Farewell Jamie Moore, Hello (again) Haye-Klitschko? Plus thoughts on Mayweather-Mosley 24/7
It’s election time in the UK and the bombardment of party broadcasts, slogans and tub thumping has already begun in earnest. Good old Dave and Gordon are reaching out to new demographics using exciting cyber tools such as Twitter and Facebook, whilst fighters too are able to communicate with their constituents more readily these days, thanks to the information super highway.
Salford’s Jamie Moore issued a press release on Monday (which circulated quickly over the net) announcing his retirement from boxing, sadly due to medical problems. His official statement read:
“In the last three years I have had three letters from the (British) Boxing Board of Control declaring that there had been a slight change in my brain scan, although I was medically fit to box. After receiving the third letter recently I decided to seek an independent opinion and was advised that I should retire. That means it’s time to move on in life and pack away my gloves and gumshield for good.”
Things can move so quickly in our sport. Just months ago, Moore had been touted for a world title crack against Sergio Martinez at 154 lbs, now however, it’s all over.
Moore was an exciting, hard battling performer. He leaves us with numerous domestic classics, including his brawls with Michael Jones, Matthew Macklin and Ryan Rhodes.
The Macklin war was perhaps Jamie’s finest hour, a battle of attrition for the British title which ebbed and flowed throughout until he lowered the boom on a spent Macklin in the tenth round.
It was a win which propelled Moore onto a wonderful run, one which saw him hoist the European light middleweight title by knocking out Michele Piccirillo in Wigan. His streak would last three years, until he lost to Rhodes in October after yet another small hall epic (one I was lucky enough to have caught live). He finishes with a ledger of 32-5 (23), compiled whilst annexing British, Commonwealth and Irish titles alongside that of the EBU.
Moore’s press release is a classy sign-off from an honest and gutsy fighter, during which he professes a wish to see Macklin and Rhodes lift world titles whilst praising the sport he contributed so many thrills and spills to.
“I have a wonderful wife, two beautiful children and a lifetime ahead of me”.
“It’s been a great ride”.
That it has. Good luck Jamie.
Heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko released his own public statement this week, this one short and sweet, much like the left hook he landed on Eddie Chambers last month. It appears it was baby brother who won the coin toss for the right to face the division’s new big noise, David “Hayemaker” Haye.
In an immediate retort on Sky Sports News yesterday, Haye’s manager and trainer Adam Booth seemed amenable to the idea of a fight with Wlad yet, rather worryingly started bandying about the idea of a 50-50 purse split. He also alluded to the notion that they would prefer to tackle big brother Vitali for his “more prestigious” title.
The pedant in me is forced to point out the fact that none of the alphabet titles hold any more prestige than the other in the year 2010, and that Haye would be far better advised to shoot for Wlad whilst taking the short end of the stick (as long as the brothers don’t try to force him to keep fighting one of the pair forever more).
I have a feeling this fight will be made and if it were to land in London, I’d be extremely happy. It would be the cherry on the cake with regard to the sport’s resurgence on our island and one of the most exciting fights which can be made in boxing right now.
Lastly, I caught the opening episode of the new 24/7 series featuring Floyd Mayweather and Shane Mosley and despite apprehension going in that I’d seen it all before, it was as excellent as ever. Here are a few notes:
- Mayweather’s schtick is getting tired. Despite claiming to be king of the trash talkers, Floyd’s material always seems second hand to me. I think we established some time ago that he lacked class (remember those comments about his crusade against PEDs being similar to the struggles of Martin Luther King?) yet his foul mouthed tirades against Mosley do nothing for the sport he claims to have “saved”. I understand he’s the heel here, yet his lack of respect sticks in the craw.
- Naazim Richardson is hypnotic when he speaks. I could quite happily sit and listen to him talk about “knocking grease off dudes” etc without ever getting bored. I like his realism also, his assured quotes leading up to the fight give Mosley fans real reasons to believe.
- There’s not a lot more to see from Floyd, which is what I was thinking about Pacquiao in his last appearance leading up to the Hatton fight. Imagine how boring their 24/7 will be should they ever decide to cross swords: Floyd hits Roger’s mitts repeatedly….sticks tongue out at camera….Manny prays….Roger says Manny is a “little dude” who “aint shit”…Freddie Roach leers as he replies, saying Roger is “an asshole”…..we cut to the Phillipines, people fly past on mopeds shouting “Mannneeeeee Pacquiaoooooo”…..Floyd carries out charity work looking like he’d rather be elsewhere…..the narrator explains how Manny’s camp all fit inside a shoe cupboard…….Roach says they’re “clingy people”…..Manny spars……Floyd doesn’t…………Zzzzzzzzzzz.
- I like the overhand right Shane was slinging at the poor guy holding a medicine ball against the ropes.
- How grating was it when the doping guys turned up at Mayweather’s gym and he started “yeyying” like a sanctimonious teenager. They should have made him drink his sample for ‘being silly’.
- Mosley’s confidence is unerring. Whatever happens, Floyd has himself a fight here, his toughest for many a long year.
- The Rocky track was utterly fantastic.
(I’ve added the episode to the tab at the head of the page)
*Coming next: Pavlik v Martinez Preview & Prediction
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