Former lightweight titleholders George Kambosos and Vasiliy Lomachenko will for the vacant IBF title at the RAC Arena, Perth, Australia, on Saturday (Sunday in Australia) The match up will have huge ramifications for both men and will be broadcast on ESPN+ at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT. Lomachenko, rated at No. 1 by The Ring at lightweight, was one of the most decorated amateurs ever, claiming Olympic gold medals at London 2012 and Rio 2016. An early setback to Orlando Salido (SD 12), in his second professional outing, was followed by a rapid ascent. Loma claimed the vacant WBO featherweight title at the expense of Gary Russell Jr. (MD 12) and he has won further titles at 130 and 135. The supremely gifted Ukrainian southpaw owns solid victories over Roman Martinez (KO 5), Nicholas Walters (RTD 7), Guillermo Rigondeaux (RTD 6) and Jorge Linares (TKO 10). He lost to Teofimo Lopez (UD 12) but has bounced back with comprehensive wins over Masayoshi Nakatani (TKO 9) and Richard Commey (UD 12). In the eyes of most he did enough to beat then undisputed lightweight champion Devin Haney (UD 12) but the three people whose opinion mattered most saw the American as the winner. Kambosos, , rated at No. 7 by The Ring at lightweight, worked his way up the local scene collecting a slew of regional titles along the way. He fought a couple of times in America but didn’t catch the eye. His big break came when he traveled to the UK to edge past Lee Selby (SD 12) in an IBF title eliminator. That earned him a shot at Ring lightweight champion and IBF/WBA/WBO titlist Teofimo Lopez. As a huge underdog, he remained calm and composed to upset the gifted American by 12-round split decision. However, the popular Australian was comprehensively outboxed and lost his titles to Haney (UD 12) and then was widely beaten in a rematch (UD 12). After time off he resurfaced and narrowly beat Maxi Hughes (MD 12). Kambosos (21-2, 10 knockouts) can’t match Lomachenko for skill, so his best chance is to turn it into a brawl. Can he do that? It’s been a year since the 36-year-old Lomachenko (17-3, 11 KOs) last fought. Will age and/or ring rust play a part? Kambosos lost two fights to Haney in front of his own fans, and this is his chance at redemption. Will that level the playing field and buoy him to success? Meanwhile, Lomachenko will have had time to acclimate and to Australia, but being there will take him out of his comfort zone. May that have an affect on him? Online gambling group William Hill lists Lomachenko as a 1/8 (-800) favorite, while Kambosos Jr. is priced at 9/2 (+450); the draw is 20/1 (+2000). Here’s how the experts see it: THE RING ANSON WAINWRIGHT: LOMACHENKO UD “To me this boils down to what does Lomachenko have left after a glittering amateur and professional career. If he is close to his best, he schools Kambosos. If not, Kambosos is more than capable of giving the Ukrainian great lots of trouble. I think this will be somewhere in between with Lomachenko a step ahead and dealing with Kambosos to win a 12-round unanimous decision.” LEE GROVES: LOMACHENKO UD “Critics can rightly say that Kambosos hasn’t been the same since his upset win over Teofimo Lopez and many thought Maxi Hughes had done enough to defeat him in his most recent appearance. In fact, Kambosos’ last lights-out performance was a sixth-round TKO against Richard Pena in his ancestral home of Athens, Greece in June 2019, nearly five years ago. If he beats Lomachenko in emphatic fashion before his home fans in Australia, he will fend off those who label him a “one-hit wonder.” As for Lomachenko, he’s a shoo-in future Hall of Famer, but the big questions surrounding him are age, inactivity and attrition. He hasn’t fought in nearly a year, and, at 36, he is in the sunset of a magnificent career, but I believe he can still summon enough echoes of his past to score a unanimous decision victory.” DIEGO MORILLA: LOMACHENKO UD “Kambosos has already shown he’s capable of defying and beating the odds, but this is different. Lomachenko is a bit past his prime already, but he’s still crafty and savvy enough to deal with the Kambosos of the world. The question is how much longer he’ll be able to do so, but this time he’ll certainly be able to do it.” MARTY MULCAHEY: LOMACHENKO UD “A part of this comes down to whether I trust a quickly aging 36-year-old Vasyl Lomachenko or a battle worn 30-year-old George Kambosos? When in doubt go with the man with a wider array of weapons to work with, and that for me is Lomachenko. I don’t believe Kambosos has the legs to pin down or trap the still crafty and imminently better boxer in Lomachenko. For one punch Lomachenko remains quicker, and that ability is maximized by Kambosos inherent lack of defense. I see this as a runaway victory for Lomachenko, who even if tagged by Kambosos on occasion has the chin and recouperation capability to get out of trouble. Maybe Kambosos wins two rounds? I know this looks somewhat insulting to Kambosos, but believe me this is more about my appreciation for the Hall of Fame capabilities of Lomachenko.” RON BORGES: LOMACHENKO UD “Kambosos is as tough as 20 miles of detours but toughness alone won’t get it done against a skillful fighter as Lomachenko. Maybe Loma is starting to slip a bit but he won’t slip far enough for Kambosos to beat him. Loma by clear decision.” NORM FRAUENHEIM: LOMACHENKO TKO 10 “Lomachenko has a chance to remind the world and perhaps himself that he still possesses much of the skill so aptly defined by his original nickname: Hi-Tech. With apologies to Roy Jones Jr., you’all must’ve forgot. A defeat can do that, even one as controversial as his scorecard loss to Devin Haney in his last bout in May 2023. It was unanimous on the cards, but contentious among fans who thought Lomachenko had done enough for at least a draw. Against George Kambosos in Western Australia, Lomachenko can prove those fans right. Kambosos, an Aussie, is 1-2 over his last three. He struggled in his last one, a win over Maxi Hughes. Hughes doesn’t have much in common with the accomplished Lomachenko. But there’s one thing: They’ were both left-handed. Kambosos often looked baffled by Hughes’ southpaw style. Against Lomachenko’s varied skill set, he’ll have no clue in a bout that figures to end in a late-round stoppage.”  Vasiliy Lomachenko (left) scores a lunging left on Jamaine Ortiz during their lightweight fight at The Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden on October 29, 2022. (Photo by Mikey Williams/Top Rank Inc via Getty Images) BOXING INSIDERS DUKE MCKENZIE (FORMER THREE-DIVISION TITLEHOLDER/TV ANALYST): LOMACHENKO UD “It’s very difficult to see where the loser of this fight goes, a definite crossroads fight for both of these two proud warriors. They clash for the vacant IBF world lightweight title Kambosos won against Teo Lopez. That was a shock. However, he was comfortably beaten by Devin Haney, who has since moved up in weight. Equally, Lomachenko was beaten by Haney, and there lies the benchmark. Many ringside observers considered Lomachenko desperately unlucky to lose on points. Kambosos lost clearly to Haney while Lomachenko clearly is an old man in boxing terms, but this man is like a fine wine and has preserved himself well as a master boxer. I don’t see Kambosos winning this fight. Lomachenko wins via a unanimous points decision.“ SERGIO MORA: (FORMER WORLD CHAMPION/ COMMENTATOR): KAMBOSOS PTS “Loma is still a threat! I think he still has enough to win this fight. Loma struggled against a much bigger Teofimo and taller, longer Haney, still both fights were very close! Against Kambosos he won’t have that much to overcome physically, but I like Kambosos by close decision. It’ll be extremely hard to get decision down under. Kambosos by decision.” TOM GRAY (FORMER MANAGING EDITOR FOR THE RING): LOMACHENKO UD “With the way Haney vs. Garcia unfolded, we should be ready for anything. However, unless Lomachenko has fallen off a cliff since the Haney performance, I can’t see Kambosos beating him. For me, Maxi Hughes comfortably outpointed the Australian brawler last July and it’s down to styles. Hughes is a mobile lefty who can be hard to pin down. Well, if Maxi can frustrate the life out of George, then what can Loma do? Kambosos is a pure warrior and he’s never been stopped, so he’ll be hard to discourage. I think Lomachenko wins almost every round on the way to a lopsided decision. He might even score a knockdown or two.” STEVE KIM (THE 3 KNOCKDOWN RULE): LOMACHENKO UD “The main question I have here is if Lomachenko, in the wake of what was a very dubious decision against Haney last year, still has his heart in this game and his career. Based on styles and skills, he still figures to have a significant advantage over Kambosos. Now, the fight is in his backyard, but that didn’t help him versus Haney in two tries. My view is that Loma will still be a cut or two above Kambosos. He will win a clear decision ‘Down Under’.” JOE ROTONDA (MATCHMAKER, MAIN EVENTS): LOMACHENKO UD “I am a big fan of both of these guys. Kambosos incredible win against Teofimo Lopez opened the doors for opportunities that he may not have had otherwise, you have to credit the fighter who seizes the opportunity the way he has. Lomachenko on the other hand is a true professional as well, he’s fought the best in the world consistently throughout his career. I think this is a very tough fight for George though, Lomachenko’s footwork and angles may be too much for him in this one. Kambosos has quick hands, but I think he is too stationary to keep up with his opponent in this one. Lomachenko by unanimous decision in an entertaining fight.” ROBERT DIAZ (MATCHMAKER): LOMACHENKO UD “Loma vs Kambosos is a fight that both must win. Both are against the wall, both need the win to get them back into the bigger fights, and a loss really sets them back and possibly sends into retirement. Loma has been giving up so much advantages fighting at 135, he’s getting away with it because of his high IQ. In this fight, Kambosos has the size advantage. I really feel Kambosos will fight the fight of his life and will be the aggressor but that will benefit the master boxer Loma. I see an entertaining bout and in the end Loma get a well deserved unanimous decision.” RUDY HERNANDEZ (TRAINER): LOMACHENKO PTS “Kambosos vs Lomachenko is a pick ’em fight. Lomachenko is older now, prime-for-prime the easy pick is in favor of Lomachenko. But the clock has ticked and both will fight their best fight on fight night. But father time will play a role and I think there will be a few good rounds that can go to one or the other. Winner? I’ll stay with Lomachenko, he just may find that extra in him to pull the judges in his favor.” RICH MAROTTA (COMMENTATOR): LOMACHENKO TKO 8 “The Lomachenko-Kambosos match is legit, but nowhere near as layered as the other big fights we have been, and will be, treated to this year. It’s an A+ fighter against a B fighter. Loma has the advantage in every category except age. I suspect he will study Kambosos at first, begin slowly breaking him down around the third or fourth round, build his advantage with each succeeding round, and stop Kambosos around the eighth.”  Devin Haney (right) and George Kambosos Jr. (left) exchange punches during their lightweight title bout at Rod Laver Arena on October 16, 2022 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Kelly Defina/Getty Images) JOLENE MIZZONE (MANAGER): LOMACHENKO UD “I just think in this one Loma has the better boxing skills and it will show in the fight. I am hoping after Loma fought Haney he will learn that he can’t just do enough to win, he has to make a statement and box his ears off to prove that he still belongs in there with all the lightweights.” ALEX STEEDMAN (COMMENTATOR): LOMACHENKO PTS “Every day that passes seems to enhance the notion that George Kambosos’s win over Teofimo Lopez was a weird glitch in the matrix. And while some will question the disposable powers available these days to the man, Lomachenko, who once spirited above mortals from that domain, he still looks a level or two above Kambosos. The Aussie will blast as many fast right hands as he can but recent results, including against a lesser southpaw, underline he’s simply not good enough. Lomachenko showed against Haney he’s still very, very good and I expect him to win convincingly. A break down, beat down stoppage is possible but Kambosos is tough and brings attitude so I think points is the likely route for Loma.” RAUL MARQUEZ (FORMER WORLD CHAMPION/COMMENTATOR): LOMACHENKO KO 9 “Loma is a well preserved veteran and knows all the tricks of the trade. He will KO a very prideful Kambosos in his home country in Round 9.” JOHN SCULLY (TRAINER): LOMACHENKO UD “It’s tough to pick with confidence either way because we’ve seen so little of Loma as of late but assuming he continues with the same focus and dedication and assuming that his skills have been preserved I would see him winning a pretty clear unanimous decision from Kambosos. Kambosos is a very good fighter but Loma when he is right is something special.” BOB SANTOS (TRAINER): LOMACHENKO UD “I see Loma gathering data in the first two or three rounds and from that point really starting to dominate the fight. I think Kambosos has the heart of a champiom and he’s going to try to press and give his best effort but it’s not gonna be enough. I think he’s going to get very frustrated and run into a lot of punches.” WAYNE MCCULLOUGH (FORMER WORLD CHAMPION/ TRAINER): LOMACHENKO TKO 7 “Kambosos will have to be more aggressive and get his shots off faster than he usually does. If he can do this he will be able to counter Lomachenko without any problems. Loma has tremendous hand and foot speed and will get inside quickly behind his right southpaw jabs. Kambosos has to try and time his straight rights to Loma’s head when Loma jumps in, and if he is able, follow it up with a quick left hook right behind it he could hurt him. Age could catch up with Loma and Kambosos may win this fight, but I think Lomachenko will still have his speed and land right jabs over and over to the head of Kambosos. Then a left to the body might hurt him to end the fight in the seventh giving Loma the stoppage win.” Final Tally: Lomachenko 19-1 Questions and/or comments can be sent to Anson at elraincoat@live.co.uk. The post Fight Picks: George Kambosos Jr. vs. Vasiliy Lomachenko appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
The clash between Sergey Lipinets and Robbie Davies, Jr. is about as even as it gets. Lipinets will face Davies tonight at the Whitesands (also known as the ProBox TV) Events Center in Plant City, Florida. The 10-round bout will headline a four-bout card that will stream live on the ProBox TV YouTube page and application (8 p.m. ET/ 5 p.m. PT). At Tuesday’s weigh-in, both fighters weighed in at 141.6 pounds. Both fighters are in need of a win, as the winner of tonight’s clash is back amongst the contenders in a very competitive and deep 140-pound division. ProBox TV’s Chris Glover could not stress enough how even the fight is between Lipinets and Davies, which could produce an excellent fight. “No one can really say who will win,” Glover told The Ring Tuesday. “This is a 50-50 fight. It’s really a pick’em fight between two solid fighters at 140 pounds.” Lipinets (17-3-1, 13 knockouts), who is originally from Martuk, Kazakhstan and now resides in the Los Angeles suburb of Woodland Hills, California, lost a close unanimous decision to Michel Rivera in his last fight on November 25. In his previous fight in August 2022, Lipinets stopped former world lightweight titleholder Omar Figueroa in a one-sided fight. In November 2017, Lipinets won the vacant IBF world junior welterweight title, defeating Akihiro Kondo of Japan by unanimous decision. Lipinets would lose the title over four months later, dropping a decision to then-unbeaten Mikey Garcia. The 35-year-old would go unbeaten in his next four bouts after the loss to Garcia, including defeating the likes of Erick Bone and Lamont Peterson, before losing by knockout to Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis in April 2021. Like Lipinets, Davies is coming off a loss in his last fight, losing by knockout to Darragh Foley on March 23 of last year. Davies was dropped in the second round and again during the third round that resulted in an injured ankle, which prevented him from continuing. Davies (23-4, 15 KOs), who is originally from Liverpool, England, notched his two notable victories of his career prior to the loss to Foley. In May 2022, Davies won by split-decision against U.S. Olympian and top prospect Javier Molina in a close fight. He also notched a knockout victory over former world title challenger Henry ‘Hank’ Lundy in December 2021. Prior to the defeat to Foley, the 34-year-old Davies had won three in a row since a defeat to fringe contender Gabriel Gollaz Valenzuela. In the co-feature, unbeaten heavyweight prospect Fernely Feliz, Jr. will square off against once-beaten Cesar Navarro in an eight-round bout. Feliz (7-0, 6 KOs), who resides in Bethel, Connecticut, stopped Raphael Carolina in the sixth and final round of his last bout on December 16. Navarro (11-1, 9 KOs) has fought all of his fights in Phoenix, Arizona and his hometown of Agua Prieta, Mexico. In his last bout on December 2, which was fought at light heavyweight, Navarro defeated journeyman Jesus Haro Campos by unanimous decision. Lightweight prospect Tsendbaatar Erdenebat (9-0, 4 KOs) of Mongolia will face Puerto Rico’s Alberto Mercado (17-6-1, 4 KOs) in an eight-round bout. In a clash of unbeaten junior lightweights, 19-year-old Robert Meriwether III (5-0, 2 KOs) of Las Vegas, Nevada will square off against Mexico’s Victor Lopez Gala (5-0, 3 KOs) in a six-round bout. Francisco A. Salazar has written for The Ring since October 2013 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (California) Star newspaper. He can be reached at santio89@yahoo.com The post Ex-champ Sergey Lipinets in ’50-50 fight’ tonight against Robbie Davies Jr. appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Jermall Charlo was relieved of his WBC middleweight title, as his next bouts will take place in the courtroom. The now former two-division titleholder was arrested Monday evening on three misdemeanor counts related to a car crash in Brazoria County, Texas. Charlo was booked on Tuesday and charged with Driving While Intoxicated, Fleeing or Attempting to Elude Police Officer and Collision Involving Damage to Vehicle Exceeding $200. Three separate surety bonds totaling $9,500 were posted for Charlo, who was released from custody later that day. According to a Pearland Police Department arrest report obtained by The Ring, Charlo crashed his Lamborghini Urus while intoxicated. The accident took place Monday evening at around 6:41 p.m., after which Charlo and the other driver began to argue. left the scene before police arrived. His alleged movements led to a police chase for roughly one mile before he was boxed in by authorities. Charlo was placed under arrest and subsequently given a sobriety test. According to the police report, Charlo’s blood alcohol content (BAC) was greater than 0.15 percent. The legal limit is 0.08 percent in Texas, as well as most other states. News of the incident broke Tuesday, which prompted the WBC to finally take long overdue action. Charlo (33-0, 22 knockouts) was upgraded to full WBC middleweight titleholder in 2019 but has produced a dormant title reign. Just three defenses have followed, none since June 2021. The lone fight to take place in that span came last November well above the middleweight limit. Charlo outpointed Jose Benavidez Jr. over ten rounds but was 3.4 pounds over the 163-pound contract limit. The latest news cycle was enough for the WBC to strip him of the belt and elevate Carlos Adames from interim title status. “The WBC has provided and will continue to do as much as possible to support Jermall Charlo during his difficult times with regards to Mental Wellness,” the sanctioning body noted in an official statement. “The WBC Board of Governors has decided to confirm Carlos Adames as the WBC reigning middleweight champion as he is being elevated from interim champion to WBC World Champion. “The WBC will closely work with PBC in securing the best course of action to attend to Jermall needs at this moment in time. After a thorough evaluation of the situation and understanding of the facts and times the WBC may rank Jermall [at super middleweight].” Charlo still faces far greater issues. The incident from Monday could leave Charlo in violation of the bond conditions from a previous arrest in April. According to an April 16 arrest report obtained by The Ring, Charlo was charged with Assault Causing Bodily Injury to a Family member and Driving With a Previously Suspended License. Charlo was freed on $15,500 bond. Stipulated among the 12 Conditions of Bond, Charlo “shall commit no offense against the law of this or any other State.” The initial assault charge was amended by Magistrate’s Order and upgraded to Injury to a Child with Intention To Cause Bodily Harm, a third-degree felony in the state of Texas. Charlo is scheduled to appear in court on May 20 for the alleged incident in April. The case is classified as an Unindicted Filing with the 240th District Court of Fort Bend County. Jake Donovan is a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. The post Jermall Charlo Stripped Of WBC Middleweight Title After Recent Arrests appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Ryan Garcia has taken the first credible step in an effort to clear his name. The Ring has confirmed that Garcia has requested to have his “B” samples analyzed from samples collected surrounding his April 20 win over Devin Haney. Urine samples collected on April 19 and post-fight on April 20 showed evidence of the banned substance Ostarine [Enobosarm]. The test results cast a dark cloud of Garcia’s upset victory over Haney at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. The bout was fought under the supervision of the New York State Athletic Commission (NYSAC), who is currently investigating the matter. NYSAC officials were alerted of the test outcome, as were all other parties involved in the event. Garcia was informed that he had until May 11 to file the request, which was performed by his legal team. The 25-year-old California native has retained Global Sports Advocates, LLC, a law firm whose specialties include anti-doping violations. “Mr. Garcia hereby exercises his right to request analysis of the “B” samples from the two tests at issue,” the firm stated to all parties in a letter obtained by The Ring. “We plan to send an independent witness to observe the opening an analysis of the “B” samples at the SMRTL laboratory once you provide us with notice of the date(s)/time(s) the opening and analyses will take place.” Garcia (25-1, 20 knockouts) floored Haney (31-1, 15 KOs) three times en route to a majority decision victory. Haney was permitted to retain his WBC 140-pound title, despite the defeat. Garcia was not eligible to win the belt after he miserably missed weight. The outspoken boxer checked in at a career-heaviest 143.2 pounds during the April 19 official weigh-in. Because he was so far over the divisional limit, there was not even an option to lose the extra weight within a prescribed time. Garcia was required to pay a fine and rework the fight contract to move forward with the main event. Those antics—while nothing to dismiss—pale in comparison to the consequences Garcia can face if unable to prove his innocence. Garcia has made several claims in the wake of reports on his drug testing scandal. Among them is potential contamination. His team is reviewing a list of his food and supplements ingested in preparation for the fight. Enobosarm is a selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM). Its primary purpose among men is to prevent muscle loss. The substance was banned by World Anti-Doping Agency in 2008. It is not approved for any medical use—prescribed or otherwise. It continues to show up in boxing circles, however. The most recent instance was in Amir Khan’s test results surrounding his February 2022 knockout defeat to Kell Brook. The former 140-pound titlist was subsequently dealt a two-year ban, although he announced his retirement by that point. Former WBC super middleweight titlist Lucian Bute also tested positive for Enobosarm in his April 2016 draw with Badou Jack. The substance was discovered from a post-fight sample whose results were returned on May 27, four weeks after their title fight. Bute insisted ingestion through a contaminated supplement. His B-sample also came back positive, its results not learned until August 12, nearly four months after the fight. The Washington D.C. commission accepted Bute’s contamination alibi but still issued a six-month suspension and $50,000 fine. Lucas Browne was popped for the substance during a November 2016 test conducted through the WBC’s Clean Boxing Program. It was his second positive test on the year. Browne previously tested positive for Clenbuterol, which cost him the WBA ‘Regular’ heavyweight title he won from Ruslan Chagaev. Alexander Povetkin also produced two positive drug tests that year, including Ostarine from a December 2016 sample. He was permitted to fight that evening, though no longer for an interim WBC heavyweight title. Povetkin previously tested positive for meldonium which cost him a May 2016 title fight versus then-unbeaten champ Deontay Wilder. The test results for this fight mark Garcia’s first offense through eight years as a pro. His initial reaction was to dismiss the findings and allege a frame job. “I’ve never taken a steroid in my life,” Garcia insisted via video posted on his social media channels. “I don’t even know where to get steroids. I barely take supplements. They’re saying it’s coming from the ashwagandha, that’s fucking retarded. “Big lies, I beat his ass. Fuck outta here.” His stance on the subject was viewed as an extension of the extreme trolling exhibited throughout the promotion. This latest part, in particular, did not fall well with his rightfully bitter rival. “It’s unfortunate Ryan cheated and disrespected both the fans and the sport of boxing by fighting dirty,” Haney said. “Ryan owes the fans an apology, and by his recent tweet he still thinks this is a joke. We put our lives on the line to entertain people for a living. You don’t play boxing. This puts the fight in a completely different light. Despite the disadvantage, I still fought on my shield and got back up! People die in this sport. This isn’t a joking matter.” Should the “B” samples produce the same results, Garcia will then have to appear before the NYSAC to learn his fate. There exists the possibility of a suspension, fine and the outcome being overturned to a No-Decision. Jake Donovan is a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. READ THE LATEST ISSUE OF THE RING FOR FREE VIA THE NEW APP NOW. SUBSCRIBE NOW TO ACCESS MORE THAN 10 YEARS OF BACK ISSUES.  The post Ryan Garcia Requests Analysis Of “B” Samples From Drug Tests Surrounding Devin Haney Fight appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Long-time junior bantamweight contender Andrew Moloney was preparing for one seasoned Mexican veteran but will instead face another on the undercard of George Kambosos-Vasiliy Lomachenko at the RAC Arena, Perth, Australia, on Saturday (Sunday in Australia). Moloney, rated at No. 4 by The Ring at junior bantamweight, had been tabbed to face Carlos Cuadras, but when the Mexican injured his Achilles tendon, in jumped Pedro Guevara. “I’m extremely excited for this fight,” Moloney (26-3, 16 knockouts) told The Ring. “Pedro Guevara is a former [WBC junior flyweight] world champion who has only lost to the very best. “I’m grateful to be fighting for the WBC interim world title and I’m very motivated knowing that a win in the fight opens up the doors to some huge fights for me.” As well as having home advantage, the 33-year-old will also appear on the undercard of countryman Kambosos Jr. as he takes on the always difficult Lomachenko. “I’m pumped to be fighting on such a huge card and a part of a massive event here in Australia,” he said proudly. “A lot of people will be tuning into this fight from all over the world and this is a great opportunity for me to show that I belong at the top of this division.” A year ago, Moloney suffered the ignominy of being brutally stopped by rising star Junto Nakatani, in what was ultimately named The Ring Magazine’s Knockout of the Year. Moloney took some time off and returned with a solid 10-round unanimous decision over Judy Flores in December. That set the stage for this opportunity.  Andrew Moloney (L) and Joshua Franco (R) exchange punches during their fight for the WBA super flyweight championship at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tulsa on August 14, 2021 in Catoosa, Oklahoma. (Photo by Mikey Williams/Top Rank Inc via Getty Images) “It was extremely important,” he said of the Flores triumph. “I needed to get back in the ring and move forward in my career, so I could put that loss behind me. I’m really happy that now, less the 12 months after that loss I’m already fighting for an Interim world title.” Previously, Moloney engaged in a three-fight series with Joshua Franco. While now in his 30s, he is just as motivated as ever. “I will not be satisfied with my career if I don’t at least win (a proper) world title,” he said. “The dream has always been for me and Jason to be world champions at the same time and that is what we are chasing.” The brothers are very close but due to their respective fights taking place 6 days apart in different countries, Andrew hasn’t been able to be in Japan to support his sibling. “It will be difficult,” he admitted. “This will be the first time I will not be there for Jason’s fight as a professional but I need to focus on my fight. On May 12 we can celebrate two great victories together.” [Editors Note: This interview took place before Jason lost his WBO title to Yoshiki Takei on Monday] Long-time manager, Tony Tolj, knows the importance of this fight and a victory will put his fighter in line for more significant fighters in the future. “I’m excited for this fight for Andrew, Guevara is a well respected former world champion and for Andrew’s whose career we just want to fight the best and that’s what excites us all and motivates us,” said Tolj. “May 12 can’t come soon enough.” Guevara (41-4-1, 22 KOs), rated at No. 9 by The Ring at junior bantamweight, has been a professional since 2008. The Mazatlan-native went 18-0-1 before he lost to John Riel Casimero (SD 12) in an IBF 108-pound title shot. The now 34-year-old rebounded and claimed the WBC title by stopping Akira Yaegashi (KO 7). He successfully made two defenses before being outhustled by Yu Kimura (SD 12). Four wins helped earn him a shot at Kenshiro Teraji, who had since won the WBC title but the Japanese standout was able to edge past Guevara by 12-round majority decision. The Mexican moved up in weight and reeled off 10 wins before narrowly losing to Carlos Cuadras (SD 12) last November. He has since got back in the win column. Kambosos-Lomachenko, plus undercard bouts, will be broadcast on ESPN+ at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT. Questions and/or comments can be sent to Anson at elraincoat@live.co.uk. The post Andrew Moloney ‘grateful’ and ‘excited’ to face late-sub Pedro Guevara appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
The Japanese takeover of the bantamweight division is complete after two sanctioning body belts changed hands over the past few days. On Monday, former kickboxer Yoshiki Takei (9-0, 8 KOs) wrestled the WBO strap from Jason Moloney (27-3, 19 KOs) with an unexpected unanimous decision win at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan. Two days early Ryosuke Nishida (9-0, 1 KO) lifted the IBF belt from Emmanuel Rodriguez (22-3, 13 KOs) at the EDION Arena in Osaka, Japan. Southpaws Takei and Nishida, both 27, join compatriots Junto Nakatani (27-0, 20 KOs) and Takuma Inoue (20-1, 5 KOs) as titleholders at 118-pounds. Nakatani, another lefty, holds the WBC belt while Inoue successfully defended his WBA bauble by unanimous decision against veteran Sho Ishida (34-3, 17 KOs) on the Tokyo Dome card. The belts look destined to remain in the Land of the Rising Sun for some time to come. Takei boxed a clever fight against Moloney, proving there was more to his game than pure power. An early point deduction for straying low didn’t derail his ambition as he comprehensively outboxed the 33-year-old Australian to win by scores of 117-110 and 116-111 twice. Nishida, rated at No 9 by The Ring at bantamweight, was equally impressive against Puerto Rico’s Rodriguez, 31. The light-punching Nishida opted to stand in the pocket and trade for much of the contest, a decision that left him with both the IBF belt and a misshapen face at the final bell. Rodriguez was down from a hard left to the body in the fourth round and for a moment it looked like he wouldn’t be able to continue. The fight ultimately went the distance with Nishida securing a unanimous decision victory by scores of 117-110 and 115-112 twice. With the win, Nishida becomes just the second world champion for promoter and manager Takashi Edagawa, who guided Nobuo Nashiro to the WBA junior bantamweight title 18 years ago. Mike Altamura, who acted as matchmaker and advisor to Edagawa’s Muto Boxing Gym for the bout, said he was not expecting the style of fight that Nishida delivered. “Man, he even surprised me how much he waged war in the trenches,” the Australian told The Ring the day after the victory. “It’s good to know he has that in reserve. I thought it was over in the fourth the way Manny sank to the canvas after the body shot. Full credit to him for coming back stronger.” The one thing that didn’t surprise Altamura was Nishida’s precision power punching. “A well-timed body shot hits different, regardless of the supposed power. Nishida has dropped solid guys to the head too with well timed shots,” Altamura said. “I knew there were times Nishida would need to hold his feet and exchange as Rodriguez is tricky and deceivingly long, and Nishida would need to be prepared for such moments. But I expected him to utilize the jab and keep it longer. The team assured me weeks ago that tactically Ryo could wage war in the trenches and time Rodriguez in between his punches, but to see it for almost 12 rounds was incredible. True samurai spirit. “The body assault was definitely part of the strategy. Nishida’s timing is exquisite so it’s no surprise to us he landed that punch. Full credit to Manny for rising and coming back stronger. He’s a true champion and ring warrior. “There was an expectation leading into the fight that Rodriguez is a terrific fighter and he wouldn’t be coming to Osaka to freely relinquish his strap. We knew he’s a multi-faceted, courageous fighter and that his strongest rounds would likely be mid-late fight. He won a few of those middle rounds but he was working tirelessly too, so there was never any panic given the early lead Nishida built.” Photos of Nishida’s face posted to social media after the bout proved he had been in a fight. His right eye was bruised and almost swollen shut, while his right cheek ballooned out like he had a large plug of chewing tobacco wedged in his gum. A well-earned rest is the order of the day before a potential unification bout. “You know currently three-quarters of the belts at 118-pounds are in Japanese hands, and if Takei beat Moloney, it would be a Japanese sweep,” explained Altamura. “We’ve heard whispers in that situation of a Japanese super tournament to crown an undisputed champion. But let’s see. Nishida fought such a beautiful, spirited battle and he deserves time to bask in the glory and replenish the tank.” The golden era of Japanese boxing looks set to continue for some time to come. The post Ryosuke Nishida looks headed to all-Japanese tourney to crown king of the bantams appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Opportunity knocked for junior featherweight Alan David Picasso and he made the most of it fighting on a big stage. Picasso stopped former world title challenger Damien Vazquez this past Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The eight-round bout was part of the Canelo Alvarez-Jaime Munguia non-televised undercard. The 23-year-old Picasso improved to 28-0-1, 16 knockouts. From the opening bell, Picasso was the busier and more-effective fighter, breaking Vazquez down in each moment of every round. A barrage of punches forced the fight to be stopped at 2:11 of the fifth round. Eric Gomez, President of Golden Boy Promotions, believes Picasso is a talented fighter and has the ability to excel in one of boxing’s most competitive weight classes. According to Gomez, Picasso facing fringe contenders or former world title challengers, like Vazquez, has been important in his development in becoming a contender. “He’s fighting rated fighters,” Gomez told The Ring last week. “We will continue to build him here in the U.S. He is ready for bigger (and) getter fights.” In his last fight on January 27, Picasso defeated gatekeeper Erik Ruiz of Oxnard by unanimous decision. In his previous fight on October 16, Picasso stopped Colombia’s Yeison Vargas in the second round. The win over Ruiz was the United States debut for Picasso, who is co-promoted by Golden Boy and Zanfer Boxing. Prior to the Ruiz fight, Picasso had stopped 10 of his previous 12 opponents. Picasso headlined a card in his hometown of Mexico City on July 15, stopping Sabelo Ngebinyana of South Africa at the end of the sixth round. He is currently a student at La Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico (UNAM), where he is studying neuroscience. Vazquez, who lives and trains in Las Vegas, falls to 17-4-1, 10 KOs. Vazquez stopped Jeronil Borres in the sixth round of his last fight on August 12. Vazquez was losing on all three judges’ scorecards at the time of the stoppage. The 26-year-old has won his last two fights since losing by knockout to former world bantamweight titleholder Rau’shee Warren in August 2021. Vazquez challenged then-WBA world junior featherweight titleholder Brandon Figueroa in September 2020, losing by knockout in the 10th round. Vazquez is the younger brother of former world champion Israel Vazquez. Francisco A. Salazar has written for The Ring since October 2013 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (California) Star newspaper. He can be reached at santio89@yahoo.com The post Alan David Picasso stops Damien Vazquez in non-televised undercard of Canelo-Munguia appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
So much for Shakur Stevenson’s retirement. Stevenson, rated at No. 4 by The Ring at 135 pounds, will attempt to make the defense of his WBC lightweight belt against Armenian-born German Olympian Artem Harutyunyan on Saturday, July 6, at Prudential Center in his hometown of Newark, New Jersey. In the co-feature, O’Shaquie Foster will defend his WBC junior lightweight belt against Brazilian Olympic gold medalist and three-time world title challenger Robson Conceicao. In the 10-round lightweight televised opener, Keyshawn Davis will take on Mexican veteran Miguel Madueno. Stevenson-Harutyunyan, Foster-Conceicao, and Davis-Madueno will be broadcast live on ESPN, ESPN, Deportes and ESPN+ at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT. Stevenson (21-0, 10 KOs) has won world titles in three weight classes during his seven-year run. After securing a silver medal at the 2016 Olympics, he made his pro debut in 2017 and swiftly moved up the ranks. He captured his first world title by defeating Joet Gonzalez for the WBO featherweight strap in October 2019. Two years later, he stopped Jamel Herring in 10 rounds to earn the WBO title at 130 pounds. The 26-year-old southpaw unified world titles by handing then-WBC champion Oscar Valdez his first loss in April 2022. Stevenson then claimed two consecutive victories at Prudential Center by defeating Conceicao that September and stopping Japanese contender Shuichiro Yoshino in six last April. Hee outpointed Dominican puncher Edwin De Los Santos last November to become the WBC lightweight world champion. Stevenson said, “It feels good to be going back home to Newark, where they appreciate a young legend, and to make my first title defense at 135. On July 6, Down Goes Artem!” Harutyunyan (12-1, 7 KOs) captured an Olympic bronze medal for Germany in 2016. He started his pro career the following year and went 12-0 in his adopted country with triumphs over Samuel Molina in September 2021 and Humberto Galindo in June 2022. Last July, he made his U.S. debut in a competitive showdown against Frank Martin. The 33-year-old had success with his aggression and right hand, though Martin rallied late to win a narrow unanimous decision. Harutyunyan will have his first world title shot against his second consecutive southpaw rival.  Junior lightweight O’Shaquie Foster (right) in a previous fight vs. Jon Fernandez. Photo by Dave Mandel/Showtime Harutyunyan said, “I respect Shakur Stevenson as a champion, but I’m coming to shock his hometown fans and win the WBC lightweight championship. This is the opportunity of a lifetime, and I will take full advantage of it. This will be my second fight in the U.S. I’ve learned and progressed since my loss to Frank Martin.” Foster (22-2, 12 KOs), rated at No. 2 by The Ring at junior lightweight, had a distinguished amateur career with more than 100 fights and an alternate spot in the 2012 U.S. Olympic team before entering the paid ranks later that year. He encountered two early-career setbacks, including a split decision defeat to Rolando Chinea in July 2016. He returned more than a year later with renowned trainer Bobby Benton and has since gone 12-0. Last February, he won the WBC world title with a points verdict over two-division world champion Rey Vargas before a dramatic 12th-round knockout win against Eduardo “Rocky” Hernandez in October. The following month, Foster signed a long-term promotional deal with Top Rank. He returns after securing a well-earned split decision over Abraham Nova in February. Foster said, “I’m excited to be back for my third title defense. Conceicao is a great opponent who has been in the ring with a lot of top fighters, but come July 6, we will be ready. I will keep proving that I’m one of the best fighters in the world.” Conceicao (18-2-1, 9 KOs), rated at No. 7 by The Ring at junior lightweight and Brazil’s inaugural Olympic boxing gold medalist, turned pro in November 2016. His only losses have come against unbeaten world champions, including a close decision against then-WBC champ Valdez in September 2021. Following the setback to Stevenson, Conceicao’s June 2022 showdown against Nicolas Polanco ended in a no contest. He followed up by challenging three-weight world champion Emanuel Navarrete last November, rising twice from the canvas and battling to a majority draw. In April, he registered a seventh-round TKO against Jose Guardado in April. Conceicao said, “I’m really looking forward to this fight against O’Shaquie Foster. This title is something I’ve been aiming for a long time, and I’m not going to let this opportunity slip away. I can guarantee that I’ll give my best; I’ll leave everything in the ring. Blood, sweat, and dedication—everything will be invested in this title bout. I’m ready to face any challenge that comes my way. Let’s go all in towards victory! Brazil!” Davis (10-0, 7 KOs), from Norfolk, Virginia, made a quick transition from prospect to contender. After going 3-0 as a pro, he earned a silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics. In November 2021, he inked a long-term promotional pact with Top Rank and has amassed seven wins since. In 2023, he stopped Anthony Yigit in nine rounds in April and vanquished Francesco Patera via 10-round decision in July. After his October win over Nahir Albright was overturned to a no contest due to a positive marijuana test, Davis returned with renewed vigor in February to dispatch former two-weight world champion Jose Pedraza in six. Madueno (31-2, 28 KOs) tallied a three-fight winning spree after a decision defeat to Jezreel Corrales in March 2022. The streak was halted by a points setback against Canadian contender Steve Claggett last November, but he bounced back quickly by decisioning Justin Pauldo in February. Davis said, “Madueno is a tough fighter with more than 30 pro fights, and I have a lot of respect for what he brings to the table. I love fighting in Newark. The fans there are special, and I am going to feed off their energy and put on a show.” Undercard action — streaming live and exclusively on ESPN+ — includes the return of 20-year-old lightweight prodigy Abdullah Mason and unbeaten heavyweight prospect Damian “Polish Hussar” Knyba. Mason (13-0, 11 KOs) will make his third 2024 appearance in an eight-rounder against Puerto Rican veteran Luis Lebron. The Cleveland native went 5-0 with four knockouts last year before stopping Benjamin Gurment in two in February. He is coming off a fourth-round TKO win over Ronal Ron in April. Lebron (20-5-1, 13 KOs) has given stiff tests to Duke Ragan and Henry Lebron and stopped Giovanni Gutierrez in February. Knyba (13-0, 7 KOs), a 6-foot-7 behemoth with an 86-inch reach, returns in an eight-rounder versus Richard Lartey (16-6, 13 KOs). He joined the Top Rank stable in January 2023 and scored a TKO win over Curtis Harper that April followed by decisions over Helaman Olguin in June and Michael Coffie in December. A press release by Top Rank was used in this article. The post Shakur Stevenson scheduled to take on Artem Harutyunyan on July 6 in Newark appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Dan Azeez aims to get right back into the mix. The 34-year-old light heavyweight contender will return to the ring on June 15 at Selhurst Park in London, England. An opponent was not announced for Azeez, who looks to rebound from his February 3 defeat to countryman Joshua Buatsi. “I’m looking forward to getting back in the ring,” Azeez said in a statement provided by BOXXER. “This is my job and I wear this sport on my chest like a badge of honor.” The slot will come in supporting capacity to the already announced Chris Billam-Smith vs. Richard Riakporhe WBO cruiserweight title fight. Azeez (20-1, 13 knockouts) is The Ring’s No. 6-rated light heavyweight contender. The loss to Buatsi (18-0, 13 KOs), No. 3 at 175, briefly stalled his journey towards a major title fight. However, there are still high hopes for the London native. “It’s great to see Dan Azeez back in the ring so quickly,” said Ben Shalom, BOXXER founder and Azeez’s promoter. “I know he will have learnt a lot from such a great fight with Joshua Buatsi. He has become one of the country’s most popular fighters and I now expect him to be well equipped to go right to the top of the division.” Azeez’s placement on the show comes with two more confirmed bouts. slot provides Azeez with a second straight assignment in the greater London area after two fights on the road. “I’m ready to put the graft in like I always do to prove I belong at the top of the sport,” noted Azeez. “I always aim for the top and I’m excited to be a part of a huge stadium show in South London, where I am from! “Selhurst Park is going to be rocking and I’m excited to put on a show for all the fans who turn out.” Bournemouth’s Billam-Smith (19-1, 13 knockouts), The Ring’s No.3 cruiserweight, attempts his second WBO title defense. Riakporhe (17-0, 13 KOs), No. 6 at 200, from nearby Walworth, enters his first title fight. It comes in a rematch to their July 2019 meeting, won by Riakporhe via split decision. Billam-Smith has won ten in a row since that night. Chief among that run was his 12-round upset of Lawrence Okolie last May 27 to win the WBO title. Also confirmed for the undercard: Ben Whittaker (7-0, 5 KOs) fights for the third time this year. The 2020 Olympic Silver medalist faces Nigeria’s Eworitse Ezra Arenyeka (12-0, 10 KOs) in a ten-round light heavyweight contest. Poland’s Michael Cieslak (26-2, 20 KOs) faces Isaac Chamberlain (16-2, 8 KOs) in a 12-rounder European cruiserweight title fight. Jake Donovan is a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America.
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Lamont Roach Jr. will head home for his first title defense. The reigning WBA junior lightweight titlist will next face unbeaten contender Feargal McCrory. The bout will headline a June 28 ProBox TV show from Entertainment & Sports Arena in Washington D.C. Roach hails from nearby Upper Marlboro, Maryland. Further taking control of his own career, the show is presented by NoXcuse Promotions. The company is run by Lamont Roach Sr., also his son’s manager and head trainer. “Coming home to defend my title is a dream come true,” noted Roach Jr. “I can’t wait to fight in front of so many friends and family. I know he’s (McCrory) coming for my world title, wanting to keep his ‘0’ and make a name for himself.” Roach (24-1-1, 9 knockouts) won the title in a split decision over Hector Luis Garcia last November 25 in Las Vegas. The Ring’s No. 5-rated junior lightweight floored the unbeaten Dominican in the final round to claim a split decision victory. The fight took place on a show presented by Premier Boxing Champions (PBC), who stalled out Roach for months. This time around, the Roach family gets to call the shots. The event is a rare one for ProBox to take place outside of its homebase in the Central Florida region. Hitting the road was commonplace for the group during its first year. The bulk of its shows since then have been staged at ProBox headquarters in Plant City, Florida. Being presented with the opportunity to host a major title fight is always a welcomed exception. “ProBoxTV is excited about working with Lamont Roach Sr. and Jr. Both are a success story in and out of the ring,” said ProBoxTV founder and owner Garry Jonas. “They want to do it their way and they want to fight in DC in front of their people. “We’ve been able to give them the support they need to make it happen on their terms and we’re excited to put on a solid championship production.” Roach will fight in the greater D.C. area for the first time since November 2017. Meanwhile, McCrory (16-0, 8 KOs) hits the road for his first career title fight. The 31-year-old New York-based southpaw from Northern Ireland has stopped five of his past seven opponents. His most recent win came March 15. McCrory halted Carlos Carlson inside of three rounds at Madison Square Garden’s Hulu Theater. The title challenge versus Roach will mark his sixth consecutive stateside appearance. The co-feature pits unbeaten Lester Martinez (17-0, 15 KOs) of Guatelama versus veteran Ecuadorian contender Carlos Gongora (22-2, 17 KOs). Also on the show, San Antonio’s Joshua Franco (18-2-3, 8 KOs) ends his brief retirement to return for the first time in just more than a year. The former WBA 115-pound titlist faces Dominican Republic’s Geraldo Valdez (16-1, 11 KOs) in a 10-round bout. Other undercard bouts: Jordan Roach, Lamont’s younger brother, makes his pro debut. The 20-year-old former amateur standout will fight in a four-rounder versus an opponent to be determined. His amateur teammate, Benjamin Johnson, will also turn pro in a scheduled four-round contest. Upper Marlboro’s Rianna Rios (7-0, 1 KO) returns to the venue where she fought last May 6. D.C. prospects Deric Davis (3-0, 3 KOs) and David Whitmire (4-0, 3 KOs) also appear in separate four-round contests. Jake Donovan a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America.
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Buenos Aires, Argentina.- All great things come to an end, and the venerable Luna Park Stadium is no exception. It was probably a sign of the times to see the “temple of Corrientes and Bouchard,” a sanctuary of masculinity and virility during the better part of the 20th century, having its final card headlined by a women’s bout in which junior flyweight champion Evelin Bermudez defended her IBF and WBO belts against Mexico’s Jessica Basulto in front of a sparsely populated stadium, a far cry from the standing-room-only sold-out crowds of yesteryear. But the hammer will nevertheless go down sometime near the end of this year, and the Luna Park founded in 1932 by Ismael Pace and Jose Lectoure will be remodeled to an extend that it is not yet known even by its current handlers. Declared a national monument due to the many historic events that took place within it (the first meeting between Juan Domingo Peron and his soon-to-be wife Evita being only one of them), the Luna Park cannot be completely torn down, and its outer shell should remain intact. But the floor upon which people like Pope John Paul II, Frank Sinatra, Muhammad Ali and countless boxers and performers set foot during the last 90-plus years will definitely be gone, and so will the stands on which several generations learned to love and appreciate fighters such as Oscar Bonavena, Jose Maria Gatica, Eduardo Lausse, Carlos Monzon, Victor Galindez, Pascual Perez and thousands more.  Rodrigo Ruiz (left) lands a hook on Freddy Lainez – Photo by Nelson Quispe/Boxeo de Primera The main event itself was worthy of the stadium’s best nights, with the 27-year-old Bermudez being her usual feisty self against a visitor bent on ruining her big night. Basulto led with her head and threw punches in bunches in the first three rounds, but Bermudez remained calm, connecting with power and accuracy to keep her at bay most of the time. The champion moved in for the kill in round six and started applying more pressure on her increasingly desperate opponent, who had suffered a flash knockdown in the first round. With the punishment accumulating on Basulto and with Bermudez ahead on all scorecards, Basulto’s corner threw in the towel in the eighth round and referee Alejandro Grispo agreed to halt the contest. With the win, Bermudez improves to 20-1-1 (7 knockouts) while Basulto, a former challenger to champion Yokasta Valle at strawweight, drops to 12-2 (3 KOs).  Gabriela Celeste Alaniz (center) holds her three belts at Luna Park Stadium on May 4, 2024 – Photo by Nelson Quispe/Boxeo de Primera Earlier, Rodrigo Ruiz made quick work of Nicaragua’s Freddy Lainez with a demolishing stoppage in the very first round of a scheduled 10-rounder in the junior featherweight division. Two knockdowns in rapid succession led referee Adrian Ayunta to make the decision to stop the bout in favor of Ruiz, who thus improved to 19-0 (14 KOs) at the expense of Lainez’s 18-5 (13 KOs) ledger. In other results, Venezuela’s Jonathan Hernandez thoroughly dominated Mariano Sandoval (8-3, 3 KOs) over six entertaining rounds in the middleweight division to improve to 14-0 (9 KOs), and earlier on Jennifer Meza (9-3, 3 KOs) overcame a slow and shaky start to rally down the stretch and earn a close win over Venezuela’s Roxana Colmenarez (10-4-1, 8 KOs).  As the ring is being taken down one last time at the old Luna Park, Ring writer Diego Morilla rings the final bell – Photo courtesy of Brenda Melgar Before the main event, a celebration for recently crowned Ring champion Gabriela Celeste Alaniz (the first Argentine female fighter to earn a Ring championship) took place in the ring, with this writer representing the magazine in the ceremony as Alaniz received her WBA, WBC and WBO belts. Bermudez’s stoppage win meant that the Canelo Alvarez-Jaime Munguia fight, which started almost simultaneously with the live main event at the stadium, would stretch beyond closing time, but the local crew was gracious enough to allow a group of passionate scribes to remain in the building as they performed the final act of disassembling the ring. As we all watched the last few rounds of the Canelo-Munguia bout huddled around a cell phone screen, the real spectacle that should have commanded our attention was the bittersweet view of the boxing ring being dismantled one last time in a place built and inhabited by giants of the game. If that painful sight was the last punch ever thrown at the old Luna Park, I’d like to believe that the lucky handful of writers who witnessed the moment took it right on the chin in honor of those who built the legend of this brick and mortar enclosure with their blood, sweat and tears, a place with a magical name that will forever hold the dreams of hundreds of fighters and the imagination of an entire nation. A few years will have to go by before we finally know if the new Luna Park is capable of inspiring a similar aura of awe and respect. For those of us who heard the final bell toll within its walls and swallowed that hard and cold slab of heartbreak, and for the millions of boxing fans who sat on their stands across nine decades and half a dozen generations, we certainly believe that the architects in charge of the project will have their work cut out for them.
Diego M. Morilla has written for The Ring since 2013. He has also written for HBO.com, ESPN.com and many other magazines, websites, newspapers and outlets since 1993. He is a full member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and an elector for the International Boxing Hall of Fame. He has won two first-place awards in the BWAA’s annual writing contest, and he is the moderator of The Ring’s Women’s Ratings Panel. He served as copy editor for the second era of The Ring en Espanol (2018-2020) and is currently a writer and editor for RingTV.com.
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Angelo Leo could be fighting for another world title belt this summer. The Ring has learned that Leo is in advanced talks to face IBF featherweight titleholder Luis ‘Venado’ Lopez in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where Leo is originally from. “World title fight here in my hometown of Albuquerque,” stated Leo in a recent post on his social media accounts. “I couldn’t ask for more.” Local media outlets in Albuquerque report the fight will take place on August 10 or 17 at Tingley Coliseum, a multi-purpose venue that seats approximately 11,600. In the last week or so, the New Mexico Athletic Commission approved August 10 as the date for the fight to take place. The card will reportedly be promoted by Top Rank Boxing, which promotes Lopez, in association with Albuquerque-based Legacy Promotions. Top Rank declined comment to The Ring’s Jake Donovan when asked to confirm the Lopez-Leo fight. The clash between Lopez and Leo would be a compelling fight between two of the top featherweights in the world. Lopez is rated No. 1 by The Ring at 126 pounds, while Leo is ranked amongst the top 10 in two of boxing’s major sanctioning bodies. Leo (24-1, 11 knockouts), who currently lives and trains in Las Vegas, Nevada, is coming off a unanimous decision victory over former world title challenger Eduardo Baez on April 10. In his previous fight on January 31, Leo knocked out former junior featherweight contender Mike Plania in the third round. The 29-year-old has won his last four fights since suffering the only loss of his career at the hands of Stephen Fulton in January 2021. Leo would lose the WBO world junior featherweight title in the defeat to Fulton. After a lengthy period of fighting under the Mayweather Promotions banner, Leo is now promoted by ProBox TV. Lopez (30-2, 17 KOs), who resides in Mexicali, Mexico, last fought on March 2, stopping Reiya Abe of Japan in the eighth round. Lopez previously fought on September 15, defeating Joet Gonzalez by unanimous decision. The 30-year-old won the IBF world title in December 2022, defeating Josh Warrington by majority decision. If the fight does become a reality, the Leo fight will be Lopez’s fourth attempt at a world title defense. Francisco A. Salazar has written for The Ring since October 2013 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (California) Star newspaper. He can be reached at santio89@yahoo.com The post Angelo Leo headed to a world title shot against Luis Lopez in New Mexico in August appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Naoya Inoue suffered a shocking knockdown during the opening round of his first defense of the undisputed junior featherweight championship on Monday inside the Tokyo Dome, an almost surreal scene that instantly gave boxing fans worldwide a flashback to Tyson-Douglas, but there would be no monumental upset on The Monster’s watch. Inoue (27-0, 24 KOs) got up on wobbly legs after getting nailed with a perfectly timed left cross from Nery, the bold and battle-tested southpaw from Tijuana, and survived the round with an attitude. He would pay Nery back in Round 2, dropping The Ring’s No. 5-rated junior featherweight with a hook. Inoue, currently No. 2 in The Ring’s pound-for-pound rankings, dialed in with a power jab and stinging one-two combinations in Round 3, keeping Nery at arms’ length and holstering the Mexican’s offense. By Round 4, Inoue was confident enough to showboat a little, play to the crowd and taunt the challenger in front of at least 40,000 fans. Nery (35-2, 27 KOs) took the punches but wasn’t returning fire. That changed in Round 5, when the Mexican opened up and forged forward, pressing Inoue to the ropes. And that’s all the opening the four-division world titleholder needed to land another knockdown-producing left hook with 35 seconds left in the round. Inoue went for the kill in Round 6, no longer content to play with his food. Backing weary looking Nery into a corner Inoue unleashed a combination punctuated with a right uppercut followed by a right cross that violently deposited the gutsy challenger to the canvas where referee Michael Griffin waved the bout off at 1:22 of the round.
What began as a dramatic shootout became a one-sided beating, but it was thrilling due to Inoue’s dynamic offense and Nery’s toughness. When the Fighter of the Year faces the winner of the Fight of the Year, we should have expected entertainment. Most expected revenge for Japanese boxing, as Nery was once banned from fighting in the country due to controversial back-to-back knockouts of respected bantamweight champ Shinsuke Yamanaka in 2017 and 2018. Nery tested positive for a banned substance after their first bout and then missed weight by three and half pounds for the rematch. Despite the ugly past, Inoue said he respected Nery as a competitor during his post-fight interview. So, what’s next for The Monster? Sam Goodman, the mandatory challenger for one of the four sanctioning body belts that Inoue holds, was in the ring at the end of his post-fight interview. Inoue said he would love to fight the undefeated Australian, The Ring’s No. 4-rated junior featherweight, in September. Goodman will be an even bigger underdog than Nery was, but that first round may have given him (and all the other top 122 and 126 pounders) hope. The post Naoya Inoue survives knockdown, KOs Luis Nery in six, retains undisputed 122-pound championship appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Former kickboxing champion Yoshiki Takei utilized his long reach, unorthodox southpaw style and a lot of guts to outpoint battle-tested Jason Moloney and win his first major world boxing title in his ninth pro bout on the Inoue-Nery undercard on Monday at the Tokyo Dome. The 27-year-old Tokyo native had to survive a furious rally from Moloney in the final minute of Round 12 to earn the WBO bantamweight title by scores of 117-110 and 116-111 (twice), but he had banked the early rounds (despite being penalized a point for a borderline low blow in Round 2) by soundly outworking the rugged Australian and he held his form when the 33-year-old veteran pressed him hard in Rounds 6, 7 and 8. Takei (9-0, 8 KOs) had only fought past eight rounds once (an 11th-round stoppage of Bruno Tarimo in 2022), so he lost some steam in Rounds 8 and 9 but he was still able to set traps and land his heavy left hand while backpedaling away from Moloney (27-3, 19 KOs), The Ring’s No. 2-rated bantamweight, who inexplicably took his foot off the gas pedal in Rounds 10 and 11, setting up the dramatic finish. With Takei’s victory, all four major bantamweight world titleholders now hail from Japan. READ THE LATEST ISSUE OF THE RING FOR FREE VIA THE NEW APP NOW. SUBSCRIBE NOW TO ACCESS MORE THAN 10 YEARS OF BACK ISSUES. The post Yoshiki Takei outpoints Jason Moloney, wins WBO bantamweight title appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Takuma Inoue will likely never escape the shadow of his older brother, but he continues to develop into a complete boxer and top-class world titleholder, as evidenced by the second defense of his WBA bantamweight title against tough veteran Sho Ishida on the undercard of Naoya’s showdown with Luis Nery on Monday at the Tokyo Dome. Apart suffering an opening round knockdown (courtesy of a stiff jab from Ishida), Inoue (20-1, 5 KOs) put on a boxing clinic against the gritty 32-year-old former title challenger, winning a unanimous decision by scores of 118-109 (twice) and 116-111. The 28-year-old Yokohama native beat the veteran from Osaka to the punch whether he was setting traps and counterpunching off the back foot or standing and trading in the pocket. Inoue, the faster and more fluid and creative puncher, had Ishida’s nose bleeding from the second round on, with most of the damage coming from uppercuts, but the taller challenger was also punished with crisp jabs, one-two combinations and hooks to the body. Inoue was the ring general throughout the bout, although Ishida (34-4, 17 KOs), who has never been stopped, tried his best to mount a rally in Rounds 10 and 11. Inoue, The Ring’s No. 5-rated bantamweight, made the first defense of his title with a ninth-round stoppage former 115-pound beltholder Jerwin Ancajas in February. He was The Ring’s 2015 Prospect of the Year. The post Takuma Inoue outclasses Sho Ishida over 12, retains WBA bantamweight title appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Seigo Yuri Akui and Takku Kuwahara first faced each other in the ring with the Japanese flyweight title on the line. Akui won that bout via 10th-round stoppage at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo in 2021. Three bouts later, Akui won the WBA world title with a unanimous decision over long-reigning Artem Dalakian in January of this year, so his rematch with Kuwahara on the Inoue-Nery undercard at the Tokyo Dome was on a much larger stage and for much larger stakes but he maintained his superiority over his domestic rival. Kuwahara (13-2, 8 KOs) managed to last the 12-round distance on Monday but was soundly outclassed by Akui (20-2-1, 11 KOs), who won by scores of 118-110 and 117-111 (twice). Akui confidently walked down the stick-and-moving Kuwahara, landing head-snapping jabs, right hands, one-two combinations, sneaky lead hooks and body shots en route to his unanimous decision victory. Akui is The Ring’s No. 4-rated flyweight. READ THE LATEST ISSUE OF THE RING FOR FREE VIA THE NEW APP NOW. SUBSCRIBE NOW TO ACCESS MORE THAN 10 YEARS OF BACK ISSUES. The post Seigo Yuri Akui outpoints Taku Kuwahara in rematch, retains WBA flyweight title appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Rumors of Canelo Alvarez’s demise were greatly exaggerated. While boxing’s biggest star may not be in his absolute prime, he is still more than good enough to beat most world-class super middleweights and he exhibited that when he turned back the challenge of previously unbeaten countryman Jaime Munguia to retain his Ring and undisputed 168-pound titles in front of 17,492 fans at the T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, on Saturday. Canelo took the first round to take a look at Munguia, throwing just 11 punches, then he got to work and while Munguia threw more in 10 of the 12 rounds, Canelo was far more economic throughout, landing at least 32 percent of his punches a round, while the 27-year-old challenger only bettered that mark in two rounds of the fight. The first big moment in the fight came when the pair exchanged punches in Round 4, Munguia looked to try to overwhelm Canelo, landing a snapping right hand but as he tried to follow up, Canelo replied with a right hand of his own. Shortly afterwards a rapid-fire combination was punctuated with a perfect right uppercut that sent the Tijuana native down for the first time in his career with just over 30 seconds in the round remaining.
To Munguia’s credit he fought on and back. He was always a step behind but he put up a fight unlike Jermell Charlo’s tepid effort last September. Canelo (61-2-2, 29 knockouts) was awarded the victory 117-110, 116-111 and a little to close 115-112 on the usually reliable Steve Weisfeld’s scorecard and remains the face of boxing. However, it was a valuable lesson for Munguia (43-1, 34 KOs). The Ring’s No. 5-rated super middleweight showed he can compete at the highest level. It was the kind of experience you can’t buy, and he probably learned more than he did in all his previous wins put together and will serve him well going forward. However, his activity seemed to aid him specifically on Weisfeld’s card. As the old adage goes, never mistake activity for achievement.
According to CompuBox Canelo threw 536 punches landing 234 of his shots for a 43.7 connect rate, while Munguia threw 663 and landed 170 shots which equated to 25.6. Accuracy prevailed over activity. “I’m glad I gave Jaime this opportunity, he’s a great guy, great champion, he’s going to continue doing good,” Canelo told Jim Gray afterwards. “I feel very proud to put these type of fights in Vegas. I feel proud to represent Mexico! Viva Cabrones!” Which was greeted with huge cheers from his countrymen in attendance. “I took my time, I have great experience,” he added. “Jaime Munguia is a great fighter, he’s strong, he’s smart. I take my time, I have 12 rounds to win the fight and I did. I did really good, and I feel proud about it.” And he’s right to feel so, it’s probably the best he’s looked since before he lost to Dmitry Bivol. Since then, he has posted wins over Gennadiy Golovkin (UD 12), John Ryder (UD 12) and Charlo (UD 12). However those cheers turned to jeers when the name of David Benavidez was mentioned soon after. “Right now, I’m gonna rest, enjoy my family,” he said. “But you know, if the money is right, I can fight right now. I don’t give a shit. I can do whatever I want.” And he can do that, he’s earnt that privilege over the years. Unfortunately, Alvarez doesn’t seem bothered about facing Benavidez, who as well as outgrowing the 168-pound division probably got fed up waiting for his name to get called.  David Benavidez, The Ring’s No. 1-rated super middleweight, remains the man that most hardcore fans want Canelo to face. Photo by Esther Lin The former two-time WBC 168-pound titlist is heading to light heavyweight, where he’ll meet former WBC 175-pound beltholder Oleksandr Gvozdyk on June 15. How Benavidez made 168 for so long is anyone’s guess. He’ll be big for a light heavyweight and to drop back to 168 would require a herculean effort. Maybe that’s part of Canelo’s plan, let him get comfy at 175 and call his name and as the A-side bring him down in weight, sapping the younger man of his strength. Afterall it won’t be the first time we’ve seen an A-side use this tactic. The super middleweight landscape will also receive more change when the super dangerous but largely unknown David Morrell heads to light heavyweight in August. Those two moving up will create opportunities for others. Eddie Hearn has proclaimed the wholly undeserving Edgar Berlanga next. In my eyes it would be a shame for Canelo to face Berlanga, who brings little in terms of threat or fan appeal. There has been mention of fellow pound-for-pound star Terence Crawford stepping up to the plate. Crawford has fought his career from 135-147 and will make his 154-pound debut on August 3. I can see him jumping up in weight again if victorious but that won’t happen in September. It would be fool-hardy to jump from 154 straight to 168. There is a reason why we have weight classes and that is a significant jump. With a thinning field left maybe the best and most exciting option would be Christian Mbilli. The all-action Mbilli (26-0, 22 KOs) will face Mark Heffron on May 25. The Canadian-based fighter, The Ring’s No. 2-rated super middleweight, fights at a high pace, something that would serve to take Canelo out of his stride. However, in much the way he beat Munguia, Canelo’s precision would be key. The fight could resemble a modern-day Marvin Hagler-John Mugabi, in which the fearsome challenger brings out the best in the aging champion.  Christian Mbili (left) brutally stopped Nadjib Mohammedi in five rounds – Photo by Vincent Ethier Canelo has the best resume in boxing. He’s already a first ballot hall of famer and a modern day great. He’d have more to lose than gain against Benavidez, but those cat calls will prick his pride and ego. He’s a stubborn sort and will likely look at that as a challenge but one he will take when he is good and ready, not when anyone else wants it. The most likely path for that fight to come to fruition is if Turki Alalshikh deems it to be on his wish list and decrees the funds are there to entice both parties. Here’s to hoping His Excellency waves his magic wand. He’s already made several fights that previously didn’t seem doable. What about this one?
Questions and/or comments can be sent to Anson at elraincoat@live.co.uk and you can follow him on The post Wainwright Weighs In: After besting Munguia, who’s next for Canelo Alvarez? appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Malik Zinad will vie for his first major title, one fight ahead of schedule. The Ring has confirmed that the unbeaten 30-year-old contender has been tabbed to challenge WBA light heavyweight titlist Dmitry Bivol. The scheduled 12-round bout takes place June 1 at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Zinad (22-0, 16 knockouts) replaces Artur Beterbiev (20-0, 20 knockouts), who was due to face Bivol for the undisputed championship. Beterbiev, The Ring’s No. 1-rated light heavyweight, suffered a ruptured meniscus, and was forced to withdraw. Messages left with representatives for Bivol, Zinad and event handler Turki Alalshikh were not returned as this goes to publication. However, The Ring has learned that a deal was immediately struck with GOAT MGT founder Nomaan Ali, Zinad’s manager. The quick call to action allowed Bivol to remain on the show, as first reported by ESPN.com’s Mike Coppinger. Bivol (22-0, 11 KOs) will no longer command the main event slot, though irrelevant in the grand scheme of things. Deontay Wilder (43-3-1, 42 KOs) and Zhilei Zhang (26-2-1, 21 KOs) will now advance the headlining act. Their heavyweight bout anchors the Matchroom Boxing vs. Queensberry Promotions 5-vs.-5 tournament. Bivol will attempt his 11th defense of the WBA light heavyweight title. He has held the full version since a November 2017 first-round knockout of Trent Broadhurst. His sights were set on Beterbiev’s WBC, IBF and WBO titles to crown the first fully unified light heavyweight king in more than 20 years. That dream is now delayed until at least later this year. Meanwhile, Zinad will do his part to enter the undisputed equation. The first-time title bid also marks a quick ring return for the Malta-based Libyan boxer. Zinad outpointed unbeaten Jerome Pampellone in their April 24 IBF semifinal title eliminator in Sydney. Another win would have put him in position as the mandatory challenger. That route is no longer necessary, thanks to the cooperative efforts of his team. The five week-turnaround for Zinad is his shortest gap between fights since 2019. Fittingly, it makes up for lost time; his win over Pampellone ended a 13-month ring absence. Bivol returns to the site that hosted his last title defense. The Ring’s No. 2 light heavyweight and No. 6 pound-for-pound fighter outpointed Lyndon Arthur last December 23 at Kingdom Arena. The rest of the show remains intact and will air live on DAZN Pay-Per-View. Beterbiev-Bivol was due to stream separately on ESPN+. In addition to Bivol-Zinad and Wilder-Zhang, at least four more fights are confirmed for the show. Croatia’s Filip Hrgovic (17-0, 14 KOs), No. 5 at heavyweight, will face former WBA ‘Regular’ titlist Daniel Dubois (20-2, 19 KOs). As previously reported by The Ring, Hrgovic-Dubois will likely come the vacant IBF heavyweight title at stake. It will depend on the outcome of the May 18 Oleksandr Usyk-Tyson Fury undisputed championship. The winner is expected to immediately relinquish the IBF belt in lieu of a mandatory title defense versus Hrgovic.. WBA 126-pound titlist Raymond Ford (15-0-1, 8 KOs) will defend his belt versus Nick Ball (19-0-1, 11 KOs). Ford is No. 7 at 126, while Ball is The Ring’s No. 4-rated contender. Hamzah Sheeraz (19-0, 15 KOs) and Austin ‘Ammo’ Williams (16-0, 11 KOs) meet in a pairing of unbeaten middleweights. London’s Craig Richards (18-3-1, 11 KOs) and Scotland’s Willy Hutchinson (17-1, 13 KOs) square off in a light heavyweight matchup. Wilder is the team captain for the Matchroom squad that also includes Hrgovic, Ford, Williams and Richards. Sheeraz heads Team Queensberry, who is also represented by Zhang, Dubois, Ball and Hutchinson. Jake Donovan is a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. READ THE LATEST ISSUE OF THE RING FOR FREE VIA THE NEW APP NOW. SUBSCRIBE NOW TO ACCESS MORE THAN 10 YEARS OF BACK ISSUES. The post Dmitry Bivol To Remain On June 1 Riyadh Show, Will Defend WBA Title Versus Malik Zinad appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Naoya Inoue’s right cheek quivered as he stared into Luis Nery’s soul. Both fighters were inside the divisional limit for their RING and undisputed 122-pound championship. Inoue was 121 3/4 pounds ahead of his first defense as undisputed king and second overall title defense at the weight. Tijuana’s Nery was well under the mark at 120.8 pounds in a bid to become a two-time RING champion. Their bout headlines a four-title fight show this Monday on ESPN+ and Amazon Prime-Japan from the Tokyo Dome. It marks the first boxing event at the famed venue since Buster Douglas’ historic March 1990 upset of Mike Tyson. For Nery (35-1, 27 knockouts), it’s a chance at redemption in a country where he was previously banned to box. He badly blew weight ahead of a March 2018 knockout win over Shinsuke Yamanaka at Kokugikan Arena in Tokyo. The rematch came seven months after Nery dethroned a then-unbeaten Yamanaka for the WBC and Ring crown in Kyoto. Nery, No. 2 at 122, was issued an indefinite suspension, which was lifted earlier this year. There is no question the overturned verdict came as an effort to satisfy a hit list item for the nation’s best fighter. Inoue (26-0, 23 KOs), No. 2 pound-for-pound, was determined for Nery to be his first challenger of 2024. Talks were underway even before he defeated Marlon Tapales to fully unify the 122-pound division. The knockout win saw Inoue become Japan’s first-ever two-division undisputed champion, a feat he accomplished in just 54 weeks. The unbeaten 31-year-old from Yokohama previously held titles at 108, 115 and 118. He fully unified the bantamweight division by the end of 2022 before he moved up in weight to conquer junior featherweight. Nery has won four straight, including three consecutive stoppage victories. Included among the bunch is his eleventh-round knockout of Azat Hovhannisyan last February. Their thriller was a top runner-up for 2023 Fight of the Year. Below are the weights for the other three title fights. Jason Moloney (27-2, 19 KOs), New South Wales, Australia, 117 3/4 pounds Takuma Inoue (19-1, 5 KOs), Yokohama, 117 3/4 pounds Seigo Yuri Akui (19-2-1, 11 KOs), Kurashiki, Japan, 111 3/4 pounds Jake Donovan a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. The post Naoya Inoue-Luis Nery, ESPN+ Undercard Weigh-In Results From Tokyo appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
The only thing that Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez couldn’t do was make good on his guarantee of a knockout. He didn’t really need to, on a night where the four-division champion reminded the world why he is among the sport’s all-time greats. Guadalajara’s Alvarez dropped countryman Jaime Munguia in the third round en route to a unanimous decision victory. Scores were 117-111, 116-111 and 115-112 for the reigning RING and undisputed 168-pound king atop a PBC on Prime/PPV.com Pay-Per-View event Saturday evening at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. “I feel very proud for this kind of fight here in Vegas,” Alvarez said after the win. “All of the world was watching us, the Mexicans. I feel so proud to represent Mexico. Viva Mexico, cabrones!” The first all-Mexico undisputed championship clash in more than 50 years saw Munguia enjoy an early lead. He took advantage of Alvarez’s traditional slow start and controlled the opening round largely on the strength of his jab. Alvarez threw just eleven punches in the first three minutes but never rattled and fought with confidence that he would quickly turn the tide. True to form, Alvarez went to work in round two. Munguia stuck with what worked in the opening frame but Alvarez was able to land in combination. A body shot earlier set up the attack by the defending champion. Munguia responded with a bushel of punches, most of which were blocked. Munguia went with straight volume in the third. It was always his best—if not only—shot at an upset and he seized his moment in the final 90 seconds of the round. Alvarez’s stellar defense picked off most of the incoming and countered a left hook with a right uppercut. Munguia rode it out and drove Alvarez to a corner where he connected with a clean combination. Reality would soon set in, however. Alvarez delivered the lone knockdown on the night. Munguia left his chin exposed long enough to get clipped with a right uppercut. The sequence sent down the unbeaten Tijuana native for the first time in his career. “I take my time, I have a lot of experience,” noted Alvarez. “Jaime Munguia is a great fighter. He’s a strong, smart fighter. I took my time, I have twelve rounds to win the fight and I did. I feel proud about it.” Munguia beat the count but was never able to rediscover his early rhythm. Meanwhile, Alvarez grew increasingly accurate in his economic approach. Munguia continued to throw more punches but Alvarez landed more and at a much higher percentage. Alvarez connected with a double left hook at the start of the sixth. Munguia attempted to respond but missed with most of his punches. A similar pattern played out in the seventh, as Munguia’s punches lacked steam. Momentum shifted in round nine. Munguia connected with a right hand and a left hook upstairs. Alvarez’s granite chin withstood the damage, though he was slowed later in the round by an inadvertent low blow. Munguia was warned for the infraction while Alvarez was cautioned by referee Thomas Taylor to not retaliate. Alvarez slammed home a right hand to open the tenth round. It was a brutal reality check that Munguia was suddenly reduced to a puncher’s chance. It wasn’t going to happen in a fight where his power did not have any real effect. Munguia let his hands go in the eleventh round. Most missed the mark once again, though his activity resonated with the judges. The final scores gave credit to Munguia’s punch output, although he landed at a much lower percentage. Alvarez (61-2-2, 39 knockouts) landed 234-of-536 total punches (43.7%), including nearly half of his power shots (151-of-304, 49.7%). The only thing Alvarez could not deliver in the end was a knockout. Instead, he goes the distance for the fifth straight time. Munguia (43-1, 34 KOs) suffered both his first knockdown and lone defeat, albeit in a valiant effort. He previously held the WBO 154-pound title before he vacated late in 2019. All his fights from January 2020 onward have taken place at middleweight or higher. Saturday marked his third straight at super middleweight. His previous outing was the 2023 Fight of the Year, when he defeated former title challenger Sergiy Derevyanchenko last June 10. The plan is to stick around at the weight, and perhaps all the wiser even in defeat. “Honestly, I thought I was winning the early rounds but then I got caught in the fourth,” noted Munguia. “Aside from that moment, I was never hurt. He has a lot of experience and is an amazing fighter. “This was a great learning experience for me [Saturday] night.” The fight was Alvarez’s first versus a fellow Mexican since his May 2017 win over Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in this venue. It was also his first to involve Golden Boy Promotions since his bitter split from the company in 2020. Golden Boy co-promotes Munguia. Company co-founder and chairman Oscar De La Hoya played up to the bitter feud. The Hall of Fame former six-division champion antagonized Alvarez throughout fight week. The two traded harsh insults during Wednesday’s press conference and had to be separated on stage. When all was said and done, De La Hoya continued to offer support for Munguia. “I though Jaime fought an excellent fight,” De La Hoya told reporters during the post-fight press conference. “He did it against the current face of boxing. I take nothing away from Canelo, I’ve always said he’s a good fighter in the ring. “But this experience for Jaime will take him to another level. It’s just like with Canelo and Floyd Mayweather. Canelo got schooled and then he became the face of boxing. It’s the same for Jaime.” Alvarez made the seventh defense of his RING super middleweight championship and at least two alphabet titles. It was his fourth defense of the undisputed championship, the most by any male fighter in the four-belt era. Overall, Alvarez is 22-2 in major title fights spanning four weight divisions. His place is forever etched in history among the all-time greats and on the short list of best Mexican fighters of all time. Just how high he is on that list, remains open to debate. “I don’t consider myself the best fighter ever,” Alvarez humbly stated. “When I retire, I think my number is going to say where my position I am. But I am the best fighter right now for sure.” His next fight will likely come versus unbeaten WBA mandatory challenger Edgar Berlanga. The fight that the fans still want to see, however, is versus former two-time champ David Benavidez (28-0, 24 KOs). Even in front of a crowd filled with his countrymen on Cinco de Mayo weekend, the 168-pound king couldn’t avoid public scorn over his noncommittal response. “I don’t know right now. I just want to rest and enjoy my family,” Alvarez said in a response that triggered some boos. “But you know, if the money is right, I can fight right now. I don’t give a shit. “At this point, everybody’s asking for everything. I fought Lara, Trout, Mayweather, Cotto, Gennadiy Golovkin, Billy Joe Saunders, Caleb Jake Donovan a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. The post Canelo Alvarez Turns Away Jaime Munguia, Retains RING and Undisputed 168-Pound Championship appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Mario Barrios will head into fatherhood armed with a three-fight win streak. The two-division interim titlist defended his secondary WBC welterweight belt with a twelve-round decision win over Argentina’s Fabian Maidana. Scores were for 116-111 across the board for Barrios in their PBC on Prime/PPV.com Pay-Per-View co-feature Saturday evening at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Action was slow throughout the bout, largely due to Maidana’s refusal to engage. The 31-year-old Argentinean always sought to create a name separate from older brother Marcos, a former welterweight titlist and fan favorite. His tactics were effective early, as Barrios struggled to find his timing. That changed in round three, when San Antonio’s Barrios connected with a right hand for the bout’s lone knockdown. Maidana beat the count and actually fought well for the balance of the round. Barrios was forced to fight through a swollen right eye for much of the night. The wound and the defense-first approach by Maidana admittedly affected his overall performance, even in victory. Maidana was effective on the occasions when he chose to stand his ground. He connected with a left hook that briefly froze Barrios, who responded with two left hooks of his own. One was blocked and the other missed the mark. Action in the second half was slowed to a crawl. Maidana enjoyed singular success with his right hand. However, he didn’t throw enough of them—or any punches, in general. The first twelve-round fight for Maidana saw him land just 84-of-342 punches as he fell to 22-3 (16 knockouts). Barrios, The Ring’s No. 7-rated welterweight, advanced to 29-2 (18 KOs) with the win. It was his third in a row since back-to-back defeats to Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis and Keith Thurman. The latter marked the welterweight debut for Barrios, who turned pro at 122 more than ten years ago. He previously held a secondary WBA 140-pound title, which he lost to Davis via 11th round knockout in June 2021. Barrios claimed the interim WBC welterweight title in a twelve-round win over former WBA titlist Yordenis Ugas last September 30. Saturday’s successful title defense will likely be his last before his partner, Omayra Figueroa, gives birth to their child. Omayra’s brother, Brandon Figueroa knocked out Jessie Magdaleno in the ninth round earlier on the show. Barrios-Maidan was the co-feature of a four-fight PPV telecast, topped by the Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez-Jaime Munguia Ring/undisputed 168-pound championship. Jake Donovan a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. READ THE LATEST ISSUE OF THE RING FOR FREE VIA THE NEW APP NOW. SUBSCRIBE NOW TO ACCESS MORE THAN 10 YEARS OF BACK ISSUES. The post Mario Barrios Drops, Outpoints Fabian Maidana In Canelo-Munguia Co-Feature appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Brandon Figueroa turned a forgettable fight into a highlight-reel moment in an instant. A wicked left to the body forced Jessie Magdaleno to the canvas late in round nine. Referee Allen Huggins reached the count of ten to end the fight at 2:59 of the ninth round Saturday evening at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Figueroa played with house money, as his interim WBC featherweight title was not at stake. Magdaleno missed weight by 2.6 pounds at Friday’s official weigh-in and was not eligible to win the secondary belt. It didn’t prevent the former WBO 122-pound titleholder from slowing down Figueroa’s normally high-octane attack. The Las Vegas native used constant movement to discourage his heavily favored foe and slow down the pace to a crawl. Figueroa looked sluggish in his first fight since a win over Mark Magsayo last March. Magdaleno was only slightly more active. He hadn’t fought since a shutout loss to Ray Ford last April 8 in San Antonio. The 13-month inactive stretch was inconsequential, though he was dealt a brief scare early. A clash of heads left Magdaleno with a cut over his left eye late in the round. Javier Capetillo Jr. validated his reputation as a top cutman, as the wound was never a factor for the balance of the fight. Magdaleno continued on with his intended game plan, while Figueroa did his best to force an inside fight. Figueroa was issued a hard warning late in round four when a right uppercut landed well below the beltline. Magdaleno dropped to his knees in pain and sought time to recover from the foul. Another warning was issued to Figueroa in round five for leading with his head. The Texan southpaw questioned the call by the referee but did his best to not let it affect his performance.
Figueroa drove Magdaleno to the ropes and let his hands go late in round six. The crowd on hand was given reason to cheer for the first time in the fight. The momentum shift was brief, however, as action once again slowed in the middle rounds. Another sequence along the ropes saw Figueroa dig to the body late in round nine. Magdaleno threatened to make it out of the round. However, he left his right side exposed just enough for Figueroa to slam home a left just below his elbow. Magdaleno immediately hit the deck and winced in pain as he was issued the full ten count.
The one-punch knockout erased Figueroa’s largely ineffective offense on the night. He landed 129 of 470 total punches, which outpaced Magdaleno (115-of-317) in both categories. However, Magdaleno connected at a higher percentage, 36.3% compared to 27.5% for Figueroa. Magdaleno also landed 92-of-252 power shots (36.5%), again more accurate than Figueroa (118-of-370, 31.2%). He also connected on more body shots (27 to 25). Only one mattered in the end, and it resulted in the second straight defeat for Magdaleno (29-3, 18 knockouts). His last victory came in May 2022, the tail end of a four-fight win streak. Magdaleno previously held the WBO 122-pound title, when he dethroned future Hall of Famer Nonito Donaire in November 2016. His reign ended in an April 2018 knockout defeat to then-unbeaten Isaac Dogboe. Figueroa, The Ring’s No. 5-rated featherweight, improved to 25-1-1 (19 knockouts). He previously held a secondary WBA 122-pound title and the full WBC belt at the weight. He lost the title to Stephen Fulton in their epic Nov. 2021 unification bout in Las Vegas. Just three fights have followed, though he remains the mandatory challenger to full WBC featherweight titlist Rey Vargas (36-1-1, 22 KOs). Figueroa-Magdaleno was part of a four-fight PPV telecast, topped by the Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez-Jaime Munguia Ring/undisputed 168-pound championship. Jake Donovan a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. The post Brandon Figueroa Overcomes Sluggish Start, Earns One-Punch, Ninth-Round Knockout Over Jessie Magdaleno appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Eimantas Stanionis waited more than two years for this moment. The unwelcome 749-day ring absence ultimately came with a reward in the form of a lopsided decision over Gabriel Maestre. The battle of 2016 Olympians saw Stanionis prevail by scores of 119-109, 118-110 and 117-111 Saturday evening at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The win saw Stanionis defend his WBA ‘Regular’ welterweight title in the opening bout of the Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) on Prime/PPV.com pay-per-view headlined by Canelo Alvarez vs. Jaime Munguia. Ring rust was not evident in the steady attack of Lithuania’s Stanionis, who entered the ropes for the first time in nearly 25 months. A strong jab was key in the offensive attack for Stanionis, who shook off a left hook to land one of his own along with a right uppercut. Maestre stood directly in front of the unbeaten secondary titlist and relied on upper body movement as his defense. He found just enough space to minimize the impact of Stanionis’ landed punches. However, the previously unbeaten Venezuelan was outlanded in every round, according to Compubox punch statistics. Stanionis’ one consistent flaw throughout the fight was allowing Maestre to frequently land to the body. Maestre waded through power shots to dig his right hand and left hooks downstairs. Stanionis was momentarily slowed in round five but quickly recovered and powered forward to outwork Maestre. Action slowed in rounds eight and nine, which at times worked to Maestre’s advantage. Stanionis still enjoyed the greater success during the majority of exchanges. However, he was warned by head trainer Marvin Somodio to not allow the two-time Olympian to steal those rounds. Maestre was similarly instructed by Ismael Salas to pick up the pace as the fight entered the tenth round. The advice was expertly carried out, as Maestre consistently threw right hands upstairs. Stanionis put an end to that early in round eleven. A second wind came over the 29-year-old, whose two-fisted attack upstairs put Maestre on the defensive. Maestre attempted to turn the tide midway through the round but was forced to clinch when Stanionis landed a combination upstairs.
Maestre offered one last gasp in the twelfth and final round. Stanionis refused to allow his foe to enjoy any sustained success, though he took a tumble to the canvas at fight’s end. The sequence was correctly ruled a slip by referee Robert Hoyle, to eliminate even the slightest hint of controversy. Stanionis (15-0, 9 knockouts; 1 No-Contest) won his first fight since April 2022. Three efforts to schedule a title defense versus Vergil Ortiz Jr. ended with a cancellation and the bulk of his lengthy layoff. Maestre fell to 6-1-1 (5 KOs). He previously held an interim title, though it came in a controversial win over Mykal Fox. Their August 2021 bout changed the manner in which the WBA assigned secondary titles, though they’ve since softened their stance. At age 37, Maestre—a 2012 and 2016 Olympian for Venezuela—is perhaps on borrowed time, with limited options. Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford (40-0, 31 KOs) is the Ring, WBC, WBA ‘Super’ and WBO champ at welterweight. The Ring’s pound-for-pound king will next face WBA 154-pound titlist Israil Madrimov on August 3 in Los Angeles. Stanionis should be in line to challenge for the full WBA 147-pound title afterward or receive an upgrade if Crawford does not return to the weight. For now, he will simply settle for activity in any form in 2024. Stanionis-Maestre opened a four-fight PPV telecast, topped by the Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez-Jaime Munguia Ring/undisputed 168-pound championship. Jake Donovan a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. The post Eimantas Stanionis Ends Lengthy Layoff, Outpoints Gabriel Maestre appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Jesus Ramos made good on a promise to be more aggressive than was the case in his previous outing. The hard work and patience reaped dividends, as he eventually dropped and stopped Johan Gonzalez. Ramos scored two knockdowns to earn a ninth-round stoppage. Referee Harvey Dock allowed the action to continue after the first knockdown but halted the contest when Gonzalez once again hit the deck. The official time was 2:56 of round nine in their Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) on Prime preliminary bout Saturday evening from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The fight was the first for Ramos since a narrow defeat to Erickson Lubin last September 30 in this venue. The Ring’s No. 6-rated junior middleweight felt he did enough to win that night. He admitted, however, that a conservative offense ultimately left the fight on the table. There was no doubt this time around. Gonzalez (34-3, 22 knockouts) had never been stopped in 36 prior contests and showed a sturdy chin for much of the night. Ramos was vicious with his right hook and his body attack, which eventually slowed and broke down Gonzalez. Ramos was dealt a brief moment of adversity midway through the fight. A clash of heads left the 23-year-old southpaw from Casa Grande, Arizona, with a cut just above his left eyelid. His corner expertly worked on the wound to where it wasn’t a factor for the remainder of the bout. Gonzalez threatened to cross the finish line before Ramos stepped it up and closed the show. A left hook sent Gonzalez to the canvas late in round nine. He barely beat Dock’s count but was still wobbly from the prior sequence. Ramos slammed home a final combination to put Gonzalez on his butt, this time to produce an immediate stoppage. Ramos advanced to 21-1 (16KOs). His loss to Lubin came on the Showtime Pay-Per-View undercard topped by Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez’s dominant win over Jermell Charlo. Saturday’s bout preceded a four-fight PBC on Prime PPV telecast, once again headlined by Alvarez, who defends his Ring and undisputed 168-pound championship versus Jaime Munguia. The opening bout of the PBC on Prime prelim show saw Vito Mielnicki Jr. (18-1, 12 KOs) outpoint Ronald Cruz (19-4-1, 12 KOs) over ten rounds. Scores were 99-89, 98-90 and 96-92 for Mielnicki, who floored Cruz in rounds three and four. The 21-year-old North New Jersey native was cut under his right eye but fought through it to earn his tenth straight win. Jake Donovan a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. The post Canelo-Munguia Undercard Results: Jesus Ramos Jr. Stops Johan Gonzalez In 9th Round; Vito Mielnicki Wins appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
A few busy weeks in the realm of women’s boxing and a few not-so-busy careers by some of its practitioners have led to a number of changes across most weight classes. Here’s a rundown on the latest in our trailblazing ratings: Flyweight: Celeste Alaniz got her revenge against Marlen Esparza in another thriller, and thus became the first Argentine fighter to earn the Ring belt. After two sub-par performances with the added issue of missing weight for her rematch against Alaniz, the panel found Esparza now worthy of moving all the way down to No. 2 behind Gabriela Fundora. “The rematch was an even closer and more difficult fight to judge than the first, but I personally favored the aggression and high volume output from Alaniz which I thought just barely edged it for her despite Esparza’s impressive work behind her jab and proficiency fighting off the backfoot,” said writer Christopher Benedict in justifying his own vote. Junior bantamweight: Carla Merino defeated Micaela Lujan, and Asley Gonzalez was found to be inactive for a long period of time. This led to a reshuffle at the weight, in which Japan’s Mizuki Hiruta entered the fray and Merino joined in as well. With those results and a panel-wide vote on how to handle all of them, Hiruta entered at No. 3 and Merino at No. 4, with Irma Garcia dropping down to No. 5 in the same process. Junior featherweight: Ellie Scotney earned the vacant Ring magazine belt with a win over France’s Segolene Lefebvre a few weeks ago. A great outing for both ladies, with Scotney’s superior skills becoming evident as the bout progressed to secure the win and the inaugural belt in this division for her. “I thought Scotney really stepped up and put on a beautiful performance. She fought effortlessly throughout and was clearly enjoying herself. I was very touched when she received Ricky Hatton’s Ring belt,” said historian Malissa Smith, author of the newly released “The Promise of Women’s Boxing,” in reference to the former champ’s gesture of lending her Ring belt to Scotney for the ceremonial post-fight picture. With the result, Lefebvre remains our No. 1, and the place left vacant by Scotney now goes to Mexico’s Mayeli Flores at No. 5. Junior lightweight: With Beatriz Ferreira earning a lightweight belt after being a career-long 130-pounder and Hyun Mi Choi also jumping to 135 only to lose a title bout against to Jessica Camara, a division in turmoil was finally left in disarray. Enter Australia’s Mea Motu, who scored a TKO over Noppraket Srisawas to finally get noticed in this rather thin division and join in at the bottom of our list. Spain’s Jennifer Miranda also was able to capitalize on this situation to earn a No. 4 in our ratings. Lightweight: Rhiannon Dixon defeated Karen Carabajal a few weeks ago, and then Brazil’s Beatriz Ferreira became a world titlist with a win over Yanina Lescano. Both impressive wins, but in the head-to-head contest, Ferreira earned more votes than Dixon in the quest to make progress in our ratings. “Ferreira was arguably more impressive against Lezcano than was Dubois, who we have ranked as No. 1. I suggest we rate Ferreira at No. 2 and move Dixon to No. 3,” argued columnist Mark Jones, in an opinion that found agreement across the panel. “I would also move Ferreyra over Dixon,” said writer Irene Deserti. “The boxing difference between one and the other is brutal. Beatriz has been sweeping everything. A fight with Dubois should be the next step and without a doubt, it would be a great fight.” Middleweight: Historically, women’s boxing has the shallowest talent pools above 160 pounds, and a series of movements prompted the panel to consider an entirely new lineup based on recent desertions, changes in weight classes and more. Savannah Marshall remains our No. 1, followed in order by Mapule Ngubane, Melinda Watpool, Adriana Dos Santos Araujo and Jesikah Guerra. “I like the middleweight line up,” said Beautiful Brawlers’ Lupi Gutierrez-Beagle. “I won’t be surprised to see Adriana Araujo ranked above Melinda in the future. And this will likely light a fire under young, California pro Jesikah Guerra.” Super middleweight: Same as 160, but even slightly worse. Raquel Miller and Maricela Cornejo exited on inactivity Olivia Curry (previously rated at No. 4 at 168) finally made the jump to 160 only to earn a draw against a 1-1 fighter. The thinnest division in all of boxing regardless of gender is in life support right now, and it would take literally an invasion of talented women to create some changes in this division, in which Savannah Marshall is the current Ring champ followed in order by our former inaugural champ Franchon Crews-Dezurn, Shadasia Green, Lani Daniels, Mary Casamassa and Citlalli Ortiz. The post Women’s Ratings Update: Scotney, Alaniz new champs, massive changes across many weights appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Edward Vazquez was not about to let history repeat itself. Vazquez overcame a difficult start to finish strong and grind out a hard-fought unanimous decision over Daniel Bailey Friday night at the Red Owl Boxing Arena in Houston, Texas. Scores were 78-74, 78-74, and 79-73 for Vazquez, who improved to 16-2, 3 knockouts. During the opening round, Bailey momentarily shook Vazquez with a right-left combination to the head. Vazquez was able to get through the onslaught of punches from Bailey and, by round three, began to dictate the action by outboxing Bailey. “It was like a six or seven-month layoff, so I kind of had to shake the cobwebs off,” said Vazquez after the fight. “It took about a minute or two, but once I got those cobwebs out, I was ready to go and I found a rhythm and I started to walk him down, break him down. He didn’t have too much power, so once I felt his best shot, I was like it’s just time to press forward and just try to get him out of there. We broke his will and it just fed right into our hands.” Vazquez dominated Bailey during the second half of the fight, throwing and landing a series of right hands to the head in round five, and outboxing him during the sixth round. Early during the eighth round, Vazquez landed a right hand that snapped Bailey’s head back. Despite being momentarily stunned, Bailey fought back, even standing in the pocket to trade with Vazquez during the last minute of the fight. The 28-year-old Vazquez previously fought on November 4, losing a close majority decision to IBF world junior lightweight titleholder Joe Cordina. The fight was back and forth, but some media and boxing insiders thought Vazquez did enough to win the fight. Prior to the loss to Cordina, Vazquez had won four fights in a row since a disputed split-decision loss to Raymond Ford, who is the current WBA world featherweight titleholder, in February 2022. Vazquez did not care for Bailey’s antics and trash-talk before the fight, instead choosing to come out victorious. “It felt great to get back in the win column,” said Vazquez, who is promoted by Lou DiBella and resides in Fort Worth, Texas. “We took a tough loss in our last fight, but it felt good to get back in the win column and it felt good to give this guy a piece of humble pie. He came in here with a big ego. It’s normal to be confident, but he talked a lot of s**t and, just like the other guys, I gave him a piece of humble pie. You saw him walk out of here with his head down. That’s what he gets for coming in here (and) talking s**t.” Bailey, who resides in Miami, Florida, falls to 13-2, 6 KOs. The U.S. Army veteran last fought on March 1, stopping Jerson Ortiz in the fifth round. On December 1, which also took place at the Red Owl Boxing Arena, Bailey defeated previously unbeaten Malik Warren by majority decision. In the co-feature, junior bantamweight Ephraim Bui dropped Ernie Cuevas twice en route to a knockout win in round five. Bui, who resides in nearby Sugar Land, improved to 9-0, 8 KOs. Bui dropped Cuevas during the third round. Cuevas was able to beat the count and was game afterwards, Bui ended matters early in round five, with a devastating left hook to the head that dropped Cuevas down to the canvas. Referee Joseph Rodriguez waved the fight off at 12 seconds. Cuevas, who resides in Greenville, South Carolina, falls to 8-2, 5 KOs. In super middleweight action, amateur standout Lorenzo Simpson of Baltimore, Maryland improved to 14-1, 8 KOs, stopping Mexico’s Noe Alejandro Lopez (11-6, 4 KOs) at the end of the opening round. Another amateur standout, 18-year-old Tony Nash of Colorado Springs, Colorado defeated Roman Reyes (5-1, 4 KOs) of Greenville, South Carolina by unanimous decision. All three judges scored the bout 40-36 in favor of Nash, who improved to 2-0. The card was promoted by Red Owl Boxing and streamed live on DAZN. Francisco A. Salazar has written for The Ring since October 2013 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (California) Star newspaper. He can be reached at santio89@yahoo.com The post Edward Vazquez overcomes rough start, beats Daniel Bailey by unanimous decision appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Another bantamweight title has made its way back to Japan. Ryosuke Nishida dropped and outclassed Emmanuel Rodriguez to win the IBF bantamweight title. A strong start early, punctuated by a fourth-round knockdown, paved the way for a clear-cut unanimous decision. Scores were 117–110, 115-112 and 115-112 for Nishida in their ABEMA TV-aired main event Saturday at EDION Arena in Osaka, Japan. Puerto Rico’s Rodriguez (22-3, 13 knockouts) entered the bout as The Ring’s number three-rated bantamweight. Saturday’s bout marked the first defense of his second IBF reign, as well as his first career fight in Japan. Things jumped off to a rough start for the 31-year-old Boricua. Nishida (9-0-1, 1 KOs), No. 9 at 118, was dominant early, particularly to the body. A left hook downstairs produced the bout’s lone knockdown, as Rodriguez was floored midway through round four. To his credit, Rodriguez rallied back in the middle rounds and did enough late in the fight to get the benefit of the doubt in every close sequence. Judges Gil Co (115-112) and Carl Zappia (115-112) had the fight much closer than most home viewers who followed the fight online. Nishida appeared to remain a step ahead in the second half of the fight, as both fought through fatigue. Rodriguez desperately tried to rally late but did not have enough left to fend off the 27-year-old southpaw. Nishida closed the fight strong to seal his most significant victory to date. The win marks the eighth consecutive distance fight for the five-year pro, who went twelve rounds for the fifth time in his young career. He became the ninth fighter from Japan to currently hold a major title with Saturday’s feat. Rodriguez is now just 3-3 with one No Contest over his last seven fights. His second title reign ends in less than nine months and without a successful defense. Rodriguez won the belt in a twelve-round shutout over Melving Lopez last August in the greater Washington D.C. area. He was an unbeaten IBF bantamweight titlist at the time of his May 2019 title defense versus Naoya Inoue. Their World Boxing Super Series semifinal bout became a whitewash, as Rodriguez was floored three times in a second-round stoppage defeat. Inoue (26-0, 23 KOs) went on to fully unify the 118-pound division and also claim The Ring championship. He repeated the feat at 122, where he is the current RING, WBC, WBA, IBF and WBO champion. The Ring championship remains vacant at 118. Three of the four major titles in the division are already back in Japan with Saturday’s verdict. Junto Nakatani (27-0, 20 KOs) won the WBC title earlier this year with a sixth-round knockout of Alexandro Santiago. Takuma Inoue, Naoya’s younger brother, holds the WBA belt and defends versus countryman Sho Ishida on Monday in Tokyo. The same show houses Naoya Inoue’s RING/undisputed championship defense versus Tijuana’s Luis Nery. Australia’s Jason Moloney (26-2, 19 KOs) also appears on the show as he attempts to defend his WBO 118-pound title for the second time. The Ring’s No. 2-rated bantamweight faces unbeaten Yoshiki Takei (8-0, 8 KOs), an Inoue stablemate. A win by Takei will provide a bantamweight sweep for Japan. Jake Donovan is a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. READ THE LATEST ISSUE OF THE RING FOR FREE VIA THE NEW APP NOW. SUBSCRIBE NOW TO ACCESS MORE THAN 10 YEARS OF BACK ISSUES. The post Ryosuke Nishida Drops, Outclasses Emmanuel Rodriguez To Win IBF Bantamweight Title appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
Loreto Garza’s boxing journey took him all the way from Northern California to France, from dreaming kid to world champion. Garza, who was the youngest of seven children, was born on May 23, 1962, and grew up surrounded by family in Northgate, a suburb of Sacramento. “We were poor. Being the youngest, I got all the hand-me downs,” Garza told The Ring. “My family loved boxing. I remember sitting down with my dad and brother watching boxing, and Roberto Duran came out with a belt around his waist and I looked at him and I told myself, ‘That’s who I want to be.’ “I grew up backyard boxing. I have a brother one year older than me and we probably boxed every day as children. It was never taught; there was no training. I did that all the way until I was 15, 16.”  Garza in 1985. (The Ring archive) Things got more serious when one of his older brothers mentioned an amateur boxing tournament at the state fair. Soon after attending, Garza went to a local gym and quickly showed promise. Just three months later, he had his first amateur fight. He went on to win three state Golden Gloves tournaments before deciding his future lay in the professional ranks. Garza turned professional as a junior welterweight and made $300 for a second-round knockout of fellow debutant Don Canada in February 1983. Five fights later, however, his pro career hit an early speed bump when he lost to a largely unknown opponent in less-than-ideal circumstances. “The night I fought [Francisco Tomas] Da Cruz, my [original] opponent didn’t show,” he explained. “They go, ‘Da Cruz doesn’t have a fight. Why don’t we match them up?’ Of course, I don’t know who he is, but I’m 5-0 with 5 knockouts and I’m thinking, ‘I’ll fight anybody.'” It didn’t prove to be the correct decision, and Garza was dropped twice and stopped in the fourth round by the Brazilian, who later lost a world title challenge to Mexican legend Julio Cesar Chavez. Garza got back to winning ways, reeling off several wins before he stepped up in class in 1988. “I was getting better and better,” he said. “Charlie ‘Choo Choo’ Brown was supposed to beat me, but I stopped him in four, and Harry Arroyo was supposed to beat me to get another title shot, but I caught him early and stopped him in the first round.”  Garza says that fighting Warren with one good eye was a valuable experience. (Photo by Bryan Patrick/The Ring archive) Garza continued his upward trajectory by stopping another former world champion, Joe Manley (KO 7), in early 1989. A few months later, he was presented with the opportunity to gain revenge against Da Cruz. “It’s in your mind: ‘This guy beat me once,’” he said. “I didn’t think he was better than me; he was better that day. He caught me. But in a rematch, I controlled the fight from the beginning and stopped him in four rounds.” Next came once-beaten Frankie Warren for the USBA 140-pound title in the summer of 1989. “We were told the winner fights Juan Coggi in three months,” recalled Garza, who won a hard-fought 12-round unanimous decision. “I had two months to prepare for that fight. I was top of my game … I knew I had to keep on my toes, keep him off-balance and use a lot of jabs, which I did. “I cut him in five different places and ended up tearing his retina in two places, so he had to retire after that fight. He was a very hard fight; I learned a lot from that fight and I learned to fight with one eye, because I had never been cut before.” Garza expected he’d fight Coggi soon afterward, but a year would pass before he got the call to face the WBA titleholder from Argentina. “I didn’t know what was going on,” he vividly recalled. “My coach called me up and said, ‘We’ve got that world title shot.’ I’m excited and say, ‘When is it?’ He said, ‘Well, it’s going to be in 17 days.’ I said, ‘What?’ They’re saying take it or leave it. I’m like, ‘I can’t let it go,’ and then he goes, ‘And we’ve got to go to France to fight.’ “I knew I couldn’t say no, because otherwise I may never get another shot. So, I took the shot. I trained as hard as I could in two weeks. Getting the weight off was a struggle. I believe I was 148 pounds when they told me about the fight.” Although the fight was taking place on neutral territory, Coggi had fought in France previously and was the prohibitive favorite. Due to the late notice he received, Garza felt he had to fight a controlled and disciplined fight. “One thing I didn’t want to do is fight hard and not have anything left the last three or four rounds,” said Garza, who won a 12-round majority decision. “I had to fight a smart fight. I kept my hands up. I’m going to box him. If I hurt him, I’m going to get on him, and if I don’t get rid of him, I’ll get off him and get back to boxing and try to hurt him again. I didn’t know how much I had to go 12 rounds. I had only been 12 rounds once, against Frankie Warren, and I was in great shape. I thought I won the fight pretty convincingly. I thought I won eight out of the 12 rounds.” Coggi attended a party that was originally scheduled for the champion, then headed home the following day. He received a warm welcome. “When I landed at the airport, there were hundreds of people inside the airport. It was so crowded in there,” he said proudly. “I was excited. My mother and father were there; everybody I knew was there.”  Garza got a hero’s welcome after returning to Sacramento with the WBA title. (Photo by Bryan Patrick/The Ring archive) After enjoying his victory lap, it was quickly time for Garza to think about his next move. His team decided to match their fighter with former lightweight titleholder and two-time 140-pound title challenger Vinny Pazienza. The two met at the Arco Arena in Sacramento in December 1990. By the late rounds, Pazienza was both bloodied and frustrated by Garza’s boxing skills. “I was well ahead in the fight,” said Garza. “The referee came to my corner the round before and said, ‘He is cut pretty bad; we’re probably going to have to stop this fight.’ I’d never heard this before. I’m expecting the fight to be stopped on cuts. He had five different cuts, and when the fight was stopped [in Round 11], I just assumed he was so cut up that’s why the fight was over. I didn’t know until later on he was disqualified, which I think robbed me from a stoppage.”  Pazienza and Garza in the grinder. (Photo by Bryan Patrick/The Ring archive) When his promoter, Don Chargin, was unable to make a unification with Chavez, Garza met veteran puncher Edwin Rosario in June 1990. “I believe he caught me with the very first right hand he threw. Because of that right hand, I was never in the fight. I was never on solid ground, like tipsy; anything he threw could bobble me. I was just not there,” said Garza, who made a career-high payday but was stopped in three rounds. “Once you get older, you might slow down, but one thing you don’t lose is that punching power. [Rosario] was still young enough to perform. It wasn’t like he was over the hill.” via Ironbar Boxing on YouTube: Garza had a rematch clause, which he tried to invoke without realizing the contract had an end date and the rematch clause had elapsed. The likable Californian was unable to get another title opportunity and watched as his old title was quickly passed from Rosario to Akinobu Hiranaka, who in turn lost it to Morris East, who was stopped by old adversary: Coggi. “I thought Coggi will want to fight me again to prove he can beat me,” he said. “When my promoter contacted them, they said they didn’t want to do it. So I never got a shot again.”  Garza in 1990. (Photo by Bryan Patrick/The Ring archive) It was a frustrating time for Garza (31-2-1, 26 knockouts). “I started working for [the Department of] Corrections; they’d give me time off to fight if I needed it,” he said. “But I wasn’t getting name fighters. I’m making a lot less money now, it’s not a title fight and I’m getting older. Boxing is boxing; you get no insurance, and I knew I needed to have a life after boxing. I have a wife and kids. I want to enjoy life with them after boxing. “I thought, ‘It’s time to hang ’em up. I want to retire with my head straight.’ I thought, ‘I’ve had a good career, I made money.’ It’s never enough money anyway, if I get a job with benefits, because money will run out if you don’t continue working or fighting. I made sure I got a decent job so I don’t burn all my money I earned and saved in a couple of years. If I can have a job just to maintain my life.” Garza worked as a correctional officer for 30 years before retiring in November 2022. Garza, now 61, is married, has three children from his first marriage and has two grandchildren. He lives in Woodland, in the outskirts of Sacramento. He graciously took time to speak to The Ring about the best he fought in 10 key categories.
BEST JAB Joe Manley: “He had a pretty good jab. He seemed to use it at the right times. He made me counter. His hands were always up and he had a good jab, so I had to find my way in to counter his punches.”
BEST DEFENSE Juan Coggi: “His hands were always up, and defensively I wouldn’t say he was hard to hit, but I never caught him clean. I’d catch him a couple of times, but he always got away.”
BEST HAND SPEED Peter Cunningham: “More of an unknown from earlier in my career is a guy named Peter Cunningham. He had fast hands; he didn’t throw a lot of punches, but when he did, they were fast. I was able to counter him, but I could tell speed-wise he had pretty fast hands.”
BEST FOOTWORK Vinny Pazienza: “Not that he had good footwork while he was fighting, but when he stepped out of range, he used his feet well to get positioning.”
SMARTEST Coggi: “He had movement in the fight. Even though he was known for being aggressive, I think my speed kind of offset him, so he wasn’t really coming at me. He was trying to wait and see what I was going do. I.Q.-wise, he was a smart fighter.”
STRONGEST Pazienza: “When I got close inside, I could feel he was strong and would try to push me around.”
BEST PUNCHER Edwin Rosario: “Only two people who put me down were De La Cruz early in my career and Rosario. I have to say Edwin Rosario, because he caught me early and I never recovered. I didn’t see the punch coming. I literally looked at the floor and thought, ‘What am I doing on the floor?’ I couldn’t tell you the difference in how it felt. Joe Manley actually hit me with a good right hand that buzzed my whole body numb. I looked at the tapes later and didn’t show any sign of being hurt at all. When Edwin hit me, I just looked at the floor.”
BEST CHIN Frankie Warren: “We went 12 rounds. I hit him with some clean shots, and even though I thought I buckled him a few times, I was never able to put him down. I was in great shape for that fight and landed a lot of clean, hard punches, and he was able to take ’em. I tore his retina in two places, but at the end of 12 rounds of fighting, he was still on his feet.”
BEST BOXING SKILLS Rosario: “When I fought Harry Arroyo, he was known to go the distance and get stronger and stronger as the fight went on, but I caught him in the first round and got rid of him. Watching other fights, he was a very good technical boxer; he had a good jab, moved his head, he came on strong toward the end and threw combinations. Edwin Rosario, he was shorter than most people, but he always had that little head movement, side-to-side, picking punches off and countering. I got nailed early in that fight and I was never able to show what I had and never really saw in a normal sense of boxing what he has, because I fought hurt the rest of the fight. I guess I’ve got to go with the guy who beat me. I would have to say Edwin Rosario.”
BEST OVERALL ?Rosario: “I have to go with Edwin Rosario from his resume. He won titles and fought big names. I was hurt early.”
Questions and/or comments can be sent to Anson at elraincoat@live.co.uk. The post Best I Faced: Loreto Garza appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
The light heavyweight debate will have to linger for a few more months. Artur Beterbiev was once again forced to postpone a title fight due to injury. This one delays the heavily anticipated undisputed showdown versus fellow unbeaten titlist Dmitry Bivol. Beterbiev suffered a ruptured meniscus during training camp, which took their anticipated showdown off the current schedule. “The plan is to reschedule Beterbiev-Bivol before the end of the year,” Top Rank confirmed in a company statement made available to the media. “Additional details will be provided in due course.” The top two light heavyweights in the world were due to meet on June 1 at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Beterbiev (20-0, 20 knockouts) is No. 1 at 175, No. 5 pound-for-pound and the unified WBC, IBF and WBO titlist. The Russia-born, Montreal-based knockout artist is also the recognized lineal champion. Bivol (22-0, 11 KOs) is No. 2 at 175, No. 6 pound-for-pound and owns the WBA title. The winner would have crowned the first undisputed champion at the weight in more than two decades. ESPN+ was due to air the attractive matchup in the United States. The rest of the show will move forward, featuring the well-publicized Matchroom vs. Queensberry 5-vs.-5 event. Those bouts were always due to air live on DAZN Pay-Per-View, separate from the Beterbiev-Bivol championship. “After receiving today’s news about Beterbiev’s injury, we will be postponing…the fight,” confirmed Turki Alalshikh, chairman of the General Entertainment Authority. “Wishing my brother Artur a speedy recovery. “However, the 5v5 event is still on for June 1st.” There is a chance that Bivol will remain on the show. Event handlers are currently working to secure a replacement opponent, though on just four weeks’ notice. Beterbiev was due to attempt his tenth title fight win and seventh with two or more belts at stake. The last came in a seventh-round knockout of Callum Smith (29-2, 23 KOs) on January 13 in Quebec City. He’s outlasted the sport’s politics to keep his three-belt reign intact and position himself to collect the final chip. However, his title reign has been crippled by injuries, illness and the pandemic. Beterbiev suffered both an injury and illness in his oft-postponed IBF mandatory title defense against Adam Deines. A rib injury prompted a postponement of their October 2020 date in Russia, already postponed by one month by that point. The rescheduled December 2020 was scrapped when Beterbiev tested positive for Covid. The two finally met in March 2021. Beterbiev overcame ring rust to stop Deines in the tenth round. He went on to also stop Marcus Browne in a December 2021 championship defense. It remains his only two-fight campaign since 2019. Beterbiev fought just once in 2022, though he made it count. A crushing second-round stoppage of Joe Smith Jr. saw Beterbiev unify the WBC, IBF and WBO titles. He was due to face mandatory challenger Anthony Yarde later that October. However, another injury forced a three-month postponement. Their rescheduled clash last January 28 saw Beterbiev fend off the scrappy Brit to earn an eighth-round stoppage in London. It would serve as his only fight on the year. A separate mandatory title defense versus Liverpool’s Callum Smith was due to take place last summer. Beterbiev had to withdraw due to a tooth infection. They would eventually meet on January 21. Beterbiev, 39, delivered one of his best performances in a seventh-round knockout of the former Ring/WBA super middleweight champ. The win set up the one fight he wanted the most—a clash with Bivol for that final chip. “I see another belt,” Beterbiev stated during their April 15 press conference to formally announce the event. “I’m collecting belts. I need one more.” Bivol was more than happy to accommodate that request. He now becomes a victim of circumstance. A 2022 Fighter of the Year campaign saw Bivol upend pound-for-pound king Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez and then-unbeaten Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez. His reward was stalled momentum in a wasted 2023 that only saw one fight. Bivol outpointed Lyndon Arthur over twelve rounds last December 23 in Riyadh. The only upside was that the fight took place on a card presented by Alalshikh, who was keen to deliver the Beterbiev fight. It was a worthwhile time investment for Bivol, though the sport will once again test his patience. Bivol has held the full version of the WBA 175-pound title since November 2017. He knocked out Trent Broadhurst in the first round to upgrade his ‘Regular’ belt to the full version. Ten more title defenses have followed as he has long craved undisputed status. Thanks to his counterpart, there now comes an extension to that already long wait. Jake Donovan a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. The post Artur Beterbiev (Meniscus) Injured, RING/Undisputed Championship Versus Bivol Postponed appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
An all-Mexico undisputed championship clash will take center stage for the first time in more than 50 years. Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez and Jaime Munguia were both inside the super middleweight limit. Guadalajara’s Alvarez (60-2-2, 39 knockouts) was 166.8 pounds, his lightest weight since he moved up to the division in 2020. The reigning Ring and fully unified champ will attempt his seventh divisional title defense. Tijuana’s Munguia (43-0, 34 KOs) checked in at 167.4 pounds. The former identical to his weight for his 2023 Fight of the Year-honored victory over Sergiy Derevyanchenko last June. The unbeaten former WBO 154-pound tillist his first major title fight in nearly five years. Their scheduled 12-round clash headlines a PBC on Prime Pay-Per-View show this Saturday from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. PPV.com and DAZN’s PPV arm will also carry the event, beginning at 8:00 p.m. ET. The suggested retail price is $89.99 + tax. Alvarez, The Ring 168-pound champion, defeated Jermell Charlo (35-2-1, 19 KOs) The Ring 154-pound champion, last Sept. 30. The win was his third straight since he dropped back down to 168. Alvarez was unsuccessful in his May 2022 bid versus WBA light heavyweight titlsit Dmitry Bivol. Both bouts took place at T-Mobile Arena, where Alvarez appears for the ninth time. The four-division champ headlined the venue’s first boxing event, a May 2016 knockout win over Amir Khan. Munguia emerged as the leading candidate to land boxing’s equivalent of the Powerball jackpot after his latest win. The unbeaten 27-year-old looked spectacular in a ninth-round knockout of England’s John Ryder (32-7, 18 KOs) on January 27 at Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona. Munguia immediately called for an all-Mexico clash with Alvarez during his post-fight interview, but was uncertain at the time if he would land that fight. That dream has come true and will mark the first all-Mexico undisputed championship showdown in more than 52 years. The last such occasion was in March 1972, when Rafael Herrera knocked out ‘Rockabye’ Ruben Olivares in the eighth-round to win the Ring, WBC and WBA bantamweight championship. PPV Undercard Weights Mario Barrios (28-2, 19 KOs), San Antonio, Texas, 146.6 pounds Brandon Figueroa (24-1-1, 18 KOs), Weslaco, Texas, 125.4 pounds Eimantas Stanionis (14-0, 9 KOs), Kaunas, Lithuania, 146.6 pounds PBC on Prime Video Prelim Weights Jesus Ramos Jr. (20-1, 16 KOs), Casa Grande, Arizona, 154.6 pounds Vito Mielnicki, Jr. (17-1, 12 KOs), Roseland, New Jersey, 153.6 pounds Jake Donovan a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. READ THE LATEST ISSUE OF THE RING FOR FREE VIA THE NEW APP NOW. SUBSCRIBE NOW TO ACCESS MORE THAN 10 YEARS OF BACK ISSUES. The post Canelo Alvarez, Jaime Munguia Both Make Weight For RING 168-Pound Championship appeared first on The Ring. Медиа: | ↑ |
