Sergey Kovalev made easy work of Jean Pascal in their rematch this past weekend. This hardly came as a surprise. In fact most fans didn’t see their first fight as the type of encounter that warranted a rematch in the first place. Kovalev dominated Pascal when they first met, and was even more dominant this time around hardly losing a second en route to a 7th round stoppage after Pascal’s trainer Freddie Roach admirably told the referee the fight was over to protect his athlete.
A very interesting and potentially exciting heavyweight match-up has been set, one that will contest the EBU title the unbeaten Robert Helenius has just vacated. Once-beaten Bulgarian Kubrat Pulev will meet experienced Brit Dereck Chisora at a date and venue still to be determined.
Helenius, fresh off a December win over Franz Rill – a points victory that saw him take the EBU title that had been stripped from Erkan Teper due to Teper failing a post-fight drugs test after his KO win over David Price – opted to vacate the European crown to concentrate on his world title ambitions. So, Pulev, 22-1(12) and two wins removed from his November 2014 stoppage loss to then world heavyweight king Wladimir Klitschko, will face well-travelled Brit Chisora, 25-5(17) and four wins removed from his stoppage loss to reigning heavyweight boss Tyson Fury, in what should be a an entertaining battle.
Retired superstar Floyd Mayweather Junior is currently in the UK, embarking on a special (and very expensive to attend) “Victory Tour” where the man known as “Money” will meet and greet his UK fans. And, whilst here, the soon-to-be 39-year-old great spoke with BBC Sport.
Mayweather began by revealing how he has been offered “crazy numbers – nine figures” to fight again. Floyd said the offers have been coming in from a number of different countries around the world. But as of right now, Mayweather is “completely out” of boxing and has no plans to box again.
A great boxing gala in Pilsen. Bytyqi, Sedláčková, Schwarz and… Pála!
PILSEN – Three Czech boxers will fight for their titles on March 5 at HM Arena in Pilsen. H Fabiana Bytyqi (6-0, 2 KO), Lucie Sedláčková (5-0-1, 2 KO) and Štěpán Horváth (15-5, 6 KO) will fight for European WBO titles in their division. But this is not all. The fans will have the opportunity to see eight fights. And one will be better than another.
It has been confirmed by ESPN.com, how Cuba’s Luis Ortiz will face German-based Russian Alexander Dimitrenko on March 5th. Southpaw Ortiz, 24-0(21) will be making the second defence of the interim WBA heavyweight title he won by stopping little-known Matias Ariel Vidondo last October. The 36-year-old who is known as “The Real King Kong,” is coming off a very impressive stoppage win over Bryant Jennings who he halted in the seventh-round in December.
In beating Wladimir Klitschko and doing what 18 title challengers before him could not, Tyson Fury shocked the boxing world and claimed its greatest crown.
EXCERPTS: TYSON FURY: “’From the United Kingdom.’ And it took a second to sink in. And I thought, ‘Yes, that’s me.’ Hands up. I’ve won it. I am the man who beat the man. And I always knew it and I always said it. So not being big headed, but told you so.”
The undefeated WBA, IBF, and WBO light heavyweight champion of the world Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev promised before the bout to severely punish Jean Pascal and he did just that for seven one-sided rounds after which Pascal’s trainer Freddie Roach mercifully stopped the bout and saved Pascal from taking anymore unnecessary punishment. Kovalev retained his world titles with the seventh round technical knockout victory and improved to 29-0-1, 26 KOs while Pascal dropped to 30-4-1, 17 KOs, at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Canada.
Rising star Erickson “The Hammer” Lubin (14-0, 10 KOs) defeated Mexican brawler Jose De Jesus Macias (18-5-2, 9 KOs) in his first main event Sunday night on Premier Boxing Champions: The Next Round on Bounce TV from a sold out Seminole Casino Hotel Immokalee in Immokalee, Florida.
Lubin, of Orlando, showed superior skills by using his quick hands and combination punching to offset Macias’ come-forward style. In round five, Lubin scored a knockdown when he landed a cuffing right hook that forced Macias to touch the canvas with his glove.