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The Past Week in Action 7 March 2021: Olympian Tony Yoka Captures European Heavyweight Title By Eric Armit PhilBoxing.com Mon, 08 Mar 2021  Olympic gold medalist Tony Yoka (R) rages against Tambwe Djeko. Highlights: -Rio gold medal winner Tony Yoka collects the vacant European Union heavyweight title with last round stoppage of Joel Tambwe Djeko -Brandon Adams comes from behind to stop Serhii Bohachuk and snap the Ukrainian’s run of 18 consecutive inside the distance victories -Puerto Rican Danielito Zorrilla extends his record to 16-0 with technical decision over Ruslan Madiev after a punch to the back of the head renders Zorrilla unable to continue -Liam Paro remains at the front of the queue for a fight against the winner of Josh Taylor vs. Jose Ramirez as he goes to 21-0 with victory over Terry Tzouramanis -Firat Arslan (50) knocks out Gusmyr Perdomo (43) in battle of the ages 4 March Guaynabo, Puerto Rico: Super Welter: Brandon Adams (23-3) W TKO 8 Serhii Bohachuk (18-1): Super Light: Danielito Zorrilla (15-0) W TEC DEC 8 Ruslan Madiev (13-2). Feather: Bryan Chevalier (15-1-1) W KO 3 Carlos Zambrano (26-2). Middle: Fernando Vargas Jr (2-0) W TKO 1 Salome Flores Torres (0-3). 
Adams (L) puts the pressure on Bohachuk. Adams vs. Bohachuk Facing defeat “Cannon” Adams explodes in the eighth to stop unbeaten Bohachuk. With all of his wins coming inside the distance a confident Bohachuk took the fight to Adams immediately applying lots of pressure. Adams countered well and scored with hooks to the body and looked to have edged the opening round. Adams was giving away height and reach to Bohachuk so he took the fight inside in the second but Bohachuk was matching him. Adams had landed a few belt-line punches and when he strayed low in the third that cost him a one point deduction. Bohachuk slowly took control of the fight from the fourth and by the seventh Adams was starting to tire and his punch output dropped and he slipped to the canvas three times. Going into the eighth Bohachuk was in front on scores of 68-64 twice and 69-63 and a stoppage looked on the cards. He was working Adams over on the ropes when Adams connected with a left hook. Bohachuk backed off badly rocked and a left uppercut dropped him heavily. Bohachuk struggled to his feet but wobbled and the fight was stopped. Adams, 31, came to the fore when he won the 5th series of The Contenders. He lost a wide points decision against Jermall Charlo for the WBC middleweight title in June 19 and was rated No 7 middleweight by the WBC. Ukrainian Bohachuk had never gone past the sixth round and his 18 consecutive inside the distance wins had seen him rated WBC 7/IBF 9 at super welterweight. Zorrilla vs. Madiev Zorrilla wins technical decision after being unable to continue after a punch to the back of the head from Madiev. Madiev was rolling forward in the first getting past the longer reach of Zorrilla and working to the body. Zorrilla countered well in the second to even things up. Madiev continued to dig in body punches with Zorrilla doing his scoring with sharp jabs and hooks when forced to stand and trade. The rounds were close and hard to score but the referee deducted a point from Madiev for a punch to the back of the head in the fifth. Madiev continued to press but was warned again in the sixth for a shot to the back of the head a round which Zorrilla won making it a 10-8 round. The seventh was another close round but Zorrilla was finding it hard to keep Madiev out. In the eighth Madiev was relentless but connected with another illegal punch to the back of Zorrilla’s head. Zorrilla went down on his knees and it was five minutes before he was raised to sit on a stool. He was unable to continue so the fight was decided on the judge's cards with two having it 77-75 and 76-75 for Zorrilla and the other 76-73 for Madiev. Zorrilla was taken to a local hospital as a precaution. Zorrilla wins the vacant WBO NABO belt. Kazak Madiev was in his first fight for 20 months. His other loss came on a technical decision against Pablo Cano. Chevalier vs. Zambrano Chevalier disposes of Zambrano in three rounds. Chevalier scored a dubious knockdown in the first from a light punch to the back of Zambrano’s head. Chevalier used his long reach to outscore Zambrano in the second and then put Zambrano down twice in the third with body punches with Zambrano being counted out on the second knockdown. The 5’11” 26-year-old Puerto Rican has 12 wins by KO/TKO and has useful wins over 16-0 Luis Lebron and 17-2 Yeison Vargas. Peruvian Zambrano, a former holder of the interim WBA feather title, was having his first fight since being flattened inside a round by Claudio Marrero in a fight for the WBA interim and vacant IBO feather titles. Vargas vs. Flores Vargas blows away poor Flores inside a round. A low left from Vargas sent Flores down early in the first. Flores was given time to recover and then started throwing wild punches until a straight left dropped him. He beat the count and tried to punch with Vargas but a series of head shots floored him again and the referee just waived the fight over. The tall 24-year-old southpaw is the son of Fernando Snr. the former holder of the IBF and secondary WBA super welterweight titles and has won both of his fights by KO/TKO. Flores has lost all three of his fights in the first round. Melbourne, Australia: Light: Kieran Cronin (6-2-1) W PTS 10 Gaige Ireland (7-4-3). Heavy: Willis Meehan (10-0) W TKO 1 Hunter Sam (11-15-3). Cronin vs. Ireland Queensland’s Cronin shows youth does not always have to be served as the decisions national title holder Ireland. Cronin made a slow start but picked up the pace from the third and dominated after that. Scores 98-92 twice and 97-93. The 39-year-old was No 12 in the Australian ratings so something of an upset. Local southpaw Ireland, 27, was making the second defence of the title. Meehan vs. Sam In his first fight for 18 months Meehan too big and punches too hard for Sam. Meehan put Sam down twice and the fight was halted after just 87 seconds. Eight wins by KO/TKO for Meehan son of former WBO title challenger Kali. He splits his time between boxing and the day job as a professional rugby league player. Former Australian champion Sam is on a steep down slope as he is 0-12-1in his last 13 fights. Delray Beach, FL, USA: Light Heavy: Steve Geffrard (18-2) W PTS 8 Denis Grachev (20-12-1).Light Heavy: Robin Sirwan Safar (11-0) W TKO 8 Demetrius Banks (10-10-1,1ND). Geffrard vs. Grachev After periods of inactivity Geffrard returns to the ring and registers his eighteenth win in a row as he takes unanimous decision over seasoned Russian pro Grachev. Geffrard, 30, lost his first two pro fights against poor opponents and did not fight in 2017, 2019 or 2020. Fifth loss in his last six fights for 38-year-old Grachev. Safar vs. Banks Las Vegas-based Swede Safar gets his fifth inside the distance victory in a row as he halts Detroit oldie Banks. Safar was Swedish amateur champion at both 81kg and super heavyweight. Banks, 40, has managed only one win in his last twelve fights Biloxi, MS, USA: Middle: John Vera (20-1) W KO 1 Cleotis Pendarvis (21-8-2). Vera gets a win but on an injury. The fight was hardly started when Pendarvis threw a right jab to the body of Vera. Pendarvis turned away holding his right arm and retreated to the ropes and went down on his knee still holding his right arm. He was in quite a bit of pain and was counted out just as he made it to his feet. Vera’s lone defeat was on points against Michele Soro in March 2018 but he had rebounded with a points win over 17-1 Ravshan Hudaynazarov in August 2019. Fourth defeat in a row for Pendarvis but he was unlucky with the injury here. 5 March Nantes, France: Heavy: Tony Yoka (10-0) W TKO 12 Joel Tambwe Djeko (17-3-1). Yoka marches on with a late stoppage of Djeko. A slow first round saw both fighters cautious with Djeko just edging it. Yoka bossed the second. He was finding gaps for his jab and then stepping in and scoring with heavy rights with Djeko hardly moving from the ropes and throwing few punches. Djeko stood and traded jabs with Yoka at the beginning of the third but when Yoka’s jabs started to jolt Djeko’s head he went on the retreat and Yoka was connecting with heavy rights. It was a similar pattern in the fourth and fifth with Djeko lively at the start but then having no answer to Yoka’s jab. Yoka was following the jab with solid rights with Djeko too often caught against the ropes and throwing little in return. Yoka’s output dropped in the sixth and Djeko fired a couple of bursts of punches. Yoka was back in charge in the seventh and eighth controlling the fight with his jab and connecting with left hooks to the body and rights to the head on a constantly retreating Djeko. The Belgian had a growing bump over his left eye that threatened to become a problem but over the ninth and tenth apart from an occasional clubbing right he looked to be focusing on survival. Djeko now had a swelling under his right eye and the eye was almost closed but he was a bit more competitive in the eleventh although Yoka had him under heavy pressure at the bell. Yoke ended it in the twelfth. He trapped Djeko in a corner and kept unloading punches until Djeko turned his back leaning over the ropes and the fight was stopped. Yoka wins the vacant European Union title with his eighth inside the distance victory. The 6’7” Rio gold medallist wins his first pro title. He is showing steady improvement and his jabbing was impressive here. He has come though reasonable tests against Alex Dimitrenko, Johann Duhaupas and Christian Hammer but he still tends to come forward in a straight line with very little head movement. He is rated IBF 8(7)/WBC 13 and could be ready for a title shot in 2022. “Big Joe” Djeko had won his last eight fights but suffers his first inside the distance loss and perhaps next time he won’t be stupid enough to aim a slap his opponent at the weigh-in. Culiacan, Mexico: Super Feather: Eliot Chavez (9-3-1) W TKO 10 Rodolfo Bustamante (16-1-1). Outsider Chavez wins the vacant NABF title with late stoppage of unbeaten Bustamante. For most of the fight the superior skills of “Elegant” Bustamante frustrated the ever aggressive Chavez. He was slotting jabs through Chavez guard and stopping Chavez in his attacks with straight rights and left hooks. Chavez just kept coming with Bustamante being forced to stand and exchange shots. In the tenth Chavez drove a tiring Bustamante into a corner and froze him with a devastating right to the chin. Bustamante dropped his hands and started to slip to the canvas and Chavez landed another right before the referee could leap in to save Bustamante who collapsed to the canvas. The fight was immediately stopped so that Bustamante could receive medical assistance and he was eventually taken from the ring on a stretcher. No update on his condition at this time. Chavez gets his third inside the distance victory on the trot. Kissimmee, FL, USA: Super Light: Yomar Alamo (19-0-1) W PTS 10 Jesus Beltran (17-4-2). 
Alamo and Beltran at the weighin. Alamo vs. Beltran Alamo adds another win as he has too much skill for a limited Beltran. Hand speed, good use of his longer reach and plenty of movement saw Alamo capture the first two rounds. Beltran got into the fight in the third as his pressure began to pay off but Alamo continued to slot punches home and countered Beltran’s aggression with crisp left hooks. By the fifth Beltran was marking up under his right eye as part of the price of trying to walk through Alamo’s punches. Alamo outworked Beltran over the seventh and eighth but Beltran put in a big effort in the ninth although he was now marked under his right eye. Alamo took no chances in the last as he boxed his way to the bell. Scores 98-92, 97-93 and 96-94 for Alamo. The 25-year-old Puerto Rican was lucky to keep his unbeaten streak going in a split draw against Antonio Moran in October 2019 but was back on track when beating 17-0 Keno Castaneda in February last year. He wins the vacant WBO Latino title and is rated No 8 by them. After an early loss Mexican Beltran had put together a 15-0-2 run but has now lost three consecutive fights all to unbeaten boxers. Brisbane, Australia: Super Light: Liam Paro (20-0) W RTD 7 Terry Tzouramanis (23-5-3). Super Light: Justin Frost (12-1-1) W TKO 10 Waylon Law (12-9). Paro vs. Tzouramanis Paro puts his name at the head of the queue to face the winner on the Josh Taylor vs. Jose Ramirez unifier with win over Tzouramanis. Impressive display from Paro as he outboxed and outpunched useful Tzouramanis. Paro never allowed Tzouramanis to get a toe-hold in the fight he was too quick and too accurate with his punches for the slower Tzouramanis. Paro won every round flooring Tzouramanis with a left to the body in the sixth. He handing out steady punishment in the seventh and Tzouramanis was pulled out of the fight at the end of the round. Thirteenth inside the distance win for Paro. He is rated No 2 by the WBO and with positions 1 and 2 vacant is the highest rated fighter at No 3 by the IBF and yet he has not faced a single rated opponent so largely untested but he was defending the WBO Global and IBF International titles which explains his rating. Tzouramanis, 35, was coming off a good domestic win over Brandon Ogilvie in October 2019. Frost vs. Law Frost moves 2-1 ahead in his series of fights with Law with a late stoppage. It looked like an early finish when Frost floored Law twice with rights to the head in the second but Law saw out the round. Frost won almost every round but a tough Law made him fight hard making it an entertaining scrap. After nine rounds Frost was in front 89-80 on two cards and 87-83 on the third. It looked as though this one was going the distance until Frost pinned Law to the ropes and battered him with a series of punches until the referee stepped in and stopped the contest with just 25 seconds left before the final bell. Law wins the IBF Asia Oceania title. In two Australian title fights with Law he lost on a split decision and then won on a majority decision but this was much more decisive. Third time Law has been stopped. Pinamar, Argentina: Super Bantam: Ernesto Franzolini (12-11-2) W PTS 10 Lucas Baez (36-20-5). Franzolini wins the vacant Argentinian title with unanimous verdict over Baez. Great start for home town fighter Franzolini as he put Baez on the canvas with a right just 28 seconds into the fight. Baez bounced up and then outfought Franzolini for the rest of the round. It turned into a fast-paced scrap with Franzolini’s left jab and left hooks giving him the edge over the wilder attacks from Baez. Franzolini looked to be flagging over the seventh and eighth but had a strong ninth and handed out a beating to Baez in the tenth flooring him with a burst of punches. Baez managed to get to his feet and hung on to the bell. Scores 98-92, 97-91, 96 ½ -92 ½ all for Franzolini. The former South American title challenger gets his fourth win in his last five outings. Second unsuccessful shot at the national title for Baez 6 March Goeppingen, Germany: Cruiser: Firat Arslan (48-9-3) W KO 3 Gusmyr Perdomo (26-10). Heavy: Ali Kiydin (13-1) W KO 1 Pablo Magrini (19-7). Cruiser: Huseyin Cinkara (15-0) W TKO 3 Francisco Benitez (16-8). Arslan vs. Perdomo Fighting in his own gymnasium Arslan wins with third round count out of fellow-southpaw Perdomo. After two slow rounds Perdomo came out firing and connected with a couple of body punches. Arslan then landed a wicked left hook to the body of his own. Perdomo went down rolled over and took the full count on his hands and knees. First fight for 50-year-old Arslan since sixth round stoppage defeat against Kevin Lerena for the IBO title in February last year. Third inside the route loss for Perdomo, 43, and third fight in over two years. Kiydin vs. Magrini Kiydin disposes of an obese Argentinian Magrini inside a round in a terrible example of matchmaking. This one was never going to last long and Kiydin caught up with Magrini late in the opening round putting him down with a short left hook to the jaw. Magrini started to rise then pitched forward on his face. He finally managed to make it to his feet and staggered to the ropes leaning on them to hold himself up but the referee insisted on counting to eight before waving the fight over. German Kiydin, 29, a Arslan-look-alike, gets his ninth first round win. Magrini, 42, 5’9 ½” and 250lbs, which tells you all you need to know about his conditioning, has lost his last five contests by KO/TKO. Cinkara vs. Benitez German Cinkara beats up another Argentinian oldie as he halts poor Benitez in three rounds. Cinkara floored Benitez and although the visitor made it to the vertical he was in no condition to continue. The former undefeated German International champion makes 8 wins by KO/TKO in his last 9 fights. Benitez, 40, was having his first fight for three years and all eight of his losses have come inside the distance and he is really just a fattened super middle. Accra, Ghana: Light: Michael Ansah (20-10-2) W TKO 5 Sherrif Quaye (19-3-1). Feather: Alfred Lamptey (8-0) W TKO 4 George Krampah (14-5). 11 Ansah lives up to his nickname of “One Bullet” and his prediction to stop Quaye inside the distance in this Commonwealth Boxing Council final eliminator. Quaye was the better boxer and worked well with his jab to keep the slower Ansah out. Ansah kept pressing but was coming up short with his punches and being caught with counters. Quaye had built a lead by the end of the fourth but at the start of the fifth Ansah hurt him with a left hook. Quaye tried to steady himself but a leaping left hook sent him crashing to the floor. He made it to his fe3t but his legs were wobbling and after the eight count the referee stopped the fight. Ansah retains the National title and goes in front 2-1 in his series of fights with Quaye with his two wins in the series both being stoppages. The earlier loss to Ansah was Quaye’s only defeat in his last nine fights Lamptey vs. Krampah Lamptey batters Krampah to defeat in four rounds. Lamptey was able to catch the smaller Krampah with counters as he came forward. Krampah kept trying to walk through the punches but without much success. A left had Krampah badly shaken at the start of the fourth. Krampah was unsteady but kept trying to take the fight to Lamptey but was staggered time and again before finally stepping away and going down on his knees with the fight being stopped. Lamptey, 18, showed good skills and put his punches together well as he wins the vacant West African Boxing Union title. Krampah was in only his third fight in five years. Aizawl, India: Super Feather: Lalrinsanga Tlau (5-0) W PTS 8 Eric Quarm (4-2). Professional boxing in India gets a boost as prospect Tlau wins the vacant WBC Youth title. He was giving away height and reach to the tall Ghanaian but he outworked and outboxed Quarm and won clearly. Scores 80-72 on the judge's cards for the 21-year-old “Sangtea” . Quarm had gone ten rounds in an unsuccessful challenge for the West African title in his last fight Miami, FL, USA: Cruiser: Anthony Martinez (9-1) W TKO 3 Evert Bravo (26-14-1). Martinez vs. Bravo “White Chocolate” Martinez breaks down experienced Bravo and ends things in the third. Martinez put Bravo under pressure from the first bell with a focused body attack. Bravo was already showing signs of fading in the second and Martinez dropped him in the third leading to the stoppage. The 22-year-old 6’4” son of Cuban emigrants wins the vacant WBO Latino title with his eighth quick win. Only 2 wins in his last 9 outings for Colombian Bravo. Mexicali, Mexico: Light: Cristian Bielma (16-3-1) W PTS 10 Osvaldo Maldonado (10-1). Bielma takes unanimous verdict over Maldonado to win the vacant NABF title as he goes 6-1-1 in his last 8 fights. Maldonado. 21, was going ten rounds for the first time. Rangsit, Thailand: Super Fly: Kongfah CP Freshmart (36-1-1) W PTS 10 Samartlek (34-16-1). Kongfah picks up the WBC Asian Boxing Council belt with unanimous decision over veteran Samartlek. Kongfah (Jakkrawut Majoogoen), 25, was just too young and too strong for Samartlek (Wittawas Basapean). Kongfah is 22-0-1 since losing to Daigo Higa in 2015 but his opposition has been pitiful with nine of his opponents never having won a fight and the draw in last year was with someone who had a 0-1 record! Samartlek, 36, has been unsuccessful in shots at the WBC and IBF light flyweight titles but those halcyon days are far behind him now and he won only one of his last twelve fights. Kiev, Ukraine: Heavy: Vladyslav Sirenko (16-0) W PTS 8 Kamil Sokolowski (10-21-2). Feather: Oleg Malinovski (27-0) W KO 5 Giorgi Gachechiladze (16-38-1). Sirenko vs. Sokolowski Sirenko gets routine points victory over Sokolowski. Sirenko was able to use his height and reach to score on the outside in a slow-paced contest. The Ukrainian shook Sokolowski with big rights in the second and third but Sokolowski is an experienced and durable campaigner. By the sixth Sokolowski was bleeding heavily from the nose and had a bump under his left eye but did enough to stay in the fight. Sirenko continued to land clubbing head shots in the seventh and eighth but never looked likely to stop the tough Pole. Scores 80-72 for Sirenko from the three judges. Only the third time Sirenko, 26, has been taken the distance but still no real tests. UK-based Sokolowski falls to 2-6 in his last 8 contests. Malinovski vs. Gachechiladze Kiev southpaw Malinovski pads out his record with fifth round stoppage of poor Georgian Gachechiladze. Eighth inside the distance win for Malinovski but at 32 and after nine years as a pro he does not seem to be going anywhere. With 21 inside the distance losses and just one win in his last thirteen fights Gachechiladze needs to stick to his day job. Fight of the week (Significance): Tony Yoka’s win over Joel Tambwe Djeko shows he can be a threat at heavyweight Fight of the week (Entertainment): Nothing to set the pulses racing Fighter of the week: Brandon Adams for his fight-saving late stoppage of 18-1 Serhii Bohachuk Punch of the week: The left hook from Michael Ansah that put Sherrif Quaye down was a beauty with honourable mentions to left hooks to the body from Bryan Chevalier that finished Carlos Zambrano and Firat Arslan which left Gusmyr Perdomo writhing in agony Upset of the week: Eliot Chavez (8-3-1) was meant to be just another victim for 16-0-1 Rodolfo Bustamante but ended up the winner Prospect watch: None stood out Observations A fall off in activity from last week but it will pick up again next weekend with Juan Francisco Estrada vs. Roman Gonzalez and David Benavidez vs. Ronald Ellis looking the pick. Boxing a young man’s sport! We had Firat Arslan 50, Diego Juncos 46, Gusmyr Perdomo 43, Pablo Magrini 42, Rad Rashid 41, Ricardo Ramirez 40 and Francisco Benitez 40 all on the Firat Arslan show in Germany. In the cases of Argentineans Juncos, Magrini, Ramirez, and Benitez I have this vision of a bus stopping outside a care home in Buenos Aires asking if any of the residents fancied a little holiday in Germany. It was a awful show as ten of the eleven fights were over early six in the first round and the others inside three rounds. I guess no one would fancy asking Firat for their money back. Not making weight for a fight is rarely forgivable but perhaps a pound or two is not too bad. Australian Hayden Wright went a bit too far he came in 44lbs over!! About the Author 
Born in Scotland, Eric Armit started working with Boxing News magazine in the UK in the late 1960’s initially doing records for their Boxing News Annual and compiling World, European and Commonwealth ratings for the magazine. He wrote his first feature article for Boxing News in 1973 and wrote a “World Scene” weekly column for the magazine from the late 1970’s until 2004. Armit wrote a monthly column for Boxing Digest in the USA and contributed pieces to magazines in Mexico, Italy, Australia, Spain, Argentina and other countries. Armit now writes a Weekly Report covering every major fight around the world and a bi-weekly Snips & Snipes column plus occasional general interest articles with these being taken up by boxing sites around the world. He was a member of the inaugural WBC Ratings Committee and a technical advisor to the EBU Ratings Committee and was consulted by John McCain’s research team when they were drafting the Ali Act. He is a Director and former Chairman of the Commonwealth Boxing Council. Armit has been nominated to the International Boxing Hall of Fame the past two years (2019 and 2020) to which he said, “Being on the list is an unbelievably huge honour.” Click here to view a list of other articles written by Eric Armit.  |
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