Tomorrow night from the Emerald Queen Casino in Tacoma, Washington, SHOWTIME will unveil it’s second boxing tournament in as many years with it’s four man two event bantamweight tournament, winner take all. SHOWTIME sports executive Ken Hershman has done a great job bringing attention to boxing and to otherwise obscure weight divisions like the super middleweight division which kicked off it’s round robin Super Six tournament in the last quarter of 2009.
The Super Six has had it’s speed bumps along the way but to the credit of Hershman, is still going strong and has entertained many boxing enthusiast with great scraps among the division’s top fighters back-to-back-to-back and so on as the tournament progresses into the semi-finals.
It’s become rare in boxing that the fans are treated to a divisions best pugilist all fighting one another on a regular basis, making for very entertaining and competitive fights where anyone can win on any night. The word “loss” garners way too much attention in this era of boxing and has made fighters not as willing to put everything on the line because they are so worried about having an L on their record.
The sport needs the best to fight the best and Ken Hershman should be applauded for his risk taking and innovation in doing whatever had to be done to get the elite guys all fighting one another repeatedly.
The Super Six has brought much attention to SHOWTIME, the super middleweight division and it’s participants that not many outside the mainstream knew of. Though it’s had it’s rough patches the tournament has been competitive and exciting and this weekend’s bantamweight tournament promises more of the same as it will bring notoriety to one of the smaller weight classes and it’s brawlers that usually do not get this kind of deserved exposure.
While two of the bantamweight division’s top dogs, Nonito Donaire and Fernando Montiel are not part of the two event competition, four of it’s others Abner Mares, Vic Darchinyan, Yonnhy Perez and Joseph Agbeko are. With Montiel and Donaire scheduled to fight each other in February, a mega-fight could loom down the road for the winner of that contest against the victor of the tourney to truly decide who will sit atop the bantamweight class.
Unlike the Super Six, the bantamweight contest will not be a round robin but single elimination tournament winner take all. The semi-final losers will fight one another on the evening the two finalist square off to decide the Bantamweight Tournament Championship, which guarantee’s all four men two tournament fights. I like this format much better because it moves the tournament along at a faster pace leaving less room for snags along the way.
To start things off tomorrow in Washington, undefeated Montebello, CA., native by way of Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico., Abner Mares (20-0-1, 13KOs) will square off against the power punching two-division world champion Vic “Raging Bull” Darchinyan (35-2-1, 27KOs), while IBF world bantamweight champion Yonnhy “El Colombiano” Perez (20-0-1, 14KOs) locks horns with former IBF world titlist Joseph “King Kong” Agbeko (27-2, 22KOs) of Ghana, in what looks to be a high intensity action packed night of brawls.
These combatants are familiar with each other as Joseph Agbeko lost his IBF championship strap to Yonnhy Perez by unanimous decision in October 2009 in a heated back and forth bout while Darchinyan lost to Agbeko, also by unanimous decision in July 2009 and Abner Mares fought Perez to a majority draw in May with scores of 115-113 Mares and 114-114 twice.
The rematch between Perez and Agbeko for the IBF bantamweight belt should be a barn-burner. The first contest between these two was action packed, competitive and involved controversy as Perez wrangled the IBF championship strap away from “King Kong” in 2009. In the 10th round of their non-stop punch fest the fighters heads came together causing Agbeko to commit the cardinal sin of turning his attention away from his opponent looking at the referee for some kind of admonition. At that point Perez did the right thing and blasted his unguarded foe, knocking Agbeko to the canvas in a round that Joseph was winning to that point. Perez also had two cuts opened over each eye and felt that Joseph was head butting him all night. When the score cards were read Perez defeated Agbeko by unanimous decision with scores of 116-111 and 117-110 twice which were head scratching scores considering how close the fight seemed to be. If Joseph Agbeko didn’t get floored when looking away from his opponent in the 10th round he would have won the fight on my score card by one point.
This sets the stage for their rematch Saturday as both bruisers are chomping at the bit for a chance to sock one another in the face and during a media conference call the conversation got heated between the two warriors
When Joseph was asked whether he had learned anything from his previous encounter with Perez that would cause him to employ a new game plan this time around, the agitated Agbeko intoned, “The only thing I shouldn’t have done was continue after the head butt.” To which Perez antagonistically countered, “I know who the real head butter is. He caused his own injury and he caused my injury. I had a cut over my eyebrow that needed many stitches.”
Agbeko is obviously incensed over their first go around and shot back, “That is BS. I want him to know I am coming to get my belt back.”
The second match up pits the talented and undefeated Abner Mares against the always exciting and part time maniac Vic “Raging Bull” Darchinyan. This fight also looks to be very close on paper and is hard to call as it will be Darchinyan’s aggression and brute strength trying to overcome the slick boxer-puncher in Mares who also moves well inside the ring.
“I have proven that I can come back and be good after a loss. I will prove to everyone I am faster and stronger than Abner, despite him being ten years younger,” commented Darchinyan during the media conference call.
“Two big fights back to back is great for me and the others,” said the Armenian and it looks as though the “Raging Bull” will stay put, at least for a while, at the 118lb division. “It was a mistake to fight at super flyweight and go back to bantamweight. I was looking for an edge and was impatient. I am comfortable at bantamweight and intend to stay here,” Vic relayed.
“Vic is purely a power puncher but speed beats power. Either way we are ready with power of our own,” declared Mares.
Earlier Mares revealed that he hopes Perez defeats Agbeko to set up a rematch between himself and “El Colombiano.” In an interview with Leave It In The Ring Radio Mares stated, “After this fight against Vic Darchinyan, if we win I honestly think we’re going to blow up, beating a well known fighter like Darchinyan and if we get the rematch with Yonnhy and beat him as well, we’ll blow up even more. I see myself beating those two fighters and becoming world champion at bantamweight and having two different world titles and eventually move up to super bantamweight.”
When Mares and Perez fought to a majority draw on May 22nd it was a thrilling and tight contest which I thought Mares clearly won but the judges didn’t agree and Yonnhy was able to escape defeat taking his IBF belt home with him that night
My tournament prediction’s foresee “King Kong” Agbeko achieving redemption by beating Yonnhy Perez by late round stoppage or unanimous decision in a fire fight to reclaim the IBF bantamweight championship belt. In their first meeting Perez boxed well landing many combination’s on Joseph but I thought Agbeko was just too strong down the stretch with his relentless come forward power punching style. It seemed Agbeko was able to slow Perez late in the scrap with brawn and determination but foiled himself by looking away from Yonnhy and getting knocked down in the 10th round.
While I believe Mares-Darchinyan will be entertaining I also think Abner is just too slick for the Australian by way of Armenia. The “Raging Bull” packs the power to achieve victory with one punch but is mostly a one handed fighter and lacks the technical skills to adapt when he can’t bully opponents who box as well or better than him. I wont be surprised if Vic is able to catch Perez with a left-handed knockout bomb in the consolation bout but I predict he will lose both of his tournament fights as I feel the other three are better boxers and not afraid of Vic’s power at bantamweight.
I believe Abner separates himself from the pack with his defense, footwork and lateral movement which conforms when his fire power isn’t enough. All four warriors throw good combination’s when standing toe-to-toe in the middle of the ring but Mares’ boxing while on his bicycle is superior as he is able to continue landing combination’s while maintaining a high work-rate.
I take Abner Mares to win the Bantamweight Tournament Championship by first defeating Darchinyan then Agbeko in the final to claim the IBF bantamweight strap as well, both by unanimous decision in high action bouts to set up a super fight with either Donaire or Montiel late in 2011.
The parity of the players involved promises drama and after it is all said and done there can only be one man with the IBF bantamweight gold wrapped around his waist while on a collision course with the Donaire-Montiel winner in the quest for 118-pound supremacy.
You can view the semi-final fights live tomorrow night, Saturday, Dec. 11, on SHOWTIME at 9 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast.)