The Daily Bread Mailbag returns with Stephen “Breadman” Edwards tackling topics such as unified light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev, former champion Caleb Plant, former champion Kell Brook, Navarrete vs. Vargas, Roy Jones and more.
Emmanuel Navarrete and Rey Vargas are both favored to become three-division world champions this month. Despite winning all those titles and combing for a gaudy 72-1 ring record as divisional peers, they haven’t fought each other. It would have made sense at any point during the last four years, but there aren’t any plans for that fight. This is likely because of ties to promoters and television networks. In my mind, that’s every ingredient needed to create a super fight in modern boxing. Do you think these factors eventually lead to Vargas-Navarette becoming one of the fights boxing fans demand to see? Thank you!
Bread’s Response: This is a great match up that no one ever talks about. I would love to see it but as you know boxing is a sport and business. Hopefully a bigger fight can be made with Top Rank vs PBC and this one gets put in the Co Main Event.
Coach Bread,
Thank you for sharing your time and knowledge with us each week, bro, especially since you have such a busy schedule. My comment: In the Jan 28 edition of Daily Bread, you were breaking down how Philly produces fighters like no other city does, and as someone who grew up in the boxing gyms of Los Angeles, even I gotta give it up to y’all: Philadelphia is just next level, and I’m looking forward to seeing who else this great city produces (and congrats on reaching the Super Bowl, by the way). You also discussed other cities: NYC, Chicago, LA of course – and this got me to thinking about other boxing hotbeds outside of the U.S. Definitely need to shoutout London, Tokyo, Montreal, and so many others, but one that really stood out to me while going over different places around the world was no doubt Mexico City (aka: CDMX, DF, etc).
I was going through names of fighters who’ve won a world title from this boxing mecca; I tried sticking to your approach of only going back to 1980, and I still came up with quite a few names. Just off top: Juan Manuel Márquez, Rafael Márquez, Daniel Zaragoza, Miguel Angel González, Ricardo López, Marco Antonio Barrera, Lupe Pintor (he could be considered borderline since he did his thing in the late 70s, early 80s), César Bazán, Juan Carlos Salgado, José Luís Bueno, José Martín Castillo – and I’m sure I’m missing a lot others (again, from 1980 on). This doesn’t even take into consideration the many women from Mexico City who’ve won world titles, and I’m also separating boxers from the state of México (for example, Rey Vargas, Emanuel Navarrete, and one of my all-time favorites, Salvador Sánchez), which is the same region (like the DMV, for instance), but not considered part of the city.
For sure, I’m not making a direct comparison here since per capita is way different (because of the population disparity), but this is definitely an impressive list in its own right. I’ve always heard Mexican fighters say they try to avoid fighting Mexico City natives because no matter their record, they’re always a tough out. In the Un round más podcast, trainer Carlos Rosales did say that this has been changing lately and that there is less top talent in the city due to lack of support, which is unfortunate because a lot of talent will be lost. My question: I always read your column, and I’ve noticed people asking a lot about the best fighters, who was best at which division, etc. I’m not sure if someone has asked you this before, and if they have, please ignore this question, but I was wondering: what would you say is the greatest fight of all time per division? Or maybe even your personal favorite fight of all-time per division? I’m thinking it will be tough for another middleweight fight to top Hagler-Hearns, but of course this division has had so many incredible battles.
Thanks again, my guy, and all the best to you and yours.
José, Ventura, CA
Bread’s Response: This is a good question and it requires hours of research and film study, so I may get it wrong but I will try off the top of my head. The answers will be closer to my favorite fights with the best considered. I will name only fights that I watched in their entirety.
Heavyweight: Most pick the Thrilla in Manila, which was a great, great fight. But I feel like Frazier vs Ali 1 was a better fight. It was 4 years earlier. They fought at a higher skill level and it had the same amount of drama and viciousness. ABC showed a digital color version of the fight a couple of years ago and it was breath taking.
Cruiserweight: Holyfield vs Qawi. Just watch it.
Light heavyweight: Saad Muhammad vs Yaqui Lopez 2
Super Middleweight: Benn vs McClellan
Middleweight: Hagler vs Hearns
Junior Middleweight: Trinidad vs Vargas
Welterweight: Duran vs Leonard 1 was better than Leonard vs Hearns 1 as far as action round for round. But Leonard vs Hearns 1 had the dramatic ending. Honorable Mentions: Basilio vs Demarco 1 and Brown vs Trice 1.
Junior Welterweight: Pryor vs Arguello 1, Chavez vs Taylor 1, Ward vs Gatti 1.
Lightweight: Corrales vs Castillo1 but Robinson vs Gatti 1 was almost as good.
Junior Lightweight: Bobby Chacon vs Bazooka Limon 1982 fight is maybe the best I’ve seen Round for Round.
Featherweight: Pep vs Saddler II
Junior Featherweight: Morales vs Barrera 1
Bantamweight: Ayala vs Tapia 1
Junior Bantamweight: Roberto Quiroga vs Kid Akeem Anifowoshe is a gut wrenching fight, most haven’t seen.
Flyweight: Not sure
Junior Flyweight: Michael Carbajal vs Humberto Gonzalez 1
Strawweight: Ricardo Lopez vs Rosendo Alvarez 2
Good Day Bread, hope all is good.
The great trainer Brendan Ingle taught all his fighters to hold their hands by their waist. He said holding your hands high doesn’t really protect your head because the other guy can just punch around & through those gloves. The effect of hands high is to restrict your own field of vision of punches coming at you.It seemed to work for some of his fighters but it helps if, like Herol Graham or Prince Naseem, you naturally have the reflexes of a cat. You also have to remember the corollary, which is, if you hold your hands low you must always employ lateral movement & never stop moving. We’ve seen 2 British fighters come to grief for low hands recently because they didn’t remember that corollary. Firstly, Kid Galahad went backwards in a straight line v Kiko Martinez, secondly, CEJ got caught in a corner v Liam.Its also worth saying that if you hold your hands up you may not stop the incoming punches but you take some of the power off them. With ‘hands down’ if you get hit you get hit very clean.So Bread, how do you feel if you have kids in the gym who want to hold their hands down? Would you encourage or discourage that?
Bread’s Response: I was told by a HOF coach, that there is no wrong way to do things in boxing. It all depends on if it works or not. That being said I don’t agree with holding your hands down by your side but I can see why it has it’s benefits. It invites the opponent to punch more and open up. It allows the fighter with his hands down to counter more. It allows him to see better. Also I know plenty of fighters who get off better offensively with their hands lower. So I get it. And if I had a freak fighter, I would be willing to compromise.
But overall if you’re starting a fighter out in his first day in the gym. You teach him to fight with his hands up and feet under him. It’s how you build his foundation and later on if you find he can operate with his hands lower, you allow him to under specific circumstances. But that’s just me. I won’t criticize Brenden Ingle because it has worked for him. Opponents can punch around the guard. But I would rather a punch hit glove and face instead of just face. In order to fight with your hands down, you need freak reflexes, and unconventional punch technique. Everyone is not born with that…..
Hello Breadman,
I didn’t see or hear any criticism of Roy Jones, or anything about an elbow until I read it on BoxingScene. I don’t do social media so maybe that’s why. RJJ is one of the few people I listen to when it comes to boxing, you are another.I can probably count on both hands the number of people I always feel are worth listening to when they speak on boxing. This is without people trying to be provocative or hype/promote.I don’t mean it in an arrogant way it’s just that many people speak out of turn without thinking things through in detail, and don’t put the humble work in to really learn and become truly knowledgeable – this relates also to what you wrote about Eubank. It’s something I’ve been thinking about recently and want to write in about in another email. There are a few fighters treading that path, Yarde is another who in addition had the benefit of a machine behind him.Since my prior email to you in October I started getting phishing emails. I don’t know if it’s related or not but you may want to change your passwords as a precaution. Also, do not click on any links that anybody sends you always copy and paste the link into Google search (not the address bar), and if it comes up with a legit result it is probably safe to click that search result.
Much Respect as always
Bread’s Response: Roy Jones is a boxing savant. No trainer or boxer is perfect but Roy is great. He knows what he’s doing and he knows how to articulate it. It’s up to the student to receive it and execute. Eubank wanted to fight like Roy Jones. He idolized him. You can’t blame Roy Jones for that. I’m sure if Eubank came to Roy Jones and wanted to fight another style, Jones would have still trained him…
I don’t have an issue with Anthony Yarde. He took a tough fight, did his best and lost. He can hold his held up high.
Assalaam alaykum Mr Edwards,
I sincerely hope that you and yours are well. I believe that Anthony Yarde fought the fight of his life on Saturday against Artur Beterbiev. I think the scorecards reflected how much Yarde exceeded expectations, but were still woefully off when considering the actual action. Yarde had some fantastic moments, he landed some solid counters, a few good uppercuts, and a tight check hook that repeatedly caught Beterbiev. BUT the champion was never in danger in this fight. The outcome was clear after the third round. With the amount of punches he landed in rounds three and four, it was apparent that Beterbiev was in the process of breaking Yarde down. I think as people go back and rewatch this fight it will be more and more obvious that Yarde was operating at a level he’s never previously achieved but it still wasn’t going to be enough. Given that, I have three questions: 1) What did you think of the scorecards? I can’t find ANY way to have scored (four or) five of seven rounds for Yarde, but I was not watching with a pencil. 2) Given the promotional alignments at issue, do you think we’re any closer to light an undisputed champion at light heavyweight? 3) How much did Yarde improve his punch resistance? I noticed that CompuBox had Beterbiev landing 46% of his power punches. If you would have asked me before the fight, I would have said that NO ONE could take almost half of Beterbiev’s power shots for more than just a few rounds. I send all the best to you, my hopes and prayers for you and those near and dear to you. Thank you for all you do for this sport.
Peace, John
Bread’s Response:1) I watched the fight twice because I wanted to study how Beterbiev cut off the ring. He’s brilliant and very savvy. Someone taught him a trick long ago and he never goes in TOO deep and allows himself to be turned out. He never has to re track an opponent. I thought Beterbiev was winning but the fight was close. I didn’t watch with a pen and pad but I can see the fight being 4-3 either way.
You have to remember that Yarde was home and he was doing better than expected. He also threw some eye catching punches. I think people thought that Beterbiev was hurt more than he was. I think Beterbiev sort of reboots or resettles his attack if he’s hit with a good shot. Everyone had their opinion…..But it seems more to me he was resettling than actually hurt. Yarde took Beterbiev’s body language as him being hurt and rightfully attacked but he paid a dear price every time.
2)I have no idea how close they are to making Beterbiev vs Bivol. My guts tell me that Beterbiev vs Callum Smith will be made first. I assume this because they just tapped into the UK market with Yarde. So they may as well capitalize on it again vs Smith. Just a business hunch, I don’t know anything concrete.
3) Punch resistance is a tricky thing. I think it’s something you can increase but I also think there are many factors. Yarde doesn’t have a horrible chin, he has poor stamina which doesn’t allow him to recover fast once he’s hurt. He was ko’d with a jab by Kovalev but he was exhausted. Oxygen being carried throughout your body is why you get ko’d. Yarde has large muscle groups so those muscles require oxygen.
I also believe determination and the refusal to accept your opponents resistance is a factor. Yarde fought a very determined fight. He wanted to win and it showed. He had a high level of determination and he would’ve kept going if his corner didn’t step in. Your mind is a big factor in how well you take a punch. It’s not just a physical thing, but it’s also mental. Everyone gets hurt. But everyone can’t get past getting hurt.
One of the strange things about boxing is that the sport couldn’t survive without losing fighters to serve as trial horses and fill out cards but boxing is such a hard way to make a living if you’re not going to be very successful. Being the twelfth man on the Houston Rockets or Charlotte Hornets might hurt your ego but you’re still getting to play basketball for a good living. But a comparable boxer is getting his brain bashed in for change. How good does a fighter have to be to be worth the dangers of his involvement? Would you advise a fighter to retire if you think a top 10 rating is beyond his ceiling? And how deep into his career do you think that would be clear, granting that a few guys like Orlando Salido have been able to overcome slow starts (albeit rarely)?
Thanks, Luke
Virginia
Bread’s Response: I was just having this conversation with Strength and Conditioning Guru Tony Brady. I think Journeymen and Gatekeepers should be treated better. Prospects and contenders need them especially in this era, where no one wants to take 50/50 fights. I think promoters make a big mistake when they treat them less than. These brave fighters make the boxing world go around. But promoters over do it. They don’t get these guys wins in between their losses. So after a while, they burn them out and they don’t get approved by different commissions.
If a fighter can be competitive and he’s not getting stopped on the regular I wouldn’t advise him to retire. He has a right to make a living. If a fighter is not competitive and he gets hurts often then I feel like it’s time to hang them up. But as long as he has self esteem and he always try to win, I don’t have an issue with him going forward. Look at Johnnie Rice. He doesn’t have a great record but he’s a real fighter and he’s good enough to upset some guys. Rice has self esteem and he tries to win every time. He’s an example of a guy who needs to be treated right by whatever Promoters he’s affiliated with.
Hello Mr. Edwards, Long time reader, first time writer. Thank you so much for your time and dedication to your mailbag. Wishing you and your family all the best!2 questions; (forgive me if this has been asked and answered) What are some of your most favorite upsets that you predicted actually happening? If you have any, can you please share some or a story about the late great Vernon Forrest? I greatly appreciate you hope to meet you one day!
Thank you,
Sandman Amir – Bay2LA
Bread’s Response: I have so many upsets. Let’s see Leonard vs Hagler. I told all of my friends that Leonard would win. I come from a Ray Leonard family. My grand pop loved him so I rode with his opinion. The only person who was against Leonard was my step dad. He was a blue collar hard working guy and most didn’t like the pretty boy Leonard but I knew he was much more….
Recently I picked Anthony Young as a 12 to 1 underdog to best Sadam Ali. I also predicted that Adonis Stevenson would score a 1st round ko over Chad Dawson. Not sure who was the favorite but I knew Stevenson would win early. Also Bernard Hopkins over Kelly Pavlik.
I think my best one recently was Cotto over Martinez for the lineal middleweight title. Cotto had lost to Mayweather and Trout at 154 in 2012 and he was considered a well past it fighter in 2014. Martinez had the leg injury but he was bigger, he was the champion and before the fight he was thought to be too much for Cotto. Cotto beats him up and stops him and people tried to discredit Cotto. I couldn’t understand it. Even the knee injury was aggravated because Martinez was knocked down. Had he not lost his equilibrium due to a punch, his knee wouldn’t have given out. He wasn’t imping into the ring. I have more but those stand out.
Good Morning Bread,
First time question, long-time reader. Before I start, thank you for taking the time and effort to share your insights into the world of boxing: I have no issue saying I look forward to your mailbox each and every week. I know you’re a fan of succinct points/questions: I shall do my best. I was thinking about the talents of Oleksandr Usyk, and how he has been able to more than hold his own at Heavyweight. I think the question we have had about how fighters of similar size such as Muhammed Ali and Holyfield would cope with the size of today’s Heavyweights has been answered somewhat: I see no reason why they couldn’t hold their own and more with access to modern-day training and conditioning. Which leads me onto how weight carries over in lower divisions. We’ve seen Pacquaio successfully campaign from Flyweight through to Super Welterweight: what is the determining factor as to whether as fighter is able to successfully move up? I have in mind Inoue in particular: there’s no more than an inch or so in height between him and Pacquaio, but there is very little talk of him being successful anything past Junior Featherweight. Is it the worry his power won’t carry across or are there intangibles that only the fighter and trainer know? Perhaps Pacquiao could have remained unbeaten had he stuck fighting fighters around his natural weight/height: it seems he dared to be great. Putting aside any questions of how performance enhancement may have been a determining factor: I’d love to know what your thoughts on this.
Kind Regards,
Dan, West Yorkshire, England.
Bread’s Response: I have always believed 6’3- 215-220lbs is all you need as a heavyweight. Working with heavyweights in the gym, most men over 240lbs have stamina issues. Hitting the pads with a fighter 160lbs is totally different than hitting the pads with a 240lbs man. The larger you are, the more stress it puts on your heart to pump blood to the body parts. The taller you are, the less coordinated you usually are because it takes longer for your body to get the signal from your brain. There are always exceptions to the rules. Like Tyson Fury for example. But for the most part my assessment holds to be true.
So if a man Usyk’s size or Ali’s size is physically tough and can take the punches, they usually have an advantage. I’m glad you brought up modern technology. Whenever you compare fighters you have to take that into consideration or take it out of consideration. So if you put Ali in this era, imagine, he’s going to have all of the modern advancements. He would fight less and last longer. Are you kidding me? Ali would be the GOAT in any era.
I also don’t like when critics exclude heavyweights out of the P4P argument. It’s ridiculous. Just because they don’t jump divisions doesn’t mean their skill can’t be appreciated. Usyk giving up 20lbs to Joshua and winning is more impressive than a random fighter moving up from 122lbs to 126lbs. No disrespect to the smaller fighters but I think it’s easier to weight jump up to 140lbs which seems to be the special line.
After 140lbs for the most part special or great fighters can do it. Just look at the examples of the fighters who have won titles from 147 to 160. You have to be special to do it. There are guys I don’t consider special who have won 3 division titles below 147 but not too many over 147.
I think it comes down to the BELL CURVE. There is a larger pool of men competing from 147 to 175. So the competition is deeper. Also there is more weight in between the divisions as you go higher. So for example there is 105, 108, 112, 115, 118, 122, 126, 130, 135 and 140. After 140 the jump is 7lbs is not 3lbs or 4lbs or 5lbs. So anatomically the men start to look different. Their bone structure changes. It’s not just a height and weight thing. So you will see fighters who aren’t quite as special winning titles at say 115 and 118. But you won’t see it as often at say 147 to 154. In fact we haven’t had a 147lbs champion win a 154 title since Floyd Mayweather in 2013. A whole decade!
Manny Pacquiao is just a special fighter and it’s hard to compare any smaller fighter to him. The stars have to line up for a fighter to do what he did. Pacquiao was 16 when he turned pro. He’s from a very poor area and most likely his nutrition was not good. So he was far from fully grown. So that attributed to the low weight he started out at. He also has a large head, large hands and large calves. He’s small everywhere else but those 3 body parts are huge. So that allows a flyweight to fight welterweights. Also Pacquiao is extremely athletic and fast. TV doesn’t do him any justice. It slows him down. But he’s super fast, he’s physically tough and he has a wealth of know how in the ring. Pacquiao is sort of short for welterweight but he has extreme physicality. But Physicality tops out. For as great as Nonito Donaire and Monster Inoue are. They just don’t have the physicality that Pacman has. He’s much more dense as them and at least equally athletic. Pac is one of one.
Breadman, with Kell Brook in the news lately, I thought I’d write in about his career. We talk about fighters that have been screwed by the system such as choc and GGG, but I also think Brook falls into this category, when he was world champion no one wanted to fight him. I strongly believe he would have beaten and unified against Thurman and Garcia, but he was never given the option. He then did one of the ballsiest moves I’ve ever seen and went up 2 weight divisions to fight one of the biggest killers in recent memory, who at the time was at his apex and showing no signs of slippage. No one in his own division wanted anything to do with him, but Brook chased greatness. Brook came out of that fight with huge credit, but it was of course detrimental to his career, he then drained himself down to fight another killer in Spence, and was winning the fight until his conditioning let him down, no doubt caused by his weight drain, again I think he would have won that fight if the stars were aligned different. So the question is, where would Brook rank had he unified at welter, defended and won against Spence, and then gone up to 154, won a world title or more and then retired undefeated, all of which I believe to have been more than possible, had he not been avoided and with better management to map this out for him?
Bread’s Response: First off let me say that I think whoever posted that video of Brook is a scumbag. It’s obvious he was comfortable around them and for them to betray his trust like that is no good.
I always liked Brook as a fighter. He was the 1st man to beat a prime Shawn Porter which is no easy out. I feel like PBC sent Spence overseas to fight him because they had the most confidence in Spence in bringing that belt back. Brook was a real.
I will say that I rated Brook very highly when he was an active champion but after the GGG fight I think he went to money fights too soon instead of staying active and getting better. The matchmaking in this era is just poor all around. I feel like fighters go the money routes too early in their progression and it’s why this era doesn’t produce great fighters.
I can’t say where I would rank Brook had he retired undefeated because he didn’t. If my Aunt had a penis, she would be my Uncle. I feel like Brook was too small for 154 but he struggled to make 147. I feel like had he had that under control and not fought GGG he would’ve been hell on the field at 147. He gave Spence a serious tussle. But weight is a real thing when you’re heavily muscled.
Brook won’t go to the HOF but those of this era know he was real. But such is life. He chose the big money fight over getting better and he got big money but he didn’t get better. Sometimes it’s just how the ball bounces. However, I respect him for taking real smoke.
Whats going on Breadman.
I just watched the plant benavidez press conference. Man benavidez and his pops are hella in their feelings lol. I heard benavidez senior mention they are working with memo heredia for this fight. Huge red flag. Were u guys able to get vada testing for this fight? Everytime i hear a fighter starts working with this guy it always makes me uncomfortable. All of sudden guys start looking 10 years younger and 10 times bigger when he joins a fighters camp. Marquez Arce ect. Either hes that much better than all the other strength n conditioning coaches out there or hes still playing dirty and getting away with it.Beterbiev vs yarde was a great fight i gotta give yarde props he fought his ass off and had Beterbiev hurt a few times but Beterbiev is a beast he hid it well and got the stoppage. I bet the under i lost money on the fight lol. Who do u got if Beterbiev and bivol fight? I think its going to look a lot like the fight Beterbiev against the nail with biev stopping bivol late in a great fight. Time definitely is not on his side though he needs to make that fight asap. Lastly what advice would u give somebody looking to become a boxing trainer? What are the most important fundamentals? Love your mailbags bro keep doing your thing and best of luck with the benavidez fight. -Joel from the bay
Bread’s Response: Yes Caleb Plant has VADA testing for this fight. It was part of Caleb’s demands. Yes I heard the comment also about Heredia. Hopefully VADA did too.
Beterbiev vs Yarde was an excellent fight for light heavyweight in terms of activity. Yarde performed well but I feel like he had to fight too hard to get his work done. Beterbiev carried him really fast. I don’t think Beterbiev was hurt as much as everyone was saying he was. I think he’s just not a prideful fighter in terms of taking a second to gather his positioning and sort of rebooting. It’s his way of weathering a storm and keeping you on the same side of the ring. If you follow him he turns you out and then your back is on the ropes. If you don’t he closes in you again.
Beterbiev is not flashy but he knows how to box. I still like Beterbiev over Bivol. It’s a great match up but I don’t think he looked vulnerable. I think Yarde performed better than expected.
My advice would be to go for it if you want to train and find one fighter and put your all into him before you start jumping around trying to train multiple fighters. I trained one fighter for 3 years before I took on anyone else. But Always go for your dream.
As for technical advice, you can never stop learning. You can always keep getting better as a trainer. When you start training any fighter, at any level have them shadow box and move them around the ring. You fight in a ring. I feel like boxing today starts with pad work and throwing punches. But boxing starts with the feet and your rhythm. If you’re building a 10 story building you don’t start on the 10th floor, you start at the bottom with the foundation and work your way up.
Hi Mr. Edwards,
Want to ask you some questions on Beterbiev. Do you think he punches harder than Adonis Stevenson and Sergey Kovalev at their primes, or compared to great Bob Foster? Is he already cracked the top 10 all-time light heavyweights list? And how do you see Beterbiev fare in mythical matchups against light heavyweight greats of the past and present -Sam Langford, Archie Moore, Billy Conn, Bob Foster, Michael Spinks, Roy Jones Jnr, Bernard Hopkins, Andre Ward, Adonis Stevenson?
Many Thanks, Mike
Bread’s Response: All are great punchers but punchers come in different types and sometimes people don’t understand that. Foster and Kovalev are what I call SWORDSMEN. They hit you with long slashing sharp shots.
Adonis Stevenson is a Speed Thudder, he’s a mix of being fast but also has thudding power.
Beterbiev in my opinion part of the Heavy Handed Debilitator Crew. I think he’s more heavy handed than they are. I think he needs less room to do damage. I think he’s physically stronger than them. But as far as who’s the better puncher. I think Foster is, out of all of them but all are great punchers in their own right.
No I don’t think Beterbiev is a top 10 light heavyweight. But he has a nice resume thus far and if he beats Bivol he would have a strong case for the HOF.
I don’t like comparing fighters from eras too far gone…I would pick Moore over Beterbiev. Moore is too clever and just as good a puncher.
Conn vs Beterbiev is a toss up.
Foster and Beterbiev is also a toss up but I’m not as high on Foster as some historians. I feel like he was stopped too easily against heavyweights although there was a size discrepancy other great smaller fighters gave better performances vs heavyweights.
I think Spinks would beat Beterbiev in chess match.
Roy Jones vs Beterbiev is a toss up. Roy had great stamina so he wouldn’t wear out. But his penchant of going to the ropes bothers me in picking him absolutely although I lean towards him slightly.
The Hopkins that beat Tarver is right with Beterbiev. Hopkins was in beautiful shape vs Tarver. If I’m not mistaken he used Mackey Shilstone.
Andre Ward may be a little too crafty but it’s a very tough. I would have liked to see more of Ward at 175lbs. That’s real 50/50 but my gut says Ward. Ward is just so alert, I assume he doesn’t get hit with the kill shot. But I do wonder if he’s strong enough to fight Beterbiev on the inside or would he box.
I think Beterbiev would stop Adonis Stevenson in a shootout. In shootout of big punchers take the guy with the better chin and pedigree.
Who are the 5 best Philly fighters of all time? And 5 best current Philly fighters? (In no particular order so not to upset anyone, since I’m sure you have personal relationships with some) Why is Floyd’s obsessive work ethic so often looked over? Or just not mentioned at all? I’ve had people tell me that he is one of the most naturally gifted boxers ever and I just don’t agree. To me, that is Roy Jones Jr or someone like that. Of course Floyd is extremely athletic. But what separates Floyd IMO was his obsession/dedication AND most importantly his refusal to partake in substance abuse. I’m not a race baiter but I can only imagine if he had the same record, work ethic, etc and was white he woulda been the biggest athlete of all time in any sport. Weird.
After watching Loma’s fights against Teofimo and Ortiz, I believe Tank Davis would be a TERRIBLE match up for him and now I feel Mayweather promotions missed out on a huge opportunity to get tank that defining victory. Do you think Loma could withstand Tanks onslaught or would he fall to Tank in your opinion? Also do you have a prediction Loma/Haney?
Adrian Soto-Pérez from NC
Bread’s Response: Top 5 Philly Fighters of All Time. In no order.
Bernard Hopkins, Joe Frazier, Tommy Loughran, Joey Giardello and Matthew Saad Muhammad.
Top 5 Current Philly Fighters in no order: Danny Garcia, Julian Williams, Jaron Ennis, Jaron Ennis, Tevin Farmer.
I think everyone knows Floyd’s conditioning is next level as is his work ethic. I have had several trainers talk to me about it. The great Naazim Richardson once told me that Floyd’s gift is in his CONDITIONING. Those who know, know.
So you think Floyd would be the biggest athlete of all time if he were white. Interesting….
I think Tank is special. And he may not beat everybody in this era but he would win way more than he loses in big fights. I think Loma may have been a little too advanced for Tank before the pandemic but not anymore. But you have to be mindful that Lopez fights at long range more than Tank does. So Tank and Loma would scrap in the mid range. It would’ve been awesome to watch.
At this moment I like Haney by decision over Loma.
Send Questions to dabreadman25@hotmail.com