the referee sucks why did he get stopped he wasnt hurt and mst of calzaghes punches wernt connecting some refs are a joke some will let people fight with blood all over there face and some will stop it absolute disgrace

I wanna know why Frank Warren keeps setting up micky mouse fights? Who in the right mind would of put Manfrado up against Joe? Absolute joke, you can see why Hatton left him now!

Calzaghe should think about going to America to fight some of the greats over there, then he can be called the best in the world!

Amen!

the only reason he stopped it is because 1 of them was unable to defend himself and would look really bad to the referee and there are all these new rules

Hattons big fight in June! Really looking forward to that. Now there is a man who doesn't lack guts.

The problem there is that the best America has to offer in the super-middleweight division are Jeff Lacy and Peter Manfredo. They don't have anyone better. Looking at how dominant Joe was against those two, the rest of America don't even stand a chance of making round 2.

The only fighter at super-middleweight that might challenge him is Denmark's Mikkel Kessler (but people said that about Lacy, and look how that went).

The only thing he can do now is move up to light-heavyweight, but he'd probably dominate there too because the top fighters are all ageing and/or lack the speed to beat him.

He's already proved he's the best time and again, yet for some reason people still aren't satisfied.

Edited at 05:44 Mon 9/04/07 (BST)

I was satisfied when he beat Eubank, and then when he beat Lacy. I don't doubt that he his the best, my point was more a dig at Frank Warren for setting up stupid fights all the time, Joe shouldn't be fighting second rate fighters from no where, it was a money maker, and that's all!

You will find he might have to move up a weight, but there are still people in his division who might challenge him, and i think America has a few more boxers than Lacy and Manfredo.

I'll be satisfied when, he either retires at the top, when there is no one to fight, or he goes out there and fights a 'real' contender again, a little like Hatton, who now will only fight people who he doesn't know if he can beat or not!

Edited at 08:05 Mon 9/04/07 (BST)

You know what I got to say...
He played him by the rules if Manfrado was that good of a boxer he would have punched back!!

I see your point about Warren, and I agree 100%. America isn't the answer though, they really don't have any super-middleweights to challenge him.

The only other American big names I'm aware of are Anthony Hanshaw and Allan Green, but they aren't even up to Manfredo's level never mind Lacy. Andre Dirrell is an unbeaten youngster, but he hasn't fought anyone good yet. The only reason to go to America would be to prove himself to the American public.

Other than Lacy, Mundine from Australia, Berrio from Columbia and a Mexican I've forgotten the name of, all the top super-middleweights are European. Even here in Europe though, the only thing left for him is a title unification fight with WBC and WBA champ Kessler. Bute from Romania and Inkin from Russia are both unbeaten and there's also a couple of Germans and I think a Ukrainian. They would be the toughest fights for him, but I wouldn't say any of them other than Kessler are any better than Lacy.

Him not punching back was precisely why it was stopped. If someone stops throwing punches back at the guy hitting them, any fight gets stopped whether he's getting hurt or not. At the end of the day, the ref doesn't know if he's hurt or not, but not throwing punches sends out the signal that something's wrong.

Manfredo is better than we saw last night though (still not good enough to beat Calzaghe). Personally I think the occasion got to him. In the ring with longest reigning champ in the world, huge pressure from the American media (they pretty much rate the ability of him and Lacy as being on a similar level to Ali, Joe Louis and Rocky Marciano), hostile crowd... etc.

he wasnt hurt though america is different them here if i was any fighter in usa or mexico fight in america dont come to the uk the refs suck ive saw people fight with one eyes shut so how can that fight be stopped with out warning

But he was being punched, and he wasn't doing anything back. What was the ref meant to do? Perhaps a standing 8 count might have been a better idea? But either way if a fighter is being punched and is not defending or reacting, then the ref is bound by rules to stop the fight!

I'm still astonished when people say Klanitchnikov (spelling) could of carried on with Lewis, he'd been picked apart and was getting hammered for ages, yet people still argue he could of carried on and won.

There is always a limit, and it's up to the ref to determine that!

klitshko could of won i reckon valuev would have a fight with klitsko

It's not the visible damage on the surface a ref is worried about when he stops a fight, it's what's happening underneath.

Usually when a boxer doesn't show any signs of defending himself, it's because he's physically unable to because his brain has taken too much of a battering, or sometimes just a lucky hit in the wrong place.

A ref can't really tell why exactly a boxer isn't throwing any punches, but if he lets the fight continue thats when any damage can become permanent. Maybe a standing 8 count would be a better idea, but a ref just standing and watching is just plain wrong. At the end of the day, cuts and bruises heal a lot better than brain damage.

Well I'm not one of them. Personally, I think it was only a matter of time before Lewis put his lights out. Of the Klitschko brothers though, I think Wladimir would have given Lewis a tougher fight than Vitali did. Vitali just had all the hype and media attention at the time so naturally it was him that got the fight.

Totally agree with both your posts schulinder. We all remember what happened in a Benn fight, shows the reality of boxing, these men are not superhuman, and refs have the responsibility to protect both fighters!

yeah he has this problem....he cant walk past a chippy and a pub,(gets a bit of gut then)the guy puts on 2 stone between fights and then gets back to his fighting weight of 10 stone, proper mancunian he is

Edited at 22:32 Tue 10/04/07 (BST)

hatton will have to be on his guarg castillo is a warrior and could beat him

hattons a hattersley lad, you dont get any tougher, or more raw, when you grow up on that estate.

but he is partial too the odd pint and chip shop tea, and considering that, he does very well, as most fighters wont touch ale and a fish supper like he does
purely for fitness, stoppinf alcohol and fat, but the hitman seems to 'pull it off'

Edited at 01:43 Wed 11/04/07 (BST)

I think Hatton will triumph. He is a good lad with alot of heart.