Four Quartets
By James Blears
Arguably, even the brilliance of TS Eliot`s Four Quartets or Antonio Vivaldi`s Four Seasons can`t compare to the tap of this baton…because, for the first time in the epoch of the four belts, the Super Welterweight Undisputed Crown is there for the staking and taking!
In the one corner, Jermell Charlo aged thirty one of the United States, who holds the WBC, WBA and IBF versions. In the other, Brian Castano of Argentina, who is the WBO Champion. Both men full well know the magnitude of the stakes. One will emerge jubilant with everything, while the other will leave empty handed and bereft.
There`s “Iron Man” Jermell, who has the advantage of fighting on home turf in Lone Star Texas. The venue is the impressive AT&T Stadium in Houston. His legion of fans are hoping and praying the immortal phrase: “Houston we have a problem,” won`t occur!
Jermell physique provides significant advantages. He stands five feet eleven inches tall, and has a seventy three inch reach. He was WBC super-welter champion 2016-2019, until he suffered his sole professional loss to taller, sharp shooting Tony Harrison, who counter punched brilliantly, to snatch the crown by UD by 115-112, 115-113 and 115-113. We can`t dispute the received wisdom of the Judges. But… it was a controversial shocker!
Tony Harrison performed in a cool and unflappable manner, selecting his counter punches with care, accuracy and precision. He caught and taught Jermell coming in, with some clean and thudding eye watering punches. Yet he himself shipped considerable punishment throughout.
I thought Jermell`s never say die, non- stop aggression and best foot forward constant onslaught throughout, signing off with a fabulous twelfth round, deserved the Judges` nod, especially as he was the reigning champion. It was up to Harrison to come and take the title away from him.
But, my elders and betters thought otherwise, and it was clearly reflected in their decisive scores. On that night, Jermell lost his unbeaten record and invincibility, which his older and heavier twin Jermall still possesses and retains. Jermall is still the undefeated WBC middleweight champion. Jermell`s record was blemished.
So Jermell had to undergo a rugged basecamp, with the mountain to climb all over again. In the rematch with Tony, he performed significantly better, with a zest and an irrepressible energy to achieve a career best.
In the second round, he walked through two stinging short rights in the eye of a fierce firefight storm, and knocked Tony down with a huge left hook, just before the bell. From then, on Jermell never let up in his quest for vindication.
Mustering all of his willpower, verve, skills and firepower he decked Tony twice in the eleventh. Again with the left hook and Tony got up badly hurt and down he went again from a fuselage. Jermell then poured it on with uppecuts and an avalanche of unanswered power shots, and Referee Jack Reiss intervened to stop it at two minutes and twenty eight seconds. Jermell`s twin Jermall was there from start to finish ringside, willing him on, cheering him on and embracing him, after he won his second championship. It was zenith triumph. The summit of glory!
On to Jeison “Banana” Rosario, who held the IBF version of the title. Rejuvenated, inspired and reinvigorated, Jermell faced one tough fight against the tall elegant, poker faced Dominican, who assiduously worked behind his long snaking left jab. Rosario was felled by that signature left hook in round one. Visibly hurt and mightily surprised, he regrouped and fought back with consummate skill plus determination.
Then in the sixth Jermell once again applied that left hook, and down slid “Banana.” A huge sinking left hook to the solar plexus dropped Jeison in the eighth. Wincing in considerable pain, he was unable to beat Referee Harvey Dock`s count.
In this upcoming Fight For Four, Jermell faces a shorter swarming fighter, who cuts distance and blasts away with a two fisted attack. Unlike Jermell (35-1, 18 KO`s), Brian Castano from Argentina is undefeated and comes with everything he`s got to try and make sure it stays that way.
Brian, also aged thirty one who`s nicknamed “Ray Sugar” picks his punches and holds his gloves cupped high. He`s not as easy a target, as it would first appear. He stands only five feet seven and a half inches tall, with a relatively short sixty seven inch reach (the same as the Great Rocky Marciano). His record stands at 18-0-1, with twelve KO`s.
To become WBO champion, he defeated southpaw Patrick Teixeira over twelve rugged rounds to win a UD. Brian constantly avoided the long right southpaw lead of the much taller man, moved in to negate that wingspan advantage aimed at him, and hammered away. In so doing, he artfully slipped and deflected many of the punches, in order to deliver his own clubbers.
Fully aware of Jermell`s one punch knockdown power capacity, Brian has been working on his defense and for him the opportunities for success involve lessening the distance to transform this into a brawl, trying to force and oblige Jermell, who`s an attack mode fighter, on to the unaccustomed back foot.
Brian insists he`s constantly in the gym and in so doing avoids ring rust. To remove the luster from Jermell, he must force the pace and prevent the younger twin gaining bombardment leverage from middle range.
Jermell doesn`t rush in where angels fear to tread. He boxes with care plus patience, to find and gain openings. He is going to use his height and reach advantage to try and prevent close quarter fighting and with it untidy, messy as well as costly clinches.
Both men are peaking at the top of their game, if it`s permissible to use such a term in a sport which at this level or any other, involves very little mucking around.
Brian`s best ploy will to try and withstand an early onslaught, with the very real danger of an ensuing blitz, so as to drag it out and down deep to the later rounds in a test of supreme stamina. It`s unlikely he has the firepower to hammer Jermell down. But nothing is impossible, with the glittering belts there to have and hold.
Jermell`s best plan is to hurt the smaller man by moving in, and to back him up on to the ropes, unleashing heavy combos. Fighting a stocky, smaller man can present its problems. Jermell must resolve this early on, by using his already famed power.
Whoever wins this, will hold aloft all four belts, and then, there might well be the opportunity to move up two divisions for a gigantic payday fighting WBC super-middleweight Saul “Canelo.” For the loser, because in boxing there`s never a runner up or a sub-campeon…one long road back. In everyday life, thirty one is young. In boxing it`s already getting on a bit. Whoever loses might well grow old overnight?
As Oscar Wilde once reflected: “The tragedy of growing old is not that one is old, but that one is young!”
WORLD BOXING COUNCIL
Jose Sulaimán WBC HONORARY POSTHUMOUS LIFETIME PRESIDENT (+)
Mauricio Sulaimán
WBC PRESIDENT WBC STATS
WBC SUPERWELTERWEIGHT TITLE CHAMPIONSHIP
AT & T CENTERSAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, UNITED STATES
JULY 17, 2021
TV: PANAMA RPC CHANNEL 4 / USA SHOWTIMEARGENTINA TyC SPORTS
THIS WILL BE WBC’S 2,113 CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE FIGHT IN THE FIFTY-EIGHT YEAR HISTORY OF THE WBC
TOM BROWN & TGB PROMOTIONS, PRESENT:
JERMELL CHARLO
(US)
WBC CHAMPION
Date of Birth: May 19, 1990
Birthplace: Richmond, Texas
Residence: Houston, Texas
Age: 31
Nick Name: ‘Iron Man’
Record: 34-1-0, 18 ko’s
KO’S %: 51.5%
Guard: Orthodox
Total rounds: 234
World Title fights: 7 (6-1-0)
Trainer: Derrick James
Manager: Al Haymon
BRIAN CARLOS CASTAÑO
(ARGENTINA)
WBO CHAMPION
Date of Birth: September 12, 1989
Birthplace: Isidro Casanova, Buenos Aires
Residence: Isidro Casanova, Buenos Aires
Age: 31
Nick Name: ‘El Boxi’
Record: 17-0-1, 12 ko’s
KO’S: 66.7%
Guard: Orthodox
Total rounds: 108
World Title fights: 5 (4-0-1)
Trainer: Carlos Castaño
Manager: Sebastian Contursi
WBC´S SUPERWELTERWEIGHT WORLD CHAMPIONS
NAME PERIODO CHAMPION NAME PERIODO CHAMPION
- DENNY MOYER (US) (+) 1963
- RAPH DUPAS (US) (+) 1963
- SANDRO MAZZINGHI (ITALY) 1963 – 1965
- NINO BENVENUTI (ITALY) 1965 – 1966
- KISOO KIM (KOREA) (+) 1966 – 1968
- SANDRO MAZZINGHI (ITALY) * 1968
- FRED LITTLE (US) 1969 – 1970
- CARMELO BOSSI (ITALY) 1970 – 1971
- KOICHI WAJIMA (JAPAN) 1971 – 1974
- OSCAR ALBARADO (US) 1974 – 1975
- KOICHI WAJIMA (JAPAN) * 1975
- MIGUEL DE OLIVEIRA (BRAZIL) 1975
- ELISHA OBED (BAHAMAS) 1975 – 1976
- ECKHARD DAGGE (GER) (+) 1976 – 1977
- ROCCO MATTIOLI (ITALY) 1977 – 1979
- MAURICE HOPE (GB) 1979 – 1981
- WILFREDO BENITEZ (P. RICO) 1981 – 1982
- THOMAS HEARNS (US) 1982 – 1986
- DUANE THOMAS (US) (+) 1986 – 1987
- LUPE AQUINO (MEXICO) 1987
- GIANFRANCO ROSI (ITALY) 1987 – 1988
- DON CURRY (US) 1988 – 1989
- RENE JACQUOT (FRANCE) 1989
- JOHN MUGABI (UGANDA) 1989 – 1990
- TERRY NORRIS (US) 1990 – 1993
- SIMON BROWN (JAMAICA) 1993 – 1994
- TERRY NORRIS (US) * 1994
- LUIS SANTANA (DOM R.) 1994 – 1995
- TERRY NORRIS (US) * 1995 – 1997
- KEITH MULLINGS (US) 1997 – 1999
- J. CASTILLEJO (SPAIN) 1999 – 2001
- OSCAR DE LA HOYA (US-MEX) 2001 – 2003
- J. CASTILLEJO (SPAIN) * 2002 – 2003
- SHANE MOSLEY (US) 2003 – 2004
- RON WRIGHT (US) 2004
- RICARDO MAYORGA (NIC.) 2005 – 2006
- OSCAR DE LA HOYA (US-MEX) * 2006 – 2007
- FLOYD MAYWEATHER JR. (US) 2007
- VERNON FORREST (US) (+) 2007 – 2008
- SERGIO MORA (US) 2008
- VERNON FORREST (US) * 2008
- SERGIO MARTINEZ (ARG) 2008 – 2009
- MANNY PACQUIAO (PHIL) 2010
- SAUL ALVAREZ (MEXICO) 2011 – 2013
- FLOYD MAYWEATHER JR. (US) * 2013-2015
- JERMELL CHARLO (US) 2016-2018
- TONY HARRISON (US) 2018 – 2019
- JERMELL CHARLO (US)* 2019-
* REGAINED
WBC´S SUPERWELTERWEIGHT TOP TEN CHAMPIONS
- FLOYD MAYWEATHER JR. (US)
- OSCAR DE LA HOYA (MEXICO/US)
- TERRY NORRIS (US)
- RON WRIGHT (US)
- SERGIO MARTINEZ (ARGENTINA)
- NINO BENVENUTI (ITALY)
- SIMON BROWN (JAMAICA/US)
- SHANE MOSLEY (US)
- VERNON FORREST (US)
- MANNY PACQUIAO (PHIL)
GENERAL INFORMATION ON THE SUPERWELTERWEIGHT DIVISION IN THE HISTORY OF THE WBC
39 WORLD CHAMPIONS RECOGNIZED BY THE WBC OF WHICH ONLY 8 HAVE REGAINED THEIR TITLE:
SANDRO MAZZINGHI (ITALY)
KOICHI WAJIMA (JAPAN)
TERRY NORRIS (US)
FRANCISCO J. CASTILLEJO (SPAIN)
OSCAR DE LA HOYA (US-MEX)
VERNON FORREST (US)
FLOYD MAYWEATHER JR. (US)
JERMELL CHARLO (US)
123 TITLE BOUTS HAVE BEEN HELD IN SUPERWELTERWEIGHT DIVISION IN THE HISTORY OF THE WBC.
THIS WILL BE THE 63rd TITLE FIGHT OF WHICH HAVE TAKEN PLACE IN UNITED STATES ON SUPERWELTERWEIGHT DIVISION IN THE HISTORY OF THE WBC
WORLD SUPERWELTERWEIGHT TITLE BOUTS BY COUNTRY IN WBC HISTORY:
USA 62
ITALY 13
JAPAN 11
SPAIN 8
MEXICO 6
FRANCE 6
GERMANY 5
KOREA 3
ENGLAND 3
AUSTRALIA 2
MONACO 1
IVORY COAST 1
HAWAII 1
BAHAMAS ISLANDS 1
TOTAL 123
73 WORLD TITLE FIGHTS HAVE BEEN HELD IN TEXAS STATE IN THE WBC HISTORY
8 TITLE FIGHTS IN THE SUPERWELTERWEIGHT DIVISION HAVE TAKEN PLACE IN TEXAS STATE IN THE HISTORY OF THE WBC AND THIS WILL BE THE 73 rd WBC TITLE FIGHTS IN TEXAS STATE IN THE HISTORY OF THE WBC
FIGHTS BY DIVISION IN TEXAS STATE IN THE WBC HISTORY
FEATHER 13
LIGHT 9
SUPERWELTER 8
WELTER 8
MIDDLE 6
SUPERFEATHER 6
SUPERLIGHT 5
SUPERBANTAM 5
HEAVY 4
SUPERMIDDLE 3
SUPERFLY 3
FLY 2
BANTAM 1
TOTAL FIGHTS 73
