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.”

Mike Lee remained undefeated by emphatically stopping Aaron Quatrocchi in round one of a their ten round light heavyweight bout at The Dome at The Ballpark in Rosemont, Illinois.

In round one, Lee landed a perfect right that sent Quattrocchi to the canvas. Moments later, Lee landed another booming right that sent Quattrocchi down for a 2nd time. Lee finished off the show with a hard flurry, and the bout was stopped at 2:32.

Lee of Chicago is now 20-0 with 11 knockouts. Quattrocchi of West Virginia is now 10-2-1.

Tommy Hughes stopped Joshua Kuhn in round four of a scheduled four-round super middleweight bout.

Hughes dominated the action until a hard 1-2 combination landed and the fight was stopped at 30 seconds.

Hughes, 167 1/2 lbs of Chicago is now 4-0 with 3 knockouts. Kuhn, 167 lbs of Welch, WV is 1-2-1.

Taylor Duerr stopped Matt Cameron in round two of their scheduled four round cruiserweight bout.

Duerr landed a hard combination that hurt Cameron and the fight was stopped at

Duerr, 195 lbs of Detroit is 5-0-1 with 5 knockouts. Cameron, 199 1/2 lbs of Niles, IL is 1-1-1.

LAS VEGAS–Jesus Rojas scored a sensational 7th round stoppage over Claudio Marrero to retain his WBA Interim featherweight title at the Marquee Ballroom inside the MGM Grand.

It was an action filled fight with Rojas getting the better of the exchanges with powerful combinations on the inside.

In round seven, Rojas landed a booming left hook in the corner that sent Marrero to his back. Marrero looked like he wanted to beat the count, but he stayed on his knees and was counted out at 2:59.

Rojas of Caguas, PR is 26-1-2 with 19 knockouts. Marrero of Santo Domingo, DR is now 22-2.

“I’m super happy and super emotional,” said Jesus Rojas. “I want to thank Roberto Diaz and the entire Golden Boy team, my family and my kids. This is the joy of many years of sacrifice and many fights that have been taken from me. I promised my father that I would get a title one day, and even though he is no longer with, my promise to him is complete. We knew that he [Marrero] was going to be aggressive and we purposely worked on our counterpunching, and that was what did the trick.”

Ryan Garcia needed just 30 seconds to destroy Miguel Carrizoza in their scheduled ten-round super featherweight bout.

In the opening seconds Garcia floored Carrizoza with a straight right. Carrizoza got to his feet but ate a perfect left hook to the head and the fight was stopped.

Garcia of Victorville, CA is 11-0 with ten knockouts. Carrizoza of Nogales, MEX is 10-3.

“I am just happy!,” shouted Ryan Garcia. “When I took the fight, I actually thought it might be a bit challenging since he had never gotten knocked out. Within seconds of the bout starting, I realized that the guy wasn’t going to touch me. Hopefully now with this title I’ll be able to take on some even tougher fights!”

Damon Allen remained undefeated by winning an eight-round unanimous decision over Jayro Duran in a

In round two, Allen was deducted a point for hitting low.

That was the only blemish for Allen, of Philadelphia took every round and won by scores of 79-72 on all cards to raise his mark to 13-0-1. Duran of San Pedro sula, HON is 10-3.

“This is just another win to add to my record,” said Damon Allen. “I brought the most ring savviness, power, and control into the fight. I felt like the referee kept interrupting my rhythm, and kept calling my body shots low blows and I still lost a point for it. This is my third fight this year, so I hope I get to fight again in December for a title.”

Horacio Garcia stopped Duhul Olguin in round four of their scheduled eight-round super bantamweight bout.

In the fourth round, Garcia dropped Olguin with a hard right hand. Garcia finished off Olguin with a hard left hook that was punctuated with a left to the head. Olguin fell to the canvas as referee Robert Byrd stopped the bout at 44 seconds.

Garcia of Guadalajara, Mexico is now 33-3-1 with 23 knockouts. Olguin of Guadalajara, Mexico is now 11-8-2.

“I’m very happy,” said Horacio Garcia. “I’m very grateful for all the people, the fans who support the Mexican fighters, Golden Boy Promotions, and my team. I really wanted to fight him [Garcia] again because I know that the first time there were things that happened that didn’t allow me to go into that fight well. But today the hard work was carried out well.”

Alexis Salazar won a six-round unanimous decision over Even Torres in a middleweight bout.

Salazar of Tiaquepaque, MEX won by scores of 60-54, 59-55 and 58-56 and is now 12-3. Torres of El Paso, TX is 6-5.

“My performance was okay tonight – I wasn’t as explosive as I wanted to be,” said Alexis Salazar. “I wish I would have paid more attention to my corner, I could have gotten the knockout. My opponent was able to put a lot of pressure, and he never got tired. Training with Canelo was such a privilege – I was able to learn what it takes to be a champion.”

Srisaket Sor Rungvisai retained the WBC Super Flyweight title with a 4th round knockout over Roman Gonzalez at The StubHub Center in Carson, California.

Rungvisai consistently beat Gonzalez to the punch when the two stood toe-to-toe in the center of the ring.  Gonzalez looked a bit slower then in recent fights, where he was considered pound for pound the best fighter in the world.

In round four, Rungvisai landed a right hook that sent Gonzalez to the deck.  Gonzalez seemed to steady himself only to eat another right hook that sent him plummeting to  the canvas, and the fight was immediately stopped at 1:18.

Runvisai, 115 lbs of Si Sa Ket, THA is now 44-4-1 with 40 knockouts.  Gonzalez, 114.8 lbs of Managua, NIC is

Nayoya Inoue made an impressive American debut by stopping Antonio Nieves after round six to retain the WBO Super Flyweight title.46-2-1.

Inoue was dominant, and in round five, he landed a vicious left hook to the body that sent Nieves to the canvas.  Inoue continued to pound Nieves, and after round six, Nieves’ corner mercifully stopped the bout.

Inoue, 115 lbs of Yokohama, JAP is now 14-0 with 12 knockouts.  Nives, 113.8 lbs of Cleveland, OH is 17-2-2.

Juan Francisco Estrada won a 12-round unanimous decision over Carlos Cuadras in a battle of former world champions.

Cuadras came out boxing and controlled the early rounds.  the fight started to turn in round six, as he started to land hard power shots that rocked Cuadras.

In round two, Estrada landed a perfect straight right that sent Cuadras to the canvas.  Estrada came on late to take the late rounds and come from behind to win on all cards by 114-113 scores.

Estrada, 114.8 lbs of Puerto Penasco, Mexico is now 36-2.  Cuadras, 114.6 lbs of Mexico City is 36-2-1.

Caleb Plant remained undefeated with a 10-round unanimous decision over Andre Hernandez in a super middleweight bout.

In round nine, Hernandez was cut under his left eye.

Plant, 167.2 lbs of Nashville, TN won by scores of 100-90 on all cards, and is now 16-0. Hernandez, 166.4 lbs of Phoenix, AZ is 19-7-1.

According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, the Floyd Mayweather – Conor McGregor fight on August 26th generated a $55.4 Million gate at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

LOS ANGELES (Sept. 1, 2017) Featherweight prospect Manny “Chato” Robles III (14-0, 6 KOs) retained his undefeated status with a seventh-round knockout victory against Tijuana, Mexico’s Jose Estrella (18-13-1, 12 KOs) in the main event of the latest edition of
LA FIGHT CLUB at the Belasco Theater in downtown Los Angeles and televised live nationally on Estrella TV’s Boxeo Estelar. Robles, of Los Angeles, California, dropped Estrella two times before the fight was stopped at 1:39 of the seventh round.

“This was the first time as the main-event, but that didn’t faze me at all because I knew I was in my own backyard with my family watching and supporting me,” said Manny Robles, III. “In the earlier rounds, he was pretty resilient and I really wanted to finish him early, but by the middle of the fight I started fighting smarter, and worked the body.”

VIP fighters for tonight’s event included Joseph “JoJo” Diaz, Jr., Raul Curiel, Ryan “Kingry” Garcia, David Mijares, Niko “Baby Face” Valdes, Edgar “Kid Neza” Valerio, and WBO Super Bantamweight Champion Jessie Magdaleno.

Cesar Diaz stopped Antonio Rodriguez in round five of their scheduled six-round bantamweight bout.

Diaz dominated the bout and dropped and stopped Rodriguez with an uppercut in round five, and the bout was stopped at 1:12.

Diaz, 117.4 lbs of Palmdale, CA is 6-0 with five knockouts. Rodriguez, 118 lbs of Durango, MEX is 11-19-1.

“I feel like I’m laying down my foundation to a long career with this win,” said Cesar Diaz. “His reach was giving me a little bit of trouble, but I was able to close the distance effectively and work from the inside. We still have a lot to work on, but I’m super content with my team and this knockout victory.”

Everton Lopes remained perfect by stopping Daniel Bastien in round two of a scheduled four round super lightweight bout.

Lopes dropped Bastien once, and the fight was stopped at 1:56 of round two after Bastien suffered a barrage of hard punches, which was highlighted by body punches.

Lopes, 135.2 lbs of Salvador Bahia, BRA is now 5-0 with two knockouts. Bastien, 135.6 lbs of Nuevo Leon, MX is now 4-7.

“This is my first fight in two years since my surgery, and man does it feel good to be back!,” said Everton Lopes. “It’s been a tough time, but I’m glad to be back and get this knockout for my team and for my son who means the world to me. I’m ready for what is to come.”

Javier Martinez stopped Jose A. Martinez in round three of a scheduled six-round featherweight bout.

Javier dropped Jose with a body shot and the fight was stopped at 2:03

Javier Martinez, 125.6 lbs of Dallas, TX is now 3-0 with three knockouts. Jose A. Martinez. 125.8 lbs of Durango, MEX is now 10-11.

“I went in there really excited, and wanting to knock him out,” said Javier Martinez. “After the third round, I was able to relax, and listen to my coach. Doing that, I was able to get the knockout. I’m glad I made the move from Texas to train with my team here in California. I’ve noticed the difference in my style and have improved so much. I’m just ready to put in work!”

The IBF has ordered a bout between Sergey Lipinets and Akihiro Kondo to fight for the vacant 140 pound title that was recently vacated by Terence Crawford, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

According to the sanctioning body, both boxers have indicated in writing that they are willing to participate in the bout, and it ordered negotiations to begin immediately.

The sides have until Sept. 30 to make a deal, otherwise the IBF will order a purse bid to determine who gains promotional control of the fight.

According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, The Maryland State Athletic Commission has upheld it’s ruling of an Andre Dirrell win over Jose Uzcategui in their controversial fight that resulted in a win for Dirrell via disqualification on May 20th.

“The Maryland State Athletic Commission conducted a hearing regarding a protest of the referee’s decision made in the May 20, 2017 world title match between boxers Andre Dirrell and Jose Uzcategui. After hearing expert testimony, the commission upheld the call of referee Bill Clancy,” commission spokeswoman Theresa M. Blaner said in a statement given to ESPN. “The commission’s written determination will be issued within the next month.”

Uzcategui, adviser Sean Gibbons, their attorney Daniel James and Hall of Fame referee Steve Smoger, serving as their expert witness, attended the hearing and were very disappointed in the outcome. Gibbons said they watched a replay with the commission, along with Clancy and Dirrell’s attorney, before the commission made its ruling to uphold Clancy’s call.

“Our position is that Mr. Clancy lost control of the situation,” Gibbons told ESPN. “He overrode the doctor to make the decision. He’s the sole arbiter, but one of the things Mr. Clancy did was when Mr. Dirrell was down on his knees he told him to get up. He said, ‘Are you OK?’ And Dirrell nodded yes. Then he went to the corner and screamed, ‘Get me a doctor’ while people outside the ring, including Mr. Dirrell’s brother, told him to fall over. One of our contentions was that as the doctor was entering the ring, Mr. Clancy said to him, ‘Tell me if Dirrell can continue.’ And 10 seconds into the doctor looking at Mr. Dirrell, Clancy yelled, ‘I’m disqualifying [Uzcategui]!’

“Throughout the whole testimony, Bill Clancy was very combative as he was in the ring that night to Uzcategui and it felt like he was under attack. We feel he misrepresented the facts.”

“Mr. Clancy was adamant that since Mr. Uzcategui had accidentally hit Dirrell after the bell after the second round that it was intentional at the end of the eighth round, and because he had already warned him, that’s why he disqualified him,” Gibbons said. “They didn’t buy that it was in the heat of battle. It was a three-punch combination as the bell was ringing and there was no way he can pull up at that point. But at no point was Uzcategui doing anything intentional, but Clancy kept going on that it was intentional.”

“The IBF has also determined that it was inappropriate for the referee to advise Dirrell of the decision of the bout prior to the official decision being announced. Based on the above … the IBF has ruled that the referee’s conduct was inappropriate and will grant an immediate rematch.”

“We came to the state of Maryland on May 20 to challenge for [an interim] world title, and Uzcategui got assaulted that night, and we came back for this hearing and we were assaulted again — by the commission, by Clancy, by the attorney general’s office and Dirrell’s attorney,” Gibbons said, noting that in around 300 amateur bouts and 28 pro fights Uzcategui had never had a point deducted for a foul. “They were all going after us for an unintentional foul. It felt like they showed up to go to war instead of having a nice civil hearing to show that Uzcategui never tried to do anything intentional.”

With less than three weeks to go until fight night, Billy Joe Saunders is in the shape of his life for his next World Title defence.

On September 16th, the unbeaten Middleweight defends his WBO crown against American Willie Monroe Jr at the Copper Box Arena, live on BT Sport and BoxNation.

Saunders recently teamed up with Sheffield-based trainer Dominic Ingle, and the move appears to be paying off.

The southpaw celebrated his 28th birthday on Wednesday, but confirmed he wouldn’t be having any birthday cake. “No celebrations until after my fight as I’m in camp, but I’ll have a tin of tuna,” he tweeted.

Last time out, Saunders laboured to a points win over game Russian Artur Akavov, but admitted he was not fully fit and was dissapointed with his performance.

Now with the new team around him at Ingle Gym, the Hatfield star is confident he can kickstart his career as he eyes a big Middleweight unification against the winner of Canelo vs. Golovkin.

As well as Ingle, Saunders credits his nutritionist Greg Marriott: “It seems like I have someone practically living with me monitoring my every move towards the fridge!

“I would say my attitude towards boxing as a whole is on a different level since I have been in the Ingle camp,” he wrote in a recent Fighter Diary.

Tickets for Saunders vs. Monroe Jr priced at £40, £50, £70, £100, £150, £200 and £250 (VIP/Hospitality) are available from:

www.eventim.co.uk

www.seetickets.com

www.ticketmaster.co.uk

Former middleweight champion Peter Quilin will return to the ring on September 8th after a 21 month layoff, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

“People think I’m retired,” Quillin told ESPN on Wednesday night. “I would have announced if I was retired. But I’ve gone through a lot. I changed my team. I have some new people in my circle. I needed to make sure I had the time I needed with them. But now I am ready to go and ready to start the second leg of my career.”

“I’ve put it behind me,” Quillin said. “We can always pick and choose what we did wrong, but what happened happened. If in the future me and Danny can do a rematch so be it, but that story is the way God intended for me to learn.”

“I don’t want to be disrespectful to anyone I’ve worked with before, but being with Virgil, I find he explains things a lot more than I ever had. He’s psychologically preparing me. I got a little too comfortable in training. Now I understand it’s my job and my lifestyle.”

“I want to move back into the world title line,” Quillin said. “So Benavidez is the main event. I’ve watched him come a long way. He was my sparring partner for a few of my camps. Now I’m on his undercard. I appreciate the journey and what I’ve learned from the sport. You got to appreciate and understand the journey, but this part is humbling.”

“I’ve been middleweight since I was 18 years old, and making 160 was becoming a problem,” he said. “Behind the scenes I was suffering a lot in my body trying to make the weight. But now I am good in terms of my weight.”

“It’s hard living here [in the Bay Area] most of the time and trying to balance a family, but we do a lot of FaceTime,” he said. “But I feel I am back on track and looking forward to fighting again and continuing my journey.”

Undefeated undisputed 140 lb champion Terence Crawford vacated the IBF verison of the title, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

“On behalf of Top Rank and Terence Crawford we would like to thank you and the IBF for allowing Terence to participate in the historic four-title unification bout on August 19. As always it was a pleasure working with the IBF,” Top Rank vice president Carl Moretti wrote to IBF president Daryl Peoples to inform him of Crawford’s decision to vacate the belt. “It had been a lifelong dream of Terence’s to win an IBF world championship and to be recognized as undisputed, unified world champion.

“Top Rank and Terence realize that the IBF is in a complicated situation with respect to the mandatory defense for the title, given prior exemptions leading into the August 19 bout. Unfortunately, the timing of the purse bid and the mandatory defense do not permit Terence and Top Rank sufficient time to consider the next step in his career. In light of that, and wanting to spare the IBF unnecessary and prolonged procedural steps, Terence respectfully relinquishes his IBF title. Thank you once again for the opportunity and we look forward continuing our relationship in future endeavors.”

LAS VEGAS – In the end, only the spectacle was memorable. The fight was forgettable. Yet in the end, it was indeed a fight instead of the mere farce predicted by so many.

Floyd Mayweather, Jr. won it and with the stoppage he promised Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena in a pay-per-view event expected to set records.

But there was also a victory wrapped in the defeat for Conor McGregor, who was still upright at the time of the 10round TKO and proud as ever after the MMA star’s first professional boxing match against this generation’s best at the more traditional sweet science.

McGregor surprised the boxing pursuits.

Seemed to surprise, Mayweather, too.

He threw jabs nobody had ever seen or even suspected he had. He had Mayweather in retreat fighting off his back foot. In the opening rounds, Mayweather looked exactly like the 40-year-old man who had not answered an opening bell in a couple of years. After six rounds, it looked like an even fight.

But McGregor’s unfamiliarity with boxing became increasingly evident. By the fourth round, there was awkward pawing with his jab. His hands began to drop. All the while, Mayweather’s muscle memory began to exert itself and take control of the junior-middleweight bout.

His found his timing. He rediscovered his sense of range. Then, his right hand began to land, land and land. Suddenly, there was swelling around McGregor’s eyes. In those Irish eyes, there were mounting signs of fatigue.

The end was near, a historical one for what Mayweather vowed was his last fight. In Nevada Athletic Commission-sanctioned bout, Mayweather went 50-0, supassing Rocky Marciano’s milestone.

“Boxing’s reputation was on the line,’’ Mayweather said.

Mayweather’s legacy was, too. He protected that and managed to add a reported $200,000 to his bank account.

“”Our game plan was to take our time, go to him, let him shoot his shots early and then take him out down the stretch,’’ said Mayweather, who ended with it fusillade of right hands that left McGregor holding on and finished at 1:05 of the 10^th. “We know in MMA he fights for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, he started to slow down. I guaranteed to everybody that this wouldn’t go the distance.’’

McGregor wished that it had. Referee Robert Byrd, he said, should have let it go on, all the way through the 12^th and final round and on to the scorecards.

“Where was the final two rounds?’’ said McGregor, who collected a $100 million guarantee. “Let me walk back to my corner and compose myself.”

He’ll have plenty of time to do that. His $100-million guarantee is worth a lot of composure.

Gervonta Davis gets only boos in victory

Gervonta Davis lost his title on the scale. He lost respect in the ring.

Things changed quickly for Badou Jack. He made sure of it.

Tabiti wins unanimous decision over Cunningham

Andrew Tabiti’s fast hands initiated a head-to-body attack that the Las Vegas cruiserweight sustained throughout 10 rounds for a unanimous decision over Steve Cunningham of Philadelphia for a minor title Saturday night at Las Vegas T-Mobile Arena.

Yordenis Ugas, a 2008 Olympic bronze medalist from Cuba, scored two knockdowns and got up from one for unanimous decision over Puerto Rican Thomas Dulorme (24-3, 16 KOs) in a terrific, 10-round welterweight fight Saturday in the final bout before the pay-per-view portion of the Mayweather-McGregor card at Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena.

Everybody might be talking about Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Conor McGregor, but nobody was there when the hyped event began.

The show opened to an empty room Saturday at T-Mobile Arena.

There were only a couple of fighters and lots of echoes about three hours before Showtime’s pay-per-view card was scheduled to begin.

London super-middleweight Savannah Marshall (1-0) and Sydney LeBlanc of Lafayette, LA, created the first echoes. Most of them came from Marshall’s punches. She landed one after another, scoring a unanimous decision over LeBlanc (4-4-1).

In the card’s second fight, Fresno super-middleweight Antonio Hernandez (10-1, 2 KOs) was stronger and busier, scoring often enough for unanimous decision over Kevin Newman (7-1-1, 3 KOs) of Las Vegas.

Featherweight titlists Leo Santa Cruz and Abner Mares will angling for an October 7th rematch, but instead they will be fighting separate opponents on October 14, according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

If both win, they are supposed to meet in early 2018.

“Yeah, I am a little disappointed because for a second there I thought everything was 100 percent confirmed and I was excited to face him again, but it happens,” Mares said on Friday in the Floyd Mayweather-Conor McGregor media center.

“Whatever comes my way, I’m ready. I was ready for Leo Oct. 7, so regardless, whoever they put in front of me, it’s a fight away from the Leo fight.”

Floyd Mayweather will earn at least $100 million for his showdown with Conor McGregor, who himself will earn $30 Million according to Nevada State Athletic Commission as reported by Dan Rafael of espn.com.

Mayweather also earned a guaranteed $100 million for his 2015 megafight with Manny Pacquiao, though he made around $250 million because of his share of the enormous profits from the record-shattering event. The fight with McGregor, 29, is largely expected to break the Mayweather-Pacquiao records, which would give Mayweather (49-0, 26 KOs), 40, another payday well in excess of $200 million.

McGregor’s minimum purse is $30 million, which dwarfs any he has made for his fights in the Octagon during his mixed martial arts career. But the Irishman will wind up making tens of millions of dollars more than his minimum because of his share of the promotion. His take is likely to exceed $100 million.

Gervonta Davis (18-0, 17 KOs), who was stripped of his junior lightweight world title for weighing in at 132 pounds, two more than the division limit, will make $600,000 for his co-featured bout against Francisco Fonseca (19-0-1, 13 KOs) because he was overweight. Fonseca will earn $35,000, though a portion of Davis’ purse is likely to go to him because Davis missed his weight.

Secondary light heavyweight titlist Nathan Cleverly (30-3, 16 KOs), of Wales, will make $100,000 for his defense against Badou Jack, though Cleverly is likely to earn more from British television. Jack (20-1-3, 12 KOs), fighting for the first time since vacating his super middleweight title to move up in weight, will earn $750,000.

Cruiserweights Andrew Tabiti (14-0, 12 KOs) and Steve Cunningham (29-8-1, 13 KOs), a former two-time world titleholder, will make $100,000 apiece for their pay-per-view opening bout. Welterweight Thomas Dulorme will make $75,000, and Yordenis Ugas will be paid $50,000 for their 10-round bout, which headlines the Fox-televised portion of the undercard.

Sergiy Derevyanchenko stopped Taureano Johnson in the final round of their scheduled twelve round IBF Middleweight Elimination bout in Miami, Oklahoma.

The fight had some solid two-way action in spots with Derevyanchenko getting the better of the exchanges. In round twelve, Derevyanchenko landed a left hook that sent the broken down Johnson to the canvas. The fight was stopped 40 seconds into the final stanza.

Derevyanchenko, 159 lbs of Brooklyn, NY now waits the winner of the September 16 Gennady Golovkin – Canelo Alvarez bout with a record of 11-0 with nine knockouts. Johnson, 159. lbs of Atlanta, GA is now 20-2.

“I’m very happy with my performance,” said Derevyanchenko. “I did exactly what we worked on in training and broke him down to get the knockout.”

“I’m very disappointed,” said Johnson. “But I give a lot of credit to Derevyanchenko and congratulate him on his performance tonight.”

“He was very tough and took a lot of punches,” said Derevyanchenko. “Maybe the fight could have been stopped earlier but I was always ready to go the distance.”

“I’m ready to fight the winner of Golovkin vs. Canelo for the title,” said Derevyanchenko. “I think that Golovkin will win and I look forward to fighting him next.”

Hugo Centeno, Jr scored a spectacular third round stoppage over Immanuwel Aleem in round three of their scheduled ten-round middleweight bout.

Centeno landed a perfect left hook that sent Aleem plummeting to the canvas, and the back of his head bounced off the mat and the bout was stopped at 2:27.

Centeno, 158.8 lbs of Oxnard, CA is now 26-1 with 14 knockouts. Aleem, 158.8 lbs of Richmond, VA is 17-1-1.

Austin Dulay remained undefeated by stopping Carlos Padilla after three rounds of their scheduled eight round lightweight bout.

In round three, Dulay dropped Padilla from a combination on the ropes.  After the round, the corner of Padilla waved off the contest.

Dulay, 132.8 lbs of Nashville, TN is 11-0 with eight knockouts.  Padilla, 131.2 lbs of Barranquilla, COL is 16-6-1.