BOXING/WBO super-middleweight title fight: The look of disappointment on Joe Calzaghe's face spoke volumes after his bruising and foul-strewn brawl with the Cameroonian-born hardman Sakio Bika in Manchester on Saturday night.
After his brilliant super-middleweight title-unification win over Jeff Lacy earlier in the year the undefeated Welshman had wanted to produce another sensational showing to wow his American television audience. It was not to be. The harsh reality was that Calzaghe had to dig deep to retain his World Boxing Organisation and International Boxing Federation belts on points.
He won clearly enough, by two scores of 117-110 and one of 116-111, but the fight was as ugly and physically demanding as any he has undergone in his nine years of dominance in the 12-stone division.
Perhaps the 34-year-old champion had wanted to impress his new American paymaster, the cable channel HBO, a little too much. In the opening rounds he had dropped his gloves contemptuously as he sought to knock out Bika to record a 19th successful title defence, but when it became clear his A plan was not going to work he was unable to impose an alternative strategy.
Bika absorbed Calzaghe's attacks before landing with huge swinging hooks and uppercuts of his own, interspersed with a succession of flagrant law infringements as he appeared to repeatedly and deliberately butt the champion.
The referee, Mickey Vann, docked Bika one point and could have taken sterner action. By the last round Calzaghe's face was bruised and cut, a legacy of Bika's head work. Most observers realised the Welshman was on his way to a win but the ill-tempered nature of the fight was underlined one last time as a Calzaghe body shot landed illegally low and Bika replied with a full-blown, eye-watering uppercut to the groin that left the champion in agony.
Frank Warren, the promoter, insisted - despite the facial injuries and the Welshman's usual complaint about damage to his fragile left hand - that Calzaghe would be back in the ring in late February or March. HBO is keen to lure the former middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins out of retirement to take the job, and the struggle Calzaghe endured to subdue Bika might make Hopkins, 41, fancy his chances.
Another option would be another super-middleweight unification bout after Denmark's Mikkel Kessler, the WBA champion, blasted the veteran German WBC title-holder Markus Beyer to defeat in the third round in Copenhagen.
HBO would prefer Calzaghe to travel to the United States to face Hopkins. Whether Warren would be keen for Calzaghe to take the risk of an American trip is another matter. The most lucrative option might be to tempt Hopkins to Cardiff for a showdown in front of a massive crowd at the Millennium Stadium.
Guardian Service
