The Heavyweight Boxing Federation

[kenyan_cheena]

THE HOPES OF PENNSYLVANIA

Saturday 12 October 2002

Story by David Gomez for espn.com

One is unanimously regarded as a favourite to win the Heavyweight Boxing Federation's World Championship tournament while the other just considers himself fortunate to still be in it. Both of them call the state of Pennsylvania home and in two weeks will step back in the ring for the first time since mid-August. Neither Larry Holmes or Jimmy Young suffered the sting of defeat during the tournament's first stage but both know that the challenge to maintain that status will be mighty tough in the months to come, especially considering that they're in the same stage two group.

Born in Georgia but residing in Easton, Holmes has had to shoulder the burden of expectation ever since he attended the federation's tournament auditions last October and was soon after looked upon as the best pure boxer in the Heavyweight ranks, the federation installing him as the #4 overall seed in the tournament. He drove a faultless route through the opening six months of his pro career before hitting a minor speed bump when held to a draw by Johnny Risko on August 17 at Madison Square Garden. As a result he missed out on being seeded #1 in his stage two group and is scheduled to clash with the heavy-hitting Ohio native Earnie Shavers on the 25th of October.

"It's not the ideal start," Holmes said when I spoke to him earlier this week. "Folks are saying I'll do the same thing to him as Tunney but the guy can hit hard, mule kick hard. I'm gonna have to be at my best, without a doubt. It's the consequence of my failure against Risko, though. That's taught me a tough lesson, for sure. Saoul, he didn't talk to me for a week after that fight, he was just so disappointed in me. I have to say it cut me pretty deep to lose that perfect record 'cause it was my ambition to get through this thing unscathed. It was a lofty one but why would I shoot for anything less? That's gone now and there's no gettin' it back. Folks also see a flaw in me and that ain't a good feeling."

Holmes' style and demeanour has been referred to as "boring" by some observers, criticism that the 25 year-old simply shrugs off. He agrees that he'll never be the most talkative, outgoing fellow but doesn't think it should have any bearing on his standing as a Heavyweight boxer.

"Making people laugh ain't gonna win me the Championship," he said simply. "So why should it matter if I ain't a comedian? This is boxing, not show business."

(to be continued)

[kenyan_cheena]

(continuation)

While Holmes is shooting for the stars, Philadelphia's Jimmy Young is simply hoping to remain competitive. The 21 year-old made an ordinary start to his professional career, being held to a draw on debut and then eeking out a split decision win in his second fight. But he overcame that and went on to complete stage one with a 5-0-2 record that included an important split decision victory over Florida's Elmer Ray in the HBF's first grudge match. Looking back, Young is keenly aware of how close he came to missing out on a spot in stage two.

"If I'd lost that fight to Elmer that would've been it for me," he said. "I'd be in the position he's in now, one of the top seeds in the American tournament. And it was a close thing, you know? Came down to just one round. It's hard to believe that I made it through after the way things started for me and I ain't under any illusions. I know that this next year is gonna be real tough. Bein' realistic I just hope to stay competitive and put in some performances that'll give people reason to admire me, to show them that I belong here."

Young is a good friend of IBL Future Contender series Middleweight and fellow Philadelphian Willie Monroe and spoke of how important he thinks it is for Pennsylvania's representatives in both the HBF and IBL to excel for their state.

"This is where it's at," said Young, smiling. "Personally, I don't think there's another state in this nation that can boast as much boxing talent as Penn. Just in the federation we've got Larry, Frank Moran and Leotis Martin but the IBL, it's just through the roof: Charley Burley, Harry Greb, Billy Conn, Harold Johnson, my man Willie ... I could keep goin' but that's just off the top of my head. I'd be real surprised if there ain't at least one World Champion from Penn at the conclusion of all these tournaments. You can quote me on that."

Young's words on his home state are true but he knows that he faces a huge challenge in living up to them, especially considering that his final stage two bout will be against Holmes in just under a year from now.

"I'd love to be in a position where it's a live bout," Young said. "You know, where the winner finishes first. That'd be something."

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WALKER SHOCKS WOODCOCK IN
EURO TOURNEY OPENER

Sunday 13 October 2002

In a considerable boilover England's Bruce Woodcock fell to a majority decision defeat at the hands of compatriot Billy Walker tonight in the main event of the opening fight card of the HBF's European Championship tournament. With federation president Michael Vincennes watching in the front row an aggressive Walker ambushed the #1 seed in the early rounds, a number of bone-rattling exchanges having the crowd at the Wembley Conference Center on their feet. Woodcock put himself in the fight when he abruptly dropped Walker early in the 4th and pummeled him until the bell, but it was not enough to turn the contest in his favour as the determined West Ham-born slugger pitched a near shutout through the final four rounds of the contest to take a 78-75, 77-77, 78-74 verdict.

To understand how big an upset it was, one has to remember that back on the 19th of August Woodcock was on the verge of securing a berth in stage two of the World Championship tournament before his opponent Jack Gardner rallied from being floored twice in round two to force a draw and take the spot Woodcock had appeared to have in the bag. Woodcock's 5-1-1 record was the best of all the 144 competitors who failed to qualify for stage two of either the World Championship or 1st Defense tournaments. Naturally he was named the #1 seed for the European Championship and was expected to have little trouble against Walker, who brought a three-fight losing streak into the contest having last tasted victory against Keene Simmons on the 26th of April. Woodcock showed a baffled, bemused expression in the minutes after the verdict was announced, the 22 year-old wearing cuts under his left eye and on the bridge of his nose along with swelling around his right eye.

***

The evening also started with an upset as Ireland's Tom Sharkey was sensationally knocked out cold by the Italian Franco Cavicchi midway through round four of their contest. Sharkey came out swinging, catching Cavicchi with a number of flush blows in round one. The action slowed somewhat in the next two rounds but Sharkey maintained control. With little happening in the 4th Cavicchi unloaded with a left-right salvo, the second shot catching Sharkey on the jaw and dropping him face first to the canvas. He did not move for the duration of the count, Cavicchi declared the winner by knockout at the 1:27 mark.

Sharkey appeared devastated once he realised what had happened, the loss his third in a row following defeats against Sam Langford and Alex Stewart that ended his time in the World Championship tournament. He had spoken of how excited he was to compete for the European title and was regarded as a favourite to reach the tournament semi-finals. Of course, there are still ten premiminary bouts to come so he is by no means out of the running but he looked a broken man as he stepped under the ropes and left the ring. Sharkey's record is now a disappointing 3-3-2(2), the two stoppage victories inside of three rounds that kicked off his career seemingly a distant memory at the moment.

(to be continued)

[Romdawg88]

Damn, pretty crazy start to the Euro tourny.

[kenyan_cheena]

Originally Posted by Romdawg88

Damn, pretty crazy start to the Euro tourny.

It sure was. I have to say I enjoyed running a whole card of eight-rounders. Here's a couple more results:

(continuation)

***

In the Co-Feature Joe Bugner scored his second consecutive victory over Norway's Otto Von Porat, the big Englishman overcoming a poor start to take a 77-75, 76-76, 77-75 majority decision verdict. The two men had clashed back on the 12th of August in their final World Championship tournament outing, Bugner winning that bout by a six-round unanimous decision. The 18 year-old 2nd seed was not particularly happy with his showing tonight, saying that he was lazy through rounds two, three and four and was lucky to avoid defeat. The win improved Bugner's overall record to 5-2-1(1) while Von Porat fell to 3-5(2).

3rd-seeded Englishman Don Cockell also had a tough night as he eeked out a split decision win against the Welshman Dick Richardson (77-75, 75-77, 77-75). It was an at-times ugly encounter, one that featured a deal of clinching and point-blank exchanges, the unnatractive nature of it reflected in the judge's wildly varied scorecards. One of them gave rounds three through six to Richardson while the other two had those same rounds split 2-2 but differed in which man took each round. In fact, rounds two and seven were the only ones where all three judges were in agreement.

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SUMMARY OF RESULTS
HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING FEDERATION FIGHT CARD
SUNDAY 13 OCTOBER 2002
WEMBLEY CONFERENCE CENTER, LONDON, ENGLAND

HBF EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT, SERIES ONE


OPENING BOUT

(8) Franco Cavicchi KO4 (6) Tom Sharkey

PRELIMINARY 1

(5) Peter Maher SD8 (7) Joe Erskine

PRELIMINARY 2

(4) Hein Ten-Hoff UD8 (9) Johnny Williams

SUPPORT BOUT

(3) Don Cockell SD8 (11) Dick Richardson

CO-FEATURE

(2) Joe Bugner MD8 (10) Otto Von Porat

MAIN EVENT

(12) Billy Walker MD8 (1) Bruce Woodcock

[kenyan_cheena]

Sunday 13 October 2002

HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING FEDERATION
FIGHT CARD SCHEDULE
MONDAY 14/10/2002 - SUNDAY 20/10/2002 INCLUSIVE

MONDAY 14/10/2002

HBF CONTINENTAL AMERICAS CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT
STAGE 1, SERIES 1: GROUPS 6 & 7
EMERALD QUEEN CASINO, TACOMA, WASHINGTON, USA

(G6): 3(31) Joe Choynski vs 5(55) John Holman
(G7): 3(30) Bruce Seldon vs 5(54) Tom McNeeley
(G6): 2(19) Johnny Risko vs 4(43) Gus Ruhlin
(G7): 2(18) Stan Ward vs 4(42) Charley Retzlaff
(G7): 1(7) Tommy Gomez vs 6(66) Amos Johnson
(G6): 1(6) Ibar Arrington vs 6(67) Ted Lowry

WEDNESDAY 16/10/2002

HBF CONTINENTAL AMERICAS CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT
STAGE 1, SERIES 1: GROUPS 2 & 11
MAMMOTH GARDENS, DENVER, COLORADO, USA

(G2): 3(35) Tommy Jackson vs 5(59) Lee Savold
(G11): 3(26) Gerald Griffith vs 5(50) Nick Barone
(G2): 2(23) Jose Luis Garcia vs 4(47) Bob Satterfield
(G11): 2(14) Roland LaStarza vs 4(38) Johnny Riggins
(G11): 1(11) Bert Whitehurst vs 6(62) Randy Stephens
(G2): 1(2) Ron Lyle vs 6(71) Bill Tate

SUNDAY 20/10/2002

HBF AFRICAN CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT, SERIES 1
CARNIVAL CITY BIG TOP ARENA, JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA

(6) Francois Burger vs (7) Nelson Ndungane
(5) Samuel Peter vs (9) Jaque Botha
(4) Gerrie Coetzee vs (8) Obafemi Anichebe
(3) Kallie Knoetze vs (11) Duncan Dokiwari
(2) Johnny DuPlooy vs (10) Onyekachi Etuhu
(1) Johnny Arthur vs (12) Joseph Afolabi

[kenyan_cheena]

Starting Thursday I'll be on holiday from work for 12 days and plan to get a bunch of writing done in both my HBF/IBL and MLB universes during that time.

So if you feel inclined you can look forward to some good readin'.

[Romdawg88]

Nice that is some good news to hear. I'm looking forward to seeing what you pump out.

[kenyan_cheena]

GOMEZ KICKS OFF AMERICAN CAMPAIGN
IN SMASHING FASHION

Monday 14 October 2002

Florida Alliance member Tommy Gomez made a victorious start to the Continental Americas Championship tournament tonight, the 7th seed scoring a 3rd round KO of Ohio's Amos Johnson at the Emerald Queen Casino in Tacoma, Washington. After an evenly-fought 1st round Gomez took control in round two, catching Johnson with several hard punches. The Tampa native kept the momentum rolling into round three, pounding his opponent until a jolting right cross late in the frame sent Johnson to the canvas. He failed to beat the count, the contest over at the 2:47 mark.

Gomez was understandably low-key afterwards, not seeing the need to talk up a victory against an opponent who brought a six-fight winless streak into the evening. Even so he did acknowledge that it felt good to be back in the winner's circle after the disappointment of his drawn August bout against George Chuvalo, a result that ended his chances of progressing to stage two of the World Championship tournament. Tonight was just the start of what is an important week for the Florida Alliance as Welterweight IBL competitor James Ray steps back into the ring on Thursday night against the tough New Yorker James "Buddy" McGirt in Miami.

***

While Gomez had little trouble in dispatching of his opponent, fellow top seed Ibar Arrington came close to what would have been a disasterous defeat against Massachusetts native Ted Lowry. Born about sixty miles north in Everett the 22 year-old had the full support of the crowd but got much more than he bargained for from Lowry, the opening four rounds action-packed, fierce and explosive. Going into the 5th one judge favoured Lowry by two points while the others saw it even.

It stayed competitive through until round seven when Arrington dropped Lowry with a single devastating uppercut thirty seconds from the bell. It looked like the home town favourite would prevail but Lowry beat the count and not only made it to the bell but went on to win the final round quite convincingly, making for a nail-biter of a verdict. When it came Arrington's face was masked with relief as he was awarded a 76-75, 75-76, 76-75 split decision win.

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LYLE SURVIVES SCARE IN
OPENING AMERICAN TOURNEY BOUT

Wednesday 16 October 2002

Fighting in his hometown for the first time, Denver's Ron Lyle produced a lacklustre performance in scoring a split decision victory over Chicago's Bill Tate (78-76, 76-77, 77-75). Inexplicably, Lyle had looked quite underdone at yesterday's weigh-in and the extra pounds had a detrimental effect on his efforts as he struggled to gain the upperhand throughout the contest. Lyle is the #2 seed in the Continental Americas Championship tournament and will have to show a vast improvement in his next outing.

Baltimore's Bert Whitehurst was ambushed by Dallas native Randy Stephens in the Co-Feature, the Texan dropping Whitehurst midway through round two and holding on to record a 77-74, 75-76, 76-75 split decision victory. The win was Stephens' second in a row and improved his record to 3-4-1 while Whitehurst fell to 4-3-1. He's the tournament's 11th seed and was expected to have little trouble against Stephens but came up with an ordinary showing, to say the least. After starting his career with back-to-back victories and being spoken of as an outside chance to progress in the World Championship tournament, Whitehurst has only won two of his last six bouts.

Earlier in the evening slick-punching Bronx native Roland LaStarza made a victorious start to his campaign with a dominant unanimous decision win over Johnny Riggins (79-72, 78-73, 79-72). After assuming control early LaStarza sent Riggins to the canvas a minute into round six and cruised until the final bell. Now 5-3, LaStarza is going to need an outstanding effort through the American tournament to make up for his failure to reach stage two of the World Championship tournament, where he was the #26 seed. Followers of the HBF will remember his efforts to intimidate 7th seed Young Stribling before the Georgian handled him with ease when they finally met.

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ABRAM SIN FOUND ... IN BROOKLYN

Friday 18 October 2002

The Abram Sin saga took a strange and unexpected turn yesterday as the talented youngster was discovered to be "hiding out" in a Brooklyn homeless shelter with only a handful of possessions and the clothes on his back. Born in Hoboken, New Jersey the 15 year-old came to the public's attention last month when he turned up unannounced at the North Bergen gym where Heavyweight Boxing Federation competitor Joe Jeannette trains and demonstrated that he has a great talent for the sport. A subsequent article that New York Age journalist James Reynolds wrote on the incident sparked off a frenzy of interest and drew the ire of Jeannette, who claimed the story contained a number of inaccuracies.

Last week it was revealed that Sin had vanished. He had stopped showing up at the North Bergen gym and a search by Jeannette this past weekend of the Church Square neighbourhood where Sin claimed to live came up empty. Jeannette found out that Sin had lived there in the past but his family had moved out of their home some six months ago. Realising that Sin had lied to him, Jeannette became even more worried about the teenager and went on television to make a plea for young Abram to at the very least let him know he was okay. Abram's image was plastered all over the evening news and it didn't take long before leads developed, leads that led directly to the homeless shelter on Lexington Avenue in Brooklyn.

It appears that Jeannette's words of last week, where he speculated that the media attention may have scared Sin, were true. The young man confirmed yesterday that he'd been overwhelmed by it all and needed to escape. He also revealed that he's been homeless since August, his alcoholic father having kicked him out of the Brooklyn apartment they'd moved into after leaving Church Square. Abram's father has since disappeared. No longer living in the apartment, his whereabouts are currently unknown. Abram's future situation is currently uncertain, although Joe Jeannette stated yesterday that he is prepared, willing and able to take the young man under his wing and assume the role of his guardian...

[kenyan_cheena]

ARTHUR SCORES FIRST WIN
SINCE MAY IN AFRICAN OPENER

Sunday 20 October 2002

#1-seeded South African Johnny Arthur has made a victorious start to his African Championship tournament campaign, the 21 year-old defeating HBF debutant Joseph Afolabi in the main event of tonight's Carnival City Big Top Arena fight card in Johannesburg. It was Arthur's first victory since upsetting Tony Tucker in series five of the World Championship tournament back on the 27th of May, that win followed by losses to Zora Folley and Sam McVey that eliminated him from the event.

Arthur pitched a shutout through the fight's first five rounds and only eased off in the final stanza before being awarded a unanimous decision victory (59-55 on all three cards). The win improved his record to 4-2-2. The card featured eight fighters making their federation debuts and of them the Nigerian Onyekachi Etuhu was the most impressive as he KO'd Arthur's fellow South African Johnny DuPlooy with a single left hook to the body 42 seconds into round one. DuPlooy had brought a three-fight winning streak into the bout and wore a mask of pain in the moments after being counted out as he clutched at his ribcage.

Earlier Kallie Knoetze improved to 4-4(1) with the first knockout win of his career. After struggling through the opening round he sent Duncan Dokiwari to the canvas with a succession of blows one minute into the 2nd. Nigeria's Samuel Peter had been spoken of in glowing terms during the federation's African auditions but he was paired up against a tough South African in the form of Jaque Botha. After Peter made a great start in the 1st round Botha went on to have the better of the rest of the contest, landing a stack of punches in rounds two, three and five. Peter showed a lack of defensive ability and Botha exploited it effectively but in the end the bout was scored a draw (57-57 on all three cards).

[kenyan_cheena]

Sunday 20 October 2002

SUMMARY OF RESULTS
HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING FEDERATION FIGHT CARDS
MONDAY 14/10/2002 - SUNDAY 20/10/2002 INCLUSIVE


MONDAY 14/10/2002

HBF CONTINENTAL AMERICAS CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT
STAGE 1, SERIES 1: GROUPS 6 & 7
EMERALD QUEEN CASINO, TACOMA, WASHINGTON, USA

(G6): 3(31) Joe Choynski TKO6 5(55) John Holman
(G7): 3(30) Bruce Seldon TKO4 5(54) Tom McNeeley
(G6): 4(43) Gus Ruhlin UD8 2(19) Johnny Risko
(G7): 4(42) Charley Retzlaff MD8 2(18) Stan Ward
(G7): 1(7) Tommy Gomez KO3 6(66) Amos Johnson
(G6): 1(6) Ibar Arrington SD8 6(67) Ted Lowry


WEDNESDAY 16/10/2002

HBF CONTINENTAL AMERICAS CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT
STAGE 1, SERIES 1: GROUPS 2 & 11
MAMMOTH GARDENS, DENVER, COLORADO, USA

(G2): 5(59) Lee Savold SD8 3(35) Tommy Jackson
(G11): 3(26) Gerald Griffith UD8 5(50) Nick Barone
(G2): 2(23) Jose Luis Garcia UD8 4(47) Bob Satterfield
(G11): 2(14) Roland LaStarza UD8 4(38) Johnny Riggins
(G11): 6(62) Randy Stephens SD8 1(11) Bert Whitehurst
(G2): 1(2) Ron Lyle SD8 6(71) Bill Tate


SUNDAY 20/10/2002

HBF AFRICAN CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT, SERIES 1
CARNIVAL CITY BIG TOP ARENA, JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA

(6) Francois Burger TKO6 (7) Nelson Ndungane
(5) Samuel Peter D6 (9) Jaque Botha
(4) Gerrie Coetzee UD6 (8) Obafemi Anichebe
(3) Kallie Knoetze KO2 (11) Duncan Dokiwari
(10) Onyekachi Etuhu KO1 (2) Johnny DuPlooy
(1) Johnny Arthur UD6 (12) Joseph Afolabi

[kenyan_cheena]

Sunday 20 October 2002

HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING FEDERATION
FIGHT CARD SCHEDULE
MONDAY 21/10/2002 - SUNDAY 27/10/2002 INCLUSIVE


MONDAY 21/10/2002

HBF CONTINENTAL AMERICAS CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT
STAGE 1, SERIES 1: GROUPS 3 & 10
BOSTON GARDEN, BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, USA

(G3): 3(34) Billy Daniels vs 5(58) Toxie Hall
(G10): 3(27) Tyrell Biggs vs 5(51) Manuel Ramos
(G3): 2(22) Tony Alongi vs 4(46) Lem Franklin
(G10): 2(15) Phil Muscato vs 4(39) Embrell Davidson
(G10): 1(10) Mac Foster vs 6(63) Pat Valentino
(G3): 1(3) Jack Sharkey vs 6(70) Harold Carter


WEDNESDAY 23/10/2002

HBF CONTINENTAL AMERICAS CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT
STAGE 1, SERIES 1: GROUPS 5 & 8
LUNA PARK, BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA

(G5): 3(32) Wayne Bethea vs 5(56) Curtis Sheppard
(G8): 3(29) Jim Maloney vs 5(53) Kevin Isaac
(G5): 2(20) Joe Grim vs 4(44) Scott LeDoux
(G8): 2(17) Renaldo Snipes vs 4(41) Al Jones
(G8): 1(8) Earl Walls vs 6(65) Jack Roper
(G5): 1(5) Cesar Brion vs 6(68) Tom McMahon


FRIDAY 25/10/2002

HBF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP & 1ST DEFENSE TOURNAMENTS
STAGE 2, SERIES 1: GROUP 4 (WC) & GROUP 2 (1D)
MADISON SQUARE GARDEN, NEW YORK, NEW YORK, USA

(1D): 4(8) Herbie Hide vs 5(48) Frank Slavin
(1D): 3(30) Tommy Morrison vs 6(37) Alfredo Evangelista
(WC): 4(16) Jimmy Young vs 5(13) Ken Norton
(WC): 3(4) Larry Holmes vs 6(32) Earnie Shavers
(WC): 2(9) Sam Langford vs 7(41) Zora Folley
(WC): 1(5) Riddick Bowe vs 8(21) Ray Mercer


SATURDAY 26/10/2002

HBF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP & 1ST DEFENSE TOURNAMENTS
STAGE 2, SERIES 1: GROUP 1 (WC) & GROUP 2 (1D)
STADIO SAN SIRO, MILAN, ITALY

(1D): 2(12) Carl Morris vs 7(10) Natie Brown
(WC): 4(12) George Chuvalo vs 5(45) Harry Thomas
(WC): 3(20) Donovan Ruddock vs 6(17) Floyd Patterson
(WC): 2(8) Sam McVey vs 7(40) Alex Stewart
(1D): 1(2) James Jeffries vs 8(35) John Lester Johnson
(WC): 1(1) Gene Tunney vs 8(108) Sante Amonti


SUNDAY 27/10/2002

HBF ASIA/OCEANIA CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT, SERIES 1
SYDNEY ENTERTAINMENT CENTRE, SYDNEY, NEW SOUTH WALES, AUSTRALIA

(6) Simione Paea vs (7) Sitiveni Lauaki
(5) Steven Slater vs (9) Semo Salanoa
(4) Neemia Sivivatu vs (8) Manase Falemaka
(3) Dave Young vs (11) Sailosi Tuilagi
(2) Sione Tialata vs (10) Michael Fenton
(1) Joe Goddard vs (12) Sam Leuluai

[kenyan_cheena]

SHARKEY CONTINUES JOURNEY
ON ROAD TO REDEMPTION

Monday 21 October 2002

#3 seed Jack Sharkey made a victorious start to his quest for the HBF's Continental Americas Championship tonight, defeating New Jersey's Harold Carter by a clear-cut unanimous decision (79-73, 80-72, 79-73) at Boston Garden. The win was Sharkey's third in a row and improved his record to 5-2-1. The 23 year-old received a warm round of applause as he made his way to the ring indicating that his fellow Bostonians have forgiven him for his failure to progress to stage two of the World Championship tournament and are more concerned about supporting him in his American tournament campaign.

Sharkey's underwhelming efforts in the World Championship tournament were a source of great disappointment in Massachusetts in general and Boston in particular. After making a 2-2-1 career start the 15th seed was arrested on a public intoxication charge in early July and appeared to have hit rock bottom. But just two weeks later he produced a fantastic showing to defeat Argentina's Oscar Bonavena and then finished his time in the tournament with a victory over Ted Lowry to place 3rd in his group. He regarded tonight's win as just another step on his "road to redemption".

***

In the Co-Feature Fresno's Mac Foster scored his third consecutive 3rd round stoppage victory, knocking fellow Californian Pat Valentino out cold with a single uppercut midway through the round. After Valentino came out and dominated round one Foster turned the tables in the 2nd and then kept a hold of that momentum into the 3rd. Foster is now 5-2-1(4) and has won his last four bouts. He's one of just eight HBF competitors to have scored at least four stoppage victories.

Earlier in the evening Alabama's Lem Franklin threw away a certain victory when he was disqualified in the 7th round of his bout against Florida's Tony Alongi. Dominating the fight, Franklin led by at least four points on all three scorecards heading into the 7th but had been warned in both the 2nd and 5th rounds for using an open glove. When he committed the foul again a minute into round seven referee Jimmy Gardiner had seen enough and declared the outclassed Alongi the winner by disqualification. The defeat ended a three-fight winning streak for Franklin. He fell to 3-5(1) while Alongi improved to 5-3 but would have left the arena feeling like the luckiest man in America.

[kenyan_cheena]

HBF'S PREMIER COMPETITORS
BACK IN ACTION THIS WEEKEND

Tuesday 22 October 2002

It's been just over seven weeks since stage one of the Heavyweight Boxing Federation's World Championship and 1st Defense tournaments came to a conclusion. In the time since the rival International Boxing League has garnered the lion's share of the sport's publicity with their daily fight cards in comparison to the HBF's almost hiatus-like status. However, that situation is set to change this coming Friday as stage two of the federation's flagship events kicks off at the same place where stage one ended, Madison Square Garden in New York City.

The night will signal the beginning of a new period for the HBF, one where the stakes are higher than they've been through the first year of its existence. On Friday night HBF competitors are set to fight in ten-round bouts for the first time, the card featuring two bouts in the 1st Defense tournament and four in the World Championship tournament. Headlining the event is Brooklyn native Riddick Bowe, the World Championship tournament's #5 seed scheduled to face off against Florida's Ray Mercer.

"We've finally arrived," said federation president Michael Vincennes today as he spoke from Milan, Italy, where Saturday night's second stage two fight card will be held. "There's been a lot of talk about the IBL but one thing they can't boast of is being at the business end of their tournaments. Right now they are where we were back in February, still in the early days of their events. Things become a lot more serious for us come Friday night."

Over the next eleven months 48 of the most skilled fighters in the HBF are going to compete for the right to take part in the semi-finals of the two tournaments. While four of the sixteen entrants in the 1st Defense tournament's second stage will qualify the situation is twice as cutthroat in the World Championship tournament, where 32 tussle for those four precious semi-final berths. A look at the combined records of the competitors in each tournament illustrates the quality of fighters involved:

World Championship tournament: 178-25-21(40)
1st Defense tournament: 86-17-9(25)

"There's thirteen undefeated fighters in the World Championship tournament," said Vincennes. "I don't need to tell you that each and every one of them will be doing everything they can to maintain that status. But in the end, only one can emerge victorious and call themselves World Champion. I just can't wait to get started."

[kenyan_cheena]

BRION VICTORIOUS IN BUENOS AIRES

Wednesday 23 October 2002

Hot-headed Argentinian Cesar Brion kicked off his Continental Americas Championship tournament campaign with a victory in his homeland tonight, the 21 year-old defeating Illinois native Tom McMahon by unanimous decision (78-74, 79-72, 78-74). After a very tough, even first five rounds it appeared either man's fight to win but Brion ran away with it from the 6th onwards. He dominated that round and then floored McMahon in the 7th and 8th to blow out his lead on the cards. Brion is now 5-2-1(1). The loss stretched McMahon's winless streak to seven fights. After winning on debut back in January he was defeated in his next three bouts before being involved in three consecutive draws.

Brion stood out from the crowd during the 1st Defense tournament by being an individual who "wore his heart on his sleeve". Fans of the HBF will remember his emotions being fully on display after he pulled off an upset victory over the Cuban Nino Valdes and his absolute devastation when a loss to Carl Morris in August spelt the end of his time in the tournament. He's the 5th seed in the American tournament and if he can maintain the same standard he showed tonight should still be in contention deep into the event. As expected he received great support from the Luna Park crowd and heaped praise on them afterwards for helping him succeed.

***

In the Co-Feature Canada's Earl Walls suffered a shock 2nd round KO defeat against the unfancied Californian Jack Roper. In a wild fight Walls had Roper on the canvas twice in the opening round and looked to be on the way to victory but the Hollywood native caught Walls with a flush left hook a minute into the 2nd that put him on his backside. Walls stumbled and fell sideways as he tried to push himself off the canvas and was counted out moments later.

After a 4-0-1 start to his career Walls looked to be a fighter with real promise but tonight's loss was his third in a row and saw him drop to 4-3-1. He ended his time in the World C