By Prince Dornu-Leiku: Ghana’s Patrick Allotey is the new WBC International silver welterweight champion after claiming a unanimous points victory over Patrick Sou Toke last night in Accra. All three ringside judges scored the fight in favour of the unbeaten Ghanaian who enforced the first career loss on his Burkinabe namesake.
WBC Vice-President Houcine Houichi who is also President of ABU was on hand to decorate Allotey (now an impressive 20-0, 15 KOs) with his new belt. Afterwards, Allotey praised Sou Toke (14-1, 7 KOs) for being a good opponent but is quickly looking beyond this fight.
“The opponent was good, I won’t say he was tough but he was good and a very good test. I want to be a world champion, I can’t say when but I will work very hard for it,” the new champ told Ghanaian website SportsInGhana.com moments after his coronation.
Allotey’s win over Sou Toke was the headliner of the ‘Put up or Shut up’ bill put together by Ghanaian promotional outfit Landmark Promotions and Management Limited under the auspices of the WBC and the Ghana Boxing Authority (GBA).
On the undercard, one boxer who was shut up certainly is 51 year old Simon Peter McIntosh who was given a rude awakening from his dream to still become boxing world champion after suffering a first round stoppage loss to Isaac Nettey in his first fight in nearly three years.
Many will expect this to be the last of the Nigerian born Anazor Obele, but McIntosh is calling for a rematch. “I don’t know if it was a plot against me, the referee shouldn’t have stopped the fight. I was ready to continue. I want a rematch very soon because I’m the best, Ghanaian boxing fans deserve the best,” he stated even in the humiliating defeat.
Hot prospect Sena Agbeko once again stated his case with a first round stoppage of Alani Souleyman in a Middleweight contest to improve to 10-0, 10 KOs.
Also world title chasing Rafael Mensah improved his unbeaten record to 14-0, 11 KOs following a unanimous points decision triumph over Nigerian Prince Nurudeen whilst another Nigerian based in Ghana Isaac Ekpo stopped Ghanaian Daniel Adduku in round 3 of a Light heavyweight contest.
Also victorious via a first round stoppage of his opponent is Emmanuel Omari Danso, the fighter popularly called Kwahu Tyson who has sworn to step into the shoes of hero ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson and stop his opponents as the legendary American did once upon a time. Kwahu Tyson knocked out Cudjoe Daara in their Light heavyweight championship to improve his record to 9-0, 9 KOs.
Issa Samir was also a winner on the night, capping a fine display to secure a round 3 TKO over Eric Kwardey.
Credit: Prince Dornu-Leiku / www.sportsinghana.com
FORMER HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION, LARRY HOLMES, ANNOUNCED AS VIP FOR FANTASY SPRINGS RESORT CASINO LIVE BOXING EVENT
LOS ANGELES, December 27 – The Friday, Jan. 6 edition of ShoBox: The New Generation on SHOWTIME promises to kickoff 2012 in a big way. Larry Holmes, also know as the “Champ,” who honed his skills working as a sparring partner with impressive fighters such as Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, Earnie Shavers and Jimmy Young, will be available for a meet and greet that is open to the public with purchase of a ticket. Holmes earned his Heavyweight Title in 1978 and reigned as the world heavyweight champion for more than seven years. His left jab is considered one of the greatest weapons in the history of sports. He had a comeback in the 1990’s, at an age when most fighters wouldn’t think about returning. During that time, he had 21 wins, 2 of which were for titles.
Holmes will be on hand to meet the public, sign autographs and take pictures, from 7-8pm in the Fantasy Springs Resort Casino Special Events Center.
Golden Boy also announces today, another night of competitive action as the co-featured fight will be an intriguing matchup in the 135-pound weight class pitting unbeaten prospects Michael Perez and Omar Figueroa Jr. against each other in a 10 round battle for the WBO Inter-Continental Youth Lightweight Title. The night of boxing is headlined by the NABA USA Lightweight Title fight between Luis Ramos Jr. and Raymundo Beltran at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, Calif.
Ramos vs. Beltran and Perez vs. Figueroa are presented by Golden Boy Promotions, sponsored by Corona, DeWalt Tools and AT&T and will be televised live on ShoBox: The New Generation at 11:00 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast) on SHOWTIME.
Tickets, priced at $25, $35 and $45, are on sale now and available for purchase at the Fantasy Springs Box Office, by calling (800) 827-2946 or online at www.fantasyspringsresort.com. Doors at Fantasy Springs will open at 6:00pm PT on fight night and the first bell rings at 6:30pm PT.
A native of Newark, New Jersey, 21-year-old phenom Michael “The Artist” Perez (15-0-1, 9 KO’s) went from local hero to one of the brightest prospects in boxing with four statement-making knockout victories in 2011. Included in these four knockouts were wins over then 24-4 Ira Terry and then 24-8 Tyrone Harris, proving that the former National Golden Gloves Champion was ready for primetime as a professional and on Jan. 6, he will get his chance to shine on ShoBox against fellow prospect Figueroa.
22-year-old Omar “Panterita” Figueroa (13-0-1, 10 KO’s) is a ferocious puncher whose ability to take out any opponent in his path at any time has made him a fan favorite in his home state of Texas. In 2011, the Weslaco native took his show on the road, sandwiching a June decision win over Eric Cruz in Hidalgo with out of town knockouts over John Figueroa and Marcos Herrera in Los Angeles and Chicago, respectively. On Jan. 6, he’ll continue his U.S. tour with a bout in Indio against Perez.
Lundy responds to Williams’ threat
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (Dec. 27, 2011) – Tired of being earmarked by the contenders in the 135-pound division, reigning North American Boxing Federation (NABF) lightweight champion “Hammerin’” Hank Lundy has a direct response to the challengers questioning his credentials, specifically No. 2-ranked Dannie Williams, who threatened Tuesday to “hurt” Lundy if the two should face one another in 2012.
“Everyone knows ‘Hammerin’’ Hank will fight anyone, anywhere at anytime. This has to stop,” Lundy said. “I’ve proven myself time and time again on the road. Now y’all have to come to me. I went out to Chicago and knocked out the former world champ [David Diaz on Aug. 9]. What more do I have to do to get respect? So, if y’all aren’t coming to Philadelphia, Rhode Island, or Connecticut to fight ‘Hammerin’’ Hank, then we don’t have a fight. I’m tired of going into people’s backyards. It is what it is.”
Lundy (20-1-1, 11 KOs) – a Philadelphia native now ranked No. 4 in the world among lightweights in the World Boxing Council (WBC) – hasn’t fought in his hometown since 2009, yet has won five of his last six bouts during a stretch that includes trips to Chicago, Memphis, Boston, Rhode Island, Montreal and Connecticut. The combined record of his opponents during that same stretch is a remarkable 120-9-3. Among the victims are Diaz, the former WBC world lightweight champion; Richard Abril, the reigning World Boxing Association (WBA) world lightweight champion; and former two-time Venezuelan Olympian Patrick Lopez, whom Lundy beat for the then-vacant NABF title in April in front of a worldwide audience on ESPN’s “Friday Night Fights” – the fourth of Lundy’s five consecutive nationally-televised bouts since 2010.
Classic Entertainment & Sports president Jimmy Burchfield – Lundy’s promoter – is weighing several options, including the reigning WBC Continental Americas champion Williams (20-1, 16 KOs), as Lundy aims toward a title defense in March.
“Dannie Williams can talk the talk, but has he walked the walk? Who has he fought?” Burchfield said. “Look at the records. The last time Dannie Williams stepped into the ring, he fought an opponent with 10 losses [John Willoughby on Nov. 18]. Hank Lundy’s last six opponents don’t even have 10 losses combined.
“Stop kidding yourself,” he continued. “You had your shot at a legitimate title and lost [to Eloy Perez for the WBC U.S. National Boxing Council super featherweight title in 2009]. You came back two years later to win the WBC Continental Americas lightweight title against an untested opponent [Manuel Leyva] in your own backyard. You’re not a road warrior like Hank Lundy, nor have you faced the caliber of opponents Lundy has faced throughout his career. That’s why you’re 11th [in the WBC] and Hank is No. 4.
“Talk is cheap; right now, Hank is the most targeted fighter in the lightweight division. He’s the fighter television networks want. There are several options out there for a title defense, and you’re at the bottom of the totem pole.”
Lundy is also ranked No. 7 in the World Boxing Organization (WBO), 11th in the International Boxing Federation (IBF), and No. 2 in the North American Boxing Organization (NABO), whose title he held briefly before losing to John Molina Jr. in 2010. Since then, Lundy has won three consecutive bouts.
For more information on Lundy, or CES’ upcoming schedule, visit www.cesboxing.com.