By: William Holmes
The following is the boxinginsider.com notebook for the week of November 19th to November 26th, covering the comings and goings in the sport of boxing that you might have missed.
Breazeale and Caballero Remain Undefeated
Dominic Breazeale (2-0) fought Mike Bissett (1-1) in the heavyweight division of the undercard of the Andre Berto vs. Roberto Guerrero undercard on Saturday night. Breazeale only needed two rounds and four knockdowns to defeat his opponent. The official stoppage came at 1:17 of the 2nd round.
Randy Caballero (17-0) stopped Rigoberto Casillas (8-8-1) in the third round of their junior featherweight bout on the same undercard. Casillas took a beating from Caballero, and the referee consulted with the ringside doctor to stop the fight after the third round ended.
Murray and Quigg Victorious on Hatton Undercard
Martin Murray (25-0-1) stopped Jorge Navarro (12-1) in the sixth round of their middleweight bout on Saturday night. Navarro was knocked down in the fourth round and the sixth round. After Navarro was knocked down in the sixth round Murray continued to pound Navarro with numerous right hands before Navarro’s corner stopped the fight at 1:40.
Scott Quigg (25-0-1) remained undefeated with a decision victory over Rendell Munroe (24-3-1) in the junior featherweight division. Quigg was simply younger and quicker than Munroe, and dropped him twice in the sixth round. The referee stopped the bout at 2:37 of the sixth round.
Fernando Montiel Wins in Mexico
Junior featherweight Fernando Montiel (49-4-2) defeated Giovanni Caro (24-12-4) on Saturday night in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. This bout was much closer than expected, but Montiel skated by with a close victory with scores of 115-112, 114-112, and 114-113.
Dancing With the Stars‘ Tony Dovolani has Boxer in his Corner
World Champion pro Tony Dovolani of Dancing with the Stars and reality star Melissay Rycroft have made it to the finale of the hit ABC TV show. Dovolani also has a sports management company, Dovolani Boxing, and has a strong interest in the sport of boxing–so much so that he’s become the manager of professional cruiserweight Nasi Hani, 6-0, a 29-year-old fighter from Macedonia who is scheduled to fight on the undercard of the January 19th NBC Sports Network Fight Night boxing show at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, CT.
TD Garden Night at the Fights Announced
TD Garden Night at the Fights has been announced and will feature many of New England’s top boxers. The main event will be Danny O’Connor vs. Derek Silveira in a 10 round bout at a catch weight of 145 pounds. Undefeated junior lightweight Ryan Kielczewski and Portland trained middleweight Russell Lamour will also be on on the card. The card is on Friday, December 14th, 2012 at 7:00 PM and tickets can be bought at the TD Garden box office.
McGuinness Defends NABA Title Against Carlos Manuel Reyes
On December 14th at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Canada, the NABA Super Featherweight Champion Logan Cotton McGuiness (18-0-1) defends his title against Carlos Manuel Reyes (23-1-1) of the Dominican Republic. Jean Pascal, Aleksy Kuziemski, David Lemieux, Eleider Alvarez, and Edison Miranda will also be fighting in the squared circle on December 14th. Tickets can be purchased at www.evenko.ca.
DiBella Entertainment Announced Benefit for Hurricane Sandy Victims
DiBella Entertainment has announced a special edition Broadway Boxing Card to benefit Hurricane Sandy Victims on Wednesday, December 19th at the Roseland Ballroom in New York City, featuring Will Rosinsky (16-2), Ivan Redkach (12-0), and Gabriel Bracero (20-1). A portion of the proceeds from the show ill be donated to the victims of Hurricane Sandy.
“We are going to close our 2012 Broadway Boxing season with one of our strongest cards of the year,” said Lou DiBella. “In addition to the great card, we will also be raising money for Hurricane Sandy relief and there will be a silent auction including memorabilia from my own personal collection. Please join us not only for our traditional holiday season beatings card, but more importantly to raise money and awareness for those suffering so badly as a result of Hurricane Sandy.”
Tickets can be purchased by calling ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000.
Gamboa and 50 Cent to Hold LA Media Workout
Undefeated former World Featherweight Champion Yuriorkis Gamboa and his promoter, music superstar and business entrepreneur Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson will host a Los Angeles Media Workout on Thursday, November 29th at 12:00 PM at Fortune Gym in Los Angeles, California. Gamboa will be fighting in the co-main event of the Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Marquez event against Michael Farenas (33-3-4).
Vinny Maddalone to Take on Byron Polley
On December 8th at the Resorts World Casino in Queens, NY it has been announced that heavyweight Vinny Maddalone (35-8) will take on veteran Byron Polley (25-13-1) in a ten round main event. The co-feature will be undefeated Super Bantamweight prospect Juan Dominguez (11-0) taking on former world title challenger John Alberto Molina (32-21-3). Tickets can be purchased at www.newlegendboxing.com.
EBU Champion Gutknecht vs. Braehmer on February 2nd
Team Sauerland has already starting planning for 2013 and has announced a card at the Max-Schmeling-Halle in Berlin, Germany between European light-heavyweights Eduard Gutknecht (24-1), current EBU champion, against Juergen Braehmer (38-2) on February 2nd.
Chris Meyer, managing director of Sauerland Event: “We are happy to kick off the new year in Berlin. This will be a very exciting fight. Eduard Gutknecht is the current WBC number two, Juergen Braehmer is listed as the number two by the WBO. February 2 is not just about the highly regarded EBU Light Heavyweight Championship, but also the position as the mandatory challenger for the WBO Crown.”
Tickets can be purchased at www.eventim.de.
Heffron Out to Take Vassell’s Title
Welterweight boxer Ronnie Heffron is aiming to destroy his hero Ricky Hatton’s gym mate Denton Vassell on Friday, November 30th, to become the Commonwealth champion. Heffron had the following to say:
“I used to go to all his big fight nights in Manchester and said that one day that will be me in there headlining the big cards and now I’m there in the main event against Vassell,”
“I know that Ricky’s been training and sparring with Vassell and giving him advice which has probably given him a boost, but that won’t do him any good when he’s in the ring against me,”
“At the end of the day it’s just me and him in there. No disrespect to Vassell, he’s unbeaten and the champion, but this is my time now where I come out and prove that I’m the real thing by ripping the title from him,”
Gary Shaw Responds to Mundine’s Rants
IBF Middleweight champion, Daniel “Real Deal” Geale (28-1) and Anthony Mundine (44-4) will square off in a highly anticipated rematch on January 30, 2013. Anthony Mundine has recently said that Geale’s international promoter, Gary Shaw, and his relationship with the IBF is the reason he might lose this fight.
American Promoter Gary Shaw weighs in on Mundine’s recent rants saying, “Anthony Mundine is coming up with every excuse on why he’s going to lose his fight with Daniel. This obviously shows me he is lacking confidence in his ability to beat Geale. Just because I promote shows internationally, doesn’t mean I’m always on the winning end of each fight. This man is clearly delusional and I believe reality is starting to set in about Geale being a different fighter this time around. He knows he’s in for a long night.”
Tickets can be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.com.
NBC Sports Network 12/8 Card Taking Shape
Unbeaten Jesse Hart has recently been added to the December 8th boxing card at Temple University. Hart was a standout amateur and is 4-0 with 4 KOs since his June 9th pro debut in Las Vegas. This will be Hart’s first fight in his hometown.
“This being my first pro fight in Philly is huge because my fans, family and friends get to see things,” said Hart. “I’m bringing boxing back to the city so get ready.”
Undefeated heavyweight sensation Bryant Jennings (15-0) will be taking on Bowie Tupou (22-2) in the main event. Tupou has the following to say about his bout with Jennings.
“I don’t know much about him,” Tupou said of his opponent. “But I know he has the USBA title. It will be a good fight. It will be a good night. And as they say, let the best man win.”