Boxing Rostrum

Amir Khan’s lightning fast destruction of Dimitriy Salita has to be described as impressive. The challenger wasn’t worth his mandatory contender status but you can only fight what’s in front of you and Khan couldn’t have done the job any better.

Post fight, Amir spoke about how much his strength and power have improved, and are continuing to develop, and put forward this performance as proof. Hard not to go along with that, isn’t it. But I’m not buying any claim that Khan’s punching power has suddenly gone nuclear in the interim since beating Andreas Kotelnik.

Amir outboxed Kotelnik to grab a comfortable decision, and Kotelnik’s WBA light welter crown, and it was Khan’s speed, of fist and foot, that gave him clear supremacy. It wasn’t all hit and hop it, though. There were times in the fight when Khan planted himself, albeit briefly, and teed off with the heaviest stuff he could muster, but Kotelnik never gave any sign of being seriously disturbed, let alone in danger of a knockdown.

Andreas Kotelnik is a tough man. Doesn’t make him unique, though. There are other tough, very durable fighters in the light welter category. Just seems that Dimitriy Salita isn’t one of them.

Notwithstanding Salita’s apparent shortcomings, however, nothing can detract from the way Khan went about his business in Newcastle. The fight’s opening gambit was a beautiful boxing moment. If you needed a demonstration of why straight punches are best, here you had it. The old one-two, delivered to perfection.

Afterwards, a dejected Dimitriy said he hadn’t seen those first knockdown punches coming. I wouldn’t doubt it. He may have detected the jab just before it hit him, way too late to dodge or block, but that’s surely all he was aware of because Khan’s right hand followed through so fast it was about as near as you’re going get to having separate punches land at the same time.

When Salita climbed back up he didn’t look particularly pained, but completely bewildered, like a guy who wasn’t sure of anything except that he was in a place where he didn’t belong. The remaining action was a formality.

When it was over Freddie Roach said Khan is ready for anybody in the division. Amir himself concurred, making specific mention of Maidana and Victor Ortiz. Frank Warren, of course, was less forthcoming. He said they would think things over for a few days before looking in any particular direction.

Reading between the lines, I suspect that Warren will spend the next few days thinking about just two words. Ricky Hatton. A Khan vs. Hatton clash would suit Frank very nicely. Hatton is currently wobbling around, multi-chinned, enjoying his comfortable role within Hatton Promotions. Thing is, Ricky is getting the itch to box again and while he could and no doubt would grind himself down to what might be a cosmetically impressive appearance, he would not bring to the ring the same kind of physical conditioning that Khan now possesses. Warren knows that and, while he’s on record as saying that Hatton is finished and should retire, I’ve no doubt Frank would prefer to gain some measure of pay back against the Mancunian, their long term business relationship having ended in such acrimony, by having Khan beat Ricky and virtually force him into retirement. Last but foremost, Hatton vs. Khan generates a huge pot. If Ricky wants it, I think the fight gets made.

Amongst everything that got said Saturday night, after the event, perhaps most interesting was Amir Khan’s mention of “me and Frank” going to the States to fight. With the Salita fight having been announced as a presentation by “Frank Warren, in association with Khan Promotions,” how long will it be, I wonder - provided Amir continues to win and enhance his reputation - before Khan Promotions decides it no longer needs to do things in association with Frank Warren. Just a thought.

Seems every light welterweight in world boxing thinks they can knock out Amir Khan, that all they’ve got to do is reach his chin. With many fight fans sharing that belief, or at least having little faith in Khan’s punch resistance, Amir’s fights tend to unfold in an atmosphere of tension that doesn’t slacken even when he’s totally dominant.

So, while it might come as a surprise were catastrophe to befall Khan via another shattering kayo this Saturday evening against Dimitriy Salita, shock would not perhaps be a widespread reaction. It would be a shock to me, though. The facts of his career to date have to make you sceptical, at best, about Amir Khan’s ability to absorb a heavy shot to the head but, despite the Breidis Prescott disaster and his also getting shaken and dumped by Michael Gomez and the comparatively light hitting Willie Limond in previous winning efforts, the current WBA champion took some solid punches well enough in the course of capturing that title last time out from tough, underrated Andreas Kotelnik and maybe, just maybe, Khan’s obvious weakness in the mandible isn’t as absolute as those other incidents suggest.

There is cause for concern in that area, of course. No denying it. Amir is simply not the kind of guy who should be going toe to toe with the heavy handed brigade. The good news for him, though, is that he doesn’t need to. Khan boxed a disciplined, high speed fight against Kotelnik and, although the defeated champion complained that Amir had been wrongly credited on the cards for what he called a negative performance, fact is Khan was much too quick for the Ukranian to cope with. Khan had to concentrate all the way but the victory was clear. I expect a similar approach against Ukranian New Yorker, Salita.

Salita is the WBA top contender, unbeaten in 31 fights, but doesn’t really merit that status. His list of victims does not include the names of any top flight men. He’s done what’s been asked of him, true, but has never yet been put to a proper test. Even if Dimitriy’s ability were exceptional, his mundane career to date wouldn’t be the right prep for a world fight, and I don’t see anything exceptional in Dimitriy Salita.

Dimitriy is a neat enough boxer, well co-ordinated, and he’s used to winning. And he looks the composed type to me. If he did manage to nail Khan and get a wobble out of him, I don’t think he’d blow the opportunity by becoming over excited and throwing wild punches. At the level he’s boxed at Salita has looked a focused finisher when he’s had a foe in trouble, and that’s one aspect of his game I expect he can bring with him to this more demanding arena.

Working himself into that kind of situation is going to be a problem for the challenger, though, I think. How well will Salita’s technique hold up when he experiences the speed and accuracy of Khan’s blows. How long will it be before frustration sets in if Dimitriy has a hard time coping with Amir’s fleet feet and can’t get any punches off himself, apart from single shots here and there, and maybe, at that, only glancing blows on a moving target. A belief he can swing things his way with one good smack on the chops should sustain Salita mentally and keep the effort going should he not be doing very well, at least through the fight’s first half, but belief in the glass chin scenario could seem like clutching at straws, even to the fighter himself, by the time the contest reaches its later stages. If it does.

Dimitriy Salita has been knocked down early in fights by a couple of average pugs, so there’s a vulnerability about him too, not just Khan. And Salita has struggled to get the better of some average pugs by decision. I do expect the New Yorker to rise above anything he’s shown so far and display the very best of himself, whatever that might be, and I hope he does because it’s never nice to see anybody let themselves down on the big stage, but I just feel that Amir Khan will beat this guy to the punch right from the off.

Khan’s highlighted frailties seem to have brought about a hate campaign against him in some quarters. There are sad people out there willing him to crumble again, as you can see for yourself by visiting some of the forums. Well, that’s their prerogative - not that I can understand why anyone would wish the worst on any fighter - and, besides, obsession with Amir’s chin does no justice to his otherwise exceptional fistic skills. This is a maturing fighter who’s just now growing into his full man’s strength and getting more jolt into his punches. He has a lot of improving yet to do, but is already quite formidable, and lightning fast, and has already demonstrated he can do the full rounds in a championship fight.

Got one more thing to say. If anybody gets knocked out Saturday I expect the victim to be Dimitriy Salita.

It’s not so long ago that Cuban Jorge Rubio was banished after just one fight as trainer of Amir Khan, having apparently identified Breidis Prescott as an ideal opponent for Frank Warren’s then undefeated prodigy. When the roof fell in on Khan less than a minute into round one of that fight Rubio’s supposed input was immediately seized upon, conveniently leaving him to be fingered as the culpable party, and accordingly dismissed.

Yet the same Warren now okays the same Prescott as not just a suitable foe but a desirable one for Kevin Mitchell who is only just making the move up from super feather to lightweight and gets to face Breidis on the Khan vs. Salita show at Newcastle. You could say this is weird reasoning on Warren‘s part, or you could say it proves Rubio was cruelly scapegoated in the wake of Khan’s self-brought-upon disaster. Or you could say, like me, that both thoughts apply.

Prescott can punch and is a dangerous guy for Mitchell to be mixing with but the Khan fight still gave what was a faulty impression of the Colombian’s overall prowess. Knocking out Amir the way he did made Breidis look pretty awesome, didn’t it, yet the action was so fast and furious, and over so quick, you couldn’t draw any firm conclusions even though the menace of the man was obvious.

The trouble with Prescott is he doesn’t utilise his attributes to the full. That’s something that must have been uppermost in Warren’s thinking when agreeing to Prescott vs. Mitchell.

A guy as tall and powerful as Breidis Prescott ought to be more formidable than he actually is, and failures in that respect are strictly down to the basics. This man should have as good a jab as you’ll find in the division. A potent weapon, yes, but as a four pronged tool - battering ram, measuring stick, fending-off pole and points gatherer.

If he were to turn up at Newcastle and show that, with the right hand poised to be fired straight or chopped downwards or thrown as an uppercut as and where Mitchell comes into its range, Kevin’s undefeated record could go the same way as Khan’s. And in the same violent manner.

Could happen that way no matter how Prescott goes about his work, but Mitchell will surely be focused defensively to give Breidis no free shots. I wouldn’t think Prescott will neglect the jab altogether but if he makes minimal use of it and comes with his usual free flailing style, as seems likely, expect Kevin to step into the eye of the storm, inside those looping punches, which would not just be the safest place but would also put him in position to fire off his own short shots.

Kevin Mitchell is a warrior. He likes to fight. He has an aggressive mindset, likes to bring people down. The exuberance has to be tempered here with common sense, though. That will surely have been drummed into him. Can’t see how Warren would have allowed this pairing had he believed for one moment that Kevin - even given the fighter’s natural inclinations - would charge out in punch up mode and put himself on offer like Khan did.

They’ve obviously given this lots of consideration and come to the conclusion that disciplined boxing from Kevin Mitchell can nullify Prescott, then gradually frustrate and maybe disillusion a man who does appear one dimensional under his current tutors.

That would be the same disciplined approach - though not the same style - that Jorge Rubio had sent Amir Khan out to produce. Khan didn’t listen. Warren had better hope that Mitchell is.

Perhaps the most impressive element in Manny Pacquiao’s rampage through boxing’s weight divisions is the way he has shown himself able to take the punches of bigger and bigger men. That’s no easy thing to do. Speed and movement might negate the physical advantages of a heavier opponent but when a featherweight gets hit by a lightweight, or a lightweight by a welter, the recipient is sure to feel that extra impact, while the effect is often very visible to those looking on.

It was mainly Pacquiao dishing out the treatment at the MGM Grand but Miguel Cotto got in enough solid licks of his own to have highlighted weakness in the Filipino’s chin. There wasn’t any. None that was discernible anyway. Fact is, on top of being too fast, too sharp, too accurate, too intense, and too damn good for the excellent Cotto to cope with, Manny was too tough as well. On a night of five star quality it was Pacquiao’s hardness that stood out for me, even above his range of punches and their vicious delivery.

Only bad news for Pacman was the rupture to cartilage in his right ear. Sounds trivial compared to Miguel Cotto’s post fight facial mess, but Cotto’s face will heal. A ruptured ear could be more tricky to put right. Ear damage affects balance and Pacquiao needs to have that problem completely okayed before getting himself into any more fights. He certainly wants to be one hundred percent on all fronts if going against Floyd Mayweather.

Will they meet? A potential hundred million dollar total revenue makes a clash seem probable, if the two of them are prepared to split the purse in half, that is.

Given Floyd’s and Manny’s current standing in the game, with both having strong support as pound for pound boss, I can’t see either party giving ground financially and thereby accepting the minor role, can you. Looks like only 50-50 will make it happen. And that’s the way it should be.

If Team Mayweather or Team Pacquiao were to insist on the lion’s share of what might be boxing’s biggest ever cake, that cake will likely never make it off the recipe page, in which case the greedy faction would be left munching only on the lion’s share of nothing. And if the fight is destined not to happen because of such intransigent demands by either party - with all that loot abandoned in the process - what’s to believe except that the intransigent ones aren’t as confident in their fighter as they say they are, and don’t really want the match at all. How could you figure it any other way.

I liked what Andre Ward did in that ring last night. It got messy and a bit dirty at times but he showed his talent and proved he can fight too. Mikkel Kessler was the division benchmark but got beaten fair and square, even though the ref could have shown more authority as regards Ward’s tactical clinching and naughties with the head.

Andre has rare skills. As I’ve said before, I consider he’s blessed in that department. He’s also a man on a mission and the mental strength Ward seems to get from his personal beliefs will stand him in good stead for what’s to come. He’s got great ability, he’s got the will, and he didn’t falter on the occasions that Kessler – a genuine banger – was able to get through Andre’s defence and make clean contact.

There are people who believed Andre Ward would fall apart the first time he met real pressure and got clumped hard by a world class fighter, and some of them even wanted to see that happen. Well, they now know they’ll have to rest their hopes for Ward’s downfall in other areas. Andre Ward is not unbeatable. Nobody is. But now he’s hit the top spot it’s going to take something special to shift him, because he himself is a bit special. Believe that.

Tonight’s the night. I have always admired the gifts possessed by Andre Ward and predicted a genuine world title reign for the Athens Olympian, but to beat Mikkel Kessler on home ground in Oakland he’s going to have to show he’s already at the level I expected he would eventually reach.

Kessler is a top man. The Dane does everything to a high standard, punches hard, holds a good shot himself, and has no temperamental weakness. He travels well, has clobbered Mundine in Australia, flattened Beyer and Haussler in Germany, and given Joe Calzaghe an all the way argument over twelve rounds before fifty thousand Welshmen in Cardiff, copping his only career defeat there but losing no prestige in the process.

So, this opportunity may yet have come too soon for Ward, but you have to make your move sometime and Andre stepped up a whole level once already when easily accounting for abrasive Colombian Edison Miranda in a fight which many judges had also advised against beforehand. It had been considered a tough mission at the time, maybe too tough, but Ward didn’t just outfox Miranda - he outfought him too.

Miranda ain’t Kessler, it’s true, but Ward had to conquer a mental barrier going into that fight nonetheless and appeared to handle the task serenely, controlling Miranda throughout in imposing not just his skills but his will. I reckon Ward believes he can raise his game again with Kessler, as he’ll have to do, and I’m someone who shares that belief.

Kessler is favourite to win the Super-6 tournament outright and therefore, of course, favourite to beat Andre Ward in this first round encounter. Most expect the odds to be justified, that Kessler will be too strong, that Ward will be beaten, likely overwhelmed.

Me, I’m taking Ward’s smoothness to negate the invader’s aggression and physicality and set the base for a points victory that would really turn Super-6 on its head.

Floyd Mayweather had been contracted to box Juan Manuel Marquez at a catchweight of 144 pounds but didn’t pay too much heed to that requirement, nonchalantly hitting the scales at 146 prior to their recent clash. As a consequence of Pretty Boy’s failure to make the agreed poundage, Marquez could have pulled out of the fight. That was his right. But, via a cash adjustment which saw Mayweather penalised and a chunk of his purse transferred into Juan Manuel’s pile, the Mexican was easily persuaded to go ahead, as Floyd had no doubt been sure would be the case.

There’s the possibility that something similar could transpire when Cotto and Pacquiao weigh in later today for their Vegas battle tomorrow night. I’m not saying that Miguel Cotto is likely to register above the stipulated 145 pounds, but I’d be more than happy if he were to do just that.

When this fight was first mooted Freddy Roach wanted the deal struck at 143 to get his guy the best possible advantage – naturally enough – but the Cotto camp wasn’t prepared to have Miguel weaken himself by melting that low, hence the 145 compromise because Roach wanted no part of having Pacquiao take this fight at a full welterweight 147.

Despite that reluctance, Team Pacquiao will have no qualms about accepting the WBO crown should the Filipino triumph, and the WBO itself is sanctioning the bout as being for the title anyway.

Let’s get one thing straight. If the title is on the line then Miguel Cotto, as champion, is entitled to weigh what the hell he likes, up to and most certainly including the championship limit of 147 pounds.