World Championships - Schedules and Results - Oct 23-Nov 3
7 of the US boxers are currently teenagers and look how they performed. Warren is 20. Wilder and Estrada are 22. Then there is Downs at almost 33. The younger guys are the ones that got qualified with the exception of 2 or 3 (depending on Hunter). I think the USA could do very well next year if they work hard and get a good draw in Beijing.
A few questions which cross my mind looking at the results :
- Hum, how good Raushee Warren exactly? Isn't he like 19? (by the way, I know he's pretty good. It's sort of a rhetorical question
)
- What has gotten into the Chinese? Were they always this good, or are they having a surge which will certainlt lead to talk about performan enhancers?
- The English are doing especially well, aren't they?
On the Canadian front : Trupish in the OG. Wow. Not the guy I would have picked to do it at the Worlds - he was having an awful year. Then again, he is our most experienced competitor (the only returning olympian on the team) and one of the best raw talent on the team, if not the best.
- Hum, how good Raushee Warren exactly? Isn't he like 19? (by the way, I know he's pretty good. It's sort of a rhetorical question
)- What has gotten into the Chinese? Were they always this good, or are they having a surge which will certainlt lead to talk about performan enhancers?
- The English are doing especially well, aren't they?
On the Canadian front : Trupish in the OG. Wow. Not the guy I would have picked to do it at the Worlds - he was having an awful year. Then again, he is our most experienced competitor (the only returning olympian on the team) and one of the best raw talent on the team, if not the best.
I think Rau'shee is turning 21 in the next few months. As for the Chinese; I assume they're just putting a lot more into ALL of their big Summer sports with the Olympics being in Beijing; and they certainly have no lack of a talent pool. I expect to see them do really well in the lower weights, I was surprised before with them having a Communist government they didn't have a stronger program; being able to select the best talents and give them the best coaching and training facilities to prepare for tournaments.lap wrote:A few questions which cross my mind looking at the results :
- Hum, how good Raushee Warren exactly? Isn't he like 19? (by the way, I know he's pretty good. It's sort of a rhetorical question
- What has gotten into the Chinese? Were they always this good, or are they having a surge which will certainlt lead to talk about performan enhancers?
- The English are doing especially well, aren't they?
On the Canadian front : Trupish in the OG. Wow. Not the guy I would have picked to do it at the Worlds - he was having an awful year. Then again, he is our most experienced competitor (the only returning olympian on the team) and one of the best raw talent on the team, if not the best.
I think that's what the CCCP did way back in the day at the begining of their Olympic program-took coaches from East Germany I thought and learned their system; and then continued refining it with the Russian system of sports science and exercise physiology.Roberts J wrote:The Chinese take coaches from Europe, Russia Belarus and learn that school of boxing. Once they have it , it's in there system and they are ready to go. This is fact.
What'd you think of Timurziev-Hunter tonight, Roberts?
The early session ended pretty quick so I've made it over to the UIC library to get my thoughts in before the evening session. As if you were all waiting holding your breath . I had a chance to talk to Shawn Estrada before the session, and he was in good spirits chatting up one of the young female security people. I guess they are off to China for a meet soon, and he is looking forward to going to T&T to qualify. He thought he won against Buga of course, but he is a friendly, nice guy. Mel, I told him you had been rooting for him, and he seemed pleased to hear your name. He also promised me that Hunter will beat Timurziev if he can make it to the third round.
Good bouts today, as you would expect. The level is going up, although the crowd was pretty poor. However, based on the ticket lines, I think it will be pretty full tonight. I'll go through each weight and give my - what will be proven to be laughable, no doubt, predictions. I would like someone to explain the mystery of why the 51s had to come right back out first thing this morning, after boxing yesterday, while the 54s, who fought on Tuesday, fight in the evening. I also revised my standings in the "who has the best towel flapping technique" competition. I've decided the Moldovans are the best, with their straight leg, two handed effort.
51KG
This is a really good weight class. As I thought, Mammadov and McWilliams were very even at the start, until Mammadov pulled away in the last two rounds. Arroyo did more of the pressing, while Mammadov chose to move side-to-side. When they were straight up, Arroyo was able to win the exchanges, but Mammadov was the better fighter on the move, and once he was in front he could keep fighting that way. By the end, he was giving Arroyo all kinds of shoulder rolls and glove movements - this was a trend with some of the Eastern Euro fighters, showing more style than I expected. Arroyo was solid and should be a tough out at the Olympics.
Warren and Balakshin was an unfriendly fight. Warren was unable to control the distance against the shorter Russian, and they tended to exchange on equal terms - but Warren's better handspeed allowed him maybe one extra punch per exchange and that helped him get a 10-7 lead after two. Things got a bit rough after that as they threw each other down in the clinches, and Balakshin gave the decision a thumbs down and they didn't shake hands. Warren can definitely be better, but I think he has Balakshin's number at this point.
On the other side of the bracket, Jongjohor had an easy time with Kaczor, which I expected. Jongjohor is very tall, with a crazy long neck for a boxer. He never let Kaczor get in and tied him every time he needed. He'll meet Picardi, who won easily over the Sri Lankan Rathnayike. Can't say a lot about Picardi, except he likes to switch stances back and forth and he moves well. I'll predict that Jongjohor will frustrate him and meet Warren in the final. Warren will have his hands full with Mammadov, but given Arroyo stayed with him for two rounds, I'll guess Rau'Shee will get an early lead and make him chase, which I don't think he wants to do. I'll take Rau'Shee in the final as well - Jongjohor should give him troubles getting in to land, but the Thais are not good fighting from behind, so I think it will be close and low scoring, but I'll tab this as the US' gold.
57KG
Lomachenko was very impressive over Santos. Santos is a very solid stalking Mexican with a good high guard. But he was no match for Lomachenko's blazing handspeed. Vasyl threw beautiful fast combos, racking up the points and eventually getting the RSCOS. He'll meet Li from China - a very small waterbug who keeps winning by getting a small lead and then disappearing. He might have the quickest feet of anyone in the tournament and Lalit Lakra could never find him. I'll take Lomachenko, who can use his hands to keep from falling behind in round 1, and he has good feet himself.
On the other side, Kilic beat Adi, but for the second straight fight had to hold on for dear life in the 4th. Usmanee made a huge comeback on him, and Adi, who couldn't figure out Kilic's length, finally connected and dropped the Turk in the fourth and added a second standing 8. He ran out of time to get the stoppage though. Kilic is awkward and a bit mechanical and seems to be open to counters once people figure out his defense.
Selimov put on an absolute clinic against Raynell. This was beautiful to watch. Selimov is a lefty who keeps his hands very low. Raynell had no idea how to attack him, and Selimov took control of the distance and the tempo. He attacked when he wanted, driving in and landing, and then vanishing or closing in before Raynell could get anything off. By the end, he was exaggerating his moves, leading with his right shoulder and giving Raynell all sorts of glove moves. Selimov has a nice right lead from a low position that Raynell couldn't track and a great follow left. He ought to destroy Kilic, and I'll take him over Lomachenko as well, in what should be a great fight.
64KG
Saunders did really, really well against Vastine - much better than his last fight against Molina. Vastine had a huge height advantage, but Saunders played the distance perfectly, getting inside Vastine's length and staying in his chest. He'll face Kovalev, who won by walkover over Georgiev - I figured something must be up because there were no Bulgarians there. This finished a really bad tourney for Bulgaria, which is a shame, because those people love some amateur boxing. I'll give Kovalev the Russian benefit of the doubt against Saunders, but I don't remember too much of him from his fight Tuesday.
Kawachi keeps winning on the other side. He looks terrible to me - a slow puncher with an extended pawing right. But like many of the East Asians, he's tall as heck and nobody seems to be able to figure out how to land on him. Hambardzumyan was solid - the Armenians seem to be more old school, all straight up with high guard - but not good enough. Kawachi meets Sapiyev who retired Sepahvand. Sapiyev is another southpaw with low hands and good footwork, and had his way. I think he'll end Kawachi's run, and I'll tab him to win the gold based on the way he's handled everyone.
75KG
I was rooting for Argenis Nunez again, but Derevyanchenko was careful to not get caught like Rasulov did. Like Rasulov, he avoided Nunez' wide shots to build up a big lead but Derev kept pressing with the lead and got the RSCOS to make sure. He'll meet Korobov, who trashed the Chinese giant Wang. Korobov caught him coming in and gave him a standing 8 at the very beginning and that was the way it went. Korobov is another lefty, but he's masterful with the right, using it as his main scoring weapon, either doubled on a jab feint or the second part of a combo after a lead left. He looked terrific and I think will be too tough for Derevyanchenko who seemed very solid but maybe not special.
Artayev won, but perhaps not as well as he should have. For the defending gold medallist, he looks awfully stiff to me. He built up a 12-3 lead at the halfway mark, but then allowed the Moroccan Rachidi to land in the later rounds and finish at 19-11. Artayev has very active hands and a nice counter, but he seems too easy to hit and didn't show an ability to salt away a fight. He'll face Blanco, who delighted me by outpunching Buga after a close first two rounds. Both guys highlighted their defense, coming orthodox behind high guards, but Blanco was a little quicker and had slightly better body movement. Once he took the lead he was able to get on the bike and keep it. I'll go for Blanco in an upset here, given Artayev's available head and Blanco's straight punches. I think it will be close either way. And Korobov to beat either one for the gold.
91KG
Russo took out Gajovic, depressing the Montenegrin fans. Russo is very short and looks small. He likes to fight in reverse, leaping in and getting a shot in at the guy chasing him and then vanishing again. He's had low scoring fights both times I've seen him now. He fights Yushan, another towering Chinese who used straight puching to win solidly over a slow Hungarian. However, Yushan looks slow to me as well, and his meeting with Russo will be a major clash in styles. I'll take Russo's running and popping in this case, because I think Yushan will have a tough time finding him.
Chakhiev-Alizade ended up being pretty boring, because Alizade appears to only be able to counter and not lead and once he fell behind he showed no inclination to challenge. Chakhiev looks to me to be one of the less skilled Russians - his punches tended to loop a little - but he is as strong as a bear and was just mauling Alizade in the clinches. Chakhiev also does well with distance, closing in too fast for Alizade to get off his counter left before they clinched in. He'll face M'Bumba, who came from behind to beat Muntean in one of the few close fights so far. Muntean had an awkward, frustrating style, but M'Bumba finally figured it out in the third and then gave him two standing 8's in the fourth. M'Bumba is pretty much an orthodox right-hand power puncher, but his inability to find range with that right will surely be his undoing against Chakhiev. I'll take Chakhiev over Russo in the final, just because Russo looks so small out there. I do think he has the style though, that can trouble anyone.
Be back tonight with more.
. I had a chance to talk to Shawn Estrada before the session, and he was in good spirits chatting up one of the young female security people. I guess they are off to China for a meet soon, and he is looking forward to going to T&T to qualify. He thought he won against Buga of course, but he is a friendly, nice guy. Mel, I told him you had been rooting for him, and he seemed pleased to hear your name. He also promised me that Hunter will beat Timurziev if he can make it to the third round.Good bouts today, as you would expect. The level is going up, although the crowd was pretty poor. However, based on the ticket lines, I think it will be pretty full tonight. I'll go through each weight and give my - what will be proven to be laughable, no doubt, predictions. I would like someone to explain the mystery of why the 51s had to come right back out first thing this morning, after boxing yesterday, while the 54s, who fought on Tuesday, fight in the evening. I also revised my standings in the "who has the best towel flapping technique" competition. I've decided the Moldovans are the best, with their straight leg, two handed effort.
51KG
This is a really good weight class. As I thought, Mammadov and McWilliams were very even at the start, until Mammadov pulled away in the last two rounds. Arroyo did more of the pressing, while Mammadov chose to move side-to-side. When they were straight up, Arroyo was able to win the exchanges, but Mammadov was the better fighter on the move, and once he was in front he could keep fighting that way. By the end, he was giving Arroyo all kinds of shoulder rolls and glove movements - this was a trend with some of the Eastern Euro fighters, showing more style than I expected. Arroyo was solid and should be a tough out at the Olympics.
Warren and Balakshin was an unfriendly fight. Warren was unable to control the distance against the shorter Russian, and they tended to exchange on equal terms - but Warren's better handspeed allowed him maybe one extra punch per exchange and that helped him get a 10-7 lead after two. Things got a bit rough after that as they threw each other down in the clinches, and Balakshin gave the decision a thumbs down and they didn't shake hands. Warren can definitely be better, but I think he has Balakshin's number at this point.
On the other side of the bracket, Jongjohor had an easy time with Kaczor, which I expected. Jongjohor is very tall, with a crazy long neck for a boxer. He never let Kaczor get in and tied him every time he needed. He'll meet Picardi, who won easily over the Sri Lankan Rathnayike. Can't say a lot about Picardi, except he likes to switch stances back and forth and he moves well. I'll predict that Jongjohor will frustrate him and meet Warren in the final. Warren will have his hands full with Mammadov, but given Arroyo stayed with him for two rounds, I'll guess Rau'Shee will get an early lead and make him chase, which I don't think he wants to do. I'll take Rau'Shee in the final as well - Jongjohor should give him troubles getting in to land, but the Thais are not good fighting from behind, so I think it will be close and low scoring, but I'll tab this as the US' gold.
57KG
Lomachenko was very impressive over Santos. Santos is a very solid stalking Mexican with a good high guard. But he was no match for Lomachenko's blazing handspeed. Vasyl threw beautiful fast combos, racking up the points and eventually getting the RSCOS. He'll meet Li from China - a very small waterbug who keeps winning by getting a small lead and then disappearing. He might have the quickest feet of anyone in the tournament and Lalit Lakra could never find him. I'll take Lomachenko, who can use his hands to keep from falling behind in round 1, and he has good feet himself.
On the other side, Kilic beat Adi, but for the second straight fight had to hold on for dear life in the 4th. Usmanee made a huge comeback on him, and Adi, who couldn't figure out Kilic's length, finally connected and dropped the Turk in the fourth and added a second standing 8. He ran out of time to get the stoppage though. Kilic is awkward and a bit mechanical and seems to be open to counters once people figure out his defense.
Selimov put on an absolute clinic against Raynell. This was beautiful to watch. Selimov is a lefty who keeps his hands very low. Raynell had no idea how to attack him, and Selimov took control of the distance and the tempo. He attacked when he wanted, driving in and landing, and then vanishing or closing in before Raynell could get anything off. By the end, he was exaggerating his moves, leading with his right shoulder and giving Raynell all sorts of glove moves. Selimov has a nice right lead from a low position that Raynell couldn't track and a great follow left. He ought to destroy Kilic, and I'll take him over Lomachenko as well, in what should be a great fight.
64KG
Saunders did really, really well against Vastine - much better than his last fight against Molina. Vastine had a huge height advantage, but Saunders played the distance perfectly, getting inside Vastine's length and staying in his chest. He'll face Kovalev, who won by walkover over Georgiev - I figured something must be up because there were no Bulgarians there. This finished a really bad tourney for Bulgaria, which is a shame, because those people love some amateur boxing. I'll give Kovalev the Russian benefit of the doubt against Saunders, but I don't remember too much of him from his fight Tuesday.
Kawachi keeps winning on the other side. He looks terrible to me - a slow puncher with an extended pawing right. But like many of the East Asians, he's tall as heck and nobody seems to be able to figure out how to land on him. Hambardzumyan was solid - the Armenians seem to be more old school, all straight up with high guard - but not good enough. Kawachi meets Sapiyev who retired Sepahvand. Sapiyev is another southpaw with low hands and good footwork, and had his way. I think he'll end Kawachi's run, and I'll tab him to win the gold based on the way he's handled everyone.
75KG
I was rooting for Argenis Nunez again, but Derevyanchenko was careful to not get caught like Rasulov did. Like Rasulov, he avoided Nunez' wide shots to build up a big lead but Derev kept pressing with the lead and got the RSCOS to make sure. He'll meet Korobov, who trashed the Chinese giant Wang. Korobov caught him coming in and gave him a standing 8 at the very beginning and that was the way it went. Korobov is another lefty, but he's masterful with the right, using it as his main scoring weapon, either doubled on a jab feint or the second part of a combo after a lead left. He looked terrific and I think will be too tough for Derevyanchenko who seemed very solid but maybe not special.
Artayev won, but perhaps not as well as he should have. For the defending gold medallist, he looks awfully stiff to me. He built up a 12-3 lead at the halfway mark, but then allowed the Moroccan Rachidi to land in the later rounds and finish at 19-11. Artayev has very active hands and a nice counter, but he seems too easy to hit and didn't show an ability to salt away a fight. He'll face Blanco, who delighted me by outpunching Buga after a close first two rounds. Both guys highlighted their defense, coming orthodox behind high guards, but Blanco was a little quicker and had slightly better body movement. Once he took the lead he was able to get on the bike and keep it. I'll go for Blanco in an upset here, given Artayev's available head and Blanco's straight punches. I think it will be close either way. And Korobov to beat either one for the gold.
91KG
Russo took out Gajovic, depressing the Montenegrin fans. Russo is very short and looks small. He likes to fight in reverse, leaping in and getting a shot in at the guy chasing him and then vanishing again. He's had low scoring fights both times I've seen him now. He fights Yushan, another towering Chinese who used straight puching to win solidly over a slow Hungarian. However, Yushan looks slow to me as well, and his meeting with Russo will be a major clash in styles. I'll take Russo's running and popping in this case, because I think Yushan will have a tough time finding him.
Chakhiev-Alizade ended up being pretty boring, because Alizade appears to only be able to counter and not lead and once he fell behind he showed no inclination to challenge. Chakhiev looks to me to be one of the less skilled Russians - his punches tended to loop a little - but he is as strong as a bear and was just mauling Alizade in the clinches. Chakhiev also does well with distance, closing in too fast for Alizade to get off his counter left before they clinched in. He'll face M'Bumba, who came from behind to beat Muntean in one of the few close fights so far. Muntean had an awkward, frustrating style, but M'Bumba finally figured it out in the third and then gave him two standing 8's in the fourth. M'Bumba is pretty much an orthodox right-hand power puncher, but his inability to find range with that right will surely be his undoing against Chakhiev. I'll take Chakhiev over Russo in the final, just because Russo looks so small out there. I do think he has the style though, that can trouble anyone.
Be back tonight with more.
Emile, thank you very much for telling Shawn I was hoping for him. That was very nice of you. He is a great person and has been as long as I've known him (since he started boxing). He was probably very surprised to hear my name coming from you. 8)but he is a friendly, nice guy. Mel, I told him you had been rooting for him, and he seemed pleased to hear your name
Again, thanks for the commentary.
Said lap, I know Kolya already answered you, but I'll add my two cents.
Congratulations! I have had some email with him in the past and got to meet him in 2004. Really a nice person, as most Canadians are. (Hubby was raised in BC).
He'll be 21 in February.- Hum, how good Raushee Warren exactly? Isn't he like 19? (by the way, I know he's pretty good. It's sort of a rhetorical question
The Chinese first came into prominence in Athens. I am sure they were and are building their team to be ready for the Olympics in 2008.- What has gotten into the Chinese? Were they always this good, or are they having a surge which will certainlt lead to talk about performan enhancers?
On the Canadian front : Trupish in the OG. Wow.
Congratulations! I have had some email with him in the past and got to meet him in 2004. Really a nice person, as most Canadians are. (Hubby was raised in BC).
Kolya, I think the Russian will win. Maybe a RSC or just by a large margin of points. I know this Russian though will hit him hard. Every right hand is a possible Knock down. Well see tonight. I agree I think Russo will get into the Finals. I am 6'3 and I sparred with him, I'd say hes a little less then 6'2. Stocky and fast with looping punches.
I guess when it's done this will be seen as a disappointment for the US, getting only two medals fighting at home with no Cubans. It's a shame that they couldn't maintain that good start they had.
48KG
Yanez was a real disappointment, although his results had been bye, walkover, overmatched opponent, so perhaps he was disadvantaged without having a better prep fight. Tanamor executed his plan perfectly, using his longer arms to establish an early lead and then make Luis chase in. Yanez never figured out how to get inside his arms and was never really in it. Tanamor will meet Ruenrong next, who did a similar job on Danielyan. Two tall, long-armed East Asians who like to counter - it will no doubt be low scoring - I'll favor the Thai on the basis that I like his defense better.
The other side has Oubaali vs. Zou. I really like Oubaali - an aggressive southpaw who uses his left well despite being short. If he was against anyone else, I'd pick him, but Zou is like a Cuban - he gets moving and nobody has touched him much. Zou to beat either other guy in the final.
54KG
Gary was a disappointment as well, although it was a Russian at least. They both came out tentative, and actually looked very similar. Two lefties with similar styles - Vodopyanov a bit taller which perhaps was the difference. Once he extended the lead he started circling the ring, the crowd booed, and Russell just didn't let his hands go enough.
Vodopyanov will fight McJoe Arroyo who won well over the Colombian Romero, who was a very tall slapper. He landed one good shot on McJoe, but Arroyo won fairly easily with a more solid technique. However, he did not seem athletic or busy enough to beat Vodopyanov.
On the other side, Badar-Uugan beat Manzanilla on a cut stoppage. The Mongolian was well ahead at the time, having built a lead with an aggressive attack and then counterpunching once Manzanilla had to start chasing him. He'll fight Joe Murray of England who made a nice comeback against Gu Yu. Once Murray had taken the lead, the Chinese fighter had no answers - note, get ahead against China. I'll take Badar-Uugan in a close one, and I guess Vodopyanov to win the gold, although he is not as impressive as some of the other Russians. Seems a wide open weight class at the moment.
60KG
Valentino handled Javakhyan pretty easily. Not many thoughts here, just a crisper puncher. He'll fight Kim of North Korea, who continues to befuddle opponents with his height and reach, using a long jab to rack up points on Darley Perez. I'll take Kim, as Valentino is not very tall and will have to get inside.
The other side has Tishchenko vs. Gavin. Tishschenko controlled the fight well, slipping inside Sayota's long reach and unloading combinations. Sayota left out a weak jab that didn't offer much protection until he was finally outclassed. Gavin did a nice job neutralizing the aggression of my guy Sipal. He was very patient as the Turk held back for the first round, and he strated scoring once Sipal started winging bombs in the second. After he took the lead, Gavin did a good job moving away or coming in to clinch to preserve the lead and win by a fair amount. I don't see him beating Tishchenko though, who I think will win gold.
69KG
Nice performance by Andrade. He came out much more cautiously this time, having a subdued first round. But he started to score in the second using excellent punching angles to get to the solid German, including a left uppercut starting at his waist. He looks huge at this weight, although the other three remaining fighters are big too, and he is the only southpaw left. After a few minutes of ineffective counterpunching, he turned it back on and won in a rout.
He should beat Kidicci of Turkey, who is tall and solid, but perhaps of a similar mold to the fighter Andrade just beat. Grusac made a comeback on Kilicci before falling back at the end, but it showed that the Turk is hittable.
On the other side, to tall Asians again. Boonjumnong looked worse against Trupish than he did against Balanov. He took an early lead and looked to coast, but Trupish kept coming and kept it close. He has Hanati Silamu next, who pulled away from Sarsekbayev in the fourth in a good fight. I'll take Hanati Silamu to win this and the final, just a hunch.
81KG
Atoev and Shynaliev will meet - they are two peas in a pod. Both short left handers with a high old-timey right hand out front. Hard to call, but I'll take Shynaliev on the basis of better comp.
Beterbiev was solid over Szello, using straight, accurate punches from a flat stance. He's not flashy at all, but has a great jab and appears to be strong. He should beat Semiotis, who won a fairly ugly bout with Yasser, and I'll take Beterbiev to win the gold as well.
91+KG
Nice performance by Hunter. He moved well, and landed some good jabs on the slow tank Timurziev, who responded with wide power punches that looked hurtful. Hunter kept it close, but could not land any combos, even as Timurziev tired. But I feel a lot better about his potential now than I did yesterday - shame he's not 15 pounds heavier.
Price didn't show up, I don't know why, so Cammarelle moved to the semifinal. Hard to pick here since Roberto didn't go. Other side of the draw had two TKO's. The Chinese fighter, who is unbelievably huge, cuffed Beahan with a right hand and sent him crashing. In the next fight, Glazkov landed a weird pushing blow to the side of the head of Jaksto, which seemed to mess up his balance and he couldn't get up well. I'll take Glazkov over the Chinese fighter, despite the size disparity, because I like his skills, and the winner of the other fight to win gold.
I had a good time, regards to AIBA and Chicago for putting on a good event.
48KG
Yanez was a real disappointment, although his results had been bye, walkover, overmatched opponent, so perhaps he was disadvantaged without having a better prep fight. Tanamor executed his plan perfectly, using his longer arms to establish an early lead and then make Luis chase in. Yanez never figured out how to get inside his arms and was never really in it. Tanamor will meet Ruenrong next, who did a similar job on Danielyan. Two tall, long-armed East Asians who like to counter - it will no doubt be low scoring - I'll favor the Thai on the basis that I like his defense better.
The other side has Oubaali vs. Zou. I really like Oubaali - an aggressive southpaw who uses his left well despite being short. If he was against anyone else, I'd pick him, but Zou is like a Cuban - he gets moving and nobody has touched him much. Zou to beat either other guy in the final.
54KG
Gary was a disappointment as well, although it was a Russian at least. They both came out tentative, and actually looked very similar. Two lefties with similar styles - Vodopyanov a bit taller which perhaps was the difference. Once he extended the lead he started circling the ring, the crowd booed, and Russell just didn't let his hands go enough.
Vodopyanov will fight McJoe Arroyo who won well over the Colombian Romero, who was a very tall slapper. He landed one good shot on McJoe, but Arroyo won fairly easily with a more solid technique. However, he did not seem athletic or busy enough to beat Vodopyanov.
On the other side, Badar-Uugan beat Manzanilla on a cut stoppage. The Mongolian was well ahead at the time, having built a lead with an aggressive attack and then counterpunching once Manzanilla had to start chasing him. He'll fight Joe Murray of England who made a nice comeback against Gu Yu. Once Murray had taken the lead, the Chinese fighter had no answers - note, get ahead against China. I'll take Badar-Uugan in a close one, and I guess Vodopyanov to win the gold, although he is not as impressive as some of the other Russians. Seems a wide open weight class at the moment.
60KG
Valentino handled Javakhyan pretty easily. Not many thoughts here, just a crisper puncher. He'll fight Kim of North Korea, who continues to befuddle opponents with his height and reach, using a long jab to rack up points on Darley Perez. I'll take Kim, as Valentino is not very tall and will have to get inside.
The other side has Tishchenko vs. Gavin. Tishschenko controlled the fight well, slipping inside Sayota's long reach and unloading combinations. Sayota left out a weak jab that didn't offer much protection until he was finally outclassed. Gavin did a nice job neutralizing the aggression of my guy Sipal. He was very patient as the Turk held back for the first round, and he strated scoring once Sipal started winging bombs in the second. After he took the lead, Gavin did a good job moving away or coming in to clinch to preserve the lead and win by a fair amount. I don't see him beating Tishchenko though, who I think will win gold.
69KG
Nice performance by Andrade. He came out much more cautiously this time, having a subdued first round. But he started to score in the second using excellent punching angles to get to the solid German, including a left uppercut starting at his waist. He looks huge at this weight, although the other three remaining fighters are big too, and he is the only southpaw left. After a few minutes of ineffective counterpunching, he turned it back on and won in a rout.
He should beat Kidicci of Turkey, who is tall and solid, but perhaps of a similar mold to the fighter Andrade just beat. Grusac made a comeback on Kilicci before falling back at the end, but it showed that the Turk is hittable.
On the other side, to tall Asians again. Boonjumnong looked worse against Trupish than he did against Balanov. He took an early lead and looked to coast, but Trupish kept coming and kept it close. He has Hanati Silamu next, who pulled away from Sarsekbayev in the fourth in a good fight. I'll take Hanati Silamu to win this and the final, just a hunch.
81KG
Atoev and Shynaliev will meet - they are two peas in a pod. Both short left handers with a high old-timey right hand out front. Hard to call, but I'll take Shynaliev on the basis of better comp.
Beterbiev was solid over Szello, using straight, accurate punches from a flat stance. He's not flashy at all, but has a great jab and appears to be strong. He should beat Semiotis, who won a fairly ugly bout with Yasser, and I'll take Beterbiev to win the gold as well.
91+KG
Nice performance by Hunter. He moved well, and landed some good jabs on the slow tank Timurziev, who responded with wide power punches that looked hurtful. Hunter kept it close, but could not land any combos, even as Timurziev tired. But I feel a lot better about his potential now than I did yesterday - shame he's not 15 pounds heavier.
Price didn't show up, I don't know why, so Cammarelle moved to the semifinal. Hard to pick here since Roberto didn't go. Other side of the draw had two TKO's. The Chinese fighter, who is unbelievably huge, cuffed Beahan with a right hand and sent him crashing. In the next fight, Glazkov landed a weird pushing blow to the side of the head of Jaksto, which seemed to mess up his balance and he couldn't get up well. I'll take Glazkov over the Chinese fighter, despite the size disparity, because I like his skills, and the winner of the other fight to win gold.
I had a good time, regards to AIBA and Chicago for putting on a good event.
Last edited by emile on 02 Nov 2007, 00:30, edited 1 time in total.
Darn, that's too bad. I'm not going to make it down and was hoping to continue to read your reports. I gave away my tickets since I couldn't take the time to go to Chicago. I have to train my son and a pro I'm working with. I also have boxers from our gym competing Saturday evening.emile wrote:Nope, that's it for me. I head back home tomorrow morning and I'll be back to watching the internet scoreboard with the rest of you.
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pound per pound
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Mike Hunter
For those who are familiar with Mike Hunter, do you think he is better than the last three 91K+ Olympians on team USA? ( Clay-Bey, Brock, and Estrada )
Hey Emile great post, on McWilliam's fight was the scoring fair, this kid has great talent, he has beaten the cuban's twice in a row the first one being Olimpic Gold Medalist Yan Barthelemy. I thougt he would have gone to the medal rounds. I've always seemed to think that there has always been favortism towards european fighters or is it just that they are better fighters in the amateur system.
I thought it was a reasonable decision. I don't recall any fight in three days that seemed really out of line, although the first round and the first half of the second are so important to the outcome, a punch landed here or there and not counted can make a huge difference. There was very little between Mammadov and Arroyo, and another fight might lead to another result. As I said above, Mammadov was very good at moving laterally and suddenly stopping and throwing. When Arroyo got him to hold still and exchange, Arroyo was better. If McWilliams had taken the lead in the second, I think he would have won. Mammadov was the only Azeri to make it to the semis, and according to the posters who know here, he is a known top prospect.PRKO wrote:Hey Emile great post, on McWilliam's fight was the scoring fair, this kid has great talent, he has beaten the cuban's twice in a row the first one being Olimpic Gold Medalist Yan Barthelemy. I thougt he would have gone to the medal rounds. I've always seemed to think that there has always been favortism towards european fighters or is it just that they are better fighters in the amateur system.
The Europeans did not do all that well at the small weights - it is actually the East Asians who are really good at working the system. As I mentioned throughout, they are almost all (except for a few Chinese) really, really tall and lanky and effectively use their arms to stay away or keep the fight tied up. Tanamor over Yanez was exemplary - I don't know if Luis has short arms or has problems with southpaws, but he could not figure out how to get inside and once he was behind he was sunk. Very bad, because he had probably the easiest draw of any of the Americans.
I do think that one positive from the tournament is that I now think Raynell can medal in Beijing if he gets the right draw. Selimov was a nightmare matchup for him, but with some more experience I think he could be a bronze medal hopeful (remembering Selimov also dismantled the Olympic vet Sultanov by roughly the same score in the previous round).
I
Thanks for the above assessment, Emile. Raynell kinda came out of nowhere. I saw him for the first time at the Western Trials in May and was very impressed. I continued to be impressed in Houston.do think that one positive from the tournament is that I now think Raynell can medal in Beijing if he gets the right draw. Selimov was a nightmare matchup for him, but with some more experience I think he could be a bronze medal hopeful (remembering Selimov also dismantled the Olympic vet Sultanov by roughly the same score in the previous round).