The redemption of Devon Alexander

For a year and a half Devon Alexander has heard the whispers. Overrated. Underachieving. Undeserving. A man who served as boxing’s belle of the ball after his 2008 demolition of then-IBF junior welterweight champion Juan Urango, just months later the whispers began.

A close decision victory over Andriy Kotelnyk in front of his hometown fans started the chatter. Maybe he’s not the fighter we thought he was. A 2011 loss to fellow champion Timothy Bradley only escalated the chatter.  The fight was aesthetically awful, with lots of grabbing, clutching and butting between the fighters and ended with a whimper as Alexander declined to continue after several headbutts and lost on a technical decision. Finally, Alexander eeked out another razor thin decision versus Lucas Matthysse.  

As often happens in the world of boxing, people who disagreed with the decisions versus Kotelnyk and Matthysse screamed bloody robbery, ignoring that both fights were close enough to have gone either way.  Examine the press row scoring for each fight and you’ll see scores all over the map. But the whispers grew louder. The word from Alexander’s camp was that making the 140lb. limit he’d been fighting at since age 15 had began taking a toll on his body. But the claim fell on deaf ears as boxing’s Boy Wonder lost his superhero status and sat squarely on the edge of obscurity.

Back in his hometown against a powerful and relentless opponent, Devon Alexander’s skills shined as bright as they ever have.  Gone was his reluctance for meaningful exchanges. When Maidana applied his trademark pressure, Alexander stood his ground and fought back instead of fighting backwards.

He still utilized his trademark excellent ring movement, clenched on the inside and turned his opponent at every opportunity, but this fight was different because Devon willed his way to victory just as much as he skilled his way to victory.

During the loss to Bradley and the two disputed decisions, when his opponents got rough, Alexander seemed content to complain to the referee or simply retreat out of range becoming a matador to a charging bull.  Versus Maidana, there were times when low blows were traded freely between the two.  The fighters hit each other on the break.  Whereas before Alexander might have looked to the referee for assistance, Saturday night he looked at Maidana for revenge. Once it was apparent to Maidana he couldn’t outbrawl the faster, slicker St. Louisian he didn’t stand a chance.

Boxing is similar to football in that you’re almost always one bad loss away from being trashed and one solid win away from being treasured. With the decisive victory and a 23-1 record to boot, the newer, tougher welterweight version of Devon Alexander will have plenty of opportunities to become the fighter that many experts thought, then forgot, he could be.

There’s talk of a potential bout versus the winner of the upcoming Juan Diaz – Andre Berto rematch.  Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero’s name has come up as has Amir Khan’s. Tim Bradley moved up to welterweight for a shot at Manny Pacquiao, so a rematch could come down the line.  Of course Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. are the cream of the crop of the division. With a few good wins, Alexander’s name could pop up in those discussions also.

Regardless of the speculation, Alexander’s impressive win over Maidana  has put him back in the spotlight. He’s almost certain to appear on HBO or Showtime again in the future. It seems the rumors of his demise have been greatly exaggerated.

Follow In the Clutch on Twitter @intheclutchstl