The only people who weren’t happy after The Clash For Canterbury were the ones who had hoped to see Sonny Bill Williams get knocked out by Alipate Liava’a. Apart from them, everyone came out happy, including the critics who are not convinced with Williams’ boxing skills.
The demands of playing professional rugby have proved that it is near on impossible even for an athletic freak like Williams to have a decent training camp in the lead up to a fight.
There was no real improvement in Williams’ skill from his last fight against Scott Lewis. I’d go as far to say that if Scott Lewis had taken on Williams this time he would have won.
Even though Williams won and got through the fight unscathed I don’t think his camp would have been overly excited. You could almost hear the sigh of relief from Todd Blackadder and the All Black coaches after the final bell. There were, however, some factors that led to the lacklustre performance.
First up was the training camp that Williams had in the lead-up, complicated because of travel and rugby demands and a lack of a proper head trainer to guide SBW’s skill development. Basically, he was coached by his manager, watched videos of Roy Jones Jr for help, and had telephone advice from Mundine. In other words he didn’t have a proper camp.
Then there was the hand injury he picked up from the Reds game, and to top it off he had the flu in the week leading up to the fight. Williams is fortunate to have a good management team around him that picked an opponent that virtually was no threat to him. That made the difficulties in his camp not so crucial in the fight.
Mundine said himself that Williams can get away with this stuff at this level. If he wants to take a step up he’ll have to have a proper camp.
Sir Bob Jones’ comment about not being impressed by Williams’ boxing seemed petty, but after the fight I don’t think he would have had reason to change his mind.
Watching the fight it seems that Williams is basing his stance on Roy Jones Jr, with the low hands and head movement that is looking for an opening.
This stance also keeps his opponent just outside the pocket so that it’s harder for his opponent to connect with punches.
If they do throw punches then Williams just outstretches his arms to keep them at bay and retreats using his footwork. That’s providing that his reach is longer than his opponents. His game plan seemed to be throw a quick punch or a quick one two combo and back away.
This may sound like all boxing game plans but it lacks any methodical plan to win a fight.
Williams’ footwork also didn’t seem right at times when he threw punches, but that can also be put down to his inexperience. In a boxing sense his technique is terrible. That’s not to say its not effective. Roy Jones Jr was able to get away with bad boxing technique for years because he was so quick and powerful.
As Jones’ reflexes slowed, his bad technique was exposed, and he began to get knocked out. Someone like Bernard Hopkins, who had fundamentally good boxing technique, was able to compete well into his later years.
I have no doubt that Williams’ camp would know all too well about his shortcomings as a boxer and will be working hard to rectify them and increase his skill level. Also I think this fight would have also been a good gauge to Williams’ camp as to how to work out his fights in the future.
They will now know that his best performances will be in the off-season when he is able to have a more stable training camp.
This is not to say that Williams won’t be a success in boxing, but the Liava’a fight has shown how difficult it is to try and compete in professional rugby and boxing at the same time.
To be a world class boxer Williams will need to put as much training into his boxing as he does his rugby, which will be impossible given the demands of both.
Whatever opinion you may have of Williams and his camp, what he is doing is quite groundbreaking. Being a professional rugby player is hard enough, but to throw boxing into the mix as well is unheard of.
As a professional rugby player everything is basically mapped out for you to do because it has been done by many before. You just follow the book. With Williams he’s writing it as he goes.
There have and will be mistakes on the path that he has chosen, but you have to respect the fact that he is really pushing the boundaries of professional sport.
Damien
Roar Guru
Mundines not the reason why boxing in such a sad state. Boxing was in bad shape well and truly before Boxa Promotions came along. Mundine's just doing what he can in the boxing world. I can write another article on why boxing is in such bad shape and another 10 articles about decent fighters who've been shafted by promoters who have nothing do with Mundine. Mundine's just a business man. Put it this way. Take the Mundine v Green fight. If Mundine boxed for a promotion he would have walked away with maybe $500K (taking Garth Woods paypacket as a guide) because Mundine owns the promotion he walked away with $2.5m. (got that number from an article whinging how disgraceful it was that Mundine and Green both got paid more than the winners purse for the Australian Open for tennis and golf). Like they say in the fight game "Its all about the business"..
Damien
Roar Guru
I don't think you'll get any arguments about SBW's boxing from anyone. Including SBW himself. SBW didn't make $100K because he could box. Its because he's a superstar. We can argue about all his rugby deficiencies and how he's ordinary at the sweet science but you cant argue that he's a drawcard. It's abit like Brock Lesnar in the UFC. He's not a top heavyweight IMO but he's the UFC's biggest drawcard. I don't like it but thats just reality. Critics can't chose superstars nowdays. The fans do. Because of the internet the fans don't need critics to tell us who a superstar is. He's not the first rugby player to dabble in boxing but he is the first to do it while being a contracted player. I'm not buying into his boxing talent and I don't think that many people do. I reckon the praise he gets in regards to boxing is more for giving it a go than actually fighting.
TembaVJ
Guest
Charlie Goldman once said “a good fighter is born with the ability to punch, the rest you can add on over time” of Marciano he said “the guy had no idea how to box but he was born to do it” People like SBW and the scum in his corner (mundane) are what’s wrong with the boxing world. No one wants to lose so they turn to desperate live punching bags for a show.
TembaVJ
Guest
Spiro for SBW to hit the fat little tennis elbow boy in the belly he would have to stand on his knees or he would never reach. Analysis from people who know nothing of rugby or RL but know all about boxing have found this fight to be a joke. Its exactly what it is, a joke, at least this joke was for charity. He has nothing in his boxing arsenal, only the things he brought over from rugby... Size, strength and fitness. His right in any angel is very weak for a man his size, all is punches are predictable as he does not hide it with shaping. His jab is also weak and crosses very far over to the left. Any proper boxer will deck him with a solid right after his 3rd jab. Basing your style on a boxer who at his prime was pound for pound in RJJ is even funnier. Jones who is but a shadow of his former self would not even need to train for SBW, he would rock SWB's world in 60 seconds. Perhaps they should take the money of the fight and give it back to the tax payers, who have paid welfare to little fat man? Inexperience is not an excuse when you pulling 100K a fight, would we take that if a boxer decides he wants to start playing for rugby without the skills we pay for now? By the way its hardly the first case of a footballer dabbling in boxing... Everyone seems to think everything this man does is new... its not, not even his off loads. As Tana showed on the weekend he has been off loading with better success rate for long time. Good on him for trying but until he faces a man with a similar "tale of the tape" I wont buy into it. I wont praise him for punching around a no name, over the hill, out of the hill, was never going to see the hills over weight dull bludgers.
Damien
Roar Guru
True. I was being a smart arse. I reckon Khodder gets a bad rap partly because he just looks dodgy. No disrespect intended. Just an observation. Most rugby pundits aren't fans of Khodder & Mundine but they've got to realise that without them SBW would still be in the NRL. People tend to forget that they coughed up the intial $750K to get SBW's release. Now thats what you call putting your money where your mouth is.
macey
Guest
Khodder Nasser, being the man that he is would have not blinked twice after sbw told him that he wanted to donate the $100,000. If anything he would have been proud to be his manager.
Jason Tulio
Roar Guru
I agree Spiro. SBW did the right thing in using his reach to keep his shorter opponent from closing the distance. But aside from that, the only other thing Sonny Bill had to offer was that ineffective (and not to mention embarassing) pirouetting right hand. In my opinion, Ali's style worked for him because he was much faster than his heavyweight foes. That and the style simply suited his flashy and cocky charisma, the same way Tyson's seek and destroy methods suited his unstable ersona.
Jason Tulio
Roar Guru
True. If that is the case, hopefully he makes some much needed improvements in the meantime.
Spiro Zavos
Expert
Sonny Bill, like Anthony Mundine (in imitation of Muhammed Ali), is a head-hunter. The smallest and toughest part of the body of Liana'a is his head. Sonny Bill had difficulty getting a good shot on it, and even when he did his blows just glanced off as if he were hitting an iron ball. Why didn't he plant a couple of stiff blows to the capacious belly of his opponent? This would have ended the fight quite quickly. The answer, I think, is that to belt away at the belly you have to get in tight and close. The style that Mundine and Sonny Bill have opted for is the more showy Ali style of quick strikes from a distance to the head. I agree that Sonny Bill has a long way to go before he can be regarded as a professional boxer. This will come when he retires from rugby (union and league) in about four to six years time, I would guess.
the woodster
Guest
Did not watch the fight but what i saw in the latter stages when he looked like finishing Liava'a off was not too incouraging, like someone mentioned before he needs more in his arsenal than just a straight right to be a threat against bigger opponents. But I have faith that if he puts in the hard yards he could be something in boxing.
Damien
Roar Guru
I reckon his goal is to win a world title. And his camp certainly believe he is capable of that. Tony Mundine has said that to do that he would have to do what you suggested. Give up rugby. I believe SBW will make a serious run for it in maybe 4 years time after the next RWC and quit rugby all together. But until then it'll be more of the same in terms of fights. Just my 2 cents. Who knows I suppose. Must feel good though to have options in the fickle world of professional sport.
Damien
Roar Guru
There's a fighter in Oz named Lucas 'Big Daddy' Browne who alot of people want SBW to take on. Big Daddy's an MMA fighter along with being a boxer. Big Daddy says himself that he'd like a crack at SBW. And some are saying that SBW is scared of Big Daddy and that he should grow some and take him on. Well Big Daddy is more experienced that SBW, spends more time training in the fight game than SBW and a few months ago knocked out Alipate Liava'a when the two fought. Now no one is bagging Big Daddy for this. When SBW takes on the same guy then its a freak show. I got no dramas with Big Daddy knocking out Liava'a. This is the fight game and its not for everyone. But it is what it is..
Jason Tulio
Roar Guru
No worries Damien. You're right, aside from his decent jab SBW gets no leverage on his punches because his overly flashy footwork doesn't allow him to plant his feet properly to generate power. It does seem that his style is geared towards hiding his untested chin, which is passable at this stage. I imagine if a boxer even close to his size (let alone decently skilled) threw a combo, he'd be in trouble. I too have taken my fair share of beatings in the ring and respect any man game enough to step in there. But I do wish his goals would be more clear cut: if his goal is to win a title, then his rugby career would have to take a backseat. Otherwise if he only wishes to box in the off-season for fun/charity then so be it. But you can't do both at once.
Damien
Roar Guru
LOL. True that. The only difference is they had gloves on and there were no hugs at the end. The groundbreaking is the lead up to the fight. The training between both sports. The fact that we are in the middle of the Super Rugby season. The fact that an All Black is allowed to do it. The fact that a boxing novice could basically headline a PPV event. And not only that actually donate 100 large of his purse to Charity. Name me a boxer/sportsman that is able to make that amount of cash in his 4th fight ever, no amatuer experience and he's only doing it part time. Imagine what Khodder Nasser would have said when SBW said that he wanted to donate $NZ100,000 to the appeal. That would have been so funny to see.
mervyn
Guest
He should be embarrassed. Only redemming factor was it was for charity. He should still be embarrassed, stick to rugby.
Damien
Roar Guru
Weak it was. Unfortunately thats just the nature of the PPV beast. When you are trying to build a boxing profile/storyline its not like rugby when you can lose preseason games and no one really cares. Every fight counts especially when you have the profile of SBW. I'm sure SBW's camp will be doing everything to make sure he performs in rugby. Like I said in the article, its never been done before so how are they or anyone else to know how things will turn out unless you give it a go. Theory is all good but it doesn't beat actually doing it.
Damien
Roar Guru
Thanks for your input Jason. You know much more about boxing than I do. To me SBW doesn't seem to get any leverage with his punches. Its nice to see him not following most beginners and throwing haymakers all day. He seems to have a quick jab but the thats about it. I reckon that SBW has been drilling his defense and footwork more than his punches. Fair enough I reckon. Its more important that he not get KOed than KOing someone. He got tagged once but that seemed to be him not being aware. Imagine if a decent boxer threw a combo after tagging him. I take your point about RJJ boxing from when he could walk. I think most people expect to see SBW be as good in boxing as he is in rugby as if he came up through the grades in the sport. He only picked it up 2 years ago. Whatever his future boxing prospects are I can respect the effort that he has put in to try and become a boxer. I trained at a gym with some decent fighters and its pretty hardcore. (I was pretty hopeless. Was just used as a boxing bag LOL.). Knowing the effort that it takes and how he was trying to fit it in with his rugby training just confirms the stories about him being such a hardcore trainer.
stuff happens
Guest
This was an embarrassing freak show. Boxing it is not.What possible satisfaction could SBW or anyone in the audience have from watching him trying to beat up a 43 yr old grossly overweight man? Pathetic
Traci
Guest
I can appreciate that SBW had an injury from the Reds game and also that he had the flu, but there is no denying the fact that this fight was weak. Since it was done for charity I don't think people should be giving the SBW camp too hard a time. It does however raise a good point. Boxing during Rugby season doesn't seem to be in SBW's best interest. If boxing is his passion in the off season that's fine, but I think he needs to stop pushing himself so hard to be great at both sports at the same time. Boxing and Rugby are both tough sports and pushing himself so hard could hurt him in the long run.
Jason Tulio
Roar Guru
The reason Roy Jones Jr. got away with bad technique for so long was because of his experience in the sport; he's literally been boxing since the day he could walk. Now all things considered, SBW has made some decent improvements as a boxer. Could he beat a half-decent opponent at this point? Absolutely not and I hope his handlers don't think otherwise. Imitating RJJ with that leaning jab, evasive footwork and lead right hand is nothing but pure theatre. Sure, it can work to a boring decision against a 40+yr old gospel singer, but it's nothing more than pure trickery. Some solid sparring and better fundamentals could go a long way for Sonny Bill.