Kelly Pavlik News & Discussion

Posted October 2, 200816 yr

GREAT article from the Scene this week:

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http://www.clevescene.com/stories/15/74/the-hero

The Hero

Kelly Pavlik Defends A Struggling City's Honor

By D.x. Ferris

Friday night fights at Saxon Hall in Youngstown, a catering hall that hosts more weddings than boxing matches. Undisputed world middleweight champ Kelly Pavlik is in attendance, but no one would fault a visitor for not noticing. The 11-year-old phenom on the card tonight has a bigger entourage than Pavlik. Thin, bald, clad in jeans and a black T-shirt, the champ is sporting every piece of jewelry he owns, both of them -- a wedding ring and a watch. Pavlik blends in so well he'd be lost in the crowd if not for the VIP seating. Only the steady flow of well-wishers to his table gives away his status as a hometown hero.

These fans represent just a fraction of those who will be there, in person or in spirit, when Pavlik steps into the ring to fight Bernard "The Executioner" Hopkins on October 18. In Youngstown, sports fans break into two camps: loyal to either the Browns or the Steelers. But, as with Ohio State, everyone loves Pavlik. At just 26, the fighter is Ohio's most recent championship franchise, backed behind the scenes by a camp called Team Pavlik - a collection of family, trusted lifelong friends and powerhouse fight-game players that has become a civic institution. Team Pavlik has made Youngstown a destination, and the ring's bright lights are helping the rusty city shine.

When Pavlik wore a "Defend Youngstown" T-shirt in a documentary that aired on SportsTime Ohio, the T began selling in Cleveland. Then Midwest chic went viral after the shirt popped up in the pre-fight profile before his January 2007 HBO debut. Since then, stories in Sports Illustrated, The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times have all advanced the legend: Pavlik personally defends Youngstown, sledgehammer in hand, city on his shoulders, carrying it to a brighter future.

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More at:

http://www.clevescene.com/stories/15/74/the-hero

October 17, 200816 yr

Cool video on the Youngstown stud:

October 17, 200816 yr

That is one of my favorite videos. Youtube used to have the documentary from STO, but it's not there anymore. :(

Anyone else watching the fight tomorrow????

Go Kelly! Defend Youngstown!

October 20, 200816 yr

Well, so much for defending Youngstown's honor... :cry:

Hopkins pummels Pavlik

By Tom Canavan

ASSOCIATED PRESS

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Bernard Hopkins gave Kelly Pavlik a boxing lesson and a first loss that he will never forget.

The 43-year-old Hopkins used lightning quick combinations and a cagey, nearperfect defense to embarrass and confuse Pavlik in a 12-round non-title bout last night at Boardwalk Hall.

Hopkins, who dominated the middleweight class for a decade, made the 26-yearold Pavlik — the WBC and WBO middleweight champion — look slow and powerless in fighting at 170 pounds, 10 pounds over his weight class.

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More at:

http://www.ap.org/

November 4, 200816 yr

He'll be back. He's still the best out there at his weight class. Joe Calzaghe is a liar.

February 23, 200916 yr

Local boy Pavlik puts on a show for Youngstown

Sunday, February 22, 2009, 3:48 AM

By Dave Skretta, Associated Press

YOUNGSTOWN -- Kelly Pavlik is no longer be perfect, but he's still the best middleweight in the world.

Dominating overmatched Marco Antonio Rubio from the start, Pavlik emphatically rebounded from his first career loss by stopping the Mexican challenger after the ninth round last night before a raucous hometown crowd that arrived more than five hours early to see its hero.

The pride of Youngstown gave them something to remember.

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More at:

http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/sports/stories/2009/02/22/pavlik_2-22.ART_ART_02-22-09_C3_D5D03IS.html?sid=101