On this week's edition of SecondsOut Radio, host Eddie Goldman begins by commenting on why Israel Vazquez-Rafael Marquez 3 should be considered the 2008 Fight of the Year, on UFC vs. boxing, and boxing's sanctioning bodies and rankings.

In our main interview segment, we speak with Larry Hazzard. He headed the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board for over two decades, and now is a top official with one of boxing's major sanctioning bodies, the International Boxing Federation (IBF). His title is personal assistant to IBF president Marian Muhammad, and chairman of officials' education, development, and supervision.

In a lengthy interview, we discuss the role of the IBF and the sanctioning bodies in boxing, his many contributions to boxing over the years, what he now wants to accomplish at the IBF, and more.

Source:http://www.secondsout.com/World/news.cfm?ccs=225&cs=50378

IOWA CITY -- Evander Holyfield was the last great American Heavyweight and in an era of great Heavyweights, he was one of the best. Those days have long since past; for it has been a decade since he was truly great.

After his two bouts with Lennox Lewis, Holyfield began his long decline but while his skills declined, his quest for one more chance at a unified championship continued.

There were moments like his first victory over John Ruiz, his final draw with Ruiz in a close bout or his stoppage of Hasim Rahman that gave Holyfield false hopes but the reality was obvious to all who could see -- his skills were disappearing with each fight.

When James Toney stopped Holyfield after humiliating for eight rounds, this should have sent him into retirement. Yet, Holyfield continued his lonely quest and against Nikolai Valuev, he was fighting a man who was not only outweighed him by one hundred pounds but was nearly a foot taller.

A decade ago, this disparity would not have mattered since Holyfield's skills would have proved decisive but at 46, those skills no longer existed. So this fight was set up as a massacre. What did happened turned out to be a surprise.

Boxing pundit Ruth Lister observed that Holyfield and Valuev participated in "worst heavyweight title fight in history with a result that was just plain ugly." In a fight that will quickly be forgotten, Holyfield came within a bad decision of winning back a portion of a title.

There were moments that Holyfield looked like the Holyfield of old, fluid movement followed by quick combination. Ever so often, he connected on those combinations and in most round, scored the most effective punches but this fight was in Zurich and as Holyfield dryly quipped, "If I knock him out, I be lucky to get a draw."

Valuev often looked afraid of the smaller Holyfield and spent most of the bout pawing at the smaller fighter. Throughout the bout, Valuev's left jab merely looked like appendage that stood out and hopefully hit something.

As the fourth-ranked heavyweight in the world according to Ring Magazine, Valuev hardly look like a fighter who was fighting for a championship but a fighter who was just hoping not lose; not that there would be any chance of that happening if he was standing.

If nothing else, this shows the weakness of the heavyweight division today when compared just a decade ago. There is only one fighter who could actually be a champion or at least a contender in past eraw and that is Wladimir Klitschko.

For the rest of the contenders, we see fighters with weakness but with little strength. A few weeks ago, Vitali Klitschko sent Samuel Peter packing from the championship ranks and demonstrated that the only fighter that could beat Wladimir is his brother.

And this is fight that will never happen as both brothers have stated they are perfectly willing to split the heavyweight division whether fight each other.

The 1990's were one of the deepest heavyweight division in history; only the 70's was deeper, an era that featured Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier and two young fighters, Larry Holmes and George Foreman.

In a bout where one or two significant punch per round would have decided the fight, Holyfield appear to have those punches but as far as the judges were concern, they were phantom punches.

Holyfield used all his 46 years of experience and two plus decade of professional experience to control the pace against the giant Valuev but in a bout in which one can actually count each punch. This was fight that would be left in the hands of the judges and this only benefited the champion; who won by merely standing.

This fight actually did much to clear up the heavyweight division as this merely reinforced what has been obvious for the past few years; the Klitschko brothers are the two best heavyweight and based on the body of his work.

Wladimir Klitschko is the better heavyweight. Each heavyweight fight seem to clear the way for Wladimir to fight an different challenger -- David Haye.

Haye is the most intriguing fighter and to reinforce a point I made earlier, he does have the tools to challenge the Klitschko's brothers. The former cruiserweight champion is attempting to do what has not been done since the early 90's, move from the Cruiserweight division to the Heavyweight division to win a championship.

The irony is that the man who attempted to wrestle the title from Valuev was the last man to move from the Cruiserweight division to Heavyweight division.

Holyfield has been one of boxing's best pound for pound and many boxing fans as well as pundits forget that he was a great cruiserweight and gave this division credibility.

As for Valuev, he will most likely fight Ruslan Chagaev, the only fighter who has actually defeated Valuev but as far as the boxing public is concern; this is a mere elimination bout for the winner to eventually fight one of the Klitschko's brothers. It is not a championship bout except in name only.

Holyfield in defeat simply proved that he still has something left in the tank but a decade ago, this would be a mismatch victory for Holyfield. At 46, he still had the skills to fight the fourth ranked heavyweight in the world to a standstill and this will only encourage him to continue fighting..

Source:http://blackathlete.net/artman2/publish/Boxing_19/Holyfield_loses_to_fight_another_day.shtml

ATLANTA - He won't go away. He is well past his prime, boxing's version of a future baseball Hall of Famer still toiling in the minors.

Evander Holyfield: dedicated or delusional? Courageous or crazy? At 46, he does not care what boxing fans think. For those urging him to get a life or to find normalcy, whether out of care and concern for him or simply the desire to shove the doyen off boxing's stage, he says: "I have respect for that. But that's just your opinion. I have an opinion, too."

His opinion holds that he has one good bout left, maybe more, in his still sculptured body. He will try to summon it Saturday in Zurich in a match with Nikolai Valuev, a 7-foot Russian.

At stake is the World Boxing Association heavyweight belt. Holyfield would buckle it around a waist that has barely expanded since he won his first professional title, in 1990. This would be Holyfield's fifth heavyweight title, extending his record and distinguishing him as the eldest to reclaim a championship. He would surpass George Foreman, who did it against Michael Moorer at age 45 in 1994.

Holyfield insists such a distinction is not driving him to squeeze the last sweat drops out of his vocation. Nor is it money, even though he is sitting on an incredibly shrinking nest egg. Nor is it about pride or re-establishing his name, no small feat for someone so far removed from fame, other than for his "Dancing With the Stars" gig, that Google Earth would be hard-pressed to find him.

This fight, he attests, is about imparting a continuous lesson in perseverance to his 11 children, particularly the eldest.

Evander Jr. was 8 in 1992 when his father pondered retirement, after he lost a unanimous decision to Riddick Bowe for the undisputed heavyweight title. "My son couldn't stop crying about it," said Holyfield, who decided to soldier on because bowing out would have sent the wrong parental signal. "Scared the daylights out of me."

Seven years later, Holyfield, battling illness as well as Lennox Lewis, considered leaving the ring in the middle of a bout until he spotted Junior in the arena and changed his mind, he said, cringing at the notion of the namesake someday hearing, "You're going to be just like your daddy and quit under pressure."

Two daughters recently beseeched him to abandon the sport. He listened, then told them: "I control my life. I make my decisions. I wouldn't be wasting my time doing something I don't think I can do."

Holyfield has parried hooks and thrown uppercuts since he was 8, when a coach at an Alabama boys' club implanted the dream that he could someday rule the heavyweight division. A career beset by physical hardships and pockmarked by bizarre incidents has left him unfazed. His longevity is a product of rolling with the punches, not only the sort delivered by a gloved fist.

One bout was interrupted when Mike Tyson's teeth removed a chunk of his ear. Another was halted when a paraglider dropped into the ring. He had fights put off when an opponent had hepatitis and another was imprisoned for rape.

His physician informed him he had a hole in his heart in 1994, prompting the faith healer Benny Hinn to lay hands on him at a revival. (Mayo Clinic doctors later concluded the defect never existed.) The New York State Athletic Commission suspended his license after a loss stemming from a shoulder ailment. Foreshadowing the challenges and oddities was his disqualification for a supposed late punch in the 1984 Olympics, which cost him a shot at a gold medal.

Holyfield, whose ability to be calm in the swirl of chaos may be his greatest strength, has never lost his mojo.

There was the time Lewis accused him of hypocrisy for pledging to Christianity while fathering several children out of wedlock. How did he vent? By predicting a third-round knockout of Lewis (the bout ended in a draw). Holyfield said that the uncharacteristic boasting was uncalled for.

Retirement has not tugged hard on Holyfield, the rare fighter who relishes training. Inspirational gospel music blares through the gym, Holyfield singing along as he endures the mind- and body-numbing ritual of prepping for his fights.

At his camp in Houston, he skips rope and attacks the punching bag to the beat of his favorite tunes collected over two decades, each song remindful of a milestone bout.

He admits to the aches and pains inescapable with creeping age, and he may cancel a session or cut one short.

"I'm not doing what I used to do, trying to burn it every day," he said. "My body don't recover as fast."

In his glory days Holyfield said that he sought divine help only on the day of a bout. Now, he summons his Lord to deliver him through training sessions. "I'm paying a superprice," he said, "because I want it at this age."

Besides, motivation "is hard when the money hasn't been big for quite a while," said Tim Hallmark, his fitness adviser and nutritionist for all but one fight in the past 23 years.

Source:http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/17/sports/othersports/17holyfield.html?em

MANNHEIM, Germany (AFP) - World heavyweight champion Vladimir Klitschko had few problems defending his WBO and IBF belts on Saturday with a technical knock-out of United States challenger Hasim Rahman in the seventh round.

Klitschko, known as Dr Steelhammer, needed just 44 seconds of the seventh as he used his powerful jab to impressive effect before the referee was forced to intervene to stop Rahman taking any further punishment.

"I am happy to have won this fight, especially so soon before Christmas," said Klitschko.

"It wasn't easy, but I just want to enjoy Christmas and New Year and then we will work on the plan for next year."

The champion had been due to face Alexander Povetkin here, but a training injury ruled the Russian out and former champion Rahman, 'The Rock' from Baltimore, stepped in as a late replacement - but he was out-classed.

The 36-year-old, who pulled off the boxing shock of the year in 2001 when he knocked out reigning WBC, IBF and IBO champion Lennox Lewis, was marked from a Klitschko punch as early as the second round.

He spent most of the third on the ropes and rarely threatened the champion.

Klitschko, 32, had spent the last six weeks in Majorca training for the fight and picked his punches carefully with his left jab was a constant source of punishment for Rahman.

The champion had the American on the canvas in the sixth round with a series of jabs before the powerful right fist caught the challenger on the chin and although Rahman survived the count, he was obviously struggling from then on.

It was a huge left to the side of the face which ended the fight early in the seventh.
The champion Klitschko has now won 52 of his 54 professional fights with 46 knock-outs, while for Rahman this was the seventh defeat in his 55th fight, who has won 45 fights with 36 knock-outs and lost six times.

Along with his brother and WBC champion Witali, the Klitschko brothers from Kiev aim to dominate the heavyweight division and Vladimir, who holds the IBF, WBO and IBO titles, has said he has big plans for next year.

Between them the brothers hold four world titles and the obvious target is the WBA belt.
Russian giant Nikolai Valuev will defend the WBA heavyweight crown against Evander Holyfield in Zurich next Saturday.

The winner of the Holyfield-Valuev fight must then face ex-world champion Ruslan Chagaev in the new year and whichever of the three ends up with the WBA title is sure to be offered a fight against one of the Klitschko brothers.

But Britain's David Haye who beat Monte Barrett in a WBC heavyweight eliminator last month, was ringside and told Witali Klitschko after the fight he wants to fight either of the brothers in the next year.

"I want to fight the best in this division and it doesn't bother me which of you it is," said the 28-year-old Londoner.

Source:http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jY0m9ZBjB56FUJJRhMHQAtRkyTCw

NANNING, Southwest China, Dec. 9 (Xinhua) -- The first China-ASEAN (10 plus 3) Boxing Championship is scheduled to be held from Dec. 20 to 24 in Nanning, southwest China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, an official of the organizing committee said on Tuesday.

This championship is co-sponsored by Federation of Asian Amateur boxing association, General Administration of Sport of China, Guangxi Regional government, and China International Friendly Exchange Association.

According to the organizing committee, nearly 100 famous boxers will fight for championships in eight categories including 48kg, 51kg, 54kg, 57kg, 60kg, 64kg, 69kg and 75kg.

Every participating country can choose five categories to compete in, and only one boxer is allowed to take part in each category's contest, said Liu Xiaohong, head of the organizing committee.

Except Brunei and Malaysia, all countries from the Southeast Asian Nations as well as Japan and South Korea will send boxers to compete in this championship, Liu said.

Chinese boxers from Guangdong, Jiangsu, inner Mongolia and armed forces will participate in 48kg, 57kg, 60kg, 69kg, and 75kg categories during the championship.

Zou Shiming, Zhang Xiaoping, who won the golds of 48kg and 81 categories respectively during the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and Zhang Zhilei, who won the 90-plus-category silver during the 2008 Beijing Olympics, will attend the championship to cheer up for the participants.

Source:http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-12/10/content_10480073.htm