By Miguel Maravilla at ringside

Undefeated knockout artist Vergil Ortiz, Jr. (20-0, 20 KOs) scored a first round TKO against Fredrick “General Okunka” Lawson (30-4, 22 KOs) on Saturday night at the Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas. Now competing at super welterweight following 17 months out of the ring, Ortiz, looked to let out some ring rust, connected early in the first with a short left that staggered Lawson. Continuing to attack, Ortiz followed up with a series of unanswered punches as Lawson shelled up. Referee Tony Weeks stepped in too early, prematurely stopping the fight at 2:43 of the first, drawing a reaction of boos from the crowd. Following the fight, Ortiz went on to call out WBO super welterweight champion Tim Tzsyu.

In the co-feature bout of the evening, Venezuela’s Ismael Barroso (25-4-2, 23 KOs) scored a first round knockout over Ohara “Two Tanks” Davies (25-3, 18 KOs). A counter left dropped Davies early on. He got up and Barroso sent him to the canvas a second time. He got up once again but was unresponsive forcing the referee to stop the fight at 1:53 of the first round. The 40-year-old Barroso wins the WBA interim super lightweight title.

WBO #1 super lightweight Arnold Barbosa Jr. (29-0, 11 KOs) of El Monte returned to the ring in his Golden Boy Promotions debut to stop Xolisani Ndongeni (31-4, 18 KOs) of Eastern Cape, South Africa in eight. Continue reading “Ortiz halts Lawson, Barroso destroys Davies”

Popular 140lb contender Ryan Garcia has switched gears on a fight against WBC super lightweight champion Devin Haney, which the two had been talking up in recent weeks. Garcia announced on social media Saturday that he instead plans to challenge WBA super lightweight champion Rolly Romero.

Ryan Garcia: “I’ve notified my team I’m going a different route. My intent now is to fight Rolando Romero. I pray my team backs me on this decision. Oscar make this fight happen. THATS THE MOVE. BIGGER FIGHT, BIGGER BUSINESS…After what happens to Rollies, the Dev fight will be there and even bigger. Everyone critiquing now will end up seeing it was a better move. Plus he can go fight Richardson Hitchens. Go do your 30k PPV buys. I don’t need you Dev, you need me.”

Devin Haney: “Don’t ever mention my name p*ssy boi.”

Ryan Garcia: “You’ll be back.”

Meanwhile, Romero tweeted a homemade Rolly-Kingry fight poster with the hashtag #Spring2024

A fight between former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua and former MMA champion Francis Ngannou is a done deal. The bout will be a ten round boxing match taking place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The fight was confirmed on the social media feeds of his Excellency Turki Alalshikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority. There will be a press conference in London to officially announce the event including the date and other particulars.

BetOnline.ag was quick to set odds for the bout. Joshua isn’t nearly as big of a favorite as Fury was against the former UFC champion, but he’s still favored, and the odds are on the move.

Fight Odds
Anthony Joshua -500 (1/5)
Francis Ngannou +325 (13/4)

The odds initially opened at Joshua -275 (4/11) and Ngannou +215 (43/20), but all of the early money coming in is on Joshua.

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

WBA super flyweight champ Kazuto Ioka (31-2-1, 16 KOs), 114.75, displayed his career best performance in finishing Venezuelan Josber Perez (20-4, 18 KOs), 114.75, at 2:44 of the seventh round to keep his WBA belt for the first time on Sunday in Tokyo, Japan.

Having dethroned Joshua Franco after renouncing his WBO belt, Ioka impressively made his first defense by dropping WBA#6 Perez on three occasions. Ioka, 34, remained more aggressive than usual from the outset, and had him absorb much punishment especially at the breadbasket. The fifth witnessed Ioka floor him at first with a body bombardment and again with a solid overhand right. Perez, 28, was saved by the bell. Ioka, in the fatal seventh, again accelerated his attack upstairs and downstairs, and finally scored a beautiful right to send him sprawling to the deck. The referee Jerry Guzman, Puerto Rico, tolled the fatal ten.

Ioka is still willing to face Juan Estrada with both WBC and WBA belts at stake. Continue reading “Ioka demolishes Perez, keeps WBA 115lb belt”

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

“Monster” Naoya Inoue (26-0, 23 KOs), 121.75, impressively collected the four championship belts as he, WBC, WBO titleholder, finally caught up with WBA, IBF ruler Marlon Tapales (37-4, 19 KOs), 121.5, and dropped him with a devastating right for the count at 1:02 of the tenth round on Tuesday in Tokyo, Japan.

Inoue, in round four, floored Tapales with a solid combination of a left-right followed by a vicious left hook, and we thought it would be a matter of time for the Monster to finish it soon. But Tapales survived and displayed his gameness and durability to make it a longer fight than expected.

The tenth, however, witnessed Naoya turn loose and connect a direct strong right without a left lead, which had Tapales reeling backward and down with the ropes behind him. The Filipino southpaw was unable to beat the count. Continue reading ““Monster” Inoue becomes undisputed 122lb champ”

Former two-time unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua (27-3, 24 KOs) stopped Otto Wallin (26-2, 14 KOs) after five one-sided rounds in the main event of the super card on Saturday night at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Joshua, rated WBO #1, WBC #2, IBF #3 looked sharp as be battered and bloodied IBF #2, WBC #9, WBO #12 Wallin. AJ rocked Wallin in round five and Wallin stayed on his stool after the round.

In a huge upset, former WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker (34-3, 23 KOs) stunned WBC #1 and WBA #1 rated and former WBC heavyweight champion Deontay “The Bronze Bomber” Wilder (43-3-1, 42 KOs) by winning a twelve round unanimous decision on the super card Saturday night at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Slow start for Wilder, 38, who may have been rusty or have grown old overnight. He was outworked by Parker in almost every round. Parker, 31, rocked Wilder in round eight with a series of overhand rights and he never let Wilder get untracked as he won 118-111, 118-110, 120-108. The result likely scuttled a planned Wilder-Joshua showdown in March.

Undefeated WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol (22-0, 11 KOs) retained his world title for the 12th time with a twelve round unanimous decision over WBA #8 with a Lyndon Arthur (23-2, 16 KOs) on the super card Saturday night at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Bivol came out aggressively and was in command all the way. Bivol dropped Arthur at the end of round eleven. Scores were 120-107 3x. Bivol’s last knockout was nearly six years ago.

Former WBA “regular” champion Daniel “Dynamite” Dubois (20-2, 19 KOs) scored a tenth round TKO over previously unbeaten 333lb Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller (26-1-1, 22 KOs) on the super card Saturday night at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. WBA #7, IBF #8, WBO #8, WBC #14 Dubois moved around the ring and kept his hands moving. WBA #6 Miller applied pressure and tried to maul Dubois on the inside. Good exchanges in the next few rounds, but as the fight progressed, Miller slowed down and Dubois got his second wind. In the final moments, Dubois unleashed a barrage of punches and got a referee’s stoppage with eight seconds left in the fight.

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.

Cruiserweight Jai Opetaia will be without his IBF world title on Saturday’s ‘Day Of Reckoning’ show in Riydah, Saudi Arabia, having been forced to vacate the belt earlier today.

With mandatory rival Mairis Briedis currently injured, a special appeal was requested by Matchroom, Tasman Fighters, Queensberry and Wasserman Boxing to the IBF to allow Opetaia to defend his crown against Britain’s Zorro this weekend. But with the IBF denying Opetaia that opportunity, the Aussie has reluctantly relinquished his championship.

Fired up, Opetaia now vows to do his talking in the ring and showing why he is rated as the best cruiserweight on the planet.

Continue reading “Jai Opetaia vacates IBF cruiser title”

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”

Matchroom Boxing has announced three February fight dates across the globe to kick off their 2024 boxing schedule on DAZN.

Unbeaten super middleweight Edgar ‘The Chosen One’ Berlanga (21-0, 16 KOs) faces Padraig McCrory (18-0, 9 KOs) on February 24 at the Caribe Royale in Orlando, Florida.

IBF light flyweight champion Adrien Curiel (24-4-1, 5 KOs) will defend his belt against former champion Sivenathi Nontshinga (12-1, 9 KOs) in a direct rematch at a site to be named in Mexico. Curiel scored a shocking one-punch knockout against Nontshiunga last month in Monaco.

On February 10 at the Vertu Motors Arena in Newcastle, England, welterweights Conah Walker (12-2-1, 4 KOs) and Cyrus Pattinson (6-1, 4 KOs) do battle again following their exciting clash back in August.

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.

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.

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

WBO cruiserweight champion Chris Billam-Smith (19-1, 13 KOs) retained his title with an eighth round TKO over Mateusz Masternak (47-6, 31 KOs) on Sunday night at the Bournemouth International Centre in Bournemouth, England. Masternak beat hometown hero Billam-Smith to the punch and outworked him for most the fight. Billam-Smith, however, got the win when Masternak suddenly quit on his stool after round seven due to an apparent rib injury. Official time :02 of round eight. Masternak was ahead 5-2 on two scorecards at the time of the toppage.

2020 Olympic medallist Ben “The Surgeon” Whittaker (5-0, 4 KOs) scored a brutal fourth round KO against Stiven Leonetti Dredhaj (11-3-1, 3 KOs) in a light heavyweight bout. A battered and bloody Dredhaj took a knee in round three and Whittaker laid him on his back in round four to end it. Time was :54.

2020 Olympic gold medallist Lauren Price (6-0, 1 KO) shut out former European champion Silvia Bortot (11-4-1, 3 KOs) in an eight round female welterweight clash. Score was 80-72.

Super welterweight Lee Cutler (14-1, 7 KOs) outscored Obi Egbunike (8-3-1, 1 KO) over ten rounds for the \vacant English title. Scores were 97-93, 97-93, 96-95.

Welterweight Michael McKinson moved to 26-1, 4 KOs by outpointing previously unbeaten Musah Lawson (11-1, 9 KOs) over ten. Scores were 100-90, 100-90, 99-91. McKinson’s only loss was to Vergil Ortiz.

Unbeaten Rafael “El Divino” Espinoza (22-0, 18 KOs) dethroned WBO featherweight champion Robeisy “El Tren” Ramirez (13-1, 8 KOs) by twelve round majority decision on Saturday night at Charles F. Dodge City Center in Pembroke Pines, Florida. The 6’1 Espinoza was in control until Ramirez dropped him at the end of round five. Ramirez continued to rock Espinoza for several rounds. Espinoza, however, roared back down the stretch, dropping Ramirez in round twelve. Scores were 113-113, 114-112, 115-111.

Unbeaten WBO #2 junior middleweight Xander Zayas (18-0, 12 KOs) impressively demolished Jorge Fortea (24-4-1, 9 KOs) in round five. Zayas dropped Fortea with a body shot in round one and finished him with another body shot in round five. Time was 1:37.

Rising featherweight Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington (10-0, 6 KOs) impressively knocked out former world title challenger Jason Sanchez (16-5, 9 KOs) in the second round. Carrington dropped Sanchez twice to end it. Time was 2:59.

U.S. Olympic super heavyweight silver medalist Richard Torrez Jr. (8-0, 8 KOs) battered Curtis Harper (14-11, 9 KOs) until the bout was stopped in the eighth round. Time was 2:03. Torrez suffered a cut over his left eye. Continue reading “Espinoza beats Ramirez for WBO feather title”

By Miguel Maravilla at ringside

Former undisputed lightweight champion Devin Haney (30-0, 15 KOs) dismantled and dethroned WBC super lightweight champion Regis Prograis (29-1, 24 KOs) on Saturday night at the Chase Center in San Francisco. Haney dropped Prograis in round three and never let him into the fight. Haney won all twelve rounds 120-107 3x.

In the super lightweight co-feature bout of the evening, Australia’s Liam Paro (24-0, 15 KO’s) annihilated Montana Love (18-2-1, 9 KO’s) in scoring a sixth round stoppage. The fans showed their dissatisfaction early on as it was slow paced and lacked action with Paro stalking and Love keeping his distance. However in the sixth, Paron connected with an uppercut and dropped Love. He got up but the Aussie sent Love to the canvas for a second time with a combo. Continuing to fight, Paro attacked and was all over Love when referee Thomas Taylor stepped in to stop the fight at 1:49 of the sixth.

Cuba lightweight Andy Cruz (2-0, 1 KO) stopped Jovanni Straffon (26-6-1, 19 KO’s) of Mexico in the third round. Cruz landed a huge right in to start the fight as he backed Straffon to the ropes opening round. Banging it out in the second, Cruz attacked but Straffon and began to chop him down, landing a series of punches as the referee began keeping a close eye. Closing it out in the third, Cruz continued where he left off as the referee finally stepped in to stop the fight at 53 seconds.

Myo Yoshida (17-4) of Japan defeated Australia’s Ebanie Bridges (9-2, 3 KO’s) in a bout for the IBF bantamweight title. Yoshida kept swarming Bridges attacking on the inside and outworking the Australian. Late in the fight in the ninth, Yoshida relentlessly attacked as Bridges could not keep her away. The tenth and final round, it was all Yoshida as she was all over Bridges up to the final bell. In the end after completing ten rounds the judges scored it, 99-91, 99-91, and 97-93 all in favor for Yoshida.

Continue reading “Haney dominates, dethrones Prograis”

In a crossroads fight, former WBA cruiserweight champion Ryad Merhy (32-2, 26 KOs) hammered out a ten round unanimous decision over 2016 Olympic super heavyweight gold medalist Tony Yoka (11-3, 9 KOs) on Saturday night at the Stade Roland-Garros in Paris, France. The 6’7 Yoka tried to keep the fight at a distance with his jab against Merhy, who is listed at 5’11. Merhy was the aggressor and was able to get inside at times to land big punches. Yoka’s punch output diminished as the fight progressed with Merhy pulling away 96-94 3x. Three straight losses for Yoka, while Merhy gets back into the mix after a loss to Kevin Lerena.

Super welterweights Ohara “Two Tanks” Davies (25-2, 18 KOs) and “El Tigre” Ismael Barroso (24-4-2, 22 KOs) will collide at The Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas on January 6 and will be broadcast worldwide on DAZN. The fight, which was rescheduled from the original December 2 fight date, is a 12-round match for the WBA interim 140lb title. Davies-Barroso will be the co-feature to Vergil Ortiz, Jr. vs. Fredrick “General Okunka” Lawson.

Also on the card, newly-signed Golden Boy super lightweight Arnold Barbosa Jr. (28-0, 10 KOs) and former middleweight title challenger Sergiy Derevyanchenko (14-5, 10 KOs) will participate in separate ten round fights. Opponents for both will be announced in the coming weeks.

After losing broadcast partner Showtime, Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) has announced a new multiyear rights agreement with Amazon Prime Video beginning in 2024. Prime Video, which has been getting into live sports recently, including NFL football, MMA, and other sports, is set to become the home of PBC’s pay-per-view boxing events. The first PPV is expected in March and available for all viewers to purchase, regardless of Prime membership.

Additionally, in the U.S. and select countries, Prime Video will exclusively stream a non-PPV series of championship boxing events. Details on specific cards, dates, and locations will be announced at a later date.