Fightnews.com

By Mauricio Sulaimán
President of the WBC – Son of José Sulaimán

When a fight meets and exceeds expectations, it is then that the world does not cease talking about the event, and the fans celebrate with joy, renewing their fascination with maximum passion for our sport.

Last Saturday, Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury thrilled, giving us a fight packed with drama that, without a doubt, positions this battle among the all-time greats in history.

The heavyweight division is, by tradition, the most prestigious. The world heavyweight champion is lauded as the most powerful, revered and feared athlete in the world. This was the case for many decades; Jack Johnson, Jack Dempsey, Joe Louis, Rocky Marciano, Muhammad Ali, Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield, Lennox Lewis, Vitaly Klishtko…

Lennox retired from boxing as WBC world champion, after his dramatic fight against Vitaly Klitschko, and Lewis was the last undisputed heavyweight champion…until now. Continue reading “A Battle for the Ages, Instant Classic”

By Damon Gonzalez / LatinBox Communications

Batyrzhan Jukembayev 139.8 vs. Ivan Redkach 140
Jonhatan Cardoso 131.4 vs. Adam Lopez 131.4
Charles Harris Jr. 141.6 vs. Kyle Erwin 141.8
Adrian Tillman 220.4 vs. Jayleen Bullock 199.2

Venue: ProBox TV Events Center, Plant City, Florida.
Promoter: ProBox
TV: Proboxtv.com

Junior welterweight arch-rivals Josh Taylor and Jack Catterall were separated by a wall of fire when they faced off for the first time during fight week ahead of their grudge rematch on Saturday night at the First Direct Arena in Leeds, England and televised on ESPN+ in the U.S. and DAZN worldwide.

Unbeaten heavyweight Johnny “The Romford Bull” Fisher (11-0, 10 KOs) will step up against former bridgerweight world title challenger Alen “The Savage” Babic (12-1, 11 KOs) when he headlines his first ever show at the Copper Box Arena in London on July 6, shown live worldwide on DAZN. Both fighters are extremely popular. Fisher has his Romford Bull Army, and the all-action Babic’s charismatic personality makes him a fan favorite inside and outside the ring.

Johnny Fisher: “I have no words other than I am locked in and ready for the hardest fight of my life.”

Alen Babic: “Johnny and his dad have definitely over-ordered this time in picking me for his next fight……I am going to enjoy teaching this posh boy some very savage lessons. I look forward to the fight but no university education can give Johnny the appetite for what’s coming his way!”

A pair of title showdowns will round out the June 15 pay-per-view event on Prime Video co-headlined Gervonta “Tank” Davis and David “El Monstruo” Benavídez taking place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. The four-bout PPV lineup includes:

• Super lightweight Gary Antuanne Russell (17-0, 17 KOs) against former WBA champion Alberto Puello (22-0, 10 KOs) for the vacant WBC interim 140lb title
• Newly elevated WBC middleweight champion Carlos Adames (23-1, 18 KOs) against Terrell Gausha (25-3-1, 12 KOs) in the PPV opener.

As previously announced Tank Davis defends his WBA lightweight title against Frank “The Ghost” Martin, while David Benavídez makes his 175-pound debut against former light heavyweight champion Oleksandr “The Nail” Gvozdyk in a matchup for the WBC interim light heavyweight title.

By Boxing Bob Newman

All props to anyone who has held a version of the heavyweight title in boxing. There has been such buildup, pomp and circumstance leading to the May 18th match in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia between WBC champ Tyson Fury and WBO/IBF/WBA champ Oleksandr Usyk. The process has included claims that the winner would be the first undisputed heavyweight champion in 25 years, or since Lennox Lewis defeated Evander Holyfield in their rematch for the WBC/WBA/IBF titles. That win however, meant Lewis was the “unified” champ at heavyweight, but not undisputed. That’s because the reigning WBO champ at the time was Vitali Klitschko. Continue reading “Usyk is the FIRST undisputed heavy champ”

The Takeover is returning to his South Florida roots.

WBO junior welterweight champion Teofimo Lopez (20-1, 13 KOs) will defend his world title against Steve “The Dragon” Claggett (38-7-2, 26 KOs) on Saturday, June 29, at the 4569-seat James L. Knight Center in downtown Miami, Florida.

In the 10-round featherweight co-feature, former WBO world champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist Robeisy Ramirez (13-2, 8 KOs) returns against Brandon Leon Benitez (21-2, 9 KOs).

The six-round televised opener sees middleweight prospect Nico Ali Walsh (10-1, 5 KOs) attempt to avenge his only pro defeat in a rematch against Sona Akale (9-1, 4 KOs).

Teofimo-Claggett, Ramirez-Benitez & Ali Walsh-Akale II will be broadcast live on ESPN.

Promoter Bob Arum: “Teofimo Lopez is among the most electrifying fighters in the sport, and I know he’s motivated to put on a show against a very tough challenger in Steve Claggett. Robeisy Ramirez wants to become a two-time world champion, and the road back starts in his adopted hometown. Nico Ali Walsh has been asking for the Akale rematch from the moment the judges’ decision came back after their first fight, and he now has a chance for revenge.”

Jack ‘El Gato’ Catterall believes that a win over arch nemesis Josh Taylor at the First Direct Arena in Leeds this Saturday will springboard him towards a long-awaited world title shot in the competitive super-lightweight division.

The bitter rivals finally rematch in a huge showdown this weekend, shown live on DAZN in the UK and around the world and exclusively on ESPN+ in the U.S., and Catterall (28-1, 13 KOs) says that a comprehensive win over former undisputed 140lbs ruler Taylor will prove that he belongs on the big stage.

“I think we’ve had two years since the fight where I’ve matured in and out of the ring,” said Catterall. “I’ve been doing a lot of developing and I think it’s my time now to prove that I do belong in these big fights. Once I beat Josh I’ll go on and win a world title. Continue reading “Catterall: I want to knock Josh Taylor out cold”

…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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