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Amir Khan and Timothy Bradley are generally regarded as the best 140lb fighters in the world. Both brim with confidence and both believe they have each others number — and both aren’t afraid to talk a little smack. Check out this hilarious twitter war between the two junior welterweights that has got the boxing world buzzing about a potential fight. Here’s the transcript of the juicy bits:

Bradley - Amir Khan said he will knock me out. Bring it on baby I will fight you next! If your a man face me next and not [Juan Manuel] Marquez.

Khan -  Your turn will come, just get in the que. I want to face a better bunch of opponents first.

Bradley – Until you face me you will never get the respect…period! So who you [are] going to face next then?

Khan – Tim Bradley is dying for a pay day. Tell him get in the que of better opponents and wait his turn to get KO’d.

Bradley – Dude what you talking about? Believe in my own hype? I’ve beaten [Kendall] Holt, [Lamont] Peterson, [Junior] Witter, [Nate] Campbell. I deserve a pay day.

Khan – Remember one thing, I’d beat everyone who you beat. I’d KO them. Infact, you avoided [Andreas] Kotelnik and [Dimitry] Salita. Who’s the bitch now?

Bradley – I avoided Kotelnik and Salita?? Please explain how I avoided them? I think you’re the ducker. Who’s your mandatory? [Marcos] Maidana.

Dude I highly doubt you would have beaten Kendal Holt in 2009, maybe now but not when I fought him.

If you face Maidana next fair enough, he’s your mandatory but if you face Marquez you know there will be a backlash against you about. You gotta be a man and tell Richard Schaefer you wanna face legit 140 pounders not blown-up lightweights.

Khan – Maidana has a bad back. I wanted him. You say you want to fight but indirectly you don’t. You overprice yourself and say I’m scared…come on!

Bradley – You paid Maidana step-aside money. You’re the ducker son!

Your ego is too big. Humble yourself before someone shatters your glass jaw!

Overprice myself? What are you talking about? Gary Shaw and Richard haven’t even discussed financial details.

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Boxing is called the sweet science for a reason – the best are experts at hitting others and not getting hit themselves. The art of defense is incredibly difficult to learn as it requires reconditioning innate reflexes to do something that seems completely unnatural.

When someone tries to hit you in the face, our natural instinct is to pull backwards away from the punch. But in boxing, every defensive move must set up a counter attack, so the body must be conditioned to move laterally instead, creating an angle so that a counter punch can be landed. At its highest level, this can mean using the shoulders to deflect punches and set up counters, or even parrying and counter attacking at the same time. Also, if you must take a punch full on, the best way to absorb a blow is to lean head first into the punch with your chin down so that the power is absorbed into your back and legs rather than your neck. These movements take years of conditioning, but once ingrained, they can separate good boxers from great ones.

The best defensive fighters are an absolute joy to watch for boxing purists. Their ability to effortlessly navigate their way around trained athletes trying to take their heads off is a sight to behold, and the combination of nerve and physical geometry is nothing short of amazing. Here’s a brilliant highlight of some of boxing’s finest defensive specialists:

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For whatever reason, Floyd Mayweather has refused to fight Manny Pacquiao this year. Instead, fight fans will be treated to a more entertaining but less marketable and less ethical fight pitting the dynamic Filipino against the brawling WBC 154lbs champ Antonio Margarito.

This isn’t particularly good for the sport for a number of reasons. Firstly, Margarito doesn’t deserve a fight with Pacquiao given his disgraceful use of illegal hand wraps in his fight with Shane Mosley. Margarito has only just come off a year long ban and has yet to receive a license to fight in any of the big fighting States. Secondly, Margarito was pummeled by Shane Mosley in their fight back in 2009, barely winning a round and leaving many skeptical that he hadn’t cheated in any of his other fights.

However, this fight will be a lot of fun.

Margarito is a come forward pressure fighter who does not know the meaning of retreat. While his skills are also underrated, Margarito’s will sets him apart from other fighters and he has the ability to make any fight competitive. The fight with Pacquiao looks to be set at 154lbs (although Pacquiao will most likely demand a catch weight) giving the Mexican an inherent advantage. Margarito is immensely strong, and given Pacquiao was fighting at 130lbs only two years ago, he will carry well over 15lbs of extra muscle on fight night.

Pacquiao’s incredible speed and pin point accuracy should negate most of these advantages, but it will take a few rounds to slow the oncoming freight train. And for those rounds, expect an all out war as Margarito asserts his will and Pacquiao defends his territory.

I don’t give Margarito much of a chance against Pacquiao given the discrepancy in talent, but in terms of pure action, you couldn’t really ask for more.

So yes, buy the PPV. You will certainly get your money’s worth.

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On August 28th, veteran boxer James Toney will face off against MMA hall of famer Randy Couture in a 5 x 5 minute round fight at heavyweight at UFC 118 in Boston. The fight pits boxing against MMA in a battle that promises to settle the score as to which sport is the toughest.

UFC President Dana White was reluctant to put the fight on given his adamant opinion that the UFC should not turn into a ‘freak show’ has basically admitted that he knows it is a bit of a fair ground attraction.  James Toney has zero MMA experience, and at 41 isn’t likely to have picked up enough to face off against a wiley operator like Couture. Yet White made the fight because Toney’s credentials in boxing are so widely respected he felt it would have been wrong to deny someone of his stature a shot in the UFC.

If standout college wrestlers like Brock Lesnar are given a fast track into UFC, it stands to reason that former world class boxer should be shown the same courtesy.

So does James Toney have a serious chance of beating Randy Couture?

Yes, but not for the reasons Toney would have you believe.

While the former boxing champion thinks he will take Couture apart because ‘boxing is better’, the truth of the matter is that Toney might win because Couture is 47 years old. The aging warrior has shown little ability to take heavy blows in recent years, and has been hurt badly in 4 of his last 5 fights (something Toney’s team has picked up on) and is nowhere near the athlete he once was. Couture is a very, very smart operator and knows his way around the cage the same way Toney does a ring, but his punch resistance is so low now that lesser fighters are always in with a shot. And against a world class boxer, Couture will have to be extremely careful. At 47, Couture simply cannot go in for take downs with same speed and aggression he once did. If he pauses for a second, Toney will answer with a well timed punch and Couture could find himself on queer street very early on in the bout.

This isn’t to say that Toney should be considered a favorite. I wouldn’t hold out much hope for him if Couture rams him up against the cage or gets him on the floor. While Toney can sit on the ropes and counter all day long in a ring, the cage is a different story and Couture will be stamping on his feet, elbowing him in the face and working for a take down all at the same time. And if he gets the former middleweight champion on his back, I wouldn’t give Toney more than a minute against a Greco Roman wrestler of Coutures ability, no matter his age. Couture specializes in making his opponents do the things they don’t want to do, and even at his advanced age, he has enough left in the tank to make a 41 year old boxer more than a little uncomfortable.

The fight should be fun, and I would actually expect a competitive fight. Toney is apparently preparing hard for his foray into MMA and he won’t go in expecting an easy fight. It’s unlikely he will win, even with Couture’s advanced age and diminishing punch resistance, but he will make it entertaining while it lasts.

But make no mistake about it, should Toney somehow beat Couture, he should think very carefully about taking on one of the younger heavyweights in the UFC. Fighters like Brock Lesnar, Shane Carwin and Cain Velasquez would dump Toney on the floor so fast he wouldn’t know what had hit him. And while Toney is an expert at trading punches with bigger men standing up, there’s not much he could do with a 265lb wrestler raining down blows while lying on his back.

Enjoy Toney’s bout against Couture, and let’s hope he gets out of MMA without sustaining any serious injuries.

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Floyd Mayweather’s refusal to meet with Manny Pacquiao in November of this year this year does not look good for either Mayweather or the sport. After months of negotiations and some big concessions from Pacquiao, there was hope in the boxing world that the fight would be made. We don’t know the ins and outs of the proposed deal, but it is clear that Pacquiao relented on the blood testing up until around 14 days prior to the bout.

Pacquiao’s promoter Bob Arum held a midnight conference call after Mayweather missed the deadline for exclusive negotiating rights exonerating Mayweather from any blame. Arum said that fight fans should understand why Mayweather turned the fight down given his uncle and trainer Roger Mayweather will be facing criminal charges for assault and battery later this year.

But the next day, Mayweather spoke to the Associated Press saying the following:

I’m not interested in rushing to do anything. I’m not really thinking about boxing right now. I’m just relaxing. I fought about 60 days ago, so I’m just enjoying myself, enjoying life, enjoying my family and enjoying my vacation. Like I said, I’m just supporting my family and relaxing. That’s what I’m doing right now.

It is entirely possible that Mayweather has every intention of fighting Pacquiao, just not this year. But if he chooses to fight him at a later date he will contend with the inevitable ring rust, and a possibly more dangerous Pacquaio.  The Filipino just seems to be getting better and better with every fight, and if he is fed another welterweight before getting in with Mayweather, he will be that much more comfortable at the weight. Fighting Pacquiao next year, especially when Mayweather will be 34, does not look like the smartest thing to do.

So why has Mayweather refused the fight, especially after coming off a spectacular performance over Shane Mosley? Is it possible that he sees something in the Filipino dynamo that has given him second thoughts?

Mayweather was given a lot of credit for fighting and dismantling Mosley, a fighter many thought would give him a very tough night. If his heart was in question before the fight, his performance erased most people’s doubts. But the Pacquiao of 2010 is a very different beast, and it may well be that Mayweather doesn’t want anything to do with him.

If you look at the fighters who have given Mayweather the most trouble, they have all been south paws. Demarcus Corley and Zab Judah gave Mayweather hell early on in their fights, rocking the champion on several occasions and in Judah’s case, actually putting him on the canvas (although it was mistakenly called a slip). Pacquiao is both faster and more powerful than Corley and Judah, and also possesses a more complete game. Corley and Judah faded as the rounds wore on and stopped taking risks as Mayweather began to pick them apart. Pacquiao on the other hand, never stops trying and will take ungodly amounts of punishment to reassert himself (just look at his first fight with Erik Morales and two with Juan Manuel Marquez). Mayweather knows that every round with Pacquiao is a dangerous one and his unorthodox punching may take him more than six rounds to figure out. He may have calculated that there is simply too much risk in fighting Pacquiao and has made more than enough money to retire and not fight again.

I am inclined however to give Mayweather the benefit of the doubt, particularly after surviving a torrid second round with Shane Mosley and going on to out fight him for the next 10 rounds. Mayweather showed his heart that night and given his enormous pride and self belief, it is a bit of a stretch to think he fears another fighter his own size.

But the longer the contract with Pacquaio goes unsigned and the weaker the excuses from the Mayweather camp, there is only so long writers and fans will give him that benefit.

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Having failed to meet the July 15th deadline, Floyd Mayweather has rejected a multi million dollar bout with Manny Pacquiao. On a midnight conference call, Pacquiao’s promoter Bob Arum said the following:

“Obviously people want the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight. I think the fans are going to be disappointed. They have to realize .. they have to cut Floyd Mayweather some slack. We know his uncle is facing some difficulties in the courts in Nevada. And I can see his reluctance to commit to a big fight with Pacquiao without the services of his uncle.”

Arum has been extremely critical of Mayweather in the past for not agreeing to fight Pacquiao without stringent blood tests, but it seems the veteran promoter believes there are legitimate reasons as to why Mayweather did not agree to the new terms (which included a compromise on the blood tests).

“If boxing fans begrudge him that, that’s really sad,” said Arum of Mayweather’s reasoning. “I really believe people should be understanding.”

There is however, a glimmer of hope that the fight will still happen. The deadline was for exclusivity, meaning Arum promised not to negotiate with anyone else during that period. Now Arum will begin talks with other fighters for a super fight at a higher weight.

“The deadline was the end of the exclusivity period,” said Arum. “Now I have to go out and secure an opponent for Manny Pacquiao, assuming he won’t fight Floyd.”

And it looks like the two options are Antonio Margarito and Miguel Cotto at 154lbs – two of Arums own fighters.

There will be little desire to see a rematch between Pacquiao and Cotto given the drubbing Pacquiao laid on him when they met in 2009, and Margarito isn’t huge at the box office so whoever he fights will be somewhat of a let down for fight fans around the world. Let’s hope Mayweather considers hiring his father as his trainer and comes back to the negotiating table.

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The always quote worthy Mike Tyson on the biggest losses of his career:

Details: Why do you think you lost your first bout, to James “Buster” Douglas in 1990?
Mike Tyson: I just stopped caring. I just stopped feeling Cus inside me. All those headlines. I didn’t care about boxing. And when Douglas got up after I knocked him down and came back at me—I didn’t have it in me. I didn’t have it in me when I knocked him down, either. It’s just…more power to him, he got up. Nobody else had.

Details: And what about the infamous Holyfield fight?
Mike Tyson: Man, I didn’t care about boxing anymore. I was wrong to do that—all wrong—all crazy to do that. But that wasn’t about boxing. I just wanted to fucking maim him. I had no business being in that ring. A year out of prison, 16 months out of prison, already with two belts to defend? I had no business with those belts. I was already done. They put you, a writer, in prison, for three years, hands tied behind your back. Then they put you up against some hack, and you outwrite him, and they give you two awards. And then I put you up against a Nobel Prize winner? Absurd.

Tyson has put his losses to Douglas and Holyfield down to lack of focus and desire, but in truth, they were the first men to truly stand up to him in the ring. While Mike will always be regarded as a great fighter, his psychological fragility made him vulnerable to men who could take his punches and come back at him. For those reasons, Tyson will never be considered alongside fighters like Ali, Foreman and Louis, men who could take just as much as they could give.

In a slightly bizarre turn of events, Oscar DeLaHoya has received a ban by the New York State Athletic Commission (NYSAC) preventing him from promoting fights for 90 days. According to the Telegraph:

De la Hoya received the suspension because his company, Golden Boy Promotions, failed to disclose the standard post-fight paperwork displaying fighters contracts in the wake of the May 15 event at the Theater, in Madison Square Garden. Khan, from Bolton, made his US debut, defending the World Boxing Association light-welterweight title with aplomb against Paulie Malignaggi, winning by techical knockout of the Brooklynite in the eleventh round.

In response to the ban, DeLaHoya’s company issued the following statement:

On July 9, 2010, Golden Boy learned that it had been suspended by the NYSAC for a period of 90 days.  Although Golden Boy respectfully disagrees with one of the Commission’s charges – that there was dishonesty on the part of a Golden Boy employee – Golden Boy does acknowledge that a number of significant, but innocent, mistakes were made in failing to make timely responses to legitimate information requests from the NYSAC.  Golden Boy has now made all requested disclosures to the NYSAC.

Although innocent, these errors were not consistent with or reflective of Golden Boy’s commitment to fairness, honesty and transparency in the sport of boxing.  New York counsel for Golden Boy has already spoken to representatives of the NYSAC this morning, and has apologized for Golden Boy’s mistakes.

At the outset, before explaining what transpired, it is important to dispel some false statements made by certain reporters concerning the suspension.

1.            THE NYSAC’S SUSPENSION NOTICE DOES NOT ALLEGE OR SUGGEST ANY FINANCIAL MISCONDUCT ON THE PART OF GOLDEN BOY.

2.            THE NYSAC’S SUSPENSION NOTICE DOES NOT ALLEGE OR SUGGEST THAT THE SUSPENSION IN ANY WAY RELATES TO THE LICENSE FEES PAID BY HBO FOR THE TWO TELEVISED BOUTS ON MAY 15, 2010.  IN FACT, GOLDEN BOY DISCLOSED ITS CONTRACTS WITH HBO AND DIBELLA ENTERTAINMENT TO THE COMMISSION ON MAY 19, 2010 – JUST 4 DAYS AFTER THE MAY 15 EVENT.

3.            DIBELLA ENTERTAINMENT HAS ALREADY INVESTIGATED THE LICENSE FEE “ISSUE,” AND INFORMED GOLDEN BOY AND COUNSEL FOR MR. MALINAGGI THAT IT DOES NOT BELIEVE THAT THERE WERE ANY IRREGULARITIES.

4.            NYSAC’S SUSPENSION NOTICE DOES NOT ALLEGE OR SUGGEST THAT GOLDEN BOY FAILED TO PROVIDE REQUIRED ALI ACT DISCLOSURES TO FIGHTERS ON THE MAY 15, 2010 CARD.  TO THE CONTRARY, ALL SUCH DISCLOSURES WERE PROVIDED.

5.            THE NYSAC SUSPENDED GOLDEN BOY WITHOUT FIRST GRANTING IT A HEARING OR A WARNING.  HOWEVER, THE NYSAC WAS NOT IN ANY WAY OBLIGATED TO PROVIDE SUCH A HEARING OR WARNING.

The true facts are as follows:

1.            Following the May 15, 2010 event, a Golden Boy employee apparently mistakenly informed the NYSAC that Golden Boy did not have any written agreements with the fighters other than the bout agreements for the bouts that took place on May 15.  In fact, Golden Boy had written agreements with some of the fighters on the May 15 card.  This was an innocent error made by someone who should not have made the representation without taking steps to ensure its accuracy.

2.            On May 19, 2010, the NYSAC requested both the HBO and DiBella Agreements, as well as any written agreements between Golden Boy and the fighters on the May 15 card.  As noted, Golden Boy immediately produced the HBO and DiBella Agreements.  The GBP employee normally in charge of dealing with Commission matters, left for his honeymoon immediately following the May 15 event and was unable to be contacted, however, the person responding to the request erroneously questioned the NYSAC’s authority to request copies of Golden Boy’s promotional contracts, asked for the basis for the requests, and did not send those contracts.  This was clear error on the part of the Golden Boy, as under all circumstances, the contracts should have been sent to the ABC.

3.            Unfortunately, and despite other requests by the Commission, Golden Boy’s response was inexcusably delayed.

4.            On July 1, 2010, Golden Boy contacted the Commission by sending it an email which stated that the contracts did not have to be disclosed to the NYSAC because they would not be held confidential.  According to counsel for the Commission, this conclusion as to the confidentiality of the requested disclosures issue was erroneous.  In any event, Golden Boy erred in not immediately sending the contracts to the ABC at this point in time.

5.            On July 6, 2010, the NYSAC, as it had the absolute right to do under its Rules, suspended Golden Boy without a hearing.  At that point, Golden Boy immediately sent the requested contracts to the ABC.  Today, upon the representation of counsel for the Commission that the requested contracts were not subject to public disclosure, Golden Boy sent all of the requested contracts to the NYSAC.

I don’t think this will have much impact on Golden Boy given their current crop of fighters and promotional contracts, but it does look bad for the company that has tried to differentiate itself from the usual murky business of boxing promotion. However, compared to some of the shady dealings people like Don King have engaged in, it’s small fry and Golden Boy will continue to be regarded as the cleaner face of the boxing business.

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Famed boxing trainer Freddie Roach was more than impressed with UFC’s welter weight champion George St Pierre stating that the Canadian picked up everything he taught him during his time at the Wild Card gym. “[George] is like a sponge,’ said Roach. “He took in what I taught him and really practiced. He would come back the next day and know the move, I’d say ‘You went home and practiced that move all night long’ and he would just smile at me.”

On a personal note, St Pierre trained at my Jiu Jitsu academy when he was out here a couple of weeks ago – unfortunately while I was sick and in bed. From all the reports from my gym, he was an incredibly humble guy and a pleasure to train with. I’m hoping he will return and I get a chance to meet him, and I promise an interview if he has the time.

Check out the interview with Fight Hub TV here: