By Norm Frauenheim-

Josh Taylor has always hoped a castle would be in his future. He likes history. Mostly, he likes making some.

The castle will have to wait. But another chance at history is close. It might be there Saturday after Taylor’s first bout in his native Scotland in more than four years. He defends his unified junior-welterweight title against somebody named Jack Catterall, known only in the UK.

Despite an unbeaten record, Catterall’s anonymity says a lot about what Taylor is expected to do. A win is almost assumed. He won’t say that. Not exactly.   

“How is he going to win?” Taylor asked Thursday at a news conference.

Taylor then went on to answer his own question. It was an answer that also included what Scottish fans expect.

“…This isn’t a one-sided fight,’’ he said. “It’s my job to make it a one-sided fight.’’

If that task gets done as thoroughly as the betting odds suggest, it’ll be definitive. Actually, it’ll be a lot more than that. On Thursday, Taylor (18-0, 13 KOs) was a 20-to-1 favorite over Catterall (26-0, 13 KOs). Translation: He’d have to trip and fall into a moat to lose this one.

This fight itself has the feel of a homecoming parade. Taylor returns with all the relevant belts – WBO, WBC, WBA, IBF and The Ring. He’s the second Scottish fighter to win an undisputed title since lightweight great Ken Buchanan.

The only complaint, perhaps, is the setting. The bout (ESPN+, Sky Sports, 2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. PT) will happen at the OVO Hydro arena in Glasgow. No moat there. It has none of the magic of that castle, the one on a hilltop in Edinburgh about eight miles from Prestonpans, a mining town where Taylor grew up.

Taylor has long fantasized about a summer fight on a lawn in front of the castle or somewhere within the medieval walls. He talked about the possibility after taking possession of the belts in a decision over Jose Ramirez in Las Vegas last May. He talked about it before his long-awaited showdown with Ramirez. But there was no place at the roundtable for one of boxing’s royalty.

“I’m beginning to get to the point of telling them just to ram it,’’ Taylor told The Herald, a Glasgow newspaper, before his two-knockdown victory over Ramirez at Vegas’ Virgin Hotels. “It’s beyond me why the people at the castle don’t want to have one of their natives and have a massive historical event there.

“Yet they’ll let Lady Gaga or someone go up there and have a concert. It’s beyond me, the logic.’’

But history is not beyond him. There’s plenty of talk that his homecoming is also his goodbye to the junior-welterweight division. A jump up the scale makes sense. There’s not much else he can do at 140 pounds. Other than The Ring’s version, the acronym-sponsored titles come up with a succession of mandatories and sanctioning fees. That’s what Catterall is. He’s the WBO’s mandatory challenger.

In a move to welterweight, Taylor moves up to challenges he has long envisioned. He has talked about Terence Crawford for a couple of years. At 5-10, he’s two inches taller than Crawford. At 31, he’s four years younger. It’s time.

The problem is Crawford’s lawsuit against his former promoter, Bob Arum, Taylor’s current promoter. It was filed not long after Crawford’s November stoppage of Shawn Porter in a victory that enhanced his pound-for-pound credentials in the ongoing debate with Canelo Alvarez, still No. 1 in most rankings.

Crawford alleges racism, among other things. As long as the lawsuit is pending, the inflammatory allegations aren’t exactly a way of bringing Arum to the bargaining table.

Still, Taylor, who argues that Crawford – not Canelo –is pound-for-pound No. 1, believes the fight could happen. He has mentioned Crawford several times throughout the media tour for the Catterall bout.

The lawsuit, Taylor told FightHype.com “is a bit of an obstacle. But I still believe it’s a very doable fight. We’re both sort of in the same house. It looks like it can be made. I think it can be made.’’

Crazier things have been made in boxing, where today’s enemy is tomorrow’s business partner. The hostility between Crawford and Arum could be part of the promotion. Bad blood sells.

There are other possibilities. Taylor has also mentioned Errol Spence Jr. and Yordenis Ugas, who are scheduled to fight April 16 on the Dallas Cowboys home field at AT&T Stadium in Arlington TX. But Crawford is always first and foremost in any Taylor talk about the welterweight division.

“That’s the fight that would give me the fear factor and push me to new heights,” Taylor told The Guardian. “Otherwise, if you don’t have that kind of challenge, you go stale.’’

Going stale is also no way to get into that old, upscale house on top of a Scottish hill.

By Norm Frauenheim –

It looks as if Canelo Alvarez has more deals on the bargaining table these days than he has clubs in his golf bag. There’s no end to the reported options or the money. Mostly, the money.

The unsourced reports are all over the proverbial ballpark. Eight-five million dollars here. A hundred-million over there. Only the B-word — as in billion — hasn’t been reported. Given today’s inflation rate, that one can’t be too far away.

It’s always safe to attach some skepticism to the dollar sign next to those eight and nine-figure sums. When talks begin at boxing’s bargaining table, they might as well be speaking Russian. The numbers are hard to understand. Harder to believe. But they do include some lessons, especially for David Benavidez. He continues to be the odd man out.

He knows that. He’s known it for a while.

“Of course, I want to fight Canelo, (Caleb) Plant, (Jermall) Charlo, any of those guys,’’ Benavidez, a Phoenix native, said Wednesday during a media workout featuring middleweight prospect Diego Pacheco in Rancho Fe, CA. “But they don’t want to fight me, so I’ll fight who I have to fight, become a world champion until they have no choice but to face me.”

The abundance of Canelo’s options and his proven pay-per-view numbers allow him to do whatever he wants. For now and probably for a while, what he doesn’t want is a date with Benavidez.

Instead, all of the reports point to a Matchroom Boxing deal for a Canelo fight in May with light-heavyweight Dmitry Bivol that could lead to a third bout with Gennadiy Golovkin, according to ESPN. As of Friday, however, there was no agreement.

“About my next fight nothing is confirmed,’’ Canelo said in a tweet Thursday.

ESPN reported that GGG has yet to agree. He’s training for a bout at middleweight in Japan with Ryota Murata in April. He’s expected to beat Murata. But he’s past his prime and a third fight with Canelo is past its due date. GGG turns 40 on April 9. He still argues that he beat Canelo, first in a fight judged to be a draw in 2017 and then a rematch that Canelo won by majority decision in September 2018.

The lingering controversy perhaps is still reason enough for a third fight. It’s a chance for Canelo to shut up the doubters, once and for all. For the aging GGG, it’s a chance to make his point and an opportunity at one more big payday. But it’s a little late in the game.

The momentum, at least among younger fans, is swinging increasingly toward Benavidez-versus-Canelo.

On their respective career paths, Benavidez and GGG are going in opposite directions. GGG’s best days are behind him. Benavidez’ best is still ahead of him. The two-time former super-middleweight champion, who is expected face David Lemieux in a spring bout perhaps in hometown Phoenix, is about 15 years younger than GGG. He turned 25 on December 17.

That’s why Canelo appears to be leaning toward a deal that leads to GGG instead of a reported PBC offer that would have led to Benavidez.

On the risk-to-reward ratio – a formula that Canelo has learned and applied ever since his lone loss to Floyd Mayweather Jr. in September 2013, the choice is easy. Frustrating too, for Benavidez and his growing crowd of supporters who see him as the only real threat to Canelo Inc.

By Mario Ortega Jr. –

As reported in this space yesterday, Mayweather Promotions’ 17-year-old junior welterweight prospect David Lopez was set to make his second appearance as a professional in a four-round bout against tough guy Corey Champion (2-3, 2 KOs) of Gordonsville, Virginia at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas next Saturday night. This bout will no longer take place on the undercard to the Showtime-televised tripleheader headlined by the WBA super featherweight title eliminator between Chris Colbert and Hector Luis Garcia. 

“Basically my original opponent pulled out,” Lopez updated 15rounds.com late on Tuesday night. “And they tried reaching out to many other opponents, but it was too short notice.” 

Finding opponents for Lopez (1-0, 1 KO) of Oakland, California is a tall task for any matchmaker with ample notice, much less a couple weeks’ notice. The internet is littered with his sparring sessions and freakish athletic gifts. 

“It was disappointing after hearing the news,” said Lopez, who admitted he was a bit angry when he first heard the news. “As a fighter, we put our bodies through a lot in preparation for our fights. All I can do is stay ready and keep my mind at peace. Stuff happens man.” 

No word yet on when Lopez will return to the ring after this late cancellation. Lopez reports that he is staying ready for whenever he gets the call. 

Photo by Michael Ham/TGB Promotions

Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at ortegajr.mario@gmail.com or followed on Twitter @MarioG280

By Mario Ortega Jr.-

In the modern era of professional boxing it sometimes feels like some of the world’s best fighters are somehow pieced together in a lab, rather than naturally born and developed athletes. Some of these fighters that are so athletically gifted and excellently trained at a young age can make one wonder how anyone can compete if they did not have that same background. One young fighter that has those in the know comparing him to the top young fighters of recent times is 17-year-old child prodigy junior welterweight “Dynamite” David Lopez. The Alameda High School student takes a break from class next week to go for pro win number two on the undercard of the Showtime-televised event at the Cosmopolitan Las Vegas on February 26th. 

Lopez (1-0, 1 KO) of Oakland, California comes from a fighting family and was first incorporated into the world of boxing at the age of 5 by his father Kris Lopez, a former promising fighter himself and proprietor of Lightning’s Boxing Club in Oakland. His older brother Daniel is also a fighter, currently making a comeback. The boxing bloodlines run deep as there is family in the boxing game in Hawaii and Kris’ great grandfather Elmario Santos was a fighter of some description himself.

“My grandmother used to always tell me stories about him jumping rope and chasing roosters,” recalls Kris Lopez. “That was what he did. It is very interesting that boxing is in our family. Boxing is definitely in our family, from my grandmother’s side to my uncle’s. They would arrange bootleg backyard fights, but when it got to me…I took it to another level. I sought out to become a legitimate fighter. I struggled with it a bit and got married early, and I kind of blew my career. Here I am years later, trying to right my wrongs with my kids.”

“Lightning” Kris Lopez, as he was known during his fighting days, appears to be on his way to accomplishing his fight career goals with how he has developed David. “He’s a special kid,” says his father unapologetically. “We knew when he was little, he was a little bit different and a special, rare kid. The things he could do as a small child, even as a two-year-old baby he was freakishly strong. As a six-year-old we challenged him to do push-ups and he did like 130 push-ups. Every time he got the ball on the football field it was a touchdown. He had great open-field vision, dexterity, athleticism, coordination, toughness, everything you can imagine for an athlete he has, including being humble and having a tremendous work ethic.”

The young Lopez developed a strong fan base as an amateur with his natural abilities, speed and learned skills. Videos of interviews from David’s early amateur run are all over YouTube and are something to watch. His speaking abilities and comfort level with media at around age 11 is something rarely seen in sports.  

“I used to hear my dad talk a lot and I pretty much just repeated after him,” says David. “Whatever my dad would say, I just learned from him. My dad is a businessman, he is a gym owner. I used to hear him with the clients and the people that would come into the gym and I just took a page out of his book.”

At just 17, Lopez finds himself signed to Mayweather Promotions, one of the most prominent promotional companies in the United States. Lopez was likely on the promotional firm’s radar for years, as sparring sessions and fights between Lopez and another prodigy and Mayweather understudy “Cash Flow” Floyd Diaz are something of internet legend. Once the pros became an option, Lopez’ team got a tryout in hopes of signing with “Money May’s” company. 

“Leonard Ellerbe, the CEO of Mayweather Promotions, lined it up for me to spar with one of their signed fighters, Kevin Johnson,” recalls David. “It was good work and Leonard liked what he saw and we went from there.” 

Despite having a burgeoning fight career, David Lopez is still in high school attending class at Alameda High amongst the general population. “It’s cool,” says Lopez of the high schooler/boxer experience. “I get a lot of recognition from my friends and the teachers. They will say things like, ‘There goes the boxer’ or ‘There goes David “Dynamite.”‘ Other than that, it’s pretty normal. I’m still a normal citizen to myself. I’m just a professional boxer. It’s just a plus for me.”

Lopez turned pro in October of last year, and balancing his career and school was a little simpler during the pandemic. “The virtual learning and the zooms were much easier,” admits Lopez. “I got to wake up when I wanted to. As far as my schedule, I could go to the gym whenever and be in class at the same time. It was definitely easier.”

With in-person learning back in full-swing, Lopez has a different balancing act to perform, but he seems to be handling it well. “It’s pretty easy to manage,” says David. “I just go to school and get my work done. Whenever I have camps out in Vegas, I run it by my teachers and they give me extra work to do while I’m gone. That’s pretty easy to do.”

One of the main guys in camp with David is veteran pro and fellow southpaw Aaron Coley. David first began sparring Coley, a powerfully-built full grown man, in the early part of 2020 when he was probably just beginning to shave. “He would put him in at the tail end of the sparring,” recalls Coley (16-3-1, 7 KOs). “I had a few fights I was getting ready for and David would come in at the end.”

Lopez has been studying Coley’s game and learning what he can from the veteran, who is also trained by Kris Lopez. “He’s a very sharp fighter and he keeps my eye sharp,” David says of Coley. “The level of experience that he is on is very good. It’s a level of experience a lot of fighters don’t have, so every camp we try to get Aaron. He throws nice, in-tight punches and he’s able to get his head off the line and step around you. So definitely his in-tight work and I would say his punch selection and his work ethic [are what I emulate.]”

Coley, who turned pro in 2012, is equally complementary of Lopez. “He is sharp,” says Coley. “He is one of the better younger guys I have seen around. He’s fast and he has a lot of natural abilities. Then he comes in there and gets after it. The sky’s the limit for him. Some people are just made for certain stuff or bred into it. Like he is one of them guys. He can play everything too. He played other sports, football and is pretty good at hoop.”

Lopez’ hoop game got his name out there last year when he extended a public challenge for a one-on-one basketball game to his promoter, one Floyd Mayweather, on an episode of the Abrams Boxing Show podcast, hosted by our own Marc Abrams. It is a challenge that so far has not been accepted. 

“Not yet,” Lopez answers to the question of whether he has heard back from Mayweather. “It is going to come though. We are staying ready for it. We have been doing a lot of explosive training to dunk on him when that time comes, so I hope that Floyd is ready. He does a lot of cross training during his off-time and he always stays sharp and he’s always in the gym, so I’m sure he can hoop still.”

On February 26th, Lopez will return to the ring on the undercard of Chris Colbert-Hector Luis Garcia at the Cosmopolitan Las Vegas, taking on tough guy Corey Champion, a fighter with an MMA background and two distance losses to mega prospects Xander Zayas and Vito Mielnicki Jr. on his boxing resume. 

When it is presented to us, and they bring up Xander Zayas and Vito Mielnicki, and they both couldn’t knock him out,” Kris Lopez says of Champion (2-3, 2 KOs). “Those guys are both junior middleweights and couldn’t knock him out. This is a grown man, he’s coming down [in weight,] has never been knocked out and his two wins are knockouts. Why would you think my smaller 140-pound kid will knock him out? I know the answer to it: he probably can and he probably will. David has been knocking out 175-pound guys, knocking them out cold. But this guy, we are not going to underestimate him.”

Lopez has some sparring experience that will probably come in handy when fighting a rough MMA fighter with an awkward style. Another San Francisco Bay Area veteran often shares the ring with Lopez who is known for his rough and tough style, former welterweight contender Karim Mayfield. 

“He knows I am going to give him some rough, unorthodox work,” says Mayfield. “But when I was sparring him more and more, I saw him adjusting to some of the stuff I was doing. And I have been sparring for quite a few years and some people weren’t able to adjust to it. So that was a good look for me to see him adjusting to the unorthodox stuff, because that is stuff a lot of world champions couldn’t adjust to. He is going to excel and do well. Speed and power, the whole nine.”

The Lopez family continues a long boxing tradition of the father-son, trainer-fighter duo. “It’s great having my dad with me,” says David. “I know that I am safe and that my dad has my best interests. I think it is really cool that I get to follow my dreams with my dad. He’s a part of it and he’s taking me to where I need to go through his knowledge from what he has experienced in his past. It is definitely dope that my father gets to be part of this and is my trainer of course.”

The long road ahead gets one fight shorter next Saturday for the Lopez family and David Lopez the fighter. Although the journey is just beginning for the fighting wunderkind of Alameda High, all the ingredients appear to be there for a successful run and young David Lopez is ready to do the work required, beginning with Corey Champion in Las Vegas. 

“We are training hard and I am feeling as sharp as ever,” says David. “I can’t wait for February 26th to come.” 

Photos by Michael Ham/TGB Promotions

Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at ortegajr.mario@gmail.com or followed on Twitter @MarioG280

By Norm Frauenheim-

It’s never been much of a secret. It could be a great fight. Now, it’s official. Shakur Stevenson-versus-Oscar Valdez Jr. is going to happen

Stevenson and Valdez formally signed Thursday for a junior-lightweight fight projected for April 30 at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand. Top Rank posted photos on social media of each fighter sealing the deal for a bout that has been in the works for at least a month.

In hindsight, it’s a fight that’s been inevitable for a couple of years. Both are unbeaten. Both have belts. Both are Top Rank fighters, meaning there weren’t the usual hurdles that keep rival promoters from ever getting to the table.

There’s been speculation that the deal wasn’t done a few weeks ago because Stevenson wanted provisions about drug testing written into the contract. That’s reasonable, given the furor over Valdez’ positive test for a stimulant – phentermine – about a month before his Sept.10 fight with Robson Conceicao in Tucson, Valdez’ second home.

Valdez was allowed to fight because of different rules – WADA instead of VADA — regulating the bout on Pascua Yaqui land. Valdez went on to retain his World Boxing Council title, scoring a debatable decision over Conceicao. But the controversy lingers. 

It’ll still be there, part of the story, if not the marketing.  For Valdez, it figures to be a source of motivation. The fight is an opportunity for him to get past the controversy. It’s still not clear why he tested positive. He blamed a herbal tea. 

But the social-media mob believes that one about as much as it believes Canelo Alvarez’ claim that tainted beef was the reason he tested positive in 2018 for clenbuterol, a steroid, before his rematch with Gennadiy Golovkin.

Canelo went on to answer the furor by beating Golovkin in a postponed bout. What controversy? Just a few days before the Super Bowl, here’s an old, yet always relevant quote from late Raiders owner Al Davis.

Just win, baby.

Question the ethics, but not the effectiveness. Winning works, especially in a game where ethics are, well, negotiable.

For Valdez, however, victory won’t be as likely as the “just” in Davis’ enduring line might suggest. 

Winning has been predictable for Canelo, now a Valdez stablemate whose current negotiations might lead to a bout, also in Las Vegas on May 7, the Saturday after the projected date for Valdez-Stevenson. Winning is all Canelo has done. He’s 8-0, post-clenbuterol.

Stevenson has already opened as the betting favorite, according to some online books. He’s at minus-250, making him a 5-2 favorite. That puts Stevenson’s chances at 71.4 percent. Don’t be surprised if the odds in his favor grow. 

He’s got all the documented advantages. At 24, he’s seven years younger than the 31-year-old Valdez. Stevenson is two inches taller and has a two-inch advantage in reach.

The numbers, however, don’t measure the intangibles, especially Valdez’ tenacity. It’s off the charts. Put it this way: Valdez is never in an easy fight. He’s never lost one either, including a crazy night nearly four years ago in the rain at Carson CA when he overcame a broken jaw to score a unanimous decision over a bigger Scott Quigg.

Despite the victory, there were doubts about whether there was much left of Valdez after that bloody night. Turns out there was plenty, including a stunning knockout of heavily favored Miguel Berchelt a year ago.

Then, there was the bigger Conceicao, who was beating Valdez through the first half of their fight on a hot desert day in an outdoor ring in Tucson. But Valdez battled back – both from potential distractions brought on by the PED controversy and Conceicao’s early advantage. 

So far, Valdez’ tenacity has been inexhaustible. Nobody bites down quite the way he does.

It’s a factor that’s hard to quantify and harder to predict. But if that Valdez tenacity is still there, it could test Stevenson in ways he has never been tested. 

For Stevenson, this a fight for pound-for-pound recognition. It’s a potential springboard to the stardom many believed was there when he came home from Brazil with a 2012 Olympic silver medal.

For both, the fight is defining. For different reasons, it’s personal, which is another way of saying the stakes have never been more dramatic. This deal has a chance to be a classic. An official one.

By Norm Frauenheim-

LAS VEGAS – Time is in his nickname. But time is not on his side.

Keith Thurman, who calls himself One Time, faces the inevitable.  At 33, the former welterweight champion is confronted by the calendar, the ceaseless career clock, that says not much prime time is left.

It’s easy to make fun of Thurman’s nickname. He hears it often.

“People can say what they want,’’ Thurman (29-1, 22 KOs) said a few weeks before his comeback Saturday night against Mario Barrios (26-1, 17 KOs) in a Fox-pay-per-view telecast (9 pm ET/6pm. PT) at Mandalay Bay’s Michelob Ultra Arena. “Thurman ‘sometimes,’ ‘one time’, ‘no time.’

“Say what you want. I see your comments. Say what you want. But Keith ‘One Time’ Thurman will always be one of the best welterweights in the welterweight division today.”

But all the mocking has yet to include the inevitable:

Out Of Time.

That prospect approaches and might bring a growing sense of urgency to Thurman’s first fight in more than 30 months.

Thurman’s pursuit of legacy and a spot in the Hall of Fame has been interrupted by injuries, or the Pandemic, or boxing’s balkanized politics, or all of the above during the five years since he held two of the 147-pound belts in 2017. Then, it looked as if anything was possible. Now, not so much.

Instead, there are questions. Maybe, Thurman knocks them out against Barrios, a former junior-welterweight who is fighting for the first time at 147 pounds. But there are doubts, all still there after Thurman lost a split decision to Manny Pacquiao in July 2019.

There’s enough doubt, in fact, that a panel of trainers picked Barrios, who has Virgil Hunter in his corner, to upset Thurman during a zoom session Tuesday.

“I truly believe Mario Barrios has a great chance of beating Thurman, especially since Thurman has been out for so long and he’s made millions of dollars, so that changes anybody,’’ Robert Garcia said, “He’s (Thurman) gonna say he’s been training 10, 12 months, non-stop.

“But he could be saying that, it might not be true. I can’t wait for this fight, I’m actually excited about this fight, but I truly believe Barrios has whatever it takes to win.”

Thurman, about a 2-to-1 favorite, says a lot, of course. He’s a tireless self-promoter. His confidence has been evident throughout the sales-pitch for the Fox telecast, which has been criticized for it $75 pay-per-view price tag. 

At the formal weigh-in Friday, he laughed at any suggestion that Barrios had a chance.

“He already knows what’s up,’’ Thurman said after weighing in at 145.5 pounds. “Keep your hands up, defend yourself at all times, because you’re about to get your ass knocked out.’’

But the weigh-in also included one fact that could not be explained away. Barrios is bigger. In posing for the cameras, Barrios stood taller, looked broader. He also weighed more, He came in at 146.25 pounds.

“I’m just more comfortable now,’’ said Barrios, who was knocked out by Gervonta Davis in his last outing at 140 pounds in a June loss in Atlanta. “I feel better, stronger. This is my natural weight.’’

Barrios is also 26. He’s seven years younger, which only means he’s got more of the time that is no longer there for Thurman.

By Norm Frauenheim-

LAS VEGAS – It’s a noisy business. Maybe that’s why you haven’t heard much about – or from – Carlos Castro. 

He’s the quiet guy in a contentious crowd full of tireless trash-talkers who work harder in social media than they do in the gym. In Jake Paul’s world, clicks are more valuable than punches. A twitter account is today’s bully pulpit.

But Castro confines his craft – and perhaps his identity — to doing the work where it has always been done.

In the gym. 

And within the ropes.

That’s where he’ll be Saturday night at Mandalay Bay on a Fox pay-per-view card featuring seldom-seen Keith Thurman in his first fight in 30 months against newly-minted welterweight Mario Barrios.

For Castro (27-0, 12 KOs), the fight is a huge step. He faces Luis Nery (31-1, 24 KOs) in a junior-featherweight fight that could lead to a world-title shot against Stephen Fulton or Uzbek Murodjon Akhmadaliev, each of whom have two of the division’s significant belts.

A Castro victory over Nery, a former two-time champion, would speak volumes. Just don’t expect the volume to come from Castro, 

The bout is a chance at affirmation for the Phoenix fighter, one of four Arizona fighters (also Keenan Carbajal of Phoenix and the Ramos brothers, Abel and Jesus, of Casa Grande) scheduled to appear in Las Vegas on the same night when DAZN is scheduled for another PPV card featuring Carlos Cuadras-versus-Jesse Rodriguez at Footprint Center in downtown Phoenix. Location, location, location??? 

Cuadras-Rodriguez might be a good fight on an otherwise shuffled card. But it’s in the wrong place on the wrong night. Footprint, the Suns home arena, has 18,422 seats. A good bet is that there will be more people at the FanDuel book on the concourse level than in the arena’s seats at opening bell.

Arizona’s fight crowd figures to watch Castro, instead. If you haven’t heard about him yet, he’s hoping you will with a victory that will finally affirm his place on the world-class stage.

“He’s already one of the best in the world at junior-feather and featherweight,’’ his longtime promoter Robert Vargas of Iron Boy Promotions said. “He knows that. He’s proven it. But he just needs the victory that will get people talking about him.

“A win over Nery, a really tough guy, could do it.’’

It could. But a victory over Nery would also qualify as a mild upset, at least according to the prevailing odds. Castro is plus-140, meaning he’s a 7-to-5 underdog. On the percentage scale, that means he has less than a 50-50 chance at beating Nery, an aggressive lefthander from Tijuana. His chances? 41.7 percent.

There are countless ways to interpret the narrow odds. In part, they look to be based on simply who’s better known. That would be Nery. But Castro has been patiently working his way into the collective awareness of fight fans. He did so in February 2019 with a one-sided decision (110-90, 99-91,98-92) over Filipino Genesis Servania, who knocked down Oscar Valdez and had the current junior-lightweight champion in trouble throughout a 2017 Tucson fight. Valdez escaped with a decision (117-109, 116-110, 115-111).

That’s when Vargas and Castro knew they could play on the world-class stage. But Castro’s patient work ethic kept him from bragging. Kept him off social media, too. All the way, he continued to work on developing his skillset and upper body. Power has been a question, one that looms large against Nery. Does he have enough of it to keep the Mexican off of him?

We’ll see. In an eye-opening performance on a card featuring Yordenis Ugas’ upset of Manny Pacquiao last August, Castro flashed newfound power in scoring a 10^th-round stoppage of former contender Oscar Escandon in a featherweight bout. At 37, Escandon might not have had much left.

But he still had enough power to hurt Castro. He did. But that’s when Castro displayed newfound command of an evolving skillset. For nine-plus rounds, he did it all. 

All, and even more, might be necessary against Nery, whose lone defeat is a stoppage loss to Brandon Figueroa in his last bout.

“This the beginning of a new chapter to my career,’’ Castro said after the Escandon stoppage, his first bout with former Valdez trainer Manny Robles in his corner.

The career’s beginning was humble. Castro, now 27, arrived in Arizona from Obregon, Mexico as a 3-year-old. He grew up in trailer park in southwest Phoenix. The surrounding streets only led to trouble. Vargas said his father decided to get him into one of the countless mom-and-pop boxing gyms that dot the Phoenix landscape. 

Vargas signed him as a 17-year-old with a long amateur career. He labored – always quietly – on small cards in Phoenix. He also labored as a landscaper to support his family. He‘s a husband. And a dad. Now, he’s a contender, one step from a shot at the world title he has always wanted.

By today’s chest-thumping standards, that’s reason to brag. But there is no boast in Castro’s skillset. He’ll let a victory over Nery speak for itself. At least, he hopes one will.

Follow all the action as llunga Makabu defends the WBC Cruiserweight title against Thabiso Mchunu; Also Trevor Bryan defends the WBA Heavyweight title against Jonathan Guidry

NOW BROWSER REFRESH NEEDED; THE PAGE WILL UPDATE AUTOMATICALLY

Round 1: Right hook from Makabu

ROUND 2:  Counter left from Mchunu..Left to body from Makabu..Counter from Mchunu..Short left from Makabu..

ROUND 3 Jab to body from Mchunu..Big left from Makabu..

ROUND 4 Right hook from Mchunu..Uppercut..Straight left from Makabu..Right hook from Mchunu..Combination from Makabu

ROUND 5 Right hook and left from Mchunu…Counter left ffrom Makabu

ROUND 6 Left from Mchunu…Right uppercut..Combination from Makabut…Left from Mchunu

ROUND 7 Short jab from Mchunu…Combination from Makabu…Jabs…Nice left from Mchunu..uppercut on the inside..

ROUND 8 Jab from Mchunu..Right to the body..right hook …straight left…Nice left

ROUND 9 Right hook from Mchunu..Good body shot..Counter hook..Left..

ROUND 10 Counter from Mchunu..Hook to body from Makabu..Right hook..jab

ROUND 11 Counter from Mchunu..Counter right..Big left..Counter

ROUND 12 Body shot from Makabu..Counter from Mchunu..

115-113 MAKABU; 115-113 MCHUNU; 116-112 MAKABU

ROUND 1 Good right from Bryan..Jab..

ROUND 2 Right from Guidry…Counter right from Bryan..Jab..Ciunter hook from Guidry..Right from Bryan..

ROUND 3  Jab from Bryan..Guidry lands 2 body shots…Jab from Bryan..Another jab..Guidry starting to swell under his right eye

ROUND 4 Guidry lands a body shot…Short right from Bryan..Double jab,,,Right..Left hook from Guidry..Left hook to the body..Short left hook from Bryan,,2 jabs…Good body shot from Guidry..Big right from Bryan,,2 rights to the head..Hard right

ROUND 5 Short left hook from Guidry..Jab from Bryan..Good jab from Guidry..

ROUND 6 Nice jab from GuidrLeft uy…Nice left hook…Good right..Counter right from Bryan..Right from Guidry..Short counter..Body

ROUND 7 Right to body from Guidry..Jab from Bryan..Nice uppercut

ROUND 8 Body shot from Bryan…Jab from Bryan

ROUND 9 Hook inside from Guidry..Jab from Bryan and another…Big right hurts Guidry..Quick left from Guidry..Short right…Nice left hook..Right..Counter right from Bryan..2 good shots..Nice right…Hook from Guidry

ROUND 10 left uppercut from Bryan..Straight right..Inside left..Double jab to the body

ROUND 11 Left from Bryan..Nice uppercut..Short right from Guidry,,Jab from Bryan

ROUND 12 2 jabs from Bryan..And another..Big Right…Hook to the body..Jab …Left hook..Right…RIGHT IN THE LAST SECONDS DROPS GUIDRY…HE GETS UP

118-109 and 116-111 for BRYAN AND 115-112 FOR GUIDRY

Round 1: Good left hook to body from Kisner…Bidy shot from Langston
Round 2 Counter left from Kisner
Round 3 Nice left from Kisner..Langston Jabbing..Counter right from Kisner..Short left..
Round 4 Left From Langston…Combination on ropes
Round 5  FLURRY ON THE ROPES AND DOWN GIES KISNER..BODY SHOT AND DOWN GOES KISNER…Big Right…COMBINATION AND DOWN GOES KISNER AND THE FIGHT IS OVER

Round 1 Hafney lands a jab..Right to body
Round 2 Good Body shot from Scott..Counter from Hefney…
Round 3 Good uppercut from Scott
Round 4  Headbutt and bad cut over Hefney’s left eye
Round 5  Counter from Scott
Round 6 Nice left hook from Scott
Round 7 Scott landing power shots
Round 8 Big right hurts Hefney
Round 9 Nice Jab From Scott..Good body shot..Uppercut at the bell
Round 10 Right from Hefney..Nice Right..Nice right from Scott..

96-94 Hefney; 96-94 Scott; 97-93 Scott

Round 1: Quick left from Wiggins
Round 2 Quick combination from Wiggins…Big left hurts Wilson…Big flurry..Left and down goes Wilson
Round 3 Big left AND DOWN GOES WILSON…Straight left and the fight is stopped.

By Norm Frauenheim-

Can anyone make sense of the heavyweight mess? Sorry for the stupid question. But boxing’s old flagship is awash in uncertainty and misinformation these days

Three fights are apparently under consideration. Apparently is the key word here, simply because it’s hard to know who or what to believe.

The reported options:

A – Oleksandr Usyk-Anthony Joshua.

B – Usyk-Tyson Fury

C – Fury-Dillian Whyte

Best guess, C. At least, that was the early leader about 24 hours before a re-scheduled purse bid Friday at the World Boxing Council’s offices in Mexico City.

Fury, who has been as loud and unbelievable as ever for the last couple of weeks, appeared on social media early Thursday shouting out a promise that suggests Whyte is next.

“I can’t wait to punch Dillian Whyte’s face right in, mate,” said Fury on video posted to UK promoter Frank Warren’s Twitter account. “I’m going to give him the best hiding he’s ever had in his life, boy. Dillian Whyte, train hard sucker, cause you’re getting annihilated, bum.”

Fury says a lot of things, of course. Let’s just say his punches are more accurate than his talk. But maybe – only maybe – he dropped a reliable hint at what’s up. Warren is his promoter. Early Thursday, there were already reports that Fury-Whyte would happen in March in the UK.

But don’t be surprised if there’s news that Fury has said something different, delivered some sort of late reversal, before or after the scheduled meeting. Nobody throws a more artful feint than Fury.

After all, the purse bid had been postponed twice. Whyte apparently had been unhappy at the reported split – 20 percent for him and 80 for Fury, the WBC’s defending champion. Be 100 percent skeptical.

Even if this purse bid results in an agreement for a so-called mandatory defense, skepticism about when and where is, well, mandatory. In Saudi or Saturn, there might not be enough money to fill the purse that Fury and Whyte hope to divide.

After all, it’s not Fury-Usyk. It’s not Fury-Joshua, a fight that was proposed yet never came off last year despite reports of a $150-million offer from the Saudis. Instead, there was an arbiter’s ruling that resulted in Fury’s dramatic stoppage of Deontay Wilder in the 2021 Fight of the Year last October.

Fury-Whyte simply looms as a prelim, one step and untold sums of money before the main event. Maybe, that’s unfair, at least to Whyte. He’s a solid heavyweight, yet unknown to fans outside of the UK. That might be his best chance against Fury.

For the world’s best-known heavyweight, there might not be as much motivation for Whyte as there would be for better wages against the better-known Usyk or Joshua.

As it is, there already have been reports about negotiations for an immediate fight between Fury and Usyk, who took four of the heavyweight belts in a stunning unanimous decision over Joshua in September.

There are also widespread reports that Joshua turned down so-called step-aside money. He would have withdrawn from his contracted right for an immediate Usyk rematch, making way for Fury-Usyk.

Step-aside, however, might hasten a permanent step-away from a ring career. His confidence looks broken ever since his upset loss by stoppage to Andy Ruiz in 2019. Acceptance of step-aside cash would only be a further sign of a shot fighter. The message: Take the money, and you’re done.

According to The Telegraph, however, the money was more than just a step aside. It was a step into some serious cash. The UK newspaper reported that the offer was for 15-million pounds. That’s 20,082,150 dollars.More, maybe, than Fury-Whyte is worth

Follow all the action as Gary Russell Jr. defends the WBC Featherweight title against Mark Magsayo. The show begins at 9 PM ET / 6 PM PT with Tugstsogt Nyambayar taking on Sakaria Lukas. Subriel Matias takes Petros Ananyan in rematch.

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Round 1: Left from Russell…Right to body from Magsayo..Jab…

ROUND 2: Body shot from Magsayo..Uppercut to body…Straight right..2 Hard Body shots..Right…Right to body..

ROUND 3: Right to body from Magsayo..Left from Russell…Left to body from Magsayo..Hard right..Good counter right…Left from Russell..Good left..Right to body from Magsayo

ROUND 4 Hard right hurts Russell..Hard body shot…Left from Russell..Good left…Hard counter left

ROUND 5 Left from Russell..Uppercut to body from Magsayo…Right…Left to body from Russell..2 body shots from Magsayo..

ROUND 6  Right from Magsayo…Left from Russell..Left to body

ROUND 7 Counter left from Russell..Uppercut from Magsayo…Counter left from Russell..2 Hard rights from Magsayo..Inside left from Russell..Left to body from Magsayo

ROUND 8  Slapping left from Magsayo…Counter left from Russell…and another…Left to body from Magsayo…Left and right…Counter left from Russell

ROUND 9 Quick left from Russell…Left to body from Magsayo…Good right

ROUND 10 Left hook from Magsayo…Hard Snapping left

ROUND 11 Right from Magsayo..Straight righty

ROUND 12 Right from Magsayo….Left from Russell..Left from Russell

114-114….115-113/,,,115-113 FOR MARK MAGSAYO

Round 1 Jab from Matias…Left and right…Right from Ananya…Hard left and right from Matias..Left to body…
Round 2 Jabs from Matias…Left hook from Ananyan…Left from Matias…Trading on the inside…Combination from Matias..Left from Ananyan…Jab from Matias..
Round 3 Right from Matias…Body combination..Right from Ananyan..Left to head from Matias…Fight is a phone booth…Right from Ananayan…Left from MiB
Round 9 Big right from Matias..Left from Ananyan..Big right and left..5 Punch combro from Matias,,,,BIG RIGHT AND DOWN GOES ANANYAN

FIGHT STOPPED IN CORNER AFTER THE ROUND

Round 1: Jab from Lukas…Jab from Nyambayar…counter left hook rocks Lukas..Left and right
Round 2 Leaping left and right from Nyambayar…Jab from Lukas…Jab…Left from Nyambayar…Left hook from Lukas..
Round 3 Left hook from Nyambayar…Left..
Round 4 Body shots from Nyambayar..Jab from Lukas…left-right from Nyambayar…Left hook..Right to body…Left hook..Body shot from Lukas..Right..Left from Nyambayar
Round 5 Right from Nyambayar…Left…Counter left hook…Hard right hurtsd Lukas…Jab from Lukas..
Round 6 Jab from Lukas..another jab…Uppercut from Nyambayar….Left..Good right from Lukas..Right from Nyambayar…
Round 7 Right from Lukas
Round 8 Right and down goes Nyambayar (Ruled a slip)..Uppercut and left from Lukas…Right to body…Body work from Nyambayar…Jab…
Round 9 Right from Nyambayar…Jab…Jab..Right from Lukas
Round 10 Right from Lukas…Counter left from Nyambayar..Left from Lukas…Right from Nyambayar…Left

96-94 LUKAS…96-94 NYAMBAYAR…95-95…A SPLIT DRAW

By Norm Frauenheim-

Canelo Alvarez has options. David Benavidez has only frustration.

Canelo’s future has become a multiple-choice game. He was thinking about cruiserweight. Then, there are reports about a super-middleweight defense against a middleweight champion. Or, maybe a light-heavyweight challenge between tee times.

None of the above. Or all of the above. Benavidez is not among the reported possibilities, despite a growing number of fans and pundits who are calling for Canelo to fight him. ESPN’s Tim Bradley is just the latest to cast his vote for Canelo-Benavidez.

‘’That’s the guy that everybody wants to see him face, you know,’’ Bradley said during an ESPN telecast about the mounting speculation surrounding Canelo’s next fight.

But, you know, Benavidez is the one guy Canelo isn’t considering. His trainer, Eddy Reynoso, said so, eliminating Benavidez from a projected May 7 date.

Actually, Reynoso did more than eliminate Benavidez. He insulted him, or at least dismissed his resume. It just doesn’t measure up, Reynoso said in so many words. That brought on an inevitable counter from Benavidez, who extended his unbeaten record (25-0, 22 KOs) with a stoppage of Kyrone Davis in front of a roaring hometown crowd of about 8,000 in downtown Phoenix Nov. 13.

“It kind of, like, frustrates me now that everybody’s coming out and saying I haven’t fought nobody, that I’ve never fought on pay-per-views, I’m nobody, this and that,” Benavidez said during an appearance on the Calling Russ Anber podcast. “You can say all that, but I’m going through the ranks at super middleweight. I’ve been number one like three fights already. I’ve been beating the people I have to beat.

“The people love to see me fight, so why wouldn’t he want to fight me?’’

Good question.

Other than an opening bell, there’s not a very good answer. Inevitably, there’s talk that Canelo is simply ducking Benavidez. Maybe.

For now, however, there’s only one thing that seems to guide Canelo’s thinking on who he will — or won’t fight. A belt has to be involved. Benavidez doesn’t have one. At least, he doesn’t anymore. The World Boxing Council’s 168-pound belt was taken from him twice, first for testing positive for cocaine and then for not making weight.

Belts are like hood ornaments. They’re cheap and plentiful. But Canelo still places value on them. They are symbols, perhaps, in the history Canelo says he is pursuing.

Presumably, that’s why Reynoso mentioned cruiserweight Illungu Makabu. Makabu has a belt, the WBC’s version. A two-division jump up the scale generated a lot of headlines and social-media talk. But the possibility has cooled over the last several weeks. Makabu defends his title on Jan. 29 against Thabiso Mchunu Jan. 29 on a Don King-promoted card in Warren, Ohio.

King, of course, is still trying to trumpet the Canelo possibility. After all, he has to sell the pay-per-view. But even King hinted that Canelo’s interest has cooled.

“Hopefully, I can get him to come on in to the fight,’’ King said last week during a Zoom session for a card scheduled for a chilly locale. “So far, he don’t want to come in to that cold snow. Maybe, the sun will shine one day.’’

And, maybe, Canelo will fight Jermall Charlo instead. Talks for a May fight with Charlo, first reported by ESPN, make more sense than a risky jump up to cruiserweight.

Against Charlo, Canelo would eliminate much of the risk and retain all of the reward. It would be Charlo’s first fight at 168 pounds. But he has the one thing Benavidez doesn’t. He has a belt, the WBC’s 160-pound version.

The other Canelo possibility is at light-heavy. Joe Smith Jr. and Dmitry Bivol have been mentioned. They, too, have one thing in common: A belt. Smith retained the World Boxing Organization’s 175-pound version with a stoppage of Steve Geffrard. Bivol has a World Boxing Association belt.

Without one, Benavidez has only frustration.

His immediate future figures to include faded Montreal middleweight David Lemieux. Caleb Plant is also there. Plant is looking for a comeback from his one-sided loss to Canelo, who took his International Boxing Federation belt in a beatdown that ended in an 11^th-round TKO on Nov. 6.

Benavidez and Plant had set the stage for a showdown with trash-talking exchanges. But it all ended when Canelo decided he wanted another belt. Benavidez-Plant could still be a good fight.

For Benavidez, it also would be a yardstick, one way to measure himself against the pay-per-view star who continues to elude him.

A stoppage of Plant in an earlier round than the 11^th would give Benavidez some bragging rights. That’s better than just more of the same frustration.

By Mario Ortega Jr.-

ROSEVILLE, CA – Long established Sacramento area promoter Nasser Niavaroni’s Upper Cut Promotions will open its 2022 campaign this coming Friday, January 21st with what should be an action-packed card at the DoubleTree Hotel by Hilton, located at the state capitol’s Point West Marketplace. The six-round featured attraction pits venue favorite, Live Oak’s Tony Hernandez, who is riding a three-fight win streak, against unbeaten super middleweight and second-generation boxer Kenny Lopez Jr. of Ceres.

Hernandez (4-2, 3 KOs) last saw ring action last July against veteran trial horse Fermin Alberto Canedo, scoring a third-round stoppage in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico. In his preceding three professional fights, Hernandez became a favorite amongst local fight fans, going 2-1 with one knockout all inside the DoubleTree Hotel ring. Just under two weeks away from his DoubleTree Hotel return, Hernandez is excited to remind the local fanbase what he brings to the ring.

“I’m ready to put on a show for all of my Sacramento fans and my 530 [area code] Yuba City fans,” says Hernandez. “This will be the best Tony Hernandez everyone has seen, I can promise that. I am looking forward to January 21.” 

The Friday bout marks Hernandez’ first foray into the scheduled six-round distance and his opponent sports the glossiest record of the Live Oak resident’s career. Neither of those aforementioned facts seem to be weighing on the mind of Hernandez however.

“Training has been going good, probably one of the best camps I’ve had,” proclaims Hernandez. “I feel the best physically and mentally for this fight. I’m sure Kenny Lopez has been training hard and is going to bring his best and I’m ready for whatever he brings to the table.” 

Though the less experienced professional of the two, it is Lopez (4-0, 3 KOs) that sports the undefeated record heading into the bout. Lopez compiled all four of his pro wins during the difficult 2021, finding a home away from home at the Big Punch Arena in Tijuana. Lopez last competed just a few weeks after Hernandez blew through the same ring in Mexico, scoring a first-round stoppage of an overmatched Jorge Rodriguez Gomez.

For Lopez, whose father Kenny Lopez was a longtime professional and former California State welterweight champion, January 21st has the young fighter thrilled to be fighting for the first time in the United States. “I’m excited about everything,” says Lopez Jr. “I’m excited for my career. I’m excited to see everyone and to do my thing. Just [excited about] all of it and to learn the lessons that come with this all.” 

In the night’s second six-round affair, unblemished Sacramento featherweight Malikai Johnson will meet longtime journeyman tough guy Jude Yniguez (5-8-4, 1 KO) of Oak Hills, California. Yniguez, who in his career has gone the distance with former title challenger Stephon Young and former world champion Rico Ramos, returned to the ring late last November, ending a two-and-one-half year sabbatical from the sport.

Johnson (7-0-1, 4 KOs) began his pro career with seven straight bouts, going 6-0-1, at the DoubleTree Hotel beginning in 2017. Unfortunately, the pandemic played a part in derailing his plans for advancing his career in 2021, but Johnson could not be more amped to get back in front of his Sacramento fans on January 21st, where he will be led to the ring by a new guiding voice in his corner. 

“I’ve had to fight many obstacles in my personal life in the last two years, along with the pandemic, just to make it here,” explains Johnson. “Leaving my old coach of nine years, deaths of family and friends, stress from business ventures and serious depression from not fighting. My mental health was at an all-time low and, honestly, I considered quitting boxing, but everything changed when I joined hall of fame coach Ray Woods and the Golden State Bloodhounds. I’m with a new team, got new skills and a new hunger I haven’t felt in a long time. This fight is where I show the world Malikai “Machine Gun” Johnson is back to make a statement in the featherweight division.” 

Sacramento’s power-punching middleweight Joeshon James (4-0, 3 KOs) will return to the DoubleTree Hotel ring as he takes on debuting Bryan Martinez of Paso Robles, California in a four-round tilt. James is coming off of a unanimous decision win over durable Christian Duran at the DoubleTree last August, the first time he had been taken the full distance.

“It’s an honor to be fighting close to home so my friends and family who have never seen me fight before can support my career and watch what I do best,” says James. “Nasser has been open arms from the start and I appreciate that he has given me an opportunity to showcase my skills once again.” 

In a four-round light welterweight bout, Mark Salgado (1-0, 1 KO) of San Jose, California returns to the site of his pro victory to take on Luciano Ramos of Stockton, California by way of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Salgado made his debut last August at the DoubleTree Hotel with a stoppage win over Cmaje Ramseur. Ramos has been matched incredibly tough in his short pro career, taking on highly regarded prospects Charlie Sheehy and Mandeep Jangra in his first two outings last year.

In a four-round lightweight contest, debuting Sergio Ibarra of San Bernardino, California will take on Cmaje Ramseur (0-1) of nearby Elk Grove, California. Local product Ramseur took on the super tough Mark Salgado in his debut and came up short in that DoubleTree Hotel bout.

Due to unforeseen circumstances, the much-anticipated pairing of pro debuts between Salinas, California’s Lizette Lopez and Victorville, California’s Neveah Martinez, scheduled as a four-round super featherweight fight, was a late scratch from the card.

Tickets for the event, “Super Boxing Battles,” promoted by Upper Cut Promotions, are available online at Showclix.com or by phone or in person at Niavaroni’s Kickboxing in Roseville (916-782-4757). 

Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at ortegajr.mario@gmail.com or followed on Twitter @MarioG280

Follow all the action as Joe Smith Jr. defends the WBO Light Heavyweight Title against Steve Geffrard.  The action begins at 10 PM ET / 7 PM PT with featherweights Abraham Nova and William Encarnacion.

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Round 1: Geffrard countering with the left hook..Triple jab..Left hook..3 rights from Smith..Left hook

Round 2 Smith shoe shining…Right to body..Good Jab

Round 3 Jab from Geffrard..Right from Smith…Big Right..Right..Nice Right from Geffrard..Left counter..

Round 4 Onslaught from Smith..Right to body..Big Right

Round 5 4 punch combo from Geffrard…Left counter..Double/jab left hook from Smith…Big Straight right..Right hurts Geffrard…

Round 6 

Round 7 Good right from Smith…Left hook and double right uppercut…left uppercut…

Round 8 Left from Geffrard..Uppercut from Smith and another

Round 9 BIG SEVEN PUNCH FLURRY AND DOWN GOES GEFFRARD…REFEREE COUNTS 10….FIGHT IS OVER

Round 1 Right from Encarnacion…
Round 2 Jab from Nova…Nice Right
Round 3 Nice hook from Nova…Nice Body shot
Round 4 Body shot from Nova..Body shots…Right to body
Round 5 Nova lands a combination to the head…More Body work
Round 6 Nova Teeing off on Encarnacion…Nova bleeding over right eye from a headbutt
Round 7 Hard 1-2 from Nova…Nice Right uppercut ..Left hook and hard right
Round 8 Nice right from Nova..Encarnacion on shaky legs…ENCARNACION’S CORNER STOPS THE FIGHT

By Norm Frauenheim-

It’s a lawsuit that probably shouldn’t surprise anybody. Its inevitability was evident throughout an awkward news conference a couple of months ago.

Bob Arum and Terence Crawford looked like a couple headed to divorce court after Crawford’s stoppage of Shawn Porter on Nov. 20.

The fight itself was worth celebrating. But the post-fight newser was troublesome, another sign of a game going nowhere. Arum frowned. Crawford, whose Top Rank contract expired the second Porter’s dad/trainer threw in the towel, said he was moving on. Wednesday, we found out where he’s headed.

For now, at least, Crawford is moving only into the legal ring with a lawsuit filed in Las Vegas’ Clark County District Court. The 23-page document accuses Top Rank of racism and breach of contract.

Arum called it frivolous. Crawford’s attorneys called it a lot of other things, most of which mean the same thing.  (Insert F-word of choice here). The suit is generating lots of social-media heat. But it’s anybody’s guess whether it does much more than that.

There are some predictions that it’ll go the way of a Golden Boy Promotions anti-trust suit against PBC (Premier Boxing Champions). That one was filed in May 2015. About 19 months later, it was in the trash.

A federal judge dismissed the case in January 2017 because of Golden Boy’s failure “to demonstrate that there is a genuine issue of material fact.’’ Translation: No evidence. Let a judge decide the merits of this one.

But you don’t need a law degree to wonder about the timing. For Crawford, time is everything. He’s 34 now. He’ll be 35 in September. Prime time is slipping through the hour glass. Nineteen months from now, he’ll be nearly 36.

Right now, he needs a fight more than a lawsuit against his former promoter   

Nothing in a legal brief or a courtroom will further Crawford’s claim on the top spot in the pound-for-pound debate or enhance his Hall of Fame legacy. He can do that only in the boxing ring.

Maybe, that move is forthcoming. Maybe, he’ll announce his next fight tomorrow or next week, or next month. Maybe, the lawsuit is the first step toward a deal with another promoter in what would be a new chapter to an otherwise unappreciated career.

This lawsuit, like any other, will wait. Even if it moves forward to a trial, it will sit forgotten on a docket long after the due date on its relevance has expired.

Crawford’s brilliance in the ring – he’s still No. 1 in this pound-for-pound rating – hasn’t been complemented by what he’s done, or not done, outside of the ropes.

The lawsuit’s many issues center around the allegation that Top Rank failed to turn him into a pay-per-view star. His PPV record is dismal, including a reported 130,000 customers for his powerful statement win against Porter.

Those PPV numbers have left him with little bargaining power, despite his pound-for-pound acclaim. The public clamors for Crawford to fight Errol Spence Jr.

But Spence is demanding a 60-40 share of the total purse, because his PPV record proves he’s the bigger draw. Fifty-fifty or nothing, counters Crawford, who is as proud as he is defiant.

So far, it’s been nothing, nada.

Do you blame stubborn demands from both corners? Do you blame Top Rank for failing to fulfill alleged promises it can’t really keep? Do you blame a shrinking boxing market? Boxing’s gilded age – the Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather era – is gone.

For now, boxing’s traditional ranks (sorry, Jake Paul) include only one proven PPV star – Canelo Alvarez. He followed Mayweather. They turned themselves into PPV stars. They broke with their promoters.

Mayweather paid Arum $750,000 to get out of his Top Rank contract in 2006. At the time, he was collecting Crawford-like wages — between $3 and $5 million per fight. Crawford earned a reported $6 million for his victory over Porter.

In November 2020, Canelo split with Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions. His $250-million complaint “was resolved to everyone’s satisfaction,’’ De La Hoya said at the time.

Both took a risk that Crawford did not. A lawsuit won’t change that.

By Norn Frauenheim-

Year-enders, 2021 awards and 2022 projections, were notable for one traditional category that was mostly overlooked, if not missing altogether.

There wasn’t a whole lot of talk about fights we want to see. Maybe, that’s because only another rematch with COVID-19 seems to matter.

The New Year is only a week old, yet already there are more of the cancellations/postponements that drained enthusiasm and energy from boxing. This one is being blamed on omicron. It’s a so-called variant. From this corner, however, nothing about it has varied from exactly a year ago. Same old virus, same old buzz kill.  

It’s hard to get excited, even sustain interest when it’s uncertain exactly when or even whether an opening bell will happen.

The latest sign was news Thursday that light-heavyweight Joe Smith Jr. was looking for a new opponent for his title defense, still scheduled for Jan. 15 in Verona, N.Y., because UK challenger Callum Johnson tested positive.

“It’s a real great shame for Callum,” his promoter Frank Warren told BBC Sport. “Hopefully we can get him back in, they may want to [reschedule the fight] in late spring.’’

The Top Rank card had already been hit by COVID. Emerging featherweight Abraham Nova of Albany, NY, was supposed to fight Mexican Jose Enrique Vivas. But the stubborn virus spread through Vivas’ camp, forcing him to withdraw. Instead, Nova will fight Dominican William Encarnacion.

If the card had been scheduled for the UK, there would have been no uncertainty. No doubt at all. The date would have been off. Ring lights in the UK will be dark throughout January. Boxing won’t resume until at least Feb. 1, according to news from the British Boxing Board of Control in a story reported this week by Boxing Scene.

The step was taken because of another huge COVID surge in Britain.  In the U.S. that’s ominous, another word for omicron.

What COVID does in the UK usually foretells what it’s about to do in the U.S.

Still, the American version of the game fights on. At least, for now.

There were weigh-ins Thursday for a card featuring junior-lightweights Luis Nunez (15-0, 8 KOs)-versus-Carlos Arrieta (14-0, 9 KOs). The card includes six unbeaten fighters in three bouts. It’s a ShoBox telecast scheduled for Friday (6 p.m. PT/9 p.m. ET, Showtime) from Orlando, home for Disney World.

It’s also in the heart of Florida, where – according to a University of Florida report –up to 80 percent of the state’s population will get COVID during the omicron wave.

With those kind of odds, it’ll be a huge upset if the fighters, fans, cornermen and officials don’t get infected. Put it this way: Getting vaccinated is the best bet. Hopefully, they all are.

By Norm Frauenheim-

Predictions, like glass jaws, are fragile. Hangovers from a New Year’s Eve party last longer.

The best resolution: Resolve to never make another one. That’s an old line, also a lesson forgotten quickly as one year ends and another begins.

Other than a surge in more COVID-related postponements, nothing is certain. But 2022’s opening bell means just about anything else can happen.

A few guesses:

It made for an entertaining headline, but don’t expect Canelo Alvarez to fight cruiserweight Ilunga Makabu, unknown until the possibility was introduced about a month ago. There are too many issues and maybe too much risk in moving up two weight classes. Don’t expect him to fight David Benavidez or Gennadiy Golovkin, either. Do expect him to fight Joe Smith Jr. in the super-middleweight champion’s first attempt to unify the light-heavyweight division.

Expect Benavidez to say, again and again, that Canelo is ducking him. He might be right. Fans and Floyd Mayweather Jr. agree with him. But Canelo doesn’t care. Boxing’s biggest draw can do whatever he wants. Instead, expect the maturing Benavidez, who turned 25 on Dec. 17, to blow out David Lemieux and then jump up the scale, from super-middle to light-heavy, in his chase to fight Canelo.

Terence Crawford isn’t underrated. He’s unappreciated. Maybe that changes in 2022, but don’t bet on it. Pay-per-view sales for his brilliant stoppage of Shawn Porter Nov. 20 were reported to be 135,000. Underperformed is how much of the media described the PPV. But it was devastating for what it says about the state of the game. Crawford’s versatility and old-school instinct – he’s a finisher – still makes him No. 1 in some pound-for-debates, including this one. But the PPV number says that most in the boxing audience don’t care. Or, maybe, it says that audience isn’t very big anymore. Or, maybe, they’re watching Jake Paul.

More Crawford: He announced he was moving on, leaving Top Rank after he forced Porter’s dad/trainer to throw in the towel. His PPV number in November makes free-agency in 2022 problematic. Still, the year is pivotal. He’ll be 35 on Sept. 28. Does he fight Josh Taylor? Taylor might be ready to jump from junior-welterweight to welter later this year. Taylor has the UK audience. But he’s a Top Rank fighter. Errol Spence is still there. But don’t be surprised if Spence finds more ways to not fight Crawford. November 20 was just another way. Crawford stopped Porter; Spence scored a split decision over Porter.

The lightweight division was called a modern version of The Four Kings – Devin Haney, Gervonta Davis, Ryan Garcia and Teofimo Lopez — after Lopez dethroned Vasiliy Lomachenko in October 2020. Don’t be surprised if Lomachenko is back as the only lightweight king before 2022 turns into 2023. He took one step in that direction with a solid decision over Richard Commey. Now, he’s talking about Australian Geroge Kambosos Jr., who made a mockery out of The Four Kings with a decision over Lopez. Guess here: He beats Kambosos.

Oleksandr Usyk might have the same problem against the best and biggest in the heavyweight division that fellow Ukrainian Lomachenko had in the lighter weights. There’s a reason for weight classes. Lomachenko, a natural featherweight, got hurt at 135 pounds. That leaves a question about Usyk, a natural cruiserweight. Dynamic skills and guile were enough to beat Anthony Joshua. Both should be enough for victory in the rematch, projected for April. Then, there’s a looming showdown with Tyson Fury, who may or may not fight Dillian Whyte first in a mandatory. It’s hard to say how Usyk does against Fury and his 6-foot-9 NBA dimensions. But it’s a reason to look forward to 2022.

Here’s wishing ring announcer David Diamante a full recovery, a Filipino presidency for Manny Pacquiao and a Happy 2022 to everybody.

ReplyForward

By Norm Fraienheim-

Another year ends the same way the last one did.  Good riddance. At least, the approaching New Year can’t be postponed. It feels as if just about everything in 2021 was.

Some of the same old trouble is surging all over again. It’s ominous, which today means omicron. From the NFL to the NHL, the Postponement Pandemic is back.

The good news is that boxing did in 2021 what it has always done. It bleeds, but never breaks. It survived. It came out of the bubble and hopefully will stay there. I like its chances, mostly because of an inexhaustible defiance that was expressed throughout a problematic year.

A look back:

Fight of the Year: It’s obvious. Tyson Fury-Deontay Wilder 3 was wild, wildly wonderful enough to forget about variants and protocol. It knocked our masks off. Fury was down twice; Wilder was down twice. Then, Fury delivered the finishing blow in the 11th round of their second heavyweight rematch Oct. 9 in Las Vegas. Some complained that it wasn’t an exhibition of refined skill. So, go to a museum. It was fun for fans in desperate need of some.

Honorable Mention: Juan Francisco Estrada’s split-decision over Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez. It was controversial. It was crazy. Estrada threw 1,212 punches; Chocolatito 1,317. That’s 2,529 punches without a knockdown. In the end, both had enough energy to still be standing after the March 13 junior-bantamweight bout in Dallas.

Fighter of the Year: Canelo Alvarez. Busy was possible for just one fighter during the Postponement Pandemic. The reigning super-middleweight fought three times, winning each by stoppage –  first a gimme against overmatched Avni Yildirim, then a punishing one against a skilled Billy Joe Saunders and finally one over a limited Caleb Plant. The victories kept Canelo in the headlines and at the top of year-ending ballots.  

Honorable Mention: Oleksandr Usyk turned the heavyweight division upside-down with his dominant decision over Anthony Joshua Sept. 25 in London. Usyk has more than a dynamic skillset. He’s got some charisma. If his decision on Oct. 31, 2020 over Derek Chisora had happened in early 2021, he would have been this corner’s Fighter of the Year.

KO of the Year: Tyson Fury. In a fight with five knockdowns, it’s fitting that the fifth and final one would be KO of the Year. Put it this way, each of the first four knockdowns were concussive enough to be knockouts. The fifth defined Fury at his furious best. It was also delivered by a right, the hand that Deontay Wilder had turned into a wrecking ball, feared by every heavyweight but one. Fury delivered it – a clean shot to Wilder’s temple – at 1:10 of the eleventh.

Honorable Mention: Oscar Valdez Jr.’s 10^th-round KO of Miquel Berchelt. Valdez landed a wicked left hook in the final second of the 10^th-round, finishing a feared and favored Berchelt for the 130-pound title Feb. 20 in The Bubble at Vegas’ MGM Grand.

Upset of the Year: Yordenis Ugas, whose unanimous decision over Manny Pacquiao ended an era. The Manny Era. Pacquiao finally began to show his age, all 42 years of it. As sad as it was for 12 rounds, it was compelling in the end. At the post-fight news conference on Aug. 21 at Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena, Pacquiao delivered a touching performance, one that could be The Farewell of this Year or any other year. It set the stage for his inevitable decision to retire a few weeks later. It also reminded us of why we’ve liked him so much for so long.

Honorable Mention: George Kambosos, who scored a split-decision over Teofimo Lopez on Nov. 27 in New York. It was a shocker, especially for Lopez, who couldn’t quite get over the shock. Looking bloodied and beaten, he grabbed the microphone and insisted he had won. “Delusional,’’ Kambosos said, saying it all before taking the undisputed lightweight title home to Sydney, Australia. The upset left the 135-pound division upside-down, or at least Down Under. 

Follow all the action as Artur Beterbiev defends the IBF/WBC Light Heavyweight Titles against Marcus Browne.

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Round 1: Browne Jabbing…Body shot..Left down the middle

Round 2 Body shot from Browne…Nice Jab..Right by Beterbiev…Left from Browne..Jab from Beterbiev

Round 3 Right from Beterbiev..Browne lands a body combination…Good right from Beterbiev

Round 4 Quick combination from Browne…Unintentional Head Clash has both Guys Bleeding (Beterbiev on his forehead..Browne over his left eye)…Right from Beterbiev..Hard left to the body..

Round 5 Doctor looking at both cuts..Left down middle from Browne..Combination from Beterbiev..Jab..Beterbiev bleeding badly…4 punch combination…Good right…Ripping head shots

Round 6 Good left hook from Beterbiev..1-2..Good right..Hard Jab and right hand

Round 7 BETERBIEV LANDS A HUGE BODY AND RIGHT HAND AND DOWN GOES BROWNE..Beterbiev landing hard shots on the ropes

Round 8 Beterbiev lands a straight right…Left from Browne..Good right from Beterbiev..

Round 9 BIG COMBINATION AND BIG UPPERCUT AND DOWN GOES BROWNE AND HE STAYS DOWN FOR THE 10 COUNT

By Norm Frauenheim-

Olympic boxing is about to become what it has been known for making.

History.

At least, it sounds as if it’s closer to Olympic abolition than it ever has been.

Boxing, which has been around since the ancient Greek Games, was not included on a list of sports for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, The Associated Press reported this week.

The story didn’t get any attention. No surprise there. Nobody much cares anymore. Olympic boxing is already a ruin, unrecognizable and seemingly beyond repair after more than three decades of uninterrupted scandal and rank corruption.

Other than last rites, there doesn’t seem to be anything left to say. But there is concern. After all, the prize-fighting business has relied on Olympic boxing. From Muhammad Ali to Andre Ward, Olympic gold has led to box-office gold. It has been a place where talent can be discovered, refined and introduced to a diverse audience.

Even now, it’s a way of re-creating the game. To wit: Keyshawn Davis. The Tokyo silver medalist is an interesting prospect. Will he make it to the top of the pro game? Who knows? But we know him because of the Olympics. He’s a lightweight worth following.

Seven years from now, however, the Keyshawn of a new generation might not have that Olympic platform. That robs an emerging generation of fighters of an early goal. It also robs the business of prospects who sustain its future. An Olympics without boxing is one step toward the end so often predicted by the Boxing-Is-Dead crowd.

Mauricio Sulaiman knows that. Olympic boxing is a cornerstone to his place in the pro game. He plans a fight to preserve it, which is in effect a fight for his sanctioning body, the World Boxing Council (WBC).

“It’s a matter of great concern,’’ Sulaiman, the WBC president, said Thursday in an annual year-end zoom session with reporters from his office in Mexico City.

Sulaiman said he is communicating with the bodies supposedly in charge of amateur boxing. Trouble is, it’s not exactly clear what – who — those organizations are anymore. It was AIBA a year ago. Now, it is IBA. There’s acrimony in the acronyms, neither of which were supposed to be within earshot of an opening bell at the Tokyo Games last summer.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided to keep amateur boxing’s ruling cartel as far away from a scorecard as possible. It looks as if nothing about the IOC’s evident exasperation has changed.  It was expressed all over again with the decision to keep boxing off its initial list sports for 2028.    

Initial is the operative word here. According to the AP, there’s a chance that boxing could still be added – restored? — if it gets its act together. Big if. We’ve been waiting for Olympic boxing get its house in order for more than three decades

No matter what the letters are in the ever-changing acronym, there’s still the whiff of more scandal.

A year ago, Russian Umar Kremlyov was elected president of the governing body. Kremlyov is still the president. And the IOC is still skeptical, according to an AP report, which a year ago cited his promise to clear up the acronym’s $16-million debt if boxing’s Olympic status was retained.

Now, Kremlyov is promising to reform boxing’s judging system, which has been riddled with corruption ever since Roy Jones Jr. and Michael Carbajal were robbed of gold at the 1988 Seoul Olympics.

I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again: If Olympic boxing is serious about cleaning up its act, go back to the initial scene of the crime. Give Jones and Carbajal their rightful gold medals. Those are the fixes that never got fixed. There’s been a long succession of them ever since.

Despite Kremlyov’s lofty promise, he’s not willing to go into down and dirty details    

“We have nothing to hide,’’ Kremlyov told the AP this week.

Then, however, Kremlyov was asked about allegations of fixed fights reported in an Olympic investigation of the 2016 Rio De Janeiro Games. Kremlyov said he couldn’t he couldn’t be specific about what fights were fixed.  Or who did the fixing.

A memo to Kremlyov and everybody else with AIBA, IBA or whatever it’s called today: Get specific, or stay off that list. 

Follow all the action as Nonito Donaire defends the WBC Bantamweight title against Reymart Gaballo

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Round 1: Big right uppercut from Gaballo..Left to body from Donaire..Left..Sharp right…Left Hook..Counter right..

Round 2 Over hand right from Donaire..Counter from Gaballo…Double Jab from Gaballo..Jab from Donaire

Round 3 Gaballo lands a big right…Counter left from Donaire…Jab..Right…Nice Exchange…Sharp jab from Gaballo..Left hook…Right from Donaire..

Round 4 Right to body and head from Donaire…righ to body and left hook…BODY SHOT AND DOWN GOES GABALLO….HE DOES NOT GET UP AND THE FIGHT IS OVER

By Norm Frauenheim-

With apologies to Floyd Mayweather Jr., Andre Ward and few others, defeat is a little bit like a scar. It’s hard to get through a boxing career without one.

The key is what to do with it. There’s denial. There’s delusion. There’s blaming someone else. Anyone else.

But there’s never much healing in any of that, at least not in a sport so singularly lonely. There’s no backup quarterback to blame. No dog who ate the homework.

There’s only the fighter, looking in the mirror and at months of shadow-boxing with the personal torment left in the turbulent wake of a loss. Tough to win that one, yet a victory is often the defining fundamental in a game that’s always been about adversity.

Vasiliy Lomachenko has figured that out.

His understanding of defeat, even his empathy for a bitter rival now dealing with one, is evident in the days before the Ukrainian’s bid to get back into the lightweight title mix Saturday (ESPN, 6 pm PT/9 pm ET) against Richard Commey at New York’s Madison Square Garden.

His date with Commey comes just two weeks after Teofimo Lopez lost the 135-pound belts and his composure to George Kambosos Jr. in the same building. Lopez upset Lomachenko, taking the belts and knocking out his pound-for-pound supremacy with a unanimous decision in October 2020.

Lopez went on to rip Lomachenko, ridiculing him for saying he suffered an injury to his right shoulder. Lomachenko moved on, underwent surgery, a second procedure on a shoulder that had been injured against Jorge Linares in his first fight at lightweight.

Lomachenko, who still believes the scorecard loss to Lopez should have been judged a draw, wanted a rematch.

No way, Lopez said often and always with a dismissive tone that suggested Lomachenko (15-2, 11 KOs) was yesterday’s news.

He’s not, of course. Commey (30-3, 27 KOs) is his second fight in a comeback that began with a ninth-round stoppage of Masayoshi Nakatani in June.  

Given the trash-talking rancor left over from Lopez’s upset of Lomachenko nearly 15 months ago, however, it was easy – too easy – to think Lomachenko might experience some schadenfreude – a uniquely German word that means taking pleasure in another’s misfortune.

No, Lomachenko said Thursday during a session with reporters after the formal part of the final news conference for the Commey bout.

“I am not happy, because I understand what he’s feeling,’’ Lomachenko said when asked how he felt about the Lopez loss. “I was in the same situation.’’

It’s a situation that the once-beaten Lopez is just beginning to confront. Questions linger, including troubling news about his physical condition at opening bell. ESPN quoted a doctor as saying he could have died because of a breathing issue.

Lomachenko went on to say that he was happy Lopez would recover and “get out of this situation.’’

The situation – dealing with defeat – is a place he has been a couple of times. He had to come back from defeat after just his second pro bout – a loss to Orlando Salido. In retrospect, that defeat might have been more of a bruising way to pay some apprenticeship dues against a tough gatekeeper.

Lomachenko arrived in the pro ranks as perhaps the most celebrated Olympic boxer ever. He won two gold medals, 2008 and again in 2012. Lomachenko responded to Salido’s brutal welcome to the pros by winning titles at featherweight, junior-lightweight and lightweight.

He did, he says, mostly because of the way a defeat forces a fighter to accept accountability and then re-commit to the craft.

“Losing is not comfortable, but if you have a goal, you have to continue,’’ he said.

For Lomachenko, the goal has always been there. He talked about it in a compelling, Top Rank-produced video with Hall-of-Fame inductee Roy Jones Jr., his boyhood hero.

“You need to have just one dream,’’ he said. “You need to go to bed with your dream. You need to get up with your dream.

“You need to live with your dream.’’Sometimes, that means you have to come back from a nightmare

Follow all the action as Gervonta Davis defends the WBA Lightweight title against undefeated Isaac Cruz.  The fights begin at 8 PM ET / 5 PM PT with Sebastian Fundora taking on Sergio Garcia; Sergiy Derevyanchenko taking on Carlos Adames and Eduardo Ramirez against Miguel Marriaga

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Round 1: 2 rights from Cruz..Uppercut from Diaz…Right staggers Davis..Left from Crus

Round 2 Left uppercut from Davis..Counter from Cruz..Left from Davis…Body shot from Cruz

Round 3 Left to body from Cruz..Combination from Davis..Uppercut…Counter right hook….Left uppercut/right hook…Counter left…

Round 4 Right and left to body from Cruz…Uppercut…Uppercut from Davis…Jab from Cruz…Left uppercut from Davis..and another

Round 5 Lead left from Davis…Jab and right Cruz..Right uppercut from Davis…Body shot from Cruz..Body shot from Davis..Upercut and straight left…Right from Cruz..Left uppercut from Davis..

Round 6 Right hook from Davis…Straight left…Right from Cruz…Right hook from Davis…Left uppercut..Lead right hook..Straight left…Body

Round 7 Uppercut from Davis…Left..Cruz lands a couple of uppercuts..Big uppercut by Cruz…Right to body from Davis..Cruz lands a right…right hook and left from Davis..Body shot from Cruz..Right uppercut…right to body

Round 8 Straight left from Davis..Uppercut from Cruz…uppercut…Uppercut

Round 9 Cruz lands a body shot…Left from Davis..Lead left…Straight left and right hook to body..Counter

Round 10 Big Flurry from Cruz..right to body..right hook from Davis..

Round 11 Body shot from Cruz…Right..3 jabs from Davis…Lead right uppercut…Right hook..

Round 12 Lead right hook for Davis..Good right hook..Davis Left hand is hurt…

116-112; 115-113 TWICE FOR GERVONTA DAVIS

Round 1 Left and right from Fundora…Right from Garcia..Left rocks Garcia
Round 2 Right from Garcia..Head combo..Lead left and right uppercut from Fundora..Combination..
Round 3 Right uppercut from Garcia…Right from Fundora..Right from Garcia..Left from Fundora…Right from Garcia..Right to body from Fundora
Round 4 Fundora bleeding from Nose…Left uppercut from Garcia…Body shot..Garcia cut around the right eye..Good right from Garcia..Right to body
Round 5 Jab from Fundora..Uppercut..Right from Garcia..Uppercut and right from Fundora,,,Uppercuts on inside from Garcia..Right hook and left from Fundora…Chopping left from Garcia,..Right uppercut on inside…ocunter from Fundora..Combination
Round 6 Left hand and right to body from Fundora…Left…Right hook…Garcia lands a left..Right…Left…
Round 7 Left from Fundora…Uppercut…Left uppercut…right from Garcia…Right to body..
Round 8 Left from Fundora…Garcia landing a combination
Round 9 Garcia trying to push the action
Round 10 Garcia lands a short uppercut…Right uppercut..Another
Round 11 Left from Fundora..Right to the body…Uppercut…Uppercut…Garcia lands a right and left..Solid right to body from Fundora…Right from Garcia
Round 12 Right from Fundora…Nice uppercut…Right hook…Garcia lands a left,,,Garcia lands a big left

115-113; 117-111; 118-110 FUNDORA

Round 1:
Round 2 Big right from Adams…Right Hook..Big left hook from Derevyanchenko
Round 3 Right uppercut from Adames..Right hook from Derevyanchenko…Trading Body shots…Right from Adames..Left hook to the body
Round 4 Right from Adames…Double Jab/Right Hand…Right from Derevyanchenko…
Round 5 Right from Adames..Right from Derevyanchenko..Exchanging Big Rights
Round 6 Right from Adames
Round 7 Right cross from Adames..Left hook…Left hook..
Round 8 Jab from Derevyanchenko…Adames lands a right..Sharp Jab…Right from Derevyanchenko…Lead left hook from Adames…
Round 9 Derevyanchenko lands a jab and right…Counter from Adames..sweeping left hook..Both landing heavy head shots..Jab from Derevyanchenko…Right from Adames..Left hook..Right from Derevyanchenko
Round 10 Both landing hard combinations in the corner…Chopping right from Derevyanchenko…Right from Adames..2 short left hooks from Derevychaneko…Right

95-95, 97-93 AND 96-94 FOR ADAMES

Round 1 Left from Marriaga…Right…Left to body…Body shot from Ramirez
Round 2 Left from Ramirez…Combination..Right…Straight left…Hard combination
Round 3 Left from Ramirez…Body shot from Marriaga…Right to the head..Body shot from Ramires…Jab..Lead right..left..Lead left from Ramirez..Left from Marriaga…Right…STRAIGHT LEFT AND DOWN GOES MARRIAGA
Round 4  Marriaga lands a right…Hard left from Marriaga…Hard left…Right hook…
Round 5 1-2 from Ramirez…Left..1-2…1-2 from Marriaga…
Round 6 Ramirez working inside…Uppercut…Right..uppercut…Body work…Straight left…Hard straight left…Counter right from Marriaga…3 punch combination from Ramirez…Right from Marriaga…
Round 7  Body shot from Ramirez…Right rocks Marriaga…2 right hooks from Ramirez…
Round 8 Combination from Marriaga…Left from Ramirez…Straight left…Right Hook..Straight left
Round 9 Straight left from Ramirez…3 Punch combination…Left uppercut
Round 10 Left from Ramirez…Ripping right Hook..Left..Good right

99-90 ON ALL CARDS FOR RAMIREZ

Follow all the action as Devin Haney takes on Joseph Diaz Jr. for the WBC Lightweight title.  The action begins at 8 PM ET / 5 PM PT with four fights featuring the Undisputed Female Welterweight title bout between Jessica McCaskill and Kandi Wyatt.  Also seeing action will be undefeated Filip Hrgovic, Montana Love and Marc Castro.

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Round 1: Straight right from Haney…Combination..

Round 2 Body shot from Haney…Right to body from Diaz..Check hook from Haney..Jab from Diaz..Right..Good Body shot from Haney

Round 3 Nice uppercut from Haney…Uppercut on inside from Diaz,,,jab..Good right Hand from Haney..

Round 4 Good left to body for Diaz..Big left…Hard left..Good Jab from Haney

Round 5 Haney lands a body shot…Straight left by Diaz and follows up with a flurry…Good right from Haney…Haney outlanding Diaz 56-50

Round 6 Good body shot from Haney…Little flurry from Diaz…Haney Boxing…

Round 7 Uppercut from Haney..Counter right from Haney..3 hard lefts from Diaz…Another left…

Round 8 Right from Haney…

Round 9 Good right from Haney…Diaz flurrying…Body shot from Haney..Left-right to the body..Big Uppercut..Another left uppercut..Diaz lands a counter right hook and another

Round 10 Big right from Haney…

Round 11 Uppercut from Haney..Right to body…Body shot from Diaz…

Round 12 Big left from Diaz..ANother left buzzes Haney..Haney lands a straight right..

117-111 TWICE; 116-112 FOR DEVIN HANEY

Round 1 Check hook from Love..Nice Body shot..Uppercut..Check Hook from Diaz..
Round 2 UPPERCUT AND LEFT AND DOWN GOES DIAZ..LEFT TO THE TEMPLE AND DOWN GOES DIAZ…HARD LEFT-RIGHT AND DIAZ GOES DOWN
Round 3 Big left from Diaz…Straight left drives Diaz back and  COMBINATION FORCES A REFEREE STOPPAGE

Round 1: Hard rights from McCaskill..Good uppercut on inside..Chopping right from Wyatt..Jab..Big right from McCaskill..Good Body shots

Round 2 Good body punch on inside from McCaskill..Nice left to body…2 rights from Wyatt..Right from McCaskill

Round 3 Combination fromMcCaskill..Blood from Nose of Wyatt…Ckubbing right from McCaskill..Big Right..

Round 4 2 Hard rights from McCaskill..Uppercut

Round 5 8 Body shots from McCaskill…Uppercut and jab from Wyatt..

Round 6 Digging right to body and head shot from McCaskill…Hard 3 punch combination…

Round 7 2 RIGHT HANDS BY MCCASKILL AND THE FIGHT IS STOPPED

Round 1 Right from Ahmatovic…Left hook..Big right from Hrgovic..
Round 2 Clubbing shots from Hrgovic..Both guys sugging a way.  Left hook from Ahmatovic…CHOPPING LET TO TOP OF HEAD AND DOWN GOES AHMATOVIC..RIGHT HAND AND DOWN GOES AHMATOVIC
Round 3 ANOTHER CHOPPING RIGHT DROPS AHMATOVIC AND THE FIGHT IS OVER

Round 1 Nice 1-2 from Castro…Jab and right and DOWN GOES SOLIS..Hard left..Nice right snaps Solis head back..Big right
Round 2 HUGE RIGHT AND DOWN GOES SOLIS…FIGHT OVER

By Norm Frauenheim –

It’s appropriate that the lightweight division and much of boxing have been turned upside-down, which is another way of saying Down Under.

That’s what Australian George Kambosos did.

His stunning upset of Teofimo Lopez is a sign that maybe it’s time to get back under the hood. Time to take another look at boxers and the business from a different angle.

Kambosos used the word “delusional” to describe a bloodied and beaten Lopez, who asserted that he had somehow won their title fight last Saturday in New York.

Delusional, it was.

That much was evident in the boos at Madison Square Garden’s Hulu Theater from a crowd filled with Lopez’ hometown partisans. Kambosos tried to give him a break, suggesting that maybe he was concussed in losing the 12-rounds by a split-decision also tainted by judge Don Trella’s 114-113 card in favor of Lopez.

Delusional, it is.

In the days since the upset and before a key lightweight doubleheader– Devin Haney-JoJo Diaz Saturday (DAZN, 5 pm PT/8pm ET) and Gervonta Davis-Isaac Cruz Sunday (Showtime, 5 pm/8 pm), Lopez has taken to social media, still insisting he won.

Meanwhile, he and father-trainer, Teofimo Sr., say they’re moving on, moving up to junior welterweight. But going up the scale won’t wipe away what happened last Saturday. There’s no moving beyond.

Instead of repeating the delusional double-down, how about congratulations to Kambosos? How about Lopez saying he’d like a rematch if he can make weight?

Maybe, Lopez will eventually review the video, review his conduct, and do both. Maybe, he just can’t make the weight any more. Maybe, he can wait to fight Kambosos at a heavier weight. Or at a catch weight. Maybe, maybe.

An acknowledgment that he lost, however, would be a beginning, the first step toward redemption for a good fighter who brags about being The Takeover, his nickname. More like the take-down.

Lopez is a likable kid, emphasis on kid. Whether he can grow into the great fighter he’s been projected to be, however, begins now.

His defeat is exactly the sort of adversity that transforms good young fighters into Hall of Famers. Ray Leonard wouldn’t be Sugar if not for his Montreal loss to Roberto Duran in 1980. Ali wouldn’t be Ali without his New York loss to Joe Frazier in 1971. Inherently, boxing is about overcoming, getting up off the canvas and coming back from defeat. Now, Lopez has that opportunity, but it’s up to him to see something beyond the delusional.

Lopez’ loss was surely on the minds of everybody at separate news conferences Thursday. First, there was the Davis-Cruz newser in Los Angeles for a 135-pound fight at Staples Center on pay-per-view (talk about delusional, but a story for another delusional day).

“Last Saturday, we all saw what happens when you don’t take your opponent seriously,’’ said Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe, who promised the heavily-favored Davis is deadly serious about Cruz, a late-stand in.

Then, there was the Haney-Diaz newser in Las Vegas for the lightweight fight at MGM Grand. Kambosos, the winning face of what can happen to the delusional, was there. In an interview with UK promoter Eddie Hearn, he said was on a “scouting mission.” He’ll be at ringside for Haney-Diaz Saturday and Davis-Cruz Sunday.

He’s hoping, he says, for a fight against Haney, who apparently holds the last link to the 135-pound division’s undisputed title. Sorry, but there’s that word again, Kambosos’ word: Delusional. It’s everywhere. Boxing has no effective vaccine for it.

In beating Lopez, Kambosos took five belts, including the World Boxing Council’s (WBC) so-called “franchise’’ designation. That left only the WBC’s other lightweight belt in the hands of Haney. Apparently, the undisputed puzzle just keeps metastasizing.

Let’s just say that Kambosos is the lightweight champion. Period. Please.

In a welcome twist, the unlikely Kambosos might have finally awakened the lightweight division. When Lopez upset Vasiliy Lomachenko in October 2020, there was a lot of talk about a golden era at 135-pounds. It was even called Four Kings (insert the D-word here).

That, of course, was an insult to Leonard, Duran, Marvin Hagler and Thomas Hearns, the four pillars to George Kimball’s enduring book on their defining rivalry in the late 1970s and early 80s.

In Twitter time, Lopez, Davis, Haney, and Ryan Garcia suddenly became Four Successors. But time is proving them to be Four Reluctants. They’ve yet to fight each other.

Enter Kambosos, who isn’t shy about his willingness to fight any of them as soon as possible. If not Haney, then Davis. Or maybe Lomachenko, who has a chance to reclaim his place in the division on Dec. 11 against a bigger Richard Commey at Madison Square Garden.

Five days after his bruising victory over Lopez, Kambosos was still a long way from an Aussie-style celebration in hometown Sydney He was on the road looking for another fight.

He told Hearn that he’d be willing to step in if either Haney or Diaz suffered some inadvertent injury before Saturday’s opening bell.

“I’ll use the same shorts I used against Lopez,’’ Kambosos said. “They must be still full of blood.’’

Guts instead of you-know-what, too.

By Norm Frauenheim-

Terence Crawford put the debate back into the pound-for-pound campaign. But there’s no argument about pay-per-view. Canelo Alvarez owns it. Almost monopolizes it.

Perhaps the two, P4P and PPV, shouldn’t be linked. But forget the old apples-and -oranges advice. Punches-and-pay do mix. It’s called prizefighting. It’s one word, sometimes separated only by a hyphen, depending on who’s doing the spell check. Yet, they’re forever one and the same, a little bit like blood-and-sport.

The linkage was never more evident than it has been over the last couple of weeks. It was capped by Crawford’s statement stoppage of Shawn Porter last Saturday in Las Vegas. At one level, it was almost predictable. It was vintage Crawford — always poised, powerful and predatory.

Because of delays throughout the pandemic season and some of the usual divisions in in the balkanized boxing business, however, we just forgot how good – scary good — he really is.

He reminded us, winning a 10^th-round TKO over a smart, tough ex-welterweight champion who had never been stopped. Within one round, Porter was down twice, which equaled the number of times he had been on the canvas before the 36^th bout in his 13-year career. Then, Porter announced his retirement.

It was stunning. From Keith Thurman to Errol Spence Jr., there have been all kinds of explanations as to why Crawford had not faced the best-known fighters in the 147-pound division. There was the promotional divide, PBC and Top Rank. There were rival networks. Yet in one dynamic performance, Crawford displayed plenty of reasons to avoid him.

The big reason, however, arrived a couple days after the fight. The pay-per-view numbers were a disappointment, despite a capacity crowd of 11,568 at Mandalay Bay’s Michelob ULTRA Arena.

According to various reports, they ranged from 135,000 to 190,000. Whatever the number, it fell short of expectations. The guess before opening bell was 300,000. Top Rank’s Bob Arum had talked about 500,000 to 1.5 million for a bout carried exclusively on ESPN +. That exclusivity might have limited the television audience. Crawford thinks so.

“I feel like there was a lot of opportunities left on the table,” Crawford said Tuesday on Shawn Porter’s podcast, The Porter Way. “You know what I mean? Not only with fighters (like Thurman and Spence), but also with pay-per-view. Like for instance, me and Shawn Porter fought on a app. 

“There were so many people that was telling me they don’t know how to get the app on the TV. They don’t know how to do it. And, you know, the average elderly or person that doesn’t — you know, know tech – they’re not gonna know how to get the app on the TV. So, what do they do? They don’t buy.’’

There were other factors. Crawford-Porter was just the latest in a string of pay-per-view bouts. There was Tyson Fury’s wild KO of Deontay Wilder on Oct. 9. There was Canelo’s stoppage of Caleb Plant on Nov. 6.

Then, there’s inflation. The PPV price for Crawford-Porter was $69.99. Add another $6.99 if you weren’t already an ESPN+ subscriber. A month-long subscription was part of the price tag. That comes to $76.98. In other words, do you buy the fight or a tank of gas?

Maybe, the disappointing PPV numbers were also a result of bad scheduling. It was the Saturday before Thanksgiving. Turkey isn’t exactly cheap either.

Trouble is, Crawford’s PPV numbers have never been good, despite his brilliance. That’s problematic for a fighter who was a promotional free agent the second Porter’s father and trainer, Kenny Porter, ended it at 1:21 of the 10^th. Then, Crawford indicated he was leaving Top Rank. But his PPV record, more than his unbeaten record, will determine whether he can land a rich deal. The prize in prizefighting is pretty simple: Follow the money.

Arum has talked about a one-fight deal with Crawford versus Scotland’s Josh Taylor, the best fighter in the UK today. It makes sense. Taylor, the unified junior-welterweight champion, would move to 147 to face Crawford, a former unified champion at 140.

However, Arum is talking about doing the fight in the UK. Why? Because Crawford’s PPV numbers make him the so-called B-side. The money for a Crawford-Taylor fight would be in pounds instead of dollars. More Brits than Americans would buy it.

Meanwhile, Crawford’s victory over Porter appears to have resurrected interest in a fight with Spence, who underwent eye surgery in August. Spence was at ringside for Crawford-Porter. So was Taylor. But Spence has stronger PPV numbers than Crawford. That creates a real dilemma for the fighter who – from this corner – emerged from the victory over Porter as the pound-for-pound No.1, ahead of No. 2 Canelo.

But this debate will continue, well into 2022. Canelo has more than punching power. Pay-per-view, he’s undisputed. His victory over Plant did a reported 800,000 buys, or at least 600,000 more than the reported number of customers for Crawford’s victory. The result is that Canelo can do what he wants. 

For now, that means Ilunga Makabu instead of David Benavidez.

In a surprise, Canelo manager/trainer Eddy Reynoso asked the World Boxing Council (WBC) for permission to challenge Makabu, the acronym’s cruiserweight champion from The Congo.

The WBC is about the prize, too. There’s money – a good sanctioning fee –in the move. There’s risk, too. Canelo would be jumping up the scale in a bid for a fifth division title. There’s a reason for weight classes. Canelo is in jeopardy of suffering a knockout. He could get hurt.

If he wins, however, he wins the PPV debate. Even if he’s defeated and emerges unhurt, he’s in a no-lose situation. He’ll still have his undisputed super-middleweight title. He’ll be applauded for taking the risk, and applause counts for a lot in the pound-for-pound race, which is inherently political.

For Benavidez, that means more waiting and more calling out Canelo. He did so after blowing out a brave Kyrone Davis in an impressive Phoenix homecoming a couple of weeks ago. If he fights David Lemieux – as rumored — for a mandatory shot at Canelo WBC 168-pound title, Canelo could decide to fight at light-heavyweight. Maybe, Benavidez gets shot at him at 175, Maybe, not.

For now, it’s Canelo’s call. On any scale, he’s got all the clout.

Follow all the action as Terence Crawford Defends the WBO Welterweight title against two-time champion Shawn Porter.

NO BROWSER REFRESH NEEDED; THE PAGE WILL UPDATE AUTOMATICALLY

Round 1: Porter comes right punching…Uppercut..

Round 2 Crawford turns Southpaw..Right hook from Crawford..Right from Porter..Right hook from Crawford..Good exchange…Right from Crawford..Jab…Body shot at the bell

Round 3 Body shot from Porter..Porter cut over right eye..Porter slips….Cut from Headbutt

Round 4 Hook from Porter..Good left to body from Crawford…Left to Chest…Right from Porter..Left from Crawford..Short left

Round 5 Double right from Porter…Counter right..Porter being aggressive…Right on inside..Left to body from Crawford

Round 6 Right from Crawford…Right from Porter,,,Body shot from Crawford…Left…Another headbutt…Crawford cut on the right eye…Combination from Crawford..

Round 7 Good right from Porter…Jab from Crawford..Uppercut..

Round 8 Good combination from Crawford…4 Punch combination…Jab…2 hard rights from Porter…Body shot from Crawford

Round 9 Double Jab from Crawford…Check Hook..Body shot from Porter…Jab from Crawford…Left to body..and another…Lead Left..

Round 10 COUNTER LEFT AND DOWN GOES PORTER…RIGHT,,,HEAD COMBINATION AND DOWN GOES PORTER…FIGHT STOPPED BY PORTER’S DAD

By Norm Frauenheim –

LAS VEGAS – Only two ounces separated them on the scale. That amounts to a couple of AA batteries, or maybe a tennis ball. It’s not much, somewhere between tiny and imperceptible.

Call it even, a sign perhaps of what to expect in a compelling welterweight fight between Terence Crawford and Shawn Porter Saturday (ESPN + pay-per-view/6 pm PT, 9 pm ET) at Mandalay Bay’s Michelob Ultra Arena.

Betting odds suggest otherwise. They were 6-to-1 in favor of Crawford after he was at 146.4 pounds and Porter at 146.6 Friday at the formal weigh-in.

If those odds are reliable, Crawford will prove what he’s been saying all along. His skillset, he says, is unrivaled at welterweight and perhaps any weight.

It’s a claim he has asserted and re-asserted throughout a pound-for-pound debate that has shifted in favor of Canelo Alvarez, a super-middleweight champion who apparently is planning to fight for a cruiserweight title.

Against the smart and stubborn Porter, Crawford has a chance to punch some real evidence into his pound-for-pound claim.

“Beating a guy like Shawn Porter would boost my resume and my legacy to the next level,’’ Crawford, the World Boxing Organization’s champion, said earlier this week. “I’m not going to be biased. I’m going to be realistic.

“It depends on how I beat Shawn Porter and what fashion.’’

Fashion could mean just about anything. But a stoppage seems to fit best. It would say everything Crawford hopes to.

However, Crawford (37-0, 28 KOs), never a man of many words, said even less Friday. Opening bell is close. He stepped off the scale Friday and only said he wanted to win.

But he punctuated that comment with the intense eyes that appear to to see opportunity in the approaching storm. Lose the opportunity and he has lost the debate.

Porter (31-3-1, 17 KOs) also understands the stakes. He said a few weeks ago that he thought Crawford, unbeaten and a three-division champion, is already in the Hall of Fame. Porter is not quite there yet. But he’s on the brink, he said. An upset of Crawford would put him there.

Despite the seemingly one-sided odds, Porter has a resume that suggests he can spring that upset.

He has lost three fights – to Errol Spence Jr., Keith Thurman and Kell Brook He has a draw with Julio Diaz. He’s been down twice, once against Spence and once against Adrian Broner. That’s the part of his record that says he’s vulnerable.

But here’s what says he has a shot: He’s never been stopped. More significant, perhaps, is that he lost narrowly on the scorecards — a split decision — to Spence before Spence was badly hurt in a car crash. Pre-accident, Crawford-Spence might have been a pick-em fight.

Porter’s gritty resilience against Spence is just one marker that says that he can do what the odds say he can’t.

He knows that, knows it enough to smile straight into the menace projected by Crawford’s unforgiving eyes.

They measured each other throughout an unblinking stare-down during the ritual face-off for nearly 23 seconds after the weigh-in.

Porter finally broke it off, faced the crowd and smiled.

“Terence, you know better than I do that you’ve matured,’’ he said a couple of days before the weigh-in. “I feel like people see your personality and your character right now more than they’ve ever seen, but I feel like I’m still correct in saying that when the wrong Tweet or Instagram post goes up, you can get upset.’’

Upset, maybe, in more ways than one.

By Norm Frauenheim–

LAS VEGAS – Friends aren’t supposed to fight each other. But Terence Crawford and Shawn Porter are about to in a fight fascinating in large part because of a friendship forged and often tested over a couple of decades.

Both 34, they’ve grown up together, brothers-in-arms who on Saturday night at Mandalay Bay’s Michelob ULTRA Arena will walk to opposite corners and then face each other in perhaps the best bout (ESPN+ pay-per-view, 6 p.m. PT/9 p.m. ET) in the fabled welterweight division in awhile

It’s intriguing for all the usual reasons. There’s legacy and the pound-for-pound debate. It’s also the best fight at any weight in the post-Manny Pacquiao era. It’s a chance to move on in a business so often trapped in nostalgia.

That accounts for some late buzz suddenly surrounding a fight that was kind of lost when formally announced amid noisy hype before Tyson Fury’s wild stoppage of Deontay Wilder in the capper to a heavyweight trilogy on October 9.

Fury-Wilder was a carnival. Crawford-Porter could be a classic.

A sure sign of it is in the absence of the tired trash talk that cheapens so much of what boxing has to offer. In terms of the pre-fight rhetoric, most bouts these days are a cross between pro wrestling and a lousy-lounge act.

The pre-fight tone to this one is different. Translation: Nothing phony about it. The reason rests in what Crawford and Porter know about each other. They’ve watched each other, sometimes in admiration and sometimes warily, as amateurs and then as young pros. They might never have imagined that they would one day meet at the top of the 147-pound division.

But here they are, at a crossroads to a shared journey. In some ways, it almost looks inevitable. Then again, doesn’t everything in hindsight? But much of the bout revolves around what they’ve seen in each other over the years. Their past creates a dramatic dynamic.

They’ll step into the ring as very different personalities. Crawford says little. Porter, a television analyst, says a lot.

Crawford has the most expressive eyes since Thomas Hearns. They say everything. There’s anger there. Menace, too. More than a few opponents have looked into Crawford’s eyes and melted down.

But Porter won’t. He has looked into them. Looked back. Seen that anger. If anything, he’ll try to turn it around, turn it against Crawford.

Porter’s father and trainer, Kenny Porter, looks at Crawford and recalls a testy confrontation with him when the Omaha welterweight was 20-years old. Both Crawford and Shawn were fighting in an amateur tournament in Venezuela. There was a brawl in the stands. Kenny Porter thought he saw Crawford in the middle of it.

Kenny Porter decided to confront Crawford about it. He said he encountered Crawford in a dark hallway beneath the stands. He was about to ask him what in- the-hell happened.

That’s when Kenny Porter said he looked at Crawford and saw those eyes flash like a spark off flint.

“Then, I looked at Terence’s hands, which were already balled up into fists,’’ Kenny Porter said. “He looked at me. It was a look that said: ‘What do you want to do?’

“I decided to walk away. But that’s Terence.’’

Then and now.

It’s the Terence Crawford that father Kenny Porter and son Shawn say is essentially still there.

“I believe Terence Crawford is more dangerous than any fighter today,’’ Kenny Porter said.

But dangerous doesn’t mean unbeatable. Mike Tyson was the defining face of dangerous until he ran into Buster Douglas and then Evander Holyfield.

Shawn Porter puts on his analyst’s cap when he studies today’s Crawford, No. 2 to Canelo Alvarez in many pound-for-pound rankings.

He sees a fighter he might be able to disrupt with an inside attack full of uppercuts and counters.

Crawford’s versatile skillset – an ability to switch from orthodox to southpaw and one-punch power – has allowed him to dictate tempo throughout his unbeaten career (37-0, 28 KOs), which includes titles at three weights. That – and those eyes – help explain the odds. He was a 6-to-1 favorite Thursday.

But Porter (31-3-1, 17 KOs) thinks he can frustrate Crawford in ways that might anger him enough to interrupt a rhythm that from – fight-to fight – Crawford has been able to establish and sustain.

Porter knows Crawford’s temperament. He has seen him get angry at criticism.

“Every tweet, every social-media post that goes up, you’re going to get upset,’’ Porter said to Crawford Wednesday during the final formal news conference.

Crawford looked back and said:

“Maybe, maybe not.”

Texts and social media posts aren’t exactly uppercuts and counters. But Porter hopes they have the same impact, mostly because he’s seen how an old friend reacts to them. Porter’s use of the word “upset” was no coincidence. That’s what he’s planning.

Maybe, maybe not.

The Pick: Crawford, split decision. In the end, it’s a fight between consummate professionals. That means it will be decided by inches. Crawford is an inch taller. He has four-and-half more inches in reach. He’ll need those advantages and he’ll know how to use them against the clever Porter for a margin of a few points – inches – on the scorecards.

By Norm Frauenheim–

PHOENIX – It was a pound that won’t matter Saturday, but it left questions that could have a heavy influence on David Benavidez’ career beyond his date against Kyrone Davis.

Benavidez came in at 169 pounds Friday, one more than the super-middleweight limit at the formal weigh-in at an outdoor pavilion in front of the Footprint Center, the Suns home arena in downtown Phoenix.

There were no immediate consequences. No penalty. The Showtime-televised bout, a scheduled 10-rounder, is contracted for 168, plus or minus a pound. Davis, a Terence Crawford sparring partner who agreed to the fight two weeks ago, was at 167.75.

“No title involved,’’ Benavidez promoter Sampson Lewkowicz. “No problem.’’

One-hundred-and-sixty-eight pounds – not an ounce more – is the weight at which Benavidez hopes to fight Canelo Alvarez, who won all of the significant pieces to the super-middleweight title last week in an 11th-round stoppage of Caleb Plant in Las Vegas.

Benavidez’ fight Saturday in his first Phoenix homecoming in more than six years has been called an audition. A stepping-stone.

“Sometimes, with stepping-stones, you trip,’’ Davis (16-2-1, 6 KOs) said.

Benavidez didn’t exactly trip when he stepped on and then off the scale. But he did raise some alarms. Although unbeaten, Benavidez (24-0, 21 KOs) has lost the World Boxing Council’s version of the super-middleweight title twice, first for testing positive for cocaine in 2018 and then last August for failing to make weight.

Benavidez was 2.8 pounds over the limit the day before a scheduled title defense against Roamer Alexis Angulo. The next day – August 15, he blew out Angulo, scoring a 10^th-round stoppage at the Mohegan Sun in Connecticut. But the WBC belt had already been stripped from him. He’s been chasing it — and Canelo — ever since.

Then, he blamed the scale fail on Pandemic protocol that had closed gyms and saunas. Then, Benavidez said he was sure he could still make the weight. He turns 25 on Dec. 17. He’s young man still growing into his prime. He’s going to grow out of the super-middleweight division. The question is when.

“Maybe two more fights,’’ his father and trainer Jose Benavidez Sr. said earlier this week.

Benavidez hopes for only one against Canelo, perhaps on May 7 in celebration of next year’s annual Cinco de Mayo holiday. Benavidez, a Mexican-American, against Canelo, a Mexican, looks like a perfect fit. But only if Benavidez can still be perfect on the scale, which means 168 and not an ounce more.

Nobody expects Canelo to wait around. He’s boxing biggest draw. He has a banquet full of options, one that grew this week with news that Ryota Murata will fight old Canelo rival Gennadiy Golovkin in Japan Dec. 29 in a middleweight bout.

If the winner agrees to move to 168, Canelo could choose to settle his differences with Golovkin with a third fight or expand his brand to Asia with a fight against Murata in Japan.

If not that, a jump to light-heavyweight is a possibility. So, too, is Jermall Charlo, an unbeaten WBC champ at middleweight who Canelo mentioned last Saturday after his crushing victory over Plant.

For now, at least, Benavidez can only wait. And make weight.

In another Showtime bout Saturday, Benavidez’ older brother, Jose, comes back after nearly more than three years against Argentine Francisco Torres. In a bout contracted to be at 159 pounds, Jose Benavidez Jr., (27-1, 18 KOs) a former welterweight, was at 158.75 pounds. Torres (17-3, 5 KOs) was at 157.50.

The Showtime telecast is scheduled to begin at 9 p.m., ET/6 p.m. PT. In Arizona (Mountain time), the non-televised part of the card is scheduled to begin at 4:40 p.m.

By Norm Frauenheim-

PHOENIX – More than three years, 37 months and counting, have come, gone and almost been forgotten since Jose Benavidez Jr. answered an opening bell.

He learned how to be a dad. He has a young daughter and his wife is expecting another child in February. He learned how to live like just another guy. There was no roadwork at sunrise. Holidays were spent at home and at the dinner table instead of at a gym decorated by only bags and bruises.

Benavidez learned to like it.

At least, most of it.

But he couldn’t quite learn how to live without that old regimen. He grew up to the rhythm of a speed bag.  He missed it, all of it during the days, weeks, months and years since he fought fearlessly against Terence Crawford, perhaps the game’s most feared fighter.

It was an intriguing fight then. Now, it’s a memorable one, a significant fight remembered for what it still says about Crawford’s pound-for-pound aspirations as he prepares for a key test against Shawn Porter. It’s memorable, too, for what it still says about Jose Benavidez Jr.

The bold swagger is still there, impossible to contain. You can hear it in his words and see it in dark eyes that flash like a spark off flint.

All that and more were evident Thursday at a news conference for Jose Jr.’s comeback at junior-middleweight against Argentine Francisco Torres in Showtime-televised card (6 p.mp PT/9 pm ET) featuring brother David Benavidez-versus-Kyrone Davis on the Phoenix Suns home floor at Footprint Center.

The brothers are there to make a statement. For David, it’s about a fight that says he belongs at the front of the line for a shot at Canelo Alvarez. For Jose Jr., it’s a fight to say he’s back.

In a sport that has seen and done it all, thirty-seven idle months are expected to leave so-called rust on much, if not all, of the skillset. We’ll see. But there was no rust or reticence in Jose Jr.’s willingness to engage in some familiar trash talk. The words and the look were as fearless as ever.

“I feel like I’m a different animal now,’’ Jose Jr.  said as he looked at Torres. “When I say I’m going to do something, I do it. He better not run on Saturday. I’m coming to break his ribs with body shots. 

“I don’t care how busy he’s been. He’s never seen anyone with power like mine. You better be ready for Saturday night.

“He’s a bum just like the bums that he’s fought. I’m back to take this clown out and show everyone that I’m going to be the next 154-pound world champion.’’

Moments later, he would stand in front of Torres in the ritual face-off for the cameras. All the while, a media consultant for PBC (Premier Boxing Champions) said: “Easy, easy.’’

Three-plus years away from the ring have done nothing to dull Jose’s mind set. It’s still got that fearless edge. It was there on Oct. 12, 2018 in Omaha, Neb., at the weigh-in before the bout with Crawford. Jose Jr. shoved Crawford. Crawford countered with a missile-like, bare-handed punch that narrowly missed Benavidez’ jaw.

“I thought maybe he was trying kiss me or something,’’ Benavidez said then.

Let’s just say that Crawford’s attempted punch was not motivated by affection. Hostility at the weigh-in led to Omaha police adding further officers to its presence both in and outside the ring. There was tension evident in the capacity crowd, which gathered to watch the hometown Crawford punish Benavidez. But Benavidez wasn’t intimidated. Crawford stopped him, but not until midway through the 12^th and final round.

Benavidez didn’t win. But there was – still is — talk that maybe he could have. He took Crawford into the 12^th, limping on his right leg. He kneecap was blown way in a still mysterious shooting on a Phoenix canal bank in August 2016.

“The knee is fine,’’ he said Thursday. “It’s 100 percent. One-hundred-and-ten percent.’’

Nothing wrong with that fearlessness, either.

A day before the news conference, Jose Benavidez Jr. was reminded of the Crawford fight. In a zoom call Wednesday, Porter said he has been studying video of the fight in training for his Nov. 20 date against Crawford at Las Vegas’ Mandalay Bay.

“You could see that Jose had boxing abilities that gave Terence problems,’’ Porter said.

Then, Porter added: “I’ve got everything Jose has got and maybe a little bit more.’’

Porter’s comment seemed to be a nod a respect for Benavidez. When told of the quote, Jose Jr.’ eyes flashed the way they would at Thursday’s face-off with Torres.

“I used to kick Porter’s ass when I was 16-year-old sparring with him,’’ Benavidez said. “Terence Crawford is going to kick his ass. After he does, I’ll be happy to.’’

No rust on the rhetoric.Attachments area