Jay Caspian Kang: It’s only early March and the big fights of the fall haven’t been lined up yet, but should we go ahead and proclaim Saturday’s brutal 12-round welterweight battle the Fight of the Year? For those rightfully rolling their eyes right now, let me clarify the question. Given the ongoing feud between Golden Boy Promotions and Top Rank, the age of some of the top fighters in the sport (Sergio Martinez, Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao, and Juan Manuel Marquez are all at least 34 years old), and the general putridity we’ve seen so far in 2013, are there any potential matchups that could possibly match the skill, power, and heart we saw on display Saturday night in Carson, California? Great fights often come out of nowhere, with Bradley vs. Provodnikov being the most recent example of that truth. But given the protection of some of the top young contenders via their promoters’ matchmaking, will we really see a fight where a top-flight fighter like Bradley gets seriously tested by a guy who has absolutely nothing to lose? What would that fight even be?
The smart money lies with Canelo Alvarez’s upcoming bout against Austin Trout in San Antonio. I suppose there’s a chance that Trout’s speed and the sheer volume of his punches slows down the unstoppable Canelo machine, but count me as maybe the only boxing writer out there who doesn’t really buy all the talk that has circulated about Canelo taking the fight against the wishes of his handlers and Golden Boy Promotions. Someone sees a real weakness in Trout that the rest of us who watched him beat Miguel Cotto do not. If Trout’s as dangerous as he seems, there’s no way Golden Boy would risk their big golden Canelo baby at the tender age of 22.
In case you were out living a life of leisure, here's what you missed in sports on Wednesday.
Despite some lingering soreness from cramps that kept him out at the end of Game 4, LeBron James expects to play in Thursday's Game 5. Unfortunately, this probably means he's out for the big swimming relay race at small-town Indiana's Lake Martin, where he planned to show up unannounced and help young Todd Mulberry win the race, and with it the heart of the prettiest girl in school, Wanda Tyler, who currently dates Blaine Sparks, the blond rich kid who always rides around in his fancy boat sneering at poor people and who has now won the big swimming relay race five years in a row with his asshole sidekick Luke Denvers.
In case you were out living a life of leisure, here's what you missed in sports on Wednesday.
Matt Cain threw the 22nd perfect game in major league history, striking out 14 in a 10-0 Giants win over the Astros. "He was just too good tonight," said Astros catcher Chris Snyder, who hits .188 and was waiting until he finished his stick of chewing gum before attempting to walk out of the locker room. "Hey, this might be a stupid question, but uh … when do you know that a piece of gum is actually finished? It seems to just be … staying there. Does it go away, or just — ooh boy, getting a little panicky here. Mind is racing. Emergency. Where's my crisis blanket? WHERE'S MY CRISIS BLANKET!" When Snyder tried to stand up, he immediately tripped due to coordination issues, and the gum slipped from his mouth. "Now that was a close call!" he said, grinning in relief from the floor. "You fooled 'em again, Snyder. You fooled 'em again. Hey, but seriously, where's my crisis blanket?"
In case you were out living a life of leisure, here's what you missed in sports on Monday.
The L.A. Kings are Stanley Cup champions. For the first time in franchise history, they're taking home the title after a 6-1 rout of the New Jersey Devils in Game 6. With the end of the NHL season, Canadians allowed themselves a night of celebration before migrating to their caves this morning to begin a long hibernation. But be warned — just because they're inactive for a few months doesn't mean you can disturb them without consequence. Canadians have been known to react violently when woken from a hibernation slumber. They can rise quickly to defend themselves if they think an attack is imminent — a necessary skill, since they can't burrow underground for protection.
Timothy Bradley first entered the boxing consciousness about five years ago with a handful of impressive victories on Showtime’s why-are-you-still-awake-at-this-hour boxing series, ShoBox. Back then, the ring announcers referred to him by his full name, Timothy Ray Bradley. Upon realizing they were attempting to advance the career of a boxer and not a serial killer or political assassin, Bradley’s promotional team wisely dropped the “Ray” a short while later. Now we’re left with Timothy Bradley: boring name. Dangerous fighter. Potential super-fight killer and payday assassin.
You know what theoretical nine-figure super fight we’re talking about — Mayweather-Pacquiao. It’s the only fight anyone who doesn’t follow boxing on a day-to-day basis ever talks about. And even though Floyd Mayweather’s temporary residence in the Clark County Detention Center has limited talk of said super fight this week, it will again be the only boxing topic anyone is talking about come late Saturday night if Manny Pacquiao defeats Bradley.
But until and unless Bradley makes this a reality instead, let’s explore what Pacquiao-Bradley is rather than lamenting what it isn’t. Here are five intriguing topics surrounding Saturday’s fight:
