Monday’s Mash-Up

Hank Lundy – True Contender!

Hank Lundy has done everything he could do to put himself in a top ten Lightweight position.  Now it is up to his promoter and manager to come through with that title shot.  Lundy put on a boxing clinic by using his jab to out point and outland Williams all night.  Lundy survived an early knockdown in the first after getting caught with a shot to the temple.  Williams would try to match Lundy’s speed throughout the fight, but was getting tagged with Lundy’s more accurate and shorter punches.  Williams punches were a bit wide and more telegraphed.  The main difference in the fight was Lundy’s jab.  He was able to time Williams throughout the night and score effectively with his ring generalship.  The fight was over with Lundy winning by wide decision (98-91) and (97-92) twice.  It is back to the drawing board for Williams and trainer Jack Loew.  Hopefully Lundy gets a shot later this year on HBO or Showtime as it is well deserved. 

Down goes Jorge Linares and Toddyrock!

Linares has all the talent in the world, but he can not seem to put it together.  With a suspect chin and a face that cuts easily, Linares days as an elite fighter could be over.  Sergio Thompson has extended his winning streak to 8 fights and put his name out there in a big way.  In what was suppose to be a relatively smooth bounce back fight for Linares, who had a July 7^th rematch with Demarco set, gets smoked in the 2^nd round and stopped.  It was exciting while lasted with both fighters trading punches in the first round.  It was Thompson who backed up Linares early before Linares landed a solid left hook towards the end of the round.  At the beginning of the second round it was Linares being cautious and Thompson coming forward landed hard shots sending Linares back.  Thompson felt like he could finish him off and sent a dozen or so punches, some wild and missing some landing, towards Linares.  Thompson opened a cut over Linares eye and then landed another right hand that sent Linares to the canvas for an 8 count.  As Linares got up time was called and the fight stopped due to cuts 2:27 of the second round with Thompson winning in a huge upset.  Linares career is in serious jeopardy as Thompson should be on to bigger and better things after this huge win, maybe even Linares’s spot on the July 7^th Showtime card.

My Report Card! 1-1

Off to a .500 start.  I will give myself a C.  My prediction of the Lundy-Williams fight was spot on.  This fight sums up Lundy’s career so far.  He is an excellent boxer with tremendous speed and a suspect chin.  He is willing to mix it up just enough for that threat of being dropped to exist throughout the whole fight.  Fans will like Lundy as he is extremely confident in his abilities and takes the right attitude into the ring. 

If anyone knew Jorge Linares was going to get stopped in the second round, please stand up and take a bow!  You deserve it.  There are not many notable names behind Thompson’s 7 fight win streak, but you can only beat who is in front of you.  Maybe they were fight where Thompson was able to work on some things and build confidence.  What ever the case may be he now has an 8 fight win streak and threw his name in the mix for a more notable fight within a stacked lightweight division.  Good for him.  Heading forward I would not be surprised to see Linares get dropped from Freddie Roach’s stable.

Other Notable Results and News from the Weekend

Kelly Pavlik wins via TKO 2^nd round against Aaron Jaco in a return bout.  This was Kelly’s first fight in over 10 months and first with red-hot trainer Robert Garcia.  Trainer and fighter both agreed this was a step in the right direction.  Pavlik looked to be in good shape, calm, and relaxed.  Moving to California and away from some bad habits in his hometown of Youngstown, OH may have been the best career move Pavlik has made to date.  With trainer Robert Garcia, Pavlik’s career stands a good chance of recovery.  Look for Kelly to return on ESPN’s Friday night fights June 8^th in Las Vegas, a night before the big Pacquaio vs. Bradley card.

James Kirkland found out some disappointing news recently.  He suffered two tears in his right shoulder that will require surgery.  James Kirkand is coming off a controversially win in a fight with Carlos Molina in which he was granted a victory by DQ.  Kirkland was behind on the cards, but was coming on as Molina was dropped and disqualified when his corner accidently stepped into the ring.  Kirkland’s camp does not know when the injury occurred, but it could be a reason Kirkland was not his usually aggressive self in the ring.  With recovery time taking up to 3 months a proposed bout with Paul Williams in late June could be put on hold.