Boxing (sport) - Because who doesn't want to punch bassomatic in the face

[Chadley Dickinson]

I'm about 2 months late here, but most gyms have a trial class that you could try out.
As for learning basics off videos, you could potentially form bad habits since there's no coach to ensure that you're in good form.

Likewise, I am a bit late but I just signed up after lurking for a bit. But this is important to point out: unless you have a decent amount of training and experience already you're not going to get much from watching a video. A BJJ blue belt or a scholastic wrestler with a couple years under his belt can get something from watching a ne waza or tachi waza video on a Judo YouTube channel, but a no-nothing off the street will not because the previous already have an understanding of the mechanics of grappling and an understanding of how the demonstrator is applying the technique in the demo. For example, kuzushi is something present in folkstyle wrestling even though we never called it that so when I was introduced to the term the first time I stepped on the mat at a Judo place I quickly understood what it was and why it works. In wrestling it is just manifested in things like shucks, arm drags, short singles etc.

 

[cypocraphy]

 

[Zaragoza]

Still can't get enough of this video:

Also lets see a bit of Lomachenko while we're at it, this guy is incredible, there's a reason why people in boxing gyms are taking notes from Lomachenko's footwork.

And here's the next edition of The Ring magazine, Naoya Inoue.

Pernell Whitaker

January 2, 1964 - July 14, 2019

​

 

[Zaragoza]

Well, I honestly thought Thurman won the fight but the judges had it as a split decision, regardless of the outcome that guy was graceful and humble enough to stay in the stage and celebrate his defeat with Manny, unlike Broner who bragged and cried that he won when it clearly wasn't, I think Thurman has a good career coming his way very similar to Canelo when he lost to Mayweather. And as for Manny, for a guy his age he put up a great offense against Thurman the entire match and god damn this would be a good way for him to retire just like Mayweather.

 

[Some JERK]

Spoiler: Loma vs. Lopez result

that was a draw at best but at worst was a narrow victory for Lopez. One judge scored it 119-109??? Fucking boxing, man. You have to win decisively to make sure you don't get robbed.

 

[Complete Reprobate]

N E C R O T I M E

It was a great weekend of boxing, so let’s get into it -

April 23rd, Friday - DAZN Card in Spain

Not the flashiest card, but the Jez Smith v. Kerman Lejarraga fight was the fight of the night. Smith is a domestic/Euro level boxer in my eyes, but this fight might boost him a bit. He managed to down the very tough Lejarraga twice, catching him with sweet right uppercuts while he charged in. The veteran Lejarraga made adjustments, and dropped Smith later with punishing body work. Unfortunately, the referee jumped in waaaay too early and put a stop to the bout, much to the dismay of the announcers and myself. I will be looking for Smith's next fight. I hope he can up his game to match with some of the better Euro level boxers.

Gavin McDonnell also got away with a draw against a very stout Andoni Gago. Gago opened up a nasty cut over McDonnells left eye early in the fight, and also never gave McDonnell any room to breathe, keeping pressure on him for the entire abbreviated fight. The cut worsened and in round 4, the fight was halted. Gago deserved the win, but he keeps the EBU title he brought with him.

April 24th, Saturday - Bethnal Green, London

Felix Cash put in some good work against Denzel Bentley in London, scoring a third round standing KO. Cash is a pressure fighter, and Bentley more of a technician. Pressure won out this time around, as Cash trapped Bentley on the ropes, scored five huge powershots, and forced the referee to intercede. Great win for Cash, who should be moving on to more lucrative bouts in the near future.

Callum Johnson made short work of Emil Markic, knocking him out in the second round. Johnson has always been heavy handed, his only loss coming to current champ Artrur Beterbiev. When fighting Beterbiev, he put him on the floor before he himself was knocked out. Johnson says he wants to fight Joe Smith Jr., and I think that would be a great match.

April 24th, Saturday - Silver Spurs Arena, Kissimmee Florida

Two fights interested me on this card - Berlanga v. Nicholson, and Navarette v. Diaz.
Edgar Berlanga was riding a 16 fight 1st round KO streak into this fight, and he finally was forced to go the distance. Demond Nicholson is a gatekeeper level fighter imo, and he was all heart the entire fight. He made Berlanga pay for his mistakes, and gave the younger fighter some things to think about on the plane ride home. Berlanga put Nicholson down four times, the fourth time being in the final round, close to the final bell. Nicholson kept beating the count, and can go home knowing he competed well. Fun fight!

Emanuel Navaratte is an unorthodox, nightmarish fighter to face. He throws punches from all over the place, and is unpredictable. Christopher Diaz, a Puerto Rican Olympian, brought the pressure to Navarrette and tried to grind him down, but was outclassed by the Mexican. Diaz’ corner threw the towel in the 12th round, after Diaz had been beaten up the entire fight. Navarrette needs to see some big names next. I would love to see him fight Leo Santa Cruz next.

Interesting fights for next week -

May 1, Manchester Arena -
Chisora v. Parker - Chisora always brings it, but ex-champ Parker is a savvy boxer that knows how to win. I give this one to Parker by UD.

Bivol v. Richards - I have been following Craig Richards for a couple of years now, and I don’t think he has what it takes to get the belt from Bivol. Bivol by late KO, but I hope I’m wrong.

May 1, Bethnal Green -
Conlan v. Baluta - I always tune in for Conlan fights, just to see how my favorite Olympian is progressing. He faces good competition in Baluta. Conlan by a somewhat close decision.

May 1, Carson CA -

Fundora v. Cota - Fundora is 6 ft 5.5, and is in the super welterweight division, making him freakishly tall. Still, he knocks guys out. Watch this just for the freak factor, if anything. No call on this one.

Ruiz v. Arreola - Andy Ruiz is the first Mexican heavyweight champ, and he lost all the belts in the rematch with A. Joshua. Ruiz literally ate and partied the belts away, which is a damn shame. We will see if he can make a comeback. Ruiz by mid round KO.

Lara v. Lamanna - Erislandy Lara is a black Cuban boxer. Eric Lamanna is a white guy nicknamed ‘Cornflake.’ Watch this, and tell your friends you saw a black guy knock out Cornflake. Should make for good water cooler convo. Lara by early KO.

I’m sure there are more that I will see, we will catch up on them next weeked.

And for those interested in betting -
I got lucky this weekend. Had $100 on Gavin Mcdonnell by decision at -150, but the bet was pushed, and I got my money back. Immediately put my money on Berlanga v. Nicholson, O/1.5 rounds at +140, and nailed it.

For the weekend of the 1st, I have a parlay on Joseph Parker and Katie Taylor winning for $30. I’ll have to wait and see what mybookie puts out for the undercards, as they like to wait until late to do so. Good luck!

 

[Complete Reprobate]

Here I go, shouting into the V O I D again.

4/30 - Bethnal Hall, York ENGLUND

Called it right for Mick Conlan, who had a razor close majority decision against the very durable Ionut Boluta of Romania. Conlan managed to eke out a majority decision via his slick boxing and counterpunching. Props to Baluta, who made him earn every hard fought point from the judges.

Troy Williamson KO’d Kieran Smith in the sixth from a barrage of punches, and sent the Scotsman out of the ring on a stretcher. Good win for ‘The Trojan.’ Would like to see him fight for the Lonsdale, or the BBBofC belt next. ARE TED Cheeseman would be a great matchup for him.

Moruti Mthalane, the IBF flyweight champ from South Africa, faced the much younger Englishman Sunny Edwards. Mthalane hasn’t lost since 2008, and that was to Nonito Donaire who is also still fighting competitively. Mthalane definitely looked the older man tonight, as he tried to chase down the elusive Edwards for all twelve rounds. Edwards played turtle the last two rounds, figuring he had it in the bag. And, to his credit, he did. Congratulations to the new champ! Sunny joins his older brother Charlie in being a flyweight champ. The big dog in the flyweight world is Julio Cesar Martinez, and I think Sunny needs to fight a few more top 10 names before he tries to unify. Sho Kimura perhaps, or McWilliams Arroyo would both be excellent fights.

5/1 - Manchester Arena, ENGLUND

Craig Richards avoided the KO, and Dmitry Bivol cruised to a decision win. Missed the call here. Richards was competitive the entire fight, and the scorecards reflected it with scores of 115-114, 115-113, and a lopsided card of 118-110. Richards began to figure out some winning strategies as the fight wore on, but it was just too late. Look for Richards to have another top 10 fight in the LHW division this year, and for Bivol to continue to be avoided.

Joe Parker got knocked down early in the first round, shook it off, and managed to get his decision win against ‘War’ Chisora. Parker stayed calm, rode out the storm, and just wore Chisora down as the fight went along. Split decision victory, and he stays in the heavyweight limelight.

Of note on the undercard -

Campbell Hatton, son of Ricky Hatton, had the second fight of his pro career. His first fight, five weeks ago in Gibraltar, was a bit sloppy, and one could tell that nerves got the better of him in his initial win. His second fight showed vast improvement. One to keep an eye on.

Irish Olympian Katie Taylor put her belts up for grabs against Natasha Jonas in a bout that was difficult to score throughout. She came out on top with scores of 96-95 x2 and 96-94. Gotta love a handsy, violent Irish broad.

Chris Eubank Jr. continued his winning ways against fellow Englishman Marcus Morrison. Eubank is now trained by Roy Jones Jr., and watching him operate today, you can clearly see the influence Roy has taken in his training. He looked good, and promoter Kalle Sauerland is hyping a big fight this summer. Should be fun.

5/1 - Carson, CA

Sebastian Fundora continued his KO ways, with a bit of an early stoppage in my opinion. The battle-hardened Jorge Cota was stopped standing, right after landing a nasty left hook that had Fundora looking a bit dazed. Hard luck for Cota, and onwards and upwards for Fundora.

Cornflake got knocked the fuck out, as predicted, in the first round by Erislandy Lara. 1 out of 2 people had a good time, etc.

Andy Ruiz got a W in his ring return against Chris Arreola. Not a great victory, as he was knocked down in round 2, and proceeded to get the decision win. I was a little disappointed, but I'm hoping that this is a transition between trainers fight, and things will mesh together better for the next fight. There are rumors that a Wilder-Ruiz clash is in the works, which would be a lot of fun.

As for the upcoming fights of interest -

It's Five-o de Mayo weekend, boys and girls, which means it's a Canelo weekend. He takes on Billy Joe Saunders, a Gypsy boxer from ENGLUND. BJ has never really had any opposition in the ring IMO, but he is an excellent boxer. Excellent boxers happen to be Canelo's closest thing to a weakness, so he is a live dog in this one. I am going to keep my money away from this one, but if I were to wager, mybookie has 'Will the fight go the distance?' Y @-125, N @-110. I'd put some money on YES. BJ is not going to KO Canelo, but is slick enough to stay out of harms way for 12 rounds. So you are getting two outcomes for the price of one. Canelo by UD, with a knockdown of Saunders on the way

Cuban heavyweight prospect Frank Sanchez will be taking on journeyman Nagy Aguilera in a 10 rounder, but don't look for it to last that long. Sanchez by KO.

Bets for the weekend -
Besides the aforementioned parlay, I put $160 on Conlan to win by decision at -160. Nail biter, but I pulled through. +$100!
And my cheesy parlay delivered, giving me +$30.
I put a 'spare change' bet on Jorge Cota by KO over Fundora. -$9.
+$121 for the weekend.

OK, the wager for today, 5/8 - Soto v. Takeyama - O 7.5 Rounds @-135. Put 270 on it. Let's see what happens!

 

[Complete Reprobate]

Here we go again, boys and gorls.

Frank Sanchez won a weird contest against the not-so-motivated Nagy Aguilera in round 6. Aguilera got ‘hit in the back of the head’ at the end of the round, and then put his inner WWE wrasslin’ kayfabe on display. I think the guy was getting worn down, and sensed the end swiftly approaching, and took matters into his own hands. Journeyman gets a paycheck, a tale as old as time. Sanchez, on the other hand, looked good. Boxed well, countered well, moved well. Aguilera was making him barely miss, but Sanchez was getting closer and closer to that killer blow. Sanchez earned his shortened UD. Hopefully we see him again soon. I would love to see him against another prospect, such as the Croatian Filip Hrgovic.

Frenchman (via Senegal) Souleymane Cissokho fought Englishman Kieron Conway in a 10 rounder for a WBO international belt. Cissokho immediately established the jab, a nasty straight right, and blurring footwork to completely outclass Conway. The only ‘highlight’ of the fight was Conway catching Cissokho with a picture perfect double uppercut at the start of the 9th, resulting in a knockdown. Conway then decided that staring at the man he just knocked down instead of trying to murder him was the smart move to make. Oh well. Cissokho won a puzzling split decision, when he should have been ahead at least five rounds, IMO.

Current WBO Light Flyweight champ Elwin Soto defeated game former minimum weight champ Katsunari Takayama on a VERY questionable referee stoppage courtesy of Lawrence Cole, who is infamous in his own right. Regardless, Takayama was not going to win that fight, but he took Soto to the later rounds, and made him work for the victory. Gotta love Jap boxers. All of them are tough as nails, and love to fight.

Canelo beat Billy Joe Saunders via RTD at the end of the eighth, as Saunders would not get off his stool due to a busted up right eye. It was a competitive fight, and was the best show that Canelo has put on in his past five or six matches. Saunders made Canelo look silly a few times, but Canelo got the better of it in the end.

Things cool down next weekend, with a domestic British card, and a banger in California.

Luis Nery v. Brandon Figueroa looks to be the only competitive fight, and I am really looking forward to this one. Nery, with that bulldozer Mexican style, and Figueroa, with the boxer-puncher American style. This one has the potential to be great.

Betting - My Soto v. Takayama bet landed, so that puts me up +$200 on the weekend. I'll see the none of you that read this next week!

The wager for this week - Roman v. Franco - Fight will go the distance at -225.

 

[surprisemfka]

From r/boxing, end of the last round.

Spoiler

How is this guy Mexican? He puts anglos and amerimutts to shame.

 

[Goyaanisqatsi]

Good luck winning any kind of decision against Canelo but I would have loved to see of Saunders could have kept it competitive late before the broken orbital.

 

[Complete Reprobate]

I thought Saunders was keeping it competitive, up until his face was shattered. He was pulling some slick catch and counter, but there wasn't enough behind his punches to faze Canelo. The only person I have seen truly back Canelo up was GGG.

 

[Complete Reprobate]

(Late) WEEKEND R E C A P

Yours truly was in the wagie cagie for 16 hour shifts over the weekend, making those dank overtime bux. As such, I didn't get to see any fights, which kills me. The Nery-Figueroa card was a banger. We'll recap anyway.
Manchester Arena, ENGLUND -
This was a prospect card, and as such, wasn't really too exciting. For the most part, those that were supposed to win, did.
Buatsi by KO over Dos Santos
McCarthy over Jur by KO
Smith over Appleyard by KO.

Notably, Gamal Yafai, whose brother Kal Yafai was blown out by Chocalatito last year, got upset by journeyman Jason Cunningham. Gotta love when the dog gets the W!

Dignity Health Sports Park - Carson, CA
THIS was the card of the weekend.

On the under-under card -

Cardona by KO over De Herrera
Fundora UD over Valverde <-- Fundora might sound familiar. It's this guys sister.
Valenzuela by KO over Hampton

Main card -
Xavier Martinez outboxed Juan Carlos Burgos to a UD. The Mexican crowd was none too pleased with Martinez' perfomance, and they booed him when his victory was announced. Burgos was fighting Mexican style the whole 10 rounds, which the crowd liked. Kinda based, but I felt a little bad for the kid. Still, onwards and upwards for Martinez, and Burgos remains a respectable gatekeeper.

Daniel Roman v. Ricardo Espinoza Franco - Let's talk about uppercuts. More specifically, Daniel Romans sweet sweet uppercut that turned Mr. Franco's face into chorizo. Franco brought it in the first two to three rounds, walking Roman down, and letting his hands go. Roman ate some shots, but his defense held, and in the third/fourth round, started to find his timing. He literally decoded Franco, and after the fifth round, he was landing at will. Roman drew blood in the eighth, and it looked like my bet was going to miss. But man, Franco is TOUGH. He lasted the distance somehow. What a fight! Roman by UD.

Brandon Figueroa v. Luis Nery - Figueroa, a Texas (aka north Mexico) native, squared off against the Tijuana born Luis Nery. Fig surprised me by not using his reach to keep the hard hitting Nery at distance. Instead, he waded right in there and started banging. A lot of infighting, a lot of nasty shots. Both men showed excellent chins and stamina. An old boxing adage states that if the chin doesn't crack, the breadbasket will. And holy shit was this true. The delayed reaction bodyshot, the bane of the granite chin. Brandon Figueroa wins by 7th round KO.
Figueroa is already lined up to fight Stephon Fulton in September. Fulton is the better boxer, but with body shots like that, who cares? Should be a good one.

Upcoming Fights -
May 22, Las Vegas - Josh Taylor v. Jose Ramirez - Winner gets all the belts. I think this will be the first unified Super Lightweight champion ever. Josh Taylor, who won the Mohammed Ali Trophy over Regis Prograis on a razor thin decision, has an ENGINE in him. He can throw a hundred punches a round while running laps in the ring. Incredible to watch. Ramirez brings that skill negating Mexican style with him, and if he is smart, he can negate Taylors' superior movement and speed. Should be excellent!

May 22, West Midlands, ENGLUND - A ho hum British card featuring Sam Eggington v. Carlos Molina in the main event. They will be fighting for a WBO Silver title. Of interest on the card is Shakan Pitters, a recent victim of Craig Richards. who we have covered recently. Pitters will be fighting some bum, but I would like to see if he is a bit gun shy from his KO at the hands of Richards.


Betting -
Roman v. Franco - Fight will go the distance at -225 netted me $100. That was the only wager I had this weekend.

As I've bitched about before, mybookie is slow with boxing odds, so I will edit in my wager for the upcoming fight. If the one person that reads this does any sports betting on the side and knows of a better site, please let me know!

Thanks for dropping by, and I'll see you next week!

 

[Goyaanisqatsi]

I'm just stoked to see Naoya Inoue again soon in his mandatory. Hopefully he gets some big fights for the rest of the year.

 

[Complete Reprobate]

I'm just stoked to see Naoya Inoue again soon in his mandatory. Hopefully he gets some big fights for the rest of the year.

Not much in the way of competition, but I will always tune in for another Monster KO. What a fight he had with Donaire, who BTW will be fighting on the 29th with the guy who beat Inoue's brother. A twisted drama, boxing.

 

[Slimy Time]

Apparently the arbitrator ruled in favour of Deontay Wilder and they have told Fury to fight Wilder again.

 

[Complete Reprobate]

I read about that. 50/50 he forces the rematch, or takes a fat step aside paycheck. I hope we get Fury-Joshua. As fun as Wilder is, I don't think he's going to reproduce the knockdowns in the first fight with Fury.

 

[Hesa]

Getting up 2.30am so I could watch Josh Taylor v José Ramírez. Good fight and worth a watch.

 

[Complete Reprobate]

It was an excellent fight. Taylor really took his foot off the gas after the second knockdown, which I found very puzzling. 114-112 on all scorecards!

 

[Complete Reprobate]

WE HAVE A NEW UNIFIED CHAMP!

May 22 Las Vegas -
A big congrats to Josh Taylor, the Tartan Tornado. I'm unsure if tornados occur in Scotland, but that's beside the point. He pulls off a 114-112 points victory over a game Jose Carlos Ramirez. The fight was very give and take the entire way, with the deciding factor being the two knockdowns Taylor scored in the 6th and 7th rounds. He then decided to cruise to a victory afterwards, which is a dangerous proposition for a foreign fighter anywhere. However Taylor prevailed, and is now (I think?) the sixth man to ever completely unify a division.

Of note on the undercard, one dog managed to pull off the upset - Elvis Rodriguez dropped a MD to Kenneth Sims Jr. Rodriguez, a southpaw trained by Freddy Roach, was countered all night behind a fast double jab coming from Sims Jr. A major setback for Rodriguez, and I hope Sims can get a decent payday from the work he put in. Well done!

The rest of the undercard -
Javier Martinez KO3 an Amish farmhand, Calvin Metcalf. Apparently, Metcalf had never been stopped before.

Cuban gold medalist Robeisy Ramirez UD6 Ryan Lee Allen
Andres Cortes UD8 Eduardo Garza
Raymond Muratalla TKO5 Jose Gallegos. Ref stepped in after a beating, so no highlight reel stuff.
Jose Enrique Durantes Vivas UD8 Luis Coria. Coria did not have enough last names to win.
Jose Zepeda UD10 Henry Lundy. The bookies had Hammerin' Hank getting defeated by knockout, but the Philly product proved them wrong.

You may or may not have heard of 'Bridgerweight', which is some new weight class that the WBC is trying to push. It's one weight step up from cruiser, and a Russian card had two fairly well known guys go after a secondary belt in said division -

Siberian Gulag, Russia -
Evgeny Romanov UD12 Dmitry Kudrayshov. Romanov is known for KOing Deontay Wilder in the amateurs, and Kudrayshov is a KO or get KO'd kind of guy. And yeah, they went to decision.

Skydome, Coventry, West Midlands, ENGLUND -

Brett McGinty PTS4 Dwain Grant
Tommy Welch TKO1 over Dmitrij Kalinovskij. Welch might be worth keeping an eye on.

Idris Virgo PTS6 over Lewis van Poetsch. van Poetsch, or 'Poochie', is a fan favorite journeyman. Who wouldn't want to root for this guy to escape getting KO'd every week?

Stephen Mckenna TKO1 Damian Haus

Michael Hennessy Jr. PTS6 Paul Cummings
Shakan Pitters TKO5 Jermaine Springer. Pitters got back to the W column, and looked decent doing so. Springer is not a big puncher, so hopefully Pitters will face some higher quality opposition next time around.

River Wilson Bent TKO7 George Farrell. This was a fun scrap. I have the time at the KO, but I enjoyed the entire fight.

Kaisee Benjamin RTD7 Martin Harkin

Sam Eggington UD12 Carlos Molina

Good weekend coming up.

Nonito Donaire, who I am a big fan of, will be facing Nordine Oubaali for his WBC Bantamweight title. As with any fight with the Filipino Flash, I say Donaire by KO, late rounds.

Devin Haney will be fighting Jorge Linares in what will likely be a UD for Haney.

No bets this week, dammit. I had some money on an undercard fight in the Romanov/Kurdrayshov match, but the fight was cancelled, and my bet was tied up all weekend. I was going to go all in on Zepeda v. Lundy - Fight goes the distance. I would have won, and I would have tripled my $$$.

WOULDA WOULDA WOULDA!

Until next week. Don't back out with your chin in the air!

BETTING -
Put 100 on Donaire by KO at +450. Cross your fingers that the Flash still has it!

 

[Complete Reprobate]

MAMA MIA! DONAIRE IS CHAMPION ONCE AGAIN!

This was the weekend of two opposite main events. One of natural power, and one of natural skill.

May 29, Las Vegas - DAZN


Amari Jones TKO1 Jonathan Ryan Burrs

Khalil Coe TKO2 Nathaniel Todd - The debut of Khalil Coe. Good looking prospect and worth keeping an eye on. Not often a debut ends in a bodyshot KO.
Ramla Ali UD6 Mikayla Nebel
Reshat Mati UD6 Ryan Pino
Chantelle Cameron TKO5 Melissa Hernandez
Jason Quigley MD Shane Mosley Jr. If the name Shane Mosley sounds familiar, it's his son. Not quite as good as dad, but few are.
Azinga Fuzile TKO8 Martin J. Ward

Devin Haney UD12 Jorge Linares

Haney is the WBC Titleist, and defended his belt against a faded Jorge Linares. Just a few things about Linares - 5 losses (before this fight), all by KO in 52 matches. He is no spring chicken, and due to all of the scar tissue he has accumulated in 19 years of fighting, he is known to be a bleeder. Haney never once came close to putting this man away, not once. He was not bleeding at the end of this fight, and IMO Linares realized too late that he could walk through this crap and GET him.
Exhibit A -

(Courtesy of /sp/)

The luckiest man in that ring is wearing white trunks. He would have been KO'd if there had been any time left in the round. Afterwards, it was jab, grab, run. I was listening to the broadcast at work, and his hometown audience was booing him at the end of the fight, and cheering for Linares. The little dance Linares did in the above clip really got them going, and swung the fickle winds of audience favor in his direction. So, as that turd Max Kellerman might say, Linares won the STORY of the fight. Also, he gets to go home to this -

Spoiler: Mrs. Linares

So, if you watched your highlight video like a good Kiwi, you will see a LOT of shots landed on Linares. Surely, he was a mangled mess after the fight, right? He took some PUNISHMENT!

Spoiler: NSFL

And he is right. At the top level, Haney can not get anyone out of the ring early. He is what they call in the industry a 'pillowfist' and it is truly a damn shame. Haney could be the next Sugar Ray Leonard with the boxing skill and hand speed he has, but he has NO POWER! He is going to need to find some before he sells that belt to any other top level opposition in his weight class. I truly hope that he can figure something out, since his talent is unreal.

Now, on to the other half -

May 29, Carson CA -

Rey Diaz UD4 Sergio A. Gonzalez
Atif Oberlton KO3 Larry Pryor
Alejandro S. Barrios KO2 Juan G. Medina
Kevin Johnson KO8 Luis David Salazar <------- WOOF WOOF! There's dog 1 of the day. Johnson brought the hurt early to Salazar, scoring knockdowns in the third (x2), seventh, and ended things in the eighth. Looking at Johnsons record, he has fought an unusually tough first ten fights, and his level of competition showed against Salazar.

Gary A. Russell RTD6 Jovanie Santiago

Subriel Matias RTD8 Batyrzhan Jukembayev

Nonito Donaire KO4 Nordine Oubaali

Compare the above with the Haney fight. Donaire is 38 years old, and made history last night as the oldest man to get a bantamweight belt. He sent that French/Arab bastard straight to the S H A D O W R E A L M with counterpunching and slick movement that has been perfected over two decades. There is POWER in both of those hands, career ending, harmful power. Just so you know the difference.

Donaire says he wants an Inoue rematch, and I would be lying if I didn't say I wanted the same. Both men now know a few of the others tricks, so new strategies would be needed, more intensive training camps, and so on. What an incredible fight that would be. Also, I would love to see Donaire fight Casimero, or even rematch Rigondeaux. What an amazing KO for Donaire! Also, told you so. He didn't wait around until the late rounds, but the result is still the same.

UPCOMING FIGHTS - One big card for next weekend.

Jarret Hurd faces tough, but middling competition in Luis Arias. Look for this one to go the distance in favor of Hurd.



BETTING -
I had 100 on Donaire by KO, so that's +$450
Also had Matias v Jukembayev - NOT go the distance at -175, so +$100
+$550 on the weekend! Whenever Donaire is the dog, throw him some bones.