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Boxlab Promotions and Warriors Boxing have announced that middleweight prospect Yoelvis Gomez (7-1, 6 KOs) from Havana, Cuba, will face off against Diego Ferreira (11-2, 7 KOs) from Curitiba, Brazil, in an eight-rounder on MVP’s Most Valuable Prospects 8 card. The event is set for this Friday, September 6, at the Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando, Florida, and will be broadcast live globally on DAZN.

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

“Monster” Naoya Inoue (27-0, 24 KOs), undisputed world super bantamweight champion, scaled in at the 122-pound class limit, while Irish challenger TJ Doheny (26-4, 20 KOs) weighed in a half pounder lighter at 121.5 pounds.

The undercard weigh-in results were as follows:

WBO bantamweight title bout
Yoshiki Takei (9-0, 8 KOs) 117.75
vs. Daigo Higa (21-2-1, 19 KOs) 117.75

WBA super lightweight eliminator for #1
Ismael Barroso (25-4-2, 23 KOs) 140
vs. Andy Hiraoka (23-0, 18 KOs) 140

OPBF, WBO AP welterweight title bout
Jin Sasaki (17-1-1, 16 KOs) 146.25
vs. Qamil Balla (15-1-1, 8 KOs) 147

Japanese super bantamweight title bout
Toshiki Shimomachi (18-1-3, 12 KOs) 121.75
vs. Ryuya Tsugawa (13-1, 9 KOs) 122

More + photos

A logistical issue has forced Marcos Villasana to withdraw from his scheduled fight against Arthur Biyarslanov on Thursday night. The NABF super lightweight champion will now defend his title against Hungarian champion Tamas Kiliti (10-0, 6 KOs )in a battle of undefeated fighters. The event will take place in front of a sold-out crowd at the Cabaret du Casino de Montréal and will also be broadcast on Punching Grace and ESPN+.

“The opponent may change, but the goal remains the same,” commented Arthur Biyarslanov (15-0, 13 KOs), ranked 25th in the world by the WBC at 140 lbs, as he prepares for his first NABF title defense.

By Boxing Bob Newman

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, there wasn’t a more exciting light heavyweight contender to sling leather in the ring and grace the TV screens of boxing fans around the world than Alvaro “Yaqui” Lopez. The superbly conditioned, “blood and guts” Lopez fought for the light heavyweight title four times and once for the cruiserweight title, losing each time, while gaining the respect and admiration of his opponents as well as boxing fans everywhere.

Lopez faced a who’s who of champions and contenders: John Conteh, Victor Galindez (twice), Matthew Saad Muhammad (twice), Carlos DeLeon, Mike Rossman, James Scott, Michael Spinks, S.T. Gordon, Bash Ali (twice), Tony Mundine, Jesse Burnett (4 X), Mike Quarry, Andy Kendall and Lonnie Bennett, while amassing a final record of 61-13, 39 KOs.

Unbeaten super lightweight Cain Sandoval (14-0, 12 KOs) scored an impressive sixth round KO against Romero Duno (26-6, 20 KOs) on Saturday night at the Chumash Casino Resort in Santa Ynez, California. A right hand to the body in round six floored Duno for the count. Time was 1:59.

Fighting for the first time in the United States, middleweight Sadriddin Akhmedov (14-0, 12 KOs) knocked out Antonio Todd (17-11, 9 KOs) in the first round of their scheduled eight rounder.

Fighting for the first time in nine months, light heavyweight powerhouse Umar Dzambekov (9-0, 6 KOs) stopped Eddie Ortiz (13-1-2, 5 KOs) in the fourth round.

By Miguel Maravilla at ringside

Boxing was back at the “War Grounds” as local undefeated WBO #1 super middleweight Diego Pacheco (22-0 18 KOs) of Los Angeles made a statement in knocking out the always durable Maciej Sulecki (32-3, 12 KOs) of Poland in the sixth in headlining on DAZN from the Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California.

Firing away the jab in the opening round, Pacheco boxed and kept Sulecki at a distance. Pacheco kept pumping the jab and boxed patiently in round two as Sulecki pressed and looked to work his way in. Sulecki slipped to start round three and pressed, Pacheco continued to work the jab and began to let go of the right hand. Continuing to box in the fourth, Pacheco stuck to the plan as Sulecki kept going forward, Pacheco peppered away with the jab and follow up with the right as Sulecki kept pressing.

Stepping up the pace, Pacheco hurt Sulecki late in the fifth round and followed up with powerful right hands as the Polish fights was saved by the bell. A crunching left hook to the body by Pacheco did it in the sixth as Sulecki hit canvas and referee Ray Corona reached a ten count at 54 seconds of the sixth. Continue reading “WBO #1 Pacheco KOs Sulecki in six”

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

We saw a press conference of the forthcoming quintuple event today (Saturday) in Yokohama, Japan. All were eloquent, so this reporter summarizes their confident comments. Top Rank CEO Bob Arum was in attendance, saying he would highly expect a great show.

Undisputed world super bantamweight title bout

Naoya “Monster” Inoue (27-0, 24 KOs, Japan):
“I’m in tiptop shape after strenuous training for months since my victory over Luis Nery this May. I’ll never take Doheny lightly as he is a well-experienced strong fighter that I respect. It won’t be an easy fight for me.”

TJ Doheny (26-4, 20 KOs, Ireland, residing in Australia):
“I’m in perfect condition and am happy to be here to make history. I know Inoue is a very excellent boxer. I respect him, but I have a strong determination to regain the world junior feather belt.”

_

* * *

WBO world bantamweight title bout

Yoshiki Takei (9-0, 8 KOs, Japan, former K-1 champion):
“This is my first defense since I dethroned Jason Moloney last May. I know Higa is a hard-punching ex-world champion, but I’ll knock him out.”

Daigo Higa (21-2-1, 19 KOs, Japan):
“I’m in great shape. I’m more experienced than Takei and show the difference of career to win back the belt.”

* * *

WBA super lightweight eliminator for #1

Ismael Barroso (25-4-2, 23 KOs, Venezuela):
“I’m very fit physically and mentally. It will become a great spectacle by hard-punchers. Andy is a good boxer, but I’ll finish him.”

Andy Hiraoka (23-0, 18 KOs, Japan):
“My condition is great after good training for months. Barroso is a very dangerous hard-hitter, but it is me that will be victorious.”

* * *

OPBF/WBO AP welterweight title bout

Jun Sasaki (17-1-1, 16 KOs, Japan):
“I’ll be the very first world welterweight champion out of Japan. I’m aware of Balla’s strength with his great muscles. I wish to entertain customers and media watchers.”

Qamil Balla (15-1-1, 8 KOs, Japan):
“I’m happy to fight on the same show with “Monster” Inoue. I’ve had a very good condition, and you can expect a great fight with young and strong Sasaki.”

* * *

This deluxe show at Ariake Arena (the capacity of which is 15,000) will be presented by Ohashi Promotions.

TV: Lemino in Japan; ESPN+ in US.

Terence Crawford has decided to remain as champion in the super welterweight division of the World Boxing Association (WBA), and vacate his welterweight belt. Crawford’s decision will leave Eimantas Stanionis as the only WBA welterweight champion.

Also, David Morell formally informed the WBA that he will vacate his super middleweight belt to remain as champion in the light heavyweight category.

Cain Sandoval 140.6 vs. Romero Duno 139.8
Sadriddin Akhmedov 159.4 vs. Antonio Todd 158.8
Umar Dzambekov 178 vs. Edward Jeramie Ortiz 177.8
Daniel Robles 125.4 vs. Jonathan Almacen 126
Angel Carrillo 121.6 vs. Josaphat Navarro 121.4

Venue: Chumash Casino Resort, Santa Ynez, California
Promoter: 360 Promotions
TV: UFC Fightpass

Diego Pacheco 168 vs. Maciej Sulecki 167.4
Eduardo Nunez 133 vs. Miguel Marriaga 131.8
Arturo Cardenas 121.2 vs. Jesus Arechiga 122
Chev Clarke 199.8 vs. Efetobor Apochi 199.2
Adelaida Ruiz 113.6 vs. Ginny Fuchs 114.4
Fabian Rojo 145.8 vs. Alejandro Frias 146.4
Criztec Bazaldua 140 vs. Kyle Erwin 140.8
Alex Gueche 115.8 vs. David Vargas 116

Venue: Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California
Promoter: Matchroom
TV: DAZN

WBA #15 cruiserweight Aleksei Papin (18-1, 17 KOs) scored an impressive fifth round KO against former world title challenger Felix Valera (23-5, 20 KOs) on Friday night at the Ice Arena in Cherepovets, Russia.

44-year-old former heavyweight title challenger Kevin “Kingpin” Johnson (36-22-2, 20 KOs) won a four round majority decision over Sean Turner (12-5, 8 KOs).

Unbeaten heavyweight Johnny “The Romford Bull” Fisher (12-0, 11 KOs)  will look to extend his explosive knockout streak when he takes on experienced Andriy Rudenko (36-7, 22 KOs) at the Copper Box Arena in London on Saturday September 28, live worldwide on DAZN. The hugely popular 25-year-old Fisher aims to build on his sensational one-round destruction of Croatia’s Alen Babic last time out in East London as he locks horns with Rudenko in a scheduled ten-round contest.

There’s also women’s world title action on the card as Rhiannon Dixon makes the first defense of her WBO lightweight world title against domestic rival Terri Harper in what promises to be an electric all-British match-up.

By Miguel Maravilla

WBO #1 super middleweight Diego Pacheco reviews his clash with Maciej Sulecki at Dignity Health Sports Park in Los Angeles on Saturday August 31, live worldwide on DAZN.

By Evan Jacobs

Fight Club OC returned on August 29th to melt the dome off the Hangar at the OC Fair & Events Center in auspicious Costa Mesa, CA. It was a night filled with thrills, chills and spills as the fans were treated to a show that was sold out weeks before it happened! With 6 bouts showcasing multiple fighters, disciplines and styles, this hybrid boxing/MMA card did not disappoint. Continue reading “Fight Club Results”

ESPN+ will air a rematch between WBC super featherweight champion Robson Conceicao and former champ O’Shaquie Foster on November 2. According to the network, the event will take place at the Turning Stone Resort in Verona, New York.

The World Boxing Association (WBA) Championships Committee approved the request made by the teams of Gilberto Ramirez and Yuniel Dorticos to extend the negotiation period for their cruiserweight title bout by 10 days. This Tuesday, August 27, the purse bid for the fight was due to take place, but at the request of the parties, the WBA gave permission for them to continue negotiating and reach an agreement.

* * *

The WBA Championships Committee called off the purse bid scheduled for Tuesday, August 27 to grant the promotional rights for the Muslim Gadzhimagomedov-Leon Harth bout as both teams announced that they have reached an agreement to make the bout. The mandatory WBA bridgerweight title fight had been ordered on August 14 and the purse bid was summoned on August 16 to take place in Houston.

However, a day before the bidding, the teams reported that they had reached an agreement to make the bout for the 224-pound crown. The WBA will give both fighters and their teams time to submit contracts with details of the venue and date for the bout.

Salita Promotions presents the next edition of “Big Time Boxing USA” on Thursday, September 12 featuring undefeated Flint, Mich., native Ardreal “Bossman” Holmes Jr. (15-0, 6 KOs) defending his USBA junior middleweight title against Cuba’s Hugo Noriega (10-2, 5 KOs) in the main event at the Dort Financial Center in Flint, Michigan.

The co-main event will feature unbeaten prospect Joseph “Sug” Hicks (10-0, 7 KOs) of Grand Rapids, Mich., taking on Detroit’s Ronnie Austion (10-2, 7 KOs) in an eight-round super welterweight bout, while fellow Detroit native and SugarHill Steward-trained “Hitman 2.0” Da’Velle Smith (8-0, 6 KOs) collides against Esau Herrera de la Cruz (21-17-1, 8 KOs) in a middleweight fight. Continue reading “Boxing back in Flint, Michigan”

Unbeaten prospect Samuel “Squirm” Arnold III (10-0-0, 6KOs) of Dallas, Texas will highlight the October 26th Three Lions card at the RBC Centre in London, Ontario Canada. Arnold, 21, has beaten all of his foes that have been put up against him since turning profesional 3 years ago at the age of 17 years old. He will face off against 23 year old Mohamed Zawadi (9-1-0, 8KOs) of Toronto, Canada for the vacant WBC light heavyweight youth world title. Continue reading “Arnold III-Zawadi Oct 26 Canada”

WBO #1, WBC  #4, WBA #4 super middleweight Diego Pacheco (21-0, 17 KOs) believes he is ready to take on the biggest names in the super middleweight division – but knows he has to see off Maciej Sulecki (32-2, 12 KOs) in style first on Saturday night at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Los Angeles, live worldwide on DAZN.

“A win gets me that step closer,” said Pacheco. “If I can do that, it hopefully gets me a fight with someone that’s in the top ten with me, and then become mandatory for one of the titles and next year, get that World title shot. I don’t feel like I have to show anything in particular. People have already seen that I can knock people out, that I can hurt people to the body, I can drop guys with uppercuts, hurt them with jabs. It’s more just getting the win and looking good, that’s what I train for, there’s no added pressure. Continue reading “Pacheco: I’d take Mbilli, Berlanga or Bazinyan next”

The WBO has ordered a jr. middleweight mandatory championship contest between current interim champion  Terence Crawford and full champion Sebastian Fundora. The parties have 30 days to negotiate and reach an agreement. If an accord is not reached within the timeframe, a purse bid will be ordered with a minimum acceptable bid of $200,000. Either party may request a purse bid procedure at any time. The split will be no greater than 80/20 with the specific split determined using a ratio based on the average purse of each fighter’s last three (3) fights.

The Crawford-Fundora WBO mandatory is enforced to immediately terminate the WBO interim champion status of Crawford and recognize only one world champion in each weight category.

The Atlantic City Boxing Hall of Fame Weekend (ACBHOF) teams up with Hard Hitting Promotions (HHP) for a fight night at Resorts Hotel & Casino Atlantic City in its Superstar Theater on Friday, September 27. The main event is Branden Pizarro (19-1-1, 10 KOs) of Philadelphia, PA vs. Wesley Ferrer (17-2-1, 8 KOs) of Brooklyn, NY in a 10 round junior welterweight clash for the WBA/NABA championship. The co-main pits Julian Rodriguez (21-1, 14 KOs) of Hoboken, NJ vs. Quashawn Toler (17-2, 12 KOs) of Cincinnati, OH in an eight round welterweight clash. Continue reading “Atlantic City card set for Sept 27”

Former WBA junior middleweight world champion Israil ‘The Dream’ Madrimov (10-1-1, 7 KOs), is looking ahead to fighting for a world title following his battle with Terence Crawford on Saturday, August 3 at BMO Stadium in Downtown Los Angeles.

“I said after the fight that I thought I did enough to keep my world championship belt,” said the 29-year-old Uzbek native. “Right now, I’m ready for a rematch with Crawford to regain my title or to challenge any of the other junior middleweight champions.”

Currently the WBC and WBO belts are held by Sebastian Fundora with the IBF title held by Bakhram Murtazaliev. Continue reading “Israil Madrimov Update”

Unbeaten super welterweight Nikita Tszyu (10-0, 8 KOs) stopped Koen Mazoudier (12-4-1, 5 KOs) in round nine on Wednesday night at the ICC Sydney Theatre in Sydney, NSW, Australia. Tszyu broke open a competitive fight to get a referee’s stoppage at 2:05 of round nine after a barrage of punches. With the win, Tszyu claimed the vacant IBF Australasian and WBO Inter-Continental belts.

Tszyu is the son of ring legend Kostya Tzsyu and brother of former WBO 154lb champion Tim Tszyu.

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

In the main event of a regional title tripleheader, WBC#15 Kazuki Nakajima (16-2-1, 13 KOs), 122, successfully kept his OPBF (Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation) super bantam belt when he caught up with former world challenger Shingo Wake (31-9-2, 22 KOs), 121.5, and finished him for the count at 2:11 of the second round in a scheduled twelve on Tuesday in Tokyo, Japan. Nakajima once had the WBO AP belt, but was dethroned by TJ Doheny (who will have an ambitious shot at Naoya Inoue’s unified 122-pound belts a week later) via TKO route in June last year. The hard-punching southpaw Nakajima, 31, then acquired the vacant OPBF belt, and this was his first defense since. Veteran southpaw Wake, 37, also had a bitter experience in his failure to win the IBF belt with his eleventh-round TKO by defending champ Yonatan Guzman in 2016. In this fight Nakajima proved more energetic and powerful for the fading Wake, who badly hit the deck to be counted by the referee Nakamura. Continue reading “WBC#15 Nakajima finishes Wake, keeps OPBF 122lb belt”

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

Japanese super feather champ Tsubasa Narai (14-2, 10 KOs), 129.75, barely kept his national belt by eking out a close but unanimous nod (96-94 twice, 97-93) over JBC#1 Kanta Fukui (12-6-1, 8 KOs), 129.75, over a hairline ten on Tuesday in Tokyo, Japan. The taller Fukui, a late bloomer, fought well in the first half, utilizing solid right crosses over the champ Narai’s leading lefts. The hard-punching champ, however, maintained the pressure, if not sufficient punches, in the second half to be given a very close decision. Either should have scored with cleaner and more effective shots to the rival to make it a clear contest. Continue reading “Narai barely keeps Japanese 130lb belt”