December 18
Las Vegas, NV, USA: Light: Rances Barthelemy (24-0,1ND) W PTS 12 Denis Shafikov (36-2-1). Cruiser: Isaiah Thomas (15-0,1ND) ND 3 Murat Gassiev (22-0,1ND). Light: Gervonta Davis (14-0) W KO 9 Luis Sanchez (17-5-1). Middle: Brian Castano (11-0) W PTS 8 Aaron Garcia (15-5-1). Light: Mickey Bey (22-1-1,1ND) W PTS 10 Naim Nelson (12-1-1). Super Welter: Ishe Smith (28-8) W PTS 10 Tommy Rainone (24-7-1). Super Welter: Eric Walker (12-0) W PTS 8 Chris Pearson (13-1,1ND). Super Middle: Ronald Gavril (15-1) W TKO 3 Mariano Hilario (13-5) Barthelemy vs. Shafikov Barthelemy wins the vacant IBF light title with unanimous decision over Shafikov. The physical size of the boxers, Barthelemy 5’11” (180cm) and Shafikov 5’5” (165cm) dictated the tactics as Shafikov had to get inside the Cuban’s reach advantage. It is something that the little Russian is used to and he employed his usual tank-like approach rumbling forward to try to start a brawl. Over the first six rounds he had quite a bit of success as Barthelemy chose not to use those advantages but to fight the fight Shafikov wanted. That made it a close contests but Barthelemy introduced a game-changer when he opened a bad cut over Shafikov’s right eye. The cut bleed profusely with Barthelemy targeting it and Shafikov had to survive a doctor’s inspection in the eighth. Barthelemy’s confidence grew and he boxed more and by the ninth was starting to showboat winding up his punches but Shafikov kept pressurising and had a good round. Over the tenth and eleventh Barthelemy was finally using his longer reach to pop Shafikov with jabs and hooks and the Cuban danced through the last round to a clear victory but one that was closer than the scores indicated. Scores 116-112 twice and 119-109. The 29-year-old “Kid Blast” had relinquished the IBF super feather title due to problems making the weight and had established his lightweight credentials with a win over former champion Antonio DeMarco. “Djingis Khan” Shafikov loses in a world title fight for the second time having been outpointed by Miguel Vazquez for the WBC light title in February last year. He had scored three wins since then including a victory over Rustam Nugaev in an IBF eliminator. Thomas vs. Gassiev No real benefit to either Thomas or Gassiev in this technical draw. Neither fighter landed a real punch in the first which saw the taller southpaw Thomas backing around the ring with Gassiev just tracking him but not cutting him off. Gassiev was more aggressive in the second getting inside and trying to land some rights but Smith was tying him up. They both scored with some shots Gassiev with rights and Thomas with southpaw lefts. In the third Gassiev was getting past Thomas’s jab and working inside. As the round came to an end Gassiev had taken Thomas to the ropes. He landed two thudding rights to the head but he had been swinging them on the bell and the second landed late. Thomas decided he could not continue and as it was ruled that Gassiev had not intentionally hit late and there had only been three rounds completed the fight was ruled a No Decision. Russian “Iron” Gassiev, 22, looked to be getting on top at the stoppage with Thomas lacking the power to keep him out. It broke Gassiev’s run of inside the distance wins at seven. Detroit’s Thomas, 26, was coming off a good win over Jordan Shimmell. Davis vs. Sanchez Davis marches on with ninth round win over Sanchez. Davis had his manager Floyd Mayweather Jr. leaving his seat and coming to his corner in the fight shouting advice. Davis had the power and made a good start hurting Sanchez in the third but the gutsy Sanchez hung in there taking the punishment and fighting hard to stay competitive. Davis broke his resistance in the eighth with an uppercut that put Sanchez down. The Mexican got out of the round but Davis jumped in with a short left hook in the ninth putting him face down on the canvas and the fight was waived off before the count was completed. The 21-year-old “Baltimore Tank”, a former NGG and PAL champion, has 13 wins by KO/TKO and this is the first time he has had to go past the sixth round for a win. He was coming off a win over former IBF feather champion Cristobal Cruz. Sanchez had won a decision over unbeaten Adan Mares in April but was knocked out in six rounds by Michael Perez in July. Castano vs. Garcia Argentinian prospect Castano gets wide unanimous decision over Garcia. Castano was giving away height and reach but fought in his usual all-out aggression tactics. He had Garcia in bad trouble in the second but injured his right hand in the third and was only able to make limited use of it. Garcia took advantage and was more competitive but Castano’s aggression was forcing Garcia to fight toe-to-toe and left hooks to the body from Castano helped him keep control of the fight. Scores 79-73 twice and 80-72. Castano, 26, a former South American Championships gold medallist and WSB fighter, is considered the best prospect in Argentina. Chicago-born Mexican Garcia, 22, had lost only one of his last eleven fights but against modest opposition. Bey vs. Nelson Bey has his first fight in 15 months and registers a wide unanimous verdict over Philadelphian Nelson. Bey was much too good for Nelson and won by the wide margins of 100-90 twice and 99-91. Bey, 32, the former undefeated IBF light champion relinquished his title rather than fight his mandatory challenger Shafikov. He has dropped out of the ratings due to inactivity so this was one fairly easy step on the way to a championship fight. Nelson, 25, was having his first fight since September 2014. Smith vs. Rainone Smith was another former champion working his way back. Rainone was a good opponent on paper but Smith was just too quick and skilful and won every round. Scores 100-90 from all three judges. The 37-year-old for IBF super welter champion is No 10 with the WBC but dropped out of the other ratings after losing a majority decision to Vanes Martirosyan in September. New Yorker Rainone has yet to lose inside the distance and his only loss in his previous nine fights was to Dusty Hernandez Harrison. Walker vs. Pearson An upset here as Walker just proved too tough for unbeaten southpaw Pearson. Walker knew he did not have the skill to match Pearson so he set a high work rate and just kept the pressure on Pearson all of the way making for an exciting scrap. Walker had Pearson in trouble in the fourth only for Pearson to survive and bang back hard in the fifth. Walker was going for quantity whilst Pearson seemed to be looking for one big punch to turn things around but it never came. Walker had another impressive round in the seventh to stall any attempt from Pearson to stage a strong finish and Walker was a clear winner. Scores 80-72, 79-73 and 78-74 all for Walker. A huge contrast in how these two boxers got where they are. Pearson came through the amateur ranks winning various titles including the US national Championships and a spell in the WSB. Walker 32, leaned to box in prison during a 13 year sentence which saw him inside from the age of 16 to 29 and been very much under the radar. This was both his first eight round fight and a big step up in the level of opponent. Pearson, 25, can learn from this and come again. Gavril vs. Hilario Gavril too young and strong for Dominican-born Hilario. Gavril took the first two rounds before cornering Hilario in the third and putting him down with a quick combination rounded off with a body punch and the referee stopped the fight. The 29-yeart-old Romanian gets his eleventh win by KO/TKO and his fourth victory since losing his unbeaten record to Elvin Ayala in March. Spanish-based Hilario, a former EU champion, has now lost 3 of his last 4 fights. Malvern, Australia: Super Bantam: Jason Moloney (5-0) W TKO 6 Markquil Salvana (9-1). Bantam: Anthony Maloney (5-0) W TKO 4 Roberto Lerio (16-23-1). Moloney vs. Salvana Good night for the Moloney twins as they both collect titles. Jason used his jab to control the fight and it also had the unbeaten Filipino’s right eye gradually closing. By the end of the fifth round Salvana was fighting with his vision severely restricted and his corner retired him. Jason, 24, wins the vacant WBA Oceania title and gets his fifth win by KO/TKO. He is rated No 3 by the ANBF and was a quarter-finalist at the 2010 Commonwealth Games. Salvana, 19, needs more experience but can only improve. Maloney vs. Lerio Andrew wins the vacant Australian title with fourth round stoppage of experienced former Australian champion Lerio. Third win by KO/TKO for Andrew who was a gold medallist at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. Now six losses in a row for Australian-based Filipino Lerio Cartagena, Colombia: Feather: Miguel Marriaga (22-1) W TKO 3 Luis Zambrano (10-8,1ND). Super Bantam: Luis Melendez (45-10-1) W TKO 4 Yurley Barrios (0-5). Marriaga vs. Zambrano Easy win for Marriaga. He spent two rounds just boxing with Zambrano but when he let his punches go in the third a body punch followed by a right to the head ended the fight. The 29-year-old local “Scorpion” gets his second victory since losing to Nicholas Walters for the WBA feather title in June. Fellow-Colombian Zambrano now has six losses in a row by KO/TKO. Melendez vs. Barrios Disgraceful match sees Melendez halt poor Barrios in the fourth. The 36-year-old former WBA super fly and IBO bantam challenger has won 11of his last 12 fight and there is a mixture of matches as bad as this and some much more competitive. Barrios now has 4 losses by KO/TKO. Le Mans, France: Middle: Patrice Sou Toke (22-4) W PTS 12 Nordine Arik (14-4-2). Visitor Toke wins vacant ABU and WBC Francophone titles with unanimous decision over Le Mans–based Moroccan fighter Arik. In a close fight a knockdown scored by a Toke left uppercut in the fourth which put Arik down heavily for the first time in his career made the difference. Scores 114-111 twice and 113-111 all for Toke who finally wins the ABU title at his third attempt. Arik, 34, a Frenchman based in Qatar was trying to rebound from a split decision loss to Damien Martin for the national title. Ratingen, Germany: Light Heavy: Avni Yildrim (8-0) W KO 1 Janne Forsman (21-3). Welter: Selcuk Aydin (28-3) W RTD 5 Nodar Robakidze (15-16-3). Yildrim vs. Forsman Yildrim destroys Finn Forsman inside a round. After some brief sparring Yildrim dug a left hook into Forsman’s side and the Finn went down in agony writhing on the canvas and the referee just waived the fight off. Turk Yildrim, 24, wins the WBC Eurasia Pacific title and retains his WBC International Silver title. He goes to 5 wins by KO/TKO and is No 14 with the WBC. Forsman was halted in two rounds by Brit Ovill McKenzie but that was his only loss in his last 10 fights. Aydin vs. Robakidze Aydin gets win on his first bout for eleven months. From the outset he was forcing the young Georgian onto the back foot with a stiff jab. Robakidze tried to counter when he could but he did not have the power to push Aydin back. In the second Aydin was using hooks and uppercuts on the inside and tracking the retreating Robakidze around the ring fighting at a walking pace. Robakidze was trying to come forward in the third and stay off the ropes and as a result did a bit better. Aydin was back in control in the fourth thumping left hooks to the body and thudding rights but ended the round with a small cut on his right eyelid. The fifth was brutal as Aydin just marched Robakidze around the ring landing left hooks to the body and clubbing head punches and Robakidze retired at the end of the round. First fight for the former WBC Silver champion since losing in eleven round against Viktor Postol in April last year. Robakidze, 21, showed real guts but gets his seventh loss by KO/TKO. Mexicali, Mexico: Super Bantam: Hanzel Martinez (23-2) W KO 4 Jose Silveria (16-19). Martinez overcomes a bad start to kayo Silveria in a short war. In the first round Silveria went on the attack and had Martinez on the back foot and to add to Martinez’s problems a clash of heads saw Martinez suffer a bad cut. In the second a right from Martinez put Silveria down only for Silveria to get up and score a knockdown of his own and when the eight count was completed Martinez was again hurt and only just survived to the bell. In the third Martinez took over with a series of body punches and in the fourth a combination put Silveria down and he could not beat the count. The 24-year-old “Rude Boy” from Tijuana won his first 19 fights before losing to Alejandro Gonzalez (17-0-2) in 2013 and his second loss was on points against Alexis Santiago in 2014. This is his third win since then and win No 18 by KO/TKO. Silveria, 36, has now lost 10 of his last 11 fights Budva, Montenegro: Super Middle: Nikola Sjekloca (30-4) W KO 1 Ivan Jukic (22-7). Serb-born local Sjekloca gets this one over early. A right hook to the head followed by a body punch put Jukic down and he did not beat the count. The 37-year-old Sjekloca won his first 25 fights but is 4-4-1 in his last nine including a loss to Sakio Bika in a WBC eliminator and defeats against Arthur Abraham, Callum Smith and unbeaten Tyrone Zeuge. Croatian Jukic, 34, now has six losses by KO/TKO including one round blowouts by both Chris Eubank Jr and Frank Buglioni. Tlalinepantla, Mexico: Light: Sergio Torres (26-8-1,1ND) W PTS 10 Ivan Lopez (5-9). Torres gets majority decision but is a given a tougher than expected fight by less experienced Lopez. This was a typical second level Mexican fight with both fighters parking their defence in the corner and just fighting hard for round after round. Torres was looking to wear Lopez down with straight lefts and left hooks to the body. Lopez surprised by taking the punishment and just firing back hard in every round keeping the verdict in the balance to the last bell. Scores 96-93 and 96-95 for Torres and 95-95. The 28-year-old “Tama” a former interim WBC Fecarbox champion, is 6-2 in his last 8 fights. Lopez, having his first ten round fight put on a good show. Uitenhage, South Africa: Minimum: Siphosethu Ncisane (8-1 W KO 11 Ndikho Magadaza (6-7). Local fighter Ncisane wins the vacant World Boxing Federation International title with late stoppage of Magadaza. The fight was close until Ncisane’s power brought the end. Fifth win by KO/TKO for Ncisane who jumped straight from six round fights to twelve. He was rated No 6 by the SABC. “Mini Cooper” Magadaza was having his first fight since September last year.
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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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