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Boxing brings the power in 2009

By Chris Iorfida

Posted: Thursday, August 20, 2009 | 10:10 AM

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The year promises to end with a bang in boxing with a series of intriguing fights, beginning with Floyd Mayweather Jr. coming back to test his unbeaten mark against tricky Juan Manuel Marquez next month.

Later in September, Vitaly Klitschko returns to the scene of his gutsy loss to Lennox Lewis, taking on undefeated American Chris Arreola at Staples Center in Los Angeles.

Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto battle in what should be an action-packed fight, and Paul Williams and Kelly Pavlik clash in a high-stakes bout.

Those are just the four highest-profile bouts on the schedule, there are others of slightly more obscure vintage that could very well be thrilling.

It's already been a remarkable year in one aspect. Watching the Antonio Pitalua knockout last week, I've been struck by just how many spectacular KOs there have been this year.

In certain years you only find a couple or three legitimate contenders for KO of the year. The mind gets foggy, but I can recall at least eight highlight-reel candidates this year, presented here in chronological order.

Click the fight result to watch. Thanks to YouTube, HBO, Showtime, ESPN, and SRC among others.

Juan Manuel Marquez KO 9 Juan Diaz

Juan Diaz beats just about any fighter that night. Unfortunately for him, Juan Manuel Marquez is not just any fighter.

Jean Pascal KO 5 Pablo Nievas

Shades of Foreman-Frazier aesthetically as Montreal's Pascal sends Nievas airborne before the crash to the canvas.

Randall Bailey KO 4 Francisco Figueroa

Bailey, almost 35, lends credence to theory that power is the last thing a fighter loses.

Manny Pacquiao KO 2 Ricky Hatton

This will probably get the nod as KO of the year due to the calibre of fighters involved, and you'd get no argument here.

Toshiaki Nishioka KO 3 Jhonny Gonzalez

Gonzalez was having his way in front of a frenzied Mexican crowd that was shocked into silence by Nishioka's outburst.

Miguel Acosta KO 9 Urbano Antillon

Undefeated Antillon appeared ready for title contention but faded badly en route to the uppercut that doomed him.

Antonio Pitalua KO 6 Jose Reyes

Don't let his age (39) and El DeBarge haircut fool you, Pitalua can bang.

And two stoppages

Not technically one-punch KOs, but two dramatic stoppages on the same card that were initiated by dramatic knockdowns:

Allan Green KO 2 Carlos DeLeon

Green is Jekyll and Hyde in the ring - often maddening, but occasionally sensational, like here.

Carl Froch KO 12 Jermain Taylor

Briton Froch, trailing on two of the scorecards, preserves unbeaten mark in the last round.

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Cutting to the chase
Marquez no easy mark for Mayweather