Canelo-Khan: Speed kills, but brute force the difference

The fight the boxing world wants to see is Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez against Gennady Golovkin.

It's the only realistic 'super fight' boxing has left, despite the heavyweight scene currently seeing a resurgence.

The only problem is, once again, politics and promoters get in the way.

Last week Golovkin fought Dominic Wade, and annihilated him, as everyone expected.

Canelo will fight Amir Khan this Sunday.

When Golovkin vanquished David Lemieux in October last year, most thought GGG would next fight the winner of Cotto-Canelo.

But here we are, and no progress has been made.

Canelo is the heir apparent, destined to take over the throne of Boxing's King.

It's hard to believe he is still only 25-years-old.

Already he's taken on Floyd Mayweather, Miguel Cotto, Shane Mosley and co.

He should be fighting Golovkin.

In the fight game matchups are made using the risk/reward formula, and Khan looks like a good fight for Canelo with this in mind.

Khan is a financial draw. He's built his name as an exciting fighter and has a diverse fan base from both Britain and parts of Asia, given his heritage.

But, his best work has been done as a Lightweight and Light Welterweight. It was only in December 2014 that he stepped up to the Welterweight limit. Now he steps up almost three divisions to take on Canelo.

On the face of it, Khan seems like a safe bet for Canelo. He's a name fighter, with a suspect chin, not known for his knockout power and someone fighting way out of his weight class.

But Khan's best asset is speed and it's the very asset that has shown to be Canelo's Achilles heel.

We saw Canelo exposed somewhat in the Floyd Mayweather fight, with the Mexican unable to deal with Mayweather’s hand speed and movement. He struggled to close the distance and looked sluggish, without throwing anything of note.

Even most recently against Miguel Cotto, the Puerto Rican won the early rounds using his jab and speed to fight on the outside. It wasn't until Cotto tired did the fight come back to the Mexican.

There’s a multimillion dollar carrot dangling for Canelo after this fight, with pressure to make a Golovkin fight mounting, but he risks that substantial pay day against Amir Khan.

The fact Khan is fighting at Middleweight for the 160 pound title* is ludicrous.

The fight itself will be fought at an agreed weight of 155 pounds, given Canelo's ( and Miguel Cotto's) appetite for not fighting at Middleweight, despite being a Middleweight World Champion.

Canelo has always been marked as an elite fighter, with the potential to go to the next level. We've all been waiting for him to assume the mantle and it seems like he's finally comfortable wearing it.

He gave us some doubts in his performance against Mayweather, but to be fair - he was only 23 at the time.

Canelo showed he had matured is his fight with Cotto and had he pressed a bit more, he could have got Cotto out of there earlier than a decision victory.

Khan’s only hope of winning would have to be a decision victory and I expect him to fight on the outside, score and then stay out of range. If he gets caught on the inside, and Canelo lands, it could be a very short night.

The Khan fight will do reasonable business. But it's not the fight boxing fans want to see.

It's time boxing learnt that if you don't give fans what they want, they'll go somewhere where they can get it. Namely, the UFC.

I expect Canelo to win on Sunday, but should he come unstuck, plans to tackle Golovkin will take a massive nose dive.

Not good news for Canelo or the sport of Boxing.

ADAM SANTAROSSA

Leicester helps us love again

There's no greater story in sport than that of Leicester City. 

A team that should have been relegated last season, but now lifts the Premier League.

A team that no one believed in, even when they led the league at Christmas or with just a handful of games to go.


It couldn't happen. Surely, reality would kick in soon. But the reality is- Leicester are champions!

I've watched every minute of their title bid since January, my father and I staying up through the early hours of the morning in Australia, cheering them on.

Now, that might sound strange given I'm a 29-year old man, but it's something I haven't been able to do for a while.

It's only a short term arrangement, and there probably won't be another season where we watch the important moments together. But it was a cool thing to experience together, a reminder of years gone by.

Now, usually I despise those who jump on the bandwagon of teams that become successful, such as Chelsea and Manchester City, but this was different.

We still have our own teams that we support, but you couldn’t help but cheer Leicester on.

Leicester has shown that hard work, unity and belief can prevail over millions.

It’s a lesson football badly needed.

It gives belief to supporters like me that maybe my teams can one day be successful again.

I support AC Milan and Leeds United. Both were once great, now they are a shell of their former selves.

Big spending has seen these two clubs plummet.

AC Milan were the kings of Europe. When I was young and first handed a Milan kit on a family holiday in Italy, their side was star studded. Van Basten, Gullit, Rijkaard, Baresi were just some of the names.

Through the 90’s they were formidable, winning the European Cup multiple times. In 1994 they beat Barcelona 4-0, in 2003 they beat Juventus on penalties. In 2005 they fell to Liverpool after leading 3-0, but got redemption in 2007 against the English side.

Maldini, Weah, Baggio, Boban, Pirlo, Crespo, Ibrahimovic, Ronaldinho, Robinho, Shevchenko, Seedorf, Vieri – it makes good reading.

From there, it’s been a steady decline. They haven’t featured in the Champions League for the past two campaigns and wont again next year.

In 2015 they reported a loss of 91.4 million euro for the previous financial year, in a season that saw the club finish 10th. 

My other side is Leeds United. It’s the side my father supported and I declared loyalty to at a young age, helped by the fact that they had a heavy Australian contingent, including Harry Kewell and Mark Viduka.

In 2001 Leeds were in the semi-finals of the Champions League. They saw off Barcelona, AC Milan (awkward), Real Madrid, Lazio and Deportivo on the way. 

Three years later they’d be relegated from the Premier League, ironically, Leicester City were one of the teams joining them in going down. 

Two years after that, Leeds would be sent down a further tier to League One, after losing 10 points for going into administration.

It would take them three seasons to climb back up to The Championship, where they’ve remained ever since.

The club no longer owns its stadium, Elland Road, its training base, or its Academy. At one point it was haemorrhaging $100,000 a week.

The debts have diminished in size year on year, but so too has the activity in the transfer market. 

The best players are routinely sold, the transfer fee generally not used to find a replacement either.

But what will warm the hearts is the fact Leicester City were in a similar position only a few seasons ago.

The club reported $52.5 million losses for the three seasons before they rejoined the Premier League in 2014.

Chairman Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha wrote off the clubs debts of $103 million, swapping the huge liabilities for shares in the club.

They were debt-free for the first time in two decades, and set about rebuilding the club with smart investment.

They found Jamie Vardy in non-league football for $1 million. Ngolo Kante was more extravagant, costing $4.6 million.

Riyad Mahrez cost just $400,000 and last week was crowned the Premier League’s Player of the Season.

In total Leicester spent just shy of $50 million this season, whilst Manchester United spent three times as much. Juan Mata, a substitute in Sunday's clash between the two sides, cost more than Leicester’s squad combined.

Leicester’s financial return and unbelievable success gives hope for supporters like me. Our club may rise again.

The Foxes have inspired us all and there are feel good stories everywhere you look. From Vardy to Ranieri to those fans who never would have ever dreamed of this day.

Supporters have been used to going into Premier League seasons, hoping for survival, a mid table finish or perhaps a decent cup run. 

Now fans can dream about taking it to the best, and perhaps ‘doing a Leicester’.

Leicester City has shown money isn’t everything.

Desire, commitment, unity, togetherness – are items you cannot buy.

Thank you Leicester.

You’ve shown why football is the greatest sport in the world.

We can all believe again.

ADAM SANTAROSSA

C’mon Laurie! Give us half a chance

If Trent Hodkinson and his Newcastle Knights we’re a racehorse, chances are someone would be calling for the curtain right about now.

Instead, New South Wales State of Origin coach Laurie Daley wants to give Hodkinson the No.7 jersey for Game One.

Hodkinson was underwhelming last season in Origin and he hasn’t had a good start to life in Newcastle in 2016, where he’s leading around one of the worst teams in the National Rugby League.

Daley says he wants to stick true and remain loyal, instead of looking at the other halves showing good form in the lead up.

There’s a host of halves showing their worth, led by Raiders pair Aidan Sezer and Blake Austin.

   

Sezer looks reinvigorated since going to the Canberra Raiders. He seems to have a license to run the football and he’s picking his moments well.

He was stilted in a team where everything was on his young shoulders at the Gold Coast. Now he has freedom and he can look to make an impact.

His halves partner Blake Austin was the most in-form player last season. He’s continued in the same vein in 2016. He was a standout in City-Country last year, has utility value, and yet didn’t even come close to a look in for Origin.

Adam Reynolds has been solid, despite some injuries, and his kicking game remains the best in the NRL and a significant asset to his South Sydney side.

That same asset is crucial to New South Wales chances, given the Blues have been horrendous in this area previously. The Blues last tackle options through Pearce and Hodkinson were simply not good enough. Kick after kick went down the Maroons throats, putting the Blues defence straight back under the pump.

Daley says he wants to remain loyal to those who’ve worn the jersey previously.

But despite winning the 2014 series, he didn’t remain loyal to the Blues halves pairing Josh Reynolds and Trent Hodkinson last season.

Daley also says he will only pick players in their true position.

This is despite picking Mitchell Pearce at Five-Eighth for last year’s series, a position he’d never played prior.

Hodkinson is badly out of form, and the stats tell the story.

Adam Reynolds is averaging 49.33 running metres for 2016, Sezer has 43.40 and Austin 35.33, whilst Hodkinson can manage just 25.12 – the worst in the NRL.

Hodkinson’s potential halves partner Mitchell Pearce has only just returned from a lengthy suspension for disciplinary problems.

You could use this weekend’s City-Country fixture as a platform to run the rule over halves contenders, only that representative fixture gets more ludicrous every year.

Sezer and James Maloney will be the only contenders to line up in Tamworth on Sunday, with their halves partners being Chad Townsend and Jack Bird. ( Yes, Jack Bird in the No.7)

Queensland on the other hand can take their pick of halves options. Johnathan Thurston, Cooper Cronk, Daly Cherry-Evans, Anthony Milford (suspended), Ben Hunt and Michael Morgan are just a few of their options.

You get the sense that Daley will continue making the same mistakes and go with Mitchell Pearce.

For mine, Pearce’s card are marked for Origin, he’s had enough chances. He goes missing in big moments and it’s clear he cannot handle the occasion, and the pressure placed upon him, fair or not.

    

With the game on the line, Queensland is like a well-oiled machine, with their chiefs calling the shots. You saw it with Cooper Cronk’s field goal in Game One last season. You could see it happening, but you just couldn’t do anything about it.

For New South Wales, their halves go missing when the pressure starts to mount. They lack direction and composure, with Paul Gallen seemingly always finding himself at first receiver in key moments.

I’d be picking Adam Reynolds and Blake Austin.

Both are in decent form and both offer something different. Austin can run the football, Reynolds can organise and kick well. He’s also a high percentage goal kicker, which is another area that’s let NSW down in the past.

Both have handled the spotlight well enough so far. Austin has emerged from a fringe first grader to a bona fide star, whilst Reynolds has come from the NSW Cup to a Premiership with South Sydney.

It's probably a year early for Sezer, but having worked with him at the Titans, I don't think he'd be overawed by the occasions like many before him.  

Queensland won’t blink twice if the names read out are the same as 2015 – Trent Hodkinson and Mitchell Pearce.

C’mon Laurie, let’s try something different.

Give us half a chance!

ADAM SANTAROSSA