It has begun. Calzaghe: "Chad Dawson is a good fighter"

http://blog.nj.com/ledgerboxing/2008/11/calzaghe_ponders_future_after.html

I think at the end of the day, Joe will take this fight. If he does, it can be a proper sendoff (if he wins) in Wales before tens of thousands of his cheering fans for a fat purse.

Chad Dawson is the last possible hurdle for Calzaghe. I think, one final time, Joe will accept the challenge.

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One other note from the article:

 

Amen to that. :good I do think Team Calzaghe is leaning towards a Dawson fight, too, even if they won't admit as much right now. They had to beat RJJ first and now that has been taken care of.

Why wouldn't Joe want to end his career in Wales against the last possible threat to him at LHW in the eyes of most boxing observers? It's a no-brainer, I think, so long as Joe can get himself to be 'up' for the training camp and fight. Which shouldn't be a problem, given that it can be a very high-profile career finale in Wales for big $$$.

 

+1

Great post, RightCross. :good

 

Yeah, and especially in your home country.

For years, no one cared about Joe's fights in Wales. This fight would get gigantic amounts of coverage.

Not sure how the HBO/Showtime thing would work (unclear about the promotional rights issues), and if there could be a 24/7. That would be tight, and give Chad a lot of 'push.' I'm sure Showtime would sign off on the deal for enough $$$. It helps build the value of their asset (Dawson) by gaining him big publicity.

 

Chad is not widely-known outside boxing circles, but he is very marketable and is seen as the only real threat to Joe (or at least among guys Joe has never fought {BHop, Kessler}).

If Joe wants to make another fight, Dawson is pretty much his only viable choice, especially if Joe does not want to grant any more rematches.