Is there more mileage in the classic “Rocky” saga? Creator and star Sylvester Stallone put out a tweet yesterday, in which he wrote:
“Looking forward to directing and producing the incredibly talented Michael B Jordan in CREED 2 next year – one more round!”
Fans are currently enjoying the exciting, the-best-fight-the-best, World Boxing Super Series tournament; or to be fully accurate, we are enjoying two ongoing WBSS tournaments; the one at cruiserweight as well as the one at super-middleweight.
So far, both eight-man elimination tourneys have gone smoothly and we have seen some great action fights along with some crunching knockouts – and the thrilling finals are still to come, in the first quarter of 2018.
Exactly twenty years ago today in Sheffield, England, a great fight saw a great fighter crowned as world champion for the first time. It was on October 11 in 1997 when Welsh legend Joe Calzaghe met Chris Eubank in a battle to decide the vacant WBO super-middleweight title (Steve Collins, who had dethroned Eubank to take the belt had retired, thus vacating the strap).
Eubank, a love him or hate him figure of British boxing, was coming towards the end of his own superb career, while the unbeaten “Pride of Wales,” at age 25 the younger man by seven years, was approaching his prime. What’s more, Calzaghe was approaching an absolutely stupendous run as a truly dominant word champion – one who would never, ever taste a single defeat.
Amir Khan-Kell Brook; or should that be the other way around? Just who is the A-side in this all-British clash, one that seemingly will not go away? Both fighters, if they’re not quite drinking at The Last Chance Saloon, are both close to entering the tavern.
Neither former champ has won a fight in a long, long time – Khan last registering a win in May of 2015, Brook last emerging victorious in March of 2016. But despite this recent run of defeat (against nothing but elite fighters it must be pointed out; with Khan losing to Canelo Alvarez and Brook coming unstuck against Gennady Golovkin and Errol Spence) neither man is ready to call it quits quite yet.
It’s time for WBA/IBF heavyweight ruler Anthony Joshua to take his show on the road. So far in his exciting 19-fight pro career, AJ has boxed in the UK only, but Eddie Hearn has laid out plans for the immediate future – and after Joshua has come through okay against his IBF mandatory challenger Kubrat Pulev who he will face in Cardiff on October 28, the next fight will take place abroad.
Upon entering the ring in the Coliseo Roberto Clemente stadium in Puerto Rico just over 40 years ago, former heavyweight king George Foreman had Muhammad Ali on his mind; in particular he had thoughts of a rematch with the man who had shocked, stunned and beaten him three years earlier playing on his mind.
Anthony Joshua is not one for trash-talk, yet he could not resist coming out with a little bit of it when addressing the recent calling out he has been subjected to by both Deontay Wilder and David Haye.
Wilder, via a video the WBC heavyweight champ uploaded on social media, strongly suggests the WBA/IBF ruler is unwilling to face him. Not so says AJ, who gave both Wilder and his fellow Brit Haye both barrels.
Once a cauldron of activity, a building that housed a boxing gym that saw such special talent as Thomas Hearns, Hilmer Kenty, Milton McCrory and other future world champions hone their craft under the tutelage of the late Emanuel Steward, the old Detroit Kronk gym was sadly destroyed by fire over the weekend.
Police in Detroit strongly suspect arson and the building, which closed in 2006, is now mere debris. An investigation is now underway.
Jeff Horn is one of the hottest and most talked about fighters in boxing right now, courtesy of his big July upset win over ageing superstar Manny Pacquiao. While we fans await “The Hornet’s” next move – word now is, it could be British fighter Gary Corcoran next, but nothing is confirmed yet – British fight fans also await the ring return of Amir Khan.
For years we’ve been waiting for the incredibly vocal, “I am the best” Chris Eubank Junior to deliver performances worthy of backing up his boasts. Last night in the former British middleweight champion’s first appearance in the super-middleweight WBSS tournament, Eubank gave us such a performance.
No, Eubank, 26-1(20) did not face a killer, or even an established top-10 fighter in Turkey’s unbeaten but largely untested Avni Yildrim, but he put on a most impressive display of power, explosiveness and aggression. Looking solid as a wall, Eubank was ruthless in his quest to not only win, but to send out a message: “I am here to dominate this tournament,” the 28 year old declared shortly after dispatching Yildrim, 16-1(10) in the third-round in Stuttgart.