Former Ghana and West Africa champion, Raymond Commey hopes to finally lay his hands on the WBA Pan Africa Super Bantamweight belt when the Ghanaian boxer faces compatriot, Michael Barnor in Accra next week Friday, May 22.
Commey nicknamed Chorkor Banku defeated Kenyan, Nick Otieno at the Accra Sports Stadium back on December 26 last year apparently for the same belt, but he never got the title due to some technical hitches which according to the WBA did not warrant the fight as sanctioned.
Whether or not he chooses to use his former “funtime” moniker on May 30th, IBF world welterweight challenger Frankie Gavin has insisted he will be all business when he steps between the ropes to face Kell Brook at London’s O2 on Matchroom Sports bumper triple-header-world title card.
It’s no secret Gavin is going to be up against it fighting the slick Wincobank world champion who was excellent last time out returning from a nasty stab wound to the leg to destroy limited mandatory challenger Jo Jo Dan.
The former world amateur champion, who has long been criticised for not fulfilling his obvious potential in the paid ranks, has spoken to Sky Sports about the fight – promising he will be the man to upset Brook on the night.
A week Saturday, British gold medal winning Olympian James DeGale (20-1, 14ko) will attempt to make history when he turns road warrior and travels to Boston to challenge Andre Dirrell (24-1, 16ko) for the vacant IBF 168lb strap.
Should the talented Londoner succeed in his mission, he will become the first gold medal winning Brit in history to then go on and win a world title. Only Chris Finnegan who won gold at the 1968 Melbourne games ended up coming close – losing his shot to light-heavyweight legend Bob Foster in 1972 in the Ring Magazine’s Fight Of The Year.
Birmingham, Ala. (May 14, 2015) – Undefeated Heavyweight World Champion Deontay “The Bronze Bomber” Wilder (33-0, 32 KOs), of Tuscaloosa, Ala., will make the first defense of his title when he faces Eric “Drummer Boy” Molina (23-2, 17 KOs), of Raymondville, Texas, in the main event of SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING® on Saturday, June 13, live on SHOWTIME® (9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT) at Bartow Arena in Birmingham, Ala.
In the co-feature, undefeated Jose “The Sniper” Pedraza (19-0, 12 KOs), of Caguas, Puerto Rico, will be opposed by Andrey Klimov (19-1, 9 KOs), of Klimovski, Russia, in a 12-rounder for the vacant IBF Junior Lightweight World Championship.
It’s pretty fair to say that Britain’s former 140lb world champion Amir Khan comes in for more than his fair share of stick – particularly over the fact that for the last two years he has (some say desperately and at the expense of his credibility) been pursuing a mega-money fight with P4P king Floyd Mayweather.
That and his not fighting domestic rival – IBF 147lb champion Kell Brook in a UK super-fight this Summer. Oh – and the fact that his next opponent is light hitting American Chris Algieri in a much maligned and ridiculed fight on the 29th.
Are you getting the idea?
Saturday night sees slick, yet light punching Boxcino tournament winner Willie Monroe Jr (19-1, 6ko) attempt the seemingly impossible when he becomes the 33rd man to step between the ropes to face destructive puncher Gennady Golovkin.
Of the previous 32 men who took on the task – 29 failed to see the final bell.
This is going to be a massive ask for the relatively unknown American and represents a huge jump up in class from anyone he has faced before. To give you an idea for comparative purposes, Brian Vera – now due to fight Britain’s Rocky Fielding – is the best, and last, name on his resume.
There are quite a few figures in boxing who are never short of something to say, one of the most vocal being veteran trainer Abel Sanchez, -for whom Gennady Golovkin is the latest of the world champions he has cornered.
Ahead of Golovkins upcoming 160lb bout with Boxcino tournament winner Willie Monroe Jr on Saturday, Sanchez has spoken to fighthype.com about the seemingly inevitable clash with Mexican superstar Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez in the wake of Saturday’s destruction of James Kirkland.
After his recent ill-advised “racist” tweet ostensibly suggesting that 175lb rival and WBC champion Adonis Steven (26-1, 21ko) is a chimpanzee, unbeaten Russian banger Sergey Kovalev (27-0-1, 24ko) has gone on twitter once again to attempt to hype any potential clash – albeit in a slightly less offensive manner.
Two tweets from the “Krusher” in particular have been re-tweeted hundreds of times.
The first read;
168lb boss Carl Froch, recently stripped of his WBA (reg) title for inactivity, has hinted more than enough recently that the end is nigh. Promoter Eddie Hearn also waded in last week to say he too suspects we’ve seen the last of “The Cobra”, yet The Daily Star are reporting that long time trainer and Team GB Olympic boxing head coach Rob McCracken, may well think otherwise.
Provided Froch fights on for the right reasons – and not just the money – then the former fighter-turned-trainer can feasibly see a return.
He said;
The saga began with Crolla being due to face then-champ Richar Abril for the belt but fate intervened before Christmas when the Manchester prizefighter was hit over the head with a concrete slab confronting burglars at a neighbour’s home.
A fractured skull and a broken ankle, sustained during the assault has kept him out of action until now.