17,000 tickets were sold on the opening day of sales for Anthony Joshua’s IBF World Heavyweight title defence against Eric Molina at the Manchester Arena on December 10, live on Sky Sports Box Office in the UK and on SHOWTIME in the US.
Joshua defends his crown for the second time in his third fight in a row against American opposition – with limited tickets remaining on sale priced £40 to £500 from http://www.manchester-arena.com/ and on 0844 847 8000.
June 2003, The Staples Centre, Los Angeles. The date and venue are familiar to fight fans, heavyweight fight fans especially. Why? Because we saw a great action fight between two huge heavies, both well above the mid-240-pound range, we saw blood and gore, we saw huge bombs landed, we saw heart and courage on the line, and we were left wanting to see a rematch. The task today is quite simple: name a world heavyweight title fight since that has ticked that many boxes.
But the biggest reason fans still talk about this fight, won by Lewis via corner retirement on the part of Klitschko at the end of the sixth round, is because we all wonder what might have happened; what would have happened.
Dillian Whyte and Dereck Chisora had to be separated by security and filming was halted at Sky Sports studios this evening as they faced-off in the ‘Gloves Are Off’ ahead of their WBC World Heavyweight title eliminator at the Manchester Arena on December 10, live on Sky Sports Box Office in the UK and on SHOWTIME in the US.
The bitter London rivals sat face-to-face for 22 tension-filled minutes of filming with Johnny Nelson the man in the middle, before Whyte accused Chisora of ducking a clash with Anthony Joshua – lighting the fuse for the pair to leap to their feet, leading to security stepping in and filming ending.
WBO, WBA and IBF Light Heavyweight World Champion Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (30-0-1, 26 KOs) held an open workout this past Tuesday for members of the media in advance of his upcoming “Pound For Pound” showdown on Saturday, November 19 against Andre “S.O.G.” Ward (30-0, 15 KOs) at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas which will be produced and distribute live by HBO Pay-Per-View. Also in attendance were Curtis “The Cerebral Assassin” Stevens (28-5, 21 KOs) who will take on James “The King” De La Rosa (23-4, 13 KOs) for the WBA Continental Americas Middleweight Title and Oleksandr “The Nail” Gvozdyk (11-0, 9 KOs) who will face Isaac “Golden Boy” Chilemba (24-4-2, 10 KOs) for the NABF Light Heavyweight Title on the Kovalev-Ward HBO Pay-Per-View telecast.
It wasn’t Floyd Mayweather’s most thrilling fight, nor was it one of his biggest, but a decade ago (Nov 4, 2006), “Pretty Boy,” as Mayweather was still calling himself at the time, scored a good win that led to a genuine super-fight. In November of 2006 at Las Vegas’ Mandalay Bay, a 29-year-old, 36-0 Mayweather boxed his third fight as a welterweight and he picked up both the lineal and the WBC 147-pound titles.
Bitter heavyweight rivals Dereck Chisora and Dillian Whyte came face to face today at a press conference to further promote a British heavyweight title fight that in truth needs no further hype. These two DO NOT like one another and even if reigning British champ Whyte has made a habit of engaging in a war of words, verbally attacking a number of his previous opponents, the simmering intensity between these two is as real as it gets.
Before today’s presser, promoter Eddie Hearn was admittedly concerned over the two big men coming to blows or doing something generally crazy. This, thankfully did not happen (although these two have been involved in out-of-the-ring shenanigans before; remember Chisora’s infamous “bottle” incident with David Haye in Germany?)
By: Bill Dwyre * – LAS VEGAS – The Honorable Emmanual Dapridan Pacquiao, freshman senator from the Philippines, pulled up a chair at the end of a long table here the other day and gave the gathered dozens a new look at the state of his union.
Gathered around were the least likely of the media set to deeply comprehend Filipino politics; actually, the least likely to comprehend any politics. We were the semi-couth of the journalism world, aka boxing writers. Our dress code is tennis shoes and, if handy, a clean shirt.
Reigning and defending WBO welterweight champ Jessie Vargas almost certainly does not like it one bit, but it does seem as though fight fans and members of the media are talking more about who returning superstar Manny Pacquiao may or may not face in his next fight after the Las Vegas clash with Vargas this coming Saturday night. There is interest in Pacquiao-Vargas but the fight does not have anything like the buzz previous Pacquiao fights had.
Eddie Hearn has said whilst speaking with Kugan Cassius of IFILM TV that the response to the recently announced Anthony Joshua-Eric Molina fight has been “lukewarm” in the UK, although better in the US, where Molina, 25-3(19) is of course far better known. Hearn said he has once again heard the moans and groans regarding why the December 10 fight, and it’s card, will be pay-per-view on Sky Box Office.
Shannon Briggs has finally landed himself a big fight. The 44-year-old former lineal and WBO ruler first chased, harassed and pestered Wladimir Klitschko for a fight, then Briggs turned his attention towards David Haye. Niether of these two took the bait (although Haye appeared to come close, verbally promising the vocal veteran a fight but then either opting to run away, according to Briggs, or not being able to find a pay-per-view platform, according to Haye).