Month: June 2017

Exclusive interview with Mario Daser – the self-made millionaire turned pro boxer

Exclusive interview with Mario Daser – the self-made millionaire turned pro boxer

Fighting for anything but the money, unbeaten cruiserweight Mario Daser of Germany could well be looked at as an usual case. A self-made millionaire (Mario having done very well in the property market) the 13-0(6) contender says it is his life’s goal to win a world title.

The 28 year-old made believers of some with his last fight, an upset stoppage win over a past his best but still vastly experienced, and betting favourite, Ola Afolabi. Daser is rightfully proud of the third-round stoppage win he score on May 19th; and he now aims to go on, improve, and then “beat an even stronger fighter” than the former interim WBO champ.

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Ward vs Kovalev – Chapter I – Bitter End

Ward vs Kovalev - Chapter I - Bitter End

Andre Ward and Sergey Kovalev delivered a remarkable performance; one which I believe has drawn a great debate in its conclusion. All sides present justified facts for the reasons supporting their account of what was one of 2016’s most exciting bout. The fighters and their respective camps have equally been charged in their testimony of all that which took form in their first encounter.

The 19th November 2016 bore the finding narration of the highly engaging battle paired with an equally disputed resulted. It was a rather closely matched fight; I am not fooled into the polarizing debates which argue that the winning margin was greater than that which we saw manifested. The difficulty in their understanding has taken further strain as mutual agreement and respect has been evasive. This has cemented merit for further engagement to determine who truly should stand as an exalted king.

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Guillermo Rigondeaux: I don’t understand this myth of me not having knockouts

Guillermo Rigondeaux: I don't understand this myth of me not having knockouts

Of all the almost criminally avoided boxers over the years, Cuban master Guillermo Rigondeaux has to be close to the very top when it comes to a fighter being swerved. Despite being a superb talent, a pound-for-pound star, the 36 year old has not been able to land himself the big fights his considerable talents more than deserve. No wonder Rigondeaux is frustrated.

Tomorrow night, “El Chacal” will climb into the ring with a good fighter in his mandatory challenger, the unbeaten Moises Flores, and the southpaw hopes bigger fights will finally come after the fight that will snap an eleven month enforced inactive spell.

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Bivol vs. Agnew Scouting Report

Bivol vs. Agnew Scouting Report

Las Vegas, NV:        The HBO Pay Per View® undercard of the Andre Ward vs. Sergey Kovalev 2: “The Rematch” on June 17 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas will include the ten-round light heavyweight battle between the hard-punching young Russian prospect Dmitry Bivol (10-0, 8 KOs) and seasoned veteran technical boxer Cedric “L.O.W.” Agnew (29-2, 15 KOs). Below is the scouting report for this exciting match-up:

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A Coaches view on the Maywether vs. McGregor fight…

A Coaches view on the Maywether vs. McGregor fight…

No thanks, I’ll sit this one out…

I don’t begrudge anyone in any fighting sport the opportunity to make money. These men are talented in their respective sports and they put themselves at risk out there so let them get paid. I get it!

However, on that Saturday night in August as you gather around your TV’s in anticipation of the big fight between Conor McGregor and Floyd Maywether, please take a moment and consider this.

One day a few years back a boy showed up at my gym with all of his worldly possessions in a backpack wanting to become a professional boxer. He had heard about me from a distant relative and came half-way around the world, leaving his wife and 3 year-old daughter behind, to come chase his dream. He knew two words of English…”me champion.”

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An angry Sergey Kovalev storms out of presser; round-one to Andre Ward?

An angry Sergey Kovalev storms out of presser; round-one to Andre Ward?

While the recently confirmed Floyd Mayweather-Conor McGregor “Super-Fight,” “Freak Show,” or whatever you choose to call it, has seemingly snatched more than its share of attention; boxing fans remain fully interested in tomorrow night’s rematch between Andre Ward and Sergey Kovalev.

An extremely tough fight to pick (unlike Mayweather-McGregor; with the overwhelming majority picking Floyd to school the MMA star), the rematch of last year’s controversial bout won by Ward has genuinely bad blood. This was shown in quite stunning detail at yesterday’s final press conference for the light-heavyweight return.

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Happy Birthday Roberto Duran

Happy Birthday Roberto Duran

Turning 66 years old day is the great, the hugely celebrated Roberto Duran. One of the finest “born fighters” in history, Duran lit up the sport in a major way for years. Arguably the finest living fighter today, Duran did everything his way.

Turning pro in February of 1968, Duran won a UD over four-rounds against a guy named Carlos Mendoza. Roberto would go on to score a number of brutal KO’s and he would also collect no less than four world titles in different weight classes – lightweight, welterweight, light-middleweight and middleweight being the divisions this legend conquered.

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Ward-Kovalev II final press conference quotes

Ward-Kovalev II final press conference quotes

On Thursday, June 15, Unified Light Heavyweight World Champion Andre “S.O.G.” Ward (31-0, 15 KOs) and former WBO, WBA and IBF Light Heavyweight World Champion Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (30-1-1, 26 KOs), along with their teams, participated in the Fight Week Powered by Monster Final Press Conference for their highly-anticipated showdown. Ward-Kovalev 2: “The Rematch” will take place Saturday, June 17 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. The championship event, presented by Corona Extra, will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View® beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT.

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Omar Figueroa and Robert Guerrero quotes for July 15

Omar Figueroa and Robert Guerrero quotes for July 15

Lou DiBella
Thanks, everybody for joining us for the main event conference call for the PBC on FOX and FOX Deportes show on July 15th live at 8:00 pm Eastern Time, 5:00 pm Pacific Time on FOX and live at NYCB Live home of the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum o=in Uniondale, New York.

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Quotes: Rigondeaux Vs. Flores; Bivol Vs. Agnew; Arias Vs. Magomedov

Quotes: Rigondeaux Vs. Flores; Bivol Vs. Agnew; Arias Vs. Magomedov

Guillermo Rigondeaux (17-0, 11 KOs), WBA World Super Bantamweight Champion

“I can’t wait for Saturday night. The Mexican boxing community is going to be out there and every Mexican is ready for war, so we’re ready to put on a spectacular fight on Saturday. I believe my preparation has always been excellent and the Cuban school of boxing has always been something I’ve focused on. I believe, on Saturday, June 17, it will be shown. I train for one boxer at a time and when it comes, it comes. You just train hard all the time. No boxer intimidates me in any way. [Flores] is a good boxer and I’m impressed by his style, but I’m not intimidated by anyone. It’s a God-given gift to move [the way I do] in the ring and have the reflexes I have. It just kicks in. I go to work when I step into the ring.

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