The stakes were raised recently for Pacquiao's mega-fight versus undefeated Floyd Mayweather Jr. when trainer and ESPN2 commentator Teddy Atlas recently brought more allegations to light during a recent Friday Nigh Fights telecast.

A bitter sweet start to one of the most anticipated events in boxing ended mixed results.

First up, "King" Arthur Abraham came closer to being named king of the super middleweights with a matter-of-fact-1 punch KO of now routinely vicious KO victim and former undisputed middleweight champion, Jermain Taylor.

Gone was the future contender to all-time status, you know, the one who gave Bernard Hopkins a rough go-round twice, then said to hell with it, and risked it all against the always formidable Ronald "Winky" Wright--only to come out on top all three times.

It may have started with current MW champ Kelly "The Ghost" Pavlik, but it definitely ended tonight with Abraham; his chance for greatness. Taylor has now graced the canvas like paint for the third time in less than three years. Time to hang them up, especially after the way he fought and lost to Arthur Abraham: by another one-punch kayo (right hand down the pipe).


Taylor assumes a familiar pose

As for Carl "Cobra, cause he's slippery like that" Froch vs. Andre Dirrell ... let's just say that Froch did a reverse Willie Pep. Instead of winning a round without throwing a punch, he won a fight in Nottingham without landing many punches compared to catching them. Only in the U.K.

Disgrace.

3 Notes to Dirrell:

1) Learn how not to clinch like a scared woman

2) Learn to keep your balance when attempting to clinch

3) Learn how to lose your damned passport as robberies are high in Nottingham

2009, a year in which Mayweather was partially retired, proved to be a good year for "Money"

After all the hoopla, essentially two fighters beat out a host of top-notch MMA fighters and a Don King-esque promoter. Floyd Mayweather and Juan Manuel Marquez, two future Hall of Famers each weighing less than half of UFC's biggest superstar, Brock Lesnar, combined to pull in more than 1 million PPV buys and generating $52 million dollars. Not bad for a boring fighter in a dying sport.

It's sad that both combat sports have been reduced to bashing each other in order to gain attention. As far as this writer is concerned, both sports will have to co-exist as they will be supported fully.

And to all the fans that say Mayweather doesn't fight, they need to open their eyes. How many people can dance past Marquez? He was simply too small an slow for the naturally bigger Mayweather. There are only three fighters who stand a better than even chance at beating Mayweather: Paul Williams, Shane Mosely, and Floyd Mayweather.

Manny Pacquiao is not as versatile, too straight forward. Miguel Cotto lacks speed and boxing technique. But this is boxing and all it takes is one punch.

Now, hopefully these silly, PPV wars/fights can go away. Put them on mainstream television and watch the ratings skyrocket (and advertisers pay dearly).

Mayweather Regains P4P Status?

In his first fight back after almost 2 years being away, Floyd Mayweather lived up to his nickname by dominating the dangerous Juan Manuel Marquez and left the ring not much the worse for wear.

Mayweather, who came in @ 146 lbs., 2 pounds above the contracted weight, refused to make weight and paid $600,000 for his defiance. Much will, and it should, be made about the weight issue. Remember, this is what cost a third fight from happening between Jose Luis Castillo and the late Diego Corrales.

Marquez was dropped from a left hook by Mayweather in round 2. Any other fighter would have been broken down after that. But Marquez is a hall of fame fighter who was in over his head against a younger, stronger and faster fighter. The drums will now beat for the Manny Pacquiao - Miguel Cotto winner. Marquez is still headed to the hall.

UFC 103 Results (televised fights):

Vitor Belfort KO1 Rich Franklin
Vitor showed he will never lose the ability to finish a fight once he has his opponent hurt. Somewhere out there Gegard Moussasi is grinding his teeth.

Junior Dos Santos TKO3 Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic
CroCop has seeming lost the talent/will to win. He showed a good account of himself until he was repeatedly stalked and punched by the taller striker, Dos Santos. Dos Santos is now a serious contender in the HW division.

Paul Daley TKO1 Martin Kampmann
Daley, who has fast hands and isn't afraid to use them, makes a big splash in his UFC debut against favorite Kampmann

Josh Koscheck TKO1 Frank Trigg
Koscheck continues climb back to former status as he stops veteran Trigg.

Tyson Griffin KO2 Hermes Franca
Franca returns without the juice against Sean Sher's twin brother.

This weekend fight fans will have two sports from which to choose, traditional boxing and UFC's MMA.

Boxing picks:




Mayweather W12 Marquez
It won't be easy unless Marquez grows old and frustrated. Remember, Marquez is the same man who twice barely lost to Manny Pacquiao.

Chris John W12 Rocky Juarez
Juarez is tough as nails and does not get KO'd. John will now show us what he's made of in a rematch. EXPECT A 12-ROUND WAR

UFC 103 Picks:



Rich Franklin W3 Vitor Belfort
Vitor is the odds on favorite and though if it weren't for Anderson Silva, Franklin would be the easy pick. Ace gets stronger as the fight goes on whereas Belfort has shown he gasses. Add the fact he had trouble making weight and who knows. Don't blink: Belfort's hands are for real.

Junior dos Santos Submission2 Mirko FilipovićUnless CroCop found his cojones after the Overeem fight,look for Dos Santos to use his stand up to take it to the ground.

For more: jerseychaser.com

This weekend, Floyd Mayweather will test his marketable skills against the juggernaut that is the UFC, spearheaded by Dana White and financed by the Ferttita brothers. Money Mayweather has cars and a sweet pad, but he does not own casinos or a multi-million dollar organization.

White threw jabs at both Juan Manuel Marquez and Mayweather at an earlier press conference by forgetting JMM's name. Whether that was a Freudian slip or a crab-in-a-barrel approach, it was low even by a promoter's standard (Bob Arum would be proud). The fact is that Mayweather and Marquez are two hall of fame fighters going against a UFC card, 103, which has a slew of good fighters but as of yet none are HOF worthy (Rich Franklin and Mirko Filipovich are close but nay).

Forget the bouts, who will win this financial fight? The UFC has a huge early lead with a top-selling video game and the premiere of the uber-popular, The Ultimate Fighter on SpikeTV, two days before the PPV UFC 103. But Mayweather has HBO's popular 24/7 series and, that's it. ESPN2's Friday Night Fights had its season finale unusually early last month. JMM has never headlined a PPV card. And of course, the star, Mayweather, has been off for more than a year.

Mayweather evokes memory of another HOF fighter who never truly was appreciated by the masses:
"Sweet Pea" Pernell Whitaker.

Granted, Mayweather is infinitely more abrasive than Whitaker ever was out of the ring. But like Whitaker, Mayweather has stepped up in weight and class and outclassed the opposition. It's not always aesthetically pleasing but effective nonetheless. The MMA fans, those who appreciate the finer points of BJJ, can surely appreciate the defensive wizardry Mayweather displays. The other MMA fans, those who want to see a man punched repeatedly after being knocked out, will scoff at Mayweatehr's defensive skills, probably the same fans who boo and change the channel when two experienced ground fighters fight for position.

The pick here is that the UFC will pull away, but not by much. This, unfortunately, is not like the event earlier this year that saw Shane Mosley vs Antonio Margarito and the now defunct Affliction card which was headlining Fedor Emelianenko in a rare U.S. appearance. Different disciplines competing is not bad for either sport. But when only a few fights are worthy, then fans, fighters, and even the promoters lose.
Here's to hoping all fighters give their all to shine this Saturday night.

Usually, it's the mismatches and lack of quality opponents, as well as the alphabet belts corruption which disintegrates the fight games of boxing and MMA.

But recently, violent deaths, and not in the ring--if that comes as any relief--has been plaguing the sporting world of boxing. Steroids, has recently KO'd one of the most anticipated cards oft he summer: Affliction Trilogy.

It started with the death of Alexis Arguello, reportedly as a suicide (self-inflicted chest shot), which set off what has now become a chain of gruesome murders. Then, football player, Steve "Air" McNair, was found shot to death in his home by his lover. While the news was shocking, unfortunately there was more to come.

A week after McNair's death, it was reported that former boxing champion Arturo Gatti, had been found strangled to death in Brazil, with his wife the only suspect as of this writing. Two violent death of two boxing warriors in as many months. But just to be reminded that the summer is still here, along with unprecedented violence accompanying it, former world champion and Olympic competitor*, Vernon Forrest was gunned down in an attempted car jacking. And August has yet to come through.

With such a heavy burden to bear, fight fans were still looking to escape their normal routines, as well as the recent tragedies in the sporting world, with the only remedy combat sport brings: a good fight card to ease the emotional pain. But still, the pain grows worse.

Affliction, UFC's latest thorn, was picking up some steam by acquiring the best heavyweight since the heavily hyped Brock Lesnar. Fedor Emelianenko was poised to fight former pal Josh Barnett. But as has been the case in many MMA bouts, a fighter tested positive for performance enhancing drugs. The perp: Barnett. The result: cancelled card and many fighters feeling the chain reaction of one bozo move. If Barnett is indeed guilty, a message must be sent out to all fighters that this type of non-professionalism will not be tolerated.

While a fight card can be rescheduled, there can only be mourning and celebration of a lost life. For now, this is what many fans can expect to hear: A Final Ten Count for the fallen warriors.