By Miguel Maravilla

WBO bantamweight champion John Riel Casimero talks win over Rigondeaux. Calls out Donaire and Inoue.

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Nine months after their controversial rematch, Joshua “El Profesor” Franco left no doubt in the trilogy bout. Franco defended his WBA super flyweight world title with a unanimous decision over Andrew “The Monster” Moloney Saturday evening from the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Tulsa.

All three judges score the bout 116-112 for Franco (18-1-2, 8 KOs), who won the title from Moloney last June in their first bout.

Moloney (21-2, 14 KOs) was unable to capture the magic of their rematch, where he outgunned Franco for two rounds before the fight was stopped due to what the referee deemed an accidental headbutt. The controversy — head clash or punch — raged for nine months, and Franco quickly established his supremacy this time around. Continue reading “Franco defeats A. Moloney again”

By Miguel Maravilla at ringside

WBO bantamweight champion John Riel Casimero (31-4, 21 KOs) successfully defended his title against two-division world champion Guillermo Rigondeaux (20-2, 13 KOs) in winning a split decision on the Showtime Championship Boxing main event as it was Cuba vs. the Philippines Saturday night at the Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California Continue reading “Casimero defeats Rigondeaux by split decision”

By Jeff Zimmerman at ringside

WBO #1 welterweight Vergil Ortiz Jr. (18-0, 18 KOs) fighting in front of his hometown fans for the second fight in a row, put the welterweight division on notice in emphatic fashion as he blasted out the “Mean Machine” Egidijus Kavaliauskas (22-2-1, 18 KOs) in the 8th round via TKO to retain his WBO International title in front of a packed house at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco and home to the Dallas Cowboys. Ortiz Jr. dropped Kavaliauskas in round three and four more times in the eighth, before referee Laurence Cole waived it off 2:59 of the scheduled twelve. Continue reading “Ortiz KOs Kavaliauskas in eight”

To: WBA Promoters
From: Championships Committee
Ref: Interim Titles

Dear Sirs,

The World Boxing Association Championships Committee has decided to withdraw all the Interim championship titles approved so far in light of the resolution to eliminate all the interim champions. However, they will be approved as elimination fights.

The WBA Championships Committee will study case by case to decide which Interim champions will be ordered to fight the champions.

Sincerely yours,
Carlos Chavez
Championships Committee Chairman

By Miguel Maravilla at ringside

Unbeaten contender Gary Antonio Russell (18-0, 12 KOs) and former champion Emmanuel Rodriguez (19-2, 12 KO’s) were involved in a no-contest as they squared off for the WBA Bantamweight eliminator in the co-main event. A clash of heads right seconds into the opening round sent Rodriguez to the canvas in pain as he was on the receiving end of the clash. The fight was stopped at 16 seconds of the first.

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Former world champion Rau’shee Warren (19-3, 5 KO’s) and Damien Vazquez (15-2, 8 KO’s) opened up the Showtime telecast. Warren came out firing from the start and dropped Vasquez with a short right hand as he got up quickly. Another huge right by Warren sat Vasquez back down. Continuing to fight, the three-time Olympian Warren attacked as Vasquez survived. A huge straight left by Warren did it, as Vasquez was extremely hurt staggering around referee Ray Corona immediately waved it at 2:18 of the second.

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Former world champion Juan Carlos Payano (22-5, 11 KO’s) of the Dominican Republic stopped Filipino Raymond Tabugo (22-13-1, KOs) in the fifth round. The former world champion Payano overwhelmed Tabugo with pressure, a series of punches the Filipino appeared to be tired as the referee stopped the fight at the end of the fifth. Continue reading “Casimero-Rigondeaux Undercard”

By Jeff Zimmerman at ringside

In the co-main event at Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, TX, home of the Dallas Cowboys practice facility, WBA super featherweight champ Roger Gutierrez (26-3-1, 20 KOs) from Maracaibo, Venezuela faced his nemesis Rene Alvarado (32-10, 21 KOs) out of Managua, Nicaragua, for the third time and second time this year as he squeaked out a close unanimous decision 116-112, 116-112 and 115-113.

In a very tactical fight over the first five rounds from both fighters, it finally heated up in round six as Alvarado rocked Gutierrez with a big right hand early in the round and punctuated it with a left uppercut before it ended. From that point on, Alvarado appeared to gain confidence and pressured Gutierrez, forcing the champ backwards. However Gutierrez made sure the judges knew when he landed a punch or at least appeared to as he raised his hand in the air that was highlighted in the recent Tokyo Olympics.

Gutierrez did not have the same dominating performance he had in January this year when he dropped Alvarado three times, including the twelfth and final round. Many of the rounds were very close and the judges felt Gutierrez did enough to earn the victory in their trilogy. Alvarado won their first fight by KO back in 2017 at the Belasco Theater in Los Angeles. Once again the Alvarado brothers go 1-1 in their back to back fights in Texas this year, but with this fight much closer, perhaps a fourth one is on the horizon.

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Light flyweight champ Felix Alvarado (37-2, 32 KOs) out of Managua, Nicaragua destroyed late replacement Israel Vazquez (10-5-2, 7 KOs) hailing from Puerto Rico in the first round to earn the TKO victory of the scheduled ten.

Alvarado jumped on Vazquez immediately and unloaded power shots to the the head and body as Vazquez tried to match the champ punch for punch. Alvarado finally dropped Vazquez with an overhand right as he was clearly hurt from the non-stop onslaught to stat the fight. Vazquez reluctantly got to his feet before referee Luis Pabon decided to waive it off. The official time was 2:50.

Alvarado was originally scheduled to face Mexico’s Erick Lopez, but due to visa problems, ended up fighting Vazquez to defend his title. This is Alvarado’s second trip to the Lone Star State this year as he defended his title at American Airlines Center in Dallas in early January under the Ryan Garcia – Luke Campbell card. He stopped former champ DeeJay Kriel that night. Now he waits for his twin brother, Renee, to fight his nemesis Roger Gutierrez from Venezuela in a trilogy to reclaim his title after losing it to Gutierrez on the same Golden Boy show in January. Continue reading “Ortiz-Kavaliauskas undercard”

The fight between Gary Antonio Russell and Emmanuel Rodríguez, which will be take place tonight at Dignity Health Sport Park, in Carson, California, will be a WBA bantamweight eliminator and not for the interim title of the pioneer body, as had been announced in principle.

Along with this fight, there is also that of super flyweights Ronal Batista and Alejandro Santiago on September 10, and that of super middleweights Aidos Yerbossynuly against Lennox Allen, which will be played on September 12. Both will be WBA qualifiers.

The decisions are due to the start of the WBA’s title reduction plan that will gradually come into operation and that will evaluate one by one the interim titles in the divisions in which they exist to make decisions.

In a WBA light heavyweight eliminator, #2 rated Joshua Buatsi (15-0, 13 KOs) stopped #3 Ricards Bolotniks (18-6-1, 8 KOs) in round eleven on Saturday at Matchroom HQ outside London. The rugged Bolotniks put up strong resistance, but Buatsi was ultimately too powerful. Continue reading “Buatsi stops Bolotniks in 11”

By Damon Gonzalez/LatinBox Sports

Yamar “The Magic” Alamo (20-0-1, 12 KO) from Aguas Buenas, Puerto Rico defended his WBO NABO Jr Welterweight title Friday night against battle tested Adrian “El Chinito” Yung (28-7-2, 22 KO) from Los Mochis, Sinaloa, Mexico in front of a screaming crowd at the Osceola Heritage Park Events Center(OHP) in Kissimmee, FL. Alamo scores a tenth round unanimous decision victory. The judges scorecards were 98-92, 99-90, 100-89. Continue reading “Alamo defeats Yung”

Cuban Mike Perez returned to the ring to fight for the World Boxing Association (WBA) Inter-Continental cruiserweight title and proved he still has his power by knocking out Tony Salam in three rounds at the Atlantis The Palm Hotel in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

The 35-year-old fighter scored a third round technical knockout over a gritty African challenger and captured the pioneer organization’s regional belt with a resounding and convincing performance. Continue reading “Mike Perez wins by KO”

Sorry to report the passing of IBF Ratings Chairman Anibal Miramontes. Anibal was with the IBF for approximately a decade, but his roots in boxing run deep and for many years. He was well known throughout the boxing community globally and his knowledge of the sport was extensive and thorough. This is a sad loss for the boxing community as a whole. He was a respected boxing official who worked many championship fights, and was a renowned boxing record-keeper. RIP

By Jeff Zimmerman

Fightnews.com® caught up with Golden Boy’s rising star Vergil Ortiz Jr. after weigh-ins as he squares off against the “Mean Machine” Egidijus Kavaliausjas this Saturday at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco in the main event and shown live on DAZN.

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John Riel Casimero 118 vs. Guillermo Rigondeaux 117 ½
(WBO Bantamweight title)

Gary Antonio Russell 116 ¾ vs. Emmanuel Rodriguez 118
(WBA interim Bantamweight Title)

Rau’shee Warren 117 ½ vs. Damien Vazquez 117 ¼
Brandun Lee 141 ½ pounds vs. Ezequiel Fernandez 138 ½

Venue: Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California
Promoter: TGB Promotions
TV: Showtime

Joshua Franco 114.2 vs. Andrew Moloney 114.8
(WBA Super Flyweight World Title)

Nico Ali Walsh 162.4 vs. Jordan Weeks 161
Arnold Barboza Jr. 139.8 vs. Antonio Moran 139
(WBO International Junior Welterweight Title)
Joshua Greer Jr. 117.6 vs. Jason Moloney 117.6
(WBC Silver Bantamweight Title)
Trey Lippe Morrison 229 vs. Don Haynesworth 288.6
Karlos Balderas 131.6 vs. Fidel Cervantes 131.6
Genesis Servania 132.8 vs. Andres Cortes 133
Albert Bell 132.8 vs. Julio Cortez 133.2
Abraham Nova 127.2 vs. Richard Pumicpic 127.4

Venue: Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tulsa
Promoter: Top Rank
TV: ESPN, ESPN+

‘Huntington Beach Bad Boy’ Tito Ortiz vs. ‘The Spider’ Silva.

David Haye vs. Joy Fournier

Andy Vences vs. Jono Carroll

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

Unbeaten Japanese lightweight champion, WBO#7. IBF#15 Shuichiro Yoshino (14-0, 11 KOs), 135, successfully kept his national belt when he halted JBC#10 Shuma Nakazato (10-2-3, 7 KOs), 134.5, from Okinawa, because of a nasty cut at 2:20 of the sixth session on Thursday in Tokyo, Japan. Yoshino, making his seventh defense, took a solid right cross of the ambitious challenger, the son of former OPBF 122-pound ruler Shigeru who had three unsuccessful cracks against Oscar Larios twice (2003, 2004) and Mahyar Monshipour (2005), in the first round, but he quickly regained his rhythm and range from the second onward. The busy-punching Yoshino, 29, accelerated his attack to demonstrate his experience, but the hard-punching Nakazato, 24, occasionally scored with a solid shot at a time. After the fifth, the open scoring system indicated the champ leading: all 49-47. A laceration caused by the champ’s legal shots in the fourth became worsened as the contest progressed, and the ref finally declared a halt to save the younger loser. Continue reading “Yoshino halts Nakazato, keeps Japanese 135lb belt”

By Jeff Zimmerman

Fightnews.com® caught up with Nicaragua’s Rene Alvarado at today’s final presser, as he seeks revenge in his rubber match versus Venezuela’s Roger Gutierrez for the WBA “World” junior lightweight title headlined by Egidijus Kavaliausjas versus Vergil Ortiz Jr. this Saturday at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco and shown live on DAZN.

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By Joe Koizumi

WBO 115-pound champion Kazuto Ioka (26-2, 15 KOs), Japan, has announced to defend his belt against #2 Francisco Rodriguez (34-4, 24 KOs), Mexico, at the Ota-city Gymnasium, Tokyo, on September 1. It is very rare here for the sake of ticket-selling time that a world title bout is publicly announced only three weeks prior to the event. Ioka, 32, welcomes his first appearance since his stunning stoppage of #1 Kosei Tanaka on New Year’s Eve, while Rodriguez, former WBO, IBF 105-pound ruler, 29, also anticipates his crack at the belt with latest fifteen victories in a row.

By Jeff Zimmerman

Fightnews.com® caught up with the “Mean Machine” Egidijus Kavaliauskas at the final presser for his showdown against Golden Boy’s rising star Vergil Ortiz Jr. this Saturday, Aug. 14 at The Star in Frisco in Frisco, TX and shown live on DAZN.

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Last November, controversy reigned supreme. Andrew Moloney thought he’d done enough to snatch the WBA super flyweight world title from Joshua Franco. Moloney contended that numerous jabs caused swelling under Franco’s right eye, which forced the fight to be stopped after two rounds. Following a nearly 30-minute video review, the referee’s decision of a headbutt was upheld. Franco retained his title, the title he won from Moloney via decision nearly five months prior.

After all the trash talk and ensuing tension, Franco and Moloney are set to meet in a trilogy showdown Saturday at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tulsa. Moloney hopes to right what he feels was an injustice, while Franco is out to prove their first fight was not an aberration.

At Thursday’s final press conference, this is what the combatants had to say. Continue reading “Franco-Maloney Final Press Conference”

Yamar “The Magic” Alamo 140 vs. Adrian “El Chinito” Yung 140 lbs
(WBO NABO Jr Welterweights)

Mekhrubon Sanginov 147 vs. Albert “Barreterito” Beltran 147
Otar Eransoyan 130 vs. Juan Carlos Peña 130
Jorge Romero 122 vs. Jesus “Sargento” Martínez 122
Anthony Olascuaga 110 vs. Saul “Baby” Juarez 110
Luis Cabrera 133 vs. Carlos “Jaguar” Jimenez 133
Otabek Kholmatov 128 vs. Marcello Williams 131

Venue: Osceola Heritage Park Events Center, Kissimmee, Florida
Promoter: All Star Boxing, Inc.
TV: Boexo Telemundo

Two-division world champion Guillermo Rigondeaux and WBO Bantamweight World Champion John Riel Casimero went face-to-face Thursday at the final press conference before they headline action live on SHOWTIME this Saturday, August 14 in a Premier Boxing Champions event from Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California.

Also featured at Thursday’s press conference were rising unbeaten contender Gary Antonio Russell and former champion Emmanuel Rodriguez, who meet for the WBA Interim Bantamweight Title in the co-main event, plus former champion Rau’shee Warren and Damien Vazquez, who square off to kick off the telecast at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT

The event is promoted by TGB Promotions. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased at AXS.com.

Here is what the fighters had to say Thursday: Continue reading “Rigo-Casimero Final Press Conference”

The World Boxing Association (WBA) has declared the Interim Welterweight Title vacant after the controversial decision of August 7 in Minnesota in the fight between Gabriel Maestre and Mykal Fox. In addition, the organization will respectfully request the Minnesota Commission to declare the bout a “No Contest”.

At the end of the Fox and Maestre fight, the WBA Officials Committee evaluated the fight. For that reason, and in pursuant to rule C26, the WBA ordered a direct rematch and granted the parties 60 days to make the fight. In case there is a Purse Bid, the split will 50% for each boxer. In addition, the WBA will not approve any fight o special permission to the contenders before the direct rematch takes place. Continue reading “WBA Interim Welterweight Title declared vacant”

Former world champions Robert Guerrero and Víctor Ortiz meet in the co-feature.

Unbeaten featherweight contender Mark Magsayo faces former world champion Julio Ceja in a WBC featherweight title eliminator.

Unbeaten featherweight Carlos Castro takes on former title challenger Óscar Escandón To Open Pay-Per-View.