• Boxing Year in review

Amir Khan shines bright for boxing

Amir Khan showed power and the ability to take a punch against Marcos Maidana © Getty Images

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A year splintered by some sublime fights and ridiculous moments, but the action picked up towards the end of the year with some high-class fights setting the pulse racing:

Fight of the Year:
The Super Six Series has been beset by problems with a number of fighters picking up injuries, but it has not been short on action and has been an excellent advertisement for the super-middleweight division. It served up an absolute treat in April as Mikkel Kessler inflicted the first defeat of his career on Carl Froch. The Brit travelled over to Kessler's native Denmark and put up a fantastic effort, as the pair traded blows for 12 rounds. It was a stunning display and could have gone either way, with Kessler edging it on the judges' scorecards. A special mention goes to Amir Khan who proved he has a chin to match his quicksilver speed when beating Marcos Maidana on his Las Vegas debut. Khan's US promoter Oscar de la Hoya described it as the "Fight of the Decade". It wasn't quite in that class, but the Brit certainly served up a treat.

Star man:
Boxing has many heroes but a man who stands above all others is Manny Pacquiao. The Filipino is a legend, with his victory over Antonio Margarito in November his tenth world title at eight different weights. Since suffering defeat to Erik Morales, he has not looked back - mopping up title after title. Having been named Fighter of the Decade 2000-2009 by the Boxing Writers of America, there could have been suggestions that he would be on the decline in 2010 but judged on his dominant victories over Joshua Clottey and Margarito, that does not look to hold any credence. As well as being a dominant force in the ring, Pacquiao has other strings to his bow and is a member of congress in his homeland, a no mean crooner and by the look of it an all-round good guy. There really could be no other choice.

Knockout of the Year:
Paul Williams and Sergio Martinez served up a treat in December 2009, with Williams winning a tight fight that saw both fighters pick themselves up off the canvas. A rematch was always expected and it arrived on November 20, but this one did not go the distance. A war was always on the cards and blows were traded early on. Towards the end of the second, Williams marched forward but with his low right hand, Martinez found a gap and with a left hand that came from another county, he caught Williams flush on the chin. It was one of those punches where the lights go out long before the fighter hits the canvas. It was a quite stunning shot that Williams is probably still recovering from.

Paul Williams was left seeing stars after being tagged by Sergio Martinez © Getty Images

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Disappointment of the Year:
The heavyweight division. The marquee weight for boxing, the heavyweight scene is at a low ebb. The dominant figures in the division are the Klitschko brothers, Vitali and Wladimir, and Britain's David Haye. But it's been a poor year for the big hitters. We've had the Klitschkos taking part in bore-fests, with Wlad jabbing his way to wins over Eddie Chambers and Samuel Peter, and Vitali doing similar in his wins over Albert Sosnowski and Shannon Briggs. Hopes were raised that Haye would spark life into the division when dominating the giant Nikolai Valuev last year, but after failing to strike a deal with either of the Klitschkos he signed a deal to fight Audley Harrison. Both parties talked up the fight, but talk proved cheap as barely a punch was thrown for two rounds before Haye knocked out Harrison in the third. The fight left a nasty taste in the mouths of punters and Haye and the Klitschkos need to do the heavyweight scene some good PR by striking a deal for 2011.

Quote:
"He's been comparing himself this week to Bernard Hopkins, but he's about as dangerous as Bernard Cribbins."
Boxing thrives on its trash talking and James DeGale is never slow in taking a swipe at his rival George Groves. It's high time they got it on in the ring

"Straight after the fight, I went down the road picked up my dog, went to McDonalds and went home and had a wee night on the Xbox."
Ricky Burns reveals how he celebrated defending his WBO title against Andreas Evensen

"I was swaying and feeling like shit and David was hanging over the balcony being sick."
Carl Froch blows out of the water the notion that WBA heavyweight champion David Haye can hold his alcohol, as he revealed the pair were worse for wear during a boozy trip to Ibiza

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