7/31/09 SHOBOX Harris-Quintero, Avalos-Wilson

Harris Upsets Quintero, Scores 8th Round TKO (130 lbs.)

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Round 1: Harris lands a right uppercut followed by a straight a left. Quintero lands the same punches. Quintero lands a straight left, but was countered with a hard right hook to the head from Harris. Both fighters landed very hard punches.

Round 2: Quintero is boxing more and lands a straight left. Quintero is landing solid punches off his right jab. Harris hit Quintero with good power shots, but Quintero landed more combinations behind the jab.

Round 3: Quintero is hitting Harris with combinations to the body. Harris is countering with a straight left and hard right hook. Quintero lands a low blow.

Round 4: Both fighters exchanged many straight lefts. Harris hammers Quintero coming toward him with a counter right hook.

Round 5: Harris continues to catch Quintero with punches as he is coming in, especially landing the right hook. Quintero is throwing punches, but just as he finishes his combinations, Harris times Quintero with sharp lefts and right hooks. After the round, Quintero appears upset on his stool in the corner.

Round 6: Showtime's commentator Nick Charles reports Quintero may have hurt his right hand. Quintero lands a straight left - right hook combination. Harris rocks Quintero with a right hook - left uppercut combination. Quintero comes back to land a straight left and left uppercut.
Quintero is fighting Harris very hard.

Round 7: Harris lands another right hook. Quintero is coming forward landing combinations. Harris hits Quintero with straight left. Quintero tags Harris with a straight left. Quintero is the aggressor and is landing his combinations. Harris lands two very hard straight lefts just before the bell sounds to end the round.

Round 8: Harris nails Quintero with a straight left and Quintero is out on his feet. Quintero falls back into the ropes. Harris nails Quintero with a left uppercut and than hit him with another straight left, sending Quintero into the corner. The referee stopped the bout.

Overall Summary: In the main event, Tyrone Harris (24-5, 16 KO's) scored an upset victory over Marvin Quintero (16-2, 12 KO's), stopping him in the 8th round of a 10 round junior lightweight bout. Quintero was fighting hard and landing solid combinations, but got hit by Harris too often. Harris was landing hard, crisp counter right hooks all bout. Both fighters were exchanging hard blows, but it was Harris who landed the cleaner punches.

Harris landed two clean straight lefts near the end of the 7th round, which set the tone for what happened in the 8th round. Harris placed his punches intelligently. He showed very good timing as he landed many counter right hooks to Quintero's head. Just as Quintero would finish throwing his combinations, Harris threw his punches and landed them cleanly. Finally, in the 8th round after taking many clean shots, Quintero was finished with a hard straight left from Harris that he did not appear to see coming.


In other action in the bantamweight division, 19 year old Chris Avalos improved his record to (11-0, 9 KO's) by stopping a south paw, Andre Wilson (11-3-1, 9 KO's) in the second round. Wilson was the first southpaw Avalos has faced in his professional career. In the 1st round, Wilson stayed on the outside as Avalos tried to land straight rights. In the 2nd round, Avalos landed a hard, counter left hook. Then, Wilson was dropped from another left hook. Wilson rose to his feet, but Avalos floored him again with a right hand. Avalos swarmed Wilson again, landing a right and left hook that prompted the referee to stop the fight.

7/31/09 ESPN's Friday Night Fights

Victor Cayo Wins 10 Rd. Unanimous Decision Over Julio Diaz

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Round 1: Cayo has the edge in hand speed, but keeps his hands low. Diaz is pressing forward and most of the action is taking place in the center of the ring.

Round 2: After Cayo delivers his punches, he stands too straight up. Diaz lands a solid left hook. Cayo hits Diaz with a left hook. As the round is about to close, Diaz switches to a southpaw stance, but gets tagged with an overhand right from Cayo.

Round 3: Cayo lands a strong overhand right. Diaz hits Cayo with a left hook to the body.

Round 4: Diaz fires and lands a left hook to Cayo's head. Cayo is throwing his shots one at a time. Diaz tags Cayo with a flush left hook to the head. Cayo counters with an overhand right and left hook to the head. Diaz hits Cayo with an overhand right.

Round 5: Cayo lands an overhand right. Diaz is fighting on the inside. Cayo pulls back and lands an overhand right followed by a left hook to the head.

Round 6: Toe-to-toe action. Cayo is landing head shots, while Diaz is landing body shots.

Round 7: Good action in this round as well. Cayo lands an overhand right. Diaz hits Cayo with a right uppercut during an exchange.

Round 8: Cayo hits Diaz with a right uppercut. He is beating Diaz to the punch. Cayo stuns Diaz with a left hook to the head.

Round 9: Cayo is pressing forward and is landing the cleaner, harder shots.

Round 10: Cayo is showing that he has more energy left. Cayo is outworking Diaz and moving well. Cayo is landing good punches and getting out of range, so Diaz cannot connect.

Overall Summary: In a junior welterweight clash, Victor "Marmalade" Cayo (23-0, 14 KO's) improves his record by winning a convincing 10 round unanimous decision over veteran Julio Diaz (36-6, 26 KO's). The 23 year old Cayo, who hails from the Dominican Republic and has fought more than 300 amateur fights, landed more cleaner and harder punches than Diaz. Diaz made this a competitive fight, but the younger Cayo possessed the superior hand speed and quickness. Diaz's best chances came when he was throwing body shots inside, but Cayo would quickly counter back with sharp, accurate punches. It appeared that Diaz's energy level was dropping after the heated exchanges that took place in the 6th and 7th rounds. As the fight went down the stretch, the 29 year old Diaz was getting beat to the punch, mostly getting hit by Cayo's overhand right.

Victor Cayo passed the test tonight by defeating a former world champion. It will be interesting to see how much he will improve off his biggest victory in his next bout.



In other action, heavyweight contender Derric Rossy improves his record to (22-2, 12 KO's) by defeating Carl Davis Drumond (25-2, 20 KO's) by a 10 round unanimous decision. All three ringside judges scored the bout 99-91 for Rossy. Derric Rossy has now won 4 consecutive bouts.

7/30/09 VERSUS

LUIS RAMOS JR. TKO'S SANDRO MARCOS IN 6 ROUNDS (135 LBS.)

Luis Ramos Jr. (12-0, 7 KO's) is one of the fastest and best rising prospects in boxing. This 21 year old southpaw, dominated Sandro Marcos (29-20-2, 24 KO's) last night with vicious uppercuts, stopping the veteran in 6 rounds.

In the 1st round, Ramos demonstrated superior hand speed, good balance and the ability to land clean punches. At one point, Marcos was caught leaning forward and got nailed with a left uppercut. Ramos then fired and landed a vicious right uppercut - right hook combination that dropped the veteran.

In round 2, Ramos peppered Marcos with left uppercuts, straight lefts and right hooks. Marcos landed a solid overhand right and left hook. Ramos continued to fire sharp, accurate punches and was landing them at will.

Round 3 was a better round for Marcos. Marcos landed a short left hook to Ramos' head. Then, Marcos landed a straight right followed by a left hook to the body and head. Ramos responded with a straight left and landed some vicious uppercuts inside.

Rounds 4-5 were also dominated by Ramos as he started to wear down Marcos. Ramos landed a left uppercut - straight left combination that hurt Marcos in round 4. Ramos started to land a series of right hooks to the body. Ramos hit Marcos with a straight left - right hook combination in the body. A left uppercut landed with Marcos' back touching the ropes. Marcos' face was very swollen at the end of the 5th round.

Finally, Ramos hit Marcos in the 6th round with a sharp and vicious left uppercut - right hook combination that dropped Marcos to one knee. Marcos rose to his feet, but the referee halted the bout.


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In the main event, 20 year old Derrick Wilson (5-0-1, 2 KO's) from Fort Myers, Florida, knocked out 22 year old Charles Huerta (11-1, 6 KO's) with a big left hook under a minute in the 1st round. Huerta landed a left hook to Wilson's head. Wilson countered with an overhand right that missed. Then, Huerta missed with a left hook, but got nailed with a devastating left hook to the head from Wilson. Huerta could not beat the referee's 10 count.


In other action, heavyweight Herman Binek (8-1, 6 KO's) defeated Yohan Banks (2-3-2, 1 KO) by a 4 round unanimous decision.

Also, in a junior welterweight bout, Carlos Molina improves his record to (8-0, 4 KO's) by stopping Eber Luis Perez (9-13-1, 7 KO's) in 4 rounds. In the 4th and final round, Molina landed a nasty left uppercut that stunned Perez. Then, Molina threw and landed a series of left hooks and straight rights. The referee promptly stopped the bout with Perez's back against the ropes.

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Super Fight Preview: Manny Pacquiao vs. Miguel Cotto

On November 14th at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada, Manny Pacquiao will face Miguel Cotto at a catch weight of 145 lbs., 2 lbs. under the welterweight limit. This fight should be an action packed slugfest from the opening bell. Pacquiao is coming off a sensational 2nd round knockout of Ricky Hatton and has won his last 10 bouts. Cotto has won his last 2 bouts after being stopped in the 11th round in a war with Antonio Margarito.

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JAB & BODY PUNCHING

Miguel Cotto must keep Pacquiao from swarming him with his whirlwind punching attack if he is to be victorious. An effective jab can neutralize Pacquiao's speed. Cotto must impose his will on Pacquiao. He needs to throw his body shots off the jab and force Pacquiao to fight backing up. Pacquiao has been stopped twice in his career from body shots and Cotto is one of the best body punchers in the sport. He cannot move toward Pacquiao without the use of a jab because he will get blitzed with punches. If Cotto does not dictate this fight with his jab, he will not defeat Pacquiao.

SIZE ADVANTAGE

Will Cotto be able to use his size advantage effectively or will he be too drained making the 145 lb. weight limit when he is used to making 147 lbs? This depends on how in shape he is now, when he starts training and how close he keeps his weight to the 145 lb. limit during training without dehydrating himself. There may not be a weight issue for Cotto like many people believe.

SPEED, COMBINATION PUNCHING & BALANCE

Cotto has fought bigger, stronger and harder punching fighters than Pacquiao has in his career. Cotto started his professional career at 135 lbs., and as his record indicates, has done well suffering only one defeat and knocking out 77% of his opponents. In contrast, Manny Pacquiao started his career at 108 lbs. and has a knockout percentage of 69%. Cotto has shown that he can take a punch pretty well from bigger punchers. Can Manny hurt him? No matter how good a fighter is, if he keeps getting blistered with punches, he will falter. Has Cotto ever been in the ring with someone so quick? Probably not, and this is another important factor in determining the outcome of the fight.

Manny Pacquiao is a whirlwind puncher and lands his shots from all angles with lightning speed. Pacquiao moves in and out quickly and uses his jab as a range finder. Sometimes, he can be a little off balanced after he fires a combination, but Pacquiao's trainer Freddie Roach has drastically helped him improve his footwork.

Pacquiao is elusive and boxes better now than earlier in his career. Manny possesses good head movement and keeps fighters a little hesistant from throwing their shots, which enables him to land clean, effective punches. Cotto is slower, at times flat footed and looks to counter punch. It's hard to counter punch if you don't match your opponent's hand speed. That leaves Cotto with one option. His timing placing his punches must be perfect because Manny has the definitive edge in hand speed.

Pacquiao must make Cotto fight at a very fast pace. He needs to make Cotto use a lot of energy, especially with Cotto having to make the 145 lb. weight limit because he might be drained and tired if the fight gets into the later rounds. Pacquiao should not have a problem being dehydrated because he is the smaller man moving up in weight. Pacquiao needs to use his speed advantage against Cotto because he does not want to stand there and trade shots with the bigger puncher.

IN THE LATER ROUNDS

If this fight gets into the later rounds and Cotto is not dehydrated from making the 145 lb. weight limit, than he will have an advantage over Pacquiao. If Cotto presses forward at his pace and Pacquiao exerts more energy than he wants, than the advantage goes to the bigger man. Pacquiao looked tired in his two fights with Juan Manuel Marquez in the later rounds. Cotto probably will put more pressure on Pacquiao than Marquez did. However, Cotto is unlikely to counter punch Pacquiao as effectively as Marquez was able to do in both of their bouts. Marquez matches Pacquiao's hand speed better than Cotto because he is a more efficient counter puncher.

CONFIDENCE

Pacquiao comes into this fight extremely confident riding a 10 fight win streak. Cotto still looks like he doubts his abilities after losing to Antonio Margarito. In his last two fights, when Cotto has taken a clean punch, his body language suggests that he is having flashbacks to the war he fought with Margarito. He looks like he is re-evaluating the situation about whether he wants to engage. This showed more in Cotto's fight with Joshua Clottey than against Michael Jennings. However, Cotto came out victorious in both contests and hurt Clottey in the 6th round. In the later rounds against Clottey, as opposed to the Margarito fight, Cotto was resilient and fought back well enough to come away with a 12 round split decision victory. Now, this leaves the question: Is Cotto's confidence restored after coming away with the victory over Clottey? Will shades over the Margarito fight be a lingering cloud over Cotto? How will he react when Pacquiao lands a clean, effective punch? We'll see on November 14th, but Cotto does possess the punching power to take away Pacquiao's confidence with one punch. This will be the hardest puncher Pacquiao has ever faced.

STYLES

Being a southpaw, Manny Pacquiao presents a problem to Miguel Cotto. There are other factors stated above as how Pacquiao has some advantages too, but fighting from that stance may be too tough for Cotto to handle. The awkward angles Pacquiao throws his punches, along with his speed and balance, may keep Cotto off balanced all night and he may never get close to landing an effective punch.

Boxing's oldest saying is "Styles Make Fights". Boxing's next oldest slogan may be that "A good big man, will beat a good small man". I think the latter statement will come to be true on November 14th.

HOW I SEE THIS FIGHT PLAYING OUT?

In the early going, Miguel Cotto will press forward and Manny Pacquiao will box. Pacquiao will land many of his quick punches in combination, but Cotto will be resilient. Cotto will continue to impose his will on the smaller man. Pacquiao will exert a lot of energy boxing him and as a result, Cotto will get closer and land effective shots. In the middle rounds, I see Cotto and Pacquiao exchanging quality punches with Cotto landing the harder shots. Sorry Pacquiao fans, but I see Cotto stopping Pacquiao with a left hook to the body in the 8th round.

7/25/09 "Latin Fury 10"

Miguel Acosta TKO 9 Over Urbano Antillon (135 lbs.)
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Round 1: Acosta lands a solid right. Antillon puts on the pressure. Antillon looks very strong for 135 lbs. Acosta lands a right uppercut and is moving well. Antillon lands a left hook to the head.

Round 2: Antillon lands a right to the body. He is throwing good body punches. Acosta throws a flurry to Antillon's head. Antillon throws a left hook to Acosta's head, but Acosta slips the punch.

Round 3: Antillon jabs to the body and then fires a right to the body. Antillon is a strong puncher and lands a right uppercut. Acosta lands an overhand right. Antillon lands a straight right.

Round 4: Acosta lands another right uppercut. Antillon is the aggressor and is trying to impose his will. Acosta is boxing well and landing solid , clean punches.

Round 5: An overhand right dazes Antillon. Acosta starts to work the body. Antillon is still coming forward landing body shots.

Round 6: Antillon continues coming forward and throws his jab. Acosta hits Antillon with an overhand right followed by a right uppercut.

Round 7: Antillon lands some hooks. Toward the end of the round, Acosta is boxing and beating Antillon to the punch. Antillon lands a left hook to the body.

Round 8: Antillon is relentlessly coming forward and lands a left hook to the head. Antillon hits Acosta with a solid right inside. Antillon has a cut above his right eye.

Round 9: Acosta lands some body shots and an overhand right. Antillon goes to the body - hits Acosta with a right to the head. Acosta nails Antillon with an overhand right. Acosta catches Antillon with a stinging right uppercut that floors him as he came forward. The referee stopped the bout when Antillon got back to his feet.

Overall Summary: Miguel Acosta is a much better fighter than his record indictates (26-3-2, 20 KO's ). The 31 year old Venezuelan landed quick uppercuts and used his range well. Acosta did not engage in a slugfest with the hard punching 26 year old Urbano Antillon, who suffered his first professional defeat (26-1, 19 KO's). Throughout the fight, Antillon kept the pressure on, but did not land the cleaner punches. Antillon landed some good body shots, but Acosta was landing crisp uppercuts as Antillon was coming toward him. Antillon suffered a cut above his right eye in the bout, which probably was the result of an uppercut from Acosta. Miguel Acosta has not suffered a defeat since October 18, 2003. His record from that point on is (17-0, 12 KO's).

7/25/09 "Latin Fury 10"

Giovanni Segura TKO 6 Over Juanito Rubillar (108 lbs.)
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Round 1: Rubillar lands a right hook and two straight lefts to Segura's head. Segura gets a little swelling under his right eye.

Round 2: Segura hurts Rubillar with a right hook. Rubillar lands a left to the body. Segura stuns Rubillar with a straight left. A right hook rocks Rubillar's head back.

Round 3: Segura lands a right hook and the body followed by a left to the body. Another right hook to the body almost dropped Rubillar. Segura stuns Rubillar with a right uppercut - straight left combination. Segura lands hard body shots and Rubillar comes back with his own body shots.

Round 4: Segura landing cleaner, more effective punches.

Round 5: Hard uppercuts and hooks are really taking a toll on Rubillar.

Round 6: Shots are breaking Rubillar down, Segura lands a right hook to the body. Rubillar fights back valiantly, but his corner throws in the towel!

Overall Summary: Giovanni Segura's cleaner punching was the difference in this fight. Juanito Rubillar, who is a southpaw, landed some good punches early, but Segura came back and wore him out with his punch output. Segura, who is also a southpaw, landed many right hooks to the body and straight lefts to the head. Giovanni Segura hits very hard for the 108 lb. Junior Flyweight class.

The 27 year old Giovanni Segura improves his record to 21-1-1, 17 KO's. Juanito Rubillar drops to 46-13-7, 22 KO's.

7/25/09 "Latin Fury 10"

Alberto Rosas W10 Over Alejandro Martinez (115 lbs.)

Overall Summary: This bout had a lot of toe-to-toe action and inside fighting. Both fighters landed hard body shots. As the rounds passed, Rosas kept up his pace, but Martinez started to slow a bit. Rosas' body punching was having an effect on Martinez. Martinez had the reach advantage, but chose to fight mostly on the inside and that played into the game plan of Rosas. Martinez was very resilient in the exchanges and landed some quality punches, but failed to establish the jab. This led Martinez into a fierce battle with a solid veteran. Get yourself a new punching bag and save with $2.95 shipping.

Rosas was the more experienced fighter and appeared to be Martinez's toughest competition to date. Alberto Rosas improves his record to 30-5, 25 KO's and Alejandro Martinez falls to 16-2-1, 11 KO's.

7/25/09 "Latin Fury 10"

Hernan "Tyson" Marquez Defeats Juan Esquer W10 (115 lbs.)

Round 1: Marquez fires a straight left. Esquer counters with a left hook to the body. Marquez jabs. Esquer lands a straight right. Marquez counters with a right hook to the head. Esquer throws and lands a left hook to Marquez's head. Marquez fires and lands a straight left and right hook to the body.

Round 2: Marquez lands a few right uppercuts. Marquez using an effective jab and continues to land right uppercuts. Marquez lands an overhand left and Esquer counters with an overhand right. Marquez nails Esquer with a right uppercut, straight left and followed it with a right hook to the body. Esquer lands a right to the body. Esquer changes to a southpaw stance and fires a straight left.

Round 3: Marquez lands a hard right jab and a straight left to the body. Esquer lands some left hooks as Marquez got caught in the corner.

Round 4: Right uppercut - straight left lands for Marquez. Esquer throwing shots to the body. Marquez lands a right uppercut - right hook combination. Esquer hits Marquez with an overhand right. Marquez lands a straight left - right uppercut.

Round 5: Marquez lands a right hook to the body and straight left. Esquer counters with a left uppercut and right. Marquez hammers Esquer with another right uppercut.

Round 6: Marquez hits Esquer with a right - left to the body. Marquez lands a straight left. Esquer's face is starting to swell. Marquez hits Esquer with a straight left to the head. Esquer fires back again. Marquez lands a right uppercut and fires a jab. Esquer is pressuring.

Round 7: Esquer hits Marquez with a left hook to the body. Marquez counters with a straight left - right uppercut combination. Esquer lands an overhand right and swarms Marquez with punches.

Round 8: Esquer struck with a low blow. Action momentarily stops. Marquez fires a straight left. Marquez lands a right uppercut to the head and body. Esquer hits Marquez with an overhand right.

Round 9: Toe-to-toe action. A right uppercut rocks Esquer. Marquez lands a right hook, right uppercut and straight left. Esquer lands a left uppercut & left hook that stuns Marquez.

Round 10: Marquez lands a right hook to the head. Esquer counters with a right to the body. Marquez hits Esquer with a straight left to the body. Marquez lands another straight left.

Overall Summary: Hernan "Tyson" Marquez (23-0, 16 KO's) looked solid defeating Juan Esquer (24-6-1, 18 KO's) last night in Mexico. From the opening bell, Marquez dictated the action by utilizing his hard right jab. The southpaw was able to connect with right uppercuts to Esquer's head most of the bout. Esquer was very tough and proved to be a formidable opponent for the 20 year old Marquez. Marquez landed hard combinations, but Esquer took many of the punches well and kept charging forward, which made for a real action packed fight. Esquer proved to be resilient and lasted the distance, but was outskilled by Marquez's movement, power and hand speed. Get cheap boxing gloves by Everlast and Ringside.

R.I.P. Vernon Forrest 1971-2009
Tragedy strikes another fighter again: Vernon Forrest killed in Atlanta shooting
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"Latin Fury 10" Top Rank PPV 7/25/09

RECAP COMING SOON!

Miguel Acosta TKO 9 Over Urbano Antillon

Giovani Segura TKO 6 Over Juanito Rubillar
Alberto Rosas W10 Over Alejandro Martinez
Hernan "Tyson" Marquez W10 Over Juan Esquer

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7/24/09 ESPN'S Friday Night Fights

Escalante Tops Lock, Wins 10 Round Unanimous Decision

Round 1: The southpaw Cornelius Lock starts to use his jab. Lock lands a counter right hook to the head and then fires a combination. Escalante lands a left hook to the body. Lock counters with a left uppercut. Escalante lands body shots as round ends.

Round 2: Lock lands a straight left to the body. Escalante fires a left hook to the head. Lock lands a straight left - right hook combination. Good exchanges. Escalante has a cut above his left eye. Escalante is landing hard body shots.

Round 3: Escalante lands a right - left hook combination to the head. Lock fires back. Heated exchanges start to take place with both fighters landing hard shots to the body and head. Escalante drops Lock with a solid right uppercut to the body. Lock got up, but Escalante landed a series of left hooks to the head and Lock went down again.

Round 4: Lock jabs and lands a right hook to the body. Escalante fires and lands a right. Lock lands a combination inside and then lands a combination to the body and head. Escalante hits hard, but Lock fires back. In the last 10 seconds, Escalante nails Lock and almost knocks him down.

Round 5: A left hook to the head lands for Escalante. Lock counters with a straight left. Escalante lands an overhand right. Lock lands a vicious right hook to the head. Escalante attacks Lock's body. Escalante lands a left hook to the head. Lock is rocked again toward the end of the round.

Round 6: Lock's punches appear a little slower. Escalante lands a right to the body. Lock jabs. Lock fires a right hook - left combination to the body. Escalante lands a body shot.

Round 7: Escalante lands clean, crisp body shots. Lock lands a solid combination to the body and head. Lock slowed Escalante as the round ends.

Round 8: Escalante presses the action. He connects with a left hook to Lock's head. Escalante lands a straight right. Lock is slowing down.

Rounds 9-10: Escalante is fighting at the same pace. Lock is taking more clean shots to the head and body. His legs appear a little unsteady and wobbly. Corner could have stopped the fight in either of these rounds, but Lock showed a lot of heart and was firing back.

Overall Summary: This was a terrific fight from start to finish. Both fighters showed tremendous heart throughout this hard fought bout. Cornelius Lock (18-4-1, 11 KO's) had the faster hands and landed counter right hooks when Escalante threw his left hook to the body. Lock fired many left uppercuts that landed on the inside. He landed some good head shots on Antonio Escalante (20-2, 13 KO's) too, but Escalante's pace never slowed. He kept applying pressure and wore down Lock with his body attack, especially using the left hook. Both fighters landed many clean shots, but it was Escalante who took the punches better and had slightly more power in his punch output. Get cheap boxing gloves by Everlast and Ringside.

Antonio Escalante, who fights at Super Bantamweight (122lbs.), has won 7 straight fights against solid opposition since losing by TKO 8 to Mauricio Pastrana on January 26, 2007. Some of the notable opponents Escalante has defeated are Feider Viloria, Mike Oliver, and Gary Stark Jr. Escalante is a tough, resilient 24 year old from Mexico. Escalante's best asset is his body attack. He can wear opponents down, take a good punch and can counter the opposition efficiently, even when he does not have the edge in hand speed.

7/24/09 ESPN'S Friday Night Fights

UPSET: Jose Beranza Wins 6 Round Unanimous Decision Over Juan Velasquez (122lbs.)

Round 1: Velasquez uses his jab. Velasquez hits Beranza with a left uppercut and Beranza lands an overhand right.

Round 2: Velasquez lands a hard overhand right. Beranza lands a right and left hook to the body.

Round 3: Beranza lands a right to Velasquez's body. Velasquez was off balanced, but his gloves and knee touched the canvas resulting in a knockdown. The action continued and Beranza landed a hard left uppercut that dropped Velasquez again.

Round 4: Beranza is pressing the action and lands a left to the body and a solid overhand right. Velasquez fired and missed a left hook to the head. Beranza viciously attacking the body. Beranza lands a right uppercut. Velasquez counters with a left hook to the head. Beranza flurries again.

Round 5: Velasquez hits Beranza with an overhand right. Beranza continues to put pressure and attacks Velasquez's body and throws punches inside. Velasquez is throwing his jab as he tries to keep Beranza away. Beranza lands a flush straight right to Velasquez's head. Velasquez's mouthpiece came out and the referee calls a halt to the action with 10 seconds left in the round.

Round 6: Beranza lands a solid right to the body. Velasquez lands a straight right.

Overall Summary: Carlos Velasquez's twin brother did not fare as well as he did tonight in earlier action. From the 3rd round on, Jose Beranza (32-15-2, 25 KO's) wore out Juan Velasquez (9-1, 5 KO's) with his ferocious body attack. Velasquez did not use his range and could not keep Beranza at bay with his jab. Beranza was able to land hard shots on the inside and took Velasquez shots well. Also, Beranza's jab enabled him to get in close range and fire straight rights that connected to Velasquez's face. Juan Velasquez seemed surprised by the toughness his Mexican opponent showed. He may have underestimated the 13 year veteran. Beranza showed more will and courage to win this fight. Get a ninja costume for Halloween.

In the 5th round, Beranza knocked out Velasquez's mouthpiece when he landed a flush right. ESPN commentators Teddy Atlas and Joe Tessitore were critical of the referee's decision to halt the action, while Beranza was still on the attack with 10 seconds to go in the round. When Velasquez's mouthpiece came out, he briefly looked at Beranza and then quickly looked at the referee. When Velasquez looked at the referee, Beranza stopped coming forward and then the referee stepped in. It all happened so quickly and looked as if the referee stopped the action with Beranza ready to throw more punches, but Beranza did momentarily pause. Even with Beranza's short pause, the referee should have let the action continue.

The lesson to take away from this fight is to never underestimate any opponent!

7/24/09 ESPN'S Friday Night Fights

Carlos Velasquez Defeats Juan Nazario By 6 Round Unanimous Decision

Round 1: Both fighters come out aggressively. Velasquez lands a right to the body followed by an overhand right. Nazario hits Velasquez with a left hook to the body. Velasquez lands an overhand right and Nazario countered with a right to the head.

Round 2: Nazario lands a right. Velasquez lands a solid right to Nazario's face and Nazario's glove appears to touch the canvas, but there is no ruling for a knockdown. The action continues. Nazario lands a left hook to the head and Velasquez counters with a right to the body. Velasquez nails Nazario with a left hook to the head. Velasquez lands a good right to Nazario's body.

Round 3: Velasquez gets hit in the head with a right from Nazario. Velasquez momentarily stuns Nazario with a hard left hook to the head. Velasquez lands an overhand right.

Round 4: Velasquez hurts Nazario with a left hook to the head followed by an overhand right. Velasquez continues on the attack and hits Nazario with a right to the body. Velasquez fires a hard right and left to Nazario's body.

Round 5: Nazario lands a left hook to the head. Velasquez continues to come forward. Velasquez lands 3 consecutive overhand rights. Velasquez lands a solid left hook to Nazario's head. The referee takes 1 point away from Nazario for excessive holding.

Round 6: Velasquez continues to land overhand rights. A left hook - right to the head combination lands for Velasquez.

Overall Summary: Junior Lightweight Carlos Velasquez (11-0, 9 KO's) controlled the pace of this fight with his effective aggression. Juan Nazario (6-2-1, 4 KO's) had no answer for Velasquez's hard overhand rights and good body work. Velasquez put an enormous amount of pressure on Nazario from the opening bell. When Nazario felt he was in trouble, he would tie Velasquez up rather than working his jab and trying to box the 24 year old from Puerto Rico.

However, Velasquez made some errors tonight, and may have been in trouble if he fought better opposition. Though he applied pressure throughout the entire fight, Velasquez came forward throwing punches from too far away without using his jab, which left him open to counter punches. He also didn't throw punches from many angles. In the future, he needs to shorten the distance with his jab and then fire his combinations.

Also, Velasquez possesses good hand speed, but should show more movement than just walking straight toward opponents to be less predictable. Velasquez needs to put together a better game plan because he is not always going to have the edge in overall skill to overpower his opposition. A better boxer and counter puncher may have exposed Velasquez to his vulnerabilities. Still, a good overall performance by the young Carlos Velasquez.

Pacquiao - Cotto Preview: Coming Soon!!!

Be sure to check my fight preview of Pacquiao vs. Cotto early next week! I will be posting a recap after the conclusion of ESPN's "Friday Night Fights" along with a recap of Top Rank's "Latin Fury 10" card on Saturday.

Also, I already did a fight preview of Mayweather vs. Marquez on September 19th, but it's in my archives. If you have not read it yet, it's the first article I submitted. Enjoy!

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Marco Nazareth Passes Away

Marco Nazareth has passed away this morning due to injuries suffered in a bout in Mexico with Julio Cesar Chavez's son, Omar Chavez. Nazareth was stopped in the 4th round of a scheduled 6 round bout on July 18th. After the loss, Nazareth felt dizzy and then passed out. He was carried from the ring on a stretcher and brought to a nearby hospital, where doctors operated on him to reduce swelling on his brain. After the operation, doctors revealed only 10% of his brain was functioning.
Chavez went to the hospital to support Nazareth and his family.

This marked the second time these two men fought. In their first encounter, Chavez won a 4 round unanimous decision. Sadly, this was the 3rd time Nazareth was knocked out in his last 5 fights and he probably should not have been matched up again with Chavez, whose record is 17-0-1, 13 KO's. Nazareth was 23 years old and had a record of 4-4, 3 KO's. My condolences go out to Marco Nazareth's entire family.

TICKET PRICES FOR PACQUIAO - COTTO ANNOUNCED

Ticket prices for the November 14th clash between Manny Pacquiao vs. Miguel Cotto have been announced. According to sources, ticket prices for the fight are priced at $1,000, $750, $500, $300, and $150. They will go on sale next month. The fight will be held at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada. Pacquiao opened a 2 to 1 favorite over Cotto. New boots for your fast feet. Boxing shoes on sale.

http://www.randdboxingblog.com

Q & A With ESPN's Sportscenter Anchor Robert Flores

Originally from Houston, Texas, Robert Flores graduated from the University of Houston in 1992. Since March 2005, Robert has worked at ESPN in Bristol, Connecticut. It is a real pleasure to interview him on my Boxing Blog.

Question: Robert, how did you get into boxing?

Answer: "My dad and grandfather were big boxing fans. Growing up, we spent weekends watching boxing on television. I think I was lucky to grow up in the 70's and 80's. It was one of the greatest eras in the sport, and some of the biggest fights were on television more frequently then now."

Question: What's been your favorite assignment on ESPN?

Answer: "I think anchoring Sportscenter has been the biggest thrill of my professional career. It's the flagship show of the company."

Question: Can you describe your thoughts on the recent tragic deaths of Alexis Arguello and Arturo Gatti?

Answer: "Obviously, both were tragedies made even more tragic by the surrounding circumstances. Boxing lost two great warriors."

Question: What is your first thought or fondest memory of Arguello and Gatti?

Answer: "When I think of Alexis Arguello, I think about his two fights with Aaron Pryor, especially the first one in 1982. I remember watching that fight on HBO. The great Barry Tompkins had the call. It's one of the best fights in history. I think I'm like most boxing fans, when I think about Arturo Gatti, I think about Micky Ward. Speaking of HBO, I believe they aired the entire Gatti/Ward trilogy this weekend in honor of the late Arturo Gatti."

Question: Who do you feel boxing's biggest draw is right now? Mayweather, Pacquiao or someone else?

Answer: "With apologies to my man "Money May", boxing's biggest draw right now is Manny Pacquiao."

Question: If you weren't at ESPN, what would you be doing?

Answer: "I've wondered about that....I think I would pursue a career as a basketball coach."

Question: Do you feel boxing will ever have a national commission in this country?

Answer: "Unfortunately, no. Too much money and too many promoters often become a negative for the sport."

Question: What are your thoughts on Mayweather vs. Marquez? Can Marquez pull off the upset?

Answer: "I think he can, especially in light of Mayweather's layoff and rib injury. Marquez is at his best when he's facing adversity, so Mayweather's speed won't rattle him. However, I'll still take Mayweather by decision."

Question: What's your most memorable fight on "Friday Night Fights"?

Answer: For some reason, this fight sticks out in my head, but not for the reason you think. Back in April, Demarcus "Chop Chop" Corley fought Hector Sanchez. Corley came into the ring wearing the "Predator" mask. I mean it was authentic, looking exactly like the movie. The fight went the distance and afterwards, Corley put on the mask again. He lost by decision. It was just hilarious to see his reaction to the decision with his mask on. I guess you had to be there."

Question: Who is your all time favorite fighter and why?

Answer: "Muhammad Ali. I was a huge fan of his growing up. My favorite Christmas was the year I got the Muhammad Ali Boxing Ring. He meant a great deal to the sport and had a huge impact both in and out of the ring. There was a time, when the most famous athlete in the world was a boxer. Unbelievable right?"

Question: What are some of your hobbies?

Answer: "I enjoy playing pick up basketball, running, reading and video games...having two sons certainly feeds that habit."

Question: What are your top 5 all time favorite fights?

Answer: "Leonard-Hearns I, Holmes-Norton, Arguello-Pryor I, Gatti-Ward I and Foreman-Moorer (just because it was so unexpected)"

Question: If you could see one fight made in boxing right now, what would it be?

Answer: "Mayweather-Pacquiao"

Question: Lastly, what's the one fight you would have liked to see, but for one reason or another, never took place?

Answer: "Leonard-Pryor"

Thank you, Robert. I really appreciate the time you took to do this interview with me!

Pacquiao and Cotto will fight at 145lbs. on November 14th

http://tinyurl.com/n7hvbw

RICKY HATTON: "I'm not missing it. Fighting is the furthest thing from my mind."

http://tinyurl.com/njuygw

Shed weight with sauna suits that look good.

AMIR KHAN DEFEATS ANDREAS KOTELNIK BY 12 ROUND UNANIMOUS DECISION

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/boxing/2543185/Amir-Khan-beats-Andreas-Kotelnik.html Stay up to date your subscription to The Ring Magazine. http://www.usatoday.com/sports/boxing/2009-07-18-khan-kotelnik_N.htm?csp=34

7/17/09 ESPN'S Friday Night Fights

VAZQUEZ UPSETS PRESCOTT

Overall Summary: Lightweight Miguel Vazquez (25-3, 12 KO's) recovered from a 1st round knockdown to upset previously unbeaten Breisdis Prescott (21-1, 18 KO's) by a 10 round split decision. One judge scored the fight 97-92 in favor of Prescott, but it was hard to believe. Vazquez got better as the fight went into the later rounds and should have received a unanimous decision victory. Get your boxing equipment for less.

Prescott started throwing punches from a good range in the first round. He was able to drop Vazquez with a quick left jab to the head. In round 2, Vazquez landed a sneaky right hand that momentarily stunned Prescott. The fight changed after this occurred.

Breisdis Prescott pressed the action and still was in good range, but he was not using his jab enough. This enabled Vazquez to use his jab more to dictate the action. Vazquez was using feints, angles and subtle movements to keep Prescott off his game. Prescott was getting more frustrated as each round passed and was also getting tagged with many punches. Prescott looked too much for the knockout and could not land that one big punch.

In round 5, Vazquez continued to circle and throw his jab. Prescott was looking to hit Vazquez with a big punch, but Vazquez connected with an overhand right. In round 6, Prescott got tagged with a big left hook to the head. Again, Vazquez was in front of Prescott and then got out of range.

Vazquez connected with a clean right to Prescott's jaw and Prescott countered with a left hook to the head in round 7. Vazquez landed a solid left hook to the head in the 8th round and Prescott's left eye and cheek became very swollen.

In round 9, Prescott was throwing a barrage of punches, but they were not on target. In the 10th and final round, Prescott landed a right to the body, but Vazquez countered with a left hook to the head. Vazquez's jab continued to slow Prescott.

The Breidis Prescott that destroyed Amir Khan in one round, did not appear to be the same fighter tonight. It seemed that if Prescott used his jab more and did not get anxious, he possesed the physical attributes and skills to defeat Miguel Vazquez. However, Vazquez fought an intelligent fight. As the fight wore on, Prescott continued to give up his height and reach advantage out of frustration. As a result, Vazquez dictated the pace of the fight and ultimately won.

7/17/09 ESPN'S Friday Night Fights

ERISLANDY LARA WINS AGAIN ON "FRIDAY NIGHT FIGHTS"

Overall Summary: Making his 4th appearance on "Friday Night Fights", Erislandy Lara defeated the veteran Darnell Boone (16-12-2, 6 KO's) by a 6 round unanimous decision to improve his record to 7-0, 4 KO's. Roll? Save money on your next judo gi.

The southpaw Lara, came out blazing from the opening bell, firing straight lefts to Boone's head. In the 1st round, Boone landed a combination to Lara's body and head. Lara responded by quickly ripping shots at Boone. In the 2nd round, Lara hit Boone with straight lefts to his body. Then, Boone landed shots on the inside, but Lara responded again. Lara fired consecutive straight lefts to Boone's head, followed by a straight left to the body.

In the 3rd round, Lara continued to land hard, clean left hand shots. Lara would patiently wait until Boone fired his punches and then, he would retaliate with his own combinations.

By the 4th round, the edge in hand speed was apparent. Lara would throw his combinations so quickly, that Boone did not have time to counter. Again, Lara would land a left to the body. Every time Lara landed a clean punch, it would momentarily stun Boone.

It looked like Boone was landing more punches in round 5, but it was most likely due to Lara's punch out put dropping a bit.

In the 6th and final round, Lara staggered Boone with many punches. First, Lara landed a hard right hook to the head. Then, he landed a right hook - straight left combination to the head. Boone fell back into the ropes. Lara then landed a straight left to Boone's face and momentarily trapped him in the corner. Lara almost knocked him out, but Boone held on before the bell sounded to end the fight.

Erislandy Lara was born on April 11, 1983 in Cuba. Lara has won three consecutive national amateur championships at welterweight (2005-07), and was the world champion at welterweight in 2005. Lara, who was considered to be one of the favorites at welterweight for the 2008 Beijing Olympic games, left the Cuban amateur boxing team on July 22, 2007 during the Pan-American games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Lara left the team with Guillermo Rigondeaux Ortiz, and initially was reported to be turning professional with ARENA Box-Promotion and Ahmet Oener. However, Lara was subsequently arrested with Rigondeaux, and stated that he wanted to return to Cuba. Lara subsequently escaped from Cuba again via speedboat to Mexico. He has since signed with Arena Box-Promotion and turned professional in July 2008.

http://www.boxrec.com/media/index.php?title=Human:457231

7/17/09 ESPN'S Friday Night Fights

YUDEL JOHNSON WINS 4 ROUND UNANIMOUS DECISION

Round 1: Johnson attacks with a series of straight lefts. He lands a left uppercut to Paulo's head and body. Paulo is getting hit with hard, accurate punches and appears stunned.

Round 2: Johnson is using his range more in this round. Johnson continues to land powerful lefts. Paulo lands a counter left hook to the head. Johnson swarms Paulo with punches as his back is against the ropes. Palo is getting nailed with lefts to the head and swelling starts to appear on his face.

Round 3: Johnson continues to beat Paulo to the punch. Johnson hits Paulo with a straight left to the body. Paulo is throwing his punches from too far away.

Round 4: Johnson throws his right jab more. Paulo's face and head are more swollen. A left uppercut - straight left combination lands for Johnson. Johnson is using more feints. Paulo charges forward and lands a short right cross before the bell sounds to end the round. Get yourself a new punching bag and save with $2.95 shipping.

Overall Summary: Junior middleweight prospect Yudel Johnson (2-0, 1 KO) defeated Justin Paulo (1-1, 0 KO's) by a 4 round unanimous decision. The Cuban southpaw, hammered Paulo with hard left hand shots all fight. This also was Justin Paulo's second professional fight, but he was vastly over matched by the former 2004 silver medalist in the Athens Olympic Games. Putting Paulo in with a fighter of Johnson's caliber so early on in his career, may have damaging effects. Although both fighters were entering their 2nd professional fights, Paulo does not possess the experience Johnson has acquired in the amateur ranks.

Johnson was also the featherweight gold medalist at the 1999 Pan American Games, as well as the Light Welterweight gold medalist at the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games. Johnson was defeated by Carlos Banteaux in the finals of the Cuban national championships in the welterweight class, preventing Johnson from making a second appearance at the Olympic games. In the spring of 2009, Johnson defected to turn professional.

http://www.boxrec.com/media/index.php?title=Human:494042

7/17/09 ESPN'S Friday Night Fights

RIGONDEAUX SCORES 1ST ROUND KO

Overall Summary: Guillermo Rigondeaux improves his professional record to 2-0, 2 KO's by stopping Robert Guillen with a perfectly placed, counter left to the body in the 1st round. The Cuban southpaw, was very patient before letting his hands go and landed hard left uppercuts and straight lefts. Get cheap boxing gloves by Everlast and Ringside. The 2000 and 2004 Olympic Gold medalist preferred to counter punch Guillen rather than initiating the action.

There is no professional boxing in Cuba. Rigondeaux fled for the United States to begin a professional career, leaving behind his wife and son."El Chacal" was not allowed to box anymore when it was rumored he defected after he failed to appear at the weigh-in for the July 2007 Pan-Am games. Rigondeaux returned to camp the next day and stated that he was at a bar all night, but was kicked off the national team.

Tonight, Rigondeaux was very impressive yet again on ESPN's "Friday Night Fights". This focused and determined 122lb. fighter is on the fast track to world a title. Because of his stellar amateur background, Guillermo Rigondeaux can step up his level of competition sooner than most fighters could at this point in their career.

Mayweather - Marquez: Conference Call

Floyd Mayweather Jr.:

"The biggest fight in boxing is Mayweather vs. anyone. It doesn't matter who I fight."

"I don't call out or chase opponents. Opponents have to chase me."

"It's like a t-bone steak. Basically I ate all the meat off the steak and then threw them the bone."

"I know in my heart that Marquez is going to be at his best. He always comes out and performs to the best of his ability."

"I feel that my family bond is stronger if we stick together and I feel we're weak if we spread out."

"I'm going down in history as one of the best, one of the best of all time, if not the best."

Speaking about Juan Manuel Marquez:

"I know in my heart that Marquez is going to be at his best. He always comes out and performs to the best of his ability. I'm back training and you're going to get one hell of a fight."

"Marquez is a Mexican warrior. He represents the Mexican community extremely well and the heritage extremely well. I know he's going to be at his best when he comes to face the best, so the only thing I've got to do is go out there and be me. Be sharp and be smart."

On retirement and getting back in the ring:

"I had my first fight in 1987 and I had never had a break, so I guess my body needed a break. You know, everybody needs a break, everybody needs a vacation. Boxing is still in me. I still miss the sport."

"I've been off almost two years now. So, when you've been off two years, you have a chance to relax and just grow as a human being mentally. Not physically, but mentally. Because I feel what makes you a man is taking care of your responsibilities."

"If my body's going to be taking any type of abuse, and my hands are going to be taking any type of abuse, I might as well do it and get under the lights, and do what I like to do - to perform for my fans. I can't wait to get out there on September 19."

"I'm the best at my job because I push myself to the limit at my job. I get to the boxing gym before everybody else. If I get there when everybody else is training, I train so long everybody leaves."

"I already know I'm not worried about the Pay-Per-View numbers. I already know we're going to do good numbers. That's not what I'm chasing. That's going to happen regardless. I want to go out there and perform well for all the fans."

"Hopefully I will be remembered in my own way, and hopefully that's in a good way. Like a lot people say Ali but I think Ali stood for one hell of a cause in his era. And, I take my hat off to all of the champions, but I just want to be known as just one great fighter. Just one great fighter that fought the best in his era."

Speaking about his injury:

"Well when it happened, I tried to work through it. I was fine for a while, but then it happened again and I was like, well you know what; I can't try to be a superhero or be Superman."

"It's best to take your time - take a little time off, let it heal and come back so when I do go out and perform I'll be able to perform to the best of my ability for my fans."

"I've been through a lot of physical mishaps before, but only the strong can survive. I'm one of the strong ones. So I just didn't want to go into this fight like I went into other fights in the past where I wasn't 100%."

"I've been training since last week. All I've been doing is running, basketball, or doing a lot of pull-ups and push-ups and dips. You know, getting myself back into shape. Today I'm going to the boxing gym and will probably start working on the floor."

About his family:

"My dad is coming around now. He is teaching his oldest grandson how to box. So that's a good thing. He's coming to the birthday parties of his granddaughters. He's spending more time with his grand kids, getting to know his grandkids, and that's the main thing that counts."

"You've got to realize, my kids are the future of the Mayweather family and of the Mayweather brand. I feel that we're stronger - I feel that my family bond is stronger if we stick together and I feel we're weak if we spread out."

"If you want to learn about the sport of boxing, all you have to do is hang around the Mayweather family. All Roger does is watch boxing all day and study boxing all day. Now me - all I do is sit in the movie theater in my house and eat junk food, like I'm doing right now."

On Manny Pacquiao:

"Everybody on this phone knows that Pacquiao's not going to get a 50/50 with Floyd Mayweather. Go back and look at the numbers he did with David Diaz. People seem to forget about certain things. If you go look at what Pacquiao's grossed in his last two fights, and you see what I've grossed in my last two fights, and you go from there. Its still is a business even though it's a sport."

"Marquez is a guy that really deserves a shot at me so he can make some good money. If Manny Pacquiao really wants to fight me, all he has to do is say it."

"As of right now, Pacquiao - if he's one of the top fighters in the sport - he's got to ask for the fight. I'm not trying to tear him out of the frame. It's not a bad thing with Pacquiao. He has a bad deal."

On being boxing's pound-for-pound champ:

"If pound-for-pound pays any extra money, then you know I'm proud to say, 'Oh, yeah, I'm pound-for-pound.' But if it doesn't pay extra money, I'm happy with who I am as a person and I'm happy with my team."

"So, when these guys are beating each other and the title is switching hands, it's no different from when people talk about Manny Pacquiao. And I'm not saying that he hasn't done his job, but he hasn't done anything that I haven't done. All he did was follow right behind me."

"I've beat everybody - it's like a steak. It's like a t-bone steak. Basically I ate all the meat off the steak and then threw them the bone."

Speaking about the tragic deaths of Arturo Gatti & Alexis Arguello:

"I just want to say, blessing to the Gatti family. Blessings to Artuo Gatti, because he was one hell of a warrior."

"I just try to keep my mind focused on the positive and hopefully raising my kids to be the best that they can be once they become young adults in this world. I try not to keep my mind focused on tragedies, but Alexis Arguello was probably one of the best junior lightweights to ever put on a pair of gloves."

"We know Gatti never turned away from any opponent - never turned his back on any opponent. He fought anybody that was put in front of him and was a beast. He's a guy that could get knocked down four or five times and come right back. I guess he had throwback fights - he'd get knocked down four or five times, he'd come back in one shot. I mean, it would be lights out for you."

Leonard Ellerbe, CEO of Mayweather Promotions:

"September 19 obviously is Mexican Independence Day weekend and it's the biggest weekend of the year, but its Floyd's night."

Juan Manuel Marquez:

"Obviously, I have a lot of heart. I'm Mexican. I like to get up there. I like to fight."

"Winning will be the gift of my life (Marquez celebrates his birthday August 23)."

About Floyd Mayweather:

"It's a very hard fight, but mentally I'm preparing myself to win and I feel I can beat Mayweather."

"Winning will be the gift of my life (Marquez celebrates his birthday August 23). The best gift of my life. I'm preparing myself and I'm putting all the ingredients together so I can beat Mayweather."

"I'm getting ready for the best Mayweather ever. I'm not thinking about his retirement. I'm getting ready for the best guy possible...the best fighter in the world."

On the rescheduling:

"I did get some rest. Nacho is a very experienced trainer. He's a very smart person and he knew that I shouldn't burn myself out. I took about a week to ten days off and I came back fresh, motivated and ready to go."

On his fights with Manny Pacquiao:

"I feel that I beat him both times. The first one was very close and I felt that I pulled it off. It was called a draw. And the second fight, I felt that I clearly beat him. I clearly beat him and I should have been on top on the points but for whatever reason, the judges - they saw a different fight that night."

On being the underdog:

"I think that life is full of surprises. This is what motivates me. This is what makes me train hard. When I wake up in the morning, it makes me want to train harder, run faster and longer."

"I'm going to be in better condition and I'm going to be focused 100%. These are the kind of fights that motivate me. I'm going to prove everybody wrong."

"Everything's going great. I have a great plan and I'm feeling a lot stronger already. I'm building up the right weight - not just to build up weight, but to build myself up and be very strong. I can feel the difference already."

"Obviously, I have a lot of heart. I'm Mexican. I like to get up there. I like to fight."

Oscar De La Hoya, President of Golden Boy Promotions:

"Marquez wants to challenge the best and that's why we're here - because he's challenging the best in Mayweather. We all know that Mayweather's the best fighter on the planet and therefore Marquez wanted to fight the best."

"The winner of this fight should be considered the best pound-for-pound fighter on the planet. We can make a strong argument for that."

"People are going to watch to see Mayweather lose in September because Marquez is that good."

"I felt more skill coming out of Mayweather than I did with Pacquiao. That's the reason why we named the fight Numero Uno/Number One - because they are fighting to see who the number one fighter is on the planet."

Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions:

"To the millions of fight fans who were so greatly waiting for his return - Floyd Mayweather is feeling better, everything is going well, he is back in training and he has shown a recommitment to the sport of boxing."

"Contrary to some reports, which probably originated from some promoters and people who are not involved with the fight, this fight is doing extremely well. It's shaping up to become one of the biggest non-heavyweight gates in Las Vegas history. Several of the price categories are sold out already."

"It will be the most covered weigh-in ever because everybody wants to know what the weight is. So make sure you don't miss it."

Mayweather vs. Marquez: "Number One/Numero Uno," is promoted by Mayweather Promotions and Golden Boy Promotions in association with Marquez Promotions and is sponsored by Cerveza Tecate, Quaker State, Dewalt Tools, Affliction Clothing and Southwest Airlines. The 12-round bout will take place Saturday, September 19 at MGM Grand in Las Vegas, NV and will be produced and distributed live on HBO Pay-Per-View® beginning at 9pm ET/6pm PT.

HBO's Emmy®-Award-winning all-access reality series "24/7" returns to HBO® with an all new edition as "Mayweather/Marquez 24/7" premieres Saturday, August 29 at 10:15 pm ET/PT. The four-episode series will chronicle the preparations and back stories of both fighters as they train for their September 19 pay-per-view showdown.

Tickets priced at $1,000, $750, $600, $300 and $150, not including applicable service charges, are on sale now. Ticket sales at $1,000, $750, $600 and $300 are limited to 10 per person and ticket sales at $150 are limited to two (2) per person with a total ticket limit of 10 per person. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Tickets also are available for purchase at www.mgmgrand.com or www.ticketmaster.com. Tickets previously purchased for the July 18 date will be honored. Get cheap boxing gloves by Everlast and Ringside. http://www.randdboxingblog.com

Floyd Mayweather Jr. Speaks With ESPN's Brian Kenny Again

http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=4330549

New boots for your fast feet. Boxing shoes on sale.

2 Rematches Have Been Signed

On September 19th, Chris John will defend his WBA Featherweight title against Rocky Juarez in a rematch on the Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Juan Manuel Marquez HBO PPV undercard. John vs. Juarez II was originally scheduled for June 27th, but John pulled out because he was ill.

On November 28th, Lucian Bute will face Librado Andrade in a rematch for Bute's IBF super middleweight title on HBO's "Boxing After Dark". The fight will take place in Montreal or Quebec City.

Stay up to date your subscription to The Ring Magazine.

Hasegawa Wins Again, Stops Rocha In 1st Round

From the Associated Press:

KOBE, Japan -- WBC bantamweight champion Hozumi Hasegawa of Japan kept his title by stopping Nestor Rocha of the United States in the first round.

Hasegawa sent Rocha to the canvas twice Tuesday before the referee stopped the bout after 2 minutes, 28 seconds.

This was Hasegawa's ninth title defense. He improved to 27-2, 11 by knockout. Rocha was bidding for his first world title and dropped to 21-2 with seven KOs.

In an earlier bout, Roman Gonzalez of Nicaragua retained his WBA minimumweight crown with a unanimous decision over Katsunari Takayama of Japan.

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Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press

Mayweather Jr. : "Pacquiao Fight Won't Happen At 50/50"

See article @ http://tinyurl.com/nf544m

Police eye wife in Gatti's death, rule out nothing

http://tinyurl.com/m4tzv9

SHOWTIME 7/11/09

Pictured: (Top - Joseph "King Kong" Agbeko, Bottom - Vic "The Raging Bull" Darchinyan) - Bantamweights

Round 1: Darchinyan presses forward firing his signature straight left. Agbeko lands a right followed by a left hook to the head. Darchinyan hits Agbeko with a left hand. Agbeko counters with a right. Darchinyan appears to be slightly stunned. Darchinyan lands another straight left.

Round 2: Good exchanges. Agbeko lands some rights and Darchinyan lands his straight left. Agbeko hits Darchinyan with a left hook. Darchinyan is aggressively throwing his left. Agbeko nails Darchinyan with a right hand lead. Darchinyan lands a straight left to Agbeko's body.

Round 3: Agbeko nails Darchinyan again with a straight right followed by a left hook. Darchinyan charges Agbeko. Agbeko steps back and fires his shots. Darchinyan lands a straight left. Agbeko lands a straight right. Darchinyan started to have swelling under his left eye. Both fighters are throwing bombs. Agbeko tags Darchinyan with a left hook.

Round 4: Both fighters jab. Darchinyan fires a straight left. Agbeko lands a left hook. Agbeko hits Darchinyan with a right hand lead. Darchinyan lands consecutive straight lefts.

Round 5: Agbeko is busier and lands a left hook. Another right hand lead lands for Agbeko. Darchinyan is throwing one punch at a time and can't stop that right hand lead. Darchinyan needs to put his punches together. Agbeko is continually beating Darchinyan to the punch.

Round 6: Darchinyan's face is swollen. Agbeko is landing more straight rights. Darchinyan is showing signs of slowing down.

Round 7: Agbeko has more energy. Darchinyan is one-dimensional and is having trouble landing a clean shot. Agbeko is starting to dominate and take control of this fight. Darchinyan throws a straight left and scores a knockdown, but after seeing the replay, Agbeko clearly slipped. Darchinyan is being kept off-balanced because of Agbeko's right hand lead. The time keeper made a mistake and this round lasted 4 minutes.

Round 8: Darchinyan lands an overhand left. Agbeko counters with a right. A right hand lead wobbles Darchinyan. Agbeko presses forward, throwing his right. Darchinyan throws his left and hits Agbeko low. Darchinyan lands a straight left: toe-to-toe action

Round 9: Darchinyan lands a straight left, but Agbeko is moving his shoulders well. Darchinyan is still being kept off-balanced by Agbeko's output of punches. Agbeko lands a right and Darchinyan lands a left. Get yourself a new punching bag and save with $2.95 shipping.

Round 10: Darchinyan fires and lands a right hook. Agbeko starts throwing hooks. Darchinyan is bleeding above his right eye from an accidental clash of heads. Darchinyan hits Agbeko with a straight left, but takes a straight right from Agbeko. Agbeko is keeping his chin tucked in and is staying low.

Round 11: Agbeko hits Darchinyan with a straight right followed by a left hook. Darchinyan pushes Agbeko to the canvas. Darchinyan is looking to land a straight left, but he struggles as Agbeko gets his punches off first. Agbeko continues to beat Darchinyan to the punch.

Round 12: Agbeko lands another straight right. Darchinyan counters with a left. Agbeko continues to land his shots. A battered and bloody Darchinyan, cannot do much damage with his one-dimensional attack.

Overall Summary: Well fight fans, no controversy from the judges on this bout. Joseph Agbeko clearly won this fight by a 12 round unanimous decision. Vic Darchinyan had absolutely no answer for Agbeko's right hand lead. Agbeko did most of the damage to Darchinyan in this fight with that punch. Darchinyan was not able to overwhelm a bigger opponent with his one-dimensional attack of firing a powerful straight left hand. Agbeko beat Darchinyan to the punch all night long and possessed the superior hand speed. Darchinyan could not alter his style. He was lunging in and telegraphing his punches. Agbeko knew what was coming, adjusted and used his range to fire accurate right hands before Darchinyan could get his punches to the target.

It's not a mystery how Vic Darchinyan fights. His style was effective in the past because his damaging punching power hurt fighters that were his size or smaller. He cannot dominate a bigger man the same way. This is his second professional defeat against a bigger opponent; the other coming at the hands of the "Filipino Flash" Nonito Donaire. Darchinyan aggressively comes forward and tries to overwhelm his opponents with his powerful left hand. This style is not effective against an opponent like Agbeko, who is taller, faster, slips punches efficiently and is naturally the bigger man.

Darchinyan's right jab was missing tonight too. He did not use it enough and as a result, got hit more coming forward. At times, the 33 year old Darchinyan will use his jab to find range, but does not throw his punches off of it or set up combinations. Boxing's old cliche continues to be true: "A good big man beats a good small man." Tonight, Joseph Agbeko showed the world that he is a complete fighter.

Joseph Agbeko's record now stands 27-1, 22 KO's at while Vic Darchinyan falls to 32-2-1, 26 KO's.