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Showtime ShoBox Recap

"No Excuses"

July 5, 2008

Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino-Las Vegas, Nevada

This month will feature this website's first in the industry exclusive coverage of the E3 Business & Media Summit, the premiere event in the video gaming world. We would like to know what type of coverage you would like to see of this event. Please email Dave, hsmeltzer@juno.com, Bryan, figure4@ix.netcom.com, and me, ZurRoadie@aol.com, to let us know what type of coverage you would like us to deliver. This is a work in progress. The more feedback we receive the better we can meet the needs of our readers. If you would like us to cover other non-wrestling and MMA games, like Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, Gears of War 2 and Resistance 2, you need to tell us. If you want some sort of mailbag/figure four daily about all of the games at E3, you need to tell us. Any ideas you have please send them in to us.

1. Junior Welterweight (140 pounds) 10-Round Match:

Lamont Peterson (24-0, 11 KO's, 141 pounds) vs. Rogelio Castaneda, Jr. (24-13-3, 8 KO's, 141 pounds)

Peterson had a good amateur boxing career. He won the United States National Amateur Championship at 141 pounds in 2003.

The Washington, D.C. native has been involved in a recent controversy with his management. Lamont and his brother, Anthony Peterson, recently signed with Bob Arum's Top Rank Promotion. Each brother received a $100,000 signing bonus. However, their manager never read the contract, and filed a $300,000 claim in the court of arbitration to block the deal. Their manager said he had a deal in place with Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions that would have paid the brothers double the signing bonus they received from Top Rank, and had them debut on the undercard of the De La Hoya vs. Steve Forbes match at the Home Depot Center on May 3. Instead Anthony debuted for Top Rank with a lackluster showing on a little viewed Versus card on June 26. Lamont is debuting for Top Rank on this event, that starts at 11 PM Eastern Time. This has all made the brothers' decision to sign with Top Rank very curious.

The Memphis, Tennessee resident's last match was a dominant 10-round unanimous decision victory over Antonio Mesquita on January 4, 2008 at the Hard Rock Casino in Biloxi, Mississippi.

Peterson is unranked by The Ring magazine, but the number 34 ranked boxer at 140 pounds by boxrec.com.

Castaneda has lost 3 of his last 4 matches with all of the matches making it to round 10. It appears Castaneda is here to lose to Peterson, but last several rounds in the match.

The Sacramento, California resident's last match was a 10-round unanimous decision over Ubaldo Hernandez on October 19, 2007 at the Feather Falls Casino in Oroville, California. That match was a rematch of a match on April 12, 2007 at Arco Arena in Sacramento, where Hernandez beat Castaneda via 10-round unanimous decision.

Castaneda is unranked by The Ring at any weight class, but ranked 81 at 147 pounds by boxrec.com.

At 24-years-old, Peterson is 7 years younger then the 31-year-old Castaneda. Castaneda has a slight height advantage standing 5' 9.5" tall, while Peterson stands 5' 9" tall. Peterson has the reach advantage with a 74" wingspan, compared to Castaneda's 72" wingspan. Neither boxers' unofficial weight approaching match time is available. However, Castaneda is reported to have added a lot of weight rehydrating and is probably the heavier boxer in the ring. Both boxers will employ the orthodox stance.

The unified rules of boxing are in effect for this event. Two of the judges keeping official score of this match from ringside are from Nevada and the other is from Florida. The referee is Russell Mora.

Peterson shows too much speed for Castaneda to win round 1 easily, 10-9. However, Peterson is dodging some punches from Castaneda, by shifting his head and body back awkwardly in a manner that does not allow Peterson to move were a second punch to follow the first as part of a combination. Castaneda may not have the speed or power to exploit that weakness, but better boxers at 140 pounds will make Peterson pay for that technical mistake. Peterson is too fast for Castaneda and dominates round 2 winning it, 10-9. Castaneda is failing to punch back frequently, and being hit with ease. Castaneda will need to do something in this match quickly or the referee may stop this match early, even if Castaneda is not knocked down. Peterson wins round 3, 10-9. He spent a lot of round 3 fooling around and playing to the crowd. Unfortunately, Peterson was not working this crowd very well and they were not receptive to his antics. They are looking for a quick stoppage and his preening is going to frustrate them, rather then make him a bigger star that will draw more money. Peterson leads on my scorecard after 3 rounds, 30-27. Nick Charles, doing play-by-play of this event for Showtime, and Steve Farhood, Showtime's color commentator for this event, both have Peterson ahead after 3 rounds, 30-27.

With over 1:30 to go in round 4, Castaneda has been cut below his right eye. It should play no factor in this match. Peterson had Castaneda in trouble in the last 30 seconds of round 4, but the Sacramento resident lasted out the round. Peterson wins round 4, 10-9. Big round 5 for Peterson. The referee was taking a close look at Castaneda in the opening minute of the round, and again, with about 1 minute to go in the round. However, Peterson did not punch himself out going for the knockout and kept up a deliberate pace. Round 5 is going to be scored for Peterson, 10-9. After 5 rounds, Peterson has yet to sit on his stool between rounds. In the corner between rounds he stands every time, frequently not even leaning on the ropes to rest. Conversely, Castaneda at this point is staying on his stool until the bell rings to begin the next round to get as much rest as possible between rounds. Peterson wins an uneventful round 6, 10-9. After 6 rounds, Charles, Farhood, and my scorecard all have Peterson ahead, 60-54.

Peterson wins round 7, 10-9. At one point in the round, Castaneda was taking numerous punches from Peterson without punching back and the referee was thinking about stopping it. However, the referee let it continue, because there is very little power on Peterson's punches. After a few seconds of standing there and being hit, Castaneda recovered to punch back. If Paulie Malignaggi is Floyd Mayweather, Jr. "light", then Peterson is Malignaggi "light". Peterson solidly wins round 8, 10-9. The Washington, D.C. native had Castaneda in real trouble starting in round 2, however he has never picked up the pace to try and finish this match. It appears Peterson almost slows down when he has the opportunity to finish the match. Then with 1:14 to go in round 9, a right hand out of nowhere hits Castaneda behind the right ear, and sends him to the canvas face first, as if a tree fell on him. Castaneda successively answers the referee's count for the match to continue with 1:02 to go in the round. With around 15 seconds to go in the round this match is over. Castaneda's corner threw in the towel with their boxer taking punches in a corner. Castaneda was still coherent and able to defend himself, but he had taken too many punches in this match for it to continue.

The official outcome of this match from the always "Classy" Jimmy Lennon, Jr. is that: at 2:50 of round 9, upon the request of the corner the referee has stopped the contest, making the winner by technical knockout and still undefeated, Lamont Peterson. The win moves Peterson to 25-0 with 12 of those wins coming by way of knockout.

Peterson's performance in this match was okay. Peterson is hoping this match will springboard him into a title match against the winner of the main event. However, Peterson is not at the level of a top 10 boxer in the 140-pound division. Peterson is ready to challenge someone in the 11-20 contender spots, not for a title. This was a glorified sparring session, not a statement victory that proves Peterson is ready for a title match. Peterson might be ready to challenge for a title in late 2009 or 2010.

Castaneda was outclassed in every way in this match. His defense was poor. He was unable to match the power of a boxer with little power. Castaneda's speed deficiency in this match was revealed in the opening minute. He appears to be the perfect opponent for young prospects looking to go rounds against a safe opponent. Castaneda will likely continue to do that for good money for the rest of his boxing career.

2. WBO Junior Welterweight 12-Round Championship Match:

Ricardo Torres (32-1, 28 KO's, 139 pounds) (c) vs. Kendall Holt (23-2, 12 KO's, 139 pounds) II

Torres won this title when it was vacant via 12-round split decision over Mike Arnaoutis on November 18, 2006 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas. The previous champion was Miguel Cotto who vacated the title to move up to 147 pounds. Torres is making his third defense of this title.

The first match between these two boxers was won by Torres via controversial technical knockout in round 11 on September 1, 2007 in Barranquilla, Colombia. Holt was ahead on 2 the judges' scorecards, but was then the likely victim of a hometown stoppage. Holt stayed standing after he was hit with a "loaded" beer can in the head thrown from the crowd, after he knocked down Torres in round 6 to begin to pull away on the scorecards. However in round 11, Holt was knocked down when, in a move straight out of the rudo playbook, Torres' corner was holding Holt's leg so he could not move out of the way of the punches. Then when Holt stood up, a shower of debris began to fly at the ring from the crowd. Therefore, Holt thought the best idea was to hold on or try and move away and avoid boxing, rather then act as a sitting target that was trying to box while the crowd threw things at his head. However, the referee decided he had seen enough, and declared that Holt was not fighting back ruling the match a technical knockout victory for Torres. The stoppage was premature, but somewhat defensible. It does not appear this was a situation where the referee was biased towards Torres before the match. This appears to have been more of a situation where the referee stopped the foreign boxer for the safety of everyone involved, like Julio Cesar Chavez was the beneficiary of many years ago in Mexico City where the referee made a questionable technical knockout call that may have been influenced by the desire to save the life of everyone involved and many others that would have been killed in the ensuing riot had that match been sent to the scorecards.

Torres' last match was his victory over Holt.

Torres is The Ring's number 6 contender at 140 pounds to their champion in the weight class, Ricky Hatton.

Holt's last match was a 10-round majority decision victory over Ben Tackie on February 7, 2008 at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. That victory did not make Holt the mandatory challenger to Torres' title. However, Holt's people offered Torres $250,000 to come to the United States for a rematch. That is why this match is happening.

Holt is unranked by The Ring, but the number 14 ranked boxer at 140 pounds by boxrec.com.

At 27-years-old, Holt is 1 year younger then the 28-year-old Torres. Holt has the height advantage standing 5' 9" tall, while Torres stands 5' 8" tall. The challenger has the reach advantage with a 71" wingspan compared to the 67" wingspan of the champion. Neither boxers' unofficial weight approaching match time is available, but Holt will probably be the heavier boxer in the ring. Both boxers will employ the orthodox stance. According to Showtime, Holt is 2.5-to-1 favorite.

All of the judges keeping official score of this match are from Nevada. The referee is Jay Nady.

A right hook sends Holt to the mat 13 seconds into round 1. Holt is shaking his head that he is not hurt and is allowed to continue with 2:35 to go in the round. However, despite Holt's bravado, his legs are unsteady when the action resumes. Holt eats a few more punches and then both of his gloves touch the canvas as he reaches towards Torres with 2:28 to go in the round. The referee is going to allow Holt to continue with 2:16 to go in the round. The 3 knockdown rule is not in effect. Now, Holt has fired back from against the ropes and landed a combination capped by a right hand that has sent Torres to his knees with 2:06 to go still in round 1. Torres cannot answer the count, it is over. This is undoubtedly the round of the year! This is one of the greatest round 1's in the history of boxing. It appears Torres was knocked unconscious, but landed in the kneeling position. That was why the count was applied. When the referee tried to look into Torres' eyes, he realized that the boxer was unconscious.

After a scary minute, Torres has regained consciousness in the ring. He does not appear to have any idea what happened or where he is. However, Torres should be okay.

The official outcome of this match from the "Classy" Jimmy Lennon, Jr. is that: at 1:01 of round 1 the winner by way of "spectacular knockout" and new WBO Junior Welterweight Champion of the World, Kendall "Rated R" Holt. The win moves Holt to 24-3 with 13 of those wins coming by way of knockout.

Holt is his post match interview said he is open to a rematch.

Holt is not an elite 140-pounder. No one can be knocked down twice in the first 45 seconds of a match, and claim to be at the elite level. The replays show that Holt hit Torres with a headbutt to start the combination that finished Torres. The obvious next match for Holt is a rubber match in this series. If Holt were to face a top boxer at 140 pounds, he would probably lose, and that would take away a lot of the drawing power away from a third match with Torres. The winner of this match was also being talked about for a title unification match on the undercard of a Showtime card on September 13 against Timothy Bradley, Jr. That match could be very entertaining. However, the third match in this series is more interesting and a match with Bradley should still be available down the line to the winner of a third match in this series.

Torres has a legitimate claim for a rematch with the foul starting the combination that ended his night. However, Torres did not box a clean match himself, either. After Torres had knocked down Holt for the second time, the Colombian hit Holt when he was standing back up without the referee spotting it. There was no rematch clause in the contract for this match and Torres may not want a rematch after being stopped so decisively. However, it is probably the best paying match he could get.

The first match was average and a fairly easy skip. However, the 1 minute that is the main event is a must watch. It will be the round of the year in boxing.

News and Notes: During this event it was announced Bill Goldberg will host a new program on Showtime featuring the best sporting moments on their network in 2007 and 2008. It is surprising that they have chosen Goldberg for that role. The last time they let Goldberg promote anything it was the show 'Rome" following the first EliteXC show. However, it was the greatest promo read, ever. They made Goldberg read from a poorly scripted cue card. Therefore, he started mumbling, and bailed out on the last line of the promo. However, the highlight was when he lowered the mic and began walking away in disgust while the camera was still rolling. Showtime probably did not think that was the greatest promo read, ever.

The deal is almost finalized to have Joe Calzaghe's final match be a defense of his Ring Championship at 175 pounds against Roy Jones, Jr. on September 20. That match would air on HBO pay-per-view. To do that match on HBO PPV on that day is an odd choice. HBO PPV is running Joel Casamayor defending his Ring Championship at 135 pounds against Juan Manuel Marquez previous weekend, on September 13. It would be the first time in history that HBO has run boxing PPV's on back-to-back weekends.

Calzaghe has vacated one of his title belts at 168 pounds. It appears that Carl Froch will face Jermain Taylor to determine the new champion. Froch was the mandated number 1 contender to that title, and Jermain Taylor has not had a match at 168 pounds in over 5 years. That match will air on HBO.

It appears Kelly Pavlik's next match will be a title defense of his 160-pound championships against current 147-pound title holder Paul Williams. That match would happen on September 27 on HBO. Pavlik wants to have another title defense in December. Then in early 2009 he could face The Ring's number 1 contender at 160 pounds, Arthur Abraham.

Pavlik wanted to face Calzaghe in the fall, however Calzaghe opted for the higher paying match with Jones. Pavlik's second choice was Sergio Mora. However, Mora is stuck in contractual purgatory. Mora has managed to be contractually obligated to face both Vernon Forrest and Sergio Martinez in his next match. That mess not only cost Mora the match with Pavlik, which would have paid him $1.2 million, but an even more lucrative PPV main event match with Shane Mosley. The slow movement of Mora's team to clear this mess up has literally cost the boxer over a million dollars, and counting.

Since Joel Casamayor has refused the ordered match with Nate Campbell, Campbell has signed to defend his titles at 135 against a mandatory challenger, Joan Guzman. That match will take place on Showtime on September 13, the same night as Casamayor's title defense. Therefore, Casamayor and Campbell will be in position to face each other in their next match, if they can get a contract worked out this time.

Former UFC Heavyweight Champion Andrei Arlovski will make his pro boxing debut in the opening match on the September 13 HBO PPV. This is not going to effect his scheduled match on the July 19 Affliction PPV.

Samuel Peter's heavyweight title defense against Vitali Klitschko will air on Showtime. The terms are almost finalized for the match to take place in Europe on October 4 or 11. The one delay is for the contingency that if Klitschko gets injured, again.

Ruslan Chagaev tore his left Achilles tendon and had surgery on it earlier this week. This has forced him to postpone for a second time his WBA Heavyweight Championship defense against Nikolai Valuev. Therefore, the WBA is going to declare Chagaev the "champion in recess". They are preparing to order a match between Valuev and John Ruiz for the vacant title. Then, Chagaev must face the winner of the Valuev-Ruiz match by June 26, 2009 to unify the title or forfeit his claim to the belt. None of these matches are likely to be televised in the United States, which is probably for the best.

The date of David Haye's debut at heavyweight has changed, again. It now appears Haye will debut at heavyweight against Monte Barrett on October 18 at the O2 Arena in London, England. That match will probably be carried on HBO.

Mike Tyson who was in attendance at this event has had a bad week. Recent testimony in a racketeering case accuses Tyson of paying to have 2 men killed. More testimony in that same trial indicates that someone else was going to put a hit out on Tyson. However, the guy who was to do the job turned it down, because Tyson was a Muslim. (Apparently, that explanation for turning down the contract seemed as ridiculous in court as it does in this recap.)

Francisco Lorenzo defeated Humberto Soto via controversial disqualification on the undercard of the Manny Pacquiao-David Diaz PPV. That match was for a vacant interim title at 130 pounds. However, the WBC invoked the Vickie Guerrero rule that a title cannot be won on a count out or disqualification. Therefore, they refused to award Lorenzo the title, and the belt is being held up.

Mayweather this week accused HBO and their broadcasters of being biased against black fighters. Saying the broadcasters for HBO's are biased is probably unfair. However, charges about HBO management being biased about booking black boxers have been made in the past. Thomas Hauser wrote a piece about this last year for secondsout.com. His article did a statistical breakdown of how there is a far higher percentage of black boxers on Showtime then HBO. For the first half of 2007, 31% of the boxers used by HBO were black. During that same time period, 50% of the boxers used by Showtime were black. HBO appears to be aware of this problem or perceived problem and appears to be taking the stance of ignoring it. Last year HBO no showed the National Association of Black Journalists convention in Las Vegas. Apparently only 1 person in the company was capable of going and had a last minute family illness. (It is unclear whether it was to attend to the back Steve Austin injured moving furniture or Kevin Nash' most recent heart attack.) Mayweather was a part of the forum that HBO was supposed to have participated in at the convention. It is important to keep in context that HBO and WCW at one time were part of the same company.

In a sport with a bad history of prejudice, other active participants in boxing have done similarly tactless things when it comes to race and ethnicity, HBO was just the most recent to get called on it. Gary Shaw honestly (and stupidly) admitted on television, before the interviewer could cut him off that he uses perceived ethnic rivalries and race baiting when making matches. Shaw said he thinks booking a Puerto Rican vs. a Mexican is a formula for a great fight. He did not explain that the styles had to mesh or for them to be great boxers. He just needed to book a Puerto Rican vs. a Mexican and watch the money flow into his bank account. This is the same Gary Shaw that promotes EliteXC and just got a second loan from Showtime. This is how this business works. (Thanks to Mike Sempervive for sending me the Thomas Hauser article.)

The next recap will come out July 13, and cover Wladimir Klitschko's defensive of his titles against Tony Thompson on HBO.