In a second successive upset at the Revel Resort, Atlantic City Darren Barker (26-1, 16) claimed a close split decision to take the IBF Middleweight title from Australian Daniel Geale (29-2, 15) in an enthralling and very difficult to score 12 round contest.
The fight started at an amazing pace with both men standing close and trading attacks, Geale, known for his work rate appeared to be his usual busy self but Barker seemed to be just as confident in his stamina and matched Geale almost punch for punch in a great round. The round really could have gone either way and it was one of a number of swing rounds the fight saw as the men refused to let the other really take any advantage, however Barker did land a low one on the bell to end round 2.
The first clear round was the third a round won by Barker thanks to his excellent crisp shots that seemed to rattle Geale at several points. The Aussie tried to fight back but for the first time he was unable to really answer the firepower of the Englishman.
Although Barker had claimed the third Geale appeared to bounce back excellently and took the fourth round as he stepped up his work rate and tried to show Barker that HE was the champion and he wouldn't give up his title with out a fight. It was by the end of this round that both guys were showing signs of having been in a fight with their left eyes reddening from the shots they had each landed. The eyes only got worse through round 5 as they again fought a very tight round that saw Geale landing a low blow that appeared to be a revenge shot for the one Barker hand landed on him
If round 3 was the first clear round then round 6 was the clearest round as Geale dropped Barker hard from a body shot that he only just managed to get up from. The shot, an absolute beauty, would have finished off most men but Barker found a way to will himself to his feet and despite taking a shellacking for a good portion of the round he managed to turn things around late to prove there was still plenty of fight in him.
Following the body shot in the sixth Geale appeared to target the mid section again in round 7 though it was Barker who landed the notable shots and by the end of it Geale's trademark work rate appeared to have deserted with Barker actually having the much better round of the two fighters
The work rate of Geale did return in roudn 8 though only in the first minute or so before Barker came back and possibly stole the round in another of the fights many swing rounds. Unfortunately for Barker it seemed like round 9 was a solid Gale round although Barker did himself land some solid shots it was hard to award him the round as he looked sluggish and tired for the first time.
Barker seemed to bounce back well in round 10 as Geale began to look tired and although neither man appeared able to really hurt the other neither man seemed to be able to really great a gap in the scoring due to close nature of the rounds and the fact that every time one guy won one cleanly the other seemed to take the next.
Going in to the championship rounds it was really anyone's fight due to the close nature of so many rounds. Unfortunately for Geale however he was looking worse for wear not just facially with his lip being swollen but also physically with his work rate dropping dramatically. Geale tried to force himself to battle hard against Barker in the later rounds but amazing Barker fought back even hard and appeared to take round 11.
Having lost the 11 Geale managed to fight back harder in the 12 and probably just took that to even out the score from the previous round.
With so many tight rounds any result was fair and whilst I had the bout a victory to the champion (115-112) the judges felt that Barker had done enough to deserve a split decision with scores of 114-113 each way and an oddly wide card of 116-111 to Barker. I understand there were plenty of swing rounds but 116-111 either way seems unfair to the loser of a great fight.
If anything has come from this, one of the best fights of the year, it's that a rematch should take place as it would be a bit hit with the fans and the fighters as well as HBO
Showing posts with label Daniel Geale. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Daniel Geale. Show all posts
Saturday, 17 August 2013
Wednesday, 30 January 2013
Daniel Geale v Anthony Mundine II
After the frankly laughable co-main event between Kimbo Slice and Shane Tilyard (trust me, watch it just two laugh at the fight) Australian boxing fans finally got a real fight as IBF Middleweight champion Daniel "The Real Deal" Geale (29-1, 15) defended his world title with a dominant victory over compatriot Anthony "The Man" Mundine (44-5, 26) in a long awaited rematch.
The opening round started slowly with the first minute or so spent feeling each other out before Geale started to step on the gas and just do enough to out work and out land his challenger. The openin round was arguably the closest in the fight as Geale started to go through the gears and assert himself with his speed, work rate and skill making Mundine look like an old clumsy man. Geale was managing to get in and out with his blows whilst making Mundine miss time and time again. In fact for much of the fight Mundine's only successes came in single jabs that Geale walked through.
By the mid point of the fight it was easy to see how Geale could have been 6-0, he was just simply doing everything to win the rounds. If wasn't 6-0 to Geale it was certainly no worse than 5-1 to the champion.
Mundine managed to fight back well in the second half of the fight arguably claiming round 7 and 8 which were again closer rounds as Mundine was forced to change his game plan as desperation started to set in. Despite being competitive in those rounds it was merely that Mundine was competitive enough to make the rounds close enough to give him a share as opposed to winning the rounds.
Despite Mundine having a couple of competitive rounds Geale started to step up a gear in the later rounds as he thoroughly dominated the final rounds with Mundine needing a knockout. Whilst the champion twice slipped to the canvas he was never under any serious threat from Mundine who's shots looked weak and were walked through time and time again.
The fight, fought in a competitive spirit, did see a number of fouls, including elbows and use of the head by Mundine which he was warned for though sadly it was Mundines actions after the fight that really left a bad taste as Mundine celebrated as if he'd won. In fact Mundine seemed to suggest that a loss for him would have been a robbery when instead he'd been thoroughly out classed.
Despite what appeared to be a 1-sided contest the score cards took a very long time to get tallied up before finally Geale was announced the winner by unanimous decision by scores of 116-112 (far too close and 117-111 (twice).
For Mundine this is probably the end of the line, though Geale will be waiting for the result of the upcoming Sturm v Soliman fight to find out about his next mandatory defence.
The opening round started slowly with the first minute or so spent feeling each other out before Geale started to step on the gas and just do enough to out work and out land his challenger. The openin round was arguably the closest in the fight as Geale started to go through the gears and assert himself with his speed, work rate and skill making Mundine look like an old clumsy man. Geale was managing to get in and out with his blows whilst making Mundine miss time and time again. In fact for much of the fight Mundine's only successes came in single jabs that Geale walked through.
By the mid point of the fight it was easy to see how Geale could have been 6-0, he was just simply doing everything to win the rounds. If wasn't 6-0 to Geale it was certainly no worse than 5-1 to the champion.
Mundine managed to fight back well in the second half of the fight arguably claiming round 7 and 8 which were again closer rounds as Mundine was forced to change his game plan as desperation started to set in. Despite being competitive in those rounds it was merely that Mundine was competitive enough to make the rounds close enough to give him a share as opposed to winning the rounds.
Despite Mundine having a couple of competitive rounds Geale started to step up a gear in the later rounds as he thoroughly dominated the final rounds with Mundine needing a knockout. Whilst the champion twice slipped to the canvas he was never under any serious threat from Mundine who's shots looked weak and were walked through time and time again.
The fight, fought in a competitive spirit, did see a number of fouls, including elbows and use of the head by Mundine which he was warned for though sadly it was Mundines actions after the fight that really left a bad taste as Mundine celebrated as if he'd won. In fact Mundine seemed to suggest that a loss for him would have been a robbery when instead he'd been thoroughly out classed.
Despite what appeared to be a 1-sided contest the score cards took a very long time to get tallied up before finally Geale was announced the winner by unanimous decision by scores of 116-112 (far too close and 117-111 (twice).
For Mundine this is probably the end of the line, though Geale will be waiting for the result of the upcoming Sturm v Soliman fight to find out about his next mandatory defence.
Saturday, 1 September 2012
Daniel Geale v Felix Sturm
Australian Daniel Geale (28-1,15) first made his name when he traveled to Germany last year and defeated the then IBF Middleweight champion Sebastian Sylvester to claim his first world title as a professional boxer. Amazingly he repeated the act just hours ago as he once again traveled to Germany and dethroned a German champion to claim the WBA "super" title from Felix Sturm (37-3-2, 16).
The fight started excellently with both both men having a solid claim to the opening round as both fighter let their hands go and shared solid offense. It seemed as if Sturm's jab would be the most potent weapon but Geale often matched him solidly in a high octane jab off. The startling thing however was that Geale often found his way around the Sturm jab where he could unleash solid combinations to both the head and body of the champion.
Many of the opening rounds were close as both men took it almost in turns to come at the other. Despite the action being hotly contested the only early damage either man suffered was a small cut around the back of Geale's in ear from what appeared to have been from an accidental clash of heads late in the second round. It was however not the cut that played a big part on the fight but instead the body work of Geale who repeatedly dug into Sturm's body in the early portion of the fight, taking the wind out of the German's sails.
Despite starting well it seemed like the accumulation of the body shots took their toll on Sturm in the middle rounds as the Australian came on strong whilst Sturm seemed very subdued and tired. In many of the middle rounds Sturm looked like a man who was there for the taking and his usually reliable jab was rarely finding the target with any success as Geale managed to slip inside and unleash up close time and time again. By the end of the 7th round Sturm was looking worn out, he had taken barrages of shots from the dogged Aussie who was starting to storm away with the bout.
Having just falling behind Sturm then tried to fight back, his jab started to look busier and more efficient, his usual snap was back and he started to grind out several rounds as Geale himself started to slow due to the hectic pace he had set himself. Several of these rounds were almost impossible to score as each man gave as good as they got and were likely the reason for the varying score cards that we finally got.
Going into the championship rounds it was anyone's guess as to who was in the lead and the fighters knew it as they put it all on the line in both rounds 11 and 12. Whilst the 11th was close both men were starting to look tired, their work, whilst busy was starting to look sloppier and more desperate than it had earlier on and it was fair to say we didn't expect much going into the final round. Instead of the pace slowing even more in the 12th it seemed as if both men had a second wind as they unleashed on each other in a hectic round that saw both men putting it all on the line in arguably the most enjoyable round of the bout. As soon as one man finished his series of punches the other came back with more ferocity, then the first fighter came back as both men tried to stake a claim for the round.
As we came to the final bell, the scores were anyone's guess. There had been enough close rounds to score it any which way, in fact you wouldn't have been shocked had the scored included as many as 3 or 4 tied rounds due to the give and take nature of the bout. Rather ominously however the German's looked worried whilst the Aussie's corner looked optimistic, as if they could feel something in the air as they did when Geale beat Sylvester...
Michael Buffer announced the first card, 116-112-Sturm, we then though Sturm would become the unified Middleweight champion...the the second card came 116-112-Geale, it suddenly dawned on us that we might not actually end up with a unified champion after all. Everyone watching waited with baited breath almost preempting a 114-114 scorecard, then Buffer announced the third scorecard 116-112...he paused...before confirming that it was for Daniel Geale who had managed to claim another Split Decision victory in Germany!
For a non-German based fighter to have won 2 close bouts in Germany in world title fights in the opponents home state is almost unheard of, so for Geale to have managed that in just the last 18 months or so is simply incredible. The doors have really opened for the Aussie who will certainly be watching tonight's bout between Gennady Golovkin and Grzegorz Proksa very closely as well as awaiting the out come of a number of other major Middleweight bouts. For Sturm however the end is nigh, if not already here.
The fight started excellently with both both men having a solid claim to the opening round as both fighter let their hands go and shared solid offense. It seemed as if Sturm's jab would be the most potent weapon but Geale often matched him solidly in a high octane jab off. The startling thing however was that Geale often found his way around the Sturm jab where he could unleash solid combinations to both the head and body of the champion.
Many of the opening rounds were close as both men took it almost in turns to come at the other. Despite the action being hotly contested the only early damage either man suffered was a small cut around the back of Geale's in ear from what appeared to have been from an accidental clash of heads late in the second round. It was however not the cut that played a big part on the fight but instead the body work of Geale who repeatedly dug into Sturm's body in the early portion of the fight, taking the wind out of the German's sails.
Despite starting well it seemed like the accumulation of the body shots took their toll on Sturm in the middle rounds as the Australian came on strong whilst Sturm seemed very subdued and tired. In many of the middle rounds Sturm looked like a man who was there for the taking and his usually reliable jab was rarely finding the target with any success as Geale managed to slip inside and unleash up close time and time again. By the end of the 7th round Sturm was looking worn out, he had taken barrages of shots from the dogged Aussie who was starting to storm away with the bout.
Having just falling behind Sturm then tried to fight back, his jab started to look busier and more efficient, his usual snap was back and he started to grind out several rounds as Geale himself started to slow due to the hectic pace he had set himself. Several of these rounds were almost impossible to score as each man gave as good as they got and were likely the reason for the varying score cards that we finally got.
Going into the championship rounds it was anyone's guess as to who was in the lead and the fighters knew it as they put it all on the line in both rounds 11 and 12. Whilst the 11th was close both men were starting to look tired, their work, whilst busy was starting to look sloppier and more desperate than it had earlier on and it was fair to say we didn't expect much going into the final round. Instead of the pace slowing even more in the 12th it seemed as if both men had a second wind as they unleashed on each other in a hectic round that saw both men putting it all on the line in arguably the most enjoyable round of the bout. As soon as one man finished his series of punches the other came back with more ferocity, then the first fighter came back as both men tried to stake a claim for the round.
As we came to the final bell, the scores were anyone's guess. There had been enough close rounds to score it any which way, in fact you wouldn't have been shocked had the scored included as many as 3 or 4 tied rounds due to the give and take nature of the bout. Rather ominously however the German's looked worried whilst the Aussie's corner looked optimistic, as if they could feel something in the air as they did when Geale beat Sylvester...
Michael Buffer announced the first card, 116-112-Sturm, we then though Sturm would become the unified Middleweight champion...the the second card came 116-112-Geale, it suddenly dawned on us that we might not actually end up with a unified champion after all. Everyone watching waited with baited breath almost preempting a 114-114 scorecard, then Buffer announced the third scorecard 116-112...he paused...before confirming that it was for Daniel Geale who had managed to claim another Split Decision victory in Germany!
For a non-German based fighter to have won 2 close bouts in Germany in world title fights in the opponents home state is almost unheard of, so for Geale to have managed that in just the last 18 months or so is simply incredible. The doors have really opened for the Aussie who will certainly be watching tonight's bout between Gennady Golovkin and Grzegorz Proksa very closely as well as awaiting the out come of a number of other major Middleweight bouts. For Sturm however the end is nigh, if not already here.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)