Fightnews.com

By Evan Jacobs

Englebrecht Promotions & Events returned to the Hangar at the OC Fair & Events Center in Costa Mesa, CA for their fifth sell out show of 2023. Fight Club OC put on a 7 bout card that featured a clash for the Tequila Mandala “Young Champions” super welterweight belt as Jesse “Lobito”Gonzalez 7-1-1 (2KOs) took on outgunned Josias Gonzalez 2-2.

Lobito Gonzalez was quicker on the draw in round one, simply being just a step ahead of his opponent in the first stanza. The fight continued this way, with each round being a virtual carbon copy of the next. With the crowd cheering him on, Lobito Gonzalez went on to pound out a majority, 6th round decision over his game foe and take home the coveted Tequila Mandala strap.

Jordan Panthen 6-0 (5KOs) went the distance for the first time against the highly capable Cameron Krael 20-30-3 (7KOs). Panthen jumped on Krael and stalked him for the majority of the fight. However, Krael used his experience and ring IQ to remain competitive and give Panthen fits. Ultimately, Panthen’s consistent, Canelo-like pressure earned him a well-deserved 8 round decision. He was bound to go the distance at some point, and this bout will help him in the long run. Continue reading “Fight Club OC results”

Tyson Fury: “How do I prepare for a guy like this? It’s pretty difficult, but in America, we say a statement like this, ‘I’m gonna knock a motherf***er out!’ And that’s how we do it. I’ve been working with SugarHill {Steward} to knock him out cold on Saturday night, and I have no doubt in my mind that I will knock him out…he’s a big, strong guy. Obviously, he’s got a good punch. But so am I. I’m a big, strong guy. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be the world heavyweight champion. But I believe there’s levels to the game. And he’s going to find out my level on Saturday night.”

Francis Ngannou: “This is a dream come true. And I remember four years ago, when I first met Mike Tyson, my only request was for him to be in my corner if I fight Tyson Fury. People thought I was losing it. They thought I was crazy. They thought it would never happen. But here we are…we got Mike Tyson in, and the first thing he said that stuck in my mind is when he said, ‘Listen, he has two hands and two feet like you.’ And I got that. And that’s enough for Saturday night. Tyson Fury is definitely the best in boxing, but that’s stopping on Saturday night.”

O’Shaquie Foster is ready to make the first defense of his WBC super featherweight title against Rocky Hernandez on Saturday night in Cancun, Mexico, live worldwide on DAZN – and the champion believes he will display his full arsenal on the night as he sent a chilling KO message to IBF ruler Joe Cordina.

Foster (20-2 11 KOs) landed the vacant title by widely outpointing another Mexican, Rey Vargas, in San Antonio in February, and in facing mandatory challenger Hernandez (34-1 31 KOs) on Saturday night, ‘Ice Water’ will fight twice in a calendar year for the first time since 2019.

The 30-year-old champion respects the task in front of him in the form of traveling to the backyard of the Mexican KO machine, but Foster says that those tasks are the ones that will get the best of him as he plans to breakout in style and move closer to the unification bout he craves with Cordina, who defends his title next weekend in Monaco against Edward Vazquez, live on DAZN. Continue reading “Foster: You’ve only seen 50% of me”

By Damon Gonzalez / LatinBox Communications

WBO interim jr flyweight title between #4 ranked contender Rene “El Chulo” Santiago (11-3, 8 KOs) against the undefeated #15 Kevin Vivas (7-0, 2 KOs) at the famed Alexis Arguello Arena in Managua, Nicaragua over 12 rounds. ESPN+ will televise in the U.S.

Kevin Vivas 107.4 vs. Rene Santiago 107.6
(WBO Interim jr. flyweight title)

Harvin Aguirre 146.4 vs. Isreal Lopez 146.4
Eveling Ortega vs. 107.6 vs. Silvia Duran 110
Geraldo Sanchez 107.4 vs. Eduardo Ajito 106.6
Alex Vallecillo 120 vs. Cristian Jimenez 121.6
Michael Carmona 104.6 vs. Miguel Torcero 107.8

Venue: Alexis Arguello Arena in Managua, Nicaragua
Promoter: All Star Boxing, Inc.
TV: ESPN+

WBC super featherweight champion O’Shaquie Foster and Rocky Hernandez faced off at the final press conference for the Matchroom Boxing card taking place on Saturday in Cancun, Mexico. DAZN will televise.

O’Shaquie Foster: “They say they have been calling for this fight, it kind of sounds crazy because we could have fought in the summertime, he fought Hector Garcia because he wanted a tune-up fight instead of coming for the world title. I hadn’t fought for a year when I went into the world title fight with Vargas, no excuses. They have nothing but excuses and those that know the background know that they have been running from me.”

Rocky Hernandez: “On Saturday you are going to see a new world champion, and that’s me. I don’t know why he is saying I was scared to fight him; I’m not scared of anyone, and it is his fault that the fight went to purse bids. I’m bringing the war on Saturday, and I hope he is ready for it because I am taking that title home and will show exactly who Eduardo ‘Rocky’ Hernandez is.

Amanda Serrano 125.7 vs. Danila Ramos 124.6
(WBA, IBF, WBO female featherweight title)

Antonio Vargas 117.6 vs. Hernan Marquez 117.5
Damian Lescaille 147.6 vs. Ray Barlow 145.7

Venue: Caribe Royale Orlando, Orlando, Florida
Promoter: Most Valuable Promotions
TV: DAZN

WBC super featherweight champion O’Shaquie Foster and Rocky Hernandez face off for the first time on the beach in Cancun, Mexico. The two will meet in the main event of the Matchroom boxing card on Saturday in Cancun.

WBC heavyweight champion Tyson “The Gypsy King” Fury, MMA star Francis Ngannou, and undercard combatants hosted their public workouts today ahead of Saturday’s PPV at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Tyson Fury: “I showed the best version of me, and if he can deal with that, best of luck to him. I was in there floating like a butterfly. Nineteen stone, can you believe that? And 6-foot-9. And moving like that! That’s shocking. It’s not fair, really! It’s happening. He’s the bull, I’m the matador! 99.999 percent of the time, the matador wins! Francis Ngannou is a big, fat sausage. That’s why he won’t take his top off. He’s embarrassed of his body. If it was up to Francis, he’d fight with his t-shirt on. Facts!”

Francis Ngannou: “To be honest, I haven’t gotten any respect from the boxing community, so I am not expecting anybody to respect me. I think I need to claim my own respect…anything is possible. It’s possible. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be here. In fact, see how we are talking about Tyson Fury? Who would’ve believed that a couple years ago?”

“King” Ryan Garcia (23-1, 19 KOs) and knockout artist Oscar “La Migraña” Duarte (26-1-1, 21 KOs) of Parral, Mexico hosted a press conference today ahead of their 12-round, super lightweight collision. The fight will take place at Toyota Center in Houston, Texas on December 2 and broadcasted worldwide on DAZN.

Ryan Garcia: At this new weight I feel more confident, just stronger and just more aware…if I expect to become a champion, I can’t take easy fights and think that’s going get me there. So, I knew that Oscar was a challenge. He’s fast. He’s strong. He’s got good timing. So it just made sense for me, you know, this fight, to show what I could do to prepare me for the bigger fights.”

Oscar Duarte: “Come December 2, I’m going to win and I’m going to be the next idol in Mexican boxing with the preparation that I am doing. I have a big rival in front of me, I have an incredible team behind me. They are my strength, and I am ready for the big challenges ahead of me. This is my best moment for me not only physically but mentally too.”

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

If successful, “Monster” Naoya Inoue (25-0, 22 KOs), Japan, will completely unify four belts in just two fights after moving up to the 122-pound category—within a year. WBC, WBO super bantam champion Inoue will collide with WBA, IBF counterpart Marlon Tapales (37-3, 19 KOs) in Tokyo on December 26. It was announced on Wednesday by Hideyuki Ohashi of Ohashi Promotions, who emphasized the new chapter of the Monster legend. It will take place at the Ariake Arena (constructed for the previous Olympic Games here) the capacity of which is 15,000.

Naoya took four years, seven months to complete bantamweight unification of the four belts since he at first dethroned Jamie McDonnel via first round demolition in May 2018 until he collected the fourth belt from Paul Butler in December of the previous year. But Inoue, 30, quickly seized the two titles from WBC, WBO ruler Stephen Fulton in his first engagement this July after he outgrew the 118-pound category. In only five months the Monster may acquire the other two belts from the hard-punching Filipino southpaw Tapales, a year his senior at 31, if successful.

Inoue said at the press conference, “Fulton was a very skillful boxer, while Tapales is a crafty southpaw with good defensive ability based on his flexible body movement. He also can counterpunch with excellent timing. He seems very hungry for fame and fortune.” Sean Gibbons, the representative of MP Promotions on behalf of Tapales, said, “We know Inoue is an explosive puncher with full of confidence. Tapales, however, wishes to become the first Filipino boxer to unify four belts. Marlon is training in the US, but will come home in the Philippines this November to make himself fit and finally prepared.”

Again if successful, Inoue will follow the footsteps of Terrence Crawford who impressively accomplished his complete unification of the four major belts in a couple of weight divisions (super-light and welter categories). Asked how long he will stay in the 122-pound class, Naoya replied, “I may move up to the featherweight division in 2025. If possible, I’d like to fight three times next year—probably against Luis Nery, John Riel Casimero and Murodjon Akhmadaliev.”

Tapales is unbeaten here in Japan, having beaten Shohei Omori twice, won a technical decision over Hayato Kimura, but lost to Ryosuke Iwasa via eleventh round TKO with the vacant IBF interim belt at stake in New York in 2019. When in the teens, Marlon came to Japan to serve as a sparring partner for Kazuto Ioka, the current WBA 115-pound titleholder.

Boxing has passed the age of radio, television, cable TV and pay-per-view to have the industry bigger and bigger as time goes by. Now it is the age of internet, in another word, streaming. You can enjoy watching boxing bouts with your hand phone or PC from all over the world, which realistically produces gigantic money. Naoya Inoue, now a world famous phenomenon thanks to streaming or YouTube, is truly a special product of the internet age.

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The show most go on…Bomba Gonzalez is forced to withdraw for Friday’s WBO title defense due to illness which has forced the champ to sit on the sidelines for the second time out. Replacing the main event is the co-feature which has been upgraded to the WBO interim jr flyweight title between #4 ranked contender Rene “El Chulo” Santiago (11-3, 8 KOs) against the undefeated #15 Kevin Vivas (7-0, 2 KOs) at the famed Alexis Arguello Arena in Managua, Nicaragua over 12 rounds. ESPN+ will televise in the U.S.

ESPN has announced a December 9 telecast headlined by WBO featherweight champion Robeisy Ramirez (13-1, 8 KOs) against Rafael Espinoza (21-0, 18 KOs) taking place in Pembroke Pines, Florida. In the co-feature, 2020 Olympic silver medalist Keyshawn Davis (10-0, 6 KOs) meets former world champion Jose “Sniper” Pedraza (29-5-1, 14 KOs) in a ten round lightweight affair. Unbeaten junior middleweight Xander Zayas (17-0, 11 KOs) will also see action.

Jordan Panthen 159.9 vs Cameron Krael 156
Jesse Gonzalez 152.4 vs Josias Gonzalez 150.8
Lisa Mauldin 125.8 vs Angel Blackwell 123.6
Troy Guerrero 153.8 vs Mauricio Magdaleno 155.8
Sonny Robledo 139.4 vs Jose Angulo 140
Jesikah Guerra 157.6 vs Brianna Jiminez 157.4
Nick Olson 171 vs Caleb Tenpas 169.2

Venue: The Hangar in Costa Mesa, California
Promoter: Englebrecht Promotions & Events
TV: Live PPV on Fite.tv
Thursday, October 26th, 7pm PST

Former super lightweight contender Ryan “Blue Chip” Martin (25-2, 15 KOs) is set to make his return to the boxing ring after a year-long layoff. He will face off against Philippine slugger Rogelio “Hercules” Jun Doliguez (25-5-2, 19 KOs) in an 8-round super lightweight bout scheduled for Saturday. The fight will take place at the Lum Color Center in Ontario, California, under the promotional banner of Elite Boxing USA titled “Evolution XII.” Continue reading “Ryan “Blue Chip” Martin returns”

WBC/WBO world champion Naoya “Monster” Inoue and WBA/IBF king Marlon Tapales will collide in an undisputed junior featherweight showdown on Tuesday, December 26 at Ariake Arena in Tokyo. Inoue, already a four-division world champion, seeks to become the second fighter to earn four-belt undisputed status in a second division.

Inoue-Tapales and undercard bouts will stream live and exclusively in the U.S. on ESPN+ in a special early-morning presentation.

“The sensational Naoya Inoue astounds with every performance. We are witnessing an all-time great fighter in the prime of his career,” said Top Rank chairman Bob Arum. “He has a very difficult task at hand on December 26 against a tough, powerful Filipino champion in Marlon Tapales, but I am confident ‘The Monster’ will pass this test with flying colors.” Continue reading “Inoue-Taples set for Dec 26 in Tokyo”

Unbeaten super lightweight prospect Dion “Prime Time” Jones (6-0, 6 KOs) stopped Local Jader Esquivia (3-19-2, 1 KO) in round 1. The bout will took place at the Coliseo Cubierto de Pescaito in Santa Marta, Colombia. Jones followed the instructions of his trainer Jeff Mayweather and immediately established his jab within the early seconds of the fight while switching from conventional to the southpaw stance periodically. Esquivia was game and responded by pressing Jones but not landing anything significant as Jones footwork and handspeed kept him off balance. During the midway point of round one Jones opened up a rapid combination on Esquivia off the ropes. Esquivia attempting to fire back appeard to hurt his hand firing at Jones’ midsection. He dropped to the canvas immediately following the punch motioning to his right hand in obvious pain. Esquivia was unable to continue and the referee waved the bout off. The fight was just getting warmed up but had a nice pace going. Unfortunate set of circumstances as Esquivia pushed an unbeaten prospect near the six round distance in his previous bout. Jones for his part was extremely sharp and more than ready for his first scheduled six round bout.

A big international fight week kicks off this Friday from Nicaragua as the country will host a world title fight after a 21 year drought. WBO jr flyweight titlist Jonathan “Bomba” Gonzalez (27-3-1 14 KO’s) makes his third defense against local ranked challenger #14 Gerardo “Cascabel” Zapata (14-1-1 5 KO’s) from beautiful Alexis Arguello Arena in Managua. Continue reading “Bomba-Zapata undercard set”

WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury spoke about Saturday’s scheduled ten-rounder with MMA star Francis Ngannou in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

“I can stand and trade with anybody. I stood and traded with Wilder. I traded with Wladimir {Klitschko}, and I’ll stand and trade with this little bitch.”

“I might give him a slick, master boxing performance, not let the ugly man touch me once. That would be unbelievable, wouldn’t it? I might start dancing, tripling the jab like Apollo Creed, move around, just stick and move.”

“When {Ngannou} feels this right hand, he won’t be winning very much.” Continue reading “Tyson Fury unloads on Ngannou”

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

Boxing is going through a complicated period of adjustments as a new era is beginning, eliciting a transformation.

The announcement by the Showtime network to end its boxing programming, after 37 years of being one of the world leaders has come as a considerable surprise to the world, creating uncertainty and concern for many members of the industry of our great sport.

Boxing is the oldest sport of humanity, and its modern version began more than 300 years ago in England. People gathered on vacant lots to watch and bet on bare-knuckle fights between two sturdy individuals, basically devoid of rules. Eventually it became regulated, took shape, formulated, and by the beginning of the 20th century, it was a highly popular sport throughout the world. Continue reading “An era in boxing ends, a new one begins”

WBO cruiserweight champion Chris ‘The Gentleman’ Billam-Smith (18-1, 12 KOs) makes the first defense of his world title on December 10 against Mateusz Masternak (47-5, 31 KOs), currently ranked #5 by the WBO and #9 by the WBC. The bout will take place at the Bournemouth International Centre in Bournemouth, England, and airs live Peacock in the US and on Sky Sports in the UK.

BOXXER founder and CEO Ben Shalom said, “Chris Billam-Smith wanted his first defense of the WBO world cruiserweight championship to be a big crowd-pleaser of a fight in his home town. Mateusz Masternak ticks all the boxes; he’s ranked number five in the world, he’s got a ton of experience and he rarely takes a backwards step. He’s a very dangerous opponent and Billam-Smith is taking a serious risk here.”

Former three-division world champion Jorge “Golden Boy” Linares, 38, announced his retirement from boxing, after his unanimous decision loss against Jack Catterall, in Liverpool, England. Linares (47-9, 29 KOs) logged his fourth consecutive loss and sixth in his last 10 fights.

During his 21 years in professional boxing, he won the World Boxing Council featherweight championship, the WBA super featherweight championship, and the WBC lightweight championship.

Jorge Linares: “This was my last fight, I told my team, I told my wife, my family, that if I lost this fight, I would retire. So I lost and I’m leaving boxing. That’s why I’m very happy as I have accomplished so much. I told my team that it was a beautiful fight. Finishing today by decision was a victory for me.”

The Only in America 92 Celebration just got bigger as promoter Don King has put together five title fights for the Saturday, Nov. 4 extravaganza at the Casino Miami Jai Alai.

King is going to celebrate his recent 92nd birthday with five championship fights.

The Nov. 4th card will have three co-feature title fights headlined by the 12-round battle for the WBC cruiserweight vacant title as the number one ranked fighter, Mikaelian (26-2, 11 KOs) of Miami, FL via Armenia taking on the number two ranked fighter and former champion Makabu (29-3, 25 KOs) from Johannesburg, South Africa via the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Makabu, who lost his title to Badou Jack as he was stopped in the 12th round, is hoping to regain his belt after Badou Jack relinquished the title. Continue reading “King announces additional fights for Nov 4”