Mansour takes out Price after 7

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ATLANTIC CITY–Heavyweight Amir Mansour remained perfect with a stoppage after round seven of his scheduled 10 round bout with Kelvin Price.

It was a sloppy and rough fight as Mansour was boring in with power shots while Price humped in and tried to force clinches. In round three, Mansour started landing power shots that were more flush under the long reach of Price. In round four, Mansour cracked Price with a right hand. Mansour then drilled Price with a gard left that rocked Price all over the ring. Mansour hit a wobbled Price with eight flush shots and the only thing that kept him was holding on to Price. Price was having a decent round five until he walked into a booming left that sent him down to the canvas. Luckily for him it was at the end of the frame.

The power punching continued in round six when Mansour rattled a right hook off the head of Price. Price came back for a moment in round seven when he landed a solid right hand. Mansout then came and landed a huge right that sent Price to the deck for a 2nd time. Price barely made it out of the round but then called it a night in between rounds.

Mansour, 229 lbs of Wilmington, DE is now 20-0 with 15 knockouts. Price, 240 lbs of Pensacola, FL is now 14-2.

“It came down to who wanted it more,” Mansour said after the fight. “And there is no one with more desire than me. He was tough and we both wanted the same thing, but I’m going to keep coming until I get him out of there. That’s what I did.”

Lionell Thompson boxed his weigh to a ten round unanimous decision over Ryan Coyne in a Light Heavyweight bout.

Thompson landed well over the first two rounds. Thompson was efficient with the jab and followed up nicely with the right. Coyne tried to mount some offense but Thompson was very slick. Coyne was cut around his left eye from a punch. Coyne started to come and land some good blows in the fourth. In round five, Thompson rocked Coyne with a perfect right hand. That set off a barrage of about six hard punches to the head but Coyne was able to withstand that. Coyne was able to mount a nice flurry as round five closed.

Round six saw Thompson get back to boxing. Thompson continued to box, potshot and move for which Coyne did not have much of an answer for.neath the long reach of Price.

Thompson, 173 1/2 lbs of Buffalo won by scores of 99-90 on all cards and is now 15-2. Coyne, 174 1/2 of St. Louis is now 21-2.

“I actually thought I might get the knockout,” Thompson said. “He was a lot tougher than I expected. He took a lot of huge body shots.”

Former two-time Cruiserweight world champion Steve Cunningham was nearly flawless in pitching an eight round shutout of Manuel Quezada in their Heavyweight bout.

It was evident from the opening seconds that Cunningham was the class in this bout as he continuously pumped the jab in the face of Quezada. Cunningham then started mixing in hooks and right hands that drew blood from the nose of Quezada and then in round three hurt Quezada’s ribs. Cunningham continued to dominate and at several points in the bout he may have been a few punches away from ending things but Quezada toughed it out and made it to the final bell.

Cunnigham, 208 lbs of Philadelphia won by scores of 80-72 on all cards and is now 26-6. Quezada, 230 lbs of Bakersfield, CA is now 29-8.

Former Cruiserweight contender Darnell Wilson put the 1st blemish on the ledger of David Rodriguez with an explosive 6th round stoppage in the final scheduled second of their Heavyweight bout.

Rodriguez had a good 1st round but Wilson landed a hard left hook in round two. Wilson landed several more power shots that round. With blood coming from his left eye, Wilson ripped Rodriguez with four hard power shots that buckled Rodriguez. Wilson punctuated the round by landing a thudding left hook. Rodriguez got back in the fight in the fourth as he landed a couple of nice body shots. In round six, Rodriguez face was a crimson mask he got drilled with a big left hook and he was counted out at 2:59 of the 6th and final round.

Wilson, 239 lbs of Miami, FL is now 25-17-3 with 21 knockouts. Rodriguez, 254 1/2 lbs of El Paso, TX is now 36-1.

In a battle of pro debuting Middleweights, Trent Laidler and Vincent Floyd battled to a four round draw.

Laidler scored a knockdown with the 1st punch of the fight. Although Floyd fought hard many thought that Laidler got the better of the rest of the action.

Laidler won a bout 40-35; Floyd won a card 38-37 and a third card 38-38.

John Magda remained undefeated with a 6 round unanimous decision over Jess Noriega in a Super Middleweight bout.

Scores were 60-54 on two cards and 60-53 for Magda, 168 1.2 lbs of Ruthorford, NJ and is now 4-0. Noriega, 169 1/2 lbs of Lynchburg, VA is now 2-9.

In the scheduled 4-round walkout bout, Philadelphia heavyweight Aaron Leonard, 1-1-1, 1 KO, stopped Sicklerville, NJ’s Andrew Peurifoy, 0-1, at 1:50 of the first round.




Vargas decisions Belmontes

Francisco Vargas remained perfect by scoring a ten round unanimous decision over Jerry Belmontes.

Vargas was much more active and landed almost twice as many punches as Belmontes and won by scores of 100-89 on all cards.

Vargas, 129 1/4 lbs is now 18-0-1. Belmontes, 130 lbs of Corpus Christi, TX is now 18-3.

Jermall Charlo scored a 5th round stoppage over Joseph De Los Santos in a scheduled eight round Middleweight bout.

Charlo dropped De Los Santos in rounds three, four and five and the bout was stopped after the 3rd knockdown just 29 seconds into round five.

Charlo, 115 3/4 lbs of Houston, TX is now 17-0 with 13 knockouts. De Los Santos, 156 lbs of Nagua, DR is now 17-12-3.

Joseph Diaz remained undefeated by scoring a 7th round stoppage over Carlos Rodriguez in a scheduled eight round Super Featherweight bout.

Diaz dominated the action and turned up in round seven as he began to pound away at Rodriguez and the fight was stopped at 1:13 of round 7.

Diaz, 122 1/2 lbs of South El Monte, CA is now 8-0 with 6 knockouts. Rodriguez, 121 1/4 lbs of Los Mochis, MX is now 18-13-4.

2012 U.S. Olympian Errol Spence stopped Pipino Cuevas Jr. after the first round of their eight round Jr. Middleweight bout.

Spence dominated by hammering the ample body of Cuevas. He landed a hard right to the body that sent Cuevas to a knee at the end of the round. Cuevas went back to his corner in distinguished pain and the fight was stopped in the corner.

Spence, 147 1/2 lbs of Desoto, TX is now 10-0 with 8 knockouts. Cuevas, 153 lbs of Mexico is now 17-11.




Broner and Maidana make weight, and Broner promises flat-line

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SAN ANTONIO – Friday afternoon in the western part of this city’s downtown area, Cincinnati welterweight Adrien “The Problem” Broner (27-0, 22 KOs) and Argentine Marcos “El Chino” Maidana (34-3, 31 KOs) each came in under the weight limit for their Saturday title match at Alamodome, with Broner marking 144.4 pounds and Maidana weighing 146.2.

Lingering rumors about Broner’s weight, of his being too heavy, were wrong. Rumors of his being a box-office heavy might prove to be as well.

Popular as he is on television and for as much presence as he shows in planned media events, Adrien Broner does not seem to be drawing much of a crowd in South Texas – certainly no crowds like those Saul “Canelo” Alvarez drew in April. While there were some who braved the raw temperatures to gather at Market Square and watch Broner make weight, Friday, there was more of a media presence than a presence of fans.

After being partially pushed out the way by a characteristically quiet and surly Maidana, Broner made his weight, jumped off the scale and gave interviewer Steve Farhood a prognostication.

“Easy money,” Broner said. “If he comes in with any dumb shit, I’m a flat-line him.”

While the “Danger Zone” card is stacked as its promoters say it is, a toys-for-tickets drive and $10 entrance fees to Alamodome on Saturday have insiders wondering how much of a draw an African American from Cincinnati and an Argentine are proving to be, especially this close to Christmas.

If the main event needs support, though, it is getting plenty of it, with a co-main between Florida welterweight Keith “One Time” Thurman (21-0, 19 KOs) and Mexican Jesus Soto-Karass (28-8-3, 18 KOs). Friday each fighter came in below the welterweight limit – Thurman at 145.8 pounds and Soto-Karass at 146.2 – and Thurman, probably the card’s most likable personality, shared what he told Soto-Karass during their staredown and then added an insight.

“He’s tough,” Thurman said of his Mexican opponent. “My grandma’s tough too.”

The Saturday fighter most likely to entice South Texas’ partisan-Mexican fanbase, California super bantamweight Leo Santa Cruz (25-0-1, 15 KOs), took the scale as well in preparation for his title match with Puerto Rican Cesar Seda (25-1, 17 KOs), in a match aficionados expect Santa Cruz, who weighed 121.4 pounds, to win by brutal stoppage over Seda, who weighed 121.6.

“It’s my personality,” Santa Cruz said, when asked why he is always grinning. “I’m always happy.”

Alamodome doors open early on Saturday at 3:00 PM local time. Opening bell for “Danger Zone” will ring at 3:30. 15rounds.com will have full ringside coverage.




Weights from San Antonio

Adrien Broner 144.4 – Marcos Maidana 146.2
Keith Thurman 145.8 – Jesus Soto Karass 146.2
Leo Santa Cruz 121.4 – Cesar Seda 121.6
Beibut Shumenov 175 – Tamas Kovacs 174.4

SHOWTIME EXTREME – Live at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT

JUNIOR WELTERWEIGHTS
Ricardo Alvarez – 140.4 Pounds
Rod Salka – 138.8 Pounds

LIGHTWEIGHTS
Robert Easter, Jr. – 133.6 Pounds
Hardy Paredes – 135.4 Pounds




Weights from Atlantic City

Amir Mansour 229 – Kelvin Price 240
Lionell Thompson 173.5 – Ryan Coyne 174.5
John Magda 168.5 – Jess Noriega 169.5
Aaron Leonard 211 – Andrew Purifoy 201.5
Steve Cunningham 208 – Manuel Quezada 230
David Rodriguez 254.5 – Darnell Wilson 239
Trent Laidler 158.5 – Vincent Floyd 160




Former Lightweight champion Jauregui passes away

According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, former Lightweight champion Javier Jauregui passed away from complications from a stroke. He was 40 years old.

“He was a great champion, and I remember him as a nice and polite young man outside the ring,” Golden Boy chief executive Richard Schaefer said.

“He was one of our first world champions,” Schaefer said of Jauregui. “Very sad. We will do a 10-count [in his honor] on Saturday.”




Jhonny Gonzalez to rematch Abner Mares on February 15

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According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, WBC Featherweight champion Jhonny Gonzalez will defend against the man he won it from, Abner Mares on February 15th at Staples Center in Los Angeles.

Gonzalez stopped Mares in the 1st round on August 24th.

“We did get an email confirmation from Jhonny Gonzalez’s promoter, Oswaldo Kuchle, saying that they accepted the terms,” said Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer. “We were going back and forth and they have accepted the terms, and they also confirmed it to the WBC. I like signed contracts but for all intents and purposes this fight will happen Feb. 15 at the Staples Center.”

“They reneged on the deal but Richard was ready to get him stripped if he didn’t comply with the contract they signed,” said Mares manager Frank Espinoza told ESPN.com. “There was a rematch clause in the contract and [Gonzalez] would have been violating it if he didn’t do the rematch.

“Abner is looking forward to fighting Feb. 15. We work well with Golden Boy and Richard and we’ll work out the rest of our deal this week. We should have it all done this week.”

“He just got caught and he got stopped,” Espinoza said. “You can’t judge a fight on less than one round. It’s not like Abner went in there and lost after seven or eight rounds and was getting beat up. He got caught. It’s boxing. Abner is looking forward to coming back. He’s looking for redemption.”

Said Schaefer, “I remember back in the day when I was working with [Top Rank’s] Bob [Arum] and I would have these conversations with (Hall of Fame matchmaker) Bruce Trampler and he always said to me that when a guy gets knocked out in the first round it’s almost like it doesn’t count because you can’t read too much into it. Abner was winning the first round and he got caught. I take nothing away from Jhonny. But Abner had some (undisclosed) issues in his training camp. He never brought it up or complained about it or used it as an excuse, but I know for a fact he had issues in camp.

“He will be refocused and knows what he has to do. I think it will be a very interesting fight. It’s a very dangerous fight. Jhonny’s will cannot be underestimated and he will come in with a lot of momentum having won the first fight by a knockout. I do believe Abner is the more skilled fighter but Jhonny is dangerous as hell. He has that game changer — one-punch knockout power that can come at any time.”

Schaefer said he has not worked out the undercard fights but said that if junior featherweight titlist Leo Santa Cruz (25-0-1, 15 KOs) retains his title against Cesar Seda (25-1, 17 KOs) on Saturday night at the Alamodome in San Antonio on a Showtime-televised card featuring four world title fights that he could return Feb. 15.

“We’re hoping to do a tripleheader,” Schaefer said. “I want to see what happens this weekend and see how everything goes. If Leo looks good and doesn’t get cut we might have him back. I have a lot of ideas but I’m not ready to talk about them all yet.”




Abdusalamov out of coma

Good news to report as Heavyweight Magomed Abdusalamov is out of his coma that he has been in for all but a day since his November 2nd fight with Mike Perez.

“The doctor told me he is out of the coma and awake and that he is aware of his surroundings, and they are moving him to a regular room (on Tuesday),” said Nathan Lewkowicz. “They said this is different than last time (he was taken out of the coma) because this time he’s showing more improvement.

“He’s awake. He’s not able to speak but he’s awake and aware of his surroundings even if he can’t speak. His eyes are open.

“He said they won’t know how his brain is until 18 months after the injury, but it’s only been a month and his brain is still healing. The doctor said he most likely will have some limb dysfunction, but they don’t exactly what it will mean. He was on death’s doorstep when they brought him in after the fight, but the fact that he was young and healthy made all the difference. He’s making progress. He’s going to live but they don’t know what his limitations are going to be.”




Burns to defend title against Crawford in Scotland

WBO Lightweight champion Ricky Burns will defend his title against mandatory challenger Terence Crawford in Scotland this February according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

“I’m delighted to bring this fight to Scotland. We tried hard to make the [Raymundo] Beltran rematch but Crawford is the mandatory and Ricky is happy to accept the challenge,” said Burns promoter Eddie Hearn told ESPN.com on Sunday. “It’s perhaps the toughest test Ricky has faced so far. There seems to be plenty of hype around Crawford, so let’s see how he gets on trying to take Ricky’s title in his backyard.”

“Eddie finally made us an offer, a scenario, to do the fight in Scotland on Feb. 8 or Feb. 22 on his show, and we worked out the financial package for us and for Crawford,” said Top Rank’s Carl Moretti. “I called [Crawford’s manager] Cameron [Dunkin] and he liked it and was closing a deal with Crawford, so we’ll travel there and fight for the title.”

Moretti said he got Hearn to agree on neutral officials to be appointed by the WBO.

“It was one of the things I insisted on and he agreed, and the WBO is OK with it also,” Moretti said.

“I could have put here [in the United States] if we won the purse bid, but Eddie made us an offer we were comfortable with,” Moretti said. “Hopefully, Terence will win the fight and his first defense can be in the United States on HBO.”




Stieglitz – Abraham III set for March 1st

According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, Robert Stieglitz will meet Arthur Abraham for a 3rd tim on March 1st as Stieglitz will defend his WBO Super Middleweight title after his promoter, SES won a purse bid.

Steinforth, who promotes Stieglitz, bid $3,135,000 to easily beat the only other offer, which was $1,541,414 by Abraham promoter Sauerland Event at the WBO purse bid. The minimum bid was $300,000.

Rafael’s Boxing Blog
Rafael Get the latest scoop and analysis on the world of boxing from ESPN.com’s Dan Rafael in his blog.

“Of course, I am happy that we won the purse bid, but especially for Robert, my SES team and our [German] TV partner SAT.1,” Steinforth said. “I am happy because there is more planning certainty for us.”

As the titleholder, Stieglitz is entitled to 75 percent of the winning bid ($2,351,250) while Abraham will get the remaining 25 percent challenger’s share ($783,750).

“That’s good job by my promoter Ulf Steinforth,” Stieglitz said of his winning the purse bid. “Now I can concentrate on the preparation and on the fight against Arthur. I am also happy for my fans in Germany and especially for Magdeburg.”




Malignaggi decisions Judah to be crowned King of Brooklyn

Paulie Malignaggi
Brooklyn went hard on Saturday night as hometown heroes settled a local rivalry on boxing’s biggest stage. Paul Malignaggi (32-5, 7 KO’s) of the Bensonhurst neighborhood squared off against Zab Judah (42-7, 29KO’s) of Brownsville. Both fighters showcased their strengths early in the fight. Malignaggi, making good use of his footwork and high volume of punches, while Judah countered well and his punches were more powerful. In the second round, just as Judah was landing a left hand, Malignaggi’s leg tangled with Judah’s, causing him to trip. The ref ruled it a knockdown despite Malignaggi’s protests. For the next two rounds, Judah dominated. He landed his jab effectively and frequently followed up with a straight left, reddening the side of Malignaggi’s face.

Entering the fifth round, Judah seemed to be in control, but lowered his punch output. Malignaggi took advantage. Bouncing in an out of range, he fired off a stiff jab and occasional right. His movement prevented Judah from walking him down.

Judah never made the necessary adjustments, and Malignaggi dominated throughout the rest of the fight. The final scores read 116-111, 117-110, and 117-110 giving Malignaggi a UD victory.

“This is an emotional win for me,” said Malignaggi. “It definitely allows me to continue boxing. If I had lost, I don’t know that I would have wanted to continue. But this big win puts me in the right spot to fight in this division for lots of money…lots.

“Walking to the ring was pretty surreal. As a teenager I watched Zab fight and to walk into the ring and fighting against him was very surreal. Not that I never expected myself not to be successful, but it was still something very surreal,” continued Malignaggi. “I felt like this showed that this sport can unify everyone. I looked up to this guy when I was coming up in the sport and he’s one of the greats.”

Judah said, “I came to fight and so did Paulie. It just wasn’t there. This was a great opportunity and a great event. I wanted to be the King of Brooklyn. He wasn’t tougher than me. He stayed on the outside and didn’t engage.”

Shawn Porter (22-0-1, 14KO’s) was an aggressive breath of fresh air on a card that featured defensive minded fighters. He took on title holder Devon Alexander (25-2, 13 KO’s). From the outset, Porter rushed Alexander with high-volume punching. In the third round, hard looping punches landed flush on Alexander’s chin, wobbling him. It was more of the same for Porter in the fourth as he was able to wobble Alexander’s legs again with his hard shots. Things cooled off in the middle rounds. Porter’s style comes with him throwing caution to the wind, and that hurt him, as Alexander was often able to land hard counter punches on Porter’s exposed chin. Still, Alexander’s success was few and far between, and it allowed Porter to hold onto the big lead he built for himself. He won by way of Unanimous decision with scores of 115-113, 116-112, 116-112.

After the fight, Porter said, “This is a blessing. We wanted to come out here and establish that I was the better fighter and we made it happen. I think I was able to control the fight because of my experience and I’m the bigger guy. We did what we had to do. I paid my dues. The opportunity was here and I stepped up to the plate.”

Alexander said, “I’m disappointed. I didn’t do what I was supposed to do. I didn’t follow the game plan. He was rushing in and I didn’t capitalize on that. And that’s what we had planned on.”

In a very lackluster affair, Erisandy Lara (18-1-2, 12 KO’s) dominated Austin Trout (26-1, 14 KO’s) over the course of twelve rounds. Lara was much more mobile and able to pick apart his bigger and slightly slower opponent. The action was very limited except for an eleventh round knockdown scored by Lara. The final scores read 118-109, 117-110, and 117-110 giving Lara a unanimous decision victory.

“I did what Canelo couldn’t do. I dominated Trout and I dropped him. Now we have to make a fight that everyone wants to see which is me against Canelo,” said Lara.

“I’m coming right back,” said Trout. “Who can say that they fought such high caliber fighters as Cotto, Canelo and Lara back-to-back-to-back? His style was tricky, but I don’t sign up for easy fights. He was the better man tonight.”

Sakio Bika (35-2-2, 21 KOs) and Anthony Dirrell (26-0-1, 22 KOs) fought an exciting back and forth affair. Bika started the fight winging wild shots, while Dirrell remained composed and was able to pick Bika off with powerful shots. In the fifth round a hard right staggered Bika badly, and another right sent him down. Bika beat the count, and started off the sixth looking to stage a comeback. With a strong body attack and with Dirrell backing into the ropes constantly, Bika was able to take control of large chunks of the fight; even hurting Dirrell on different occasions. In the eleventh, after a wild throw that went low, Bika was deducted a point. This proved to be significant in a close fight. The final scores read 114-112 for Bika, 116-110 for Dirrell, and 113-113 even, making the fight a split draw.

“I want to apologize to the fans for leaving the ring like that but I was just disappointed,” said a frustrated Dirrell. “He hit low and head butted. I definitely want a rematch.”

Bika felt differently. “I feel like I was fighting the referee as well. The body shot was a legitimate body shot. Not below the belt line. I got him on the belt line, Dirrell just wanted to milk it. I was the busier fighter and now I just want to fight the best ahead of me.”

Julian Williams (14-0 8 KOs) dominated Orlando Lora (29-5-2, 29 KOs) en route to a TKO victory. His combination punching and ability to maintain distance was what did it. The fight was stopped at the 0:34 mark of the third round.

Sadam Ali (18-0, 10 KOs) looked impressive against Jesus Selig (12-2-1, 6 KOs) in their bout. He looked very fluid as he toned down his aggression and worked behind a well balanced offensive approach. After dominating Selig for five rounds, a right hand dropped Selig right before the bell. Selig beat the count, but was met with more damage as the 6th round opened. The referee jumped in and stopped the fight at 0:22 mark of round 6, giving Ali a TKO victory.

Marcul Browne (7-0, 7 KO’s) scored another impressive first round knockout when he faced Kevin Engel (20-8, 16 KO’s). The time of the stoppage was 3:00 of the first round.

Juan Dominguez (15-0, 11 KO’s) scored an eight round unanimous decision victory over Camillo Perez (9-2, 4 KO’s). Scores were 79-73, 78-74, and 78-74.




Rigondeaux decisions Agbeko to retain titles

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ATLANTIC CITY–Guillermo Rigondeaux retained the WBA/WBO Super Bantamweight titles at the Adrian Phillips Ballroom inside of Boardwalk HalL.

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Rigondeaux used his superior boxing ability as he places precision shots to the body and flicking jabs to the head of Agbeko.

Scores were 120-108 on all cards for Rigondeaux and is now 13-0. Agbeko is now 29-5.

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James Kirkland scored a 6th round stoppage over previously undefeated Glen Tapia in a thrilling Jr. Middleweight fight.

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Tapia dominated the first frame as he jumped on Kirkland which thrilled the pro-Tapia crowd. Most of the next five rounds were spent with Kirkland unloading hundreds of flush punches to the head and the body of Tapia. Tapia was getting beat up but he showed an unbelievable heart and only god knows what was keeping him standing. Tapia showed short bursts of offense in the beginning of the 4th, 5th and 6th rounds but they were short lived as Kirkland pounded away at Tapia that had blood flying from the nose of Tapia until referee Steve Smoger stopped the bout at 38 seconds of round six.

Kirkland is now 32-1 with 28 knockouts. Tapia is now 20-1.

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Matthew Macklin pounded out a ten round unanimous decisioble n over previously undefeated Lamar Russ in a Middleweight bout.

Macklin controlled the action with solid ring generalship and he stuck the jab in the taller Russ’face. Macklin landed several hard blows in round nine that had Russ bleeding from the mouth and the defensive as the round ended. Russ came out and threw hard shots in round ten but none of consequence

Matt Korobov remained undefeated by scoring a 9th round stoppage over Derek Edwards in a Middleweight bout.

In round one, a body-head combination made Edwards buckle Korobov continued to pound Edwards to the body and the head for which he had Edwards stumbling into the ropes. Korobov landed a fuselage of shots until he was rocked badly by a hard right from Edwards. Korobov was clarly hurt and even turned his back in an effort to run away but two three more hard shots before the end of the first round. In round two, Korobov landed a hard straight left that sent Edwards sprawling into the ropes for a knockdown. Korobov rocked Edwards once again in round four when he landed a terrific three punch head combination.

Korobov scored a knockdown at the end of round seven from a hard left hand. The two went to war in round eight with Korobov getting the better of the two way action. Korobov ended the night by dropping Edwards in round nine from yet another straight left and referee Steve Smoger stopped the fight immediately at 28 seconds of round nine.

Korobov, 162.8 lbs of Orotukian, RUS is now 22-0 with 13 knockouts. Edwards, 161.8 lbs of Winston Salem, NC is now 26-3-1.

Toka Khan Clary survived two knockdowns and boxed his way to a six round unanimous decision over Ramsey Luna in a Super Featherweight bout featuring undefeated fighters.

Clary was quicker to the punch throughout as he hit and played good defense. In round four, Luna sent Clary down from a right hand and then dropped him again from a body shot. Clary was able to get out of the round and was never threatened the rest of the way.

Clary, 130.2 lbs of Providence, RI won by scores of 57-55 on all cards and is now 9-0-0-1. Luna, 131.2 lbs of Corpus Christi, TX is now 11-1.

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Jesse Hart scored an explosive 1st round stoppage over Tyrell Hendrix in a scheduled six round Super Middleweight bout.

Hart rocked Hendrix with an uppercut an opened up with a huge flurry where he drilled Hendrix several more times before referee Steve Smoger stopped the bout at 1:20 of round one.

Hart, 168.2 lbs of Philadelphia is now 11-0 with 10 knockouts. Hendrix, 168.4 lbs of Los Angeles is now 10-3-2-1.

Julian Rodriguez scored a 4 round unanimous decision over Ryan Picou in a Jr. Welterweight bout.

Rodriguez pounded away on Picou in the 1st with blistering combinations. Picou, who was a late replacement tried and landed some shots here and there. Late in round two, Rodriguez continue to rock Picou for the duration of the fight.

Rodriguez, 140.6 lbs of Hasbrouck, NJ won by scores of 40-36 on all cards and is now 2-0. Picou, 140 lbs of Las Vegas is now 0-2.

Egor Mekhontsev made a successful pro debut with a 3 round beat down of Peter Cajigas in a scheduled four round Light Heavyweight bout.

Mekhonstev showed quick hands and hard combinations over the first two rounds. Mekhonstev dropped Cajigas three times in round three all from all hard body shots and referee Steve Smoger stopped the bout at 35 seconds of round three.

Mekhonstev, 177.2 lbs of Asobest, RUS is now 1-0 with 1 knockout. Cajigas, 179.8 lbs of Franklin Park, IL is now 0-3-1.

Photos by Chris Farina / Top Rank




Love stops Simon in Six

J’Leon Love scored a sixth round stoppage over LaJuan Simon in round six of their scheduled 10 round Super Middleweight bout at the Little Creek Resort in Shelton, Washington.

Love won every round as he was younger, fresher and much faster then Simon, who was making his 1st appearance in 2 years.

Love boxed well and finally in round six landed a right hand that drove Simon into the ropes that hurt Simon. Love landed a few shots that was capped off by a right hand that sent Simon flat on his back with his head pounding against the canvas and the fight was immediately stopped at 2:48 of round six.

Love, 167 lbs of Las Vegas is now 16-0 with 9 knockouts. Simon, 168 lbs of Philadelphia is now 23-5-2.

“This was a good fight,’’ said Love, who moved up to 168 pounds for the fight and was making his first start for trainer and former light heavyweight world champion, Eddie Mustafa Muhammad. “This guy was a vet. I knew I couldn’t just go in and blow him away. I knew I had to work angles and fight smart.

“But I had to do something. Everybody on my team before me was knocking everybody out. We work so hard as a team. We’re always behind each other. There is no limit to what we can do.’

Badou Jack remained undefeated with a sixth round stoppage over tough Rogelio Medina in a scheduled 10 round Super Middleweight clash.

Medina fought well early as he landed some solid body punches and later got the jab rolling. Jack turned things around in round four as he rocked Medina with a hard right hand. In round five, Jack started to wear Medina down.

Round six saw Jack land a big right hand that sent Medina to the canvas. Medina got up and Jack jumped right on him. Jack landed a big flurry and dropped Medina for a second time in the round. Medina showed plenty of heart and took some more punishment but he was kept in the fight momentarily as he threw just enough punches until he ate a huge uppercut that sent him down for a 3rd and final time and the fight was stopped at 2:30 of round six.

Jack, 167 1/2 lbs of Stockholm, SWE is now 16-0-1 with 11 knockouts. Medina, 167 3/4 lbs of Ermosilo, MX is now 31-5.

“He was tougher than I thought he’d be,’’ the 30-year-old Jack said. “I’m known as a slow starter and it took me a while to break him down, but it felt great to get that knockout.

“I thought the referee would stop the fight after the first knockdown. After the second knockdown I thought that Medina was definitely done, but then he got up and the fight went on and I was like, I gotta go for the kill.’ ’’

Mickey Bey scored a 3rd round stoppage over Carlos Cardenas in a scheduled 10 round Lightweight bout.

Bey dominated the action and landed a perfect left to the chin that sent Cardenas to the canvas. Cardenas got to his feet but he was clearly hurt and the fight was stopped at 2:23 of round three.

Bey, 135 lbs of Las Vegas, NV is now 19-1-1, 10 KO’s. Cardenas, 133 1/2 lbs of Baranias, VEN is now 20-7-1.

“It always feel good to get your hand raised,’’ Bey, a 135-pounder, said. “I know he was going to come out strong and try and catch me in the early rounds. The fight before me ended so quickly I’m not sure I was totally warmed up so I just took my time.

“This guy was not an easy opponent. But I wanted a tough fight. Honestly, I didn’t even know I threw the punch that knocked him out. It was so automatic, just like I do all the time in training. It was like hitting the mitts. It’s good to get back on track.’’

Chris Pearson scored an explosive 1st round stoppage over Acacio Ferreira inside of one round of their scheduled 8 round Jr. Middleweight bout.

Pearson landed a powerful right hook that was followed by three thunderous power shots against s defenseless Ferreira and he slumped to the canvas as the fight was stopped at 1:44 of round one.

Pearson, 156 lbs of Dayton, OH is now 10-0 with 9 knockouts. Ferreira, 152 lbs of Santa Cantarina, BRA is now 14-1-1.

“I trained hard and was prepared to go 10 rounds, but I knew if I caught him right I could take him out of there,’’ Pearson said. “I’m just glad to give the fans what they love to see.

“This was a good win, but now it’s time to get ready for the next one.’’




UFC Fight Night results

Former world Light Heavyweight champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua scored an explosive one-punch 1st round stoppage over James Te Huna in a Light Heavyweight bout.

Rua countered a Te Huna right with a short yet devastating left hook to the jaw that crumpled Te Huna to the canvas and the fight was stopped at 1:03 of round one.

Rua, 205 lbs of Curitibia, BRA is now 22-8. Te Huna, 205 lbs of Perth, AUS is now 18-7.

Former Ultimate Fighter winner Ryan Bader bloodied and battered Anthony Perosh over three rounds and scored a three round unanimous decision in a Light Heavyweight bout.

Perosh was bleeding from his head and nose and when he wasnt taking punches he was on his back being put wrestled by Bader.

Bader, 205 lbs of Temple, AZ won by scores of 30-27, 30-27 and 30-26. Perosh, 2o4 lbs of Sydney, AUS is now 14-8

Soa Palelei stopped Pat Barry in the first round of their Heavyweight bout.

Palelei had Barry on the ground and landed a barrage of punches to the face of a prone Barry and the fight was stopped at 2:09 of round one.

Palelei, 264 lbs of Perth, AU is now 20-3. Barry, 237 lbs of Alexandria, MN is 8-7

Clint Hester scored a stoppage victory over Dylan Andrews after Andrews could not continue after round two of their three round Middleweight bout.

Andrews apparently injured his right shoulder and could not continue.

Hester, 186 lbs of Atlanta, GA is now 9-3. Andrews, 185 lbs of Golds Coast, Queensland, AUS is now 18-6-1.

Bethe Corriea scored a three round split decision over Julie Kedzie in a female Bantamweight bout.

Corriea, 135 lbs of Brazil won two cards at 29-28. Kedzie, 135 lbs of Albuquerque, NM won a card 29-28.

Corriea is 7-0. Kedzie is now 16-13.

In an exciting back and forth slugfest, Takeya Mitzuhaki scored a three round unanimous decision over Nam Phan in a Bantamweight bout.

Mitzugaki, 135 lbs of Kanagawa, JAP won by scores of 30-28, 29-28 and 29-28 and is now 19-7-2. Phan, 135 lbs of Little Saigon, CA is now 18-13.

Caio Magalhales scored a three round unanimous decision over Nick Ring in a Middleweight bout.

Scores were 29-28 on all cards for Magalhales, 186 lbs of Brazil ans is now 7-1. Ring, 185 lbs of Calgary. ALB, CAN is now 13-3.

Justin Scoggins scored a 1st round stoppage over Richie Vaculk in a Flyweight bout.

Scoggins ended the bout by pounding Vaculk on the ground and the bout was stopped at 4:43 of round one.

Scoggins, 125 lbs of Coconut Creek, FL is now 8-0. Vaculk, 126 lbs of Sydney, AUS is now 9-3.

Kryztolf Jocko scored a three round unanimous decision over Bruno Santos in a battle of previously undefeated Middleweights.

Scores were 30-37, 29-28 and 29-28 for Jocko, 185 lbs of Ornatin, POL and is now 14-0. Santos, 185 lbs of Brazil is now 13-1.




WEIGHTS FROM ATLANTIC CITY

Guillermo Rigondeaux 121 – Joseph Agbeko 121.6
Lamar Russ 159 – Matthew Macklin 159
Glen Tapia 156 – James Kirkland 155.1
Egor Mekhonsev 177.2 – PJ Catages 179.8
Julian Rodriguez 140.6 – Ryan Piquot 140
Jesse Hart 168.2 – Tyrell Hendrix 168.4
Ramsey Luna 131.2 – Toka Khan Klary 132
Matt Korobov 162.2 – Derek Edwards 161.8
Tramaine Williams 122.6 – Jovanny Fuentes 121.8




Wladimir Klitschko ordered to fight Leapai

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Recognized Heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko has been ordered to defend his title against unheralded Alex Leapai according to Dan Rafael of espn.com

“I’ve never heard of Alex Leapai until the fight with Boytsov,” Klitschko told ESPN.com. “I think he did a great job to win that fight and become official mandatory for WBO title. I’m looking forward to that challenge from Alex and I’m sure he will give his best in that fight against me.”

“We accept the decision by the WBO,” Boente said of making Leapai the mandatory challenger. “I saw Leapai’s courageous fight against No. 1 and unbeaten Boytsov. He looked strong, can take a punch and had Boytsov twice on the floor. We have no idea about the date and arena. First we have to discuss with Leapai’s management.”




Pacquiao – Rios does around 500,000 PPV buys

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According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, the November 23rd bout between Manny Pacquiao – and Brandon Rios did about 500,000 buys on Pay Per View.

“The numbers are coming in like we expected,” sais Top Rank’s Bob Arum Arum. “There was a little delay because of Thanksgiving, but it will be somewhere in the area of 500,000 buys. We ran all our numbers on something a little less than 500,000 but figuring we’d do around 500,000, and that’s what we’re going to wind up doing. It means 490,000 or 510,000, something like that.”

“It’s very, very difficult when you’re not doing the fight in the United States,” Arum said. “But the deal we structured with (the Venetian Macao, the host casino) was to make up for that.

“The [pay-per-view] industry told us when you do an event that far away you can expect to do maybe 30 percent of what you would ordinarily do on the fight. We did a lot better. We performed better than that, so I think it was a big success. We had a huge audience on television in China.”

“We’ll have Manny fighting back in the United States with Zou Shiming on the undercard and do a pay-per-view in China, where it will be on Sunday morning,” Arum said.

As for Pacquiao’s opponent in April, Arum said there are three names under consideration: a fifth fight with Marquez, a rematch with welterweight titlist Timothy Bradley (who claimed a highly controversial split decision against Pacquiao in June 2012), and newly crowned junior welterweight titlist Ruslan Provodnikov of Russia.

“It’ll be one of those guys,” Arum said. “We’re gonna get it done sometime this month I hope. I want to start promoting it. What we’re hoping to do is get Manny over here in January to do press conferences for the fight and also to do rallies in places like Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Washington, D.C., for relief for the victims of the typhoon in the Philippines.”




De La Hoya, Trinidad, Calzaghe highlight Hall of Fame Class

Oscar De La Hoya
Three of the most popular fighters of the past decade, Oscar De La Hoya, Felix Trinidad and Joe Calzaghe will highlight the 2014 Hall of Fame class that will be enshrined in Canastota, New York on June 8th.

“I am honored and appreciative to be chosen for the International Boxing Hall of Fame’s Class of 2014 and I thank everyone who has been a part of this journey with me,” said De La Hoya, who has struggled with substance abuse issues during retirement but also founded Golden Boy Promotions, one of the leading promotional companies in the world.

“This is the dream of everyone who puts on a pair of gloves and steps between the ropes, and through the good and the bad, you always hope that when all is said and done, you put on good fights, entertained the fans and will be remembered for what you did in the ring. To know that I will be in the Hall of Fame with the greats of this sport is humbling, but it’s also put a smile on my face that isn’t coming off anytime soon.”

“This is tremendous news. I’ve spent many years in boxing, and I am very happy,” Trinidad said. “This is a great honor for me, my father [and trainer, Felix Trinidad Sr.], my family and my whole team. I’m extremely happy to be inducted with all the Puerto Rican boxers already in the Hall of Fame. This is the biggest triumph in my career.”

“I’m so excited. I’m very proud and humbled,” Calzaghe said. “I think it’s amazing to be inducted. This is a massive, massive honor, just fantastic. To receive this honor and be up there with all the legends is the ultimate honor for me. I’m so happy right now, and I can’t wait to come to Canastota.”

They will be enshrined June 8 during the 25th annual inductions ceremony at the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, N.Y. Also elected were British promoter Barry Hearn and referee Richard Steele in the nonparticipant category, journalist Graham Houston and photographer Neil Leifer in the observer category, George Chaney, Charles Ledoux and Mike O’Dowd in the old-timers category and Tom Allen in the pioneer category.




Bundrage – Hernandez Eliminator set for January 24th

According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, former IBF Jr. Middleweight champion Cornelius Bundrage will meet Joey Hernandez in an elimination bout on January 24th.

“The fight is all signed, sealed and delivered. Both guys signed their contracts,” Gomez said. “K9 really wants another title shot and Hernandez is a very hungry fighter, so I think it should be a good fight. It’s a very important fight for both guys.”

The bout will take place at the Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, Calif., as part of a “Golden Boy Live” card (Fox Sports 1), although Gomez said it has not yet determined if the bout would be part of the telecast.

“That purse bid was crazy, but this fight is more for the opportunity than the purse,” Bundrage said at the time. “But I will beat Joey Hernandez and then go get my belt back.”




Kovalev stops Sillakh in two

Adonis Stevenson retained the WBC Light Heavyweight title with a sixth round stoppage of mandatory contender Tony Bellew at the Pepsi Coliseum in Quebec City, Canada.

In round six, Stevenson dropped Bellew with a perfect left hand. Stevenson then landed two more crunching lefts that snapped the head of Bellew back violently and referee Michael Griffin stopped the bout at 1:50 of round six.

Stevenson, 174 1/2 lbs of Montreal is now 23-1 with 21 knockouts. Bellew, 175 lbs of Liverpool, ENG is now 20-2-1.

Sergey Kovalev retained the WBO Light Heavyweight with a two round destruction of Ismayl Sillakh.

After a good boxing 1st round by both, Kovalev dropped Sillakh just seconds into the second round with a hard right hand. Sillakh was clearly hurt but ate a devastating three punch combination that decked Sillakh on hos side and the fight was stopped at 52 seconds of round two

Kovalev of Fort Lauderdale, FL is now 23-0-1 with 21 knockouts. Sillakh, 174 1/2 lbs of Simi Valley, CA is now 21-2.




Diaz stomps Maynard in One

Nate Diaz destroyed Gray Maynard in round one of their Lightweight bout at the Mandalay Bay In Las Vegas.

Diaz continuously pounded Maynard in the face with about 15 vicious shots, bloodying the nose of Maynard in the process and the fight was stopped at 2:38 of round one.

Diaz, 156 lbs of Stockton, CA is now 18-9. Maynard, 156 lbs of Santa Cruz, CA is now 12-4-1-1.

Juliana Pena captured the Ultimate Fighter 18 women’s title with a 1st round stoppage over Jessica Rakoczy in a Bantmweight bout.

Pena pounded out Rakoczy on the ground until the fight was stopped at 4:59 of round one.

Pena, 134 lbs of Spokane, WA is now 6-2. Rakoczy, 132 lbs of Las Vegas is now 2-4-1.

Chris Holdsworth submitted Davey Grant to win the Ultimate Fighter 18 championship in round two of their Bantamweight bout.

Holdsworth submitted Grant with a rear naked choke at 2:10 of round two.

Holdworth, 136 lbs is now 6-0. Grant 135 lbs of England is now 9-1.

Jessamyn Duke scored a three round unanimous Patty Morgan in a bantamweight bout.

Duke, 136 lbs of Glendale, CA won by scores of 30-27 on all cards and is now 3-0-1. Morgan, 136 lbs of Arlington, MA is now 2-1.

Raquel Pennington scored a three round unanimous decision over Roxanne Moddaferi in a Bantamweight bout.

Pennington almost choked out Moddaferi in the last minute of the bout. Scores were 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 for Pennington, 135 lbs of Colorado Springs, CO and is now 4-4. Moddaferri, 134 lbs of Las Vegas, NV is now 15-11.

Akira Corassani scored a 1st round disqualification victory over Maximo Blanco in a Featherweight bout.

Blanco hit Cirassani with a knee to the nose while Corassani was on the canvas at 25 seconds into the 1st round.

Corassani, 146 lbs of New York, NY is 14-4. Blanco, 146 lbs of Tokyo, JAP is now 9-5-1-1.

Tom Ninimaki scored a 3 round split decision over Rami Yahya in a Featherweight bout.

Ninimaki, 145 lbs of Finland won two cards 30-27 and 29-28 while Yahya, 146 lbs of Basillia, BRA won a card 29-28.

Ninimaki is now 21-5-1. Yahyah is now 19=8.

Jared Roshalt scored 3 round unanimous decision over Walt Harris in a Heavyweight bout.

Scores were 29-28 on all cards for Roshalt, 240 lbs of Arlington, TX and is now 9-1. Harris, 244 lbs of Coconut Creek FL is now 6-2.

Shawn Spencer scored a three round unanimous decision over Drew Dover. All scores were 30-27.




Tarver stops Sheppard in four

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Former Light Heavyweight champion Antonio Tarver scored a 4th round stoppage over Mike Sheppard in a scheduled 10 round Heavyweight bout at the BB&T Center in Sunrise, Florida.

In round four, Tarver landed a big left uppercut that plummeted Sheppard on the canvas. Tarver jumped on Sheppard and dropped him a second time from a flurry of punches. Sheppard was buckled from a right hook and dropped three punches later and the fight was stopped at 1:33.

Tarver, 221 lbs of Orlando, FL is now 30-6 with 21 knokouts. Sheppard, 227 3/4 lbs of Elizabeth, WV is now 21-16-1.

Randy Caballero remained undefeated by scoring a 7th round stoppage over Jesse Cruz in a scheduled ten round Bantamweight bout.

In round six, Caballero landed a right to the body that sent Cruz to the canvas. Caballero continued the assault in round seven as he dropped Cruz again from another big flurry of punches. Caballero was relentless with his activity and the fight was stopped at the end of the round. The official time was 2:59.

Caballero, 118 1/2 lbs of Cochella, CA is now 20-0 with 12 knockouts. Cruz, 118 1/2 lbs of Miami is now 10-6-1

Thomas Williams Jr. scored the biggest win of his young and undefeated career as he scored a 10 round unanimous decision over former world title challenger Yusaf Mack in a Light Heavyweight bput.

The two traded heavy shots throughout the exciting slugfest with Williams getting the better of the action as he staggered Mack several times and cut him over the right eye.

Williams, 174 3/4 lbs of Washington, DC won by scores of 99-91, 98-92 and 92-92 and is now 15-0. Mack, 175 lbs of Philadelphia is now 31-7-2.




Hes Back; Pacquiao decisions Rios in Macau

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Manny Pacquiao came back from the devastating knockout of a year ago to Juan Manuel Marquez to score an easy 12 round unanimous decision over former Lightweight champion Brandon Rios at the Cotai Arena at the Venetian in Macau, China.

Pacquiao came out in round one and showed blazing speed with his left hand. Pacquiao continued to pepper Rios with straight left hands and blazing four and five punch combinations that started bleeding around Rios’ left eye in round six.

Pacquiao continued to land ripping punches and rocked Rios several times with flush lead lefts. By the 11th round, Rios right eye was swelling from the effects of the offensive assault of Pacquiao. Pacquiao toed with Rios for much of the fight but Rios was tough as he tried to the very end. Pacquiao looked as good as could be and showed that rest did him well as he cruised to victory to the tune of 120-108, 119-109 and 118-108.

Pacquiao is now 55-5-2. Rios of Oxnard, CA is now 31-2.

Evgeny Gradovich retained the IBF Featherweight title with a 9th round stoppage from the man he won the title from in Billy Dib.

Gradovich dominated the bout as he landed some tremendous hard right hands and systematically beat Dib down. From about round six on, Gradovich started pounding Dib abd scored a knockdown in round six from an overhand right. With Dib’s left closing, Gradovich landed some hard right hands and mixed in uppercuts that lifted the head of Gradovich up to the point where Dib’s trainer Billy Huessein stopped the bout.

Gradovich of Russia is now 18-0 with 9 knockouts. Dib of Australia is now 36-3.

Andy Ruiz scored a stoppage over Tor Hamer after three round of their ten round Heavyweight bout after Hamer did not come out for the fourth round.

After a pretty good first two rounds for Hamer, Ruiz stated to take over as he started landing hard combinations and body shots. Hamer looked spent and decided after three rounds that he had enough.

Ruiz is now 21-0 with 15 knockouts. Hamer of New York is 21-3.

Chinese Olympic hero Zou Shiming scored a six round unanimous decision over Juan Tozcano in a Flyweight bout.

Shiming looked more polished then he did in either of his previous two bouts as he sat down on his punches and landed hard shots. Toscano was cut around the right in round three. Shiming continued to land hard combinations. The fight could have been stopped at any point as he was bloodied, battered and taking a beating but he lasted until the final bell.

Shiming, 111 1/2 lbs of China won by scores of 60-54, 60-54 and 60-52 and is now 3-0. Tozcano, 110 lbs of Esonada, MX is now 4-1.

Felix Verdejo scored a six round unanimous decision over Petchsamuthr Duanaaymukdahan in a six round Lightweight bout.

Verdejo showed early in round one that there was a clear class difference as he fired off shots with both hands. Verdejo landed a booming right hand that started round three and his opponent took it well and came back to fire some shots. Verdejo coasted down the stretch while Duanaaymukdahan had a point deducted a point in the final round for a low blow.

Verdejo of Puerto Rico won by scores of 60-53 on all cards ans is now 9-0. Duanaaymukdahan of Bankok, Thailand is 8-2..

Rex Tso scored a 1st round knockout over Susu Sithjadaeng in a scheduled 6 round Super Flyweight bout.

Rios dropped Sithjadaeng and then landed about 30 unanswered blows before the fight was stopped at 2:29.

Tso, 117 lbs of Hong Kong, CHN is now 11-0 with 7 knockouts. Sithjadaeng, 117 1/2 lbs of Thailand is now 7-4.

Kuok Kun Ng won a four round unanimous decision over You-Jie Zeng in a Jr. Middleweight bout.

Scores were 40-36 on all cards for NG, 151 1/2 lbs of Macau, China is now 2-0. Zeng, 147 1/2 lbs of Bangkok, THI is now 4-5.

Ik Zeng scored a six round majority decision over Hero Tito in a Lightweight bout.

Scores were 6054, 60-54 and 57-57 for Zeng, 137 1/2 lbs of Dalina, China and is now 14-0. Tito, 138 lbs of Milan, Indonesia is now 7-3.

Hermanito De La Torre scored a 3rd round stoppage over Jason Butar Butar in a scheduled 6 round Light bout.

De La Torre landed a big uppercut that was followed by a push but was ruled a knockdown and Butar was down for the 10 count at 1:23 of round three.

De La Torre is now 11-0 with 6 knockouts. Butar Butar is now 15-12-1.




Froch scores controversial stoppage over Groves

Carl Froch
With the help pf referee Howard Foster, Carl Froch was able to retain his WBA/IBF Super Middleweight with a 9th round stoppage over previously undefeated George Groves in Manchester, England.

Groves dominated the early part of the fight as he viciously dropped the champion with a huge right hand. Froch was very wobbly as he stumbled to the ropes just before the end of the 1st round. Groves could not miss Froch with jabs and right hands. The action was furious with guys landing heavy shots that thrilled the 20,000 fans. Groves started to develop a welt under his left eye. That did not bother Groves as he continued to land piston jabs and laser right hands to the face of Froch.

In round nine, the two had a serious exchange with Froch getting the better. Froch landed two hard shots and Groves was attempting to mount offense while being a bit staggered and for some reason referee Howard Foster stopped the bout at 1:33 of the 9th.

Froch is 32-2 with 23 knockouts. Groves is now 19-1.

Scott Quigg retained the WBA Super Bantamweight title with a 2nd round destruction over Diego Silva.

Quigg dropped Silva with a body shot in round two and finished him with a devastating right to the head that plummeted Silva to the canvas and the fight was over at 1:41 of round 2.

Quigg, 121 1/2 lbs is now 27-0-2 with 20 knockouts. Silva, 121 1/4 lbs of Argentina is now 29-3-4.

Former Middleweight world title challenger Andy Lee scored a 2nd round stoppage over Ferenc Haffner in a scheduled six round bout.

Lee Dropped Hafner in the 1st round from a body shot. In round two, Lee dropped Hafner from a right hook to the head and then again from a straight left and the fight was stopped at 1:19 of round 2.

Lee, 163 1/2 lbs is now 31-2 with 22 knockouts. Hafner, 161 3/4 lbs is now 21-5.

Anthony Crolla scored a 6th round stoppage over Stephen Foster Jr in a scheduled 12 round Lightweight bout.

Crolla dominated the action until Foster could not come out for the 7th round.

Crolla is now 134 1/2 lbs is now 27-4-1 with 10 knockouts. Foster Jr., 134 lbs is now 31-5-1.

2012 British Olympian Luke Campbell scored a 4 round decision over Chuck Jones in a Jr. Welterweight bout.

The score by the referee was 40-35 for Campbell, 137 lbs and he is now 4-0. Jones, 142 lbs is 4-13-2.




Abdusalamov back on life support

According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, injured Heavyweight Magomed Abdusalamov is back on life support after being briefly being taken off it. Abdusalamov was injured during his November 2nd bout with Mike Perez in New York.

“His temperature shot up to 103, so his body wasn’t ready yet (to come out of the coma), so they put him back on life support and (into) the medically induced coma,” Lewkowicz said. “Terrible setback. No clue when they are trying to bring him out again.”




Jermain Taylor to return on December 14

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Former Middleweight champion Jermain Taylor will return to the ring on December 14th against JC Candelo in San Antonio according to Dan Rafael of espn.com.

“Al (Haymon, Taylor’s manager) asked us to put him on the card and we put him on the card,” said Golden Boy Promotions Richard Schaefer, who has a very close relationship with Haymon, told ESPN.com on Tuesday

“This opportunity for Jermain came up so we’ve been training really hard,” Taylor’s trainer Pat Burns told ESPN.com. “He looks fantastic. He’s excited and in great spirits. In the last year the highest he went up to was 177 pounds. As soon as I got here (to Little Rock for training camp) on Oct. 14, he was about 170. After two workouts he was 166, which is absolutely perfect.”

“I think people should be entitled to their own opinion if a fighter should retire or not, but it’s a personal thing and I am not going to go and tell somebody they should retire,” Schaefer said. “Whether Jermain should retire or not, it’s not up to me to decide. Jermain Taylor is not a stupid guy. If he feels he has the necessary tools to compete, and so do the people around him, then let him do that.

“Let him try that and see where it will take him. He’ll have this fight and take it from there. He and his team can make that assessment.”




Haye hurts shoulder; Fury fight off

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Former two division world champion David Haye has pulled out his bout with Tyson Fury for the 2nd time, this time for a shoulder injury that required immediate surgery according to Dan Rafael of espn.com

The bout was originally scheduled for September 28th but a cut over Haye’s eye forced a postponement to February 8th.

“I genuinely believed the shoulder injury wasn’t that bad,” Haye said. “But the doctor sent me for a detailed MRI scan and within 24 hours I was told the full extent of the damage. Twenty-four hours after that I was in the operating theater.

“It’s a crushing blow for me. I had big plans for next year and the ultimate goal was to win back the world heavyweight title, something my amazing fans deserve.

“What I didn’t anticipate was that this year would be the unluckiest of my career and that a number of injuries would disrupt my plans so much. Perhaps it just wasn’t meant to be. The boxing gods keep hinting that maybe enough is enough and that it’s time to finally hang up my gloves.”

“The surgery and subsequent results are a bitter pill to swallow because I truly felt I had a lot more to offer and was looking forward to paying back my loyal fans with some great fights in 2014,” Haye said. “But I’ve been boxing for 23 years now, amateur and pro, and this has clearly taken its toll on my body. I can only offer my sincerest apologies to all those fans who have followed me over the years and, like me, wanted to finish on a real high. This wasn’t how I wanted to end 2013.

“If I’m now destined to have won the European championship, the unified world cruiserweight championship and the WBA heavyweight championship of the world, then so be it. I’m proud of these achievements and consider my boxing career a huge success.”




Ward decisions Rodriguez in rough, ugly contest

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It started at yesterday’s weigh-in when Edwin Rodriguez failed to make weight for his WBA Super Middleweight clash with Andre Ward. Then he and Ward engaged in an ugly fight that saw Ward easily score a twelve round unanimous decision ast the Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario, California.

The fight started out with Rodriguez running across the ring and trying to bully Ward. Ward would have nine of that as he started drilling Rodriguez with pinpoint shots with both hands. Ward was dominating the fight with both hands and featured a hard power jab. In round four, the fight turned ugly as inordinate amount of clutching and grabbing by both men forced referee Jack Reiss to not only pause the bout but take two points away from each man, warn them and suggest that the commission fine both fighters. Reiss also intimated that he was hit by a stray punch.

“We had two highly trained athletes full of adrenalin and emotion,” the veteran referee observed. “I deducted two points from each of them and warned them that the deduction of another point would result in a disqualification. That was done with the intent to produce an exciting, competitive fight all the way to its conclusion. And it did.”

That admonishment seemed to work as the bout picked up a better flow but unfortunately for Rodriguez it was all Ward as he continued to rock Rodriguez with body shots, hard jabs and even an uppercut that hurt Rodriguez in round eleven.

Despite being off 14 months for shoulder surgery, Ward solidified his status among the pound for pound elite bu pounding out the decision by scores of 118-106, 117-107 and 116-108 to raise his perfect mark to 27-0. Rodrigiez or Worcester, MA is now 24-1.

“We knew he would come out and try and bull me,” said Ward, who showed no ill effects from his inactivity following surgery to his right shoulder.

“Instead of trying to win rounds he was looking to land one big shot. He wanted to make it ugly and hope he could land something big. Jack Reiss did a tremendous job keeping the action going.”

“He was putting his head down a little too much,” a frustrated Rodriguez pointed out. “Andre Ward is very tricky, but does not have a lot of power in his right hand. I am just disappointed in my performance. The weight had nothing to do with it. He’s a good fighter. What can I say?”




De Leon decisions Hernandez

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Former world champion Daniel Ponce De Leon scored a ten round unanimous decision over Joksan Hernandez in a Super Featherweight bout at the Oasis Hotel in Cancun, Mexico.

De Leon landed an over hand left that buckled Hernandez that made Hernandez glove touch the canvas and was ruled a knockdown. The two traded heavy shots after that to finish the round. Hernandez gave a good effort but De Leon landed the more telling blows throughout the bout.

De Leon, 130 lbs of Chihuahua, Mexico is now 45-5. Hernandez, 130 lbs of Ensenada, MX is 23-6-1.

Roberto Manzanarez stopped veteran Alejandro Barrera in round three of their scheduled ten round Lightweight bout.

Barrera scored a knockdown in round. In round two he sent Barrera to the canvas from a left to the head and finished things with a hard left to the body sent crumpled Barrera to the canvas in round three and the bout was stopped.

Manzanarez, 134 1/2 lbs of Los Mochis, MX is now 25-1 with 21 knockouts. Barrera, 135 1/2 lbs of Mexico City is now 22-16.

Juan Pablo Sanchez scored a 5th round stoppage over Raul Hinojosa in a scheduled 10 round Super Featherweight bout.

Sanchez, 130 lbs of Tabasco, MX is now 26-11 with 12 knockouts. Hinojosa, 130 1/4 lbs of Mexico City is now 11-3-1.

Emanuel Medina (5-0, 4 KO’s) scored a 2nd round stoppage over Maximiliano De La Cruz (0-2) in a Welterweight bout.




UFC 167 EARLY RESULTS

Donald Cerrone choked out Evan Dunham in the 2nd round of theor Lightweight bout.

Cerrone choked out Dunham at 3:49 of round 2 with the triangle.

Cerrone, 155 lbs is 21-5-1. Dunham, 146 lbs, is 14-5.

Thales Leites scored a three round unanimous decision over Ed Herman in a Middelweight bout.

Leites, 186 lbs of Rio Di Janeanaro, BRA won by scores of 30-27 on all cards and is now 22-4. Herman, 186 lbs of Fort Collins, CO is now 21-9-1.

Rick Story scored a three round unanimous decision over Brian Ebersole in a Welterweight bout.

Scores were 30-27 on all cards for Story, 170 lbs of Vancouver, WA and is now 16-7. Ebersole, 171 lbs of Phuket, Thailand is now 50-16-1.

Erik Perez scored a three round unanimous decision over Edwin Figueroa in a Bantamweight bout.

Perez, 135 lbs of Albuquerque, NM won by scores of 30-27 on all cards and is now 14-5. Figueroa, 135 lbs of mcKinney, TX is now 9-4.