HBO Presents Boxing after Dark Sept. 11th, 2010

HBO will put on another Boxing After Dark (BAD) program live from the Palms hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. This should keep some of us at ease until the Juan Manuel Marquez vs Michael Katsidis fight Thanksgiving weekend.

I'm intrigued to watch Saturday night, because it will showcase a few of the featherweight, and lightweight divisions top fighters. Two of the  matches will take place on the live broadcast which is set to air at 11pm/est.

Opening the card will be a 135 pound battle between two undefeated fighters as Anthony Peterson (30-0, 20 KO's) fighting out of Memphis will step inside the ring against Brandon Rios (24-0, 18KO's) from Oxnard, California.Only John Murray who is ranked as the #8 lightweight in the world holds an undefeated record in the top 25 fighters of the division.

According to HBO's official preview Peterson is known for his footwork and technique, while Rio's is known for his aggression and powerful combo's. Peterson is the 21st ranked lightweight in the world vs Brandon Rio's who is ranked 18th.

The undefeated record of both boxers stands out as a major accomplishment since they are both in the top 25. Experts paint a picture of Anthony Peterson as a rising star and one of the best fighters in the division.

Here is a prediction from doghouseboxing.com

"This pairing of two mid-twenties American former amateur standout, undefeated contenders looks better each time you look at it. It may not turn out a thriller, but who knows? Both have a lot to gain with a win on HBO - national exposure and a shot at one of the two WBA lightweight champs. (I can't believe I have to write that.) This could go either way, but I'll go with Peterson, who just knows how to win rounds."



The Main Event of the night will feature Yuriorkis Gamboa (18-0, 15 KOs) of Miami, Fla taking on Orlando Salido (34-10, 22 KOs) of Sonora, Mexico scheduled for 12 rounds in a unification match.

Gamboa won a gold medal at the 2004 summer Olympic games and is currently ranked as the #5 featherweight in the world. He won a title after 15 professional fights, and is considered one of the best pound for pound fighters today. He is known for early knockouts, quick speed, and above average power.

On a fast track to stardom, Gamboa won a gold medal for Cuba in the flyweight boxing division at the 2004 Summer Olympic Games, and captured a featherweight title after just 15 pro fights. He’s widely considered one of the best pound-for-pound fighters today, with blazing hand speed, supplemented by brute power that often puts thunderstruck opponents on the canvas in the early rounds.

His opponent, Orlando Salido is ranked #10 in the world, and will rely on his experience and knock out power to get past Gamboa. With only a one year age difference, experience wouldn't seem to be a big advantage, but Salido skipped the amateur ranks and went right into the pros at age 16. Salido


Doghouseboxing predictions

"It says here that Gamboa's name will be penciled into pound-for-pound lists in very short order, probably by 2011. Sure, he has the defensive liabilities that come with such unabashed aggressiveness and combination punching, but outside of the likes of Manny Pacquiao, he's among the most explosive offensive forces in the sport today. His combination of speed and power amazes, and he'll prove too much for veteran titlist Salido, though this probably won't be a cakewalk, as Salido's been in with a lot of tough pros and can handle himself. Unfortunately for him, he'd need more than that to last with Gamboa."


Personally, I like the two matches for the weekend and can't argue with doghouseboxing's predictions. If you get a chance to watch these two fights this weekend, you probably won't be disappointed. It might not be Manny vs Floyd, but it's always good to keep up with other names in Boxing.

The Ultimate Fighter Season 12 Team GSP vs Team Koscheck

 Next week is the premier of The Ultimate Fighter 12, so I decided to open up the blog with some thoughts on the upcoming season.

I didn't get a lot of enjoyment out of last years show, mostly because of all the behind the scenes politics when it came to the trainers. We finally did see Rampage vs Evans, but with Rampage quitting the UFC, only to come back and have the match later, it really goes to show how great the UFC is with Dana White in charge.

Sneak Peek: Ultimate Fighter - Team GSP vs Team Koscheck

This year I'm going to give this show a real shot. George St. Pierre is in my mind, the top fighter in all of combat sports and if you have read anything about him via his blogs, or the great article about him in Mens Health  Then you know that he is one of the best in the world at what he does. I'm sure anyone that gets into the house would love to be trained by GSP.

This also builds up the rematch against Koscheck from UFC 74 back in August of 2007. GSP won by unanimous decision and it should be interesting to see throughout the show what Koscheck is thinking for the rematch.

GSP hasn't lost a match in almost three years. He's defeated the likes of Hughes, Matt Serra, Jon Fitch, BJ Penn, Alves, and his most recent win against Dan Hardy back in March.

Koscheck goes into the season on a three match winning streak, but his list of victories doesn't stand up to GSP. Some say that this should be a hell of a fight between the two trainers, but in my opinion this is an easy victory for GSP.

I'll post my thoughts on season one later this week.

Welcome to the blog.

Hayabusa has been a trending topic this week. I first saw him in 1996

If you know me, (which hopefully you don't.) you are aware that I'm a big fan of all things fighting. I think it probably started as a kid growing up when my father would let my brother and I watch Pro Wrestling before Saturday Night Live came on at 11:30pm on a saturday night. I was an 80's child who loved the Immortal Hulk Hogan along with all of my other first grade friends.

In the mid to late 90's when we got our first taste of the information super highway, I learned all about Extreme Championship Wrestling, Japanese wrestling, and got my first taste of the Mexican Lucha Libre scene at When Worlds Collide 1995.


I've also been a fan of UFC and Boxing ever since I was growing up, so this blog will also touch on the real and the "fake". To me it's all entertainment. It doesn't have to be "real" to be enjoyable. I've seen more pro wrestling matches from NOAH or Dragon Gate that were more enjoyable and worth my time than things I've seen for $50 a pop on PPV.


If Professional Wrestling isn't your thing, I understand, if you don't like Boxing, not a problem, if you only like UFC, you probably are a douche bag who just started watching it in 2006 and then decided to train to be a fighter, which probably means you're a homo.


I'm a normal, in shape, almost thirty year old man with a fulltime job, a life filled with great friends, and a loving girlfriend, but I have one guilty pleasure. That guilty pleasure is the art of athletic combat and entertainment, and since my girlfriend wants nothing to do with it, and most of my friends can only find UFC to be enjoyable, I will spill out my thoughts here on this blog!


On a side note, I love the Cleveland Indians, so the blog name comes from that, along with the fact that one of the best blogs out there is ran by CubsFan who gives you everything you ever need to know about Mexican style wrestling.


So strap in kids, and enjoy the trip down memory lane, the blogs that will get you excited for the weeks to come in pro wrestling, and anything else that might be on my mind!