Tag Archives: arena

Brandon Robinson & Oscar Riojas at Philly’s 2300 Arena Friday

Posted on 04/06/2018

By: Ken Hissner

At the 2300 Arena in South Philly Friday night Marshall Kauffman’s King’s Promotions put Upper Darby (Philly) Super Middleweight Brandon Robinson in his first Main Event when he meets Oscar Riojas, of Monterrey, MEX, with six additional fights on the undercard. King’s will return to Sands Event Center in Bethlehem, PA, on April 13th.

In the Main Event Super Middleweight Brandon Robinson, 9-1 (7), of Upper Darby, PA, at 167.3 lbs meets Oscar Riojas, 16-8-1 (5), of Monterrey, MEX, at 168.8 lbs over 8 rounds.

In the Co-feature Super Bantamweight Marcus Bates, 8-0-1 (7), of Wash. D.C. at 122.9 lbs meets Raeese Aleem, 10-0 (5), of Las Vegas, NV, at 121.9 lbs over 8 rounds.

Heavyweight Colby “Braveheart” Madison, 6-0-1 (4), at 247.9 lbs meets Guillermo Del Rio, 2-2 (2), of Houston, TX, at 198.9 lbs over 4 rounds.

Welterweight Rasheed Johnson, 3-1 (1), of Willow Grove, PA, at 147.3 meets Denis Okoth, 1-0-1 (1), of Siaya, Kenya, at 143.9 over 4 rounds.

In an all Philadelphia bout Welterweight Poindexter Knight, 2-0 (2), 149.3 lbs meets Vincent Floyd, 3-4-1 (2), at 148.3 over 4 rounds.

Puerto Rico’s Lightweight Joshafat Ortiz, 2-0 (1), of Reading, PA, 131.5 lbs meets Bulgaria’s Evgueny Metchenov, 0-1 (0), of Gaithersburg MD, at 130.7 lbs over 4 rounds.

In an all Philadelphia Light Heavyweight bout Kendall Cannida, 1-0 (0), at 178.1 lbs meets Carlos Villenueva, 0-0 (0), at 173.2 lbs over 4 rounds.

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Two Philly Shows this Friday at SugarHouse Casino & 2300 Arena

Posted on 11/30/2017

By: Ken Hissner

Yes, a writer’s nightmare this Friday in Philly thanks to the Pennsylvania Boxing Commission. We can only make one!
Both promoters Manny Rivera of Hard Hitting Promotions (SugarHouse) and Marshall Kauffman of Kings Promotions (2300 Arena) held press conferences Wednesday night. At SugarHouse Casino most of the boxers on the card were at this event with approximately 100 people in attendance. The show is was sold out in three days per promoter Manny Rivera of Hard Hitting Promotions.

At SugarHouse Casino the main event has Philly heavyweight Joey “The Tank” Dawejko, 18-4-4 (11), meeting Kelvin Nunez, 15-0 (14), of Carolina, PR, over 8 rounds. “I look forward to bigger fights and feel I will be champion someday. I want to thank my manager Mark Cipparone for believing in me. My trainer Freddie Roach is in with Miguel Cotto but I feel confident about this fight and am not looking past it. I am at the crossroads of my career. This fight could put me in the WBC rankings where I belong,” said Dawejko.

The co-feature has Philly’s fast rising bantam Christian Carto, 12-0 (11), meeting Luis Fernando Saavedra, 7-3 (3), of MEX, over 8 rounds. “I want to thank the promoter Manny Rivera and matchmaker Will Ruiz and that’s about all I have to say,” said Carto. He’s a young man who lets his fists do his talking in the ring.

Philly’s Pizarro brothers were scheduled to fight but only 17 year-old lightweight Branden, 8-0 (4), will be in with Christian Rivera, 6-0 (5), of Bayamon, PR, over 6 rounds. Branden keeps asking to step up the competition and this fight should be his toughest opponent. The older brother feather Angel Jr., 3-0 (2), was scheduled to fight but his opponent failed to show.

Philly Lightweight Sam Teah, 11-1-1 (5), meets Maynard Allison, 9-2 (6), from NC, who is now living in Philly, in a 6. Philly Heavyweight making his Philly debut is former amateur champion Darmani Rock, 9-0 (5), meeting Carlos Cotto, 8-1 (5), of San Juan, PR, in a 6. This should be a fight with plenty of fireworks when the “big boy’s” start slugging it out. “It’s good to finally fight in front of my home crowd,” said Rock.

Philly’s Jeremy Cuevas, 5-0 (4), meets Jose M Castro, 5-9 (3), of Carolina, PR, in a lightweight 6. “I want to thank God and for the opportunity to fight on this card. Cuevas is a “Diamond in the rough” who has gotten little recognition and he can fight. Super featherweight Gadwin Rosa, 4-0 (3), of Ocala, FL, meets veteran Jesus Lule, 11-24-1 (8), of Ft Myers, FL, in a 4. Kurt Wolfheimer is the PR man and did a fine job MC’ing the press conference.
“I want to thank the fighters for without them this wouldn’t be possible. Please come and see old school boxing at its best. There are five fighters on this card that could be the main event. We appreciate promoter Greg Cohen for allowing us to have Joey Dawejko in the main event.

At the 2300 Arena the main event is Philly’s super welter Tyrone Brunson, 25-6-2 (23), meeting Manny Woods, 16-6-1 (6), of St. Pete’s, FL, in a 10 rounder. The co-feature is Wilmington lightweight Omar “Super O” Douglas, 17-2 (12), facing Mexican Isaias Martin Gonzales, 22-9 (14), of Tucson, AZ, in an 8.

Also from Wilmington is middleweight Kyrone “Shut It Down” Davis, 12-1 (5), meeting Jaime Barboza, 19-12 (9), of Costa Rica, 8 rounds. Super middleweights both from Philly are Brandon “Brob” Robinson, 7-1 (6), and Christopher “Ice” Brooker, 12-4 (5), which promises to possibly “steal the show”.

Possibly the best prospect in Philly Jaron “Boots” Ennis, 16-0 (14), at welterweight is a late addition and will meet knockout artist George “El Terrible Sosa” Rosa, 15-10-1 (15), of NJ. Heavyweight Joe Hanks, 21-2 (14), of Newark, NJ, takes on Joe Caudle, 7-0-1 (5), of Raleigh, NC, 8 rounds. Super bantamweight Marcus Bates, 7-0-1 (6), of DC, meets Antonio Rodriguez, 11-19-1 (5), of Durango, MEX, over 6 rounds.

In 4’s will be super bantam Romuel Cruz of Philly making his debut meeting Rondarius Hunter, 1-1 (1), of Atlanta, GA. Welter Rasheed Johnson, 2-1 (1), of Willow Grove, meets Readings, Kashon Hutchinson, 3-3 (1). Philly Super lightweight Shamsuddeen Justice, 1-0 (1), takes on Latorie Woodberry, 1-5 (0), of Roanoke, VA. Philly Lightweight Christopher Burgos, 0-1, meets Mexican Gerardo Tiburcio, 1-0 (1), of Coatesville. Heavyweight Colby Madison, 4-0-1 (3), of Owings Mill, MD, meets Randy Easton, 4-9-2 (4), of Sunbury, PA. Marc Adams is the PR man.

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Peltz Boxing Returns to 2300 Arena with an All Philly Main Event Friday

Posted on 09/06/2017

By: Ken Hissner

IBHOF Promoter J Russell Peltz continues his tradition of Philly fighters fighting one another at the 2300 Arena in South Philly Friday night. In the Main Event he features Super welterweights Isaiah Wise against Fred Jenkins, Jr. There are 10 bouts scheduled with BAM Boxing’s Brittany Rogers also co-promoting and helping with the matchmaking.

Wise, 5-1 (3), has fought all his 6 fights at the 2300 Arena. Jenkins has fought his last 6 fights at the same venue. His father and trainer Fred Jenkins, Sr., is a PA BHOF trainer out of the ABC Rec Gym in North Philly.

In the co-feature Philly’s Super featherweight Avery Sparrow, 7-1 (3), taking on Canadian Joey Laviolette, 6-0 (4), of Sackville, Nova Scotia. The latter is a 4-time Canadian National Champion. Sparrow is 2-0 in 2017.

Philly’s Super welterweight Elijah Vines, 4-0 (4), is making his home debut against Gilbert Alex Sanchez, 5-7-1 (2), of Camden, NJ, who is coming back from 2 years of inactivity. Highly touted welterweight prospect Julian “Hammer Hands” Rodriguez, 15-0 (10), of Hasbrouck Heights, NJ, returns to action after 10 months taking on Dario “Macizo” Ferman, 14-2 (11), of Chihuahua, MEX.

Also on the under card are Philly welterweight prospect Marcel Rivers, 2-0 (1), Upper Darby Super welterweight Brandon Robinson, 5-1 (4), Philly lightweight Jae Ho Kim, 6-4-1 (2) formerly of South Korea, Philly debuting middleweight Leon DeShields and PR Super lightweight Victor Padilla, 3-0 (2), of Berlin, NJ, who is another good prospect will be among those on the undercard.
USA Comcast SportsNet will televise.

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Golovkin Ready to Show Who the Better Boxer Is

Posted on 07/20/2017

By: Francisco Martinez

September 16th Gennady Golovkin is set to meet Saul Canelo Alvarez in Las Vegas at the T-Mobile arena. A fight 2 years in the making. A fight announced right after Canelo’s shutout of Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. a masterful performance not enjoyed to long by Canelo as his next opponent was brought to the ring there and then. To the surprise of many the fight we’ve all been asking for finally materialized. Canelo vs Golovkin is suppose to be the fight that proves what Canelo truly is capable of and the fight that proves is Golovkin the bogey man they make him out to be.

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With a combined record of 86 victories and 67 knockouts Canelo & Golovkin is almost a certain knockout ending. How do both fighters feel in regards to those expectations “It’s going to be a tough fight, a fight with a lot of action but I’ll make it clear as to who is the better man” expresses Canelo a conservative prediction as does Golovkin “I’m a professional athlete and for me it’s very interesting to see who’s better. Not special but who’s the better athlete, who’s the better boxer” states Golovkin.

If we look back into this fight and dig a little more we’ll find that Canelo & Golovkin have shared the ring before as both careers took off. In a sparring session that took place about 6 years ago or so at the Summit Boxing gym in Big Bear, California owned by Golovkin’s trainer, 2015 BWAA Trainer Of The Year, Abel Sanchez. The man responsible for Golovkin’s Mexican Style inside the ring. As for the sparring session a lot has circulated around the media and gym talk as to what actually happened but both fighters had this to say about their now legendary sparring session

“That happened about 6 years ago more or less. He has advanced, I have advanced. It can help a little bit but I won’t focus on it as we’ve both have totally advanced and sparring can’t influence a fight it’s way too different. It’ll be a good fight a fight the people have been wanting. It’ll be a good fight. We’ll be ready” says Canelo of the 6 year old sparring session. Gennady Golovkin had this to say about the past sparring session

“It was 6 years ago it’s a different time right now. It was sparring and it’s different. Sparring and fighting. It’s sparring not fighting” says Gennady Golovkin with a similar tone as Canelo to the past sparring between both. Canelo was just making his transition into 154lbs class and Golovkin was already a full fledged 160lbs fighter so the sparring can be taken with a grain of salt aside from what rumors might say took place within the sparring at the time.

About 21 days before Canelo & Gennady Golovkin are set to face each other another big fight will take place. The return of Floyd Mayweather in the same place and venue. A fight some critics think might affect Canelo & Golovkin’s revenue and possibly a strategic move by Mayweather. Arguably the best boxer ever, surely the best of our time and also known as one of the best business minds in boxing as well.

Golden Boy promotion’s Oscar De La Hoya is not concerned with Mayweather & McGregor taking place a couple of weeks prior to Canelo & Golovkin neither is K2 promotion’s Tom Loeffler “I figured they would make the fight I wasn’t sure when they would do it. It surprised us they would go before on August. You know August people are in still in vacation and you know that’s two big names that they have so they probably figured they can go when they wanted to and were gonna focus on our end to promote ours the best that we can and I’m sure that Floyd and Conor are gonna promote their event and I think that’s one of those fights that the build up would be more exciting than the fight itself but we’re gonna do the best we can on our end”

Floyd Mayweather gave his prediction to Canelo vs Golovkin late last year and he predicted Canelo would knockout Golovkin also went as far as to say he would beat Golovkin. Gennady had this to say about Mayweather’s recent comments “He talks too much. I think he’s not a promoter, he’s not Canelo’s promoter. I don’t know why? Ask him why?” Replied Golovkin to Mayweather’s comments.

Two mega fights that will take place withing a month of each other can only benefit boxing although some would disagree others would say it’s what boxing needs at this point in time in a year that has been one to remember boxing wise. This September 16th Supremacy in the middleweight division is what we’ll get once Canelo & Gennady Golovkin step into the ring in Las Vegas at the T-Mobile Arena live on HBO PPV.

So don’t miss it and follow the conversation and converage leading up to fight night via #CaneloGGG

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Canelo-GGG Sell Out T-Mobile Arena

Posted on 07/07/2017

Canelo-GGG Sell Out T-Mobile Arena
By: Sean Crose

In what should come as a surprise to absolutely no one, the much anticipated fight between Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin has sold out the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Still, the fact that the host location sold out in what was essentially a matter of days is impressive. As Lance Pugmire of the LA Times states: “The sellout comes even before promoters have announced their co-main event and undercard, with lightweight champion Jorge Linares a possible participant.” Such details are telling. One could only imagine the size of the live crowd had the fight taken place at AT@T Stadium near Dallas, as many had hoped it would.

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No matter. The September 16th twelve round middleweight bout between the 37-0 Kazakh and the 49-1-1 Mexican superstar is set to go down in the “Mecca of Boxing” and nothing can change that now. Vegas is where the money is, and Canelo-GGG has already proven itself to be a big money affair, with ticket prices ranging into the thousands and many willing to pay into the better half of one hundred dollars to watch the festivities live on pay per view. “The boxing public fully understands that this is the biggest fight in many years,” gushed Oscar De La Hoya, who clearly had reason to be happy.

What makes today’s news positive for die hard fight fans is it shows the September 16th event is not going to be overwhelmed entirely by the Mayweather-McGregor circus a few weeks earlier – though that might well be something Mayweather himself wishes would happen. While the circus may indeed take a lot of air out of the room, it’s not going to take all of it. In fact, right now it’s looking like there’s two major happenings on the horizon: The Most Interesting Fight In Boxing and the Pop Culture Event Of The Summer.

The Pop Culture extravaganza will come first, absorbing tons of mainstream media, fan boy and general societal attention before the Interesting Fight arrives. This may mean the Interesting Fight won’t get the attention and energy it might have had two possible narcissists not decided to perform a surreal duet in the public spotlight. Yet things are looking good for Canelo-GGG, regardless. Those who prefer good boxing to oversize personalities – and the numbers of such people are legion – are clearly looking forward to a top level event after the headache of August 26th subsides.

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Canelo-GGG Will Go Down At T-Mobile Arena In Las Vegas

Posted on 06/05/2017

Canelo-GGG Will Go Down At T-Mobile Arena In Vegas
By: Sean Crose

Many people wanted the September 16th Canelo-Alvarez-Gennady Golovkin superfight to happen in Texas, at the AT&T arena, home of the famed Dallas Cowboys. Of course, fight fans had a right to want to see the fight there. AT&T is a location that might actually be able to fit a record setting crowd. And, after this past spring’s Anthony Joshua-Wladimir Klitscko war in front of 90,000 people in England, fans could only be expected to hope for the same kind of explosive atmosphere back here in the states. Canelo-GGG is the biggest legitimate fight in boxing, after all. What’s more, the sport has been on the uptick in a big way. Why not continue to ride the wave by letting the world see just how big boxing can be in America in 2017?

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Unfortunately, for those hoping for a thrilling Texas night, Oscar De La Hoya announced on ESPN today that Canelo-GGG will, in fact, be happening at the T Mobile Arena in Vegas. Once again, Sin City will host the sport’s biggest match. So much for reasonably priced tickets. So much for an event exclusively of and for the fans. Still, it would be unfair to bash De La Hoya or Golovkin promoter Tom Loeffler for this. Boxing, as we’re forever reminded, is a business, after all. As long as the big fights are being made, fans can only complain so much. None of that is to say that the AT@T arena’s Jerry Jones didn’t work hard to make the fight go down in the same building where his Cowboy’s play. Ultimately, though, the allure of Vegas proved to be too strong.

“The city’s ability to attract high-rolling gamblers helped it bankroll the unrevealed site fee,” wrote the LA Times’ Lance Pugmire. What’s more, De La Hoya made it clear that Vegas is a party town and that there’s a lot more to a big fight than the big fight itself. Surprisingly enough, Vegas has, until now, not hosted Golovkin, perhaps the most feared individual in all of combat sports today, in a high level match. Canelo, on the other hand, can be seen as a Vegas regular, as he’s fought in major bouts in the city on numerous occasions – most famously against Floyd Mayweather in 2013.

Speaking of Mayweather, it’s been mentioned that perhaps Floyd’s interest in fighting MMA star Conor McGregor in a boxing match may have had some impact on the decided location for Canelo-GGG. De La Hoya and Loeffler, after all, wouldn’t want Floyd fighting in Vegas around the same time their own major event was going down.

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Josh Davis Stops Carlos Rosario at 2300 Arena in Philly Friday!

Posted on 05/20/2017

Josh Davis Stops Carlos Rosario at 2300 Arena in Philly Friday!
By: Ken Hissner

King’s Promotions returned to the 2300 Arena in South Philly on Friday night with 8 bouts and 46 rounds. They will be returning on June 24th with former champion Kermit Cintron and Tyrone Brunson.

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In the main event lightweight Carlos “Rock Hands” Rosario, 7-2 (4), of Pennsauken, NJ, was down several times before being stopped by Joshua “Dynamite” Davis, 11-1 (5), of Wash. DC, at 1:49 of the seventh round in a scheduled 8.
In the first round it was a feeling out round with Rosario coming forward and Davis countering. In the second round Davis dropped Rosario with a left uppercut to the chin. In the third round it was close with the jab of Davis controlling things. In the fourth round Rosario had swelling under both eyes as Davis wasted little energy picking his shots.

In the fifth round Rosario landed his best punch so far a straight right to the chin of Davis. Rosario was switching back and forth from orthodox to southpaw. In the sixth round a counter lead right by Davis to the chin of Rosario put him down. In the seventh round Davis hurt Rosario having him out on his feet with a right to the chin followed up by a flurry of punches forcing referee Gary Rosato to wisely call a halt.

In the co-feature light heavyweight Amir Shabazz, 4-1 (1), of Philadelphia, lost a disputed decision to Antowyan “Iceman” Aikens, 10-3-1 (1), of Atlantic City, NJ, over 6 dull rounds.

In the first two rounds it was all Aikens with little opposition coming from Shabazz. In the third and fourth rounds Shabazz started fighting back keeping Aikens on the defense. In the fifth round Shabazz continued coming forward though suffering a cut along the left eyebrow.

In the sixth and final round Shabazz kept up what little action there was in this one.

Judge Rubenstein had it 60-54 while Vargas and Poturaj 58-56. This writer had it 58-56 Shabazz.

Lightweight Tyrone Crawley, 7-0 (0), of Philadelphia, shut out Juan Rodriguez, 7-7-1 (5), of Manasa, VA, over 6 rounds.
Judge Rubenstein had it 59-55 while Vargas and Kinney along with this writer had it 60-54.

In the first two rounds Crawley seemed to have a slight edge switching back and forth southpaw to orthodox. In the third round Crawley started putting his punches together with little return from Rodriguez. In the fourth round Crawley continued to move and jab always one step ahead of Rodriguez. In the fifth round Rodriguez had a bloody nose from Crawley’s jabs. In the sixth and final round both let it all hang out. Referee was Bashir.

Super lightweight Steven Ortiz, 6-0 (2), of Philadelphia, scored a pair of knockdowns stopping Hector Rivera, 3-2 (2), of San Juan, PR, at 2:37 of the second round.

In the first round Ortiz had a snapping jab knocking the head of Rivera back. At the bell a left hook from Ortiz on the chin of Rivera dropped him. In the second round Ortiz was landing left hook after left hook until he finally dropped Rivera with one. Shortly after getting up Ortiz landed a right uppercut to the chin causing referee Rosato to stop it. Raul “Chino” Rivas was in the corner of Ortiz.
Lightweight Thomas “T.J.” Velasquez, 9-0 (5), of Philadelphia, shut out survivor Brandon Sanudo, 5-4 (2), of Baja CA, MEX, over 6 rounds.

In the first round the first punch Velasquez landed was a solid jab almost knocking Sanudo down. In the second round Velasquez started landing power shots with both hands hurting Sanudo with a body shot making him start to run around the ring. In the third and fourth rounds Velasquez was chasing Sanudo landing more hard body shots.

In the fifth round Velasquez continued chasing down Sanudo. In the sixth and final round Sanudo did all he could do to survive the body shots from Velasquez when he caught up to him. Referee was Rosato.

Judge Vargas had it 60-53 while Kinney and Poturaj along with this writer had it 60-54.

In the opening bout Welterweight southpaw Vincent Floyd, 3-2-1 (2), of Philadelphia, scored several knockdowns stopping Rafael Montalvo, 3-6 (3), of St. Clair, PA, at 1:26 of the third round of a scheduled 6.

In the first round Montalvo had Floyd out on his feet against the ropes before Floyd was able to spin out of trouble. In the second round halfway through Floyd landed a straight left to the chin of Montalvo and down he went. In trying to get up he fell back again on his butt but did beat the count. Floyd would hurt Montalvo again just prior to the bell. In the third round Montalvo was going to the body side to side when all of a sudden Floyd dropped Montalvo. Upon getting up referee Rosato wisely stopped it.

Super lightweight Titos Gonsalves, 0-2 (0), of Philadelphia, was stopped after a pair of knockdowns by Gerardo Martinez, 1-0 (1), of Phoenixville, PA, at 1:47 of the first round.

In the first round Martinez scored a pair of knockdowns from right hands to the chin of Gonsalves before referee Bashir called a halt. Jimmy Deoria was in the corner of Martinez.

Junior welterweight southpaw Antonio “The Sniper” Allen, 0-6 (0), of Philadelphia, lost a lack luster decision to Demetris Williams, 1-2 (0), Philadelphia, over 4 rounds.

In the first round it was very close with Williams landing a solid right to the chin knocking Allen back several steps. In the second round Allen had a nasty cut above his left eye from a Williams right hand. In the third round a lead right to the chin by Williams rocked Allen. In the fourth and final round of a little action bout it looked like Williams may have pulled out his first win. Bashir was the referee.

All 3 judges Vargas, Rubenstein and Poturaj had it 40-36 as did this writer.

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Carlos Rosario and Joshua Davis Headline at 2300 Arena Friday!

Posted on 05/17/2017

Carlos Rosario and Joshua Davis Headline at 2300 Arena Friday!
By: Ken Hissner

Kings Promotions will be at the 2300 Arena in South Philadelphia this Friday with an 11 bout card and 60 rounds of boxing. In the main event Carlos Rosario, 7-1 (4), of Pennsauken, NJ, takes on Joshua Davis, 10-1 (4), of D.C. in an 8 round super featherweight bout.

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In 6 round bouts will be light heavyweight Amir Shabazz, 4-0 (1), of Philadelphia takes on Antowyan Aikens, 10-3-1 (1), of Atlantic City, NJ.

Lightweight Tyrone Crawley, Jr., 6-0 (0), of Philadelphia takes on Juan Rodriguez, 7-6 (5), of Manasa, VA.

Super lightweight David Gonzales, 8-2 (2), of Philadelphia takes on Darius Ervin, 4-1 (0), of L.A., CA.

Lightweight Steven Ortiz, 5-0 (1), of Philadelphia takes on Hector Rivera, 3-1 (2), of San Juan, PR.

Lightweight Anthony Burgin, 10-3 (2), of Philadelphia takes on tba.

Super featherweight Thomas “TJ” Velasquez, 8-0 (5), of Philadelphia takes on Brandon Sanudo, 5-3 (2), of Baja California, MEX.

In 4 round bouts super featherweight southpaw Vincent Floyd, 2-2-1 (1), of Philadelphia takes on Rafael Montalvo, 3-3 (3), of St. Clair, PA.

Super lightweight Antonio Allen, 0-5 (0), of Philadelphia takes on Demetrius Williams, 0-2 (0), of Philadelphia.
Welterweight Lucas Dos Santos, 2-0 (2), of Miami, FL takes on tba.

Welterweight Titos Gosaves, 0-1 (0), of Philadelphia takes on Gerardo Martinez, 0-0 (0), of Phoenixville, PA. Doors Open at 6:00 PM and First bout at 6:30PM 2300 S. Swanson St.

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Derrick “Take It to the Bank” Webster Wins in Return to the Grundy Arena in Bristol, PA, Saturday!

Posted on 05/14/2017

Derrick “Take It to the Bank” Webster Wins in Return to the Grundy Arena in Bristol, PA, Saturday!
By: Ken Hissner

Three new promoters in Deuce Promotions and Kane 5 Promotions in association with MIS Downing Promotions in an ice rink presented five fights before a crowd of about 500. Sacred Downing from Trenton, NJ, was an outstanding amateur boxer who was an Olympian.

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Super Middleweight southpaw Derrick “Take It to the Bank” Webster, 23-1 (11), of Glassboro, NJ, won the WBF International title stopping southpaw Frankie Filippone, 22-6-1 (7), of Norfolk, VA, at 0:32 of the seventh round. Referee Eric Dali who worked the entire five matches saw enough after Filippone was knocked down in the sixth round and twice in the seventh of a scheduled ten rounds. Filippone had won his six previous fights.

Webster much taller than Filippone rarely used his left hand controlling the fight with a jab. Filippone tried urging Webster into mixing it up and not just eating jabs all night and when Webster did Filippone wouldn’t exchange with him. It was not a performance by Webster that would get him into the top 15 of any of the organizations. Up until the final round it was more like a sparring session.

The co-feature was cancelled when female lightweight Ikram Kersat, 7-1 (5), of Pensacola, FL, born in Tunisia and previous only fought in Germany had several opponents fall out. The WBF Jr. Regional title belt was given to her by James Gibbs of the WBF. Webster made Filippone wait some ten minutes in the ring before he came out of his dressing room. Commissioner Rudy Battle and Boxing Director did little to make Webster appear.

In the new co-feature Mikkel Lespierre, 16-0-1 (7), of Brooklyn, NY, won a fairly interesting bout over the once prospect Jerome “The Messenger” Rodriguez, 7-9-3 (2), of Bethlehem, PA, who has lost eight of his last nine fights. Rodriguez landed more punches in this battle of southpaws but Lespierre was too heavy handed for him.

Judges scores were Lundy and Page 59-55 twice and 58-56 Weisfeld all in favor of Lespierre as this writer had it 58-56 for the winner.

Featherweight Vidal Rivera, 6-0 (4), of Camden, NJ, won a majority decision over southpaw Jesus Salas, 1-1 (1), of PR over six rounds.

Salas was the much taller of the two and may have took the first round but from the time the bell sounded to start the second round Rivera got inside the reach of Salas and took it to his body and head. “I felt I won the fight and have gotten few fights due to my job and opponents lacking to fight me,” said Rivera. He had an outstanding amateur career.

Cruiserweight Mike Hilton, 6-0 (6), of Trenton, NJ, scored a technical stoppage over Eric Cason, 2-6 (2), of Davenport, IA, at 2:51 of the second round in a schedule 4.

Hilton won a close first round but gave Cason a beating in the second round until referee Dali called a halt. Cason complained to no avail.

Light heavyweight Brandon “Brob” Robinson, 3-1 (2), of Upper Darby, PA, easily defeated by knockout over Phillip Legrand, 1-5 (1), of Atlanta, GA, at 0:45 of the second round.

In the show opener Liberia’s Gowarr Karyah, 1-0 (1), of Philadelphia stopped Jose Homar Rios, 1-5 (1), of Moorhead, WI.

Rios tried by kept get tagged by Karyah and the referee Dali had seen enough. There were no complaints from the loser’s corner.

In this writer’s ten years of covering fights the conditions were the worst. The freezing ice hockey rink was so cold we moved to the penalty box to get off of the covered ice. The speaker system was poor and a late start. This facility should not be approved by the commission in the future. With a lack of security the fans stood in front of the penalty box making the writers stand for the entire show.

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Jaron “Boots” Ennis Seeking Tenth Win in Eleven Months Friday!

Posted on 03/31/2017

Jaron “Boots” Ennis Seeking Tenth Win in Eleven Months Friday!

By: Ken Hissner

Jaron “Boots” Ennis, 9-0 (8), the hottest prospect out of Philadelphia since the 1984 Olympic Gold Medalist Meldrick Taylor will be headlining at the 2300 Arena in South Philadelphia Friday on a Victory Boxing Promotions show.

Ennis is looking for his tenth win in eleven months since signing with manager Cameron Dunkin who is currently managing super lightweight champion Terrence Crawford.

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“His career is going good and we are on the right track,” said Bozy Ennis (father and trainer).The 19 year-old Ennis is following in the footsteps of his brothers Derek “Pooh” Ennis, the former USBA super welterweight champion and Farah Ennis, the former NABF super middleweight champion. At Bozy’s Dungeon on Venango Street in North Philadelphia he’s been sparring with WBC contender “The New” Ray Robinson (whom Bozy trains), 23-2, Elijah Vines, 3-0, who will be on the show Friday, New York’s Steve Martinez, 17-3 (who is managed by Philly’s Brian Cohen) who will be on an April 7th show in Puerto Rico that Philly’s Hard Hitting Promotions is involved with and Kyrone “Shut It Down”Davis, 12-1, from Wilmington, DE, who won Tuesday on Fox Sports-1.

Ennis turned professional in April of 2016 in St. George, UT, scoring a first round knockout in 0:42 on a Victory Boxing show, a first round stoppage in 0:23 in May in Philly at the PA Sheet Metal Workers Hall on a Hard Hitting show, in June in Springfield, VA, another first round knockout in 0:20, in July in Rio Rancho, NM, with a fourth round stoppage on a Victory Boxing show, in August at the Grundy Arena in Bristol, PA, on a D&D Promotions show scoring a second round knockout, in September winning his only decision at the 2300 Arena in Philly on a Peltz Boxing show, in November at the 2300 Arena in Philly with a fourth round stoppage over Chris Alexander, 4-2, in his first scheduled six round bout on a Victory Boxing show, in December at the SugarHouse Casino in Philly he scored a sixth round stoppage in a scheduled six, over Marcus Beckford, 3-4-1, on a Hard Hitting show and in January at the 2300 Arena on a Victory Boxing show scoring a first round knockout over Elvis Perez, 28-16-4, in 0:35.

There were just five fights at weigh-in down from twelve bouts scheduled as of Thursday. Angel Pizarro, 2-0 (1), of Philly (trained by Bozy) was to meet Christopher Nelson of Louisville, KY but was not at weigh-in. Manny “Major Pain” Folly, 9-0 (7), who is a Philly policeman, Joshua Jones, 3-0-1 (2), Darren Goodall, 4-0 (3), and Brandun Lee, 1-0 (1). There are just 24 rounds with 52 shown on box rec? Five fights for $75.00 ringside?

Doors open at 6pm and first fight scheduled at 7:00pm.

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Two Philly Boxing Events This Weekend Friday & Saturday!

Posted on 03/08/2017

Two Philly Boxing Events This Weekend Friday & Saturday!
By: Ken Hissner

There have only been 3 events in Pennsylvania this year and 2 of them were in Philly and sub-par shows. This weekend the two top promoters bring shows in Peltz Boxing and Kings Promotions.

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On Friday at the 2300 Arena in South Philly J Russell Peltz brings in what he does best in Philly vs Philly on top! Underneath he will have 10 more fights which is quite unusual for Peltz.

In the main event lightweight Anthony “Bad Boy” Burgin, 10-2 (2), has spent the last 8 weeks in Puerto Rico under trainer Raul “Chino” Rivas. “The new things I learned and did there helped bring my talent to another level physically and mentally. The feeling of fighting the main event in Philly is unbelievable. I have been sparring with Michael Perez and a few other guys from PR,” said Burgin.

His trainer Raul “Chino” Rivas had this to say “Anthony looks amazing like he’s fighting for a world title.”

In the opposite corner that night will be another Philly fighter in Avery Sparrow, 5-1 (3). “Camp has been the best ever. I feel the best I have ever felt in my whole career. We worked hard and smart,” said Sparrow. His trainer Greg Jackson had this to say, “Everyone knows what it is. Everyone is coming to see Anthony Burgin get his head chopped off. This is an execution!”

The semi-final will pit super welterweight Fred Jenkins, Jr., 10-3 (1), against returning visitor Roque Zapata, 2-1-3 (0), who in his last fight defeated Philly’s Isaiah Wise. “I saw him fight Isaiah Wise and it was a good fight. One thing I noticed he threw a lot of punches and Wise was still fighting,” said Jenkins, Jr. His father train had this to say “Fred looks superb. Whatever Zapata brings to the table Fred is ready to match it,” said Jenkins, Sr.

“I am not worried about coming to his backyard or being the underdog. In my MMA days and in boxing I’ve been fighting in the other guy’s back yard a lot and I love it,” said Zapata. His trainer Eric Zamora had this to say “he’s very focused and hungry for this fight. He’s put in enough hard work to have his hand raised on March 10th!”

On the undercard will feature two of the best Puerto Ricans from the area in separate bouts in Victor Padilla, 2-0 (2), of Berlin, NJ, and Joseph “Blessed Hands” Adorno, 2-0 (2), from Allentown, PA. Isaiah Wise, 3-1 will be back. Also returning from out of CT will be heavyweight Cassius Chaney, 8-0. Philly’s Marcel Rivers, 1-0 and Chris “Sandman” Thomas, 4-0, from Blackwood, NJ.

Completing the 10 undercard fights will be debuting Puerto Rican Crystian Peguero, of Philly and Basyzbek Baratov, 1-1-1, of KYR, and now Philly, Ernesto Almodovar debuting from Philly.

First fight will be at 7:30. Besides Peltz, BAM and Joe Hand Promotions along with Park Casino and Coors Light will handle the promotion.

On Saturday night Kings Promotion will have one of Philly’s knockout artists on top in Tyrone Brunson, 23-6-2 (22), facing Brandon Quarles, 18-3-1 (9), of Alexandria, VA. Philly’s David Gonzales, 8-1-2 (2), Tyrone Crawley, Jr., 6-0 (0), with Daquan Johnson, 2-0 (2), of Cherry Hill, NJ, will be taking on Philly’s Vincent Floyd, 1-2 (0). Carlos Rosario, 6-1 (3), of Pennsauken, NJ, Upper Darby’s Brandon Robinson, 1-1 (1), and debuting Philly boxer Terry Crowder as well as Philly’s Sam Orapeza will feature 8 fights.

The event will be at the SugarHouse Casino in Philly.

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Tevin “American Idol” Farmer Defends NABF Title in Philly on Friday!

Posted on 11/30/2016

Tevin “American Idol” Farmer Defends NABF Title in Philly on Friday!
By: Ken Hissner

Philadelphia’s Tevin “American Idol” Farmer, 23-4-1 (5) defends his NABF super featherweight title he won back in March at the 2300 Arena in South Philadelphia. Peltz Boxing is doing the promotion with associates BAM Boxing, DiBella Entertainment and Joe Hand Promotions.

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Farmer has won his last 16 fights and is ranked No. 3 in the WBC, No. 7 in the IBF and No. 10 in the WBO. His last loss in 2012 was to now unbeaten IBF super featherweight champion Jose Pedraza of Puerto Rico. Farmer would love a rematch for his IBF title.

The Philly southpaw is promoted by DiBella Entertainment and trained by Raul “Chino” Rivas in New Jersey. One of the boxers sparring with Farmer has been WBA super featherweight champion Jason “El Canito” Sosa out of Camden, NJ, who are friends and spar on a regular basis.

This will only be the second Philadelphia appearance for Farmer since 2013. His last fight was in the same 2300 Arena in October of 2016. If you haven’t seen Farmer you will be impressed to see his unusual style. He brings back memories of “Gypsy” Joe Harris though there was only one “Gypsy”.

There are 8 bouts on the card with Philly’s Garrett “Ultimate Warrior” Wilson, 16-11-1 (9), against Lamont “Too Smooth” Capers, 7-8-2 (0), of Hawley, PA, in a heavyweight bout. Don’t let Capers record fool you. He’s won his last 2 bouts including over a 17-2 boxer and Philly’s Pedro Martinez in his last fight. Wilson also defeated Martinez in his last Philly appearance in October of 2015.

There will be a pair of top prospects making their debuts with Victor Padilla out of Berlin, NJ, and Joseph Adorno, of Allentown, PA, in separate bouts. Doors open at 6pm and first fight at 7pm and when J Russell Peltz says that’s the starting time you can bank on it.

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Dusty Hernandez-Harrison and Thomas “Cornflake” Lamanna Rock the House at the Philly Arena!

Posted on 09/16/2016

Dusty Hernandez-Harrison and Thomas “Cornflake” Lamanna Rock the House at the Philly Arena!
By: Ken Hissner

This was a Peltz Boxing Promotion with GH-3 who has a good young group of boxers and on a Thursday night. CBS Sports Center will televise the show. The place was packed with standing room only. This one goes back to Ward and Gatti without the hoopla.

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Photo Credit: Darryl Cobb Jr.

No. 4 Thomas “Cornflake” Lamanna, 21-2 (9), of Millville, NJ, was defeated by No. 1 Dusty Hernandez-Harrison, 30-0-1 (16), of South East D.C. for the vacant USBA welterweight title. “I thought he won 6-4 not like the wide scores,” said Lamanna.

In the opening round Hernandez-Harrison moved around the ring countering well. Lamanna seemed to have problems with the speed of his opponent. In the second round Hernandez-Harrison landed a 3-punch combination. Lamanna is having a problem hitting the elusive Hernandez-Harrison.

In the third round Lamanna flurried having Hernandez-Harrison against the ropes only to have Hernandez-Harrison come back with 3 left hooks. Lamanna came out all fired up landing half a dozen punches without return. Things started heating up in the third round.

In the fourth round a lead right by Hernandez-Harrison rocked Lamanna who came back with a flurry of punches. In the fifth round Lamanna was doing well which seemed to anger Hernandez-Harrison who came back punching Lamanna around the ring. Lamanna has swelling around both eyes. In the sixth round Hernandez-Harrison is putting more behind his punches. Both boxers have plenty of fans in the crowd.

In the seventh round Lamanna landed a power right to the head of Hernandez-Harrison who was holding on. A half a round later it was all Hernandez-Harrison. In the eighth round both went back and forth controlling the round but Hernandez-Harrison’s hand and foot speed always keeps him one step ahead of Lamanna.

In the ninth round it’s more action from both but Hernandez-Harrison continues to batter Lamanna whose eyes are swelling while Hernandez-Harrison is unmarked. In the tenth and final round the fans are yelling “Dusty, Dusty”, as he is looking for a knockout to avoid a hometown decision. This was one of the best fights seen here in sometime with one from Millville and the other D.C.

Judges Bernard Bruni had it 98-92 while judges Tom Schreck and Dana DePaolo had it 97-93 while this writer had it 100-90.

In the co-feature former NFL player Ray “Cincinnati Kid” Edwards, 11-0-1 (7), out of Cinn., OH, won a 6 round decision over southpaw New Jersey champion Dan Pasciolla, 8-1-1 (0), out of Brick, NJ.

In the first two rounds it was the light punching Pasciolla who was taking good body shots from Edwards. The action was very slow. In the third round and fourth rounds Edwards was too strong for Pasciolla.

In the fifth and sixth rounds Pasciolla got his jab in but it wasn’t enough to offset Edwards.

Atlantic City’s Anthony “Juice” Young 14-2 (6) easily stopped Malik “The Freak” Jackson, 3-10-4 (2), of Newark, NJ, at the end of the fourth round stopped by ring physician.

In the opening round a hard right by Young to the head of Jackson dropped him. Referee Clark gave him the 8 count. Jackson did what he had to do to get through the round.

On paper it looked like a mismatch and this writer was surprised Boxing Director Greg Sirb approved it.

In the second round it was more of the same but Jackson staying on his feet. In the third round Jackson’s corner is yelling out instructions but one wonders how they put him in with Young. In the fourth round Young continued bombing Jackson who has little power to hold Young off. A left uppercut to the midsection by Young dropped Jackson At the bell a left hook by Young to the head had Jackson out on his fight.

His corner should have stopped it but it took the ring physician to do it. This was a total mismatch from the time they signed the contracts. Working the corner for Young was Chino Rivas assisted by Rashiem Jefferson.

The Hottest prospect in Philly since 1984 Olympic Gold medalist Meldrick Taylor is Philly’s Jaron “Boots” Ennis, 6-0 (5), from the Germantown section of the city who showed flashes of greatness and needed a fight like Eddie Diaz, 2-4-2 (0), of Compton, CA, gave him. “I should have done better,” said Ennis. You can’t knock everybody out!

In the opening round Ennis came out orthodox showing very fast hands and going to the body of Diaz. Diaz managed to get some punches to the chin of Ennis. In the second round Ennis continued looking terrific but anytime you are in with a fighter from Compton, CA, which is possibly the baddest city in the country you have to be aware he came to fight. Diaz had a small cut outside of his right eye.

In the third round Diaz would take 3 to land 1 which was usually a right to the head of Ennis. The round was won by Ennis but he got rocked at the bell with a Diaz right to the chin. In the fourth and final round Ennis could not hurt Diaz who was one tough fighter. So Ennis continue to throw combinations and uppercuts to the body of Diaz who never took a back step. Ennis needed a fight like this. “We aren’t taking anymore 143 fights. We will move up to 147,” said Bozy Ennis. The young Ennis had an ice pack on his left hand.

Two judges had it 40-36 and one 39-37. This writer had it 40-36.

In a rematch bantamweight Leroy “Luscious” Davila, 3-0 (1), out of New Brunswick, NJ, had Edgar Torres, 3-4 (0), of Vineland, NJ, on the canvas 3 times with the final one in the second round at 2:03.

Both southpaws scoring well while Davila was very conservative with his punches when all of a sudden out of nowhere he drops Cortes not once but twice. Referee Rosato gave him he the 8 count both times. In the second round Cortes walked right into a lead straight left from Davila putting Cortes on the canvas almost knocked out. Referee Rosato wisely halted it and in no time the ring physician was in the ring administering to Cortes.

Junior welterweight Kenneth “Bossman” Sims, Jr., 7-0 (2), out of Chicago, won a hard fought 6 round decision over Gilbert “Gordo” Venegas, 14-24-5 (8), of E. Moline, IL.

In the opening round Sims goes from orthodox to southpaw having his way with tough veteran Venegas. In the second and third rounds Simms continues to show his skills while Venegas lands an occasional overhand right to the head of Sims. Left hooks by Sims are rocking the iron jawed Venegas.

In the fourth round Sims lands a 3-punch combination and follows with a flurry of punches. In the fifth round Venegas has a small cut along the eyebrow of his left eye. In the sixth and final round Venegas lands his best punch of the fight an overhand right to the head of Simms. This is probably the best round of the fight as both fighters were still throwing leather at the bell!

Judges Gail Jasper, Tom Schreck and Dana Depaolo had it 60-54 as did this writer. Sims was very impressive.

Good looking lightweight Devin “The Dream” Haney, 10-0 (6), out of Las Vegas, defeated southpaw “Mighty” Mike Fowler, 5-3 (2), out of Milwaukees over 8 rounds.
In the opening round Fowler controlled the first half before Haney got his rhythm together and took the second half. In the second and third round Haney unloaded on Fowler who is doing very little in return.

In the fourth Haney is landing 3 punches at a time as the nose of Fowler is bleeding. In the fifth round Haney continued to rock Fowler until referee Rosato wisely halted the fight. ”I fought a good fight especially going to the body,” said Haney. He is one to watch!
In the opening bout a war broke out. Darryl “Dreamking” Bunting, 2-1-2 (1), of Asbury Park, NJ, was stopped by Darryl Gause, 2-0 (1), of Vineland, NJ, in a super middleweight match at 2:14 of the second.

In the opening round it was a slugfest with Bunting having the edge until a right hand from Gause had him out on his feet. It looked like referee Dali might stop it. He gave him a standing count at the bell. In the second round the slugfest continued until once again a Gause right hand drove Bunting across the ring into the ropes Gause jumped on him and referee Dali wisely halted the action.

Ring announcer was Mark Fratto.

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Thomas “Cornflake” Lamanna & Dusty Hernandez-Harrison Thursday in Philly Arena!

Posted on 09/14/2016

Thomas “Cornflake” Lamanna & Dusty Hernandez-Harrison Thursday in Philly Arena!
By: Ken Hissner

You don’t always see two white fighters headlining but Thursday at the 2300 Arena in the Philly Arena a Peltz Boxing Promotion should be a good one and a flip of the coin who the winner will be! CBS Sports Center will televise the show.

Thomas “Cornflake” Lamanna, 21-1 (9), of Millville, NJ, who has won his last five fights and Dusty Hernandez-Harrison, 29-0-1 (16), of D.C. for the vacant USBA welterweight title.

Harrison-Hernandez is coming off a brutal draw and the first event if I am not mistaken without his father Buddy Harrison. Winning the USBA title usually guarantees a ranking in the IBF. In the July USBA ratings Hernandez-Harrison was No. 1 and Lamanna No. 4.

The 8 fight show has Atlantic City’s Anthony “Juice” Young 13-2 (5) against Malik Jackson, 3-9-4 (2), of Newark, NJ, who is a “spoiler”.

Heavyweight Ray “The Cincinnati Kid” Edwards, 11-0-1 (7), of Cinn., OH, is a former football player at Purdue University. His opponent is southpaw Dan Pasciolla, 8-1-1 (0), of Brick, NJ, whose latest win over former IBF Cruiserweight champion Imau Mayfield for the NJ, state title fight was his best showing to date.

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The Hottest prospect in Philly since 1984 Olympic Gold medalist Meldrick Taylor is Philly’s Jaron “Boots” Ennis, 5-0 (5), who has been fighting once a month since turning professional has his father “Bozy” Ennis in his corner. His opponent which would be his toughest to date is Eddie Diaz, 2-4-2 (0), of Torrance, CA, welterweight match-up.

A good prospect is bantamweight Leroy “Luscious” Davila, 2-0 (0), out of New Brunswick, NJ, taking on Edgar Torres, 3-3 (0), of Vineland, NJ. Welterweight Kenneth “Bossman” Sims, Jr., 7-0 (2), out of Chicago meets up with Gilbert Venegas, 14-24-5 (8), of E. Moline, IL. Devin “The Dream” Haney, 9-0 (5), out of Las Vegas battles Mike Fowler, 5-2 (2), out of Milwaukee in a lightweight match. Darryl “Dreamking” Bunting, 2-0-2 (1), of Asbury Park, NJ, meets Darryl Gause, 1-0 (0), of Vineland, NJ, in a super middleweight match.

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HBO World Championship Boxing Preview: Chocolatito vs. Cuadras, Golovkin vs. Brook

Posted on 09/08/2016

HBO World Championship Boxing Preview: Chocolatito vs. Cuadras, Golovkin vs. Brook
By: William Holmes

On Saturday night HBO will broadcast two world championship fights from two different venues. Pound for pound king Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez will be bumping up to the junior bantamweight division to chase after another world title when he faces off against Carlos Cuadras. If he is successful he will have won titles in four different weight classes. Earlier in the day knockout artist Gennady Golovkin will be defending his middleweight titles when he faces welterweight world champion Kell Brook.

The Gonzalez vs. Cuadras bout will take place at the Forum in Inglewood, California and the Golovkin vs. Brook bout will take place at the O2 Arena in London, England on Brook’s home turf. HBO will also be televising a rematch between Yoshihiro Kamegai and Jesus Soto-Karass in the junior middleweight division. Their previous fight was considered by many to be a fight of the year candidate.

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The following is a preview of both world title fights.

Carlos Cuadras (35-0-1) vs. Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez (45-0); WBC Junior Bantamweight Title

Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez is a three division world champion and considered by many to be the best pound for pound boxer in the world today. However, there are limits to how many weight classes an individual can be a champion in and he’s facing a legitimate junior bantamweight world champion.

Gonzalez will be giving up five inches in height and two inches in reach to Cuadras. Cuadras is also one year younger than Gonzalez, but both are in their physical primes.

They both have been fairly active in the past two years. Cuadras fought three times in 2014 and in 2015, and already fought once in 2016. Gonzalez fought four times in 2014, three times in 2015, and once so far in 2016.

They both had experienced success as an amateur. Cuadras is a Pan American gold medalist and a gold medalist in the International Junior Olympics. Chocolatito has an alleged record of 88-0 as an amateur, but does not have any notable international amateur tournament victories.

Chocolatito has beaten the likes of Yutaka Niida, Juan Francisco Estrada, Rocky Fuentes, Akiri Yaegashi, Edgar Sosa, Brian Viloria, and McWilliams Arroyo. Cuadras has defeated the likes of Marvin Mabait, Luis Concepcion, Dixon Flores, Koki Eto, and Richie Mepranum.

Gonzalez has more world title fight experience and has a record of 14-0 in world title fights. Cuadras has a record of 6-0 in world title fights.

Both boxers have considerable power. Cuadras has twenty seven stoppage victories, and three of his past five fights were by stoppage victory. Gonzalez has thirty eight stoppage victories.

It will be interesting to see how Gonzalez handles the length and reach of Cuadras. Gonzalez, who was a world champion in the minimumweight division, will likely be unable to jump additional weight classes if he’s victorious on Saturday and he has a very tough test ahead of him. This should be an entertaining and technical bout, but Gonzalez should be able to pull off the decision victory, but may have his chin tested in the process.

Gennady Golovkin (35-0) vs. Kell Brook (36-0); WBA/WBC/IBF Middleweight Titles

Don’t let the fact that Kell Brook is jumping up two weight classes to fight Gennady Golovkin fool you. Brook is a large welterweight and Golovkin is a smaller middleweight. In fact, Brook has been weighing in heavier than Golovkin in the weeks leading up to the fight.

One of the biggest question marks about Golovkin is his age. He’s thirty four years old and doesn’t have many years left in his prime. His opponent is four years younger than him. Golovkin, however, will have a slight one and a half inch height advantage and a one inch reach advantage.

Despite the fact he’s a major star in boxing, Golovkin has kept a fairly active schedule. He has fought once in 2016, three times in 2015, and three times in 2014. Brook has been having trouble finding a big fight in the welterweight division and fought twice in 2014 and in 2015, and once in 2016.

Golovkin’s power is well known and can be considered legendary. He has thirty two knockouts on his resume and is in the midst of an incredible streak that consists of twenty two wins by knockout in a row. Brook’s power can’t be overlooked, he has stopped twenty five opponents and has one four of his past five fights by stoppage.

Brook will be fighting in front of his home crowd at the O2 arena and that will be a big advantage for him. He has defeated the likes of Kevin Bizier, Frankie Gavin, Ionut Dan Ion, Shawn Porter, Vyacheslav Senchenko, Matthew Hatton, and Luis Galarza.

The last person to go the distance against Golovkin was Amar Amari in 2008. He has steamrolled every boxer he’s faced since then. He has defead the likes of Dominic Wade, David Lemieux, Willie Monroe Jr., Martin Murray, Marco Antonio Rubio, Daniel Geale, Curtis Stevens, Matthew Macklin, Nobuhiro Ishida, Gabriel Rosado, Kassim Ouma, and Grzegorz Proksa.

Golovkin has to be very careful to not overlook Kell Brook. Brook is a very good, technical boxer and is considered by many to be a top 10 pound for pound fighter. Golovkin’s power should be able to lead him to victory, but don’t be surprised if he knockout streak ends on Saturday night.

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