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“I’ve proved myself,” said unbeaten WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bicol after defeating mandatory challenger Zurdo Ramirez on Saturday night in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

“I beat the best guy in the world (Canelo Alvarez) and I was happy. And now I beat another guy who doesn’t know what losing is. It means a lot to me. I have a goal. I want to be undisputed champion…I prefer to fight for another belt, but if I don’t have this chance in four or five months, of course, I will take another fight.”

As for a rematch with Canelo, Bivol stated he’d discuss going to 168 to fight for Canelo’s four belts, “but remember, I’m a light heavyweight. This is my weight.”

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In a post-fight interview, Ramirez stated that he thought he did enough to win, but the judges did their job and he’s thankful to be there.

Undefeated WBA “regular” super middleweight champion David Morrell Jr. (8-0, 7 KOs) scored an explosive twelfth round knockout against previously unbeaten mandatory challenger Aidos Yerbossynuly (16-1, 11 KOs) on Saturday night at The Armory in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Spectacular performance by Morrell both offensively and defensively. He progressively busted up the extremely tough Yerbossynuly, who walked through fire and gamely kept fighting. Morrell finally dropped Yerbossynuly in the final round, then finished him with another knockdown. Time was 2:34.

In an upset, late sub Brian “La Bala” Mendoza (21-2, 15 KOs) knocked out former unified world champion Jeison “Banana” Rosario (23-4-1, 17 KOs) in a middleweight bout which served as the Morrell-Yerbossynuly co-feature on Saturday night at The Armory in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Mendoza dropped Rosario with a body shot in round two and finished him with a right uppercut in round five. Rosario tried to get up but collapsed back to the canvas. Time was :35.

Unbeaten middleweight Fiodor Czerkaszyn (21-0, 13 KOs) hammered out an impressive ten round unanimous decision over rugged Nathaniel Gallimore (22-6-1, 17 KOs). Scores were 97-93, 99-91, 100-90.

Longtime contender Andre “The Matrix” Dirrell (29-3, 18 KOs) looked good in a tenth round TKO win against aggressive Yunieski Gonzalez (21-4, 17 KOs) in light heavyweight clash. The 39-year-old Dirrell was credited with a knockdown at the end of round nine and got a referee’s stoppage in round ten. Time was 1:30.

Former unified 154lb world champion Julian “J-Rock” Williams (28-3-1, 16 KOs) scored a workmanlike eight round unanimous decision over Rolando Mansilla (18-12-1, 8 KOs) in a middleweight affair. Returning from two straight losses and a 13-month layoff, Williams won by scores of 80-81, 79-72, 79-72. Mansilla was deducted a point in round five for continually losing his mouthpiece.

In a rematch between unbeaten super lightweights, Kent Cruz (16-0-3, 10 KOs) and Enriko Gogokhia (13-0-2, 8 KOs) battled to their second consecutive draw. Scores were 76-76, 76-76, 78-74 for Gogokhia. Their first fight was a split-draw in February.

WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol (21-0, 11 KOs) retained his title with a wide twelve round unanimous decision over previously unbeaten Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez (44-1, 30 KOs) on Saturday night at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. After four cautious rounds, Bivol started to take over in round five. Zurdo didn’t have an answer for Bivol’s counterpunching and he seemed hesitant to throw anything hard. Bivol won rounds with sharp combinations that had Zurdo’s head swiveling. Zurdo upped the pressure late and Bivol made him pay for it. Scores were 118-110. 117-111, 117-111.

In a clash for the undisputed female super lightweight world title, unbeaten Chantelle “Il Capo” Cameron (17-0, 8 KOs) outpointed currently undisputed welterweight champ Jessica “Caskilla” McCaskill (12-3, 5 KOs) over ten rounds on Saturday night at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Cameron schooled McCaskill in the first half of the fight. McCaskill rallied down the stretch, but it was too little, too late. Scores were 97-93, 96-94, 96-94, all for Cameron. McCaskill dropped down in weight in an attempt to secure the 140lb belts. Cameron retained her IBF and WBC belts, and added the vacant WBA and WBO belts to reach undisputed status.

Unbeaten super featherweight Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov (17-0-1, 14 KOs) scored a come-from-behind ninth round KO over Zelfa Barrett (28-2, 16 KOs) to claim the vacant IBF world title on Saturday night at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Barrett dropped Rakhimov in round three and looked headed toward the title, but Rakhimov suddenly turned the tables, flooring a spent Barrett twice in round nine to end it. Time was 2:35.

Olympic gold medalist Galal Yafai (3-0, 2 KOs) won a ten round split decision against Gohan Rodriguez (12-2-1, 1 KO) to retain his WBC International flyweight title. Scores were 96-94 and 96-95 Yafai, 96-95 Rodriguez. The pair were originally slated to meet on the ill-fated Eubank Jr-Benn undercard.

In an upset, unheralded super lightweight John Lawrence Ordonio (8-4-1, 4 KOs) outworked previously unbeaten local hero Majid Al Naqbi (7-1, 4 KOs) to take a four round unanimous decision. Scores were 40-36, 40-36, 39-37.

Former world champion Kal Yafai (27-1, 15 KOs) fought for the first time since losing his WBA super flyweight belt nearly three years ago, and barely got past journeyman Jerald Paclar (16-6-3, 9 KOs). Paclar dropped Yafai in round one and had him in all kinds of trouble. Yafai looked shaky for a few rounds, but then he did enough to squeak out a ten round unanimous decision by scores of 96-93, 96-93, 95-94.

Lightweight prospect Campbell Hatton (9-0, 3 KOs), son of British boxing legend Ricky Hatton, quickly finished Denis Bartos (9-6, 6 KOs) in just 1:44. Bartos down twice from body shots.

Pull up a chair and get ready for about a 14-hour block of near-continuous boxing action.

Four preliminary bouts on the Bivol-Ramirez card from Abu Dhabi will begin streaming at 10AM ET, 7AM PT. The six-fight main card starts at 1:30PM ET, 10:30AM PT with Bivol-Ramirez probably starting around 5PM ET, 2PM PT.

Showtime’s three-bout countdown show on YouTube/Facebook begins at 6:30PM ET, 3:30PM PT, with the three-bout Showtime Championship Boxing telecast slated to start at 9:10PM ET, 6:10PM PT. Look for the Morrell-Yerbossynuly main event around 11PM ET, 8PM PT.

Antonio “Toño” Moran (29-5-1, 20 KOs) won $50,000 cash and the finale of ProBox TV’s innovative 140lb “Last Chance” tournament with a tenth round TKO over Kendo Castañeda (19-6, 9 KOs) on Friday night at the ProBox Events Center in Plant City, Florida. Moran outboxed Castañeda all night long, dropping him with a body shot in round six, then putting him down twice in round ten to end it. Time was 1:28.

Lightweight KO artist Miguel “Explosivo” Madueno (28-1, 26 KOs) got back into the win column with a brutal fifth round KO to dethrone WBO Latino champion Juan “El Olympico” Huertas (16-4, 12 KOs). The end came when the aggressive Madueno battered Huertas to a knee and Huertas watched the referee count him out. Time was 2:15.

In a clash of unbeaten super featherweights, Ezequiel Borrero (6-0, 2 KOs) won a six round unanimous decision over Carlos Rosario (5-1, 3 KOs) by scores of 59-54, 60-54, 60-54.

Unbeaten super featherweight Dominic Valle (6-0, 4 KOs) went the distance for the first time, taking a six round unanimous decision over Jose Meza (8-8, 2 KOs). Scores were 58-56, 59-55, 59-55.

The WBO World Championship Committee has granted sanction approval for the junior bantamweight unification contest between Kazuto Ioka and Joshua Franco, scheduled for Saturday, December 31 in Japan. The winner of Ioka/Franco must face the WBO junior bantamweight mandatory challenger Junto Nakatani no later than 180-days after the fight.

David Morrell Jr. 166.5 vs. Aidos Yerbossynuly 167.25
(WBA “regular” super middleweight title)

Jeison Rosario 160 vs. Brian Mendoza 159.25
Fiodor Czerkaszyn 158.75 vs. Nathaniel Gallimore 158.5
Andre Dirrell 174 vs. Yunieski Gonzalez 174
Julian “J-Rock” Williams 159.6 vs. Rolando Mansilla 158
Kent Cruz 143.6 vs. Enriko Gogokhia 141.4

Venue: The Armory in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Promoter: TGB Promotions
TV: Showtime, YouTube

WBO welterweight champion Terence “Bud” Crawford (38-0, 29 KOs) talks about his December 10 clash with WBO #6 ranked David Avanesyan (29-3-1, 17 KOs) at the CHI Health Center in Omaha, Nebraska. The bout will air live on BLK Prime PPV. Tickets go on sale Monday.

“I am an exciting fighter and the best closer in the sport,” said Crawford. “I have knocked out every fighter I have faced since 2016. I’m going to put on another entertaining fight on December 10 and continue my knockout streak. David Avanesyan is a tough opponent who is riding a strong knockout streak of his own. He’s upset some really good fighters and has nothing to lose. That makes for something that the fans will want to see.”

Continue reading “Crawford: I’m the best closer in the sport”

Dmitry Bivol 174.7 vs. Zurdo Ramirez 174.6
(WBA light heavyweight title)

Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov 130 vs. Zelfa Barrett 130
(IBF super featherweight title)

Chantelle Cameron 139.6 vs. Jessica McCaskill 139.3
(Undisputed women’s super lightweight title)

Galal Yafai 111.8 vs. Gohan Rodriguez 110.9
Kal Yafai 120.6 vs. Jerald Paclar 117.5
Campbell Hatton 139.3 vs. Denis Bartos 137.6

Venue: Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Promoter: Matchroom
TV: DAZN

By Ray Wheatley – World of Boxing

Unbeaten Australian heavyweight Justis Huni (7-0,4 KOs) went toe-to-toe against Kiki Toa Leutele (8-2-2, 7 KOs) over ten action rounds to be awarded a unanimous decision on Friday at the Nissan Arena, Nathan, Queensland, Australia, televised on Foxtel. Huni connected with power head and body shots consistently on his opponent but at no time during the bout did Leutele look in danger of visiting the canvas. Leutele came to fight and never took a backward step as he delivered bombs on Huni. The Australian was the busier and more accurate with his blows, but the New Zealander was the heavier puncher. At the conclusion, scores were all for Huni – Steve Marshall 99-91, Phil Gregory 97-93, Allan Burford 98-92. Continue reading “Huni defeats Leutele by unanimous decision”

Following a year of inactivity, super middleweight contender Serhii “El Flacco” Bohachuk (21-1, 21 KOs) scored a second round KO over Aaron Coley, (16-5-1, 7 KOs) in a bout for the vacant WBC Continental Americas title on Thursday night at the Quiet Cannon/Montebello Country Club near Los Angeles. Bohachuk dropped Coley with a short left hook and Coley failed to beat the count. Time was 1:54.

In the main event, junior middleweight “King” Callum Walsh (5-0, 4 KOs) demolished Delen Parsley (13-2, 4 KOs) in less than three rounds. Walsh dropped Parsley in both rounds one and two, then knocked him out in round three. Time was 2:26.

Former IBF super middleweight champion Caleb Plant (22-1, 13 KOs) has announced on social media that he will next take on former two-time WBC champion David Benavidez (26-0, 23 KOs). Benavidez has confirmed. The bout will reportedly be on pay-per-view in early 2023.

WBA super middleweight champion David Morrell Jr. and mandatory challenger Aidos Yerbossynuly went face-to-face at the final press conference on Thursday, before they put their unbeaten records on the line live on Showtime this Saturday from The Armory in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Aidos Yerbossynuly: “There is nothing about David Morrell Jr. that concerns me. The danger with boxing is that every fighter is coming to hurt you. Every boxer is dangerous. There’s nothing special about him. I think that we are evenly matched fighters but the difference on Saturday night is going to be that I’m the smarter fighter and I want it more…if he’s promising something to his fans, he might have to apologize to them after he loses. I’m definitely coming to stop Morrell in this fight. I trained hard and I’m here to get the belt.”

David Morrell Jr: “100% I’m coming for the knockout. He’s the one that’s asking for it. It’s going to be for my team and for Cuban boxing. You don’t mess with the people of Cuba…I feel bad for Aidos. He has no idea what’s going on and he doesn’t know anything about boxing history. I’m going to teach him on fight night. I’m taking him to school. He has it coming.”

A $50,000 bonus check will be on the line in ProBox TV’s 140 lb. “Last Chance” Tournament Finale taking place tomorrow night at the ProBox Events Center in Plant City, Florida (a Tampa suburb). The fight will be streamed live at PROBOXTV.com and the ProBox TV app. The Last Chance Tournament kicked off on May 20 with eight combatants who were chosen based on having a top amateur trajectory, where fate had not been on the side of their once-promising professional careers. The finalists are Kendo Castañeda (19-5, 9 KOs) vs. Antonio “Toño” Moran (28-5-1, 19 KOs).

Antonio Moran: “I think that Castaneda is a fighter who comes forward and is aggressive, so you must box him. He’s going to come in with his same fighting style and he’s going to try and pick me up at close range, but I’ll handle it. In the first four rounds I will look for the knockout, but if I don’t get it, I will outbox him. I’m going to do the fight my way, connecting with quick combinations and moving around the ring.

Kendo Castañeda: “I’m always ready to fight, so I actually do not envision this as my last chance. Moran thinks he will knock me out in five? I think nothing of Moran, esta pendejo, but it will be a Mexican war for as long as it lasts, and I am ready for 32 rounds. Moran will be running into a brick wall and eventually he falls. The referee stops it, or his corner stops it.”

Kendo Castaneda 140 vs. Antonio Moran 140.2
(“Last Chance” Tournament final)

Miguel Madueno 135 vs. Juan Huertas 134.6
Carlos Rosario 133.6 vs. Ezequiel Borrero 136
Dominic Valle 129.2 vs. Jose Antonio Meza 130.4
Daniel Blancas 167.2 vs. Carlos Cruz 164.2

Venue: ProBox Events Center, Plant City, Florida
Promoter: ProBox
TV: ProBox TV

By Przemek Garczarczyk

We caught up with WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol (20-0, 11 KOs) before his clash against undefeated Gilberto Ramirez (44-0, 30 KOs) streaming on DAZN Saturday from the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Bivol talks about being cold as ice, always humble, never fulfilled Olympic dreams, why belts are better than money, and why this fight will be about him, not Zurdo.

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Unbeaten WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol faces off against mandatory challenger Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez at today’s final press conference ahead of Saturday night’s clash at the Etihad Arena, Abu Dhabi. Bivol is coming off a huge upset win over Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez, at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas in May, where he retained his 175lb world title via a unanimous decision to make it 20 wins from 20 fights.

Dmitry Bivol: “I really had a big dream to win this belt and I don’t want to leave it. I will fight for this and I want to keep it. I want more…I have been here since September 27th. I feel like I had everything that I needed for training…when people tell me that I have achieved everything it’s like they pour water on my fire. I try to only think about my dream, to realise my full potential. I try to be hungry and angry every time and be focused on training and my opponents. I try to think about how this Saturday night will be the hardest fight of my career. It makes me more focused on the night.”

Zurdo Ramirez: “I really believe that I can become a two-time world champion on Saturday…I’ve been training hard for this fight and I will take the belt this Saturday that’s for sure. 44 tried, 44 fell. I hope that the people enjoy the fight because this is the type of fight that fans like to see in boxing…my goal is to become a two-time world champion, continue to build my legacy and eventually to become a legend.”

They may not be fighting in the ring anytime soon, but rival welterweight champions Terence Crawford and Errol Spence had plenty to say on social media on Wednesday night.

It all stemmed from this video Crawford posted on Instagram…

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View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Terence Bud Crawford (@tbudcrawford)

Promoter Oscar De La Hoya approved of Bud’s comments, tweeting “My respects to @terencecrawford and exposing the Al Hamon circus. I’ve been dealing with this shit for years, I promoted “all” the PBC fighters and its all the same bullshit with them, they are not in charge. I’ll be going live soon to elaborate and expose the truth.”

Serhii Bohachuk 153.3 vs. Aaron Coley 153.8
(WBC Continental Americas super welterweight title)

Callum Walsh 154 vs. Delen Parsley 154
Daniel Barrera 114.8 vs. Isaac Anguiano 113
Omar Cande Trinidad 125.8 vs. Jose Edgardo Garcia 126
David Romero 135.8 vs. Michael De La Cruz 136.6
Gloria Munguilla 114.4 vs. JoAnna Espinoza 113.4
Steven von Euw 152.4 vs. Matthew Reed 152.2

Venue: Quiet Cannon/Montebello Country Club, Montebello, CA
Promoter: 360 Promotions
TV: UFC Fightpass

By Bob Caico

Newhouse Boxing has announced a professional boxing card to take place at the LaCentre Conference and Banquet Center in Westlake, Ohio (located 12 miles west of downtown Cleveland) on Friday, December 16. Headlining will be three of Cleveland’s top boxers: bantamweight Antonio Nieves (20-3-2, 11 KOs), middleweight Michael Moore (19-3, 8 KOs), and super lightweight Mark Davis Jr. (18-1, 5 KOs). Also featured will be rising Top Rank-signed lightweight Abdullah Mason (5-0, 4 KOs). Advance tickets are now on sale. The event will be streamed via BigPlay.com and their social media platforms.

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

Unbeaten ex-WBO flyweight champ, puzzling southpaw Junto Nakatani (24-0, 18 KOs), 114.5, decked his first triumph in the super-fly category when he pounded out a unanimous decision (97-92, 98-91, 99-90) over former WBO#3 Francisco Rodriguez Jr. (36-6-1, 25 KOs), 115, Mexico, over ten heats on Tuesday in Saitama, Japan. Continue reading “Nakatani-Rodriguez Full Report”