The Greatest Prize in Sports

[kenyan_cheena]

The New York Age

SATURDAY, 2 SEPTEMBER, 2006

TOP SEEDS TO SQUARE OFF
FOR IBL WELTERWEIGHT TITLE

Story by James Reynolds

Mexico's Enrique Diaz and Virgin Islands-born New Yorker Emile Griffith became the first fighters to book a place in an IBL world title fight last night, both scoring 12-round decision victories in semi-final bouts at Mexico City's Arena Coliseo. Appearing in the main event Diaz overcame a mighty challenge from Cleveland native Marvyn Rollins before taking a unanimous verdict by scores of 116-112 and 115-113 (twice). Rollins had come within a whisker of dethroning WBA junior-welterweight champion Eddie Perkins in April before scoring a split decision win over Ike Quartey in both men's first IBL bout in June. Some observers believed that a third big fight in the space of five months would be too much for him to handle and, when one looks at the final result, that appears to be true. But through the first seven rounds Rollins was very much in the fight and trailed by just a single point on all three cards.

But Enrique Diaz is nothing if not a determined customer and he effectively ended Rollins' quest to be crowned the league's first welterweight world champion by dominating rounds eight, nine and ten. The former WBO title holder looked fantastic in decimating Roger Menetrey in the quarters and last night he was similarly impressive, but for different reasons. He fought on the outside for much of the contest, putting on a brilliant display of counter punching against the more aggressive Rollins. Even when Rollins became desperate in the final rounds and went all out for a stoppage Diaz never lost his composure. He outlanded Rollins by a considerable margin, connecting with 314 of 860 punches (36.5%) while the Ohio slugger landed 228 of 1,100 (20.7%). Diaz improved to 30-1(22) while Rollins lost for the second time in three fights to fall to 30-3-1(22).

The tournament's #1 seed Emile Griffith scraped through by the skin of his teeth in the co-feature, defeating Germany's Gustav Eder by majority decision (114-113, 114-114, 114-113). Griffith had also won his quarter-final against Phialdelphia's Meldrick Taylor by majority decision but he was much closer to defeat last night than he was back in June. Eder is a fantastic fighter who made the former WBA champ earn his victory the hard way, never backing down and pushing his adversary all the way to the final bell. A number of rounds were very close and therefore difficult to score. As an example the American judge Nathan Palmer gave rounds two through four to Griffith, while Korea's Wan-Soo Yuh scored each of them in Eder's favour. Griffith has been considered the best welterweight in the world for the last couple of years but it would be true to say he has not exactly set the world on fire in his opening two IBL contests. As was the case against Taylor, Griffith was deducted a point last night. It came in the 9th when he hit Eder in the kidneys one time too many. Griffith's record is now 29-1-1(22), Eder falling to 26-2(17).

Based on the performances of Griffith and Diaz through the quarters and semis the Mexican would have to be considered a slight favourite to emerge with the championship. For far too long the 27 year-old has been underrated and unappreciated and if he can lift that championship belt come December 4 it would be a fantastic achievement. He'll give Griffith one of the biggest tests of his career and it should be an outstanding contest.

In the evening's openers Ghana's Ike Quartey and the Puerto Rican Carmelo Barea were both victorious in eight-round world ranking bouts. Both were defeated in the quarters of the world championship tournament and would have been happy to get back in the winner's circle, albeit against opponents who were not quite of the same class. Quartey floored Charley Scott twice on the way to a unanimous decision nod while Barea won by 6th round technical unanimous decision after his contest with Charlie Shipes was halted due to a cut over the Californian's right eye. It had been opened by an accidental headbutt in round four.

***

Results

(#1) Griffith MD12 (#4) Eder
(#2) Diaz UD12 (#6) Rollins

IBL World Welterweight Championship,
Friday 8 December

(#1) Emile Griffith (29-1-1(22)) vs (#2) Enrique Diaz (30-1(22))

***

[kenyan_cheena]

THE OHIO EXPRESS

Sunday, 3 September, 2006

LAMPKIN OUTDUELS DURAN
IN MILAN THRILLER

Story by Jerry Anderson

In one of the most dramatic boxing matches in years Youngstown native Jeff Lampkin earned himself a shot at becoming the International Boxing League's inaugural World Junior-Heavyweight Champion with a majority decision win over Italy's Massimiliano Duran last night. Fighting in front of a crowd that was 100% behind Duran at Milan's Agora Stadium 7th-seeded Lampkin followed up his upset quarter-final win over former light-heavyweight champion Maurice Holmes with an effort that was built on determination and aggression. Duran had surprised the boxing world by defeating Canada's two-time Olympic gold medallist Sam Langford in the quarters and was expected to have an easier time against Lampkin, who despite having a quartet of wins over former world champions on his resume has never held a world title himself.

The opening two rounds were less than remarkable, with Duran taking the 1st and Lampkin doing just enough to claim the 2nd. But the fight came to life in round three when Lampkin floored Duran with a flush uppercut after just sixteen seconds. The Italian was up at three and Lampkin punished him through the rest of the round, finding the mark with some hard body shots but failing to put him away. Lampkin maintained the momentum with some brilliant work in the 4th and 5th stanzas, with the referee appearing on the verge of calling it off late in round four. The Ohio slugger was landing crisp, clean combinations and as he returned to his corner following the 5th Duran looked a beaten man. But he answered back strongly in rounds six and seven, taking both to give his fans some hope.

Those hopes appeared to be dashed in the 8th when Lampkin sent Duran to the canvas for a second time, a left-right-left salvo thirty seconds in dropping the 3rd seed on his backside. He barely beat the count, lurching to his feet at eight. Lampkin landed a crunching right and a big uppercut before the round was over and as the fight entered round nine he was in complete control. But Duran rallied once again, having the crowd on their feet when he dropped Lampkin not once but twice in the frame. The first came just after the round had entered its bottom half. Lampkin was winning it and Duran's right eye was getting more swollen with every left jab but a right hand stunned the 29 year-old and a flush left hook dropped him. He was up at five and seemed okay, especially when he caught Duran with a counter left hook. But with twenty seconds to go Duran caught him right on the chin with a sizzling uppercut. This time Lampkin was not okay and he struggled to his feet at eight. He saw out the round but looked in real trouble during the intermission.

Unsurprisingly the action slowed in the 10th, Duran taking it almost entirely due to the jolting right cross he landed shortly before the bell. Round eleven appeared to be going his way also but when Lampkin unleashed a hard left to the body ten seconds from the bell Duran was down for the third time in the fight. He took a knee, the shot taking the wind out of his sails. Duran recovered to finish all guns blazing in the 12th, catching a tiring Lampkin with a big uppercut and a series of stinging combos. He could only wonder whether it would be enough as the judges tallied their scorecards. When the verdict was revealed Lampkin screamed and fell to his knees triumphantly. The majority decision verdict was his by scores of 113-110, 112-112 and 113-112. Duran could only shake his head, as heartbroken as the 5,000 fans in attendance. Both fighters landed exactly 312 punches, the more aggressive Lampkin connecting at 31.6% and Duran at 62.2%.

It was supposed to have been a night of glory for Italian boxing but before Lampkin and Duran had even stepped foot in the ring the audience was already in a disappointed mood after Angelo Rottoli's exit from the tournament in the co-feature. Like his quarter-final against Alexander Petkovick, Rottoli's clash with Puerto Rico's #1 seed Carlos DeLeon ended as a draw, sending DeLeon through to the championship match. Like the main event it was a superb, competitive affair and to be truthful a draw was probably a fitting result. DeLeon held a two-point advantage on all three cards through the first eight rounds but Rottoli finished strongly, sweeping the final four on one card and winning three of them on another. Rottoli suffered a cut in round seven from an accidental headclash and it became serious enough in round eleven that the referee had the ringside doctor take a look at it. Despite being the top seed DeLeon has struggled to show his best in the tournament, only just edging Uriah Grant by split decision in the quarters before last night's dramatic bout.

Earlier in the evening former WBA light-heavyweight champion Maurice Holmes scored his first victory since coming out of retirement, the 34 year-old defeating the Algerian Mohamed Azzaoui by unanimous decision in an eight-rounder to improve to 39-4-1(33). Holmes said afterwards that he's determined to make it to the top of the junior-heavyweight division, no matter how long it takes. The Brooklyn native will most likely be ranked just outside the top ten once the tournament is over and if he can go through 2007 undefeated should be in a good position to challenge for the title during '08. Germany's Alexander Petkovick was also victorious last night, knocking out Robert Daniels in the 8th and final round of a bout that Daniels was clearly winning. It was a dramatic start to the evening, a clear harbinger of what was to come.

---

Results

(#1) DeLeon D12 (#4) Rottoli
(#7) Lampkin MD12 (#3) Duran

World Championship, 9 December

(#1) Carlos DeLeon (31-1-1(21)) vs (#7) Jeff Lampkin (35-7-1(28))

---

[Infinity]

Good stuff KC...I spent some time reading your off topic thread today, and actually enjoyed reading about your rugby team, even though I know absolutely NOTHING about rugby...lol But being an avid S. F. 49er Fan who lives and dies by their season, I can relate!

[kenyan_cheena]

Originally Posted by Infinity

Good stuff KC...I spent some time reading your off topic thread today, and actually enjoyed reading about your rugby team, even though I know absolutely NOTHING about rugby...lol But being an avid S. F. 49er Fan who lives and dies by their season, I can relate!

Thanks, Infinity. The news didn't get any better for my Tigers last night as they lost 20-18 to the Brisbane Broncos. So they've lost their last three games by a combined total of FIVE points.

There's quite a few rugby league clips on youtube if you're just interested in watching to see what it's like.

[kenyan_cheena]

Halifax Sunday
Chronicle-Herald

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2006

LANGFORD VICTORIOUS
IN WORLD RANKING BOUT

Story by Louis Haywood

In his first outing since being eliminated from the IBL's Junior-Heavyweight World Championship tournament Nova Scotia's Sam Langford recorded an eight-round unanimous decision victory over the willing but outclassed Cuban Yoan Pablo Hernandez last night. In front of a parochial crowd at Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens the two-time Olympic gold medallist found some stubborn resistance from Hernandez but was always in control, taking the verdict by scores of 79-74, 77-76 and 78-74. Langford employed a balanced and varied offense throughout the fight, making it difficult for Hernandez to know what to look out for from one punch to the next. The Cuban sustained a cut on his right eyebrow in round six, which the ringside doctor examined late in the round and again in round seven. Langford landed 170 of 780 punches (22.3%), Hernandez 154 of 454 (33.9%).

Langford entered the arena to a deafening ovation and was decked out in our nation's colours of red and white. He'd said in the lead-up to the fight that he was feeling more nervous than usual and that his defeat at the hands of Massimiliano Duran in June had affected his mindset more than he expected, despite "a lot of prayer and positive thoughts". Rumours had been circulating through Toronto fight circles in recent weeks which claimed that Langford might drop down to the light-heavyweight division in the new year. While he did not rule out such a possibility, Langford said that it was not something he'd previously spoken about and that the rumour did not originate from his camp. The Sydney and Athens Olympic Champion is now 15-1(11).

[kenyan_cheena]

ESPN

Boxing

Updated: September 6, 2006, 10.15 AM ET

Marquez calls alphabet's bluff,
will fight Brown in November

By Larry Holman
ESPN.com
Archive

Mexican lightweight boxer Patricio Marquez made an announcement yesterday that will have huge ramifications for the future of the sport's "alphabet" organisations, in particular the World Boxing Association and the World Boxing Council. Until yesterday Marquez was the lightweight champion of both the WBA and WBC, but not anymore. The 31 year-old revealed to the public during an afternoon press conference that he had relinquished both titles and will take on IBF Champion Joe Brown in a long anticipated clash at the end of November. Marquez stated that it was one of the most difficult decisions he's ever made but one that was necessary both for his own career and the betterment of the sport.

The WBA and WBC have shunned the IBF ever since that organisation's president Michael Jacobs was charged in relation to death threats against Mexican featherweight Gilberto Vasquez in June. As a result they would not allow Marquez to fight Brown unless the New Orleans native vacated his IBF title beforehand. But they misjudged Marquez's desire to take on Brown and also his loyalty to them, believing that he would go along with their wishes without question. Their approach has now come back to bite them and Marquez has become the second multi-belt holder in the space of the last month to either vacate or have his titles taken away from him following the Mike McCallum situation in early August.

The boxing loving public will now get to see a fight that appeared likely to never happen only a couple of weeks ago. Marquez said that he spoke to his promoter and family about relinquishing his belts before approaching Brown, who was more than happy to go along with the plan. Despite the fact that ony the IBF championship will be at stake there's no doubt that the winner can claim the title of the best lightweight in the world. Marquez (42-2-1(34)) has not fought since defeating Dominican Republic native Francisco Ortiz in a WBA/WBC unification bout back in March. Brown (33-2-1(24)) was last in action on the 13th of May, when he retained his belt against Marquez's fellow Mexican Oscar Jimenez in Atlantic City.

Larry Holman is ESPN.com's boxing writer.

[kenyan_cheena]

EL UNIVERSAL

Saturday 9 September 2006

STRONG FINISH SEES
LIMON INTO TITLE FIGHT

Story by Miguel Trelles

Rafael Limon became the second Mexican fighter to qualify for an International Boxing League world title fight yesterday, the lightweight defeating South Africa's Brian Mitchell by unanimous decision in an exciting contest at Japan's Saitama Super Centre (115-112, 114-113, 115-112). Going into round ten it was either man's fight to win. Mitchell had been deducted a point in the 9th for a low blow but was still very much in it, the former WBO champion giving Limon all sorts of trouble in rounds five, seven and nine and holding his own in a number of others. But Limon's determination carried him through the final three stanzas, which he swept on two scorecards. Having given up his WBA junior-lightweight title before joining the IBL Limon is now just one win from becoming a two-time world champion.

The 28 year-old recorded his 30th career victory against just a single defeat, nineteen of his wins coming by knockout. Mitchell fell to 32-4-1(23) but showed enough to convince this writer that he'll be a contender for the title during the next couple years. Japan's Teruki Nakata was far too good for his compatriot Hiroshi Kobayashi in the other semi-final. Nakata floored Kobayashi in rounds eight and nine and went on to claim a 117-110, 118-112, 117-112 unanimous decision win. Kobayashi had scored an upset split decision win over the previously undefeated Hector Hernandez in the quarter-finals but Nakata's aggression and workrate was too much for him to handle. Kobayashi actually outlanded Nakata 301-258 with his quicker, more accurate shots but it was not enough to deliver him a victory.

Understandably, it was a fight Japanese boxing fans have been looking forward to. The combatants are friends and have tremendous respect for each other, something that was displayed following the decision when Nakata encouraged the crowd to applaud Kobayashi's brave efforts. Earlier on the card two of the fighters eliminated in the quarter-finals recorded solid victories. Hector Hernandez decimated the Filipino Rene Barrientos in a one-round onslaught while Venezuela's Leonel Hernandez pitched a shutout against the American Sammy Angott, dropping him in the final stanza and winning the eight-rounder by unanimous decision (80-71, 80-73, 80-71). Both bouts appeared to be mismatches, something that might concern the IBL seeing as both Barrientos and Angott were competitors in the Challenger's tournament.

Summary of results

(#1) Limon UD12 (#5) Mitchell
(#2) Nakata UD12 (#6) Kobayashi

IBL Lightweight Championship,
15 December

(#1) Rafael Limon (30-1(19)) vs (#2) Teruki Nakata (27-2(20))

[kenyan_cheena]

THE GUARDIAN
LAGOS - NIGERIA

Sunday 10 September 2006

KESHI SHOCKS TIGER
WITH 8TH ROUND STOPPAGE

Story by Sani Yobo

Taribo Keshi sent Dick Tiger crashing to his first defeat as a professional last night with an 8th round TKO at Surelere Stadium in the semi-finals of the International Boxing League's World Light-Heavyweight Championship tournament. It was the rematch all of Nigeria had been waiting for and it certainly lived up to the hype, Keshi reversing the result of their April clash and catching a number of experts by surprise in the process. Most believed that the outcome would be identical to the duo's IBF title bout but it was clear from the opening round that Keshi meant business. He pressured Tiger by staying in close and unloading with short lefts and rights. As the contest progressed Tiger's fans became more and more concerned.

Keshi was in clear control going into round five but it was at that point where the tournament's #2 seed showed signs of a rally. He took the round and then held his own in a spectacular 6th, during which both men connected with some thunderous blows. But Keshi answered back brilliantly in the 7th, dominating the frame and punishing Tiger with some powerful shots to both the body and head. Tiger looked a beaten man as he trudged back to his corner and once the 8th started it was clear that he had not fully recovered from the damage he'd absorbed in round seven. Keshi caught him with a series of flush blows before flooring him with a flurry of shots just before the two minute mark. He was up at six, referee Sergey Krupenich allowing him to continue. But moments later the fight was over when a big left hook almost dropped him for a second time, Krupenich waving it off at the 2:09 mark.

The two good friends were quite emotional afterwards, Keshi shedding some tears over the gravity of his victory and the lengths he'd had to go to in order to achieve it. Tiger was genuinely happy for him and said that if he had to choose anyone to end his undefeated streak, "it would have been Taribo". Keshi landed 188 of 473 punches (39.7%) and improved to 23-2(18) while Tiger connected with 155 of 573 (27.1%) and is now 25-1-2(19). 27 year-old Tiger had said during the lead-up to the fight that, despite winning his only world title in the division, he did not feel as comfortable fighting at light-heavyweight as he had at middleweight earlier in his career. However, he was constantly having trouble making weight at 160 and the chances of him returning there are very slim. Having been held to a draw by John Conteh in the quarter-finals Tiger remains winless under the IBL banner.

America's Harold Johnson was the first man into the championship match after he defeated Jimmy Slade by majority decision in the co-feature. As expected it wasn't anything like the easy evening Johnson had against Miguel Angel Cuello in the quarter-finals, although it probably wasn't as difficult as some believed it would be, either. Johnson took the decision by verdicts of 116-113, 114-114 and 115-113 but in this writer's opinion it wasn't really as close as the cards indicated. Johnson had Slade looking weary and jaded by the end of round five after peppering him with a constant stream of left jabs and strong hooks. He eased off considerably in the bottom half of the contest but never looked close to tasting defeat. He outlanded Slade 266-162. The former WBA titlist is now an impressive 36-1-2(26) and will be a daunting proposition for Keshi come December.

---

Results

(#1) JOHNSON MD12 (#4) SLADE
(#6) KESHI TKO8 (#2) TIGER

IBL World Championship, 16 December

(#1) HAROLD JOHNSON (36-1-2(26)) vs (#6) TARIBO KESHI (23-2(18))

---

[comicfanman]

WOW

[kenyan_cheena]

THE LONDON TIMES

Tuesday 12 September 2006

JACKSON TO TACKLE GERMAN
IN TOURNAMENT FINAL

Story by James Simpson

Today East London's Ashley Jackson stands just a single victory away from what will be a fairytale start to his professional boxing career after securing a place in the final of the International Boxing League's Inter-Continental Welterweight Championship tournament last night in Japan. Jackson destroyed the Frenchman Francois Pavilla, dominating and punishing him for the first three rounds before knocking him down twice in round four, Pavilla being counted out at the 2:51 mark to end the contest. It was Jackson's seventh consecutive stoppage victory, the last three of which have come in the tournament. He knocked out 2nd seed Miguel Velasquez in three rounds in stage one and then stopped the Australian Hector Thompson in the 7th round of their quarter-final bout.

With fourteen career wins under his belt Pavilla was the most experienced combatant remaining in the tournament but that mattered little. He was simply no match for the explosive 18 year-old, Jackson connecting with an astonishing 177 of 436 punches during the fight's four rounds. Pavilla landed just 52 of 168. In the eight weeks since the quarter-finals Jackson's already considerable celebrity status continued to grow here in England, but in a pleasing contrast to the weeks leading up to his win against Thompson he had been much more dedicated to his training regime. He stepped between the ropes last night in fantastic shape, his torso ripped and lean with an impressive six pack having been unveiled during the previous evening's weigh-in. Jackson is something of a comedian and a clown but he was in a deadly serious mood in the moments before the opening bell, his attitude a clear indication of how important the fight was to him.

Jackson's record is now 9-0(8). His opponent in the championship bout will be Germany's Reinhardt Kohler, who sent the crowd at Tokyo's Korakuen Hall home in a disappointed mood after putting their man Akio Kameda to sleep with a single, jolting right cross one minute into the 1st round. Kameda did not move for the duration of the count, the fight over at the 1:13 mark. Both men had performed well in the quarter-finals, Kameda stopping Australia's Justin Rowsell in six rounds and Kohler upstaging the tournament's #1 seed Roberto Cruz with a unanimous decision win. Kohler was able to take Kameda out early and his punching power is something that Jackson will have to be weary of when the two men square off on the 4th of December.

***

Semi-final results

(#15) Jackson KO4 (#3) Pavilla
(#9) Kohler KO1 (#5) Kameda

Championship bout, 4 December

(#9) Reinhardt Kohler (9-1(5)) vs (#15) Ashley Jackson (9-0(8))

***

[djday45]

What an amazing result for Jackson! his character and persona is so vivid.

[Jeff1787]

I sure was wrong on my Dick Tiger prediction!!

[Ric915]

As always KC Love your write ups. Great Stuff!!!

[comicfanman]

Originally Posted by Jeff1787

I sure was wrong on my Dick Tiger prediction!!

That was a shocking one

[kenyan_cheena]

Originally Posted by comicfanman

WOW

Originally Posted by djday45

What an amazing result for Jackson! his character and persona is so vivid.

Originally Posted by Jeff1787

I sure was wrong on my Dick Tiger prediction!!

Originally Posted by Ric915

As always KC Love your write ups. Great Stuff!!!

Originally Posted by comicfanman

That was a shocking one

Thanks for all the kind words and enthusiasm, guys. It makes me happy to know you're taking so much interest in my uni.

I'm hoping your guy can claim that title, Dean. It'll be fantastic if he does.

As for Tiger, you have to remember that he's fighting at light-heavy in this uni. He's rated better at middleweight, which is why I included that section in the write-up where he had talked about feeling he was better when at middleweight.

[comicfanman]

You truly keep it entertaining. Thanks a bunch for the efforts.

[kenyan_cheena]

The San Diego
Union-Tribune

FRIDAY 15 SEPTEMBER 2006

Norris gate-crashes tournament final

Story by Geoff Klein

20 year-old San Diego slugger Orlin Norris continued his unexpected run through the International Boxing League's Junior-Heavyweight Americas Championship tournament last night, the 11th seed booking a place in the championship bout with a 2nd round knockout of Guyana's Wayne Braithwaite at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York. Norris had already defeated Dale Brown and Gary Gomez earlier in the tournament but most expected the #2-seeded Braithwaite to end his title quest. Braithwaite had eliminated the promising Nebraska native Mark Elwood in the quarter-finals and after the opening round it looked like he'd do the same to Norris. Braithwaite had the better of an action-packed stanza in which both men connected with some punishing blows but midway through round two Norris unleashed a flurry of shots, four of which caught the Guyanan flush and put him on his back. Braithwaite appeared stunned and he only started moving when the count reached six. He pushed himself up and shook his head but was still on his knees as referee Telis Assimenios waved the fight over at the 1:40 mark.

Norris' corner crew flooded the ring and celebrated with him, Norris looking almost as stunned by his achievement as Braithwaite was. Amongst the revelers was his younger brother Terry, the 15 year-old who recently started boxing in the amateur ranks. Norris' record is now 11-0(8) while Braithwaite fell to 20-5(14). Norris faces New York's Louis Del Valle, who defeated the tournament's top seed Eric Fields by unanimous decision in the main event (97-94, 99-92, 97-94). Del Valle made a slow start but was brilliant through the middle rounds, setting up his win by controlling and sweeping rounds four through eight on all three scorecards. He outlanded Fields 272-191 and must have benefitted from fighting only five rounds through his first two tournament bouts. Del Valle is now 17-3-1(13), Fields 21-4-1(13). The Oklahoma native was deeply disappointed in his effort in the moments after the final bell and even moreso after the verdict was announced.

Earlier on the card Athens bronze medallist Elmer Ray finally recorded his first victory under the banner of the IBL. Having been eliminated from the tournament in a controversial draw against Dan Harvison and then dropping a unanimous decision to Johnathon Banks, Ray left no room for doubt against the Brazilian Laudelino Jose Barros. He sent Barros to the canvas four times on the way to a 59-50, 59-51, 59-50 unanimous decision victory. Ray outlanded Barros 192-47 in the one-sided contest, the Brazilian connecting with just 10% of the punches he threw. Ray improved to 6-1-1(5) but was in no mood to celebrate, believing the fight should have been stopped after he floored Barros twice in round four.

In a match-up of combatants eliminated in the quarter-finals Salt Lake City's Gary Gomez scored a split decision win over Mark Elwood (59-56, 57-58, 58-56). Neither man is known for their defensive prowess but both had a deal of trouble landing punches in the fight, Gomez connecting with 105 of 409 (25.7%) and Elwood 94 of 430 (21.9%). Before these IBL tournaments started Elwood was regarded as a future "cant-miss" world championship contender but has now fallen to two consecutive defeats after being perfect through his first eleven pro bouts. He'll need to rediscover that winning formula when next he steps back into the ring. Elwood is now 11-2(8) while Gomez improved to 16-3-1(11).

***

Results

(#11) Norris KO2 (#2) Braithwaite
(#4) Del Valle UD10 (#1) Fields

Tournament final, 7 December

(#4) Louis Del Valle (17-3-1(13) vs (#11) Orlin Norris (11-0(8))

***

[kenyan_cheena]

THE TOKYO TIMES

Saturday, 16 September, 2006

WAJIMA ENDS MUGABI'S
WINNING STREAK

Story by Hiroko Yamamoto

Tokyo-based middleweight Koichi Wajima scored a stunning unanimous decision win over Uganda's John Mugabi in Los Angeles last night to secure a spot in the final of the International Boxing League's World Championship tournament. Wajima had defeated LA native James Toney in the quarter-finals but it had been assumed that Mugabi's power would be too much for him to handle. Mugabi has lived in Los Angeles for the past five years and enjoyed almost unanimous support from the Staples Center crowd, in addition to bringing a 21-fight winning streak into the contest. But the fleet-footed Wajima was able to stay out of danger for most of the bout, sniping away at Mugabi from the outside with great success. He set the tone in round one when he caught the former WBO junior-middleweight champion with a number of jabs plus some harder shots, including a pair of right crosses and a left hook.

Round two was closer but when Wajima came on strong in the bottom half of the 3rd Mugabi's supporters had reason to worry. Wajima's tactics had clearly taken him by surprise and he didn't know how to respond. Things got no better in round four but after an even 5th Mugabi finally showed what he's capable of in round six. He caught Wajima with a succession of power punches but somehow the Hokkaido-born slugger stayed on his feet. Wajima then stole back the momentum with some fantastic work in round seven, landing some hard, flush shots on the counter. Mugabi looked tired and frustrated as he returned to his corner. He had been the more active fighter but was only connecting with about one of every five punches thrown.

The 8th was an action-packed affair but once again Wajima had the better of it. Mugabi's response in the 9th was promising but when Wajima convincingly won the 10th the writing was on the wall. The action slowed in the final two rounds, Wajima more concerned with keeping out of range and away from that big right hand than finishing strongly. It made little difference as he took the verdict by scores of 116-113, 117-113 and 116-113. The 26 year-old's tactics worked superbly as he landed almost twice as many punches as Mugabi despite throwing considerably less.

Wajima: 345/677 (51.0%)
Mugabi: 189/1,147 (16.5%)

The Ugandan wore some nasty swelling under his right eye, which his handlers insisted was from a head clash in round four, a head clash no one else could remember seeing. As was the case after his victory against Toney, Wajima was not especially excited when confirmed as the winner. He's a calm, laid-back individual, one who is not in the habit of expressing his emotions in a loud, open fashion. Even so, it was a surprise that he appeared nonchalant after a second straight win over a former world champion. He simply smiled and accepted the crowd's grudging applause, shaking hands with his corner crew, Mugabi and the IBL officials in the ring. Wajima is now 23-1-2(16) while Mugabi fell to 31-3-2(29).

As expected Wajima will take on the Australian #1 seed Les Darcy for the championship after Darcy defeated Argentina's Juan Roldan for the second time this year. The two men had clashed back in March for Darcy's WBA title, which he vacated before joining the IBL. As was the case in that first meeting Darcy won last night's clash by unanimous decision (117-110, 116-110, 117-109). Despite the appearance of an easy win Roldan made Darcy work hard for his victory, as most of the punches he landed were hard power shots. The problem was he didn't connect with nearly enough of them, Darcy outlanding him 346-208.

While Darcy's strategy of staying outside and counter-punching did not waver throughout the contest, Roldan's changed almost from round to round. He started out trying to muscle his way inside before then setting himself up on the outside. When that didn't work he swung for the fences in an effort to land one perfect bomb. While it was entertaining, it ultimately failed. Darcy improved to 28-1(23), Roldan now 29-4(26). Apparently the fighters were informed afterwards that due to Wajima's twin victories over Toney and Mugabi the World Championship bout will be held in Tokyo. From all reports Darcy has no problem with this arrangement but he has requested that if he claims the title he be allowed to make his first defense of it in his hometown of Sydney.

The evening started with an outstanding contest between two American fighters. Highly regarded Wisconsin native Jake Morrison scored the biggest victory of his young career to date when he stopped former world title challenger Marvin Blanks in the 8th and final round. It was the third consecutive defeat for the Californian. He'd been stopped in the 11th round by Freddie Steele in a February IBF title fight before getting himself disqualified against Juan Roldan with a low blow in the quarter-finals of the IBL's World Championship tournament in June. Morrison had suffered his first career defeat at the hands of the Englishman Nigel Benn in stage one of the Challenger's tournament, a devastating 2nd round TKO. He started slow against Blanks, struggling through the first couple of rounds. But he became more aggressive in the 3rd and just edged out Blanks in the 4th and 5th, both of which were exciting rounds.

Morrison took control from a tiring Blanks for good in round six before dominating the 7th and then dropping the Oakland native early in the 8th. Morrison followed up with an all-out attack, leading to the referee stopping the fight at the 2:25 mark. Morrison celebrated wildly, offending the large contingent of Blanks fans in the crowd and not giving a damn about it. He is now 9-1(9) while Blanks fell to 25-6(19). Local crowd favourite James Toney returned to the winner's circle after his disheartening loss to Wajima with a unanimous decision win over the outclassed Jamaican Hastings Gayle. Toney floored him in the 1st, 3rd and 4th rounds and took the verdict by scores of 80-70, 79-70 and 80-69. Aware of his opponent's limitations, Toney was wise enough to show some humility afterwards. He improved to 35-4-1(29) and if anything, the victory will help to restore some of the confidence he's lost in recent times.

***

Semi-final results

(#1) Darcy UD12 (#4) Roldan
(#6) Wajima UD12 (#2) Mugabi

IBL World Middleweight Championship bout,
22 December

(#1) Les Darcy (28-1(23)) vs (#6) Koichi Wajima (23-1-2(16))

***

[kenyan_cheena]

LOS ANGELES DAILY MAIL

Sunday, 17 September, 2006

SMITH'S FAIRYTALE RIDE CONTINUES

Story by Frank Jackson

For the second fight in a row Los Angeles-born featherweight boxer Solly Smith has overcame both a hostile crowd and expert opinion to emerge with an unlikely victory. Last night he scored a unanimous decision win over hometown favourite Keith Harrison at Texas Stadium in the semi-finals of the International Boxing League's World Championship tournament. It followed June's triumph against the #1-seeded Mexican Juan Meza, Smith stopping him in the 6th round of a bout he was clearly losing. The 25 year-old is of Mexican and Irish heritage but, as already mentioned, has succeeded with barely any crowd support in both of his wins. Meza enjoyed a huge backing in Saltillo while Harrison is one of Texas' most popular athletes. Smith beat them both and his achievement must surely be the biggest story to have come out of these IBL tournaments.

The win over Harrison was not nearly as dramatic as the one against Meza, but it was another example of the 8th-seeded Smith digging deep when he looked like losing. Harrison had been the better man through the opening half of the contest and led by two points on two of the scorecards heading into the 7th. Each round had been close and competitive but Harrison was doing just enough to win a greater share of frames. But Smith stole the momentum in the 7th and kept it by dominating rounds eight and nine and then capped his fantastic rally by flooring Harrison with a single right cross midway through the 10th. Harrison had looked good during the first ninety seconds but Smith undid all of that good work with a single punch. The Texan was on his feet at eight but Smith followed up nicely, landing a big right hand and a pair of combinations before the round was over.

Harrison finished the contest strongly but Smith's fightback ended up being crucial. He took the verdict by scores of 115-112 and 114-113 (x2), outlanding Harrison 295-265. Smith shouted and pumped his fist when revealed as the winner, his corner crew erupting also. Amongst them was fellow LA native James Toney, who had made the trip from their hometown after fighting at the Staples Center on Friday night. Smith's best friend and fellow IBL competitor Ken Norton could not be present as he is currently in Russia preparing for his own world championship semi-final, which takes place on Friday. Smith said that Norton's words of advice and encouragement from a number of conversations they'd shared during the previous week really helped him to stay focused during the bout. The win improved his record to 24-1(17) while Harrison's mark dropped to 30-5-1(22).

Smith's championship bout opponent will be Mexico's Gilberto Vasquez, who was awarded victory by disqualification against his compatriot and the tournament's #2 seed Jesus Carrillo. Vasquez had made a good start through the first five rounds and was leading on all three scorecards. In particular he had punished Carrillo in a whirlwind opening round, Vasquez coming out with destructive intent and planting a number of flush power punches on Carrillo's chin. It appeared that Carrillo was getting frustrated by both his inability to land a clean punch and Vasquez's contrasting ease in doing so. As round six approached its midpoint Carrillo unleashed a left hook that caught Vasquez way below the belt and sent him to the canvas in agony. After checking on Vasquez's condition referee Jose Cobian immediately disqualified Carrillo, who protested briefly before returning to his corner, shaking his head all the way. It was only the second loss in the former WBC junior-featherweight champion's career.

It took several minutes before Vasquez had recovered from the low blow, which television replays confirmed was an especially nasty one. His problems with the IBF during the past year have been heavily documented but despite the ongoing court case of that organisation's president Michael Jacobs they now appear to be the last thing on his mind. Vasquez will be fighting for a world title for the first time in his career come December 23 and he couldn't quite believe it when he was interviewed following his victory. The 26 year-old's record is now 28-2(19), Carrillo falling to 26-2-1(17) following his inexplicable brain explosion. After Juan Meza's exit from the tournament he had been installed as the new favourite but will now have to work hard to earn himself a title fight during the coming twelve months.

The evening started with no-nonsense victories in world ranking bouts to former championship tournament contenders Michael Schneider and Juan Meza. Germany's Schneider defeated the Englishman Dylan Price by unanimous decision before Meza stopped South Africa's Shaun Smith in round eight, flooring him three times along the way. Schneider is now 29-3-2(22) while Meza improved to 28-2-2(23). The former IBF junior-featherweight champion wore a surly expression during his time in the ring, as if he had still not shaken off his defeat at the hands of Solly Smith. There's no doubt Meza will be doing everything he can to secure a shot at the world title as quickly as possible once we enter 2007.

(#3) Vasquez DQ6 (#2) Carrillo
(#8) Smith UD12 (#4) Harrison

World Championship, 23 December...

(#3) Gilberto Vasquez (28-2(19)) vs (#8) Solly Smith (24-1(17))

[kenyan_cheena]

The New York Age

MONDAY, 18 SEPTEMBER, 2006

Luck smiles on Ohashi once again

Story by James Reynolds

On the 23rd of July Japanese welterweight Shoji Ohashi defeated Olympic silver medallist James Ray when their fight was controversially stopped in the final round due to a cut above Ray's right eye. The Florida native had clearly been the better fighter through the first seven rounds and took a three-point lead on each of the scorecards into the final stanza. Those factors aren't supposed to be taken into account when officials elect to stop a fight due to a cut but there's no doubt that both the referee and doctor knew they were taking a certain victory away from Ray when they made their decision. Last night history repeated itself in Yokohama when Ohashi scored a 5th round TKO victory over Bendict Khumalo due to a cut in the exact same position as the one he inflicted on Ray, above the right eye.

South African-born Khumalo defeated Ray to win gold in Athens, although the general consensus was that it had been a poor decision. Ohashi has now defeated both medallists during the IBL's Welterweight Challenger's tournament and sits a single victory away from what would have been thought an unlikely world title shot six months ago. Like Ray, Khumalo was defeating Ohashi quite convincingly at the time of the stoppage. He was ahead by three points on each scorecard heading into the 5th after putting the Japanese fighter on his backside with a brutal right cross one minute into the 3rd. That knockdown had come after they'd split the opening two rounds, with Ohashi cutting Khumalo in round two. Khumalo went on to dominate the rest of round three following the knockdown and then maintained the momentum with some more impressive work in round four.

Ohashi was able to land some choice blows in the 5th that worsened Khumalo's cut, the ringside doctor examining it on three seperate occasions during the round before stopping the fight at the 2:31 mark. Khumalo and his cornermen pleaded his case, going as far as saying that the officials had no right to stop him from competing, regardless of the cut. He was visibly upset and close to tears, the defeat the first of his career. Ohashi might soon be known as "the surgeon" if he keeps on managing to score these types of victories. He kept his undefeated record intact at 19-0-1(14) while Khumalo fell to 14-1(8). Ohashi takes on Colombia's Hugo Pineda in the tournament final after Pineda defeated the Nigerian 2nd seed Ademola Udeze by unanimous decision in an action-packed contest. Udeze landed a greater number of punches but Pineda was more active and clearly inflicted more punishment with his shots. The scores were 96-94, 97-93 and 96-94, Pineda now 22-2-1(14) while Udeze's mark dropped to 23-3(17).

Back in action for the first time since Ohashi defeated him, James Ray looked confident and enthusiastic during a convincing unanimous decision win over the Challenger tournament's former #1 seed Ifeani Adamu. Ray floored the Nigerian with a flush left hook late in round three and outlanded him by an average of ten punches per round on the way to a 78-73, 78-74, 78-73 verdict. Both men possess lightning fast hands and both had their jabs working nicely. But that was as far as it went for Adamu. He couldn't land much else and all the while Ray was peppering him with three and four punch combinations that had many of the crowd at ringside in awe. The 21 year-old could not have been much more impressive and something will have to go drastically wrong in either his career or life in general to prevent him from eventually being crowned the IBL's welterweight king. Ray is now 14-1(10) while Adamu fell to 22-3-1(16), the loss his second in a row after being stopped by Khumalo in the quarter-finals.

***

(#3) Pineda UD10 (#2) Udeze
(#5) Ohashi TKO5 (#9) Khumalo

Tournament final, 10 December

(#3) Hugo Pineda (22-2-1(14)) vs (#5) Shoji Ohashi (19-0-1(14))

***