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…wins vacant OPBF 147lb belt

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

Free-swinging hard-hitting prospect, WBC#9, WBO#4 Jin Sasaki (17-1, 16 KOs), 146.5, impressively acquired the vacant OPBF welterweight belt as he dispatched Filipino veteran southpaw Joe Noynay (23-4-2, 11 KOs), 145.75, with a vicious assault at 0:43 of the fifth round on Thursday in Tokyo, Japan. Sasaki, still 22, also made his third defense of his WBO Asia Pacific belt since he dethroned world rated Ryota Toyoshima on a first-round demolition last year. Continue reading “WBC #9 Sasaki sinks Noynay…”

By Miguel Maravilla

Atlanta’s new WBO interim welterweight champion Brian Norman Jr talks beating WBO #1 Giovanni Santillan

By Miguel Maravilla at ringside

Unbeaten Denys Berinchyk (19-0, 9 KOs) claimed the vacant WBO lightweight title with a twelve round split decision over three-division world champion Emanuel “Vaquero” Navarrete (38-2-1, 31 KOs) on Saturday night at the Pechanga Arena San Diego, California. It was a sloppy and awkward affair with Berinchyk winning 116-112, 115-113 on two cards. Navarrete was up 116-112 on the third card. Continue reading “Berinchyk edges Navarrete for WBO 135lb title”

By Miguel Maravilla at ringside

Unbeaten WBO #10 welterweight Brian Norman Jr. (26-0, 20 KOs) scored a spectacular tenth round knockout over previously unbeaten WBO #1-rated Giovani Santillan (32-1, 17 KOs) to claim the vacant WBO interim world title on Saturday night at the Pechanga Arena in San Diego, California. Norman badly busted up Santillan, then dropped him twice in round ten to end it.

Norman Jr of Atlanta, in hostile territory against hometown hero Santillan, came out boxing, working the jab and using his hand speed in the opening round, while Santillan patiently crouched and stalked looking to work his way inside. Continue reading “Norman stops WBO #1 Santillan for interim title”

By Damon Gonzalez / LatinBox

Unbeaten middleweight Petr Khamukov (13-0, 6 KOs) from Woodland Hills, California, successfully defended his (NBA) National Boxing Association title by stopping Esau Herrera de la Cruz (21-17-1, 8 KOs) from Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico at the official time 1:28 seconds of round three on Saturday night at the sold out Fox Theater in Redwood, California.

Unbeaten welterweight Jacob Macalooy (8-0, 4 KOs) from San Diego, CA., won by six round unanimous decision over Xavier Madrid (5-4, 2 KO’s) from Albuquerque, New Mexico. Macalolooy showed quicker hands, not allowing Madrid to get off any good shots. Score was 60-54 3x.

The fight card presented by Westside Promotions.

“I believe I won that fight,” said former WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury (34-1-1, 24 KOs) after losing a split decision to Oleksandr Usyk (22-0, 14 KOs) in a clash for the undisputed heavyweight title on Saturday evening in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

“I believe he won a few of the rounds,” said Fury. “I thought I won a majority of them, and what can you do? These are one of those decisions in boxing. We both put on a good fight, the best we could do. And, you know, his country’s at war, so people are deciding with the country at war. But make no mistake, I won that fight in my opinion and I’ll be back. We have a rematch clause.

“We go back, have a little rest up, spend some time with our families, and get it back on in October. I’m not going to sit here and cry and make excuses.”

By Miguel Maravilla at ringside

2020 Olympic Heavyweight silver medalist Richard Torrez Jr. (10-0, 10 KOs) of Tulare, California continued his KO streak as he stopped previously unbeaten Brandon Moore (14-1, 8 KOs) on Saturday night at the Pechanga Arena in San Diego, California. Torres came out swinging for the fences as Moore clinched and kept him close. Moore shoved Torres to begin round two and referee Thomas Taylor issued a warning. Later in the round, Torres caught Moore with a right but Moore stayed in the pocket and a brawl ensued briefly. The fighting continued in the third as Torrez and Moore went at each other with Torres backing Moore and catching him solidly at the end of the round. Moore began to back away as Torrez closed the distance and caught him with solid straight shots. Torrez sent Moore to the canvas to start the fifth. Moore appeared to be out but continued. The offense continued from Torres and he attacked and finished Moore forcing referee Thomas Taylor to stop the fight at 1:39 of the fifth.

The son of former world champion Fernando Vargas, junior welterweight Emiliano Vargas (10-0, 8 KOs) of Las Vegas scored a sixth round stoppage over Angel Varela (10-3, 7 KOs) of Sonora, Mexico. Vargas was strong from the opening bell attacking Varela much of the fight. Vargas finished him off in the sixth and final round as referee Ray Corona stepped in to stop the fight. The time of the stoppage 1:01. Continue reading “Torrez Jr., Vargas remain unbeaten”

In a long-awaited bout for the undisputed heavyweight championship of the world, WBA/IBF/WBO champion Oleksandr Usyk (22-0, 14 KOs) took the belt of WBC champion Tyson Fury (34-1-1, 24 KOs) by twelve round split decision on Saturday night at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Usyk pressed the action and made Fury work every moment. Fury did good work to the body while Usyk connected with a straight left hands to the head. The 6’9 Fury began to find his range in round four, connecting from long range. Fury hurt Usyk with body shots in round six. Usyk adjusted with several good connects to shade round seven. Usyk repeatedly connected with Fury in round eight. Usyk rocked Fury and dropped him in round nine. Fury was reeling and barely survived. Fury attempted to box from a distance in rounds ten and eleven. In the final round, both had their moments. Scores were 115-112, 114-113 Usyk, 114-113 Fury.

Usyk became the third man to achieve undisputed status in two divisions, joining Terence Crawford and Naoya Inoue.

The title may only be undisputed for a short time as the IBF won’t permit the automatic rematch.

In a rematch between former champions for the vacant IBF cruiserweight title, unbeaten Jai Opetaia (25-0, 19 KOs) regained the belt with a twelve round unanimous decision over Mairis Briedis (28-3, 20 KOs) on Saturday night at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Opetaia was in command for first five rounds, then broke the 39-year-old Briedis’ nose with a left hook in round six. Hopeless behind on the cards, Briedis rocked Opetaia in round ten and came on in the championship rounds. It was too little, too late, however. Scores were 117-111, 116-112, 116-112.

Opetaia previously won the IBF title against Briedis two years ago, but was forced to vacate the title to take a Saudi money fight rather than fighting the injured Briedis in a rematch. Briedis then had two IBF title fights fall through and Opetaia landed the shot to regain his old belt.

Unheralded junior lightweight Anthony Cacace (22-1, 8 KOs) dethroned previously unbeaten IBF world champion Joe Cordina (17-1, 9 KOs) by eighth round TKO on Saturday night at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. In round three, the 35-year-old Cacace hit Cordina on a break, then dropped him moments later – nearly getting a stoppage. Cordina recovered somewhat between rounds. Cacace later pummeled Cordina on the ropes in rounds six and seven. The bout was stopped by the referee after more punishment in round eight. Time was :39. Cordina was a 7:1 favorite.

In a WBC heavyweight final eliminator, WBC #3 Agit Kabayel (25-0, 17 KOs) knocked out WBC #2 Frank Sanchez (24-1, 17 KOs) in round seven on Saturday night at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Kabayel pressed the action from the start and walked down Sanchez the whole fight. Sanchez simply wasn’t able to handle the pressure and workrate of Kabayel. The end came in round seven when Kabayel floored Sanchez twice with a body shots. He was counted out at 2:33.

Sanchez, also rated WBO #3, WBA #4, IBF #6, was more than a 2:1 favorite. IBF #7, WBO #8, WBA #9 Kabayel now has consecutive upset wins against Sanchez and Arslanbek Makhmudov, who was a 9:1 favorite.

Unbeaten WBO #15 cruiserweight Robin Safar (17-0, 12 KOs) scored a ten round unanimous decision over former unified light heavyweight champion Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (35-5-1, 29 KOs) on Saturday night at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Returning after two year layoff, 41-year-old Kovalev appeared to be a shadow of his former glory as Safar systematically broke him down. Safar finally dropped the Krusher with moments left in the fight. Scores were 97-92, 99-90, 95-94.

Unbeaten heavyweight Moses Itauma (9-0, 7 KOs) made quick work of Ilja Mezencev (25-4, 21 KOs), finishing him 50 seconds into round two. Itauma claimed the WBO intercontinental belt.

Unbeaten WBC #10 lightweight Mark Chamberlain (16-0, 12 KOs) destroyed Joshua Oluwaseun Wahab (23-2,16 KOs) in the first round. Chamberlain dropped Wahab twice to end it. Time was 2:42. Chamberlain claimed the WBC silver title.

Other Results:
David Nyika KO4 Michael Seitz (cruiserweight)
Isaac Lowe W10 Hasibullah Ahmadi featherweight)
Daniel Lapin KO1 Octavio Pudivitr (light heavyweight)

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

Last Saturday (May 11), Treasure Boxing Promotions of Japan, presided by ex-WBO junior light champ Masayuki Ito (retired), staged a show at Paradise city in Inchon, Korea. Former world 108-pound champ, now WBA#2, IBF#4 flyweight Hiroto Kyoguchi (18-2, 12 KOs9, 112, surprisingly dropped an upset unanimous decision (97-93 twice, 96-94 by all Korean judges under KBM) to IBF#10 ranked Filipino Vince Paras (21-2-1, 15 KOs), 111.75, over ten. It was such a close contest that Paras was more aggressive with less precision, while Kyoguchi less aggressive but with better precision. The upset loser Kyoguchi, who previously kept his IBF 105-pound belt against Paras by a unanimous nod (all 117-110) in 2018, strongly complained of the debatable decision, which he strongly claimed. The show was shown live by U-Next streaming in Japan, and it became a big controversy among our TV viewers. Continue reading “Another brawl after Paras upsets Kyoguchi in Korea”

By Jeff Zimmerman

Mike Tyson and Jake Paul faced off at the kickoff press conference for their July 20 clash on Netflix from AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

Press Conference Highlights:

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Emanuel Navarrete 135 vs. Denys Berinchyk 134.8
(WBO lightweight title)

Giovani Santillan 146.4 vs. Brian Norman Jr 146.5
(WBO interim welterweight title)

Richard Torrez Jr 229.9 vs. Brandon Moore 229.4

Other Weights:
Emiliano Vargas 139.6 vs. Angel Varela 140
Jonny Mansour 134 vs. Anel Dudo 130.8
Alan Garcia 137.8 vs. Wilfredo Flores 136.9
Jonathan Lopez 127.1 vs. Edgar Ortega 127.6
Art Barrera Jr. 146 vs. Levy Josue Garcia Benitez 143.9

Venue: Pechanga Arena, San Diego, California
Promoter: Top Rank
TV: ESPN

Tyson Fury 262 vs. Oleksandr Usyk 223.5
(Undisputed WBC/WBA/IBF/WBO heavyweight title)

Unlike the press conference Fury and Usyk did face off. The fighters pressed their foreheads together, then Fury pushed Usyk. “The Gypsy King” weighed in more than 15 pounds less than the 277.75 pounds he weighed for his last fight against Francis Ngannou.

Tyson Fury: “I’m coming for his heart. That’s what I’m coming for. F*ck his belt. I’m coming for his f*cking heart. He’s getting it tomorrow. Spark out! F*ck him. F*ck all his team too. F*ck the lot of them. They can all get it if they wanted to.”

Oleksandr Usyk: “[I told him] don’t be afraid. I will not leave you alone tomorrow.”

Jai Opetaia 198.1 vs. Mairis Briedis 199.1
(IBF cruiserweight title)

Joe Cordina 130 vs. Anthony Cacace 129.8
(IBF junior lightweight title)

Agit Kabayel 238.5 vs. Frank Sanchez 238.5

Sergey Kovalev 194.2 vs. Robin Safar 194.1

Other Weights:
Moses Itauma 239.1 vs. Ilja Mezencev 232.1
Mark Chamberlain 132 vs. Joshua Wahab 132.1
Daniel Lapin 174.7 vs. Octavio Pudivitr 173.7
Isaac Lowe 125.5 vs. Hasibullah Ahmadi 127.7

Venue: Kingdom Arena, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Promoter: Top Rank, Queensberry Promotions
TV: DAZN PPV, ESPN+ PPV

By Przemek Garczarczyk

Five years ago in Chicago, after he stopped Chazz Whiterspoon in seven, I told Oleksandr Usyk that fighting like that will not be enough to win the belt. We met again 24 hours before his quest to become first undisputed heavyweight champ in 25 years. I asked Oleksandr about our exchange from Chicago, and he answered.

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By Przemek Garczarczyk

Legendary Teddy Atlas explains from Riyadh all the angles (pun intended!) of the Usyk vs. Fury fight and gives his final prediction:

“Usyk because he knows how to win. I know Tyson will be ready, best he can be…but it will be not enough for Usyk.”

By Miguel Maravilla

Three-division world champion Emanuel “Vaquero” Navarrete (38-1-1, 31 KOs) of Mexico City looks to add to his impressive resume as he takes on Ukrainian Olympian undefeated Denys Berinchyk (18-0, 9 KOs) for the vacant WBO lightweight title. Navarrete faces Berinchyk this Saturday night at the Pechanga Arena in San Diego, California live on ESPN.

“This fight represents a lot. The opportunity to become a four-division world champion. I’m looking to take advantage of this opportunity,” says Navarrete. “I’m coming to the lightweight division to win and conquer.”

Having wrapped up his camp in Tijuana, Navarrete comes in well-trimmed and ready to campaign at 135 pounds.

“I always train similar every fight is different. He is an Olympian with experience in boxing. We always put a lot of energy and put the work in 100 percent,” Navarrete said on the preparation. “The truth is I’ve been training here for six years now. There’s a lot of sparring here and I am very focused here on the task but at the same time being away from family. There are sacrifices to make in this sport to come out on top.” Continue reading “Navarrete eyes world title in fourth weight division”

Ahead of his big “Fists of Fury” event on June 7 at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida, the world’s greatest promoter Don King addressed the media alongside the fighters featured on the card.

Don King: “We are going to be here and bring boxing back to the fans, where it rightly belongs. I am very excited and pleased to do so. June 7 will be an exciting evening and will be second to none. We will be able to bring you Adrien “The Problem” Broner, and he is a problem, but so am I…most of these guys will fight better than they talk. That’s what they are. They are fighters. They are in the hurt business, and they don’t sit around and cry. This is the business to hurt people. We play the cards we are dealt, and we deal with them.”

The featured WBC People’s Championship has former four-division world champion Adrien “The Problem” Broner (35-4-1, 24 KOs) against fan-favorite Blair “The Flair” Cobbs (16-1-1, 10 KOs).

Blair Cobbs: “It’s none other than Blair “The Flair,” the most exciting man in boxing. I come out blazing like never before. You guys are going to see something that you’ve never seen before. Things that are going to happen to Broner are going to be things never seen before. You guys are going to see action-packed performances, and this is all that I am about. I’ve been born for this moment. I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time. I’ve been looking for this moment for a long time. I’ve been begging for this moment for a long time. I’ve been praying for this moment for a long time. Thank you, Don King, because Don King is back in action. June 7, I’ve arrived.”

Adrien Broner: “Now look at all this clown sh*t and none of this clown sh*t will work in the ring. People say I’m a clown but I’m a different type of clown. He’s (Cobbs) a clown in the circus. I’m ‘IT.’ I’m some scary type of clown. It gets scary when you talk about me. That sh*t isn’t going to work on me. June 7, I want everyone to come out. This time I don’t need to say anything, he’s doing everything for me. I’m about to f*ck this guy up. I look at him like Bill Haney if he was a boxer, no disrespect to Bill Haney. June 7 is doomsday and I’m training good. I’m training in Las Vegas with my little brother Tank (Davis). A lot of people thought I wouldn’t show up but I’m in shape and I can’t wait to put on a great performance. So, everyone come out and we’re about to get money. Let’s go Don, we got money to make.”

* * *

In a world title fight, WBC cruiserweight champion Noel “The Dark Horse” Mikaelian (27-2, 12 KOs) of Miami will defend his title for the first time when he takes on number one challenger Ryan “The Bruiser” Rozicki (20-1, 19 KOs) from Ontario, Canada.

Noel Mikaelian: “It will be a good fight. I’ll be defending my world title. I’m looking forward to bigger fights and this one is just like a training fight.”

Ryan Rozicki: “I’m not really much of a talker, I’m here to knock him out or he’s going to knock me out. And that’s it.”

Emanuel “Vaquero” Navarrete (38-1-1, 31 KOs) will attempt to become a four-division world champion when he fights Denys Berinchyk (18-0, 9 KOs) for the vacant WBO lightweight world title this Saturday at Pechanga Arena in San Diego.

Emanuel Navarrete: “Each fight is different. Each opponent is different. Denys is an Olympian. He has a lot of experience in boxing. That’s the part we have to defeat. That’s the hardest part on Saturday. However, we always work the same. We always strengthen certain things that have been seen as weak in previous fights. But we always put a lot of energy into each training camp. We always have that mentality to work at 100 percent, and this camp wasn’t the exception. We worked hard, and Saturday will be a great fight night for all those watching at Pechanga Arena.”

Denys Berinchyk: “I’m happy for Emanuel that he was the king in three divisions, but this is my division. You will see a great, exciting fight on Saturday night.”

* * *

The co-feature between hometown hero Giovani Santillan (32-0, 17 KOs) and unbeaten Brian Norman Jr. (25-0, 19 KOs) will now be for the vacant WBO interim welterweight title. If Santillan wins, he will become only the second San Diego-born world champion in history, following Paul Vaden in 1995.

Giovani Santillan: “I’ve been looking forward to something like this happening ever since my first fight at Pechanga San Diego back in 2021. I’ve been saying that I want to bring world title fights for myself here in San Diego. Me being born and raised here, it’s an honor for this to happen. I’m excited. I just found out this morning {that the fight would be for the WBO interim title}. I’m ready.”

Brian Norman Jr: “We’re in his hometown. Everything is against me in this fight. But once again, this is where I shine the best. I thrive off of negativity. I love this opportunity. I love this moment…he’s number one, plain and simple. You saw what he did to Alexis Rocha to earn his spot, so I have to earn mine. He did his thing. Time for me to do mine.”

WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury (34-0-1, 24 KOs) refused to look at WBO/IBF/WBA heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk (21-0, 14 KOs) during the face-off following the final press conference for their PPV clash on Saturday at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Neither fighter had much to say during their turn at the mic. They were both very respectful and serious.

Tyson Fury: “I’m ready. I’ve got nothing to say apart from I’m ready for a good fight. And if it’s tough or easy, either way, I’ll be ready.”

Oleksandr Usyk: “I’m excited. I’m grateful for His Excellency, the reason this fight happened. Let’s make history!”

This is what WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury (34-0-1, 24 KOs) and WBO/IBF/WBA heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk (21-0, 14 KOs) had to say at Wednesday’s media workout, three days before all the belts will be at stake on PPV from the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Tyson Fury: “I’m on top of the world, baby! Who wouldn’t be enjoying it? I’m in the great Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This is the main event. It is the undisputed heavyweight championship of the world…we’re looking forward to putting on a fantastic show for the world to watch.”

Oleksandr Usyk: “I feel good. Each event brings with it a new experience. It’s always a wonderful, great, and new experience for the team. I don’t have a final message for him. I will save it for Saturday.”

As Emanuel “Vaquero” Navarrete (38-1-1, 31 KOs) prepares to make history, he’s received overwhelming support from some of Mexico’s most revered boxing legends.

Canelo Alvarez, Juan Manuel “Dinamita” Marquez, Erik “El Terrible” Morales, Leo Santa Cruz, and Jorge “El Travieso” Arce have all extended their support to the 29-year-old fighting pride of San Juan Zitlaltepec, who will attempt to join this elite group of Mexican boxers who have captured world titles in four different weight divisions.

Navarrete will fight Ukrainian Olympian Denys Berinchyk (18-0, 9 KOs) for the vacant WBO lightweight world title this Saturday at Pechanga Arena in San Diego. Continue reading “Mexican legends inspire Navarrete”

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

Incredible story! Japan’s most popular news show named “Sunday Morning” of TBS television–this Sunday–revealed an untold surprising episode of “Monster” Naoya Inoue’s behavior after his very first knockdown in his career that he suffered in the opening session at the hand of Luis Nery at the Tokyo Dome.

While Naoya was sitting on the stool in the corner after the first, he was watching a big screen that replayed Nery’s left hook dropping him. Monster reportedly carefully watched the orbiting patch of Nery’s vicious left hand so that he would never take the punch again.

Is that true? Usually it is said a boxer after hitting the deck becomes temporarily unclear in thinking because of the cobwebs. Monster Inoue, however, did analyze Pantera Nery’s punching angle and timing of his countering shot in the first—thanks to the big screen replay at the Dome.

Should it be really true, he must be a Monster.