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Ohashi reserves Doheny as a substitute for Nery in case

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

“Monster” Naoya Inoue, undisputed four-belt 122-pound champion, celebrated his thirty-first birthday at Ohashi Gym on Wednesday in Yokohama, Japan. Naoya said, “I have been world champion for the last ten years, and it is my honor to be able to defend my belts at the gigantic Tokyo Dome (whose capacity is 55,000 for a boxing event).”

His manager/promoter Hideyuki Ohashi, ex-WBC, WBA 105-pound titleholder, revealed his counterplot against Luis Nery in case he should fail to make weight. He reserves former champion TJ Doheny as a substitute for Nery, and TJ is prepared to fight unbeaten Filipino Bryl Bayogos (7-0-1, 2 KOs) in the curtain raiser bout on May 6. Doheny, 37, is also a southpaw like Nery. Continue reading “Happy Birthday, Monster Inoue”

WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury held a press conference Wednesday in his hometown of Morecambe, England. With 38 days remaining before Fury faces Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight title in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, the Gypsy King looked to be in great shape and in good spirits.

Fury said his size advantage will be decisive.

“He couldn’t do anything with Derek Chisora. We all saw the fight. It was a 50/50 fight, could have gone either way. So not unless he’s come on at 38 or 39 years old over the last two years, like leaps and bounds.”

On reports that former heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko has offered advice to Usyk, Fury said, Wlad’s advice would be on how to lose to the Gypsy King. 

“How could my old pal Wlad give anybody any advice? Because he would have used it himself if he had any advice or any idea how to beat me.”

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

Faster jabber Hironori Mishiro (15-1-1, 4 KOs), 134.5, wrested the Japanese national lightweight belt as he made good use of hand speed and agility and scored a unanimous decision (97-93, 96-94 twice) over defending champ Shuma Nakazato (14-3-3, 8 KOs), 134.5, over ten hard-fought rounds on Tuesday in Tokyo, Japan. Formerly world rated Mishiro, ex-OPBF 130-pound titlist, had defeated the hard-punching son of Shigeru Nakazato, three-time world 122-pound challenger some twenty years ago, on points in 2017. The sturdy champ maintained the pressure to take the initiative after the fifth—all 48-47 for Nakazato on the open scoring system. Mishiro, however, utilized his superior and sharper jabs to dominate the second half to have the tide turn in his favor. Continue reading “Mishiro dethrones Japanese 135lb champ Nakazato”

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

Unbeaten lefty prospect whose amateur mark being 102-10, JBC#1 Kuntae Lee (7-0-1, 2 KOs), 140, managed to capture the Japanese national super light belt from Homura Fujita (12-2, 10 KOs), 140, by a unanimous decision (all 97-93) over ten on Tuesday in Tokyo, Japan. Lee had a tough time coping with the rough-and-tumble swinger, suffered a cut over the right eyebrow but handled the brutal aggressor with counters and footwork. Continue reading “Lee defeats Fujita, wins Japanese 140lb belt”

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

Do you remember ex-WBA world junior middleweight champ Koichi Wajima, who acquired the belt on three occasions by defeating Carmelo Bossi, Oscar Shotgun and Jae-Do Yuh in 1970s? His welterweight grandson Taishin Isotani (6-3, 5 KOs), 146.75, impressively pounded out a unanimous decision (58-54 twice, 57-55) over Kota Matsuno (3-3, 2 KOs), 146.5, as the six-footer dropped his grudge rival twice in rounds two and four—with a one-two combo and with a vicious left hook respectively. Continue reading “3x world champ Wajima’s grandson Isotani victorious”

By Jeff Zimmerman

KingRy addresses Devin camp vs Tank without the rehydration clause, weight draining and much more at his media day in Dallas.

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By Jeff Zimmerman

KingRy addresses David Benavidez DAZN interview where he had “one too many” and making amends with Canelo at his media day in Dallas as he prepares for Haney at Barclays Center April 20 and live on DAZN.

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By Jeff Zimmerman

One-on-One with Golden Boy CEO and boxing legend Oscar De La Hoya at the Ryan “KingRy” Garcia Media Day at trainer Derrick Jame’s World Class Boxing Gym in Dallas ahead of the Haney-Garcia showdown on April 20 at Barclays Center and live on DAZN.

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By Jeff Zimmerman

KingRy works out with trainer Derrick James at his Media Day in Dallas as he prepares to fight amateur rival Devin Haney on Sat, April 20, at Barclays Center and shown live on DAZN.

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By Jeff Zimmerman

Henry Garcia, father of boxing superstar Ryan Garcia, talks about their history with the Haney’s and what to expect when his son faces Devin on Sat, April 20 at the Barclays Center and shown live on DAZN.

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By Jeff Zimmerman

Sean Garcia, Ryan’s brother, talks about Ryan’s upcoming fight vs Devin Haney and addresses his mental health in the lead up to this Super Fight on Sat, April 20 at Barclays Center and live on DAZN.

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

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) recently expressed its position regarding boxing and its future in the Olympic Games.

The IOC categorically confirmed that IBA, formerly called AIBA, is excluded from any recognition as the International Association in charge of administering Olympic boxing. In addition, it announced that it’s looking for a new group to acquire the administration of our sport, otherwise, boxing will be excluded from the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games. Continue reading “The future of Olympic boxing”

The PPV undercard is set for the Canelo Álvarez vs. Jaime Munguía event taking place May 4 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

In the co-main event, former world champion Mario “El Azteca” Barrios (28-2, 18 KOs) will defend his WBC interim welterweight title against Fabián “TNT” Maidana (22-2, 16 KOs), younger brother of former world champion Marcos Maidana. Former world champion Brandon “The Heartbreaker” Figueroa (24-1-1, 18 KOs) puts his WBC interim featherweight title on the line against former world champion Jessie Magdaleno (29-2, 18. KOs). In the PPV opener, WBA welterweight champion Eimantas Stanionis (14-0, 9 KOs) battling unbeaten two-time Olympian Gabriel Maestre (6-0-1, 5 KOs).

Heavyweight prospect Richard Torrez Jr., (9-0, 9 KOs) the U.S. Olympic silver medalist who has knocked out every man he’s faced, hopes to extend his streak of fallen foes. Torrez steps up against fellow unbeaten Brandon Moore (14-0, 8 KOs) on Saturday, May 18 at Pechanga Arena San Diego.

The eight-round televised opener joins a loaded bill headlined by the vacant WBO lightweight world title showdown between Mexican three-weight world champion Emanuel “Vaquero” Navarrete and Ukraine’s Denys Berinchyk. The 12-round welterweight co-feature, a match of undefeated contenders, will see San Diego native Giovani Santillan fight Brian Norman Jr.

Navarrete-Berinchyk, Santillan-Norman and Torrez-Moore will be broadcast LIVE on ESPN.

Eye of the Tiger has postponed its April 11 card headlined by WBC #3, WBA #3, WBO #3, IBF #6 super middleweight Erik Bazinyan against Shakeel Phinn for the NABF and WBA International titles. The new date is Thursday, May 2 at the Cabaret du Casino de Montréal. Bazinyan has been suffering from sinusitis for a few days, so Eye of the Tiger decided to postpone the fight.

“We waited a few days before making the decision, hoping that his antibiotics would help him recover, but unfortunately, that’s not the case, and he’s still too unwell,” said EOTTM general manager Antonin Décarie. “However, we are relieved to be able to offer boxing fans this long-awaited fight within a reasonable timeframe,” he added.

Tickets for the originally scheduled gala on April 11 will be honored on May 2. Customers who are not available on this new date will also be offered the option of a refund by Ticketmaster. The deadline for refund requests is April 19.

World-ranked light heavyweight Richie “Popeye the Sailor Man” Rivera (26-2, 19 KOs) won a ten round unanimous over Devaun Lee (11-12-1, 6 KOs) in the main event in front of over 4,000 fans at Mohegan Sun Casino on Saturday night. Scores were 100-90, 97-93 and 97-93.

In a clash between undefeated super bantamweights, Travon Lawson (6-0, 3 KOs) edged out a controversial and minor upset split decision over Rajon Chance (8-1-1, 6 KOs). The scores were 78-73 Chance, 77-75 twice for Lawson. Continue reading “Rivera defeats Lee”

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Boxing Beat Magazine, Joe Koizumi

Veteran campaigners of Japan and Australia furiously competed with the vacant OPBF super middleweight title at stake on Saturday in Sakai, Osaka, Japan. Japanese southpaw, ex-OPBF 160-pound champ Yuki Nonaka (38-12-3, 11 KOs), 167.5, seized the regional 168-pound belt by pounding out a close but unanimous decision (115-114, 115-113, 118-110) over former IBF world middle ruler Sam Soliman (49-19-1, 19 KOs), 166.5, over twelve hard-fought rounds.

It was a close affair with each seldom catching the opponent with precision. Nonaka, however, was a bit more aggressive, occasionally scoring with southpaw straight lefts to the tricky and unorthodox Aussie. Sam tasted his first setback here despite his previous victories in a couple of bouts in 2003. Continue reading “Nonaka defeats Soliman, wins vacant OPBF 168lb belt”

…wins WBO AP 115lb belt

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

Unsung prospect Tetsuro Ohashi (12-3-1, 3 KOs), 115, brilliantly upset WBC, WBO both #2 Kenta Nakagawa (24-5-1, 12 KOs), 115, by scoring a fine TKO victory at 2:48 of the tenth round in a scheduled twelve, and wrested the WBO Asia Pacific junior bantam belt on Saturday in Tokyo, Japan.

It was a see-saw affair, but it turned out that Ohashi had been leading on points at the stoppage: 86-85, 87-84 for him, but 84-87 for Nakagawa. The aggressor Tetsuro caught the fading champ with a vicious southpaw left to the button, badly dropping him on the knees. Ohashi, 25, swarmed over the 38-year-old groggy champ with a fusillade of punches and prompted the referee Fukuchi to intervene and call a well-received halt. Continue reading “Ohashi upsets WBC #2, WBO #2 Nakagawa”

By Héctor Villarreal
Photos: Martín Pérez

Super lightweight Jonathan “Alta Gamma” Miniel (5-0, 5 KOs) stopped Jonathan “El Bloque” Torres (4-1, 1 KO), at 3:00 of the very first round to claim the vacant National championship in the main event of the Boxing Summer Fest card in which Laguna Premium presented the top local rising stars facing opponents of their same level, on Thursday night at the Arena Roberto Duran in Panama City, Panama. Continue reading “Miniel KOs Torres, wins Panama 140lb belt”

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

Game and crafty Jukiya Iimura (6-1, 2 KOs), 111.75, had a tough time coping with aggressive and agile Yuga Inoue (15-4-1, 3 KOs), 112, but finally retained his Japanese flyweight belt by a dramatic stoppage at 1:28 of the ninth round in a scheduled ten on Saturday in Tokyo, Japan. Iimura, a former amateur speedster, wrested the national belt from Josuke Nagata last July, and he registered his second defense to his credit. The champ scored a flash knockdown with a light left hook to the temple in round two, but the challenger furiously retaliated with all he had in every round since. The ninth and fatal session witnessed Jukiya dig a strong shot to the midsection to deck Yuga in agony so that he was obviously unable to raise himself and resume fighting. The ref promptly called a halt without completing the fatal ten. It was Iimura’s best performance in his short career without doubt. Continue reading “Iimura halts Inoue, keeps Japanese 112lb belt”

In an IBF junior welterweight world title eliminator, Richardson Hitchins (18-0, 7 KOs) took a twelve round unanimous decision over Gustavo Lemos (29-1, 19 KOs) on Saturday night at the Fontainebleau Las Vegas. Lemos pressed the action non-stop, but judges preferred the work of Hitchins, 117-111, 115-113, 115-113. Hitchins earned a shot at IBF chanpion Subriel Matias.

Unbeaten super middleweight Diego Pacheco (21-0, 17 KOs) won a tactical ten-rounder over Shawn McCalman (15-1, 7 KOs). Scores 98-92, 97-93, 96-94. Pacheco retained his WBO International and USWBC titles

Olympic gold medalist Galal Yafai (7-0, 4 KOs) stopped Agustin Gauto (21-2, 15 KOs) in round eight of a hard-fought contest. Referee’s stoppage at 2:40. Yafai retained his WBC International flyweight title.

In a clash for the vacant WBC female featherweight title, Skye Nicolson (10-0, 1 KOs) scored a one-sided ten round unanimous decision over Sarah Mahfoud (14-2, 3 KOs). Scores were 100-90, 100-90, 99-91.

Unbeaten super featherweight Marc Castro (12-0, 8 KOs) outscored Abraham Montoya (22-6-1, 14 KOs) over ten rounds, 100-90, 98-92, 97-93.

Unbeaten Bakhram Murtazaliev (23-0, 16 KOs) of Russia stopped former WBA super welterweight champion Jack Culcay (33-5, 14 KOs) of Germany in round 11 to win the vacant IBF world super welter title. The two slugged it out from the beginning to end on very even terms. A true fight of the year candidate giving the fans a memorable fight. Murtazaliev had his breakthrough moment in round 11 where he seriously rocked Culcay with a number of solid punches finally dropping him with a left hook with seconds to go in round eleven. Culcay, on very unsteady legs, beat the count but the referee correctly waved the bout off. The event was promoted by Almin Kuc (Kuc Boxing Promotion GmbH), Ingo Volckmann (Agon Sports) with the site of the event being the Stadthalle, Falkensee, Brandenburg, Germany

Unbeaten super lightweight Ernesto “Tito” Mercado (15-0, 14 KOs) got an easy W against Deiner Berrio (22-5-1, 13 KOs) on Saturday night at the Red Owl Boxing Arena in Houston, Texas. The 22-year-old Mercado pounded on the defensive-minded Berrio for three rounds and Berrio stayed on the stool after the round.

Richardson Hitchins 139.8 vs. Gustavo Lemos 138.4

Diego Pacheco 167.4 vs. Shawn McCalman 167.6

Galal Yafai 111.6 vs. Agustin Gauto 111.2
Skye Nicolson 125,6 vs. Sarah Mahfoud 125
Marc Castro 130 vs. Abraham Montoya 129
Steven Navarro 115.6 vs. Jose Lopez 114.8
Harley Mederos 134.6 vs Pedro Vicente 134.8

Venue: Fontainebleau Las Vegas
Promoter: Matchroom
TV: DAZN

Bakhram Murtazaliev 153.5 vs. Jack Culcay 153.7
(IBF junior middleweight title)
*This is for the vacant IBF world title formerly held by Jermell Charlo

Ismael Seck 159.9 vs. Etinosa Oliha 159
Omir Rodriguez 156.3 vs. Edin Avdic 159.4
Uisma Lima 151.7 vs. Haro Matevosyan 152.6
Yeison Gonzalez 146.6 vs. Viktor Cakiqi 146.9
Simone Bono 153.2 vs. Paul Wall 153.7

Venue: Stadthalle, Falkensee, Germany
Promoter: AGON Sports/Kuc Boxing
TV: RBB (Germany)