Billy's Boxing Blog

By William Trillo
Photo: Mikey Williams -Top Rank

The look of confusion on Amir Khan’s face as he tried to recuperate from a powerful low blow seemed to tell a story that I believe many missed or dare not mention. Yes the blow delivered by Terrance Crawford was way south of the border, Khan had every reason to need some time to collect himself.

To me it looked as though Khan was trying to walk it off when suddenly as he got to the corner he had a look of confusion on his face. He did not comprehend what was being told to him from his corner. The advice coming from Virgil Hunter was for Khan not to proceed with the fight. Obviously Khan did not understand why and the look on his face spoke volumes.

Say what you will about Amir Khan, but he has never shown the attributes of a quitter. He might not have the heartiest whiskers on the planet but his heart should not come into question. It’s just not in Khan’s character to throw in the towel. His mind doesn’t work that way.

Had Hunter not given the advice I believe Khan would have fought on.

Hunter will never admit it but I firmly believe he was hopeful the errant blow thrown by Crawford would be deemed a foul, thus giving Khan the victory via disqualification.

Outside of Andre Ward, Hunter’s track record with other fighters in Championship bouts is far from stellar. Getting his fighter a victory on paper would if nothing else look good on his resume a year or two down the road.

Personally, I don’t think this thought is that farfetched, but as I said, getting Virgil to admit that ain’t gonna happen.

Look, Khan was most likely not going to win that fight but he got up off the deck after a brutal knockdown in round 1 and although it is unlikely he was winning any rounds he did land more than his share of flush shots to Crawford’s chin. In fact I can’t recall a time when Crawford was getting caught like that in any of his previous fights.

If nothing else Khan still had a punchers chance. He should have been the one to decide if he was going to fight on or not.

The next time I see Amir, whether that be next week or next year, the first thing I am going to ask him is if it was his decision or Virgil’s. If he tells me it was Virgil’s decision I will inquire about the motivation.

I have a sneaking suspicion I already know the answer to that question.

Check out www.Pound4Pound.com for all the latest boxing news.

By William Trillo

It was late Saturday evening as I was driving down the 5 freeway when I got the little alert on my phone telling me I just received an email. The email turned out to be a press release sent out after Claressa Shields (9-0, 2 KOs) defeated Christina Hammer (24-0, 11 KOs) by unanimous decision to unify the women’s middleweight titles.

In her post fight quote Shields stated, “I am the greatest woman of all time.”

That was a pretty bold statement but Claressa just won a World title on national TV so I figured she was still high on the Adrenaline of the moment. My knee jerk reaction was to call her out for that statement but I gave her a pass and let her lofty self assessment slide.

I would have left well enough alone but Shields let fly with some pretty absurd statements this week that need to be addressed.

According to Shields, and I quote, “I think I can beat up Keith Thurman … I really do.” Welterweight Champ Thurman’s record is 29-0-1 with 22 via KO.

Claressa then went on to say, “…I could give GGG a run for his money.” Golovkin’s record is 38-1-1 with 34 KO’s.

Did Shields pass the drug test after her fight this weekend? Girl might be on some mighty strong hallucinogens. Either that or she has a huge misconception of how talented she actually is.

Claressa…please!

I realize that in this day and age of the “Me Too” movement you want to be given your just due. But seriously, this is not a game of one on one basketball we are talking about here. You just called out two of the hardest hitters in men’s professional prize fighting. The idea is ludicrous at best.

One of my esteemed colleagues read your statement and sent me this text message: “What the ????. Has she lost her mind? She is so full of herself!”

Enough said. Your statement has made you the laughing stock of boxing.

And although I was going to reserve my comments on your claim to being the best woman fighter of all time, I can’t help but give you my thoughts now.

Frankly speaking Claressa, you would be hard pressed to crack the Top Ten women of all time. Christy Martin, Lucia Rijker, Laila Ali, Anne Wolf, Holly Holm and yes even Mia St. John would beat you in their prime.

You might be the best in women’s boxing right now but the talent pool is about as deep as the kiddie pool in my neighbor’s backyard and it is half empty. You might wanna rethink that best of all time statement.

You are 9-0 with a mere 2 KO’s. Now is not the time to be staking your claim as best of the best.

Check out www.Pound4Pound.com for all the latest boxing truth.

By William Trillo

It is with great pleasure that I want to let all my faithful readers, (3 at last count), know that you can also find your favorite boxing website at www.Lb4Lb.com as well as www.Pound4Pound.com

Nothing else will change. You will still get our 24/7 boxing coverage that includes fight coverage with photos of all the major events, exclusive interviews and videos as well as my blog which can go anywhere from hard hitting editorials to speaking the truth or having a good laugh, which sometimes go hand in hand. No holds barred here, Lb4Lb.com will give you all the latest news and truth as it always has.

So for those of you hate punching in those ridiculous long boxing domain names, (mybadboxingfightnewspage.com), only to get to a site full of press releases and softball interviews and reports, look no further…just go to Lb4Lb.com ….you won’t regret it.

Speaking of boxing truth…was anyone paying attention to the crickets chirping after the Ryan Garcia fight Saturday night? Why did the media in attendance look like they were covering a funeral after the fight?

Let me give you a hint.

After the night was over I was waiting for my car in the valet area and was chatting with some Ryan Garcia fans that made the trek all the way from Victorville to see their hometown boy. I asked her, “So tell me what you thought of the fight?”

The fans husband immediately turned around and walked away leaving his wife to field the question. She looked at me and said “It was just….just…just…”

“JUST WHAT,” I said.

“Just… (shrugs her shoulders).”

That honest answer in and of itself was more than refreshing to me. What it tells me is not everyone is chugging down the Kool-Aid the Garcia spin machine is trying to serve up to his fans.

When one hometown fan walks away when asked about King-Ry and all the other one can do is shrug her shoulders… that pretty much tells me everything I need to know.

It should tell a lot of other people too but their minds are clouded with finding the next Oscar and the $$$ that come along the way.

“Kool-Aid, Kool-Aid. Taste great. Wish we had some. Can’t wait…”

Check out www.Lb4Lb.com for all the news and truth!