Superb must read article on Zab Dawsons dangerous new innovations....

"Also it's good you aknowledge Hopkins was thrown and not 'shrugged off' as some people have been saying. "

I'm one of "those people". What happened Saturday night is what has happened a thousand times before in a fight between a south paw and a right hander.
They got tangled and yes, Dawson did shrug him off. You make it sound like Hulk Hogan picking up Rocky Balboa and spinning him around and throwing him out of the ring.
There was no "body slam", just an awkward jumble of arms and legs.
I'm believing in good faith that Hopkins was really hurt (even though when he told the ref he could continue "with one arm " he was lying down), but again, he's cried 'wolf' too many times in fights ..acting more hurt from a foul than believable .

 

The Mayor of Macondo
By

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(Photo © German Villasenor)


Can you google this article and read it. In light of the article you just posted i think this is a perfect counter view. I don't want to post any part of the article bc it's from Max-Boxing.

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Man again you posting that bs gift picture trying to compare that to the Hopkins fight. Dawson was stunned by a counter shot in which he was looking something to hold on in which yes he grab Pascal's leg but didnt come close of trying to throw him down. You say cause Pascal was throwing punches in which it unable Dawson from throwing Pascal? You know damn well its bs and besides Dawson could have done the same thing later on right? but he didnt do it. I cant believe you defending one of the king of dirty tactics in Hopkins who's a great actor of faking injuries.

 

Tell me who has more of a habbit of doing something ? Hopkins fake injuries and dirty tactics of headbutts, low blows? Or Dawson grabbing legs?

 

Yes and it was BS then. Cotto could do no wrong. Cotto should have been penalized. Doesn't make the move OK.

Nobody is ripping Chad for the move alone. Bend at the waist an out of position guy will get on your back. Get on a guy's back and he may throw you off. It is murky and neither man is the "villain" in this case.

The fact is though that the move ended the fight and should NOT have resulted in a title changing hands. TKO via body slam? Complete nonsense.

 

It was a bad way for a chamionship to change hands.

I don't think it was an intentional body slam, though. Just a little "get off me" and an akward fall.

 

Everytime? Dont you mean Hopkins fighting dirty?

 

Before the fight, Russell gave his pre-fight instructions in each fighter’s dressing room. “If you get knocked down, I want you up at the count of eight. I want you to walk to me. Convince me you are OK,” instructed Russell. “At all times, convince me you are OK. I want to make sure at all times your health and safety are number one in my book. Other than that, I’m going to let you work.”

Hopkins nodded in the affirmative.

Heading into the fight, the general consensus was that Hopkins was craftier, more experienced and too tough for Dawson. While he had the talent, the Hartford native’s shy manner and sometimes bored demeanor overshadowed his better outings. In this fight, Dawson was dismissed as too weak-minded to win. I chose to see Dawson as an enigma who, if figured out, could lead to good, possibly great fights.

For three years prior, Dawson claimed Hopkins was that particular elixir personified and chased him down as best he could. A rematch clause in his contract with Jean Pascal, whom he lost the WBC belt to last August, allowed him to trap Hopkins into finally fighting him. Dawson stepped aside for HBO and Hopkins, who wanted a rematch with Pascal following their disputed draw last December. A few months and a decisive win later, Hopkins had the title and a contractual obligation to face the 29-year-old, 6’1” southpaw with all the speed, power, and boxing skill to get the job done.

The fight itself was too sparse to be anything more than an impression of a possible future.

The first round was tight. Dawson stayed a very poised but stalking ring general. He used his jab as a weapon to get near Hopkins and at times, blunt an attack while mixing in the lead left to the belly and chest. They were not hard shots but sharp enough to maintain the outside range Dawson wanted. His best punch of the round (and the fight) was a left hand while he had Hopkins’ back to the ropes. Hopkins took it well but got the hell off the ropes immediately afterward.

For his part in the first round, Hopkins stayed along the edges looking for moments to rush in, punch and tie up. When he tried his usual combination of a right hand followed by a headbutt and clinch, it was clear who the stronger man was (Hint: it was not the older fighter). It was also clear that Dawson, who smiled or laughed dismissively every time Hopkins jawed at him during the promotional build-up, was showing a dismissiveness of a different color in the ring. Dawson was neither timid nor weak-minded. He appeared focused and well-prepared to not only fight his dream fight but win it.

Hopkins has amazed us in recent years beating younger men like Kelly Pavlik and Jean Pascal. He is the oldest man to ever win a major title but the difference between this fight and those is that Hopkins showed early vs. Pavlik and Pascal that he was on. He led with a hook or a straight and showed early on he meant business.

In this fight, Hopkins appeared to be like a junk ball pitcher looking around the edges of the plate for a place to slide a slow one past a fresh young hitter. He wins not because he is particularly fast or hard hitting. It’s because the sum of his parts (knowledge, solid power, expert defense, a mastery of boxing’s grey area of infighting and theatrics) is greater than any opponent he has not been obligated to fight since he beat Felix Trinidad ten years ago.
Hopkins is often referred to as cagey or crafty. Even more often, his dirty infighting is praised for its veteran guile but ask the seven stitches on the top of Winky Wright’s head in their 2007 bout what that is actually called. How about the cut over Wright’s eye caused by an intentional headbutt at 6:10 of this clip?

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnfN8Vqe17A&feature=related[/ame]

Ask Joe Calzaghe at any point in this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3gMN-Qhtd0&feature=player_embedded#!

Ask Roy Jones Jr. about his rematch with Hopkins.[/quote]
==

 

Hopkins is often referred to as cagey or crafty. Even more often, his dirty infighting is praised for its veteran guile but ask the seven stitches on the top of Winky Wright’s head in their 2007 bout what that is actually called. How about the cut over Wright’s eye caused by an intentional headbutt at 6:10 of this clip?

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnfN8Vqe17A&feature=related[/ame]

Ask Joe Calzaghe at any point in this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3gMN-Qhtd0&feature=player_embedded#!

Ask Roy Jones Jr. about his rematch with Hopkins.[/quote]
==[/quote]
What about vs Holmes in which Hopkins should have been dq for many damn low blows in which it should have been Trinidad vs Holmes in the finals.

 

If you asked Chad Dawson or his trainer “Iceman” John Scully, they’d have told you they’d seen the tapes and were prepared for every eventuality. Scully told me that because of Dawson’s style, the rough tactics shouldn’t be a problem.

In round two, the action felt more or less the same. Dawson stayed with the single jab/left to the body routine. Hopkins initiated the first clinch that ended up with him holding Dawson’s head. Hopkins got in a right and a partial left. Dawson answered right back after being clinched along the ropes. In the clinch, with Hopkins’ back to the ropes, Dawson worked his left elbow into Hopkins’ neck. As Russell untangled them slowly, Dawson slowly brought it up further and looked into Hopkins eyes. He kept it there a moment as if to let Hopkins know that tonight- or any other- wasn’t the night to get rough with him.

Dawson would trap Hopkins in the corner and miss more than land. Hopkins bull rushed his way out of the corner and into a clinch, headfirst. After the break, Hopkins attempted a right hand and missed. In a bit of foreshadowing, Hopkins pressed an off-balance Dawson and threw a punch. Dawson dipped low to avoid it and almost fell before holding onto Hopkins and righting himself. During that stumble, Dawson’s glove touched the canvas but ref Russell rightly called it no knockdown.

“Don’t push him down,” Russell warned Hopkins.

Again, they attempted an exchange and again, Hopkins clinched with Dawson working with one free hand. Each time this happened, it has to be noted that Dawson took control of either his balance when being bullied backward or he turned the tables on the clinch.

They parted and Hopkins landed a jab. Dawson answered with two. Hopkins got aggressive with his right and Dawson pivoted with him, landing a partial right hook.

Then it happened. With less than 30 seconds to go, Hopkins threw a right hand and missed. As usual, his momentum carried him forward and he appeared to drape himself over Dawson, who was ducking to his own left. It appeared to me, watching a million replays in slow motion, that Hopkins’ feet briefly left the ground as he overextended past Dawson. At the same time, Dawson did not allow Hopkins to fully land and instead cuffed his right leg briefly and released it just as he shouldered Hopkins off of him. Hopkins’ right foot landed firmly on the canvas but his free swinging left was not so lucky.

Hopkins tumbled back, hitting his head on the middle and bottom ropes. First his rear hit the canvas, then his hip and he caught himself with his left elbow. Dawson waved his hand down at the fallen fighter in disgust. Hopkins immediately began grimacing in pain; his left seemed to lock to his side. The shoulder was the same one dislocated by Antwun Echols back in December 2000. Hopkins went on to win that one with one arm by tenth round stoppage.

His work for this night was done.

Russell called Hopkins’ name and, not getting a response, said “Time,” stopping the clock.

With Hopkins essentially non-responsive and writhing in pain, kicking his legs in pain or anger, Russell called the doctor up to the ring. At no point did he call a foul.

In Steve Kim’s interview with Russell after the fight (http://www.maxboxing.com/news/main-lead/a-night-at-the-farce), the ref explained he did not see a foul. To many fans and Golden Boy Promotions who, as of press time, has only filed a protest with the WBC but plans more, Dawson’s cuffing of the leg coupled with his throw down of Hopkins was a foul.

I submit it was not. Dawson was merely getting an opponent who had clinched, attempted to use his head and was warned for trying to push him down earlier in the round off his back. The cuff lasted only long enough to control Hopkins’ body from crashing into Dawson. He did not hold it to make sure Hopkins fell. Had Hopkins not attempted the move, he would not have been thrown like a rag doll and the next few moments would not have happened. Hopkins created that moment.

As the doctor approached him, Hopkins scooted under the ropes, using his good arm for leverage, resting a moment on the left elbow. He pounded the canvas with his leg as he sat up complaining about his shoulder.

“My arm,” said Hopkins. “My shoulder.”

After the doctor asked him if he could continue, Hopkins looked up and said, “With one arm, yeah.”

“What?” asked the doctor.

“With one hand, yeah. Look. It popped out,” said Hopkins.

“He can’t continue,” said the doctor.

With that, the fight was waved off and a TKO was ruled by Russell on the basis that there was no foul but that Hopkins could not continue. A fighter was injured and said so to the doctor and the ref. They stopped the fight correctly. No foul was made so there was no rest period needed. It does not matter what the audience thinks in this case. The ref made a ruling and the WBC did not protest and demand use of the available instant replay per their rules so it stood for a night at least.

Now here is where it gets dicey. The fight was overseen by the California State Commission but it was also sanctioned by the WBC and governed under the championship rules of the Association of Boxing Commissions. The referee also has a set of rules he has to follow under the ABC.

The ABC rules state that “If an accidental foul causes an injury severe enough for the referee to stop the bout immediately, the bout will result in a NO DECISION if stopped before four (4) completed rounds. Four (4) rounds are complete when the bell rings signifying the end of the fourth round.”

However, there was no foul ruled here, accidental or otherwise. Russell told Steve Kim that it was a roughhouse fight and he called it as such. To my eyes, Hopkins wanted the song performed in that particular key and like Mayweather with Ortiz, Dawson simply played it better.

So we defer to the referee’s rules.

Section 33:

“A case of accidental injury is when someone or something other than an opponent injures a boxer.

The Referee must immediately declare that an Accidental Injury has occurred. In these cases the Referee will have the clock stopped and attend to the injury.

When the Referee declares that an accidental injury has occurred the Four (4) Round Rule will be applied.

The Referee must consult with the Ringside Physician in all accidental injury cases. The Referee in conjunction with the Ringside Physician will determine the length of time needed to evaluate the affected
boxer and his or her suitability to continue.

If the injured boxer is not adversely affected and their chance of winning has not been seriously jeopardized because of the injury, the bout may be allowed to continue after the time allotted by the Referee.”

To my knowledge, accidental injury was never declared.

So what we are left with is the one guideline given to Hopkins by Pat Russell at the start of the fight:

“At all times, convince me you are OK.”

Hopkins failed to do so and in the process, lost his belt by technical knockout to a man he never wanted to face in the first place.