Boxing brainbox Nathan Cleverly met his match when he came head-to-head with former Countdown queen Carol Vorderman in the ring.
The Cardiff University Maths graduate, who’s preparing for his homecoming WBO World Light-Heavywight title defence on February 25th at Cardiff’s Motorpoint Arena, didn’t do his homework, though, and got Vorderman to put on the gloves instead at London’s famous Peacock Gym this week.
Loose Women presenter Vorderman, an Honorary Fellow at Cardiff Uni, got ahead on the scorecards when she nearly KO’d Cleverly – who’s never been floored in 23 fights – in a stunning red dress and killer heels before starting their session.
Cleverly got her in the ring and put her through her paces, with the feisty Welsh TV star unleashing some impressive power-packed punches.
Vorderman said, “I enjoy a bit of boxing and I might take it up properly now. Watch out the Loose Women!”
“I wouldn’t mind having a few rounds with Janet Street Porter some days, but she’s bigger than me and I’d get flattened by round 2, so maybe that’s not such a good idea after all!”
“I think Nathan is an incredible young man. To gain a Maths degree, which is a difficult option, is hard enough. He hasn’t come from a privileged background, he has done it all himself. To do that while training as hard as he did is the sign of a champ,”
A big boxing fan, Vorderman said she will be sitting ringside on the night to give Cleverly plenty of support against his American challenger Tommy Karpency.
She added, “I’ve watched a lot of fights on telly and always wanted to go and see one live and I’m really excited that I’m going to be ringside cheering for Nathan in his world title fight,”
“I like watching a good fight and I’m really interested to see what it’s like to be there up close. Now that I’ve meet Nathan and he’s a lovely person and I hope he wins. He is a young man with a big brain and a great talent and I wish that his every dream comes true.”
Unbeaten Cleverly, 24, one of Britain’s two only world champions, said, “Carol can certainly whack, I can’t imagine any on of her guests getting out of line with her on Loose Women!”
“Unfortunately my maths has taken a back seat since I graduated because I’m now fully focused on training and I didn’t have time to swot up with my maths books before meeting her so I thought I’d get her in the ring instead to make it more even!”
“She can bang, her right hand carries a fair bit of power and close up her hooks and uppercuts are pretty hefty, she can be a right handful if she had more training,”
He added, “It’s great that she will be ringside on fight night at the Motorpoint Arena to give me her support. The show is going really well and is close to selling out which is fantastic for my first fight back in Wales in over four years and it will be live on the BoxNation,”
Remaining tickets can be purchased from the Motorpoint Arena Box Office on 02920 224 488 or online at www.livenation.co.uk/cardiff
Cleverly’s World Boxing Organization (WBO) World Light-Heavyweight title defence against Karpency can be seen live and exclusive on BoxNation (Sky Ch. 456/Virgin Ch. 546) on Saturday 25th February. Join at www.boxnation.tv
BoxNation is the first dedicated subscription boxing TV channel in the UK to bring together the biggest names in amateur, domestic and international boxing with an unbeatable schedule of matches from across the globe.
For just £10 per month BoxNation offers unbeatable value for money for all fight fans. To subscribe to BoxNation simply go to www.boxnation.tv and hit the “Subscribe Now” button and choose your subscription package. Simple
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Spivey-Vazquez, Witherspoon-Saulsberry tonight
ATALNTIC CIITY (February 4, 2012)—TONIGHT, A “can’t miss” all action brawl with potential ramifications as Dorin Spivey takes on Victor Vasquez in the ten round main event.
The entire nine bout card can be seen LIVE all over the world at 8pm eastern for just $9.99 on the worldwide leader for LIVE streaming of combat sports on www.gfl.tv by clicking:
http://www.gfl.tv/Events/Fight/Boxing/DEE_LEE_Promotions_LLC_Presents_Superbrawl_I/1346
A terrific undercard has been assembled that will feature top Heavyweight contender Chazz Witherspoon plus four highly regarded undefeated fighters will look to stay perfect.
Spivey of Portsmouth, Virginia is one of the grizzled veterans of the sport. The thirty-eight year old turned pro all the way back in 1993 and promptly won twenty-six of his first twenty-seven contests before losing to future multi-time world title challenger Juan Lazcano.
Spivey went on to score big victories over the likes of Billy Irwin (34-4); Michael Stewart (28-0-2) and Meacher Major (16-3-1).
Vasquez is known as Philly’s Blood and Guts Warrior as he is always prepared most of the time winds up in a war.
Tonight with so much on the line, fans should expect no different,
Vasquez has a record of 14-5-1 with seven knockouts.
He has won two straight and is taking a big step up in competition but has faced and defeated some of the better prospects in the Philadelphia.
His all action style should be a major test for the battle tested Spivey.
In the eight round co-feature, one of the top Heavyweight’s in the world Chazz “The Gentleman” Witherspoontakes on David Saulsberry.
Witherspoon of Philadelphia has an impressive record of 29-2 with twenty-one knockouts and is just one or two fights away from another major opportunity.
He first has to get by Saulsberry. Every one of Saulsberry’s bouts has ended early so expect fireworks in this bout.
The card will feature some undefeated prospects and exciting bouts including an all action women’s bout.
In a four round Woman’s Featherweight bout, Ela Nunez (11-11-2, 3 KO’s) coming off a sensational knockout just seven days on GFL will fight Nydia Feliciano (3-2-3)
Dennis Hasson (11-0, 3 KO’s) takes on William Santiago (6-7, 2 KO’s) in a six round Cruiserweight bout.
Popular Frankie Fillipone (8-2, 2 KO’s) will square off with Harley Kilfian (9-8, 8 KO’s) in six round Super Middleweight tussle.
Joey Tiberi (6-1, 5 KO’s) will do battle with Steve Cox (2-3,1 KO) in four round Lightweight bout.
The big boys will get it on when Dorsett Barnwell (5-0, 3 KO’s) will take on Jon Bolden (2-3, 2 KO’s) in a four round bout.
Isiah Seldon (5-0, 2KO’s) will look to stay perfect when he takes on Kenneth Moody (2-2-2, 1 KO) in a Middleweight bout scheduled for rounds.
Beginning the action will decorated Lightweight, Keenan Smith (4-0, 1 KO) taking on Detroit’s Chris Finley (2-3, 2 KO’s) in a four round Lightweight bout.
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Benchabla tactical masterclass as Astana Arlans defeat Milano and more
Lausanne, Switzerland, 4 February 2012 – In the stand-out fixture of this World Series of Boxing (WSB) weekend, Astana Arlans delight their home supporters with a hard-fought win against Group A leaders the Dolce & Gabbana Milano Thunder. The Venky’s Mumbai Fighters move into quarter-final contention with quality victory over Bangkok Elephants as Dynamo Moscow beat the Los Angeles Matadors in Russia. Istanbul Bosphorus outclass the visiting Leipzig Leopards and Baku Fires power past Paris United as Germakhanov books his place for the WSB Individual Championships in May.
Full results and rankings
Schedule
Relive all the matches on www.worldseriesboxingtv.com
Match of the week
It was a real test of character for the Astana Arlans at the packed Almaty Sports Palace on Friday evening as the top ranked team in Group A the Dolce & Gabbana Milano Thunder came to town for a clash of epic proportions. 20-year-old Khabibulla Ismail-Akhunov worked hard but was ultimately undone by the experienced Ukrainian southpaw Vitaliy Volkov as Milano drew first blood to go ahead in the tie. Merey Akshalov who started off slowly quickly found his range in the Lightweight contest to outbox Miklos Varga and draw the match level. Sergiy Derevyanchenko once again proved he is almost in a class of his own with the valiant Astana’s Kanat Slam quickly running out of ideas to break him down in their Middleweight match-up as the Italian outfit went ahead for the second time in the match. Benchabla’s tactical master class then frustrated Frenchman Ludovic Groguhé as the scores were once again level with all eyes then turned to the Heavyweight contest that would decide the outcome of this nail-biter. Debutant Milano Cameroonian Romarick Ngoula Tangoum started off on the front foot and his exuberant style seemed to be leaving him vulnerable to Ruslan Myrsatayev’s counter-attacks. With both fighters throwing lots of punches, this was anyone’s fight and the crowd was sensing the drama as they cheered each fist that landed. In the fourth round, Myrsatayev connected with a solid overhead right that landed hard on Ngoula temple and form there, there was no way back. The TKO handed Astana Arlans a well earned 3:2 victory, moving them level on points with the Dolce & Gabbana Milano Thunder team in Group A. Watch this match again LIVE on WSB TV
Fight of the week
Billed as Chapter III in this enthralling saga, Astana’s Benchabla vs. Milano’s Groguhé did not disappoint, with this fight on a real knife edge throughout five excellent rounds of boxing action. The intelligent Algerian Benchabla was tactically spot-on in this contest, moving well and ensuring he kept Frenchman Groguhé at arm’s length with some clever jabs. With Benchabla comfortable in the knowledge he had won the first three rounds, Groguhé went on the rampage to try and claw his way back into the fight. Although the Milano Light Heavyweight orthodox fighter had his opponent in quite some trouble late on, Benchabla combination punching was too good as he stuck to his clever game plan to triumph.
Rest of the action
Baku Fires remain simply unstoppable as Paris United’s resistance was overcome in this Group B match. The Azeri pace-setters’ 3:2 victory ensured they remain unbeaten this season. This was a bad-tempered affair with seemingly a lot of bad blood left in between the two teams, ever since Pairs United triumphed in last season’s semi-finals. The contest looked like boiling over several times with both sets of boxers going at it hard from the off. Baku Fires Gairbek Germakhanov consolidated his place as the top ranked Bantamweight, to look almost certain to fight at the WSB Individual Championships in May, after defeating Samir Brahimi in the evening’s opening contest. 25-year-old Abdelkader Chadi then drew Paris United level at 1-1 with a quality display versus Madadi Nagzibekov. Michel Tavares saw his hopes of reaching the Individual Finals dented after succumbing to defeat against Heybulla Mursalov as Baku Fires went 2-1 up in on the night. Ramazan Magomedau made it four wins out of four this season for himself as he out-boxed Paris United’s Croatian Hrvoje Sep to give the home team the overall victory. Filip Hrgovic then reduced the deficit as he dominated his Heavyweight rival Abdulkadir Abdullayev, but the night belonged to the Baku Fires once again. Watch this match again LIVE on WSB TV
Dynamo Moscow were ruthless in the Russian capital as Bantamweight Anvar Yunusov and rising Middleweight star Aleksandr Ivanov set the tone to overawe the visiting Los Angeles Matadors. This comprehensive victory for the home team sees them draw level on points with Dolce & Gabbana Milano Thunder and Astana Arlans in Group A, who they will each now face in the remaining two fixtures of the regular season. The next fortnight will be a defining one in the race to top this tightly contested Group. Watch this match again LIVE on WSB TV
The Venky’s Mumbai Fighters moved up to fourth place in Group B with a convincing 4:1 victory over the Bangkok Elephants. Middleweight Israeli Konstantin Snigour looked class as he gave the Mumbai team an early lead at the T-Box Mobile Arena at the Inorbit Mall. Leanid Charnabayeu came out on top in the Light Heavyweight contest to earn himself a first victory this season and give the Indian Franchise a 2-0 lead in the tie. Bantamweight Satjapron Jumroensan then clawed one back for the visiting Bangkok Elephants as he convincingly outpointed Mirbek Sherov. Charly Suarez made sure of the win as he triumphed in the Lightweight contest and Uaine Fa confirmed his growing reputation with a sensational demonstration of power against Anatolii Antoniuk in the Heavyweight contest. Watch this match again LIVE on WSB TV
Leipzig Leopards continue to struggle away from home as they taste defeat once again, this time to the well-organised Istanbul Bosphorus. The unpredictability of these two teams made it a very intriguing contest; however no one could have predicted that the Turkish team would have been so dominant on the night. Veteran Huseyin Dundar was too good for Edgar Walth in the opening Bantamweight fight before Bunyamin Aydin rocked Rashid Kassem in the fourth round on his way to make it 2-0 for the Istanbul Bosphorus. Jaba Khositashvili then showcased his skills to win against Patrick Thomas Wojcicki and give the home team an unassailable lead for the overall victory. Bahram Muzaffer surprisingly lost to Enrico Kölling in the Light Heavyweight fight before Belarusian southpaw Viktar Zuyev overwhelmed Alexander Overnov to give the Istanbul Bosphorus a comprehensive 4:1 victory in Group B. Watch this match again LIVE on WSB TV
Boxer of the week
Filipino newcomer Charly Suarez announced his arrival to the WSB competition in explosive style as the 23-year-old orthodox Venky’s Mumbai Fighters’ Lightweight spectacularly knocked-out his opponent. Suarez had looked hungry from the first bell, hounding down his taller rival throughout and when he unleashed a combination straight left to the chin and a hard right hook to the face midway through round two, Egkachai Prommaka hit the canvas and never recovered. Suarez was punching the air in delight and that performance had the crowds in raptures. He will be one to watch.
The Mexico City Guerreros vs. Beijing Dragons tie was postponed due to problems with the issuing of visas for the visiting team. A new date for the match will be announced shortly.