In one of the most shocking upsets of the year thus far, WBA super feather champ Jorge Linares was stopped in the first round by challenger Juan Carlos Salgado today at Yoyogi Gymnasium in Tokyo.

Both men came into the contest undefeated but Tokyo based Venezuelan Linares was a former WBC feather and current WBA super feather kingpin who had stopped his last six adversaries early and was expected to win big.

Mexico City based Salgado had turned away respectable competition such as Ivan Valle and Marcos Licona during his career but had not come close to facing a world class operator before this opportunity.

During the first round, Salgado caught Linares unaware with a full-blooded right hand that decked the champion. Linares was soon on his pants again after the next assault and while he beat the count, the Tokyo resident was declared to be in no shape to continue and the contest stopped at 1:13 of the frame. More...

The most anticipated domestic match-up of 2009, between Jamie Moore and Ryan Rhodes, will take place at Bolton Arena in Bolton. England.

Moore, (32-3), will be defending his European light middleweight when he faces his Sheffield rival on Friday October 23.

An application has also been made for WBC eliminator status which would add even more prestige to this match-up. More...

FTM stable stars Jamie Moore and Rendall Munroe are set to earn WBC title fights next year.

The pair were celebrating last night after the Mexico City based governing body gave them impressive world rankings in their latest ratings. More...

Jhonny Gonzalez's dream to return to world championship standing came to a crashing halt last night at Arena Monterrey in Monterrey, Mexico as he was stopped by reigning WBC super bantam kingpin Toshiaki Nishioka in just three rounds.

Gonzalez nearly pulled off an upset in the very first round as the hard-punching Mexico City man announced his arrival by canvassing the champion but Nishioka rose to his feet and made it through the round.

In the second, the champion began to settle in as his compact southpaw style began to reverse the disastrous start but Nishioka was still wary of Gonzalez's power.

In the third, Nishioka rammed home a perfect southpaw left behind a double jab that had Gonzalez on his back and in dire straits. More...

Big bill on tonight at Arena Monterrey in Monterrey, Mexico as reigning WBC super bantam champ Toshiaki Nishioka heads into the lion's den to face challenger Jhonny Gonzalez of Mexico City.

Tokyo based southpaw Nishioka, 33-4-3 (20), will be making a rare appearance outside Japan but is coming into this first title defense after having won the belt with a dramatic 12th round stoppage of Mexican veteran Genaro Garcia in January.

32 year old Nishioka has been a pro since 1994 and fought WBC bantam titlist Veeraphol Sahaprom four times between 200-2004, losing the first and fourth while forcing draws in the second and third bouts.

Nishikoa moved up to super bantam after the last Sahaprom contest and has since reeled off 10 straight victories.

In the oppositie corner, 27 year old Gonzalez, 40-6 (34), has been a pro since he was 17 and after losing his first two bouts, won the next 14, capturing the NABF bantam crown along the way. More...

There is no rest for the Golden Boy Promotions team in or out of the ring this week, and the Floyd Mayweather vs. Juan Manuel Marquez international press tour is only the tip of the iceberg for the hardest working promotional team in the boxing business.

In addition to the press tour, which has already hit Los Angeles, New York and London, six of Golden Boy's finest will step into the ring this week for pivotal battles on their road to world championships. More...

Toshiaki Nishioka, the WBC super bantamweight champion from Japan, will be arriving in Monterrey, Mexico, on Monday, May 18, to defend his WBC championship against mandatory contender and former world champion Jhonny Gonzalez.

Nishioka has been praised by the World Boxing Council, especially president Jose Sulaiman, for his professionalism and exemplary commitment during these difficult times that has made many countries and corporations make humiliating and drastic decisions that are hurting the world of sports, especially in Mexico. More...

The only genuine action this past weekend took place in Asia and we crack open the first results report of 2009 with a quick trip to the Pacifico in Yokahama, Japan where there were two world title fights on Saturday night.

Yusuke Kobori put his WBA Lightweight crown at risk for the first time since winning the belt with a third round stoppage of Jose Alfaro in May, but the Tokyo man wasn't ready for what challenger Paulus Moses brought to the table.

The 30 year old Namibian earned his stripes by winning the WBA Pan African and Intercontinental titles in 2006 but truly earned his "Hitman" nickname on Saturday by generally beating the champion to the punch over twelve tough rounds.

When the dust had settled, Moses took the WBA title by scores of 119-109 and 115-113 twice, keeping his perfect record intact to climb to 24-0 (17).

Former Japanese and OPBF Super Feather kingpin Kobori saw a 15 fight no loss streak go up in flames and the 27 year old sees his record drop to 23-3-1 (12).

In other action on the bill, another Tokyo resident fared better as Toshiaki Nishioka saw his status as WBC Interim Super Bantam Champ improve to the full WBC Champion with a dramatic 12th and final round stoppage of Mexico's Genaro Garcia. More...

From the office of Jose Sulaiman:

Toshiaki Nishioka of Japan has joined a very select group.

The super bantamweight finally won the WBC championship on his fifth attempt. He joined German Torres and Marcos Villasana, both of whom lost in four attempts to win a world title before being successful in the fifth. More...