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The biggest bout this past Thursday was in the US as former Welterweight champions collided in a genuine crossroads fight. Unfortunately, though as with most with crossroad fights, the loser, in the case Victor Ortiz (29-5-2, 22), now has his career left in tatters.
Ortiz, returning from a 19 month break from the ring was left looking like a broken man after being stopped by Luis Collazo (35-5, 18) in just 2 rounds. The highly touted American puncher, once viewed as a potential pound-for-pound contender, has now suffered a trio of successive stoppage losses and it's hard to see where he can go with his career now. For Collazo the victory is big. Following the bout he called out Floyd Mayweather, although that bout is unlikely there is a real possibility that he will manage to get a WBA world title fight later this year with either Keith Thurman or the winner of Marcos Maiadana/Adrien Broner II. Also on this card was the very highly touted Gary Russell Jr (24-0, 14) who managed to score a stay busy victory over Miguel Tamayo (15-8-2, 13). Tamayo offered Russell Jr no real threat and did little more than act as a punch bag with Russell Jr apparently landing 42% of his punches including 58% of his power punches. We're hoping to see Russell Jr in a competitive bout next time out but with his career so far it's becoming hard to stay interested in this genuinely talented youngster.
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 Courtesy of http://rufighter.com It's not often that amateur fights leave fans going "wow" but in the 2011 World Amateur Championship's final we saw one of those bouts as Japan's Ryota Murata fought Ukrainian Ievgen Khytrov (1-0, 1) in an all out war.
Unfortunately for Murata he lost to Khytrov in the final bout and only took home the Silver medal. Despite the loss he had made his name well known in amateur circles and secured his place in the London 2012 Olympics. We had hoped that Murata and Khytrov would meet again in the Olympics but instead Khytrov went out early on, albeit in controversial fashion, before Murata went on to claim the Gold and become a major star in Japan. Despite the fact Khytrov "failed" in the Olympics many have tipped him to become a major success in the professional ranks. His career, which kicked off with an eye catching KO, continues this Friday as he takes on the limited Romon Barber (4-6, 3) in what is, really, a mismatch. It'd be a shock it Khytrov really even broke a sweat against Barber though we'll admit it's not the "now" that interests us about Khytrov but instead it's the future. We'd love to see Khytrov v Murata II in the professional ranks. If it's half the fight their 2011 classic was then we'd be in for something special and with that in mind we'll be following Khytrov very carefully. Unfortunately however it seems they are on very different career trajectories with Murata being moved quickly and aggressively whilst Khytrov is being given a much slower and softer development.  Courtesy of the Barclays Centre Although American sports fans are, obviously, looking forward to Sunday night's "Superbowl" between the Denver Bronces and the Seattle Seahawks, they haven't managed to put a stop to boxing for the week. Instead boxing fans get treat to a small but notable card on Tuesday courtesy of Golden Boy Promotions.
The card is headlined by the return to the ring of the divisive "Vicious" Victor Ortiz (29-4-2, 22) who has been out of the ring for more than 18 months. Although much hyped Ortiz has shown a lack of the fighters mentality and often looks more like a bully than a boxer, of course like any good bully he's not a fan of being hit back. The man attempting to hit Ortiz back will be former world champion Luis Collazo (34-5, 17) who although on the slide himself could act as the spoiler in a bout that looks very much like a 50-50 contest to us. Both men will know this is a bout they must win, and a loss will be the end of their career at the TV level. With that in mind we may well see something very special from both men. The other notable bout from this card is at Featherweight where Gary Russell Jr (23-0, 13) takes on Miguel Tamayo (15-7-2, 13) in nothing short of a complete mismatch. We want to like Russell Jr, we really do, but his match making has made us wonder if his management team really believe in him. He's already world ranked at Featherweight. It's fair to say that the likes of Akifumi Shimoda, Nonito Donaire, Satoshi Hosono, Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo and Jun Doliguez will all be watching to see how Russell Jr looks. They are all ranked near Russell in at least 1 of the rankings and whilst they are unlikely to fight him, especially with the way he's being matched, they'll want to see how good the competition is and whether or not they have anything to be afraid of in the form America's top prospect at the weight. The biggest fight of the day was in Australia as former world champion Anthony Mundine (46-5, 27) continued his career with an easy victory over the limited, but game, Kiwi Gunnar Jackson (18-7-3, 6). The bout saw Jackson refusing to go down, though it also saw the difference in class of the two men deciding the winner. Unfortunately for Mundine his future doesn't look great and at his age he is only one loss from being at the end of his long and highly controversial career.
On the undercard rugby player Quade Cooper (2-0, 2) scored a 4th round TKO over the win-less Warren Tresidder (0-2). Cooper has the potential to bring plenty of attention to Australian boxing though whether or not he has the skills to match the attention he'll get is a whole different matter.  Courtesy of boxrec.com There are few men in boxing quite as controversial as Australian Anthony "The Man" Mundine (45-5, 27). Whether you're a fan or a hater Mundine is certainly a man who splits opinion and this Wednesday sees him returning to action as he takes on Gunnar Jackson (18-4-3, 6). The bout, which is an Australia v New Zealand, is one which has local rivalry running through it though is, in all honesty, a total mismatch.
Jackson, who is something like the replacement of a replacement opponent for Mundine isn't very good and Mundine, a multi-time "world champion", should certainly have more than enough in his locker to out point him, despite heading towards 40 years old. Although the Mundine/Jackson bout is the card's stand out contest in terms of big names we are rather interested in the co-feature which sees the unbeaten Renold Quinlan (6-0, 3) taking on the experienced Joel Casey (15-11-3, 10). Quinlan is a promising Super Middleweight and although he struggled with Tim Kanofski he did look excellent demolishing Aswin Cabuy. One other prospect on this card that's worth mentioning is Quade Cooper (1-0, 1). Cooper, like Mundine, has come from Rugby to boxing and although he's just at the start of his career there are big hopes for him. Cooper, is matched easily here as he takes on Warren Tresidder (0-1) though hopefully we'll see him in more meaningful bouts down the line.  This past Saturday was the biggest day in boxing so far this year. It may not have been the greatest day of boxing but it was certainly full of notably fighters.
For us the most interesting contest was the WBO Super Featherweight title fight between the very highly regarded Mikey Garcia (34-0, 28) and Mexican veteran Juan Carlos Burgos (30-2-2, 20). Garcia, although dominant over-all, wasn't as impressive as we'd have expected. Fair enough it was partly due to Burgos knowing how to survive though on this performance any dreams that Garcia has of fighting Pacquiao are a long way from reality. Garcia's talented for sure but we're not sure if he's actually one of the top 2 guys in his division. He looks small at Super Featherweight and his punch resistance doesn't seems that impressive. Another champion who retained his title was WBO Cruiserweight kingpin Marco Huck (37-2-1, 26) who stopped the tough Firat Arslan (33-7-2, 21) in very impressive fashion. Arslan had controversially been beaten by Huck last year but this was a much better showing from Huck who has now requested to be considered a WBO super champion, an honour rarely bestowed on a fighter. The final world champion who retained his title was Lamont Peterson (32-2-1, 16) who retained his claim as the IBF Light Welterweight champion. Peterson, one of the most fortunate fighters on the planet, managed to over-come the previously unbeaten Dierry Jean (25-1, 17). This bout certainly had it's entertaining moments early on but Jean's lack of world class power gave him little chance to beat the well schooled Peterson, who was fighting for the first time since being steam rolled by Lucas Martin Matthysse. As well as the trio of title bouts there was also a selection of other interesting bouts. These included Jermell Charlo (23-0, 11) dominating former Gennady Golovkin foe Gabriel Rosado (21-8-0-1, 12), British Heavyweight David Price (16-2, 14) stopping late replacement Istvan Ruzsinszky (12-10-1, 8) inside a round, Bryant Jennings (18-0, 10) stopping Artur Szpilka (16-1, 12) and most notably Brazilian Olympian Yamaguchi Falcao (0-0-0-1) being involved in a double disqualification with Martin Fidel Rios (10-0-2-1, 4).  Courtesy of The 13th Round A busy Friday night saw a lot of action through out the US with a number of those bouts having a relevancy to us Asian fans.
Firstly there was a number of former foes of our fighters. These included Light Heavyweight Cornelius White (21-3, 16) who was dispatched inside a round by the unbeaten Thomas Williams (16-0, 11). The bout between White and Williams saw 3 knockdowns with White being stopped in one of the most dramatic rounds of the year. Unfortunately this bout does make Sergey Kovalev's victory over White look less impressive though we'd argue that really Kovalev did the long last damage to White. Things were much better for former Gennady Golovkin foe Curtis Stevens (26-4, 19) who scored an opening round victory himself. Stevens needed just 46 seconds to see off Poland's Patrick Majewski (21-3, 13), who was down 3 times and seemed to look more like a yo-yo than a boxer. Things were also good, at least in terms of the result, for Rico Ramos (23-3, 12). Ramos, who is best known for knocking out Akifumi Shimoda, dropped Jonathan Arrellano (14-3-2, 3) 3-times though failed to do much to make fans want to see him. Although talented and powerful with his left hook Ramos did too much of nothing and once again left fans wondering what is mentally wrong with him. In bouts less directly relevant to our fighters we saw a few interesting results. In the Light Middleweight division Cornelius "K9" Bundrage (33-5-0-1, 19) managed to secure himself the #1 slot with the IBF courtesy of a victory over Joey Hernandez (23-2-1, 13) who showed up his clear limitations. Light Welterweight sensation Antonio Orozco (19-0, 15) managed to quickly see off the horribly over-matched Miguel Angel Huerta (27-12-1, 18) and Cruiserweight hopeful Thabiso Mchunu (15-1, 10) managed to over-come Nigerian puncher Olanrewaju Durodola (17-2, 16)  Courtesy of Top Rank As with most weekends the most notable action is in the US this Saturday, though it's given a good run from a show in Germany and there's also notable action in Brazil and Italy as we get a day to remember, thankfully hiding the fact that Asian action is quiet still.
The most notable single bout is in New York as WBO Super Featherweight champion Mikey Garcia (33-0, 28) looks to make the first defense of his title. The unbeaten Garcia, who some regard as the best fighter at 130lbs, will be taking on the very talented Juan Carlos Burgos (30-1-2, 20). To many Burgos is the man who should have the WBO belt around his waist though he was robbed by judges when he faced Roman Martinez, the man eventually dethroned by Garcia. To us this is a significant bout though unfortunately it sounds like it will be Garcia's last one at 130lbs. On the same card as the Garcia/Burgos bout is a big Heavyweight clash between Poland's unbeaten Artur Szpilka (16-0, 12) and highly touted American Bryant Jennings (17-0, 9). Whilst the Garcia/Burgos is the main event we thing this Heavyweight clash has the potential to be the better bout to watch. On a separate US card we get another world title fight as IBF Light Welterweight champion Lamont Peterson (31-2-1, 16) takes on the unbeaten Dierry Jean (25-0, 17). Whilst we will admit that Peterson is the luckiest champion on the planet he should still have a bit too much experienced for Jean, however a victory for Jean would see him throw his name into the big conversations at 140lbs. A secondary bout on this card sees the unbeaten Jermell Charlo (22-0, 11) take on former Gennady Golovkin victim Gabriel Rosado (21-7, 3). Rodado, dubbed a "good boy" by Golovkin, is the toughest test on paper for the young Charlo who some stateside are tipping a future world champion at either Light Middleweight or Middleweight. As well as the two world title bouts Stateside there is also one in Germany as WBO Cruiserweight kingpin Marco Huck (36-2-1, 25) looks to defend his title against Firat Arslan (33-6-2, 21). This is a rematch of a controversial contest from last year in a bout that many felt Arslan deserved to take the victory in, though Huck retained with somewhat "nice" unanimous decision. This promises to be a really entertaining battle, as every Huck bout is, though it's going to be something that cuts his career short. Staying with the German card there is another interesting Heavyweight clash as Britain's David Price (15-2, 13) returns for the first time since back-to-back losses to Tony Thompson. Price will be expected to score an easy victory over Konstantin Airich (19-7-2, 15) but he will know that if he loses again that's his career over. Not far from Germany, in Italy, there is a very good looking European Lightweight title fight between Emiliano Marsili (27-0-1, 12), the defending champion, and Pasquale Di Silvio (17-5-1, 5). Although this bout is only for the European title it's fair to suggest that the winner will feel that they deserve a world title fight and in a division that features Masayoshi Nakatani and Masao Nakamura it's fair to suggest that these two will also feel that they are deserving of a world title fight in the near future. We think we're on the verge of a very interesting period in the Lightweight division. In Brazil fans get the first chance to see the very talented Yamaguchi Falcao (0-0) fight as a professional. The former amateur standout will be fighting unbeaten Argentinian Martin Fidel Rios (10-0-2, 4) in what will serve as an excellent introduction to the professional ranks for one of the two Falcao brothers. Yamaguchi's brother Esquiva, best known for fighting Ryota Murata in the 2012 Olympic final, is set to make his debut in just as few weeks as well. Thanks to the13thround Although the Asian action this weekend is scarce, to say the least, the international action does have some very interesting match ups, especially in the US where the bouts seem to be "interesting" as opposed to genuinely "notable".
On Friday the interesting match ups in the US take place across a number of divisions. For us the most notable is the return to action of American Middleweight Curtis Stevens (25-4, 18) who fights for the first time since he was stopped by Gennady Golovkin last year. Stevens will be looking to get back to winning ways as he takes on Patrick Majewski (21-2, 13) in what looks, on the face of it, like a great match up. Stevens is the clear favourite (priced around 1/4) though depending on the damage Golovkin to him he may not be the same fighter and Majewski (7/2), fighting in his adopted New Jersey, will be very well supported. On the same card there is also action in the Cruiserweight division with the very highly regarded Thabiso Mchunu (14-1, 10) battling against the big punching Olanrewaju Durodola (17-1, 16). Mchunu, who impressed against Eddie Chambers last time out, is world ranked by all 4 bodies and will know he's closing in on a world title fight. Saying that though Durodola is a big puncher with a lot of stoppages inside 4 rounds and we'd not be shocked to see Mchunu given a chin test of some variety. As with the Stevens/Majewski fight one man, Mchunu is the clear favourite (1/4) though it's Nigerian born Durodola (4/1) has got Olympic experience and great power. Staying in the US, though going to Indio, California we get a Light Middleweight double header. The main event sees former IBF champion Cornelius Bundrage (32-5-0-1, 19) take on Joey Hernandez (23-1-1, 13) in an IBF eliminator for the #1 spot. The bout, not one that we're really excited about, should set up the next challenger for the winner of the upcoming Carlos Molina/Jermall Charlo bout. The second Light Middleweight bout on the show sees the always exciting to watch Antonio Orozco (18-0, 14) take on the over-matched Miguel Angel Huerta (17-11-1, 18). Although this is a mismatch we love watching Orozco who is all action with a must watch style and real power. Whilst this bout is an easy one for the unbeaten man we wouldn't be shocked to see 2014 become his break out year. One more show in the US is in Washington and will be televised on ESPN. The main event here sees former Sergey Kovalev foe Cornelius White (21-2, 16) attempt to resurrect his career as he takes on the unbeaten Thomas Williams Jr (15-0, 10) in what is a really important bout in the Light Heavyweight division between two IBF ranked fighters. A second bout on this card that has an interest to us is a Featherweight one between Rico Ramos (22-3, 12) and Jonathan Arrellano (14-2-2, 3). Ramos, best known for stopping Akifumi Shimoda back in 2011, has won just 2 of his last 5 fights whilst regularly stinking out the joint. Anything but a good win over Arrellano would likely be the end of Ramos's days on TV. Interestingly Arrellano (priced at 5/2) is given a decent underdog price from the bookies who have Ramos (1/3) as a favourite but not a certainty. The only other bouts of note take place in Spain where European Union Light Welterweight champion Ruben Nieto (13-0, 6) defends his belt against Samuele Esposito (17-1, 10). The winner of this bout is likely to be moved towards a notable fight by the end of the year.  Courtesy of boxrec.com This past Saturday was one of the most interesting days so far this year in terms of scheduled fights. Unfortunately however the day proved to be better on paper than it was in reality with very few fights living up to their promise and very few fighters really shining like they could have done.
The biggest disappointment of the night came in Quebec, Canada in easily the most anticipated fight of the year so far. In one corner there was Jean Pascal (29-2-1, 17), a Haitian born Canadian based fighter who had been the WBC Light Heavyweight champion, whilst in the other corner was Lucian Bute (31-2, 24) a Romanian based in Canada who had previously held the IBF Super Middleweight title. The fight, viewed as potentially the biggest Canadian fight in history, was disappointing from the off with both men looking nervous and struggling to get in to any sort of a groove. Unfortunately the nerves took a long time to wear off and this meant there was very little clean action from either man for long swathes of the fight. The fight was meant to set up an opponent for a bout with for Adonis Stevenson though Pascal, who took the victory, looked unwilling to commit to that bout and instead seemed to hint at a rematch. Unfortunately after this stinker we can't imagine fans wanting to see a re-do. Interesting we also can't see either man wanting to be the next victim of Russian puncher Sergey Kovalev who, on this showing, would dismantle either man. The same card also saw a disappointing Heavyweight performance from Mike Perez (20-0-1, 12) who gave a lackluster performance in a draw with Carlos Takam (29-1-1, 23). The bout was supposed to be a chance for Perez to build on his victory over Magomed Abdusalamov, unfortunately however it appears that that bout took it all out of Perez who looked mentally done as a fighter. The Perez/Abdusalamov fight, late last year, left the Russian in a coma and it seems that Perez has been seriously effected by that which is a shame considering how great he had looked in that fight. Staying with the Quebec card for just a moment a moment longer. There was another televised Light Heavyweight contest. This one saw Canadian based Colombian Eleider Alvarez (14-0, 8) take a hard fought decision over the tough Andrew Gardiner (10-1, 6). This bout was meant to be a show case for Alvarez though unfortunately for the Colombian he failed to really impress and actually managed to turn fans against him by the end of the contest. Considering his potential and skills this was highly disappointing from Alvarez. Outside of Canada we had 2 fights, not involving Asian's, that were of interest in Mexico. One of these saw the highly ranked Felipe Orucuta (29-2, 24) defeating Gabriel Pena (5-5-1, 2), who retired at the start of round 10, whilst the other saw female starlet Yazmin Rivas (29-8-0-4, 9) dominate Calixta Silgado (11-3-2, 8). For Orucuta the fight was likely about staying active and little else, though he certainly didn't impress as some, including ourselves had expected. Rivas however wasn't just out to stay busy but was fighting to force a rematch with Jessica Gonzalez who claim an absolutely robbery against her last year. On her performance Rivas is a fighter that isn't to be messed with in her current mood. Staying with female action there was a major upset in Argentina as Ana Laura Esteche (10-3-1, 2) ripped the WBA female Light Welterweight title from the previously unbeaten Monica Silvina Acosta (19-1-2, 5). This was probably the shock of the night and one of the biggest shocks of the year so far. One result that wasn't a shock however was in Chile was the wonderfully talented Carolina Rodriguez (11-0, 1) dominated Simone Da Silva Duarte (14-5, 6) to defend her WIBA Bantamweight title. Whilst we weren't impressed by the fighters in Canada we need to admit that Yazmin Rivas, Carolina Rodriguez and Ana Laura Esteche all deserve a good mention for their performances. |
InternationalWe know that not every fight involves an Asian fighter but a lot of fights do affect Asian fighter. As a result we've decided to add this new section to Asian boxing where we look at selected International bouts. Archives
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