BOXING Tyson Fury vs Dereck Chisora : Channel 5 Does the Business

Yesterday the British public were treated to a boxing highlight, when the eagerly anticipated Fury vs Chisora fight was aired on channel 5 and I am happy to say it did not disappoint. Both fighters showed great spirit and contributed to a spectacular night at Wembley Arena. Eventually the reach advantage and superior stamina of Fury proved too much for Chisora who fought his corner but failed to offer enough punches to justify a win on points.

On several occasions Chisora landed telling left hands and few will forget his spirited barrage of blows in the tenth round, where he 'went for broke' and looked to land a killer knock-out blow with a barbaric flurry of hooks and overhand punches. Tyson Fury fought a good, if not technically sound fight,using the jab effectively and switching to southpaw stance where necessary to unsettle his shorter opponent. The reach advantage of 8 inches enjoyed by Fury allowed him to pick his shots and wait for his foe to try and attack him from inside. Fury is now talking about the Klitschko brothers but I think he has to have a few more high profile fights before facing the kings of this division, Chisora is far from finished and has much to offer still,he may look to come into his next fight in better condition than he did last night. We will see more of the new British Champion, he has  a positive outlook,an ideal  stature for a heavyweight and a charm which will keep fans interested if not in awe of his anecdotes and self promotion. I hate to admit it but I am a Fury fan after the events of last night and I hope people in the UK will get behind him. With a few more fights,more work in the gym and some good advice from experienced trainers and management Fury could do very well to say the least,he was the raw ingredients required to go far in a relatively weak division. The 'showboating' and posturing will have to stop but the solid chin he showed ought to stand up against a host of the leading lights at this weight class. I have to also mention the robust chin of Chisora who took some lusty blows but never really looked like hitting the canvas.

The Channel 5 coverage was 'amateurish' to say the least,the build up was lame and spent more time selling the Khan v Judah fight on pay per view than giving viewers a background to the featured fight but overall how could I complain? British boxing back on the box and a great night of entertainment for any sporting fan.Well done Tyson,well done channel 5.

Brett Favre Quote

'Just, you never know what the next day is going to bring. That goes for football,that goes for off the field and I gave up a long time ago trying to predict the future and trying to deal with things I couldn't deal with.'







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Should Football Teams Hang on to 'Wantaway' Players

A number of Premiership Clubs have had to deal with 'wantaway' stars over the years. Recently we have heard stories about Tevez, Modric,Nasri and Fabregas apparently wishing to leave their respective clubs. Clubs have to consider three things when deciding whether they should let a player go:

1) How long does the player have to run on their contract?
2) Is the player pivotal to future success?
3) Can the player be replaced for a reasonable price?

The first question is relevant as it could affect the financial situation at the club. If a player has less than a year to run on their contract, a Chairman would be stupid not to accept a good offer for the player. Waiting twelve months would allow the player to leave for free on the Bosman ruling,an event that would leave the club with no funds for a player they could have offloaded for a handsome fee twelve months earlier. The second question is clearly valid and the third question is probably the most important factor.

In the case of Samir Nasri Arsenal would be mad not to sell. £25million has been touted as an achievable price, a huge fee for a player who can be replaced and only has 12months to run on his contract. The Carlos Tevez saga is obvious too. Manchester City should offload him for offers over or equal to £35million. The reasoning is clear, Tevez is a great player but they have infinite funds to replace him. Why keep such a troublesome player, he is hugely talented and was their best player last season, but break the bank to buy Kaka, Sneijder or even Benzema and he would barely be missed. Tevez has moaned about Manchester weather, the food, everything, he is hardly likely to give his all to the Manchester City cause with this attitude.

Luka Modric must be made to stay at White Hart Lane. Modric was Tottenham's best player last year, Sir Alex Ferguson said he was possibly the best player in the League last year. The Croatian would be near impossible to replace with the budget at Harry Redknapp's disposal. Levy is justified in saying he would allow Modric to,'rot in the stands' if he chooses not to give his best for Spurs in light of his desire to move.

Cesc Fabregas must be sold. It is not good to have a player as club captain who has voiced his desire to leave for over a year! Barcelona are offering top dollar and with Real Madrid showing interest,Arsenal should realise upwards of £35million for the talented Spaniard.

Overall Football teams should realise that they are in control when a player is under contract to them. No player is bigger than any club to quote a cliché, a cliché that should ring loud around Stadiums across England and the world.

Floyd Mayweather Quote

'To be honest with you, I normally beat guys with my C game and I don't normally have to bring my A or B game out.'

Golf: The Open Championship Contenders 2011

The Open at Royal St.George's kicks off next week and the stage is set for someone to seize the claret jug and cement their name in golfing history. I believe Lee Westwood is well placed to break his Major winning duck. The level headed Englishman is a majestic iron player and has the experience to finally land one of golf's big 4 titles. A sizzling 65 in the first round at The Scottish Open shows he is in the mood to go well in golf's oldest major.The winner is likely to be someone with a reputation for straight driving and impressive greens in regulation statistics. The importance of long, straight driving is emphasised more than usual by the quirky layout of the course.

Luke Donald is an obvious contender,with his long game precision, as is USPGA champion, Martin Kaymer. Rory Mcilroy is the favourite and is priced as short as 5/1 chance with the bookmakers. The 2011 US Open victory along with 3 strong rounds at Augusta illustrate that he is a threat, I just wonder whether the newly formed pressure of last month's performance will hinder his concentration and mental approach.

2010 US Open Champion Graeme Mcdowell has the ability to beat strong winds with low trajectory shot-making where necessary and a stunning 2nd round at The Scottish Open show that he is finding the groove at just the right time.

Charl Schwartzel will still be enjoying the confidence boost of his Masters win and has the length,shot shaping ability and accuracy off the tee to be a contender.

When considering outside shots for the Championship, Bubba Watson springs to mind. If the big American can avoid hitting too many errant tee shots, he can overpower this course if he gets things going on the greens.  Matteo Mannasero and Anthony Kim will win majors one day. These two young stars have the power and accuracy to make them a threat at any tournament.

Padraig Harrington must be considered with his 3 major wins and who would write off Ernie Els? The experience, swing consistency and wind control shot-making of the South African could surprise many by going close next week.

Royal St. Georges has a habit of producing surprise winners. Could Phil Mickelson finally capture a British Open crown? I would be surprised if the big hitting left hander lifts the Claret Jug next Sunday but with his Major winning pedigree and amazing short game, who knows?

Ricky Hatton in a Nutshell

Ricky's never been interested in the business side of things,...All Richard is interested in is boxing. Even when I could get him to come along to meetings he'd sit there and text his mates the whole time and wouldn't pay a bit of attention.  After some meetings I've turned to him and said,'Do you want to know what that means?' and he's just said, 'No, you deal with that Dad,I just want to fight.

Football Transfer Talk- Could Wesley Sneijder be the final link in the Manchester United chain?

The transfer market is going crazy and certain prospective deals are arousing much interest. The Manchester United, Wesley Sneijder connection is a particularly appetising prospect. Despite the Red Devil's success last season I have always felt that they have lacked a touch of mesmerising flair at times. Cristiano Ronaldo's trickery has been missed but Sneijder is undoubtedly the man to fill his shoes and take the fight to Barcelona in Europe. A key man in the Holland and Inter Milan sides, Sneijder is intelligent, skilful and experienced. I could see the Dutch maestro linking up well with Rooney, Hernandez or Berbatov to devastating effect. With Paul Scholes gone, United need to replace the Old Trafford Hall of Famer's passing skills and experience. If Sneijder joins the Premier League Champions, Chelsea will have to capture Samir Nasri or another creative midfielder to keep pace with developments at Old Trafford.

The Stewart Downing connection to Liverpool is not surprising. Liverpool have a habit of acquiring good players that do not live up to the great heritage of the club. Liverpool are a huge club and I find it peculiar that they keep buying good players,rather than the great players they should be attracting. Suarez,Carroll and Henderson are class acts no doubt but why have they been joined by the likes of Jovanovic, Aquilani and Konchesky  in recent memory? Downing would just be another 7 out of 10 player ,adding to a huge wage bill and cluttering up squad numbers that could be given to genuine stars. At £20million Downing is all wrong for Dalglish and I just hope the money men at the club deem this too higher price to pay for a heavily one sided, better than average winger.

Manchester City have spent £7million on Clichy which is decent business. Kolarov is a better player but Clichy will create good competition at left back. The Tevez saga shows that players are exerting too much power over their clubs. Credit must go to City for holding out for £50million, a price that offers potential purchasers no value once sign-on fees,wages&management of the Argentinian's behaviour are considered. Don't be shocked if the Argentinian talisman has to get on with things or warm the bench until January.

The transfer stories keep coming and are far from finished. Expect to see Roman Abramovich funding Andre Villas-Boas' buying wishes, particularly of Porto stars such as Hulk and Falcao. QPR should dig deep too with wealthy backers such as steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal, F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone and F1 entrepreneur Flavio Briatore at hand to fund their survival charge.