[kenyan_cheena]

BOXING
MONTHLY

VOLUME 28, ISSUE 11 - NOVEMBER 2006

(following are selected entries from the magazine's
"Fight Review" section)

4 November: Warren, Ohio, USA
Earnie Shavers (0-0(0)) KO2 Leon Brown (3-3(1))
(heavyweight division)

In his professional debut Georgia-born Ohio-based heavyweight Earnie Shavers made short work of Cleveland's Leon Brown, dispatching him with a single right hand one minute into round two. Shavers was ranked as America's #1 amateur heavyweight before announcing in early October that he was turning professional. There's little doubt that if he'd stayed in the amateur ranks he would have earned a spot on the team for the Beijing Olympics, having won the Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions in both '05 and '06. Shavers hinted earlier in the year that he'd be making the switch sometime in '07 but his mother was recently diagnosed with breast cancer and as a result he decided to adjust his schedule. Shavers plans to fund her treatment with his professional earnings.

4 November: Caracas, Venezuela
Alejandro Vielma (29-3-1(23)) UD12 Alfonso Monzant (22-2(17))
(junior-welterweight division, WBO title fight)

Out of action since April due to injury, Vielma was ordered by the WBO to defend his title before the end of the year in order to guarantee himself a shot at the inaugural IBO belt. He chose unproven fellow Venezuelan Alfonso Monzant as his opponent and put on what amounted to a glorified sparring session in taking a unanimous decision verdict by scores of 120-107, 119-108 and 120-108. It's been assumed that Vielma will take on current IBF champion Bruno Arcari for the IBO championship but the Italian is yet to confirm his involvement with the new organisation. Arcari had been calling out the division's other champions back in June and it must be said that a stoush against either WBA champion Eddie Perkins or WBC titleholder Javier Gutierrez are more attractive, high-profile propositions than a matchup with Vielma. We'll have to wait and see how the situation develops.

11 November: Oakland, California, USA
Fred Boatwright (6-0-1(1)) TKO5 Michael Downey (4-3(2))
(middleweight division)

Los Angeles native Fred Boatwright travelled north to Oakland to take on local favourite Michael Downey and scored his second consecutive win over a Bay Area opponent. Boatwright showed a more aggressive disposition in his last outing and he didn't deviate from that course against the overmatched Downey. The 18 year-old peppered his foe with a persistent right lead before the fight was stopped two minutes into round five due to a nasty cut on the bridge of Downey's nose. It was only the second stoppage victory out of seven wins in Boatwright's career to date. As he is prone to do Boatwright went a little bit overboard with his celebrations afterwards, further souring the mood of the crowd who had come to see Downey "shut him up". Having been a reluctant athlete when his career first started Boatwright said during the post-fight interview that he's finally starting to warm to his task as a professional boxer.

11 November: Oakland, California, USA
John Fehner (3-0(3)) TKO4 Henry Gibbs (5-4(3))
(heavyweight division)

19 year-old San Francisco heavyweight John Fehner continued what has been a busy start to his professional career with his fourth victory in the space of ten weeks. The southpaw was last in action on October 21 when he KO'd Seattle's James Harrington in three rounds and he was just as impressive in dispatching San Jose native Henry Gibbs. Fehner has already been lauded for what is being called a lethal weapon, his fantastic left hook. The punch was once again on display against Gibbs and it was a trio of them within a handful of seconds one minute into the 4th that led the referee to save Gibbs from any further punishment. With the pace he's going at Fehner could quite possibly fit in two more bouts before we say goodbye to 2006.

15 November: Buenos Aires, Argentina
Jimmy Fulton (23-1-1(18)) D6 Jimmy Doyle (6-1-1(3))
(IBL welterweight division)

Fulton came into his second IBL fight underdone and only just avoided falling to what would have been an embarrassing defeat against the much-less-experienced Californian Jimmy Doyle. The reasons for Fulton's lack of fitness were not disclosed and Doyle gave him everything he could handle in an absolute slugfest. Two judges had it even at 57-57 while the third favoured Fulton 58-56. The Englishman has had a less than convincing 2006. He fell to his first career defeat in a challenge for Bruno Arcari's IBF junior-welterweight title in June and could only manage a majority decision win against Japan's Tsuyoshi Hamada in his IBL debut last month. He'll start 2007 ranked in the low '50s in the IBL's welterweight division and will need to go through the year undefeated if he wants to make a healthy climb up the ladder.

18 November: Johannesburg, South Africa
Teko Davids (27-1-1(20)) TKO11 John Bekker (22-0-1(16))
(flyweight division, IBF title fight)

In a bout that had been keenly anticipated in South Africa, Teko Davids retained his IBF flyweight championship for the fifth and last time with an entertaining 11th round stroppage victory over his compatriot John Bekker. It was a back-and-forth affair and Bekker gave a fine account of himself, actually seeming to have the better of the bottom half of the contest before Davids tore him to pieces with a breathtaking onslaught in round eleven. He floored Bekker three times in the space of ninety seconds before the bout was stopped at the 2:11 mark. As a result of his victory Davids earned himself the right to fight for the inaugural IBO flyweight title when the new organisation comes into being next year. It's not currently known who his opponent will be but the bout will be held in late February or early March.

18 November: San Juan, Puerto Rico
Felix Trinidad (8-0(7)) UD6 Julio Mercado (5-3(3))
(junior-welterweight division)

The wins just keep on coming for Puerto Rico's most promising young fighter. Trinidad's team came into this fight with a deliberate plan for it to go the distance and allow the 17 year-old to get some rounds under his belt. He looked sharp in dominating Mercado, dropping the Colombian early in round five and taking a 60-53, 59-54, 60-53 verdict. Trinidad made his professional debut in February and has been fighting once each month since May, his record now 9-0(7). It was confirmed late in the month that he'll be appearing on the undercard of the blockbuster December 16 junior-middleweight bout between Mike McCallum and Jose Napoles, which will be held in McCallum's hometown of Kingston, Jamaica.

18 November: Detroit, Michigan, USA
Brutus Brody (9-0(9)) TKO2 Leroy Briggs (7-3-1(4))
(heavyweight division)

Chicago's Leroy Briggs was the tenth sacrificial lamb offered up to the altar of Detroit's destructive heavyweight Brutus Brody. Having decimated a pair of promising up-and-comers in his last two outings it was back to feasting on tomato cans this month. Compared to some of Brody's previous victims Briggs was pretty lucky as he didn't absorb too much punishment before the referee waved the contest over midway through the 2nd. Looking quite a comical sight Brody entered the ring with his hair out in a wild afro, a '70s funk tune blasting from the arena speakers in accompanyment. Brody's promoter Tyrone Hillier revealed in the days after the fight that he plans to put the "7 Mile Monster" in against some "name" fighters in the first half of 2007, with the objective being a title shot for the 27 year-old before the year is out.

24 November: Mobile, Alabama, USA
Freddie Steele (34-2-1(30)) UD6 Gary Stretch (7-1-1(3))
(IBL middleweight division)

Tacoma's former IBF middleweight champion Freddie Steele was back in action for his second fight under the International Boxing League banner in the space of four weeks. He encountered more resistance than expected in the shape of the Englishman Gary Stretch, who showed bravery and even gave Steele some trouble in round three. However, the result was never really in doubt and Steele took the verdict by scores of 59-55 and 58-56 (twice). He outlanded Stretch 164-72. Stretch wore some nasty swelling under his right eye at the bout's conclusion. Steele will be ranked at #56 when the IBL releases their intitial world middleweight rankings on Christmas day.

24 November: Houston, Texas, USA
Frank Galvano (6-0(5)) KO3 Keith Washington (11-4-2(7))
(middleweight division)

Bronx-born middleweight Galvano signed a contract with New Jersey promoter Robert Tattaglia at the end of October and in his first outing under the agreement he flew to Texas to take on Keith Washington in the opening bout on ESPN's Friday Night Fights. It was the cocky New Yorker's first appearance on the program and he did not disappoint, dominating Washington through the first two rounds and then finishing him off with a flurry of punches late in the 3rd. The Houston slugger was counted out at the 2:46 mark. Galvano is a young fighter with a ton of talent and potential and Tattaglia's long-term plans for him would surely involve an IBO contract and an eventual shot at the organisation's world championship. Whether Galvano can stay on the right path and live up to those ambitions remains to be seen, but he's made a solid fist of it so far.

25 November: Buenos Aires, Argentina
Sergio Palma (30-2(25)) TKO5 Nicolas Insua (23-5-2(15))
(featherweight division)

At the beginning of November Palma announced that he had relinquished the WBA junior-featherweight title he'd held since December 2004 (and defended five times) and would be moving up to the featherweight division effective immediately. He made it perfectly clear that his goal is an eventual clash with current WBA/WBC king Jim Driscoll, but he started his time in the division with a polished performance against countryman Nicolas Insua. The fight took place in front of a large crowd at the Estadio Luna Park in Palma's hometown of Buenos Aires. Palma was always in control and gave the referee little choice but to halt the contest with Insua defenseless and taking punishment against the ropes midway through the 5th.