It’s quite rare for any big fight to be staged on a Sunday; even rarer if the Sunday doesn’t fall on a bank holiday weekend. The big fights these days are reserved for Friday and Saturday nights, but it seems Tony Bellew and David Haye are on the verge of agreeing to a rematch of their March battle, to take place at London’s O2, on Sunday December 17th.
Haye has just tweeted the following:
There are a few big fight cards still to come this year, but the biggest year end card that will close out what has been a good year for the sport overall could well be the one we fans will get on November 4. It has been confirmed that WBC heavyweight ruler Deontay Wilder will defend his belt against Luis Ortiz, at Barclays Centre, New York, with Showtime to televise.
A seemingly guaranteed can’t-miss shoot-out between two undefeated proven punchers, Wilder is likely to get the stiffest, most testing fight of his entire career to date. Wilder is hugely confident and deserves credit for taking such a big risk. As for Cuba’s Ortiz, he too deserves credit for taking this fight when he could have simply sat and waited for his mandatory shot at the WBA title currently held by Anthony Joshua.
In sad news, it has been reported how David Bey, a top contender and a world heavyweight title challenger in the 1980s, has passed away. According to a report on Action News, Bey died in Camden as result of an industrial accident. Bey, just 60 years old, was working as Pyle driver with local carpenters and he was reportedly hit by a steel sheet Pyle.
We’ve been treated to some big, big fights this year, but the best may be still to come; as pound-for-pound stars and former amateur greats Vasyl Lomachenko and Guillermo Rigondeaux are gearing up for their truly fascinating December 9 meeting.
Last seen putting in a quite dire effort against countryman Canelo Alvarez in May in a big fight that disappointed all concerned, Julio Cesar Chavez Junior has tweeted how he is set to return to the ring on November 11. The former WBC middleweight champ left the ring to the sound of boos after his lopsided, he-failed-to-turn-up decision loss to Canelo, and he now aims to get fight fans back on his side with a win over former 168 pound champ Anthony Dirrell.
Rarely does any fight fan either like or accept a drawn verdict in a fight, such is the need and desire to see a winner after a big and important fight; or even after a small, less important fight. And as we try to move on from the controversy caused by this past Saturday’s fight and the drawn verdict that was handed in after middleweights Gennady Golovkin and Canelo Alvarez went to war for 12 engrossing rounds (and as we try and somehow forget the shocking card of one judge in particular), there are those people who seem unable to let it go.
Billy Joe Saunders retained his WBO middleweight title last night, with a less than thrilling, but wide decision win over Willie Monroe Jr. and now the unbeaten southpaw is planning his next fight for December.
Saunders has long since been calling out Gennady Golovkin, the man who holds all the other belts at 160, but speaking at last night’s post-fight presser, as quoted by Nick Parkinson of ESPN.com, Saunders said he doesn’t think GGG – who of course boxed to a controversial draw with Canelo Alvarez in last night’s massive bout – will be ready to fight again as soon as December.
In a weird, unsettling way, it is perhaps fitting that after last night’s massive world middleweight title fight showdown between Gennady Golovkin and Canelo Alvarez – called by many the biggest 160 pound title fight showdown since Sugar Ray Leonard-Marvin Hagler from 30 years ago – we were left with a hugely controversial decision.
The fierce debate has already begun: with many people calling the drawn verdict a disgrace, saying that GGG was robbed, with others still saying they feel Canelo deserved a close win; while others yet say they agree with the draw. There are indeed parallels between GGG D12 Canelo and Leonard WS12 Hagler.
Tonight in Las Vegas, after fans witnessed an excellent, truly engrossing battle that went right down to the wire, middleweight king Gennady Golovkin retained his belts by way of a draw – a result that is sure to be viewed as THE most controversial of the year.
Scores were an insane 118-110 to Canelo, 115-113 for GGG and 114-114. Simply put, these two have to do it again. Golovkin is now 37-0-1(33). Canelo is now 49-1-2(34).
Tonight in London at the start of a huge night of boxing, unbeaten 20 year old heavyweight prospect Daniel Dubois scored a chilling 1st round KO over AJ Carter, a man who was expected by some to give Dubois his biggest test thus far.
Instead, with mere seconds gone in the opening round, Dubois decked his man with a right hand. A flash later, Carter was down again, and then, courtesy of a brutal right hand to the head, Carter was knocked cold and left flat on his face. It was all over after just 48-seconds. Down for an alarming amount of time, Carter thankfully recovered and was given applause as he eventually got back to his feet.