Zab Got Zonked By King Khan

I tried to give Zab Judah the benefit of the doubt in thinking that his experience would help carry him to the end of a 12-round fight in which he would lose by decision to Amir Khan. Instead, Judah proved again that he can't hold par with the top guns in the sport.

After watching the match, I wasn't sure if Khan won because he fought really well, or was it because Judah fought so poorly. Khan certainly was the more aggressive of the two, he out punched Judah by a wide margin. However Khan's connect percentage was low. Judah's performance was atrocious in all categories. If Judah had a fight strategy for dealing with Khan, it was only apparent to himself. Even Judah's trainer six time world champion "Sweet Pea" Whitaker seemed perplexed as to what Judah was doing in the ring. Like a deer in the headlights, Judah looked confused. He constantly let Khan get off first and back him towards the ropes. Rarely did Judah counter punch to challenge Khan's frequent encroachments.

Judah's course of action should have been to stand toe-to-toe with Khan and trade shots, or back up and then bang Khan as he moved forward. Judah did neither, and that's why he was face down in the 5th round after receiving a controversial body shot, and then counted out (KO)! Maybe the shot was low. But there is a high probability Judah would have landed on the canvas in the near future anyway.

Like a true champion, Khan finished his man. Yet there is still the question of whether the young gun can win a tough close match. To present none of Khan's opponents have pushed him to his limit, with the exception of the flash knock out he received earlier in his career. Beating Zab Judah makes Khan a good fighter, but certainly not the best. If Khan wants to raise his stature, he has got to win against someone like Floyd Mayweather Jr. or Manny Pacquiao. Only then will Khan be seen as exceptional.

The Buzz: Amir Khan vs. Zab Judah - Press Conference (HBO)

The next big fight on the horizon is Amir Khan vs. Zab Judah. This fight will either excite fans or dissapoint them depending on the frame of mind Zab Judah enters the ring.

Zab has won 5 world titles between the junior welterweight and welterweight divisions. However, he has had notable mental lapses during his professional boxing career. After Zab was knocked senseless in the second round of a contest with Kostya Tszuy on November 3, 2001, his actions after the bout landed him a $75,000 fine and a 6 month suspension for throwing a stool across the ring and shoving his gloved fist into the neck of the referee that evening. On April 6, 2006, Zab hit Floyd Mayweather Jr. below the belt in round 10 of their match. Both fighters' entourages entered the ring and a near riot ensued. The contest concluded with a unanimous decision in favor of Mayweather Jr., and Zab was fined $350,000 and his boxing license was revoked for 1 year. Dramatic incidences aside, Zab also has a reputation of coming out strong in the early rounds of fights, and then losing fortitude and focus in the later rounds. All of which makes one question Zab's ability to stay mentally and emotionally connected to his performance inside the ring.

Despite the controversy, Zab is on the comeback trail, after winning the IBF junior welter weight title. A decision over Amir Khan would return Zab to his former glory as the best in the division. Physically neither Zab or Amir holds an advantage over the other. Their strength and speed is about equal. Amir is a bit taller and lankier, but that should not pose too much of a problem for the more experienced Zab. In my opinion the winner of this fight is the one who settles into their fight plan first, makes the best adjustments between rounds and stays mentally focused.

My prediction is that Amir Khan gets a brutal education on what it takes to be the best of the best, but he gets the win by a 12 round decision. Zab has not proven to me that he adjust well to adversity in the ring, and he is prone to losing his concentration when he is not winning a match. But Zab will compose himself well enough to give Amir Khan all he can handle.

HBO POST FIGHT INTERVIEW David Haye v Wladimir Klitschko 'Broken Toe' R...

I thought I might take a break from writing my long tedious post series, "Resistance Training For Boxers" to talk about the David Haye vs. Wladimir Klitschko fight that took place in Hamburg, Germany (Imtech Arena) on July 2, 2011.

Klitschko, A.K.A Dr. Shock, bested Haye in a 12-round unanimous decision to become boxing's latest unified heavyweight world champion. It's a feat that hasn't been accomplished since Lenox Lewis outscored Evander Holyfield in their November 13, 1999 re-match.

There was a lot of hype leading up to the bout coming from the mouth's of both fighters, but Haye clearly tallied the most promises of destruction and defeat. But what counts is the fact that Klitschko outscored Haye by a wide margin on every judge's score card, effectively telling Haye to take foot, and then insert in mouth.

I am by no stretch of the imagination a fan of Wladimir Klitscho. His style of boxing is boring and rudimentary. But I give credit where it is due. Klitscho has consistently delivered convincing performances in the ring by knocking out 85% of his opponents (whoa). Even in his loss to Lenox Lewis on June 21, 2003, Klitscho fought valiantly, until the match was halted in the sixth round due to a nasty cut that opened over Klitscho's eye in the third round. Having survived the challenge, Lewis considered Klitscho enough of a threat that he refused an 8-figure salary offered him for a re-match, and then conveniently retired to save face.

Klitscho will never be an exciting fighter to watch, but he did show some skills I wasn't expecting from him against Haye. He was noticeably a bit more relaxed and agile through the upper body. Probably due to the fact that Haye represents the most athletic and fastest fighter Klitscho has had to face in the ring. Klitscho had no choice, but to get a little silky to catch the elusive Haye. Secondly, he incorporated a left hook into his two-punch (left jab, right cross) arsenal. What's next? Dr. Shock might actually throw 3 and 4 punch combinations in his next fight.

Haye repeatedly fired his patented hay-maker (over-hand right cross) mostly unsuccessfully, due to Klitscho's ability to neutralized the majority of Haye's attempts with his long jab. Occasionally each fighter managed to land a right hand. But Klitscho's right proved to be the more punishing of the pair. When Haye wasn't busy missing shots, he spent an excessive amount of time nose diving onto the mat. It was like a backyard game of slip and slide.

After the contest, Haye took off one of his boxing boots inside the ring to show everyone his broken toe during the HBO post-fight interview. When questioned about the timing of the injury, he announced it occurred 3 weeks prior to the fight. So Haye said he was unable to push off his right foot to effectively throw his hay-maker punch. My thoughts, if a fighter decides to compete despite having an influencing injury, then you don't bother to complain about it after the fact. Worst, don't even mildly or indirectly offer it as an excuse as to why you lost. It's lame to do so!

Final words, the fight did not live up to the publicised expectations. Fireworks were promised, but fight fans barely got a spark. However, Wladimir Klitschko emerged as the undisputed best heavyweight in boxing today. I don't like his style, but I respect his efforts and accomplishments.

I gave David Haye a reality rehab._Wladimir Klitschko