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SteckmetX
  • 6/3/2025
Transcript
00:00:00Ornelas faces Sam Solomon in an intriguing 10 round middleweight fight.
00:00:05Also that night a battle of unbeaten heavyweights with 2003 Golden Gloves champion Travis Freight Trainwalker against 2004 U.S. Olympian Jason Big Six Estrada.
00:00:16Then Friday December 1st we bring you another battle of unbeatens featherweight Mario Santiago versus Rasheem Jefferson.
00:00:23Showtime Championship Boxing returns to America's Fight Night on Saturday December 2nd at 9 p.m. Eastern and Pacific with a welterweight showcase.
00:00:34Miguel Cotto battles Carlos Quintana for the vacant WBA welterweight championship.
00:00:39And Antonio Margarito defends his WBO crowd against Joshua Clotty.
00:00:44We are really looking forward to next month which will feature a pair of dynamic fighters in separate bouts.
00:00:54That's December 2nd from the boardwalk in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
00:00:57Miguel Cotto and Antonio Margarito.
00:01:00They'll co-headline our world championship doubleheader.
00:01:02And Al, that is indeed a terrific showcase of a couple of well-awaited stars.
00:01:06Really looking forward to it.
00:01:08Two fighters who have exciting take-no-prisoners kind of style, both Margarito and Cotto.
00:01:13And Cotto and Carlos Quintana, that fight getting a lot of buzz because Carlos Quintana is an undefeated young fighter who many believe is going to be very difficult for Cotto.
00:01:23Who, while he is great offensive firepower, as we well know, has some defensive liabilities.
00:01:28And a quick word about that Showbox show.
00:01:30That's going to be a lot of fun.
00:01:32Two really good fighters there.
00:01:33And Sam Solomon has been in with the best middleweights in the world.
00:01:36And he's facing young undefeated middleweight.
00:01:38It should be a fun one.
00:01:39All right, Al.
00:01:39So that's the boxing coming up on Showtime in the months ahead.
00:01:42Up next, our main event, Lachovitz vs. Briggs for the WBO heavyweight title.
00:01:48But first, here's a word about some of the original series here on Showtime.
00:01:54The critics say Dexter is killer.
00:01:57This is unique.
00:01:58It's the best new series on cable or network.
00:02:01Open your eyes and look at what you did.
00:02:04Four stars.
00:02:05It's impossible to resist.
00:02:07Thanks.
00:02:09You have a morbid sense of fun.
00:02:10That's probably true.
00:02:11A classic in the making.
00:02:14I'm a lucky guy.
00:02:16See you at the next bloodbath.
00:02:17Never miss a party.
00:02:18Dexter.
00:02:19Tomorrow at 10 p.m.
00:02:20With replays throughout the week.
00:02:22When the next attack happens, where will you be?
00:02:48Sleeper Cell, American Terror, premiering Sunday, December 10th, only on Showtime.
00:02:53It's boxing under the stars on a beautiful, very comfortable night here at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona.
00:03:03The temperature in the high 70s.
00:03:05The crowd settling in for the first heavyweight championship fight in the history of this city.
00:03:09And sparks are expected in our main event as Sergei Lehovich will defend his WBO heavyweight crown against the dangerous Shannon Briggs.
00:03:17And, yes, tensions are high as there is mutual disdain.
00:03:21Earlier tonight, our Jim Gray spoke with the challenger.
00:03:24Steve, thank you.
00:03:26Back here with Shannon Briggs.
00:03:28Shannon, do you consider this to some degree your last hurrah?
00:03:31Not at all.
00:03:32I mean, you know, I've been around a long time, but I'm a lot younger than people who assume me to be.
00:03:36I'm 34.
00:03:37They got me, like, listed as 44, basically, in people's mind.
00:03:40But, no, I mean, I'm here for tonight.
00:03:42I'm not even thinking about tomorrow.
00:03:44How many times in the past did you think you'd get an opportunity like this again after you lost to Lewis?
00:03:50I knew I'd get a chance because I knew, you know, all I had to do was stay busy and fight my way back to the top.
00:03:54It was a hard road back, but I did it.
00:03:56I'm here.
00:03:57In your mind, how would you assess your career?
00:04:00Many have thought that maybe you've been an underachiever.
00:04:03Overachiever.
00:04:04I'm this guy who, you know, sick all my life.
00:04:07You know, I basically didn't go to school because I had asthma.
00:04:10And, you know, where I came from, it was rough.
00:04:13And, listen, I'm way out of the ghetto.
00:04:15I'm way out of the hood.
00:04:16I'm feeling good about that.
00:04:17And I'm doing good for myself.
00:04:18I got a great family, two beautiful children.
00:04:20I'm doing great.
00:04:21Shannon, how much hope does it give you when you see a guy like Miscaev win a championship at 37?
00:04:26And when he can capture it, do you think in your mind, hey, it's out there for me?
00:04:30Well, 37 is old, man.
00:04:31I mean, young.
00:04:32I'm sorry.
00:04:3337 is young.
00:04:33I mean, I always felt like, you know, look, when I beat George Foreman, I became heavyweight champion in the world.
00:04:38People don't like to give me the credit for it, but I did.
00:04:40I lost a linear championship to Lennox.
00:04:42And I knew one day I'd be champion again, and it's going to be tonight.
00:04:45Shannon, let's take a look at the press conference and the weigh-in that occurred on Wednesday.
00:04:49It got pretty agitated between you and Sergey.
00:04:52Tell us just exactly what was happening here because there was an exchange of words.
00:04:56And as this tape continues to roll on, he's going to point at you, and you're going to have a reaction.
00:05:00So what exactly was the problem here?
00:05:02You know, I was trying to get under his skin.
00:05:04Basically, I got under his skin from day one because I realized that he was a guy who gets frustrated.
00:05:08But I watched his fights earlier on in his career.
00:05:10He's a guy who's not mentally strong, so I wanted to get under his skin and make him do something stupid.
00:05:14And I think I did a great job at that.
00:05:16In the process, were you too disrespectful?
00:05:18I don't think so.
00:05:19Not at all.
00:05:19I mean, I'm never disrespectful.
00:05:21I mean, this is boxing.
00:05:22This is the fight sport.
00:05:23But you can't cross the line, but I don't think I did it all.
00:05:25All right.
00:05:26Let's take a listen.
00:05:26You don't think that was a bit over the edge there, huh?
00:05:45Well, that was a little harsh.
00:05:47But at the same time, you know, that was heat of the moment.
00:05:49I don't even remember that.
00:05:50Basically, I'm spazzed out.
00:05:52But, hey, listen, it happens, man.
00:05:54I'm here for a championship.
00:05:55He has something I want, and I'm taking it.
00:05:58It was a family program up until then.
00:05:59Shannon, good evening.
00:06:00Good luck to you this evening.
00:06:01Thank you, sir.
00:06:02All right.
00:06:02Let's go back out to you, Steve.
00:06:05All right.
00:06:05Thanks to Jim Gray earlier tonight with Shannon Briggs.
00:06:08He can always count on Briggs to talk boldly, and he's acted boldly at the press conferences leading up to tonight.
00:06:14Will it spill over when the bell sounds?
00:06:17Sergei Lehovich does his fighting in the ring, not at press conferences.
00:06:21He's surprised a lot of folks by outlasting the big-punching layman Brewster.
00:06:25But Lehovich's success hasn't surprised the fighter himself.
00:06:29The confident champion has turned his dreams into reality.
00:06:32It's when I start doing my amateur career.
00:06:37I told to myself, someday I will become world champion.
00:06:43So, dream come true.
00:06:47Dreams.
00:06:47They inspire fighters during the long, lonely hours in the gym and sustain them through the harsh punishments of the ring.
00:06:56For Sergei Lehovich, the dreams of being a world champion began long ago in an industrial city in the former Soviet Union.
00:07:04I came from Belarus, and I have a working family.
00:07:10It's my father, construction worker, and my mother, she's worked.
00:07:16And I was 12, and my father told me, how about you try boxing?
00:07:21Okay.
00:07:22So, I tried.
00:07:23I like it.
00:07:25In pursuit of his dream, he excelled in the amateur ranks.
00:07:30I was in the Olympic team in 1996.
00:07:33I represent Belarus.
00:07:35I won bronze medal in World Championships in 1997 in Budapest.
00:07:41Despite his fame, Lehovich could not forge a pro career in Belarus.
00:07:46So, he left the only life he knew to migrate to Phoenix, Arizona.
00:07:51I miss a lot my family.
00:07:54My sister, my father, my mother, and all my family.
00:07:57But in the Valley of the Sun, far from his native Belarus, he met and married Irina, a Russian-born woman.
00:08:05She has provided love, support, and a link to the world he left behind.
00:08:10It's like starting from zero.
00:08:13You really have to make new friends, new places.
00:08:18I mean, it's really all different.
00:08:19And the culture is different.
00:08:22Relationships, people around you.
00:08:24Everything is different.
00:08:26And that's one of the sacrifices you do.
00:08:28You have to know your goal, and you have to do whatever it takes to reach it.
00:08:35As his personal life flourished, so did his professional career, as he rose through the heavyweight ranks.
00:08:42Earlier this year, Lehovich met WBO champion Lehman Brewster in what could be the heavyweight fight of the year.
00:08:49What a slumpfist, furious pace for Pittman, non-stop action.
00:08:56In the seventh round, Lehovich was hurt, and his dreams of a championship were in jeopardy.
00:09:02Some guy inside you tells you this.
00:09:07So when you see this, one guy, bad guy, and one good guy.
00:09:11And bad guy said to you, man, just, you need to stop.
00:09:15Don't do this no more.
00:09:16And another guy, you know, is a good guy who said, you need to do a little bit more.
00:09:20So I pushed myself.
00:09:21And push himself, he did.
00:09:24Lehovich with a breakthrough.
00:09:26Big action here for Lehovich.
00:09:28At the end of the 12th round, the fight went to the cards.
00:09:32Winner and new WBO heavyweight champion of the world.
00:09:37This is just great feelings.
00:09:39Great feelings.
00:09:40By Kovic.
00:09:43It's hard to explain these feelings.
00:09:45It's great.
00:09:46I realize it's my dream come true.
00:09:49By defeating Lehman Brewster in one of the year's best fights,
00:09:55Sergei Lehovich introduced himself with an exclamation point.
00:09:58Now he's looking to establish consistency and build to a multi-million dollar unification fight.
00:10:03Al, ring-wise, just how formidable are Lehovich's skills?
00:10:07Being mindful that Briggs has had problems with technically savvy guys.
00:10:11I think you can make the case that Lehovich is the most skilled in terms of fundamentals
00:10:15of any of the four heavyweight champions, that's for sure.
00:10:18But Lehovich does have a few unconventional things that make him kind of a hybrid of a standard Eastern European fighter
00:10:24and the more freewheeling American type style that we see.
00:10:28Did I say freewheeling?
00:10:29Well, Shannon Briggs is that for sure.
00:10:32He's in a seek and destroy mode these days that has produced 11 straight wins by stoppages.
00:10:37But tonight there are some technique issues he needs to consider.
00:10:40One of those issues is keeping his hands up, especially his left.
00:10:49He can eat right hands.
00:10:50Briggs says he has the stamina to win a decision.
00:10:53I'm not sure.
00:10:54I think he needs to go for a KO.
00:10:56Lehovich loves to lead with a right to the body and you have to counter that punch with a left hook.
00:11:01And Briggs can throw that punch.
00:11:04When Joseph Akin was short with this right hand, Briggs would counter beautifully with his own left hook.
00:11:14And this created a knockdown.
00:11:16Even if he doesn't hurt Lehovich doing this, he has to counter to take away the right to the body.
00:11:21When tall heavyweights use their stand-up style against Briggs, it works.
00:11:27Leaning in is a bad idea.
00:11:30Lehovich took early risks against Lehman Brewster.
00:11:32That was a mistake it would be tonight as well.
00:11:35Briggs' Achilles heel is standing straight with his hands down.
00:11:39Lehovich can land the right hand.
00:11:43Lehovich did a masterful job of using the jab against Lehman Brewster.
00:11:47And it set up the right hand.
00:11:51He needs to use this often against Briggs.
00:11:53And it may lead to this finishing left hook.
00:11:57Lehovich showing that he is a polished and schooled boxer.
00:12:11So we close in on what the locals are calling Arizona's biggest sports spectacle
00:12:16so since Game 7 of the 2001 World Series on these same grounds
00:12:21and on the same calendar day, November the 4th.
00:12:24The engaging Shannon Briggs with his trademark gold dreadlocks and beard
00:12:32coming into Marvin Gaye's Let's Get It On.
00:12:36Briggs, another one of those compelling stories.
00:12:39Born premature at three pounds, a sickly child,
00:12:43hard to believe looking at the man today.
00:12:45From the tough Brownsville section of Brooklyn.
00:12:47As a kid, he and his mom would wander the streets homeless,
00:12:51sleeping on trains and shelters.
00:12:53His mom died of a drug overdose.
00:12:55His stepdad died in prison.
00:12:57A boxing career, promise, expectations, missed opportunities,
00:13:01excuses seem destined for greatness,
00:13:03but distractions, inconsistency, nasty splits with trainers chasing
00:13:08an acting career, reducing Briggs to a perennial contender.
00:13:12Al, it took Shannon Briggs eight years to get back here on the world title stage
00:13:17and if he doesn't do it tonight, the consensus is he'll never get another chance.
00:13:21Well, you know, with all that drama you said acted out, it's amazing.
00:13:25He pointed out he's 34.
00:13:26Most people think he's 40.
00:13:28He makes the point that most heavyweight contenders these days
00:13:31are at least that age or older.
00:13:34And so with his power, he walks in here with the same chance
00:13:37that some others who have gotten the job done have.
00:13:39And he walks in with some very interesting specs.
00:13:44Yeah, he does.
00:13:45In the past, Briggs has had issues with stamina, weight, training habits.
00:13:50He claims he's fixed.
00:13:52He's fixed it all.
00:13:53That he's sparred 110 rounds and we'll soon see if it all pays off
00:13:58in a fight that could change the life of Shannon Briggs.
00:14:14In sharp contrast to the gregarious, outspoken challenger,
00:14:18the reserve understated champion, Sergei Lehovich.
00:14:33Getting some nice reaction from the crowd.
00:14:36He resides in nearby Scottsdale, Arizona the past seven years.
00:14:40We were wondering, coming in, about the hometown advantage.
00:14:44The boxing community certainly took notice of his thrilling upset
00:14:47of layman Brewster to lift the title.
00:14:49But we wondered if it would resonate with the fans,
00:14:52even the ones right here in his own backyard.
00:14:54They salute him as he makes his way in.
00:14:56Tough to anoint a guy based on one fight, Al.
00:14:59And tonight the pressure is on, Lehovich, to prove he's more than a one-hit wonder.
00:15:02Well, you know what?
00:15:03He comes in here, though, off a performance against layman Brewster
00:15:07that I think was very, very special.
00:15:09And he served notice that he has the kind of skills and resolve
00:15:13that could very well make him a major player for years in the heavyweight division.
00:15:18The last time Sergei Lehovich was in the ring,
00:15:20he was in what many consider the fight of the year.
00:15:24The big question now, how does he follow it up tonight?
00:15:28His lovely wife, Irina, we saw earlier in the feature,
00:15:36so supportive of Sergei.
00:15:41She's been here about 13 years.
00:15:42She was a journalist back in the Ukraine
00:15:44and became an interior designer here in the United States.
00:15:47And here is where she met Sergei.
00:15:50A delightful lady who's a very important force,
00:15:53not only in his life, but in his career as well.
00:15:55So they're a team, Sergei and Irina Lehovich.
00:16:01Let's size him up now as we go to the tail of the tape.
00:16:04Briggs turns 35 in exactly a month,
00:16:08nearly five years older than Lehovich.
00:16:11Big heavyweight, both stands 6'4
00:16:13and a 30-pound difference at 268.
00:16:16Briggs actually down from his career heaviest, 273 his last fight.
00:16:20And Briggs with a whopping 80-inch reach has a five-and-a-half-inch advantage there.
00:16:26And the key unified rules for this world title affair.
00:16:29There's no standing eight count, no three knockdown rule.
00:16:31A fighter cannot be saved by the bell in any round.
00:16:35If an accidental headbutt causes a fight to end within four rounds,
00:16:38it's a no decision.
00:16:39After four rounds, they go to the scorecards.
00:16:41And if a punch causes a cut and the injured fighter can't continue,
00:16:45he loses by T.K.O.
00:16:52So here at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona,
00:16:55getting ready for our main event,
00:16:56Sergei Lehovich versus Shannon Briggs
00:16:58for the WBO Heavyweight Championship.
00:17:01Let's get the official introductions from our ring announcer,
00:17:04the classy Jimmy Lennon Jr.
00:17:05Ladies and gentlemen,
00:17:17we welcome you to Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona
00:17:21for the featured bout of the evening
00:17:23brought to you by Don King Productions
00:17:27in association with Nemeroff and Showtime.
00:17:31This bout coming away is sanctioned by the World Boxing Organization,
00:17:34the president, Francisco Valcarcel,
00:17:37supervisor, John Duggan,
00:17:39along with the Arizona State Boxing Commission,
00:17:41the chairwoman, Mary Rose Wilcox,
00:17:43commissioners, Richard Saunders and Lionel Ruiz.
00:17:47The director of boxing is John Montagno.
00:17:50Introducing our physicians at ringside,
00:17:52Dr. Charles Howard, Dr. Andrea Herbert,
00:17:55and Dr. Robin McDougall,
00:17:57timekeepers at the bell,
00:17:58also keeping count of the knockdowns,
00:18:00Martin Dominguez and Bill Buck.
00:18:02Introducing at this time our three judges
00:18:05scoring this bout from ringside,
00:18:07from St. Paul, Minnesota,
00:18:09Dennis Nelson,
00:18:10from San Juan, Puerto Rico,
00:18:12Jose Rivera,
00:18:14and from Phoenix, Arizona,
00:18:16Chris Wilson.
00:18:19Introducing our referee in charge,
00:18:20the third man to the ring,
00:18:22from Tucson, Arizona,
00:18:24Bobby Ferrara.
00:18:26All right, fans,
00:18:30here we go with our main event of the evening,
00:18:3312 rounds of boxing
00:18:34for the WBO Heavyweight Championship of the World.
00:18:39And now, ladies and gentlemen in attendance
00:18:41and boxing fans joining us around the world,
00:18:46live from Phoenix, Arizona,
00:18:49it's showtime!
00:18:59Introducing to you first on my left,
00:19:02the challenger,
00:19:03fighting out of the blue corner,
00:19:05wearing black trunks with silver trim,
00:19:08he is fighting out of
00:19:09and representing his hometown
00:19:10of Brooklyn, New York.
00:19:13He weighed in at 268 pounds,
00:19:17undefeated in the past three and a half years
00:19:19with 11 consecutive knockout victories.
00:19:22His overall record stands at 47 wins,
00:19:25four losses,
00:19:26and one draw,
00:19:27with 41 wins coming by way of knockout.
00:19:31Tonight, making a second attempt at a world title,
00:19:34please welcome the challenger
00:19:35and WBO number three ranked heavyweight contender,
00:19:39introducing the hard-hitting Shannon.
00:19:43The Cannon Briggs!
00:19:51And his opponent across the ring,
00:19:53the defending world champion,
00:19:55up by right,
00:19:56fighting out of the red corner,
00:19:58wearing dark green trunks with red trim,
00:20:01fighting out of Scottsdale, Arizona,
00:20:04by way of Vitebsk, Belarus.
00:20:07He weighed in at 238 pounds,
00:20:10with a record of 23 wins,
00:20:12and one loss.
00:20:14He has 14 wins coming by way of knockout.
00:20:18Tonight, ladies and gentlemen,
00:20:19he is making the first defense of his title.
00:20:21Here is the current WBO heavyweight champion
00:20:26of the world known as the White Wolf.
00:20:29Introducing Sergei Lachovic!
00:20:35Once again, a referee in charge,
00:20:42Bombay Ferrara, now to give instructions.
00:20:44Sergei, Shannon,
00:20:47we went over the rules in the dressing room.
00:20:49You know what I expect from you?
00:20:51A good, clean fight.
00:20:53Protect yourselves at all times.
00:20:56Trunks are good here.
00:20:57Anything here or lower,
00:20:58it's going to be low blow.
00:20:59Same thing here.
00:21:00Trunks are in good shape.
00:21:01Shake hands.
00:21:02Good luck to you.
00:21:02Good luck to you.
00:21:12The prevailing opinion,
00:21:13if Briggs wins by wins,
00:21:15it'll be by early knockout.
00:21:17Lachovic can win by KO or decision,
00:21:20but it would be a stretch for Briggs
00:21:21to win on points.
00:21:23Big tall Sergei Lachovic,
00:21:25the challenger.
00:21:27Looks like he's right at his central casting.
00:21:28The massive, physically imposing
00:21:30Shannon Briggs.
00:21:32History would dictate
00:21:33he'd be most dangerous at the outset
00:21:35with 27 of his 41 KOs in the first.
00:21:39But despite all of the pre-fight bravado,
00:21:43Briggs said,
00:21:43don't be surprised if I start out boxing.
00:21:46He does have a very good jab.
00:21:48It may not lead to an early knockout,
00:21:50but it could put Briggs in a position
00:21:51for a knockout.
00:21:56Lachovic, big, tall.
00:21:58He doesn't do one thing super great,
00:22:01but he does a lot of things really well.
00:22:04Typically not a fast starter,
00:22:05but he says he's ready for anything.
00:22:07And the crowd already growing anxious
00:22:0930 seconds in.
00:22:11Well, he's a very consistent fighter, Lachovic.
00:22:13You know, one big issue I put in my keys,
00:22:16I thought he should fight tall.
00:22:17He's the jab and a straight right hand.
00:22:19He told us, though, at the fighter meeting,
00:22:21he thinks he'd like to get low
00:22:23and get inside against Briggs.
00:22:24We'll see which plan works,
00:22:26his or the one I laid out,
00:22:28and whether he really does use that plan.
00:22:31A lot of posing here at the outset.
00:22:33Big concern for Briggs.
00:22:34Is his weight, the longer this fight goes,
00:22:36his conditioning, timing, and hand speed
00:22:39both being extremely cautious here
00:22:41in the opening minute.
00:22:45Briggs has tried everything
00:22:47to lure Lachovic into a street fight,
00:22:49and now he finally goes on the attack.
00:22:51Briggs, winging with rights,
00:22:53left hooks to the body.
00:22:55And Lachovic steps back,
00:22:57and a couple of good left hooks to the head
00:22:59by Briggs, then follows it up
00:23:00with two right hands to the midsection.
00:23:02Briggs, turning it up.
00:23:04A big right hand to the head by Briggs,
00:23:07looking to end it here.
00:23:11Left-right combination to the head by Briggs.
00:23:13He's got Lachovic trapped on the ropes in the corner,
00:23:16and this is the absolute worst place
00:23:19Lachovic wants to be.
00:23:21Early in this fight,
00:23:22you see how Lachovic starts
00:23:23with the right hand to the body
00:23:24all through the last fight against Brewster.
00:23:26Brewster could not counter that right to the body.
00:23:29Briggs just did, and it hurt Lachovic.
00:23:32I said it in the keys,
00:23:33it's important to do when you fight Lachovic,
00:23:35and Briggs did it perfectly,
00:23:36and it created a big advantage here in round one for him.
00:23:39Good tactical move by Briggs.
00:23:41Very good start
00:23:42for Brooklyn's Shannon Briggs.
00:23:47And now things settle down
00:23:49after that early barrage
00:23:52by the challenger.
00:23:56All right, let's break.
00:23:57Lachovic isn't a big KO puncher,
00:23:59but normally busier than Briggs
00:24:02has a more varied arsenal than Briggs.
00:24:05But so far, he's been very, very quiet.
00:24:09Now, we saw, though,
00:24:10how Lachovic can get past adversity,
00:24:12and Shannon Briggs,
00:24:13a little careful in how he attacked Lachovic
00:24:16as he got him in some trouble.
00:24:18He did it intelligently.
00:24:22Got that left hand down real low,
00:24:24does Briggs.
00:24:24Well, now Sergei Lachovic knows Briggs has power,
00:24:27that's for sure,
00:24:28but he felt Brewster's power as well.
00:24:31Do you think Briggs has
00:24:33as much power or more power than Brewster?
00:24:36Where do you rate those two?
00:24:37You know, I would have rated Brewster
00:24:39a little bit above him,
00:24:40but who knows?
00:24:40Maybe I'm wrong.
00:24:53Where is my...
00:24:55First thing you've done
00:25:00was took yourself to the ropes.
00:25:02Yes, right.
00:25:02Listen to me.
00:25:04I know he's strong, right?
00:25:06He's not fine, no.
00:25:07Okay, listen to him.
00:25:09When you hit them corners,
00:25:10you get your feet moving
00:25:11and get out of there.
00:25:12Okay.
00:25:12Don't get in there,
00:25:13drop your hands,
00:25:14and try to be like him.
00:25:16Okay.
00:25:17You ain't him.
00:25:18Okay.
00:25:19Lachovic will throw the right to the body
00:25:21and gets countered with the left hook by Briggs.
00:25:23It's what you need to do against Lachovic,
00:25:25and it is one of the chinks in Lachovic's armor.
00:25:30Another look.
00:25:31The right goes below,
00:25:32and there's Briggs countering with the left.
00:25:34It was an instinctive move by Shannon Briggs,
00:25:37and it hurt Sergei Lachovic.
00:25:42If Lachovic trades with Briggs,
00:25:44as he did with Brewster,
00:25:46he could be inviting big trouble
00:25:47as they finally get that mouthpiece.
00:25:49I'm not going to put up with this again.
00:25:49You guys cleared this corner.
00:25:51Into Briggs,
00:25:52and you hear Bobby Ferreira
00:25:53not going to put up with this anymore.
00:25:55Boy, it's taken forever.
00:25:58About 15 seconds extra there
00:25:59to get that mouthpiece into Briggs' mouth.
00:26:02And you heard the lecture by Kenny Weldon
00:26:07in the corner of Lachovic.
00:26:09He said, first thing it did
00:26:10was put yourself on the ropes.
00:26:11That's the first place.
00:26:13He says, you're not Shannon Briggs.
00:26:16The Lachovic jab,
00:26:17which was such an important weapon
00:26:18against Lehman Brewster,
00:26:20there it is,
00:26:20has not been that evident.
00:26:22And remember,
00:26:23these early rounds for Lachovic,
00:26:25what did I say in the keys?
00:26:26Don't take early risks.
00:26:28His mission is to get this
00:26:29into the seventh round,
00:26:30the sixth round,
00:26:31where presumably,
00:26:33based upon previous experience,
00:26:36Shannon Briggs has not been as effective.
00:26:38There's the jab.
00:26:42Shannon Briggs fights in spurts,
00:26:44and that's just the way he does it.
00:26:47The way he's always done it,
00:26:48he does it even more now.
00:26:52We know also Lachovic is very tough
00:26:54and can take a punch.
00:26:56He's got a lot of heart.
00:26:57He's a good counter puncher,
00:26:59but he's got to be extra careful
00:27:00against the power of Shannon Briggs,
00:27:03who's being very deliberate right here.
00:27:04Watch that back punch.
00:27:06There's that lead right to the body again
00:27:07by Lachovic.
00:27:08He's courting trouble
00:27:09when he throws that punch
00:27:10because now Briggs knows
00:27:11he can counter it,
00:27:12and he'll keep trying.
00:27:14And Lachovic probably feels
00:27:15he can drop Briggs
00:27:17because Briggs does have
00:27:18a suspect chin
00:27:20and suspect heart.
00:27:23But once again,
00:27:24it would be a mistake
00:27:25to trade with Briggs.
00:27:30Very slow pace now.
00:27:34Lachovic doing most of what's been done
00:27:37in this round,
00:27:37using the jab and the double jab,
00:27:39and you would think
00:27:40the right hand would follow shortly.
00:27:42And there's the left hook upstairs
00:27:43by Lachovic.
00:27:45Briggs shakes his head
00:27:46as if to say,
00:27:48had no effect on me.
00:27:49And you'll notice Lachovic
00:27:50carrying his left hand very low.
00:27:52That's a bad American trait.
00:27:54He's learned.
00:27:55Yeah, and he's inviting
00:27:57an overhand right,
00:27:59a big right hand by Briggs
00:28:00if he's not careful.
00:28:01Shannon Briggs
00:28:02already, though,
00:28:04slowed his pace
00:28:04so dramatically there.
00:28:06And you hear the crowd reaction.
00:28:09But Lachovic,
00:28:11you know,
00:28:11rightfully concerned
00:28:12about over committing
00:28:14and getting countered again.
00:28:15He was hurt
00:28:15when he got countered
00:28:17by Briggs.
00:28:18But he should be using
00:28:19the jab, Lachovic.
00:28:20That's been a very effective...
00:28:21There it is.
00:28:22He heard you.
00:28:23Did it on cue.
00:28:24Fans trying to get behind
00:28:25Lachovic
00:28:26by chanting his name.
00:28:27Now, mind you,
00:28:32this round is going
00:28:33almost exactly the way
00:28:34Lachovic would like it
00:28:35to go in these early rounds.
00:28:35He's winning the round
00:28:36and not having to do much
00:28:38and Briggs is not punching.
00:28:39So, might not be exciting,
00:28:41but for Lachovic,
00:28:41this works.
00:28:42Our main event here tonight
00:28:58comes from Chase Field
00:29:00in Phoenix, Arizona.
00:29:02Lachovic versus Briggs
00:29:03off to a slow start.
00:29:11He's coming back.
00:29:12Now, he's starting to drop
00:29:14that left hand early
00:29:15and we were doting on that.
00:29:17Which one is that?
00:29:18He's dropping that left hand
00:29:19down here.
00:29:20So, when he's pulling out
00:29:21and coming in,
00:29:22he's opening with
00:29:22straight right hands.
00:29:24I'm trying to time him
00:29:24coming in,
00:29:25but I'm waiting too much.
00:29:25You're waiting too much.
00:29:26Yeah, you're waiting too much
00:29:28and you're making two moves.
00:29:30If you're going to counterpunch,
00:29:31make one move
00:29:32and shoot quick.
00:29:33Okay.
00:29:33But try to time him
00:29:34coming in.
00:29:35Let's pick it up now.
00:29:36Behind the jab.
00:29:37You're starting to come on.
00:29:39Just relax.
00:29:39Let's go.
00:29:40Let's go.
00:29:41Let's go.
00:29:41Let's go.
00:29:42Let's go, guys.
00:29:42Hey, come on.
00:29:43Come on.
00:29:43Come on.
00:29:44Come on.
00:29:44We got to go, guys.
00:29:45Well, they finally got
00:29:45the mouthpiece in this time.
00:29:47Chuck McGregor,
00:29:48former Lehovich trainer,
00:29:49a longtime resident
00:29:51of the Phoenix area
00:29:53and a very close friend
00:29:55of Lehovich's trainer,
00:29:56Kenny Weldon.
00:29:57So,
00:29:58Greg's looking for every edge,
00:29:59bringing in his,
00:30:00Lehovich's former trainer
00:30:02to try to get inside
00:30:03Lehovich's head.
00:30:04And Lehovich says,
00:30:06hey, I'm a totally
00:30:07different guy today
00:30:08and it will not
00:30:09give you an advantage.
00:30:13Briggs trying to start
00:30:14a little faster.
00:30:16It was interesting
00:30:16Shannon Briggs understood
00:30:17what he,
00:30:17that he waited too long
00:30:19in that last round
00:30:20and didn't really
00:30:20get going.
00:30:21You know,
00:30:22the 110 rounds of sparring
00:30:23you talked about
00:30:24when he fought
00:30:24Jameel McClein in 2002,
00:30:26lost the decision.
00:30:27He said he only sparred
00:30:2817 rounds.
00:30:29Part of it because
00:30:30there just isn't money
00:30:31to pay sparring partners
00:30:32unless you get on
00:30:33this world stage
00:30:34and sometimes
00:30:35they're not available.
00:30:37We'll see if it has
00:30:38an impact and helps him.
00:30:42Lehovich has been made
00:30:44very timid
00:30:45by that initial left hook
00:30:46that hurt him.
00:30:48He's thinking to himself,
00:30:49I don't want to overcommit.
00:30:50I want to make sure
00:30:51that I make my punches count.
00:30:57Has there been a punch
00:30:58thrown in this round?
00:31:00You know,
00:31:01only a couple.
00:31:02There's a few jabs.
00:31:05Oh,
00:31:05big body shot there
00:31:06by Lehovich.
00:31:07Maybe that'll start something.
00:31:09And they don't want him
00:31:10on the ropes,
00:31:11Lehovich,
00:31:11as Shannon Briggs
00:31:12comes forward.
00:31:14And I'm surprised
00:31:14Briggs didn't continue
00:31:15to come forward.
00:31:16He had him on the ropes
00:31:17and backed off
00:31:18for some reason.
00:31:20You know,
00:31:20Shannon Briggs is a guy
00:31:21who talks a lot
00:31:22about activity in the ring,
00:31:24but for the most part,
00:31:25as we said,
00:31:26he fights in spurts,
00:31:27he doesn't look
00:31:28to sustain a lot
00:31:30of activity in the ring.
00:31:31Well,
00:31:31he obviously is just
00:31:32looking for that
00:31:33one big punch.
00:31:35Which he almost had
00:31:36in round one.
00:31:40But he also knows
00:31:41that Lehovich
00:31:42has a very good chin.
00:31:44It's very tough
00:31:45to get him down.
00:31:46And honestly,
00:31:51I would have thought
00:31:52we would have a quicker
00:31:53pace early in this fight.
00:31:54Even though I suggested
00:31:55Lehovich doesn't want
00:31:56to take risks
00:31:57early in this fight,
00:31:58I still would have thought
00:31:59he would be a little bit
00:32:00more active,
00:32:01but that was slowed
00:32:02by that first round
00:32:03that Briggs had.
00:32:03Lehovich inviting Briggs
00:32:05in just now.
00:32:06You see him wink at him
00:32:07and usher him in.
00:32:08He said,
00:32:09all right,
00:32:09come on in.
00:32:09I can take it.
00:32:10But this is one punch
00:32:12at a time.
00:32:13Each guy.
00:32:15No sustained action.
00:32:17No combinations.
00:32:18They are not letting
00:32:19their hands go
00:32:20whatsoever.
00:32:21And certainly
00:32:22from Lehovich,
00:32:23we saw much more
00:32:25combination punching
00:32:26and activity
00:32:28in the Brewster fight.
00:32:29This,
00:32:29a round that,
00:32:31you know,
00:32:31it's hard to score
00:32:32except most of the action
00:32:33has been from Lehovich.
00:32:34Lehovich with a left hook
00:32:36upstairs.
00:32:37Again,
00:32:38Briggs just waves it off.
00:32:40Now Lehovich has a better
00:32:48left hook than people think
00:32:49and he's landing it
00:32:50against Briggs now.
00:33:04Keep dropping it like that,
00:33:06he's going to start jumping
00:33:06on you in a minute
00:33:07with right hands.
00:33:08And you know what?
00:33:09He don't have to hit
00:33:10you on the head.
00:33:11He can hit you
00:33:11on the shoulder
00:33:12or something, you know.
00:33:13You hit them corners
00:33:15moving.
00:33:16When you're near the ropes,
00:33:17you get your left hand up.
00:33:19Now,
00:33:20offensively,
00:33:21double up your jab.
00:33:23Double up your jab.
00:33:24And when he goes back
00:33:25like that,
00:33:25keep going.
00:33:26Keep stepping up.
00:33:28And you ain't through it.
00:33:28Great advice
00:33:29by Kenny Weldon.
00:33:30And look how it works.
00:33:32Seeing it pushes
00:33:32Shannon Briggs back.
00:33:34And what he wants
00:33:34is for Lehovich
00:33:35to take one more step in
00:33:36and see if the right hand
00:33:37will get there.
00:33:38And not a right hand
00:33:38to the body.
00:33:39He was just getting ready
00:33:40to throw,
00:33:40but a right to the head.
00:33:42And that is great advice
00:33:43because Briggs
00:33:44can be outboxed.
00:33:47You know,
00:33:48he's got the edge
00:33:48in experience
00:33:49over Lehovich,
00:33:50but he was schooled
00:33:51by George Foreman,
00:33:53even though Briggs
00:33:54won by controversial decision.
00:33:57The combinations
00:33:58of Franz Bode work.
00:34:00That was a draw.
00:34:01And he lost
00:34:02to Jamil McCline,
00:34:03but McCline's
00:34:05boxed well against him.
00:34:07Heavy, heavy,
00:34:08or excuse me,
00:34:09tall heavyweights
00:34:10who use a jab,
00:34:11follow with the right hand,
00:34:13keep their distance,
00:34:14and fight at their own pace
00:34:15are very tough
00:34:17for Shannon Briggs
00:34:17to deal with.
00:34:18We haven't seen enough
00:34:19of that good stiff
00:34:20jackhammer ramrod jab
00:34:23of Shannon Briggs.
00:34:24I don't know
00:34:24what he's waiting for there.
00:34:27Briggs came in at 268.
00:34:29It's much higher
00:34:30than he has before.
00:34:30Look, he looks like
00:34:31an inch shape, 268.
00:34:32Make no mistake about it.
00:34:34He's talked about
00:34:34all the sparring he did,
00:34:36but with all that,
00:34:37he's been very inactive
00:34:38for the most part
00:34:38in this fight,
00:34:39except for round one
00:34:40in which he hurt Lehovich
00:34:41and then did go after him
00:34:43to a point.
00:34:46Briggs spent a couple of...
00:34:47Oh, big right hand
00:34:48missing by Lehovich.
00:34:51And was counted
00:34:51with the left hook
00:34:52by Briggs.
00:34:54I'm not sure
00:34:54that left hook
00:34:55didn't get Lehovich's attention.
00:35:00Lehovich digging
00:35:01to the body now.
00:35:02soft point jab
00:35:13by Shannon Briggs
00:35:15having no effect.
00:35:16couple of right hands
00:35:24by Briggs
00:35:25pushes Lehovich back
00:35:26and again,
00:35:27he's on the ropes
00:35:28which is not where
00:35:29they want him to be.
00:35:31See if he can counterpunch
00:35:32off those ropes.
00:35:33and Kenny Weldon
00:35:34can't be happy with this.
00:35:36Lehovich talking to Briggs
00:35:38trying to lure him in.
00:35:39But he's not throwing anything,
00:35:40Briggs.
00:35:41He's got him where he wants him.
00:35:43Lehovich is just
00:35:44a target,
00:35:46a sitting duck.
00:35:47And Briggs did not
00:35:48take advantage.
00:35:49He let him off the hook.
00:35:51So, yes,
00:35:52Lehovich is trying
00:35:53to draw Briggs in.
00:35:56Another round
00:35:57in which the punch output
00:35:58is very low
00:35:59for both men
00:36:00and it makes it
00:36:01a difficult round
00:36:02to score.
00:36:03Briggs landed
00:36:03a couple of good shots.
00:36:05Lehovich has thrown
00:36:06more punches.
00:36:07You can do
00:36:08the punch count
00:36:08on one hand
00:36:09in this round.
00:36:22And the crowd
00:36:23continues to
00:36:24be very upset.
00:36:30In a million years,
00:36:31I didn't expect
00:36:32this slow a pace
00:36:33in this fight.
00:36:34That's really surprising
00:36:35to me
00:36:35on all levels.
00:36:36Especially coming off
00:36:37the Brewster match.
00:36:39with Lehovich.
00:36:40Briggs starting
00:36:40to open up
00:36:41a little more
00:36:41with the jab.
00:36:42That was two good jabs.
00:36:44But he doesn't
00:36:44follow it up.
00:36:45Combination upstairs,
00:36:46left, right,
00:36:47to the neck area
00:36:48by Lehovich.
00:36:50That's the first
00:36:51combination, really,
00:36:52he's thrown
00:36:52in this fight, Steve.
00:36:53Did he say that?
00:36:54Finally,
00:36:54let his hands go
00:36:55with more than one punch.
00:37:01You don't have,
00:37:02you want him big.
00:37:03I don't even.
00:37:04Listen to me.
00:37:04Keep your legs out.
00:37:06Okay?
00:37:07Stop rolling your hands.
00:37:08Stop rolling your hands.
00:37:11Walk him down.
00:37:12Okay?
00:37:13Listen, walk him down.
00:37:13Stop holding your hands.
00:37:15Put your shoulder up.
00:37:15Walk him down.
00:37:16Sneak that jab in.
00:37:18That one down
00:37:18is killing him.
00:37:19Okay?
00:37:20Keep your hands moving.
00:37:21And what's going to happen?
00:37:22You're going to win
00:37:23this motherfucking thing.
00:37:24I'm going to win it.
00:37:24Okay?
00:37:25So it's your night.
00:37:26You won that round.
00:37:26Take a deep breath.
00:37:27Take a deep breath.
00:37:28Real hard.
00:37:29Right?
00:37:31Lehovich trying to use
00:37:32that jab
00:37:32to push Briggs back.
00:37:33They weren't effective
00:37:34and instead Briggs landed
00:37:36an interesting combination.
00:37:37A double right hand
00:37:39to the body
00:37:41and to the head.
00:37:43And Lehovich at the end
00:37:44of the round
00:37:44throwing those combinations.
00:37:45Landed a couple.
00:37:46They weren't big punches
00:37:47and Briggs quick
00:37:48to give the commentary
00:37:50that it wasn't a big punch.
00:37:51Round five scheduled
00:37:59for 12 WBO Heavyweight Championship.
00:38:02It has been a slow pace
00:38:04for the most part
00:38:05sort of robotic
00:38:07mechanical fight.
00:38:08Not a lot of punches
00:38:09being thrown.
00:38:10Let's see if it opens up
00:38:11some more from here.
00:38:19Very emphatic
00:38:20in Shannon Briggs' corner.
00:38:21of course for him
00:38:22to be more active.
00:38:22That's pretty obvious.
00:38:23And now he is.
00:38:24And he's landed.
00:38:27They're trading left hooks.
00:38:38Lehovich attempting
00:38:38the jab two in a row there
00:38:40overhand straight right
00:38:41by Briggs
00:38:42and just
00:38:43kind of great
00:38:45is Lehovich.
00:38:46You know,
00:38:46Shannon Briggs
00:38:47made the point
00:38:48that Lehovich
00:38:49has a short reach
00:38:50for a big man.
00:38:5074 inches.
00:38:51He has a big edge
00:38:52in reach, Briggs.
00:38:53And honestly,
00:38:54I didn't think
00:38:55that was going to be
00:38:55as big a factor
00:38:56in this fight
00:38:56as Briggs was suggesting.
00:38:58But can I tell you
00:38:58it has been.
00:38:59Good luck took
00:39:00by Lehovich.
00:39:01But I think
00:39:01Lehovich is having
00:39:02a hard time
00:39:02a hard time
00:39:02with
00:39:03the reach issue.
00:39:06Well,
00:39:07after four,
00:39:07majority decision
00:39:08to Briggs.
00:39:11Norm Fraunheim,
00:39:13Arizona Republic,
00:39:14Darren Nichols,
00:39:15BoxingTalk.com,
00:39:17William Stickney Jr.
00:39:17from the Houston Chronicle.
00:39:19I've got a draw
00:39:20two rounds,
00:39:21two,
00:39:2138-38.
00:39:22Now there's
00:39:23the right hand
00:39:23from Lehovich.
00:39:24That punch
00:39:25should be there
00:39:25for him.
00:39:26It has been
00:39:26for every other
00:39:27heavyweight
00:39:27that throws it
00:39:28a lot against Briggs.
00:39:29Falling short there.
00:39:34He's throwing it
00:39:35from too far out.
00:39:36You're absolutely right.
00:39:37Don't you think?
00:39:37And he...
00:39:38You know what?
00:39:39Can't blame him.
00:39:40I mean...
00:39:41Yeah,
00:39:42because he's been
00:39:43countered with
00:39:44that left hook.
00:39:45And again,
00:39:45the reach issue
00:39:46that Briggs
00:39:46talked about
00:39:47may be a factor.
00:39:48So this fight
00:39:49has a few dynamics
00:39:50that are maybe
00:39:51surprising a lot
00:39:52of people,
00:39:52including us.
00:39:53Lehovich should
00:39:54better pull his
00:39:54trunks up as well.
00:39:56Starting to slip down.
00:40:01Well,
00:40:01given the pace
00:40:02this fight
00:40:03is being fought at,
00:40:04it may be
00:40:05favoring Shannon Briggs
00:40:06in terms of
00:40:06how well he can do
00:40:07in the later rounds
00:40:08because he hasn't
00:40:08had to fight
00:40:09at a big pace.
00:40:09Briggs' hands
00:40:10are so low
00:40:10it's ridiculous.
00:40:13Lehovich throwing
00:40:14nothing,
00:40:15worried about
00:40:15being countered.
00:40:16The only thing
00:40:16is that Briggs
00:40:18is doing
00:40:19sort of an
00:40:19anti-strategy
00:40:21thing here.
00:40:21Everybody,
00:40:22of course,
00:40:22thinks he was
00:40:22going to try
00:40:23to take Lehovich
00:40:24out early.
00:40:24He may be around
00:40:28in the later rounds
00:40:29because of this
00:40:30pace,
00:40:31but it's going to be
00:40:33totally non-entertaining.
00:40:34He's not going to win fans.
00:40:36He's just going to
00:40:37try to get the W,
00:40:39but it's going to be
00:40:40at a cost.
00:40:41And Lehovich himself
00:40:43contributing to this.
00:40:44Not very active,
00:40:45although in this round
00:40:46most of the punches
00:40:47thrown by Lehovich.
00:40:48He's landed some
00:40:48left hooks
00:40:49and some jabs,
00:40:50et cetera.
00:40:51So he's throwing
00:40:52more punches than Briggs.
00:40:53Make no mistake
00:40:54about that,
00:40:54but that's damning
00:40:55with faint praise.
00:40:57Crisp left hook
00:40:57there on the inside
00:40:58by Lehovich
00:40:59near the belt.
00:41:03More displeasure
00:41:04from the crowd.
00:41:05The girlfriend
00:41:11of Shannon Briggs,
00:41:13Alana Wilson.
00:41:15All smiles.
00:41:23And there is Arena,
00:41:25the wife
00:41:26of Sergei Lehovich.
00:41:28Very tense.
00:41:29He's breaking down
00:41:43and he's waiting,
00:41:44but you've got to
00:41:45turn up the middle on him.
00:41:51Up the move.
00:41:59So far,
00:42:02not very much
00:42:03to turn the crowd
00:42:04on here.
00:42:05There was just one flurry
00:42:07in the opening round
00:42:08by Shannon Briggs.
00:42:11Lehovich able to
00:42:12escape that barrage,
00:42:15but since that point
00:42:16it has been
00:42:17quite boring.
00:42:18Now the conventional
00:42:19wisdom is that
00:42:20we're headed into rounds
00:42:20in which Lehovich
00:42:21can get some things done
00:42:22and he starts here
00:42:23in round six.
00:42:24Let's see if he picks up
00:42:25the pace
00:42:25and let's see if Briggs
00:42:26can respond.
00:42:27Just now,
00:42:28a good left-right
00:42:28combination
00:42:29upstairs by Lehovich.
00:42:33The jab,
00:42:34a punch that Lehovich
00:42:35has when he uses it
00:42:36is effective.
00:42:37He's letting that
00:42:38left hook in
00:42:38pretty well,
00:42:39but it's more
00:42:39of a roundhouse hook.
00:42:42He's got to be careful
00:42:43because if it's too
00:42:44wide and looping,
00:42:46Briggs can counter
00:42:47with a straight right hand
00:42:48right down the middle
00:42:49and that's what
00:42:49they want to see
00:42:50from Briggs.
00:42:51You can feel Lehovich
00:42:53still picking up
00:42:53the pace a bit
00:42:54and you can feel him
00:42:55zeroing in
00:42:56to land a few more punches.
00:42:59Very hard to walk in
00:43:04and win the heavyweight title
00:43:06as a challenger
00:43:07without throwing many punches.
00:43:08Double left hook there
00:43:09by Shannon Briggs,
00:43:11a rare combination
00:43:12from him.
00:43:13Kenny Weldon
00:43:15asking Lehovich
00:43:16to be more active
00:43:16and he has been.
00:43:17There's that right
00:43:18to the body
00:43:18and immediately
00:43:19Briggs tries to counter
00:43:21with the hook.
00:43:22That was what hurt
00:43:23Lehovich in round one.
00:43:24And that hook was a
00:43:31sensational weapon
00:43:32for Lehman Brewster
00:43:33last April
00:43:34against Lehovich.
00:43:36Yeah, though he never
00:43:37did find a way
00:43:38to really counter
00:43:39off that right
00:43:40to the body
00:43:40as much
00:43:41as he might have.
00:43:41These rounds are difficult.
00:43:49Certainly more action
00:43:50from Lehovich
00:43:50and probably he's winning
00:43:52this round
00:43:52but it's not impressive.
00:43:56Briggs with his left hand
00:43:58down by his hip.
00:44:01He's almost begging Lehovich
00:44:02to try and throw the right
00:44:04thinking he can counter.
00:44:05I think you're right.
00:44:07He's trying to
00:44:08suck him right in.
00:44:12There will be a method
00:44:13to his madness here.
00:44:14You know, surprisingly
00:44:15the one weapon
00:44:16that really has worked
00:44:17for Lehovich
00:44:18has been the hook.
00:44:19And he's been able
00:44:19to get that punch in
00:44:20pretty regularly
00:44:22in this match.
00:44:26It worked well
00:44:27against Brewster as well
00:44:28but Brewster
00:44:29a much smaller
00:44:29kind of squattish fighter
00:44:31where the left hook
00:44:31can get in.
00:44:35The sport that really
00:44:36comes to mind here
00:44:37if this is a sport
00:44:37is chess.
00:44:40You know,
00:44:41left hook again
00:44:42by Lehovich.
00:44:43The pattern that's
00:44:43emerging here is
00:44:44when he can get in
00:44:45position to throw
00:44:46that punch
00:44:47Briggs just can't
00:44:48seem to stop it.
00:44:51And it's the punch
00:44:52that has won this round
00:44:53for him.
00:44:54You get, yeah,
00:44:54it's a, you know,
00:44:56just a pointing jab
00:44:57by Shannon Briggs
00:45:00that has no effect
00:45:01and we've seen
00:45:01a lot better from him
00:45:02than the jab.
00:45:03This is a good jab
00:45:04by Lehovich.
00:45:04He doubled it up
00:45:05just before the pill.
00:45:09I don't know what
00:45:10Briggs was thinking
00:45:11in that round.
00:45:12The roof is open
00:45:13here at Chase Field.
00:45:16Beautiful sight
00:45:18from downtown
00:45:19Phoenix, Arizona.
00:45:23Full moon!
00:45:25Look out, Al.
00:45:28Strange things happen
00:45:29when there's a full moon.
00:45:30Full moon over
00:45:31Phoenix.
00:45:32Just don't get too brave.
00:45:33No, don't worry about it.
00:45:35And look, when you throw
00:45:36something at him
00:45:37and he backs up,
00:45:38you keep going.
00:45:39He's open.
00:45:40He cannot do nothing
00:45:40with his feet.
00:45:41Well, take him, man.
00:45:42Take him, man.
00:45:43Take him, man.
00:45:44Take him, man.
00:45:44You don't be taking
00:45:45nobody right now.
00:45:46Take the time.
00:45:47You get a chance,
00:45:48you take him.
00:45:49Otherwise, you just keep
00:45:50doing what you're doing.
00:45:52Those were the best
00:45:53words of the night
00:45:54from Lehovich to Weldon.
00:45:55Don't worry about it.
00:45:57Well, let's see
00:45:58if he can back that up.
00:45:59And Fitzgerald, who spoke,
00:46:02saying take him,
00:46:03I don't think he meant it
00:46:04exactly the way he said it,
00:46:05but Kenny Weldon
00:46:06didn't want to leave
00:46:07any doubt.
00:46:08Did not want his man
00:46:09going after Briggs
00:46:10right now.
00:46:11He wants him doing
00:46:12exactly what he's doing
00:46:13and then looking for an
00:46:14opportunity.
00:46:15It might not make
00:46:16for scintillating boxing,
00:46:17and it's not exactly,
00:46:18but for him right now,
00:46:19it's probably going
00:46:20to keep doing what you're
00:46:21doing what you're doing.
00:46:22Those were the best
00:46:23words of the night
00:46:24And that's what he's doing.
00:46:25Jack, you know,
00:46:26it does not make for
00:46:27scintillating boxing,
00:46:28and it's not exactly,
00:46:29but for him right now,
00:46:30it's probably the best
00:46:31strategy.
00:46:32Well, that was the best
00:46:33action of the night
00:46:34in that corner.
00:46:35Yes, you saw something
00:46:36adversarial for.
00:46:38Yeah.
00:46:39Two-two corner man
00:46:41at odds.
00:46:47Briggs just standing there
00:46:48and just waving his left
00:46:50hand out.
00:46:51And nothing's happening.
00:46:52happening
00:46:56well this you see you see the the scoring and how close it's become a draw
00:47:04with about to the scorecard I have my hopes ahead by 58 56 I agree with
00:47:12Darren Nichols now I'm just jabbing to the body he could jab to the body and
00:47:22then come to the head with that jab which is what Kenny Weld is suggesting and
00:47:27Lohovich is unleashing a left hook but it's being totally telegraphed very easy
00:47:31to block a wide looping point gotta tighten it up over the top there right
00:47:42hand there's the jab by Lovitz finally a right hand that landed by Lovitz you know
00:47:46even though those left hooks are not very consequential some of them are getting in
00:47:50and there's so little coming from Shannon Briggs that
00:47:54Lovitz is starting to pile up some rounds I'm not I just don't know what he's
00:47:58waiting for
00:48:01I know he's talking and you know these are the rounds where
00:48:08Shannon Briggs traditionally he's gotten more done in earlier rounds and he got
00:48:12the only round in which he got a lot done it was round one even though he won one
00:48:15other round for sure and Lovitz himself not being super active but doing enough to
00:48:22probably take these rounds some red well forming on the forehead the left side of
00:48:30Lovitz nice combination by law but she certainly has the ability to throw those
00:48:36kind of combinations
00:48:39but nobody's really taking the initiative here I think that's the understatement of
00:48:44the dunking yes it's just unbelievable for Lovitz tactically this is correct and
00:48:50it's working very very well just isn't similarly but now this is a heavyweight
00:49:00championship of the world it's an amazing stage what an opportunity for somebody
00:49:07especially in the current climate of the heavyweight division very unsettled very
00:49:11wide open why somebody wouldn't want to take the initiative
00:49:26well next month on Showtime two standout welterweights will co-headline from
00:49:31Atlantic City undefeated Miguel Cotto and Antonio Margarito looking forward to
00:49:37seeing those guys very much so Cotto always in exciting fights margarito as
00:49:41well they're very very action fighters made they're fighting two very very very good
00:49:46fighters and for Cotto a step up to try and win a welterweight title so that
00:49:50should be a lot of fun that's it December 2nd from Atlantic okay hands up and
00:49:57don't give him that around there slide the other way slide over
00:50:02win the round we're gonna be out of here
00:50:08well in round seven against Briggs look hope it's through 18 left hands and six
00:50:14rights and he was the busier of the two fighters and probably won the round yeah
00:50:20he's a lot which has won these last three rounds right in a row because Briggs has
00:50:25been so inactive and he's been able to land you know a certain number of punches
00:50:31I hope it's trying to dig to the body there with the right we hope it she's
00:50:35starting to pick up the pace look the amazing thing is it was almost a frenetic
00:50:38pace against Brewster back in April staggering fight I mean a double heavyweights yeah
00:50:43fight of the year it was fought watch the back Sergey brisk pace and with a lot of skill and this one is
00:50:51different totally and I you know this fight turned in round one because Briggs hurt him with that left
00:50:59counter left hook and it made Lehovich certainly more tentative and more tactical and Shannon Briggs
00:51:05himself has done very little now what what puzzles me irks me I don't know Briggs has waited eight years
00:51:13for this second shot at the heavyweight title the loss to Lennox Lewis back in 1998 why is he not
00:51:21showing more fire you would think because to count on one big punch very tough because he landed a big
00:51:29punch in round one and Lehovich was able to get through it he's you know Lehovich is a resilient
00:51:35fighter so you can't rely on one punch and yes Shannon Briggs is fighting a very passive fight when he
00:51:41does throw he lands he's got to take more risks of course stamina has always been an issue with him
00:51:48he talked about asthma that has dogged him and preparation now Briggs is throwing the jab trying
00:51:54doing a little more in this round so he's done it had a better round date
00:52:05it's almost as if Shannon Briggs is loading up to throw a jab which is odd but he has been more
00:52:22aggressive in this round as Shannon Briggs is winning this round there's no question about it
00:52:26he's landed some pretty good punches but then he stops great left hook that hurt Lehovich yes it did
00:52:34and he it was because Lehovich tried that right to the body you know why doesn't Briggs go after
00:52:39him yeah he doesn't follow it up that's in the back of the head I told you before okay
00:52:43warning from Bobby Ferreira for the rabbit punch to Briggs local ref Bobby Ferreira from Tucson his 25th
00:52:52world title fight his first heavyweight championship that's what we need let's stop some action when it
00:52:57starts well big round for Shannon Briggs first big certainly in terms of the way this fight is gone
00:53:03and he reminded Lehovich that he can hurt him but then he didn't go after him
00:53:08Lehovich just walked into one
00:53:12so a little more aggression not much but enough for Briggs perhaps to take that room
00:53:27lost the round but it was a very close round it could go either way look
00:53:34why do you why do you think why do you think let me ask you why do you think you keep dropping your hand
00:53:40like that for 12 rounds and not get hit with a right hand you know what hey hey double up your jab when
00:53:48this guy's when you move his feet backwards you you shove him backwards and go get him
00:53:52Shannon Briggs
00:53:55able to get a a left to have a right hand in against Lehovich
00:54:05Briggs hurt him on a couple of occasions I thought in that round
00:54:08Briggs for up top
00:54:11using the jab a little bit in this round and there's that there's the left hook that hurt
00:54:15Lehovich he dropped his right hand and Briggs whacked him with a very very good
00:54:20left hook Briggs should be throwing that left hook a lot more he can land it stop stop stop
00:54:25you should be doing a lot of okay if this continues out a heavyweight title fight that will
00:54:31not so into a time capsule no and you know the heavyweight division has taken its share of beating
00:54:37but we've had several really great heavyweight fights this this uh year certainly the Brewster
00:54:44Lehovich fight the rock on Moscow and obviously uh Tony Peters so there have been some good fights this one
00:54:50however is not one of them that left jab but by the way by Shannon Briggs pushed Lehovich back
00:54:58therefore why don't we see it more often you would think and he sees it works there it is
00:55:05it's a clear edge of power in this fight he's been able to to hurt Lehovich on several different occasions
00:55:11we've said this before in other fights Briggs's left jab is as strong as a lot of guys rights
00:55:18keep him up keep him up oh there's a big right hand by Briggs wow that got Sergei's attention
00:55:28Lehovich comes back maybe he needed a wake-up call now that looked Lehovich booster-like didn't it
00:55:34yes just for a moment but now they go back to standing still
00:55:45little spurts and i'm really surprised from Lehovich's standpoint because
00:55:51his punch output in these last two fights against Dominic Gwynn and in the Brewster fight much much
00:55:57more and you would think when he gets in this kind of position he'd be throwing more often and you could
00:56:01just stop here the great let go both of you come on back up frustration of his trainer Kenny Weldon
00:56:07this is another round that i would give to Shannon Briggs so far unless Lehovich starts to put on the gas
00:56:12because Briggs has landed some very good punches although there's a long time left over a minute
00:56:16stop stop stop stop come on come on break
00:56:26Briggs is really sucking wind right now isn't it absolutely and this fight is there for Shanna
00:56:31Briggs to win he'll rue that he'll look at this he will look at this videotape and he should feel
00:56:36very very distressed if he ends up losing this fight left hook upstairs to the head by Lehovich
00:56:43right hand missed
00:56:53very close round here and maybe a pivot round here in round nine scheduled for 12 for the wbo heavyweight
00:57:03title this round like the fight is there to be taken drinks pawing instead of throwing real punches there
00:57:13in round two for the wbo heavyweight
00:57:17watch right hand
00:57:20stop
00:57:21please shut up sergey
00:57:25get your breathing get your breathing you got it he's breaking down get your breathing
00:57:32full soccer get your breathing get your breathing
00:57:34okay you got it yeah breathe slow no water yet you've got nine minutes to get this title nine
00:57:44minutes and you're behind but you can speed stop trying to think power okay you're not going to knock
00:57:50this guy out okay you can't speed you win these rounds you get that left hand up get it up come on man
00:57:58early on in the round there'll be a chopping right hand a countering right hand by briggs that
00:58:07rocks lehovich and then that digs that left hook to the body later in round lehovich able to get
00:58:12some things done on the inside come on pushes him back with the combination not everything landing
00:58:18but something getting there and that speaks to what kenny weldon said think speed not power sage advice from
00:58:24kenny weldon briggs is two one and one with a knockout and fights that have gone ten rounds or
00:58:29more lehovich three and oh all wins by decision
00:58:37you know the scoring in this fight could be widely divergent it really could because these rounds have
00:58:42been when there are passive rounds it's very hard to tell that last round a very difficult one to score
00:58:47they want the jab from lehovich and he obliges them to the body
00:59:00kenny weldon tells him you're not going to knock this guy out so box
00:59:05you know they the advice to briggs that he is behind and he better go after him
00:59:09i thought was coaching he may or may not be behind but the senses he might be by a couple points
00:59:15and in any case he hasn't done enough who would have thought that the shannon griggs
00:59:21would have a possibility of winning on points yeah exactly and there's another counter right hand now
00:59:26from close range when lehovich is there griggs can counter that left hook with his own right
00:59:32most of the pundits going and figured if briggs is going to win this fight it's going to be by
00:59:36you know a knockout early to mid
00:59:41and if lehovich was going to win it would be by you know either a late group hard body shot by briggs
00:59:45late stoppage or on points nice combination upstairs by lehovich that where has that been lehovich
00:59:52that's exactly what we expected from lehovich he has thrown so few combinations in this fight
00:59:58right left from a long way out by lehovich he made some contact and now those are from close range
01:00:06and much more effective lehovich winning this round with a tactical approach good job by lehovich here
01:00:14hold it hold it and those are combinations that's why he's landing them he landed some great shots
01:00:18there briggs didn't go anywhere so kenny weldon may be right he's not going to knock him out but the
01:00:22combinations are the answer he's landing what he's throwing now and and briggs not responding
01:00:29briggs has been down in his career at least five times three of those times in his last title fight
01:00:36against lennox lewis won by daryl wilson one time by camille mcclein steve you know what's significant
01:00:44here look lovich is standing right in front of briggs and trading and briggs isn't really throwing
01:00:50power punches he had a lot of opportunities griggs did to land power punches there and he didn't
01:00:57so that may be a sign of his fatigue
01:00:59briggs 47 4-1 with 41 knockouts a 14-year pro lehovich 23-1 14 knockouts seven and a half year pro
01:01:11lehovich is only lost to maurice harris
01:01:18and that was back in 0-2 and it was by ninth round knockout break break
01:01:29a little adjustment right now you know what that is get your weight back and start double and triple
01:01:42jabbing don't single jab this guy don't single jab into the body don't single jab into the head
01:01:49you got to get your feet up there that's what you're doing you're starting to start
01:01:54shannon briggs able to counter lehovich lehovich shows the left hook and there's the countering
01:01:59right hand over the top briggs has countered effectively in this match on a number of occasions
01:02:05but here's the combination punching from lehovich landing the the right hand after the the left
01:02:10hook and then there's the jab and he was able to to land some very effective combinations during the
01:02:17course of that round and a couple that looked like they might even have hurt come on deep breath
01:02:24time is running out for shannon briggs nearing the age of 35 he'll be 35 in exactly 30 days
01:02:33as we enter the championship rounds time time come on come on you got to get this
01:02:40chuck come on get this corner going better here he forgot to put the mouthpiece in come on
01:02:46briggs went out without the mouthpiece
01:02:48boy the last time we saw that happen it involved another guy from brooklyn al do
01:02:58do i dare even bring it up a famous fight and with some mouthpiece wasn't necessary for him
01:03:03i'm sure that was not jannon briggs' from the same hometown brownsville brooklyn is mike tyson
01:03:08there's another counter left took by briggs now here we are in round number 11 uh and again the urgency
01:03:19for shannon briggs is to make something happen and yet you don't feel the sense of it from him
01:03:24oh big wicked right hand that nailed lehovich
01:03:29now why wouldn't he follow up right now he just stayed there
01:03:32there's a wow big right hand again can briggs follow it up the holder's battling back though
01:03:44he is fighting hurt though
01:03:46lehovich with some action nailed the briggs on the chin
01:03:57lehovich is really doing the wrong thing standing right in front of briggs and exchanging but it's
01:04:02created interesting moments but stamina has obviously an issue here for for shannon because we're in
01:04:10round 11 he he just can't follow it up i mean he's done enough to put himself ahead in this round but
01:04:16when he did have lehovich stunned and clearly he did he just couldn't go after him
01:04:24wild miss by lehovich going for broke there right right come on let's go back up we thought that if
01:04:31we were in the 11th round lehovich would probably be ahead by points that may be true but it's the way
01:04:37it's happened that has made it less appetizing and and surprising in many respects less appetizing
01:04:44the operative phrase
01:04:50and you know with briggs's hands so low you would think lehovich could get something done
01:04:58yeah i mean he's just inviting that overhand right is briggs and the jab the double jabs yep that uh
01:05:04that kenny weldon has talked about the hole which concerned about being countered of course but you
01:05:10have to initiate something
01:05:14final 20 seconds of the 11th round
01:05:16the hole which with a roundhouse right that missed big
01:05:36stop
01:05:44this guy's too strong for you to stay in there with like that you understand
01:06:00now i think we've got an even fight or you may be a little bit ahead i can't tell
01:06:05but one thing's for sure if you keep throwing uh stupid punches
01:06:10if you keep going stupid punches we lose
01:06:18you gotta knock him out so it's your choice you got the call you're in there
01:06:23you're strong you're strong he's not you gotta answer him back go balls to the wall go balls to the wall
01:06:38in a very distasteful heavyweight championship fight kenny weldon is right this one's too close to call
01:06:46you just don't know who's ahead but he's very upset with lehovich who's just been so reckless here
01:06:52he's he's got to tighten it up he's got a jab and box and interestingly in briggs's corner they feel
01:06:58he needs a knockout to win now i have lehovich ahead by a couple of points but it's very very close oh nice
01:07:03right hand counter right by briggs i think the fists came together on that one
01:07:08low which is staying right in briggs's wheelhouse
01:07:15not using the jab he's giving briggs an opportunity he's right in the wheelhouse for
01:07:20great i mean both guys have to be thinking going into this round this thing is just too close nobody
01:07:25really knows who's ahead and therefore i got i really have to get going here lehovich is doing
01:07:31exactly what kenny weldon didn't want him to do kind of languishing on the inside he just got it
01:07:36with another hook when he threw it right to the body lehovich tied along press row i i have i have
01:07:42lehovich by two points so i'm with one of the judges split decision to lehovich lehovich getting
01:07:48black but he throws an excellent left hook there's a nice left right combination by lehovich someone
01:07:55could go down in this round i'm telling you well they're both so tired right now very fatigued
01:08:01it is likely it could happen and so because they're landing a couple of significant shots
01:08:06big left hand there by briggs pushed lehovich back and a knockdown in this round would be
01:08:12significant in the scoring needless to say body shot by lehovich very close 12th round
01:08:31we approach the final minute of this fight briggs with a beautiful counter right hand
01:08:37another one every time lehovich initiates now briggs is countering and he just did it again
01:08:42and will not go after lehovich off balance momentarily he stepped on but there's a big
01:08:48right hand by briggs backing lehovich up shannon briggs has this moment right now in front of him
01:08:55if he fails to take advantage of it loses this fight he will rue this moment the rest of his life
01:09:00and he's got the time he's got 40 seconds
01:09:03but he is really gasping big right hand by briggs looking to follow it up with the left the right
01:09:14down goes lehovich through the ropes
01:09:17five six seven eight come here come here put your hands up you all right short it took till the
01:09:3112th round for breaks to finally have this breakthrough he's got to survive can lehovich make
01:09:37it take it to the end oh look down the home it's down through the ropes onto the scorers table
01:09:48it's all over bobby ferreira's waving it off ferreira is waving it off and a dazed
01:09:58sergey lehovich is stuck between the official's table and the ring and shannon briggs has won by tko
01:10:11after a listless lackluster fight for 11 plus rounds it ends with an explosion
01:10:19and the celebration
01:10:41and by shannon briggs come on in he's too tired to celebrate
01:10:49he's okay sitting here
01:10:53this is just a few feet away from us to our right
01:10:56lojovic seems to be all right now but he's sort of pinned in there
01:11:08what a bizarre ending to this fight that springs out well there is a full move
01:11:14so he's not going to be able to get down to this fight that he's not going to be able to go down
01:11:23i thought at the beginning of this round somebody might go down and it turned out to be lojovic
01:11:33sergey's wife erina trying to get in there to see if her husband is okay
01:11:38and ferreira just waved it up it wasn't going to happen it wasn't going to happen right there's
01:12:03alana who is the girlfriend of shannon briggs and briggs you're right he can just barely stand
01:12:09he celebrates sitting down he's exhausted from this totally
01:12:16he can't even work up a smile and he almost didn't have enough to get this done incredible finish
01:12:24and meanwhile lojovic is still sitting there breathe this is one of the most bizarre scenes
01:12:31i've ever seen in boxing this is a heavyweight championship just breathe deep breathe
01:12:40just breathe i think he's just so ticked off frustrated disappointed disappointed
01:12:48he finally makes his way to his feet and gets back into the ring
01:12:54but sergey lojovic is dethroned
01:12:57he did not listen to kenny wilton
01:13:06meanwhile over in the shannon briggs corner finally able to break a smile
01:13:11but he is exhausted
01:13:19gmg shot gmg baby right the sometimes comical shannon briggs
01:13:26we look back at uh the first knockdown shannon briggs had lojovic in trouble really a couple times before
01:13:32this then he got him in so much trouble that even briggs so tired realized he had to go in
01:13:40and go after lojovic that right hand is the one that really really rocked him lojovic was in all
01:13:45kinds of trouble and would go down for the first of two times in the 12th round now remember at this
01:13:52juncture and we haven't seen the scorecards yet but it's conceivable that all lojovic had to do is
01:13:58stand on his feet to win this fight it's possible and now there was about 26 seconds left in the fight
01:14:05when briggs came in for the second knockdown and briggs walks across lands a beautiful right hand
01:14:16and a great body shot and now lojovic would go through the ropes and this is really significant
01:14:20because even if he hadn't gone through the ropes maybe just maybe he could have gotten up and and
01:14:27we don't know he might have hit his head on the bell there as well it was very tough to tell but if
01:14:32and we look at it from above which may give us even a better view of talk about having your bell wrong
01:14:37yes that's true and now he goes out of the ring and immediately bobby ferrero called called an end to
01:14:47this fight and appropriately so and the reaction of alana his
01:14:55of briggs his girlfriend as she watches in exaltation shannon briggs captured this fight at a time
01:15:05when it's conceivable he was on the brink of losing you can sum this up al in one word for shannon briggs
01:15:11finally he has finally fulfilled a dream chase field becomes his field of dreams and you know
01:15:18what's interesting for shannon briggs when he beat george foreman originally it was a controversial
01:15:23decision he lost lewis even in this while he wins the title because of the nature of this fight
01:15:29might not get as much acclaim but look at it he's excited quite a scene america is back in the heavyweight
01:15:36title business courtesy of soon to be 35 year old shannon briggs let's get it up to jimmy lennon jr
01:15:47ladies and gentlemen we have the time of two minutes 59 seconds in round number 12.
01:15:55a referee in charge bobby ferrara stops the contest the winner by way of technical knockout
01:16:01he is the new wbo heavyweight champion of the world shannon the cannon briggs
01:16:12the new heavyweight champion of the world standing alongside our jim gray jim
01:16:16all right i got you baby i got you baby steve thank you very much shannon congratulations thank you
01:16:36shannon congratulations thank you wow i mean i don't even really know where to start how would
01:16:42you assess this fight up until the last 30 seconds i was motivated man because um the last time i fought
01:16:47on showtime you ragged me against both of us when you came in the dressing room i was ready to knock
01:16:51you out but i said no it's all about me let's talk about the fight well you know this guy was tough man
01:16:57i mean i know he was the you know toughest of the russians to fight you know i was supposed to fight
01:17:02vladimir clisco in the garden november 11th but shelly finkel lied to me for two and a half months
01:17:07had me on the string sitting by the fax machine telling me to send me a contract and it never
01:17:10materialized and you know they went to the garden told me they was fighting shannon briggs and they
01:17:14wanted to fight calvin brock so that hurt me so i did this i did the best thing i should have done a
01:17:17long time ago called don king and to the rest he saved my life man because no one was giving me a
01:17:23chance in boxing everybody turned it back on me don king invited me in his home i had a good steak over at
01:17:28his house i was chilling and i said you know what don king said give me a title shot i said i didn't
01:17:33believe it but he did man hey sergey i love you brother don't get him twisted i was never mad at
01:17:38you i was just trying to get under your skin man i thought you was the best of the russian fighters man
01:17:43i thought you was the best of them the toughest of them by far and i didn't want to fight you i wanted
01:17:47to fight klitsko and i didn't want to go against kenny i'm a big fan of his but when they said when don
01:17:52king gave me the opportunity i had to take it because nobody was giving me a shot i love you you're a great
01:17:56fighter i watched you beat brewster i watched you beat dominic guinn i said this is a tough kid
01:18:03first of all hold on stick stick with us here a second are you okay oh absolutely i'm okay what
01:18:08what happened you were the champion of the world and it seems as though you were reluctant to throw
01:18:13punches all night you know what first of all i don't fight you know my fight you know like
01:18:17i you know i fought his fight and it just you know it's happened you know like i took a shot
01:18:22it's not you know like a not you know like a bad bad shot but you know i took a lot of uh punches
01:18:27before so this shot you know he he cut he cut me but sergey what was your reluctance through all of
01:18:34those rounds to mix it up and to want to fight you had fought brewster toe to toe and there seemed
01:18:38to be a great reluctance tonight why you know what i'm not right there you know honestly i'm not right
01:18:44there you know i don't fight i don't fight my fight and you know he is he fought this you know
01:18:50i gave him a great he fought he fought his fight and i fought his fight did you realize that you were
01:18:56ahead and all you had to do was stay on your feet you were ahead 106 103 on two cards and 105 104 on
01:19:03another were you aware that you simply had to avoid getting knocked out in the 12th round
01:19:07uh yeah but you know what he cut me you know he got me it's not you know it's like i don't don't
01:19:16understand me wrong man you know don't cut me you know like a really you know bad shot but you know
01:19:19like i'm out of balance and he catch me right in the bottom you know right in the chin so you heard
01:19:24me a couple times with a couple body shots and that's why i was so i had to take a break over there
01:19:28man because the guy's tough man that sneaky right hand to the body was catching me it was hard to get
01:19:32his time incoming he was you know i knew i knew coming to the fight that i had a longer reach to him
01:19:36so i said you know what i got to beat him to the punch he's got to come to me so that was my game
01:19:40plan in a sense to to catch him coming in and i was charming him a lot but not as much as i wanted
01:19:44to i thought i had him out in the first round but the guy is so tough man let's go why you do me like
01:19:49this man i could have you know i could have knocked you out next week and had that belt but thank you
01:19:53anyway shelly finger for shagging me and thank you don king and i want to thank you hold on one second
01:19:58scott hirsch my man no one wanted me no one wanted me no one wanted me nobody wanted me in boxing
01:20:04scott hirsch came to my house and from day one said you know i'm gonna make you a champion did
01:20:09you realize that you were behind and that you needed a knockout yes my corner kept telling me
01:20:14you know chuck mcgregor came over to me and he gave me a speech he gave me he ragged me he said you're
01:20:20losing this fight and if you don't you don't do what you got to do you know you're gonna lose can i
01:20:23say one thing one more thing please mr gray i want to say what's up to everybody in brooklyn brownsville we
01:20:28got another champion mike tyson riddick bowe and shannon briggs three heavyweight champions from
01:20:32brownsville brooklyn and four passing and i want to say so jersey dc and i'm gonna let you say
01:20:36whatever you want let's get to the question we're gonna let you have your final say here let's take
01:20:40a look here at the first knockdown okay and the first knockdown here in the 12th round and tell
01:20:45us what was your thoughts right here um i was timing i was i was timing him a lot you know he had to reach
01:20:51that he didn't have he doesn't have a good uh you know reach on me i know i heard him right there
01:20:56i was tired man i was real tired man this guy i exerted a lot of energy trying to get him out there
01:21:00early in the first round i loaded a lot of energy trying to get him out so and now let's jump forward
01:21:05here as he was able to get to his feet right and here is the end of the fight when you knock sergey
01:21:11through the ropes here right ah three two we work on it all day in the gym i said you know what hit him
01:21:17to the body hurt him a little bit you know i couldn't get him out i was worried man i said let me get a
01:21:22straight shot and there it was straight right hand right on the head because he was holding his defense
01:21:25his hands like this so i said i gotta split the gloves go down the middle would you have always had
01:21:29regret if you didn't have this knockout that you had waited eight years for this opportunity and
01:21:33then not been able yeah almost and i almost blew it yeah man you know i i've been you know you asked
01:21:39me in the dressing room you said you consider yourself an underachiever and in a lot of ways i don't but
01:21:44in some ways i do but you know i would i would have probably went home and shot myself in the head if
01:21:49i wouldn't have won tonight nah but i got two beautiful sons chan and kaden you know alana wilson
01:21:54where's she at where alana come here girl come here this is my girl man from day one she was by
01:21:59my side another one who when nobody else wanted me she took me man i'm crazy man i'm hard to deal
01:22:06with so thank you baby i think you've had your save you said everything you'd like to say oh mr
01:22:10gray thank you for motivating me all these years oh it's me since 99 i said i'm gonna get this one
01:22:15do i get a part of this title belt then i'm gonna let you hold it for a week all right congratulations
01:22:19shannon let's bring in don king don king the promoter of tonight's fight he's got all of
01:22:25his flags here don so where do we go from here don because basically up until that knockout quite
01:22:30frankly this was not really worth watching well it was a great fight i don't agree with you there
01:22:34about fight come on don it was a great fight the man was playing his strategy you know whatever his
01:22:39game was playing was he made it come through so that's what makes him you will take a lemon and make
01:22:44lemonade won't you listen it won it was a hollywood knockout it don't get no better than this
01:22:48and i think it's just great that we had a great show like this on showtime this is where it's
01:22:52really at and i think that we're going to continue in this vein of going out to get them we want to
01:22:56klitsko we want oleg maski off we're going at the same way with all of them till we unified his crown
01:23:02but quite frankly let's let's be serious here for just a moment if the fights are going to be like
01:23:06this don how do you promote and unify this thing because for 11 rounds in two minutes and 30 seconds
01:23:14this was not a fight that was worthy of a heavyweight championship title that's how do you
01:23:19give your opinion well it's the opinion i think of everybody who was watching as well and that
01:23:22opinion would have had any some validity to it had it not been the knockout but since there was a
01:23:28knockout who's to say that shannon wasn't planning it all the way you know what i mean so you got to
01:23:32understand that now if shannon had a logical thing this was a lackadaisical fight don it was cavalier
01:23:36it didn't mean nothing but when it goes out like this listen to this crowd look at this stadium that's
01:23:41filled up out here in phoenix it's an excitement is in there you have american champion now and you've
01:23:46got to say whatever you will of me he's an american champion how did he get that doing it the best way
01:23:51he could and what he did in the best way he could is as good as it's good this is what bobby has been
01:23:56waiting here referee in the ring let's just ask him his opinion uh bobby uh when a man gets knocked
01:24:01out of the ring was there no question in your mind that that was the end of the fight yes uh you know
01:24:05he's been down once and when he got up uh he was hurt but being champion i wanted to give him a little
01:24:10benefit of the doubt to see if he could defend himself because i knew we were close to the end
01:24:14of the round so i let him i let him go again but when he took a couple shots and he started going
01:24:18through the ropes i knew it was over so i waves it off right then thank you good job tonight thank
01:24:22you all right don always good to be with you we will see you again soon time to wrap it up so say
01:24:27good night i'm going to take shannon briggs to mordecai de jeweler every time a guy wins he goes to
01:24:32mordecai de jeweler and get him a nice big jewel a big bubble so get ready mordecai i'm on my way
01:24:37and it was going to be you own this store no i don't own the store but he's a good guy the best
01:24:41jeweler in the country and so i want everybody to go there and buy their jewelry with mordecai
01:24:45in las vegas don good to be with you thank you it's great to be with you because this is show
01:24:49back to steve and al he'll still be talking it's going to be we got a son's game we got a cardinals game
01:24:59all right thank you very much uh jim let's take a look at the scoring for lohovich versus
01:25:03briggs first the official judges score cards and wow denny uh nelson had it 106 103 lohovich when it
01:25:12was stopped jose rivera the same and chris wilson had it the closest 105 104 so lohovich as jim had
01:25:19pointed out during those interviews was ahead going into the 12th round and briggs needed a knockout to
01:25:25win the championship and he did it lohovich was 26 seconds away from winning this fight because if he
01:25:31had stayed on his feet not got knocked down the next time he would have won this fight and press
01:25:35row norm frauenheim had briggs ahead 105 104 he's the only person who had briggs ahead and then darren
01:25:44nichols and william stickney had lohovich winning the fight at the time of the stoppage let's take a
01:25:52look again at that final round that 12th round lohovich remember is ahead all he needs to do is stay out of
01:25:59the way of shannon briggs but briggs had other ideas the final seconds of the 12th round the first
01:26:08knockdowns coming up that right hand was the start of the trouble for lohovich and now you look at the
01:26:16clock as he gets up there will be 26 seconds left in this fight if he could have found a way somehow
01:26:24to stay on his feet after this knockdown he would have won this fight by one point in a split decision
01:26:31by one point and two scorecards he couldn't move he just couldn't move he was in that much trouble
01:26:36and then was sent out of the ring by shannon briggs and briggs himself had sold a left and tank and
01:26:43remember the scene after all this happened shannon briggs could barely stand and so when lohovich got
01:26:50knocked out of the ring bobby ferrer appropriately signaled an end to this fight he knew that lohovich
01:26:54was never going to get back in no matter how much uh was counted and it really was a bizarre moment
01:27:01a bizarre scene you see shannon briggs who can barely stand uh trying to exalt and and lohovich is pinned
01:27:09between the scorers table and and the ring you know the interesting thing is for a fight that did not have a
01:27:14lot of drama for 11 plus rounds the last 40 seconds and then minutes after it had enough
01:27:21drama to last us that was a made for tv uh you know mini series the last few it really was and you
01:27:28know you and i've done a lot of boxing over the last 20 some years i've never seen a fighter end up
01:27:32like that and for lohovich the disappointment is pronounced as he uh contemplates what might have been
01:27:40and how he might have avoided almost this situation brings back memories of ralph branka after bobby
01:27:47thompson that's actually a good analogy around the world meanwhile in the ring uh shannon briggs still
01:27:53celebrate he doesn't know what to do first i mean he is so he is so elated well you know he is shannon
01:27:59briggs is quite a personality and we saw evidence of that after the fight that's right yeah you know if
01:28:06one thing he may not be the most exciting fighter in the world although it ended in uh you know very
01:28:11exciting fashion uh with an exclamation point he said he's going to bring luster back to the heavy
01:28:16weight division he does have personality he does have charisma uh you know i think i think the first
01:28:22thing he's going to do is call up leno and letterman and try to get on on those shows and he is a very
01:28:28vibrant personality we see that don't he's been in a number of movies he's a very clever guy very
01:28:32eclectic the problem with shannon briggs is that as a fighter he is not as dynamic as he would like
01:28:39to be he is powerful and people like that in a heavyweight certainly um and right now he's hitting
01:28:46as hard as any heavyweight in the division so if he can get to a heavyweight he can hurt them the
01:28:51problem is can he find a way to be more active in the ring uh during the course of fights that's
01:28:55going to be required if he's going to market himself like he wants to and how about jim jim gray as a
01:29:00motivator of fighters i had no idea he had that skill and now once again an aging heavyweight
01:29:07makes it to the top on the heavyweight throne the youngest of the heavyweight champions was sergey
01:29:12lojovic now we have another mid-30ish heavyweight champion so what that does for the division i don't
01:29:19know but this man would hope that he could get back in the heavyweight picture and in truth could
01:29:24easily do so in the next uh couple of fights just a night to forget for sergey lojovic who was ahead
01:29:31going into the 12th round all he had to do was stay away from shannon briggs in a in a lackadaisical
01:29:36fight for 11 plus rounds and briggs did what he had to do to pull it out in the last few seconds
01:29:43and he won by knockout and very emphatically too two knockdowns in that 12th round the final seconds
01:29:49and the final one sent my hope is clear through

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