Mike “Yes Indeed” Reed Eyes National Spotlight on Saturday’s Top Rank Card — Glen Tapia, Russell Jr., More!

06/14/2014 Paul Jones

By Paul “Paparazzi“ Jones & Justin Jones – Capitol Heights, MD – This Saturday, Junior Middleweight Glen “Jersey Boy” Tapia(20-1, 12 KOs) headlines a Top Rank card against Keenan Collins (15-8-3, 10 KOs) at Bally’s in Atlantic City (NJ). Tapia is determined to rebound with an impressive showing after being stopped by James Kirkland (32-1, 28 KOs) last December in a fight of the year candidate. While the stakes are high for Tapia, perhaps no one on the fight card has more to gain than unbeaten Junior Welterweight prospect Mike “Yes Indeed” Reed (9-0, 6 KOs).

Reed, 21, who fights out of Waldorf, MD, will be facing the hard-charging Nicaraguan Alberto Morales (11-3-1, 1 NC, 8 KOs) in a 6-round undercard bout. The contest marks one of the rare occasions that Reed will fight outside the confines of the Rosecroft Raceway (Fort Washington, MD).

Miguel Cotto: Puerto Rico’s Shining Star

06/09/201406/08/2014 Paul Jones

By Justin Jones — Manhattan, NY – If there was any doubt surrounding Miguel Cotto’s (39-4, 32 KOs) future hall of fame status, or uncertainty about who his signature victory would be against–as all the greats possess–last night’s stoppage of former middleweight kingpin Sergio Martinez (51-3-2, 28 KOs) was it ladies and gentleman.

Cotto proved to truly be Puerto Rico’s finest as he became the island’s first boxer to ever win a title in four different weight classes. What’s more impressive about the dominating performance is that he achieved the historic feat at Madison Square Garden (MSG), the world’s most famous arena, in front of a packed house of more than 20,000–the majority of them consisting of prideful and supportive fellow Puerto Ricans. Keep in mind he did this against one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the world previously, and on the eve of the Puerto Rican Day parade. Most of all and frankly, the fight wasn’t even close.

OPEN MIC: Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin Discusses Golovkin, Mayweather Jr., Stevens,and More!

05/16/2014 Paul Jones

Photo © Paul “Paparazzi” Jones – Washington, DC —In April,WBO Middleweight Champion Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin (31-0, 22 KOs) dominated Lukáš Konečný (50-5, 23 KOs) over 12 rounds at the DC Armory. When the final results were read, Kid Chocolate led on all three scorecards (119-109 [twice], 120-108) in a virtual shutout. After the fight, Quillin wasted little time in calling out the Miguel Cotto(38-4, 31 KOs)/Sergio Martínez(51-2-2, 28 KOs) winner and fellow New Yorker, Daniel Jacobs(27-1, 24 KOs).

Before his victory, Quillin sat down with Eastsideboxing’s Paul “Paparazzi” Jones for an exclusive interview. Kid Chocolate discussed his upbringing, potential opponents, his connection to International Boxing Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach, and more.

Eastsideboxing.com: Can you talk a little bit about growing up in Grand Rapids, Michigan and discuss some of the hardships that you’ve faced along the way?

Peter Quillin (PQ):“Well, I was homeless in New York City. That’s away from family. While I was with family, it still was a struggle. My mom was raising four boys alone. My dad went to prison at an early age; me and my brother had to learn a lot of life lessons in the streets.”

Adrien “The Problem” Broner Holds Media Workout—Photos and More!

09/15/201604/25/2014 Paul Jones

By Paul “Paparazzi” Jones – Former three-division World Champion Adrien “The Problem” Broner (27-1, 22 KOs) held an open workout today at the Bald Eagle Boxing Annex (DC) in preparation for his May 3^rd showdown against Carlos Molina (17-1-1, 7 KOs).

The 10-round Junior Welterweight bout, which is part of the Mayweather vs. Maidana (SHOWTIME PPV®) undercard at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas (NV), marks the return of Broner, 24, after losing to Marcos “El Chino” Maidana (35-3, 31 KOs) last December.

“The Alien” vs. “Superman” Coming Soon to a Theatre Near You?

04/21/2014 Paul Jones

By Paul “Paparazzi“ Jones & Justin Jones – In the aftermath of Hopkins vs. Shumenov, Bernard “The Alien” Hopkins(55-6-2, 32 KOs) wasted little time in ditching his boxing gloves for his promotional hat to campaign for a showdown with Superman. That is, WBC Light Heavyweight Champion Adonis “Superman” Stevenson (23-1, 20 KOs).

“The Alien vs. Superman” sounds like a snazzy title for a forthcoming DC Universe original movie, but the potential matchup between two of boxing’s elite is a match-up that many boxing fans would pay to see.

“Stevenson, I’m coming to Canada. I’m getting my papers together,” said Hopkins.

Bhops also indicated that geography would not be a barrier to making this fight. “I’ll go anywhere they pay the most,” Hopkins said. “I’ve been in Canada. I love Canada. They’ve got a big fan base for Bernard Hopkins out there. And let me tell you something. This fight would do well at the MGM [Grand].”

Mike Reed Crushes Canales; Signing Nears

04/19/2014 Paul Jones

By Justin Jones – Fort Washington, DC — Mike “Indeed” Reed hasn’t been as fortunate as some of his peers when it comes to getting signed by a major or even local promotional outfit upon turning pro, but that hasn’t stopped the standout DMV prospect from obtaining his piece of the “attention pie.”

Reed, a Waldorf, MD native, is similar to a small town star who is trying to catch the eye of his big time college coach for a walk-on opportunity, or a free agent trying to secure a new lucrative and long-term contract with a new team. Some would call Reed’s workman-like approach of fighting every couple of months against the likes of other unbeaten competition, or at the very least fighters with the same or more fights under their belt –unlike some of the built up fighters you see today– the “hard way.”

Hopkins-Shumenov: Fighter, Media, and Fan Predictions!

04/19/201404/19/2014 Paul Jones

By Paul “Paparazzi“ Jones & Justin Jones

Published: April 19, 2014

Eastsideboxing.com surveyed fighters, media members, and fans to get their opinions on the winner of Hopkins vs. Shumenov:

“I always say Bernard [Hopkins], a master technician in the ring. A guy that looks like he can do it for 50 more years because he hasn’t had any big wars. He takes care of himself. He takes care of his body. So, I think he can do it again….Most importantly, he can [box] for the next 5 or 10 years because he’s not a guy that started his career like a lot of people at age 5, 10, and 11. His career started at a late time so, for him boxing, he’s a 20 year-old kid now.”

Official Weigh-in Results / Photos for Hopkins-Shumenov

04/19/201404/18/2014 Paul Jones

By Justin Jones & Paul “Paparazzi” Jones — Washington, DC — Official weigh-ins for the “History At The Capitol: Bernard Hopkins vs. Beibut Shumenov” tripleheader (SHOWTIME^® Championship Boxing; 9:00 PM ET/PT) were held at the Marriott Renaissance hotel (Washington, DC) this afternoon in front of an energetic crowd.

The 49-year-old Bernard “The Alien” Hopkins (54-6-2, 2 NC, 32 KOs) and his adversary Beibut Shumenov (14-1, 9 KOs) both weighed in below the Light Heavyweight limit for their unification bout (IBF/WBA/IBA). Hopkins tipped the scales at 172.5 lbs, while Shumenov weighed in at 174.5 lbs.

Co-main event headliners Shawn “Showtime” Porter (23-0-1, 14 KOs) and Paulie “Magic Man” Malignaggi (33-5, 7 KOs) made the Welterweight limit without incidence. Porter weighed in at 146.8 lbs, while Malignaggi weighed 146.2 lbs.

Comprehensive weigh-in results for the televised portion of the card appear below:

Boxing Cheat Sheet: Breakdown of Hopkins-Shumenov

04/17/2014 Paul Jones

By Paul “Paparazzi“ Jones & Justin Jones — Washington, DC —There is a longstanding debate as to whether experience is the best teacher or whether youth trumps experience. Given the age gap between Bernard Hopkins (IBF) and Beibut Shumenov (WBA/IBA), it stands to reason that the outcome of Saturday’s Light Heavyweight Unification bout may help to explain this question.

In the sections that follow, we breakdown the Hopkins-Shumenov match-up, consider their respective strengths and weaknesses, and offer keys to victory for each fighter.¹

BERNARD “THE ALIEN” HOPKINS

OPEN MIC: Curtis “Showtime” Stevens Discusses Johnson, Quillin, Kirkland, Mayweather Jr., and More!

04/01/2014 Paul Jones

By Paul “Paparazzi” Jones, Photo © Paul “Paparazzi” Jones

Atlantic City, NJ — This Friday, NBCSN’s Fight Night series travels to the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia (PA) and features a heavyweight clash between Steve “USS” Cunningham (26-6, 12 KOs) and Amir “Hardcore” Mansour (20-0, 15 KOs) for the USBA Heavyweight Championship. However, the co-feature of this Main Events promoted card, pitting Curtis “Showtime” Stevens (26-4, 19 KOs) against undefeated prospect Tureano Johnson (14-0, 10 KOs), has “Fight of the Night” written all over it.

A product of Brownsville, Brooklyn, the 29-year-old Stevens has experienced his share of ups and downs since turning pro in 2004. From his early success as one-half of the “Chin Checkers,” to lackluster performances against Andre Dirrell (21-1, 14 KOs) and Jesse Brinkley (35-7, 22 KOs), Stevens has shown two qualities that often endear a fighter to his or her fan base: (1) resilience and (2) a desire to compete against boxing’s elite.