Sky punditry is diabolical

[Grimmer]

Did anyone else feel cringeworthy when they were saying Mitchell could handle Soto?

Now, don't get me wrong, I like Mitchell...I always have, but what has he ever done to warrant statements that he could beat Soto as easily as the Sky pundits made out? I'm not confident he'll get past Katsidis, which I hope he does and think he can...but it will tough, he'll have to go the distance and be the better man on the night. Soto is a top fighter at world level, right now he beats Mitchell imo, in a couple of years it could be a different story, but to say Mitchell could beat Soto based on Soto's last night performance is down right ludicrous. Soto was fighting for a World title at a weight he'd only fought at couple of times at before and got the job done clearly. Mitchell has earn't his reputation at SFW and hasn't fought any world champions at that weight yet. So the though of him stepping up and beating the likes of Soto at Lightweight is pretty far fetched, at this point of his career.

[lickirake]

Sky's commentating on any thing outside of England is usually diabolical!Even then that's bending over backwards for them, I also vaguely remember them saying something along the lines of Diaz trying to return to his former glory a couple of times during that fight, as if he was some p4p'er before Pacquiao had his way with him! Sky's pundits knowledge of world boxing is just abysmal in general really!

[Grimmer]

Sky's commentating on any thing outside of England is usually diabolical!Even then that's bending over backwards for them, I also vaguely remember them saying something along the lines of Diaz trying to return to his former glory a couple of times during that fight, as if he was some p4p'er before Pacquiao had his way with him! Sky's pundits knowledge of world boxing is just abysmal in general really!

And I use to think Setanta's was pretty bad with Richie Woodhall, (although Sky and Jim Watt trump it in biasness, ITV are no better than Sky though)....at least Setanta use to switch their broadcast to the HBO crew for the big fights!

[lickirake]

I think sky have no excuses though, there pretty decent with all other sports they carry!Setanta was awful!!Calling for a Calzaghe RJJ rematch half way through the tenth been one of there gems!, but a bit more forgivable because they carried fights which would be a bit more obsecure to the casual fan, like Holt vs Torres etc, but I agree, having to switch to a crappy HBO stream because of sky commentating says everything!!

[Grimmer]

I think sky have no excuses though, there pretty decent with all other sports they carry!Setanta was awful!!Calling for a Calzaghe RJJ rematch half way through the tenth been one of there gems!, but a bit more forgivable because they carried fights which would be a bit more obsecure to the casual fan, like Holt vs Torres etc, but I agree, having to switch to a crappy HBO stream because of sky commentating says everything!!

Andy Gray isn't much good with football with his arse licking of Man Utd, but the Soccer Saturday crew is awesome. Yeah Setanta was the boxing channel...last night's fight would have been on Setanta if they hadn't shut down. All Sky use to be interested in was Ricky Hatton fights and Floyd Mayweather fights, as well as the domestic scene. I use to love Setanta' coverage for all the world title fights even if there wasn't an English fighter involved (but they had Haye and Calzaghe). Holt and Torres like you mentioned. They had Pacman v Marquez 2, Cotto v Marga, Mosley v Marga...the Klitschko's v whoever and more....they had them all other than Hatton or Mayweather, and Khan was still on terrestrial by then (but Khan was ready to sign with them before their financial difficulties became public knowledge). It's a damn shame Setanta shut down.

[The Guru_]

They didnt say he could handle Soto they were talking up a decent fight between them, the garbage David Diaz gave Soto a tough fight. Kevin Mitchell is a better fighter than David Diaz, much better infact.

[dannnnn]

Yeah, as I remember it, they didn't say Mitchell would "handle" Soto, they just brought his name up in a kind of "How might he fare against these guys?" kind of way, which is completely acceptable since he's on the cusp of world-class in the Lightweight division.

For me, Jim Watt is the best commentator on Sky. He really knows the business, was a world-champion himself and has been commentating for years (with the late, great Reg Gutteridge) and tends to read fights accurately. Also, he isn't in love with the sound of his own voice (Ian Darke and Adam Smith) which is probably my main pet-peeve with commentators. Glenn McCrory's alright as well and Nicky Piper's a good analyst.

On HBO, Emanuel Steward is probably the only one who doesn't irritate me, I definitely find I have more respect for the guys who have actually fought/trained and been around the business more so than just the arm-chair critics. Max Kellerman's a twat, plain and simple. Larry Merchant seems to come up with one sentence every half hour and you can tell he's been sitting there desperately trying to think of something witty that people can quote. Harold Lederman is a cartoon.

I just like a commentator to stay calm and call the fight accurately, that's it really. ITV were the worst, I'm actually glad they dropped boxing since I no longer have to listen to John Rawling and Duke McKenzie. My favourite commentary is on Showtime, I've never heard Al Bernstein call a fight badly. He's completely unbiased, very insightful and really knows what to look for when scoring a fight. And you'll never hear him randomly start shouting **** **** **** **** **** halfway through a fight, because, you know, he's not a tosser.

[123tyson123]

I dont think Johnny Nelson and Glen McGregor are too bad, Jim watts the problem. Every fight he commentates he brings out the negatives way to much. He ruins the fights with his negative comments. He moaned throughout the whole broadcast of Pac v Clottey on Saturday, he even moaned about the music between rounds!

[*2TOUGH*]

No, Soto looked like an ordinary fighter against the bum in Diaz that is why they said what they said!!!

[*2TOUGH*]

I dont think Johnny Nelson and Glen McGregor are too bad, Jim watts the problem. Every fight he commentates he brings out the negatives way to much. He ruins the fights with his negative comments. He moaned throughout the whole broadcast of Pac v Clottey on Saturday, he even moaned about the music between rounds!

actually that wasnt Jim Watt that complained about the music first, it was the other guy! And it was ****ty, why would you wanna play rock music in between rounds? Accept it, it was lame to play that ****.