There were two good cards Down Under on Friday, and we start off at the Manly Leagues Club in Brookvale, NSW where there was a battle for the vacant WBO Oriental Light Heavyweight title.

New Zealander Kariz Kariuki, 16-7-2 (15), bounced back from a KO loss at the hands of slugger Victor Oganov almost a year ago to crush New Caledonia's Iau Kamisak, 9-4-1 (7), in the very first round,

The Kiwi based Kenyan Kariuki captures the WBO Oriental belt with the win and has had an interesting career since turning pro in late 2000. More...

Aside from the big Pacquiao vs. Diaz card in Las Vegas, there was some good action in America this weekend starting off with the latest bout of Irish sensation John Duddy, who outpointed Charlie Howe at The Castle in Boston, MA.

Duddy, 25-0 (17), was coming off a horrific performance against Montreal based Tunisian fighter Walid Smichet in February and needed an impressive win. At 33 years of age with losses to the only name fighters that he had faced, Joey Gilbert and Cornelius Brundage, Howe, 17-5-2 (9), was handpicked for the purpose.

Not surprisingly, Duddy had little trouble practicing his arsenal against the Midwesterner, finding range to both the head and body with equal success with very little coming back in return.

Howe was hurt at times but the big hearted fighter never stopped trying against his more skilled foe, landing a few good shots here and there to keep Duddy from running roughshod over him.

After the bout ran it's ten round course, Duddy was awarded the victory on marks of 100-90 on all three scorecards. More...

© Jim Everett / Saddo Boxing

You wouldn’t know by reading all the boxing press in the media, but there is actually another fight taking place besides the Manny Pacquiao vs. David Diaz title bout on Saturday night at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada. With all the focus on Pacquiao, it may be easy to overlook that two heavyweights will meet for a crossroads fight that can make or break either fighter's career.

Veteran Monte Barrett, 33-6 (19), has been put in place as a tough “opponent” to prospect Tye Fields, 41-1 (37). Fields' promoter Bob Arum feels the giant could be the next great American heavyweight and is looking forward to Fields' step up in competition on Saturday, which could propel him into contender status with an impressive win.

The thirty-seven year-old Barrett doesn’t quite see it the same way as Arum and believes Fields is an “opponent” for him with an impressive victory providing him more opportunities in his future. More...