The Super Six begins this weekend. Six top Super-Middleweights will contest the tournament - Mikkel Kessler, Carl Froch, Arthur Abraham, Jermain Taylor, Andre Dirrell and Andre Ward. That is three Europeans Vs. three Americans in case you hadn't noticed. Although, this is no boxing Ryder Cup - each man fights for personal glory (and a shit-load of cash).
The series will take a modified round-robin format. Each fighter will engage in three bouts, with the four highest point scorers contesting the semi-final. Fighters will earn three points for a KO, two points for a decision win and one point for a draw. The semi-final will be single-elimination. The Super Six is an intriguing contest and the organisers should be applauded for getting such a good mix of renowned fighters and up-and-comers on board. Although, it's a shame Kelly Pavlik isn't involved - they could have made it the Super 8 and thrown in Paul Williams to boot.
Unfortunately boxing doesn't readily lend itself to extended tournaments and accordingly there are some issues with the format. For example, I don't think it is fair that Andre Dirrell has to face world champion, and Nottingham's favourite son, Carl Froch in his backyard or that Jermain Taylor should fight Arthur Abraham in Berlin. In the interests of fairness each bout should be contested in neutral venues, but screw egalitarianism, the money men realise these established fighters will bring in the most cash in their home towns, so that's where they will fight.
Secondly, the opening round sees each boxer fight three opponents, meaning there will be two contestants that each boxer has avoided and it will vary from man-to-man. This cannot be described as fair - each boxer should have fought all contestants by the end of round one. Is it too much to ask for a boxer to take on five fights in a year and a bit? Possibly. I can see why organisers have decided against it but there is no escaping how unbalanced the Super Six is.
That said, it still promises to be a cracking tournament so here are my opening predictions.
Arthur Abraham vs. Jermain Taylor
The series will take a modified round-robin format. Each fighter will engage in three bouts, with the four highest point scorers contesting the semi-final. Fighters will earn three points for a KO, two points for a decision win and one point for a draw. The semi-final will be single-elimination. The Super Six is an intriguing contest and the organisers should be applauded for getting such a good mix of renowned fighters and up-and-comers on board. Although, it's a shame Kelly Pavlik isn't involved - they could have made it the Super 8 and thrown in Paul Williams to boot.
Unfortunately boxing doesn't readily lend itself to extended tournaments and accordingly there are some issues with the format. For example, I don't think it is fair that Andre Dirrell has to face world champion, and Nottingham's favourite son, Carl Froch in his backyard or that Jermain Taylor should fight Arthur Abraham in Berlin. In the interests of fairness each bout should be contested in neutral venues, but screw egalitarianism, the money men realise these established fighters will bring in the most cash in their home towns, so that's where they will fight.
Secondly, the opening round sees each boxer fight three opponents, meaning there will be two contestants that each boxer has avoided and it will vary from man-to-man. This cannot be described as fair - each boxer should have fought all contestants by the end of round one. Is it too much to ask for a boxer to take on five fights in a year and a bit? Possibly. I can see why organisers have decided against it but there is no escaping how unbalanced the Super Six is.
That said, it still promises to be a cracking tournament so here are my opening predictions.
Arthur Abraham vs. Jermain Taylor
I'm really looking forward to this one, the brawler versus the technician. Abraham might not be pretty to watch but you could never accuse him of failing to excite the punters. He occasionally jabs but on the whole he throws savage but wreckless hooks and uppercuts, which often miss his opponent (it's funny to watch the momentum of these bombs causing him to stagger a couple of steps after he throws). When he is not trying to take opponents heads clean off their shoulders he reverts to a crude, yet effective, defence reminiscent of Mickey Ward, where he places his gloves in front of his head like pillars of stone and uses his elbows to block the body while backing off towards the ropes. Perhaps Abraham's biggest attribute is his heart. This guy famously fought eight rounds with a broken jaw against Edison Miranda.
Taylor is by far the better artisan. Unlike Abraham he can be fleet of foot, knows how to move his head, and can slip punches. He can also build an effective offence around his jab. However, as we saw against Froch, he can also get dragged into brawls and this will suit the Armenian more. There are also big question marks over his mental strength and physical conditioning. I mean, how much does he still want to be in the fight game?
For Taylor to win he will have to be in peak condition, avoid Abraham's haymakers and pound the Armenian when he is in his defensive posture. Most of these shots will not connect cleanly but incrementally, over the course of the fight, they will wear Abraham out. In the later rounds, Taylor may get an opening for a knockout. If not, he will have to hope the judges give a fair reflecion of his superior boxing skills.
For Taylor to win he will have to be in peak condition, avoid Abraham's haymakers and pound the Armenian when he is in his defensive posture. Most of these shots will not connect cleanly but incrementally, over the course of the fight, they will wear Abraham out. In the later rounds, Taylor may get an opening for a knockout. If not, he will have to hope the judges give a fair reflecion of his superior boxing skills.
Unfortunately for 'Bad Intentions', I don't think it will pan out like this. It is possible that an Abraham bomb will KO him in the early rounds but more likely, I suspect, is that Taylor's notorious poor conditioning will play a big part in the later rounds. I predict that despite being up on the cards, a big Abraham punch will rock the American and send him to the canvas. After taking the eight count, the ref will stop the fight after a big Teutonic onslaught. Although it wouldn't surprise me if Abraham knocks him clean out either.
Prediction: Abraham win by TKO late in the fight.
Carl Froch vs. Andre Dirrell
Prediction: Abraham win by TKO late in the fight.
Carl Froch vs. Andre Dirrell
The Super Six may finally bring Froch the attention and acclaim he clearly craves. If Kessler doesn't claim the crown, then I think Froch will. Like Abraham his technique will not win him any prizes but he is a relentless pressure fighter and less skilled opponents simply cave under his ferocious attacks. Dirrell will have to utilize his superior speed and boxing ability to rack up the points. Froch will eat a lot of leather in this fight and his cocky style of leaving his gloves low will not help him but he is the sort of boxer who will take two punches to throw one. Dirrell has the fast hands but I don't think he has the power to knock him out. After all Pascal and Taylor threw everything they had at Froch but still couldn't pull it off. Dirrell has never stepped up and fought an opponent of the Englishman's calibre and I think this will be significant. There's an outside chance he may win a points decision but I think Froch will have too much for him. The American has never lost, so it's very difficult to call, but I'm going with a win for 'The Cobra' by KO.Prediction: Froch win by KO.
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