With four medium to high-profile fight cards going down all around the world this weekend, the seemingly endless slate of matchups on the docket have intrigued me to the point where I have ten questions about ten fighters at various stages of their careers. Set your DVR as I quickly touch on all of them from timezone to timezone.
Question for Kobe, Japan (NO US TV, Friday)
1. Does Jhonny Gonzalez still have something left in the tank?
Aside from a one-sided win over Fernando Montiel years ago when he was WBO bantamweight champ, Gonzalez (right) has since gassed out in a stoppage loss to then-WBC junior featherweight champ Israel Vazquez in a fight where he was way ahead, and then blitzed by Toshiaki Nishioka in a failed bid at the same belt after Vazquez vacated it. This is probably his last chance to win another crown, as he faces off against a former WBC bantamweight champ and pound-for-pound top 15 threat in Hasegawa, himself a victim of Montiel at 118 pounds before moving up to take a piece of the featherweight title in his last bout.
ANSWER: YES! Gonzalez scored a resounding TKO of Hasegawa in the fourth!Question for Montreal, Canada (ESPN2, Friday)
2. Will David Lemieux be tested for the first time?
Lemieux, almost everyone's 2010 Prospect of the Year, appears before a sellout crowd in Montreal on ESPN2 Friday Night Fights tonight. With 24 KOs in 25 bouts, Lemieux hasn't had much difficulty breezing through his opponents. This bout, a WBC middleweight title eliminator against a former world title challenger like Rubio, could test him. Or not.
ANSWER: Yes, and then some! After a right hand appeared to land behind Lemieux ear in the sixth, Rubio took over and shockingly stopped Lemieux one round later. At 22, Lemieux is still young enough to learn from this, but how he responds in his next training camp will tell a lot about him.Questions for Primm, Nevada (Telefutura, Friday)
3. Can Quadtrine Hill really fight?
The former Chicago Bears fullback has committed full-time to boxing in 2009 at the tender age of 27. While the new heavyweight incurred a loss in his second bout and now sits at 4-1, anyone can tell you how tough it is to take on this sport that late. He takes on 3-0 Alexander Flores.
ANSWER: No. He was outclassed by Flores in a clear four-round decision.
4. Can Jessie Vargas erase the memory of his last outing?
Actually, I really want to ask if Vivian Harris should be in the ring given the two knockouts he suffered at the hands of Lucas Matthysse and Victor Ortiz last year, but since I can't do anything to convince the Nevada State Athletic Commission otherwise, I guess the focus shifts to Vargas (left), a Roger Mayweather-trained junior welterweight prospect. Golden Boy has been very high on him, but he looked far from sharp in a decision win over rugged toughman Cristian Favela that most scored a draw. Harris, albeit past his prime, is a former WBA world champ at 140 and a resolute win here could do a lot in restoring Vargas's name.
ANSWER: The jury's still out. Vargas impressively stopped Harris in one, but again, as mentioned above, we don't know if this version of "Vicious" Vivian belonged in a ring altogether. I want to see Vargas in a rematch with Favela before he steps it up.
Questions for Laredo, Texas (Showtime, Friday)
5. Is Marcus Johnson ready for a Top 10 super middleweight?
In the ShoBox main event, Johnson (right) has done all Lou DiBella and Joe Quiambao have asked of him so far. With a string of steady but not spectacular performances, he brings his 20-0 record into the ring against Dyah Davis, son of Howard Davis, the 1976 Olympic hero. Davis can fight a little bit, too, having won one of the scorecards in a dubious majority draw against Francisco Sierra on Top Rank Live earlier this year. If Johnson can stop Davis here, bring on an Allan Green-caliber opponent.
ANSWER: No. Davis outhustled Johnson all night to a unanimous nod, including a body shot that sent Johnson down momentarily in the ninth. Much like Sergio Martinez righting the judges' wrongs in previous fights with his own fists, Davis did his best to rid himself of the bad taste in his mouth left by the Sierra fight.
6. Will Willie Nelson remain under the radar with an impressive showing?
I saw this guy in Oakland, and he is a conundrum. This welterweight from Ohio is 6'3'' tall and stopped an old pro like Jesse Feliciano in one with some freakish power. He takes on Vincent Arroyo, who can slug as well, but in the only time he has stepped up so far, he was outboxed by Mike Dallas. With that said, Mr. Nelson is one to watch just to see what he can do with his tools.
ANSWER: Yes and no. He will remain under the radar and the showing was not impressive because he was pummeled by Arroyo, tasting the floor in the third, sixth, and seventh round. Nelson will now face questions about his chin and his conditioning, which will probably mean he will move up to 154 now.Questions for Las Vegas, Nevada (HBO PPV, Saturday)
7. Will Erik Morales's corner have the heart to throw in the towel IF he looks outmatched early?
(PHOTO: Chris Cozzone/Fightnews)Let's get one thing straight here. "El Terrible" is one of my favorite fighters of all-time. He took on all comers, gave every fight his all, never resorted to dirty tactics (in and out of the ring), and never made excuses. Notice I'm using the past tense.
After seeing him get brutally knocked out not once, but twice by Manny Pacquiao, I am genuinely concerned for his safety tomorrow against a relentless killer like Marcos Maidana, especially when considering this bout is ten pounds heavier at junior welterweight, where Morales's power has not seemed to carry in his last few comeback bouts.
If Amir Khan couldn't put Maidana away with a murderous body shot, what makes Morales think his power would eclipse that level? Look, I could be wrong and Morales somehow bathes in the fountain of youth one last time tomorrow night. I just hope the NSAC has assigned the right ring doctor and referee for a fight like this just in case he doesn't.
ANSWER: They didn't have to, as a gutsy Morales almost edged the fight in a majority decision loss. "El Terrible" turned in the performance of a lifetime given his chronological and ring age. I guess you can really win in losing sometimes, and in my opinion has earned the right to continue fighting at an elite level without the same amount of scrutiny that surrounded last Saturday. 8. How resilient is Michael Katsidis's skin after multiple wars?
Katsidis has been through so many blood-and-guts affairs that Nonito Donaire, Sr., will have his hands full as his cutman on Saturday, especially against a precise boxer-puncher like Robert Guerrero. I see the fight getting stopped on cuts late unless Katsidis can put "The Ghost" on the canvas early and often in a brawl. It could happen, remembering that Katsidis had Juan Manuel Marquez, the reigning lightweight world champ, on the canvas last November but just couldn't finish the job. I doubt it though.
ANSWER: Katsidis's face held up to the finish line, but he was dominated by a stronger Guerrero. The Australian even resorted to low blows in the seventh and eighth, where he was penalized for throwing them below Guerrero's beltline. The tactics were to no avail, however, and a valiant warrior like Katsidis must now at least entertain the idea of retirement.
9. How far along is James Kirkland in his comeback?
Cameron Dunkin has been keeping his junior middleweight client very busy since returning from incarceration. He fought twice in two weeks, and now comes a credible test against Nobuhiro Ishida, who is coming off an unsuccessful challenge for the interim WBA belt at 154 pounds. If Kirkland stops Ishida, like he's expected to do, look for him on an HBO Boxing After Dark show sometime in the early summer.
ANSWER: Not very far at all. Ishida dwarfed Kirkland with his height advantage and sent him to the ground with short punches three times on the way to the upset of the weekend, a first-round TKO. Kirkland has to be wondering not only if rushing back into the ring was a wise decision, but also whether leaving longtime trainer Ann Wolfe has hurt his promising prospects at stardom.
Questions for Newark, NJ (Integrated Sports PPV, Saturday)
10. Can Tomasz Adamek generate enough buzz to make a Klitschko fight credible?
With the dearth of quality heavyweights in line to fight the Klitschko brothers, Adamek can make a statement by looking dominant against Kevin McBride, who stopped a faded Mike Tyson in his unceremonious farewell fight six years ago. According to USA Today, the two-division Polish world champ will most likely get Vitali, the WBC champ, if he gets by the 37-year-old McBride. Wladimir, the other brother, will reportedly fight David Haye to unify their IBF, WBO, and WBA belts.
ANSWER: The buzz was minimal, but a win is a win, as Adamek took the unanimous decision. It wasn't pretty, as McBride was overweight and the two-division Polish champ seemed more intent on prolonging the fight over the distance. But Adamek didn't do anything to damage his reputation, and on paper, a win over Chris Arreola will be the marketing point of his next fight with Vitali Klitschko.
Reigning 141-lbs. California Golden Gloves champ Andy Vences of San Jose PAL
