Fightnews.com

By Ray Wheatley – World of Boxing

Australian heavyweight champion Justis Huni (6-0, 4 KOs) clearly outpointed Joseph Goodall (8-1-1, 7 KOs) over ten rounds on Wednesday night to capture the IBF Pan Pacific, WBO Oriental and OPBF titles at the Nissan Arena at Nathan, Queensland televised on Foxtel Main Event and Kayo Sports Pay-Per-View.

Huni controlled the bout from the opening round connecting with accurate head and body shots on the aggressive Goodall. Huni sustained a cut on his left eyelid in round five and by round six the left eye of Goodall was almost closed compliments of Huni’s precise combinations. Scores at the conclusion were Phil Austen 100-90, Chris Condon 98-92, Adam Height 98-93.

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

Elongated lightweight, former world challenger Masayoshi Nakatani (20-2, 14 KOs), 136.75, made short work of Filipino Harmonito Dela Torre (22-4, 14 KOs), 135.75, dropping him twice to score a quick knockout at 1:16 of the opening round on Monday in Tokyo, Japan. The six-footer Nakatani, 33, once had an ambitious shot at Teofimo Lopez and showed a gallant performance despite his unanimous decision loss in Maryland in 2019.

He stunned the US crowd when he upset prohibitive favorite Felix Verdejo via ninth round come-from-behind TKO victory in Las Vegas in 2020. Masayoshi then tasted a bitter defeat at the hand of versatile and valiant Vasyl Lomachenko there in June of the previous year. Nakatani decked the Filipino with a left-right combination, and sank him again with a vicious Inoue-like left uppercut to the side-belly for the count. We now have good 135-pounders here including undefeated regional champ Shuichiro Yoshino, also unbeaten Hironori Mishiro and ex-WBO titlist Masaharu Ito. Their confrontations will be greatly anticipated soon. Continue reading “Nakatani demolishes Dela Torre”

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

Unheralded ex-national youth champ Takeru Kobata (12-5-1, 5 KOs), 147, acquired the vacant Japanese interim welterweight belt as he surprisingly upset former ruler Yuki Nagano (19-4, 15 KOs), 146.75, by an unexpected TKO win at 1:42 of the fifth round in a scheduled ten on Monday in Tokyo, Japan.

Originally slated to face current champ Keita Obara to regain his belt in a rematch, Nagano, 32, faced a younger and fresher foe, 23, who positively threw good combos from the outset and dominated the proceedings. The fifth saw the underdog Kobata, from Kyushu, accelerate his attack so furiously to almost topple the ex-champ that his corner wisely signaled a surrender, which was well-received by ringsiders. Continue reading “Kobata halts Nagano, wins Japanese interim 147lb belt”

By Ray Wheatley – World of Boxing

UK promoter Eddie Hearn will reportedly be promoting a September card Down Under. Hearn told news.com.au he was looking to do “four to six shows a year” in Australia, having recruited Aussie fighters Liam Paro, Brock Jarvis, Skye Nicolson, Ebanie Bridges and Demsey McKean to his stable. “Demsey’s going to fight on our September card, maybe against the winner of tomorrow night (Justis Huni vs. Joseph Goodall), maybe against Lucas Browne, which would be another decent fight,” Hearn said.

Ring legend Floyd “Money” Mayweather and RIZIN held a press conference in Las Vegas on Monday night to officially announce the 45-year-old newly inducted Hall of Famer’s next exhibition, which will take place in September against Japanese MMA fighter Mikuru Asakura on RIZIN in Japan.

Floyd Mayweather: “I know that he believes in his skill, but no fighter that he’s ever been in the ring with is Floyd Mayweather. These other guys are just fighters, but I’m Floyd Mayweather. I’m on a different level. I’m special. Not just special, very special. I don’t have to watch tape on my opponents, he needs to watch me. I’m the one to watch. Everybody I face is just an opponent. It’s no different from facing Manny Pacquiao or Canelo Alvarez.”

Mikuru Asakura: “I’m an MMA fighter, but I’m going to use this opportunity and use Mayweather to raise my name and value internationally. I will win this fight.”

By Mauricio Sulaimán
Son of Jose Sulaiman & President of the WBC

After two years of uncertainty, anxiety and suffering, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the International Boxing Hall of Fame, in Canastota, New York, reopened its doors to celebrate the annual induction ceremony for legends of our sport.

On this occasion, three generations combined “Trilogy,” those of 2020, 2021, and 2022, and the atmosphere that was experienced will remain in the memory of all of us, who had the opportunity to witness the entrance to boxing’s heaven for eternity, the great men and women who have devoted their lives to make boxing great.

Canastota is a small town in the center of the state of New York, but it managed to pinpoint itself on the map with the greatness of champion Carmen Basilio, who gave the city a sense of belonging in the 70s, thanks to a small display case with a plaque and a robe.

It remained like that for several years, until one day in the 1990s the International Boxing Hall of Fame was formed, which began with a small office; later a showroom of articles, and through the years, it has grown enormously. The fans of the world travel once a year to pay tribute to those who achieve the dream of being inducted at this venue. Continue reading “The International Boxing Hall of Fame”

Undefeated super flyweight terror David “General” Cuellar (21-0, 14 KOs) hopes to notch his seventh consecutive knockout in a 10-round main event Friday evening against former world title challenger Yader Cardoza (26-17-1, 8 KOs) at Auditorio Municipal in Torreón, Mexico. The 20-year-old Cuellar has not been taken the distance since September 2019, a run that has included stoppage victories over former world champion Moises Fuentes and longtime contender Ricardo Blandon. He knocked out Blandon in six rounds in February despite Blandon missing weight by more than five pounds.

In the world title co-feature, WBC female bantamweight champion Yuliahn Luna (23-3-1, 4 KOs) will make the second defense of her title in a rematch versus Jessica Gonzalez (8-5-2, 1 KO).

Cuellar-Cardoza and Luna-Gonzalez stream live in the U.S. on ESPN+.

Retired boxer Tyson Fury, who still holds the WBC heavyweight championship, offered up the strongest hint yet that his fighting days are not behind him when he took the hotseat for a digital get-together with his promoter Frank Warren and host Dev Sahni for the latest UniBet Lowdown episode. The Gypsy King revealed that he and Frank Warren are formulating plans for another memorable night or two in the months to come. Warren added, “We’re talking about various scenarios. Something will come out of it. We could announce fairly soon.”

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Two-time featherweight title challenger Joet Gonzalez (25-2, 15 KOs) will take on former junior featherweight world champion Isaac “Royal Storm” Dogboe (23-2, 15 KOs) in a 10-rounder on July 23, at Grand Casino Hinckley in Hinckley, Minnesota. Gonzalez will put his WBO International belt on the line, with the fight also serving as a WBC world title eliminator.

In the 10-round lightweight co-feature, undefeated contender Giovanni “El Cabron” Cabrera (20-0, 7 KOs) hopes for a signature win against the flashy Gabriel Flores Jr. (21-1, 7 KOs).

The entire event will stream on ESPN+. Continue reading “Gonzalez-Dogboe set for WBC eliminator”

Daniel Dubois is back in the UK after successfully seizing the WBA world championship belt from the champion Trevor Bryan and he now has a couple of big domestic targets firmly in his sights.

“I heard a lot of people say it and even though I thought it was a foregone conclusion I would win the fight, that fight was very big,” said Dubois. “It has set up a whole load of other matches down the line that are going to happen…I am ready for the winner [of Usyk-Joshua]. Line them up! I am waiting for this moment. I would prefer it to be Joshua, but whoever it is, it is the big league.”

Promoter Frank Warren mentioned the name of Dillian Whyte for a potential defense and Dubois showed interest. “That’s the fight. This is all business, there is no disrespect to anyone but I am coming to clean up and take out whoever is in my way.”

Super lightweight Ohara Davies was hoping to be picked to fight for the vacant WBA super lightweight belt, but learned on Sunday night that #1 ranked Alberto Puello had been chosen to face Batyr Akhmedov, who sits at #6. The WBA also confirmed that Ismael Barroso, the Venezuelan puncher who withdrew from a November clash with Davies, will fight the winner.

Davies, #3 in the rankings, has been left to face Spain’s Sandor Martin in an eliminator while former world champion and fellow Probellum fighter Regis Prograis has been told he would replace any of the contenders if they chose to pull out.

“When I found out about the WBA’s decision, I was gutted,” said Davies, who fights in Leeds on Saturday night. “I felt like I should have been given the shot next because I was meant to fight Ismael Barroso, but he pulled out of our fight, so I don’t understand how he can be made mandatory challenger for the title? I didn’t understand the WBA’s decision, but I have had to fight my whole life, and this is just another fight. Continue reading “Ohara Davies: I should have been given WBA shot”

45-year-old ring legend Floyd Mayweather Jr returns in a September boxing exhibition against MMA fighter Mikuru Asakura on a Rizin Fighting Federation event. Date and exact rules are TBA. Floyd was inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame over the weekend.

By Ray Wheatley – World of Boxing

Australian heavyweight champion Justis Huni (5-0, 4 KOs), who had his house sprayed with bullets last week, returns to the ring Wednesday against Las Vegas-based Aussie Joseph Goodall (8-0-1, 7 KOs) with the IBF Pan Pacific, WBO Oriental, and OPBF titles up for grabs at the Nissan Arena at Nathan, Queensland, televised on Foxtel Main Event and Kayo Sports Pay-Per-View.

Huni weighed in at 242.5, while Goodall tipped the scale at 239.5.

Justis Huni: “I’m not looking to have a padded record. I want fight the best of the best….I’m not here to sit around and play marbles. I’m here to get the hard fights, get the job done, build my way up to a world title fight and get out of this well and healthy.”

Joseph Goodall: “For me, it’s everything. I don’t know what it is for him. But for me, it’s everything.”

Promoter Dean Lonergan
Matchmaker Stuart Duncan
IBF supervisor: Ben Keilty
WBO supervisor: Danny Leigh
OPBF supervisor: Frank Hadley

By Gabriel F. Cordero

Sad to report that Boxing Hall of Famer Carlos Ortiz has passed away at 85 years of age. Ortiz was a three-time world champion in two divisions, lightweight and super lightweight. At lightweight, he remained champion for nine years and was one of the great 135-pounders of all time, behind only Roberto ‘Mano de Piedra’ Durán and Julio César Chávez. He boxed from 1955 to 1973, and compiled a professional mark of 61-7-1 with 30 KOs.

The World Boxing Association (WBA) Championships Committee has determined that Alberto Puello and Batyr Akhmedov will fight for the vacant super lightweight championship, formerly held by Josh Taylor. After meeting with six teams of the top-ranked fighters days ago, the panel analyzed all the reasons of those involved and ordered the title bout, which must be negotiated in 15 days (until June 25) or it will be open to purse bid on July 5. The winner of Puello-Akhmedov will have to face Ismael Barroso in a period of no more than 90 days after the fight.

Meanwhile, Sandor Martin and Ohara Davies were also ordered to negotiate an eliminator fight, for which they will have a period of 50 days from the sending of the official communication from the WBA.

Former champion Regis Prograis will be eligible to substitute for any of the fighters involved if any of them do not want to comply or cannot due to medical or any other reasons. Continue reading “WBA super lightweight title update”

Here are both installments of the “Blood, Sweat & Tears: Beterbiev vs. Smith, Jr.” series that goes inside the fight camps of WBC/IBF light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev (17-0, 17 KOs) and WBO light heavyweight champion Joe Smith, Jr. (28-3, 22 KOs) ahead of their title unification bout on Saturday at the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York.

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By Boxing Bob Newman

The International Boxing Hall of Fame dubbed this year’s induction, the first in three years- “The Trilogy,” as the pandemic forced the cancellation of the enshrinement of the classes of 2020 and 2021. The 3-for-1 deal actually came off without too much of a hitch. While some segments of the four day event had to be scrubbed (the golf tournament, the VIP cocktail hour) and the inductions themselves had to be moved to the nearby Events Center at the Turning Stone Resort and Casino, to accommodate the triple-sized crowd, what did occur was enjoyed by all. Continue reading “IBHOF Trilogy Induction Speeches 2020, 2021, 2022”

By Miguel Maravilla

Following his victory, Tijuana’s Jaime Munguia spoke about his knockout over Jimmy “Kilrain” Kelly (26-2, 10 KOs) of Manchester, England Saturday night at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Munguia held court addressing the media at the post fight press conference.

“I am happy with the victory. It was a great spectacle. My team and I did a great job leading to this fight and I clearly showed it tonight,” said Munguia on the win. Continue reading “Munguia: I would like some of the bigger names”

WBC World Youth Lightweight Champion Pedro Bernal (9-1-2, 3 KOs) of Mexico City is set to defend his title versus Georgie Payne (5-2, 2 KOs) of Australia, on August 27 at the Hamilton Convention Centre in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Bernal won the crown via an upset unanimous decision over highly touted prospect Manuel Jaimes (12-1-1, 10 KOs), who entered that bout having upset former world champion Moises Flores (25-6-1, 17 KOs). Continue reading “Bernal-Payne clash Aug 27 in Hamilton”

Unbeaten super middleweight Edgar “The Chosen One” Berlanga (20-0, 16 KOs), has apologized for his post-fight comments and the dirty tactics employed in Saturday’s fight against Alexis Angulo.

In a statement on social media, Berlanga said, “I want to apologize for my actions and what I said yesterday about the Mike Tyson bite. I was in the moment and got a little ahead of myself. It doesn’t take away from the embarrassment that I have caused upon myself, my team, top ranks, and many others.

“I reacted poorly and take full responsibility. Moving forward, I am going to be more mindful and encouraging in my behavior. Once again, I do apologize.”

The WBA recently announced that unbeaten WBA ranked #1 super lightweight contender Alberto Puello (20-0, 10 KOs) of the Dominican Republic and WBA #6 ranked super lightweight contender Botirzhon Akhmedo (9-1, 8 KOs) will fight for the WBA super lightweight world title. Akhmedo is said to be moved to the #2 world ranking when the next rankings come out. An issue is that the current #2 world ranking is being held by former world title challenger Ismael Barroso (23-3-2, 21 KOs) of Venezuela. Barroso´s co-manager Osmiri Fernandez was very displeased by the WBA’S ruling and vows to pursue immediate legal channels to get justice for Barroso. Continue reading “Team Barroso outraged over WBA Ruling”

After two featured bouts fell out only days before the weigh-in and the other at the weigh-in, Star Boxing resiliently still brought the fans an entertaining and exciting 42nd edition of the “Rockin’ Fights” series at The Paramount in Huntington, New York on Saturday night.

In a bloody super middleweight battle, Lucas Martins (14-1 11 KOs) took an eight round unanimous decision over Tony Browne (5-2, 0 KOs) by scores of 78-73, 78-73, 80-71.

Other Results:
Zay Flaherty TKO4 Quadeer Jenkins (middleweight)
Ronny Reyes W4 Hector Becerra (lightweight)
Dequint Hill W4 Lou Maietta (light heavyweight)

Continue reading “Rockin’ Fights 42 Results”

Report/Photos: Boxing Bob Newman

After a three year hiatus, the International Boxing Hall of Fame inducted three classes today into its hallowed fraternity and sorority. Some 36 inductees were enshrined overall. 22 were actually on hand with additional video greetings sent by Wladimir Klitschko and Lucia Rijker who remain back home in the Ukraine and the Netherlands respectively.

With the pandemic necessitating the cancellation of the 2020 and 2021 festivities, the induction of three classes meant finding a way to accommodate the families and friends of three classes worth of inductees.

The Hall of Fame partnered with the nearby Turning Stone Resort and Casino to utilize their events center where boxing is often held, to conduct the induction. It was a perfect fit with over a thousand in attendance.

Inductions were done by class – starting with 2020 first and ending with 2022. A full video with speeches by the boxers will follow tomorrow!

By Ray Wheatley – World of Boxing

Looks like undisputed super welterweight champion Jermell Charlo will be facing WBO mandatory challenger Tim Tszyu next.

“We are told that they have an agreement and they are looking for a date because big fights are coming and this is one of them,” WBO president Paco Valcarcel told ESPN Knockout while attending International Boxing Hall of Fame festivities in Canastota, New York.

By Ron Jackson

In an epic toe-to-toe encounter, Roarke Knapp (14-1-1, 11 KOs) beat Brandon Thysse (14-3-1, 12 KOs) on a twelve round split decision in their rematch at Emperors Palace, near Kempton Park on Saturday night to win the vacant African Boxing Union junior middleweight title. Knapp, who was stopped in the seventh round to suffer his only defeat against Thysse in their first fight, was much sharper as he weathered an early storm in the opening round to punch out a deserved decision.

Judges Kedibone Phetlho and Mfundo Mvandaba scored it 115-114 and 116-112 for Knapp and judge Thabo Spampool had 115-113 for Thysse. Continue reading “Knapp wins toe-to-toe war for ABU title”