Congratulations to Hasim "The Rock" Rahman, the Interim WBC Heavyweight champion! Rahman won a unanimous decision over Monte Barrett in Chicago on August 13. Rahman has earned the opportunity to fight Vitali Klitschko for the WBC title before the end of the year.
The question now is: did Rahman make a statement with his performance? Maybe the question should be did Rahman make enough of a statement?
The answer to the second question is probably no. Here's why:
Rahman faced a guy who could do nothing but make Rahman looked bad. For the majority of the bout, Barrett made Rahman chase him. He moved all over the place. That made it difficult for Rahman to land telling blows. I thought Rahman handled the movement better than he usually does. The jab worked well in spots for the champ. It was those spots that led him to victory.
Unfortunately, the average boxing fan (as evidenced by the reaction to the bout from the United Center crowd) did not appreciate Rahman's ability to adapt to what Barrett was doing. The problem was Rahman did not show the finishing ability that he has in the past and he did get hit and rocked by a number of Barrett shots simply by walking into them.
So on the surface, it seemed that Rahman didn't do enough to convince fans he is a legitimate champion. But I think there is a light at the end of this tunnel. Vitali Klitschko doesn't move nearly as much or as well as Monte Barrett. He will stand in front of Rahman and trade. If that holds true, than Rahman should use what got him to the dance.
If he jabs, he wins. Period. (How's that for a recurring theme?)
Other side items about the card: Showtime PPV only served as a distributor to the card. The telecast actually was a KingVision production.
Overall, the telecast was pretty decent. I love Barry Tompkins and Rich Marotta. They are REAL boxing announcers who put the fighters ahead as the show, not themselves. George Foreman added some things but he was mostly the same ol' George. Jim Hill was stiff yet solid as host and I was actually impressed by JT The Brick from Fox Sports Radio. He sounded more like a pro wrestling announcer than a boxing interviewer, but he did seem like he knew his information, asked good questions and didn't embarrass himself.
Fun fact of the night: How many of you knew that IBF Heavyweight Champ Chris Byrd and WBO Heavyweight titleholder Lamon Brewster were cousins? I didn't either.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
rahman was a "one-hit wonder", he hit the lottery and it is basically over for him, if you ask me. rahman does not show the wiilingness to engage or the desire to ko anyone since he has been kayoed by lewis.. vitali will rain right hand, after right hand down on him and make it a very difficult fight for him. the only heavyweight that sparks interest in the heavyweight division is a former middleweight champion and you know who that is, james toney.. he s probably the most skilled heavyweight in the business right now.
samuel peter is another fighter that sparks some interest right now and that is only because of his power..
You may be right about Rahman, but I do see a better commitment from Rahman than before. I think the fact that Rahman has brought his weight down means a lot. If Rahman keeps Klitschko away with his jab, he will be all right.
Toney has to recover from that steroid issue. I like what I see from Peter thus far.
Post a Comment