PRIMM, NEVADA — Rising light welterweight prospect Jessie Vargas aims to add the name of former world champion Vivian Harris to his resume before a hometown crowd at the Buffalo Bill’s Resort & Casino. Their intriguing ten-round clash is the featured main event of tonight’s Telefutura Solo Boxeo telecast. Fighters weighed in Thursday evening at the casino’s Star of the Desert Arena, where tonight’s action takes place.

Vargas (14-0, 7 KOs) of Las Vegas, Nevada has built his reputation mostly against the usual list of suspects, but has the opportunity to raise a few eyebrows if he can impressively defeat Harris, who only a few years ago was a serious contender. Vargas had hoped to get in the ring with a former champion in his last bout, but Jose Armando Santa Cruz was ruled out and replaced by journeyman Cristian Favela on short notice. Vargas ended up notching an eight-round unanimous decision victory in that fight last October.

Harris (29-5-1, 19 KOs) of Brooklyn, New York by way of Georgetown, Guyana looked to have the potential as a force at 140-pounds when he knocked off veteran WBA Light Welterweight titleholder Diosbelys Hurtado in the second-round back in October of 2002. Harris made three defenses before his steady decline began with an upset knockout defeat to unheralded Carlos Maussa in June of 2005, just as his name was being mentioned for a possible showdown with Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Harris’ last outing, a devastating third-round knockout to Victor Ortiz last September, has led some to question whether or not he should continue fighting. A loss to Vargas tonight would definitely relegate him to the opponent category, but a win would go a long way in making him a more viable entity once more.

Thursday’s main event weigh-in provided more entertainment value than was advertised. Vargas came in a pound under the contracted 144-pound catchweight for tonight’s ten-round bout, but on his initial try Harris scaled 146.5-pounds. Vargas’ team, led by former world champion Cornelius Boza Edwards, insisted that Harris lose one-and-a-half pounds (in Nevada there is a one pound leeway for non-title bouts). An hour later Harris returned and took to the scale in the nude, but was still over at 145.2-pounds. Boza Edwards still insisted that Harris lose the .2-pounds. After a third and fourth try, Harris came in at 145-pounds, thus avoiding paying out a percentage of his purse in fines.

Light middleweight prospect Eddie Gomez (3-0, 3 KOs) of the Bronx, New York will take on Roberto Lopez (4-1-2, 1 KO) of Kissimmee, Florida in the six-round co-feature. Gomez, a former New York Golden Gloves Champion, will be making his U.S. debut as a professional after scoring three exciting stoppages on Puerto Rican soil this past winter. Lopez was undefeated prior to his last outing, a six-round decision defeat to now 10-0 Jake Giuriceo last September. Gomez and Lopez both weighed in at 150.5-pounds.

Bastie Samir (10-0, 10 KOs) of Las Vegas by way of Accra, Ghana will take on Lester Gonzalez (11-3-1, 6 KOs) of San Diego, California by way of Havana, Cuba in a six-round middleweight bout. Samir, who is trained by the respected Kenny Adams, has literally blown through his competition. Only one fighter, tough guy Loren Myers, has taken him past the third round. Gonzalez, currently on a three-fight skid against solid competition, has failed to last the distance just once in his career, but that came in his most recent fight. Samir came in at 161.5-pounds, while Gonzalez made the contracted 163 right on the nose.

In the featured women’s attraction of the evening, the powerfully-built Tatini Anderson (3-1, 3 KOs) of Las Vegas will meet Lissette Medel (2-1) of Maywood, California in a four-round light welterweight bout. Anderson, who was affectionately refereed to as Little Tyson at the weigh-in, scored three straight knockout victories before dropping a decision to Kuulei Kupihea almost exactly one year ago. Medel, who did not appear to be intimidated by Anderson’s muscular build, has not fought in over four years. Anderson weighed in at 139-pounds, while Medal came in at 138.

Former ESPN The Magazine cover boy Quadtrine Hill (4-1, 1 KO) of Hollywood, California looks to keep his winning streak going against Alexander Flores (3-0, 2 KOs) of Rowland Heights, California in a four-round pairing of heavyweights. Hill has posted three straight decision wins since admittedly running out of gas and getting stopped last September by Yohan Banks on pay-per-view. Flores, who turned pro in March of 2010, weighed in at 225.5-pounds. Hill, who has been training at the Wild Card Boxing Club since relocating from Florida, weighed in at 219.5-pounds, which is the lowest of his career.

Paul Green (1-1) of Compton, California takes on Kai Zama (5-2, 3 KOs) of Costa Mesa, California by way of Tokyo, Japan in a four-round light welterweight bout. Zama, who scaled 139, will be making his U.S. debut, as he has fought entirely in Japan until now. Zama’s last outing was a four-round decision defeat to Mitsumasa Takahashi last August. Green, who weighed in at 136.5-pounds, fought just last month, dropping a four-round decision to Juan Reyes in Tustin, California.

Tickets for the event, promoted by Golden Boy Promotions and Roy Englebrecht Promotions, are available online at Ticketmaster.com.

Quick Weigh-in Results:

Welterweights, 10 Rounds
Vargas 143
Harris 145*

Light Middleweights, 6 Rounds
Gomez 150.5
Lopez 150.5

Middleweights, 6 Rounds
Samir 161.5
Gonzalez 163

Heavyweights, 4 Rounds
Hill 219.5
Flores 225.5

Light Welterweights, 4 Rounds
Anderson 139
Medel 138

Light Welterweights, 4 Rounds
Green 136.5
Zama 139

*Harris made weight on his fourth attempt, originally scaling 146.5

Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at ortega15rds@lycos.com.

According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, Heavyweight champions Wladimir and Vitali Klitschko will each fight anticipated bouts in the coming months.

Wladimir will defend his IBF/WBO and Ring Magazine world championships against WBA champ David Haye on either June 25th or July 2nd in a bout that has been brewing for a couple of years while Vitali will defend his WBC strap against Tomasz Adamek providing Adamek gets by Kevin McBride this Saturday in Newark, New Jersey.

“It’s pretty simple: Wladimir was the first one in 2009 who wanted to face Haye after Haye attacked him first, verbally in London at a press conference for a charity cause,” said Klitschko manager Bernd Boente. “From the beginning it was always going in that direction. From the contract side it’s possible it could change but, as of now, they made the decision between themselves.”

There still remains a possibility that Vitali (42-2, 39 KOs), who is coming off a first-round knockout of mandatory challenger Odlanier Solis on March 19, will also fight June 4 against an opponent to be determined in Germany.

“Maybe Vitali will fight then, but it depends on the TV situation in Germany,” Boente said.

“It will be Wladimir fighting Haye and Vitali is fighting Adamek, but Adamek has to win or he’s out,” Boente said.

Boente and Adam Booth, Haye’s manager and trainer, were in New York last week meeting with American television executives about deals for the U.S. rights to the fights. HBO is the likely outlet, Boente said.

“There is interest in America but, in the end, my gut feeling tells me HBO is the station,” Boente said. “Last week we went to HBO, to Epix and to Showtime. It’s not written in stone, but I think we are back in business with HBO.”

“June 25 or July 2, but it really depends on the stadium deal,” Boente said. “We are still not sure which one it will be in. It could still be outside of Germany, but it has to be agreed on by Adam Booth and myself. This is a true 50-50 deal.”

Argenis Mendez will vie for his first world title when he travels to South Africa to take on Mzonke Fana for the IBF Jr. Lightweight title on June 11 according to Dan Rafael of espn.com

The 24-year-old Mendez (18-1, 9 KOs) scored a first-round knockdown and went on to outpoint former titleholder Cassius Baloyi in South Africa on Jan. 29 in the eliminator that earned him the title shot against Fana.

“I’m glad he had that last fight in South Africa,” Lou DiBella, Mendez’s promoter, told ESPN.com. “It was very good experience to have fought there before going into this fight. He won the decision there and did very well. He will be comfortable fighting there again. I am very confident he can win the title there.

“Fana is still a good fighter, but [Mendez] has a lot of advantages going for him and he will be well-served by having fought there before. He is excited about the opportunity to win a title.

Fana was hoping to meet Scotland’s Ricky Burns in a summer unification fight after Burns and his promoter, Frank Warren, called him out. However, they were unable to make a deal.

“The offer Frank made for us to come to the U.K. for a unification was just a little bit more money than a normal challenger would get,” Branco Milenkovic, Fana’s promoter, said. “I doubled the offer and up to this moment they can’t make up their mind. No disrespect, but I think they didn’t want the fight to happen. The easiest way to kill the fight is to offer too little money.

“After I doubled up, they still were not prepared to come to South Africa. Maybe Burns wanted the fight, but Frank doesn’t. I understand. But don’t go three months telling me you want to make a deal. We were really looking forward to a unification fight in South Africa, but we couldn’t get it made, so I decided to go with DiBella because I saw Warren is not interested and I have a good working relationship with Lou. So we were able to make a deal. Mendez fought well when he was in South Africa.”

Former world champion Eric Morel stopped former world title challenger Luis Maldonado after four rounds of their scheduled ten round Jr. Featherweight bout at the Fantasy Springs Resort in Indio, CA.

Morel dropped Maldonado at the end of round one from a right hand and continued to pressure Maldonado until the bout was stopped after four rounds.

Morel, 119 lbs of San Juan, PR is now 44-2 with twenty-two knockouts. Maldonado, 119 1/2 lbs of Mexicali, MX is now 37-5-1.

Good looking twenty year old prospect Randy Caballero stopped Felix Perez in round two of a scheduled six round Super Bantamweight bout.

Caballero dropped Perez in the first from a left to the head and again dropped Perez in round two with a left to the body body and the bout was stopped at 2:42 of round two.

Caballero, 120 1/2 lbs of Cochella, CA is now 9-0 with five knockouts. Perez, 120 1/2 lbs of Carolina, PR is now 7-3.

Ramon Valadez scored a spectacular one punch knockout over Rob Diezel in round one of their scheduled six round Lightweight bout.

After a nice exchange, Diezel walked into a perfect right that knocked him down and out at 1:42 of round one.

Valadez, 131 3/4 lbs of Ontario, CA is now 7-1 with four knockouts. Diezel, 129 lbs of Seattle, WA is now 5-4.

Alfonso Blanco remained undefeated by scoring a four round unanimous decision over Ricardo Malfavon in a Jr. Middleweight bout.

Scores were 39-36 on all cards for Balnco, 153 3/4 lbs of Caracas, Venezuela and is now 4-0. Malfavon, 151 3/4 lbs of Mexico is now 1-5.

MAIN EVENT — Joel “El Rey” Castillo sent a wave of electricity through the Aviator Sports Complex in Brooklyn, New York Saturday night when he delivered a violent one punch knockout to Billy Cunningham just eighteen seconds into the fight!

The punch, a vicious left hook on the button, sent Cunningham crashing stiffly the canvas where he would remain until ringside physicians propped him up onto a stool for a medical examination.

Cunningham came out of the corner, circled Castillo, and walked right into a perfectly placed left hook. He immediately crumbled. His legs stiffened upon hitting the mat, his eyes rolled to the back of his head, Undertaker-style.

The crowd, who had been awaiting a knockdown of note got more than they bargained for in the main event. Not only was it a knockdown of note, it was a KNOCKOUT of note.

With one murderous left hook less than twenty seconds into the fight, the Bronx’s Castillo improved his record to 8-0, 5 KOs, while Cunningham, a native of Jackson, Mississippi’s, fell to 5-10, 4 KOs.

Mark Davis vs. Ramesis Gil — 6 Rounds, lightweight

In the night’s co-main event, Cincinnati, Ohio’s Mark Davis scored a TKO victory over the Dominican Republic’s Ramesis Gil when Gil was unable to answer the bell for round six.

It was clear from the onset that Davis’ superior hand-speed and overall athleticism was going to be a lot for Gil to handle, and it was. To make matters worse for the Dominican, his defense was average at best.

The speedy Davis first hurt his counterpart in the second round when he landed a textbook one-two to the face of Gil. He continued to find Gil with ease for the next two, including a huge right hand to the chin that wobbled Gil in round four. While Davis was unable to shut the door at that particular moment, he only needed one more round the finish the job.

In the fifth round, Davis started to attack Gil’s body. After an exhausted Gil recovered from a grazing low blow, Davis turned up the heat and began wailing away at Gil’s midsection. As he back him into the ropes, Davis delivered a bruising left hook to the liver of Gil, who immediately absorbed a flurry of more body shots courtesy of Davis before falling to the canvas.

When Gil returned to his corner after the round concluded, his corner stepped in and advised the referee to call a halt to the bout at the end of round five.

Davis improved his record to 15-0, 5 KOs with the win, while Gil loses his second fight and sees his record morph to read 6-2-4, 5 KOs.

Leon Moore vs. Felipe Almanza — 6 Rounds, bantamweight

Lean “Hurry Up” Moore cruised past Felipe Almanza

When watching this fight, I was trying to think of new nicknames for Moore. I only came up with two, and they are both sub-par, but here you go. Leon “Hurry Up And Get This Fight Over With” Moore? Leon “Hurry Up And” Snore?

Point is, Leon Moore is an extremely talented fighter, and his record shows it — 28-2, 23 KOs.

With that said, his style is not exactly crowd-pleasing.

The Guyanese-born Brooklynite works methodically behind his crisp jab, taking little risks to land punches that would offer large rewards. But in all fairness to Moore, he didn’t have to take unnecessary risks in this fight, and he didn’t.

The bout saw some fiery exchanges, but they were few and far between. Although the bout was pretty much out of Almanza’s reach by the fourth round, he was deducted a point by the referee for hitting after the break. That, if nothing else, sealed his fate.

In the end, Moore took home the unanimous decision victory. All three judges scored the bout 59-54 in his favor.

Ramadan Yasser vs. Mario Flores — 4 Rounds, heavyweight

In the night’s lone heavyweight bout of the evening, the Egyptian-born New Yorker, Ramadan Yasser scored a majority decision victory over Washington, D.C.’s Mario Flores.

Yasser, a flamboyant boxer, clubs more than he punches. His ‘punches’ are awkward and extremely wide, but he throws them from all angles, which created problems for the Chris Arreola (but fifty pounds lighter) look-a-like, Flores.

Throughout the fight, Yasser taunted Flores, doing all kinds of showboating over the course of twelve minutes. While it didn’t seem to phase Flores, I know if it was me, I would have been pissed. Flores, took it in stride, and continued to try walk down his opponent, who seemingly was treated this fight as some sort of comedy act.

Flores’ only round won on my scorecard was the second round, where he made a commitment to attack Yasser’s body. He got away from that however, and didn’t see much success elsewhere.

In the end, judge Julie Lederman scored the bout even 38-38, while the other two judges agreed that Yasser won the bout by a score of 39-37.

With the win, Yasser stays perfect as a professional, improving his record to 4-0, 3 KOs, while Flores drops his first professional fight, and falls to 1-1, 1 KO.

Frank Galarza vs. Noel Garcia — 4 Rounds, junior middleweight

Hometown favorite Frank Galarza easily outpointed the lesser talented Noel Garcia in a four round junior middleweight bout.

Garcia looked hesitant from the opening bell, as if he wasn’t sure he wanted to be in the ring that night. Conversely, Galarza looks like a boxer and he acts like one too.

Galarza controlled the pace and domination the action from bell to bell, stalking Garcia around the ring. The only knock on Galarza this bout is that when he had Garcia hurt, he showed no desire to follow-up quickly and try to stop his opponent. Instead, he chose to slowly stalk his prey, which worked as well, resulting in another ‘W’ in the young prospect’s win column.

With the win, Galarza runs his record to 3-0, 1 KO, while Springfield, Massachusetts’ Garcia falls to 2-8-1, 1 KO.

Tommy Rainone vs. Arthur Medina — 6 Rounds, welterweight

Arthur Medina’s trunks read “All Heart.” His tattoo that arched across his back said the same. After the fight ended, I didn’t doubt those words. Too bad he has “All Heart” and not much else, however.

His opponent, Tommy Rainone’s trunks, read “Razor” across the waist. And that too turned out to be an appropriate nickname as he continually sliced through Medina’s shoddy defense with a razor-like left hand.

I was convinced by the third round that if Rainone’s trunks said “Hammer” across the belt-line instead of “Razor”, his “Hammer” would have trumped Medina’s “All Heart” and this fight would have been over by the second round.

Rainone dominated this fight bell to bell, literally. No more than seconds into the fight Medina was sporting a cut on the cheekbone under his right eye. While the cut never became a factor in the fight, it certainly was an indicator of the now would go for Medina.

The Colorado native, Medina, was too easy to find for Brooklyn’s own Rainone. Time after time, Rainone shot his left hand through Medina’s hand-made uprights.

While Rainone never lost control of the bout, it was a dirty and chippy fight that saw the referee constantly getting in-between the southpaw, Rainone, and the orthodox, Medina.

In the third round, Rainone through a half straight left/half push that resulted in Medina falling to the canvas. Referee Sparkle Lee, incorrectly in my view, ruled it a knockdown.

Later in the fight, in the fifth round, however, Rainone scored a legitimate knockdown when a one-two sent Medina to the mat.

When it was all said and done, all three judges awarded Rainone the victory. Scores were 59-53 and 60-52, twice..

With the win, Rainone improves 14-4, 4 KOs, while Medina drops to 14-23, 5 KOs.

Jonathan Arias vs. Angel Cruz — 6 Rounds, super flyweight

While there was no doubt that Joel Castillo’s knockout of Billy Cunningham was the knockout of the night, there was also no doubt that Jonathan Arias versus Angel Cruz was the fight of the night.

The bout opened up with fireworks and the they were constant throughout, until the finale, which commenced at the sound of the bell to end round six. Arias, the crowd favorite and Dominican Republic native now resided in New York City exchanged blows with the Puerto Rican, Miami resident, Cruz from the opening ‘ding.’

In the second round, Cruz stumbled Castillo with a huge one-two which backed Castillo against the ropes. Cruz continued to attack, but Castillo weathered the storm and fired off a few crushing blows of his own.

The best action of the best fight came in round five when Arias hurt Cruz with an uppercut, forcing him to backpedal until he reached the ropes. Arias continued to wail away at Cruz, who was covering up and not firing back. After absorbing a few more blows, it was Cruz’s turn to fire back, and in doing so the crowd was on their feet, half the arena cheering for while Arias, while the Puerto Rican fans in attendance adopted Cruz to root for.

Although Arias gave it everything he had, Cruz was the more technical, less wild, and quicker boxer, with heavier hands. Ultimately, that carried him to victory.

Scores were 59-55 and 58-56, all in favor of Cruz.

At the end of the fight, HBO’s unofficial offical, Howard Lederman, who was sitting in the first row exclaimed, “Man that’s as good as it gets! Incredible!”

With the win, Cruz improves to 5-1, 4 KOs, while Arias drops to 11-7, 9 KOs.

DonYil Livingston vs. Greg Hackett — 6 Rounds, middleweight

In the evening’s first contest, Los Angeles, California’s DonYil Livingston scored a narrow unanimous decision victory the hard-nosed Greg Hackett of Philadelphia.

The underdog, Hackett, gave Livingston all he could handle in this fight and all three judges agreed he had one half the rounds. However, his downfall came in the sixth and final round when he delivered his third low blow to Livingston and was deducted a point.

That point proved vital as all three judges scored the bout in favor of Livingston, 57-56.

With the win, Livingston improves his record to 3-0, 2 KOs, while Hackett drops to 2-7.

At the BB Kings Blues Club in Times Square, NY, Jose Pedraza, a fighter with one professional fight under his belt, headlined a Broadway Boxing card. The Broadway Boxing series has played a part in producing most of New York’s top boxers. His being showcased as the main event so early in his career brought about some criticism from people who have yet to see Pedraza.

Pedraza (1-0, 1 KO) was set to take on Corben Page (1-2). Pedraza wasted little time getting things going, as he knocked down Page with a well timed right. Page beat the count, but it was clearly evident that he was not going to last long against what we found out was a true talent. With blood pouring out his nose, he took a mean combination and was down on the canvas again. After beating that count a second time, he was met with more punches which forced the referee to stop the fight at the 2:25 point of the first round giving Pedraza a TKO victory.

The co-feature pitted Willie Monroe Jr. (10-0, 4 KO’s) in a tough matchup against the notorious spoiler Darnell Boone (17-17-3, 7 KO’s). The fight was scheduled for eight rounds, and everyone in attendance expected it to go the distance. The fight started out at a slow pace. Oddly enough, it was Boone that was pressing the action with a body attack. In the fifth round, after some infighting, Monroe went down, but the referee ruled it a slip. The bout continued at the same pace, with Boone looking stronger as the fight progressed. In the eighth round, a right hand knocked down Wilson, and the folks in attendance pretty much knew that Boone would be getting the decision. In the end, the scores read 78-73 and 77-74 for Boone and 76-75 for Monroe, giving Boone a split decision victory.

The popular Seanie Monaghan (6-0, 4 KO’s) took the ring against Michael Glenn (2-2, 1 KO). Monaghan makes up for a lack of technique with hard work and overwhelming punching. His workmanlike style and constant pressure was too much for Glenn, who had nothing to provide in response. The fight ended with scores of 40-36 for Monaghan, giving him a unanimous decision victory.

Former Golden Gloves champion who somehow stayed below the New York hype, Travis Peterkin (1-0, 1 KO’s) completely bum rushed Abdellah Smith (1-1, 1 KO) as soon as the opening bell rang. Thudding shots were heard from even outside the room. The ref was forced to stop the beating at the 2:33 point of the first round, giving Peterkin a TKO victory.

The tall and athletic Delen Parsley (4-0, 2 KO’s) took on the difficult David Lopez (3-4, 3 KO’s). Lopez is a southpaw notorious for making his opponents look bad. This fight wasn’t much different for him. Despite a few heated exchanges, Lopez made it difficult for Parsley to showcase his range and versatility. Still, he did not provide much offense in return, so Parsley was clearly in the lead. After a decent scrap, scores of 59-55, 59-55, and 58-56 giving Parsley a unanimous decision victory.

Scott Burrell (2-0, 2 KO’s) took on Jemell Tyson (0-0-1) in a four round match. Burrell used his superior talent and harder punching to dominate the fight from start to finish, winning the fight with scores of 40-36, 40-36 and 39-37, giving Burrell a unanimous decision victory.

Gabriel DuLuc made his professional debut against Joel Alarcon (0-1) in a fight scheduled for four rounds. Right hands were the name of DuLuc’s game, as he often avoided throwing jabs for long stretches of time. A right knocked Alarcon down briefly in the first round, and the rest of the bout saw DuLuc’s right hand constantly pepper his opponent’s face. The scores from all three judges read 40-35, giving DuLuc a unanimous deicision victory and his first professional win.

And a blistering hot sun it was today at Roger Dean Stadium in Jupiter Florida for today’s outdoor boxing event, “Fight for the Pink.” Jason Gavern headlined the card and proved to the crowd and the boxing world that he is a legitimate threat to all the heavyweight belts as he retained his own WBC Caribean heavyweight belt in a 7th round TKO over a very game and hard hitting Darnell “Ding a Ling” Wilson. Both men came out with bad intentions early with a smattering of hard shots from both sides in the first few rounds with Gavern the more busy fighter establishing his jab early. The middle rounds were more Gavern as he started to seemingly frustrate Wilson by not letting him set for his punches. Gavern a crowd favorite toyed with the ringside observers throughout the fight while Wilson was trying to get off the one big shot. The end came at 1:44 of the 7th round with an overhand right from Gavern that landed flush on the head of Wilson opening a huge gash prompting referee Frank Santore Jr to call a stop to the action. Gavern improves to 20-7 and this fight should move him closer if not in to the coveted top 10 rankings in the world for the big men.

In the other headliner of the day Patricia “Patty Boom Boom” Alcivar continued to impress with another gem of a performance over an extremely tough and game Savannah Hill. Alcivar led off round one with a flurry of punches connecting with several and setting the pace for the fight which would stay much of the same, Boom Boom booming shots into the face and body of Hill. Alcivar showed she was the superior fighter using sometimes 5 and 6 punch combinations all the while maintaining her composure and nimble feet. “Boom Boom” won a unanimous decision after 6 rounds of fighting winning every round on all the judges score cards and she improves her impeccable unbeaten record to 5- 0 and rumor has it she is fighting for a title sometime this year. Much more to come from this exciting young fighter.

On the undercard Swedish Heavyweight David Loy improved to 2-0 with a solid knockout of Justin Riegle in the second round. It should be noted that Loy donated his whole purse to the Fight Breast Cancer cause. Former Florida gold glover had his hands full in his pro debut with veteran Alex Cruz Medina before finally Medinas corner put a stop to the action at 1:22 in the third. Cuban Heavyweight Luis Ortiz improves his record to 7 wins and no defeats with a one sided victory of the slick, elusive now journeyman Jerry Butler. Look for Ortiz to shake up the heavyweight division over the next couple of years if he keeps focused. Finally Arturo Santiago improved to 7-3-1 in a win over Kadel Luiz Martinez in what was a very exciting back and forth match. All in all today’s fight were a success for the fighters the fans and the fight against cancer.

“Hammerin” Hank Lundy scored a ten round unanimous decision over Patrick Lopez in a Lightweight bout at the
Fox Theater at Foxwoods in Connecticut.

Lundy took control early on the strength of a knockdown in round two that came from a quick left hand to the head. Lopez began to bleed from the corner of his right eye in round three. Lundy suffered the same fate with his right eye in round five.

It was clear who the faster man was but Lopez had the look of a guy who was just beginning to stalk his prey

Lopez started to up the pressure in round’s seven, eight and nine that began to swing the tide in his favor. The two exchanged wild flurries that that excited the crowd all the way to the final bell.

Lundy, 135 lbs of Philadelphia won by scores of 99-91; 97-92 and 95-94 to raise his record to 20-1-1. Lopez, 135 lbs of Londonderry, NH is now 20-4.

Vladine Bioose scored a fifth round stoppage over Tim Connors in a battle of Super Middleweight southpaws that was scheduled for eight rounds.

Biosse dropped Connors in round five from a straight left. Biosse was continuing his dominance until he drilled Connors with another big left that sent him down to the canvas just thirty-seven seconds into round the round.

Biosse, 168 lbs of Providence, RI is now 11-0 with six knockouts. Connors, 167 lbs of St. Louis is now 10-3.

Former world title challenger stopped Joe Gardner when Gardner could not come out to start round five in their scheduled six round Super Middleweight bout.

Ayala dropped Gardner twice with body shots in round four and Gardner did not want to take any more punishment and the bout was stopped before round five could commence.

Ayala, 168 lbs of New Haven, CT is now 22-5-1 with ten knockouts. Gardener, 169 lbs of Rhode Island is now 7-2-1.

Raymond “Tito” Serrano scored a fifth round stoppage over Corey Alacorn in a scheduled eight round Welterweight bout at the Asylum Arena in South Philadelphia.

Serrano scored a knockdown in the first round from a left to the body. The battering was evident in round two as Alacorn’s nose started to bleed from some solid straight right’s from Serrano. In round four, Serrano rocked Alacorn repeatedly from rights to the head and lefts to the body.

In round five, Serrano drilled Alacorn on two separate occasions to score two knockdowns and the fight was stopped just forty-four seconds into the fifth frame as the hometown kid put on a dominant performance.
Serrano, 147 lbs of Philadelphia is now 15-0 with eight knockouts. Alacorn, 147 lbs of Denver, CO is now 14-17-1.

In the co-feature, Andres Taylor took four round unanimous decision over awkward Rayshawn Myers in a Cruiserweight bout.

Myers seemed more concerned about clowning around then he did to win and in round one it cost him as he tried three bolo punches with the third he got countered and dropped on the seat of his pants.
Over the next three rounds, Taylor tried to make the fight in spite of Myers antics with Myers having little success.

It was Taylor’s willingness to fight that gained him the unanimous decision by scores of 40-35; 40-35 and 38-37.

Taylor, 194 lbs of Johnstown, PA is now 17-1-2. Myers, 190 lbs of Cleveland, OH is now 3-7.
Patrick Majewski remained perfect by obliterating an overmatched Allen Medina in a scheduled six round Middleweight contest.

Majewski came out and landed two hard rights that rocked Medina. A third right sent Medina down the canvas. Majewski jumped on Medina and landed five consecutive hard blows and the fight was stopped just seventy-four seconds into the contest.

Majewski, 160 lbs of Atlantic City, NJ is now 16-0 with eleven stoppages. Medina, 158 lbs of Denver is now 8-19.

Ardrick Butler scored a sixth round stoppage over gutty Michael Denby in the final scheduled round of their welterweight bout.

Butler rocked Denby in round one from a big right hand and dropped him in round three from a left hook. Denby shocked the crowd by landing a huge right that sent Butler to the canvas. Butler seemed hurt but was able to make it out of the round.

Butler came out in round six by rocking Denby with a big right that had Denby stumbling bad into the ropes. Referee Blair Talmidge separated the two combatants and when he gently pushed Denby back, he fell to the canvas proving how hurt he really was and Talmidge had no other recourse then to stop the bout Tat forty-one seconds of round six.

Butler, 147 ½ lbs of Philadelphia is 6-4 with three knockouts. Denby, 150 lbs of Felton, DE is now 3-9-3.
Juan Rodriguez was very consistent in pounding out a four round unanimous decision over Andrew Jones in a Welterweight bout.

Scores were 40-36 on all cards for Rodriguez, 147 lbs of Union City, NJ to remain undefeated at 6-0. Jones, 147 lbs of Buffalo, NY is now 0-5-1.

Kamil Lasczyk was knocked down from a counter left in the first minute of his bout with Javier Ramos but came back to land a vicious body shot that dropped and stopped Ramos at 1:48 of that same round in a scheduled four round Featherweight bout.

Lasczyk, 127 ½ of North Bergen, NJ is now 3-0 with three knockouts. Ramos, 128 ½ lbs of Mayaquez, PR is now 2-6.

Keenan Smith scored a four round unanimous decision over Joshua Nieves in a Jr. Lightweight bout.
Scores were 40-36; 39-37 and 39-37 for Smith, 132 ½ lbs of Philadelphia and is now 4-0. Nieves, 129 ½ lbs of Bronx, NY was making his pro debut.

John Mecurio remained undefeated by pounding out a four round unanimous decision over William Miranda in a Heavyweight tussle.

Scores were 40-37; 39-37 and 39-37 for Mecurio, 266 lbs of Philadelphia and is now 4-0. Miranda, 236 lbs of Allentown, PA suffered a cut from who is nose is now 2-3.

The show was promoted by Andre Kut and KEA Boxing.

ATLANTIC CITY, NJ — In the main event of the evening, Yuriorkis Gamboa sent Jorge Solis to the mat five times in four rounds to remain undefeated in front of a sold out crowd at the Adrian Phillips Ballroom at Boardwalk Hall.

The opening round saw little action as both fighter’s were content with feeling one another out. The second round was a different story, however, as Gamboa overwhelmed his counterpart, sending him crashing to the canvas on two separate occasions.

Gamboa’s first knockdown came courtesy of a crisp left hook. Solis beat the ten count, and quickly regained his legs, only to be met with a flurry of punches from Gamboa. Eventually, Gamboa dropped Solis again after a combination ending with a right hand, combined with little push, sent Solis down.

Gamboa cruised through the third round and with only ten seconds remaining he delivered a skull-crushing left hook that collapsed Solis to the mat for a third time. He was able to beat the ten count and walked backed to his corner between rounds on shaky legs.

In the fourth, it was more of the same, Gamboa landed a quick one-two flush that sent Solis flying on his back and to the mat for a fourth time. Solis, looking over at his corner while on a knee, waved to his corner to let the fight continue. That proved to be unwise because as soon as the fight continued Gamboa rushed to Solis and fired off a flurry of punches that would ultimately send Solis to the canvas for a fifth and final time.

Referee David Fields stepped in and called a halt to the bout at the 1:31 mark of round four.

“Of course, I knew that Solis had shown a great fight against Pacquiao”, said Gamboa after the fight. “And, of course, it was an extra motivation to beat him faster than Pacquiao did. I wanted to make a statement tonight. I always enter the ring to prove that I am the best fighter in the world. Whoever wants to prove me wrong should just come and fight me. I don’t care about my opponent’s names – I want the big fights to show the world that I am the best.”

Promoter Ahmet Oner was once more thrilled by Gamboa’s performance. “That was exactly the Yuriorkis Gamboa we all know and want to see”, said Oner. “He didn’t look as determined and explosive in some of his last fights. But today he showed the full package again: his extraordinary hand speed and overall movement plus his enormous power and accuracy. He is definitely one of the most exciting fighters in the world today. And I don’t see anybody he has to be afraid of. Gamboa is simply made for this sport. He’s a natural born boxer and winner.”

With the win, Gamboa remains undefeated and improves to 20-0, 16 KOs, while the veteran Solis drops to 40-3-2-1, 29 KOs.

In another championship bout featuring two undefeated fighters, Miguel Angel Garcia became the new NABF and NABO featherweight champion as he stopped the former unbeaten fighter, Matt Remillard.

The first round saw good action, with Oxnard, California’s Garcia ultimately getting the better of his counterpart. The best action came about two minutes in when Garcia hurt Remillard with a barrage of punches that hard a hurt Remillard covering up his face with his back against the ropes.

In the second round, Manchester Connecticut’s Remillard found success by applying constant pressure. His best punch came about midway through the round when he landed a straight right flush on the left side of Garcia’s face.

Garcia started break Remillard’s defense in round three as he continuously sent shots straight up the middle, Garcia’s fists always finding their target. At times in the third round, Remillard seemed a bit lost, his only answer to Garcia’s punches was to flick an ineffective left jab at him.

The middle rounds belonged to Garcia, as continued to breakdown the red-faced Remillard. Garcia fired straight shots up the middle, but when Remillard would sure up his guard there, Garcia would hook in punches around the gloves.

In the ninth round, Garcia dropped Remillard with a grazing left hook. Remillard beat the referee’s ten count but stood on shaky legs. Garcia quickly greeted the hurt champion with a barrage of punches that forced Remillard into retreat. Garcia then landed a crushing left hook right on the button that sent Remillard violently back to the canvas. He impressively beat the ten count once again and stood just in time to hear the bell concluded round nine.

In the tenth, Garcia picked up where he left off, continuing to punish the champion. Once again Remillard went down the canvas, this time courtesy of a Garcia right to the head.

In between rounds ten and eleven, Remillard’s trainer, Mike Skowronski stepped in to save his fighter and stop the bout.

As a result, Miguel Angel Garcia captures the NABF and NABO featherweight titles and improves his record to 25-0, 21 KOs, while Remillard suffers his first professional defeat and falls to 23-1, 13 KOs.

In an electrifying USBA super bantamweight title bout, Philadelphia’s Teon Kennedy successfully defended his title against a tough Jorge Diaz.

It was a battle of wills between the two undefeated prospects, a battle that would somehow go the distance even though each boxer was on the receiving end of some vicious blows.

The fight opened with Diaz acting as the aggressor. He constantly came forward, continuously finding a home for his right hand. Kennedy, who is an above average counterpuncher in his own right, seemed uneasy and awkward in the opening rounds in this fight.

In the second round, Diaz caught Kennedy flush with a left hook to the side of his face. It was quickly followed a by a straight right, a combination that momentarily hurt the champion. It also resulted in a cut to open over Kennedy’s right eye.

In the third round, Kennedy began to turn the tides. With his back nearing the ropes, Kennedy caught Diaz with a left hook high on Diaz’s head, forcing the challenger off-balance to the point where both his gloves touched the canvas, resulting in a knockdown. It was only after this knockdown did Kennedy come forward for the first time in the fight.

In the fourth round, the two continued to exchange blows. A divided crowd was more than alive by this point as chants of “Jorge! Jorge” were countered by chants of “Teon! Teon!” Late in round four Diaz seemingly hurt Kennedy with a straight right, but Kennedy recovered quickly.

In the sixth round Kennedy countered a Diaz right hand that sent him crashing to floor. Somehow Diaz was able to beat referee Steve Smoger’s ten count and continue the fight. The game Diaz stood on clumsy legs, wobbling back into the ropes as Kennedy tried to finish the fight. Four consecutive head shots were landed and any other referee other than Smoger probably would have stepped in and called a halt to the bout. He didn’t and no less than twenty seconds later did the resilient Diaz rattle off a three punch combination of his own. As the round concluded, Diaz — who was clearly still hurt — clutched Kennedy’s hip and dragged them both mat as the bell sounded.

When round seven opened up, Diaz clinched frequently, buying time for his legs to regain their strength. By this time, Diaz’

s eye was beginning to severely swell, to the point where he was having trouble opening it. Smoger kept looking in at Diaz’s face, but decided to let the bout continue.

The fight continued to electrify the crowd for the final three rounds, as each fighter was willing to eat a few punches to dish out a few of their own. Both fighter’s fought to keep their undefeated record until the final bell sounded.

When it did, the judges scored the bout a unanimous decision in favor of the champion, Kennedy. Judge Steve Weisfeld saw the bout 115-111. Judge Alan Rubenstein scored the fight 118-109 and judge John Poturaj had it 117-109, all for Kennedy.

With the win Kennedy retains his USBA championship and improves his record to 17-0-1, 7 KOs, while Diaz loses his first professional bout and drops to 15-1, 9 KOs.

Baltimore Ravens’ safety and former Notre Dame football captain, Tommy Zbikowski improved his professional boxing record to 3-0 with a win over former MMA fighter, Caleb Grummet.

Zbikowski, who trained under the tutelage of Emanuel Steward for this fight, showcased an impressive arsenal of weapons throughout the first two rounds of this bout, before fading heavily.

Zbikowski began the fight as a southpaw, making a visible commitment to attack his heavier opponent’s body. Grummet took the punches well and returned fire with a few successful body blows of his own.

The second round was all Zbikowski as he hurt Grummet early in the round. With Grummet dazed and agains the ropes, Zbikowski was able to land some devastating uppercuts, as well as a vicious three punch combination to Grummet’s body. Grummet was able to survive Zbikowski’s onslaught in the second round and came out firing on all cylinders in the third round.

Grummet came out aggressive in the third round, constantly walking forward, forcing Zbikowski to retreat. The former cage fighter continuously landed flush punches to a fatigued Zbikowski, but he was deducted a point for his third low blow of the round.

In the fourth round, Grummet continued to fight like it was his Super Bowl. Again he was relentless with pressure, forcing an absolutely exhausted Zbikowski against the ropes. Zbikowski absorbed three minutes worth of Grummet punches, and twice during the round, took his eyes off his firing opponent to check how much time was left in the bout.

In the end, the first two rounds coupled with the point Grummet lost due to low blows, was enough for Zbikowski to earn a unanimous decision and improve his record to 3-0, 2 KOs. Judges scores read as follows: 39-36, twice, and 38-37.

With the loss, Grand Rapid’s Michigan’s Caleb Grummet falls to 0-1-1.

Undefeated prospect and former Manny Pacqiuao sparring partner, Glen Tapia, scored a unanimous decision victory over the durable Eberto Medina.

The first opened up with good action, both fighters throwing a healthy mix of body and head punches. The highlight of the first round came midway through when Tapia landed a one-two that stunned Medina momentarily.

The second round began with Tapia bombarding his surprised counterpart, who immediately backed against the ropes where he was met with a head-snapped right hand. Medina, who was clearly hurt by that punch, went from corner to corner in retreat. Tapia continued to apply pressure, but Medina was able to weather the storm early in round two.

Medina started to find some success in round three as he continuously applied pressure and walked Tapia into corners. Tapia seemed comfortable fighting with his back near the ropes, as he successfully countered Medina time after time. Towards the end of round three, Tapia caught Medina with a left hook that sent him stumbling backwards until he took a seat on the canvas. He beat the referee’s ten count with ease, and continued on to hear the bell to conclude round three.

The fight continued to entertain as both fighters continued to engage one another. It was Tapia, however, who continued to land the cleaner, more devastating blows. Credit Medina for battling, however, as he continued to pressure Tapia in hopes of landing one big punch until the final bell sounded.

In the end, all three judges scored the bout in favor of Passaic, New Jersey’s Tapia. Scores read as follows: 59-54, 60-53, and 60-52.

With the win Tapia improves his already perfect record to 9-0, 5 KOs, while Newark, New Jersey’s Medina drops to 5-6, 1 KO.

Former National Golden Gloves Champion Miguel Cartejena probably didn’t anticipate his professional debut to be a brawl — and it wasn’t at first. But after a vicious wild-swinging exchange between he and Omar Gonzalez opened the third round, that’s what it became.

For the final six minutes the two fighters dug in and traded blows, with Cartejena consistently getting the better of the southpaw, Gonzalez.

It wasn’t an aesthetically pleasing bout, with both fighters colliding numerous times due to the orthodox-southpaw match up. It was a crowd pleaser, however, as the Cartejena fans — who were numerous and audible throughout the bout — cheered their fighter throughout.

Puerto Rico’s Camilo Perez needed exactly three minutes to dispose of his now 0-2 opponent, Desi Williams. It was clear from the onset that North Carolina’s Williams was in over his head. The crisper, more technically sound, and flat-out better fighter — Perez — first knocked Williams down against the ropes with a half punch/half push right hand. Shortly after, with Williams running across the ring in retreat, the stalking Perez landed a left hook to the side of William’s face that sent him down for the ten count.

With the win Perez improves his record to 2-0 with 2 knockouts.

Photos–Chris Farina / Top Rank

FAIRFIELD, CALIFORNIA — Three years ago Alejandro Perez was an emerging undefeated prospect with the backing of a powerful promoter, but one slip up derailed his rise. With an eye-opening first-round stoppage of world ranked Antonio Escalante Friday night at the Fairfield Sports Center, Perez appears ready to fulfill the promise of years passed.

Escalante (24-4, 15 KOs) of El Paso, Texas by way of Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico is normally a forward-moving brawler, but did little of either in the one round of action Friday. The strategy played into the hands of Perez (15-2-1, 10 KOs) of Salinas, California, who was able to time the movement of Escalante’s left hand. Midway through the round, Perez, 130, jabbed and missed Escalante, 130, with an overhand right by several inches. Though the combination failed to accomplish its mission, the idea behind it was correct.

Escalante continued to keep his lead hand held at his waistline, and when Perez jabbed downstairs a second time, it brought the Texan’s left down even further, setting up the overhand right that landed flush on his jaw and ended the fight. Escalante, who hit the back of his head hard on the mat, sat up before signaling to referee Ed Collantes that he could not continue. Time of the stoppage was 2:57 of round one.

Perez, who had fought at 122-pounds nearly his entire career, had been scheduled to fight last Friday against featherweight prospect Ronny Rios in Costa Mesa, California. Soon after that fight fell out, Perez was offered Escalante at super featherweight. Although he carried his power all the way up the scale, Perez plans to drop back down to the 126-pound featherweight division.

Despite having just scored the biggest win of his career, which played to a national television audience on Telefutura’s Solo Boxeo, Perez could not be goaded into calling out one of the marquee names of the featherweight division. “I am just taking it one day at a time,” says Perez. “I can say I want to fight this person or that person, but only time will tell. Whatever comes our way, we will sit down and make a decision.”

For Escalante, who entered the fight the IBF #6/WBO #14 ranked featherweight, it is hard to imagine a scenario in which he becomes a viable contender again any time in the near future. The loss to Perez marked the second straight early round kayo loss of his career, the first coming at the hands of former champion Daniel Ponce De Leon last September.

In the competitively matched co-feature, Clint Coronel (4-1-2, 1 KO) of San Jose, California came away with a six-round split decision nod over journeyman Carlos Musquez (3-5-3, 3 KOs) of Sacramento, California.

Neither fighter may be craftiest or quickest pugilist you ever saw, but both Coronel and Musquez bring their hard hat and lunch pail, planning to put in the work for however many rounds they are scheduled. The naturally larger Coronel, 150 ½, did his best work when he gave himself enough room to score with his looping overhand right, which was the showiest punch continually landed in the bout.

Despite his apparent height and strength disadvantages, Musquez, 149 ½, was effective pressing Coronel and landing in combination to the San Jose resident’s body. Several of the rounds were hard to score, as each had their moments in most every round. In the end, two judges preferred Coronel by the scores of 59-56 and 58-56. The lone dissenting judge had it for Musquez, 58-56.

Former amateur standout Manuel Avila (3-0, 2 KOs) of Vacaville, California scored three knockdowns in under two completed rounds to halt Frank Gutierrez (2-9-2, 1 KO) of Highland, California

Avila, 121, boxed cautiously before landing a straight right midway through the first round. The tentative southpaw Gutierrez, 120, flicked out a jab, but offered little else that might prevent Avila from utilizing any of the weapons in his arsenal. When Gutierrez lunged forward awkwardly, Avila landed two lefts that forced his foe to stumble to the mat for the first knockdown of the fight late in the first.

Gutierrez made it out of the round, but found himself deposited on the mat by a short counter left seconds into the second. Gutierrez returned to his feet before unwisely leaving out a lazy jab moments later. Avila seized the opening, sending out a laser right that dropped Gutierrez a third and final time. Referee Ray Balewicz waved off the fight without a count at 59 seconds of the second round.

Unfortunately for the television audience at home, the fight of the night did not make air as former amateur standout Guy Robb (3-0, 1 KO) of Sacramento battled debuting Manuel Morales (0-1) of Orosi, California tooth and nail en route to a well earned four-round majority decision victory.

One punch that was there all night for Robb, 131, was his straight right, which was the first telling blow he landed early in the first. Morales, 136, let it be known right then that he was not going to be an easy out. Morales charged inside, and forced Robb to fight from the ropes. Robb, though clearly the more schooled boxer, opted to trade from the ropes rather than spin out and box at a distance. Just as Morales appeared to be coming on, Robb uncorked left on the inside that bucked the Orosi native nearly down to a knee right at the bell.

Although Morales had come in heavier, three pounds over the contracted weight, Robb looked bigger and was clearly the stronger puncher. Neither of those facts deterred Morales, as he continued to press Robb throughout the fight. Robb may have been a little out of his comfort zone, but he seemed to be enjoying the toe-to-toe action nonetheless. Robb’s power-punching and ability to shorten up his punches on the inside gave him the edge in rounds two and three.

Undeterred, Morales broke through with some clean shots of his own late in the fourth. After the final bell, fans ringside applauded both fighters. One judge had the fight even, 38-38, but was overruled by the other two official scorers who had Robb a shutout winner, 40-36.

What looked to be a physical mismatch proved to be just that, as Trevor McCumby (2-0, 2 KOs) of Glendale, Arizona wasted no time in dispatching Nathan Ortiz (0-2) of Crystal River, Florida in the opening contest of the night. Hands held low, McCumby, 183, moved in and pressed the stocky Ortiz, 182, from the outset.

McCumby, the 2010 Under 19 National Champion at light heavyweight, punctuated an unanswered series of blows with a left hook to score the inevitable knockdown. The fight continued as the wobbly-legged Oritz managed to make it to his feet. However, with their man taking punches along the ropes, Ortiz’ corner signaled for referee Ray Balewicz to stop the fight. Official time of the stoppage was 1:13 of the first round.

Super bantamweight prospect Roman Morales (2-0, 2 KOs) of San Ardo, California put his wide arrange of abilities on display for four-rounds in a unanimous decision over durable Danny Pantoja (0-4-2) of Fairfield. Pantoja, 125, never stopped trying, but was simply outgunned in every way.

Morales, 123, never changed his expression as he systematically picked Pantoja apart from round one. Morales’ well-timed counter right started the damage midway through the first, opening Pantoja up for a series of clean headshots along the ropes. Pantoja turned defensive and was countered with a chopping right before round’s end.

Over the course of the following three rounds, Morales pulled many of his tools out of the toolbox. The former amateur champion switched to southpaw and back, boxed in spots, landed punches from multiple angles and mixed up his power shots from body to head and vice versa. To his credit, Pantoja never went completely defensive, as he fought back in spots, perhaps hoping to land that one Hail Mary shot that could turn around the fight. It never came as Morales took the decision 40-36 on all three official cards.

Photos by Stephanie Trapp/StephanieTrapp.com

Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at ortega15rds@lycos.com.

In what is considered an upset, Carlos Molina held the heralded an undefeated Erislandy Lara to a ten round draw in a Jr. Middleweight bout at the Cosmopolitan Hotel in Las Vegas.

Molina pressed the action and gave Lara his toughest test to date and the score cards proved that. It took a late rally from Lara to even get a draw that had the pro-Molina crowd booing the decision that read 97-93 for Molina and 95-95 on two cards.

Molina of Chicago is now 17-4-2. Lara of Miami is 15-0-1.

Cuban Jr. Middleweight Yudel Jhonson stopped Richard Gutierrez in round seven of their scheduled ten round bout.

Jhonson rocked Gutierrez with a right hook and landed five more shots before referee Russell Mora stopped the fight maybe a little prematurely at 1:09 of round seven.

Jhonson, 153 lb of Miami is now 10-0 with seven knockouts. Gutierrez, 156 lbs of Cartegena, Colombia is now 26-6-1.

Yunier Dorticos kept his perfect knockout streak intact as he stopped Jose Luis Herrera in round two of a scheduled six round Cruiserweight bout.

Dorticos dropped Herrera in round and a follow up flurry made referee Tony Weeks stop the bout at 2:36 of round two.

Dorticos, 199 lbs of Miami is now 12-0 with twelve knockouts. Herrera, 202 lbs of Colombia is now 16-11.

CLICK TO ORDER THE FIGHTS
Osmanu Adama scored a fourth round stoppage over Marcus Upshaw in a scheduled twelve round Middleweight fight that highlighted a championship card at the Hanging Gardens in River Grove, Illinois just outside of Chicago.

Adama landed a big left hook that rocked Upshaw into the corner and the fight was stopped after a follow up flurry at forty-two seconds of the round.

Adama, 160 lbs of Chicago via Accra, Ghana is now 19-2 with fourteen knockouts. Upshaw, 157 lbs of Jacksonville, FL is now 13-5-1.

In what had a hostile build up, Joey Hernandez scored a disqualification victory over Angel Hernandez in a scheduled ten round Jr, Middleweight bout.

Joey dropped Angel at the end of round two and the fight was entertaining throughout. Angel roughhoused during the fight with low blows and hitting behind the head ans was disqualified for the latter infraction.

Joey, 154 lbs is now 18-1-1. Angel, 154 lbs of Chicago is now 30-10.

The two had to be separated at the weigh-in after the the pushed each other and exchanged obscenities

Lanardo Tyner and Adrian Granados fought to a eight round draw in a Welterweight bout.

Scores were 77-75 each way and 76-76.

Tyner, 147 lbs of Houston is 24-4-2. Granados, 148 lbs of Cicero, IL is 7-1-1.

Brooke Dierdorf and Ashley Vurray fought to a four round draw in a ladies Lightweight bout.

Each girl won a card at 39-37 while a third card read 38-38.

Dierdorf, 132 1/2 lbs is now 6-5-2. Curry, 133 lbs is now 3-5-2.

Mike Jimenez scored a four round unanimous decision over Cameron Allen in a sUper Middleweight bout.

Scores were 39-37 for Jimenez, 167 lbs of Chicago and is now 4-0. Allen, 165 lbs of Battle Creek, MI is now 3-6

Eric Estrada won a six round unanimous decision over James Lester in a Super Featherweight bout.

Estrada, 131 lbs of Chicago won by scores of 59-55 on all cards and is now 9-1. Lester, 130 lbs of Detroit is now 9-5.

Antonio Canas dropped Andrew Hartley twice in round one and scored a first round stoppage in a scheduled four round Jr. Welterweight bout

Canas, 140 lbs of Chicago is 4-0 with three knockouts. Hartley 145 lbs of Arkansas is 2-20.

Yuriorkis Gamboa 126 – Jorge Solis 125.5
Mikey Garcia 125 – Matt Remillard 125
Tommy Zbikowski 195 – Caleb Grummett 215.5
Teon Kennedy 122 – Jorge Diaz 122
Glen Tapia 152 – Eberto Medina 151
Camilo Perez 124 – Desi Williams 125
Miguel Cartegena 117 – Omar Gonzalez 119
Rashad Brown 161.5 – Darryl Parker 161

FAIRFIELD, CALIFORNIA — An intriguing crossroads battle headlines tonight’s edition of Telefutura Solo Boxeo, as world ranked contender Antonio Escalante attempts to rebound from a devastating kayo against fellow exciting action fighter Alejandro Perez at the Fairfield Sports Center. Fighters weighed in Thursday evening at the Courtyard by Marriott Fairfield Napa Valley Area in Fairfield.

Escalante (24-3, 15 KOs) of El Paso, Texas by way of Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico was last seen in action in September when he took on former champion Daniel Ponce De Leon in a WBO Featherweight title eliminator. Unfortunately for Escalante the power-punching Ponce De Leon proved to be too much, and the fight ended in a brutal third-round knockout loss. Escalante, still the IBF #6/WBO #14 ranked 126-pounder, has opted to move up to super featherweight for this fight.

Much like Escalante, Perez (14-2-1, 9 KOs) of Salinas, California has been known for providing entertaining fights, and much like Escalante, he looks to rebound from a loss. Perez has been out of the ring since dropping an eight-round decision to emerging contender Rico Ramos in November 2009. Perez had planned to move up to featherweight and take on undefeated prospect Ronny Rios last week, but soon after that fight fell out, he was offered the crack at Escalante in a fight one weight class further up the scale.

Weight became a storyline to tonight’s main event at yesterday’s weigh-in. When originally approached for the fight, Perez was asked to sign for a 132-pound catchweight bout. When Perez said that was too heavy, Escalante’s team agreed to 130-pounds and the fight was a go. However, when Escalante first took the scales he came in at 132-pounds, while Perez made 130.

Escalante did sweat off the two extra pounds and make 130 within the two hour time frame allotted by the California State Athletic Commission, but had he not the fight could have been in jeopardy. “He came in two pounds heavier than I did,” said Perez after Escalante’s initial attempt. “I made the sacrifice to lose the weight. I dug down to get to 130, which was the contract. What we decided is that he has two hours to lose the weight, and if he doesn’t, we are not going to fight.” Time will tell if Escalante’s struggle with the scale will have any effect on him, or maybe even add extra fuel to Perez’ fire.

In the televised co-feature, two unheralded fighters get the chance to shine in front of a national audience as Clint Coronel (3-1-2, 1 KO) of San Jose, California takes on Carlos Musquez (3-4-3, 3 KOs) of Sacramento, California in a six-round light middleweight fight. Coronel, who scaled 150 ½, has only one loss on his record, but he just as easily could be undefeated. The lone blemish was the result of a cut stoppage in a fight with Roberto Reyes, which replays indicated was initiated by a headbutt. In his last time out, Coronel fought undefeated Richard Hargraves to a four-round draw. Musquez, who came in at 149 ½, ended a two-and-one-half year layoff in January with a four-round draw against unbeaten Anthony Martinez.

In a four-round super bantamweight swing bout, former local amateur standout Manuel Avila (2-0, 1 KO) of Vacaville, California takes on Frank Gutierrez (2-8-2, 1 KO) of Highland, California. Avila pleased his local following with a fourth-round kayo of Carlos Garcia at the Fairfield Sports Center just last month. Originally scheduled to fight last week, Avila, who scaled 121, is pleased to have another opportunity to fight at home. Gutierrez, who came in at 120, has met a tough run of prospects and faces another one tonight.

Fresh off of a dominant showing at this same venue last month, Guy Robb (2-0, 1 KO) of Sacramento, California looks to thrill his local fan base again, this time against debuting Manuel Morales of Orosi, California in a four-round lightweight bout. For the second straight time, Robb’s opponent came in heavy, as Morales scaled 136-pounds. Robb, who plans to campaign as a featherweight eventually, scaled 131-pounds Thursday.

Super bantamweight prospect Roman Morales (1-0, 1 KO) of San Ardo, California will take on tough luck pro Danny Pantoja (0-3-2) of Fairfield in a four-round bout. Morales, promoted by Gary Shaw Productions, capped a stellar amateur run with a gold medal at the Four Nations Tournament in France last November and turned pro with a first-round knockout in February. Pantoja has fought prospects almost exclusively, coming up short in two majority decisions and one split decision. Morales scaled 123-pounds, while Pantoja came in at 125.

Trevor McCumby (1-0, 1 KO) of Glendale, Arizona will take on Nathan Ortiz (0-1) of Crystal River, Florida in a four-round cruiserweight bout. McCumby, the 2010 Under 19 National Champion at 178-pounds, was quite the imposing figure as he scaled 183-pounds Thursday. Ortiz, who will be at a great height disadvantage, weighed in at 182-pounds.

Remaining tickets for the event, promoted by Golden Boy Promotions, Don Chargin Productions, Jorge Marron Productions and Paco Presents, will be sold at the door.

Quick Weigh-in Results:

Super Featherweights, 10 Rounds
Escalante 130
Perez 130

Light Middleweights, 6 Rounds
Coronel 150 ½
Musquez 149 ½

Super Bantamweights, 4 Rounds
Avila 121
Gutierrez 120

Super Bantamweights, 4 Rounds
Morales 123
Pantoja 125

Lightweights, 4 Rounds
Robb 131
Morales 136

Cruiserweights, 4 Rounds
McCumby 183
Ortiz 182

Mario Ortega Jr. can be contacted at ortega15rds@lycos.com.

According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, one-time pound for pound king and now faded legend Roy Jones Jr. will travel to Moscow, Russia to take on former world cruiserweight title challenger Denis Lebedev on May 22nd.

On Thursday evening, Jones signed on to face rugged cruiserweight contender Denis Lebedev on May 22 in Moscow, John Wirt, CEO of Jones’ Square Ring promotional company, told ESPN.com.

Wirt said the fight, scheduled for 10 rounds, will take place at cruiserweight limit of 200 pounds.

“I actually think he beat Huck and got ripped off in Germany,” Wirt said. “I think he’s the legitimate WBO cruiserweight champion and he is one of the toughest opponents in the division.”

“I do believe the weight is to Roy’s advantage,” Wirt said. “Roy has had a lot of trouble getting down to 175 pounds in the last few fights. He was so dried out for the Hopkins fight and I think that showed in his performance.”

“We didn’t budge and they came to our number and when they did, we signed,” he said.

“We had some different things on the table. We had an offer in Canada, something in the U.S., but this was a unique opportunity,” Wirt said. “How many big fights have been in Russia? That was kind of a neat aspect that was intriguing about this. Roy has no problem and no issue with going to Russia. He is not concerned about fighting over there. We’ll have fair judges and a fair referee. We’ve already been in contact with the Russian federation to make sure we know all the rules.”

Sources have informed 15rounds.com that unbeaten contender James “Mandingo Warrior” Kirkland of Austin, TX will face Nobuhiro Ishida April 9 as part of a pay per view card at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, NV. Kirkland, 27-0 (24 KO’s), will fight for the third time since leaving prison. Ishida, of Osaka, Japan, owns a respectable 22-6-2 ledger with 7 wins by way of knockout. This is his first bout since losing to Rigoberto Alvarez last October in Mexico.

Marc Abrams contributed to this report

Dan Rafael of espn.com is reporting that former Jr, Welterweight champion Paulie Malignaggi will face Jose Cotto on April 9 as part of the Marcos Maidana – Erik Morales Pay Per View in Las Vegas.

“I think it’s a good opportunity. It’s a logical next step up in level of opponent for me at welterweight,” Malignaggi told ESPN.com on Monday night. “It’s a great opportunity to be showcased on a card like this. It’ll give me some good TV exposure. I’m very happy with the progress I’m making and this is the next step to get back up the ladder. It’s a good fight for me. Las Vegas, MGM Grand, HBO PPV. I’m excited. How could I not be?”

“Cotto is an action fighter. He comes to fight, he comes forward,” Golden Boy promoter Richard Schaefer said. “This is a big opportunity for him to be in Las Vegas and on pay-per-view again against Paulie Malignaggi. He feels it is a very winnable fight and he is convinced he will win. For Malignaggi, he’s been a champion at 140 pounds. Now he wants to make a name for himself at 147.”

“I really don’t think about that too much, but I guess when you do think about it, that factors into it,” Malignaggi said. “I fought Miguel Cotto, now I’m fighting Jose Miguel Cotto. They’re brothers, but I fought the better Cotto back in 2006. But having fought a Cotto, I know you have to come prepared. Jose Miguel Cotto may not have the resume of his brother, but he’s a good fighter. Both of his losses (to Alvarez and a lightweight title bout to Juan Diaz in 2006) came to name fighters. Both of our records have losses that have come only to name fighters. He’s always solid, always gives his best. But he’s a guy, if I am going to make my way back up the boxing ladder, he’s a guy I’m supposed to beat. He’s a guy I should beat pretty handily. I shouldn’t have a competitive fight with Jose Miguel Cotto in my eyes.”

“Following his loss to Khan, Paulie wanted to move up to welterweight. He felt it was time to see what he can do at 147 pounds,” Schaefer said. “He’s a very talented fighter. He’s a very good boxer, but not known as a knockout puncher. But to move up to 147 and the first guy he fights, he not only wins, he knocks him out. I have to say I was pretty impressed. It was a great first impression at 147 and first impressions count. I was impressed with that performance. So here he goes again at 147 against Cotto, a fighter who [Alvarez] had a little bit of trouble with.”

Roman Gonzalez made the first defense of the WBA Light Flyweight title with a twelve round unanimous decision over Manuel Vargas in Puebla, Mexico

Gonzalez controlled the action as he pressed the action and back Vargas up. Gonzalez fought the last three rounds with a cut around his left eye that was caused by a Vargas headbutt.

Gonzalez, 108 lbs of Managua, Nicaragua won by scores of 119-109; 116-112; 116-112 to stay perfect at 28-0.

Vargas, 108 lbs of Lagos De Moreno, Mexico and a former minimumweight champion is now 29-8-1.

Former two-time world title challenger Ricardo Dominguez scored a ten round split decision over tough Luis Arceo in a Lightweight bout.

Dominguez dropped Arceo in round three and Arceo was bloodied throughout but kept coming forward and thats what made the fight close.

Dominguez of Culican, Mexico is now 33-7-2. Arceo is now 23-11-3

Lucian Bute made the seventh defense of the IBF Super Middleweight crown with a body punch assault tenth round stoppage over gritty Brian Magee in front of over 13, 000 rabid fans at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Canada.

Bute came out and over the first few rounds was very effective with the right hook but Magee was competitive as he featured some body work. Magee was doing well at the beginning of rounds but Bute would box well enough to take most of the first five frames. In round six, Bute landed a vicious right hook to the that sent Magee down to a knee. Magee got up but Bute was dominant the rest of the round as he landed some more right hooks and straight lefts.

Just seconds after being sent to the canvas via a low blow, Magee was dropped with another right hook to the body in round seven. Replays later showed that the low blow was indeed a solid and legal punch. Magee came out in round eight looking like a tired fighter from the effects of the body work.

Magee would not go away as he was tough as nails in taking some shots and not giving up in an effort to pull off the big upset.

In round ten, Bute landed yet another crushing uppercut but this time landing flush on the chin that sent Magee to his knees and referee Pete Patgorski waved off the bout immediately at 2:04 of round ten.

Bute, 167 1/2 lbs of Montreal is now 28-0 with twenty-three knockouts. Magee, 167 3/4 lbs of Northern Island is now 34-4-1.

The fifth consecutive stoppage by Bute begged the obvious question: Who is next? Ready to answer that question was Mikkel Kessler, who flew from Denmark to attend the fight and provide commentary with the SHOWTIME broadcasting team. Asked if he would fight Bute in front of the Lucian-loving Montreal crowd, Kessler responded, “Yea, why not?” He later continued, “[Bute] can have his hometown. I’ll kick his [butt] anywhere.”

When questioned if he would be interested in a match with the former WBA and WBC Super Middleweight Champion, Bute commented, “If he’s well enough to fight, I’ll fight anyone.”

COSTA MESA, CALIFORNIA — Both prospect Luis Ramos Jr. and recently returned contender James Kirkland notched victories as expected on Friday night at the Orange County Fair & Event Center, but neither appear ready for the names they have been linked to in recent weeks just yet.

On paper, Ramos (18-0, 8 KOs) of Santa Ana, California seemed to be meeting his toughest challenge to date in the rugged Jose Hernandez (10-5-1, 4 KOs) of Fort Worth, Texas. That belief proved to be true, as Ramos, 139.4, earned a hard-fought eight-round majority decision in the Telefutura Solo Boxeo main event.

Hernandez, 135.2, has upset some prospects in his career, and taken others to the limit. He did the latter Friday night, but ultimately Ramos’ superior boxing and well-timed counter-punching won out over Hernandez’ pressure and solid inside game.

Ramos boxed well in the first and seemed to score a knockdown in the second round with a short right counter. Hernandez’ fall was ruled a slip by referee Lou Moret, but a replay on the large screen in between rounds indicated that a knockdown was perhaps the right call. There was some contact between Hernandez’ left foot and the right foot of Ramos, but the punch seemed to be the cause of the fall. Hernandez was undeterred either way and landed two good right uppercuts moments later. Ramos, as was the case often in the bout, was a little quicker on the draw and caught Hernandez with a right as the Texan looked to fire one of his own.

Round four was a good one for the out-of-towner, but the most memorable blow was one from Ramos that dislodged the mouthpiece from Hernandez’ mouth. The fifth featured solid two-way action before Hernandez had another good round in the sixth. Against conventional wisdom, it was the taller Hernandez doing better on the inside. The shorter Ramos was more effective boxing from the outside and countering the aggressive Hernandez.

Ramos boxed smart for much of the seventh by keeping Hernandez at the end of his one-two and tying up or moving out of range when his opponent moved in close. Hernandez did manage to get inside in the last thirty seconds, landing a solid left hook and stiff right uppercut. Ramos answered back, landing two clean, short punches before the bell.

Again Ramos boxed well for much of the eighth, as his subtle defensive movements made it difficult for Hernandez to land anything clean. That changed again in the last thirty seconds, when Ramos, likely a bit winded, stayed on the inside. Hernandez landed two solid hooks in the last seconds that may have hurt Ramos, but it could have also been the Santa Ana resident’s fatigue showing through.

In the end, one judge had the fight even, 76-76, but was overruled by tallies of 79-73 and 77-75 for Ramos. “I’m happy with the performance,” Ramos said after the fight. “I got hit, but that is a part of boxing.”

Ramos’ manager Frank Espinoza had mentioned possibly matching Ramos against another prospect, such as Mercito Gesta, but it would appear to be wise if a fight like that was put on hold for a bit. Ramos is ready for a move up to ten rounds, and probably would already have had one or two set for that distance by now if it were not for the 90 minute timeslot of the Solo Boxeo program which has aired his last few fights.

James Kirkland (27-0, 24 KOs) of Austin, Texas shook off a little more rust as he disposed of journeyman Jhon Berrio (15-9, 11 KOs) of Monteria, Cordoba, Columbia inside of two rounds in the co-feature.

Berrio, 161.6, opted to trade with Kirkland, 163.4, early, not usually a great idea, but the journeyman did surprisingly find some success in the opening frame. Kirkland did show his strength as he pressed Berrio around the ring for much of the round. However, the Columbian landed a straight right that seemed to clearly hurt the “Mandingo Warrior.” Kirkland would later claim it was the headbutts that hurt him in the first, but when Berrio landed that right it forced his left leg to shiver.

Kirkland held briefly after Berrio’s solid right, but quickly regained his footing and controlled the rest of the round while fighting mostly on the inside. Berrio did employ some rough tactics, such as headbutts and forearms, which Kirkland complained of in the second round.

About a minute in to the second, Kirkland dropped Berrio, lastly landing a glancing jab. Berrio began to rise on all fours, but plopped back down to the mat, prompting referee Zack Young to wave off the contest. The crowd ringside was not convinced Berrio could not continue, which was something the California State Athletic Commission would debate themselves after the bout.

While the glancing jab was the last punch landed, if the knockout was legitimate, it was either a straight left to the body or an overhand left that landed high on Berrio’s head that really did the damage. Those blows were thrown and landed with Berrio in a corner, just before he moved to the ropes and took the jab.

While kneeling over to be inspected by the physician, Berrio pointed to his head, seemingly indicating the overhand left was the reason he did not get up. Later Berrio told a member of the Commission he was coughing up blood, which would indicate the body shot stopped him. There was talk of withholding Berrio’s check due to his non-effort in the bout. No word on how that shook out as of press time. Officially the stoppage came at 1:05 of round two, and now Kirkland can look ahead to bigger and better things.

Immediately ahead, Kirkland is slated to appear on the pay-per-view undercard of the April 9th clash between Erik Morales and Marcos Maidana at the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. Kirkland’s manager Cameron Dunkin, who admittedly wanted a softer touch for tonight’s fight, said he and Golden Boy Promotions’ matchmaker Eric Gomez are still discussing potential opponents for that date.

Looking further down the road, at the end of last week’s HBO telecast of recognized middleweight king Sergio Martinez’ victory over Serhiy Dzinziruk, commentator Max Kellerman anointed Kirkland as the potentially intriguing contender to the middleweight throne. “That’s right down the street,” said Kirkland Friday of a potential Martinez clash. “That’s right in the area where I need to be at. Sergio Martinez is a great fighter, but he is not one of the best fighters and I want to expose him and put him out there, because that is a fight I do want.”

While Kirkland would like to get a fight with Martinez, the top 160-pounder, he does not plan to campaign at middleweight at this time. “As far as middleweight, this is just me coming back and taking it real nice and slow,” said Kirkland, who has fought just twice since March 2009. “I am dropping weight and I will be back at 154, junior middleweight.”

Considering Kirkland was incarcerated for 17 months and has fought under five minutes since regaining his freedom, it is fairly incredible that he is already being mentioned in the same breath as Sergio Martinez or even getting ready to fight on pay-per-view. These developments are not lost on Kirkland. “It is more than overwhelming to get back into this position,” said Kirkland. “To show my talent amongst people who really care, and amongst fans and around people who really supported me and helped get me back to this position.”

Light welterweight prospect Antonio Orozco (9-0, 6 KOs) of San Diego, California by way of Tecate, Baja California, Mexico made short work of Manuel Aguilar (6-2, 4 KOs) of Agua Prieta, Sonora, Mexico thanks to a concentrated body attack.

Orozco, 140.8, landed two well placed lefts to the body set up a right upstairs and yet another left to the ribs that ended the night for Aguilar, 140.4, early. Referee Zack Young counted to ten with Aguilar hunched over on one knee for a stoppage at the 1:42 mark of the first round.

Unbeaten lightweight prospect Francisco Contreras (16-0, 13 KOs) of Irvington, New Jersey by way of La Romana, Dominican Republic failed to impress ringside observers as he cruised to a six-round unanimous verdict over journeyman Adolfo Landeros (20-18-1, 9 KOs) of Hidalgo, Nuevo Leon, Mexico.

After a methodical round-and-a-half, Contreras, 133.8, sprang to life in the second and began to put his punches together. Contreras’ fighting style can be more sizzle than steak, as he throws quick, showy combinations and moves around the ring on his toes. However, the number of punches he threw with real conviction probably could have been counted on two hands through the first four rounds. The limited but game Landeros, 133, continuously came forward, but could not land anything of real significance.

By the fifth round, Contreras must have realized that Landeros could not hurt him, as the New Jersey transplant really began to toy with his Mexican counterpart. Contreras offered up everything from long range uppercuts to bolo punches, but never really pressed for the knockout that was there for the taking. When the final bell rang, all three scorers handed in identical 60-54 scorecards for Contreras.

Making his professional debut, Humberto Zatarain (1-0) of Whittier, California did what few fighters manage to do in their entire careers: get off the canvas and win a unanimous four-round decision. Jose Manuel Sanchez (3-2, 1 KO) of Santa Ana dropped Zatarain with a straight left in close midway through the first round, but was unable to follow up to any great effect, and it ended up costing him.

Zatarain, 127.6, came out in round two looking to change the course of the fight, which he did as he rocked and bloodied Sanchez, 127.2, with a flurry in the early moments of the round. Each fighter had their moments in an all-action third and fourth rounds to close out the solid scrap, but ultimately it was Zatarain that impressed the judges en route to a 38-37 victory on all three cards.

Steffan Lugo (1-0, 1 KO) of Newport Beach, California spoiled the professional boxing debut of veteran mixed martial artist J.J. Ambrose (0-1) of San Jose, California via third-round stoppage. The action was a bit frantic early, but it was Ambrose, 166.6, that landed the most telling blow of the first, a left hook which forced Lugo to hold on momentarily. Lugo, 165.2, recovered quickly and got in the last shot of the round just before the bell.

The local favorite Lugo began to take control in the second, as his right uppercut began to find a home regularly. Lugo kept up the pressure, landing a straight right midway through the third round. The end came when Lugo landed a hard right hook which sent Ambrose towards the mat. As Ambrose took his ascent, Lugo landed another left just to make sure he would not be allowed to continue. Referee Lou Moret called a halt to the contest at 1:49 mark of round three.

In the final bout of the evening, Bobby Chavez (1-2) of Santa Ana got into the win column with a third-round stoppage of Stephen Rubalcava (0-3) of Lindsay, California. Chavez, 152.2, pressed the action from the outset with constant punching. Rubalcava, 151, weathered the onrush early, but never landed anything of note in retort.

Chavez continued his into the third with mostly arm punches, though a right uppercut had Rubalcava holding on in the second round. In the third, a straight right forced a delayed reaction knockdown as Rubalcava took a knee. When the action resumed, Rubalcava was left taking shots against the ropes before his cornerman Repo Ric threw in the towel to signal referee to stop the fight. Official time was 1:14 of the third round.

Friday’s event was a special edition of the “Fight Club OC” series at the Orange Country Fair & Event Center promoted by Roy Englebrecht Promotions. Fights take place in the building known as The Hangar. The next fight card, which will feature both boxing and mixed martial arts, takes place on April 21st.

Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at ortega15rds@lycos.com.

It didint last long and was far from dramatic but Vitali Klitschko made the sixth defense of the WBC Heavyweight title when Odlanier Solis could not continue at the end of round one in Cologne, Germany.

Solis was doing decent in the first round as he landed a couple of shots with his quick hands. Klitschko was forcing Solis but landed nothing of note. At the end of the first frame, Solis jumped forward and then fell to the canvas after his leg gave out. The action was ruled a knockdown by referee Guadlupe Garcia. Solis got to his feet and was limping badly and the fight was waved off.

Klitschko, 249 lbs of Kiev, Ukraine is now 42-2 with thirty-nine knockouts. Solis, 245 lbs of Miami is now 17-1.

PHOENIX – Familiar echoes filled the building. Jesus Gonzales was back.

Back at work.

Gonzales returned Friday to his hometown in an attempt to restart a career that began with him tagged as a big-time prospect. The tag is gone. Some of the skills are rusty. But the second chapter is underway with a victory. Little else mattered to a near-capacity in the 2,600-seat Celebrity Theatre.

Gonzales (26-1, 14 KOs) could do no wrong for a lively crowd that chanted his nickname and cheered his unanimous decision over Dhafir Smith (24-20-7, 4 KOs) for the International Boxing Federation’s North American super-middleweight title.

“I got work to do,’’ said Gonzales, who is called El Martillo, Spanish for The Hammer. “I know that. But, man, it just feels good to be back in the ring.’’

For most of 12 rounds, Gonzales’ powerful left hand hammered Dhafir of Philadelphia. Gonzales was credited with a knockdown in the third. But Dhafir called it a slip. Whatever it was, it would not have mattered. Gonzales, who collected $3,500, won all but two rounds on the 15rounds scorecard, although he also suffered a cut over his right eye in the 10th by a left hand from Dhafir, who beat former and faded champion Jeff Lacy in his last bout.

“Just a bad night,’’ said Dhafir, who earned $7,500. “But, man, that was not a knockdown in the 10th.’’

“My jab wasn’t the way it needs to be,’’ said Gonzales, who needed six-to-10 stitches for the cut. “I’ll go back into the gym and work on that for sure.’’

On the undercard there was confusion and controversy. Canadian junior-middleweight Janks Trotter (4-0-1) fought to a technical draw with Arturo Crespin (6-1-1) of New Mexico The six-round fight was stopped after the second because Crespin suffered a cut caused by a head butt, although Trotter argued that a pitch, a left hand, cut Crespin.

Trotter went into the ring with a shuffled corner. Michael Carbajal had been training him at the Ninth Street Gym in Phoenix, but did not work the corner because the Phoenix Hall of Famer had been drinking. The Arizona State Boxing Commission was notified of the change by Fanbase Promotions before the card began. Carbajal, 43, has been struggling with drinking problems since he retired from the ring in 1999.

Carbajal, who was honored for his career at intermission, sat a table near ringside. During the fight, he was agitated by what he saw. It looked as if he was about to leave his ringside seat for a seat in Trotter’s corner. But he stayed put at the urging of friends who were with him.

Rest of the card: California welterweight Ricky Duenas (8-1) won a majority decision over Eddie Brooks (9-3) of Phoenix; Phoenix light-heavyweight Roberto Yong (1-2) scored a unanimous decision over Nelson Lopez of Reno; and cruiserweights Carlos Reyes (4-3-1) of Superior, Ariz., and Billy Schmidt (1-0-2) fought to a draw.

Dan Rafael of espn.com is reporting that former 140 lb world champion Devon Alexander will take on hard punching Lucas Matthysse on June 25th most likely in St. Louis

“I made a deal with (Alexander’s promoter Don)King and I made one also with my fighter, so we are in,” said Matthysse’s promoter Richard Schaefer.

“This is one of those crossroads fights,” Schaefer said. “The winner is right back in the mix at 140 pounds, which is one of the most exciting weight classes in boxing. Lucas Matthysse is always in exciting fights.”

“I think it will be a great fight,” Cunningham said. “Matthysse is one of the most dangerous 140 pounders and these are the type of fights Devon wants. He knows he has to bounce back from the Bradley fight. He can’t take some no-name opponent. He has to fight one of the top guys in the division and Matthysse is one of the most dangerous opponents we could have possibly chosen.

“If you want to be considered one of the best in your division, you have to fight the best guys in your division. That’s what you have to do. Devon feels like he blew a great opportunity by not performing up to his potential against Tim Bradley. He feels like Matthysse is a more dangerous fighter than Bradley. Bradley is no puncher and Matthysse is big puncher. Matthysse has punching ability and some skill.”

“Devon Alexander is a great young fighter, but things didn’t really work out for him the Bradley fight,” Schaefer said. “He’s coming back against Matthysse, who many believe won the fight with Judah. For Devon Alexander to do a tune-up fight, that won’t get him anywhere, and for Lucas Matthysse to do another tune-up fight, that won’t get him anywhere either. He could have stayed in Argentina and had another tune-up fight, but he didn’t want that. “He wanted a fight like this because he knows a win will increase his potential to be back in an even bigger fight.”

Former Unified lightweight champion of the world Nate “The Galaxxy Warrior” Campbell has confirmed that he has singed a contract to face tough Philly fighter Danny Garcia 20-0(14KO) on April 9th on the great undercard of the Marcos Maidana vs Erik Morales card. This card is shaping up to be one of the best undercards of the year so far with Paul Malignaggi facing Jose Miguel Cotto, Robert Guerrero vs Michael Katsidis and top middleweight prospect James Kirkland making his post prison return.

In the main even on ESPN, WBA #1-ranked welterweight Brad “King” Solomon (17-0, 7 KOs) successfully defended his WBA International belt with tactful unanimous decision victory over Demetrius Hopkins 30-2(11KO) from Philadelphia.

This fight started of slow with a definite feeling out process between these two skillful fighters. Solomon’s speed was a factor as he beat Hopkins to the punch early but not without being caught with counter punches by the skilled Philly fighter Hopkins. As the fight wore on Solomon was much busier and rocked Hopkins on occasion, not without taking a few nice shots back from the hard fighting Hopkins, who is the nephew of future Hall of Famer Bernard Hopkins. Solomon gained national attention on Friday Night Fights in front of a nationally-televised audience with a domination of formerly undefeated prospect Kenny Galarza (14-1, 14 KOs) last June. The cards read 97-93 99-91.

Cedric “The Bos” Boswell (34-1, 26 KOs) is the new NABA Heavyweight champion with a unanimous decision victory over former World Champion Oliver “The Atomic Bomb” McCall 55-11(37KO). From the opening bell Boswell did not show much respect for McCall’s power and looked sharp and much faster while firing off sharp jabs and big handed combos on McCall’s iron chin. Throughout the fight Boswell was far busier, while the hesitant McCall, who turns 46 next month, landed occasional huge bombs and hurt Boswell a couple times in the fight. The two exchanged plenty of un-pleasantries throughout the 10 round fight, but proved to be competitive jaw jacking more than anything. The official score cards read 99-91 98-92 and 99-92.

Dieuly “The Untamed Beast” Aristilde 8-4(1KO) won a slow paced fight by unanimous decision over Lujan Henderson 2-5(KO). Aristilde was off of a tough loss in which he showed the ill effects of his war with Elijah McCall showed some spryness in his step this go The cards read 39-37 and 40-36 twice unanimous decision.

2004 Cuban Olympic gold medalist Super Bantamweight Yan Barthelemy (11-2, 4 KOs) won a hard fought battle over tough Francis Ruiz 9-5(4KO). As the fight remained competitive there was a noticeable skill difference level in Barthelemy who knocked Ruiz down with a sweet left lead hand, right hook in 3nd round. The Cuban southpaw pressed the action with a high volume of punches while Ruiz put up a good fight and exchanged often with the sharp punching Barthelemy. The cards read 98-91, 97-92, 100-89.

Palm Beach-based bruiser Erik “The Viking” Leander (10-1, 7 KOs) brought his berserker attack to bear against Puerto Rican giant Albert “El Caballo” Jimenez (5-4, 5 KOs). Leander crushed Jimenez with a brutal right hook and dropped the Giant down and out at 1:20 of the first round. Official scored a KO for the Viking.

CEDRIC BOSWELL (226-1/4 LBS) VS OLIVER MCCALL (259 LBS)
YAN BARTHELEMY (119-3/4 LBS) VS. FRANCIS RUIZ (120-1/4 LBS)
DEMETRIUS HOPKINS (149 LBS) VS BRAD “KING” SOLOMON (145-1/2 LBS)
YASNAY CONSUEGRA (241-1/2 LBS) VS DAVID WILLIAMS (228-3/4 LBS)
DOMINIQUE DOLTON (156-3/4 LBS)
LUJAN HENDERSON (274-1/4 LBS) VS. DIEULY ARISTILDE (216-1/4 LBS)

Rising lightweight prospect Luis Ramos Jr. faces perhaps his stiffest test to date in rugged Jose Hernandez in the main event of tonight’s edition of Telefutura Solo Boxeo at the Orange County Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa, California. In the co-feature, James Kirkland attempts to continue the rebuilding of his career following a self-inflicted layoff against journeyman Jhon Berrio. It is imperative for both Ramos and Kirkland to look impressive in order to keep proposed money fights on the table for later this year. Fighters weighed in Thursday at the fight venue.

Ramos (17-0, 8 KOs) of Santa Ana, California could be a win or two away from a meaningful fight against a ranked contender or fellow prospect, which is exactly the type a fight a boxer with his record should be moving towards, but first comes tonight’s eight-rounder against Hernandez. Ramos, who has yet to step up to ten round bouts in his career, will be making his 2011 debut after two straight Telefutura-televised eight-round decision wins closed out his 2010 campaign. Ramos weighed in at 139.4-pounds Thursday.

Hernandez (10-4-1, 4 KOs) of Fort Worth, Texas provides an interesting test for the young Ramos, considering he has upset the plans of a couple other prospects and come close to doing the same on two recent occasions. Just last month, Hernandez fought undefeated Mickey Bey Jr. to an eight-round majority draw. Two judges had the fight even, while the third had Hernadnez up by four points. Hernandez, a former WBC Youth Super Featherweight title holder, scaled 135.2-pounds.

Though he fights in the co-feature, the most noteworthy name on the card tonight is James Kirkland (26-0, 23 KOs) of Austin, Texas. Kirkland will fight for the second time in two weeks, as he needed just 34 seconds to dispose of Ahsandi Gibbs on March 5th in Anaheim, California. That recent victory ended a two-year layoff due to Kirkland’s much publicized 17-month incarceration for a probation violation.

Prior to his legal troubles, Kirkland was one of the fast-rising stars of the sport, perhaps on the verge of challenging for a light middleweight title. Kirkland had punctuated a six-fight knockout streak with a sixth-round stoppage over Joel Julio in the main event of an HBO telecast in March of 2009. Though he has had just the one fight since, Kirkland has already been anointed by some in the press as an intriguing challenger to the middleweight throne of Sergio Martinez. Should Kirkland, who scaled 163.4, win without trouble as expected tonight, a slot awaits him on the Erik Morales-Marcos Maidana pay-per-view telecast on April 9th.

Berrio (15-8, 11 KOs) of Monteria, Cordoba, Colombia is 0-2 when competing in the United States. Two fights ago, Berrio lost a ten-round majority decision to light middleweight prospect Sherzod Husanov in Washington, which preceded a sixth-round stoppage defeat against Peter Manfredo Jr. in Rhode Island this past November. Berrio weighed in for the scheduled eight-round bout at 161.6-pounds Thursday.

In a swing bout likely to make television, undefeated Antonio Orozco (8-0, 5 KOs) of San Diego, California by way of Tecate, Baja California, Mexico will take on Manuel Aguilar (6-1, 4 KOs) of Agua Prieta, Sonora, Mexico in a light welterweight contest slated for either six or four-rounds, depending on the length of the two featured bouts. Orozco, an Espinoza Boxing Club stablemate of Luis Ramos, weighed in at 140.8-pounds, while Aguilar weighed in at 140.4.

Unbeaten lightweight prospect Francisco Contreras (15-0, 13 KOs) of Irvington, New Jersey by way of La Romana, Dominican Republic will get his year started against journeyman Adolfo Landeros (20-17-1, 9 KOs) of Hidalgo, Nuevo Leon, Mexico in a six-round tilt. Contreras, who shares his manager Cameron Dunkin with James Kirkland, weighed in at 133.8-pounds. Landeros, a favorite of Golden Boy Promotions’ matchmakers, scaled an even 133.

Somebody’s ‘O’ must go, as Bobby Chavez (0-2) of Santa Ana takes on Stephen Rubalcava (0-2) of Lindsay, California in a four-round pairing of light middleweights. Chavez scaled 152.2-pounds, while Rubalcava came in at 151.

Jose Manuel Sanchez (3-1, 1 KO) of Santa Ana will meet debuting Humberto Zatarain of Whittier, California in a four-round featherweight contest. Sanchez, fighting for the second time in two weeks, weighed in at 127.2-pounds. Zatarain weighed in 127.6-pounds Thursday.

In the curtain raiser, veteran mixed martial artist J.J. Ambrose of San Jose, California will make his pro boxing debut against Steffan Lugo of Newport Beach, California in a four-round super middleweight bout. Ambrose, who appeared on the UFC’s reality series The Ultimate Fighter last year, is a veteran of over twenty pro MMA contests. Lugo, who is also making his debut, scaled 165.2-pounds, while Ambrose came in at 166.6.

For the second straight time in his career, lightweight prospect Fidel Maldonado Jr. (8-0, 7 KOs) of Albuquerque, New Mexico stepped on the scales, but did not have an opponent with whom to take any traditional weigh-in photos. Maldonado, who weighed in 136.6-pounds, can only hope it turns out as well as it did last month, when his opponent arrived late and was stopped early the next day. Maldonado was to have taken on Juan Montiel (5-3-2, 3 KOs) of Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico in a six-round bout. As of press time a replacement opponent was being sought.

Tickets for tonight’s event, promoted by Golden Boy Promotions and Roy Englebrecht Promotions, are available online at FightClubOC.com.

Quick Weigh-in Results:

Light Welterweights, 8 Rounds
Ramos Jr. 139.4
Hernandez 135.2

Middleweights, 8 Rounds
Kirkland 163.4
Berrio 161.6

Light Welterweights, 4 or 6 Rounds
Orozco 140.8
Aguilar 140.4

Lightweights, 6 Rounds
Contreras 133.8
Landeros 133

Light Middleweights, 4 Rounds
Chavez 152.2
Rubalcava 151

Featherweights, 4 Rounds
Sanchez 127.2
Zatarain 127.6

Super Middleweights, 4 Rounds
Ambrose 166.6
Lugo 165.2

Lightweights, 6 Rounds
Maldonado Jr. 136.6*

*Maldonado without an opponent as of press time

Photos by Eric Gomez/Golden Boy Promotions

Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at ortega15rds@lycos.com.

Sergio Martinez continued his domination of the middleweight division by scoring an impressive 8th round KO over Sergiy Dzinziruk. Martinez dominated from the outset as he scored well from the outside and easily moved away from the jab of Dzinziruk. By the fourth Martinez began to open up and score more easily. Mid round, a left hand in the midst of a 4 punch combo caused Dzinziruk to take a knee. Martinez continued his dominance and scored a knockdown on a jab left hand at the end of round 5. Dzinziruk had perhaps his best round in the 7th when he finally opened up and landed some good jabs and left hands, but Martinez stormed back in the 8th and scored an early knockdown on a counter left hand. Dzinziruk rose on shaky legs only to be knocked down by a second counter left hand. He gamely fought on but one more flurry from Martinez dumped Dzinziruk on the seat of his pants and referee Arthur Mercante Jr. called the fight at 1:43 of round 8. Martinez notches another big win and improves to 47-2-2 with 26KOs while Dzinziruk loses his 0 and drops to 37-1 23KOs.

Middleweight’s Andy Lee and Craig McEwan fought an exciting ten round scrap that ultimately saw Lee come from behind to score an impressive KO. Lee started well and landed some strong right hooks over the first two rounds, a few of which visibly bucked the legs of McEwan. But McEwan began to find his rhythm in round 3 and started timing Lee with straight left hands and right hooks. Rounds 4-6 saw McEwan land some good shots which appeared to sap Lee’s strength and put him in retreat. Lee rebounded in round 7 though and began to turn the tables, landing some good right hooks that helped close the gap in the scorecards. A jab right hand combo at the end of round 9 dropped McEwan hard and Lee did all he could to finish him off. He had to wait till round ten when he landed a sweeping overhand left to the McEwan’s chin who dropped hard to the canvas. Referee Steve Smoger called off the fight without a count at 56 seconds of round ten. Lee showed heart in his come from behind victory and runs his record to 25-1 with 19KOs. McEwan loses for the first time as a pro and falls to 19-1 10KOs.

Featheweight Javier Fotuna of LaRomana, Dominican Republic scored a highlight reel KO in the first of HBO’s televised fights, knocking out a truly game Derrick Wilson (Miami, FL) in the eighth round. Wilson came to win and threw punches with reckless abandon from the start of the fight. Fortuna had the superior skills though and was able to time Wilson and land a perfect counter right that dropped him in the 3rd. Wilson rose and continued to fight hard which allowed him to survive the round. He arguably won the fourth round as he tagged Fortuna repeatedly with right hands but was again knocked down in the 6th via a left hand, right hook, left hand combo. Wilson had a good round 7 but was dropped for the third time mid-way through the 8th on a straight left hand. Again he rose and fought back gamely but ultimately paid the price for his bravery as Fortuna landed a perfect straight left counter that put Wilson out cold. Referee John Callas called the fight without a count at 2:27 of round 8. Fortuna is now 14-0 with 11KOs while Wilson slips to 8-2 2KOs.

Welterweight Thomas Durlorme of Carolina, Puerto Rico needed only two rounds to dispatch his over matched opponent Guillermo Valdes of Miami, FL. It was obvious from the opening bell that Durlorme was going to earn himself a stoppage; the only intrigue in the fight was how long it would last. Valdes was knocked around the ring for all of the first round and continued to take a beating in round 2 until referee Dick Flaherty intervened 2 minutes and 30 seconds into the round and saved Valdes from further punishment. The stoppage was premature but Valdes (now 12-3 3KOs) clearly had no chance and should be thankful he didn’t have to fight on.. The win keeps Durlorme unbeaten at 10-0 9KOs.

In the lone female bout of the card, heavyweight’s Sonya Lamanokis of Turner Falls, MA earned a unanimous decision over the formerly unbeaten Tanzee Daniel of Brooklyn, NY. From the opening bell both fighters stood toe to toe and fired shots to the body and head. This trend continued for each of the six rounds and seemingly made for a difficult fight to score. When the scores were announced though, the judges were in agreement and gave the fight to Lamanokis by scores of 58-56 and 59-55 (twice.) Lamanokis keeps her 0 and runs her record to 4-0 2KOs while Daniel slips to 4-1 1KO.

Light heavyweight Seanie Monaghan of Long Beach, NY battered Jackson, Missippi’s Billy Cunningham over 4 one-sided rounds to earn himself a unanimous decision. Monaghan pressed the action throughout the fight and consistently landed good left hooks to the body. Despite his best efforts, Monaghan never had Cunningham in trouble but did more than enough to earn scores of 40-36 across the board. He improves to 6-0 4KOs while Cunningham drops to 5-9 4KOs.

In the opening bout of the evening, junior middleweight Abraham Lopez (2-1-1) of Oxnard, CA outworked his opponent Andrew Jones (0-4) of Buffalo, NY over 4 rounds to claim a unanimous decision. Lopez battered Jones all fight with strong lead right hands and almost put him away in rounds 3 and 4. Scores were 40-36 and 39-37 (twice.)

POST FIGHT PRESS CONFERENCE QUOTES

Sergio Martinez: “I want no easy fights. They (Paul Williams and Dzinziruk) are two different fighters. Paul Williams and Dzinziruk have different tactics. Dzinziruk is a very smart fighter but I beat him at his own game – the jab. It was supposed to be a technical fight.”

“(He wasn’t hit with) nothing special. I wasn’t hurt. I felt one punch, behind my head, but that happens in fights.”

“There was no emergency (after he was cut). It was just the moment to finish.”

“(How low can he go to make a Manny Pacquiao fight) Probably 154.”

“(Head trainer filling in for his brother Gabriel) Pablo (Sarmiento) did a perfect job.”

“Cotto would be a good fight. I just want to fight the best. If Cotto is man enough, he will ask to fight Sergio Martinez.”

“I will not stop until I am recognized as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.”

Lou DiBella, promoter of Martinez and Lee: “McEwan put on one of the gutsiest performances. He was leading after eight rounds and Lee had to do something dramatic.”

“I’m proud of Andy Lee’s performance. I’ll talk next week with Manny (Stewart, Lee’s manager/trainer). It won’t be Sergio (for Andy) the next fight. This made Andy an HBO fighter – the best thing he can do.”

“It was a terrific show. It turns out Dzinziruk was the right fight. This proved that he (Sergio) is a Hall of Fame fighter. Dzinziruk is an excellent fighter but Sergio may be the best fighter in the world.”

“Pound-for-pound, (Sergio) he is the best fighter in the world. Tonight you saw why he’s going to the Hall of Fame. He is the best middleweight from Argentina since Carlos Monzon.”

“We want the biggest fight out there.”

“That’s not up to me (making a Martinez-Miguel Cotto fight). It’s up to Bob (Arum). Maybe Cotto will be man enough to ask Bob to fight Sergio? Arum’s been lining up bum after bum after bum to fight Manny Pacquiao and Cotto. People should be lining up to fight him (Sergio), the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.”

Gary Shaw, co-promoter of Dzinziruk: “Sergio Martinez not only is the best 160 pound fighter in the world but he may be the best fighter in the world. I’ve been in this business since 1961 and I’ve never seen anybody with more hand speed than Sergio Martinez. We still have the best 154-pound fighter in the world. There isn’t a 154-pound fighter in the world we wouldn’t fight.”

Artie Pellulo, co-promoter of Dzinziruk: “We have the best junior middleweight in the world; Lou has the best middleweight in the world and one of the best, if not the best fighter in the world. Dzinziruk got up and knew he was fighting the best in the world. The better man won tonight; he fought the best middleweight in the world.”

Andy Lee: “Overall, I wasn’t happy with my performance. I hurt him early in the fight and I think that worked against me. I loaded up too much. I got into that habit and it was tough to get out. In the middle rounds I thought I was losing the fight. It was a big opportunity so I said to myself if I’m going to lose he’s going to have to kill me.”

“Basically I was flat-footed until I switched it up. Eventually I caught him at the end. I was fortunate but I deserved it. I don’t know what round it was but something inside me said I was going to take it.”

“He boxed very good. It was hard; we’re friends. I respected him before the fight and more now.”

“Sergio has great speed. He’d be a tough challenge for me.”

“I won the ninth, 10-8, but knew I needed a big finish and not leave it to the judges. One, two – he was on the ground. It wasn’t my best performance but it was a great victory. It was a hard fought fight. I showed courage and heart. I will get better.”

Follow all the action LIVE from the MGM Grand as Miguel Cotto defends the WBA Super Welterweight championship and Ricardo Mayorga. There will be a three fight undercard beginning at 9pm est/6pm pac time featuring Yuri Foreman battling Pawel Wolak; IBF Lightweight champion Miguel Vazquez defending against Mandatory challenger Lenny Zappavigna as well as NFL Safety Tommy Zbikowski taking on Rich Bryant

REFRESH BROWSER FOR MINUTE BY MINUTE UPDATES

12 ROUNDS–WBA SUPER WELTERWEIGHT TITLE–MIGUEL COTTO (35-2, 28 KO’S) VS RICARDO MAYORGA (29-7-1, 23 KO’S)

Round 1: Counter left from Cotto…Mayorga chops a right to the head…Big body shot by Cotto…Chopping right from Mayorga…tradong left hooks…good left hook from Cotto…10-9 Cotto

Round 2: Brawl on the ropes huge shots and an uppercut from Mayorga…Good right from Cotto…Jab…Uppercut from Mayorga…Flurry…19-19

Round 3 Cotto lands a left hook..Mayorga lands a right and BEGS COTTO TO FIGHT…Cotto lands 2 body shots…Good right to the chin…29-28 Cotto

Round 4 Mayorga lands a nice right…good body shot…combination…38-38

Round 5 Mayorga showboats and gets caught with body punches and uppercuts…Head shots…2 rights from Mayorga…Wicked exchange that is highlighted by a Cotto left hook..Mayorga lands a chopping right…left hook to the chin by Cotto…48-47 Cotto

Round 6 Cotto left uppercut…Mayorga combo to the body…Cotto lands a jab…counter left and right uppercut…58-56 Cotto

Round 7 Mayorga lands 2 rights…uppercut on inside..right uppercut…Right buckled Cotto….67-66 Cotto

Round 8 Cotto lands a left hook…Cotto counters with the left…Hard jab..Swelling around the right eye of Mayorga…Good combination..Mayorga lands a straight right…77-75 Cotto

Round 9 Left from Mayorga…Cotto jabbing..Mayorga lands a head combo..another combo…Cotto lands a jab…and another…Big uppercut from Mayorga…86-85 Cotto

Round 10 Good jab from Cotto…Great triple jab…another jab…96-94 Cotto

Round 11 Mayorga showboating and mocking Cotto…Good defense from Cotto at the end of the round…106-103 Cotto

ROUND 12 HUGE SHOT AND DOWN GOES MAYORGA…HE TAKES A HUGE JAB AND ASKS REFEREE ROBERT BYRD TO STOP THE FIGHT…MAYORGA MAY HAVE HURT HIS HAND WHEN HE GOT KNOCKDOWN…IT WAS A BIG LEFT HOOK FROM COTTO TO THE HEAD

10 ROUNDS–JR. MIDDLEWEIGHTS–YURI FOREMAN (28-1, 8 KO’S) VS PAWEL WOLAK (28-1, 18 KO’S)

ROUND 1 Wolak stalking…Big right to the head..combination…10-9 Wolak

Round 2 Foreman lands a jab…Wolak lands a right on the ropes…20-18 Wolak

Round 3 Uppercut on inside by Foreman…Good counter..counter right..combination to the head..Wolak gets in a chopping right..good body punches and head from Wolak and another right…30-28 Wolak

Round 4: Wolak landing right..right inside..Foreman 2 body shots…Good right…Right from Wolak..Right hurts Foreman…3 more big rights at the bell…40-37 Wolak

Round 5: Wolak lands a right…Hard rights on the ropes…Foreman lands a right and left uppercut…hard right from Wolak…Left…Foreman lands an uppercut…50-46 Wolak

Round 6: Wolak lands a combinations…Swelling around left eye of Wolak..Big finish from Wolak…60-55 Wolak—FOREMAN QUITS ON THE STOOL

Round 7

4 ROUNDS HEAVYWEIGHTS–TOMMY ZBIKOWSKI (1-0, 1 KO) VS RICH BRYANT (1-2, 1 KO)

ROUND 1 Tommy Z lands a right…Big right…LEFT HOOK DOWN GOES BRYANT AND REFEREE RUSSELL MORA STOPS THE BOUT

12 ROUNDS–IBF LIGHTWEIGHT TITLE–MIGUEL VAZQUEZ (27-3, 12 KO’S) VS LENNY ZAPPAVIGNA (25-0, 17KO’s)

Round 1 Vazquez Jabs…Vazquez lands a right..comb from Vazquez at the bell 10-9 Vazquez

Round 2:Vazquez lands a left hook..Left hook counter..Good jab 20-18 Vazquez

Round 3: Zappavigna lands a big overhand right and left hook…Zappavigna bleeding from left eye..29-28 Vazquez

Round 4: Zappavigna grazing right…38-38

Round 5 Vazquez 1-2; Counter shots…Zappavigna lands a body shot…jab…Zappa lands an overhand right…Zappa starting to bleed bad from right eye….48-47 Vazquez

Round 6 Zappa lands a combination…57-57

Round 7: Trading rights…Vazquez lands a couple jabs…Zappa lands a left…67-66 Vazquez

Round 8: Good jabs and 1-2 from Vazquez..Zappa lands a body punch…good 1-2…combination…body shot at end of round…77-75 Vazquez

Round 9Zappa gets through with a wide left...86-85 Vazquez

Round 10 Blood streaming down the face of Zappa..Zappa lands some uppsercuts on the inside…95-95

Round 11

Photo By Claudia Bocanegra