Gatti Whups Damgaard....What Happens to the Welterweights?

Story here.

Arturo "Thunder" Gatti, known to black fans as "that bleedin' white boy" pulled out some new tricks to go along with his old-fashioned "stand there and let him hit me, and maybe I'll hit him, too" strategy. Floyd Mayweather beat that method out of him last June. Gatti actually fought a smart fight, and did not appear to bleed at all, though it is said that he broke his often-injured right hand on his way to an 11th round TKO win (and I want to congratulate the ref, Lindsay Paige, who made a very smart stoppage).

Buddy McGirt, Gatti's trainer, coached and prepared Gatti well. Damgaard appeared confused throughout much of the fight, as was I, who had never seen Gatti fight such a "smart" fight.

Gatti switched back and forth from southpaw to right-handed stances, and did a bit of actual boxing, though he still did not display a terribly good offense, and very little in the way of defense. The weaknesses in Gatti's style (namely hand speed and defense) weren't exploited by Damgaard, because Damgaard didn't have the power to hurt Gatti, who certainly does not lack in "chin". Most first-tier welterweights will not have that problem, and I don't think that Gatti will have his alphabet-belt long.

With his win, Gatti won the largely insignificant IBA welterweight belt. Boxing is first and foremost a business, so this "champion versus champion" will likely be enough to justify a big PPV event with him fighting Carlos Baldomir (who became my favorite Argentinian when he humiliated Zab Judah, stripping him of his belt earlier this month--too bad Carlos didn't pay the other licensing fees, or he'd be the undisputed champion). The winner of this fight will probably fight Floyd Mayweather, Jr, after "Pretty Boy Floyd" beats the tar out of Zab Judah in May (which should happen, because, even though Judah is complaining about the money, he doesn't really have any better option).

How will Gatti do against Baldomir?

Baldomir does not have great speed or power, but he is a tough and fundamentally sound fighter with a good defense. Gatti could do well against him, especially if he is able to land his power punches and dictate the pace of the fight. With Gatti's undisciplined style, it is quite likely that Baldomir will be at an advantage if he establishes his jab, weathers Gatti's flurries of haymakers, and the fight goes the distance.

I'll certainly pay to watch Gatti/Baldomir, though I likely won't pay to see Mayweather pound the winner into the dirt, unless there is a good undercard. I like watching Mayweather, but against either of those guys, it will be a 6-round or shorter beat-down. He IS that much better. Talent-wise and style-wise, I'd like to see Mayweather fight Ronald "Winky" Wright, instead of any of the welterweights, though that might be a mismatch due to Wright's bigger size. I just don't know if there is a compelling fight for Mayweather right now, unless he fights Ricky Hatton, Miguel Angel Cotto, or Jose Luis Castillo. Hatton is probably at his ideal weight for now, so I don't see him moving up at this stage in his career. Cotto might also give Mayweather a bit of a challenge, but I'm not expecting this fight to happen as it wouldn't be too much of a draw. Castillo, as shown by the debacle of his last fight with Corrales, needs to move up to light-welterweight, as he can't (or won't) make the lightweight requirements. Hatton and Cotto might give Mayweather a good fight (my money's on Floyd), but Mayweather would likely roll over Castillo.