Boxing News Thread
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@HERESY
, still think Adonis wants to fight Kovalev? Stevenson vs Kovalev in jeopardy as Stevenson on verge of leaving to Showtime with advisor Al Haymon
Dan Rafael D @danr afaelespn 2h
Very good chance (and I think likely) Stevenson-Fonfara winds up on @SHOsports, which offered more than @HBOboxing. HBO has a matching right
Props:
CZAR and CZAR
Well u dont have to imagine because it just became real. Got Em!!
Props:
Coach E. No and Coach E. No
HBO can afford Stevenson vs Kovalev. The problem here is Haymon is twisting their arm to pay big money for Stevenson vs the polish kid out of Chicago coming up.
I'm a Bhop fan obviously so a Bhop vs Stevenson is a dope fight but Kovalev vs Stevenson is what the fans want, at least first. I mean it was set up so perfectly - Hopkins vs Shumonev are fighting to unify two belts, and Kovalev vs Stevenson could have fought to unify their two belts, winners fight to unify all four titles. It was like a four man tournament between the four belt holders. Absolutely perfect. Now it looks like Kovalev will be left out which is a damn shame.
I'm a Bhop fan obviously so a Bhop vs Stevenson is a dope fight but Kovalev vs Stevenson is what the fans want, at least first. I mean it was set up so perfectly - Hopkins vs Shumonev are fighting to unify two belts, and Kovalev vs Stevenson could have fought to unify their two belts, winners fight to unify all four titles. It was like a four man tournament between the four belt holders. Absolutely perfect. Now it looks like Kovalev will be left out which is a damn shame.
Keith Thurman, Lucas Matthysse, Omar Figueroa on April 26 tripleheader
March 25, 2014
Welterweight boxer-puncher Keith "One Time" Thurman will fight two-time lightweight titlewinner Julio Diaz in the main event of a Showtime-televised tripleheader on April 26 at the StubHub Center in Carson, Calif. THE RING's No. 1-rated junior welterweight Lucas Matthysse faces rugged lightweight puncher John Molina, and WBC lightweight titleholder Omar Figueroa Jr. will face spolier Jerry Belmontes, Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer informed RingTV.com on Tuesday.
Thurman (22-0, 20 knockouts), a 25-year-old from Clearwater, Fla., scored a ninth-round technical knockout over veteran gatekeeper Jesus Soto Karass, who was floored once each in the fifth and final rounds of their bout in December. In his previous bout, last July, Thurman scored a 10th-round knockout of previously unbeaten Argentine Diego Chaves, whom he dropped once each in the ninth and final rounds.
Although the 34-year-old Diaz (40-9-1, 29 KOs) is 0-2-1 in his past three fights, those bouts were a draw and a unanimous decision loss against unbeaten current IBF beltholder Shawn Porter and a close decision setback to former titleholder Amir Khan.
In succession, Diaz drew with Porter in December 2012, floored Khan in the fourth round in April of last year, and was outpointed in December by Porter, whose next bout was a unanimous decision that dethroned Devon Alexander in December.
"I think that Keith Thurman against Julio Diaz is one of those fights where, obviously, Keith is the favorite, but Julio Diaz is a fighter who always comes to fight. It seems like those fighters from the Coachella Valley and from Riverside, like Josesito Lopez and Mauricio Herera and Julio Diaz, they love to be spoilers," said Schaefer, referring to Lopez's knockout of Victor Ortiz, and Herrera's majority decision loss to RING 140-pound champion Danny Garcia.
"Just when Julio Diaz went over to England and fought Amir Khan, he realizes that this is a tremendous opportunity for him. He always comes to fight, and Keith Thurman is obviously considered to be one of the big names and one of the fast emerging stars at 147. Plus, Keith has a big target on his back, just like Danny Garcia did a few weeks ago in Puerto Rico. These guys who are considered to be opponents are suddenly are not just opponents, but guys who want to capture the opportunity. I know that Julio Diaz is exactly like that."
Thurman-Diaz will happen after an April 19 defense by Porter against two-time titleholder Paulie Malignaggi. In addition, on May 3, RING 147-pound champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. defends against WBA counterpart Marcos Maidana, Khan will fight ex-welterweight titleholder Luis Collazo, and former beltholder Adrian Broner meets Carlos Molina.
"I know that Thurman is happy to be in the mix around the time frame that Porter and Malignaggi are fighting," said Schaefer. "Then, on May 3, many of the other welterweights will be in action. So I think that it's important for Keith Thurman to be in that group, and he's happy to be back in the ring."
A 31-year-old Argentine, Matthysse (34-2, 32 KOs) was last in the ring in September when he was dropped in the 11th round of a unanimous decision loss to unbeaten Garcia, the RING, WBA and WBC junior welterweight champion.
Before falling to Garcia, Matthysse had built a 4-2 record (with four knockouts) against six current or former titleholders, having floored all of them.
Last May, Matthysse registered three knockdowns during a third round stoppage of IBF 140-pound beltholder Lamont Peterson in a non-title bout for his sixth straight knockout win.
Molina (27-3, 22 KOs), meanwhile, is 3-2 with three knockouts in his past five bouts, the first of which was a first-round stoppage loss to former titleholder Antonio DeMarco in September 2012.
Molina split his next two bouts, stopping Dannie Williams in the first round last January before falling by majority decision to Andrey Klimov in June.
But the 31-year-old Southern Californian has knocked out his past two opponents, coming from behind to stop previously unbeaten Mickey Bey in the 10th round last July, and knocking out Jorge Pimentel in the second round in November.
"Matthysse against John Molina is going to be exciting toe-to-toe action, because John Molina always comes to fight," said Schaefer. "With Matthysse, you never have a boring fight. After this fight, Matthysse is going to be weighing his options concerning whether he's going to remain at 140 or whether he's going to want to move up to 147."
The 24-year-old Figuroa (22-0-1, 17 KOs) had to pull out of a scheduled March 8 defense of his WBC 135-pound defense against Ricardo Alvarez due to a hand injury, but said that his hand is recovering.
An all-action, fan-friendly fighter, Figueroa won his belt against Nihito Arakawa, flooring the Japanese veteran twice during a unanimous decision in August.
March 8 was a banner night for the 25-year-old Belmontes (19-3, 5 KOs), who spoiled the U.S. debut of previously unbeaten Will Tomlinson of Australia. Figuroa of Weslaco, Texas, never has beaten amateur nemesis Belmontes, of Corpus Christi, Texas.
"We have the opening bout with Omar Figueroa, who is one of the most exciting fighters in the sport, against Jerry Belmontes, who had a big win against Tomlinson," said Schaefer.
"So that's going to be a very entertaining and exciting fight. To have Omar Figueroa, followed by Lucas Matthysse, and then, Keith Thurman, all in one night, I can tell you that this is going to be, top-to-bottom, one of the most exciting cards we have done in a while."
March 25, 2014
Welterweight boxer-puncher Keith "One Time" Thurman will fight two-time lightweight titlewinner Julio Diaz in the main event of a Showtime-televised tripleheader on April 26 at the StubHub Center in Carson, Calif. THE RING's No. 1-rated junior welterweight Lucas Matthysse faces rugged lightweight puncher John Molina, and WBC lightweight titleholder Omar Figueroa Jr. will face spolier Jerry Belmontes, Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer informed RingTV.com on Tuesday.
Thurman (22-0, 20 knockouts), a 25-year-old from Clearwater, Fla., scored a ninth-round technical knockout over veteran gatekeeper Jesus Soto Karass, who was floored once each in the fifth and final rounds of their bout in December. In his previous bout, last July, Thurman scored a 10th-round knockout of previously unbeaten Argentine Diego Chaves, whom he dropped once each in the ninth and final rounds.
Although the 34-year-old Diaz (40-9-1, 29 KOs) is 0-2-1 in his past three fights, those bouts were a draw and a unanimous decision loss against unbeaten current IBF beltholder Shawn Porter and a close decision setback to former titleholder Amir Khan.
In succession, Diaz drew with Porter in December 2012, floored Khan in the fourth round in April of last year, and was outpointed in December by Porter, whose next bout was a unanimous decision that dethroned Devon Alexander in December.
"I think that Keith Thurman against Julio Diaz is one of those fights where, obviously, Keith is the favorite, but Julio Diaz is a fighter who always comes to fight. It seems like those fighters from the Coachella Valley and from Riverside, like Josesito Lopez and Mauricio Herera and Julio Diaz, they love to be spoilers," said Schaefer, referring to Lopez's knockout of Victor Ortiz, and Herrera's majority decision loss to RING 140-pound champion Danny Garcia.
"Just when Julio Diaz went over to England and fought Amir Khan, he realizes that this is a tremendous opportunity for him. He always comes to fight, and Keith Thurman is obviously considered to be one of the big names and one of the fast emerging stars at 147. Plus, Keith has a big target on his back, just like Danny Garcia did a few weeks ago in Puerto Rico. These guys who are considered to be opponents are suddenly are not just opponents, but guys who want to capture the opportunity. I know that Julio Diaz is exactly like that."
Thurman-Diaz will happen after an April 19 defense by Porter against two-time titleholder Paulie Malignaggi. In addition, on May 3, RING 147-pound champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. defends against WBA counterpart Marcos Maidana, Khan will fight ex-welterweight titleholder Luis Collazo, and former beltholder Adrian Broner meets Carlos Molina.
"I know that Thurman is happy to be in the mix around the time frame that Porter and Malignaggi are fighting," said Schaefer. "Then, on May 3, many of the other welterweights will be in action. So I think that it's important for Keith Thurman to be in that group, and he's happy to be back in the ring."
A 31-year-old Argentine, Matthysse (34-2, 32 KOs) was last in the ring in September when he was dropped in the 11th round of a unanimous decision loss to unbeaten Garcia, the RING, WBA and WBC junior welterweight champion.
Before falling to Garcia, Matthysse had built a 4-2 record (with four knockouts) against six current or former titleholders, having floored all of them.
Last May, Matthysse registered three knockdowns during a third round stoppage of IBF 140-pound beltholder Lamont Peterson in a non-title bout for his sixth straight knockout win.
Molina (27-3, 22 KOs), meanwhile, is 3-2 with three knockouts in his past five bouts, the first of which was a first-round stoppage loss to former titleholder Antonio DeMarco in September 2012.
Molina split his next two bouts, stopping Dannie Williams in the first round last January before falling by majority decision to Andrey Klimov in June.
But the 31-year-old Southern Californian has knocked out his past two opponents, coming from behind to stop previously unbeaten Mickey Bey in the 10th round last July, and knocking out Jorge Pimentel in the second round in November.
"Matthysse against John Molina is going to be exciting toe-to-toe action, because John Molina always comes to fight," said Schaefer. "With Matthysse, you never have a boring fight. After this fight, Matthysse is going to be weighing his options concerning whether he's going to remain at 140 or whether he's going to want to move up to 147."
The 24-year-old Figuroa (22-0-1, 17 KOs) had to pull out of a scheduled March 8 defense of his WBC 135-pound defense against Ricardo Alvarez due to a hand injury, but said that his hand is recovering.
An all-action, fan-friendly fighter, Figueroa won his belt against Nihito Arakawa, flooring the Japanese veteran twice during a unanimous decision in August.
March 8 was a banner night for the 25-year-old Belmontes (19-3, 5 KOs), who spoiled the U.S. debut of previously unbeaten Will Tomlinson of Australia. Figuroa of Weslaco, Texas, never has beaten amateur nemesis Belmontes, of Corpus Christi, Texas.
"We have the opening bout with Omar Figueroa, who is one of the most exciting fighters in the sport, against Jerry Belmontes, who had a big win against Tomlinson," said Schaefer.
"So that's going to be a very entertaining and exciting fight. To have Omar Figueroa, followed by Lucas Matthysse, and then, Keith Thurman, all in one night, I can tell you that this is going to be, top-to-bottom, one of the most exciting cards we have done in a while."
Lem’s latest: Erislandy Lara to fight Ishe Smith on May 2
March 25, 2014
alt
Once-beaten southpaw Erislandy Lara will fight ex-beltholder Ishe Smith in a junior middleweight bout on May 2 on Fox Sports 1 at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, according to Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer.
Lara (19-1-2, 12 knockdowns), who turns 31 next month, will face the 35-year-old Smith (25-6, 11 KOs) the night before Floyd Mayweather Jr. defends his RING, WBC and WBA (the latter of which is deemed the "super" variety) welterweight championships against WBA counterpart Marcos Maidana at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on Showtime Pay Per View.
In his last fight in December, Lara scored an 11th-round knockdown during a one-sided unanimous decision win over fellow leftie Austin Trout. Before defeating Trout, Lara rose from knockdowns in the fourth and ninth rounds of a 10th-round stoppage of Alfredo Angulo last June.
Lara is attempting to set up a showdown with former RING 154-pound champion Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, who rebounded from last September's majority decision loss to Mayweather with a 10th-round knockout of Angulo on March 8. Alvarez also dropped Trout in the seventh round of a unanimous decision victory last April.
Smith was last in the ring for September's split decision loss to Carlos Molina, who earned the IBF belt Smith had won from Cornelius Bundrage by majority decision in February 2013.
SCHAEFER CONFIRMS: ADRIEN BRONER-CARLOS MOLINA, J'LEON LOVE-MARCO ANTONIO PERIBAN ARE 'ALL DONE'
Schaefer confirmed an earlier report by RingTV.com that three-division titlewinner Adrien Broner will face Carlos Molina (not the IBF's aforementioned 154-pound titleholder) in a 140-pound bout and unbeaten middleweight J'Leon Love will fight Marco Antonio Periban on the Mayweather-Maidana card.
The fights are "all done," Schaefer wrote in an email to RingTV.com.
Schaefer had announced earlier on Monday that a deal had been completed for Amir Khan to face bellow former beltholder Luis Collazo in a welterweight bout in support of Mayweather-Maidana.
SCHAEFER CONFIRMS OPPONENTS FOR LUCAS MATTHYSSE, KEITH THURMAN, OMAR FIGUEROA ON APRIL 26
Unbeaten welterweight boxer-puncher Keith "One Time" Thurman will fight two-time titlewinner Julio Diaz in the main event, RING number one-rated 140-pounder Lucas Matthysse will face John Molina, and WBC lightweight titleholder Omar Figueroa will face Jerry Belmontes on Showtime on April 26 at the StubHub Center in Carson, California, Schaefer said.
ALSO ON THE MAYWEATHER-MAIDANA CARD
Middleweight Chris Pearson, super middleweight Ronald Gavril and cruiserweight Andrew Tabiti, each of whom are undefeated, as well as once-beaten super middleweight Lanell Bellows and veteran welterweight Ashley Theophane will appear on the May 3 undercard of Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s defense of his RING, WBC and WBA 147-pound championships against WBA "regular" counterpart Marcos Maidana, Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe confirmed to RingTV.com on Tuesday.
CORNELIUS BUNDRAGE POISED FOR TITLE SHOT?
Cornelius Bundrage (33-5, 19 KOs) appears to be in line to regain his IBF belt, according to IBF Championships Chairman Lindsey Tucker. The jailed Molina has until June to make the mandatory defense of his belt or risk being stripped.
Molina was arrested earlier this month and remains in a federal immigration holding cell at the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas. His detainment forced the cancelation of his scheduled March 8 defense, which was optional, against Jermall Charlo.
"This was an optional defense. When it comes time to do the mandatory, if he is still unavailable, then it becomes a problem," said Tucker during a March 7 interview with RingTV.com. "He beat Ishe Smith on September 14 and we will notify him on April 14 and then his mandatory is due on June 14."
A Mexican-born fighter who lives in Chicago, Molina is wanted in Wisconsin for obstruction and failing to register as a sex offender, according to a Clark County Detention Center spokesperson.
U.S. immigration officials told The Associated Press Molina was deported in 2006 and could be removed once again in the wake of his arrest. Molina has nine months from September, when he dethroned Ishe Smith, to defend his title, according to Tucker.
"If for some reason Molina is unavailable, then Cornelius Bundrage, as the mandatory, would fight whoever the next leading available contender is. Right now, Bundrage is the mandatory. We're just waiting for April 14 to come around to send a letter to Molina to let him know that he has to start negotiations with Bundrage. Now, the champion always has two options and I don't know if either one of these is going to happen," said Tucker.
"But Molina could always come back and say, 'We want to fight the WBA or the WBC or the WBO junior middleweight champion in a unification fight. That would have to be approved but if it is, that would take priority over the mandatory. The other thing is that Molina could come to the board and ask for an exception and if the board granted the exception, then he could fight somebody other than Bundrage but then again, with the condition that the winner would next face Bundrage."
Bundrage entered the bout against Smith after having scored a seventh-round stoppage of Cory Spinks in June 2012. The bout with Spinks was a rematch for Bundrage, who originally dethroned Spinks by fifth-round stoppage in August of 2010.
JOSHUA CLOTTEY-ANTHONY MUNDINE BOUT DELAYED A WEEK
The Joshua Clottey-Anthony Mundine junior middleweight bout has been delayed from its original date of April 2 to April 9 to allow Clottey to secure a visa, Clottey's promoter, Joe DeGuardia, of Star Boxing, informed ESPN.com on Monday.
Slated to face Mundine (46-5, 27 KOs) at the Entertainment Centre in New South Wales, Australia, Clottey (37-4, 22 KOs), of Bronx, N.Y., has fought just twice since losing to Manny Pacquiao in March 2010. The 36-year-old has blamed promoter and managerial issues on his lack of activity.
Mundine is coming off a stoppage victory over "Sugar" Shane Mosley and will enjoy home-field advantage against Clottey.
UNBEATEN ENRICO KOELLING ON JUERGEN BRAEHMER-ENZO MACCARINELLI CARD
Light heavyweight Enrico Koelling (12-0, 4 KOs), 24, will face 33-year-old Mirzet Bajrektarevic (8-1, 4 KOs) on the undercard of the April 5 bout between WBA 175-pound titleholder Juergen Braehmer and Enzo Maccarinelli in Rostock, Germany, Sauerland Events announced on Tuesday.
March 25, 2014
alt
Once-beaten southpaw Erislandy Lara will fight ex-beltholder Ishe Smith in a junior middleweight bout on May 2 on Fox Sports 1 at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, according to Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer.
Lara (19-1-2, 12 knockdowns), who turns 31 next month, will face the 35-year-old Smith (25-6, 11 KOs) the night before Floyd Mayweather Jr. defends his RING, WBC and WBA (the latter of which is deemed the "super" variety) welterweight championships against WBA counterpart Marcos Maidana at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on Showtime Pay Per View.
In his last fight in December, Lara scored an 11th-round knockdown during a one-sided unanimous decision win over fellow leftie Austin Trout. Before defeating Trout, Lara rose from knockdowns in the fourth and ninth rounds of a 10th-round stoppage of Alfredo Angulo last June.
Lara is attempting to set up a showdown with former RING 154-pound champion Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, who rebounded from last September's majority decision loss to Mayweather with a 10th-round knockout of Angulo on March 8. Alvarez also dropped Trout in the seventh round of a unanimous decision victory last April.
Smith was last in the ring for September's split decision loss to Carlos Molina, who earned the IBF belt Smith had won from Cornelius Bundrage by majority decision in February 2013.
SCHAEFER CONFIRMS: ADRIEN BRONER-CARLOS MOLINA, J'LEON LOVE-MARCO ANTONIO PERIBAN ARE 'ALL DONE'
Schaefer confirmed an earlier report by RingTV.com that three-division titlewinner Adrien Broner will face Carlos Molina (not the IBF's aforementioned 154-pound titleholder) in a 140-pound bout and unbeaten middleweight J'Leon Love will fight Marco Antonio Periban on the Mayweather-Maidana card.
The fights are "all done," Schaefer wrote in an email to RingTV.com.
Schaefer had announced earlier on Monday that a deal had been completed for Amir Khan to face bellow former beltholder Luis Collazo in a welterweight bout in support of Mayweather-Maidana.
SCHAEFER CONFIRMS OPPONENTS FOR LUCAS MATTHYSSE, KEITH THURMAN, OMAR FIGUEROA ON APRIL 26
Unbeaten welterweight boxer-puncher Keith "One Time" Thurman will fight two-time titlewinner Julio Diaz in the main event, RING number one-rated 140-pounder Lucas Matthysse will face John Molina, and WBC lightweight titleholder Omar Figueroa will face Jerry Belmontes on Showtime on April 26 at the StubHub Center in Carson, California, Schaefer said.
ALSO ON THE MAYWEATHER-MAIDANA CARD
Middleweight Chris Pearson, super middleweight Ronald Gavril and cruiserweight Andrew Tabiti, each of whom are undefeated, as well as once-beaten super middleweight Lanell Bellows and veteran welterweight Ashley Theophane will appear on the May 3 undercard of Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s defense of his RING, WBC and WBA 147-pound championships against WBA "regular" counterpart Marcos Maidana, Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe confirmed to RingTV.com on Tuesday.
CORNELIUS BUNDRAGE POISED FOR TITLE SHOT?
Cornelius Bundrage (33-5, 19 KOs) appears to be in line to regain his IBF belt, according to IBF Championships Chairman Lindsey Tucker. The jailed Molina has until June to make the mandatory defense of his belt or risk being stripped.
Molina was arrested earlier this month and remains in a federal immigration holding cell at the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas. His detainment forced the cancelation of his scheduled March 8 defense, which was optional, against Jermall Charlo.
"This was an optional defense. When it comes time to do the mandatory, if he is still unavailable, then it becomes a problem," said Tucker during a March 7 interview with RingTV.com. "He beat Ishe Smith on September 14 and we will notify him on April 14 and then his mandatory is due on June 14."
A Mexican-born fighter who lives in Chicago, Molina is wanted in Wisconsin for obstruction and failing to register as a sex offender, according to a Clark County Detention Center spokesperson.
U.S. immigration officials told The Associated Press Molina was deported in 2006 and could be removed once again in the wake of his arrest. Molina has nine months from September, when he dethroned Ishe Smith, to defend his title, according to Tucker.
"If for some reason Molina is unavailable, then Cornelius Bundrage, as the mandatory, would fight whoever the next leading available contender is. Right now, Bundrage is the mandatory. We're just waiting for April 14 to come around to send a letter to Molina to let him know that he has to start negotiations with Bundrage. Now, the champion always has two options and I don't know if either one of these is going to happen," said Tucker.
"But Molina could always come back and say, 'We want to fight the WBA or the WBC or the WBO junior middleweight champion in a unification fight. That would have to be approved but if it is, that would take priority over the mandatory. The other thing is that Molina could come to the board and ask for an exception and if the board granted the exception, then he could fight somebody other than Bundrage but then again, with the condition that the winner would next face Bundrage."
Bundrage entered the bout against Smith after having scored a seventh-round stoppage of Cory Spinks in June 2012. The bout with Spinks was a rematch for Bundrage, who originally dethroned Spinks by fifth-round stoppage in August of 2010.
JOSHUA CLOTTEY-ANTHONY MUNDINE BOUT DELAYED A WEEK
The Joshua Clottey-Anthony Mundine junior middleweight bout has been delayed from its original date of April 2 to April 9 to allow Clottey to secure a visa, Clottey's promoter, Joe DeGuardia, of Star Boxing, informed ESPN.com on Monday.
Slated to face Mundine (46-5, 27 KOs) at the Entertainment Centre in New South Wales, Australia, Clottey (37-4, 22 KOs), of Bronx, N.Y., has fought just twice since losing to Manny Pacquiao in March 2010. The 36-year-old has blamed promoter and managerial issues on his lack of activity.
Mundine is coming off a stoppage victory over "Sugar" Shane Mosley and will enjoy home-field advantage against Clottey.
UNBEATEN ENRICO KOELLING ON JUERGEN BRAEHMER-ENZO MACCARINELLI CARD
Light heavyweight Enrico Koelling (12-0, 4 KOs), 24, will face 33-year-old Mirzet Bajrektarevic (8-1, 4 KOs) on the undercard of the April 5 bout between WBA 175-pound titleholder Juergen Braehmer and Enzo Maccarinelli in Rostock, Germany, Sauerland Events announced on Tuesday.
Hunter: Khan fighting Collazo was a business decision
March 25th, 2014 | Post Comment - 42 Comments
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Khan Collazo Khan vs. Collazo luis collazo amir khan By Scott Gilfoid: Trainer Virgil Hunter says that the reason why former WBA welterweight champion Luis Collazo (35-5, 18 KO’s) was picked out for Amir Khan (28-3, 19 KO’s) to fight on May 3rd instead of another welterweight in the division was due to it being a “business decision.”
Hunter didn’t reveal what he meant by that, but you can kind of read between the lines that maybe Collazo was seen as an easy mark given that he’s only had one fight against a named opponent [Victor Ortiz] in the past 5 years since his loss to Andre Berto in 2009, and that was against a rusty and depleted Ortiz.
Picking out Collazo to fight rather than someone dangerous like Keith Thurman has to be seen as a business decision, because we’re really talking about Khan fighting an old name in order to get a scalp with a recognizable name. It’s kind of like how Khan fought older and past their best smaller fighters like Marco Antonio Berrera and Julio Diaz. Khan said it himself in the past about him getting guys at the right time of their careers when they’re on the downside.
“It was a good business fight for Amir to fight Luis Collazo,” Hunter said to the Daily Mail. “It gives Amir a chance to shine and prove that he belongs in the ring with Floyd Mayweather. What better place to show that than on the undercard and fight right before his [Mayweather] fight.”
I hear what Hunter is talking about. Get an old guy with one recognizable opponent under his belt in 5 years, and then beat him in front of a large crowd, and immediately start calling out Mayweather.
It’s a brilliant move to have Khan fighting Collazo. The risk is minimal to Khan, because Collazo’s true talent was not shown in the fight against a depleted Ortiz. Perhaps a better example of Collazo’s talent was him getting beaten easily by 35-year-old journeyman Freddy Hernandez in 2011. If you saw that fight then you saw how a fighter with 6 losses in his last 7 fights easily beat Collazo.
Boxing fans that haven’t been following Collazo’s career since his loss to Andre Berto are looking at his win over Ortiz and assuming that he’s a top guy at 147. The reality is Collazo is the same guy that Hernandez easily beat. The only difference is he beat Ortiz, so fans think he’s great rather than looking at Ortiz, who had two back to back losses going into the Collazo fight, and seeing him as a fighter who is showing signs of being past it.
You have to connect the dots when analyzing a fight, and you can’t just look at Collazo’s win over Ortiz and say he’s a great opponent for Khan. You could only say that if Collazo was put in with guys like Keith Thurman, Devon Alexander and Shawn Porter and he did the same thing to them that he did to Ortiz. I don’t think he would though. I suspect we’d see Collazo dominated by those guys in the same way he was by Freddy Hernandez
Read more at Hunter: Khan fighting Collazo was a business decision
March 25th, 2014 | Post Comment - 42 Comments
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Khan Collazo Khan vs. Collazo luis collazo amir khan By Scott Gilfoid: Trainer Virgil Hunter says that the reason why former WBA welterweight champion Luis Collazo (35-5, 18 KO’s) was picked out for Amir Khan (28-3, 19 KO’s) to fight on May 3rd instead of another welterweight in the division was due to it being a “business decision.”
Hunter didn’t reveal what he meant by that, but you can kind of read between the lines that maybe Collazo was seen as an easy mark given that he’s only had one fight against a named opponent [Victor Ortiz] in the past 5 years since his loss to Andre Berto in 2009, and that was against a rusty and depleted Ortiz.
Picking out Collazo to fight rather than someone dangerous like Keith Thurman has to be seen as a business decision, because we’re really talking about Khan fighting an old name in order to get a scalp with a recognizable name. It’s kind of like how Khan fought older and past their best smaller fighters like Marco Antonio Berrera and Julio Diaz. Khan said it himself in the past about him getting guys at the right time of their careers when they’re on the downside.
“It was a good business fight for Amir to fight Luis Collazo,” Hunter said to the Daily Mail. “It gives Amir a chance to shine and prove that he belongs in the ring with Floyd Mayweather. What better place to show that than on the undercard and fight right before his [Mayweather] fight.”
I hear what Hunter is talking about. Get an old guy with one recognizable opponent under his belt in 5 years, and then beat him in front of a large crowd, and immediately start calling out Mayweather.
It’s a brilliant move to have Khan fighting Collazo. The risk is minimal to Khan, because Collazo’s true talent was not shown in the fight against a depleted Ortiz. Perhaps a better example of Collazo’s talent was him getting beaten easily by 35-year-old journeyman Freddy Hernandez in 2011. If you saw that fight then you saw how a fighter with 6 losses in his last 7 fights easily beat Collazo.
Boxing fans that haven’t been following Collazo’s career since his loss to Andre Berto are looking at his win over Ortiz and assuming that he’s a top guy at 147. The reality is Collazo is the same guy that Hernandez easily beat. The only difference is he beat Ortiz, so fans think he’s great rather than looking at Ortiz, who had two back to back losses going into the Collazo fight, and seeing him as a fighter who is showing signs of being past it.
You have to connect the dots when analyzing a fight, and you can’t just look at Collazo’s win over Ortiz and say he’s a great opponent for Khan. You could only say that if Collazo was put in with guys like Keith Thurman, Devon Alexander and Shawn Porter and he did the same thing to them that he did to Ortiz. I don’t think he would though. I suspect we’d see Collazo dominated by those guys in the same way he was by Freddy Hernandez
Read more at Hunter: Khan fighting Collazo was a business decision
It's time to call a duck a duck....
Kovalev's Promoter Slams Adonis Stevenson, Jabs Haymon - Boxing News
Main Events CEO Kathy Duva, who promotes WBO light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev (23-0-1, 21KOs), held nothing back when discussing the recent turn of events with WBC champion Adonis Stevenson (23-1, 20KOs).
Earlier this year, Duva believed that she reached an agreement with Yvon Michel, promoter of Stevenson, to have their boxers unify in the fall. Both fighters were going to take interim-fights to continue building it up.
Kovalev returns on Saturday night against Cedric Agnew in Atlantic City. Stevenson is back on May 24 against Andrzej Fonfara*in Montreal.
But a few weeks ago Duva, and HBO, began to worry when Stevenson signed a deal with powerful adviser Al Haymon. Early last year, HBO broke their business ties with Haymon and Golden Boy Promotions. Haymon, and the Golden Boy stable, fight primarily on network rival Showtime.
In the last few days, it became clear that Showtime had come to the table with a much bigger monetary bid to acquire the rights to Stevenson-Fonfara.
After days of negotiations, HBO ultimately passed and now Stevenson-Fonfara appears to be heading to Showtime.
Because he is heading to Showtime, Stevenson is now in position to go after the fight he truly wants - a unification with IBF champion Bernard Hopkins, who himself is booked next month for a unification bout with WBA king Beibut Shumenov.
"About two months ago, we made a deal. We had a deal with Yvon Michel. We had a deal with HBO. We all got on the phone together in Atlantic City for a fight that we had on January 24th. I walked around that day very happy because we had a deal. I had really not been concerned that Adonis was going to fight or not, because I was told by his promoter that he was willing to do so," Duva told BoxingScene.com.
"We've seen his interviews. We've seen how he acts when Sergey Kovalev's name comes up. We see his mouth move but all we hear is quack, quack, quack coming out. Did he make the ultimate move to make sure the fight doesn't happen? He probably did. Who in the world is better in making sure the public doesn't see the fight they really want to see than his new manger, so yeah I got a little concerned [when he signed with Haymon]."
"I think that every time I saw Adonis Stevenson asked whether he wanted to fight Sergey Kovalev, he began to stutter. I think he had no desire to fight him. I think it's quite clear he had no desire to fight him. He went and made the one move that he could make [in preventing a Kovalev fight] by running to a rival network and with a manager who is known as an obstructionist. Yes he got his wish, he doesn't have to fight Sergey Kovalev right now. But I don't know if he can avoid him forever. Sergey Kovalev is going to have a brilliant career. He is must-see TV."
Duva is rallying the fans, and the boxing press, to apply as much pressure as possible on Stevenson, on a daily basis,*until he caves in and agrees to fight Kovalev.
"I want to say this to the fans who are disappointed. And I want to send this message loud and clear. If you want to give him a pass and let him fight a guy who is 49-years-old instead of the guy you want to see. If you sit back and say 'well it's okay, he's fighting a legend.' If you don't want to send him messages on Twitter every day asking him why won't he fight Sergey Kovalev. If you reporters don't want to ask him, every time that you're in the room with him, why won't he fight Sergey Kovalev - then you don't deserve to seem him fight Sergey Kovalev," Duva said.
"When the deal was made for Mike Tyson to fight Evander Holyfield. And I'm talking about the deal before*[Tyson] went away [to jail]. And that deal got made because people kept coming up to Mike Tyson in the streets and asking him why he was ducking Holyfield. And one day Mike Tyson got tired of being called a duck.* If people want to ask Adonis Stevenson why he is ducking Sergey Kovalev, they should."
Kovalev's Promoter Slams Adonis Stevenson, Jabs Haymon - Boxing News
Main Events CEO Kathy Duva, who promotes WBO light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev (23-0-1, 21KOs), held nothing back when discussing the recent turn of events with WBC champion Adonis Stevenson (23-1, 20KOs).
Earlier this year, Duva believed that she reached an agreement with Yvon Michel, promoter of Stevenson, to have their boxers unify in the fall. Both fighters were going to take interim-fights to continue building it up.
Kovalev returns on Saturday night against Cedric Agnew in Atlantic City. Stevenson is back on May 24 against Andrzej Fonfara*in Montreal.
But a few weeks ago Duva, and HBO, began to worry when Stevenson signed a deal with powerful adviser Al Haymon. Early last year, HBO broke their business ties with Haymon and Golden Boy Promotions. Haymon, and the Golden Boy stable, fight primarily on network rival Showtime.
In the last few days, it became clear that Showtime had come to the table with a much bigger monetary bid to acquire the rights to Stevenson-Fonfara.
After days of negotiations, HBO ultimately passed and now Stevenson-Fonfara appears to be heading to Showtime.
Because he is heading to Showtime, Stevenson is now in position to go after the fight he truly wants - a unification with IBF champion Bernard Hopkins, who himself is booked next month for a unification bout with WBA king Beibut Shumenov.
"About two months ago, we made a deal. We had a deal with Yvon Michel. We had a deal with HBO. We all got on the phone together in Atlantic City for a fight that we had on January 24th. I walked around that day very happy because we had a deal. I had really not been concerned that Adonis was going to fight or not, because I was told by his promoter that he was willing to do so," Duva told BoxingScene.com.
"We've seen his interviews. We've seen how he acts when Sergey Kovalev's name comes up. We see his mouth move but all we hear is quack, quack, quack coming out. Did he make the ultimate move to make sure the fight doesn't happen? He probably did. Who in the world is better in making sure the public doesn't see the fight they really want to see than his new manger, so yeah I got a little concerned [when he signed with Haymon]."
"I think that every time I saw Adonis Stevenson asked whether he wanted to fight Sergey Kovalev, he began to stutter. I think he had no desire to fight him. I think it's quite clear he had no desire to fight him. He went and made the one move that he could make [in preventing a Kovalev fight] by running to a rival network and with a manager who is known as an obstructionist. Yes he got his wish, he doesn't have to fight Sergey Kovalev right now. But I don't know if he can avoid him forever. Sergey Kovalev is going to have a brilliant career. He is must-see TV."
Duva is rallying the fans, and the boxing press, to apply as much pressure as possible on Stevenson, on a daily basis,*until he caves in and agrees to fight Kovalev.
"I want to say this to the fans who are disappointed. And I want to send this message loud and clear. If you want to give him a pass and let him fight a guy who is 49-years-old instead of the guy you want to see. If you sit back and say 'well it's okay, he's fighting a legend.' If you don't want to send him messages on Twitter every day asking him why won't he fight Sergey Kovalev. If you reporters don't want to ask him, every time that you're in the room with him, why won't he fight Sergey Kovalev - then you don't deserve to seem him fight Sergey Kovalev," Duva said.
"When the deal was made for Mike Tyson to fight Evander Holyfield. And I'm talking about the deal before*[Tyson] went away [to jail]. And that deal got made because people kept coming up to Mike Tyson in the streets and asking him why he was ducking Holyfield. And one day Mike Tyson got tired of being called a duck.* If people want to ask Adonis Stevenson why he is ducking Sergey Kovalev, they should."
List Of Al Haymon Fighters. More Extensive Then Many Imagined
Chris Arreola
Deontay Wilder
Seth Mitchell
Dominic Breazeale
Gerald Washington
Antonio Tarver
Adonis Stevenson
Chad Dawson
Beibut Shumenov
Marcus Browne
Enrique Ornelas
Thomas Williams, Jr.
Librado Andrade
Edwin Rodriguez
Sakio Bika
Anthony Dirrell
Dominic Wade
Peter Quillin
Daniel Jacobs
Terrell Gausha
Jermain Taylor
J’Leon Love
Chris Pearson
Austin Trout
Jermell Charlo
Jermall Charlo
Erislandy Lara
Alfredo Angulo*
Demetrius Andrade+
Fernando Guerrero
Ronald Hearns
Julian Williams
Prichard Colon
Denis Douglin
Daquan Arnett
Kareem Martin
Floyd Mayweather
Devon Alexander
Keith Thurman
Marcos Maidana
Shawn Porter
Paulie Malignaggi
Andre Berto
Luis Collazo
Victor Ortiz
Errol Spence, Jr.
Amir Khan*
Robert Guerrero*
Semajay Thomas
Danny Garcia
Lucas Matthysse
Lamont Peterson
Josesito Lopez
Jamel Herring
Anthony Peterson
John Molina
Omar Figueroa
Robert Easter, Jr.
Rances Barthelemy
Rico Ramos
Gervonta Davis
Gary Russell, Jr.
Leo Santa Cruz
Rau’shee Warren
*reportedly/in talks
+questionable
This is a list provided by
Tim Starks
@tqbr
Chris Arreola
Deontay Wilder
Seth Mitchell
Dominic Breazeale
Gerald Washington
Antonio Tarver
Adonis Stevenson
Chad Dawson
Beibut Shumenov
Marcus Browne
Enrique Ornelas
Thomas Williams, Jr.
Librado Andrade
Edwin Rodriguez
Sakio Bika
Anthony Dirrell
Dominic Wade
Peter Quillin
Daniel Jacobs
Terrell Gausha
Jermain Taylor
J’Leon Love
Chris Pearson
Austin Trout
Jermell Charlo
Jermall Charlo
Erislandy Lara
Alfredo Angulo*
Demetrius Andrade+
Fernando Guerrero
Ronald Hearns
Julian Williams
Prichard Colon
Denis Douglin
Daquan Arnett
Kareem Martin
Floyd Mayweather
Devon Alexander
Keith Thurman
Marcos Maidana
Shawn Porter
Paulie Malignaggi
Andre Berto
Luis Collazo
Victor Ortiz
Errol Spence, Jr.
Amir Khan*
Robert Guerrero*
Semajay Thomas
Danny Garcia
Lucas Matthysse
Lamont Peterson
Josesito Lopez
Jamel Herring
Anthony Peterson
John Molina
Omar Figueroa
Robert Easter, Jr.
Rances Barthelemy
Rico Ramos
Gervonta Davis
Gary Russell, Jr.
Leo Santa Cruz
Rau’shee Warren
*reportedly/in talks
+questionable
This is a list provided by
Tim Starks
@tqbr
Erislandy Lara: Come May 2nd I'm going to do Mayweather a favor and retire Ishe Smith
WBA SUPER WELTERWEIGHT WORLD CHAMPION ERISLANDY LARA TO DEFEND TITLE AGAINST FORMER WORLD CHAMPION ISHE SMITH IN THE MAIN EVENT OF MAY FOX SPORTS 1 AND FOX DEPORTES
TRIPLEHEADER FROM HARD ROCK HOTEL & CASINO JUST ONE DAY BEFORE "THE MOMENT: FLOYD MAYWEATHER VS. MARCOS MAIDANA"
PLUS! MICKEY BEY JR. TAKES ON ALAN HERRERA IN A LIGHTWEIGHT BOUT AND JESUS CUELLAR DEFENDS HIS WBA INTERIM FEATHERWEIGHT BELT AGAINST FORMER WORLD CHAMPION RICO RAMOS
Tickets Go On Sale Tomorrow At Noon PT!
LAS VEGAS (March 25) - Las Vegas will be the center of the boxing universe Cinco de Mayo weekend and kicking it off will be an action-packed night of fights at The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino when FOX Sports 1 and FOX Deportes feature a tripleheader that includes two World Championship bouts just one night before "THE MOMENT: Floyd Mayweather vs. Marcos Maidana" takes place at MGM Grand. In the 12-round main event, the WBA Super Welterweight title is on the line when Cuban star Erislandy "The American Dream" Lara defends the belt against Las Vegas' own former World Champion Ishe "Sugar Shay" Smith.
Plus, rising lightweight star Mickey "The Spirit" Bey Jr. will meet hard-hitting Mexican veteranAlan "Explosivo" Herrera in a 10-round matchup and in the televised opener, Argentina'sJesus Cuellar squares off with former World Champion Rico Ramos in a 12-round bout for Cuellar's WBA Interim Featherweight World Title.
Lara vs. Smith, a 12-round bout for Lara's WBA Super Welterweight World Title, is presented by Mayweather Promotions and Golden Boy Promotions and is sponsored by Corona and O'Reilly Auto Parts. The FOX Sports 1 and FOX Deportes broadcast airs live at 10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT.
Tickets, priced at $95, $65, $35 and $25, not including applicable service charges and taxes,go on sale tomorrow, Wednesday, March 26 at noon PT and will be available for purchase by visiting The Joint box office, calling 800.745.3000 or online at www.ticketmaster.com.
"Ishe Smith talks a lot on the internet, let's see if he fights as well as he talks," said Lara. "I'm on a different level and he'll know that as soon as the first bell rings. He's fighting the best super welterweight in the world and the pressure is mounting on him so he's trying to build himself up mentally. Come May 2nd I'm going to do Mayweather a favor and retire him."
"This is a dream come true, not only fighting for a chance at claiming another world title, but to be doing it in front of my hometown fans and family is a blessing, I'm truly honored," said Smith. "Lara was offered a chance to fight me back in 2012 and he turned it down to fight Freddy Hernandez instead. I will show him he was right in turning the fight down the first time. I'm ready to lay it all on the line to regain one of the super welterweight championships, come May 2nd I will turn his American Dream into an American Nightmare."
"May 2nd should not be overlooked by any means, it's one night with two world championships on the line," said Leonard Ellerbe, CEO of Mayweather Promotions. "We have put together a card with a roster of top tier talent that will be showcased come fight night. I'm sure no one in the building or watching from home will be disappointed."
"With the entire boxing world focusing on Las Vegas, we're giving fans another stacked card the night before 'THE MOMENT,'" said Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions. "Two championship fights and a great matchup between top prospects will get the weekend started right on FOX Sports 1 and FOX Deportes."
A native of Guantanamo, Cuba who now fights out of his adopted home of Houston, Texas,Erislandy "The American Dream" Lara (19-1-2, 12 KOs) is one of the most talented boxers in the sport today, with his style giving fits to whoever dares to step into the ring with him. Unbeaten in five straight, with wins over Freddy Hernandez, Alfredo Angulo and Austin Trout, Lara finally got his hands on a world championship belt in 2013 and the 30-year-old is not about to let it go.
A seasoned veteran whose February 2013 win over Cornelius Bundrage for the IBF Super Welterweight World Title was the most inspirational boxing story of the year, Ishe "Sugar Shay" Smith (25-6, 11 KOs) made his fans at home and around the globe proud as he became the first Las Vegas native to win a world championship. Although he lost the belt to Carlos Molina last September, the controversial split decision prompted the WBA to put Smith back in a title fight as soon as possible and the 35-year-old vows to regain the title this May.
Cleveland native Mickey Bey Jr. (19-1-1, 10 KOs) was a top amateur before entering the professional game in 2005 and after some ups and downs, he returned to the ring in 2013 and capped off the year with a third round technical knockout win over Carlos Cardenas. Now approaching his fighting prime, he's eager to begin his 2014 season with a big victory on May 2.
Though just 24 years old, Mazatlan, Mexico's Alan "Explosivo" Herrera (32-5, 21 KOs) is an experienced veteran with nearly 40 professional fights to his name. A winner of six of his last seven bouts, including three first round knockouts, Herrera has the stopping power to get the respect of Bey or anyone else he faces in the ring.
Fighting out of Buenos Aires, Argentina, southpaw Jesus Cuellar (23-1, 18 KOs) was a decorated amateur with several titles on his resume, but with his style more suited to the pros, he made his debut in 2008 and hasn't looked back since. Unbeaten in six straight, the 27-year-old won the WBA Interim Featherweight World Title last August with a 12-round unanimous decision victory over Claudio Marrero. Now he looks to make his first defense of the belt against Ramos.
Rico Ramos (23-3, 12 KOs) stunned the boxing world in 2011 when he beat the vastly more experienced Akifumi Shimoda for the WBA World Super Bantamweight World Title. While the Pico Rivera, California native lost the belt to Guillermo Rigondeaux in 2012 and navigated some rough waters after that, the 26-year-old bounced back with consecutive wins over Carlos Ivan Velasquez and Jonathan Arrellano to earn another shot at world title honors.
WBA SUPER WELTERWEIGHT WORLD CHAMPION ERISLANDY LARA TO DEFEND TITLE AGAINST FORMER WORLD CHAMPION ISHE SMITH IN THE MAIN EVENT OF MAY FOX SPORTS 1 AND FOX DEPORTES
TRIPLEHEADER FROM HARD ROCK HOTEL & CASINO JUST ONE DAY BEFORE "THE MOMENT: FLOYD MAYWEATHER VS. MARCOS MAIDANA"
PLUS! MICKEY BEY JR. TAKES ON ALAN HERRERA IN A LIGHTWEIGHT BOUT AND JESUS CUELLAR DEFENDS HIS WBA INTERIM FEATHERWEIGHT BELT AGAINST FORMER WORLD CHAMPION RICO RAMOS
Tickets Go On Sale Tomorrow At Noon PT!
LAS VEGAS (March 25) - Las Vegas will be the center of the boxing universe Cinco de Mayo weekend and kicking it off will be an action-packed night of fights at The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino when FOX Sports 1 and FOX Deportes feature a tripleheader that includes two World Championship bouts just one night before "THE MOMENT: Floyd Mayweather vs. Marcos Maidana" takes place at MGM Grand. In the 12-round main event, the WBA Super Welterweight title is on the line when Cuban star Erislandy "The American Dream" Lara defends the belt against Las Vegas' own former World Champion Ishe "Sugar Shay" Smith.
Plus, rising lightweight star Mickey "The Spirit" Bey Jr. will meet hard-hitting Mexican veteranAlan "Explosivo" Herrera in a 10-round matchup and in the televised opener, Argentina'sJesus Cuellar squares off with former World Champion Rico Ramos in a 12-round bout for Cuellar's WBA Interim Featherweight World Title.
Lara vs. Smith, a 12-round bout for Lara's WBA Super Welterweight World Title, is presented by Mayweather Promotions and Golden Boy Promotions and is sponsored by Corona and O'Reilly Auto Parts. The FOX Sports 1 and FOX Deportes broadcast airs live at 10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT.
Tickets, priced at $95, $65, $35 and $25, not including applicable service charges and taxes,go on sale tomorrow, Wednesday, March 26 at noon PT and will be available for purchase by visiting The Joint box office, calling 800.745.3000 or online at www.ticketmaster.com.
"Ishe Smith talks a lot on the internet, let's see if he fights as well as he talks," said Lara. "I'm on a different level and he'll know that as soon as the first bell rings. He's fighting the best super welterweight in the world and the pressure is mounting on him so he's trying to build himself up mentally. Come May 2nd I'm going to do Mayweather a favor and retire him."
"This is a dream come true, not only fighting for a chance at claiming another world title, but to be doing it in front of my hometown fans and family is a blessing, I'm truly honored," said Smith. "Lara was offered a chance to fight me back in 2012 and he turned it down to fight Freddy Hernandez instead. I will show him he was right in turning the fight down the first time. I'm ready to lay it all on the line to regain one of the super welterweight championships, come May 2nd I will turn his American Dream into an American Nightmare."
"May 2nd should not be overlooked by any means, it's one night with two world championships on the line," said Leonard Ellerbe, CEO of Mayweather Promotions. "We have put together a card with a roster of top tier talent that will be showcased come fight night. I'm sure no one in the building or watching from home will be disappointed."
"With the entire boxing world focusing on Las Vegas, we're giving fans another stacked card the night before 'THE MOMENT,'" said Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions. "Two championship fights and a great matchup between top prospects will get the weekend started right on FOX Sports 1 and FOX Deportes."
A native of Guantanamo, Cuba who now fights out of his adopted home of Houston, Texas,Erislandy "The American Dream" Lara (19-1-2, 12 KOs) is one of the most talented boxers in the sport today, with his style giving fits to whoever dares to step into the ring with him. Unbeaten in five straight, with wins over Freddy Hernandez, Alfredo Angulo and Austin Trout, Lara finally got his hands on a world championship belt in 2013 and the 30-year-old is not about to let it go.
A seasoned veteran whose February 2013 win over Cornelius Bundrage for the IBF Super Welterweight World Title was the most inspirational boxing story of the year, Ishe "Sugar Shay" Smith (25-6, 11 KOs) made his fans at home and around the globe proud as he became the first Las Vegas native to win a world championship. Although he lost the belt to Carlos Molina last September, the controversial split decision prompted the WBA to put Smith back in a title fight as soon as possible and the 35-year-old vows to regain the title this May.
Cleveland native Mickey Bey Jr. (19-1-1, 10 KOs) was a top amateur before entering the professional game in 2005 and after some ups and downs, he returned to the ring in 2013 and capped off the year with a third round technical knockout win over Carlos Cardenas. Now approaching his fighting prime, he's eager to begin his 2014 season with a big victory on May 2.
Though just 24 years old, Mazatlan, Mexico's Alan "Explosivo" Herrera (32-5, 21 KOs) is an experienced veteran with nearly 40 professional fights to his name. A winner of six of his last seven bouts, including three first round knockouts, Herrera has the stopping power to get the respect of Bey or anyone else he faces in the ring.
Fighting out of Buenos Aires, Argentina, southpaw Jesus Cuellar (23-1, 18 KOs) was a decorated amateur with several titles on his resume, but with his style more suited to the pros, he made his debut in 2008 and hasn't looked back since. Unbeaten in six straight, the 27-year-old won the WBA Interim Featherweight World Title last August with a 12-round unanimous decision victory over Claudio Marrero. Now he looks to make his first defense of the belt against Ramos.
Rico Ramos (23-3, 12 KOs) stunned the boxing world in 2011 when he beat the vastly more experienced Akifumi Shimoda for the WBA World Super Bantamweight World Title. While the Pico Rivera, California native lost the belt to Guillermo Rigondeaux in 2012 and navigated some rough waters after that, the 26-year-old bounced back with consecutive wins over Carlos Ivan Velasquez and Jonathan Arrellano to earn another shot at world title honors.
Showtime reaches deal for Adonis Stevenson vs. Andrzej Fonfara fight
March 25th, 2014 | Post Comment - 20 Comments
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Stevenson Fonfara Stevenson vs. Fonfara adonis stevenson By Dan Ambrose: HBO chose not to renegotiate a contract with WBC light heavyweight champion Adonis Stevenson (23-1, 20 KO’s), who is fighting Andrzej Fonfara (25-2, 15 KO’s) on May 4th at the Bell Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. HBO had the option of taking this fight and keeping Stevenson with their network, but they passed up on the deal, according to Yahoo Sports. It’s possible that the asking price was too much to keep the 36-year-old Stevenson, who is now being managed by Al Haymon.
The loss of Stevenson from HBO means boxing fans won’t get a chance to see Stevenson vs. Sergey Kovalev fight each other, as Kovalev is with HBO. Showtime vice president of sports Stephen Espinosa said to Yahoo “There is a structure which allows us to continue for multiple fights beyond that fight.” The fight he’s talking about is the Fonfara fight, which honestly isn’t that big of a deal. That’s not a fight that will bring in big ratings no matter which network televises it.
I can kind of understand why HBO might not have been interested in renegotiating Stevenson’s contract given the less than appealing Fonfara mismatch. For fans who’ve seen Fonfara fight, they’ll know what I’m talking about when I say that a fight between Fonfara and Stevenson is a terrible fight. It’s basically Stevenson vs. Tony Bellew all over again, but probably even worse than that because Fonfara doesn’t box as well as Bellew and he doesn’t have his power.
He’s a tall fighter who stands straight up and gets hit a lot, and who has faced mediocre opposition through much of his career. I can definitely see why HBO might not have been excited about putting that fight on after Stevenson’s last mismatch against Bellew. The Stevenson vs. Chad Dawson fight was a good match-up that ended in spectacular fashion. But the Stevenson-Bellew was horrible, and the Stevenson vs. Fonfara fight is another poor one on paper.
Having Stevenson with Showtime potentially opens up a possible fight between Stevenson and IBF light heavyweight champion Bernard Hopkins. I still have my doubts that Hopkins will ever agree to face Stevenson, even though he no longer has the excuse that he fights on a different network. Hopkins said recently in the past that he wants to fight him, but I would be very surprised if Hopkins actually does that.
As bad as Hopkins looked in his last fight against Karo Murat, I don’t see him agreeing to fight Stevenson. If Hopkins never faces Stevenson, then it won’t be much of a great deal in having Stevenson on Showtime, to be honest. Andre Ward won’t fight him, and he can’t fight Gennady Golovkin because he’s on HBO.
So, Showtime will have a guy who will likely spend the next 1-3 years defending his title against guys like Fonfara, Isaac Chilemba, Denis Grachev and possible Lucian Bute. Jean Pascal has shown zero interest in fighting Stevenson, so you can forget that fight. Bute was recently easily beaten by Pascal, so I don’t see a Stevenson-Bute fight interesting fans. Without Stevenson fighting Kovalev or Hopkins, it’s really not even worth it for Showtime to have signed him. Espinoza should have figured that out ahead of time and saved the money in signing him.
Read more at Showtime reaches deal for Adonis Stevenson vs. Andrzej Fonfara fight
March 25th, 2014 | Post Comment - 20 Comments
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Stevenson Fonfara Stevenson vs. Fonfara adonis stevenson By Dan Ambrose: HBO chose not to renegotiate a contract with WBC light heavyweight champion Adonis Stevenson (23-1, 20 KO’s), who is fighting Andrzej Fonfara (25-2, 15 KO’s) on May 4th at the Bell Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. HBO had the option of taking this fight and keeping Stevenson with their network, but they passed up on the deal, according to Yahoo Sports. It’s possible that the asking price was too much to keep the 36-year-old Stevenson, who is now being managed by Al Haymon.
The loss of Stevenson from HBO means boxing fans won’t get a chance to see Stevenson vs. Sergey Kovalev fight each other, as Kovalev is with HBO. Showtime vice president of sports Stephen Espinosa said to Yahoo “There is a structure which allows us to continue for multiple fights beyond that fight.” The fight he’s talking about is the Fonfara fight, which honestly isn’t that big of a deal. That’s not a fight that will bring in big ratings no matter which network televises it.
I can kind of understand why HBO might not have been interested in renegotiating Stevenson’s contract given the less than appealing Fonfara mismatch. For fans who’ve seen Fonfara fight, they’ll know what I’m talking about when I say that a fight between Fonfara and Stevenson is a terrible fight. It’s basically Stevenson vs. Tony Bellew all over again, but probably even worse than that because Fonfara doesn’t box as well as Bellew and he doesn’t have his power.
He’s a tall fighter who stands straight up and gets hit a lot, and who has faced mediocre opposition through much of his career. I can definitely see why HBO might not have been excited about putting that fight on after Stevenson’s last mismatch against Bellew. The Stevenson vs. Chad Dawson fight was a good match-up that ended in spectacular fashion. But the Stevenson-Bellew was horrible, and the Stevenson vs. Fonfara fight is another poor one on paper.
Having Stevenson with Showtime potentially opens up a possible fight between Stevenson and IBF light heavyweight champion Bernard Hopkins. I still have my doubts that Hopkins will ever agree to face Stevenson, even though he no longer has the excuse that he fights on a different network. Hopkins said recently in the past that he wants to fight him, but I would be very surprised if Hopkins actually does that.
As bad as Hopkins looked in his last fight against Karo Murat, I don’t see him agreeing to fight Stevenson. If Hopkins never faces Stevenson, then it won’t be much of a great deal in having Stevenson on Showtime, to be honest. Andre Ward won’t fight him, and he can’t fight Gennady Golovkin because he’s on HBO.
So, Showtime will have a guy who will likely spend the next 1-3 years defending his title against guys like Fonfara, Isaac Chilemba, Denis Grachev and possible Lucian Bute. Jean Pascal has shown zero interest in fighting Stevenson, so you can forget that fight. Bute was recently easily beaten by Pascal, so I don’t see a Stevenson-Bute fight interesting fans. Without Stevenson fighting Kovalev or Hopkins, it’s really not even worth it for Showtime to have signed him. Espinoza should have figured that out ahead of time and saved the money in signing him.
Read more at Showtime reaches deal for Adonis Stevenson vs. Andrzej Fonfara fight
Yuriorkis Gamboa Says He Is Done Chasing Mikey Garcia
JulioGarcia Tuesday, March 25, 2014 Featured No Comments
Yuriorkis Gamboa Says He Is Done Chasing Mikey Garcia
When fighters expect big things to happen but it never does it can drain them mentally . Seconds become minutes. Minutes become hours. Hours become days. Days become weeks and weeks become months. Over time you realise you can only give so much in an effort to make things happen and for Yuriorkis Gamboa that time has come in his search for a fight with Mikey Garcia. After countless failed negotiations and reports stating that Garcia priced himself out instead of Gamboa, the Cuban fighter has decided to move on and search for another opponent.
“Just so you all know I’m done looking for a fight with Mikey Garcia,” stated Gamboa via Twitter. “There are champs like “JuanMa” that would fight for the fans and for pride, not just money.”
JulioGarcia Tuesday, March 25, 2014 Featured No Comments
Yuriorkis Gamboa Says He Is Done Chasing Mikey Garcia
When fighters expect big things to happen but it never does it can drain them mentally . Seconds become minutes. Minutes become hours. Hours become days. Days become weeks and weeks become months. Over time you realise you can only give so much in an effort to make things happen and for Yuriorkis Gamboa that time has come in his search for a fight with Mikey Garcia. After countless failed negotiations and reports stating that Garcia priced himself out instead of Gamboa, the Cuban fighter has decided to move on and search for another opponent.
“Just so you all know I’m done looking for a fight with Mikey Garcia,” stated Gamboa via Twitter. “There are champs like “JuanMa” that would fight for the fans and for pride, not just money.”