Boxing: The Heavyweights

[H2O Man]

Boxing fans are looking forward to a few bouts that could help determine who the champion of the division is. It has been a long time since Lennox Lewis retired, and while there actually is a good deal of talent to be found in the top 12 heavyweights, promoters have not been in a hurry to clear up the confusion.

Three good fights may be coming up in the next three months: Samuel Peter will meet James Toney on 9-2; Nikolay Valuev meets Monte Barrett on 10-14; and there is word that Waldimir Klitschko will fight Shannon Briggs on 11-4.

Before looking at the Peter-Toney fight, I'll say that I'm curious about Valuev. Is he anything more than a new Primo Carnera? Barrett may help determine that; Monte has potential to be a force in the division, if he would train hard and harness his talent. (I know: big "if.")

I've heard that some promoters/managers are trying to derail the Klitschko-Briggs fight. Perhaps they already have. There is interest in Wladimir meeting Maskaev, although Oley is supposed to meet the winner of the Peter-Toney fight. If Wladimir does fight Shannon, I think it will upset the division. Briggs will take him out in two rounds.

Now to Peter-Toney. Samuel Peter is 25 years old, with a 26-1 (22 KOs) record. He is 6' 1", and should weigh about 248 lbs at fight time. James Toney is 38; his record is 69-4-3 (43 KOs). He is 5' 9" and his weight is expected to be about 220 lbs.

Toney is the former Middleweight, Super Middleweight, and Cruiserweight champion. He has fought twice for "paper" titles. In 4-05, he beat John Ruiz, but had the decision changed when he tested positive for steroids. And in 3-06, he had a draw with Rahman. (He weighed 237, and blamed his showing on a coild, a flu, and the ref.) I've seen film of his training for this match, and he looks very good. He is a smart athlete, and he knows this is a tough opponent.

Peter has been studying the Vassiley Jirov match, which was one of Toney's most impressive showings. Though "Lights Out" won convincingly, Jirov showed that when a guy plants one foot between James', and throws punches toward his chest, it takes him off balance, thus opening the head. Look for the "Nigerian Nightmare" to throw heavy punches to the belly and chest.

The two warriors have been trading insults. Samuel said, "If he wants to trade punches, I will put him through hell." Toney has made fun of Peter's accent, and "made Aboriginal clicking noises" to try to upset his younger opponent when they are together. He has also said, "I'll beat you like a slave .... I'll send your ass back on a banana boat, punk." I think that Toney is going extra low with his comments, because he recognizes that the psychological advantage is so important with a young fighter so much bigger and stronger than him.

I think this will be the best heavyweight fight we've seen since Lewis retired.

[H2O Man]

1. One at a time, please.

It's hard to react to all the responses at once. Rather than try to answer each one individually, I'll just make this one post for now .....

Toney is hoping that Samuel squares up in front of him at arm's length, and throws the looping overhand right. Toney will try to keep Peter off-balance with short, stiff jabs, and to counter the big right with rapid combinations.

Can he do it? I never like to bet against James Toney. But I think Samuel Peter may be the toughest fight he's had to date in the heavyweight division.

[TSIAS]

2. I'll give it a try

To preface my comments, it's important to understand that the HW division is hardly the most interesting division in boxing today. The lack of a top-caliber heavyweight champion should not obscure the fact that there is a ton of talent and many great fights happening at lower weights. Of course you understand that, but many casual fans dismiss boxing because of the lack of a dominant HW champion.

Most people in the sport acknowledge that Wladimir Klitschko is currently the #1 man in the divison. There is no true champion now, but Klitschko would be the consensus #1 man to take the crown. Klitschko/Briggs was in the works for a while, but after Maskaev upset Rahman there was talk of Klitschko/Maskaev at MSG in November. However, now it looks like Maskaev is out and may matchup with Lyakhovich. I think Briggs would be a very dangerous fight for Klitschko. He is physically a big man and would probably weight more than Klitschko. Briggs hasn't done much in recent years against top competition, but he does stand a chance. We remember that Corrie Sanders, a HW division who was all but retired before fighting Klitschko, won by 2nd Round KO. I think Briggs has the attitude and won't be scared of Klitschko. When Klitschko fought the giant Jameel McCline back a few years ago, McCline lacked the mental toughness and the ability to make Klitschko fight. If nothing else, Briggs will be a live opponent.

I'm looking forward to Valuev/Barrett. We don't know very much about the Russian, Valuev. He's enormous and seems to pack a big punch. But the only decent fighter he's beat is the relatively lackluster John Ruiz. Barrett is a veteran American contender who's only lost to the divison's top guys (W.Klitschko and Rahman). Barrett beat Owen Beck a couple of years ago, and Beck lost by early KO to Valuev in his last fight. I've always thought that Barrett had the talent to win one of the numerous HW belts. I also think that Valuev is intriguing for the reason that European basketball players intrigue NBA general managers. We don't know that much about him. It's really only American media who have seen him in live action. Personally, I've only seen highlights of Valuev. In Demand PPV offered a cheap PPV highlight (5 minutes) of Valuev's performances, but my cable provider didn't have it.

Toney/Peter has all the makings of a highly competitive bout. One of Toney's big strenghts is that it's nearly impossible to hurt him. Granted he hasn't fought any big punching HW's, but I've never seen anybody come close to stunning him in a fight. Peter had his one chance last year in losing a decision to Klitschko. Even though he lost, Peter did hurt Klitschko late and showed the stamina to fight 12 competitive rounds. Peter obviously is at a technical disadvantage against Toney. As a boxer, Toney is perhaps the most skilled fighter today. Peter will have to try and utilize his advantage in strength to wear Toney down. Peter is an imposing physical specimen. It'll be interesting to see what Toney looks like. In his last fight, he came in around 235 pounds and still fought well. I often wonder how great Toney could be if he kept his weight at a reasonable level. I've read on boxing message boards that Toney could be pushing 260 pounds. However, I can't verify that and we won't know for sure until the weigh-in. The winner of this fight should cement himself as a legitimate contender to fight one of the beltholders.

There's still questions about what will happen with Maskaev and Lyakhovich. Fight News reported that Shannon Briggs has signed with Don King and is prepared to take the Klitschko date and fight Lyakhovich in November. There were also rumors of Maskaev and Lyakhovich squaring off. In the article I read, it's reported that Maskaev has made overtures to fight undefeated American prospect Calvin Brock.

Outside of the aforementioned fights, there are a few other heavies of note. Lamon Brewster is the only one of the current HW crop to hold a victory over Wladimir Klitschko. While some of that win is attributed to Klitschko's inexplicable loss of stamina, Brewster should lots of toughness by absorbing many big Klitschko punches and getting off the canvas to win. His April fight with Lyakhovich is one of the two best HW fights of the year (Maskaev/Rahman II being the other). Brewster also holds an impressive 1st Round KO of former contender Andrew Golota in the last fight before losing his title. I haven't heard much from him since that loss.

American Calvin Brock is likely to get some sort of shot, as he is undefeated and probably the top contender from the States. I haven't been overly impressed with his career so fight. He seems like a decent fighter, but his HBO Boxing After Dark performance in June against Timur Ibragimov didn't inspire me. The other win of note on his record was a Unanimous Decision over former contender Jameel McCline in 2005.

I hope the division is ready to sort itself out over the next year. Toney/Peter should bring some sort of clarity. The winner emerges as a viable Top 5 contender and could get a title shot at Maskaev. If Valuev comes to the states and beats a veteran American contender in Barrett, he will validate his emergence as a heavyweight to watch. Wladimir Klitschko is already cemented as perhaps the main man in the division.

On the outside looking in, Vitali Klitschko could feasibly make a comeback. He is still relatively young and hasn't taken a lot of punishment. Vitali is a smart man who appears happy to live comfortably in Ukraine. Finally, Evander Holyfield is trying to make another comeback. I watched the shameful FOX Sports Net telecast of Holyfield versus insurance agent Jeremy Bates. I couldn't believe the amount of shilling the commentators were doing for Holyfield. Amazingly, they even played the song "Hurt" by Johnny Cash while lamenting the fact that the New York State Boxing Commission was denying Holyfield his dream of being champ again. They failed to mention that Holyfield's only won 3 bouts in this decade and was completely shutout by Larry Donald in his last challenge. Holyfield will try to sell the fact that his injured shoulder lead to his poor performance. I'm hearing that Holyfield may go to Europe and fight fringe contender Samil Sam for a chance to make some sanctioning mob's Top 10 rankings. As ridiculous as his comeback sounds to hardcore fight fans, he was able to sell 10,000 tickets at Dallas's American Airlines Center. If he can still attract that sort of live gate, he may be around for a few more years.

While Lennox Lewis wasn't considered the most exciting HW to most people, he was the undisputed top man in the division. They could fracture the belts and give titles to pretenders like Ruiz, everybody who knew boxing understood that Lewis was the champ. Currently, even the most knowledgable fight fans aren't sure who is actually the Champ.

[H2O Man]

4. Yep.

I find myself agreeing with your post.

Briggs hasn't been able to get a fight against a top 10 fighter since he has been on his serious comeback. Last June ('05) he was a sub on the card at the Turning Stone Casino, for the Hall of Fame weekend. He fought the one young man from Africa ... it was on ESPN, but I can't think of his name. We were at ringside, and Briggs looked good. I've seen him on tv since, and he is ready for any heavyweight today. Several have the ability to beat him, but he also has the ability to beat any of them.

I don't think any of the top people in boxing believe there is a champion now. There are "titles," but no real champion. And, despite his limited appeal, Lennox Lewis was the last real champion in the division. It's sad to read the new Ring booklet, with the list of fights where "titles" changed hands (or changed hands without fights taking place!) .... for most of boxing history, there was one champion. The nonsense started with Ernie Terrell, who paid a price when Ali "united" the title. But by the 1980s, the joke titles began, and self-appointed commissions prostituted the concept of a championship.

One reason the lightweight to middleweight divisions are so good right now is that so many good fighters dare to fight the other top guys. This is what is needed to clear up the heavyweight division: either through a tournament, or one man who will take on all comers. It may be Brock, who is, like Lewis, not a thrilling fighter, but very good. It may a Briggs or even McCline, who is now serious about fighting again. Or it may be that a Samuel Peter or Lyakhovich rules the division for a while.

[Kingofalldems]

6. Has there ever been a natural middleweight who moved up

to the HW division and won a title? I don't recall any. Toney seems to fit this category. I know Ali moved up but he was still filling out in the Olympics. BTW, when is the Barrett fight?

[H2O Man]

7. Two of interest:

The first was Bob Fitzsimmons, the old-time fighter born in Cornwall, England. His early career was not well recorded. It's known that he started boxing at age 20 in 1882. He weighed about 165 lbs his entire career. In 1894, he won the middleweight title; in 1897, the heavyweight title; and in 1903, the light heavyweight title.

More recently was the great Ezzard Charles. He was born in 1921 in Georgia, and by age 16, was an outstanding amateur champion. In fact, he was the greatest amateur boxer in the sport's history, winning all 42 bouts and every tournament he ever entered.

Charles turned pro as a middleweight. He moved up to lightheavyweight, where he owned future champions Joey Maxim and Archie Moore. He knocked Moore out in 8, and decisioned him as well. He also beat Charley Burley -- twice -- when Burley was at his best.

Charles was denied a chance at the light heavyweight title, but he is certainly among the very best in the division. I rate him the best, based in large part on the Moore/Maxim/Burley fights. He was also blasting guys like Jimmy Blivens out of the ring.

After he killed an opponent in the ring, Ezzard wasn't the same fighter. He boxed without the same intensity. He would move up to heavyweight (182 lbs) and win the title. He had some important wins, including Joe Louis and Jersey Joe Walcott. And he had the two classic matches with Rocky Marciano. Charles also beat guys like Bob Satterfield and Coley Wallace (Wallace beat Marciano in one of those matches that took place after the Rock had turned pro, but that "disappeared" from his record; there are pictures of the fight), but he fought far too long. He died 5-27-1975, after a long illness.

[dr.zoidberg]

3. re: heavyweights

I've read that Klitschko could be fighting Calvin Brock. I've also heard that Shannon Briggs, who recently signed with Don King, will be fighting Sergei Lyahkovich.

Oof, rough comments by Toney. I'm surprised that he didn't throw in a few "niggers" in there while he was at it. Toney/Peter should be a good fight, especially if they can both come in shape. Of course, considering both men's track records in that department they may not.

Valuev/Barret has the potential to be an upset. Barret has a real chance of winning this fight. Valuev has given me no reason to be confident in him, especially when considering his performance Larry Donald.

[H2O Man]

5. I think that Barret

is a good fighter, and that he will provide the evidence on Valuev one way or the other.

Brock and Klitschko would be interesting on paper. I think WK would try to make it more boring than any Ruiz fight.

Lyahkovich would be a tougher fight for Briggs than WK. If it went beyond 6 rounds, it would favor the younger man. And he does take a good punch.

I think Toney is in good shape. I hope so. I've seen Peter several times, and he has always looked in good shape. I didn't see his first bout after the loss, although I understand he didn't look good.

[H2O Man]

8. 70

I have people coming to my house to watch the fight from as far as 70 miles away. We'll have all ages, too, from young to old. This is what heavyweight boxing is supposed to be.

Earlier this month, I attended a family reunion, from another branch of the "family tree." Most of the people were from my great uncle's family. He had fought in the early 1900s in the NYC/NJ area, and had been associated with fighters from Jimmy Braddock to Jack Sharkey. His closest friends were Bucky Lawless, who only boxing historians will recall (though he fought 13 world champions, from welterweight to light heavyweight! My uncle beat him), and the great Carmen Basilio. It was a blast listening to the elders there talking about packing up a few cars, and bringing kids, parents, uncles, and grandfathers to either Syracuse or Madison Square Garden to watch the big fights. Basilio, Sugar Ray Robinson, and the great Joe Louis were among the "must see" fighters they loved to watch.

We were talking about how the heavyweight champions have always represented their era. When we think of John L. Sullivan, we think of the country's culture changing with the Irish immigrants; Jack Johnson brought out the ugly racism in a nation experiencing huge problems; Jack Dempsey was of the Roaring 20s; Joe Louis was the strength of the Greatest Generation; Rocky Marciano was of Ike's 50s; Clay/Ali was the energy and rebellion of the 1960s; and Tyson was the face of the rage of a growing population of marginalized youth from behind bars. The lack of a true heavyweight champion in the Bush years seems almost appropriate.

[H2O Man]

9. Two concerns:

First, I've seen two clips of Samuel Peter saying, with a little grin, "He can't hurt me. I'll walk through him." And he is saying it with full confidence that James Toney can't hurt him. Now that could be dangerous. Toney doesn't have explosive power for a heavyweight. But he is strong, smart, and he understands how to use his opponent's strength against him. Power often includes both speed and balance -- hitting a guy who doesn't see it coming, and who is slightly off balance, can equal explosive power in a long fight.

Second, although I have heard Toney had his eye on <220lbs for fight weight, rumors on here and from a reporter from the Boston area who is pretty accurate indicates he may be well over that range. That, too, could be dangerous. It is hard to overestimate the significance of "size" in the ring. There is a reason that most middleweights don't go up and challenge light heavyweights. And a really good "small" heavyweight at 220 lbs should really be considered to be in a different weight class than a natural 240 lber. I remember in the 1970s, I had two amateur heavyweights. One was 225 lbs, and he was considered huge. Most amateur heavyweights around here were 205 lbs. A generation later, there are guys like my nephews, who are another size larger. When they graduated high school, one was 6' 3" and 275 lbs. (Another was a couple inches taller, but 65 lbs lighter; He has filled out considerably since.) Most US kids that size, as noted on ESPN FNF recently, look to play football rather than box. But, back to the point, there is a huge difference in a guy 275 lbs and a guy who is naturally 210 lbs. My nephew is bigger than Samuel, of course, but I'm still thinking that Toney may be in serious trouble if he is not in top shape. This is the wrong kid to get tired and to try to cut corners with.

[TSIAS]

10. Weigh-In: Toney 233, Peter 257

Toney came in about where I expected he would. It's 4 pounts lighter than his last fight with Rahman. I think he'd be better in the 215-220 pound range, like he weighed against Holyfield a few years back. Peter doesn't look to be in top shape either. He weighed 243 against Klitschko and now weighs nearly 15 pounds more. Frankly, I'm disappointed that neither fighter appears to have prepared well for this fight.

This is truly one of the toughest fights to pick this year. On one hand, Toney is one of the best technical boxers in the sport today. Even with his ever exceeding girth, he hasn't lost his boxing ability. However, Peter is an explosive puncher that could hurt Toney with any one big punch to end the fight. My biggest problem with Peter is that he's pretty raw as a fighter. If Toney finds a way to keep Peter at a distance, he could easily control the fight and win a wide Unanimous Decision.

I think Peter has to come out and do damage early. I'm not sure if Peter has the conditioning to have anything more than a puncher's chance if the fight goes into the later rounds. I've been going back and forth on this fight, initially saying that Peter would land one big punch that would rock Toney's world. Toney's coming in about a 7-5 favorite. If I were a better, I'd go with Toney by UD.

[H2O Man]

11. Interesting.

Toney should be less than 220 lbs. Peter is a big guy, and I do not think his increased weight necessarily reflects on a lack of preparation. He is at the age when many heavyweights get larger.

I haven't looked forward to a heavyweight fight this much in many years.

[TSIAS]

12. Entertaining Fight Card

After a brief glance at some of the boxing message boards, I already can see the result of this fight will be disputed heavily. After adding up my card, I gave Toney the fight by a score of 115-112. I was shocked when the final card was read, 116-111, and it was in favor of Peter. I figured that Peter had a shot of pulling out a decision, but not by the margins that Judges Flaherty and Rochin produced. Considering the point deduction, their scores meant that Peter essentially won the fight 9 rounds to 3. I can understand why judges might have thought Peter landed the cleaner punches, but Toney landed a ton of his punches and at times was inflicting damage on Peter. In fairness to Peter, I watched the fight with audio and Showtime’s analyst, Al Bernstein, thought Toney won a close decision. When I scored the rounds, I didn’t think Peter was landing punches that hurt Toney. He did land big punches that definitely shook Toney, but he never seemed to threaten Toney with a KO.

I have to say that I was happy with Peter’s performance. He didn’t let Toney win a lot of clear, undisputed rounds as Toney did against Rahman. Most of the rounds were close and left it up to the judges to choose the style they preferred. Obviously, I disagreed but Peter kept up enough of a pace to win this decision on the cards.

When I analyzed the fight beforehand, this was the least likely outcome in my mind. I figured that the only way Peter wins a decision is if he seriously hurts Toney and Toney happens to survive the distance. Sort of like when Maskaev beat Rahman, I didn’t put much credence in the possibility of a Peter win on the cards.

Now it looks like Peter will get a shot soon against WBC beltholder Oleg Maskaev. On the surface, it looks like the worst matchup for Maskaev. Oleg has shown a questionable chin in the past and I doubt he could survive the kind of big punches that Peter throws. Toney was able to dodge and weave enough to keep many of Peter’s punches from landing flush. I know I’ve picked against Maskaev before and been wrong, but I’d take Peter to win the title by early stoppage.

The main undercard fight ended up being fairly lobsided. Although Eric Aiken held one of the Featherweight belts, Robert Guerrero was considered the better prospect and proved it in the ring. After the first few rounds, Guerrero was in complete control and won every round in my mind. The talk from Guerrero is that he might fight against Juan Manuel Marquez in what would be an intriguing attraction at 126 pounds.

Finally, I think this main event deserves watching again with the eye of a judge. I scored the fight casually. However, I can’t say I took the time to dissect every round and really think about whom was the “effective aggressor”. If this type of decision had gone against someone else other than Toney, I probably would be thoroughly disgusted. But I’ve never been a big fan of Toney’s self-promoting style. Maybe it’s just to get him motivated, but it seems like he’s always getting into pre-fight altercations with his opponents. And after the decision was announced, a minor melee took place inside the ropes. This loss is bad news for Toney since a win would have guaranteed him a shot at the WBC belt, which he likely could have taken from Maskaev. Now he has to get back in line and there aren’t that many heavies who really want to fight a style like Toney has.

[H2O Man]

13. I had 11 people

here for the fight. Four thought Toney won; four thought Peter won; and three thought it was a draw. Everyone agreed it was close.

I thought Peter won. His punches were far more meaningful. But I do wonder: where is this kid's jab? Both Liston and Foreman, the two guys he has the potential to be similar to, had great jabs. If Samuel had a working jab, he may have closed the deal when he stunned James.

[MessiahRp]

14. I had Toney... by the one point the ref gave him.

114-113. But I could easily see how Peter could win on any card. I still don't like that Peter was deducted a point for a harmless earmuff when Toney was purposely driving his head into Peter and not listening to the ref trying to break it on the ropes and Toney doesn't even get a warning. To me it seemed the ref should have separated both guys and warned them both. The point deduction seemed a bit rash to me. Otherwise a very well reffed contest (in contrast to the last few HBO fights).

I just don't think Toney has the power to be a viable heavyweight. If you don't want your career to be messed up by an errant judge's score, you can't leave it up to them. It is clear in this division that Toney doesn't have the power to stop anybody in it.

I marvel at his ability to continue on and how he has never been KO'd but I think Toney's time has passed. Peter on the otherhand has a bright future IF he can learn to have a killer instinct. He lacked it the few times he rocked Toney and he lacked it when he knocked Klitschko down three times and still lost the fight.

Oh and one thing annoyed me. Al Bernstein. He was Toney's bitch. Anything Peter did never made contact. Every round Toney was better. He might as well have declared Toney the winner before the fight even started. After awhile it really wore on me.

Rp

[H2O Man]

15. I've read a few

quotes from Peter, where he talks about his "game plan ... to stick the jab." I would love to see him add a jab to his attack. I also thought he could have thrown more left hooks inside.

I really like both Peter and Toney. But you are absolutely right in that Toney isn't the future of the division. He can't improve his legend by sticking around any longer. The guy is one of the best of our era, and could compete with the best in history. But he's not his best at heavyweight, and age is taking some of his skills.

The future of the division is actually becoming very interesting. I do wish Briggs would have gotten the Klitschko fight. I am confident he'd have taken him out in two rounds. But the Sergi Liakhovich fight will be a very important match in the division. If Shannon wants to be the champion, he has to beat everybody -- and right now, Sergi may be the best of the "title holders."

I hope that Calvin Brock is at the top of his game against Klitschko. Wladimir will attempt to make it a dull, clinch-filled struggle. Brock no doubt has studied the WK-Peter film, and if Brock is at his best, I'm confident he will win.

It looks like Don King is serious about promoting Valuev. Do you think he'd be doing this much, unless he was convinced this giant had some developing talents?

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

17. I enjoyed the fight

I thought Toney won by three points, but I have no problem with those who thought Peter won because it was a close fight and hard to judge. I only saw Toney rocked once, when he held onto the ropes after the sweeping right he took to the ear. I never saw Toney in serious danger of going down. Instead, I saw Toney surpassing Peter in the four categories that Harold Lederman loves to recall for us in the fights he covers: clean punching, effective aggression, ring generalship, and defense. Toney landed some absolutely terrific jabs throughout the fight that really busted up Peter. Both men can obviously take a punch because both got hit very hard. To me, it was that jab and Toney's defense that won the fight. But I admit it was close. I was hoping to see a much improved Peter in this fight. Instead, I saw a guy who does not have a sharp straight punch but relies on landing sweeping bombs two or three times a round and getting carried away with his obvious power. Peter does not move his feet well and tends to be a plodder at times and completely lacks an effective jab. I cannot understand why Peter only sporadically went to Toney's body in the earlier rounds, as the head and shoulders can move on a guy like Toney, but the body doesn't. I was hoping to see one of the future focal points of the heavyweight division in Peter and instead I saw a big strong guy who is wasting the strength and quickness that he was blessed with, displaying poor technique at times and poor judgement.

What really raised my temperature in this fight, however, were the score cards of the judges. Two judges had Peter winning 9 of the 12 rounds. That is just an impossibility to me by anyone who saw that fight. Of course perhaps the judges were not in a position to see how Toney was blocking or avoiding most of the effect of Peter's punches when he was on the ropes. But still, 116 to 111 with a point deduction to boot (it would have been 117 to 111 otherwise) just could not be. It's the judges, in fight-after-fight quite often having looney decisions, that is leaving a very bad taste in my mouth about boxing. And it's not just this fight, but it's the case in many decisions I've seen, and I try to catch almost every fight I can on the tube.

[H2O Man]

18. I've watched it

several times now. I think it was 8-4 for Peter. I have no problem with people seeing it differently. But I will say that I don't think much of a case can be made for Toney being aggressive at all, and so the only aggressiveness, effective or otherwise, would go to Samuel.

Being at ringside gives the judges advantages that a tv audience don't have, as far as being able to tell how hard punches are. Hard punches are scored higher than not-so-hard ones. Peter punches very hard, and Toney doesn't. (Of course, with tv, we get instant replay!)

You are on target with two areas that Peter needs to work on: footwork and the jab. His next fight might be one where just the power gets him by. He should win by a KO by the 4th round. But if he can't land his punches, he will be facing a guy who hits pretty hard. But the guy is pretty slow, and an open enough target that Rahman was able to hit him. And Rahman is about as slow as anyone except John Ruiz. Where it could really hurt Peter would be against someone like Brock, who has good defensive skills, and can through very powerful, fast counter-punches.

[Lefty48197]

16. Go get him Toney!

He went to my high school.

[H2O Man]

19. For those who

enjoy watching Peter, and want to help support him:

http://samuel-peter.com/

If you order any of the T-shirts, tell Jeremiah that I said to give you a good deal.