We’re nearly a week removed from Chris Algieri’s stunning split-decision win over Ruslan Provodnikov, but depending on who you ask the upset wasn’t nearly as shocking as it may have been to some. This is most likely because there were those who believed that while Provodnikov possesses incredible punching power to go along with his immense heart, he isn’t a very well-balanced fighter and lacks the technical superiority usually associated with world-class fighters.
I’m sure there are fight fans out there with boxing IQs that far surpass my own, but regardless, I still think that Algieri’s win was surprising enough to warrant “Upset of the Year” consideration.
What hasn’t surprised me is Provodnikov’s trainer, Freddie Roach, and the comments he’s made recently in regards to the fight’s outcome.
Of course he believes his guy won, he has to say that, but more importantly I believe his reasoning is a systematic theology that strongly correlates with his heavy offense training style.
Algieri was able to get off the canvas twice in the first round of their 12 round WBO junior welterweight title fight. It seemed like the fight would play out in a manner that suggested the matchup was a huge mismatch, instead Algieri regained his senses and then proceeded to fight in strategic fashion.
He was able to outbox Provodnikov for several rounds and even when Provodnikov found success it was Algieri who was able to dictate and control the fight’s pace. There were some difficult rounds to score because Provodnikov was landing hard shots while Algieri boxed candidly, and in those rounds it came down to judging preference.
It’s my opinion that Provodnikov could’ve easily found himself on the winning side of things last Saturday night and it wouldn’t’ve been completely absurd. Again, it comes down to preference.
A win for either fighter wouldn’t be all that controversial, but the outcome has produced some controversial and somewhat ludicrous hyperbole from Roach.
At the post-fight press conference Roach went on record to make certain declarations that exposed more truths than he may have been prepared to disclose. When asked whether the recent trend in judges scoring for the boxer over the puncher puts his fighters at a disadvantage, Roach responded with an almost annoyed tone, suggesting that, regardless of a few fight outcomes, he wouldn’t alter his approach because he firmly believes his style is a coaching to win type of style.
“That’s bullshit because defense doesn’t win fights. You don’t score points by making a punch miss, it’s good that you do that, but you don’t get a point for it though. If that’s the case then we have to change the whole ballgame and Andre Ward would be the best fighter in the world,” Roach said.
I can understand Roach’s sentiment to a certain degree, but to suggest that defense doesn’t win fights is completely misleading. Perhaps I’m taking his statements out of context and if he meant that you can’t win a fight without at least a shred of offense then I agree. But I doubt that’s what he was saying because it is obvious you have to land at least a few punches a round if you want your hand raised.
So, if Roach was alluding to the fact that you can’t win fights with defense as the backbone of your style, strategy, or overall game plan then he must be venting some serious insecurities.
I can’t imagine a world-class trainer believing that a defensive oriented fighter can’t beat a purely offensive fighter when their skills and attributes are on an even keel.
The truth is Provodnikov either allowed Algieri to get back into the fight or he couldn’t stop him from getting back into the fight, but both of those theories fall on Roach, at least to some extent.
What is more disparaging is Roach’s refusal to give Algieri his just due. Roach has given Algieri some credit, but not the kind that he deserves. I guess any further credit would contradict Roach’s thoughts on Provodnikov winning the fight, but his praise of Algieri borders on the line of disrespect, and it almost seems sarcastic.
Roach’s statements after the fight were more about Algieri’s ability to take a beating opposed to his sheer capabilities as a fighter. When asked if Algieri did anything that surprised Roach in the fight, he responded smugly.
“Yeah, he got up twice. [Provodnikov] hits hard, he knocked me down last week on the mitts. Algieri had a lot of guts getting up twice,” Roach said.
These words make his “defense doesn’t win fights” sentiment much more curious, or actually less curious if you start to put the trend together.
Defense can and has won fights since the beginning of prizefighting, and while there’s little doubt of Roach’s top spot in the boxing world in regards to training fighters, his biased position on his own inherent style is clouting his judgment, and that trend is much more dangerous to his fighters than any set of judges the boxing world has to offer—unless, of course, they reside in Texas.
