By: William Holmes
The following is the Boxing Insider notebook for the week of June 24th to July 1st covering the comings and goings in the sport of boxing that you might have missed.
Golovkin Crumbles Macklin
Gennady Golovkin (27-0) was supposed to face the stiffest test of his career when he faced Matthew Macklin (29-5) on Saturday night in Mashantucket, Connecticut. Instead fight fans were treated to a typical Golovkin fight, a three round destruction which ended when Golovkin landed a brutal left hand to the liver of Macklin that sent him crumbling to the mat in pain.
On the undercard Brandon Gonzales (17-0-1) drew with Thomas Oosthuizen (21-0-2) in the super middleweight division. Oosthuizen was expected by many to win but was lucky to get the draw. The scores were 98-92 for Gonzales, 96-94 for Oosthuizen, and 95-95. Willie Nelson (21-1-1) also fought on the undercard and won a close decision against Luciano Cuello (32-3) in the junior middleweight division with scores of 97-93, 97-93, and 96-94.
Revel Casino to Host Daniel Geale vs. Darren Barker on August 17th
Revel Casino-Hotel, Atlantic City’s newest and largest casino resort, will proudly host the highly anticipated middleweight showdown between IBF titleholder Daniel Geale (29-1, 15KOs) and No. 6 rated contender from the UK Darren Barker (25-1, 16KOs) on August 17th. Gary Shaw Productions in association with Grange Old School Boxing, andMatchroom Boxing, will promote the event which will be televised live on HBOBoxing After Dark® beginning at 9:45 p.m. ET/PT.
This is the first time a boxing event will take place at Revel Casino-Hotel since its grand opening in May of last year. Shaw is very excited to present the show and also the potential for bringing more events to Revel. He knows this card is an incredible opportunity to kick off boxing at the fantastically vibrant venue, Ovation Hall. Event start time is 7 p.m.
Ricky Hatton Protégé Shines in Belfast
Hatton Promotions prospects Ryan Burnett and Zhanat Zhakiyanov both scored impressive stoppages over their foes at the Holiday Inn in Belfast. Zhakiyanov (20-1) halted Spain-based Nicaraguan Michael Escobar in the fourth round. Burnett (2-0) needed only two rounds to stop Slovakia’s Elemir Rafael.
Daniel Diaz Upsets Robert Marroquin
Robert Marroquin (23-3) was expected to easily defeat Daniel Diaz (20-5-1) on Saturday in Thackerville, Oklahoma. Instead he was knocked down twice in the first round and had to play catch up the rest of the fight. The 10-7 first round was too much for Marroquin to overcome and Diaz won with scores of 96-92, 96-92 for Diaz and 95-93 for Marroquin.
Gavin Rees Loses in England
Gavin Rees (37-3-1) followed up his knockout loss in Atlantic City to Adrien Broner with a match against Anthony Crolla (26-4-1) in the lightweight division. Unfortunately for Rees was unable to get back in the win column. Rees was unable to counter Crolla’s well-timed shots and lost on the scorecards with scores of 116-113, 115-113, and 115-115.
Scott Quigg (26-0-1) won on the undercard in the featherweight division against William Prado (21-4-1). A crisp right hand sent Prado down in the third round and he was unable to get back up at 2:31.
Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero Honorary Guest at March of Dimes Event
Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero was an honorary guest at the 6th Annual March of Dimes “Be a Hero for Babies” Wine tasting Fundraiser at Hecker Pass Winery in Gilroy, California. The March of Dimes is inspired by all babies, those born healthy and those who need help to survive and thrive.
“The March of Dimes is a great organization that I support and the help they bring these children is incredible.” Said Guerrero. “There will be a live auction with various items being presented and I believe we will raise a lot of money for the cause. I’m excited to be part of something special.”
Former World Champion M’Baye Vows to Bring it Hard Against Undefeated Russian Star
Souleymane M’Baye (40-4-1) is confident that world class training and 10 week fight camp will prove telling against WBA Champion Khalib Allakhverdiev (18-0) in Monte Carlo super show on July 13th. The fight is the co-feature on the “Monte Carlo Million Dollar Super Four” final bill, taking place in Monaco and promoted by Golden Gloves.
“I love his style, that is exactly what I need to make him face unexpected problems,” said M’baye, who speaks French, Spanish and the Wolof language of Senegal. “I do not want to say more, first out of respect, second because of superstition and third, because a fight is never ‘done’ before it takes place. I made this mistake in the past, I do not want to repeat it.
50 Cent’s ESPN FNF Show This Week in Hartford
Famed rapper Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson’s SMS Promotions will present its first solo professional boxing event, “50 Cent’s Birthhday Bash” this Friday, July 5th, on ESPN Friday Night Fights from the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford.
The main event will be between undefeated NABO and NABA Light Heavyweight Champion Eleider “Storm” Alvarez (12-0) and former super middleweight title challenger Allan Green (32-4). Billy Dib (35-2) will look to get back into the win column after losing to Evgeny Gradovich and will be facing “Machine Gun” Mike Oliver (25-3).
Unfinished Business for Marcus Upshaw
Modern day road warrior Marcus “Hurelius” Upshaw (15-9-2, 7 KOs) has unfinished business to take care of this Saturday night as the 32-year-old Floridian ventures to Minnesota for a rematch against “Sir” Carresso Fort (16-1-1, 11 KOs) in an eight-round bout at Black Bear Casino.
Upshaw and Fort fought September 9, 2011 in Tampa, Florida. The fight somehow ended in a six-round split draw with Upshaw winning on two of three judges’ scorecards (58-56, 58-56) with the other a draw (57-57).
“I won the fight, two of the judges had me winning, but I guess they didn’t want to give him (Fort) his first loss and it was called a draw,” Upshaw said. “It’s just going to be me and him in the ring and this time it isn’t going to go the distance. I should have gotten him out the last time. I don’t know why I didn’t win a split decision.
Juan Carlos Burgos to Take on Daulis Prescott
Juan Carlos Burgos will take on Daulis Prescott on July 26th at the Thunder Valley Casino Resort on ESPN’s Friday Night Fights. This bout will be for the WBO Intercontinental Jr. Lightweight title at the Thunder Valley Casino Resort in Sacramento, California. The fight is promoted by Banner Promotions and Thompson Boxing and will be broadcasted live on ESPN’s Friday Night Fights.
Gingras Challenges Bosse
Veteran super middleweight Rich Gingras (13-3, 8 KOs) of Pawtucket, R.I., will now challenge Providence’s own Vladine Biosse (15-2-1, 7 KOs) for the New England Super Middleweight Title on Saturday, July 27th, 2013 at Twin River Casino.
Gingras has upped the ante by seeking the tutelage of Biosse’s former trainer, Orlondo Valles, whom Biosse parted ways with in February to work with Paul Andrade, the father of unbeaten light middleweight prospect Demetrius Andrade. Both sides insist there’s no bad blood between them, and Biosse has even gone as far as to credit Valles for getting his career off the ground, but it’s become increasingly clear there will be tension next month when the two camps meet face-to-face for the first time.
The 8-round super middleweight showdown between Biosse and Gingras is the main event of “Game On,” presented by Jimmy Burchfield’s Classic Entertainment & Sports. Coincidentally, it will be the first sporting event at Twin River since the casino introduced live table games at the beginning of June. In addition to the turf war between Gingras and Biosse, middleweight Thomas Falowo (10-1, 7 KOs) of Pawtucket, R.I., will star in his first 8-round co-feature while Willimantic, Conn., light heavyweight Kevin Cobbs (7-1, 2 KOs) will face his toughest test to date in a 6-round bout against unbeaten Philadelphia prospect Todd Unthank-May (7-0, 2 KOs).
Quotes from Tomasz Adamek Press Conference
Tomasz Adamek (48-2) has announced his upcoming fight with Tony Grano (20-3-1) scheduled for August 3rd. Their bout will be televised on the NBC Sports Network as part of the popular Fight Night Boxing Series.
“After a busy last year, there was time for a rest,” Adamek said. “I was resting for a couple of months, but I came back to the gym with Roger and we’ve spent over 10 weeks in the gym (already). I’m fresh and ready for a comeback. I’m sure Tony Grano is a good fighter. He is a puncher, but I’m not afraid. I’m not a chicken. I want to beat him. He brings everything into the ring, but I’m ready for everything. I respect every opponent, but I want to win this fight and I’m looking for title fights again. That is my goal.”
“Tomasz is a guy who finds a way to win, and that is an enormous asset,” Duva added. “He is a tremendous performer. He has held two world titles – at light heavyweight and at cruiserweight. He has fought so many heavyweights that we’re literally running out of people for him to fight in that division. We’re waiting for some of the young guys to start coming up, and that’s what Tony Grano is. He is someone who is younger and looking to make his mark. It’s going to be the biggest fight of his life, and that presents challenges.”
Mayweather vs. Alvarez Press Conference in Phoenix Cancelled
In the wake of the devastating Arizona wildfire that killed 19 elite firefighters, the Floyd Mayweather vs. Canelo Alvarez boxing press conference scheduled for tomorrow, Tuesday, July 2, at The Herberger Theater Center in Phoenix has been cancelled.
The press conference, which was to be open to the public, was cancelled out of respect for the firefighters who lost their lives as they battled wildfires Sunday in areas northwest of Phoenix.
A donation will be made on behalf of the promotion to The 100 Club’s Survivor Fund in memory of the Granite Mountain Hotshots, a specialist team of wildfire firefighters based in Prescott, Ariz., whose members died during the tragic blaze. The 100 Club’s Survivor Fund’s mission is “to provide immediate financial assistance to families of public safety officers and firefighters who are seriously injured or killed in the line of duty.”
AIBA Statement Against the Accusations of Non AIBA Pro Boxing Organizations
As defined in Chapter 1, Point 6 of the Olympic Charter, the Olympic Games “are competitions between athletes in individual or team events and not between countries. They bring together all athletes selected by their respective National Olympic Committees (NOCs), whose entries have been accepted by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). They compete under the technical direction of the International Federations (IFs) concerned.”
This definition means that the IOC recognizes one IF in each sport and accepts all athletes and officials for the Olympic Games according to the rules and regulations of this IF being also the world governing body of this sport.
As everyone is aware, AIBA is the only world governing body of the sport of boxing recognized by the IOC and AIBA’s mission and role as the governing body of the sport of boxing and in the Olympic Movement are well stated in the Olympic Charter as:
“The mission and role of the IFs within the Olympic Movement are: to establish and enforce, in accordance with the Olympic spirit, the rules concerning the practice of their respective sports and to ensure their application; (…) to establish their criteria of eligibility for the competitions of the Olympic Games in conformity with the Olympic Charter, and to submit these to the IOC for approval.” (Olympic Charter – Chapter 3, Point 26).
Therefore, it is an absolutely unchanged fact that all Olympic athletes will have to follow the Olympic Qualifying Guidelines which should also be approved by the IOC once proposed by the IF.
Throughout the last decades, the Olympic Movement has gone through a number of changes in order to further spread the Olympic spirit across the globe. As a result, after the Seoul 1988 Olympic Games, the IOC decided that professional athletes could be eligible for the Olympic Games, subject to approval of the IFs. Until now, only professional boxers and wrestlers are not allowed to compete in the Olympic Games.
Following its reform process which started in 2007, AIBA set its mission as “governing the sport of boxing in all its forms worldwide”. Based on this mission, AIBA strongly committed itself to bring the sport of boxing to another level through positive development initiatives after AIBA received unanimous demands from all AIBA National Member Federations, boxers and officials. In addition, this was also the result of a demand from the public and commercial markets which really would like to see more transparent and life-long caring programs for boxers.
AIBA has transformed its rules and competitions based on three different tiers. The Amateur competitions now called AIBA Open Boxing (AOB), the Semi-Pro team competition called the World Series of Boxing (WSB) launched 4 years ago, then ultimately, AIBA has launched a real pro boxing individual competition called AIBA Pro Boxing (APB).
For the first time in history, the Individual Champions of the World Series of Boxing participated in the London 2012 Olympic Games. Now, as a step further from the WSB, APB will become the first and only individual ranking competition in the history of boxing allowing its pro boxers to compete whilst retaining their Olympic eligibility and maintaining their membership status in their National Federations. It represents a safe career plan for AIBA athletes, providing them with a transparent development path, with protection and financial stability.
AIBA came out with this proposal following a long and deep analysis of the current situation of the global boxing market. The main goal of this groundbreaking competition program is to protect boxers throughout their entire career, from grassroots to the pinnacle of their pro career. This is why, in order to be eligible for APB, boxers should remain within their National Federations and thus under the AIBA Family following the AIBA Technical Rules and APB Competition Rules.
The non-AIBA pro boxing organizations are currently accusing the above-mentioned Olympic Movement system. However, AIBA has already opened its doors to all boxers competing under the regulations of these organizations to join APB following the APB eligibility criteria. As APB will officially begin its competition next year, time is running out for these boxers for whom the window will be opened until the end of this year.
AIBA understands the dreams and hopes of current professional boxers to compete in the Olympic Games. However, we also hope that they will understand the time and efforts all AIBA boxers have given through their entire career. Certainly, they will not want to lose the opportunity and their status of being loyal members of the AIBA Family for many years.
Pro Boxing Returns to Downtown Boxing on July 27th
Professional boxing returns to downtown Boston as Big Six Entertainment, in association with Cappiello Promotions, presents “The Roxy Homecoming Celebration” at the Royale Nightclub Boston on Saturday July 27th at 5 p.m. ET.
Iraq War veteran Chris Traietti, a light heavyweight, headlines in an eight round bout. Unbeaten Boston welterwegith Gabriel Duluc (8-0) will be showcased in the six round co-feature event. Opponents cannot be announced until they are approved by the Massachusetts State Athletic Commission.
Barthelemy Calls Out Champion Mendez and All Other Top Super Featherweights
Fresh off his sensational one-punch KO 2 of Thailand’s Fahsai “Mountain Boy” Sakkreerin in an IBF eliminator for a mandatory title shot, Cuba’s now #1-rated super featherweight Rances “Kid Blast” Barthelemy (19-0, 12 KOs) is calling out his next opponent.
“Why wait for your mandatory to get it on? Let’s do this now!” said Barthelemy to current champion Argenis Mendez. “Instead of fighting a guy I beat, come take care of business with your top challenger.”
Mendez is currently scheduled to face former Barthelemy foe Arash Usmanee in August, but Barthelemy feels the champion should forget about taking an easier fight and focus on what champions do: defend against the best possible opponent.
Barthelemy, who crushed Sakkreerin with a single body shot at 1:26 of the second round says a fight against him would be much more lucrative and exciting.
“We can do this in New York or wherever you want. You live in New York, bring your Dominican community out and I’ll bring my Cuban brothers and sisters and let’s have an old-fashioned showdown right in the Big Apple.”
