Since I've Been Gone

Juan Manuel Marquez added to his rich legacy on Saturday after he won another instant classic against "Baby Bull" Juan Diaz.

A lot happened over the weekend and earlier this week, and I completely did not cover any of it. This will be a shorter entry just to get all you fight fans caught up on some important happenings that you may have missed. 

Juan Diaz vs Juan Manuel Marquez: One for the ages

If you have not had the chance to see this fight yet, just stop reading this blog and find it. I can honestly say it not only tops the great performances from Shane Mosley and Vic Darchinyan earlier this year, but it also goes down as one of the best boxing matches of all-time. 

"Baby Bull" Juan Diaz came out like you would expect him to: hands flying. His quantity-over-quality approach throws fighters off balance very well, but the savvy Marquez never panicked, which is a good thing since he was getting mowed down in the early rounds. 

He tried his best to throw counter punches, but since his back was on the ropes for most of the early rounds of the fight, Marquez was not having much success. Then he cut Diaz in the eighth round and the fight turned. 

Baby Bull couldn't see very well because of the blood dripping into his eye and Marquez turned up the heat and boxed the same way he did when he became famous for his bouts with Manny Pacquiao. The dramatic back-and-forth action and the just the all-out war that happened between these two will go down in boxing history books. 

Seriously, watch this fight. 

On the same night, one of my favorite featherweights, Chris John, fought to a draw with Rocky Juarez. John is still undefeated and looked great, but I was impressed with Juarez. It was a solid bout, but I was disappointed John couldn't get the victory. 

Johnathon Banks vs Tomasz Adamek: Where's the killer instinct?

The fight that took place in New Jersey Friday night looked more like a sparring session for most of the fight compared to the blistering barn-burner Diaz and Marquez put on in Houston the following night. 

I had very high expectations for the fight, but was a little let down with the performance from Banks. Banks is the hottest prospect in the cruiserweight division and Adamek is one of the best boxers around, so I figured it should be great. It was good, not great. 

Banks looked sharp in the early rounds, using a jab that seemed to be too quick for Adamek who never stopped stalking. Banks did a good job of keeping his lead left foot out far enough to keep Adamek at a distance. Throughout those early rounds, Adamek seemed content to just chase Banks. 

While Banks is a solid prospect, he will need to develop a killer instinct to get to the next level. He had the champ in trouble a few times, but he laid off the gas and got a little too comfortable and confident and didn't fight with enough urgency. He paid the price as Adamek hit him with powerful shots in the last few rounds. 

In what could be the shortest right hook ever thrown, Adamek floored Banks in the seventh. Banks got up on legs as sturdy as string cheese and was smothered before the referee stepped in and called for an end to the fight. 

Adamek proved he is going to be a tough champion to defeat and he has developed the confidence and poise required to successfully defend the strap. If Banks can find a killer instinct, he will become a world champion. I still think he has a bright future though I was disappointed a little with the fight. 

WEC 39: Mike Brown is for real

You can count me in among those who thought Mike Brown would have a short lived run with the featherweight championship after he surprisingly defeated Urijah Faber. In fact, I thought he would lose pretty soundly to Leonard Garcia on Sunday. 

I was wrong. 

Brown not only won, he dominated a very good fighter in one round. Brown used that same powerful striking he displayed against Faber to pretty much dispose of Garcia with ease. It was an awesome and frightening statement for featherweights, including Faber, who thought Brown was a one-and-done champion. 

I can't wait for the Brown/Faber rematch. I am convinced Brown holds a strength advantage, even though there is no doubt Faber is all-around better. 

In other action, Damacio Page looked scary good against Marcus Galvao. The quick first round knockout was very frightening, but more on that in tomorrow's post. The fact is Page is crazy and has no fear as he comes out swinging for the fences every time. 

Two other quick notes from the show. Highly regarded Bart Palaszewski suffered a huge upset loss to Ricardo Lamas. Not much was known about Lamas, but if he can hang with Palaszewski, then he could have a future. 

Also, a much anticipated bout between Marcus Hicks and Rob McCullough was a complete bomb. Despite some good action in the second round, the fight was boring and embarrassing. I love technical fights, but both men couldn't even land a jab and neither looked to engage with anything more than light kicks and the occasional dirty boxing. 

I expect MUCH more from these two, hopefully they bounce back. Oh yeah, McCullough won I guess.