Eric Armit's World View by Eric Armit May 19th 2008

It was a long time ago, but I still remember the wickedly funny Spike Milligan coming on at the end of a play in the West End and playing a faintly recognisable version of the National Anthem on a tin whistle. In those days the National Anthem was played at the end of all public events, so we stood uncertainly whilst Spike completed his wavering effort. When he finished he paused for a couple of seconds, looked at us in scorn and said “If you'll stand for that, you'll stand for anything”. Well things have not changed much. I can't believe that anyone paid good money to see Oscar de La Hoya against Steve Forbes. Just a public sparring session against a guy who had lost two of his last three fights and was just really a fat super-featherweight. They actually carried Oscar around the ring-for beating Steve Forbes! It is “designer label“ boxing. Who cares whether the goods are shoddy as long as they have the ODLH label - if you will stand for that... The acting profession may say “Don't put your daughter on the stage”, but that obviously does not apply to world champion and sons. In recent action we had Julio Cesar Chavez Junior and brother Omar Chavez, Hector Camacho Junior, Jorge Paez Junior, Gabriel Bernal Junior, Tim Witherspoon Junior and Juan Nazario Junior. We also have Pipino Cuevas Junior, Kenbun Torres (son of German Torres), Aaron Pryor Junior, James McGirt Junior and in the amateurs Chris Eubank's son. Hope they all take care of their dad's now as most of the old men will have blown what they earned. And on that subject the former world welterweight champion Jose Napoles recently received another support payment from the WBC “Friendly Hand” association. Now residing in Juarez Jose is still training boxers, but living in virtual poverty. Still on Latin America, the WBA recently honoured Colombians Rodrigo Valdes and Fidel Bassa. Valdes would probably have been a world champion in any era, but was unlucky to be around at the same time as Carlos Monzon. He won the WBC title by stopping Bennie Briscoe in seven rounds in May 1974 and made four defences before losing to Monzon in June 1976 and in a return 13 months later. Rodrigo ended with only eight losses in 72 bouts. Bassa won the WBA flyweight title by decisioning Hilario Zapata in February 1987 and made seven defences including wins in Belfast over Dave McAuley in 1987 and 1988. He retired after losing the title to Jesus Rojas in September 1989. Mexican multi-millionaire Carlos Slim has started a scheme to provide financial assistance to 50 young Mexican boxers. The selected fighters will receive a wage, assistance with schooling and first class facilities. The aim is to foster the Mexican fighters of the future and will apply to both amateurs and professionals and fighters have been invited to apply for positions in the scheme. The problem may be where this cuts across existing contracts, so it remains to be seen how it develops. Don King is up to his old tricks again. Suddenly Nigeria is his favourite country and he thinks that the best thing that could happen to the country is for them to stage a world heavyweight title fight, featuring Samuel Peter of course. He feels that the Nigerian Government has a duty not to miss out on this wonderful opportunity so could they please come up with the money. Don gets to promote a world heavyweight title fight, pick up the profits, and it does not cost him a cent. In making this announcement he trumpeted that it would be the first world heavyweight title fight in Africa since “The Rumble in the Jungle” in 1974. Suddenly South Africa is not in Africa and so Gerrie Coetzee vs. Mike Weaver and Hasim Rahman vs. Lennox Lewis do not count. Never let the truth spoil a good sales pitch. We are still relatively insular here when it comes to boxing. It is still traditional to have British fighters in the top spot on a show and to be in bouts all the way down the bill. However, take Germany, a world title show in Dresden had three Hungarians, two Americans, and fighters from France, Indonesia, Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Mexico, Russian and Lithuania, and the only bout featuring a German was between two female boxers. Now that is international. Just in case you thought that the list of titles had been exhausted I regret to inform you that two more have emerged. We now have a World Combat Union and an IBF East/West Europe titles and to make it worse the WBA are talking about bringing back their EABA European titles. If we ever populate another planet it will be a race between McDonald's and a sanctioning body as to who claims it first.  (Don't forget Starbucks - Ed.) On April 25 in New York Albert Sosnowski scored another meaningless win as he halted Terrell Nelson in five rounds. You have to wonder how long a journey to nowhere takes. After 10 years as a pro and with a record of 43 wins in 44 fights he is not rated in the top 15 by any of the major sanctioning bodies. His nickname is “The Dragon” perhaps he should change it to “The Drag On”. Two former top amateurs scored wins in Houston on May 1. Marcus “Too Much” Johnson made it 15 wins as he halted Anthony Greeley in four rounds at light-heavyweight and Jesus Gonzalez improved to 24 wins in 25 bouts with a points victory over Durrell Richardson. Johnson was US Junior and Senior champion but lost out to Andre Ward for the 2004 Olympic berth. Gonzalez was US Junior, Under-19 and Senior champion and beat Andre Berto, James McGirt Jr. and Andre Dirrell as an amateur. Now just 23, he turned pro at 18. Despite only one loss he has not convinced people of his talent so far. On the following night in Santa Ynez, Dirrell continued his climb with an impressive fifth round stoppage of super-middleweight Anthony Hanshaw and now has 15 wins. The Olympic bronze medallist may be the best prospect in the division. Hanshaw was an Olympic alternate and his dad sparred with Earnie Shavers. Vicente Escobedo was a team-mate of Dirrell's in Athens but came away without a medal. As a pro he has not really impressed even though his points win over mediocre Argentinian Roberto Arrieta in Carson on May 2 took his record to 17-1. That was his eighth win in a row since losing a split verdict to Daniel Jimenez in April 2006, and his fifth points win in a row, so lack of power may be his Achilles heel. He beat Anthony Peterson in the final trials for Athens, but Peterson is considered a much better prospect. Victor Ortiz also failed to make the USA team for Athens, losing to Peterson in the trials. However, he has impressed as a pro and has a punch. In another show in Carson, this on the De La Hoya card on May 3, Ortiz knocked out former Olympian Dario Esalas from Colombia in five rounds and has a 21-1-1 record with 16 wins by kayo or stoppage. Two of Canada's top boxers scored wins on a show in Montreal on May 3, but both had to climb off the canvas to do so. Commonwealth cruiserweight champion Troy Ross was on the floor in the third against Kendrick Releford but in the end took a unanimous points decision over eight rounds. In a fight for the vacant NABO welterweight title Canadian light-welterweight champion Antonin Decarie was floored in the fifth round by Brian Camechis although the referee wrongly ruled it a slip. However Decarie was well in command and won the twelve round verdict. Decarie has 19 wins. Ross, (a fashion designer!), is 17-1 but has not defended his Commonwealth title since beating Buster Keeton for the vacant crown in March 2007 and is in danger of being stripped. A good clash of world rated flyweights saw Frenchman Bernard Inom lift the European title with an eighth round stoppage of champion Andrea Sarritzu in Sassari on May 3. These two had fought a draw for the title last June in Ajaccio, Inom's backyard. Both have challenged Omar Narvaez for the WBO title with Sarritzu losing a split decision and drawing and Inom being stopped in eleven rounds. Inom was born in Reunion, an Island in the Indian Ocean. On the same show Italian Luciano Abis halted Louis Mimoune in nine rounds for the vacant WBC Mediterranean welterweight title. “Bazooka” Abis has 23 wins and a technical draw. Mediterranean title! What next? The Moray Firth interim sporranweight title perhaps. Joe Calzaghe victim Peter Manfredo Jr. took an easy one as he beat Luis Lopez on a third round retirement in Worley on May 3. Despite a points loss to Jeff Lacy in December, Manfredo is a “name” due to his participation in “The Contender” and can expect another shot at the super-middleweight title if he can stay unbeaten. Omar Narvaez retained his WBO flyweight title as Spaniard Ivan Pozo retired after six rounds of their fight in Vigo on May 9. Narvaez rolls on and is still unbeaten with 27 wins and 2 draws. He has defended his title 13 tines, six of those in Europe. Mexican Reynaldo Lopez tore up the script when he halted previously unbeaten in 21 fights Mike Oliver in Boston on May 7. The 34-year-old Lopez had been in tough (Cristian Mijares and Daniel Ponce)but was meant to be just another milestone for “The Machine” who was rated number two super-bantamweight by the IBF. It could mean a title fight for Lopez and it is back to the drawing board for Oliver. The young French hope Ali Chebah retained his WBC Youth light-welterweight title with a sixth round kayo of Nelson Lara from Nicaragua. Chebah, who turned pro at the age of 16 in 2001 has 25 wins. Consecutive losses to Ricardo Torres and Kendall Holt sidelined Greek light-welterweight Mike Arnaoutis, but he is fighting his way back into the picture. On May 9 in Atlantic City he outpointed unbeaten Lanardo Tyler to retain his USBA title and he is currently rated No 15 by the IBF and raised his record to 19-2-2.

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