We can only hope that 2008 will bring us as many major boxing matches as 2007 did. As the year winds down, we can now safely say that this was/is a great year for boxing. With Calzaghe-Kessler, Taylor-Pavlik, and Mosley-Cotto already in the books, among other great fights this year, there is still the much anticipated Hatton-Mayweather to put an exclamation point on the year.

So, what does 2008 have in store. Already we know that we’ll be seeing Roy Jones, Jr. vs. Felix Trinidad, we’ll be seeing Pavlik – Taylor II, Vasquez – Marquez III, Klitschko – Ibragimov, Peter – Maskaev, and hopefully many more big fights.

Right now, the most needed fights to be made are Calzaghe vs. Hopkins, and Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Marquez. Miguel Cotto vs. the winner of Hatton-Mayweather is also nice, but if that winner is Hatton, expect Oscar De La Hoya to swoop in and take a Hatton fight.

So where are we now with all of these fights…

• Manny Pacquiao claims to be interested in fighting Juan Manuel Marquez in a much needed rematch of their 2003 draw, but is claiming that he needs the lion’s share of the money for the fight to happen. If Pacquiao doesn’t make this fight happen, then it will be clear as day that he wants no part of Marquez, and has no interest in fighting real fights. He has not been in the ring with a single belt on the line in four years, and seems to be only interested in making money.Taking a look around all the other weight classes, Pacquiao now stands alone as the only top fighter not trying to make a mega fight. Maybe he’ll just move up to lightweight and get blasted by Juan Diaz and the world can collectively take the Pacquiao hog out of it’s mouth. With two good wins in his entire career, Pacquiao needs to step up and do something to prove he’s who he thinks he is.
• Miguel Cotto has said that a fight with Antonio Margarito is possible, after saying it wasn’t just days ago. Cotto is hoping to fight three times in 2008, but that will be determined by the available opponents.
• Joe Calzaghe has stepped up the talk with Bernard Hopkins. Hopefully the war of words will lead to real demand for the fight, and Hopkins will come to understand that as much as he wants to be, he is not the draw or the name in this potential fight. Hopkins needs to make this fight happen. He’s already ducked Calzaghe once, and doing it again will be a major blow to his legacy.
• Vernon Forrest said that he would like a third fight with Ricardo Mayorga, the only man who’s beaten him. While I respect a man wanting to right the wrongs on his record, Forrest has bigger fish to fry right now. He holds a belt, and has a responsibility to make the right fights. Under almost no circumstances is a third fight with Mayorga the right fight for him to take. I suppose if Mayorga beats Fernando Vargas, and Forrest has no mandatories, he can take the fight, otherwise he needs to just accept his losses and move on. He’s got a chance to be a major player at 154, and should take this chance seriously.

*****
Now, in other boxing news….

• Ricky Hatton is already at a fit 148 pounds, nearly a month ahead of his welterweight title fight on Dec. 8. For a man who’s had weight issues in the past, this is a good sign for Hatton fans.
• Antonio Tarver is completely delusional.
• New Jersey’s athletic control board commissioner Larry Hazzard was fired this week after 20 years on the job. Hazzard had overseen boxing and mixed martial arts in New Jersey since 1985. The decision was made by the state Attorney General.

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