Boxing Challenge

       It's a one-fight weekend in the boxing challenge as super middleweight contender Diego Pacheco continues his development against veteran Maciej Sulecki on a DAZN/Matchroom card from Carson, California.

Pacheco was devastating in his climb up the ladder but was just average in a unanimous decision over unbeaten but unknown Shawn McCalman in April.

Sulecki made a name for himself in 2016 when he lost a close decision to Daniel Jacobs but in his next name fight, he was floored several times and didn't win a round against Demetrius Andrade in 2019.

Since losing to Andrade, Sulecki has won four fights but none against contenders, and two of the four with losing records, so it's fair to consider how much Sulecki will bring to the ring against Pacheco.

Pacheco needs an impressive performance, and Sulecki needs at least a solid one to remain in the picture for main event fights.

Super Middleweights. 12 Rds 

Diego Pacheo vs Maciej Sulecki

Ramon Malpica: Pacheco KO 9
TRS: Pacheco KO 4

Vince Samano: Pacheco KO 3

PPM

     Last season, we decided to go with a younger actress (Peyton List) as the face of the PPM and for the 2024 season, we decided to go back to the past with Cheryl Ladd, who was the favorite of "Charlie's Angels" of a young me.

That holds up today (in my opinion), so needing to make a quick decision for the PPM, I decided to select Ms.Ladd.

There will be one change in the PPM as I will be moving from the Chargers (Will not root for a team with a Harbaugh) and selecting another NFL team for the PPM.

It will likely be a West Coast team but could also be a return to the Saints.

College

Ohio State over Akron 72-7

Texas Tech over Abilene Christian 45-17

N.C. State over Western Carolina 49-14

Bowling Green over Fordham 35-17

Arkansas over Arkansas Pine-Bluff 42-10

UTSA over Kennesaw State 34-16

Boise State over Georgia Southern 33-24

Oregon State over Idaho State 40-21

Middle Tennessee over Tennessee Tech 28-14

Games of the Week

Georgia over Clemson 35-21

West Virginia over Penn State 24-21

Road Trip: Pulsar, Hayburners and Leadbelly's

As we entered our final full day in Omaha, we decided to use our morning and early afternoon to visit Lincoln, Nebraska's capital city and home to the Cornhuskers.

Located about an hour west of Omaha, Lincoln was interesting with an antique mall to peruse and I had looked up a few interesting places to consider eating. 

On the drive, I saw the Platte Valley Antique Mall which I hadn't seen while researching and since it was literally off the interstate, we decided to stop.

I was glad I did as I found a few programs (Omaha Royals and a Nebraska-Oklahoma 1980 football) and saw a cool old pinball machine that I would have loved to have purchased!

Manufactured in 1951, Hayburners used a horse racing motif and not only was it working, but it was recently cleaned and looked almost new!

It's the exact style of machine that I love with the old numbers that move plates as you score and a basic few bumpers system but reading the reviews of the game, it looks better than it would play and it was for the best that I didn't purchase (Like I was writing a three thousand dollar check and figuring out how to get it to Maryland anyway!).

The next stop was on the outskirts of Lincoln and the main reason for the drive was the Aardvark Antique Mall.

Aardvark was large and had a large supply of items but I managed to hold off the impulse to buy Pulsar the Ultimate Man of Adventure (I had him as a kid and hadn't thought of him in years but this was the first of three times I would see Pulsar this summer) and escaped without spending anything!

We continued into Lincoln for a visit to Leadbelly's.

Located in the Haymarket district near Memorial Stadium, home of the Cornhuskers, there were several places to choose from to eat and a few shops as well, one of which Cherie stopped by to purchase a few items for herself and others.

Leadbelly's had a 1930s-style speakeasy feel to it and it wasn't overly busy for a weekday lunchtime visit, which added to our enjoyment as we could talk and not have to shout over others.

We decided to have a little bit of a few things as we split a bacon cheeseburger, and ordered two appetizers to share- some delicious orange chicken poppers and some stadium nachos.

Everything was great and we certainly enjoyed our time at Leadbelly's.

After driving back to our hotel for a little downtime, it was time for the hardest part of the trip.

We met Ryan and his family at the Greek Islands, a favorite of theirs and a place that plays to the theatrical as they do things like lighting a hot plate in front of you as part of the show.

I really wasn't that hungry after Leadbelly's so I ordered a sandwich and that was all that I ate.

It was good but I wasn't up for eating too much.

After our goodbyes, which was far harder than I expected, it was quiet in the vehicle.

Surprisingly, I was thinking of my parents and events of over thirty years before.

You see, anyone who knows me well knows that I always wanted to return to raise my family in Ohio and for various reasons, that never was able to happen.

My parents never wanted us to leave and while that was understandable, I felt that they could have been more supportive, and had they done so, I might have been able to pull the move off.

Yet years later, while I'm preparing to say goodbye to my son ( and Nebraska is much farther away than Ohio for the geographically challenged), I found myself thinking of those times and perhaps empathizing a bit with their plight.

After all, they didn't want to lose their son, daughter-in-law, and grandson (most of this was before Rachel was born) either, and maybe they thought they were doing the right thing.

That's what I was thinking and I'm still torn but in the end, I don't think ( not that I could) I'd try to stand in anyone's way or guilt trip them before or after the decision.

In the end, I think everyone would like to have their family close by but life takes all of us in different directions and while I miss my son ( and my new family), I don't think it would be fair to put my wishes above what is best for either of my children.

All of that said, it's not easy leaving them behind and I'm not sure that it ever will be easy nor should it be.

If it was easy, I'd wonder how much one would really care.

We finish up the series next time with the drive home and the stops on the way! 

I Tell Ya' Herbie

      Last season, we used the old seventies toy, Super Toe, as the face of "Herbie".

Well, since then I've found an actual Super Toe at an antique market in Dayton Ohio (Picture as I found him in Dayton), so starting next week, I'll have a picture of Super Toe today, although I still need some of those block bottomed footballs!

I tell ya' Herbie:

                           The first week of the season doesn't feature many great matchups but it will have two inter-conference games that are quite underrated as rivalries that could set the tone for the season for the winners.

I've always loved inter-conference rivalries and more of these types of games should be played.

I tell ya' Herbie:

                          Georgia vs Clemson may not have the cache' that it may have had a few seasons ago with Clemson's mild decline but it still matches the favorites of the SEC and a top contender in the ACC, especially with Florida State's surprising loss to Georgia Tech in Ireland.

The two schools are separated by only seventy miles and have played sixty-five times but this will be only the fourth time in the last twenty-one years and in the new era of playoff football where one loss won't kill your season, perhaps Georgia vs Clemson can once again become an annual rivalry.

I tell ya' Herbie:

                           The other renewed rivalry will see Penn State travel to Morgantown as an eight-point favorite over West Virginia and the Mountaineers.

Last season's 38-15 Penn State win in State College was the first game in a sixty-game series since 1992.

Penn State usually beats everyone not named Ohio State or Michigan on their schedule but they seldom under James Franklin defeat teams that they aren't far superior to.

West Virginia improved to 9-4 last season, Morgantown is a tough place to visit, and if Penn State isn't ready to play, I think West Virginia is capable of pulling an upset.

I tell ya' Herbie:

                           Boise State is the team that many are picking as the potential Group of Five representative in the playoff but the Broncos have a very tough game at Oregon early in the season that receives the attention as a Bronco-buster.

However, Boise starts the season with three games that aren't easy, the first of which is this Saturday against Sun Belt member Georgia Southern in Statesboro Ga.

The Eagles are also capable of an upset at home against a team traveling across the country, so Boise needs to take care of business before their Oregon and Washington State matchups.

I tell ya' Herbie:

                           One team that I am interested in watching is Nebraska with Matt Ruhle in his second year and starting true freshman Dylan Raiola at quarterback, the Cornhuskers should be a team worth watching- for good or bad.

Ruhle and Raiola could show signs of progress in Lincoln for even more improvement in 2015 or they could also struggle, bringing the fanbase to early concern, and Raiola, who committed to seemingly half the nation in his high school years, to start looking around for a landing spot elsewhere.

I could see it playing out either way, which is why it's so interesting to keep an eye on.

I tell ya' Herbie:

                           Of all the games in the first month of the season, the one I am looking forward to most (outside of the teams I support) is September 28th with Liberty traveling to Appalachian State.

The favorites to win the CUSA and Sun Belt conferences, the winner could have a huge leg up on the automatic playoff berth.

Liberty plays another weak schedule without an opponent that the Flames would not be favored, while Appalachian State travels to Clemson before this game, a win here, and a run of the table (with a Sun Belt title game win) could put a one-loss Mountaineer team into the tournament even with a loss to Clemson.

Cleaning out the Inbox: Football Passings

    There have been several recent passings from the world of football and we are well behind in the tributes to these past stars of the gridiron.

Goodbye to Abner Haynes at the age of  86.

One of the first stars of the AFL, Haynes chose the Dallas Texans over the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1960 when Steelers coach Buddy Parker and star quarterback Bobby Layne showed up at Haynes' house drunk, which made Haynes's father, a minister, to tell his son that he would be signing with the brand new Texans.

Haynes led the AFL in rushing and touchdowns in the league's first year, winning the Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year awards in 1960.

Haynes was named to the All-AFL first team three times and second team once, was named to the league's all-time team, and finished third in league history, yet Haynes is most remembered for his "kick to the clock" decision in a gale storm in the 1962 AFL title game.

Texans coach Hank Stram had given Haynes instructions to take the wind if they won the toss and when Dallas won the coin flip, Haynes's "kick to the clock" allowed the Houston Oilers to have the ball first and the wind in overtime.

The Texans overcame the error, winning the game 20-17 in the second overtime in the final game as the Dallas Texans as they left for Kansas City for the following season.

Goodbye to Jim Ninowski at the age of 88.

Ninowski played for four teams in his twelve-year career, most notably with the Lions and Browns.

Ninowski was acquired from Cleveland to start for the Lions in the 1960 and 1961 seasons but threw only nine touchdown passes against thirty-six interceptions in the two seasons.

Ninowski returned to Cleveland in 1962 but a shoulder injury forced him from the lineup, Frank Ryan took over as the starter and would be a backup for the remainder of his career, which concluded in 1969 with a four-game stint with the New Orleans Saints.

Goodbye to Benjamin Gay at the age of 44.

A five-star recruit in 1997, Gay chose Baylor and was kicked off the team after only five games for rules violations.

Gay played a half-season before being kicked off that team for rules violations and was waived by the CFL's Edmonton Eskimos in 2000.

Gay tried out for the Cleveland Browns and made the team in 2001 as a running back and kick returner.

Gay rushed for fifty-six yards and his only NFL touchdown in a November win over Baltimore. He was waived at the end of the season, signing with Indianapolis for 2002 but would not make the team.

Goodbye to Brad Dusek at the age of 73.

Dusek spent all eight seasons of his NFL career with Washington after being acquired from New England, who picked him in the third round of the 1973 draft from Texas A&M as a solid all-around linebacker.

Dusek would start ninety-one games for Washington in those eight seasons.

Dusek recovered sixteen fumbles, picked off four interceptions, and had fourteen sacks to go with three touchdowns, which Dusek scored off fumble recoveries.

Goodbye to Tony Hunter at the age of 64.

A standout tight end at Notre Dame, Hunter was chosen twelfth overall with the first of the Buffalo Bills' two first-round draft picks in the 1983 draft, ahead of Buffalo's fourteenth pick, Jim Kelly.

Hunter played two seasons in Buffalo before being traded to the Los Angeles Rams and catching fifty passes in his first season as a Ram before a career-ending leg injury in 1986.

Goodbye to Dave Williams at the age of 78.

Williams spent his best seasons with the St.Louis Cardinals before moving to San Diego and Pittsburgh along with the WFL's Southern California Sun.

Williams was the Cardinal's first-round pick in 1967 from Washington and played five seasons there, catching 162 passes and 22 touchdowns.

Williams was the top receiver for the WFL Sun, scoring twenty touchdowns for the Southern California franchise.

Browns release Foreman, Ika

   On cutdown day for what is called the "initial" 53, the Cleveland Browns dropped a few interesting names, and while some could be returned to the practice squad should things work out on the waiver wire, others might not have problems finding a new home.

The biggest surprise was running back D'onta Foreman, who was signed in the offseason as the hard yardage back and was expected to help the ground game in the early season absence of Nick Chubb.

Foreman suffered a scary neck injury in camp and left the final preseason game against Seattle with a rib injury, so the Browns may have felt that Foreman's injuries were a luxury that they couldn't afford with Pierre Strong also dinged up among a running back room not filled with depth.

That lack of depth could see the Browns scoop up a back in the next day (perhaps Samaje Perine, who could be waived by Denver) to feel a bit safer, although I've always liked Foreman as a back.

I wonder if he'd be interested in a return when healthy or maybe there is something we don't know about Foreman and the Browns relationship that may have played a part in this decision.

Cleveland also declared David Bell the winner for the final spot at wide receiver with the Browns releasing Michael Woods and James Proche.

Woods was the Browns' sixth-round pick in 2022 and missed all of 2023 due to a knee injury but caught five passes and two touchdowns in the final preseason game.

Proche was used as a punt returner last season and is noted for his special teams play.

I think the Browns would be interested in signing either or both to their practice squad ( and maybe another released receiver in Jaylen Darden) but I think someone is likely to sign Woods during the scramble period.

Cleveland released two players that may return after the dust settles as the team let goTony Brown and Justin Hardee.

Both can play in the secondary in a pinch, are top-notch special teamers, and as veterans will not have to clear the waiver wire, so deals may have been arranged with one or both to hang around town.

Cleveland is very deep along the interior of the defensive line and two recent draft picks didn't make the cut as 2023 third-rounder Siaki Ika and 2024 seventh Jowan Briggs were released.

Briggs is a player who could return to the practice squad and while Ika was a high draft pick, Andrew Berry usually gives his picks every possible chance to succeed, considering that- it says volumes that the Browns have given up on the former Baylor Bear this quickly.

Cleveland has placed four quarterbacks on the roster for now (DeShaun Watson, Jameis Winston, Dorian Thompson-Robinson, and Tyler Huntley) but this is likely to see if they can get something for one of them before they are forced to let one player (my guess is Winston if there is a trade, Huntley if they release someone) go for no return.

The Browns also released veteran offensive tackle German Ifedi, which means the Browns feel good about the health of Jack Conklin and/or Jedrick Wills before the opener as Ifedi was the main depth after an injury to James Hudson.

Cleaning out the Inbox

    Time to clean out the inbox and as has happened before, we move to lobsters.

We start in Pueblo, Colorado where employees of a local Red Lobster found a naturally orange lobster. 

Nicknamed "Crush" for the Denver Broncos defense, orange lobsters are very rare, as in one in every thirty million!

My first thought is how closely an orange lobster resembles a cooked lobster and how fortunate it was to be picked out of the crowd for survival.

Crush was donated to the Denver Aquarium where he will be seen by the public after a quarantine period.

We moved to New England for more orange lobsters as "Peaches" gave birth to what is hoped to be many orange lobsters.

Although the odds are that only a few will turn out to be orange, finding Peaches with eggs gives some hope with orange lobsters being so scarce, egg-bearing orange lobsters are rare on the rare scale!

We stay in New England and Concord, Massachusetts where archaeologists have found musket balls that date back 250 years to the famous "Shot heard around the world" that escalated the beginning of the American Revolution.

Early reports state that they are likely to have been shot by British troops during the battle in April 1775.

Atlas Obscura writes of the renovation of the first airplane to be used as "Air Force One" as the official plane of the President is referred to.

The 1948 Lockheed C-Constellation was upgraded by Dwight Eisenhower and became the first plane to use the name Air Force One in 1953.

The plane moved to Vice President Richard Nixon in 1954 and was retired in 1968 to an Arizona storage facility, where no one realized its status until 1978.

The plane is currently being restored in Virginia, where it has been since 2016. 

Browns add another late draft pick

   Andrew Berry continues his constant moving of late-round draft picks in and out, this time adding a 2025 sixth-rounder from the Chicago Bears in return for defensive tackle Chris Williams and a 2025 seventh-round pick.

Williams played two seasons for the Indianapolis Colts (2021 and 2022) before spending last season on the practice squads of Kansas City and Cleveland.

Williams had two sacks for the Browns in the preseason but was still considered a long shot to make the final roster, so getting anything in return for a player who was unlikely to make the team is a win for Berry and the Browns.

Chicago is having injury issues along their defensive line and their head coach Matt Eberflus has some knowledge of Williams, having coached him as the defensive coordinator in Indianapolis, so much like the Browns trade last week to obtain Nick Harris (and a seventh-rounder for a sixth) due to depth concerns, this made sense for the Beara at a nominal cost.

The Browns still have questions on the offensive line, especially at tackle, so adding a sixth-rounder could help them swing another deal to help them at tackle before the roster cutdown for the season opener against Dallas.

I don't look at these picks as disposable because I believe you can add players that can help you (as the Browns appear to have possibly found in their seventh-round pick in April's draft in cornerback Myles Harden).

However, moves involving picks can help teams fill gaps with veteran players when the injury bug swarms over a specific position group, so any extra selections could come in very handy in acquiring personnel in that situation.

Getting something for a player who would have likely gone elsewhere for nothing in a few days is always an excellent move.

I think that we haven't seen the last of these moves before the season begins.

Cleaning out the Inbox: Passings

    It's a pro wrestling-heavy version of tributes and we begin with two brothers, who starred as a tag team and passed away less than two months apart.

Goodbye to the Wild Samoans, Afa, and Sika at the ages of 81 and 79.

The three-time WWF tag team champions managed by Captain Lou Albano, also held tag team titles in several territories, most notably Georgia and Mid-South but had their most success in the WWF.

The Samoans were a sensation in 1979-80, winning the titles from Ivan Putski and Tito Santana before losing them to Bob Backlund and Pedro Morales at the famous 1980 Shea Stadium show.

Backlund couldn't hold two titles at the same time, so the titles were vacated with the Samoans winning a tournament for their second reign which ended with a loss to Tony Garea and Rick Martel.

After the loss, the Samoans wrestled in various promotions before a return in 1983 that would see them defeat the Strongbow Brothers for their third reign before dropping them to Tony Atlas and Rocky Johnson.

Both Afa and Sika received title shots against WWF champion Bob Backlund in their first WWF run and after the WWF national expansion, Sika was managed by Mr.Fuji in several title opportunities against Hulk Hogan in 1985.

Goodbye to Pete Sanchez at the age of 81.

Sanchez wrestled as one of the better preliminary wrestlers in the WWF from 1963 to 1992, usually losing on television to the top stars but enjoyed a high enough status to enable him to give those stars a tougher time than they would usually have in those matches.

Sanchez would often win on the house shows on the circuit against opponents of his level and if you didn't live in the WWF territory, Sanchez might be best remembered as the opponent for Ric Flair in 1976 as Flair made his first appearance in the federation as a "special attraction" on the undercard.

Goodbye to Vladimir Petrov at the age of 66.

Al Blake was another trainee off the Minnesota assembly line in the mid-1980s and when another Minnesota grappler John Nord changed his mind after accepting the spot, stepped in to become "Vladimir Petrov".

When Magnum TA suffered his career-ending auto accident in 1986, feared Russian heel Nikita Koloff was turned to the good side to dedicate his career to his fallen rival, creating a need for someone to face Nikita under the guidance of "Uncle" Ivan Koloff.

That man was Petrov, the supposed Russian amateur rival of Nikita but his matches with Nikita saw him lose those matches and within a year, was gone from the territory other than a brief trip to the UWF against champion Steve "Dr.Death" Williams.

Goodbye to Mark Wells at the age of 66.

Wells was a member of the 1980 Miracle on Ice team that won the Olympic gold medal in hockey but never played in the NHL.

Wells played three seasons in the minor leagues before retiring in 1982 after hockey was diagnosed with a rare degenerative spinal disease which often left him bedridden and unable to work.

The hospital bills would force Wells to sell his gold medal in 2010 for $40,000 to pay medical expenses and keep his home.

Goodbye to War Chant at the age of 27.

The 2000 Breeders Cup Mile winner on the grass, War Chant won five of his seven career starts and won both of his starts on turf.

War Chant finished ninth in the 2000 Kentucky Derby before taking five months off to prepare for the final two races of his career, including his exciting Breeders Cup Mile triumph.

War Chant stood at stud in America until 2011 when he moved to Australia for the remainder of his life.

Browns trade Cade York to Washington

     Andrew Berry and the Cleveland Browns continue to collect seventh-round picks.

One week after swapping a sixth-rounder to Seattle for Nick Harris and a seventh-round selection, Berry traded kicker Cade York to the Washington Commanders for a conditional seventh-round draft pick.

Cleveland's fourth-round draft pick in 2022, York was the starting kicker in that season but was released in the 2023 pre-season after some erratic performances with the Browns trading with San Diego for Dustin Hopkins.

York was re-signed in the off-season even though Hopkins was signed to a three-season contract extension as the Browns must have been thinking about Hopkins's injury history and the new kickoff rule that could leave kickers vulnerable to contact.

York hit both of his field goal attempts in the two exhibition games, including a fifty-five-yard kick against Green Bay, and both extra point tries, so there are signs that York may be rounding into the kicker that Cleveland drafted in 2022.

I'm not sure about the conditions of the seventh round but usually, it is activated if York kicks/on the roster for a specified amount of games.

I've always liked Cade York's potential and I wish there was a way to keep him around but Washington needs a kicker, York will have a chance to kick there, and while a conditional seventh rounder isn't a great return, it's something for a player that likely wouldn't be able to return to the practice squad.

Hurd-Rosario battle to draw

      I've always thought that there is a place for veterans to continue to box past their prime with the caveat that they have to be matched very carefully and preferably against each other.

A perfect example of this was last night's ProBox main event between former junior middleweight champions Jarrett Hurd and Jeison Rosario in a ten-rounder at middleweight.

Neither fighter looked like a title contender but since they were on the same level, the former titleholders put on an entertaining fight that ended in a draw.

Both fighters landed their share of punches with Hurd landing more and Rosario hitting with the harder punches.

Hurd may have lost the fight in the final two rounds, holding a lead on my card, Hurd allowed Rosario to control the distance in those rounds, both won by Rosario with the rally giving him the draw on my card at 95-95.

Two judges scored the fight 96-94, one each for Rosario and Hurd, with the deciding judge marking a scorecard of 95-95.

I think a rematch would be acceptable especially if it meant that it kept either of the two wouldn't be matched against a contender or talented prospect.

Boxing Challenge

Ramon Malpica; 115 Pts(0) 

TRS: 106 Pts (0)

Vince Samano: 58 Pts (0)

Road Trip: Race Horses and Storm Chasers

     The road trip to Omaha rolled on as we spent the day with Ryan, who showed us the sights of his new hometown.

Ryan. Cherie and I saw the various markets and attractions of Omaha but for me, there were two stops that I wanted to see most of all and Ryan was kind enough to make that happen.

The first stop that I really wanted to make was a return to Omaha suburb Gretna and Werner Park, the home of the Omaha Storm Chasers, the AAA affiliate of the Kansas City Royals.

One thing that I didn't know before the trip was that the Storm Chasers didn't use the same ballpark downtown that is used for the College World Series.

I just assumed that was the case and was surprised to hear that the Storm Chasers had their own facility.

Werner Park didn't stand out from the interstate and it seemed to be tucked away in an area filled with industrial businesses and homes but it was easy to find and had plenty of places to park unlike the urban stadiums, where parking is always a pain.

Walking outside the stadium is a beautiful statue of Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Gibson, an Omaha native who also attended Creighton University in the city.

The statue is very well done and captures Gibson's release from the mound perfectly.

We didn't stay very long, long enough to hit the team store, snap a few pictures, and watch enough to count Werner Park on the visited stadiums list.

We then returned to Omaha to look for a small monument to the racehorse Omaha, who was the third horse to win the Triple Crown, and who lived out his life in Nebraska after a poor career at stud.

Ak-Sar-Ben (Nebraska spelled backward) Race Course was the center of Nebraska horse racing before being torn down in 2005 and somewhere in the area, Omaha is buried.

The remains weren't found when the facility was razed although occasionally writers use modern methods to try to pinpoint where they may rest.

Now the area is called AkSarBen Village with an entertainment village, a park, and an arena that hosts events for Nebraska-Omaha sports teams.

We would return to the hotel afterward for the evening to prepare for a Memorial Day cookout the following day at Ryan's, which I had a surprisingly good time considering that it combined the outdoors and meeting new people, neither of which are noted as favorites of mine.

In our next and possibly final installment, we start our final day in Omaha, travel to Lincoln, say goodbye to Ryan and family, and take the long way home.

It is possible that there could be two posts depending on the length of the post.

 

Boxing Challenge

    It's a rare weeknight entry in the boxing challenge as two former unified junior middleweight champions in desperate need of a jolt to sagging careers meet in Florida on a ProBox TV card.

Not only did both men hold two titles, they held the same two (WBA and IBF) and could have faced each other with a different result or two.

Jarrett Hurd was flying high in 2019 with two titles and wins over Erislandy Lara in a fight of the year candidate (yes, it's true Erislandy Lara and fight of the year in the same sentence), Austin Trout, and Tony Harrison had Hurd set for a Northern Virginia homecoming that was setting up for another big unification chance against Jermell Charlo.

Instead, Hurd was upset by Julian Williams and it's been all downhill ever since as Hurd lost a split decision to Luis Arias in 2021 and then was stopped in the tenth round in March 2023 to Jose Resendiz before a recent win in a squash match.

Jeison Rosario was known as a hard puncher with a questionable chin (Rosario's one loss at that time had been by sixth-round KO to veteran Nathaniel Gallimore) entering a 2020 title attempt against Julian Williams in his homecoming fight in Philadelphia (even more parallels).

Rosario shocked Williams with a fifth-round KO, taking the WBA and IBF belts, and placing himself in the title unification picture against Jermell Charlo.

Charlo would take the titles in five rounds from Rosario, and Erickson Lubin knocked Rosario out in six rounds in his next fight.

Rosario won three straight against lesser competition before Brian Mendoza stopped him in five rounds in 2022 and has one low level win since.

This brings us to tonight's fight in Florida- two former unified champions who haven't looked good in their most recent fights but perhaps could get the fire going against a veteran of their own age with struggles of their own.

Rosario's the bigger puncher but possesses the weaker chin.

Hurd has the better skills but has looked severely slowed (in other words "Swift" hasn't been speedy) since his title loss, so who really knows how this is going to play out.

Could this be an entertaining slugfest between two fighters who can't avoid the other?

Or will this be a snoozer with two faded former champions unable to fire punches and settling for clinches?

Boxing Challenge

Ramon Malpica: Hurd Unanimous Decision

TRS: Hurd KO 7

Vince Samano: Rosario KO 8

The Grand Prize Game!

 If you are over thirty-five, you may remember the "BOZO Show" and their  Grand Prize Game, in which buckets were lined in a row, and one by one, each ball is tossed in a bucket until the player missed.

I'm going to use that premise and offer one recent nugget for each of the teams/sports that I follow closely.

I was surprised to hear that MSG Networks and the New Jersey Devils moved away from Erica Wachter as their studio host for Devils games.

I liked Wachter's work (she also appears on MLB and NHL Network) and she had good chemistry with her studio partner Bryce Salvador.

No word on her replacement on Devils broadcasts.

The Cleveland Browns reached out for a player from their past to help solve an injury issue when they traded a 2026 sixth-round draft choice to the Seattle Seahawks for center Nick Harris and a 2026 seventh-round draft pick.

Harris was the Browns' heir apparent at center but injured his knee in training camp in 2022, which allowed veteran Ethan Pocic to cement himself as the starter.

Cleveland drafted Luke Wypler at the position in 2023 and Harris signed with Seattle as a free agent in the past off-season but Wypler suffered an ankle injury in the preseason opener and Harris's Cleveland experience made him an attractive option to replace Wypler as the backup.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have re-signed the three core players of their franchise to contract extensions in the off-season with the agreements with Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen but one decision still remains- a decision involving Isaac Okoro.

Okoro is a restricted free agent and some rumors have spread about a possible sign and trade with the Brooklyn Nets.

Okoro could take the Cavaliers qualifying offer and remain with the team, which would be okay with me but Okoro's skills and below-average shot make him less desirable as more than a situational player off the bench.

Newcastle United start their season at home against Southampton, in what is the Saints return to the Premier League after a one-year absence.

The drama around the Magpies is about their attempted signing of Marc Guehi from Crystal Palace.

Crystal Palace was asking sixty-five million (English Pounds) and turned down three offers for Newcastle before Newcastle offered the asking price, only to have the Eagles turn down THAT offer.

I'm all for negotiations but if Newcastle felt they were willing to meet the asking price of the player, why didn't they just offer it on the second try rather than the fourth?

I'm not knowledgeable enough to say if Guehi is worth this cost or not but Newcastle might have to go all in for him or end with no considerable additions to a team that wishes to return to Champions League play next season. 

We wrap up with this thought from boxing.

With the IBF forcing their talented welterweight champion Jaron "Boots" Ennis to fight a rematch against Karen Chukhadzhian, it started me thinking about fights that didn't deserve a second fight that was forced by sanctioning bodies.

In their first fight in January 2023, Ennis won each of the twelve rounds in a fight that managed to do the unexpected- make Ennis look ordinary.

Chukhadzhian ran, Ennis chased, and after the decision, most thought that we wouldn't hear from Chukhadzhian again.

Chukhadzhian has won three times since against middling opposition but one of those came in an IBF eliminator against England's Harry Scarff and when Cody Crowley was forced to drop out of his scheduled title try against Ennis due to an eye injury (replaced by David Avanesyan), Ennis still needed to make a mandatory defense and now that man is Chukhadzhian, leaving boxing fans with a fight that no one asked for once, let alone twice.

This made me think of Marvin Hagler being forced to fight Fulgencio Obelmejias twice by the WBA.

Obelmejias was 30-0 in January 1981 against weak opposition when the WBA mandated his title chance and Obelmejias fought fairly well in his first attempt at Hagler before being stopped in round eight.

Obelmejias rebounded with eight straight wins with the best win as an eighth-round stoppage of future super middleweight champion Chong-Pal Park to return to the top of the WBA rankings and another mandated chance against Hagler.

Twenty-one months later, the rematch no one wanted other than the WBA and maybe Obelmejias occurred in Italy with Hagler dominating before knocking Obelmejias cold with a fifth-round left hook.

Fast forward, five years, and Obelmeijas finally became a world champion when he won a unanimous decision over old rival Chong-Pal Park to win the WBA super middleweight championship in 1988.

Obelmejias lost the title in his first defense to In-Chul Baek and won his final three fights before retiring.

Boxing Challenge: Mbilli defeats Dereyvanchenko

      The boxing Saturday was all about Oh, Canada with a Top Rank/ESPN card from Quebec City and while the headliner earned the victory, he may have looked just vulnerable enough to give other contenders a willingness to face him in the future.

Christian Mbilli's unanimous decision win over Sergey Dereyvanchenko may not have created a new star but the victory certainly helped his rise through the division as the best of his career.

Mbilli attacked in his usual aggressive style and won the first three rounds although Dereyvanchenko scored well at times and when Dereyvanchenko took control with an excellent round four, the fight looked like it was going to be a close fight from there.

Except it wasn't.

Dereyvanchenko damaged his bicep in winning the round and it naturally limited his effectiveness, leading Mbilli to control the remainder of the fight against a game but outmanned opponent.

Mbilli won easily at 100-90, 99-91, and 98-92 (I scored 98-92 for Mbilli), and while he didn't tarnish his image in victory, he didn't dazzle either against an aging opponent who was unable to use one of his hands.

Christian Mbilli is ranked near the top of the super middleweight ratings and unless his team decides to take a safe course, I'd think Mbilli would make sense for the winner of the fall Jaime Munguia-Erik Bazinyan battle.

As for Dereyvanchenko, he's thirty-eight, faces a lengthy rehab for the injured bicep, and has taken more punishment than most fighters after a twenty-one-fight career, so it might be time for him to step away from the sport.

The co-feature saw Guido Vinaello stop Arislanbek Mahkmudov when the doctor stopped the fight at the start of the eighth round due to incredible swelling around the left eye of Mahkmudov.

Vinello won every round on my card, battering the lumbering Makhmundov throughout the bout and hurting him on several occasions.

Give Makhmudov credit for hanging around as long as he did on courage alone but he's dreadfully slow and unless you match him against a non-mover, he's going to have big problems.

Cuban super middleweight Osley Iglesias continued his maturation with a second-round knockout over Sena Agbeko.

Agbeko was recently stopped by David Morrell in two rounds but Morrell (or anyone in Agbeko's career) failed to knock him down.

That ended against Iglesias, who knocked Agbeko down late in the first round and finished him early in the second.

Iglesias is developing into a potential future star at 168 pounds.

Boxing Challenge

Ramon Malpica: 115 Pts (3)

TRS: 106 Pts (6)

Vince Samano: 58 Pts (3)

Boxing Challenge

    The boxing weekend is based in Quebec City, Canada with three fights of interest.

In the main event, exciting super middleweight bomber, Christian Mbilli, faces his sternest test to date against rugged warhorse Sergey Dereyvanchenko.

Mbilli has been devastating in his climb to the top of the super middleweight ratings and while Dereyvanchenko has lost five times (All to world champions), an argument can be made that four of his losses (Gennady Golovkin, Daniel Jacobs, Carlos Adames, and most recently Jaime Munguia) could have been scored for Dereyvanchenko.

Mbilli has shown devastating power and plenty of aggressiveness but looks to be vulnerable to a counterpunch as he attacks.

The question is this- Is a thirty-five-year-old Dereyvanchenko still capable of landing such a punch after so many grueling wars?

On the surface, this looks to be the perfect time for Mbilli to step on the world stage but Dereyvanchenko has been counted out before only to roar back with a strong performance.

The co-feature will pit two heavyweights in a crossroads matchup with both in desperate need of a victory.

Arslanbek Mahkhmudov was unbeaten in eighteen fights before being battered by Agit Kabayel in Riyadh last December, losing via fourth-round knockout.

Guido Vianello lost a close split decision to Efe Ajagba in his last bout and his only other defeat was due to an awful cut, so he could easily be unbeaten with luck.

Vianelo showed lots of heart in his losses, Mahkmudov wilted against Kabayel but Mahkmudov is the much bigger puncher, so this is a close fight to choose a winner.

Unbeaten Cuban super middleweight Osleys Iglesias returns against Sena Agbeko in a ten-rounder.

Iglesias has stopped ten of his eleven opponents, his last two both fell in the first round.

Agbekol has lost in his two tests against good opponents and was last seen being blown out by David Morrell in two rounds.

Boxing Challenge

Super Middleweights. 10 Rds

Christian Mbilli vs Sergey Dereyvanchenko

R.L and TRS; Mbilli Unanimous Decision
V.S: Mbilli KO 6

Heavyweights 10 Rds

Arslanbek Mahkmudov  vs Guido Vianello

R.L: Mahkmudov Unanimous Decision

TRS: Vianello Unanimous Decision
V.S: Mahkmudov KO 9

Super Middleweights. 10 Rds

Osleys Iglesias vs Sena Agbeko

R.L: Iglesias Unanimous Decision
TRS: Iglesias KO 2

V.S: Iglesias KO 7

Boxing Challenge: Bombs Away!

    Editor's Note: Sorry this is so late, I was on a trip.

Posts on those coming soon.

The violence in the two main events on Saturday won't be forgotten any time shortly as the two offered the type of actions that boxing fans crave and non-boxing fans can see what our sport is all about.

The biggest fight came from Las Vegas where on a Golden Boy?DAZN card, Vergil Ortiz survived a huge test from Serhii Bohachuk to win a close and somewhat controversial majority decision to win a minor junior middleweight title.

The win could give Ortiz a chance at Terence Crawford's WBO junior middleweight title in what would be a terrific pairing of two former welterweight standouts but let's not move too quickly past his savage battle vs Serhii Bohachuk.

Ortiz was the slightly more aggressive boxer and landed a few more punches but Bohachuk threw more and dictated the pace of the fight a little more in my opinion.

Ortiz's punches had a little more power but it was Bohachuk who scored knockdowns in the first and eighth rounds.

Neither punch hurt Ortiz badly and the first-round knockdown was initially scored a slip before being overturned at the beginning of round five after replay analysis that is used in Nevada.

Ortiz rallied strong in the eighth after the knockdown and on my card, his work was able to salvage losing the round 10-9 rather than the standard 10-8 in a round involving a knockdown, and he hurt Bohachuk in each of the final two rounds but was unable to drop Bohachuk.

Ortiz won the majority decision by scores of 114-112 times two and the other 113-113.

I scored the fight for Bohachuk 114-113 but I wouldn't say that I have a problem with Ortiz gaining the victory.

This battle would be my choice for fight of the year thus far and while Bohachuk deserves a rematch, I can't blame Ortiz for taking a Terence Crawford fight if offered.

Ortiz's style is exciting but he takes punishment and he could get beaten before a huge fight, so it's good business for him to cash in.

For Bohachuk, he remains a force at 154 pounds and deserves a fight against another of the division's elite as he lost little in his losing effort.

The evening's other fight may not have featured quite as much action as Ortiz-Bohachuk but the IBF featherweight title battle from Albuquerque New Mexico did have one thing they lacked- A spectacular ending that may win knockout of the year.

Angelo Leo would battle evenly with champion Luis Alberto Lopez into the tenth round with the fight hanging in the balance (I had Lopez ahead 86-85 after nine rounds but Leo ahead by the same score is very plausible).

Leo did the better work on the inside and Lopez with his Naseem Hamed-like swipes did the damage from the outside and both fighters swapped the momentum throughout the fight.

Then suddenly and conclusively the fight ended as Lopez lobbed a jab like a Bill Lee folly-floater that Leo slipped and slammed home a left hook that dropped Lopez to his back like the Road Warriors throwing pumpkins off a scaffold (I'm done with analogies now), hitting his head on the floor and even though Ernie Sharif (referee) didn't need to count, he did anyway.

Leo now holds his second world title (he held the WBO junior featherweight title briefly) and has a few options- a title unification against the winner of the WBO title rematch between Rafael Espinoza and Robiesy Ramirez, a rematch against Lopez, or possibly as the first title adversary for the talented prospect Bruce Carrington.

As for Lopez, he always makes fun fights and his name will keep him involved in the title picture for a while but he will be rebuilding himself for a bit as he'll have to prove he hasn't lost his punch resistance after such a devastating defeat.

No matter who you rooted for, there is no denying that this was one awesome evening of boxing.

Boxing Challenge;

Ramon Malpica; 112 Pts (1)
TRS: 100 Pts (1)
Vince Samano: 55 Pts (0)

Boxing Challenge

 The boxing challenge will feature just two main events from two competing cards.

Golden Boy/DAZN will offer the most exciting fight of the pair with a minor junior middleweight title at stake between power hitters Serheii Bohachuk and Vergil Ortiz. 

Between the two, there is only one loss (Bohachuk's) and only one distance fight (Bohachuk's last fight, a decision pounding of Brian Mendoza), so this looms as an explosive fight between two fighters that don't allow a dazed opponent off the hook.

The biggest question for Ortiz is his lack of ring action, having fought only two rounds in two years while Bohachuk's concern is his chin against the pop of Ortiz as his only loss was by knockout to Brandon Adams, who doesn't have nearly the power of Ortiz.

This shapes as an entertaining evening as well as potentially a short one.

Top Rank/ESPN+ counters with a solid main event for the IBF featherweight title as road warrior champion Luis Alberto Lopez hits the trail again as Lopez visits Albuquerque, New Mexico to face hometown standout Angelo Leo.

Lopez has impressed since winning the title on the road in 2002 in England over Josh Warrington with defenses against Michael Conlan in Northern Ireland, Joet Gonzalez, and mandatory challenger Reiya Abe in New York.

Leo held the WBO junior featherweight title, winning the vacant title unanimously over Tramaine Williams before losing it in his first defense to Stephen Fulton.

Leo has won four straight since the Fulton defeat, moving up to featherweight, and returning home to New Mexico to fight in front of his home crowd since 2015.

This fight might not have the pure punching power of Bohachuk-Ortiz but it might be a longer fight with lots of punches being swapped.

Boxing Challenge

Junior Middleweights 12 Rds  

Serheii Bohachuk vs Vergil Ortiz

R.L: Ortiz Unanimous Decision
TRS: Ortiz KO 8
V.S: Bohachuk KO 9

IBF Featherweight Title. 12 Rds

Luis Alberto Lopez vs Angelo Leo

R.L and TRS: Lopez Unanimous Decision
V.S: Lopez KO 7 

TRS Boxing Ratings: Part Two

  Part two of the TRS boxing ratings is available covering the junior flyweights through the lightweight division.

Lightweights

1: Gervonta Davis WBA Champion 24 Pts

2: Vasyl Lomachenko IBF Champion 21 Pts

3: Shakur Stevenson WBC Champion 17 Pts

4: William Zepeda 8 Pts

5: Denis Berinchyk WBO Champion 3 Pts (Unranked)

Also Received Votes: Frank Martin, Keyshawn Davis

Junior Lightweights

1: Emanuel Navarrete WBO Champion 22 Pts

2: O'Shaquie Foster 17 Pts (Up Three)

3: Anthony Cacace IBF Champion 16 Pts (Unranked)

4: Lamont Roach WBA Champion 9 Pts (Unranked)

5: Oscar Valdez 6 Pts (Down One)

Also Received Votes: Robson Conceicao WBC Champion, Albert Bell

Featherweights

1: Luis Alberto Lopez IBF Champion 25 Pts

2: Leigh Wood 13 Pts

3: Rafael Espinoza WBO Champion 12 Pts (Unranked)

    Brandon Figueroa (Up One)

5: Nick Ball WBA Champion 8 Pts (Unranked)

Also received votes: Raymond Ford, Rey Vargas WBC Champion, Bruce Carrington, Robeisy Ramirez

Junior Featherweights

World Champion: Naoya Inoue

1: Murodjon Akhmadaliev 18 Pts (Up Four)

     Stephen Fulton (Up One)

3: Marlon Tapales 17 Pts

4: Luis Nery 12 pts

5: Sam Goodman 8 Pts (Unranked)

Also Received Votes: Ra'eese Aleem

Bantamweights

1: Junto Nakatani WBC Champion 25 Pts (Unranked)

2: Ryosuke Nishida IBF Champion 17 Pts (Unranked)

3: Takuma Inoue WBA Champion 16 Pts 

4: Yoshiki Takei WBO Champion 13 Pts (Unranked)

5: Emanuel Rodriguez 3 Pts (Down Four)

Also Received Votes: Vincent Astroblabio

Junior Bantamweights

1: Jesse "Bam" Rodriguez WBC Champion 20 Pts

2: Juan Francisco Estrada 18 Pts (Down One)

3: Fernando Martinez WBA/IBF Champion 17 Pts (Up One)

4: Kazuto Ioka 10 Pts (Down One)

5: Kosei Tanaka WBO Champion 9 Pts (Unranked)

Also Received Votes; David Jimenez

Flyweights

1: Sunny Edwarda 23 Pts

2: Angel Ayala 20 Pts (Unranked)

3: Seigo Yuri Akai WBA Champion 17 Pts (Unranked)

4: Artem Dalakian 7 Pts

5: Alberto Sandoval 4 Pts (Unranked)

Also Recieved Votes: Gal Yafai, 

Junior Flyweights/Under

1: Kenshiro Teraji 18 Pts

2: Sivenathi Nontshinga 14 Pts (Up Two)

3: Jonathan Gonzalez 13 Pts (Down One) 

4: Oscar Collazo 11 Pts (Unranked)

5: Hiroto Kyoguchi 5 Pts (Unranked)

    Carlos Canizales (Unranked)

    Adrien Curiel  (Unranked)

Also Recieved Votes: Shokihi Iwata

TRS Boxing Ratings: Part One

      Sorry these are a bit late and might even be unusual due to fights that have happened since I received votes.

I lost a voter and between short time on my part and waiting for that person, these are a little late.

Also, it's been close to a year since the last ratings, so that is why so many that were unranked last time are ranked now.

This will not happen again.

If you and anyone else are knowledgable in the fight game and want to vote in the next rankings, LMK.

A few notes- Oleksandr Usyk is still recognized as a full four title champion, even though he has been stripped of the IBF title because that title is currently vacant.

Same for Canelo Alvarez, who has been stripped by the IBF, but remains full champion for this period as the IBF belt is vacant.

David Benavidez and David Morrell for this rating period only are ranked at both super middleweight and light heavyweight as both men last fought at 175 pounds but held minor titles at 168, so next ratings period, it will be decided on one division for each.

This will skew the ratings a bit as some voted for each man in one division and not the other, both divisions or neither.

Terence Crawford, who has won a world title at 154 pounds and still holds the WBO title at welterweight for now, isn't ranked at 154 as his win came after voting was completed.

Crawford is still ranked at welterweight for those reasons this time.

At junior welterweight, voting had concluded when Jose Valenzuela upset Isaac Cruz for the WBA title, which is why Cruz is ranked and Valenzuela is not.

Heavyweights 

World Champion: Oleksandr Usyk

1: Tyson Fury 24 Pts

2: Anthony Joshua 19 Pts (Up Two)

3: Joseph Parker 16 Pts (Unranked)

4: Daniel DuBois 9 Pts (Unranked)

5: Zhilei Zhang 4 Pts

Also Received Votes; Agit Kabayel, Martin Bakole

Cruiserweights

1: Jai Opietaia IBF Champion 25 Pts

2: Chris Billam-Smith WBO Champion 19 Pts (Unranked)

3: Mairis Breidis 11 Pts

    Gilberto Ramirez WBA Champion (Unranked)

5: Noel Mikaelian WBC Champion 7 Pts (Unranked)

Also Received Votes: Yuniel Dorticos

Light Heavyweights

1: Artur Beterbiev WBC/IBF/WBO Champion 25 Pts

2: Dmitry Bivol  WBA Champion 20 Pts

3: David Benavidez 11 Pts (Unranked)

4: Joshua Buatsi 10 Pts

5: Anthony Yarde 6 Pts (Down One)

Also Received Votes; Callum Smith

Super Middleweights

World Champion: Canelo Alvarez

1: David Benavidez 21 Pts

    David Morrell (Up One)

3: Christian Mbilli 16 Pts

4: Jaime Munguia 8 Pts (Unranked)

5: Osley Iglesias 4 Pts (Unranked)

    Diego Pacheco (Unranked)

Also Received Votes: Caleb Plant

Middleweights

1: Janibek Alimkhanuly IBF/WBO Champion 24 Pts

2: Carlos Adames WBC Champion 18 Pts

3: Jermall Charlo 12 Pts

4: Hamzah Sheeraz 8 Pts (Unranked)

5: Chris Eubank Jr. 7 Pts (Unranked)

Also Received Votes: Erislandy Lara WBA Champion

Junior Middleweights

1: Sebastian Fundora WBC Champion 24 Pts (Up Three) 

2: Tim Tsyzu 19 Pts (Down One)

3: Israil Madrimov 16 Pts (Unranked)

4: Vergil Ortiz 7 Pts (Unranked)

5: Bakhram Murtazakliev IBF Champion 3 Pts (Unranked)

    Erickson Lubin (Unranked)

Also Received Votes; Sergei Bohachuk, Charles Conwell

Welterweights

1: Terence Crawford WBO Champion 25 Pts

2: Jaron Ennis IBF Champion 20 Pts (Down One)

3: Eimantis Stanionis WBA Champion 13 Pts

4: Errol Spence 7 Pts (Down Two)

5: Mario Barrios WBC Champion 4 Pts (Unranked)

Also Received Votes: Cody Crowley, Brian Norman, Conor Benn

Junior Welterweights

1: Teofimo Lopez WBO Champion 24 Pts

2: Devin Haney 16 Pts (Unranked)

3: Jack Catterall 13 Pts

4: Liam Paro IBF Champion  10 Pts (Unranked)

5: Isaac Cruz 6 Pts (Unranked) 

Also Received Votes: Alberto Puello WBC Champion, Jose Ramirez.

Road Trip: Finding Paladin or Have Collectibles Will Travel

     The next day on the trip was Cherie and I's thirty-seventh anniversary, so we kept the day low-key.

We agreed far ahead of time about the trip being our gifts to each other, so we kept that day very basic as we started the day with a visit to Conrad's elementary school for his award as "Tiger of the Month" complete with school fight song "We are the Tigers".

I've always thought teams named the Tigers used the song "Tiger Rag" but times change.

After that concluded, Cherie and I returned to the hotel for a while before another visit to the hospital to see Archie.

I never got tired of that trip but I did leave for a bit to go shopping in Omaha as Conrad needed a thing for an upcoming football camp the following day.

We spent the rest of the day around the hotel and enjoyed hanging out with plenty of talk about the good times.

The following day, we had agreed to take Conrad to his football camp, starring Kansas City Chief running back Isiah Pacheco, because Archie was coming home and that's what we could do to help.

After making the football camp stop, we traveled to an Omaha suburb, Gretna, and our second trip to a Brass Armadillo!

At the Omaha Armadillo, I found this Exhibit card of Richard Boone, the star of the 50s television show Have Gun Will Travel.

The case with this card was in the first row that we walked through, but I took note of it in case I didn't overspend.

The Exhibit Company produced postcard-sized cards in the forties, fifties, and sixties and they came out of vending machines one card at a time with cards of baseball and football stars, singers, and film and television stars.

I wound up buying it for 15.50 and it came with three other Hollywood cards from the set as well.

I only knew one of them (Gene Barry of Bat Masterson TV fame) but I would have bought the "Paladin" card anyway, so the others were an added bonus.

That was the only thing that I bought for myself here, although Cherie and I found some things for other people. Still, I was very close to buying a vintage Mego Catwoman, but the price was a little higher than I saw it on eBay and I decided to pass.

We drove back to Ryan's for pizza and a visit before ending the day back at the hotel.

The following day was our day with Ryan, who showed us the sights of Omaha but that will wait until the next installment. 

Boxing Challenge: Upsets and Pushes

 The Crawford-Madrimov undercard was filled with interesting fights that saw a few upsets and spectacular endings.

In the co-feature, Isaac "Pit Bull Cruz" lost his WBA junior welterweight title and a possible rematch against Gervonta Davis in a split decision defeat to Jose Valenzuela.

Cruz didn't fight badly but he seemed a step behind Valenzuela throughout the fight and never grabbed any type of rhythm that would wear down the challenger.

I scored Valenzuela the winner at 116-112, the same as the two judges with the dissenting card for Cruz at 115-113.

With both fighters aligned with PBC and this fight being an optional defense for Cruz, I'd think that a rematch is possible soon.

The two fights in the heavyweight division featured a former heavyweight champion, a former top contender, and the top American prospect, and yet none of those became the star of the evening.

That honor belonged to Martin Bakole, whom I described as a live dog in my preview of his fight against Jared Anderson and then punished the touted American prospect for five rounds, dropping him three times on his way to the knockout triumph.

Bakole forced Anderson into retreat from the beginning and while Anderson fought back gamely when he could have packed it in, Bakole's domination was complete.

Bakole would make some interesting fights against other contenders (Zhilei Zhang, perhaps?) and made a name for himself with his upset win while Anderson, who has made no secret of not being in love with boxing and has had legal issues, answered questions about his heart and desire but created others about his ability to fend off bigger and aggressive fighters.

In the other heavyweight bout, former heavyweight champion Andy Ruiz and former contender/PED user Jarrell Miller slugged it out to a majority decision draw in a "Battle of The Big Boys" that brought to mind the Saturday Night Main Event from the 1980s between King Kong Bundy and Uncle Elmer.

Miller dropped thirty pounds from his loss to Daniel DuBois but still weighed over three hundred pounds against Ruiz, who hadn't fought for almost two years and fought at two hundred seventy-four pounds, yet it was Miller who finished the fight stronger in the second half of the fight.

I scored Miller the winner 115-113 with one judge giving the edge to Miller 116-112 and the other two scored the fight even at 114-114.

While the fight was somewhat entertaining, it was also sloppy enough that neither fighter distinguished themselves enough for a bigger fight soon, so it makes sense to hook these two up for a rematch.

David Morrell moved up from super middleweight to light heavyweight for a minor title but the vaunted "boogeyman" didn't look especially strong in winning a unanimous decision over Radivoje Kalajdzic.

Kalajdzic fought surprisingly well and deserved better on the cards, which I thought were unfair to Kalajdzic with Morrell winning by scores of 118-110 and 117-111 times two.

I scored Morrell the narrow victor 115-113 and Morrell continued the strange circle of call-outs as Morrell constantly requests to face David Benavidez while Benavidez asks for Canelo Alvarez and uses similar excuses to not face Morrell as Alvarez uses to avoid Benavidez.

In the opener, former Olympic gold medalist Andy Cruz was struggling in his fight with veteran Antonio Moran before stopping him in the seventh round.

Moran appeared to have hurt Cruz in round five and the fight was even on my card at 57-57 entering the seventh round.

Cruz didn't dazzle anyone in victory but deserved credit for ending the fight and avoiding what could have been a close decision.

Boxing Challenge

Ramon Malpica; 111 Pts (4)

TRS: 99 pts (4) 

Vince Samano: 55 pts (5)

Boxing Challenge: Crawford squeaks by Madrimov

     The premiere card in the United States for Riyadh Season offered a few upsets, good action, and a mildly controversial main event, all of which added up to a strong debut in Los Angeles.

In the main event, Terence Crawford was severely tested by Israil Madrimov before breaking away in the later rounds to win a close but unanimous decision and the WBA junior middleweight championship.

It was a highly technical affair that wasn't boring and showcased the skills of both men at the elite level.

I had Crawford winning three of the final four rounds and pulling out a 116-112 win, which was the same score as one judge with the remaining cards scoring for Crawford 115-113.

Most watchers thought Crawford deserved a close nod but some did have Madrimov as the winner and while some are now saying that Crawford's ambitious goal of facing Canelo Alvarez has taken a hit, I beg to differ- I think I like Crawford's chances a bit better now than before.

Some might question my thinking but bear with me.

Bud Crawford has never been truly extended other maybe in his win over Shawn Porter and he showed his ability to win a close fight against a bigger man, one that was better than some anticipated in Israil Madrimov.

Now he's been tested in a close fight and showed the ability to pull away against a larger talented and gifted opponent, which he certainly would need in a fight against Canelo Alvarez and has fought for the first time in a year, which would help Crawford's sharpness if that fight could be made in the next six months or so.

A historical parallel might be this one-  the great Salvador Sanchez's final fight in 1982 against little-known Azumah Nelson, who was a late replacement for Mario Miranda, and Sanchez all that he wanted before Sanchez stopped Nelson in the fifteenth and final round.

Sanchez would tragically die a few weeks later but it was only as time progressed and it was learned just how great Azumah Nelson was that Sanchez's victory was truly appreciated for the great triumph that it was.

If we were writing now about the pinnacle of Terence Crawford's career, his win to unify the welterweight division over Errol Spence would have to be considered the best of his career and it could remain so.

However, this win over Israil Madrimov might be the one years later that is looked at as his best win- that's how good Israil Madrimov might be and it took an all-time great in Terence Crawford to edge him.

I'll write about the undercard bouts next time.

Boxing Challenge

   Riyadh Season comes to America with a spectacular card from Los Angeles along with several important fights from various promoters.

The main event will see welterweight champion Terence Crawford move to junior middleweight to attempt to win the WBA title held by Israil Madrimov.

Crawford hasn't fought since his virtuoso performance last summer against Errol Spence and Madrimov is far from a pushover and holds an impressive amateur background.

Madrimov won the vacant title in Riyadh with an impressive stoppage over unbeaten Magomed Kurbanov and is the naturally larger man.

I think Madrimov is going to push Crawford a bit but I think Crawford pulls away late and wins a close fight.

The other title at stake will be the WBA junior welterweight title held by Isaac Cruz, who defends against Jose Valenzuela in a bout provided by PBC.

Cruz steamrolled Rolando Romero to win the title in eight rounds last March and is a very popular fighter in Southern California.

Valenzuela avenged a controversial decision loss to Chris Colbert with a vicious sixth-round knockout last December and the styles should match up well for an exciting fight that is likely to end early.

The heavyweight division presents two interesting battles that should see the victors move up the ratings and set themselves up for bigger future fights.

Former three-title champion Andy Ruiz returns after almost two years away against Jarrell "Big Baby" Miller in a pairing of talented big men that often are too big for their own good.

Ruiz decisioned Luis Ortiz in September 2022 and Miller was knocked out by Daniel DuBois in the tenth and final round last December in suffering his first loss.

Both fighters have fast hands for men their size and it may come down to which man is in the better condition.

Unbeaten Jared Anderson faces his best opponent in dangerous Martin Bakole in a ten-rounder.

Anderson takes a huge leap in the caliber of opponent after a dreadfully dull win over Ryad Merhy in April.

Bakole impressively knocked out veteran Carlos Takam in four rounds last October and is a live dog against Anderson, who was rocked badly against his best previous opponent Charles Martin.

David Morrell moves to the light heavyweight division for a minor title against Radivoje Kalajdzic.

Morrell has been very impressive in his ten wins but never beat a true top ten contender at 168 pounds, so as good as he appears and he may be VERY good, we still don't know what happens when someone fights back.

Kalajdzic's two losses are excusable, an eight-round split decision loss to Marcus Browne that I thought he deserved, and a knockout loss to Artur Beterbiev in a title challenge.

The card opens with former Olympic gold medalist Andy Cruz battling veteran Antonio Moran in a lightweight ten-rounder.

Cruz is unbeaten in his three fights and has the talent to burn while Moran has been stopped only once in his six losses ( a one-round stoppage against Devin Haney) and defeated Romero Duno in January, stopping Duno in six rounds.

Moran is as tough as they come and if Cruz can end this one early, it will be a strong victory.

Boxing Challenge

WBA Junior Middleweight Title 12 Rds

Israil Madrimov vs Terence Crawford

R.L and TRS: Crawford Unanimous Decision
V.S:  Crawford KO 7

WBA Junior Welterweight Title. 12 Rds

Isaac Cruz vs Jose Valenzuela

R.L: Cruz Unanimous Decision

TRS: Cruz KO 4
V.S: Valenzuela Split Decision

Heavyweights 12 Rds

Andy Ruiz vs Jarrell Miller

R.L and V.S: Miller KO 9

TRS: Ruiz Unanimous Decision

Heavyweights. 10 Rds

Jared Anderson vs Martin Bakole

R.L: Anderson KO 5

TRS: Anderson Split Decision
V.S: Bakole Unanimous Decision

Light Heavyweights. 12 Rds

David Morrell vs Radivoje Kalajdzic.

R.L: Morrell KO 10
TRS: Morrell KO 5
V.S: Morrell KO 4

Lightweights 10 Rds

Andy Cruz vs Antonio Moran

R.L and TRS: Cruz Unanimous Decision
V.S: Moran Unanimous Decision