Category: Sports

Today’s Poll: Tebow vs. ‘Taker at WrestleMania XXVIII

I had a vision recently. I saw The Undertaker’s legendary WrestleMania streak end. I saw The Dead Man lose to a Holy Man at WrestleMania XXVIII. Of course I’m talking about Tim Tebow. Never mind that the Denver Broncos’ winning streak came to end yesterday. Tebow has the power of light! He’s the world’s only hope against The Undertaker’s dark dominance of WrestleMania.

If Tebow vs. ‘Taker went down at WrestleMania XXVIII, how do you think it would go down? Kindly vote in today’s poll and describe the match you see in your head in the comments section.

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Manny Pacquiao: Pound for Pound (iOS) Free Today

The Manny Pacquiao game for iOS is free today. Head on over and download Manny Pacquiao: Pound for Pound if you’re a fan of the Filipino boxer or if you’re looking for some unintentional comedy. The game looks…meh and the videogame version of Pacquiao looks like he was rejected from the Street Fighter and Tekken tournaments, but you can’t really complain about a free game. Ha!

How Do You Feel About the NBA Post-Lockout?

After months of grueling negotiations, the NBA lockout is over and the regular season will begin on December 25, 2011. Now that NBA basketball is nearly here, I wanted to see if the lockout has changed your view on the sport. I’m already psyched by all the trade rumors (Chris Paul, Rajon Rondo, Dwight Howard, etc.), but I’m still bitter about the lockout. Hearing millionaires argue about billions of dollars in revenue is…unattractive — especially when you’re not making a lot of money and the economy is crap.

The end of the last NBA season was brilliant, but for me that buzz was mostly killed by the lockout. How about you? Has the lockout made you bitter about the NBA? Or are you excited for the season to start?

WBC President Jose Sulaiman Explains Pacquiao Performance

World Boxing Council president Jose Sulaiman was quoted as saying, “I was practically embarrassed,” in regards to Manny Pacquiao’s performance against Juan Manuel Marquez last Saturday. Although the official records list Pacquiao as the victor, many boxing journalists, current fighters, and retired boxers saw the fight as a Marquez victory or a draw. In a Twitter exchange with me, Sulaiman cleared up his comments and blamed Pacquiao’s performance on politics:

I believe this was a fight in which I didn’t see the real Pacquiao (That does not demerit Marquez who fought like a champion). I did say that this was probably the worst version of Pacquiao since I know him, I believe you can’t blame it on boxing. He is a federal senator and I believe he’s focused and has other priorities over boxing now that are somehow taking what he has been as a fighter. That you can quote.

It’s an interesting explanation and there’s probably some truth to Pacquiao being less focused on boxing than he was even five years ago. That said, I believe that Juan Manuel Marquez was simply the better boxer on Saturday. It’s actually embarrassing to see other Filipinos blindly sticking up for Pacquiao without reason or logic (and in some cases, without even knowing how fights are scored).

Even though I believe Marquez won, a draw would have been an acceptable score too. I thought Pacquiao lost face by saying that he “clearly” won. That’s just complete garbage. At best, it was a very close fight. At worst, Pacquiao was out-boxed by Marquez, who displayed cleaner punching, showed superior defense, controlled the pace and spacing of the fight, and neutralized Pacquiao’s formidable left hand for the majority of the bout.

At least Sulaiman didn’t use the word “embarrassed” in our exchange. With all the garbage the WBC has pulled over the years, I don’t think he should be embarrassed about any fighter’s performance.

Magic Johnson, HIV, and You

Today is the 20th anniversary of Earvin “Magic” Johnson’s first retirement due to contracting the HIV virus. I remember the announcement vividly. I was in high school and it was report card day. The news floored everyone — students, teachers, custodians, etc. At the time, information on HIV and AIDS was relatively scarce. While it’s wrong to lionize Magic for the lifestyle that led to him to getting HIV, he should be lauded for helping educate the world about this deadly virus.

Before Magic’s announcement, I was woefully uneducated and uninformed about HIV and AIDS. Prior to Magic, the biggest celebrity that I can recall getting AIDS was Rock Hudson, who was way before my time and didn’t resonate with me. When I was a bit younger, my favorite uncle died of AIDS, but I was too young to really process any of it. Magic made HIV real for me. This was someone I looked up to — I marveled at Magic’s ability on the court and was charmed by his persona off the court. Like many other ignorant people, I didn’t realize that HIV could infect people that weren’t homosexuals or drug addicts.

After his announcement, a lot more information on HIV and AIDS became available. People started to learn about and understand the disease. People became informed about the ways you can and can’t get it (with the exception of that idiotic statutory rapist Karl Malone). People learned how to protect themselves from HIV infection. For a lot of people, the reason why they learned facts about HIV and AIDS was Magic Johnson.

Of course I have to mention an arguably off-color joke my friend Justin Killian made several years after Magic stopped playing. I distinctly remember spitting out soda when he said, “What the hell kind of HIV is that?!? I want Magic’s HIV that changes you from a point guard to a power forward!” I suppose the point being that prior to Magic, I thought that HIV was an automatic death sentence to AIDS. Again, I was ignorant and Magic helped me learn.

As you can tell, Earvin’s announcement had a big impact on my life. How about yours? How did you react when Magic Johnson announced that he had the HIV virus? Did you learn more about AIDS and HIV because of him?

UFC Coming to Xbox Live on December 1, 2011

Microsoft has announced that UFC content will be coming to the Xbox 360 starting December 1, 2011. Live pay-per-view events, on-demand content, press conferences, weigh-ins, and more will be available. The first live PPV broadcast will be UFC 140 on December 10. Here are the bullet points from the press release:

  • Live and On-Demand Video — Event previews, UFC Countdown, press conferences, weigh-ins, interviews, workouts, highlights, and more, together for the first time on your big screen.
  • Streaming HD Quality in 720p –UFC fans demand stunning HD viewing, and Xbox LIVE brings the most premium streaming HD to the big screen.
  • Pay-Per-View with Ease — The biggest pay-per-view fights available to all Xbox LIVE members in HD and SD pricing options. Purchase directly with your credit card, Microsoft Points not required.
  • Interactive Fight Card with Predictions — Size up the fighters with the tale of the tape and view their past fight results. Predict upcoming fights, compare results with friends for points and bragging rights, and see where you stand against them on the leaderboard, all accessible while watching the fight so you’ll never have to leave the excitement of the Octagon.
  • Control the action with Kinect — Focus on the fight instead of looking for the remote. Navigate through the video content, bring up the Interactive Fight Card, or play, pause, and rewind that big punch, kick or submission…all with the magic of Kinect.

I know that most of you are incredibly excited to control UFC events via Kinect. I kid, I kid. In all seriousness, this is a tremendous partnership. UFC is incredibly popular and Microsoft is being very aggressive with its television initiatives on Xbox 360. I have no doubt that this will be a great success for everyone involved.

Any of you psyched for you UFC on your Xbox 360? What features are you looking forward to the most?

September 28, 2011: A Historic Day in Baseball History

Last night was, by far, the most exciting regular-season day in Major League Baseball history. One day later and I still can’t believe what I saw. Three games that determined the last slots in the playoffs ending within 25 minutes of each other. Two dramatic comebacks ending within three minutes of each other. One major collapse (Atlanta Braves) and one epic collapse (Boston Red Sox) culminating in minutes. It was dramatic (for everyone) and fun (depending on your teams), and I’m pretty sure that I’ll never see anything like that again.

One minute I was watching Jonathan Papelbon blow a save against the lowly Orioles. A couple of minutes later I was watching Evan Longoria hit a game-ending homer against the Yankees, clinching the Tampa Bay Rays’ spot in the playoffs and ensuring an entertaining off-season in Boston. It was nuts how quickly it all happened. I was chuckling at Papelbon’s failure and — BAM! — just like that Longoria’s home run had me thinking, “Whoa! Did that just really happen?!?” On one hand, I wasn’t done laughing at the Red Sox. On the other hand, I just witnessed one of the most extraordinary days in baseball history.

As a tech nerd, it was a blast marveling, gloating, and discussing everything that just happened through different social networking services. As I was laughing at the Red Sox’ demise, I whipped out my iPad 2, headed to Facebook, and left some annoying comments on my friend Matt’s wall. He’s from Boston. *snicker* Discussing the games on Twitter, Google+, and Facebook made the events even more fun. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I love what social networking has added to sports.

Anyway, I wanted to see what you thought of last night’s games. Were you watching them live? Did you watch the highlights today? What do you think of it all? Which team was the biggest loser? Which team was the biggest winner? Have Yankee fans ever been happier about a loss? Share your feelings (like a Care Bear) in the comments section (please!).

Larry Merchant Talks Floyd Mayweather, Jr.

TMZ caught up with HBO boxing analyst Larry Merchant at Los Angeles International airport. The topic at hand was, of course, his confrontation with Floyd Mayweather, Jr. following his fight against Victor Ortiz. It’s a great guerrilla-style interview and Merchant gives some sharp answers despite the clips run-and-gun nature. Below is the confrontation with Floyd, for reference. If you have a chance, check out both clips and let me know what you think (please)!

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Coffee Talk #399: The Mayweather vs. Ortiz Controversy

“Pretty Boy” Floyd Mayweather, Jr. knocked out “Vicious” Victor Ortiz over the weekend, but did so in a controversial fashion. Before I get to the controversy, I wanted to make it clear that going into the fight I…

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, the Boston Red Sox possibly missing the playoffs, Peter Dinklage winning an Emmy for Game of Thrones, or your favorite candybar, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

“Pretty Boy” Floyd Mayweather, Jr. knocked out “Vicious” Victor Ortiz over the weekend, but did so in a controversial fashion. Before I get to the controversy, I wanted to make it clear that going into the fight I thought Mayweather was going to win, easily. During the fight I saw nothing that indicated Ortiz had anything more than a puncher’s chance. Prior to the knockout, I saw Mayweather well on his way to a decisive victory.

Now let’s get to the controversy! Late in the fourth round, it was clear that Ortiz was getting frustrated by his inability to land meaningful shots on Mayweather. Ortiz resorted to headbutts, including one so egregious that referee Joe Cortez (the “fair, but firm” guy) had no choice but to dock Ortiz a point. Ortiz tried several times to apologize. The action was set to resume when the fighters hugged. A split second later Mayweather landed a sharp hook on Ortiz, who was clearly not ready to fight. This was followed by a strong right hand that put Ortiz down for the count.

Some fans felt that this was a cheap shot. Customarily, when fighters hug or touch gloves, they wait a few seconds to resume boxing. Ortiz was obviously not ready and appeared to be waiting on further instructions from Cortez. Meanwhile, Cortez was looking towards the timekeeper to see if there was any time remaining in the round. While Mayweather did nothing illegal, some feel that it was unsportsmanlike. The fight-ending combo has been referred to as “a legal cheap shot” or a “by-the-books sucker-punch”.

Others feel that Ortiz got what he deserved. He blatantly cheated with the head butts. The last head butt did more damage to Mayweather than any of Ortiz’s punches. The feeling is that he punked Floyd and Floyd had every right to punk him back. Ortiz also forgot a set of instructions that’s given to boxers before every match: “Protect yourself at all times.” Referees say this before every fight and it was foolish for Ortiz to have his guard down. A boxer with more than 30 professional fights should know better.

On a side note, Mayweather’s post-fight behavior was probably more entertaining than the actual fight. HBO’s Larry Merchant was conducting a fair interview when Mayweather exploded on him. He went on an idiotic and profanity-laced tirade that shows what a mentally weak person he is outside of the ring. Merchant is an accomplished print journalist, an outstanding broadcaster, and a true boxing historian. He’s also 79-years old. It’s pathetic that Mayweather threateningly disrespected one of boxing’s treasures. It was hilarious that Merchant playfully yelled back, “I wish I was 50 years younger and I’d kick your ass!”

Ultimately, I think that Mayweather did himself a disservice. I believe he was angry about the head butts and wanted to nail Ortiz for the transgression. Winning this way was bad for his image. Some fans, particularly casual boxing fans, will think that he’s a cheap-shot artist. He could have easily won the fight without stooping to Ortiz’s level. It’s a shame for him, because he was putting on a boxing clinic and was going to school Ortiz. As HBO’s Jim Lampley said shortly after the knockout, “This isn’t going to win him any more fans.”

What do you think of the knockout? Was it a cheap shot by Mayweather? Was it amateur of Ortiz to forget the “protect yourself at all times” instructions? Does this win tarnish Mayweather’s reputation? Will the controversy increase his earning potential? Leave a comment and let me know (please)!

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Coffee Talk #395: Your Dream Dinner for Four

If you could have dinner with three people from the history of the world, who would be at your table? They can be game developers, actors, musicians, etc. It’s your dream dinner for four and I’d love to hear your…

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, rain ruining my U.S. Open (tennis) background noise, why my coffee beans are late (again), or dinner/drinks with two excellent people, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

If you could have dinner with three people from the history of the world, who would be at your table? The only condition for this game is that the people you choose have to be real (this is mostly to prevent one of you from choosing He-Man or Bugs Bunny). They can be game developers, actors, musicians, etc. It’s your dream dinner for four and I’d love to hear your picks! Here are mine:

Muhammad Ali: “The Greatest” would headline my dream dinner. I’d choose the Ali that was banned from boxing and speaking out against the war in Vietnam. Ali was already an extraordinary athlete with unmatched speed for a heavyweight boxer, but his stance against the Vietnam War made him so much more. He lost three prime years of his career, but inspired so many people while he was away from boxing. He became more than just an athlete. He became an icon.

John Lennon: My feelings about Lennon are similar to my feelings about Ali. He was already a renowned performance artist and songwriter, but his post-Beatles activism made him so much more. I love that he used his fame to spread positive messages and to get people to think. I also love the continued to write great songs when doubters thought he was washed up. I’d love to have ’70s John Lennon at my dream dinner.

Steve Jobs: My last spot was a tough choice. As I mentioned to you last year, I’d love to have a one-on-one dinner with Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto. For some reason, I’m being a stickler with my dinner-for-four scenario and am disqualifying Miyamoto because he would require a translator (sorry Bill!). The final spot goes to Apple’s Steve Jobs. This would be 2005 Jobs, fresh off his Stanford commencement speech. In addition to getting his thoughts on making products people are passionate about, I’d love to hear about how he felt about getting booted from Apple, elevating Pixar, and returning to make Apple better than ever.

So that’s my dream dinner for four. Now let me know who’s sitting at your table (please)!