In a war of wills and attrition, after being hurt considerably by a left hook in round five, Alfredo “Perro” Angulo weathered the storm and came back to stop Richard Gutierrez at 2:48 of the very same round to capture the vacant WBO Inter-Continental Light Middleweight Title. The bout was the second televised event of an excellent fight card put together by Gary Shaw Productions and HBO in Primm, NV on Saturday night.
The two exceptionally tough light middleweights wasted no time in the opening round, standing toe to toe and digging hard shots up and down on each other’s head and torso. Colombia’s Gutierrez showed a better defense early on, landing the more telling blows to seemingly take an action packed round one that left the crowd cheering.
Gutierrez also showed surprising strength early on, backing Angulo into the ropes from time to time. Angulo, who fought in the Olympics for Mexico, was calm and collected in only his 13th professional fight 13-0 (10) against his toughest and most experienced opponent to date in Gutierrez 24-2 (14). The 29 year old Gutierrez had taken world class fighter, Joshua Clottey to the limit almost two years ago in a close majority decision loss.
Angulo made some adjustments, being a bit more elusive, switching to a southpaw stance, and attacking the body ferociously, producing some wild exchanges in the second and third rounds. The hard punching Angulo noticeably hurt Gutierrez towards the end of round three, forcing Gutierrez to box more off the back foot for a while.
The fourth round was clearly Angulo’s best as he started to take the fight over, winning most of the wild exchanges and showing some movement and underrated boxing skills, developed by sparring the past couple years with some of the best opponents that the Southern California gym scene has to offer. More...
This past Saturday night at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, 35 year old Shane Mosley proved to all doubters that he still has what it takes to fight at the championship level in boxing’s 147 pound division. Mosley scored an impressive 119-109, 118-109 (twice) unanimous decision over crafty southpaw Luis Collazo to win the Interim WBC Welterweight title.
After capturing a title at 154 pounds in 2003 and losing it in 2004, Mosley, 44-4 (37), has spent the past couple of years bouncing between the light middle and welter divisions, trying to find his way back to the championship level. Mosley stated he’s best at 147 and he may be right after Saturday night’s performance in regaining the interim version of the title that he held in 2000 and 2001.
The opening minutes of the HBO televised event were closely fought, showcasing Mosley’s speed advantage and the difficulty that Collazo, 27-3 (13), presented for Mosley in his southpaw stance. No meaningful punches were landed as the fighters figured each other out, but Mosley was a little busier and more accurate to take the round. More...
In the co-main event to the Shane Mosley - Luis Collazo bout at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas on Saturday, Guyana native Vivian Harris scored a close 114-113, 115-112 (twice) unanimous decision over Californian Juan Lazcano in a WBC Light Welterweight Title Eliminator. Harris bravely fought off a determined effort from from Lazcano to earn the victory and the right to challenge WBC Champion Junior Witter.
The opening round was a tentatively fought by both men, with no one really wanting to take the lead and both looking to counter. With Lazcano perhaps wary of the Brooklyn resident’s long, strong right hand, Harris was slightly busier to take the opening stanza.
Lazcano landed a straight right hand in the middle of round two that got Harris’ attention, prompting "Vicious" Vivian to open up and find the range on two big right uppercuts that had the crowd roaring. Harris punctuated the round with a straight right hand.
Lazcano wisely took the fight to the inside in the third frame, instantly having success by digging to Harris’ lean torso and backing him up to take the round.
Shane Mosley and Luis Collazo both weighed in at the welterweight limit of 147 pounds today in anticipation of their WBC Interim title fight tomorrow night at The Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, NV.
Slick southpaw Collazo, 27-2 (13), will be a solid test to see if the 35 year old Mosley still has what it takes to compete at the championship level. Collazo recently held the WBA Welterweight title before losing a controversial decision to England's Ricky Hatton in May of last year. More...
Manchester, England’s Ricky Hatton fulfilled his dream of winning a major title in the boxing capital of the world by scoring a unanimous 119-109 decision over Colombia’s Juan Urango at The Paris Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, NV.
Hatton regained the IBF Light Welterweight title with a tactical if not boring, workman like effort over the muscle bound southpaw. The latter half of the fight certainly could have been called “Punch and Clinch” or “Hit and Hold”, but Hatton did what he needed to do to ensure a victory in an important fight over a dangerous opponent.
Despite being overseas, the “Hitman” must have felt right at home on Vegas strip as the 3000 British fans on hand dominated the cheering in the 7000 capacity ballroom, often singing a few favorite tunes during the bout. More...
Manny Pacquiao showed Eric Morales and the rest of the boxing world that he is frighteningly fast, powerful, and right in his prime by scoring a devastating 3rd round knockout over the Mexican legend to retain his WBC International Super Featherweight Title.
The opening round of the trilogy started with both working behind the jab and a couple of nice counters from Pacquiao, particulary a nice right hook. Morales got in a good shot against the ropes, but Pacquiao landed a few more shots to take the first round. More...
Both Eric Morales and Manny Pacquiao weighed in at 129 pounds for their highly anticipated rubber match, scheduled for Saturday night at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Morales quickly put to rest any lingering questions regarding his ability to make the weight, as he showed up lookng physically much better than he has at recent weigh-ins. More...
There were no suprises during the welterweight championship bout, Saturday night at The Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada. IBF Welterweight Champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. took no chances and cruised to a unanimous decision over WBC Welterweight Champion Carlos Baldomir. Two judges had Floyd pitching a 12 round shut out 120-108, while one judge gave the 4th and 10th rounds to Baldomir, scoring the bout 118-110.
The fight was really a display of Mayweather's speed and world class defensive skills. He was simply too fast for the rugged Argentinian who maintained pressure throughout the fight, but rarely caught up to the elusive Mayweather. When Baldomir did trap Mayweather on the ropes, he had difficulty landing any effective punches before Mayweather spun away and took the fight back to the center of the ring.
Compubox punch statistics tell the story of the fight as Baldomir landed only 79 of 670 punches thrown for a 12% connect percentage. More...
Carlos Baldomir and Floyd Mayweather Jr. showed up in top shape for Friday's weigh-in at The Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. WBC Welterweight Champion Baldomir came right in at the welterweight limit of 147 lbs, while IBF Welterweight Champion Mayweather came in at 146 lbs.
Both fighters displayed unwavering confidence for their vocal fans in a highly anticipated matchup of contrasting styles. It will be the speed and skills of perhaps the world's best boxer in Mayweather against the iron-chinned and relentless Baldomir. Fight fans from around the world will be able to view the bout on HBO PPV telecast starting at 6pm, PST. More...
Joel Casamayor used his speed and crafty southpaw boxing skills to take a split decision victory and capture the WBC Lightweight title from Diego Corrales tonight at The Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. In actuality, Corrales had relinquished the title the day before on the scales as he was unable to make the 135 Lb lightweight limit, coming in at 139 pounds.
Only Casamayor was eligible to obtain the title, and he effectively worked up and down on Corrales in the eyes of two judges who scored the bout 116-111 and 115-112. The third judge, somewhat surprisingly, had Corrales winning at 114-113.
The victory also gives Casamayor the edge over Corrales in their trilogy, as the two had previously split two close bouts. The two championship level fighters are clearly in the latter stages of their careers, and one had to wonder about the sharpness of Corrales who struggled all week to make weight, and was left fighting only for pride.
Both fighters started tentatively in the opening rounds, particularly Corrales, who watched the 1992 Cuban Olympic Gold medalist Casamayor score consistently with a straight left to the body to sweep the first three rounds on the judges scorecards. More...
The Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada held the press conference for this Saturday's big fight between archrivals Diego Corrales and Joel Casamayor, who face each other for the third time, a contest that Showtime will broadcast.
WBC Lightweight Champion Corrales was short on words and clearly focused for his third bout with former Cuban Olympic Gold Medallist, Joel Casamayor. More...
Over 10,000 fight fans at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada were bound to get their money's worth with three world class bouts, brilliantly lined up by Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions this past Saturday night They certainly did, but the heated action came in the two co-main event features before Mexican legend Marco Antonio Barrera cautiously defended his WBC Super Featherweight Title for a second time against Rocky
Juarez in the main event.
Fight fans have grown accustomed over the years to seeing Barrera, 63-4 (42), engage in furious battles in the ring, and the paying crowd at the MGM voiced their displeasure with loud boos throughout the course of Barrera's measured but clear 117-111,115-113 (twice) victory.
During their first encounter back in May, the 32 year old Barrera often stood toe to toe and traded punches with the younger, stronger Juarez and it nearly cost him his title in a split decision victory. This time around, Barrera was content to box in circles from the outside, employing a consistent jab and tying Juarez up on the inside, effectively smothering Rocky's punches. More...
The MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas is absolutely buzzing with energy in anticipation of Saturday nights 3 world championship boxing matches put on by Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions. What is likely to be fight card of the year will be shown in homes around the world on HBO pay-per-view television.
The main event will feature Houston's Rocky Juarez(25-2, 18KO's) once again challenging for Mexican legend Marco Antonio Barrera's WBC Super Featherweight Title. The two went at it in a closely contested battle back in May with the younger Juarez coming on at the end to initially have the bout announced as a draw. An error was later found in the scoring and Juarez was told about 20 minutes later that Barrera had retained his title with a split decision victory. More...
Boxing promoter Top Rank provided an entertaining fight card on Thursday night at The Orleans Arena, ahead of big boxing weekend in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Almazbek Raiymkulov aka “Kid Diamond”, put on an impressive display of power punching, by being the first fighter to stop Jairo Rafael Ramirez inside the distance. Raiymkulov captured the NABF Lightweight Title with the TKO victory at 2:25 of round 7, after scoring 2 knockdowns earlier in the bout. Raiymkulov of Las Vegas by way of Kyrgyzstan, improved his record to 23-1-1(14KO's), while Ramirez falls to 20-3(7KO's) More...
Boxing promoter Top Rank has put together a nice fight card to take place in Las Vegas at The Orleans Arena on Thursday night. The bouts will be shown on The Outdoor Life Network (OLN), a channel found in most basic cable television packages.
In the main event, Almazbek Raiymkulov aka "Kid Diamond" will take on Jairo Rafael Ramirez in a 12 round bout for the NABF Lightweight Title. More...
The WBC Heavyweight Title match Saturday night at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada had an exciting finish with challenger Oleg Maskaev ensuring his victory with a TKO stoppage of champion Hasim Rahman with just 43 seconds to go in the 12th and final round. The rematch was similar to their first encounter back in 1999,
when Rahman jumping out to an early lead only to have Maskaev come on later and finish him off in the 8th round, sending "The Rock" thru the ropes and onto the concrete floor for the knockout. The now 37 year old Maskaev needed a bit longer to get the engine running and get the job done this time around.
Boxing's heavyweight division has been looking for a catalyst, some spark for sometime now and we'd like to think that this close fight and late stoppage would do the trick. But if we are "keeping it real" as some like to say, last night's bout was not heavyweight boxing as it's finest. As a matter of fact, it was downright dreadful and sloppy at times. More...
The two main undercard fights to the Rahman-Maskaev heavyweight title bout tonight at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas are perhaps being overlooked as both bouts are capable of stealing the show.
WBC Lightweight champion Jose Armando Santa Cruz (23-1, 13KO's) defends his title against southpaw punching David Diaz(31-1-1, 16KO's). Michoacan, Mexico native Santa Cruz has a crowd-pleasing, non-stop presure punching style that he recently used to overcome tough and skillful Edner Cherry amongst other name fighters on his way to the title.
Chicago native Diaz also has used a high volume punching style to earn victories over solid fighters such as Emanuel Augustus, Juaquin Gallardo, and a deserved title shot for the 30 year old former amateur standout. More...
The weigh-in for Saturday night's WBC Heavyweight title fight at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas was held today at Caesar's Palace on the world famous Las Vegas Strip. Both fighters appeared in phenomenal shape as WBC Champion Hasim Rahman of Baltimore, MD, came in at 235 lb., while challenger Oleg Maskaev of Staten Island, NY, by way of Kazakhstan, came in at 238 lb.
Hardly an ounce of fat could be seen on either fighter, refreshing for today's shaky heavyweight division. Maskaev and Rahman appeared calm and confident, neither fighter altering their gaze during an intense staredown. More...
Rafael Marquez once again defended his IBF Bantamweight title with a hard earned ninth round technical stoppage of Silence Mabuza, Saturday night at the Montbleu Resort Casino & Spa in Stateline, Nevada. Marquez's convincing win closes the chapter on his two fights with Mabuza, the first one back in November ending somewhat controversially, with Mabuza being stopped on cuts in the fourth round after fighting his way back into the bout after a horrific start.
Mabuza, 19-2 (15), once again got off to a slow, tentative start in the first round of the rematch, and the seemingly more intense Marquez, 35-3 (31), took advantage, hurting and wobbling Mabuza at the end of the round. Mabuza's nose was bloodied in the second round and the speedy South African crumpled to the canvas after an accidental low blow from Mexico City's Marquez. More...
Rafael and Juan Manuel Marquez, two of the best brother tandems in boxing history, will be showcased tonight in beautiful South Lake Tahoe, Nevada, in an outdoor event likely to produce fireworks. Slick counterpunching Juan Manuel will look to regain his winning ways after controversially losing his WBA Featherweight title to the talented Chris John in Indonesia. Standing in his way will be the tough Thai fighter Terdsak Jandaeng, a twenty-five year old southpaw whose only loss in 25 professional fights was to world class Joan Guzman of the Dominican Republic. Marquez and Jandaeng will clash for the WBO Featherweight Title. More...
