Left-Hook Lounge Mailbag: Garcia/Peterson, Quillin/Lee/GGG, & Gary Russell Jr!

Markus H. (Orlando, FL): You were pretty down on Gary Russell Jr. in the past. I wanted to know what were your thoughts about his recent performance and what do you see next for him?

Vivek W. (ESB): There was a point in which I just felt that Russell simply wasn’t showing any evolution. We knew he possessed great speed and a certain level of skill, but we never really saw it translate against the level of opposition good enough to bring all of it out. After seeing him coast to easy victories over guys who had no business in the ring with him, it simply got old. All that being said, just as he once warranted criticism, I think at this stage he clearly deserves praise! And a lot of it!

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A cruiserweight monster in the making – Dmitry Kudryashov

Dmitry Kudryashov, 17-0 (KO 17), a name widely unfamiliar to the boxing public, has emerged as a rising force and a sure-fire championship prospect. His latest fight took place on April 10 in Moscow on the Lebedev – Kalenga undercard when he defended his WBA Int’l cruiser weight title against seasoned Puerto Rican contender Francisco Palacios. Palacios went the distance twice with former WBC World champ Wlodarsczyk and was supposed to challenge the basically untested Russian who had other plans. Kudryashov boxed stylishly behind a tight high guard scanning for openings before he threw a double left hook, to the ribs and to the temple and put Palacios out cold. As soon as the referee stopped counting he called for first aid and the fallen warrior needed a minute or two before he woke up and a couple more before he was able to get up and sit on his chair. It was a scary ending which replaced the usual celebration of the winner with relief at the recovery of the opponent. The fight lasted 52 seconds.

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We Are Leeds – Undercard Ringside Review

Martin J Ward TKO5 Maxi Hughes – Martin J Ward, 11-0-2 (6KO’s), left no room for doubt second time around as he convincingly halted Maxi Hughes, 13-2-2 (2KO’s), on his stool at the closure of the 5th round of their super-featherweight rematch.

It’s been a long wait for Tony Sims’s charge; he felt he had done enough in the first meeting in December – in which he was controversially down twice – to earn more than the majority draw awarded.

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2015 Boxcino Semi-Finals Results, Sands Casino in Bethlehem, PA – April 10

by Joe Latti – Brick City Boxing – The 2015 Boxcino Tournament continues to impress, as this edition took Sands Casino in Bethlehem, PA by storm on Friday, April 10th. The show was promoted by Arthur Pelullo’s Banner Promotions and broadcast live on ESPN’s Friday Night Fights on ESPN2. The semi-finals featured four-eight round bouts in the Jr. Middleweight and Heavyweight divisions, with the winners advancing to the 2015 Boxcino Finals on May 22, 2015 in Corona, CA.

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Ma Yi Ming ready for the Petalcorin Challenge

Photo: SECA Promotions – With the biggest fight of his career less than a fortnight away, it … continue

Andy Lee vs Peter Quillin ends in draw; Garcia beats Peterson

In an exciting fight, WBO middleweight champion Andy Lee (34-2-1, 24 KOs) got up off the canvas twice to rally in the second half of the fight to salvage a 12 round majority draw against former WBO 160 pound champion Peter Quillin (31-0-1, 22 KOs). Lee knocked Quillin down in the 7th round with a right hook to the head. That knockdown negated one of Quillin’s earlier knockdowns.

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Josh Warrington v Dennis Tubieron – Ringside Review

Josh Warrington claimed the vacant WBC international featherweight title this evening with a 12 round unanimous decision victory over the teak tough Filipino Dennis Tubieron.

The local hero – now mandatory challenger to Gary Russell Jnr’s WBC featherweight world championship – was greeted in the customary raucous fashion held on reserve for him at the First Direct Arena in Leeds, which resembled more of summer rock festival than a championship boxing show.

Such an atmosphere can’t help but transfer to target of its affection and Warrington looked ready to explode as he soaked up every ounce of it pacing around his corner, in which he was oddly accompanied by ex-footballer and actor Vinnie Jones.

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Frank Galarza KOs Sheldon Moore Friday On ShoBox

Undefeated super welterweight Frank Galarza put on a show for his hometown fans, knocking out Sheldon Moore in the third round of the main event of ShoBox: The New Generation on Friday at the Aviator Sports and Events Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.

Known as “The Brooklyn Rocky,” Galarza (17-0-2, 11 KOs) may have graduated from prospect to contender with yet another early round knockout on the prospect developmental series. Galarza staggered Moore with a big left hook in the third and then attacked with a series of shots to the head and a big right hook to the body that floored the Belgian boxer. Moore (13-3-1, 9 KOs) looked determined to get up but was unable to recover and was counted out at 1:41 as he lay on the canvas for the first time in his career.

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Freddie Roach: “It’s for the soul of boxing.”

“It’s for the soul of boxing.”

This was Freddie Roach’s summation of the stakes involved in Manny Pacquaio’s upcoming fight – the most lucrative in boxing history – against Floyd Mayweather Jr at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on May 2.

“I can’t lose this fight,” he went on as we sat downstairs from Wildcard in the private gym he opened last year for the sole purpose of working with the likes of Manny Pacquaio and Miguel Cotto in seclusion.

It had been six years since my last visit to the Wildcard Boxing Club, and ten years since I’d been a regular while living in the city. The changes that had taken place in that time were immediately obvious during my initial arrival at the gym two days prior.

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Lebedev beats Kalenga; Brutal Undercard KO Extravaganza In Russia!

In an outstanding cruiserweight war, Number 1 Ranked Contender YOURI “El Toro” KALENGA was in the biggest fight of his life on Friday night in Moscow, Russia, challenging World Boxing Association (‘WBA’) Champion DENIS LEBEDEV.

With each warrior being dropped once during the 12-round battle, judges’ scores were 115-112 twice and 116-111 for Lebedev.

“I tip my hat to Lebedev, he’s a great fighter and perhaps I’ll get another chance to face him. He’s without question the toughest fighter I’ve faced but I thought I clearly won the fight,” said the disappointed Kalenga.

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