Anthony Joshua retained the IBF/WBA Heavyweight titles with a 10th round stoppage over Carlos Takam in front ovf over 78,000 fans at Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales.

Joshua controlled the action from the outset. Joshua started to bleed from his nose in round two from a clash of heads. That was the only minor blemish for the champion as he kept the durable Takam at bay with hard jabs and right hands.

The fight started to take its course in round four when Takam suffered a cut over his right eye, and later in the round he was sent to the canvas when he ate a short left hand on the inside.

Joshua continued to land some solid shots, while Takam showed that he was deserving as he tried to fight back and would sneak in a right hand to keep Joshua honest.

In round eye, Takam suffered a cut over his left eye, and the fight was slowly slipping away from the late-replacement challenger.

In round ten, Joshua landed a good combination, and referee Phil Edwards stopped the bout at 1:34.

Joshua is now 20-0 with all wins coming early. Takam of France is now 35-4-1.

According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, undisputed 140 pound champion Terence Crawford will move to welterweight and already has been installed as the mandatory challenger for the winner of WBO champion Jeff Horn and Gary Corocoran that will take place in December.

“Crawford literally dominated and cleaned out a division,” Top Rank Vice-President Carl Moretti said. “There are no more challenges left for him at 140 pounds and, physically, his body is ready to move to 147 pounds and do the same thing he did at 135 and 140 — dominate a division.

“Now he’s pound-for-pound the best in the world and I think you’ll see more of that at 147 pounds. So he has vacated the WBO title and he will be notifying the WBC and WBA shortly.”

Top Rank chairman Bob Arum, who also co-promotes Horn, said Crawford would travel with him to Australia for Horn-Corcoran, which he said would be televised live on an ESPN network in the early morning United States time.

“I want Terence to see Australia and I want the people in Australia to see Terence,” Arum said.

“I think Crawford is an enormous talent,” Arum said. “I know that if he wins the welterweight title I am going to look to match him with him a number of fighters that are managed by Al Haymon, like (former titlist) Danny Garcia, (unified titleholder) Keith Thurman and a huge fight would be one with (titleholder Errol) Spence. That would be a big pay-per-view fight.”

Alantez Fox fought last Saturday’s middleweight bout with Demetrius Andrade with a torn rotator cuff, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

“He was fighting with a serious injury,” Fox manager Mike Borao said. “He told me the pain was excruciating but that he did not want to quit in the fight. He’s known for throwing a great number of punches, which he didn’t do in this fight because of the shoulder. We’re waiting on the MRI report and hopefully the injury won’t keep him out of the ring for too long. “Under the circumstances, I’m very proud of him. All credit to Andrade though. He fought a great fight. I’d love to see him get a chance to fight Canelo (Alvarez) or (unified world champion Gennady) Golovkin.”

In round eleven, Burnett started to bleed from a cut on his forehead.

Burnett, who outlanded Zhakiyanov 214-132, won by scores of 118-110, 119-109 and 116-112.

NEWARK, NJ – IBF cruiserweight champion Murat “Iron” Gassiev (25-0, 18 KO) defeated longtime division Iron Man, Krzysztof “Diablo” Wlodarczyk (53-4-1, 37 KO), to retain his title and advance to the World Boxing Super Series semifinal. The definitive punch came early in the third round courtesy of a meaty Gassiev left hook to Wlodarczyk’s liver. The punch immediately shut down the former titlist’s system, forcing him at first to a knee, before his body collapsed face down on the canvas. The 36-year old Wlodarczyk failed to referee Earl Brown’s ten count, and the contest was halted at the 1:57 mark of round 3. It is only the second time in Wlodarczyk’s career he was stopped, the other coming in 2003 vs. Pavel Melkomyan.

At times, the Abel Sanchez trained Gassiev looked like a spitting image of his stablemate, Gennady Golovkin. Over the course of three rounds the 24-year old Gassiev methodically cut off the ring, wasting no movement, and landing the most effective punches. Gassiev forced Wlodarczyk to fight going backwards, and in doing so, never put himself in an unfavorable position.

Midway through the third round with Gassiev coming forward and Wlodarczyk backing up toward the ropes, Gassiev unloaded two lefts to the body. The first landed straight to the sternum. It was followed quickly by a show stopping left-hook to Wlodarczyk’s liver that ended the fight.

“He threw a short uppercut and then a left hand that Wlodarczyk turned right into and it hit him flush. It’s something we work on a lot,” Sanchez said after the fight. “I know that when Gassiev lands a punch correctly, the opponent isn’t getting up.

It was a raucous environment inside Newark’s Prudential Center where a split crowd made up of Polish Wlodarczyk fans and Russian Gassiev supporters cheered on their fighter. Many of the Gassiev supporters wove Ossetian flags, which is the region of Russia where Gassiev hails from.

Gassiev will now go on to face will go on to face undefeated Cuban knockout artist, Yunier Dorticos, in the World Boxing Super Series semifinals. The winner of that contest will take on the winner of Oleksander Usyk vs. Mairis Briedis in the tournament finals in May 2018.

“I had a great opponent tonight,” Gassiev said afterward. “I prepared myself for a tough fight but it is boxing and anything can happen…We do a lot of work in the gym and I just listened to my coach round after round and he told me what I needed to do. That’s all I needed.”

A visibly disappointed Wlodarczyk also spoke afterward. “We worked hard to try to avoid this kind of shot but unfortunately he got a really hard shot through and hurt me,” the veteran fighter said.

He continued, “We knew how good he was and we prepared hard for it. I wanted to use the jab as much as possible. My strength is the second part of the fight and we were hoping to bring him to the later part of the fight and take advantage.”

Gassiev’s semifinal opponent, Yunier Dorticos also spoke after the bout.

“I really wanted Gassiev to win, because he’s going to taste the power of a real man against me. His opponent tonight was past his time, I’m ready to show him what a champion looks like and give him a challenge he’s never faced before.”

“I want to take his belt. I want to get in the ring and destroy Gassiev.”

Taking the high road, Gassiev said, “Dorticos is a very good fighter with great experience. He’s undefeated and I can’t wait to give all the boxing fans the gift of a great fight against Dorticos.”

Mateusz Masternak vs. Stivens Bujaj – 10 rounds, cruiserweight

The night’s cruiserweight co-feature witnessed Poland’s Mateusz Masternak (40-4, 25 KO) steamroll past New York’s Stivens Bujaj (16-2-1, 11 KO) en route to a late round stoppage victory. It was domination from the start by the tough Pole, who fought each minute of each round on his terms. Masternak fought patiently and with purpose, fighting at a comfortable distance, and landing cleanly and effectively round after round. Bujaj never seemed to get comfortable and failed to mount any significant offense in any round. In the seventh, with Bujaj fatiguing quickly, Masternak blasted a perfect one-two that crumbled Bujaj to the mat. The Albanian-born New York transplant barely beat referee Shada Murdaugh’s ten-count and, standing on wobbly legs, hung on to survive the round. In between rounds, however, after examining the state of Bujaj, the ringside physician advised Murdaugh to stop the contest.

The fight marked Masternak’s second victory at the Prudential Center, the previous victory coming back in 2009 on the undercard of Tomasz Adamek vs. Bobby Gunn.

“I got stronger as the fight went on,” Masternak said. “I was ready to go hard rounds and use my attack to overwhelm him. Once I started using combinations I was very effective in hurting him. That made the difference for me.

“I stayed focused and kept my right hand ready to deliver damage. I’m ready to fight with anyone they put in front of me. I’m always ready in the gym and I can’t wait to get back in the ring.”

A dejected Bujaj also spoke after the fight. “I’m disappointed in myself,” he said. “I know I could have fought better than that and performed better. I just didn’t feel like myself tonight.”

Maciej Sulecki vs. Jack Culcay – 10 rounds, super welterweight

In a back and forth WBC super welterweight eliminator, Poland’s Maciej Sulecki (26-0, 10 KO) stayed undefeated, earning a unanimous decision victory against Germany’s “Golden” Jack Culcay (22-3, 11 KO). Throughout the bout, the Polish-born Sulecki tried to use his height and reach advantage to his benefit, snapping jabs at his counterpart in an attempt to keep him at bay. Early on, however, it was quite clear that the smaller Culcay would not be easily tamed. When Culcay punched, he punched with purpose. His punches were thrown with ferocity, with more steam. They also came from more angles. Culcay looped lefts around Sulecki’s gloves early, and over the duration of the contest, threw numerous windmilling rights, that would surely end the fight if he connected cleanly.

It was a classic seesawing contest that saw momentum swings inside each round. As the fight progressed, it became more entertaining, with Cuclay initiating, but not always getting the better of, the exchanges.

At the open of the seventh round, Culcay raced off his stool and immediately bombarded an unsuspecting Sulecki with lefts and rights. The Ecuadorean-born German threw wildly, and continually tried to land his homerun punch, the looping overhand right. About 30 seconds into his onslaught, “Golden Jack” cleanly connected with a right that momentarily wobbled Sulecki. The hard-nosed Pole hung on to survive the onslaught and dish out some punishment of his own before the round commenced.

In the ninth, Culcay again buckled Sulecki a bit and backed him into the ropes. But this minor victory would be short-lived and the hard-nosed Pole came right back with a right hand of his own that landed behind Culcay’s ear and briefly wobbled him.

The ebb and flow continued into the tenth and final round, when with time ticking down, Culcay landed a monstrous right stunned Sulecki. The German immediately followed up with more ill intended punches until the final bell sounded.

In the end, however, all three judges scored the contest in favor of the unbeaten Pole.

Lindsey Paige saw the fight 98-92, Paul Wallace, 97-93, & James Kinney, 96-94. 15rounds.com scored the contest 95-95.

“It was a close fight. Hard to tell but I felt like I was winning,” Culcay said after the fight. “It was very close but I really thought I was winning.

He continued, “I felt like I was strong. I thought that I hurt him. But this is boxing. I would love a rematch, but either way I will be back even stronger.”

Sulecki credited his counterpart afterward. “It was a very tough fight and I had to be at my best,” Sulecki said. “I didn’t think he’d be quite as tough, but I wanted to fight him and I got him.

He added, “I prepared for about four or five weeks for this opponent. The seventh round was the toughest round for me. I got hit with a couple big shots, but I wanted a war. I was never going to let down.”

Money Powell IV vs. Brandon Adams – 6 rounds, super welterweight

In an entertaining 6 round super welterweight scrap, Money Powell IV (5-0, 2 KO) scored a unanimous decision victory over Brandon Adams (4-5-1, 2 KO). From the get-go, both fighters came off their stools firing at will and during an early exchange, the southpaw, Adams, connected with a looping left that caught Powell off-guard, sending him to the canvas. Powell easily beat the ensuing ten-count and enjoyed his own share of success in the bout’s opening round. The following rounds saw the two prizefighters continuing to engage, willing to eat a few punches to land some of their own, with Powell tending to get the better of Adams. In the fourth, the 19-year old Powell threw a straight right that exploded on Adams’ chin, wobbling and spinning him around all at once. Powell turned up the heat on his legless foe, applied more pressure to the body, and continued to connect with purposeful head shots. Adams was able to weather the storm, however, and escape the round on two feet. Powell continued to get the better of Adams in the fight’s final rounds and at the end of the contest, all three judges scored the bout for Powell. Debra Barnes saw it 59-55, Lawrence Layton 59-56, and Robin Taylor 58-55.

Efe Ajagba vs. Luke Lyons – 6 rounds, heavyweights

Former Nigerian Olympian, Efe Ajagba (2-0, 2 KO) made quick work of formerly undefeated Luke Lyons (5-1, 2 KO), dropping him twice in the opening round of their heavyweight bout en route to a TKO victory. The 6’3” Ajagbe, who is now based in Houston and trained by Ronnie Shields, dominated Lyons from the opening ding until the 2:19 mark of round one, when referee Harvey Dock called a halt the contest. Initially, it was a sledgehammer of a left-hook that Ajagbe dug to Lyons’ liver that forced him to a knee for the first time. Less than a minute later, Ajagbe finished off his Kentucky-born counterpart with a left-hook to the body, straight-right to the head combo that brought Lyons to a knee for the second time. Although he beat Dock’s ten-count, the referee deemed Lyon’s was in no condition to continue and stopped the contest.

Skender Halili vs. Samuel Amoako – 6 rounds, super welterweight

Skender Halili (15-2, 13 KO) easily outpointed Samuel Amoako (19-16, 16 KO) in a six round super welterweight contest, kicking off a night of fights that will culminate when IBF cruiserweight champion Murat Gassiev squares off against former two-time cruiserweight titlist, Krzysztof Wlodarczyk, in a World Boxing Super Series quarterfinal. It was a nice bounceback performance for Halii, who suffered a setback in Mexico his last time in the ring, when he was outpointed by relative novice, Adrian Haro Campos. The Kosovo-born Bronx resident, Halili, was back on his game tonight, however, working well behind his jab, using it to control range and the ring. At the conclusion of six, judges Debra Barnes, Lawrence Layton, and Robin Taylor all had it a shutout for Halili, 60-54.

Gabriel Rosado stopped Glen Tapia in round six of a scheduled 10 round middleweight bout at the Monte Carlo Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

It was all Rosado as he cut Tapia in the first round and an ugly welt started to form on the forehead in round three. Rosado continued to wale away on Tapia with little resistance from Tapia.

Finally in round six, Rosado wobbled, hurt and put down Tapia with a furious combination. Rosado was all over a basically defenseless Tapia and referee Robert Byrd stopped the bout at 1:15.

Rosado of Philadelphia now 24-11 with 13 knockouts. Tapia of Passaic, NJ is 23-5.

“Tapia’s the type of guy that when you hurt him, he’ll come forward,” said Rosado. “It was very important to get the win. It was important to make a statement, to be impressive, to put myself back into the mix. I want Canelo Alvarez, Danny Jacobs, or a rematch with David Lemieux. I want to prove that I still have something.”

KeAndre Gibson won a 10-round majority decision over Alejandro Barrera in a junior welterweight bout.

In round two, Barrera started to bleed from his nose. In round four, Gibson was cut over his left eye.

In round six, Barrera was cut over his left eye. In round seven, he was cut over the right eye.

Gibson won by scores of 98-92, 97-93 and 95-95, and is now 18-1-1. Barrera is 27-4.

“I feel good, you know. I feel great,” said Gibson. “I beat an experienced guy, though I think that I could’ve done a better. I’m going to box a little more next time. I’m going to control my distance more and relax. It was a good fight.”

“I feel sad because of the defeat,” said Barrera. “I should’ve done more defensive movements, so I’ll work on that for next time.”

Toka Khan Clary stopped David Berna in round two of a scheduled ten round WBA NABA Featherweight bout at the Georgia Freight Depot in Atlanta, Georgia.

In round two, Clary scored three knockdowns and the fight was stopped at 1:32.

Clary, 124.8 lbs of Providence, RI is now 23-1 with 16 knockouts. Berna, 125.6 lbs of Budapest, HUN is 13-1.

Ray Lampkin remained undefeated by winning a six-round unanimous decision over Joshua Davis in a lightweight bout.

In round three, Lampkin landed a left that sent Davis to a knee.

Lampkin, 130 lbs of Portland, OR won by scores of 60-53 twice and 58-55 to raise his perfect mark to 11-0. Davis, 130.2 lbs of Washington, DC is 11-2.

In a battle of undefeated cruiserweights, Joshua Temple won a six-round unanimous decision over Bryan Daniels.

Temple, 196 lbs of St. Louis, MO won by scores of 60-54 and 59-55 twice and is now 5-0. Daniels, 197 lbs of Worcester, MA is 5-1.

Mario Diaz stopped Rayonta Whitfield in round seven of their scheduled ten round Bantamweight bout.

Diaz hurt Whitfield with a right hand in round seven and finished him off with a hard flurry on the ropes at 32 seconds.

Diaz, 118 lbs of Aguascalientes, MX is now 17-1 with seven knockouts. Whitfield, 118 lbs of Augusta, GA is 28-2.

Marquise Moore stopped Zachary Bunce in round one of their scheduled six-round super middleweight bout.

Moore dropped Bunce with a hard right hand. Moore finished Bunce off with a hard flurry and the fight was stopped at 2:18.

Moore, 167 lbs of Colorado Springs, CO is now 6=0 with four knockouts, Bunce, 168.6 lbs of Las Vegas is now 2-3.

WBC Bantamweight champion Luis Nery will take on Arthur Villanueva on November 4 in Tijuana. Mexico.

Nery won the title in Japan in August but failed a post fight drug test, and he is taking the stay busy fight while he waits for an outcome by the WBC.

“Personally, and on behalf of my company Zanfer, we thank Mauricio Sulaiman, president of the World Boxing Council, for the opportunity that was given to Nery to become world champion,” said promoter Fernando Beltran said at a news conference announcing the fight. “We will wait and respect the resolution made by the WBC, but for now, we announce that Nery will face a tough opponent, Artur Villanueva.”

“It is a joy to fight in Tijuana. It was always my dream to fight before my people as world champion, and I will be granted this opportunity on Nov. 4,” Nery said. “I hope that the fans of Tijuana will be present at the Gasmart Stadium and we’ll be able to give them a great fight.”

WBO Middleweight champion Billy Joe Saunders will defend his title against David Lemieux on December in Quebec, Canada in a bout that will be televised by HBO, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

“It’s a done deal, live from Montreal on HBO,” Lemieux promoter Oscar De La Hoya said, adding that he is speaking with two venues about hosting the fight — the Bell Centre in downtown Montreal or the new Place Bell, a 10,000-seat arena that opened earlier this year in Laval, which is just outside Montreal.

“Like gentlemen, we worked out the agreement and we’re on the same page with Warren,” De La Hoya said. “We want to see this year finish strong for boxing. It’s been a great year for the sport and for Golden Boy. We’re extremely proud we can deliver not only Miguel Cotto’s final fight but also Saunders-Lemieux, both live on HBO.

“We’re willing to work with everybody. We believe that David Lemieux has a great shot to win this fight. Frank Warren believes that his guy, Saunders, has a great shot as well. It was a matter of a little give and take and we made the deal. But all business aside, it’s great for both parties what we negotiated. Both sides are happy. We wanted to make sure we delivered an exciting fight to end the year.”

“I strongly believe David Lemieux is the missing piece of the puzzle in the middleweight division,” De La Hoya said. “David Lemieux looking great against Billy Joe Saunders will create excitement in the division.”

“David Lemieux against a fighter who is tough, who is durable and who is a trash-talker will make the fight week quite interesting. We’re looking forward to it,” De La Hoya said. “When David heard we had a deal for him to fight Saunders, he was ecstatic. He cannot wait to bring the title back to Canada.”

“Saunders is a middleweight who is dangerous, who can box, who can move, who can make things difficult for you,” De La Hoya said. “Obviously, David Lemieux cannot take this guy lightly whatsoever. David Lemieux has to make a statement on Dec 16 by knocking out Saunders.”

Abner Mares defended the WBA Featherweight title with a 10th round technical decision over Andres Gutierrez due to cuts.

In round two, Gutierrez was cut around the left eye from a headbutt. Gutierrez tried to fight through it, but Mares dominant and the cut worsened to the point where the fight was stopped.

Mares, 126 lbs of Los Angeles won by scores of 100-90 and 99-91 twice is 31-2-1.. Gutierrez, 126 lbs of Guadalajara, MX is 35-2-1.

Former world champion Antonio Demarco stopped previously undefeated Eddie Ramirez in round one of their scheduled ten-round super lightweight bout.

DeMarco landed a huge barrage of punches on the ropes, and the bout was stopped at 1:56.

Demarco, 141.8 lbs of Tijuana, MX is 33-6-1 with 24 knockouts. Ramirez, 142 lbs of Aurora, IL is 17-1

BROOKLYN, NY–BROOKLYN (Oct. 15, 2017) – WBA Super Welterweight World Champion Erislandy Lara knocked down previously unbeaten Terrell Gausha en route to a 12-round unanimous decision in the main event of SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING Saturday on SHOWTIME at Barclays Center.

The Premier Boxing Champions event featured three world title fights in the stacked 154-pound division, a lineup including five fighters ranked in the top 10, and four in the top five.

The southpaw Lara used a precise jab to set up a sharp left hand in the sixth defense of his world title. The supreme technician, known for his elusiveness, put on a clinic as expected. He fought mostly in the pocket and picked apart the 2012 U.S. Olympian Gausha, a Cleveland native getting his first shot at a world title.

Lara landed 45 percent of his power shots and threw 200 more total punches in the bout that was scored 116-111 and 117-110 twice.

“We want to give a lot of credit to Gausha. He’s an Olympian and he came to fight,” Lara said. “I take the rhythm of the boxing match and that’s when I take over. He’s fighting with the best in the division. He’s not a stupid fighter, but he knew who he was facing today.

“I’m ready to box anyone that comes my way. I’m the best boxer at 154 pounds and I won’t shy away from anyone that wants to fight me. I’ll box whoever, just line them up. I’m not afraid. I have proven that I’m a true champion. I’ll fight (Jermell) Charlo if I have to. We are friends, but business is business.”

One of the most anticipated fights of the year lasted only 2:41 seconds as WBC Super Welterweight World Champion Jermell Charlo knocked out Erickson Lubin with a brutal right uppercut to the chin in the opening round in the second of three 154-pound world title fights. VIDEO: http://s.sho.com/2yoXIU6

While the matchup of young, undefeated Americans was regarded as one of boxing’s best fights in a year of marquee matchups, Jermell Charlo had other plans. After feeling each other out Charlo, the twin brother of undefeated former champion Jermall, unloaded a strong right uppercut that the highly touted Lubin leaned into. With Lubin struggling to return to his feet, referee Harvey Dock waived off the contest and helped a dazed Lubin return to his corner.

“They were giving him a lot of attention,” a fired up Lubin told SHOWTIME Sports reporter Jim Gray. “I was quiet the whole time. They said they were going to come take my title. I had to defend it. They didn’t know what I was brining into this and I think (Lubin) was worried about the wrong things.

“We’re going to unify. The other champions want to fight me and I’ll take any of them. Give me another title. I want Hurd. Hurd just won. Give me Hurd.”

The 22-year-old Lubin, boxing’s consensus 2016 prospect of the year, had his hopes of becoming the second youngest titlist in boxing dashed in less than three minutes.

“I’m fine. He caught me with a blind shot. I didn’t see it coming. He landed it. I felt like when I got up I could have kept fighting, but it’s boxing. It happens.

“I’m young and I’m hungry. I know I’m one of the best out there. He caught me with a blind shot that I didn’t see. Like I said, it’s boxing. I’m just going to remain hungry, get back in the gym and become the champion I know I am.

“I’m young and have plenty of fight left in me. This is just a minor setback. I’ll be back sooner than later and hungrier than ever.”

IBF Junior Middleweight World Champion Jarrett Hurd became the first person to stop veteran former champion Austin Trout with a 10th round technical knockout in the first defense of his world title in the opening bout of the SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast.

The 27-year-old Hurd did what Miguel Cotto, Canelo Alvarez, Erislandy Lara and Jermall Charlo could not after the ringside doctor stepped in to stop the bout following a brutal closing 20 seconds of the 10th frame.

The Accokeek, Md., native often neglected defense in the early rounds and fought back after a slow start to wear down the toughest opponent of his career. The championship affair shifted in the sixth as Trout tired and Hurd picked up his output of power shots despite a bloody cut over his left eye. Trout was practically saved by the bell in the 10th round and trainer Louie Burke did not protest as he was advised that the fight should be stopped.

“It’s most definitely tougher to defend the title than win it,” Hurd said. “I’m always the one that comes on stronger at the end of the fight. We knew we were going to wear Austin Trout down in the later rounds and eventually stop him. My cut made me a little better with my head movement.

“Team Swift, we don’t run from anyone. I’m ready to unify. 2018 is the year for unifications. It doesn’t matter who it is. I’m ready to fight anyone.”

Hurd had a 89-31 edge in power punches landed over the last three rounds and connected on 43 percent of his power shots over 10 rounds.

Trout was taken to Lutheran Hospital for observation after the bout.

Saturday’s telecast will replay on Monday, Oct. 16 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on SHOWTIME EXTREME and will be available on SHOWTIME ON DEMAND® and SHOWTIME ANYTIME®.

Julian Sosa remained undefeated by winning a four round unanimous decision over Erick Daniel Martinez in a welterweight bout.

In round three. Sosa dropped Martinez with a hard right hand.

Sosa is now 10-0-1.  Martinez is 14-10-1.

Tony Harrison won an eight-round unanimous decision over Paul Valenzuela, Jr. in a middleweight bout.

In round two, Valenzuela was cut over the left eye from an accidental headbutt.  In round five, he was deducted a point for hitting Harrison on the break.

Harrison, 156 lbs of Detroit won by scores of 80-71 and 78-73 on two cards, and is now 25-2.  Valenzuela, 1558.8 lbs of Santa Rosalia. MEX is 20-6.

Cindy Serrano won an eight-round split decision over Edina Kiss in a super featherweight bout.

Serrano, 128.8 lbs of Brooklyn, NY won by scores of 79-73 & 78-74, while Kiss took a card 78-74.

Serrano is now 27-5-3.  Kiss, 127.8 lbs of Budapest, HUN is 13-6.

Chrodale Booker remained undefeated by winning a eight round unanimous decision over Malcolm McAllister in a battle of undefeated super welterweights.

In round seven, Booker landed a hard left hook that knocked Mcallister between the bottom and second ropes.

Booker, 154.2 lbs of Brooklyn, NY won by scores of 79-72, and 78-73 twice and is now 8-0.  McAllister, 151.8 lbs of Long Beach, CA is now 9-1.

Richardson Hitchins remained undefeated by winning a four round unanimous decision over Jordan Morales on a welterweight bout.

Hitchins, 143.6 lbs of Brooklyn, NY won by scores of 40-36 on all cards, and is now 3-0. Morales, 142 lbs of Pennsylvania is 2-3.

George Arias stopped Mario Heredia in round six of a scheduled eight round heavyweight bout.

It was a back and forth brawl, and Heredia could not continue.

Arias, 230 lbs of Bronx, NY is 9-0 with five knockouts. Heredia, 288.8 lbs of San Diego, CA is 14-6.

WBO Middleweight champion Billy Joe Saunders has been ordered to defend his title against Billy Joe Saunders, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com

“We got the letter from the WBO and Frank Warren reached out to me in an email and I responded back to him, so we’ve started dialogue and it will continue. We’re going to start negotiating,” Golden Boy Promotions Eric Gomez told ESPN.

“You can’t do it on that undercard. It’s a little too expensive,” Gomez said. “Frank’s got the champion, so he’ll make us an offer. Most likely he’ll want to do the fight in the U.K. Depending on the offer, we’ll react. We’ll discuss it with David, but it’s a good fight for HBO. I notified [HBO Sports executive vice president] Peter Nelson and he has interest in it.”

“We have 30 days to negotiate a deal, and then if they call for a purse bid it would be within two weeks after the 30 days,” Gomez said. “Then from the date of the purse bid it’s 90 days to put on the fight, so you’re looking at maybe February or March. But David is ready to fight in December, so that will be part of our conversation with Frank. It’s all open to discussion and negotiation.”

According to Dan Rafael of espn.com. Miguel Cotto will fight Sadam Ali on December 2nd in Madison Square Garden in what will be Cotto’s farewell fight.

“The fight has been agreed to verbally,” Eric Gomez, president of Golden Boy Promotions, which promotes Cotto, told ESPN on Tuesday. “We’re working on the contracts now and we’ll be making official announcement shortly.”

Cotto’s preferred opponent would have been the winner of the Sept. 16 middleweight world title showdown between Gennady Golovkin and Alvarez, but they fought to a disputed draw and likely will face each other in a rematch on May 5 without any intervening bouts.

Cotto has no plans to wait for either of them or any of the other bigger names who turned down offers to fight him before Ali accepted the bout. “I am leaving the ring Dec. 31,” Cotto told ESPN in September in Las Vegas during Golovkin-Alvarez fight week. “I will have the last fight of my career in December.”

Super Bantamweight world champion Jessie Magdaleno had to pull out of his November 11 title defense with Cesar Juarez with a wrist injury, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

“I’m disappointed for Jessie Magdaleno, I’m disappointed for Cesar Juarez and I’m disappointed for the fight fans who wanted to see this fight,” duBoef said. “We’ll reschedule the fight and probably see it after the first of the year. It’s not the end of the world. It happens. It’s part of the business and you have to accept it.

“It’s unfortunate because there would be fireworks with that fight. So we’ll see the fireworks in 2018 instead of in 2017.”

Frank Espinoza, Magdaleno’s manager, told ESPN that the injury was a reoccurrence of an injury Magdaleno, a southpaw, suffered about a month ago as he opened training camp.

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“At the beginning of camp he had hurt his hand and it seemed to get better,” Espinoza said. “We took him to the doctor. Nothing was broken. It felt better and he continued to work. Then it happened again the other day in sparring. His left wrist is swollen. He was kind of bummed out about it when I talked to him. He was down. It’s a shame, but you can’t prevent injuries. I’m certainly not going to put my fighter in the ring unless he’s 100 percent.”

Lewis Ritson won the British Lightweight title with a 7th round stoppage over Robbie Barrett

In round two, Ritson dropped Barrett with a cruching left and right to the head. Ritson continued to batter Barrett all over the ring for the balance of the round. In round six, it was an accumulation of punches of punches that sent Barrett down again. Seconds later, It was a straight right to the body that sent the champ down again.

In round seven, it was another body shot that sent Barrett down to the ground, and Barrett’s corner threw in the towel at 2:27.

Ritosn, 133.9 lbs of Forest Hall is now 13-0 with seven knockouts. Barrett, 134.4 lbs of Darfield is 15-3-1.

Hosea Burton needed just 80 seconds to dispose of late-replacement Daniel Latinearaa.

Burton scored two knockdowns and the fight was stopped as Latinierarra wobbled while throwing a punch.

Burton, 179.4 lbs is now 20-1 with 10 knockouts.

Scott Cardle won a six-round decision over Lee Connelly in a lightweight bout.

Connelly started to drip blood from his nostrils in a rough round five, where he was buckled and hurt by a big onslaught of punches from Cardle.

Cardle, 136.4 lbs won by a referee score of 59-56, and is now 22-1-1. Connelly is 7-28-3.

Unable to secure a rematch with Manny Pacquiao, WBO Welterweight champion Jeff Horn will face Gary Corcoran, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

Bob Arum, who co-promotes Horn with Duco Events, said terms of the bout have been agreed to but contracts won’t be signed until the plans are finalized for the building of a temporary facility that will seat about 8,000 for the fight in Brisbane, Australia, Horn’s hometown.

“We are clearing a location in Brisbane and once that is cleared then we can go ahead with doing the fight, which will now take place in December instead of November, which is what we were originally planning,” Arum said.

Arum said the fight probably will take place on Friday night, Dec. 15, Brisbane time with an ESPN network to carry live coverage of the bout in the United States that morning as part of Top Rank’s long-term deal with the network. Brisbane is 14 hours ahead of U.S. Eastern time.

The WBC has ordered a rematch of the September 16th Canelo Alvarez – Gennady Golovkin bout, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com

“Regardless of if they did or didn’t order the rematch, we are going to try to make it happen,” Eric Gomez, president of Alvarez promoter Golden Boy Promotions, told ESPN on Monday night. “We’ll do whatever it takes to make it happen because it’s the fight that the fans want, it’s what the fighters want, and it’s what the media wants.”

“It doesn’t get any better than the fight with Canelo,” Loeffler said. “It really became an international sporting event instead of a world boxing championship match. Gennady still has all his titles. He’s still the world champion and this is a fight that the fans want again, so we can have a more definitive ending to the next one. We’ll do whatever we can on our side to make it happen.”

Gary O’Sullivan stopped Nick Quigley in round four of a scheduled 10-round middleweight at the House of Blues in Boston.

O’Sullivan battered Quigley until the bout was stopped at 1:22.

O’Sullivan, 159.8 lbs of Boston, MA is now 26-2 with 18 knockouts. Quigley, 159.8 lbs of Liverpool, ENG is 15-3.

Darden Zenunaj stopped Recky Dulay in round three of their scheduled 10 round super featherweight bout.

Zenunaj dropped Dulay twice in round one. The first knockdown came from a left hook. Seconds later, it was a left to the body that put Dulay down. In round three, Zenunaj dropped Dulay with a right to the top of the head for the ten count at 1:50.

Zenunaj, 129.6 lbs of Sherman Oaks, CA is 14-3 with 11 knockouts. Dulay, 130.6 lbs of Samar, PHL is 10-3.

Everton Lopes won a six-round unanimous decision over Rafael Reyes in a lightweight bout.

Lopes, 135 lbs of Salvador Bahia, BRA won by scores of 59-55 twice and 58-56 to remain perfect at 6-0. Reyes, 136.4 lbs of Reynosa, MEX is 7-12.

Artur Beterbiev and Enrico Koelling will now vie for the vacant IBF Light Heavyweight title on November 11th, after the retirement of Andre Ward, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

“This is to notify you that IBF light heavyweight champion Andre Ward has retired. Now that the title is vacant, the IBF will approve the Artur Beterbiev vs. Enrico Koelling eliminator as a fight for the vacant title,” the IBF wrote.

Heavyweight contender Luis Ortiz failed a drug test and putting his November 4th title shot with WBC Deontay Wilder in jeopardy.

According to the letter sent by VADA president Dr. Margaret Goodman to Sulaiman and others disclosing the positive test, a copy of which was obtained by ESPN, Ortiz gave a urine sample for a random drug test conducted on Sept. 22 at his training camp in Miami. The results were returned on Thursday, and Ortiz’s “A” sample tested positive for the banned diuretics chlorothiazide and hydrochlorothiazide, which are used to treat high blood pressure but also can be used as masking agents for performance-enhancing drug use.

“I can verify the information Mauricio put out,” DiBella, promoter of the fight, told ESPN. “I’m flabbergasted and particularly crestfallen for my fighter. Deontay Wilder is a great champion and a clean champion and probably has been victimized more than any other fighter in the history of the sport.”

“Stay clean, because we’ll be checking,” Wilder told Ortiz. “Stay clean. Don’t f— this up for me, nor you, because I’m gonna prove to the world that I am the best.”

“It is sad for the sport, and I just hope something even more can be done about this situation before it ruins the sport of boxing,” Wilder told ESPN in February, before he faced Washington. “I want to see some punishment done. I want to see if you do this, if you put steroids or anything that has your body doing what it is not naturally supposed to do, I think you should not only get suspended, but maybe indefinitely.

“They need to take their career away, because this is ridiculous. I am naturally strong without weights. Without training. With anything, I am God-given, Alabama-country strong. I have always been that way. But just imagine if I used anything to enhance my body. Did you see my fight with [Artur] Szpilka? Just imagine if I had something in my body. That man would have been dead, because I thought he was dead. I hope it just gets cleaned up.”

DiBella said he would deal with things on Friday and planned to talk to Wilder’s team, Barclays Center officials and Showtime Sports boss Stephen Espinoza.

“I want to get a good night sleep and deal with it on Friday,” DiBella said.

The recent Hurricane Maria that severly damaged Puerto Rico has forced the cancellation of this Saturday’s Juan Manuel Lopez – Jayson Velez fight, according to Dan Rafael.

Also, Gaby Penagaricano, a representative of Black Tiger Promotions, told ESPN that there is no way the card can move ahead with the island facing so many difficulties.

“I have not been able to communicate with the promoter to have an official cancellation announcement. They have not been able to even put a press release out,” Penagaricano told ESPN by email. “However, I am certain the event is not happening. This is a complete disaster over the whole island. No power; very limited water availability; banks closed; limited gasoline supplies; and telecommunications also very limited.”

The September 16th Canelo Alvarez – Gennady Golovkin fight generated a gate of $27,059,850 which constitutes the 3rd biggest gate of all-time, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

The fight generated $27,059,850 from 17,318 tickets sold, according to figures released Tuesday by the Nevada State Athletic Commission. There were 934 complimentary tickets given out, according to the commission.

“By drawing the third largest gate in [boxing] history, Canelo has demonstrated once again that he is the top draw in our sport,” Golden Boy Promotions CEO Oscar De La Hoya, Alvarez’s promoter, told ESPN. “And the scary thing is that he’s still only 27 years old. As he continues to engage in the kind of hard-fought battles he had with GGG, Canelo’s popularity will only continue to soar.”

Jorge Linares retained the WBA Lightweight title with a hard fought split decision over Luke Campbell at The Forum in Inglewood, California.

In round two, Linares dropped Campbell with a quick straight right hand.  Later in the round, Campbell was cut under his right eye.  When it seemed Linares would cruise to another defense, Campbell valiantly fought back by landing some solid jabs and right hooks to the body.

The fight was on the table going into the championship rounds, but Linares got back to what was working for him early, and landed some straight right hands.

Linares, 134.2 lbs of Barines, VEN won by scores of 115-112 and 114-113 on two cards, while Campbell took a card 115-113.

Linares is now 43-3.  Campbell, 134.8 lbs of Hull, ENG is 17-2.

“I fought very well,” said Jorge Linares. “I’m happy with the fight. At the fifth round, we had some trouble but we came out on top. Trust me, I have a great connection with my team and with my trainer, so we worked hard and kept at it. I knew I had to let the dogs out. We want Mikey Garcia next.”

“No one can ever doubt my hard work,” said Luke Campbell. “Yes, I got off to a rocky start. He [Linares] caught me in the eye. A nice shot that put me on the mat. But I had to fight. I had to get focused. I didn’t think he was landing any shots whatsoever in the second half.”

TUCSON, Ariz. – Oscar Valdez Jr. wanted to please a crowd that had traveled from his birthplace in Mexico and to the U.S. city where he went to school.

Mission accomplished and then some.

Valdez took his fans on a dramatic ride, thrilling at some turns and dangerous at others. In the end, he and them got to where they expected.

Valdez retained his World Boxing Organization featherweight title with a unanimous decision over Genesis Servania, who proved to be as tough as he was unknown.

“I wanted to show the crowd,’’ Valdez (23-0, 19 KOs) said after the ESPN televised but at Tucson Arena on a Top Rank card that also included super-middleweight Gilberto Ramirez’ dramatic victory over Jesse Hart in another title defense.

It was close, a lot closer than the 116-110, 115-111, 117-109 scorecards might suggest. In the later rounds, however, Valdez, who collected $400,000, managed to keep his distance, stay busy and throw just enough punches to stay in control of the bout and his futures.

“The scores were a little wide,’’ said Servania (29-1, 12 KOs), who collected $55,000. “Let’s do it again.’’

Promoter Bob Arum said he hopes to put together a deal for Valdez to fight Belfast featherweight Carl Frampton, sometime next year.

Meanwhile, Robles wants to get Valdez to become a better listener between rounds. There were a lot of potential distractions for Valdez before opening bell. He voiced his support for the Dreamers, young undocumented immigrants who are fighting to stay in the United States. Arum said he gave about 300 to 400 free tickets to the Dreamers who could document their immigration status.

Valdez also fought in front of a grandfather, Luis Fierro, who was arrested last month on, reportedly for an old traffic ticket. Valdez said he is facing charges that could lead to his deportation. He said got his grandfather out of jail in time to see the fight.

“There were a lot of emotions before this one and Oscar is an emotional fighter,’’ Robles said.

Now, they can talk about what’s next.

Ramirez retains WBO belt

It was exhausting and exhilarating. It was a lot of things. Sometimes, bruising. Sometimes, beautiful. Sometimes, ugly. Always, dramatic.

In the end, it belonged to Ramirez.

Ramirez retained the WBO’s super-middleweight title with a 115-112, 114-113, 115-112 decision over Hart, a Philadelphia fighter whose last name sounds like heart because he has plenty of it.

So, too, does Ramirez (36-0, 24 KOs). The Mexican dedicated his victory to America’s young , undocumented immigrants, so-called Dreamers, some of whom were in the crowd of 4, 103. He dedicated it to the earthquake victims in Mexico City. He also thanked Hart (22-1, 18 KOs), who he knocked down in the second round with a right hand.

“A great show for everybody here and all my people in Mexico,’’ Ramirez said.

Michael Conlan scores powerful stoppage

Michael Conlan’s right is best remembered for an obscene gesture. But there’s more than just a middle finger in that hand. There’s power and it speaks for itself. It landed loudly and decisively, taking out a tough Kenny Guzman of Montana in the second round of the card featuring Servania-Valdez.

“I was a bit reckless early,’’ said Conlan (4-0, 4 KOs), a Belfast featherweight who famously – or infamously — flipped off the judges at the 2016 Olympics.

He was altogether devastating a little later. Poor Guzman (3-1, 1 KO) never had a chance to be offended. He never saw it coming. Conlan, whose next fight is scheduled for Dec. 9 at New York’s Madison Square Garden..

Conlan, a Valdez stablemate in trainer Manny Robles’ gym, had the right high and cocked life the trigger on a gun. Guzman was out the second it landed. He got up and referee Wes Melton ended it at 2:59 of the round.

On The Undercard

The Best: Lithuanian welterweight Egis Kavaliauskas (18-0, 15 KOs) took a lot of punches and landed even more, leaving Mexican Mahonri Montes (32-7-1, 21 KOs) with a bloodied face, a swollen right eye and a bruising seventh round loss by TKO.

For Kavaliauskas, a two-time Olympian, the victory was an opportunity After dominating the bout, he turned the ring inot a bully pulpit.

“Bring on Jeff Horn,’’ he said of the Australian who beat Many Pacquiao in a controversial decision Down Under in July.

The Rest: Lightweight Mikaela Mayer (2-0, 2 KOs), 2016 Olympian from Los Angeles, landed an uninterrupted succession of punches, leaving Texan Allison Martinez (1-3, 1 KOs) dazed, done and defeated at 39 seconds of the third round.

Brazilian junior lightweight Robson Conceicao (5-0, 4 KOs) flashed his Olympic gold-medal credentials, toying for three round with Nicaraguan Carlos Osorio (13-8-1, 5 KOs), who complained of a shoulder injury and quit on his stool before the fourth.

Uzbek junior-welterweight Fazliddin Gaibnazarov 3-0, 1 KO), a 2016 gold medalist and one of three Olympic medalists on the card, scored a unanimous decision over a game, yet overmatched Victor Rosas (9-7, 3 KOs) of Mexico.

Australian welterweight Lenny Zappavigna (36-3, 26 KOs) came back from a 2016 loss with a little but of thunder, scoring a third-round TYKO of Mexican Fidel Monterroza (38-14-1, 30 KOs)

“Absolutely sick to my stomach,” Golden Boy Promotions Eric Gomez said of the situation.

Juan Sanchez won a four-round unanimous decision over Gorward Karya in a featherweight bout.

In round one, Sanchez scored a knockdown on a right hand.

Sanchez, 124.9 lbs of Bethlehem. PA won on two cards 39-36 and took a third card 40-35 to raise his mark to 3-0. Karyah, 125.8 lbs of Philadelphia is 1-1.

Ryan Wilczak took out Devin McMaster in just 95 seconds of their scheduled four round junior middleweight bout.

Wilczak scored two knockdowns and finished McMaster off with a hard left hand that sent him on his back.

Wilczak, 154.3 lbs of Scranton, PA is 5-0 with three knockouts. McMaster, 152.9 lbs of Allentown, PA is 1-3.

Antonio Russell stopped Cristian Renteria in round three of a scheduled six-round bantamweight bout.

In round three, Russell drilled Rebteria with a right hook that sent him to the canvas. Renteria got to his feet but referee Benjy Esteves stopped at 1:26.

Russell, 117.8 lbs of Washington, DC is 9-0 with seven knockouts. Renteria, 120.2 lbs of California, MX is 7-6.

Antuanne Russell battered a tough Jesus Lule before stopping him at 2:37 of round one of their scheduled four round super lightweight bout.

Russell hit Lule with some viscous combination’s, yet the veteran Lule continued to take the shots. Finally a ripping flurry of punches to the head had referee Benji Esteves stop the bout.

Russell. 138.5 lbs of Washington, DC is 2-0 with 2 knockouts. Lule, 139.7 lbs of Fort Myers, FL is 11-24-1.

Jeffrey Torres remained undefeated by stopping Latorie Woodberry in the first round of their scheduled four round super lightweight bout

Torres flooreds Woodberry in round one with 2 lefts tio head and one to the body, Woodberry went down again from a right hand. Torres ended things with 2 more lefts to the body that sent Woodnerry down, and referee Gary Rosato stopped the bout at 2:37.

Torres, 140.4 lbs of Hartford, CT is 4-0 with 2 knockouts. Woodberry, 141.8 lbs of Roanoke, VA is 1-5-1.

According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, talks for a rematch of last Saturday’s Canelo Alvarez – Gennady Gilovkin will commence shortly.

“I had conversations with [Golden Boy CEO] Oscar [De La Hoya] on Sunday and Monday, and we feel that’s the best thing to do, to go straight into a rematch,” Golden Boy President Eric Gomez said.

He also spoke to Golovkin promoter Tom Loeffler, who also wants to pursue a second fight.

“I spoke to Tom a few times, and he’s certainly open to it after taking to his side, so we agreed to sit down later this week and start discussing it,” Gomez said.

“Obviously, we’re going to give Canelo some time off and we’ll start talking to him as well. Immediately after the fight everybody was open to a rematch. I feel it was such a great fight it deserves a rematch, even besides it being such a close fight.”

“Regardless of what the contract says, everybody is interested in the rematch, so it’s just a matter of us sitting down and talking,” he said.

“We are definitely open to it. It’s owed to the fans and owed to the sport that the rematch should happen.”

“The priority for Gennady is to do the rematch,” Loeffler said. “It’s the biggest fight still in the sport of boxing and the biggest fight for both guys. We will sit down with Golden Boy and see if we can make that happen and we wouldn’t let a different fight get in the way.”

“If we can make the rematch for May, Gennady would wait for the rematch in May,” Loeffler said. “If Canelo won’t commit to the rematch in May, then we can’t wait on Canelo and we would take a different fight before that. But clearly there’s no reason to talk about a different fight yet if we can make the rematch with Canelo in May.”

“There’s no problem with that, but I would rather we do the rematch directly because I would hate for him take another fight and get injured or lose. It’s too risky,” Gomez said. “I would be against it, but I don’t control it. But, that said, based on my conversations with Tom, they would like to do an immediate rematch. I think the fight merits a rematch and we’ll see if it gets done.”

Said Loeffler: “That just adds to an additional aspect to the rematch.”

WBC Heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder will defend his title against undefeated challenger Luis Ortiz on November 4th at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

Part of that deal includes a title elimination fight on the undercard. Bermane Stiverne will face 2012 U.S. Olympian Dominic Breazeale (18-1, 16 KOs), 32, of Los Angeles, multiple sources told ESPN. Breazeale suffered his only loss by seventh-round knockout challenging world titleholder Anthony Joshua in June 2016 in London.

Juergen Braehmer will take on Rob Brant in the World Boxing Super Series on October 27 in Germany.

“I am very glad the World Boxing Super Series can announce a date and venue for my quarterfinal against Rob Brant,” said Braehmer, 38, a former light heavyweight world titleholder moving down in weight. “I am very excited that this bout is going to take place in my hometown of Schwerin. In short: I cannot wait to start my journey to win the Muhammad Ali Trophy.”

“Braehmer is a well-accomplished and proven boxer worldwide with star power in his home country,” Brant said. “I have no problem going to his backyard for a fight. He is a seeded athlete in the tournament.

“I feel this is a pure crossroads fight containing a proven well-known fighter toward the end of his career against a hot prospect looking to make his name in the sport. I feel confident in winning this fight as does everyone in my training circle. After researching Schwerin I am excited to compete in such a beautiful and historic city.”

LAS VEGAS – The business wanted a party. Wanted to celebrate. But all it can do today is to try to explain away another controversy, the only promise boxing ever seems to deliver with any kind of reliability.

 

GGG might as well stand for Grumble Grumble Grumble.

 

The judges got in the way of a good fight. Not a great one. Gennady Golovkin and Canelo Alvarez will never be confused with Marvin Hagler and Thomas Hearns. But they’re in the history books anyway, but for all the wrong reasons. They fought to a draw Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena in another pay-per-outrage event.

 

Canelo promoter Oscar De La Hoya promised rounds of hell. For him, the hell will come in trying to calm the anger over the judging. For instance: What in the hell was Adelaide Byrd watching? She had it 118-110 for Canelo. Carl Moretti scored it 115-113 from Golovkin. Don Trella had it 114-114.

 

At home and in the very expensive seats, it looked like a much different fight. On the 15 Rounds scorecard, it was GGG, 116-112. Perhaps, it was closer than that. But Golovkin seemed to gain momentum midway through the bout, controlling the pace and landing most of the punches from the sixth through the 11^th rounds. According to CompuBox, Golovkin (37-0-1, 33 KOs) landed 49 more punches, 218 to Canelo’s 169.

 

On any scorecard, Golovkin, still the reigning middleweight champ, also appeared to score heavily in the aggression category. That’s GGG for Going Going Going. He was always going forward. Canelo (48-1-2, 34 KOs) would land thudding body shots and head-rocking uppercuts. Yet after each, the redheaded Mexican looked up and there he was all over again, Golovkin going, going, going forward.

 

Canelo will see GGG coming forward and into his face in his dreams. He’ll also hear the boos. The predominantly Mexican crowd — populated by Canelo fans — was unhappy at the judging. After all, they had been told this was a real fight. Whet they didn’t know was that the judging would be such a mockery of what Canelo and GGG did. Those punches were real. They were dangerous. The judging was devoid of reality, yet dangerous in terms of how it can further erode credibility in a sport with so little of it.

 

A rematch, of course, looks to be inevitable.

 

“Of course, I want a rematch,’’ Golovkin said. “I won the fight.’’

 

But not the cards, a House of Cards that always seems to make boxing look like a Joker.

The arena was empty. But the ring wasn’t.

Flyweight Marlen Esperza was there, full of heart and skill, to open the show Saturday a couple of hours before the pay-per-view telecast of the long-awaited card featuring the middleweight showdown between Gennady Golvkin and Canelo Alvarez at T-Mobile Arena,

Esperza (3-0) who dedicated the fight to the flood-ravaged victims in her hometown of Houston, looked dominated every second of every round for a six-round shutout of Aracely Palacios (8-8, 1 KO) of Mexico.

“Even though my opponent, on paper, looked like she had more ring experience, I’ve been in the ring way more than she had,’’ said Esparza, a 2012 Olympic bronze medalist. “Because I had three-minute rounds, I was able to think a lot more in the ring and was even told by my trainer I had to slow down.

“I couldn’t research much about my opponent, but we knew she was going to be throwing her right often. I’m satisfied with my performance because this was my first six-round fight.”