And the winner is...

My 'alternative' fighter of the year award - henceforth known as The Fran - goes to David Haye. The heavyweight division has been dreadfully dull for what seems like an eternity, but finally a fighter has come along capable of generating some much needed excitement. And he's British. 'Nuff said.

Shurely shume mistake?

The BBC Sports Personality of the Year top-10 shortlist has just been revealed:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/tv_and_radio/sports_personality_of_the_year/8386162.stm
Unbelievably the current (and 14 time) world darts champion Phil Taylor is not on it. This year, besides reclaiming his world title, Taylor has won over twenty other titles - his match record is 190 wins against just 11 losses - earning prize money of over £760,000 (he has also won 36 of the last 44 tournaments he has competed in). During a match in April he recorded the highest ever 3-dart average for a televised event – an unbelievable 116.01. Yet the BBC doesn’t think he’s one of the top ten sportspeople of the year? Back in January, I declared Taylor to be the greatest living Briton:
http://floatlikeabutterflysting.blogspot.com/2009/01/hes-got-power.html
Since then, he has simply become even greater. Last time Taylor won the world title, in 2006, he was nominated for the BBC accolade. His achievements this year make 2006 look fairly average (by his amazingly high standards). So I can only assume his omission from the shortlist is some kind of administrative error which will be corrected shortly. Either that, or the BBC intends to reward him with their Lifetime Achievement award. Or possibly the Unsung Hero award?

The day football died

Make no mistake, football didn't die because it's too corupt, because there are too many cheats playing the game. It died because nobody in authority is prepared to do anything about it. Henry would not have been able to get away with such a blatant breach of the rules if he'd been playing 'American' football - there are multiple officials on the field, and even when they fail to spot an obvious infringement, video replays are used. Players are also punnished retrospectively after the completion of games. So that's it for me - until the world footballing authorities decide to act, I'm sticking to watching the NFL.

Haye, Haye, USA

Congratulations to David Haye for bringing some long-needed excitement back to the heavyweight division. The Americans are going to love him - the only bad news is that he's stuck with a mandatory defense against John Ruiz, probably the most boring fighter on the planet.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder?

Apologies for the lack of activity recently. Believe it or not, I forgot my password. Anyway, I'll try and make up for lost time...

So where's the catch (weight)?

Wasn't The Mayweather v Marquez fight supposed to be at a catchweight of 144 pounds? So how come Mayweather weighed in at 146 pounds? Apparently, he'll have to pay a $600,000 penalty for not even attempting to get down to the contract weight. But that's scant consollation for Marquez, who was duly pummelled by a man possibly a stone (or more) heavier at the start of the contest. Don't get me wrong, Mayweather is an unbelievable fighter - but, boy, does he like to play things safe.

Whisper it, but Marquez could win

After a few quiet months, some exciting fights are on the horizon, the first of which is Mayweather v Marquez this weekend. Mayweather is the clear favourite, but Marquez should not be underestimated. Let's not forget, despite being knocked down three times by Pacquiao in the first round of their initial fight, Marquez went on to dominate the contest and should have been given the decision. Although I didn't see the rematch, many analysts thought Marquez also won that fight. Mayweather has the weight advantage, and is undoubtedly an exceptional fighter. But can he keep taking such long breaks between fights without the 'ring rust' eventually affecting his performance? It should certainly be a great fight.