Carl Froch reclaimed the WBC Super Middleweight title with an easier then expected unanimous decision over former Middleweight champion Arthur Abraham as part of the Super Six world Boxing Classic in Helsinki, Finland.

Froch was much more active early as he threw combination’s behind his jab and worked the body of the normally slow starting Abraham. Abraham lived up to that billing as he offensive attempts were few and far between as it was Frpch who dictated the action throughout the bout. Froch closed out the first half of the fight strongly as he worked the sides of Abraham underneath the German’s high guard. In round six, Froch’s jab began to knock Abraham back and even caused swelling wound Abraham’s’ eyes.

Froch was very consistent with his brief flurries as he never let Abraham get into any rhythm as Froch not only led but was effective with the counter punching. By round eleven, Abraham had a resounding look of resignation on his face as Froch continued to pound Abraham with combination’s to the head and body. Abraham showed slightly more desperation in the final stanza but his punches were wide and Froch’s movement and enough jabbing had him winning the frame much like the previous eleven.

Froch, 116 3/4 lbs of Nottingham, England won by scores of 120-108; 119-109; 119-109 to raise his record to 27-1. Abraham, 167 3/4 lbs of Berlin, Germany is now 31-2.

With a tournament record of 2-1, Froch earned two points for the win for a total of four and will face Glen Johnson in the Semifinals. Johnson and Abraham are tied with three points but Johnson wins the judges’ scorecard tiebreak to grab the third seed. That leaves Abraham in fourth and a Semifinal date with tournament point leader Andre Ward.

“He’s an old wise fox,” Froch said of the 41-year-old Johnson. “He knows what he’s doing. He’s a great, great fighter. If Glen Johnson is watching I just want to say I look forward to that fight.”

The standings after the Group Stages are as follows:

FINAL GROUP STAGE SUPER SIX WORLD BOXING CLASSIC SCOREBOARD

Record Fighter Points

3-0 Andre Ward 6

2-1 Carl Froch 4

1-0, 1 KO Glen Johnson* 3

1-2, 1 KO Arthur Abraham 3

* Johnson wins tiebreaker based on total judges’ scorecard points.

SHOWTIME play-by-play announcer Steve Albert was duly impressed by Froch’s performance. “This has been a stunning display by Froch,” he said, after which analyst Steve Farhood replied. “And this has been a stunningly flat display by Abraham.”

“I knew I was going to be this dominating,” Froch told Farhood and the SHOWTIME viewers after the fight. “There were so many times I wanted to put my punches together and put my shots together but I just listened to my corner and they kept saying stand back and let him come. So that’s what I did.

“There were a few times when it got into a bit of a brawl but I didn’t want that. That would have been too dangerous and silly because Arthur Abraham is a big puncher and a very strong man. He knows what he’s doing. I knew if I executed my game plan it would be an easy night’s work and I proved that tonight. “He landed a few stiff jabs in there. He tried to get a little dirty but the ref did a great job stopping that. I had some great sparring with (ShoBox alum) Edwin Rodriguez. That really helped me.”

Abraham was contrite and short following the bout. “I’m not sure what happened,” he said. “Nothing worked tonight. He was the better man tonight and he won. Everything I meant to do did not work.”

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA — Andre Ward successfully defended his WBA Super Middleweight title with a hard-fought twelve-round decision over WBA #13 ranked Sakio Bika before a crowd of 4,120 Saturday night at the Oracle Arena to set up a Super Six showdown with Arthur Abraham sometime in the first quarter of 2011.

Ward (23-0, 13 KOs) of Oakland may have left the ring with the most bruises of his professional career, but showed his class in a lopsided decision win over the rough and rugged Bika (28-5-2, 19 KOs) of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia by way of Douala, Cameroon.

The fight was a wrestling match at the outset in an ugly first round, as the two tangled up for the most part. Bika, 168, may have landed the one telling blow in the round before the two collided for the first of many accidental headbutts. The roughhouse tactics continued in round two, with headbutting, clinching and wrestling. Ward, 168, looked to referee Dan Stell for some help, but nothing slowed Bika’s approach.

Bika blatantly utilized his elbow in the third and Ward took to holding Bika’s left. Bika allowed the holding and began clubbing Ward with his free right. With the inside fight going Bika’s way for the most part, Ward began to find his range on the outside and implementing his superior boxing skills. The two traded to close the third, with Ward landing the best shot and Bika getting one in after the bell.

Ward landed with a left to open the fourth and continued to box well when at a distance. Ward leaped in with a flurry that rocked Bika against the ropes. Even though Bika appeared hurt by the combination and was holding on before he fell, Stell waved off the knockdown. Bika continued to hold on when the action resumed, and Ward continued to press forward. It would appear that all of Bika’s rule-bending had gotten under Ward’s skin, as the usually composed champion was opening up more freely than in fights past.

Another bad accidental headbutt started the fifth. Bika landed with a solid right over the top that had Ward covering up. Both fighters got in their licks in the round before Bika landed a good shot late and Ward jumped back with a couple of his own. Bika smiled and patted Ward on the head after the bell.

The pace of the fight slowed a bit in rounds six through eight. Bika had his moments in those rounds, as most of the action took place on the inside. At one instance, Ward complained to Stell, and Bika forearmed him right in front of the referee.

Ward came on in the ninth and hurt Bika against the ropes. With Bika holding on for dear life, the referee struggled to break up the clinching and lectured the two once they let go of each other. With the fight going Ward’s way, Bika turned to boxing and found little to no success. Bika left the round with a cut over his left eye and little hope for turning around the fight.

After Ward continued to outbox Bika in the tenth and eleventh, Bika got wild in the twelfth, but could not get much done. In the end, all three judges had it a landslide for the defending the champion. Judge Marty Sammon had it a shutout, 120-108, judges Jon Schorle and Hunter Walton both had it 118-110 all for Ward.

After the fight, Bika was asked to compare Ward and current IBF Super Middleweight titleholder Lucian Bute, who had defeated the Cameroonian back in 2007 and is regarded by most as either the number one or number two in the division. “The more difficult fighter was maybe Andre Ward,” said Bika. “Andre Ward today was stronger and threw harder, so I think Andre Ward was the tougher one.”

Now Ward can shift his focus to his Super Six World Boxing Classic semi-final opponent Arthur Abraham, who was completely outboxed in a one-sided loss to Carl Froch earlier in the evening in Helsinki, Finland. However, when pressed for his thoughts on the match-up, Ward seemed reluctant to begin that process, and was brief in speaking on the subject. “This is the perfect guy to get ready for a fight like that,” said Ward. “I’m just pleased with the win. I am going to go back do better.”

Determining fight sites has been a factor in many of the disputes and spats that have occurred between the various camps throughout much of the tournament. Ward promoter Dan Goossen mentioned a desire to hold the fight on the Caribbean resort island country Saint Lucia and made it clear he would not make the fight in Germany. Though Ward fought in Saint Lucia back in 2007, it would be considered even ground. “Sauerland [Event] will not come out here to Oakland,” said Goossen. “We have a contract that allows for both parties to have a mutual agreement on a site, and in this case, a neutral site.”

Javier Molina (5-0, 4 KOs) of Norwalk, California was taken the distance for the first time in his professional career by journeyman Francisco Rios Gil (17-14, 12 KOs) of Phoenix, Arizona by way of Huatabampo, Sonora, Mexico in the final preliminary bout before tonight’s main event.

Molina, 149, utilized his boxing skills instead of overpowering the veteran Rios Gil, 149, as he had done his previous four opponents. After four rounds, all three judges had the fight for Molina by the scores of 39-37 and 40-36 twice.

In what was more of a boxing match than the action fight most had expected, Michael Ruiz Jr. (6-0-1, 3 KOs) of Fresno, California fought to a six-round split decision draw with the always tough Jonathan Alcantara (4-3-2) of Novato, California.

The fight got off to a bit of a slow start, as Ruiz, 120 ½, and Alcantara, 119, went through the feeling out process. The action began to heat up a bit to start the second, as Ruiz and Alcantara decided to exchange. As the fight progressed, Alcantara took on the role of boxer-mover and Ruiz continued to come forward. The fight would become an inside battle in spots, but for the most part was an exhibition of boxing skill. In the end, two judges had it 58-56, one for each man, while the third official scorer forced the draw with a 57-57 score.

Promising super middleweight Cornelius White (16-0, 15 KOs) of Houston, Texas continued to destroy everything put in front of him as he decimated experienced and usually durable Demetrius Davis (20-25-5, 8 KOs) of Washington, District of Columbia in one round.

White, 171 ½, seemingly hurt Davis, 166, with everything that he threw in the fight. White scored a knockdown right off the bat with a straight left jab and Davis never seemed to recover. A quick flurry with Davis leaning on the ropes scored knockdown number two. Davis got up wobbly and nearly fell through the ropes once White connected again. What could have been scored a knockdown was not, and the fight continued. Davis, getting knocked around the ring, managed to wave to the crowd and fire a quick flurry to end the round, but the ringside physician decided to call the fight before the start of the second.

Previously unheralded Khadaphi Proctor (6-6-1) of Hesperia, California scored three knockdowns en route to unceremoniously ending the undefeated run of lightweight prospect Stan Martyniouk (10-1, 1 KO) of Sacramento, California. Proctor, 135, surprisingly dropped Martyniouk, 134 ½, twice in the first and once in the third.

A right hand downed Martyniouk for the first time early in round one and a left hook scored the second minutes later. The second knockdown clearly hurt Martyniouk, who rose seconds before the end of the round. After getting beat for most of the second, Martyniouk sprung to life with two hard lefts just before the bell.

Just as it seemed Martyniouk was getting back in to the fight, he traded lefts with Proctor in the third. Unfortunately for Martyniouk, Proctor’s landed first and hardest, and prompted the third knockdown. To Martyniouk’s credit, he kept trying and clearly began to sit down on his punches with all that he could, but Proctor took them well and fired back. They traded punches after the bell to end the fifth, with Martyniouk’s landing last.

After a good round for Martyniouk to end the fight, the unanimous decision verdict was rendered in favor of Proctor. Judge Kermit Bayless scored it 56-55, while judges Marshall Walker and Michael Tate had it 58-53, all for Proctor.

Roman Andreev (10-0, 7 KOs) of the Komi Republic, Russia remained unbeaten in the opener, with a six-round decision over Manuel Del Cid (4-4, 1 KO) of Los Angeles, California. Andreev, 135, got off to a rough start early in round one, but bounced back late and stalked Del Cid, 135, for most of the second stanza.

Andreev took over mid-fight with his relentless pressure en route a six-round unanimous decision. Judge Kermit Bayless had it 59-55, while judges Marshall Walker and Michael Tate both had it a 60-54 shutout for Andreev.

In the walkout bout, Matt Villanueva (4-0, 4 KOs) of Van Nuys, California scored a third-round stoppage over Adrian Aleman (6-8-3, 4 KOs) of Cathedral City, California. Villanueva, 117 ½, flashed his speed and power throughout the bout, a fight that Aleman, 117, was never really in. In the third round, Villanueva landed a combination that prompted referee Ray Balewicz to stop the fight. Official time was 43 seconds of the third.

Photo by Craig Bennett/Goossen Tutor Promotions

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

Once again Mexican Legend Juan Manuel Marquez 52-5-1(38) proved that age is no obstetrical as he went toe toe with teek tough Michael Katsidis 27-3(22). The give and take action finally came to an end with the champion retaining his WBA & WBO titles via ninth round TKO at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas

The first round is pretty busy with both guys going straight to work, Marquez is more accurate and picks his openings while Katsidis closes the distance and stays in close to Marquez. The second see’s Marquez stay on the outside allowing Katsidis to come forward behind a high held guard. Marquez known as one of the games best counter puncher picks his way through Katsidis porous defense. Too his credit Katsidis continued to pressure Marquez landing some body punches. Nearly a minute into the third Katsidis lands a huge left hook that drops Marquez hard, to his credit he rides out the pressure and fires back his own combination’s. The third round is a contender for round of the year. Marquez enjoys a good fourth landing several eye catching combination’s to head and body. The fifth is much of the same, with Katsidis looking like a man who wont be denied walking through fire trapping Marquez on the ropes toward the end of the round. Katsidis makes Marquez work every second of the sixth & seventh rounds barreling forward pushing the hard nosed Mexican back. The war of attrition is well and truly on. Both guys have there moments in the eighth, Katsidis is marked under both eyes. Finally in the ninth when something had to give Marquez breaks through landing left uppercut hurting the brave Australian who backpedaled. Marquez jumped on his opponent and with plenty of time in the round picked his way through Katsidis until Kenny Bayliss stopped the action a 2.14 of the ninth round.

Afterwards Marquez said with regards a muted third fight with nemesis Manny Pacquiao “It’s what the public wants”

A gracious Katsidis afterward congratualted Marquez and spoke of the sad loss of his brother.

Andre Berto 27-0(21) made quick work of Freddy “El Riel” Hernandez 29-2(20) to retain his WBC Welterweight title for the fifth time. Catching him with a left hook followed by a right hand which punctured Hernandez guard sending Hernandez went down hard in the ring centre, to his credit he got up but referee Russell Mora waved the action over at 2.07 of the first round.

With none of the top guys at Featherweight willing to face Celestino Caballero 34-3(23) he moved up to Super Featherweight in an experiment that ultimately failed as he lost a close split decision to Jason Litzau 28-2(21) when the scores were totaled Litzau won 96-94 & 97-93 while the third judge scored it 96-94 for Litzau. On the HBO on the night scales Litzau weighted 140 while Caballero was 135.

Minnesota’s Litzau started well pressuring Caballero back for most of the first round. Caballero content having seen what Litzau could do picks up the pace. Both guys start fast throwing bombs, a big left from Caballero mid way through the round hurts Litzau, who quickly returns fire. Both guys look like they feel they have the power to take the other out. Caballero takes the fourth with a barrage of punches after shaking Litzau up with a solid right hand. The fifth see’s Litzau get back into the fight, again both guys trade punches with Litzau getting greater success, Caballero’s face is starting to swell. Litzau again enjoys a good round, his greater strength seems to be effecting Caballero in the sixth. The seventh is fairly scrappy round with Litzau pushing forward. Caballero regains a foot hold in the fight landing a solid left hook early in the round and another impressive combination in the middle of the round. The ninth & tenth see both guys land good shots with the momentum going back and for, in what’s a tough round to score.

Campbell Shocked – Nate Campbell dropped back down to Lightweight after a brief sojourn to Light Welterweight when he was unsuccessful against Victor Ortiz. He was expected to get back to winning ways, it didn’t prove that way as he was out hustled over 8 rounds by perennial journeyman Walter Estrada who won his third fight in a row to move to 38-13-1(25). Campbell 38, looked flat and was beaten to the punch by the Colombian on several occasions even getting rocked in the second round. Estrada was deducted a point in the third for hitting and holding. Estrada won a split decision 77-74×2 & Campbell took the other 76-75.

Cuban sensation Erislandy Lara 14-0(9) didn’t need long to dispose of Tim Connors 10-2(7). The end came at 1.38 when Lara first dropped Connors with a stiff jab. To his credit Connors rose but clearly shaken walked into a barrage of shots and was on his way down when the fight was called off. With the win Lara collects Vacant WBA Fedalatin Light Middleweight title.

Florida’s Keith Thurman 15-0(14) kept him impressive unbeaten record when he took apart Favio Medina 23-3-3(8) stopping him in the fourth with a right hand.

In Middleweight action Bastie Samir advanced to 7-0(7) when he battered Billy Cunningham into submission at 1.56. Cunningham was down 3 times before referee Jay Nady halted proceedings.

Michael Finney impressively moved to 6-0(6) when he stopped Clayvonne Howard 2-5-1(1) at 1.26 of the second round. Howard was hurt by a left hook at the end of the first round. Finney pounced on his man in the second pushing him back mixing head and body shots landing 3 hard left hooks that prompted the referee to stop the fight with Howard slumped on the ropes.

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA — Their fight may not be part of the Super Six World Boxing Classic, but the outcome of tonight’s Andre Ward-Sakio Bika title bout may have greater implications on the tournament than even the Carl Froch-Arthur Abraham clash which will end hours earlier. Ward is not only defending his WBA belt, but the remaining sanctity of the Super Six concept against a determined and willing challenger that was not deemed “Super” enough for whatever reasons. Their fight, to be televised live by Showtime, takes place on Ward’s home turf, the Oracle Arena in Oakland. Fighters weighed in Friday, down the road at the Hilton Oakland Airport.

Bika (28-4-2, 19 KOs) of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia by way of Douala, Cameroon has been a perennial 168-pound contender since battling then-WBC ruler Markus Beyer to a technical draw in 2006. Bika’s wild career has seen him lose to Joe Calzaghe before a packed M.E.N. Arena in Manchester, England on international television to fighting in relative obscurity on undercards in Australia. Bika’s biggest claim to fame was winning The Contender reality series tournament in 2007, but he did so at a time when the show had been placated to ESPN and thus the victory did not have the career-lifting effect such as it had for its initial run. However, with an upset victory tonight, Bika will have turned the division on its ear.

Ward (22-0, 13 KOs) of Oakland has distanced himself from the pack in the Super Six as the clear favorite and the fighter to most likely emerge from tournament as a new boxing star. Ward knocked off the pre-tourney favorite Mikkel Kessler to claim the WBA Super Middleweight title and carried that momentum into a twelve-round drubbing of Allan Green this past June. Now Ward attempts to solidify his claim to the throne of division leader against the WBA #13 ranked Bika. Those who believe that title belongs to Lucian Bute will have some basis for a comparison once tonight’s bout is over, as Bika dropped a clear-cut decision to the reigning IBF belt-holder over three years ago. Both Ward and Bika scaled an even 168-pounds Friday.

In undercard action, 2008 U.S. Olympian Javier Molina (4-0, 4 KOs) of Norwalk, California will take on weathered journeyman Francisco Rios Gil (17-13, 12 KOs) of Phoenix, Arizona by way of Huatabampo, Sonora, Mexico in a six-round light middleweight bout. Molina, who came in at 149-pounds, takes the ring for the second time in two months after an injury-induced fourteen-month layoff. Rios Gil, who scaled 149 as well, has built up his win total in Mexico and most of his loss total against American prospects, as is the case tonight.

Lightweight prospect Stan Martyniouk (10-0, 1 KO) of Sacramento, California will take on Khadaphi Proctor (6-5-1) of Hesperia, California in a six-round fight. Martyniouk, who came in at 134 ½-pounds, took on renowned world class trainer Joe Goossen just before his last fight in July and gets a chance to show off what he has learned tonight in front of some of his supporters making the short trip down to Oakland from Northern California. Proctor, coming off of a pay-per-view victory over Rynell Griffin two months ago, scaled 135-pounds.

Promising super middleweight Cornelius White (15-0, 14 KOs) of Houston, Texas will take on the experienced Demetrius Davis (20-24-5, 8 KOs) of Washington, District of Columbia in a swing bout set for either six or eight-rounds and contracted for just over the 168-pound division limit. After a brief amateur run, White has reeled of an impressive knockout tally, but will take on by far the most durable opponent of his career to date. Davis began his career when White was just five-years-old and worked his way to a regional title try against Thomas Tate in 1998, before taking a nearly nine-year sabbatical from the sport. White came in at 171 ½-pounds, while Davis scaled 166.

There may not be a bona fide co-feature on the card, but the supporting bout of the night is expected to be the six-rounder between former national amateur standout Michael Ruiz Jr. (6-0, 3 KOs) of Fresno, California and all-action fighter Jonathan Alcantara (4-3-1) of Novato, California. Ruiz, who scaled 120 ½-pounds, has torn through his competition since turning pro just over seven months ago. Alcantara, who came in at 119, has made a career out of going against former national amateur stars, posting a 2-2 record in such fights.

Bantamweight prospect Matt Villanueva (3-0, 3 KOs) of Van Nuys, California takes on six-year veteran Adrian Aleman (6-7-3, 4 KOs) of Cathedral City, California in a four-round bout. Villanueva, who came in at 117 ½-pounds, has blasted out three opponents in just under eleven combined minutes. Aleman, who scaled 117, has dropped five straight, but four came against unbeaten foes and all went the distance.

In a swing bout scheduled for either four or six-rounds, unbeaten lightweight Roman Andreev (9-0, 7 KOs) of the Komi Republic, Russia will take on Manuel Del Cid (4-3, 1 KO) of Los Angeles, California. Andreev, who trained for the bout in Southern California, scaled 135-pounds. Del Cid, who also scaled 135 on Friday, has the unenviable task of taking on Andreev in his first fight since suffering a second-round knockout at the hands of Jose Benavidez Jr. just over two months ago.

Quick Weigh-in Results:

WBA Super Middleweight Championship, 12 Rounds
Ward 168
Bika 168

Light Middleweights, 6 Rounds
Molina 149
Rios Gil 149

Lightweights, 6 Rounds
Martyniouk 134 ½
Proctor 135

Light Heavyweights, 6 or 8 Rounds
White 171 ½
Davis 166

Super Bantamweights, 6 Rounds
Ruiz Jr. 120 ½
Alcantara 119

Bantamweights, 4 Rounds
Villanueva 117 ½
Aleman 117

Lightweights, 4 or 6 Rounds
Andreev 135
Delcid 135

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

Juan Manuel Marquez 134 -V- 135 Michael Katsidis
WBA/WBO & Ring magazine Lightweight Title 12 Rounds

Andre Berto 145 -V- 147 Freddy Hernandez
WBC Welterweight Title 12 Rounds

Celestino Caballero 130 -V- 130 Jason Litzau
Super Featherweight 10 Rounds
Caballero had to re-weigh as he was initially 1.5pounds over.

Erislandy Lara 154 -V- 154 Tim Connors
Light Middleweight 10 Rounds

Nate Campbell 139 -V- 136 Walter Estrada
Lightweight 8 Rounds

Keith Thurman 149 -V- 149 Favio Medina
Light Middleweight 8 Rounds

Bastie Samir 163 -V- 162 Billy Cunningham
Middleweight 4 Rounds

Michael Finney 146 -V- 141 Clayvonne Howard
Light Welterweight 4 Rounds

On Thanksgiving weekend two of Boxing biggest Warriors collide for the WBA/WBO Lightweight Championship. It feature’s Mexican Legend and reigning champion Juan Manuel Marquez against Australian Michael Katsidis.

Yesterday they both arrived at the MGM Grand Garden Hotel Casino ahead of this weekend clash. First Challenger Katsidis arrived and made his way to the stage to cheers then pre-fight favorite Marquez entered smiling to a rapturous reception. Both fighters were greeted by promoter Oscar De La Hoya who was equally popular amongst the fans in attendance.

After a brief run through on proceedings De La Hoya talked about the fight and spoke highly of both guys.

Then it was the turn of the trainers, first to the the dais was Brendan Smith, Katsidis trainer who said “Michael’s worked hard for 3 months, very hard”

Adding “2001 we turned pro and the goal was to be Super Champion, on Saturday we come to realize that dream, it’s an honor to fight Marquez but we come to win and only win”

It was then the turn of Marquez longtime trainer Nacho Beristain “We had a great training camp, we’re ready to go”

Finally the fighters had there say Katsidis said “This is going to be a great fight, it was one tough training camp. There was a fair bit of speculation over the last month because of my brothers death”

“It was tough and as everyone knows, nothing is ever easy. We’ve endured to some tough times and we’re here to win.”

Next came the legendary 3 weight champion Marquez who said “First of all, I really applaud Michael Katsidis character for his bravery in fighting after the death of his brother. I have the greatest respect for him and wish the best for his family. Everyone knows Katsidis is a strong fighter and a warrior. However I have prepared myself hard for this type of fighter. I don’t have to say any more. I’m ready to give a great fight to all of the people.”

The promotion is sponsored by Tecate who will be offering rebates on packs of their beer for those watching the fight.

“Warriors” goes live on HBO Championship Boxing at 9.45 East, 6.45 Pacific.

Tickets remain priced from $350 all the way down to $50.

Anson Wainwright
15rounds.com

Top-10 contender Pawel “Raging Bull” Wolak will be In Harm’s Way on Saturday, December 4, when he challenges undefeated WBC Silver middleweight champion Julio César Chávez, Jr. in a 12-round title fight. Wolak replaces the injured Alfonso Gomez, Chávez’s original opponent, who withdrew today after an MRI detected a ligament tear in his left elbow.

Wolak (27-1, 17 KOs), from Mount Arlington, NJ, enters this fight riding a two-year, six-bout winning streak, with three of those victories coming by knockout. The combined record of the last three opponents he defeated — James Moore, Ishmail Arvin and Carlos Nascimento – had a combined record of 56-4-4 when he fought them, which translates into an impressive 88% winning percentage. His last fight, a 10-round unanimous decision victory over Moore (17-2), was fought on the historic Yuri Foreman-Miguel Cotto undercard at Yankee Stadium on June 5. He is currently world-rated No. 7 by the WBA.

“Everything worked out well”, said Wolak, who almost fought Chavez previously before the bout fell apart. “I had another fight December 16 so I will be in good enough shape to fight him. We are just finalizing some things (in training) and I don’t have to lose any (extra weight).”

A former New York State middleweight champion, Wolak, 29, is known as aggressive, high-pressure style fighter who always makes for exciting fights. Trained by Aroz Gist, Wolak, an East Coast fixture, will be making his West Coast debut when he rumbles with Chávez Jr.

“He is tough but hopefully my pressure will overwhelm him.” “I plan to dig deep every round and hopefully I will come out on top. I must thank my promoter Top Rank for this great opportunity and I will be ready.”

According to Dan Rafael of espn.com. Manny Pacquiao’s twelve round beatdown of Antonio Margarito generated in excess of 1.15 million Pay Per Views that produced $64 million in domestic revenue.

“We’re thrilled with the PPV performance,” said HBO senior vice president Mark Taffet, who runs HBO PPV. “With the breadth of interest from sports, entertainment and news media following Manny and the fight, boxing has tremendous momentum as we finish 2010 and head into a very exciting 2011.”

“This is the third consecutive year that a Manny Pacquiao megafight has exceeded 1 million buys and he has generated 5.1 million buys over his last five fights — true measures of his PPV superstar status,” Taffet said.

“I think the fight with Margarito did very, very well and we are constantly trying to figure out how to better our performances,” Top Rank promoter Bob Arum said. “Considering where we were when we announced the fight, nobody would have believed we would have done this. They said Margarito was disgraced and people talked about boycotting it.

“That’s one of the achievements we can take credit for — taking a non-American and crossing him over,” Arum said. “Can we do more? Yeah. Nobody would have dreamed that you could take a fighter from the Philippines and make him into an iconic American star and we’ve been able to do that. Most of the credit goes to Pacquiao, but we’ve been able to do that and now we have to improve on what we’ve done.

“It’s a work in progress. It’s one thing to do big numbers fighting Oscar De La Hoya, who always did big numbers. It’s another doing them on his own, which he is now apparently able to do. One of the ways to put it into the stratosphere is to make the Mayweather fight, but that is out of my control.

“I hope that is the next fight.

Photo by Chris Farina / Top Rank

CLICK TO ORDER ON DEMAND
Emerging prospect Farah “Quiet Storm” Ennis picked up the vacant NABF Super Middleweight title after impressively stopping lionhearted Victor Lares Friday evening at Harrah’s Resort and Casino in Atlantic City.

From the opening bell, Ennis peppered his opponent with just about every punch he threw. Ennis had success to both the body and head, consistently tagging his Corpus Christi, TX based counterpart as if he were a novice sparring partner. The Philadelphia, PA based prospect managed to steer clear of a number of Lares’ slow and wild hooks, regularly making him pay for it. Lares, who displayed tremendous heart, was decked once in round four and twice in the sixth before Referee Eddie Cotton stopped the contest following a fourth knockdown in the seventh stanza.

Time of stoppage was 2:35.

“My whole game plan was to work his body because he had a hard head,” Ennis said of his gritty opponent as he spit out blood in the hallway of the arena. “Whoever wants (to try and take my title) can come after it!”

Ennis is now 17-0 with 11 KO’s. Lares falls to 16-6 with 4 KO’s and won the hearts of many with his toughness.

In the co-feature, heavyweight hopeful and St. Josephs University graduate Chazz “The Gentleman” Witherspoon forced game but overmatched Alexis Mejia’s to retire following one sided four rounds. Witherspoon connected at will with hard jabs and right hands, causing Mejia’s’ left eye to close. The Paulsboro, NJ native almost had Mejia’s out in the fourth, but a number of clinches towards the end of the round helped the latter stay on his feet for the time being. Mejia’s corner wisely threw in the towel before the fifth.

Witherspoon improves to 28-2 with 20 KO’s. Mejia, who has been stopped in four of his last five starts, heads home to Paterson, Nj at 11-6 (5 KO’s).

Light heavyweight Lavarn “Baby Bowe” Harvell of Atlantic City stopped late replacement, Khalil Farah at the end of the first round. Harvell beat Farah, from pillar to post in the first three minutes of the fight and scored a knockdown before Referee Samuel Viruet pulled the plug.

Harvell ups his professional ledger to 7-0 (3 KO’s). Farah, a Philadelphia native who likely took the fight to help balance out the funds while he attends Temple University, is 6-7 with 1 KO.

Philadelphia’s Keenan Smith improved to 3-0 and scored his first knockout after stopping debuting Anthony Royal of Newport News, VA. At the weigh-in, Smith and Royal exchanged some heated words, so this fight was hotly anticipated; only one man lived up to the pre fight hype. Smith dominated the battle of long and lean lightweights, breaking Royal’s will with a two fisted attack en route to knocking him out after consecutive right hands 1:20 into the fourth.

Good looking super middleweight prospect Joel De La Paz of Atlantic City scored a unanimous decision over Virgil Hill trained “Trouble” Troy Maxwell. De La Paz connected almost at will and busted open the face of Maxwell, who displayed the heart of a lion in a losing effort. Scores were 40-36 on all three cards.

De La Paz is 6-0 with 4 KO’s. Maxwell, of Galloway, is 2-2.

Ishmael Garcia of Millville, NJ outboxed Corey Preston over four rounds en route to scoring a shut out decision in a junior middleweight contest. Garcia is 2-0. Preston of Cincinnati, OH remains winless at 0-2.

Junior lightweight Joey Tiberi demolished Tonio Parker in one minute and 54 seconds. Tiberi, a member of Delaware’s most famous boxing family, scored two knockdowns. The Newark native improves 2-0 with both of his victories coming via first round KO. Parker of Wilson, NC is 0-2.

The card was promoted by Spartan Fight Promotions.

For more New Jersey boxing news, go to gardenstatefightscene.com

Less than one year ago, a father and a son had a vision. To bring the best MMA shows to Ohio. They succeeded. One year later, they have taken it national.

National mixed martial arts fight promotion Rocktagon MMA, formerly known as CageStars, presented the first Amateur MMA event under the Rocktagon name Saturday night, at the brand new Rocktagon Arena.

The 12 fight card was stacked with rising talent and action packed fights. Two champions were crowned as Cy Stephens won a 3 round decision over Mike Maderitz. The capacity crowd was on its feet for the entire final round as both these warriors fought like champions but only one walked away with the gold.

The main event saw hometown fan favorite Marcus Washington capture the 155lb title with a first round TKO over David Parker. Washington flashed his signature Hollywood smile as the title was placed around his waist. Washington thanked Rocktagon MMA for the opportunity to fight for a title and thanked the 3,000 screaming fans that were in attendance at the Rocktagon Arena. When asked if fighting in his backyard made a difference Washington stated that “It was important to have the support of the hometown fans but it was really most important to me to perform well because it was the first time my mother could see me fight,”

Fans in attendance were amazed of the growth of this promotion in only one year. Mark for Elyria told us “I have been to all of their shows and each of them have been better than the first.”

John from Akron was impressed with the overall event “When you come to a Rocktagon event you are not just coming to see cage fighting. There is so much more to their show than just a fight..they really open their doors to everyone…..even a non MMA fan will have fun here”.

Mike from Parma stated “This arena is beautiful, problem is the word is getting out and I bet in a few more shows they will have to get a larger venue.”

Immediately following the event CageStars founder Lorenzo Gentile and Rocktagon CEO James Jedda announced that the “Cage Stars Amateur Elite Series 2” will be held on February 5th, 2011 at the Rocktagon Arena. For more information visit www.rocktagonmma.com

Full Results
• 185-Mark Ondich (1-0) TKO 2:40 1st round over Mike Schmittle (0-1)
• 145-Paul Troutman (3-2) decision 30-27, 30-27, 39-28 over Nate Hurst (2-2)
• Super Heavyweight-Nick Breshear decision 30-27, 30-27, 29-28 over Clay Wetzel (0-2)
• 135-Sean Brown (1-2) tapout 1:28 1st round over Ron Fitch (2-4)
• 170-Jacob Rathwell (1-0) tapout 2:08 1st round over Andy Johnson (0-1)
• 170-Don Jongquist (2-0) decision 29-28, 29-28, 29-28 over Nick Schenk (0-1)
• 170-James Pfeiffer (1-0) decision 30-27, 30-27, 30-27 over Alex Brown (0-1)
• 215-Kyle Horton (2-0) TKO 3:00 2nd round over Tyree Johnson (1-2)
• 185-Josh Martinez (3-0) TKO 3:00 1st round over Brandon Vasquez (3-1)
• 170-Dave Vandevolde (4-0) TKO :43 1st round over Kyle Booth (2-2)
• 145 (Title fight)-Cy Stephens (5-2) decision 30-27, 30-27, 29-28 over Mike Maderitz (4-2)
• 155 (Title fight)-Marcus Washington (5-0-1) TKO 2:59 1st round over David Parker (4-4)

Artie Pelullo has been a recognizable face in boxing circles for many years. The Philadelphia based promoter handles fighters from all four corners of the globe and has run cards in various locations. From Las Vegas to Australia, Mexico, Canada and Brazil, Pelullo’s traveled just about everywhere imaginable.

Last night in Atlantic City, Pelullo was ringside for the Paul Williams-Sergio Martinez middleweight title bout at Boardwalk Hall. He also appeared at the post fight press conference, not to take advantage of a rare opportunity to enjoy the night of fights as a fan, but with one goal in mind; a unification bout.

Pelullo, the American Promoter of WBO Middleweight champion Dmitry Pirog, notified 15rounds that he is going to do everything in his power to push for a showdown between his fighter and Sergio Martinez.

“Pirog would absolutely love to fight a great fighter like Martinez,” stated Pelullo. “The only way fighters become names is if HBO gives them an opportunity. It has happened with (so many different guys) who were willing to take chances (against tough opponents). Pirog is willing to take a chance and he texted me saying that they were watching the fight in Russia (and that he wants to fight) Martinez.”

Pelullo then pulled out his cell phone and opened up a text message he sent to HBO’s Senior Vice President of Sports Programming Kerry Davis that said “Pirog vs. Martinez?”

“This would be unification and a great fight for both the sport and the fans. Each guy is a fan friendly fighter,” said Pelullo. who promoted premium cable bouts featuring Acelino Freitas, Ricky Hatton and Diego Corrales amongst others. “I think that (Pirog’s) sensational win over Danny Jacobs puts an interesting spin on (a potential Martinez fight). I think HBO will put up enough money to make the fight happen.”

While Pelullo is already on the Pirog vs. Martinez campaign, Davis said that HBO hasn’t begun to think about a possible match up between the two.

“I think it’s premature to talk about Martinez’ next move when I haven’t spoke to (Martinez’ Promoter Lou) Dibella, (Advisor Sampson) Lewkowicz or Sergio. We are going to hold off (on talking about it) for the time being. Artie came up to me and asked me about the fight and I think Pirog is a good fighter.”

Davis also cited that Martinez’ emergence and age, 35, could cause him to steer away from a bout with Pirog.

“Martinez is looking for the biggest fights possible. Right now, Pirog is not known in the United States. (Pirog) is an option, but I don’t believe that will be Martinez’ first option and I will have to discuss (with Martinez’ team) what (else is out there) before I start talking opponents.”

Martinez, who scored a jaw dropping and one punch knockout of Williams in the second round to retain his titles, is aiming for a showdown with Floyd Mayweather or Manny Pacquiao. Pirog’s other options were not mentioned by Pelullo.

On Saturday night at Caesar’s Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey, Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez (46-2-2, 25 KOs) scored an electrifying second round KO over Paul “The Punisher” Williams (39-2, 27 KOs).

The knockout, which is undoubtedly the frontrunner for “Knockout of the Year” came at the 1:10 mark of round two and courtesy of a Martinez straight left.

In December of 2009, Williams was awarded a majority decision victory over Martinez — a close fight in which Judge Pierre Benoist turned in an inexplicable score of 119-110 in favor of Williams.

Seeking his revenge, Martinez made it clear he did not want his fate decided by three judges again. Rather, this time “Maravilla” took matters into his own hands, catching and dropping Williams with a blistering straight left that he would never get up from.

After picking up where they left off last December, the first round featured both fighter’s sharing their own bit of success. “Maravilla” made it a point to mix in a few body punches, but both fighters were clearly willing to stand in the pocket and trade with one another like they did eleven months ago.

The second round, or round fourteen, seemed to continue the trend of vicious exchanges when suddenly Martinez caught Williams with an unforgiving left that landed flush. The 6’1” Williams fell crumbled slowly and majestically to the canvass where he would lay motionless for the better part of two minutes and not return to his feet for about five.

Upon seeing his opponent collapse before his eyes, Martinez ran with excitement onto the turnbuckles and raised his arms in front of the Boardwalk Hall crowd, not even waiting to see if Williams would beat the ten count.

With the one punch knockout, Martinez asserted himself as frontrunner for not only “Knockout of the Year,” but also “Fighter of the Year” — also sporting an impressive victory of Kelly Pavlik earlier in 2010.

Further, Martinez’s trainer, Gabriel Sarmiento, cemented his case as “Trainer of the Year,” an award in which he has already been nominated for. Only after the fight had come to a conclusion was it revealed that Sarmiento laid out a plan two days ago that had Martinez work Williams’ body in the inaugural round, before fainting — and faking a right — only to surprise Williams with a left that would knock him out in round two.

Like something out of a movie, that is exactly what happened as “Maravilla” executed his trainer’s plans to perfection, scoring an unbelievable knockout victory over Williams and asserting himself an “HBO A-side fighter” in the process.

With the win, Martinez retained his Ring Magazine middleweight title, as well as his WBC middleweight title.

Steve Upsher Chambers vs. Bayan Jargal — 8 Rounds, Welterweights

Philadelphia’s Steve Upsher Chambers (23-1-1, 6 KOs) squeaked out a split decision victory over the previously unbeaten Bayan Jargal (15-1-3, 10 KOs).

In the first two rounds, both fighter’s found their fare share of success, neither proving to be an elusive target.

In the first minute of round three, the two fighters were involved in a barbaric exchange with Upsher Chambers getting the better of Jargal. Upsher Chambers rocked Jargal multiple times in round three, but Jargal was unwilling to backdown, always having an answer for anything Upsher Chambers threw his way.

By round four, it was clear that Jargal was the effective aggressor, steadily moving forward while forcing Upsher Chambers to fight with his back against the ropes — which is where Upsher Chambers fought most of the fight.

In round six, with Upsher Chambers still against the ropes, Jargal unleashed a flurry of punches on Upsher Chambers, and tired himself in the process. Upsher Chambers came off of the ropes and landed a few punches of his own, drawing some “oohs” and “aahs” from the crowd.

When the final bell sounded to conclude the eight round, the fight went to the scorecards. Judge Joe Pasquale scored the bout 77-75 in favor of Jargal. Judges John McKay and Judge Ron Mcnair saw the bout 77-75 and 78-78, respectively, for the winner, Upsher Chambers.

Zsolt Erdei vs. Samson Onyango — 8 Rounds, Light Heavyweight

In front of a couple hundred loud Hungarian fans, Hungary’s Zsolt Erdei (32-0, 17 KOs) coasted to a unimous decision victory over Kenya’s Samson Onyango (20-7, 13 KOs).

Erdei methodically controlled the pace of the first three rounds, throwing a steady streams of jabs and letting straight rights fly. Onyango found success when he went to Erdei’s body, but had trouble finding Erdei’s face.

In round four, Erdei continued pressuring his Kenyan counterpart. Left hooks began to land with more regularity, and Erdei’s best punch of the round was a straight right that stumbled Onyango.

Rounds five, six, and seven mirrored those of the earlier rounds, with Erdei using a consistent flow of left hooks and straight rights to get the better of his opponent.

Round eight opening up with an impressive five-punch combination from Erdei that seemed to surprise Onyango. With the Hungarian fans chanting “Knockout! Knockout!” Erdei gave it his best shot to stop his opponent, letting his hands fly.

Erdei was unable to get the knockout, but did score a unanimous decision victory over Onyango. Judge Ron Mcnair saw the bout in Erdei’s favor, 79-73, while judges John McKay and Joe Pasquale agreed that Erdei won the bout 80-72.

Tony Thompson vs. Paul Marinaccio — 10 Rounds, Heavyweight

In a heavyweight battle, schedule for ten rounds, Tony Thompson (35-2, 23 KOs) scored a 4th round TKO victory over Buffalo, New York’s Paul Marinaccio (24-6-3, 11 KOs).

In the first round, Thompson asserted himself as the aggressor, continually coming forward, working behind an effective jab.

In the second round, Thompson landed a crushing straight left that snapped Marinaccio’s head back and and put his back against the ropes — where he remained for the rest of the fight. Thompson continued to pour on, landing a solid right hook, followed by a straight left. Thompson found his opponent with regularity in the second round, while Marinaccio seemed reluctant to let his hands go.

In the third round, Thompson continued his effective aggression, immediately backing his opponent into a corner, where he then began to pummel Marinaccio. Thompson continued to score at will to Marinaccio’s head, but rarely did any work to his opponent’s body.

In the fourth round, Thompson conintued his dominance, pressing the action and forcing Marinaccio to fight with his back against the ropes. Marinaccio couldn’t ward off the aggressive Thompson, who ultimately pinned Marinaccio into a corner, where he landed three straight vicious right hooks to the right side of Marinaccio’s face before the referee jumped in between the two and stopped the fight. He called a halt to the bout at the 2:02 mark of the fourth round.

Fernando Guerrero vs. Saul Duran — 8 Rounds, Middleweight

Undefeated Dominican phenom Fernando Guerrero (20-0, 16 KOs) kept his record perfect with a fourth round TKO over the tough Mexican, Saul Duran (36-17-3, 29 KOs).

The first round belonged to Guerrero, who imposed his will on his Mexican counterpart. Guerrero teed off on Duran, landing straight lefts at will. The Dominican showed off an impressive arsenal in the inaugural round, landing a healthy mix of jabs, body punches, straight lefts, and uppercuts — all inflicting damage to Duran.

In the second round, Guerrero picked up right where he left off, landing bullet-like lefts through Duran’s defense. The heavy-handed Dominican continued to land at an alarming success rate and ultimately dropped Duran in the second round courtesy of a straight left.

In the third round, the resilient Duran — in classic Mexican fashion — kept coming forward and engaging Guerrero. Duran kept Guerrero on the ropes for the majority of round three, but it was Guerrero who got the best of the exchanges.

In round four, Guerrero finished off his opponent in style, landing a left-right-left combination to Duran’s unprotected face, sending him to the canvas for the second — and last time. Referee Ricardo Vera called a halt to the bout at the 1:06 mark of round four.

Luis Del Valle vs. Noe Lopez Jr. — 8 Rounds, Featherweight

In a bout scheduled for eight rounds at the featherweight division, Newburgh, New York’s Luis Del Valle (11-0, 9 KOs) scored a fourth round TKO victory over Mexico’s Noe Lopez Jr. (6-7, 4 KOs).

Del Valle asserted his will in the opening round, constantly coming forward and getting the better of his opponent. The second round featured a savage exchange between the two fighters, with Del Valle landing a huge straight right, but Lopez immediately returning the favor by delivering a vicious uppercut followed by a straight left.

At the end of the second round, just as the bell sounded, Del Valle stunned Lopez with an ill-intentioned straight right, forcing his legs to wobble until he collapsed to the canvas. The referee, however, disallowed the knockdown.

In the fourth round, after being hit with a crackling body shot, Lopez dropped to a knee. After beating the referee’s ten count, Lopez found himself on unsteady legs — and was dropped by two left hooks, one to the body, one to the head. It is at that point that the referee saw it fit to call a halt to the bout awarding Del Valle the TKO victory.

Willie Nelson vs. Quinton Whitaker — 8 Rounds, Welterweight

Cleveland, Ohio’s Willie Nelson took his talents to Atlantic City, New Jersey, where he improved his already undefeated record to 16-0-1 (10 KOs) with a first round TKO over San Antonio’s Quinton Whitaker (7-9, 5 KOs).

Midway through the first round, Nelson dropped Whitaker with a devastating straight right that he never recovered from. Whitaker beat the referee’s ten count, but was greeted seconds later two blistering left hooks, one to the body and one to the head that forced Whitaker to the canvass once more. Too tough for his own good, Whitaker once again beat the ten count, but was immediately greeted by a flurry of punches courtesy of Nelson, which ultimately led to the third knockdown of the first round.

The referee called a halt to the bout at the 2:22 mark in the first round.

According to tmz.com, Floyd Mayweather had an alleged run-in with a member of his own security detail

Law enforcement sources told tmz.com a private security guard who was patrolling inside Floyd’s gated community drove up to Floyd’s house a few hours ago to confront the boxer about a parking situation.

We’re told the security guard rolled down his window to talk to Floyd … and that’s when Floyd allegedly unleashed his finger — striking the guard in the face.

Cops were called to the scene and knocked on Floyd’s door — but we’re told the boxer refused to open up.

We’re told since Floyd was only suspected of a misdemeanor battery — and because the alleged incident didn’t take place in front of a police officer — cops merely took a report and did not make an arrest.

Law enforcement sources tell us cops plan to turn the case over to the D.A., who will decide whether or not to press charges.

TACOMA, WASHINGTON — With most of the boxing world’s eyes focused on events taking place about 2,000 miles southeast, fight fans of the Northwest were treated to an entertaining night of action Saturday at the Emerald Queen Casino. Longtime local favorite David Torres fought to a majority draw with Santos Pakau in the main event of a competitively-matched card from top to bottom.

Pakau (27-6-2, 10 KOs) of Spokane, Washington got off to a solid start in the fight as he employed a focused body attack in the early going and followed up with right hands to the head of his opponent. Torres (21-2-1, 13 KOs) of Othello, Washington began to wake up late in the second round, but was clearly not punching with the same power as Pakau, especially in the early rounds.

Pakau, 137, must have been feeling good, as he even played to the crowd, waving his right fist in the air. Torres, 139, was constantly moving forward and finally broke through with a solid left hook to the body, which momentarily stopped Pakau in his tracks. Action picked up as both fighters landed well in an exchange near the close of the fourth.

Pakau looked good in rounds five and six, as a right uppercut stunned Torres and forced him to hold on. Then early in the sixth, Pakau landed a clean left hand. Pakau found a range in the round where he could land and the shorter Torres could not reach him. Torres continued to press forward, and did get close enough to land some shots on the inside to close out the round.

Pakau began to look tired in the seventh and was warned for pushing. Torres was coming on, but still did not seem to have the power to really hurt Pakau. Torres did land a clean straight right late in the stanza, a round that was clearly his.

Torres outworked Pakau in the ninth, though the New Zealander did land a pretty left hook and traded well to close out the round. Both fighters came out aggressively in the tenth, as they unloaded at close quarters. Pakau would end up cut in the corner of his right eye before the two stood their ground and traded to close out the fight.

When it was all said and done, one judge favored Pakau 96-94, but was overruled by identical even scores of 95-95, forcing the draw. As should be expected after a draw, both fighters felt as though they should have been declared the winner.

“I feel I had at least six of the ten rounds,” said an obviously disappointed Pakau after the bout. “I should have worked that little bit extra I guess. But what do you do? I got a draw I guess, it’s better than a loss.”

Torres feelings on the scoring were very similar to Pakau’s only the other way around. “I think it was a really good fight for both of us, but honestly I feel I won the fight,” said Torres, who is open to the idea of a rematch. “I think I had at least six rounds. He kept a little busier, but I threw the better shots.”

A side story to the fight revolved around the weight, and weighing-in. The Torres camp was concerned going in that Pakau, who had fought most of his recent fights at or near 147-pounds, would come in heavy, or at least enter the ring with a great weight advantage. Therefore both Pakau and Torres weighed in officially on Saturday morning to hopefully curb how much weight Pakau could gain by the time they actually fought.

“They were very worried,” said Pakau after the fight. “They made me weigh-in the same day. I don’t know why, little stupid tactics. I had to drive nearly an hour out of Tacoma to go for the weigh-in this morning. It didn’t faze me, but it was just stupid.”

Although he has fought around 139-pounds for much of his career, Torres and his team have plans to eventually move down in weight. “I feel good at 139, but my goal is to go lower, probably down to 135,” said Torres.

When asked about a potential rematch, Pakau did not sound too thrilled about his prospects for a fair decision on Torres’ home turf. “It would be interesting, but what am I going to get out of it?” said Pakau. “Nothing really. There is no point in it. I knew coming into this fight that I wasn’t going to win unless I knocked him out. It’s as simple as that.”

It is incredible how a puncher can change a fight in an instant. Out of action for the last three-years, Lafarrell Bunting showed he still has an eraser for a right hand with a sixth-round stoppage over Junior Moar in the co-main event of the evening.

Bunting (17-3-1, 17 KOs) of Memphis, Tennessee and Moar (8-3, 2 KOs) of Richmond, British Columbia, Canada were two fighters just as different as their entrance music. Moar, who entered the ring accompanied by Native American drummers and dancers, is not a puncher, but is an aggressive, forward-moving fighter. Bunting, who came out to expletive-laden rap, fought most of the fight in the style of a boxer-mover, before displaying his fight-changing kayo power.

Moar, 176, was the aggressor early and often in the fight. Bunting, 175 ½, played the part of counter-puncher at the outset, as he appeared to be getting his timing right and perhaps shaking off some rust.

Things began to heat up in the second, as each fighter landed a solid blow in an early exchange. Bunting caught Moar with a left uppercut and Moar retorted with a combination of hooks upstairs. Before the end of the round, Bunting would be warned by referee Louis Jackvony for a low blow that doubled Moar over near the ropes. Moar would return to his corner with a cut near his left eye, which Jackvony told the ringside judges was the result of a punch.

Moar began to impose his will in the third, pressing Bunting against the ropes with his attack. The rough fight continued to get rougher, as Moar was warned for hitting on a break and Bunting admonished for holding the Canadian’s left hand under his own, a tactic he would employ at various times in the fight. Moar refused to complain and instead worked Bunting’s body over a bit with his free right hand.

Moar did well for much of the fourth as well, pressing the fight still while Bunting mostly looked to cover up and move away. A stiff left jab from Moar got a reaction from the crowd, but did not appear to hurt Bunting. The Memphis native reverted back to using his own jab to keep Moar off balance in closing the round.

Moar continued to press forward and land well in the fifth, but did get caught by a left uppercut that Bunting timed and measured accurately. Bunting continued to at least give the impression he was looking for that punch again, as he repeatedly loaded up with the uppercut. Moar closed out the fifth by pressing Bunting, who was again covering up along the ropes. Despite the way the fight was going, it was Moar’s face that looked the worse for wear, with his cut bleeding freely and a bad knot forming high on his left temple.

Bunting would be warned again for a low blow early in the sixth. Soon after, Jackvony called time to give the doctor a chance to look at the cut, which did look pretty bad. The referee ruled that the cut was made worse from an accidental headbutt. Jackvony would warn Bunting again, this time for hitting behind the head.

Soon after action resumed, Bunting landed the counter he had been looking for, an overhand right that dropped Moar. Three stiff rights and a left would drop Moar a second time. When Moar returned to his feet, Bunting flurried him into the ropes, prompting Jackvony to wave off the fight. Official time was 2:57 of the sixth round.

The official scores entering the sixth and ultimately final round were 49-46 and 48-47 twice, all for Moar. Had he made it out after the two knockdowns, Moar would have likely been down on two cards (57-55) and even on the third (56-56) with two rounds to go. That being said, with Moar’s apparent condition, the timing of the stoppage was just.

After the bout, Bunting expressed his confidence going in, but gave Moar credit for his performance. “Going into this fight, even though I had been off for three-and-a-half years, I knew I had the power to pull off this win,” said Bunting. “It was a tough fight. Junior Moar came to fight and I have a lot of respect for him.”

Going into the bout, promoters had designs on matching the winner with world ranked Otis Griffin for the vacant WBO NABO Light Heavyweight title. While Griffin is likely headed for an IBF title eliminator against Yusef Mack, he had informed 15rounds.com that he would be willing to take on the winner after that as a “tune-up.”

“Hey, Griffin, take the fight and stop running,” said Bunting after he was informed of Griffin’s thoughts on the prospective bout. “Why don’t you meet me January 8th, here at the Emerald Queen Casino. Let’s make it happen.”

In a rare paring of undefeated heavyweights early in their careers, Vincent Thompson (6-0, 1 KO) of Federal Way, Washington scored a six-round unanimous decision over former National Golden Gloves Champion Charles Ellis (6-1-1, 5 KOs) of Vancouver, Washington.

Despite size and strength advantages, Ellis, 227, never looked comfortable in the fight. Thompson, 226 ½, was comfortable early and became more and more confident as the fight progressed. Early action was fought on the inside, before Thompson morphed into a boxer-mover in the fourth round. Thompson would continually land his shots and move out of range. By the fifth, the plodding, discouraged Ellis refused to offer up much offense and even looked to his corner, shaking his head in the sixth. When Ellis would pin Thompson in a corner he could not, or would not, get anything done. In the end, one judge scored the bout 59-55, with the other two scoring it a shutout, 60-54, all for Thompson.

In what was a closely-contested match-up every step of the way, Rob Diezel (4-1, 1 KO) of Seattle, Washington boxed his way past Marco Cardenas (1-3) of Salem, Oregon by way of a four-round split decision. Their roles were defined in the early going, as Diezel, 130 ½, was clearly the classy boxer and Cardenas, 129 ½, the aggressor. In the end, the judges were won over by Diezel’s boxing skills.

Diezel was busted open in the second, from what was ruled a headbutt, although there was a clean overhand right that landed in that spot during the same sequence. By the third, Cardenas would be bloodied as well, as he began to leak crimson from his nose shortly after a Diezel right hook. The fourth featured many toe-to-toe exchanges. Ultimately, two judges favored Diezel, 39-37, with the lone dissenter scoring it for Cardenas, 39-38.

Former local amateur standout Virgil Green (1-0) of Arlington, Washington got his pro career off on the right foot with a four-round unanimous decision over Miguel Garcia (2-2) also of Arlington. Despite giving up his sizeable height and reach advantages by fighting on the inside for much of the bout, Green, 139 ½, proved too quick and slick for Garcia, 141, who was no pushover.

Garcia landed his best shot in the third, a solid left hook, but did not follow up. Despite his corner’s instructions to move forward and throw punches, Garcia decided to play the role of counter-puncher. In the fourth, Green took complete control and backed up his posturing opponent en route to the victory. Scores read 39-37 and 40-36 twice all for Green.

In the curtain raiser, Ralph Prescott (1-5) of Seattle moved into the win column with a four-round majority decision over professional mixed martial artist and debuting boxer Omar Avelar (0-1) of Moses Lake, Washington. Prescott, 139, fought one of the more determined fights in the history of 0-5 fighters in a back-and-forth bout from start to finish. Avelar, 145 ½, appeared to be the harder punch throughout, but began to fade midway through the fight. Rounds three and four ended with both men standing their ground and trading shots, much to the crowd’s delight. In a bout that could have gone either way, two judges favored Prescott by the scores of 40-36 and 39-37. The third scorer had it even, 38-38.

On Saturday, ESPN.com’s Dan Rafael reported that the Showtime-televised bantamweight doubleheader would be taking place here December 11th, but to say that is definite would be premature. Currently the Charlie Daniels Band is scheduled to perform at the casino on that date, but efforts are being made.

Boxing will definitely be returning to the Emerald Queen Casino in 2011, with five dates already scheduled. Brian Halquist Productions will kick off the year with “Battle at the Boat 80” on January 8th.

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

In my experience as a boxing fan and historian I’ve never witnessed such a poor excuse for a World heavyweight championship fight, I felt ashamed to call this a fight, it was more of a farce as it happens!

Audley Harrison’s effort or should that be lack of has earned him the number one position of the worst ever title challenger in a World championship fight and I mean any World championship fight, I felt sorry for myself having just paid out 95 for almost nine minutes of a non event, but more so for the high rollers who paid 50 yes that’s right the best part of two thousand pounds for a disgraceful fight if you could call it a fight that is?
Sure there’s been poor displays from some fairly inept challengers through the history of the big men, Puerto Rico’s Joe Roman was brutally outclassed by the fists of George Foreman inside of a round in Japan in 73, Liston it was claimed threw the ‘fight’ against Ali in 65 and so forth but Audley Harrison on this showing has topped that list, to think they call him A Force, surely after this they should rename him A Fraud!

So enough of my rant, let’s read about the so called fight, shall we….?
Coming into the ring to a chorus of boo’s I mean Audley came in decked in a red t shirt about saving some adventure playground, Haye the champion was given a better welcome.
Haye outweighed by just over three stones {43lbs} looked much the smaller man despite being just two inches the shorter, as the paying public anticipated the outcome and that Harrison always had the proverbial punchers chance, sure the tangibles were there though David was much the more fancied going into this his second defense of the W.B.A heavyweight title.
Both to begin with did very little though Audley pressured to begin with as he came forward but Haye soon had Audley backing off with the odd attempt of a punch that failed to land and has soon as forty or so seconds had elapsed into the round the knowledgeable few began to boo both combatants, which I felt was a little premature and unfair, Haye to his credit threw a two punch combination to silence the few impatient fans, and a roar went up, but it didn’t last long!
Thing is one minute had elapsed, then yep you guessed it two minutes as neither boxer threw a punch that landed and even when they did throw which was a rarity in itself they missed or fell short has both looked far too cautious and then the bell rang to conclude the worst three minutes in the whole history of the World heavyweight championship in my opinion, I felt disgusted to even call this interesting but hey give the guys a chance, the usual feeling out process is all very well in the opener but you expect to see at least one of two meaningful punches land, sadly neither party wanted to dance!
So to the second but yet again both Audley and David did anything other than spar for a opening and it wasn’t pretty, again unbelievably neither was willing to take the initiative, it was dismal plain and simple and yep you guessed it right again, no body threw a punch and to think people call the Klitskco’s boring is rather unjust when you watch fights like this, at least they do show a little work rate.
If British heavyweights through boxing history have been called the horizontal heavy, then it’s bad enough seeing them just stand there and look at each other, no body was willing to do anything and I mean anything, even the third man Luis Pabon called for more action and to think they billed this one as ‘the best of enemies’ it seemed they were really the best of friends! by now within eighteen seconds of the second stanza the crowd began a slow hand clap…..oh dear!
Then Haye after a minute or so of inactivity finally threw a right hand that had Harrison on the retreat with his hands up, though Haye landed with a cuffing right hand shot that had very little power behind it, before both went into retirement mode again, however Haye did manage to land a decent straight right to Audley’s midsection about several seconds later but again both went to sleep and after almost a minute and a half into the round Ref Pablon called for them to get busy! Haye did in the last thirty or so seconds but landed with half hearted shots has he simply wasn’t setting himself properly, Audley seemed content to just cover up and get on the move……..the crowd booed some more at the bell to end another fruitless session, both were tarnishing the heavyweight championship, a belt that Mssr’s Johnson, Louis, Marciano and Ali had once held with pride, was now becoming something of a joke!
Oh yeah sorry meant to say Audley did actually land a straight southpaw jab to Haye’s handsome countenance in the second, sorry it was so boring it was hard to keep track!
So to the third and Harrison met Haye center ring, Haye cockily had his left hand slightly extended as if he was using it as a measure to Harrison’s chin, Harrison tried the odd punch but couldn’t find the target, after fifty seconds of unequaled boredom Haye finally came too life and threw a combination beginning with a succession of rights that had Audley backing away to the ropes where Haye punctuated it with a two handed body attack, again both looked each other over and then Haye exploded a two punch combination with a solid right that landed to Harrison’s chin before getting out of harms way, literally seconds later a series of right hands caught the bigger Harrison on the ropes that sent him spinning around, before Haye launched a series of right hands that found the target starting with a big right to the body before bringing the attack to Audley’s head has he cowered on the ropes and seemed to be here to make up the numbers, a series of straight rights pierced Harrison’s high guard before Haye unleashed right uppercuts and started to catch Harrison around the side of the head with more rights that had Audley dazed, a final combination sent Harrison over for the count as he fell forwards and rolled onto his back, Audley was almost a pathetic sight as he got too all fours and made it to his feet at the count of eight, the referee Pablon put Audley’s gum shield back in as though he was prolonging Audley’s agony, Haye like a tiger patiently waited in the corner and wasn’t to let victory out of his sights as he went in for the finish rushing across the ring trapping Audley and not allowing him off the ropes and with both hands flailing, a left hook and a few right hooks had Harrison wobbling again but the third man Pablon had seen enough and saved Audley the embarrassment of a second visit to the canvas in as many seconds as he rightfully waved it off, Audley still erect but badly wobbled stopped at 1:52 of the third.
Haye did the job but seemed too cautious in my opinion and it was beginning to stink out the joint, in the post fight interview David spoke of the brothers but on this performance Haye should really reconsider such a task, beating Audley Harrison’s one thing but in against either brother would be a far tougher proposition, as Harrison spoke of possibly giving it another go!
THIS WASN’T BOXING, THIS WAS BORING!

Any comments to micksnice@aol.com

David Torres and Santos Pakau, fighters for tonight’s main event at the Emerald Queen Casino in Tacoma, Washington, both made the contracted weight of 139-pounds this morning, Torres’ manager Lalo Martinez confirmed to 15rounds.com.

Longtime local favorite Torres (21-2, 13 KOs) of Othello, Washington is returning from his second career defeat this past January as he takes on veteran gatekeeper Pakau (27-6-1, 10 KOs) of Spokane, Washington in a ten-rounder. Torres, the naturally smaller fighter, scaled 139-even. Pakau, who has campaigned at welterweight in recent years, scaled 137-pounds.

Both fighters weighed in before Washington State Department of Licensing officials this morning in Olympia, Washington. Members of Torres’ team had expressed mild concerns regarding Pakau’s ability to make the weight at last night’s undercard weigh-in. Torres’ promoter, and host of tonight’s fights, Brian Halquist believes Torres could make 130-pounds for the right fight. Pakau comes first however, in what is an important bout in determining the direction for rest of Torres’ career.

Tickets for tonight’s six-bout card, promoted by Brian Halquist Productions, are available online at Ticketmaster.com.

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

Akron, Ohio is known as the Rubber City and the home of the All American Soap Box Derby, now is has another legacy, Dan Bobish territory. The former 2 time Super Heavyweight Champion of the World’s promotion, Ultimate Cage Battles, invaded Akron to a capacity crowd at Akron’s hot spot, The Barley House. Fans were treated to a 9 bout card that left the fighters bloody and the crowd screaming for more.

In the main event, Victor “The Italian Stallion” Guarriello stopped Bryan Gregory at 2:51 of the second round via a TKO due to strikes. Both combatants are known for their ground and pound game but the first round was mostly a stand up boxing match reminiscent of Rocky Balboa vs Apollo Creed. In the second, The Stallion took control early and Gregory could not keep up the pace of Guarriello. In his post fight interview, Guarriello thanked the fans for their support he received as he traveled into hostile territory all the way from Jamestown, New York. Guarriello, fought like a true warrior as he took this career changing bout on only 4 days notice. The Stallion improved to 3-1 while Gregory dropped to 3-2.

On the under card

Ed “Mighty” Mouse improved to 10-4 with a second round stoppage due to strikes over Trevor Stiles.

Kyle “Lil Bam-Bam” made quick work of Tyler Bess stopping him in just 24 seconds with vi\vicious strikes.

Debuting Travis Griffith upset “The Handgun” Dallas Dishman at 1:05 in the first round as he made “The Handgun” tap out with a arm choke.

“The Beast” Christian Anderson was victorious in is MMA debut over John “Big Bang” Compton who was also making his MMA debut.

Late substitute Jeremiah Yeager made Josh “Pitbull” Berkley tap out in the very first round with a Rear Naked Choke. The time was 2:29.

Brad Osborne won a 3 round unanimous decision over DeAndre Billingsly.

John Darin Choked out Sean Brown in the first round. The time 1:36.

UFC legend Wes Sims was in attendance working the corners of the Buckeye MMA fighters.

Following intermission, Dan Bobish announced the January 15, 2011 in Cleveland, Ohio will be the next installment of Ultimate Cage Battles. This pro-am card is already shaping up to be an amazing show. Already signed to fight is Brian Rogers 5-2. This 205lb combatant is riding a 4 fight win streak. None of his victories have gone past the first round.

For more information visit www.cagebattle.net

ARLINGTON, Tex. – Manny Pacquiao’s congregation wore T-shirts that said it all. Say it all.

Manny Knows

Does he ever.

There’s never a hint of doubt in that enigmatic smile and child-like eyes. Pacquiao never doubts. He just believes and on Saturday night at Cowboys Stadium he crushed those doubts and Antonio Margarito with hands that deliver an unrivalled mix of speed and power.

Questions about Pacquiao’s commitment and priorities were everywhere and building for weeks before he would challenge for an unprecedented eighth title, junior middleweight, at a catch weight. He was said to be more of a politician than a puncher since his election to the Filipino Congress. The guessing game was that he wanted a political title more than a boxing one. When he isn’t in the ring, maybe he does.

But at opening bell, this Congressman is still the pound-for-pound champion.

Margarito never had a chance in losing a decision. It was more than unanimous. It was one-sided. Judge Jurgen Langos scored it 120-108. It was 118-100 on Glen Crocker’s card. Oren Schellenbruger had it 119-109. On the 15 Rounds card, Margarito won only one round, the eighth, out of the scheduled 12. Even that one might qualify as a gift to the gutsy Margarito, who withstood a blinding succession of combinations and was clearly finished after the ninth.

“He is a tough fighter,’’ said Pacquiao, (52-3-2, 38 KOs), who said he was hurt by body punch along the ropes in the sixth.

But he is a slow fighter.

That became oh-so-evident quickly.

Seconds after the opening bell, Pacquiao was more effective with a consistent jab and an accurate right that began to expose Margarito’s ponderous lack of speed.

Pacquiao’s right landed, landed and landed in the first round. There it was again in the second, even in the face of a more aggressive Margarito, who landed an uppercut that served as an early warning and a powerful reminder that standing still was a one-way ticket to defeat for the Filipino.

Suddenly, a crowd announced at 41,734 began to witness answers to questions about Pacquiao had done the roadwork. He had. From round-to-round, Margarito moved forward. He knows no other way.

Through at least seven rounds, Pacquiao darted out of the corner, off the ropes, around Margarito as he landed a bewildering array of punches off-balance and always on the fly.

“He is the fastest fighter of our era,’’ Margarito trainer Robert Garcia said. “We’ve never seen anything like him.’’

In the later rounds, Margarito (38-7, 27 KOs) had trouble seeing at all.

In the third round, Pacquiao opened up a cut below Margarito’s right eye with an uppercut. With each round, the swelling grew and it looked as if it began to affect Margarito’s vision. By the 11th, even Pacquaio was concerned. He turned and seemed to ask referee Laurence Cole to stop it.

“My opponent looked bad,’’ Pacquiao said. “I didn’t want to damage him permanently.’’

But damage might have been done to Margarito’s future as fighter. At least, Roach thought so.

Margarito, Roach said, has “the worst corner.’’ Garcia, he said, should have stopped the fight to save Margarito’s career. But Margarito would not quit and said so in the ring after it was over. His pride, his Mexican heritage, would not permit surrender, he said. Still, there was no chance at victory either.

Magarito came into the ring just three pounds lighter than a super-middleweight and 17 pounds heavier than Pacquiao, who at 148 pounds was just one heavier than a welterweight.

Margarito gained 15 pounds between weigh-in and opening bell. He grabbed the water bottle after stepping off the official scale Friday and must have kept room service busy with orders for pasta, more pasta, for the next few hours.

But the early issue involved something that isn’t on any menu. Ephedra, a stimulant, is illegal. Roach suggested that Margarito might have been sprinkling it onto that pasta, or spiking his breakfast cup of coffee with the stuff.

In the end, neither the pounds nor ephedra, not anything else mattered.

But like the T-shirt said Pacquiao already knew that.

A good, sometimes great fight, unfolded while laptops at ringside were abuzz with tweets about a locker room debate initiated by Manny Pacquiao trainer Freddie Roach, who asked that Antonio Margarito undergo drug testing for ephedra, an illegal stimulant.

It wasn’t clear who was winning in the locker room.

It also wasn’t clear who was winning in the ring between Philadelphia welterweight Mike Jones (23-0, 18 KOs) and Mexican Jesus Soto-Karass (24-5-3, 16 KOs). In the end, Jones got the nod, a 12-round majority decision, over Soto-Karass.

Jones and Karass brought the crowd to its feet with a toe-to-toe, free-swinging exchange in the second. Jones won the round. For awhile, however, it looked as if had lost the fight. He nearly exhausted himself and Soto-Karass capitalized with stubborn aggressiveness and body shots followed by head-rocking right hands. Judge Serio Caiz scored it 97-93 for Jones. Jones won, 95-94, on Levi Martinez’ card. Gale Van Hoy scored it 94-94, leaving Soto-Karass with a tough loss to go along with bloody cuts near both eyes.

Guillermo Rigondeaux (7-0, 5 KOs), an Olympic gold medalist from Cuba, won a fight, but no fans. They had a new way to spell his name, as in Rigondull.

That’s what his split decision over Panamanian Ricardo Cordoba (37-3-2, 23 KOs) for a World Boxing Association interim junior-featherweight title was: Dull, dull and duller. Did we forget to say dull?

The only cheers were for legendary Roberto Duran, who accompanied Cordoba into the ring. After that, there were yawns, then boos and even the wave, which might have been the most derisive gesture from bored fans awaiting Manny Pacquiao and Antonio Margarito.

For awhile, it sounded as if the restless crowd was watching the Cowboys, who have yet to win a game this NFL season on the home turf beneath the ring.

Rigondeaux escaped with a victory, in part because Cordoba went down on to a knee in the fourth from an apparent body shot. The Cuban won 117-109 on one judge’s card and 114-112 on a second. The third judge scored it 114-112 for Cordoba.

For the first time in days, there were cheers for Brandon Rios, who had been booed for mocking Manny Pacquiao trainer Freddie Roach’s Parkinson’s symptoms in a controversial video.

Rios was booed at Friday’s weigh-in.

He was booed when he walked to the ring Saturday for the first fight on the HBO pay-per-view telecast that featured Pacquiao-Antonio Margarito. And booed when he stepped through the ropes. And when he was introduced.

The cheers came later, after Rios (26-0-1, 19 KOs), a super-lightweight from Oxnard, Calif., was declared the winner by TKO over Omri Lowther (14-3, 10 KOs) of Valdosta, Ga.

Rios cut off the ring, cut off every avenue of escape and began to subject Lowther to a withering succession of body punches. In the fifth, a few well-placed head shots brought about the inevitable end for an exhausted Lowther.

An Antonio Margarito sparring partner was beaten up in the gym and beaten Saturday night on the card’s opening bout.

Los Angeles welterweight Rashad Holloway (11-2-2, 5 KOs) lost an unanimous decision to Dennis Laurente (35-3-4, 17 KOs), one of Manny Pacquiao’s fellow Filipinos.

Fellow Filipinos already in their seats at Cowboys Stadium probably hoped that was a good sign for their revered Congressman in a main event scheduled to start six hours after the opener. For Margarito fans, it might have been a sign of what they hope he will do to Pacquiao.

Margarito reportedly hurt Holloway in sparring. One of his injuries was reported to be a dislocated eye socket. Holloway never had a chance against Laurente, who won seven of eight rounds on one card, six on another and five on the third.

In the second bout, Mexican super-lightweight Oscar Meza (20-4, 17 KOs) left no questions, scoring a knockdown in the fourth and final round for a unanimous decision over Jose Hernandez (10-3, 4 KOs) of Dallas.

There were some questions in the third fight. Filipino flyweight Richie Mepranum (17-3-1, 3 KOs) got the favorable answer, an eight-round split decision over Anthony Villareal (10-4, 6 KOs), of Perris, Calif.

Phoenix prospect Jose Benavidez Jr. (9-0, 9 KOs) knocked fellow super-lightweight Winston Mathis (6-3, 2 KOs) of Stockbridge, Ga., down and around, but never much sense into him.

After scoring two knockdowns in the first round, Benavidez sent Mathis up and back onto his heels with a looping right that landed with the impact of bat onto a fastball. Referee Neal Young looked into the hazy daze of Mathis’ eyes. What he saw was obvious: The end.

Young stopped it at 2:24 of the third. But the stoppage angered Mathis, who for a moment raised his hands and ran at Young as if he had decided to continue the fight against a different opponent. Mathis lost that one, too

Notre Dame graduate Mike Lee did to Keith Debow what the Irish used to do to Navy. He mauled him. Lucky for Debow, this one didn’t last four quarters.

It was over at 1:33 of the first round.

Lee’s report record as a light-heavyweight remained perfect (3-0) with his second knockout, which came about as a result of big right hand followed by several more against defenseless Debow (0-3-1), a St. Louis who leaned on a neutral ring post as though it if it were the only thing keeping him up and in the ring.

First-round stoppages began to become a theme in the next bout, the sixth on a card scheduled for 11. Dallas featherweight Robert Marroquin (17-0, 13 KOs) scored the encore, knocking down Mexican Francisco Dominguez (8-8, 7 KOs) twice within 87 seconds for a TKO victory at 1:27 of the first.

It was a swing fight. For super-featherweights Angel Rodriguez (6-4-2, 4 KOs) of Houston and Juan Martin Elorde (11-1, 4 KOs) of the Philippines, it was swing and mostly miss through flour erratic rounds. Rodriguez missed less often Elorde. He scored a unanimous decision over the previously unbeaten Filipino.

Photo By Cgris Farina / Top Rank

Jesus Ruiz scored a twelve round unanimous decision over Julio Ler in a Super Bantamweight bout in Polanco, Mexico.

Ruiz used his height advantage to pick apart Ler and and win every round on all three judges scorecards. Those card read 120-108.

Ruiz, 121 lbs of Sonora, Mexico is now 24-3-2. Ler, 121 lbs of Cordoba, Argentina is now 30-8.

FIFE, WASHINGTON — Two years ago, David Torres was an unbeaten, but unproven prospect before taking a major step up in class against former world champion Julio Diaz. The step proved to be too big, as Diaz stopped him in five. Torres has gone 1-1 in his two fights since, and will look to get back on track against fellow local Santos Pakau in the main event tonight at the Emerald Queen Casino in Tacoma, Washington. Undercard fighters weighed in late Friday at the neighboring Emerald Queen Hotel & Casino in Fife.

Torres (21-2, 13 KOs) of Othello, Washington has been a fan favorite at the Emerald Queen Casino since shortly after turning professional in 2003, having fought all but three of his fights at the venue. Torres has only been beaten once on his home court and that defeat came last time out when Raymundo Beltran halted him in the seventh round this past January.

Pakau (27-6-1, 10 KOs) of Spokane, Washington by way of Auckland, New Zealand has taken on a very tough schedule in recent years. Since moving from New Zealand to the United States Pakau has been thrown in with a bevy of prospects and top contenders, including top welterweights Paul Williams and Randall Bailey. For the fight against Torres, Pakau is moving back down to a weight at which he could likely be more competitive. The contracted weight for tonight’s ten-round bout is 139-pounds.

Although he has routinely weighed around 139, if Torres were to ever vie for a title, it would likely be at 135-pounds. Pakau has fought the majority of his fights of late at or near the welterweight limit of 147. Thus it is to the benefit of the naturally smaller Torres that the official weigh-in takes place Saturday morning, so that Pakau has less time to plump up in weight after hydrating and eating. Thus, Torres and Pakau will weigh-in at 9:00 A.M. this morning before Washington State officials in Spokane.

In the co-main event, Lafarrell Bunting (16-3-1, 16 KOs) of Memphis, Tennessee will return from a three-year absence against Junior Moar (8-2, 2 KOs) of Richmond, British Columbia, Canada in an eight-round light heavyweight bout. Bunting, a well regarded prospect at 168-pounds a few years back, weighed in at 175 ½-pounds on his second try. Moar, the reigning Canadian Light Heavyweight Champion, will be making his U.S. debut. Moar scaled 176-pounds. Promoters have designs on putting the winner of this bout in a regional title fight on a future show.

In a battle of unbeaten big men, Charles Ellis (6-0-1, 5 KOs) of Vancouver, Washington will take on Vincent Thompson (5-0, 1 KO) of nearby Federal Way, Washington in a six-rounder. Ellis, the 2003 National Golden Gloves Heavyweight Champion, weighed in at a solid 227-pounds. Thompson, coming off of his career best win over former amateur rival Villi Bloomfield in August, scaled 226 ½-pounds.

Rob Diezel (3-1, 1 KO) of Seattle, Washington will meet Marco Cardenas (1-2) of Salem, Oregon in a four-round super featherweight rematch. Diezel scored a close four-round unanimous decision over Cardenas less than one month ago in Ferndale, Washington. Diezel was ahead by one point, 38-37, on two of the official cards. Cardenas scaled 129 ½ Friday, while Diezel came in at 130 ½.

Professional mixed martial artist Omar Avelar of Moses Lake, Washington will make his debut as a boxer against Ralph Prescott (0-5) of Seattle in a four-round welterweight fight. Avelar, who has a 4-0 record in MMA, scaled 145 ½-pounds after taking the fight on short notice. Prescott, who tipped the scales at 139-pounds, is winless in five tries, but has only been stopped by former Olympian Sadam Ali.

Debuting Virgil Green of Arlington, Washington will take on Miguel Garcia (2-1) also of Arlington in a four-round light welterweight fight. Green, a former regional Golden Gloves and PAL champion, weighed in at 139 ½-pounds, while Garcia scaled 141-pounds.

Tickets for the event, promoted by Brian Halquist Productions, are available online at Ticketmaster.com. Saturday’s event is the 79th edition of the “Battle at the Boat” boxing series.

Quick Weigh-in Results:

Light Welterweights, 10 Rounds
Torres*
Pakau*

Light Heavyweights, 8 Rounds
Bunting 175 ½
Moar 176

Heavyweights, 6 Rounds
Ellis 227
Thompson 226 ½

Super Featherweights, 4 Rounds
Diezel 130 ½
Cardenas 129 ½

Welterweights, 4 Rounds
Prescott 139
Avelar 145 ½

Light Welterweights, 4 Rounds
Green 139 ½
Garcia 141

*will weigh-in at 9:00 A.M. this morning

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

CLICK TO ORDER THE FIGHT CARD
NORTH BERGEN, NJ — In a ten round middleweight bout, Ossie “The Ghanaian Gladiator” Duran (25-8-2, 9 KO) easily outpointed tough veteran, Matt “The Predator” Vanda (43-11, 25 KO). Working behind an electric jab, Duran was awarded a unanimous decisions by the scores of 99-91 and 100-90 twice.

From the opening bell Duran established an effective jab, consistently tagging Vanda at will. With his snapping jab, Duran was able to keep the usually combative Vanda at bay, never letting him fight on the inside.

After breezing through two rounds, Duran found himself trading with Vanda early in round three. “The Predator” came out aggressive, trying to turn the tide, but it was not meant to be. Every time Vanda enjoyed a bit of success, Duran would fire right back even the score.

By round four, Duran was peppering Vanda with a variety of punches. Besides throwing his unavoidable jab, “The Ghanaian Gladiator” was beginning to frequently land ill-intentioned body blows. Vanda’s suspect defense did little to stop the determined Duran as he began punching through or around “The Predator’s” gloves and to an exposed body.

In round seven, Vanda showed a sense of urgency by firing left hooks and straight rights Duran’s way. He tried to overwhelm Duran with power punches and backed the “Ghanaian Gladiator” up against the ropes, where he pounded away at a well-defended Duran.

Although this was Vanda’s most successful round, “The Predator” ran out of gas in the final minute, not throwing many punches and allowing the persistent Duran to steal the round.

Duran warded off a few more Vanda attacks before the final bell, but never found himself in any danger.

Juan “JZ” Zegarra vs. Bryan “The Brick” Abraham — 4 Rounds, Jr. Welterweight

In a bout that was explosive while it lasted, Juan “JZ” Zegarra stopped Bryan “The Brick” Abraham within two rounds to improve his already impressive record to 6-0, with 6 KOs.

The fight’s opening punch was a straight left hand courtesy of Zegarra that landed flush on the face of Abraham (2-4-2, 2 KO). To his credit, Abraham fired right back, connecting with wide but heavy punches. Zegarra seemingly respected Abraham’s power, but was willing to continue trading with him for the rest of the round.

Zegarra, a North Bergen import, via Lima, Peru, landed a huge straight left that rocked Abraham, sending him off balance. Abraham, although never falling to canvass, used his gloves to help keep him on his feet, resulting in a knockdown.

In the second round, Zegarra continued to trade with Abraham, seemingly willing to eat a punch or two in order to land his own shots. The Peruvian was clearly getting the better of the exchanges when his persistence paid off when he stunned Abraham with a huge left, sending him back into the ropes where Zegarra followed up and finished the job. Referee Eddie Cotten saw enough and called a halt to the bout at the 1:46 mark in round two.

Todd Erickson vs. Joe Dunn — 4 Rounds, Super Middleweights

In an impressive performance, Dover, New Jersey’s Todd Erickson (2-4-1, 1 KO) scored a unanimous decision victory of Philadelphia’s Joe Dunn.

Erickson used his height and reach advantage to keep Dunn from ever landing anything significant. The taller Erickson worked behind an effective jab in the early goings and gained more confidence as the bout progressed, as he rattled off more combinations in the last two rounds.

Dunn spent the first three rounds an arms length away from Erickson. In the final round, showing a little more urgency, Dunn attempted to get on the inside and fire off some punches, but he ended up paying a price for his efforts.

Erickson cruised to a unanimous decision victory with all three judges scoring it 40-36 for the fan-favorite.

Juan “The Beast” Rodriguez vs. Salim “The Dream” Al Quaadir — 4 Rounds, Jr. Middleweight

Juan “The Beast” Rodriguez made quick of Salim “The Dream” Al Quaadir to improve his record to 5-0, 3 KOs. Rodriguez dropped Al Quaadir (1-3) twice in the first round, with the second one concluding the fight.

Al Quaadir, who was fighting for the first time in twelve years, must have wished he never returned, as he spent the 2:57 of the first round on the receiving end of “The Beast’s” vicious punches.

Midway through the inaugural round, Al Quaadir took a knee after Rodriguez rattled off a steady stream of punches while Al Quaadir was backed into a corner.

The second knockdown, which Al Quaadir never recovered from, came courtesy of a thudding right to the body. The fight was stopped at the 2:57 mark of the first round.

Deano “Bad Newz” Burrell vs. John Passantino — 4 Rounds, Lightweight

In his highly anticipated professional debut, Deano “Bad Newz” Burrell (1-0, 1 KO) did not disappoint the tens of fans who traveled from London to North Bergen to watch him fight. For the four minutes and forty-four seconds Burrell was in the ring, he was dishing out punishment to Selden, New York’s John Passantino (0-2).

Burrell, a southpaw, battered his smaller opponent in the opening round, dropping him with a huge overhand left at the end of the round.

In the second round, Burrell picked up right were he left off, punishing his opponent with crackling body shots, ultimately forcing Passantino the drop to one knee. After beating the referee’s count, the spent Passantino backed into the ropes, where he became prey for a predator. Burrell pummeled Passantino until the referee stopped the bout at the 1:44 mark of round two.

Donald “Stone Face” Bernard vs. Rogilio Sanchez — 4 Rounds, Jr. Middleweight

In the night’s opening bout, Paterson, New Jersey’s Donald Bernard (2-0) was awarded a split decision victory over Fort Wayne, Indiana’s Rogilio Sanchez.

Sanchez forced the action the entire fight, always coming forward and pressuring Bernard. In a fight that was anything but a defensive clinic, both fighter’s had their fare share of success, but also put their chins to the test.

In the end, Bernard was awarded the split decision victory.

Judges Tony Perez and Pierre Benoist scored the bout 39-37 in favor of Bernard, while judge Alan Rubenstein scored it 39-37 in favor of Sanchez.

ARLINGTON, Tex. – Boxing history is littered with great fighters going one weight class too high. The oddsmakers still say Filipino Manny Pacquiao has not made that mistake. But if Saturday’s fight brings an unexpected loss for Pacquiao, no forensic team will be needed to uncover a cause. The evidence will be found on the scale.

Friday afternoon at Cowboys Stadium, Pacquiao and Mexican Antonio Margarito took the indoor stage of the East Side Plaza before a roaring crowd of perhaps 1,000 fight fans – moved inside by the possibility of rain. Both fighters were bundled up in multiple layers, as the Texas temperature had dropped 20 degrees in a few hours.

Margarito weighed the fight’s contracted maximum of 150 pounds. Pacquiao weighed 144.6. If Margarito’s weight was expected, Pacquiao’s was another thing entirely.

Throughout the promotion of Pacquiao-Margarito, questions have arisen about Pacquiao’s commitment to his training regimen. The naturally smaller man, by a significant margin, Pacquiao was expected to add muscle enough to weigh at least the welterweight limit of 147 pounds. He wasn’t close.

More intrigue happened when the two men stood beside one another.

After Margarito approached the scale in an all-black track suit, gold chain and gold earrings, and made weight, with a loud and mixed reception from Mexican and Filipino fans, he waited for Pacquiao to disrobe and mount the scale. And then came the customary stare-down. It held a surprise.

Margarito wore the more defined of the two bodies on Friday’s stage.

Pacquiao’s physique was muscular, not shredded. Margarito, meanwhile, was taller, wider, and closer to “ripped.”

Friday’s weight, though, may be only the beginning of the story. Pacquiao is believed to have eaten freely this week, as he has regularly during fight weeks since his move to welterweight in 2008, and if that is the case, he may not even weigh as much on Saturday as he did Friday afternoon. Margarito, on the other hand, is fully expected to be above the middleweight limit of 160 pounds, and maybe quite a bit above it.

Pacquiao remains the favorite, because of speed and class. But a fight that was already more interesting than initially expected grew more interesting, still, Friday.

Saturday’s Pacquiao-Margarito card is scheduled to begin at 5:00 PM local time, with Cowboys Stadium doors opening at 4:00 PM. The pay-per-view portion of the card will begin at 8:00, with the main event scheduled to start at 10:00. 15rounds.com will have full ringside coverage.

Photo By Chris Farina / Top Rank

Urijah Faber made his Bantamweight debut by choking out Takeya Mizugaki at 4:50 of round one of a scheduled three round bout that headlined a WEC card at the Pearl at the Palms in Las Vegas.

Faber choked Mizugaki and was impressive in his new weight class.

Faber, 136 lbs of Sacramento, CA is now 24-4. Mizugaki, 136 lbs of Japan is now 13-5-2.

Chad Mendes remained undefeated with a three round unanimous decision over Javier Vazquez in a Featherweight bout.

Scores were 30-27 on all cards for Mendez, 145 1/2 lbs and is now 9-0. Vazquez, 146 lbs of Rancho Cucamunga, CA is now 15-5.

Cub Swanson scored a three round split decision over Mackens Semerzier in a Featherweight fight.

Swans0n, 145 lbs won by scores of 29-28 on two cards while Semerzier won a card 29-28.

Erik Koch landed one devastating and made quick work over previously undefeated Francisco Rivera by scoring a stoppage in round one of their scheduled three round Featherweight bout.

Koch landed a hard left kick to the face that sent Rivera to the canvas and quickly pounced on Rivera before referee Steve Mazagatti stopped the bout just ninety-six seconds into the bout.

Koch, 146 lbs of Cedar Rapids, IA is now 11-1. Rivera, 146 lbs of Buena Park, Ca is now 5-1

Joseph Benavidez submitted Wagney Fabiano in round two of the scheduled three round Bantamweight bout.

Benavidez locked in chokes on three separate occasions with the third time being the charm as Fabiano finally tapped out.

The end came at 2:45 of round two for Benavidez, 136 lbs of Sacramento is 13-2. Fabiano, 136 lbs of Rio Di Janerio, Brazil is now 14-.3

Demetrious Johnson choked out Damacio Page in round three of their scheduled three round Bantamweight bout.

The end came at 2:27 of round for Johnson 135 lbs of Parkland, Washington is now 12-1. Page, 136 lbs of Albuquerque, is now 12-5.

CLICK TO ORDER THE FIGHT
10 Rounds, Light Middleweight
Ossie Duran — 159 lbs.
vs.
Matt Vanda — 160 lbs.

6 Rounds, Light Welterweight
Juan Zegarra — 140 lbs.
vs.
Bryan Abraham — 141.5 lbs.

4 Rounds, Featherweight
Deano Burrell — 135.5 lbs.
vs.
John Passantino — 134 lbs.

4 Rounds, Welterweight
Juan Rodriguez — 148.5 lbs.
vs.
Salim Al Quaadir — 146 lbs.

4 Rounds, Light Welterweight
Donald Bernard — 150 lbs.
vs.
Rogelio Sanchez — 150 lbs.

4 Rounds, Light Heavyweight
Todd Erickson — 168.5 lbs.
vs.
Joe Dunn — 161 lbs.

On Friday night November 12th, Paterson New Jersey’s “Ghanian Gladiator” Ossie Duran, 24-8-2, 9 KO’s will take on Matt “The Predator” Vanda, 43-11, 23 KO’s who fights out of Saint Paul, Minnesota. This 10-round junior middleweight bout will set the tone for a card featuring fighters who take great pride in the fact that they do not turn down fights and they come to fight 100% every time out. “Rumble in the Park” will take place at Schuetzen Park in North Bergen, New Jersey.

The night of boxing will feature Newark, New Jersey’s Jr. middleweight prospect and 2000 Olympian Jersen “Superjerz” Ravelo, 20-5, 12 KOs, and “The Brick City Spoiler,” world ranked lightweight, Carlos Vinan, 10-8-4, 2 KOs. Exciting, well-known prospects will both make their pro debut, Deano “Bad Newz” Burrell and Scotty “Spade Ace” Burrell. Local favorite, KEA Boxing’s Juan Rodgriguez, 4-0, 2 KOs will also be fighting in addition to three other bouts. The girls of www.Roundcardmodels.com will also be featured.

Tickets for “Rumble in the Park” are priced at $100 and $45 and can be purchased by calling 201-774-1646. Doors open at 6:30 pm, first bout is at 7:30 pm.

Rico Ramos remained undefeated with a devastating one punch knockout over veteran Heriberto Ruiz at 1:03 of round two of their scheduled ten round Super Bantamweight bout in front of U.S Army members at Camp Lejuene, North Carolina.

Ramos landed perfect right that knocked Ramos, who was trying to land his own wide right hand, out with a perfectly placed shoton the chin.

Ramos, 123 1/2 lbs of Downey, CA is now 18-0 with ten knockouts. Ruiz, 122 1/2 lbs of Los Mochis, Mexico is now 44-10-2.

Former U.S. Olympian looked to be on his way to his tenth straight knockout as he dropped Tony Hirsch midway through the first round of their scheduled six round Super Middleweight fight but Hirsch showed courage but it was Estrada who walked away with the unanimous decision in the Super Middleweight bout.

Estrada dropped Hirsch with a left hook and Hirsch was in trouble but held on to get out of round one. Hirsch fought well in spots and Estrada was even cut over his left eye from an appear ant headbutt. Estrada took the latter rounds to win by scores of 59-54; 59-54 and 58-55

Estrada, 163 1/4 lbs of East Los Angeles is 10-0. Hirsch, 160 1/4 lbs of Oakland, CA is 12-4-1.

In the final bout of a long night of boxing at Newark, New Jersey’s Prudential Center, Zab “Super” Judah (40-6, 27 KO) was awarded a split decision victory over the previously unbeaten Lucas Matthysse (27-1, 25 KO) in front of a crowd of 4,172 people.

The main event was slow to start, as the first five rounds failed to provide fireworks, and thus, failed to excite the crowd — who, at times, ‘booed’ the fighters in the ring. The best punches of the bouts first few rounds were landed by Zab — a crisp right hook in round 1, a sharp left uppercut perfectly placed on Matthysse’s chin in round 3, and another vicious right hook in round 5.

From round 6 on, however, Matthysse looked like a different fighter. He started to press the action more and more and walk down Judah and cut off the ring. It was evident that Matthysse was trying to score big with a straight right, and finally, in round 10, he connected and Judah went crashing to the canvas. Matthysse, smelling blood in the water, tried to follow up, but Judah fired back and warded off any further attack.

Matthysse second-half comeback was not enough to overcome his slow start, however, as he lost a split decision. The judge who scored the bout in favor of the Argentinian saw it 114-113. While the two who scored the bout for Judah saw the fight 115-112 and 114-113.

The win marks Judah’s fourth in a row and second straight since returning to 140 lbs. Next up for Judah will likely be Kaizer Mabuza in another IBF junior welterweight eliminator

Robert Guerrero vs. Vincente Escobedo

In an entertaining and hard-fought ten round battle, Robert Guerrero (28-1, 18 KO) earned a unanimous decision victory over fellow Californian, Vincente Escobedo (22-3, 14 KO).

In the opening round, Guerrero got the better of Escobedo, with a sensational right hook serving as the opening rounds most devastating punch. It was a clash of heads however, not any punches, that caused a huge gash to open up on the side of Escobedo’s head. As the round progressed, Escobedo’s entire left side of his face was painted red.

Escobedo’s cutman did a nice job between rounds to slow the cut and reduce the blood flow from a pour to a slow leak. Both fighters continued to feel one another in the second round, with Guerrero getting the better of Escobedo. In the third round, Guerrero turned up the heat, as he dropped Escobedo with a dazzling combination of a right hook followed by a straight left.

To Escobedo’s credit and in round four found a lot of success when he threw punches in bunches. At times, Escobedo landed his punches flush on Guerrero’s face, but “The Ghost” was never in danger.

In the sixth round, Guerrero sent Escobedo crashing to the canvas once again, courtesy of a left uppercut.

While Escobedo battled, there was no way he could overcome the two knockdowns.

All three judges scored the bout in favor of Guerrero: 100-88, 98-90, and 96-93.

Bastie Samir vs. Damion Reed — 4 Rounds

In the night’s opening bout, Bastie Samir (6-0, 6 KOs) made quick work of Reidsville, North Carolina’s Damion Reed (2-4, 1 KO). Samir, who fights out of Las Vegas by way of Accra, Ghana, bombarded his defenseless opponent with a barrage of vicious left hooks. The former Ghanaian Olympian sent Reed to one knee four different times in the opening round before the referee called a halt to the bout. The time of the stoppage was 2:47 into round 1.

Mikael Zewski vs. Ardrick Butler — Welterweights — 4Rounds

In a four round bout at the welterweight division, undefeated prospect Mikael Zewski (5-0, 3 KOs) defeated Philadelphia’s Ardrick Butler (5-3, 2 KOs). The Canadian prospect, Zewski, showed off an impressive skillet over the twelve minutes spent in the ring. Zewski pounded away at Butler throughout the fight, hammering Butler’s body, and mixing in aggressive left hooks that often found a home. In the final round, Zewski kicked it into another gear, throwing a fifteen second flurry of viscious power punches, which Butler, to his credit, withstood. The resilient Butler had his own share of success sprinkled throughout the bout, but Zewski always had an answer. All three judges scored the bout 40-36 in favor of Zewski.

Mike Perez vs. Hevinson Herrera — Lightweights — 6 Rounds

Undefeated prospect Mike Perez put on an electrifying performance in front of his hometown fans. Perez (10-0-1, 5 KO’s), born and raised in Newark, shocked his opponent, Hevinson Herrera (14-7-1, 12 KO’s) when he hurt him with a straight right less than a minute into the inaugural round. Perez wisely followed up backing the injured Herrera up against the ropes before finishing him off with a three punch combination — left hook, right to the body, left hook — that sent Herrera hard to the canvas. Herrera beat the ten count, but was visibly hurt and standing on wobbly legs. Referee Randy Nuemann stopped the bout 1:02 into the opening round.

Tyrone Luckey vs. Alex Montes — Junior Lightweights — 4 Rounds

In a fight that had the Prudential Center crowd on their feet at times, Middletown, New Jersey’s Tyrone Luckey improved his record to 2-0 with a third round stoppage over Alex Montes (1-2) of San Juan, Puerto Rico. The fight started with a bang when Montes introduced Luckey to the canvas about fifteen seconds into the fight. The fighter’s continued to exchange power punches with each other throughout the first round, standing in the pocket, and wailing away. The second round saw Luckey find Montes’ chin with regularity, as he dropped Montes twice in round two, both with violent left hooks. Round three saw more fireworks, with Montes on the receiving end of most exchanges. Once again, Luckey rocked Montes, who went down for the third time in the fight. When Montes got to his feet, he was standing on unstable legs and that’s when Luckey pounded away at his injured opponent until the referee called a halt to the bout at the 2:55 mark of the round 3.

Mike Brooks vs. Kywayne Hill — Junior Lightweights — 4 Rounds

Long Island, New York’s Mike “Lefty” Brooks easily outpointed Philadelphia’s Kywayne Hill to improve his record to 3-0, 1 KO. Brooks used his superior hand speed to continuously score against Hill 1-6, 1 KO, who offered up an uninspiring effort. At times, Hill looked like he could inflict some damage on Brooks, scoring sporadically with uppercuts and straight rights. He could never string together combinations, however, and seemed content at times to cover up and let Brooks throw freely — which he did. In the end, all three judges scored the bout 40-36 in favor of Brooks.

Angel Concepcion vs. Maurice Amaro — Light Heavyweights — 4 Rounds

In a four round light heavyweight bout, Newark’s Angel Concepcion improved his record to 3-0 with a unanimous decision over Philadelphia’s Maurice Amaro, who fell to 1-3. The opening round was Concepcion’s finest, landing punches at will through Hill’s suspect defense. Concepcion pummeled HIll with left hooks that wrapped around Hill’s defense and couple them with straight rights that split Hill’s gloves. TO his credit, Hill withstood everything Concepcion threw at him, and on occasion landed some power punches of his own. Concepcion, who was never once in danger throughout the fight, imposed his will on Hill, landing punches with regularity. In the end all three judges scored the bout 40-36 in favor of Newark’s Concepcion.

Adrien Broner vs. Ilido Julio — Junior Lightweights — 8 Rounds

Undefeated prospect Adrian Broner scored a first round TKO victory over veteran journeyman Ilido Julio to improve his record to 18-0, 15 KOs. Broner, showed not only superior boxing skills, but also superior dance moves, as he came into the ring dancing, danced a little more mid-fight, and finished the show with a backflip. Broner hammered his out of shape Colombian opponent from the opening bell. Midway through the round, Broner landed a violent left hook/straight right combination that sent Julio crashing to the floor. During the 10-count, Broner walked over to where the HBO announcing trio of Jim Lampley, Max Kellerman, and Roy Jones Jr., are seated and told Roy Jones Jr. that he’s the next world champion. When the fight resumed, Broner rushed over the wobbly Julio and unleashed a continuous flow of punches until the referee stepped in and stopped the fight. The time of the stoppage was 1:34 in the first round.

Sadam Ali vs. Gary Bergeron — Welterweights — 8 Rounds 2:18

Fan favorite and former US Olympian, Brooklyn’s Sadam Ali (10-0, 6 KOs) overpowered New Orleans’ Gary Bergeron (12-7, 7 KOs) to get the TKO victory at the 2:18 mark of round 2. Ali looked as sharp as ever, creating angles with impressive footwork and landing punches at will. Bergeron seemed content to cover up his face and absorb a barrage of body punches throughout the fight. Ali hammered away at Bergeron, who was unable to create any offense whatsoever during his five-plus minutes in the ring. Towards the end of the opening round, Ali dropped Bergeron with a left hook, left uppercut combination. After beating the 10-count, Bergeron was pinned against the ropes, covering up and not firing back as Ali unleashed vicious combinations on him. The fight could have easily been stopped at the end of round 1, but Bergeron was saved by bell.

The second round was all Ali, as he once again controlled the fight. Towards the end of round 2, Ali dropped Bergeron again, this time by a right uppercut. After beating the count, Ali put pressure on, eventually rocking Bergeron again with a left hook that put the New Orleans native on unsteady legs. A straight right and one more left hook prompted the referee to call a halt to the bout at the 2:18 mark of round 2.

LAS VEGAS — It wasn’t a defining moment. For the fighter known simply as JuanMa, that will have to wait. JuanMagnifico, he wasn’t.

But JuanMature he might become after a bruising battle Saturday night at the MGM Grand that ended with Rafael Marquez unable to continue after the eighth round because of an injury to his right shoulder.

After early dominance, Juan Manuel Lopez (29-0, 26 KOs) fought through trouble, recovered and reasserted himself to stay undefeated in defense of his featherweight crown, the World Boxing Organization’s version of the 126-pound title. The 27-year-old Lopez had the crowd chanting his name – JuanMa, JuanMa — in the opening rounds and again in the end for the stinging power in his hands and the young legs that carried him into trouble, out of it and finally up the ladder to stardom. Early on, JuanMa smiled and gestured at the crow, which included boyhood idol Felix Trinidad, as though he thought he was in for an easy night. His hands were faster; his legs younger. At the end of the first round, JuanMa bounced a succession of punches off Marquez (39-6, 35 KOs) at the rate of a pinball. After the bell sounded, he turned, smiled at his corner and waved his gloved hands in front of him as if to say it would end quickly. For the next two rounds, there was nothing to change his mind.

In the third, a short left hand from the left-handed Puerto Rican sent Marquez stumbling half way across the ring and into the ropes. How tough could it be? Turns out, very tough. The experienced Marquez caught Lopez with a head-rocking counter seconds after it looked as he might be finished in the third. In the fourth, the 35-year-old Mexican began to put together punches that looked like a lesson plan. Suddenly, JuanMa’s early success began to look like a mirage. Left-handed counters left JuanMa looking dazed, yet still on his feet.

“It’s going to happen,’’ JuanMa said. “”You get hit. He gets hit. He has tremendous power.’’

Translation: JuanMa endured that part of the lesson and survived, although his youth showed for a moment. He was penalized a point by referee Tony Weeks for hitting Marquez on the back of the head. He argued with Weeks after the round ended.

But the frustration dissipated as quickly as Marquez’ chances. Marquez began to look his old. That might have been because of an unspecified injury. “I was hurt before the fight,’’ said the Mexican great, whose thumb injury in August forced the fight to be postponed from Sept. 18. Marquez said he hurt his right shoulder in the third round. After the eighth, he told his corner about the injury.

“I can’t move it,’’ Marquez said he told trainer Daniel Zaragoza. Zaragoza asked him if would have to stop the fight. Then, somebody touched Marquez shoulder. He winced. The pain was evident. “I can’t go,’’ Marquez told Zaragosa. The injury happened sometime in the third round, said Marquez, who said it limited his ability to throw punches. “I couldn’t punch the way I always do,’’ he said, “If I could have I would have won the fight.’’

Marquez seemed to be saying that he wanted a rematch. Against a JuanMature, that might be a tough sequel.

Johnson scores 8th-round TKO over Green

It took a sub to make another one look sub-par. Glen Johnson made Alan Green look like a sub sandwich in the super-middleweight’s Super Six Classic Saturday night at the MGM Grand. Green went down easily against an older and much tougher Johnson.

The 41-year-old Johnson (51-14-2, 35 KOs), who looked more comfortable at 168 pounds than he has at light heavyweight (175), threw right hands early, later and almost at will. The 31-year-old Green (29-3, 10 KOs) had no counter, no defense and not much else other than perhaps a quick shuffle out of the Showtime tournament. Like hammer to nail, Johnson’s right hand finished the job at 36 seconds of the eighth round when at least two rights put Green down.

“ I knew that eventually he would move into a position where I could really land those punches,’’ said Johnson, whose fight-ending blows crashed off of Green’s left temples As he tried to get up, referee Robert Byrd looked and saw shaky legs, unsteady feet and uncertain eyes. Byrd had seen enough. As Byrd waved his arms, Green there was a hint of relief in his dazed eyes, even though he was leading on two of three scorecards. Judges Jerry Roth and Dick Houck had Green leading, 67-66. Johnson led, 68-65, on Burt Clements’ card. En route to his TKO victory, Johnson delivered an early message, a wicked overhand right, in the first round that must have told Green that next time he should try to get into a different kind of tournament. Table tennis, anyone? Green, Johnson’s longtime friend, backpedaled until there was nowhere to go. There was no refuge in retreat. Only the ropes. That’s where Green found himself near the end of third. Johnson caught him once in the back of the head.

Then, he followed with the right hand that already had displayed its power. The bell ended the round. But Green was in trouble. He stumbled in search of his stool. It was only a matter of time before he would find only defeat and an exit from the Super Six.
Knockouts are early theme on JuanMa-Marquez undercard

Derrick Campos (20-10, 11 KOs), a super-featherweight from Topeka, Kan., got up, close and personal with the canvas. Unbeaten Diego Magdaleno (17-0, 5 KOs) of Las Vegas made sure of it a in bout that was part of Showtime’s international telecast. Magdaleno put Campos down three times in four rounds. A left-right sent Campos tumbling in the final second of the first. A right hook sent down again in the third and encore right at 15 seconds of the fourth ended it.

Knockouts were the early story. Through the first three fights, they were the only story. The biggest was delivered by Washington D.C. lightweight Daniel Attah (25-6-1, 9 KOs), whose right hook at 1:55 of the second round almost sent Mexican Marvin Quintero (20-3, 16 KOs) skipping across the canvas like a flat stone on a pond. It took several minutes before Quintero could walk under his own power. He was helped onto stool at the center of the ring where he sat, dazed, while his corner men try to tell him what had happened. He was unconscious at the moment Attah’s right landed.

Attah only took a little bit longer than Jesse Magdaleno and McWilliams Arroyo did in the first two fights of the untelevised part of a card featuring featherweights Juan Manuel Lopez and Rafael Marquez.

In the night’s opener, Arroyo (5-1, 4 KOs), a Puerto Rican flyweight, won a by TKO at 2:55 of the first round over Mexican Cesar Grajeda (7-2, 1 KO,).

Magdaleno (1-0, 1 KO), a Las Vegas super-featherweight, won his debut with a TKO at 1:38 of the first over Matthew Salazar (1-3-1, 0 KOs) of Albuquerque.

The judges finally had some say-so in the night’s fourth fight, won by Las Vegas welterweight Anthony Lenk (8-1, 4 KOs), who scored a 6-round unanimous decision over formerly-unbeaten Danny Escobar (6-1, 5 KOs) of Riverside, Calif.

In the last fight before the card moved onto the Showtime stage, Cleveland lightweight Mickey Bey stayed unbeaten (16-0, 8 KOs) with a 6-round,unanimous decision over Erick Cruz (7-6-3, 7 KOS), a Puerto Rican who was on his knees in the second after he was rocked by a right-left combo.

Fairfax, VA – It was another sensational evening at George Mason University’s Patriot Center packed by fans and families in support of their local hero Jimmy Lange in his eleventh appearance at the famed venue. The event, presented by ICE Promotions, gathered many fans and local talents across the greater VA/DC/MD Metropolitan area.

However, someone forgot to inform Pittsburg, PA’s Joe Wyatt (23-2, 15KOs), as he came to the National Capital region with an intent to spoil the party.

In the main event, Jimmy Lange (34-4, 24KOs) delivered in one of the most exciting fights of the year, akin to some of the famous come-from-behind knockouts displayed by the late Arturo Gatti.

After a slow feel-out round in the first, Wyatt began to force the attack in the second, landing a hard overhand right and stalking his opponent with intent to hurt. Lange tried to keep Wyatt at bay with jabs, but Wyatt continuously closed the gap and inflicted damage with short well-timed right hands. In the fourth, Wyatt unleashed a barrage of hard unanswered uppercuts and left hooks that cornered Lange against the ropes unable to defend. Lange came back in the fifth with a short right hand to the ear and dropped Wyatt for a quick eight count. War ensued shortly after and the two fighters fiercely exchanged before the bell. Wyatt drew blood early in the sixth and continued to punish and bust up Lange, who was now cut on his swelling left eye. Lange did his best to evade the onslaught and later caught Wyatt again with leg buckling shots to the head, also causing a cut above the eye of his opponent. A straight right landed by Lange in the beginning of the eighth briefly drew crowd’s reaction to his favor, but Wyatt landed the more effective shots to take the round. Both fighters bled profusely in round nine and Wyatt seemingly held the edge once again with cleaner uppercuts. The two exchanged furiously towards the end of the tenth and final round, but it was a devastating right hand by Lange that prevailed, landing right on the button to drop Wyatt for a full ten-count. The official time of the stoppage was 2:38. With the win, Lange picks up the vacant NABA super welterweight title and sets up a potential showdown in Atlantic City against Harry Joe Yorgey in early spring.

JOPPY HELD TO A DRAW

On the co-main event, former three time middleweight champion and ring legend William Joppy ( 39-6-2, 30KOs) made his return to the ring, fighting to a tough, physical, hard fought ten round draw against the very pugnacious and durable Cory ‘Black Ice’ Cummings (17-4-1, 13KOs).

Cummings came out strong in the first two rounds, relentlessly putting pressure on the former world champ. The third round saw Joppy using his vastly superior experience to out-jab and outmaneuver the oncoming and determined foe in Cummings. Pressure was reinforced in round five by ‘Black Ice’, continuing to push Joppy against the ropes while the D.C native tried his best to counter. Rounds six and seven were closely fought. Joppy appeared to have the edge when pitted in the center of the ring as he was able to evade wild overhand rights and place well put combinations. Against the ropes, it was Cummings who did most damage, forcing hard shots to the noggin. Joppy easily controlled the round in the eighth, using his lateral movements and caught his charging opponent with several jabs and body shots. It was back-and-forth action in round nine where Cummings again, forced the action against the ropes while Joppy aimed to counter. Cummings remained a similar pace in the final round, repeatedly catching Joppy with hard hooks. Joppy weathered the storm and fired back with staggering uppercuts and right hand as the two combatants stood toe-to-toe in the final minute.

After ten very brutal rounds, majority of the crowd in attendance stood in ovation. Ultimately, one judge scored 96-94 in favor of Joppy while the others scored it even (95-95).

Joppy, now residing in Woodbridge, VA is probably one of the three or four best middleweights to have laced the gloves in the past two decades. Although his best days as a fighter are behind him, the former champion from D.C. still appears to be a popular attraction, proved by the reaction from his immense supporting crowd in attendance.

REID DAWG WINS AND SINGS

Former reality show ‘The Contender’ participant, Jonathan ‘Reid Dawg’ Reid (35-13, 19KOs) got back on the winning track, tabbing a lopsided six round decision over veteran Mike McFail (12-41-2, 4KOs) of Baltimore, MD. From the get go, Reid dictated pace with sharper technique, easily finding his target with consistent jabs and loud blows to the mid-section. McFail persistently applied pressure, but to no avail, largely due to Reid’s tight defense and savvy ring movement. Tides momentarily turned in favor of McFail in round five when he landed a hail-mary left hook to the chin that buckled Reid against the ropes. The referee credited McFail with the knockdown, but Reid re-took his command when he landed a huge hook that sent McFail’s mouthpiece flying out of the ring. Reid resumed in charge in the sixth, utilizing his superior athleticism and more accurate punches. All judges were in agreement with outcome, scoring the bout 59-55 (twice) and 58-55.

BALLARD DRILLS MULLINS!

The very popular and former Jimmy Lange foe Perry Ballard (21-2-1, 16KOs) scored a sensational first round knockout win over Booker Mullins (3-10, 2KOs) of Sparatanburg, SC in a six round scheduled welterweight contest. Mullins rocked Ballard with a well placed uppercut, but the ‘The Punisher’ retaliated with a perfectly timed right hand that dropped Mullins, prompting the referee to put a halt to a bout at 2:54. After the bout, the charismatic West Virginia native was vaunted by the responsive crowd. Ballard, who holds a Master’s degree in Safety, proceeded to interact with the crowd and even went on to call out Jimmy Lange for a rematch.

Local favorite and Fairfax resident Todd ‘White Lightning’ Wilson punished Columbia, SC’s Cory ‘Bad Boy’ Goodwin (7-6, 4KOs) to improve his unblemished record to 9-0, 3KOs. Wilson, an energetic lefty welterweight, was simply too fast, too powerful and just too relentless to overwhelm Cummings, who was haplessly getting pounded against the ropes in the third stanza. Official time of the stoppage was 2:24.

In the opening bout of the night, Alexandria, VA’s Brandon Quarles won an entertaining four round unanimous decision over Reston, VA’s Lawrence Jones. It was a closely contested bout throughout between two junior middleweights, but Quarles was awarded with the razor thin score of 38-37 across all three judges’ cards.

It was only the second fight of the night, but fans in attendance were convincingly pleased when middleweights Zain ‘Tiger’ Shah (4-0, 2KOs) and Omar Sims (5-3, 3KOs) gave their best efforts in the ring.

Annandale, VA’s Shah appeared to have won the first round, using his superior reach and connecting with jabs and occasional right hands to the head. Action increased towards the end of the round two when Sims pressed attack, landing crisp hooks to the head. Sims, who hails from Baltimore, MD, began to find his mark in round three, landing early with right hands. Shah seemed a bit fatigued as Sims progressively applied pressure and inflict damage on the inside. Sims resumed his attack in round four, but Shah was able to stun Sims just before the bell. Fifth round was close, with Shah continuing to create distance to land his counter right hand while Sims pursued to the body and doubling up with the hook. Both fighters let their hands going in the sixth and final round, but it heavily favored Sims, who was able to relentlessly land clean hooks to the head and hard shots to the body. Most ringside observers appeared to have Sims winning, but the judges disagreed, scoring 58-56 (twice) and 59-55 in favor of Shah.

In other interesting notes, Jonathan Reid, who was coming off his hard-fought win earlier in the night, displayed talent beyond pugilistic arts, singing a happy birthday tribute to Jimmy Lange’s sister in front of the audience. Other notables at ringside included the very high regarded Paul Williams, former junior welterweight champion DeMarcus ‘Chop Chop Corley’, and junior middleweight contender Harry Joe Yorgey.

DALLAS, TEXAS — Former light middleweight title challenger Juan Carlos Candelo and rising super middleweight prospect Alfonso Lopez III each took home WBC-affiliated titles with victories in the co-featured bouts of a private event held at the Dallas Petroleum Club on Thursday night.

In a rematch, Candelo (31-10-4, 20 KOs) of Baytown, Texas by way of Buenaventura, Valle del Cauca, Colombia notched his second victory over Chase Shields (30-4-1, 14 KOs) of Houston, Texas and claimed his WBC USNBC Light Middleweight title in the process.

Candelo, 154, appeared to have turned back the clock to about 2003 when he was a perennial top contender, as he outboxed and outclassed Shields, 154, from the outset. Without much trouble, Candelo picked his shots from the outside, as all Shields could do was cover up and flick out a jab.

Having boxed Shields silly from the outside, Candelo pressed the fight in the sixth, and forced his counterpart to the ropes with a hammering series of blows. Frustrated with the way the fight was progressing, Shields grabbed Candelo in a headlock and dragged him to the mat at the end of the round.

Just seconds into the seventh, Candelo, upset by the headlock that had closed the previous round, and Shields began jawing at each other. Referee Jesse Reyes called for a timeout, which did not stop the argument. In the midst of the break, Shields flagrantly headbutted Candelo, who fell to the mat. After being forced away from Candelo, who was still lying on the canvas, Shields broke from the referee’s restraint to land another cheap shot.

Both camps ran into the ring to separate the fighters before things got any further out of hand. With no other option, Reyes disqualified Shields, who had been escorted out of the ring, officially 38 seconds into the seventh round.

“He want to headbutt me and then hit me on the floor,” explained Candelo after the fight. “That is the only way he can hit me. So I guess he got a free shot because I was down.” The reasons behind Shields’ actions were clear to his opponent. “I think out of frustration, and he knows that he was down in the fight, and to me what I saw was that he didn’t want nothing anymore, so he just found a way out,” said Candelo. “And the easy way out was to do something unsportsmanlike in the ring.”

Candelo scored a stoppage victory in their first meeting last December when Shields failed to answer the bell for round eight. Candelo, known for stirring up pre-fight emotions with his words, explained how this feud may have started. “The first time around there was bad blood, but it was more just trash talking,” said Candelo. “But I got him out of there, because I told him ‘I am gonna whoop your ass and you are not going to finish the fight.’ And that is exactly what I did.”

Candelo, who saw a potential springboard fight fall through when Sergio Mora opted out of their scheduled July clash to fight Shane Mosley in September, hopes his title-winning effort will help alter the course of his resurgent career. “The doors were closed to me, but now I am pretty sure we can go and knock on some doors and the doors will open. To my fans, I am back.”

In the co-main event, Alfonso Lopez III (21-0, 16 KOs) of Cut and Shoot, Texas claimed the vacant WBC Continental Americas Super Middleweight title with a twelfth-round stoppage of Romero Johnson (11-3-1, 6 KOs) of Cleveland, Ohio.

It took Lopez, 168, a few rounds to warm-up, but Johnson, 168, began the fight swinging freely for the fences with hooks that began from out of range and only occasionally hit the target. Lopez did however catch Johnson a couple times with short counter shots as the Cleveland resident came forward in the early rounds.

Johnson had one of his better rounds in the third, as he most notably caught Lopez with a clean left hook in the first half. As the round progressed, Lopez appeared to be getting his timing down for a counter against the forward-moving Johnson.

After a fourth round that consisted mainly of infighting, action began to heat up near the end of the fifth. In the last minute, Johnson tagged Lopez with a short punch on the inside, which seemed to inspire Lopez to open up and land a successful three-punch combination of his own.

Lopez kept the pressure on in the sixth, and began to take over the fight offensively. After a dominate three minutes, Lopez returned to his corner shaking his right hand and wincing. With the apparent injury, Lopez went left hand happy in the seventh. Despite the disadvantage, Johnson failed to capitalize on the situation and allowed himself to get outworked in the round.

In the eighth Lopez was still taking it easy with the right, even turning southpaw for a short stretch, but remained the busier fighter. Johnson continued to look for one wild punch at a time, but did land a sweeping hook late in the round that got the crowd’s attention.

Lopez continued to keep Johnson off guard with his output in the ninth, closing the round with a clean right-left combination. Though he punctuated the round, Lopez immediately looked over to his corner after shaking his right again. Lopez continued to dominate in the tenth and eleventh, landing more than one punch that snapped Johnson’s head back like a speed bag, but it appeared his injured hand may prevent him from going for the knockout.

With Johnson fading in the twelfth, Lopez refused to allow his injured right to stop him from scoring the knockout. Lopez opened up and scored with Johnson failing to defend. With Johnson forced against the ropes, and taking a series of unanswered punches, referee Laurence Cole leaped in to stop the fight. Official time of the stoppage was 2:45 of the final round.

For Lopez Thursday’s fight marked a move down to the 168-pound super middleweight class from seven pounds north, but the Cut and Shoot native seemed to adjust just fine. “Going into the fight, we knew Romero was tough, but I felt pretty good coming down to super middleweight,” said Lopez. “Overall I thought I did a lot of things right. I was getting better as the rounds were going on. I just took my time, got a little sloppy sometimes with some power punches, but once I settled down and started putting my punches together, I got him out of there.”

The injury to Lopez’ right hand, which occurred in the middle rounds just as he seemed to be warming up, gave the young pro an opportunity to prove he could overcome adversity during the course of a twelve-round fight. “It was pretty painful,” admitted Lopez afterward. “It’s in pretty bad shape. I just had to bite down, bear down on it, and try to use my left hand more and just grin it on the right hands I landed.”

Having claimed the regional WBC title over a solid veteran, Lopez now looks forward to bigger things. “We are looking for another good name, someone who’s got some credibility, someone who has maybe been on TV,” said Lopez. “Maybe we can look for a TV fight.”

Karim Martinez (3-0, 2 KOs) of Houston scored three knockdowns en route to a second-round technical stoppage of debuting Randolph Cole (0-1) of Gulfport, Mississippi. Martinez, 138, downed Cole, 138, in the early going of round one with a stiff jab and continued to work over the tentative new pro when the action resumed, forcing him to each corner with combinations. With Cole covering up in a corner, Martinez unleashed a right hook, left hand combination to down him again near the close of the round.

Cole came out more offensive-minded in round two, but eventually two light-looking body shots downed him again a minute in, which prompted referee Jesse Reyes to stop the contest. The official time was 1:05 of round two.

In a somewhat mauling lightweight affair, Alicio Castaneda (11-1, 5 KOs) of Cut and Shoot scored a four-round majority decision over Robert Lewis Hill (2-7) of Gulfport. Hill boxed well in spots during the first round, but ended up with a high on his forehead. From the second round on, the fight was fought almost entirely on the inside, as Hill’s southpaw style led to constant tangling with the onrushing Castaneda. With not much for the judges to differentiate between the fighters, scores read 40-36 and 39-37 for Castaneda, with one card tabulated evenly at 38-38.

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

Jose Miguel Cotto scored a fourth round stoppage over veteran Christopher Henry in a scheduled eight round Welterweight bout.

Cotto dropped Henry in the second and battered him in round’s three and four before the referee stopped the bout at 1:19 of round four.

Cotto, 145 lbs of Caguas, PR is now 32-2-1 with twenty two knockouts. Henry, 150 lbs of Barbados is now 22-21

Jesus Rojas scored a six round split decision over Reynaldo Lopez in a Featherweight bout.

Rojas scored a knockdown in the second round which proved to be the difference.

Rojas, 123 3/4 lbs of Caguas, PR is now 16-1. Lopez, 123 1/2 lbs of Colombia is now 30-10-2.

Angel Fret remained undefeated by scoring a second round stoppage over Sigfredo Medina in a scheduled six round Super Bantamweight bout.

Fret dominated the action and the bout was stopped just after Fret landed a three punch combination that was highlighted by a wicked left uppercut from the southpaw stance.

Fret, 121 lbs of Vega Alta, PR is now 9-0 with eight knockouts. Medina, 122 3/4 lbs of Aquadilla, PR is now 3-3.