FNF: Ruben Olivares versus Chucho Castillo

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What better accompaniment to our last piece that getting Friday Night Fights back on track by showcasing one of the grittiest matchups in the storied career of Ruben Olivares. It's April of 1970 and the Inglewood Forum is once again a showcase for fanatical Mexican-American boxing fans and two of their favorite sons. Only this time they were to step into the ring and do battle with each other. The fans had rioted when Castillo lost a split decision to Lionel Rose and went nearly as mad when Olivares defeated Rose by a fifth round KO. No easy pick for them here. It was as close in the ring as it was in their hearts.

A Wilted Rose

As Lionel Rose stood in his corner waiting for all the pomp and pageantry to subside, there had to be a certain fear within him. It's oft said when a boxer loses that fear of his opponent, that's when he really is in trouble. Nerves would have certainly been growing and growing, making him ever more anxious as his time of reckoning grew nearer.

Time To Light The Fire

Let's pretend we all have a time machine for a minute. We'll take a journey back to January of 2011. Whatever happiness any West Ham supporter happened to be experiencing in their personal lives it certainly was most likely juxtaposed with an extreme case of nerves due to West Ham's place in the table.

West Ham 2 Norwich 1

Bit weird to be on the other side of the calls isn't it? While saying West Ham were lucky to do would certainly be a stretch, Mark Clattenburg definitely did us a bit of a favor in awarding a penalty to the Hammers with barely a minute gone in the match.

Hopes and Wishes

Ahhh, January. The start of a New Year and yet another transfer window. Hope for a better year, or continuance of a good year past, dodgy "in the know' accounts on Twitter and ridiculous speculation in regards to who your club is going to bring in. Isn't it a magical time?

For The Suits P4P Rankings: January 2013

It goes without saying: a lot changes in a year. In boxing that holds true more than in most sports. Although consistency and longevity are two greatly respected traits in the business, like many other sports, when you're dealing with boxing, as volatile ans fickle sport as any,  in which one's entire world can change with a perfectly delivered punch there is absolutely no guarantees. See: Victor Ortiz/Josesito Lopez or any planned future opponent of Canelo Alvarez' fight before the "big one" with Canelo.

So Long, Mr. Charmers.

So here you are again, another Friday crammed into a sweaty club while the reggae beat pumps through speakers as big as mum and dads wardrobe. Bass so loud it is sending waves of sound threw your suit jacket. The smell of Brut and cigarette smoke and stale Red Stripe creating an intoxicating aroma. The three wouldn't seem as though they would be the sort of mixture that you'd happily wake up smelling of tomorrow morning, but that's exactly what you know will happen.