Boxing_News__November_24_2017

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Contents

November 23, 2017

14

FRAMPTON

GOES TO WAR

Hometown hero has to dig deep on his return to Belfast

DON’T MISS

>> 8 BELLEW’S NEXT MOVE

What will “Bomber” do following

David Haye’s untimely injury?

>> 22 CUBAN CONUNDRUM

In depth with Yuriorkis Gamboa – one

of boxing’s most puzzling characters

>> 26 RETURN OF ‘KRUSHER’

Previewing Sergey Kovalev’s first fight

since his two losses to Andre Ward

>> 34 OSCAR WINNER

Proud Mexican Valdez speaks out on

fighting for his country and his people

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WWW.BOXINGNEWSONLINE.NET/APPS

Photos: MARK MARLOW & JOE CAMPOREALE/USA TODAY SPORTS

22

HIGHLIGHTS

>> 4 EDITOR’S LETTER

The power of social media in boxing

>> 5 GUEST COLUMN

Kovalev’s ex-coach on their bitter split

>> 12 PENDLETON Q&A

“Fearless” Freddie entertainingly

reflects on his roller-coaster career

>> 17 SUPER-WELTER BELTER

Julian Williams and Ishe Smith engage

in a crowd-pleasing Las Vegas tussle

>> 30 FOR THE LOVE OF IT

We speak to promoter Dennis Hobson

about his largely thankless task

>> 40 AMATEURS

Seismic change at the top of the sport

>> 46 60-SECOND INTERVIEW

‘DON’T FORGET YOUR GUMSHIELD.

YOU’LL MISS SPARRING AND THE

LADS WILL RIP YOU APART!’

Owen Jobburn

www.boxingnewsonline.net NOVEMBER 23, 2017 l BOXING NEWS l 3

EDITOR’S LETTER

Photo: MARK ROBINSON/MATCHROOM

USE IT WISELY:

Joshua takes

a selfie but his

name has recently

been caught up

in an unsavoury

social media spat

THE POWER OF SOCIAL MEDIA

Why Twitter and co are among the sport’s leading matchmakers

Cover photography

MARK MARLOW

Coming

next time

l MIGUEL COTTO

prepares to

sign off with

a defence of

his WBO superwelterweight

title against

Sadam Ali on

December 2.

We examine the

event in detail.

l TOMMY

MORRISON

remains a cult

hero to many

boxing fans. We

catch up with his

son, Trey Lippe

Morrison, who

has the almost

impossible job

of following

in some giant

footsteps.

A

Matt

Christie

@MattCBoxingNews

Editor

S Huey Lewis and

the News may have

observed had they

been at the peak of

their fame today,

the power of social

media is a curious

thing. Make a one

man weep, make

another man sing.

In fact, it’s been a

blessing and a curse

to pretty much

everyone involved.

Take Anthony

Joshua, for example.

One minute he’s

seducing housewives

the world over with

videos of muscle-pumping gym graft and

the next he – or someone claiming to be

– is sullying his cleaner than clean public

image with a string of foul-mouthed insults.

And Amir Khan, currently up to his neck in

snakes and rice and beans, will probably

delete his accounts when he gets back from

his jungle adventure if the current abuse

he’s getting continues.

For all media brands, Boxing News

included, the power of social media has

become a crucial tool in gathering and

breaking news while spreading awareness

like no other platform can. Indeed, for

many outlets, both old and new, social

media – the biggest attention-seeking, egoenhancing

device of the digital age – has

been at the core of some incredible success

stories. In that regard, to bemoan it too

heartily may seem like a foolhardy move.

Because, to get a taste of the sport in 2017,

those numerous social media channels will

provide cheap and accessible tasters – you

don’t need no credit card to ride this train,

after all – of pretty much all the latest

talking points. Some posts are heartfelt

announcements, others witty observations

but, and here’s the problem, too many

are unfiltered garblings that snowball and

create utter mayhem.

Admittedly, various tweets and posts

have provided our website with ‘stories’ but

we always do our best to ensure they’re

the start of the tale rather than the end.

However, those redesigning tweets and

allowing them to masquerade as news,

are guilty of feeding the monster further.

And I’d venture that the vast majority

of people reading this have fallen for a

clickbait headline only to be left deeply

disappointed that you have just invested

five minutes of your life into the bank of

no return.

Take the recent ‘news’ from the

heavyweight division. Joshua’s team

claimed his Instagram account had been

hacked after it was reported by former

contender Eddie Chambers that the WBA

and IBF champion had been sending

him insulting private messages. Someone

claiming to be AJ called Chambers a b***h

and said he was an insult to the “superior

black race”. Firstly, while it’s almost

unfathomable that Joshua would waste

his time like this, it also seems odd that

a hacker, after busting into the treasure

trove of Joshua’s social media accounts,

would choose to privately target Chambers.

Unless it was Chambers himself, of course.

Secondly, if it was Joshua, as some suspect,

it was exceptionally poor judgement

and his management team should have

a serious word in his earhole. Finally,

whoever sent the private messages, can

the rest of us stop talking about it please?

All we’re in danger of doing is creating yet

another unnecessary matchup born purely

from social media ‘beef’ rather than any

semblance of worthiness in the ring. While

the fans may chuckle and news agencies

count the clicks, boxers’ reputations walk

a fine line with every post.

Which brings us to the Tony Bellew-

David Haye saga, which initially caught

fire on social media. Minutes after it was

confirmed that a rematch will not happen

this year, Tyson Fury – still growling and

overweight and without a boxing licence

but thankfully back in training – jumped on

social media to demand a fight with Bellew

in four weeks’ time, and was soon joined by

Dillian Whyte, who is never slow to spot

a get-rich-quick opportunity.

Certainly, getting your phone out of your

pocket and demanding a fight is easier

than earning one in the ring, but there is

still something bothersome about contests

being created solely because a mountain of

retweets has justifed its appeal.

Social media is perhaps the most

powerful weapon in the sport today. Not

only can it change a hawk to a little white

dove, it allowed Conor McGregor to secure

a showdown with Floyd Mayweather in

boxing gloves.

It can make fights, ruin reputations

and sway public opinion dramatically. We

should all tread carefully out there.

Follow us and keep up to date

@BoxingNewsED

BoxingNewsOnline

l WE track

down the

1980s thrillseeker,

Kelvin

Seabrooks, and

discover a man

still living life

on the edge.

l AND we

introduce you to

Commonwealth

cruiserweight

champion,

Luke Watkins,

who explains

what it’s like

to spar Tyson

Fury and how he

plans to rule at

heavyweight.

l AVAILABLE

to download

via iTunes and

Google Play

from November

28, 2017, and the

print edition is

in stores on

November 30,

2017.

4 l BOXING NEWS l NOVEMBER 23, 2017 www.boxingnewsonline.net

GUEST COLUMN

‘KOVALEV IS NOT A NICE PERSON’

Photo: DAVID SPAGNOLO/MAIN EVENETS

MORE CONTROVERSY:

But Jackson always

feared for the fate of

Kovalev in a rematch

wih Ward

My side of the story behind my split from Sergey

T

John David

Jackson

Leading

trainer

IT’S no secret

about my split

with Sergey

Kovalev.

Everyone is

aware of the

news now and

there’s been

some stuff

wrote about

why we parted,

but the truth is

that I just don’t

think that he’s

a nice person.

He’s a very cold

man and I was

willing to help

him out as

a favour to Don Turner but eventually

it went the same way for me as it

did with Turner and it did with Abel

Sanchez. The time has got to come

when Sergey looks at himself and

perhaps admit that he’s the problem.

I’ve got no issue whatsoever saying

this stuff about Sergey because

I think people deserve to know the

truth about our partnership going

wrong, but it wasn’t the most perfect

relationship to begin with. You won’t

believe me when I tell you this but

there are not many people who are

close to Sergey, and even those who

are allowed into his circle will more

than likely tell you that he’s not a good

man.

There’s no doubts that me and

Sergey had many great nights together

but they were purely on a professional

basis. We didn’t hang out when we

were outside the gym, it was just a

fighter and a trainer working together

and getting good results. Who knows

what might’ve happened if we had a

better understanding with each other,

but you’ll have to ask Sergey about

that because he wasn’t always willing

to do what I asked him. If he did then

he would’ve been a far better fighter

than the one you’re used to seeing.

That second Andre Ward fight was

no surprise to me because

I knew Sergey couldn’t match Andre

on the inside and there’s been some

talk about Kovalev being weak to

the stomach. I knew that and Sergey

probably knew that, but he’d done

okay up to certain point fighting a

certain level of guy, but Ward was

a million times better than anything

Sergey had seen before and that

showed over the two fights. Ward

can’t punch the hardest and he’s not

the quickest but he knows how to use

every single inch of that ring and that,

for me, is the best quality a fighter

can have. When you have a brain like

Ward’s then it’s better than any other

attribute.

The first fight was a fight that Sergey

definitely won though and I do give

him credit for his performance in the

early going. I knew that first fight was

our best chance to beat him because

Ward had been quite inactive and his

level of opposition

couldn’t compare

with who Sergey

had been facing.

We knew he was

taking a step up

and it showed in

the first few rounds,

and then Sergey

let him get back

into after halfway.

For me, Ward just

did better late on

than what he did in the earlier rounds

and that fooled some of the judges.

It was a 9-3 [rounds] fight for me or

8-4 at a push but there’s no way I can

have Ward a winner. That first fight

was one we had to win as the rematch

definitely favoured Ward.

Me and Kovalev have now gone our

separate ways so time will tell what

impact I had on him. I didn’t know

NO ONE IS

IN A BETTER

POSITION THAN

ME TO TELL YOU

THAT SERGEY’S

POWER IS REAL

too much about his opponent this

weekend, [Vyacheslav] Shabranskyy,

but I decided to have a little watch

of him. He’ll go for Kovalev’s body

early and that is his best option.

He’ll have seen what Ward did in the

second fight, but he’s nowhere near

as talented so he’ll have to take a few

shots back to even get near Kovalev.

Sergey still does things well, especially

from distance, and

no one is in a better

position than me to

tell you his power

is real. Shabranskyy

will have to apply

himself intelligently

and walk Kovalev

down, and if he

can force him

back and get to his

body, that’s his best

chance.

I’ll watch the fight and see what

happens and see how Kovalev looks

but my priorities over the next few

weeks have nothing to do with Sergey

for the first time in long while. I’ll

enjoy the fight and then I’m off to link

up with Bryant Jennings for his next

fight. That will take up my time until

the middle of December and then

we’ll see what happens next.


OPINION

Fans, fighters

and pundits all

have their say

ON TWITTER

@BoxingNewsED

ON FACEBOOK

www.facebook.com/boxingnewsonline

TWEETS

@JAMIECONLAN11

Heartbroken about

last night, really

tough night at the

office. Ancajas was

a quality operator.

Real privilege to be

involved in such a

great night of boxing.

Atmosphere was

special, very thankful

for the support from

everyone especially

my family and team.

JAMIE CONLAN

stays classy after

his painful defeat to

Jerwin Ancajas in

Belfast.

@SWIFTYSMITH

Early knock for a drug

test this morning.

STEPHEN SMITH,

training for his Las

Vegas fight next

month, shows that

the UK drug testing

regime is strong.

@OSCARDELAHOYA

Honoured and

privileged to

give back to my

community for 21

years! The ODLH

Foundation Annual

Turkey giveaway in

East LA today. Thank

you to our volunteers

and sponsors!

With Thanksgiving

looming, all-time

great OSCAR DE LA

HOYA gives back to the

community he grew

up in by distributing

turkeys.

LETTER OF THE WEEK

THE MADIGAN-ALI TRILOGY

I WAS very sorry to hear about

the passing of three-time

Australian Olympian Tony

Madigan on October 29. I met Tony in

1954 while serving in Germany with the

RAF. The station boxing officer asked

me if I would box Tony in an event

which was arranged by the Germans. I

was totally unaware of his high-quality

standing, but I was only 18 years old and

was eager to box anyone, so I agreed. I

sparred with him on two occasions after

that, and was made aware of who he was

and how good he was. Tony was a perfect

gentleman who had an iron chin. It was

an honour to have known him.

The press reports I’ve read state

that Tony fought Muhammad Ali (then

Cassius Clay) on two occasions, but they

did in fact fight three times – in 1958,

1959 and 1960, with Tony winning the

first on points, and losing the second and

third by decision. Many people believe

Tony actually deserved the verdict in the

third fight, which was an Olympic semifinal.

Tony and Ali went on to become very

good friends. In 1963, I had the privilege

of meeting Ali, who I talked to for about

15 minutes. It was being rumoured at

that time that Tony was considering

turning professional and he hoped to

face Muhammad in his first pro fight.

When I mentioned this to Ali, his eyes

lit up. He then said that he had no say

regarding his opponents, and simply

fought who he was told to.

Pat Leighton

CHESS MATCH

THE Liam Smith-Liam Williams rematch

Photo: THE COURIER-JOURNAL/USA TODAY SPORTS

THE CHAMP:

But Ali would not

have won gold if Tony

Madigan had

received the verdict

in 1960

wasn’t the war that the fans had wished

for. After the thrilling first scrap and the

real dislike between the two boxers, we

all expected a continuation of the first

encounter. This didn’t happen, as a lot of

respect was shown by the two fighters,

which led to a chess match of a fight.

Williams is a very game and capable

fighter, but the experienced Smith just

had a little more in his locker, which

earned him the decision. It was good to

see the fighters embrace each other after

the final bell. Now Smith can continue to

chase another world title.

Patch Hammond, Norwich

NOT GOOD FOR THE SPORT

I WAS a little taken aback by the

announcement of James DeGale’s next

opponent – Caleb Truax. I was even

more taken aback by Gilberto Ramirez

taking on Habib Ahmed. This is not good

for the sport. There’s no need for world

champions to inflate their records with

undeserving opponents.

Robert Brewer

@JOHNJOENEVIN

Back in this ring this

Friday in Tolworth,

London. Can’t wait

until I knock the ring

rust off.

Irish lightweight

JOHN JOE NEVIN has

his first fight for 15

months tomorrow

night.

@CASSIUSCONNOR

Tete is good but he

don’t beat Burnett…

Hackbridge

lightweight CASSIUS

CONNOR boldly

makes his pick for a

potential Zolani Tete

vs Ryan Burnett fight.

WE ASKED...

MONEY TALKS:

Mayweather kicks

back with a tiny

portion of the cash

he made in the

social media age

IS SOCIAL MEDIA GOOD FOR BOXING?

DANIEL J MARSTERS

Imagine trying to sell a ppv boxing

match without the media. Good

luck! It’s 2017. Make the media

useful and productive towards your

income/business.

NAMANYA JONATHAN

Yes. It’s everything to boxing.

Boxing is so boring with its rules

and less action. It’s like a drama.

PAUL WICKES

Yes. It can remove barriers. Darren

Barker got the Martinez fight by

contacting him through Twitter.

DAVID JOHN DUNSCOMB

Social media is part of everything

that sells for money. Social media

is the new daytime television but

far more entertaining.

TRICIA SEAN GOODMAN

It’s great for promoting the sport

and hyping a fight. It keeps fans

engaged.

ANDY BRACE

Judging by some of the fans I’ve

come across, I’d say no.


ON INSTAGRAM

boxingnewsonline

EMAIL

letters@boxingnewsonline.net

POST

Boxing News Letters, 120 Leman St, London, E1 8EU

HEAD-2-HEAD

RICKY

HATTON

vs

JUNIOR

WITTER

Who would have

won had these two

super-lightweight

rivals squared off,

and why?

IAIN HAMILTON

Hatton all day, with

a late stoppage.

The body shots and

relentless fighting

style would have

worn Witter down.

STEPHEN BOSWELL

It would have been

a close first five

rounds with Hatton

waiting for Witter

to gas, then put the

pressure on to win

on points by three

rounds or a late

stoppage.

DANNY HARE

It’s a known fact

Hatton ducked

him. Witter’s style

would have caused

nightmares for a

fighter like Hatton,

who ducked him for a

reason.

LEA PRIOR

Witter would have

taken the early

rounds but by midfight

Hatton would

eventually catch up

with him, cut the

ring off and get to

work on the body.

Witter just wouldn’t

be able to live with

Hatton’s inside

game.

EDWARD MANN

Hatton by KO or TKO

about the fifthround

mark. His

pressure and body

shots would have

been too much.

ROBIN RAY

I always said Witter

had the style that

was all wrong for

Hatton. He’d have

busted Ricky up,

broken him down

and stopped him

late.

THE PANEL

Kevin

Mitchell

Former world

title challenger

He’s gifted and

he’ll definitely

win another

world title. He’s

got the ability to

do it. Whether

it’s at feather or

super-feather, it’s

whatever suits

him. It’s whichever

title comes up for

him.

CAN CARL FRAMPTON WIN

ANOTHER WORLD TITLE?

HAVE THE ANDRE WARD LOSSES TAKEN

MUCH OUT OF SERGEY KOVALEV?

Kevin

Mitchell

Former world

title challenger

Definitely. Hard

fights take it out

of you – even

wins. Will it affect

him mentally?

That depends

on how you are

as a person, as

an individual.

Everybody’s

different. You

don’t know until

the first bell goes.

Paddy

Fitzpatrick

Leading

trainer

It would be

unfair to judge

him on his last

performance.

It was his first

since January

and it came after

making lots of

changes, including

his trainer. Carl

was coasting for

five rounds, then

had some more

difficult rounds.

Paddy

Fitzpatrick

Leading

trainer

Kovalev isn’t

finished because

of one loss -

you’re finished

when you have

two or three

consistently bad

fights. Sergey is

excellent at what

he does but Ward

could adjust.

Maybe Ward was

just the puzzle he

couldn’t solve.

Anthony

Farnell

Leading

trainer

I’d like to think he

would but I can’t

see it. And I really

like Carl. Off that

last performance,

Josh Warrington

and Lee Selby

beat him. He’s

too small for the

weight and he’s

had a lot of hard

fights.

Anthony

Farnell

Leading

trainer

No. Kovalev is still

a great fighter. He

lost twice to Ward,

but Andre was

pound-for-pound

the best. And

Sergey wasn’t out

of shape in either

fight, he was

always in the fight.

So he knows he

can hang in there

with the top guys.

Martin

Murray

Middleweight

contender

Without a shadow

of a doubt he

can. He’s a quality

fighter, elite. He

has everything

you need to be

a world champion.

In that fight at

the weekend

he proved his

toughness.

Martin

Murray

Middleweight

contender

Definitely. A lot

of boxing is in

the mind, it’s

about confidence.

Kovalev won’t be

going into the

ring now feeling

invincible. But

the Ward defeats

could also affect

him a positive

way, because he

didn’t get beat by

a no-mark but by

a Hall-of-Famer.

‘THE DEFEATS TO WARD COULD AFFECT

KOVALEV IN A POSITIVE WAY’

10 COUNT

IN A HURRY

Tete-Gonya wasn’t the first

shockingly quick world title win,

writes Daniel Herbert

1: JACKIE PATERSON-PETER KANE

Scottish southpaw Paterson needed

just 61 seconds to take the flyweight

crown from Kane in June 1943.

2: LLOYD HONEYGHAN-GENE

HATCHER

“The bell went ding and I went dong,”

said the WBC/IBF welterweight

champ about how he caught his

challenger cold in 40 seconds.

3: JULIAN JACKSON-ISMAEL

NEGRON

One of the all-time great hitters,

the Virgin Islands man required

all of 50 seconds to retain his WBC

middleweight title in February 1992.

4: GERALD MCCLELLAN-JAY BELL

In March 1993 in Bayamon, Puerto

Rico, unheralded Bell lasted a mere

20 seconds with McClellan for the

WBC middleweight belt.

5: NASEEM HAMED-SAID LAWAL

Lawal didn’t belong in the ring with

the WBO feather champ - he was

blown out in 35 seconds.

6: HERBIE HIDE-DAMON REED

This April 1998 Manchester bid for

Hide’s WBO heavyweight belt lasted

just 52 seconds for Kansas man Reed.

7: FABRICE TIOZZO-TERRY RAY

Ray was an unknown from Terre

Haute, Indiana when he challenged

WBA cruiser king Tiozzo in France in

May 1998. He returned unknown after

losing in one minute.

8: LAMON BREWSTER-ANDREW

GOLOTA

Nearly eight years after losing in

1-35 to Lennox Lewis, the big Pole

went down even more quickly (52

seconds) to WBO heavyweight champ

Brewster in 2005.

9: GENNADY GOLOVKIN-MILTON

NUNEZ

Okay, it was only for interim WBA

middleweight belt, but in 2009

“GGG” took 58 seconds to despatch

his Colombian opponent at the

Roberto Duran Arena in Panama City.

10: JULIUS INDONGO-EDUARD

TROYANOVSY

In December 2016 Namibia’s Indongo

travelled to Moscow to rip the IBF

140lbs belt from the champ with this

one-punch, 40-second stunner.


NEWS

Highlighting the best

of the week’s stories

WWW.BOXINGNEWSONLINE.NET

Photo: ACTION IMAGES/ANDREW COULDRIDGE

‘HAYE DOES

RECOVER

FROM HIS

INJURES

VERY, VERY

QUICKLY’

WAITING GAME:

Bellew is not yet

willing to give up on

the Haye rematch

WHAT NOW FOR BELLEW?

John Dennen

discusses

‘Bomber’s’

options with

Dave Coldwell

following

collapse of

Haye rematch

SHOCK and gloom descended over

Tony Bellew and his team when they

discovered that David Haye was injured

and their December 17 rematch, set for

the O2 in London, had been ‘postponed’.

Bellew’s trainer Dave Coldwell told

Boxing News of their reaction. “I’m gutted

for Tony I really am. It’s been a hard, hard

camp. It’s been very tough on him. There’s

no end product for it right now,” he said.

It’s been especially difficult for Bellew,

who had been mourning the death of his

brother-in-law, a close family member,

while preparing diligently to repeat a

victory over his nemesis, Haye.

“He showed immense strength of

character. I’ve always had respect for his

mental toughness but for him to have just

gone through the sessions that we’ve had

to, with all that that’s going on, it’s took it

to another level,” Coldwell said. “He is an

unbelievable professional.

“The last week, 10 days, I’ve just been,

wow, really, really looking forward to this.”

Although Haye has suffered a litany of

injuries the official word is he can come

back, and potential dates for a sequel are

March 24 or May 5.

“It’s a fresh injury, I suppose that’s

a good thing. It’s an injury that could

happen to anybody. You fall down the

stairs, you put your arm out. You fall

off a curb, you put your arm out. You

could dislocate your shoulder, you could

rupture your bicep, do whatever. It’s

one of those things. But again, it’s f*****g

David Haye again,” Coldwell said.

“Right now we’re waiting to see what

all the options are and what people like

Eddie [Hearn, the promoter] and Sky,

what they do. Tony will look at what his

options are and we’ll take it from there.

If Haye had done his Achilles [the injury

which happened in the first Bellew fight],

it’s gone again, he’s not going to make it

to the ring. It’s his bicep, a fresh injury like

I said, we’ll see.

“If it’s not too far out, we’ll speak about

it. Do we wait? Do we do something

else? I don’t know, we’ll see,” he added.

“We’ll have to see how quickly he does

recover. The best thing about Haye is the

team that he has around him, the money

that he has available to him to get things

sorted, he does recover from his injuries

very, very quickly… This could be one of

them. But I don’t know. Ultimately it’s

down to what Tony wants to do.”

Former heavyweight world champion

Tyson Fury appeared on social media

offering his services as an opponent.

Coldwell ruled that out for December 17.

“He’s too big,” the trainer said. “That’s not

a fight I would entertain whatsoever. Fury

is big, long and very, very clever in that

ring. There’s no way that I’d be interested

in that fight.”

Not to mention the fact that Fury still

has to have a hearing with an anti-doping

panel before he can get a licence to box

from the British Boxing Board of Control.

Before this return with Haye was

signed, WBO champion Joseph Parker

had been a target for Bellew. But the New

Zealander has “zero interest” in stepping

in and filling Haye’s slot, Boxing News

discovered.

“With the greatest amount of respect

to Tony Bellew, we have zero interest in

stepping in at short notice and replacing

the injured David Haye on December 17,”

Team Parker said. “That’s despite our team

having 100 per cent belief it would be

an easy payday and easy win for Joseph

Parker. Bellew is not ranked in the top 15

of the WBO and needs reminding he is

ineligible for a title shot anyway.”

Bellew however does not want to lose

the form and fitness he had attained in

this camp. “He was devastated when he

got the call. He’s had today off. He sent

me text this morning [Monday November

20], because he’s in good shape, he’s in

very good shape, saying ‘I’m not letting

this go, I’ll be with you tomorrow.’ I think

he’s going to come down for a session

tomorrow. But we’ll see. We’ll see how he

is,” Coldwell revealed.

Matchroom still hope to stage a show

on the weekend of December 16/17, but

refunds will be available to customers

who bought tickets for the original event.


OBITUARY

FERDIE PACHECO, 1927-2017

Daniel

Herbert

pays tribute

to a doctor

famed for his

connections

with ‘The

Greatest’

Muhammad Ali

THE FIGHT DOCTOR:

The bespectacled

Pacheco will later

predict Ali’s

poor health

FERDIE PACHECO, best known as

Muhammad Ali’s doctor during much of

the champion’s career, passed away on

November 16 at his Miami, Florida home

after a long illness. He was 89.

Pacheco first met Ali in 1960 when

the future world heavyweight champion

was still Cassius Clay. Their paths crossed

at the 5th Street Gym in Miami, where

the Kentucky talent trained with Angelo

Dundee after winning light-heavyweight

gold at that summer’s Rome Olympics.

The medic became Ali’s personal

physician in 1962 and later travelled

the world as part of his globetrotting

entourage, becoming especially well

known in the 1970s when Ali took his

show on the road.

But Pacheco had other strings to his

bow. Ali was just one of a dozen world

champions whose corner he worked.

And after leaving Muhammad’s camp

in the late 1970s over concerns for the

champion’s declining health, Ferdie

parlayed his fame into a regular US

network television gig as The Fight Doctor,

providing commentary on big shows.

He also wrote several books (not all on

boxing) and was an accomplished painter.

Of Spanish-Cuban origins, Ferdie was

born in the immigrant-packed Ybor

City section of Tampa,

Florida on December 8,

1927. He never boxed

but first attended local

amateur shows and, after

qualifying as a doctor,

started to attend pro

events staged by Chris

Dundee. It was at one

such show that he met

Dundee’s younger brother

Angelo, a promising

trainer, who promised

him free tickets if Pacheco would “help

stitch up my fighters.”

How could he have foreseen the

heights the Ali-Dundee partnership would

reach? Yet Pacheco was there for all the

great moments, starting in Miami Beach

‘IF YOU WANT

TO CONTINUE

BOXING, YOU

HAVE NO SHOT

AT A NORMAL

LIFE’

in February 1964 when huge underdog Ali

dethroned Sonny Liston to become world

heavyweight champion.

Ali famously acted crazy at the weighin

but Pacheco discovered the truth

behind the scenes. In a 2010 interview

with USA Today’s Jon

Saraceno he recalled,

“Ali’s blood pressure was

astronomical. As soon as

it was over, he got into the

limo, and I started taking

his blood pressure. It was

normal. I said, ‘Why did

you do all that crazy stuff?’

He said, ‘Doc, all bullies

from prison think guys like

me that are not scared of

them are crazy - that I’m

so nuts I will do anything.’

When Ali announced his religious

conversion soon afterwards there was

an attempt by some Nation of Islam

members to replace Pacheco (and Angelo

Dundee), but the champ stayed loyal to

those who had got him there.

Pacheco would not leave the Ali team

until 1977, when it became clear that

Muhammad was suffering the effects of

too many hard fights. Already, two years

earlier in 1975, Pacheco had urged Ali to

stop after his brutal third fight with Joe

Frazier, the Thrilla in Manila.

It was after Ali’s points win over hugepunching

Earnie Shavers in September

1977 that the two finally parted. He told

Saraceno, “They [Ali’s advisers] had told

me they never were going to put him in a

hard fight again, then they put Shavers in

there. He was about the strongest guy in

boxing. That was easy?”

After that fight, Pacheco sent Ali’s

medical exam results to Angelo Dundee,

Ali’s manager Herbert Muhammad, Ali

and his wife Veronica. He wrote, “This is

what’s happening to you. If you want to

continue, you have no shot at a normal

life.” Yet, as he told Saraceno, “I never

heard a word – a word. Because they

knew I was right.”

Subsequent events would prove

the truth of that, but Ali and Pacheco

remained friends, meeting for the final

time in 2002.

By then Pacheco had called time

on a successful two-decade career as

a TV analyst, with his fluent Spanish

proving useful as more Hispanic fighters

came to the fore in the United States.

And it should not be forgotten how he

campaigned for greater safety in boxing,

with ambulances present at all shows,

four ropes instead of three to a ring, and

thumbless gloves to lessen the risk of eye

injury.


NEWS

Highlighting the best

of the week’s stories

WWW.BOXINGNEWSONLINE.NET

NO EXCUSES

Speaking to

John Dennen,

Lawrence

Okolie

describes his

confrontation

with Isaac

Chamberlain

and its

consequences

AWRENCE

OKOLIE is a big

L

cruiserweight, a

GB Olympian and

a hard puncher. It’s

counter-intuitive to

think once he was

the victim of bullying. For Anti-Bullying

Week last week he has been visiting his

local school. “I was bullied in primary and

early secondary school so it’s a subject

that’s close to me. I come in and speak

to some of the kids in assembly, show

that you can be bullied, you can be body

conscious and you can change your life,

become an Olympian, box on Sky, do

whatever you want to do in life,” he said.

It’s been an eventful week in other

ways. He had his next fight confirmed

for December 13 at York Hall and

expects to take on London rival Isaac

Chamberlain in February next year.

After the two confronted each other

on the sidelines of a show last Friday,

Okolie phoned promoter Eddie Hearn to

insist on the fight

happening as soon as

possible.

“He likes to play

this underdog,

‘nothing’s been given

to me,’” Lawrence

told Boxing News. But

he points out, “It’s

me taking the step

up in the sense that

I’m boxing someone

that’s ranked above

me, who has been

pro for three years, so has developed

a lot more experience in that time as a

professional. He’s done 10 rounds.

I haven’t gone past six. He’s been in the

trenches. He’s gone six hard rounds

with Russell Henshaw, four hard rounds

with Martin Grainger. He’s gone 10 hard

rounds with Wadi Camacho. He’s gone

six rounds with Ossie Jervier. So in a

sense he’s the favourite.”

Their recent confrontation was the

final straw. Okolie said, “Chamberlain

and I have seen each other on multiple

occasions. Face to face, man to man, he

doesn’t want to say a word to me ever.

When he’s with his people, I’m with my

people, he doesn’t want to talk. This time

I was at York Hall to support my friend.

I was there with my brother, we were

walking through when Chamerlain and

his friends suddenly confronted us, all

with their cameras out, you know, talking

about ridiculous stuff, nothing to do with

fighting. So I pressed the issue, do you

want to fight?”

‘IF CHAMBERLAIN

SAYS HE’S INJURED

AND CAN’T FIGHT

IN FEBRUARY,

I’M TELLING YOU

THE INJURY IS

NOT REAL’

“I said talk’s cheap, let’s get cracking in

December,” he continued. “Some people

are about talking, other people are about

action.”

Lawrence maintains if the two don’t

box on February 3 2018, it will be down

to Chamberlain. “Unfortunately they

overpushed it with the taunting and the

talking, I made the relevant calls and

stressed that the fight needs to happen

soon. It takes away the whole ‘letting it

build’,” Okolie said. “If the fight doesn’t

happen in Feburary it’s because they

bottled it, in the sense that they want to

fight me but they don’t think it’s worth

the risk. It’s bluffing in the sense that

they didn’t want the fight right now. If

the fight doesn’t happen in February, it’s

purely because of an injury, and if he says

he’s injured I’m telling you it’s not real,

or because they priced themselves out

of the fight. That’s the bottom line and it

sickens that this stuff is even possible in

boxing.”

“I don’t think Chamberlain’s afraid to

fight me. I think he

wants it to be lifechanging

money,”

he mused. “We’ll see

anyway.

“I’m not in this

game to mess about

for three years

talking rubbish with

someone, trying to

build up a big fight.

If I’m as good as I

believe I’m going to

be, then my big fight

isn’t Chamberlain, it’s European, World

title, unification that I’m going to build

towards.”

There is personal animosity between

them. “They’re saying they want to fight

but, I don’t want to get into the ins

and outs of money, but Chamberlain is

extremely jealous of me,” Lawrence said.

“He’s jealous and he thinks that he’s been

hard done by, despite the fact that he’s

got TV, Sky, Facebook Live, coverage from

Matchroom, when people in his own

gym have done more as an amateur and

are doing more as a professional and

haven’t got the same platform. So I don’t

think that’s fair.”

Okolie reasoned there is no point

waiting. He wants to avoid the curse

of letting a fight ‘marinade’. “I’m not in

boxing to do talking for months or years.

He says he wants to fight, he says he

wants to box for the Commonwealth

title, for the English, whatever. So that

being said, the Commonwealth title is

held up because Luke Watkins has a

mandatory against Mike Stafford and also

the English title is the same, [Arfan Iqbal]

and Simon Vallily are scheduled to fight.

So that means that the Commonwealth

title is held up, the English title held up,

Southern Area, he already beat Wadi

Camacho [for it], I’m ranked above Wadi

Camacho. The natural progression is


Photos: ACTION IMAGES

NOT HANGING

AROUND:

Okolie is eager to

make the right

fights and

fast progress

Chamberlain,” he said. “Chamberlain

wants to go for this, that and the other.

All of those titles he claims he wants to

fight for are held up. He cannot fight for

them.

“He doesn’t have an excuse not to take

the fight. Because he can’t box for a title

in the interim and also he can’t say he’s

not been given anything and then have

the opportunity to be co-main event on

a massive show and then say no.”

For Okolie this will be a continuation

of his accelerated amateur career. “I got

through the amateurs with 26 fights but

I managed to do Europeans, qualifiers,

Olympian, CYP champ, on the GB team

etc. all based on taking hard fights,” he

said. “I not only managed to get through

but I got a lot better quickly because

I was taking risks. So win, lose or draw

I was in there having a fight.”

He doesn’t to wait around. He wants

to move straight into real fights. That is a

refreshing attitude to have.


Photos: GETTY IMAGES

FIGHTING FIT:

Pendleton has barely

changed since his

days as a fighter


Q & A

‘CHAVEZ RAN TO THE

MOUNTAINS AS SOON AS

MY PLANE LANDED’

With bravado typical of a retired fighter, Freddie Pendleton

tells James Slater about the struggles of being too good

ESPITE suffering 26 defeats in a professional

D

career that began 36 years ago this month,

“Fearless” Freddie Pendleton speaks today as

though he never took a punch in his life. The

Philly warrior who never had anything easy in

the ring, taking short-notice fights and often

being the victim of some highly debatable

scoring, refused to give up. In his 53rd fight, Pendleton captured the

IBF lightweight title. Today, the 54-year-old, who believes he’s fit

enough to fight again, is working on his autobiography.

How many of your 26 defeats do you accept as genuine?

In all truthfulness, I feel I have only eight genuine losses on my

record. I was robbed so many

times. Frankie Randall who I fought

twice [l rsf 5, draw pts 12], the first

fight, I went right after him and

was beating him up. I took that

fight on two weeks’ notice. In the

fifth round, the ref called me over

and he said I was cut, I said, ‘So

what?’ He said it was running into

my eye and they stopped the fight.

Later I found out he had refereed

around 150 of Frankie’s amateur

fights. We fought again and it was

a draw - I think I won, he thinks he

won. But we screamed for a third

fight, my team and I, but he never

wanted it. He said, when he was

WBC [super-lightweight] champ

[Randall upset Julio Cesar Chavez

to win the title in 1994], that he

never wanted anything to do with

me ever again – that I hit him more

than anyone else did in his whole

career. And this is the guy who had

Chavez on his ass! We both were

under the same guy, Carl King, but

that third fight didn’t happen.

You’ve said before that Chavez

ducked you. Please explain.

Three times! We had big offers from all the TV networks, but

Chavez didn’t want to know. Don King called me and told me to go

spar with Chavez in Mexico.

I didn’t want to, I wanted to fight him for real. But anyway, I

went. I got there, to the gym, and asked where Chavez was; they

said he’d gone up into the mountains as soon as my plane landed.

He packed up and left.

I called Don and told him to get me the hell out of there and he

laughed. He told me later that Chavez gave him hell for getting me

over there to try and spar with him.

THE END: Pendleton retires with a 47-26-5 (35) record after

losing to Ricky Hatton in 2001

‘MAYWEATHER OWES

ME A LOT - BUT HE HIT

ME THE HARDEST’

When you finally became IBF lightweight champion, in your

53rd fight, you must have felt great?

Nah, not really. I knew I’d beat Tracy Spann [w pts 12 after a

technical draw five months earlier]. I was having such an easy time

with him, that’s why I got put on my ass in the first fight. I started

playing and I got caught. I never did that again. For me, the Jorge

Paez fight [w pts 12, Pendleton’s sole title retention] was a good

fight. When I beat Paez that made me feel more like a real world

champion. He had skills, I respected him a lot.

What would you say was your best win?

Have you seen my fight with Tyrone Trice? I had one week’s

notice – I was playing basketball on the street and they called

and said I had the fight. I needed

money and I asked when the fight

was. They said Tuesday and I said

it is Tuesday! So [I had] seven days

to get ready and they all said I was

going to get knocked out for sure,

that Trice was the next Tommy

Hearns [Pendeleton won in the

first round].

The fight with Roger

Mayweather [w rsf 6], well, he

owes me a whole lot. I helped him

become champion both times

that he did it. I sparred him before

both of his word title fight wins.

But I never understood why he

agreed to fight me: I was always

beating on him in the gym. They

threw me out one time, for hitting

him too hard. Roger is probably

the hardest puncher I ever fight

though. He stunned me bad in the

second round and I had to move

around and get out of trouble.

What do you think of fighters

today?

Today, there’s nothing awesome

out there, nothing really great.

Look at Andre Ward: he retires and then comes back, retires and

then comes back. I say good riddance. He doesn’t give a damn

about the paying fans.

When I was fighting, that was the thing: putting on a great show

for the fans who pay money to see you fight. I put it in each and

every time. I wanted people to say, ‘Man, that kid can fight.’ Mikey

Garcia, he’s a good fighter but he’s not a world champion to me.

No way would he have lived with all the greats in our era – not

even close.

Today, all the fighters care about is getting paid. But whose fault

is it? If you watch garbage they’ll continue to give you garbage.


ACTIONReports from

the best fights

around the world

★★★★★ OUTSTANDING ★★★★ GOOD ★★★ FAIR ★★ DISAPPOINTING ★ RUBBISH

Reporters’ star ratings for main events and undercards are based on in-ring entertainment, competitiveness and whether overall expectation was met

Photos: MARK MARLOW

BACK TO THE WELL:

Frampton [right] is

forced into a strenuous

scrap by tough Garcia

GUNG-HO

Frampton

is dragged

into a war

on a night

of thrills

and spills

Steve

Wellings

RINGSIDE

★★★★

★★★★

BELFAST

NOVEMBER 18

MAIN EVENT

UNDERCARD

★★★★★ ATMOSPHERE

ARL FRAMPTON

returned to the

C

cauldron that is

the SSE Arena to

record a 10-round

points victory over

Horacio Garcia.

After a period of inactivity, including a

July false start, Frampton needed a rustshedding

exercise like this before aiming

for the featherweight division’s elite.

In the early portion of the fight

Frampton could hardly miss with his

snappy left jab and left hook behind it,

as Garcia’s head rolled back on more

than one occasion. With pound-forpound

star Saul “Canelo” Alvarez sitting

at ringside, Carl was

putting on a Caneloesque

performance

with his cruelly accurate

counter shots. Sweat

was spraying off Garcia’s

static skull once again in

round three as Frampton

added a right hand to his

weaponry.

Garcia’s main punch

was the left hook, but “The Jackal”

was doing a good job of touching

the Mexican with enough leather to

make him lead off before returning fire

immediately. Frampton had a slight

‘I WANTED

A HARD FIGHT.

I WANT ONE

OF THE BIG

BOYS NOW’

trickle of blood from the right eye in

the sixth as Garcia started to find little

pockets of success, pinning the Belfast

man against the ropes.

New trainer Jamie Moore dismissed

Frampton’s postfight

assertion that

his performance was

“mediocre”, stating that

even though his man can

perform much better, Carl

was dragged into a fight,

which was great for the

fans.

Frampton hit the

canvas in round seven

when a grazing Garcia left hook, coupled

with a slip, prompted referee Victor

Loughlin to issue a count. Frampton was

also sporting a nasty swelling around

the left cheek. He rallied in the eighth


and staved off the Garcia advances just

enough to poke a little more daylight in

to the scorecards.

Judges Steve Gray (98-93), Phil

Edwards (97-93) and Dave Parris (96-93)

awarded ex-two-weight world champ

Frampton a unanimous decision victory.

“The fans enjoyed it more than me

anyway,” said Frampton, who admitted

that he personally picked the opponent.

“I wanted a hard fight. That’s got the rust

off, cobwebs gone, and I want one of the

big boys now.”

Promoter Frank Warren later explained

that they would not be waiting around

for a Leo Santa Cruz rubber match, but

rather target the winner of Lee Selby-

Josh Warrington, which is expected

around April or May 2018. Frank has

promised to deliver Carl the big summer

show in Windsor Park that he craves.

There was world title heartbreak for

Belfast warrior Jamie Conlan, who

found defending IBF super-flyweight

king Jerwin Ancajas too hot to

handle. Ancajas started behind

DAY OF ‘THE JACKAL’:

Frampton [below,

on right] shows his

mettle and class

against Garcia,

before taking the

verdict [above]

a measured southpaw jab,

poking in straight body

shots and brushing off

Conlan’s frequent left

hook retorts.

After seemingly

weathering the

early storm, Jamie

suddenly hit the deck

after a delayed reaction,

and Ancajas claimed an

unexpected 10-8 session.

Conlan suffered his customary cut

in round two as a laceration around the

left eye opened up and blood streamed

down his cheek. A tough task was already

TALKING

POINT

FRAMPTON’S record in his

hometown is imperious. Following

his victory over Garcia, he has now

won all 11 of his pro fights that have

been staged in Belfast – eight of

those wins coming inside the

distance.

getting tougher, and Jamie fell

to the mat again in round three

from a whipping body shot, but

was saved by the bell.

Conlan was down in the fourth from

another body blow at the end of the

frame, and it was getting to the point

where he might have to be protected

from himself.

Ancajas had a point deducted in

round five when referee Gray tired of his

low blows. The Filipino was back at it in

the sixth, however, and Conlan took a

swipe around the back of the head that

dropped him, forcing Mr Gray to call it

off after 52 seconds of the session.

Paddy Barnes picked up the vacant

WBO Inter-Continental flyweight strap

– very much a ranking-boosting bauble

– with a sixth-round knockout win over

Eliecer Quezada. Barnes’ main task

was to overcome Quezada’s height and

reach advantages, and when Quezada

was visibly hurt in the second round

from a body shot, Barnes jumped on

him. Soon after, a right hand landed

clean and floored Quezada for a count.

The Nicaraguan visitor was coming

forward and trying to exchange,

rather than running, which

suited Barnes’ style as he

picked off neat counters

with both hands.

By the fifth,

Quezada appeared

to have aged since

the fight started, and

Belfast’s Barnes was

repeatedly hunting him

with shots from all angles.

After flurrying to the head,

Quezada raised his hands just as

Barnes switched downstairs to tuck away

a lovely body shot. Referee Gray counted

Quezada out at 3-06 of the sixth. It had ➤


ACTION

Photos: MARK MARLOW

LOW BLOW?

Ancajas torpedoes a

searing left hand into

Conlan’s midsection

➤ been scheduled to run for 10 rounds.

Jono Carroll overwhelmed

Humberto de Santiago, stopping

the Mexican at 2-16 of round three in a

thoroughly engaging slugfest. Some of

Carroll’s body shots were straying low,

and referee Edwards warned him twice.

Cut after a clash of heads, Dubliner Carroll

decided it was time to end the proposed

12-rounder early, and unleashed a

prolonged barrage which saw de Santiago

caught up in the ropes and on the end of

sustained punishment. Edwards stopped

the bout and Carroll took home the vacant

IBF Inter-Continental super-feather belt.

Zolani Tete emphatically demolished

his WBO bantamweight title challenger

Siboniso Gonya in just 11 seconds. The

pair briefly circled before Tete unleashed

a lead right hook from the southpaw

stance that completely obliterated his

fellow South African. Referee Edwards

waved the fight off almost immediately, as

medical staff rushed into the ring. Gonya

lay stricken for an extended period before

he came to his senses and realised his

BATTLE CRY:

Barnes roars as he

attacks Quezada with

a right hook to the body

challenge had ended. Tete is hunting a

unification with Belfast’s Ryan Burnett.

“There can only be one king,” he said.

David Oliver Joyce chalked up another

win when Reynaldo Cajina’s corner

retired him at the end of the third round,

scheduled for six. Joyce was a quality

amateur and looks like he’s shaping up

well as a pro too. Always stalking forward

and moving into punching range, the

Mullingar man had too much firepower

for his Spain-based Nicaraguan opponent.

Hugh Russell Jnr refereed.

Tommy McCarthy enjoyed a hardfought

60-55 victory over Manchesterbased

Cameroonian Blaise Mendouo.

McCarthy took an extended look early on

and used his jab and uppercuts to try to

dampen Mendouo’s spirit. Blaise never

stopped trying, but Belfast’s McCarthy

earned the win on Eamonn Magill’s

scorecard.

Another hapless hopeful failed to

hear the final bell against Belfast’s Lewis

Crocker. Gyula Rozsas was stopped at

1-50 of the first round (set for four) after

Crocker landed a powerful left hook.

Mr Russell Jnr frantically waved it off while

the Hungarian stood statuesque against

the ropes, frozen by Crocker’s power.

Marco McCullough emphatically

halted Tamworth’s Josh Baillie with

a third-round stoppage. Belfast’s

McCullough loosened up early and when

he introduced the big right hand, Baillie

was dropped heavily. Mr Russell Jnr called

the scheduled six-rounder off, 32 seconds

into the third.

Liverpool’s Alex Dickinson won 40-36

against Milen Paunov on John Lowey’s

card. Podgy Paunov was more active

than his rotund frame suggested, and the

Bulgarian was not afraid to throw some

meaty swings at Dickinson.

Lanky Kildare southpaw Gary Cully

opened the show with a 40-35 success

over Birmingham’s Kane Baker. Baker

was cut and decked in the final round,

but hung on to hear Mr Lowey’s verdict.

Monkstown’s Steven Ward put in a

workmanlike six rounds against Poland’s

Przemyslaw Binienda, taking the bout

60-55 for Mr Lowey.

THE VERDICT The jury is still out

on Frampton’s chances to rule again

but, despite their gruelling nature,

10 much-needed rounds are banked.

FULL RESULTS

Carl Frampton (127lbs), 24-1 (14), w pts 10 Horacio Garcia (127lbs), 33-4-1 (24);

Jerwin Ancajas (115lbs), 28-1-1 (19), w rsf 6 Jamie Conlan (115lbs), 19-1 (11);

Zolani Tete (117 1/2lbs), 26-3 (21), w ko 1 Siboniso Gonya (116lbs), 11-2 (5);

Paddy Barnes (111 1/2lbs), 5-0 (1), w rsf 6 Eliecer Quezada (114 1/2lbs), 21-7-3

(8); Jono Carroll (129lbs), 15-0 (2), w rsf 3 Humberto de Santiago (128lbs), 15-5-

1 (11); Marco McCullough (133lbs), 18-4 (10), w rsf 3 Josh Baillie (133lbs), 5-4

(2); Tommy McCarthy (200lbs), 11-1 (6), w pts 6 Blaise Mendouo (198lbs), 4-8

(1); Steven Ward (181lbs), 6-0 (2), w pts 6 Przemyslaw Binienda (180lbs), 2-14

(2); David Oliver Joyce (131lbs), 5-0 (4), w rtd 3 Reynaldo Cajina (135lbs), 14-46-

5 (10); Lewis Crocker (150lbs), 4-0 (4), w rsf 1 Gyula Rozsas (148 1/2lbs), 2-2 (1);

Gary Cully (136lbs), 3-0 (2), w pts 4 Kane Baker (140lbs), 4-2; Alex Dickinson

(227lbs), 3-0 (2), w pts 4 Milen Paunov (225lbs), 3-5 (2).


ACTION

CROSSROADS CLASSIC

Veteran Smith pushes Williams

hard in a cracking clash, writes

Kenneth Bouhairie

★★★★

★★★

LAS VEGAS, NV

NOVEMBER 18

MAIN EVENT

UNDERCARD

SUPER-WELTERWEIGHT Julian Williams’

win over Ishe Smith is another example

of how the facts and the truth aren’t

necessarily the same in boxing. The

facts are, Williams won a wide 10-round

unanimous decision. The truth is,

Williams-Smith was a thrilling, tight battle

that kept the crowd at the Cosmopolitan

on the edge of their seats.

Boxing News had it 96-94 for Williams.

The 27-year-old was faster, moved better

and landed the more eye-catching blows.

He also resembled a fighter still in search

of what was lost on December 10, 2016.

That was the night Jermall Charlo handed

him his first loss via highlight-reel KO.

Williams returned to the ring in June

with a stoppage of Joshua Conley. Conley

seemed more interested in cashing his

cheque than earning it. Conversely,

Las Vegas’ Smith, coming off a 14-month

layoff, fought with the hunger of a

39-year-old former world champion

desperate for more purses.

Williams-Smith was far more

entertaining than expected – a classic

crossroads bout. Yet it was one-sided

early on. Williams won three of the first

four rounds, catching Smith repeatedly

with a snapping jab and sneaky right

hands. A clash of heads in the second

opened a cut over Smith’s left optic.

When he wasn’t pawing at his eye early

on, Smith’s attack concentrated on the

body. It paid off in the fifth when a left

hook to the ribs backed Williams up.

A series of rights brought about roars

from the pro-Smith crowd. Williams

wasn’t seriously hurt, though.

Smith continued to gather momentum.

A short right in the seventh momentarily

stunned Williams. The proud Philadelphia

native motioned for more. Smith

obliged, digging up and downstairs. His

assault was cut short when an accidental

headbutt caused a new gash around his

left eyelid.

They took turns landing leather during

the final three rounds. The 10th featured

heavy toe-to-toe action, and another bad

accidental headbutt. Both fighters had

their moments when action resumed –

a microcosm of the fight. Scores were

FULL

RESULTS

Julian Williams

(155 1/4lbs), 24-1-1

(15), w pts 10 Ishe

Smith (154 3/4lbs),

29-9 (12); Lionell

Thompson (177

1/4lbs), 19-4 (11),

w pts 10 Earl Newman

(179lbs), 10-1-1 (7);

Tugstsogt Nyambayar

(125 1/2lbs), 9-0 (8),

w pts 8 Harmonito

Dela Torre (128lbs),

19-1 (12); Darwin

Price (140lbs), 13-0

(6), w pts 6 Angel

Hernandez (142

1/2lbs), 13-9-2

(8); Lanell Bellows

(173lbs), 17-3-1 (10),

w rsf 7 Fabiano Pena

(179lbs), 15-10-1

(11); Oluwafemi

Oyeleye (153 3/4lbs),

4-0 (1), w pts 6

Brandon Adams (154

1/4lbs), 4-6-1 (2).

Photo: CHRIS FARINA/MAYWEATHER PROMOTIONS

99-91, 98-92 and 97-93. Russell Mora

officiated.

In a battle between Big Apple lightheavies,

Buffalo’s Lionell Thompson

handed Earl Newman of Brooklyn his

first defeat, building a wide points lead to

secure a 10-round unanimous verdict at

96-92 and 97-91 (twice).

This was easily the finest performance

of Thompson’s up-and-down career. He

displayed fast hands, good power and

excellent lateral movement. The stocky

boxer-puncher used his jab to close the

gap against the taller Newman, and then

raked him with blurring combinations.

A beautiful right uppercut in the third

shook Newman up. Thompson chased

him around the ring, landing another

right that nearly drove Newman through

the ropes. He remained upright but

referee Robert Byrd, who initially looked

as if he might stop the fight, stepped in

to administer an eight-count, correctly

noting that only the ropes had held

Newman up.

Thompson wobbled Newman again

with a left hook midway through the

fourth. Another left, followed by two

rights, floored the Brooklynite. Mr Byrd

had an extended chat with Newman

before action continued. Newman

managed to avoid further damage for

the rest of the round, using his feet and a

long jab to keep Thompson at bay.

After back-to-back 10-8 sessions,

Newman came out aggressively stalking

Thompson in the fifth. But Thompson

turned the tables in the sixth, coming

forward behind the shoulder roll and

working his opponent over.

Newman came on during the final

third of the fight, stunning Thompson

with a counter right in the eighth. He

finished the stronger fighter, but it wasn’t

enough to overcome Newman’s lead.

A clash between undefeated

featherweights saw Tugstsogt

Nyambayar taste the canvas and go

the distance for the first time as a pro.

Nevertheless, he still managed to collect

a hard-fought eight-round unanimous

decision over Miami-based Filipino

Harmonito Dela Torre.

Carson, California resident Nyambayar

was dropped hard by a left hook in the

second. The 2012 Olympic silver medallist

from Mongolia showed mettle in the

ensuing rounds, landing well-placed

and well-thrown shots to Dela Torre’s

head and body. He may still be a work

in progress, but his talent is evident.

Two judges had it 78-73, while the third

scored 79-73. Kenny Bayless refereed.

THE VERDICT Smith proves that he

still has fight left in him, even at 39.

PAST THE GUARD:

Smith tries to cover

up as Williams lands

a long right hand


ACTION

‘BOMBER’ SHOT DOWN

FULL

RESULTS

Josh Groombridge

(164 1/4lbs), 6-0

(4), w rsf 3 Rob

Brown (171lbs 6oz),

2-11 (1); Rhasian

Earlington (199

1/4lbs), 3-0, w pts 4

Dmitrij Kalinovskij

(192lbs 2oz), 11-39-4

(5); Jamal Le Doux

(172lbs 14oz), 2-0,

w pts 4 Kamil Al

Temimi (178lbs 14oz),

0-1; Aron Canning

(179 1/4lbs), 2-0 (2),

w tco 1 Darren Snow

(183lbs 1oz), 5-19-

1; Liam Berrisford

(136lbs), 1-0, w pts 4

Jamie Quinn (137lbs

2oz), 3-49-2; Kaash

Buttery (139lbs

10oz), 1-0, w pts 4

Fonz Alexander (142

1/4lbs), 5-68 (3).

Photo: JANE WARBURTON

ON THE FLOOR:

Brown hits the deck

four times against

Groombridge

Groombridge wins early again,

but doesn’t get off scot-free

★★★

Andy Whittle

RINGSIDE

★★★★

★★★★

STOKE-ON-TRENT

NOVEMBER 18

MAIN EVENT

UNDERCARD

ATMOSPHERE

UTTOXETER’S tattooed Josh

Groombridge registered his sixth win on

the bounce at the ornate Kings Hall when

he stopped Wiltshire’s taller and heavier

Rob “Bomber” Brown two seconds

shy of the halfway stage of a scheduled

six-rounder. Referee-for-the-night Kevin

Parker waved a halt having had a long

look after the Bulford man hauled himself

off the canvas for the fourth time.

Things hadn’t begun as swimmingly as

Groombridge might have wished, and by

the end of what was a fairly close opener

he had picked up not only a bloodied

nose but was nursing a nick to the corner

of the right eye too.

Sensing he may need to up the ante

somewhat, Josh emerged for the second

session with a renewed sense of vigour.

Having replied to a Brown combination

upstairs with one of his own, he duly

slammed home another left-right which

saw Rob topple forward to his knees –

a position the visitor was to find himself

once more before the bell tolled to end

the round.

The majority of the third passed

without incident, with the balance

swinging first one way and then the

other before, with the clock running

down, a hammer of a left to the body

saw Rob drop to one knee once more in

a neutral corner. Almost before he was

up he was back down again. This time a

right cross did the damage and proved

sufficient for the third man to say that

enough was enough.

The five undercard contests – all boxed

over four rounds – saw two local firsttimers

take on experienced opposition

in the shape of Stockport’s Jamie Quinn

and Newark’s Fonz Alexander. It was

the debutants – Meir’s Liam Berrisford

and Burslem’s Kaash Buttery – who

triumphed, and in some style it has to be

said. Both new starters secured shutout

40-36 victories.

Right from the off, Berrisford scored

with regular lefts to the body – half-adozen

times in the opener alone he saw

his favoured shot find the target. He

varied his work nicely in the later stages

after Quinn kept his elbows tucked in

tight, finishing with a two-handed burst

to the head.

Meanwhile, fresh-faced Buttery –

urged on by a noisy throng – was proof

that looks can be deceptive. He may have

appeared angelic enough, but he packed

quite a punch. Alexander was made

acutely aware of this fact from a very

early stage.

Relentless, and with fast hands to boot,

there was never a doubt that Buttery

would take every session. Alexander, who

is out almost every week, was seemingly

well impressed. The beaten man was

quick to offer his congratulations to the

winner at the finish.

The meeting between one-fight

Wrexham novice Aron Canning and

Dinnington’s Darren Snow lasted just

125 seconds before “Snowy” was floored

heavily for a second time by a left to the

body, and referee Parker dispensed with

the count.

Newcastle-under-Lyme’s Rhasian

Earlington ran out a 40-37 victor against

gutsy Lithuanian Dmitrij Kalinovskij

who, not there just to make up the

numbers, made a more than decent fist

of it, especially in the second half. I had

this one – enjoyable throughout – a little

closer than Mr Parker.

A final quartet of rounds boxed

between Hanley’s Jamal Le Doux and

Aberystwyth’s Poland-born Kamil Al

Temimi saw Le Doux bank win number

two by a margin of 40-35.

Debutant Al Temimi, who was born

to a Polish mother and an Iraqi father,

was counted as early as the first. Having

been tagged off balance by a right to the

head and seemingly helped on his way

by a slip on the canvas, his knee touched

down momentarily. Kamil also picked

up a bloodied mouth along the way, and

finished marked below the right eye.

THE VERDICT Two impressive debut

performances from Berrisford and

Buttery make for an entertaining

evening.


ACTION

Photo: ACTION IMAGES/CRAIG BROUGH

FABULOUS FABIO

MILESTONE:

Cartwright now has

20 wins to his name

SHARP

BLUNTED

Cartwright notches his third

victory in just six weeks

★★★

MANCHESTER

NOVEMBER 18

WHOLE SHOW

JUST a fortnight after losing his

Central Area middleweight title to

fellow Middleton man Matthew

Ryan in this same Bowlers

Exhibition Centre ring, Darryl

Sharp lost out over the distance

once more, this time boxing

over eight rounds against Leeds’

much taller and heavier Reece

Cartwright. Sharp succumbed

by a margin of 80-74 on the card

of Darren Sarginson, who scored

from ringside for trialist referee

Jamie Kirkpatrick.

Cartwright’s victory – his third in

quick succession – should go some

way towards banishing memories

of his sole career defeat. That

came via first-frame stoppage

at the hands of Spain-based

Romanian Rafael Chiruta here at

Bowlers in late July. Now boasting

20 career wins, Reece will be

looking to kick on in 2018.

Six-round points successes

came the way of Altrincham’s

George Brennan and Zahid

Hussain of Leeds. Brennan

claimed a 58-56 win over

Islington’s game Jules Phillips

( John Latham scoring for Mr

Kirkpatrick), while Hussain, as

expected, took every session

(60-54) for referee Sarginson

against Westbrook’s Ricky Leach.

Three-and-a-half years after

debuting and having won all

13 so far, Zahid ought to now

be matched against tougher

opposition than was the case here.

After two early finishes,

Liverpool’s Brian Phillips was

taken the distance for the first

time by durable Lithuanian Simas

Volosinas. Mr Latham tallied

40-36 in favour of Phillips.

The same official had

Morecambe’s Reece MacMillan

a winner by an identical scoreline

(40-36) against Nuneaton’s

evergreen Kristian Laight.

Leeds lady SJ Smith registered

a 40-36 four-twos win for Mr

Sarginson over Monika Antonik.

The Pole has boxed five of her last

six contests on these shores, but

has not won a single round in the

process. She has, however, only

been halted the once. That was

by 2012 Olympian Natasha Jonas

in June.

THE VERDICT Bowlers is one

of the most used venues in the

UK at the moment.

Wardley is in no mood for

hanging around against Saward

★★★

NORWICH

NOVEMBER 18

AFTER triumphing by way of

a first-round stoppage last

time out, Ipswich heavyweight

Fabio Wardley continued his

destructive run at the Epic Centre

by knocking out Erith’s Scott

Saward six seconds from the end

of the opener in a scheduled four.

The much heavier Saward

had won all three previously –

each of his bouts having run the

distance – but this time he was

in with a puncher, and it was a

case of ‘lights out’ when Wardley

connected with a heavy right as

the bell to end the first frame

approached.

When popular local Zaiphan

Morris went in over eight with

Hull’s busy Luke Fash at this

same venue in July, the contest

was scored a 77-77 draw. While

Fash, as is usually the case, once

again gave a decent account of

himself, he was unable to prevent

Zaiphan running out a 59-55

SMILING GIANTS:

Wardley [left],

pictured alongside

British heavyweight

champ Sam Sexton

WHOLE SHOW

winner over the shorter six-round

distance this time. Morris had also

beaten the Humberside operator

over four 18 months ago.

Almost a year had passed since

Clacton’s Joe Hurn was held to a

tie over six by Atherton’s William

Warburton, and he returned

to the squared circle in style.

Hurn halted Rochester’s Sonny

Whiting – who had been shaken

by a weighty right – 61 seconds

from the end of a bout slated for

four.

Arvydas Trizno (in his 101st

fight) and Florians Strupits were

both four-round points losers.

Lithuanian Trizno succumbed

40-37 to Croydon’s Connor Vian,

while Latvia-based Ukrainian

Strupits tasted defeat for the 50th

time and had his nose bloodied

too in losing 40-36 to one-bout

Marsham novice Iain Martell.

Colchester’s Alan Ratibb

secured his third straight victory,

outpointing Braintree’s as-yetwinless

Dylan Draper 40-36,

while another Braintree resident

– Billy Bird – edged out Brixton’s

Ashley Bailey Dumetz 58-57 in

an exciting clash over six.

THE VERDICT Wardley marks

himself out as a puncher to

keep an eye on.

FULL RESULTS

Reece Cartwright (172lbs 7oz), 20-1 (11), w pts 8 Darryl Sharp (164lbs 5oz), 5-26;

George Brennan (126lbs 2oz), 5-1-1 (1), w pts 6 Jules Phillips (127lbs 7oz), 1-10;

Zahid Hussain (125lbs 11oz), 13-0 (2), w pts 6 Ricky Leach (121lbs 14oz), 3-24-1;

Brian Phillips (135lbs 6oz), 3-0 (2), w pts 4 Simas Volosinas (134lbs), 7-70 (1);

Reece MacMillan (143lbs 1oz), 5-1 (1), w pts 4 Kristian Laight (142lbs 14oz), 12-258-8;

SJ Smith (137lbs 13oz), 7-1 (4), w pts 4 Monika Antonik (136lbs), 1-7.

FULL RESULTS

Fabio Wardley (223lbs), 3-0 (2), w ko 1 Scott Saward (272lbs), 3-1; Zaiphan Morris (133lbs),

11-0-2, w pts 6 Luke Fash (133lbs), 2-33-2; Billy Bird (164lbs), 16-1 (2), w pts 6 Ashley

Bailey Dumetz (167lbs), 2-4; Alan Ratibb (146lbs), 5-2 (1), w pts 4 Dylan Draper (145lbs),

0-9; Joe Hurn (162lbs), 9-0-1 (6), w rsf 4 Sonny Whiting (164lbs), 5-25-2 (2); Iain Martell

(203lbs), 2-0 (1), w pts 4 Florians Strupits (203lbs), 3-50-3 (2); Connor Vian (150lbs), 5-0,

w pts 4 Arvydas Trizno (153lbs), 26-72-3 (7).


ACTION

Photo: ANDY GARNER

★★★

★★★

Andy Whittle

RINGSIDE

SHEFFIELD

NOVEMBER 17

WHOLE SHOW

ATMOSPHERE

A QUARTET of contests (three over

four rounds and one over six) – all of

which were overseen by John Latham

– went ahead in front of a decent and

appreciative crowd in the Platinum Suite

at Sheffield United’s Bramall Lane football

ground. All of the bouts resulted in

distance victories for Yorkshire fighters.

The super-bantamweight six between

Ingle-stabled “Golden Kid” Kyle Yousaf

and Evesham terrier Brett Fidoe – who

was punching for pay for the 50th time –

went the way of the Sheffield man, who

duly got the 60-54 nod.

Boasting both height and reach

advantages, Yousaf opened an early lead,

his superiority emphasised when he

crashed home a spiteful right to the body,

followed by a left to the head late in the

second session. A fair proportion of his

best work came when having switched to

southpaw, where he followed his jab in

with telling lefts.

Brett did manage to work his way

inside occasionally, but not with sufficient

regularity for it to affect the scoring. The

HOME COMFORTS

Victories

for the four

locals on

Steel City

dinner show

visitor was admonished for holding on a

couple of occasions.

Another Ingle boxer looking to move

onwards and upwards in the new year

is Rotherham’s Atif Shafiq. He took

all four rounds (40-36) in an alwayswatchable

encounter against Cardiff’s

Rhys Saunders who, despite finishing

both on the receiving end and with a

bloody nose, contributed well.

Sheffield’s Loua Nassa outpointed

Latvia’s Dmitrijs Gutmans 39-37. Mr

Latham gave the last round to the import,

SHUTOUT:

Yousaf [left] is

a clear winner

against Fidoe

FULL

RESULTS

Kyle Yousaf (120lbs),

12-0 (5), w pts 6 Brett

Fidoe (121lbs), 7-40-

3 (5); Atif Shafiq

(142lbs), 18-2 (4),

w pts 4 Rhys Saunders

(140lbs), 3-8-1 (1);

Loua Nassa (124

1/2lbs), 10-0, w pts

4 Dmitrijs Gutmans

(128lbs), 4-23-1 (4);

Razaq Najib (129lbs),

7-2 (1), w pts 4 Jamie

Speight (129lbs),

15-16 (2).

who has now fought 25 times in the UK.

Mr Latham adjudged another Steel City

operator – Razaq Najib – a winner by

the same score (39-37) at the conclusion

of another four against Kingsteignton’s

Jamie Speight who, like the Latvian

before him, was credited with having

done enough to take the last round.

THE VERDICT Billy Joe Saunders

and Kid Galahad are among the

ringsiders cheering their winning

stablemates on.

WELSH WIZARDS

Photo: PHILIP SHARKEY

Evans and co secure

a clean sweep for Wales

★★★

★★★

Philip Sharkey

RINGSIDE

MAYFAIR

NOVEMBER 16

WHOLE SHOW

ATMOSPHERE

ROBERT WATERMAN’S annual

dinner show at the Sheraton

Grand Hotel – raising money for

the HabAid charity – saw three

Chris Sanigar-managed Welshmen

register wins.

In a decent six-rounder, portsider

JJ Evans found Plymouth’s

Christian Hoskin Gomez happy

to engage for the full 18 minutes.

Referee-for-the-evening Jeff Hinds

never had to speak to the boxers

or separate them as both whacked

away, to the delight of the black-tie

audience.

Even a sustained body assault in

the fourth from Evans did not deter

his bearded Devonian opponent.

It was the Cardiff 21-year-old who

had his hand raised at the end, with

Mr Hinds scoring 59-56.

Another 21-year-old southpaw –

Swansea’s Sonny Lee – had a much

easier night against winless Czech

Dominik Landgraf. Sonny did

as he pleased against the hapless

visitor, extravagantly showboating

for much of the last round in a

four-threes to earn a 40-36 points

victory.

Pontypridd’s Jermaine Asare

proved too big (eight pounds

heavier) and powerful for

Manchester-based Angolan Julio

Cesar. With two first-frame defeats

ON THE MARK:

Evans’ right hook

thuds off of Hoskin

Gomez’s cranium

on his record, alarm bells sounded

when Jermaine was caught by a

wild swinging right hand.

However, he fired back

emphatically with two left hooks

followed by a solid right to the

temple that sent Cesar reeling. Mr

Hinds stepped in after 29 seconds

of the second session to terminate

proceedings in favour of Asare. It

had been scheduled for four.

THE VERDICT A hat-trick of

wins for Wales, as money is

raised for a great cause.

FULL RESULTS

JJ Evans (161lbs), 6-0, w pts 6 Christian

Hoskin Gomez (158lbs), 6-28-4 (2);

Sonny Lee (184lbs), 3-0, w pts 4 Dominik

Landgraf (180lbs), 0-6; Jermaine Asare

(184lbs), 8-2 (2), w rsf 2 Julio Cesar

(176lbs), 1-2.


ACTION

AMBITION ADJUSTMENT


Now unbeaten in his last three,

journeyman McCauley’s career

appears to be changing tack

★★★

★★★

Will Hale

RINGSIDE

WESTON-SUPER-MARE

NOVEMBER 18

WHOLE SHOW

ATMOSPHERE

HEADLINING a Dynamite Pro Boxing

show at Winter Gardens, Stourbridge

centurion Kevin McCauley upset

the paid bow of Weston-super-Mare’s

Daniel Sabastonelli by taking a 39-37

points win over four rounds from

referee-for-the-evening Lee Every.

The experienced journeyman

McCauley was on top throughout.

He walked Daniel down and drew the

energy out of the debutant. Kevin hurt

Sabastonelli with left hands to the body,

and the first-timer was exhausted from

the third frame onwards.

Yeovil’s Dean Dodge took a 39-38

verdict over Worcester’s “Mad Man”

Michael Mooney. Dodge stalked

and attempted to bully Mooney in the

opener, but seemed to dip in confidence

in the second when blood emerged from

his nose. However, Dean rallied well over

the last two sessions, and his youth and

freshness – combined with some solid

left hooks and slashing rights – proved

the difference.

Taunton-based Pole Pawel

Augustynik looks like one to watch.

He took every second of a shutout

four-round win (40-36) over Lithuanian

hardman Remigijus Ziausys. Pawel was

so sharp and used some lovely feints to

set up his work. He wisely realised that

Ziausys’ guard was hard to penetrate

from distance, so switched to closerrange

attacks using the lead left uppercut,

and followed up with impressive clusters.

Ziausys took a real thumping over the

last two stanzas and needed all of his

durability to last the course.

Weston-super-Mare’s Rob Boardman

shut out Latvia’s fairly unambitious

Jevgenijs Andrejevs over four (40-36).

After finding his rhythm, Rob started

to land with lead left hands and hefty

shots downstairs. Boardman pressured

throughout and made all the running,

as Andrejevs fiddled his way to the finish.

THE VERDICT Dodge, Augustynik

and Boardman all remain

undefeated as boxing in Somerset

gains momentum.

FULL RESULTS

Kevin McCauley (157lbs), 15-154-12; Daniel

Sabastonelli (154lbs), 0-1; Dean Dodge

(139lbs), 2-0, w pts 4 Michael Mooney (139lbs),

8-42-1 (3); Pawel Augustynik (182lbs), 4-0,

w pts 4 Remigijus Ziausys (186lbs), 20-83-5

(10); Rob Boardman (185lbs), 6-0 (1), w pts 4

Jevgenijs Andrejevs (179lbs), 10-89-3 (4).

ON THE UP:

McCauley [left],

pictured here

beating Jamie

Carley, is on the

longest unbeaten

run of his career


CUBAN

MISSILE

CRISIS

Once an explosive young dynamo with the whole world at his feet,

Yuriorkis Gamboa tells Chris Walker how his career drifted off

course, and explains why it can still hit the target

YURIORKIS

★ GAMBOA★

BIG INTERVIEW


Photo: USA TODAY

HAT’S the shot I’m looking for, right through the

middle,” says Bones Adams, the former WBA

T

super-bantamweight champion and burgeoning

trainer. Sparring is taking place inside his thriving

Las Vegas gym where Yuriorkis Gamboa, a

Cuban escapee, relentless drifter and agonising

underachiever, is trying to rescue what was once

one of the most promising careers in the sport.

On November 25, the 2004 Olympic champion and former WBA

and IBF featherweight boss will meet Jason Sosa

at The Theater inside Madison Square Garden,

New York. A loss will be almost catastrophic.

Now 35, and with stoppage setbacks to

Terence Crawford and the unfancied Robinson

Castellanos in his recent past, the Cuban is

barely clinging to relevancy. It was not supposed

to be like this. Not for Gamboa.

“He’s looking so good. He knows what is at

stake,” says Jesse Rodriguez, Gamboa’s manager

who will interpret his charge’s side of the

conversation with Boxing News.

“How disappointing is it that someone with

your ability and talent is fighting for his career?”

we begin.

“It’s not easy, that’s for sure,” Gamboa responds. “It’s God’s plan but

I know that everything I’ve had to put up with in my career has

brought me to this fight for a reason. I’ve had problems with

promoters and managers, as you probably know, and that can either

get you down and finish you altogether, or you get strong from the

setback and deal with it. My career has had more good moments

than bad and now I have the chance to do more good in my next

fight.”

There’s a confidence swarming Gamboa. Now settled at Adams’

‘I’M STILL HERE

NOW TRYING

TO SHOW

PEOPLE HOW

GOOD I AM’

base, a location that magnetises Cubans like Westchester, Miami,

post-Revolution, Gamboa cuts a positive figure. Saying farewell to the

high profile fights – occasions for which he exiled himself from his

family back in Cuba just over a decade ago – is an idea that barely

registers with him. If any pressure exists, then it is a secret he is not

willing to share.

“Sosa is good but he can’t beat me,” he continues. “He can’t beat

me. He’s tough. He’s right there in front of you but he only does well

when you allow him to fight that he wants.”

Gamboa’s assessment of Sosa is brief and

basic. It is nothing like his own professional rise

and fall. As a young boxer he always craved

the brightest spotlights boxing could offer. The

shine of multiple amateur gongs provided some

satisfaction, but the desire to go one step further

burned within Gamboa like the Caribbean

sun he matured under. Restrictions on turning

professional in his homeland prompted

Gamboa, along with heavyweight Odlanier Solis

and bantamweight Yan Barthelemy, to escape a

Venezuelan training exercise in December 2006 -

relocating to Europe to pursue professional titles

and lucrative purses. But some of the amateur

medals they achieved had to be sold back then so they were able to

buy food for their families.

“I had to go,” Gamboa explains. “I knew what I was leaving behind.

My family meant everything to me but I couldn’t stay any longer.

What else was there for me to achieve? I always wanted to be the

best and that meant in the pro sport too. I had an Olympic gold

medal and done well in other tournaments but when you’re the best

amateur in the world, you’re still not the best fighter in the world.

You have to turn professional to be that and that was the biggest

thing behind my decision. ➤

LAST CHANCE SALOON:

At the age of 35, Gamboa might

already be fighting on

borrowed time


Photo: USA TODAY

SUPPORTING ACT:

Gamboa eases past

Michael Farenas in 2012,

on the Las Vegas undercard of

Juan Manuel Marquez-

Manny Pacquiao

➤ “I had to escape so I could become the best fighter in the

world. It hurt me so much not being able to go back, but things have

changed a lot now and it’s become a lot easier to go back there and

see my family.”

Gamboa’s route to the position he dreamed of was not without

obstacles, and nor is it complete. Stationed in Germany for the

inaugural stages of his professional voyage, Gamboa routinely

dispatched a number of overmatched foes before reaching America

in late 2007. His magical form initially continued, and after boxing

predominantly under the Arena-Box label, Gamboa received the

wider exposure he craved on American TV via Top Rank.

The wins kept coming, however high quality performances did

not always accompany them. Gamboa could be explosive but such

entertainment came in small portions and, much like countryman

Guillermo Rigondeaux today, Yuriorkis Gamboa struggled for

mainstream respect. A Cuban-Puerto Rican rivalry with Juan Manuel

Lopez was placed on the stove by Bob Arum but it was ultimately

overcooked, with the highly-anticipated matchup fading alongside

Lopez’s career.

“That fight could’ve done some big stuff for me,” Gamboa explains.

“Was that the fight that could’ve made me a PPV star here in America?

I don’t know. I’m not innocent when I look at where mistakes have

been made in my career. I haven’t always made the right decisions but

I do think some more effort could’ve been made in my career, and

I do wonder why things haven’t always gone right for me. I’ve been

world champion, I beat good names and I was in some good fights

but I’m still here now trying to show people just how good I am.”

It’s often presumed that all Cuban fighters, burdened yet disciplined

with strict regimes as amateurs, will struggle to retain focus when they

achieve the freedom that professional boxing affords. Unquestionably,

plenty of Gamboa’s countrymen have succumbed to poor lifestyle

choices but he refuses to blame leaving home for the failures of his

past teammates and predecessors.

“The same temptations are not only there for Cubans, they are

there for every fighter,” he counters, perhaps missing the point.

“Cubans will always do well as professionals but it’s making that leap

to becoming a big name. That is something we struggle with, and

I don’t really know why. One thing I could put it down to is the style

we box. I’ve always tried to be a little bit more offensive and on the

front foot because if you look at our fighters, we are very defensive.

We fight at a slow pace with a very good defence and if you’re

honest, you probably know yourself that it’s not a style that appeals

to many people. People from every country and every background

will underachieve for whatever reason, but Cuban boxers can be a lot

more patient than other countries.”

Despite being guilty himself of the negative demeanour he accuses

his fellow Cubans of often demonstrating, Gamboa has entertained in

several outings, with one of the most eye-catching coming in a losing

effort to Crawford at lightweight. Gamboa showed superb variety in

the bout’s early stages, but by halfway the fight took an almighty turn.


Photo: TOM HOGAN/GOLDEN BOY

PROMISE

UNFULFILLED:

Gamboa loses to

Castellanos [top

right] four years

after outscoring

Perez in 2013

Photo: USA TODAY

In the end Crawford produced a performance that the outstanding

Nebraskan is now famed for.

Gamboa won many plaudits in defeat but his career since has

stuttered along without anyone really noticing. Last year was one of

inactivitybefore a move to Golden Boy Promotions was seemingly

the fresh start to catapult Gamboa back into the mainstream. That

was the intention but a poor showing against Castellanos back in

May, where Gamboa sought refuge on his stool after seven one-sided

rounds, told folk what they had anticipated all along: For all Gamboa’s

talent, something is missing and with middle age approaching, the

odds on him finding it lengthen by the minute.

“It was bad to go out like that but I shouldn’t have even fought that

night and now I wish I didn’t,” reflects a regretful Gamboa. “Training

didn’t go the best, and all through my camp I didn’t feel good. There

were little knocks and my ankle wasn’t the best but I’m a fighter and

you think that once you’re in there and it all starts then you’ll feel

alright. It wasn’t alright that night but once again it was another lesson

learnt and I think everything that has happened to me has put me in a

better position. For now, I only have Jason Sosa on my mind because

if I don’t win this fight then nothing else really matters.”

A spell as world champion informs people that Gamboa achieved

a portion of his dream with a reign at featherweight. Impressive wins

over respected campaigners such as Salido, Daniel Ponce De Leon,

and Darleys Perez suggest that he was a solid performer capable of

disposing guys who fall short of elite class, but is that really enough

for someone like Gamboa? Certainly, it’s not enough for him nor

would it have been enough for his supporters when the journey

began all those years ago.

His immaculate pedigree had expectant onlookers salivating when

his professional switch occurred, and what was seen in him by those

within the industry such as Arum and later Oscar De La Hoya, was

also a view shared by a cluster of other promoters and managers.

Now a 10-year professional, the story of a young fantasist who

deserted the island he once proudly represented could be heading for

a bad ending. The time has arrived for Gamboa to write an alternative

version. bn

‘I ONLY HAVE JASON SOSA ON MY MIND BECAUSE

IF I DON’T WIN, NOTHING ELSE REALLY MATTERS’


the best

upcoming fights

PREVIEWSPreviewing

around the world

Photos: TOM HOGAN/HOGAN PHOTOS/ROC NATION SPORTS

★★★★★ OUTSTANDING ★★★★ GOOD ★★★ FAIR ★★ DISAPPOINTING ★ RUBBISH

The star ratings indicate how well the writer believes the fighters match up, the fight(s)’ contextual significance, and how good the fight(s) will be

IT’S TIME TO REBOUND:

Kovalev is desperate to get

back into the win column

DAMAGE LIMITATION

Kovalev’s

future

hangs in

the balance

following

back-to-back

losses to

Ward, writes

Chris Walker

★★★

★★★

MAIN EVENT

UNDERCARD

HO knows how

W

Sergey Kovalev

is feeling heading

into Saturday’s

(November

25) meeting

with Ukraine’s

Vyacheslav Shabranskyy? The aura of

invincibility that surrounded the Russian

for 31 fights was craftily removed by

Andre Ward a year ago, and then the

same man obliterated whatever was left

when the pair met again in June.

Such losses can leave scars on such

seemingly indestructible fighters. On the

other hand, Kovalev may watch the first

contest and believe that shoddy judging

let him down. And he may sit down and

study his second clash with the Oakland

native and remain convinced that he

was hit low several times before being

stopped in round eight. This weekend,

inside The Theater at Madison Square

Garden, could provide the answer.

Joining Kovalev in a battle for his

old WBO title at 175lbs (now vacant)

is Shabrankskyy. The Eastern European

pair enter this bout at different stages

of their careers. Kovalev has occupied a

lofty position at light-heavyweight since

becoming world champion in 2013, but

his reputation was fearsome well before

that coronation versus Nathan Cleverly,

when he punished the Welshman

viciously for four rounds.

Sergey’s reign brought impressive

wins against high-level opponents like

Bernard Hopkins and Jean Pascal (twice)

– as well as three world crowns. His

double setback against Ward underlined

weaknesses in Kovalev though, including

his lack of ability fighting on the inside,

and the vulnerability of his midsection to

a sharp blow [detailed by former trainer

John David Jackson on page 5]. Ward was

able to exploit Kovalev in both areas, but

does that mean Shabranskyy can?

The evidence renders this scenario

highly unlikely. Through 20 contests,

mainly facing average opposition,

Shabranskyy has looked devastating at

times, but his sole loss to Sullivan Barrera

(seventh-round KO) highlighted alarming

deficiencies. The Cuban’s accuracy in

December was outstanding as he hurt

Shabranskyy several times before the

corner and referee united to prevent any

further punishment. Round after round,

Barrera landed freely and Shabranskyy


SHABRANSKYY ON PAPER LOOKS RUTHLESS, BUT HE IS

A LONG WAY FROM ANYBODY OF KOVALEV’S STANDING

failed to adapt his strategy to prevent

further assaults. If Kovalev had been

landing the same shots then the ending

would probably have come earlier.

However, if Shabranskyy is to have

success against Kovalev then this is the

time when it is most likely to occur.

Two shattering losses to a long-term

rival – where the right to be crowned the

best boxer on the planet was at stake –

may have done the type of damage to

Kovalev’s mind that has vanquished many

marauding monsters before him. A new

team is in place for Sergey, with Jackson

making way for Abror Tursunpulatov

following a turbulent split, and the Uzbek

coach will do well to replicate a portion

of the success Kovalev achieved with the

American.

Despite the defeats to the exceptional

Ward, and given the evidence we

have thus far, we should presume

Kovalev still remains one of the sport’s

most accomplished fighters. He is

an outstanding outside fighter with

knockout power in either hand.

Shabranskyy on paper looks a ruthless

competitor, but in reality he is a long

way from anybody of Kovalev’s standing.

Photo: TOM HOGAN/HOGAN PHOTOS/GOLDEN BOY PROMOTIONS

Unless Kovalev has been well and truly

ruined by Ward (and neither reverse saw

him take a beating, as such), this fight

should only have one winner, and that

will be Kovalev sometime before halfway.

On the undercard of this Sky Sports/

HBO-televised show, the talented but

flawed Cuban Yuriorkis Gamboa

tackles the tough Jason Sosa at superfeatherweight.

Gamboa, 27-2 (17), had

his reputation severely damaged against

Robinson Castellanos back in May, when

he was stopped in seven rounds. He

rebounded with a tight points win over

Alexis Reyes in August, but in Sosa he

faces his hardest assignment since being

halted by Terence Crawford in 2014.

TALE OF THE TAPE

SERGEY KOVALEV

V. SHABRANSKYY

@KrusherKovalev

@Shabranskyy

Apr 2, 1983/34 DOB/AGE May 1, 1987/30

Los Angeles, CA HOMETOWN Los Angeles, CA

Russian NATIONALITY Ukrainian

6ft HEIGHT 6ft 3 1/2ins

30-2-1 (26) RECORD 19-1 (16)

Orthodox STANCE Orthodox

Jul 25, 2009/26 DEBUT/AGE Sep 20, 2012/25

79 KO PERCENTAGE 80

New Jersey warrior Sosa, 20-2-4 (15),

only fights one way, but at a certain

level it is more than acceptable and

has brought notable wins against Javier

Fortuna and Stephen Smith (both 2016).

He took a huge leap in April when trying

to outfight WBO ruler Vasyl Lomachenko,

but found himself on the end of a onesided

thrashing. Given the Ukrainian’s

ability, that is a result that should bring

no shame to Sosa, 29.

Picking a winner in this one is difficult,

as a prepared and focused Gamboa –

even at 35 – is a handful for anyone,

but the form line has to favour Sosa.

Where we do not know what to expect

from Gamboa, Sosa is as dependable

as any fighter performing today, and

his efforts every time he steps into the

ring are nothing short of remarkable.

Former unified world feather champ

Gamboa will dazzle and look every bit

the boxer we know he can be in small

portions, but that will not be enough

over the scheduled 10-round distance as

he loses a narrow decision to the more

industrious Sosa.

THE VERDICT Kovalev should ease

himself back into contention.

UNDERDOG:

Shabranskyy might

be catching Kovalev

at the right time

but few expect

him to triumph


PREVIEWS

Photo: ACTION IMAGES / ADAM HOLT

MOVIN’ ON UP:

Lopes is ready for his

biggest test to date

CROSSROADS

COASTAL CLASH

★★★ McKINSON-LYNES

MICHAEL McKINSON, a

southpaw who fights out of Belfast,

returns to his Portsmouth birthplace

on Saturday (November 25) when

he faces Colin Lynes for the

vacant WBC International Silver

welterweight bauble.

The 10-rounder tops the Al Siesta

promotion at the Mountbatten

Centre and while the bauble on offer

may mean much, returning veteran

Lynes represents a significant step up

for McKinson.

The son of trainer Michael

Balingall has won all 12 fights (one

early) but against Eastern European

and domestic journeymen - with one

exception.

That was in April, when he went

to Swindon to snap the unbeaten

record of local Ryan Martin on a

unanimous 10-round decision for the

vacant WBC Youth strap.

Lynes, who turns 40 the day after

this show and pictured below, has

experience to burn. A pro since 1998,

the Hornchurch man has held British,

European and IBO titles at 140lbs,

plus the British belt up at 147lbs.

After retiring in 2013 he returned

to win two low-key bouts this year,

lifting his record to 39-11 (12). He

has good skills and a sound chin but

McKinson is 16 years younger, so

expect Michael to finish strongly for

a points victory.

Photo: ACTION IMAGES/HENRY BROWNE

BOMBS AWAY

Camacho

and Lopes

set for

explosive

clash, writes

Daniel

Herbert

★★★★ CAMACHO-LOPES

THE Goodwins promotional machine

goes again at its regular York Hall,

Bethnal Green venue on Saturday

(November 25), when the bill-topper is

an exciting clash for the Southern Area

cruiserweight title.

Defending champ is Canning Town

southpaw Wadi Camacho, with

Stratford’s Jose Lopes his challenger.

It’s scheduled for 10 rounds, but don’t

be surprised if it ends earlier than that

because both men can punch – and be

tagged themselves.

Camacho is much more experienced

at 18-7, with 11 early wins and four early

losses. He’s mixed in title class since 2013,

with his up-and-down career exemplified

by his 2017 form: two wins and two

defeats.

Before that, he’d lost to contenders

Stephen Simmons in Scotland and Craig

Kennedy in Wales, but walloped Dan

Woodgate and Danny Couzens at York

Hall. He’s in his second reign as Southern

Area 201lbs champ.

Lopes is 8-1 (4) but that setback, a

ninth-round stoppage by Ossie Jervier

in March, tips the formline in favour of

Camacho – Wadi subsequently outpointed

the Willesden man in September, retaining

his Area belt in the process.

One can never be certain with

two bangers, but the more seasoned

Camacho can survive any rough patches

to retain in about six rounds.


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Photos: ACTION IMAGES


➤ of what I achieved in boxing, was to prove to my dad what

I was capable of doing. It was all about him.”

There have been massive ups and equally big downs

for Hobson. Plucked from the chorus by the Hattons for a

one-off deal, which he used to make a fight with WBA lightwelterweight

holder Carlos Maussa after Hatton agreed to take

a smaller cut of the purse due to it being a partial unification,

Hobson was handed a three-fight deal after the Mancunian

knocked out Maussa in nine in November 2005.

The link-up allowed Hobson to sample life at the top table:

big shows, mega deals, with Art Pelullo helping Stateside, and,

in his third fight with Hatton, putting on a card in Las Vegas. It

was a hell of ride.

However, Hobson’s defining memory is the night when

Woods overcame his underdog status to hand fancied

American Rico Hoye his first defeat in five rounds and claim

a world title at Rotherham’s Magna Centre. The contest was

shown live on BBC and they thought it was going to be the start

of a terrestrial TV journey. However, the Beeb had been stung

by the unfolding farce of Audley Harrison’s career and the win

over Hoye was Woods’s last fight on the channel despite him

winning the world title in his fourth attempt: a loss to Roy Jones

Jnr (l rsf 6) had been followed by a draw and decision defeat to

Glen Johnson in previous title tilts.

“Some fellas go through their career managing or promoting

without getting a world champion, I’ve been lucky because I’ve

had a few. Like that golf pro said: ‘The harder I practice the

luckier I get’. I’ve had plenty of knockbacks yet I suppose I have

a bit of tenacity and keep plugging away.

“When Clinton had his hands waved the adrenaline rush is

what I imagine a drug rush must feel like. Clinton’s is a story on

its own. He stayed loyal to me and I stayed loyal to him, despite

people trying to get into his ear. Money comes and goes,

memories are there forever. Getting a few quid is a bonus, the

achievement is the dream — I’m in it for the dream and not the

bonus.”

Defences over Julio Cesar Gonzalez (w pts 12 in May 2006

and again in September 2007, his final successful defence

before losing his belt by decision to Antonio Tarver in April

2008), Jason DeLisle (w rsf 6) and Glen Johnson (w pts 12,

beating the “Road Warrior” at the third time of asking),

underlined the fact that Woods, who Hobson had compared

to Henry Cooper due to his humility, was there on merit.

Hobson too, as took the reins of Hatton’s career following the

Mancunian’s decision to part company with former promoter

Frank Warren following his win over Kostya Tszyu at the

Manchester M.E.N. Arena in June 2005.

“I was in conversations with [Ricky’s dad] Ray at the time and

just offered him a better deal than anyone else to get Maussa,”

he explained. “I didn’t want [WBA welterweight holder Luis]

Collazo [in America] next, I wanted Vivian Harris, but Ricky

wanted to test himself at 147 and nearly came unstuck.

“Then he came back down to light-welter. I sifted through a

bit of politics around the fight against [IBF holder Juan] Urango

fight to do a deal with Bob Arum to put it on as a semi-final

for [Juan Luis] Castillo, which was the final, and Ricky got to

headline in Vegas.”

Hatton won his hold title back with a decision over Urango

in a performance that was blighted by the effects of a pre-fight

virus. Castillo netted the WBC belt by beating Herman Ngoudjo

via a contentious split-decision to ensure that the fight went

ahead in the summer of 2007. Hatton was much improved in

that one, stopping the Mexican with a trademark left hook to

the body at Las Vegas’ Thomas & Mack Center before goading

Mayweather out of retirement.

Hobson had wanted Hatton to consolidate his position by

seeking other fights as part of a possible tie-in with Arum, or by

taking an interim homecoming bout against Paulie Malignaggi

then pursing Mayweather. The promoter also wanted to

explore the option of bringing Mayweather over to Wembley

Stadium for a purse of $10m.

“At that point we were on a handshake basis so they went

away and did Mayweather themselves,” Hobson recalled. “My

THE NEGOTIATING TABLE: Hobson is proud of the opportunities

he has created for his boxers over the years. Some didn’t go to

plan - like Antonio Tarver dethroning Clinton Woods [above]

- while the likes of Jamie McDonnell [right] would claim the

world title against Julio Ceja before Stuey Hall would win the

same belt [top] under Hobson’s guidance


OSCAR

★ VALDEZ★

WE GO IN-DEPTH

Fighting for

pride, his

country and his

people, Oscar

Valdez speaks to

John Dennen


THE ONLY WAY IS UP:

Valdez [left, with WBO belt]

scores his second defence,

beating Miguel Marriaga in

April over 12 rounds [above]

➤ were brought to American as undocumented children], these

are people that came here to this country to do good things,

even help the United States. Why would you do something

negative towards people that have nothing but positive

thoughts and to help a great country like the United States? So

those type of things we’re questioning, like I said, if there’s any

way to help I will definitely do it.”

Valdez has developed as a person over the years of his

professional career, as well as blossoming as a fighter. He

grew up in Arizona and Mexico. Now he trains with Manny

Robles in California and between fights he returns to Sonora,

to spend time with family and tend to his animals, including an

increasingly large alligator called Steve. He was Mexico’s only

amateur to go to two editions of the Olympic Games.

He took immense pride boxing in the Mexican vest.

When he was only 17 years old he qualified for Beijing

2008. At London 2012 he just missed out on a medal,

losing to John Joe Nevin in the quarterfinal.

It was enough however to catch the

eye of promotional powerhouse Top

Rank. Valdez is fast becoming one of

their marquis names.

“He’s always had a very telegenic style

and he loves to exchange and he loves

to put everything into every punch,”

Todd DeBoef, Top Rank president, told

Boxing News. “We followed him through

his amateur career knowing that he

HIS MISSION, TO

HIMSELF AND TO

MOVE AWARENESS

FORWARD, IS

A WONDERFUL

CAUSE”

obviously came from a country that has a very rich, rich history

of boxing, representing Mexico, of which we’ve had a very

strong position in and we believed he had certain skillsets to

take him to the next level.”

DeBoef was not surprised to see this rising political

awareness in the boxer. “I think this is just relatively

characteristic to the time and the day. I think everything has

become politicised. We have the NFL, people are taking a

knee during the national anthem, which has become very

politicised,” Todd said. “I think boxing is nationalised where it

represents, very similar to soccer, national pride. You represent

your colours.

“If it was Chavez representing Mexico or Pacquiao

representing the Philippines, there’s this nationalistic

pride that is associated with boxing, that’s very similar

to soccer. The difference is that in boxing it’s one

athlete, it’s not a team. So the athlete represents

a country.

“The world is going through some

tense moments across the board,” he

continued.

“People are being very vocal about

how their feelings are and what they

believe in. And I believe that Oscar

has been that way from the beginning

and I support him in his right to free

speech and his right to express himself.

I think it’s wonderful. I think that his

mission, to move himself and to move


RANKINGS

HEAVYWEIGHT

over 200lbs/14st 4lbs

1. ANTHONY JOSHUA 20-0 (ENG)

2. DEONTAY WILDER 39-0 (USA)

3. KUBRAT PULEV 25-1 (BGR)

4. LUIS ORTIZ 27-0 (CUB)

5. JOSEPH PARKER 23-0 (NZL)

6. ANDY RUIZ JNR 29-1 (USA)

7. HUGHIE FURY 20-1 (ENG)

8. CARLOS TAKAM 35-4-1 (CMR)

9. TONY BELLEW 29-2-1 (ENG)

10. DILLIAN WHYTE 22-1 (ENG)

MIDDLEWEIGHT

160lbs/11st 6lbs

1. GENNADY GOLOVKIN 37-0-1 (KAZ)

2. CANELO ALVAREZ 49-1-2 (MEX)

3. DANIEL JACOBS 33-2 (USA)

4. BILLY JOE SAUNDERS 25-0 (ENG)

5. DAVID LEMIEUX 38-3 (CAN)

6. ANDY LEE 35-3-1 (IRL)

7. JERMALL CHARLO 26-0 (USA)

8. RYOTA MURATA 13-1 (JPN)

9. WILLIE MONROE JNR 21-3 (USA)

10. SERGIY DEREVYANCHENKO 11-0 (UKR)

LIGHTWEIGHT

135lbs/9st 9lbs

1. JORGE LINARES 43-3 (VEN)

2. TERRY FLANAGAN 33-0 (ENG)

3. ROBERT EASTER JNR 20-0 (USA)

4. LUKE CAMPBELL 17-2 (ENG)

5. ANTHONY CROLLA 32-6-3 (ENG)

6. DEJAN ZLATICANIN 22-1 (MNE)

7. YVAN MENDY 39-4-1 (FRA)

8. RAYMUNDO BELTRAN 34-7-1 (MEX)

9. DENIS SHAFIKOV 38-3-1 (RUS)

10. RICHARD COMMEY 25-2 (GHA)

SUPER-FLYWEIGHT

115lbs/8st 3lbs

1. SRISAKET SOR RUNGVISAI 44-4-1 (THA)

2. NAOYA INOUE 14-0 (JPN)

3. ROMAN GONZALEZ 46-2 (NIC)

4. JUAN FRANCISCO ESTRADA 36-2 (MEX)

5. CARLOS CUADRAS 36-2-1 (MEX)

6. KAL YAFAI 23-0 (ENG)

7. REX TSO 22-0 (CHN)

8. JERWIN ANCAJAS 28-1-1 (PHL)

9. KOHEI KONO 33-11-1 (JPN)

10. RAU’SHEE WARREN 15-2 (USA)

CRUISERWEIGHT

200lbs/14st 4lbs

1. OLEKSANDR USYK 13-0 (UKR)

2. KRZYSZTOF GLOWACKI 28-1 (POL)

3. MAIRIS BRIEDIS 23-0 (LVA)

4. MURAT GASSIEV 25-0 (RUS)

5. DENIS LEBEDEV 30-3 (RUS)

6. KRZYSZTOF WLODARCZYK 53-4-1 (POL)

7. FIRAT ARSLAN 41-8-2 (GER)

8. ILUNGA MAKABU 21-2 (COD)

9. MAKSIM VLASOV 39-2 (RUS)

10. YUNIER DORTICOS 22-0 (CUB)

SUPER-WELTERWEIGHT

154lbs/11st

1. ERISLANDY LARA 25-2-2 (CUB)

2. MIGUEL COTTO 41-5 (PRI)

3. JERMELL CHARLO 30-0 (USA)

4. JARRETT HURD 21-0 (USA)

5. LIAM SMITH 26-1-1 (ENG)

6. LIAM WILLIAMS 16-2-1 (WAL)

7. BRIAN CARLOS CASTANO 14-0 (ARG)

8. MACIEJ SULECKI 26-0 (POL)

9. JULIAN WILLIAMS 24-1-1 (USA)

10. TERRELL GAUSHA 20-1 (USA)

SUPER-FEATHERWEIGHT

130lbs/9st 4lbs

1. VASYL LOMACHENKO 9-1 (UKR)

2. ALBERTO MACHADO 19-0 (PRI)

3. JEZREEL CORRALES 22-2 (PAN)

4. MIGUEL BERCHELT 32-1 (MEX)

5. FRANCISCO VARGAS 23-1-2 (MEX)

6. GERVONTA DAVIS 19-0 (USA)

7. JASON SOSA 20-2-4 (USA)

8. ROBINSON CASTELLANOS 24-13 (MEX)

9. TEVIN FARMER 25-4-1 (USA)

10. JOSE PEDRAZA 22-1 (PRI)

FLYWEIGHT

112lbs/8st

1. KAZUTO IOKA 22-1 (JPN)

2. JUAN CARLOS REVECO 39-3 (ARG)

3. DAIGO HIGA 14-0 (JPN)

4. DONNIE NIETES 40-1-4 (PHL)

5. JUAN HERNANDEZ NAVARRETE 34-3 (MEX)

6. MORUTI MTHALANE 35-2 (RSA)

7. SHO KIMURA 15-1-2 (JPN)

8. YODMONGKOL VOR SAENGTHEP 47-3 (THA)

9. VINCENT LEGRAND 25-0 (FRA)

10. ANDREW SELBY 10-0 (WAL)

LIGHT-HEAVYWEIGHT

175lbs/12st 7lbs

1. SERGEY KOVALEV 30-2-1 (RUS)

2. ADONIS STEVENSON 29-1 (CAN)

3. ELEIDER ALVAREZ 23-0 (COL)

4. BADOU JACK 22-1-2 (SWE)

5. ARTUR BETERBIEV 12-0 (RUS)

6. SULLIVAN BARRERA 20-1 (CUB)

7. JOE SMITH JNR 23-2 (USA)

8. OLEKSANDR GVOZDYK 14-0 (UKR)

9. IGOR MIKHALKIN 20-1 (RUS)

10. DMITRY BIVOL 12-0 (RUS)

WELTERWEIGHT

147lbs/10st 7lbs

1. KEITH THURMAN 28-0 (USA)

2. ERROL SPENCE JNR 22-0 (USA)

3. KELL BROOK 36-2 (ENG)

4. JEFF HORN 17-0-1 (AUS)

5. MANNY PACQUIAO 59-7-2 (PHL)

6. SHAWN PORTER 28-2-1 (USA)

7. DANNY GARCIA 33-1 (USA)

8. KONSTANTIN PONOMAREV 32-0 (RUS)

9. LAMONT PETERSON 35-3-1 (USA)

10. KUDRATILLO ABDUKAKHOROV 12-0 (UZB)

FEATHERWEIGHT

126lbs/9st

1. GARY RUSSELL JNR 28-1 (USA)

2. LEO SANTA CRUZ 34-1-1 (MEX)

3. CARL FRAMPTON 24-1 (NIR)

4. LEE SELBY 25-1 (WAL)

5. ABNER MARES 31-2-1 (MEX)

6. JESUS CUELLAR 28-2 (ARG)

7. OSCAR VALDEZ 23-0 (MEX)

8. JOSEPH DIAZ 25-0 (USA)

9. JESUS M ROJAS 26-1-2 (PRI)

10. LERATO DLAMINI 10-1 (RSA)

LIGHT-FLYWEIGHT

108lbs/7st 10lbs

1. KEN SHIRO 11-0 (JPN)

2. GANIGAN LOPEZ 28-7 (MEX)

3. PEDRO GUEVARA 30-3-1 (MEX)

4. MILAN MELINDO 37-2 (PHL)

5. RYOICHI TAGUCHI 26-2-2 (JPN) [above]

6. KOSEI TANAKA 10-0 (JPN)

7. JESSE ESPINAS 16-2 (PHL)

8. RANDY PETALCORIN 28-2-1 (PHL)

9. FELIX ALVARADO 30-2 (NIC)

10. HEKKIE BUDLER 31-3 (RSA)

SUPER-MIDDLEWEIGHT

168lbs/12st

1. JAMES DeGALE 23-1-1 (ENG)

2. GILBERTO RAMIREZ 36-0 (MEX)

3. GEORGE GROVES 27-3 (ENG)

4. CHRIS EUBANK JNR 26-1 (ENG)

5. ANTHONY DIRRELL 31-1-1 (USA)

6. ANDRE DIRRELL 26-2 (USA)

7. CALLUM SMITH 23-0 (ENG)

8. TYRON ZEUGE 21-0-1 (GER) [above]

9. DAVID BENAVIDEZ 19-0 (USA)

10. JUERGEN BRAEHMER 49-3 (GER)

SUPER-LIGHTWEIGHT

140lbs/10st

1. TERENCE CRAWFORD 32-0 (USA)

2. MIKEY GARCIA 37-0 (USA)

3. VIKTOR POSTOL 29-1 (UKR)

4. JULIUS INDONGO 22-1 (NAM)

5. ANTONIO OROZCO 26-0 (MEX) [above]

6. RANCES BARTHELEMY 26-0 (CUB)

7. SERGEY LIPINETS 13-0 (RUS)

8. JOHN MOLINA JNR 29-7 (USA)

9. REGIS PROGRAIS 20-0 (USA)

10. ADRIEN BRONER 33-3 (USA)

SUPER-BANTAMWEIGHT

122lbs/8st 10lbs

1. GUILLERMO RIGONDEAUX 17-0 (CUB)

2. JESSIE MAGDALENO 25-0 (USA)

3. CESAR JUAREZ 20-5 (MEX)

4. REY VARGAS 30-0 (MEX)

5. MOISES FLORES 25-0 (MEX)

6. RYOSUKE IWASA 24-2 (JPN)

7. DANIEL ROMAN 23-2-1 (USA)

8. DIEGO DE LA HOYA 20-0 (MEX)

9. JULIO CEJA 31-2 (MEX) [above]

10. PAULUS AMBUNDA 25-2 (NAM)

STRAWWEIGHT

105lbs/7st 7lbs

1. KNOCKOUT CP FRESHMART 16-0 (THA)

2. BYRON ROJAS 20-3-3 (NIC)

3. WANHENG MENAYOTHIN 48-0 (THA)

4. HIROTO KYOGUCHI 8-0 (JPN)

5. JOSE ARGUMEDO 20-4-1 (MEX)

6. SIMPHIWE KHONCO 18-5 (RSA)

7. LEROY ESTRADA 16-2 (PAN)

8. RYUYA YAMANAKA 15-2 (JPN)

9. TATSUYA FUKUHARA 19-5-6 (JPN)

10. JOEY CANOY 13-3-1 (PHL)

l If a fighter has been inactive for over a year, he will be removed from

the rankings, unless he has a fight officially scheduled. Once removed

due to inactivity, a fighter cannot be reinstated until he has fought again.

l Each fighter is ranked on the results they have achieved in their own

specific weight division (excluding the pound-for-pound list).

l Each fighter is ranked in the weight division in which their most recent

significant fight took place. With regards to catchweight fights, common

sense will (hopefully) prevail.

BANTAMWEIGHT

118lbs/8st 6lbs

1. LUIS NERY 25-0 (MEX)

2. SHINSUKE YAMANAKA 27-1-2 (JPN)

3. RYAN BURNETT 18-0 (NIR)

4. ZHANAT ZHAKIYANOV 27-2 (KAZ)

5. JUAN CARLOS PAYANO 19-1 (DOM)

6. JAMIE McDONNELL 29-2-1 (ENG)

7. MARLON TAPALES 30-2 (PHL)

8. ZOLANI TETE 26-3 (RSA)

9. LEE HASKINS 34-4 (ENG)

10. PAUL BUTLER 25-1 (ENG)

POUND-FOR-POUND

The best of the best

1. GENNADY GOLOVKIN 37-0-1 (KAZ)

2. CANELO ALVAREZ 49-1-2 (MEX)

3. TERENCE CRAWFORD 32-0 (USA)

4. VASYL LOMACHENKO 9-1 (UKR)

5. SRISAKET SOR RUNGVISAI 44-4-1 (THA)

6. MIKEY GARCIA 37-0 (USA)

7. MIGUEL COTTO 41-5 (PRI)

8. GUILLERMO RIGONDEAUX 18-0 (CUB)

9. LEO SANTA CRUZ 34-1-1 (MEX)

10. KEITH THURMAN 28-0 (USA)


DIARY

NOVEMBER

THURSDAY 23

Radisson Blu Hotel, Glasgow

Scott Allan (holder) v Ukashir Farooq

(Scottish Area bantamweight title); Jamie

Wilson v s/o. (Promoter: St Andrew's

Sporting Club).

FRIDAY 24

Tolworth Recreation Centre

John Joe Nevin v Lee Connelly; Cheznie

Hawkins v Ibrar Riyaz; Lenny Daws v s/o;

Kallia Kourouni v s/o; George Lamport v

Liam Griffiths; Yusuf Safa v s/o; Naylor

Ball v s/o; Nathanael Wilson v s/o; Jonny

Phillips v s/o; Tony Vincent v s/o; Kieran

McPherson v s/o; Zuhayr Al Qahtani v

Naheem Chaudhry. (Promoter: Hennessy

Sports).

Leeds United FC Banqueting Suite,

Elland Road

Jack Bateson v s/o; Billy Pickles v s/o;

Hamed Ghaz v s/o; Mick Learmonth v s/o;

Lee McGhie v s/o. (Promoter: Bateson

Promotions).

City West Hotel, Dublin

Sean Creagh v s/o; Chris Mullally v s/o;

Craig McCarthy v s/o; Liam Gaynor v s/o;

Victor Rabei v s/o; Cillian Readon v s/o.

(Promoter: SK Promotions).

Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand

Wanheng Menayothin (holder) v Tatsuya

Fukuhara (WBC strawweight title).

SATURDAY 25

York Hall, Bethnal Green

Wadi Camacho (holder) v Jose Lopes

(Southern Area cruiserweight title);

Darrell Church v Jordan Joseph; Jez

Smith v Nathan Hardy; Marcus Eaton v

Radoslav Mitev; Kian Thomas v s/o; Lewis

Syrett v s/o; Brandon Ball v Luke Fash;

Jumanne Camero v s/o; Yaser Al Ghena v

s/o; Conroy Downer v s/o; Prince Brady

v Edward Bjorklund; Ryan Walker v Jamie

Speight; Ricky Heavens v Daniel Spencer;

Jack Mulowayi v s/o; Dana Zaxo v s/o.

(Promoter: Goodwin Main Events).

Mountbatten Centre, Portsmouth

Michael McKinson v Colin Lynes; Paul

Kamanga v Christopher Sebire; Lucas

BOXING ON THE BOX

THURSDAY 23

7pm BoxNation

Cassius & Helder

FRIDAY 24

7pm BoxNation

Bunce’s Boxing Hour

SUNDAY 26

3am Sky Sports

Action/Main Event

LIVE Sergey Kovalev

v Vyacheslav

Shabranskyy

Photo: ACTION IMAGES/LEE SMITH

Ballingall v Antonino Sponziello; Floyd

Moore v Ivan Godor; Luther Clay v Gallus

Coulon; David Birmingham v Antonio

Horvatic; Sam Jones v Andrew Ponsford;

Darren Cruise v Lukasz Kuc; Eric Israel

v Anthony Fox; Lucy Wildheart v Vanesa

Caballero. (Promoter: Siesta Boxing).

Doncaster Dome

Maxi Hughes v Cassius Connor; Curtis

Woodhouse v Lewis van Poetsch; Andy

Townend v Peter Cope; Lee Appleyard v

s/o; Daniel Slaney v s/o; Ross Blackwell

v Fonz Alexander; Muma Mweemba v

Kristian Laight; Christian Kinsiona v s/o;

Anthony Tomlinson v s/o; Terri Harper v

s/o. (Promoter: Stefy Bull Promotions).

Imperial Banqueting Suite, Bilston

Ricky Summers v Gonzalo Romero;

Jason Welborn v Christian Hoskin Gomez;

James Beech Jnr v s/o; Antony Woollery v

Dmitrij Kalinovskij; Nathan Heaney v

MONDAY 27

5.15am Channel 4

KOTV Boxing Weekly

7pm BoxNation

Boxing Matters

Sean Gorman. (Promoter: Black Country

Boxing Promotion).

Harvey Hadden Sports Village,

Nottingham

Joe Ducker v Leo D'Erlanger; Leigh Wood

v s/o; Conar Blackshaw v Gary Reeve;

Jake Sharp v s/o; Sajid Abid v Jack Green;

Connor Ireson v s/o; Nina Bradley v Kim

Angelina Jaeckel. (Promoter: Carl Greaves

Promotions).

Double Tree by Hilton Aberdeen

Treetops Hotel

Darren Traynor v Isaac Nettey; Liall

Mackenzie v William Warburton; Billy

Stuart v Ricky Leach; Chris Ryder v Myles

Vale; Kristen Fraser v Claire Ciantar.

(Promoter: SM Promotions & Northern

Sporting Club).

Madison Square Garden Theater,

New York (Sky Sports Action/

Main Event & HB0)

Sergey Kovalev v Vyacheslav Shabranskyy

(vacant WBO light-heavyweight title);

Jason Sosa v Yuriorkis Gamboa;

Sullivan Barrera v Felix Valera; Bakhram

Murtazaliev v Carlos Galvan; Frank Galarza

v Jaime Herrera. (Promoter: Shuan Boxing

Promotions & Golden Boy Promotions &

Main Events).

Mohegan Sun Casino, Uncasville,

Connecticut

Constantin Bejenaru v Thabiso Mchunu;

Daniel Gonzalez v Danny O'Connor.

(Promoter: Star Boxing).

Centro Internacional de Convenciones ,

Chetumal, Mexico

Julio Ceja v Breilor Teran. (Promoter:

Promociones del Pueblo & Boxing Time

Promotions & Cancún Boxing).

Oberhausen, Germany

Manuel Charr v Alexander Ustinov.

Bohol Wisdom School Gym,

Tagbilaran City, Philippines

Mark Magsayo v Shota Hayashi; Albert

Pagara v Mohammed Kambuluta; Melvin

Jerusalem v Pedro Taduran; Rocky

Fuentes v Ryan Tampus. (Promoter: ALA

Promotions).

MONDAY 27

Luzhniki, Moscow, Russia

Sergey Kuzmin v Amir Mansour; Eduard

Troyanovsky v Carlos Manuel Portillo;

Aleksei Papin v Ismayl Sillah; Alexey

Egorov v Andrei Kniazev; Sergey Lubkovich

v Michele Di Rocco [pictured]. (Promoter:

World of Boxing Promotions).

THURSDAY 30

Prince Regent Hotel, Chigwell

Shaquille Day v Adam Barker; Mikey Sakyi

v Rhys Saunders; Mason Cartwright v s/o;

Daniel Khan v Harvey Hemsley; Harley

Benn v s/o. (Promoter: WAM Boxing).

MGM National Harbor, Oxon Hill,

Maryland (ESPN2)

Jose Lopez v Miguel Angel Gonzalez;

Lamont Roach v Rey Perez; Manuel Avila

v Raul Hidalgo. (Promoter: Golden Boy

Promotions).

FRIDAY 1

York Hall, Bethnal Green

Elliott Matthews v Grant Dennis (vacant

English middleweight title); Louis Greene

(holder) v Joe Hayes (Southern Area

welterweight title); Chris Kongo v s/o;

Daniel Kennedy v Jordan Grannum; Tom

Little v s/o; Jeffrey Ofori v Josh Thorne;

Oli Edwards v Victor Edagha; Luke Gibb v

Dylan Draper; Ryan Maycock v s/o; Andre

Grant v s/o; Lewis Adams v s/o; Kurt

Johnson v s/o; Rod Douglas v s/o; Julian

Wilson v s/o; Connor Wright v s/o; Emran

Hussain v s/o; Tom McGinley v s/o; Chavez

Campbell v s/o; Frank Arnold v s/o; Quaise

Khademi v s/o. (Promoter: British Warrior

Boxing Promotion).

Dolman Exhibition Hall, Bristol

Dan Sarkozi v Bradley Pryce; Ryan Wheeler

v s/o; Tyler Davies v s/o; Wayne Ingram v

s/o; Tim Cutler v s/o; Aaron Sutton v s/o;

Reece Godfrey Sharp v s/o. (Promoter:

Sanigar Events).

The Venue, Edgbaston

Dilbag Singh v s/o; Stewart Davies v s/o;

Ikram Hussain v s/o; Matt Sen v s/o;

Nathan Stevens v s/o. (Promoter:

Black Country Boxing Promotion).


AMATEURS

AMATEURSCENE

The

very best action, previews and

news from Olympic-style boxing

With JOHN DENNEN | @BoxingNewsJD

SEND us your club's news, results or upcoming events to john.dennen@boxingnewsonline.net or 020 7618 3478

WU STEPS DOWN

The president of AIBA,

after 11 years at the top, is

out, writes John Dennen

THE battle to control AIBA, the

governing body for Olympic

boxing, met a sudden twist when

its president Dr. Ching-Kuo Wu

decided to step down on Tuesday.

Wu had resisted efforts to

oust him, defying a vote of no

confidence from the AIBA Executive

Committee and even going to court

in Switzerland when the opposition

set up an Interim Management

Committee to wrest control of the

organisation from him.

In recent weeks the Disciplinary

Commission at AIBA had handed

Wu a provisional suspension,

reinforced by the Executive

Committee. Among the charges he

faced were accusations that he had

failed to reveal the full extent of the

financial crisis engulfing AIBA.

This week, in a surprise move,

Wu issued a joint statement with

chief antagonist, ‘Interim president’

Franco Falcinelli announcing that

he would step down. They claimed

there was “no indication of any

unethical behaviour by either

party”. Wu is now looking for a

dignified exit. As he steps down

from his role as AIBA president, he

Photo: ED MULHOLLAND/USA TODAY SPORTS

is likely to be made an Honorary

President. An Extraordinary

Congress for AIBA’s member

national federations will take place

in Dubai on January 27, not to

vote out Wu now but to consider

governance changes.

ON THE WAY OUT:

Wu stands down as

president, but AIBA is

still beset by problems

AIBA however still remains in a

perilous financial position, still so

over-indebted it risks insolvency.

Wu’s legacy is complicated. He

took over amateur boxing in 2006

as a reforming, anti-corruption

figure and judging in the sport did

improve. But standards slipped.

At the latest Olympic Games the

officiating resulted in bad decisions

in contests, famously illustrated

by Michael Conlan’s furious

assessment live on television.

Ultimately all the Olympic referees

and judges were suspended.

He tried to modernise amateur

boxing in some respects, creating the

quasi-pro World Series of Boxing and

the unsuccessful format AIBA Pro

Boxing. The WSB is well established,

but there was widespread criticism

of Wu’s efforts to allow professional

boxers to enter Rio 2016.

Wu brought women’s boxing to

the fore, triumphantly introducing

it to the Olympic Games at London

2012. The number of women’s

weight categories will be expanded

to five for Tokyo 2020, although this

is coming at the expense of men’s

boxing, where the weight divisions

will be reduced from 10 to eight

categories for the next Olympics.

Wu said he has stood down

“for the sport I love and have

dedicated my life to. I step down

in the best interests of both AIBA

and boxing but I remain committed

to ensure a smooth handover to

the new leadership. I am thankful

for the time I was allowed to

serve our sport, AIBA and the

boxing community.”

HOORAY FOR HENRY

London Community Boxing

enjoy the rewards of victory

Daniel Herbert

RINGSIDE

PECKHAM

NOVEMBER 18

LONDON Community Boxing

held an open show in the Harris

Academy sports hall and the

reward was five winners out of six

(all seniors).

Henry Akpobasa was too

skilful for Spencer Song, although

the Imperial College boxer never

stopped trying, while Rhys

Fowler’s frequent right crosses

earned him a split (but deserved)

decision over Tomasz Zdanawski

in one of the evening’s most

entertaining battles.

Lewin Simpson enjoyed such a

dominant first round against Sam

Mason that a stoppage seemed

possible – but the White Hart Lane

entry rallied so well that the home

boxer had to be content with a

split decision.

Unanimous wins went the way

of Emmanuel Zion and southpaw

Jonathan Okonofur, while Tomas

Regec’s lack of head movement

cost him in a defeat against

Akashveer Dhesi (Odyssey).

Two raw novices produced a

wild, bloody punch-up with Javier

Martinez (Left Hook) unanimously

beating Zubair Azam (IQ).

RESULTS

Junior, 3 x 2: Rahim Ali (Left Hook) outpd John

McDonagh (Islington) unan; Steve McDonagh

(Fairbairn) outpd Sean Leahy (Fitzpatrick’s

Gym) split. Youth, 3 x 2: Mitchel Ackerman (Left

Hook) outpd Jake Samler (Maldon) unan. Senior,

3 x 2: Henry Akpobasa (LCB) outpd Spencer

Song (Imperial College) unan; Kieran Fowler

(LCB) outpd Tomasz Zdanawski (Stonebridge)

split; Javier Martinez (Left Hook) outpd Zubair

Azam (IQ) unan; Akashveer Dhesi (Odyssey)

outpd Tomas Rogec (LCB) unan; Lewin Simpson

(LCB) outpd Sam Mason (White Hart Lane) split;

Abugahal Akbari (Fairbairn) outpd Sloan Siblett

(Herts University) unan; Emmanuel Zion (LCB)

outpd Max Hudson (Danson) unan; Jonathan

Okonofur (LCB) outpd Jurell Da Costa Green

(White Hart Lane) unan; Adeshina Adetoro

(Miguels) outpd Andre Dascalu (Stonebridge);

Zoe Hefford (Double Jab) outpd Jessica Jellicoe

(Herts University) split. 3 x 3: Alex Richards

(Miguels) outpd Marie Conan (Left Hook).


AMATEURS

Rio Olympian steps

up to middleweight for

Ulster championships

Photo: ACTION IMAGES/PETER CZIBORRA

ULSTER KING:

Rio Olympian Donnelly

wins crunch contest

Matt Bozeat

RINGSIDE

BELFAST

NOVEMBER 17

RIO Olympian Steven Donnelly

stepped up to middleweight and

repelled the challenge of Holy

Trinity banger Caoimhin Hynes

in their much-anticipated Ulster

championship semi-final at the

Dockers Club.

Four of the judges scored the

fight for Donnelly and the other

had it level. There was a bit of

needle between the fighters in

the build up to the clash and the

handshake afterwards wasn’t the

warmest.

Hynes (Holy Trinity) was strong,

willing and heavy handed, but

Donnelly, eight years his senior at

28 and vastly more experienced,

won clearly enough and seemed

to enjoy putting him in his place.

Donnelly (All Saints) settled quickly,

landing right hands at will in the

opening minute or so, and when

Hynes went looking for the big

punch in the second, Donnelly saw

them coming, made him miss and

countered.

Hynes became frustrated and

was handed a public warning

for dangerous use of his head.

Donnelly stood his ground more in

the last and though he was told off

a couple of times for holding, he

got the better of the exchanges.

In the Ulster final at Ulster

Hall tomorrow night (Friday),

Donnelly meets Fergus Quinn.

RAF bantamweight Ricki Lyon

continued his excellent start to the

season when he took the English

Southern Area title in a show at

RAF Brize Norton in November.

After narrowly taking a split

points decision over Brighton and

Hove’s Kealan McFadden only

five days previously, a repeat or

revenge rematch was arranged

with the Southern Area belt on the

line for the victor. A typically fast

start was made by Lyon, using deft

DONNELLY DELIVERS

The Camlough southpaw kept

Conor Docherty (Emerald) under

pressure from first bell to last and

handed him a count in the third on

the way to a unanimous points win

in the other 75kgs semi final.

Best bout was the lightweight

clash between Sean Duffy, back

LYON HEART

The bantamweight takes an solid win, writes Scott Boland

footwork and classy combinations

to take the opener. The second

saw McFadden attempt to pressure

Lyon through an upped workrate

and punch output, with some level

of success. Both boxers met centre

ring for much of the third, but Lyon

endured a late rally from McFadden

to take the 56kg title home to St

Helens. Following a year out with

injury, Lyon will hope to use the

win as a catalyst for his push for

Elite honours in 2018.

after three years out, and Stephen

McKenna (Old School). Duffy

(Holy Trinity) was a unanimous

winner after three rounds of

quality action. He came close to

a stoppage. The shorter of the

fighters by a couple of inches, he

had the slender McKenna on the

floor with a left hook and when

McKenna tried to fight his way out

of trouble on the resumption, Duffy

caught him cleanly with enough

heavy shots to force a count.

McKenna did well to get through

the first round and after the

minute’s break, he rallied superbly,

taking the fight to Duffy throughout

the second, pumping out non-stop

punches. That drive took a lot out

of McKenna and Duffy won the

last clearly by circling the ring and

walking him onto punches.

Duffy next meets St Georges

southpaw James McGivern, who

boxed well on the balls of his feet

to outpoint Dylan Duffy (Pegasus).

Super-heavyweights Denis

Borskins (Sacred Heart, Newry)

and Immaculata southpaw Joe

Downey knocked lumps out of

each other, to the delight of the

crowd, until the referee decided

Downey could take no more

midway through the third. The fight

was waved off after Downey took

his fourth count. His nose had bled

from the opener. Downey looked

likely to overwhelm Borskins in

the first round as he backed him

up and whaled away, but Borskins

counter-attacked off the ropes with

a flurry to put him on his knees.

They took it in turns to unload on

each other throughout an exciting

second, with Borskins getting the

better of it, handing Downey a

count in the closing seconds.

Both were desperately tired in

the last, but Borskins had a bit

more left in the tank and handed

Downey two more counts with

combinations of short, jolting

punches that led to the stoppage.

Borskins meets Joe Joyce (Erne)

in the final after his sharp left-hand

work took him to a unanimous

points win over Stephen

McMonagle (Holy Trinity).


AMATEURS

A GALA OF BOXING

Inspirational event is set for November 25 at the Tottenham Community Sports Centre, writes John Dennen

ON Saturday November 25 a gala

of female boxing is taking place at

the Tottenham Community Sports

Centre, 759 High Road, London,

N17 8AD. The boxing starts at 2pm.

The event, which has a mammoth

30 bouts expected, brings teams

together from different regions

across the country to give female

boxers competitive opportunity. The

inaugural ‘This Girl Can Box’ show

took place last year and the hope

is to make it an annual occurrence.

“Girls are hard to match, it’s like

having a flyweight or a superheavyweight

in your gym, you’ve got

to do a little bit more to travel and

get them the bouts that they need,”

said organiser Terri Kelly. “This gives

them a fantastic opportunity to get

on the same show.”

“We needed to link up round

the country and help each other

for development,” she continued.

“It’s up to us to create more

opportunities to box. You need

to box to develop your skills. So I

thought I’d match it and do it. This

time I’m hoping to raise a bit of

revenue. If we can do it and raise

some funds and try and get some

sponsors, maybe next time what

we could do is invite a team from

Ireland or a team from Sweden,

if we had the money there to put

them up in a hotel, so it’s not a

burden for one club.”

On the show there will be a

Southern Area title belt bout

between Haringey’s Amy Andrew

and Charlie Hamm from Kent

Gloves. Deayndre Allen has moved

up from 64kgs to welterweight and

will box Laura Stevens, from Far

Cotton. Ramla Ali, Nemesis, is due

to box Nikki Arthur from Manx

and Sarah Dunne will box Xian

Blackman Prince.

“It ranges. There’s a few skills

bouts on there, Development

bouts, Elites who don’t box

enough,” Terri said. “As they have

more and more bouts it gets harder

to match them and I don’t want

them just sitting around.”

“The idea is that each region has

squads, it’s supposed to encourage

that,” she added. “It’s much nicer if

it’s got a squad feel about it.

“It’s to make it more of a

celebration or a gala of boxing. It

has a really nice feeling about it

and just have some inspirational

women there as well.

“There’s not enough happening.

AMBITIOUS:

Andrew [centre]

with Terri Kelly

[right] and Brian

John [left]

We can’t keep sitting and waiting.

I’ve never been one to sit and

wait for anything. We’re all quite

proactive and thinking what can

we do. That’s fed through to this as

well. What can we do, rather than

keep moaning.

“People really enjoy it. The whole

day’s a nice atmosphere and there’s

nothing more inspirational than

seeing 60 other female boxers all

doing what you love doing.”

‘WE CAN’T KEEP SITTING AND WAITING. WE’RE QUITE

PROACTIVE, THINKING WHAT CAN WE DO’

BACK IN ANGERED

Haringey return to Sweden

FOR the first time in eight years

Haringey Police Community Boxing

Club returned to the Angered Box

Cup in Sweden, from November

3-5. Angered initially inspired

them to set up the Haringey Box

Cup, which has now been running

successfully in London for a decade.

Stephen Makolo and Amy

Andrew both won gold medals,

while Claudia Wilmot Smith

picked up a silver. “[Andrew] has

got to start thinking about the Elites

now,” Terri Kelly said. “She’s looking

to do as much as she can, she’s very

ambitious.”

Haringey’s Numan Hussein had

a tough bout with Danish boxer

Frederik Lundgaard Jensen,

but will learn plenty from the

experience.

Deayndre Allen, shaking off

ring rust, also suffered a defeat. But

Kelly points out, “The following

day she sparred [an experienced

international] from Denmark and

she was outstanding. I thought

why couldn’t you box like that

the day before? That girl’s had 75

bouts. Unfortunately it happens.”


TRIP OF A LIFE TIME

Moss Side visit Fight for Peace

in the favelas of Rio

MOSS Side Fire Station boxing club

enjoyed a trip of a lifetime to Rio

de Janeiro from October 23-30 to

participate in the first tournament

hosted by that Fight for Peace

charity.

Fight for Peace was founded in

Brazil by Luke Dowdney in 2000

and they use boxing and martial

arts to engage with young people

who live in favelas with the aim

of taking them away from gang

violence, guns, drugs and other

negative things.

The Moss Side fire station boxing

club, which was founded by Nigel

Travis in 2008, also has the same

model using boxing to engage with

people.

Regarding the trip Travis

commented, “Most of the Brazilian

Fight for Peace team were members

of the national set up so it was

difficult for our boxers as most of

them were novices. And with some

dubious decisions it made it all

the more harder, but what these

kids have gained from the trip is

immeasurable and their lives will be

better for it.”

RESULTS

Moss Side first: Matthew Knipe outpd by

William Campos split, Tom Rowen outpd Douglas

Clementino unan, Hamdun Abubakhar outpd

by Matheus Martins split, Subhaan Khaliq stpd

RIO 2017:

Moss Side meet

Fight for Peace

by Keno Marley, Conner Tudsbury outpd Bruno

Henrique unan, Liam Phillips outpd by Rubens

Diego Dos Santos unan, Malakai Dixon outpd by

Michel Soares unan, Nathan Cummiskey outpd

by Cleison Charles Dos Santos unan, Lucas

Cummings stpd by Wanderson De Oliveira.

BRANDON’S BEST YET

Alex Oliver on the club’s most

significant show so far

BRANDON boxing club had a

home show on Saturday November

11 and arguably it was their best

one yet. The crowds continue to

grow as the area continues to show

its support for an ever expanding

club, that hopes to head to new

premises in the new year.

The show was top class and with

it falling on Remembrance weekend

the club had a parade to the Last

Post and the traditional 10 bells

followed by the national anthem

to honour our forces. There were

over 500 people in the hall and you

could have heard a pin drop.

The show featured Brandon

boxers competing against clubs

from all over the UK with victories

for Lennon Burnham, Callum

O’Connor, Reuben Schindler,

Callum Sweeney and Dan

Lennon with each and every

boxer giving 100 per cent. Top of

the bill saw club captain Peter

“The” Hardman take on Aaron

Camsell from Spennymoor. There

is friendly rivalry between Brandon

and Spennymoor and also, as Aaron

has previously defeated Peter, there

was a lot on the line. Hardman

was extremely focused and in a

competitive contest took a points

victory.

There were defeats for Harry

Huitson, Jude Gordon and Jake

Williamson but each lad gave

everything and left it all in the ring.

The show also featured the

first USL sponsored Tyne Tees and

Wear Belts series with two top

bantamweights battling it out with

Ryan Daley from North Star taking

a split decision over Jeff Neesham

in a bout that had both sets of

supports on their feet. The belts are

sponsored by Brandon Boxing Club’s

very own coach Paddy O’Connor’s

company USL. The icing on the

cake for the show was an auction

where they raised funds for my

daughter Kara-mai’s school and

also Lauren Rennie who requires

surgery in America on her spine.

The auction did fantastically with

framed and signed Carl Froch and

George Groves bringing in over

£600 for the two causes.


YESTERDAY’S HEROES

Photo: LARRY BRAYSHER

STADIUM STARS:

Britt is KO’d by Summers

in their rubber match at

the Memorial Athletic

Grounds in Canning Town

TAKING THE LEEDS

Secretary

Paul Abraham

is being proactive

in his search for

new members

for his EBA

Simon

Euan-Smith

EBA

correspondent

LEEDS EBA began in 1952. Two local

ex-boxers, Jimmy Learoyd and Mike

Sutherland, were travelling home together

on the tram after attending the funeral

of another ex-pro, Tommy Mallinson.

They started discussing the possibility of

forming a reunion organisation for Leeds

ex-fighters.

Learoyd was licensee of the Duke

William Hotel – and a few weeks after

that initial discussion, the first meeting

was held there. Leeds is still going today

– meeting at 11.30am on the first Sunday

of the month at The Anglers Club, 75a

Stony Rock Lane, Leeds, LS9 7TB. “The

December meeting will be on the 17th,”

Secretary Paul Abraham said. “We’re

having it just before Christmas – we’ll be

getting some drinks in! But then we’ll go

back to the first Sunday.”

Like all EBAs, Leeds are keen to get new

members. “We’re going to make a big

effort in the new year,” Paul said. “We’ll

be contacting the local gyms – and Derek

Roche, who started coming recently, is

spreading the word. And we visit other

EBAs – we go to Manchester dos, and the

Northern Federation Gala Weekend. Nick

Manners recently joined us, and so did

Mickey Vann.”

Roche is a former British welterweight

champion, Manners (now a pro trainer)

held the Central Area light-heavyweight

title, and Vann, though never a champion,

went on to become one of Britain’s top

referees. Incidentally, I recently read

Mickey’s autobiography, Give Me a Ring,

and can thoroughly recommend it.

But you don’t have to have been a

championship fighter, or a top referee,

to join an EBA. Abraham, for instance,

never boxed, but told me: “I’ve been a fan

since 1971. I’d go to all the EBA functions

I could, and meet my heroes, such as

ex-world champions Alan Minter and

John H. Stracey. Boxers really are a special

group of people – they always make you

welcome.” Anyone who’s attended an EBA

function will know what Paul means.

Another champion is Leeds President

Allan Richardson. “He’s a terrific

ambassador,” Paul said. “He goes to Wales,

Brighton – and for the past two years I’ve

been with him to the British EBAs Hall of

Fame. He’s well respected everywhere.”

I remember Allan (he was billed as

‘Alan’ when he was boxing) as a fine

featherweight in the ‘70s. In July 1974,

I covered his British title challenge

against Evan Armstrong. Armstrong was

another no-nonsense pro, and the pair

put up quite a battle for 10 rounds – with

Richardson, I thought, having the better


THE GREAT OUTDOORS

Recalling

Britain’s

first ‘stadium

fight’ – held

in Canning

Town in 1909

Miles

Templeton

Boxing

historian

ACK in the 1920s

and ‘30s, the most

B

important contests

in the States took

place in large stadia

in front of vast

crowds. When Jack

Dempsey fought Gene Tunney in 1927 at

the Soldier Field in Chicago, the paying

attendance exceeded 100,000. Joe Louis

boxed Max Schmeling in front of 70,000

at the Yankee Stadium, New York in 1938.

In those days, it was the ‘gate’ that paid

the boxers’ wages, and vast crowds were

vital.

From the 1960s onwards, with the

advent of closed-circuit TV and then

pay-per-view, the live gate became less

important, and it was the number of

channel subscriptions that mattered.

Boxers could earn huge purses because

of the number of people watching live

all over the world. As a result, Las Vegas

became the most important fight centre

and the place that everyone wanted to

compete in.

Things are changing again. In recent

years, the sport in Britain has boomed

and, while pay-per-view is very much the

driving force, the atmosphere that can

be created from a large live audience is

also important. Now everyone wants to

fight in Britain, and the most outstanding

boxers are now known as being ‘stadium

fighters’.

Since the advent of gloves in the

mid-1880s, the vast majority of British

boxing has taken place in small halls and

clubs dotted up and down the country.

Major events occurred at places like the

Royal Albert Hall in front of five or six

thousand. Occasionally, large outdoor

events were organised, but they occurred

less frequently than is the case today. In

the first 63 years of its existence, only

four boxing promotions were held at

Wembley Stadium. I suspect that there

may be more than four held there within

the next five years.

I have recently tracked down the first

instance of a ‘stadium fight’ in Britain, and

it took place at the Memorial Athletic

Grounds, Canning Town in July 1909. The

participants were Johnny Summers of

Canning Town and Jimmy Britt, a resident

of San Francisco.

The contest generated huge interest

among the public and a lot of attention

in the press. The two had met twice

previously, on both occasions in London,

with a win apiece. The outdoor match

would decide, once and for all, who was

the best. At the time, Britain and America

could both claim equal status as boxing’s

leading nation, and this added to the

huge interest in the outcome.

Articles were signed five weeks prior

to the bout, and Middlesbrough-born

Summers’ preparation took place in

Brighton. Britt established his camp at

the Coach and Horses, Stonebridge Park.

The two men were to share half of the

gate money, with the winner taking 60

per cent of this amount and the loser 40

per cent.

On the day, the contest was preceded

by four six-round matches between

Londoners and, in true Edwardian

fashion, the crowd could also witness

sprints, wrestling, weight-throwing and

pole vaulting.

The spectacle was a true family day

out, but the real interest was for the main

event. Although the crowd was not great

by today’s standards, it far exceeded the

number of people who usually attended

most indoor halls.

The two men entered the ring at

around 5.30pm, and it was seen that

“they formed a splendid picture of

muscular manhood, with the Englishman

looking the harder, though both looked

fit enough for anything.” After nine

rounds of high-quality boxing and

some roughhouse tactics from both

men, Summers emerged victorious by

knockout.

While Britt never fought again,

Summers moved on to greater things,

although he failed to reach the very top,

and lost his only contest for the world

title. He was a true great of the British

game and was, I believe, the winner of

the first great ‘stadium fight’ in British

boxing history.

of things. But a tongue-lashing in the

corner sent Armstrong storming out in

the 11th – a big left hook put Richardson

down, and when he got up referee Harry

Gibbs stopped the fight.

I talked to Allan about the fight years

later, and he said he felt he should have

been allowed to carry on. Armstrong

– who died recently – retired soon

afterwards, and it says something about

his domination of the British feather

division that (a) the BBBofC nominated

two of his KO victims – Vernon Sollas and

Jimmy Revie – to contest the vacant title,

and (b) after Sollas beat Revie (fourthround

KO) his first defence was against

another Armstrong victim – Richardson!

And Allan won the British belt at the

second attempt, halting Sollas in eight

rounds. That also gave Allan revenge

for an eighth-round stoppage defeat by

Sollas previously.

Back to Leeds EBA, and I must

mention their excellent website, www.

leedsboxinghistory.com. There’s a history of

boxing in the city from the bare-knuckle

days, and a fascinating item about world

heavyweight champion James J. Corbett

coming over from America in 1894,

touring the UK in the play Gentleman

Jack, Corbett taking the title role. The

play ran for a week in Leeds. And there

are reports of promotions in Leeds, and

interviews with local fighters.

EMAIL simonoldtimers@googlemail.com

with your ex-boxer association news.

DON’T MISS

Tuesday December 5

North Staffs EBA Christmas Dinner,

London Road Sports and Social Club,

279 London Road, Stoke-on-Trent.

Thursday December 7

Bournemouth EBA Christmas Dinner,

Parley Country Club, Ferndown.

Sunday December 10

Brighton EBA Christmas Party,

The Nevill, Hove (12pm).

Sunday December 17

Home Counties EBA Christmas Party,

Bricket Wood Social Club (12pm).


SIGN ME UP:

Top referee Vann is a member of Leeds EBA


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