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Just Some More Random Thoughts and Musings
By Steve Kim (May 30, 2007)

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Okay, it's been awhile, so I guess now is as good a time as any for another edition of my random thoughts and musings. There's nothing earth shattering here, just some things that popped into my head the past few weeks as I went about my days as a boxing scribe. So
here goes...

Did anyone hear Arturo Gatti's diatribe (which can be seen on Max-TV, by the way) on his ex-girlfriend and Buddy McGirt? I haven't seen anyone go off like that publicly since White Sox G.M. Kenny Williams lambasted a departing Frank Thomas last year.....Seriously, what took place between Gatti and McGirt that they are no longer buddies? (pun fully intended)....Is it just me, but shouldn't a guy who hasn't fought in over a year (a loss at that) and came out with a damaged eye, like Lamon Brewster, have at least a tune-up before facing Wladimir Klitschko?.....It's official - Dustin Diamond (forever aka 'Screech' from 'Saved by the Bell') has replaced Puck as the most hated reality show participant ever....I don't care what anybody says, as long as VH-I keeps serving up 'Celebrity Fit Club', sign me up....Who's had more retirements and subsequent comebacks, Roger Clemens or Sugar Ray Leonard? 'The Rocket's new nickname should be Sugar Ray Clemens....

Anyone seen that show on Telemundo that airs in the afternoon, 'Laura', where guys who commit various indiscretions on their spouses or whoever get slapped silly, while bouncers hold their hands back and tie them down? That show seriously needs Richard Steele....Somewhere out there Pat Burns must feel like Shar Jackson after Britney and K-Fed divorced....Is it just me, or does every girl that Kevin Arnold comes across on 'the Wonder Years' look at least five years older and six inches taller?....Seriously, what is Adina Howard up to these days? I hope for her sake she's working the stairmaster, y'know because, well, y'know....I'll say it right now, the theme song from 'Alice' is among the most underrated ever. It may not be 'Three's Company' or 'Mission Impossible' but it can't be forgotten about....And if you don't agree, you can kiss my grits.....

Didn't Kelly Pavlik, who got cleaned up all nice on Friday Night Fights this past week, look a bit like Andre Agassi?....In my opinion, Pavlik, if he should win the title, should have his first defense at the famed 'Horseshoe' of Ohio State. I think 'the Buckeye Banger' (that's my new moniker for him) could draw 25,000 to 30,000 there and he has a promoter in Bob Arum that could pull it off....But I still maintain 168-pounds will be his best weight....Did you know he made his pro debut the night before De La Hoya-Mosley I in Coachella, California on ESPN2's 'Friday Night Fights'?.....

Anyone enjoying the 'new' vintage Main Events bouts on ESPN Classic?....Watching Lou Duva and George Benton work those corners back then, it was clear they were the Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis of that era. They just put out one hit after another....To tell you how much this business has changed, a sterling match-up between Meldrick Taylor and Buddy McGirt - which nowadays would be on HBO or Showtime for millions - was broadcast on a Saturday afternoon on ABC's Wide World of Sports....This is one example of why boxers, in contemporary times, may never be as transcendent as they once were.....If you recall 1976 and 1984 - and even 1988 - the U.S. Olympic boxing teams got plenty of coverage on ABC and NBC and were the subject of various vignettes that introduced them to the public.... Now, Olympic boxing coverage is relegated to some off-shoot cable network that nobody really watches. I really wonder if sticking around for the Olympics and winning a gold is even that big of a deal anymore. Just ask Andre Ward....I'd rather turn a kid pro a bit earlier and not let USA Boxing (which is more of a political organization than one that deals with boxing) ingrain bad habits into him and be able to develop him slowly and quietly....

Speaking of the 84 Olympians, I think I've said this before, but they really are the 'New Edition' of boxing. As I watch their bouts as professionals on ESPN Classic, it just becomes more and more evident....Both were huge in the 80's and early 90's and had sustained success throughout.... Pernell Whitaker is definitely the Bobby Brown of the crew. Fearless, would do anything at anytime, had substance abuse problems, but gifted, regardless.....Mark Breland was its Ralph Tresvant - everyone thought he would be the big individual star, but really Breland's best days were with headgear and the big gloves,
Ralph's with Ronnie, Bobby, Rick and Mike - and later Johnny Gill....And of course the rest of the guys were kinda like BBD, although Evander Holyfield was certainly much bigger than that in his heyday.....I wonder what Neneh Cherry is up to? When 'Buffalo Stance' comes on, I don't change radio stations....

Speaking of Taylor, he threw some of the fastest, most beautiful combinations I've ever seen....But unfortunately, his heart was too big and his hands not quite heavy enough against Julio Cesar Chavez (in a fight I'll go to my grave believing was stopped prematurely and nobody can tell me differently)....A battle between a prime 'TNT' and 'Sugar' Shane of 1998 is one I would pay a pretty penny for.....Why isn't Roy Jones facing Glen Johnson on July 14th instead of Anthony Hanshaw? Johnson, who keeps flowin' like Old Man River, is still one of the most difficult outs in boxing....Speaking of old guys who have stuck around, I can't believe Julio Franco is still in the big leagues. I remember getting his baseball cards waaaaaay back in elementary school while I was living in Valencia, California, when he still had the Jeri curl when he played for the Cleveland Indians.....I was surprised at the way Bones Adams looked last week on Wednesday Night Fights. It looks like that time off did him some good. He'd be a good name opponent in the future for guys like Robert Guerrero and Celestino Caballero.....And fess up, which remaining loyalists of the cult Roy Jones-town are going to purchase that pay-per-view show? There may be a few cups of Kool-Aid left, I see....

Magic Johnson's 42-15-7 line he put up in game six of the 1980 championship series against the Sixers is one of the greatest games ever played....I finally got to see that game (instead of just the usual clips) and I think people forget how good he really was....People can laud Steve Nash all the want - and it's warranted - but Magic was doing that a quarter century ago - and was 6'9.....I agree with Kobe Bryant, Mitch Kupchak needs to be replaced by Jerry West. As for a possible trade involving 24, he ain't going anywhere. Because without him, there isn't one iota of interest that I'd have in any Laker game....Besides, trading Shaq and Kobe in a four year period officially makes them the Clippers II.....I hear all the criticism of LeBron James. Isn't he just 22 or 23 years old, still?....Greg Oden or Kevin Durant? Easy, the Big Oden. Portland, this isn't Sam Bowie, go big and enjoy. A frontline of LaMarcus Aldridge and Oden should be potent for years....

With 'the Simpsons' movie coming out and having completed their 400th episode recently, I was reminded of one of my favorite shows when Bart and Homer came to form a bond as they both watched a 'Truckasaurus' commercial and the looks on their faces said it all. As they both rushed home and looked at each other, they yelled simultaneously:" TRUCKASAURUS!!!' and they knew they had found a connection with each other....Hey, don't we all have those moments when you see something and you instantly fall in love? I have a few....First, it was game two of the 1978 World Series, when a rookie hurler by the name of Bob Welch faced off against Mr. October, Reggie Jackson, in the ninth inning and the game on the line. It's the first baseball game I can recall watching. And it seemed that Welch threw fastballs at Reggie for about 15 minutes straight before finally fanning him in dramatic fashion. But the Yanks and Jackson would have the last laugh, winning the series in six...Then there was the first boxing match I saw on TV, the rematch between the great Salvador Sanchez and Danny 'Lil Red' Lopez at the Pavlion at Caesars Palace in June of 1980. I can still see it clearly, Lopez bouncing a huge right hand off of Sanchez's head, sweat flying everywhere off his Mexi-fro, crowd going nuts - and Sanchez not even batting an eyelash. He would stop Lopez in 14 rounds....Then there was December of 1986, I was on Christmas break my freshman year at Montebello High School and I was up late watching CNN's Sports Tonight with Fred Hickman and Nick Charles, which was still very prominent before ESPN's complete world domination. On this late night edition of the program they would show the renegade Miami Hurricanes coming to Tempe, Arizona, to begin preparations for the 1987 Fiesta Bowl against Penn St. As the team stepped off the plane, you saw them come down in army fatigues, replete with wrap-around shades and dog-tags. Hey, it looked cool, what can I say? They would blow that game (well, Vinny Testaverde did by himself, actually) but I became a fan that night.....And Jimmy Johnson and his boys got redemption the next year as they went undefeated and topped Oklahoma to win it all....

I agree with what Larry Merchant said about the business of boxing needing to place a premium on exciting fights and fighters....And I know he couldn't say this, but I will, and we need networks to stop enabling boxers who act more like businessmen in the ring than fighters. Reward the guys who make the entertaining fights and not the ones who act like malcontents and can't draw flies to their bouts.....Speaking of exciting fighters, Edwin Valero seems to be going backwards technically. While he still has that raw, God-given power, his feet seem to be stuck in cement and his punches are getting wider and wider. Right now, he's the Rob Deer or Steve Balboni of boxing.....I'm ordering everyone out there to watch 'Friday Night Lights' on NBC. Please, this show is simply too good to go after only two seasons (and I know I'm lucky to be getting a sophomore year out of this program)......Is everything good within the Cotto camp? Just wondering.....I'll take Antonio Margarito by 8th round KO over Paul Whatshisname....

I gotta admit, I’m a Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson fan....I actually went to a gathering to watch his bout with Chuck Liddell and it was funny being the 'casual fan', not caring about the undercard, getting into discussions about whether Lisa Lisa was better than Stacy Q or whether the Cover Girls were superior to Seduction and just hanging out.....But overall, I had a really good time. Of course, the Jack and Cokes I kept having over and over helped too. I was feeling higher than Lindsay Lohan by the end of the night....I wonder, does Dana White make out a bonus check to Floyd Mayweather every time he fights? I mean, think about it, he's probably converted more boxing fans into followers of MMA than Tito Ortiz, Rampage or Liddell combined....One factor I believe for the rise of MMA is that just about every high school across the country has a wrestling program and those who participate in it probably find this realm - with it's grappling aspect - very appealing. So literally every year, thousands of graduates are potential UFC fans....When was the last time boxing had a strong presence in high school or college?

Shame on everybody involved if Pacquiao-Marquez II and Joe Calzaghe-Mikkel Kessler are not made for the fall....I'm calling for the Sultan 'of Swat' Ibragimov to beat Shannon Briggs this weekend for the WBO title....I really hope that Erik Morales-David Diaz doesn't turn out like Diego Corrales' last bout against Joshua Clottey. And if it does, I hope those who have the power to do something about it will do the right thing....Golden Boy has something in store for Shane Mosley, right?.....Is it just me or is Mary Jo Sanders a much more pleasant personality than Laila Ali? I think one of the problems that women’s boxing has had is that it's biggest stars have been all about themselves and nothing more. Which is exactly why the big fights that they needed to happen never did. I think Sanders is a great ambassador for the female fight game....But you can't necessarily blame Ali either, she made lots of money not fighting a lot of live bodies. She might be the most well-managed fighter of this generation if you think about it....Could anyone have guessed that about two years after 'defeating' Bernard Hopkins that Jermain Taylor's stock would be so low - and that's without an official loss on his record....

The three best left-hooks I've ever seen are Ray Leonard's versus Davey Boy Green, Mike McCallum on Donald Curry and Bob Foster against Mike Quarry. Those were the type of knockouts that made you jump off your couch.....Oh, and didn't Sugar Ray Robinson land a decent one against Gene Fullmer in their rematch?....Michael Vick is the Don King of dogfighting, huh?....Kenny Phillips is the next great safety from 'the U'....Incoming freshman Joe McKnight can be USC's next Reggie Bush....Right now, I'm forecasting USC and LSU in the BCS championship game.....Believe it or not, while I may not watch 'the View'- even I have my limits - I do respect Rosie O'Donnell. In an age overrun by political correctness, I admire her willingness to say whatever is on her mind. Whether we agree with what she says is irrelevant.....Uh, me thinks charging $850 for ringside seats for Hopkins-Wright on July 21st is a wee bit pricey.....

Just how badly has Joel Casamayor's career been managed recently? Think about it, in his last bout he won the WBC title against Corrales in October, and yet since that time has seemingly become the most irrelevant of all the blue-chip 135-pounders. And his next bout, which I believe is taking place in Panama, is not even televised.....Seriously, with Juan Diaz, David Diaz, Julio Diaz (3-Diaz, indeed), Michael Katsidis, Nate Campbell, Kid Diamond and Anthony Peterson all residing in that same division, it's amazing to me that Casamayor seems to be the forgotten (or is it, ignored?) man in this weight class....Yeah, he has the recognition as the 'Ring' champion, but this situation shows that while it's a great distinction to have, it's really not all that important or even really recognized....Let's hope he gets a big fight in the second half of 2007.....

Russian Alexander Povetkin, who's 12-0 with 10 KO's, could be the best heavyweight prospect out there currently. He's been matched carefully, but he seems to have the tools....Speaking of heavyweights, yes, now that Malik Scott is now fighting 10-rounders, his nickname is '100-90'.....Just my opinion, Marco Antonio Barrera should just call it a day. He can't fight three minutes of every round anymore and 'the Pac Man' is the wrong man to face if you have that predicament.....If Zab Judah loses to Miguel Cotto on June 9th, will he then get a crack at Wlad Klitschko in 2008?....I'm being dead serious, R2-D2 is my favorite 'Star Wars' character. He's a funny little droid.....I don't know about you, but I'd never co-sign on a loan with Murad Muhammad.....