May The Best Man Win

I have mentioned before in previous blogs about a habit of mine calling the next fight – UFC or Boxing – that I am attending or watching as being the best fight of the year. I guess it is a way of justifying it to myself, especially if I am paying to travel and attend. I prefer to think of it more as me being positive and looking forward to the next great fight.

The last fight I went to, that was not the case which is rare for me. David Haye v Audley Harrison turned into something of a farce. You can never predict the outcome of a fight with massive confidence, there are so many factors which can affect the outcome. However, that was one which turned out to be a farce and which it should not have been a surprise, I still expected more from the fight.

The most surprising thing that night however was not the fight itself. It was the show and the hugely poor quality of it. I have been to quite a number of fights in recent years and this not only had an embarrassingly poor undercard, but the production and show itself was awful. Not only were there no big screens in the arena, but there was no music between fights, no entertainment, no nothing. It smacked of being a cheap production and along with garbage fights, the night was a let down for me. You can never be sure of entertaining fights, but the least a promoter can do is put on a show and entertain fans.

The other downside that night was being sat around a bunch of muppets. I joke around as much as the next person, but these kids were really out of order with poor tasting jokes and various racist comments. I was embarrassed to be there with HJ and my parents.

So off the back of that pretty poor experience, tonight is the night of redemption. Tonight is Juan Manuel Marquez against Michael Katsidis. The only downside tonight is not being able to watch Arthur Abraham and Carl Froch, but I can deal with that. This fight has all the makings of a fight of the year – in fact I will go on record now and claim that this will be one of the top three fights this year. The styles are fabulous and this will be a brawl. I am supporting Katsidis tonight for two reasons. Firstly, as there are so many Mexican fans around and attending, that the Aussies will be outnumbered. Even during the Ashes, I can be impartial enough to cheer an Aussie on. And secondly, after the sad death of his brother recently, this fight easily could have been postponed, but he decided to fight. Credit to the guy. I like Marquez too however so I cannot really lose tonight, all I ask for is a cracking fight, and I am 99% sure they will deliver. And even if it does not, we’ll get some music, glitz and glamour just to entertain us a fraction if all else fails. Marquez to win in the 9th round for me.

Random Sporting Thoughts

Plenty of excitement around the start of the NHL season – I am in my element at this time of year with all my favourite sports up and running. I expect the usual super powers to return to the top and fight for the Stanley Cup this year – I expect a winner from the Red Wings, Capitals and the Penguins. I feel as if injuries really hampered the Red Wings last year, while I believe the Olympics were not particularly beneficial for the other two especially. If pushed, I’ll take a punt on the Capitals.

I am genuinely excited about boxing in November and December. Some top class fights scheduled and hoping to get to the Katsidis v Marquez fight which could be an absolute gem. Khan v Maidana should be fascinating, while Froch and Abraham will be a corker too. Then there is Pacquiao v Cheatarito which should be fun to watch also. Happy days.

Commonwealth Games in Delhi. I’m not there, and I do not know anybody who is. That said, the media coverage has been incredible negative and hard not to believe that there are some major issues out there. Hearing the swimmers fall ill due to an alleged contamination of the practise pool is pretty shocking, and that is just one of a number of issues reported. All that in mind, just how important are these games these days? Not very I’m afraid to say.

I was saddened to hear about Rugby League player Terry Newton committing suicide a couple of weeks ago. A great player who was serving a suspension for taking an illegal substance. So sad that nobody seemed to be aware of the troubles he was going through. Maybe a reminder and wake up call for the Rugby Football League and many other federations to improve their care and support of suspended, injured and retired athletes.

Another star cyclist reported to have failed a drugs test, and a handful of other riders also. I have the utmost respect for the UCI and there is no doubt in my mind that they lead the way in sport as the most rigorous and ruthless drug-testers around. At the same time, I cannot help but feel that they are killing cycling. Actually, it is the cyclists who are killing it. How many federations cover up positive drug tests, match-fixing in order to protect their interests? I would guess at a fair number of them. Sad, but very likely to be true.

Looking forward to a Canadian Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday and Week 5 of the NFL season. I’ll go on record and offer my tips – may as well revel in my success or look like a total muppet.
Bengals -6.5
Atlanta -2.5
Texans to win and -2.5
Saints -6.5
Chargers -5.5 (Sorry dude, what do I know?)
Lions/Rams over 42.5 (my favourite bet of the round)