- 7/14/2025
Undefeated Heavyweight Chris Byrd takes on Jimmy Thunder on HBO Boxing After Dark. Plus an interview with Prince Naseem Hamed.
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00:00In our 25th year, the following is a special presentation of HBO Sports.
01:30A heavyweight doubleheader.
01:31First, undefeated Chris Byrd meets Jimmy Thunder.
01:35And then former heavyweight champion Tim Witherspoon faces the newly revived Larry Donald.
01:41The giant Foxwoods Resort Casino in the wilds of Connecticut on the Mashantucket Pequot Indian Reservation.
01:50Four heavyweights having come here in search of greater point fame and perhaps down the road greater fortune in the heavyweight division.
01:59The first two fighters in the ring and all ready to fight right now.
02:02And we add this shot as a tribute to those of you who've just enjoyed the HBO original picture, Breast Men.
02:08And the crowd fills the tiny arena here at the Foxwoods Resort Casino.
02:15Hello again, everybody. I'm Jim Lafley.
02:18We welcome you to this latest edition of the Ultimate Counterculture Boxing Telecast, HBO's Boxing After Dark.
02:23Two heavyweight fights tonight, both of which observe the same style contrast profile.
02:29A heavier puncher, Jimmy Thunder, Tim Witherspoon, against a slicker, more defensively oriented boxer, Chris Byrd, Larry Donald.
02:37Working with me as always, HBO Boxing Analyst Larry Merchant.
02:41Larry, aside from the fact that we're hopeful of seeing a couple of pretty good fights,
02:44how do these two heavyweight tussles fit into the larger picture of the heavyweight division?
02:50Jim, the larger picture in the heavyweight division is like a Jackson Pollock painting.
02:54It's confusing and chaotic.
02:56The paint has been thrown at the canvas.
02:58And as a, for instance, Henry Akawande, who was disqualified from a championship fight with Lennox Lewis last July
03:06for an inept, terrible, disgusting performance, is now a mandatory challenger for the heavyweight title again.
03:16Given that, given that it hardly matters whether you win or lose sometimes in the heavyweight division,
03:22these fights can be meaningful.
03:24And three of the four fighters tonight are ranked in the top ten in somebody's rankings.
03:31The way I deal with all of this, Jim, is to look at the little picture.
03:34I'm just hoping we get a good fight.
03:36Well, and a lot of people would say that in the first of the two fights, we'll be lucky to get a good one
03:41because it features the man regarded by many now as the most unwatchable of all successful heavyweights,
03:47unbeaten young prospect, Chris Byrd.
03:49Now, it's interesting, as we turn to world light heavyweight champion Roy Jones,
03:52who has spoken frequently in the past about the possibility of moving up to fight as a heavyweight,
03:57that we're about to watch Chris Byrd, who won a silver medal at the 1992 Olympics fighting at 165 pounds,
04:04to the surprise of almost everybody, moved up and became a heavyweight as a professional,
04:08and he's unbeaten mostly by avoiding punches.
04:11Do you take any special interest in watching Chris tonight, Roy?
04:14I take any special interest in him because he moved up from 165 pounds,
04:18which is something I would like to do, but I don't have the body frame, the height that he had to do it,
04:22and be quite as successful at doing it over a period of time.
04:25However, I think the only thing that he's missing is a home run hit.
04:29He doesn't throw that home run punch that makes people want to see him over and over and over again.
04:34He outboxes a lot of guys, but he needs to work on building up that punch.
04:38Chris Byrd going against a home run puncher tonight, who also strikes out a great deal.
04:42And we'll take a look at Byrd, whose professional record shows 22 wins, no losses, not a lot of power, as you'll see.
04:5012 KOs, 92 Olympic silver medalists at 165 pounds.
04:53The opponent across the ring is the other New Zealand heavyweight besides the well-known David Tua.
05:00Jimmy Thunder, like Tua, has his roots in Samoa, grew up in Auckland, New Zealand.
05:05He says that a fight between him and Tua would fill an outdoor stadium in Auckland or Christchurch.
05:10He's won 32, lost 8, 26 by KOs.
05:13When he doesn't get a KO, he struggles, because by no means is he the kind of boxer that Chris Byrd is.
05:20Both fighters in the ring already.
05:24And we bring you the tale of the tape between Chris Byrd and Jimmy Thunder,
05:27and you'll see that Byrd has grown to weigh 215 pounds.
05:32He says, I'm like Muhammad Ali. He doesn't swat like Ali, at least not yet.
05:37Four-year age advantage for Byrd, two-inch reach advantage for Thunder,
05:40who weighed in at 230 and must produce Thunder to win the fight.
05:44Rules of the bout with our ringside judge, Harold Letterman.
05:46The Chris Byrd-Jimmy Thunder fight is scheduled for 10 rounds.
05:50There is no standing eight count, no three-knockdown rule.
05:53Only the referee can stop the fight, and you cannot be saved by the bell in any round,
05:58including the 10th and final round. Jim.
06:00All right, Harold, let's go to ring announcer Ed Darian.
06:03Darian, for the pre-fight introductions.
06:06We are live from Foxwoods Resort Casino here in Mashantucket, Connecticut.
06:11For its HBO's Boxing After Dark is being promoted by Main Events Fight Night.
06:19In association with Foxwoods Resort Casino and Budweiser, the King of Beers,
06:26is sanctioned by the Mashantucket-Pequot Tribal Nation Gaming and Athletic Commission.
06:33Its chairman, Robert Hayward, vice chairman, Roy Butler.
06:36Commissioner is Bill Hickey, and the executive director is John Meskill.
06:41Our chief physician in attendance at ringside this evening is Dr. Michael Schwartz,
06:46along with his two fine associates, Dr. Joseph Carpentiery and Dr. Anthony Alessi.
06:53Our judges for this scheduled 10-round heavyweight bout,
06:57Glenn Feldman, William Hutt, and Clark Sammartino.
07:01Now, in the ring at this time, the man in charge of the scheduled 10-round heavyweight bout,
07:07double S, referee Steve Smoger.
07:10And now, my good friends, introducing the principals.
07:14First in the red corner, wearing the white trunks with the black trim.
07:19He weighed in at an even 230 pounds.
07:23Now, this veteran pugilist has 32 wins, 8 losses, with 26 knockouts.
07:29All the way from Auckland, New Zealand, and now making his home in Las Vegas, Nevada.
07:36Ladies and gentlemen, let's welcome Jimmy Thundair from Down Under.
07:42Thundair.
07:44And his opponent in the blue corner, wearing the red trunks with the white trim.
07:50He weighed in at an even 215 pounds.
07:53Now, this fella is undefeated in 22 pro bouts with 12 knockouts.
07:59He is currently racked number 8 by the IBS from Flint, Michigan.
08:04Ladies and gentlemen, here is Chris Bird.
08:09Bird.
08:10All right, Jimmy and Chris, you were giving your instructions and addressing it.
08:22I want you to obey my commands at all times, protect yourself at all times, and respect the belt.
08:27Touch plugs.
08:27God bless.
08:30Hey, hey, hey.
08:31One of the things about Bird, Jim, is you can't insult him by calling him boring, because to him, boring means he's won the fight.
08:41Let's see if he can modify his profile as he has promised in this fight.
08:47Jimmy Thunder likes to start very fast.
08:49He knocked out Crawford Grimsley in 13 seconds with one overhand right.
08:55But Bird is not easily found, and Thunder doesn't find him with his first long walk across the ring.
09:02Body shots by Thunder.
09:03The first landed punches at the bout.
09:05These are the type of fighters that Bird wants to fight.
09:09Chris Bird knocks Jimmy Thunder down with a left.
09:16And Deslin, we told you he was boring.
09:19He makes it exciting.
09:20These are the kind of guys he wants to fight.
09:22These big punches.
09:23They're tailor-made for him.
09:24He's an excellent boxer, and this is where he gets to use his speed and his skill to outflorn him.
09:28Now, it's interesting.
09:31You see Thunder going almost exclusively to the body early.
09:34Thunder's trainer, Eddie Mustafa Mohammed, said,
09:36Hey, Bird moves a lot, but he moves his head all the time.
09:40Doesn't move his body that much.
09:41Guys make the mistake of trying to go up top against him.
09:44They should throw nothing but body punches.
09:46Thunder's landing some early on.
09:49One thing he also found out, Thunder, is that you can't just run into a guy,
09:53no matter whether he's supposed to punch or not.
09:55When the gloves are this small, everybody can punch to a degree.
09:58Well, he was just squared up to him, and he was off balance,
10:02and he just got knocked out, knocked out.
10:05Obviously, the punch didn't hurt him at all.
10:09The Thunder's body shots could make a difference in this bout
10:12if he continues to land them at this rate.
10:16Because how's he going to keep throwing them at this rate?
10:19A good question.
10:20He seems to be tired a little bit already.
10:28Should be.
10:29With that kind of punch output, he was throwing punches at 100 punch per round rate,
10:33almost all of them body shots.
10:35Chris Bird having weathered the early storm,
10:37and scored an early knockout against Jimmy Thunder.
10:41Looks to get his own jab going.
10:43Thunder drives him back into the ropes with body shots.
10:45Early knockdown.
10:46Early knockdown, yes.
10:47And, Larry, I think that Chris Bird is truly hurting Thunder with these head shots.
10:57And he's also taking some good shots from Thunder.
11:01This is an interesting round because both fighters have made so much contact,
11:05and that's not what we expected would be the case.
11:16Thunder keeps walking in like this.
11:17He's going to get knocked out because Chris is much too skilled for him to just walk in defensive.
11:22So you have a lot of respect for Chris's boxing skill.
11:25Yes, his whole family's been in boxing since he was a little kid.
11:27You can't help but to respect a family like this.
11:30His father's well-schooled, and, I mean, you can't help but to know that this is what this kid did his entire life.
11:35He grew up sparring with his brothers in an 8-foot-by-8-foot enclosed room in the basement of his house,
11:42and says that his great defensive skills came from fighting in that tiny ring.
11:47So that should tell you right there.
11:48Don't lay on the ropes too hard.
12:01When you're back hit, you cut your butt in there, okay?
12:04Don't lay on the ropes long.
12:05Spin back out and get right back on it, okay?
12:09You get right back.
12:10Touch it to the body.
12:11You can't miss.
12:11Leave the right hand alone.
12:13Hit him to the body with both hands.
12:15If you're on to the ropes, you sit and fire both torpedoes to the body, all right?
12:21Hit him on the arms, hit him in the wrist, in the body.
12:24That's all you got to do.
12:25Touch him with your feet.
12:26There you see Chris Bird.
12:29The gazelle turned into a lion momentarily as he caught thunder squared up.
12:36Knocked him on the seat of his pants.
12:39All right, corner.
12:40Top of Bird.
12:41Eddie.
12:42He's going to hold boxing back there.
12:44By CompuBox count, Jimmy Thunder threw 85 punches in round one.
12:4983 of them power shots.
12:52He only threw a couple of jabs.
12:54And, of course, landed 34 punches, almost all of them to the body.
12:57You heard Eddie Mustafa Mohammed telling Jimmy Thunder between rounds,
13:00forget about his head, just keep hitting his body with both hands.
13:04He caused them torpedoes.
13:06His dad was a Navy man, so that's where his terminology comes from.
13:11Chris Bird lands a straight left hand.
13:14Watch your heads going in, fellas.
13:25One thing Bird does very spectacular to me is he gets his hands far out in front of him
13:34so he can deal with the punches long before they reach a danger zone on him.
13:38Most fighters don't do this, but this is a very good tactic.
13:41Good three-punch combination by Chris Bird there.
13:44Thunder, who threw 85 punches in round one, won't throw 40 in this round at this pace.
13:51Is that one of the reasons, Roy, that he doesn't have power in his punches, that his arms are extended like that?
13:57No, that's not a reason that he doesn't have power.
13:59He doesn't have power because he doesn't choose to be a power puncher, and he doesn't sit down on the punches.
14:03But this makes people like Thunder not want to punch when they're sitting outside because he doesn't see an opening.
14:08All he sees is two gloves in front of his gloves.
14:10So he thinks there are no openings there, and he won't be so quick to throw punches, especially big punches.
14:16Bird again able to land one-two.
14:18Right jab, left cross, straight down the pipe.
14:21But Thunder, as you can see, does not defend himself very well.
14:27Got no head movement to speak of.
14:39And whenever Thunder stops his head moving, Bird fires the jab on the left cross.
14:44I tell you what, and Bird is hurting Thunder with those left body shots.
14:46Every time he hits them, we hear him grunt way over here.
14:48It's a whole different Jimmy Thunder in round two.
15:10And therefore, Bird is able to fight an entirely different fight.
15:13And he's landing accurately and precisely throughout the round.
15:16Jimmy Thunder seems to have thrown everything he had early.
15:25He doesn't seem to have a whole lot of power left.
15:29Thunder lands a shot to the body.
15:30Bird lands one up top.
15:32If you've been watching the sport long, you know what the judges prefer.
15:37It's very hard to win fights with body punches if you're not able to break your opponent down
15:41and get him to the head eventually.
15:42Because they're mainly a good investment for the later rounds.
15:46Take the power out of the guy, make him tired from beatings by the early,
15:49and it usually helps you in the late rounds.
15:51A little smile for Bird at the end of the round, who seems to believe that he can fire that left hand
15:58and land it when he wants to.
15:59Tim Witherspoon warming up in his dressing room.
16:02We're told that Witherspoon's handlers left his boxing shoes in his hotel room,
16:08and somebody has been sent off now to gather the shoes.
16:11The hope would be that we don't get a quick knockout in this fight,
16:15which might bring Witherspoon to the ring, their foot.
16:19That would be good that I taught you in the gym.
16:22This guy does.
16:22Every time you hit him in the body, you hurt him.
16:24You're not doing anything.
16:26Step to the man, step to your left, and you step to him,
16:28and keep the jab going, and work to the body.
16:30Stop backing up on the man.
16:31You're going to lose yourself in there.
16:33Stop backing up.
16:33Keep touching him with the jab, and work to the man's body.
16:36Let both hands go.
16:37Stop waiting for him.
16:37All right.
16:39Don't take a lunge, is he?
16:41Yep.
16:42Okay.
16:46Chris Bird with his father, Joe Bird, the only trainer he's ever had,
16:51and he says, the only trainer I'll ever have is my dad.
16:54Jimmy Thunder, working with Eddie Mustafa Mohammed,
16:57is the seventh trainer of his career.
17:00Thunder, 85 punches thrown in the first round, 36 in the second.
17:04Now he comes out and begins the second round,
17:07or the third round,
17:08as though he wants to go back to the tempo he established in round one.
17:11Why is Bird like to lay in the corners?
17:14Because he can protect himself from the big punches.
17:17When a guy has you calling,
17:18he usually want to tee off and throw big punches at you.
17:21If you're comfortable, and if you have a good defense,
17:23you don't have to worry about it,
17:24because you're going to see everything coming.
17:26You just make them wear themselves out trying to hit you,
17:28and they're not going to land much.
17:29The ropes keep you from falling,
17:30so you're not going to fall back and lose balance.
17:32You can support the punches, you can block,
17:34and the ropes serve as support when you're defending against a big guy.
17:38Bird parrying Thunder's weak jab,
17:40and then countering twice to his face.
17:43The tables are turned,
17:44as Thunder backs around into the corner,
17:46and Bird lands a couple of body shots.
17:48And then the big punches,
17:49they don't like to be in the corner,
17:50because they feel intimidated,
17:51because they think this is where they want a guy at.
17:53So they figure if it's reversed,
17:55then they're in a bad situation.
17:56All right, well, one thing we're certainly seeing early
17:59is that Bird has great ring intelligence
18:02and uses it at all times.
18:03Yes, he does.
18:09Witherspoon's shoes have arrived in his dressing room, we're told.
18:14He might need them tonight to catch up with Larry Donald.
18:17That's right.
18:18Might want track shoes.
18:19Bird, laser-like accuracy with the left hand.
18:38Lands another right and a left on the face of Jimmy Thunder.
18:42Thunder seemingly startled by Bird's punching quickness and accuracy.
18:49Thunder looks like an Easter Island statue,
18:56and he fights like one sometimes.
19:00His eyes are starting to twirl a little.
19:02Yep, he's getting tattooed.
19:12So even though Bird doesn't pack much of a wallop,
19:15he shows you that accurate shark punching
19:18means something regardless of whether you have great power.
19:21It means a lot.
19:23With a guy like Jimmy Thunder,
19:24you can have seven or eight trainers,
19:26but if you're used to going out there and knocking a guy out,
19:28and once this guy sticks around and passes that point,
19:30you feel intimidated,
19:32and you feel as though your fight is over.
19:34Did you see Bird faint thunder with his head
19:36and then fire a punch almost like a look-away pass in basketball?
19:40Yes, he did.
19:40That was slick.
19:43Very slick.
19:51A no-look punch.
19:57A little more too much,
19:58you end up getting cut in the head,
20:00but okay,
20:01you got to keep the punch.
20:03You throw it one,
20:03two and stop him.
20:04Go with the four,
20:05five.
20:06Until he tie up or tie him up,
20:08okay?
20:08Go with the seven of the punches.
20:12Let's don't go with one.
20:17Let's don't go with a one punch.
20:19Like I said,
20:19I don't hit him.
20:19I'm glad I was.
20:20Throw four,
20:21five punches when you got it going.
20:23And watch out for the wild punch.
20:25That's all you got to look out for the wild punch.
20:27Here you see Bird
20:29making thunder look
20:31like an oaf
20:33with the quickness of his hands.
20:36And here it is in real speed.
20:38Bird
20:39laser-like accuracy
20:41with the
20:41Eddie,
20:42pop a Bird.
20:46By CompuBox count
20:47in round three,
20:48Bird landed
20:4961% of his punches.
20:5137 out of 61.
20:53Thunder,
20:5417 of 64,
20:56not making nearly
20:57the same impact.
20:58So round four begins
21:03and
21:03Thunder tries to follow
21:05Eddie Mustafa Muhammad's instructions
21:07to go to the body.
21:13Harold Letterman,
21:13how'd you score it through the first three?
21:15Jim,
21:15three rounds to nothing,
21:1630 to 26,
21:18Chris Bird.
21:18Jim,
21:19I think he's a pretty fighter.
21:20Really,
21:20he's got all the moves.
21:21One thing I have to disagree with you, Jim,
21:23he'd get punched to the body all night.
21:25He doesn't have to throw a head punch
21:26and he'd win every round of my card.
21:28I mean,
21:28really,
21:29you don't have to punch to the head
21:30because he does everything you have to do
21:31to win a fight.
21:32That double jab is beautiful.
21:34He spins out of the corner beautifully
21:35and he's just tattooing Jimmy Thunder.
21:37But,
21:37Harold,
21:38you do pay attention to body punches
21:40and you know,
21:40doggone good and well,
21:41there are a lot of judges who don't.
21:43Well,
21:43hopefully we have experienced judges
21:45in major fights.
21:45I mean,
21:46you know,
21:46we had a long discussion about that
21:48after the former thing.
21:49I think that the judges working tonight
21:50are experienced enough
21:51to recognize good body shots.
21:53I hope so.
22:02Bird with another one-two.
22:04Landed the left behind Thunder's ear.
22:06As if all of Bird's other attributes
22:21weren't enough to twist you in
22:24more different directions
22:25than you'd like to be twisted in.
22:26He's a southpaw to boot.
22:29It's almost unfair.
22:32Well,
22:32he's starting to really get to Jimmy
22:33a little bit now
22:34because Jimmy is snoring
22:35and Bird is still just as quick
22:36as he was.
22:37And actually,
22:38he's going to speed up
22:38a little bit
22:39and it has to be
22:40disencouraging to Jimmy
22:41because he can't hit him.
22:43He's trying everything.
22:44He just can't seem to land
22:45a solid punch on Bird.
22:46Touch the man, James.
22:47Touch the man.
22:57He's playing with him.
22:58Get him.
22:59Right there,
22:59right there,
23:00baby.
23:00Get that into the wood.
23:01Come on.
23:03Have a wait.
23:04Have a wait.
23:05crowd getting more action
23:32than they might have bargained for
23:33in this opening boxing match
23:36of the boxing doubleheader
23:37on After Dark Tonight.
23:40Heavyweight Chris Bird
23:41doing a paint job
23:42on Jimmy Thunder.
23:44That was the first time
23:45he did exactly
23:45what his father told him
23:46which was to add
23:47to his combination.
23:48Don't be satisfied
23:49with hitting him one time.
23:54Chris Bird
23:54from the Boxing Birds
23:56of Flint, Michigan
23:57has four brothers
23:57and three sisters.
23:59all
23:59or are boxing now
24:01or have boxed
24:02in the past.
24:03His father Joe Bird
24:04was a boxer.
24:06Patrick Bird
24:07still active
24:08as a middleweight.
24:09Or check it,
24:10a junior middleweight.
24:11Twelve wins,
24:12two losses.
24:13And there's a look
24:13at Patrick
24:14scoring a
24:16knockout victory.
24:17Sister
24:18Tracy Bird
24:20is eight
24:21and oh
24:21as a lightweight
24:22and Chris says
24:25that Tracy
24:26is the hardest hitting
24:27of the Bird boxers.
24:28He ain't throw
24:29the hook yet.
24:29That's what he's waiting on.
24:30He ain't got to be
24:31a hard hook.
24:32He's got to be
24:32a series of hooks
24:33that open up
24:34that left hand
24:34to get in there.
24:36Okay?
24:36He's watching
24:36for the left hand
24:37and don't let him
24:39push you on the ropes
24:40and butt you
24:41and cut you.
24:41Okay?
24:42Keep yourself together.
24:43Let's go.
24:44Let's go, Pope.
24:47Round four,
24:48a CompuBox wipeout
24:50for Bird
24:50who landed
24:5132 of 54 punches,
24:5359%
24:54against 6 of 53
24:56for Thunder.
24:57And Bird
24:58is now catching
24:59many of Thunder's punches
25:00with his gloves.
25:02So Thunder tries
25:03to load up on power
25:05and just go right
25:05through the gloves
25:06and he lands
25:07to Bird's neck
25:08with a hard
25:09right-hand shot.
25:15That's the best
25:16thing he can do
25:16because he's not
25:17going to land
25:17nothing flush
25:18on Bird right now.
25:19He may as well
25:19just be comfortable
25:20with hitting his gloves
25:21and landing
25:22the body shot.
25:23Well, he should
25:24hit his arms.
25:30You think you
25:32could fight Bird,
25:33Roy?
25:34Well, I think
25:35I could fight Bird.
25:36I probably could.
25:38Would you?
25:39You know,
25:40I'll fight anybody.
25:43Well, I'll just
25:44finish the sentence
25:45if they pay you enough.
25:46Now you're talking.
25:47You already know
25:48the rest.
25:48I didn't even have to see it.
25:50Well, if he
25:51were to go on
25:52and win a heavyweight title
25:54and it's certainly
25:54not out of the question,
25:56this is certainly
25:57a heavyweight that
25:58doesn't outsize you
26:00in a dramatic way.
26:01Nope.
26:06Bird straight up the pipe
26:07with the left hand again.
26:08Thunder came out fast
26:10to start this fifth round.
26:11Now he's gone back
26:13to a more normal
26:14activity level.
26:15Bird begins to carefully
26:16pick those laser shots.
26:19Like that.
26:20Good fighter shot.
26:20You see,
26:22then he backs up.
26:24It's great to be able
26:25to make your opponent
26:26miss if you're a good boxer.
26:29But why would you just
26:30throw a quick little
26:32combination
26:32and get out of there?
26:34Because you don't want
26:34to leave yourself open.
26:36If you stay there
26:37and stay,
26:37don't keep throwing
26:38the same punches,
26:39then it's not the punches
26:40too hard
26:41to just let them
26:41tee off on you
26:42between your punches.
26:43The best time
26:43to knock a guy out
26:44is to catch him
26:45between punches
26:45and hit him.
26:46And Bird knows that.
26:47Bird's chopping
26:48left hand over the top
26:50appeared to hurt
26:50Thunder momentarily,
26:51so he followed Thunder
26:52as Thunder backed up,
26:53but then Thunder
26:54got some time
26:55to catch his breath.
26:57Now right there
26:57you should have countered.
26:59Once he made
26:59Thunder miss bad,
27:00that's the time
27:00to really counter.
27:01But if you hit him
27:02with three or four punches
27:03like right there,
27:03now it's time to back off.
27:04Don't keep going
27:05because you're running
27:06to something big.
27:11And he doesn't want
27:12to run to the bigger punches
27:13because he's giving up
27:14the size already.
27:14I'm just amazed
27:18at Bird's punching
27:19accuracy out of this style.
27:20I mean,
27:21this is a guy
27:22who really knows
27:22the geometry of the sport.
27:24He can find a way
27:25to put the leather on you.
27:31Boom.
27:35These big punches
27:36are telemade for Bird.
27:38He's a boxer.
27:38He's a quick boxer.
27:39He's a smart boxer.
27:40He doesn't have the big punch,
27:41so he doesn't get caught up
27:42in trying to lock him out.
27:43So who among
27:44the big-name heavyweights
27:45would give him trouble?
27:46Well, the only guy
27:46who would give him
27:47really trouble
27:47is Lance Lewis.
27:48Don't worry about it.
27:48Because of Lewis's
27:49overwhelming power.
27:50And his size.
27:51Lewis has a lot of size,
27:52and Lewis is a pretty good boxer
27:53himself.
28:03Porter Pope!
28:05James,
28:06you're not listening, champ.
28:08Well, you let your hands go,
28:09different ball game.
28:10Now let your hands go.
28:12You're waiting for him
28:13to punch.
28:13You're going to put it.
28:14That's why you got this
28:15goddamn putt.
28:16You're walking around
28:17the wrong side.
28:18I'm telling you to go
28:18to your left.
28:19All right, Steve.
28:20And you're going to the right.
28:21Hibs and water.
28:24James.
28:24You're going to the water.
28:25James.
28:25Open them up with a right hand.
28:26Maybe his blood.
28:29Oh, that's all good.
28:30That's all right.
28:31Yeah.
28:31Yeah.
28:31All right.
28:33Okay, round six now.
28:36So that's going to be
28:36getting in there close.
28:38You don't want no cuts.
28:39Yeah, sure.
28:40Stay out there
28:41and then box it this round.
28:42He passed.
28:43Let's go.
28:43Time for Bird.
28:48Come on, quick.
28:51You saw the graphic
28:57with Bird's punching
28:58accuracy numbers
28:59through the first six rounds.
29:01First five rounds,
29:02I should say.
29:03Above 50%.
29:06Awfully hard to beat that.
29:08Now, when last we left, Roy,
29:11you were saying
29:11that the one prominent heavyweight
29:12who would get in trouble
29:13is Lewis because of his
29:14power and size.
29:15Are you telling me
29:16that Bird would not be bothered
29:18by Evander Holyfield's style?
29:20Not really,
29:21because Evander sits
29:21in front of him
29:22and Evander's not a rangy fighter.
29:24It'll be a good fight
29:25because Evander has so much heart.
29:26But Bird is usually
29:27going to outbox the guys
29:28that sit there
29:29and stand flat-footed.
29:30Evander's not really
29:31a big rangy fighter,
29:32so he'd have a harder time
29:33with Bird.
29:33And he's not 100% sure
29:35that anybody's going
29:36to beat anybody.
29:37But Bird would have
29:37a much easier time
29:38with a person
29:39his height or shoulder
29:40like Evander Holyfield
29:41than he would
29:42with somebody tall
29:43like Lennox.
29:44Lennox is 6 feet 5 inches tall.
29:45That's just one of the things
29:46that differentiates Lewis
29:48from most of the other
29:49top heavyweights.
29:52Now that Bo is gone
29:54and Galata has been discredited,
29:56Lewis pretty much
29:57stands alone
29:58among the big heavyweights.
30:02Chris Bird landing
30:04more or less at will
30:05against Jimmy Thunder.
30:07And you saw the cut
30:08above Thunder's left eye.
30:12Not enough thunder
30:13or lightning in Thunder.
30:16He's had some opportunities,
30:18but he hasn't been able
30:19to really hurt Bird.
30:22Now if he hits him clean
30:24like that,
30:25then he just doesn't
30:25punch hard enough.
30:26You see how Bird
30:29keeping the head moving?
30:30It's hard for a guy
30:31to hit a steel target
30:32like that.
30:32These big punches
30:33would not even take a chance
30:34at punching at your head
30:36if you move it that much.
30:37Well, which is why
30:38Eddie Mustafa Muhammad
30:39told him just stick to the body.
30:40Don't even bother with the head.
30:41Yeah, but how many years
30:42has he been going to the head
30:43without Eddie Mustafa?
30:45There you go.
30:45Very hard to teach
30:46your old dog a new trick.
30:47There you go.
30:48One of the constant
30:51conundrums of the sport.
30:52It's about habits
30:53and reflexes
30:54and most fighters
30:55only know one way to fight.
31:06The guys who can actually
31:07adjust and change
31:08and find another way
31:10to do it during a fight
31:11usually wear a championship belt.
31:13I think Bird's going
31:28for the hole in there
31:28right now.
31:35Hard right hand
31:36by Thunder
31:36hard right hand
31:37by Bird.
31:43Blood beginning
31:44to trickle again
31:45just above the left eye
31:46of Jimmy Thunder.
31:52Bird is very tired.
31:55Bird is not.
31:56Not at all.
31:57He's not throwing big punches.
32:01You work on him.
32:02James, let me
32:03smash him to you, my man.
32:04Every time you hit the man
32:05you hurt him
32:05but you backing up
32:06and not following up.
32:08James, hold on your ground
32:10and let your hands go.
32:11That's all you got to do.
32:12This guy
32:13can do it as best
32:14and you can work with him.
32:16Keep that jab
32:17knowing he
32:17don't let him special
32:18when he's back
32:18when he's broke.
32:19He's sitting there.
32:22Don't be spraying
32:23that type of thing.
32:25We'll be talking
32:26to Prince Nassim Hamed
32:27between fights here.
32:29Got him on Freddy
32:30on the 17th.
32:31Tremendous matchup.
32:32You got to sit down.
32:33What you got
32:34is your hand pushing
32:35at you.
32:36Right left hand.
32:37Snap it.
32:38Turn it over
32:38to power at the end of it.
32:40Then you'll catch him.
32:41He's coming right in
32:42on it.
32:42I got to turn it over.
32:44Okay?
32:45Let's go.
32:47And that last card
32:48you saw
32:49listed on the graphic
32:50February 6th
32:51for potential
32:52down the road opponents
32:53for Roy Jones Jr.
32:55in the light heavyweight division.
32:56Virg grinning
33:12as he lands the jab
33:14over and over.
33:16Pop, pop, pop, pop.
33:17Because he knows
33:18he has Jimmy
33:18to where he can hit him
33:19at will.
33:20He can hit Jimmy
33:21just about any time
33:22he gets ready to.
33:23Just anything he wants
33:24to hit him with.
33:33Harold Lederman,
33:34how'd you have it
33:34halfway through?
33:35Jim, 6-0,
33:3760-53,
33:38Chris Bird.
33:39He gets an extra point
33:40in round one.
33:41Certainly he won the rest
33:42of the rounds 10-9.
33:43Jim, I'm going to talk
33:43to you about the scoring area.
33:45When Chris Bird,
33:46when Jimmy Carter
33:46hits Chris Bird,
33:47he hits him on the elbows
33:48and the forearms,
33:48that doesn't count
33:50as a clean,
33:50effective punch.
33:51You've got to hit a guy
33:52from the top of his head
33:54to his belly button
33:55on his body,
33:56you know,
33:56between his sides.
33:57If he blocks it,
33:59if Chris Bird blocks
34:00the punch with his elbows
34:01or his forearms,
34:02you give Bird credit
34:03for good defense.
34:04It doesn't count
34:05as a clean,
34:05effective punch
34:06if it hits him
34:06on the elbows.
34:07And that's what Bird's doing.
34:08Picking off the punches
34:09with forearms and elbows.
34:10Eddie Mustafa,
34:11Mohammed wants him
34:12to go ahead
34:12and hit him on the elbows
34:13and the arms
34:14and the back of the shoulder
34:15anyway because he hopes
34:17that will wear Bird down
34:19as the fight goes on.
34:20But Jim,
34:20we've got to remember,
34:21it's not really
34:22in the scoring area.
34:23A judge shouldn't
34:23count the punches
34:24as Randy.
34:25We're not talking
34:26about counting it
34:28as a punch,
34:29Harold.
34:29We're talking about
34:30breaking the guy down
34:31physically if you can
34:33that way.
34:38Heated discussion here.
34:41Push off, Chris.
34:42It's a small enough arena
34:44that we can hear
34:45Eddie Mustafa, Mohammed,
34:46out all the way
34:47across the ring
34:47as he tries to get
34:49Thunder to keep
34:50moving forward.
34:51Heard him between rounds
34:52saying, look,
34:53you're hitting the guy
34:53but then you're backing up.
34:56And there's the reason.
34:57Because the guy's
34:58hitting him back.
34:59Easily.
35:01Whoa, good try.
35:02Good left shot
35:03by Chris Bird.
35:05A little backhand
35:13right by Bird.
35:14You know,
35:14as much as you admire
35:16the skill
35:18and the nerve
35:19of somebody like Bird
35:21for getting in
35:22with big,
35:23strong heavyweights,
35:24I can assure you
35:26that this performance
35:27will have many
35:29of the managers
35:30of heavyweights
35:31wishing that Bird
35:33were strangled at Bird.
35:35That's right.
35:37Because they don't want
35:37to see a guy like you.
35:39Nobody's going to want
35:40to fight him,
35:40that's for sure.
35:42Oh,
35:43hard right hand
35:44shot by Thunder
35:44got through the guard.
35:46very good,
35:55very good.
36:02That was a slight
36:02more better round,
36:03James.
36:04You're starting
36:04to move your hand.
36:05Don't wait for the bell
36:06or the 30,
36:0610 second bell
36:07you're going to go off
36:08and let your hand go.
36:11You're not punching,
36:12James.
36:13You're not punching.
36:14This kid is abusing you
36:16because you're not
36:17doing anything.
36:18That's the bottom line.
36:20Come on,
36:20I know,
36:21baby,
36:21you're fine.
36:21That's what it's all good.
36:22You're not doing anything.
36:24You're not doing anything.
36:25You hear what I'm saying?
36:26Get the water out of the way.
36:27Get the water.
36:28Okay.
36:29Okay.
36:30Okay,
36:31now this is everything
36:31in the Bird corner.
36:32Okay,
36:34let's go to work
36:35in there this round,
36:36okay?
36:37This is going
36:38into the,
36:38uh,
36:39eighth round.
36:39Eight round.
36:40He's working on that.
36:41Yeah,
36:41yeah,
36:41round.
36:44How many boxers
36:49have you ever seen
36:50with their mother
36:51in the corner
36:51as a Chief second?
36:52Ooh,
36:53not many.
36:54Not many at all.
36:54Maybe the first.
36:55I think it's a first for me.
36:57You ever seen that,
36:57Larry?
36:58Nope.
36:58Rose Bird,
36:59mother of Chris Bird,
37:01is,
37:02uh,
37:03one of the corner people.
37:06He said the whole family
37:07can box.
37:08I wouldn't be surprised
37:09if the dog is a boxer.
37:10This is a bird
37:26that darts
37:27through the thunder.
37:28Jimmy Thunder seems
37:46to have the attitude
37:46of a beaten fighter
37:47right now.
37:48I think he's just
37:49going to try to see
37:50can he find anything
37:50and if he can,
37:52he'll try to score
37:52a knockout.
37:53Push off,
37:53push off.
37:53If not,
37:54then he knows
37:54he can't win a decision
37:55at this point.
37:56Right.
37:57He's kind of going
37:58through the motions
37:58and hoping to land
37:59one big shot.
38:06Watch your head's
38:07coming in, fellas.
38:08Watch your head now.
38:08That makes the fight
38:10less entertaining
38:11because, of course,
38:12the easier it gets
38:13for Chris Bird,
38:14the fewer chances
38:15he's going to take.
38:17A lot of people say
38:18that they don't like
38:19to see people
38:19that don't take chances,
38:21but when you're taught
38:22to box by your father,
38:23this is what he teaches you.
38:24I was taught not
38:24to take chances
38:25my entire career.
38:26And he's right
38:27because you can last
38:27longer this way.
38:28If your father cares
38:29about you more
38:30than anyone else,
38:30he's not going
38:30to kill you out there
38:31to take a beat
38:32and get you all
38:33banged and bruised up.
38:34He wants you to go in
38:34and come out as safe
38:36and healthy
38:36as you possibly can.
38:38That's why he fights
38:38this way.
38:39Yeah, but Chris Bird
38:41told us that everybody
38:42else in his family
38:43was a puncher.
38:45Maybe that's why
38:46they weren't as successful
38:47as him.
38:47That's why Chris Bird
38:48is still going.
38:49Everybody can't take
38:50that notion
38:51and be that way.
38:53Well, the real pros
38:54like yourself,
38:55Sugar Ray Leonard
38:55used to say it
38:56to us all the time,
38:57a win is a win
38:58is a win.
38:59But, of course,
39:00you have a built-in
39:01marketing power
39:02that makes it easy
39:03for you to go ahead
39:04and post wins
39:05and maintain your status
39:06in the sport.
39:07Some fighters
39:08have to entertain.
39:09Have to entertain.
39:11People want to see
39:11entertainment.
39:12They want to see
39:12something different.
39:14So it'll be interesting
39:19to see how Bird
39:20deals with
39:21that particular
39:22conundrum
39:23as he continues
39:25on up through
39:25the heavyweight ranks.
39:26But one thing
39:27that's entertaining
39:27is to see him
39:28beat up on these
39:29bigger guys like this.
39:30I think the crowd
39:31loves to see
39:31things like this.
39:33Well, this has not
39:33been unentertaining.
39:34And I feel a little
39:36bad for having
39:37started the telecast
39:38by suggesting
39:38that a lot of people
39:39think he's unwatchable.
39:41But on the other hand,
39:42you can see
39:43what it is that
39:44the general boxing fan,
39:46the non-purist,
39:47might find a little
39:48annoying about it.
39:49The good part
39:57of this for Bird
39:57is that it's so easy
39:59for him to land punches.
40:02And still to come
40:03tonight,
40:04earlier we showed
40:05you Tim Witherspoon
40:06who's had his shoes
40:07brought to him by now.
40:08There's the opponent,
40:09Larry Donald.
40:11Out of Louisville, Kentucky.
40:12He once styled himself
40:14as the second coming
40:16of Muhammad Ali.
40:16All that bravado.
40:19Yeah, excuse me.
40:20Yeah, that's right.
40:20He called himself
40:21the Cincinnati Lip.
40:24Yeah, that's right
40:25because he's from Cincinnati,
40:26not Louisville.
40:27My mistake.
40:28Okay.
40:28There's Rose Bird,
40:29mother of Chris Bird.
40:31And we told you about
40:31her working the corner.
40:34Okay, now let's go
40:35to work on that speed.
40:37He tired.
40:37He tired.
40:41Yeah, yeah.
40:41I see.
40:42Train too hard
40:43for this game.
40:44Let your hands go.
40:45All right?
40:45You have to wake up.
40:46He's got the right amateur.
40:49You hear what
40:50Mama Bird said, Roy?
40:51What's that?
40:52You got to get that eye.
40:56The cut above
40:57Jimmy Thunder's left eye
40:59has been exceedingly
41:01well treated by
41:02Al Gavin,
41:04one of the outstanding
41:04cut men in the sport.
41:06Let him go.
41:07Let him go.
41:08Let him go.
41:12Put your way in.
41:13There ain't no milk
41:16of human kindness
41:17in the ring,
41:18even from Mama.
41:24Harold,
41:24after eight rounds,
41:25how do you score it?
41:26Larry,
41:26I still got it
41:27in a shot out.
41:28Eight to nothing.
41:2980 to 71,
41:30Chris Bird.
41:30He's just jabbing him
41:31to death with my right hand,
41:33coming across
41:33with the straight left.
41:34Jim,
41:35the only thing
41:35that drives the judges
41:36nuts about Chris Bird
41:37is when he lays on the ropes
41:38and one judge
41:39is looking at somebody's back,
41:40which makes it hard
41:40to see the punches.
41:41Other than that,
41:42the guys can work it.
41:45Blood trickles
41:45from the nose of Thunder
41:47and Thunder looks
41:48to be all done in.
41:50He's just too tired, Roy.
41:52He's not going to be able
41:52to go much further.
41:54And Bird senses
41:55the opportunity
41:56and steps in
41:58and fires away.
41:59How long will Steve Smoger
42:01allow Thunder
42:02to take this kind
42:03of punishment?
42:03No longer.
42:04No longer.
42:04No longer.
42:04No longer.
42:04No longer.
42:08Well, you can't say
42:09the folks here
42:10weren't entertained.
42:11No.
42:15That was a rousing
42:16performance by Chris Bird.
42:19Very entertaining.
42:27All credit
42:28to the young man
42:29from Flint, Michigan.
42:31First they said
42:32he couldn't be a heavyweight.
42:33Then they said
42:34he couldn't succeed
42:35with this style.
42:36Well, look at him now.
42:37He's 23-0
42:38with a knockout victory
42:40on boxing after dark.
42:421-0-7.
42:441-0-7.
42:45You know where you are?
42:47Where are you?
42:50Roy Jones,
42:51let's take another look
42:52at the end of the fight
42:53and talk about
42:54the precision work
42:56in finishing
42:56that Chris Bird did.
42:58Well, right there
42:59he had Jimmy hurt.
43:00He knew Jimmy was in trouble.
43:01He could hit Jimmy at will.
43:02He knew Jimmy was ready
43:03to give at any time.
43:04He did a wide thing
43:05by going to the body
43:06and coming back
43:07to the head.
43:08This kept Jimmy in trouble.
43:09Wouldn't let Jimmy
43:10get off.
43:11There again,
43:12he moves his head.
43:13Then he comes back
43:13and he knows Jimmy is done.
43:15So he just kept the heat on.
43:16That was another body shot.
43:17Jimmy is not going to punch back
43:18when he's getting caught
43:19with these kind of punches.
43:21Well, for a guy
43:22whom I labeled
43:23a non-puncher,
43:25he certainly showed you
43:26how to finish.
43:27There's technique
43:28involved in that
43:28and Bird used
43:30all of his
43:30masterful technique
43:32to put Thunder away.
43:45Another look
43:46at the finishing work
43:47of Chris Bird
43:48on Jimmy Thunder.
43:5123rd victory,
43:5213th knockout.
43:53I don't know.
43:54Would you say
43:54he's adding more power
43:55to his game
43:56or was it just because
43:57of the circumstances here?
43:58No, I think he's adding
43:59more power to his game.
44:00He already possessed
44:01the power.
44:01It's just that
44:02he knows when it's time
44:03to use the power
44:04and when it's not.
44:09And referee Ed Darien,
44:10I mean,
44:11ring announcer Ed Darien
44:12with the official
44:13particulars here.
44:14Ladies and gentlemen,
44:14from Foxwoods Casino Resort
44:16here in Mashantucket,
44:18Connecticut,
44:19double S,
44:20referee Steve Smoker
44:21moves in
44:23and stops this bout
44:24at one minute
44:25and seven seconds
44:27of the ninth round
44:28and a winner
44:29by a TKO
44:30and still undefeated,
44:33Chris Bird.
44:36Bird.
44:38Let's have a nice round
44:40of applause
44:40for Jimmy Thunder.
44:42Let's hear it all.
44:46Chris Bird did tell us
44:48before the fight
44:49that he wasn't going to
44:52just try to peck
44:53his opponent to death.
44:55that if he hadn't been
44:57he said that if he had
45:02his opponent in trouble,
45:04he would,
45:05unlike the past,
45:07try to get him out of there.
45:09And he did.
45:14Here's a look at the final
45:16punch stat numbers
45:17and as you can see,
45:19Bird and Thunder
45:20threw roughly
45:21the same amount
45:21of punches.
45:23Bird landed twice
45:24as often
45:26as Thunder.
45:28Take a look
45:29at the jabs
45:29and there
45:30the discrepancy
45:31is even
45:32more marked.
45:34It's almost,
45:35almost grotesque
45:37how many more
45:38bird,
45:39jabs,
45:39Bird landed
45:40than Thunder did.
45:42All right,
45:44Jim,
45:45what you got?
45:47All right,
45:48thanks very much,
45:49Larry Merchant
45:50and upstairs now
45:51with Roy Jones.
45:52Roy,
45:52one final comment
45:53about Chris Bird.
45:54Because of the style,
45:56the fact that he's
45:56a southpaw,
45:58it would appear
45:58that he's going to
45:59have to generate
46:00public interest.
46:01He's going to have
46:01to get fans excited
46:02to get himself
46:03into a position
46:04where he can demand
46:05a title shot.
46:06After seeing this,
46:07I don't rule
46:08that possibility out.
46:09I don't rule out either.
46:10I think Chris is excellent
46:11for the heavyweight division.
46:12He's a boxer puncher,
46:13somewhat like
46:14Muhammad Ali was.
46:15He's quick,
46:16he has the hand speed,
46:17they can't hit him.
46:18That's what's best
46:18and that's what's
46:19most effective about Chris.
46:20None of the big guys
46:21can hit him
46:22because they all
46:22want to try to kill him
46:23when they see him.
46:24He's small,
46:24they want to hit his head
46:25because he shows it
46:26to them so much.
46:27He gets them thinking
46:28one thing while
46:28he's doing the other
46:29and he's going to
46:29constantly win like this.
46:31All right,
46:31let's look ahead
46:31to next week
46:32on World Championship Boxing.
46:33Have you ever met
46:34and spoken to
46:35Prince Nassim Hamed?
46:36Yes, I have.
46:37Ah, well you're well ahead
46:39of most Americans
46:39because most Americans
46:41are about to meet him
46:42for the first time.
46:43So let's take a look
46:44right now
46:45at some video
46:46of the man
46:46who comes to America
46:47for his HBO
46:49and American debut
46:50next week
46:51in Madison Square Garden.
46:52The 126-pound
46:53world champion
46:54Prince Nassim Hamed,
46:56born in Yemen,
46:58raised in Sheffield.
46:59He calls himself
47:00a British Arab
47:02and he has dazzled
47:03the European boxing world
47:05with his unorthodox style.
47:07Some boxing experts
47:08say so unorthodox
47:09that he makes
47:10Roy Jones look like
47:11a textbook fighter
47:12and also with his
47:14stunning knockout power.
47:16Prince Nassim Hamed
47:17knocks out opponents
47:18with either hand
47:20with one punch
47:21and consequently
47:22he is a huge star
47:23as he arrives here
47:24for his first
47:25American assignment
47:26next week
47:26right here on HBO's
47:28World Championship Boxing
47:29against Kevin Kelly.
47:30That'll be December 19
47:31from Madison Square Garden
47:33and the Prince,
47:34my new best friend,
47:35joins us now
47:36from our HBO studio
47:38in New York.
47:38Good evening Naz
47:39and welcome to America.
47:41Yeah, thanks a lot my man.
47:42How you doing Jim?
47:43How you doing Roy?
47:44How you doing?
47:45Alright, we're both
47:46doing pretty well
47:46and we're looking forward
47:47to seeing you next week
47:48against Kevin Kelly.
47:49Textbook wisdom
47:50on this side of the pond Naz
47:52is that Kevin Kelly
47:53represents by far
47:55your toughest opponent
47:56so far in your career.
47:58Do you agree with that?
47:59I most definitely do
48:00but I agree with me
48:01being his toughest opponent too
48:03and he's going to realize
48:04he's going to get took out
48:05and he's going to face
48:06the best featherweight ever.
48:07A lot of people talk
48:09about your unorthodox style.
48:10How would you describe
48:12the way you approach fighting?
48:14The way I fight
48:15is just totally unique,
48:16totally different
48:17to any other fighter.
48:19I can't really describe it.
48:20It's on its own.
48:21It's just very, very effective,
48:23very fast,
48:23different angles,
48:25wicked movement
48:25and it's a winning formula.
48:28The objective is to land bombs
48:30and to knock the opponent out, right?
48:32Damn right.
48:32Hit and not get hit
48:33and then take him out
48:34and look good while you're doing it.
48:36And look good while doing it
48:38and you're able to knock out
48:39most of your opponents
48:39up to this point.
48:41One punch with either hand.
48:42Is there any one punch
48:43that you think of
48:44as your bread and butter?
48:46Well, I do love a right hook
48:47but I love a right uppercut
48:49and a left hook.
48:49I could be sitting here all night
48:51telling you about my shots.
48:53I'm natural at
48:54certain all different kinds of shots
48:56so I love throwing
48:57all different kinds of shots
48:58with different opponents
48:59and taking them out in style.
49:00Love to take them out.
49:0128-5, 28 wins
49:04and 26 knockouts.
49:06It just saves it all, you know?
49:08Not every fighter
49:09is so fluent with his record.
49:10You've been predicting the round
49:11in which you knock opponents out.
49:13What do you have to say
49:14about Kevin Kelly
49:14next Friday night?
49:16I think Kevin's going to
49:17take a severe beating.
49:19I'm going to beat him
49:19like I'm his daddy
49:20in the third round
49:21so I want him to look out
49:23and watch out for the third round
49:24because something made drastic
49:25is going to happen to Kevin.
49:27How do you like America
49:28so far, Naz?
49:29I love America.
49:30I love America.
49:31I love just the way it is.
49:33All the lights,
49:33the people,
49:34the attitude of everybody.
49:36I think it's a place for me
49:37at this moment in time
49:38for my debut in America,
49:40Madison Square Garden.
49:41And I shall perform in.
49:42I shall rise to every occasion.
49:44And I shall win
49:45on the 19th in style, believe.
49:48Well, according to legend,
49:49you already own
49:50half of Great Britain
49:51and I know that our contract
49:52with you extends
49:53for several fights
49:54after which I'm sure
49:55you plan to own
49:56a big chunk
49:56of the United States as well.
49:58Most definitely.
49:59I've come over here
50:00to take over boxing, basically.
50:02I'm not taking anything
50:02away from Roy Jones
50:03because I know
50:04he's a man out here.
50:05You know,
50:05and I've got to respect him
50:06and the rest of the fighters
50:07out here.
50:07But I've come to take
50:08a big part of it
50:09and I've signed a big contract
50:10with HBO
50:11so full respect to HBO.
50:13And I've come to do business here,
50:14you know.
50:15I'm here on business
50:15at the moment
50:16and I'll take care of business
50:17on the 19th
50:18and look good
50:19while I'm doing it.
50:19I can't wait to fight you again.
50:21The good news, Naz,
50:22is that even Roy smiles
50:23a big smile
50:24when you say stuff like that.
50:25We're really looking forward
50:26to seeing you next Friday night
50:27and thanks very much
50:28for spending time
50:29with us this evening.
50:31All right.
50:31Cool.
50:32All right.
50:32Cool.
50:33Prince Nassim Hamed.
50:35You and I can call him Naz
50:37because we're buddies now.
50:38On December 19
50:39from Madison Square Garden
50:40World Championship Boxing
50:41presents
50:41the American and HBO
50:43debut of Prince Nassim
50:44who will fight Kevin Kelly.
50:46Junior featherweight matchup
50:47also on that card.
50:49We'll start a tremendous battle
50:49between Junior Jones
50:51and Kennedy McKinney
50:52and the winner of that fight
50:53will be one of the people
50:54that Prince Nassim
50:55is looking to match with
50:56down the road
50:57if in fact
50:58he can get past Kevin Kelly
51:00and that,
51:00as I mentioned,
51:01is no small assignment.
51:03So,
51:04Larry Merchant,
51:05our greetings
51:06to Prince Nassim
51:07and the victory
51:08for Chris Bird
51:08now in the books.
51:10Let's get ready
51:10for the second half of that.
51:13God bless you.
51:13Let's get ready
51:14for the second half of that.
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