The Heavyweight Boxing Federation

[kenyan_cheena]

VINCENNES ANNOUNCES
WEDNESDAY PRESS CONFERENCE

Sunday 8 September 2002

The second week of the Heavyweight Boxing Federation's partial hiatus begins tomorrow but the organisation's president Michael Vincennes is not resting on his laurels. Today he called a press conference for this coming Wednesday the 11th, claiming that he'd be speaking about an "important development for the future of boxing".

Like this past week, next week's HBF schedule features only a pair of bouts. The first takes place on Tuesday and is the tournament final of the Northern European Boxing League. The semi-finals produced a major upset when top-seeded Swede Ingemar Johansson was eliminated by Denmark's Flemming Ekelund. He takes on the Irishman Artuir Claffey in the final, the bout a rematch of their May clash in which Claffey handed Ekelund his only defeat to date. The fight will be held in the undefeated Claffey's own backyard at the same venue as their first clash, Walsh Park in Waterford, Munster.

Thursday will see another rematch to decide the Champion of the South American Boxing League. Undefeated 5th seed Bernardo Mercado (5-0-1) will be fighting in his homeland of Colombia for the first time when he takes on the #1-seeded Argentinian Gregorio Perlata (5-1-0) who he scored an upset win over in April. When competition in this league commenced it was almost assumed that Perlata would make an undefeated run through it but he'll certainly be in for a tough night against the determined Colombian.

Both fights figure to be entertaining affairs and with Vincennes' announcement to look forward to the coming week promises to be an interesting one for fans of the Heavyweight Boxing Federation...

HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING FEDERATION
FIGHT CARD SCHEDULE
MONDAY 09/09/2002 - SATURDAY 14/09/2002 INCLUSIVE

TUESDAY 10/09/2002 - WALSH PARK, WATERFORD, MUNSTER, IRELAND
THE NORTHERN EUROPE BOXING LEAGUE
TOURNAMENT FINAL

(3) ARTUIR CLAFFEY vs (2) FLEMMING EKELUND

THURSDAY 12/09/2002 - ESTADIO EL CAMPIN, BOGOTA, COLOMBIA
THE SOUTH AMERICAN BOXING LEAGUE
TOURNAMENT FINAL

(5) BERNARDO MERCADO vs (1) GREGORIO PERALTA

[Romdawg88]

HM, must say I'm interested in seeing what Vincennes has to say on Wednesday.

[kenyan_cheena]

CLAFFEY STOPS EKELUND IN THREE,
WINS NORTHERN EURO TOURNAMENT

Tuesday 10 September 2002

Fighting in front of a parochial hometown crowd at Munster's Walsh Park, 23 year-old Irishman Artuir Claffey scored a stunning one-punch knockout victory over Denmark's Flemming Ekelund to win the HBF's Northern Europe Boxing League tournament and earn a place in the upcoming World Ranking tournament.

Claffey was the #3 seed in the tournament, Ekelund #2. The Dane had upset top-seeded Swede Ingemar Johansson in the semi-finals and was favoured to win, despite the fact that Claffey had handed him his one and only loss back in May. Through the first two rounds Ekelund was in control, finding the mark with some smashing lefts and rights. Claffey appeared to be suffering from a case of stage fright, the pressure of the occasion and a large homecrowd possibly affecting him.

There was nothing noteworthy to the top half of round three but when Claffey caught his man right on the chin with a counter left hook Ekelund slumped to the canvas and a roar like an explosion resonated around Walsh Park. Claffey moved excitedly to a neutral corner as referee Mickey Vann applied the count. By the time he had reached five it was clear that Ekelund was out cold but Vann continued counting, reaching ten at the 1:49 mark of the round.

Claffey celebrated jubilantly, his cornermen carrying him around the ring on their shoulders, the crowd applauding as if he'd just been crowned World Champion. Irish boxing fans haven't had too much to sing about during the brief life of the Heavyweight Boxing Federation but tonight's triumph was certainly worthy of such celebration. Claffey has now guaranteed himself eleven eight-round bouts over the course of the next sixteen months and, if he finishes in the top half of his tournament group, he'll have earned himself a World Ranking also. The tournament kicks off exactly two months from today.

Ekelund had landed 60 of 141 punches before the fight ended (.426), Claffey 50 of 112 (.446). The Irishman will take a perfect 7-0(3) record into the World Ranking tournament. Ekelund (5-2(1)) will now be placed in the Qualifying League. No doubt, he'll take some solice in the fact that only one man was able to best him during the Northern European tournament. The fact that that same man achieved the feat twice, now that will be a source of disappointment...


SUMMARY OF RESULTS
HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING FEDERATION FIGHT CARD
TUESDAY 10 SEPTEMBER 2002
WALSH PARK, WATERFORD, MUNSTER, IRELAND

THE NORTHERN EUROPE BOXING LEAGUE
TOURNAMENT FINAL


MAIN EVENT - TOURNAMENT FINAL

(3) Artuir Claffey KO3 (2) Flemming Ekelund

[kenyan_cheena]

Hey, everyone.

After thinking about it during the last three or four days I've decided that I'm going to reduce the amount of detail that I put into my wirte-ups. Since starting the HBF/IBL universe in October 2004 I've had a great, fantastic time chronicling it. Without a doubt, it has been one of the most enjoyable writing endeavours I've ever committed to and knowing that it's entertained all of you who follow along makes me really happy.

HOWEVER, I am moving at a snail's pace. I always have been. At this rate it will be years before I even arrive at the HBF World Championship bout. So starting immediately I'll be makiing my reviews of the fight cards a good deal briefer than they have been. There will be exceptions, such as the upcoming Leonard v Ray bout and any other marquee matchups that take place, aswell as the bouts involving the TBCB community member fighters. But the fact is, most of the IBL regional qualifiers are not really that important, at least compared to what they'll lead to in the World Championship tournaments.

I love doing this but I don't want to waste years and years getting to the promised land, so to speak. It's already taken me three years and four months to chronicle just the first eight months of the story, a fact that makes me shake my head.

I'm hoping that everyone who has enjoyed and followed the HBF/IBL will continue to do so into this new, faster future that I have planned for it.

Thanks.

k_c

[Romdawg88]

I've mentioned before that I thought going less into detail sometimes was a good idea when you decided to do it with the Feeder leagues and the Future Contenders series and I agree with it here. I don't think anyones enjoyment will be lessen just because we didn't get a blow by blow account of Bunny Grant/Hector Constance. I'm looking forward to seeing the new and improved HBF/IBL. Oh yeah, KC have you made the switch over to TBCB 2.5 yet?

[kenyan_cheena]

Originally Posted by Romdawg88

I've mentioned before that I thought going less into detail sometimes was a good idea when you decided to do it with the Feeder leagues and the Future Contenders series and I agree with it here. I don't think anyones enjoyment will be lessen just because we didn't get a blow by blow account of Bunny Grant/Hector Constance. I'm looking forward to seeing the new and improved HBF/IBL. Oh yeah, KC have you made the switch over to TBCB 2.5 yet?

Thanks, Romy. With the IBL cards I'm thinking of just doing write-ups for maybe two or three fights per card, in particular the ones featuring prominent fighters. It'll be like maybe the main event and then "Undercard highlights". I'll still be summarising the results like I usually do, though.

Haven't got 2.5 yet. Might try the demo first to see how it works.

[kenyan_cheena]

VINCENNES SPEAKS ON
THE FUTURE OF BOXING

Wednesday 11 September 2002

The Heavyweight Boxing Federation held a press conference today at their Manhattan headquarters where the organisation's president Michael Vincennes spoke on the future of their sport in front of a considerable media contingent.

"The HBF came into being just over twelve months ago," Vincennes began. "In the time since it's true to say that the sport of professional boxing has become a major force around the world. Personally, I've been amazed by the progress and growth we've achieved in such a short period of time. The International Boxing League was formed in April and it goes without saying that the organisation has played a huge part in the continuous popularisation of our sport."

Vincennes paused briefly, taking a sip from a glass of water before continuing.

"While professional boxing has come on in leaps and bounds, the same cannot be said for the amateur game. It's my opinion that amateur boxing has been long underfunded and underappreciated. With the exception of those couple of weeks that cover the Olympic games every four years, it's largely a non-event on the sporting calendar. This is something that should give fans and administrators of boxing in general cause for concern, because it's from the amateur ranks that many of the future champions of both the HBF and IBL will originate. During the past several weeks I've been engaged in some serious discussions with those who oversee amateur boxing both here in America and overseas in Europe, Africa and Asia. Today I'm proud to announce that, starting immediately, the sport will be receiving a substantial and long-term injection of funds."

As Vincennes paused, a dozen questions were thrown at him all at once. The federation president motioned for silence.

"I know that all of you have questions," he said, smiling. "And I know that one of the most obvious ones is where this funding is coming from. I'll answer that right away. Most would assume that this is something the HBF would not be able to handle by themselves, and they'd be right in that assumption. I've called on a number of personal friends in the business world, individuals who have jumped at the chance to be involved in securing the future of boxing. They're going to be of great help in this endeavour. But there's also another, more obvious source of these funds."

With that, a door to the left of Vincennes opened and out walked International Boxing League Chief Director James Molk, drawing a collective intake of breath from the gathered media before once again they were all competing with each other to ask questions, flashbulbs snapping like a feeding frenzy.

"Ladies and gentlemen, Mr James Molk of the International Boxing League," said Vincennes.

Molk smiled before moving to Vincennes and shaking his hand. The HBF's head honcho then took a seat to the right of the podium, giving the floor to Molk.

"Thank you, Michael," said Molk. "I'm proud and excited to be here today for this exciting announcement. As you'd all know, Mr Vincennes and I have had our differences in the past but the subject that we're talking about today is something that unites us. There's nothing more important to both of us than making sure the future of this great sport of ours is a secure one and the steps that we've taken will go a very long way to making sure that's the case. All of the credit for this endeavour must go to Michael Vincennes. He broached the subject with me about six weeks ago and it's simply blossomed from there. All of you will be wondering how "substantial" this financial backing that we've entered into is. Without stating exact numbers, let me tell you that it's in the high eight-figure range. Anyone who knows how amateur boxing has been administered in recent years will be aware that it's a very substantial amount. That's all we're going to say on it for now. There will be more information on the distribution of these funds in the days to come. Right now, though, I'd like to introduce some of the finest amateur boxers currently competing under the banner of the United States of America. These young men may only be in their mid-teens now, but if all goes well for them in the next four to five years, they'll be well on their way to a successful professional boxing career by that time."

Coming through the same door that Molk had entered from were a quartet of teenagers, two of them black and two latino. They stood, somewhat sheepishly, to Molk's left.

"These four young gentlemen are all currently ranked number one in the United States amateur rankings. First we have Leon Spinks at Light-Heavyweight. Leon is 18 years old and yes, he is the younger brother of Sydney Olympics gold medallist and current IBL competitor Michael. We also have Michael Martinez, a Los Angeles native who competes in the Lightweight division. Next to him is a young man who hails from The Big Easy, New Orleans, our top Welterweight and the #5 ranked Welterweight in the world, Ronin James. And standing to my far left is Miami's own, a 16 year-old who could one day be competing for the HBF Championship, Yadel Pedroso."

As the reporters snapped away and the questions continued to flow, Vincennes came to his feet, shook Molk's hand and the hands of the four young men. They posed for a number of photos, Vincennes and Molk joking like old friends...

[Romdawg88]

Nice, this looks interesting plus it seems to be the first step down the road to a possible HBF/IBL merger. So what do you plan to do with the amateurs?

[kenyan_cheena]

Originally Posted by Romdawg88

Nice, this looks interesting plus it seems to be the first step down the road to a possible HBF/IBL merger. So what do you plan to do with the amateurs?

It's more a situation where Molk and Vincennes are working together for the greater good of the sport than a step towards a merger. Although you'd think that a merger would be something that would also be in the best interests of the sport. Oh, well. Sometimes egos get in the way, as is the case here.

I don't have any plans to start running amateur bouts, but I will be mentioning the amateur side more often than I have been. After all, it's realistic to occasionally shine the spotlight on the future stars of the sport. There will be another post soon that will give more detail on what influence the HBF and IBL will have on the amateurs and any changes that they're proposing.

[kenyan_cheena]

SWEET REVENGE:
PERALTA MONSTERS MERCADO,
QUALIFIES FOR WORLD RANKING TOURNEY

Thursday 12 September 2002

Tonight the boxing public was unanimously focused on the big IBL fight card in Connecticut, but a Heavyweight Boxing Federation bout was taking place at the same time in Bogota, Colombia. It was the final of the South American Boxing League tournament between hometwon hero Bernardo Mercado and the #1-seeded Argentinian Gregorio Peralta.

Mercado had scored an upset win over Peralta back in April but tonight the Argentine had his revenge, Peralta scoring a dominant eight round unanimous decision victory (80-71, 79-72, 80-71) to qualify for the HBF's upcoming World Ranking tournament.

The Colombian was the 5th seed in the league and surprisingly made his way through the preliminary rounds with a perfect 5-0 record, but his fortune ran out tonight as Peralta put on a clinic. After an explosive opening round it appeared that Mercado might have a chance but when Peralta floored him with a flurry of shots late in round three any such thoughts were extinguished. Peralta kept his foot in place for the remainder of the contest, with the Colombian winning just a single round on all three scorecards combined.

Punch totals

Peralta: 265/470 (56.4%)
Mercado: 99/351 (28.2%)

Peralta's victory improves his record to 6-1 while Mercado fell to 5-1-1. Peralta joins Harry Wills, Terone Haynes and the Irishman Artuir Claffey as feeder league tournament champions and qualifiers into the World Ranking tournament...

SUMMARY OF RESULTS
HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING FEDERATION FIGHT CARD
THURSDAY 12 SEPTEMBER 2002
ESTADIO EL CAMPIN, BOGOTA, COLOMBIA

THE SOUTH AMERICAN BOXING LEAGUE
TOURNAMENT FINAL


MAIN EVENT - TOURNAMENT FINAL

(1) Gregorio Peralta UD8 (5) Bernardo Mercado

[kenyan_cheena]

Okay, that concludes what was an exciting 12 September 2002 in the world of the HBF/IBL. I feel like I'm in the aftermath of a storm now, as that Leonard-Ray fight was so anticipated and now it's done and dusted. Oh, well. I enjoyed it and I hope everyone who read the review did also.

That's enough from me for today. We'll be diving right back into the IBL (hopefully tomorrow) for two cards on Friday the 13th () while the next event for the HBF is the Tuesday 17/9 card from Los Angeles. It features the final of the Pacific League tournament but also the second pro bouts for Romy Alvarez, Mike Hanson, Scott Mundt and Hugh Phillips.

[kenyan_cheena]

Coming up in the world of the HBF/IBL...

* Leonard-Ray sets new ratings record
* "Just another Florida Alliance choke job"
* IBL fight cards from England and Brazil
* Further info on HBF/IBL amateur agreement

[Romdawg88]

Originally Posted by kenyan_cheena

* "Just another Florida Alliance choke job"

I going to throw out a guess here and I may be wrong here but I got a feeling that quote is coming from everyone's favorite Louisville native.

[kenyan_cheena]

"JUST ANOTHER FLORIDA ALLIANCE CHOKE JOB"

Friday 13 September 2002

In the aftermath of last night's IBL Connecticut fight card Indianapolis slugger Mike Hanson took his latest shot at the Florida Alliance this morning, calling James Ray's draw against Ray Leonard "just another Florida Alliance choke job."

"Tell me I'm wrong," said Hanson, during an interview on a local sports radio talk show. "It started when Elmer Ray fought Patterson and then Gomez and McCall both failed when they had chances to put themselves in a great position. Sure, McCall made stage two but he could have finished 1st and he blew it against that Morrison dude. And last night it happened again. James Ray had Leonard at his mercy. He really only needed to win one of those last three rounds and it would have been enough. But like the others, he choked. That's all they are, a bunch of chokers and last night was just another Florida Alliance choke job."

In the past the Alliance members have more or less shrugged off Hanson's comments, so it will be interesting to see how they reply to this latest outburst.

Hanson will board a plane for Los Angeles later today, his second bout in the HBF's Qualifying League scheduled to take place Tuesday night at the Staples Center. The Florida Alliance will be in attendance, as Romy Alvarez also features on the card. Hanson confirmed that a quartet of his closest friends will be accompanying him on the flight.

"Yeah, we'll be the Indiana Alliance," he joked. "My boys'll have my back just in case anything goes down while I'm out there."

Unsatisfied with his debut showing, Hanson said that he'll be trying for an early night on Tuesday.

"The plan is to be out of there within three rounds," he said. "I feel that I'm stronger and faster now than I was five weeks ago, and that's bad news for Antonio Serioux."

[Romdawg88]

Hm, didn't see that coming at all. I'm sure the Alliance will come up with a suitable replay to Hanson's latest comments.

[kenyan_cheena]

HBF REVEALS MORE INFORMATION
ON AMATEUR AGREEMENT

Saturday 14 September 2002

More details have been released this morning in relation to the agreement made by the HBF in partnership with the IBL and other backers to finance improvements to amateur boxing. The exact figure of the initial funding boost was revealed to be $65 million worldwide, with a considerable portion of it to be used to improve existing training facilities aswell as constructing new ones, particularly in Africa.

A concerted effort to market the sport to youngsters will be put in action with the HBF and IBL planning to make hundreds of visits to high schools around the globe. The goal is to make amateur boxing an option for students as part of the sporting curriculum. Clearly, the two organisations are subscribing to the motto "get 'em while they're young".

It was also announced that the scoring system used in amateur bouts will be reviewed. Having been introduced for the 1992 Olympics the system, which has five judges scoring bouts with keypads, has come under heavy criticism at times and it's very likely that changes will be made to it. However, no detail of these proposed changes was revealed in this morning's press release.

[kenyan_cheena]

Coming up in the HBF/IBL...

* IBL fight card from the Philippines
* Molk speaks on brawl in London, amongst other issues
* Florida Alliance fires back
* IBL fight card in Oakland, California

That will make for a busy Saturday the 14th.

[Romdawg88]

Originally Posted by kenyan_cheena

Coming up in the HBF/IBL...

* IBL fight card from the Philippines
* Molk speaks on brawl in London, amongst other issues
* Florida Alliance fires back
* IBL fight card in Oakland, California

That will make for a busy Saturday the 14th.

I can't wait to see how the Alliance comes back at Mike. I'm loving the build to the Hanson/Alvarez fight. As long as neither of us flame out that should be a huge match I just fought public isn't too disappointed when I knock him out in 30 seconds.

[kenyan_cheena]

Just a note to say I made a mistake with the posting of the fighters involved in the World Ranking tournament. I realised this yesterday when I wanted to find out where Joe Beckett had ended up and discovered that he wasn't in any of the upcoming tournaments. He should have been in the WR tourney, Karl Mildenberger and Heinz Neuhaus also.

Not sure what happened when I was working it out originally but I stuffed it up. I also didn't list all the fighters who "missed the cut". I've edited post #1625 to correct the mistake, Mildenberger, Neuhaus and Beckett now showing in the WR tournament. All of the 39 who missed out are also listed.