LAS VEGAS – And in an instant, Martinez-Chavez went from Pacquiao-De La Hoya to Chavez-Taylor.

Not since Manny Pacquiao retired Oscar De La Hoya had a small southpaw looked so profoundly dominant against a larger titlist as Sergio Martinez looked against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. for 11 rounds. And not since Chavez Sr. came back to stop Meldrick Taylor in the final seconds of a fight he was losing lopsidedly had such a profound change of fortunes been brought to a world champion the way Chavez brought it to Martinez in the 12th.

Saturday night, in a match at Thomas & Mack Arena that disappointed all expectations of suspense for 33 minutes before becoming an unforgettable thing in its final three, Argentine middleweight champion Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez (50-2-2, 28 KOs) rose from the canvas in the final round to survive and decision Mexican Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (46-1-1-1, 32 KOs) by unanimous scores of 117-110, 118-109 and 118-109. The 15rounds.com ringside scorecard concurred, marking 117-110 for Martinez – while marking the final round 10-7 for Chavez.

“We are two professionals,” Martinez said afterwards. “And we comported ourselves as professionals.”

The fight began the way all prognosticators believed it would. Martinez’s class was too much for Chavez in the first round and each of its successors. What little sense of geometry Chavez showed in the opening round, extending Martinez’s circles to the perimeter somewhat, was gone by the third.

“I began slowly,” Chavez said in the ring after the judges’ cards were read. “But I will not do that in the rematch.”

In fact, not till the sixth round did Chavez land anything consequential. Though Chavez was the much larger man, Martinez was the far more balletic, polished, athletic and accurate, hitting Chavez with nifty left uppercut leads and other inventive combinations. Chavez, sporting a knee brace and suffering abrasions and swelling round both eyes, was not dissuaded, however.

“This confirms me in boxing,” said Martinez, to an outnumbered but surprisingly vocal Argentinean group of fans. “Long live Argentina!”

More fatigued than he knew as the bell for the 12th rang, Martinez walked into a short Chavez left hook that wobbled and shocked him in the final two minutes. Martinez’s eyes bulged and he collapsed in the ropes. A pair of rights and lefts from Chavez then tossed him limply to the canvas. But Martinez rose, ran, held, slipped, and ultimately punched his way to the final bell, as suddenly enchanted Mexican fans rabidly urged their man on.

“Of course,” Martinez said when asked if he would grant Chavez a rematch.

“Long live Mexico!” cried Chavez at the end of his postfight interview.

ROMAN MARTINEZ VS. MIGUEL BELTRAN JR.
In an attempt at prophecy, or at least wishful thinking, Saturday’s excellent Top Rank co-main event featured a hard-pressing Mexican slugger named “Junior” against a foreigner named Martinez. Unfortunately for the emotional Mexican crowd, the Mexican did not prevail.

Fighting for a vacant WBO super featherweight title, Puerto Rican Roman Martinez (26-1-1, 16 KOs) sneaked past Mexican Miguel Beltran Jr. (27-2-0-1, 17 KOs), besting him by split-decision scores of 116-111, 113-114 and 113-114. The fight would have been a majority draw, were it not for a penalty assessed to Beltran in the championship rounds.

Each round of Martinez-Beltran featured punches both well leveraged and well landed by both fighters, but in each of the opening six rounds, regardless of what Martinez did, Beltran appeared to do a little more. In the sixth, Beltran landed the match’s most-devastating punch, a right cross that snapped Martinez’s head back between his own shoulder blades.

The seventh round, though, saw Martinez begin to establish a more effective attack, catching Beltran on the way in, with oddly placed punches. But by the middle of the eighth, Beltran again appeared the stronger man. By the end of the 10th, Martinez, game as he was, did not appear to want much more.

The 11th brought a point deduction to Beltran’s tally from overly officious Nevada referee Russell Mora, though, tightening ringside scorecards somewhat. Martinez also flurried in the 12th, appearing to steal that stanza as well. Ultimately, the fight was a close one that might have gone either way and probably should have gone the way of a majority draw.

MATTHEW MACKLIN VS. JOACHIM ALCINE
Matthew Macklin makes his ring entrance to a hybrid song of “Mack the Knife” and “Rocky Road to Dublin,” in a two-part nod to his nickname and heritage. But Saturday, he didn’t have to take his opponent very far down a rocky road before knifing him.

In the penultimate match of the evening’s undercard, Macklin (29-4, 20 KOs) caught Canadian middleweight Joachim Alcine (33-3-1, 19 KOs) with a flush right cross in the opening moments of the fight then marched him down, dropped him a second time and brought the match to an exciting knockout conclusion at 2:36 of round 1.

Despite a record with four losses on it, Macklin again proved that he can rally a crowd and make an exciting, satisfying match whomever he is given for an opponent.

GUILLERMO RIGONDEAUX VS. ROBERTO MARROQUIN
After a 2010 showing in Cowboys Stadium that brought loud boos from those fans not yawning, Cuban super bantamweight Guillermo Rigondeaux needed two years of exciting knockouts to make fans forget how displeasing his defense-first style can be. Saturday in Thomas & Mack Arena, though, they were reminded once more.

Rigondeaux (11-0, 8 KOs) successfully, and rather easily, defended his WBA super bantamweight title against tough if limited Texan Roberto Marroquin (22-2, 15 KOs) by unanimous scores of 118-108, 118-108 and 118-109. And if there is a prizefighter today who fights like Floyd Mayweather as well as Mayweather does, he is Rigondeaux, right down to the cautiousness.

Rigondeaux established a superiority of reflex over Marroquin – a superiority of reflex Rigondeaux enjoys over most every opponent he faces – and then put the match on a form of cruise control that did little to entice fans. Possessed of every punch and step in the boxing lexicon, Rigondeaux does not appear to enjoy physical matches with larger men, and he certainly did not look for one with Marroquin, who appeared a weight class or two larger than Rigondeaux on Saturday.

Twice in the match Marroquin managed to land a pulled left hook that temporarily destabilized the Cuban southpaw’s otherwise flawless footing, but from each of those faux scares, Rigondeaux quickly recovered and returned to mastering Marroquin technically if not combatively.

In round 10, bored by Rigondeaux-Marroquin, the crowd – partisan Mexican though with an Argentinean contingent – began to sing futbol songs at one another till the match was over, despite Rigondeaux’s scoring the match’s one knockdown in its final two minutes.

MIKE LEE VS. PAUL HARNESS
Mike Lee is undoubtedly the best light heavyweight on the Notre Dame campus, but he is decidedly not the best light heavyweight in the world. Further evidence of this came at the midway point of Saturday’s undercard when Lee (11-0, 6 KOs) whacked away at Kansas City opponent Paul Harness (4-4-1, 3 KOs) for four rounds and ultimately prevailed by unanmious scores of 40-36, 40-36 and 40-36.

Questions about Lee’s power – he landed at least four clean right hands in every round without once felling Harness – and his defense, though, remain, and grow, with every showing. Despite leading comfortably in the fourth round, Lee nevertheless was tagged by several knee-buckling shots by Harness.

UNDERCARD
Highly regarded super welterweight John Jackson brought his undefeated record in the Thomas & Mack Center ring for Saturday’s third bout, against Cleveland’s Willie Nelson, and Jackson’s ‘0’ left the ring before Jackson did. In a close fight that might have been scored either way, Nelson (19-1-1, 11
KOs) decisioned Nelson (13-1, 12 KOs) by unanimous scores of 96-94, 96-94 and 98-92.

Before that, in an eight-round super welterweight match, Mexican Michael Medina (26-3-2, 19 KOs) scored a lopsided decision victory over North Carolinian James Winchester (15-5, 5 KOs). All three judges had the match 80-70 for Medina.

The evening began with an eight-round, unanimous-decision victory for California welterweight Wale Omotoso (23-0, 19 KOs) over Puerto Rican Daniel Sostre (11-7-1, 4 KOs).

Opening bell rang on a sparsely populated Thomas & Mack Center at 3:17 PM local time.

Follow all the action from the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas as the long awaited Middleweight championship showdown with take place featuring recognized world xhampion Sergio Martinez and WBC champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. The action kicks off with a five fight undercard at 8pm eastern/ 5 pm Pacific featuring two world title bouts as WBA Super Bantamweight champion Guillermo Rigondeaux defends against Robert Marroquin. The WBO Super Featherweight title will be contested by Rocky Martinez and Miguel Beltran Jr. Also Joachim Alcine battles Matthew Macklin an and appearance by Notre Dame favorite Mike Lee.

12 ROUNDS–WBC MIDDLEWEIGHT TITLE–SERGIO MARTINEZ (49-2-2, 28 KO’S) VS JULIO CESAR CHAVEZ JR. (46-0-1, 32 KO’S)

Round 1 Martinez lands a left..Chavez lands a right to the body…Sergio more active…10-9 Martinez

Round 2 Hard left from Martinez…Body shot from Chavez…Combination and body shot from Martinez..Body shot and a jab..right hook from Martinez..Good body work on the ropes...20-18 Martinez

Round 3 Hard left from Martinez..Hard left from Chavez..Good body shot..Martinez landing to the body..Left hook from Martinez..straight left…Blood from the mouth of Chavez…30-27 Martinez

Round 4 Martinez lands a left..short right hook..Hard right from Chavez…hard right…Left/body from Martinez..Chavez landing left to the body..Big left from Martinez at the bell…40-36 Martinez

Round 5 Martinez lands 2 lefts to the body…50-45 Martinez

Round 6 Chavez lands a couple little shots in the corner..2 good rights…Good body shot..big rally from Martinez…Martinez picking Chavez apart…60-54 Martinez

Round 7 Straight left..Counter left…4 hard lefts on the ropes…Chavez landing and eating shots in return..70-63 Martinez

Round 8 Wide right from Chavez..Martinez going to the body..2 good left hooks from Chavez..Blood from Martinez left eye…79-73 Martinez

Round 9 Martinez lands a combination…89-82 Martinez

Round 10 2 good rights and 2 more from Martinez…body..Jab…99-91 Martinez

Round 11Great action with Chavez landing hard shots…Martinez landing in return…Martinez favce bloody…108-101 Martinez

Round 12 Big right hurts Martinez..WOW…CHAVEZ ALL OVER MARTINEZ AND DROPS HIM….MARTINEZ IS BLEEDING AND HURT…ITS A WAR…MARTINEZ LOOKS LIKE HE WILL GET OUT OF THE ROUND….116-111 Martinez

12 Rounds–WBO Super Featherweight Title–Ramon Martinez (25-1-1, 16 KO”s) vs Miguel Beltran Jr. (27-1, 17 KO’s)

Round 1 Hard right from Beltran…2 more rights…10-9 Beltran

Round 2 Good left hook from Martinez…19-19

Round 3 Trading shots …29-29

Round 4 Beltran pounding Martinez in the corner…Hard right from Martinez..Good left hook..Martinez lands a good right…39-38 Beltran

Round 5 Beltran lands a hard right…Big left and right from Martinez…Beltran lands a right…Blood from the left eye of Beltran…48-48

Round 6 Beltran lands a counter uppercut..Good right from Beltran..58-57 Beltran

Round 7 Good body shot from Beltran…Hard body shot…Good combo from Martinez…Good body shot from Beltran…68-66 Beltran

Round 8 Good uppercut and body shot from Beltran…left hook to the body..78-75 Beltran

Round 9 Hard right from Beltran...88-84 Beltran

Round 10 Beltran lands a left and right..Body shot..98-93 Beltran

Round 11 Good right from Beltran..Martinez 4 punch combination…Hard right from Beltran…POINT DEDUCTED FROM BELTRAN FOR HITTING BEHIND THE HEAD…Good right from Beltran…106-103 Beltran

Round 12 Martinez lands a right…115-113 Beltran

116-111 Beltran; 114-113 Martinez; 114-113 Martinez

10 Rounds–Middleweight–Matthew Macklin (28-4, 19 KO’s) vs. Joachim Alcine (33-2-1, 19 KO’s)

Round 1 HUGE RIGHT AND DOWN GOES ALCINE….Macklin ALL OVER ALCINE AND DOWN GOES ALCINE FROM A LEFT HOOK…2 HUGE BODY SHOTS AND A FLURRY AND REFEREE JAY NADY STOPS THE FIGHT

MACKLIN TOK 1 AT 2:36

12 Rounds–WBA Super Bantamweight Title–Guillermo Rigondeaux (10-0, 8 KO’s) vs Robert Marroquin (22-1, 15 KO’s)

Round 1 not mucj…10-10

Round 2 Rigondeuax lands a counter left…20-19 Rigondeuax

Round 3 Marroquin lands a hard left hook…Straight right…29-29

Round 4 Right from Rigondeuax..Marroquin landsa left hook..39-39

Round 5 PERFECT LEFT DOWNS GOES MARROQUIN..49-47 Rigondeaux

Round 6 Rigondeuax lands a left to the body..59-56

Round 7 69-66

Round 8 Rigondeaux lands a big left..Good body…Marroquin lands a left hook to the body…79-75 Rigondeaux

Round 9: Left from Marroquin drives Rigo into the corner…Right hand..88-85 Rigondeaux

Round 10 Rigondeuax lands a uppercut to the body..leaping uppercut and another..98-94 Rigondeaux

Round 11 Good straight left from Rigondeaux..Good right from Marroquin…Body shots from Rigondeuax..108-103 Rigondeaux

Round 12 HUGE RIGHT AND DOWN GOES MARROQUIN…118-111 Rigondeaux

118-108, 118-108, 118-109…RIGONDEAUX

10 Rounds–Jr. Middleweights–Willie Nelson (18-1-1, 11 KO’s) vs John Jackson (13-0, 12 KO’s)

Round 3 Jackson going to the body…

Round 4Nelson lands a hard right and left hook..Right down the middle

Round 5 Nelson Active

Round 6

Round 7

LAS VEGAS – The weekend’s first upset happened Friday, and it wasn’t by way of a punch at Thomas & Mack Center. In what may turn out to be the greatest surprise of Martinez-Chavez, barring of course an early stoppage, Argentine Sergio Martinez outweighed Mexican Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. Friday afternoon at Wynn Las Vegas’ Encore Theater. But if either man was surprised, neither showed it.

Martinez, considered by most to be a small middleweight champion, and Chavez, considered by all to be an enormous middleweight titlist, shared a one-pound disparity on the scale: Martinez made 159, and Chavez made 158.

“He said it’s going to be a war,” Martinez said immediately after a talkative stare-down with Chavez that followed both making weight for their middleweight world championship match. “I want a war.”

Martinez, known as much for his cool demeanor and handsome countenance as his jazzy southpaw style, appeared uncharacteristically anxious Friday afternoon. Dressed in a black sweatsuit and dark shades, Martinez preceded Chavez to the stage and the scale and made a show of rallying a small Argentinean contingent waiving robin’s-egg-blue and white flags, stage left.

“He said that he is going to rip my head off,” said Chavez, when asked what words Martinez spoke to him after he climbed off the scale. Then Chavez, easily the cooler character Friday, laughed and shrugged.

While Saturday’s match for the lineal middleweight championship of the world – along with belts from The Ring, WBC and surely a few others – will be the biggest fight of both men’s careers, Chavez shows the demeanor of a man who knows other superfights will inevitably follow. Martinez, about whom the same cannot be said, appears to be channeling some of his handlers’ nervousness.

Part of what led to onlookers’ general surprise at Friday’s weighin, and specifically Chavez’s coming-in two pounds under the middleweight limit, were reports of undertraining by the Mexican champion. Numerous sources reported Chavez had skipped scheduled sessions with trainer Freddie Roach during his camp, preferring to work-out at home instead.

But Chavez’s promoter, Top Rank, expressed no concern. Chavez made weight easily, and apparently needs little instruction in how to cut-off a prizefighting ring, as he is expected to have to do against Martinez on Saturday.

Early Friday afternoon, one last thread of controversy was stitched in the Martinez-Chavez tapestry: Trainer Nazim Richardson will attend the wrapping of Chavez’s hands in behalf of the Martinez camp, Saturday. Richardson, of course, was the man who caught a hardening substance on the wraps of Antonio Margarito before the Mexican champion’s 2009 match with Shane Mosley.

Nevada State Athletic Commission executive director Keith Kizer said on Friday that while he’ll be at both of Saturday’s fight cards – Martinez-Chavez, and Saul Alvarez vs. Josesito Lopez a few blocks away at MGM Grand Garden Arena – the main event he’ll be attending is Chavez-Martinez, as Kizer anticipates potential prefight controversy at Thomas & Mack Center.

Photo by Chris Farina / Top Rank

LAS VEGAS – News conferences came like a one-two punch Wednesday and Thursday for dueling promotions Saturday night featuring Sergio Martinez-versus-Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. at Thomas & Mack Center and Canelo Alvarez-Josesito Lopez at the MGM Grand.

It’s been a rhetorical food fight, boxing’s version of Republicans and Democrats after back-to-back conventions. First, it’s Top Rank to the bully pulpit. Then, it’s Golden Boy’s turn. It’s Home Box Office- versus-Showtime. Ego-against-ego. An insult-fest. But should it be?

After widespread criticism for scheduling two major cards on the same night and amid all the ongoing negativity, there’s a chance at some numbers that might put a surprising spin on the business. Attendance at each could provide a powerful counter to an epitaph so often repeated, yet never proven.

If boxing is really dying, then a lot of people – maybe more than 30,000 at two venues within a couple miles of each other – have yet to hear the news.

There’s plenty of debate about box-office numbers promised by Golden Boy for Alvarez-Lopez in a 154-pound bout televised by Showtime. Golden Boy President Oscar De La Hoya said Thursday at the Canelo-Lopez news conference that 13,000 tickets had been sold.

“We are expecting a sellout,’’ De La Hoya said of a weekend celebrating Mexican Independence.

Top Rank doesn’t believe it. On the surprise meter, that ranks somewhere between zero and yawn. If the situation was reversed – and it will be one day, Golden Boy wouldn’t believe it either. Remember, Republicans and Democrats trust each other more than Top Rank and Golden Boy do.

For Martinez-Chavez, Jr., in a HBO pay-per-view bout for the middleweight title, Top Rank already has a sellout, 19,186, a boxing record at Thomas & Mack. Even if a sellout is announced for Alvarez-Lopez, there will be suggestions that Golden Boy gave away tickets to get there.

As of Thursday, it wasn’t clear what number Golden Boy needed for a sellout. Seating capacity at The MGM Grand Garden Arena has been 14,800. But Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer said 2,000 seats can be added before Saturday’s opening bell. If there’s time to construct the addition and the seats are filled, the crowd would be announced at 16,800. Add the Thomas & Mack sellout, and the total would be 35,186.

“That would tell you a lot about the sport,’’ Schaefer said.

With apologies to Mark Twain, t would tell you that all those dire warnings of imminent death are greatly exaggerated.

It might also tell you what could happen if Golden Boy and Top Rank made peace and did business together. But that’s another story, if not a miracle. It didn’t sound as if peace were even a remote possibility Thursday. The irony is that the fighters were the diplomats. Canelo and Lopez praised each other. The only real trash talk came from Keith Kizer, the Nevada State Athletic Commission’s executive.

In an apparent reference to the controversy over the judging of Tim Bradley’s decision over Manny Pacquiao in June at the MGM Grand, Kizer seemed to take exception at HBO’s criticism of judges Duane Ford, CJ Ross and Jerry Roth.

“There was another fight here in June, but some of the veterans at ringside that felt badly that night won’t feel so bad this time, because HBO, (Jim) Lampley and (Harold) Lederman won’t be there,’’ Kizer said. “I like the Showtime announcers much better.’’

Kizer’s shot followed one at Showtime from Top Rank’s Bob Arum.

“Half the people who’ve got Showtime don’t know they have it,’’ Arum said.

Shot, counter-shot. The beat goes on.

But if predictions are fulfilled and the numbers add up Saturday night, there won’t be an argument about whether the business still has a heartbeat.

LAS VEGAS, NEV. (September 11, 2012) – This week’s Méxican Independence Day weekend World Middleweight Championship event between undefeated World Boxing Council (WBC) middleweight champion and Son of the Legend, JULIO CÉSAR CHÁVEZ JR. (46-0-1, 32 KOs), of Culiacán, México, and two-division world champion and pound for pound kingpin with the matinee idol looks, SERGIO “Maravilla” MARTÍNEZ (49-2-2, 28 KOs), of Quilmes, Buenos Aires, Argentina, sold its last remaining tickets today at 1:58 p.m. PT. Chávez Jr. vs. Martínez will become the highest-attended boxing event in the history of the Thomas & Mack Center with 19,186 seats, eclipsing the Lennox Lewis vs. Evander Holyfield heavyweight championship rematch, which previously held the record with 19,151.

“Viva Chávez and Martínez,” said Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum. “The last two tickets were purchased just before 2 p.m. PT and our sellout has produced a paid gate of over $3 million. How appropriate that on the eve of the 20th anniversary of Julio César Chávez vs. Hector Camacho, the Thomas & Mack’s fourth highest-attended event [17,972], which took place on September 12, 1992, that Julio César Chávez, Jr. surpass his father’s record in an epic fight of his own. Father and son will be forever linked as two of the highest-attended paid boxing events in the building’s history. Naturally, the live pay-per-view telecast will be available to all cable and satellite TV systems in the Las Vegas area.”

“This is a celebration about everything that is great about boxing,” said promoter Lou DiBella. “This is obviously a fight that everyone wanted to see and thanks to Sergio and Julio everyone will have the opportunity to see — live on pay-per-view. I strongly recommend that boxing fans in the Las Vegas area buy their tickets to the closed circuit screenings at Wynn Las Vegas now before they sell out too.”

Promoted by Top Rank®, Zanfer Promotions and DiBella Entertainment, in association with Wynn Las Vegas, AT&T and Tecate, the Chávez Jr. vs. Martínez Middleweight Championship Event will take place Saturday, September 15, Méxican Independence Day Weekend, at the Thomas & Mack Center, on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. It will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View®, beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT.

Remaining tickets to the Wynn Las Vegas closed circuit presentation are priced at $70 for reserved seating in the intimate Encore Theater and $50 for general admission in the Lafite Ballroom at Wynn. Tickets are inclusive of applicable taxes and fees and can be purchased by calling (702) 770-7118, through the website wynnlasvegas.com or by visiting the Wynn Ticket Office (Friday-Tuesday: 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. PT / Wednesday-Thursday: 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. PT) or the Wynn Concierge (Daily: 10 a.m. – 9 p.m. PT.)

The Chávez Jr. vs. Martínez world championship telecast, which begins at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT, will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View and will be available to more than 92 million pay-per-view homes. HBO Pay-Per-View, a division of Home Box Office, Inc., is the leading supplier of event programming to the pay-per-view industry. Follow HBO Boxing news at www.hbo.com and at www.facebook.com/hboboxing. Use the hashtag #ChavezMartinez to join the conversation on Twitter. For Chávez Jr. vs. Martínez updates log on to www.toprank.com, www.dbe1.com or www.hbo.com.

Photo by Chris Farina / Top Rank

September 11, 2012 – Gary Shaw Productions newly crowded unified WBA and IBF middleweight champion, Daniel “Real Deal” Geale (29-1, 15 KOs), is scheduled to arrive in Las Vegas this week to be ringside at the September 15, 2012, Julio Chavez Jr. (46-0-1, 32 KOs) vs. Sergio Martinez (48-2-2, 28 KOs) showdown, taking place at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Geale, coming off his most impressive victory where he dethroned Germany’s Felix Sturm (37-3-2, 16 KOs), is interested to see who comes out victorious between Chavez Jr. and Martinez, as a possible fight with the winner could be next for him.

“The winner of Chavez Jr. and Martinez could be my next opponent,” said Daniel Geale. “I’m willing to fight the best out there and my promoter Gary Shaw is ready to make it happen. It’s an interesting fight and the winner puts himself in a great position to challenge me. I never shy away from a great test and I’ll be ready to go when Gary Shaw tells me who my next opponent will be.”

Geale’s fellow countryman, undefeated featherweight contender Joel Brunker (23-0, 13 KOs), who scheduled to make his U.S. debut on October 27, 2012, will join him while they both attend fight week activities.

“I’m excited to be traveling to the United States and be present for Chavez Jr. vs. Martinez,” stated Brunker. “I’ll remain in the States and start my training camp in preparation for my fight scheduled for October 27th. Daniel Geale and I both want to show the United States audience what we are made of.”

“I’m extremely excited to be promoting the best fighters out of Australia,” Shaw said. “Grange Old School Gym has been fantastic working with me and Daniel Geale, and it’s been a pleasure working with Angelo DiCarlo with Joel Brunker. The future looks bright for my company being that we have a great working relationship with all the top talent from the land down under.”

MIAMI (September 11, 2012) — World Boxing Association Super Bantamweight Champion Guillermo “El Chacal” Rigondeaux is expected to defend his title this Saturday evening against Robert Marroquin (22-1, 15 KOs), on the Sergio Martinez-Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. HBO Pay-Per-View event, live from the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.

A Circuit Court in Miami ruled on August 21 to enjoin Rigondeaux (10-0, 8 KOs) from engaging in any bout not approved by his manager, Gary Hyde, and also enjoined Rigondeaux from participating in this Saturday’s scheduled show promoted Top Rank.

Last night, however, Hyde and Top Rank reached a resolution to allow the Rigondeaux-Marroquin title fight to go forward, and the Nevada State Athletic Commission was informed this morning.

“Thanks to my attorneys, Patrick English and Bill Brown, we have negotiated a far superior deal to fight Robert Marroquin on September 15th,” said Hyde, who has managed Rigondeaux since the two-time Olympic gold medalist defected from Cuba in 2007. “‘Rigo doesn’t get involved or side tracked by legal dramas. He has promised me that he is at his all-time best and that he will KO Marroquin.”

After the legal situation that forced WBA Super Bantamweight champion Guillermo Rigondeaux out of a potential champions showdown on on September 15th, once-beaten Robert Marroquin will now face Alejandro Lopez as part of the Julio Cesar Chavez – Sergio Martinez Pay Per View card on that date according to San Rafael of espn.com

“Lopez was scheduled to fight in a couple of weeks, so he’s been training for at least six weeks,” Moretti said. “If he’s anything like the kid that showed up against Teon Kennedy, this ought to be a heck of a fight.

“Top Rank respects the court’s decision but we are extremely disappointed that his manager, his attorney (Pat English) and co-promoter (Caribe Promotions) would try and stop a kid from fighting when he wants to fight on Sept. 15 and agreed to pay these parties their agreed upon shares,” Moretti said. “It makes no sense and is completely unjust — but to be expected when inexperienced people let there egos get in the way of a fighter’s development.”

It’s hard to know whether September’s promise is a new dawn or just a familiar set of oncoming headlights in another head-on collision with a demise predicted and heightened by August’s doom and gloom.

No matter how you look at Andre Ward-versus-Chad Dawson Saturday in Oakland, Calif., and a dueling Las Vegas’ twin bill on Sept. 15 featuring Sergio Martinez-Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. at Thomas & Mack Center and Canelo Alvarez-Josesito Lopez at the MGM Grand, however, it is hard not to see potential for a comeback that is a boxing specialty. No business does it better.

Reliable resiliency is there in a shifting alignment that offers a way out of the never-never land of talk and only talk about Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao. Yeah-yeah, it could still happen. But a generation of lost fans doesn’t care anymore. The good news is that there is always a new one. In part, chances at winning over generation-next rest in what happens with fighters poised to succeed Pacquiao and Mayweather.

For now, the intriguing battle is for No. 2 spot in the pound-for-pound debate. The fading Pacquiao, second on most lists behind Mayweather, is in jeopardy of falling to third or even fourth after evidence of decline in his last two fights, controversial decisions over Juan Manuel Marquez and Timothy Bradley.

“Me, I believe I’m No. 2 at this moment,’’ Martinez said Wednesday in a conference call for his showdown with Chavez Jr. in a HBO pay-per-view bout for the middleweight title.

A better argument might come from Ward, if he remains unbeaten (25-0, 13 KOs) Saturday in a HBO-televised bout against light-heavy champion Dawson (30-1 17 KOs), who agreed to come down in weight for a 168-pound fight in Ward’s hometown. Mayweather stays at No. 1 because of his perfect record (43-0, 26 KOs). Martinez can’t make that claim. Even if he beats Chavez Jr., there are still losses to Antonio Margarito and Paul Williams and two draws on his resume (49-2-2, 28 KOs).

Predictably perhaps, the more circumspect Ward isn’t as bold about his place in the pound-for-pound debate as Martinez, who has become more outspoken in an escalating exchange of trash talk with Chavez Jr.

For the most part, Ward’s attention isn’t easily diverted by anything beyond the challenge immediately in front of him. That means the dangerous Dawson. Everything else is just talk that would take him away from the task at becoming an equal of fighters he admires, including Mayweather and Sugar Ray Leonard.

“They’re masters,’’ Ward said. “I’m trying to be a master.’’

The guess is that Ward will never quit trying. The goal will be there for as long as he is fighting. It’s a motivational piece to a Ward persona that in a couple of years could put him at the top of the pound-for-pound crowd.

Even in the build-up for Dawson, he seemed to look for something that would drive him to knock out slights, imagined or real. Dawson’s camp praises him. But the skeptical Ward deflects it.

“I think they’re giving us some superficial credit because they have to,’’ he said. “…To listen to them tell it, they have every advantage in the book. I think they’ll discover that isn’t the case.’’

Ward’s insightful trainer, Virgil Hunter, had his own spin.

“Our advantage is being at a disadvantage in their eyes,’’ Hunter said.

If there’s a disadvantage during the next nine days, it is expected to be in betting odds against Chavez Jr. and Dawson. But even those are slim. Spring an upset, and one or both will suddenly leap to the front of a line in the fight for spots at the pay window long occupied by Pacquiao and Mayweather.

Bob Arum, Chavez Jr.’s promoter, said an earlier opportunity for big money against Martinez was resisted precisely for the moment that will transpire on Sept. 15.

“We could have taken a chance against Martinez a year ago,’’ Arum said. “If he wins – and we believe he will, he will become an attraction on the level of Pacquiao, Mayweather.’’

Meanwhile, a hint at Mayweather’s immediate future could unfold at the Canelo-Lopez fight at the MGM Grand. Canelo keeps talking about how he wants to fight Mayweather. His representatives at Golden Boy Promotions have advised caution. At least, Golden Boy President Oscar De La Hoya did on May 5 in the wake of Canelo’s victory over Shane Mosley. But an impressive victory over a smaller Lopez on Showtime might sweep aside concern that Canelo is getting ahead of himself.

If Mayweather decides he wants to fight the popular Mexican redhead now instead of later, there’ll be no waiting.

Another future will have arrived.

VENTURA, CALIF. (August 27, 2012) — Threats and an incident of vandalism over the weekend at the Oxnard-based training camp of two-division world champion SERGIO MARTINEZ (49-2-2, 28 KOs), of Argentina,has forced the cancellation of Martinez’s Media Day Workout, scheduled for Tuesday, August 28 in Ventura, Calif. Martínez is deep in training for his upcoming challenge of undefeated World Boxing Council (WBC) middleweight champion and Son of the Legend, JULIO CÉSAR CHÁVEZ, JR. (46-0-1, 32 KOs),of México.

“This past weekend Sergio received threats from an unknown source and the car in front of his home was vandalized,” said Lou DiBella, Martinez’s promoter. “Unfortunately, until we have a security team in place, we are going to have to suspend any and all public and media appearances for Sergio, including the upcoming media day scheduled for tomorrow in Oxnard. We apologize for the inconvenience to the media and fans that have planned on attending tomorrow’s event.”

Julio César Chávez’s Las Vegas Media Workout, scheduled for Thursday, August 30, beginning at 2:00 p.m., at the Top Rank Gym (3041 Business Lane, Las Vegas, NV. 89103), will go on as scheduled.

Promoted by Top Rank®, Zanfer Promotions and DiBella Entertainment, in association with Wynn Las Vegas, AT&T and Tecate, the Chávez Jr. vs. Martinez Middleweight Championship Event will take place Saturday, September 15, Méxican Independence Day Weekend, at the Thomas & Mack Center, on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. It will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View®, beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT. The live pay-per-view undercard will feature four exciting bouts.

Remaining tickets to the Julio César Chávez Jr. vs. Sergio Martinez World Middleweight Championship, priced at $600, $400, $200, $100, $75, $50 and $25, can be purchased at the Thomas & Mack Center box office and Town Square Las Vegas Concierge. Tickets can also be purchased online at www.unlvtickets.com. To charge by telephone call (702) 739-FANS.

HBO’s Emmy-Award®-winning reality franchise returns with an all new edition when 24/7 CHÁVEZ JR./MARTÍNEZ premieres This Saturday! Sept. 1 at 11:45 p.m. ET/PT. Episode two debuts Saturday, Sept. 8 at 12:30 a.m. ET/PT on HBO.

The Chávez Jr. vs. Martinez world championship telecast, which begins at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT, will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View and will be available to more than 92 million pay-per-view homes. HBO Pay-Per-View, a division of Home Box Office, Inc., is the leading supplier of event programming to the pay-per-view industry. Follow HBO Boxing news at www.hbo.com and at www.facebook.com/hboboxing. Use the hashtag #ChavezMartinez to join the conversation on Twitter. For Chávez Jr. vs. Martinez updates log on to www.toprank.com, www.dbe1.com or www.hbo.com.

The dog days of August, an unexpected offseason, is full of more idle speculation than medal winners among the American men at the London Olympics. There’s little to celebrate and much to anticipate before it starts all over again next month. A busy September includes one night — the 15th — with two good cards: HBO’s telecast of Sergio Martinez-Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. at Las Vegas’ Thomas & Mack Center and the Showtime telecast of Canelo Alvarez-Josesito Lopez down the street at the MGM Grand. A couple of miles of Vegas neon will separate the two. After a barren August, an embarrassment of riches awaits. Or maybe just embarrassment. Until then, it’s just a guessing game.

A few more guesses:

Manny Pacquiao. Further uncertainty is about the only way to interpret his latest decision. Reports about him moving his next bout from Nov. 10 to Dec. 1 seem to say he doesn’t really know what he wants. Advisor Michael Koncz says the new date is a political necessity. It eliminates a potential interruption of training by allowing Pacquiao time in October to refile his candidacy for re-election to the Filipino Congress, according to Koncz, who was quoted as saying he has to be in the Philippines to file the documents. But Filipino media reports that he does not have to be there. He can mail in the documentation, according to the reports. The contradictions only muddy uncertain waters. Just who does he plan to fight? Reported options are Juan Manuel Marquez, Miguel Cotto and Timothy Bradley. There would be a lot less uncertainty about Pacquiao if he had announced the opponent along with the new date. As it is, there are questions about whether retirement is another option.

Floyd Mayweather Jr. It’s been three weeks since he walked out of a Las Vegas jail after serving about two months for domestic violence. There’s still no word on what his plans are. Pacquiao doesn’t seem to be among them, at least not during the final months in 2012. Keep an eye on Twitter, Mayweather’s favorite way to communicate. Also keep an eye on Canelo-Lopez. It’s not the biggest fight on Sept 15. Martinez-Chavez is. But Golden Boy Promotions has dropped hints that Canelo might be Mayweather’s next opponent if Lopez doesn’t score an encore of his upset of Victor Ortiz.

50 Cent. Keep another eye on the rapper whose birth name, Curtis Jackson, is included on the promotional license that sets him up as a potential rival to Golden Boy and Top Rank. He might have some very different ideas about who Mayweather, his friend and confidante, should fight next.

Juan Manuel Marquez. He plans to write a book. At least three of the chapters figure to be about how he says he got
robbed against Pacquiao, who won two disputed decisions after a draw against the tactically-skilled Mexican. A fourth chapter looks doubtful, if only because the proven risk isn’t worth an iffy reward for Pacquiao

Ricky Hatton. Yeah-yeah, we read the rumors about a Hatton comeback, possibly against Paulie Malignaggi. Can another Oscar De La Hoya rumor be far behind?

Andre Ward and Chad Dawson. It looks like the best of September. Martinez-Chavez Jr. is getting most of the attention, which also means all of the expectations. Those might be very hard to fulfill. Ward-Dawson on Sept. 8 in Oakland, Calif., isn’t surrounded by all of the hype, in part because neither fighter engages in much braggadocio. But the fight, an All-American bout, might introduce a new argument to a pound-for-pound debate grown stale by the unresolved blather about when or whether Pacquiao and Mayweather will fight. Ward-Dawson “sells itself,” Ward told the media Thursday in hometown Oakland. It does.

Gennady Golovkin. Never heard of him? That’s a question Golovkin, an unbeaten middleweight and Olympic silver medalist from Kazakhstan, hopes to quit hearing in the U.S. sometime after he fights for the first time in America on Sept. 1 when he kicks off next month’s schedule on HBO After Dark against Grsegorz Proksa at Turning Stone Resort in Verona, N.Y. “We’ve made it clear we’ll fight anybody in the middleweight division,” Tom Loeffler of K2-Promotions said of Golovkin. In a month that includes middleweight Chavez Jr. and Martinez, Golovkin needs to make his American debut a memorable one.

Devon Alexander and Randall Bailey. Showtime and HBO will stage a preliminary Sept. 8 to their Sept. 15th duel for viewers. That’s when Showtime will televise the Bailey-Alexander welterweight at Las Vegas’ Hard Rock Hotel and Casino on the same night as HBO’s telecast of Ward-Dawson. Alexander-Bailey has the makings of a classic boxer-puncher confrontation. Bailey already is making it fun. Bailey, who says his one-punch KO power makes him the last of a kind, has little patience for Alexander’s speed and boxing skill. “Everybody gets hit with that right hand,” Bailey said during a conference call. “Question is, when you get hit with that right, what are you gonna do?”

In September, at least, we’ll get the chance to find out.

Dan Rafael of espn.com reports that two of the three televised undercard bouts for the much anticipated Sergio Martinez – Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. fight on Sepetmber 15th in Las Vegas have been set.

WBA Super Bantamweight champion Guillermo Rigondeaux will take on once beaten Robert Marroquin while former Middleweight title challenger Matthew Macklin will take on former Jr. Middleweight titlist Joachim Alcine.

“Everybody has agreed to extend it so he can be on this card,” said promoter Bob Arum. “He signed a bout agreement for the fight, so the fight with Robert Marroquin, that’s a done deal.”

“Marroquin feels he can beat him and he really wanted this fight. He is up for this kind of challenge,” Arum said. “Rigondeaux is probably one of the best fighters around, but one thing is even if he’s one of the best fighters around, he’s a little chinny and Marroquin can hit pretty good.”

“Alcine fought really well in his last fight against David Lemieux and I thought Macklin made a lot of fans with his performance against Sergio,” said Lou DiBella,who promoted both Macklin and Alcine. “It think it’s a really good fight. Alcine is a little older now so he will be more in front of Macklin. It’s a very high skill level middleweight fight and it very well could create the next opponent for Chavez whether he loses or wins against Sergio.”

PART 1

PART 2

PART 3

PART 4

TUCSON – Antonio Margarito said Monday that a fight between him and fellow Mexican Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. would be more exciting than a speculated bout between Chavez and Argentina’s Sergio Martinez for the middleweight title.

“Between two Mexicans, I think it would be better,’’ Margarito said after his bout against Abel Perry on May 26 at Casino del Sol was formally announced during a news conference at the southern Arizona property.

Margarito wasn’t trying to eliminate Martinez as a potential fight for Chavez, the son of a Mexican legend.

“I’m not saying it shouldn’t be Maravilla,’’ Margarito said in a reference to Martinez’ nickname. “I’m not saying that at all. I’m just saying that I’m here too.’’

The controversial Margarito emerged as a possibility for Chavez, since his management put together the May 26 bout, Margarito’s first since a loss in December to Miguel Cotto. Another factor fueling the speculation is that Top Rank represents both Margarito and Chavez, who faces Andy Lee on June 16 at the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Tex.

Margarito, a former welterweight champion, will fight Perry at middleweight, 160 pounds. Margarito predicts that he will feel stronger at the heavier weight. He said he was at 172 pounds Monday.

Margarito is training for the first time in Tijuana, his hometown. Javier Cortez is working as his trainer. Raul Robles is working as his conditioning coach. Trainer Robert Garcia, who was in his corner for loss to Manny Pacquiao and Cotto, is not expected to join him in Tijuana. However, Margarito co-manager Sergio Diaz said Garcia will in his corner at opening bell for Perry, a Colorado Springs fighter who has won his last five fights, four by stoppage.

Phoenix junior-welterweight prospect Jose Benavidez Jr. is also scheduled for the Casino Del Sol card. His opponent has yet to be determined.

Benavidez expects his right wrist to be fully recovered in time for his first fight since a victory in November on the undercard of Manny Pacquiao’s disputed decision over Juan Manuel Marquez. Benavidez underwent surgery on the wrist in late January.

He has returned to trainer Freddie Roach’s Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, Calif., after working out for several weeks at Central Boxing in downtown Phoenix. He said he has resumed sparring.

“Went eight rounds twice over the last couple of days,’’ Benavidez said. “The wrist is getting better. In three or four, weeks it’ll be all the way back.’’

Photo by Phil Soto/Top Rank

Staying in line means staying busy and that’s all Antonio Margarito can do in a dogged, controversial pursuit of another big payday.

Margarito told 15Rounds.com in Tucson last week that he wants to fight Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in September. But speculation, fueled by Bob Arum’s comments to RingTV.com. has Chavez fighting Sergio Martinez instead. Nobody has to tell Margarito that Chavez-Martinez is the bigger fight. Nobody has to tell him that big fights don’t get made for more reasons than anybody wants to recount, either. Without mentioning the oh-so-familiar suspects, let’s just say that bouts between fighters represented by rival promoters these days qualify as a minor miracle.

If Arum, Chavez’ promoter, can’t make a deal with Martinez promoter Lou DiBella, it would be easy for him to stay in-house. Arum promotes Margarito, too. As the first alternate, Margarito gives Arum a marketable option, especially among Mexican and Mexican-American fans.

Many might still dislike Jr. for suspicions that he was allowed to sidestep the game’s bruising dues because of his legendary dad, Julio Cesar Chavez, Sr. Many more dislike Margarito for the hand-wrap scandal that will be with him for as long as those scars surrounding his surgically-repaired right-eye. But the complaints are free advertising. Margarito’s reputation is notorious. The Chavez rep is pampered. Mix the two and you’ve got a formula for strong sales and big television ratings.

That’s why Margarito intends to fight a tune-up on May 26 or June 15 in southern Arizona at Casino Del Sol, where his brother-in-law, super-flyweight Hanzel Martinez, won a first-round stoppage on March 23 on a ShoBox-televised card. In a sure sign of interest among Mexican and Mexican-American fans, TV Azteca plans to televise Margarito’s next bout. But against whom?

One of the names mentioned on March 23 was Jesus Gonzales, popular in Phoenix, his hometown.

“Absolutely,’’ Gonzales said when asked if he would be interested. “That would be great opportunity.’’

But Gonzales’ chances at the bout aren’t great. He is coming off a loss in Montreal to Adonis Stevenson, who knocked him out in the first round. According to people who represent Margarito and Gonzales, Gonzales has been medically cleared to fight since the devastating loss. His promoter had asked him to undergo an MRI for head trauma.

Gonzales also plans to go down in weight — from super middle (168 pounds) to middle (160). Margarito said on March 23 that he is training and weighs about 165 pounds. He wants to fight for the 160-pound title held by Chavez, the World Boxing Council champion who has reportedly been at least 180 at opening bell for his last few fights.

Neither the weight nor Gonzales’ stunning loss in his last outing, however, appears to be the issue. Gonzales’ southpaw stance against the orthodox Margarito might be. The left-handed Gonzales has a better chance at hitting Margarito’s right eye, which was badly-bloodied in his December loss to Miguel Cotto in a rematch stopped after the 10th round.

Repeated blows have degraded the skin around the eye, which was badly damaged in 2010 by Manny Pacquiao, who fractured the orbital bone. It quickly tears and ruptures into the bloody mess that led to the ringside physician in New York to call a halt to the fight against Cotto, despite Margarito’s protestations. Cotto targeted an eye that will be target for as long as Margarito continues to fight.

Margarito might have to become more defensive, says his manager, Sergio Diaz. At best, a change in style is problematic for an iron-chinned fighter known best for moving forward. Against a natural left-hander aiming for a problematic right eye, chances at pulling off that one get complicated, if not dangerous.

Dangerous enough to lose that valuable place in line for one more trip to the pay window.

The Irish fans came in full force to celebrate St. Patricks day at the theater in Madison Square Garden. They were also on hand to celebrate Ireland’s very own Matthew Macklin (28-3, 19 KO’s) as he squared off against against reigning middleweight champion, Sergio Martinez (48-2-2, 27KO’s). The bout began with Martinez showing an aggressive stance. His straight left behind his southpaw stance was a weapon that he prepared for. Macklin fared well under the circumstances. He came into the fight as a heavy underdog despite solid performances in the past, but was showcasing some skill and tenacity under the bright lights of Madison Square Garden.

Macklin’s straight right hand proved to be an effective weapon. He landed them well against Martinez, whose movement makes him a difficult target, stealing rounds due to staying on the offensive. Entering the seventh round, many ringside observers had the bout scored even at three rounds apiece. In a startling exchange, a looping right hook knocked Martinez off balance, causing his glove to touch the canvas, forcing referee Eddie Cotton Jr. to rule it a knockdown. The blow did not seem to phase Martinez, and once the fight resumed, he aggressively went after Macklin, landing one hard straight left after another.

The ruled knockdown ended up becoming the turning point of the fight. It brought the champion out of Martinez, and he dominated from then on. His straight left did not seem to miss it’s target, as he repeatedly beat Macklin to the punch with his superior hand speed. Entering the eleventh round, Macklin’s face began to redden due to the blows that he was taking. About a third of the way through the round, Martinez landed a picture perfect left hand that knocked Macklin down hard. He beat the count, but was on very unsteady legs, and the blow opened up a gash on the right side of his face. It did not take long for Martinez to send Macklin down again. All it took was another left hand, and Macklin was down again. He beat the count as the round ended.

It was then that Macklin’s corner, headed by Buddy McGirt, decided to assess their fighter. They saw that he was spent and hurt, and therefore unable to continue, and wisely made the decision to end the bout. Martinez was credited with a TKO victory at the 3:00 point in the eleventh round.

In a bout that guaranteed fireworks, Edwin Rodriguez (20-0, 15KO’s) faced off against Don George (22-1, 19KO’s) in a super middleweight match. The early portions of the bout saw each fighter measuring up their jabs and trying to get into range for harder punches.

Things began to heat up a bit in the third round as both fighters traded big rights. The fight continued at a tactical pace entering the middle rounds. Despite the high expectations of a barn burner, this fight became a smart chess match. Rodriguez proved to be the better of the two at this game. He used his skills to keep George out of reach, and the plan worked very well.

With George seemingly behind on the scorecards, the twelfth round was highly anticipated. Both fighters threw big punches for the entire three minutes. It had the crowd on their feet. As the final bell rang, both fighters embraced before the scores were read. The final scores were 96-94, 99-91, and 97-93 all in favor of Rodriguez.

The popular Seanie Monaghan (12-0, 8 KO’s) squared off against Eric Watkins (6-1, 2 KO’s) in a light heavyweight bout. Watkins started off quickly, hoping to catch Monaghan off guard. Recently, Monaghan has employed a more measured approach to fighting, and took it all in stride. He started off by throwing powerful combinations to the body, and followed that up with combinations upstairs. Watkins was unable to answer with any significant punches of his own.

The bout progressed with Monaghan in complete control of the action. After eight one-sided rounds, the final scores read 80-72, 79-73, and 79-73 in favor of Monaghan.

In the final non-televised bout of the night, heavyweights took to the ring when Magomed Abdusalamov (13-0, 13 KO’s) took on Jason Pettaway (11-0, 8 KO’s). Pettaway started the fight utilizing his quick footwork and boxing technique, while Abdusalamov stalked. In the opening rounds, it was evident that Abdusalamov had punching power, but he did not land that one power shot that would end the fight. Then, in the fourth round, Abdusalamov landed a combination that had Pettaway reeling and on the canvas. He beat the count, but was on very shaky legs. As the bout resumed, Abdusalamov took advantage and landed huge punches flush on the chin. An official immediately hoped onto the canvas to request an end. The referee called a halt to the bout at 1:20 of the fourth round, giving Abdusalamov a TKO victory.

The third bout of the evening featured the popular Kevin Rooney (3-1, 1 KO, 163.5lbs) up against Anthony Shuff (0-1, 168lbs). Rooney opened up aggressively working his opponent, and it immediately became evident that Shuff wanted no part of it. After a barrage of punches, he looked over to the ref as if to plead for mercy. The referee granted it to him, stopping the fight at 1:27 of the first round, giving Rooney the TKO victory.

In a vert tactical match, Charlie Ota (19-1-1, 13 KO’s, 151.5lbs) took on Gundrick King (16-7, 11 KO’s, 153.5lbs). Both fighters took their time in letting their hands go, as they are both counter punchers. Throughout the bout they took turns finding openings. Gradually throughout the first for rounds, Ota was landing the fresher combinations. By the sixth, a combination from Ota ended with a solid left hook that sent King down. Ota beat the count and the round ended. The seventh round saw more action from Ota, and he trapped King in the corner and landed a right that sent King to a knee. The referee stopped the bout at the :35 point in the seventh round, giving Ota a TKO win.

The opening bout of the evening featured Thomas Hardwick (4-0, 2 KO’s, 215lbs) against TJ Gibson (1-1, 207lbs) in a four round match. Hardwick maintained control throughout the bout en route to a unanimous decision victory with all three scores reading 39-35.

Danny McDermott (9-3-2, 4 KO’s, 140.5lbs) faced off against Carl McNickels (7-3, 6 KO’s, 137 1/4lbs) in a six round bout. Like any other McDermott fight, it featured a whole lot of back and fourth brawling. The final scores read 57-55, 57-55, 56-56 in favor of McNickels, giving him a majority decision victory.

Photos by Ed Diller

World Middleweight champion Sergio Martinez and Contender Matthew Macklin meet the fans at Legends Bar In New York City and Claudia Bocanegra was there to catch all the images.

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15rounds.com Claudia Bocanegra was on hand at Parlour in New York City where World Middleweight champion Sergio Martinez discussed his plans for 2012 which could include bouts with Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and Matthew Macklin

HOUSTON – And there was Sergio Martinez lurking stage left, both taller and thinner than he appears on television. He was at the postfight press conference on the second floor of Reliant Center to supervise, not make trouble. Martinez’s class prohibited him from upstaging Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., calling him out or demanding his garish WBC belt back.

Martinez did not have an entourage, certainly no one stunning as the phalanx of tight-dressed chicas that followed Chavez in the converted media center. What Martinez did have, though, was presence and a star’s piercing confidence. “I would knock him out,” Martinez said quietly in his native Spanish, when asked what would happen in a match with Chavez. “Yes, he’s improved, I see a little difference in his speed, but I would knock him out, don’t you think?”

So it tends to go for Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. Even after a fight Chavez’s promoter called “the best performance by Julio that I’ve seen,” Chavez struggled for respect when his turn at the microphone came. Two seats to the left was his father, Mexico prizefighting’s greatest living practitioner. Twenty feet from Dad was the world’s middleweight champion. About all Chavez could muster in the moment was a “¡soy muy contento!” he repeated so often even his sycophantic advisor Fernando Beltran teased him.

Chavez is not ready for Martinez – the one thing everyone agreed on after Chavez’s fantastic stoppage of Rhode Islander Peter Manfredo Jr. at 1:52 of round 5, Saturday – but he’s a hell of a lot closer to being ready for elite middleweights than anyone predicted he might be eight, or even three, years ago.

After fewer than 15 minutes in a ring with Chavez, Manfredo, who announced his retirement after Saturday’s match, sounded a whole lot like John Duddy 17 months ago in a postfight press conference at Alamodome, exactly 200 miles west of here.

“You never got me down, Ray!” Manfredo said in a passable homage to Robert De Niro’s Jake LaMotta in “Raging Bull.” Then he said, “I’m happy for (Chavez), proud of him. And you should be proud of him, too.”

Everything about Chavez was better than the last time he fought. Everything about Chavez was better, then, than the time before that. And the time before that marked Chavez’s first camp with trainer Freddie Roach. If Roach’s ever-improving-Pacquiao narrative suffered some exposure by Juan Manuel Marquez two Saturdays ago, his ever-improving-Chavez narrative held up just fine in East Texas.

Chavez now has a man’s body. Nowhere was this clearer than on the Reliant Arena media credential, a laminated green card that featured a goofy-bearded Chavez wearing the small shoulders and bird’s breast of an adolescent. Saturday’s version, conversely, was clean-shaven and muscular.

Chavez throws his jab with greater meaning and effect now than he did in 2009. His right guard flies off his cheek, yes, but that just opens him to counter crosses. And what follows each time Chavez gets tagged by a right hand makes excellent theater.

Chavez is more introspective than you think. He knows you have snickered about him for eight years. He senses that American writers have glanced at his resume and joked about the war he made on the Big Ten.

He has taken all this in what sporting good spirit the world’s privileged class shows the rest of us. In public, Chavez is self-deprecating and respectful.

And then you hit him. He takes that sort of thing far more personally than an average prizefighter. It verily pisses him off, and he goes after you with a special fury members of his class reserve for aspiring usurpers. These days, too, Chavez’s right hand is wicked enough to put down an uprising.

That right hand, and the wholly improved footwork that sets it up, represent layers Chavez has added to his self-portrait. And great portraits are all about layers.

Nowhere is that clearer in this ever-muggy city than at The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston – a couple miles northeast of Reliant Arena, beside the campus of Rice University. Through February, MFAH is running a Dutch and Flemish Masterworks exhibition that features, among other acts of genius, Rembrandt’s “Portrait of Aechje Claesdr” – a well-preserved work that first showed 17th century connoisseurs young Rembrandt Van Rijn’s singular talent.

The Flemish Master approach to painting that Rembrandt learned, perfected and improved relies on the use of seven layers. Each layer – from ink cartooning to umber underlayer to finishing palette – is applied to enhance what follows. The miracle of this approach – for if miracles exist, a miracle it surely is – comes in time’s thinning effect on oil paint. Over centuries, the oils used by the Flemish Masters have lost some of their body, allowing each painting’s underlayers to shine through. Rembrandt’s paintings, then, glow with colors more brilliantly now than when he applied them almost 500 years ago. Go ahead and think of anything we’re doing today about which that will be said in the year 2650.

One imagines Sergio Martinez would be fascinated by this approach more readily than Chavez. Martinez is closer to a master prizefighter, and more cerebral. His brilliance of motion and physical self-awareness, too, dwarf Chavez’s.

But Chavez’s apprenticeship in this brutal game has been striking. As his trainer hastens to note, Chavez understands the shape and nature of a boxing ring better than his resume predicts. Chavez has neither his father’s nor Martinez’s economy of motion, but he has confidence complemented by a willingness to engage those who offend him.

“This game has taught me how to be a strong-minded individual,” said a retiring Peter Manfredo, after Chavez stopped him Saturday. “But my kids won’t even look at (boxing). I won’t even order the pay-per-view for them.”

Chavez’s dad chose differently. Boxing continues to be entertained by that choice.

Bart Barry can be reached at bart.barrys.email (at) gmail.com

Middleweight contender Matthew Macklin meets the media to discuss a possible showdown with Sergio Martinez

Saturday continued the happiest development our sport has seen in years. Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez, a southpaw Argentine who prefers Spain but lives in California, is an accidental champion. A career 147- and 154-pounder who won the middleweight title in his first meaningful middleweight fight, Martinez makes a match with a larger man every time he defends his belts. He gets hit plenty and finishes each defense with a knockout.

He is not running for office in the Philippines. He does not have charges pending against him in Nevada. Martinez is, rather, one boxing story every aficionado should feel a sense of ownership about.

Saturday in Atlantic City, Martinez extended his record as undisputed middleweight champion to 3-0 (3 KOs) by putting in an effort more workmanlike than marvelous and finishing England’s Darren Barker at 1:29 of round 11 in a fight more competitive, and therefore more enjoyable, than predicted.

American writers predicted a whitewash for Martinez because no one knew who Darren Barker was. European fighters often bring sparkling resumes like Barker’s 22-0 mark to American arenas then acquit themselves as well-intentioned frauds. Not so with Barker. Martinez was ahead in the fight at the time Barker crumpled but not by the margin American boxing writers expected. Why not?

Here’s an idea. Sergio Martinez is not a natural middleweight. Every fight he makes at 160 pounds, then, features a man who hits him harder than he spent the first 13 years of his career being hit. Martinez relied on reflexes and elusiveness to acquire the middleweight crown from Kelly Pavlik, after consecutive fights with former welterweight champions Kermit Cintron and Paul Williams. That is worth noting.

Pavlik and the man from whose head he lifted the middleweight crown, Jermain Taylor, both worked their ways through the middleweight ranks, preparing for and fighting the Darren Barkers of the world before getting on national television. Martinez, contrarily, is learning how to be a middleweight after becoming middleweight champion. It’s a joy to watch.

There’s a spontaneity to Martinez fights that should be celebrated. He does things differently and often gets whacked for doing so. He stands before larger men, hands dangling at his hip pockets, and bobs his naked face at them, even as they shuffle to within a foot of him. He waits for them to throw then leaps out the way and counters them, or doesn’t. That’s part of the fun: An orthodox middleweight challenger like Barker – no mystery whatever to a Pavlik or Taylor – had good a chance as any of striking Martinez with meaningful punches.

Before you go to the scorecards against that claim, confirming your own prefight bias the match would not be competitive, revisit what happened in round 4. Barker, that limited Brit with a fraction the champion’s athleticism and pizzazz, splattered Martinez’s nose all over Martinez’s gorgeous face. It was a fine manifestation of an old adage that says the right combination is unlimited for being thrown by a balanced man creating leverage at little expense.

Barker was not busy enough, you say? Probably not. But until the start of round 6 – the first to show Martinez looking better than uncomfortable – Barker was making a decent case to his supporters that he was winning. No, nobody in America or watching HBO’s telecast imagined it, but if you watched the fight in the U.K., tuning in to see an undefeated prospect from London, Barker gave you plenty of reason to score two or three of the opening five rounds for him. Imagine that.

Martinez’s punches started to tell after the fight’s midway point, and his theretofore ineffective aggressiveness acquired quite a bit of effect by round 10 when, adhering to a different teaching adage and finishing a combination with a jab, Martinez staggered Barker. A Martinez right hook to Barker’s guard in the next round proved forceful enough to make Barker tip over and decide against rising. It was an honest ending to an honest effort; Barker didn’t stand at 10 1/2 and pretend he wanted to continue. Barker’d had enough, and Martinez had another well-deserved knockout defense.

Then the fretting began. “Whither this man without a country?” went the lament about Martinez’s lack of marketability. He lives in California but vacations in Spain, and half of Argentina could not pick him out of a fashion-show runway. Even if they could, Martinez’s ineffectual promoter tells us, there just aren’t enough Argentines in America! Well, that settles it, then: Keeping him in front of funereal Atlantic City audiences is the way to go.

Never mind that the late Arturo Gatti’s Italo-Canadian roots did not foreshadow popularity in New Jersey. Forget that Lennox Lewis, an Englishman who fought on Team Canada and considered himself Jamaican, made a fortune fighting in America. Sidestep the fact there are 35 million other Spanish speakers in the United States. Go whole hog on the man-sans-homeland narrative, if you wish, but then answer this question: Why must Martinez fight here?

Sergio Martinez holds the world middleweight title; take his show on the road. He surely would have drawn better in London against an undefeated Englishman than he drew at Boardwalk Hall. We learned Saturday that Martinez – as his own matchmaker – found Barker on Twitter. Martinez ought to fire his manager and promoter. He already trains himself, after all, and that has to be harder than scheduling a date with HBO.

Stories rich as Sergio Martinez’s do not visit our sport often enough. We are fortunate to have him. But he is a small middleweight who nears his 37th birthday. His title defenses will soon combine with their 49 predecessor fights to wear him down. The more people who have a chance to enjoy him before then, the better for our sport.

Bart Barry can be reached via Twitter @bartbarry

photo By Claudia Bocanegra

15rounds.com Claudia Bocanegra was at the Palm Restaurant in New York City where world Middleweight champion Sergio Martinez and undefeated contender Darren Barker met the media in advance of Saturday’s world title fight in Atlantic City

15rounds.com Claudia Bocanegra was on hand at Modells Sporting Goods in Times Square to capture the images of world Middleweight champion Sergio Martinez as he worked in advance of his his Saturday title defense against England’s Darren Barker in Atlantic City

15rounds.com Claudia Bocanegra attended a unique press event where Middleweight contender Andy went to several bars in New York City to promote his October 1st rematch with Brian Vera as part of the Sergio Martinez – Darren Barker Middleweight title card

New York, NY (September 13, 2011) – Undefeated junior middleweight Captain Boyd “Rainmaker” Melson of New York City will make his Atlantic City debut Saturday, October 1 at Boardwalk Hall.

Melson will face an opponent to be named in a six round special attraction bout prior to an HBO doubleheader headlined by the middleweight title showdown between champion Sergio Martinez and unbeaten challenger Darren Barker.

Sporting a perfect 5-0 record, Melson’s stopped his last three foes, most recently dispatching Zach Schumach in July. Melson, who had a multi-year layoff between his amateur finale and pro debut, is fighting for the fifth time in 2011 and feels that he’s making the strides to one day become a top-notch professional.

“It’s an honor to fight on this card and I’m working hard as I can in the gym in order to shine,” said Melson, a West Point Graduate who is currently doing Anti-Terrorism Training as part of his Army Reserve duties. “The more I fight, the more I believe I can compete against the world’s best fighters like I did in the amateurs.”

With America’s first clinical trial for Spinal Cord Injuries tentatively scheduled for 2012, Melson is donating his entire purse for the sixth consecutive time to “Justadollarplease” in effort to ensure that he is doing his part so the necessary resources are available to make the trial successful.

“Approximately, 10,000 Americans are paralyzed annually from Spinal Cord Injuries. With limited government funding for Embryonic Stem Cell research along with the vast polarized views regarding the ethical aspect of conducting this type of research, the trial is looking at using Non-Embryonic cells to give human beings with Spinal Cord Injuries their God given right to walk again.”

Melson also acknowledged the importance of the trial and the impact it would have on paralyzed Americans.

“A successful trial would mean that a new FDA approved standard of care that treats Spinal Cord Injuries would be legal in the United States. More importantly, if everything goes as planned, this would be the first FDA approved treatment for Spinal Cord Injuries that would allow the once paralyzed to live their lives full of independence. Between my involvement in the pending trial and the expectations of those that will come to watch me fight, I have a lot to fight for and must perform better than ever before!”

In association with Justadollarplease, Melson created Team Fight to Walk, whose mission is to raise awareness within the boxing community about the importance of stem cell research for spinal cord injuries. Team Fight to Walk is comprised of Melson, IBF cruiserweight champion Steve “USS” Cunningham, title contender DeAndre “The Bull” Latimore, Edgar “El Chamaco” Santana and prospects Sid “The Messenger” El Harrak, Denis “Da Momma’s Boy” Douglin, Vinny “The Lion” O’Brien Ahmed “Prince of Egypt” Samir and Delen “Sniper” Parsley.

Tickets prices range from $50 to $300 and can be purchased on teamfighttowalk.com. Boardwalk Hall is located at 2301 Boardwalk in Atlantic City, NJ.

Melson’s opponent will be announced shortly.

Middleweight contender Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin talks about possible fight with Sergio Martinez

Part 2

15rounds.com impeccable shutterbug Claudia Bocanegra braved the 90 degree weather this past Wednesday at 230 Fifth Avenue Rooftop in New York to capture the images of the announcement of Sergio Martinez October 1st title defense against Darren Barker in Atlantic City