The Neutral Corner

The Neutral Corner battles The Steel Cage over this boxer vs. wrestler debate.

So maybe you haven't heard yet, but Newsday now has a professional wrestling blog. A sad day for journalism indeed. But that's another matter. This becomes relevant over here in our corner because Floyd Mayweather will take on The Big Show in yet another "classic" boxing-wrestler match.

The last time I was this excited about pro rasslin' came when I was 23 years old and landed a job at The Ring magazine. The company also put out Pro Wrestling Illustrated and Bill Apter, the famed photographer, occupied the desk infront of me. Sitting next to Apter for five years I was able to meet Cactus Jack (before he was really famous), Sting and one of my all-time favorites, Mil Mascaras. And yes, he wore his mask to the office. I loved going to work every day. OK. So those years of my life were a bit dull, but that's another matter.

Let me get back on point, or to the point -- Floyd Mayweather will beat Big Show when they face each other at WrestleMania 24, Sunday, March 30, at the Florida Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Florida.

I'm sure my colleagues over at the Steel Cage blog will defend the honor of rasslin' and select the 7-foot Big Show to win. Let me tell you why they're wrong.

First, let's look at the tale of the tape.

Weight: Mayweather 159, The Big Show, 441
Height: Mayweather 5-8, The Big Show, 7-0
Reach: Mayweather 72 inches, The Big Show, 84
Biceps: Mayweather 16, The Big Show, 21
Fist: Mayweather 9, The Big Show, 15
Chest: Mayweather 42, The Big Show, 67
Wasit: Mayweather 32, The Big Show, 50
Shoe Size: Mayweather 9, The Big Show, 18 6E

A formidable matchup for Mayweather (wink). But as they say in boxing, it's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog. In Mayweather's case, it's actually the speed of the dog. Watch this hysetical video below of Mayweather bustin' Big Show's nose at a wrestling event.

Did you see that? I'm actually starting to like Floyd. Back to the point. You can't hit what you can't catch. And with Mayweather scheduled to make upwards of $20-million fighting Oscar de La Hoya in the fall, Big Show will never catch him. He won't even come close.

But, as Mayweather said, it will be entertainment. Floyd doesn't have to try too hard to play the heel. So it oughta be fun. The last time I was this excited about pro rasslin' -- aside from my location to Apter's desk -- was when I was 12 years old and caught the athletic tape that Superstar Billy Graham ripped off his wrists and flung into the crowd at Nassau Coliseum.

I will gladly award that sweaty swath of tape to the first person who can tell me why a respectable news outlet like Newsday now has a wrestling blog? -- CASSIDY

Read The Steel Cage's take on this debate.

Someone forgot to tell Joel Casamayor that his March 22 fight against Michael Katsidis was actually his retirement party. The 36-year-old Cuban champion had shown a lot of ring mileage recently and most in the know expected the young challenger to permanently deliver Casamayor to the ranks of the inactive.

Never one to shrink from a challenge, Casamayor, boldly predicted he would be the first to hang a loss on the 27-year-old Katsidis. When asked how he would prepare for his young, bullish opponent, Casamayor sniffed, "I don't prepare to fight him, he prepares to fight me."

A pair of left hands dropped Katsidis in the very first round. But the kid from Australia was young and strong and stubborn and after he picked himself up it looked like the night was over for Casamayor. Katsidis, called the next Arturo Gatti by some, marched through the blood and through the punches and began to dominate this lightweight title fight. He didn't earn this spot on HBO because he falls down and gets back up. It's what he does once he gets back up that landed him in the ring with Casamayor in Cabazon, California.

By the third round, Katsidis was stalking and digging punches into Casamayor's belly. Katsidis never took a backward step, pressuring the champion with his presence as well as his punches. In the fourth round, one of those punches -- a right hand --- caught Casamayor flush. The veteran was hurt along the ropes and this looked like it would be Casamayor's
final stand. Stunned, he gritted his teeth and started bombing back. For a 10-second sequence, with the Cuban's back to the ropes, it was as good as it gets in the sport of boxing. Both men winging power punches. Casamayor, prepared to be carried out if it came to that, dropped his guard and fought back.

It would be enough to make Fidel Castro proud.

Of course, El Presidente has a special word for those athletes who leave his tiny island nation. Cuba just may be the greatest sports machine - per capita -- in the history of sports. The Communist system has produced superstars in boxing and baseball. And when those superstars leave, as Casamayor did in 1996, they are forever considered traitors. Gusanos (worms) is what Fidel likes to call them.

Champion is what the rest of the world calls Casamayor.

What you saw from Casamayor in that fourth round had nothing to do with Fidel Castro. It had to do with what is inside Joel Casamayor. He showed again that he had the heart of a champion, a courage that is found only in the depths of elite boxer. It may have been Castro's system that developed the immense talent in this southpaw from Guantanamo, but what makes Casamayor special has nothing to do with Castro or Cuba. He is a fighter and the true fighter carries on in the most dire of circumstances. That comes from within. If Casamayor was going to relinquish his throne, Katsidis would have to earn it.

Katsidis, who entered the ring with a 23-0 record, nearly did in the sixth round when a series of punches deposited Casamayor on the ring apron. The champion barely made it back inside the ropes before being counted out. It seemed over. The only thing left to be determined was exactly how much punishment Casamayor would endure before the end.

In his last bout, in November at Madison Square Garden, Casamayor was fortunate to leave New York with his lightweight title belt and a split decision over Jose Santa Cruz. The toll of 400 amateur fights and wars with Diego Corrales and Acelino Freitas had seemingly caught up with the Cuban magician.

This fight ended in an instant. Really, just like a magic trick. The young fighter was coming forward. Youth, energy, momentum all on his side. It was time to close the show, which is exactly what Casamayor did. He caught Katsidis with a powerful, looping left hand -- BOOM -- and the challenger was spilled into a corner. Katsidis barely made it to his feet. When he did, he wobbled forward. The fight continued, briefly, just enough for Casamayor to land one more blow. The referee stopped it thirty seconds into round 10.

The fight was over and the career of Joel Casamayor carries on. -- CASSIDY

On the night Tupac Shakur was killed, he attended a Mike Tyson fight at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

With the Los Angeles Times' package today on the death of Tupac Shakur, it gives us the opportunity to revisit the relationship between Tyson and Tupac.

Ringside is typically swollen with celebrities on the night of a big fight. Particularly those in the heavyweight division and even more so when Tyson was on top of the bill. Tyson was the epitome of so many rap lyrics, it was hard for the entertainers to stay away.

Louis Gossett Jr., Charlie Sheen, Reggie Jackson, Run-DMC, Stacey Augmon and the Rev. Jesse Jackson were just some of the celebs on hand for the modern equivalent of sending out a Christian to the lions. Tyson was the lion, Bruce Seldon, his opponent, was in the role of the sacrificial Christian.

Tyson scored a knockout at 1:49 of the first round. The singing of the National Anthem lasted 41 seconds longer than the actual fight.

But as boxing cards go, it was a good one. The Tyson fight was no surprise, but world champions Terry Norris and Felix Trinidad fought on the undercard. And so did Christy Martin, who was quickly putting women’s boxing on the map.

It was Tyson’s fourth fight since being released from prison after serving three years for the rape of a Miss Black America beauty pageant contestant. It’s been reported that Tyson and Tupac corresponded with letters while Tyson was incarcerated.

But Tupac’s reason for being at the Tyson-Seldon fight went beyond friendship, fandom or morbid curiosity. Tyson’s walk to the ring was always accompanied by rap music. For a long time, Public Enemy was the heavyweight champion’s music of choice. But on this night, it was Tupac. The rapper had written a song, “Wrote the Glory,” that Tyson played during his entrance. (Tyson had also entered the ring for other fights to the Tupac song -- "Ambitionz az a Ridah.")

This video posted on YouTube is described as Tupac and Tyson after the Seldon fight. It’s not. Tupac is in a tux and that contradicts the video footage shown of the brawl (below) in the hotel lobby. This is of Tupac congratulating Tyson after a different fight:

This is a YouTube video of Tupac waiting for Tyson after the Seldon fight:

As Tupac left the Tyson-Seldon fight, he and his entourage were involved in an altercation with another group of young men. No one knows the circumstances of how this fight started, but it’s not the first time that a heroic boxer, moments after vanquishing an opponent, has inspired violence in the those young men who had just witnessed the legalized carnage. Watching a fight gets the adrenaline flowing and somehow the confidence that resides in the fists of a Mike Tyson is transferred upon his followers. It’s their time to be brave.

Here is a YouTube video of the brawl that was caught by hotel security cameras:

A few hours later, Tupac was shot while driving with Suge Knight on the Las Vegas strip and died several days later. Tyson was supposed to meet Tupac later at a victory party at a local night club.

Here is YouTube video of Tyson knocking out Seldon:

-- CASSIDY

Manny Pacquiao scored a split decision -- scores of 115-112, 114-113, 112-115 -- to capture Juan Manuel Marquez's WBC 130-pound title Saturday night in Las Vegas. It was a thrilling contest and afterward it seemed that old cliche -- there was no loser -- was appropriate.

Click here to see photos of the fight.

Click here to read the AP's coverage of the fight.

Click here to read about it on TheSweetScience.com.

HBO will broadcast a replay of the Pacquiao-Marquez II fight before Joel Casamayor meets Michael Katsidis on Saturday, March 22. - CASSIDY

At the age of 40, Sweet Saoul Mamby was giving boxers half his age fits. He was a clever fighter. He was a defensive wizard who was hard to hit. I suppose that has something to do with his longevity. At the age of 60, Mamby is back in the ring.

On Saturday night he lost a 10-round decision to a 32-year-old journeyman named Anthony Osbourne at the Lions Gate Center in Grand Cayman, Mexico. That says a lot about Mamby's skill as a fighter, Osbourne's (7-25 record) lack of skill as a fighter and the bizarre state of boxing that would allow a grandfather of 11 to fight.

Mamby, who has now competed in five decades, may hold the record for the oldest person to ever fight professionally. But is that a record anyone really wants?

Mamby's last great moment came in 1990, when he was 43. On that August night, he decisioned unbeaten contender Larry Barnes, who was 25 years old and 17-0. Two years prior to that, he beat Glenwood Brown at the Garden. Brown was 21 years old and 18-0. Both Brown and Barnes would go on to challenge for the welterweight title.

In his prime, Mamby was the WBC super lightweight champion. He beat Estaben DeJesus and went the distance with hall-of-famers Roberto Duran and Antonio Cervantes. He turned pro in 1969 and fought a total of 13 world champions over his career.

Mamby, who at times was a cab driver in New York City, used to drink green tea before it became trendy. He was a master with the jump rope. The Times Square Gym would come to halt when Mamby started his routine as people would stop to marvel at his grace. The old-timers said it reminded them of Sugar Ray Robinson when he used to skip rope to the song, "Sweet Georgia Brown."

But this is not an occasion for celebration. To this corner, it's a sad day for boxing.

This is not like suiting up Satchel Paige or Minnie Minoso and trotting them out to take the field one more time, as major league baseball teams did as publicity stunts. These punches are real and sooner or later Mamby is going to feel the effects of those punches. The accumulative impact of punches, over a prolonged period of time, eventually catches up with everyone.

Don't expect any commission in the United States to sanction him for a fight.

Mamby made headlines and heard the roar of the crowd one more time. But, please, stop now. -- CASSIDY

At times, it was ugly. But when it was over, Samuel Peter and Oleg Maskaev put forth the kind of effort that is expected from the heavyweight champion. Peter stopped Oleg Maskaev in the final seconds of the sixth round Saturday night, in a bullring in Cancun, Mexico, to win the WBC heavyweight title.

Click here to see photos of the fight.

In the end, the younger Peter (27) was too strong for the older Maskaev (39). The fighting was, at times, awkward. Maskaev's punches were slow. But both men threw bombs. They were there to win it and win it convincingly. Maskaev had been inactive since December of 2006.

Let's remember, Peter is not in the class of Joe Frazier, Mike Tyson, George Foreman or any other of the division's great punchers. But his win over Maskaev was a positive jolt in a reeling division. So now, the likely opponent for Peter (30-1, 23 KOs) is IBF-WBO champion Wladimir Klitschko, the only man to defeat him as a pro. Just two weeks ago Klitschko scored a dull decision over Sultan Ibragimov in Madison Square Garden.

Peter, known as the Nigerian Nightmare, is said to be pursuing a match with Vitali Klitschko, Wladimir's older brother, before he attempts a unification bout with Wladimir. -- CASSIDY

It remains one of the greatest rivalries in history. And that includes Yankees-Red Sox and Michigan-Ohio State. Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier fought three times over 41 rounds. The fighting was brilliant, savage and enthralling.

If you are accessing this blog from a source other than Newsday's sports page, please read Wally Matthews' excellent column on Frazier on Newsday.com. And scroll down below to watch Katie Strang's video of the Matthews-Frazier interview.

Frazier, boxing's consummate warrior, once said, "If a man doesn't want to fight, you can't make him." Truer words have never been spoken. It is so easy to remain on the stool or stay on the canvas and take the count. These men never relented in the ring. They inspired each other to greatness.

Watch for yourself, courtesy of YouTube:

The Sweet Science. That's what boxing has been known as for a century. At it's best, boxing is elevated to art by those who practice it. George Foreman once said that boxing is the sport to which all others aspire.

I agree. And that includes Mixed Martial Arts.

Please click on the video below and you will see two of my colleagues -- Joe Fernandez and Wally Matthews -- debate the merits of each sport. It's interesting, informative and, yes, even entertaining. So watch it and form your own opinion. But first, let me give you mine.

Over the last century, boxing has produced some of the greatest sporting events of all time. Dempsey-Tunney, Louis-Schmeling II, Ali-Liston, Ali-Frazier I, Leonard-Duran I and II, Arguello-Pryor I, Tyson-Holyfield I and II, De La Hoya-Mayweather. These were not merely fights, but events that enthralled even the casual fan. Each one was its own Super Bowl. A mini-World Series stuffed inside of 15 rounds or less. Documentaries are still being made about Joe Louis, books are still being written on Muhammad Ali.

MMA is in its infancy and may ultimately provide our cultural with similar, iconic, events. I've watched my share of MMA on YouTube and Spike TV. Joe has directed me to some intriguing matchups and I will tell you this, I'm not looking to get caught in anyone's arm-bar any time soon. But in my opinion, MMA will never supplant boxing.

In the video, Joe points out that many MMA stars are former top collegiate wrestlers and Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belts. I'm sure they are brilliant within their own disciplines. Just as Mayweather is within boxing. But there is a reason that those sports have not made it to network television on their own. While the athletes are skilled, the action is simply not very compelling. That's why the only wrestling we see on television is of the fake variety.

The reason MMA has been so successful is that it has taken legitimate sports -- wrestling, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, etc. -- and added a rogue element. You are allowed to elbow your opponent, knee your opponent, hit him while he's down and do other things that one would basically find offensive in a bar fight. Without those "rules" MMA would lose its appeal. MMA is a sport for the MTV generation. It's a sport of instant gratification. Observers want to see someone bludgeoned and bludgeoned quickly. They want to see someone's arm snapped and they don't want to wait 10 rounds for that to happen. I am sure there are fans of MMA, like Joe, who are
connoisseurs of the sport. He appreciates the nuances of an MMA fight. But that person is as common as a triple heel lock. The millions who are turning in to watch UFC are tuning in for legalized mayhem. So, yes, congratulations MMA, you have succeeded in providing the blood thirsty fan with a quick fix.

After the Mayweather-De La Hoya fight, HBO commentator Jim Lampley said that the fight reached a skill level -- and sustained it -- in such a manner you would never see in MMA. That comment irked my MMA friends. And rightfully so. There are a variety of skills on display in an MMA fight. But again, that's not why people are watching MMA.

I would like to take Lampley's point further. It is the sustained skill, the sustained action that makes boxing intriguing. I've yet to see that in an MMA fight. The great boxing matches in history have tremendous give-and-take. As the rounds roll by, the momentum swings back and forth. That's what makes a great sporting event. What are the best games you've watched? The ones during which a team rallies from sure defeat, or where there are numerous lead changes. In MMA, there is very little ebb and flow. The skills that are on display aren't sustained for long periods of time.

Go to YouTube. Seach for Ali-Fraizer I or III, Pryor-Arguello I, Chavez-Taylor I, Gatti-Ward I or any other classic boxing match. Watch it and then tell me if you can find a single MMA fight that beats it for athleticism, valor and drama.

I'll be waiting for your response. -- CASSIDY

Oscar De La Hoya and longtime business partner Gabriel Brener have agreed to acquire significant ownership interests in the Houston Dynamo, the two-time defending MLS champions.

Current ownership will continue to operate the team, according to Oliver Luck, President and General Manager of the Houston Dynamo.

“I’m a huge soccer fan and have been very impressed with the progress MLS and especially The Houston Dynamo have made in recent years," said De La Hoya, in a news release. "I also appreciate how much soccer, like boxing, appeals to the Hispanic community. I’m very excited to be part of such a top notch organization.”

Oscar will fight Steve Forbes on May 3 and then will fight a rematch with Floyd Mayweather Jr. on September 20.

The soccer team is just one more notch in the ever-expanding empire known as Golden Boy Enterprises. Oscar currently has 50 fighters under promotional contract -- including Bernard Hopkins, Marco Antonio Barrera, Sugar Shane Mosley. He has purchased The Ring magazine and has several real estate and entertainment holdings. -- CASSIDY