Chad Dawson may not be the biggest name in the sport, and unlike Showtime, I won't now tell you he's the world's best light heavyweight. Joe Calzaghe is still THE light heavyweight champion of the world, and Dawson's résumé is simply one that is being built steadily and even rapidly.

His wide unanimous decision win last night signaled a couple of important things, though.

For one thing, we saw the end of Antonio Tarver as a legit top-flight light heavyweight. Frankly, we saw the end of it when Bernard Hopkins beat the daylights out of him in 2006, but the world continued to believe in large part that Tarver was the fighter he briefly was before.

Tarver, if you've never gathered (somehow), has not exactly been one of my favorites over the years. He's a loud, big-talking guy with a couple of great wins. Had he not knocked Roy Jones out with one fluky shot, would we even be here? That was a highlight reel moment for anyone, let alone Tarver slamming the pound-for-pound king.

Since Hopkins, he's done nothing of merit. Wins over Elvir Muriqi and Danny Santiago mean little, if anything. Neither fighter is anywhere near Tarver's class, yet Antonio got a tough fight from Muriqi, and looked incredibly slow against an undersized, far overmatched Santiago, who had no business being in the ring with Tarver. A fight that night with Danny Green -- a solid, not special guy -- may have given Tarver far more than he could handle.

He beat Clinton Woods easily, but I'll always say, since it was obvious, that Woods just wasn't into that one, whatever his reasons were.

Dawson made him look old, slow, and like part of the past, while Chad was clearly the future and the present of the division all rolled up in one. Dawson (27-0, 17 KO) took Tarver's IBF (and IBO) titles with relative ease, winning on scores of 118-109, 117-110, and 117-110. I had it 119-108 for Dawson, though there were a couple of rounds I debated but thought Chad landed cleaner, better shots.

But with all the dissing of Tarver, I want to again make this point: outside of his whining in the 12th round that he didn't go down (his gloves clearly touched the canvas, and that's a knockdown, "Magic Man"), Tarver didn't have any Tarver moments. He was humble and classy in defeat, passed the torch in essence, and also fought like a fighter, not a guy looking to hang on at any cost.

Tarver (27-5, 19 KO) did not clinch with Dawson, who skillfully backed away from Tarver all night, forcing Tarver into the role of pursuer, which is not his strong suit. Tarver threw everything he had at Dawson. It just wasn't good enough to beat a younger, stronger, fresher, faster fighter. Dawson's gameplan worked brilliantly. He was superb.

But Antonio Tarver, even in a lopsided loss, kept the fight moving, kept the action going, and though you might not class it as a warrior loss, I'll say he went out on his shield. In the final round, he unleashed his hands and tried to find any KO he could. He didn't look for the perfect shot, he looked for any shot. That's admirable. He did everything he could to win.

There is no better photo than Herbert Knosowski's AP snap to the right to describe Vitali Klitschko's win over Samuel Peter. Klitschko's fist, what you can make of Peter's face.

To call what Vitali Kiltschko gave Samuel Peter yesterday in Germany a "boxing lesson" would require the thought that Peter had ever signed up for boxing school. To call it, simply, an "outclassing" is saying too little of the match, which was as one-sided as you could have possibly dreamt it being.

Samuel Peter (30-2, 23 KO) looked as though he had absolutely no business in the ring with Vitali Klitschko, who is going to be lauded, somewhat rightfully, for a great performance. Truth is, any tall heavyweight that knew how to control distance was going to beat the crap out of Peter.

Samuel Peter's head movement was at an all-time low. He didn't jab, and he couldn't jab. He never got inside. He tried to bull-rush a few times, and all that came of it was some wild, missed swings, and then Vitali re-finding his range and pop-pop-popping Peter until the Nigerian titleholder could takes no more, quitting after eight Klitschko-owned rounds.

Was it fear? Is it a simple case of Peter being overrated thanks to the landscape around him?

As for the latter idea, that's not his fault. What is he now at worst? Still a top five heavyweight. I wouldn't take him to beat either Klitschko and I also think Valuev's size would have its way with Peter, but I'd take him over cement-footed Chagaev, a guy he could catch clean at some point.

Peter is David Tua with less excitement. He's a lumbering, squat, straight-forward fighter that just cannot handle a good, tall fighter. Jameel McCline got him in trouble, and McCline is hardly any great shakes.

All respect to Vitali Klitschko, new WBC heavyweight titlist. Watching him and Wladimir get ready to make another weird bunch of photos after the fight was a bit much for me, and it troubles me that we're now even further away from a heavyweight champion being crowned. Had Peter beaten Vitali, all it would've taken was a Peter-Wlad rematch, and you're damn right I think Wladimir would've tried to avenge his brother. After all, big bro beat up bullies Corrie Sanders and Ross Purritty when they were done with Wladimir, and Wladimir twice hammered Chris Byrd, who holds a win over Vitali.

With Peter, you're also seeing what the future holds for Chris Arreola, like it or not. A big, thick, sturdy guy that likes to mix it up, whose power isn't Tyson-esque or anything, and whose simple boxing skills lack crispness. Plus, frankly, neither exactly goes out of their way to be in the best possible shape.

Meanwhile, giant fitness freaks the Klitschkos rule the roost at heavyweight on the strength of their jabs. There ain't nothin' wrong with either man as a fighter, if you ask me, but if it's a sensational and dynamic heavyweight champ you're looking for, keep waiting.

Quick n' dirty, and we'll have MUCH more tomorrow:

1. Vitali Klitschko dominated and forced Samuel Peter to quit after eight rounds of one-sided action in Germany. Peter was never in the fight. He was horrible.

2. Chad Dawson won a unanimous decision over Antonio Tarver, who was uncharacteristically humble and honest in defeat. Dawson was masterful, and I'll give Tarver credit: he didn't clinch, he didn't punk out. He fought. He was out-fought by a better, faster, stronger, younger fighter. He took it like a man, and in the final round after getting knocked down, he threw everything he had. It was a respectable defeat, one-sided as it was.

Again, a reminder: DO NOT post spoilers of the Peter-Klitschko fight as it happens live in Germany. The fight will be broadcast at 9pm on Showtime here in the United States, and we're waiting for that to catch any of the results so that we can cover it "live" via tape delay.

A couple of notes from Dan Rafael of ESPN on upcoming pay-per-views:

Zab Judah WILL fight on November 8 beneath Joe Calzaghe-Roy Jones, and won't be coming back at 140 like some had speculated and many hoped. He'll fight at 147 pounds again, but has officially stated he plans to go down to 140 soon:

"I'm working on my weight," Judah told ESPN.com. "I started at 140 and mentally I know that is where I should be. I'm planning to go back there and dominate. I stay ready. I'll be ready. I'm just here to show my fans I am still dominant and I can put on good fights and give great entertainment."

Judah's opponent is likely to be Ernest "Too Slick" Johnson (18-2-1, 7 KO). What a crummy, waste of time undercard that's going to be.

Abner Mares is off of next weekend's Pavlik-Hopkins undercard, where he was scheduled to fight Luis Melendez in a fight that really could have been pretty exciting. Mares suffered a torn retina this week in training, and underwent surgery. Hey, no phantom injury or B.S. about that. Nothing you can do. These things happen.

Instead of Mares-Melendez, the opening bout of the televised portion of the pay-per-view will be a six-rounder featuring Golden Boy top prospect Daniel Jacobs (10-0, 9 KO) against Indianapolis fighter Jimmy Campbell (11-2, 8 KO). I'll take it. Jacobs is the real deal, and with such short notice, nothing bigger could be expected.

Source: BoxingScene.com (Ronnie Nathanielsz)

WBO bantamweight titlist "Fearless" Gerry Penalosa says he'd like to fight 122-pound titleholder Juan Manuel Lopez on the undercard to De la Hoya-Pacquiao on December 6, reports Ronnie Nathanielsz.

Penalosa (53-6-2, 36 KO) has fought just once this year, successfully defending his title with an eighth round TKO of Ratanachai Sor Vorapin in April. He won the title with a stunning body shot KO of Jhonny Gonzalez last August.

The last time Penalosa fought at 122, he lost a good fight against heavily-favored Daniel Ponce de Leon, the same man that Lopez blew out inside of one round to gain worldwide attention earlier this year. Lopez scored a two-punch KO of Cesar Figueroa in his first defense on October 4, and his scheduled to appear on the big December 6 undercard in a featured position.

I like the fight. Penalosa's camp says they're going to talk to Bob Arum to try to make it happen. It would put a Filipino in a position of prominence on Pacquiao's undercard, and it would be a nice test for Juanma, one of the most exciting young fighters on the planet. Penalosa can scrap, and he's very smart. He's also tough.

Nothing wrong with the idea as far as I can see. Whether or not it happens is another story, but it would be a fine addition to the card.

Game's not until much later but I'm spending my day watching college football and later boxing, so here's this now.

Dan Rafael got the scoop last night that Kendall Holt and Ricardo Torres will hook up for a third time to settle the score on December 13 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. This fight will be in Holt's backyard -- the first one came in Colombia, Torres' home country, and the second was fought in Vegas.

You likely remember the second bout, a stunning one-round affair that ended in 61 seconds. Holt was knocked down, but stormed back to stop Torres on a beautiful finishing punch...which had been preceded by a brutal clash of heads. It happens. The first fight was no less controversial, with Holt being hit with beer bottles in an unsafe, uncontrolled environment.

It'll be the same day as Klitschko-Povetkin, but with HBO airing that one live (I think, anyway) sometime in the late afternoon, there'll be plenty of time for this "special ShoBox" event in the late evening. Should be a fun day, and I'm really looking forward to this fight.

As always, odds are taken from Bodog.

Fight thread will get bumped up later -- I just wanted to put something up for people to not post spoilers.

The books have Vitali Klitschko as a -200 favorite over Samuel Peter (+160). Both guys are decent bets, really. Maybe Peter catches Klitschko cold and rusty. Maybe Klitschko just plain catches Peter.

It's also a sucker's bet because there are so many intangibles and unknowns. Who knows what Klitschko has left in the tank? If he fights like he used to, I think he knocks Peter out cold, because he's simply a better fighter.

The over/under for rounds is 9 1/2, with even money on the under and -140 on the over. I'd bet it won't go that long. They're going to be throwing too many bombs for it to last very long. I don't see it going over seven, honestly.

In Vegas, Chad Dawson is the favorite (-260) over 39-year old Antonio Tarver (+200). The biggest news might be the fact that the 2,000-seat arena at the Palms isn't even close to sold out, which means that neither man is any sort of attraction. Tarver, like Shane Mosley, never really has been, no matter how good he is. Neither has ever been an A-side attraction. And Dawson just isn't a big enough name yet.

Still, not being able to fill 2,000 seats? Pretty embarrassing. Promotion for the fight didn't seem great, but I don't really think that's it. Not being able to find 2,000 boxing fans willing to pay for a major fight, and a legitimately interesting bout at that, is pretty amazing. It is also a one-fight card, really, which might have something to do with it.

Who knows? All I know is that neither man is going to have a Vegas attraction bargaining chip for any fight after this one.

Truth be told, this fight should not be in Vegas, with Dawson based in Connecticut and Tarver in Florida. What's wrong with the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville? One of the sites in Tampa? Maybe AC? Vegas makes the best offers, but it doesn't always make it the best home for a fight.

It's freaking Brett Myers Mania.

Phillies 8, Dodgers 5 (Philadelphia leads series, 2-0)

As Good Ol' JR might say, Brett Myers batting or running is bowling shoe ugly. (Hey, it's Red River Rivalry day. And for kicks -- Texas, Oklahoma.)

Yeah, Myers went 4-for-58 with 3 RBI in the entire regular season, and he's 4-for-5 with 3 RBI this postseason, including 3-for-3 with all those RBI yesterday. The most amazing thing, though, is he almost fell over between second and third base at one point, and later conked himself in the back of the head on his backswing. Pretty hilarious, really. What can you do? The dude's in the zone.

At the plate, anyway. His pitching was not as impressive, as he went five innings with five earned on six hits, four walks and six strikeouts. The Phillies win either way, and Myers' 3 RBI wind up being the difference.

Manny Ramirez went deep again, and a long fly to center from Casey Blake threatened to rally the Dodgers back into a tie game late, but Shane Victorino went back to the wall and grabbed it out of the sky with a mildly leaping catch.

With the Dodgers burning through six pitchers in the game, their rotation is now set only so far as Hiroki Kuroda will start game three on Sunday.

This is a good photo:

Red Sox 2, Rays 0 (Boston leads series, 1-0)

Earlier on SportsCenter, Buster Olney said that Daisuke Matsuzaka was the biggest question mark for Boston in this postseason.

...really?

Mike Lowell being out, forcing Mark Kotsay into first base and Youkilis over to third, and Beckett being iffy, and hoping that J.D. Drew doesn't come up lame again -- but Daisuke Matsuzaka (18-3, 2.90 ERA) was the biggest question?

For reals, Buster?

(Note: Re-watching, Buster said "going into the ALCS" -- still, really? Matsuzaka and not Beckett?)

No matter, Daisuke threw a no-hitter into the seventh inning and put in a performance you might count as "brilliant" if you're someone that goes bananas over David Lynch films. He made no sense and he took forever, but in the end, pretty good.

Home field advantage is now gone, which is made too big a deal, probably. There are still three games left at Tampa Bay should it go seven, and three games in Boston. Big whoop. I don't go in for home field advantage so much at this stage, which might seem like the exact time to go in for it, but it just doesn't make or break anything, I don't think. These are all really good teams still playing.

The scoring came on a Jed Lowrie sac fly in the fifth and a Youkilis double in the eighth, securing the win. Jonathan Papelbon extended his postseason scoreless innings streak to 20 2/3.

Tough loss for the Rays, too. James Shields pitched a hell of a game and the bullpen shut it down as they have been doing, but they just didn't score. Can't win without a run.

Note: Those that stop by tomorrow prior to the U.S. airing of Peter-Klitschko on Showtime at 9pm EDT, please do not say anything about the fight, as BLH will be waiting for the U.S. tape delay to watch the fight so that it can be covered "live" with other U.S. viewers participating. Thank you in advance.

via espn-i.starwave.com

Ahhh...the heavyweights. Those most tantalizing of boxers, they of the most lore and historical noteworthiness. The big men. The prize fighters.

The division of Jack Johnson, Muhammad Ali, Joe Louis, Rocky Marciano, Jack Dempsey, Floyd Patterson, John L. Sullivan, Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield, Lennox Lewis, Joe Frazier, George Foreman, and Larry Holmes.

And the division that continues to paint boxing as a "dead" sport to the mainstream media, because nothing interesting ever happens. None of the best fights are at heavyweight anymore. None of the best fighters, sans Wladimir Klitschko, ply their trade in these ranks.

While sportswriters of a certain vintage likely grew up as boxing "fans," they were really fans of the spectacle that can be the heavyweight division at its best. The pomp and circumstance, the showmanship, and the clash of the titans feel that a great, important heavyweight fight can give.

Tomorrow night, Vitali Klitschko, retired four years, will return to the ring to face WBC titleholder Samuel Peter, yet another effort by the boxing world to capture some energy in its heaviest and most historically profitable division. Like many of today's biggest heavyweight title fights, the match will take place in Germany, held at the O2 Arena in Berlin.

For Peter, it's a chance to force Vitali's little brother, Wladimir, to face him again, which is the lone fight that could crown a true heavyweight champion. Wladimir beat Peter once, but it was a rough win, and one of the few memorable heavyweight scraps of recent years.

For Vitali? It's a payday. It's a return to the ring which will be treated by his biggest fans as something akin to a great warrior returning to his home city to defend the castle once more.

He's tried to come back before, of course. Just last year he was supposed to face Jameel McCline, then backed out due to yet another injury. When Peter's fight with then-WBC titleholder Oleg Maskaev fell through around the same time, it was Peter that stepped in to fight McCline, something he did not have to do. He got a bad scare from McCline, but ultimately prevailed. Later he would destroy Maskaev, the man Vitali tried to fight instead, attempting to use his "champion emeritus" status to the fullest degree.

Peter wouldn't budge, though. He was the #1 contender, and he took his shot. He cleaned house on Maskaev in March, and here we are, one day away, and Vitali Klitschko isn't hurt yet.

The fight will go on. We're talking hours at this point.

It is of less concern to me the intangibles of the matchup than the fact that it's taking place to begin with. Vitali may not have gotten it as quickly as he wished, or against the fighter he desired, but he has, for certain, returned from a long absence to cash in "champion emeritus" and walk right into a title shot. In a business -- yes, business -- you can't expect any less. Outside of perhaps Wladimir, there is no bigger money opponent for Samuel Peter than Vitali Klitschko. I'm sure Peter is perfectly happy to fight Vitali for big money than someone more "deserving" and get less.

As for the matchup, it's all a big mystery. What does Vitali have left? How strong is he? Is he really 100%, or close enough to it? How rusty will he be?

How good is Sam Peter, anyway? Even with a four-year layoff, is Klitschko still better than Peter? Prime-against-prime, I'll take Vitali every time. He's taller, stronger, and hits just as hard, if not harder. Peter's punching power has probably been overstated thanks to a lack of big-time finishers in the division. Among the riff raff, Peter scores the best knockouts at the top level.

If you ask me, this is about as likely to end on a Vitali injury as anything else, but here's hoping we get a show. If Peter comes out ready to throw bombs, Vitali may have no choice but to throw them back, which could erupt into quite a spectacle.

Who do you like tomorrow?