[steelerfan]

July 2000 Results

Chris Arreola defeats James Braddock by Unanimous Decision
Judges: 97-93, 98-92, 98-97
This one was well fought but Arreola was in control from the start and was only going to lose if he was knocked out. There were no knockdowns in the fight. Braddock was warned for holding in the 3rd, suffered a gash above his left eye in the 4th and swelling to his right eye in the 6th.

Max Schmeling defeats Tyrell Biggs by Unanimous Decision
Judges: 98-91, 98-91, 100-89
Schmeling was in complete control from the opening bell, landing 119 punches to 46 for Biggs. A testament to his heart, Biggs survived knockdowns in the 7th and 10th rounds. He also had cuts to his left eye and cheek with the cheek worsening as the fight progressed. Biggs was warned for a rabbit punch in the 7th round. The fight was delayed for about 30 seconds in the 7th after a fan stormed the ring. He was led out of the building by police.

Bob Satterfield defeats Arthur Pelkey by TKO at 1:46 of Round 1
The "Bombardier" spoiled Pelkey's UBF debut, making quick work of the Canadian without allowing Pelkey to land a single punch.

David Tua defeats Ken Norton by Split Decision
Judges: 97-94, 96-95, 94-95
The best fight of the night came just before the main event. Tua cut Norton's right eye in the opening round but Norton kept Tua off of it for the rest of the night. The difference in the fight likely came in round 4 when Norton was the victim of the bout's only knockdown.Tua landed 93 punches to Norton's 90, evidence of the quality of the match. Norton will likely be looking for a rematch in the coming months.

Lennox Lewis defeats Ray Mercer by Unanimous Decision
Judges: 99-91, 99-91, 97-92
The main event didn't quite live up to its billing. Lewis pummeled Mercer to the tune of a 113-45 advantage in punches landed. The only slip up for Lewis came in the 7th when he was briefly knocked down by Mercer. "Merciless" was begging for mercy finishing the night with a badly swollen left eye after being knocked to the canvas twice - in the 4th and 7th stanzas. Both fighters were issued a warning for continuing after the bell after the 6th round as tempers boiled over.





AUGUST 2000 TOP 10 RANKINGS

Champion: James Jeffries 1-0-1 (1)

Contenders
1. Bob Fitzsimmons 2-0-0 (1)
2. Joe Frazier 1-0-1 (1)
3. Lennox Lewis 2-0-0 (1)
4. Abe Simon 1-1-0 (0)
5. George Foreman 2-0-0 (1)
6. Cleveland Williams NR
7. Denver Ed Martin 0-1-0 (0)
8. Donovan Ruddock 1-0-0 (1)
9. Ray Mercer 0-2-0 (0)
10. Anthony Joshua 1-0-1 (1)





AUGUST 2000 FIGHT CARD

#27 Muhammad Ali 1-0-0 (0) vs #26 Buster Douglas 0-1-0 (0)

#15 Jameel McCline 0-1-0 (0) vs #13 George Godfrey 0-1-0 (0)

#16 Jerry Quarry 2-0-0 (1) vs #14 Gene Tunney 2-0-0 (2)

#6 Cleveland Williams NR vs #5 George Foreman 2-0-0 (1)

Title Fight: #2 Joe Frazier 1-0-1 (1) vs Champion James Jeffries 1-0-1 (1)

Referees: Larry Rozadilla (title fight), Mark Green, Bill Clancy
Judges: Larry Doggett, John Keane, Terry O'Connor Alternate: Samuel Condi


Notes: I wasn't thrilled with Frazier getting a rematch already but that's the way the dice fell and I decided not to override it.

If Jeffries wins, he will not fight again until 2001. My rule is that incumbent champions must defend their title a minimum of 2 times in a calendar year. The maximum is 3 title defenses in a calendar year. I will force Frazier to defend the title once before the end of 2000 if he wins.


***I made the decision to have this month's title fight scheduled for 15 rounds. This is something I will do at my discretion and I think it is warranted this time because it is a rematch of a title fight that went the distance and ended in a split draw.***