In an upset, IBF #12, WBC #13, WBO #13 heavyweight Agit Kabayel (24-0, 16 KOs) ended the reign of terror of previously unbeaten WBC #3, WBA #4, IBF #7, WBO #14 Arslanbek Makhmudov (18-1, 17 KOs) on the super card Saturday night at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Kabayel outboxed Makhmudov and made him look clumsy during the first two rounds. Kabayel then took the fight to Makhmudov landing big shots in round three. In round four, Kabayel dropped Makhmudov three times to end it. Time was 2:03.

Former IBF cruiserweight champion Jai Opetaia (24-0, 19 KOs) spectacularly knocked out previously unbeaten Ellis Zorro (17-1, 7 KOs) in the first round on Saturday night on the super card at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Opetaia connected with a straight left that laid out Zorro to end it. Time was 2:56. Opetaia was stripped of his world title earlier this week, but he looked every bit a champion.

In a mismatch, current IBF mandatory heavyweight title challenger Filip “El Animal” Hrgovic (17-0, 14 KOs) crushed Mark “The Viking” De Mori (41-3-2, 36 KOs) in the first round on Saturday night on the super card at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. IBF #1, WBO #5, WBC #11, WBA #12 Hrgovic dropped De Mori in round one, then punished him until the towel came in. Time was 1:46. Hrgovic promised he would punish De Mori and he did.

Unbeaten WBC #4, WBO #4, IBF #6, WBA #8 heavyweight Frank “The Cuban Flash” Sanchez (24-0, 17 KOs) knocked out WBA #10 Junior Fa (20-3, 11 KOs) in round seven on Saturday night on the super card at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It took Sanchez half the fight to figure things out. He finally dropped Fa in round six, and twice in round seven to end it. Time was 2:42.

WBA #9, IBF #11, WBC #12 light heavyweight Conor Wallace (12-1, 9 KOs) scored a sixth round TKO over Mose Auimatagi Jr (16-4-2, 11 KOs) on Wednesday night at the Fortitude Music Hall in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Wallace dropped Auimatagi in round two. The heavy-handed Auimatagi responded well and caught Wallace with some big shots. Wallace mostly outboxed Auimatagi after that although Auimatagi had his moments also. Wallace landed some some cracking straight lefts in round six and the bout was suddenly stopped by the referee. Time was 1:14.
It seemed like a premature stoppage.

…Wins WBO AP 108lb belt

By Joe Koizumi

Unheralded Filipino puncher Jason Vayson (11-1-1-1NC, 6 KOs), 108, surprisingly captured the WBO Asia Pacific junior flyweight belt as he upset defending champ Ryuya Yamanaka (19-3, 6 KOs), 107.5, via stunning TKO win at 1:14 of the second round in a scheduled ten on Sunday in Kobe, Japan. A vicious right uppercut was a haymaker that exploded at the ex-WBO world titlist Ryuya’s chin with a perfect timing. Down went the champ. He almost stood up but was unable to resume fighting due to a bad equilibrium. The ref grabbed him not to see him go down again. Vayson, who had lost a lopsided shutout decision to Seigo Yuri Akui in his last fight here, displayed a do-or-die attack that paid off well. Continue reading “Vayson upsets ex-world champ Yamanaka”

By Joe Koizumi

Japan’s middleweight champ Riku Kunimoto (10-1, 4 KOs), 160, collected another WBO AP 160-pound belt when he caught up with elongated compatriot 6’1” Katsuhiro Nakata (9-5-1, 5 KOs), 159, at 1:25 of the ninth round in a scheduled ten on Sunday in Osaka, Japan.

Promoter: Muto Promotions.

In a flyweight unification clash, WBO champion Jesse “BAM” Rodriguez (19-0, 12 KOs) stopped IBF champion Sunny Edwards (20-1, 4 KOs) in round nine on Saturday night at the Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona. In a good fight, Rodriguez steadily broke down and busted up Edwards. BAM finally dropped Edwards at the end of round nine and the bout was stopped.

In a WBA super bantamweight eliminator, former unified champion Murodjon Akhmadaliev (12-1, 9 KOs) dealt an eight round beating to previously unbeaten Kevin Gonzalez (26-1-1, 13 KOs). Akhmadaliev dropped Gonzalez twice in round six and two more times in round eight to end it. Time was 2:49. Gonzalez was game and tough, but Akhmadaliev was too much.

Olympic gold medalist and flyweight contender Galal Yafai (6-0, 4 KOs) scored a ten round unanimous decision over rugged Rocco Santomauro (22-3, 6 KOs). Yafai was mostly in control, but Santomauro got some of his licks in also. Scores were 99-91, 98-93, 97-93.

Super bantamweight Ja’Rico O’Quinn (17-1-1, 9 KOs) scored a spectacular fifth round knockout over previously unbeaten Peter McGrail (8-1, 5 KOs). McGrail was dominating the fight until he was laid out by a counter right. Time was 2:19. O’Quinn claimed the WBA Continental belt.

Ending a 37-year run of boxing on the Showtime network, WBA “regular” super middleweight champion David Morrell (10-0, 9 KOs) scored a second round TKO over Sena Agbeko (28-3, 22 KOs) on Saturday night at The Armory in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The bout was waved off at 1:43 of round two with Morrell teeing off off on a helpless Abgeko. Another impressive performance for Morrell.

In a WBA lightweight eliminator, Jose “El Rayo” Valenzuela (13-2, 9 KOs) scored a spectacular sixth round knockout over Chris “Primetime” Colbert (17-2, 6 KOs). The end came when Valenzuela connected with a huge right hook that laid out Colbert face first avenging his controversial loss to Colbert in March. Time was 1:46.

In a blast from the past between 40-year-old former world champions, welterweights Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero (38-6-1, 20 KOs) and Andre Berto (32-6, 24 KOs) fought ten entertaining rounds with Guerrero moving to 2-0 against Berto. Scores were 98-92, 98-92, 99-91. The bout was a rematch of Guerrero’s 2012 triumph over Berto.

Former WBA super lightweight champion Alberto Puello (22-0, 10 KOs) returned from a 16-month layoff outpoint previously unbeaten Ector Madera (11-1, 6 KOs) over eight rounds. Scores were 80-72, 80-72, 79-73. Continue reading “Morrell crushes Agbeko, retains WBA belt”

2016 Olympian super featherweight Tsendbaatar Erdenebat (8-0, 4 KOs) remained unbeaten with an eighth round KO against Yohan “La Fiera” Vasquez (25-5, 20 KOs) on Saturday night at New York City’s Sony Hall. Erdenebat battered Vazquez in round two but Vazquez survived the round and then managed to continue. The bout ended in round eight when Erdenebat dropped Vazquez to end it. Time was 2:29.

By Joe Koizumi

Fast-rising super bantam WBO AP#3 Ryuya Tsugawa (12-1, 8 KOs), 123.25, impressively scored a fine KO win over Filipino Prince Andrew Laurio (12-6-1, 9 KOs), 121.5, at 1:36 of the second round in a scheduled eight on Saturday in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, Japan. Tsugawa, Japan’s youth champ previously employed as a sparring partner of “Monster” Naoya Inoue, displayed crisp punching in dropping the game Filipino twice in the opening session and once more in the fatal second. Tsugawa, a lanky hard-puncher, registered seven stoppages in latest eight consecutive wins, and will zoom up to top in the near future.

Former OPBF 160-pound champ Yuki Nonaka (37-12-3, 11 KOs), 167.75, was awarded a bizarre TKO victory over Thailander Pathueang Sikun (16-15, 12 KOs), 164.5, at 1:19 of the second round in a scheduled eight. Pathueang sprained his knee when he moved side-to-side, fell down and became unable to raise himself. Nonaka, a veteran southpaw, is gunning for a shot at the vacant OPBF 168-pound belt next spring.

Promoter: Mitsuki Promotions.

WBO #1 super welterweight Josh Kelly (15-1-1, 8 KOs) won by third round knockout against Placido Ramirez (24-4, 17 KOs) on Saturday night at the Beacon of Light in Sunderland, England. Kelly connected with an uppercut that dropped Ramirez to a knee in round three and Ramirez stayed down for the count. Time was 2:38. Kelly is in line for a title shot against WBO champion Tim Tszyu.

WBC #1 super lightweight Sandor Martin (42-3, 15 KOs) knocked out Mohamed El Marcouchi (29-4, 12 KOs) in round four on Saturday night at the Palasport Le Cupole in Turin, Italy. Martin dropped Marcouchi in round two and put him done for the count in round four. Time was 2:02.

After the fight, Martin, who is WBC’s the official mandatory challenger, immediately called out recently crowned WBC champion Devin Haney.

By Jeff Zimmerman at ringside

Super featherweight Kenneth Taylor (14-2, 3 KOs), fighting out of Tyler, TX showed off his fancy footwork and array of punches to outwork Jorge Ramos (8-5, 1 KO) from Laredo over eight entertaining rounds in the main event Friday night at College Park Center on the campus of the University of Texas at Arlington. Taylor got off to a fast start in round one and dropped Ramos with a big right hand. Ramos recovered and over the next several rounds went toe to toe with Taylor. Taylor switched gears over the second half and used his legs and threw punches from different angles to keep the hard charging Ramos at bay. Taylor punctuated the night with a big flurry to end the fight and won a unanimous decision going away by scores of 79-72, 80-71 and 79-72. Continue reading “Taylor tops Ramos in Arlington, TX”

By Héctor Villarreal

Panamanian lightweight prospect Jonathan Miniel (4-0, 4 KOs) overcame a knockdown to stop Colombian Luis Fabra (7-6,4 KOs) on the main event of the “Boxeo del Patio” show promoted by Laguna Premium on Friday night to wrap up the boxing season in Panama.

Miniel sent Fabra to the canvas in round one but a strong right hook by the Colombian surprisingly knocked the local down in the second. With the scorecards even, Miniel trapped Fabra in a neutral corner with powerful combinations, forcing the visitor to put a knee on the canvas for the 10 count. Refeee Héctor Afú called the KO at 1:39 of round 3. Continue reading “Miniel overcomes adversity, stays unbeaten”

Featherweight Kevin Barron Crespo (13-1, 9 KOs) defeated Hector Garcia Dolores (10-8, 5 KOs) in the eight round main event on Friday night. The show took place at the Auditorio Municipal Fausto Gutiérrez Moreno, in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico. Garcia was credited with a knockdown of Crespo in the eighth and final round. However, Crespo was in control of the bout overall in route to winning by way of unanimous decision . There were no official scores read.

Popular YouTuber-turned-cruiserweight boxer Jake Paul (8-1, 5 KOs) annihilated Andre August (10-2-1, 5 KOs) in the first round on Friday night at the Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando, Florida. Paul connected with a vicious uppercut that laid August out flat on his back. Time was 2:32.

In a grudge match for the WBC world and WBA interim female super middleweight titles, former undisputed champ Franchon Crews-Dezurn (9-2, 2 KOs) took a ten round unanimous decision over previously unbeaten Shadasia Green (13-1, 11 KOs). Crews-Dezurn, an 8:1 underdog, was simply busier as she pulled away 98-92, 97-93, 97-93.

Unbeaten super welterweight Yoenis Tellez (7-0, 6 KOs) scored a brutal tenth round knockout over Livan Navarro (15-2, 9 KOs). Tellez dropped Navarro in round three and knocked him out cold with a left hook in round ten. Time was 1:21.

Unbeaten heavyweight Lorenzo Medina (9-0, 8 KOs) recovered from a second round knockdown to stop Joshua Temple (12-3, 10 KOs) in round six. A barrage of punches prompted a referee’s stoppage. Time was :29.

Unbeaten super bantamweight Jose “Tito” Sanchez (12-0, 7 KOs) scored a ten round unanimous decision over Walter Santibanes (12-3, 2 KOs) on Thursday night at the Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, California. Sanchez went ten tough rounds with the rugged Santibanes, winning 99-91, 99-91, 98-92.

Unbeaten middleweight Eric Priest (12-0, 8 KOs) blew away Paul Mendez (21-5-2, 11 KOs) in the first round. Priest dropped Mendez in round one and got a referee’s stoppage with his follow-up barrage. Time was 2:09. Continue reading “Tito Sanchez still unbeaten”

In a clash of former heavyweight title challengers, Kubrat Pulev (30-3, 14 KOs) scored a one-sided ten round unanimous decision over Andrezej Wasrzyk (34-3, 20 KOs) on Thursday night at The Hangar in Costa Mesa, California. Pulev pressed the action and kept a jab in Wasrzyk’s face. Wasrzyk fought in spurts and usually moved in reverse. Pulev scored knockdowns in round six and round eight. Scores were 99-89, 100-88, 100-88.

Pulev, 42, previously challenged for the WBA/IBF/WBO belts against Wladimir Klitshko in 2014 and again against Anthony Joshua in 2020. Wawrzyk, 36, challenged Alexander Povetkin for the WBA belt in 2013.

* * *

Former world title challenger Egidijus “Mean Machine” Kavaliauskas (24-2-1, 19 KOs) scored a third round KO over Jose Marruffo (14-13-2, 2 KOs) in a super welterweight fight. Kavaliauskas dropped Marruffo in round two, but moments later was cut over the left eye by an accidental headbutt. Kavaliauskas dropped Marruffo again in round three to end it. Time was 2:10.

Full Report

WBA #14 super lightweight Batyrzhan Jukembayev (22-1, 16 KOs) hammered out a ten round unanimous decision over Mohamed Mimoune (23-4, 4 KOs) on Wednesday night at the Whitesands Events Center in Plant City, Florida. Jukembayev staggered Mimoune in round four en route to a 98-92, 98-92, 99-91 win.

Unbeaten lightweight Kelvin Davis (11-0, 6 KOs), brother of Olympic medalist Keyshawn Davis, scored a controversial eight round unanimous decision over journeyman Clarence Booth (21-9, 13 KOs). Booth pressed the action and Davis mostly moved and held with limited engagement. Both fighters were deducted point for wrestling themselves (and the referee) to the canvas. Scores were 78-72, 79-71, 79-71 for the A-side. The fans booed.

In a clash between undefeated light heavyweights fan-favorite Najee Lopez (8-0, 7 KOs) Yildo Depestre (7-0, 5 KOs). Lopez dropped Depestre at the end of round one and finished him with a barrage of punches in round three. Time was :48.

Unbeaten super featherweight Dominic Valle (8-0, 7 KOs) stopped Jensel Lausa (11-2, 7 KOs) with a body shot in round two.

By Joe Koizumi

WBA #1 bantam Sho Ishida (34-3, 17 KOs), 118, quickly chalked up a TKO victory over Filipino James Pagaling (8-2, 5 KOs), 115.75, at 1:51 of the third round in a scheduled eight on Sunday in Osaka, Japan. Ishida, an elongated boxer-puncher, made good use of his favorite left jab, took the initiative and swarmed over the Filipino with a flurry of punches. Pagaling fell and beat the count, but couldn’t resume fighting only to be stopped by the referee. Ishida’s target is WBA 118-pound ruler Takuma Inoue, the Monster’s younger brother. Sho had acquired the IBF mandatory right by edging unbeaten Victor Santillan, Dominican Republic, in the IBF eliminator here this June.

Promoter: Taisei Promotions.

By Joe Koizumi

Perennial WBO top flyweight contender, ex-WBO AP champ Riku Kano (17-3-1, 8 KOs), 113.5, exploded a quick combination, badly dropped previously unbeaten Thailander Khomsan Kaewruean (5-1, 3 KOs), 115.75, and scored a fine TKO victory at 1:25 of the second round in a scheduled eight on Sunday in Osaka, Japan. Kano is gunning for a WBO mandatory shot at the winner of the forthcoming unification bout between Jesse Rodriguez and Sunny Edwards in Arizona this coming Saturday. Kano, a southpaw puncher, previously help the WBO AP belts in the 108 and 112 pound categories, and is willing to have an ambitious shot next year.

Also, fast-rising WBC light-fly youth champ WBA#13 Yuga Ozaki (5-0-1, 4 KOs), 109.25, defeated compatriot Kenshi Noda (3-3, 2 KOs), 108.75, by a unanimous decision (all 78-74) over eight.

Promoter: Taisei Promotions.

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

Japan’s super light champ Homura Fujita (12-1, 10 KOs), 140, retained his national belt as he proved too strong and powerful for JBC#6 Shoma Sekine (6-8-2, 2 KOs), 140, scoring an impressive stoppage at 1:24 of the fourth session in a scheduled ten on Tuesday in Tokyo, Japan. Having acquired the vacant belt by a very quick demolition over Cristiano Aoqui this April, Fujita decked his second defense but looked a bit too nervous and stiff despite scoring three knockdowns. Should he face unbeaten world-rated Andy Hiraoka, it will be a crowd-pleasing matchup without doubt. Continue reading “Homura demolishes Sekine, keeps Japan 140lb belt”

Looks like the WBA will adpopt the “bridgerweight” name for their super cruiserweight division. Over the weekend, Evgeny Tishchenko (13-1, 8 KOs) made history by officially becoming the first WBA bridgerweight champion by defeating Leon Harth (22-6-1, 13 KOs) this weekend at the Agenda Arena in Dubai. Tishchenko dropped Harth in round two and finished him in the sixth round to claim the belt in the 200-224 pound weight class.

By Joe Koizumi

Former WBC female flyweight champ Go Shindo (16-4, 11 KOs) became a man in 2017 and this time made a comeback as a male boxer in a semi-official test bout on Sunday in Osaka, Japan. Shindo, however, lost to Katsuyuki Ishibashi (2-2-1, no KO) by a unanimous decision (all 29-27) over three bantamweight rounds for three minutes. Shindo, 36, looked as sharp as previously, took the first round, but seemingly lost the second. The third and final session saw Shindo aggressively leading on his way to victory, but took a left hook and hit the deck. Shindo quickly raised himself, but obviously lost a 10-8 round.

Tsuyoshi Yasukochi of JBC said, “Shindo stepped up to get licensed as a male boxer and the JBC will need to consider licensing him.”

It wasn’t an official bout, so the win-loss result wasn’t officially registered but it was experimentally scored as a test bout.

Promoter: Green Tsuda Promotions.

BoxRec: Shindo Go