By Per Ake Persson, photo by André Boge / Universum Box-Promotion – July 3, Hamburg, Germany: Neither Chambers, nor Dimitrenko had problems making weight and everybody in attendance shed at least a kilo or two at the weigh-in on this blistering hot day for tomorrow´s big show at the Color Line Arena. “Fast” Eddie Chambers came in at 94,5 kg / 208,25 lbs and gives away about ten cm / almost four inches in height to Aleksander Dimitrenko, 115 kg / 253 kg. All in all Dimitrenko is a big favourite but Chambers is the better boxer. If Eddie can pull off a “Chris Byrd”-like performance, he might upset Dimitrenko..
Argentinian Paolo Vazquez is in for a tough fight tomorrow against much-better-than-his-record Vasile Surcica, who hails from Romania but fights out of Barcelona, Spain.
Doing his last show is veteran Jean Marcel Narz. Nartz was there along with Wilfried Sauerland when German boxing was revived in the late 70´s and early 80´s. Narz was matchmaker for Sauerland for a long time, in a time that saw the likes of Graciano Rocchigiani, Henry Maske, Axel Schulz, Sven Ottke, Markus Beyer and many other develop into top class fighters. Marcel left for Universum a few years ago where he´s had various responibilities. Narz won´t leave boxing though and will become vice-President in the German Federation, the BDB.
On the status of WBA supermiddle champ Mikkel Kessler´s mandatory defence against Spotlight Boxing-signed Venezuelan Gusmyl Perdomo promoter Dietmar Poszwa said “I don´t know, we have been waiting for a date for some time now. We are giving Perdomo a keep-busy fight July 11 and hope things work out. We have exellent relations with Team Palle and would like to keep it that way but can´t wait forever either.”
On a possible defence in Germany by WBA lightheavy champ Gabriel Campillo Poszwa simply said: “I don´t know”. Rumor is that Campillo will fight Juergen Brahmer but that is for now only a rumor.
It appears that Polish welter Rafael Jackiewicz is heading for a IBF eliminator at home in Rzeszow August 1 on a Bullit Knockout promotion. Opponent have yet to be announced.
Kazach welter Victor Demayenko is back home after a stint in Las Vegas. There is at the moment no fights scheduled for the 16-0 prospect.
Spanish lightweight Francisco Nohales, 19-12,4, is about to retire after a disappointing loss to Italian Devis Boschiero in May in a fight for the EU title. Nohales was around 2003 5-10-2 but turned his career around with a series of good wins and won the EU crown in 2005.
Euro Boxing Roundup: Aydin vs Bonsu, K2 Ukraine Show, McCloskey Injured
By Per Ake Persson: Will King Arthur Abraham move up to supermiddle now or later? There´s a lot at stake for stablemate Sebastian Sylvester and Finland´s Amin Asikainen. Should Abraham move up Sylvester will move into a fight for the vacant IBF title against Giovanni Lorenzo. If Abraham stays at middle Sylvester and Asikainen will clash for the third time for the EBU crown. The score is one-one with both scoring stoppage wins. Sylvester vs Asikainen have a deadline for purse bids or agreement set for July 9 but was originally set for June 30.
When welters Selcuk Aydin and Jackson Osei Bonsu clash July 10 in Istanbul there is a lot at stake. First and foremost it´s a final WBC eliminator, Aydin defends the WBC Int´l title and the vacant EBU belt, which is also at stake. Jackson has been training in the US but is now back in Belgium and will leave for Turkey next Sunday.
K 2 East in Ukraine promote a show in the big town by the Black Sea, Odessa, July 18, billed as “Champion´s Summer”. It´s headlined by WBA I/C middleweight champ Avantandil Khurtzide in a defence of the title against an opponent to be announced. The chief support feature lightheavy Vyacheslav Uzelkov, WBA I/C titleholder, in a non-title ten-rounder. Maksim Bursak, Valery Brazhnik and Alexander Spirko are all featured on the undercard.
British jr welter Paul McCloskey is out with a hand injury with Colin Lynes stepping with just a few days notice to fight Souleyman M´Baye for the vacant EBU title on Friday in Levallois Peret. Lynes, 31-5, lost a split decision to Gianluca Branco last year and was stopped by McCloseky in his last outing. M’ Baye, WBA champ for a short spell, also had a tough 2008 losing to Herman Ngoudjo in a IBF eliminator and winning a controversial decision over Barrie Jones in a fight where Boxing News´ reporter had Jones four points up.