By Matthew Sanderson

Many ‘experts’ have been eager to find a reason for Jeff Lacy’s comprehensive defeat by a brilliant Joe Calzaghe, the main stateside one being that the Tampa slugger wasn’t all that he was talked up to being. That doesn’t wash particularly well with me, given the improvements of Lacy’s speed, flexibility and punch repertoire that allowed him to flatten the rock jawed Robin Reid last August.

No, I can think of plenty of reasons. In fact, there are over 1000 of them, if the punch stats confided by ITV presenter Jim Rosenthal to the unified 168-lb champion are to be trusted. That’s how many shots Calzaghe threw in Lacy’s direction, delivered with stunning speed and variety, and blended seamlessly with a mastery of ring space and a clever, instinctive defense.

We’re all aware of what Lacy can do when given his way.

Joe Calzaghe, who added Lacy’s IBF title to the WBO belt he’s held since 1997, fought a masterful, passionate fight, and I’m glad to say I told you he’d win. Despite early doubts, as the fight approached I leaned toward Joe, knowing that as much as he fights down to the no hopers, he performs up to the tough cookies. “What better a fighter than the ferocious Lacy to inspire, or demand, Calzaghe’s best?” Indeed.

With that win, Joe has punctuated a nine-year reign that has seen him set back the best of America (Charles Brewer, Byron Mitchell, Omar Sheika) and Britain (former WBC titlists Richie Woodhall and Robin Reid). Consider also his longevity (18 defenses), and Joe Calzaghe, 33, must go down as a great fighter.

He and his dad, Enzo, always knew it. Now we do. The distinction between champion and titlist has never been so pronounced as I’ve witnessed. The British fans have fallen for Joe again.

It was a thrilling moment for British boxing – for the 16,000 in attendance and the 2 million who tuned in to ITV’s Big Fight Live. Happily, the chief undercard did full justice to the main event, with Enzo Maccarinelli eeking a points win over Huddersfield’s Mark Hobson in a classic for the WBU cruiserweight title. I felt the well-schooled Hobson, rallying from a bad second round knockdown to hammer Enzo in the ninth, deserved to win by at least two points, but it’d make for a great rematch.

Whilst the enthusiasts argue with the revisionists, and the Brits debate with the Yanks, one question lingers: what’s next for Joe Calzaghe? If the ultimate goal is further Joe’s standing against another American name, i.e. Roy Jones or Antonio Tarver, Joe has a July 8 homecoming in Cardiff and unfinished business in his own division first.

I’d be disappointed if Joe were to take on one of the above light heavyweights. If he’s reminded us he’s still a fresh and vital champion, the same cannot be said of Tarver and Jones – the current number one light heavyweight (Tarver) and the fallen great (Jones) being in various stages of erosion. With a young, talented super middleweight rival in Mikkel Kessler, it would be a terrible waste if Calzaghe didn’t take on the WBA titlist, from Denmark.

I can’t think of anyone who’d give the WBO and IBF champion a tougher fight.

Frank Warren plans to get Joe, still nursing a hand injury sustained three weeks before the fight and aggravated in round eight against Lacy, back in the ring on July 8, at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium. Neither Tarver (fighting Bernard Hopkins in June) nor Jones (a notoriously difficult negotiator) will jump to the promoter’s tune, and after setting the bar so high last weekend, lower level opponents won’t suffice for Joe any more.

Kessler, ringside last weekend, is a superb jabber and would present a whole different set of problems than Lacy, who was bullied, battered and outclassed before being dropped with an uppercut in the twelfth round to have his record blemished. Mikkel has been dominant against B-level fighters like Manny Siaca and Eric Lucas, and would seem ready to step up to the next level – no matter how high that is.

Not so long ago, Showtime had some interest in showcasing Kessler against the badly faded, former middleweight titlist, William Joppy, of all people. Hopefully the paymasters will continue their motto of providing the “great fights” on the first weekend of every month. Guys, you did fine work with the cruiserweight unification, and let’s see you help do the same at super middle.

I can’t think of a better time and place than July 8, at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium.

American Exposure

I can understand the call for Calzaghe to expand his American following. But why has nobody mentioned Glen Johnson as an opponent? As Barry McGuigan mentioned, it’s uncertain whether Calzaghe can fight so well ever again. Every fighter has his special night. He’d be favored to beat Tarver and especially Jones (who has lost his last three fights), I would think, but each man’s defensive style, combined with their ageing bodies, would hardly give Joe much of a chance to shine on the big stage.

They might be for the taking, but I would expect a pair of ugly spoiling matches. Furthermore, Tarver has never been bog box office, and Jones is considered damaged goods.

That’s why Johnson sounds so appealing. The aggression, toughness and savvy he learned to survive a gruelling 44-10-2-fight career, could make for the sort of fight that Lacy was expected to give Joe. Despite the disappointing loss to Tarver last year (after winning their exciting 2004 fight), Johnson’s subsequent wins over George Khalid Jones (TKO10) and Richard Hall (W12) over the past seven months suggest he’s as good as he’s ever been.

Add to that what appears to be a genuine dislike between Calzaghe and Johnson, following a summer 2004 pullout by Joe, and you have what could be the recipe for a tasty main course.