The Past Week in Action 16 April 2024

The Past Week in Action 16 April 202

Highlights:

-David Papot wins WBO Global Welterweight title with points victory over Jon Miguez

– Oleksandr Zakhozhyi stops Granit Shala to win the vacant European heavyweight title and on the same show middle weight Alexander Pavlov scores upset first round stoppage of unbeaten Thomas Piccirillo and former IBF middleweight title holder Vincenzo Gualtieri outpoints Joshua Nmomah

-Zelfa Barrett scores tenth round stoppage over Jordan Gill

-Ellie Scotney outpoints Segolene Lefebvre to unify IBF and WBO super bantam belts and Rhiannon Dixon wins vacant WBO lightweight title by decisioning Karen Carbajal

-Jared Anderson outpoints Ryad Merhy in disappointing heavyweight ten, Efe Ajagba scores split decision over Guido Vianello, Ruben Villa decisions Cristian Cruz, Charly Suarez outpoints Luis Coria and Robinson Conceicao stops Jose Guardado

-Charie Edwards decisions Georges Ory to collect vacant WBC International bantamweight belt.

World Title/Major Shows

April 13

Corpus Christi, TX, USA: Heavy: Jared Anderson (17-0) W PTS 10 Ryad Merhy(32-3). Heavy: Efe Ajagba (20-1) W PTS 10 Guido Vianello (12-2-1). Super Feather: Robinson Conceicao (18-2-1,1ND ) W TKO 7 Jose Guardado (15-1#2-1). Super Feather: Charly Suarez (16-0) W Luis Coria (15-6). Ruben Villa (22-1) W PTS 10 Cristian Cruz (22-7-1). Light: Abdullah Mason (13-0) W TKO 4 Ronal Ron (14-6).

20

Anderson vs. Merhy

Anderson extends his unbeaten run with a wide unanimous decision over Merhy in a boring one-sided contest. Anderson started brightly enough coming forward stabbing out jabs to head and body but Merhy just retreated behind a high guard and only pawed with an occasional punch. It was the same in the second round. Anderson switched to southpaw and worked steadily and Merhy went backwards looking to block or evade Anderson’s punches. By the end of the round there was already a scattering and Merhy’s passive approach continued over the third and fourth. It looked as though Anderson was expecting more from Merhy but the Belgian was only throwing an occasional counter. Anderson continued to work away behind his jab bossing what few exchanges there were but was not putting Merhy under enough pressure allowing Merhy to sit behind a high guard and concentrate on surviving. There were few highlights and the boos increased. It was being fought at a pedestrian pace. Merhy finally began to come forward in the ninth and tenth throwing some punches but Anderson’s jab soon had Merhy backing off again as the fight dribble to a disappointing end. Anderson won on scores of 100-90 twice and 99-91. He got the job done but had trouble impressing against the negative tactics of Merhy. Perhaps too much was expected from Merhy. He was 235 ½ lbs for this fight ( he was 188 ½ when he started his career) and was giving away weight and height to the naturally bigger Anderson but he did nothing to earn his pay. Anderson dominated but Merhy was rarely under any pressure and Anderson never seemed to be in top gear.

Ajagba vs. Vianello

Ajagba retains the WBC Silver title with a split decision over Vianello. This heavyweight clash just served to underline the poor quality of Anderson vs. Merhy. Vianello made the better start scoring with two cracking rights in the first. He built on that in the second landing a big right that had Ajagba reeling across the ring to the ropes. He landed some more heavy shots and Ajagba got some relief when the referee stopped the action after Vianello had almost knocked Ajagba over the ropes. Vianello kept throwing rights to the heads in the third but was over reliant on the punch and Ajagba steadied himself boxing behind his jab and putting Vianello on the back foot. He was more accurate than the Italian and Vianello looked to be coming apart as Ajagba marched forward behind his jab and connecting with rights. By the eighth both fighters were slowing from the pace and Vianello began to land with those rights again as he ate into Ajagba’s lead and it was close at the end. Scores 96-94 twice for Ajagba and 96-94 for Vianello. Fifth win for Ajagba since losing a wide decision against Frank Sanchez in 2021. He is No 4 with the WBC, 8 with the IBF and 10 with the WBO. This was probably Vianello’s best performance so far. A seventh round stoppage loss against 15-6-1 Jonathan Rice in January 2023 out a question mark against him but showed he had put that behind him in his performance here.

Conceicao vbs. Guardado

It took a little while for Brazilian Olympic gold medal winner Conceicao to settle as a pro but he is now very much a force in the superb featherweight division. There was a wildness about him in his early fights but he has tighten up without losing any of that early aggression. He set a face pace from the start against Guardado looking to overwhelm the Mexican and Guardado was unable to muster any offence of his own. Conceicao ended it in the seventh putting Guardado on the floor with a left hook to the body and although Guardado beat the count he was under heavy fire and went down again and the referee stopped the fight. Although outclassed by Shakur Stevenson in a fight for the vacant WBC and WBO titles (Stevenson did not make the weight so both titles were vacant and could only be won by Conceicao) he put in a great performance in fighting WBO champion Emanuel Navarrete to a majority draw in November.

Suarez vs. Coria

Filipino Olympian Suarez take a unanimous decision over late substitute Coria. Suarez was to have faced unbeaten 19-0 Puerto Rican Henry Lebron. The fight would have been an IBF eliminator with Lebron IBF 4(but 3-as the No 2 spot is vacant) and Suarez 5 (4 again with No 2 vacant) but Lebron withdrew and instead Suarez faced Californian Coria. Suarez went from preparing to face a clever boxing southpaw to a bigger aggressive Coria. Suarez showcased his technical skills boxing mainly on the back foot using quicker hands and slick movement getting his punches off first. Coria put Suarez under plenty of pressure coming forward strongly beind his jab and trying to cut off the ring to negate Suarez’s movement. Suarez was in control until the very last seconds of the last round. Coria drove forward throwing a right and as Suarez stepped back he overbalanced and went down. Suarez questioned the count but in the end it made no difference as Suarez won on scores of 77-74 twice and 76-75. A win over Lebron would have allowed Suares to go to the No 2 slot now he must wait for another chance. Coria had floored Conceicao in a losing effort back in 2020 and he made Suarez work hard in this fight.

Villa vs. Cruz

Villa boxes his way to victory over Cruz. Both are southpaws but Villa’s right jab dominated this fight. He was getting his punches off first constantly spearing Criz with jabs forcing Cruz to reset himself and breaking up any momentum Cruz might try to build. Villa stepped up his work rate and the pressure and although Cruz scored well with body punches over the fifth and sixth he was forced to fight off the back foot by the speed and accuracy of Villa’s punches. Villa mixed it more over the later rounds taking the fight to Cruz forcing him to the ropes more often and looking to wear Cruz down. Villa is not a puncher and Cruz was never in any real trouble but the relentless pressure from Villa had him tiring late as Villa swept up the rounds. Scores 98-92 twice and 97-93 for Villa who wins the vacant WBC Silver title. Villa’s lone loss came on points in a fight against Emanuel Navarrete for the vacant WBO feather title in 2020. Villa was down twice in the early rounds but fought back strongly and it was the two knockdowns that cost him the title as two of the judges gave it to Navarrete by two points. He is No 2 with the WBC at featherweight so could get another title shot later this year. Cruz was 6-0-1 in his last 7 fights.

Mason vs. Ron

Another sparkling display from hot prospect Mason. He dropped Ron with a lightning quick southpaw straight left in the first and rocked him with uppercuts in the second. Ron took the fight to Mason in the third swapping hooks and uppercuts until a left to the body sent Ron down in agony. He did well to make it to the break but in the fourth a sustained barrage of punches had Ron reeling and the referee stopped the fight. The 20-year-old Ohio southpaw, one of four boxing brothers, has now won 8 of his last 9 fights by KO/TKO and looks better each time. Venezuelan Ron was out of his depth.

Charlottenburg, Germany: Heavy: Oleksandr Zakhozhyi (19-0) W TKO 2 Granit Shala (15-1). Middle: Alexander Pavlov (20-3) W TKO 1 Thomas Piccirillo (13-1-4). Middle: Vincenzo Gualtieri (22-1-1) W PTS 8 Joshua Nmomah (13-3).

Zakhozhyi vs. Shala

A disastrous night for the promoter AGON as two of their unbeaten fighters suffered crushing defeats. Shala was challenging for the vacant European title and although giving away six inches in height to the 6’9” Ukrainian Shala managed to score with some fast jabs in the first. Zakhozhyi landed the heavier punches and shook Shala early in the second. As they traded punches Zakhozhyi landed two heavy rights to the head that sent Shala reeling across the ring and down by the ropes. He was up at six and when the action restarted Zakhozhyi landed a right to the body and another to the head that dropped Shala in a heap. The referee started the count but than just waived the fight over. Zakhozhyi was having his first fight for a year and only his second in two years. Neither he nor Shala had faced an opponent of note and with No’s 1 to 5 in the EBU ratings reading Joshua, Hrgovic, Kabayel, Joyce, Dubois it might be difficult to find a suitable challenger for Zakhozhyi. Shala had been very conservativity matched and it is back to rebuild for him.

Pavlov vs. Piccirillo

The nightmare continued for the AGON team as previously unbeaten Piccirillo is blown away in the first round by former German champion Pavlov. Both had some success in the first exchanges but then Pavlov drove Piccirillo to the ropes. He continued to land punches as Piccirillo sat on the middle rope. Pavlov kept punching until Piccirillo fell to the canvas. Piccirillo made to his feet but was dropped again. He beat the count but was forced to the ropes and fell under Pavlov’s punches. He climbed to his feet for the third time but stumbled unsteadily and the referee stopped the fight. Pavlov wins the IBF Inter-Continental title with his eighth consecutive victory and the third first round finish in his last three fights. Italian-born German Piccirillo did not have the power to match Pavlov

Gualtieri vs. Nmomah

Gualtieri gets in eight rounds of work against Italian-based Nigerian Nmomah. The Nigerian made a fast start taking the fight to Gualtieri with Gualtieri boxing cleverly on the back foot with accurate counters. Nmomah kept up the pressure over the middle rounds but there was too much clinching for it to be an entertaining fight. Gualtieri put in a strong finish and just did enough to get the unanimous decision but it was not an impressive performance. Gualtieri was having his first fight since losing his IBF middleweight title to Zhanibek Alimkhanuly in October. Three defeats in his last four fights for Nmomah.

Manchester, England: Super Feather: Zelfa Barrett (31-2) W TKO 10 Jordan Gill (28-3-1) W. Super Bantam: Ellie Scotney (9-0) W PTS 10 Segolene Lefebvre (18-1).Light: Rhiannon Dixon (10-0) W PTS 10 Karen Carbajal (22-2). Super Feather: Michael Gomez Jr (21-1) W TKO 6 Kane Baker (19-11).

Barrett vs. Gill

Barrett floors and stops Gill in a tough, entertaining match. The pace was quick from the start with Gill taking the fight to Barrett who boxed on the back foot. Both had some success in the first with Barrett already scoring with left hooks to the body. A right cross from Barratt was the best punch of the second as Gill continued to forge forward. A sneaky right from Barrett hurt Gill in the third but Gill closed the round strongly getting through to the body. Barrett looked to have hurt Gill with a series of body punches in the fourth. Gill continued to hunt down Barrett over the fifth and sixth and he was also landing with some hurtful body punches. By the seventh there was an ugly swelling around Gill’s left eye but over the eighth and ninth his constant pressure seemed to be giving him the edge. Gill was continuing to come forward in the tenth when Barrett dug a wicked left hook into Gill’s body. He turned away and went down in some distress. Gill rolled over on his back and then bounded up. Barrett attacked with more body shots and Gill fired back forcing Barrett to give ground until another left hook to the body put him down. He got up but a series of punches had Gill turning away and the fight was stopped. Barrett wins the WBA International title as he rebuilds after a ninth round stoppage loss against Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov in a fight for the vacant IBF title in November 2022. He is No 6 with the WBA, but this win might boost that rating, and 12 with the IBF. Gill had taken a bad beating when being stopped by Kiko Martinez in October 2022 but had rebounded in some style with a tenth round stoppage of Michael Conlan in December and there are some good domestic matches to be made in this division.

Scotney vs. Lefebvre

South London’s Scotney retained her IBF title and added the WBO with a points win over France’s Lefebvre. Scotney set a fast pace and her aggressive attacks took the more experienced Lefebvre out of her stride. Lefebvre tried to match Scotney and landed some good shots in the second. Lefebvre’s strength is her skill but the volleys of hooks and constant pressure from Scotney forced her to fight Scotney’s fight and was weakened by some powerful body punching. Lefebvre landed some good shots inn then eighth and ninth but Scotney outworked her in the last and was an impressive winner. Scores 99-91, 97-93 and 96-94 for Scotney who was making the second defence of the IBF belt. Lefebvre was defending the WBO title for the fourth time.

Dixon vs. Carbajal

Three title fights in a row for three vacant titles and Dixon has won them all. She picked up this important WBO title with a unanimous decision over South American champion Carbajal. Doxon had no real amateur experience but she went off in front in this fight flooring Carbajal in the third round. Carbajal has never lost inside the distance so it was no surprise that she beat the count and fought back hard. Dixon suffered a cut high on her forehead and Carbajal over her right eye. Dixon was boxing well making good use of her jab and straight lefts and built a lead. Carbajal had to survive a doctor’s inspection of her cut at the start of the fifth and that seemed to galvanise her. She scored with some good rights and exerted plenty of pressure but Dixon more than matched her and was a clear winner. Scores 98-91, 97-92 and 96-93. A good learning fight for Dixon against the Argentinian who was 19-0 before losing on points to Katie Taylor for the IBF, WBA, WBC, WBO lightweight titles in 2022.

Gomez vs. Baker

Gomez finally overwhelms Baker in the sixth after a fierce scrap. Baker was sharper at the start and landed some good shots. Gomez was more than willing to stand and trade punches with neither willing to concede an inch. A clash of heads in the third saw both fighters cut. Gomez began to get on top inn then fifth and put Baker down with an uppercut. Baker made it to his feet but looked unsteady. The referee let the fight to continue but a right to the head put Baker down and the fight was immediately waived over. Twelfth consecutive win for Gomez who was defending the English title. Fourth loss by KO/TKO for Baker.

APRIL 10

Plant City, FL, USA: Feather: Angelo Leo (24-1) W PTS 10 Eduardo Baez (23-6-2). Super Feather: Jaycob Gomez (10-0-1) W PTS 8 Jose Arellano (11-2). Super Feather: Dominic Valle (9-0) W TKO 2 Angel Vazquez (12-2).

Leo vs. Baez

Leo takes a unanimous verdict over Baez in a phone-booth scrap. The action was all taking place inside as they traded left hooks and uppercuts set up by some short, quick jabbing. Baez landed the first strongly to take the opening round but from the second Leo was connecting with his trade mark eft hooks to the body and overhand rights and was dominating the exchanges. He continued to put Baez undern pressure over the middle rounds. Baez managed to get on the front foot in the seventh but Leo was just as much in charge when countering than when leading. Leo continued to land with left hooks and rights to the heads and although Baez never looked inn trouble he was outclassed. Scores 98-92 twice and 97-93 for Leo. The former WBO super bantam champion retained the WBA Continental North American belt with his fourth win since losing his WBO title to Stephen Felton in 2021.Baez was knocked out in six rounds by Emanuel Navarrete in a challenge for the WBO feather in 2022.

Gomez vs. Arellano

Puerto Rican southpaw Gomez wins majority victory against Arellano. After a close opening round Gomez controlled the second and third with Arellano cut over his right eye and bleeding from the nose. Relleno stepped up his pace in the third and fourth and was roughing Gomez up inside. Both had some success in a close fifth and Arellano closed the points gap landing heavier and clearer punches in the sixth. Gomez boxed more and landed some useful lefts to edge in front and Arellano survived a doctor’s inspection for his cut at the start of the eighth but was out landed by Gomez. Scores 77-75 twice for Gomez and 76-76.

Valle vs. Vazquez

Valle gets this one over quickly. He used his 5’11” height to box on the outside in the first and then caught Vazquez with counters when he tried to get inside. He hurt Vazquez with a left hook to the body early in the second and then unloaded on Vazquez until the referee stopped the fight. Seventh win by KO/TKO for the former US Youth champion. Second inside the distance defeat in a row for Mexican Vazquez.

APRIL 12

Nantes, France: Welter: David Papot (29-0-1) W PTS 12 Jon Miguez (17-1-1). Super Bantam: Terry Le Couviour (18-1) W TKO 4 Loic Tajan (11-3,1ND).

2

Papot vs. Miguez

Brilliant display of skills from Papot in his second fight in twenty days as he outclasses previously unbeaten Miguez to win the WBO Global belt. Miguel drove forward for the full twelve rounds but just could not put the elusive Papot under any sustained pressure. Papot walked Miguez onto counters from both hands scoring with hooks and uppercuts and then using slick foot work to slide away from Miguez’s attacks and then again landing bursts of fast, accurate punches. Miguel had some success when he could trap Papot on the ropes but even then some classy bobbing and weaving had Miguez swishing air. Papot is no puncher (only four wins by KO/TKO) but his movement, hand speed and overall ability make up for that. All three judges had it 118-110 for Papot . He was No 15 with the WBNO but winning the Global belt will give him a huge boost in the ratings. Miguel had knocked out James Moorcroft and drawn with 30-0 Jordy Weiss in a fight for the vacant European title in his last fight.

Le Couviour Tajan

Le Couviour batters Tajan to defeat inn four brutal rounds. This was a frantic punch-up from the start. Le Couviour battered away at Tajan who refused to surrender and just kept firing back hard shots of his own. He constantly drove Tajan to the ropes forcing a standing count but Tajan never stopped throwing back. It was four rounds of mayhem. Le Couviour bombarded Tajan with hooks, uppercuts and straight shots rocking Tajan time and again only for Tajan to regroup and fire back. Finally in the fourth with Tajan trapped in a corner taking punch after punch and his right almost closed the referee stopped the fight. Le Couviour was knocked out in six rounds by Jason Cunningham in a challenge for the EBU super bantam title in April 2022 and this was his first fight for sixteen months. Tajan had won 7 of his last 8 fights.

Marcel vs. Abbey

Ugento, Italy: Light: Giuseppe Carafa (19-6-2 ) W PTS 10 Francesco Acatullo (14-13-3).

Carafa retains the Italian title as he outscores Acatullo. This fight never really caught alight. Acatullo boxed well on the back foot over the first two rounds. Carafa upped the pressure and his work rate over the next four rounds to build a lead but then faded and Acatullo picked up a couple of rounds to keep the fight close. Cafaro then attack hard forcing Acatullo on to the defensive and swept the closing rounds to win ion scores of 97-93, 96-94 and 92-91. Cafaro, the former national super feather title holder was defending the lightweight crown for the first time. Acatullo was having his fourth shot at winning an Italian title.

London, England: Bantam: Charley Edwards (19-1,1ND) W PTS 10 Georges Ory (17-4-1). Super Welter: Kingsley Egbunike (9-3-1) W PTS 10 Jordan Dujon (9-4). Super Middle: Oliver Zaren (11-0) W PTS 8 John Harding (11-3-2).

Edwards vs. Ory

Edwards wins the vacant WBC International title with wide unanimous decision over Ory. The French southpaw is a former IBO champion but he was not in the same class as Edwards. Ory kept driving forward but Edwards was countering him on the way in with jabs and body punches and then slipping away from Ory’s punches and landing quick bursts of shots of his own. Ory lacked the speed or the punch to threaten Edwards and never had a toe-hold in the fight. The former WBC flyweight champion Edwards boxed beautifully and looked to be coming back to his best, He won 98-92 on all three cards and may be looking to go for the European title held by Thomas Essomba but Paul Butler is the mandatory challenger. Ory was fighting outside of France for the first time.

Egbunike vs. Dujon

Londoner Egbunike wins the vacant BBB of C Southern Area title with very close decision over Dujon. Egbunike made the better start building an early lead over the first three rounds all of which were close. Dujon upped his work rate and did well over the middle rounds only for him to drop away as Egbunike took over again. Dujon worked hard in the last and edged it but it was not enough. The referee scored it 96-94 for Egbunike.

Zaren vs. Harding

Young Dane hope Zaren floors and outpoints Harding. The 24-year-old Zaren dropped Harding heavily with a straight right in the first and won every round. His pace dropped over the middle rounds but Harding could not take advantage of that and Zaren finished strongly over the seventh and eighth to win 80-71 on the referee’s card. Hardin had improved his record with a short run going 3-0-1in his last 4 fights.

Springfield, MO, USA: Middle: Deshawn Prather (18-1) W DISQ 2Antonio Woods (12-0).

Prather beats woods on a second round disqualification. Woods was taking the fight to Prather in the first but was caught with a right counter that made him sag at the knees. The referee stepped between them at the start of the second to push them apart but with the referee still between them Woods threw a jab on the break landing on Prather’s right eye. Prather tuned away pawing at his eye and with his vision affected was unable to continue and Wood’s was disqualified for hitting on the break. Prather wins the vacant UBO Continental title with his seventeenth win in a row. Woods had won 5 of his last 6 fights inside the distance.

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APRIL 13

Galvez, Argentina: Fly: Tobias Reyes (15-0-1) W KO 4 Sixto Perez (5-2-2). Super Feather: Edith Matthysse (18-16-1)W PTS 10 Victoria Bustos (25-8-1).

Reyes vs. Perez

Local hero “Pitbull” Reyes retains South American and WBO Latino belts with a fourth round kayo of Perez. After taking charge of the action over the first two rounds Reyes had Perez hurt at the end of the third. He finished the job in the fourth flooring Perez with a left hook to the body and Perez was unable to beat the count. That makes it 14 wins by KO/TKO for Reyes. The draw on his record was a creditable performance against WBO flyweight title challenger Cristian Gonzalez in Mexico Perez was coming off an impressive kayo of unbeaten Leandro Blanc in December.

Matthysse vs. Bustos

This clash of former world title holders was expected to be close but Matthysse walked away with the decision. Her strength and aggression was just too much for Bustos to match. Matthysse forced a standing count in the third and although a late stoppage looked possible Matthysse took no chances and ended a clear winner with all three judges scoring it 99-90 for the sister of Lucas and Walter Matthysse. A former two-time world title holder Matthysse was rebounding from a five-bout losing streak and wins the national belt. Bustos, also a two-time world champion, was defending the national title for the second time.

Bletigheim-Bissingen, Germany: Heavy: Umut Camkiran (21-0) W PTS 10 Tomas Salek (21-5). Welter: Kastriot Sopa (8-0) W Zsolt Osadan (26-2-1().

Camkiran vs. Salek

Camkiran outpoints Czech champion Salek. The “Anatolian Lion” was almost four inches smaller but 26lbs heavier and Salek was not looking to stand and trade punches. The Czech showed good movement but was under continuous pressure. Camkiran was particularly effective with uppercuts inside and shook Salek a couple of times but the Czech picked up enough points to keep competitive. Camkiran won on scores of 97-95, 97-94 and 97-93. Only the second time he has gone the distance for a win. He blamed his failure on a rip in his pants meaning he had to keep pulling them up instead of chasing down Salek. The Czech had been stopped in 81 seconds by Nathan Gorman in 2022.

Sopa vs. Osadan

Former elite level amateur Sopa relaunched his career with a unanimous decision over Slovak Osadan on scores of 80-72, 79-73 and 78-74. Sopa had been about to give boxing up at the end of last year but a new promoter has him fired up again.

Aschersleben, Germany: Super Welter: Julian Vogel (14-0-1) W PTS 10 Jan Helin (13-4-1). Cruiser: Roman Fress (20-1) W PTS 6 Enes Yardimci (8-1). Light Heavy: Tom Dzemski (20-2) W Yevgeni Makhtelenko (11-16).

Vogel vs. Helin

Vogel wins the vacant WBC Youth title with close unanimous decision over Belgian Helin. Vogel started well edging the first two rounds by outworking Helin. There was a change in the third as Vogel seemed to struggle and Helin dominated the action. Vogel almost looked ready to duck out of the fight but he recovered and Helin’s work rate dropped. Helin had a strong ninth to make it tight but Vogel clearly took the tenth to win on scores of 96-94 twice and 97-93. Deserved win for 21-year-old home town fighter Vogel. Belgian champion Helin,23, would probably have taken this one if he had been fighting at home.

Fress vs. Yardimci

Kazakh-born German Fress just keeps busy with a six round job against Yardimici. No real problems as he wins on scores of 60-53, 60-54 and 59-56. Fifth win for Fress since an upset defeat against Armend Xhoxhaj in May 2022. That loss sent him tumbling down the ratings but he is back at No 8 with the WBO and 12 (10) with the IBF. German Yardimici just a 6/8 round prelim fighter but lasted the full six rounds so earned his pay.

Dzemski vs. Makhtelenko

Dzemski is also on a course of rebuilding and was given an easy task against Czech Makhtelenko with scores of 60-54 twice and 59-55. Dzemski was coming off a majority decision loss against Daniel Blenda Dos Santos in a fight for the vacant EU title in April last year. Makhtelenko is 1-8 in his last 9 bouts.

Accra, Ghana: Light Heavy: Bastie Samir (20-1-2) TEC DRAW 2 Idowu Rasheed (5-1-2).

This fight for the vacant OBU African title is declared a technical draw on a farcical night in Accra. After some early probing Rasheed began to connect with rights to the head and lefts to the body. Samir looked slow they swapped some meaty shots a right uppercut shook Samir and as he staggered back Rasheed landed a couple more head punches the had Samir reeling and the referee came in and warned Rasheed for a punch to the back of the head. When the action restarted Rasheed shook Samir with an uppercut and the referee stepped in and deducted a point from Rasheed for no apparent reason. In the second round two rights to the side of head and an uppercut sent Samir down heavily but he managed to beat a very slow count. Rasheed then connected with rights to side of the head and uppercuts that put Samir down on his back. The referee waived to indicate he did not intend to treat it as a knockdown and started trying to help Samir to his feet. Rasheed was celebrating his win and lots of people climbed in the ring and stood in a circle around the still prone Samir. None of them seemed to be a doctor and instead of taking the stool to Samir he was helped across the ring to his corner. Meanwhile no result had been announced and Rasheed sat in his corner with his gloves on for 6 or 7 minutes not sure if the fight was over. Chaos reigned and it was ten minutes before it was announced that the result was a technical draw as Samir had been knocked out by an illegal punch. The fight was for the vacant Universal Boxing Organisation (OBU) African title. The Organisation side it could not change the result and said that “The Ghana Boxing Authority has reportedly made the right decision in regards to the official result, and (the UBO) will report this accordingly to all record-keepers and other relevant parties. Due to the fact that the title remained vacant, the UBO is in a position, and has power, to extraordinarily decide on its ownership and OFFICIAL UBO RULING: Idowu Rasheed is recognized as the Universal Boxing Organization™ (UBO) Africa Light Heavyweight champion!

You could not make this stuff up!

Milan, Italy: Middle: Dario Morello (23-1) W PTS 10 Luca Chiancone (9-1-2). Cruiser: Jonathan Kogasso (11-0) W KO 1 Goran Babic (8-2-2) . Super Feather: Alessio Lorusso (25-5-2) W PTS 8 Kevin Trana (15-12-3).

Morello vs. Chiancone

Morello retains the WBC Mediterranean belt with a very close unanimous decision over the dangerous Chaincone. This was a contest between the speed and skills of Morello and the hard-pinching Chaincone. Morello worked hard to keep out the aggressive challenger and his added experience and skill were just enough to see him hold ion tohis title. Scores 96-94 for Morello on each of the three cards. Morello’s lone loss came back in 2019 when he was floored and outpointed by Luther Clay. He has scored eight wins ion the bounce since moving up to middleweight but is No 24 with the EBU so has some work to do. Italian champion Chiancone will improve with more experience.

Kogasso vs. Babic

Swede Babic losses his Mediterranean title as he is crushed inside a round by Kogasso. The Congolese fighter had shown he had power with four first round victories in his ten fights. Babic made an aggressive start forcing Kogasso to the ropes. A combination of hooks then sent Babic to the canvas. Babic got up and again tried to take the fight to Kogasso but a series of hooks had him holding on desperately early and a right hook put him down. He made it to his feet but another blast of hooks floored him and the referee promptly waived the fight over. Eighth win by KO/TKO for the 6’3” Congolese “Mamba” . Babic was making the first defence of the title.

Lorusso vs. Trana

Lorusso takes the unanimous decision over Nicaraguan Trana. Lorusso had Trana down in the fourth and the Nica lost a point in the fourth for holding but as usual went the distance -and lost. The multi-tattooed Italian southpaw moved up to super bantam after losing his European bantam title to Thomas Essomba and this is his fourth victory since that upset. Trana is 0-11-1in his last dozen bouts.

Osaka, Japan: Light Fly: Thanongsak Simsri (34-1) W PTS 12 Miel Fajardo (11-3-2). Super Bantam: Toshiki Shimomachi (18-1-3) W TKO 5 Tulio Dekanarudo (7-2-2).

Simsri vs. Fajardo

Thai youngster Simsri springs a surprise as he outpoints Filipino Fajardo to win the OPBF belt. Simsri’s impressive record was heavily padded and it was felt that Fajardo had faced tougher opposition and would wear down and stop Simsri in the late rounds. Simsri showed excellent skills using accurate jabbing and clever movement to slip away from Fajardo’s attacks. After eight rounds Simsri was a winning eight points ahead on two cards and four on the third leaving Fajardo needing a stoppage to win. The champion pressed hard putting in a strong finish but could not bridge the gap and Simsri won on scores of 117-110, 116-111 and 115-112. Incredibly 21 of the fighters Simsri had beaten had never won a fight which was the reason Fajardo, who was 10-0-1 in his last 11 fights was favoured.

Shimomachi vs. Dekanarudo

Southpaw Shimomachi predictably retained the Japanese title in his second defence with a stoppage of inexperienced Dekanarudo. Shimomachi used his longer reach and five inch height advantage to outbox Dekanarudo over the first four rounds. Dekanarudo just could not find a way past the reach of Shimomachi and was eating counters. In the fifth a right uppercut sent Dekanarudo down on his back. He beat the count but after two more knockdown as the referee stopped the fight. Shimomachi extends his unbeaten run to 19 fights.

Malmo, Sweden: Light Heavy: Oscar Ahlin (26-2) W PTS 10 Michal Ryba (20-11-1).

Ahlin dodges the bullet as he just squeezes past Czech Ryba on a split decision. Ahlin needed a sixth round knockdown to separate them on the scoring and Ryba looked worth at least a draw. The scores were 97-93 and 96-94 for Ahlin and 96-94 for Ryba. Now 13 wins in a row for Ahlin since losing to Patrick Mendy in 2016 but his opposition has been non-threatening and at 34 he seems unwilling to take any chances and is down at No 13 with the EBU. This fight wins him the WBF Inter-Continental belt. Ryba had won his last eight fights but if anything, his opposition was of an even lower quality than Ahlin’s.

Rosemont. IL, USA: Heavy: Deontae Pettigrew (13-0) W KO 3 Onoriode Ehwarieme (20-4). Heavy: Richard Lartey (16-6) W TKO 3 Andrzej Wawrzyk (34-4).

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Pettigrew vs. Ehwarieme

Pettigrew stops Ehwarieme three rounds. Pettigrew had the better of the exchanges before supplying the finish. As Ehwarieme stumbled forward Pettigrew met him with a left hook that sent the Nigerian down heavily. He tried to rise but tumbled over again and the referee just waived the fight over. This was supposed to be the first ten round test for Pettigrew but instead it tuned out to be his ninth win by KO/TKO. All Ehwarieme’s losses have come early.

Lartey vs. Wawrzyk

Surely the end of the road for Polish heavyweight Wawrzyk. Looking painfully slow he tried to box against Ghanaian Lartey but every time Lartey landed a right Wawrzyk was shaken. A big right in the third sent Wawrzyk staggering into the ropes and he turned away. He faced the referee as the referee counted and was unsteady when the referee wanted him to take some steps forward and the referee stopped then fight. There were danger signs when Wawrzyk was knocked out in two rounds by 3-4-2 novice Michal Boloz but he had managed to last then full ten rounds against Kubrat Pulev in December. Lartey had suffered five losses in a row when he tried to move up against such as Daniel Dubois, Nathan Gorman, Fabio Wardley and Sergey Kuzmin but had a good punch.

Fight of the week: (Significance): No biggies

Fight of the week: (Entertainment): Terry Le Couviour vs. Loic Tajan was not the main event but it was four savage rounds.

Fighter of the week: Super Bantam Ellie Scotney. Only nine fights but already owns two belts

Punch of the week: The first left hook to the body from Zelfa Barrett that sent Jordan Gill down in agony

Upset of the week: Nothing world shaking

Prospect watch: No new names this week