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Boxing Night Olavinlinna was held on 26th August at the medieval Olavinlinna castle in Savonlinna, Finland. The event featured fights from WBC super featherweight world champion Eva Wahlström, welterweight contender Jussi Koivula and hard-hitting light heavyweight prospect Niklas Räsänen, among others.

Eva Wahlström’s (21–0–1) and Irma Balijagic Adler’s (16–9) fight was an eight-rounder without Wahlström’s WBC belt on the line. It was Wahlström’s chance to show how she can handle a taller and bigger opponent, and the skillful Finn did a convincing job. Continue reading “Results from Finland”

By Miguel Maravilla at ringside

Glendora, California’s Joet Gonzalez (18-0, 9 KOs) scored a fifth round stoppage over Deivis Bassa (19-3, 11 KOs) of Montreal, Canada in a scheduled ten round super featherweight bout. A right hand by Gonzalez sent Bassa to the canvas as he continued. Gonzalez continued his attack as referee Jack Reiss stepped in to stop the fight at 2:57 of the fifth.

Super bantamweight prospect Emilio Sanchez (15-0, 10 KOs) of Pacoima, California stopped Danny Flores (11-8-1, 5 KOs) of Durango, Mexico in five rounds of a scheduled eight rounder. Sanchez landed a solid right hand in the opening round as he backed Flores. Attacking the body in round two Sanchez worked Flores inside as he kept pressing. In round three Sanchez continued to land big punches as he boxed Flores. The fourth round saw Flores land some big punches as he exchanged with the fast handed Sanchez. However in round five an accumulation of punches by Sanchez forced the referee to stop the fight 33 seconds of the fifth. Continue reading “Cotto-Kamegai Undercard Results”

By David Robinett

ESPN and Top Rank teamed up Saturday morning at the Wynn Las Vegas, on the heels of this evening’s Mayweather/McGregor event, to present a roundtable featuring various ESPN and Top Rank personnel, including Top Rank CEO Bob Arum and President Todd duBoef. The purpose of the gathering was to formally announce what was described as a “mega, comprehensive, multi-year agreement” with Top Rank for a series of fights to be presented on multiple platforms through the ESPN family of networks and other outlets. The highlight of the announcement was the emphasis on “vertical content,” described by the participants as content not just limited to live boxing on television, but re-airs, archival footage, and direct-to-consumer content through streaming services such as BAMTech.

Bob Arum explained the importance of the partnership with ESPN. “It means a lot, it really starts before I came into boxing when I was growing up and when boxing was a major, major sport in the country, where every newspaper had a boxing writer,” explained Arum. “It was a sport that was constantly before the public. And then [Muhammad] Ali helped keep the sport relevant. But as the years went on, for whatever reason, boxing became somewhat of a niche sport. Now with our partnership with ESPN, we have the opportunity to again make boxing a major sport.” Continue reading “ESPN and Top Rank announce new series”

Story and Photos by Bob Ryder

Promoters Kenny D. Moore and Tuong Vi Tran (Second 2 None Promotions) returned to DeCarlo’s Convention Center in the Detroit suburb of Warren with a solid card of pro boxing Friday night. Matchmakers for the night were Moore and Carlos Llinas. Plagued by fallouts and poor attendance in their initial outing this past April, the promoters attracted a near capacity crowd this time as they presented eight bouts headlined by Detroit’s Domonique Dolton. Dolton, making his second hometown appearance after taking some time off after his only professional loss, was impressive in walking through and knocking out Nicaragua’s Sergio Gomez.

Earlier this month Dolton did not impress in winning a decision on the Shields-Adler undercard as he struggled to land anything effective. This night he was much sharper, dominating the first round and scoring a knockdown over Gomez. The second round started off the same with Dolton scoring a knockdown early. Gomez arose but after feeling the pressure backed into his own corner where he took a knee to be counted out by referee Ansel Stewart at 1:10 of the round. Super welter Dolton is now (19-1-1, 10 KOs) while Gomez dips to (20-23, 16 KOs). Dolton was happy to be fighting at home again, “I’m going back to my roots, I started as an amateur at Kronk and I want to continue to fight here in the future. This was only my second fight with trainer Johnathon Banks and things are coming together. I just needed to work off the rust and stay active.” Continue reading “Dolton notches KO win in Detroit”

Unbeaten heavyweight champion LaRon Mitchell (16-0, 14 KOs) successfully defended his NABF “junior” title with a third round KO over against Michael Bissett (14-10, 8 KOs) on Friday night at Omega Products International in Corona, California. The San Francisco-based Mitchell, 242, had Bissett, 209, on the canvas three times in round three and finished him with another knockdown in round four. Time was 1:15.

NABF featherweight “junior” beltholder Erick Ituarte (18-1-1, 2 KOs) edged previously unbeaten Alberto Torres (10-1-2, 4 KOs) by split decision in the co-feature.

Report, Photos by Joe Koizumi

In a country of samurai (ancient brave warrior), Kumamoto, Japan, there will be the WBO 105-pound title bout tomorrow (Sunday). We today saw the weigh-in ceremony at the arena, Shiroyama Sky Dome, where defending champ Tatsuya Fukuhara (19-4-6, 7 KOs) scaled in at 104.75, while mandatory challenger Ryuya Yamanaka (14-2, 4 KOs) at the 105-pound class limit.

The WBO officials are as follows: referee Eddie Claudio (US); judges Carlos Ortiz Jr. (US; no relation to former great world titleholder), Surat Soikrachang (Thailand), Salven Lagumbay (Philippines); supervisor Leon Panoncillo (US). Continue reading “Fukuhara, Yamanaka Make Weight”

“I’m ready to fight the winner of Golovkin vs. Canelo for the title,” said middleweight Sergiy Derevyanchenko (11-0, 9 KOs) after his KO12 win over Tureano Johnson (20-2, 14 KOs) in their IBF world title eliminator. “I think that Golovkin will win and I look forward to fighting him next.”

As for his impressive win over Johnson, Derevyanchenko stated, “I’m very happy with my performance. I did exactly what we worked on in training and broke him down to get the knockout. He was very tough and took a lot of punches. Maybe the fight could have been stopped earlier but I was always ready to go the distance.”

By David Finger

Tatsuya Fukuhara 104.75 vs. Ryuya Yamanaka 105
(WBO Mini-Flyweight championship)

Naoya Haruguchi 107.5 vs. Shota Asami 108
Yuki Hirashima 121.75 vs. Wolf Nakano 121.5
Tomoya Ikeda 134 vs. Palanpetch Sithparsak 134.25
Takuya Ikawa 124.75 vs. Tetsuro Matsunami 126.5
Yoshiki Uehara 111.5 vs. Sora Takeda 111

Venue: Shiroyama Sky Dome, Ashikitamachi, Japan
Promoter: Honda Fitness Promotions
WBO Supervisor: Leon Panoncillo

Photos: Gary Crow/Premier Boxing Champions

In an important IBF middleweight eliminator, unbeaten Sergiy Derevyanchenko (11-0, 9 KOs) scored a hard fought twelfth round TKO over Tureano Johnson (20-2, 14 KOs) on Friday night at the Buffalo Run Casino in Miami, Oklahoma. In a tough, gritty fight, Derevyanchenko broke down Johnson and dropped him in round twelve to end it. Next up? The Golovkin-Canelo winner.

In an upset, middleweight Hugo Centeno Jr. (26-1, 14 KOs) scored a sudden third round KO over previously unbeaten Immanuel Aleem (17-1-1, 10 KOs). A left hook laid out Aleem for the count at :27. Ievgen Kytrov-conqueror Aleem was recently stripped of the WBC silver belt.

Unbeaten lightweight Austin “The Dream” Dulay (11-0, 8 KOs) scored a third round TKO over Carlos Padilla (16-6-1, 10 KOs). Dulay dropped Padilla in round three and Padilla was pulled out by his corner after the round.

Report/Photos: David Finger

For Japanese boxing fans, the biggest event of the week will not be taking place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Instead, Japanese fight fans will be looking south as WBO mini-flyweight champion Tatsuya Fukuhara (19-4-6, 7 KOs) defends his world title against the #1 ranked contender: countryman Ryuya Yamanaka (14-2, 4 KOs) of Kobe.

Although neither fighter has the flashiest record, this fight has already excited boxing fans as it looks to be the perfect clash of styles with the Gatti-esque Fukuhara looking to pin down the fleet footed boxer in Yamanaka. Continue reading “Fukuhara-Yamanaka final press conference”

ESPN’s telecast of the “unification” battle between undefeated world champions Terence Crawford and Julius Indongo was the second most-watched fight on cable in 2017 reaching a total live audience of 1.3 million viewers across ESPN and ESPN Deportes. The fight averaged 1.2 million viewers on ESPN (behind ESPN’s Pacquiao/Horn main event which delivered 3.7 million viewers).

*** Gervonta Davis 132 vs. Francisco Fonseca 130
(IBF jr lightweight title)
After about an hour delay, Davis has been stripped. Fonseca can claim the vacant belt if he defeats Davis.

Nathan Cleverly 174.3 vs. Badou Jack 174.5
(WBA light heavyweight title)

Andrew Tabiti 197.5 vs. Steve Cunningham 198

Yordenis Ugas 148 vs. Thomas Dulorme 147
Juan Heraldez 142 vs. Jose Miguel Borrego 143
Kevin Newman 162 vs. Antonio Hernandez 163
Savannah Marshall 164.5 vs. Sydney LeBlanc 165

Venue: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas
Promoter: Mayweather Promotions
TV: PPV, Fox

Floyd Mayweather 149.5 vs. Conor McGregor 153

Venue: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas
Promoter: Mayweather Promotions
TV: PPV

The Immanuwel Aleem vs Hugo Centeno, Jr. fight tonight is NOT sanctioned for the WBC Silver middleweight title. After numerous attempts to contact the Aleem camp and Aleem’s inactivity since winning the title in a tremendous fight against Ievgen Kytrov on January 14, 2017, his title was vacated and contested two weeks ago on August 12 between Roberto Garcia and Omar Chavez. Garcia won a unanimous decision and is now the WBC Silver middleweight champion. Any advertisement of the Aleem-Centeno, Jr. fight as being for the WBC Silver middleweight title is false and without WBC sanction for the Silver title.

Miguel Cotto 153.6 vs. Yoshihiro Kamegai 153.8
(WBO jr middleweight title)

Rey Vargas 121.6 vs. Ronny Rios 122
(WBC super bantamweight title)

Venue: Stubhub Center, Carson, California
Promoter: Golden Boy
TV: HBO

Photos courtesy HBO

Here are the official results from the weigh-in of the Olavinlinna Boxing Night event. The night will feature bouts from WBC super featherweight world champion Eva Wahlström, light heavyweight prospect Niklas Räsänen, EBU-EU contender Jussi Koivula and others.

Niklas Räsänen 174,8 vs. Patrick Mendy 175,9
Eva Wahlström 133,8 vs. Irma Balijagic Adler 131,2
Jussi Koivula 149,7 vs. Pal Olah 148,6
Oskari Metz 146,2 vs. Temur Abuladze 145,5
Sami Enbom 181,2 vs. Stanislav Escher 177,7
Tuomo Eronen 129,2 vs. Giorgi Abuladze 124,8
Jose Antonio Sanchez Romero 122,6 vs. Tornike Tortladze 125,2
Antti Hietala 151,9 vs. Robizoni Omsarahsvili 153,2

Venue: Olavinlinna Castle, Savonlinna
Live stream: Viaplay
Promoter: Dominus Boxing Group

How confident is Floyd Mayweather that he’ll handle Conor McGregor on Saturday night? All week he’s been hanging out in his Vegas strip club until the early morning hours. And according to Yahoo Sports, he plans to be there until 5 a.m. or so tonight, the night before the fight. If you want to catch a glimpse of Floyd, head over to the Girl Collection (2580 S Highland Dr) at 2 a.m. or so. Maybe you’ll even see him make it rain. (Adults only.)

By David Finger

It’s been an exciting week in boxing, and although the World Boxing Organization may not be involved in the upcoming Mayweather-McGregor fight in Las Vegas, that doesn’t mean the WBO is taking a break from the action. In fact, 2017 has been on of the busiest years for the WBO in recent memory. From the shocking upset of Jeff Horn over Manny Pacquiao, a fight that opened up Australia in new ways for the WBO, to the crowning of Terrance Crawford as Super Champion in the 140-pound division, this has undoubtedly been a historic year for the WBO.

But maybe the best is yet to come.

“We are waiting for news of the Pacquiao-Horn rematch,” WBO President Francisco “Paco” Valcarcel said about the upset of the year. Although the fight has yet to be finalized, it is cautiously expected to take place before the end of the year. And although there had been controversy with the decision in the first fight, there is a general consensus that the Pacquiao-Horn fight put Brisbane on the boxing map and revitalized the sport of boxing in Australia. Continue reading “The WBO Corner”

Tureano Johnson 159.8 vs. Sergiy Derevyanchenko 159
(IBF middleweight eliminator)

Immanuwel Aleem 158.8 vs. Hugo Centeno Jr 158.8
Austin Dulay 132.8 vs. Carlos Padilla 131.2
Charles Conwell 158.2 vs. Reynaldo Trujillo ?
Alejandro Guerrero 134.6 vs. Darin Hampton ?
McKenzie Morrison 235 vs. Roberto White 287
Demond Nicholson 167.6 vs. Josue Obando 171.4

Venue: Buffalo Run Casino, Miami, OK
Promoter: Dibella Entertainment
TV: FS1

By Ray Wheatley — World of Boxing
Photos: Johnny Chaichotchuang

IBF #13 122-pounder, Mike Tawatchai (44-10-1) successfully defended the IBF Pan Pacific title stopping Rivo Renkung (36-24-6) in round five on Wednesday at Suanlum Night Bazaar, Bangkok, Thailand. Tawatchai controlled all the rounds as he boxed aggressively and connected with power shots to the head and body that visibly hurt Revkung. At 0.29 of round five the referee crowned Tawatchai.

In other action, IBF Pan Pacific 140-pound champion Downua Ruawiking (10-0) successfully defended the title by outscoring Adam Abdulhamed (11-4) over twelve action-packed rounds. Abdulhamed came to fight but Ruawiking outworked his tough opponent in most of the rounds to be awarded the decision by scores of 117-111, 115-113, 115-113. Continue reading “IBF #13 Tawatchai victorious”

LaRon Mitchell 242 vs. Michael Bissett 209
(NABF heavyweight “junior” championship)

Erick Ituarte, 125.9 vs. Alberto Torres, 125.7
(NABF featherweight “junior” championship)

Roberto Meza, Jr. 129 vs. Giovanni Cabrera 128.8
Ruben Torres 135.6 vs. Jesse Cruz 137

Venue: Omega Products International in Corona, Calif
Promoter: Thompson Boxing

Fighters competing on the Mayweather vs. McGregor undercard spoke to media and went face-to-face Thursday, one day before they weigh-in ahead of their Saturday, Aug. 26 showdowns at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

The four-fight SHOWTIME PPV event will feature undefeated rising star Gervonta “Tank” Davis making the second defense of his 130-pound title against undefeated challenger Francisco Fonseca plus light heavyweight champion Nathan Cleverly defending his belt against former super middleweight champion Badou Jack. The telecast begins with unbeaten Andrew Tabiti and former world champion Steve Cunningham meeting in a 10-round battle. Continue reading “Mayweather-McGregor undercard Presser”

By Miguel Maravilla

Former four-division world champion Miguel Cotto (40-5, 33 KOs) of Caguas, Puerto Rico and Japan’s Yoshihiro “El Maestrito” Kamegai (27-3-2, 24 KOs) held the final press conference Thursday afternoon at the Stub Hub Center in Carson, California, where they square off this Saturday for the vacant WBO world junior middleweight title on HBO. Also present was WBC super bantamweight champion Rey Vargas (29-0, 22 KOs) of Mexico, who goes up against Santa Ana, California’s Ronny Rios (28-1, 13 KOs) in the HBO co-feature bout.

Continue reading “Cotto-Kamegai Final Press Conference”

WBO world champions Óscar Valdez and Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez hosted a press conference today to announce their respective featherweight and super middleweight title defenses taking place on September 22 at the Tucson Arena. The fighters were also joined by their Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum.

The ESPN-televised world title twinbill will be taking place on a Friday night, rather than a Saturday night.

By Joe Koizumi
Photos by Naoki Fukuda

This long-time reporter since 1964 wonders who and how our Japanese frontrunners will be in five years. Probably our current twelve world champions may change or fade out after attaining fame and fortune through their campaigns, and we may see newcomers coming out to be our new heroes.

We witnessed the second day of the first Japan’s Youth Tournament finals in three additional classes on Wednesday in Tokyo, Japan. It’s fortunate for us to be able to see such bright prospects exchange hot rallies each other with future champions victorious in front of roaring spectators at the Hall. Continue reading “Japan’s Youth Tournament Finals, Second Day”