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Report/Photos by Scott Foster

“Night Of Champions IV” Boxlab Promotions, in conjunction with CBS Sports and Warriors Boxing, presented a tripleheader Friday night at the Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando, FL dubbed the “Night Of Champions IV.” The 12-bout card was headlined by once-beaten lightweight contender, Cuban-born Idalberto Umara (11-1, 8 KOs) who faced a late but heralded substitute in former Dominican Olympian William Encarnacion (20-5, 16 KOs). Umara stole the show early with a highlight reel uppercut that had the Olympian out on his feet, crashing face-first into the canvas. After several frightening minutes, Encarnacion regained his senses and was greeted with applause from the audience after returning to his corner. The end came at 1:51 of round two. Continue reading “Umara crushes Encarnacion”

Undisputed lightweight champion Devin Haney has reportedly notified the WBC that he will be vacating the WBC belt and moving to super lightweight to face WBC 140lb champion Regis Prograis in Las Vegas on October 28. Haney’s status as WBA, IBF, and WBO lightweight champion is TBA.

Haney confirmed the Prograis fight on tonight’s ESPN telecast. “It’s the perfect time,” said Haney. “Right now I’m a free agent. I’m able to go up. I’m WBC champion at 135, and undisputed champion at 135. I’m able to go up to fight for a new belt at 140 and hopefully, God willing, I’m able to keep my 135 belts, as well.”

By Miguel Maravilla and Jeff Zimmerman at ringside

East L.A.’s Seniesa “Super Bad” Estrada (25-0, 9 KOs) successfully defended her WBC and WBA female minimumweight world titles edging out Argentina’s former world champion Leonela Yudica (19-2-3, 1 KO) in headlining Friday night at the Pearl Concert Theater at Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas. Continue reading “Estrada retains titles, remains unbeaten”

By Jeff Zimmerman

Trainer Calvin Ford shared his excitement for the Spence-Crawford fight, the return of Gervonta “Tank” Davis and a potential super fight with “The Monster” Naoya Inoue.

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By Jeff Zimmerman

Fightnews.com® caught up with First Take’s and big boxing fan, Stephen A Smith, at the Spence-Crawford weigh-ins.

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By Przemek Garczarczyk

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By Jeff Zimmerman and Miguel Maravilla at the scale
Photos: Emily Harney

Errol Spence Jr 147 vs. Terence Crawford 146.75
(undisputed WBC/WBA/IBF/WBO welterweight title)

Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz 134.5 vs. Giovanni Cabrera 134.25
(WBC, WBA lightweight eliminator)

Nonito Donaire 117.25 vs. Alexandro Santiago 117.5
(WBC bantamweight title)

Yoenis Tellez 155.5 vs. Sergio García 155.5
Steven Nelson 167.75 vs. Rowdy Legend 166.75
José Salas Reyes 121.5 vs. Aston Palicte 123.5

Venue: T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas
Promoter: TGB Promotions
TV: Showtime PPV

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Brayan ’La Roca’ De Gracia 125.6 vs. Edwin Vazquez 128.8*
(vacant IBF Inter-Continental featherweight title)

Venue: Riders Field baseball park in Frisco, Texas
Promoter: DiBella Entertainment – DBE (Lou DiBella)

*Vázquez 2.8 pounds overweight. Vazquez will attempt to make weight in allotted time permitted.

WBO mini flyweight world champion Oscar “El Pupilo” Collazo (7-0, 5 KOs) makes his first world title defense against Garen “Hellboy” Diagan (10-3, 5 KOs) on Saturday, August 26. This will be the first men’s world title fight in Puerto Rico in six years. The DAZN broadcast will take place at the Coliseo Roberto Clemente in San Juan and is presented in association with Miguel Cotto Promotions.

By Joe Koizumi
Photo by Boxing Beat

IBF 105-pound unification bout between full champion Daneil Valladares of Mexico and interim titlist Ginjiro Shigeoka of Japan scheduled in Osaka on August 11 has been postponed because of the latter’s leg injury. Kameda Promotions says it will now take place most probably on October 7.

They had a first encounter, which resulted in a bizarre “no contest” as Valladares refused to go on after an accidental headbutt in the third round this January. Ginjiro’s elder brother Yudai Shigeoka is also the WBC interim minimumweight ruler who is still under negotiation with full champ Panya Pradabsri.

While Errol Spence and Terence Crawford are getting all the attention, 52-year-old former world champion Luis Ramon “Yori Boy” Campas (107-17-3, 82 KOs) is quietly returning to the ring for the first time since 2018. Campas will face Juan Carlos Parra (8-23-2, 7 KOs) in a ten-rounder at the Auditorio Municipal Fausto Gutiérrez Moreno in Tijuana, BCN, Mexico.

Also seeing action this weekend is 48-year-old former world champion Gairy St Clair (45-12-2, 18 KOs) who last fought in 2013. He is scheduled to fight Michael Hall (8-2-1, 5 KOs) tonight in a twelve-rounder at Conca D’Oro in Riverwood, NSW, Australia.

Update: St Clair lost by twelve round majority decision. Scores were 115-113, 117-112, 114-114.

• Referee: Harvey Dock
• Judges: Tim Cheatham, David Sutherland, Steve Weisfeld
• Showtime PPV Price: $84.99
• MGM Grand Garden Arena Closed Circuit Price: $150.85 for one
• Crawford won a coin flip and will have his choice of either walking in last and being introduced first or walking in first and being introduced last.
• Las Vegas temperature on Saturday: 110°

Formerly world-ranked contender Brayan ’La Roca’ De Gracia (29-2-1, 25 KOs) looks to get back into world title contention this Saturday at the 10,000-seat Riders Field baseball park in Frisco, Texas. His opponent will be local Edwin Vazquez(14-1, 3 KOs) of nearby Fort Worth, Texas. The 10-round main event is for the vacant IBF Inter-Continental featherweight title. Attendees can also watch Spence-Crawford via closed circuit.

De Gracia is well aware that winning this title can put him back into the world rankings and has no plans of losing out on this opportunity. Continue reading “De Gracia ready to make statement Saturday”

By Héctor Villarreal
Photos: Martín Pérez

Daniel Lezcano 126 vs Carlos Montenegro 125.25
Samir Cuentas 140.5 vs Fernando Martinez 139.5
Barnie Argüelles 144 vs Harvin Aguirre 149.25
Jeffrey Martinez 115 vs Fernando Lorenzo 115
Josue Alvarado 146 vs Oriel Betancourt 148
Angel Bethancourt 118.75 vs Marcos Arrieta 121

Date: Friday, July 28th
Venue: Centro de Combates Pandeportes
Promoter: Laguna Premium Boxing
1st Bell: 8pm

Photos

Undefeated boxing superstars Errol “The Truth” Spence Jr. and Terence “Bud” Crawford faced off Thursday at the final press conference before they meet to crown the first undisputed welterweight champion of the four-belt era this Saturday headlining a SHOWTIME PPV from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas

Errol Spence Jr: “I’m gonna win because I’m the better fighter. I’m better physically and mentally. I’m more durable. I’m gonna break him down and break his will…he’s gonna find out that my skills are superior. He’s talented, but when we talk about what my coach teaches, he’s gonna see that I have great offense, defense and stamina. It’s more than just talent…bring your seasoning on Saturday night, because we’re gonna have a crawfish boil. Bring that hot sauce too.”

Terence Crawford: “He’s gonna find out the same thing that everyone else finds out. He’s gonna say that on TV I look one way. In the ring he’s gonna be seeing three of me…they say he’s the big bad wolf, but come fight night we’re gonna find out if he’s all that he says he is. He’s gonna have to show me…everything about me is better than Errol. When you look at what I do in the ring, it’s better than what he does. Come fight night, I’m going to prove every doubter wrong. I’m going to show that I’m the best fighter in the world.”

Seniesa Estrada 104.4 vs. Leonela Yudica 103.7
(WBC, WBA female minimumweight titles)

Andres Cortes 130 vs. Xavier Martinez 129.7
Karlos Balderas 135.9 vs. Nahir Albright 134.1
Rohan Polanco 142.9 vs. Cesar Francis 141.8
Abraham Nova 130.8 vs. Jonathan Romero 130.8
Subaru Murata 121.5 vs. Juan Centeno 123.3
Dante Benjamin Jr. 170.1 vs. William Langston 171.9
Charlie Sheehy 134.5 vs. Kaylyn Alfred 133.4
Jaylan Phillips 139.5 vs. E’mond Driver 142

Venue: Pearl Concert Theater at Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas
Promoter: Top Rank
TV: ESPN+

WBO welterweight champion Terence Crawford remains a slight favorite to defeat WBA/WBC/IBF welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. in their PPV super fight on Saturday night in Las Vegas.

Errol Spence Jr. vs Terence Crawford
Errol Spence Jr +125 (5/4)
Terence Crawford -145 (20/29)

Will the Fight go the Scheduled Distance?
Yes -190 (10/19)
No +155 (31/20)

Method of Victory
Terence Crawford by Decision or Technical Decision 17/10 (+170)
Terence Crawford by KO, TKO or DQ 5/2 (+250)
Errol Spence Jr. by Decision or Technical Decision 5/2 (+250)
Errol Spence Jr. by KO, TKO or DQ 9/2 (+450)
Draw or Technical Draw 12/1 (+1200)

Odds courtesy of BetOnline (www.BetOnline.ag)

BOXXER has announced to the undercard for the highly-anticipated rematch between Liam Smith and Chris Eubank Jr on Saturday, September 2 at the AO Arena, Manchester, England.

Tokyo 2020 Olympic bronze medallist Frazer Clarke is set to lock horns with ‘The White Rhino’ Dave Allen in a ten round domestic heavyweight dust up. ‘The Albanian King’ Florian Marku will take on Ireland’s Dylan Moran in a ten round welterweight contest. 2020 Olympic silver medallist Ben Whittaker faces TBA. And Mark Heffron will defend his British and Commonwealth super middleweight titles against ‘Little Lever’s Meat Cleaver’ Jack Cullen.

By Bill Green

While the fans have waited nearly 5 years for Spence vs Crawford, the fighters themselves have waited their entire boxing careers to position and maneuver themselves to be involved in the most watched/anticipated showdown in 30+ years.

Boxing is a lot like chess. For example, your coaches constantly preach to you the battle of positioning, whether it’s getting your lead foot outside of your opponents, or keeping your chin and hands in the right positions. All important aspects but for B&B-trained athletes there is another key component in positioning and that … .is simply play your best game of chess. Continue reading “B&B Boxing master chess players”

In the latest Puerto Rico vs. Mexico war on Wednesday night at the Kissimmee Civic Center in Kissimmee, Florida, super featherweights Orlando Gonzalez (21-2, 12 KOs) and Ramiro Cesena (16-2-1, 13 KOs) pounded on each other for ten rounds with Gonzalez winning 96-94, 96-94, 97-93. Judges preferred Gonzalez’ shoe-shining over Cesena’s power-punching.

Super lightweight Mohamed Mimoune (22-5, 3 KOs) stopped previously unbeaten Steven Galeano (12-0, 9 KOs) in round six. Galeano down at the end of round five and down 3x in round six.

Unbeaten middleweight Darrelle Valsaint (9-0, 7 KOs) halted Daniel Aduku (15-4-1, 11 KOs) in the fourth round. Body shots finished Aduku.

Unbeaten lightweight Mandeep Jangra (5-0, 3 KOs) outpointed Yesner Talavera (15-16-1, 4 KOs) over six rounds.

Sandwiched in between super fights this week, Top Rank has a show headlined by unified WBC/WBA female minimumweight champion Seniesa “Super Bad” Estrada (24-0, 9 KOs) against Leonela Yudica (19-1-3, 1 KO) this Friday at Pearl Concert Theater at Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas.

Seniesa Estrada: “This is just the beginning. We’re at a time in women’s boxing where all the top women are starting to headline…everyone thinks they’re going to shock the world when they get in the ring me. But then, that bell rings and they see that my style is just different. I’m a different fighter.”

Leonela Yudica: “I’m positive that they have underestimated me. I have had a lot of fights, and I have a lot of experience. I defended my flyweight title 10 times. And while it is a great challenge to be going down in weight, I am ready and prepared to show that I have everything it takes to become world champion again.”

Former WBA super lightweight champion Alberto Puello will be removed from the WBA rankings for the use of banned substances prior to his fight against Rolly Romero, current champion of the category. The WBA Championships Committee announced that it adheres to the decision made by the Nevada Athletic Commission which, after a hearing, determined that Puello should be suspended until October 5, 2023. For this reason, Puello will be able to request his return to the WBA rankings after that date.

Light heavyweight banger Anthony Yarde (23-2, 22 KOs) hits the comeback trail towards his next world title challenge on September 23 with an all-British clash against Ricky Summers (19-3-1, 6 KOs) at the OVO Arena in London on the big Zhilei Zhang-Joe Joyce rematch card, live on TNT Sports (UK).

Yarde, the self-styled “Beast from the East,” won the admiration of the boxing public back in January when he gave unified world light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev a tough fight before being retired by his own corner in the eighth round in front of a packed house at the same venue. Continue reading “Yarde on Zhang-Joyce undercard”

By Joe Koizumi
Photo: Boxing Beat

It is customary in Japan that the winner of the world title bout on the previous night participates in a press conference on the next day. The newly crowned WBC, WBO world 122-pound champion Naoya Inoue responded to questions by our media people today (Wednesday) in Yokohama. Naoya, quite uninjured and unbruised, cooly revealed his future plan.

“I wish to unify all the four world belts within this year (against Marlon Tapales). It may take three years to have myself physically adjust to the super bantam category and then may move up to the featherweight division. After taking a rest for a week, I wish to return to gym work.” Continue reading “Inoue: Even if all belts unified, I’ll stay at 122”

Unbeaten NABA middleweight champion Connor “The Kid” Coyle (19-0, 8 KOs) will make the third defense of his title when he faces Joey Bryant (17-1, 13 KOs) on August 19 at the Blind Tiger in Biloxi, Mississippi. Coyle is ranked #5 by the WBA.

“I’m excited for this fight and Connor will be sharp against a very hungry fighter in Joey Bryant,” said Coyle’s promoter Jody Caliguire of Fire Fist Boxing Promotions. “Connor has been training extremely hard with (trainer and manager) Jim McLoughlin. This is the biggest fight of Bryant’s career, so we’re expecting a good challenge.”