Pacman destroys Hatton

Ricky Hatton’s career may have come to an abrupt end last night as Manny Pacquiao showed why he is the pound for pound king with a stunning second round knockout.

Many expected this encounter to provide fireworks but few would have expected such an easy win for Pacquiao.

From the off Hatton took the fight to the Filipino, but ended up walking straight into some huge shots that had the Hitman on the canvas twice in the first round.

Pacquiao’s speed was just too quick for Hatton, but the power of his punches was simply brutal.

You have to admire Hatton’s bravery but his plan was clearly flawed and was punished by a stunning left hook that knocked him clean out at the end of the second.

It was one of the cleanest puches you’ll ever see and took Hatton the best part of fifteen minutes to regain full conciousness.

For Hatton it could be the end of what has been an epic journey, for Pacquiao however, with news of Floyd Mayweather Jr coming out of retirement, it potentially sets up what could be one of the biggest fights of all time.

Preview: Hatton vs Pacquiao

Well, it’s finally here. The biggest fight of the year. Perhaps the biggest fight for years.

Britain’s Ricky Hatton takes on the pound for pound king Manny Pacquiao in Las Vegas on Saturday night in what could be one of the sport’s greatest spectacles ever.

Hatton, who will be sporting a new tattoo for the fight (right), goes into the fight as the underdog but this really is too close to call.

With both fighters having remarkably similar styles will Hatton’s extra power or Pacquiao’s extra speed be the deciding factor?

Both fighter possess exceptional records, Hatton, with 45 – 1 – 0 and 32 knockouts, whilst Pacquiao comes in with 48 – 3 – 2 and 36 wins by knockout.

Everything suggests this will be an explosive night with two of the best fighters in the world going toe to toe.

As for who will win, on paper Pacquiao is the better boxer, but the fight is taking place at the ten stone limit, one which Hatton has never lost at.

My heart says the Hitman but my head says Pacman, what do you think? Leave your thoughts below.

Prediction: Pacquiao win by KO

Froch beats Taylor with late surge

WBC Super-Middleweight champ Carl Froch won his first title defence last night after stopping Jermain Taylor in the final round.

Taylor had dominated proceedings and had Froch on the canvas for the first time in his career in the third, but out of nowhere the Brit pulled off a stunning stoppage with just seconds left.

It was only Froch’s second ever fight outside of the UK and he looked far from comfortable in front of the MGM Grand audience.

But just like his epic battle with Canadian Jean Pascal, Froch once again took the glory in a fight that that is as good as you’ll ever see.

He now now has an undefeated record of 25 wins and will look to get some more big name scalps in the coming months.

Best of British? You decide…

No one can deny there’s been some fantastic British boxers over the years, but just who is the best?

Whether it’s because how entertaining they are or how many KO’s are on their record, use the poll below to vote for your favourite!

Click on each boxer to see a video of their career highlights. 

Frank Bruno– Admit it, you’re all hearing that laugh inside your heads. Most people forget what a formidable fighter Bruno was. With 38 knockout wins from 40 victories, that’s a 95% knockout rate, one of the highest in boxing history. With the physique more of a body builder than a boxer, he had incredible power, but that extra weight tended to sap his energy late on in fights and became his only flaw.

Nigel Benn– “The Dark Destroyer” was on of the best middleweights this country has ever seen, infamous for his fierce rivalry with Chris Eubank. He had an ability like Mike Tyson to strike fear into his opponents before a match and was one of the most infamous fighters in the world during the 1990’s.

Naseem Hamed– There was and will be simply no one like him. “Prince” Naseem had such style and swagger that just couldn’t be matched. He destroyed opponents and earned a record of 35 – 0 with 31 knockouts. However it was the great Marco Antonio Barrera that dethroned him and ultimately ended his career by teaching a lesson inside the ring back in 2001.

Ricky Hatton– “The Hitman” is one of the most popular boxers in the world today, mainly because of the incredible amount of heart he shows inside the ring. Hatton went undefeated until the great Floyd Mayweather Jr knocked him out in 2007 but he still remains the king of light-welterweights.

Lennox Lewis– “Lennox the Lion” is exactly what he is. One of Britain’s if not the world’s greatest heavyweights. He was and still is a great ambassador for the sport who completely dominated the division, capturing all of the major world titles.

Joe Calzaghe – 46 fights. 46 wins. What more can you say? Only truly great fighters can go undefeated throughout an entire career. After making the super-middleweight division his, Joe then beat Bernard Hopkins and Roy Jones Jr, there was simply nothing left for “The Pride of Wales” to achieve, outstanding.

Did you know???

 

 

Every now and then we’ll bring you some interesting and insightful facts from boxing history that not many people know about, keep checking back for more!!!

 

– The oldest boxer to compete for a world title was the great Roberto Duran who fought William Joppy in 1998, at 47 years 2 months and 12 days old!!!

– George Foreman won his first heavyweight title on his birthday in 1973, he is the only boxer to ever do this

– Foreman also holds the record the longest time taken to regain a world title, a massive 21 years

– Archie Moore holds the record for most knockouts in a career, a staggering 141!

– Muhammad Ali lost to more amateur boxers (7) than professional (5)

Khan finally gets title shot

Amir Khan will step up to light-welterweight for his first world title shot on June 27th.

The 22-year-old will face WBA champ Andreas Kotelnik with the O2 Arena the expected venue.

Following his stoppage victory against Mexican legend Marco Antonio Barrera, this will be regarded as another big gamble for Khan and the rest of his team in what will be his first professional fight away from the lightweight division.

Ukrainian Kotelnik won the title last year after stopping Welshman Gavin Rees.

However, his credentials speak for themself, with a record of 29 – 2 – 1 and an Olympic silver medal the 31-year-old will provide a stern test for Khan.

Haye – Klitschko trilogy to begin 20th June

David Haye’s highly anticipated clash with one of the Klitschko brothers will finally take place on 20th June.

The younger brother, Wladimir, will be his opponent, but this could only be the start of a potentially historic trilogy.

If Haye beats the Ukrainian then a mandatory rematch will take place later on in the year before he meets te elder brother Vitali.

The venue for the IBF and WBO title match will be Schalke 04 football club’s ground in Germany which can hold a massive 61,000 audience.

It’s taken months of negotiations to arrange the fight, maily due to the Klitschko’s taking offence at a publicity stunt that saw Haye holding Wladimir’s head as a trophy in a national newspaper.

However, this is the much needed fight the Heavyweight division has craved for years and could see Haye turn into a true boxin superstar.

We will of course bring you all of the coverage in the build up to this massive fight.

Prizefighter: The Lightweights

Tonight saw another instalment of the Prizefighter series, this time it was the turn of the lightweights.

It was the sixth event in Barry Hearn’s popular series and for the first time was held in Scotland, at the Kelvin Hall in Glasgow.

And another first was that finally the bookie’s favourite was victorious with Scotsman Ryan Brawley taking the crown and a cheque for a cool £25,000.

Surprisingly there weren’t any knockouts on the night, however fellow Scotsman Gary McArthur had to be stopped in the semi final after suffering a nasty gash.

Results:

Quarter Finals:

Ryan Brawley beat Ben Murphy

Paul Holborn beat Charlie King

Gary McArthur beat Steve Saville

Stephen Burke beat Stuart Green

 

Semi Finals:

 

Ryan Brawley beat Paul Holborn
Stephen Burke beat Gary McArthur

 

 

Final:

Ryan Brawley beat Stephen Burke

One to watch: Tyson Fury

 

You may have heard the name ‘Tyson Fury’ mentioned several times on this site and for the people who haven’t heard about the explosive heavyweight, here’s a brief rundown of why he’s taken the professional scene by storm.

Standing at six feet nine inches and weighing in at over seventeen and a half stone, the term ‘giant’ would be an understatement.

Born to an Irish family of travellers who had a passion for boxing his father was also a professional heavyweight in the 1990’s.

Fury was born eights weeks premature and weighed in then at just one and a half pounds, but somehow he pulled through, earing him the name Tyson after his father’s hero, the legendary ‘Iron Mike’.

After an exciting amateur career which consisted of 26 knockouts from 30 fights Fury turned pro in December last year and has been causing quite a storm since.

All of his four fights have been ended within the first four rounds with his incredible power proving too much for his opponents.

The 25th of April will be a chance to spread his name across the Atlantic when he takes on a yet to be named opponent on the Carl Froch vs Jermain Taylor undercard in Mashantucket, USA.

And if Fury can keep on putting in these type of performances then he stands every chance in following inthe footsteps of his namesake, although if this happens too many more times then he might the professional scene may be a bit harder than he first thought.

Khan stops Barrera through controversial cut

Amir Khan secured his twentieth victory with a stoppage against Mexican legend Marco Antonio Barrera but only after a clash of heads gave the veteran an horiffic gash.

A packed out MEN Arena saw Khan domminate the 35 year old but ultimately it was what was classed as an accidental clash of heads in the first round that decided the outcome.

Barrera was left with a cut that literally poured with blood and his corner were helpless to try an stem the flow.

Yet Khan always looked the better fighter, with lightning quick combos and for once a solid defence.

Due to technicalities the fight had to go to the scorecard when it was stopped in the fifth, but it was a foregone conclusion who the winner would be.

His victory should prove a lot of the 22 year old’s critics wrong and could set up a world title shot later in the year.

Meanwhile Enzo Maccarinelli’s career took another blow as little-known Ola Afolabi knocked the Welshman out in the ninth round in front of a shocked MEN.

The knockout to David Haye last year has clearly affected Enzo and he needs to et back on track quickly if his career is to go much further.

Elsewhere, there were other upsets as Bradley Pryce and Nicky Cook both lost their titles via knockouts, whilst the exciting Tyson Fury remains undefeated after another explosive stoppage victory.