In what was looking to be the most anticipated Cruiserweight showdown in recent memory yet, next Friday's scheduled brawl between STEVE CUNNINGHAM (22-2 {11}) and MATT GODFREY (20-1 {10}) has been re-shelved for a later date. It's really a shame this fight looks as if it may not happen, because most analysts in the sport have salivated over it for weeks. Fresh off the heels of '08's (Fight-Of-The-Year candidate) win over Tomasz Adamek, Cunningham schooled old school Gleason's fighter Wayne Braithwaite last summer. In a fight that many insiders had predicted Cunningham would lose, he simply made the fight look easy by winning a lopsided unanimous decision. His potential opponent MATT GODFREY is a multi-time Amateur National Champion from Rhode Island and the current NABF Cruiserweight Champ. Godfrey's only loss occurred in '08 when he traveled to Germany to take on then undefeated RUDOLF KRAJ. According to boxing scene.com, the fight fell through after negotiations between Don King, ESPN, Main Events, Godfrey & his manager Jimmy Burchfield became entangled. According to John Scully, Godfrey's trainer, it was common knowledge that the scheduled fight with Cunningham was "off." It was only after watching a replay of Friday Night Fights that they heard the fight was "back on" and scheduled to take place next Friday (3/26). Not only had Godfrey missed 3 valuable days of training but he was also restructured to make several thousand dollars "less" for the fight. The blow to Matt's mental focus (due to lack of communication) along with their drastic cut in pay was understandably enough for Scully to walk his fighter away from the bargaining table. There is still a slight chance that Cunningham will face someone for next Fridays' showdown on ESPN. Unfortunately, it does not look like it will be against NABF Champion Matt Godfrey. -Ricky Ray Taylor www.BoxerDRILLZ.com
