You didn’t get any credit after beating Pacquiao in the first fight, do you think you need a KO to get a definitive result. Is that what you need? How do you accomplish this?
I’ve gone down the road of thinking I need a KO and it didn’t work to benefit me. At this time I just know that I have to do my job; I will step in that ring and follow instructions from my corner that should get me my victory and credit that I deserve.
Lou DiBella
Thanks for joining us on this call. We wanted to give all the press an opportunity to speak to all six fighters that will be televised on NBC on Saturday night April 16. The TV fights will begin at 8:30 pm ET/5:30 pm PT This event’s taking place at the beautiful Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
Tickets for the live event, which is promoted by DiBella Entertainment in association with Star Boxing and sponsored by Corona, start at $25, and they can be purchased online at ticketmaster.com, barclayscenter.com or by calling 1-800-745-3000. And they’re also available at the American Express Box Office at the Barclays Center.
Andre Ward couldn’t have scripted his 175 pound debut any better if he tried. The former king of the super middleweight division has officially busted onto the scene of his new weight class, and he did so in style by dominating Sullivan Barrera. Ward proved himself an immediate force at light heavyweight by thoroughly outclassing the Cuban boxer, who was the #1 contender for Sergey Kovalev’s IBF championship entering the contest. Ward was awarded a unanimous decision victory.
One man who is uniquely qualified to speak on the ill-fated Nick Blackwell-Chris Eubank Junior fight – the story of Saturday’s brutal fight and it’s unfortunate aftermath the subject of all manner of articles in today’s press – is Michael Watson. Watson suffered brain injury in his 1991 fight with Chris Eubank Senior and only after six operations and some incredible determination and effort did Watson partially recover; enough to lead a life he often says he is blessed to have had.
Legendary British boxing trainer Brendan Ingle, at his famous Wincobank Gym in the city of Sheffield, trained a number of young fighters, taking plenty of them to major titles in the 1980s and ‘90s. Arguably the most famous of these Ingle fighters is former featherweight champ and KO king Naseem Hamed. The cocky, sometimes controversial puncher polarised fans in the 1990s and early 2000s, and was loved and disliked in seemingly equal measure.
Andre Ward (29-0) fought for the first time in the light heavyweight division and outpointed Sullivan Barrera (17-1) bumping him off the mandatory challenger spot for the IBF title held by Sergey Kovalev. The Russian watched the fight from ringside and apparently happy at what he witnessed, he stated he wants to fight Ward in the same venue in front of Andre’s home crowd. He had at least two reasons to be happy, first Ward won as expected and cleared the path for the mega fight. Secondly, Ward’s performance, although victorious, indicated he does not belong in this weight class or at least not on top of it, he simply does not have the fire power and physical strength for it.
Former pound-for-pound king, “Sugar” Shane Mosley is all set to get a world title chance (albeit an interim version) after just two comeback wins. The 44-year-old future Hall of Famer will fight Russia’s David Avanesyan in Arizona on May 28th, with the interim WBA 147-pound strap currently held by the 27-year-old on the line. Mosley, who returned to winning ways following a corner retirement loss to Anthony Mundine in November of 2013 (followed by an actual retirement announcement, one that proved to be quite short-lived) has beaten Ricardo Mayorga and, last time out, Patrick Lopez.
Last night at Wembley, in a fight the followed – after a considerable delay – the Chris Eubank Junior-Nick Blackwell battle that sadly saw Blackwell taken to hospital where he remains under observation with a brain bleed – unbeaten heavyweight Hughie Fury won a dull but wide ten-round UD over a faded Dominick Guinn.
As most had expected beforehand, reigning and defending IBF welterweight champion Kell Brook made short work of mandatory challenger Kevin Bizier of Canada last night in his hometown of Sheffield. Destroying the previously unstopped challenger inside just two-rounds, Brook improved to 36-0(25). But immediately after his easy and ruthless night’s work, Brook called out the big guns of the talent-rich 147-pound weight class he believes he can conquer.
In an example of perfect match-making, Andre Ward (29-0, 15 KOs) was able to beat the much slower made to order Sullivan Barrera (17-1, 12 KOs) by a 12 round unanimous decision tonight on HBO in his hometown at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California. It was the perfect opponent for Ward to look good against because Barrera didn’t have the hand speed to give Ward a real test like Adonis Stevenson or one of the other far superior light heavyweights.