Boxing Challenge: Dull night on DAZN

The Saturday debut on DAZN with Golden Boy Promotions was anticipated, even though it was expected that the star of the evening, Canelo Alvarez, would cruise through his fight. to be a card with clear-cut favorites.

It was more than that though as some of the fights would never occur, but first, it's Canelo Alvarez who would win one of the WBA's minor titles and could now claim to be yet another multi-divisional champion ( one of my boxing pet peeves) in what was as big of mismatch as you'll see in a while in a third round detonation of England's Rocky Fielding.
Alvarez dropped Fielding four times and I'm not sure that I can describe just how lopsided this fight was.
Fielding was clearly the larger man and that was his only edge.
I can live with these types of fights for active fighters, so I'm fine with this one since Canelo did fight Gennady Golovkin just three months ago, but I won't be so tolerant with another one next time.

Two of the boxing challenge fights never happened as David Lemieux didn't make weight and his fight was Tureano Johnson was sadly canceled.
That's too bad as that would have easily been the best fight of the evening.
Lemieux and promoter Golden Boy needs to realize whether it's a lack of training or simply a fighter that has outgrown his division-Lemieux needs to move on to 168 and not sign for fights at 160 no matter how badly he/they may want to make a bout.
While I'm at it-I feel terrible for Johnson, who lost a paycheck and training expenses and I'd like to add a new rule that state commissions could make and then enforce- IF a fighter does not make weight, his team is responsible for either full reimbursement of training expenses (if a fight's purse would have that be feasible) or if a prelim fight, a set sum that would at least help a little in making things right.

Prospect Vergil Ortiz was not passed by the New York State Commission due to a past eye surgery.
While I can respect that for looking out for the fighters safety, I wished someone could have figured this out before the day of the fight!

This moved Tevin Farmer's IBF junior lightweight defense against Francisco Fonseca to the co-main.
Fonseca tried hard, but Farmer dominated in a fight that both fighters were doing their best but settled into one round each resembling the last as Farmer won a unanimous decision (118-110 on my card).
Farmer once again called out WBA kingpin Gervonta Davis in a fight that both seem to want but is unlikely to happen.

That left the only other challenge bout as former WBO junior middleweight champ Sadam Ali returned to his natural weight at 147 and shutout former junior welterweight contender Mauricio Herrera on his way to a unanimous decision.
It was an ugly bout, not very entertaining and not one that saw Ali shine.

All and all, not a great night for Golden Boy or DAZN, who I'll be discussing their presentation in a future post.
Things aren't always going to fall the way the promoter/network wants them, but with the exception of Canelo doing what champions should do against overmatched competition- take them out early, this had to be a disappointing start to the GBP series on DAZN.
It'll get better- It better...

In the boxing challenge, Ramon Malpica outscored me six to four on the weekend.
Ramon scored two points each from Tevin Farmer and Sadam Ali and one each from Canelo Alvarez and Gilberto Ramirez on Friday.
I added my four with two from Ali and one each from Canelo and Farmer.
I still lead Ramon for the year with two weeks to go 210-191

Boxing Challenge:Lomachenko stops Linares!

In what was a technical yet exciting fight, Vasyl Lomachenko finally found an opponent that could stand to up him in WBA lightweight champion Jorge Linares, who gave as good as he took for nine rounds and even knocked Lomachenko down for the first time in his career in round six.

However, Lomachenko took firm command in the tenth round and smashed a crushing uppercut to send Linares to the ropes as a preview of what was yet to come.
A combination finished with a savage left-handed body shot sent Linares to the floor and even though the proud Linares rose, referee Ricky Gonzalez had seen enough and ended the fight.
After nine rounds, the judges were split with one judge each having one fighter ahead with the third scoring the bout a draw.
I had the score even at 85-85 with Lomachenko ahead in rounds 5-4, but Linares gaining the point back with the sixth round knockdown.

The fight was close and well fought, but I see no need for a rematch as Lomachenko was coming on strong, cutting Linares and I just don't see a rematch going any differently other than Lomachenko perhaps dominating sooner.
Give Top Rank and Golden Boy credit for working together to put this into the ring and off the negotiating table, but I have no need to see this again, at least for a while.
Lomachenko said after the fight he will be keeping his newly won belt, vacating his WBO junior lightweight title and likely to next fight WBO lightweight champ Ray Beltran, who is promoted by Top Rank as is Lomachenko.
By the end of the summer, we should have just two lightweight champions as Lomachenko-Beltran will be one unification with PBC promoting a WBC-IBF unification between Mikey Garcia and Robert Easter.
The big question is this- can a unification bout be pulled off between the winners (Lomachenko and Garcia will be heavily favored) and who would televise it?
Lomachenko and Garcia would be an even more anticipated battle than Lomachenko-Linares if it can be made.
The promoters may have their issues, but even bigger in making that fight is Garcia, who has a track record of dodging the biggest fights for lesser opponents with the lame excuse "bigger and better fights".
No one would have considered Garcia's fight vs Sergey Lipinets to be a bigger fight than a Linares bout that the WBC mandated, yet still, Garcia slid by with a lesser bout than almost everyone wanted.
Mikey Garcia, not Bob Arum or Al Haymon might be the biggest obstacle to getting one of the best fights in the game in the ring.

In Verona, New York. a star was born as undefeated and formerly untested Jaime Munguia blew away Sadam Ali in just four rounds to win Ali's WBO junior middleweight title.
Ali, a small junior middle, to begin with, looked downright tiny standing next to Munguia and was bounced around the ring to the tune of four knockdowns and a fifth that could have been called before the merciful end to the bout was called.
Munguia looks to be a star in the making as he stalked Ali from the opening bell and punished him badly.
We'll see what he does against true 154 pounders, but Jermell Charlo (WBC) and Jarrett Hurd (WBA/IBF) have been put on notice- there is a new sheriff in town and he punches like a mule kicks.
As for Ali, the beating that I saw him take didn't remind me of a fight that actually happened, it made me think of one from film-Ivan Drago vs Apollo Creed.
Every punch sent Ali careening around the ring and even as far at the end of the first, a case could have been made for ending this one.
Beatings like this one have been known to ruin careers and we'll see if Ali is able to regroup at welterweight, his natural class.

In the co-feature on HBO (boy are they getting mediocre fights or what?) Rey Vargas retained his WBC junior featherweight title via unanimous decision over Azat Hovannysian.
Hovannysian attacked throughout and made it entertaining, but the classy Vargas carried the day as I had Vargas a 117-111 winner.

In England, Hughie Fury knocked out Sam Sexton in the fifth round to win the British heavyweight title.
Haven't seen this fight as of this writing...

In the boxing challenge, I outscored Ramon Malpica seven points to three on the weekend to stretch my lead to 88-70.

I earned two points each from wins by Vasyl Lomachenko, Rey Vargas and Jaime Munguia with one from Hughie Fury.
Ramon added one point each from the Lomachenko, Vargas, and Fury wins.

Boxing Challenge: Ali upsets Cotto

The Boxing Challenge continued in Madison Square Garden as the supposed goodbye to Miguel Cotto ended badly for Cotto and his fans as heavy underdog Sadam Ali moved up from welterweight to stun Cotto and lift his WBO junior middleweight title via a close but unanimous decision.
Ali was the quicker fighter but surprisingly was the harder puncher as he hurt Cotto in the second round and won the final four rounds on my card, which had Ali as a 115-113 winner.
Cotto injured his biceps in the seventh round and that may have cost him the fight, but clearly, Cotto is getting out at the right time and I would hope to see him stick to his retirement claim.
As for Ali, I'm not sure how he stacks up against the other top 154 pounders and I would rank him fourth among the four champions at junior middleweight.

In the co-feature, the less said the better as Rey Vargas won every round on my card and won a unanimous decision over Oscar Negrete, whose best move was to use headbutts from the Tony Atlas school, to retain his WBC junior featherweight title via unanimous decision.
HBO's fights have slipped off late and this fight is a prime example of this.

Ramon Malpica and I each added two points for the Vargas win and none for Ali's upset of Cotto.
The Challenge is now 185-169.