I continue my list of fights I watched on HBO over the years.
81. Michael Grant vs. Lou Savarese. June 19, 1999. As I watched this bout from Madison Square Garden on a stormy night in south Jersey, I was curious to see how Michael Grant would perform against a solid professional like Lou Savarese. The 6′ 7″ fighter from Pennsylvania did well, and won most of the rounds enroute to a unanimous ten round decision. Whether or not Grant would win the title or not, was an entirely different story.
82. Michael Grant vs. Andrew Golota. November 20, 1999. This one took place the night before I ran the Philadelphia Marathon, so I had my mine on that more than anything. It appeared it might be a short night for Michael, when Golota put him on the deck twice in the opening round, but Grant survived. After both men were deducted points for low blows, Michael rallied, and put Golota down in the tenth. In another act of cowardice, Golota arose and simply quit, without a fight. It proved to me that he was a dog, and the rest of his career showed me I was right. As far as the marathon the next day, I was proud that I finished in just about my goal time. At 217 lbs., and despite the fact I had never run more than 13 miles before, I completed the Philadelphia Marathon.
83. Roy Jones Jr. vs David Telesco. January 15, 2000. This one was historic because it was the first time a professional boxing match was held at Radio City Music Hall in New York. I remember Jones appearing behind a curtain on the side of the theatre, and following some rapper into the ring. Telesco had been heralded as a tough contender, but Roy played with him, and easily won another twelve round decision. In his first bout of the new millennium, Jones proved he was still the best fighter on the planet.
84. Oscar De La Hoya vs. Derrell Coley. February 26, 2000. In his first time in the ring since losing a controversial bout to Felix Trinidad the previous September, the ‘Golden Boy’ looked sharp in his fight in Madison Square Garden against Coley. The challenger performed well at times until the seventh round, when Oscar stopped him with a body shot. The victory set up a huge fight against Shane Mosley in June, one I certainly looked forward to.
85. Chris Byrd vs. Vitali Klitschko. April 1, 2000. This one from Berlin, Germany was for Klitschko’s lightly regarded WBO title. He had knocked out Herbie Hide to win the belt, and this defense against Byrd was supposed to be easy. Byrd proved an elusive target, but Vitali still won most every round. At the end of the ninth, he complained that he had injured his rotator cuff, and quit on the stool. All he had to do was walk around for three more rounds to retain his championship, but instead quit. HBO commentator Larry Merchant echoed my sentiments, and I lost whatever respect I had for the guy that night in Germany.
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