Mundine up in the 11th

[madjack]

Mundine up in the 11th
By Bernie Pramberg
November 03, 2002

ANTHONY Mundine stopped tough Queenslander Ricky Thornbery in the 11th round at Carrara last night to move closer to a shot at WBA World Champion Byron Mitchell.

After a physical encounter, Mundine put Thornberry down with a lethal flurry of punches one minute 15 seconds into the round.

Thornberry slumped in a neutral corner as Thai referee Chalerm Prayadsap issued a mandatory eight count, but then signalled the fight was over.

Thornberry briefly complained, but the decision was clear cut and after Mundine showed he is definitely a better-equipped boxer since his world title loss to Sven Ottke last December.

After a cautious opening round the tempo lifted in the second, when Thornberry scored with a combination of body punches.

Mundine complained to the referee about a low blow, then landed a stinging right hand to Thornberry's head.

But the Queenslander returned fire when he pinned Mundine in a neutral corner and again switched his attack to the body.

Thornberry pressured Mundine early in the third round, but Mundine's evasive skills made him a difficult target and he stung Thornberry with a left hook and right cross combination.

Mundine shrugged and grimaced midway throughout the fourth round after Thornberry landed a big right hand and continued to apply the pressure.

The Queenslander's durability was evident in the fifth round when he refused to take a backwards step despite some sharp punching from Mundine and the referee separated the fighters on the bell with Mundine on the ropes.

Emotions spilled over outside the ring as sporadic fights broke out among supporters.

But they were quickly quelled by security staff.

Mundine haunted Thornbury during the sixth round, poking faces and snaking his left jab at the same time.

The fighters stood toe to toe for much of the eighth round.

[sooty]

Ricky ran out of gas at the end of round 5... a pity he was not a stronger puncher.. also from round 6 onwards every time Ricky closed the gap and came in Mundine tied him up, a bit of an anti climax. i should have stayed watching ufc!

Osu
Mark

[Pete M]

I wanna see mundine
fight Gurkan Ozkan

i reackon ozkan would be to strong and knock 'the man' out

what does everyone else think?

[Servant]

Remember what Briggs did to Ozkan? It would be just as, if not more, one sided.

[spoon]

Didn't Paul B. have a crook back when he fought Ozkan.
Big fan of Rick - What a warrior and what a heart.
Really thought he could get up on this one!
Barry Micheal made a good call before the fight.

[JANER]

I heard Ozkan had a broken hand.

[remy]

I heard Gurkan had cracked ribs as well.

[memek]

apparently, Gurkan had tripped over a 5inch spanner tool set and makita handrill which was left in the centre of the ring and he bruised his small toe. As a result Gurkans footwork was limited and therefore it aggrevated his left testicle and then he always dropped his hands to stop the itchiness. Pity about that Makita drill, if only it was a cordless one!

[Glenn]

exactly.

[JANER]

hahaha I like that one memek! All these excuses from the briggs camp made me laugh, its time we made our own for Gurkan!

Briggs and everyone else thought he would knock out Ozkan, didnt happen! And for that reason, they made up a pore excuse to why he couldnt finish Gurkan off! I think it was briggs's second fight which he coullnt finish off a fight early.

[apl]

There is no chance in hell that Gurkan wouldbeat Mundine, I can't beleive how overrated he is. He has no punching power whatsoever and the only thing that keeps him winning is he level of fitness and his mate Tarik "Don King" Solak when he rigs the fight.
Mundine would knock Ozkan into another world, seriously Ozkan could get hurt badly if not killed taking on that fight, it would be a serious risk.

[memek]

"He has no punching power whatsoever and the only thing that keeps him winning is he level of fitness"


1. He has knocked out 85% of his opponents

2. Gurkans fitness is know as his weakness

3. Tarik name is Tarik Solak. King isnt a Turkish name

4. Gurkan has faced Peter Graham who weighs 115kg. Mundine will just be a anorxix rake in the ring!

So, Apl get something right! Your seriously a ****er even if your kiddin around.

[Pete M]

i have to agree with mememk
there
i honestly think that ozkan one of the hardest punches in that division in the world would flatten mundine.
mundine was knocked out by sven ottke, who mundine claim "punches like a women"
image what one of gurkans punches to the head would do.
he properly would be killed.

[Servant]

You guys are really starting to go overboard now. Start being realistic for ****s sake.

I think Gurkan can KO Lennox Lewis because he punches hard and I'm sure professional fighters haven't been hit hard in their careers!

[apl]

Now you have to be realistic, Ozkan could knock out Lennox who the **** are you kidding. Is everyone ****ing Turkish or something you ****ing think Ozkan is a god, he is not even that good.
Get a ****ing life all of you's.

IM OUT

[remy]

THere is no need to compare the two. Gurkan is not a boxer even though he has had a couple of boxing fights. Mundine is a pure boxer, and is very good. Same as Briggs, a great boxer, let's just support those two to a world title which is a possibilty in 2003.

[Servant]

Ummm APL, I was being sarcastic. I was trying to talk like some of the guys on this forum do, you know, Gurkan this Gurkan that,

[remy]

Sash, the sarcasm by Apl and yourself was obvious. My comment was about comparing Gurkan to Mundine and the result if they fought. Mundine is a boxer, Gurkan is not. So obviously the clear favourite would be Mundine.
Well as far as Gurkan getting talked up on this site, it is often in response to people mocking Gurkan, and a lot of his fans feel he gets critisised a lot. There are one eyed Gurkan fans as there are one eye anti Gurkan fans.

[paul c]

Man, the Ozkan criticism is nothing now compared to what it used to be like prior to the Briggs fight.

The several heavy-weight fights he lost made everyone forget his fight carreer as a super middle weight.

Actually, I don't think the criticism had anything to do with how well he did or didn't fight. Some people just can't stand seeing anyone with a little showbiz flair do well. They'd prefer the airtime being spent on super super humble martial artists, and Ozkan just seemed to get up their noses.

[JANER]

Ozkan speaks with his fists.

[remy]

Gurkan's post fight speach's have been a lot better recently. He praised the other fighter and spoke with respect, which is good to see. The way a fighter presents themselves before and after they fight is very important in winning over fans. I hope he continues to speak well, win lose or draw.

[paul c]

Remy, your right, it makes a huge difference to some fans.
I too like seeing fighters respect each other post fight.
Though, at the same time I absolutely don't have a problem with guys being cocky pre-fight. I think it ads to the spectacle and gets the crowds going to make for a more exciting atmosphere. That's why I like watching fighters like Parr, Ozkan, Nezif etc.

[remy]

I don't mind pre fight hype. As long as it's not stupid like Tyson's comments and disrespectful.