By: William Holmes
The following is the Boxing Insider notebook for the week of January 13th to January 20th, covering the comings and goings in the sport of boxing that you might have missed.
Jennings vs. Klitschko Announced
Roc Nation Sports wasted little time in setting up Bryant Jennings up for a major fight after signing him. Bryant Jennings (19-0) will face Wladimir Klitschko (63-3) on April 25th at the Madison Square Garden in New York City. This bout will air live on HBO’s World Championship Boxing and will be for Klitschko’s IBF, WBA, WBO, and IBO belts.
“This is the moment I’ve been waiting for,” said Jennings. “Now it’s time to bring the belts home.”
Pacquiao Ready to Move on If Mayweather Does Not Sign
Manny Pacquiao has allegedly agreed to the terms proposed by Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s camp. However, Floyd Mayweather Jr. has been silent on whether or not he is ready to fight Manny Pacquiao.
Pacquiao has told the Los Angeles Times that if Mayweather doesn’t sign on the dotted line by the end of the month that he is ready to face someone else and move on with his career.
More information can be found here.
Jermain Taylor Arrested Again
Jermain Taylor was arrested on Monday after an incident at a Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade in Little Rock Arkansas where it is said he threatened to kill a father of three kids and fired shots into the air. He is already awaiting trial in an August shooting in Maumelle, Arkansas.
Taylor was arrested for charges of aggravated assault, endangering the welfare of a minor and drug possession.
Taylor also posted a bizarre, rambling and incoherent video on Facebook which has since been removed.
More information can be found here.
Play on Muhammad Ali Premieres in Louisville, Kentucky
A play about Muhammad Ali entitled And in This Corner. . . Cassius Clay premiered on January 17, 2015, on Ali’s 73rd birthday, at the StageOne Family Theatre in Lousville, Kentucky. The play will continue at the Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts from January 19th to February 14th.
More information can be found at www.stageone.org
Raymond Serrano Returns on Fox Sports
Raymond “Tito” Serrano (19-2) will return to the ring tonight against Jerome Rodriguez in a bout that will be televised by Fox Sports 1. This will only be his second appearance after a twenty-two month layoff and his second fight under Club 1957 management.
Serrano stated, “A successful night will be displaying everything that I have been working on in the gym. My last fight was mostly to get the ring rust off after the layoff. On Tuesday, I am looking to show good offense and defense and putting on a show.”
The hope is that a victory by Serrano will lead him to significant fights in the future and possible exposure on a Star Boxing Card.
Tyson Fury Eyes Deontay Wilder
Tyson Fury watched Deontay Wilder’s win over Bermane Stiverne this weekend and hopes to face Wilder later this year.
Fury stated, “Wilder did a good job on Stiverne and he’s now got the WBC title. That puts him in line for big fights against people like me, Wladimir Klitschko and whoever else. America has a new heavyweight champion of the world and the big boys are back in the division. The division has been set on fire again.
“It was definitely the result I wanted. Stiverne, although a good champion, was a bit of an unknown. Nobody knew who he was and nobody cared. Now America has a new heavyweight champion. Also, Wilder’s undefeated and a knockout artist. That means the division has been given a lift and we’re all back in business.”
“I don’t like Deontay Wilder and he doesn’t like me,” said Fury, 23 (17 KOs). “I think he’s a big hype-job. We once had a bit of a falling out in Sheffield at one of Mick Hennessy’s boxing shows and I told him one day I will get him in the ring and knock him out. That is still my plan.
“He’s got a title now and I’m the mandatory challenger for Wladimir Klitschko. In an ideal world I’d like to fight Klitschko first, because he’s got most of the belts and he’s the number one in the division, and then I’d like to unify all the titles against Deontay Wilder. Potentially, I’m three or four fights away from being the unified heavyweight champion of the world.”
Boxcino Tournament Matchups are Set
The Boxcino tournament of 2015 will start on Friday, February 13th at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut with four quarterfinal fights in the junior middleweight division.
The matchups are:
1. Cleotis Pendarvis (17-4-2, 6 KO’s) will fight Ricardo Pinnell (10-1-1, 6 KO’s)
2. Stanyslav Skorokhod (8-0, 6 KO’s) will fight Michael Moore (13-0, 6 KO’s)
3. Brandon Adams (15-1, 10 KO’s) will take on Alex Perez (18-1, 10 KO’s)
4. Vito Gasparyan (14-3-5, 8 KO’s) will square off with Simeon Hardy (13-0, 10 KO’s).
The Heavyweight tournament will start the following week at the Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, New York. Those matchups are:
1. Donovan Dennis (10-1, 8 KO’s) fights Steve Vukosa (10-0, 4 KO’s)
2. Razvan Cojano (12-1, 7 KO’s) will take on Ed Fountain (10-0, 4 KO’s)
3. Andrey Fedosov (25-3, 20 KO’s) will fight Nate Heaven (9-1, 7 KO’s)
4. Mario Heredia (9-1, 7 Ko’s) will take on Lenroy Thomas (18-3, 9 KO’s
Dmitry Salita, Star of David Boxing Promotions, and Junior Wright Honor NY Police
Promoter Dmitry Salita and his headliner, Junior Wright (12-0) plan on honoring the memories of two NYPD officers slain last month.
Wright, who has ten KOs, will face Rayford Johnson on the Salita show on Thursday night at Webster Hall.
Wright stated, “I heard about the two New York City police officers that were ambushed in December and all the trouble that’s been going on,” Wright said.
“I grew up in Chicago and all that comes with it. All my dealings with the police have been above board. They’ve helped me a lot with my career.”
Wright’s manager Steve Clemente is a 25-year veteran of the Illinois State Police while co-trainer Pete George recently retired after nearly 30 years as a suburban Chicago police officer. With that, Junior has dedicated this fight to the memory of N.Y.P.D. officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos.
Tom Casino Needs Our Help
Showtime sports photographer Tom Casino has covered the sport of boxing from many years and needs the support of fans.
He had back surgery last summer, then a near-lethal pulmonary embolism and a debilitating stomach virus called c.diff, have depleted Tom’s assets, the misery compounded by additional expenses through another six months of physical rehabilitation. Under a best-case scenario, these medical setbacks will cost Tommy one year of work and more than $100,000 in health-care costs. Without our help, food stamps, Medicaid and financial ruin loom his new reality.
You can donate online to Tom here.