by Bowie Ibarra
It was a wonderful night for knockouts for combat sports fans as UFC on FX/Fuel/Fox related station's Ultimate Fighter Finale brought some action, along with the Khan vs. Molina card, trumping a hoped return to glory for Khan.
UFC ON FX TUF 16 FINALE
This was a great show that started with DUSTIN POIRER throw down with JONATHAN BROOKINGS in a match that had Poirer taking the win via choke.
Newcomer RUSTAM 'TIGER' KHABILOV vs VINC PICHEL found the Russian Sambo superstar throwing Pichel around the ring like the son of Zangief. Three German Suplex's was all it took to take Pichel out of his game before the end of the first round. It was awesome.
PAT BERRY smacked SHANE DEL ROSARIO in the face with an overhand right followed by a flurry of punches against the gate to take the knockout victory in the second round.
The mullet-laden MIKE PYLE kneed JAMES HEAD in the head in the clinch before finishing him with punches to his face for the finish in the first round.
The TUF 16 finalists American COLTON SMITH and Canadian MIKE RICCI threw down for the title of TUF 16 Winner, with Smith dominating the whole match and taking the title by decision. He got a big piece of glass and a Harley Davidson from Dana for his efforts.
Late replacement for the injured SHANE CARWIN, the batshit crazy MATT MITRIONE took on 'BIG COUNTRY' ROY NELSON in the superstar main event. Nelson mixed it up on the feet with Mitrione, sending an uppercut from the outside that connected with Mitrione, dazing him for Nelson to take the victory.
KHAN VS. MOLINA
ALFREDO ANGULO went toe-to-toe with JORGE SILVA, with Angulo winning on the cards after the final round.
DEONTAY WILDER gave a tremendous heavyweight knockout to KELVIN PRICE in the third. He might not be the next great American heavyweight, but he's well on his way.
AMIR KHAN took apart CARLOS MOLINA in his return with a new cornerman, Virgil Hunter, and new attitude. It only took him ten rounds for the Molina camp to stop the fight, as Molina could not get an effective offense going against Khan before they called it off. Khan broke his hand in the encounter. We'll see if that affects his future training and continued return.
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BOWIE V. IBARRA is the author of the 'Down the Road' zombie horror series from Permuted Press and Simon and Schuester. His combat sports themed book, PIT FIGHTERS: BAPTISM BY FIRE, features a boxer from Scotland who transitions to mixed martial arts competition. It is available in paperback and on Kindle for .99 cents.
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The only blog on the 'net where Zombies, Blood, and Fights matter.
Showing posts with label ko. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ko. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Saturday, November 24, 2012
FIGHTS: Hatton gave it all with loss to Senchenko
by Bowie V. Ibarra
Ricky Hatton (48-3) gave it his all against a primed Vyacheslav Senchenko (33-1), but it wasn't enough to provide a triumphant return for the British brawler.
Hatton had fought some personal demons over the past few years since his devastating losses to two of the best fighters in the world in Mayweather and Pacquiao. Pulling himself together, he got back into training as well as coaching to get his mojo back.
But it seems he set his goals super high against the recently defeated Ukranian, who lost his title to Paul Malignaggi, which handed him his first loss as well. With Hatton hand-picking his opponent, many thought it was ambitious, as he clearly would have benefited from a tune-up match-up before jumping into the quality competition at welterweight.
The Manchester fans loved him, and he looked pretty good in the early rounds with relentless aggression and solid punches.
'The Ukraine Master' stayed in the game, though, in spite of being dazed and tested several times during the match. And when the water started getting deep for Hatton in the later rounds, it was evident that Senchenko was more preapared than Hatton. 'The Hitman' showed signs of frustration, openly grumbling after missing shots.
But it was the cruelest of blows that leveled Hatton in the 9th, just minutes away from winning a fight he was taking on the cards. A left hook to the kidney put Hatton away for good, dropping him to his knees in front of his adoring Manchester fans and his wife.
It was a tough loss for him, and a result of the immense amount of pressure he put on himself, saying he wanted his son and newborn daughter to be proud of him.
I just think he needs to put things in perspective here. He beat drug and alcohol abuse. He's got some bones to spend to help take care of his family. He's got a career as a coach and trainer. And he's got to remember his two losses before this one came against two of the best boxers of this day and age.
What is there to be ashamed of?
He really needed a tune-up before jumping in. This bar he set for himself was super high. Was it a realistic goal? Sure. He got to the 9th, so he was almost there.
But 'The Ukraine Master' has not had the kind of layoff Hatton has, so was much fresher. That makes him just that much better to take Hatton in the home stretch.
I honestly pray he's not as hard on himself in this 2nd retirement. I don't think he's got anything to be ashamed of. If he's a good dad to his kids, they're going to love him no matter how many wins or losses he had in his career.
I get it. Pride. Pride is a sonovabitch. But, Jesus Christ, I hope he puts things in perspective and is not so hard on himself in retirement.
If he wants to come out of retirement again and fight, I don't have a problem with it. It seems like, even in defeat, his fans (who were still singing their song for him), would have no problem watching 'The Manchester Mexican' mix it up again. He was fit and ready in what I saw (for being off for several years). He's a warrior. Boxing is just what he does, and deserves to do if his team thinks he's healthy enough to do it.
But if he does, I just hope he considers some more reasonable matchups before jumping into title contention, if there is a next time.
------
ZombieBloodFights.com would also like to offer condolences to the family and fans of Hector "Macho" Camacho. A champion in the boxing ring, and a master of his sport, dead at 50.
------
BOWIE V. IBARRA is the author of the 'Down the Road' zombie horror series from Permuted Press and Simon and Schuester. His combat sports themed book, Pit Fighters: Baptism by Fire , features a boxer from Scotland who transitions to mixed martial arts competition.
Enjoy the blog? Share it with your friends using the 'Facebook', 'Blogger' and 'Twitter' buttons below.
Agree? Disagree? Leave a comment below using your Google+ or Blogger account.
You can network with Bowie and explore his other titles at his personal website, ZombieBloodFights.com.
Ricky Hatton (48-3) gave it his all against a primed Vyacheslav Senchenko (33-1), but it wasn't enough to provide a triumphant return for the British brawler.
Hatton had fought some personal demons over the past few years since his devastating losses to two of the best fighters in the world in Mayweather and Pacquiao. Pulling himself together, he got back into training as well as coaching to get his mojo back.
But it seems he set his goals super high against the recently defeated Ukranian, who lost his title to Paul Malignaggi, which handed him his first loss as well. With Hatton hand-picking his opponent, many thought it was ambitious, as he clearly would have benefited from a tune-up match-up before jumping into the quality competition at welterweight.
The Manchester fans loved him, and he looked pretty good in the early rounds with relentless aggression and solid punches.
'The Ukraine Master' stayed in the game, though, in spite of being dazed and tested several times during the match. And when the water started getting deep for Hatton in the later rounds, it was evident that Senchenko was more preapared than Hatton. 'The Hitman' showed signs of frustration, openly grumbling after missing shots.
But it was the cruelest of blows that leveled Hatton in the 9th, just minutes away from winning a fight he was taking on the cards. A left hook to the kidney put Hatton away for good, dropping him to his knees in front of his adoring Manchester fans and his wife.
It was a tough loss for him, and a result of the immense amount of pressure he put on himself, saying he wanted his son and newborn daughter to be proud of him.
I just think he needs to put things in perspective here. He beat drug and alcohol abuse. He's got some bones to spend to help take care of his family. He's got a career as a coach and trainer. And he's got to remember his two losses before this one came against two of the best boxers of this day and age.
What is there to be ashamed of?
He really needed a tune-up before jumping in. This bar he set for himself was super high. Was it a realistic goal? Sure. He got to the 9th, so he was almost there.
But 'The Ukraine Master' has not had the kind of layoff Hatton has, so was much fresher. That makes him just that much better to take Hatton in the home stretch.
I honestly pray he's not as hard on himself in this 2nd retirement. I don't think he's got anything to be ashamed of. If he's a good dad to his kids, they're going to love him no matter how many wins or losses he had in his career.
I get it. Pride. Pride is a sonovabitch. But, Jesus Christ, I hope he puts things in perspective and is not so hard on himself in retirement.
If he wants to come out of retirement again and fight, I don't have a problem with it. It seems like, even in defeat, his fans (who were still singing their song for him), would have no problem watching 'The Manchester Mexican' mix it up again. He was fit and ready in what I saw (for being off for several years). He's a warrior. Boxing is just what he does, and deserves to do if his team thinks he's healthy enough to do it.
But if he does, I just hope he considers some more reasonable matchups before jumping into title contention, if there is a next time.
------
ZombieBloodFights.com would also like to offer condolences to the family and fans of Hector "Macho" Camacho. A champion in the boxing ring, and a master of his sport, dead at 50.
------
BOWIE V. IBARRA is the author of the 'Down the Road' zombie horror series from Permuted Press and Simon and Schuester. His combat sports themed book, Pit Fighters: Baptism by Fire , features a boxer from Scotland who transitions to mixed martial arts competition.
Enjoy the blog? Share it with your friends using the 'Facebook', 'Blogger' and 'Twitter' buttons below.
Agree? Disagree? Leave a comment below using your Google+ or Blogger account.
You can network with Bowie and explore his other titles at his personal website, ZombieBloodFights.com.
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