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Monday, May 26, 2008

Boxing: Hatton rumbles on but is fat lady warming up? - Others, More Sports - The Independent

Boxing: Hatton rumbles on but is fat lady warming up? - Others, More Sports - The IndependentI watched the fight on Versus and this account, by a London newspaper presents a fairly accurate account of the fight. Hatton did win almost every round on points but he got hurt a couple of times in the process. Lazcano was picked, as the writer says, for his lack of big punching power and his inactivity but also for his heart and his refusal to lay down. I don't think Hatton was as bad as all that, however, and his requiem may be a bit premature. Whle he was unsuccessful against the creme-de-la creme boxer Floyd Mayweather, Jr., Hatton is still an active force. His boxing style was always frontal--he's always been there to hit--and that's why Mayweather knocked him out with a check hook as Hatton surged forward. Lazcano is a pretty good fighter withall and it was an interesting contest.

The real stinker of the evening was Paul Malignaggi's fight with N'dou. It wasn't only Malignaggi who took a haircut in the middle rounds--the fight fans who watched Malignaggi did, too. N'dou battered him with big right hands and left Malignaggi wobbling and unsure of himself. Yet, N'dou seemed happy to be in the Big Limelight and was content to display his amiable personality rather than to close the show. If the fight were scored on punch and aggression, it should have been given it to N'dou. Had there been a mean streak in N'dou's sweet character, Malignaggi wouldn't have survived to fight Hatton, which is a match based on box office atraction rather than skill. I'd rather watch Lazcano-Malignaggi and let Hatton find someone more interesting than "Paulie", the fancy boy from Brooklyn.

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