McCalla, Stevenson still unbeaten!

By Gary “Digital” Williams

Undefeated Baltimore boxers Cecil “AK-47″ McCalla and James “Keep ‘Em Sleepin’” Stevenson remained undefeated with victories Thursday night on the Baltimore Pro Boxing card at Martin’s West in Woodlawn, MD. (more…)

Fists of Thunder II Presser!

Photos: TKO BOXING Promotions

Click the photo to go to the next photo
The final press conference for “FISTS OF THUNDER II” turned heated in Johnstown, PA between the two main event fighters, Andres “TAYLOR MADE” Taylor and Simon “ONE PUNCH” Carr. Called to the podium to speak to the Johnstown, PA media and fans, Philadelphia’s Carr surprised local fan favorite Taylor by presenting him with an embroidered pillow which he suggested could be used after the predicted knockout. Said Carr, “Andres, after I knock you out, you can use this pillow while you’re sleeping.” Carr stated that the pillow was from his newly started “Punchline” apparel company, based in Philadelphia. (more…)

Russian Boxing Chronicles!

By Yuri Tarantin and Alexey Sukachev

The world was at his feet, but the last step proved to be too much for the rising cruiserweight prospect Alexander Alekseev. On January 17, Alexeev, who had been an overwhelming favorite on the eve of his fight against Victor Emilio Ramirez, lost a sensational ninth-round TKO to this relatively unknown Argentinean. Ramirez, just 13-1, with 11 KOs, at the time of the collision, wasn’t probably the best fighter to clash against hard-hitting former amateur star during his impressive three-year-long pro run but he was by far the most determined, and, with the huge risks at stake, in the bout for the interim WBO cruiserweight belt he delivered his lifetime performance to capture the title. It was a major setback for then-undefeated Alekseev. Tonight at Halle 7 in Bremen, Germany, Alexander, who is still ranked #8 by the WBO and #9 by the WBA, will try to erase these sad memories in his first comeback fight against American Max Alexander (14-3-2, 2 KOs). (more…)

Ricky’s confident–girlfriend!

Photo: Nick Giongco

By Nick Giongco

In their recent private moments together back in Manchester, England, Jennifer Dooley and her boyfriend, boxing star Ricky Hatton, almost talked about everything under the sun. Dooley said boxing is hardly a topic for discussion they are at home. But when they did, Dooley reveals that Hatton always spoke about his chances of scoring an upset against Filipino phenom Manny Pacquiao on Saturday night at the MGM Grand. “Obviously, he’s very confident and he thinks he can win the fight and I think that for Ricky, this pound-for-pound title he is really desperate to get especially that it was so close and yet so far during the (Floyd) Mayweather fight and these opportunities don’t come very often,” Dooley told the fightnews/Manila Bulletin in an interview at the media center on Thursday. (more…)

More weigh-in shots!

More photos from today’s rowdy weigh-in at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas: Manny Pacquiao vs. Ricky Hatton, Humberto Soto vs. Benoit Gaudet, Daniel Jacobs, Matt Korobov, Erislandy Lara and more! . . . Click here for photo gallery by Chris Cozzone

Mayweather Jr. Update!

As first reported by Fightnews.com on April 24th, a press conference will be called before tonight’s Pacquiao-Hatton PPV clash to announce the highly expected return from retirement of Floyd Mayweather Jr. WBA/WBO lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez has been mentioned as a likely opponent for Floyd, possibly on July 18th. In any event, a presser to make a “major boxing announcement” was officially announced late Friday.

Abregu KOs Garcia in thriller!

By Francisco Salazar

In a war, unbeaten welterweight Carlos Abregu (27-0, 22 KOs) survived two knockdowns before stopping a motivated Irving Garcia (17-4-3, 8 KOs) on Friday night at the Chumash Casino Resort in Santa Ynez, California. Underdog Garcia dropped Abregu in rounds one and four, but Abregu came back to drop Garcia at 2:59 of round four and Garcia was unable to continue. Great fight!
—–
Lightweight Marvin Quintero (16-1, 12 KOs) dominated Wes Ferguson (20-4-1, 6 KOs) over eight rounds. Scores were 78-74, 79-73, 78-74. There were no knockdowns.
—–
Unbeaten Super Middleweight Anthony Dirrell (17-0, 14 KO’s) needed just 51 seconds to stop late sub Alexander Pacheco Quiroz (14-8-1, 12 KO’s). Dirrell dropped Pacheco Quiroz twice before referee Dr. Lou Moret stopped the bout.
—–
Unbeaten Featherweight Gary Russell Jr. scored a four round unanimous decision over Alvaro Muro. Russell (3-0, 1 KO) was in complete control of the bout, even scoring a knockdown in the third round over Muro (6-14, 5 KO’s). All three judges scored the bout 40-35 for Russell. Russell was on the United States Team in the Beijing Olympics but did not fight.

Antillon, Gomez victorious!

By Andreas Hale at ringside

Unbeaten WBC #1 lightweight Urbano Antillon (26-0, 19 KOs) scored a fifth round TKO over Tyrone Harris (23-5, 15 KOs) on Friday night at the New Joint inside the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. Antillon dropped Harris twice in round five befre the bout was stopped at 2:23.
—–
Former “Contender: Season One”star Alphonso Gomez (19-4-2, 9 KOs) stopped Juan Buendia (14-3-1, 8 KOs) in round eight of an exciting welterweight bout. Both boxers were cut by a fifth round headbutt but Alfonso’s cut was a bad horizontal gash on the right eyebrow. Then at the sixth round it happened again. Both Buendia and Gomez were covered in blood as they slugged it out. In the eighth round Gomez gave Buendia a blasting left to the rib cage and Buendia went down in pain. Although Buendia beat the count, he kept shaking his head ‘no’ when asked if he wished to continue and referee Robert Byrd waved it off at 1:07 of the eighth round.
—–
Super lightweight Dennis Laurente (31-3-4, 16 KOs) won an eight round unanimous decision over previously unbeaten Marvin Cordova (20-1-1, 11 KOs). All three had it 77-74.
—–
Super lightweight Mark Melliguen (14-1, 10 KOs) defeated Ramon Montano (17-7-2, 2 KOs) via eight round unanimous decision by scores of 80-72, 79-73, 78-74.
—–
Unbeaten jr lightweight Diego Magdeleno (9-0, 5 KOs) went down on the first round with a right tap to his chin, but went on to top Juan Santiago (7-2-1, 5 KOs) over four rounds. Scores were 40-37, 39-36, 39-37.

Universum to sign Chakhkiev?

By Alexey Sukachev

Rumors are circulating that 2008 Beijing Olympics heavyweight gold medalist for Russia Rakhim Chakhkiev is close to signing a deal with famed German promotional powerhouse Universum Box-Promotion. According to several sources, Chakhkiev will be in attendance for tomorrow’s Universum boxing event in Bremen, Germany, and will later have a meeting with Klaus-Peter Kohl to discuss a possible contract. Chakhiev, 26, was also a silver medalist at 2007 Chicago world championship and as well as 2007 Russian heavyweight champion.

Pacquiao, Hatton make weight

Photo by Chris Cozzone

Weights by Andreas Hale

From the MGM Grand in Las Vegas: Manny Pacquiao and Ricky Hatton made weight for their showdown tomorrow night. Pacquiao was 138; Hatton was 140. Stay tuned for more photos. 

Televised bouts:
Humberto Soto 130 vs. Benoit Gaudet 129
Daniel Jacobs 163 vs. Michael Walker 162
Matt Korobov 161.5 vs. Anthony Bartinelli 161
Erislandy Lara 156 vs. Chris Gray 155

Off-TV bouts:
Matthew Hatton 149 vs. Ernesto Zepeda 146 
Mike Alvarado  142 vs. Joaquin Gallardo 141.5
Abner Mares 119 vs. Jonathan Perez 120
Bernabe Concepcion 126 vs. Yogili Herrera 126
Joe Murray 126 vs. Missael Nunez 126
Omar Chavez 144 vs. Tyler Ziolowski 142

Moreno, Sidorenko make weight!

Photos: Eroll Popova

Click the photo to go to the next photo
Anselmo Moreno 117.5 vs Wladimir Sidorenko 117.7
(WBA bantamweight world championship)
Ina Menzer 125.8 vs Franchesca Alcanter 123.2
(WIBF/WBC female featherweight championship)
Alexander Alekseev 199.5 vs Max Alexander199.9
Marcel Meyerdiercks 125.6 vs Yordan Vasilev 126.7
Pal Bedak 112.4 vs Hassan Azaouagh 113.3
Christian Hammer 250 vs Nikolai Marinov 219.1
Lukasz Janik TBA vs Marcel Erler TBA
Venue: Messe-Halle 7 in Bremen, Germany
Promoter: Universum Box Promotion
TV: ZDF (Germany)

Graham picks Hatton inside 8!

By Craig Watt

Ricky Hatton’s former trainer Billy “The Peacher” Graham believes his former fighter will stop Manny Pacquiao inside eight rounds when they meet at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on Saturday. He told Setanta Sports in the UK today, “I can see Ricky stopping Manny inside eight rounds on Saturday- somewhere between rounds four and eight. Manny is a great fighter and take nothing away from him but by the time the fight comes Ricky will have an added ten pounds of power and that will be too much. Ricky is just too big, too strong and too powerful for Paquiao. I am surprised that Manny is the favorite for the fight. Everyone talks about Manny’s speed but Ricky is also fast and at the end of the day just too strong. It will be a great fight but I am convinced that Ricky will win – the De La Hoya victory did not show me anything that would suggest he could beat Ricky. He is fast, he is a southpaw which will create problems and he is an excellent fighter. I just feel Ricky is a better fighter and I am confident he will win and upset the bookmakers who currently have Manny as favourite.” Graham also added that he was planning a return to the training ring and stated, “I have had a full year out of the sport and have rested well with many of my physical problems now much better and improved. I am going to the US in a couple of weeks and it is likely I will set up in the US rather than the UK.”

Weights from Philly!

Rogers Mtagwa 127 vs Ricardo Medina 129.5
Kasem Wilson 146 vs Louie Leija 147
Jerome Ellis 152.5 vs Jamaal Davis 153
Carlos Diaz 128.5 vs Anthony Fllores 128.5
Anthony Ferrante 174.5 vs Tony Pietrantonio 172
Linwood Hurd 137.5 vs Victor Vasquez 137.5
Dontre King 147.5 vs Ardrick Butler 148
Frankie Trader 130.5 vs Luis Esquilin 128.5
Venue: Blue Horizon, Philadelphia, PA
Tickets are $45 and $60 and are on sale tonight at the door.

Caballero retains title!

By Robert Coster

In the packed, newly inaugurated Roberto Duran Arena in Panama City, IBF/WBA super champion Celestino” Pelenchin” Caballero (32-2, 22 KOs) retained his junior featherweight title belts with a hard-fought twelve round split decision over surprisingly tough and well-schooled Jeffrey Mathebula (22-2-2,12 KOs) of South Africa. Caballero started off very well, winning four of the first five rounds; however, the lanky Panamanian champion started to tire in the second half of the bout and let the South African back in the fight. “Pelenchin” usually enjoys height and reach advantage over his opponents but this was not the case with the equally tall Mathebula who won rounds in the later portion of the fight with a crisp, educated jab. The scores of the judges were as follows: Patricia Jarman (USA) 116-112, Hector Afu (Panama) 116-112 for Caballero while Deaon Dwarte of South Africa had it 116-112 for Mathebula.

Medina wins in Coeur d’Alene!

By Sam DiTusa

Idaho welterweight Favio Medina improved to 21-2-2 with a ten round unanimous decision over Gary Burgeron (10-3) on Thursday night at the Coeur d’Alene Casino in Worley, Idaho. For Medina it was a return to the win column after a disappointing loss in this same arena three months ago to Orlando Lora. Medina, who weighed in at 147 lbs used his trademark pressure and crisp punching to dominate the action, winning on scores of 99-91 twice, and 97-93. (more…)

McGee-Follmar Fight Recap!

Ringside Report by Jacob Chavez

Ocatvius James’ “One In a Million” Boxing promotions presented an action packed night of boxing this past Saturday at the Hammond Civic Center in Hammond, Indiana. The main event featured a spectacular match-up between local female fighters “Merciless” Mary McGee (17-0, 10 KOs) taking on Kristy “Rose” Follmar (16-2, 9 KOs) with the vacant WBC International and NABC Women’s World Lightweight titles at stake. In a very closely contested battle, McGee won the fight via a close majority decision however it could definitely be argued that the result could have been a draw or even a victory for Follmar. Either way, the two combatants put on a show of epic proportions that both won over the fans’ hearts and approval. (more…)

Pacquiao-Hatton weigh-in alert!

Open to the public, the official weigh-in for the Manny Pacquiao vs. Ricky Hatton fight begins at 2:30 p.m. today at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The undercard pay-per-view fighters step on the scale at 2:30, followed by Hatton and Pacquiao, at approximately 3 p.m.

Q&A: Andres Taylor

The Cambria County War Memorial Arena in Johnstown PA will be electric on Saturday night May 2nd as Andres “Taylor Made” Taylor (7-0-1, 3KO’s) returns to his hometown to defend his WBF All Americas cruiserweight title against crafty Philadelphian Simon “One Punch” Carr (5-3-1, 3KO’s) in the action packed eight round main event of “FISTS OF THUNDER II!”

FightNews had the opportunity to speak with the former highly decorated amateur and rising cruiserweight prospect as he prepared for his big homecoming . . . Click here for more

McGirt-Ward Reunion On May 22!

Legendary boxers James “Buddy” McGirt, Sr. and “Irish” Micky Ward began a friendship in 1986 that continues today. They will reunite May 22nd at “Rage At The River,” promoted Jimmy Burchfield’s Classic Entertainment, Inc. (CES), as head trainers of fighters on that show. McGirt, 2-time world champion in two different weight classes and former Trainer of the Year, will be training his son, middleweight James McGirt, Jr. (19-2-1, 9 KOs), who’ll be making his CES debut in a 6-round bout versus an opponent to be named. Ward, a participant in three Fights of the Year, will handle his nephew, lightweight Sean Eklund (6-3, 1 KO), against Jose Guzman (3-4-1) in a four round match. “I think it’s great and I’m excited to be working the same show as Micky,” Buddy said. “He fought on my undercard in 1986, 16 years later were in opposite corners — I had (Arturo) Gatti – and now we’re together again. Micky Ward was one fighter I didn’t want to fight. I always felt that, if he wanted to, he’d be a trainer. They don’t make fighters like Micky Ward anymore. We’re good friends.” (more…)

“Irish Lightning” Strikes Las Vegas

Unbeaten Irish light welterweight prospect Dean “Irish Lightning” Byrne explodes in Las Vegas against Mexican southpaw Jose Reynoso (10-2, 1 KO) in a scheduled eight round bout Friday night at South Point Hotel Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. The boxing world will be focused on Las Vegas this weekend for Saturday night’s mega-fight Saturday evening between pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao and Ricky Hatton, but that show’s appetizer is the Sin City debut of the 24-year-old Byrne, who’ll also have Manny’s trainer, Freddie Roach, in his corner. (more…)

“VIP Boxing” Photo Gallery

Ringside Report by Matt Richardson
Photography by Marty Rosengarten

On Tuesday Night Joe DeGuardia’s Star Boxing, presented its first installment of “VIP Boxing” at the elegant Russo’s On The Bay in Howard Beach, NY. The card was made up of five entertaining fights, headlined by Star Boxing’s heavyweight fan favorite Vinny Maddalone taking on Benji “Boom Boom” Baker. Click here for the full report and action packed photogallery.

Garcia: This is do or die!

During his ten year pro career, welterweight contender Irving “Chuma” Garcia (17-3-3, 8 KOs) has dealt with plenty of adversity as a fighter but is still dissatisfied with his status. From a disappointing loss against power punching contender Said Ouali to a controversial technical draw in a WBA interim title fight with Yuriy Nuzhnenko, Garcia fell just short during his most lucrative bouts. The narrowly missed opportunities had caused a distraction for Garcia, as he become overanxious for another crack at a top fighter. (more…)

Final Quotes: Abregu-Garcia!

Unbeaten welterweight Carlos Abregu puts his stellar, unblemished 26-0 record, with 21 knockouts, on the line against Irving Garcia (17-3-3, 8 KOs) tonight on ShoBox: The New Generation on SHOWTIME (11 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the west coast), in the 10-round main event at the Chumash Casino Resort. In the co-feature, lightweight Marvin Quintero (15-1, 12 KOs) will take on Wes Ferguson (20-3-1, 6 KOs) in an eight-rounder bout. Here’s what the principals had to say prior to Thursday’s weigh in. (more…)

Salita headlines in Primm!

WBA mandatory challenger for the world super lightweight championship Dimitry “Star of David” Salita will gamble to face Raul “El Toro” Munoz over 10 rounds at the Star of the Desert Arena at Buffalo Bills Casino Hotel in Primm, Nev. on May 24, it was announced by Square Ring Promotions Chief Executive Officer John S. Wirt. “We’re thrilled to be coming to Primm,” said Wirt. “You could say — the Star of David, meets the Star of the Desert,” making reference to Salita’s nickname as a follower of the orthodox Jewish faith.” (more…)

Acuna tops Nava!

By Lee Bates

In a women’s world title from the Estadio Luna Park in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Marcela Acuna of Argentina (32-5, 16 KOs) retained her WBA/WBC super bantamweight titles with a unanimous decision against former world champion Jackie Nava (19-3-2, 10 KOs) of Mexico. The final scores were 99-90, 98-91, and 98-92 all in favor of Acuna. Nava was very game and pressured Acuna most of the fight but Acuna’s defense was very tight and she countered with headsnapping punches throughout the bout. Acuna dropped Nava with a double jab in the final seconds of the bout to put an exclamation point on her victory.

Antillon, Harris make weight

Photo & weights by Chris Cozzone

From The Joint at the Hardrock Hotel & Casino for tomorrow night’s Top Rank card televised on Azteca America:

Urbano Antillon 135 vs. Tyrone Harris 135
Alfonso Gomez 149 vs. Juan Buendia 148.5
Ramon Montano 140 vs. Mark Melliguin 141
Marvin Cordova 142 vs. Dennis Laurente 141.5
Walter Estrada 127 vs. Michael Farenas 127
Roberto Marroquin 123.5 vs. Julio Valadez 123
Glen Tapia 154 vs. Juan Carlos de Leon 152.5
Juan Santiago 131 vs. Diego Magdaleno 129.5
* A four-round fight between Rufino Flores and Danny Escobar was nixed when Escobar weighed in several pounds overweight.

Hatton-Mayweather split untrue

According to a source close to the Ricky Hatton camp, and trainer Floyd Mayweather, Sr., the rumors of a Hatton-Mayweather split are not true. After a story broke on Yahoo! Sports about turmoil in the camp, about 5 p.m. P.T., the rumors began to circulate. Yahoo! Sports published that there was talk of Hatton working with Manny Pacquiao’s trainer, Freddie Roach, for his next fight; and that Hatton was miserable working under Mayweather. Soon after the story broke, rumors that Mayweather and Hatton had split became the talk of the town. Those rumors, Fightnews has been told, are false.

Abregu, Garcia make weight!

Photo: Tom Casino/SHOWTIME

Unbeaten welterweight KO artist Carlos Abregu (26-0, 21 KOs) weighed in at 148 for his battle against Irving Garcia (17-3-3, 8 KOs) on Friday night at the Chumash Casino Resort at Santa Ynez, Calif. Garcia weighed 147.25. The bout will be televised on ShoBox: The New Generation on SHOWTIME (11 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the west coast). In the co-feature, lightweights Marvin Quintero (15-1, 12 KOs) and Wes Ferguson (20-3-1, 6 KOs) both weighed 134.

Swine flu KOs WBA title fight!

By Gabriel F. Cordero

Mexican promoters KO Entertainment and Rochmar Gym have decided to postpone the WBA super featherweight battle between unbeaten world champion Jorge Linares and Josafat Perez. The fight was to take place on Saturday May 9 in New Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico, but was postponed due to the swine flu pandemic sweeping in the country. Possible dates for the fight to be rescheduled are May 23 or June 13 in Mexico.