Should Eastman challenge Trinidad?

Guest · Post by **Guest** » 15 Dec 2003, 11:34

I've heard whispers that Felix Trinidad is planning a comeback at middleweight next year. Can anyone confirm this? I'm not sure about the wisdom of Tito after such a long lay off but undisputably Boxing will be more exciting with him around.

Trinidad's handlers will be looking for a "warm up" opponent. A known contender, but not an established world star in his own right. My immediate thoughts turn to Howard Eastman. I'm still not convinced that the WBC are going to grant him his rightful mandatory shot against Bernard Hopkins. I'm slightly concerned when I hear that the WBC have ordered a final eliminator involving Jermain Taylor early next year. Final eliminator for what? The no1 ranking?? I certainly hope not because that would be cruel on Eastman.

I do believe though that Eastman should try and help himself. Defending his European and British title against inadequate challengers may be boosting his bank balance but their not boosting his stock. If Eastman is going to land his big fight I think he needs to take some risks in order to make it happen.

If I was Mick Hennessy I'd be straight on the phone to Trinidad's handlers proposing Eastman as a comeback opponent in America. Eastman is a known quantity on HBO but essentially will be viewed as a credible but safe opponent. William Joppy's beating at the hands of Bernard Hopkins doesn't reflect well on Howard which ironically might land him the fight.

It would be a brave gamble but there would never be a better time to fight Trinidad. Eastman is undobutedly not without hope and at 33 this could be the making of him. I believe it would be worth the risk.

Priff · Post by **Priff** » 15 Dec 2003, 11:45

I was thinking of Eastman just today and was checking his rankings. Since signing with Henessey, he's managed to secure a very lofty ranking without making himself a talked about fighter. He's WBC number 2, but not "in the mix" at all. No one's calling him out (other than Farnell

), and Eastman himself isn't making any audable noise either.

As Lightoot says, he needs to help himself by improving his opposition and thus profile/stock.

Kilburn · Post by **Kilburn** » 15 Dec 2003, 11:50

Could be a good move for Eastman, got to be better than switching weight division which is his only other hope of beating a big name.

And you can bet your life that Trinidad won't be accepting any stiffs for his comeback fight.

Lugh · Post by **Lugh** » 15 Dec 2003, 11:56

Isn't Eastman a bit too "live"?

Tito went for Cherifi last time and there is a big difference in terms of appetite.

Kilburn · Post by **Kilburn** » 15 Dec 2003, 12:06

I doubt Trinidad would have any respect for Eastman, who's only really stepped up to his level once to get outboxed by a man Tito slaughtered earlier in the same year.

It's a bit like Naz coming back against Calvo.

bennie · Post by **bennie** » 15 Dec 2003, 12:36

Eastman is number one in the WBC December rankings...

MIDDLEWEIGHT
CHAMPION: BERNARD HOPKINS (US)

1. Howard Eastman (GB) EBU
2. Cristian Sanavia (Italy)
3. Jermain Taylor (US) AMERICA
4. Kuvanych Toygonbayev (Uzbekistan)
5. Eric Mitchell (US)
6. Evans Ashira (Kenya)
7. Kingsley Ikeke (Nigeria) NABF
8. Sam Soliman (Australia) OPBF
9. Sergey Tatevosyan (Russia) INTL
10. Robert Allen (US)
11. Raymond Joval (Holland)
12. Wayne Alexander (GB)
13. Quentin Smith (US)
14. Epifanio Mendoza (Colombia)
15. Jorge Sendra (Spain) ABMH
16. Nader Hamden (Australia)
17. Bert Schenk (Germany)
18. Tokumbo Olajide (Canada)
19. Mariano Carrera (Argentina)
20. Kelly Pavlik (US)
21. Yoshinori Araki (Japan)
22. Morrade Hakkar (France)
23. Chad Dawson (US) YOUTH
24. Jerry Elliott (Nigeria)
25. Tokutaro Toyozumi (Japan)
26. Marcos S. Diaz (Argentina)
27. Jesse Brinkley (US)
28. Anthony Bonsante (US)
29. James Obedi Toney (Ghana) ABU
30. Troy Rowland (US)

steve689 · Post by **steve689** » 15 Dec 2003, 12:47

Lugh wrote:Isn't Eastman a bit too "live"?

Tito went for Cherifi last time and there is a big difference in terms of appetite.

There certainly is, Tito's "appetite" is what is letting him down from what i saw on Saturday night, he needs to re-acquaint himself with the gym again if he is planning on making a comeback. He looked like a Cruiserweight!

REAL_DEAL · Post by **REAL_DEAL** » 15 Dec 2003, 12:48

i tihnk a tito before hopkins would stop eastman, not so sure now

Kilburn · Post by **Kilburn** » 15 Dec 2003, 12:58

I don't see why Trinidad couldn't be the same as before. It's not like he's had a 5 year lay-off. Against Cherifi he was as fit and confident as ever, showing no ill signs after the Hopkins disaster.

I wouldn't be surprised to see Tito bang in form even in his first comeback fight.

He'll never beat Hopkins though.

steve689 · Post by **steve689** » 15 Dec 2003, 13:02

REAL_DEAL wrote:i tihnk a tito before hopkins would stop eastman, not so sure now

Wil tito ever be the same again? All the decent fighters will know now how to beat him, box and move and dont stand in front of him. I like Trinidad but look at his big fights against decent opposition:

Vargas - Stood in front of him and paid the price.
DLH - Arguably won the fight anyway, ran for the last rounds and lost.
Reid - Neglected to stand and trade so much, when he did he was dropped, when he didn't he had reasonable success
Hopkins - Boxed and showed good lateral movement, beat Felix with ease.
Joppy - Tried to be a hero and stood and traded, when he fought at range and used the jab he looked bigger and more assertive, Foreman even commentated he looked "the boss in there" when he boxed and moved.

Howard is too smart to be drawn into a war, he would use his superior physical strength and win IMO.

Kilburn · Post by **Kilburn** » 15 Dec 2003, 13:20

Steve, Tito lost to Hopkins (and De La Hoya) because they used their superb footwork to full effect. Eastman is a plodder by comparison. If he can trade bombs with Trinidad and come of best I'll be absolutely amazed.

The_Power · Post by **The_Power** » 15 Dec 2003, 13:22

Anyone who trades with that man loses. The only hope would be that the layoff would affect him.

Eastman would be beaten badly by trinidad imo.

MightyWarrior · Post by **MightyWarrior** » 15 Dec 2003, 13:45

It'll be a nice and easy one when Tito eventualy does come back - along the lines of Cherifi like last time out.

Howard is doing himself no favours bashing up on obscure Europeans lately, but he's got a very good chin and a decent punch, so it's fare to say he's a dangerman in the middleweight division: someone to steer clear of unless there's a title on the line.

He'd give Tito a very good fight and I think they'll stay clear of him for awhile yet. No need to take risks when you've got a multi million dollar fight with the Golden Boy looming on the horizon.

kevo · Post by **kevo** » 15 Dec 2003, 14:05

Judging by look of Tito on Saturday night ( at the Don King show ) the fights going to be made up at Heavy! He looked like a Latino Butterbean

shakermaker · Post by **shakermaker** » 15 Dec 2003, 14:06

too much of a risk for Tito.

A Trinidad that had been in shape and in the sort of form around the Vargas fight would be too much for Eastman but at the moment you couldn't count out the battersea bomber

stujones · Post by **stujones** » 15 Dec 2003, 15:36

If I was tito's manager I would say no for Eastman just at the moment. A little bit to much of a risk, after all he's only had 3 fights at Middleweight, and the only big middle he faced was past it. Joppy and Hopkins are not that big and could probably fight at Light Middle if they were desperate too.

However, knowing what Tito has done in the past, I wouldn't be surprised if he did fight Eastman straight away. Victory would give him a #1 positiion. Although one thing against him is that Eastman didn't capatalise on his good(ish) showing against Joppy. America have forgotten that he's still around, so maybe a fighter like Robert Allen would set the tongue's wagging a bit more about his intentions.

I think Tito would anhilate Eastman, so would Hopkins.

steve689 · Post by **steve689** » 15 Dec 2003, 15:51

Kevo wrote:Judging by look of Tito on Saturday night ( at the Don King show ) the fights going to be made up at Heavy! He looked like a Latino Butterbean

Lol, so i wasn't the only one who noticed a bloated Tito on Saturday then?

MightyWarrior · Post by **MightyWarrior** » 15 Dec 2003, 16:27

Tito might even be damaged goods....He was famous for handing out the type of beatings that ended fighter's careers, and it might well have happened to him with Hopkins.
Cherif was completely in awe of him, so I don't think that match would've told us anything about how much Trinidad has left.

I'm sure Oscar will be thinking along those lines, as usual.
He'd probably let Tito have near all the money for a chance at revenge.

I think he'll knock over a couple of stiffs next year, then go for the big one and enough cash to make him the richest man in Puerto Rico ( if he isn't already )

stujones · Post by **stujones** » 15 Dec 2003, 16:55

steve689 wrote:
Kevo wrote:Judging by look of Tito on Saturday night ( at the Don King show ) the fights going to be made up at Heavy! He looked like a Latino Butterbean
Lol, so i wasn't the only one who noticed a bloated Tito on Saturday then?

No, he was overweight - thats why I've got a bad feeling about the credibility of this story. However, I have heard that the writer in question is quite credible and has written for many other more respected sites.

And before anyone is to start, that's not a go at the ESB forums or anything personal, its just their repuation for reliable stories isn't great.

knockout artist · Post by **knockout artist** » 15 Dec 2003, 17:41

stujones wrote:
steve689 wrote:
Kevo wrote:Judging by look of Tito on Saturday night ( at the Don King show ) the fights going to be made up at Heavy! He looked like a Latino Butterbean
Lol, so i wasn't the only one who noticed a bloated Tito on Saturday then?
No, he was overweight - thats why I've got a bad feeling about the credibility of this story. However, I have heard that the writer in question is quite credible and has written for many other more respected sites.

And before anyone is to start, that's not a go at the ESB forums or anything personal, its just their repuation for reliable stories isn't great.

Tito looked about 185/190.

His head and face was as large as Shane Moseley's.

IF he comes back he wouldnt fight the likes of Eastman until his 3rd or 4th fight back.

mrbassie · Post by **mrbassie** » 15 Dec 2003, 17:43

Trinidad would be too much for Eastman, layoff or not. Trin is durable and Eastman is too easy to hit to be effective against such a prolific puncher. It's be a good fight for a few rounds and boxers should take risks so I'd love to see it happen but I wouldn't fancy Howard's chances.

Southpaw Stylist · Post by **Southpaw Stylist** » 15 Dec 2003, 19:32

Trinidad IS not returning at all, I have word from very credible sources that he ain't coming back. If he did, it would have to be as a heavyweight.

stujones · Post by **stujones** » 15 Dec 2003, 20:18

Southpaw Stylist wrote:Trinidad IS not returning at all, I have word from very credible sources that he ain't coming back. If he did, it would have to be as a heavyweight.

Other forums (general boxing ones) are mentioning different sources who are saying the tito was speaking. Travis Simms' manager (Kurt Emhoff) has said on another forum that both Antionio Tarver and Mike Nosky of realboxing.com mentioned that Tito talked about a serious comeback and said "that's the man I want" reffering to Simms.

Nosky has put a piece up on Realboxing mentioning it, so Kurt Emhoff was not winding. Although, he might be still drunk after the wonderful night he had (with Spinks and Simms).