Boxing News

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Roy Jones Jr., and always has been a conundrum. A man with a paradoxical capacity not only for heart-warming kindness but also unconscionable cruelty, he can flash an unassuming, seemingly genuine modesty whilst, usually with a bit more vocal inflection, be equally inclined to launch into an egotistical, cringe-inducing tirade in which he is likely to routinely refer to himself as "Roy Jones" in a tone thickly smeared with an arrogant and extremely unappealing vanity.

Nevertheless, he has always been a fighter intensely aware of the untold hazards that saturate his chosen profession and, on numerous occasions, has freely admitted to spending much of his fabled career in fear of permanently harming one of his adversaries. And as a consequence, often claims to have found himself subconsciously holding something back. Or in boxing terms, lacking a killer instinct. More...

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As sure as the sun rises and sets, there invariably comes a night in every prospects respective career when the spoon feeding ceases all the questions that cloak him must finally be answered. For the undefeated Sechew 'Iron Horse' Powell, that night has not only arrived but is rapping loudly on his door.

The former New York Golden Gloves champion is primed for the final examination to determine whether he is indeed the real McCoy or, should he falter, a mere triumph of careful matchmaking. And in a game where illusion so often overshadows substance, you never truly know until you know – you know? More...

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Click for larger image © Stefan Christou / Saddo Boxing

Making the first defence of his EBU Cruiserweight crown, Bermondsey’s David Haye delighted a capacity crowd inside the atmospheric York Hall with a gruelling eighth round stoppage of amateur rival Lasse Johansen. Headlining the Maloney Promotions bill, Haye saw his early thunder bounce off the concrete features of an impossibly sturdy challenger before a furious flurry of leather ended matters suddenly and spectacularly.

Dragged beyond the fifth round for the first time in a career jam-packed with glittering knockouts, the freakishly powerful Haye huffed and puffed but still had enough to blow his man down – eventually. With his shock loss to Carl Thompson still daisy fresh in our minds, more than a few breaths were held in the roaring partisan crowd when the lanky challenger slapped the champion across the face with a scornful smile after withstanding his best offerings. It was a look that carried more weight than any punch he’d thrown to that point, and seemed to knock Haye back on his heels. More...

A war was promised, and on Saturday night at the ExCel arena in London, a war is exactly what we got. Brixton's Danny Williams is the man of the moment, narrowly out pointing Bedford born bruiser Matt Skelton over twelve punishing rounds live on ITV1 to retain his Commonwealth crown and solidify, once and for all, his standing as the nations’ leading big man. Claiming his second undefeated scalp in less than three months, a deserved world title shot may now be on the horizon for the amiable champion.

Rolling out of their corners like a pair of inexorable tanks, the fiercely focused fighters had destruction in their eyes and fire shooting through their veins. With the clang of the opening bell still ringing in the warm air, they locked horns ferociously. Both vying for an early advantage, they immediately sought to impose their formidable strength and will on the other. Almighty clanks resonated throughout the arena as they collided early and often, their bodies making an almost metallic sound when they clashed. More...

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Making a rare London appearance, British and Commonwealth Super Middleweight champion Carl “The Cobra” Froch overcame a ponderous start to grind down Australian journeyman Dale Westerman in nine tougher than expected rounds at the prestigious York Hall arena in Bethnal Green. Headlining the Hennessy Sports show, screened live on Sky Sports, Nottingham based Froch struggled to find any sort of rhythm in the early going and it was only when his fleshy opponent began to fade that he was able to assert himself and eventually force an unspectacular stoppage.

When referee John Keane called a halt to the action, it was to save a fighter who wasn’t so much being battered as he was plain old knackered. Despite not being seriously hurt, the huffing and puffing Aussie actually looked relieved when the fight was waved off. No doubt he was more than satisfied with his showing up to that point, and appreciated the chance of an early shower. More...

Click for larger image © Stefan Christou / Saddo Boxing

Sitting with magnificent pride along the icy waters of the River Thames, the HMS Belfast graciously welcomed members of the media into one of its cosy cabins for a press conference to announce an exclusive three-fight deal negotiated by Fight Academy and U.S based outfit Banner Promotions with WBA/IBF light-welterweight champion Ricky “The Hitman” Hatton.

If all goes to plan, Hatton (40-0- 30KO’s) will make his American debut this May in a 20,000-seat tent at the Foxwoods Resort in Mashantucket, Connecticut against a high profile opponent.

How fitting, Robert Waterman of Fight Academy remarked off the bat, that Hatton’s impending invasion of America be announced from inside a Battleship which, apart from being one of the most potent cruisers in the Second World War, was the first vessel to bomb Normandy prior to the Allied invasion. More...

Click for larger image © Stefan Christou Saddo Boxing

In a press conference held early this morning on the HMS Belfast in London, it was announced Ricky “The Hitman’ Hatton will be taking on America in a three-fight deal with Arthur Pelullo’s Banner Promotions in association with Fight Academy, his first fight under the deal will be in May on either Showtime or HBO. No opponent or venue was confirmed, but Hatton is likely to take on newly crowned welterweight king Carlos Baldomir, Vivian Harris or fan

favourite Arturo Gatti depending on the outcome of the wrangling over television rights, the conclusion of which, is hoped to be announced in six days time.

Full article with more photos to follow later

Fighting For The Brits!

When Graham Earl, gloved up and ready to throw down, stares into the glaring eyes of his opponent this Friday on a Maloney Promotions bill at the Goresbrook Leisure Centre in Dagenham, a broiling national pride warming the pit of his belly is guaranteed to reach boiling point and take the British and Commonwealth
lightweight champion to a place he has never been before.

From Belarus, he takes on the WBC rated and extremely dangerous Yuri Romanov. Boasting a perfect record on British soil, the European danger-man has thrice traveled to our windy shores to do battle with the local talent. More...

A forlorn figure watched longingly from the shadows as his team-mate stood illuminated on the Olympic podium, about to receive his Gold.

It was a bittersweet moment if ever there was one. How could he, at least outwardly, not be happy for Audley? After all, they were not only countrymen but friends. If his face creased into a smile though, rest assured it was a shallow gesture. Smoke and mirrors, a disguise. Behind the grin lay nothing but regret and sadness, encapsulated in a single, unrelenting thought. "That could have been me up there…" Maybe, even, it should have been.

Courtney Fry and Audley Harrison arrived at the Sydney 2000 Games, side by side, with the hopes of a country resting firmly on their well developed shoulders. They were Team GB’s sole boxing representatives, and as such, were both under enormous pressure to perform. We all know Harrison’s story by now, the Edmonton southpaw delivered emphatically. Fry, on the other hand, didn’t even come close. Instead, the 98’ Commonwealth Games Gold Medallist, debilitated into a dud. More...

It is official. Athens 2004 Olympic lightweight Silver medalist Amir Khan is to turn professional with none other than Frank Warren as his promoter and manager. The not so shocking announcement came in the immediate aftermath of the eighteen-year-old prodigies’ rousing 19-13

triumph over amateur legend, Mario Kindelan, last Saturday night. The bout happened at the Reebok stadium in Bolton and was shown live on ITV, was watched by an estimated 6.3 million people around Britain and unfolded as a perfect, if not slightly manufactured, springboard for what was an inevitable transition into the paid ranks for the Bolton quicksilver. According to Warren, Khan will make his debut in July at the Excel arena in London on the under-card of the British heavyweight title-fight between the unbeaten Matt Skelton and former WBC title challenger Danny Williams. As for Kindelan, the time has come to bid him a fond farewell as the great man will likely retire at the age of thirty-three as a three-time world and double Olympic champion. He returns home to Cuba as a national hero, and irrefutably goes down in the history books as one of the sports great amateur practitioners. More...

Joe Calzaghe (39-0) kept alive his mega-fight ambitions last weekend with a repeat victory over former first round knockout victim Mario Veit (45-2). The long reigning Welsh champion showed his mettle by traveling into hostile territory for only the second time in his career,

as he put his title on the line against the much improved number-one challenger and hometown favorite. Defending his WBO super middleweight crown for the sixteenth time in front of an 8000 strong crowd inside the Volkswagenhalle in Braunschweig, near Hanover, Calzaghe reaffirmed his superiority over the lanky German with another convincing stoppage, this time in the sixth frame. With the win, the door now opens for a potential unification clash with IBF title-holder, Jeff “Left Hook” Lacy, later on in the year. It is a fight that Joe needs desperately; his stagnating career has had the reek of wasted talent for more than a few years now and a big fight, and more importantly a big win, is the only way to restore his waning credibility as a legitimate champion. More...

Is modesty a virtue? If you are a young boxer grappling for big fights and public recognition, then the answer to that question is a definite no; boxing is a fickle sport with fans even more fickle. Boxing is a sport revolutionized by the arrival of someone called Muhammad Ali (anyone ever heard of him?), whose impact

was immeasurable as he essentially transformed the “sweet science” from a sport into an entertainment industry, and as such, marketability is now the name of the game. To be marketable, and therefore in a position to earn the big bucks, a fighter must sell himself or be sold to his audience comparative to a product. Ali said it best: “it’s about putting butts in seats, love you, hate you, it doesn’t matter as long as people pay to watch you!” He was the first to spot that boxing and professional wrestling were not too dissimilar in the sense that they are both personality driven; skill on its own will not make you a superstar in either profession. High ability does not always equate to a high profile, not in the world of boxing. Don’t believe me? Just ask Floyd Mayweather Jr. More...

Frank Warren this week confirmed that a bout between Brixton bomber Danny Williams (32-4-27 KOs) and British heavyweight champion Matt Skelton (16-0-15 KOs) has been made. The two are set to battle it out for domestic supremacy at the M.E.N Arena, Manchester, as part of Sports

Network’s tantalizing June show, which is headlined by the Ricky Hatton-Kostya Tszyu showdown and is also slated to feature WBO featherweight champion Scott Harrison in action against Michael Brodie the night before. Speaking on the latest addition to the card, Mr. Warren had this to say, "This is a real fight for the fans and I'm delighted that it's on." So are we Frank, so are we. Britain’s leading promoter has in recent year’s endured wave upon wave of stinging criticism; he has had to duck, slip and block accusations that he is overly-protective of his fighters, and even more seriously, that the majority of his events fall short of providing the paying audience with sufficient value for money. The thickness of his skin has definitely been put to the test, but he is still standing and has answered his critics by putting together a truly mouthwatering line up for us. More...

As a sports fan, I always find it sad when a good name is sullied by allegations of steroid use. Athletes found guilty of knowingly committing such an offense in order to enhance their individual performance have found that it carries with it a stigma that has proven neigh impossible to shake off. The tag (which says cheater on it)

tends to linger in the public’s consciousness and in some cases has eclipsed entire career accomplishments, past, present, and future. That is why, as a Shane Mosley fan, I was naturally relieved when the former three-division champion was absolved of charges that he had intentionally taken Tetrahydrogestrinone (THG) – a so-called "designer steroid" that had been previously undetected by drug tests – prior to his second clash with Oscar de la Hoya in September of 2003.

In an official statement, Mosley wrote, "I was told these completely legal supplements would increase my stamina and (help) my recovery time in training." This adamant claim was backed up by the results of a subsequent lie detector test, which revealed that he was indeed telling the truth when he said that he had never knowingly consumed performance-enhancing stimulants. An innocent man he may be, but the whole thing still hangs over his head like a big black cloud! More...

With less than two-months to go before his personal date with destiny, light welterweight contender Ricky “The Hitman” Hatton is by all accounts already in phenomenal shape and preparing more rigorously than ever before. After eight topsy-turvy years as a professional

prizefighter, there now remains only one obstacle standing between him and the international respect and glory that he so craves. The stage is set, and presumably, every fiber of his being is becoming rapidly consumed by a solitary objective; to defeat and dethrone division kingpin and living legend, Kostya Tszyu. As the fight draws ever closer, the buzz of excitement and anticipation is well on its way to reaching a fever-pitched level; if you are looking forward to this showdown even half as much as I am, the coming weeks are going to feel like a lifetime. But not to worry, that just means that we have ample time to do the thing we love most – speculate. More...

What does a world title shot symbolize to a fighter? For most, it is the pot of gold at the end of their respective rainbows, a chance to gain fame, riches, and a new life. Of course, in reality, that is not always the case, but it is a universal pipe dream that fuels young men’s ambitions and hopes. We all need something to

aspire to, if only to give us a sense of direction and purpose. Boxers spend entire careers laboring in the shadows, (literally) shedding blood, sweat, and perhaps tears along the way in pursuit of their shot, their one chance to reach the pinnacle of their profession and call themselves the best. Win, and you have the world at your feet, lose, and it is a one-way ticket to the back of the queue with nothing but a broken dream. A second opportunity is not always forthcoming; the door can be slammed closed forever. Britain’s newest world champion, Clinton Woods, is well aware of that fact and surely knows how lucky he is. More...

Here we are again, and as promised, I’m going to be sharing with you my thoughts on two superlatively gifted British talents: David Haye and Junior Witter. As you may have gathered from last weeks introduction to Don’s weekly, my principal objective is not to waffle on despairingly

about all the things that are wrong with British boxing; honestly, I’m sick and tired of the constant derision our fighters are subjected to, it is neither fair nor productive. Therefore, instead of spouting negatives and generally depressing everyone – including myself – in the process, I’d much rather go against the grain and to speak by focusing my attention and bringing to light the good that I see. That is my vow, and I sincerely hope that in time the cynics out there (you know who you are) can develop an equally positive outlook, because at the end of the day, things aren’t that bad on the British front. Keep reading, and you’ll know why. More...

The reputation of British boxing has long suffered from stereotypes, and as a consequence sadly lacks credibility in the eyes of many. Fair? Yes and no. I do not wish to dwell too much on how British boxers are habitually pigeonholed by, let’s face it, the American audience; however,

what I will say is that a select few are patently not doing their part to dispel certain established perceptions associated with the British fight scene. I need not name names, except to state that they have, in recent years been flying the flag – it must be said, non-prominently – for us on the world stage; not because of a deficiency of talent or potential, but because of an apparent reluctance to break out of the “European’ mould of mismatches, padded records, hometown advantages etc. You get the idea. But as I said, it is not my intention to pessimistically focus solely on the negative aspects of the British boxing industry; god knows enough people are doing that already. I’d instead prefer to recognize the abundance of talent emerging from these cold and windy shores (that’s not another stereotype is it?), and access their respective future prospects. It’s called looking on the bright side. More...

It is a mouthwatering clash. Every so often, the boxing world is treated to the kind of match up that has “classic” branded firmly into it from the get go. When Erik “El Terrible” Morales and Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao cross paths this Saturday night,

we will have a potential classic on our hands. This fight could well be something special; all of the ingredients are there so to speak, we just need the oven to cook. That said, how often do these two men disappoint? Anyway, I would be more than a tad surprised if this one merely cooks, I have a gut feeling that it is going to explode. At heart, Morales is the quintessential Mexican warrior; he possesses that innate lust for battle. The Mexican boxing culture being what it is, Morales knows what is expected of him by his legion of fans and countrymen, thus I suspect he fights to please them as much as for himself. At times, this mentality has been to his detriment. It has to be said that he sometimes makes fights a whole lot harder than they need to be; Morales is a fantastic boxer, when he wants to be. He has so many tools at his disposal, yet stubbornly refuses to make full use of them. More...