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Philippines, 20 Nov 2024 |
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The Past Week in Action 19 November 2024: Katie Taylor Oupoints Amanda Serrano; Barrios-Ramos Ends in Split Draw; Paul Defeats Tyson By Eric Armit PhilBoxing.com Wed, 20 Nov 2024  Highlights: -Katie Taylor outpoints Amanda Serrano in defence of the five belts at super lightweight - Mario Barrios holds on to the WBC welterweight title with a split draw against Abel Ramos -Shadasia Green wins the vacant WBO super middleweight title on a split decision against Melinda Watpool and there are wins for Bruce Carrington and Lucas Bahdi -Jake Paul outpoints Mike Tyson - Gilberto Ramirez decisions Chris Billiam-Smith to unify the WBA and WBO cruiserweight titles -Oscar Collazo stops Cp-Freshmart and unifies the WBA and WBO minimumweight titles. -There are wins for Arnold Barboza, William Zepeda and Oscar Duarte Major Shows NOVEMBER 15 Arlington, TX, USA: Super Light: Katie Taylor (25-1) W PTS 10 Amanda Serrano (47-4-1). Heavy: Jake Paul (12-1) W PTS 8 Mike Tyson (50-8).Welter: Mario Barrios (29-2-2) DREW 12 Abel Ramos(28-6-4). Feather: Bruce Carrington (15-0) W PTS 8 Dana Coolwell (13-4). Light: Lucas Bahdi (19-0) W PTS 10 Armando Casamonica (14-2). Super Middle: Shadasia Green (16-1) W PTS 10 Melinda Watpool (7-2). 
Taylor vs. Serrano Taylor retains all five versions of the lightweight title with a controversial narrow unanimous decision over Serrano in another thrilling scrap. Both fighters were looking to make a fast start in the first and were throwing plenty of punches. Taylor caught Serrano with a counter right but just before the bell, with Taylor against the ropes, Serrano shook her with a left to take the round. Taylor rebounded in the second. She was going for speed with her punches putting together a burst of shots but Serrano moved inside where the traded shots with Taylor looking to have levelled things up. In the third Taylor was landing rights to the head with Serrano going to the body . They were still letting their hands go at a frantic pace with Tayor landing late to take the round. Their heads banged together in the fourth and Serrano suffered a bad cut over her right eye. The referee indicated to the judges that it was caused by a butt. Despite the cut Serrano was marching forward taking the fight to Taylor and landing heavily with Taylor having to clinch to slow Serrano but it was Serrano’s round. It was a similar picture in the fifth with Serrano forcing the fight landing more and heavier punches. As they exchanged punches there was another clash of heads and an angry Serrano fired off a bunch of punches and seemed to have taken a slight lead. The referee warned Taylor for holding at the start of the sixth and as they swapped punches a shot or head clash widened the cut over Serrano’s right eye. The referee stopped the action so the cut could be checked but the fight continued sparking some fierce exchanges with both just letting the punchers fly and scoring heavily in a close round. The seventh was a continuation of the sixth with both exhibiting a high punch output with Taylor probably landing more and Serrano heavier and Taylor ended the round strongly to get back into the fight. Serrano ignored the blood streaming from the cut and kept driving forward in the eighth as they came together in mid ring their heads again clashed and the referee decided the clashes were a consequence of Taylor’s holding and deducted a point. It’ was punch for punch in the ninth with neither fighter showing any sign of tiredness despite the frenzied pace. Taylor had the incentive to claw back the point she lost in the eighth and she somehow increases her pace and just did enough to take the round. The last round was just a wild melee as they both tossed punches for the whole two minutes. Serrano looked to have just outlanded Taylor early in the round but Taylor forced Serrano to a corner and kept her there pumping out punches with Serrano banging back to the bell. Scores 95-94 for Taylor from all three the judges. Taylor had won a split decision when they met in April 2022 and they are so well matched that any fight between them is going to be close. Initially Serrano criticised Taylor strongly for head butts only to tone her remarks down later but this was a controversial decision loudly booed by the crowd. A third fight is a possibility but initially they will both go their own, separate, roads. 
Paul vs. Tyson Paul outpoints Tyson in what hardly even qualifies as a sparring session. Despite wearing a knee brace and having limited mobility Tyson was able to get to Paulk in the first scoring with a left and overhand right. Paul landed a right but it was Tyson’s round. Paul had his jab working in a low scoring second round which he just edged. Paul began to move more and throw more punches in the third finding Tyson an easy target and he took the fourth circling Tyson and choosing his moment to step inside and score. Paul continued to box on the outside in the fifth picking the slow Tyson off with plenty of jabs with Tyson only getting through with rare shots. Paul was taking no chances in the sixth spearing Tyson with jabs and an occasional right with Tyson really only boxing defensively and not having the speed to pose any threat. Paul seemed to be holding back in the seventh trying to make Tyson look a little better to lessen the ridicule the fight had sparked and he just cruised through the eighth with a tired Tyson not able to make any effort and Paul bowed to Tyson before the final bell. Paul wins on scores of 79-73 twice and 80-72. All this proved is that Tyson is too old to be boxing anything other than exhibitions and Paul has still done nothing to show his No 106 rating by Box Rec is not inflated. Maybe one day he will face a real test but he is a valuable cash cow and as long as he can get millions for a parody such as this why should he take the risk? Tyson fought like a 58 year-old former boxer who had not had a fight for almost 18 years and some people were actually surprised by that! Distressingly Tyson said he would probably fight again and named Paul’s brother Logan as an opponent which will be a test to see if you can fool all of the people all of the time. 
Barrios vs. Ramos Barrios retains the WBC title with a split draw against Ramos. The taller Barrios made a good start in the first as he scored repeatedly with his jab as Ramos tried to find a way inside and a counter had Ramos looking unsteady. Barrios continued to boss the action in the second. Ramos did manage to score with some body punches but Barrios also found the target with a body shot. Near the end of the round Barrios landed a combination that sent Ramos down but Ramos was up quickly as the round ended. Both fighters had some success with their jab in the third with Barrios just landing the better jabs but Ramos connected with some hooks to the body before being stopped in his tracks by a left hook. Barrios dominated the fourth and fifth by using his longer reach to both score and break up the attempted attacks from Ramos. He was doubling up on his jabs and seemed comfortably in control. That changed in the sixth as Ramos stormed forward shaking Barrios with a right and another shot put Barrios on the canvas. Barrios was up quickly but looked to be shaky and had to hold off a strong attack from Ramos to survive to the bell. Ramos made all of the running in the seventh scoring well to head and body with Barrios countering but being outscored. Ramos carried the impetus into the eighth firing shots through the guard of Barrios and he ended the round connecting with hooks. It was punch for punch in a high action ninth. Barrios was moving and jabbing more going back to what worked for him in the early rounds with Ramos pressing hard and letting his hands. A close round with Barrios taking it to edge in front. With the result in the balance the tenth was another critical round and Barrios took it by just banging home jabs and outpunching Ramos. The eleventh saw Ramos again driving forward as they traded punches with little regard to defence and Barrios just that vital bit more accurate. They both went for broke in the last with Ramos trying to find a punch to finish it and Barrios working his jab and firing rights and finishing the stronger. Scores 116-110 Barrios, 114-112 Ramos, 113-113. Barrios had been upgraded from temporary/interim champion to full champion with Terrence Crawford being moved aside to be “champion in recess” . Ramos was lucky to get the shot after back-to-back losses to Luke Santamaria and Cody Crowley but had rehabilitated himself to an extent with a win over Juan Guman in April. Carrington vs. Coolwell Carrington scores two knockdowns but has to settle for a points win. The first round was fairly even but Carrington took control from the second. He outscored Coolwell over the third and then floored the Australian with a right counter in the fourth. Coolwell made it to his feet and was not badly shaken. Carrington was doing some showboating over the fifth and sixth but Coolwell was staying in there fighting back. Carrington seemed to take his foot off the pedal in the seventh before a right dropped Coolwell in the eighth but the Australian survived to the bell. All three judges turned in cards of 80-70. In the crazy world of sanctioning body ratings Carrington is No 2 with the WBA but can’t climb to No 1 because he has not beaten a rated fighter but he can be No 2 without ever facing a rated fighter! Coolwell, a former Australian super feather champion, had won his last six fights by KO/TKO but his opposition had been low level. Bahdi vs. Casamonica Bahdi wins a majority decision over Casamonica. Bahdi was into his stride quickest and outworked Casamonica in the first. The second saw the Italian taking control from the centre of the ring and landing jabs. After a slow start to the third Bahdi landed a big over hand right and followed that with other hard shots before Casamonica fired back. Big fourth round from Casamonica as he stunned Bahdi with a right and followed with some crisp combinations. A close fifth saw Casamonica the busier but Bahdi was always dangerous and a hard right to close the round probably just earned him the points. Casamonica upped his pace over the sixth and seventh and looked to have built a small lead. Bahdi battled back in the eighth to keep it close. Casamonica was on the front foot in the ninth landing jabs and good body punches. The tenth was close but Bahdi had more left and just did enough to edge the round meaning the result could go either way. Scores 98-92 and 96-93 for Bahdi and 95-95 with the 98-92 looking unreal.. Bahdi had won his last four fights by KO/TKO but looked a little lucky to get the decision in this one. Casamonica had defended the Italian super light title only 20 days ago so a busy time for him. Green vs. Watpool Green wins the vacant WBO title with a split decision over Canadian Watpool. Green was the better boxer but Watpool had an edge in power. Green used those better skills to win the first three rounds although they were all close. Watpool used her strength to put Green on the back foot with hard jabs and outworked Green over the fifth. That spurred Green to up her own work rate and she landed some useful shots in the sixth rocking Watpool a couple of times. Watpool really applied pressure and outscored Green over the seventh, eighth and ninth with Green dredging up that bit extra in the last. Scores 97-93 and 96-94 for Green and 96-94 for Watpool but I felt Watpool was worth at least a draw. Green’s only loss is a points defeat against Franchon Crews Dezurn in December. Watpool had won the WBA International belt with a victory over Natasha Spencer. NOVEMBER 16 Riyadh, Saudi Arabia : Cruiser: Gilberto Ramirez (47-1) W PTS 12 Chris Billiam-Smith (20-2). Super Light: Arnold Barboza (31-0) W PTS 10 Jose Carlos Ramirez (29-2). Light: William Zepeda (32-0) W PTS 10 Tevin Farmer (33-7-1). Minimum: Oscar Collazo (11-0) W TKO 7 Knockout CP Freshmart (25-1). Super Light: Oscar Duarte (28-2-1) W PTS 10 Botirzhon Akhmedov (10-4). 
Ramirez vs. Billam-Smith Ramirez unifies the WBA and WBO titles with a unanimous decision over Billiam-Smith Round 1 Confident start from Billam-Smith jabbing strongly and letting some right hands go. Ramirez landed a left to the body but Billam-Smith came back with accurate jabs and right hooks to the body and they both landed punches just before the bell. Score: 10-9 Billam-Smith Round 2 Billam-Smith again opened up with jabs but Ramirez connected with a heavy left counter then a right to the body. A good left hook from Billam-Smith but Ramirez fired home a left cross and a left hook. Score: 10-9 RamirezTIED 19-19 Round 3 An aggressive spell from Billam-Smith saw him forcing Ramirez back to the ropes but Ramirez took over landing heavy lefts and right hooks to the body and caught Billam-Smith with a cute left hook inside. Billam-Smith fired hooks to the body. Ramirez was finding gaps for his lefts and landed heavily with one at the end of the round. Score: 10-9 RamirezRamirez 29-28 Round 4 Ramirez was in control in the fourth upping his work rate and putting Billam-Smith under pressure. Billam-Smith was showing a cut by his left eye. Ramirez landed rights to head and body forcing Billam-Smith onto the back foot and landing a right hook. Billam-Smith was stopped in his tracks but took the punch well but Ramirez forced him back and was landing to the body as the round ended. This is becoming a brutal trial of strength with neither wanting to take a backward step. Score: 10-9 RamiezRamirez 39-37 Round 5 Ramirez was on target with a couple of punches but then Billam-Smith did good work inside scoring with some neck-snapping uppercuts. Ramirez responded with an uppercut of his own and a right brought blood from Billam-Smith’s nose. Billam-Smith stayed inside and connected with some short hooks to the body. A close round but one for Billam-Smith. Billam-Smith now also had swelling by his left eye Score: 10-9 Billam-SmithRamirez 48- 47 Round 6 A painful round for Billam-Smith. A left from Ramirez had Billam-Smith retreating and Ramirez was striding forward firing books to body and head as they trade inside. Billam-Smith fought back but Ramirez was bossing the action and landed another hard left. The cut by the left eye of Billam-Smith was worsening and the fight was going Ramirez’s way. Score: 10-9 RamirezRamirez 58-56 Round 7 The doctor examined the cut at the start of the round but let it continue. Ramirez came forward to keep Billam-Smith under pressure but Billam-Smith shook Ramirez with an uppercut. Ramirez landed a right hook and a short left and Billam-Smith seemed to be tiring. Score: 10-9 RamirezRamirez 68-65 Round 8 The trench warfare continued. It was still toe-to-toe in close work mainly fought with hooks and uppercuts. Ramirez landed a right hook that had Billam-Smith stumbling but he lurched back into the fray. He landed a couple of hooks to the head but Ramirez was throwing more and landing more and was in control. Score: 10-9 RamirezRamirez 78-74 Round 9 It was difficult to see how Billam-Smith could turn things around. He connected with a right to the body and another to the head but Ramirez came back with a left. They were both tired and Billam-Smith had slowed with Ramirez continuing to land quick accurate shots in response to any punches from Billam-Smith. Score: 10-9 RamirezRamirez 88-83 Round 10 Somehow Billam-Smith is not only just hanging in there he is fighting back. He forces Ramirez back with body punches and stays on top of him swapping hooks. A right catches Billam-Smith but he gets through with a right hook and a left and just does enough to win a close round. Score: 10-9 Billam-SmithRound 97-93 Round 11 Ramirez’s corner were concerned over the way Ramirez let Billam-Smith into the fight in the tenth. Ramirez connected with a left hook to the body then they both landed rights. Billam-Smith was continuing to march forward but Ramirez was more accurate with his shots than an arm weary Billam-Smith. It was close but Billam-Smith was outworked. Score: 10-9 RamirezRamirez 107-102 Round 12 Billam-Smith looked totally exhausted but somehow kept throwing punches landing a big left hook. Ramirez had more left and was able to force Billam-Smith back to a corner and pumped out punches. Billam-Smith forced his way out of the corner and they just stood and threw punches to the bell. Score: 10-9 Ramirez. Ramirez 117-111 Official Scores: 116-112, 116-112 and 116-113 for Ramirez. Not sure where Ramierz goes from here. The WBC champion is Noel Mikaelyan but whilst that may be a unifier it is not an attractive match and IBF champion Jai Opetaia would be very tough fight. He has talked about going up to heavyweight but that could be a leap too far. Billiam-Smith will let his many injuries heal. It was revealed after the fight that apart from the cut by his left eye and swelling under the eye he also had a broken right thumb and a fractured left hand. So a very gutsy effort and it is impossible to say how much the injuries affected his performance but they must have had some influence. He will rest and come back. 
Barboza vs. Ramirez Barboza boxes his way to victory over Ramirez. Cool and smart boxing from Barboza in the opener as Ramirez bobbed and weaved looking to get inside. Barboza was stabbing out his jab and using quick footwork to get away from Ramirez’s attacks and landed a sharp combination at the bell. The action heated up in the second as Ramirez continue to press. Good jabbing from Barboza but Ramirez landed a right. Barboza was the busier but Ramirez was closing the distance and landed some good shots to even things up. The third was another good round for Barboza. He was using clever movement to avoid Ramirez’s attempts to close him down and Ramirez just could not seem to find the range but landed a heavy right late and took the round. Barboza connected with a crisp uppercut at the start of the fourth. Ramirez had stepped up his pace but was still being frustrated by smart footwork from Barboza and the fight had not yet caught fire. The fifth was Barboza’s round. Ramirez had early success when he finally did pin Barboza against the ropes but then Barboza took over. He put together a series of combinations and then landed right and an uppercut to close out the round. Ramirez was pressing and pressing in the sixth with Barboza on the back foot constantly pinging Ramirez with jabs and throwing an occasional straight right. Ramirez managed to trap Barboza briefly but Barboza escaped and went back to his jab then landed a couple of hard punches late. Barboza was fighting to win not to entertain and it was working. Ramirez took the seventh. He finally had success in cutting off the ring and landing hooks to the body. Plenty of pressure from Ramirez again in the eighth scoring with his jab and landing hooks. A right from Barboza rocked Ramirez but he returned to the attack and did enough to take a close round. Barboza was jabbing and moving again in the ninth and frustrating Ramirez’s attempts to pin him down. Ramirez had some success late just enough to make it a close round. Barboza boxed his way through the last with Rameez unable to force him to stand and trade. He chased Barboza down but was not able to land anything significant. Scores 96-94 twice and 97-93 for Barboza. A better performance from Barboza than in his split draw with Sean McComb in April. Since losing his WBC and WBO titles to Josh Taylor in 2021 Ramirez had rebuilt with three wins over good level opposition so this is a big setback for him. 
Zepeda vs. Farmer Zepeda gets off the canvas to win this clash of southpaws on a split decision. In the first round Zepeda was throwing plenty of jabs with Farmer on the back foot landing jabs of his own. Pressure from Zepeda had Farmer holding inside as Zepeda pumped out punches. Zepeda continued the pressure in the second and third with Farmer again on the back foot. They were both firing streams of jabs and the pace was fast with Zepeda, with more variety in his work, firing combinations to head and body and outscoring Farmer. Zepeda was storming forward in the fourth with Farmer forced to stand and trade. Farmer was landing some quality punches but Zepeda was walking through them and Farmer was forced to clinch to stem the flow. It was two way action with both scoring with body punches until Farmer exploded with a left over the top of Zepeda’s guard which sent Zepeda back and down on his hands and knees. He was up quickly and took the fight to Farmer who was just looking to land that left again but had to clinch under pressure from Zepeda. A 10-8 round that clawed back much of the lead Zepeda had built. Nothing changed for Zepeda. In the fifth Farmer connected with a hard left but Zepeda still kept marching forward ignoring Farmer’s punches and landing shots to head and body. Farmer was being forced to go toe-to-toe and landing plenty of good counters but his output slowed and he did a lot more clinching. By the end of the round Farmer looked to be tiring under the relentless pressure from Zepeda. The sixth was dominated by Zepeda as he continued to hunt down a tiring Farmer with his constant attacks. Farmer bounced back in the seventh making good use of his jab to hold off Zepeda and scoring with accurate shots from both hands forcing Zepeda onto the back foot and it looked as if Zepeda might be the one slowing. Clever boxing under pressure saw Farmer have a good eighth. Zepeda was still throwing more but Farmer was landing some high quality counters and holding his own inside. Farmer was the one walking through punches in the ninth soaking up Zepeda’s shots and matching him punch-for punch until Zepeda ended the round with a fierce attack. Zepeda simple outworked Farmer in a high octane last as an exhausted Farmer somehow dredged up the energy to fight his way to the bell after a titanic battle. Zepeda won on scores of 95-94 twice and 95-94 for Farmer. I had it 97-93 for Zepeda. He was defending the WBC temporary/interim belt and logic would seem to point to a fight with WBC champion Shakur Stevenson which would be a classic clash of styles. He is also No 1 with the WBA and WBO so Gervonta Davis and Denys Berinchyk are also possible opponents. Farmer showed even at 34 he is still a top level performer. He was coming off a good performance when losing to Raymond Muratalla in July. He lost this but if anything enhanced his reputation 
Collazo vs. CP-Freshmart Collazo outclasses CP-Freshmart to unify the WBA and WBO titles. Round 1 Southpaw Collazo was throwing tentative jabs with CP-Freshmart just looking for an opening. Collazo was on target with a couple of jabs and a left to the head. Collazo landed a left to the body and CP-Freshmart missed with a right. In a low scoring round. Score: 10-9 Collazo Round 2 Both started with jabs then Collazo scored with a left and CP-Freshmart with a right. Good jabbing from Collazo as he looked to get on the front foot. Collazo darted in with a right and a left. CP-Freshmart connected with a right to the body and Collazo came back with a couple of jabs and then landed a right hook. CP-Freshmart stepped in with a couple of hooks and Collazo landed a pair of hooks to the head. Score: 10-9 CollazoCollazo 20-18 Round 3 Both scored with left hooks as they stepped up their pace but Collazo had clear advantages in hand speed and mobility. Collazo landed a long left to the body and ducked under a counter from CP-Freshmart and landed a right and a left. Collazo moved in and connected with a left to the body and a right hook then was back out before CP-Freshmart could counter. They traded shots along the ropes. Score: 10-9 CollazoCollazo 30-27 Round 4 Collazo landed a couple of hooks and a frustrated CP-Freshmart was wild with a couple of intended counters. Collazo was dominating from the centre of the ring stepping inside and landing hooks and avoiding CP-Freshmart’s attempts to score. Collazo was throwing combinations but CP-Freshmart was throwing single punches and missing. Collazo was now walking forward and firing hooks with CP-Freshmart forced onto the back foot. Brilliant boxing from Collazo as he took CP-Freshmart to the ropes and fired a short bunch of punches. Score: 10-9 CollazoCollazo 40-36 Round 5 It was one-way traffic as Collazo circled CP-Freshmart spearing him with jabs and landing lefts to the body. CP-Freshmart landed a couple of rights to the body but Collazo was picking him off with fast jabs and straight lefts. Collazo surged forward firing hooks to the body then put together a series of punches to head and body with a bewildered CP-Freshmart not knowing where the next punch was coming from. Score: 10-9 CollazoCollazo 50-45 Round 6 A straight left rocked CP-Freshmart and a left to the head knocked him off balance. Collazo banged home punches and CP-Freshmart got through with a pair of rights to the body and then landed a left hook, the best punch he had landed so far. Collazo responded with some hurtful body punches and was forcing CP-Freshmart onto the back foot. CP-Freshmart got through with a left uppercut but Collazo landed a pair of hooks to the heads. Collazo landed an uppercut then pushed CP-Freshmart back and landed two lefts to the head. As CP-Freshmart threw a punch Collazo came inside it and landed a right hook to the head that knocked CP-Freshmart down. He watched the count and was up at eight and in the twenty seconds remaining in the round Collazo shook him with another right hook. Score: 10-8 CollazoCollazo 60-54 Round 7 A right to the head had CP-Freshmart stumbling early in the round. Collazo landed a straight left to the body and then a right sent CP-Freshmart stumbling and down. CP-Freshmart made it to his feet and was hiding behind a high guard looking to draw Collazo onto a counter but another body punch followed by a left uppercut sent him to his hands and kneels and the referee waived the fight over without a count. A brilliant display from Collazo as he was quick and set too high a pace for C-P Freshmart (Thammanoon Niyomtrong) gradually breaking the Thai down before finishing him. On this showing it is difficult to see who could beat him at the weight. CP-Freshmart , 34, had held the interim/ temporary title then the secondary title before finally being upgraded to super champion by the WBA in 2019 and had defended the super title six times. He has been a good champion but was never in the fight here. Duarte vs. Akhmedov Duarte stages a strong finish to outscore Akhmedov. Both had some success in the first round with Duarte connecting with a left counter and a hard right to the jaw. Both picked up their pace in the second Akmedov got through with a left but Duarte came forward letting his punches flow and with Akmedov doing the same there were some fierce exchanges at the end of the round. It was the same in the third with Duarte scoring with hooks and uppercuts and Akmedov targeting Duarte’s body. Duarte was also going to the body in the fourth as they stood and traded punches making the fight entertaining but hard to score. Akhmedov had the better of the exchanges in the fifth scoring with some quick combinations and doing a good job of blocking Duarte’s responses and the sixth was yet another close action-filled round. It looked as though Akmedov had moved into a slight lead but Duarte’s power began to have an effect in the seventh and eighth as he stepped up the pressure landing the harder punches forcing Akmedov onto the back foot. In the ninth Akmedov adjusted and was boxing well on the back foot until Duarte hammered home some hooks at the end of the round. It was three minutes of war in the tenth and despite a cut on his forehead Duarte put in a strong finish to wrap up the decision. Scores 98-92, 97-93 and 96-94 for Duarte. Second win for Duarte since a kayo loss against Ryan Garcia in December. Akhmedov lost on points against Marios Barrios in a fight for the vacant WBA super light title back in 2019. It was only Akhmedov’a eighth fight and he came in as a substitute for Kenneth Sims for this fight. NOVEMBER 12 Miami, FL, USA: Super Bantam: Guillermo Rigondeaux (23-3) W KO 1 Dannis Aguero (20-3). Cuban veteran Rigondeaux ended this one in quick time. He was coming forward taking the fight to the retreating Aguero then drove a southpaw left to Aguero’s body which sent Aguero down in pain. Aguero crawled across to the ropes but just collapsed to the floor and was counted out. The 44-year-old former WBA and WBO super bantam champion was having his first fight in 17 months. Dominican Aguero had won his last 9 fights but was having his first fight since January 2023. NOVEMBER 14 Montreal, Canada: Light Fly: Kim Clavel (21-0-2) W PTS 10 Mayela Perez (20-28-4). Super Light: Marie Pier Houle (11-1-2) W Anissa Benyoub (7-5). Clavel vs. Perez A breeze for Clavel as she boxes her way to victory over substitute Perez. Clavel set a fast pace and it really was just a comfortable night and a chance to try out some of the things she had been working on in the gym. Perez was never a threat but she gave former WBC champion Clavel some rounds of work with Clavel hoping for a title fight early next year. Scores 100-90 on the three cards. Perez has now lost her last five fights but is durable. Houle vs. Benyoub Houle added another win as she beat French visitor Benyoub on scores of 98-92 twice and 99-91. The better skills of Houle gave her the edge and she landed some good rights early. Benyoub was competitive over the middle rounds but Houle dominated the second half of the fight. She lost to Sandy Ryan in Cardiff in a fight for the vacant WBO welter title and as with Clavel will be looking for a title shot next year. NOVEMBER 15 Dubai, UAE: Bantam: Froilan Saludar (36-8-1) W PTS 12 William Flores (18-1). Light Heavy: Guillermo Andino (20-9) W TKO 4 Ahmed Elbiali (23-2). Welter: Faizan Anwar (19-0) W PTS 10 Tom Summerbell (8-1). Saludar vs. Flores Saludar outboxes and outscores Venezuelan champion Flores. The Filipino had too much experience for the Venezuelan with the heavily padded record. Froilan controlled much of the fight with his jabbing to head and body and dealt easily with the attacks of the South American. For me Saludar won by a large margin but the scores came in too close at 116-112, 115-113 and 115-114 for former WBO title challenger Saludar who wins the WBA International title. Flores fails in his first real test. Elbiali vs. Andino Elbiali stops Andino in four. This was more farce than fight. Elbiali had to hunt down the reluctant Andino but caught up with him in the second and put him down with a right to the body. Andino made it to his feet but after a right from Elbiali he turned away from the action. Since no signal had been received from the referee Elbiali landed another right and Andino went down again. The referee decided not to count but gave Andino some recovery time. A right put Andino down at the start of the third. He was up but when the fight restarted they tangled and as Andino bent low he threw a punch into the crotch of Elbiali which the referee ignored. They tangled again and this time as Elbiali bent over he landed a punch on Anton’s crotch. Andino collapsed face down on the canvas and then rolled over on his back. The referee indicated to the time keeper he was giving Andino fives minutes recovery time. Eventually when Andino realised the referee was not going to disqualify Elbiali he got up and continued fighting. When a right to the head floored Andino at the start of the fourth the referee just waived the fight over. Egytpian Elbiali needs to get serious about his career. He won his first 16 fights then lost on a sixth round stoppage against Jean Pascal in 2017 but this is only his fourth fight in the last five years. I missed out a few other misdemeanours that Andino carried out as he suffered his ninth inside the distance defeat. Anwar vs. Summerbell Dubai-based Indian southpaw Anwar registered another victory as he outscored Britain’s Summerbell on scores of 97-93 twice and 99-91. Summerbell was having his first ten round fight and his first outside the UK. Maracaibo, Venezuela: Super Light: Alessandro Riguccini (30-0) W TKO 1 Patricio Lopez (31-6). Light: Roger Gutierrez (29-6-1) W KO 2 Moises Flores (26-9-1). Geremy Vera (8-0) W TKO 2 Angel Fernandez (3-21). Riguccini vs. Lopez Riguccini extends his run of inside the distance victories. Late in the first round he banged home a vicious right to the body which had Lopez retreating to the ropes and he then landed a series of shots that drove Lopez to put one knee on the canvas. Lopez immediately got up but the referee waived the fight over. Italian Riguccini has moved his base from Mexico to Venezuela but if he wants a world rating he needs to change the level of his opposition. Mexican southpaw Lopez was handed his third loss by KO/TKO. Gutierrez vs. Flores Gutierrez bludgeons Floresv to defeat in two rounds. In the first Flores just kept lunging forward throwing wild swinging punches with Gutierrez landing heavy counters but also being caught by the crazy shots. Flores looked a very shot fighter uncoordinated and stumbling at times but he still kept swinging. In the second Gutierrez landed a series of clubbing hooks to the head that sent Flores down. He got and was swinging again but was knocked down again. This time when he got up he was staggering like a drink man and the referee mercifully stopped the fight. The former WBA super feather champion Gutierrez had a spell where he lost 3 of 4 fights but this is his second win as he emerges from that slide. It was worrying to see former IBO and WBA interim champion Flores so shaky. He is 1-9-1 in his last 11 fights and with six losses by KO/TKO all coming inside the first 3 rounds. Vera vs. Fernandez Vera retains the Venezuelan title with a cuts victory over Fernandez. Vera attacked hard from the start but Fernandez refused to crumble and fought back. In the second Vera waited out a storm of punches from Fernandez then battered him across the ring and into a corner. He blasted away until the referee came in and only then noticed Fernandez had been cut over his right eye. The cut was too bad for the fight to continue so Vera was the winner. The 19-year-old prospect was defending the title for the first time. Despite his record Fernandez showed plenty of fight. NOVEMBER 16 Redwood City, CA, USA: Heavy: Charles Martin (30-4-1) W KO 1 Matthew McKinney (17-9-3). In his first fight in sixteen months former IBF champion Martin crushes McKinney in the first round. A southpaw left hook sent Martin crashing down and he was counted out. Last time he fought Martin was floored and outpointed by Jared Anderson. There are plenty of fights to be had by heavyweights these days so worth giving it another try. McKinney, 43, had done most of his fighting in Colombia and Mexico against very poor opposition. Atlantic City, NJ, USA: Welter: Avious Griffin (16-0) W KO 3 Adrian Gutierrez (12-3-1). Bantam: Dominique Crowder (18-0) W KO 1 Duke Micah (24-3). Super Welter: Justin Figueroa (11-0) W TKO 4 Omar Rosales (9-4-1). Griffin vs. Gutierrez Griffin continues unbeaten as he gets a third round win over Gutierez. Griffing used his 4” height edge and some sharp jabbing to collect the points in the first two rounds and then sent Gutierrez down with a right in the third to end the fight. Ninth inside the distance victory in the row for the fighter from Chattanooga but Gutierrz has lost three in a row. Crowder vs. Micah Crowder gets his eleventh inside the distance victory as he puts Ghanaian Micha down and out with a driven straight right in the first round. The Baltimore fighter is ready to step up . Micha lost to John Riel Casimero in a WBO bantamweight title fight in September 2020 and was out of the ring until losing on an eighth round stoppage against Carlos Gonzalez in September this year. Figueroa vs. Rosales Former good level amateur Figueroa handed out punishment to Rosales over the first three rounds and then floored him with a left-right combination in the fourth with the referee stopping the fight. Ninth inside the distance finish for Figueroa. Bad times for Rosales who is 0-4-1 in his last 5 fights. Bahia Blanca, Argentina: Light : Neri Munoz (17-2) W TKO 10 Jose Acevedo (7-3). Home town boxer Munoz floors Uruguayan Acevedo on the way to victory. It was a close fight going into the last round but Munoz floored Acevedo twice and the fight was stopped. Munoz gets his thirteenth win by KO/TKO and collects the vacant WBA Fedelatin title. Only the fourth fight in four years for Acevedo. Rio Cuarto, Argentina: Super Welter: Adrian Sasso (25-3) W TKO 5 Lorenzo Gerez (10-2-1). Bantam: Carla Merino (16-2) W TKO 7 Rosana Bermudez (4-8-2). Sasso vs. Gerez Sasso, a native of Rio Cuarto, stops fellow-southpaw Gerez. Sasso was using his longer reach to control the action and had won two of the first three rounds and had Gerez rocking at the end of the fourth. In then fifth a big right from Sasso shook Gerez then Sasso landed a succession of head punches before dumping Gerez on the floor with a left hook and the referee waived the fight over. Sasso retained the South American title and won the vacant Argentinian and WBO Latino belts. Gerez was 5-0-1 in recent bouts. Merino vs. Bermudez Merino beats Bermudez. The smaller Merico constantly caught the brave Bermudez with rights to the head. Bermudez kept trying to close Merico down but after she took heavy punishment in the sixth her corner threw in the towel as the bell rang to start the seventh. Merino is now the mandatory challenger for the World Boxing Council super flyweight so is looking to fight Mizuki Hiruta for the title in 2025. Bruat-la-Buissiere, France: Super Bantam: Thomas Masson (23-6-1) W KO 5 Kaddour Hmiani (4-4-2). Veteran Masson much too good for modest Hmiani and scores a fifth round kayo to win the vacant French title. Masson is a former EBU and French flyweight champion and WBC title challenger. Fourth defeat in a row for Hmiani. Accra, Ghana: Feather: Holy Dorgbetor (12-0-1) W PTS 10 Clement Aliou Loko (9-1-1). Light: Samuel Takyi (5-0) W RTD 2 Emmanuel Quartey( 26-16-1). Middle: Joshua Quartey (10-0) W TKO 3 Boniface Kabore (20-7). Dorgbetor vs. Loko Dorgbetor makes a successful first defence of the IBF African title with a wide unanimous decision over Benin’s Loko. In a very one-sided bout Dorgbetor won on scores of 100-90 twice and 99-91. These two had fought a technical draw in February so Dorgbetor just cleaning up his record. Loko has done nearly all of his fighting in Ghana and Nigeria Takyi vs. Quartey Takyi scores a win but in a fight that looked ridiculous. Takyi towered over Quartey and was able to find the target with ease. Quartey relied on wild swipes which Takyi easily avoided but Takyi was not impressive in attack himself. Takyi showed more in the second opening up on Quarter with bursts of left hooks with Quartey against the ropes hiding behind his gloves and throwing an occasional haymaker. At the end of the round Quartey retired blaming an injury to his right hand. Olympic bronze medallist Takyi, 23, dips in and out of amateur boxing and won a gold medal at the All African Games in March. This is only his fifth professional fight since the 2021 Olympics where he won his medal and fights like this will only teach him bad habits. Quartey, former Ghanaian super flyweight champion, weighed 138 lbs for this one and the additional 23 lbs was all around his waist. Quartey vs. Kabore Quartey stops Kabore in the third. Kabore looked much heavier than Quartey but had enough experience to give Quartey some problems and expose some flaws in the Ghanaian’s defence. Quartey kept pressing and put Kabore down at the end of the first round with a left to the body. Quartey scored another knockdown in the second and three more in the third and the fight was stopped. Sixth win in a row by KO/TKO for Quartey but he is very raw. Kaboré, 42, was having his first fight for six years. In his last fight back in 2018 he weighed 192 lbs but his weight given for this fight was 162 ¼. I think those scales need to be checked as he was taller and a lot wider than Quartey. Milan, Italy: Middle: Dario Morello (24-1) W PTS 10 Felice Moncelli (24-9-2). Welter: Akrem Aouina (12-1) W PTS 10 Nicholas Esposito (19-1). Super Feather: Francesco Paparo (9-1-1) W TKO 2 Mohamed Diallo (9-2). Cruiser: Jonathan Kogasso (14-0) W PTS 10 Roberto Lizzi (7-2). Morello vs. Moncelli Morello retains the WBC Mediterranean title with points victory over Moncelli. Morello was much the better boxer and the bigger man and Moncelli was forced to forge forward trying to cut off the ring but Morello was too clever and easily deflected or blocked Moncelli’s attacks and found gaps for his own punches. Morello ran out a clear winner in scores of 99-91, 98-92 sand 97-93. Second defence of the Mediterranean title and his ninth win in a row for Morello. Third unsuccessful shot at a Mediterranean title for Moncelli. Aouina vs. Esposito Italian-based Tunisian Aouina springs a surprise as he outpoints unbeaten Esposito to win the vacant WBC International Silver title on a wide unanimous decision. Scores 100-90, 99-91 and 99-93 for Aouina. Second good win in a row for Aouina who outpointed 18-2 Pietro Rossetti in June. Former national welterweight champion Esposito had not really faced a tough test before this loss. Paparo vs. Diallo Paparo beat Diallo to win the vacant Italian title. Paparo dropped Diallo in the second and forced the stoppage. Paparo was unbeaten until he suffered a loss in June so a good rebound. Guinean Diallo was favourite after winning his last 8 fights. Kogasso vs. Lizzi Kogasso wins the vacant Italian title. The 6’3” Congolese fighter got over a poor first round that saw him lose a point for a low blow. He then boxed coolly and skilfully handling with ease the wild attacks from Lizzi. Kogasso paced the fight well but Lizzi did not and he tired badly over the closing rounds with Kogasso winning on scores of 98-92 on the three cards. First ten round fight for Lizzi. Windhoek, Namibia: Super Middle: Paulinas Ndjolonimu (19-0) W TKO 9 Abubakar Mubarak (12-1). Feather: Mateus Heita (13-0) W RTD 5 Tatenda Biningo (10-2). Light: Jeremia Nakathila ( 26-4) W TKO 1 Tafadzxa Mushando (5-2). Ndjolonimu vs. Mubarak Ndjolonimu stops Mubarak in the ninth. The Namibian used his longer reach to pile up the points but Ghanaian Mubarak was fighting hard to keep the bout level. Ndjolonimu had Mubarak in trouble at the end of the sixth and floored him with a right hook in the ninth. The visitor managed to beat the count but the referee stopped the fight. The 37-year-old Ndjolonimu was making the fourth defence of the WBO African title and gets his seventeenth inside the distance victory but his No 4 rating with the WBO above Edgar Berlanga and alongside Diego Pacheco, Christian Mbilli and Jaime Munguia is ridiculous. Mubarak came in on the back of an eight-bout winning run. Heita v. Biningo Heita wins the vacant WBO African title as Zimbabwean Beningo retires in his corner at the end of the fifth round. Heita gradually broke down the brave Biningo for his ninth inside the distance win. Biningo had won his last ten fights. Nakathila vs. Mushando Nakathila blows away Zimbabwean Mushando in the first round. Mushando was down twice before the stoppage. Mushando had never been in a fight scheduled for more than six rounds and putting a novice in with Nakathila was a disgrace. Wroclaw, Poland: Safal Wolczecki (13-0) W TKO 1 Przemyslaw Zysk (19-3). Cruiser: Mateusz Masternak (49-6) W PTS 10 Floyd Masson (14-2). Wolczecki vs. Zysk Wolczecki put on a power show for his home fans as he disposed off Zysk in 85 seconds. Two hooks dropped Zysk but he made it to his feet and Wolczecki put him down again with a right hook and the fight was over. The fight was for the vacant Polish title. Zysk had lost consecutive fights against Sam Eggington and Roarke Knapp Masternak vs. Masson Masternak gets the win but finds Australian Masson a clever and elusive opponent. The first three rounds were close but Masternak started to roll from the third. It was a tough, hard fight with Masson competitive all the way. Masternak had occasions of domination in each of the rounds without ever looking likely to stop Masson. The major problem for Masson was an ear injury he suffered in the fifth which proved more of a problem with each round but he was still there at the last bell. Masternak won on scores of 96-94 twice and 97-93. Masternak is 8-1 in his last 9 bouts with the loss an eighth round retirement against Chris Billiam-Smith in a challenge for the WBO title in December. Masson’s other loss was a sixth round stoppage against Yves Ngabu in September last year which cost Masson his IBO title. Madrid, Spain: Welter: Aaron Alhambra (15-2) W TKO 1 Jonathan Valero (15--1). Local fighter Alhambra wins the vacant Spanish title with first round destruction of Valero. Initially it was Valero coming forward but Alhambra landed a right uppercut and unleased a series of punches that sent Valero slumping into the ropes. Alhambra followed up quickly and landed some more hard shots that sent Valero to the floor and the fight was stopped. Alhambra had lost in a previous shot at the vacant title in 2022 but has now won his last four fights three by KO/TKO. Valero was having his third try at the title and is 0-3 in those but he won the WBC Mediterranean title in March. Bilbao, Spain: Light: Jokin Garcia (10-1-1) DREW 10 Brian Pelaez (15-7-2). Middle: John Jader Obregon (12-1) W KO 3 David Alvarez (4-3-1). Bantam: Sebastian Perez (15-4-1) W PTS 10 Raul Zabala (6-3). Garcia vs. Pelaez The Spanish title remains vacant as Garcia and former champion Pelaez fought to a majority draw. Garcia made a good start and built a lead over the first half of the fight with Pelaez finishing strongly. Scores 95-95 twice and 98-92 for Garcia. His only loss came in May when he dropped a split decision against Rafael Acosta in a challenge for this title. Pelaez had won the title in 2022 but lost it to Antonio Collado in his first defence in May 2023. Obregon vs. Alvare No problems here for Obregon as he makes a successful defence of the Spanish title with a third round kayo of Alvarez. Obregon bossed the first two rounds and then put Alvarez down with a vicious left hook in the third and Alvarez was counted out. Colombian-born Obregon was making the first defence of then title. In December he fought Frenchman 24-0-2 Bruno Surace for the vacant EBU Silver title but lost of a twelfth round stoppage. Alvarez had no chance. Perez vs. Zabala Perez regains the national bantamweight title with a majority verdict against Zabala. Perez built an early lead before Zabala came on strong late but it was too little too late and Perez won on scores of 97-93 and 96-94 with the third card 95-95. Perez had won the title way back in 2018 but had not defended it. Zabala had lost in a fight for the vacant Spanish flyweight title in March last year. Fight of the week: (Significance): Katie Taylor vs. Amanda Serrano. With the gigantic audience for Paul vs. Tyson a whole new mass of boxing fans and others will have had their eyes opened to how entertaining female boxing can be. A game changer. Fight of the week: (Entertainment):Honour shared by Taylor vs. Serrano, Oscar Duarte vs. Botirzhon Akhmedov and Mario Barrios vs. Abel Ramos Fighter of the week: Oscar Collazo for the way he outclassed long reigning champion CP-Freshmart Punch of the week: The booming left hook from Charles Martin that laid out Matthew McKinney gets my nod with honourable mention for the Jader Obregon left hook that effectively finished David Alvarez. Upset of the week: None outstanding Prospect watch: None in the fights I covered Observations Rosette: To the show in Saudi Arabia. Two title unifiers and three other top line ten round fights Red Card: None-feeling generous after a busy weekend Paul vs. Tyson Some incredible statistics. 60 million households watching the show with 50 million of those tuning in to watch Taylor vs. Serrano and over 72,000 in attendance in Arlington. The downside is that with Tyson reportedly getting $20 million every retired boxer under sixty is challenging Paul and Tyson is talking about facing Paul’s brother Jake next. 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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