JEFF FENECH vs AZUMAH NELSON

I wasn’t going to write anything about the golden oldies fight between Jeff Fenech and Azumah Nelson, but I have seen a betting line and there does seem to be some interest.

Fenech is 44, Nelson, 49, and they are obviously going to be slowed-down shadows of the fighters who fought twice in 130-pound title bouts in the early 1990s.

Nelson hasn’t boxed in a decade, Fenech last appeared in a ring 12 years ago. They are meeting in a 10-round junior middleweight bout in Melbourne on Tuesday. Fenech weighed 151 pounds, Nelson 152.

The first fight between them was a gruelling draw in Las Vegas in 1991, and Nelson stopped Fenech in the eighth round of the rematch in Melbourne the following year.

That was when they were world-class fighters. Now they are businessmen taking part in a gimmick type of event that nevertheless has a certain weird curiosity.

Fenech was blown out in two rounds by the South African Philip Holiday as a lightweight in his last fight. His chin seemed to have totally gone — no punch-resistance at all. Nelson was well-beaten on points by Jesse James Leija at junior lightweight in his last bout.

Nelson has apparently looked quite good in sparring in Australia but Fenech has more of a toned-looking physique.

One thought occurs to me. Is Fenech so desperate for money that he would risk embarrassing himself? One has to assume that he believes he can win, and I do believe that he has always kept himself in good shape.

Nelson might not look as good physically as Fenech, but he can probably deliver a good punch, even now, and Fenech’s chin must be considered highly suspect. Yet, just a few months’ short of his 50th birthday and after such a long time out of the ring, will Nelson have the timing to catch the Aussie with a decisive blow?

No one really knows how fit Nelson is, although I believe he has a gym at his home in Ghana and I would doubt that he has ever let himself get terribly out of shape.

Anything could happen in this fight. Anyone trying to pick a winner can only make a guess. My guess would be that Fenech can eke out a decision just by being able to throw more punches.