- 6 hours ago
Philip Holiday defends the IBF Lightweight Title against Ivan Robinson on HBO Boxing After Dark.
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00:00:00David Fuah pulled it out with that 12th round knockout.
00:00:02All right, let's turn our attention now to the second of our two Boxing After Dark events this evening.
00:00:07Larry Merchant, we're going to get our first look at lightweight champion Philip Holliday of South Africa
00:00:11going against Ivan Robinson of the United States.
00:00:14And as we'll point out in a moment, Ivan Robinson shares something in common with Roy Jones Jr.
00:00:18But what is it about Holliday that we don't know yet that we ought to know?
00:00:23First of all, he's a very tough kid.
00:00:25He's a very aggressive kid.
00:00:27And he's also very unbeaten.
00:00:29And that can often be a potent combination.
00:00:32And also, like virtually every other fighter in the world today, he has one of those championship belts.
00:00:40We have a plague of so-called championship belts upon us now.
00:00:46These big, ugly, green things that fighters just love to wrap around their waist.
00:00:51And sometimes we see belts below the belt in prize fights.
00:00:55Although, happily, tonight, for the first time in a week, I've seen a heavyweight fight without a lot of belts
00:01:00below the belts.
00:01:01But I want to tell you a story because this young fighter is a South African.
00:01:08The promoter here, Cedric Kushner, is a South African.
00:01:12And he told us that not long ago, he took one of the belt givers, the heads of one of
00:01:19those corrupt organizations we all know so well in boxing,
00:01:22to visit Nelson Mandela.
00:01:24Now, Nelson Mandela is a great man.
00:01:26The proof of which is he's a very serious, enthusiastic boxing fan.
00:01:32And Nelson Mandela went after this guy immediately, declaring,
00:01:36why don't you clear up the mess in boxing?
00:01:40By definition, you can only have one champion in the division.
00:01:45And so say us all.
00:01:47The lightweight division happens to be one of those divisions without a clear champion that we can all identify.
00:01:53But Philip Holliday seems to be the kind of kid who would want to clear up the mess himself.
00:02:00Let me tell you something else about Nelson Mandela and what he says.
00:02:03He says that Philip Holliday is not only his favorite fighter, but his favorite athlete in the world.
00:02:09Which makes a lot of sense because of what Holliday is doing for South Africa's image in international sport right
00:02:13now.
00:02:14In fact, Philip Holliday gets taken to Mandela's house in Pretoria now every time he defends his lightweight title.
00:02:20Now, let's turn our attention to Ivan Robinson.
00:02:22And I told you that he has some things in common with Roy Jones Jr.
00:02:25One, an amateur boxing disappointment.
00:02:28Ivan Robinson almost made the United States Olympic team in 1992,
00:02:31missed by a point or two because of computer scoring in his fight with the lesser-known Julian Wheeler.
00:02:36He carries that disappointment in his heart.
00:02:38But more to the point, Roy, at that time, he was still trained by his father,
00:02:42who trained him all through his amateur career and right up until this moment in his professional career.
00:02:48As Ivan Robinson comes into this fight, he has just within the past six weeks fired his father as trainer
00:02:54and installed another one, Tommy Brooks.
00:02:56First of all, what about the psychological hurdles for Ivan to overcome in having removed his father from his boxing
00:03:02scene?
00:03:02That would most definitely be the toughest thing for Ivan to overcome tonight.
00:03:06He'll have to have an inside struggle with himself.
00:03:08Once your father has been with you throughout your entire career and you go to another trainer,
00:03:14then all you can hope is that you can stay stable-minded enough to be able to do the things
00:03:19your father told you to do before the split.
00:03:21If he lets the split emotionally break him down, then he'll be much easier for Holiday to come in and
00:03:30overwhelm.
00:03:31Of course, if you follow the sport, you know that Roy went through that very passage in his professional career.
00:03:35He did it so that he could install Tommy Brooks, whose recent successes as a trainer include
00:03:40Evander Holyfield over Mike Tyson, Junior Jones over Marco Antonio Barrera.
00:03:44In six weeks, what can he have done for Ivan?
00:03:47The only thing he could have done for Ivan is to inspire Ivan inside,
00:03:51not physically teach him anything else because Ivan has however many years of training from his father down pat.
00:03:58You can't change that in six weeks.
00:04:00All right.
00:04:01Let's take a look at the tail of the tape as we get ready now for these two lightweights,
00:04:04and you'll see that they both weighed in very close to the lightweight limit.
00:04:07Ivan Robinson, a quarter of a pound under.
00:04:09Philip Holiday right on the nose.
00:04:11Reach advantage to Robinson.
00:04:12Height advantage to Robinson.
00:04:14He is one year younger than his extremely well-conditioned and relentless South African opponent.
00:04:21Rules of the bout with ringside cult item Harold Letterman.
00:04:25The Philip Holiday-Ivan Robinson fight is scheduled for 12 rounds.
00:04:28There is no standing eight count, no three-knockdown rule.
00:04:31Only the referee can stop the fight,
00:04:33and he cannot be saved by the belt in any rounds, including the 12th and final round.
00:04:37Jim.
00:04:38All right.
00:04:39And the short walk to the ring here in the Mohegan Sun Casino.
00:04:43First time that we've visited here on HBO's Boxing After Dark,
00:04:47and it is certainly a spectacular casino facility.
00:04:54And here comes Ivan Robinson.
00:05:00Nickname Mighty.
00:05:02Just Mighty.
00:05:03As a kid, they called him Mighty Mouse.
00:05:05When he became a fighter, he decided that he shouldn't be known as a mouse in there.
00:05:19The record compiled without the help of trainer Tommy Brooks,
00:05:24the hottest trainer in boxing at this moment.
00:05:2623-0, 10 KOs.
00:05:29He is more of a boxer than a puncher.
00:05:39Ivan sees this fight as a great opportunity for him.
00:05:43Something he's been waiting for a long time.
00:05:45He had a close rivalry in his amateur days with Oscar De La Hoya.
00:05:49And he makes no secret of the fact that De La Hoya's multi-gazillion dollar income
00:05:54serves as a huge motivator for him now.
00:05:57Feels like he ought to be getting that kind of money somewhere down the road.
00:06:05Philip Holliday, in his last fight, defeated Joel Diaz.
00:06:10He has had four title defenses since having won the title.
00:06:13That means five separate trips to Pretoria to visit Nelson Mandela.
00:06:19And here's a look at Holliday.
00:06:44A couple of other little-known facts about Holliday.
00:06:47He participates in triathlons.
00:06:50He went to college to study drafting.
00:06:53And his mother, who is here,
00:06:57doesn't eat for two weeks before his fight.
00:07:01Nobody wants this fight to be over faster than his mother, Joyce.
00:07:06She wants it to be over fast so that she can end her fast.
00:07:10There's the record for Holliday.
00:07:11He likes to swarm opponents and try to pressure them from the opening get-go.
00:07:16In one of his recent bouts,
00:07:17he had a spectacular second-round knockout of Jeff Fennec
00:07:20in Fennec's native Australia.
00:07:22Let's go to ring announcer Mark Barrow for the official introductions.
00:07:26Ladies and gentlemen,
00:07:27Cedric Kushner, promotions in association with main events,
00:07:32HBO Sports, and Budweiser,
00:07:35the undisputed, undefeated king of beers.
00:07:38This Bud's for you presents main event,
00:07:4312 rounds for the IBF Lightweight Championship of the World.
00:07:49Ring officials assigned by the International Boxing Federation,
00:07:53President Robert W. Lee,
00:07:55attending supervisor, Walter B. Stone.
00:07:58Your judges at ringside are from Toronto, Canada,
00:08:03Harry Davis,
00:08:05from Cromwell, Connecticut,
00:08:07Steve Epstein,
00:08:09and from Virginia Beach, Virginia,
00:08:12James Fraylor.
00:08:13Your referee for this event,
00:08:16from Windsor, Connecticut,
00:08:17the sensational Steve Smoger.
00:08:22Introducing now the contestants,
00:08:24first in the red corner to my left,
00:08:27wearing the blue trunks,
00:08:29red trim,
00:08:30weighing 134 and three-quarter pounds.
00:08:35He is undefeated in 23 professional bouts.
00:08:39He has 10 wins by way of knockout.
00:08:42He hails from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,
00:08:46ranked number one in the world
00:08:48by the IBF,
00:08:49the USBA Lightweight Champion,
00:08:52and the challenger,
00:08:55Ivan Mighty Robinson.
00:09:00Robinson.
00:09:02His opponent, in the blue corner,
00:09:05wearing the white trunks,
00:09:07red accessories,
00:09:08weighing 135 pounds.
00:09:12He is undefeated in 29 professional bouts.
00:09:17He has 16 wins by way of knockout.
00:09:20From Bonomi, South Africa,
00:09:23here is the IBF Lightweight Champion
00:09:28of the World,
00:09:29Phillip Holiday!
00:09:34Holiday!
00:09:36Wild Browns IBF Lightweight Championship
00:09:39at State.
00:09:43All right, John,
00:09:43we're giving you instructions to weigh in.
00:09:45I want to obey my commands at all times.
00:09:47Respect the bell at all times,
00:09:48and above all,
00:09:49protect yourself at all times.
00:09:50Touch him up.
00:09:51Touch up.
00:09:52God bless.
00:09:56All right, Jimmy.
00:09:58Ready, Harry?
00:10:00I think Ivan will be the better boxer tonight,
00:10:02but condition will play a big part in this fight.
00:10:06And Holiday relies on conditioning
00:10:08to fight his relentless nonstop style,
00:10:11as Larry told you.
00:10:12He's participated in triathlons.
00:10:14He's been a bicycle racer.
00:10:16He played soccer quite extensively as a young man
00:10:19before ultimately electing to concentrate on boxing.
00:10:22He has a twin brother,
00:10:23and he says of his twin brother,
00:10:25not too harshly, I hope,
00:10:27he couldn't be a boxer.
00:10:29He's too soft.
00:10:34Robinson starting off flicking the jab.
00:10:39And for the moment,
00:10:40Robinson has blunted Holiday's attack
00:10:42by throwing more punches
00:10:44and moving carefully to his left.
00:10:53Low blow by Holiday with the left hand.
00:10:57Referee Steve Smoker.
00:10:58Not yet with anything to say about that.
00:11:10Larry and I have become extremely skilled
00:11:12at detecting low blows, boy.
00:11:14Or maybe we just think we're skilled at it.
00:11:16Maybe they're so obvious that anyone could.
00:11:26I haven't got a shot in the eye, I think,
00:11:28and it's starting to bother his eyes
00:11:29and ward it up with his right eye.
00:11:36Robinson staying active
00:11:37and more the point,
00:11:38continually moving to his left.
00:11:40As long as Robinson can stay off the ropes
00:11:42and keep Holiday from putting him in jail,
00:11:44he's fighting his fight.
00:11:46The minute he stops his feet from moving,
00:11:48and particularly if he has his back to the ropes
00:11:50when he doesn't,
00:11:51then it's Holiday's fight.
00:11:55Right hand body shot by Holiday momentarily stopped
00:11:58Robinson in his tracks.
00:11:59Now Ivan back up and moving.
00:12:03Holiday would have to do some work to,
00:12:05I mean,
00:12:06Robinson would have to do some work to Holiday's body too
00:12:09if he wants to stay in this fight with Holiday.
00:12:22The style contrast becomes immediately apparent
00:12:25as you see how determined Holiday is
00:12:27to back Robinson up
00:12:29and put him in jail against the ropes.
00:12:43We were going to show you a shot of Holiday's mother
00:12:48just before the fight.
00:12:51The mother who has fasted for two weeks.
00:12:54But just as the fight started,
00:12:56she got up and walked out.
00:13:06Very fast pace.
00:13:10Extremely active first round
00:13:12for both fighters.
00:13:15Something that I'm sure Holiday is very used to.
00:13:18Both fighters threw more than 100 punches
00:13:21in the first round.
00:13:23That's a whirlwind.
00:13:24Relax.
00:13:25Listen,
00:13:26I need you to throw a straight one-two,
00:13:28but he's right there for it.
00:13:29Remember when I told you
00:13:30you want to stay basic?
00:13:31Right.
00:13:31Stay real basic.
00:13:32Okay?
00:13:32You got the first round on it,
00:13:33but you got it out your system now.
00:13:35Straight one-two.
00:13:36He can't get out the way on it.
00:13:38The guy comes in
00:13:39and you square it up, baby.
00:13:40All right?
00:13:41Okay, now listen.
00:13:42When you make your turn,
00:13:44I'm fired.
00:13:45Okay?
00:13:45Remember how we're done in the gym?
00:13:47Right.
00:13:47As soon as you step,
00:13:50just keep the pressure on him,
00:13:52that's all we're going to do.
00:13:53Make him run.
00:13:54Drink some more.
00:13:54Drink some more.
00:13:55Drink some more.
00:13:56Okay?
00:13:57Concentrate on that slipping.
00:13:58I said you got to slip, slip, slip,
00:14:00get your distance right,
00:14:01and when you distance right,
00:14:02you let go.
00:14:03All right.
00:14:03Keep yourself and keep working.
00:14:05Keep working.
00:14:06Okay.
00:14:06Let's see.
00:14:28One thing that Holliday does that I do like
00:14:30is that since he knows he's the conditionist,
00:14:33he makes sure that he starts the attack first.
00:14:37Overhand right landed for Robinson.
00:14:42Robinson momentarily turns southpaw
00:14:43and then steps back into his conventional stance.
00:14:46You heard Tommy Brooks asking for combinations
00:14:48from Ivan Robinson.
00:14:51Easier said than done
00:14:53against a guy who's going to stick it to your body
00:14:55every time you throw a punch.
00:14:57Even if you don't throw a punch,
00:14:58you're going to stick it to your body.
00:15:02See, that's where Holliday lands the punches
00:15:03because he's getting gone first.
00:15:06Therefore, he's keeping Holliday on the defense.
00:15:07I mean, keeping Robinson on the defense.
00:15:15And already, Holliday's body punching
00:15:17beginning to take a toll
00:15:19on Ivan Robinson's footwork
00:15:20as Robinson is a little bit slower
00:15:23to move to his left
00:15:24and stands still just a little bit more often.
00:15:27And he can't punch as much
00:15:28because he's got his hands home
00:15:30trying to defend his body and his head.
00:15:40That was a good try by Ivan.
00:15:44Tripling up on the jab,
00:15:45following with the right hand.
00:15:48Robinson better be careful
00:15:49about dropping both hands
00:15:50after he throws a combination like that.
00:16:00Definitely getting tired.
00:16:02He's not moving back as far as he was.
00:16:04Therefore, Holliday should be connecting
00:16:05with some bigger punches.
00:16:07Robinson continues, Roy,
00:16:09by the fourth or fifth round,
00:16:10Holliday is going to have Robinson
00:16:12all locked up in the corners.
00:16:14Just about has him there now, Jim.
00:16:18See, when he's getting off his attack first,
00:16:21Robinson doesn't have a chance
00:16:22to do anything but defend.
00:16:24Robinson with a good counter right there
00:16:26that momentarily backed Holliday up
00:16:27and stopped the assault.
00:16:29Now, Holliday against Baroque.
00:16:32And Ivan Robinson
00:16:33with another effective combination.
00:16:36But can he keep this up, though?
00:16:45This is turning into a smaller version
00:16:47of our first fight.
00:16:49And that is in Holliday's favor
00:16:51because I think he has the most experience
00:16:53at fighting this type of fight.
00:16:57This is his threat, his condition.
00:16:59This is an incredible work rate
00:17:01for both punches.
00:17:02They're going to be throwing more than 100 blows
00:17:04each in the second round also.
00:17:06You have a pretty good sense
00:17:08that Phillip Holliday can keep this up.
00:17:10Can Ivan Robinson do it?
00:17:12No, no, no, no, no, no.
00:17:13No, no, no, no, no.
00:17:21All right.
00:17:22You've got to stick to the fight plan.
00:17:24Okay?
00:17:25Don't be ad-nipping on me now, okay?
00:17:27We've got to do the same thing
00:17:28we did in the gym.
00:17:29Okay?
00:17:30The same thing.
00:17:32What did I say we wanted to do?
00:17:33We wanted to stay basic, right?
00:17:36Straight one, two, baby.
00:17:38Be careful when you pull out, okay?
00:17:40Keep up, though. Just keep up.
00:17:41Just a tad more.
00:17:42Be careful when you pull out, okay?
00:17:49Okay, that's it.
00:17:52You're making too many mistakes
00:17:53while pulling out, okay?
00:17:55Get chin down.
00:17:58Robinson has very quick hands.
00:18:02But ordinarily,
00:18:03he doesn't like to stand in there
00:18:05and sit down on his punches.
00:18:07Here he is doing it
00:18:08at the end of the round.
00:18:23Robinson said that he saw Holiday just as a target ready to be hit.
00:18:28But this target hits back,
00:18:29and this target hits back at a rapid amount.
00:18:38His big right hand landed for Robinson.
00:18:41Holiday comes back with an uppercut.
00:18:43Holiday is putting in good body work.
00:18:45That's where you can tell that he has most experience at going in this type of fight.
00:18:49He shows his determination to keep going to the body.
00:18:52Won't be dissuaded.
00:18:54Because he knows that after about round seven or eight,
00:18:58this one starts to show up on the opponents.
00:19:01Robinson doing a better job in this round
00:19:03to following Tommy Brooks' instruction in sticking with the basic one-two,
00:19:07left jab, right cross.
00:19:09Uppercut landed to the body there.
00:19:11Holiday stepping through it and coming to the body himself.
00:19:14Holiday still initiates all of the contact.
00:19:16And that is not here by Robinson.
00:19:18You let the other guy get off first,
00:19:20he's going to leave him.
00:19:30I don't remember a small man,
00:19:33says Chavez, who punches with this much conviction to the body.
00:19:47Chavez and Whitaker were the last stars in the,
00:19:50in the lightweight division.
00:19:53And we're looking for the next one.
00:19:55Delahoya did a little work in the lightweight division,
00:19:58but he was just sort of passing through on his way north.
00:20:00That's true.
00:20:18Hard right hand by Robinson,
00:20:20or check it by Holiday as he stepped in.
00:20:22There's Robinson with a couple of left hooks.
00:20:31Good effort by Ivan Robinson.
00:20:35He's fighting Holiday's fight.
00:20:37And he's doing about as well as he could be expected to do it then.
00:20:40And he lands another right hand over the top,
00:20:42and Holiday comes right back to the body.
00:20:45Ivan Robinson is taking advantage of Holiday's determination to stay low
00:20:50by firing Holiday's landing.
00:20:52And that's what he should do,
00:20:53but y'all should go back to Holiday's body.
00:20:57Because Holiday is staying in his body.
00:21:01You look at this,
00:21:03and you realize why you might want to consider taking up boxing
00:21:06as conditioning if you're looking for something
00:21:08that will get you into extreme good shape.
00:21:11And if you don't do it, you will get beat.
00:21:15There are extremely well-conditioned athletes
00:21:17in the world of sport
00:21:18who would simply drop from exhaustion.
00:21:21Right now.
00:21:23That gentleman in the blue silk right there
00:21:26is Tommy Brooks.
00:21:27That's the hottest trainer in boxing,
00:21:29architect of Holyfield's victory over Tyson,
00:21:32Junior Jones' upset of Marco Antonio Varela.
00:21:35You know you can do it.
00:21:37Destroy an exam and step around a fire.
00:21:40It's simple as that.
00:21:41Now, if you want this title, you got to do it.
00:21:44Okay?
00:21:45The guy ain't going to quit.
00:21:46You got to make him quit, son.
00:21:48He ain't going to quit, man.
00:21:49You got to go up there.
00:21:50Over here.
00:21:51Over here.
00:21:52Not too much.
00:21:54Okay.
00:21:54At the rapid five seconds, not ten.
00:21:56It's long enough.
00:21:58Do you want to...
00:21:59You mean he's going to go back there?
00:22:00Okay.
00:22:02This is the end of the round.
00:22:04You saw that Robinson had a very good salvo of punches
00:22:08toward the end of the round.
00:22:10When you're scoring the fight,
00:22:12do you give him the round because of that salvo,
00:22:14or do you give the round to Holliday because he dominated the first two minutes with body shots?
00:22:20Yeah.
00:22:21Did you perhaps notice that Philip Holliday threw a near-incredible 122 punches in round three?
00:22:28Most of them power shots to the body.
00:22:34A relentless body attack Philip Holliday is putting on.
00:22:41And so far, Robinson's holding his own pretty well.
00:22:44And so far, Robinson is not locked in jail against the ropes the way Holliday wants them to be.
00:22:52When they stay out here at center ring,
00:22:55Ivan Robinson can stay in the fight with his jab and his right hand.
00:22:58He actually can pick Philip Holliday apart out there in the center of the room.
00:23:07Holliday lands a right hand up top and a left to the body as he steps in.
00:23:15One thing about the conversion from being a good amateur to being a good pro is,
00:23:19a guy like Philip Holliday probably would never have been a good amateur fighter
00:23:23because he punches hard,
00:23:24but he doesn't throw the quick punches that they look for in amateur boxing.
00:23:28Well, once you turn professional, the powerful punches become more effective over the long haul.
00:23:32And this is what gives Holliday the advantage.
00:23:35Also, in amateur boxing, you just don't get that much credit for body punching.
00:23:39You have to land directly to the base most of the time to get a point these days.
00:23:43And obviously, a lot of what Holliday does is relatively subtle work.
00:23:47With it?
00:23:48With it...
00:24:04This is the only finger, this is more important than your stick.
00:24:09And a lot of our revenge.
00:24:12This is the only referee.
00:24:13It's the only chi
00:24:13I don't to work.
00:24:14every time. Holliday's having a very good round in round four.
00:24:19Robinson's punch count is dropping just a little. Holliday's getting more and more opportunities.
00:24:25And look at how relentlessly he keeps throwing combinations.
00:24:28And the reason I was trying to jump is because he had to keep his hands at home for defense.
00:24:36This guy's a whirlwind. I mean, I haven't seen anything like this in a long, long time.
00:24:43This is Henry Armstrong. Well, he's that type of guy. His defense is his offense.
00:24:50But he's also keeps his arms up there, and he's pretty slick at ducking big punches.
00:24:57Reminds me a lot of Al Cole.
00:25:01Al Cole's a heavyweight. Yep, but he has a relentless attack like this.
00:25:06And this is his strength, his attack. His offense is his defense.
00:25:09Oh!
00:25:15Pretty big round for Holliday.
00:25:17Robinson landed one good counter shot in the last five seconds.
00:25:21But he took the world's hurt to the body.
00:25:23He's not doing anything we worked on in the gym, baby.
00:25:25Hey champ, if you want to win this fight, you have to listen, man.
00:25:29Hey, you're going to have to listen, champ.
00:25:31My God, look at that number.
00:25:34He's going to let you throw this thing with one hundred and thirty-nine punches.
00:25:36You have to follow instructions.
00:25:38You follow instructions.
00:25:40I ask what's it?
00:25:42Another Wayne McCullum.
00:25:43Yes, sir.
00:25:45Point 80.
00:25:47You just give him water.
00:25:49Just keep giving water.
00:25:50Where is it? Where is it? Where is it? Where is it? Where is it?
00:26:01This man from South Africa is a machine.
00:26:04He is throwing incredible numbers of punches to the body.
00:26:10Upstairs, downstairs, downstairs, upstairs.
00:26:15If he can keep this up for 12 rounds, I will have seen something I haven't seen for a while.
00:26:23Nelson Mandela told Philip Holliday that he is his favorite athlete because, like Mandela, and like freedom, he will not
00:26:31be denied.
00:26:32Harold, four rounds.
00:26:35What do you got?
00:26:36Larry, so far, 38-38, two rounds apiece, but certainly in the fourth round, the whole thing swung Philip Holliday's
00:26:43way.
00:26:43You know, he's been whacking him with those funny checks the entire fight.
00:26:46And the only reason I gave two rounds to Ivan Robinson was because he had very quick hands, but let
00:26:50me tell you something.
00:26:50The fourth round of the fight absolutely turned around.
00:26:52The funny checks are really stuck to tell him, Robinson.
00:26:54He's slowed up noticeably.
00:26:57Well, Robinson is fighting back well.
00:27:00I have it two rounds apiece also, but my sense is that Holliday certainly is doing well.
00:27:10I have to learn to go to the body with authority like Holliday does.
00:27:14You don't go to the body with authority, you won't last long as a professional boxer.
00:27:18That was one of Meldrick Taylor's weaknesses.
00:27:23And incidentally, Meldrick Taylor and Ivan Robinson went to the same high school.
00:27:30Thank you for that lead-in, Roy.
00:27:32I didn't know if you knew that or not.
00:27:33That would be Simon Grant's High School in Philadelphia.
00:27:37Mm-hmm.
00:27:40Both of them were good fighters, and both Ivan is a good fighter, and Meldrick is still a good fighter.
00:27:44But Ivan needs to learn that to be a great professional, you'll have to throw great body shots like the
00:27:49one he throws then.
00:27:50And Little Pity Pass won't get it.
00:27:53It's a pretty active will for Ivan Robinson to stand in there and just trade punches with Philip Holliday.
00:27:59And he's doing it up to this point in the fight.
00:28:01And I think he's hurting Holliday's body when he does punch him to the body with authority, but he has
00:28:06to do it more often.
00:28:07And there's a little red spot above Holliday's right eye, and under the eyebrow, I can't tell yet whether it's
00:28:12a cut, but it's at least an abrasion.
00:28:17Now we're cut and misses for Holliday, and he says, ah, the rib cage.
00:28:21I remember, I'll go back to the rib cage.
00:28:23If he goes to the rib cage, he can win this fight, Jim.
00:28:27Ivan Robinson.
00:28:36Right there, the guy throws 4-1 because he lets, I mean, Holiday throws 4-1 because
00:28:41Robinson lets him get off first. He's initiating all the contact. Right there. One, two, three,
00:28:50question. If this time another guy like this comes first, he's going to beat you.
00:29:00That's the kind of stopping that you have to do, you know, just like Aubin did then.
00:29:04Well, much of this round has been fought in the center of the ring. And as you pointed
00:29:08out earlier, Roy, when they fight in the center of the ring, Robinson has a chance to pick
00:29:12Holiday apart, as he does right there. But then Holiday comes back relentlessly, as is his
00:29:19start. A task on his double. Give him more down. Give him more down.
00:29:45This fight has been no holiday for Ivan Robinson. He just doesn't give you time to think or even
00:29:54blink. And then you see Robinson. He's had a little bit of a holiday here himself with
00:30:05a good flurry late on trying his best. But I can't believe that this is his fight. He's
00:30:11being forced to fight. Holiday's fight. One bad thing that's happening to Robinson as the
00:30:18fight goes on. He's losing his jab. Holiday can get away. Of 104 total connects between the
00:30:25two fighters in round five, 91 of them were power shots. And if Ivan Robinson can't set his
00:30:30stuff up with his jab, he's fighting Holiday's fight. Just as he gets outside to get set, Jim,
00:30:36Holiday attacks. He never has a chance to really get out and set up like he wants to. Robinson doesn't.
00:30:44Now they begin to trade jabs in the center of the ring. And this is where Robinson can do
00:30:47very well. And Holiday's punch count slows when they stand like this. The closer they
00:30:52get to the ropes, the more Holiday goes back to being the Tasmanian Devil or the whirling
00:30:57dervish, whatever you want to call it. That monstrous punch count. There was a featherweight
00:31:01fight a few years back, I believe, between Troy Waters and Kevin Kelly, in which the all-time
00:31:08punch stats record for most punches thrown and landed was set. I think we got a chance of threatening
00:31:13that tonight if this out goes 12 rounds. I think we do too, Jim. Great right-hand lead
00:31:22by Ivan Robinson. Well, if this is an example of some of the relatively unknown
00:31:28lightweight fighters out there, this division is going to experience a
00:31:33comeback in a big way in 97. Henry Armstrong would be proud.
00:31:41Good. Counter right-hand shot inside by Holiday. Robinson's footwork starting to suffer a little
00:31:50bit as he continues to take the wear and care to the body. Robinson took a big right hand
00:31:55up top again from Holiday. And now Holiday is starting to focus more and more on the head
00:32:00and tried to get Robinson's run. Robinson could be giving a little weak from those body shots. His legs
00:32:07could be starting to feel the body shots from Holiday. Oh, look at Holiday just set and fired. He lands
00:32:20first, he lands last, and he lands in between.
00:32:30And in the way he commits to every power punch, he's got a little of the David Dueling. Yeah, but
00:32:35give Robinson credit. He's really, really giving it a big try here. I give him a world of credit. He's
00:32:42fighting a tremendous fight. This has given a tremendous...
00:32:48I mean, we've seen this back and forth for the fourth time now in a week. Mercer and Witherspoon, Bowe
00:32:59and Galata. Earlier we saw David Tula. And I can read it. David.
00:33:17I don't think Adam Robinson is out of this fight yet. Not at all. Particularly because that abrasion above Holiday's
00:33:24right eye may yet begin to bleed.
00:33:26You're going to have to fight, man. You're going to have to work. You've got to still stay pumped.
00:33:29Incidentally, all the fights here on HBO are great like this. Well, no, not always. We've had a couple that
00:33:37weren't quite as entertaining, but we're expecting similar entertainment from Wayne McCullough. There he is, Roy. On January 11th, that'll
00:33:44be boxing after dark in Boston, Massachusetts. And you'll be there with us. That'll also have Romalo Celos against Crisanto
00:33:51Espana.
00:33:52Letting this guy out.
00:33:53Fernell Whitaker against Diobeles Furtado from Team Freedom, the group of defectors from Cuba. Lennox Lewis against Oliver McCullough. And
00:34:04Arturo Gatti against Tracy Patterson. Rematch. First one was a war. And as you saw, there was another bout on
00:34:11that card as well. Angel, Manfredi, and Wilson Rodriguez.
00:34:14Wilson Rodriguez, who had a tremendous fight against Arturo Gatti. Won by Gatti on a miracle left hook knockout when
00:34:22both of his eyes were closed.
00:34:23Workout, workout, workout. Let him out, Ivan. Let him out. Let him out. Let him out. Let him out.
00:34:29I don't know if Philip Holliday's mother has come back into the arena yet, but I can understand why she
00:34:35left.
00:34:38And my reporter out there tells me her seat is still empty.
00:34:47Oh, good body shot by Ivan Robinson.
00:34:59In the sixth round, Philip Holliday threw 121 punches, and Ivan Robinson threw 100.
00:35:06One interesting thing here, Jim. Robinson has Holliday backing up now.
00:35:11Something that I know Holliday can't possibly be accustomed to.
00:35:16Mark of how well Robinson's doing, we're into the seventh round of Schedule 12.
00:35:27Holliday is backing up looking for punching room.
00:35:30Because Robinson has decided to pressure him and try to stay in Holliday's face.
00:35:37That time Holliday cocks and blows the right hand, thinking maybe Robinson would walk into it.
00:35:45He wouldn't have to throw another 800 punches if we're down the final bell.
00:35:55Low blow by Holliday.
00:35:58Referee doesn't see it.
00:36:00Or if he did, he elected to let it go.
00:36:02Now, Roy, you tell me, what are guys doing in the gym to be able to throw this many punches?
00:36:08I mean, is it working on the speed bag, on the big bag?
00:36:11What do you do?
00:36:12The big bag mainly.
00:36:14But what he's got probably does is he probably stays in shape year round.
00:36:18I think he was hurt by that hook band, though.
00:36:21By being a triathlon, I think he probably stays well-conditioned for year round,
00:36:25and that would allow him to be able to do this.
00:36:27I think this has been a tremendous round for Ivan Robinson,
00:36:30who has been able, as Roy pointed out, to back Holliday up a couple times
00:36:34and has landed some excellent counter shots in there.
00:36:37And now Holliday, perhaps sensing that the first couple of minutes of the round got away from him,
00:36:42is looking for a big finish.
00:36:46And Robinson was very smart by not staying in that corner then.
00:36:52Robinson a little bit out of gas coming down the stretch here in round seven,
00:36:56but he has put some hurt on Holliday in this round.
00:36:58And he's given Holliday a little bit of his own metal.
00:37:01Pressure, pressure, and more pressure.
00:37:05Well, this has nothing to do with technique anymore.
00:37:10Well, both fighters getting a little ragged here in seven.
00:37:13You saw how Holliday was wild with two uppercuts,
00:37:16but he comes back with some dominations in the closing moment,
00:37:19and Robinson counters effectively.
00:37:23See, you didn't put yourself in this kind of punch.
00:37:26Listen, man, listen.
00:37:29Ivan, you square it up.
00:37:31You're just, you're throwing nothing punches.
00:37:35I told you that you need to hit something, right?
00:37:38Right.
00:37:38Okay, you just sit there in the dead air, baby.
00:37:40Okay.
00:37:41Hit something.
00:37:42You know what I'm saying?
00:37:43Right.
00:37:43You got him on the ropes, hit something.
00:37:46You know what I mean?
00:37:47The chest, the arm, the arm.
00:37:48I'm good.
00:37:49Yeah.
00:37:50Trace is getting too much.
00:37:51Just keep it, Trace.
00:37:52The fight is a little bit close, Boiki.
00:37:53Okay?
00:37:56I have to sign it.
00:38:00More exchanges in the corner.
00:38:03Holliday's nickname is No Deal,
00:38:05which is to say when you fight him,
00:38:07he's not going to give you any deal.
00:38:09He's going to make you fight him.
00:38:11And Robinson is fighting him back.
00:38:20The copy box record for punches thrown by a single fighter
00:38:24in a 12-round fight.
00:38:251,596 punches by Ray Oliveira
00:38:30in a junior welterweight bout against Zach Padilla a few years ago.
00:38:35Right now, Philip Olegay's got a chance to threaten that record.
00:38:42This right is turned around.
00:38:44Yep, Ivan Robinson at round 7-8 is making his fight.
00:38:48But I mean even tactically, Robinson is now coming at him
00:38:51and he's trying to stand back and power shoot him.
00:38:54Come on, Ivan Robinson.
00:39:13We saw between rounds that what was once an abrasion
00:39:17is now a small cut above the right eye of Philip Olegay.
00:39:20I hope you don't punch.
00:39:21That was kind of a good body shot by Ivan Robinson.
00:39:24Did that cut be part of the reason
00:39:26why Robinson's been able to back Holliday up
00:39:28in the last couple of rounds, Roy?
00:39:30No, I don't think the cut has nothing to do with it.
00:39:32I think Robinson just finally decided that,
00:39:34hey, I can't out-box this guy and stay away from him.
00:39:36I'm just going to have to go ahead and fight him.
00:39:38If I'm going to beat him, I'm going to have to beat him
00:39:39by fighting him, not boxing him.
00:39:41Brave choice.
00:39:42Step out, step out, step out.
00:39:45And you can see how much Ivan Robinson wants this tonight.
00:40:09He's going to the bottom of the board.
00:40:13He's going to the bottom of the board.
00:40:17He's going to the bottom of the board.
00:40:19The right eye of the board is going to be
00:40:21He's going to the bottom of his head.
00:40:21There's a 5'9'' lightweight like Robinson really
00:40:25built for that kind of fight...
00:40:27I'm here, I'm here.
00:40:28Don't punch him.
00:40:29Don't punch him.
00:40:29No, he's not built for a fight.
00:40:29No, he's not built for that type of fight,
00:40:31but when you can't get away from this guy,
00:40:33you may as well, fight him.
00:40:47in the early stages of my career, Larry, there were fights when I told friends of mine that
00:40:52if by round six I wasn't outboxing this guy, let me know so we can go toe-to-toe. And
00:40:58that's
00:40:59what I think has happened here.
00:41:06Well, if Ivan Robinson could pull off the upset, fighting Philip Holliday's style of fight,
00:41:12as he's been doing for the past couple of rounds, that would make it doubly sweet and doubly
00:41:17shocking.
00:41:19He might have a chance to do exactly that.
00:41:22Ivan, mighty Robinson.
00:41:24Take his gun.
00:41:29Okay boys, take a deep breath.
00:41:32Drink plenty.
00:41:33Philip, that was a great round.
00:41:34I'm going to round nine.
00:41:35There's only four rounds left, eh?
00:41:37Look, I think we are one round behind, okay?
00:41:39So add this one round in the bag, okay?
00:41:41There you see Philip Holliday's twin brother, Paul.
00:41:46He's not an identical twin.
00:41:49Mother has not returned to the arena yet.
00:41:53Look at it.
00:41:54Look at it.
00:41:54Look at it.
00:41:55Look at it.
00:41:57Look at it.
00:41:59Big mom's around the corner in the buffet.
00:42:10Hey, we need these four rounds.
00:42:15We need them big.
00:42:17Fighters like Philip Holliday can have short, blazing, meteoric careers.
00:42:22You can't do this for too many years.
00:42:25Chavez did.
00:42:27Yeah, but Chavez picked his punches a little bit more deliberately, hurt his opponents
00:42:33a little bit more.
00:42:34He's more heavy handed.
00:42:36Howard, Howard, eight rounds, how do you have it?
00:42:39Larry, I'm absolutely amazed at the way these guys are going at it.
00:42:4277, 75, five rounds to three, Ivan Robinson.
00:42:46I think he's got a tremendous fight.
00:42:48Great physical condition.
00:42:49He just keeps working.
00:42:50I think he's out working Philip Holliday.
00:42:52He's just punching and punching and punching.
00:42:54I just believe he's landed four shots and out working this kid.
00:42:57That means he's given the last three or four rounds to, well, you've given the last,
00:43:01the last two, Jim.
00:43:02And incidentally, the fight you referred to before was Troy Dorsey.
00:43:06Troy Dorsey and Kelly.
00:43:07Troy Dorsey watched that.
00:43:08I have his five rounds to three for Holliday.
00:43:15Well, that makes it interesting, doesn't it?
00:43:18Very interesting.
00:43:19And in round eight, a round, I think we all thought Robinson won.
00:43:24Philip Holliday threw 141 punches.
00:43:27I thought Holliday won the back round.
00:43:29Oh, you did?
00:43:29Okay.
00:43:31Well, the punched out number would support you because he threw 141 blows on the round.
00:43:36All right.
00:43:37Don't punch.
00:43:37Don't punch.
00:43:38Come on.
00:43:48Well, Ivan Robinson has been waiting for this fight all of his life.
00:43:52And to his credit, he is ready for it.
00:43:57He's in terrific condition.
00:44:00And he's fighting it.
00:44:02No matter what happens in this fight.
00:44:04And he is fighting it.
00:44:08And he is fighting it.
00:44:09Are you surprised when Ivan Robinson didn't make the Olympic team in 1992, Roy?
00:44:17Yeah, I was very surprised.
00:44:18I thought he was definitely one of the hotter prospects for the Olympic team in 1992.
00:44:24Hard left hands by Holliday, momentarily stopped Robinson from punching.
00:44:29Robinson slightly wobbled by that big left hook.
00:44:32That hurt Robinson very bad.
00:44:34Holliday looking for a chance to follow up.
00:44:36Robinson did a good job of holding on for a second.
00:44:39Legs still wobbling for Robinson as Holliday tries to put him against the ropes.
00:44:46Now Ivan's starting to get his legs back.
00:44:50Don't punch!
00:44:51Don't punch him!
00:45:06Don't punch!
00:45:06Robinson has to shorten up on the punches a little bit because the reason Holliday gives
00:45:11to the target more times is that he's doing shorter, more frequent, economical punches.
00:45:29Deep breath. Punch him, punch him, punch him.
00:45:32No, straight one-two is all you got to do, baby. I've been telling you that for round one.
00:45:37Right. But you're not doing it. Your back is straight up. You let him get the ground.
00:45:43Hey, you got three rounds left, Captain.
00:45:46Hey, hey, listen. You've got to knock this guy out the ground.
00:45:50You worked too hard for this, man. Everything that you did in the gym, you didn't do in here.
00:45:54Right. You know it.
00:45:58One minute. I feel like I'm feeling good.
00:46:00Keep the pressure on duty when it's done.
00:46:05I've seen so many punches land in these fights we've seen the last week.
00:46:10I think I'm beginning to feel a little punchy.
00:46:13And here are more of them.
00:46:16Do you think that Tommy Brooks is saying the right things to Robinson?
00:46:20It seems to me that he's undermining him a little bit.
00:46:22But, I mean, the fight is turned. He can't get away from Holiday.
00:46:27Why do you keep telling him you're not doing what you're doing in the gym?
00:46:30What he's doing in the gym probably wouldn't work right now anyway.
00:46:33I'm sure they were planning to box Holiday in the gym, but that will not work.
00:46:39Yeah, I'm not sure how you're going to effectively box against a guy who just puts his head in your
00:46:43chest
00:46:43and fires away the way Holiday does most of the time.
00:46:47Well, you have to fight him a little bit and box him a little bit.
00:46:49Then fight him a little bit, then box him a little bit.
00:46:51You change up on him so much that you confuse him.
00:46:53Of which I think Robinson's done a tremendous job.
00:46:56Can't imagine what Tommy Brooks would be dissatisfied about with regard to that.
00:46:59But probably because Robinson isn't putting out the punch effort that Holiday is putting out.
00:47:05Well, I don't think Brooks sees him as a brawler, and he's been involved in a brawl.
00:47:09So it's quite understandable that he's a little disappointed that Robinson hasn't been able to execute his style as a
00:47:18boxer.
00:47:19But once you see what's happening, why undermine him psychologically by keep telling him that?
00:47:26Well, because he wants him to go out and try to knock him out.
00:47:30He wants out to go out and try to knock Holiday out.
00:47:34You obviously think they're that far behind.
00:47:36And I'm not working. Pull out, Arvin.
00:47:40And that's what we talked about a new trainer.
00:47:42A fighter also has to get used to the different kinds of instructions he's going to get in the corner.
00:47:49Another hard right hand by Holiday. Robinson wobbled just a little bit.
00:47:53Now Robinson lands a right-hand shot along the ropes.
00:47:58This is a hard fight to make that change here, Larry.
00:48:02Yep. Very hard fight.
00:48:03Holiday starting to get some opportunities to land power punches to the head.
00:48:07He went through the middle rounds without being able to do that.
00:48:10No punch, no punch, no punch, no punch, no punch, no punch, no punch, no punch, no punch, no punch,
00:48:21no punch, no punch, no punch.
00:48:34Pull out, pull out, pull out.
00:48:38I think Holiday's punches have lost a little snap here in the last couple of rounds.
00:48:42And right there was one of those opportunities where Arvin could have boxed a little because you had him off
00:48:47Bella.
00:48:47I had to stay outside of boxing while you had him off Bella.
00:48:52Why would he be tired after all of this, right?
00:48:56He's not tired. There he's sore right there. He has enough to do it.
00:49:00Well, this looks like an old-fashioned Philadelphia gym war.
00:49:05I'm sure Robinson has been in a few of those.
00:49:10Great right hand by Holiday.
00:49:12Robinson comes back with a left and a right of his own.
00:49:14Second right hand missed for Robinson.
00:49:17Closing seconds of the round.
00:49:19Every round of pitch battle.
00:49:23I like rough.
00:49:26I like every fight we've seen tonight.
00:49:28He's boxing after dark.
00:49:30It started on February 3 with the fabulous Kennedy McKinney versus Marco Antonio Barrera fight.
00:49:36Later we had Wilson Rodriguez against Arturo Gatti.
00:49:38We just don't have too many bad fights on this telecast.
00:49:40Right, we're on about World War 10 now, aren't we?
00:49:42That's right, yeah.
00:49:46There's six minutes left.
00:49:47You run 11, okay?
00:49:50Six minutes, we need both rounds.
00:49:51To be sure of retaining this target.
00:49:53We don't have these judges who are scoring the fight.
00:49:59And we show you round card girls on Boxing After Dark.
00:50:02In Santa Claus costumes.
00:50:04And why didn't we bring you Phillip Holiday tonight?
00:50:06Well of course because it's the holiday season.
00:50:09i must say as beautiful as this casino is and i've been all over the world the casinos have
00:50:17never seen anything quite as beautiful as this round card girls let me down a little bit
00:50:23i understand the tribal elders dictated the costumes
00:50:30that's the only thing that's let us down i started to say the boxing has been nothing
00:50:34short of cosmic tonight hard body shot by philip holliday he follows up with a couple of punches
00:50:41upstairs ivan robinson with a left and a right combination has been his best weapon all through
00:50:46the fight holliday's still able to throw punches and bunches to the rib cage
00:50:53oh that's a good way i have ivan moving over those guys one of those beers that we were speaking
00:50:59of
00:51:00earlier yeah he talked about david is overtaised beard it was world class
00:51:06as he hung in for almost all of 12 rounds against david two up before one of two his bombs
00:51:13finally put him
00:51:14away a bad low blow the first one we've seen tonight
00:51:28i don't think i was too no good one
00:51:35basically what i think is happening here is hoppages is out hustling robin
00:51:41well that's what he does
00:51:53well we showed you that ivan robinson had only 10 knockouts in his 23 wins coming in
00:51:59if he can't win the fight at the end of the night he might be thinking if i just had
00:52:04a little more
00:52:04punching power i could have backed holiday up just a tiny bit more if i could have hurt him when
00:52:08i had
00:52:09chances he hasn't been able to hurt him at all and give holliday a little bit of credit for
00:52:14him at the fourth time in the last three rounds that he's landed the kind of power shot which catches
00:52:33the
00:52:34eyes of the judges i'll tell you what adam will not quit and adam does not give in now this
00:52:41is a mighty performance
00:52:43my
00:53:02holiday told us he's going to new york with his family
00:53:06holiday for a holiday after this for the christmas holidays after watching this i think he's going to
00:53:12spend most of that time in a bed at some hotel young man from bononi south africa wants to spend
00:53:20christmas in new york
00:53:24the
00:53:25much always worse than watching this than it does
00:53:27to see myself
00:53:27all right
00:53:33all the way you're going to win you're going to knock him out okay okay
00:53:44all the way
00:53:49one fellers you touch him in the center okay give me that change
00:53:51okay
00:53:56flip three minutes eh it's between you and your title is three minutes
00:53:59eh everything depends on this down there very very close okay
00:54:03you're going into the last round
00:54:19three rounds you've given holiday the last three absolutely he just keeps coming
00:54:23stronger puncher he seems to have worn either robinson down i think he's pulled out i have it
00:54:30seven to four i have holiday further ahead i believe with tommy brooks
00:54:36that robinson has to have a very very big round to do something dramatic to pull his fight out
00:54:45but more of that in the 11th round holiday threw another 137 punches ivan robinson has come out
00:54:55looking to unload the kitchen in round 12 he's going to throw everything he's got
00:55:00hard right hands over the top and holiday will come back with exactly the same
00:55:11the reason that this series has been such a success is because we've had young live fighters like this
00:55:19trying to prove to the world how good they are relatively evenly matched and therefore
00:55:24extended to their best efforts by the competition
00:55:32robinson's off to an excellent start in round 12 roy
00:55:34yeah he is but holiday is not backing up and he's not letting go
00:55:41good left hand counter shot in there by ivan
00:55:44holiday just throws him into the ropes
00:55:49that's what was the experience too he learned robinson he learned to stop letting guys push him and throw him
00:55:54around
00:56:10well i feel like standing up and applauding after this one me too well we asked these kids to give
00:56:18us a lot and these kids
00:56:19have given us more than a lot all four of them tonight one minute to go in a great great
00:56:26night
00:56:26of boxing mohegan sun casino in connecticut first visit here for boxing off the dark and it is a memorable
00:56:33one
00:56:38and holiday seems to be getting stronger
00:56:40oh this is the moment in the draft
00:56:48i'm going to do well in the second half
00:57:06robinson wilting a little as the last second stick away
00:57:11holiday still looking to land one more big shot look at this just look at this
00:57:21these kids are all fighting
00:57:26and it's a standing row from the crowd well deserved
00:57:38and it's a standing row from the crowd
00:57:55these two guys know each other pretty well right now very well
00:58:04let's take a look at some action from round 12
00:58:08in which robinson threw 84 punches landed more than half of them
00:58:12but holiday threw 133 punches in round 12. roy
00:58:17there you see holiday coming trying to be the aggressor again but he just could not make
00:58:23ivan robinson give both of them just trading body shots ivan would not give up in this fight
00:58:33very difficult fight to score once again
00:58:36are you sure you favor aggression as does our harold letterman and you would have to cast your eye
00:58:41toward holiday for his relentlessness and his aggressive command and we told you about his mother
00:58:48who after the two-week fast she's a member of a very conservative religious sect in south africa
00:58:54and left the arena and apparently did not watch any of the fight and now she's come back in
00:59:00to see how her son has fared a big sacrificial statement that she makes for her son
00:59:08your mother watch your fights yeah my mom watches every fight and she throws every punch
00:59:12right along with me
00:59:15but we don't take too many
00:59:254 160 total punches thrown in this fight let's go up to mark farrow for the official decision
00:59:31bring the bell
00:59:33ladies and gentlemen we have a unanimous decision
00:59:40judge harry davis scores about 116 107
00:59:47judge steve epstein scores it 118 110 and judge james trailer scores it 117
00:59:58119 111 111 to the winner and ibf lightweight champion of the world
01:00:07philip holiday
01:00:14unanimous decision for holiday
01:00:17and none of the three judges quite frankly saw it as closely as we did harold
01:00:24seven rounds to five 115 113 philip holiday certainly he finished a lot stronger he deserved
01:00:30the decision i didn't think he won that bid because ivan robinson certainly looked awful good
01:00:34in the early rounds i think i agree more with harold's scoring than with the scorecards of the three judges
01:00:39all of whom saw it a little bit more one-sidedly in holiday's favor although i think roy we can
01:00:43agree holiday won the fight yeah he did win the fight he did win the fight because he showed that
01:00:48he was the champion he was the aggressor he kept kept kept coming kept coming kept coming he got
01:00:53stronger as the fight went on punch stat numbers and you can see that holiday wound up throwing
01:00:58close to 1500 punches in the fight not breaking the individual fight record but there aren't too many
01:01:03lightweights who have thrown more than that with punch stat numbers counters watching and that number i
01:01:09gave you earlier four thousand plus punches on the night that was in the two bouts combined that's what
01:01:13you that's what you watched on boxing after dark tonight was four thousand one hundred sixty attempted
01:01:17punches let's go to larry merchant in the ring all right thank you very much jim just quickly fellas
01:01:24thank you for putting your bodies and your souls into this fight uh first you ivan your thoughts about
01:01:31this fight uh it was a real damn close fight uh i got out of my game plan i didn't
01:01:36listen to to tommy brooks
01:01:37uh like i told everybody before philip holliday is a true champion i'm glad he gave me a shot at
01:01:44the
01:01:44ibf title and i'll be back i just hope hbo and you know everybody look at me as a worthy
01:01:49opponent and
01:01:49bring me back and you philip uh definitely ivan gave me a fantastic fight i must say that um i've
01:01:56had
01:01:56many fights and i don't think i've heard anybody who said um conditioning like ivan so i must take my
01:02:01hat
01:02:01off team and say well done um i i thought the fight was closer than the the judges gave it
01:02:06um
01:02:07and i one thing i was happy about was my trainer we worked hard together and he's honest to me
01:02:12in
01:02:12the corner i think we're coming in about the six round and he said to me philip i think we're
01:02:15behind
01:02:16on this fight and um that's what i like i want someone to be honest with me and tell me
01:02:19the truth
01:02:19what's going on and he made me start picking my rounds my work rate up from about around six
01:02:25so i knew i was a little bit behind i thought the fight was closer than the judges gave it
01:02:29but um we'll take it yes definitely i'll take every point i can get and so away jim what a
01:02:36sportsman huh a very good sportsman and uh you heard him say that he agreed with us in effect
01:02:42that the fight was closer than the way the judges thought well we know what philip holiday is going
01:02:47to do in the future he's going to look for more top opponents and try to pound away at them
01:02:51relentlessly as he did tonight ivan robinson looks forward to a good future with an excellent trainer
01:02:55and tommy brooks what will brooks do with it i think brooks will turn him into a
01:02:58very superb fighter uh this guy has a lot of good training already he just has to work on
01:03:03throwing more punches means a little bit more meaner in the ring he certainly overcame the
01:03:08hurdles we discussed before the fight of having recently dislodged his father as trainer to be
01:03:13able to six weeks later come back and put forth an effort like this one shows the emotional stability
01:03:18of ivan robinson that shows that he does have the emotional stability enough to become a world champion
01:03:23we saw an excellent lightweight earlier on the undercard young man named shane mosley from linwood
01:03:29california how far away is shane mosley from about with somebody like philip holiday shane mosley is
01:03:34at the door and knocking and trying to kick it down now he won't throw any 14 or 1500 punches
01:03:39he'll be
01:03:40trying to get one power shot in on holiday he won't be trying to get one power shot in he
01:03:44will be trying
01:03:44to get a numerous amount of power shots in but it won't take him 14 or 1500 if he issue
01:03:49with a
01:03:501000 somebody should be asleep by then let's go back to larry merchant uh as he joins us now at
01:03:55ringside roy thanks again for a great job larry your final thoughts uh after having spoken with
01:04:00terrific sportsman philip holiday and you can't ask for better sportsmanship than he
01:04:04exhibited in that post-fight discussion my thoughts after watching a card like this jim are that americans
01:04:12used to dominate boxing and we just thought all the best fighters in the world were americans as
01:04:17casey stengel used to say of our best athletes the youth of america but now we see that in prize
01:04:23fighting as in economics it's a tough competitive world out there and there are a lot of good
01:04:30athletes and especially a lot of good fighters out there too we saw tonight a samoan who lives in new
01:04:36zealand we saw a a nigerian who lives in paris we saw a south african we saw a kid from
01:04:44philadelphia
01:04:45brave and true souls all and sitting and watching and loving every minute of it as we were marvin
01:04:52haggler an american who now lives in italy it is an international game and we're going to see more and
01:05:00more great international fighters from now in italy it is an international game and we're going to see
01:05:06more and more great international fighters from now on boxing's global economy producing global class
01:05:13entertainment well we'll be back in a moment with the final word on what happened in our two
01:05:17terrific boxing matches on boxing after dark tonight right now let's just take a minute to look ahead to
01:05:23some upcoming programming right here on hbo
01:05:30we got ourselves a broken arrow when a routine exercise goes intentionally wrong 250 million
01:05:37dollars by 1400 utah time the race against the clock four minutes to detonation becomes a battle of ways
01:05:42everything he's joseph says he's heading west he's actually heading east christian slater samantha
01:05:48mathis and john travolta in broken arrow premieres saturday january 4th exclusively on hbo you're
01:05:55out of your mind ain't it cool at 8 30 this morning a school bus containing seven school children from
01:06:03the la roque claire school for the death was hijacked
01:06:10hbo pictures presents james garner everywhere in front of this point is considered the kill zone i'm a
01:06:16shooter exactly two minutes but i'll get that out 10 seconds
01:06:24premiere saturday january 11th only on hbo so you're making a habit of watching boxing after
01:06:31dark and you're glad you are here's why in our first fight tonight david tua pounded away against
01:06:37the resolute david izonrite of nigeria for close to 12 full rounds izonrite giving as good as he got for
01:06:44much of his fight but ultimately worn down by the excessive power of two shots particularly the
01:06:51left hook and the left uppercut finally in the second minute of the 12th round to doing enough
01:06:56damage to izonrite that izonrite slumped against the ropes and referee ralph flaherty stopped the fight
01:07:03then unanimous decision victory for philip holiday but not an easy one against ivan robinson of philadelphia
01:07:10throughout the fight they traded punches much in that manner as philip holiday would ultimately
01:07:15throw close to 1500 punches by punch stat computation in suppressing ivan robinson by
01:07:22an unanimous decision that was a little bit more one-sided than we thought it should be coming up
01:07:26immediately following our show stick around for james spader and jason robards in storyville tune in this
01:07:32week to the show the pros watch inside the nfl join hosts lynn dawson nick bonicotti chris collinsworth and
01:07:37jerry glanville as they wrap up the regular season and give the first comprehensive look
01:07:41at the upcoming nfl playoff after you finish your holiday frolicking say that seven times
01:07:46don't miss hbo sports's real sports with bryant gumbel january's installment includes a look at the
01:07:52lavish halftime shows of super bowls holiday frolicking and investigates the financial
01:07:56improprieties swirling around tennis superstar steffi graf what did she know and when did she know it
01:08:02hbo sports is boxing after dark returns january 11 from boston with a super bantamweight fight
01:08:07between daniel zaragoza and wayne mccullough and junior middleweights chrisanto espana and romales
01:08:13ellis another international night on boxing after dark now for roy jones larry merchant harold
01:08:19letterman i'm jim lampley saying good night from the mohegan tribal reservation in connecticut
01:08:24the executive producer of hbo sports is ross greenberg night's coverage of boxing after dark was
01:08:30produced by woody prime and welcome woody and directed by mark payton the associate directors
01:08:35were adam burger and steve cohen assistance to the producer lisa bennett and thomas odlevelt
01:08:39the production manager was mark hayden and the technical supervisor was bob hunter
01:09:08pin on mccullough with an
01:09:30This has been a presentation of HBO Sports, the network of champions.
01:09:38In 1996, Boxing After Dark made history in its very first year,
01:09:43as some of the best in the business worked the night shift.
01:09:48Here comes Barrera!
01:09:49Barrera versus McKinney.
01:09:51Oh, what a right-hand shot! Oh, what a return!
01:09:54Canozales versus Jones.
01:09:56Junior Jones, possibly 20 seconds away from the biggest victory of his career.
01:10:02Gotti versus Rodriguez.
01:10:04Down goes Rodriguez!
01:10:06And Nelson versus Lehigh.
01:10:10In 1997, Boxing After Dark lights up the night again,
01:10:14delivering the next exciting chapters of boxing history.
01:10:18January 11th, Saragossa and McCullough get ready to rock for the Super Bantamweight title.
01:10:24And February 22nd, the long-awaited rematch.
01:10:27Gotti versus Patterson 2.
01:10:29This is the Sun Champions are made of.
01:10:31HBO, Boxing After Dark.
01:10:33Because some of the best in the business still worked the night shift.
01:10:39Next on HBO.
01:10:41Anything goes down in New Orleans.
01:10:43A lesson that James Spader is about...
01:10:45...
01:10:45...
01:10:45...
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