Sorry, sorry, didn't mean to get everyone all excited for no reason. Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. have not agreed to fight each other yet, though the rumor mill is busy churning as hard as it can suggesting that talks are once again underway.

In the meantime, the two best boxers alive will go at it in the courtroom. A federal magistrate ordered Mayweather to give testimony starting today in Pacquiao's defamation lawsuit against him and father Floyd Sr. Though Mayweather attempted to have his appearance delayed on the grounds that he is preparing for his in-ring return against Victor Ortiz in September, that motion was denied.

Among boxing's current group of rising stars, Robert Guerrero is one of my favorites. He's skillful and tough inside the ring, and according to what I hear from writers whose opinions I trust, he's a good guy to talk to outside the ring as well. The story concerning how he put his professional career on hold during his wife's serious health troubles is an admirable one that will probably get a lot more play if Guerrero continues to climb the sport's ranks.

It's quite possible that's going to happen. Guerrero looked great in his most recent outing, easily outboxing gritty Michael Katsidis and earning a wide unanimous decision. Katsidis was even able to give Juan Manuel Marquez a few nervous moments when they fought, but he pretty much had nothing for Guerrero.

So I'm glad Guerrero is nearing a dealto fight former light welterweight titleholder Marcos Maidana in August. That should be an excellent boxer versus slugger match-up, one that could prove to be pretty exciting. Maidana also has some name recognition thanks to his thrilling battles with Amir Khan (which he lost) and Erik Morales (which he won), plus his 2009 stoppage of Victor Ortiz.

Assuming it's signed, the Guerrero-Maidana fight will take place at 140 pounds. And that's what worries me just a bit.

I'm sure plenty of boxing fans would love a trading card autographed by pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao. I've never seen an officially licensed one before, but there will be one later this year thanks to Topps.

The specific product is called 2011 Topps Marquee Baseball, and it will go on sale later this baseball season. Like most modern baseball card sets, it features plenty of autographs from baseball players, but it's the addition of Pac-Man's signature that caught my eye.

And why not? Manny is the kind of crossover superstar now who might get people who don't ordinarily pay any attention to baseball cards to take a look. He's the only boxer to sign autographs for the set, but if you were going to pick just one, he'd be your guy.

This isn't the first time Topps has included boxing autographs in a baseball product - back in 2008 there were a number of top fighters who signed for 2008 Topps Co-Signers Baseball - but to my knowledge, it's the first time Pacquiao has signed for the company. You can check out what the card looks like right now, and stay tuned until later in the summer to find out more details on the set. 

Surely you didn't think Floyd Mayweather Jr. was gone from the game of boxing for good, right? At least you had a sneaking suspicion he'd be back as soon as he thought the timing was right.

Apparently this fall is the right time. Multiple news outlets are reporting that Mayweather will return to action on September 17, taking on newly crowned WBC welterweight champion Victor Ortiz. The venue is not set, but the MGM Grand in Las Vegas is the frontrunner.

The semifinals of the Super Six World Boxing Classic conclude tonight in Atlantic City as Carl Froch puts his WBC super middleweight title on the line against accomplished veteran Glen Johnson. The winner moves on to face Andre Ward later this year to decide who wins the whole thing.

Fittingly, Ward is on hand to join the usual Showtime announce crew of Gus Johnson, Al Bernstein and Antonio Tarver.

Johnson comes to the ring first wearing a "305" hard hat and sporting a Miami Heat track jacket. Known as both the Gentleman and the Road Warrior, Johnson is 51-14-2 in his long career, which includes wins over Tarver and Roy Jones.

Froch gets a mixed reaction of boos and cheers as he walks out second. The Cobra is 27-1 with 20 KOs, with his lone loss coming to Mikkel Kessler earlier in the tournament.

The tale of the tape shows that Froch is two inches taller, and he also weighed in slightly heavier. Of course the biggest difference between the men is in age: Froch is 33, Johnson is 42.

Classy Jimmy Lennon Jr. introduces the fighters and referee Earl Brown. One of the judges is the well known John Stewart (not the Green Lantern though). The introductions are out of the way, and we are set for a scheduled 12 rounds of super middleweight action.


Round 1

Johnson comes forward, but not recklessly. Bernstein and Tarver discuss how big the ring is. Froch has his hands low while he jabs. Johnson sticks his jab in as well. Froch misses several shots and backs away from Johnson's return fire. Both men are mostly jabbing. There's a right from Glen. Froch lands his jab again. Tough round to score with nothing really big landing either way.

Tylwalk: 10-9 Froch


Round 2

Froch pounds his gloves together. Johnson tries to hop in. Froch keeps his distance behind his jab. Johnson goes to the body. Froch works a hook and returns to his jab. There's an attempted combo by The Cobra, but Johnson lands to the body and head in response. Johnson feints his way into the corner and pounds Froch a couple of times before getting held. Froch loops a right hand and a left hook to the body. Another tight round.

Tylwalk: 10-9 Froch


Round 3

Johnson seemed to be getting excellent advice in his corner. Johnson lands several stiff jabs, forcing Froch to use a left hook to drive him back. Carl is moving all over the ring while jabbing. Froch gets in a right hand but he's really scrambling to avoid the pressure. Johnson lands a stiff right hand that gets The Cobra's attention. Froch paws with jabs but can't keep Johnson off of him. Froch flurries but Johnson covers up. Glen goes to the body and is quickly tied up. Both men jab, and Johnson lands a nice left hook. Froch responds with one of his own right before the bell.

Tylwalk: 10-9 Johnson


Round 4

Froch's corner didn't like the fact that he allowed Johnson to be busier. Both men open up with plenty of jabs. Johnson just misses a big right. Right to the body by Johnson. More jabs being landed in both directions. Froch goes to the body before slipping away. The Cobra gets the best of a brief exchange. The ref warns Froch about hitting behind the head on the clinch. There's a left hook by Froch. He follows with rights to the body and head.

Tylwalk: 10-9 Froch


Round 5

This is the busiest I've seen Froch in the Super Six, but it's mostly jabs. He does land a nice right hand as a counter. Johnson lands a right to the head and one to the body that makes Froch circle away. Johnson leans on Froch and is tied up. Johnson keeps stalking and is able to land two punches in close. Froch lets his hands go with a three-punch combo upstairs. Froch digs with a right hand and an uppercut though he does take some punishment in return.

Tylwalk: 10-9 Froch


Round 6

Johnson lands jabs and a clubbing right, but Froch stays calm and keeps throwing. Froch hooks with both hands while Johnson tries to unload to the body. Johnson sneaks in a straight right, but Froch comes right back with a left hook. Froch throws a three-punch combination and steps back. Both men land in the center of the ring. Froch backs up Johnson with a right cross. There's a stiff right by Johnson but Froch takes it well.

Tylwalk: 10-9 Froch


Round 7

Bernstein thinks Johnson looks tired. Froch is beating him to the punch in almost every exchange. Johnson keeps stalking as Froch uses every part of the big ring. Froch lands a right, but Johnson comes right back with two right hands of his own. Froch tries to keep Johnson back with sheer volume. Johnson stays right in Froch's face. Johnson goes to the body but takes two back upstairs. Wicked body shot by Johnson. Overhand right by Glen as Froch tries to counter. More body work by Johnson before the bell.

Tylwalk: 10-9 Johnson


Round 8

Froch returns to trying to stick and move. Here come flurries from both fighters. Froch got the better of that exchange. Johnson is warned for a very low left hand. Froch fires a straight right and follows with a flurry to the head. Left hook by Johnson is followed by a big right hand. Froch flurries to try to catch his breath. Johnson lands to the body and head. Froch hooks with both hands as the fans roar. Johnson lands a nasty hook. Both men take a breather to jab.

Tylwalk: 10-9 Johnson


Round 9

Froch was a little slow off his stool but he is still moving well. As usual, the action starts with jabs both ways. Johnson just misses an overhand right. He does land to the body and smacks Froch's head from close range. Froch throws hooks with both hands. He lands a left hook that buys him some space. Johnson goes to the body with both hands, but Froch is landing with both hands upstairs. Three in a row from Froch. Johnson covers up to block multiple punches.

Tylwalk: 10-9 Froch


Round 10

Johnson lands a right and misses a big uppercut. Froch starts throwing power shots with both hands. Johnson comes over the top with a solid right, but Froch simply digs in and throws return shots with both hands. Froch's chin is extremely impressive. Another right lands for Johnson. Froch flurries to the head and body. He lands a sharp left that snaps Johnson's head back. Froch stays aggressive for the final 10 seconds.

Tylwalk: 10-9 Froch


Round 11

Froch knocks Johnson off balance with a two-punch combo. He is staying light on his feet while Johnson stalks. Clubbing right by Johnson in the corner. Both men land during an exchange along the ropes. Froch barely stays out of range before throwing a left-right combo. Short left hook by Johnson, but Froch keeps coming, shaking off two more rights.

Tylwalk: 10-9 Johnson


Round 12

Quite the battle as we head into the final frame. Johnson is likely going to need a last second KO to win. Froch stays calm behind multiple jabs. Johnson tries the body. Froch hooks to the head with both hands. He backs up a step and does it again. Nice uppercut by Froch before they clinch. There's another one, though Johnson keeps coming. Johnson fires a right as Froch waves him in. Froch stays busy down the stretch, and he should have this one won as we head to the scorecards.

Tylwalk: 10-9 Froch

Tylwalk: 116-112 Froch

The judges score it 114-114 and 117-111 and 116-112 for Froch. The winner by majority decision... and still WBC super middleweight titleholder... Carl "The Cobra" Froch.

Froch gives Johnson a lot of credit for being strong and tough. He said he felt some of the right hands but has a very good chin and was never really hurt.

Johnson said he thought he was in it but tried to pick it up because his corner told him he was falling behind. Glen thinks that threw him off his game plan a bit as he was looking too much for big single shots. Jim Gray asks if having to cut weight affected his ability to have enough power, but Johnson doesn't think so.

Asked if he was going to keep fighting, Johnson turns the question around on Gray and wonders rhetorically if he should keep fighting. Gray says yes.

Ward and Froch shake hands, and Ward congratulates The Cobra on his win. Ward thinks Froch got hit by some shots he didn't need to take, but he gives Carl props for battling back every time he got hit.

Froch thinks he has the plan to beat Ward, but he also knows Andre feels he is going to win. The Cobra says it's going to be a fantastic fight and something that speaks highly of the sport of boxing. 

Nick says...

It's another great night of boxing for fans in the U.S., with televised cards on both HBO and Showtime - and even staggered by an hour to allow for maximum viewing pleasure.

The Showtime main event between Carl Froch and Glen Johnson is the most significant fight of the night, as it will determine who will face Andre Ward in the final of the Super Six World Boxing Classic later this year. It's a compelling match-up between two very different fighters who fittingly earned their spots in the semifnals in completely opposite ways. no comments

These power rankings are supposed to be a monthly feature for this site, and for a while, they actually were. I just checked and saw that they haven't been updated since January. Why? Laziness perhaps, or life getting in the way. Mea culpa.

In any case, every new list of rankings is someone's first, so let me get this out of the way: This is not a pound-for-pound list. Rather, it's our attempt to quantify who has been winning the most, in the most impressive fashion aginst guys who aren't total stiffs over the last three years. Think of it as kind of a "Most Dominant" list.

Like the BCS in college football, the calculations are shrouded in mystery. I prefer them that way, as it removes one avenue of attack (that my math is wrong!). One nice thing about a mathematical formula is that it removes my personal bias from the equation, so I can't simply stick Manny Pacquiao at the top every month and I'm stuck with guys I think are undeserving (more on that below).
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Yep, congratulations are definitely going out from this corner of the internet to Zab Judah. You've just sealed the deal to face Amir Khan in Las Vegas on July 23. Nice work.

Oh, it's true that a couple of things had to go just right for this to happen, chief among them Timothy Bradley's inexplicable decision not to take on Khan himself. He may be kicking himself for that in the not too distant future.

There's also the distinct possibility that fighting Khan isn't that much of a prize after all, because, well, he's really good. He's also younger, taller and possibly stronger too.
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I suppose this is slightly off topic, but a trip to the movies on Wednesday night for a midnight screening of The Hangover Part II gave me two very different boxing-related sights.

First and foremost, I'm happy to report that Mike Tyson reprises his role from The Hangover... as himself. I don't want to spoil any of the fun for anyone planning on seeing the movie, but I will say that Iron Mike gets to show off some of his talents besides acting and punching people in the face. His famous (infamous?) facial tattoo also plays a part in the story. However his tiger is sadly absent.

Following his one-sided victory over Kelly Pavlik in 2008, Bernard Hopkins seemed almost apologetic, saying he was done fighting young opponents. You got the idea that part of him felt guilty, knowing that boxers who still had bright futures in front of them weren't going to be able to keep up with the old master.

Fortunately, B-Hop changed his mind and decided to keep fighting. That allowed us to witness events like the one that unfolded last Saturday, when Hopkins defeated Jean Pascal, becoming the oldest man ever to hold a world title belt and finding himself sitting atop a division where all of the top challengers are under 30.