Mikhalkin: I don’t think he’s hurt, he just wants to avoid me!

This Saturday’s scheduled light heavyweight clash between former world title challengers Igor Mikhalkin and Callum Johnson on the Joyce-Hammer undercard is off due to an undisclosed injury suffered by Johnson.

“The fight was supposed to take place two years ago, but was postponed several times and then completely canceled due to the pandemic,” stated a disappointed Mikhalkin. “When we got the call a few weeks ago that we could finally fight Johnson for the WBO Global and WBC Silver titles, I was overjoyed. So I’m all the more disappointed that Johnson is pulling out of the affair again. I find his behavior unsportsmanlike. Why is he suddenly hurt now? I prepared for weeks, was at the training camp in Antalya, and had very good sparring. I don’t think he’s hurt, he just wants to avoid me. He’ll have to hang up his gloves to avoid me!”

The World Boxing Organization (WBO) today unveiled details for the upcoming 2022 Convention, to be held October 24-28 at The Royal Sonesta Hotel in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The gathering will include the Executive Committee general elections as well as the annual awards dinner, and referees’ and judges’ workshops. Among the subjects to be discussed will be the role of the WBO in the exponential growth that women’s professional boxing is currently experiencing.

WBO #1 heavyweight Joe Joyce and perennial gatekeeper Christian Hammer faced off at the final press conference for Saturday’s clash at the OVA Arena in London. The fight will air in the U.S. on ESPN+.

Joe Joyce: “I’ve had a great training camp in Las Vegas again with Salas, rehabbed the injury and I’ve been adding more tools to the arsenal. I am in a good place mentally, physically and I think Hammer is going to be a good test and a good fight. He is tough, durable, and has been in there with some really good names…I am not going to put any pressure on myself by predicting rounds. It could go the distance or I could take him out.”

Christian Hammer: “I am really happy to get the chance of a fight with Joyce and I am looking forward to it. I am feeling very well and I am in good shape. This is a big chance for me and I will give everything. I haven’t come here only for travel.”

By Joe Koizumi
Photos: Naoki Fukuda

Formerly three-division world champ Kosei Tanaka (17-1, 10 KOs), 114.75, impressively captured the WBO Asia Pacific 115-pound belt as he battered unbeaten defending titlist Masayoshi Hashizume (19-1-2, 11 KOs), 115, to the punch to prompt the referee’s intervention at 2:52 of the fifth round on Wednesday in Tokyo, Japan. Annihilated by compatriot Kazuto Ioka in quest of his WBO junior bantam belt in 2020, Tanaka edged world-rated Sho Ishida and thus seized the regional belt to his credit. Tanaka said, “I’m willing to win my fourth belt in the 115-pound category.” Continue reading “Ex-champ Tanaka halts Hashizume, wins WBO AP 115lb belt”

World-ranked super middleweight contender Ali Akhmedov (18-1, 14 KOs), a training partner of unified middleweight world champion Gennadiy ‘GGG’ Golovkin, will meet TBA in a ten-rounder on July 30 at the Crypto.com Arena (formerly Staples Center).

In an eight-round super middleweight scrap, Cem ‘Champ’ Kilic, (16-1, 8 KOs) will face TBA.

These bouts take place on the undercard of a celebrity boxing pay-per-view show billed as Social Gloves: ‘No More Talk’ headlined by a grudge match between YouTubers Austin McBroom and AnEson Gib. In the co-feature, former Los Angeles Laker Nick ‘Swaggy P’ Young faces hip-hopper BlueFace. Also, in a heavyweight boxing exhibition between former NFL All-Pro running backs, Le’Veon Bell collides with Adrian Peterson. Continue reading “Akhmedov, Kilic in action on July 30”

Here is a selection of quotes from today’s Oleksandr Usyk vs. Anthony Joshua 2 press conference in London ahead of their rematch in the coastal city of Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on Saturday August 20.

Oleksandr Usyk: I am not fighting for money or any recognition. I am just doing my job now and will continue fighting until my heart keeps beating. I am not expecting anything from Anthony Joshua, but I know that he will be different, but so will I.”

Anthony Joshua: “In terms of old AJ, same old G, I’m just doing what I’m doing. Grafting away. It is a rough and tough sport. Fighting these lefties is a nightmare! And I cannot make the same mistake twice. I am hungry and desperate but at the end of the day how I perform will speak.”

Robert Garcia, trainer of Anthony Joshua: “Seeing the size difference, the height, the reach, the weight – everything is in Anthony’s advantage. We’ve got to take advantage of that. We’ve got to train him to focus on that and come fight night do what we need to do to win.”

Former world champion and all-action fan-favorite Brandon “The Heartbreaker” Figueroa expects to showcase his power and speed when he moves up in weight and makes his 126-pound debut against Carlos Castro in a WBC featherweight title eliminator that serves as the co-main event live on Showtime Saturday, July 9 from the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.

“We’re looking to make a statement on July 9,” said Figueroa. “Me not worrying about squeezing to make 122 pounds and really killing myself at the end of camp just makes me more relaxed mentally. I feel fresher heading into this fight and I just can’t wait to showcase that.

“I’m going to be a lot stronger and more explosive. If people were impressed with my conditioning at 122, just imagine what it’s going to be like at 126. Everyone is going to see a better version of myself.” Continue reading “Figueroa primed for featherweight debut”

WBO featherweight Emanuel “Vaquero” Navarrete (35-1, 29 KOs) will defend his world title in the main event against countryman Eduardo “El Gemelo” Baez (21-2-2, 7 KOs) on Saturday, August 20 at Pechanga Arena San Diego. Navarrete also signed a new multi-year promotional agreement with Top Rank that will see him fight on the ESPN family of networks in events promoted in association with Zanfer Promotions.

The 10-round welterweight co-feature will see local hero Giovani “Gallo de Oro” Santillan (29-0, 16 KOs) risk his unbeaten record against a soon-to-be-announced opponent. Continue reading “Navarrete to defend WBO belt Aug 20”

By Mauricio Sulaimán
Son of José Sulaimán & President of the WBC

All sports have officials in charge of maintaining the competition in accordance with the rules established therein.

In soccer, there is the referee, who is the highest authority, and he receives support from the line officials; in American football there is the main referee and there are five other field Referees in specific positions. In baseball, there is the umpire behind home plate, and there are two others positioned at first and third base. All sports officials are invariably subject to be in the middle of public opinion, scandals, controversy of fans and media.

Boxing has the referee, who is the highest authority inside the ring, and with three judges, who are in charge of scoring round after round, and if it is necessary to determine who is the winner of the fight, if it does not end by knockout. Continue reading “The Referee in Boxing”

WBA, IBF, WBO heavyweight champion Oleksander Usyk and former champion Anthony Joshua faced off for 83 intense seconds and it would have gone on longer if promoter Eddie Hearn didn’t intervene. Today’s press conference in London will be the last time they meet until fight week for their August 20 rematch in Saudi Arabia.

On Saturday night July 23, an eight round main event featuring Philly super featherweight Avery Sparrow (11-3, 4 KOs) against undefeated ShoBox alum William Foster III (14-0, 9 KOs) will take place at The Fillmore Philadelphia. Sparrow is coming off an upset stoppage win over Matt Conway on January 15th in Conway’s backyard of Cheswick, Pennsylvania.

In the co-feature, undefeated WBA-NABA and WBC Continental Americas super featherweight beltholder Christian Tapia (14-0, 12 KOs) takes on undefeated Fernando Romero (11-0, 10 KOs) in a 10-round bout.

By Ray Wheatley – World of Boxing

WBO #5, IBF #15 super featherweight Liam Wilson (11-1, 7 KOs) won a unanimous ten round decision over Argentina-based WBO #8 Matias Rueda (37-2, 32 KOs) at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, Queensland, Australia on Wednesday night televised nationally on Foxtel and Kayo Sports.

In a fast-paced action bout that see-sawed throughout, both Wilson and Rueda continually connected with solid punches that saw both of them visibly hurt but never in danger of visiting the canvas. Wilson damaged his left hand in round nine but staggered Rueda with right hand bombs that had the visitor holding.

At the conclusion of the closely contested bout, the judges’ scores were all for Wilson 97-93, 99-91, 96-94.

“I couldn’t use my jab, couldn’t find my range. I felt uncoordinated,” Wilson said. “It was a rough night. I had to deal with this guy who’s a bloody big puncher and find a way to win…there’s some parts of the fight where I was like f******ck. But I had to find a way to win.” Continue reading “Wilson edges Rueda”

Former two-division world champion and Brooklyn fan-favorite Danny “Swift” Garcia spoke of feeling reinvigorated from his time off while his opponent Jose Benavidez Jr. predicted that their super welterweight showdown would be the “Fight of the Year” during a virtual press conference on Tuesday. Garcia will be making his 154lb debut when they square off on July 30 live on Showtime from Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

Danny Garcia: “I needed time to feel good again and I feel great…When I’m happy, I’m a dangerous man.”

Jose Benavidez Jr: “We’re going to be throwing bombs all night long. Stay tuned, because this is going to be Fight of the Year, I guarantee that.”

More quotes

Former four-division world champion Mikey Garcia has apparently retired. No official announcement other that a new tagline on his Instagram page that reads “Retired World Champ 126, 130, 135, 140 lbs.”

From 2006 to 2018, Garcia was unbeatable. He ran his record to 39-0 with 30 KOs. In 2019, he ambitiously challenged Errol Spence Jr. for the welterweight title, but lost badly in a surprisingly one-sided affair. He chose to stay at welterweight and returned in 2020 with an uninspired decision win over Jesse Vargas, then was shockingly upset by 12:1 underdog Sandor Martin in his most recent fight last year.

Update: Mikey’s brother Robert Garcia Jr. has confirmed to ESPN that Mikey has indeed hung up his gloves.

No deal reached, so the World Boxing Council (WBC) has confirmed that a purse bid ceremony for the mandatory super lightweight championship bout between champion Josh Taylor and mandatory challenger Jose Zepeda will take place this Friday, July 1st.

The Championships Committee of the World Boxing Association (WBA) gave a period of 15 days to negotiate the fight between the WBA super featherweight champion Roger Gutierrez and his official challenger Hector Garcia. Official communication was sent to both fighters’ teams, which specifies that the period granted starts this Monday, June 27 and ends next July 12.

Gutierrez had a term of nine months to face the mandatory challenger from the moment he won the title on January 2, 2021. This time expired on October 2 last year, so he must face Garcia immediately. Should the parties fail to reach an agreement or any of them show unwillingness to do so, the Committee shall have the full right to call a purse bid under the usual WBA parameters.

Garcia, fighting as a late replacement for Gutierrez who contracted COVID-19, defeated the highly-touted Chris Colbert to earn his title shot against the man he replaced.

Cruiserweights Jake “The Problem Child” Paul and Tommy “TNT” Fury are supposed to be hosting a kickoff press conference on Wednesday in New York City. However, Fury was prevented from getting on the plane in London after being denied clearance by U.S. Homeland Security.

“I can stand here and say I have done nothing wrong and I have no clue why I’m not allowed to travel to the USA,” stated Tommy on social media. “I’ve been training for a fight this whole time and that’s all I’ve been doing. I have no clue why I’m not allowed to travel and neither does my team or my lawyers.”

Fury’s brother, WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, was also reportedly recently denied entry to the U.S. allegedly due to his association with suspected mob boss Daniel Kinahan, who was sanctioned by the U.S. government earlier this year. So it’s not unlikely that this situation is related.

Stay tuned…

By Ray Wheatley – World of Boxing

Boxing Hall of Famer Jeff Fenech predicts IBF #3 cruiserweight Jai Opetaia (20-0, 17 KOs) will shock the world when he challenges IBF cruiserweight champion Maris Breidis (28-1, 20 KOs) on Saturday at the Gold Coast Convention Centre in Queensland, Australia, televised on Foxtel Main Event Pay-Per-View and ESPN+.

“I couldn’t believe the skill level and the brilliance in what he does and how he does it,” Jeff Fenech told Fox Sports. “To this day, I still couldn’t believe it. Then he trained with us at our gym many times, I watched him box guys that were heavyweights and he was never, ever hurt or flustered. He was always one step ahead of all of them. Don’t underestimate Jai Opetaia, he’s going to shock the world.”

By Joe Koizumi

Naoki Fukuda, the famous oft-award-winning boxing photographer, has been featured by Japan’s prestigious national TV (NHK) since last week, and it will be available to a worldwide audience for a year until June 20, 2023. The 15-minute program is advertised as Naoki Fukuda is a photographer the world’s premier boxing magazine once referred to as the “undisputed champion.” He talks about the technique and passion that goes into capturing critical moments.

The Man Who Predicts Punches: Fukuda Naoki / Boxing Photographer – Direct Talk NHK WORLD-JAPAN On Demand

Don’t worry, as this interesting program is narrated in English, not in Japanese.

Unified WBC/WBO super featherweight champion Shakur Stevenson (18-0, 9 KOs) will defend his titles against Robson Conceição (17-1, 8 KOs) on a September ESPN telecast. The bout will air on Friday, September 23 in Stevenson’s hometown of Newark, New Jersey, according to the network’s website. Both competed in the 2016 Rio Olympics, with Conceição winning gold and Stevenson taking a silver in different weight divisions.

M&R Boxing Promotions (Laura Ching) will promote a card on Saturday August 6th in Medellin, Colombia. The card is scheduled to feature several fighters from all over the globe including Romero Duno, John Vincent Moralde, Mark Bernaldez, Josec Ruiz, Narciso Carmona, and more in separate bouts. The event will take place at the elegant Casino Hollywood Milla de Oro located in a popular tourist area of the city called Poblado.

“The event is scheduled to feature fighters from Colombia, Philippines, Honduras, Spain, and more. This is an outstanding opportunity for the fighters and promoter to be a part of an event in the beautiful city of Medellin at the Casino Hollywood Milla de Oro,” said manager William Ramirez (WRAM Boxing).

King’s Promotions has announced the addition of International Boxing Hall of Famer and female boxing icon Christy Martin as the new Director of Operations.

“This is a huge addition for King’s Promotions. Christy Martin will add so much to what we have built at King’s Promotions. What Christy brings to the table is endless in what she has done in the sport of boxing both in and out of the ring. In her role, Christy will help with all aspects relating to the boxing end of things, such as helping us identify and sign talent, matchmaking, day-to-day operations and mentorship to all of our fighters. Especially with our talented female fighters such as WBC Super Featherweight champion Alycia Baumgardner, Danielle Perkins and undefeated flyweight Leanna Cruz. Also, Christy has established herself as a top promoter in her own right, so we will have access to some of the fighters that she works with, and that will make our roster that much stronger and deeper,” said Marshall Kauffman, CEO of King’s Promotions. Continue reading “Christy Martin joins King’s Promotions”

The fighters were in New York City for the second stop of the Canelo Alvarez vs Gennadiy Golovkin trilogy press tour. Caleno and GGG came head to head for the last time until fight week…

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Sparse boxing action this week in the U.S. due to the Fourth of July weekend. However, ESPN+ comes through in a big way with not one, but TWO excellent international fight cards on Saturday.

SATURDAY

IBF cruiserweight world champion Mairis Briedis (28-1, 20 KOs) defends his title against mandatory challenger Jai Opetaia (21-0, 17 KOs) at the Gold Coast Convention Centre in Broadbeach, Queensland, Australia. The ESPN+ telecast will begin at 5AM ET, 2AM PT U.S. time.

Unbeaten, WBO #1, WBC #2, IBF #6 heavyweight Joe Joyce (13-0, 12 KOs) returns from a one year layoff against perennial gatekeeper Christian Hammer (27-9, 17 KOs) at the OVO Arena in London. Good undercard on this one also. The ESPN+ telecast will begin at 2:30PM ET, 11:30AM PT U.S. time.

By Ray Wheatley – World of Boxing

Australian cruiserweight professional boxer Sam Abdulrahim was shot three times in the chest on Saturday while attending a funeral service in Melbourne. Known as “The Punisher,” the Mongols bikie associate is now in stable condition it was reported. Police confirmed the shooting was a targeted attack

Abdulrahim has won all of his six fights and scored a six round decision over Victor Oganov in hhis most recent bout in May.