The promise of Britain’s tomorrow’s stars

02/21/2014 Ronan Smith

Over the following three Saturdays five of Britain’s leading top prospects will be live in action up and down the country. All five, three of which gained medals at the London 2012 Olympics, have not only the talent to become world champion but could potentially go on to one day be great, legendary even.

Britain is currently a melting pot rich with young, brilliant talent but what can this recent sprout of success be credited to? Surely the funding now available to young amateur boxers plays a significant part, which has vigorously developed since Audley Harrison became the first British fighter to win an Olympic gold medal in the super-heavyweight division in the 2000 Sydney Games and, four years later in Athens, Amir Khan taking home a silver medal in the light-weight division. In the 2008 Beijing Olympics Britain had another gold medallist in James DeGale, further strengthening the position of our young amateur fighters.

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Martinez-Cotto official for June 7th – Cotto goes for history!

02/21/201402/20/2014 James Slater

While we fight fans must sit and endure Floyd Mayweather’s silly games of not doing the right thing and announcing who he will fight next, another great fight was today announced as official: middleweight king Sergio Martinez will, as has been expected for some time, face former 140-pound, 147-pound and 154-pound ruler Miguel Cotto.

The fight will take place at a 159-pound catch-weight, just a pound below the middleweight limit, and will take place at Madison Square Garden during the weekend of the annual Puerto Rican Day parade. So, Cotto can expect a ton of fan support and fight fans can expect a potentially explosive fight that will go out on HBO pay-per-view, but can Cotto realise his dream of making history and become the first Puerto Rican fighter to win world titles at four different weights?

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Four to Watch in 2014

02/20/2014 Robert Uzzell

Timothy “Desert Storm” Bradley (31-0, 12 KOs)

Why Tune In?

He’s undefeated. He’s fought big names such as Manny Pacquiao, Juan Manuel Marquez, Ruslan Provodnikov, Joel Cassamayor, Devon Alexander, Lamont Peterson, Nate Campbell, Kendall Holt, and Junior Witter. Guess what? He hasn’t given that “0” up in the loss column yet. There’s something about this kid that just won’t take no for an answer. Desert Storm is an appropriate nickname for Bradley, not just because of fights like his war with Provodnikov- but his sheer will to go out and protect his “0”, by not going out to protect his “0”. You follow me? None of the names mentioned above are a walk in the park. For a guy with little power, he doesn’t fight like it. Witness how he dogged Devon Alexander and basically took his heart and made him quit. Timmy has earned his way to Top 3 status Pound 4 Pound in my book.

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Brazil’s Marcus de Oliveira Is Hunting The World’s Best Light-Heavyweights

03/14/201402/20/2014 Pavel Yakovlev

(2/19/14) Trainers get a certain feeling when they work the mitts with boxers who possess natural power. South Florida’s Ricky Fisler realizes that sensation when he does glove-work with light-heavyweight Marcus de Oliveira. “It’s thrilling to work with a fighter who has that instinctive ability to distribute his weight when he punches,” says Fisler. “Marcus is can do that; he is gifted. His punches feel like sledgehammers.”

The Brazilian-born, Miami-based de Oliveira fights this Friday in Cleveland. The bout – against an opponent not yet identified – is likely to be the first of two tune-ups prior to seeking a match against a world-class foe. Fisler has high expectations of his fighter, and for good reasons, too. Currently 23-1-1 with 21 knockouts, de Oliveira carries one-punch KO power in both hands. 15 of his opponents have taken the full count. The Brazilian has a puncher’s chance against any top-rated fighter in his weight class.

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Mayweather Should Have Picked Khan!

02/19/2014 Enlightened-One

Based on recent media reports, it is highly likely that Floyd Mayweather Jr. will probably face Marcos Maidana rather than Amir Khan on Cinco de Mayo weekend (May 3rd), which is a bit of a shame if you ask me, because I feel that a contest against the Brit would have raised the global profile of boxing.

From a purely financial perspective, it made sense for Mayweather Jr. to face Amir Khan, with Broner fighting on the undercard trying to gain some measure of revenge over Marcos Maidana.

However, a lot of casual fans of the sport feel (quite justifiably) that Amir Khan didn’t deserve the privilege of fighting Floyd Mayweather Jr., because he has lost two of his last four bouts and has never achieved anything at welterweight (other than gaining a controversial decision victory over Julio Diaz).

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Ruslan Provodnikov…feared man at Junior Welterweight

02/19/201402/19/2014 Joseph Herron

After winning the WBO Junior Welterweight Championship by stopping heralded tough guy and incumbent title holder “Mile High” Mike Alvarado in the reigning champ’s hometown of Denver, Colorado, on October 19th of last year, most fight fans would have guessed that big fight opportunities would be easily attainable for undefeated Russian native Ruslan Provodnikov in 2014.

With sledgehammers for fists and an iron chin to match, the irresistible force at 140 pounds always displays violent drama in the ring whenever he graces the light blue canvas…the kind that brings enthusiasm to arenas and excites fight fans around the world.

The 30 year old champ represents the kind of warrior that most avid boxing enthusiasts are willing to support.

So with a fan friendly style and a piece of coveted hardware around his waist, why is the HBO featured title holder still searching for a suitable challenger?

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Cotto-Martinez: Exciting for the wrong reasons?

02/18/201402/18/2014 Shrey Chandra

While negotiations are moving particularly slowly, it seems that the June 7th showdown between current Ring/WBC champion Sergio Martinez (51-2-2) and The Ring No.3 Jr. Middleweight Miguel Cotto (38-4-0) is inevitable. Their managers have decided on a fight name, venue, date and even catchweight, and are likely now ironing out more details. While many fans would rather see undefeated knockout-king Gennady Golovkin face Martinez instead, this bout remains interesting to the public. The reasons for this, however, may not be the kinds that lend themselves to an actually enjoyable fight.

Some analysts, for one, remain puzzled as to how Cotto has exactly earned this fight. Having lost 2 of his last 3 weights at Jr. Middleweight (both hard fought unanimous decisions), Cotto came back with a riveting knockout early in round 3 of the largely unheralded Delvin Rodriguez. Though Cotto has held world titles in every weight class from 140 – 154 pounds and has long been considered a world class fighter, he has not convinced everyone that he can still deliver that kind of performance against a world champion level fighter. What is even more questionable about him receiving this fight, however, is that Cotto has never even fought at Middleweight, and hasn’t been a World Champion for close to two years.

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Del Boy en route for chance to avenge loss against Fury in summer showdown

02/17/201402/16/2014 Ronan Smith

The heavyweight division was the particular focal point of the ‘Rock the Box III’ event staged last night, Feb’ 15th, at the Copper Box Arena, London.

The card was stacked with boxers from differing career levels, with some names only known by a handful of loyal fans and others who will be recognised by the global boxing community, but the two main events were heavyweight bouts that could ultimately make an impact on the division.

To write up the recent state of affairs of the heavyweight division would be merely an attempt to reword the many texts to have been already produced on the matter. The bottom line is: it can only get better.

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Smokin’ Joe Frazier: An Appreciation

02/27/201402/16/2014 Blair Frison

Like many fans, my introduction to the sweet science came from watching the highlight reel knockouts of Mike Tyson. A casual viewer at first, I soon became enamoured with the sport after watching such greats as Pernell Whitaker, Roy Jones Jr. and Lennox Lewis. Craving more, I decided to check out some of the great fighters of old. Every now and then, ESPN Classics would spotlight fighters such as Roberto Duran, Mohammed Ali or even Sugar Ray Robinson.

Eventually, I came upon Smokin’ Joe Frazier. I had heard the name, of course, but had not seen any of his fights. They were showing his first fight with George Foreman – Kingston, Jamaica in 1973. I could still feel the electricity all these years later as the fighters entered the ring.

And that staredown.

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Tyson Fury tips-in at a heavy 274-pounds for clash with Joey Abell!

02/14/201402/14/2014 James Slater

The weights are in for tomorrow’s heavyweight doubleheader in London, and the biggest shock/newsworthy item is the poundage Tyson Fury came in at.

Fury tipped-in at 274-pounds, some twenty pounds heavier than for his last fight, while his opponent Joey Abell came in at 241-pounds. Fury did not remove his shirt while weighing in.

In the chief support, Dereck Chisora, who has battled weight problems himself in the past, came in at a solid 238-pounds. His rival, Kevin Johnson, who is aiming to score the upset and ruin plans for a Chisora-Fury rematch in the summer, tipped-in at 240-pounds.

So, the Fury fight will attract most headlines and unbeaten Tyson’s weight has already done so. For those fans who like to bet on the underdog, maybe Abell is a fighter worth betting on.

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