Adamek-Grant

[Overhand_Right]

38 year old Michael Grant, winner of 8 fights in the 7 years since Dominic Guinn violently ended his brief revival, has been pencilled in for Tomasz Adamek's next opponent, Adamek having won 2 of his 3 heavyweight outings on points.

Eddie Mustafa Muhammad is training Grant, and because he trained Dawson to beat Adamek way back at light-heavy, is assuring us Grant will win.

I wish we could just get Adamek in with a Klitschko and see how he fares, but this should provide him a nice tidy KO1 on his record leading up to a title shot.

[diggity]

I doubt how much this will really prep him for fight a Klit but the guy deserves a pass after that war with Arreola. If Grant had a real jab & controlled distance well, then maybe there's some merit here.

Anybody who doesn't show Grant respect, walks all over him. I'm sure Adamek knows this and will do the same when he's done sparring with him for a few rounds.

[Wladimir Klitschko Sucks]

Grant has been quietly winning for years since the Guinn setback and is a huge step up from that gross fucking slob Areola, If Adamak things this is a easy win he will leave the ring on a stretcher,

WKS

[JLP 6]

I love that HOOK Guinn gave him. Guinn BTW made me sick with his lame efforts. He had the stuff.

[diggity]

Weak stuff at best. He had one good punch he got to use a few times but other than that, nothing. Toney gave him one of the best beatings I've ever had the privilege of watching.

[JLP 6]

He had stuff, but he did not put his heart into it. He could box, punch, had a solid chin, and could take it. However, he did not have confidence.

[diggity]

Heart & chin aside, at what point did he ever put on any kind of boxing exhibition? To this day I do not see what everyone saw in Guinn to say he was even above average at boxing. This always baffles me. Grant at least gutted it out & beat Golata in a tough fight. What the did Guinn ever do other than beat Grant - who was basically a really tall nobody to begin with?

[Mexal]

Grant has been quietly winning for years since the Guinn setback and is a huge step up from that gross fucking slob Areola, If Adamak things this is a easy win he will leave the ring on a stretcher,

WKS

Quietly winning for years?? Against who precisely? In a division in such desperate need of new talent where any measly win awards you a title shot, it's hard to believe Michael Grant has been on any kind of a significant winning streak that qualifies him as a 'huge step up' from anyone.

[diggity]

Whatever happened to Duncan Dokiwari anyway? That guy was a monster. That was Guinn's biggest shock of a win in my eyes.

[GorDoom]

Some Things Have Changed, But Maybe Michael Grant Hasn't
By Michael Woods from Sweet Science

He was supposed to be the prototype, the United States model for the next generation of heavyweight superstar.

The hopeful looked at Michael Grant in the late 1990s, and grinned, pleased that not all the athletes were picking hoops, or future NFL stardom, over the squared circle.

This guy could do it all, had a golden ticket to whichever sport he graced with his presence. A Clemensesque fastball as a pitcher; sick 40 speed, 4.6, for a humongous dude, tailor-made to be a dual threat as a tight end; a stellar baller.

But no, he wanted us, he wanted in on our shared passion, the fight game, and he'd help us transition to the post Tyson era.

Sports Illustrated looked at him, at his 6-7, 250-pound frame, and drooled, and spread the saliva far and wide. "The hottest young heavyweight," Franz Lidz wrote, possesses a "disintegrating jab." Another member of the choir was trainer Manny Steward, who said he was impressed by Grant's development, bout after bout. "For a 26-year-old who learned to box at age 20 and had just 12 amateur bouts, he shows amazing composure," said Steward, not coincidentally on the lookout for suitable foes for his man Lennox Lewis. HBO liked what they saw, too, enough to merit a five-fight deal. The "heavyweight of the new millennium," they touted him, as we all looked ahead to the calendar flipping to the 2000s, and loaded up on TP and bottled water in case all the world's computers crashed.

Soon enough, the hopeful thought to themselves as Grant took out the who's who of the Heavyweight Explosion fraternity, circa 1997-98, Lewis would be toppled from his throne. Hope hiccuped when Grant went down twice in the first round in a step-up fight against Andrew Golota, but those yearning for the prototype thesis to play out tried to look past the knockdowns and instead concentrate on the heart that was in evidence at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City on Nov. 20, 1999, as Grant exited with a TKO10 when Golota offered a 'no mas' after eating some nasty shots.

There would be no more tempting of fate, no more "seasoning fights." Grant's people weren't fools, not in the realm of looking out for their guy as an investment, if not as a human being. They booked Grant in with Lewis on April 29, 2000 in Madison Square Garden.

The bout was tagged "Too Big." Much was made of the combined weight--497 pounds-- of the combatants, Lewis and Grant, but maybe not enough attention was paid to an in-hindsight obvious deficiency in Grant--his lack of experience as compared to Lewis. Lennox went 85-9 as an amateur, while Grant went 11-1 before turning pro. The hopeful, especially us in the States, were tired of hearing about Lennox' pugilistic superiority. We wanted the champ to have some shark blood in him, instead we were saddled with a crafty guy who played boxing like he played chess. We were ready for a change, for the heir apparent to step up, grab the belt. But the heir apparent was not ready.

Lewis sent Grant to the mat three times in the first round, and it became glaringly apparent that all the hype was just hope, and marketing; Grant was in over his head, drowning, and Lewis was only to happy to happy to keep pouring cement into his boots. A sick uppercut, unleashed while the Brit held Grant in place with his left, finished off the challenger in round two.

After, SI's drool had dried up. Richard Hoffer wrote that "there was the problem of Grant's boxing pedigree...Grant...has the look of a contender who's been well-handled, steered into this $4 million jackpot by promoters and broadcasters. Fight folk are always skeptical of athletes turned boxers." Now you tell us!

Grant tried to get back on the winning track, subbing in Teddy Atlas for Don Turner, in his comeback bout, against another tight-end sized heavyweight, Jameel (6' 6'', 250 plus) McCline. The switch didn't work. The night ended more quickly, in more embarrassing fashion, as McCline sent Grant to the floor with his first punch, a left, and the loser broke his ankle. And, maybe, his psyche.

Getting back into the ring was not a given for Grant. Atlas stuck by him, and tried to help him get his emotions in check. "I had days in the gym where Michael stopped training and started crying," Atlas explained, right before Grant was to fight Dominick Guinn, in what would be his last meaningful fight before his Aug. 21 return to the big stage, against Tomasz Adamek at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ (available on PPV). The Humpty Dumpty project didn't pay off on June 7, 2003. Grant ate left hooks like his contract called for a bonus for every one absorbed. Guinn sent Grant to the floor four times, and the fight came to an end in the seventh after the fourth. Nobody questioned Grant's heart, but his chin, his confidence, his future in the sport, all those were fair game.

Since then, Grant has made periodic appearances on our radar. We're always keen for a comeback story, as they resonate with us, and with readers, all of whom can identify with the feeling of being lower than whale doo-doo, and seeking the strength to get out of the muck. He fought once in 2004, twice in 2005, was off 2006, fought twice in 2007, twice in 2008, and not at all in 2009. In his last effort, he scored a TKO1 victory over Kevin Burnett on a Long Island card. He is 8-0 since the Guinn fight, but to be honest, the opponents were not even Heavyweight Explosion material, many of them.

But hope springs eternal.

It can't be stopped by a cutman dream team of Stitch Duran, Joe Chavez and Danny Milano.

So, at 38 years old, with a new trainer talking familiar bullet points of optimism, Michael Grant will attempt to get back into the mix. It won't be easy. He'll need to get the better of Adamek, the wily Pole who is a fight or two away from getting a title crack against David Haye or a Klitschko.

The smart money, and the smartass keyboard tappers, see Grant as a warmup for a Klitschko, someone to let the Pole get some live rounds against someone with a similar build. Grant, on a Thursday media call-in, does not agree. He says that his age isn't something to hold against him, that he now possesses the maturity to get it done, to do what needs to be done to fulfill his potential.

And who am I to scoff? I am a 40 year old man, who no longer finds it so easy or subconsciously gratifying to stomp on the best laid plans of past-their-prime dreamers...because I still have dreams not yet accomplished, and sometimes ponder uneasily the possibility that what once seemed a given may never happen.

Grant and Atlas parted ways after the Guinn loss, and the long, tall heavy tried his luck with Buddy McGirt. He seemed to enjoy the more laid back style of McGirt ("Atlas had his strategy how he wanted to fight. I had my strategy how I wanted to fight. Buddy helps me express my talent, my athletic ability. I can be myself. I can correct my mistakes. I'm coming out, establishing the jab and being alert"--Grant said in 2004), but then latched on with Tommy Gallagher in 2007, after a two-year hiatus. That marriage went the way of Bristol and Levi, and Grant started working with Eddie Mustafa Muhammad, the ex light heavyweight standout.

So far, so good. OK, what would one expect at this juncture. Pessimism has no place in the comeback arc. Grant said on the call he's in superb shape, and Adamek will pay because of it.

“This camp has been like no other, training with Eddie," Grant said. "We have a nice formula working together and this is definitely one of the times I’ve trained the hardest. The only time I trained harder than this was for the fight with Lennox Lewis."

When I talked to Grant three years ago, during the last comeback run, he articulated some bitterness, with past managers and promoters, and said he was a puppet way back when. This time around, he seems to be steering clear of that rearview mirror stuff. He mentioned several times his maturity, his experience, said he didn't let that political stuff get him down. This may bode well, might indicate that Grant is cognizant that his destiny is mostly in his own hands, and that while it might feel good to get things off his chest, to move things forward he has to stay in a positive frame.

Mustafa certainly is; he said that he thinks Grant is "in the top five in the division," right now, and that his work ethic has been top tier.

The trainer pointed out that he was in the corner of the first and only man to beat Adamek, Chad Dawson (Feb. 2007, UD12), so one can presume that might bolster Grant's confidence heading into the Aug. 21 beef. "I'll give him his second defeat," EMM said.

Grant said he'll be looking to have a constant presence with the jab, and that if and when Adamek slips inside, he'll be met with a right hand. He dismissed the notion that Adamek is "slick," and said he thinks the Pole will "run around. You know it's not gonna be no brawl, he'll not fight like that."

Grant isn't getting ahead of himself, he said, and he'd look for another fight at "God's speed. I'm not rushing anything."

A decade after his big chances exploded in his face, Grant maintains that he's back in the ring because he has chores left to accomplish. "I wasn't finished. I felt like I had unfinished business. I have a lot to offer this game."

The 40-year-old man in me hopes so. It is always comforting and encouraging when someone seemingly set in his ways tweaks some defects, makes some mental adjustments, gets over the hump. How many of us gain, and lose, and find again, that same 10 pounds? Someone who takes it off, and keeps it off can be a catalyst. Fundamental change, going against our wiring, our mannerisms and behaviors cemented over decades, is damned difficult. The cynic in me, a goodly portion of my being, being a journalist and all, suspects that a late-in-the-game makeover will be really, really hard for Michael Grant to pull off. He may well be what he is, what he was, what he will always be. You can't, however, begrudge the man for spinning his inactivity into a positive, as he plays up his "maturity."

The Grant case brings to mind the old saying, "Just because everything is different doesn't mean anything has changed." New management, new trainer, newfound maturity. Maybe new results, maybe a midlife surge. But, oh, it's hard. No matter the result, and I see Adamek using his cagey ring generalship to get a UD, I have to applaud Grant's effort and desire. You'll not hear snide remarks about "another comeback" from me.

Allow me to quote, with a tweak, Ben Franklin: "When you're finished changing--or trying to change--you're finished."

Good luck, Michael.

[KOJOE90]

Adamek by mid to late TKO, too young, fresh and hungry.

[Kyoodle]

Grant is just another victim of "The Cayton Curse". He, along with Tyson, Tommy Morrison, Sheika, Jeremy Williams and a couple of other, lesser-lights all hit the skids once they turned their backs on the man who marketed them to big-time purses.

Grant also has some balls feeling any bitterness towards "past managers and promoters", because if it wasn't for Cayton, Lott and Craig Hamilton--along with their promotional partners, Grant would have been exposed a helluva lot earlier than he was, minus those nice paydays he garnered as a result of Bill C's business acumen.

He's not going to show the same resilience and heart he showed against Golota, a guy with even LESS backbone than he, when he's in there against the tireless Adamek. This "smartass keyboard tapper" is looking for Grant to receive a satisfying two or three round beat down at Goral's hands in this one.

Regards,
Kyoodle

[don1234]

As a heavyweight, Michael Spinks had his gimme kayo.

This may be Adamek's Steffen Tangstad.

[GorDoom]

10 Years After: Michael Grant Prepping for a “Big” Return
By Lyle Fitzsimmons from Boxing Scene

Memories.

If you make a living writing Hallmark cards or adult contemporary hits, they’re a staple of your business. But if you’re an athlete – particularly a baseball relief pitcher or an ice hockey goalie – they’re not quite as helpful.

If you’re a boxer, it’s even less.

Case in point… Michael Grant.

If you’re a fan of the sport, chances are your No. 1 memory of Grant involves the stallion-like 27-year-old version looking as if he’d been put down – literally – courtesy of a Lennox Lewis barrage in round two of their April 2000 title fight at Madison Square Garden.

It was equally ugly 15 months later, when a lame ankle left him on the short end of a one-round TKO against Jameel McCline at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

To most, in fact, the 15 wins in 16 fights since have been forgettable.

Yet Grant presses on, downing the likes of Billy Zumbrun, Kevin Montiy, Demetrice King, Paul Marinaccio and Kevin Burnett in his last five fights and getting little closer to the respect that’s escaped him since the cataclysms of a decade ago.

Now, at 38… he’s got another shot.

Though considered little more than a familiar name and carcass for surging Tomasz Adamek’s pre-heavyweight title resume, Grant and trainer Eddie Mustafa Muhammad are singing a cheerier tune as they approach Saturday’s match at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.

The event is being billed “The Big Challenge” and a win would earn Grant – who stands nearly six inches taller and should weigh in at 40 or so pounds heavier – both the IBF international and WBO NABO titles.

Ho hum.

More importantly, it’d go leaps and bounds toward reshaping his career template.

“I only have three losses. Those losses were learning stones for me, stepping stones,” Grant said. “It's a great opportunity for me and I'm ready for it. I'm experienced. I've got a hell of a trainer. I'm having a hell of a camp. Everything is lining up.

“This fight is a very important opportunity to me and my family. The only time I've trained harder than this is when I fought Lennox Lewis. So this is how I know that things are lining up for me to be victorious.”

OK… so logic may not be his strong point.

But according to Muhammad, dedication isn’t a problem.

“Right now, I can put Michael in the top five of his division,” he said. “Because of his work ethic and because of what he brings to me in the gym. I am not trying to change his style, all I am doing is adding on to his style. Whatever he brings me, I just take that to another level.

“(People) don't see Michael the way I see Michael. I am working with him every day in the gym. We are working on different things. Michael is the bigger man. He's a harder punching man. He's got the height and reach. He's got the good jab. You know, everybody's gonna see a different, a very different scenario. They're gonna see a more mature Michael Grant.”

Now the promotional property of Nick Garone’s X-Cel Worldwide Promotions, Grant will also be facing some familiar out-of-the-ring faces from Main Events – the company that worked with him early in his career and is now promoting Adamek.

"I know Michael. I love him,” said Main Events Director Kathy Duva. “He used to be our fighter and I have no hard feelings. But obviously now we are on opposite sides and I'll be rooting for my guy when the bell rings.”

The X-Cel stable also features former two-time super middleweight title claimant Byron Mitchell and mid-card veterans Dorin Spivey and Meacher Major, as well as rising prospects in welterweight Adrian Mora and 140-pounder Nick Casal.

The marked mix of young and old is both intentional and vital, according to Garone.

“It’s different in every case,” he said. “Yes, you need young guys because there is a turnover on talent continuously, but there is a catch-22. The older, more experienced and name-recognized guys are sometimes better because you have a built product. If you sign guys that are established you have an instant draw and an opportunity to solicit television, venues, etc.

“Younger guys need to be built into contenders and more often than not it takes a huge commitment with money, time and resources. But don't get me wrong; if someone came along that was a winner you have to take that risk. Guys like Michael Grant and Byron Mitchell have name recognition, so fight fans might want to come out.”

* * * * * * * * * *

One of these days, I’m going to listen to myself.

I still carry the emotional scars from 14 years ago, when, as assistant sports editor with a newspaper in Batavia, N.Y., I wrote a column on that night’s first Mike Tyson-Evander Holyfield heavyweight title fight – in which Tyson was a prohibitive favorite.

Over 750 words or so, I laid out a series of reasons why I – never a giant “Iron Mike” fan – believed the thought-to-be-shot “Real Deal” had a legitimate chance at springing a sizable upset and snatching Tyson’s WBA title belt in the MGM Grand ring.

But when push came to shove at the end… I chickened out and picked Tyson anyway, then watched the broadcast through clenched teeth as nearly every scenario I’d forecasted unfolded en route to Holyfield’s decisive 11th-round TKO win.

Worst of all was the graphic that kept popping up, identifying one media member out of 50 or so as having picked Holyfield. And funny, no matter how often I showed my dad the actual body of the column as the KO became imminent, he only smiled and pointed to the end.

I’ve tried to carry the shame with me ever since… and it usually works.

But for whatever reason, I let it slide a little last week.

While doing prep work for Saturday’s Chad Dawson-Jean Pascal title fight in Montreal, I started getting the overwhelming feeling that the unbeaten IBO champion – one of my favorite fighters since he emerged in 2007 – was in for a rougher go than odds indicated.

Something about the stat I unburied – it was the first time Dawson had fought a younger man after 30 straight older foes – gave me a sinking suspicion the reign was fixing to end.

I didn’t run out and throw down a wager with the Haitian-turned-Canadian at 3-to-1 odds (dumb!), but I did write a Friday piece pointing out exactly the things about the fight were troubling me as it approached.

Among my genius:

“There's little debate that on a platform of talent, accomplishment and familiarity, Dawson's a prime-time powerhouse. His duels with Antonio Tarver and Glen Johnson were effective if not artistic, with little doubt of superiority remaining at the close of either.

“And a wide scorecard defeat of then-unbeaten WBC champ Tomasz Adamek three years ago looks better with each scalp the Pole claims at heavyweight. Still, the age thing lingers in an arena where youth is often a tipping point.

“Because he's not met a foe in his 20s since 2006 -- and never one near a world-class level -- Dawson could be slightly uneasy when dealing with challenges presented by a solidly-built 27-year-old who's been more dominant, in admittedly lesser tasks, since first emerging in 2007.

“Overcoming a workmanlike Johnson is one thing at 40. Denying a prime and hungry fireplug 13 years younger is quite another.”

But, surprise, surprise… when it came time to make the pick, I went back to the chalk and went with Dawson by decision, even with the distinctly prescient comment – “Dawson's first chance to fight a young, prime 175-pounder.”

Oh well… maybe I’ll have wised up by 2024.

* * * * * * * * * *

This week’s title-fight schedule:

SATURDAY
WBO junior heavyweight title – Erfurt, Germany
Marco Huck (champion) vs. Matt Godfrey (No. 5 contender)
Huck (29-1, 22 KO): Fourth title defense; Thirteenth straight fight in Germany (11-1, 8 KO)
Godfrey (20-1, 10 KO): First title fight; Second fight in Germany (0-1, 0 KO)
Fitzbitz says: “Streaking champion remains a major commodity on home turf.” Huck by decision

Last week’s picks: 3-1
Overall picks record: 124-44 (73.8 percent)

Lyle Fitzsimmons has covered professional boxing since 1995 and written a weekly column for Boxing Scene since 2008. He is a full voting member of the Boxing Writers Association of America.

[GorDoom]

Adamek Stays Ready To Avoid Having To Get Ready
By Jake Donovan from Boxing Scene

In a year where fighters would rather ride the pine in search of big fights that may never come, Tomasz Adamek is a breath of fresh air.

The logic behind passing on less glamorous fights is that if said fighter decides to go that route, they run the risk of not being available should a bigger opportunity suddenly present itself.

What’s wrong with such a way of thinking is that those types of opportunities don’t always come at a fighter’s convenience, thus running the risk of not being properly trained for what should be the biggest night of your career.

The best way to guard against being ill-prepared is to simply remain active. Such is a lesson not lost on Adamek (41-1, 27KO), who refuses to allow the industry’s power structure to dictate who and when he should and can fight.

Case in point – the former lineal cruiserweight king and light heavyweight titlist appears this weekend, his fourth fight in span of less than ten months.

Sure, his choice of opponent for this weekend has been mocked, as he squares off against faded former title challenger Michael Grant at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey (Saturday, 9PM ET, Integrated Sports PPV).

But while some focus on who he’s fighting, others look at the fact that he is simply fighting – again, and with or without a major television network along for the ride.

Since suffering the lone loss of his career to Chad Dawson more than three years, the general rate of activity for Adamek has been to fight four times in the span of any given 12-month period.

Some of the bouts have been televised; others have taken place just for the sake of staying busy. In fact, his majority decision victory over Chris Arreola earlier this year was his first on a major network in more than a year.

But out of sight doesn’t always mean out of mind.

Perhaps it speaks of the lack of depth in the heavyweight division. Or perhaps hard work simply pays off. Whatever the case, Adamek’s achievements on and off camera have propelled him to Top Five status in the land of the big boys on the strength of his April win over Chris Arreola.

His win over Arreola was just his third as a heavyweight (four, if you count his slightly-over-cruiserweight bout with Gary Gomez two summers ago), and his lone bout to date against a legitimate Top Ten contender. Yet one win, along with his past track record, was enough to leapfrog most of the best of the rest in a heavyweight division where fighters aren’t only inactive, but turning down title shots with alarming regularity.

The choice of Grant as this weekend’s opponent clearly outlines his future plans – a fight against either of the Klitschko brothers, whom own most of the heavyweight hardware, with Wladimir also serving as the division’s true lineal champion.

Adamek announced his desire to face either of the Klitschko brothers as far back as his aforementioned tuneup against Gomez. While pondering life as a heavyweight, Adamek would go on to establish himself as the best cruiserweight in the world on the strength of his performance in a 2008 Fight of the Year nominee against Steve Cunningham.

Two title defenses later, he decided that it was time to test the heavyweight waters. At the time, it was meant as just a quick dip – which also coincided with what was billed as the biggest fight in the history of Poland in his October fight with countryman Andrew Golota.

The 15 or so pounds added to his frame proved to be addicting enough to give up the cruiserweight crown. Four months later came a stay-busy fight against 2004 Olympic heavyweight Jason Estrada. For some, a “stay-busy” fight has less to do with staying busy than it does padding the record and perhaps the bank account.

For Adamek, there’s truth in advertising, as the bout was his fourth in 49 weeks. Eleven weeks later, came the win over Arreola to help put him one step closer toward challenging for the heavyweight title of his liking.

What helps his cause is the fact that he has a promoter who’s willing to secure fight dates with or without TV money funding their show. Saturday night will mark Adamek’s 10th fight since February 2008, when he signed with Main Events.

The New Jersey-based promotional outfit in its prime was known as one of “The Big Three”, along with Don King Productions and Bob Arum’s Top Rank, Inc. Of the three, only Arum still carries a full clip, loaded with top talent as well as TV dates, though not averse to staging his own PPV shows when he feels the need to keep his fighters busy.

In recent years, Main Events has experimented with their own PPV webcasts, as well as simply going the grassroots route with its shows for the sake of keeping its fighters busy.

It’s a theory to which Adamek has willingly subscribed, which has gone a long in way in establishing himself as a bona fide draw at the Prudential Center since relocating to Jersey City in 2008. This weekend will mark his fifth appearance at the boxing friendly venue, where yet another rabid crowd is expected to turn out – regardless of who Adamek faces.

But that’s not to say that this weekend’s fight is without meaning. A win over Grant this weekend doesn’t necessarily advance him in any set of rankings – alphabet or respectable – but on paper, it’s the perfect fight to take, and at the perfect time.

Wladimir Klitschko returns to the ring next month when he defends his lineal crown and litany of alphabet titles against Samuel Peter in a rematch to their September 2005 title eliminator.

Peter gets the title opportunity merely for being the highest rated alphabet contender after Alexander Povetkin was advised to back out of his mandatory title shot. Should Klitschko defeat Peter for the second time in as many tries, the sanctioning body will undoubtedly order a title eliminator to secure his next mandatory challenger.

Adamek is the next highest contender in that particular set of ratings, which means that next on his plate – with a win this weekend – will most likely be an elimination bout. Denis Boytsov, an undefeated heavyweight contender from Germany, is right behind Adamek in the two sets of alphabet rankings where the Pole is one fight away from challenging for a belt, with both of those titles currently owned by the younger Klitschko.

A bout with Boytsov could conceivably take place before year’s end, whereas a direct shot at Klitschko without having to go the title eliminator bout would most likely not take place before 2011. Should the latter become his future course of action, past history would place Adamek in the ring one more time before the end of this year.

The beauty of either scenario is that whenever his time comes to pursue his lifelong dream of winning the heavyweight championship, the threat of having to delay or even turn down the fight in order to sufficiently train will come into play.

Why? Because by staying ready, Tomasz Adamek never has to worry about getting ready.

Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of Boxingscene.com and an award-winning member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Contact Jake at JakeNDaBox@gmail.com .

[diggity]

Does anybody want to take a stab at how quick Adamek will make Grant quit?
I say within 6.

[TDKO]

Adamek has been so active,and against better comp, it's hard to imagine a geriatric Grant showing him anything he hasn't seen except a larger tower.
That being said Grant could hit a little, so possibly his corner will have him stay away for a couple of rounds and feel him out, but that's not his style, so I would agree Dig, Adamek between 6-8 rounds.

[don1234]

Assuming Adamek defeats Grant (stoppage in 6-8 rds sounds right), who's next? There's talk of a title fight. Would that be Haye?

[diggity]

Haye will never fight anybody truly dangerous. So unless a miracle happens and Grant wins, no.

[mrbig1]

Some fighters never recover from a KO loss. I think Grant is one of those people. Lewis took his heart with that beating. This is without a doubt his last shot. Let me take that back. He can always fight for some bullshit title like IBC or IBO.

[Kyoodle]

Does anybody want to take a stab at how quick Adamek will make Grant quit?
I say within 6.

I took a stab earlier in the thread, Dig....the big stiff gets unraveled by Adamek in 2 or 3.

Kyoodle

[mrbig1]

Adamek has won a one sided UD over Grant. 5-0 as a HW.

[diggity]

I'm curious to watch this for free, not for the pathetic PPV offering.

[Wladimir Klitschko Sucks]

anyone seen this yet? the post on Fightnews says Adamek was hurt, wobbled, and cut up. Sounds like homecooking to me, Jersey is Adameks home town adn a big Polish stronghold,

WKS

[bodyblow]

Adamek has won a one sided UD over Grant. 5-0 as a HW.

That fight was one sided to you? Adamek struggled like hell and was hurt several times against Grant. I had him up by one point at the end. Grant refused to throw punches, if he had gone on the offensive more he would have stopped Adamek. If I were Tomaz I would get out of the HW division quick.

[wolgast]

I was there. Grant won two rounds. In the sixth, he was losing the entire round until he nailed Adamek in the last 10 seconds. Grant also won the
12th when he again stunned Adamek. The seventh was close. Adamek dominated each of the other nine rounds. Yes, he had to work hard but working hard is his MOS. Remember, a few years ago this guy was a 175-pounder and now he is fighting someone 6-foot-7, 260 pounds. This was Dempsey against Willard but Adamek does not Dempsey's punch. He could use another test against a big guy. No one ever claimed he could beat the Klits, but he does have plenty of balls and he is tireless and he works hard. Everyone predicted that he would blow Grant out. Since that didn't happen, rather than admit they didn't know what they were talking about, these so-called experts and now are ragging on Adamek. Adamek's camp never believed this fight was a walkover--they left those thoughts up to today's boxing geniuses. The scorecards were solid; there was no home cooking. Please!

[TDKO]

Grant finally learned to relax in the ring, and not panic when hit, which gave him more of a chance to use his long jab and huge frame.
I did think Adamek would get him out of there, from attrition, and superior boxing skills, but based my prediction on memories of past Grant not seeing him active in years, some credit to him, but he wasn't in with a monster puncher, which may have changed his temperment.

[don1234]

Polish heavyweight contender Tomasz Adamek won a hard fought 12 round decision over former world title challenger Michael Grant at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey on Saturday night.

Adamak,42-1-(27), made a positive start to the biggest fight of his heavyweight career so far by landing some solid clean shots in the opener and controlled the first half of the fight but Grant, 46-4-(34), edged his way back into the fight in the sixth round by shaking up Adamek with a sustained barrage of punches. Adamak also sustained a cut over the right eye.

Encouraged by the previous round’s success, the 6ft 7 Grant upped the pace in round seven in the hope of connecting with another big punch and he did rattle Adamek a few times, expecially in round nine but the gutsy Polish former two weight world champ came back strongly and boxed his way out of trouble.

Grant marched forward for one last time in the 12th round knowing he needed a knockout to win. He very nearly got it as well, hurting Adamek in the final stages but the tough Polish battler hung on to claim a unanimous points win.

(from Max Boxing)

[mrbig1]

That fight was one sided to you? Adamek struggled like hell and was hurt several times against Grant. I had him up by one point at the end. Grant refused to throw punches, if he had gone on the offensive more he would have stopped Adamek. If I were Tomaz I would get out of the HW division quick.

I was quoting CBS sportsline.com.

[don1234]

Polish heavyweight contender Tomasz Adamek won a hard fought 12 round decision over former world title challenger Michael Grant at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey on Saturday night.

Adamak,42-1-(27), made a positive start to the biggest fight of his heavyweight career so far by landing some solid clean shots in the opener and controlled the first half of the fight but Grant, 46-4-(34), edged his way back into the fight in the sixth round by shaking up Adamek with a sustained barrage of punches. Adamak also sustained a cut over the right eye.

Encouraged by the previous round’s success, the 6ft 7 Grant upped the pace in round seven in the hope of connecting with another big punch and he did rattle Adamek a few times, expecially in round nine but the gutsy Polish former two weight world champ came back strongly and boxed his way out of trouble.

Grant marched forward for one last time in the 12th round knowing he needed a knockout to win. He very nearly got it as well, hurting Adamek in the final stages but the tough Polish battler hung on to claim a unanimous points win.

(from Max Boxing)

If this coverage is accurate, Adamek suffers the same fate as many too small heavyweights without a compensatory heavy punch. All real heavies will remain a threat, regardless of the skill discrepancies. His matchmaking will be crucial (risk/reward).