Irish Boxing

Id put the Campas win just ahead of Eastman-he was comin off a loss to Elcock and was coming towards the end of his contender status.I had Duddy beating Eastman but thought he was a bit lucky to get the nod over Campas-great fight in any case.Campas can still upset younger fighters and is just after back to back fights with Hector Camacho and Camacho jnr. which must be some kind of first.The Foreman/Santos fight was bloody awful-they missed a trick not getting Santos for Duddy as he looked totally shot.Foreman doesnt have much power so at worst its a 12 rd. points loss.

 

http://irish-boxing.com/stories/december09/dec09_cork_report.html

Reports from Cork

 

A man cant be blamed for bigging up his homeboy

Good man Cormac

08 December 2009 - By Padraig Hoare One of Ireland's most talked about prospects of recent years, Cork's Gary 'Spike' O'Sullivan, realised his long-held dream by becoming the middleweight champion of Ireland on Friday night, beating Belfast's Ciaran Healy in his home town.
That's the good news.
The not-so-good? Spike (10-0, 7 KO) made a long, long night's work of it, labouring to get his shots off and looking bereft of inspiration when Healy would not succumb to his attacks to the body. The score by referee Emile Tiedt over ten gruelling rounds was 98-94 - this reporter had it closer at 96-94.
No matter to the 600 rabid supporters or so in attendance in Cork's Neptune Stadium - they loved it. Spike has a way of connecting with his fans - young, old, male and female. He's a Cork lad through and through and by God, the Cork crowd adore him for it.
Even the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Micheál Martin, was ringside to roar on the 25-year-old from Mahon, as was the former two-weight world champion Steve Collins, TV3 frontman Trevor Welch and former Olympian and eleven-time National champion, the legendary Michael Roche.
Spike is a talented boxer and body puncher. However, he is no middleweight, certainly not at this point in his career. Last night he looked like a 154lb fighter trapped in a 160lb body - the power wasn't there, the speed and the execution all missing a beat.
Ciaran Healy surprised us all, the pride at the chance of becoming a two-weight Irish champion burning inside and bringing one last great performance to the fore.
He flew out of the traps in the first round, forcing Spike to cover up immediately. Spike looked a bit static as the punches rained in - however some spiteful punches to Healy’s body evened things up.
Much to the chagrin of trainer and manager Paschal Collins in the corner, Spike stood and traded in the second round, forgetting how good his jab can be. His over-reliance on his body shots was also a contributory factor, with Healy not budging.
The third round saw a different Spike, with fine jabs setting up some wicked hooks. One left hook to the body looked particularly nasty, but again, Healy took it on board.
Round four was an excellent round for Spike. After listening intently to Collins in the corner, Spike rolled and slipped punch after punch in the first two minutes of the round - it was a master class in movement. Surely now it was only a matter of time?
Not so. The next three rounds were much the same. Healy refused to be bullied, Spike looked short on ideas on how to break him down, and looking short of power at 160lbs. One of Spike’s great assets in his first nine contests at light-middle was the effortless way he threw people around the ring like they were rag dolls. It just was not happening here.
Drawn into a slugfest, Spike did not use his jab effectively until the eighth round where he looked like a championship boxer again. It was too late however, as in round nine and ten, he looked very tired. The last round was a frenzied affair, Healy giving it all and Spike responding with the machismo we know and love down in Cork.
Emile Tiedt (who was excellent in his handling of the fight - no nonsense, let the fighters fight and took no lip from the corners) scored it 98-94, a little harsh on Healy. This reporter had it six rounds to Spike, four to Healy. The joy at winning an Irish title was there for all to see on Spike’s face. Emulating one of his heroes, Steve Collins, who won the Irish middleweight title back in 1988, Spike clung to the belt like a child with the latest hi-tech gizmo from the toy store.
"It is great to win it - to follow on from winning a national amateur title to this. It was a tough week leading up to the show, with it being off and then on, so I had to keep my concentration and not let it be disrupted. Fair play to Healy, he was tough and came to fight. He had been preparing for weeks and it showed. I take my hat off to him."
He conceded middleweight might be a weight to high at this stage of his career.
"Possibly but I so badly wanted this Irish title that I moved up the weight. I can still make light-middle and am not afraid of anyone at either weight. Never have been and never will be. Coyle, Moore, Fitzgerald, Long - I’ll fight anyone."
Paschal Collins could make this week’s Budget sound like a giveaway, such is his gift at putting a positive spin on events in the ring.
He said: "I knew Healy would come to win. He takes a lot of fights at short notice and that’s why he loses. But he put in weeks of training for this one - eight or nine weeks. Spike is green still. It was a ten round fight and was a great learning experience. We didn’t want a knockout.
"Spike is a light-middleweight. He’ll eventually mature at middleweight but he’s a pro less than two years. I’m pleased."
There might be a move on the cards to maximise his potential, according to Paschal.
"In Ireland it’s very hard to get quality sparring. There is a financial issue going to America, but I am going to spend a bit more time there from now. I’ll use my connections in Boston and Los Angeles and we’ll see what we come up with. We’ll enjoy Christmas and hopefully be on a Frank Warren show in February."
On the undercard, Eddie Hyland, who is the Irish human highlight reel, surprised us by putting on a - gasp! - boxing lesson. The Tallaght man who only knows how to thrill was superb in a six-rounder with Maurycy Gojko, boxing beautifully. He decided to have some of his usual fun in the last round, when he invited his opponent in for a three-minute war. Emile Tiedt scored it a shutout.
Ian Tims made a welcome return to the ring with Kronk’s John Rooney and Michael Roche in his corner. The ring rust from a long lay off showed in the first round against Radoslaw Musial, who tore into the former national champion with the glittering amateur career. Tims was even forced to hold for a few seconds.
The second round was the complete opposite, with Tims looking a million dollars as he showed his superb technical skills. A beautiful body shot had Musial down at the end of the round, and he could not continue. Tims moves to 7-0, (2 KO).
Young Paddy McDonagh looked like a Mexican warrior in only his second fight. Like a young Jose Luis Castillo, he stalked his opponent Mariusz Radziszewski from bell to bell. He showed superb hand speed and mouth-watering combinations. Gary Hyde has an excellent prospect. Emile Tiedt scored it a shutout over four threes.

 

Saw this in another thread, Max Kellerman reviews the fights of the year and describes Dunne V Cordoba as "the best action fight of 2009". Does anyone think it will be named FOTY or will it be one of the more high profile fights?

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXps04q0GqU[/ame]

 

It probably was the best action fight of the year but there were some other higher profile wars which will probably push it down the list. It should be in the top 5 of any FOTY list though.

I mean how could you not be enthralled by that if you were any kind of boxing fan

 

Yeah that's the thing it will probably be a high profile fight which wasn't as good as the Dunne fight that will get it.

 

Is Frampton out again on the 18th? I know there was talk of him getting out again before xmas but he isn't listed for anything. There are a couple of cards on that night anyway.

 

I'd say Marquez/Diaz will get FOTY, because it was a higher profile fight that Dunne/Cordoba. The latter was, of course, a better fight but won't get FOTY.

 

Yeah heard he was on here:thumbsup

 

good to see Thomas reads this forum and saw my comments with regards Macklins parents! :hi:

 

Matthew Macklin Says He Has "The Skills, The Power And The Chin To Beat Kelly Pavlik"

by James Slater - Fighting this past Saturday night but somewhat lost amongst the hectic weekend of action taking place, was European middleweight ruler Matthew Macklin. The 27-year-old won a non-title fight with a solid points win over the durable Rafael Sosa Pintos in Dublin - winning via a clear and wide unanimous decision. Now unbeaten in his last nine fights, or since his heavy defeat in a war against Jamie Moore down at 154-pounds, Macklin is looking at bigger things..

Though he is set to defend the European belt he won with a sensational first-round stoppage of Finland's experienced Amin Asikainen back in September - against Russia's Dmitriy Pirog in February - Macklin has made it clear he would take any world title fight that was offered to him instead. As a result of the sensational win over Asikainen, Macklin is now highly ranked amongst the world's elite 160-pounders, and the talented and exciting Birmingham man wants to prove how good he is. And the best way to do that, Macklin told The Birmingham Mail, would be to defeat world middleweight king Kelly Pavlik.

Though Mackiln, 26-2(18) says he has no qualms at all about fighting Russia's Pirog, unbeaten at 14-0(11), he would much rather get it on with a world champion; the Youngstown warrior known as "The Ghost" especially. Macklin believes he has the stuff needed to beat Pavlik.

"I'd take on any of the [world] champions right now, including Kelly Pavlik," Macklin told The Birmingham Mail. "I don't think there are too may big fights out there for Pavlik at the moment so if that fight came my way I'd jump at it. I believe I've the skills, the power and the chin to beat him."

Pavlik, who has had an awful year - what with his enforced inactivity due to his staph infection - is set to face Miguel Angel Espino on December 19th, and though a fight with IBF 168-pound champion Lucian Bute is a possibility for next year, Macklin is right - there aren't too many options for the big-hitter at present. So who knows, maybe Pavlik and his team will give Macklin's people the call?

It really has been impressive the way Macklin has bounced back from the face-down KO he suffered at the hands of southpaw Moore back in September 2006. Since moving up to middleweight, the 27-year-old has looked great. And while a world title shot is his main goal, he has other options - including a possible showdown with Ireland's Andy Lee (Macklin has an Irish passport).

This too would be a most interesting and very likely explosive fight.

"Ideally I want to get past Pirog and then fight for a world title, but if that doesn't come off then I think a voluntary defence of my European title against Andy Lee would make a lot of sense," Macklin said. "He's told me personally that he's up for the fight so it's definitely another option although a world title fight is what I'm really pushing for right now."

Macklin-Pavlik? Macklin-Lee? Both fights are definitely appealing. And the way British boxing has been going just lately - what with Britain currently having a heavyweight

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ruler, a super-middleweight ruler and a light-welterweight ruler - who's to say Macklin couldn't beat Pavlik and bring a middleweight title home? ​

 

I'll be there!

 

i think dunne will get it ....{fight of the year}....marquez diaz was too short ....
havent seen the williams martinez fight though and i heard that was a war

 

Was talking to Barry last week he said it will be early in the New Year instead