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Undefeated WBC middleweight champion Jermall Charlo and Jose Benavidez Jr. went back and forth during a heated virtual press conference Tuesday ahead of their 10-round non-title WBC special event that serves as the Showtime PPV co-main event on November 25 from Michelob ULTRA Arena at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.

Jermall Charlo: “He’s gonna see what it’s about when he’s in there. He can keep running his mouth, because he’s gonna find out.”

Jose Benavidez Jr: “It’s gonna be funny when I whoop you. I always keep this same energy.”

More Quotes

360 Promotions hosted the final New York City Press Conference at Legends NYC for Thursday’s Hollywood Fight Nights event in The Theater at Madison Square Garden featuring ‘King’ Callum Walsh (8-0, 7 KOs) against Ismael ‘The Beast’ Villarreal (13-1, 9 KOs) in the ten-round main event on UFC Fightpass.

Tom Loeffler, President of 360 Promotions, stated “This is 10 years to the week from when ‘GGG’ headlined The Theater at Madison Square Garden against Curtis Stevens which was a huge launching pad and it really feels like we’re using the same steps with Callum. With the marketability and the charisma that Callum has it feels like we’re recreating the situation with GGG where he was able to successfully fight on both coasts, here in New York City and Los Angeles.

“Callum is 8-0 with seven knockouts, he’s 22 years old and he’s got a great future in front of him. He’s trained by Hall of Famer Freddie Roach…I think that Callum has all the makings of a global superstar.”

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

This past November 1st we celebrated, in New York City , the centennial anniversary of the Jack Dempsey vs. Luis Ángel Firpo which took place at the famous Polo Grounds, a stadium where the Yankees won 15 World Series, the Giants three American football championships, and more than 50 hall of fame boxers fought and had a nights of glory.

I had the great honor of meeting and spending time with Joseph Halperin, who is the grandson of one of the most important promoters in the history of our sport: Tex Rickard.

Rickard promoted all the big fights in the United States in the first quarter of the 1900’s often building stadiums just for the fight, such as Jack Johnson vs. Jeffries, or with Jack Dempsey in many occasions and many more until his untimely death, at age 56. He was the one who paved the way for subsequent generations of promoters to this day. Continue reading “Great closing of the year for boxing”

By Bob Ryder

Promoter Vick Green continues to provide the Toledo fight fans with entertaining cards featuring the best in local talent and this Saturday he presents WBO number one super featherweight contender Albert Bell in the 10 round main event. Bell (24-0, 7 KOs) will clash with former world title challenger Jayson Velez (30-11-1, 21 KOs).

Velez has been in there with fighters such as Ryan Garcia and Oscar Valdez in addition to his split draw IBF world title match vs Evgeny Gradovich back in 2014. Puerto Rican Velez has slipped some the last couple of years having lost 6 of his last 7 bouts but should provide a good match for Bell as a lot is at stake for both main event participants. Huge props go to Bell for risking his #1 ranking as most boxers today in his position would be content to sit and wait for a mandated title fight. Conversely, Velez could reinvigorate his career with an upset win and move himself back into contention for bigger fights. Continue reading “Bell risks WBO #1 ranking in Toledo Saturday”

In their last scheduled fight of 2023, Golden Boy will close out the year at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino on December 14 with unbeaten super bantamweight Jose “Tito” Sanchez (11-0, 7 KOs) against Walter Santibañes (12-2, 2 KOs) in a ten-rounder to be broadcast worldwide on DAZN.

Trained by world renowned Joel Diaz in Indio, Sanchez was last seen in Puerto Rico securing a WBC regional belt via third round technical knockout against Carlos Caraballo this past July 12. “Honestly, it’s been a very long time since I’ve actually fought in my hometown, but I am thrilled,” said Sanchez.

Santibañes was last seen inside the ring in June, where he defeated the hometown fighter Manuel “Gucci Manny” Flores. He will now be looking to defeat another hometown favorite. “The last time I was in the B-corner as the main event, I walked out of the ring with an upset victory,” said Santibañes. “I plan to do it again.”

WBO #1 ranked cruiserweight contender Richard Riakporhe (16-0, 12 KOs) returns to the ring on Saturday, November 18th as he looks to maintain his unbeaten record and remain on course for a world title challenge. Riakporhe will face former French national cruiserweight champion and two-time EBU European challenger Dylan Bregeon (13-4-1, 3 KOs) at The Halls in Wolverhampton and airing live on Sky Sports in the UK and Ireland and Peacock in the USA.

The show is headlined by a European title double-header as super lightweight Adam Azim challenges EBU champion Franck Petitjean and middleweight Tyler Denny challenges EBU champion Matteo Signani.

“A lot has happened since I’ve been away but on November 18th I am back and reminding everyone why I am the number one contender in this division.” said Riakporhe. Continue reading “WBO #1 Riakporhe returns Nov 18”

Jamel Herring 131.8 vs. Nicholas Molina 131.2
Miyo Yoshida 117.8 vs. Shurretta Metcalf 117.8
Roney Hines 245 vs. Jonathan Gruber 220.8
Mikiah Kreps 123 vs. Isis Vargas Perez 121.6

Venue: Edison Ballroom, in Times Square, New York City
Promoter: DiBella Entertainment
TV: DAZN

Maidel Sando 174.2 vs. Cleotis Pendarvis 175.2
Julio Gomez 134.4 vs. Dreon Merriweather 134.8
Erick Arellano 228.2 vs. Ritchie Cherry 230.6
Elijah Lynah 199.2 vs. Kevin Torian 198.8

Venue: Troubadour Nashville
Promoter: Jimmy Adams Promotions
TV: Fite.tv (Marc Abrams and Albert Haynesworth on the call)
1st Bell 7PM CT (8 PM ET)

Heavyweight contender Jared “Real Big Baby” Anderson was reportedly arrested in Oregon, Ohio, and charged with driving under the influence and improper handling of a firearm. He was pulled over at about 1AM after police clocked him driving 55 mph in a 40 mph zone. Police say Anderson was impaired and admitted to smoking marijuana and consuming alcoholic beverages earlier in the evening. Officers searched the vehicle and found a pistol in the glove box. Anderson was booked and later released on bond. He has a court date on Tuesday.

This past Saturday, CBN Promotions held its second “New Blood” card at the at Infinite Reality Studios in Long Beach, CA. In the 8-round welterweight main event, Louie Lopez (14-2-2, 4 KOs) of Corona, CA, and Salvador Briceño (17-7, 11 KOs) of Guadalajara, Mexico, fought to a draw. Lopez had his moments in the early rounds while Briceño had his in the middle rounds. The action was going back and forth as both fighters were going for it. Heading into the final rounds it was anyone’s fight. The last round was razor close and at the end the bout ended in a draw. Scorecards read 76-76 across the board.

In the scheduled 8-round super bantamweight co-main event, Eros Correa (14-1, 9 KOs) of San Jose, CA, defeated Robin Ellis (6-1, 5 KOs) of Las Vegas, NV, by way of second round knockout. In round two, Correa landed an overhand right to the head of Ellis, sending him to the floor. Ellis couldn’t recover and the bout was stopped at the 1:05 mark of round two.

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

His wife Manami, formerly an amateur boxer serving as a corner woman as well as a hand-wrapper in this fight, helped Japan’s flyweight champ Jukiya Iimura (5-1, 1 KO), 111.25, defeat Katsuya Murakami (14-3-1, 3 KOs), 111,75, by a nearly shutout decision (all 99-91) to retain his national belt on Saturday in Tokyo, Japan. Moving to-and-fro all the way, Iimura frustrated the 5’8” taller challenger and steadily piled up points with his more accurate combos. Faster and ring crafty, Iimura, formerly a university boxer, displayed hit-and-run tactics to confuse the methodical and predictable challenger with ease.

Boxing history recalls Mrs. Jimmy Wilde having served as a sparring partner, corner lady and trainer for British pride The Mighty Atom (137-4-1, 98 KOs) in 1920’s. Will Mrs. Iimura follow the footstep of Mrs. Wilde? Continue reading “Wife helps Iimura keep Japan’s 112lb belt”

By Joe Koizumi
Photos: Naoki Fukuda

Ex-OPBF and WBO AP welter champ Ryota Toyoshima (18-3-1, 11 KOs), 146.5, acquired the right to have a mandatory shot at the national belt against Shoki Sakai as he scored a majority decision (77-75, 78-74, 76-76) over game warrior Aso Ishiwaki (12-7-1, 8 KOs), 146.25, in an eight-round eliminator on Saturday in Tokyo, Japan. Toyoshima had forfeited his WBO AP 147-pound belt to up-and-coming Jin Sasaki via first round stoppage loss last January, and scored a couple of comebacking victories since. Toyoshima’s accuracy and aggressiveness paid off to pave his way to win back the national belt.

Also, in another JBC eliminator formerly world rated Hironori Mishiro (14-1-1, 4 KOs),134.25, pounded out a unanimous decision (78-74 twice, 79-73) over Hiromasa Urakawa (9-2, 6 KOs), 134.5, over eight. Ex-OPBF 130-pound champ Mishiro, a stylish jabber, tasted his first setback to Min-Ho Jung in Korea this April, having dropped out of the world ratings. Mishiro utilized his vaunted jab and controlled the processing, accelerating his attack down the stretch. His mandatory target will be national 135-pound champ Shuma Nakazato (13-2-3, 8 KOs), the son of formerly three-time world challenger Shigeru Nakazato. Mishiro may have a jabber’s chance. Continue reading “Toyoshima, Mishiro victorious in JBC eliminators”

Lightweight Adam “Bluenose” Lopez (17-5, 6 KOs) scored a one-sided eight round unanimous decision over Giovannie Gonzalez (18-6-2, 13 KOs) on Saturday night at the famed Cow Palace in Daly City, California. Scores were 80-72 3x.

In the co-feature, unbeaten super featherweight Malikai “Machine Gun” Johnson (12-0-1, 8 KOs) stopped Eugene Lagos (16-7-3, 11 KOs) in round three with a body shot.

Unified IBF/WBO female minimumweight champion Yokasta “Yoka” Valle (30-2, 9 KOs) successfully defended her world titles against former two-time world champion Anabel “Avispa” Ortiz (33-6, 4 KOs) in a 10-round match that went the distance in front of more than five-thousand fans at the Polideportivo de Cartago in Costa Rica. Valle used her superior skillset to offset the aggressive Ortiz, the judges scoring in favor of Valle with scores of 100-90, 99-92 and 99-91.

In the co-main event, Santiago “Somer” Dominguez (26-0, 19 KOs) kept his undefeated record intact against Kelvinyer Salazar (19-3-1, 12 KOs) in an eight-round welterweight that only made it to the second round. Dominguez used a solid uppercut to end the fight at 0:44 in the second round.

WBC #7, IBF #13 heavyweight Efe Ajagba (19-1, 14 KOs) scored a fourth round TKO over Joe Goodall (10-2-1, 9 KOs) on Saturday night at the Tahoe Blue Event Center in Lake Tahoe, Nevada. Ajagba rocked Goodall in round three and went right after him in round four prompting a stoppage by referee Tony Weeks. Time was :50.

“I was out of boxing for a long time,” said Ajagba. “When I came back with Stephen Shaw (in January 2023), my confidence was not there. I had just come back from surgery, and I had to get back into shape. But right now, I came back with full confidence. That’s why I took him out. My team pushed me in training camp. They made me work extremely hard in this camp to make sure I win the fight. I sparred a lot of different guys to make me stay strong.

“Whoever they offer me to fight, I’m ready to go. I will go back with my team to talk about that.”

WBC #9, WBO #9, IBF #11 lightweight Raymond “Danger” Muratalla (19-0, 16 KOs) dominated and stopped previously unbeaten Diego Torres (18-1, 17 KOs). Muratalla dropped Torres in round eight and the bout was stopped. Time was 1:45.

In a clash between undefeated junior lightweight contenders, WBO #8, IBF #10 Henry Lebron (19-0, 10 KOs) scored a ten round majority decision over WBA #12 William Foster III (16-1, 10 KOs). Good fight with Lebron closing strong. Scores were 95-95, 96-94, 99-91.

Unbeaten heavyweight Brandon Moore (13-0, 8 KOs) won a shutout decision against Robert Simms (12-4-1, 3 KOs). Moore dropped Simms in round four en route to a 80-71 3x victory. Continue reading “Ajagba stops Goodall in four”

Photos by David Martin Warr

In a clash for the vacant WBC cruiserweight title, #1 rated Noel Mikaelian (27-2, 12 KOs) stopped former champion Ilunga Junior Makabu (29-4, 25 KOs) in round three on Saturday night at Casino Miami Jai Alai in Miami Florida. Mikaelian dropped Makabu in round two with a right hand. Mikaelian tried to finish Makabu but Makabu weathered the storm. In round three, Mikaelian floored Makabu again. Makabu beat the count but the referee waved it off. Time was 1:00.

“I didn’t expect the knockout so early, but I knew my hand would be raised (in victory) at the end of the night,” said Mikaelian. “I’m so happy. I waited two years. I was so close to winning that belt and this time I didn’t want to leave any doubts.

“I had a great camp…I’m the first German to win a world championship on American soil in 90 years, since Max Schmelling.”

Photos by David Martin Warr

WBA #13 heavyweight Jonathan Guidry (20-1-2, 12 KOs) knocked out previously unbeaten Jesus Escalera (19-1, 19 KOs) in round two on Saturday night at Casino Miami Jai Alai in Miami Florida. Guidry connected with a right hand to the head and Escalera sank to a knee for the count. Time was 2:00. Escalera, 43, compiled his entire unbeaten pro record in an eleven month time span.

“I thought he would be stronger,” said Guidry. “I know he is a dangerous fighter but tonight I was on a different level and it showed…we’re going to see what’s next. This felt like a sparring session so I will be ready for December 2nd. I always fight whoever Don King puts in front of me and that’s why I am champion. I am ready for whoever.”

Heavyweight Cassius Chaney (23-1, 16 KOs) knocked out former WBA “regular” heavyweight champion Trevor Bryan (21-1, 15 KOs) in round seven. Cheney dropped Bryan in round two and Bryan was saved by the bell. Chaney continued to punish Bryan in round three. In round four, Cheney’s punch output slowed and Bryan began to dictate the pace. Cheney came out aggressive in round seven and landed a huge right hand that dropped Bryan face first to end it. Time was 2:03. Bryan remained down for several minutes and was taken out on a stretcher.

“I saw everything,” said Cheney. “He couldn’t really get out of the way of my jab…it’s huge because that was a big-time knockout. My mindset was just to win but once I got yelled at in the corner I knew to step to him and throw the overhand right. I thought ‘I could probably get him’ and he just ran right into it.”

Other Results:
Alexander Castro TKO3 Hector Bobadilla (middleweight)
Isaiah Riquelmy W6 Rondale Hubbert (welterweight)
Cory Caad W6 Isiah Hart (super middleweight)

WBO #2, IBF #6, WBC #7 cruiserweight Michal Cieslak (25-2, 19 KOs) scored a seventh round stoppage of Tommy McCarthy (20-5, 10 KOs) to retain his EBU European title on Saturday night at the Nosalowy Dwor Resort & Spa in Zakopane, Poland. Cieslak, a former world title challenger, systematically broke down McCarthy, prompting the referee’s intervention.

Two-time former cruiserweight world champion Krzysztof “Diablo” Wlodarczyk (64-4-1, 44 KOs) needed just 84 seconds to destroy Edwin Mosquera (10-3-2, 6 KOs) in the very first round.

Former middleweight title challenger Kamil Szeremeta (25-2-1, 8 KOs) outscored Omir Rodriguez (13-12-1, 6 KOs) over eight rounds by scores of 80-71 3x. Szeremeta challenged GGG for the IBF belt in 2020 and fought Jaime Munguia the following year.

IBF super featherweight champion Joe Cordina (17-0, 9 KOs) scored a hard-fought twelve round majority decision over Edward Vazquez (15-2, 3 KOs) on Saturday night at the Casino de Monte Carlo in Monte Carlo, Monaco. Tough gritty fight with judges scoring it 114-114, 116-112, 116-112.

Unheralded light flyweight Adrian Curiel (24-4-1, 5 KOs) sensationally knocked out and dethroned previously unbeaten IBF world champion Sivenathi Nontshinga (12-1, 9 KOs) in the second round. Curiel connected with a right hand that shockingly laid out Nontshinga. Time was 1:09.

Unbeaten WBC #3 welterweight Souleymane Cissokho (17-0, 9 KOs) outscored Isaias Lucero (16-2, 10 KOs) over twelve mostly lackluster rounds. Cissokho, a 2016 Olympic medalist, dropped Lucero with a short right in round two, then cruised through the full twelve, winning 118-109, 118-109, 117-110. The fighters touched gloves after each round.

In a rematch, female super bantamweight Ramla Ali (9-1, 2 KOs) outboxed Julissa Alejandra Guzman (13-3-2, 7 KOs) over ten rounds to avenge her only loss. Scores were 96-94 3x.

Unbeaten light flyweight Luis Castillo of Los Mochis, Sinaloa, Mexico kept his 0 intact (21-0-1, 13 KOs) decisioning countryman Miguel Angel Herrera (22-7-5, 8 KOs) in the 10 round main event in Aguascalientes, Aguascalientes, Mexico. Good two-way action between the pair with Herrera the agressor most of the fight and landing a fair amount of his punches. The southpaw Castillo landed the more eye catching punches mainly his left snapping the head back of Herrera throughout the fight. There were no official scores read, just that Castillo had won by unanimous decision.

Unheralded Karia Ramos Zamora (11-10-1, 4 KOs) of Mexico upset fomer two-division (135, 140) WBC female world champion Eric Faris (27-8, 10 KOs) by fifth round TKO in a scheduled eight round bout. Farias started out strong in round one, but it was all Zamora after that putting on a full display of volume punching head and body consistently. A series of punches with Farias against the ropes in round five prompted the referee to understandably stop the fight.

London, England, Friday 3rd November 2023: GBM Sports, the new promotional force in boxing, and national broadcaster talkSPORT today announced a multi-fight agreement that will see talkSPORT’s boxing YouTube channel live stream GBM Sports’ Championship boxing events.

The first event will be broadcast in early 2024 starting in Sheffield, followed by further regular shows in key cities around the UK where GBM Sports will be breaking new ground. Continue reading “GBM Sports inks deal with talkSPORT”

The World Boxing Association (WBA) Championships Committee ordered a fight for the vacant WBA featherweight title between Otabek Kholmatov and Raymond Ford. Former champion Leigh Wood vacated the belt after his October 7 fight to move up a division, so the WBA called Kholmatov, ranked number one, and Raymond Ford, ranked number two in the division, to fight.

The camps will have 30 days to reach an agreement. If an agreement is not reached within the given period of time or if either party refuses to do so, the WBA may call the fight to auction with a 50% purse split for each contender.

* * *

The WBA also ordered a featherweight eliminator fight between Victor Morales Jr. (5th rated) and Reynaldo Nunez (6th rated).

Louie Lopez 147 vs Salvador Briceno 147
Eros Correa 120.8 vs Robin Ellis 116.2
Alejandro Luis Silva 157.3 vs Janer Gonzalez 160.5
Nelson Oliva 159.9 vs Dario Guerrero-Meneses 159
Abel Mejia 137.6 vs Leslie Summers 138.3
Christopher Gonzalez 146.3 vs Jose Mejia 145
Anthony Saldivar 155 vs Manuel Moreira 154.5

Venue: Infinite Reality Studios, Long Beach, California
Promoter: CBN Promotions
TV: FOX Deportes

Yokasta Valle 104.5 vs. Anabel Ortiz 105
(IBF & WBO female minimumweight title)

Santiago Dominguez 146.7 vs. Nolberto Casco 148
Jose Alvarado 130.5 vs. Moises Garcia 131
Julio Miranda 114 vs. Dennis Espinoza 115.5
Maricela Cornejo 146.9 vs. Cynthia Lozano 144.9
Joshua Jimenez 128 vs. Nicasio Campos 128.9
Antonio Flores 126 vs. Manuel Gonzalez 126
Merari Vivar 117.3 vs. Grisolda Fabiola Tumax 118
Yamil Luna 130 vs. Ivan Ubeda 129

Venue: Polideportivo de Cartago in Costa Rica
Promoter: Golden Boy
TV: DAZN

A federal judge in San Juan, Puerto Rico, sentenced former lightweight contender and 2012 Olympian Felix Verdejo to consecutive life terms for the kidnapping and murder of his pregnant girlfriend in 2021. Verdejo, 30, will serve his time in a federal prison.