Undefeated lightweight contender, Ghislain “Mani” Maduma (16-0, 10KOs) is potentially one bout away from fighting International Boxing Federation (IBF) Champion, Miguel Vazquez; however, before this happens, he needs to defeat the tough “Mighty” Kevin Mitchell (37-2, 27KOs) in their lightweight title eliminator on May 31st on the undercard of the Carl Froch v. George Groves matchup at Wembley Stadium in London, England.
Month: May 2014
Avoided Fighters: A Sign of Boxing’s Decline
When talking with a friend of mine; a serious boxing-head, the conversation managed to swing around to how Andre ‘Son of God’ Ward (27-0-0) is still marginalized despite garnering quite glowing praise from critics around the world. We got on to this subject as we were discussing the upcoming super-middleweight clash between ‘Saint’ George Groves (19-1-0) and Carl ‘The Cobra’ Froch (32-2-0), and how the British public’s interest in the fight had greatly elevated the perceived status of the fight; already supplemented by the fact that there are two World titles on the line. Now, as a massive George Groves fan, I am delighted that he was made mandatory for the IBF title and has been successful in forcing a rematch; the question that lingers in my head is why these two fighters are having two title fights in the space of a year, whilst Ward languishes.
Sergio Martinez media conference call quick quotes
NEW YORK, NY / MIAMI FL (5/20/14) – World Boxing Council (WBC)/The Ring middleweight champion and Argentina’s favorite son, SERGIO “Maravilla” MARTÍNEZ, along with promoter Lou DiBella, held an international media conference all earlier today in anticipation of his upcoming world title defense and the most eagerly anticipated boxing event of 2014 against three-division world champion and the Pride of Puerto Rico, MIGUEL COTTO.
Below are a few quick notes from the call. A complete transcript to follow.
SERGIO MARTINEZ: My knee is feeling great and I have been running in the mornings. I haven’t felt this good in a very long time.
In The Ring With Ahmed “The Egyptian” Elbiali
In the segment In the Ring, boxing writer Bill Barner interviews fighters from inside the ring in an effort to gain more insight into their fighting styles. In May 2014, Barner interviewed Super Middleweight Ahmed “The Egyptian” Elbiali.
Born in Egypt, Elbiali immigrated to the United States at a young age. As an amateur, Elbiali dreamed of being an Olympic fighter, but those dreams were shattered and shelved during the famous Arab Spring.
Floyd Mayweather will fight September 13th – opponent and venue to be announced
Some people, myself included, felt superstar Floyd Mayweather Junior would perhaps take a pass on his usual September fight due to the tougher than expected (not to mention foul-filled) night’s work “Money” had last time out, when he won a decision over a rough and ready Marcos Maidana. But such thinking has been proven wrong, because Mayweather has officially announced how he will next fight on September 13th – the venue and, more importantly, the opponent, will be announced in two weeks.
Leonard Ellerbe, speaking with ESPN.com last night, said a return meeting with Maidana, (who, along with his fans, claimed he was robbed of a deserved decision earlier this month) is a possibility, but that there is a “long list” of potential opponents according to Floyd‘s right-hand man.
Is Harold Right? Referees Pay No Attention
HBO’s unofficial scorer, and celebrated long time judge and analyst, Harold Lederman made a valid point this past saturday night during the PPV bout between Viktor Postol (26-0, 11 KO’s) and Selcuk Aydin (26-3, 19 KO’s). During the bout, held at the Forum, Inglewood, CA, Harold made what would seem to be a legitimate, valid point.
He spelled things out, explaining that all too often tall fighters illegally use their extended lead hand as a “range finder”. The situation presented itself saturday night when the taller man, Postol, started using his extended left as a range finder for his power punch, the right. Specifically, he held his extended left out in such a way that it would not only obstruct Aydin’s vision, it would also act as a similar instrument used with a gun for estimating the distance to Aydin’s head. In this case, the projectile was Postol’s power loaded right.
Tori “Sho Nuff” Nelson Defeats Mia St. John in Ponytail Promotions Debut!
Last night Tori “Sho Nuff” Nelson successfully defended her WIBA welterweight championship against former world champion Mia St. John. The bout was the main event for Ponytail Promotions who held their first card at Northern Virginia Community College.
Paulie Malignaggi shouldn’t retire just yet
Now that the dust has settled after his recent crushing loss to Shawn Porter, Paulie Malignaggi shouldn’t retire just yet.
Sure, what happened to him on April 19th was shocking to most. Despite not being known for having a right hand, his chin, ring- intelligence, and technical ability have gotten him this far in his career. He’s been in the ring and lost to big punchers before: Miguel Cotto, Amir Khan, Adrien Broner, but none of those fights ended anywhere near as dramatically as it did against Porter.
In the post-fight interview, Paulie hinted at retirement but held back from making such a decision after reeling from a loss. I think his reticence at the time was wise because, after watching the fight, perhaps he shouldn’t retire. It was apparent from the moment both fighters entered the ring that Porter was the stronger and more powerful of the two – however, nothing out of the ordinary. Contrary to what we’ve seen Paulie do in the past, stick a jab and move, he decided to bring it to his opponent not afraid of fighting in close quarters, toe-to-toe.
Marquez Sizzles and Pops in Win over Alvarado
Forty year old Juan Manuel “Dinamita” Marquez’ (JMM) combinations were sharp and fast. His punches hissed through the air and then crackled when they reached their target. To Mike “Mile High” Alvarado, they must have sounded like the ear popping you hear and feel with a change of altitude.
Early on both men seemed overly cautious, as though they were determined not to provide counter punch opportunities. JMM was first to explore things. He poked and prodded a bit, and when there was no retaliation, he cranked things up a bit. Mike remained in the cautious stage. The problem with that strategy was he was losing rounds, because JMM is not only a great counter puncher, he’s also pretty damn good at leading too. As soon as JMM realized Mike wasn’t going to return his shots, he naturally picked up the pace. Mike kept his gloves up tight in defensive mode, but that wasn’t enough. Mike found out the hard way that there’s too much area to cover when JMM is throwing.
Boxing Returns to the LA Forum in Style
Juan Manuel Marquez built his career at The Forum in Inglewood, California. From 1995 to 1999 he went 12-0 at the famed venue, making a name for himself among fight fans in the LA area. A decade and a half later “Dinamita” returned as an international star to face the bigger, younger “Mile High” Mike Alvarado. A pro Marquez crowd showed up and nearly blew the roof off The Forum with deafening roars during the fighter introductions. It was an amazing atmosphere for fight fans.