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As China tries to put itself on the map as a legitimate "Boxing Country" in recent times, I'd like to spotlight a word from Hall of Fame commentator Larry Merchant who made the trip to Macao for the February card. We got an ugly but effective win from Miguel Vazquez over Denis Shafikov and a significantly more exciting match between China's own rising star Zou Shiming over the more experienced pro, Thai fighter Yokthong Kokietgym. Kokietgym was badly beaten but what he did was give a highly valiant effort against Shiming which forced him to shine. Larry's quote on boxing in China:
"I feel like a, uh, dog barking at boxing's caravan, as it tries to open up a trade route in China the way Marco Polo did about eight hundred years ago, from Venice. And we just happen to be in the Venetian Hotel with, uh, gondoliers paddling and singing on the third floor. A couple of numbers that indicate why westerners think this could be a rare and rich territory to explore and exploit:
Fifty million dollars. That's the amount that two high rollers rolled the casino during the weekend that Pacquiao fought Rios, back in November. And what was the hotel's response? They ordered four more events this year. That's how well boxing has done for them. The other figure: One and three quarter million dollars. That's the amount that Shiming will have made by the end of tonight, in four preliminary main events. So, the caravan moves on. We don't know where it's going or where it'll stop, but, meanwhile, it's been a gas."
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