Calzaghe vs Sven Ottke?

[lfcchris]

it deffo looks like it is his next fight, in Denmark.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/boxing/6710903.stm

[Doc_Piptorious]

because warren is a ****** should not take away from calzaghes achievements - it seems that every ****er on here hates calzaghe, granted im welsh but above that im a boxing fan and have a decent knowledge of the sport, and j.c has done bloody well...he fights and beats whoever is put in front of him....as for the ottke fight, it is nothing more than a rumour at this stage yet still he gets slated.
And trust me when i say Calzaghe would easily stop jermaine taylor, and if anyone fancies those odds im willing to wager £500.00 on exactly that result. (provided it happens within the next 12 months or else age may be a deciding factor, even though i doubt it).

I don't think anyone is debating Calzaghe's ability or how he can fight when he is up against someone that he deems a threat. Warren is not helping Calzaghe by feeding him lesser fighters, Calzaghe has a habit of fighting down to his opponent's level, and this makes him seem worse than his ability suggests. Calzaghe has a mouth and can tell Warren that he wants to fight Fighter X or Fighter Y or he could do what Hatton did, and if so, there would be no sortage of promoters looking to sign him up.


I would prefer to see Calzaghe calling fighters out and forcing them to appear like the are backing down and avoiding him, because I think a champ should appear to want to take on the best out there and shame them into either fighting or shutting up, but with Calzaghe, or at least with Warren as his mouthpiece, we keep hearing that the huge fight is coming up next, and then we get a Manfredo put forward as a genuine threat. Hard for people not to be sceptical when this happens over and over with Warren's fighters.

If the Kessler talk is genuine, and the contracts get signed, and not a case of both sides saying the other pulled out, then he will be walking the walk as well as talking the talk.

[Red Wino]

Yeah but Dunne has improved more as a pro than Walstad has.

That's an understatement

[kurtangle01]

Respect to Joe. I suppose he wants to go into the lions den and beat Kessler, and I'm sure he will.

[Doc_Piptorious]

Respect to Joe. I suppose he wants to go into the lions den and beat Kessler, and I'm sure he will.

If both are 100%, then Calzaghe will be the favourite, no doubt on that.

If it comes down to grit and a grind out a result type fight, then I would favour Kessler.

[bazza76]

I thought Calzaghe was one of the best at grinding out wins.

[Howard_lfc]

I thought Calzaghe was one of the best at grinding out wins.

I've seen virtually nothing of Kessler so I'll take a back seat on this one.

[bazza76]

I've seen virtually nothing of Kessler so I'll take a back seat on this one.

same as me mate

[kurtangle01]

I've seen virtually nothing of Kessler so I'll take a back seat on this one.

I have seen nothing of Kessler but from what I've heard he's very strong and aggressive. He apparently is very powerful and when you see the size of him that's not hard to believe.

He's the WBA and WBC champion and you don't get that far by being a bum. This is a huge risk for Joe but it's one worth taking. If he can beat Kessler for those 2 belts in front of a partisan crowd he'll have nothing left to prove IMHO.

[Doc_Piptorious]

I thought Calzaghe was one of the best at grinding out wins.

Would disagree with that. The only time he grinds out results is when he lets himself come down to the level of some of the lesser fighters he has met, ones he had the ability to destroy inside the distance.

[Doc_Piptorious]

I've seen virtually nothing of Kessler so I'll take a back seat on this one.

Kessler is like a throwback in many ways. Technically good, strong defence, good chin, very strong in the body and is imposing. Has a good punch with either hand, and can box or brawl. The guy brings a lot of heart to the ring and has really good balance.

He reminds me of the type of fighter that you would have seen in showreels from the 1940's. Tough, no bull****, and doesn't back down. Has a very European style of fighting.


Him and Calzaghe would be a world class fight, the two best fighters in that weight division meeting.

Brawling would not beat him, the way to beat him, imho, is to box him at a high tempo for the first four to six rounds, build up the points so he knows he is behind, then let him come to you and take him on the counter. He can be frustrated by cagey play, but that would not work early doors when he is fresh. Of course that is easier said than done againt a fighter of his calibre, as that gameplan would have to be brought to play with a near perfect display of boxing, and unlike Lacy who had no back up plan, Kessler would. Calzaghe has the speed to play it that way, and then the power to wear him down on the counter.

I would expect Kessler to try to take the centre of the ring straight away and keep moving forward, using his body strength and sapping shots, to the ribs in particular, to wear Calzaghe down. Another shot that Kessler likes to throw, and I do not see many fighters doing it, is to land above the top of the hip bone, or as close as you can, depending on how high the shorts are worn. That shot takes away the mobility of a fighter, and makes winding up for a punch painful to say the least.

[spud_gun]

The Americans view of Calzaghie.

Taken from ESPN they rate him as the top Super middleweight in the world

'A hand injury suffered in his wipeout of Peter Manfredo will prevent a summer fight, but the fall opponent is up in the air for the champ. Promoter Frank Warren has been talking to Lou DiBella, promoter of middleweight champ Jermain Taylor, about a showdown. But the match we all want to see first is against Mikkel Kessler, a unified titlist and the only truly meaningful fight in the division. On top of that, a Calzaghe-Kessler fight would probably be a barnburner. Just do boxing fans around the world a favor and make the fight.'

and their view of Kessler who they rate as second in the super middleweight division

'With all due respect to Kessler promoter Mogens Palle, he's got to realize that any deal to fight Calzaghe won't be a 50-50 split of revenue. Calzaghe is the bigger name, bigger attraction and can generate a lot more television revenue. Palle's notion that Kessler's two alphabet belts mean more than Calzaghe's one is misguided. Until there is some real compromise on both of those issues by the two sides, the dream fight will remain only on our wish list.'

[Cantankerous]

Well, it's been settled -

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/boxing/6280484.stm

How do you think it'll go?

[Red Chilli]

Well, it's been settled -

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/boxing/6280484.stm

How do you think it'll go?

Difficult to go against Calzaghe

[calvoboy]

I would prefer to see Calzaghe calling fighters out and forcing them to appear like the are backing down and avoiding him, because I think a champ should appear to want to take on the best out there and shame them into either fighting or shutting up.

Surely it is for the challenger to come out with this sort of stuff though, while the champ reigns supreme? e.g Froch calling out Calzaghe, and to a lesser extent, Hatton calling out Mayweather?

Finally no-one can complain anyway, and Calzaghe-Kessler is happening. Personally I reckon Calzaghe will stop him in style after 7-8 rounds.