Former heavyweight world champions Lennox Lewis and Vitali Klitschko are both now retired. The two boxers fought just once during their careers, way back on June 21, 2003. They weren’t even originally scheduled to face each other on that fateful day. Originally Klitschko was slated to face Cedric Boswell on the undercard of a showcase event featuring world champion Lennox Lewis, who was supposed to go up against challenger Kirk Johnson.
The International Boxing Hall of Fame and Museum announced today the members of the Class of 2017. Inductees include three Modern category boxers who all enter the Hall in their first year of eligibility; Mexico’s three-division champion “The Baby Faced Assassin” Marco Antonio Barrera,undisputed cruiserweight and heavyweight champion Evander “The Real Deal” Holyfield and three-division champion Johnny “Mi Vida Loca” Tapia (posthumous). Non-participants and observers to be inducted include Australian trainer Johnny Lewis, veteran judge Jerry Roth, journalist / broadcaster Steve Farhood and broadcaster Barry Tompkins.
Fight fans who tuned in saw a great card in Moscow this past Saturday, and it was a card that was predominantly highlighted by cruiserweights. We saw hard-hitting Murat Gassiev decision the unimaginably tough Denis Lebedev in a great fight, and we saw the lethal banger that is Dmitriy Kudryashov – arguably the single hardest one-punch terminator in the sport today – ice Santander Silgado in typically chilling fashion.
While a good number of fight fans may well agree with David Haye’s prediction that he will “demolish” Tony Bellew when they meet in their heavily hyped fight next March, these same fans may raise an eyebrow at the former WBA heavyweight champ’s claim – made yesterday – that he would knock unbeaten star Anthony Joshua out inside three rounds.
Haye, aged 36 and having boxed just three rounds since the summer of 2012, says that everything he has seen of the reigning IBF heavyweight champ tells him he would not only have a short night against him but that he would even enjoy the fight, and have “fun.” Haye calls the 17-0(17) British star “robotic” and he insists there are just too many holes in his overall game for him to be able to cope with “The Hayemaker.”
December 10 marks a pivotal year for Abner Mares, the highly respected former three-division world champion. It marks over one year since fans saw him enter the ring on television and one year since the newly formed partnership of Mares and revered trainer Robert Garcia. It is a transformed Mares that will enter the ring on Saturday, December 10 when he takes on current WBA Featherweight World Champion Jesus Cuellar in a Premier Boxing Champions live event on SHOWTIME® (10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT) from Galen Center at USC in Los Angeles.
Tickets are on sale now at www.galentix.com . The live event is promoted by Ringstar Sports and TGB Promotions and presented in association with Premier Boxing Champions.
A Deontay Wilder-Hughie Fury fight has been spoken of before now, at least as a possibility, and yesterday, in a Tweet by unbeaten Hughie, cousin of course of troubled former world heavyweight king Tyson, an actual date for this would-be fight appeared. 22-year-old Fury, 20-0(10) Tweeted the following:
“I’m ready for the big fights. Wilder wants it 25th Feb. I’m happy please make this fight @boxnationtv @MGM_Manchester @HennesseySports.”
Watch Britain’s Anthony Joshua defend his IBF World Heavyweight title against Eric Molina for just £14.95 – Britain’s lowest price
On Saturday 10th December, all TalkTalk TV customers will be able to watch Anthony Joshua defend his IBF World Heavyweight title against Eric Molina at Britain’s lowest price of only £14.95.
Viewers will be treated to a thrilling night of British boxing from the comfort of their own homes via Sky Sports Box Office on TalkTalk TV. The ringside action starts from 5:00pm and is available live on channel 416 for TalkTalk TV customers.
The recent news that MMA superstar Conor McGregor got himself a license to box in the state of California really did start a scrum of activity amongst active and even inactive boxers, all of whom want a piece of McGregor in his assumed boxing debut/tune-up ahead of his hoped for (but very unlikely) mega-match with Floyd Mayweather.
The latest boxer to call McGregor out is Australian lightweight warrior Michael Katsidis. Katsidis, as he explained to The Gold Coast Bulletin, is ready and willing to finish off his exciting ring career with a fight against McGregor. “The Great,” as Katsidis, the former WBO 135-pound champ is known, predicts a “Fight of The Year” bout if McGregor takes him up on his offer to face him.
It was just over 42 years ago when promoter extraordinaire Don King’s vision of having the great Muhammad Ali try and regain his crown from an unbeaten George Foreman in the African jungle became reality. And it was 15 years ago this year when Hasim Rahman shocked Lennox Lewis in South Africa. Now, promoter Eddie Hearn says it is possible that IBF heavyweight champ Anthony Joshua could follow in the footsteps of Foreman and Lewis and defend his title in Africa.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tot5Vj1SLzs
Last night in Sofia, Bulgaria, heavyweight contender Kubrat Pulev enjoyed an easy homecoming as he bashed around an out of shape Sam Peter in front of his adoring fans. Pulev, basically having nothing to beat, landed punches on the overweight, slow-footed 36-year-old at will. Peter threw a few punches, off balance as he was, but nothing ever came close to troubling 35-year-old Pulev.