Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, Wales, Great Britain, 7th Avril 07
Calzaghe a Class Apart PA Sports
Joe Calzaghe taught 'Contender' star Peter Manfredo a violent lesson in the
reality of world championship boxing with an emphatic third-round stoppage
victory at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium. Calzaghe successfully defended his
WBO super-middleweight title for the 20th time, an accomplishment which saw
him equal the records of fellow greats Larry Holmes and Bernard Hopkins. In
front of a record indoor crowd of around 35,000, Calzaghe blazed out for the
third round and rained a seemingly endless supply of hooks down upon hapless Manfredo.Watching closely as the 26-year-old challenger gamely attempted to
stay on his feet, referee Terry O'Connor had finally seen enough at one minute
30 seconds of the round and waved the contest off. While such a quick win had
always been expected for Calzaghe, of equal importance was its manner which
cannot fail to have impressed his influential paymasters on both sides of the
Atlantic. In truth, having starred in the first series of the popular US reality TV
boxing show, Manfredo had come to Cardiff with a broadcast appeal far
outweighing his pure boxing credentials. Successive knockout wins over Scott
Pemberton and Joe Spina just about earned him his shot but few if any outside
his camp gave the Providence native a realistic shot. At least Manfredo went out
on his feet, but the manner of Calzaghe's win underlined that the 35-year-old
belongs in a different league to almost all the current crop of 12-stone
contenders. One exception is unbeaten WBA champion Mikkel Kessler, the Dane
who has also been promoted by Home Box Office and would certainly pose a
sterner test in a possible super-fight to come. Despite Manfredo's questionable
qualities, this was a clever fight for Calzaghe, designed to impress an American
audience granted a rare free-to-air glimpse of the Welshman via the Home Box
Office network. And the challenger played his part too in the opening round,
scoring with a clean right hook and largely keeping the champion at bay with
his strength whenever he came into range. Calzaghe dug home a couple of
hurtful right hooks to the body at the start of the second and continued to flick
jabs through Manfredo's guard as he began to take control of the fight.
The champion seized upon his advantage early in the third, cracking home a magnificent right to tee up a sustained period of punishment which had
Manfredo desperately seeking to maintain his guard. Scenting another dramatic
quick win, Calzaghe blazed away with both hands, and the intervention of
O'Connor was not unduly protested by the Manfredo corner. Calzaghe told ITV:
"It's amazing (to be in Cardiff) for my 20th defence in this amazing arena. "I
paid my dues for a long time and this is what dreams are made of - and there's
more to come yet." Calzaghe admitted that the stoppage may have come a
little early but was certain he would have knocked his opponent out given the
chance. "I think you could make a case that it was stopped slightly prematurely
but if it hadn't have been then I'd have stopped him by the fourth. "The referee
saved him from more punishment. Up close he was going (down) and in the
next 20 or 30 seconds I'd have floored him. "It looked like the ropes were
keeping him up. "I'm always supremely confident of my abilities but even at 35,
you're still learning." Manfredo was unhappy at the referee's decision to stop
the fight when he did. He told ITV: "I was hanging in there, trying to get my
rhythm going, and the fight was stopped too soon. There was no warning or
anything. "Joe is the best and I wanted to feel my way and find my rhythm but
I couldn't get it going. He picked up the pace and got me in a corner. He has
fast hands but not much power. I've been hit by bigger punches. I was never
hurt and it (the stoppage) was too quick. "It just wasn't my night tonight and I
guess I am not ready for this league yet but it's a learning experience."