Colonial War

Two big, big men in the "search and destroy" mode of fighter, both vulnerable to big punches themselves, in a fight against one another that's a dark horse candidate for fight of the year in 2007... sounds like something you'd wanna watch on TV, huh? No such luck, despite rumors that the MSG Network may broadcast it. When Jean-Marc Mormeck and David Haye do battle this weekend, you'll just have to imagine it in your head, then read about it afterwards.

Here's how it looks in my head:

Jean-Marc Mormeck is the acknowledged boss at cruiserweight (200 lbs.), the division just south of heavyweight. He is, more or less, a human battering ram. A French one. He splashed onto the scene in the United States when he toppled well-regarded Wayne Braithewaite in a rare unification fight by stalking him and hitting him until he couldn't take it anymore. Before that, he had quality wins over top-flight cruiserweights Dale Brown and Virgil Hill. When I saw him against Braithwaite, I thought, "I don't know how you beat a guy like that. He just keeps coming and doesn't care if you hit him." It was an appealing style, since most boxing fans want to see a lot of leather traded. Turns out the way you beat him is to push him off you and keep him at a distance with power shots, which is what O'Neil Bell did to him in 2006 in a fight of the year candidate that had numerous potential rounds of the year within. Bell stood up to the blows Mormeck landed then knocked him out late, but in a rematch, Mormeck overcame exhaustion and some moments where he was stunned to win a decision.

Brit David Haye is less of a grinder, but he brims with natural talent. He's knocked out 16 of his 17 victims. He's got a lot of speed, the thing he thinks will make him stand out when he makes a permanent move to heavyweight. When he hits people, it's like he erases them. He's young and fresh, but he's also been knocked out himself. But I've run into a problem here: I can't say much about Haye's experience, because he hardly has any major victories on his record. When your "best career win" is against a fighter who was 37 and had defeated no one of note and didn't turn pro until he was 31, I'm not terribly impressed. Knocking out someone in the first round in your heavyweight debut who'd lasted nine rounds against a more established heavyweight three years earlier is kind of neat, but again, it doesn't prove all that much much. That Haye fought at heavyweight earlier this year and had to shrink nearly 30 pounds to get back down to cruiser will resurrect long-held questions about Haye's stamina, although Haye says he's slowly shed the pounds over a five-month period.

That said, Haye's a dangerous man for Mormeck. Mormeck's 35. Haye is 27. Haye is hittable, but he could ably mimic Bell's successful formula of power + distance = Mormeck sleepytime. Mormeck can fight from a distance if he has to, but he's clearly more comfortable fighting on the inside, and he's going to have to walk through some big shots by Haye to do so. The briefest of contemplations of this dynamic reveals its inherent potential for drama. But since it's up against one of the two or three biggest fights of the year -- Miguel Cotto-Shane Mosley is also Saturday -- I suppose it would have been hard for a U.S. station to counter-program. I beg of someone to put this Mormeck-Haye thing on YouTube when it ends.

My prediction: Mormeck by late-round KO. Mormeck doesn't overwhelm people with one-punch power, but he does put a hurt on them over time. He's way more experienced than Haye, which I think will work to his advantage rather than his detriment. And it's unsettling the way Haye struggles to make weight and fantasizes about moving up to heavyweight. I think even if he's made the cruiserweight limit easier this time around, it's still a struggle and he doesn't much want to make weight anymore, which means he may be distracted and tired.
Confidence: 70%. No, I wouldn't be remotely surprised if Haye caught Mormeck with something big early and finished him off quickly. I just think it's significantly more likely that Mormeck's experience beats Haye's youthful assets and vulnerabilities.
My allegiance: Mormeck. What's not to like about a really good French fighter? Die, stereotypes.



















Who said the French can't fight?

Boxing News Of The Weird And So Forth

Stick to the fists, O'Neil. And come back soon. We miss you. (from antique-used-tools.com)

• Random. Oh, O'Neil Bell. The most recent cruiserweight (200 lbs.) champion to unify all the belts of the various organizations that give out belts missed his ESPN date Wednesday because, according to the Associated Press, he "was dropped from the card when officials with the show's promoter, Warriors Boxing, were unable to locate him the past two weeks." Prior, in February, according to the Associated Press, "Bell was arrested over the weekend after a sparring partner claimed he heaved a hatchet at him during a training run through the woods, authorities said." Bell, whose nickname is "Give 'Em Hell," should consider changing his moniker to a version of the nickname granted to Owen "What The Heck" Beck: "What The Hell?"
• Random. While perusing a rulebook for my recent post on excessive hugging in boxing, I stumbled across this quizzical rule: "If a boxer attempts to foul his opponent while exerting any type of unsportsmanlike conduct or unorthodox move and he injures himself, the Referee will treat the injury as if a legal blow caused it." I've never seen this rule applied, but if it is in any forthcoming fight, REMEMBER WHERE YOU HEARD IT FIRST!
• Wrap-up. It's an interesting anomaly that Showtime pointed out prior to Marquez-Vasquez II: Three of Ring Magazine's last seven "fight of the year" awardees came at bantamweight (118 lbs.) and super-bantamweight (122 lbs.). Marquez-Vasquez II has an excellent chance of making it four of eight. Or is it an anomaly? Anyone who only pays attention to the higher weight classes -- nobody higher than 140 lbs. has won "fight of the year" awards from Ring Magazine since 1996 -- well, The Ring's William Dettloff said it best after the latest fight of the year candidate: "I almost feel sorry for the non-boxing fans out there. They have no idea what they’re missing. " God bless Comcast On-Demand: HBO just re-aired Erik Morales-Marco Antonio Barrera I, the 2000 fight of the year at 122 lbs., and yes, I now have on tape that fight, one of the best ever, back-to-back with Marquez-Vasquez II.
  
• Wrap-up. Speaking of Marquez-Vasquez II, fellow 122-pound titlist Daniel Ponce DeLeon told maxboxing.com: "I thought Marquez did not prepare fully. He took (Vazquez) too lightly and ran out of gas. Vazquez looked in much better shape than was the case last time out and the result showed. This time he was able to get on the inside on a consistent basis and do his damage, zapping Marquez’s energy with the fight turning out the way it did.” I have no idea if DeLeon is right, but something seemed off about Marquez to me. Confidence? Conditioning? I can't rule out the possibility that I got suckered by the pre-fight talk of better preparation by Marquez, thus driving me back into the cave of "never trust a fighter who says he's in the best shape of his life."
• Preview. I haven't seen enough of this weekend's star Boxing After Dark combatants at (you guessed it) 122 lbs. to make predictions with any confidence, but I know enough about them to bet it's going to be an incredible double-header. The aforementioned DeLeon is all kinds of wild knockout power, and he's taking on the younger, also-powerful, more technical, but less granite-chinned Rey Bautista. I'm tempted to favor DeLeon here, but only because I've seen more of him and Bautista got dropped in the one bout of his I've witnessed. Also, Jhonny Gonzalez, whose sweet science is fierce, battles Gary Penalosa, the man who nearly upset DeLeon in their last fight. Weight class? 118 lbs.