Tag Archives: russell

Posted on 02/10/2020

By: Hans Themistode

Gary Russell Jr not only made a statement inside of the ring by easily defeating Tugstsogt Nyambayar by unanimous decision at the PPL Center in Allentown, Pennsylvania, but he also did so outside of it. Shortly after his win, Russell announced to everyone that he no longer intends on campaigning at the Featherweight division. 

Now why would a fighter who has held his world title for the past five years be content with dropping his belt? Well, that’s an easy question to answer. Since 2015, Russell has stepped inside of the ring just once. His claims of no other title challengers willing to step up and face him might actually be true. 

In the sport of boxing, when you are bereft of a world title, then you’re essentially the hunter. If you are one of the few that reaches championship status then you become the hunted. That just simply isn’t the case with Russell. 

So now, he’s ready to go back on the hunt for a world title, but this time, in another weight class at 135. 

With the move up in weight, the fans should be excited about the possibilities that could be next for him. Let’s take a look at the next best options for Russell in his next ring outing. 

Devin Haney

This seems like a very cruel way to be introduced to the Lightweight division doesn’t it? 

The star power in Russell’s soon to be new division is ridiculous. But none seem to shine brighter than the young Devin Haney. Technically, Haney doesn’t have a belt anymore since he was stripped of his WBC crown following shoulder surgery, but that shouldn’t stop this contest from happening. Both fighters are strong, fast and have the sort of skills that can rival anyones in the entire sport. Haney is the sort of scalp that Russell would love to have on his resume. Now that they are going to be in the same division, he could make that a reality. 

Gervonta Davis

At this point, Gervonta Davis might need Gary Russell Jr more than he realizes. Davis might be a two division undefeated world champion but his lack of competitive opponents is becoming glaring. Russell has been calling out Davis for quite some time now. With all but one of his contests going the distance, Davis is clearly a big puncher. Yet, Russell seems incredulous to that statement. Well, now that they are in the same division, Russell can find out for himself. 

Vasiliy Lomachenko vs Teofimo Lopez Winner 

It may not have been officially announced, but a contest between unified champion Vasiliy Lomachenko and IBF belt holder Teofimo Lopez is going to happen in the next few months. Usually when a fighter moves up in weight, he or she will seldom if ever go straight for the best fighter in the division. Russell, on the other hand, is the sort of fighter who seems more than willing to take on the top dog of the weight class. The winner between Lomachenko and Lopez would most certainly be identified as the number one fighter in the division. A distinction that Russell wants for himself. 

The previously mentioned contest on this list would be great, but this is the fight that Russell would want the most.

Posted on 02/09/2020

Featherweight champion Gary Russell Jr. (31-1, 18 KO) turned away a dangerous challenger Saturday night. He put together a hefty lead and pranced across the finish line against Tugstsogt “King Tug” Nyambayar (11-1, 9 KO), earning a unanimous-decision victory at the PPL Center in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

Russell, defending his WBC crown for the fifth time, was too fast for Nyambayar early on until things evened up in the championship rounds when Russell’s gas tank took a hit. Still, Russell, behind flaring jabs and zipping combinations, bested his opponent, winning 118-110, 116-112, and 117-111. 

The oldest beltholder at 126 pounds, the points win may have been his featherweight envoi.

“We wanted Leo Santa Cruz… we wanted Gervonta Davis,” Russell told Jim Gray after the fight. “If we gotta move up in weight for these guys to feel as though they have some sort of advantage to take the fight, then we’ll do so.”

Holding onto the belt for five years, itching for a new division may give the impression that Russell has cleaned out the ranks at featherweight. But not so. Fighting once per annum, this was just his fifth defense. Anticipation was still high, despite the challenger’s light record on paper, given Nyambayar’s power and Olympic pedigree.

Through the first four rounds, at least, Russell had Nyambayar in check. Both men opened the fight from a crouched position before the challenger took initiative and the center of the ring. Feints and right crosses made up the Mongolian-born technician’s initial attack. Meanwhile flashing double and triple jabs from Russell secured an early lead.

Russell, 31, continued fighting in reverse while southpaw jabs kept flying. It was disciplined maneuvering and a technical jockeying for position in both directions. 

Nyambayar, 27, attempted to parry and cut off the ring but was unable to solve the fluttering puzzle in front of him. Russell, occasionally found himself backed into a corner, yet subtly side-stepped out of danger and, at times, simultaneously skid a right hand across his opponent’s chin.

Nyambayar would eventually get a finger on the trigger in the fifth and sixth stanza. Hooking off his jab and upping the pressure, he touched Russell here and there. Soon enough he found especial success targeting the champion’s body with left hooks.

Quick exchanges opened the seventh session. It began a pattern of Russell’s, who would step into the trenches at the bell before resorting back to circling the outline of the ring. From a comfortable distance, Russell put together his hands upstairs. Through the next handful of rounds Nyambayar forgot about his left hook and instead gladly ate whimsical one-two combos for a chance at a big right hand. 

In Round 10, Russell got off to another good start: his hands moving in short bursts but with little venom. It did not stop Nyambayar from getting off his best moment of the fight. Walking Russell into a corner, the American tried turning out of it to his left, but “King Tug” had a right hand waiting for him. The punch was clean. Russell’s eyes lit up and Nyambayar stung him with another two-handed volley.

Russell gathered himself but seemed sapped in the eleventh frame. Grappling became more prevalent and he was visibly less elusive. Up close, Russell still had an edge in hand speed: initiating phone booth combos with a throw-away punch to Nyambayar’s elbow before immediately following up tp his man’s head with a right-left salvo.

Naturally, there would be no floating like a butterfly in Round 12. Nyambayar assumed the center of the ring and punched through Russell’s guard. Now capable of parrying the champion’s feeble jabs, the Mongolian puncher swiped away incoming blows and stuck out a right hand to mask sweeping left hooks to the body: digging and digging some more. A light shiner emerged under the left eye of Russell. But no matter Nyambayar’s closing effort, the fight was still out of reach. 

Running out the clock, a smile crossed Russell’s face. 

“I’m a perfectionist,” said Russell, who extended his win streak to seven in a row. “We put the work in the gym. I’m one of the longest reigning champions for a reason.”

While the scorecards leaned significantly toward the defending champion, the punch states were nearly dead even. Russell landed 134 of 867 total punches (15 percent), including 104 of 399 power shots (26 percent). Nyambayar, to his credit, connected on 122 of 707 total punches (17 percent) and 101 of 482 power punches (21 percent). 

Rigondeaux is champion again 

Guillermo Rigondeaux (20-1, 13 KO) won a split decision over former champion Liborio Solis (30-6, 14 KO) to claim a vacant WBA bantamweight title, gaining the nod from the judges who had the bout 116-111 and 115-112 in Rigo’s favor and 115-112 for Solis.

In pursuit of a second divisional crown, Rigondeaux, 39, has been full surprises. First, opting to drop down to bantamweight—the opposite direction of most aging fighters. Then doling out fireworks in his eighth-round TKO over Julio Ceja last summer.

Rigondeaux continued his personal renewal in the opening round. Directly in the face of Solis, Rigo was unconcerned with the brawling attack from his opponent, who let loose left uppercuts and hooks. Most were blocked by the Cuban maestro, who would wait for Solis to open up and hurl, vicious straight left hands into the Venezuelan’s exposed chin. 

The gameplan worked well enough at first. That is until a minute later one of those left hooks from Solis landed flush and left Rigo momentarily stunned. Rigondeaux collected himself but just before the bell, Solis caught him again, this time turning, cracking him with a winging right hand, visibly shaking his senses.

Rigondeaux would not take anymore chances. He entered the second round with a new philosophy—better known as his old, tried-and-true approach of technical proficiency. Called boring by most.

So now pawing from mid-range with a jab, the rounds piled up in his corner. Unsurprisingly, followed by audible booing from the audience. 

In Round 7, Rigo did punch in a knockdown. His back against the ropes, he timed Solis perfectly with a long left uppercut. And combined with consecutive heavy left hands, Solis fell into the ropes, which he otherwise would’ve hit the deck. As much was clear to referee Benjy Esteves Jr. who initiated an eight-count.

Solis was also rattled in the tenth inning. But the only takeaway were the additional boos from the crowd when Rigondeaux ran out the clock six minutes later.

A storied amateur career long behind him, and a bewildering quit job to Vasyl Lomachenko still haunting his record, Rigondeaux lacks direction. Against Ceja, and the opening round here, he seemed eager to shake off his dull reputation with the one language every fan speaks: action. But all it took was one clean punch from Solis to convince him otherwise.

Posted on 02/07/2020

By Robert Aaron Contreras

Gary Russell Jr. (30-1, 18 KO) does not move at the same speed as everybody else. Quick to strike but slow to sign, he finally has another worthy challenger, facing Tugstsogt Nyambayar (11-0, 9 KO) in defense of his WBC featherweight championship, headlining a PBC on Showtime billing on February 8 from the PPL Center in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

The fight comes a week after a scalp of Russell’s, that being JoJo Diaz, dethroned former titleholder Tevin Farmer by decision. His own points win over Diaz only looks better in hindsight. And without doubt the oft-criticized American could use the goodwill. Totaling four title defenses since lifting the WBC’s green belt, Russell has routinely maneuvered his way into easy touches and sparse ones at that, turning away Diaz two years ago already.

Fighting on Saturday will be his first since May 2019: par for the course, having fought once a year since 2014. That same year he was wildly outboxed by Vasyl Lomachenko. A year later, in 2015, Russell astonishingly lifted the strap from Jhonny Gonzalez, at the time featherweight’s most lethal hitter.

That was March 2015 when Russell ripped Gonzalez apart, earning a fourth-round TKO. His fists moving in blinding patterns, it was his masterwork. But the frustration surrounding Russell has little to do with him as a fighter instead Russell, the champion, who like his fists, operates at a different frequency, a timetable only he can decipher.

Five years on, Russell, 31, is preparing for just his fifth defense, making an art of inactivity and manipulating time: pushing the sanctioning body’s patience from the sidelines before slipping in a mandatory defense at the eleventh hour. Russell enjoys the throne, transfixed and immovable at the center of a raging continuum. Last May, he even seemed to go backwards in time in order to resurrect Kiko Martinez, presumably from the coffin he had been laying in since his past days as as super bantamweight contender.

Unsurprisingly, Martinez did not last five rounds with Russell. But against every boxer’s will, the clock keeps ticking. Father Time (and gravity, they are related after all) having recently forced out Leo Santa Cruz, Carl Frampton and Oscar Valdez to junior lightweight, Russell is by far the oldest beltholder at 126 pounds. Older than Shakur Stevenson by practically a decade. Of TBRB’s top-8 featherweights in the world, Russell is the only one over the age of 30. Helping round out the Top 10 is Oscar Escandon, 36, who lost three straight before a miraculous upset over Jhack Tepora propelled him into the rankings.

In 2018, Russell pulverized Escandon. It took the champion seven rounds to do it. And that was seven too many for most as the the fight was chided when it was announced. Escandon being only 3-2 in his previous five fights, it was deservedly labeled a squash match.

So what was the difference when a year later Nyambayar, commonly referred to as “King Tug,” did the same thing to Escandon? For starters, Nyambayar did it faster: ending his man’s night in three rounds. Knocking him out in fewer than his previous opponents was just what the former Olympian should aim for. Moreover, the 27-year-old California transplant was just nine bouts into his career, laying the foundation to a healthy career after a notable rise out of Mongolia.

King Tug’s two-handed sequence that left Escandon on his back was a tremendous follow-up to the flash knockdown he suffered just before that against Filipino veteran Harmonito Dela Torre. Nyambayar would otherwise have little trouble, winning a wide decision verdict over eight rounds. But nothing was more impressive than his most recent appearance.

In a WBC eliminator, Nyambayar met Claudio Marrero, who is no slouch of a puncher, and a well scienced southpaw. It was a sink or swim contest for Nyamabar, a hump every blue-chipper has to get over, but not one every blue-chipper welcomes after just 10 fights. He would handle Marrero, stunning him early and eating his opponent’s biggest shots to earn a unanimous decision victory and a date with Russell.

Rigondeaux highlights undercard

In chief support, Guillermo Rigondeaux will be trying his fragile hands at bantamweight. Unlike most aging fighters found ballooning up in age, the 39-year-old Rigo is moving down, from 122 pounds to 118.

Rigondeaux (19-1, 13 KO) will be welcomed to the category with a WBA title fight against Liborio Solis (30-5-1), who years ago briefly held a belt at 115 pounds. The contest will be Rigondeaux’s third performance under the handling of Al Haymon. Opting to sign an exclusive contract with the PBC after calling “no mas” opposite Lomachenko in 2017. The Cuban legend has since won two straight, each by knockout.

Solis 37, is no spring chicken. But his recent run fighting in Latin America, after a failed series of bouts with Jamie McDonnell, has paid off, winning five in a row, including three by KO. Rigondeaoux, despite pushing 40, is still leagues above that competition Solis saw, made up of part-timers and tomato cans.

In other bouts scheduled for the show, Russell’s brothers are also suiting up for action. Sharing the same first name, both Gary Antuanne and Gary Antonio are the undefeated, younger siblings to the featherweight champion. Antuanne, 23, competed in the 2016 Olympics and Antonio, 27, was a runner up in the national amateurs.

Posted on 10/03/2019

By: Hans Themistode

Do you know how long is 50 years? It’s 5 decades, half a century, or in other words just a really long time. Let’s put it this way. In the early 1900s the life expectancy for a human being was roughly 47 years. In short, 50 years can feel like a life time.

It isn’t easy to do anything for that long of a time period. Let alone being a boxing promoter???

The life of a boxing promoter is a short lived one. Putting on great shows, signing fighters and staying relevant is a difficult thing to do. For promoter Russell Peltz, he has managed to accomplish all of the above. This Friday night on October 4th, 2019, Peltz will be celebrating his 50th year in the sport of boxing with a show in his hometown of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the 2300 arena.

Throughout the career of Peltz he has seen it all. From the most obscure fighters to the most world renowned in Muhammad Ali. Boxing has been apart of Peltz life since he can remember. He has produced more than a thousand shows in his long and illustrious career.

For a man that has been through it all in boxing and has reached the mountain top, Peltz has never forgotten the long road he took to get here. At the age of 72, Peltz can recollect just about everything in his boxing career. Including, when he first fell in love with the sport.

“1959,” said Peltz regarding his love affair with boxing. That is when I first fell in love with boxing. I was 12 years old. It was like love at first sight. Growing up I wanted to be a sports writer so I took journalism in college and began my path to making my dreams come true.”

If anyone has ever chased their dreams, no matter if it is in professional sports or something completely different, then you would understand just how much of a grind it is in order to make those dreams come true. Peltz was no different.

“I remember working at a newspaper named the Bulletin and I did the midnight shift. I would work there from midnight until 8 in the morning and straight from there I would head to school from 9 until 1 in the afternoon. It may seem like a lot of work for some people but I was enjoying what I was doing and I was making pretty good money as well.”

No matter how much we believe we can something, we all have the tendency to change our minds don’t we? What was supposed to be just a career in journalism took a bit of an unexpected turn in the life of Peltz.

“There was a time where I wanted to be the boxing writer for the paper. That was my goal in life but the boxing writer at the time had gotten an extension at a time where I thought he was going to retire and I remember thinking to myself, do I want to sit around and wait until this guy dies? I would just watch the clock while I was working and I thought did I really want to just watch the clock for my entire life? I didn’t. I quit shortly after.”

With the help of his many connections, the life of a boxing promoter began shortly after. To the surprise of many, possibly even Peltz, he enjoyed success at an early age but more than anything, there was a sense of fulfillment in the work he was doing.

“When I started promoting I was 22 and no one was doing that so I got a lot of publicity for it. We had some good fighters coming up in the Philadelphia area. Willie Monroe and Cyclone Hart were big time fighters out here. I ran about 15 shows in 7 and a half months. The money wasn’t great but I was enjoying what I was doing. As long as I was able to support myself and do what I loved to do then I was okay with that.”

Throughout the career of Peltz he has managed to see just about every all-time great fighter. Muhammed Ali, Marvin Hagler and countless others have came across his Philadelphia ring. With so many outstanding fighters in his presence it would be difficult to choose who was the very best wouldn’t it? For most of us, including myself. Ali would immediately come to mind, but not for Peltz.

“Ali was great. He was truly an amazing fighter, he is right up there with the best that I have ever seen but I would have to place him number two behind Carlos Monzon. The guy had almost a hundred fights and only lost three of them. He was one of the best fighters ever and personally, he was the best that I had ever seen up close.”

For Peltz he has been able to see boxers from many generations. A common discussion in the world of boxing is too compare eras. Don’t bring Peltz into that conversation. It is one that he has a difficult time indulging in.

“The eras will always influence how a fighter fights. If you take a guy like Mike Tyson and place him in a different era than he would have fought some what similar to the guys of that era. That’s why it is difficult to compare eras. Some guys look at the old school fighters and think that they wouldn’t be able to compete in certain eras but that isn’t true. Guys just fought differently in the eras that they were apart of. Guys also. fought every month back in the day. Fighters today fight just about twice a year so it’s a difference. Would the guys of today be able to fight as many times as the guys did before them and still be able to hold up physically? That’s the question. Guys are bought up with much easier opposition. The best thing to me is to fight an undefeated fighter because 9 out of 10 times he can’t fight.”

Peltz has nothing against a fighter with an undefeated record but he does believe that it can be a bit over blown. It isn’t simply about the records. It should only be about if the guy can actually fight.

“The TV people don’t want the best fighters,” said Peltz when discussing the issue that certain networks have with a fighter. “They want guys with the best record.”

Even without the backing of certain networks, Peltz has continued to put on shows with the sort of fighters that would fail to get recognition in any other circumstances. For his 50th anniversary show, the main event will feature a fighter with a record of 8 wins against 2 defeats. It will also have plenty of fighters with similar records. To Peltz, it isn’t about the record. He was grown up in a time where non of that really mattered.

“There were so many guys who were great fighters but didn’t have perfect records. Some of them didn’t even have particularly good records but still won at the highest levels. Freddie Pendleton won a piece of the lightweight title and he had over 25 losses in his career. A guy like Buster Drayton had numerous losses but he managed to perceiver and win titles as well. There is just too much of an emphasis placed on the win, loss record. I have a fight on my anniversary show where a guy is 0-2 and the other kid 1-4-1. I know it’s going to be a terrific fight. Those kids deserve a platform because too often they are served up as fodder. They get paid more then they usually would to get destroyed by an up and coming prospect. When that happens enough times they just retire and the talent pool gets even thinner. There has to be a platform for kids who are 8-4 who fights another guy who is 6-3 and it is entertaining fight. There has to be an outlet for those kinds of fighters.”

Peltz has successfully created that platform for these fighters. He doesn’t just want to fixate his attention on the undefeated prospects who are destined for greatness. Instead, he has placed an emphasis on fighters who are constantly overlooked to find a home.

Even with the success that Peltz has enjoyed, he still has his hands in the pot of many other ventures in the boxing world as well.

“I’m advising fighters and match making for shows as well. I just want to make competitive fights so that the people in the audience who are paying outrageous amounts of money to go see a fight get their money’s worth.”

50 years is a long time to be doing anything but let’s all hope that he has at least another 50 years left in him. As a kid, Russell Peltz loved the sport of boxing but what he may not realize is that the sport of boxing loves him as well.

Posted on 05/17/2019

By: Hans Themistode

WBC Featherweight champion, Gary Russell Jr (29-1) will make his annual appearance in the ring this coming Saturday night on March 18th, when he takes on former champion Kiko Martinez (39-8-2, 28 KOs). Their contest will be taking place at the Barclay Center in Brooklyn, New York.

Martinez hasn’t held a world title in over five years, he also hasn’t faced anyone of note since a 2017 majority loss to Josh Warrington. This matchup is widely regarded as a mismatch. Although Martinez is just 33 years of age, his fight against Russell will be the 50th of his long career. Since a 2014 loss at the hands of Vasiliy Lomachenko back in 2014, Russell has been nothing short of dominant. He has reeled off five straight wins with three of those victories coming via stoppage.

The problem for Russell is not his talent, but it is his activity level. He has fought just once a year since 2015. High level professional fighters aren’t known for having a rigorous fight schedule. Most step inside of the ring two or three times during a calendar year. Russell’s lack of fights over the years is alarming. If it was up to the current WBC champion he would be much more active. So who exactly is to blame for his lack of activity?

“We have to get one of these fighters to get in the ring. People keep asking why do I compete once a year? It’s not because of me, it’s because none of these fighters are willing to get in the ring and compete against me. None of these champions want to get in the ring with me.”

Russell is a tremendous fighter. He is mostly regarded as possessing the fastest hands in all of boxing. In terms of who exactly are these other champions that don’t want to face him inside of the squared circle, Russell didn’t mince words.

“I wanted Leo Santa Cruz, I wanted Carl Frampton when he was a champion. I want everyone. It seems like I will never get the Cruz fight.”

The frustrations for Russell have seemed to reach their breaking point. The current belt holder has a plan if he doesn’t get the unification bouts that he desires.

“After this Kiko Martinez fight, if I don’t immediately get Leo Santa Cruz then I am vacating my title and I will be moving up to challenge Miguel Berchelt for his WBC title. From there hopefully I can land the Gervonta Davis fight because that is a fight I want as well.”

It sounds as though Russell has his eyes set on bigger and better things going forward. Whether it is a unification fight at 126 or a host of new challenges at 130. The first step however, he must get past the rugged and battle tested veteran Kiko Martinez. According to Russell, don’t expect this contest to go the distance.

“I can’t predict how this fight will go exactly but I don’t think it will last all 12 rounds. I just don’t believe that this guy has the skillset to last all 12 rounds with me.”

Posted on 05/16/2019

By: William Holmes

On Saturday night the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York will host a heavyweight title fight between Deontay Wilder and Dominic Breazeale for the WBC Heavyweight Title.

This bout will be put on by Al Haymon’s Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) and will be televised live on Showtime.

Garry Russell Jr. will also be appearing on the card and will take on Kiko Martinez for Russell’s WBC Featherweight Title.

Photo Credit: Premier Boxing Champions Twitter Account

The following is a preview of both title bouts.

Gary Russell Jr.(29-1) vs. Kiko Martinez (39-8-2); WBC Featherweight Title

Whenever the name of Gary Russell Jr. comes up a debate follows if he’s a legitimate pound for pound fighter or not.

He’s a boxer who’s only blemish on his record came at the hands Vasily Lomachenko, a fighter most will agree is a pound for pound great. However, he’s also a boxer that has only fought once a year since 2015 and frustrates fans for his inactivity.

Russell will be facing Kiko Martinez on Saturday, a 33 year old boxer with eight losses on his resume and five of those losses coming since 2013. Martinez has been very active, as he fought twice in 2018 and three times in 2017. Martinez will also have about a two inch reach advantage and a half inch height advantage over Russell.

However, Russell has a clear edge in his resume of defeated opponents and amateur background. He won several national tournaments as an amateur in the United States and represented the United States in the 2008 Summer Olympics. Martinez does not have the amateur pedigree of Russell.

Russell has defeated the likes of Joseph Diaz, Oscar Escandon, Patrick Hyland, Jhonny Gonzalez, and Christopher Martin. Martinez has defeated the likes of Marc Vidal, Hozumi Hasegawa, Jeffrey Mathebula, and Jhonatan Romero. He has losses to the likes of Carl Frampton (twice), Scott Quigg, Leo Santa Cruz, and Josh Warrington.

Even though Martinez has been more active than Russell, he doesn’t’ have the talent of Russell and has several losses and draws in recent years, including two losses by stoppage. This shouldn’t be a fight that Russell will have issues in.

Deontay Wilder (40-0-1) vs. Dominic Breazeale (20-1); WBC Heavyweight Title

This won’t be Dominic Breazeale’s first chance at a heavyweight title. When he last challenged for the heavyweight title he was stopped in the seventh round by Anthony Joshua.

On paper, it appears unlikely this fight will be much different.

Breazeale has power, as he has stopped eighteen of his opponents, but he also can be stopped, as he only made it to the seventh round when he faced Anthony Joshua. He’ll need a strong chin when he faces Wilder, who has stopped thirty nine of the forty opponents he has faced, and even knocked down Tyson Fury in their disputed draw.

Both boxers stand at 6’7” and Wilder will have a slight one and a half inch reach advantage. Wilder fought twice in 2018 and in 2017 while Breazeale only fought once in 2018 and twice in 2017.

Both boxers represented the United States in the Olympics. Wilder competed in the 2008 Olympics while Breazeale competed in the 2012 Olympics. Wilder however was able to medal while Breazeale did not.

Wilder has beaten the likes of Luis Ortiz, Bermane Stiverne, Gerald Washington, Chris Arreola, Artur Szpilka, Johann Duhaupas, Eric Molina, Malik Scott, and Siarhei Liakhovich.

Breazeale has beaten the likes of Carlos Negron, Eric Molina, Izuagbe Ugonoh, Amir Mansour, Fred Kassi, Yasmany Consuegra, and Victor Bisbal.

Wilder is looking for a big money fight but has remained steadfastly loyal to Al Haymon and Showtime. Dominic Breazeale stands in his way of that big money fight, but it’s an obstacle that Wilder should be able to overcome.

Posted on 05/20/2018

By: William Holmes

Showtime has shown no signs of slowing down in putting on competitive fights with a split site double header on their Showtime World Championship Boxing telecast.

The opening bout of the night was between Gary Russell Jr. (28-1) and Joseph Diaz (26-0) for the WBC Featherweight Title. This bout took place at The Theater at the MGM Grand National Harbor in Maryland.

Joseph Diaz entered the ring first and Russell second to a much louder ovation.

Photo Credit: Showtime Boxing Twitter Account

Both boxers were southpaws and Diaz looked like the bigger fighter, but Russell established early on that he had the better hand speed. He was active with his jab in the opening round and had a strong start to the fight.

Russell continued with his jab in the early parts of the second round, but Diaz had some moderate success to the body and ended the round strong.

The third round was a closer round, but it looked like Diaz was willing to take a few punches from Russell in order to land one punch of his own. Diaz ended the round with two good straight left hands.

Diaz kept a high guard in the fourth and fifth rounds but Russell landed the higher volume of punches while Diaz landed the harder shots to the body. Diaz had a strong fifth round, but Russell came back in the sixth round with his active jab and high volume output.

Russell was the first man to throw and land in the seventh and eighth rounds and looked like he was beginning to walk away with the fight. Russell hand speed was on full display in the ninth round as Diaz was simply not throwing enough punches.

Diaz had a better tenth round and took more risks than earlier rounds, but was also countered more often by the faster Russell.

The final two rounds featured several fierce exchanges, and Russell looked like he was beginning to fade a little bit in the last round, but Diaz wasn’t able to do enough to get a stoppage.
The Judges scored the fight 115-113, 117-111, and 117-111.

The last fight televised by Showtime was a WBC Light Heavyweight Title Fight between Champion Adonis Stevenson (29-1) and challenger Badou Jack (22-1-2) at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Canada.

Stevenson, a southpaw, and Jack, fighting out of an orthodox stance, had spent the better part of two rounds feeling each other out and tried to find their range. Stevenson was able to land some straight left hands in the second and was more active in the third, but Jack was able to land some counters in the third round.

Photo Credit: Showtime Boxing Twitter Account

Jack was able to fire off his punches first in the fourth round but took a good left uppercut from Stevenson with about thirty seconds left. Stevenson was the aggressor in the fifth and sixth rounds while Jack fought mainly out of a tight high guard. Jack was warned for a low blow at the end of the sixth round.

Jack started to come forward in the seventh round and hurt Stevenson with a short right hand followed up by combinations. Jack was snapping the head of Stevenson in the seventh with his uppercuts, but he was warned for a low blow again at the end of the round.

Jack opened up the eighth round with another low blow and Adonis Stevenson was given time to recover. Jack followed up with short right hooks and uppercuts and was able to bust open the nose of Badou jack.

Jack looked like the fresher fighter in the ninth round and had Stevenson stumbling at one point. Stevenson was able to come back and have a strong tenth round when he hurt Jack with a body shot and had Jack peddling backwards.

Stevenson pressed the pace early on in the eleventh round and had Jack in full retreat, but he tired in the middle of the round and Jack re-established dominance in the ring.

Both boxers were able to land some good shots in the final round, but Jack ended the fight strong with a hard combination as the final bell rang.

The judges scored the bout 114-114, 115-113 Jack, 114-114 for a majority draw.

Adonis Steven retains the title with a draw.

Posted on 05/18/2018

By: William Holmes

On Saturday night Showtime network will broadcast two fights from two separate locations on a split site feature.

One fight will feature a WBC Light Heavyweight Title Fight between current champion Adonis Stevenson and the Swedish fighter Badou Jack. This bout will be taking place in Toronto, Canada at the Air Canada Centre. The other bout will be a WBC Featherweight Title between Gary Russell Jr. and Joseph Diaz Jr.

Photo Credit: Badou Jack Twitter Account

The following is a preview of both televised fights.

Adonis Stevenson (29-1) vs. Badou Jack (22-1-2); WBC Light Heavyweight Title

Adonis Stevenson has often been mentioned as one of the best light heavyweights in the world along with Sergei Kovalev and Andre Ward, but neither of those fights have ever come to fruition and he’s no forty years old and past his athletic prime.

Stevenson will face a very tough opponent in Badou Jack. Jack is six years younger than Stevenson, but has also been more active. He fought twice in 2017 and once in 2016, while Stevenson only fought once in 2017 and once in 2016.

Stevenson will also be giving up about two inches in height to Jack, but he will have a four inch reach advantage. Stevenson will be fighting in his home country which shouldn’t be a big surpise since he has only fought outside of Canada two times. This will be Jack’s first fight outside of the United States since 2010.

Both boxers had successful amateur careers. Stevenson was a Canadian National Champion and Jack was a Swedish National Champion and a competitor in the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Stevenson has defeated the likes of Andrzej Fonfara, Thomas Williams Jr., Tommy Karpency, Sakio Bika, Tony Bellew, Tavoris Cloud, Chad Dawson, and Donovan George. His lone loss was the Darnell Boone, which he later avenged.

Jack also has a good professional resume, though his level of competition in recent fights surpasses that of Stevenson. His lone loss was a shocking TKO upset loss to Derek Edwards in 2014. He has two draws against James DeGale and Marco Antonio Periban. He has defeated the likes of Nathan Cleverly, Lucian Bute, George Groves, Anthony Dirrell, and Marco Antonio Periban.

If this fight happened five years ago Stevenson would have to be considered the favorite. But he’s now forty years old and has been fairly inactive recently while Jack has been steadily facing tougher and tougher competition.

If this fight goes to the Judges scorecards Stevenson may have a slight edge since the fight is happening in Canada, but the timing feels right for Jack to pull off a victory.

Gary Russell Jr. (28-1) vs. Joseph Diaz Jr. (26-0); WBC Featherweight Title

Golden Boy Promotions needs to be given credit for their willingness to throw their fighters in the ring with top fighters from other promotions. The Diaz-Russell fight is a good example of Golden Boy taking a risk by putting one of their top guys against an established champion.

Diaz is twenty five and will be four years younger than Russell. However, Joseph Diaz has been very active since 2016. He fought once in 2018, twice in 2017 and four times in 2016. Russell only fought once in 2017, 2016, and in 2015.

Diaz will have about an inch and a half reach height advantage and both boxers have the same reach. They both represented the United States in the Summer Olympics, Russell in 2008 and Diaz in 2012.

Diaz is a southpaw, and the only boxer that Russell lost to, Vasyl Lomachenko, was a southpaw. It will be interesting to see what adjustments Russell has made since he last fought Lomachenko.

Russell represents the biggest test of Diaz’s young career. He has defeated the likes of Victor Terrazas, Rafael Rivera, Manuel Avila, Jayson Velez, and Ruben Tamayo.

Russell has been fairly inactive for a world champion, but has defeated some very good fighters. He has defeated the likes of Oscar Escandon, Patrick Hyland, Jhonny Gonzlaez, and Christopher Martin. His lone loss was the Vasyl Lomachenko, who has since jumped up two weight classes to dethrone Jorge Linares as the Lightweight Champion.

Russell’s inactivity should be of concern to his camp, especially since he’s facing a young, undefeated, challenger who has a strong amateur pedigree.

This fight will be close, but age and activity has this writer giving Diaz a slight edge on Saturday night.

Posted on 05/09/2018

Compiled By: William Holmes

The following is the Boxing Insider notebook for the week of May 1st to May 8th; covering the comings and goings in the sport of boxing that you might have missed.

Gary Russell and His Brothers to Compete on Same Card on May 19th

The Russells of Capitol Heights, Maryland will team up again for an exciting night of boxing for their hometown fans. Three of the five boxing brothers, all trained by their father, Gary, Sr., will compete on the same card for the second time in their careers at MGM National Harbor in Maryland on Saturday, May 19.

The event is headlined by Gary Russell, Jr. defending his featherweight world title against mandatory challenger Joseph Diaz Jr. live on SHOWTIME (10 p.m. ET/PT). His brothers, super lightweight Gary Antuanne Russell and bantamweight Gary Antonio Russell will compete in separate non-televised bouts on the undercard.

Tickets for the event, which is promoted by TGB Promotions in association with Golden Boy Promotions, are on sale now and are available by visiting http://mgmnationalharbor.com/.

The 21-year-old Gary Antuanne (5-0, 5 KOs) will take on Wilmer Rodriguez (9-2, 7 KOs) in an eight round 140-pound match. Russell was a member of the U.S. boxing team at the 2016 Olympic games. He made his professional debut fighting on the same card as his other two brothers at MGM National Harbor last May 20 when he scored a TKO victory over Josh Ross. With his brothers and father working his corner at his last fight, he scored a stoppage victory over Andrew Rodgers in Brooklyn on April 21.

Gary Antonio (10-0, 8 KOs) will battle Esteban Aquino (12-4, 7 KOs) in an eight-round bantamweight match. Russell scored a knockout victory over Marco Antonio Mendoza Chico in his last fight on Nov. 21 and the card with his brothers last May 20, the 25-year-old Russell stopped Jovany Fuentes for a TKO victory.

In additional undercard action, Cobia Breedy (10-0, 4 KOs) will fight in an eight-round featherweight match and Immanuel Aleem (17-1-1, 10 KOs) steps into the ring for a 10-round middleweight match. Plus, Moshea Aleem (4-1-2, 2 KOs) battles Rayton Okwiri (2-0, 1 KO) in a six-round super welterweight match and Brandon Quarles (18-4-1, 9 KOs) clashes with Fred Jenkins, Jr. (10-5, 3 KOs) in an eight-round super welterweight bout.
Marine Takes on Royal Marines in UK Boxing Match

Marine Corporal Christian Valdes, of Silver Springs, MD, will be competing in a boxing match against the Royal Marines in London, England on May 8th at 2 p.m. eastern. You can watch his boxing match against the Royal Marines via webcast or on our satellite coordinates below.

Marines from the Marine Corps Boxing Team travelled to the United Kingdom to participate in a military-to-military training exchange culminating in a boxing competition against the Royal Marines May 8, 2018. The United States Marine Corps and Royal Marines will use the competition to celebrate their shared warfighting culture, values and military partnership. The U.S. Marine fighters have been handpicked from units in Southern California to represent the United States Marine Corps in the ring against the Royal Marines.

WHO: Corporal Christian Valdes
WHAT: Boxing Match between US Marines & Royal Marines
WHERE: London, England
WHEN: Tuesday, May 8th at 2 p.m. eastern
HOW: Via webcast and Satellite coordinates (below additional info)

Webcast Link to Boxing Matches : https://www.dvidshub.net/webcast/15204

Carlos Adames Ready for ESPN Spotlight

Carlos ‘Caballo Bronco’ Adames no longer wants to be the welterweight division’s best-kept secret. The undefeated 24-year-old from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, is seeking to make a statement on one of the biggest stages imaginable.

Adames (13-0, 11 KOs) will face Alejandro Barrera in a 10-round bout as the ESPN-televised co-feature to Jorge Linares’ WBA and Ring Magazine lightweight title defense against Vasiliy Lomachenko on Saturday at Madison Square Garden. Adames, who will be making his debut under the Top Rank banner, has not fought in the United States since his fourth pro bout back in 2015.

“I feel like I carry the responsibility of becoming the superstar that my country is waiting for,” Adames said. “I have the talent, dedication and confidence to become a superstar that represents the Dominican Republic. I’m going to give it all for my country.”

Adames, a go-for-broke puncher, turned pro in 2015 following a storied amateur career that saw him win gold medals at the Pan American Youth Championships and the Dominican Republic Youth National Championships, among other tournaments. Last July, he picked up the most impressive win of his pro career, shutting out former IBF junior middleweight champion Carlos Molina over 11 rounds. Adames gained invaluable experience when he sparred with pound-for-pound elite Terence Crawford roughly two years ago.

“I sparred some good rounds with Crawford, and I did very well against one of the best fighters in the world,” Adames said. “That gave me a lot of confidence, and it showed me that I could go very far as a fighter.”

Standing in his way is Barrera (27-4, 17 KOs), a veteran from Monterrey, Mexico, whose only stoppage defeat came to current IBF welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. in 2015.

“I’m going to leave it all in the ring and put on a great show for the fans that will be present at Madison Square Garden and for the millions that will be watching live on ESPN,” Adames said. “I want to tell everyone to get their snacks and drinks ready because I am going for the knockout. Watch out. ‘Caballo Bronco’ is coming.’”

Linares vs. Lomachenko and Adames vs. Barrera will be televised live and exclusively at 8:00 p.m. ET on ESPN and ESPN Deportes, and undercard bouts will stream live on ESPN+, available through the ESPN App, beginning at 4:30 p.m. ET.

Roy Jones Jr. and Evander Holyfield to Attend Atlantic City Card at the Claridge

Two of the greatest fighters of all-time, former cruiserweight and heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield and former four division world champion Roy Jones, Jr. will be special guests as Mis Downing Promotions will officially kick off the Atlantic City Boxing Hall of Fame 2nd Annual Induction Weekend on Friday, June 1st, with a great night of professional boxing at The Claridge: A Radisson Hotel.

The fight card on Friday June 1st in the Celebrity Theater at the Claridge Hotel will precede a great show that will take place the next evening Saturday June 2nd at Historic Boardwalk Hall {Adrian Phillips Theater} where Mis Downing Promotions will be working in associating with 4-Time Heavyweight Champ Evander “Real Deal” Holyfield and his promotional company Real Deal Sports & Entertainment.

“To have Evander and Roy attend my fight card will just add to a great night and weekend in Atlantic City. These are 2 of the legends of the sport, and knowing that they will be in attendance on June 1st, that will inspire all of the fighters even more,” Said Mis Downing, CEO of Mis Downing Promotions.

In the main event, super middleweight Derrick Webster (25-1, 13 KOs) of Glassboro, New Jersey will take part in a ten-round bout.
Jaron Ennis to Take On Mike Arnaoutis

On Friday, June 1st Rising Welterweight Contender, Jaron “Boots” Ennis (19-0 17ko) headlines Rising Star Promotions newly created series “Boardwalk Boxing” Round 2 taking on battle tested, former USBA, NABO Champion and World Title challenger “Mighty” Mike Arnaoutis (26-10-2 13ko) at the beautiful Showboat Hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

“Boots” comes from a fighting family with his brothers Farah and Derek “Pooh” Ennis along with trainer/father Derek “Bozy” Ennis. Turning pro on April 30th of 2016, Ennis has been very active almost fighting 10 times a year. Ennis will be scheduled to box his first 10 round bout on the Boardwalk.

“This is going to be a great night of boxing, not only for us and the fighters, but for the City of Atlantic City and the State of New Jersey” Rising Star VP Thomas “Cornflake” LaManna says during a brief interview. “Atlantic City has a HUGE history of boxing and I think it’s great that a venue like The Showboat Hotel has gone the extra mile for us to be able to continue bringing Elite Level club show boxing to this reviving city”.

Mike Arnaoutis is no stranger to the big fights. The Pride of Athens Greece is the toughest test to date to the much younger Ennis. Arnaoutis has been in the ring with World Class opposition like Danny Garcia, Kendall Holt, Chris Algieri, Victor Ortiz, Demetrius Hopkins and Delvin Rodriguez to name a couple.

LaManna continued to quote “This is a test that Boots needs but to me, Jaron Ennis is hands down one of the best fighters not only in Philadelphia, but in the country. I see Boots’ story turning out to be like Terrance Crawford, he might be unknown to certain people and outlets outside of Philadelphia and/or the Tri-State area, but once he gets that breakout fight and TV appearance, he will become a superstar and I’m happy to be apart of that journey in any way, shape or form”.

The June 1st undercard is headlined by two NEW JERSEY STATE TITLE FIGHTS

Undefeated Chris “Sandman” Thomas (8-0-1) of Beachwood will be taking on Asbury Park’s Daryl “DreamKing” Bunting (3-3-1) for the NEW JERSEY STATE MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP.

Brick, New Jersey’s Dan Pasciolla (9-2-2) defends his State title against Vineland’s undefeated former Flordia, Marlins Center Fielder Quian Davis (4-0-2 2ko) for the NEW JERSEY STATE HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP.

Undercard will feature Rising Star Promotions own Donald “No Love” Smith and Nahir “Woo” Albright both of Philadelphia. Afghanistan War Veteran Ernesto “Tito” Perez, Yurik “DBSBC” Mamedov, Joel De La Paz, Michael Lee and Angel Pizarro.

Appearing in six-rounds bouts will be lightweight Christina Linardatou (9-1, 5 KOs) of Athens, Greece; super lightweight John Bauza (9-0, 5 KOs) of North Bergen, NJ; heavyweight Darmani Rock (11-0, 7 KOs) of Philadelphia, PA; featherweight Kevin Asmat (3-2, 2 KOs) of North Bergen, NJ.

Seeing action in four-round bouts will be pro debuting super welterweight Isaiah Hart of Atlantic City; featherweight James Wilkins (3-0, 3 KOs) of Brooklyn, NY; super featherweight Javier Oquendo (3-0, 1 KO) of Philadelphia and super lightweight Osnel Charles (12-18-1, 2 KOs) of Atlantic City.

Tickets are $150 for VIP Ringside; $120 for Stage seating; $85 for Premium Seating and $60 for General Admission

Posted on 04/25/2018

Compiled By: William Holmes

The following is the Boxing Insider notebook for the week of April 17th to April 24th; covering the comings and goings in the sport of boxing that you might have missed.

Photo Credit: Mikey Williams/Top Rank

Injury Rehabilitation Forces Keith Thurman to Relinquish WBC Belt

Unified welterweight champion Keith Thurman has voluntarily relinquished his WBC title while he recovers from the effects of elbow surgery last year and a hand injury he suffered in training camp last month.
After speaking with WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman recently, Thurman decided that he would relinquish the title and open the way for former champions Danny Garcia and Shawn Porter, the two leading contenders for the WBC title, to fight each other for the championship while Thurman made a full recovery from his injuries.

“Due to my rehabilitation from my injuries, I agreed to relinquish my WBC title at this time. I continue to rehab my hand and elbow and I look forward to getting back in the ring this summer. This is a temporary setback and I will be the unified champion once again and look forward to winning back my WBC title as soon as possible,” said Thurman.

“Keith Thurman unfortunately has suffered two consecutive injuries that have kept him out of the ring after his sensational victory over Danny Garcia and he has graciously relinquished his title, and the WBC has mandated that Danny Garcia and Shawn Porter will fight for the title,” said Mauricio Sulaiman. “Keith will have a direct path to fight for the title once he has healed just as Vitali Klitshcko and other WBC champions have done in the past. Keith is a tremendous athlete, champion and role model. The WBC will support him completely during this difficult time. ”

Garcia (34-1, 20 KOs), a former unified champion at 140 pounds and the former WBC welterweight champion, lost the WBC title to Thurman by 12-round split decision in 2017. He bounced back with a knockout victory over former champion Brandon Rios in February. The WBC had made that fight a title elimination match, which put Garcia in line to fight Thurman again for the title.

Porter (28-2-1, 17 KOs), a former welterweight champion, lost a close 12-round decision to Thurman in 2016. He became the mandatory challenger for the WBC title when he knocked out Andre Berto last year. He maintained his status with a 12-round decision over Adrian Granados in November.

The 29-year-old Thurman (28-0, 22 KOs) has been plagued by a string of injuries the last two years.
Thurman injured his neck in a car accident in February 2016, which delayed his match against Porter by three months. When they met Thurman defeated Porter by unanimous decision on June 25.

He defeated Garcia by split decision in a welterweight unification match on March 4, 2017. A month later he had major surgery on his right elbow to remove bone spurs and calcium deposits. He is still in rehabilitation from that surgery.

Thurman injured his hand hitting the heavy bag last month and aggravated the injury sparring with some amateurs at his gym in St. Petersburg, Florida. An MRI revealed bruises to the metacarpal bones in the hand, which also has extensive swelling. Thurman can’t have any impact with the hand for at least 8 weeks, which added another delay to his ring return.

He now hopes to return to the ring in the late summer or early fall.

Jessie Magdaleno: I’m Going to Put on a Spectacular Show

World Boxing Organization (WBO) junior featherweight champion Jessie Magdaleno has spent his latest training camp running the mountains near Guadalajara, Mexico, and alongside some of the world’s best fighters at Legendz Boxing in Norwalk, Calif. Magdaleno is preparing for the role of main event headliner against No. 1 contender and interim champion Isaac Dogboe (18-0, 12 KOs) on Saturday, April 28 at The Liacouras Center in Philadelphia.

“I’m mentally ready. I’m physically ready,” Magdaleno said. “Being here with {trainer} Manny Robles keeps me ready. The sparring has been great, but I get impatient sometimes and just want to get in the ring for real. I have to stay calm and wait until the fight comes.”

Said Robles: “Dogboe is a real tough opponent. Jessie definitely has to be ready for this fight, and it should be a fan-friendly fight.”

Magdaleno (25-0, 18 KOs) won the world title with a unanimous decision over four-weight world champion Nonito Donaire on Nov. 5, 2016. He has defended his belt once, a second-round stoppage over Adeilson Dos Santos last April. When Magdaleno steps into the ring against Dogboe, it will have been 371 days since the Dos Santos fight.

“It’s been a long training camp, and I’ve been training with some excellent fighters,” Magdaleno said. “I was with {WBO featherweight champion} Oscar Valdez in Mexico, and now, it’s the home stretch. We’re more than ready to get back in the ring.”

The pre-fight drama escalated last month when Dogboe’s father/trainer, Paul Dogboe, told Ghana’s Pulse website: “We hope Magdaleno will not run like a chicken. We hope he makes the weight and comes in with no excuses because we are ready for him. We are ready to eat him like a chicken. We are focused, and our only mission is to devour him, eat the crazy chicken, throw him over the wall of Mexico and present the title to Donald Trump. Magdaleno will run when he sees Isaac.”

Paul Dogboe has since apologized, and Magdaleno is intent on doing his talking inside the ring.
“It’s about experience, staying focused, and doing our job,” Magdaleno said. “Manny keeps me focused on the fight, and that is my main concern.”

Magdaleno-Dogboe will be televised LIVE on ESPN and stream in English and Spanish on the ESPN App at 7 p.m. ET. Undercard bouts will stream live on ESPN+, available on the ESPN App, beginning at 4 p.m. ET. ESPN Deportes will air the fight at 10 p.m. ET.

Promoted by Top Rank, in association with Peltz Boxing, tickets, priced at $100 (ringside), $65 and $35, are ON SALE NOW and can be purchased at The Liacouras Center Box Office and www.liacourascenter.com, or by calling Peltz Boxing at 215-765-0922.

Adonis Stevenson to Face Badou Jack May 19th in Toronto

Undefeated knockout artist Adonis Stevenson, the longest reigning light heavyweight world champion, will defend his title against two-division champion Badou Jack on Saturday, May 19 live on SHOWTIME from the Air Canada Centre in Toronto in an event presented by Premier Boxing Champions.

The showdown between Stevenson and Jack is one of the most intriguing matches in the light heavyweight division as Jack, a former 168-pound and 175-pound champion, has relinquished his title for the chance to challenge one of the hardest hitters in the sport. Both men are looking to make their claim as the class of the division.

Stevenson vs. Jack is part of a split-site SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING® telecast beginning at 10 p.m. ET/PT with featherweight champion Gary Russell, Jr. defending his title against mandatory title challenger Joseph Diaz from the MGM National Harbor in Maryland on Saturday, May 19.

Tickets for the Toronto show, which is promoted by Groupe Yvon Michel, Lee Baxter Promotions and Mayweather Promotions, are on sale Friday, April 27 and will be available at www.ticketmaster.ca.
“It is the second time that we will come to Toronto to promote a WBC world championship fight with Adonis Stevenson,” said Yvon Michel, President of Groupe Yvon Michel. “If you found the first event to be spectacular, be sure not to miss the second one as it will be a real firework! Badou Jack is a two-division world champion and an Olympian. He is dangerous and by far the biggest challenge for Adonis since he won the title against Chad Dawson in 2013. We are confident that ‘Superman’ has what it takes to defend his title successfully for the ninth time.

“I would also like to give thanks to our co-promoter Lee Baxter. This event would not have been possible without his collaboration. In addition, I am grateful for Lee and Wayne Zronik from MLSE, who are providing great support for this event and has opened the doors of the Air Canada Centre to us.”

“Mayweather Promotions is looking forward to partnering with Groupe Yvon Michel to pull off this highly anticipated matchup,” said Leonard Ellerbe, CEO of Mayweather Promotions. “Adonis Stevenson has been a reigning champion in this division since 2013. Badou Jack has risen to every challenge he’s faced in his career. Now, he has an opportunity to become a three-time world champion and that raises the stakes for him. I predict two confident, hard-punching and highly skilled fighters will enter the ring at Air Canada Centre on May 19, both determined to walk away a champion.’’

“We are looking forward to hosting this spectacular event at Air Canada Centre,” said Wayne Zronik, Senior Vice President, Music and Live Events at Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment. “It is the first title fight that the venue will host. We’ve worked with this group before to bring world class boxing to the city and are excited for the return of championship boxing to Toronto, and to Air Canada Centre in particular.”

Stevenson (29-1, 24 KOs) owns one of the most powerful left hands in boxing and goes by the ring moniker “Superman’’. The 40-year-old Stevenson has made eight successful defenses of his title since winning it with a knockout victory over Chad Dawson in 2013. The lineal 175-pound champion most recently defended his title with a second-round stoppage of Andrzej Fonfara last June and delivered a third round TKO over Tommy Karpency in his most recent defense in Toronto in 2015.

“I’m definitely excited and hungry to get into the ring and perform,” said Stevenson. “I’ve trained very hard for this fight against Badou Jack. I’m looking forward to winning this fight by knockout. I’m from the Kronk Gym and we always look for the knockout. Jack is a good, technical boxer. He was a world champion and he has done very well. He’s tough and I won’t underestimate him. I’ll be prepared for anything he brings in the ring.

“I’m fighting him at home in Canada, so I’m looking to give the fans a good show. I’ve got power and I’ve got the best left hook in boxing. I’ve got 12 rounds and I just need to touch you once to end it. It’s not complicated. I don’t need three or four shots. I just need one shot and you’re not going to recover. I’m going to finish you.”

The 34-year-old Jack (22-1-2, 13 KOs) relinquished his 168-pound world championship following a majority draw against James DeGale in 2017 to move up to light heavyweight. He made a successful debut at 175 pounds by knocking out Nathan Cleverly for the light heavyweight championship last August. Jack then relinquished that title to seek out this challenge against the division’s heaviest hitter. Born in Stockholm, Sweden, a 2008 Olympian for his father’s native Gambia and now residing in Las Vegas, Jack is looking to become a three-time world champion on his opponent’s home turf on May 19.

“I’m excited to have the opportunity to fight for my third world title against one of the division’s best, Adonis Stevenson,” said Jack. “I’ve been asking for this fight for a long time and was willing to fight him anywhere, including his backyard. I know he’s good and very dangerous and that’s the reason I want to fight him. I’m all about the best fighting the best and come May 19th, I’m bringing the WBC belt back to Las Vegas. My newborn son, Malik was born just before training camp so now I have two children to fight for, which gives me all the motivation I need to get this win.”

Gary Russell Jr. vs. Joseph Diaz Press Conference Quotes

WBC Featherweight World Champion Gary Russell Jr. (28-1, 17 KOs) and unbeaten No. 1 contender Joseph “JoJo” Diaz Jr. (26-0, 14 KOs) hosted a press conference and faced off for the first time Tuesday before their championship showdown Saturday, May 19 live on SHOWTIME from MGM National Harbor in Maryland.

Tickets for the event, which is promoted by TGB Promotions in association with Golden Boy Promotions, are on sale now and are available by visitinghttp://mgmnationalharbor.com/.

The Russell vs. Diaz fight is part of a split-site SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast that will feature WBC Light Heavyweight World Champion Adonis Stevenson defending his title against two-division world champion Badou Jack in a main event from Toronto presented by Premier Boxing Champions.

Russell Jr., a 2008 U.S. Olympian and 126-pound titleholder since 2015, will defend against his mandatory challenger in the 25-year-old Diaz, who represented the U.S. at the 2012 Olympic games and will be competing in his first title bout.

Here is what the fighters had to say Tuesday from TAP Sports Bar at MGM National Harbor:
GARY RUSSELL JR.

“It’s amazing to be fighting at home. It’s cool to know that the people I see around all the time will be able to get in the car and drive 15 minutes to come watch this massacre. I can’t wait.

“I appreciate JoJo for being honest and saying that he feels I’m the best featherweight in the world. That speaks volumes.

“We stay focused in the gym. The inactivity doesn’t mean anything. It’s no issue. I’ve had hand issues in the past but I’m able to preserve my body and stay sharp, stay focused. I’m a fighter that’s always in shape. I never take a day off. You can ask my wife. On anniversaries, we’re in the gym. On birthdays, we’re in the gym.

“Regardless of what the situation is, you want a sense of financial stability for yourself and your family. I’m at the point of my career where I have maybe six more fights in me. We want to maximize everything. We want to maximize our revenue and it’s been irritating because a lot of the champions don’t want to get in the ring with me. I appreciate JoJo for giving me the opportunity to sharpen my teeth a little bit more. At least he’ll have the opportunity to say he got in the ring with Mr. Gary Russell Jr.

“I’m one of the most dangerous fighters on the planet. Speed, power, ring IQ, we can get ugly if we need to. I don’t plan on going 12 rounds. I’m not going the distance with anybody for the remainder of my career. Mark my words.

“When you have guys that fight and move around a lot, it makes it difficult to get to them the way you want to. When you have a guy that is straightforward and will be in your face, it makes it much easier for me and they’re much more susceptible to get hit.

“A lot of fighters win with pure athleticism because they’re faster, stronger or in better shape. They’re not winning because they have the ability to make the necessary adjustments based on what goes on in the ring. I tell people all the time that boxing is intellect manifested on a physical form. In most cases, the more intelligent fighter wins.

“My father says that whenever you see a fight that is an all-out, knockdown war, it’s just two stupid fighters that didn’t have a plan B or the ability to make the adjustments to make the fight easier. If that’s JoJo’s game plan, it’s going to make this fight a lot easier for me. It’s not going 12 rounds.

“As far as a hit list of my next opponents goes, we are first going to take care of JoJo. I would love to get a unification bout with Leo Santa Cruz after that. If we don’t get that, I plan on moving up in weight and challenging whoever has the title in that division. You want to know who I really want, though? I want Mikey Garcia.

“My last fight will be against (Vasyl) Lomachenko. I want to conclude my career with breaking my foot off of him. That will be the conclusion of it. I’m willing to wait, though. Right now, we’re good.
“Of course I would entertain a fight with Gervonta Davis. We’re cool. He’s somebody that I actually watched grow up and develop as a fighter, but you have to stay in your lane. When I move up in weight, he’s got to get out of the way or he’s going to get ran over too.

“I didn’t want to come home to fight until I had a world title. That’s the reason I didn’t fight at home for so long. Now we have the title, and I wanted to fight at least one more time here.

“I want to maximize our revenue because I don’t plan on fighting for too much longer. I had my first fight at seven years old. I’m 29 now. That’s a long time competing and a lot of wear and tear on your body. I’m a guy that doesn’t cut corners, so it takes away from the time I could be spending with my family and friends. I’m ready to spend time with my family and children and live out the fruits of our labor. But in the meantime, everybody else is in my way. They’re trying to take food off my baby’s plate.”

JOSEPH DIAZ JR.

“I don’t think the fact that I’ve been more active will give me any advantage. I’m just doing what I’m supposed to be doing and getting the experience I need inside the ring before facing an elite fighter like Gary Russell Jr. My preparation has been good. I’ve fought tremendous opponents and I have all the experience to come out victorious May 19.

“It doesn’t affect me at all fighting in his hometown. I’m happy to fight in his backyard. He’s the champion and that’s what champions get to do. I know what he’s capable of doing. He says I don’t have the boxing IQ or the power and speed that he has, but he’s going to be in for a rude awakening come fight night. He’s going to see that I have all the tools.

“It’s a dream come true to be fighting on this stage. Ever since I roomed with Errol Spence at the Olympics, we always promised each other that once we became pro we were going to fight all the elite athletes and the best champions. Gary Russell Jr. is the best at 126 pounds. I’m not scared to fight him and that’s what Errol Spence did, too. He beat Kell Brook in his hometown.

“Gary Russell Jr. is by far the best featherweight in the world. Leo Santa Cruz, Abner Mares, Lee Selby, none of these guys want to fight Russell. They’re afraid of the speed and the counter shots. But I know what I’m capable of doing and I’ll showcase it May 19.

“A win would mean everything for me. It would be a dream come true realizing all of the hard work I’ve put in since I was 13 years old. It would mean that I’m the champion and I’d be the shot caller.

“I think his speed is an obstacle; he’s very fast. But that’s the thing about me, I’m good at adapting to any style that I fight. Come fight night I know that his speed is going to be fast, but it’s nothing that I won’t be able to take, or nothing that will shock me. I’m going to be able to adapt to that speed and make sure I’m able to land my shots when he’s opening up.

“I’m very confident; 100 percent confident I’ll beat him. I know that this is an opportunity that is presented to me and I’ll be victorious. I’ve always prayed to God that I could fight on SHOWTIME and for a WBC title. And now that I am it feels like it’s all settling in and it’s all coming true. I’m working hard every single day, and once I get my hand raised in victory I’m going to go from there.

“If he gets a little bit over confident like he did against [Oscar] Escandon, he’s going to be in for a rude awakening. He’s going to be shocked with not only my punching power, but also with my combinations and with my speed. I’m not like a Jhonny Gonzalez where I’m just throwing one shot, or slow combinations. I’m pretty fast with my punches and you won’t see my punches coming because I throw them very elusive and I punch from different angles. He’s going to be very shocked if he fights the way he fought Oscar Escandon.

“I don’t think it’s going to go the distance. Gary Russell is going to go out there and not back down and give the fight fans a good show, but I’m going to go out there and give a good show and not back down. So I think we’re both not going to back down and we’re going to brawl it out, and let the best man win.”

Sullivan Barrera Expects Bounce Back Performance on Kovalev-Alvarez Undercard

Light heavyweight contender Sullivan “Sully B” Barrera is back in training camp armed with a new fight date and a fresh attitude.

The former Cuban amateur standout admits that not much went right in his March 3rd loss to Dmitry Bivol but chalks it up to an off night and said that it was a learning experience.

Barrera is back with his team but has also added a sports psychologist to his squad in an effort to make sure a repeat of March 3rd doesn’t happen.

“I feel great. I know that was just one bad night. I am not worried about the past and only looking ahead,” Barrera explained.

The plan is for Barrera to return to the ring sometime in the summer on the Sergey Kovalev-Eleider undercard and he hopes to fight the winner next.

“I think the fans know that I always want to fight the best out there. After this fight I want another big fight. My goal is to fight whoever wins between Kovalev and Alvarez,” said Barrera.

“Boxing is like sex. You can be the best lover in the world but sometimes you have an off night. My fiancee knows I am the best even if I don’t perform as well one night. I want to get back in the ring and show the world my best again.”

Posted on 03/26/2018

By: Ken Hissner

Philly’s Avery Sparrow puts all his trust in his promoter IBHOF promoter/matchmaker J Russell Peltz. He is currently No. 14 in the WBO ratings due to a victory over previous No. 5 Jose Lopez.

This is what Peltz had to say about his fighter when he was introduced first while fighting an opponent from Nogales, Mexico on the first pro show at Parx Casino in Bensalem, PA, on March 9th.

“When I mentioned this to Brittany Rogers who coordinated the smoothly run show, she remarked “since when did J Russell Peltz care about such things as who enters the ring first?” Never once did Sparrow mention it to me later that shows he has bought into the Peltz Boxing system for which we need a name. You’ve heard of the West Coast offense in football and the Triangle in basketball, but we need a name for the Peltz Boxing system. Something like, as Michelle Rosado coined last week: “If you want a tune-up, go to Midas!”

Avery Sparrow never said one word about being introduced first. He never moaned that he was making substantially less money for March 9th than he made for November 30th when he upset Jose Lopez, the No. 5 ranked WBO junior lightweight contender in the world, on ESPN. He never argued that Jesus Serrano, 17-4-2, was not exactly “a walk in the park type of opponent”. He never threatened to pull out when he was 8 pounds over the contract weight 48 hours before the weigh-in. He simply went out there and destroyed a credible opponent in less than 2 rounds to secure his rating with the WBO and hopefully open the eyes of the other ranking organizations.

I cannot sit here and tell you that Avery Marcus Sparrow will win the world title but I can tell you that after 49 years in this sometimes wonderful, sometimes rancid business of professional boxing, I am grateful that he believes in me as much as I believe in him. I’m not going to worry if, when the money comes in, that some moron on the street will fill his head with negative thoughts about me. That’s part of the business, but as I head to the top of the stretch of my career, I am enjoying the ride.

Sparrow is 10-1 (4) and turned 24 in January. He turned professional in July of 2014 winning his first 4 fight, 2 by stoppage, before losing for the only time in his career so far by DQ in the 6th and final round to Jerome Rodriguez, 6-3-3, in October of 2015. He came back in March of 2016 to score a first round knockout in Dubai Night Life in Charlotte, NC.

Sparrow didn’t fight again until March of 2017 when he was pitted against one time Philly prospect Anthony Burgin, 10-2, when he won an 8 round split decision. In June he was up in The Sands in Bethlehem, PA, defeating Isaelin Florian, 6-0, of the DR and Reading, PA. In September he was put in with another 6-0 boxer named Joey Laviolette from Nova Scotia, Canada who he defeated by majority decision in 8 rounds. Two months later he defeated Lopez, who was 19-1-1 (14), at the MGM National Harbor, in Oxon Hill, MD. This put him into the WBO Super Featherweight ratings.

In December of 2015 Peltz took Camden’s Jason Sosa who was 18-1-3, on a trip to a world championship. Sosa only had one 10 round bout prior to this. Sosa was pitted with Nicholas Walters the WBA World Super Featherweight champion who Sosa drew with in a non-title bout. In his next fight in June of 2016 Sosa defeated Javier Fortuna in Beijing, China, for the world title that Walters had given up.

Will Peltz lead Avery Sparrow to a world super featherweight title the same way? Only time will tell!

Posted on 02/20/2018

Boxing in Atlantic City has been prevalent for more than 45 years. One man who has been in the center of a lot of the action on the boardwalk has been International Boxing and Atlantic City Boxing Hall-of-Fame promoter and matchmaker J Russell Peltz.

The Philadelphia legend, who has promoted scores of cards in the shore town, is making matches for the February 24 card at The Showboat Hotel that will feature Thomas “Cornflake” LaManna vs. Gabriel “Tito” Bracero in a 10-round battle for the WBC Fecarbox Welterweight championship.

“I did my first fight in 1973,” said Peltz, who has run shows in just about every property in Atlantic City.

It is only fitting that Peltz is the matchmaker with promoter Rising Star Promotions in the South Jersey based promotional outfit’s effort to bring Atlantic City back to prominence as the the premier fight destination on the East Coast.

Peltz is hoping LaManna-Bracero is added to the memorable bouts that Peltz has been involved in Atlantic City:

1. August 31, 1981 at The Sands Hotel–Frank Fletcher vs Ernie Singletary.(PRISM)

“The fight was televised by local cable channel PRISM (Jim Barniak and Bob Wright, both deceased, did the commentary) and it was for Fletcher’s USBA middleweight title.

“This was the most brutal fight I ever saw, even more brutal than Matthew Saad Muhammad-Marvin Johnson I. This was a closet classic since few saw it on PRISM. The fight was toe-to-toe for seven rounds, no knockdowns, until ringside doctor stopped it between the seventh and eighth round. They coukd have fought this one in a phone booth.

“Singletary was taken to hospital after fight.

“Later, when we couldn’t find Fletcher, we broke into his hotel room, and he was out cold on the floor. We couldn’t get an ambulance so we (Marty Feldman and I) put him in the back of a police wagon and rode with him to the hospital where the doctor told us if we hadn’t found him he would have been dead.

“Singletary kept saying in the pre-fight buildup that no 12-2 TV fighter was gonna beat him. This was a reference to Fletcher getting into the first ESPN tournament and winning while Singletary had been plying his trade for years (24-2 then) and never got that kind of exposure, just on PRISM. Actually, Fletcher already had been on NBC once, beating Norberto Sabater.”

2. September 9, 1980 from Resorts–Mike Rossman vs. Al Bolden (PRISM)

“Ex-WBA light-heavyweight Rossman was getting beat up every round for 8 1/2 rounds against Al Bolden, of Pittsburgh, PA, and finally found a little light late in round 9 and came on to knock Bolden out at 2:32 of the 10th round and salvage the win. Bolden took the second knockdown in the 10th on his knees.”

3. March 13, 1983 from Resorts–Jeff Chandler – Gaby Canizalez (ABC)

“Jeff Chandler, in the most brilliant performance of his Hall-of-Fame career out-boxed, out-punched and out-muscled future champion Gaby Canizales, of Texas, over 15 rounds to defend his WBA bantamweight title for the seventh time by unanimous decision. No one thought he could stand up under Canizales’ body attack but it was Chandler’s body and head attack that kept Canizales at bay for the entire fight. Just magnificent.”

4. March 2, 1985 from the Sands Hotel–Gary Hinton vs Aaron Pryor (ABC)

“Unknown lefty Gary Hinton gave IBF 140 pound world champ Aaron Pryor all he could handle, but a 14th-round knockdown helped Pryor gain a 15-round split decision with Sylvester Stallone in attendance. He was our partner at the time with Pryor. It was Pryor’s last successful title defense.”

5. November 19, 2011 from Ballys–Garrett Wilson vs. Chuck Mussachio

“Moving from light heavyweight to cruiserweight, Mussachio appeared to have out-boxed Wilson for 11 rounds in their USBA cruiserweight title fight, but Wilson drilled Mussachhio with a monstrous overhand right 41 seconds into the 12th round for the knockout win.”

Besides LaManna vs. Bracero, a terrific undercard has been assembled featuring undefeated fighters: light-heavyweight Frederick Julan (8-0, 6 KOs), of Brooklyn, NY; super middleweight Darren Goodall (5-0, 4 KOs), of New Milford, NJ; middleweight Omar Kabary Salem (1-0), of Brooklyn, NY; super lightweight Jahmal Dyer (4-0, 2 KOs), of Baltimore, MD.

FIGHT NIGHT TICKETS: $150, $80 and $55 and can be purchased at: www.risingboxingpromotions.com

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.

Posted on 08/01/2017

Compiled By: William Holmes

The following is the Boxing Insider notebook for the week of July 25th to August 1st, covering the comings and goings in the sport of boxing that you might have missed.

Photo Credit: HBO Sports

Gennady Golovkin Will Defend All his World Title Belts When he Faces Canelo Alvarez

Undefeated World Middleweight Champion GENNADY “GGG” GOLOVKIN wants to make one thing clear. On Saturday, September 16, when he faces Canelo Alvaraez, Golovkin is walking into the ring at the T-Mobile Arena the same way he walked out of the ring at Madison Square Garden, in his last fight — wearing all his world championship belts.

“GGG will be proudly defending all of his titles — WBC, WBA, IBF, and IBO — as well as looking to add The Ring magazine title to his collection when he steps into the ring against Canelo,” said Tom Loeffler, Golovkin’s promoter. “Fans love this matchup. It’s not only the two best fighters in their division fighting each other in their prime, but also two of the most marketable fighters in the sport.”

Canelo vs. Golovkin is a 12-round fight for the middleweight championship of the world presented by Golden Boy Promotions and GGG Promotions and sponsored by Tecate, BORN BOLD, Hennessy, Never Stop, Never Settle, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Fred Loya Insurance, Fathom Events, Tsesnabank, and Capital Holdings. The event will take place Saturday, Sept. 16 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View® beginning at 8:00 p.m. ET/5:00 p.m. PT.
Episode #1 of 24/7 Canelo/Golovkin premieres Saturday, Aug. 26 on HBO immediately following the live World Championship Boxing doubleheader from the StubHub Center at 9:45 p.m. ET/PT.

HBO Sports Special Under the Lights: Canelo/Golovkin Debuts September 2nd

HBO Sports, widely acclaimed for its innovative and provocative boxing programming, examines the upcoming HBO Pay-Per-View® showdown between the two best middleweights today –Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin — when UNDER THE LIGHTS: CANELO/GOLOVKIN debuts SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 2 (10:00-10:20 p.m. ET/PT) on HBO.

The special will also be available on HBO NOW, HBO GO® and HBO On Demand®, and at hbo.com/boxing, as well as other new media platforms.

In an intimate and unvarnished setting, UNDER THE LIGHTS: CANELO/GOLOVKIN will feature an engaging roundtable conversation hosted by HBO Boxing commentator Max Kellerman, combatants Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin and HBO boxing analyst and four-division champion Roy Jones, Jr., as they breakdown and examine the many skills and experiences each fighter will bring into the ring for the best boxing matchup of 2017. It’s the final time the two will see each other until fight week unfolds in Las Vegas.

For more information, visit hbo.com/boxing; become a fan on Facebook at facebook.com/HBOBoxing; and follow on Twitter and Instagram at @HBOBoxing. Follow the conversation using #CaneloGGG.

“Canelo vs. Golovkin” takes place Saturday, September 16 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 8:00 p.m. (ET)/ 5:00 p.m. (PT).

Super Channel to Air Vasyl Lomachenko vs. Miguel Marriaga in Canada

Super Channel subscribers in Canada will have the opportunity to watch superstar Vasyl Lomachenko, arguably the No. 1 pound-for-pound professional boxer in the world today, as the Ukrainian defends his World Boxing Organization (WBO) Association Junior Lightweight World Championship for the second time, this Saturday night (August 5), starting at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT, live from Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles.

The 29-year-old Lomachenko (8-1, 6 KOs) will be challenged by two-time world title challenger, dangerous Colombian knockout artist Miguel “The Scorpian” Marriaga (25-2, 21 KOs), the WBO No. 10-ranked contender, in the 12-round main event.
Three exciting fights on the stacked “Lomachenko vs, Marriaga” card, promoted by Top Rank, will air exclusively in Canada on Super Channel.

Super Channel has recently aired major boxing events live like Brook vs. Spence Jr., Pacquiao-Horn, and Eubank, Jr. vs.
Abraham.

“we are all ecstatic to be bringing this exciting bout featuring one of the world’s best boxers, Vasyl Lomachenko, to our viewers and to be presenting another top-notch card from legendary promoter, Top Rank’s Bob Arum, to Canadian fight fans,” said Troy Wassill. Director of Programming, Domestic Distributors & Sports for Super Channel.

Lomachenko is regarded by many as the greatest amateur boxer of his time and arguably all-time having captured two Olympic gold medals (2008 & 2012) and three World Championships, reportedly losing only once in 396 amateur bouts.

Eight (7-1) of his nine fights during his three-year pro career have been in world title fights, including world title winning performances in two different weight classes, WBO featherweight and junior lightweight. Lomachenko has defeated world champions Gary Russell, Jr., Roman Martinez and Nicholas Walters.

Marriaga, who is moving up to junior lightweight to challenge Lomachenko, is a battled-tested challenger with good power and a strong amateur background.

In the 12-round co-feature, NABO & NABF lightweight champion “Sugar” Raymundo Beltran (33-7-1, 21 KOs) defends his titles against former two-time Interim World Boxing Association (WBA) Super Featherweight World Champion Bryan Vasquez (36-2, 19 KOs).

Mexico-native Beltran, fighting out of Phoenix (AZ), is a two-time world title challenger who is knocking on the door for another world title shot. Beltran is ranked No. 2 in the world by the WBO, World Boxing Council (WBC) and International Boxing Federation (IBF), as well as No. 6 by the WBA.

Vasquez, fighting out of Costa Rico, is rated the No. 1 lightweight contender in the world by the WBA
In the eight-round Super Channel opener, 2012 Olympic silver medalist Esquiva Falcao (17-0, 12 KOs), the undefeated Brazilian middleweight, steps up in terms of class opposition to face Ivan “Terrible” Montero (20-2, 8 KOs), of Mexico.

To see the “Lomachenko vs. Marriaga” live, as well as more exciting boxing to come, fight fans in Canada can contact their local cable provider to subscribe to Super Channel and all that it offers, including premium series, movies and much more, for as low as $9.95 per month.

Sadam Ali Captures WBA International Welterweight Title and Third Straight Victory with Decision Win Against Johan Perez

Sadam “The World Kid” Ali (25-1, 14 KOs) took a decisive step towards once again fighting for a world title tonight with a unanimous decision victory against former two-time interim WBA Super Lightweight champion Johan “El Terrible” Perez (22-4-4, 15 KOs). The 10-round fight, which earned Ali the vacant WBA International Welterweight, was the main event of the latest edition of Golden Boy Boxing on ESPN from Casino Del Sol in Tucson, Arizona.

Ali, from Brooklyn, NY, fought in one of the toughest fights of his career against Perez, a native of Caracas, Venezuela, who had scored wins against the likes of Yoshihiro “El Maestrito” Kamegai, Paul Spadafora and Steve “2POUND” Forbes.

“I give myself a 6 tonight; I felt off,” said Sadam Ali. “Perez was tough, very tall and awkward, and I was able to see that I have a lot to work on to be honest. I felt that my movement wasn’t right. I felt slow and off balance. I’m not too happy with my performance. I don’t want to make excuses, but my performance wasn’t as good as I expected. Now it’s time to go back to the gym and work on things I need to work on. That’s how I’ll get better, by seeing my mistakes and getting back to work in the gym.”

“I need rugged fights like this. Johan might not have a big name but he came to fight and not only for a paycheck. So, these kinds of fights are exactly what I need to get into title contention.”

In the televised co-main event, Alejandro “El Elegido” Barrera (27-3, 17 KOs) of Nuevo León, México scored a split decision victory against Eddie “E-Boy” Gomez (20-3, 11 KOs) of the Bronx, NY in a 10-round Welterweight bout.

Barrera, who is a student of the Hall of Fame trainer Ignacio “Nacho” Beristáin, brought a busy style from the outside that nullified Gomez’s counter-punching offense. When Gomez would try to counter, Barrera would step back and throw counters of his own. Or, like in sixth round, Barrera would simply overwhelm Gomez with volume punching.

During an explosive seventh round exchange, Barrera was cut by a headbutt above his right eye. Then, only a few seconds later, Gomez dropped Barrera with a thunderous counter left hook. The back and forth action continued into the final rounds, with Barrera winning by two scores of 93-96, while one judge it 95-94 for Gomez.

“I feel very happy with the victory, but at the same time I feel tired because it was a tough fight,” said Alejandro Barrera. “There were many headbutts. He is a very dirty fighter, but I already knew his boxing was fast-paced. I studied it and trained for it. Now, I’ve got to rest and continue training hard.”

Pablo “The Shark” Rubio, Jr. (10-0, 3 KOs) of Los Angeles, California scored a tough split decision victory against David Perez (8-2, 4 KOs) of Houston, Texas in a non-televised swing bout. Two judges scored the fight for Rubio with scores of 58-56 and 59-55, while one judge scored the fight 60-54 for Perez.

Topping off the ESPN3 live stream, Patrick Teixeira (27-1, 22 KOs) cruised to a unanimous decision victory against Andrew “Hurricane” Hernandez (19-6-1, 9 KOs) of Phoenix, Arizona in an eight-round super welterweight collision.
Teixeira, a native of Santa Catarina, Brazil, used his rangy southpaw stance to box from the outside and to set up straight left hands to the head and left hooks to the body. However, in fifth round, Teixeira injured his left hand, which forced him to rely on his jab and footwork even more for the later stretch of the fight.

Although he was cut below his left eye in the eighth and final round, Teixeira earned an easy victory after not having fought since his first defeat in May of 2016. Teixeira won with two scores of 80-72 and one score of 79-73.

Kicking off the ESPN3 live stream, Daquan “King” Arnett (16-1 9 KOs) of Winter Park, Florida shook off an almost two-year layoff by cruising to a unanimous decision victory against Tijuana, Mexico’s Jorge “Pantera” Silva (21-14-2, 17 KOs) in an eight-round super welterweight fight. Arnett controlled the action throughout the fight by calmly walking Silva down from one side of the ring to the other, using touch jabs to blind Silva before unleashing hard combinations to the head and body.

Silva was deducted a point in sixth round for holding Arnett excessively. After two more rounds of boxing, Arnett earned himself three scores of 80-71.

In the first fight of the evening, Alfredo Escarcega (3-0) scored a majority decision victory against Rodolfo “Rudy” Gamez (1-4) in a four-round super lightweight fight.

Another All Philly War in Line as Wise-Jenkins Collide

It may be just a six-round fight, but the match between North Philadelphia junior middleweights Isaiah Wise and Fred Jenkins, Jr., is sure to be treated by the fans like a main event when the fighters collide Friday evening, Sept. 8, at the 2300 Arena in South Philadelphia.

Topping the 10-bout card is an eight-round junior lightweight contest between Avery Sparrow, of Philadelphia, and former four-time Canadian national amateur champion Joey Laviolette, of Nova Scotia, Canada. First fight begins at 7.30 p.m.
Wise ( above left), 25, is a relative newcomer, having compiled a 5-1 record since turning pro early in 2016. He has scored three knockouts, losing only by decision to Philly-killer Roque Zapata, of Culpeper, VA.

In two fights this year against Wisconsin-based fighters, Wise got off the canvas to stop Jeffrey Wright in four rounds and he outpointed Mark Daniels over six.

Jenkins,30, is the veteran of the two, owning a 10-4 record since turning pro in 2011. He has scored three knockouts and he is managed and trained by his dad, Fred Jenkins, Sr., an ex-pro junior middleweight himself and a member of the Pennsylvania Boxing Hall of Fame as a trainer.

The biggest win on the resume of Jenkins, Jr. came in 2014 when he knocked out Jeremy Trussell, of Baltimore, MD, in four rounds at the 2300 Arena. He also has defeated Alex Sanchez, of Camden, NJ, and Ibrihim Shabazz, of Newark, NJ.

Wise has had all six of his professional fights at the 2300 Arena. Jenkins is 4-3 in the building.

In an era where Philadelphia fighters often balk at fighting each other, neither Wise nor Jenkins appear to have a problem with the match.

“Fighting someone from the same city doesn’t bother me at all,” said Wise. “This is a business and this fight will show me where I stand.”

Jenkins: “It’s all about winning. I’m trying to climb the ladder and if I beat Wise then I can get another shot at Zapata.”

Zapata, who fights Elijah Vines, of Philadelphia, on the same card, owns victories over both Wise and Jenkins, both by decision, both at the 2300 Arena.

The only other foe common to both Wise and Jenkins is James Robinson, of York, PA. Wise and Jenkins each defeated Robinson by decision, Wise over four rounds and Jenkins over six.

Seven additional bouts complete the Sept. 8 card. Among those featured will be welterweight Marcel Rivers, junior welterweight Victor Padilla and featherweight Crystian Peguero.

Mayweather Promotions Announces the 8th Titans of the Trade: Breakfast of Champions at MGM Grand

Mayweather Promotions is preparing for this signature event for the 8th consecutive time! Titans of the Trade: Breakfast of Champions is set to take place on the morning of the Mayweather vs. McGregor weigh-in, Friday, August 25 at MGM Grand. This event celebrates the continuous achievements of individuals who are influencers the sports and entertainment world to make it what it is today.

This year’s theme is Dream, Conquer, and Sparkle-exemplifying the acknowledgement of those who have shined or sparkled in their respective professional fields. The ability to shine bright within the industry is noteworthy and deserves recognition and presentation of one of our prestigious awards.

Honorees from our 2016 Titans of the Trade affair include: first African American VP in Major League Baseball history; Marian Rhodes, former WBC World Champion; Alicia Ashley, 2016 Olympian; Vashti Cunningham, Chi-Town’s finest breakers; The Monster Kids, and Premier Boxing Champions’ President of Boxing Operations; Sylvia Browne-Owens. Honorees to be recognized at the upcoming event include: multi-talented musician and actress; Tally, undefeated boxing world champion and MMA fighter; Heather Hardy, UC-Riverside’s top performing female basketball player; Simone Decoud, former UNLV softball coach; Shan McDonald, and remarkable boxing referee; Sparkle Lee.
Honorees:

Young Trailblazer Award recipient- Tally is an up and coming multi-talented rap artist, songwriter, actress and musician from sunny Nashville, Tennessee. Growing up, Tally took interest into becoming an artist when she began making YouTube covers, landed lead roles in her school plays, and starting playing the guitar, which helped her songwriting skills.

Music always played an important role in her life and that landed her a star role in the second season of Lifetime’s The Rap Game. After being eliminated after the first episode, she didn’t let that deter her future success. She continued to focus on her music career, ultimately landed her another opportunity on the third season of The Rap Game, as well as performing at the 2017 Radio Disney Awards.
Young Trailblazer Award recipient- Simone Decoud has made headlines due to her continuous success as a point guard at UC-Riverside. This Riverside native has been a three-time, All-Big West Honoree, who has averaged 11.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game this season. Simone has finished her junior year in college as the team’s seventh all-time leading scorer and second on the career assists list and expects to graduate with a degree in Media Cultural Studies. After graduating, she will look to begin her professional basketball career overseas.

Golden Glove Award recipient- Heather “The Heat” Hardy has let her talent do all the talking. She has contributed to diversifying the sports industry by her remarkable success as a female boxer and strength through her continuous achievements in the industry. Being a single mother and a professional boxer has come with a lot of hard-work and dedication but Heather has conquered her adversities through recognition in combat-sports. Her most recent achievement was her TKO win at her MMA debut against Alice Yauger on June 24th. Heather is also unbeaten in the boxing ring with 20 wins, 4 KO’s and the WBC super bantamweight & featherweight world titlesTitans of the Trade Award recipient- Shan McDonald was inducted into the UNLV Athletics Hall of Fame after leading the Rebels to 511 victories in 17 seasons, seven-straight NCAA tournaments from 1990-96, and three appearances in the Women’s College World Series. The former UNLV softball coach drove her team to break, or tie, 30 school records, which helped earn her the ‘all-time winnings coach’s title. She has proven to be a true titan in sports.

Meritorious Achievement Award recipient- Sparkle Lee has lead a reputable career as a boxing referee that has helped reshape the image of the ‘third man in the ring’ for all women. She has made history on countless occasions including as the first female referee to be inducted in the International Boxing Hall of Fame. Her love for boxing started as a routine workout at Gleason’s Gym in the 80’s and transpired into a career of 30+ years, paving the way for female referees to follow.
In addition to our honorees, the event will be hosted by, TV personality and fashion designer; Angel Brinks. Plus 2 special guest performances by talented Las Vegas native; Cabria Anderson and singer and songwriter, Jade Novah.

This year’s Titans of the Trade: Breakfast of Champions- Dream, Conquer, & Sparkle is sponsored by: The Money Team, Mayweather Sports, MGM Grand, SHOWTIME, FNOM, Screaming Images BoxRaw, Alexandre Crepin, Fight Label, Versace Fragrances, Smooth Operators Salon, Too Pretty Brand, and PINTA USA.

Posted on 06/01/2017

“Hammering” Hank Lundy & Jaron “Boots” Ennis in Philly Friday!
By: Ken Hissner

Lightweight “Hammering” Hank Lundy, 27-6-1 (13), returns to Philadelphia for the first time since 2009. Also on the card is Philly’s welterweight Jaron “Boots” Ennis, 11-0 (9), the best looking prospect in Philadelphia since 1984 Olympian Meldrick Taylor. Peltz Boxing, BAM Boxing and now Raging Babe continue to bring the fans competitive bouts.

Peltz is an IBHOF promoter and matchmaker. Brittany Rogers is one of the youngest promoter-matchmakers in the country and though in her 20’s knows her boxing especially learning from Peltz who goes back to 1969 when he promoted his first show.

There was a press conference Wednesday night at the Xfinity Center in South Philadelphia. There are eleven bouts scheduled but by fight night Friday several will probably be cut out. Boxing Director Greg Sirb gets quite upset when there are more than seven bouts. Raging Babe speaks Spanish and was able to speak to the main event opponent of Lundy in Danny Evangelista, Jr., 20-7-2 (16), from Mexico City in a scheduled 8 round bout.

Lundy is quite outspoken and though failed in a title fight with unbeaten Terrance Crawford at 140 proclaims he will be the 135 champ. He has lost 3 of his last 5 fights and was backed by his promoter from CES Promotions out of Rhode Island telling all in attendance about Lundy fighting Crawford with an injury.

When boxers return to their home base Peltz said in so many words they are at the end of their career. Lundy is 33 and in his eleventh year of boxing. He has returned to his trainer “Cornbread” Ramey who is one of the most respected trainers in Philadelphia.

On the other hand Ennis is trained by his father “Bozy” Ennis who may be the best or one of the best trainers in the city and runs “Bozy’s Dungeon” in the Kensington section of Philadelphia. His son has won all 11 fights in but his fourteenth month since turning professional in April of 2016 under manager Cameron Dunkin. Dunkin chose Chris Middendorf’s Victory Promotions instead of Top Rank who are one and have been one of the best promotional groups in the country for years. Middendorf promoted a pair of shows in Philadelphia and hopefully won’t be returning after the mismatches he put on. Ennis has fought 6 of his 11 fights in Philadelphia and another in close by Bristol, PA. His bout is against Wilfredo “EllZurdo” Acuna, 16-20 (12), of Mauagua, NIC, scheduled for 6 rounds.

Also on hand were super welterweight Mark Daniels, Jr., 3-0 (1), a Native American from Crandon, WI, who as Peltz said was “not hesitant to come to Philadelphia to fight a Philadelphian in Isaiah Wise, 4-1 (3), who is a tough opponent and that’s the way Peltz does his matchmaking putting on competitive fights. This is for 6 rounds.

Well known trainer Don Turner now having a camp in Arapahoe, NC, is from the Philadelphia and brings in a pair of boxers to debut here knowing this area will develop out of town boxers as it did in “Marvelous” Marvin Hagler and Eddie Mustapha Muhammad. He has brought with him super welterweight Ishmael Altman who will face Philadelphia’s Tyree Crowder also in his debut. The other from NC is southpaw Heriberto Polanco who will fight Brooklyn’s Omar Kabary Salem, both in their debuts.

In a welterweight bout two out of state boxers face each other in a 6 round bout in Juan Reyna, 6-6-1 (2), of Brownsville, TX, against Alvin “Iron Majik” Varmall, Jr., 10-0-1 (8), of Catskill, NY. Philadelphia’s prospect Scott Kelleher, 5-0 (3), is returning to action after 13 months and will meet Dion Richardson, 1-1 (1), of Newark, NJ. Another prospect from Philadelphia is Crystian Peguero, 1-0 (1), who made his debut in March. He will meet Saquan Felton, 0-1, from Rochester, NY. Peltz said “I’m bringing a match between lightweight Marko Bailey, 4-0 (3), of Durham, NC, and Vinnie Denierio, 1-1 (10) of Geneva, NY, who I was told was a barnburner in their recent meeting.

Peltz doesn’t always care if the boxers are from the city if he knows they will give the fans something to cheer about.
Philadelphia’s super lightweight Nahir Albright, 1-1 (0), will meet debuting Sultan Zamir Uulu, of KYR now living in Philadelphia. Finally Philadelphia’s welterweight Marcel Rivers, 1-0 (1), meets Jamaal Gregory, 1-0 (1), of Charlotte, NC.

First bout is at 7:30PM and you know a Peltz show always starts on time. It is at the 2300 Arena at 2300 S. Swanson St. at the Front and Oregon area. Peltz said the event is already sold out.