Daily Bread Mailbag: Ennis-Avanesyan aftermath, Hagler vs. Hopkins, and some of the best matches that can be made today

In this week’s can’t-miss mailbag, trainer Stephen “Breadman” Edwards talks about similarities and differences between Jaron “Boots” Ennis and Terence Crawford, looks at some of the best bouts that can be made today, and discusses the ability to listen and work towards different strategies.

Hey Bread,

Hope you’re good.Ennis destroyed Avanesyan as expected. Glad he got the payday and some of the exposure he deserves. DA was too tough for his own good, and in a way was protected by his inside boxing turned smothering. He is so in your chest you don’t get enough space. Boxing, skill, level wise though, we didn’t learn anything. It speaks volumes about how high we all hold Ennis. He destroyed a guy who would beat lots of 147 pounders and probably would go 12 (and test) other welterweight title-holders and former 140 coming up. But we hope to see more. Defense I know you dismiss it all the time but, don’t you think the only chink in Ennis’s armor might be his vulnerability to right counters?

Hear me out. He has a chin. And he trusts it. And I know he willingly “sacrifice” it and goes full offense. If he eats them, it means that he can take them while not being too bothered by it. He also knows those guys don’t have sufficient power. He called it rust, but there is an analysis video on Youtube showing that just below the surface of his perfect game, he still eats too many clean shots in fights, even the ones he dominates completely. 

To compare with guys way less defensively dynamic, like even GGG, there’s a notable difference. Crawford, Canelo, or GGG (the last two have top chins) rarely got countered that cleanly, that many times. Now I have seen no effects, granted. And he seems unbothered. Maybe it’s risky eventually? A bad habit? If a fighter of yours was fighting him, there must be an angle, a weakness, you’d attack. What is it?

If you are training Vergil Ortiz, do you see a slight path? Or absolute perfection ala peak Roy Jones, you wouldn’t know how to address?

Foes besides Crawford, who has the best chance to beat or have Boots struggle, from 147 to 160? 

147: Teofimo / Haney / Norman Jr / Benn / Stanionis / Barrios? To me it seems like he’d toy with them ala RJJ – maybe Teo would give him a few competitive early rounds.

154: Lubin / Madrimov / Fundora / Tim / Ortiz / Murtazaliev / Bohachuk / Ramos Jr?

Seems like 154 is the deepest. They all would be good and tough fights. Ortiz, Lubin, Madrimov, Ramos, would be interesting fights. Way more competitive than any WW fight. Ortiz probably the best. 

160: Adames / Lara / Zhanibek / Sheeraz / Eubank. I just like Sheeraz here to be more competitive, although unproven. What do you think? And where does he go from there? Three realistic names you’d like him facing that Eddie could provide? 

Cheers, Diego

Bread’s Response: On a scale of 1 to 10, I give Boots Ennis an 8 for that performance. It was good. Very good but not great. 

I don’t dismiss DEFENSE. In the past I have dismissed the criticism of Boots’s defense. There is a difference. I have heard people say that Boots has poor defense. I don’t believe that to be true. I think his reflexes are off the charts and he does have good defense, he’s just an offensive fighter so he gets hit. 

However, in this most recent fight. I think he got hit a little too much. Everyone gets hit, but some of those cute right hands by Avanesyan landed a little too clean for my liking. I also watched Crawford’s fight vs Avanesyan and I will say that Avanesyan is SNEAKY good. He hit both Boots and Bud with same sneaky right hand. Avanesyan is NOT as good as they are. But he’s world class, he has skills, and he’s not scared. He’s willing to apply that skill and take chances. He’s going to hit everybody. 

I still think Boots got a hit a little too much. But I think Boots is trying to find himself. He’s trying to find a place where he can be defensively responsible but still put on a show and score a KO. He’s trying to be exciting, while still showing his skill. He’s also seeing what he can and can not get away with. Only he knows how he feels. 

If his chin is on the level, then he’s going to be fine. If he gets hurt, his IQ will have to scale his offense back somewhat. Only time will tell. From my perspective, it’s never cool to get hit. But I respect a fighter who lays it on the line. I don’t want to complain too much about a fighter who hasn’t really lost a round and he’s putting on offensive shows when the media is also criticizing other fighters, for NOT letting their hands go. 

To answer you directly, YES. It’s a slight concern that Dolurme, Lipinets and Avanesyan ALL landed the same right hand. But it’s also impressive that I have seen fighters face THAT level of competition and let fights get away from them with close decisions wins or losses. Boots never loses CONTROL of the fight. He never allows these landed punches to turn the momentum of the fight. And he still comprehensively scores stoppages and doesn’t get gun shy once he’s hit. That’s a BIGGER DEAL than getting hit. Boots’s reaction to being HIT. Boots turns into an animal when he gets hit. Isn’t that how we want our stars to act when they get punched in the mouth. I love it.

I don’t want to compare Boots to fighters at 154 or 160. He’s at 147. The reason the Bud fight is being talked about is because Bud was just the undisputed champion at 147 before he moved up to 154. Now that Bud is gone, I favor Boots over the rest of the field at 147 with Stanious being his toughest fight. I don’t know who the realistic name is for Boots’s next fight. But I know he wants to unify. I think they better hurry up because his days of making 147 are numbered.. Boots is a big kid.

Hey Mr. Edwards… Boxing, basketball and track & field are the only sports that I’m really into, and I know you are a big basketball and boxing fan, and you train your daughter in track & field, so I’m always interested in your opinion on these 3 sports. I think Larry Bird would’ve made a good boxer, because I’ve been watching ‘Larry Bird’s Ultimate Mixtape’ [career highlights] over and over for the past 2 months on YouTube. Let me explain… I was born in 1980 and I remember watching basketball games with my dad as a kid, and I remember Larry Bird being good, but I don’t remember him being this great – he had an amazing basketball I.Q., and it’s like he had eyes in the back of his head, and his basketball I.Q. reminds me of Vasily Lomachenko’s skills and boxing I.Q. A few years ago, I remember someone writing to you and saying Lomachenko is overrated and basically a ‘great white hype’, and you called the guy a ‘know-nothing hater’, and I agreed with you. People have always said Larry Bird wasn’t athletic, and I think those people are just haters. My mom is black and my dad is white, and I remember going with my dad to the playground to play basketball in the ’80s, and he would play with black teenagers in the neighborhood, and they would say ‘white men can’t jump’. That was true about my dad, but it was NOT true about Larry Bird – early in his career, before he had all the injuries, he was dunking on people. Michael Jordan has said multiple times that Larry Bird is the best all-around player ever, because he could do everything. He also had hustle and heart – he would dive after the ball, sliding across the court, on his stomach. The year before he retired, he fell face-first on the court, hustling for the ball, and fractured his orbital bone. So he left the game. Seeing that his team was in trouble from the locker room, he returned to the game for the 3rd and 4th quarters, and won the game with a fractured orbital bone and a concussion and double-vision. That reminds me of Muhammad Ali’s heart, and him finishing his fight with Ken Norton with a broken jaw. Larry Bird was also one of the most clutch athletes ever, and reminds me of James Toney and his clutch skills in boxing. Remember when Toney had a close and competitive fight with Vasiliy Jirov for the IBF cruiserweight title and he scored a knockdown in the 12th round to seal the victory? Early in Toney’s career, he got a terrible cut early in a fight, and the referee wanted to stop the fight and Toney asked him for one more round and the referee reluctantly agreed. In that next round, Toney knocked out his undefeated opponent and got the win. That reminds me of Larry Bird making 3-point shots on the buzzer to win games. So I have a 2-part question for you about boxing and Larry Bird… What boxer does Larry Bird remind you of, and if you were going to train Larry Bird as a heavyweight boxer, what strengths and skills of his would you try to develop?

Thanks for your opinion.John, Sacramento, California. 

Bread’s Response: You can be a great athlete without being overly athletic. People fail to realize that. Bird was 6’9 so yes he could dunk on people but he wasn’t a big leaper. But he had great hand-eye coordination. A great motor, meaning his stamina and effort were always on go. He had great IQ. He had a huge heart and a big-time clutch gene. On top of that, he was supremely skilled. Those qualities would give him great timing as a fighter. 

Lots of great fighters have the same qualities Bird had. In fact most fighters aren’t really ATHLETIC. They have other qualities that make them successful fighters. There aren’t many fighters who could play in the NBA…

If I were training Larry Bird from a young teenager, I would be training the heavyweight champion of the world. That’s it. That’s all. Bird was more special than these new analytic experts realize.

Janibek Alimkhanuly couldn’t fight this past Saturday because he was severely dehydrated. That happened while he was trying to cut a final few pounds to make the 160-pound limit. Knowing this, I assume he’ll be fighting at 168 pounds soon enough. How do you think Alimkhanuly would do at super middleweight if he ever has to move up? 

Bread’s Response: I would have to see Janibek move up first. If he’s struggling to make weight in this summer heat, with 8 weeks notice to fight with him being the A side, it’s an issue. It’s over 110 degrees in Vegas…So I agree he will be moving up soon. But 160 to 168 is the biggest jump in boxing. In fact the only MW of the last 20 years to win a title at SMW are Canelo, Saunders and Abraham. And only Canelo has been as good at 168 as he was at 160. 

It’s a lot more difficult than people realize. I think Janibek is very, very good. But I don’t view him as a better fighter than a prime Canelo. In fact when they were talking about Andrade fighting Janibek, I felt that Andrade would’ve beaten him. I never understood the Boogeyman thing with Janibek, although I think he’s very good. But because of Usyk, GGG, Beterbiev and Loma, everytime a top fighter from that area of the world ascends, everyone calls them the Boogeyman. 

We are just in an era where fighters won’t fight an elite fighter unless they see a weakness. So Janibek is calling everyone out and he seems willing to fight everyone and now he’s called the Boogeyman. I say he’s a very good fighter. But not quite on the level of a prime GGG or the others I named. He may be able to win a belt at 168 but it would depend on who he fights. I wouldn’t favor him over Canelo, Benavidez or Morrell. Let’s see if he moves up or tries to make 160 again.

How you doing Bread. 

I was debating someone the other day who said they put Fernando Vargas in too early with Tito. I don’t necessarily agree. Vargas had already beaten Yory Boy Campas, Winky Wright and Ike Quartey before the Tito fight!! Some fights just permanently damage fighters,  Meldrick Taylor after Chavez and Jermain Taylor after Pavlik come to mind.

My next question is I’m curious how would you see Floyd vs Bud at 147? A year ago I would’ve said Floyd but I’m not sure anymore. The 3 fighters that gave Floyd some trouble (Castillo, Cotto, Maidana) I see Bud beating them fairly easy. I think Bud’s angles, switch hitting, mental strength, and physical strength would make for a very rough night for Floyd. Your thoughts? 

Bread’s Response: I never say that Vargas was put in too early with Trinidad. Vargas was young but that’s the best he ever was in his career. There was a window to make a huge unification fight and they made the fight. Tito Trinidad had struggled with Oscar De La Hoya the year before him and Vargas fought. He had also been dropped by David Reid that same year. Vargas didn’t have as many title fights as Tito but his resume was better at 154 and not far behind overall. Vargas had beaten Campas, Winky Wright , Raul Marquez and Ike Quartey. 

Those were real wins. He had overall 5 successful title defenses. With Tito being viewed as the smaller guy and with him known for getting knocked down, many liked Vargas’s chances. I don’t see anything wrong with the fight. It’s not like Vargas was forced into fighting Tito in his 1st title defense. The unification fight was his 6th title defense and Quartey and Wright get you ready for a Tito. 

Hindsight is always 20/20. And Tito turned in a historically great performance vs Vargas. But going into that fight, Tito was the favorite but there are lots of people who “liked” Vargas. I think sometimes we underrate how early athletes reach their physical peak. Vargas peaked early. And in my opinion he was as ready as he was ever going to be. Tito was just a little better but Vargas was on the level because he competed and gave an ATG a monumental struggle. 

I can’t call Floyd vs Bud. Floyd just has a way about him where he’s as good as he needs to be. His mind processes in such a way where he can just about rise to any occasion. But Bud has those same qualities in my opinion. 

Floyd gets better as the fight goes on because of his ability to process. Well so does Bud. 

Floyd takes some time and makes a few adjustments then he goes on a roll. Well so does Bud. 

Floyd has overlooked length and he has the ability to control pace and distance. Well so does Bud. 

Floyd is much stronger than he looks. Well so is Bud. 

Floyd is only 5’8 but he has arms as long as most Middleweights who are around 6ft. Well so does Bud.

I know Floyd has DONE more and has a better resume. But if you’re asking me who wins head to head. I can’t call it. It’s that close in my opinion.

Assalaam alaykum Mr Edwards,

I was looking for you on the floor before and after Boots Ennis’ demolition of David Avanesyan, just to give you my salaams. I hope you were able to be present and I hope you enjoyed the show. It seemed to be an excellent return to the big stage and bright lights for Philadelphia boxing. I am very impressed with Boots’ performance. Having taken some of your praise of Boots with a grain of salt, I expected him to beat Avanesyan but I didn’t expect it to be quite so brutal. Boots looked to me like something of a cross between Roy Jones Jr and Gennady Golovkin. Roy was the first boxer I followed extensively and a big reason for my interest in the sport. Boots’ ability to double and triple his hooks and uppercuts reminded me of Captain Hook back in the day. But I think Boots’ power is more like Golovkin’s, absolutely devastating and debilitating. You’ve spent quite a bit of ink describing Boots’ athleticism and his fundamentals, but how would you characterize his power? After what amounted to a showcase fight against a respected and tough veteran, which of the other belt holders do you think gives Boots his unification shot?

Thank you for all you do for the sport, Breadman. I hope this finds you and your family well and I send the very best to you and yours.Salaams,

John

Bread’s Response: I was there in the suites behind Boots’s corner….I always described Boots as a cross between Roy Jones and Mark Too Sharp Johnson. But I feel the GGG comparison. Boots just grinded Avanesyan out, GGG style.

I think Boots is definitely a power puncher. I know he hits hard, I’ve hit the pads with him. But I think even power punchers can become infatuated with their ability to punch. 

I feel like his jab is his best punch and he underused it slightly just to put more hurt on Avanesyan. His jabs are hard and strong with both hands and he could’ve worn Avanesyan down with his jab without taking the shots he took. But because he KNOWS he hits hard,  and he decided to be more brutal. I rate him Boots as one of the 10 best punchers in boxing but HOW he goes about getting his kos will be the sticking point moving forward. Because he has a choice to either overwhelm or box his way to his KOs.

Dear Bread,

Watched the Chocolatito fight last night. Having read your thoughts on his career over the years, I would love to hear your analyisis. The fight felt under-publicized for a HOF fighter like him. Regardless, it was a good card/venue and Choc looked like his old self — but I don’t know whether his opponent was a legitimate test.

Rob

Bread’s Response: I think Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez is a National Treasure. He has a real case for being the greatest fighter ever from 115lbs on down. I could be wrong but he’s the only fighter in history that I can recall who has won titles at 105, 108, 112 and 115. 

For as great as he was, I think he was screwed out of his legacy with the SSR I and Estrada II decisions. If he gets those decisions there would be no need for rematches. Choc would be 54-0. Choc in my opinion is a mix of Eder Jofre and Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. He’s not a super athlete in terms of physicality. But he has durability and smooth approach to offense and defense. Instincts and gas tank make him one of the best pressure fighters I have ever seen. In fact, I think he’s the best pressure fighter of the century. 

There are people that don’t regard Choc very high. But I disagree strongly. I watched Choc on a GGG undercard. And I came away saying that Choc is clearly the superior fighter, although GGG was more popular. Choc got criticized for finally getting a platform which is absurd. But by the time he was on HBO, he was already a 3 division champion and a HOF. He had actually started slipping but he was still great. He filled the #1 P4P spot because Floyd had retired and Ward was inactive. I still don’t get the criticism. Choc fought every elite fighter available to him and besides the SSR II performance, he was always THAT guy. Chocolatito is an ATG fighter overall. And he has a real case for being the best fighter ever from 115 on down. Very special!

Hi Bread, hope you are great! Had the opportunity to talk boxing and baseball with you outside of the Barclays. I have a question for you about a dream fight no one seems to mention. Who do you like between Ray Leonard and Pernell? Also what are your thoughts on Hagler vs Hopkins? 

Bread’s Response: I am a huge Pernell Whitaker fan. And he is probably underrated historically. But I don’t think he has the physicality to beat Ray Leonard. Whitaker had freaky reflexes and great eyes. But he wasn’t the athlete that Leonard was. And in a fight that close in terms of ability, physicality will come into play. Leonard was bigger, faster, hit harder and just as talented and skilled. Whitaker would be in the fight, but I clearly favor Leonard. 

Hopkins and Hagler is a tougher call for me. It’s a harder fight to assess. There are cases for both. But best day for best day. So let’s say the Hopkins who fought Glen Johnson and Felix Trinidad vs the Hagler who fought Tony Sibson and Alan Minter. Hopkins’s lead right hand would be an issue for Hagler. But Hagler’s jab and workrate would be an issue for Hopkins. I don’t believe either would be able to stop the other. But the Robert Allen fight with Hopkins stands out to me. Robert Allen is the closest opponent that either had stylistically to the other and Allen gave Hopkins trouble in their 1st fight. Big trouble. So if I flip a coin. Today I say draw or Hagler lets his hands go a little more and takes a decision in a controversial fight. Great match up. Tomorrow I may say Bhop, it’s that’s close of a match up .

Great call on Tevin Farmer. He didn’t win but those odds were way off. I think it was close but your prediction of how was spot on. Muratalla is not all that and was clearly exposed. If it weren’t for the weird point deduction at the right opportunistic time, I think Tevin would’ve won. The point deduction sort of deflated him. Where do you think both go from here? 

Bread’s Response: I knew Tevin was a long shot because of his style. But I also knew he would be live because of his style…..Tevin is not a huge puncher. He’s not even a flashy puncher. So he would have had to really dominate in order to get the decision. But I just felt like from what I’ve seen from Muratalla that he shouldn’t have been a 10 to 1 favorite over Tevin. I was right. 

I’ve only seen parts of the fight. So I have to be careful what I say. But from what I’ve seen it looked like Tevin had the slight edge. But I saw the earlier rounds. I also know a point was deducted and Muratalla came on late. 

As for the point deduction, I didn’t think the holding was excessive. But I want to see everything that led up to it to be fair to the referee. It cost Tevin BIG. 

Where do they go from here? Unfortunately for Tevin he can either retire. Or build himself back up to take some fights again on the B side, again against a young and up and coming fighter as the B side where the odds are stacked against him. 

Muratalla will get a big fight very soon. Matchmaking is an art and Top Rank has great matchmakers. If they keep putting Muratalla in with guys like Tevin, it will devalue him. Huge favorites in Muratalla’s position, get devalued if they keep struggling with past their prime fighters. For example no one will give Muratalla much of a chance to beat Shakur Stevenson, although triangle theories in boxing don’t always work. Make no mistake, Farmer was picked to see how Muratalla would handle a southpaw boxer. He definitely gained experience but he would have to improve drastically to beat Shakur Stevenson. 

So, I would guess that Muratalla is going straight to the big fight. Although I think Stevenson beats him, I think he goes to a fight of that level because he could lose to a Farmer type. So I expect Muratalla to fight Keyshawn Davis or Shakur Stevenson depending on his contract situation, in his very next fight.

Your analogy on Twitter of Bud and Boots were spot on. Bud the MJ of the 90s and Boots the MJ of the 80s is the best comparison I have heard, maybe ever. The sad part is some people took it wrong. I know exactly how you meant it because of how they both fought Avanesyan. Bud let the fight come to him a little more and he got the clean one punch KO. Whereas Boots imposed his youth and athleticism on Avanesyan and broke his jaw. MJ of the 90s hit pretty fade aways and MJ of the 80s would just go by you and dunk on you. I hope no one on the big networks steals your comparison and not give you credit. They do it to you often. My issue is however, why did people take it wrong. I saw someone who claimed that he was Terence Crawford’s cousin get upset about it. It was the strangest interaction I’ve seen you have. He actually told you to pick a side. I almost chimed in because you have been giving Bud props for over 10 years now. You had him number 1 pound for pound before anyone did. My question is, I know you have relationships throughout boxing. How do you manage to keep your relationships in place when fighters you know face each other?

Bread’s Response: Man that dude was a weirdo. He knew I was giving Bud his props. And if he followed me, which I’m sure he does, he knows how long I have been saying Bud is special. Social Media is a drug, where it allows people to have access to people they otherwise wouldn’t have access to. It allows unimportant people to be important in their own world. So he took his opportunity and attacked my compliment to Boots. Trying to belittle my opinion of Boots as a top fighter. 

But here is the thing. No one can change my opinion of how I feel about a fighter. I have died on many hills as far as my assessment of fighters. Terence Crawford being one of them by the way. Back in 2011-12 Adrien Broner was ahead of Terence Crawford in terms of notoriety. I told everyone who would listen, Crawford was the better fighter. No one listened in 2012. Now it’s not even an argument. So whoever that guy was he can kick rocks. I feel like Boots is on that level. He just hasn’t had the fights to prove it. 

Now that doesn’t mean, Boots will go 50-0 and be God gift to Boxing. Anything can happen. But from where I am standing, I feel like his talent reminds me of Bud’s at the same stage of their careers. They both were overlooked and undervalued early and it’s taken them a little longer for people to realize how good they were. They not only have similar styles, but similar paths. 

Both were excellent amateurs but not Olympians. Both were better than fighters that turned pro in the same class as them but because of the Olympics and promotional reasons they didn’t hit mainstream until later. 

Both won their titles at around 26yrs old. Both are switch-hitting KO artists, who have elite boxing abilities. Both even received the same criticism of getting hit a little too much but I think it’s because they’re killers and they put themselves in harm’s way. 

And you’re correct, the WAY they fought Avanesyan says a lot. Crawford is more patient and content in the ring. He has a way of letting things come to him and being efficient. Boots imposed himself on Avanesyan. I don’t know the punch stats but Boots seemed to punch more than Crawford did. But they got the same RESULT. 

Both were in front of their home town crowds. But Bud told the crowd with his actions, I’m going to take care of business but I’m going to take my time. Whereas Boots didn’t want the crowd to be disappointed at all. He went after it right away. 

One has wisdom. The other youth. What I was TRYING to illustrate until I was interrupted was it shows the difference in the way a young fighter thinks and a seasoned fighter thinks. Neither is WRONG. It’s just a difference of approach. 

I would never say a bad word about either. I love watching both fight and their approach to the game. I also have a world of respect for their trainers. That dude was tripping for NO reason, trying to be important. 

I don’t really worry about my relationships with fighters and their teams. Because I know my heart. I don’t disrespect anyone. Even if I don’t think highly of a fighter or trainer, I don’t disrespect them. I’m very respectful with my outward opinion. So there is never malice in anything I say. 

If they are cool with me, they know where I’m coming from so there is never an issue. It’s all about the delivery of an opinion. For example,  if I think a fighter will get stopped in 2 rounds and I know the fighter. I will just say it’s a tough fight for him and hopefully he gets out of the early rounds. I won’t say he’s going to get crushed early. That’s disrespectful. But…If they can’t respect a respectful delivery well that’s on them. I can’t be bullied or made to think something that I don’t agree with. And as far as I know, my opinion has not cost me any relationships that I have valued. So it’s all good. Good question by the way.

I just watched an interview with Kyrone Davis. The interviewer gave him props for listening to you in between rounds of his fight with Elijah Garcia. His response was very interesting. He said that’s what you pay your corner for. I pay him to listen to him. Why would I pay him to not listen. What a great response. Then I started watching some of his fights because I hadn’t seen much of him before. I noticed something very intriguing. Against Mark Hernandez he fought like a buzzsaw. You were yelling, stay in his chest. Against Anthony Dirrell he boxed on a bounce and I agree with you, he won that fight. A draw as the short notice B side is a win.  And against Garcia, he just countered, laid on the ropes and countered with right hands like a James Toney-type. It got me wondering, how did you get him to fight so many different styles under the pressure of a real fight? Do other fighters listen as well as Davis? It’s really amazing if anyone stopped to look at it.

Bread’s Response: Kyrone was 91-9 as an amateur and won Nationals 3x. Out of the fighters I have trained, he was the most accomplished as an amateur but had the hardest road as a pro. So I’m very happy that people finally got to see him perform on the BIG stage. And thank you for giving him props. He earned it the hard way. 

If I’m being honest, he hasn’t always listened to me OUTSIDE of the ring. But INSIDE he has a unique ability to LISTEN. And you’re correct, his 3 best performances have been displayed with 3 different styles. Great pick up. All of my fighters listen to a certain extent. But if I’m being honest, Kyrone listens the most inside the ring. I don’t know if my other guys would be so comfortable fighting different styles under the pressure of a real fight. But that’s no knock on them. Most fighters aren’t comfortable doing that. I think it comes from his parents and his toughness. He’s an extremely durable and tough fighter. So he doesn’t really fear being hurt. He also can function while being tired. So when you have that, fighting a different style than you’re most comfortable with is not as difficult as it would be for other fighters. And his parents are present. They hold him accountable for things in his personal life. That transfers in the ring. I can ask him to do something that he’s not comfortable with and he will try it. 

Hi Bread, Just catching up on your latest mailbag and as usual quite a lot of the column inches pertain to various aspects of Canelo’s resume and why he’s ‘ducking’ Benavidez, I know that you respect and hold his resume in high regard but it seems many of your readers can’t seem to give him credit for his incredible achievements. I mean he’s fought guys like Amir Khan and Floyd Mayweather right up to Bivol and Kovalev. Natural lightweights and natural light heavyweights. And in between he’s beaten HOF level fighters at 154, 160 and 168 Unified champion at 154 Unified at 160, Undisputed at 168, 1 belt at 175, cleaned out super middle beating undefeated fighters, Callum Smith, BJS and Caleb Plant – but not given his credit due to a couple of them being ‘European’ which seems to be a byword for ‘not very good’ by a lot of short sighted American boxing fans. Has he got the benefit of the dobut sometimes? Sure, but he’s never been given a robbery win.

He does seem to be avoiding Benavidez for whatever reason, but if you go back to look at the breadth of styles that he’s faced, he fights all comers. Slick fighters, hard punchers, eastern Europeans, Mexicans…If he fights Benavidez they will just call for the next guy, like fans do with the number 1 draw in the sport. Canelo is an ATG.

Conrad

Sheffield

Bread’s Response: You’re spot on. The issue I have with boxing fans/media is that they can’t rationalize how more than one thing can be true at the same time. It’s why I think boxing fans are the worst fans in ALL of sports. 

I don’t like to grandstand with my opinion like it’s a fact. But Canelo is a 1st ballot HOF and an ATG. He’s one of the few men in boxing history to win titles from 154-175. Do you know who the other 2 are? Sugar Ray Leonard and Tommy Hearns. That’s exclusive company. Anyone who says different is just hating at this point. I won’t go over Canelo’s resume because it’s very good and it’s too many big names to list…But I can ask…. Was everyone in their primes, NO? Did he win all of his BIG fights, NO? But if you ask that question about every fighter in history, at least one of the answers will be NO. ok so…..

People want to throw Canelo’s career away because he won’t fight Benavidez. If he never fights him, he will have to live with the decision. It will be a duck. But you can’t throw away 64 fights and his sustained excellence because he won’t fight Benavidez. Just rank him accordingly. When rankings of the best fighters of the 2000s come out. And it close between Canelo and John Doe. If they have similar resumes, similar results and John Doe fought his biggest rival, while Canelo didn’t fight his, dock points away from Canelo. That’s all. Put him as an ATG but just not a Mt. Rushmore-level great. And that’s that. But you can’t throw his career away. 

 

Benavidez is the #1 threat and contender to Canelo and has been for 3 years. They have been in the same division for too long to not have fought. I admit that. I don’t want to try to play boxing shrink at this point. Canelo is the A side and he hasn’t made the fight. Ok so what else can you do besides acknowledge the obvious. It doesn’t mean Canelo is not great. It just means he doesn’t want to fight David Benavidez. I can acknowledge both things. Because both things are TRUE.

Are there any fantasy matches you would like to see next year? How long do you think the Saudi boxing league will go on for? I thought the 5 vs 5 card was innovative, intriguing, and most importantly, competitive and good to watch. I for one am somewhat excited for it and I believe that boxing has hit a wall as far as innovation. Saudi boxing I think has the potential to reshape boxing. I have high hopes for it.

Bread’s Response: The matches shouldn’t be fantasy if the fights are possible. But I will give you fights that I think are possible and why. 

Bam vs Junto. Junto is the best fighter that is in a fair range for Bam to fight and he’s in his PRIME. 

Junto vs Monster. Junto is the best fighter within weight range for Monster to fight and it would be the biggest fight in Japanese history. 

Tank vs Shakur would be the biggest fight in lightweight history. It would also be a fight between two fighters from popular East Coast Urban areas. I think we could get a legit Super Fight not in Vegas. 

I don’t believe Bud and Boots will fight. I think they are going in different directions in their careers. But how about Boots vs Teofimo. Same age range and Teofimo is saying he would move up. 

Bud vs Canelo. I don’t believe Canelo is in a rush to fight Benavidez. So Bud vs Canelo is the most popular fight that can be made. I think the odds would favor Canelo but I think Bud pulls off the upset. The winner of this fight, OWNS the era.

Benavidez vs Morrell. This is a makeable fight. Two guys the same age and same size with the same promotional company. And it’s a great fight. Some days I favor Benavidez but I look at Morrell and give him the eyeball test and he looks like the goods. His resume doesn’t say so but the eyeball test says he’s as talented as Benavidez. I love this fight because I’m not sure who the winner will be. 

Beterbiev vs Bivol. Classic match up. Puncher vs Boxer. Historical significance at light heavyweight. Top 10 ever ranking on the line.. 

Usyk vs Opetaia is the best fight that can be made for the BIG guys. 

I don’t know much about the Saudi boxing league. But I love what I’m seeing so far. I also love that they are doing shows in the US. I hope they save boxing. We could use a lifeline.

I loved the 5 vs 5 card. I would love to see Top Rank, Golden Boy, PBC and Matchroom all do it and see who comes out on top. Great concept.

Greetings Bread, Who do you think T Crawford’s personality resembles more Kobe or MJ? Do you have a favorite trainer comment either to the fighter or anyone else at ringside?

I must admit I will always remember Goosen with Diego and Chris Algieri’s trainer saying he was going to let him out of the cage vs Pac.

Bread’s Response: I’ve always said Kobe played like Jordan of the 90s. I just described Bud as the Jordan of the 90s. So Kobe is a fair comparison. Bud is THAT dude. He has the rare mix of talent, work ethic, smooth athleticism and killer mentality. Any comparison to Kobe or Jordan of any sport is the ultimate compliment. 

 

My favorite trainer comment is when I say “Good shot!” after one of my fighters lands something nice and sharp. Besides that I have a couple. Joe Goosen is a friend of mine and I once told him that his speech to Diego was epic. To be the head trainer of the winning fighter, in the greatest fight ever, it says a lot. Goosen said a lot that night. 

Angelo Dundee with two comments. In Leonard vs Hearns1, he said you’re blowing it son. In Leonard vs Hagler he said, 3 minutes!!! Letting the Sugarman know he was almost to the finish line. 

And Virgil Hunter, my mentor in boxing, telling Andre Ward after he was knocked down by Sergey Kovalev. “Ali got up, Leonard got up, Robinson got up. You got up!!” I just got chills running down my spine.

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