Anthony Joshua insists there will be no added pressure on him, but the IBF heavyweight champ will have not one but two big names checking out his upcoming performance as they hope to fight him next. Both Wladimir Klitschko and David Haye will be part of Sky Sports’ broadcast team for Joshua’s second defence against Eric Molina, and as much as the two will be impartial analysts, both men will be taking mental notes on how to defeat A.J.
James Slater
Conor McGregor gets boxing license, Paulie Malignaggi wants to fight him
MMA superstar Conor McGregor has been successful in his attempts at getting himself a license to box in the state of California, and though this news does not in all likelihood mean we are any closer to seeing the much talked about McGregor-Floyd Mayweather “Super-Fight,” actually take place, it does mean other pro boxers are already busy calling McGregor out.
One of these boxers is former two-time world champ Paulie Malignaggi. Upon hearing about McGregor’s success in California, “The Magic Man” took to his official Twitter account to call the Irishman out.
Naazim Richardson will not be working with Bernard Hopkins in his “final” fight – but will it matter?
As fight fans know, the great Bernard Hopkins is fast approaching what he calls his final fight, against young and dangerous puncher Joe Smith Junior, who the amazing 51-year-old (52 in January) will fight on December 17th. Who knows if B-Hop, AKA The Alien, AKA The Executioner will really hang ’em up after the Smith fight, win or lose. But we do know that the Philly legend will not have his usual head trainer, of the past 11 years, in his corner for what is being billed as his swansong.
David Haye Vs. Eddie Hearn!
It may have come as no surprise when David Haye and Tony Bellew got nasty towards one a other at today’s press conference in London – Haye even chucking a left hook at Bellew as they went face-to-face – but Haye’s scathing attack (of the verbal kind) on promoter Eddie Hearn was a surprise.
Surprise, Surprise – Haye and Bellew get physical at today’s presser!
Seemingly genuinely bitter rivals David Haye and Tony Bellew came face to face (literally) in London today, at the O2 presser to further promote/hype their upcoming March 4 clash. The two exchanged words on the top table, before the inevitable (now tiresome) face-to-face “photo opportunity.”
Eric Molina: I don’t want to hear any excuses after the fight
With news coming that former heavyweight king Wladimir Klitschko will be in attendance in Manchester for Anthony Joshua’s IBF title defence against Eric Molina, some people are wondering if Joshua will be at all affected by the sight of the man he is set up to meet in a huge fight next March/April. Will Joshua try too hard to impress Klitschko? Will he take his eyes, and his concentration, off the man in front of him?
Joshua told Sky Sports how he aims to make the fight, his second title defence, “look easy.” Molina says there is no way AJ will have an easy night next month, and the Mexican/American also made it clear he does not want any excuses if Joshua underestimates him and winds up losing in a big upset. Molina told Sky Sports that he wants to face a Joshua who is fully focused and is taking his challenge seriously.
Lomachenko: As good as Ali? Better than Mayweather?
There is no doubting the talent of two-weight champ and reigning WBO super-featherweight king Vasyl Lomachenko. It is also undeniable that the 28-year-old Ukrainian is hovering as close as can be to the top spot, pound-for-pound. Some fans and experts suggest “Hi-Tech” is already fully deserving of the top spot.
That much is debatable – considering the formidable talents of special fighters such as Andre Ward, Roman Gonzalez and Gennady Golovkin – but promoter Bob Arum, who looks after the finest, most prominent 7-1 boxer in history, has ensured even more debate amongst fight fans. We’ve already read the Top Rank boss’s statement, one made from the heart, regarding how Lomachenko has impressed him more than any fighter since the peak Muhammad Ali – but Arum also says he feels the southpaw talent is more of a fully formed package than the one and only Floyd Mayweather Junior (who, like the immortal Ali, was once promoted by Arum).
Floyd Mayweather again boasts about his wealth, calls people talking about his ring return “Backseat drivers – the joke’s on you”
Retired superstar Floyd Mayweather is annoyed at the way certain people involved in the sport continue to talk about, and call for, his ring return. Every week or so, a story breaks suggesting “Money,” now aged 39 and having last fought over 14 months ago, will return to the squared circle soon. But Mayweather, who has said again and again that he is content in retirement, sure seems to mean what he says.
Just yesterday, Mayweather put out a message on social media, in which he both ridicules those people who continue to talk about him returning for fight number-50, and boasts about his incredible wealth.
Lebedev vs. Gassiev: Get ready for an explosion in Moscow!
Forget the cold war, this one will be red-hot! This Saturday in Moscow, Russia, we just might have The Fight of The Year, as cruiserweights Denis Lebedev (never in a bad fight) and Murat Gassiev (brutal KO artist) meet in a fight that has attracted plenty of attention amongst hardcore fight fans. These same fans, and a whole lot of boxing experts, are split as to who wins.
Andre Ward says Team-GGG didn’t want to fight until 2018, so he moved up to 175
According to Andre Ward, we fans could have, indeed, would have, seen a super-fight between he and middleweight king Gennady Golovkin this year had Team-GGG been willing to take the 50-50 fight that was offered to them. Speaking with TMZ Sports, Ward, now the unified light-heavyweight champion, said Golovkin was not willing to fight him until 2018, so he made the decision to move up in weight and challenge Sergey Kovalev.
“I think the fight with Golovkin should have happened before the Kovalev fight,” Ward said. “That fight was talked about, our teams had some correspondence, and it just didn’t work out. I’m not here to expose them or throw them under the bus or nothin’ like that. But I will be honest with the fans because there is a lot of confusion out there. They didn’t want the fight. They flipped it and said we were ducking and dodging. If you read the e-mail [of an offer for the fight] it was clear – we gave them a 50-50 split so there wouldn’t be any arguments.”