Boxing Challenge: Wardley rallies again!

    For the second fight in a row, Fabio Wardley rallied from behind to score a miracle knockout win, and in this win, he defeated the best opponent of his career to earn a chance at undisputed heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk.

Wardley's eleventh-round stoppage of Joseph Parker won him a minor title, but his victory in London has replaced Parker as the next opponent for Usyk.

The fight was action-filled and competitive, but two of the three judges had Parker ahead (by two and six points), with the third scoring it even after ten rounds (I had Parker ahead 97-93).

Both fighters landed heavy shots throughout the fight, but Parker had Wardley in mild trouble in the ninth and tenth rounds.

I thought the stoppage by referee Howard Foster was premature, as Parker looked to be hurt worse earlier in the round, and Wardley wasn't connecting solidly (if at all) with the flurry that ended the fight.

A rematch seems to be a good idea, but I can't see Wardley risking his now mandatory shot at Usyk, although Parker took that risk to face Wardley.

I don't see Wardley having more than a puncher's chance against Usyk, who will likely handle Wardley in the same manner that he disposed of the similarly styled Daniel DuBois.

However, as Wardley has proven in his two recent bouts, you always have a chance when you possess the power to end a fight at any time.

Boxing Challenge

TRS: 135 Pts (0)

Ramon Malpica: 128 Pts (0)

Vince Samano; 53 Pts  (0) 

Boxing Challenge: Joshua ends Ngonnou in two!

    Francis Ngannou proved a lot in his split decision loss to Tyson Fury last year but what he may have proven yesterday is that Fury either took him very lightly or the WBC champion is past his best days.

While we will wait to see that for sure in May with Fury's fight with Oleksandr Usyk coming then, Ngannou definitely proved that he is out of his league against a prepared and motivated top heavyweight as former champion Anthony Joshua knocked Ngannou down in the first and second before a right hand from hell ended the fight with a definite contender for knockout of the year.

Ngannou may given the fight of his life to an underprepared and fairly inactive Fury but he was no match for Joshua, who was fighting for the fourth time in a year and looked razor-sharp against a relative novice in the sport.

Ngannou was completely puzzled by Joshua's jab and had no options for getting inside on the taller Briton.

The Joshua dispatching of Ngannou likely ends Ngannou's boxing forays for the time being as he is likely to return to the MMA league where he is the heavyweight champion.

As for Joshua, he's clearly the world's third-best heavyweight and his increased activity has sharpened his skills.

In the co-feature, Joseph Parker won a minor title and more importantly, will move into the WBO mandatory contender position by majority decision over Zhilei Zhang.

Zhang scored both knockdowns in the fight in the third and eighth rounds but was reluctant to follow up and gave away the final four rounds by refusing to throw punches allowing Parker to peck away to pile up points.

The fight was far from thrilling but there will be a rematch as contractually stipulated should Parker earn the victory.

The judges' scores for Parker were 115-111 114-112 (same as mine) and even at 113-113.

Before Anthony Joshua's win, the fighter of the night may have Israil Madrimov, who annihilated Magomed Kurbanov in stopping him in five rounds to win the vacant WBA junior middleweight title.

I picked Kurbanov, who had the better wins and competition, and Madrimov had been out of the ring for eighteen months, which made me lean towards the upset.

Madrimov couldn't miss with his left hand and he dominated every aspect of the fight and while the stoppage may have been a bit early, it was a matter of time before the fight ended as Madrimov was that dominant.

Madrimov needs to fight more often and be seen more but he has the talent to be a future star.

I haven't had time to watch Rey Vargas retaining his WBC featherweight title over Nick Ball. 
Ball scored knockdowns in the eighth and eleventh rounds with the cards reading 114-113 for Vargas, 116-110 for Ball, and even at 113.

Ball was expected to face WBA champion Raymond Ford, if he had won, on the Matchroom vs Queensbury card later this year but Ford was on social media with the comment saying he thought Ball won, and he is still willing to fight Ball on that card.

Boxing Challenge

TRS: 29 Pts(2)

Ramon Malpica: 28 Pts (1)

Vince Samano: 15 Pts (0)

Boxing Challenge: Wilder Upset!

  The heavyweight heavy card from Saudi Arabia on Saturday was supposed to be a preamble to a superfight that has been awaited for years.

Instead, the fight will not happen as while Anthony Joshua dominated Otto Wallin with Wallin's corner stopping the fight after the fifth round, Deontay Wilder was unable to do his part as he sleepwalked through a unanimous decision defeat to Joseph Parker in the co-main event.

Joshua was very sharp in carving up Otto Wallin, busting him up around both eyes and hurting Wallin in the fifth round before Wallin's corner stopped the fight with their fighter unlikely to turn the tide in the future.

I had Joshua ahead 49-46 at the time of the stoppage, and while Wallin is a solid contender, he might have been well-matched for Joshua because Wallin isn't known as a big puncher, Joshua didn't have to worry about his chin letting him down.

Joshua now will have to wonder about his next opponent as his agreed-to-March battle with Deontay Wilder was contingent on both men winning.

Wilder's defeat was pretty dull as Wilder walked around a patient Parker with his powerful right hand cocked but could never seem to get the punch off as Parker respected the power and boxed from the outside.

Parker's offense wasn't a lot more active than Wilder but it was enough to easily win on the cards of the judges at 120-108, 118-111, and 118-110, the latter score agreeing with my score.

Wilder-Joshua could still happen, but it's unlikely that Joshua would take that risk now with the shine removed from Wilder's pedestrian performance.

At 38, Wilder looked very much the part of an aging fighter, seeing openings and unable to fire at them, and when you consider the money Wilder has made in his career, he shouldn't need to continue unless he wishes to.

As for Parker, adding the name Wilder to his resume gives him a boost and could make him a desirable opponent for an up-and-coming prospect, or perhaps get him into a title eliminator that could eventually earn him another title shot.

Being Christmas Day, time is a little short so I'm going with the results from the rest of the card with my scores to the right.

I have not watched the Frank Sanchez-Junior Fa match.

Daniel DuBois KO 10 Jarrell Miller (DuBois leading 88-83)

Dmitry Bivol:  Unanimous Decision over Lyndon Arthur (Bivol 120-107) to retain his WBA light heavyweight title.

Agit Kabayel KO 4 Arlanbek Makhmudov (Kabayel leading 29-28)

Flip Hrgovic KO 1 Mark DeMori

Jai Opietaia KO 1 Ellis Zorro

Frank Sanchez KO 7 Junior Fa

Boxing Challenge

TRS: 196 Pts (9)

Ramon Malpica:177 Pts  (8)

Vince Samano: 129 Pts (5) 

Boxing Challenge: Smith knocks out Eubank!

 If you had selected the least likely result for Saturday's middleweight clash between Chris Eubank Jr. and Liam Smith before the fight, you likely would have picked a Smith KO.

Smith has never been known as a big puncher, and Eubank has always shown an excellent chin, so combined with Eubank being the natural middleweight and Smith moving up to the division, it was only natural to think Smith's best chance to win was via decision.

And as so often happens in boxing, the least likely result was exactly what happened as Smith landed a left uppercut that sent Eubank slumping in a corner, and on very unsteady legs after he rose.

Smith grabbed the opportunity to floor Eubank again and after he rose from the floor, his coordination looked even worse and the fight ended in round four.

As the post-fight began a large lump under Eubank's right eye began to appear and in hindsight, Eubank may have had major problems with the eye not swelling shut as the fight progressed.

For Liam Smith, it's the biggest win of his career and may have earned him a potential title fight later this year as the defeated Eubank was rated in the top five in three of the rating organizations.

Smith may have to repeat his win over Eubank as there is a rematch clause, should Eubank choose to activate his option but if not Smith certainly will be in line for bigger fights.

As for Eubank, this loss isn't one to finish a career but he will need to bounce back from this, if not with a win over Smith in a rematch, a win over someone to regain his standing in the division.

Eubank is capable of winning a rematch as he looked very good in the third round and looked to be ready to swing the fight his way, so I would imagine that he could justify a rematch by stating he just caught perfectly by an average puncher and could win a rematch.

Eubank had better win that rematch if he asks for it as a second loss could leave him as permanently damaged goods.

In the co-feature, undefeated Richard Riakporhe knocked out former WBO cruiserweight champion Krzysztof Glowacki in the fourth round for the biggest win of his career.

Riakporhe fended off the occasional rushes of Glowacki and came close to ending the fight in round two as he rocked Glowacki late in the round before the round ended.

Riakporhe punished Glowacki in the fourth round and after raining punches on the veteran and trapping him in a corner, the referee bailed Glowacki out with an honorable stoppage before he would take even more of a beating.

Riakporhe looks to be in line for a challenge of WBO cruiserweight champion Lawrence Okolie next or fight for a possible vacant title, should Okolie decide to leave the division.

As for Glowacki, with knockout losses in three of his last fights, he seems to be well past his prime and should consider retirement.

In the other challenge fight, former WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker rebounded from his knockout loss to Joe Joyce with an easy unanimous decision over awkward former cruiserweight Jack Massey.

Massey looked almost frail next to Parker and the southpaw did try to be effective. especially in the tenth round when he rallied a bit.

Massey lost a point in the eighth round for holding and there wasn't a ton of action for Parker to brag about a big win.

Scorecards saw Parker a winner at 97-93, 96-93, and 97-92.

I scored Parker the winner at 98-91.

Boxing Challenge

Ramon Malpica: 10 Pts (4)

TRS: 10 Pts (3)

Vince Samano: 10 Pts (3)

 

Boxing Challenge; The Juggernaut Chugs On!

 Joe Joyce took everything that Joseph Parker had to give for ten rounds and then finished him in the eleventh with one left hand to stop Parker for the first time in his career and add another top heavyweight to a growing list that hit Joyce often but could not deter him.

Parker attempted to box Joyce and tried to stand his ground on occasion to establish his power and gain the respect of Joyce but while he may have gained the respect of Joyce, Parker could never stem the steady attack of the Juggernaut.

Parker landed his share of right hands but Joyce paid them little mind and Parker dealt with a bad cut over his right eye from the early portion of the fight.

I had Joyce leading 97-93 at the time of the stoppage.

I thought Parker had a chance to outbox Joyce and the New Zealand veteran fought well but Joe Joyce fought better and it's pretty clear that I didn't give Joyce enough credit for his similar win over Daniel DuBois.

Joyce reminds me so much of former heavyweight contender Ray Mercer with a rock-hard chin, plus power, a late start to a pro career, and a willingness to fight anyone.

Joyce does throw more punches than Mercer did as Mercer could be outworked in his fights- you won't say that about Joe Joyce,

Joe Joyce needs to continue to stay active as he is 37 years old and it's very possible that his first chance at a championship could be his final one but I think this win proves he's at worst the third-best heavyweight in the world.

I'd pick Joyce over former champions Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder and I'd rate him as a very intriguing underdog against either world champion Oleksandr Usyk or Tyson Fury.

Usyk defeated Joyce in the amateurs and certainly has the skills to outbox the sometimes plodding Joyce but can he do that for the twelve-round distance against the constant pressure of Joyce?

Fury will have the height and weight advantage over Joyce as he has over most heavyweights but the edge won't be as pronounced as usual and I wonder how effective a usual Fury tactic of laying on the inside and pushing down on the smaller fighter to sap energy would be against Joyce.

I would lean toward either champion in a potential Joyce bout but Joyce would have a decent chance of dethroning either man as well.

As for Joseph Parker, the former WBO champion has established himself as a top ten and very capable heavyweight and only the best of the division are going to get by Parker.

However, against those top-of-the-world boxers, Parker has fallen a little short and he may have fallen into gatekeeper status albeit as the best gatekeeper a heavyweight can be.

Parker may have been stopped for the first time in his career but under the circumstances has nothing to be ashamed of in defeat.

Meanwhile, over in Nottingham (Joyce-Parker took place in Manchester), a lightweight DAZN main event wasn't nearly as exciting as veteran lightweight Maxi Hughes won a majority decision over former IBF featherweight champion Kid Galahad in a fight that was filled with awkward exchanges and fouls that would eventually decide the fight as Galahad would lose on one card by one point and finished even on another after losing a point in round ten for headbutting Hughes.

The cards read 116-111 and 114-113 for Hughes and an even card of 114-114 so the point loss cost Galahad a draw.

I scored the fight 114-113 for Hughes in a close and hard-fought affair that didn't mesh smoothly in style.

Boxing Challenge

TRS:162 Pts (1)

Ramon Malpica:142 Pts (1)

Vince Samano:131 Pts (2) 

Boxing Challenge: Parker repeats against Chisora

 The boxing challenge finished up the 2021 season on Saturday with four fights and two of them loaded with action.

In London, Joseph Parker won a unanimous decision in his rematch with Derek Chisora in a fight that was a better one than their original but the story in defeat was the effort by Chisora, who easily could have cashed in at several times during the fight and yet battled through in one of the more courageous efforts that you'll see.

Parker would knock down Chisora in the seventh and in both the fourth and eighth rounds, Parker would drive Chisora into the ropes with Chisora using the ropes to stay upright and was rightfully scored knockdowns on both occasions.

On each occasion, Chisora would walk to a corner, anchor himself against the corner post, and wave Parker in and would then begin to fire enough wild punches to pull himself together to survive the round.

Parker was far more aggressive than in his first fight against Chisora and used the jab to set up the right hand rather than box off his back foot.

Parker's right uppercut was the key difference this time as it seemed that it found Chisora with every attempt and it was the uppercut that scored all three official knockdowns.

Parker won on all three cards and was closer than I expected ( 115-110, 115-111, and a surprising 114-112 card that would have seen Chisora win on one card without knockdowns) as my card had Parker winning 117-108.

Parker keeps himself in line for a future try at a title shot (Parker is ranked in the top five in three of the four organizations) while Chisora will continue to grab good paydays as a gatekeeper in the division.

DAZN returned in the evening with the final card of the year from Golden Boy with the main event that was much more entertaining than expected as Gilberto Ramirez earned the mandatory contender spot for WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol with a tenth round knockout over Yuneski Gonzalez.

No knockdowns in this one but plenty of toe-to-toe exchanges that were generally dominated by Ramirez with Gonzalez scoring enough to keep Ramirez honest and make the fight an entertaining one.

I had Ramirez well ahead in the fight at 88-84.

For Ramirez, it was an entertaining win and it does seem that the reluctant super-middleweight champion has developed into an aggressive light heavyweight and I'm looking forward to a Ramirez challenge of Dmitry Bivol.

On the undercard, Lamont Roach dominated Rene Alvarado and won a unanimous decision in a battle of top ten junior lightweights.

I scored Roach a 99-91 winner.

In Minneapolis on Fox, super middleweight David Morrell stopped Alantez Fox in four rounds in a fight that I haven't had time to watch yet.

Boxing Challenge: Parker, Ruiz survive Heavyweight tests.

    Two former heavyweight champions survived stern tests from veterans attempting to stay relevant on Saturday with both winning entertaining affairs and both having to get off the floor to notch victories.

In Manchester, England, former WBO champion Joseph Parker was knocked down in the opening seconds and fell far behind on the scorecards against Dereck Chisora before rallying in the second half of the fight to grab a split decision.

Chisora was more aggressive and banked most of the first half of the fight, but tired badly as the bout continued with visible gasps for air in the corner between rounds.

Parker turned the tide against the weary Chisora in the second half of the fight, but on my card, it was decided by the knockdown in the opening round, 114-113 for Chisora.

Two judges scored it 115-113 for each fighter, which was very fair, and then the decisive score of 117-111 for Parker was ridiculous.

Parker is rated in the top six by the WBC, IBF, and WBO, so he'll likely have an eliminator soon, but the opponent is unknown as the fighters above him are with other promoters except for Oleksandr Usyk, who would be unlikely to take such a fight.

As for Dereck Chisora, it was yet another close fight that didn't quite go his way, but a strong effort that will earn him another paycheck against another contender.

On the other heavyweight fight, I wasn't surprised that Andy Ruiz and Chris Arreola put on an excellent fight, I was surprised that it went the twelve-round distance with Ruiz winning a unanimous decision.

Arreola knocked Ruiz down in the second round and won some early rounds, but Ruiz kept grinding and when Arreola courageously battled through a shoulder injury, he was meat on the platter for Ruiz, who swept the final rounds for the victory.

I scored Ruiz a 116-111 winner and though Arreola had his moments in an entertaining battle, Ruiz was the clear winner.

Ruiz is ranked in the top five by three of the four organizations and even though his PBC affiliation hinders him from title chances against Anthony Joshua or Tyson Fury, there are interesting fights for him against Deontay Wilder or Luis Ortiz at the top of the food chain or Adam Kownacki or Robert Helenius below him.

Any of those names would make entertaining brawls against Ruiz and a win over a Wilder or Ortiz would zoom him to the top of the contender list.

On the Parker-Chisora undercard, WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol won an unimpressive unanimous decision over a surprising Craig "Spider" Richards.

Richards had fought no one of Bivol's caliber, but tried throughout and landed occasional right hands which is more than I expected of him, but Bivol never tried to step up the pace and was content to take a closer than expected decision with two scores of 115-114 and 115-113, which were too close in my opinion.

I scored Bivol a 117-111 winner with Richards winning the final three rounds while Bivol was on cruise control, but Bivol, who was once thought of as a possible future superstar, continues to be content to win less than thrilling decisions that drive away fans.

Bivol is expected to face former WBO super middleweight champion Gilberto Ramirez next in a fight that Bivol will need to perform far better than he has of late.

On the Ruiz-Arreola card from Carson California, former WBC lightweight champion Omar Figueroa was beaten up for six rounds by fringe contender Abel Ramos and then had the fight stopped in the corner in what has been reported as an uncompetitive fight.

I haven't seen this yet, but it sounds like the once-promising Figueroa may be headed for retirement.

On the Fox version of the undercard, Erislandy Lara knocked out undeserving Thomas LaManna with one punch in the first round to win one of the WBA's gumball machine belts, this one in the middleweight division.

I rambled about the wretched WBA in previewing this bout, so I'll save my breath now rather than ranting further about a mismatch that was clear before the contract was signed.

In the boxing challenge, I scored five points to Ramon Malpica's four and lead the challenge 59-56.

Boxing Challenge: Canelo Crunches Yildirim

  The boxing challenge was reduced to only three fights for the weekend, but all three would be important ones in their divisions.

The biggest star in boxing took care of an obligation as Canelo Alvarez retained his WBA and WBC super-middleweight titles with a ridiculously easy stoppage of Avni Yildirim after three rounds when Yildirim's corner ended the fight.

Alvarez was barely touched in the three rounds (Yildirim landed four power punches) and the only drama in the WBC-mandated bout (Yildirim had been promised the fight for two years after a controversial loss to Anthony Dirrell)  was this- could Canelo escape without getting cut on a headbutt or a stray elbow?

Alvarez knocked Yildirim down with a straight right in the third and went on the attack and even though Yildirim didn't seem to be in extreme danger, one could see that the end was near.

However, the spectacular ending would be lacking as just as Yildirim's trainer Joel Diaz told him he was going to give him one more round, a member of the corner could be seen motioning for his surrender.

With the promised defense out of the way, Alvarez moves on and will take another step toward the goal of a unified super-middleweight title with an announced May fight against WBO champion Billy Joe Saunders.

The winner of that event will own three of the four titles in the division.

Saunders may not make an exciting fight or even a winning one, but I have a feeling that Saunders will fight better than many expect against Alvarez.

Much like his cousin, Tyson Fury, Saunders is one of those fighters that fights best when he is motivated by strong competition, and against the brightest star in boxing, he better be motivated.

Earlier in the day, the fight of the century in New Zealand had more than only national impact as amateur heavyweight rivals Joseph Parker and Junior Fa squared off with the winner staying in the title picture.

Fa landed the bigger punches and wobbled Parker in the first and seventh, but Parker threw more and was the rougher fighter in close and won a unanimous decision.

My 115-113 card for Parker matched one judge with the other two were more than a bit too wide at 117-111 and a hideous 119-108.

The fight picked up in the late rounds and I wouldn't be surprised to see a rematch eventually, but for now, it seems Parker will face Dereck Chisora next with the winner likely to see the Oleksandr Usyk-Joe Joyce winner as a possible 2022 title challenger or positioned for the also likely vacating of the WBO title by the Anthony Joshua-Tyson Fury winner.

The PBC/Fox main event between super middleweights Anthony Dirrell and Kyrone Davis ended in a draw, but I haven't watched it as of this writing.

Editor's Note: I thought Dirrell pulled this out close (115-113), but considering Davis had never fought at the weight and lacked experience against top ten competition, Dirrell looked a bit shopworn.

Dirrell will move on and could fight a rematch against David Benavidez, who dominated him in their first battle, but I expect the fight to be one-sided and it's one that I don't need to see.

Dirrell's problem is that he isn't going to beat champions or contenders, but fighting fights such as this one isn't going to add much to the bank account.

In the boxing challenge, Ramon Malpica and I each scored four points to move the overall total to 20-19.

Boxing Challenge:Chocolatito Regains Title, Garcia, Martinez win

Saturday night from Frisco, Texas, Matchroom Boxing, and DAZN assembled an excellent card of boxing and one that will be difficult to match this year.

When you have a three-division champion winning in his return, an excellent action championship fight, a future star moving up the ladder and a former heavyweight champion ending his fight vis knockout, it's a great night.

However, none of those fights are the story of the night as that honor belongs to Roman "Chocolatito" Gonzalez, who won the WBA junior bantamweight title from Kal Yafai by a ninth-round knockout.
Gonzalez had fought only twice, both against lower-level competition, since his stunning fourth-round knockout loss to Srisaket Sor Rungvisai.
The knockout defeat for Gonzalez was the second in a row to Rungvisai, who had defeated Gonzalez via a decision in their first fight in which finished in the conversation for fight of the year with most scoring Gonzalez as a decisive winner and combined with knee surgery since, many wondered how much that Gonzalez had lost from the supremely skilled fighter that was so dominant at junior flyweight and flyweight and was still elite at junior bantamweight, if not quite the same at the higher weight.
Despite five successful defenses of his WBA title, Yafai was looked at as the third best fighter in the division at best behind WBC champion Juan Francisco Estrada and Rungvisai with some ranking him fourth or fifth behind IBF champion Jerwin Ancajas and/or WBO Kazuto Ioka, as Yafai didn't have a standout win and had scored just one knockout in his defenses.
Yafai was clearly the bigger and taller man and he may have been able to fight off the jab, using his range to keep Gonzalez off him and maybe won a decision, but instead despite his corner's protestations, decided to fight on the inside and try to grind down the veteran.
The grinding process worked well- for Gonzalez, who gradually pounded Yafai and dominated the sixth and seventh before knocking Yafai down late in the eighth round.
The clock saved Yafai in the eighth, but it would not in the ninth as Gonzalez knocked Yafai down with a crushing right within the first few seconds with the referee waving the battle off immediately.

Gonzalez winning was a surprise only due to his circumstances, not his ability and it was one of those nights in boxing that you don't see very often- a great fighter summoning up an unexpected effort to make the viewers remember how great he once was and that he might have more than a bit remaining.
I had Gonzalez leading 78-73 going into the ninth, so it was more than just hurting a fighter and finishing him off and I'll be interested to see "Chocolatito" 's next fight as he has just entered a triangle of exciting 115 pounders with Estrada and Rungvisai with each fighter having scores to settle- Gonzalez holds a win over Estrada (at flyweight), Estrada has defeated Rungvisai, and Rungvisai owns two wins over Gonzalez, so any pairing of the three will have an instant storyline and all should be action fights.

Roman Gonzalez may have won fighter of the night, but the fight of the night had to be Julio Cesar Martinez's unanimous decision victory over Jay Harris.
Martinez retained his WBC flyweight title in a fight that saw Harris fight bravely but was just a bit overmatched against the talented champion.
The fight was often held toe to toe with both fighters landing strong shots, but Martinez landed the bigger shots and more often, bloodying Harris from the nose and swelling the face of the Welshman for the second half of the fight.
Martinez landed a hard left to the body in the tenth that dropped Harris and looked like the end of the fight was near, but Harris managed to grit his way through and last the distance.
Martinez won on my scorecard 116-111 and I'd love to match him against any of the three other champions in the flyweight division, but don't rule out Harris either.
I'm not sure Harris beats any of the other champions in a strong division, but when fighters move up in weight or retire, I think he might be in the mix.

For four rounds of the main event, Jessie Vargas was on his way to a huge upset over Mikey Garcia.
I thought Vargas won three of the first four, the other round was close and just as I started to think upset, Garcia struck with a barrage of right hands that knocked Vargas down and swung the fight his way.
Garcia tried to end the fight in the sixth and seventh with a strong attack against a shaken Vargas, but Vargas rode out the storm and when Garcia put the car into neutral for the final four rounds, content to win a decision, that's what Garcia got- a unanimous decision that thrilled few and proved only that Garcia is capable of defeating top ten welterweights, but not the best of the division.
I scored Garcia a 116-111 winner, but I didn't find him overly impressive in victory and for all of his technical skills, Garcia's workmanlike style hasn't dazzled me since his days at 126 and 130 pounds.
Many things in life, we get paid for things that we are good at, not always things that we love.
Mikey Garcia doesn't seem to have the passion that truly great fighters have and sometimes watchers of the sport have to realize that we may want the passion for greatness more than the men that fight do.

Israil Madrimov entered a junior middleweight eliminator with the reputation of a future star and he did nothing to disprove that with a dismantling of Charlie Navarro in six rounds.
The 40-year-old Navarro isn't at the level of a title eliminator and he gave little resistance to Madrimov, who toyed with Navarro as he would with a novice before two sixth-round knockdowns ended the fight.
Madrimov's next fight will be tougher as he'll face someone in a final eliminator that could see him face recently crowned WBA/IBF champion Jeison Rosario or Julian Williams, should Williams win their contractually obligated rematch.

Former WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker survived a cut to stop trialhorse Shawndell Winters in five rounds.
Winters gave a game effort, but the naturally smaller fighter could never sting Parker and earn his respect.
Parker knocked Winters down late in the third round with the bell saving Winters and Winters showed plenty of heart in getting through the fourth, but was unable to survive the bigger puncher's fifth-round combination that sent him to the floor and ended the fight.
Parker could be facing British veteran Dereck Chisora next, who he was scheduled to fight last year before falling out due to a spider bite or even WBC top contender Dillian Whyte in a rematch of their terrific 2018 fight that was won by Whyte by unanimous decision.
Whyte could be reluctant to face Parker with a title shot on the line, but a rematch could be another battle.

In the boxing challenge, I outscored Ramon Malpica eight to seven with the Roman Gonzalez win as the difference in the week.
I lead the challenge 41-37.

Boxing Challenge: Somnambulant Middleweights

On a night filled with uncompetitive matches and not even in the same universe as compelling, two of the middleweight titles were on the line on two networks and neither was remotely interesting to watch.

The best performance was that of WBO middleweight champion Demetrius Andrade, who charged from his corner and for one round seemed interested in changing his reputations for dominant and yet dull performances when he dropped challenger Maciej Sulecki in the first minute of round one and delivering a round filled with power punches that dazzled the challenger from Poland.
Andrade then returned to his corner to be told by his trainer and father, Paul Andrade that they "didn't come here for a war and to box".
Andrade then controlled every round, won them all on my card (120-107), cruised to a unanimous decision to retain his title and yet didn't do a thing to make fans want to see him against Canelo Alvarez or Gennady Golovkin.
I've always liked Andrade, and back in the old days of the FightHeads podcast ( Selfish Plug-If you are reading this and would like me to appear on a podcast, ask!) I even picked Andrade as a possible top star, if he would only fight more.
Now, he's fighting more often but isn't exciting anyone in the process.
It looks to me that Andrade is in the same position that Gennady Golovkin once found himself in- A fight against him is a low reward and high risk.

The DAZN undercard wasn't exciting either as former WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker pounded Alex Leapai for ten rounds before the merciful end in the tenth.
Parker looked good, but it would have been hard not to against a retreating heavy bag that would occasionally toss a looping counter right.
The best I can say about this is that Parker threw more punches, punch output has been something Parker's been criticized for, and Leapai's chin is pretty dam strong.
Kal Yafai won a boring unanimous decision over Norbelto Jimenez that left the crowd booing and me wondering why I watch boxing sometimes.
Yafai scored a late knockdown to win going away (118-109 on my card) and hopes for a unification fight against WBC champion Juan Francisco Estrada next in which he'll need to put forth the best effort of his career to win.

And then there was Showtime, home of the best announcing team and production in boxing and suddenly finds itself showing B level shows from the PBC.
This three fight card was one better suited for another network and I felt bad for Showtime watching it.
I've always been someone that campaigned for boxing to have network television, but it appears that PBC is shoveling better fights to Fox and considering the broadcast quality of Fox, who schleps the non-boxing guy Chris Myers out for their fights- that's not a good thing.

Jermall Charlo, who had been gifted the WBC middleweight title earlier in the week, defending his newly handed title with a unanimous decision over Brandon Adams in a sloppy, awkward fight.
No knockdowns and little excitement for Charlo, which was expected entering into the fight and with the fight becoming a full title fight during fight week, it just seemed like a second class event.
I've always been a "belts matter" (copyright Steve Kim) guy, but this is so silly for a fighter to have wins over Jorge Heiland, Hugo Centeno, Matt Korobov, and now Brandon Adams and claim to be the champion of the world.
I've been critical of Jermall Charlo's competition (he really only possesses three wins of note- the KO of Julian Williams, which was impressive and close decision wins over Austin Trout and last-minute replacement Korobov) and that's a fair one, but the real villain here isn't Charlo, it's the WBC for putting their champion in such a place.
I plan on taking them on later this week.

The co-feature predictably saw Erickson Lubin hammer Zakaria Attou for four rounds before the fight was ended with mercy.
I could have written that result and saved Attou the beating.
We still don't know how much Lubin has recovered from his one round loss to Jermell Charlo and we won't until he fights someone that fights back- which is a question so often uttered when dealing with PBC promoted fighters.

The first bout saw Claudio Marrero win a unanimous decision over Eduardo Ramirez to become mandatory for Leo Santa Cruz's WBA featherweight title.
This wasn't exactly a barnburner, but at least it was competitive, which was rare on this evening, no matter your network.
I scored Marrero a 115-113 winner and despite losing his previous fight to Tug Nyambayar, will now eventually face the oft-protected Santa Cruz.

Just a tedious night of boxing and one that showed the worst of the game.

In the boxing challenge, I outscored Ramon Malpica nine to seven with the difference being the bonus point for calling the round of Erickson Lubin's KO and Demetrius Andrade winning by decision.
I lead the overall challenge 163-147

Boxing Challenge: Joshua slogs past Parker

There were 80,000 fans in Cardiff, Wales that left happy as Anthony Joshua added the WBO heavyweight title to his previously owned WBA and IBF championships as Joshua won a unanimous decision over Joseph Parker.

Happy is different than entertained, however, as the action was stunted at best and glacial at worst as Joshua swept the later rounds to pull away on most cards, although the judges predictably had Joshua ahead more than most observers, although to be fair, most of the first six rounds were close (also known as boring and dull with little to choose from) enough to not argue with which fighter that you saw winning.
I watched it one and a half times (I watched the first six rounds over) and I scored Joshua 116-112 live and 118-110 on a second watching.
It was just plain dull and there is plenty to be said for winning this one and look good the next one, but still, this slow bout combined with Deontay Wilder's victory over Luis Ortiz suddenly has some people thinking Wilder has a chance against Joshua that would not have thought so before this fight.
I still think Wilder's chin isn't great and I think he'll fight Joshua off his back foot more than as an attacker, but off this performance by Joshua, I can at least understand that belief, if not agree with it.
I suppose the part of the match that surprised me was Deontay Wilder's reaction and screaming after the fight that Parker was robbed.
Delusion is not always able to be understood...

I'm not sure if Joshua-Wilder happens next unless some things are worked out with their respective management and the sanctioning bodies, but one idea that would allow Joshua to debut in America, Wilder to perhaps draw a crowd, knock out some mandatories and even regain some excitement lost from today's fight would be a doubleheader in the summer with Joshua defending against Povetkin and Wilder against Dillian Whyte.
It seems to check all the boxes and makes a lot of sense, which likely why I'm doubtful it would be a finished deal.
In boxing, no sense makes sense.

In the semi-main, a predictable result occurred when Alexander Povetkin delivered a spectacular knockout of David Price in the fifth round.
Povetkin dropped Price in the third, but Price rallied back to drive Povetkin back into the corner in what was ruled a knockdown as the corner held Povetkin up.
Povetkin is the number one contender for both the WBA and WBO, so Eddie Hearn (promoter of Anthony Joshua) is going to have to either deal with Povetkin physically in a title defense or financially to pay step-aside dollars for Joshua to face Wilder (or anyone else) next time out.
Povetkin can crack with the best of the division and is a dangerous fight, but also one with danger for any promoter with his PED history that makes you nervous about the status of the fight all the way until the fighters enter the ring.
As for David Price, it's too bad that his chin is made of melted cheese because he otherwise looks the part of a contender.
Tall, rangy, punches pretty well, Price reminds you of what a British heavyweight used to be (Frank Bruno, Richard Dunn, Brian London etc) with his lack of punch resistance.
David Price either needs to step aside or be matched as a special attraction against fighters that aren't a big threat (think of how Butterbean Esch was scheduled or for you wrestling historians- Giant Baba of All Japan in his later years) to his health, because continuing to place David Price against any of type of contender is going to wind up hurting Price badly.

I didn't see the other two fights on the card and in the boxing challenge
Ryan Burnett retained his WBA bantamweight belt with a unanimous decision over Yonfrez Parejao and Anthony Crolla won a unanimous decision over Edson Ramirez in a lightweight fight.

In the boxing challenge, I scored eight points to Ramon Malpica's six on the day to boost my lead to  56-43.
I scored two points each in all four fights with Ramon scoring two points each for wins by Ryan Burnett and Anthony Crolla with one each for the heavyweight wins of Anthony Joshua and Alexander Povetkin.

Wilder takes care of business!

AP Photo/Kevin Hagen

The biggest bout in the boxing challenge featured the biggest men as Deontay Wilder blew away the only fighter to have lasted the distance with him in just one round as Wilder crushed Bermane Stiverne in their rematch in Brooklyn.
Stiverne, who had fought just one time since his first bout with Wilder, appeared out of shape and didn't land any of the four punches that he threw at Wilder, proved that his top ranking in the WBC was as farcical as it appeared and it appeared that the skills that he once possessed that helped him take Wilder the distance were gone and he needs to retire.
As for Wilder, he did exactly what champions do when you are forced to fight undeserving challengers- dispatch them quickly and impressively as three knockdowns and leaving your opponent unconscious showed in this one.

I've been hard on Wilder's competition in the past and this didn't change that, but it's pretty clear that the time is right for Wilder to step up (or someone to step up and fight him) for a big fight.
Wilder made a lot of noise after the fight about fighting Anthony Joshua and I do believe that he wants that fight badly-mainly because it would prove who the best heavyweight is and bring Wilder the largest payday of his career- especially if Wilder is willing to go to the UK where the fight would sell out an 80,000 seat stadium.
However, is there anything more overdone in boxing than "calling out opponents"that are promoted by someone else, therefore making the said fight difficult to make?
I'm not saying Wilder doesn't want Anthony Joshua, but calling him out doesn't prove anything and I am very weary of fighters from any stable, but especially from the notoriously difficult to deal with PBC talking about fights that they aren't willing to make a deal to close a contract.
Considering the options available for Joshua there (UK fighters that might make Joshua more money at lesser risk such as Tyson Fury, Dillion Whyte and the winner of the Tony Bellew-David Haye rematch) compared to the less than wonderful options available for Wilder, I'd be surprised if this fight happened next year and very surprised to see it happen in the next fight for either man.

As I wrote, Joshua has far more options than Wilder, but that doesn't mean Wilder doesn't have any.
Since Joshua has two belts (WBA and IBF) to Wilder's WBC title if this fight cannot be worked out.
I would go looking for the third champion in WBO champ Joseph Parker, who has not looked great in winning his title against Andy Ruiz or his first title defense vs Hughie Fury.
That fight makes a lot of sense as the winner can claim two titles as Joshua does, Parker is far more likely to come to the United States than Joshua is and Parker has even fewer options than Wilder does, although after his win over Fury, Parker too "called out" Joshua.
It's easy to see that calling out the man that brings the dollars and leverage to the table is much simpler than making the actual fight.

If Wilder (and for that matter Parker) can't make fights against Joshua or each other, I would try to keep them in the ring as much as possible fighting more often.
The heavyweight division is strong at the top with three champions and if Tyson Fury is ever able to return to the ring in a decent mindset, but where it is weakest is in legitimately strong contenders.
Dillon Whyte's biggest "win" was in a loss to Joshua, the same can be argued for Dominic Breazeale, Jarrell "Big Baby" Miller gets his first top 15 test next week on HBO, Kubrat Pulev has an injured shoulder, Carlos Takam has already been beaten by Joshua and Parker, Andy Ruiz hasn't fought since his very close loss to Parker and Luis Ortiz along with Alexander Povetkin cannot be trusted to pass PED tests before title fights and these are the best of the contenders.

Staying active against weaker challengers won't prove much more about Deontay Wilder than we already know from his past soft touches, but it will keep him in front of fans and with each impressive and preferably explosive win, the roar for a Joshua-Wilder showdown will increase.
Of course, we all would love to see this made as soon as the spring and I'm not calling for a "Marinade", but there could be a way to make this a bigger event on this side of the Atlantic and it would come with multiple wins.

The heavyweight division suddenly is exciting, if not filled with proven depth, and if we cannot see Joshua-Wilder soon, let's hope that we see more of them more often against what is available in the heavyweight division....

I'll be back later with the rest of the weekend in boxing...

Boxing Challenge: KO,close one and a snoozer

Three different fights of equal significance on this Saturday from Texas, California, and Manchester England with all of them with different results.

Let's start in San Antonio, Texas at the Alamodome for a World Boxing Super Series quarterfinal in their cruiserweight tournament with minor titleholder Yunier Dorticos defending his belt with a vicious second-round knockout of Dmitry Kudryashov, that saw the Russian native on the floor with his eyes rolling in his head after eating a booming right hand.
This bout looked to be the most interesting first-round cruiserweight final and for the round and a half that it lasted-it was as both fighters landed their fair share of crunching punches.
In the end, it was the more versatile Dorticos that was able to close the show.
Dorticos moves in the tournament to the semi-finals against the winner of IBF champion Murat Gassiev against Krzysztof Wlodarczyk in Newark, New Jersey next month.

Two questions that I'm going to answer-one has been asked to me and one that I'm asking rhetorically.
The first is why don't I recognize Dorticos as the WBA champion?
It's because, despite Denis Lebedev's loss to the aforementioned Gassiev last year, the WBA still recognizes Lebedev as their "super" champion and in divisions that the WBA has 2 or even 3 champions, I only recognize that champion as the WBA champion.

The better question is why did the WBSS put a fight between a Cuban and a Russian without a local hook in San Antonio, Texas, and expect it to draw?
I don't know what the attendance numbers, but I wonder why this match was selected for this location?
Another issue is the WBSS stream on their website, which so many have complained about as being so fuzzy.
I believe I have the solution-the pomp and circumstance that the WBSS attempts to add to their events includes a dazzling light show that uses a ring of lights that surrounds the ring in a form that resembles the Roman Colosseum.
It adds attractiveness to the show and I like it-Until the fight begins.
They don't turn off those lights and it just plays havoc with the picture (and pixels) and you get a less than desirable picture on your PC.

In Inglewood, California, WBA lightweight champion Jorge Linares retained his championship with a split decision win over Britain's former Olympic gold medalist Luke Campbell.
Linares scored a knockdown in the second round that also cut Campbell and that knockdown allowed Linares the win as had he not scored that knockdown the fight would have been a draw on a card that Linares won on by one point.
Linares looked so impressive in the first three rounds that I was talking to Fred and said I expected Linares to finish Campbell in the middle rounds.
However, I was wrong as Campbell began to battle back by not allowing Linares to move inside on the rangy Briton and beginning to trouble Linares on the scorecards as well.
Linares put things back together in winning the final two rounds to win on my card 115-112 (7-5 in rounds minus a point for Campbell on the knockdown).
I thought I'd see better work from Linares, but it could have been the style of Campbell that made Linares more hesitant than usual.
I'll wait until his next start before proclaiming Linares in decline, but that fight will be one that might help determine just that.

In the first fight of the day, New Zealand's Joseph Parker kept his WBO heavyweight belt with a tedious majority decision over a less than combative Hughie Fury of England.
Parker, who has put together three less than impressive albeit victorious efforts in winning his title and defending it twice, did at least come forward and try to engage, which is more than I could say for Fury, who did little except move, grab and jab with an occasional right hand in a less than meritorious performance.
The fight was awkward and hard to judge as neither fighter did much offensively, but Parker did enough to win a contest that won't be fondly remembered by almost anyone.
I scored Parker a 117-111 winner (9-3).
I'm not sure what Parker has next as Fury was his mandatory defense, so he now has time for an optional defense or pursues Anthony Joshua or the Deontay Wilder-Luis Ortiz winner.
The WBO ratings are a real mess. Fury at number one has been disposed of, number two contender Christian Hammer has one notable victory in the last four years (a KO over soft jawed former Olympic bronze medalist David Price),third-rated Kubrat Pulev is fighting Joshua, fourth-ranked Tom Schwartz is undefeated, but against a resume' that makes Hammer's look like the opponents of Larry Holmes and number five contender Dominic Breazeale is fighting Bermane Stiverne in a WBC eliminator.
What a mess indeed...

In the boxing challenge, Ramon Malpica and I each scored four points on day-two from the KO win by Yunier Dorticos and one each from the wins by Jorge Linares and Joseph Parker.
I lead the challenge 134-122.

For more on these and other boxing talk-Listen to me and Ramon on Fightheads Monday at 8 EST at
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/fightheads or call in to talk to us at 646-787-1746

Heavyweight Saturday

Two of the four heavyweight titles were on the line from overseas on Saturday and with more action on tap Saturday night,it was a big day in the boxing world..

Early Saturday morning,the WBO title (Vacated by Tyson Fury) was filled in Auckland,New Zealand as hometown fighter Joseph Parker won a narrow majority decision over Andy Ruiz to win that organization's championship.
I thought the scores were fair (114-114 and two cards for Parker 115-113) and could have went either way.
I scored the fight 114-114,but being honest,it felt like Ruiz won the fight.
Sometimes,you can score a fight even and still feel that one fighter "won" the fight-this was one of those nights for me.
I've been critical of Andy Ruiz,his reluctance to get into shape and his less than competitive opponents,but I liked some of what I saw in this fight from him in his first real test against Parker.
Ruiz showed pretty fast hands (although not fast feet) and if he can stay in the gym,he could still make some noise in this division and that is not something that I would have written yesterday before this fight.
As for,the new WBO champion,Joseph Parker showed some talent and patience,but Parker needs work a little more.
I really like the Parker jab,if he can build off that,he can be a interesting fighter to follow.
Parker will be forced to make his first defense in  four months by the WBO against England's Hughie Fury.
Assuming Parker gets by Fury and I think he should-I'm all for a Ruiz rematch,

In the boxing challenge,Ramon Malpica and I each added one point for the Parker victory,

In Manchester England,Anthony Joshua mowed down overmatched Eric Molina in three rounds to retain his IBF heavyweight title.
Molina gave WBC champ Deontay Wilder some anxious moments when he challenged Wilder,but he was no match for Joshua.
Joshua's next fight will be against former champion Wladimir Klitschko in a defense of his title and the winner will receive the other title (WBA) vacated by Tyson Fury..
Ramon added three points for the win,getting the bonus point for calling the round with me adding two...

The boxing challenge stands at 139-116 with more to come.....

Dull night in Vegas-Boxing Challenge

On a busy day in boxing,the boxing challenge had five fights on the slate and saw R.L.Malpica and I each add seven points to our totals.
I lead the challenge 62-52.

The day started with two fights from outside America that I didn't get to see live,but did watch through the wonder of YouTube.
The most meaningful fight on a day with four world title fights,might have been the one without a title on the line as New Zealand's talented young heavyweight Joseph Parker earned a unanimous decision over veteran Carlos Takam to become the mandatory contender for IBF champion Anthony Joshua,should Joshua defeat Dominic Breazeale as he is heavily favored to do next month.
Takam tested Parker in the type of way that is good for young fighters to take a step forward and I think it will serve Parker very well in his challenge of Joshua.
I scored Parker a 116-112 winner.
R.L and I each scored one point for the Parker win...

In Moscow Denis Lebedev impressively unified his WBA cruiserweight title with the IBF belt with a second round knockout of Victor Ramirez.
Lebedev knocked Ramirez down in the second and then hammered Ramirez around the ring before the referee jumped in to end the fight.
A Lebedev-Murat Gassiev fight (Gassiev is the IBF number one contender) might be one of the best action fights that can be made....
I added two points for the Lebedev knockout win with R.L.gaining one..

In Las Vegas,three of the four junior middleweight titles were on the line and at the end of the night,all three resided in the same stable in Houston.
That's not great news for boxing fans when none of the three have the slightest interest in fighting each other.
The 154 pound class is one of the weakest in the sport and that didn't change in Vegas.

The main event saw a rematch of a fight that few wanted to see the first time,let alone a second as Erislandy Lara retained his WBA title with a unanimous decision win  over Vanes Martirosyan in a fight that was reminding no one of a good action battle.
I had Lara a narrow 115-112 winner.
R.L and I each collected two points for the win.

Jermall Charlo kept his IBF title with a unanimous win over Austin Trout.
I've been critical of the Charlo brothers,but Austin Trout is an excellent name to have on the resume and I give Charlo credit for taking Trout on.
I had Charlo a 115-113 winner as Trout came on in the late rounds,but started too late.
R.L grabbed two points for the Charlo win to my zero as I picked Trout..

Jermell Charlo won the vacant WBC title with a sudden eighth round knockout of John Jackson.
Jackson was leading on my card when Charlo struck seconds into round eight to stun Jackson,who turned his back away just before the referee stopped the fight.
Charlo gave me two points and R.L one for the win....

The Charlos and Lara aren't fun fighters to watch and I suppose we'll have some boring fights to look forward to.
Lara's the top fighter in the division until beaten,but Demetrius Andrade and Julian Williams are boxing fans best hopes to break the Houston stable's chokehold on the division....