The Heavyweight Boxing Federation

[kenyan_cheena]

RAY ROCKS RENAULT
WITH ONE-PUNCH KNOCKOUT

Wednesday 30 October 2002

Florida Alliance leader Elmer Ray made an explosive return to the ring tonight, knocking out the Canadian Jack Renault in the 3rd round of the main event at Montreal's Bell Centre. The #1 seed in the Continental Americas Championship tournament was fighting for the first time sice being dominated and defeated by Floyd Patterson on August the 9th in Miami, a loss that ended his time in the federation's World Championship tournament. Ray stepped between the ropes in fantastic shape, having weighed-in at a ripped 192 pounds yesterday. After a mostly uneventful opening round the 17 year-old showed more aggression in the 2nd and then finished Renault off in devastating fashion in round three. After stunning him with a jolting uppercut forty seconds in Ray turned Renault's lights out for good with another uppercut thirty seconds from the bell. The shot snapped the Canadian's head back and he crumbled to the canvas to be counted out at the 2:37 mark.

'Ain' no big deal, y'all," Ray said afterwards in a nonchalant tone. "This be jus' the beginnin', see? Gots t' say, though, it real nice to be fightin' 'gain. Be almos' three months I be waitin' to step back in, y'all. You know, our man Romdawg took care of b'iness last night so we now 2-0 this week, see? Now all we needin' is O-Mack to do his thang on Friday and we be rollin'."

Ray is now 6-2(3) and is not shy about his ambitions for the tournament, saying earlier this week that he'll regard anything less than a Championship win as a "huge failure". Such words will no doubt put the same type of pressure that he felt during the World Championship tournament back on him but he's entirely aware of that. It was actually his idea to have tonight's card staged in Montreal. The federation granted "hometown cards" to each of the top six seeds in the tournament for series one but Ray refused, partly because he'd fought in Florida in his last bout but mostly because he wanted to be in a "hostile environment" for his American tourney debut. Renault may not be the most talented fighter in the HBF but he had the entire Bell Centre audience behind him and they were sent into a stunned, disappointed silence when their man was knocked out.

If Ray can achieve his goal and walk away as the inaugural Continental Americas Champion it will really bring about some interesting situations down the road, especially if he's able to earn himself a World Championship shot by defending the title five times...

***

In the co-feature Detroit's Johnny Summerlin snapped a two-fight losing streak with a unanimous decision win over Oakland's Roger Rischer (78-74, 79-73, 78-74). Summerlin is the tournament's 12th seed and looked confident and hungry in handling Rischer. He floored the Californian with a stinging body shot late in the 7th and was always in control of the contest.

Summerlin's fellow Michigan native Tony Tucker ended his own three-fight losing streak, tasting victory for the first time since April with a 7th round KO of the Argentinian Alejandro Lavorante. Based on his performance Tucker appears to have put the disappointment of missing out on stage two of the World Championship tournament behind him and is focused solely on winning the American title. He never let Lavorante into the fight and dropped him for a full count with an impressive, rapid accumulation of power punches a minute into round seven.

[Romdawg88]

Way to go Ray, that was exactly what he needed to do after the Patterson fight.

[kenyan_cheena]

MERCADO MASSACRED AT HOME

Thursday 31 October 2002

Colombia's Bernardo Mercado made a disasterous start to his Qualifying League campaign tonight when he was stopped inside of two rounds by the unfancied Englishman Michael Richardson. It was the second loss in a row for Mercado, both of which have come in his homeland (and at the same venue). He was dominated by the Argentinian Gregorio Peralta in the final of the South American Boxing League on September 12. That result was not a surprise but tonight's one was. Richardson brought a 0-1-1 record into the clash and was not expected to trouble the Qualifying League's #4 seed, having fought out a draw with the lightly regarded Belgian Jean-Pierre Coopman in his last outing.

After controlling the opening round Richardson sent Mercado to the canvas with a barrage of punches midway through the 2nd. Mercado beat the count but Richardson made the most of the opportunity and unloaded on him, landing a number of hard, flush shots. The final straw was a three-punch combo that had Mercado sliding down the ropes before referee Dick Young jumped in to end it eighteen seconds from the bell. Richardson was understandably ecstatic while the crowd was shocked, Mercado led back to his corner on unsteady legs. The loss saw his record fall to 5-2-1(1) and extended his winless streak to three fights.

In the evening's co-feature Sweden's Ingemar Johansson made a victorious QL debut, scoring a comfortable unanimous decision win over the German Torsten Hildebrand (59-54 on all three cards). Johansson floored Hildebrand in the 1st and 5th rounds, his best work coming in the bottom half of the fight where he was in complete control. Followers of the HBF will remember that Johansson was on his way to winning the Northern Europe Boxing League tournament before being upset by Denmark's Flemming Ekelund in the semi-finals, his only loss to date. Johansson is the Qualifying League's 9th seed and should be regarded as one of its real talents. His record is now 6-1(2).

Earlier on the card New Yorker Carl Williams improved to 3-0 with a unanimous decision win over Sonny Banks (58-56, 59-55, 58-56). Banks showed promise in an entertaining 1st but from round two onwards Williams never looked like losing as he kept Banks off balance with a potent left jab. Williams has really set himself apart as one of the finds of the QL and it will be interesting to watch him as he continues through the tournament.

In an all-Russian clash, Aleksandr Bystrov was very impressive in stopping Genadi Yantchev in the 4th round. Yantchev had been the #1 seed in the Southern Europe Boxing League but suffered his first defeat when stopped by Lovro Alanovic in it's semi-finals. Tonight was his first outing since then and after flooring Bystrov at the end of the 1st round everything went downhill for him. Bystrov pummeled him in rounds two and three and then dropped him early in the 4th. After climbing from the canvas Yantchev ate a number of hard shots and the bout was stopped with him helpless in a nuetral corner midway through the stanza.

In a less-than-enthralling matchup Texas native Terry Daniels had to settle for a draw for the second fight in a row. After an ugly clash against Nashville's Max Cayton all three judges came up with a 57-57 verdict. Cayton had looked fantastic in defeating Aleksandr Bystrov in his last bout but he struggled tonight, having difficulty finding his range and maintaining any sustained offense against an opponent who was more concerned with clinching and holding. Cayton complained to the referee about Daniels' tactics on more than one occasion and while the Texan showed more willingness to engage in the later rounds his earlier antics more or less spoiled the contest. Cayton wore a disappointed countenance after the verdict and exchanged some heated words with Daniels, accusing him of poor sportsmanship and claiming that he "sabotaged" his efforts to win the fight.

[kenyan_cheena]

JACKSON CLIMBS OFF CANVAS IN 1ST,
STOPS HENRY IN THE 9TH

Friday 1 November 2002

Australia's Peter Jackson survived a shock 1st round knockdown before going on to stop Los Angeles native Clarence Henry in round nine of the main event on tonight's HBF fight card in Osaka, Japan. The 6th seed in the federation's World Championship tournament recovered from the opening round mishap in quick fashion, getting the better of an action-packed 2nd and then pounding Henry into submission during the next four rounds. By the 7th Henry's right eye was showing some bad swelling but he was allowed to continue. Jackson floored him with a body shot thirty seconds into round eight and when the Californian ate a trio of shots early in the 9th the referee and ring doctor came to mutual agreement to stop the contest due to the severity of the swelling. The win maintained Jackson's perfect record and was his first stoppage victory since his debut win over James Ellis back in January. Henry fell to 4-4(2).

"The guy really surprised me there in the 1st," said Jackson. "He tried to bomb me away straight out of the gates but I think when he realised I wasn't going anywhere that really, well, dispirited him, I guess. It was a great hit-out, everything I expected it to be. I have to give all the thanks in the world to this crowd and the people of Japan for their support and hospitality during this last week. You have always shown me just as much love as I get back home in Australia and I appreciate that. I'll be doing my best for you to go as far as I can in this tournament."

In the evening's opening contest Florida Alliance member Oliver McCall made a successful start to stage two of the 1st Defense tournament when he knocked out Mike Weaver late in the 8th round. This fiercely-competitive fight was the first clash between any of the members of the three recognised "cliques" in boxing, those being the Florida Alliance, Jersey Pride and USC. Weaver is a member of USC and the two combatants had traded a deal of trash talk during the last few days, especially at yesterday's weigh-in. As for the fight itself, it was an absolute thriller. Weaver just had the better of round one, despite a strong finish from McCall, but the Fort Lauderdale native was clearly superior in the 2nd. The momentum shifted Weaver's way in round three before the 4th was another tight stanza.

The action slowed in the 5th but McCall was brilliant in round six, cutting Weaver under the left eye with a booming right hand. McCall kept his foot to the floor in the 7th and brought the crowd to its feet with a smashing left hook thirty seconds from the end of the 8th. The shot caught Weaver flush on the jaw and dropped him like a bullet from a sniper. McCall was motioned to a neutral croner by the referee but made a jubilant leap into the air before the count was even through, pumping his fist and shouting excitedly. Weaver was counted out at the 2:45 mark. Going into the 8th round all three ringside judges had the contest tied up at 67-67. Weaver had only lost once before tonight and fell to 6-2(2) while McCall improved to 6-1-1(2), bouncing back from a disappointing unanimous decision defeat at the hands of Tommy Morrison in August.

(to be continued)

[Romdawg88]

Nice win for McCall. Sounded like a pretty damn good fight until McCall shifted into high gear and smashed Weaver.

[kenyan_cheena]

Originally Posted by Romdawg88

Nice win for McCall. Sounded like a pretty damn good fight until McCall shifted into high gear and smashed Weaver.

I'm really, really hoping that he can claim one of those two semi-final berths from the group. It's way too much to expect him to beat Marciano but if he can show up and win each of his other bouts he should make it. Even if he just misses out he'll still be highly ranked when the tournament is over, which will be something for the Alliance to crow over.

[kenyan_cheena]

(continuation)

New York native Doug Jones remained undefeated as he floored Cuba's Nino Valdes three times on the way to a unanimous decision victory (96-91 on all three cards). It was a very competitive fight through the first five rounds with Jones leading by one point on two cards and Valdes up by the same margin on the other. But when Jones sent the Cuban to the canvas in both the 6th and 7th the bout turned permanently in his favour. The third knockdown early in round nine simply reinforced Jones' superiority. Both combatants were #1 seeds in their respective stage one groups so this was a high-quality matchup. They're part of a talent-heavy stage two group that actually features five of the top seven seeds in the 1st Defense tournament. Jones is now 7-0-1 while Valdes fell to 5-3(1) and has been victorious in just one of his last four fights.

In the first World Championship contest of the evening Louisville's Jimmy Ellis dominated the Englishman Gary Mason before stopping him late in the 7th. This one looked like being a one-sided contest from the opening round, Ellis dropping Mason with a big left hook midway through. As the bout continued Ellis built a winning lead, fighting with confidence and assuredness. He sent Mason to the canvas again in the 6th and for the third and final time with thirty seconds remaining in the 8th. It was a stinging body shot that did the trick and Mason stayed down on one knee for the duration of the count. Ellis' only defeat during stage one was to Chicago's Ernie Terrell so tonight's win improved his record to 7-1(2). Mason has now lost two fights in a row and fell to 5-3(1). He'll need to show a lot more than he did tonight when he steps in against Oakland's Lou Nova in eight weeks from now.

Speaking of Nova, the Californian almost sprung a big upset when he floored Jack Johnson with a jolting left hook forty seconds into the 2nd round of their clash. While Johnson looked to be in great shape he was unsure of himself as he struggled to get into the fight during the opening two rounds. He landed some telling blows in the 3rd and then ended it abruptly with a left hook just 23 seconds into the 4th that put Nova to sleep. He was counted out at the 0:34 mark and Johnson had his seventh win in a row since that famous loss to Joe Beckett back in January. Johnson was in a bragadocious mood afterwards, celebrating with his gorgeous girlfriend Jessica Aguilar and acknowledging a hearty ovation from the crowd. After winning his first five bouts Nova has now lost three of his last four, all of them inside the distance. He was knocked out by World Championship tournament 2nd seed Sonny Liston to end stage one and that result combined with tonight's points to him being out of his league against the top contenders of the tournament.

Pittsburgh's Frank Moran scored an impressive 5th round knockout win over England's Frank Bruno in the co-feature, the victory improving his record to 7-0-1(3). Moran appeared to be in control through the opening two rounds but Bruno answered back strongly in the 3rd and 4th, setting up an intriguing stoush. But Moran struck a minute into the 5th, dropping Bruno with a barrage of punches. He was up at six but looked groggy and Moran floored him for a second time with a lightning bolt of a left hook fifty seconds from the bell. This time there was no coming back for the Englishman and he was counted out at 2:20 of the 5th round. After going undefeated through his first six bouts Bruno tasted defeat for the second time in a row. Moran has been fantastic throughout the tournament and must be regarded as having a real chance of challenging for a 1st place finish.

***

McCall KO8 Weaver
Jones UD10 Valdes
Ellis KO7 Mason
Johnson KO4 Nova
Moran KO5 Bruno
Jackson TKO9 Henry

[kenyan_cheena]

LISTON BESTS BRAVE BONAVENA

Saturday 2 November 2002

#2 seed Sonny Liston made a victorious start to stage two of the HBF's World Championship tournament tonight, stopping the courageous Argentine Oscar Bonavena in the 9th round of their main event clash at Glasgow's Braehead Arena. Fighting in his adopted homeland for the third time Liston was preceeded to the ring by a quartet of bagpipe players and once again wore the Scottish national colours of blue and white. He received thunderous applause as he entered the arena, the crowd giving a clear indication that they have taken the Missouri-born slugger into their hearts and embraced him as one of their own.

Bonavena showed brave resistance throughout the fight, especially in round three when he went toe-to-toe with Liston and had the better of some fierce exchanges. But he never looked like winning and was dominated from the 4th round onwards with Liston scoring knockdowns two minutes into round six and then again in the 9th from a vicious left hook. Liston followed up that second knockdown with a merciless assault and the referee stopped the contest six seconds from the bell with Bonavena on the ropes and helplessly absorbing shots. Liston improved to 8-0, recording his HBF-best seventh stoppage win while Bonavena fell to 5-3.

The 1st Defense tournament's top seed Rocky Marciano was also victorious on the night, knocking out an overmatched but game Bob Devere at the 2:32 mark of round six in the co-feature. A smashing left hook dropped the Irishman at the end of the 1st round and while he gave Marciano some troule in rounds four and five it seemed like being just a matter of time until "the Brockton Blockbuster" finished him off. When the end came it was quick but brutal, a single jolting uppercut dropping Devere for a full count. Marciano added to his perfect record, improving to 8-0(6), Devere suffering his third career defeat in falling to 4-3-1(1).

The Massachusetts native had the crowd in awe throughout the contest as he pounded Devere with those sledgehammer-like lefts and rights. They gave him a wonderful ovation at the bout's conclusion and an even more enthusiastic one after Marciano spoke words of thanks and appreciation to them during the post-fight interview. The man is, without a doubt, one of the class acts of the sport and it appears that he's on an unstoppable run to the tournament final.

(to be continued)

[kenyan_cheena]

(continuation)

***

In the evening's opening contest Jamaica's Trevor Berbick ran his record to 8-0(3) with a 3rd round TKO of Kentucky native Marvin Hart. It was Hart's third defeat in four fights, his record now 4-3-1. He wasted a great start as he swept the opening two rounds on all three cards, coming at Berbick with aggression and power. But the Jamaican stunned him with a hard right hand early in the 3rd and landed several follow-up shots. As the round progressed Hart was in further trouble and when Berbick caught him with a big uppercut the end was near. Defenseless and out on his feet Hart ate four unanswered shots and the bout was stopped at the 2:25 mark.

Georgia's Young Stribling proved too classy for undefeated Jersey Pride member Steve Hamas, winning by unanimous decision (96-93, 97-92, 96-94). The opening half of the fight was pretty even but Stribling did just enough in what were some close rounds, the judges swaying his way. Then in round six he dropped Hamas with an uppercut late in the frame after the Passaic native had been winning it quite handily. The final four rounds were split evenly and so despite putting in a solid effort Hamas found himself a clear-cut loser according to the cards.

Back in August England's Jack Gardner had produced a brave effort to avoid defeat and book his place in stage two when he climbed off the canvas twice in round two to hold compatriot Bruce Woodcock to a draw. He faced an even bigger challenge tonight in the shape of the World Championship tournament's 14th seed Ernie Terrell but found the roles being reversed compared to the Woodcock fight. While he had been the one rallying on that occasion tonight it was Terrell who overcame a slow start to force a drawn verdict.

Building a solid lead through the first four rounds Gardner looked set to score an upset win but Terrell was right into the contest after he swept the 5th, 6th and 7th rounds on all three cards. Gardner hit back in the 8th before they split the final two frames. The scorecards showed two verdicts of 95-95 and one of 96-94 in Gardner's favour. As a result Terrell's record is now 6-0-2 and Gardner's is 5-1-2. It was the second drawn bout in a row for both men, Terrell struggling against the unheralded King Levinsky in his own final stage one bout.

Having seen his friend Steve Hamas fall to his first career defeat earlier in the night Jersey Pride leader Joe Jeannette was determined not to suffer the same fate and he was fantastic in scoring a 7th round KO of Texas native Cleveland Williams. Establishing control through the first four rounds Jeannette then floored Williams twice in the 5th before finishing him off with a crippling body shot midway through the 7th. Williams was in obvious pain and, clutching at his side, was counted out at the 1:41 mark of the round.

It was Williams' second defeat following an ugly loss to Jack Johnson in July. He's now 5-2-1(1) but has been victorious in just one of his last four bouts. Jeannette improved to 8-0(3) at the end of what has been a busy period for him. He was in Toms River, New Jersey last week to see his good friend and fellow JP member Ike Williams compete (and win) on an IBL Future Contender series card. Then back on Monday he attended a custody hearing for Abram Sin, the young man who created headlines and some controversy when he showed up at Jeannette's North Bergen gym in late September and displayed his fantastic boxing skills. Once that was concluded Jeannette had to board a plane for Glasgow and it's a testament to his talent that he was able to produce such a great performance tonight.

***

Berbick TKO3 Hart
Stribling UD10 Hamas
Terrell D10 Gardner
Jeannette KO7 Williams
Marciano KO6 Devere
Liston TKO9 Bonavena

[kenyan_cheena]

Sunday 3 November 2002

SUMMARY OF RESULTS
HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING FEDERATION FIGHT CARDS
MONDAY 28/10/2002 - SUNDAY 03/11/2002 INCLUSIVE


MONDAY 28/10/2002

HBF CONTINENTAL AMERICAS CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT
STAGE 1, SERIES 1: GROUPS 4 & 9
CANTON MEMORIAL CIVIC CENTER, CANTON, OHIO, USA

(G4): 5(57) Amos Lincoln KO1 3(33) Larry Middleton
(G9): 3(28) Buddy Baer KO2 5(52) Coley Wallace
(G4): 2(21) Gus Dorazio D8 4(45) Charles Horn
(G9): 4(40) Tony Galento UD8 2(19) Buster Mathis
(G9): 1(9) Bernie Reynolds UD8 6(64) James Ellis
(G4): 1(4) Michael Dokes UD8 6(69) Gerry Cooney


TUESDAY 29/10/2002

HBF QUALIFYING LEAGUE, INITIAL RANKING TOURNAMENT
STAGE 1, SERIES 3: GROUPS 1 & 12
SURELERE STADIUM, LAGOS, NIGERIA

(G1): 5(60) Romy Alvarez UD6 4(48) Delbert Craw
(G12): 5(49) Kalolo Umaga UD6 4(37) Larry Gains
(G1): 3(36) Shakes Qoboza MD6 6(72) Antonio Serioux
(G12): 6(61) Scott Mundt UD6 3(25) Rex Layne
(G1): 2(24) Stanley Drexxon D6 7(84) Mike Hanson
(G12): 7(73) Hugh Phillips UD6 2(13) Jack Beckerman
(G12): 8(85) Lee Q. Murray KO1 1(12) Jim Flynn
(G1): 1(1) Omovo Okocha KO2 8(96) Sylvain Ribery


WEDNESDAY 30/10/2002

HBF CONTINENTAL AMERICAS CHAMPIONSHIP TOURNAMENT
STAGE 1, SERIES 1: GROUPS 1 & 12
BELL CENTRE, MONTREAL, QUEBEC, CANADA

(G1): 3(36) Henry Clark SD8 5(60) Ron Stander
(G12): 3(25) Bill Brennan KO4 5(49) Tony Ross
(G1): 2(24) Arthur Pelkey UD8 4(48) Al Ettore
(G12): 2(13) Tony Tucker KO7 4(37) Alejandro Lavorante
(G12): 1(12) Johnny Summerlin UD8 6(61) Roger Rischer
(G1): 1(1) Elmer Ray KO3 6(72) Jack Renault


THURSDAY 31/10/2002

HBF QUALIFYING LEAGUE, INITIAL RANKING TOURNAMENT
STAGE 1, SERIES 3: GROUPS 4 & 9
ESTADIO EL CAMPIN, BOGOTA, COLOMBIA

(G4): 4(45) Jim Chang Kai UD6 5(57) Jean-Pierre Coopman
(G9): 4(40) Howard King SD6 5(52) Charles Bradley
(G4): 6(69) Jerry Quarry TKO3 3(33) Lou Bailey
(G9): 3(28) Terry Daniels D6 6(64) Max Cayton
(G4): 7(81) Carl Williams UD6 2(21) Sonny Banks
(G9): 7(76) Aleksandr Bystrov TKO4 2(16) Genadi Yantchev
(G9): 1(9) Ingemar Johansson UD6 8(88) Torsten Hildebrand
(G4): 8(93) Michael Richardson TKO2 1(4) Bernardo Mercado


FRIDAY 01/11/2002

HBF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP & 1ST DEFENSE TOURNAMENTS
STAGE 2, SERIES 1: GROUP 3 (WC) & GROUP 1 (1D)
OSAKA DOME, OSAKA, JAPAN

(1D): 5(3) Oliver McCall KO8 4(11) Mike Weaver
(1D): 3(7) Doug Jones UD10 6(5) Nino Valdes
(WC): 5(19) Jimmy Ellis KO7 4(66) Gary Mason
(WC): 3(3) Jack Johnson KO4 6(63) Lou Nova
(WC): 2(23) Frank Moran KO5 7(42) Frank Bruno
(WC): 1(6) Peter Jackson TKO9 8(38) Clarence Henry


SATURDAY 02/11/2002

HBF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP & 1ST DEFENSE TOURNAMENTS
STAGE 2, SERIES 1: GROUP 2 (WC) & GROUP 1 (1D)
BRAEHEAD ARENA, GLASGOW, LANARKSHIRE, SCOTLAND

(1D): 2(4) Trevor Berbick TKO3 7(15) Marvin Hart
(WC): 4(7) Young Stribling UD10 5(39) Steve Hamas
(WC): 3(14) Ernie Terrell D10 6(27) Jack Gardner
(WC): 2(11) Joe Jeannette KO7 7(30) Cleveland Williams
(1D): 1(1) Rocky Marciano KO6 8(17) Bob Devere
(WC): 1(2) Sonny Liston TKO9 8(18) Oscar Bonavena

[kenyan_cheena]

Sunday 3 November 2002

HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING FEDERATION
FIGHT CARD SCHEDULE
MONDAY 04/11/2002 - SUNDAY 10/11/2002 INCLUSIVE


TUESDAY 05/11/2002

HBF QUALIFYING LEAGUE, INITIAL RANKING TOURNAMENT
STAGE 1, SERIES 3: GROUPS 5 & 8
CANWEST GLOBAL PARK, WINNIPEG, CANADA

(G5): 4(44) Fred Fulton vs 5(56) Leonidas Jaskucionis
(G8): 4(41) Omelio Agramonte vs 5(53) Drago Bencek
(G5): 3(32) Olaf Heiberg vs 6(68) Marco Santino
(G8): 3(29) Greg Williams vs 6(65) Steve Finley
(G5): 2(20) Jorge Luis Gonzalez vs 7(80) Deutron Shelby
(G8): 2(17) Brion Mayo vs 7(77) Luis Gomez
(G8): 1(8) Lovro Alanovic vs 8(89) Dwayne Peters
(G5): 1(5) John Ferguson vs 8(92) Yevgeny Semshov


THURSDAY 07/11/2002

HBF QUALIFYING LEAGUE, INITIAL RANKING TOURNAMENT
STAGE 1, SERIES 3: GROUPS 2 & 11
ADAMS MARK HOTEL, PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, USA

(G2): 4(47) Anaclet Wamba vs 5(59) Tony Doyle
(G11): 4(38) Ernie Schaaf vs 5(50) Grantham Abdul-Kafar
(G2): 3(35) Vittorio Campolo vs 6(71) Yeti Yates
(G11): 3(26) Carmine Vingo vs 6(62) Kent Ares
(G2): 2(23) Graham Jefferson vs 7(83) Mark Jones
(G11): 2(14) Joe Alexander vs 7(74) Sean Hargraves
(G11): 1(11) James Eldren vs 8(86) Vasily Anyukov
(G2): 1(2) Leotis Martin vs 8(95) Nathan Williams


SUNDAY 10/11/2002

HBF WORLD RANKING TOURNAMENT
GROUP 1, SERIES 1
MIAMI ARENA, MIAMI, FLORIDA, USA

(6) Wim Snoek vs (8) Floyd Cummings
(5) Max Schmeling vs (7) Jose Roman
(4) Robert Cleroux vs (9) Brian London
(3) Gregorio Peralta vs (11) Joe Beckett
(2) Artuir Claffey vs (10) Al Kaufmann
(1) Terone Haynes vs (12) Chuck Wepner

[Claybor]

Kool, I knew my bout had to be coming up fairly soon.

[kenyan_cheena]

Sorry 'bout the inactivity these last four days. Been busy planning for end of year holiday to the Philippines. Should be back in action tomorrow and definitely on the weekend. You'll know how your guy went in his 3rd bout by Friday night US time, Steve.

[kenyan_cheena]

FERGUSON VICTORIOUS IN QL DEBUT

Tuesday 5 November 2002

Canadian Boxing League finalist John Ferguson has made a winning start to his Qualifying League campaign, defeating Russia's Yevgeny Semshov by majority decision in the main event of tonight's Winnipeg fight card (59-55, 57-57, 59-55). Ferguson gained instant attention and recognition when he upset Olympic Super-Heavyweight gold medallist Lennox Lewis in the CBL preliminaries back in June and gave a good account of himself in the tournament final against Robert Cleroux. Against Semshov he built a winning lead through the opening three rounds, the Russian showing some fighting spirit in the contest's bottom half to no avail. The win improved Ferguson's overall record to 6-2 while the less experienced Semshov fell to 1-2.

In the co-feature 8th-seeded Croatian Lovro Alanovic was ambushed by hometown favourite Dwayne Peters, who followed up September's 1st round TKO of Drago Bencek with a majority decison win to stay undefeated at 2-0-1(1). Peters was in control early, dropping Alanovic with a vicious right cross late in the 2nd. But Alanovic was much more competitive in the next three rounds and almost stole a victory when he floored Peters twice in the final thirty seconds of the bout. The bell saved the Canadian and he took a slim 56-55, 55-55, 56-55 verdict. It was Alanovic's second consecutive defeat after falling to Markus Stober in the final of the Southern European Boxing League. He's now 4-3-1(1).

Earlier in the evening New York's Marco Santino bounced back from a loss to Deutron Shelby in his last bout to score a dominating unanimous decision win over Norway's Olaf Heiberg (59-52, 59-53, 59-52). Santino sent his foe to the canvas at the end of the 1st, early in the 4th and late in the 6th. All three knockdowns came from single punches and Santino ended the night in a much more positive frame of mind than he had after the defeat to Shelby, where he'd been a shattered man. The Catskills-born slugger showed once again that he is blessed with power in both fists and it was only Heiberg's determination and stubbornness that saw him last to the final bell. He has now lost three fights in a row, tonight's loss seeing him fall to 3-4(1). Santino is 2-1(1).

The New Yorker's victory was followed by a similarly impressive display from Virginia's Steve Finley who maintained his perfect stoppage record with a 5th round KO of Greg Williams. Having defeated Cuba's Omelio Agramonte in his opening QL bout in August Williams brought a 4-2(2) record into tonight's contest but the writing was on the wall when Finley sent him to one knee with a stinging body shot midway through round one. From that point on the New York native was in survival mode and it was a flush left hook in the final minute of the 5th that put him to sleep. He was counted out at the 2:19 mark, Finley improving to a fantastic 3-0(3). He had been a little bit lucky in his September win over Luis Gomez but tonight was all class from the 20 year-old against an opponent who some were tipping as a victor. It's a triumph that will no doubt elevate him to the top bracket of HBF prospects along with the likes of Romy Alvarez and Scott Mundt.

Another name that could be added to that list is the Cleveland native Deutron Shelby. He also improved to 3-0 tonight, defeating Cuba's Jorge Luis Gonzalez by majority decison (58-56, 57-57, 58-56). In a hard-fought contest Shelby swept the final two rounds on all three cards to secure the win. Both men gave it their and it was a shame that one of them had to be a loser. Shelby showed his warrior-like qualities in his first two contests, well-earned wins against Yevgeny Semshov and Marco Santino. Tonight it was no different against an opponent who some say underachieved in the South American Boxing League but dug deep tonight. Gonzalez is now 3-3-1.

After being robbed of a win on debut and stopped on cuts when leading in his second fight, Mexican-born Arizona resident Luis Gomez finally secured his first professional win tonight. He was fantastic in a one-sided affair, sending the Irishman Brion Mayo to the canvas three times on the way to a unanimous decision win (60-51 on all three cards). Mayo had been a semi-finalist in the Northern Europe Boxing League tournament where he was defeated by compatriot Artuir Claffey. After starting his career 3-0 tonight's defeat was his second in a row and third in four fights. Mayo is now 3-3-1 and looking like he will really struggle in the Qualifying League. As for Gomez, his countenance was one of sweet relief afterwards. He'll need to keep winning if he wants to secure a top two berth but based on tonight's performance that shouldn't be a problem.

[Claybor]

It's a triumph that will no doubt elevate him to the top bracket of HBF prospects along with the likes of Romy Alvarez and Scott Mundt.

Now that's what I want to hear!

[kenyan_cheena]

MARTIN CRUISES IN PHILLY

Thursday 7 November 2002

Philadelphia's Leotis Martin started his professional career competing in the federation's Pacific Coast Boxing League, fighting in locations such as Los Angeles and Las Vegas. Tonight he finally stepped into a ring in his own home town, making his Qualifying League debut at the Adams Mark Hotel. The 24 year-old had little trouble in scoring a unanimous decision win over Denver's Nathan Williams (59-54, 60-54, 58-55). Martin had been favoured to take out the Pacific League title but fell to his only defeat in the tournament final against Detroit native Rosco Toles. He was made the #2 overall seed in the QL and brought a 6-1(1) mark into tonight's contest, flooring Williams a minute into round five on the way to his seventh win.

In the evening's co-feature New Orleans slugger James Eldren also made his Qualifying League debut and was victorious in a similarly-comfortable manner against Russia's Vasily Anyukov. Eldren won the first four fights of his career before being defeated in back-to-back contests by the Nigerian duo of Omovo Okocha and Ike Ibeabuchi in the African Boxing League tournament. He dropped Anyukov with a single left hook late in round three and went on to take a 60-55, 58-56, 60-54 unanimous decision verdict. Eldren showed a deal of promise in the ABL and it will be interesting to see how he fares in the Qualifying League.

***

Earlier on the card the tough Englishman Yeti Yates came close to clean sweeping the scorecards in a dominant win over Italy's Vittorio Campolo. Yates had been thoroughly dismantled and dominated by the New Yorker Mark Jones last month and was keen to gain back some of the intimidation factor he'd lost as a result of that defeat. Whether he succeeded or not is unclear as Campolo showed little in the way of offense but was durable and determined enough to stay on his feet for the duration of the contest.

The tattoo-covered Yates had Campolo in trouble on a number of occasions but his finishing was, being perfectly honest, quite poor. Campolo was able to evade a number of blows that could have ended the fight but to his credit (and surprisingly) Yates never showed any frustration or dissatisfaction with his work. Two judges awarded him every round for a 60-54 verdict while the third gave round three to Campolo for a 59-55 scorecard. Yates opened up afterwards, something that is also unusual for the normally brooding, anti-social ex-convict. He spoke of the simple relief of getting the win, and in such a comfortable fashion.

"I can't tell you how disappointed and embarrassed I was after that last fight," Yates said. "That old Yank really did a number on me and made me think again about my approach. All I cared about tonight was winning and I did that pretty easily. Some people were calling for me to kill the guy, to knock his head off. That didn't concern me at all. I just wanted the win."

(to be continued)

[kenyan_cheena]

(continuation)

Ireland's Kent Ares was back in the winner's circle with a hard-fought unanimous decision victory against Bronx native Carmine Vingo (58-56, 59-56, 58-56). After dominating rounds two and three Ares appeared on the way to an easy night but Vingo made him earn it in the bottom half, taking the 4th and then holding his own in the final two frames. After accumulated a 3-1-1 record during his time in the Canadian Boxing League Vingo has now lost two fights in a row in the QL and will need to start winning if he wants to threaten for a high placing by the end of stage one. Ares had dropped a split decision to Sean Hargraves six weeks ago in a bout many thought the New York-born Irishman had done enough to win. That result had frustrated him greatly and he mentioned it while being interviewed following tonight's bout. He's confident that he can stay undefeated through the rest of stage one and prove that he belongs amongst the top competitors in the Qualifying League.

40 year-old New Yorker Mark Jones scored a fantastic win over Yeti Yates back in September and tonight he improved to 3-0, just edging out fellow Gotham native Graham Jefferson to take a split decision verdict (57-56, 56-57, 57-56). Jefferson had given Leotis Martin a real challenge in the semis of the PCBL and came into his first QL bout with a 3-3 record. Two of those previous losses had been by split decision, meaning tonight's defeat was his third by that unfortunate fashion. After a non-descript opening round Jones took both the 2nd and 3rd and was in control until he found himself on his backside after eating a left hook 45 seconds into the 4th. Jefferson tried to finish him off but couldn't and an unperturbed Jones went right back to work in the 5th. He swept the final two rounds on all three cards to secure a gutsy win. His HBF career to date is certainly proof that age is nothing but a number. Jones has shown up in superb shape for each fight and performed admirably. He is just another member of what is a terribly impressive bunch of "rookies" the HBF has for themselves in the Qualifying League.

Also numbered amongst that outstanding "rookie" group is South Korean-born Los Angeles resident Sean Hargraves. Like Jones he stayed perfect tonight, upping his record to 3-0(1) with a 6th round knockout of Atlantic League semi-finalist Joe Alexander. The New Yorker had been undefeated through his first five career bouts but after losing to Harry Wills back in July and Hargraves tonight he's now 3-2-2(1). This was a marvellous showing from Hargraves as he already had the fight in his keeping heading into the final round, two judges having him leading by three points after the 5th. It was the stretch through rounds two, three and four where Hargraves built that lead. He swept the cards despite some solid resistance from Alexander, the QL's overall 14th seed. The knockout came against the run of play as Alexander appeared on his way to winning the final frame. But a perfect right cross within a minute from the final bell dropped him to the canvas and he was counted out at the 2:18 mark, a bemused expression on his face as he struggled to return to his feet.

Without a doubt tonight's card was a prime example supporting the claim that the rookie group of fighters in the Qualifying League are superior to those who came over from the feeder leagues. The quartet of Yates, Ares, Jones and Hargraves were a perfect 4-0 combined and will most likely repeat the feat next month when they swap opponents within their respective groups. Followers of the tournament can continue to appreciate their efforts through this 1st stage but will have even more exciting clashes to look forward to in stage two, where the top fighters in each stage one group are to be matched up for the chance to earn a shot at a world ranking...