“Boxwork” Orange
By William Trillo
Photo-Chop: Bret “The Threat” Newton
Photo-Chop: Bret “The Threat” Newton
Anyone who has seen the Stanley Kubrick classic Clockwork Orange may have an idea in what direction I am headed here. For those of you who don’t know, the movie is based on an old Cockney expression, “as queer as a clockwork orange”, and alludes to the prevention of the main character’s exercise of his free will through the use of a classical conditioning technique. With this technique, the subject’s emotional responses to violence are systematically paired with a negative stimulation.
Like the main character many boxing writers at times feel their free will to write as they feel is taken away by the powers that be classical conditioning technique’s. These techniques can take many forms but the bottom line is it renders good writers incapable of informing the fans the truth. In all honesty I have fallen victim to this lack of expressing myself as I would like to over the past month or so, and I can’t take it anymore, there are some things I have to get off my chest.
First and foremost… is this Freekin’ Super Six and the log jam it has created in a relatively sharp and talented 168 pound division over yet? Here we are in the middle of 2010 and as of yet we are not even through round 2 yet and Andre Ward who has fought one time has a fight coming up with a fill in fighter Allan Green and somehow many think he is the odds on favorite.
Gimmee a break.
In the meantime Andre somehow gets to fight all his fights in his hometown of Oakland while the other Andre (Dirrell) fakes injuries…errrrr…I mean gets hurt and changes venues to his hometown midstream forcing Arthur Abraham to make multiple Trans Atlantic flights until he is so jet lagged he is incapable of performing at his usual level.
Anyone who didn’t see through that charade is blind….SHOWTIME!!
And now with most of the talent at 168 pounds tied into that disaster of a tournament the real best Super Middleweight in the World, Lucian Bute, is forced to fight guys like Jesse Brinkley and will await the winner of the IBF mandatory fight between the ever pulling out of fights Sakio Bika vs. Jean Paul Mendy.
Thank the Super Six for that mess.
Speaking of Bika & Mendy, this fight is so meaningless that at the purse bid only one promoter showed up and the bid was a whopping $30,000. I don’t know what the split is here but let me tell you right now that Bika who fought a bunch of stiffs to take The Contender # 2 title won a pretty half million dollars will not be fighting for the chump change he could earn in this mandatory battle. No way, no how!!
Moving down a division we have a few things that caught my eye as well.
It has been announced that on the undercard of the Juan Manuel Marquez vs. Juan Diaz rematch, Danny Jacobs will be taking on Dmitry Piorog in a battle for the vacant WBO 160 pound belt. Now hear me loud and clear when I say I really like Danny Jacobs and I believe one day he will be a Champion. Unfortunately coming off his last few performances I am not so sure he is ready for a fighter the likes of Pirog. The undefeated Russian is not a household name in the USA but with an almost 90% KO ratio this may be too big of a test for Jacobs. I have heard some quiet rumblings that this fight is not yet official and may get scrapped, but if it goes down there could be some disappointment in store for team Jacobs.
On the heels of that news our buddy over at ESPN, the Fat Man, reported that Sergio Mora will be taking on the consummate journeyman JC Candelo on an ESPN televised card from Temecula. Mora’s manager, Cameron Dunkin said that if Mora wins he wants a shot at the winner of Jacobs and Pirog. Apparently fearing some of the aforementioned negative stimulation the report did not mention that Candelo has spent most of his career at 154 or lower. Not fearing the negative conditioning technique I have to ask how beating a journeyman 154 pounder puts you in line for a 160 pound World title shot.
And if Pirog beats Jacobs like I expect, I predict Mora will find a way to slither out of that fight like he has done multiple times in the past.
Lastly, I know that Ron Artest is a huge boxing fan and having him on the Lakers has given us a toughness we lacked in prior years. But putting that aside I can’t help but wonder if Trevor Ariza would have sank those 2 late free throws that Artest botched, thus helping Boston win the game and putting the Lakers in a do or die 3-2 hole.
I’m singing in the rain, singing in the rain. What a glorious feeling, I’m happy again.
