The proverbial Luck of the Irish smiled on Andy Lee as he escaped with a come from behind knockout victory over John Jackson last Saturday in Madison Square Garden.

KO of the Year Candidate

Irish Andy Lee’s dramatic 5^th round stoppage of John Jackson is an early candidate for boxing’s knockout of the year. Trailing 39-36 in all of the judges’ scorecards, Lee uncorked a right hybrid hook-uppercut to the chin that knocked John Jackson out cold for a couple of minutes on the canvass.

Jackson had been in control of the bout, as he was able to drop Lee with a right hook in the very first round. Jackson continued to pound Lee during their fierce exchanges in the second round. In the third, Lee was able to keep the lanky Jackson at bay with his stiff jabs although Jackson was still able to connect with his heavy right hand. As the fourth round started, Jackson continued his offensive against Lee and caught the Irishman in the ropes. But as Lee moved out to his left and out of danger, he caught Jackson coming in with that thunderous right hand that immediately floored Jackson at the 1:07 mark.

The sensational knockout was reminiscent of Lee’s third round knockout victory over former light middleweight world champion Carl Daniels in March 2007 at the MSG Theater.

Early Birthday Present

The win was an early birthday present for Andy Lee, who will turn 30 on June 11. Lee had relocated to London from Detroit after his loss to Julio Cesar Chavez Jr and the untimely death of legendary trainer Emmanuel Steward who was his mentor. Now under the tutelage of trainer and manager Adam Booth, Lee re-grouped in London and moved down to the light middleweight division where he and Booth felt that Lee would be more of a force to reckon with.

Moving Down in Weight

Lee had previously fought in the middleweight class ever since he was an amateur. After winning his first 15 bouts, he was knocked out by American Brian Vera in his HBO debut in 2008. But Emmanuel Steward worked Lee into a contender, and that culminated in his June 2012 WBC World Middleweight title bout against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.

Lee was fighting a good bout against Chavez from the outside but was weakened by Julio’s body punches. The young Chavez started to turn the match in his favor as the bout neared the middle rounds. In round 7, Chavez unleashed a flurry that left a tired Andy Lee helpless on the ropes and although Lee never went down, referee Lawrence Cole stopped the bout.

Lee bounced back from that defeat to win four straight bouts, three by KO to set up the fight with John Jackson in the Cotto-Martinez undercard.

Title Shot

With the win over Jackson, Lee also won the NABF light middleweight belt. His promoter Lou Di Bella and manager Adam Booth are set to discuss their future plans for Lee. And although he had some luck in beating Jackson, the victory over the WBC’s #4 ranked contender will move Lee up the ladder and possibly set up a title fight in the near future.

Ruslan “The Siberian Rocky” Provodnikov makes his first defense of the WBO Light Welterweight championship against unbeaten but unheralded Chris Algieri on June 14 on HBO’s “Boxing after Dark” at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

Memorable Year

2013 was a memorable year for Ruslan Provodnikov as he had two career-defining fights. On March 15, 2013 he fought Timothy Bradley in a grueling 12 round battle that was named as 2013 Fight of the Year by the Ring Magazine. Although Provodnikov lost that bout, it earned him the international recognition and respect that he longed for in the USA. Ruslan rebounded from that loss by punching Mike Alvarado to submission on October 19, 2013 and capture the WBO Light Welterweight title.

Looking Forward to Big Fights

Provodnikov was looking forward to another big fight to start his 2014 campaign. But Juan Manuel Marquez chose to fight Mike Alvarado and Manny Pacquiao fought Timothy Bradley in a rematch. Another option was Bam Bam Rios, but he was said to be having difficulty in making the 140 lbs limit so the plan was scratched. Provodnikov said that he was “a little bit disappointed” that he would not be fighting the opponents that he wanted. But he said that he is looking forward to getting back in the ring on June 14 for his first title defense.

The Perfect Fight

In contrast, Algieri’s promoter Joe De Guardia called the Providnikov fight the “perfect fight” for Chris Agieri. He believes that the timing of the bout is perfect as Chris is coming off the big win over Taylor and fighting in New York would be big for Chris Algieri who is from Huntington.

But De Guardia said the bout will be a lot of firsts for his fighter. It will mark the first time that he will be fighting for a world title, in a premier network and on a big time venue. He also added that Provodnikov is one of the fastest rising stars in the business and is one of the toughest champions out there. De Guardia said that while there are a lot of things to Conquer, he believes that Algieri is looking forward to the opportunity of a lifetime.

Fighting Big Punchers

Algieri thinks that he’s got Provodnikov all figured out. He pointed out that he has fought two pressure fighters who had one punch knockouts power, much like Provodnikov. He singled out Jose Peralta and his last opponent, former IBF Junior Welterweight contender #4 Emmanuel Taylor. Algieri defeated both by unanimous decision. He added that he’s watched Provodnikov’s losses on tape and that the Siberian Rocky has a weakness against boxers who utilize the jab and movement.  But he also believes that with a bruiser like Ruslan in front of him, he’s got to stand and fight toe to toe at times.

Algieri is unbeaten in 19 bouts and has 8 KO’s but he is a virtual unknown in the boxing world. However, he was a former World Kickboxing Association Super Welterweight title holder who had a kickboxing record of 20-11 before retiring to become a professional boxer.

But despite the confidence and optimism, Algieri is up against huge odds.

Siberian Rocky

Provodnikov is one of today’s most exciting fighters. He has an outstanding record of 23-2 with 16 KO’s. Provodnikov streaked to 17 straight wins before losing a controversial bout to Mauricio Herrera in in 2011. Ruslan’s manager Vadim Kornilov brought him to the Wild Card gym to train with Freddie Roach.  There, Provodnikov had the opportunity to spar with Manny Pacquiao, who is Roach’s prized pupil. It was under Freddie Roach’s tutelage that Provodnikov honed his skills and improved to a world class fighter.

With two of Roach’s top pupils Pacquiao and Cotto coming up with big wins to start 2014 , Provodnikov hopes to make his master just as proud on Saturday night.

As the next Floyd Mayweather Jr fight nears, the speculations on his next opponents are fast growing. But as Team Mayweather is looking for new faces to fight, they are not discounting on rematches between two former opponents.

Taking it Back

Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe back tracked on his earlier pronouncement that Team Mayweather “will no longer do business” with Golden Boy Promotions. Taking back his statement, Ellerbe this time said that the “door is open for future business” with GBP. He added that the only person in the GBP stable “worthy” of fighting is Canelo Alvarez.

It can be recalled that Mayweather made an all-time high guarantee of $41.5M in his first fight with Alvarez. The bout also grossed an all-time high of $150M to eclipse the previous record of $136M which was raked in by Mayweather’s 2007 split decision win over Oscar De La Hoya.

As estimated by Forbes, Mayweather stands to earn around $250M for his six fight contract with Showtime which he signed last year. Mayweather has done three of those six fights already with the fourth one due this coming September.

Canning Canelo

Alvarez was highly touted to be the man who can beat Floyd Mayweather Jr. because of his youth, size and power. But it was clear that Mayweather made easy target of Canelo who appeared like he was trapped in a can and could not get away from Floyd’s Money shots.

The young Alvarez was easily outpointed by Mayweather in their bout last year, but he has since rebounded with a 10th round KO of Alfredo Angulo last March. Alvarez is slated to fight Erislandy Lara in July 12. And should Canelo win that bout, he will be considered for Floyd’s 2015 opponents.

Mayweather’s September 13 opponent could very well be among Amir Khan, Danny Garcia and Marcos Maidana. Ellerbe said that won’t be a problem as he only has to “pick up the phone and talk to the same guy”. He was referring to Al Haymon, the power broker who also advises Mayweather.

Maidana Part 2?

Maidana’s name was already in consideration a few hours after his May 3 defeat to Mayweather. The Argentine proved that Mayweather is not untouchable and is beatable. Mayweather has not had a close call as he had with Maidana in a long time. And although Floyd Sr. complained about Maidana and urged his son not to fight him again, public clamor and the business of boxing could lead Team Mayweather to Maidana again this September.

Maidana’s adviser Steve Contursi said earlier this week that should Maidana be chosen to fight Floyd in September, his ward has to come at a lighter weight on fight night, be busier with his jabs and be more accurate with his right hand to beat Floyd Mayweather. He said that they were surprised that there was a lot of complaining from the camp of Mayweather about Maidana’s alleged “dirty tactics” and “roughhousing.” He added that Mayweather is a warrior and should not complain.

Contursi was referring to Mayweather’s statement that the Maidana bout was the “toughest wrestling match” that he’s been a part of. Mayweather was a part-time wrestler with the WWE during his semi-retirement.

Contursi pointed out that Maidana landed more shots on Mayweather than any fighter in Floyd’s last 38 bouts per Compubox. That alone should say how competitive Maidana was against Mayweather. Contursi also said that with some adjustments, Maidana can change that competitiveness into victory against the unbeaten Mayweather.

Keeping that “O”

With Richard Schaeffer’s departure from GBP, things could go interesting in the next few months for the sport of boxing. As for Mayweather, it’s business as usual as they look for the 4th installment of the Floyd Mayweather Jr. farewell tour. And with his team’s pronouncements of their willingness to do a rematch with two foes that Mayweather has clearly defeated in the past, it looks like Floyd really wants to keep that “O” until he retires.

The Oklahoma City Thunder were easily beaten by the San Antonio Spurs in the first two games of the 2014 Western Conference Finals despite having Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook at full strength. But the Thunder also played without center Serge Ibaka, who was out with a calf strain. When Ibaka returned in Game 3, the Thunder beat the Spurs 106-97, holding San Antonio below 100 points for the first time in the series. So does this mean that Ibaka’s defense is more valuable than Durant and Westrbook’s offense?

Let’s find out:

Shutting Down the Shooters

In the first two games, the Thunder tried to outgun the Spurs. But the Spurs have more weapons. Danny Green and Kawhi Leonard were making huge offensive contributions. In game 3, their combined points total was the lowest in the series:

No, it wasn’t Ibaka who guarded both of them. But with Ibaka manning the middle, the other defenders can play honest defense on their man without having to worry about the middle. And Ibaka is also a good close out defender.

Rim Protector

Serge Ibaka is a member of the NBA’s All-Defensive First team in 2012 and 2013. He is sure to be on the 2014 team as well. He led the NBA in blocked shots two years ago. This season, he finished a close second to Charlotte’s Anthony Davis. Serge Ibaka is one of the NBA’s best shot blockers and he doesn’t just block shots, he alters them.

In the first two games of the series, the Spurs were averaging 60 points in the paint. During the regular season, OKC was just yielding 39.5 points in the paint per game. And while the Spurs went to town during the first two games, Ibaka and the Thunder held them at bay in Game 3. OKC outscored San Antonio in the paint 46-40.

In Game 1, The Thunder were outrebounded 37-40. In Game 2, the Spurs dominated OKC 53-38 off the boards. With Ibaka back in Game 3, the Thunder won the battle of rebounds 52-36. The Spurs won the battle of the blocks in the first two games by a total of 9-6. In Game 3, Ibaka had four shot blocks and OKC lorded it over the Spurs 10-2.

The Difference Maker

Oklahoma City’s defense is Serge Ibaka, at least against the Spurs this season. The Thunder are 5-0 with him playing and are 0-2 when Ibaka was out with injury. And it’s not only been his shot blocking and rebounding that has been crucial for OKC, it’s the intensity that he brings each time he steps on the court. Ibaka is definitely a game changer and difference maker for Oklahoma City. Take a look at this very interesting piece of information from ESPN.com:

Thunder Stats this season vs Spurs with and without Serge Ibaka:

The difference is unbelievable. The Thunder are a totally different team with and without Serge Ibaka manning the middle.

Offense Wins Games, Defense Wins Championships

During the regular season, Kevin Durant won MVP honors with his spectacular offensive display. Durant torched the nets with 32.0 points per game and .503 FG shooting. Westbrook averaged 21.8 points per game on .437 FG shooting. In the playoffs, Durant has averaged 30.1 points while Westbrook is doing 25.7 points per game. But their field goal percentages have dropped. Durant is shooting just .454 and Westbrook .416 from the field. Obviously, the opposing teams are playing much tougher and better defense in the playoffs.

In Game 1, Durant and Westbrook combined for 53 points and they still lost the game. In Game 2, the duo combined for 30 points and the Thunder also lost. In Game 3, they totaled 51 points and OKC won. This does not mean that their scoring is not important. OKC needs these two stars to score. But the point is that there is no consistent pattern between the duo’s points per game and wins or losses.

However, there is a season long pattern between defense and playoff wins. An old basketball cliché says that offense wins games, but defense wins championships.

Kevin Durant led all Thunder players during the regular season in win shares per 48 minutes with .295. Russell Westbrook came in second at .178 while Serge Ibaka was a close third at .173. In the playoffs, Durant and Ibaka are now tied with .151 win shares per 48 minutes, while Westbrook is third at .139.

There is no denying that Kevin Durant is a superstar among superstars. He deserves the regular season MVP award. But it’s the playoffs, and right now it’s defense that matters, and that’s why Serge Ibaka is the key to winning it all for the Thunder.

At 40 years of age, Juan Manuel Marquez seems to have found the fountain of youth with the way he’s fought in the last two years. Because instead of looking like a “leaving legend”, Marquez has looked like a prospect in his prime.

During the official weigh in for his May 17th fight against Mike Alvarado, Performance Enhancing Drugs (PED) expert Victor Conte saw something “very alarming.” In his Twitter account, Conte asked this question: ” Does boxing know that elevated testosterone levels in teen males can cause acne?” Conte was referring to the presence of acne on the chest of Marquez.

Doping Scandal

If there’s anybody who knows much about doping in sports, it is Victor Conte. Conte is the founder and president of the BALCO sports nutrition clinic in California. BALCO was accused by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) of developing the banned steroid tetrahydrogestrinone with the help of a bodybuilding chemist named Patrick Arnold.

Conte later admitted to aiding trackstar Marion Jones and her partner Tim Montgomery in a doping program that broke Olympic records. In 2005, Conte entered into a guilty plea to one count of distributing steroids and another count of laundering a check. Conte spent four months in prison and four months on house arrest.

After prison, Conte has remained clean and has devoted his time to the research and development of new legal sports supplements. He continues to work with athletes and his current stable of boxers include Nonito Donaire Jr and Zab Judah.

Dinamita

Many have noticed the sudden bulk and power of Juan Manuel Marquez, especially during his fourth fight against Manny Pacquiao. During their first three fights, Marquez continually peppered Pacman with his brilliant counter punching. But there was never a point when he had Pacquiao wobbling. But in the 3rd round of the fourth bout, a looping overhand right surprisingly knocked down the stocky Pacquiao.

Pacquiao had previously battled with Barrera, Morales, Hatton, Cotto and Margarito among others, but he had not been knocked down. Marquez completed the “dinamita” performance by putting Pacquiao to sleep with a right counter at the end of round 6.

PEDs in Boxing

Conte Tweeted that Top Rank’s Bob Arum and Golden Boy’s Richard Schaeffer are both “enabling and promoting rampant PED use in boxing.” Conte added that there has been “no random drug testing”  in the major fights of 2014 and that the Nevada commission drug testing is  “a joke.”  He pointed out to the Marquez vs Alvarado fight as an example. Conte also said that “boxing promoters do not have a genuine interest in clean sport.” because it is “all about the money.”

HBO’s Max Kellerman also voiced out his insinuations on Marquez. Kellerman said that he gets cynical when he sees a guy who gets faster as he gets older. Kellerman added that there is always suspicion when a modern day athlete performs differently when he reaches an advanced stage. Kellerman opined that this was the case after the Pacquiao-Marquez 4 bout because Marquez looked bigger and stronger than ever.

Juicing Up

Pacquiao also had his share of PED issues when he rose from the lower weights to beat up bigger guys like De La Hoya, Cotto and Margarito. Pacquiao always denied this and defended that he always followed the standards required by the sanctioning Athletic commissions which Conte now says are shams.

It can be recalled that during the first negotiations for the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight in 2009, random drug testing was the main reason why the talks fell off. To Pacquiao’s credit however, he was never proven to be  juiced up.

The Marquez camp has not given their side on the issue. While it remains to be seen what Conte’s motives are for the series of tweets on PEDs and boxing. But Conte has a point when he said that he hopes that random drug testing will become the standard for elite boxers in the near future.  Because these promoters and fighters make millions of dollars from the betting and viewing public. And if Conte is correct, then boxing could lose this fight via knockout.

Manny Pacquiao has signed a two year contract extension with Top Rank that will virtually keep him under the wings of Bob Arum’s promotional company until the last day of his glorious boxing career.

Arum’s Plans

Top Rank CEO Bob Arum was pleased to announce that Top Rank “will continue presenting to the public fights of the great Manny Pacquiao through the end of 2016.” Arum told Yahoo sports that Pacquiao’s contract will continue “as usual”. This means that Pacman will continue to fight twice each year: one in the spring and one in the fall. As for the immediate plans, Arum is contemplating a November fight in Macau against the WBO’s mandatory challenger Juan Manuel Marquez. If that happens, it will be the fifth fight between the Mexican legend and the Filipino icon. Pacquiao owns a record of 2-1-1 against his rival, but Marquez won the last fight via a sensational knockout.

If Marquez does not want to fight, Arum said they will go after former Pacquiao sparring mate Ruslan Provodnikov. He is the WBO 140 lbs champion who is also under Top Rank and is trained by Freddie Roach. While a Marquez bout could spell a PPV hit, a fight with Provodnikov would be a war for the ages.

The Mega Bout

Arum sounded like a broken record when asked about the never-ending question of a Mayweather-Pacquiao showdown. He said that “we want to fight him (Mayweather) and we’re willing to discuss it at any point.” Arum pointed out that should the fight happen within 2015, a scenario similar to the Lewis vs. Tyson fight of 2002 could happen where HBO and Showtime came together to put up the fight. Arum also suggested that if Mayweather wants it in 2016, he can go back to HBO and “do it there”.

Arum even gave it a surprisingly optimistic “90-10 chance of happening”. Of course with Arum, one doesn’t know what’s true and what’s promoting. There are too many obstacles along the way. The greatest of which is his feud with Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Bad Blood

Top Rank signed Floyd Mayweather Jr. right after he won the bronze medal in the 1996 summer Olympics. He last fought under Top Rank on April 2006 when he defeated Zab Judah to win the IBF and IBO Welterweight titles. Mayweather and Arum’s relationship soured because Floyd resented the way Arum marketed him. Floyd Mayweather exercised a buyout option in his contract, freed himself from Arum and made the sole decision on who to fight.

At that time, Mayweather rejected an $8M offer to fight Antonio Margarito, and instead waited for Oscar De La Hoya to beat Ricardo Mayorga to forge the biggest fight boxing has ever seen. The De La Hoya vs. Mayweather bout set a record of 2.5M PPV buys and $136M in gate revenues. Mayweather then became the new icon of the sport and its highest paid star.

This week, Arum admitted to Yahoo Sports that Mayweather “absolutely made the right move to go on his own” and that Mayweather “would have been more successful had Top Rank paid closer heed to Mayweather’s ideas”. Arum added that he “certainly doesn’t hate Floyd” and he has “no hard feelings”.

But Mayweather has vowed that he will never do business with Arum ever again. Those words have been cast in stone. People close to Mayweather swear that Floyd doesn’t want Arum “to make money off him”. Mayweather even challenged Pacquiao in the past to dump Arum to make the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight possible. But then the inevitable opposite has happened when Pacman extended his Top Rank contract.

Signing a Death Certificate

Yahoo’ Kevin Iole said that Pacquiao virtually signed on the “death certificate” of the Mayweather-Pacquiao bout when he signed the contract extension with Top Rank.

The contract extension locks Pacquiao until December 31, 2016, a few days after Pacquiao will turn 38 years old. After the Timothy Bradley fight, Pacquiao said that his “journey in boxing” will continue for two more years. It would be safe to assume then that Top Rank has signed Pacquiao to the end of his incredible boxing journey.

And that journey may very well likely end without ever fighting Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Golden Era?

While there is an ongoing rift within Golden Boy, Bob Arum made peace with his former fighter and promotional rival Oscar De La Hoya. Arum said that he could “work very easily with De La Hoya” and that he can put on fights with boxers who are under contract to Golden Boy. Arum added that “he never said that he wouldn’t deal with Schaeffer (GBP CEO Richard Schaeffer)” and that it was Schaeffer who said he wouldn’t work with Arum.

Arum said that if Amir Khan ends up with Golden Boy after the feud between Schaeffer and De La Hoya, he could end up fighting Manny Pacquiao in the future. With that thinking, Arum might have told us that Mayweather isn’t really in Pacquiao’s future contrary to his 90-10 statement.

After losing Game 1 to the Pacers, the Miami Heat bounced back with a huge statement in Game 2 by knocking off the Pacers 87-83 in Indiana’s home floor. With the victory, Miami has claimed home court advantage in the NBA Eastern Conference Finals and bolstered their chances for a three-peat.

Turning Up the Heat in Defense

After giving up 107 points in Game 1, Miami turned up the heat on the defensive side of the court. They allowed only 10 points in the final 7:19 of the game. The Pacers outrebounded the Heat 38-29 in Game 1. However, Miami kept it close in Game 2 by being three rebounds short of the Pacers’ total at 38-41.

But the big difference was playing honest defense. Miami yielded 26 fouls in Game 1 which led to the Pacers’ 29-37 free throw shooting. In Game 2, Miami committed just 17 fouls and sent the Pacers 15 times to the foul line. Indiana made only 10 free throws, so the difference in free throws made was a huge 19 points.

King James

Lebron James took over when it mattered. He had 24 touches in the fourth quarter, which was the most in a fourth quarter during this post season. James scored or assisted in 17 of the Heat’s 25 points in the payoff period. He scored the first six points on that decisive 12-2 run that sealed the win. James finished with 22 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals and 3 blocks. James statline has been dominant in the last four postseasons. Take a look at this incredible statistic that was mentioned in ESPN.com:

Most playoff games with 22 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists since 2011

James has done it thrice already in the 2014 playoffs, and they’ve only played two games in the conference finals. This comparison is ridiculous. Lebron James is in his own planet and this feat just proves that he is the best basketball player in the planet right now, bar none.

What Home Court Edge?

The Pacers preached all season long on how badly they needed the home court advantage to win the east and the NBA title. When Miami overtook them late in the season for the top spot in the East, the Pacers fought back despite their late season struggles to re-capture and secure the Top seed in the East.

The Pacers had the NBA’s best home record during the regular season at 35-6. They’ve yielded it after two games of every playoff series so far. They were able to get away with it during the first two rounds when they battled #8 Atlanta and #5 Washington. But this time, they’re not just up against the #2 seed of the East. They’re battling it out with the two time defending champions Miami Heat.

And these Heat know them like the back of their hands. They battled it out for seven games in last year’s Eastern Conference Finals. During the 2014 regular season, these two teams split their season series 2-2. Home court advantage has been very important to this rivalry. Before Game 2, Pacers were 6-1 at home against the Heat. They are just 1-6 in Miami.

Overall, these two teams were tied with 7 wins apiece against each other in the last two years. Miami’s Game 2 win broke that tie, and more importantly, they won for only the second time in two years in Indiana. So the Pacers are in a lot of pressure right now because they’ve yielded their biggest advantage that they had over the Heat.

For the Heat, it’s just a matter of holding court. And with a King like Lebron, Miami’s kingdom is in good hands.

Mexican boxing legend Juan Manuel Marquez put on an impressive show at the Forum in Los Angeles USA by defeating American Mike Alvarado via unanimous decision to capture the WBO International Welterweight title. Marquez put on a 12-round boxing clinic in a lopsided match that was scored 117-109,117-109 and 119-109 by the judges.

The bout was declared by the WBO as the Welterweight title eliminator which means that Juan Manuel is now the mandatory challenger for the WBO champion. Incidentally, the WBO champion is Filipino icon Manny Pacquiao who has fought Marquez four times already. Pacquiao officially has the better of Marquez in their head to head standings at 2-1-1 but most boxing fans remember their last fight which Marquez won.

Greatest Rivalry in Boxing

Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez own the greatest rivalry the sport of boxing has even seen. Although Pacquiao knocked down Marquez thrice in the first round of their first fight, Marquez came up big to finish the fight and was able to salvage a draw.

Their second fight was close and Marquez outlanded the Pacman, but Pacquiao’s knockdown in the third round proved to be the decisive edge in the fight. Pacquiao won the third fight again via majority decision, but there was just as much controversy as there was in the previous fight. In their fourth encounter, each fighter had scored a knockdown going into the sixth round. And while Pacquiao was starting to dominate Marquez, Juan Manuel launced a hail mary that was heard by the heavens. An overhand right knocked Pacquiao unconscious for a couple of minutes.

After that win, Marquez had said that justice had been served, and that he had settled his score with Pacquiao. When the Pacquiao camp asked for a rematch, Marquez refused and said that he wanted to savor having the last say in their fabled rivalry.

Four Division Champion

Marquez has been a world champion at the featherweight, super featherweight and lightweight division. He held an interim title at the super lightweight division. Marquez has been open about his desire to win a fourth division title because he would be the first Mexican boxer to do that. Mexico has produced great champions of the past like Chavez, Morales and Barrera. But a fourth world title in a fourth weight class would make Juan Manuel Marquez the greatest of them all. Unfortunately, that fourth belt is around the waist of Manny Pacquiao.

Pacquiao vs Marquez 3 was for that WBO welterweight belt. Marquez believes that he won that fight and that the WBO welterweight belt should’ve been his. Now that he is the mandatory challenger for that title, Marquez has all the motivation he needs. Or does he?

Uno Mas?

Immediately after the bout, the most asked question was the possible fifth fight against Manny Pacquiao. But instead of calling out the Filipino champion, Marquez said that he had “obtained justice” in the fourth fight. Marquez added that he wants to take a rest first before talking about fighting Pacquiao again.

Top Rank big boss Bob Arum who promoted both Pacquiao and Marquez, said that the fifth bout is up to Juan Manuel. Pacquiao definitely wants to get back at Marquez. In fact, they offered Marquez more money for a rematch than what the Bradley fight paid Marquez. But Marquez spurned the Pacquiao camp despite the big payday. But now, the circumstances are different as both Pacquiao and Marquez seem to have discovered the fountain of youth that has transformed Bernard Hopkins to an alien.

Mexicutioner?

Pacman’s trainer and coach Freddie Roach was at ringside watching the Marquez-Alvarado fight. It was an indication that Pacquiao is keen on fighting the winner. Roach had said earlier this month that he’d love to see a fifth fight because Juan Manuel looked like an old man against a fast guy like Bradley. Roach said a couple of weeks ago that if Alvarado wins, they’re headed to Macau. But if Marquez wins, they’ll fight in the US.

That is logical because a Pacman-Alvarado bout will not sell PPVS in the US. However, a Pacquiao-Marquez is almost a guaranteed 1M buys because of the Mexican population. Team Pacquiao has said recently that their ward’s PPV numbers have gone down due to the absence of a Mexican foe. Pacquiao has a long line of Mexican victims that include Marquez, Morales and Barrera.

For some rivalries, a trilogy settles the difference. But in the case of Pacquiao and Marquez, these guys can fight until they’re 50 and still sell tickets and PPV buys.

Even if Chris Weidman gets past Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida on July 5 at UFC 175, his title reign has the potential to be the toughest among the UFC champions out there today. Not only is the middleweight division the most lucrative and popular, it is the deepest weight class in terms of quality of championship contenders.

Here are five reasons why Chris Weidman’s road is the toughest:

Johny Hendricks  #9 Pound for Pound , UFC Welterweight Champion

Big Rig has just won the welterweight title last March 15 against Robbie Lawler in UFC 171. The win not only showed Hendricks’ skills but it showed that he had the heart of a champion when he summoned his inner strength to beat Lawler in the deciding fifth round.

In Hendricks’ previous fight, the Oklahoma native dominated the legendary Georges St. Pierre for five rounds before losing a disputed and controversial split decision. The bout led to St. Pierre’s leave of absence which paved the way for Johny’s second crack at the title.

Big Rig has a record of 18-2 with 8 knockouts and 1 submission. Hendricks has stated that he wants to retire at 185lbs. While Hendricks admits that he may be relatively “short” at 5’9″ for the middleweight division, he likened himself to Mike Tyson who beat up all the bigger men in heavyweight boxing with his heart and brawn. With his stocky frame and freakish punching power, Hendricks can definitely punch his way to the top of the middleweight division should he choose to move up.

Luke Rockhold # 5 Middleweight

Luke Rockhold has won two consecutive first round stoppage victories in the UFC after his defeat to Vitor Belfort in his UFC debut. Rockhold knocked out #10 Costas Philippou with body kicks in UFC Fight Night last January 15. He returned to the Octagon after three months at UFC 172 and submitted #13 Tim Boetsch via inverted triangle-kimura. Rockhold has an impressive 12-2 record with 3 knockouts and 7 submissions. This Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belter won the Strike Force middleweight crown with a controversial unanimous decision win over Jacare Souza in 2011.

After beating Boetsch, Rockhold called out his UFC conqueror Vitor Belfort for a rematch and demanded a title shot if he gets past the Brazilian phenom. Vitor knocked him out with a spinning heel kick to the face in one of the most spectacular knockouts in UFC history. But after two bounce back victories, Rockhold is back on the winning track and has his eyes set at Belfort and then the title.

Jacare Souza #4 Middleweight

Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza is one of the best grapplers in the sport. Souza is the former Strike Force Middleweight champion who has a record of 20-3 with 2 knockouts. 14 of those victories have come via submission. Souza won a total of 8 gold medals in 5 World Championship of Jiu Jitsu competitions. He also won 2 golds and 3 silvers in five years of competing in the ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championships.

Since joining the UFC in 2013, Souza has been 3-0. Souza submitted Chris Camozzi in his UFC debut while he knocked out Japanese Yushin Okami with punches in the first round round of their UFC Fight Night bout last September 2013. Souza defeated Francis Carmont by unanimous decision in his first fight of 2014.

After the fight, Souza revealed that he suffered an elbow injury during training. But now that the elbow is 100% after surgery, Souza wants a piece of the championship belt too. He also said that he would gladly settle for #3contender Vitor Belfort if he does not get a title shot in his next bout.

Anderson Silva #1 Middleweight, #7 Pound for Pound

Although Weidman beat Silva twice, many people still doubt his victories over the greatest mixed martial artist of all-time. Weidman knocked out the Spider with a punch in their first fight, and critics called it a lucky punch. In their rematch last December 28, Silva broke his left leg while Weidman checked his kick.

Again, the premature ending left doubters wondering what would’ve happened if Silva didn’t break a leg. But the fact is, Weidman beat Silva twice- fair and square. And that’s the reason why the middleweight belt is around the All-American’s waist.

But Silva refused to be counted out. He immediately had arthroscopic surgery to stabilize his tibia with a metallic rod while his fibula was reset. But barely a month and a half after the surgery, Silva tweeted photographs of himself training in the gym. Silva was seen lifting weights with a trainer and going up and down the stairs without the aid of crutches.

UFC President Dana White had hinted a possible year end comeback for the former middleweight champion. And although Silva clearly lost twice to Chris Weidman, UFC fans are still hoping to see them battle once again. Silva has a record of 33-6 with 20 knockouts and 6 submissions.

Vitor Belfort #3 Middleweight

The Phenom was supposed to face Chris Weidman in UFC 173 but he was forced to withdraw because of the Nevada State Athletic Commission’s ban on Testosterone Replacement Therapy(TRT). Belfort has been controversial for his “therapeutical” use of TRT and the decision of the NSA prompted him to forego his application for a license to fight Weidman in UFC 173.  Belfort had blasted to the top of the middleweight standings after three sensational victories over Michael Bisping, Luke Rockhold and Dan Henderson since moving down from the light heavyweight division.

At age 37, Belfort is one of the greatest UFC fighters of all time. At age 19, he was the youngest fighter to win a UFC match. In 1997, he won the UFC 12 Heavyweight tournament. He beat the massive Tank Abbott via knockout in UFC 13 before losing to Randy Couture in the UFC Heavyweight title eliminator in UFC 15.

The Miami Heat turned to their basketball savior once again to finally put away their season demon called the Brooklyn Nets in Game 5 of their second round series. Down by eight points with less than five minutes to play, the defending NBA champions turned up the defensive heat and forced the Nets to nine straight misses while racking up 12 unanswered points to finish the game and the series 96-94.

Again, it was Ray Allen’s huge three pointer that gave the Heat the go ahead basket with 32 seconds left and sealed the doom of Brooklyn’s $190M payroll team.

Allen was 0-6 from three point distance before that game changing shot, but there was no doubt that when he released that shot, it was going to shatter the title hopes of his former Celtics’ teammates Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett. Pierce and Garnett were recruited by Brooklyn in the offseason to beef up their line up and make it Heat-proof. But on Wednesday night, Ray Allen did it again. He stuck a dagger right through the heart of Brooklyn just as he has done time and again.

He Got Game

Allen, who played the role of Jesus Shuttlesworth in the movie “He got Game”, is the NBA’s all-time leader in three point shots made in the regular season and the playoffs. He may be running on 38 year old legs, but he is one of the game’s greatest clutch shooters. He’s had a long resume of memorable post-season games that are part of NBA folklore. Here are a few of them:

Game 6, 2001 Eastern Conference Finals– Allen explodes for 41 points to send the series to a Game 7. The Bucks lost game 7 to the 76ers, but this was as close as the Bucks have been to the finals in recent history.

Game 4, 2008 NBA Finals-The Boston Celtics complete the greatest comeback in NBA Finals history by erasing a 24 point 2nd quarter lead to beat the Lakers. Allen played all 48 minutes and scored the winning layup with 16.4 seconds left in the game

Game 6, 2008 NBA Finals- Allen hit an NBA record with 7 three pointers in a 131-92 win over the Lakers

Game 2, 2009 1st Round- Ray Allen hit an improbable three pointer over Joakim Noah to save the Celtics from losing Game 2 and falling behind 0-2 in the series against the Bulls.

Game 6, 2009 1st Round– Allen scores 51 points in the most productive post season performance of his NBA career. The Game went to three overtimes and Allen hit a total of nine three pointers. The Celtics however, lost this game against the Bulls.

Game 2, 2010 NBA Finals– After losing Game 1, Ray Allen returns the home court advantage to the Celtics after shooting an NBA finals record 8 three pointers against the LA Lakers on a night where Paul Pierce and KG were a combined 4-16 from the field.

Game 3, 2011 1st Round– Allen conquers the Knicks at Madison Square Garden with 32 points including 8 three pointers via a 113-96 win. In Game 1 of this series, Allen beat the Knicks with a buzzer beater. And the greatest of them all was that Game 6 three pointer against the Spurs in last year’s NBA Finals. Miami was on the brink of losing their title but Allen’s legendary three pointer sent the game to overtime and set up an overtime win for the Heat. Miami completed its resurrection by winning the title in Game 7.

Now, Allen is starting to hit the stride again.

Allen Takes Control

Allen was 0-6 from three point distance before that crucial three pointer. But as in the past, that did not matter. He finished the game with 13 points and hit clutch free throws to seal the deal.

Look at Ray Allen’s averages from the regular season up to the second round:

Ray’s starting to pick up the slack. His scoring averages have gone to double digits in the second round. The Nets swept the Heat in the regular season. And although there were close games in the series, the Heat pulled it off and Allen was the X factor in that series.

Allen’s numbers have significantly changed as the playoffs have gone deeper. He knows that it is crunch time and crunch time means it’s time to turn it up a notch. After eliminating the Nets, Mario Chalmers said that it’s great to have the best three point shooter in the history of the NBA to his left during that clutch play. That was an understatement.

The Heat have assembled the Big Three to lead them to the Promised Land. But even the King needs a savior. And for the Miami Heat, Ray Allen has become that man.