DOMINGUEZ SHINES OVER SANTIAGO TO CLAIM NEW YORK STATE TITLE—FIGHTS TO BE STREAMED ON DEMAND ON GFL.TV

Posted on | June 27, 2011 | No Comments

Cuba – Duran fight to crowd pleasing and controversial draw; McMorrow defeats Olszewski in upset to win Ladies Lightweight state title

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WOODHAVEN, NY (June 27, 2011)—This past Friday night at The Cordon Bleu in Woodhaven, New York, New Legend Boxing Promotions and Old World Boxing presented a memorable night of championship boxing that saw Juan Dominguez capture the New York State Bantamweight title; Melissa McMorrow win the ladies Flyweight State title and a controversial draw between Jonathan Cuba and Ariel Duran for the New York State Bantamweight.

The fights were taped to be streamed all over the world on www.gfl.tv for just $9.99 by clicking:
http://www.gfl.tv/Events/Fight/Boxing/Old_WorldNew_Legend_Presents_Friday_Night_Fights/1101

Dominguez and Arturo Santiago engaged in a terrific fight that Dominguez fought well and Santiago should incredible courage and kept coming back every time that it seemed Dominguez would be in control.

Dominguez closed the show in style by dropping Santiago in the final moment to secure the victory and remain perfect at 8-0.

In the co-feature, Melissa McMorrow trekked across the country to win the New York State Lightweight title with a split decision over Eileen Olszewski in a ladies Flyweight bout.

It was a good close fight with McMorrow bobbing and weaving herself inside while Olszewski tried to control the fight from range.

McMorrow was able to win a lot of the little inside battles and worked the body to gain the narrow victory.

In what was the most intense and controversial fight of the night, Ariel Duran and Jonathan Cuba battled a spirited bout for the New York State Lightweight crown

The two waged war with Duran landing some nice lead rights and scoring a knockdown on Cuba.  Cuba picked up the pace and stalked hurt Duran in the last round.

Most at ringside thought Duran deserved the victory and the title and talk quickly pointed towards a rematch

Other Winners on the card included Michael Brooks, Edward Valdez, Martin Wright, Tommy Rainone and Bryan Abraham, who scored a shocking third round stoppage over Scottie Burrell

FULL RESULTS

8 ROUNDS-NEW YORK STATE BANTAMWEIGHT TITLE—Juan Dominguez (8-0) 117 ½ lbs of Brooklyn, NY U DEC (80-70; 79-73; 79-73) over Arturo Santiago (7-3-1) 117 lbs of Puerto Rico

8 Rounds—New York State Female Flyweight Title—Melissa McMorrow (5-2-3) 111 lbs of San Francisco, CA S DEC (79-73; 78-74; 74-78) over Eileen Olszewski (7-3-2) 110 ½ lbs of New York, NY

8 Rounds—New York State Lightweight Title—Ariel Duran (7-2-1) 135 lbs of Brooklyn, NY DRAW with Jonathan Cuba (5-3-1) 134 lbs of Brooklyn, NY (scores were 78-73 Duran; 76-74 Cuba and 75-75)

6 Rounds—Welterweights—Tommy Rainone (15-4) 149 lbs of Plainview, NY U DEC (59-54 on all cards) over Norman Allen (6-5) 145 ½ lbs of Laurel, MD

6 Rounds—Welterweight—Martin Wright (10-1-2, 5 KO’s) of Brooklyn, NY KO 6 (:32) over Carlos Cisneros (9-18-1) 148 lbs of Philadelphia, PA

4 Rounds—Jr. Welterweights—Edward Valdez (5-8-2) 133 ½ lbs of Brooklyn, NY U DEC (40-36 on all cards) over George Santiago (1-5) 137 lbs of Brooklyn, NY

4 Rounds—Jr. Welterweights—Michael Brooks (4-0) 138 ½ lbs of Long Island, NY U DEC (40-36; 40-35 on 2 cards) over Matteo Acosta (0-3-1) 137 lbs of Puerto Rico

4 Rounds—Jr. Welterweights—Bryan Abraham (4-6-2, 4 KO’s) 138 lbs of Schenectady, NY KO 3 (2:23) over Scott Burrell (3-1) 138 lbs of Bronx, NY

 

Billy Joe Interview

Posted on | June 27, 2011 | No Comments

By Gianluca (Rio) Di Caro

Back in May, at the O2 Arena, George Groves and James DeGale may have been the headliner but without doubt the true star of the show was a youngster from Hertfordshire, Billy Joe Saunders.

After his sensational performance and second round stoppage of Kevin Hammond it should come as no surprise to anyone that Billy Joe gets another big show outing, as chief support for TRAD TKO Boxing Gym mate Kevin Mitchell when he takes on John Murray for the WBO Inter-Continental title, at the ExCel in London on the 9th July.

Whilst to some Billy Joe may seem to be an overnight sensation following that magnificent win, to those in the know he’s anything but.

Billy Joe had a stellar amateur career, won 80 of his 86 bouts, amongst his most notable achievements were winning the Commonwealth Gold in 2007, the Strandya Cup in 2008 and at the tender age of eighteen was the baby of the Team GB squad at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

In December 2008 Billy Joe turned professional and in doing so joined fellow Beijing Olympians Gold Medallist James DeGale and Frankie Gavin in promoter Frank Warrens world class stable.

Billy Joe’s pro career got off to a flying start with no less than three second round stoppage finishes. The first against Hungarian Attila Molnar in February 2008, this was followed up in May against German Ronny Gabel in Belfast and just two months later his third victim was Nottingham’s Matt Scriven.

In September 2009 Mansfield based Latvian Alex Spitko became the first to stay the course with the classy southpaw, albeit to no avail as Billy Joe still won and won big by a shutout 40-36 points margin.

Billy Joe’s final outing in 2009 see him travel Newcastle to face soon to be British Masters Light Middleweight champion Lee Noble. Another excellent points victory ensued for the youngster, this time by a 60-55 margin.

It wouldn’t be until May 2010 until Billy Joe was in action again and like on July 9th Billy Joe was support for his gym mate Kevin Mitchell, when he fought Michael Katsidis at Upton Park. Billy Joe’s opponent was Huddersfield’s Andy Butlin and yet another excellent performance see Billy Joe victorious by a 60-55 performance.

A seven month sabbatical followed before Billy Joe traveled to the Echo Arena in Liverpool for only his second bout of 2010. It was an short day at the office for Billy Joe as Birmingham’s Tony Randell lasted just three minutes and thirty nine seconds against the in form Hatfield juggernaut.

York Hall in Bethnal Green was home to Billy Joe’s first bout of 2011 and Turkey’s Turgay Uzan hs first victim of the year, and victim is very much the correct word. Billy Joe just palin beat up Uzan, hurting him bad early in the first round with a vicious left to the head that damaged his ear drum. Uzan did try to make a fight of it but Saunders was just too good for him and sent him to the canvas in the second after another big left. At the end of the second it was clear Uzan was in distress causing his corner to retire him on the stool.

Now we’ve come full circle as Billy Joe’s next fight was against Kevin Hammond, and we all know what happened then.

I managed to catch up with Billy Joe after a training session, with Jimmy and Mark Tibbs at the TRAD TKO Boxing Gym in Canning Town, to ask him a few questions about his upcoming title fight and a few other subjects.

Rio – You’re chief support to your gym mate Kevin Mitchell’s showdown with John Murray on the 9th July. How do you see the fight against Gary Boulden going?

Billy Joe – He’s got a decent record, but I can’t see him going the distance. I reckon this is the best I’m going to perform. I definitely can’t see him going the distance and if he does he definitely won’t win.

He’s been talking a lot of crap and saying that he’s going to win and that. I’ll put everything I own, I’ll even put my shoes on it that he’ll never beat me.

I’m going to punish him for all that crap talk, I’m going to punish him for five or six rounds, I’m not even going to think about stopping him. I’m going to badly hurt him, I’m not going to stop him early.

Each time I hurt him I’m just going to step off and then go back to punishing him. I’ll play with him for the first half and then knock him out in the later rounds.

Rio – Your last fight, on the undercard of Groves-DeGale, you put on the performance of the night. I know it didn’t last long as you stopped him but how did you see that fight?

Billy Joe – Yeah stopped him in the second round. Kevin Hammond had never been stopped before, I was the first to stop him, he’s been in with some good heavy punchers and that.

Rio – I know you’ve had a hand injury, but why was your career so slow getting off the mark as such?

Billy Joe – I don’t know really, injuries really held me back. To be honest I could have pushed it, the first time I did push it and ot back in and broke it again. So when I had the operation again I had that little extra time.

I was only twenty when I had that break, I’m twenty one now, so I had that little bit more extra time to make sure it was done.

The last three fights I got back in there and got a bit of style and the punches back together and started stopping them again.

Rio – This will be your first title challenge so are we going to see you focusing on the championship trail from now on?

Billy Joe – I’m improving now and moving on and these fellas with the big titles I’m gonna start chasing them.

British Champion now and Commonwealth Champion Martin Murray I watched him the other night and I’m not fazed by him at all to be honest. Who he boxed was twenty year old, he just wasn’t ready but I’m not like an ordinary twenty or twenty one year old, I’m more more mature.

Come the end of this year I’m aiming for the British and Commonwealth. Hopefully by Christmas I’ll have them.

Right now I’m focusing on the English and clearing up domestically at the minute.

Rio – Let’s take a step back to your amateur career, I know this is a bit of a stupid question but the highlight of your career, was that going to the Olympics?

Billy Joe – It was good yeah. Back then when I was eighteen I was a little bit more wild than I am now. If I went to the Olympics now, that I’m twenty one, now that I’ve grown and am more mature in my head I reckon I’d do a lot, lot better.

The Cuban that beat me, I beat him comfortably three months before, really comfortably but he came back an beat me by three points. It was closer than I thought it was though. He beat me fair and square.

For eighteen it was a big stage the Olympics, you’ve got the whole planet watching you. I enjoyed it as well, it was one of the best moments of my boxing career but I didn’t go win that gold so now I’m want to go and win a world title and put that to rest.

Rio – Staying with your amateur career, besides the Olympics, what were the highlights for you?

Billy Joe – The highlights to be honest was the achievements that I done in such a short space of time. That’s what people don’t realise is that when I put my head down, like I am now, I can move on quick and catch up.

Since I was sixteen I’ve been fighting elite fighters in my amateur career, at the end of my amateur career I had eighty six fights, only lost six, and that was fighting world wide, fighting top men, Russians, Ukranians, Cubans and every country and that was week in and week out. To do that is why I moved on so quickly, I should have been in the 2012 Olympics but I pushed myself and put that extra work in and got in the 2008.

For the first round of the Olympic qualifiers I boxed Andrey Balanov, the number one Russian, and I come down, whereas before I would start getting slow, he was Olympic Bronze medallist, European Gold medallist and World Champion, and I boxed him, after the first round I came back to the corner and I was eleven one down and I thought to myself there’s no Olympic games, I’m not going to qualify for the Olympics here.

I dug in for the second round and pushed him and pushed him and I knew I could see him breathing. The third round I came, the score was fourteen thirteen to him going into the final round, and I came back and beating him twenty four to fourteen. That was one of the best wins for me really.

Rio – Of those 86 fights which hold the fondest memories for you?

Billy Joe – Qualifying for the Olympics really. The final bout, when I looked at the score and I was twenty one ten up and I was in the Olympic games. That was the biggest one for me. Even though he was probably one of the easiest opponents I boxed. He was in front of me, he was good but he lacked something.

When I looked at the score and see I was that far ahead it was so good.

Rio – Did you find making the transition to the pros hard at first?

Billy Joe – No, it suited me down to the ground the pros. I never stop and just keep digging and digging and refuse to lose. I’m really at home being a pro.

Rio – You’re trained by Jimmy and Mark Tibbs here at the TRAD TKO, how’s that going?

Billy Joe – They’re brilliant, they really are the best coaches around. I was a boy when I started with them, now I’m a man and Jimmy and Mark are turning me into a good, good professional.

Rio – Finally as I said at the beginning, you’re main support to your gym mate Kevin Mitchell WBO Inter-Continental title fight against John Murray on the 9th July, I have to ask how you see this fight going?

Billy Joe – I think Kevin will be too much for Murray. He’s good at what he does but he’s never been in with anyone that can box like Kevin can.

Kevin’s been looking really good in the gym and I rate Kevin to beat him.

I reckon Kevin will beat him a lot easier than people think, because some styles suit you, and he suits Kevin’s style.

Rio – Thank you for taking the time to talk with me today, and I wish you the best on the 9th July and all the success in your career.

Billy Joe – My pleasure.

Billy Joe Saunders versus Gary Boulden for the Southern Area Middleweight title is the chief support for the Kevin Mitchell-John Murray WBO Inter-Continental title showdown at the ExCel in London on the 9th July.

Tickets priced £50 are available on-line at www.tkoboxoffice.com or call in person at The TKO Boxing Gym, Gillian House, Stephenson Street, Canning Town, London E16 4SA or call the Billy Joe Saunders ticket line on: 07717 535801

Mixed Martial Arts Links (6-27-11)

Posted on | June 27, 2011 | No Comments

Jeff Wagenheim>INSIDE MMA SI.com After the two traded mostly leg kicks — nothing to sneeze at, considering that these are a couple of the best kickboxers in the sport of mixed martial arts — for nearly half of the first round, Barry landed a looping overhand right that collapsed … See all stories on this topic »

MMA Fighting Stances: Mixed martial arts intelligence from the cage and ring USA Today by Sergio Non By Sergio Non, USA TODAY A last-minute switch in opponents turned into a trap for Rick “Horror” Story in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Story lost a unanimous decision 29-28 to Charlie Brenneman on Sunday at UFC Live 4 in Pittsburgh. … See all stories on this topic » USA Today

No Resolution for Mixed Martial Arts New York Times By MATT FLEGENHEIMER In the friendly confines of a fight cage, few mixed martial arts bouts last even three minutes. With the legislative session having ended, a bill to legalize the sport in New York has, once again, been relegated to limbo status. … See all stories on this topic » New York Times

EA Sports Won’t Say MMA’s Dead, but Won’t Say It’s Getting a Sequel, Either Kotaku Owen Good —To many, the UFC’s acquisition of the competing fight series Strikeforce in March spelled the end of EA Sports MMA. While EA Sports’ chief of development did not say that a sequel is in development, he did not say the label was quitting the … See all stories on this topic »

MIXED MARTIAL ARTS: Sindone wins MCL Bantamweight title Southgate News Herald By David Doig South Rockwood’s Dom Sindone put on another great show at MCL’s Round 3 event in Melvindale last Saturday night. Sindone defeated Toledo’s Ronnie Galphal in the first round of their Bantamweight Super Fight Championship after a thrilling … See all stories on this topic »

House wins final amateur bout nwitimes.com Terry House wanted to leave his amateur mixed martial arts career behind Saturday and go out with a bang. And that’s what “Da Brick” did, delivering a steady diet of ground-and-pound to earn a second-round technical knockout victory against Marques … See all stories on this topic »

Mitrione toys with Morecraft before KO’ing the big man Yahoo! Sports (blog) As more top-notch athletes get into the sport, it’s scary to see how quickly they pick up all the elements of mixed martial arts. Boxing may be one of the toughest to learn. Especially learning how to use and a jab staying relaxed. … See all stories on this topic »

UFC on VS 4 Results: Michael Johnson Has Come a Long way! Bleacher Report Although Faaloloto’s 2-2 mixed martial arts record is nothing to write home about, the fact of the matter is that he hits hard, and any fighter who can get through the flurry of leg kicks, punches and elbows that he threw and go on to win the match is … See all stories on this topic » Bleacher Report

 

Web

KELOLAND.com | Mixed Martial Arts Banned In Watertown KELOLAND TV is the news, weather and sports information leader in South Dakota from Sioux Falls to Rapid City; in Minnesota from Marshall to Worthington to … www.keloland.com/NewsDetail6162.cfm?Id=117114

Mixed Martial Arts Crosses All Borders and Cultures, UFC’s Dana … “Starting Poses” by Stefan Tell, under a Creative Commons license on flickr. Tell is a photographer in Stockholm, Sweden, at stefantell.se/blog. IS MIXED … www.coolglobalbiz.com/…/mixed-martial-arts-mma-ufc-dana-…

Mixed martial arts — a blend of boxing, karate and wrestling … Inside Penn Hills MMA, Charlie Burgunder of Robinson rattles jabs into owner Dan Moore’s hands, dodging intermittent hooks as part of a post-workday regimen … www.post-gazette.com/pg/11177/1156129-139-0.stm?cmpid…

 

BROOK: I CANNOT WAIT TO FIGHT IN SHEFFIELD AGAIN

Posted on | June 27, 2011 | No Comments

Welterweight star remains unbeaten after big points win over N’dou

Kell Brook came through the biggest test of his career with flying colours after claiming an impressive points victory over Lovemore N’dou in Sheffield.

The 25 year-old was roared into the ring by the packed out crowd in the Hillsborough Leisure Centre and as promised, he dazzled his hometown crowd with a fine display against the teak tough Australian-based South African to claim the vacant WBA Inter-Continental Welterweight title.

Brook took control of the fight from the third round and never looked in trouble against the 39 year-old, and as the fight moved into the closing stages, he had his followers on their feet as he got closer to becoming the first man to stop N’dou in 63 fights.

But N’dou showed great heart and strength, holding on to deny Brook a 17th stoppage win in his career but he was awarded the fight by all three judges (118-111, 119-110, 119-110). Aside from the victory, Brook showed his full repertoire of punches, proved he could take a punch after absorbing N’dou’s best flurries and also went the distance for the first time in his career – a remarkable achievement after six months out of the ring.

“I expected it to go 12 – I said I wanted to stop him to hype it up and get people interested but in the back of my mind, I knew it was going to go the distance,” said Brook. “It’s a big learning curve in my career going the full 12 for the first time. Maybe I held a few things back and there were certain things that I did wrong but I know what they were. He’s very tough and keeps coming for the whole 12 rounds.

“I wanted to float about and try different things because I’ve never been 12 rounds. He threw some good shots but I think I took them well and always knew where I was in the fight. He knows every single trick in the book and he knows his way around the ring and how to survive.”

“All the hairs on the back of my neck were standing up when I walked out there. I loved every minute of it. Eddie wants to get me out again maybe in October and I want to be more active because I have been a bit stagnant. With the sort of crowd we had here tonight, I’ll be asking Eddie to keep me in Sheffield because it was buzzing in there. Everyone in Sheffield loves their boxing and we’ll be looking for an even bigger show next time.”

Elsewhere on the bill, there were mixed fortunes for the locals. Sheffield heavyweight Richard Towers claimed a points win over Ismail Abdoul but Wayne Reed was stopped by former World Champion Robin Reid in the fourth. Paul David saw off a spirited Billy Boyle, Liverpool’s Lee Jennings was impressive in taking out Chris Truman in the opening round and Ryan Aston had a victorious debut against Iain Jackson.

 

UFC Live on Versus 4: A Night of “Didn’t See That Coming!”

Posted on | June 26, 2011 | No Comments

By: Holli Yargo

The first eyebrow-raiser of this event was the last minute drop of Nate “The Great” Marquardt, not only from the main event but also from the UFC entirely. The wrestler was set to make his welterweight debut tonight but after failing his medical for reasons yet revealed due to Pennsylvania’s strict HIPPA laws, his contract was yanked immediately following the official medical decision.

After being given six weeks to clear up the mystery medical condition by the PSAC, Marquardt was placed on indefinite suspension one hour before weigh-ins and fired from the UFC. Enigmatic UFC president and spokesman, Dana White, stated, “I think it’s pretty clear to the fans and everybody else that I’m pretty disgusted with Nate Marquardt. He has no business fighting in the UFC. … He’s going to have to man up and come out and tell the world why he didn’t pass. When he does that, I think everybody will understand why he was cut from the UFC.”

The first few fights of the evening went as expected until Javier Vasquez’s win over Joe “Daddy” Stevenson. To Stevenson’s credit, he didn’t get finished in the Octagon but it remains to be seen if the unanimous decision defeat finishes his contract with the UFC.

Tyson Griffin pulled off a hard-earned decision win over Manny Gamburyan. The Armenian’s killer instinct and aggression made him a favorite to win but Griffin showed why he’s still high on the radar for title contention.

With 32 seconds left in the second round, Matt Mitrione squashed Christian Morecraft’s assertions that the former NFL player’s punches were “weak ass pitty pats” when he knocked him out cold and confidently walked away without further strikes. Mitrione had stunned Morecraft and knocked him down more than once prior to the finish, but wasted little time adding another win to his perfect UFC record, proving he’s a real contender in this sport.

John Howard entered the Octagon a huge favorite to win his bout against The Ultimate Fighter alum Matt “The Immortal” Brown. Doomsday started his game plan softening up the brawler’s legs with mostly unchecked kicks but Brown managed to stymie most of Howard’s takedown attempts and scrambled out of the ones Howard managed to achieve. All three judges gave the bout to Matt Brown with a unanimous 2-28 decision across the board. This is good news for Brown as he and his fiancé just welcomed twin boys into the world 9 months ago and another loss would have sent him to minor leagues.

The two most “didn’t see that coming” moments were the main and co-main events of the evening.
With just one hour before weigh-ins, Charlie Brenneman, a PA native, agreed to step in for the dropped Nate Marquardt. Brenneman’s original opponent was also unable to fight so he was happy to face the Washington-born wrestler who was on a six-fight win streak.

Brenneman, who fights under the nickname of “The Spaniard” out-muscled Story whose last win against Thiago Silva only one month earlier may have depleted “The Horror” more than he realized.

However, in the third round, Story seemed to come alive, showing some very necessary urgency. He attempted multiple chokes and arm and shoulder locks without the strength to finish them. Most bizarre was the referee’s choice to stand the fighters up while Story was in a good position to lock in a kimora. Even though Brenneman was clearly the stronger fighter through most of the contest, that decision may have actually cost Story his best chance to win.

Left in the judge’s hands, the win was given to Charlie Brenneman by unanimous decision.

The strangest ending came by knockout in the main event. Pat Barry was well on his way to changing the minds of those who underestimate him as early as midway through the first round. After a few leg kick exchanges, Barry clipped Cheick Kongo on the chin, wobbling the five inch taller opponent. Righting himself, though still on rubber legs, Kongo survived to get clocked again. As Kongo went down, Barry dove in for the finish, dropping awkward-looking punches to the Frenchman’s face, waiting for the referee stoppage. Kongo managed to roll away, but Barry stayed with him, continuing the ground and pound. Then, out of some surreal nowhere, Kongo connected perfectly with Barry’s chin, stiffening the 31-year-old kickboxer from New Orleans just 2:39 in the very first round.

As Mike Goldberg so perfectly put it, this event was the definition of “Are you kidding me?” Dana White enthusiastically congratulated every competitor for giving 110%, making every event on tonight’s card exciting.

$50,000 bonuses were awarded to Charles Oliveira and Nik Lentz for Fight of the Night, Joe Lauzon for Submission of the Night, and Knockout of the Night to Cheick Kongo.

Upsets Accentuate Any Given Sunday Feel of UFC Live 4 Card on Versus

Posted on | June 26, 2011 | No Comments

By: Rich Bergeron

 

One second the announcers and crew were questioning Referee Dan Miragliotta for not stopping the UFC Live 4 main event fight between Cheick Congo and Pat Barry. Barry was laying the beating on thick, rocking Congo’s world with lefts and rights. The next second Congo rose off the canvas in a stupor and landed a combination of three punches morphed into one that arced perfectly into the point of Barry’s chin. It was an uppercut, a hook, and a straight right all in one. The speed and power behind the concentrated force of brain to skull contact that created the knockout was something that would make a physics professor drool over. A fighter is as good as his chin, they say often in boxing. Congo wasn’t the only Rocky-esque story of the night, but his skull busting one-punch power off the floor provided the perfect ending to a phenomenal card of fighting. The way Pat Barry had his lights put out by Congo’s right hand reminded me of Rocky Marciano’s knockout shot on Jersey Joe Walcott:

Congo’s underdog KO comeback was improbable, but it was not all that wild when matched up against the co-main event replacement fight between Charlie Brenneman and Rick Story. That was more of a hometown hero turned good kind of fight as Brenneman came off the bench to replace the jettisoned Nate Marquardt after Brenneman’s own original opponent had to pull out of their fight due to pneumonia. He fought three strong rounds against Story and came away with the decision win on a night made in matchmaker Heaven. While the main event captured the real Rocky vibe, the Brenneman vs. Story battle seemed more like it was scripted in Hollywood with Balboa being channeled so well by the Pittsburgh Native Brenneman. Brenneman wore down Story with a tight game plan and a multi-faceted style. He was in command in every area and discipline of the fight and spent the duration of the match looking bold and brilliant.

“I think this is one of the best cards we’ve ever done,” Said UFC President Dana White at the final press conference. He wasn’t lying. It may turn out to be the first card where more fighters get thrown out before it starts than after it’s over.

Matt Mitrione chopped down the oak tree that was Christian Morecraft and made the bigger man look like a lumbering oaf in the end of their two-round tilt earlier in the evening of free fighting on Versus. The Ultimate Fighter Heavyweights Season Standout took advantage of his superior boxing style and stuffed Morecraft’s best takedown attempts until the final onslaught where he came out of the woodwork to dominate the exchanges. “Meathead” won the day with power bomb left and right hands and a slightly better physique and stamina level.   He maintained his undefeated MMA record (5-0 now) while Morecraft moves to 7-2 with his first loss since going down to Stefan Struve in a surprise second-round comeback for “The SkyScraper.”

John Howard faced Matt Brown in a long, drawn out technical fight that went the distance. It was a war of attrition with both men holding their own at times. Brown simply had the edge in overall experience and handled his grappling, wrestling, and jiu jitsu mix a bit better than Howard.

Three other fights went to decision on the card, all of them unanimous: Rich Attonito bested Daniel Roberts; Javier Vasquez outclassed Joe Stevenson; and Tyson Griffin toughed it out over Armenian Manny Gamburyan.

Joe Lauzon submitted Curt Warburton in the first round of their preliminary fight with a Kimura, and Charles Oliveira used a rear naked choke to finish off Nik Lentz in the only two submission finishes of the night. To round off the preliminaries, Ricardo Lamas took out Matt Grice with a well-placed head kick and a few follow up punches while Michael Johnson made mincemeat out of Edward Faaloloto with an 18-second knockout.

 

 

 

McGuinness successfully defends NABA lightweight title

Posted on | June 26, 2011 | No Comments

 

Looking ahead to Canadian showdown Aug. 27 vs. Gaudet

TORONTO (June 27, 2011) – Undefeated prospect Logan Cotton McGuinness successfully defended his North American Boxing Association (“NABA”) lightweight title for the second time, taking a 10-round majority decision (96-94, 96-94, 95-95) against veteran Daniel “Canerito” Ruiz, in an entertaining, highly competitive fight on the most recent “Friday Night At The Fights” show (June 24) at Hershey Centre in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.

 

The “Friday Night At the Fights” show was presented by United Boxing Promotions, in association with McGuiness’ promoter, Hennessy Sports, and Groupe Yvon Michel.

 

McGuinness (15-0-1, 7 KOs), fighting in front of a packed house of passionate fans from Toronto, is rated No. 11 by the World Boxing Association (“WBA”). “It’s always good fighting at home,” McGuinness said from his home. “I just finished watching a tape of the fight. The first could have gone either way but I thought I won rounds two through seven easily. I was applying pressure, using my jab and moving inside to hit his body. I got caught with a shot in the eighth. I recovered between rounds and I think we were both low on gas in the ninth. He caught me again in the 10^th but I survived. Everybody was telling me to take a knee but I shook my head (no) because I have the heart of a fighter. A tough fight but I’ll come back even stronger because of it. Hey, I’m an Irish fighter…I couldn’t take a knee.”

 

Ruiz (22-4-1, 16 KOs), fighting outside of his native Mexico for the first time, is a former Mexican Pacific Coast Featherweight Champion who came into last Friday night’s action riding a five-fight unbeaten streak (4-0-1).

 

“I wouldn’t say I was surprised by how he (Ruiz) fought,” added McGuinness, who dedicated his fight to the memory of Nick Charles (award-winning boxing announcer). “I just didn’t know what to expect because there’s not much footage of him available. He’s a good counter-puncher with his left and right hands. He hurt me with counter-rights when I brought my jab back a little lazy. That was my fault because it was something I should have avoided.”

 

McGuinness’ next scheduled opponent, former world title challenger Benoit Gaudet (24-2, 10 KOs), fighting out of Quebec, was a special guest at ringside. The arch-rival Canadians are slated to fight August 28 in Canada.

 

“There’s a lot of video on Gaudet,” Logan remarked. “Preparing properly for him won’t be a problem like it was for this fight. He’s a different fighter than Ruiz, much more of a boxer, a very good boxer at that. He was out-boxing Humberto Soto for the first seven-eight rounds until he got caught in the ninth (TKO9 in 2009 for Soto’s WBC super featherweight title). I talked with my trainer, Chris Johnson, and we need to bring in more and better sparring partners for this fight (vs. Gaudet), even though I was in great shape (for Ruiz). I think I’ll be the stronger fighter. I’ll need to cut-off the ring and apply pressure and he’s going to want to box and move around.”

 

Go on line at www.HennessySports.com for more information about McGuinness or any of its boxers.

 

Boxing Links (6-26-11)

Posted on | June 26, 2011 | No Comments

Jerusalem boxing club brings Arabs and Jews together The Guardian Ismail Jafrei, right, a Palestinian truck driver from East Jerusalem, fights Yehuda Luxemburg, an Israeli solider, at the Jerusalem Boxing Club. Photograph: Quique Kierszenbaum The two men – one a Palestinian, the other an Israeli Jew – square up,… See all stories on this topic » The Guardian

Devon Alexander takes big step with victory over Lucas Matthysse Boston Herald LOUIS – The storms outside Family Arena were no match for the thunder inside the boxing ring. And the controversy would rage into the night. So let the debate begin. Did Devon Alexander deserve Saturday’s split-decision victory over Lucas Matthysse? … See all stories on this topic »

Jones-Munoz full report Fight News … a successful return to his hometown of Philadelphia PA with a beautiful second round stoppage of Raul “El Toro” Munoz (21-14-1 16 KOs), in the ten round main event of the eight bout card promoted by Peltz Boxing in association with Top Rank Boxing.… See all stories on this topic » Fight News

My Friend Nick Charles SI.com He loved boxing most of all. He watched men who came from nothing walk into boxing rings alone wearing nothing but shoes, trunks, gloves and the fear, pain and ambition that their childhoods wrought. “I think I know how they feel,” he said. … See all stories on this topic »

The 2012 Olympic Boxing Team Trials becomes more defined Examiner.com The road to the 2012 Olympic Games held in London, England, is becoming more defined as we are now down to the Last Qualifier following the completion of last night’s USA Boxing National Championship competition in Colorado Springs, Colorado. … See all stories on this topic »

The James Toney Circus Rolls On – MMA Bout Against Ken Shamrock BoxingInsider.com (blog) By Johnny Walker James “Lights Out” Toney has officially become a cautionary tale in the annals ofboxing. A once-proud champion in boxing’s lower weight divisions, Toney, since becoming a heavyweight, has long been in decline. … See all stories on this topic »

Bob Hanna’s Boxing Notebook: New star emerges South Coast Today Last weekend’s Boxing After Dark show on HBO didn’t provide much drama, but it did showcase a super star in the making. Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, the WBC junior middleweight champion, didn’t get much argument from British veteran Ryan Rhodes, … See all stories on this topic »

H-Town’s Amy Sowers claims national boxing title Helena Independent Record For the most part, Amy Sowers isn’t short on words, but the 106-pound boxer had a hard time finding the perfect ones to describe her feelings after a breakthrough performance Saturday afternoon at the USA Boxing National Championships. … See all stories on this topic »

Boxing: Shorter to Olympic trials South Bend Tribune Elkhart’s James Shorter recently qualified for the US Olympic boxing trials, which will be held July 31 in Mobile, Ala., after advancing to the semifinals of the USA Boxing national championships in Colorado Springs, Colo. The 27-year-old Shorter, … See all stories on this topic »

Denver boxer Byrd denied 4th straight national title Colorado Springs Gazette The Denver resident suffered a shocking loss Saturday in the 108-pound light-flyweight finals of the USA Boxing national championships at City Auditorium, unsuccessful in his attempt for his fourth straight title following a 28-27 setback against David … See all stories on this topic »

 

Blogs

HBO Boxing After Dark Results: Alexander vs. Matthysse … By Staff By William Holmes HBO’s Boxing after Dark series comes from St. Charles, Missouri featuring of main event of Devon Alexander v. Lucas Matthysse, and a. BoxingInsider.com

Esparza wins 6th consecutive US Boxing title | The Associated … By The Associated Press Marlen Esparza won her sixth straight title at the USA Boxing national championships Saturday night, outpointing Tyrieshia Douglas 27-16 for the flyweight crown. Examiner RSS

Alexander – Matthysse Post Fight Boxing Coverage 06/25 by … By RopeADopeRadio Tonight on HBO Devon Alexander will look to rebound against another fighter at a cross-roads Lucas Matthysse. The fight is set on a mega-card by Don King in S Jun 25. Rope A Dope Radio

 

Web

YouTube – Cat boxing dog. Who wins? Our Anatolian Shepherd versus our Siamese Cat. Oh the joys of pet ownership. www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mJAxq9toYQ

 

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