Monday, August 21, 2006 - After his expected victory over Shambra Mitchell, Paul Williams is the hot new prospect on the boxing scene. With the ability to throw a high number of punches each round and the willingness to take a punch, or two, or three, to land one, or two, or three, Williams is on the minds of boxing fans.

Never mind that he called out Antonio Margarito, a man that nobody else in the welterweight or junior middleweight division seems to has a genuine interest in battling. This sort of bravado fuels interest in a fighter, but sometimes blurs a fan's perspective on the pugilist’s true abilities.

While Williams seems like a solid prospect, let us not get ahead of ourselves, the man is just that, a PROSPECT.

A victory over Mitchell was expected. Mitchell, moving up in weight and at the tale end of his career, posed no real threat to Williams. The win does not validate Mitchell as a viable opponent for Margarito.

If Margarito fought Williams, I would take the veteran Mexican as a hands down favorite. E-mail me, if you want to take me up on that bet.

While Williams throws a flurry of punches, he does not have the mind numbing power of Tommy Hearns. The lack of one punch power might cause a problem for Williams, who loves to fight inside. Much has been said about Paul's 82" reach, but he is not designed to be an inside fighter.

Another note on the hot prospect, he needs to work on defense and balance. In his fight against Mitchell, after throwing punches, Williams was clearly off balance, with his hands down. If he displays such poor technique against Margarito, or any true welterweight, Paul might find himself on the floor.

One final comment, I always find these hotshot prospects who call out seasoned veterans a bit suspicious. If a manager and promoter have a TRUE talent, do you think they would be rushing him in with the likes of Antonio Margarito?

I remember another young fighter, with limited experience, who called out Margarito.

Maybe Paul should talk to Kermit Cintron before barking up the wrong tree

(I am happy to be joining the FightNightNews team, you can look for my Stick and Move column ever week. If you feel the need to e-mail me with your comments or questions, send me an e-mail to riclois@gmail.com.)