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WBC Jr Super Lightweight Champion Kostya Tszyu faces WBA Super Lightweight Champion Sharmba Mitchell in a unification fight on Showtime Boxing. Plus an interview with IBF Champion Zab Judah.
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00:00:002000 U.S. Olympic team and we look forward to seeing more of Jeff Lacey in the future for now
00:00:11Jeff joins us alongside Jim Gray Jim all right thank you very much Steve well we just saw that knockout
00:00:17pretty good left hand right there huh I've been working on that in the gym with me and my coach
00:00:21Roger Blower been working on the basics and we we use it in the fight yesterday night you weren't able
00:00:29to fight in Connecticut
00:00:29obviously a disappointment but might that postponement of work to your advantage give you a little bit more time and
00:00:34and and help you actually I think is it really got my mind set up to really really be ready
00:00:41for this fight and we're not trying to rush anything much I really would like to have my pro debut
00:00:48on Showtime but unfortunately it was a bad mistake that I wasn't able to fight can you really get a
00:00:55flavor and tell just exactly what you've accomplished or what you've done in one
00:00:59round in such a short fight well actually you really can't tell but I think I did it in a
00:01:05superb way I didn't go out and just look for the knockout it just came what do you plan to
00:01:10do next now when will your next fight be obviously it'll be pretty soon won't it oh the next fight
00:01:15is scheduled for March 2nd here in Las Vegas at the Texas station I don't know who my opponent is
00:01:21scheduled for yet I don't know
00:01:24uh sleeper do you feel that maybe as Steve Albert just said you could be the sleeper of the 2000
00:01:29Olympic team when it's all said and done well we'll leave it to the fans it really really dictate and
00:01:35really see who's going to be the sleeper for the Olympic team coming out because we have really good competition
00:01:40coming out of the Olympics we'll just see in the long run
00:01:43now the guy right behind you Zab Judah he's trying to get your attention there a little bit you saw
00:01:47that left hand what did you think of Jeff Jeff Jeff Jeff Jeff Jeff I knew Jeff from way back
00:01:51in the amateurs we came up together and um I think he's gonna make a hell of a pro
00:01:56what kind of advice would you give him obviously a young fighter he's had the Olympic experiences as he gets
00:02:01going as a pro I mean I would just tell him the same thing the rest of the world champion
00:02:04told me when I came up there just stay focused dedication and work hard
00:02:09obviously you have a big interest in this fight here coming up and we'll get your thoughts on that throughout
00:02:12the fight we look forward to seeing you jab Jeff congratulations to you best of luck in the future thanks
00:02:18thanks for having me all right let's go back to Steve Albert ringside the very camera friendly Jeff Lacey nice
00:02:24job last night in Columbus Ohio making the the trek into Las Vegas quickly and getting some camera time with
00:02:30Jim Gray and we'll hear a lot more from Zab Judah as well later on in this telecast well we
00:02:36just saw Jeff Lacey
00:02:38the future of boxing speaking of the future here's what's coming up on Showtime championship boxing next Saturday February 10th
00:02:44we will come to you from across the pond in witness England to bring you a world championship bout WBO
00:02:50junior middleweight champion Harry Simon faces challenger Robert Allen catch this special same day coverage at 10 p.m. Eastern
00:02:57and Pacific and coming up in March on pay per view some of boxing's biggest names in one spectacular night
00:03:06of fights starting with W
00:03:08WBA heavyweight champion of Vander Holyfield he's held back on proving his controversial decision over John Ruiz was no mistake
00:03:14he beat him once but who will have the last word plus former world champion Miguel Angel Gonzalez the first
00:03:20lady of the ring Christy Martin and one more great bout Holyfield Ruiz to the last word Saturday March 3rd
00:03:26live on pay per view
00:03:35beginning at 9 p.m. Eastern 6 Pacific hey and don't forget March 23rd a heavyweight doubleheader as David Tua
00:03:43restarts his pursuit of a championship versus Donnell Nicholson and the showtime debut of one of the most talked about
00:03:49new faces on the heavyweight scene the black rhino Clifford Etienne versus Fres Okendo that's Friday February March 23rd 11
00:03:57p.m. Eastern and the showtime debut of one of the most talked about new faces on the heavyweight scene
00:03:58the black rhino Clifford Etienne
00:03:58and Pacific we hope that you'll join us we are one down one to go in our world championship doubleheader
00:04:05from Las Vegas Nevada as we stand by for our featured attraction here at the spacious Mandalay Bay Resort and
00:04:12Casino a showdown with major ramifications coming up next it's our main event Kostya Zoo versus Sean Bay Mitchell the
00:04:21fight to unify the WBC
00:04:23WBC and WBA super lightweight titles Steve Albert back here with my ringside partner Bobby Chez Bobby this a fight
00:04:34of contrasting styles I know you've always enjoyed the controlled fury of Kostya Zoo tell us about it well Kostya
00:04:41Zoo is one of my favorite fighters because he's all business he comes right to the fight likes to get
00:04:45right to the fight and systematically break down his opponents en route to their inevitable destruction how about a video
00:04:51scouting report of Kostya Zoo
00:04:53Kostya Zoo has taken the basic Eastern European style and added some very effective Americanized moves become one of boxing's
00:05:00best fighters Kostya Zoo he uses his jab as a range finder he sticks it out in front of him
00:05:11keeping his opponents at a safe distance which sets up his offensive combinations he also uses his jab as a
00:05:17measuring device which leads to his hammer like right hand but don't be fooled he also has real knock
00:05:23back out power in his left hand they can kill you with left hooks and uppercuts and as you can
00:05:28see in his fight with the veteran Julio Cesar Chavez he is a devastating finisher his power coupled with his
00:05:37excellent endurance in your face style makes him a legitimate threat every minute of every single round and Bobby I
00:05:44know you also have a great deal of respect for his opponent tonight the Sean Bay Mitchell a fighter who
00:05:48really came up the hard way we know Steve Sean Bay is also one of my favorite fighters he's been
00:05:52here for a long time
00:05:53for a long time he's got a lot of experience he's paid his dues he's really worked hard for everything
00:05:57has no one's given him anything easy you know what you gotta respect the guy like that how about handicapping
00:06:02Mr. Mitchell I sure will charm by Milton Mitchell is a slick well rounded experienced southpaw he has good skills
00:06:09and almost every facet of the game
00:06:18fighting southpaw Mitchell uses a very active right jab to set up his attack he relies on his speed and
00:06:24likes to confuse his opponents with angles occasionally shifting to an orthodox stance
00:06:29on defense he enjoys making his opponents miss and uses his feet to stay out of trouble while he possesses
00:06:35decent one punch power he relies on his fast hands and impressive combinations to truly hurt his opponent
00:06:43When you add it all up Shawn Ray Mitchell's experience his speed and all his skills make him a very
00:06:48tough opponent to beat Steve
00:06:49All right Bobby so much for the scouting reports tonight Kostya Zoo and Shawn Bay Mitchell meet one will go
00:06:55home with two world title belts the other goes home a former champion
00:06:59Here's what they had to say about their impending championship unification
00:07:03Am I excited about the fight? Oh most definitely come on this is like the World Series
00:07:09The Super Bowl and all that combined in one so why wouldn't I be this is what you get into
00:07:16boxing for
00:07:18You know unifying titles
00:07:21You know it won't be easy
00:07:22We're talking about the unification bet can be easy fight and I don't want to be easy fight
00:07:28I believe Chamba trained properly
00:07:32And I really want him to be in a good shape because I want to beat the best guy and
00:07:39I want to beat impressively him and I believe I will be
00:07:42I dream about what's gonna happen
00:07:45What happens in that dream is that you know we go into the rounds and I end up catching them
00:07:52What I have to do to win the fight is pressure, constant pressure
00:08:02Make him suffer, hit him hard, hit him hard from many different places, slow him down and just slowly slowly
00:08:13destroy it
00:08:14I think that you know if you stand in front of Costa Zou he's a great puncher
00:08:19Um if you move on Costa Zou he's not so great puncher
00:08:23Um too pretty to be getting hit and get bruised up and things like that
00:08:27Uh like Ali said you know you gotta after the fight you have to have that pretty smile and uh
00:08:33you know you can't mess up the pretty face
00:08:34So that's what I have to do
00:08:37I have great timing when the right time come I will connect it
00:08:42I can't lose
00:08:46Two very confident young men and after digesting all of that Bobby is Costa Zou just physically too strong for
00:08:54Shambi Mitchell or Shambi Mitchell too fast for Costa Zou
00:08:57You know Steve that's exactly why we're here and exactly what we're about to find out
00:09:00Speed and power are the two best equalizers in this business
00:09:03One punch knockout power obviously number one but speed we saw Diego corrales get neutralized by an excellent
00:09:09Floyd Floyd mayweather jr. What we have here tonight though is a little bit of a different case
00:09:14I have personally think that the pressure and power of Costas is gonna be a little too much
00:09:17Let's not forget Shambi Mitchell's had almost double the amount of fights been around a long time
00:09:22I think some of those where the wear and tear and toll it's taken on his body might be attitude
00:09:26tonight
00:09:26It might not be enough for him and while Costas Zou knows that Shambi Mitchell is known for his speed
00:09:32Costas Zou feels that
00:09:34Shambi Mitchell is underestimating
00:09:37Costas Zou's speed and accuracy say that fast five times
00:09:40Let's get your keys to victory for okay. We have a case here of power and unbelievable pressure versus an
00:09:45experienced slick southpaw
00:09:50We'll start with Shambi Mitchell he's got to use that jab that's imperative he doesn't keep Zou off he's in
00:09:55trouble
00:09:55Also constant movement that will keep Zou off balance and make him not be able to punch as well and
00:10:00a straight left hand
00:10:00It works against all orthodox fighters
00:10:03Here against Green is gonna throw a jab and then he's gonna rock back out let Green miss a wild
00:10:07left hand
00:10:08But now watch what happens once he gets him off balance Green's off balance he's gonna jump back in with
00:10:13a right hook
00:10:15Then a left hand that's wild and misses but he comes right back with another right hook and this puts
00:10:20Green on the canvas
00:10:23Keeping him off balance and keeping punches in his face
00:10:33Costas Zou always needs to keep the pressure on he cannot fight going backwards also force the slugfest
00:10:39He's the heavier puncher here probably has a better chin and also a good straight right hand if the left
00:10:43works for him the right
00:10:44Or excuse me if the left works on him the right will work for him
00:10:48Here against Hurtado double jab stiff power jabs
00:10:50Good right hand down the pipe and this powerful left hook to the body
00:10:54Always pressing always trying to corner his man keeping the pressure on and unloading if he can force the slugfest
00:11:00this may happen
00:11:01to Sean bay mitchell
00:11:07And bobby as cost you zoo gets ready to walk in a
00:11:10Disappointing thin crowd on hand here for such an important fight
00:11:16The ring walks were determined by a coin toss so first comes wbc super lightweight champ costa zoo from sydney
00:11:23australia
00:11:24By way of sarov russia off the one-sided six round tko over six-time world champ
00:11:29Julio cesar chavez
00:11:30Which finally convinced the mexican idol to retire two won the belt with a punishing 10th round ko of miguel
00:11:36angel gonzalez
00:11:37His third defense also a former ibf 140 pound champions won seven straight all by knockout outstanding amateur career
00:11:45259 wins of gold at the 91 world championships
00:11:49His only loss to vince phillips a 10th round tko in 97 which zoo says turned his career around and
00:11:56made him
00:11:56A better overall fighter
00:11:59And while zoo has excellent power underrated speed and terrific reflexes
00:12:04Bobby as you know his defense not always what it should be could that be a factor considering mitchell's awkward
00:12:11south cost style
00:12:12You know steve his defense generally isn't that bad
00:12:14But sometimes zoo is so focused on his offensive mission of destroying his opponents that he forgets defense when he
00:12:20hurt hurtado
00:12:21Had him down he came running in wildly and blindly forgetting his defense wound up tasting the canvas twice
00:12:26Before eventually knocking her title out so if the past is any indication it could be a factor tonight if
00:12:32he's not paying attention
00:12:34Well a small but loyal gathering favoring the entrance of cost you zoo
00:12:40There you see averages a bit over seven
00:12:43Rounds per fight, but he is a ferocious
00:12:47vicious
00:12:48relentless
00:12:49very heavy-fisted fighter
00:12:55They'll make a purse reportedly of eight hundred thousand dollars as he gets his gloves checked by the veteran rep
00:13:01joe cortez
00:13:03Mr. I'm firm, but I'm fair
00:13:07There's his father boris
00:13:09He used to work in the steel mills of the old soviet union about three decades. There's the wbc belt
00:13:16being proudly
00:13:17displayed by boris sue who came over from
00:13:21Russia to join his son and now here is shambay mitchell who's making 900 000
00:13:27The wba chap when he was 31 and 0 he was fed up with the political political aspect of boxing
00:13:34Because guys 17 and over getting title shots
00:13:36He says that that frustration and lack of focus
00:13:39Led to his back-to-back losses in 1994 against lavander johnson and steve johnson
00:13:44He is being psyched up and urged on by team mitchell there
00:13:48And they are really
00:13:51Beside themselves
00:13:54As you heard earlier from our reports
00:13:57From tim smith
00:13:59And jim gray
00:14:02Shambay suffering an injury to his left knee and you know how important it's going to be for him to
00:14:06be mobile
00:14:07And to move around a lot against a guy like cost you zoo and this fight was being threatened for
00:14:12a while
00:14:12Of being canceled or being postponed
00:14:16But thank goodness it stays on
00:14:19At one point after those two losses mitchell actually contemplated quitting but he said i'll show you and he won
00:14:24his next 16
00:14:25Including the title over frenchman colleague rahilou in paris he's defended it four times
00:14:31bobby he's looked okay of late but not exceptionally sharp his last five have gone the distance
00:14:38Is that carelessness the fact that he's been dropped by a younger inexperienced felix glories?
00:14:44He was stunned by reggie green or is it an indication that the many
00:14:49Fights are beginning to take their toll well steve we talked about earlier a number of fights mitchell has had
00:14:53and i know this from experience myself
00:14:54The body from all those long years of wars start to wear down and it takes his tone
00:14:59But mitchell is actually younger than cost you zoo even though he's had so many more fights in cost you
00:15:03zoo
00:15:04I feel whatever he has left in his system he is going to summon up for this very important moment
00:15:08tonight
00:15:10Let's size him up as we check out the tale of the tale
00:15:13Only a year separates the two behind exactly the same but a five-inch reach advantage for mitchell
00:15:19At yesterday's weigh-in two 140 mitchell just under the fight time weights
00:15:23zoo 150 mitchell 145 and the key rules for this championship unification no standing eight count no three knockdown rule
00:15:31The fighter cannot be saved by the bell in any round
00:15:35Accidental foul ends the fight before the conclusion of the fourth it's a no contest if it happens after the
00:15:40end of four they go to the cards
00:15:42So here at the mandalay bay in las vegas getting ready for our main event
00:15:47cost you zoo versus sharma mitchell to unify the wbc and wba 140 pound belts
00:15:52Let's get the official introductions from our ring announcer the classy jimmy lennon jr
00:16:01Ladies and gentlemen a very good evening to you and we welcome you to the beautiful mandalay bay resort and
00:16:08casino in las
00:16:09vegas nevada as it's time for our featured bout of the evening and it's all brought to you by don
00:16:14king productions in association with
00:16:17vlad wharton's millennium events along with the mandalay bay and showtime
00:16:21championship boxing this battle coming away is sanctioned by the world boxing council president jose
00:16:27suleiman supervisor eduardo lamazon along with the world boxing association the president herberto mendoza
00:16:34supervisor bolivar y casa and the nevada state athletic commission the chairman is dr elias ghanem
00:16:40commissioners amy aub glenn carano dr flip omansky and dr luther mack the executive director is mark ratner
00:16:48now introducing to you our three judges scoring this battle from ringside from las vegas nevada chuck
00:16:54jumper from carson city nevada keith mcdonald and from tervuran belgium daniel venderville and the
00:17:02third man of the ring our referee on charge he is working in this his 138th world title bout joe
00:17:09cortez
00:17:11all right fans here we go with our main event of the evening 12 rounds of boxing for the unified
00:17:19wba
00:17:19and wbc super lightweight championship of the world and now ladies and gentlemen in attendance and boxing
00:17:27fans joining us around the world live from the mandalay bay it's showtime
00:17:40introducing to you first ladies and gentlemen on my left he is fighting out of the red corner he is
00:17:47entering the ring wearing camouflage trunks originally from washington dc now fighting out of tacoma park
00:17:53maryland maryland he waved in at a trim and ready 139 pounds with a record of 47 wins two losses
00:18:01he has
00:18:0129 wins coming by way of knockout tonight he is making the fifth defense of his title ladies and
00:18:08gentlemen please welcome the wba super lightweight champion of the world known as the little big
00:18:15man introducing shambay mitchell
00:18:25and his opponent across the ring ready to fight on my right in the blue corner he enters the ring
00:18:31wearing black trunks originally from seroth russia now fighting out of sydney australia he weighed in at
00:18:39the super lightweight limit of 140 pounds even his record stands at 25 wins one loss one draw with 21
00:18:47wins coming by way of knockout in his second reign as super lightweight champion tonight he is making the
00:18:54third defense of his title ladies and gentlemen please welcome the wbc super lightweight champion of the
00:19:00world introducing costia zoo once again our referee in charge joe cortez now to give instructions 12
00:19:14rounds of unification championship boxing coming okay mitchell soon
00:19:27all right gentlemen we won all the rules in the dressing room this fight for the wbc wba unification
00:19:33i want good sportsman like conduct give me a good clean fight obey my commands at all time
00:19:39remember guys i'm fair but i'm firm all right touch them all
00:19:49final instructions from joe cortez costia zoo he'll give you pressure from the start search and destroy
00:19:56straight ahead extremely offensive minded tenacious ever-present punishing there with johnny lewis his trainer
00:20:05shambay mitchell can he get zoo's respect he'll need a lot of movement remember he's got a bad left knee
00:20:11coming in he cannot stand right in front of zoo can't be careless he needs to box smart and put
00:20:16his
00:20:16experience to work but he is so slick the southpaw when he moves he's smart aggressive good side to
00:20:25side good defender he's hard to hit cleanly but zoo will try to get him out of his rhythm mitchell
00:20:30a
00:20:30rhythm type fighter pastor zoo always comes out with that hand up again the rage finder the jam to get
00:20:36some points and all sort of block anything coming at him in this case charm bay's jab
00:20:41zoo has the power of a middleweight fighting at 140 therefore mitchell spired with one of the
00:20:49middleweight champions one of his maryland buddies will jumpy he's going to look out for zoo's big
00:20:55right hand left hook and as bobby pointed out the stiff range fighting jab which he likes to stuff
00:21:02to just wears you down hammers the body and makes you pay see the fight this type of fight for
00:21:09shambay mitchell's an awful lot of energy zoo's not using a lot of energy but shambay's using a lot of
00:21:14energy moving moving moving constantly on the balls his feet calves everything's going to tighten up
00:21:19comes around six seven eight keep an eye on that left knee of of shambay mitchell mitchell
00:21:26has improving power remember he's got 29 knockouts but there is concern because his last five fights
00:21:32went the 12 round distance and he was rocked and he was knocked down for only the second time in
00:21:38his
00:21:38career by a younger inexperienced fight his last fight there was a weight in half a slip half a knockdown
00:21:46and joe cortez says no knockdown it happens midway through the first
00:21:53costia zoo in his prime as things heat up early
00:22:00zoo confident disciplined very intelligent and typically tests his opponent's heart and
00:22:06chin almost immediately in the very first round
00:22:13both trained extremely hard for this fight not a clean left hand there but
00:22:17betzel look out as he gets dragged across the ring by zoo
00:22:21i want him pushing let's go on the inside it's obvious that shambay mitchell's going to hold
00:22:25if kasha zoo wants to work
00:22:29big left hook by kasha zoo and a nice right hook by shambay mitchell again that was a
00:22:34a throw down a take down by two no knockdown mitchell's been on the canvas twice but no knockdown
00:22:39oh my god come on they're all tactics no real tactics and things getting very rough
00:22:43early
00:22:47pretty good right uppercut half hook there by mitchell all right let him out
00:22:51mitchell's trying to catch kasha zoo coming in trying to jump in at him from some angles
00:22:55but he's using an awful lot of energy steve it's going to be interesting to see if he can keep
00:22:59this up
00:23:00for 12 rounds stop stop stop stop and i think shambay mitchell is tasting the power of kasha zoo
00:23:07right from the opening bell
00:23:13zoo means strong and a typical opening round for zoo lots of pressure a very very difficult round
00:23:21on the score steve it was some effectiveness from the outside by mitchell a lot of aggressiveness
00:23:35get off first get off first get off first keep walking over here walk right into the left hand
00:23:40go to the left hand at the shoulder don't worry about his head go right here right there all right
00:23:44now how do you feel good we're not going down mitchell spent a lot of time on the floor
00:23:52here he steps on his left foot you can see it you see that when the southpaw fights an orthodox
00:23:55fighter
00:23:55the feet got tangled up he stepped on shambay's foot and here it's just kind of a throw down
00:24:02they get tangled up and he pushes them not really down but through the ropes
00:24:07there are some decent combinations on the inside but they get tangled up here
00:24:11and this time he throws them all the way down round two joe cortez repeats
00:24:19a statement no rough tactics to both fighters
00:24:24lots of movement some good jabs by mitchell in round one but didn't expect to be spun around so much
00:24:32so much of a lot of movement some good jabs by mitchell and you can see mitchell's noticing that he's
00:24:39getting caught
00:24:43mitchell trying to be elusive mitchell looks
00:24:46in great shape working with noted fitness guru mackie shillstone
00:24:52zoo always in tremendous condition there's a looping right hand by zoo
00:24:58his power does make a huge difference and i think shambay's gonna have to step up the combinations
00:25:07that straight left hip land cleanly right hand also over the top of zoo's head
00:25:13nice brain work there by shambay mitchell kasha had his hands up he went to both rib catches
00:25:22mitchell is not impressed he said with the jab of zoo calling it a pulling jab
00:25:28and he almost spun around again
00:25:33and cortez gives him a dirty look
00:25:37there were some good combinations there by both fighters no real effects for either fighter
00:25:42that's just starting to load up a little bit too much now steve
00:25:45mitchell's been down in case you're wondering two times in his career
00:25:49once in 94 against lavander johnson and in his last fight against felix florian
00:25:55zoo's been down four times overall all right break break
00:26:00zoo has been prone to cucks and bruises and now
00:26:04there is a trickle of blood out of the nose of shambay mitchell
00:26:14the left nostril of shambay mitchell blood
00:26:17he's got the inside kasha zoo wants to work shambay wants to tie the hands up smart move for mitchell
00:26:30to keep him from punching
00:26:33zoo is following charlie mitchell a little too much to the right he's got to cut the ring off with
00:26:37that
00:26:37hook step to his left
00:26:41bring out bring out bring out mitchell has a lot to worry about with a guy like zoo in front
00:26:45of him
00:26:45how do i avoid that heavy right and left hook
00:26:50you got to do it with movement or you got to tie them up
00:26:53and then you got to worry about throwing your own offense
00:26:57see what's well here's the thing the tournament mitchell stays a little ahead of
00:27:01zoo in speed he'll always be able to tie you up before zoo gets off
00:27:05but zoo's trying to counter exclusively counter too much
00:27:11here's a good left hand by mitchell right on the head just before the bell
00:27:18zoo comes back with a smile
00:27:20there's nothing to it it's just like anybody else all right it's just like anybody else
00:27:25use your face use your face don't blow through your nose okay yeah use your face and come off your
00:27:30face okay
00:27:31you can do it work you don't need a favor that's all
00:27:35that's all
00:27:37throw the one two at his chest don't blow it with his hand
00:27:40Okay.
00:27:52Any good, mate?
00:27:53Any good?
00:27:54Nothing silly but the crust.
00:27:56Go around the leg.
00:27:59Go around the leg.
00:28:00All right.
00:28:01We've got tactics, all right?
00:28:02We've got to push it, all right?
00:28:04Let's go, man.
00:28:06Faking, baby.
00:28:06We'll be faking first.
00:28:07Very calm and composed of the Kostya Zoo corner.
00:28:11When a cut man like Jeff Kemerz says to the fighter,
00:28:14don't blow your nose,
00:28:16is there some concern that it might be busted?
00:28:19Not that it busted, Steve,
00:28:20but what'll happen is if your eye swells a little bit and you blow,
00:28:23there are air passages in the nose
00:28:24that are connected to the eye from your eye
00:28:26will get some of that forced air and swell.
00:28:30So there could be some damage there in that area.
00:28:33Bring it, bring it, bring it!
00:28:34Well, I'll tell you what, Steve, I'm so excited.
00:28:36I'm sitting to see you here jumping and bouncing
00:28:38almost like we're back in the fighting days
00:28:39and talking too fast about it.
00:28:41Let's go, guys.
00:28:42A lot safer.
00:28:43Yeah, no, I like this y'all better.
00:28:44All right, break, break, break!
00:28:46Especially with these two guys in the ring,
00:28:48Zoo and Mitchell.
00:28:49Well, the first round I gave to Kostya Zoo
00:28:51by a little bit, the second round to Mitchell.
00:28:53Here's a straight right hand that landed by Kostya Zoo
00:28:55who's opening up more round three.
00:28:58And he's throwing leads rather than countering.
00:29:01Well, if you notice, too, now,
00:29:02Mitchell's not moving quite as much.
00:29:04Again, as much as he was moving the first two rounds,
00:29:06the amount of energy that would take is tremendous,
00:29:09which is why I'm sure not a lot of people appreciated
00:29:11just how well-conditioned Muhammad Ali and his legs were.
00:29:14A lot of energy being exhibited here
00:29:17by Shambay Mitchell.
00:29:19Good straight left hand that Zoo just walked into.
00:29:25Oh, stop, stop!
00:29:27Mitchell's so much more slick when he moves.
00:29:30The left leg doesn't seem to be hampering him.
00:29:35The left knee that he claimed was injured before the fight.
00:29:39Come on, come on.
00:29:39Neither of his legs seem to be a factor at all right now, Stephen.
00:29:42I'm pretty sure Kostya Zoo's not going to punch him
00:29:44those knees to test him.
00:29:45And some real roughhouse tactics there by Zoo.
00:29:48The clean as he pours it on.
00:29:51The aggressive Zoo with a heavy right,
00:29:54but it didn't land cleanly.
00:29:56Well, if he lands with one of those,
00:29:58it's trouble for Mitchell.
00:29:59Uppercut with the left by Zoo on the inside.
00:30:03Right on the chin.
00:30:06This is going to be a fight each and every minute
00:30:08of each and every round.
00:30:09That's how Kostya fights,
00:30:10and that's how he forces his opponents to fight back.
00:30:13Typically Zoo looking to make it into a war.
00:30:17Awesome!
00:30:19And typically not Mitchell's M.O.
00:30:22He's a boxer first.
00:30:24On his way in now,
00:30:24Zoo is starting to block Mitchell's punches
00:30:26a little more effectively than he had in the last round.
00:30:28Starting to pick him off in midair
00:30:30and hit home with his own punches.
00:30:33This is a classic Matador Bull situation.
00:30:36Pretty good combination to the head by Shambay Mitchell.
00:30:39Hang on.
00:30:44See, when Mitchell's moving like that,
00:30:45he's very effective.
00:30:46Stepping around, using angles,
00:30:48hopping the jab,
00:30:49setting up the right hook in the left hand.
00:30:59Nice left uppercut by Mitchell.
00:31:01Counterpunch should do perfectly.
00:31:03And a straight left hand by Mitchell
00:31:05for the nose of Zoo.
00:31:06Oh!
00:31:07What a right hand by Zoo!
00:31:08And he hurt Mitchell with that right hand.
00:31:10It was a counter-right uppercut.
00:31:11Right on the jaw of Shambay Mitchell.
00:31:17Let's go to Tim Spent
00:31:18with a very interesting spectator.
00:31:22Yes, Steve, we got a guy here
00:31:23that's very interested in what's going on in the ring
00:31:25because he's going to get one of these guys
00:31:26on May 19th.
00:31:28Zab, what do you see?
00:31:30I mean, personally,
00:31:31I think Shambay's fighting the wrong fight.
00:31:33They say he had a bad knee.
00:31:35He shouldn't be moving so much on his leg
00:31:37and throwing a little more jabs
00:31:38and throwing a left uppercut.
00:31:39That's the key of the fight.
00:31:41And Kosta Azusa,
00:31:42we just cutting the ring off
00:31:42and putting a lot of pressure on him
00:31:44and just breaking him down.
00:31:45I mean, I don't know.
00:31:47Shambay looks like he's going to be in big trouble.
00:31:48I kind of feel sorry for him.
00:31:50But if you know he's got a big mouth,
00:31:51I don't.
00:31:53So he's not feeling sorry
00:31:54for Shambay Mitchell at all in this fight.
00:31:58And it looks like from Zab's perspective
00:32:02that Kosta Azusa is on his way to winning.
00:32:05He'll be out of here soon.
00:32:06He'll be out of here soon, he said, Steve.
00:32:08All right, Tim,
00:32:09and they're working feverishly
00:32:10as we speak on the left knee
00:32:12of Shambay Mitchell in the corner.
00:32:14It seemed that, oh,
00:32:15Azusa just comes rushing out.
00:32:16It seemed that Mitchell took a peek down
00:32:19at his knee just before he got nailed
00:32:23in that last round.
00:32:26And what Zab Judah was referring to
00:32:29as the action continues here
00:32:30is that Mitchell shows no respect for Judah.
00:32:33He feels that Zab has not paid his dues,
00:32:36does not deserve to be here,
00:32:37should fight WBO champ and or Julio
00:32:39before he comes into the unification mix.
00:32:41Certainly no love lost here
00:32:43to finish mutual on both sides.
00:32:44Triple left hook by Kosta Azusa.
00:32:46Shambay Mitchell holds on
00:32:47as he was trying to get off
00:32:49his own combinations.
00:32:50Oh, oh, oh.
00:32:50He's very accurate with his punches.
00:32:52We're going to pull our head down.
00:32:57All right.
00:32:59Break, break out, break out, break out.
00:33:01Let's go, guys.
00:33:02You can see the scar
00:33:04on the left knee of Shambay Mitchell
00:33:06from the ACL operation he had
00:33:09some years ago
00:33:10and it is affecting him here tonight.
00:33:15Now, neither of the fighters
00:33:16Zu or Mitchell has tried
00:33:18the hook to the body under jab.
00:33:20The left hook for Zu
00:33:20or the right hook for Mitchell
00:33:22under the opponent's jab.
00:33:24I'd be interested to see
00:33:25how things work.
00:33:25They start with body work.
00:33:33Don't hold her head.
00:33:34Don't hold her head.
00:33:35Don't be holding her head
00:33:36and hitting her head.
00:33:37That's cool.
00:33:40Their feet crossed 22 times
00:33:43in round two,
00:33:4319 times in round three.
00:33:46And that doesn't help
00:33:47Mitchell's knee problem.
00:33:50Nice left hook
00:33:51and right uppercut
00:33:52by Kosh to Zu.
00:33:53Bought Mitchell clean
00:33:54and the little effects.
00:33:55Zu keeping the pressure on,
00:33:58forcing the action
00:33:59in pursuit
00:34:01of the WBA belt
00:34:02as well as defending
00:34:04the WBC title.
00:34:05And there was one of those
00:34:06left hooks to the body by Zu
00:34:07and he walks into
00:34:08a right hook, left hand.
00:34:10Mitchell scoring
00:34:11and the crowd
00:34:14really going wild.
00:34:16Mitchell coming forward.
00:34:18Zu smiles.
00:34:21Zu missing with the right hand.
00:34:23Hold it.
00:34:24What a roll.
00:34:26Let's go.
00:34:27Let's go.
00:34:28Let's go.
00:34:30Mitchell complaining
00:34:30that he's being held
00:34:32and he's injured
00:34:32his right hand a bit.
00:34:34He's trying to shake it out.
00:34:37Left, right,
00:34:38but not cleanly.
00:34:39A right hand
00:34:40scores by Mitchell.
00:34:42All of these fighters
00:34:43are getting a little wide,
00:34:44a little anxious.
00:34:45Both of them
00:34:45working the punches, Steve.
00:34:46Wild exchange.
00:34:48Down goes Mitchell.
00:34:49But it's a push
00:34:50as it goes through
00:34:51the lower rope.
00:34:53And it takes him a while
00:34:55to get back up.
00:34:58He seems exhausted.
00:35:00Whole time.
00:35:01Whole time.
00:35:02And the crowd.
00:35:04Whole point.
00:35:04They take a point away
00:35:06from zone.
00:35:07Whole point.
00:35:08The rough tactics.
00:35:09The rough tactics.
00:35:11The push.
00:35:12And Joe Cortez
00:35:13seeing enough.
00:35:16Let's go.
00:35:17Time in.
00:35:17Let's go.
00:35:17So Zoo has topped the point
00:35:19here in round four.
00:35:22And the roughhouse stuff
00:35:23continues.
00:35:24Let it go.
00:35:25Let it go.
00:35:25Let it go.
00:35:26The crowd behind
00:35:27Sean Bay Mitchell
00:35:30as round four ends
00:35:31a wild one.
00:35:34Let's go.
00:35:34Oh, man, baby.
00:35:38Let's go.
00:35:38Let's go.
00:35:39Let's go.
00:35:39Let's go.
00:35:42Don't worry about that.
00:35:45Don't worry about that.
00:35:46Don't worry about that.
00:35:46Don't worry about that.
00:35:47Don't worry about that.
00:35:47It's easy.
00:35:48It's a fight.
00:35:48It's a fight.
00:35:49Keep your adrenaline going.
00:35:51Keep on working.
00:35:52It's a fight.
00:35:53Keep moving, baby.
00:35:55Come on.
00:35:55Up the nose.
00:35:56Look at here.
00:35:57He fucking hit.
00:35:58I know it.
00:35:58You got to stay away from it.
00:36:00You got to stay away from it.
00:36:01You got to stay away from it.
00:36:01It looks like Mitchell
00:36:02catches Zoo on the way in.
00:36:03Again, sometimes he's
00:36:04so offensive-minded.
00:36:06There's a nice right,
00:36:07excuse me, left hook to the ear.
00:36:09And a beautiful follow right.
00:36:11And you see a little bit of a,
00:36:12a little hesitation in Zoo's face.
00:36:16There's the left hand.
00:36:17And then the right hand.
00:36:18Comes right there.
00:36:20Rocking Zoo.
00:36:21Staggering him for the first time
00:36:22in this fight.
00:36:24Here comes sort of the throw down.
00:36:28A little bit of attack,
00:36:29a little bit of a push down.
00:36:30And that really got the crowd going.
00:36:32And Joe Cortez took a point away
00:36:34from Costa Zoo.
00:36:35Mitchell's best punch of round four
00:36:37at the 150 mark.
00:36:40Mitchell spun to the canvas
00:36:41three times in this fight.
00:36:44He's had blood from the nose.
00:36:47This is an alley fight.
00:36:50Round five.
00:36:55Joe Cortez with his hands full.
00:36:58Charmaine Mitchell's in with
00:36:59one of the best fighters in his division.
00:37:01One of the premier punchers
00:37:02is that he is bringing his best up to the table.
00:37:04And he is really a lot of courage here.
00:37:07Claims he's getting head butted.
00:37:09Very upset in his corner between rounds.
00:37:12Blood streaking from near the nose
00:37:14of Sean Bay Mitchell on the right side.
00:37:17I'll tell you what.
00:37:18Mitchell's got guts.
00:37:19He's not afraid to train or mix it up
00:37:21with this tough guy.
00:37:26And Zoo said coming in,
00:37:27he respected Mitchell.
00:37:28Mitchell didn't seem to have
00:37:30that much respect for Zoo.
00:37:31No, he thought,
00:37:32in the interviews at least,
00:37:33he said this is not going to be that hard.
00:37:34I'm going to hit him
00:37:35and he's not going to hit me.
00:37:36That isn't completely the case.
00:37:37Big left hook there
00:37:38by Costa Zoo.
00:37:42And Zoo just doesn't let up.
00:37:46Relentless pursuit.
00:37:49So tenacious.
00:37:51See, there's the attrition factor here
00:37:52that the people who have never fought at home
00:37:54are not going to understand.
00:37:56But all of these punches all of a sudden
00:37:57at the round six, seven, eight, nine
00:37:59are going to add up
00:38:00and the body's going to really
00:38:01start to be in pain.
00:38:02The old accumulative effect.
00:38:09See, Zoo's a lot slicker there,
00:38:11blocking the punches.
00:38:12Charmaine's eating a lot more from flush.
00:38:14Quick mention,
00:38:15all the press row people have Mitchell ahead.
00:38:182-4.
00:38:27A minute to go
00:38:29and the fifth scheduled for 12
00:38:30to unify the WBCWBA
00:38:32super lightweight titles.
00:38:36And it's been a crowd-pleasing fight.
00:38:39Bring it on, bring it on, bring it on.
00:38:45Yeah, yeah.
00:38:47Boy, Mitchell came up short there
00:38:48and paid the price.
00:38:49Ho!
00:38:50Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
00:38:50Come on.
00:38:51Come on.
00:38:52Come on.
00:38:53Come on, come on.
00:38:56Max, Zoo seems to be waiting here on something,
00:38:59looking for some timing shot or punch.
00:39:02Not working his way in.
00:39:04And I think Mitchell is fighting a very smart fight,
00:39:07although he just ate a left hook to the head.
00:39:08I'm sure it did.
00:39:09It was a short, crisp, left hook by Zoom.
00:39:12As he uses another one,
00:39:13the same way.
00:39:15Oh, wow.
00:39:19Final seconds, round five.
00:39:22And pretty much non-stop action from the start.
00:39:26Good left hand, followed by another left
00:39:28by Mitchell at the bounce.
00:39:31Good finish for Shabek.
00:39:39Bring it on that big left hand, aren't I, man?
00:39:42The bucket's gonna be between his feet.
00:39:45And between them.
00:39:47Bring the bucket round.
00:39:48Bring it round, Ty.
00:39:49Let's go inside the ropes with Bobby Ches
00:39:51and show you how rough and tumble this fight has been.
00:39:55This is a combination of wrestling
00:39:56and boxing right now.
00:39:58You watch it.
00:39:59Step on his foot.
00:40:02Again, they're gonna mix it up.
00:40:04They're gonna start to clinch.
00:40:05But what they do, they start twisting each other's arms,
00:40:08turning like that, grabbing them by the head,
00:40:10pushing them down through the ropes.
00:40:13And that's what happens when you rough and tumble
00:40:14a little too much.
00:40:22They continue to work on the left knee of Shambay Mitchell.
00:40:28Here we go into round six, and once again,
00:40:30it's Kostya Zhu who comes rushing from his corner.
00:40:33All over Mitchell.
00:40:35Mitchell trying to tie him up.
00:40:38Round five saw three minutes of recovery time
00:40:41for both fighters.
00:40:44After constant action in round four.
00:40:47Four action here in six.
00:40:52There's that drooping range-fighting jab of Kostya Zhu.
00:40:57There's a good right hand by Zhu that scored.
00:41:00Nice combination by Shambay Mitchell coming out.
00:41:03He didn't just eat that punch.
00:41:04He followed back and fired with a straight left
00:41:06and no round left.
00:41:08And a body shot with a right hand by Zhu.
00:41:11Zhu, there's a lot of head hunting.
00:41:13We haven't seen too many shots of the body.
00:41:14Oh, a quick right hand.
00:41:16A shotgun right by Zhu to the hand.
00:41:18Very quick, very accurate.
00:41:20He says his speed and accuracy is underestimated
00:41:23by his opponent, Shambay Mitchell.
00:41:25We'll find out afterwards.
00:41:28That's a slip.
00:41:29No knockdowns.
00:41:31There haven't been any knockdowns,
00:41:33but there have been a lot of pushes and a lot of shoves
00:41:35and a lot of takedowns.
00:41:37Mitchell just walked into a jab.
00:41:39He comes back with a left of his own to the head
00:41:41and a right hand by Zhu.
00:41:44Combination heating up, boy.
00:41:45Back and forth, back and forth.
00:41:48Each one is getting hit.
00:41:49It's returning fire.
00:41:50Some furious exchanges.
00:41:53Ebb and flow.
00:41:54Mitchell just walked into a straight right hand,
00:41:57a sledgehammer right by Zhu.
00:42:01Oh, a right hand by Zhu and it appeared he was being tied up.
00:42:04He was being tied up.
00:42:05Shambay Mitchell is right in over his head.
00:42:07He knew where the head was.
00:42:08If you know where the body is,
00:42:09you just throw where the head should be.
00:42:11Zhu active at all times.
00:42:13Even when he's being tied up, he throws.
00:42:16And scores effectively.
00:42:21The movement here for Shambay Mitchell slowed down a little bit
00:42:23in this round.
00:42:24I think that some of the pace is going to catch up with him.
00:42:27And he can't stand and just slow.
00:42:28He's got to step and step and step.
00:42:31Even if he doesn't move, he's got to step around.
00:42:33Kashi Zhu.
00:42:33Now we know why he worked with noted fitness guru,
00:42:36Mackie Shilstone.
00:42:38He better be in good shape for this one.
00:42:40Not only to go a full 12 if necessary,
00:42:43but to take this kind of punishment.
00:42:46Can you imagine absorbing this plus going the distance?
00:42:50Oh, a takedown by Zhu.
00:42:52No knockdown.
00:42:54And he went down with a thud.
00:42:55That was a combination of a left hook that went behind his ear,
00:42:58stepping to the side,
00:42:59and the momentum just carrying him to the floor.
00:43:01That's the fourth time he's been on the deck,
00:43:03but no knockdowns.
00:43:04Come on, let's go.
00:43:07Body shot by Mitchell.
00:43:08Nice side hook to the body.
00:43:09Yeah.
00:43:15It's a slashing piece of blood
00:43:17over the bridge of the nose of Mitchell.
00:43:20What a wonderful combination that was by Zhu.
00:43:24Well, that's been there for a while.
00:43:26Take back, take back.
00:43:29Back we go to Tim Smith with Zab Judah.
00:43:31Tim.
00:43:32Thanks, Steve.
00:43:33Zab, a lot of people at ringside have
00:43:36Charmbe Mitchell winning this fight,
00:43:38but it looks like he's taking a lot of punishment.
00:43:40How can he avoid taking this kind of punishment?
00:43:42I think he's fighting the wrong fight.
00:43:43He should be using his jab more,
00:43:45throwing the left uppercut and the double hook.
00:43:47Wakazu, his hand is so low,
00:43:48you've got to hit it with something to distract him,
00:43:51and then bring the double hook to sting him.
00:43:53I mean, Charmbe, he said he got a bad knee.
00:43:56He can't run so much.
00:43:56You've got to have some heart and stay in there
00:43:58and use your defense.
00:43:59That's it.
00:44:00I mean, I mean...
00:44:01Okay, so Zab says he's got to stand and deliver, Steve.
00:44:05Stand and deliver.
00:44:06Some good observations by Zab Judah.
00:44:11Here's a little bit of a momentum takedown.
00:44:14The right hook misses.
00:44:15The left hook misses behind here,
00:44:16and again, he just carried himself.
00:44:18He threw the hook behind the head
00:44:19and just kind of pulled him through.
00:44:21His momentum was going that way.
00:44:22And again, the legs crossed, Steve.
00:44:24Southpaw to right.
00:44:25And that can't be beneficial for that left knee
00:44:27as he rolls over hard onto the canvas.
00:44:31Round seven.
00:44:33Halfway through the fight, round six.
00:44:35A painful one for the WBA champ,
00:44:37Shambay Mitchell.
00:44:41Stop, stop!
00:44:43Very active, Joe Cortez,
00:44:45in his 138th title fight.
00:44:50They bang into each other's heads there.
00:44:52Oh, a wild left hand there by Mitchell,
00:44:55but Mitchell goes down.
00:44:56It's a slip.
00:44:57What a left hand by Mitchell.
00:44:59And he gained a right hand on the way back, Steve,
00:45:01but they bang into each other on a regular basis.
00:45:04Their legs keep crossing.
00:45:06He's hurt.
00:45:06Mitchell's hurt.
00:45:07As he's humbling around on his left knee.
00:45:09He came down wrong on it.
00:45:11He's trying to shake it off.
00:45:18Well, let's see if this continues to be a factor now.
00:45:21What a shame if this fight would have to be stopped on an injury.
00:45:24Shambay's gonna try to work through it.
00:45:26But he's tasting leather.
00:45:28He just ate two good straight left hands.
00:45:31Mitchell's showing a lot of guts here.
00:45:33A lot of resolve.
00:45:35He's basically working on one leg.
00:45:38He just ate a big right hand, Steve.
00:45:39And Sue doesn't care.
00:45:41He's just going after Mitchell.
00:45:42Body shots, that head shot.
00:45:43Back comes Mitchell.
00:45:46Oh, oh, oh.
00:45:46Shambay's keeping his head through straight up and down.
00:45:48And they keep slamming into one another face to face.
00:45:54Mitchell showing a lot of heart.
00:45:56Sue fighting this one in the trenches.
00:45:58And he's bringing Shambay along for the ride.
00:46:00But Shambay is standing up to him big time.
00:46:03Part of the problem with Shambay's thought process is
00:46:06he believes he hit so hard that he just worries about one thing
00:46:09and he doesn't worry about defense.
00:46:11Here it is again, Steve.
00:46:13Mitchell showing a tremendous chin here
00:46:15against the power of Kostya Zou.
00:46:18Zou with two three in a row to the head.
00:46:20Right hands.
00:46:24And now the left hand, the jab by Kostya Zou.
00:46:28He's scoring almost at will here.
00:46:32Zou's leaning some heavier shots,
00:46:33but he's also eating some in this round.
00:46:36Missing there with the right hand, Zou.
00:46:38He's been able to regain his balance quickly
00:46:41and not get hurt in the process.
00:46:43Hold, hold, hold.
00:46:45Hold it, hold.
00:46:54Let it go, let it go, let it go.
00:46:56Let it go, hey.
00:46:57He actually slowing down considerably now.
00:47:00Zou's still the aggressor, counted on reasonably well.
00:47:04We approach the final 20 seconds of round seven.
00:47:08Hurry!
00:47:09This is the biggest lull of the fight,
00:47:11and it has been relentless action for the most part.
00:47:14Let's go.
00:47:14Let's go.
00:47:15Let's go.
00:47:18Let's go.
00:47:21Oh, stop, stop, stop, stop.
00:47:24Zou may be landing the heavier punches overall,
00:47:26but it appears unofficially as Mitchell limps back to his corner
00:47:31that he is outpointing Zou.
00:47:33I hate this suit.
00:47:34Don't fucking move Hollywood.
00:47:36All right, well, tell Rock, get on the stool.
00:47:38Get the fucking stool in the middle.
00:47:39I can't hardly move, Rock.
00:47:41What do you want to do?
00:47:41You want to go out this way?
00:47:42It's up to you.
00:47:43I can't hardly move.
00:47:43No job.
00:47:45No job.
00:47:46Not in the eye.
00:47:46One more look.
00:47:47One more quick look.
00:47:48Ah.
00:47:50How you doing, Sean?
00:47:51Do my leg.
00:47:52How you doing here?
00:47:52Working out.
00:47:53Please do my leg.
00:47:54We're fine.
00:47:55Okay.
00:47:55Do my leg, please.
00:47:56I'm checking it out.
00:47:58You're working on this all night.
00:48:00I can't hardly move.
00:48:01I'm trying to get out of the way.
00:48:03I'm trying to get out of the way.
00:48:03I'm going to stop it.
00:48:04I'm going to stop it.
00:48:05What do you want to do, champ?
00:48:05I'm going to stop it.
00:48:07I'm going to stop it.
00:48:09It's on you.
00:48:09How you want to go?
00:48:10I'm going to stop it.
00:48:11I can't fucking move.
00:48:12I'm going to stop it.
00:48:13It's so numb down here, yo.
00:48:15I'm trying to move around.
00:48:16I can't really move around.
00:48:18What do you want to do?
00:48:19I'm sweating.
00:48:20I'm sweating.
00:48:22I'm sweating.
00:48:23I'm sweating.
00:48:24I'm sweating.
00:48:24I'm sweating.
00:48:24I'm sweating.
00:48:25I'm sweating.
00:48:25Are they going to stop it?
00:48:26Yeah.
00:48:27They stopped it because of the injured left knee.
00:48:30Margaret Goodman, the ringside doctor in there.
00:48:33Mark Bradner looking on the head of the commission.
00:48:36And Kostya Zoo celebrates.
00:48:39I'll tell you what, Steve.
00:48:40There's not going to be any closure with this type of decision,
00:48:42this type of win for either of the fighters.
00:48:45Not the loss for Zoo.
00:48:47You can't move!
00:48:48You can't move!
00:48:49You can't move!
00:48:50You can't move!
00:48:50You can't move!
00:48:50You can't move!
00:48:51You can't move!
00:48:53You can't move!
00:48:53You can't move!
00:48:54Unfortunately, Shambay Mitchell has to quit on the stool
00:48:58because of the left knee injury.
00:48:59You see the disappointment there.
00:49:01He just can't move.
00:49:03And it'll be interesting to see what the scorecards read
00:49:06going into the eighth round.
00:49:09A gallant effort there by Shambay Mitchell up to this point.
00:49:12But you can see it was rapidly deteriorating the last few rounds.
00:49:16The left knee that came back to haunt him before this fight began.
00:49:21And the fight came close to being postponed before it even began.
00:49:26And now the two embrace.
00:49:29I thought Mitchell was doing a terrific job up to that point despite the problem.
00:49:34I thought he was fighting a terrific fight.
00:49:36I didn't have him ahead, but I didn't have him behind.
00:49:38I had to fight 66-66 with the point off, four rounds to three.
00:49:42I gave Zoo a little edge.
00:49:43He landed the heavier shots.
00:49:45He was the effective aggressor for the majority of the fight,
00:49:47but when he was boxing brilliantly, Shambay was winning rounds too,
00:49:51putting him in the bank.
00:49:52And you can't really use the word quit in a situation like this.
00:49:55I guess retire would be the more appropriate term.
00:50:03There is a very dejected Shambay Mitchell,
00:50:06unable to continue because of the injury to his left knee.
00:50:12And a very happy Kostya Zoo who'll take it any way he can.
00:50:18But you're right.
00:50:19I mean, I can't say, I can't say that.
00:50:22As far as the closure is concerned, we just didn't have it here tonight.
00:50:26So what did you do when he was holding you?
00:50:27I'm just, I'm just pushing the hand.
00:50:30A very, very close fight up to this point.
00:50:34As we throw it up to our ring announcer, Jimmy Lennon Jr.
00:50:40Ladies and gentlemen, this bout has been stopped at the end of round number seven
00:50:44on advice of the corner, a referee in charge.
00:50:47Joe Cortez stops the contest fighter unable to continue.
00:50:52Therefore the winner by way of technical knockout.
00:50:54He is now the WBC and WBA super lightweight champion of the world.
00:51:01Kostya Zoo.
00:51:05Of course, it's not the way you want to win a championship, Bobby,
00:51:09but you'll take the belt any way you can.
00:51:11And Kostya Zoo getting congratulations all around.
00:51:15But he wins it under unusual circumstances as the fight has to be stopped
00:51:20because of an injury to Shambay Mitchell.
00:51:23Let's get it over to Jim Gray.
00:51:24Jim.
00:51:24All right.
00:51:25Thank you, Steve, with Joe Cortez, a veteran of many of these fights.
00:51:28Joe, what exactly happened over there in the corner?
00:51:31It appeared as though Shambay Mitchell wanted to continue.
00:51:34Apparently he had a problem with his leg, and I believe his corner stopped it.
00:51:38His corner did, not the fighter?
00:51:39I believe his corner.
00:51:40From what I understand was the corner wanted to stop the fight.
00:51:42He was complaining about his leg was kind of hurting him.
00:51:45As you saw towards our round there for a second or two,
00:51:47he kind of got like a cramp.
00:51:50And we have to watch out for the safety of the fighters,
00:51:52and the corners felt it was best to stop it.
00:51:54What did the doctor say to you exactly?
00:51:56You consulted her.
00:51:57She said that the corner wanted to stop the fight.
00:52:00In your estimation, would it have been a danger for Shambay to continue?
00:52:04Oh, absolutely.
00:52:05When a fighter's in a ring and is not 100%, especially with his leg,
00:52:09which is where he gets his mobility,
00:52:11this young fighter can get hurt, especially with a puncher like Costa Su,
00:52:16who's a great champion.
00:52:18And we don't want any tragedies in the ring,
00:52:20and maybe it's best that I ended this way.
00:52:21Joe, thank you for your time.
00:52:22You're welcome.
00:52:22We appreciate it.
00:52:23Good job tonight.
00:52:24Costa, congratulations to you.
00:52:27Let me ask you about the stopping of this fight.
00:52:30Could you tell it appeared to me that in the sixth round
00:52:33you noticed that Shambay twisted his knee and you jumped right in on it.
00:52:37Were you aware?
00:52:37I mean, you know the boxing all about it.
00:52:41You said he was sick before the fight.
00:52:43I mean, I know all the tricks around the boxing.
00:52:45I never really noticed on this.
00:52:47He come to the ring, no excuse.
00:52:49No excuse.
00:52:50You have to fight or die, whatever it happened.
00:52:54I mean...
00:52:54Did you recognize he had a problem?
00:52:56Yes, I believe so.
00:52:57I mean, same thing.
00:52:58It could be a trick.
00:52:59Who knows?
00:53:00Shambay is a smart man.
00:53:02How about this fight?
00:53:03How would you assess your performance tonight?
00:53:06Performance was, I'd say, 10 of 10, maybe even less.
00:53:14Accuracy wasn't really...
00:53:15I mean, I have to say that Shambay is a good fighter.
00:53:18I mean, I knew he was a good fighter, but how he's done it, he's reacting on my jab
00:53:23and some of the punches I throw, very sharp, and he just defended.
00:53:29He's good, good, good, good defense.
00:53:30Did you feel at all rusty, having only fought six rounds in the past year against Chavez?
00:53:34Chavez, what about the...
00:53:36Well, that was all the way ago in February.
00:53:38Yeah, two years, yeah.
00:53:40In one year, I fought two fights.
00:53:41It's not because I had injured.
00:53:45It's just circumstances come like this, and I couldn't fight,
00:53:48and I had a good time during Olympic Games.
00:53:50I helped the Australian team, went to Russia for a little while,
00:53:56and I was busy, I was busy, and I was active, and I was trained.
00:53:59Did he ever hurt you tonight?
00:54:01No, no, not at all.
00:54:02I mean, some of the punches are sharp, but it's just flashy punches.
00:54:06All right, now we look forward to May 19th.
00:54:09Zab Judah was here.
00:54:10I mean...
00:54:11Ringside, I know you saw him.
00:54:12What about that fight?
00:54:13Our fight, first of all, we never discussed really May 19th,
00:54:17and I just heard this couple...
00:54:19We just discussed it.
00:54:20We discussed it.
00:54:21We'll see.
00:54:21Let me back to Australia, have a see my family,
00:54:24and then we'll organize everything.
00:54:27I believe everything's going to be fine.
00:54:29If it's not 19th, we'll fight something different, Tom.
00:54:31Obviously, it's your goal to unify this thing.
00:54:33You've got two of them now, and you want the third, right?
00:54:36Definitely, yes.
00:54:37And I believe with Zab, we're going to be a tremendous fight.
00:54:40He's a good fighter, a young fighter, younger than me.
00:54:44Eventually, someone younger than me coming to the ring.
00:54:48It will be interesting.
00:54:49It will be interesting.
00:54:50Castor, congratulations to you.
00:54:51Thanks a lot.
00:54:52Let's send it over to Tim Smith.
00:54:53He's with Charm Bay Mitchell.
00:54:54Okay.
00:54:55Charm Bay Mitchell is obviously distraught.
00:54:59It was a tough situation.
00:55:01He came into this fight injured.
00:55:02He toughed it out for as long as he could.
00:55:04And still, it was an even fight.
00:55:08Charm Bay, at what point did it just get so bad that you just couldn't go on the leg?
00:55:14I just told my corner that I wasn't really feeling my leg, but I didn't want to stop.
00:55:19And they wanted to stop it.
00:55:21But I never wanted to stop, man.
00:55:22It's just like, you know, they didn't even want me to fight, and I wanted to fight.
00:55:27That's just me, man.
00:55:29Was it a problem the entire fight, or did it just get progressively worse?
00:55:35It was just, it was hurt.
00:55:36I knew I came in the ring hurt, but I still fought.
00:55:39I fought a good fight, and I was winning the fight.
00:55:42I know I didn't want to stop because I probably could have pulled it out.
00:55:45You know, I guess it'd be another day, man.
00:55:49How much of a discussion was there in the corner as to whether it should continue on or not?
00:55:55Well, I told him that I didn't want to stop.
00:55:57You know, I told the doctor that I didn't want to stop, and the doctor just said, you know,
00:56:00Sean Bay, it'll be another day.
00:56:01You know, you came in hurt, whatever.
00:56:04Do you think Kosta Zoo took advantage of the injury by throwing you down and trying to roughhouse you a
00:56:09little bit?
00:56:12I'm not going to really say that.
00:56:13You know, he's a champion.
00:56:15He's a fighter.
00:56:16You know, he was fighting dirty.
00:56:17He headbutt me.
00:56:18He was throwing me around, you know.
00:56:19It was aggravating my knee.
00:56:22You know, I did what I had to do, and I did all I could do.
00:56:26You know, until my corner just, you know, they wanted to stop it.
00:56:30I didn't want to stop.
00:56:31That's just not me.
00:56:32You know, I'll go out.
00:56:33They have to kill me before I quit, you know, on a fight or whatever.
00:56:37But, man, I'm really kind of upset about, you know, them stopping it.
00:56:42But, you know, it'll be another day, and I guess they're looking out for my welfare.
00:56:47Do you regret it at all coming out, or was it just the motivation of trying to add the 140
00:56:52-pound title
00:56:53and fighting a guy who was supposed to be the best?
00:56:55I'm not going to regret anything.
00:56:57You know, I'm a fighter.
00:56:58I'm a warrior.
00:56:59I'm a champion.
00:56:59You know, I came out and fought for this man, and the man couldn't really beat me.
00:57:03He couldn't beat me with a hurt leg, you know.
00:57:05Just imagine if I was in tip-top, you know, condition and didn't have a hurt leg.
00:57:09You know, I probably would have shot him out.
00:57:13Is this something you want to do again at a point when you're 100%?
00:57:17Oh, most definitely.
00:57:18Get me at 100%.
00:57:19Don't get me at 50%.
00:57:20You know, it was just unfortunate that, you know, my leg went out on me.
00:57:24And, you know, I just trained too hard to quit in the dressing room.
00:57:28And I trained too hard to even quit on the stool.
00:57:30You know, it was my corner's decision.
00:57:34And trust me, I argued with him about it.
00:57:36And they're going to keep on telling me, you know, it'll be another day.
00:57:38It'll be another day.
00:57:39It will be.
00:57:40He'll be back.
00:57:41He'll be back for sure.
00:57:42I'm a warrior.
00:57:43I'm a champion, man.
00:57:44And I just wanted to fight.
00:57:46This was for, you know, for me, my kids, you know, and all of D.C.
00:57:51You know, we don't give up.
00:57:52We don't give up at all.
00:57:53Okay.
00:57:54Well, we look forward to seeing another day of you in the ring, Charm Bay.
00:57:58So, Steve, on a night when he showed a warrior's heart, his leg just wouldn't hold out for him to
00:58:04continue the fight.
00:58:06All right, Tim.
00:58:07We appreciate it.
00:58:08Thank you so much.
00:58:09Obviously, a very emotional, distraught.
00:58:12All right.
00:58:13Sean Bay Mitchell after having to quit because of an injury to his left knee.
00:58:18And, well, you can see the emotion there as he puts his head into his hands afterwards.
00:58:24All right.
00:58:24Let's see how all the scoring transpired here tonight.
00:58:29Here are the judges' scorecards, the official scorecards.
00:58:31Let's see.
00:58:32Chuck Giampa had a 68-64 for Kostya Zhu at the time of the stoppage.
00:58:37Keith McDonald had it all even.
00:58:3866-66.
00:58:40And Daniel VanderWaal had Zhu ahead 68-65.
00:58:45And now we go from the official scoring to the press row scoring.
00:58:49Tim Dahlberg had it 66-66 all even.
00:58:52Well, they all had it even.
00:58:53Grand Jaday and Kim as well.
00:58:56You'll recall they had that first fight a draw with Tabanis and Sopran.
00:59:00And now they have this fight a draw as well going into the eighth round.
00:59:04And the online results, the folks at home will go to that one right here.
00:59:07And there you see it was very close with the fans voting.
00:59:10Kostya Zhu ahead four rounds to three.
00:59:14All right.
00:59:16Kostya Zhu ahead four rounds to three.
00:59:20All right.
00:59:21If you took part, we thank you for your participation.
00:59:24Steve Albert here with Zab Judah.
00:59:27The road leads to this man.
00:59:29Look at some rap, man.
00:59:30You hear?
00:59:30Unbelievable.
00:59:31Now, Zab, what's your reaction to what you just saw?
00:59:33Do you think, even though a lot of people had it very close,
00:59:37it might have been inevitable that Kostya Zhu was going to really dish out more punishment
00:59:44to Shambay Mitchell, who, you know, he might have been scoring points,
00:59:47but he really wasn't in danger of hurting Kostya Zhu.
00:59:51Shambay fought the wrong fight.
00:59:52He fought.
00:59:52He came in there.
00:59:53He had a bad leg.
00:59:54He tried to run, which was, first of all, you don't fight a bull going backwards.
01:00:00You got to go side to side, lateral movement.
01:00:02You got to use your head, use your jab, stick your uppercuts and your hooks.
01:00:06Shambay didn't, he didn't do it.
01:00:07He came in there.
01:00:08He tried to run and hit, run and hit, run and hit.
01:00:09You can't do that for a 12 round with a fight like Kostya Zhu.
01:00:11The leg, the knee may have had something to do with that.
01:00:14Well, I mean, you know, like I say, man, the boy winning in the beginning,
01:00:18he's from the ghetto and all that.
01:00:20Where I'm from, we don't cry.
01:00:21Win, lose a draw.
01:00:22Nobody's crying.
01:00:23Nobody's sitting around crying and all that.
01:00:26It just don't go down like that.
01:00:27You know what I'm saying?
01:00:28Real people do real things.
01:00:29That's it.
01:00:29And I mean, look, the boy won, you know, his corner stopped it, whatever, whatever.
01:00:34And they'll come back another day to do what they got to do.
01:00:35But right now, it's Kostya Zhu and Zab Judah.
01:00:38And I ain't doing no crying, baby.
01:00:40And I'm really from the hood.
01:00:41All right, Bobby.
01:00:42For sure.
01:00:43Certainly, I believe there's no crying in boxing as well.
01:00:45Ain't no crying here, baby.
01:00:46But let's just say for the sake of argument that Shambay Mitchell had in his mind
01:00:49to move that side to side and that he underestimated the strength of Kostya Zhu.
01:00:53How do you make the adjustment off that?
01:00:55If Zhu Zhu's a little strong for the side to side, what do you do?
01:00:57First of all, see, when you get in there and he did feel like that,
01:01:01it's got to come out.
01:01:01Special effects got to come out.
01:01:02You got to turn into Superman.
01:01:05And that's what I do best.
01:01:06When I'm in trouble, I turn to Superman.
01:01:08I put that kick on and I just transform.
01:01:11Believe me, this Kostya Zhu, the jab going to be pumping.
01:01:13Ain't going to be none of that running around.
01:01:14You got to chase you, chase me.
01:01:17It's going to be total action.
01:01:18It all keys off the jab.
01:01:19You got to listen.
01:01:20Listen, Kostya Zhu, Kostya Zhu, he doesn't take an uppercut
01:01:22and a double hook well.
01:01:23So, watch out for that.
01:01:25Now, wait a minute, Zab.
01:01:26You have been criticized the last couple of fights for not fighting with intensity.
01:01:32You were even stopped by a referee, Arthur McCatty, in your last fight, you recall.
01:01:36Now, can you take that same approach against the Kostya Zhu?
01:01:40Let me tell you, I fight what I want to fight.
01:01:42If I feel like playing for two rounds and shaking around and dipping his dad,
01:01:45I'm going to do that.
01:01:46But then when it's time for me to get serious, y'all see,
01:01:48when it's time for me to put it down, I put Reggie Green down.
01:01:50When I felt like I was ready to put it down, I put it down.
01:01:53Any fighter.
01:01:54Since I won a title, it's nothing but knockouts.
01:01:56I don't care what they say.
01:01:57I play around too much.
01:01:58I do that.
01:01:58I get the job done.
01:02:00Obviously, the reaction from the crowd, the booing doesn't affect you.
01:02:03Why?
01:02:04They're not in their fight.
01:02:04I'm fighting.
01:02:05I don't worry about that.
01:02:07I mean, listen, you're going to have people with you.
01:02:09You're going to have people not with you.
01:02:10And then, you know, at the end of the night, the same boo, the same boo,
01:02:13that boo, after I knocked him out, there was no chance.
01:02:15You told us a couple of weeks ago, before that Green fight,
01:02:19that the reason you fight this way now is because at times you have fits of boredom.
01:02:24I did bored, man.
01:02:25I mean, look, a fighter that caught the zoo, believe me, I won't get bored.
01:02:28I mean, he's coming in with a attempt to hurt me, so I'm going to have the same attempt back.
01:02:32You know what I'm saying?
01:02:33You try to hurt me, I'm going to hurt me.
01:02:34Reggie Green was no threat.
01:02:35I mean, don't forget, don't get me wrong, he was a good fighter.
01:02:37He had sharp skills, and he was, you know, he was slick at times,
01:02:42but he didn't really have been like a force of threat to me.
01:02:46You know what I mean?
01:02:46Which cost the zoo.
01:02:47I feel like he's going to come in there, because he wants to be the Undisputed Champion of the World,
01:02:50and he can try to bring a threat of hurt.
01:02:51Yeah, but not to beat a dead horse here, but if you're going to be a showman,
01:02:55and if you're going to be theatrical, and if you're bored, doesn't that mean that we're bored?
01:03:00And the fans are bored.
01:03:01Why don't you step it up, then, when you're bored?
01:03:03Just to kill your own boredom.
01:03:04If I was here to please, I mean, I'm not here to please the fans.
01:03:08That's the whole thing.
01:03:09I mean, people who don't like me stay at home watching on Showtime.
01:03:12I mean, you know, I try to be cocky now.
01:03:14I'm just saying, I'm confident at what I do.
01:03:17I'm confident at what I do.
01:03:18You know what I mean?
01:03:19And like I said, from here to ten years from now, until I decide to quit this, get this game
01:03:26up.
01:03:26As long as I got my heart and my will and my father and my team in my corner,
01:03:29Zab Judah is going to reign supreme.
01:03:31All right. We're looking forward to seeing a great fight May 19th.
01:03:33May 19th. Yeah.
01:03:34Undisputed, baby.
01:03:35All right, Zab Judah.
01:03:36Trust me.
01:03:37I ain't no Sean Big Mitchell.
01:03:38I don't cry.
01:03:39I don't play around.
01:03:40I put it down.
01:03:41You heard me?
01:03:41Zab Judah.
01:03:43That's the future of boxing.
01:03:44And speaking of the future, here's what's coming up on Showtime Championship boxing.
01:03:48We want to tell you.
01:03:48Thank you, Zab.
01:03:49Next week, Saturday, February 10th.
01:03:51Special same day coverage of WBO junior middleweight champ Harry Simons title defense
01:03:55versus Robert Allen at 10 p.m. Eastern and Pacific.
01:03:59On SET pay-per-view March 3rd, Holyfield Ruiz.
01:04:02They meet again in the rematch of their controversial fight last August with the WBA title hanging on the balance
01:04:06beginning at 9 p.m. Eastern and 6 Pacific.
01:04:11Thanks, Brian and Max.
01:04:12We're at the Cleveland Gray.
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