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In a unification fight for the WBO and WBA cruiserweight titles, WBA champion Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez (47-1, 30 KOs) took the title of WBO champion Chris Billam-Smith (20-2, 13 KOs) via twelve round unanimous decision on Saturday night at The Venue in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Zurdo simply outworked Billam-Smith en route to a 116-112, 116-112, 116-113 win. Zurdo now has two belts with Noel Mikaelyan (WBC) and Jai Opetaia (IBF) holding the other big four championships.

“Me and my team were prepared, we knew that he’s a tough fighter and a strong guy. It was an honor for me to fight him and get the belt,” Ramirez said following the fight. “I tried to use my distance as much as I could. He’s tough, he comes forward all the time and he’s a strong fighter. I just have respect for him, he’s a great champion. Of course, I want to unify with all the champions. That’s the main goal for me and other champions.”

In a clash between former stablemates, undefeated WBO #1-ranked Arnold Barboza Jr. (31-0, 11 KOs) scored a ten round unanimous decision over 2012 U.S. Olympian and former unified super lightweight champion Jose Ramirez (29-2, 18 KOs) in an important non-title encounter on Saturday night at The Venue in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Barboza never let Ramirez get untracked in a technical bout that never heated up. Scores were 97-93, 96-94, 96-94.

In a minimum unification fight, WBO Champion Oscar “El Pupilo” Collazo (11-0, 8 KOs) knocked out long-reigning WBA minimumweight champion Thammanoon “Knockout CP Freshmart” Niyomtrong (25-1, 9 KOs) in round seven. Collazo dropped Niyomtrong in round six and twice in round seven to end it. Time was 1:29.

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WBA #9 super lightweight Oscar “La Migraña” Duarte (28-2-1, 22 KOs) hammered out a ten round unanimous decision over Botirzhon Akhmedov (10-4, 9 KOs). Scores were 98-92, 97-93, 96-94.

Local hero Ziyad Almaayouf (6-0, 1 KO) and Juan Garcia (5-6-1, 0 KOs) battled to a split draw in a six-round welterweight bout.

By Jeff Zimmerman

Jake Paul Postfight Press Conference

Team Tyson Postfight Press Conference

Katie Taylor Postfight Press Conference

Andre Ward Postfight Press Conference

YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul has admitted that he carried 58-year-old ring legend Mike Tyson in their boxing match on Friday night in Arlington, Texas.

“I wanted to give the fans a show,” said Paul at the post fight press conference, “but I didn’t wanna hurt someone that didn’t need to be hurt. [I took my foot off the pedal] a little bit, yeah like I did. There was a point where you know I was just like ‘OK he’s not really engaging back and I don’t know if he’s tired or whatever’ and I could just tell that his age was showing a little bit.

“I just have so much respect for him, and that violence/war thing between us like after he slapped me, I wanted to be aggressive and take him down and knock him out and all that stuff, but that kind of went away as the rounds went on.”

By Jeff Zimmerman at ringside

In an official heavyweight boxing match, Jake “El Gallo” Paul (11-1, 7 KOs) scored an eight round unanimous decision over 58-year-old ring legend “Iron” Mike Tyson (50-7, 44 KOs) on Friday night in front of 72,300-seat at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Scores were 80-72, 79-73, 79-73. The fight was fought with 14-ounce gloves and two-minute rounds.

Tyson came out strong in round one and landed the first blow of the night, a right hand to the head of Paul. Paul landed a shot later in the round as Tyson was warned of a low blow. Staying on the outside in round two, Paul scored with a body shot as Tyson landed a solid left hook. By round three, it was clear Tyson could not move well with a brace on his right leg as Paul continued to control the fight from the outside. In round four, Paul’s confidence grew as he let his hand go and hit Tyson with combinations. From rounds 5-8, it was mostly Paul picking his shots to the head and body whereas Tyson land an occasional left hook to Paul’s head. Continue reading “Jake Paul decisions Mike Tyson”

By Jeff Zimmerman at ringside

Super lightweight champion Katie Taylor (24-1, 6 KOs) out of Ireland went toe-to-toe with her Puerto Rican nemesis Amanda Serrano (47-3-1, 31 KOs) once again over ten brutal rounds and escaped the Lone Star State with a unanimous decision to retain her WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO and Ring belts in another instant classic. Taylor barely beat Serrano via split decision in their 2022 fight of the year at Madison Square Garden. This time it was 95-94 3x.

In a continuation of their last fight, Serrano and Taylor went right to work. Serrano, a southpaw, showed off her blazing speed early and went right after Taylor and connected a left hook on the jaw at the end of the round. Taylor landed power right hands in round two and both exchanged blows in round three. Continue reading “Taylor edges Serrano again”

By Jeff Zimmerman at ringside

In a classic welterweight clash, “El Aztec” Mario Barrios (29-2-1, 18 KOs) out of San Antonio battled fellow Mexican Abel Ramos (28-6-3, 22 KOs) out of Arizona to a split draw over twelve bloody, entertaining rounds on Friday night at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The scores read 114-112 Ramos, 116-110 Barrios and113-113.

Barrios came out on fire from the opening bell using a pinpoint one, two on Ramos and appeared to drop him in round one as it appeared Ramos’ hand touched the canvas. In round two there was no debate as Barrios put Ramos on his back with a left hand to the body followed by a right hand to the head. Using his clear size advantage, it seemed this might be an early night for the WBC welterweight champ. Continue reading “Barrios and Ramos battle to a draw”

By Jeff Zimmerman at ringside

In the first boxing match on Netflix to kick off the Paul-Tyson heavyweight clash at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX, super middleweight Neeraj Goyat 19-4-2 8 KOs, an actor and star in India, battled Brazilian musician YouTube sensation with 44.7 million subscribers Whindersson Nunes (2-3-1 2 KOs) over six entertaining rounds. Goyat used his experience and quick hands to out box Nunes to win a six round unanimous decision. Goyat, clearly an entertainer, waved his hands early in the fight to get the crowd engaged, and left his hands at his side to goat Nunes to throw punches. Goyat landed fast combos at times as Nunes countered at times and landed a few right hands, but not enough to win rounds. Goyat is signed to Most Valuable Promotions and even wants to fight his promoter, Jake Paul. Goyat called him out in the pre-fight presser and Jake responded that it would happen in India. For now, Goyat gets the title of the first winner on a live Netflix card to share with his millions of fans in India as the scores read 60-54 twice and 59-55.

Shadasia Green (16-1, 11 KOs) claimed the vacant WBO super middleweight belt with a hard fought win split decision against the undefeated Canadian Melinda Watpool (7-1, 2 KOs) for the vacant WBO super middleweight title. Green controlled the early rounds with on the outside as she landed a straight right hand to the face of Watpool. Watpool took the fight inside and had her most success as she took the fight to Green over the second half of the contest. Over ten action packed rounds, Green squeaked out the win with scores of 97-93 and 96-94 twice. Green wins her first world title after losing against Franchon Crews Dezurn for the WBC strap in 2023.

In a competitive super lightweight battle, Lucas Bahdi (18-0, 15 KOs) from Niagara Falls, Canada, scored a ten round majority decision against Armando Casamonica (14-1, 3 KOs) out of Rome Italy. It took some time to heat up as Casamonica was the early aggressor. Bahdi started to let his hands go in the middle rounds. In a tactical fight, neither fighter was hurt, as the fight lasted the full ten rounds. Scores read 95-95, 96-93, 98-92 for Bahdi as he remained undefeated with the victory and gave the Italian his first loss of his career.

In the opening bout at AT&T Stadium of the massive Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson battle live on Netflix, rising featherweight star Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington (15-0, 8 KOs) said he was going to steal the show versus Dana Coolwell (13-4, 8 KOs) and he sure tried to make his case early in the night. “Shu Shu”, a product of Brownsville, NY, like his idol “Iron Mike,” dropped Coolwell twice to score a dominant unanimous decision, 80-70 x 3.

Carrington put his full arsenal on display landing left hooks to the body, right hand uppercuts and everything in between. It was a left hook that dropped Coolwell in round four and the same shot that hurt him in round eight before “Shu Shu” put him down again with a flurry of shots in the corner. Coolwell was game and survived to the final bell but was no match for the ultra-skilled Carrington. The night could only get better for Carrington if “Iron Mike” beats Jake to win a 1 million dollar bet he made with Jake at weigh-ins on Thursday.

Weights and Photos by Brad Snyder, The Undercard

Justin Johnson 167 vs. Jonathan Ryan Burrs 165 lbs
Justin Lacey-Pierce 148.4 vs. Jessie Addison 149.8
Ramon Guevara 142.6 vs. Travis Floyd 149.2
Roberto Hernandez 132.8 vs. Ethen Curtis 131
Garrett Ross 162 vs. Ashaun Bates 166
Ulysses Campos 145.6 vs. Brodyx Gilman 152

Venue: Causeway Hotel and Convention Center, Lansing, Michigan
Promoter: CLIP Promotions and Rebel Combat
First bell: 8pm, tickets available at the door.

Zurdo Ramirez 199.6 vs. Chris Billam-Smith 199.4
(WBA/WBO cruiserweight unification)\

Jose Ramirez 139.6 vs. Arnold Barboza Jr.140

William Zepeda 134.2 vs. Tevin Farmer 135
(WBC interim lightweight title)

Oscar Collazo 104.8 vs. Thammanoon Niyomtrong 104.8
(WBA/WBO minimumweight unification)

Oscar Duarte 141.8 vs. Botirzhon Akhmedov 141.8
Ziyad Almaayouf 143.2 vs. Juan Garcia 141.8

Venue: The Venue, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Promoter: Golden Boy
TV: DAZN

Avious Griffin 147 vs. Adrian Gutierrez 147
Dominique Crowder 120 vs. Duke Micah 120
Justin Figueroa 155 vs. Omar Rosales 155
Donte Layne 167 vs. Shaquille Cameron 162
Dwyke Flemmings, Jr. 156 vs. David Lobo Ramirez 155
Bruce Seldon, Jr. 231 vs. Julio Mendoz 231
Stacia Suttles 141 vs. Maroya Agapova 138
Shera Mae Patricio 119 vs. Sarah Click 120
Giacomo Micheli 140 vs. Ronnell Burnett 140

Venue: The Showroom at Tropicana Atlantic City
Promoter: Boxing Insider Promotions
TV: DAZN

Light heavyweight stars will go face-to-face as WBC interim light heavyweight champion David “El Monstro” Benavídez and WBA light heavyweight champion David Morrell Jr. hold a Los Angeles press conference to preview their showdown that will headline a PBC Pay-Per-View event on Prime Video taking place Saturday, February 1 from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

The press conference will also feature WBC featherweight world champion Brandon “The Heartbreaker” Figueroa and former unified world champion Stephen Fulton Jr., as they meet in a much-anticipated rematch in the co-main event.

Also at Tuesday’s press conference will be fan-favorite and former world champion Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz and hard-charging contender Angel Fierro, as they meet in an all-Mexican attraction, and rising Mexican star Jesus “Mono” Ramos Jr. and former unified champion Jeison Rosario, who square off in the pay-per-view opener.

By Jeff Zimmerman

BJ Flores

BJ Flores, former coach of Jake Paul and once a world title contender at cruiserweight and heavyweight, gave his take on what to expect tonight as Jake squares off against “Iron Mike” Tyson at AT&T Stadium and live on Netflix.

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Rafael Cordeiro – Mike Tyson head trainer

Rafael Cordeiro, head trainer Mike Tyson, discussed how he and “Iron Mike” came together and how he prepared the former heavyweight champion and living legend to take on the young lion that is Jake Paul.

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Pacman Jones

Former NFL defensive back and one of the best to do it, Pacman Jones, gives prediction on Paul-Tyson.

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By Jeff Zimmerman

“Iron Mike” Tyson slapped Jake Paul at the weigh-ins Thursday as they were about to faceoff for the final time before they square in the ring Friday night at AT&T Stadium and live on Netflix! Get your popcorn ready!

By Héctor Villarreal

After the total success achieved on October 19 in the confrontation of proven lightweight veterans, Ricardo “The Scientist” Nuñez and Jezrrel “Invisible” Corrales, Laguna Premium Boxing once again activates the Roberto Duran Arena with another anticipated natural clash between local talents, this time the undefeated KO artist Jonathan Miniel (7-0, 6 KOs) facing the dangerous Orlando “Virus” Mosquera (13-3-1, 2 KOs), both prospects in the rise of their careers.

“We are very proud to be the only company that promotes events in the legitimate temple of Panamanian boxing, the Roberto Duran Arena, matching the best vs the best, almost exclusively Panamanians”, said Rousse Laguna de Moreno, adding that “we take a huge risk by doing them on Saturdays, as it should always be, without worrying about the effect that the broadcasts of the big fights all around the world may cause, because we strongly believe in the quality of our local product.” Continue reading “Prospects Miniel-Mosquera collide Dec 14 in Panama”

By Jeff Zimmerman at the scale

Jake Paul 227.2 vs. Mike Tyson 228.4
The moment they faced off, Tyson slapped Paul and the fighters were separated.

Katie Taylor 137.4 vs. Amanda Serrano 137.4
(undisputed female super lightweight title)

Mario Barrios 146.8 vs. Abel Ramos 146.4
(WBC welterweight title)

Neeraj Goyat 162 vs. Whindersson Nunes 164
Shadasia Green 167.8 vs. Melinda Watpool 166.8
WBO female super middleweight title)
Lucas Bahdi 134.6 vs. Armando Casamonica 138.6
Bruce Carrington 125.8 vs. Dana Coolwell 125.2

Venue: AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas, USA
Promoter: MVP Promotions
TV: Netflix

WBA cruiserweight champion Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez (46-1, 30 KOs) and WBO cruiserweight champion Chris Billam-Smith (20-1, 13 KOs) faced off for their unification clash at the final press conference ahead of Latino Night Saturday on DAZN from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Gilberto Ramirez: “I’m ready for whatever he [Billam-Smith] brings to the table…I’ll show everyone that I’m ready for this division. I’m going to prove to myself and to everyone else on Saturday night that I’m ready to take the belt.”

Chris Billam-Smith: “While this night is supposed to be Zurdo’s, unfortunately I’m here to spoil the party again and I’ll be doing that Saturday night. “I know the level I’m at. There’s no offense taken [at being referred to as the underdog]. It gives me even more drive and he’ll be eating humble pie on Saturday night.”

By Jeff Zimmerman

Stitch Duran, the premier cutman in combat sports, was at the Jake Paul vs Mike Tyson press conference as part of Team Tyson. Stitch talked about how well “Iron Mike” looked in camp and is ready to be in his corner this Friday, Nov. 15 at AT&T Stadium and live on Netflix.

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Keeps Japanese 115lb belt

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

When WBA featherweight champ Wilfredo Vazquez annihilated Japanese challenger Yuji Watanabe in five lopsided rounds here in 1997, we never imagined the loser’s nephew would become a professional boxer and then a national titlist since he was just five months old upon his uncle’s ill-fated world title shot that resulted in a jaw bone fracture. His nephew Suzumi Takayama (9-0, 8 KOs; amateur 35-16, 10 stoppages), 115, made his third defense of the Japanese super flyweight belt by dispatching Isao Aoyama (14-13-1, 4 KOs), 114.5, at 3:06 of the second session in a scheduled ten on Tuesday in Tokyo, Japan.

WBA#8 southpaw Takayama caught the underdog so quickly in the opening session and almost brought home the bacon within the first three minutes of the bout. But JBC#12 Aoyama, 35 and seven years his senior, desperately withstood the champ’s opening attack and occasionally displayed a gallant retaliation. In the closing seconds of round two, however, Takayama proved too strong and powerful for the overmatched challenger as he sank the game but limited rival with a vicious southpaw right hook that had him listen to the fatal ten on all fours on the canvas. His uncle Yuji Watanabe might smile at his impressive triumph though he needs more improvement on his defensive skills (he undesirably absorbed some of the bad loser’s opening attack). Suzumi is also rated #7 by IBF, #9 by WBO and #10 by WBC. Continue reading “WBA#8 Takayama ices Aoyama”

By Jeff Zimmerman

Jake Paul and Mike Tyson faced off at the final press conference at the Toyota Music Factory as they get ready to go to battle Friday, Nov. 15 at AT&T Stadium and live on Netflix.

By Jeff Zimmerman

Amer Abdallah, boxing advisor for Team Tyson, disclosed how “Iron Mike” has looked in camp at 58, and what to expect versus YouTuber turned boxer Jake Paul this Friday at AT&T Stadium and live on Netflix worldwide.

By Jeff Zimmerman

“Iron Mike” Tyson is mobbed by fans after his public workout at the Toyota Music Factory where he showed off his speed and movement as he prepares to take on Jake Paul this Friday, Nov 15, AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX, and live on Netflix.

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Strength and Conditioning Coach for Jake Paul

By Jeff Zimmerman

Coach Larry Wade, Strength and Conditioning Coach for Jake Paul, discusses how he prepared Jake to take on “the baddest man on the planet,” “Iron Mike” Tyson this Friday, Nov 15 at AT&T Stadium and live on Netflix. Coach Wade doesn’t see it going the distance and said Jake is looking to stop Mike in the fourth or fifth round!

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By Jeff Zimmerman

“Iron Mike” Tyson, “the baddest man on the planet,” looked in phenomenal shape at 58 as he showed off his skills in front of a packed house at The Toyota Music Factory in Irving, TX, as he gets ready to take on YouTuber turned boxer Jake Paul on Friday, Nov 15, at AT&T Stadium and live worldwide on Netflix. Tyson gave Jake his first opportunity in the ring when Tyson fought Roy Jones Jr in an exhibition in 2020 and now will share the ring with him in what is anticipated to be the most viewed fight of all time.

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It was clear Jake put on some pounds to absorb punches from one of the hardest hitting heavyweight’s of all time in Tyson.

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All Star Boxing presents its final show of the year on November 29th from Centro de Combates in Panama City, Panama. In the main event, flyweight contender Cristian “Chicharito” Gonzalez (15-2-1, 5 KOs) of Mexico City, Mexico squares off against former world title challenger Leroy “El Sensacional” Estrada (18-4, 8 KOs) in a 10 rounder on ESPN Knockout seen throughout Latin America.

“Our Main event is a good showdown as Chicharito has his hands full with Estrada,” stated President Tuto Zabala Jr. “Our mission is to deliver entertaining fights to the fans. This year has been a great year for our company and we look forward to carrying the momentum in 2025 with more historic events.” Continue reading “Gonzalez-Estrada collide Nov 29”