World Boxing Round-up.
A complete recap of the news and results from the last seven days of world boxing.
Last week started off with an impressive performance at heavyweight by Luan Krasniqi with a sixth round knockout of big Lance Whitaker, who had never previously been down. Krasniqi, a Kosovo-Albanian with German citizenship, is now the number-one contender for Lamon Brewster’s WBO title. Expect a promotional battle between Don King and Klaus Peter Kohl for the right to stage that fight. My bet is that the home fighter wins, so we should see a large bid by both outfits. On the under-card, Juan Carlos Gomez of Cuba continued his resurgence after his shocking first round loss to Yanqui Diaz, with a fourth round stoppage of the Brazilian George Arias, himself coming off a win over 24-1 Steffen Nielsen. Gomez is a class boxer and ex-cruiserweight champion that could still come good in the wide-open heavyweight division.
Mexico City native and current Los Angeles resident Israel Vazquez defended his IBF 122-pound title with a unanimous decision over fellow Mexican Armando Guerro. Vazquez holds a first round knockout against the current WBC champion (and fellow Mexican) Oscar “Chololo†Larios, which was then avenged with a twelve-round stoppage in 2002. I am prepared to chip in to make a rubber match between these two hard punching all-action fighters. Vazquez desperately wants the fight and, if Larios can repeat his win over Wayne McCullough next month, this bout may be made before years end.
In Missouri, two fighters on the comeback trail earned knockout wins, with David Diaz returning after his stoppage loss to Kendall Holt. Diaz is now 27-1 and has beaten some good opponents in his ten-year career. Whether he can rise to the top of the densely populated light welterweight division remains to be seen. Ex-light heavyweight champion William Guthrie scored a first round knockout, but at thirty-eight, and with all three of his losses by kayo, I doubt if he can go further than a “name†stepping-stone for up and comers.
Bernard Hopkins BEWARE. Raymond “Hallelujah†Joval is the new IBO middleweight champion after out-pointing career loser Lansana Diallo. Joval, recently beaten by both Sam Soliman and Fernando Vargas is looking for a unification fight but claims that “The Nard†is too scared to fight in the Netherlands! Well, he did not actually say that, but it’s pretty obvious that Hopkins is running from the man named “Hallelujah.†Or maybe not.
Romanian sensation Lucian Bute racked up his thirteenth win, all by knockout, with an eight round stoppage in his new hometown of Montreal. Trainer Stephane Larouche is building up quite a stable of his former compatriots in Canada and many within the game feel that they will be a force over the next few years. Bute, a twenty-five-year-old super middleweight has the tools and punch to give Jeff Lacy a tussle, with a little more experience. Keep an eye on this guy.
On the under-card of Friday’s hors d’oeuvres bill in Manchester, Michael Jennings defended his English welterweight title, and WBO mandatory spot, with a ninth round win over Gavin Down. Jennings has an exciting style and is now 26-0 (12) and is next up on promoter Frank Warren’s conveyor belt of title shots. It’s just a shame that David Barnes getting kayoed has thrown a spanner in the works of that British showdown.
Also on the same bill, Mathew Hatton beat Adnan Hadoui over eight rounds to up his record to 24-2-1. You can bet the whole Hatton family are down the pub celebrating that victory today. Still on the same bill, Thomas McDonagh extended his unbeaten run to 26-0-2 with a stoppage of previously undefeated Scotsman, Barrie Lee. Ryan “Spice Boy†Rhodes continued his re-emergence with another win over hapless opposition and Ernie “Gypsy†Smith lost for the second time in twenty-four hours when he was out-pointed by Martin “The Immaculate†Concepcion to rack up his eighty-third loss, seventy-five of them coming since 2000. And to think, he was once 3-2-1. Concepcion is now 11-0 (8) and I really hope he makes it as I want to see Michael Buffer introduce The “Immaculate Concepcion†to a Las Vegas audience.
Former Kostya Tszyu conqueror Vince “Cool†Phillips won a ten-round decision in Mexico over Mauro Lucero, while in Florida, China “The Dragon†Smith improved to 28-2 (24). Smith, fights as a heavyweight out of Sarasota, and looks the part but was kayoed twice by ex-super middleweight Saul Montana. He has yet to fight anyone decent and needs to step up or off if he wants to proceed.
In Germany, Mahamed Ali made his pro debut and recorded a first round knockout. Remember that name, it’s Mahamed Ali!
The World’s Greatest Boxer, Peter Buckley, lost for the 206th time in Dublin last night. While the champions get all the money and the glory, it’s guys like Buckley who deserve all the credit by standing in at short notice to keep grassroots boxing alive. On the same bill, the Hyland brothers both won with featherweight Patrick moving to 3-0 (against Buckley) while 130-pounder Eddie moved up to 2-0. This should please their father Paddy, who promoted last nights bill and has a big hand in keeping boxing moving and grooving in the Emerald Isle.
Ex-light middleweight contender, Emmett “Laser†Linton came to the end of the road with a loss to Darryl Woods for the UBA title. Woods, thirty-seven, has lost ten times himself so don’t expect any of the major champions to be looking over their shoulders.
Under the Hatton-Tszyu bill, Wayne Alexander was involved in another war, successfully, against tough Dane Christian Bladt. “Alexander the Great†now has eighteen kayos in twenty-three wins with two losses. At thirty-year-of-age next month, he should be pushing Frank Warren for a title shot and he is easily on level terms with Castillo, Simms or Santos although Kassim Ouma may be a step too far. He previously fought for the WBO title against Harry Simon but lost in five after subbing for Robert Allen at less than twenty-four hours notice. Simon also steamrollered a prepared “Winky†Wright so there is no shame there.
Enzo Maccarinelli warmed up for his shot against Johnny Nelson with a two minute stoppage while Tyson beater Danny Williams also had an easy night, and kept loose for his highly anticipated match against Matt Skelton, with a third round win. Maccarinelli is a stable-mate of Joe Calzaghe and is 21-1 (16) with a crowd-pleasing style. Whether he can overcome the stylish (yet often boring) Johnny Nelson is another matter as the ageless champ looks as good as ever at age thirty-eight.
Hero of the week was undoubtedly Ricky Hatton who deserves a big hug for his amazing performance against future Hall of Famer Kostya Tszyu. After being labeled over-protected by many in the States, Ricky has moved to the top of the light welterweight division with the stoppage and now has a list of great opponents to choose from. With Miguel Cotto facing a difficult test in Mohamad Abdulaev next weekend and Gatti- Mayweather next month, boxing’s most exciting and deep division is heating up.
Rupert Wricklemarsh can be reached at taansend@yahoo.com