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makoto-naegi555 · 3 years

Text

Dragonronpa chapter 16

https://archiveofourown.org/works/28144008/chapters/78156926

And so makoto and siramay where continuing to wait for escape to be at hand growing weary.

Makoto: how much longer

Siramay: wait and hope makoto wait and hope.

Before makoto could think too much he heard the strum of an instrument as he saw siramay playing

[SIRAMAY] Makoto's luck was really out His spirit and his fortune low Alone he sat, alone he thought Of happy times he used to know [HUSKS] Hey dreamer, don't be so upset Hey Makoto, you're not beaten yet [ALL] Go go go Makoto you know what they say Hang on now Makoto you'll make it someday Don't give up Makoto fight till you drop We’ve played the game and you come out on top.

Makoto: what does that mean?

Siramay: well think about it makoto, I come from the multiverse where anything’s possible yah? so if you think about it, it only makes sense there’s a universe where your story is a video game for all to play.

Makoto: really?

Siramay: yes! And you’re the protagonist in fact that’s how I saw you the first time from that screen you where great! Sure some chumps think you’re boring but there wrong!

Makoto: I’m probably not the best protagonist though.

Siramay: nonsense! we’ve all saw you strive and conquer in that game and while this universe will branch away from cannon we still believe in you makoto! We know you can rise and beat the mastermind when no one else could! So there’s only one thing left for you to do.

Then he started chanting

[SIRAMAY, ENSEMBLE] Go ma-ko-to Go ma-ko-to Go ma-ko-to! GO MA-KO-TO!!! Go, go, go Makoto you know what they say Hang on now Makoto you'll make it someday Sha la la Makoto you're doing fine You and your great hopes ahead of your time Go, go, go Makoto you know what they say Hang on now Makoto you'll make it someday Sha la la Makoto you're doing fine You and your great hopes ahead of your time GO MA-KO-TO

Then siramay got up and started dancing all over

Makoto: what are you doing?

Siramay: whats it look like? I’m dancing the despair away! come on makoto dance your despair away to!

[HUSK] GO MA-KO-TO

And with that makoto got up also wiggling around trying to dance the despair away

Siramay: yeah! You go makoto!

[HUSK] GO MA-KO-TO

And so makoto and siramay both joined together in a grand weird dance to fend of despair.

GO MA-KO-TO GO MA-KO-TO GO, GO, GO, GO, GO, GO, GO, GO! Makoto you know what they say Hang on now Makoto you'll make it someday Sha la la Makoto you're doing fine You and your great hopes ahead of your time Go, go, go, go, go, go, go Makoto you know what they say Hang on now Makoto you'll make it someday Sha la la Makoto you're doing fine You and your great hopes ahead of your time

[SIRAMAY] Ahead of your time [MAKOTO] Ahead of my time [SIRAMAY] Ahead of your time [MAKOTO] Ahead of my time [SIRAMAY] Ahead of your time [MAKOTO] Ahead of my time [SIRAMAY] Ahead of your time [BOTH] Ahead of my time [SIRAMAY] Ahead of your time [MAKOTO] Ahead of my time [SIRAMAY] Ahead of your time [ALL] Ahead of your/my

But then suddenly they heard a loud rumble as they all looked up to see something fall from the sky.

Makoto: what was that!?

Siramay: YOUR SALVATION! its kyoko! now breath in for this last line [ALL] TIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIMMMME!

After that makoto went to investigate the trash to find out its kyoko! She came to save him and even brought food how sweet… oh I guess that makes my food redundant eh he still needs breakfast a days past anyway, then makoto scarfed it down then they talked kyoko apologized for setting up makoto cause kyoko herself was set up, course makotos a sweety and forgave her as they talk about how the mastermind stole her memory.

Kyoko: That being said, there was a limit to what I could do by myself. Which is why I asked you to help me.

Makoto: But...why me?

Kyoko: Because among everyone, you were least likely to be the mastermind. That was just intuition, but...

Makoto: I-I see... Your intuition was right, though. There's no way an ordinary kid like me could've been the mastermind.

Siramay: now if only you where the mastermind so you could spite her.

Makoto: why!?

Siramay: I like spiting people.

So makoto continued to talk to kyoko and she finally remembered her talent the ultimate detective bum bum buuuuum and the headmasters her father, bum bum buuuuuu, so kyoko investigated a lot said the point of the trial was to kill her.

kyoko: The mastermind is adamant about following the rules, and with that rule in place, they couldn't step in. Since they couldn't kill me themselves, they tried to use the class trial to do it.

The mastermind couldn’t step in because of the rules? That makes it sound like...the mastermind themselves is somehow bound by the school regulations.

Siramay: id use the term “bound” loosely makoto they did try to kill you Afterall, there as bond to the rules as a story genie you know because genies are all like “I shall give you whatever you want” and so you are like “I wish I was hot” so they set you on fire because you said you wanted to be hot so technically they granted your wish but they are trying.

So they went on about how makoto could have died.

Kyoko: I can hear them, you know. The footsteps of the god of death.

Makoto: What...?

Kyoko: I can hear the god of death as he moves. That ability naturally draws me into cases, just like this.

Siramay starts tap dancing.

Kyoko: ???

Siramay: hahaha I should stop kidding around, let her continue to talk.

So basically she talks about the whole fiasco and the other ultimate despair, well the true ultimate despair but they don’t know that.

Kyoko: ...what happened a year ago--the biggest, most awful, most tragic event in human history.

Siramay: no no! its the biggest… most awful most tragic event! IN HUMAN HISTORY!!! jazz hands

Kyoko: They're the root of all the evil that has forced us to go through this. *That* is the Ultimate Despair. And that is our real enemy.

END CHAPTER

And then there where 6

Witch brings us to chapter 6!

he Ultimate Despair... A group of people who caused The Tragedy one year ago... Those same people put together this killing game and began broadcasting it around the world. The most desperately awful group of people ever... *That* is the mastermind's true identity. Our enemy has finally been revealed... But right now...

you gotta get out of the trash! and take a bath boy you smell.

so then they went to the door and began climbing A LADDER not me though because I can do this little thing called flying siramay said floating right next to makoto who was gradually climbing the ladder

CHAPTER 6

And so makoto and kyoko began talking about everything really as they talked about kyokos life story.

Siramay: talk about daddy issues, like man like wow.

Makoto: yeah…

Siramay: so, nearing the end aren’t you?

Makoto: that’s what you say.

Siramay: so I guess we should talk since it could be the last time we do personally talk.

Makoto: huh?

Siramay: yeah after you beat zetsu and get out of here I have to leave on my own path who knows when we could see eachother I think it be a few years.

Makoto: a few years!?

Siramay: yeah being a king of villains is a busy job even with being all powerful and immortal so much work, but that’s ok cause the work keeps me stimulated and fulfilled, and that’s like an important factor in life right?

Makoto: I guess, so what do you wanna talk about

Siramay: well that’s the thing I have so many things I want to say to you, but my memory is bad, so I kept on forgetting to tell you because we just got distracted by something else so uh just let me try to grab them …. So hope and despair ay?

Makoto: is it ok to say despair.

Siramay: we’re in the trash shoot he can’t hear us! …she cant hear us? They cant hear us? Hear us? eh but it’s beside the point you know I just think it’s weird.

Makoto: whats weird

Siramay: your worlds twisted definitions on hope and despair that’s what! like I mean look at your definition of hope its like, to keep moving forward and to face adversity head on right? … honestly, that’s noble and if everyone else liked that definition I guess I’d be ok with it but that’s what you think hope is right?

Makoto: right?

Siramay: so what do you think despair is? You think its bad stuff right? You think its all gross nasty evil like zetsu.

Makoto: well….

Siramay: WELL YOU’RE WRONG! All this bad stuff zetsu does aint despair its depravity though the depression is despair because let me tell you the truth of the matter is makoto hope means: a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen. and despair means: the complete loss or absence of hope.

That is all nothing more nothing less, but your universe corrupted those ideals you ruined the balance of hope and despair I mean not you personally but your people! The people

Makoto: what? How? Why?

Siramay: well yes they may have those meanings of hope wanting something to happen and despair being no want, but they also have their other halves as most see hope as good and despair as bad but by their other names you’d see fear as bad and love as good, maybe but hope is fear and despair is love in a way.

Makoto: that makes no sense.

Siramay: yes it does makoto you just need to use your mind and think after all there are many articles about said subject and how hope and fear are just two emotions on the same face… metaphorically not literally after all the Greeks stated it themselves did they not?... did they not? But yes they are two faces of the same emotion it really just depends on the… the whats the term, influences I’d say it depends on what influences your mind whether the desire s that of hope or that of fear. Do you see what I get at?

Makoto: I guess but in a way love is desire but there’s no desire in despair so how they would work.

Siramay: well that’s where your wrong they fit quite well when you think about it after all when you are of true love you stop wanting because you have after all witch is no desire since you have what you desire and now just experience having it but that’s not what I’m talking about this whole topic came from a dream.

Makoto: a dream?

Siramay: yes I was gonna tell you the dream but with all the stuff happening it slipped my mind as so many things do but it was one of my many odd dreams where many things happen with no explanation, water parks, malls strangers who say there my friends and most importantly a testing facility using people as guinne pigs I recall sneaking in and being caught after in witch they sent me in a simulation though I can’t recall what happened in the situation but it was tragedy with a happy ending I recall cause I remember floating with someone I cared about on wood with hope we’d have a better life after the fiasco we just did, whatever it was, you see cause after that the head set was ripped of my head as I saw a mad scientist, both figuratively and literally hahaha he went off on me on a bunch of stuff I wasn’t paying attention to but he said something very important he said to me “you cant have an ending of hope and love those are conflicting ideal!” the rest of the dream went on but that line did make me think when I woke up you know? Hope and love conflicting ideals? How odd a statement cause Afterall if anything hope, and despair are the conflicting ideals unless what he was saying was love is despair? Or would It be despair is love? But thinking about it that actually made a lot of sense but I’m afraid I can’t go on about this tangent, but I will say one thing once you meet the mastermind you’ll understand exactly what I meant when I said love and despair are the same you can’t have one without the other there like twins or lovers or twin lovers!

Makoto: no

Siramay: ok not the last one but lovers definitely

ah yes hope and despair, fear and love the two angels that balanced the universe before everything went wrong.

Makoto: what?

Siramay: well makoto you know that stuff about you being an angel? Well as I am an ALL-POWERFUL BEING WHO CAN BEND THE FABRIC OF THE UNIVERES and make it a lovely sweater for you to wear I think I found some of your worlds history to back up that clam. you see once upon a time in the beginning of the universe the great creator had two beings, angels some say but I digress their names where nozumo and zetsu.

Makoto: but isn’t that-

Siramay: EXSACTLY I had a reason after all, and they helped create the universe and bring it to balance, and oh how they loved eachother… but zetsu felt unappreciated by the world so he fell to darkness and the balance of hope and despair where corrupted to what they are now as zetsu was banished for his crimes and never got to see nozumo again but they still loved eachother greatly its stated in prophecy that their souls are constantly being reborn till the day they can be reunited again, don’t you see makoto all that talk about you being a angel maybe its not just a comparison of your purity maybe you are the reincarnation of the great angel nozumo!

Makoto: what! No that has to be impossible.

Siramay: well I don’t think so I mean after all I’m a king of villains, but there’s a reason I care about you despite that tittle and its your purity, man heroes have a sense of upright self-righteousness, but they never really hold out and it leaves a bitter taste in my mouth and a fire in my hands at their hypocrisy! They are filled with sin that I must punish! But you are different, I look at you and you are so genuinely pure you are truly one of the golden ones.

Makoto: golden ones?

Siramay: eh it’s a name I made up but despite your rarity I have met another man like you he was a handsome fellow he was with wonderful black hair his name was soot and his heart shared your purity, sure he is considerably different more rambunctious and lively but I could still feel that same purity in him, all loving, forgiving and willing to care for all even if others won’t, oh how I loved him… sadly it didn’t work out but he was so pure and his universe shared a level of pureness that despite my villainess I respected the lack of corruption in that world and would hate if others corrupted it so I vow to protect his universe for his sake and I feel that same need with you! Just looking into your eyes I have this sense of not wanting to be evil and if everyone was like you I probably wouldn’t, but sadly many people aren’t like you there are many cruel people and suffering people. And I must bring an end to that. But yes you are so pure, kind and compassionate I care about you greatly and I feel a great pain in my soul if something bad where to happen to you, you make me see how the world could be in spite of the way that it is! now makoto I just want to make one thing clear when I say I care about you. If someone ever hurts you or causes you to suffer… I will make sure that person regrets ever being brought into this universe because you don’t deserve to suffer, and I’d hate to see that.

This scared makoto a bit wondering what siramay would do to said person.

Makoto: p-please don’t cause anyone to suffer on my behalf.

Siramay: ah don’t worry buddy as long as they don’t hurt you I won’t hurt them, after all I find all that despair, depravity, suffering whatever to be quite… dull.

Makoto: you do? But aren’t you evil?

Siramay: makoto just cause I’m evil dosent mean I’m a jerk, personally I’m quite honorable with these things… I think, but yes I don’t enjoy the pain and suffering stuff its just delaying the inevitable really and it makes me uncomfortable especially the ones out of my control after all I am an almighty all-powerful being who’s traveled the multiverse so I’ve seen lots of suffering and I can safely say… siramay was trying to force a word out of himself and stayed silent for a bit.

ITS BORING!

Makoto: ah!

This startled makoto who almost fell but siramay summoned another hand to push him back.

Siramay: I MEAN ITS ALL THE SAME MAKOTO, YOU HURT SOMEONE THEY SUFFER THEY GET SAD OR MAD OR BOTH AND IF YOU CONTIUE THE PROCESS THEY WILL DIE ITS ALL THE SAME ITS ALL THE SAME! WHATS THE POINT OF WATCHING SOMEONE SUFFER LIKE THAT its exhausting I already know they will suffer so whats the point like I don’t care what she said about “despair being unpredictable” SHES A BIG FAT LIAR if you can’t get 2 from 1+1 and learn if you cause someone to suffer they will be sad then I think you might be lying about being ultimate smart cause that’s just really stupid if that’s what you enjoy! if anything I do find the hope more interesting sure I know everything will work out in the end, but peoples hopes to have different emotional flavors makoto! Just seeing someone at the lowest of low when all hope seems lost and your like “oh whats gonna happen how they gonna make it out” and you see that determined look in their eye like OOOOOOUUU see that’s the problem with today’s heroes there getting more depressed like look at how depressed and edgy they are if you’re that depressed please lose so the villain can at least get there happy ending I know they won’t waste that! Or worse! The hero starts out optimistic but then because of the story they get depressed I feel betrayed! What happened to the hero that believed the best could happen, you dirty liar you betray my heart?

But your special makoto! You look death in the eyes and still smile in the name of hope makoto can I tell you something about your future.

Makoto: …..what?

Siramay: you go through some sad things that’s a fact but, even though everything you face, even with all that’s happened and how much you’ve grown and changed by the end of everything you are still you you are still makoto naegi the hopeful boy that walked through the gates of hopes peak from the start and the fact you can still stay strong like that…it’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen in my life.

Makoto: ….really?

Siramay: yes makoto so though I know you are a humble man don’t forget you’re a great guy.

….you know all this talk reminds me of zetsu… the mastermind zetsu not the fallen angel one.

Makoto: what about them?

Siramay: well like I said I believe their whole reason for loving despair to be a bold face lie especially with all they’ve done in their evil plan I mean look at all the bad stuff that’s happened and I knew would happen just shows despairs predictability! But uh that’s not what I mean you see you saw yourself zetsu left many openings and holes in their plan, and while I as a villain find it foolish I know why they do it they said themselves they want to see if you can win make it a fair battle since there super smart, they could have rigged it to be impossible, but they didn’t.

Makoto: wait so we only got this far because she let us?

Siramay: no! well kinda, but don’t disqualify yourself makoto you not dying was completely unpredicted, along with many other things you did but ask yourself makoto, why would they do that and limit themselves.

Makoto: because you said they wanted it to be fair.

Siramay: well yes but actually no cause the way I see it a rigged game is more despair than a fair one just to think it’s all for nothing, oh the tragedy. But they made it fair cause they wanna see if you can win now think about it what would they gain from you winning? nothing! Sure from what I know about them if you asked they’d spout some dumb stuff about “despair of losing” but… call me a fool but I think shes actually hoping you’ll beat her.

Makoto: what? But why would they want that?

Siramay: they feel despair from this to makoto, if you beat them they won’t have to make anyone suffer anymore. No one was able to beat them but maybe you can.

Makoto: but if they don’t want to do it they why don’t they just stop.

Siramay: do you ask an alcoholic why they don’t stop drinking? Or a smoker to stop smoking? or a drug addict why they don’t stop taking drugs?

Makoto: …

Siramay: exactly There is neither happiness nor misery in the world only the comparison of ones state with another nothing more Without hope despair wouldn’t exist because it's very being is measured by hope sure it's the absence but if it were to not exist at all then who's to say despair exists it's like knowing you’re not evil but if evil didn’t exist I can’t call yah good like hope to what I mean to say is Without night who's to say the light is bright?

Oh but look at the time where at the top welp time to make your grad reveal makoto! Oh and one more thing when you do face off against zetsu ask questions but don’t ask if you want an answer ask questions for what she will answer cause there’s no evidence she will say the truth or even anything that makes sense but if you just stop and think about it they actually do say a lot about her even if it’s not what you were asking.

And so makoto finally reached the surface world in the trash room and then kyoko tell makoto to reveal his presence to monokuma talking on how the mastermind is ensnared and so they planned to go to the gym.

Siramay: ok makoto you gotta be strong and intimidate the mastermind show they you know no fear you have seen the face of death and survived.

Makoto: how am I soused to show that.

Siramay: hmmmm……. OH I KNOOOWWW

And so siramay told makoto his plan as makoto went to the gym.

Makoto: whats up guys? I’m back.

Monokuma: what the- you can’t be here. You’re dead. I literally saw you die!

Makoto: death is a social construct.

Siramay: OOOHH HE GOT YAH GOOD MONO! AHAHAHAH

And so monokuma and kyoko where debating makotos life and what it meant if he was killed again and accused monokuma of killing mukuro (the truth) and kyoko went on a bluff about hope and despair and peoples viewpoints witch I guess is a way to look at it I supposes as they were prepared for a final showdown and monokuma excepted of course but it was not just for the mystery of mukuros killer no it was also to find out all the mysteries of the school as we knew it!

Kyoko: When we've uncovered every last truth, how will the Ultimate Desberry reveal their own desrose...?

Makoto: do we really have to do that?

Siramay: I’m not giving monokuma the victory of me saying it one more time.

Monokuma: how dare you try and stifle my metaphorical robotic bear erection!

Makoto: I honestly can't believe how this has all turned out...

And then kyoko asked once more on the rules but while they beat around the bush I shall write in ink their statements if the mastermind is to get caught and in turn lose this trial, like every other failed blacked of the past trials they will die and just because they have status of being the big bad does not change their fate if they are to lose cause there a student to and other hidden things said but I won’t say those.

Monokuma: I'm done talking! I got nothin' left to say to you! So get lost, would ya!?

Makoto: Why so mad!?

Kyoko: He seems...emotionally unstable.

Siramay: NO KIDDING!?

And so makoto was free and they left so makoto thanked kyoko then they talked about how monokuma said this was displayed on the airwaves and how that proves he wants to prove something basically kyokos hypnotists on the mastermind but as its different from my own I will omit it and while this is a case of confirmation bias I as the king of villains do not care for this ethical dilemma and so they planned to meet the others, so they went to the dining hall and saw monokuma.

Monokuma: Skrgh@yaGfew, anji&\krakAW;! fzzlbRff#[]

Makoto: You again...

Monokuma: Hrskzzzz_dat.; EgspllER103.2.1.255

Makoto: Is he...broken?

Siramay: HAHAHAH their mad, you should see the look on their face! There all like

Siramay then pulls out a keyboard and starts smashing their face on it.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Hhhahahahahahahahah oh I love it!

Kyoko: I suppose his emotional instability reached its limit.

Siramay: oh sweet innocent naive kyoko, THERE STABILITY IS GONNA GET MUCH WORSE HAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAH quite the downward spiral.

Monokuma: aG^3. 4sum=(SEN|akt~____ 61!

Then monokuma left

Makoto: Jeez... What the heck?

Course all emotion began to rise with the reuniting of the survivor gang all glad to see makoto alive! though sadly they all backed away cause makoto was stinky from the trash.

Siramay: but you should shower makoto who wants to beat the mastermind all stinky like that.

So they all talked and reunited and then they went to important matters on how it was almost the final showdown to defeat the mastermind once and for all, so it was there job to search and find to discover the secrets that lay barren or die trying though makoto was hopeful, but kyoko less so because they suspected one of them was the mastermind (though not true), but I digress then monokuma unlocked every room for the gang to investigate and then people started splitting up.

Siramay: don’t worry makoto you got me to help yah solve the mysteries of the school! And I got your back!

And so it was time for the final investigation bu bu bu bu bu bu bu bu bu bu bu bu bu it’s the final investigation!

So makoto had to go explore the locked rooms to learn the new lore so first things first he went to the second floor of the dorm room which looked quite like death,

Siramay: mmmmmmm

Makoto: what?

Siramay: with how destroyed these rooms are and with the fact there are 16 students and only 15 rooms I can’t help but have the awful thought in my head that she and mukuro slept together nooooooooo.

Makoto: oh

there were also lockers but at the moment makoto was unable to open them then we finally got to the headmasters room where kyoko was in there trying to open a secret passage, but she couldn’t unlock the password then they talk about little info about the ultimate despair.

makoto: do you know anything about the ultimate despair?

Siramay: besides the fact their tragic jerks and I feel their name should be instead the ultimate depravity? no at least not anything useful at the moment.

So makoto was thinking on what the password for the computer could be and brought up kyokos name though kyoko did not believe this possibility when makoto tried it, it worked which intensified kyokos daddy issues, so they went in the secret room and while there where other things that looked interesting we had to look at the present in the center of the room witch kyoko warned him about it and when makoto opened it he saw THE BONEY REMAINS OF KYOKOS FATHER

Siramay: talk about an awkward “meet the parents situation” this is probably the weirdest one I’ve seen… well actually… nah nah not now you’ll understand later.

Needless to say this was all crazy but then he saw the tragic photo which made kyoko emotional.

Kyoko: *is angsty in daddy issues*

Siramay: you know zetsu had daddy issues too.

Makoto: really?

Siramay: yeah every person they ever called daddy died by their hands.

Makoto: I don’t like the way you worded that.

Siramay: I don’t like the way I worded that either.

So makoto continued to look for other things he even found an emergency handbook that could open everything. Then kyoko asked nicely if makoto could leave so she could be alone

So makoto left and kyoko was alone ;) to ponder her feelings for her dad.

[KYOKO] You were a sub-standard dad. But the only one I had I grew up hearing. Your evil scheming down the hall But when I look at this thing It makes me wanna sing. Maybe You're not so bad a dad, after all. At my first ever swim meet You stepped on the other teams' feet. At my recital You clapped louder than you should.

But this piece of plastic in my hand Makes me finally understand. Maybe you're not so bad a dad. Not so bad a dad after all

youtube

#dragonronpa #siramay #makoto naegi #kyoko kirigiri #the tale of depravity

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theliberaltony · 3 years

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via Politics – FiveThirtyEight

We’re fast approaching President Biden’s 100th day in office and already Congress has passed a massive $1.9 trillion coronavirus aid package; helped usher in Biden’s history-making Cabinet picks; and approved a measure in the House that would give undocumented immigrants, including those currently with temporary protections under the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, a pathway to citizenship.

To understand just how much of the president’s agenda is getting through Congress and the extent to which various members of Congress support that agenda, we’re once again tracking how often representatives and senators agree with Biden and how that compares with our expectations, based on Biden’s 2020 vote margin in the member’s state or district. (If this sounds familiar, it’s because we did the same for former President Trump.) We’ve also added a number of new features to help illustrate how members of Congress vote relative to one another and identify the outliers in each party. (Hint: Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Krysten Sinema of Arizona might not be the only thorns in Biden’s side for the next several years.)

A member of Congress’ “Biden score” is just a simple percentage of how often a senator or representative supports the president’s agenda. (We calculate this by adding the member’s “yea” votes on bills that Biden supported and “no” votes on bills Biden opposed, then divide that by the total number of bills on which that member has voted and we know Biden’s position.) As we did during the Trump administration, we’re relying on the Office of Management and Budget’s “statements of administration policy” to determine the administration’s stance on a bill. To read more about what types of measures we’re tracking, check out our detailed methodology post from 2017 — it’s about Trump-era congresses, but the same rules still apply. And, as a reminder, these ratings will update through the 117th Congress.

It’s early yet — we have just 13 votes that aren’t related to the confirmation of Biden’s Cabinet,1 but there are two interesting trends we’ve noticed at the margins so far:

Republicans are not unilaterally voting against Biden’s agenda

After Biden was elected last year, story after story predicted that Republicans would thwart his agenda as control of the Senate remained in limbo and that Trump retained an ironclad grip on the party. And while the latter is still at least partially true, it’s also not yet entirely clear the extent to which they’re impacting the GOP’s ability to compromise. Republicans, for instance, haven’t entirely stymied Biden’s agenda.

Sure, no Republican in the House or Senate voted in favor of Biden’s COVID-19 relief bill. But in the Senate, many have backed his Cabinet picks, and in the House, Republicans and Democrats have found common ground on bills like reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act and allowing farmworkers a pathway to legal immigration status.

Now, it doesn’t mean these bills featured overwhelming bipartisan majorities, but 140 different House Republicans have voted at least once for something Biden supported. And for some members who fall in this category, the choice appears to be a matter of political caution. Pennsylvania Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, New Jersey Rep. Chris Smith and Michigan Rep. Fred Upton — two of whom represent districts Biden either won in 2020 or was competitive in — are so far the GOP members backing Biden’s agenda most frequently.

House Republicans who back Biden the most

The 11 Republican House members who vote with Biden’s positions most often, and how often we anticipated they’d vote with Biden based on their district’s 2020 vote margin

Representative District 2020 vote margin biden score plus-minus* Brian Fitzpatrick PA-1 D+ 5.8 76.9% -2.1 Chris Smith NJ-4 R+10.5 61.5 +43.8 Fred Upton MI-6 R+4.5 53.8 +20.3 Carlos A. Gimenez FL-26 R+5.6 46.2 +16.4 John Katko NY-24 D+ 9.0 46.2 -42.3 Jeff Van Drew NJ-2 R+2.9 46.2 +6.2 María Elvira Salazar FL-27 D+ 3.2 41.7 -26.0 Don Young AK at-large R+10.1 40.0 +20.8 Tom Reed NY-23 R+11.2 38.5 +21.8 Mike Bost IL-12 R+14.2 33.3 +19.5 Adam Kinzinnger IL-16 R+16.0 33.3 +21.6

*Plus-minus is the difference between a member of Congress’s actual Biden score and his or her predicted Biden score.

Sources: U.S. House, U.S. Senate, Office of Management and budget, Daily Kos, @unitedstates

But not all House Republicans are interested in backing Biden’s agenda. About one-third of members — 72 total — have completely opposed everything on Biden’s agenda so far. This includes Biden’s coronavirus stimulus package, but also things like increasing the waiting period for background checks on gun sales, expanding unionization and collective bargaining rights and an omnibus police reform bill named after George Floyd. (Only a handful of Republican representatives supported these measures.)

One thing we found surprising, though, is that even some of the most pro-Trump House members, according to our tracker of Congress and Trump, have supported at least one item on Biden’s agenda. Take Louisiana Rep. Steve Scalise, for example, the House’s No. 2 Republican who ended Trump’s term with a 98.2 percent Trump score rating overall. He was among the 121 House Republicans who approved a special waiver to allow retired Army Gen. Lloyd Austin as secretary of defense. (Austin’s appointment required this waiver because he had only been retired from the military for four years, instead of the seven years required by law.) Even House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy — who supported Trump’s agenda 97.3 percent of the time — supported the same waiver. Granted, this is the only Biden-supported bill that they’ve backed; as such, both Scalise and McCarthy still rank very low in terms of backing Biden’s agenda with a Biden score of 7.7 percent so far.

In the Senate, every sitting member has supported Biden at least once (yes, even Sens. Ted Cruz, Josh Hawley and Mitch McConnell). An important caveat here, though, is almost all of the Senate votes so far — save for the COVID-19 aid package — were on or related to Cabinet confirmations.

However, the top Senate Republicans backing Biden’s nominations so far shouldn’t come as much of a shock, considering many were long seen as potential Senate swing votes or are members of the so-called G-10 — a group of 10 deal-making moderate Republicans who reportedly want to negotiate with Biden and other Democrats. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine leads the pack with a 91.3 percent Biden score. She’s followed by Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski (90.9 percent), Ohio Sen. Rob Portman (87 percent), Utah Sen. Mitt Romney (87 percent) and South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham (78.3 percent).

The usual suspects back Biden in the Senate

The 10 Republican senators who vote with Biden’s positions most often, and how often we anticipated they’d vote with Biden based on their state’s 2020 vote margin

Senator State 2020 vote Margin Biden Score plus-minus* Susan Collins ME D+ 9.1 91.3% -1.4 Lisa Murkowski AK R+ 10.1 90.9 +18.9 Rob Portman OH R+ 8.0 87.0 +12.3 Mitt Romney UT R+ 20.5 87.0 +29.3 Lindsey Graham SC R+ 11.7 78.3 +8.7 Shelley Moore Capito WV R+ 38.9 77.3 +40.6 Richard Burr NC R+ 1.3 75.0 -7.6 Chuck Grassley IA R+ 8.2 73.9 -0.5 Mitch McConnell KY R+ 25.9 73.9 +22.7 Mike Rounds SD R+ 26.2 73.9 +23.0

*Plus-minus is the difference between a member of Congress’s actual Biden score and his or her predicted Biden score.

Sources: U.S. House, U.S. Senate, Office of Management and budget, Daily Kos, @unitedstates

To be sure, a lot of what we’re seeing now among Republicans is pretty small in the grand scheme of things (i.e., supporting Cabinet nominations isn’t that surprising when Republicans don’t have enough votes to block them). Perhaps we’ll get a better sense of which GOP senators want to work with Biden via Democrats’ big infrastructure proposal, but if Democrats move to pass that via budget reconciliation, we still might not have a sense of who those senators are, as Democrats won’t need their votes. At this point, it’s unclear how many real opportunities for bipartisanship there will be, especially if Biden tries to push items forward that are consistent with what Republican voters want, but aren’t necessarily in line with what their GOP representatives want.

Democrats who don’t side with Biden are in the minority

Meanwhile, most Democrats support Biden 100 percent of the time.

In fact, the only time Senate Democrats have bucked the president’s agenda was when 14 of them voted against granting Austin’s waiver. This wasn’t a major flashpoint in the party, as Austin’s confirmation was never really in jeopardy. Instead, it mostly mirrored what happened when Congress approved a similar waiver in 2017, as many of the same Democrats expressed opposition to making a similar exception for Trump’s former Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis.

At this point, the two senators who have arguably received the most attention as being potential roadblocks to the president’s agenda — Manchin and Sinema — haven’t actually voted against any of the things Biden supports. Now, this is in large part because, again, almost all of the Senate votes so far were on noncontroversial Cabinet confirmations. And any controversial policy proposals both objected to, like raising the minimum wage to $15 per hour, have been cut from the final bill. So the two senators are still exerting their power to block legislation in ways that aren’t captured by our data. That’s why we should keep an eye on these two members — and others from the more moderate wing of the party — going forward, especially when it comes to their votes on Biden’s infrastructure and climate proposals.

In the House it’s much of the same: Representatives who don’t vote with Biden 100 percent of the time are the exception, not the rule. Even members from competitive districts that Biden lost — Iowa Rep. Cindy Axne, Illinois Rep. Cheri Bustos, Pennsylvania Rep. Matt Cartwright and New Jersey Rep. Andy Kim — are completely supportive of the president’s agenda.

There have been some defectors in the lower chamber, though. And those members fall into two main categories: Progressive Democrats who were against supporting the Austin waiver and lawmakers from competitive districts.

Let’s examine the latter category first. Maine Rep. Jared Golden, who won one of the most competitive House districts, only has a 53.8 percent Biden score — the lowest among all House Democrats. Why? Well, Biden lost his district by nearly 8 points last year and Golden only barely wrested his seat out of Republicans’ grip in 2018.

So far, Golden has voted against Austin’s waiver, legislation allowing farmworkers to get legal immigration status, increasing the waiting period for federal gun background checks, requiring background checks for all gun sales and the coronavirus stimulus package, among other things. Beyond Golden, other members in competitive districts to watch are Wisconsin Rep. Ron Kind (76.9 percent Biden score), Texas Rep. Henry Cuellar (92.3 percent) and Texas Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (92.3 percent). Biden either lost their districts or won by fewer than 5 points in 2020, so we can likely expect for them to continue to deviate from Biden’s agenda.

Progressive Democrats have long criticized establishment members of their party as too centrist and cautious, but so far the measure that the largest number opposed was also the Austin waiver. Excluding that, the most liberal Democrats — including New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Missouri Rep. Cori Bush, Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna Pressley and New York Rep. Jamaal Bowman — have supported Biden 100 percent.

So, to recap: Democrats in both chambers are, so far, largely unified, with some more interesting splinters in the House among members facing competitive reelection bids in 2022. And in the Senate, we’ll likely see more fissures among Democratic members as Biden moves to pass more controversial agenda items. At this point, though, it’s hard to know what the progressive wing will do with Biden’s later proposals since they don’t really have the votes to bring legislation to the floor on their own and their main power will be — similar to Manchin and Sinema — in blocking bills.

There’s definitely not enough data to make sweeping statements about how senators and representatives are taking to Biden’s presidency. But at this early juncture, it’s fair to say Republicans might not be completely against compromise and most Democrats will be in lockstep with the president. We’ll continue updating our interactive as more votes are recorded along with publishing stories about the most interesting trends we see as the administration gets to work.

#IFTTT #Politics – FiveThirtyEight #politics #538 #Alex Samuels

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sikereviewdotcom · 4 years

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undercover brother (2002) review

sup been a while but didnt forget about yall and your eager butts to dive head first right in the flooding words coming out of my mouth today gonna rev "undercover brother" (2002), its gonna be solid guys

so we start with an introduction where we talk about how black culture was losing its flavour after the 70s, progress was slowed down n all as we reached 2000 but dont be fooled, its all cause of a buncha events orchastred by "the man"... a big racist mf ig whos also the kkk equivalent of the team rocket boss, sitting in a ig chair, never see his face in the flashbacks or like the bad guy in inspector gadget, more like him ig since we actually see the team R boss face quite often nonetheless, theres a form of mystery folding this whole business... THE MAN acts in the shadows and he hates to see how dark those are, he wants things to be like it used to be back in slavery times good oltime for him but.. not for the fam

ofc then here is introduced THE REAL MAN OF MEN => undercover brother, our hero and damn he has the style of a whole pack of elephants trampling around in pink disco suits every ladies wanna a piece of that sweet fro he is packing up on his head, funky

ngl, the whole way this mov is filmed n edited is sike asf, dope guys especially considerin its actually made in 2002, loving it anyway then were also introduced to the other secondary protags who are from an organisation here to stop The Mans evil doings and careful: undercover bro was actually a solo act until now cause now they gonna collaborate all throughout da mov: its the B.R.O.T.H.E.R.H.O.O.D, with conspiracy brother (tbh a fav here, guys wack like the whole plot guy thinks computer comes from a story involving peanut and idk guys he keeps rambling bout bs which makes him a+ character) smart brother, chief and sister girl (original name/10)

so btw the organization is on a mission rn at the beginning to destroy The Man (lets call him tm for the rest of this rev) financial infrastructure aka funds to stop him better or smthg and it gets spicy as they get caught but ofc undercover bro barges in from nowhere wow big disguise as an old man no one noticed him so like slash bawow boom vlam, bad guys ko and he squeedaddle out of there like twas breeze gg man, he also get fed a nice editing of xrays battle like with a side of kungfu n whatnot, undercover bro knows his stuff

nice sounds effects ah yes btw romantic intrigue with sister girl begins here, its the zinc of the flinch as ub (undercover brother) notices her big wink wink nudge nudge, btw later she is asked to go enlist him in the corps so he can help stop the man with them n shit and he trynna get her in his bed cause thats we this brother is used to, getting laid as soon as he meets a chick, who can resist this dude?

he gots moves, fro, style, skills and also at times he is a pussy but k, not everyones perf sometimes you just simp for a white blond blue eyed woman (spoiler) and crawls on all four looking like a big preppy nerd btw in this review im trynna not spoil the whole plot cause guys, this movie gotta be on yo watch list kay? im not here to ruin this experience in yo life itd be pretty uncool of me so im just gonna state the big lines then its up to you to swoop the tiny ones out of the watch, knot your own breds n stuff

back on the whooper slapping: intro credits roll, we get some nice back story for our hero, making sure we can understand his cause in saving the black peeps from TMs assholery might truth n justice be your guide

so what the big plot then? well yknow how a big antag cant do shit on his own cause hes too busy sticking brooms up his ass in his private quarters? yea well same goes here so there this gay guy who will be twerking later on btw, a scene to behold, rumps to ogle at, so hes a bad guy and gay n gonna do most of the dirty work for TM, whats new? idk what to think of it yknow its a stereotype in movs so ig ok still uncool but ill see it as all in good spirit cause theres bad n good im not excepting this to be the best watch of my life, nah it wasnt either, but i had a good laugh kay? makes up for it cause unlike some here i got no shit up my ass alley its clean scrubbed up n down so i can smoothly take a chillax up n a shit out without a night tormented by constipation, nah its all sliding where it should no pain no sweat

so the big lines is that a war hero whos a black man is gonna become president and wtf no is the only react racist mf could have which is what they have, bad guys gonna stop it from happening at once and the brotherhood aint letting it happens cause obvs something is wrong as every black peeps gonna turn into a stereotype like waddup in this mad world? its all because of the poisonous fried chicken brand TM will get around ty to another poison to make our war hero delusional n so on were also introduced to white evil she-ra later btw, just dropping this in cause undercover brother really wants to make oreos with her n sister girl (his words) ig shes the second love interest, im not too invested in this romantic intrigue it was just necessary not like twas very developped anyway its even more of a bedroom intrigue when it comes the the white blue eyed blond chick, sister girl before hoes yo

whats it in conclusion about this movie? first, the plot: hilarious biznasty worthy a+ bs especially how its turned yknow, the clichés were turned upside down n if not theyre just turned into a big satire of themselves editing + music ? yknow its actually good, and funky asf im digging it, a travel in time nostalgia of times i lived acting is pretty neat its not an ironically good movie cause its hilariously ridiculous in the making way its all about the plot here, plot twists and characters, the whole universe ig like its superior to big mamma sorta plot or maybe im dropping this comparison cause its been a while since i saw big maam, for sure twas under estimated while over brought when this here? it got freshness packed in

the spoiling was light and this is cause this movie got a 69/10 rating jk 8/10 if were gonna be serious, im gonna list wats unwoke n uncool here: 1 gay villain stereot, gotta be honest here its not that big of a deal tme seeing when it was made and how i still laughed yknow idc this much but some could go apeshit over it 2 not enough conspiracy brother content: this is all i ask for 3 had no snacks while watching the movie, too bad id dig a aj or grape soda right about now n then 4 more lines for car wash chicks jk this last one idc about, but car wash representation is lacking once again in american movies, i cant believe how looked over it is, as if they didnt need smore rep in the medias its not an easy job washing car all day long, standin in those ghost buster lookin suit while staring at the hot guys in hot wheelys, whos gonna pay you a drink when youre just an old carwash lady? thought finally a hero would step up in this movie but there it goes thrown out da window, the potential was real until it got blown away sure sister girl was a solid character but give the washers some credits cut them a slack of free time n have a lil date together there on top of a truck to keep it native

nonetheless this is a top rec for anyone who feels like slipping into some conspiracy slippers

tg, out

#undercover brother #sike reviews #movie review #undercover brother review

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frontproofmedia · 3 years

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Gervonta Davis Seeks Title In A Third Division Against Unbeaten Mario Barrios

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Published: May 20, 2021

Top Contender Erickson Lubin and Former Unified Champion Jeison Rosario Battle in WBC Super Welterweight Title Eliminator in Co-Main Event Former Unified Champion Julian Williams Takes On Rugged Contender Brian Mendoza and Hard-Hitting Olympian Batyr Akhmedov Duels Former World Champion Argenis Mendez In Pay-Per-View Action Beginning at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT

ATLANTA – Four-time world champion Gervonta “Tank” Davis will take on a career-defining challenge as he sets his sights on capturing a title in a third weight class when he faces undefeated WBA Super Lightweight Champion Mario “El Azteca” Barrios in a SHOWTIME PPV main event Saturday, June 26 at the award-winning State Farm Arena in Atlanta in an event presented by Premier Boxing Champions. The pay-per-view undercard will feature a battle of two top 154-pound contenders as Erickson “Hammer” Lubin faces former unified champion Jeison Rosario in a WBC Super Welterweight Title Eliminator in the co-main event. Former unified super welterweight champion Julian “J-Rock” Williams returns to the ring for the first time in 18 months to take on Brian Mendoza in a 10-round showdown and hard-hitting Olympian Batyr Akhmedov steps in against former world champion Argenis Mendez in a 12-round WBA Super Lightweight Title Eliminator to kick off the pay-per-view telecast at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT. Tickets for the live event at State Farm Arena, which is promoted by Mayweather Promotions, GTD Promotions and TGB Promotions, go on sale Friday at 10 a.m. ET, and can be purchased at ticketmaster.com. “I am ready for anything Akhmedov brings and then a world title fight after,” said Mendez. “I believe that I beat Hitchins in my last fight, even though I was coming off a long layoff. I’m in great shape right now. Akhmedov is a hard puncher, but the fans are going to see me shine against him. There is a lot left in my tank and that will be obvious to everyone on June 26.” A former super featherweight champion, Mendez (25-6-3, 12 KOs) has a reputation for providing stiff challenges to the sport’s best and has proven to be a durable contender at 140-pounds, including his most recent outing that saw him drop a split-decision to Richardson Hitchins last December. In 2019, Mendez fought to back-to-back draws against super lightweight contenders Anthony Peterson and Juan Heraldez. Born in San Juan de La Maguana, Dominican Republic, Mendez now fights out of Yonkers, N.Y. and owns victories over Eddie Ramirez, Ivan Redkach and former titlist Miguel Vazquez. He has also gone toe-to-toe with former champions Rances Barthelemy and Robert Easter Jr. “I can’t wait to get back in the ring for a big fight on June 26,” said Akhmedov. “I’ve been training hard to get another shot at the title. I know that if I make a big statement and defeat a former world champion in Mendez, I expect my next fight will be for the title. I’m always in exciting fights that fans love, and this matchup is going to be no different.” Born in Uzbekistan and now fighting out of Los Angeles, Akhmedov (8-1, 7 KOs) represented Turkey at the 2016 Olympic games. The 30-year-old turned pro in 2017 and won his first seven pro fights, with six coming by knockout. His lone blemish came in an action-packed title fight against Mario Barrios in September 2019, where he was able to survive two knockdowns to make it a close fight, before eventually losing by decision. Most recently, Akhmedov blasted out Ray Perez in the first round of their September 2020 clash. “This fight against Julian Williams is just the fight I’ve been waiting for,” said Mendoza. “I’m planning to take full advantage of the opportunity. Julian Williams is a great fighter, but after June 26, the whole world is going to know that I belong at this level.” Mendoza (19-1, 13 KOs) earned a career best-victory in his last outing, beating veteran contender Thomas LaManna by unanimous decision in August 2020. The 27-year-old has fought professionally since 2014, with his only defeat coming by a narrow split-decision in November 2019 against Larry Gomez. Mendoza was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where he won two New Mexico Golden Gloves Championships as an amateur, and currently fights out of Las Vegas. “This has been the longest layoff of my career, so I’m excited to get back in the ring,” said Williams. “Mendoza is a decent fighter. I’ve even been in the gym with him and he’s a good guy. But on June 26, it’s going to be all business. I just need to come out on top. He doesn’t have anything that I haven’t seen before. I know he’ll be ready because this is like the Super Bowl for him. So I know he’ll be ready, but I’ll be ready too. If I’m able to get the win, then it’s on to bigger and better opportunities. But I’m definitely not looking past Brian because I know how seriously he’s taking this fight.” Philadelphia’s Williams (27-2-1, 16 KOs) became a unified world champion at 154-pounds in May 2019 when he upset Jarrett Hurd in one of the year’s best fights, winning a close-quarters brawl by unanimous decision. The 31-year-old dropped the titles in his first defense, losing to Jeison Rosario in January 2020. Williams had been riding a five-fight winning streak going into the Rosario matchup, in which he added victories over former champion Ishe Smith and hard-hitting contender Nathaniel Gallimore to his ledger. “I make no excuses for losing the fight to Charlo, but that was then, and this is now,” said Rosario. “I have turned to a new page in my career with my new trainer Herman Caicedo. I will not lose again, especially in this fight against Lubin. He’s a great contender, and I respect his abilities, but I will knock him out on June 26.” Rosario (20-2-1, 14 KOs) will look to climb back into world title contention after losing his 154-pound belts to Jermell Charlo in their September 2020 clash. The 26-year-old captured the WBA and IBF belts by stopping Julian Williams in one of 2020’s biggest upsets. Born in the Dominican Republic and now fighting out of Miami, Rosario rode an eight-fight unbeaten streak into the showdown with Williams, including victories over 154-pound contenders Jamontay Clark, Justin DeLoach, Jorge Cota and Marcos Hernandez. Coming into the Charlo matchup, Rosario had established his power by earning a stoppage victory or scoring a knockdown in seven of his previous nine contests. “I’m so ready for this fight and we’ve been working hard in preparation for Rosario,” said Lubin. “This fight is another step closer to getting that world title shot. Coach Cunningham and I have a great game plan in place. We know this is going to be a tough fight and the fans are going to see a much-improved version of myself. I’ve taken my training to the next level during this training camp. Rosario is a former world champion who I know is going to bring his best, which is going to make for a great night of boxing. This card is stacked, but I’m going to steal the show with an incredible performance. I will not be denied, I’m coming out on top. It's Hammer Time!” The 25-year-old Lubin (23-1, 16 KOs) has put together an impressive five-bout winning streak since a loss to unified 154-pound champion Jermell Charlo in 2017. In his most recent outing, he defeated U.S. Olympian Terrell Gausha by unanimous decision in September of last year. Prior to the victory over Gausha, he became the first person to stop former champion Ishe Smith, in addition to a dominating victory over Nathaniel Gallimore in October 2019. A native of Orlando, Fla., Lubin is trained by acclaimed coach Kevin Cunningham as he continues his quest toward another title opportunity. After a stellar amateur career, Lubin turned pro at 18 years old in 2013, eventually being named “Prospect Of The Year” by ESPN and Ring Magazine in 2016. “Fighting on SHOWTIME PPV is a dream come true and an opportunity that I’m going to take full advantage of,” said Barrios. “Gervonta Davis is a pound-for-pound champion and it’s going to be an honor sharing the ring with him. This fight is my shining moment and the pinnacle of the boxing world, on the biggest stage possible. Boxing fans around the globe will be watching this fight and I’m coming to shock the world. To all my Mexican fans, I'm going to bring this historic victory home for La Raza.” Standing nearly six-feet tall, Barrios debuted as a pro at super bantamweight in 2013 and had success moving up the rankings in the super featherweight division. His first 140-pound bout came in 2017 and saw him increase his power from his previous performances. At super lightweight, Barrios has scored knockouts in every fight except the title-winning performance against Akhmedov, where his power was still on display with a pair of knockdowns. Barrios (26-0, 17 KOs) captured his 140-pound championship in September 2019, scoring two knockdowns and fighting through a cut to win a unanimous decision over previously unbeaten Batyr Akhmedov. The San Antonio-native trains in Oakland, Calif., under the guidance of renowned coach Virgil Hunter. In his most recent outing, Barrios knocked out Ryan Karl in the sixth-round of their clash on the pay-per-view undercard of Davis vs. Santa Cruz. “I’m excited to make history on June 26 in Atlanta and become a three-division world champion,” said Davis. “Atlanta welcomed me with open arms for my fight against Gamboa and I couldn’t wait to come back and headline a spectacular SHOWTIME PPV card. Mario Barrios is an undefeated champion, but he hasn’t ever faced anyone like me before. Moving up to 140-pounds is a big challenge but I’ve been working hard in camp and I’ll be ready. Thank you to my whole team for making this historic boxing event possible. Make sure you get your tickets early because this fight is definitely selling out! Keep supporting me and I’ll fight for you!” in January 2017. At the time, he became the youngest world champion in boxing at age 22. The Baltimore-native also owns knockout performances in world title fights over Jesus Cuellar in 2018 and Yuriorkis Gamboa in 2019. The 2019 triumph over Gamboa came at a sold out State Farm Arena, during a year that also saw him fill venues in his hometown of Baltimore and Southern California.®Davis first burst onto the scene with an explosive knockout victory over Jose Pedraza to win the IBF Junior Lightweight World Title in a star-making performance on SHOWTIME Davis (24-0, 23 KOs) delivered a highlight-reel knockout in his last fight, producing another sensational and memorable performance that has made him a popular draw throughout the country. Davis stopped four-division champion Leo Santa Cruz with one powerful uppercut in that October 2020 fight and put Santa Cruz down and out for the first time in his illustrious career. Promoted by Mayweather Promotions, Davis will make his second headline appearance on pay-per-view as he has asserted himself as a must-see headline attraction in his first pay-per-view “Gervonta Davis is looking to become a three-division world champion, and has a big undertaking in front of him in challenging Barrios for his WBA title at 140-pounds,” said Leonard Ellerbe, CEO of Mayweather Promotions. “Barrios is a warrior, and this is going to be Davis’ toughest fight to date. Atlanta, be ready for a show on June 26!” One of boxing’s biggest stars at just 26-years-old, Davis moves up to 140-pounds for the first time in his career as he aims to add super lightweight champion to his stellar resume. Davis has already captured titles at 130 and 135-pounds. With a victory, Davis will hold world championships in three different divisions simultaneously, a feat only accomplished by a few fighters in history, including Henry Armstrong and Canelo Alvarez. Standing in his way is the undefeated 25-year-old Barrios, who owns a 9-0 record with eight knockouts during his 140-pound reign while holding a six-inch height advantage over Davis.

#HF #Gervonta Davis #Mario Barrios #Mayweather Promotions #Showtime PPV

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aurora-borealis-love · 4 years

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From

Brig Inder Mohan Singh (Retd)

KARTARPUR SAHIB VISIT.

I begin with a quote from Bhakt KabirJi in Guru Granth Sahib :-

AWWAL ALLAH NOOR UPAYA, KUDRAT KE SAB BANDE

EK NOOR TE SAB JAG UPJIYA, KAUN BHALE KO MANDE.

On 12 Jan along with three other veterans I went to Kartarpur Sahib. Lt Col H S Kahlon, Vr C Arty 26 NDA, Col S S Bhullar, 18 Cav and self travelled together. Col Mukhtiar Singh, Arty 1979 travelled separately with his wife.

Application: Application has to be made minimum 15 days ahead of travel, on line, at [email protected]. Scanned copy of Indian Passport, first and last page and a photo along with some details are sent. Foreign passport holders only with OCI card can travel. Rest through Pak visa. Arrange for police verification same day as you get a notice from the local police station the next day. In 4 to 5 days you get acknowledgement of your application. Final permission comes 4 days before day of visit.

Issue is why fresh police verification required? It is a formality completed by two neighbours of your area.

The final confirmation says "You MAY download the ETA...". It is MUST. It should say ETD. You need to carry the printed letter. If not, an enterprising guy from a close by village has pasted his mobile number at the first check post and he gets you a copy in about 30 minutes for Rs 20.

Checks At ICP. After two checks on the road leading to the ICP, one by Punjab Police and another by BSF you enter the car park.

At the ICP you have to show your passport and the travel permit more times than to enter an aircraft for a flight to USA or Europe. Finger prints at the immigration counter, mine seldom work and a photograph are part of the check. Customs check. You declare the currency being carried. Do carry USD 20. Out of the ICP in about 30 mins you are taken in an electric cart about 150 metres to the Zero line. Checked once again you walk across the Radcliffe Line.

Pak ICP. From the Zero line you are taken in electric carts to the Pak ICP about 200 metres away. You get entry permit by paying USD 20. You can also pay in Indian currency. Enter the ICP. Thankfully less checks on Pakistan side. Passport and photo done, you get to the Customs check and out of ICP. You board a bus for the 3 km ride to the shrine.

Our First Impression. Entering Pakistan we wished all of them, the cart driver, Rangers, FIA, currency deposit counter, immigration officials and the customs staff Sat Sri Akal and As- Salam-u-Alaykum. All conversation in Punjabi. What a feeling. When told we are ex faujis we got more respect than other visitors. The Customs Officer made us sit and get the check done separately whilst others were in the queue. Where is this animosity towards Indians and that too ex faujis? Not me. Ask anyone who has visited the place their experience. You are given a card to be worn at all times during the visit.

The Gurudwara. A few minutes' drive across the Ravi takes you to the Gurudwara. A young Sikh lady, Andleeb Kaur briefs you about the layout. Asked her about the non Sikh sounding name she said it's a Persian word. Its Nightingale. I asked her any problems she and others faced. Coming from Narowal, 16 km away, she said no problems at all.

It is amazing to see the works done by the Pakistan govt and the Pakistan Gurudwara Committee. Our SGPC and the Kar Sewa Babas must learn from them. The original Gurudwara building, made by Maharaja Bhupinder Singh is not touched except for painting. It's still a brick structure. The massive area around it, Baradari I should say, on three sides and the huge area in between is beautifully constructed. The Sarovars are like a pool in a 5 Star resort. Pilgrims not aware plus may be the winter cold saw it unused. As the story goes Guru Nanak's mortal remains were not found as Muslims and Sikhs argued over the last rites. The Gurudwara has a mazar just a few feet outside where the Muslims buried one half of the Baba's robe in accordance with their faith and a small enclosure inside the building where the Sikhs performed the last rites with the other half.Both communities had claimed Babaji as their own Peer/Guru.

The Granth Sahib is on the first floor. The space inside is slightly smaller than the Harmandar Sahib in Amritsar.

There is a well a few feet away which was used by Guru Nanak to water the fields. A small tail of an exploded bomb is displayed there. The writing says an IAF attack missed the Gurudwara building and landed in the well. I leave it at that.

The Baradari on two sides have long halls with thick mattresses, clean white sheets and pillows for pilgrims to spend the night. More for locals and those on visitor Visa. We have to return by 4 PM.

The Langar. A large hall, spic and span with a modern kitchen. The Aloo Vadi, Rajma, rice, chappatis, pickle and sewian langar followed by tea was memorable. All sewadars serving food and cooks are Pakistani muslims. The langar is practically Muslim run. Indian pilgrims do take part in cleaning the plates etc.

Experience from Meeting Pakistanis. Greetings are very well reciprocated. It will pleasantly shock readers of this post that more Pakistani Muslims visit the place than Indians. And they too have to show their ID and get a card to display around their necks. They are not from close by areas alone. Lahore, Multan, Gujrat, Sindh, Bahawalnagar and many more places. Met one Hindu Sindhi family from Sukkur. Asked them how was life. We hear lot of problems they face. NONE they said. Met a group of ladies from Lahore. The eldest, close to 80 said she was born in Delhi. All came from USA and Canada. We branded the Bajwa - Sidhu hug as anti national. What would you say when the elderly Pakistani lady was emotional and repeatedly held us in a hug.

The visit is special for Punjabis. You realise how strong this bond is vis a vis the hatred spread by the politicians. They wanted to know where we came from. One group which had migrated from Ludhiana was thrilled we were all from Ludhiana. They belonged to two villages, one Sherpur near Jagraon and the other Mundian near Ludhiana. Others wanted to know if anyone was from Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur and other parts of Punjab. Some wanted to know the surnames. One was a Waraich. So many common names. The immigration guy asked me are there Dhaiyas in Punjab. I said yes, few Sikhs, more Haryana Jats. He was one himself. There was a Bajwa policeman. We spoke to scores of groups. Teachers, bankers, students, young and old, men and women. Not one showed any ill will towards India and Indians. One of them left a lasting memory. Is the water in Ravi different on both sides he asked? They only said they wished greater friendship, meetings, travels etc.

I remember what late Kuldip Nayyar said many times. Leave the Indo Pak problems to Punjabis. The politicians, bureaucrats and foreign ministry guys from other states will not resolve any problem. This is confirmed after my visit.

The Return. There are about 15 shops outside the gurudwara complex selling handicrafts, dry fruits, desi juttis, women's dresses etc. Some accept Indian currency, some ask for it to be exchanged at a exchange counter. The passport is again checked by the Pakistan side before leaving the Gurudwara complex. You board the bus back. Same customs and immigration check. Board electric carts. Repeat checks on Indian side. Since most of the visitors are of higher age group, one wheel chair bound old lady was helped in getting into the cart and another elderly also lifted made a Pakistani Ranger remark in Punjabi, " ki gal a,saare budhe aa rahe ne". My prompt reply: The young are lining up in the queue for Canada, Australia, New Zealand. Brought laughter all around.

We profusely thanked the BSF personnel on return.

This is what Guru Gobind Singh ji said :

MANAS KI JAAT SABHE EKE PEHCHANBO.

What an experience. Pray this initiative brings the countries and communities together once again. Looks it will happen some day.

For all those who harbor animosity towards Pakistanis please visit Kartarpur Sahib and meet even one person with hatred towards India and Indians.

My heartfelt thanks to PMs Modi and Imran, Gen Bajwa and a Japhi to Navjot Sidhu who made it happen.

Inder Mohan

Photos sent separately.

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trilotechcorp · 7 years

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New Post has been published on PBA-Live

New Post has been published on http://pba-live.com/paulie-malignaggi-i-want-to-make-conor-mcgregor-better/

Paulie Malignaggi: I want to make Conor McGregor better

When UFC superstar Conor McGregor secured a boxing license in California in February as part of his efforts to land a mega boxing match with Floyd Mayweather, former two-division world titleholder Paulie Malignaggi was one of his biggest critics.

Malignaggi ridiculed McGregor on social media, at one point telling him he was “going to knock the beard off you homie. You are going to be apologizing for everything you have been trying to do to get into boxing.”

Fast forward five months and, oh, how times have changed.

First, the unthinkable is happening. The all-time great Mayweather (49-0, 26 KOs) is exiting a two-year retirement at age 40 to face the 28-year-old McGregor in his pro boxing debut. They are scheduled to meet in a massively hyped 12-round junior middleweight fight on Aug. 26 (Showtime PPV) at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

And maybe even more improbable than the fight being made is this: Malignaggi will soon be headed to training camp to serve as one of McGregor’s main sparring partners to help ready him for the combat.

Say what?

Even Malignaggi is surprised that McGregor has invited him to camp.

Last month, Dean Byrne, an Irish welterweight Malignaggi used to train with in Los Angeles, and with whom he has been friends for years, got in touch with him. Byrne’s brother, Gerry Byrne, works with McGregor and Dean was reaching out to Malignaggi at his brother’s behest to see if Malignaggi would be interested in sparring with McGregor in preparation to fight Mayweather.

“I told him, sure, pass along my number. If they want to spar, let me know. I haven’t been training but I could get in shape,” Malignaggi said. “Nobody called and I forgot about it.”

Then, on June 18, Malignaggi was at the airport in Las Vegas headed home to New York after having worked the British telecast of the Andre Ward-Sergey Kovalev light heavyweight title rematch the previous night, when his phone rang.

It was Gerry Byrne asking if he would be interested in helping McGregor get ready for the big fight.

“I told him I wasn’t in great shape, but let me talk to my team,” Malignaggi said. “I spoke to my team, they gave me the OK and I told Gerry, OK, let’s make a deal and work this out and I would go to camp with McGregor.”

Malignaggi won world titles at junior welterweight and welterweight and faced many big names, including Miguel Cotto, Ricky Hatton, Zab Judah, Danny Garcia and Adrien Broner. But he is now best known as a boxing commentator on Showtime in the United States and Sky Sports in the United Kingdom. In fact, he was already retired from the ring when Gerry Byrne called him.

Malignaggi (36-8, 7 KOs), 36, traveled to London on March 4 and got knocked out in the eighth round by Sam Eggington. Two days later, on March 6, the 19th anniversary of his first boxing match as an amateur, Malignaggi announced his retirement.

He has no plans to return to the ring as an active fighter, saying he will leave it at sparring with McGregor.

“I’ve started working out because I need to be in some shape for the sparring,” Malignaggi said. “McGregor has been training in Ireland but in a few more weeks when they come to Las Vegas is when I will join him in camp. It looks like that’s the plan.”

Malignaggi said any negative comments he may have made about McGregor’s attempt to box one of the all-time greats in his pro boxing debut have been forgotten. Now, his goal is help the man be as prepared as he can for what most view as an unwinnable fight.

“I was a speed and reflex fighter, so is Floyd, so there’s that,” Malignaggi said. “I think they also picked me for my boxing brains and to give my two cents. If I’m there I’m there to help and do my part to improve him and get him ready for this big opportunity. I’d like to think there were several different reasons I was called. I am looking to make things happen for him.”

Malignaggi said he and McGregor have never met, so when he arrives at camp it will be the first time. He said McGregor is showing how serious he is about giving himself the best chance to perform well against Mayweather by hiring one of his most vocal critics.

“When he got his boxing license in California, I was one of the guys calling him out and talking crap,” Malignaggi said. “I admit that. So I was really surprised they called me. He’s putting his pride aside to maximize his opportunity to win this fight. They wanted me for my boxing ability and my boxing brain.

“I think it really shows Conor’s willingness to win in that he is ready to do what he has to, including swallowing his pride, by having his team call me. In that way it made me respect him more.”

McGregor is a massive underdog in the fight, so even if Malignaggi is not expecting him to pull off the upset he at least wants to help him as best as he can.

“I think at the end of the day you’re looking to make improvements in him,” Malignaggi said. “Winning the fight is up to Conor. I want to see improvements and I want to make him better than he would have been without me in camp. I will do my part.

“I’m not your average sparring partner because the competitive part of my career is over. I am going there to be of help to him, not to make a name for myself. I expect the sparring sessions to be intense. I am going there to improve the fighter so he can be as ready as he can for his fight. I’m not going to do it so much for the money but because I believe this is the biggest sporting event of the year with the Super Bowl and the Champions League final in soccer. This is the biggest boxing event of the year.”

Malignaggi admitted a McGregor win is a long shot.

“Realistically, to ask Conor to win the fight is a big ask,” Malignaggi said. “But maybe he can win moments of the fight or certain rounds. If he’s winning certain moments of the fight, even if he loses in the long run, people will talk more about what Conor did than Floyd winning.”

Working with McGregor in training camp will also give Malignaggi a unique perspective when it comes to fight night. He will be working the Showtime PPV telecast as an analyst and will certainly know what McGregor showed him in camp. He also has called several of Mayweather’s bouts.

“On fight night I will be able to share a lot of things,” Malignaggi said. “It will make for some pretty cool stuff talking up the fight. It’s exciting to be part of possibly the biggest sporting event of the year. I didn’t expect it and gives me a reason to get in shape.”

Source: http://www.espn.com/boxing/story/_/id/19893835/paulie-malignaggi-want-make-conor-mcgregor-better

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theliberaltony · 6 years

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via Politics – FiveThirtyEight

Welcome to Pollapalooza, our weekly polling roundup.

Poll of the week

Charlie Baker, Larry Hogan and Phil Scott should get T-shirts made up. In the first quarter of 2018, according to Morning Consult, they were the first-, second- and fourth-most-popular governors in America.1 And that’s despite sharing one surprising commonality: They are Republicans in three of the country’s bluest states. If they were a band, they’d be called Maroon Three — red castaways enisled in a sea of blue.

This week, Morning Consult released their updated ranking of America’s most popular governors, and, like last quarter again, Baker and Hogan topped the list. A full 69 percent of voters in Massachusetts — whose FiveThirtyEight partisan lean2 is 24 points more Democratic-leaning than the nation at large — approved of the job Baker was doing, while only 17 percent disapproved. The story was almost exactly the same in Maryland, another D+24 state: Hogan received a 68 percent approval rating and a 17 percent disapproval rating.

But Scott might get voted off the island. While he had a 65-21 approval-disapproval rating among Vermonters in the first quarter, he has fallen to 47 percent approval, 42 percent disapproval in this week’s findings, tarnishing his both-sides-of-the-street cred. The likeliest reason for the plummet in his popularity is a landmark gun-control law he signed in April amid protests in this historically gun-friendly state.

The new numbers cast doubt on the widely held assumption that Scott will cruise to re-election in 2018. But if he is indeed in danger, it may be in the Aug. 14 GOP primary rather than the general election. That’s because his popularity has eroded dramatically among Vermont’s Republicans, dropping by 26 points since last quarter. According to Morning Consult, Scott amazingly now has a higher approval rating among Democrats (who approve of him 61 percent to 31 percent) than Republicans (who disapprove 56 percent to 41 percent). If he survives his primary challenge from a pro-gun business owner, Scott still starts in a good position to win the votes of the state’s many Democrats.

And he’s not alone in his cross-party appeal. Baker is about equally popular among Democrats (who approve of him 70 percent to 17 percent) and Republicans (who approve 69 percent to 20 percent). Hogan can’t boast the same, but I imagine he’s still pretty happy with his support across the political spectrum: 62 percent of Democrats approve of his performance vs. 23 percent who disapprove. Republicans approve of him 82 percent to 10 percent.

Those numbers sound impressive — and they are — but they’re not as unusual as you might think. Support for governors frequently defies partisanship, at least if you define “partisanship” by people’s presidential preferences. Gubernatorial elections have gotten more nationalized in recent decades, but many voters still see state and federal elections as fundamentally different ballgames. There is basically no correlation between each governor’s net approval rating3 in the latest Morning Consult poll and his or her state’s partisan lean. Some governors are right in line with the partisanship of their states, such as Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee (a +18 net approval rating in D+13 Washington). But others have brands that distinguish them from their parties and make them way more popular (or unpopular) than partisanship alone would predict.

We can quantify each governor’s “Popularity Above Replacement Governor” (or PARG) by measuring the distance between their net approval rating and their state’s partisan lean. By this measurement, Scott is still doing pretty well. He’s 31 points more popular than a generic Republican “should” be in Vermont, good for the seventh-highest score in the country.

Introducing ‘Popularity Above Replacement Governor’

Governors’ net approval rating relative to the partisan lean* of their state

Governor State Name Party Net Approval State Partisan Lean PARG Massachusetts Baker R +52 D+24 +76 Maryland Hogan R +51 D+24 +75 Montana Bullock D +20 R+21 +41 Nevada Sandoval R +37 D+1 +38 New Hampshire Sununu R +39 R+1 +38 Louisiana Edwards D +14 R+22 +36 Vermont P. Scott R +5 D+26 +31 North Carolina Cooper D +22 R+6 +28 Georgia Deal R +31 R+8 +23 Colorado Hickenlooper D +23 D+2 +21 Alabama Ivey R +50 R+29 +21 Virginia Northam D +21 D+2 +19 Texas Abbott R +30 R+13 +17 Florida R. Scott R +19 R+3 +16 Minnesota Dayton D +16 D+1 +15 Delaware Carney D +24 D+11 +13 Mississippi Bryant R +30 R+19 +11 Indiana Holcomb R +29 R+19 +10 Pennsylvania Wolf D +7 R+2 +9 South Dakota Daugaard R +37 R+29 +8 Ohio Kasich R +15 R+8 +7 Washington Inslee D +18 D+13 +5 South Carolina McMaster R +20 R+16 +4 Tennessee Haslam R +30 R+27 +3 Arkansas Hutchinson R +31 R+29 +2 Utah Herbert R +29 R+28 +1 New Jersey Murphy D +11 D+12 -1 Missouri Parson R +18 R+19 -1 Kansas Colyer R +18 R+23 -5 Oregon K. Brown D +3 D+9 -6 Iowa Reynolds R +1 R+8 -7 North Dakota Burgum R +27 R+34 -7 Wisconsin S. Walker R -8 R+1 -9 Arizona Ducey R -2 R+7 -9 Maine LePage R -14 D+4 -10 Nebraska Ricketts R +16 R+27 -11 New York Cuomo D +9 D+21 -12 New Mexico Martinez R -19 D+6 -13 Michigan Snyder R -15 EVEN -15 Wyoming Mead R +32 R+47 -15 Rhode Island Raimondo D -2 D+16 -18 Illinois Rauner R -33 D+14 -19 Idaho Otter R +12 R+34 -22 California J. Brown D +2 D+26 -24 Hawaii Ige D -7 D+32 -39 West Virginia Justice R -4 R+41 -45 Kentucky Bevin R -28 R+31 -59 Connecticut Malloy D -50 D+12 -62 Oklahoma Fallin R -55 R+38 -93

Note: A Democratic governor with a net approval of +2 in an R+7 state has a PARG of +9 (2+7 = 9). If the same state had a Republican governor with the same approval rating, the PARG would be -5 (2-7= -5). Alaska’s Bill Walker was omitted from this list because he’s an independent.

*A state’s partisan lean is the average difference between how the district voted and how the country voted overall in the last two presidential elections, with 2016 weighted 75 percent and 2012 weighted 25 percent.

Sources: Morning Consult, Daily Kos Elections

It’s not surprising that the two governors with the highest PARG are also the two most popular governors overall. Think about it: If a governor appeals only to their own party, there’s a ceiling on how popular they can become. (Even the most lopsided state in the 2016 election, Wyoming, gave only 68 percent of its votes to President Trump.) To break through that barrier, you need to have crossover appeal. When you’re a Republican in a dark-red state, there’s no real incentive to build on that base — you’re going to win your next election anyway. But Republicans in blue states (and Democrats in red states) are forced to win over voters on the other side. Otherwise, they can’t get elected. As long as those voters continue to approve of their actions in office, the sky’s the limit for these governors’ approval ratings.

Other polling nuggets

An NBC News/Marist poll that was making the rounds Wednesday included some stunning numbers from a trio of Midwestern states. When asked whether Trump deserves re-election, Michigan voters said 62 percent to 28 percent that someone else should be given a chance. Minnesota voters agreed 60 percent to 30 percent, as did Wisconsin voters, 63 percent to 31 percent. The problem, though, with these types of polls is that a presidential election is a choice, not a referendum. It’s easy for voters to hear a question like that and measure up Trump against their ideal candidate. But the Democrats’ 2020 nominee won’t be every voter’s ideal candidate, and Trump won’t lose these states by 30-plus points, either.

Americans are split on Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh. According to a Quinnipiac poll, 40 percent of voters said the Senate should confirm him, while 41 percent said it should not. Eighty percent of Republicans but only 11 percent of Democrats said Kavanaugh should be confirmed.

33 percent of Americans approve of Trump’s handling of his summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki this month, according to an ABC/Washington Post poll; 50 percent disapprove. That’s in line with the Quinnipiac poll, which found 27 percent said the summit was a success, while 52 percent said it was a failure.

33 percent of Americans said they think the FBI is “biased against the Trump administration,” as opposed to “just trying to do their job,” according to a Marist poll. That’s up from 23 percent in February.

A poll from the Pew Research Center found a decline in the FBI’s favorability from 71 percent in September 2016 to 65 percent now. That may not seem like much of a change, but the topline numbers mask a growing partisan divide.

A Monmouth University poll shows that Democrat Conor Lamb has a double-digit lead on Republican Keith Rothfus in Pennsylvania’s 17th District. The district was newly drawn from bits of other districts by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, making this the only House race that pits incumbents against each other.

A YouGov poll found that 49 percent of Americans said they believe it is either “definitely” or “probably” true that millions of illegal votes were cast in the 2016 presidential election. That includes 42 percent of Democrats as well as 59 percent of Republicans.

In addition to the governors survey, Morning Consult also released job approval numbers for every member of the Senate. Vermont’s Bernie Sanders had the highest approval rating, while Kentucky’s Mitch McConnell had the highest disapproval rating.

70 percent of Americans said in a YouGov poll that, of the five senses, they would miss sight the most if they lost it; 7 percent said they would miss hearing the most, 5 percent said taste, 3 percent said touch, and 2 percent said smell.

48 percent of registered voters said in a Morning Consult poll that the label “milk” should not be used to market non-dairy beverages; 23 percent said the label should be used. That comes after the head of the FDA suggested last week that non-dairy products may not meet the FDA’s official definition of milk, noting that “an almond doesn’t lactate.”

Trump approval

This week, Trump’s net approval rating sits at -11.7 percentage points, according to our tracker: 41.3 percent approve of his job performance and 53 percent disapprove. Last week, the spread was a bit smaller, at -11.0 points (a 41.8 percent approval rating compared with a 52.8 percent disapproval rating). He was slightly more popular a month ago, when his net approval rating was -9.5 points. Back then, 42.2 percent approved and 51.7 percent disapproved of his performance.

Generic ballot

According to FiveThirtyEight’s model of generic congressional ballot polling, 48.1 percent of voters prefer Democrats and 39.9 percent prefer Republicans. That 8.2-point margin has reverted to the mean a bit from Democrats’ unusually wide 9.3-point lead (Democrats 48.7 percent, Republicans 39.4 percent) last week, but it’s definitely much better for them than the 5.7-point lead (Democrats 46.4 percent, Republicans 40.7 percent) they held this time last month.

Check out all the polls we’ve been collecting ahead of the 2018 midterms.

#IFTTT #Politics – FiveThirtyEight #politics #538 #Nathaniel Rakich and Dhrumil Mehta

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frontproofmedia · 3 years

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Who Can Defeat Canelo Alvarez?

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By Hector Franco

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Published: January 29, 2021

Boxing fans are now less than a month away from the in-ring return of arguably the best fighter in the world pound-for-pound, Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (54-1-2, 36 KOs).

Alvarez will be making one of the quicker turn arounds of his career when he defends his WBA and WBC Super Middleweight titles against WBC mandatory challenger, Avni Yildirim (21-2, 12 KOs).

Yildirim isn’t an elite fighter, and in his previous bout in February 2019, he lost a decision to Anthony Dirrell after the bout was stopped due to a clash of heads.

The news of Yildirim being Alvarez’s next opponent was met with apathy as the continuation of the title belt organizations forcing fighters to face at times what would be considered less than stellar opposition has felt like more of a nuisance over the last few years.

The expectation is that Alvarez should quickly dispatch the Turkish fighter.

In his most recent bout, the Mexican fighter put on one of the best performances of his career, winning a dominant unanimous decision over the United Kingdom’s Callum Smith.

It seems now at 30 years of age, Alvarez is at his peak as a fighter, having put together all of the teachings from his trainer Eddy Reynoso to go along with the best resume in the sport sans Manny Pacquiao.

The expectations are at their highest with Alvarez as winning will now be just as important as how he wins. There is also the expectation that Alvarez will forego the standard two-fight a year program that boxing has been on for the past 20 plus years and step in the ring at least three times in 2021.

After Yildirim, fans will demand that the Mexican fighter step in the ring with a fighter who stands a chance at defeating him.

The question is, which fighter has the best chance at toppling the pound-for-pound superstar?

JERMALL CHARLO (31-0, 22 KOs)

Houston, Texas’ Jermall Charlo currently holds the WBC Middleweight title.

Last September, Charlo defeated top Middleweight contender Sergiy Dereveyanchenko, firmly establishing himself as one of the top Middleweights in the world.

The Ukrainian Derevyanchenko gave current IBF Middleweight titleholder Gennadiy Golovkin all he could handle in October 2019 and came close to defeating Daniel Jacobs in 2018. Charlo’s performance against the Ukrainian eclipsed those of his contemporaries.

Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe feels that Charlo is now the best fighter at Middleweight and would beat Alvarez should they ever meet in the ring.

“Jermall Charlo is the best Middleweight in the world right now,” Ellerbe stated to BoxingScene.com. “There are few other guys at 160, namely Canelo, who will have something to say about that. Jermall is on a mission to prove something to the world. Jermall’s style is all wrong for Canelo. They would never put him in there with Charlo. I don’t think Canelo goes anywhere near Jermall. He’s an animal.”

Unfortunately for Charlo, Alvarez recently relinquished his WBA Middleweight title, making it unlikely that he will return to the division.

However, Charlo may be willing to move up to Super Middleweight as he stands at 6 feet compared to Alvarez’s 5’8.

Charlo represents a challenge, and unlike many of the available opponents for Alvarez, the Texas native could make for a major pay-per-view event that could have a large crowd if the bout were to take place in Texas.

CALEB PLANT (20-0, 12 KOs)

On paper, Caleb Plant, the IBF Super Middleweight champion out of Nashville, Tennessee, looks to be a stylistic nightmare for Alvarez.

Plant is younger and bigger than Alvarez, with an ability to fight off the back foot using lateral movement with fast hands.

While Alvarez has alleviated many of his past weaknesses, such as fighting in spurts, he still has slow feet. If Alvarez is unable to close the distance against Plant, he could find himself behind on points.

Plant will be making the third defense of his IBF title against Caleb Truax this upcoming weekend.

If Alvarez’s goal is to become the undisputed champion at Super Middleweight, starting with Plant would be a step in the right direction.

“I know that’s a fight that me and him both want,” Plant said to DAZN’s Brian Kenny in an interview. “At some point, me and Canelo are going to get in there and do our thing. We will have our showdown, and when we do, I can promise you it’s going to be fireworks. I think Canelo is a great fighter, but I feel like I have all the tools and the weapons to beat him. I will get my hand raised when we fight, I can assure you that.”

GENNADIY GOLOVKIN (41-1-1, 36 KOs)

At 38 years of age, IBF Middleweight champion Gennadiy Golovkin is no longer at his best. In his last two performances, he struggled against Sergiy Derevyanchenko and scored a seventh-round stoppage against the relatively unknown Kamil Szeremeta in a mandatory defense of his title.

Golovkin may not be the threat to Alvarez he was when they first fought in September 2017; he does represent potentially the most significant payday out of any opponent.

Their first two meetings sold over a million buys on pay-per-view, and their rematch won the 2018 fight of the year award from numerous publications.

Their first fight ended in a highly controversial draw, and in the second encounter, Alvarez won a disputed majority decision.

Alvarez is currently at his best while Golovkin seems to have left his best days behind him; however, their previous bouts were closely contested, with a majority of fans and pundits having Golovkin winning both bouts.

The question would be if Golovkin could be to Alvarez what Juan Manuel Marquez was to Manny Pacquiao?

A rival that gives you trouble no matter where they are in their career.

“I don’t have anything to prove to anyone, I did my job already by beating him twice, and right now, I want to stay at 168, and if Golovkin wants to move up, we’ll see what happens, if that’s what the fans really want,” Alvarez stated to The Ring. “I’m at 168, and I don’t have to do any favors for anyone. I’m at 168, and our goal is to unify here.

“I feel like I’m at my peak, and I continue working hard. If a fight happens a third time with Golovkin, I feel so good that I could most likely knock out and do some serious damage.”

Alvarez would undoubtedly be the favorite in a rubber match against the Kazakhstani puncher. However, based on how their previous encounters turned out, Golovkin could still prove to be a worthy challenge.

ERROL SPENCE JR (27-0, 21 KOs)

Along with Golovin and Charlo, Errol Spence Jr. represents a substantial potential payday for Alvarez. Both Spence and Alvarez have had bouts at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, and a fight between the two could fill up a stadium.

However, how much of a chance does the unified Welterweight champion have against Alvarez?

Spence recently returned to the ring in December 2020 after a severe car crash and won a unanimous decision over top Welterweight contender Danny Garcia.

The performance against Garcia was impressive as he shut down the Philadelphia fighter while controlling the range in which the fight was fought.

But, it didn’t provide enough evidence to predict him to come out victorious against Alvarez.

The Texas native is big for the Welterweight division, but it’s unknown how well he would do at Junior Middleweight, let alone at Middleweight.

“I think it’s a great fight, especially at 160,” Spence said to DAZN’s Chris Mannix regarding a fight with Alvarez. “I’m a guy that sucks down to 147. I mean, I really think that a lot of people see probably 80 or 70 percent of who I really am at 147 pounds. I’m holding around because I wanted to be undisputed champion at 147, but if there’s a great fight at 160, I can definitely go up to 160 and fight easy.

“I think it’d be an all-out-war. Have it at AT&T Stadium, 100-thousand plus.”

At 31, Spence still has unfinished business at Welterweight with Terence Crawford, but should an opportunity arise to face Alvarez, a more well-known and accomplished fighter; he should take it.

DEMETRIUS ANDRADE (29-0, 18 KOs)

WBO Middleweight champion Demetrius Andrade hasn’t secured a major fight with any of the other top Middleweights. Despite fighting on the same streaming network (DAZN) as Alvarez and Golovkin, he has yet to face either man.

At 32, the southpaw from Providence, Rhode Island, has a relatively thin resume and is arguably unproven. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that Andrade wouldn’t be a formidable opponent for Alvarez.

Andrade has a vast amateur background winning numerous Golden Glove championships, and is a fighter that can fight in many different styles.

Unfortunately, Alvarez may view Andrade as a high-risk-low-reward fight and is unlikely to face the Rhode Island native unless he can defeat other elite fighters.

The problem for Andrade has been getting elite fighters to step in the ring with him.

“It’s like Jermall Charlo, Billy Joe Saunders, Callum Smith, and GG have a poster of Canelo over their beds and be like, please pick me Canelo, please pick me,” Andrade said during an interview with DAZN. “I feel bad for Canelo. We need to start fighting each other so that we can demand the Canelo fight. Canelo shouldn’t have to fight me, GGG, Charlo, and all these guys. We need to fight and eliminate who needs to be eliminated.”

BILLY JOE SAUNDERS (30-0, 14 KOs)

According to ESPN, the next man in line to face Alvarez should he come out unscathed against Yildirim is WBO Super Middleweight title holder, Billy Joe Saunders.

Saunders arguably falls within the same category as Andrade as a fighter who may be better than his resume suggests.

Last May, Saunders was in line to face Alvarez, but the fight was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Saunders last defended his WBO title against Martin Murray in December 2020 where he won via unanimous decision.

The undefeated United Kingdom pugilist's best performances came in 2017 when he won dominant unanimous decisions over Willie Monroe Jr. and power puncher David Lemieux.

Saunders has the look of a natural southpaw who can fight on the move in a relaxed state. With Alvarez’s greatest weakness being his slow feet, Saunders could prove to be a problem for the four-division champion.

When Saunders has stepped up in competition, he has always enhanced his game. Against Alvarez, he will be a big underdog, but he should be at his best.

If Alvarez plans to fight in the United Kingdom, a fight with Billy Joe Saunders could be the fight to do it.

There are other fighters throughout the Super Middleweight and Light Heavyweight divisions that could provide Alvarez with a challenge, such as former two-time WBC Super Middleweight champion David Benavidez and WBA Light Heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol.

The only fighter at this time that would be a favorite to defeat Alvarez is unified WBC and IBF Light Heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev who may be the hardest puncher in all of boxing.

However, Alvarez’s pit stop at Light Heavyweight in November 2019 against Sergey Kovalev was a one-time occurrence as an opportunity to win a title against a fighter who still has a name but is no longer at their best.

Alvarez has a plethora of options that could make him more money at a lower risk. It's unlikely that the four-division champion would face Beterbiev in the near future.

Alvarez is at a pivotal point in his career. He stands on top of the mountain as the number one fighter pound-for-pound and boxing's biggest moneymaker.

The Mexican's motto over the last few years has been "No Boxing, No Life." With that motto behind him, it may not be until he is past his prime that he suffers another defeat.

(Featured Photo: Matchroom Boxing)

#HF #Canelo Alvarez #Billy Joe Saunders #Avni Yildirim

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frontproofmedia · 5 years

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The World Boxing Super Series Cruiserweight Quarterfinals Media Day in Chicago

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By Steven Weinberg | Contributing Writer and Photographer

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Published: November 09, 2018

On Saturday, November 10, at Chicago’s UIC Pavilion, two quarter final fights will take place as part of season two of the World Boxing Super Series Cruiserweight Tournament. Krzysztof Glowacki (30-1, 19 KO), from Walcz, Poland, will face Maksim Vlasov (42-2, 25 KO) of Samara, Russia, in a 12-round battle for the Interim WBO World Championship. Additionally, Mairis Briedis (24-1, 18 KO) from Riga, Latvia, will take on Hamburg, Germany’s Noel Mikaelian (23-1, 10 KO) for the WBC World Diamond Belt Championship.

Ahead of the fights, Frontproof Media was able to speak with three of the fighters along with Leon Margules, President of Warriors Boxing Promotions, the United States promotional partner for the World Boxing Super Series.

Leon Margules – President of Warriors Boxing Promotions

FP: We’re here with Leon Margules, the head of Warriors Boxing. First, welcome back to Chicago.

LM: Thank you. It’s good to be back.

FP: It’s been about a year and half since you last put a show on here.

LM: Has it been that long?

FP: I believe it was – June 2017 – I think.

LM: I don’t remember. Too many places, too many shows.

FP: So you guys have been busy, just outside of Chicago?

LM: Yes.

FP: Is there a reason you haven’t been in Chicago in a year and half?

LM: Just business and opportunities. No reason not, or to, be in Chicago.

FP: How did you get involved with the World Boxing Super Series?

LM: They came to me and asked to come on as their legal counsel and also as a boxing consultant when they decided to get involved in the Cruiserweight division, as I was heavily invested in Cruiserweights.

FP: Cruiserweights aren’t exactly popular in America.

LM: No, but they should be. They’re big, fast, strong athletes.

FP: And there are a lot of men between 175 and 200 pounds.

LM: And they’re the same fighters that had us all excited about the heavyweight division when Joe Louis was heavyweight champion at 185 or Ali fought Frazier at 203, you know . . . they were cruiserweights.

FP: Are you mostly involved with cruiserweights overseas?

LM: No. I started with the Polish community, as you know. I have Wlodarczyk who was two time world champion at cruiserweight, same stable was Glowacki. Then I got involved with Gassiev who did very well the first season [of the WBSS], and just from there... but mostly because of my Polish business.

FP: Junior Wright, from Evanston, is the cruiserweight I remember from two of your cards.

LM: You know, it’s funny, I tried to sign Junior Wright, but he made a deal with Dmitry Salita instead. His option.

FP: Is he still boxing?

LM: Yeah, he was supposed to fight . . . he made a deal to fight in Orlando, October 20th against Keith Tapia, as an alternate fight in the World Boxing Super Series, and he pulled out and we went with Mike Perez instead.

FP: How do you think the cruiserweights in the World Boxing Super Series are going to be received here in America?

LM: I think well, because they’re great fights. They’re well matched. They’re exciting. I think the fight between Masternak and Dorticos a couple of good, very good competitive fight. I think the two fights Saturday night are good competitive fights and world titles are involved. It’s always good when world titles are involved.

FP: Do you think from a fan’s perspective this cruiserweight tournament being so close to the last cruiserweight tournament poses any issues?

LM: Would I rather have Gassiev and Usyk back in the tournament? The answer is yes. Does it pose any issues? No. It’s as good as we can give the public for a third tournament, we think. And these are the top eight cruiserweights in the world not named Gassiev and Usyk.

FP: Let’s talk about Chicago fighters. You had Shawn Simpson on some cards, you had Jessica McCaskill on some cards, who just won a world championship . . .

LM: I still have Jessica McCaskill, I still promote her.

FP: Were you at the show a couple of weeks ago when she won her championship?

LM: No, I couldn’t make it. I made the deal, but I couldn’t make the show. My son, who works in our office, went over to England when she fought Katie Taylor.

FP: Was Josh Greer ever under your banner or just on a couple of your shows?

LM: No, he was just on our shows. Andrew Zack manages him and made us financial deals to put him on our shows.

FP: Is Jessica the only Chicago fighter you’re currently promoting?

LM: That’s a good question.. . I think so. I have contracts that I’m not enforcing or I’ve released certain fighters like Josh Hernandez . . . but I think she is at the moment. Unless you consider the Polish fighters Chicago fighters.

FP: Well, Chicago does have the second largest Polish community outside of Warsaw, so let’s call them Chicago guys.

LM: Well [Krzysztof] Glowacki but he’s never fought here.

FP: Do you have anything planned for Jessica in the future?

LM: Yeah, something very big, but I’m not at liberty to say. In the next week or so there will be a big announcement.

FP: What are you expecting on Saturday night, other than a giant Polish crowd?

LM: I hope – they’re always late showing up – they haven’t showed up yet! The answer is I expect two very good fights. [Mairis] Briedis who was the only guy to give [Oleksandr] Usyk trouble in the first tournament is the number one seed, and he’s fighting [Noel] Gevor who is a very solid technical fighter who gave [Krzysztof] Wlodarczyk trouble in an elimination bout a couple of years back. A lot people say Briedis had that one night where he was super and not that good and a lot of other people say he’s the second best guy in the world at cruiserweight. So, we’ll see how he does, it’s a real test for him. And, [Maksim] Vlasov has been hot and is well thought of as any cruiserweight the last couple of years and Glowacki, who won a world title when he knocked out [Marco] Huck is trying win a second world title - I think that’s a “pick ‘em” fight. So, I think it’s going to be a great night. And then you have a third fight, you have undefeated German Artur Mann against Alexey Zubov who’s a ranked guy. So you have three good cruiserweight fights, two tournament fights.

FP: How did you get into promoting – going back over 30 years?

LM: Ha! That’s a story to itself. My partner of 30 years is a guy named Louie Decubas, a well known boxing guy. He managed guys like Alfredo Gomez, Roberto Duran. So, the first Cuban defector, Jorge Luis Gonzalez, a big, Cuban giant heavyweight, defected to the United States. And I was a trial lawyer in North Miami Beach, and I was retained to represent him in a contract dispute. I was successful. Louie and I, who was my client, formed a small promotional syndicate called Team Freedom Promotions for all the Cuban defectors, that’s how I got into promotions.

FP: Through the Cuban community?

LM: Through the Cuban community. So I had Joel Casamayor, Gonzalez, Diobelys Hurtado,

FP: Do you speak Spanish?

LM: No, not a word.

Mairis Briedis

FP: This is your second WBSS tournament. What are your thoughts on participating in your second tournament?

MB: I think it is more sensational, for a fighter because I fight for WBC Diamond belt, for me, this very important.

FP: How long have you been in Chicago?

MB: From 1st of November.

FP: How are you acclimating to the time change?

MB: First four days very hard because we train two times per day, and, um, the food is different but thanks G-d, now everything, now everything is like at home.

FP: What have you been eating here in Chicago while training?

MB: Oh, this is a secret. (Laughing.)

FP: Have you done anything different this training camp versus any of the other training camps?

MB: No. But at lunch we always eat Mexican food. (Laughing.)

FP: (Laughing) There are a lot of good Mexican restaurants here in Chicago. Do you have a favorite Mexican dish?

MB: No, we change every time. Now we have two good Mexican foods because when we eat Mexican our stomach don’t pain like before. But now, no pain.

FP: How is your weight for this fight so far?

MB: Weight is perfect. Weight is no problem. Too small (laughing).

FP: You don’t have any weight to lose before the weigh in?

MB: No, maybe 1 kg, 2.2 pounds.

FP: In your training, do you have any cheat foods, any food that you like to sneak, that you’re not supposed to eat?

MB: No. I think if my wife make some different foods, no this is helpful.

FP: What are you doing to relax in your downtime?

MB: Sleep, rest, physical rest. Now I train very hard for two and half months. Now we don’t have to think about rest, I need to think about fight.

FP: Tell us a little bit about your opponent [Noel Gevor] and what you expect Saturday night?

MB: He’s a very tough opponent. I think everyone is a tough opponent because everybody want . . .you know in the cruiserweight division there are 1,000 boxers. And two things: there are the best fighters and lucky fighters. Because there are only eight fighters [in the tournament] and there is a big motivation for everyone.

Maksim Vlasov

FP: Tell us about your opponent, Krzystof Glowacki, on Saturday night.

MV: I saw a lot of fights of him. I know he’s a strong guy. Mentally and strong physical condition. And I think it will be a great fight.

FP: Where did you train for this fight?

MV: At home, in Samara (Russia). We have a good gym, good sparing partners, everything good for preparation.

FP: Glowacki is a southpaw, did you have lefties as sparring partners?

MV: Of course. I have some guys who are southpaws, and a lot of sparring for this fight.

FP: How do you feel being part of the World Boxing Super Series?

MV: I’m excited. It’s a great show, great fights, and I’m happy to be here.

FP: How did you get involved in the tournament?

MV: I was rated number 1 and 2 by the organizations, so of course I should fight the best the fighters in this tournament. That is the idea of the tournament, that the best fighters at the moment fight each other.

FP: When did you arrive in Chicago?

MV: Four days ago.

FP: Have you adjusted to the time?

MV: Yes, of course. And I continued to train, one time per day.

FP: What have been doing to relax since you got here in Chicago?

MV: Just standard practice, just relaxing, sleeping, going to the sauna, some massages, and walking on the river (in downtown Chicago).

FP: How is your weight so far?

MV: I don’t have to make weight. I fight at my natural weight, 200lbs.

FP: What are you expecting from your opponent on Saturday night?

MV: I think Glowacki will try to knock me out. He’s a puncher. Glowacki should understand technically I am better, my boxing IQ is higher, and Glowacki’s only chance is to try and knock me out.

Krzysztof Glowacki

FP: How did you get involved in this tournament?

KG: I’m very happy to be participating. I think it was because I was very high in the rankings. And I’m really happy that I’ll be able to show what I can do in the ring.

FP: Tell us about your opponent [Maksim Vlasov] on Saturday night.

KG: He’s a very good boxer, he’s very inconvenient, and I’m really hoping for a really good fight to watch for our fans.

FP: Is this your first time in Chicago?

KG: That’s right. This is my first time in Chicago. I’ve only boxed in Newark and New York.

FP: Are you aware that this is the second largest Polish community outside of Warsaw?

KG: Of course, I know, I’ve heard a lot about Polish Americans and I’m hoping there will be a lot of fans that come and cheer for me.

FP: I’m guessing that 90% of the people there will be cheering for you.

KG: I’m really happy because it motivates me and I’m really sure this is going to be a really good fight.

FP: How is your weight going into the weigh in on Friday?

KG: As far as weight, I have no problem whatsoever. I can stand on the weight today.

FP: When you’re training, do you have any cheat food, anything you like to sneak that you’re not supposed to?

KG: After the fight, after training, of course I eat things I shouldn’t. But during the training and preparation I stick to my diet.

FP: How did this training camp go?

KG: It was a very a heavy duty camp but we did everything we wanted to so that will show itself in the ring.

FP: When did you arrive in Chicago?

KG: I came one and half weeks ago, exactly.

FP: So you’re used to the time change?

KG: That’s right. As far as time change goes, I sleep normally so everything is the way it’s supposed to be.

FP: What are you doing to relax ahead of the fight?

KG: The standard, pretty much, is we stay at the hotel and we don’t really go out much. I listen to a lot of music, and I play cards. I spend a lot of time with my brother because we communicate together very well.

FP: Is your brother here in town?

KG: He comes tomorrow.

The World Boxing Super Series Cruiserweight Quarter Finals will be available on DAZN and will feature 2 world championship fights plus six additional fights.

(Featured Photo: World Boxing Super Series)

#SW #World Boxing Super Series #Mairis Briedis #Krzysztof Glowacki #Leon Margules

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frontproofmedia · 7 years

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Miguel Cotto's Five Finest Performances

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By Hector Franco

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Tonight at the StubHub Center in Carson, California Puerto Rico’s first four-division world champion Miguel Cotto (40-5, 33 KOs) steps into the ring for what could be the final time. Cotto will be facing Japanese brawler Yoshihiro Kamegai (27-3-2, 24 KOs) for the vacant WBO Super Welterweight (154) championship. The bout has been largely overshadowed by the spectacle of Mayweather-McGregor. However, for many Cotto-Kamegai will be the fight to watch tonight as it could end up providing fans with fireworks.

Cotto has stated on many occasions that 2017 will be the final year of his career and depending on what happens against Kamegai, fans could be seeing him for the last time. The four-division champion has never been the most beloved fighter even in his native Puerto Rico, but the one thing he has all across the board from fans and pundits alike is respect. No matter how the career of Cotto ends, he has given boxing exciting fights against the best competition available on a regular basis. Looking back at Cotto’s career he stepped in the ring with the two best of his era in Floyd Mayweather (49-0, 26 KOs) and Manny Pacquiao (59-7-2, 38 KOs) and even avoided fighters like Austin Trout (30-3, 17 KOs) and Joshua Clottey (39-5, 22 KOs). After a career that has spanned over 16 years let’s take a look at some of the best performances, Miguel Cotto has produced.

Honorable Mentions

Kelson Pinto (24-2, 22 KOs)

September 11, 2004

Even for the most accomplished fighters, the first title victory will always be memorable. In 2004, Cotto faced amateur rival Kelson Pinto for the vacant WBO Super Lightweight (140) title in Puerto Rico. On this night, Cotto wore trunks with the names of all the previous world champions from Puerto Rico as a way to show that he was ready to stamp his name with all those champions. Those who may remember Cotto as a come forward destroyer will not be disappointed with his performance over Pinto. The vaunted left hook was on full display as he stopped Pinto in the sixth round in a great world title performance.

Randall Bailey (46-9, 39 KOs)

December 11, 2004

For some fighters winning a world championship can make you that much more confident in your abilities. Cotto was no exception in this often forgotten fight with Randall Bailey in his first world title defense. This bout was put on the undercard of a Vitali Klitschko heavyweight title defense against British contender Danny Williams. On this night, Cotto put on a boxing clinic dropping Bailey twice with the bout ultimately being stopped due to cuts in the sixth round.

Ricardo Torres (33-2, 29 KOs)

September 24, 2005

In Atlantic City once again on the undercard for one of the Klitschko brothers, Cotto faced Columbian power-puncher, Ricardo Torres. Torres came in on two-weeks notice and provided Cotto with arguably the most exciting fight of his career. If not for the bout with Diego Corrales and Jose Luis Castillo in May of 2005, Cotto-Torres may have been the fight of the year. In the fight, both men were severely hurt and hit the canvas. In the end, Cotto came out victorious with a knockout in the seventh round after Torres ran out of gas. Those looking for a bout where Cotto shows his resilience and his ability to come back from being hurt, the fight with Torres is one to watch.

Delvin Rodriguez (29-9-4, 16 KOs)

October 03, 2013

After a disappointing 2012 that saw Cotto lose to Floyd Mayweather and Austin Trout, the Puerto Rican decided to change his team by adding Freddie Roach and strength and conditioning coach Gavin McMillan. The bond between Cotto and Roach brought back the Cotto of old who came forward with his left hook to the body. The fight took place in the untapped Puerto Rican market of Orlando, Florida bringing in a packed house at the Amway Center. In the second round, Cotto hurt Rodriguez with a beautiful left hook and finished the job in the third round. This was the start of the last phase of Cotto’s career.

Carlos Quintana (29-4, 23 KOs)

December 02, 2006

After a few years of struggling to make the 140-pound limit at super lightweight, Cotto decided to make his move to the welterweight (147) division. Luckily for him, there was an opportunity to challenge for a vacant title against fellow undefeated Puerto Rican Carlos Quintana. At the time the island of Puerto Rico was split down the middle as to who would win the fight and whom they would be supporting. Cotto put the conversation to rest by for lack of a better term beating up Quintana. Cotto dropped Quintana with a devastating left hook to the body that took the fight out of Quintana forcing his corner to stop the fight in the corner before the start of the sixth round. With the victory, Cotto became the WBA welterweight champion.

Antonio Margarito II (40-8, 27 KOs)

December 03, 2011

The highly anticipated rematch between Cotto and Margarito took place three years after the now controversial first bout. This time the two men would be fighting for the WBA Super Welterweight (154) title. This was the definition of a grudge match with the two men trading insults most famously on an episode of HBO’s Faceoff where Cotto accused Margarito of having tampered hand wraps in their first bout. Aside from the hand wrap storyline, there was also the issue of Margarito’s eye that was injured in his fight with Manny Pacquiao the year before. There was also the famous Mexico-Puerto Rico rivalry that was part of the bout.

The fight took place in front of a packed house at Madison Square Garden in front of a large Puerto Rican contingency. The match played out similar to the first bout with Cotto winning most of the rounds by out landing and out boxing the bigger Margarito. Unfortunately for Margarito, the eye came into play after having his best round in the ninth. The fight was stopped due to damage to the eye that Cotto capitalized on. This was more of a moral victory for Cotto who performed well but got the demon of his first loss as a professional off his back.

Sergio Martinez (51-3-2, 28 KOs)

June 07, 2014

The apex of the partnership between Cotto and Freddie Roach took place in June 2014 when Cotto challenged middleweight champion Sergio Martinez for the WBC and lineal middleweight championships. Cotto would be attempting to become the first four-division Puerto Rican champion in boxing history. The champion, in this case, gave up all concessions to the challenger by facing Cotto in his second home of Madison Square Garden and acquiescing to a catch weight. Martinez had been out of the ring for over a year and coming off of surgery. It was unclear how he would perform against a formidable challenge in Cotto.

Any questions surrounding the bout were answered in the first round as Cotto hurt Martinez with the first left hook he landed and dropped him three times in the round. Cotto followed the game plan set by Roach and did not bum rush Martinez but proceeded to outbox the Argentinean who was clearly affected by his knee. After Cotto dropped Martinez with a jab in the ninth round, Martinez’s corner decided they have seen enough stopping the bout in the corner before the start of the tenth round. While Martinez’s physical state does take away from the victory, Cotto still performed wonderfully in the fight and made history becoming the first four-division Puerto Rican champion.

Zab Judah (43-9, 30 KOs)

June 09, 2007

The bout with Zab Judah much like Felix Trinidad’s fight with William Joppy six years earlier was the apex of Cotto’s popularity. At the time the fight with Judah was the highest selling boxing bout in the history of Madison Square Garden setting an attendance record. Judah is a native New Yorker who was coming off a suspension from his April 2006 bout with Floyd Mayweather. Judah only had one bout in between that went one round and was turned into a no contest. Just a little less than two years before meeting Cotto, Judah was the undisputed welterweight champion. Needless to say, Judah did not need any extra motivation to get ready for Cotto.

Cotto-Judah was a fight that had everything you can ask for as a boxing fan. It featured back and forth action with both fighters getting hurt. The raucous crowd added in the controversy of the low blows by Cotto made the bout that much better. In the end, Cotto began to punish Judah in the later rounds and stopped him in the eleventh round. It was a crowning moment for Cotto signifying him as the new star in the welterweight division.

Shane Mosley (49-10-1, 41 KOs)

November 10, 2007

Seven years after Shane Mosley faced Oscar De La Hoya in Los Angeles in a bout that exceeded expectations, Mosley met Cotto in Madison Square Garden in one of the best fights of 2007. While Mosley was not in his prime when he met Cotto, he was still a formidable opponent capable of defeating and challenging the best in any division he competed. The build up to the fight was filled with nothing but respect. It was the opposite of the De La Hoya-Mayweather bout that took place earlier in the year. Cotto and Mosley put on a show for the fans at MSG with both men trading rounds and having shifts in momentum. Ultimately the Judges saw the fight in favor of the Puerto Rican who showed another dimension that night by at times out brawling and out boxing the veteran Mosley. The scorecards were 115-113 twice and 116-113. The fight by the numbers was as close as can be with both men landing the same amount of total punches (248) according to CompuBox.

Miguel Cotto will one day be inducted into the hall-of-fame. Cotto will be known as one of the greatest Puerto Rican fighters of all time following the footsteps of Wilfred Benitez and Wilfredo Gomez. He may not have been the beloved figure like his predecessor Felix Trinidad, but he was more than a worthy successor as he always gave the fans their money’s worth and represented the island nation with pride.

"“All I want to is my finish my career in the best way possible. That’s the reason that I’ve been working hard at this stage of my career. And all I want for me is to finish this in the best way possible.” " -- Miguel Cotto

(Feature Photo: Getty Images)

#HF #Miguel Cotto #Puerto Rico #WBO #HBO World Championship Boxing #HBO BOxing

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