Highlighting Sims Jr., Conor Benn vs. Peter Dobson Review

In every generation, there is usually a group of pure-boxers. Fighters who fight strictly by the book, consistently demonstrating superior ring generalship, and remain static in form regardless of what the opposition throws back. Anthony Sims Jr. is one such fighter.

His style is reminiscent of one from three generations prior, he moves forward like a striker from the "Four Kings" era, and his defense has shown promise. One of Sims Jr.'s best skills is his ability to switch back and forth between guards. Sims Jr. uses the Philly shell at times, picks his hands up, and has used Archie Moore's near-impenetrable cross-guard.

Watching Sims Jr. box is truly a treat. He has built much of his offensive success off of his footwork and head movement as well. Sims Jr. uses his rear foot to reposition himself, as well as shoot angles to create new opportunities to throw power shots. His head movement gives him exclusive access to the shoulder and forearm roll that James Toney was very well known for using.

Only two losses stain the man's record, with his loss against Alexis Angulo being the most questionable. In the first round, Sims opened up with a solid jab and impressive ring generalship. He danced around the ring in a fashion similar to Muhammad Ali and Sugar Ray Leonard. By the fifth round, Sims Jr. still had the energy to move around the ring and keep Angulo back from hitting him with anything meaningful.

Angulo was very slow, and when he was able to press Sims Jr. against the ropes the head movement was too strong to give any clear shots away. Earlier I mentioned Archie Moore's cross-guard. This fight against Angulo is where the cross-guard was applied to its maximum capacity.

Angulo fell in love with his jab to the body, and Sims Jr. caught on quickly. In the third round, one's keen eye can pick up the latter man dropping his forearms to catch the body jab, then picking them back up to throw a shot of his own. Sometimes Angulo hit the gloves, other times he hit his shoulder, and when he headhunted, he found the back of Sims Jr.'s head, or worse, air.

Watching the fight live was frustrating, but it drew out several core memories. Sims Jr. losing this fight reminded me of the way Emmanuel Augustus would be robbed in his heyday. His superior head movement should have given him the nod in so many fights, but he was continuously robbed because many judges are disgustingly biased against fighters who outclass their opponents through defensive superiority.

The days of fighters being rewarded for their defensive prowess are over. In 1946, Willie Pep famously won a round off of Jackie Graves without throwing a single punch. His head movement and footwork dominated Graves, which later gave him a victory over the powerful boxer.

This historical fact alone paints the picture. Judges, like I spoke about in last week's article and episode on the show, have changed for the worse. It is unacceptable for a fighter to dedicate months to training and a camp, and be discredited because they didn't play the game the judges wanted them to play.

How is it that the fighters of three to four generations prior were acknowledged for their head movement and footwork, but the fighters of this current generation are penalized for it? It is disingenuous, a spit in the face to the hard workers.

I can recall the numerous footwork drills I've done over the years and what I benefitted from them. I also recall times when I dropped rounds because of my use of footwork. This isn't an issue exclusive to Sims Jr., it is an issue affecting the entire community. The sooner the combat sports world receives better judging, the sooner people like Sims Jr. can save their records, and save their stock. The most powerful form of reconciliation will arrive when the community responds in a meaningful way instead of accepting horrendous scoring.

Breaking out into the new welterweight status is Conor Benn. His first big move came at the expense of his career, the Chris Eubank Jr. matchup is one that people worldwide still crave. The ironic thing is that Eubank is looking to chase greater at middleweight.

Welterweight, however, may end up being a division for anyone's taking. Terrence Crawford was unjustly stripped of his IBF Welterweight World Championship, with the belt being handed down by e-mail to Jarron "Boots" Ennis. The best of the best are moving on as well.

Keith Thurman is taking his talents to super-welterweight, Errol Spence may be moving up due to weight-cut issues, and Vergil Ortiz is jumping up to middleweight. Although the majority of the belts at welterweight are held by Crawford, Benn still has the chance to carve himself a piece of legacy.

An undefeated prospect like Peter "Pistol Pete" Dobson provided the exact challenge Conor Benn needed. Dobson's unique striking has created a situation where he has been avoided, despite being a ranked opponent in the past. Dobson is very heavy-handed when working inside.

During his match with Benn this became a highlight repeatedly. Benn would throw two to three devastating power shots, and Dobson would respond with two of his own. No matter how many times he got hit, Dobson gave maximum effort and gave no easy points away.

The most interesting portion of the match came around round 5, when Dobson and Benn were most active on the inside. Dobson and Benn sized eachother up, using head movement to provide gaps in the guard. Finally, they unleashed power every welterweight should be fearful of.

Dobson rolled under Benn's uppercut and threw a left hook to the body, then an overhand right. Benn responded in kind with a cross and a left to the body of his own.

This back and forth was a continuing trend in the fight, but it was ultimately Dobson who lost his way. This isn't to say that Benn wasn't hurt, though. In the 12th round, after clipping Dobson with his famous double left hook combo, Benn ate a ferocious overhand right.

This got Benn's attention, and forced him into the clinch. After exiting the clinch and regaining his composure, he shot a jab-cross combination straight down the pipe and hurt Dobson.

Benn was able to slow Dobson down and keep him lethargic, and cruised through the rest of the match. "The Destroyer" was able to earn the nod from the judges, with the scorecards reading 118-110, 118-110, and 119-109 at the end of the night.

After passing the test of Peter Dobson, Benn's fellow welterweights were adamant that his power had been nowhere to be found during the match. One of Benn's biggest critics was Errol Spence Jr., who has been radio silent recently after his eye surgery.

Ryan Garcia and Gervonta "Tank" Davis, two men out of Benn's weight range, also had plenty to talk about after his performance. Bill Haney, the father of former Undisputed Lightweight Champion Devin Haney, crashed Conor Benn's post-fight press conference to congratulate Benn.

During their short confrontation, Haney let Benn know that he and his son were interested in fighting him sometime in the future. Devin and his father have been teasing a move to welterweight for the last few weeks, causing controversy with three-belt champion Terrence Crawford, as well as critiquing the inactive fighters chasing after him.

A move to welterweight would look good on paper for Haney, he already undisputed once at a weight class that he'd been in for almost a decade. He won a championship against the top super-lightweight above him, and with the belts scattered, he may not have the same luck he had at lightweight to get all the belts under one promotional banner.

Moving up and fighting Benn would be logical. Benn is currently ranked fifth at welterweight by the WBC, who Devin Haney has a great relationship with. By beating Benn, Haney would assert himself as a worthy challenger to Terrence Crawford and Jarron "Boots" Ennis, who is the sole belt holder aside from Crawford.

If Benn is to beat Haney on the night, it proves to the world that Nigel Benn's legacy is ready to grace the world stage. Both names are respected in the boxing community and have pull.

Outside of a Devin Haney clash, Benn is still looking to face off in the ring with Christ Eubank Jr. Two days ago, Chris Eubank Sr. went on Simon Jordan's TalkSport to discuss the fight being re-made. He explicitly stated that his son was too big to fight Conor, and that the fight was a circus act.

Whether or not you agree with Eubank Sr., you have to admit that there were some strange stipulations at play. A rehydration clause, questionable rematch clause, and then of course, the fallout of the fight.

Hopefully there can be some answers as to whether or not Team Eubank will officially answer Benn's call. Either way, the boxing public is looking forward to seeing Conor Benn deliver another delightful performance in the ring.