Boxing Challenge: Joshua Dropped, Tsyzu retires Spence

      No upsets over the weekend, but the biggest news came from a near-upset as unknown Kristian Prenga dropped former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua twice in the first round before Joshua would return the favor by stopping Prenga in the second.

Joshua's next opponent, Tyson Fury, won his warm-up fight over veteran Mariusz Wach when Wach was unable to answer the bell for the eighth round.

Fury and Joshua are scheduled to meet sometime in the fall.

In Australia, former junior middleweight champion Tim Tszyu won a unanimous decision over comebacking former welterweight champion Errol Spence.

Spence announced his retirement after the fight.

Former junior middleweight and middleweight champion Demetrius Andrade won his ring return with a first-round KO of Douglas Ataide.

Josh Kelly retained his IBF junior middleweight title with a unanimous decision over Caoimhin Agyarko, and Hamzah Sheeraz kept his WBO super middleweight title with a unanimous decision over Simon Zachenhuber in two boring fights on the Joshua-Prenga undercard.

Edgar Berlanga stopped Steven Butler in seven rounds in the Zuffa main event from New York City.

Richardson Hitchins won a unanimous decision over Ricardo Salas, and Jalil Hackett earned a unanimous decision over Sergey Dereyvanchenko in the supporting bouts.

Boxing Challenge

TRS: 85 Pts (13)

Ramon Malpica: 70 Pts (10)

Vince Samano: 58 Pts (12)

Boxing Challenge

    Due to time constraints (Ruby and Work), here is the boxing challenge with just the facts.

Boxing Challenge

Heavyweights. 12 Rds 

Anthony Joshua vs Christian Prenga

Ramon Malpica: Joshua KO 8

TRS: Joshua KO 5
Vince Samano: Joshua KO 7

WBO Super Middleweight Title. 12 Rds

Hamzah Sheeraz vs Simon Zachenhuber

R.L: Sheeraz KO 9
TRS: Sheeraz KO 2
V.S: Sheeraz Unanimous Decision

IBF Junior Middleweight Title 12 Rds

Josh Kelly vs Caoimhin Agyarko

All: Kelly Unanimous Decision

Middleweights 12 Rds

Errol Spence vs Tim Tszyu

R.L: Tszyu KO 9
TRS: Tszyu KO 10
V.S: Spence KO 7

Junior Lightweights 12 Rds

Stephen Fulton vs Liam Wilson

All: Fulton Unanimous Decision

Super Middleweights 10 Rds

Edgar Berlanga vs Steven Butler

R.L: Berlanga Split Decision
TRS: Berlanga KO 5
V.S: Butler KO 8

Welterweights 12 Rds

Richardson Hitchins vs Ricardo Salas

R.L: Hitchins KO 9
TRS and V.S: Hitchins Unanimous Decision

Middleweights 10 Rds

Sergiy Dereyvanchenko vs Jalil Hackett

R.L and TRS: Dereyvanchenko Unanimous Decision
V.S: Hackett Unanimous Decision

Boxing Challenge

   The boxing weekend starts early on Fridaty with two former world champions making returns to the ring.

In Thailand, former heavyweight champion Tyson Fury will try to stay busy before an expected match with Anthony Joshua later this year.

Fury will meet veteran Mariusz Wach, who once challenged Wladimir Klitschko for the heavyweight title but in recent years has become a journeyman.

The fight isn't live-streamed as it is going to be shown eventually on Fury's Netflix reality show.

In Uncasville, Connecticut, former junior middleweight and middleweight champion Demetrius Andrade returns for the first time since his first defeat, a knockout loss to David Benavidez.

Andrade will face unknown Brazilian Douglas Ataide, who has been stopped in three of his five losses.

Boxing Challenge

Heavyweights. 10 Rds

Tyson Fury vs Mariusz Wach

All: Fury Unanimous Decision

Super Middleweights 10 Rds

Demetrius Andrade vs Douglas Ataide

Ramon Malpica and Vince Samano; Andrade Unanimous Decision

TRS: Andrade KO 6

Boxing Challenge: Pacheco stops Aleem

    The Matchroom card from Carson, California, didn't look to be thrilling or competitive, and it wasn't.

In the main event, unbeaten super middleweight contender Diego Pacheco stopped veteran Immanuel Aleem in the eleventh round.

Pacheco wore down the durable Aleem with a commitment to body work that had been missing in his recent fights, and his aggression looked more like the rising prospect than the more tentative boxer/puncher, who had settled for decision victories in his last three wins.

Lightweight contender Andy Cruz knocked out late replacement Abraham Montoya in the third round,

Cruz announced after the fight that he was going to move down in weight to the junior lightweight division.

Boxing Challenge

TRS: 72 Pts (2) 

Ramon Malpica: 60 Pts (2)

Vince Samano: 46 Pts (2)

Boxing Challenge

     It's an uninspiring card from Carson, California, from Matchroom, in the only action in the boxing challenge.

Unbeaten super middleweight contender Diego Pacheco meets trialhorse Immanuel Aleem in the main event.

Pacheco hasn't been exciting in his recent wins, and he's not facing a top contender in Aleem, who lasted the distance with Lester Martinez but was pounded in a lopsided loss.

Former Olympic gold medalist Andy Cruz returns to action for the first time since his majority decision defeat in an IBF lightweight title attempt against Raymond Muratalla against late replacement Abraham Montoya.

Montoya is replacing Albert Bell, who was allowed to drop out of the bout to face WBO champion Abdullah Mason.

Boxing Challenge

Super Middleweights. 12 Rds 

Diego Pacheco vs Immanuel Aleem

All: Pacheco Unanimous Decision

Lightweights 10 Rds

Andy Cruz vs Abraham Montoya

All: Cruz Unanimous Decision

Devils sign Anthony Mantha

    The New Jersey Devils wanted a top-six forward during the offseason, and after the Utah Mammoth matched the Devils' offer sheet to Barrett Hayden, New Jersey's shopping for that player continued.

The Devils found their new addition in right wing Anthony Mantha, who signed a two-year, $ 9.5 million contract to move to New Jersey.

The soon to be 32 year old Mantha is coming off the best season of his career, scoring 33 goals with 31 assists (both career-highs) with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The Devils will be the sixth team for Mantha (Detroit, Washington, Las Vegas, Calgary, and Pittsburgh) after a career that has been solid but somewhat disappointing for a player with his size (6'5 240 pounds) and skills.

A first-round pick by Detroit in 2013, Mantha looked to be a potential star when he notched 48 points in back-to-back seasons with the Red Wings, but until his one season with Pittsburgh, Mantha never lived up to his potential.

Mantha has good hands, is a strong skater, and plays with more finesse than a player of his size should; he is likely to be on the first or second line next season.

If Mantha can match his production with the Penguins, the Devils may have found exactly the player that they needed on the wing, but it's fair to question if Mantha isn't coming in at his highest value after a career season.

I'm tentatively optimistic with this signing, but it could go either way.

Cleaning out the Inbox: Non-Sports Edition

    I continue catching up with tributes to those who have recently left us with this edition from the non-sports world.

Goodbye to Anthony Head at the age of 72. 

Head was famous for his acting and singing in the United Kingdom, but his two most memorable roles for me were his recent role as West Ham owner "Rupert Mannion" in the Apple series "Ted Lasso", and of course as "Rupert Giles", the "watcher" in "Buffy The Vampire Slayer".

He also had many roles in voice work, including narrating documentaries and voice work for audiobooks, video games, and animation.

Goodbye to Charles Cioffi at the age of 90.

The long-time character actor was known as the police lieutenant in the 1971 film "Shaft" and appeared in more television series and movies than I can note.

Cioffi also had supporting roles in two of my favorite 80s films as Tom Cruise's father in "All the Right Moves" and as the lead villain (George Grove) in "Remo Williams".

Goodbye to Donald Gibb at the age of  71.

The hulking Gibb was usually cast in roles that made effective use of his size, such as bouncers, bikers, and athletes.

Gibb's most recognized role was as "Ogre" in the Revenge of the Nerds movie series, but he also played linebacker "Dr.Death for all seven seasons of the HBO series "First and Ten".

Goodbye to Joe Negri at the age of 99.

A long-time music teacher at various universities in the Pittsburgh area, Negri's claim to fame was in his recurring role in Mister Rogers ' Neighborhood as "Handyman Negri" in the program's "Land of Make-Believe".

Negri appeared on the program first in 1968 and was a regular until the show's final episode in 2000.

Goodbye to Claudine Longet at the age of 84.

Longet was a singer and actress who appeared on many network television shows in the sixties and seventies, and was a singer who had two top forty hits.

Longet was married to singer and television host Andy Williams before a 1970 divorce and a controversial role in the death of Olympic skier Spider Sabich in 1976.

Longet was convicted of negligent homicide but would only serve thirty days and pay a small fine.