European Boxing News: Stieglitz, Menzer, Hide, Kessler, Sartison, Holyfield

By Per Ake Persson

WBO super middle champ Robert Stieglitz defends the title January 9 in Magdeburg on a SES promotion. In the chief support Ina Menzer will defend the WBC, WIBF and WBO featherweight titles against Ramona Kuehne, who holds the WIBF crown at junior light. For Stieglitz it will be the first defence of the title he won in August with a come from behind win over Karoly Balzsay.

The “Dancing Destroyer”, Herbie Hide has pulled out as challenger for the vacant European cruiser title. Hide is probably not the only one who eyes fighting newly crowned WBC king Zsolt Erdei, who while very capable is a very, very small cruiser.

WBA super middle “super champ” Mikkel Kessler lost to Andre Ward Saturday night while Dimitri Sartison won the WBA “regular” title with a TKO win over Stjepan Bozic which makes one wonder about the status of the two champions. Normally a “super champ” holds two or more titles in a major association but such was not the case with Kessler.

In regards of Mikkel Kessler, I first got my eye on Kessler when he was a teenage amateur and have followed his career very closely. I have seen all but three fights live at ringside. No disrespect to Andre Ward who fought well but in my eyes it was more a case of a poor performance from the Dane than an outstanding fight from Ward.

Kessler made very basic mistakes and even looked gunshy. It could be Mikkel peaked with his great win over Librado Andrade in 2007 and then came the Joe Calzaghe fight, a huge payday, a move to Monaco, a contractual dispute and some easy fights and that may have dulled his once exellent fighting skills.

Sauerland Event wants Carl Froch vs Kessler to go ahead March 6 in Denmark but it´s a big question mark if Mikkel can recuperate in time – and I doubt he can find the fire he once had. Big paydays can do things to a fighter that have a similar effect as a bad beating.

Baltic Pro Box will along with Real Deal LCC, Fight Production. SES and Risum Boxing promote a major show in Kampala, Uganda, January 16 with Francois Botha defending the WBFederation (not to be confused with the still existing WBFoundation) heavyweight title against Evander Holyfield.

BPB is headed by Eddie Bazira, who hails from Uganda but lives since many years in Stockholm, Sweden. According to a press release from BPB they expect a sellout crowd of 80 000 at the Nelson Mandela Stadion and PPV worldwide.

How much will Holyfield earn? – It´s a secret, says Bazira. who previously have promoted boxing events in Uganda with Pro Box Scandinavia but it must said that neither PBS or BPB have been even remotedly close to a show of this magnitude.

Multiple female super middle queen Natascha Ragosina will move up to heavyweight and take on Pamela London December 19 in Ekaterinburg with the vacant WIBF title at stake. Also on the bill is Czech junior middle Lukas Konecny, stablemate with Ragosina in SES.

IBF junior middle Youth champ Dominik Britsch defends the title December 5 in Ludwigsburg against Argentinian Matias Ezequiel Franco. Britsch vs Franco is the chief supporting to the battle between WBO cruiser champ Marco Huck and interim ruler Ola Afolabi.