Boxing News Thread
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Pacquiao willing to fight Marquez for a guaranteed purse – but worried the fight will
By Dan Ambrose: Manny Pacquiao has no problems with facing WBA/WBO lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez as long as Pacquiao gets a guaranteed purse. Pacquiao is convinced the fight won’t sell for some reason and is worried that it will actually lose money instead of making it. Why Pacquiao thinks this is unclear, because he’s faced two less than popular Top Rank fighters Joshua Clottey and Antonio Margarito, and both of those fights have made a lot of money. It’s hard to see Clottey or Margarito as having larger fan bases than Marquez.
In an article at Abs-cbnnews, Pacquiao says “If it’s Juan Manuel Marquez, that would be easy. Even if you weak me up in the middle of the nihgt and asked me to sign a contract, that’s easy. But the problem is you can’t just promote a match when the promoter would lose money. Boxing is also a business. If I was a boxing fans, I don’t think I would watch Marquez and Pacquiao fight. They can do the promotion solo, give us a guaranteed purse and they will take care if they earn or lose money. I will have no problem just as long as our earnings are ensured.”
In reading some of Pacquiao’s comments, you have to wonder who’s been whispering in Pacquiao’s ear and telling him things like a fight between him and Marquez would lose money. That sounds worse ridiculous. It can’t be that Pacquiao has derived this theory all by himself without someone planting that bizarre notion. Pacquiao’s two previous fights with Marquez were incredibly exciting and very close. So why then would a third fight between them not interest boxing fans?
Is Pacquiao just looking for an excuse not to fight Marquez? It seems fishy, because if he’s fighting less than popular fighters like Margarito and Clottey, two of Arum’s struggling stable fighters, then a fight against Marquez would appear to certainly top those fights. Marquez fought Floyd Mayweather Jr. last year on pay-per-view and that fight got a respectable 1.4 million buys. Is Pacquiao suggesting that Mayweather is a bigger draw than himself? This would seem to be the case, because if Mayweather is able to get those numbers against Marquez, then wouldn’t Pacquiao be able to get similar numbers? How is that losing money? Pacquiao’s comments seem really strange and not grounded on reality. Could he be afraid of fighting Marquez? I know some writers on here think he is, but I don’t know what to think when you see Pacquiao saying a fight with Marquez will lose money
By Dan Ambrose: Manny Pacquiao has no problems with facing WBA/WBO lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez as long as Pacquiao gets a guaranteed purse. Pacquiao is convinced the fight won’t sell for some reason and is worried that it will actually lose money instead of making it. Why Pacquiao thinks this is unclear, because he’s faced two less than popular Top Rank fighters Joshua Clottey and Antonio Margarito, and both of those fights have made a lot of money. It’s hard to see Clottey or Margarito as having larger fan bases than Marquez.
In an article at Abs-cbnnews, Pacquiao says “If it’s Juan Manuel Marquez, that would be easy. Even if you weak me up in the middle of the nihgt and asked me to sign a contract, that’s easy. But the problem is you can’t just promote a match when the promoter would lose money. Boxing is also a business. If I was a boxing fans, I don’t think I would watch Marquez and Pacquiao fight. They can do the promotion solo, give us a guaranteed purse and they will take care if they earn or lose money. I will have no problem just as long as our earnings are ensured.”
In reading some of Pacquiao’s comments, you have to wonder who’s been whispering in Pacquiao’s ear and telling him things like a fight between him and Marquez would lose money. That sounds worse ridiculous. It can’t be that Pacquiao has derived this theory all by himself without someone planting that bizarre notion. Pacquiao’s two previous fights with Marquez were incredibly exciting and very close. So why then would a third fight between them not interest boxing fans?
Is Pacquiao just looking for an excuse not to fight Marquez? It seems fishy, because if he’s fighting less than popular fighters like Margarito and Clottey, two of Arum’s struggling stable fighters, then a fight against Marquez would appear to certainly top those fights. Marquez fought Floyd Mayweather Jr. last year on pay-per-view and that fight got a respectable 1.4 million buys. Is Pacquiao suggesting that Mayweather is a bigger draw than himself? This would seem to be the case, because if Mayweather is able to get those numbers against Marquez, then wouldn’t Pacquiao be able to get similar numbers? How is that losing money? Pacquiao’s comments seem really strange and not grounded on reality. Could he be afraid of fighting Marquez? I know some writers on here think he is, but I don’t know what to think when you see Pacquiao saying a fight with Marquez will lose money
DiBella To Arum: "Let's Make Pacquiao-Martinez at 155"
By Rick Reeno
Promoter Lou DiBella has responded to the recent comments that were made by Bob Arum, CEO of Top Rank. During a recent interview with BoxingScene.com's Lem Satterfield, Arum said that he believed Manny Pacquiao would beat Sergio Martinez, but his fighter would be putting himself at a great disadvantage with respect to the difference in size and weight.
"Even if he beat Martinez, which I believe that he would, and even if he turns it into a fairly easy fight, because he's fighting someone who is a much bigger, stronger guy, he could get hurt like he did in there against Antonio Margarito. You can get him hurt once in a couple of years, but you can't keep getting him hurt every fight and expect him to continue fighting," Arum said.
Although Pacquiao's last fight took place at 154-pounds, he only weighed 144.6 at the final pre-fight weigh-in. According to DiBella, his side is willing to split the difference. Martinez, the WBC champion, would agree to a catch-weight of 155-pounds. The catch-weight for Pacquiao's last fight, with Margarito, was 150-pounds.
"If Bob feels that way, let's make the fight at 155. I know the fight won't happen next. Manny will have his fight. Sergio's next fight is going to be on HBO. Let's build the fight and make it happen next year. I think Sergio is the best fighter in the world. I know Pacquiao won't duck any challenge. We'll make the fight at 155, and frankly Sergio would have to kill himself to get there," DiBella told BoxingScene.com.
By Rick Reeno
Promoter Lou DiBella has responded to the recent comments that were made by Bob Arum, CEO of Top Rank. During a recent interview with BoxingScene.com's Lem Satterfield, Arum said that he believed Manny Pacquiao would beat Sergio Martinez, but his fighter would be putting himself at a great disadvantage with respect to the difference in size and weight.
"Even if he beat Martinez, which I believe that he would, and even if he turns it into a fairly easy fight, because he's fighting someone who is a much bigger, stronger guy, he could get hurt like he did in there against Antonio Margarito. You can get him hurt once in a couple of years, but you can't keep getting him hurt every fight and expect him to continue fighting," Arum said.
Although Pacquiao's last fight took place at 154-pounds, he only weighed 144.6 at the final pre-fight weigh-in. According to DiBella, his side is willing to split the difference. Martinez, the WBC champion, would agree to a catch-weight of 155-pounds. The catch-weight for Pacquiao's last fight, with Margarito, was 150-pounds.
"If Bob feels that way, let's make the fight at 155. I know the fight won't happen next. Manny will have his fight. Sergio's next fight is going to be on HBO. Let's build the fight and make it happen next year. I think Sergio is the best fighter in the world. I know Pacquiao won't duck any challenge. We'll make the fight at 155, and frankly Sergio would have to kill himself to get there," DiBella told BoxingScene.com.
Goossen: "Paul Williams May Return To 147-Pounds"
By Mark Vester
According to promoter Dan Goossen, Paul "The Punisher" Williams may be returning to the welterweight division for a while. Last Saturday in Atlantic City, Williams was knocked out in two rounds by WBC middleweight champion Sergio Martinez. Since 2008, Williams has been taking fights at 154 and 160-pounds. Williams' height of 6'3, and 81-inch reach, made it very difficult to land fights at welterweight. He moved up to find bigger game. Goossen plans to speak with Williams, and managers George Peterson and Al Haymon, about another welterweight run.
"In the future, we'll be looking to avenge any loss. The last time Paul lost, he took an immediate rematch and turned the tables around. I'd like to talk to Paul, George and Al about getting back into that 147-pound division and trying to stay there for a while," Goossen said.
Martinez's promoter, Lou DiBella agrees with Goossen. He spoke with Williams and advised him to move down to 147 or 154.
"I gave Paul my two cents, that he's not a middleweight. He's the best welterweight in the world and he may very well be the best junior middleweight, as long as Sergio stays away from that division," DiBella said.
By Mark Vester
According to promoter Dan Goossen, Paul "The Punisher" Williams may be returning to the welterweight division for a while. Last Saturday in Atlantic City, Williams was knocked out in two rounds by WBC middleweight champion Sergio Martinez. Since 2008, Williams has been taking fights at 154 and 160-pounds. Williams' height of 6'3, and 81-inch reach, made it very difficult to land fights at welterweight. He moved up to find bigger game. Goossen plans to speak with Williams, and managers George Peterson and Al Haymon, about another welterweight run.
"In the future, we'll be looking to avenge any loss. The last time Paul lost, he took an immediate rematch and turned the tables around. I'd like to talk to Paul, George and Al about getting back into that 147-pound division and trying to stay there for a while," Goossen said.
Martinez's promoter, Lou DiBella agrees with Goossen. He spoke with Williams and advised him to move down to 147 or 154.
"I gave Paul my two cents, that he's not a middleweight. He's the best welterweight in the world and he may very well be the best junior middleweight, as long as Sergio stays away from that division," DiBella said.
Colorful Hopkins Makes Valid Point on Pacquiao
By Lyle Fitzsimmons
Leave it to Bernard Hopkins.
Seven months off his last win in Las Vegas and several weeks from his next test north of the border, the imminent senior citizen still manages to make news with his mouth.
By alleging pound-for-pound phenom Manny Pacquiao is undeserving of consensus No. 1 status because he hasn’t fought a top-flight black opponent, Hopkins regained in a single sound bite the relevance he’d apparently craved since embarrassing Roy Jones Jr. last April.
“Floyd Mayweather would beat Manny Pacquiao because the styles of African-American fighters – and I mean black fighters from the streets or the inner cities – would be successful,” he said. “I think Floyd Mayweather would pot-shot Pacquiao and bust him up in between the four to five punches that Pacquiao throws, and then set him up later on down the line.
“Maybe I'm biased because I'm black, but I think that this is what is said at people's homes and around the dinner table among black boxing fans and fighters. Most of them won't say it (in public) because they're not being real and they don't have the balls to say it.”
For those who’ve followed him awhile, it was vintage Bernard.
The same guy who mocked Joe Calzaghe and said he’d never let a “white boy” beat him. The same guy who counseled Kelly Pavlik to be slicker and compete more like a black fighter. And the same guy who trashed Puerto Rican flags to hype a subsequent Manhattan beatdown of Felix Trinidad.
He’s intensely provocative, delightfully edgy and deliberately controversial.
He’s often toeing the boundary line of political correctness; and more often a few steps beyond it.
But this time, when it comes to the assessment of Pacquiao… he’s a little more than all that.
He’s also dead right.
While all should dismiss Hopkins’s chronic race-baiting verbiage for what it is – chronic race-baiting nonsense – it’d take a flag-waver of the ‘n’th degree to insist with a straight face that the Filipino in question’s recent run to prominence isn’t at least partially due to prudent matchmaking.
Pacquiao parrots the “I fight who my promoter tells me to fight” mantra as well as any fighter in recent history, but it’s hardly a back-room accident that Top Rank czar Bob Arum has lined up the specific guys who’ve appeared opposite Manny on his rise to the boxing stratosphere.
When the curtain gets peeled back, it’s evident that the congressman from General Santos City has been elevated to near deity in the last two years by pretty much beating the same guy five times – David Diaz, Ricky Hatton, Miguel Cotto, Joshua Clottey and Antonio Margarito.
All strong fighters. All credible champions. But all cut from the same slow-footed, stand-in-front, take-two-to-give-one cloth that a star with Pac’s exact skill set was made to destroy – hence his deserved status as a heavy favorite heading into each bout.
He punished Diaz, jolted Hatton and dismantled Cotto/Clottey/Margarito, thanks to clear advantages in speed and footwork and a fearless will to stalk bigger quarry.
He took whatever shots were dished out in solo and used superior athletic acumen to avoid the prolonged beatings each foe had been robotically programmed to deliver.
In the end, Manny’s done with each of them exactly what he was supposed to do.
But simply reciting lines from memory doesn’t make an oratory legend. And simply arranging beneficial matchups to yield a trophy room full of title belts doesn’t make a Henry Armstrong clone.
So if Arum wants to legitimize the “best-ever” talk that’s out there, there’s more work to be done.
Which brings us back to Bernard.
Forgetting the racial prism through which it was delivered, the substance of his chatter holds true.
When Manny steps outside his competitive comfort zone, the terrain’s been much tougher.
The last time he met someone known for more than winning via sturdiness – 130-pounder Juan Manuel Marquez in 2008 – he was pushed to the limit in a fight many still insist he lost. And when he encountered the same multi-faceted foe four years prior at 126, the result was similarly disputed.
After those scares, it’s no wonder Team Pac chose to grow its investment under heavy shelter.
But to get from short-term alphabet rich to long-term Canastota wealthy, a new mix is needed.
Now that the Paul Williams spin doctors are temporarily stalled for hyperbole, the only significant fights out there for Pacquiao would pit him against a pair of accomplished slicksters whose very last game plan would be to engage their powerful foil in a face-first volley of heavy artillery.
Instead, Argentine southpaw Sergio Martinez presents a threat capable of both 12-round clinic and one-shot poleax, while Nevada-based enigma Floyd Mayweather Jr. has already beaten a laundry list of elite foes who’d planned to erase him with mettle-sapping intensity.
Any Pac fights with any other stand-ins are only a useless reread of the same tired script.
And if he’s got any real pull with promoter Arum and the Top Rank brass, now’s the time to prove it.
Maybe Manny whips them both and silences the final contrarians.
Or maybe he falls gamely short in a career-defining attempt.
But only by making the attempt can he legitimize legacy in a way another series of cookie-cutters – or untested upstarts Bradley, Alexander and Khan – simply never will.
And until he does so, he gives an old mouth in Philly an audience its old fists no longer warrant.
Choose wisely, Pac Man. For all our sakes.
* * * * * * * * * *
This week’s title-fight schedule:
FRIDAY
Vacant WBC featherweight title – Nagoya, Japan
Juan Carlos Burgos (No. 1 contender) vs. Hozumi Hasegawa (No. 2 contender)
Burgos (25-0, 18 KO): First title fight; First fight outside North America
Hasegawa (28-3, 12 KO): Thirteenth title fight (11-1, 7 KO); Held WBC title at 118 pounds (2005-2010)
Fitzbitz says: “Ex-bantam king should thrive in higher weight class.” Hasegawa by decision
WBC super featherweight title – Nagoya, Japan
Vitali Tajbert (champion) vs. Takahiro Aoh (No. 2 contender)
Tajbert (20-1, 6 KO): Second title defense; Three fight win streak since 2008 (3-0, 0 KO)
Aoh (19-2-1, 9 KO): Fourth title fight (1-2, 0 KO); Held WBC title at 126 pounds (2008)
Fitzbitz says: “Southpaw local captures second weight-division title.” Aoh by decision
SATURDAY
IBF lightweight title – Tijuana, Mexico
Miguel Vazquez (champion) vs. Ricardo Dominguez (unranked)
Vazquez (26-3, 12 KO): First title defense; Two of three career losses in Mexico (22-2, 11 KO)
Dominguez (32-6-2, 20 KO): Second title fight (0-1, 0 KO); Undefeated in Tijuana (4-0, 3 KO)
Fitzbitz says: “Underappreciated Vazquez triumphs in initial title defense.” Vazquez by decision
WBA/WBO lightweight titles – Las Vegas, Nev.
Juan Manuel Marquez (WBA/WBO champion) vs. Michael Katsidis (WBO interim champion)
Marquez (51-5-1, 37 KO): Second title defense; Held IBF/WBA titles at 126 and WBC title at 130
Katsidis (27-2, 22 KO): Second title fight (0-1, 0 KO); Unbeaten in Las Vegas (2-0, 0 KO)
Fitzbitz says: “Veteran Marquez too skilled for gutty challenger at lightweight.” Marquez in 10
WBA super middleweight title – Oakland, Calif.
Andre Ward (champion) vs. Sakio Bika (No. 13 contender)
Ward (22-0, 13 KO): Second title defense; Fourth fight in Oakland (3-0, 0 KO)
Bika (28-4-2, 19 KO): Fourth title fight (1-1-1, 1 KO); Held IBO title at 168 pounds (2008-09)
Fitzbitz says: “Ex-Olympian Ward climbing pound-for-pound rankings as champion.” Ward by decision
WBC welterweight title – Las Vegas, Nev.
Andre Berto (champion) vs. Freddy Hernandez (No. 10 contender)
Berto (26-0, 20 KO): Fifth title defense; First fight in Las Vegas
Hernandez (29-1, 20 KO): First title fight; Second fight in Nevada (1-0, 1 KO)
Fitzbitz says: “Unbeaten Berto staking his claim to second tier at welterweight.” Berto in 8
Vacant WBC super middleweight title – Helsinki, Finland
Carl Froch (No. 1 contender) vs. Arthur Abraham (No. 2 contender)
Froch (26-1, 20 KO): Fifth title fight (3-1, 1 KO); Held WBC title at 168 pounds (2008-2010)
Abraham (31-1, 25 KO): Twelfth title fight (11-0, 7 KO); Held IBF title at 160 pounds (2005-2009)
Fitzbitz says: “More skilled ex-middleweight king should overcome dangerous foe.” Abraham by decision
Last week’s picks: 3-0
Overall picks record: 154-51 (75.1 percent)
By Lyle Fitzsimmons
Leave it to Bernard Hopkins.
Seven months off his last win in Las Vegas and several weeks from his next test north of the border, the imminent senior citizen still manages to make news with his mouth.
By alleging pound-for-pound phenom Manny Pacquiao is undeserving of consensus No. 1 status because he hasn’t fought a top-flight black opponent, Hopkins regained in a single sound bite the relevance he’d apparently craved since embarrassing Roy Jones Jr. last April.
“Floyd Mayweather would beat Manny Pacquiao because the styles of African-American fighters – and I mean black fighters from the streets or the inner cities – would be successful,” he said. “I think Floyd Mayweather would pot-shot Pacquiao and bust him up in between the four to five punches that Pacquiao throws, and then set him up later on down the line.
“Maybe I'm biased because I'm black, but I think that this is what is said at people's homes and around the dinner table among black boxing fans and fighters. Most of them won't say it (in public) because they're not being real and they don't have the balls to say it.”
For those who’ve followed him awhile, it was vintage Bernard.
The same guy who mocked Joe Calzaghe and said he’d never let a “white boy” beat him. The same guy who counseled Kelly Pavlik to be slicker and compete more like a black fighter. And the same guy who trashed Puerto Rican flags to hype a subsequent Manhattan beatdown of Felix Trinidad.
He’s intensely provocative, delightfully edgy and deliberately controversial.
He’s often toeing the boundary line of political correctness; and more often a few steps beyond it.
But this time, when it comes to the assessment of Pacquiao… he’s a little more than all that.
He’s also dead right.
While all should dismiss Hopkins’s chronic race-baiting verbiage for what it is – chronic race-baiting nonsense – it’d take a flag-waver of the ‘n’th degree to insist with a straight face that the Filipino in question’s recent run to prominence isn’t at least partially due to prudent matchmaking.
Pacquiao parrots the “I fight who my promoter tells me to fight” mantra as well as any fighter in recent history, but it’s hardly a back-room accident that Top Rank czar Bob Arum has lined up the specific guys who’ve appeared opposite Manny on his rise to the boxing stratosphere.
When the curtain gets peeled back, it’s evident that the congressman from General Santos City has been elevated to near deity in the last two years by pretty much beating the same guy five times – David Diaz, Ricky Hatton, Miguel Cotto, Joshua Clottey and Antonio Margarito.
All strong fighters. All credible champions. But all cut from the same slow-footed, stand-in-front, take-two-to-give-one cloth that a star with Pac’s exact skill set was made to destroy – hence his deserved status as a heavy favorite heading into each bout.
He punished Diaz, jolted Hatton and dismantled Cotto/Clottey/Margarito, thanks to clear advantages in speed and footwork and a fearless will to stalk bigger quarry.
He took whatever shots were dished out in solo and used superior athletic acumen to avoid the prolonged beatings each foe had been robotically programmed to deliver.
In the end, Manny’s done with each of them exactly what he was supposed to do.
But simply reciting lines from memory doesn’t make an oratory legend. And simply arranging beneficial matchups to yield a trophy room full of title belts doesn’t make a Henry Armstrong clone.
So if Arum wants to legitimize the “best-ever” talk that’s out there, there’s more work to be done.
Which brings us back to Bernard.
Forgetting the racial prism through which it was delivered, the substance of his chatter holds true.
When Manny steps outside his competitive comfort zone, the terrain’s been much tougher.
The last time he met someone known for more than winning via sturdiness – 130-pounder Juan Manuel Marquez in 2008 – he was pushed to the limit in a fight many still insist he lost. And when he encountered the same multi-faceted foe four years prior at 126, the result was similarly disputed.
After those scares, it’s no wonder Team Pac chose to grow its investment under heavy shelter.
But to get from short-term alphabet rich to long-term Canastota wealthy, a new mix is needed.
Now that the Paul Williams spin doctors are temporarily stalled for hyperbole, the only significant fights out there for Pacquiao would pit him against a pair of accomplished slicksters whose very last game plan would be to engage their powerful foil in a face-first volley of heavy artillery.
Instead, Argentine southpaw Sergio Martinez presents a threat capable of both 12-round clinic and one-shot poleax, while Nevada-based enigma Floyd Mayweather Jr. has already beaten a laundry list of elite foes who’d planned to erase him with mettle-sapping intensity.
Any Pac fights with any other stand-ins are only a useless reread of the same tired script.
And if he’s got any real pull with promoter Arum and the Top Rank brass, now’s the time to prove it.
Maybe Manny whips them both and silences the final contrarians.
Or maybe he falls gamely short in a career-defining attempt.
But only by making the attempt can he legitimize legacy in a way another series of cookie-cutters – or untested upstarts Bradley, Alexander and Khan – simply never will.
And until he does so, he gives an old mouth in Philly an audience its old fists no longer warrant.
Choose wisely, Pac Man. For all our sakes.
* * * * * * * * * *
This week’s title-fight schedule:
FRIDAY
Vacant WBC featherweight title – Nagoya, Japan
Juan Carlos Burgos (No. 1 contender) vs. Hozumi Hasegawa (No. 2 contender)
Burgos (25-0, 18 KO): First title fight; First fight outside North America
Hasegawa (28-3, 12 KO): Thirteenth title fight (11-1, 7 KO); Held WBC title at 118 pounds (2005-2010)
Fitzbitz says: “Ex-bantam king should thrive in higher weight class.” Hasegawa by decision
WBC super featherweight title – Nagoya, Japan
Vitali Tajbert (champion) vs. Takahiro Aoh (No. 2 contender)
Tajbert (20-1, 6 KO): Second title defense; Three fight win streak since 2008 (3-0, 0 KO)
Aoh (19-2-1, 9 KO): Fourth title fight (1-2, 0 KO); Held WBC title at 126 pounds (2008)
Fitzbitz says: “Southpaw local captures second weight-division title.” Aoh by decision
SATURDAY
IBF lightweight title – Tijuana, Mexico
Miguel Vazquez (champion) vs. Ricardo Dominguez (unranked)
Vazquez (26-3, 12 KO): First title defense; Two of three career losses in Mexico (22-2, 11 KO)
Dominguez (32-6-2, 20 KO): Second title fight (0-1, 0 KO); Undefeated in Tijuana (4-0, 3 KO)
Fitzbitz says: “Underappreciated Vazquez triumphs in initial title defense.” Vazquez by decision
WBA/WBO lightweight titles – Las Vegas, Nev.
Juan Manuel Marquez (WBA/WBO champion) vs. Michael Katsidis (WBO interim champion)
Marquez (51-5-1, 37 KO): Second title defense; Held IBF/WBA titles at 126 and WBC title at 130
Katsidis (27-2, 22 KO): Second title fight (0-1, 0 KO); Unbeaten in Las Vegas (2-0, 0 KO)
Fitzbitz says: “Veteran Marquez too skilled for gutty challenger at lightweight.” Marquez in 10
WBA super middleweight title – Oakland, Calif.
Andre Ward (champion) vs. Sakio Bika (No. 13 contender)
Ward (22-0, 13 KO): Second title defense; Fourth fight in Oakland (3-0, 0 KO)
Bika (28-4-2, 19 KO): Fourth title fight (1-1-1, 1 KO); Held IBO title at 168 pounds (2008-09)
Fitzbitz says: “Ex-Olympian Ward climbing pound-for-pound rankings as champion.” Ward by decision
WBC welterweight title – Las Vegas, Nev.
Andre Berto (champion) vs. Freddy Hernandez (No. 10 contender)
Berto (26-0, 20 KO): Fifth title defense; First fight in Las Vegas
Hernandez (29-1, 20 KO): First title fight; Second fight in Nevada (1-0, 1 KO)
Fitzbitz says: “Unbeaten Berto staking his claim to second tier at welterweight.” Berto in 8
Vacant WBC super middleweight title – Helsinki, Finland
Carl Froch (No. 1 contender) vs. Arthur Abraham (No. 2 contender)
Froch (26-1, 20 KO): Fifth title fight (3-1, 1 KO); Held WBC title at 168 pounds (2008-2010)
Abraham (31-1, 25 KO): Twelfth title fight (11-0, 7 KO); Held IBF title at 160 pounds (2005-2009)
Fitzbitz says: “More skilled ex-middleweight king should overcome dangerous foe.” Abraham by decision
Last week’s picks: 3-0
Overall picks record: 154-51 (75.1 percent)
Cotto-Margarito & Foreman-Chavez Jr. doubleheader in June 2011 – News
By Dan Ambrose: Top Rank promoter Bob Arum is looking at matching four of his stable fighters against each other in a big in house fight next year in June, according to badlefthook.com. Arum is looking at matching WBA junior middleweight champion Miguel Cotto vs. Antonio Margarito in a rematch, and his much hyped fighter Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. vs. former WBA junior middleweight champion Yuri Foreman in a fight that possibly would take place in New York.
Arum may have to change his plans for this fight if Margarito is unable to get licensing to fight in New York. Right now, he’s only able to fight in Texas. However, a card with Cotto-Margarito and Chavez-Foreman would still do well in Texas, but it might not be worthy of putting in a huge stadium like the Cowboys Stadium.
Neither Cotto or Margarito seem to be the same fighters they once were after their brutal war in 2008. Cotto has won three out of four fights since then, but he was matched softly in his win against Michael Jennings and he looked on the verge of being beaten in his win over Joshua Clottey last year. Cotto recently defeated Foreman by a 9th round stoppage in June of this year, but Cotto had a big handicap given that Foreman hurt his previously injured right knee in the 7th round and was hobbling on one leg until he was taken out by some big shots from Cotto in the 9th.
Foreman has since had his knee operated on to have cartilage and ligaments repaired. Cotto didn’t look great when Foreman was throwing power shots and the fight was pretty much even at the time the injury occurred. As for Margarito, he’s looked awful in losses to Shane Mosley, his win over fringe junior middleweight contender Roberto Garcia and his loss to Manny Pacquiao. Margarito doesn’t seem to be the same fighter he once was, and his power seems to have strangely disappeared for some reason. Still, even without power, Margarito would be a tough fight for Cotto given how vulnerable he’s looked in the later rounds against Clottey and Pacquiao.
If Foreman’s leg has healed up, he should be able to the young Chavez Jr. without too many problems. Chavez Jr. has been matched soft his entire career, and still looks more like a 2nd tier middleweight than an actual top contender in my view. He recently beat Top Rank fighter John Duddy, but that doesn’t say all that much, because Duddy is very average and struggles against B level fighters. I have a hard time believing that Chavez will go along with the idea of him facing Foreman, because he’s likely to lose and once Chavez is no longer unbeaten, his chances for a big money fight against Manny Pacquiao or some other big star will go down the drain. Foreman may not be all that great, but I think he’s more than good enough to beat Chavez.
By Dan Ambrose: Top Rank promoter Bob Arum is looking at matching four of his stable fighters against each other in a big in house fight next year in June, according to badlefthook.com. Arum is looking at matching WBA junior middleweight champion Miguel Cotto vs. Antonio Margarito in a rematch, and his much hyped fighter Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. vs. former WBA junior middleweight champion Yuri Foreman in a fight that possibly would take place in New York.
Arum may have to change his plans for this fight if Margarito is unable to get licensing to fight in New York. Right now, he’s only able to fight in Texas. However, a card with Cotto-Margarito and Chavez-Foreman would still do well in Texas, but it might not be worthy of putting in a huge stadium like the Cowboys Stadium.
Neither Cotto or Margarito seem to be the same fighters they once were after their brutal war in 2008. Cotto has won three out of four fights since then, but he was matched softly in his win against Michael Jennings and he looked on the verge of being beaten in his win over Joshua Clottey last year. Cotto recently defeated Foreman by a 9th round stoppage in June of this year, but Cotto had a big handicap given that Foreman hurt his previously injured right knee in the 7th round and was hobbling on one leg until he was taken out by some big shots from Cotto in the 9th.
Foreman has since had his knee operated on to have cartilage and ligaments repaired. Cotto didn’t look great when Foreman was throwing power shots and the fight was pretty much even at the time the injury occurred. As for Margarito, he’s looked awful in losses to Shane Mosley, his win over fringe junior middleweight contender Roberto Garcia and his loss to Manny Pacquiao. Margarito doesn’t seem to be the same fighter he once was, and his power seems to have strangely disappeared for some reason. Still, even without power, Margarito would be a tough fight for Cotto given how vulnerable he’s looked in the later rounds against Clottey and Pacquiao.
If Foreman’s leg has healed up, he should be able to the young Chavez Jr. without too many problems. Chavez Jr. has been matched soft his entire career, and still looks more like a 2nd tier middleweight than an actual top contender in my view. He recently beat Top Rank fighter John Duddy, but that doesn’t say all that much, because Duddy is very average and struggles against B level fighters. I have a hard time believing that Chavez will go along with the idea of him facing Foreman, because he’s likely to lose and once Chavez is no longer unbeaten, his chances for a big money fight against Manny Pacquiao or some other big star will go down the drain. Foreman may not be all that great, but I think he’s more than good enough to beat Chavez.
Hopkins vs. Pascal: Over 15,000 tickets already sold for their December 18th fight
By Jim Dower: WBC light heavyweight champion Jean Pascal (26-1, 16 KO’s) will be making his 4th defense of his World Boxing Council belt against 45-year-old former IBF/WBA/WBC/WBO middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins (52-5-1, 32 KO’s) in a fight at the Pepsi Coliseum, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. Compared to Hopkins’ last fight against 41-year-old Roy Jones Jr., which didn’t do well in terms of ticket sales, this fight is selling incredibly well with over 15,000 tickets already purchased for the clash in Quebec. It’s great news for Hopkins and Pascal, because this fight will really help both of their careers, especially the winner.
Pascal, 28, is 17 years younger than the 45-year-old Hopkins and a lot faster than him. This is going to be a really tough fight for Hopkins, because he’s faced limited opposition since pulling off a big upset in his 12 round decision win over Kelly Pavlik in 2008. Pascal is a lot faster than Pavlik and Enrique Ornelas, two of Hopkins’ opponents in the past two years, and has a lot more in the tank than Jones did in his 12 round decision loss to Hopkins in April. Hopkins is hoping to use the Pascal fight to revive his career, but if he’s to have a chance at beating Pascal, he’s going to have to look a lot better than he did in the Jones and Ornelas bouts.
That version of Hopkins would lose to Pascal by a long shot. Pascal recently defeated Chad Dawson by a 11 round technical decision. Dawson was considered by many fans to be the best fighter in the light heavyweight division, and yet Pascal easily beat him. Hopkins is going to have to do more than relying on his old punch and grab technique that he’s fallen into as he’s aged in the past two years. Pascal is too fast to be beaten by that style, and Hopkins is going to have problems as he comes in trying to clinch and maul. That won’t work for him. He’s going to have to beat Pascal in a straight up fight if he wants to win. At 45, it’s doubtful Hopkins has enough left to beat someone in the class of Pascal.
By Jim Dower: WBC light heavyweight champion Jean Pascal (26-1, 16 KO’s) will be making his 4th defense of his World Boxing Council belt against 45-year-old former IBF/WBA/WBC/WBO middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins (52-5-1, 32 KO’s) in a fight at the Pepsi Coliseum, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. Compared to Hopkins’ last fight against 41-year-old Roy Jones Jr., which didn’t do well in terms of ticket sales, this fight is selling incredibly well with over 15,000 tickets already purchased for the clash in Quebec. It’s great news for Hopkins and Pascal, because this fight will really help both of their careers, especially the winner.
Pascal, 28, is 17 years younger than the 45-year-old Hopkins and a lot faster than him. This is going to be a really tough fight for Hopkins, because he’s faced limited opposition since pulling off a big upset in his 12 round decision win over Kelly Pavlik in 2008. Pascal is a lot faster than Pavlik and Enrique Ornelas, two of Hopkins’ opponents in the past two years, and has a lot more in the tank than Jones did in his 12 round decision loss to Hopkins in April. Hopkins is hoping to use the Pascal fight to revive his career, but if he’s to have a chance at beating Pascal, he’s going to have to look a lot better than he did in the Jones and Ornelas bouts.
That version of Hopkins would lose to Pascal by a long shot. Pascal recently defeated Chad Dawson by a 11 round technical decision. Dawson was considered by many fans to be the best fighter in the light heavyweight division, and yet Pascal easily beat him. Hopkins is going to have to do more than relying on his old punch and grab technique that he’s fallen into as he’s aged in the past two years. Pascal is too fast to be beaten by that style, and Hopkins is going to have problems as he comes in trying to clinch and maul. That won’t work for him. He’s going to have to beat Pascal in a straight up fight if he wants to win. At 45, it’s doubtful Hopkins has enough left to beat someone in the class of Pascal.
Pacquiao-Margarito brings in 1.15 million PPV buys and possibly more
By Dan Ambrose: The November 13th clash between Manny Pacquiao (52-3-2, 38 KO’s) and Antonio Margarito (38-7, 27 KO’s) at the Cowboys Stadium, in Arlington, Texas, reportedly brought in at least 1.15 million pay per view buys, according to boxing news from Dan Rafael of ESPN.
The fight could end up bringing in more than 1.15 buys, but these are the initial numbers from HBO for the mini mega fight.
Needless to say, these are very good numbers indeed because Pacquiao did it pretty much on his own with a little help from HBO’s 24/7 Pacquiao/Margarito series and with Margarito’s Mexican fan base tuning in. Margarito has never had much of a fan base, but it could be that he was able to draw a number of Mexican fans to help make this fight more successful that Pacquiao’s recent fight against Joshua Clottey, which drew less PPV buys at 700,000. In contrast, Pacquiao’s bout against Oscar De La Hoya did 1.25 million buys.
Top Rank promoter Bob Arum, who promotes both Margarito and Pacquiao, had this to say in an ESPN interview: “Considering where we were when we announced the fight, nobody would have believed we would have done this. They said Margarito was disgraced and people talked about boycotting it.” Arum seemed to be gloating about the success of the fight. However, when you have a fighter like Pacquiao, you can pretty much match him up against anyone, as was the case against Clottey, and the fight will still do well. The real test of how popular Margarito is will be when Arum puts him in with an obscure opponent.
Arum would like to match Margarito against Miguel Cotto in a rematch of their 2008 fight. That bout will likely do well, but Margarito is going to need a lot of time to heal up from the beating he took against Pacquiao. Margarito sustained a fractured right orbital bone and he took a lot of head shots in the fight. He might not be the same fighter, but then again, Cotto doesn’t look like the same fighter since being beaten by Margarito in 2008. It will be a good fight between fading sluggers.
As for Pacquiao, Arum is really hoping that Floyd Mayweather Jr. will show an interest in fighting him in 2011. Arum says “It’s one thing to do big numbers fighting Oscar De La Hoya, who always did big numbers. It’s another doing them on his own, which he is now apparently able to do. One of the ways to put it into the stratosphere is to make the Mayweather fight, but that is out of my control. I hope that is the next fight.”
It’s a wonder that Pacquiao has been able to bring in good numbers against Clottey and Margarito, because Arum could have selected more popular opponents than them – and likely would have made more money – but chose them for some reason. Many people think Arum selected Arum and Clottey simply because they’re part of his Top Rank stable, and not because he thought they were the fights that would make the most money. Pacquiao would have likely did better had he fought Shane Mosley rather than Clottey or Margarito.
The Mayweather fight is going to be a problem to put together because he’s going to want Pacquiao to agree to random blood tests for performance enhancing drugs, and that’s where the two fighters were unable to agree upon last time they attempted to negotiate this year. Also, the purse split will could be a problem as well as the weight. If Pacquiao’s team attempts to make this another catch weight in order to get a handicap for Pacquiao, it will make it difficult to make this fight.
By Dan Ambrose: The November 13th clash between Manny Pacquiao (52-3-2, 38 KO’s) and Antonio Margarito (38-7, 27 KO’s) at the Cowboys Stadium, in Arlington, Texas, reportedly brought in at least 1.15 million pay per view buys, according to boxing news from Dan Rafael of ESPN.
The fight could end up bringing in more than 1.15 buys, but these are the initial numbers from HBO for the mini mega fight.
Needless to say, these are very good numbers indeed because Pacquiao did it pretty much on his own with a little help from HBO’s 24/7 Pacquiao/Margarito series and with Margarito’s Mexican fan base tuning in. Margarito has never had much of a fan base, but it could be that he was able to draw a number of Mexican fans to help make this fight more successful that Pacquiao’s recent fight against Joshua Clottey, which drew less PPV buys at 700,000. In contrast, Pacquiao’s bout against Oscar De La Hoya did 1.25 million buys.
Top Rank promoter Bob Arum, who promotes both Margarito and Pacquiao, had this to say in an ESPN interview: “Considering where we were when we announced the fight, nobody would have believed we would have done this. They said Margarito was disgraced and people talked about boycotting it.” Arum seemed to be gloating about the success of the fight. However, when you have a fighter like Pacquiao, you can pretty much match him up against anyone, as was the case against Clottey, and the fight will still do well. The real test of how popular Margarito is will be when Arum puts him in with an obscure opponent.
Arum would like to match Margarito against Miguel Cotto in a rematch of their 2008 fight. That bout will likely do well, but Margarito is going to need a lot of time to heal up from the beating he took against Pacquiao. Margarito sustained a fractured right orbital bone and he took a lot of head shots in the fight. He might not be the same fighter, but then again, Cotto doesn’t look like the same fighter since being beaten by Margarito in 2008. It will be a good fight between fading sluggers.
As for Pacquiao, Arum is really hoping that Floyd Mayweather Jr. will show an interest in fighting him in 2011. Arum says “It’s one thing to do big numbers fighting Oscar De La Hoya, who always did big numbers. It’s another doing them on his own, which he is now apparently able to do. One of the ways to put it into the stratosphere is to make the Mayweather fight, but that is out of my control. I hope that is the next fight.”
It’s a wonder that Pacquiao has been able to bring in good numbers against Clottey and Margarito, because Arum could have selected more popular opponents than them – and likely would have made more money – but chose them for some reason. Many people think Arum selected Arum and Clottey simply because they’re part of his Top Rank stable, and not because he thought they were the fights that would make the most money. Pacquiao would have likely did better had he fought Shane Mosley rather than Clottey or Margarito.
The Mayweather fight is going to be a problem to put together because he’s going to want Pacquiao to agree to random blood tests for performance enhancing drugs, and that’s where the two fighters were unable to agree upon last time they attempted to negotiate this year. Also, the purse split will could be a problem as well as the weight. If Pacquiao’s team attempts to make this another catch weight in order to get a handicap for Pacquiao, it will make it difficult to make this fight.
Paul Williams was kicked off of the “Ring Magazine‘s” P4P list! Here’s the new update
November 23rd, 2010
By Marquise Bullock: The P4P list was finally updated and for some of you who don’t keep up with it, here it is, just for you!
1. Manny Pacquiao (52-3-2- 38KO’s) weeks on the list: 364
2. Floyd Mayweather Jr. (41-0 25KO’s) weeks on the list: 62
3. Sergio Martinez (45-2-2 25KO’s) weeks on the list: 30
4. Juan Manuel Marquez (51-5-1 37KO’s) weeks on the list: 193
5. Nonito Donaire (23-1 15KO’s) weeks on the list: 82
6. Pongsaklek Wonjongkam (77-3-1 41KO’s) weeks on the list: 30
7. Fernando Montiel (43-2-2 33KO’s) weeks on the list: 19
8. Wladimir Klitschko (55-3 49KO’s) weeks on the list: 15
9. Timothy Bradley (26-0 11KO’s) weeks on the list: 10
10. Juan Manuel Lopez (29-0 26KO’s) weeks on the list: 1
Well, there you have it, out of 17 weight classes, these are the best Pound 4 Pound fighters in the world according to “Ring Magazine”. Paul Williams was not moved down, but completely knocked off. Tell me what you think. Is this how your list looks? Some people even now think Sergio Martinez is P4P the best fighter in the world, some people say it’s Floyd, and others like it just how it is with “Pac” sitting on the throne. Let me know what ya think.
November 23rd, 2010
By Marquise Bullock: The P4P list was finally updated and for some of you who don’t keep up with it, here it is, just for you!
1. Manny Pacquiao (52-3-2- 38KO’s) weeks on the list: 364
2. Floyd Mayweather Jr. (41-0 25KO’s) weeks on the list: 62
3. Sergio Martinez (45-2-2 25KO’s) weeks on the list: 30
4. Juan Manuel Marquez (51-5-1 37KO’s) weeks on the list: 193
5. Nonito Donaire (23-1 15KO’s) weeks on the list: 82
6. Pongsaklek Wonjongkam (77-3-1 41KO’s) weeks on the list: 30
7. Fernando Montiel (43-2-2 33KO’s) weeks on the list: 19
8. Wladimir Klitschko (55-3 49KO’s) weeks on the list: 15
9. Timothy Bradley (26-0 11KO’s) weeks on the list: 10
10. Juan Manuel Lopez (29-0 26KO’s) weeks on the list: 1
Well, there you have it, out of 17 weight classes, these are the best Pound 4 Pound fighters in the world according to “Ring Magazine”. Paul Williams was not moved down, but completely knocked off. Tell me what you think. Is this how your list looks? Some people even now think Sergio Martinez is P4P the best fighter in the world, some people say it’s Floyd, and others like it just how it is with “Pac” sitting on the throne. Let me know what ya think.
Arum: Floyd Mayweather is Still The Priority, Not Mosley
By Lem Satterfield
According to promoter Bob Arum, CEO of Top Rank, there will be no fight discussions with Manny Pacquiao until at least mid-December. Arum is planning to travel to the Philippines in mid-December to celebrate Pacquiao's birthday, and to discuss the Filipino champion's next probable opponent. Arum has yet to hear back from Floyd Mayweather Jr., but still regards him as the top priority for Pacquiao's next fight.
Arum has already taken part in early discussions for fights with Shane Mosley and Andre Berto. Mayweather has yet to respond to Arum's request to name an individual who will negotiate on his behalf. If Arum doesn't hear back from Mayweather by mid-December, he will further explore Mosley, Berto and even Juan Manuel Marquez. Mosley is regarded as the frontrunner if a Mayweather fight falls through.
"I'm still hoping that Floyd Mayweather surfaces so that we can make that fight. I'm still hoping for that. I mean, that's still our No. 1 priority. But if that won't happen, then, as we get closer to my date of departure, which is Dec. 12, then we will explore Shane Mosley, and Andre Berto, and, maybe even Juan Manuel Marquez. Anybody like that would make an attractive fight," Arum said.
By Lem Satterfield
According to promoter Bob Arum, CEO of Top Rank, there will be no fight discussions with Manny Pacquiao until at least mid-December. Arum is planning to travel to the Philippines in mid-December to celebrate Pacquiao's birthday, and to discuss the Filipino champion's next probable opponent. Arum has yet to hear back from Floyd Mayweather Jr., but still regards him as the top priority for Pacquiao's next fight.
Arum has already taken part in early discussions for fights with Shane Mosley and Andre Berto. Mayweather has yet to respond to Arum's request to name an individual who will negotiate on his behalf. If Arum doesn't hear back from Mayweather by mid-December, he will further explore Mosley, Berto and even Juan Manuel Marquez. Mosley is regarded as the frontrunner if a Mayweather fight falls through.
"I'm still hoping that Floyd Mayweather surfaces so that we can make that fight. I'm still hoping for that. I mean, that's still our No. 1 priority. But if that won't happen, then, as we get closer to my date of departure, which is Dec. 12, then we will explore Shane Mosley, and Andre Berto, and, maybe even Juan Manuel Marquez. Anybody like that would make an attractive fight," Arum said.
Amir Khan: I'll Take Mayweather's Pound for Pound Crown
By Eoin Mundow
WBA junior welterweight champion Amir Khan is training for his upcoming title defense against Marcos Maidana on December 11 in Las Vegas. He talks bout the fight with Maidana, his desire to unify the division and thoughts on facing Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2011.
Having developed your defense, something you have always possessed is power. Do you think that many fighters outside the UK including your next opponent Maidana who has been knocked down several times Victor Ortiz underestimate your power?
"I think I go into this fight with the most power. I think I have a shot to knock out anyone if I hit them clean. In the Malignaggi fight, you know I had him going a few times but the guys was just running I couldn’t catch him, but with Maidana he is going to come onto the shots and when you have someone who wants to fight you as well, it just makes the fight more exciting.
People can think what they want, but they will see a totally different Amir Khan in this fight and a different style, a better style. "
The negotiations between Floyd Mayweather Jnr and Manny Pacquiao fighting each other appear to have come to a dead end. Now there is talk of you fighting Floyd in the future?
Yeah, I think if that fight was going to happen it would happen in about 12 months time. I want to unify this division, I want to get Maidana out the way and then fight the winner out of Devon Alexander and Timothy Bradley, which will make me the unified champion at Light Welterweight. Then I would like to move up a division and fight Floyd.
I think that would work out well timing wise and if you want to be the best fighter in the world you have to fight the best in the world and I think it’s a fight people want to see. Because you know, Ricky Hatton failed when he fought for the pound for pound title and I’m sure that I can go there and become the pound for pound fighter in the world, the best fighter and bring that title back to England."
By Eoin Mundow
WBA junior welterweight champion Amir Khan is training for his upcoming title defense against Marcos Maidana on December 11 in Las Vegas. He talks bout the fight with Maidana, his desire to unify the division and thoughts on facing Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2011.
Having developed your defense, something you have always possessed is power. Do you think that many fighters outside the UK including your next opponent Maidana who has been knocked down several times Victor Ortiz underestimate your power?
"I think I go into this fight with the most power. I think I have a shot to knock out anyone if I hit them clean. In the Malignaggi fight, you know I had him going a few times but the guys was just running I couldn’t catch him, but with Maidana he is going to come onto the shots and when you have someone who wants to fight you as well, it just makes the fight more exciting.
People can think what they want, but they will see a totally different Amir Khan in this fight and a different style, a better style. "
The negotiations between Floyd Mayweather Jnr and Manny Pacquiao fighting each other appear to have come to a dead end. Now there is talk of you fighting Floyd in the future?
Yeah, I think if that fight was going to happen it would happen in about 12 months time. I want to unify this division, I want to get Maidana out the way and then fight the winner out of Devon Alexander and Timothy Bradley, which will make me the unified champion at Light Welterweight. Then I would like to move up a division and fight Floyd.
I think that would work out well timing wise and if you want to be the best fighter in the world you have to fight the best in the world and I think it’s a fight people want to see. Because you know, Ricky Hatton failed when he fought for the pound for pound title and I’m sure that I can go there and become the pound for pound fighter in the world, the best fighter and bring that title back to England."
Schaefer Feels Arum is Cherry Picking Pacquiao's Fights
By Lem Satterfield
There is certainly no love between Golden Boy Promotions and Top Rank. Golden Boy's CEO, Richard Schaefer, took aim at Bob Arum, the CEO at Top Rank, by stating that Arum should take the blame for any perceived cherry picking of Manny Pacquiao's opponents.
Schaefer is very surprised with Pacquiao's recent comments about Juan Manuel Marquez. When asked about a third fight with Marquez, Pacquiao said the "fans will not want to watch it" and voiced his concerns about the pay-per-view buyrate. Schaefer doesn't believe those are Pacquiao's thoughts. He feels those are actually Arum's thoughts on the fight.
"I am a little surprised about his [Pacquiao's] comments about Marquez to tell you the truth because that's a little uncharacteristic for him," said Schaefer. "Because I know Manny Pacquiao doesn't turn down anyone. He will fight anyone. It really is not Manny Pacquiao, I think that it's his promoter. Manny fights whoever his promoter puts in front of him. Do you think Manny Pacquiao was picking Joshua Clottey? I mean give me a break, you know?"
If Pacquiao fights a less than stellar opponent in his next ring appearance, Schaefer says it's Arum who should take the blame - and not the Filipino champion.
"So you really can't be disappointed in Pacquiao. If you have to be disappointed you can be disappointed in Arum, but not in Pacquiao," said Schaefer. "Arum has that way about him to take charge, and I think that it takes a very strong fighter to stand up to that and to say, you know what? I'm the boss and I'm going to say who I want to fight
By Lem Satterfield
There is certainly no love between Golden Boy Promotions and Top Rank. Golden Boy's CEO, Richard Schaefer, took aim at Bob Arum, the CEO at Top Rank, by stating that Arum should take the blame for any perceived cherry picking of Manny Pacquiao's opponents.
Schaefer is very surprised with Pacquiao's recent comments about Juan Manuel Marquez. When asked about a third fight with Marquez, Pacquiao said the "fans will not want to watch it" and voiced his concerns about the pay-per-view buyrate. Schaefer doesn't believe those are Pacquiao's thoughts. He feels those are actually Arum's thoughts on the fight.
"I am a little surprised about his [Pacquiao's] comments about Marquez to tell you the truth because that's a little uncharacteristic for him," said Schaefer. "Because I know Manny Pacquiao doesn't turn down anyone. He will fight anyone. It really is not Manny Pacquiao, I think that it's his promoter. Manny fights whoever his promoter puts in front of him. Do you think Manny Pacquiao was picking Joshua Clottey? I mean give me a break, you know?"
If Pacquiao fights a less than stellar opponent in his next ring appearance, Schaefer says it's Arum who should take the blame - and not the Filipino champion.
"So you really can't be disappointed in Pacquiao. If you have to be disappointed you can be disappointed in Arum, but not in Pacquiao," said Schaefer. "Arum has that way about him to take charge, and I think that it takes a very strong fighter to stand up to that and to say, you know what? I'm the boss and I'm going to say who I want to fight
Guillermo Jones Eyes Cruiser Super 6, Not 12/17 Return
By Jhonny Gonzalez
According to reports in Panama, WBA cruiserweight champion Guillermo Jones is not going to fight on Don King's planned show for December 17 in Miami, Florida. Jones was scheduled to make his heavyweight debut on the Miami card being headlined by a heavyweight eliminator between Odlanier Solis and Ray Austin.
No official reason has been provided as to why Jones will not take part in the show, but there are reports that his handlers are trying to secure him a spot in the upcoming Super Six cruiserweight tournament being put together by Sauerland Event.
By Jhonny Gonzalez
According to reports in Panama, WBA cruiserweight champion Guillermo Jones is not going to fight on Don King's planned show for December 17 in Miami, Florida. Jones was scheduled to make his heavyweight debut on the Miami card being headlined by a heavyweight eliminator between Odlanier Solis and Ray Austin.
No official reason has been provided as to why Jones will not take part in the show, but there are reports that his handlers are trying to secure him a spot in the upcoming Super Six cruiserweight tournament being put together by Sauerland Event.
Roach: Pacquiao Would Finish Mosley Like Margarito
By Mark Vester
Trainer Freddie Roach is not too fond of a possible fight between Manny Pacquiao and Shane Mosley. He feels the fight would play out in the same fashion as Pacquiao's last bout with Antonio Margarito, who was beaten up and battered for twelve rounds at Cowboys Stadium on November 13.
Mosley is one of three boxers being highly considered for Pacquiao's next fight. The other two candidates are Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Andre Berto. If they can't get Mayweather, Roach would like to see Pacquiao take part in a trilogy grudge match with Juan Manuel Marquez.
"Shane is a great guy and stuff like that, but if you look at his last fight [against Sergio Mora], it wasn't too exciting. I mean it's...the same result [as Margarito]. Who cares [about fighting Mosley]? I mean really....who cares? We don't take anyone lightly. Make a deal and get us an opponent and we'll get ready for anybody. If he fights you, we'll get ready for you," Roach said to BoxingScene.com's Bill Emes.
"I want him to fight Marquez. I want Manny to finally shut his mouth. I think it's a good fight and this time Manny would knock him out."
By Mark Vester
Trainer Freddie Roach is not too fond of a possible fight between Manny Pacquiao and Shane Mosley. He feels the fight would play out in the same fashion as Pacquiao's last bout with Antonio Margarito, who was beaten up and battered for twelve rounds at Cowboys Stadium on November 13.
Mosley is one of three boxers being highly considered for Pacquiao's next fight. The other two candidates are Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Andre Berto. If they can't get Mayweather, Roach would like to see Pacquiao take part in a trilogy grudge match with Juan Manuel Marquez.
"Shane is a great guy and stuff like that, but if you look at his last fight [against Sergio Mora], it wasn't too exciting. I mean it's...the same result [as Margarito]. Who cares [about fighting Mosley]? I mean really....who cares? We don't take anyone lightly. Make a deal and get us an opponent and we'll get ready for anybody. If he fights you, we'll get ready for you," Roach said to BoxingScene.com's Bill Emes.
"I want him to fight Marquez. I want Manny to finally shut his mouth. I think it's a good fight and this time Manny would knock him out."
Berto on Pacquiao's 'Black Fighter' Woes, Hernandez, More
By Lem Satterfield
WBC welterweight champion Andre Berto (26-0, 20 KOs) is not sweating the lack of an African American opponent on Manny Pacquiao's record. Berto heard the recent comments that were made by Bernard Hopkins, who openly wondered why Pacquiao has not fought a top American-born black boxer with a slick style of fighting, like a Floyd Mayweather Jr. or a Shane Mosley.
Hopkins believes that an African American boxer, with a slick style, would likely beat Pacquiao. Berto agrees that Pacquiao has not faced any African American opponents, but he disagrees with the idea that Pacquiao has intentionally avoided black fighters.
was responding to statements made to FanHouse by former undisputed middleweight (160 pounds) king, Bernard Hopkins, that Pacquiao has yet to face an American-born black fighter with a slick style.
"I heard about the statement he [Hopkins] made, and, you know, it's somewhat of a true statement. But at the end of the day, Manny Pacquiao, you can't take anything away from what he's done," said Berto.
"Manny Pacquiao's still a tremendous fighter. But I think that it's just coincidence that he hasn't fought too many African American fighters, or, well, really, the fact is that he hasn't at all. But you know, I don't really think too much about that."
Berto defends his title this Saturday at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas against Mexico City's Freddy Hernandez. The fight is part of an HBO televised tripleheader. Berto is one of the main candidates being considered to fight Pacquiao in 2011. For that reason, among others, he is not overlooking the challenge of Hernandez. Berto is fully aware that an impressive performance on Saturday will put him in position to possibly fight the likes of Pacquiao, Shane Mosley and Floyd Mayweather Jr.
"I think that a fight like this, in a lot of ways, is a more dangerous fight to have to fight because this is a situation where I have everything to lose and he has got everything to gain. At the same time, these are the types of fights that I really get up for and I'll get up for this just because of that," said Berto.
"This is going to be a really good fight, and we're looking forward to coming out of here with a win. We're looking forward to just moving forward and looking at bigger things in the future. We'll handle business on Saturday night, and then, it looks like the floodgates will open."
By Lem Satterfield
WBC welterweight champion Andre Berto (26-0, 20 KOs) is not sweating the lack of an African American opponent on Manny Pacquiao's record. Berto heard the recent comments that were made by Bernard Hopkins, who openly wondered why Pacquiao has not fought a top American-born black boxer with a slick style of fighting, like a Floyd Mayweather Jr. or a Shane Mosley.
Hopkins believes that an African American boxer, with a slick style, would likely beat Pacquiao. Berto agrees that Pacquiao has not faced any African American opponents, but he disagrees with the idea that Pacquiao has intentionally avoided black fighters.
was responding to statements made to FanHouse by former undisputed middleweight (160 pounds) king, Bernard Hopkins, that Pacquiao has yet to face an American-born black fighter with a slick style.
"I heard about the statement he [Hopkins] made, and, you know, it's somewhat of a true statement. But at the end of the day, Manny Pacquiao, you can't take anything away from what he's done," said Berto.
"Manny Pacquiao's still a tremendous fighter. But I think that it's just coincidence that he hasn't fought too many African American fighters, or, well, really, the fact is that he hasn't at all. But you know, I don't really think too much about that."
Berto defends his title this Saturday at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas against Mexico City's Freddy Hernandez. The fight is part of an HBO televised tripleheader. Berto is one of the main candidates being considered to fight Pacquiao in 2011. For that reason, among others, he is not overlooking the challenge of Hernandez. Berto is fully aware that an impressive performance on Saturday will put him in position to possibly fight the likes of Pacquiao, Shane Mosley and Floyd Mayweather Jr.
"I think that a fight like this, in a lot of ways, is a more dangerous fight to have to fight because this is a situation where I have everything to lose and he has got everything to gain. At the same time, these are the types of fights that I really get up for and I'll get up for this just because of that," said Berto.
"This is going to be a really good fight, and we're looking forward to coming out of here with a win. We're looking forward to just moving forward and looking at bigger things in the future. We'll handle business on Saturday night, and then, it looks like the floodgates will open."
Possible Mayweather Pacquaio showdown showing flashes of Holmes Cooney fight
By Roberto Elmore: The stage is being set. The fans are lobbying which fighter is the best pound for pound fighter in the world. Journalist hands have been plenty busy for the past 4 months tracking every move made by Mayweather and Pacquiao. Bloggers have been calling Mayweather a coward and saying he’s using the drug test as a means to avoid the fight while Pacman has come under fire for fighting fighters who best suit his style and avoiding slick black fighters. Whatever the case may be, thanks to Benard Hopkins, a log called race has now been thrown on the fire. This is Holmes and Cooney all over again.
For those who don’t know in 1982, Cooney and Holmes squared off in an epic battle at Ceasers Palace for the WBC title. Holmes was three years into reign has heavyweight champion and was feeling neglected and not appreciated by the public. He was a blue collar worker with great fighting skills and had a mission to prove this to the whole world. Then you have this brash young fighter in Gerry Cooney who was working his way through the ranks and was determined to prove as well that his skill and not skin color, was the reason he got a shot at Holmes ( Reference used: Legendary Nights). But somewhere in the mist, the talk of the skill level of both fighters, went out the window and race came through the front door. The two camps played it for what it was worth.
Mike Jones and Dennis Rappaport, Gerry’s promoters, and Don King, Holmes promoter, exchanged barbs for days. It got so bad that threats were made to both fighters. And on fight night snipers were surrounded the pre-fabricated parking lot to ensure the safety of the two fighters. Even Jesse Jackson was brought in to calm things down. The media gave more attention to Gerry Cooney like never before and was being held up as the Great White Hope. To add more flames to the fire, on fight night Holmes was introduced first, even though he was champion. Cooney had never been in a long greuling fight. His longest fight before Holmes was against a guy named Eddie Lopez (Reference used: Google; Gerry Cooney’s boxrec). He admited when the fight got into the later rounds his mind went into shock because he had been used to putting fighters away early. As for Holmes, he was season, skilled determined, and nothing was going to stand in his way that night. The end result was a 13 round TKO thus silencing critics along the way.
Which brings me here. You have Manny Pacquiao from the Phillippines, who has suddenly taken the boxing world by storm and is racking his more noteriety along the way. He is a very humble man, newly elected Congressman, appearing on American T.V shows such as 60 minutes and Jimmy Kimmel; a very likeable type of guy; everything one could ask for in a fighter depending on the person. Manny’s break through came against Oscar De La Hoya after making the Golden Boy quit in their fight. That was followed up by wins over Clottey, Cotto, and Margarito winning the BWAA award 3 times, fighter of the year in 06, 08, and 09, and an eight time world champ. To some, a perfect gentlemen and role model.
Then you have Floyd Mayweather from Grand Rapids, Michigan; runs his mouth about his opponents, flashy with his money and very outspoken. To some, not a role model or gentlemen. He at one time was the pound for pound champ. He too has Oscar De la Hoya to thank for his breakthrough; that was followed up with victories over Hatton, Marquez, and Mosley, 5 time world champ,1998 and 2007 International Boxing Award (Muhammad Ali Boxing Award) Fighter of the Year, 2010 Forbes Magazine, Ranked “Number 2″ Richest and Powerful athlete in the world.
Which brings me here. How will the situation play out? Nobody has heard a peep from Mayweather concerning the fight while Top Rank says its their number one priority. Both fighters will make plethora of money and clean up on pay per view. Will Mayweather’s defensive skills, ability to make adjustments, counter punching ability, excellent use of his footwork come into play or will Manny’s ability to throw punches from odd angles, in and out approach, lightning quick hands, aggressiveness, able to put away rounds early, come into play? Will the media and bloggers continue to bash both fighters records? Absolutely. Will the people continue to take sides? You can count on it. In my opinion, this fight should be based squarely of skills and not race. But you can rest assure, the color of these fighters skin will play a huge part. The race is on.
By Roberto Elmore: The stage is being set. The fans are lobbying which fighter is the best pound for pound fighter in the world. Journalist hands have been plenty busy for the past 4 months tracking every move made by Mayweather and Pacquiao. Bloggers have been calling Mayweather a coward and saying he’s using the drug test as a means to avoid the fight while Pacman has come under fire for fighting fighters who best suit his style and avoiding slick black fighters. Whatever the case may be, thanks to Benard Hopkins, a log called race has now been thrown on the fire. This is Holmes and Cooney all over again.
For those who don’t know in 1982, Cooney and Holmes squared off in an epic battle at Ceasers Palace for the WBC title. Holmes was three years into reign has heavyweight champion and was feeling neglected and not appreciated by the public. He was a blue collar worker with great fighting skills and had a mission to prove this to the whole world. Then you have this brash young fighter in Gerry Cooney who was working his way through the ranks and was determined to prove as well that his skill and not skin color, was the reason he got a shot at Holmes ( Reference used: Legendary Nights). But somewhere in the mist, the talk of the skill level of both fighters, went out the window and race came through the front door. The two camps played it for what it was worth.
Mike Jones and Dennis Rappaport, Gerry’s promoters, and Don King, Holmes promoter, exchanged barbs for days. It got so bad that threats were made to both fighters. And on fight night snipers were surrounded the pre-fabricated parking lot to ensure the safety of the two fighters. Even Jesse Jackson was brought in to calm things down. The media gave more attention to Gerry Cooney like never before and was being held up as the Great White Hope. To add more flames to the fire, on fight night Holmes was introduced first, even though he was champion. Cooney had never been in a long greuling fight. His longest fight before Holmes was against a guy named Eddie Lopez (Reference used: Google; Gerry Cooney’s boxrec). He admited when the fight got into the later rounds his mind went into shock because he had been used to putting fighters away early. As for Holmes, he was season, skilled determined, and nothing was going to stand in his way that night. The end result was a 13 round TKO thus silencing critics along the way.
Which brings me here. You have Manny Pacquiao from the Phillippines, who has suddenly taken the boxing world by storm and is racking his more noteriety along the way. He is a very humble man, newly elected Congressman, appearing on American T.V shows such as 60 minutes and Jimmy Kimmel; a very likeable type of guy; everything one could ask for in a fighter depending on the person. Manny’s break through came against Oscar De La Hoya after making the Golden Boy quit in their fight. That was followed up by wins over Clottey, Cotto, and Margarito winning the BWAA award 3 times, fighter of the year in 06, 08, and 09, and an eight time world champ. To some, a perfect gentlemen and role model.
Then you have Floyd Mayweather from Grand Rapids, Michigan; runs his mouth about his opponents, flashy with his money and very outspoken. To some, not a role model or gentlemen. He at one time was the pound for pound champ. He too has Oscar De la Hoya to thank for his breakthrough; that was followed up with victories over Hatton, Marquez, and Mosley, 5 time world champ,1998 and 2007 International Boxing Award (Muhammad Ali Boxing Award) Fighter of the Year, 2010 Forbes Magazine, Ranked “Number 2″ Richest and Powerful athlete in the world.
Which brings me here. How will the situation play out? Nobody has heard a peep from Mayweather concerning the fight while Top Rank says its their number one priority. Both fighters will make plethora of money and clean up on pay per view. Will Mayweather’s defensive skills, ability to make adjustments, counter punching ability, excellent use of his footwork come into play or will Manny’s ability to throw punches from odd angles, in and out approach, lightning quick hands, aggressiveness, able to put away rounds early, come into play? Will the media and bloggers continue to bash both fighters records? Absolutely. Will the people continue to take sides? You can count on it. In my opinion, this fight should be based squarely of skills and not race. But you can rest assure, the color of these fighters skin will play a huge part. The race is on.
Ronald “Winky” Wright says, he wants a shot at Sergio Martinez!
By Marquise Bullock: In a Williams-Martinez post fight interview by Round1 TV at Youtube.com, When 38 year old Ronald “Winky” Wright (51-5-1 25KO’s) was ask whom does he think Sergio Martinez (45-2-2 25KO’s) should fight next he replied: “Me, me, I think he should fight me. Hopefully we could do that in March or April. Paul Williams was a tall lanky dude, Martinez is more of my size, I think he’s a sharp skilled fighter, and I want to come back and prove I’m the best middleweight out there.” Wright also mentioned how he can’t make 154, and would want to fight at a full 160 pounds no catch-weight.
I think the veteran southpaw would give Martinez a decent fight. He [Wright] probably has one or two more fights in the tank, depending on how bad he wants his popularity and star power back. Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao frames are slightly to small to take on the bigger Martinez, but most people can’t get that through their heads. Wright still possesses a pretty good name in boxing and Martinez could probably make a good $2 million or $3 million fighting him, in maybe the Boardwalk hall, in Atlantic city NJ, or the Staples Center, in Los Angeles CA.
Other than that, I don’t see no fights out there for Martinez. Martinez was totally disrespected in The Williams-Martinez rematch. The fight was tailor-made for Paul “who got punished” Williams to win. He requested the catch-weight, judges, gloves, and he came into the ring last, also receiving a bigger piece of the pie earning $2 million dollars, while Martinez only received $1 Million (Which is still a hell of a lot of money). Is that how they treat our champions in America? Martinez had no choice but to take it out of the judges hands, or we would’ve most likely been seeing a repeat of their first fight, ending with a controversial decision.
But to sum this up, if Wright doesn’t get his shot, which I think he should, I honestly think Dmitry Pirog, or maybe James Kirkland and Felix Sturm should get a crack at Martinez. Sergio Martinez is a Hot fighter right now, let’s just see what the future holds for him and hopefully he gets a big payday, so he can retire happily.
By Marquise Bullock: In a Williams-Martinez post fight interview by Round1 TV at Youtube.com, When 38 year old Ronald “Winky” Wright (51-5-1 25KO’s) was ask whom does he think Sergio Martinez (45-2-2 25KO’s) should fight next he replied: “Me, me, I think he should fight me. Hopefully we could do that in March or April. Paul Williams was a tall lanky dude, Martinez is more of my size, I think he’s a sharp skilled fighter, and I want to come back and prove I’m the best middleweight out there.” Wright also mentioned how he can’t make 154, and would want to fight at a full 160 pounds no catch-weight.
I think the veteran southpaw would give Martinez a decent fight. He [Wright] probably has one or two more fights in the tank, depending on how bad he wants his popularity and star power back. Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao frames are slightly to small to take on the bigger Martinez, but most people can’t get that through their heads. Wright still possesses a pretty good name in boxing and Martinez could probably make a good $2 million or $3 million fighting him, in maybe the Boardwalk hall, in Atlantic city NJ, or the Staples Center, in Los Angeles CA.
Other than that, I don’t see no fights out there for Martinez. Martinez was totally disrespected in The Williams-Martinez rematch. The fight was tailor-made for Paul “who got punished” Williams to win. He requested the catch-weight, judges, gloves, and he came into the ring last, also receiving a bigger piece of the pie earning $2 million dollars, while Martinez only received $1 Million (Which is still a hell of a lot of money). Is that how they treat our champions in America? Martinez had no choice but to take it out of the judges hands, or we would’ve most likely been seeing a repeat of their first fight, ending with a controversial decision.
But to sum this up, if Wright doesn’t get his shot, which I think he should, I honestly think Dmitry Pirog, or maybe James Kirkland and Felix Sturm should get a crack at Martinez. Sergio Martinez is a Hot fighter right now, let’s just see what the future holds for him and hopefully he gets a big payday, so he can retire happily.
I liked the Lyle Fitzsimmons interview. He bashes Pacquiao for not fighting Bradley, Alexander, Khan, Williams, or Martinez.
LOL
Has Floyd? They are his size, in his division (for the most part)...right?
Khan has been calling him out. Floyd would beat him, but he made a big showing about Marquez, saying he fought him because he was calling him out.
Maybe Floyd is afraid of those fighters, too.
Maybe everyone is afraid of everyone. Maybe boxing is dead.
Make the fucking fight already.
LOL
Has Floyd? They are his size, in his division (for the most part)...right?
Khan has been calling him out. Floyd would beat him, but he made a big showing about Marquez, saying he fought him because he was calling him out.
Maybe Floyd is afraid of those fighters, too.
Maybe everyone is afraid of everyone. Maybe boxing is dead.
Make the fucking fight already.
Freddie Roach Responds To Hopkins' Black Fighter Claims
By Lem Satterfield
Freddie Roach, trainer for Manny Pacquiao, has responded to the recent claims that were made by Bernard Hopkins. According to Hopkins, Pacquiao has been kept away from top African American boxers who fight with a slick style. Hopkins believes the slick style of a top African American boxer, like Floyd Mayweather Jr., would easily beat Pacquiao. However, the list of possible candidates for Pacquiao's next fight is mostly comprised of top African American boxers.
"We've fought everyone out there. We've ducked nobody. Shane Mosley [who is African American] is another guy out there right now. I know that he hasn't looked that good in his last couple of fights, but he's still a very good fighter. He's a very good possibility to be Manny's next opponent," Roach said.
"I don't think that Bernard Hopkins has beaten any Canadians lately [reference to Hopkins' upcoming bout with WBC light heavyweight (175 pounds) champ Jean Pascal on Dec. 18.] And Bernard's never beaten an English guy [lost to Joe Calzaghe] because he's only fought one."
Roach considers Hopkins a friend, but doesn't understand the former champion's reasons for making the statements that he did about Pacquiao. Promoter Bob Arum of Top Rank, Pacquiao's business manager Michael Koncz, and Roach, are in full agreement that Pacquiao's fights are determined by economics and not skin color.
"Bernard, you know, he's my friend, and so forth, because I've worked with him in the past. But I don't know why people make racist statements like that. We don't need that stuff in the world of boxing. I think Bernard knows that it's all about business and that it has nothing to do with color," Roach said.
"It's all about the best deals, the best fight that makes the most economic sense. It has nothing to do with [skin] color. We won the title from [Lehlohonolo] Ledwaba, a South African, and we beat Joshua Clottey, who, I'm not sure what Clottey is. He came from England by way of Ghana, I think. So, with those two, we've beaten two black guys. But this is a sport, so lets get on with the sport."
By Lem Satterfield
Freddie Roach, trainer for Manny Pacquiao, has responded to the recent claims that were made by Bernard Hopkins. According to Hopkins, Pacquiao has been kept away from top African American boxers who fight with a slick style. Hopkins believes the slick style of a top African American boxer, like Floyd Mayweather Jr., would easily beat Pacquiao. However, the list of possible candidates for Pacquiao's next fight is mostly comprised of top African American boxers.
"We've fought everyone out there. We've ducked nobody. Shane Mosley [who is African American] is another guy out there right now. I know that he hasn't looked that good in his last couple of fights, but he's still a very good fighter. He's a very good possibility to be Manny's next opponent," Roach said.
"I don't think that Bernard Hopkins has beaten any Canadians lately [reference to Hopkins' upcoming bout with WBC light heavyweight (175 pounds) champ Jean Pascal on Dec. 18.] And Bernard's never beaten an English guy [lost to Joe Calzaghe] because he's only fought one."
Roach considers Hopkins a friend, but doesn't understand the former champion's reasons for making the statements that he did about Pacquiao. Promoter Bob Arum of Top Rank, Pacquiao's business manager Michael Koncz, and Roach, are in full agreement that Pacquiao's fights are determined by economics and not skin color.
"Bernard, you know, he's my friend, and so forth, because I've worked with him in the past. But I don't know why people make racist statements like that. We don't need that stuff in the world of boxing. I think Bernard knows that it's all about business and that it has nothing to do with color," Roach said.
"It's all about the best deals, the best fight that makes the most economic sense. It has nothing to do with [skin] color. We won the title from [Lehlohonolo] Ledwaba, a South African, and we beat Joshua Clottey, who, I'm not sure what Clottey is. He came from England by way of Ghana, I think. So, with those two, we've beaten two black guys. But this is a sport, so lets get on with the sport."
World Series of Boxing: Team Lists For Week 2 Action
Lausanne, Switzerland – Such is the calibre of the athletes competing in the World Series of Boxing that eleven Olympians will be in action across three different continents this weekend as the tournament enters the second leg of the regular season.
The teams in the European conference will once again be the first to take to the ring this weekend as the Istanbulls welcome Milano Thunder and Moscow's Kremlin Bears travel to Paris on Friday. After the success of the Italian boxers in the home ring last week, Milano Thunder have dispatched a contingent of East European talent together with national middleweight Luca Podda to Turkey. The Istanbulls have selected four of the boxers who competed at last month's pre-season exhibition match against the Astana Arlans, including team captain Onur Sipal and 2008 Olympian Mohammed Arjaoui from Algeria. Mehmet Topcakan, who competed at lightweight for the exhibition match, has moved back down to his usual bantamweight, with rising star Shafiq Chitou filling the lightweight slot. The 24-year-old from Benin had arrived at the training camp for last year's world championships with little more than his gumshield, but impressed the WSB evaluators when he qualified for the final 16 on his international debut.
Paris United have chosen two Olympians from their national boxers, Nordine Oubaali at bantamweight and Alexis Vastine at middleweight, to delight the home crowd at the Halle Georges Carpentier tomorrow evening. The squad travelling from Moscow, consisting of three Russians and two Uzbeks, is young, with the oldest member only 23 years old. But it is Paris United who ultimately have youth on their side in the form of Youth Olympic Games gold medalist Tony Yoka, who is set to make his debut in the WSB at only 18 years old.
Memphis Force have chosen a strong side that includes world champion Detelin Dalakliev and Olympian Imre Szello for their home encounter against the Miami Gallos. Dalakliev will face Luis Miguel Diaz, who has moved up from light flyweight to compete in the WSB. Diaz' team-mate from the Dominican Republic, 2008 Olympian Roberto Navarro Gonzalez, will take to the ring in the lightweight contest against Raynell Williams.
In the provisional line-up for the Los Angeles Matadors v Mexico City Guerreros encounter on Sunday evening (final team deadline is 7.30pm tonight Pacific Time), Lamar Fenner will be the only international boxer representing the Guerreros as they travel to Los Angeles to face the Matadors. The Chicagoan will line up against the Ukraine's Vyacheslav Shabranskyy in the light heavyweight contest. Shabranskyy is one of two international boxers (the other being Everton Lopes from Brazil at lightweight) in action for the Matadors this weekend. Without their high-altitude home advantage, the Guerreros may experience a different kind of match, especially with double Olympian Rau'Shee Warren on the roster at bantamweight for the home side.
The middleweight contest at the Astana Arlans home match against Baku Fires has the makings of the bout of the week, since Kazakhstan's Olympic gold medalist Bakhyt Sarsekbayev will meet Mahamed Nurduzinau, the Belarussian who competed in the same weight category at the Beijing Olympics. Baku Fires' Deny Poyatsyka (light heavyweight) and Magomedrasul Medzhidov (heavyweight) will be looking for their first competitive action on Saturday after winning by walkover against the Beijing Dragons last weekend.
For their first away match, the Incheon Red Wings have chosen a strong side to face the Beijing Dragons at the Venetian Macao Resort on Saturday evening. 2008 Olympian Abdelhafid Benchabla will be one of two Algerian boxers competing in the top weight categories. Another Olympian, Andranik Hakobyan from Armenia, will be facing the Dragons' only international boxer in action this weekend, Brazil's Pedro Lima, in the middleweight contest.
#ENDS#
Team lists for week 2 of the 2010-2011 regular season
EUROPE
Istanbulls
Milano Thunder
54kg
Mehmet TOPCAKAN (TUR)
Vitaliy VOLKOV (UKR)
61kg
Shafiq CHITOU (BEN)
Vazgen SAFARYANTS (BLR)
73kg
Onur SIPAL (TUR)
Luca PODDA (ITA)
85kg
Onder OZGUL (TUR)
Bosko DRASKOVIC (MNE)
91+kg
Mohammed ARJAOUI (MAR)
Damir BELJO (BIH)
Paris United
Moscow Kremlin Bears
54kg
Nordine OUBAALI (FRA)
Alisher MAHMUDOV (UZB)
61kg
Rachid AZZEDINE (FRA)
Ilyas GUDOBERDOV (RUS)
73kg
Alexis VASTINE (FRA)
Movsur YUSUPOV (RUS)
85kg
Hrvoje SEP (CRO)
Mansur ELSAEV (RUS)
91+kg
Tony YOKA (FRA)
Umidbek SALAEV (UZB)
AMERICAS
Memphis Force
Miami Gallos
54kg
Detelin DALAKLIEV (BUL)
Luis Miguel DIAZ (DOM)
61kg
Raynell WILLIAMS (USA)
Roberto NAVARRO GONZALEZ (DOM)
73kg
Terrell GAUSHA (USA)
Anthony CAMPBELL (USA)
85kg
Imre SZELLO (HUN)
Sijuola SHABAZZ (USA)
91+kg
Angelo BUCHANAN (USA)
Donovan DENNIS (USA)
Provisional (team submission deadline is 7.30pm Pacific Time on Novemebr 25th)
LA Matadors
Mexico Guerreros
54kg
Raushee WARREN (USA)
Elias EMIGDIO ABARCA (MEX)
61kg
Everton DOS SANTOS LOPES (BRA)
Angel GUTIERREZ AMEZCUA (MEX)
73kg
Russell LAMOUR (USA)
Roberto ESPINOSA (MEX)
85kg
Vyacheslav SHABRANSKYY (UKR)
Lamar FENNER (USA)
91+kg
Javier Jose TORRES (USA)
Alex RIVERA (MEX)
ASIA
Astana Arlans
Baku Fires
54kg
Nurlan SEITIMBETOV (KAZ)
Rahim NAJAFOV (AZE)
61kg
Yerzhan MUSSAFIROV (KAZ)
Koba PKHAKADZE (GEO)
73kg
Bakhyt SARSEKBAYEV (KAZ)
Mahamed NURUDZINAU (BLR)
85kg
Marat MOLDAGEREEV (KAZ)
Denys POYATSYKA (UKR)
91+kg
Milutin STANKOVIC (SRB)
Magomedrasul MEDZHIDOV (AZE)
Beijing Dragons
Incheon Red Wings
54kg
Zhiwei HE (CHN)
Lukasz MASZCZYK (POL)
61kg
Zhimin WANG (CHN)
Do Jae LEE (KOR)
73kg
Pedro LIMA (BRA)
Andranik HAKOBYAN (ARM)
85kg
Wei ZHANG (CHN)
Abdelhafid BENCHABLA (ALG)
91+kg
Xiangyang CHENG (CHN)
Chouaib BOULOUDINATS (ALG)
Lausanne, Switzerland – Such is the calibre of the athletes competing in the World Series of Boxing that eleven Olympians will be in action across three different continents this weekend as the tournament enters the second leg of the regular season.
The teams in the European conference will once again be the first to take to the ring this weekend as the Istanbulls welcome Milano Thunder and Moscow's Kremlin Bears travel to Paris on Friday. After the success of the Italian boxers in the home ring last week, Milano Thunder have dispatched a contingent of East European talent together with national middleweight Luca Podda to Turkey. The Istanbulls have selected four of the boxers who competed at last month's pre-season exhibition match against the Astana Arlans, including team captain Onur Sipal and 2008 Olympian Mohammed Arjaoui from Algeria. Mehmet Topcakan, who competed at lightweight for the exhibition match, has moved back down to his usual bantamweight, with rising star Shafiq Chitou filling the lightweight slot. The 24-year-old from Benin had arrived at the training camp for last year's world championships with little more than his gumshield, but impressed the WSB evaluators when he qualified for the final 16 on his international debut.
Paris United have chosen two Olympians from their national boxers, Nordine Oubaali at bantamweight and Alexis Vastine at middleweight, to delight the home crowd at the Halle Georges Carpentier tomorrow evening. The squad travelling from Moscow, consisting of three Russians and two Uzbeks, is young, with the oldest member only 23 years old. But it is Paris United who ultimately have youth on their side in the form of Youth Olympic Games gold medalist Tony Yoka, who is set to make his debut in the WSB at only 18 years old.
Memphis Force have chosen a strong side that includes world champion Detelin Dalakliev and Olympian Imre Szello for their home encounter against the Miami Gallos. Dalakliev will face Luis Miguel Diaz, who has moved up from light flyweight to compete in the WSB. Diaz' team-mate from the Dominican Republic, 2008 Olympian Roberto Navarro Gonzalez, will take to the ring in the lightweight contest against Raynell Williams.
In the provisional line-up for the Los Angeles Matadors v Mexico City Guerreros encounter on Sunday evening (final team deadline is 7.30pm tonight Pacific Time), Lamar Fenner will be the only international boxer representing the Guerreros as they travel to Los Angeles to face the Matadors. The Chicagoan will line up against the Ukraine's Vyacheslav Shabranskyy in the light heavyweight contest. Shabranskyy is one of two international boxers (the other being Everton Lopes from Brazil at lightweight) in action for the Matadors this weekend. Without their high-altitude home advantage, the Guerreros may experience a different kind of match, especially with double Olympian Rau'Shee Warren on the roster at bantamweight for the home side.
The middleweight contest at the Astana Arlans home match against Baku Fires has the makings of the bout of the week, since Kazakhstan's Olympic gold medalist Bakhyt Sarsekbayev will meet Mahamed Nurduzinau, the Belarussian who competed in the same weight category at the Beijing Olympics. Baku Fires' Deny Poyatsyka (light heavyweight) and Magomedrasul Medzhidov (heavyweight) will be looking for their first competitive action on Saturday after winning by walkover against the Beijing Dragons last weekend.
For their first away match, the Incheon Red Wings have chosen a strong side to face the Beijing Dragons at the Venetian Macao Resort on Saturday evening. 2008 Olympian Abdelhafid Benchabla will be one of two Algerian boxers competing in the top weight categories. Another Olympian, Andranik Hakobyan from Armenia, will be facing the Dragons' only international boxer in action this weekend, Brazil's Pedro Lima, in the middleweight contest.
#ENDS#
Team lists for week 2 of the 2010-2011 regular season
EUROPE
Istanbulls
Milano Thunder
54kg
Mehmet TOPCAKAN (TUR)
Vitaliy VOLKOV (UKR)
61kg
Shafiq CHITOU (BEN)
Vazgen SAFARYANTS (BLR)
73kg
Onur SIPAL (TUR)
Luca PODDA (ITA)
85kg
Onder OZGUL (TUR)
Bosko DRASKOVIC (MNE)
91+kg
Mohammed ARJAOUI (MAR)
Damir BELJO (BIH)
Paris United
Moscow Kremlin Bears
54kg
Nordine OUBAALI (FRA)
Alisher MAHMUDOV (UZB)
61kg
Rachid AZZEDINE (FRA)
Ilyas GUDOBERDOV (RUS)
73kg
Alexis VASTINE (FRA)
Movsur YUSUPOV (RUS)
85kg
Hrvoje SEP (CRO)
Mansur ELSAEV (RUS)
91+kg
Tony YOKA (FRA)
Umidbek SALAEV (UZB)
AMERICAS
Memphis Force
Miami Gallos
54kg
Detelin DALAKLIEV (BUL)
Luis Miguel DIAZ (DOM)
61kg
Raynell WILLIAMS (USA)
Roberto NAVARRO GONZALEZ (DOM)
73kg
Terrell GAUSHA (USA)
Anthony CAMPBELL (USA)
85kg
Imre SZELLO (HUN)
Sijuola SHABAZZ (USA)
91+kg
Angelo BUCHANAN (USA)
Donovan DENNIS (USA)
Provisional (team submission deadline is 7.30pm Pacific Time on Novemebr 25th)
LA Matadors
Mexico Guerreros
54kg
Raushee WARREN (USA)
Elias EMIGDIO ABARCA (MEX)
61kg
Everton DOS SANTOS LOPES (BRA)
Angel GUTIERREZ AMEZCUA (MEX)
73kg
Russell LAMOUR (USA)
Roberto ESPINOSA (MEX)
85kg
Vyacheslav SHABRANSKYY (UKR)
Lamar FENNER (USA)
91+kg
Javier Jose TORRES (USA)
Alex RIVERA (MEX)
ASIA
Astana Arlans
Baku Fires
54kg
Nurlan SEITIMBETOV (KAZ)
Rahim NAJAFOV (AZE)
61kg
Yerzhan MUSSAFIROV (KAZ)
Koba PKHAKADZE (GEO)
73kg
Bakhyt SARSEKBAYEV (KAZ)
Mahamed NURUDZINAU (BLR)
85kg
Marat MOLDAGEREEV (KAZ)
Denys POYATSYKA (UKR)
91+kg
Milutin STANKOVIC (SRB)
Magomedrasul MEDZHIDOV (AZE)
Beijing Dragons
Incheon Red Wings
54kg
Zhiwei HE (CHN)
Lukasz MASZCZYK (POL)
61kg
Zhimin WANG (CHN)
Do Jae LEE (KOR)
73kg
Pedro LIMA (BRA)
Andranik HAKOBYAN (ARM)
85kg
Wei ZHANG (CHN)
Abdelhafid BENCHABLA (ALG)
91+kg
Xiangyang CHENG (CHN)
Chouaib BOULOUDINATS (ALG)