Danny Green is back where it all began

As Danny Green prepares to step into the ring with Krysztof Wlodarczyk on Wednesday night, it presents a chance for the Australian to finally capture a title which has long eluded him.

The WBC title is one that has eluded Green his entire career. Sure he tasted the WBC interim title, but that’s like saying you got with Danni Minogue instead of Kylie. “The Green belt” as the WBC title is affectionately known, is seen by many as the true measure of a fighter given the titles history and the distinction in which it is held. It’s a title which was once ripped from his grasp just as the champagne was ready to flow, in an event that kick started a public love affair with the Green Machine.

In August of 2003, Danny Green was fighting for his first World title, against a highly credentialed European opponent, Markus Beyer for the WBC Super Middleweight Title, in just his seventeenth professional fight.

After dropping the champion in round one and two, and clearly winning rounds three and four, Green was disqualified in round five, for what the referee saw as an intentional head butt. Some called it justice, some controversy and corruption, but nonetheless the country fell in love with the Green Machine, and his chase for that green belt.

It was a time when Green was hungry, literally. It was a time when he lived beside a train line at Bankstown and struggled to make ends meet.

Fast forward to 2011, and a lot has changed.

Green no longer lives beside the train line at Bankstown, he has swapped those digs for a plush base at The Star Casino, as well as a swank residence in Perth, and the millions of dollars that his fights generate ensure he no longer struggles to make ends meet.

Whilst Green still commands a legion of fans, it would be fair to say that his public following has diminished. Many were stung by the farce that was his clash with Paul “Hurricane” Briggs, as well as a continued procession of “easy” fights after his destruction of Roy Jones.

Headlines of cage fights with UFC Champion, Brock Lesnar, chasing a fight with Bernard Hopkins, and having the ability to knock heavyweights senseless, were met with opponents that were largely overmatched, inactive or within their best interests financially to come in under the Cruiserweight limit.

But whilst so much has changed, come Wednesday night, two things remain.

Danny Green is hungry again...and he is still chasing that green belt.

Danny Green enters the ring on Wednesday night a man with a point to prove. In his last fight with Antonio Tarver he was stopped for the first time ever in his career, with his trainer Angelo Hyder having to throw in the towel at the conclusion of the ninth round. The fight not only stripped Green of the distinction of never losing by knockout, but also leaving was the IBO Cruiserweight Title.

Following the fight there was a plethora of names telling Green that he was washed up and that recent fights against lacklustre opponents had made him vulnerable when stepping it up against marquee names like Tarver.

Green following his knockout loss to Tarver

                                                                                   

Following the defeat, Green simply could have retired and settled in with his young children and wife Nina and continued promoting, something he has dabbled in the last twelve months. Or better still taken some easy fights and furthered his retirement nest egg.

He doesn’t need the money, and as a former multiple time world champion, his career will sit alongside some of the greats of Australian boxing.

The easy option for Danny Green would have been to walk away. But Danny Green has never done things the easy way.

Instead he will line up against the WBC Cruiserweight World Champion, Krzysztof Wlodarczyk, a man who posesses 45 career wins, with only two defeats and a very impressive resume.

Danny Green is not going to die wondering. He will throw everything but the kitchen sink at Wlodarczyk. In his 42 wins, Wlodarczyk has knocked out his opponent on 32 occasions. For Green, he was 31 wins for 27 knockouts. So expect some fireworks.

Going into the fight there are many questions that remain unanswered. Questions such as those surrounding the reports of Wlodarczyk allegedly attempting suicide following a row with his wife. Reports state Wlodarczyk was rushed to hospital and placed in a coma while he had his stomach pumped. Team Wlodarczyk has been rather coy in attempting to dispel the rumours since arriving in the country.

There are questions also around the ability of Danny Green. Is he washed up? Has age finally caught up to him? Or was it simply an off night?

People continue to question the reasons why Green continues to fight as a Cruiserweight. Prior to the Tarver fight, Green was seen as a Cruiserweight Champion, but had continually fought at a catch weight closer to the Light Heavyweight division.

Against Tarver, Green weighed in as a true cruiserweight, and the heaviest he had ever fought in his career. This takes some getting used to, and maybe contributed to his sluggishness in the ring.

There is no denying he cut a strong and imposing figure, which pales in comparison to the weight drained fighter he was at Super Middleweight.

Green and his trainer, Angelo Hyder would have gone away and made some changes. The biggest change that Green has made so far in preparation for this fight is that all the talk and all the headlines are strangely absent.

The build-up to the fight has been quite soft. There have been no outlandish statements and no attention seeking.

Danny Green will do his talking in the ring on Wednesday night.

Following his defeat to Tarver many called Green washed up, and no longer world title calibre. I remember similar calls following his one sided defeat at the hands of Anthony Mundine.

Green came back bigger and better, and is capable of doing it again here.

Win or lose, this could be the last time Danny Green ever steps foot inside the ring. He has always worn his heart on his sleeve, and we have all ridden the rollercoaster with him.

Come Wednesday night, Danny Green finds himself in a familiar setting. He enters the ring just like that fateful day in Germany.

He is hungry, He has a point to prove, and he is chasing that elusive WBC title.

Count him out at your own peril.



Boxing's biggest enemy is now itself



Yesterday the UFC strode onto network TV for the first time, and saw over 150 million people tune into the event worldwide, giving the organization’s push into the mainstream a massive shot in the arm.

A few short hours later, that push got stronger, as the same number of people witnessed the sport of boxing give itself yet another low blow, and gave those 150 million people a reason to give up on the sport for good.

It was a daylight robbery that Jesse James would have been proud of.

As hard as it is to believe that Juan Manuel Marquez wasn’t unanimously awarded the decision by the judges, what is even harder to believe is that not a single judge ruled in his favour.

It’s often said that watching a fight at ringside and at home, shows two different fights, but that argument doesn’t stick here.

Most commentators at ringside had Marquez ahead, as did myself, most of those that frequent social networking sites and certainly by the resounding boo’s that were heard around the MGM Grand Garden Arena when the decision was announced, plenty of the people in the stands certainly had him the winner.

The biggest indication though was the sight of Pacquiao walking despondently to his corner upon hearing the final bell, whilst Marquez celebrated jubilantly.

Even betting organization Sportingbet decided to refund those who bet on Marquez, given their disbelief at the decision.

The sad thing is that this is not the first time it has happened in the sport, and it sure as hell won’t be the last.

Questions need to be asked.

Greed and corruption continues to kill the sport, and fans continue to turn away.

For so long fans simply put up with it, shrugged their shoulders and said “That’s Boxing”. But that was before the emergence of an alternative.

The biggest problem with Boxing is that the biggest names are held accountable to no one, and are available to the highest bidder. They have the ability to choose who they fight, when they fight and in some cases who is judging.

It is not an uncommon occurrence for a fighter to protest over the selection of a judge and have a more favourable one put in their place, as the governing bodies do not want to jeopardise their slice of the fighter’s salary they receive through sanctioning fees, and with the likes of Mayweather and Pacquiao...that’s big money.

The fighters have all the control, and their promotional companies have just as much sway.

The big promotional companies wheel and deal, and have enough money and enough pull to keep certain fighters down and allow certain fighters to become protected species.

Not for a second am I saying that corruption was involved in yesterday’s decision, but history has shown a long list of occasions when it has reared its ugly head in Boxing.

The biggest example that Australian fans will be familiar with is the controversial decision in the first Jeff Fenech- Azumah Nelson fight. Fenech himself has said in interviews when questioned on the decision- “Well, Nelson was a Don King fighter, on a Don King promotion”.

Referees and Judges have often found themselves being wined and dined; received significant hotel upgrades and numerous other “sweeteners” by promoters to ensure their fighters get the ample consideration when tallying the numbers at the end of a fight.

Pacquiao earnt a cool $22 million dollars for the fight, whilst Marquez walked away with $5 million.

The success that Pacquiao has, extensively lines the pockets of many, and with a $100 Million dollar fight with Floyd Mayweather on the radar, you can certainly see why I am asking the question...and I am not the only one.

A fourth fight between Pacquiao and Marquez will see significant increases to both of those figures, but the question has to be asked, whether Juan Manuel Marquez wants to go around again, after he has been given the rough end of the stick on three occasions now.

The fight showed that Marquez has a hell of a lot of fight left in him, and that Manny Pacquiao is very beatable.

Whilst there are many that say Pacquiao is the pound for pound king and some even say he should be called the greatest of all time, there are as many who see him as simply overhyped.

Wins over Top Rank stablemates Antonio Margarito, Miguel Cotto and Joshua Clottey, have been coupled with victories over Ricky Hatton, Oscar De La Hoya and Shane Mosley, all of which who had been beaten by Floyd “Money” Mayweather previously before stepping into the ring with the Pacman.

Whilst Pacquiao has managed two highly controversial wins over Marquez, and another highly controversial draw.

Floyd Mayweather defeated Marquez so convincingly in 2009, that none of the judges’ scorecards even had Marquez winning a round.

 One positive to come out of the decision is that a Pacquiao victory may finally push the “super fight” with Mayweather closer to reality. Mayweather may now see some significant chinks in the Pacquiao armour, and move in to not only cash in significantly but permanently erase any conjecture over who is the best in the world.

A Pacquiao loss to Marquez would have certainly dented the box office appeal in the fight, as well as made negotiations in relation to a 50-50 split of revenue difficult, considering Pacquiao would have then been coming of a loss.

But while the circus that is boxing moves onto the next city, the question remains whether the hardcore fans will continue to walk through the turnstiles.

Pay per view sales are down, and numerous fight cards recently in Las Vegas have seen embarrassingly poor ticket sales.

On the other hand, the UFC continues to grow, with record numbers in almost every business area. They have a highly lucrative network television deal, and continue to expand to more and more countries all over the globe.

Boxing’s two biggest drawcards have left Boxing with two bitter blows in a matter of months. First, it was the controversial end to the Mayweather- Ortiz fight, and now this.

I wrote last year that the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight is the one that could save boxing.

Now, it may simply be too late.