By Joe Koizumi

Unheralded underdog Masamichi Yabuki (13-3, 12 KOs), 107.75, surprisingly captured the WBC 108-pound belt as he survived a crisis in the ninth and caught up with previously unbeaten defending champ Kenshiro Teraji (18-1, 10 KOs), 107.5, with a flurry of unanswered punches, which prompted the referee’s intervention. Prior to the stoppage, Yabuki was leading on points: 87-84, 86-85, and 88-83.

WBA/WBC/WBO super middleweight world champion Canelo Álvarez and undefeated IBF super middleweight world champion Caleb “Sweethands” Plant met for an intense staredown that turned into a scuffle Tuesday at a press conference previewing their undisputed super middleweight championship showdown.

During an extended face-off that kicked off the event, the fighters exchanged words and threw glancing blows before their respective teams rushed the stage to separate the combatants. Plant was left bleeding from a scratch under his right eye. Continue reading “Canelo draws first blood”

Star Boxing announced today that WBO light heavyweight champion Joe Smith Jr’s October 30 title defense against Umar Salamov will be postponed due to Smith Jr. testing positive for COVID-19. The fight was set to be officially announced this week and expected to sell out quickly. A rescheduled fight date will be announced soon.

Joe Smith Jr: “I was in camp working hard. I am very disappointed that I won’t be able to defend my title in October due to having COVID. When I am better I will be back in the gym preparing to fight as soon as I can and put on a great show for all my fans.” Continue reading “Covid KOs Joe Smith Jr. defense”

Former heavyweight champion Riddick Bowe (43-1, 33 KOs) will take on former NBA star Lamar Odom in an exhibition bout on October 2 at the James L. Knight Center in Miami, Florida. The 53-year-old Bowe last fought in 2008. The 41-year-old Odom recently destroyed rapper Aaron Carter in an exhibition.

Also on the card, former world champion Paulie Malignaggi (36-8, 7 KOs) faces TikToker Corey B.

WBC #14, IBF #15 heavyweight Martin Bakole (17-1, 13 KOs) scored an easy first round knockout over Haruna Osumanu (12-2, 7 KOs) at the Sport Society in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Simply not much resistance from the 41-year-old Osumanu, who was quite overweight. Bakole stalked Osumanu from the opening bell and once he realized there was nothing much coming back, he opened up and blasted Osumanu to the canvas with a few seconds left in round one to end it.

Unbeaten lightweight Anthony de Bruijn (10-0-1, 6 KOs) outpointed journeyman Giorgi Gachechiladze (16-40-1, 9 KOs) over eight workmanlike rounds. No scores were announced.

My name is Stephen Blea and this is an open letter which I have decided to write with regards to my scoring from last Friday night in the Valdez vs Conceicao fight in Tucson, Arizona, 10 Sept. 21.

I have been involved in boxing as a ring official both in the amateur and professional fields for more than 30 years. I have officiated over 60 championship title fights as a judge and referee in several countries of the world including Japan, Thailand, Korea, China, Russia, Mexico, and the USA. I have judged over 200 fights and refereed over 500 Pro fights, with no controversy.

I have watched the fight and thoroughly analyzed it, [my] 117-110 score is not accurate and does not represent the actions in the ring and I feel I have let down my federation the NABF, my organization the WBC, and most importantly our sport and the fighters inside the ring. Continue reading “Valdez-Conceicao judge apologizes for 117-110”

44-year-old UFC legend Vitor Belfort scored a first round TKO over 58-year-old former heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield (44-11-2, 29 KOs) on Saturday night at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida. Belfort dropped Holyfield with an uppercut, then got the referee’s stoppage with his follow-up barrage. Time was 1:49.

Holyfield complained about the stoppage, saying he wasn’t hurt. Belfort called out Jake Paul in a $30 million winner take all match. The offer is also open to Canelo, although that’s less than his normal purse.

Is a boxing match between UFC legends, Anderson Silva scored a brutal first round knockout over Tito Ortiz. Ortiz aggressively pressured Silva, who countered and hurt Ortiz. He then blasted Ortiz to the canvas for the count. Silva defeated former WBC middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in June, so he can box at a decent level.

In a WBA super featherweight eliminator, Jono Carroll (22-6, 5 KOs) won a close ten round majority decision over Andy Vences (23-3-1, 12 KOs). Vences had Carroll pretty busted up by round eight. Doctors gave Carroll a good look after the round, which seemed to wake up Carroll who then rallied in the final two rounds. In the end, scores were 95-95, 97-93, 97-93 for Carroll. Vences looked shocked when the decision was announced.

Former WBA heavyweight champion David Haye (29-4, 26 KOs) carried his friend business magnate Joe Fournier (9-1, 9 KOs) over eight uneventful two-minute rounds that resembled a sparring session. Haye never opened up and won easily 79-72, 80-71, 79-72. After the fight, Haye called out WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury.

More results

By Boxing Bob Newman at ringside

Hometown boy Oscar Valdez, carried the hopes of Tucson on his back in his first defense of the WBC super featherweight title against old amateur foe Robson Conceição of Bahia, Brazil on Friday night before 4,545 at the AVA Amphitheater at Casino Del Sol in Tucson, Arizona. This was a rematch 12 years in the making, as Conceição had bested Valdez during the 2009 PanAm games. This was also a battle of highly skilled multi Olympians as Valdez represented Mexico twice while Conceição went for the gold thrice, finally pulling off the trick in his homeland during the 2016 Rio Olympic games.

It was definitely a Mutt & Jeff affair as Conceição, at 5’10” towered over the 5’5.5″ Valdez.

Conceição appeared confident and relaxed as he moved forward behind his jab, Valdez for his part trying to defend and mount an offense against his towering, crafty foe. Valdez began the third nicely as he buried a wicked left hook the body following up to the head of Conceição, bringing the crowd to its feet. But Conceição regained his composure and boxed neatly for the remainder of the round. Valdez was able to mount a brief, fleeting body attack in the fourth, but it seemed minimal against Conceição’s ring generalship, jabbing and moving. Continue reading “Valdez beats Conceição, retains WBC 130lb title”

By Boxing Bob Newman at ringside

There was definitely bad blood between super featherweights Gabriel Flores, Jr. of Stockton and Mexicali’s Luis Alberto Lopez during the press conference and weigh-ins, where Flores, Jr. formed his fingers into the shape of a pistol and pointed it gang-style to Lopez’ face. That fuel carried over into the ring tonight at the AVA Amphitheater at Casino Del Sol in Tucson, Arizona. Continue reading “Upset: Lopez takes WBO #11 Flores’ 0”

By Boxing Bob Newman at ringside

Defending WBO flyweight champion Junto Nakatani made his American debut in defense of his title against former WBO light fly champ Angel “Tito” Acosta on Friday night at the AVA Amphitheater at Casino Del Sol in Tucson, Arizona. In a cautious first round, the lanky Nakatani probed with his right jab from the southpaw stance, while Acosta tried to find a way to land anything. A hard left late in the round caused Acosta to stumble back into his own corner and Nakatani to pursue with a flurry. Acosta punched his way out and escaped the round.

In the second, a flurry of punches caused blood to start pouring from Acosta’s nose. After a prolonged visit from the ringside physician, Acosta was allowed to continue, only to get more leather laid on him. As Acosta was backed into Nakatani’s corner, he caught the oncoming champ with a huge right, nearly dropping him! Nakatani recovered quickly and survived the round.

The third saw another visit from the doctor, this time shorter and the action resumed. Nakatani had success with sneaky lead lefts that caught Acosta flush, further damaging his mouth and nose. Moments into the fourth, Acosta’s corner signaled to referee Rocky Burke that their charge had had enough, prompting Burke to wave it off at 0:32. Continue reading “Nakatani stops Acosta, retains WBO fly belt”

Premier Boxing Champions is saving the Mexican Independence Day Weekend for boxing fans.

Normally the coveted date has some of the biggest fights of the year, but with the Canelo-Plant PPV getting pushed back to November, DAZN’s proposed Mikey Garcia card falling apart, and Showtime’s Figueroa-Fulton showdown getting kayoed by COVID, PBC saw an opportunity.

They hastily arranged back-to-back cards on FS1 September 18 and September 19 at Mechanics Bank Arena in Bakersfield, California. For short notice, it’s not bad matchmaking. Continue reading “PBC announces Sept 18, 19 boxing lineup”

IBF #7, WBC #10, WBO #15 rated Tony Yoka (11-0, 9 KOs) broke down and stopped previously unbeaten Peter Milas (15-1, 11 KOs) in seven rounds on Friday night at the famous Roland Garros Tennis Stadium in Paris, France. 2016 Olympic gold medalist Yoka progressively broke down the mobile Milas, finally dropping him twice in round seven to end it.

IBF #4, WBC #9, WBO #13 heavyweight Filip “El Animal” Hrgovic (13-0, 11 KOs) crushed previously unbeaten Marko Radonjic (22-1, 22 KOs) on Friday night at Wörthersee Stadium in Klagenfurt, Austria. Hrgovic was careful of Radonjic’s power in round one, but he dropped Radonjic FOUR times in round two. Radonjic was down again in round three but survived. When Radonjic came out for round four, the referee immediately waved it off.

According to Hrgovic’s promoter, all of the IBF top 15 turned down the opportunity to face him in a final eliminator to become mandatory challenger for Anthony Joshua’s heavyweight crown.

There goes September 18.

With Canelo-Plant getting pushed back to November and DAZN’s proposed Mikey Garcia card falling apart, the coveted Mexican Independence Day Weekend fight date was owned lock, stock, and barrel by Showtime’s attractive title unification clash between unbeaten super bantamweight world champions Brandon “Heartbreaker” Figueroa (22-0-1, 17 KOs) and Stephen “Cool Boy Steph” Fulton Jr. (19-0, 8 KOs) from the Park Theater at Park MGM in Las Vegas.

Unfortunately, Figueroa announced on social media that he has contracted COVID and the fight is postponed. Continue reading “COVID KOs Figueroa, Sept 18 bout postponed”

FITE has announced that former President Donald J. Trump will provide live commentary from the Hard Rock in Hollywood, Florida during Saturday’s Holyfield-Belfort pay-per-view telecast. According to Triller, Trump will give unfiltered boxing commentary on an alternate audio feed that has to be ordered directly from FITE.tv. He will call all four fights and be joined by Donald Trump Jr.

Triller PPVs are known for their offbeat commentary.

“I love great fighters and great fights. I look forward to seeing both this Saturday night and sharing my thoughts ringside. You won’t want to miss this special event,” said Trump.

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

Last week was one of the most difficult ones since I have led the organization I proudly chair: the World Boxing Council (WBC).

The easy and utterly mistaken option would be to describe it as “a week to forget.” That would be a very serious mistake. Forgetting important events, especially challenging ones, is something that should never happen. We must always remember what happened, to serve as teaching and inspiration to continue moving forward, seeking to improve things and, in our case, on how to make boxing safer and fairer for athletes. Continue reading “Sulaimán: A Very Complicated Week”

The rematch between former IBF world featherweight champion Josh Warrington (30-1-1, 7 KOs) and Mauricio Lara (23-2-1, 16 KOs) ended in a two round technical draw on Saturday night at Emerald Headingley Stadium in Leeds, England. A second round head clash left Lara with a deep cut over his left eye and the bout was stopped.

Disappointing ending for Warrington and about 20,000 hometown fans, as Warrington was hoping to avenge his surprising knockout loss to Lara in a keep-busy fight in February.

Undisputed female lightweight ruler Katie Taylor (19-0, 6 KOs) defended her WBC, WBA, IBF, WBO and crowns by shutout ten round unanimous decision against mandatory challenger Jennifer Han (18-4-1, 1 KO) on Saturday night at Emerald Headingley Stadium in Leeds, England. The 38-year-old Han was never a threat, but she was savvy enough to often thwart Taylor’s aggressions. Taylor was credited with a knockdown in round eight which Han disputed and replays seemed to back her up. Scores were 100-89 on all three cards. Six straight decisions for Taylor.

Former unified super lightweight champion Julius Indongo (23-4, 12 KOs) was stopped by Hassan Mwakinyo (20-2, 14 KOs) in round four on Friday at Kilimanjaro Hall in Dar-Es-Salaam, Tanzania. A barrage of punches by Mwakinyo prompted the referee to halt the fight. Indongo, 38, has now lost four of his last five fights.

My people,

I have never used banned substances to enhance my performance. I have never done it. I have been respectful of the anti-doping rules since I was an amateur, Olympian, and now professional.

Since I became world champion in 2016, l have been VADA-tested more than 30 times. I insisted — in writing — on VADA testing for myself and Robson Conceicao for this fight.

I would like to thank my manager Frank Espinoza, Top Rank, Eddy Reynoso and my entire team for standing by me throughout this process.

I would also like to thank the Pascua Yaqui Boxing Commission for the due process in hearing my case.

I will happily comply with the stipulations set forth by the World Boxing Council, to collaborate in the programs, tests, and other activities required of me.

See you on September 10th in the first defense of my WBC world title in Tucson, Arizona.

At the 2012 Association of Boxing Commission (ABC) meeting in Clearwater, Florida the ABC unanimously voted to adopt (Pascua Yaqui Tribe was present) the World Anti-Doping (WADA) Prohibited List and took an important step in the prevention of abuse of performance-enhancing drugs in combat sports.

President of the ABC Board, Mike Mazzuli has announced the Association of Boxing Commissions concurs with the findings of the Pascua Yaqui Tribal Athletic Commission and its Executive Director Ernie Gallardo in allowing WBC world champion Oscar Valdez to fight on September 10, 2021. Continue reading “ABC supports decision to let Oscar Valdez fight”

The WBC will sanction the September 10 bout between WBC super featherweight champion Oscar Valdez vs. Robson Conceicao. The bout has already been approved by the Pascua Yaqui Athletic Commission, the local commission with jurisdiction, so it looks like Valdez-Conceicao will go on as scheduled, despite Valdez testing positive for a banned substance.

Valdez will be put on probation for a year and any further adverse findings will result in an indefinite suspension. Valdez will also be required to undergo a substantial number of random anti-doping tests in the next six months, plus enroll in the WBC weight management program, and upon completion serve as a WBC Ambassador making a minimum of six personal appearances to promote and educate others on clean boxing, weight management, and WBC social responsibility values. Continue reading “WBC to sanction Valdez-Conceicao with conditions”

With Canelo-Plant getting pushed back to November and DAZN’s proposed Mikey Garcia card falling apart, the coveted Mexican Independence Day Weekend fight date will be owned lock, stock, and barrel by Showtime’s attractive title unification clash between unbeaten super bantamweight world champions Brandon “Heartbreaker” Figueroa (22-0-1, 17 KOs) and Stephen “Cool Boy Steph” Fulton Jr. (19-0, 8 KOs) from the Park Theater at Park MGM in Las Vegas.

The card also includes undefeated WBA #1 super bantamweight Ra’eese Aleem (18-0, 12 KOs) against Eduardo Baez (19-1-2, 6 KOs) and unbeaten WBA #2 bantamweight Gary Antonio Russell (18-0, 12 KOs) against Alejandro Barrios (24-2-5, 13 KOs). Click here for a preview including fighter quotes

By Joe Koizumi

WBO 115-pound champion Kazuto Ioka (27-2, 15 KOs), 115, Japan, barely kept his belt as he earned a close but unanimous decision (all 116-112) over WBO #2 Francisco “Chihuas” Rodriguez (34-5-1, 24 KOs), 114, Mexico, over give-and-take rounds on Wednesday in Tokyo, Japan.

(More to come)

Unbeaten YouTuber Jake “The Problem Child” Paul (4-0, 3 KOs) won an eight round split decision over 39-year-old former UFC champion Tyron “The Chosen One” Woodley on Sunday night at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Paul’s hometown of Cleveland, Ohio. Paul outworked Woodley over the first three rounds. Woodley staggered Paul in round four. Paul did just a little more than Woodley down the stretch. Paul never hurt Woodley and Woodley often walked down Paul. Scores were 77-75, 78-74 Paul, 77-75 Woodley.

P4P women’s boxer Amanda “The Real Deal” Serrano (41-1-1, 30 KOs) defended her WBC and WBO female featherweight world titles by one-sided ten round unanimous decision against WBC super bantamweight champion Yamileth Mercado (18-3, 5 KOs). Total domination by Serrano, but Mercado showed real toughness in lasting the full ten. Scores were 97-93, 98-92, 99-91.

WBA #1 heavyweight “Dynamite” Daniel Dubois (17-1, 16 KOs) promised to be devastating in his U.S. debut and he was. Dubois dropped Juiseppe Angelo Cusumano (19-4, 17 KOs) three times in a first round KO. Time was 2:10.

Coming off 2020’s “Fight of the Year,” former IBF super lightweight world champion Ivan “The Beast” Baranchyk (20-3, 13 KOs) was stopped in seven rounds by undefeated Montana Love (16-0-1, 8 KOs) in a welterweight bout. Love’s hand speed and movement often neutralized Baranchyk’s attacks. Baranchyk rocked Love in round three. Love dropped Baranchyk at the end of round seven and Baranchyk’s corner stopped the bout after the round.

Light heavyweight prospect Tommy “TNT” Fury (7-0, 4 KOs), half-brother of WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, easily won a four-round unanimous decision over undersized MMA fighter Anthony Taylor. Scores 40-36 3x. Fury has been mentioned as a possible opponent for Jake Paul. Based on this performance, not looking good.

In an off-TV bout between unbeaten super welterweights, Charles “Bad News” Conwell (16-0, 12 KOs) scored a third round TKO over Juan Carlos Rubio (18-1, 9 KOs). Conwell dropped Rubio in round two and finished him in round three. Time was 2:49.