Brick City Boxing

By: Christopher Roche

Lucian Bute is wildly popular in his hometown of Montreal, and his sparkling record has him ranked as the number one super middleweight in the Boxrec compilations. According to Boxrec, Bute is ranked ahead of Jermain Taylor, Carl Froch and Mikkel Kessler.

Despite the high praise, many casual boxing fans have never seen Bute fight, and after he was nearly flattened in the twelfth round against Liberado Andrade back in October, mainstream observers questioned whether Bute was worthy of the accolades he receives.

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Bute, for his part, appears to be an affable showman who is not afraid to face his critics. Before his Showbox bout last night, he did not dodge the questions about his final frame meltdown against Andrade, and he assured the audience he was over it. Against a decent challenger in Fulgencio Zuniga, Bute passed the test and quelled his critics. With one of the more vicious body shots we will see this year, Bute dropped Zuniga and then finished him off in round four. What makes this all the more impressive, is that Zuniga had never been stopped, save for one bout against Kelly Pavlik, which was due to cuts.

So who is Lucian Bute? With his left handed stance, tall frame and in and out style, some might initially liken him to Joe Calzaghe. Like Calzaghe, Bute normally fights in his own backyard; he is very popular, and he has flair as a showman. However, after watching a few of Bute’s fights, I do not see him being nearly as fluid or quick as Joe, and his style is not quite as exciting. Bute is not a human punch machine; he is more methodical but maybe more powerful as well.

Where Bute goes from here, is anyone’s guess, but if he wants to be mentioned as the heir apparent to Calzaghe in the super-middleweight division, then he needs to take on Kessler or the winner of Taylor vs. Froch. If he can emerge victorious from either of those two scenarios, then he will be legitimately crowned as the best super-middleweight in the world.

Barrera vs. Khan

I have a passing interest in this bout, and I have only a few hours to decide if I am going to purchase it. Save for the Big East Tournament, there is nothing on television tonight, so I might watch the delay. If Barrera has anything left, I think he will KO Khan.

Irish Eyes Smiling?

Well, not so much. Irish Ropes Promotions had to cancel their Madison Square Garden show, which was supposed to take place this weekend, and without John Duddy, some are wondering if the company will remain viable.

One show that is coming off tonight is a card up in Dorchester, MA, featuring Patrick Hyland. Boxing manager Brian Burke called the other day to give me the heads up. Burke is very optimistic about Patrick’s future. The Hylands are a fighting family from Ireland, and all of the brothers boast impressive records. For more information on the family, please visit www.thehylandbrothers.com.