The Past Week in Action 29 April 2024

Miss any of this week’s action in the sport? Get caught up with “The Past Week in Action” by Eric Armit; with a review of all major cards in the boxing for the past week.

Highlights:

-In a big show in Fresno Jose Carlos Ramirez outpoints Rances Barthelemy, Vergil Ortiz finishes Thomas Dulorme in a round, Gabriela Alaniz wins the WBA/WBC and WBO flyweight tiles by outpointing Marlen Esparza after all three titles became vacant when Estrada failed to make the weight and Oscar Duarte stops Joseph Diaz,

-Nikita Tszyu retains the Australian welter title with a points victory over Danilo Creati but Jerome Pampellone is outpointed by Malik Zinad in an IBF light heavy eliminator

-Jessica Camara wins the WBA Gold lightweight title as she outpoints 21-0-1 Hyun Mi Choi in South Korea

-Peter McGrail gets back on track with a points victory over Marc Leach and Beatriz Ferreira  beats Yanina Lescano on a technical decision to win the vacant IBF super bantam belt.

-Canadian Sara Haghighat-Joo wins the WBA light flyweight title with a points victory over Mari Bautista  in her fifth fight setting a new Canadian record

– Mexican Yamileth Mercado retains the WBC super-bantam belt as she decisions Linda Lecca

-Amy Andrews wins the vacant Commonwealth featherweight tile in her seventh fight

 

World Title/Major Shows

 

APRIL 27

 

Fresno, CA, USA: Welter: Jose Carlos Ramirez (29-1) W PTS 10 Rances Barthelemy (30-3-1,1ND). Middle: Vergil Ortiz (21-0) W KO 1 Thomas Dulorme (26-7-1). Oscar Duarte (27-2-1) W TKO 9 Joseph Diaz (33-6-1). Fly: Gabriela Alaniz (15-1) W PTS 10 Marlen Esparza (14-2). Welter: Raul Curiel (15-0) W TKO 1 Jorge Marron (20-5-2). Light: Bryan Lua (9-0) W TKO 1 Ron Solis (4-5-1,1ND).

Ramirez vs. Barthelemy

Ramirez comes through a couple of shaky moments to outpoint Barthelemy. Ramirez made a good start taking the fight to Barthelemy over the first two rounds forcing the Cuban to the ropes and landing some hurtful body punches. Barthelemy was covering up and looking for openings to counter. Ramirez continued to pile on the pressure in the third forcing Barthelemy back with a strong jab and banging home left hooks. Suddenly a straight left from Barthelemy sent Ramirez back shaken. Barthelemy leapt forward throwing a series of hooks as Ramirez stumbled and Barthelemy continued tom throw punches even after Ramirez was kneeling on the canvas, The referee came in a shoved Barthelemy away to stop him throwing more punches and then gave Barthelemy a telling off for those late with hooks and uppercuts and had  punches. That gave Ramirez a bit of recovery time. Ramirez came forward again driving Barthelemy to the ropes but a series of counter hooks from Barthelemy had Ramirez reeling and he had to hold on and was rocked again when he tried to fire back. Ramirez looked to be in the groove again as he had Barthelemy backing to the ropes and working him over with hooks. Barthelemy was setting a trap and exploded with a left that made Ramirez dip at the knees. Barthelemy then bombarded Ramirez with punches. Ramirez began to fire back with hooks and uppercuts with Barthelemy forced to defend. Ramirez dominated from there his relentless attacks keeping Barthelemy on the back foot and Ramirez also made some minor changes to guard against the counters from Barthelemy. The relentless pressure and body punch from Ramirez were having an effect and Barthelemy ran out of ideas. He was still dangerous with an occasional counter but his punch output dropped and Ramirez pressed hard looking to end the fight early but Barthelemy survived a stormy eleventh and stayed there even rallying briefly in the last. Ramirez won on scores of 119-109 twice and 118-110. Thirteen months of inactivity has seen Ramirez tumbling down the ratings to No 4 with the WBO and & with the WBC but out of the top ten of the IBF and WBA. Barthelemy was stopped in six rounds by Gary Antuane Russell in his only fight in 2022 and won a majority decision over Omar Juarez in May in his only fight in 2023 so he has lots of work to do if he is to become a factor at super light.

Ortiz vs. Dulorme

Ortiz cuts down Dulorme with a body punch in the opening round. Both did some probing and Dulorme scored with a smart left hook. Ortiz was walking Dulorme down behind his jab. As the exchanged punches Ortiz landed a couple of left hooks and then dug a third one into Dulorme’s ribs that saw Dulorme take a step back and then collapse in pain. He rolled around the canvas and made it to his hands and knees but no further and was counted out. Ortiz has won all of his 21 fights by KO/TKO with useful names such as Maurice Hooker, Egidijus Kavaliauskas and Michael McKinson amongst the fallen. Ortiz is No 1 with the WBA so mandatory challenger to Israil Madrimov and there is talk of a fight with Tim Tszyu who is No 1 with the WBC and WBO. Dulorme had lost 4 of his last fights including being knocked out in 109 seconds by Jaron Ennis in 2021.
Duarte vs. Diaz

The heavy-handed Duarte wears down and stops Diaz. As expected Duarte came driving forward in the first firing hooks and uppercuts targeting Diaz’s body. Boxing mostly on the back foot southpaw Diaz had plenty of success with counters landing enough to keep things reasonably even edging the first and third rounds with Duarte taking the second and fourth. Duarte stepped up his attacks in the fifth hunting Diaz and scoring with sweeping punches from both hands. A series of straight rights had Diaz badly shaken on a couple of occasions. Duarte continued to march forward swinging punches and Diaz was under more and more pressure constantly fighting with his back against the ropes as Duarte kept banging to the body and landing overhand rights. Diaz stood and traded punch for punch in the eighth trying to turn the fight around but by the end of the round he was shipping some heavy punishment. A punch from Duarte opened a cut over Diaz’s left eye in the ninth and when Duarte trapped Diaz against the ropes and unloaded a barrage of punches the referee came in to halt the fight just as the towel came in from Diaz’s corner.  Diaz protested but it was a good stoppage. Duarte had strung together a run of eleven inside the distance finishes before being knocked out by Ryan Garcia inn eight rounds in December so a nice bounce back win. Former IBF super feather champion Diaz had lost 4 of his last 5 fights but most of the opposition had been very tough including Devin Haney and William Zepeda.

Alaniz vs. Esparza

A bad night all round for Esparza as she losses her titles on the scales and then losses the decision. It was a case of which style you preferred. Argentinian Alaniz attacked hard from the first bell storming into Esparza throwing punches. Esparza had better skills and boxed on the back foot picking up points with accurate but less plentiful punches. Alaniz maintained her high work rate right through the fight with Esparza fading a bit over the closing rounds which gave the fight to Alaniz. She won on scores of 98-92, 97-93 and 96-94. Esparza was already WBA and WBC champion when she took a majority decision over Alaniz in July last year to add Alaniz’s WBO title to her collection. This time Texan Esparza forfeited all three belts when she came in 2lbs over the division limit.

Curiel vs. Marron

Curiel makes quick work of Marron. Curiel came out throwing hooks and putting Marron on the retreat. He caught Marron with a sweeping left hook and Marron went down on his hands and knees. He beat the count but a fierce attack topped off with another left hook saw Marron on his hands and knees again and he was counted out. Curiel was defending the NABF title for an impressive tenth time and makes it ten inside the distance wins in a row. Marron now has just one win in his last six fights.

Lua vs. Solis

Lua finishes Solis in round one. Solis was floored by a right to the head but was up immediately. After the count he was pinned against the ropes and a series of head punches saw him slump to the floor with the count being dispensed with. In the amateurs Lua won and lost inn fights with Raul Garcia and beat Duke Ragan and Nikita Abably but lost to Devin Haney. Fourth consecutive defeat for Solis.

 

APRIL 24

 

Sydney: Super Welter: Nikita Tszyu (9-0) W PTS 10 Danilo Creati (8-2-1). Light Heavy: Malik Zinad (22-0) W PTS 12 Jerome Pampellone (18-1). Super Fly: Clara Lescurat (11-0) W PTS 10 Linn Sandstrom (8-3-2). Middle: Cesar Tapia (17-0) W PTS 10 Keiber Gonzalez (20-0). Super Welter: Ben Hussain (11-2) W TKO 10 Masion Smith (9-2-1). Super Middle: Andrei Mikhailovich ( 13) W TKO 1 Les Sherrington (39-18).

Tszyu vs. Creati

Tszyu retains the Australian title and goes ten rounds for the first time as he survives a wobble in the sixth to take the decision. Southpaw Tszyu scored well in the first and was credited with a knockdown in the second when he connected with a left which knocked Creati off balance with Creati ‘s glove briefly touched the canvas. Tszyu piled on the punches over the next three rounds. In the sixth a right from Creati had Tszyu wobbling badly and holding on for the rest of the round. Tszyu was back in control over the remainder of the fight. He put in a big effort in the ninth but Creati survived the punishment and despite being exhausted and under fire in the tenth made it to the final bell. Scores 100-88, 100-89 and 99-90. Good experience of going ten rounds for Tszyu but he had serious problems in making the weight. He was reportedly 5kg over before shedding 3kg Monday and was late for the weigh-in on Tuesday as he struggled to shed the other 2kg. He only left for the weigh-in after he finally hit the weight on scales at home.  He blamed the problem on a faulty steam room at his home. Gutsy performance from Italian-born Creati whose only previous defeat came on points against WBA No 8 Michael Zerafa.

Zinad vs. Pampellone

Maltese-based Libyan Zinad causes a mild upset as he outpoints New Zealand-based Britisher Pampellone. Zinad boxed a composed fight using a strong jab and straight rights to dominate much of the back and forth action.  Both fighters had good spells  but with Zinad rocking Pampellone a couple of times with those rights and despite the majority decision he looked a clear winner. Scores 117-111 twice for Zinad and 114-114. This was an IBF eliminator to fill the vacant No 2 spot with Pampellone No 4 and Zinad No 14. It was being said the winner would face the winner of Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol. However, Michael Eifert will remain No 1 for the IBF and with Joshua Buatsi No 1  with the WBA, WBC and WBO it is unlikely Zinad will get an early shot.

Lescurat vs. Sandstrom

Argentinian Lescurat retained her WBA belt with a wide unanimous decision over Sandstrom. The champion was busier outworking Sandstrom using a focused body attack and plenty of combination punching not letting Sandstrom get into the fight in a meaningful way. Lescurat, who was making the fourth defence of the title, won on scores of 100-90, 99-91 and 97-93. Swedish-born Australian Sandstrom has collected a few minor titles whilst fighting in six different countries but the big one eluded her this time.

Tapia vs. Gonzalez

Tapia maintained his 100% record with a points win against over-hyped Venezuelan Gonzalez. Tapia was gifted a disputed knockdown in the second round but controlled the action beating the Venezuelan on scores of 98-92 twice and 97-93 to win the vacant WBO Latino title. Tapia is going to have to look for a better class of opponent if he is to break into the ratings. Gonzalez was 20-0 but in the normal way of things with Venezuelan fighters 10 of his victims had never had a fight previously or never won a fight and the rest of his victims were only marginally better.

Hussain vs. Smith

Hussain holds on to the WBA Oceania belt with late stoppage of southpaw Smith. Hussain made a slow start and fell further behind when he lost a point in the fourth for a low punch. After that he battled his way into the lead and was up on two cards going into the tenth. A left hook sent an exhausted Smith into the ropes and down. He made it to his feet but Hussainn bombarded him with punches and with Smith reeling the referee stopped the fight. Fifth win in a row for Hussain who was defending the Oceanian title for the first time. Former undefeated Australian super middle weight champion Smith had been stopped in a round by Nikita Tszyu in May 2022 but had recovered to go 4-0-1 including picking up the Australian title.

Mikhailovich vs. Sherrington

A poor match sees New Zealander Mikhailovich stop a sorely used Sherrington. A body shot put Sherrington down with a body punch and the fight was stopped. All over in 84 seconds. Mikhailovich is No 4 super middle with the IBF with positions No 1 and 2 vacant but he can’t climb higher unless he beats a rated boxer. Sherrington, 41, had his best days as a super middle but was 180lbs for this fight and suffered loss No 17 by KO/TKO.

 

Plant City, FL, USA: Super Welter: Damian Sosa (25-2) W PTS 10 Marques Valle (10-1). Super Bantam: Ramon Cardenas ( 25-1) W TKO 9 Jesus Ramirez (22-3-3). Feather: Ronny Rios (34-4) W KO 5 Nicolas Polanco (21-6-1,1ND).

Sosa vs. Valle

Sosa consigns Valle’s unbeaten record to the dustbin with a well-deserved split decision. The 6’1” Valle started well using his long reach to outscore Sosa over the first two rounds. Sosa had a better third as he hustled Valle to the ropes to work inside. Valle scored with a fierce left hook in the fourth but Sosa recovered and Valle found himself fighting with his back against the ropes over much of the action in the middle rounds. He lost his mouthguard three or four times but was never in any real trouble and connected with sharp counters to keep it a close fight. They both looked to stand and exchanging at close quarters over the ninth and tenth with the busier Sosa just having the edge. Valle had success with some choice body shots but it was not enough to get him the decision. Sosa won on scores of 97-93 and 96-94 with the third judge going 98-92 for Valle. Third victory for Sosa since losing disappointingly on  points against experienced Ivan Alvarez in April last year.

Cardenas vs. Ramirez

Cardenas scores late kayo of Ramirez. Cardenas was the favourite but Ramirez showed good skills and tactical awareness. The opening two rounds were close but from the third clever countering from Ramirez off set the jabbing and pressure from Cardenas. Ramirez looked to have built a lead after seven rounds but Cardenas started to get through in the eighth. His corner was warning Cardenas he was behind but he took the result out of the hands of the judges in the ninth with a vicious left hook to the body that sent Ramirez down and he was unable to beat the count. Fourteenth win by KO/TKO for Texan Cardenas the WBA No 4. Ramirez had been stopped in one round by Nick Ball in November 2022 when he came in as a late substitute

Rios vs. Polanco

Rios returns to action for the first time since a last round stoppage against Murodjon Akhmadaliev in a challenge for the IBF and WBA super bantam titles back in June 2022. His opponent Polanco was looking to box but Rios had the Dominican under pressure from the first. Rios slowly broke Polanco down with hooks to the body from both hands and hurtful uppercuts. Polanco managed to get through with some hard rights but lacked the power to keep Rios out. Two uppercuts and a rib-bending left hook sent Polanco down in the fifth and he was never going to beat the count. Rios lost on points to Rey Vargas in a challenge for the WBC super-bantam belt in 2017 when Rios was 28-1 but a third title shot may be out of his reach. Polanco is now 1-5,1ND against some tough opposition.

 

APRIL 26

 

Ghent, Belgium: Shalova Guchmazovi (7-6-2) W TKO 2 Timur Nikarkhoev (27-7).

Guchmazovi was brought in to add a bit of padding to the record of Nikarkhoev but read the wrong script as he came off the floor in the first to stop Nikarkhoev in the second. Six of Guchmazovi’s wins have come by KO/TKO. Nikarkhoev was supposed to be rebuilding after inside the distance defeats by Robin Krasniqi and Ezequiel Maderna in 2023.

 

Auckland, New Zealand: Super Feather: Mea Motu (19-0) W TKO 2 Noppaket Srisawas (8-2).

IBO super bantam champion Motu stops Thai novice Srisawas in two rounds. Motu overwhelmed Srisawas with a variety of hooks and uppercuts. After a series of unanswered punches in the second the referee stopped the mismatch. Motu will now be looking to get into some big fights in Australia or Europe. Srisawas had won her last six fights but her victim had only one win between them.

 

Huyton, England: Super Welter: Naomi Mannes (7-2-1) W PTS 8 Hannah Rankin (13-8). 7

Mannes wins a split decision over Rankin. Over the first two rounds Mannes showed some good skills working on the back foot blunting the attacks of the aggressive Rankin. The third, fourth and fifth were Rankin’s rounds a she pressure began to pay off and Mannes was in deep trouble at the end of the fifth. Despite that Mannes rebounded to even the score as she outboxed Rankin in the sixth and seventh. The last could have been scored for either fighter but Mannesv had a slight edge and took the verdict on scores of 79-74 and 77-75 to 77-76 for Rankin. German Mannes was in need of a win after going 0-2-1 in her previous three bouts. Huge disappointment for Scot Rankin a former IBO and WBA champion who had lost to Ema Kozin for the WBC and WBO belts in November.

Orlando, FL, USA: Super Welter: Yoenis Tellez (8-0) W PTS 10 Joseph Jackson (19-1). Heavy: Dainier Pero (7-0) W TKO 1 Jose Tamez (4-4).

Tellez vs. Jackson

This looked a fairly even match on paper but prospect Tellez floored Jackson early and won every round. After dominating the first Tellez sent Jackson down with a beautiful left hook in the second. Jackson was up and made it to the bell but quickly went into survival mode as Tellez scored with hurtful body shots. Jackson had Tellez down in the fourth from the second of two low punches so no count but no points deduction. Jackson was in trouble again from a body punch in the ninth but lasted to the final bell. Tellez, 23, a former Cuban Youth champion won 100-89 on the three cards. Jackson’s record built on opposition that was modest at best.

Pero vs. Tamez

Former top level amateur Pero wipes out Tamez in two minutes. A couple of fierce body punches had Tamez in trouble and the referee stopped the fight. The 24-year-old Cuban was World Junior and World Youth champion and a gold medallist at the Pan American Games beating Richard Torrez. He went to the Tokyo Olympics as favourite for a gold there but lost a split decision to Torrez in the quarter finals. He is the younger brother of unbeaten Lenier and at 6’5” he is the right height for heavyweights today so could be a real threat. Mexican Tamez in way over his head

 

Biloxi, MS, USA: Heavy: Jonathan Guidry (21-1-2) W RTD 2 Bobby O’Bannon (10-8).Feather: Victor Hernandez (10-0) W PTS 8 Kenneth Taylor (14-3-2).

Guidry vs. O’Bannon

Guidry demolishes O’Bannon in two rounds.  Guidry rocked O’Bannon a couple of times in the first then floored him at the end of the second. O’Bannon made it to the bell but did not come out for the third round. Louisiana’s Guidry lost a split decision to Trevor Bryan for the secondary WBA title in January 2022 and this is his fourth win in the two years since then. O’Bannon, 38, was inactive for almost eleven year before returning in February when he lost on a second round kayo.

Hernandez vs. Taylor

Louisiana’s Hernandez maintains his 100% record but has to fight hard to do so. He took the fight to Taylor in every round but Taylor boxed well on the back foot continually catching the oncoming Hernandez with sharp left hooks. Hernandez did his best work inside and it was close all the way with Hernandez getting the majority decision on scores of 78-74 and 77-75 with the third card reading 76-76. Taylor had lost only one of his last thirteen fights and this was a good learning fight for Hernandez.

 

Mexico City, Mexico: Mariana Juarez (56-13-4) W TKO 9 Matsidisho Mokebisi (18-12-2)

Mexico’s “Barbie” Juarez just goes on and on. Now 44 she rebounds from a run of three straight losses and stops South African Mokebisi in the ninth round to win the vacant WBC Silver belt. Surely a 26-year must be coming to an end and “Barbie” has said this will be her last year as a boxer! First loss by KO/TKO for former South African super bantam champion Mokebisi.

 

APRIL 27

 

 

Toronto, Canada: Light Fly: Sara Haghighat-Joo (4-0) W PTS 10 Mari Bautista (23-12-2). Welter: Josh Wagner (18-0) W PTS 10 Geronimo Vazquez (17-2). Middle: Kemahl Russell (17-1) W TKO 3 Luka Lozo (8-2-1). Welter: Bradley Wilcox (12-0) W TKO 5 Jorge Rodriguez (23-21-2)

Haghighat-Joo vs. Bautista

Joo sets a new record for Canadian boxers as she takes a unanimous decision over Mexican Bautista to win the WBA title in her fourth fight. Joo won on scores of 99-91, 98-92 and 96-94. The Vancouver-born Joo had a great deal of amateur experience to help her having had 133 fights  having competed at the Commonwealth Games and World Championships and won the Canadian and Irish titles . Former IBF champion Bautista was defending the WBA belt for the third time and had lost only one of her last eighteen fights.

amateur

Wagner vs. Vazquez

Wagner outboxes Argentinian southpaw Vazquez. Wagner was too quick, too mobile and too busy for Vazquez. He worked well behind his jab and even outscored Vazquez when fighting inside. Vazquez showed nothing. He had lost his only other ten round fight  and lacked the power and skill to threaten Wagner who won every round. No scores given. Wagner wins the vacant IBF International title.

Russell vs. Lozo

Jamaican Russell makes it seven consecutive inside the distance victories with third round victory over Croatian Loza. Russell’s only loss came on a fifth round stoppage against Sergiy Derevyanchenko in 2017. Lozao was unbeaten in his last 8 contests.

Wilcox vs. Rodriguez

Wilcox continues unbeaten as he stops Argentinian Rodriguez in five rounds. Wilcox ended it with a big right for his seventh win by KO/TKO. Rodriguez, 42, is 1-9-1 in his last 11 fights.

 

Marseilles, France: Super Feather: Samir Ziani (37-3-1) W PTS 10 Jordan Rodriguez (9-1).

Southpaw Ziani retains the WBC International Silver title as he scores unanimous decision over previously unbeaten Rodriguez. After a slow first round the fight came alive in the second. Ziani was driving forward pitching hooks from both hands with Rodriguez throwing less but being more precise and landing some good uppercuts. Over the second half of the fight Rodriguez developed a swelling on his left cheekbone and although never in trouble Ziani’s constant aggression had Rodriguez fading. Ziani lost a point for holding in then eighth but outscored Rodriguez in the ninth and tenth. Scores 99-90, 97-92 and 96-93. The former undefeated European champion has won his last 14 fights but had only one fight in 2020 and one in 2021 and was inactive in 2022. He would be a favourite if he could get a shot at European champion Juan Felix Gomez but needs to be more active if he wants an EBU rating. Rodriguez was an elite level amateur and at 27 he has time to absorb some lessons from this loss and come back stronger.

 

Nuremburg, Germany: Cruiser: Labinot Xhoxhaj (18-0-1) W TKO 3 Semir Dautovic (6-3-2). Light Heavy: Ardian Krasniqi (9-0) W KO 2 Andreas Masold (11-12). Cruiser: Huseyin Cinkara(22-0) W TKO 2 Armend Xhoxhaj (18-4).

Xhoxhaj vs. Dautovic

Xhoxhaj halts Dautovic in three. Xhoxhaj took charge from the start. He had Dautovic bleeding from the nose in the first and on the floor in the second. When Dautovic went down twice in the third the referee stopped the fight. Kosovan Xhoxhaj racks up win No 15 by KO/TKO but was coming off a draw in May last year against 8-5 Milosav Savic. Bosnian Dautovic had won his last three fights against opponents with combined records of 3-55-1.

Krasniqi vs. Masold

Krasniqi massacres Masold in first defence of German Title. Masold was down twice from rights in the first and twice in round two being counted out on the second knockdown. It has taken only 15 rounds for Krasniqi to register 9 wins but only one of his opponents has had a positive record.

Cinkara vs. Krasniqi

Cinkara destroys Xhoxhaj in two rounds. Cinkara was already finding the target  with strong jabs and hefty rights in the first. Xhoxhaj decided to walk through Cinkara’s punches in the second and was nailed by a right uppercut which staggered him badly. Cinkara then cut loose with a succession of punches forcing Xhoxhaj back and down. Xhoxhaj made it to his feet and stumbled to a corner. He hardly seemed aware of the count but the referee left the fight continue. A series of punches had Xhoxhaj reeling and the referee stopped the fight just as Xhoxhaj’s trainer Juergen Brahmer threw in the towel. Cinkara, 39, has 18 wins by KO/TKO. He was No 23 in the EBU ratings but with Xhoxhaj No 10 he could finally break into the EBU top 15. Xhoxhaj had earned his rating with a win over then unbeaten Roman Fress but was knocked out in five rounds by Chris Billiam-Smith

 

Hamburg, Germany: light: Nenad Stancic (15-0) W PTS 10 Yeison Juarez (14-5). Welter: Sebastian Formella (26-3) W RTD 4 Serio Dos Santos Carvalho (13-3).

Stancic vs. Juarez

Stancic uses his big edge in reach to outbox a reluctant Juarez  winning every round with all three judges scoring it 100-89. As co-promoter Stancic was looking to entertain but Juarez just wanted to run and clinch. Stancic tried lowering his guard in the last round but Juarez was not tempted. Stancic was moving up to ten rounds for the first time and wins the German International title.

Formella vs. Carvalho

Former undefeated IBO welter title holder Formella gets his third inside the distance finish in a row as he beats Brazilian Carvalho. Hard, accurate punching from Formella had Carvalho under pressure but Carvalho absorbed the punishment and fought back tenaciously over the first three rounds. Formella upped the pace in the fourth and shook Carvalho badly with a right. Carvalho survived but retired at the end of the round. Formella suffered losses in London against Conor Benn in 2020 and Chris Kongo in 2022 and started his recover with two wins in 2023. First fight for Carvalho since being stopped inn five rounds by Michael McKinson in March last year.

 

Philadelphia, PA, USA: Heavy: Andrew Tabiti (21-2) W TKO 1 Junior Wright (20-6-1). Heavy: Joey Dawejko (28-11-4) W RTD 3 Walter Burns (7-2). Middle: Nikita Abably (13-0) W TKO 1 Jesus Cruz (6-4). Bantam: Dylan Price (18-0) W TKO 2 Ernesto Franzolini (19-15-2). Light Heavy: Jesse Hart (31-3) W TKO 5 Daniel Aduku (15-5-1).

Tabiti vbs. Wright

Impressive power show by Tabiti as he stops Wright in the first round. A succession of clubbing hooks to the head sent Wright to the canvas and the fight was stopped. A badly needed win for Tabiti after losing a wide unanimous nod to Justis Huni in October. Wright stuck around for 2:29 which is better than his last fight  against Arslanbek Makhmudov when he was finished after just 70 seconds.

Dawejko vs. Burns

Popular Dawejko rebounds from his loss to Malik Titus in January for the WBC USA Silver title with victory over Walter Burns who retired after the third round.

Abably vs. Cruz

Unbeaten prospect “White Chocolate” Abably, 25, returned to action after almost two years out but showed no rust as he halted Mexican Cruz at the end of the first round. Fourth inside the distanced defeat in a row for Cruz.

Price vs. Franzolini

Another quick finish as Price rolls over Franzolini in the second round for his twelfth KO/TKO victory. Franzolini had height and a longer reach going for him but no power and was easily brushed aside. The local hope was US Junior and twice US Youth champion as well as landing a bronze medal at the World Youth championships. Argentinian Franzolini is a former Argentinian super bantam champion.

Hart vs. Aduku

Hart gets five rounds of work but little else out of limited Ghanaian Aduku. Hart has scored five wins since losing to Joe Smith in January 2020 but has dropped out of the ratings so will have to face better opposition than Aduku if he wants back into the ratings. Three losses in a row all inside five rounds for Aduku.

 

Liepaja, Latvia: Middle: Bohdan Sobol (18-0) W TKO ? Juan Ruiz (27-11).

Ukrainian Sobol halts Venezuelan Ruiz as the referee comes in to save Ruiz who was pinned against the ropes and sliding to the floor. Eighth win by KO/TKO for 24-year-old Sobol who was defending the IBA Inter-Continental belt. At one time Ruiz was 21-0 but his form going into this fight was 0-6 1ND

 

Tijuana, Mexico: Super Bantam: Yamileth Mercado (23-3) W PTS 10 Linda Lecca (16-8-2, 4 ND). Welter: Ruben Aguilar (22-0-1) W KO 2 Mauricio Gutierrez (8-4,1ND ). Bantam: Carlos Lopez (19-0-4) DREW 8 Jorge Sanchez (9-5-4).

Mercado vs. Lecca

Mexican Mercado retains the WBC title with stress free points win over Peruvian Lecca. Mercado took the first round to study Lecca and then won every round. She put Lecca under pressure and Lecca quickly went onto defensive mode. Mercado had Lecca rocking badly in the sixth but with Lecca focusing only on survival Mercado had to settle for winning 100-90 on the judges cards. Second defence of the WBC title for Mercado. Former WBA super fly champion Lecca was 1-3 going into this fight.

Aguilar vs. Gutierrez

Aguilar, 23, from Ensenada, moves to 19 wins by KO/TKO with a second round kayo of Gutierrez. Aguilar had fought a draw with 16-2 Ricardo Salas in March last year.  All four of Gutierrez’s losses have come inside the distance.

Lopez vs. Sanchez

Carlos “El Mini ” Lopez remains unbeaten but looks lucky to escape with a draw against Sanchez. Scores 78-74 Lopez, 78-74 Sanchez and 76-76. Four draws each for these two so I guess a draw was predictable. Some confusion over scores as one source had it 77-75, 74-77 and 76-76.

 

Windhoek, Namibia: Super Bantam: Fillipus Nghitumbwa (14-2) W PTS 12 DeKang Wang (9-0). Light: Jeremia Nakathila (24-4) W PTS 10 Evans Husayihwevhu (17-3). Bantam: Nestor Thomas (9-0) W PTS 10 Paulus Shonena (3-4). Feather: Lineekela Nghifindaka (6-1) W PTS 10 Tomas Shifiona (6-1-3). Super Middle: Paulinus Ndjolonimu (18-0) W TKO 6 Clever Sithole (8-4-1).

Nghitumbwa vs. Wang

Nghitumbwa makes a successful defence of the WBO African title with a unanimous decision over China’s Wang. This was a terrific battle with Wang always under pressure but always bouncing back and surviving to make Nghitumbwa fight hard for victory. Scores 116-112 on all three cards. Nghitumbwa, the WBO Gold title holder, has lost only one of his last 15 fights and that was on points against John Riel Casimero. No idea what Wang, the WBO Asian champion, was doing fighting for the WBO African title.

Nakathila vs. Husayihwevhu

After two consecutive inside the distance defeats against unbeaten fighter in America Nakathila gets a home win. Zimbabwean Husayihwevhu showed durability and managed to stay the full ten rounds. Nakathila won 100-90 on two cards and 99-91 on the third. He hit the heights with his inside the distance win over Miguel Berchelt in 2022 but the kudos from that have slipped away. Husayihwevhu had won 9 of his last 10 fights.

Thomas vs. Shonena

Thomas win the vacant Namibian title with a unanimous verdict over Shonena. First time past six rounds for Thomas. Third loss in a row for Shonena

Nghifindaka vs. Shifiona

Nghifindaka wins the vacant Namibian featherweight title. He had Shifiona on the floor a couple of times but could not put him away and had to settle for a unanimous decision.

Ndjolonimu vs. Sithole

Ndjolonimu stops Sithole in six rounds. The lanky Ndjolonimu, the WBO No 6, was landing long swinging punches and had Sithole on the floor in the first round. Sithole also survived a scare in the second and was still in the fight in the fifth. A series of straight rights in the sixth drove Sithole to the ropes and he went down with the fight being stopped. Sixteen of Ndjolonimu’s wins have come by KO/TKO. Zimbabwean Sithole had won his last 5 fights by KO/TKO but was out of his league against Ndjolonimu.

 

Timisoara, Romania: Middle: Flavius Blea (23-1) W RTD 2 Darleys Perez (34-8-2). Heavy: Mihai Nistor (8-0). W TKO ? David Zegarra (35-12-1).

Blea vs. Perez

Blea gets an easy night against Colombian Perez. Blea had taken the first two rounds and was just getting into his stride when Perez retired at the end of the second round citing a hand injury. Blea’s single loss is a twelfth round stoppage against Valentyn Golovko back in 2017. He has won eleven contests since then and picked up the IBA title. Perez, 40, is a former WBA interim champion who drew and lost in fights against Anthony Criolla for the secondary WBA light title.

Nistor vs. Zegarra

Nistor stops Peruvian Zegarra. No round given as Nistor makes it 7 quick wins in 7 fights. As an amateur Nistor registered wins over Anthony Joshua (inside the distance), Frazer Clarke, Filip Hrgovic, Guido Vianello and Jose Larduet  but after turning professional in 2019 had only four fight in his first four years as a pro. Zegarra went 30-0 at the start of his career before losing to Lolenga Mock. Then he was a super middle now he is up at 190lbs and is 1-8-1 in his last 10 fights

 

Suwon, South Korea: Light: Jessica Camara (13-4) W PTS 10 Hyun Mi Choi (21-0-1).

She came she saw she conquered; Canadian “Cobra” Camara boxed her way to a points victory over previously unbeaten Choi to win the vacant WBA Gold title. Choi had the superior skills but sheer aggression from Camara eventually gave her the upper hand. Choi had boxed well early and built a lead but Camara began to dominate over the second half of the fight. Choi was exhausted bruised and battered by the eighth with a swelling under her right eye and it looked as though Camara might take it out of the judges hands but Choi used her fifteen years of experience to survive. It was a split decision with two judges giving it to Camara 98-92 and 96-94 and the dissenting judge having it 96-94 for Choi. The Canadian is a former IBO/WBA/WBO super light title holder. North Korean-born Choi is a former undefeated WBA super feather champion.

 

Basle, Switzerland: Heavy: Arnold Gjergjaj (38-3) W PTS 10 Dennis Lewandowski (18-5).

Gjergjaj takes unanimous verdict over German Lewandowski. As you might expect a fight between two boxers weighing a total of 538lbs between them this was a slow-paced scrap. The 6’5” Gjergjaj had height and reach over the heavier Lewandowski and chose to fight on the back foot. He kept prodding jabs straight rights through the defence of Lewandowski as Lewandowski plodded forward. Gjergjaj’s exaggerated changing of guard and direction blunted some of Lewandowski’s attacks and he was able to land plenty of counters as Lewandowski and built a good lead. Lewandowski just kept rumbling forward and was able to connect with bludgeoning short hooks inside. Gjergjaj tired badly over the closing rounds but Lewandowski did not do enough to cancel out the earlier success of Gjergjaj who won on scores of 97-93 twice and 96-92. Losses to David Haye, Sean Turner and Umut Camkiran defined Gjergjaj’s ceiling but he had won the vacant WBFederation title in September with a split decision over Bilal Laggoune. He was 234 ¼” lbs for the fight against the smaller Laggoune but 257lbs for this fight. No risk management had seen Lewandowski, who had dropped 30lbs since his previous fight, score five wins in a row.

 

Brentwood, England: Feather: Amy Andrews (7-0) W PTS 10 Linzi Buczynskyi (5-4). Super Light: Ben Crocker (13-0) W PTS 8 Stelios Papadopoulos (15-1-2).

Andrews vs. Buczynskyi

Amy Andrews wins the vacant Commonwealth title as she beats Buczynskyi on scores of 99-91 twice 98-92. Belfast-born Andrews was in her first ten round fight but won both the English and New Zealand titles as an amateur.

Crocker vs. Papadopoulos

Crocker wins this clash of undefeated fighters but a knockdown makes the difference. Crocker had Papadopoulos rocky in the second and dropped him in the third. Apart from those two significant rounds it was close and Papadopoulos only just came up short with the referee giving it to Crocker 76-75.

 

Liverpool, England: Super Bantam: Peter McGrail (9-1) W PTS 10  Marc Leach (18-4-1). Light: Beatriz Ferreira (5-0) W TEC DEC 6 Yanina del Carmen Lescano (14-4). Super Welter: Junaid Bostan (9-0) W TKO 8 Jack Martin (9-2).

McGrail vs. Leach

McGrail gets his career back on track with a scintillating exhibition of skill as he wins a unanimous decision over credible test Leach by 8, 8 and 10 points on the judge’s cards. A fired-up McGrail had the better of the exchanges in the first round and continued to pressurise Leach over the second and third. Leach kept his composure using his jab to try to get some space but McGrail was relentless. He was finding gaps for his right jabs and switching his attacks seamlessly to the body. Despite Leach’s best efforts the fight began to be one-sided as Leach had a growing swelling under his right eye. Leach was drifting out of the fight as McGrail became more and more dominant but at no point did it seem that a stoppage was on the cards. McGrail kept up the pressure through the closing rounds but a clash of heads in the tenth saw him cut over his right eye an injury he could do without as he was looking to stay active as he put the kayo loss against Ja ’Rico O’Quinn in December behind him. McGrail won on scores of 99-91 twice and 100-90 to collect the vacant WBA International title. Leach won the vacant British super bantam title with a points victory over unbeaten Chris Bourke but then suffered consecutive defeats against Liam Davies and Masood Abdulah so three losses in a row leaves him with a hill to climb.

Ferreira vs. Lescano

Brazilian Ferreira wins the vacant IBF title on a technical decision over Argentinian Lescano. The opening round was close but from the second the all-out aggression from Ferreira gave her the edge. She rocked Lescano with a right in the second and Lescano was unable to keep Ferreira out as she battled her way inside over the third and fourth. Lescano shipped some fierce punishment in the fifth and a cut was sliced open over her left eye as their heads collided. The doctor examined the injury at the beginning of the sixth and let the contest continue but with the cut worsening the referee stopped the fight and the outcome was decided on the cards with Ferreira winning on two scores of 59-55 and one of 58-56. Ferreira’s pro record may only be 5-0 but she won gold medals at the 2019 Pan American Games and World Championships and silver at the 2020 Olympics and 2022 World Championships and has her eyes on a gold in Paris in the summer. South American champion Lescano was floored and outpointed by Caroline Dubois in London last June .

Bostan vs. Martin

Southpaw Bostan shows good skills as he beats Martin in eight rounds. Bostan was comfortable on the back foot slotting jabs through the guard of the advancing Martin. He shook Martin with a series of shots in the first and continued to score heavily as the rounds progressed Martinn had occasional success with rights but was losing the rounds. Bostan was down in the sixth but from a low punch and he wrapped up the fight impressively inn the eighth. As Martin came forward yet again Bostan met him with a left uppercut that dropped him heavily. Martin managed to get up but the referee stopped the fight. Seventh KO/TKO victory for 22-year-old Bostan. First loss by KO/TKO for Martin

 

Miami, FL, USA: Super Bantam: Melving Lopez (31-2) W RTD 1 Gregorio Lebron (24-8). Feather: Mike Plania (31-4) W TKO 1 Martin Diaz (18-18-2).

Lopez vs. Lebron

Nicaraguan Lopez gets early win over Lebron. Lopez floored Lebron heavily with a left hook in the first putting Lebron down on his back. He managed to get to his feet and survive the rest of the round but then retired in his corner. A 29-1 record saw Lopez get a shot at the vacant IBF bantam title against Emmanuel Rodriguez in August last year but he did not win a round and was floored three times in the twelfth losing by fifteen points on each of the three cards. He is No 7 with the IBF as he starts to rebuild. Dominican Lebron, 41, has lost each of his last three fights inside three rounds.

Plania vs. Diaz

Filipino Plania ended this in quick time. Two left hooks sent Diaz slumping to the canvas and when his legs slid out from under him during the count the referee just waived his arm to signify the fight was over after just 20 seconds. Seventeen victories by KO/TKO for Plania. He went 26-1 at the start of his career but a points loss to Ra’eese Aleem and knockout defeats against Elijah Pierce and against Angelo Leo in January have seen him drop out of the ratings. Six defeats on the bounce for Diaz.

 

 

Fight of the week: (Significance): Impressive performance from Vergil Ortiz as he wipes out Thomas Delorme in a round to set up an exciting match with Tim Tszyu probably in August.

Fighter of the week: Vergil Ortiz for his destruction of Thomas Dulorme.

Punch of the week: Any one of the fight ending left hooks to the body from Ortiz , Ronny Rios and Yeonis Tellez

Upset of the week: Georgian Shalova Guchmazovi 6-6-2 looked no match for 27-6 Timur Nikarkhoev but came off the floor to stop Nikarkhoev inn the second round.

Prospect watch: Philadelphia Dylan Price 18-0 (12) is worth watching

 

Observations

Rosette: To the ladies. There were only six world title fights at the weekend and they were all female fights

Red Card: To the GBU: Some sanctioning bodies don’t deserve to exist. On 25 April in Bangkok a fight that was advertised as for the Global Boxing Union World cruiserweight title which saw Azeri Taryel Jafarov (27-7 with 25 wins by KO/TKO) fight Indonesian King Faud (3-1-1). The 6’2” Jafarov towered over the obese little Faud who had no idea of how to box. Jafarov drove Faud to the floor three times 68 in seconds before the farce was stopped by the referee. In his last fight in November Faud weighed 166 ½ lbs  and had lost inside the distance. Obviously any organisation who would sanction such a fight for any title let alone their “World” title disgraces the sport and should be ashamed-but they were probably were too busy counting the sanction fee and the supervisor’s fee and expenses to give any though to how this reflected on boxing.

 

Lets hear it for the ladies again: Mariano Juarez is coming to the end of a 26-year-career and the WBC are going to miss her and her sanctioning fees. “Barbie” made six defences of the WBC interim title, 9 of the WBC flyweight title and lost her WBC bantamweight title in her tenth defence.

 

Let’s hear it for the ladies again: Referee Diana Drews Milani looked as though she probably weighed no more than 118lbs.It therefore looked as though she literally  had a mammoth task handling the fight between Arnold Gjergjaj and Dennis Lewandowski who weighed a combined total of 528lbs but referee Milani showed she was the boss even though a bulldozer might have been handy for breaking up the clinches.

It must be concerning when a boxer in a major title fight admits that he dropped 5kg the night before the weigh in and another 2kg on the morning of the fight. That’s what Nikita Tszyu told the press. He blamed it on a faulty steam room at home which is a ridiculous attempt at an explanation. Surely Tszyu’s team must have known a couple of days before the fight he was going to struggle. He was late weighing in and I know that in a lot of countries a fighter shedding that much weight inn such a short period of time would not be allowed to box. Hopefully someone somewhere is asking a lot of questions over this. The Johnny Owen tragedy illustrated the dangers of this.

-The Ontario Boxing Commission is now prohibiting all bookies and sports betting operators operating in the Ontario region from accepting bets on WBA-run matches. The Commission say it took this action due to strong suspicions about some boxing matches sanctioned by the WBA being rigged. The only example being quoted in the media was a WBA sanctioned fight in Florida where a boxer’s manager allegedly bet $110,000 on the round in which a fight would end and it looked suspiciously as though his fighter carried his opponent before ending the fight in the round the manager bet on. There is so much wrong with this. Firstly, there is no law against betting in Ontario and I am not sure how such a ban could be policed. Secondly the suspicions are very tenuous and don’t relate to Ontario and thirdly why should the WBA be blamed if a manger and his boxer collude to fix a fight. Only in boxing.