Anthony Joshua Looking To Impress Before Kingpin Showdown

Big punching British heavyweight prospect Anthony Joshua (11-0, 11ko) – tipped as a future star by many – takes another step toward his “acid-test” fight with solid American veteran Kevin Johnson on May 30th with a scheduled 8 rounder against South American journeyman Raphael Zumbano Love on Saturday as part of Matchroom Sports Sky Sports broadcast from Birmingham.

Whilst nothing but a win is expected, the Olympic gold medalist is making all the right noises ahead of the contest, promising an “explosive” performance.

He said to Sky Sports;

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Golden Boy Promotions files $300 million lawsuit against Al Haymon

Golden Boy Promotions today filed a $300 million lawsuit against Al Haymon and his related companies and Waddell & Reed Financial, Inc. and its related hedge funds, alleging their repeated violation of the antitrust laws and the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act. The case was filed in Federal Court in Los Angeles.

Since the moment Al Haymon launched Premier Boxing Champions, he has repeatedly and brazenly broken the letter and spirit of the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act that is meant to protect fighters from exploitation. As part of an anti-competitive conspiracy that includes financial backers from Waddell & Reed, Haymon has “entered into agreements to restrain trade in a substantial portion of the market for promotion of Championship-Caliber Boxers,” the bombshell new lawsuit claims.

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Mayweather “open to a rematch with Pacquiao”

The fans may have had too much of Mayweather and Pacquiao for the last several months but the saga continues. Mayweather has stated, or rather texted his wish to have another go with Manny Pacquiao. He sent a text message to Stephen A. Smith from ESPN expressing his interest in a sequel. Pacman cried rematch right after the final bell and the fighters seem unanimous in their decision to finalize their careers with forging a rivalry. The rivalry used to be intriguing before it materialized into “the fight of the century” which failed to meet even the most conservative expectations of aficionados while it satisfied most of the naysayers’ warnings. The numbers have not been released yet but it looks like the fight may have met at least one high expectation that the fans care little about – a grossing pay-per-view record.

Pacquiao announced a shoulder injury after the fight which got him into several kinds of trouble. He did not need an excuse as he did well and even his opponent complimented him, saying “I take my hat off to him”. Team Pacquiao behaved erratically after the fight, they were in denial and showed little class in reconciling with the verdict, fair or not and maintaining dignity.

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Can Matthew Macklin Bounce Back?

This Saturday, Birmingham middleweight Matthew Macklin (31-6, 20ko) attempts to steer his career back towards world title glory in a confidence building fight against Ferenc Albert (12-7, 7ko) on the Matchroom sport show from the city’s Barclaycard Arena.

Macklin – just days shy of his 33rd birthday – is coming off a devastating knockout loss to Argentine contender Jorge Sebastian Heiland (25-4-2) last November that left many in the trade questioning whether the Brum fighter still has the goods to mix it at top level.

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24/7 Canelo vs. Kirkland Full Episode (HBO Boxing); Fighters Arrive In Houston

Cinco De Mayo unleashed “Canelomania” as Canelo Alvarez and James “Mandingo Warrior” Kirkland arrived in Houston on the celebrated holiday to kickoff fight week for their highly anticipated clash on May 9 at Minute Maid Park and live on HBO World Championship Boxing ®. The fighters greeted Houston fans at a special Cinco De Mayo Fan Fiesta hosted by Corona and HEB and then sped off to attend the ceremonial coin toss for the Houston Dynamo vs. San Jose Earthquakes game along with Oscar De La Hoya, President and Founder of Golden Boy Promotions.

Tickets for May 9 Canelo vs. Kirkland are priced at $350, $150, $100, $50 and $25, plus applicable fees and service charges, are available for purchase at Astros.com/boxing, the Minute Maid Park Box Office (Monday-Friday, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.) all Ticketmaster outlets, by calling Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000, online at www.ticketmaster.com. There is a 19-ticket limit per household.

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British Blagger Gets Ringside For Mayweather v Pacquiao

One normally doesn’t associate the North Yorkshire city of Hull with Hollywood A-list glamour, but British media is alight with the news that a business graduate from the city blagged his way ringside for last Saturday’s mega-fight and ended up meeting a horde of boxing figures and celebrities including the fighters themselves.

Steve Carruthers, who had managed to obtain a $2000 ticket for the fight, told the Hull Daily Mail how after following actor Mark Wahlberg down to ringside – and pretending to be a part of Leonardo Di Caprio’s entourage, he spent the evening swigging champagne in the VIP bar with fighters and famous faces, taking selfies with Christian Bale, Donald Trump and Michael Keaton.

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Only In America! Pacquiao Sued For Injury

I’m a Brit so please forgive me if you DON’T find the American legal system slightly farcical at times, yet the BBC is reporting that two “people” have filed a lawsuit against Manny Pacquiao in Nevada for “defrauding ticket buyers, television viewers and gamblers” after the fight on Saturday.

The litigation culture in America is something foreign in the extreme to us and all this mess has stemmed from Pacquiao’s post fight insistence that a torn rotator cuff in his shoulder was to blame for his underwhelming, yet spirited performance that resulted in a UD defeat.

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Ricky Burns – Last Shot At Glory Against Omar Figueroa

This weekend Scotland’s Ricky Burns (37-4-1, 11ko) will enter the proverbial “Lion’s Den” when he attempts the monumental task of dethroning unbeaten former WBC lightweight champion Omar Figueroa Jr (24-0-1, 18ko) as part of Al Haymon’s PBC brand – in his opponents home state of Texas.

Despite insisting he ultimately wants to remain at lightweight, the Coatbridge fighter is moving to 140lb to fight the Mexican-American who stopped Daniel Estrada in his last fight some 9 months ago.

It’s certainly going to be a tough, tough ask for the former world champion who, since losing his title on home soil to Terence Crawford in March last year, has faced questions over whether he still has what it takes to operate at top level.

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Eddie Hearn ” Mayweather Won’t Fight Kell Brook Or Amir Khan”

Britain’s biggest promoter Eddie Hearn, who looks after IBF welterweight champion Kell Brook, has poured scorn on suggestions that Floyd Mayweather will face his fighter for the final fight of his Showtime contract in September.

Speaking to talkSPORT, Hearn said of the suggestion;

“Kell Brook is not a big enough fight for Floyd Mayweather. Floyd doesn’t want to fight young lions and that includes Brook and Amir Khan.”

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Canelo v Kirkland – “Will Kirkland Turn Up?”

With the debate still raging at whether or not Saturday’s fight will have attracted new fans to the sport, the dedicated hardcore are turning their attentions to the weekend and the return of Mexican star Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez (44-1-1, 31ko) who squares off against big punching James Kirkland (32-1, 28ko) in Houston, TX in a fight that – on paper at least – should be far more entertaining than the May-Pac affair.

At least that is what Golden Boy chief Oscar De La Hoya is promising, previously telling fighthype.com

“This will be a dangerous and fun fight to watch. You’re guaranteed to see fireworks, guaranteed to see a knock-out. One punch can change it all.”

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