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The Past Week in Action 8 April 2025: Alimkhanuly Stops Ngamissengue to Retain IBF/WBO Titles; Hrgovic Outpoints Joyce; Torrez Decisions Vianello; Tszyu TKOs Spencer in 4 By Eric Armit PhilBoxing.com Wed, 09 Apr 2025  Highlights: -Zhanibek Alimkhanuly successfully defends the IBF and WBO middleweight titles with a fifth round stoppage of Anauel Ngamissengue and there are wins for Sultan Zaurbek, and Bakhodir Jalolov. -Filip Hrgovic outpoints Joe Joyce and there are wins for David Adeleye and Jack Rafferty -Richard Torrez decisions Guido Vianello and Lindolfo Delgado, and Abdullah Mason score wins -Tim Tszyu stops Joseph Spencer in four rounds. -Sol Cudos wins the vacant IBF minimum title as she outpoints Maria Baumstarh. -Tina Rupprecht takes a majority verdict over Sumire Yamanaka in a unification fight for the IBF, WBA, WBC and WBO atomweight titles to become the first German boxer to hold all four versions of a title in a division Major Shows APRIL 5 Astana, Kazakhstan: Middle: Zhanibek Alimkhanuly (17-0) W TKO 5 Anauel Ngamissengue (14-1). Super Feather: Sultan Zaurbek (20-0) W Azinga Fuzile (18-3). Super Light: Batyrzhan Jukembayev (24-1) W PTS 10 Kane Gardner (17-5). Heavy: Bakhodir Jalolov (15-0) W PTS 10 Ihor Shevaszutskyi (12-3). Alimkhanuly vs. Ngamissengue An impressive Alimkhanuly takes a determined Ngamissengue apart then ends it in style in the fifth. Round 1 Alimkhanuly was quickly on target with his jab. Southpaw Ngamissengue was coming forward looking to get inside but Alimkhanuly kept piercing Ngamissengue guard with his right jab and making a difficult target as he stood side-on to Ngamissengue effectively taking Ngamissengue left hooks out of the fight. Ngamissengue was scoring with some hooks but a downward chopping left dropped him. He was up at seven but the bell went before Alimkhanuly could do any more damage. Score: 10-8 Alimkhanuly Round 2 Ngamissengue landed a hard left to the head at the start of the round but Alimkhanuly was now the one coming forward using right jabs, left hooks and uppercuts to force Ngamissengue back. Ngamissengue landed some right hooks to the body but Alimkhanuly exploded with a burst of punches from both hands. Ngamissengue just kept coming and connected with some shots inside before Alimkhanuly banged come rights and lefts. Alimkhanuly’s round but Ngamissengue was having some success and Alimkhanuly was rightly warned for using his shoulder to push Ngamissengue back. Score: 10-9 AlimkhanulyAlimkhanuly 20-17 Round 3 Ngamissengue had switched to orthodox and was pacing forward with Alimkhanuly retreating and firing right jabs. Alimkhanuly connected with a couple of left hooks. The change of guard made no difference as Alimkhanuly continued to stab jabs home and then scored with a lightning fast combination. Ngamissengue was fighting hard walking through Alimkhanuly’s jab and pumping out punches with a measure of success but was caught by another combination at the bell. Score: 10-9 AlimkhanulyAlimkhanuly 30-26 Round 4 Once again Ngamissengue was pacing forward onto jabs and inside hooks from Alimkhanuly who kept retreating but firing fast, accurate counters. Ngamissengue had set a fast pace and was now slowing and Alimkhanuly was catching him with hooks and uppercuts and had a little mor time to select his shots. Score: 10-9 AlimkhanulyAlimkhanuly 40-35 Round 5 Alimkhanuly continued to feed the advancing Ngamissengue with right jabs and then exploding with little burst of hooks and uppercuts. Ngamissengue had picked up his pace but Alimkhanuly was meeting him with well-timed lefts. Ngamissengue persisted in walking forward pumping out punches but was walking onto jabs and lefts. As Ngamissengue came forward again two left hooks sent him flying back and down. He was up at five but when the referee asked him to step forward he stumbled and the referee waived the fight over. This was an impressively cool destruction job by Alimkhanuly against a brave but outclassed challenger. He was defending the IBF and WBO belts and was calling out WBC champion Calos Adames for a unification fight. Congolese-born Frenchman Ngamissengue had been rated after outpointing 22-0 Fiodor Czerkaszyn in August 2023 but has had only one low level fight in the 20 months since then so not the strongest of contender qualifications. Zaurbek vs. Fuzile Zaurbek wins the unanimous decision over Fuzile in this battle of southpaws. Both started well having some success in the first round. Zaurbek’s strong jab and accurate countering put him in charge in the second but again it was close. Fuzile had a good third as he got in tight and scored with a right that stopped Zaurbek in his tracks. Fuzile carried the impetus of that success into the fourth as he focused on body work and was giving Zaurbek some problems. The fifth was close with both landing good shots but Zaurbek was timing Fuzile’s attacks in the sixth and was starting to take over. In the seventh he was closing Fuzile down with pressure finding gaps for his jab and landing some useful body punches. Fuzile had slowed and over the eighth and ninth Zaurbek and the South African stood and traded more but the power of Zaurbek made that bad tactics. Zaurbek had more left in the tank in the tenth and dominated the exchanges to emerge a clear winner. Scores 98-92, 98-92, and 97-93. Zaurbek is No 2 with the WBA and No 5 with the IBF so a title shot later in the year is not out of the question. Fuzile lost on points against Kenichi Ogawa for the vacant IBF super feather title in 2021 and was coming off three wins in domestic fights but had fallen out of the ratings. Jukembayev vs. Gardner Jukembayev continues his run of good form with a unanimous decision over Gardner. The local southpaw used his superior skills and hand speed to control the fight. Gardner pressed hard behind a high guard and posed some problems for Jukembayev but was never a serious threat and Jukembayev won on scores of 99-91, 98-92 and 97-93. Jukembayev’s loss came on an eighth round retirement against Subriel Matias in 2021 and he had scored five wins against good level opposition but recent inactivity had seen him drop out of the ratings. Third loss in his last 4 fights for Gardner but the other two losses have come against unbeaten Pierce O’Leary and 16-1 Reece MacMillan. Jalolov vs. Shevaszutskyi Jalolov goes the distance for the first time as he outpoints “Hulk” Shevaszutskyi. Jalolov was giving away 46 lbs to the 6’3” well-named “Hulk so he was able to box comfortably against the much slower Ukrainian. Shevaszutskyi was slow but strong and Jalolov, 6’7” made use of his longer reach to score and tried to avoid any inside work where Shevaszutskyi’s weight would be a problem. There were few highlights. Jalolov floored Shevaszutskyi late in the third but Shevaszutskyi survived and was never in trouble again. He managed to get close often enough to pick up a couple of rounds and looked to have shaken Jalolov with a right in the seventh. Realising Shevaszutskyi was not going to crumple Jalolov settled for boxing his way to the end. Scores 100-89 97-93 and 97-92. A bit of a reality check for double Olympic gold medallist Jalolov as he had never had to go past seven rounds for a win. Shevaszutskyi was stopped in three rounds by Martin Bakole in 2023 and outpointed over twelve rounds by Kubrat Pulev in March last year. Mexico City: Mexico: Sergio Chirino (23-2) W PTS 10 Ivan Turrubiartes (25-2-2). Chirino holds off a late rally from Turrubiartes to win on points. The action was slow over the first two rounds which Chirino edged. The paced quickened in the third with Chirino driving Turrubiartes onto the back foot and scoring with jabs and hooks. Turrubiartes boxed well over the fourth and fifth blocking Chirino’s shots and countering accurately. Pressure and strong jabbing saw Chirino back in charge and he collected rounds six to eight leaving Turrubiartes needing a knockout and although he finished strongly to take the ninth and tenth it was not enough and Chirino won on scores of 98-94, 97-94 and 96-95. First fight for Chirino since losing on a fourth round stoppage against Rafael Espinoza in a challenge for the WBO feather title in June last year. After being 23-0 Turrubiartes has hit a rocky spell being 2-2-2 in his last 6 Manchester, England: Heavy: Filip Hrgovic (18-1) W PTS 10 Joe Joyce (16-4). Heavy: David Adeleye (14-1) W TKO 6 Jeamie Tshikeva (8-2). Super Light: Jack Rafferty (26-0) W TKO 5 Cory O’Regan (14-1).Cruiser: Juergen Uldedaj (20-1) W PTS 10 Gerardo Mellado (12-4). Heavy: Delicious Orie (1-0) W PTS 4 Milos Veletic (3-8). Super Light: Khaleel Majid (15-0) W PTS 10 Alex Murphy (13-1). Super Feather: Royston Barney-Smith (14-0) W PTS 8 Cesar Paredes (18-17-1). Super Light: Mark Chamberlain (17-1) W PTS 8 Miguel Scaringi (8-5). 
Hrgovic vs. Joyce Hrgovic outlasts Joyce in a gruelling battle of behemoths and takes the decision on scores of 98-92, 97-93 and 96-95. Both were probing with their jabs in the first but then Hrgovic connected with a left hook and a right to the head. A right from Joyce opened a cut over Hrgovic’s right eye but Hrgovic came back with left that rocked Joyce. Hrgovic landed a pair of heavy right at the start of the second but Joyce shook them off and did some good work with his jab only for Hrgovic to again find the target with a right cross. Joyce again did some good work with his jab at the start if the third and was having a good round with Hrgovic not finding a solution to Joyce’s jab until late in the round when he connected with two rights. That sparked a fierce exchange and saw Joyce the one landing rights to the head only for Hrgovic to land a right that had Joyce stumbling. Hrgovic was given a warning for his customary punches to the back of the head. In the fourth and fifth Joyce shook off rights from Hrgovic and put the Croation under some pressure forcing him to the ropes and unloading ponderous rights. Good from Joyce but in each round Hrgovic came back strongly landing more of his clubbing right swings. A right to the head seemed to shake Hrgovic in the sixth and he was forced to clinch in what had been a good round for Joyce. The seventh saw Joyce continuing to come forward walking onto a series of left hooks from Hrgovic and pitching counters of his own but with Hrgovic landing more and harder punches. Hrgovic was tending to retreat to the ropes and wait for Joyce to come forward and then fire counters. Joyce was caught out by those tactics in the eighth as Hrgovic met him with two left hooks and a powerful right. Joyce stumbled back and Hrgovic landed another right but the bell went at that point. Hrgovic handed Joyce a savage beating in the ninth scoring with right after right with Joyce trying to fie back but for moments it looked as though Hrgovic might stop Joyce but Joyce was still swinging at the bell. Hrgovic had more left in the tank and took the last and as he stood with his back to the ropes he landed a booming right to the head that forced Joyce back but Joyce just rolled forward again as two exhumated fighters saw out the last round. Scores 98-92, 97-93 and 96-95 for Hrgovic. Hrgovic needed to win this one if he was to have any chance of a title shot having lost on an eighth round stoppage against Daniel Dubois for the interim IBF title in June. He took this fight at three weeks’ notice and the gamble paid off. Fourth loss in his last five fights for Joyce. He is 39 but says he intends to fight on but he had already dropped out of the ratings so will find it hard to get anywhere near a title fight. 
Adeleye vs. Tshikeva Adeleye stops Tshikeva in the eighth to win the vacant British title but a very controversial ending. Some pre-fight incidents meant this was going to be a bad tempered fight from the start. Tshikeva settled quickest in the first jabbing well with Adeleye not really doing much. Tshikeva also began well in the second connecting with a right to the head but Adeleye started to roll late in the round and a hard left hook had Tshikeva holding. Tshikeva had shoved Adeleye as they parted at the end of the round and that seemed to fire up Adeleye. He was letting his punches go in the third and fourth finding the target with powerful rights. The referee had to warn both fighters for some rough stuff in the fifth. Adeleye was landing the more powerful shots but not working hard enough allowing Tshikeva to pinch the round. In the sixth as they fell into a clinch the referee twice called break Tshikeva’s left arm was around the back of Adeleye and as the referee moved around the fighters he tapped Tshikeva’s arm to enforce the break call. Tshikeva dropped his left arm and momentarily lost focus and Adeleye connected with a left hook that sent Tshikeva crashing to the canvas. Tshikeva used the ropes to pull himself up at six and walked along the ropes to a corner with the referee following and completing the eight count. Adeley moved in and fired a broadside at Tshikeva who pitched face first to the canvas. He made it to his feet but looked unsteady and the referee actually held up ten fingers in his count but as Tshikeva was standing it was a stoppage and not a kayo. Tshikeva protested and his corner were furious with the result sure to be appealed. Adeleye had been stopped in seven rounds by Fabio Wardley in October 2023 but had won the English title with a sixty second wipe out of unbeaten Solomon Dacres in December. A return with Tshikeva might be next depending the appeal by Tshikeva’s team. Rafferty vs. O’Regan Rafferty cuts down O’Regan in five rounds in a Commonwealth title defence. Southpaw Rafferty applied pressure early but O’Regan boxed intelligently on the back foot using some good upper body movement and slick footwork to avoid Rafferty’s punches. Rafferty confidently walked the elusive O’Regan down finding it hard to nail him but showing his power when he did. The power was evident in the third when a big right from Rafferty sent O’Regan crashing to the canvas. O’Regan got up and managed to avoid any more trouble in the round. O’Regan still seemed a little unsteady at the start of the fourth and Rafferty was in full flow landing shots to head and body. O’Regan tried to stand and trade and connected with some useful lefts but he lacked the power to hurt Rafferty who was battering O’Regan at the bell. After snapping O’Regan’s head back with a right in the fifth Rafferty connected with a series of body punches and when he landed two more rights the towel came in from O’Regan’s corner. Rafferty was defending the Commonwealth title for the third time and has 16 inside the distance wins. He impresses more every time out and is a real threat in a strong division. O’Regan showed some good skills and probably took the first two rounds but he just did not have the experience or power to trouble Rafferty. Uldedaj vs. Mellado Just a routine ten rounds of action for German-based Albanian Uldedaj. He had the edge in both height and reach and was more mobile than the fleshy Mellado. Uldedaj was able to use some powerful jabbing to control the action and Mellado’s technique was very basic. He stabbed out jabs that had little chance of landing and then followed behind with swinging punches that lacked any power. He was very active constantly throwing himself forward firing those swings. Uldedaj boxed patiently at distance jabbing well and mixing in right hooks and uppercuts and switching guards but it was a competent rather than existing performance. He never looked to have the Chilean in any trouble but boxed his way to the win over a very modest opponent. Scores 100-90, 99-91 and 97-94. Uldedaj was making the first defence of his IBF International title and has won five in a row since a disappointing loss against 8-3 Benoit Huber in 2023. Three of Mellado’s losses have come by KO/TKO all inside two rounds. Orie vs. Veletic Olympian Orie safely navigates his first professional fight as he outpoints Veletic, No real highlights as Orie dictated the pace and won evert]y round without really threatening to stop the Bosnian who outweighed him by 48 lbs. The referee scored it 40-36 for Orie. The 6’6” Russian-born Orie, 27, did not medal in Paris but won a gold medal at the European Games and won’t be rushed. Majid vs. Murphy In a clash of unbeaten fighters Majid takes a unanimous decision over Murray in the fight of the night. Majid was in control in the first winning the exchanges and connecting with some hard rights. The pace was fast in this one and Majid continued outscore Murray in the second both at distance and inside. Murray was fighting hard enough to make the rounds close as they continually swapped punches. Majid had taken the first three rounds but Murray forced the pace even more in the fourth and Majid changed from standing and exchanging punches to moving more. Majid clawed that round back with a high work rate in the fifth but Murray’s corner urged him to step up and he outfought Majid in the sixth . It was punch-for-punch in an all-action seventh with Majid doing the better work early but being shaken by a right late and with the fight slipping away from him Murphy attacked throughout the eighth to stay in contention. Murphy needed to take the ninth to have any chance of winning and he did just that landing the cleaner shots and rocking Majid with a right. Majid found that bit extra in the tenth landing some heavy rights and forcing Murphy back and Murphy’s task was made harder when a cut was opened over his left eye in a clash of heads Majid took the round and the decision on scores 97-94 , 96-94 and 96-95 end the was a standing ovation as a reward for both. A valuable win for Majid and valuable experience as he was going ten rounds for the first time. Murphy was also going ten rounds for the first time and he has enhanced his profile despite the loss. Barney-Smith vs. Paredes Southpaw hope Barney-Smith got some rounds under his belt as he won every round against Peruvian Paredes. Sugar Boy Roy opened a bad cut on the bridge of the nose of Paredes but despite unrelenting pressure Paredes went the distance. The referee scored it 80-72 as Barney-Smith continues to progress. He had suffered burst ear drum early in the year so good to see he has recovered. Chamberlain vs. Scaringi Southpaw Chamberlain starts his journey on the road back with an easy win over Argentinian prelim fighter Scaringi. Chamberlain shook Scaringi in the third but just could not put the Argentinian away and had to settle for winning every round on the 80-72 card of the referee. This was Chamberlain’s first fight since being floored and outpointed by Josh Padley in September. Chamberlain had collected the IBF European, WBA Inter-Continental and WBC Silver belts before that loss. Las Vegas, NV, USA: Richard Torrez (13-0) W PTS 10 Guido Vianello (13-3-1). Super Light: Lindolfo Delgado (23-0) W PTS 10 Elvis Rodriguez (17-2-1). Light: Abdullah Mason (18-0) W TKO 6 Carlos Ornelas (28-5). Middle: Jahi Tucker (14-1-1) W PTS 10 Troy Williamson (20-4-1). Feather: Albert Gonzalez (13-0) W PTS 8 Dana Coolwell (13-4). Super Fly: Steven Navarro (6-0) W TKO 4 Juan Garcia (14-2-2). Super Feather: Demler Zamora (16-0) W TKO 4 Hugo Castaneda (15-2-1). Super Welter: Art Barrera Jr (8-0) W TKO 2 Daijohn Gonzalez (12-6). 
Torrez vs. Vianello As he was giving away height and reach Torrez knew he would have to get inside and he immediately drove forward in the first firing punches. Vianello’s response was to hold and he was warned in the first minute of the fight. High energy all-out attacks are Torrez’s trademark and Vianello had trouble stifling Torrez’s attack but landed a right uppercut and did enough to take a close round that could have been scored for either fighter. Vianello is not built for fighting inside and his tactics were to circle the ring just pawing with his jab and firing right counters when Torrez came forward. Torrez was having success with hooks with Vianello again warned for holding. Torrez was again driving forward in the second and the referee stopped the action to give Vianello another warning for holding and for using his elbow. After some more clinches the referee took a point off Vianello for holding. Torrez connected with a right to the head but it was a messy fight with very little clear scoring by either fighter. The referee visited Vianello’s corner at the end of the round to make it clear he would take further action if Vianello continued to hold. Vianello had some success in the third with counter rights. Torrez dived inside and connected with some hooks but there was still too much clinching and wrestling. Both were warned for punches to the back of the head in a close round where Torrez landed a hard left hook and Vianello found the space to connect with straight rights. Vianello had a good fifth shaking Torrez with a right and he jabbed well but Torrez got through with hooks to make the sixth close. Vianello took the seventh. Torrez was not closing Vianello down and not throwing as many punches. When Torrez did come forward Vianello was stepping back and countering. Torrez picked up the pace again in the eighth connecting with overhand rights and left hooks to the body. Vianello scored with some hooks to the body but Torrez landed a big left that shook Vianello. Torrez forced Vianello to the ropes at the start of the ninth and bombarded him with hooks from both hands. When the referee parted them Torrez was pawing at a cut on his right eyelid from a clash of heads. Vianello targeted the cut with jabs and Torrez dialled his aggression back a tad looking to protect the cut and then landed three hooks before the bell. Vianello started the tenth firing hooks and getting the better of the exchanges but Torrez forced Vianello to the ropes and connected with overhand rights and lefts. Vianello went down but it was a slip and the bell went when he got up. Torrez won on scores of 98-91 twice and 97-92 but it had been an untidy mauling contest with few exciting moments as their respective styles resulted in moments of scrappy action interspersed with continual clinches. A big win for Torrez. He looked exhausted at the end as he went ten rounds for the first time. There is nothing pretty about his style but it is effective. Obviously a set-back for Vianello. Losing a split decision against Efe Ajagba in April last year was a blow but he had redeemed himself with a stoppage of Arslanbek Makhmudov in August now he has some rebuilding to do. 
Delgado vs. Rodriguez Delgado wins a majority decision in this WBC eliminator which reportedly makes him the mandatory challenger to WBC champion Albert Puello. This one took a couple of rounds to catch fire. Those first two rounds were close but Delgado raised his pace in the third outworking Rodriguez. Both had some success in the fourth Delgado with rights against southpaw Rodriguez and Rodriguez bringing his straight lefts into play. Delgado ‘s work rate made the difference in the fifth and sixth to establish a clear lead but Rodriguez scored with accurate jabs and left hooks to turn the fight his way in the seventh and eighth. The ninth was close with the higher work rate of Delgado against the more accurate punches from Rodriguez but Rodrigez connected with a heavy left that rocked Delgado and sent him into the ropes. It looked as though it would all rest on the last round and Delgado produced the better finish outscoring the tired Rodriguez and ending the round landing some hard left hooks to the body. Scores 96-94 twice for Delgado and 95-95. Rodriguez was just one more tough opponent for Delgado to fight through and he has earned a title shot. However ,with Delgado rated No 5 and Rodriguez No 15, fighters such Dalton Smith, Sandor Martin, Isaac Cruz, Jack Catterall, Liam Paro and Subriel Matias all in the WBC top 8 must wonder how Rodriguez leap-frogged them all. This was close Rodriguez will come again , Mason vs. Ornelas Mason floors Ornelas three times and stops him in the sixth. In theory this was Mason’s progression from eighth rounds to ten but that did not figure in Mason’s plan. A first round of studying the experienced Ornelas then saw Mason go into action in the second. Late in the round a left to the head brought a delayed action knockdown as Ornelas took a couple of steps back and dropped to one knee. After the count Mason connected with a left that had Ornelas badly shaken but the bell went. Ornelas took the fight to Mason in the third forging forward only to be forced back by heavy counters and having his nose busted. Mason landed heavily to head and body in the fourth before driving Ornelas to the ropes and landing two brutal lefts to the head that again saw Ornelas drop to a knee. Ornelas was up at eight and there was not enough time left for Mason to finish the fight. It was all over in the sixth. A left opened a cut over Ornelas right eye and with just one minute remaining in the round another left had Ornelas on one knee again. Although he beat the count and made it to the bell the referee followed him to his corner and waived the fight over. Mason, who turned 21 on the night of the fight, makes it 16 inside the distance wins including 8 in a row now. He has the talent and charisma make a huge impact and is already rated WBC 7 and WBO 8. Ornelas came in as a substitute and had won his last three fights. Tucker vs. Williamson Tucker outpoints Williamson in a tough ten round fight. Both were looking to dominate from the start letting their hands go in the first with the quicker Tucker landing the better punches. Williamson tried to get inside in the second but as he came in bobbing and weaving Tucker seemed to connected with a right uppercut that floored him. Williamson was up immediately and the referee deemed it was caused by their legs getting entangled so no count but Williamson was shaken with a right later in the round. Williamson was determined to take the fight to Tucker and landed well in some exchanges in the third and then outworked Tucker in the fourth pinning him in a corner and getting through with a burst of punches. With neither fighter paying much attention to defence Tucker came back to land the better punches in a close, hard fought fifth. Ticker had his best round so far in the sixth as he landed heavily to the head forcing Williamson back under a barrage of rights. Williamson rebounded to force Tucker to the ropes and connect with hooks only for Tucker to fire back and hurt Williamson. Tucker outlanded Williamson in the seventh and then sent Williamson flying into the ropes with a left hook in the eighth. The ropes stopped Williamson going down so the referee applied a count. Tucker landed some more hard punches but Williamson was fighting back by the end of the round. The younger Tucker was just that bit more active over the ninth and tenth and captured those rounds. All three judges scored it 99-89 for Tucker picking the right winner but looking unfair on the tremendous effort from Williamson. After losing to Nicklaus Flaz and drawing with Francisco Veron in 2023 the 22-year-old Tucker has reestablished himself with four victories with this his best win so far. After being 19-0-1 Williamson fell away badly with losses against Josh Kelly, Caoimhin Agyarko and Ishmael Davis leaving him with just one win in his last five fights. Gonzalez vs. Coolwell Gonzalez moves to 13 wins as he takes a unanimous verdict over Coolwell. Gonzalez was forcing the fight from the start attacking Coolwell’s body with Coolwell boxing well defensively. Gonzalez had the upper hand over the first three rounds but Coolwell made some adjustments and the fourth and fifth were close with Coolwell looking to have done enough to edge them. Gonzalez was back on top in the sixth landing a series of body punches and had his best round in the seventh punishing Coolwell with shots to head and body. Coolwell tried to stage a strong finish but was outlanded by Gonzalez who won on scores of 80-72, 78-74 and 77-75. Good learning fight for Gonzalez, who turned 23 three days after the fight, and the plan is to move him up to ten rounds in a forthcoming fight. Tough former Australian super featherweight champion Coolwell had climbed off the floor twice to go the distance with Bruce Carrington in November. Navarro vs. Garcia In a slow first round Garcia boxed well, showed some good skills and was willing to take the fight to Navarro. Navarro upped the pace in the second and they traded hard shots with Navarro’s quicker hands and accuracy giving him the edge. Navarro began to connect heavily in the third putting together some flashing combinations and switching guards being equally impressive in either stance. Garcia banged back getting through with some good punches of his own. Three left hooks to the body in the fourth had Garcia backing off and Navarro cut loose with series after series of punches and with Garcia reeling under heavy fire the referee stopped the fight. Navarro, 21, showed great hand speed and gets his fifth inside the distance win. Mexican Garcia, who had scored 11 inside the distance wins, suffers his first TKO defeat but showed well until Navarro really cut loose in the third. Zamora vs. Castaneda Filipino American Zamora scores three knockdowns on the way to a fourth round stoppage of Castaneda. Zamora opened up by boxing on the back foot and using his fast hands to connect with straight left counters as Castaneda came forward. He then stood and traded punches in some fierce exchanges switching his shots to head and body and had Castaneda backing up. Castaneda took the fight to Zamora in the second firing some useful combinations until accurate jabbing and straight lefts again forced Castaneda to back off. When Castaneda returned to the attack Zamora fed him fast jabs and left hooks. There were sustained exchanges at the start of the third with Zamora getting the better of them banging home left hooks to the body and a left dropped Castaneda. He made it to his feet but was down again just before the bell. Zamora ended it in the fourth flooring Castaneda with a sweeping left hook with the referee immediately waiving the fight over. Southpaw Zamora, 21, was coming off a good win over useful test Roman Reynosa and this is his eleventh victory by KO/TKO. Mexican Castaneda was 3-0-1 in his last 4 fights and this was his first inside the distance loss. Barrera vs. Gonzalez Barrera had early success curving left hooks behind Gonzalez southpaw defence. In the second he easily dealt with Gonzalez’s lunging attempts to come forward and then nailed Gonzalez with a three-punch combination ending with a left hook that dropped Gonzalez on his rump. Gonzalez was up at six but had blood seeping from his nose. At the end of the count Barrera just walked forward and landed a left hook that sent Gonzalez back down. He was up at eight and the referee let the fight continue but Gonzalez stumbled back before Barrera had even landed another punch and the fight was over. The 19-year-old Top Rank prospect has six wins by KO/TKO. Now back-to-back losses for Gonzalez. APRIL 6 Newcastle, Australia: Super Welter: Tim Tszyu (25-2) W TKO 4 Joseph Spencer (19-2). Super Welter: Koen Mazoudier (13-4-1) W PTS 10 Dan Hill (7-2). Middle: Blake Wells (12-2) W PTS 6 Andrei Mikhailovich (21-2) : Middle: Endry Saavedra (17-1-1) W TKO 8 Mikkel Nielsen (13-3). 
Tszyu vs. Spencer Tszyu stops an overmatched Spencer in four. A cautious start by both fighters. Tszyu was on the front foot and scored with jabs to head and body with Spencer not really committing himself to anything. Tszyu landed a solid left jab early in the second then stepped back quickly out of range when Spencer came forward with his jab. Spencer connected with a left hook and Tszyu with an accurate counter and Spencer landed an uppercut. Tszyu came forward in the third closing the distance to Spencer with his jabs and getting through with hooks. Spencer stopped to fire some shots to the body but Tszyu drove him back with jabs and then connected with hooks as Spencer retreated across the ring. Tszyu followed and scored with a combination to the head and later landed three straight shots to Spencer’s head. It was obvious that Spencer was in way over his head and knew it. They stood and exchanged shots in the middle of the ring and Tszyu pierced Spencer’s guard again and again. In the fourth Tszyu was again using his jab to back Spencer up. Spencer fired a couple of counters but there was no power in them. Tszyu landed a burst of hooks and uppercuts again forcing Spencer back and continued to walk forward firing punches. He scored with hooks to the body and after Spender fired a couple of counters Tszyu unleashed a barrage of punches that had Spencer backing away to the ropes. Tszyu bombarded Spencer with punches and with Spencer not firing back the referee stopped the fight. It looks like Tszyu will now take on Keith Thurman next. Spencer lacked the experience or the power to give Tszyu any sort of test. Mazoudier vs. Hill Mazoudier outpoints champion Hill in an entertaining scrap to win the Australian title. Mazoudier floored Hill with a right in the third and had him hurt again in the tenth wining on scores of 100-89, 99-90 and 98-91. Wells vs. Mikhailovich Southpaw Wells survives a bad cut to score an upset victory with a split decision victory over former IBF middleweight title challenger Mikhailovich. Wells won on scores of 59-55 and 58-56 against a 58-56 for Mikhailovich who lost on a ninth round stoppage against Zhanibek Alimkhanuly in October Saavedra vs. Nielsen Saavedra hands out a beating to Nielsen and stops him in the eighth. Saavedra had won every round before flooring Saavedra in the eighth. Niesen only just made it to his feet but was dropped again and under fire when the referee stopped the fight. The Venezuelan was having his third fight in Australia having stopped Isaac Hardman and drawn with world rated Carlos Tapia. Dane Nielsen had won his last 5 fights but suffers his first inside the distance defeat. APRIL 4 London, England:. Super Fly: Super Fly: Emma Dolan (8-0) W PTS 10 Lauren Parker (10-2-1). Heavy: Hughie Fury (30-3) W TKO 5 Dan Garber (9-5). Super Light: Ben Crocker (14-0-1) DREW 10 Tiernan Bradley (10-0-1). Dolan vs. Parker Dolan retains the British and Commonwealth belts as she takes a unanimous decision over Parker. The challenger just edged a close opening round but then Dolan’s longer reach saw her getting the best of the action and she controlled the fight from there. She was on the front foot, was the busier and more accurate finding the target with jabs and straight rights. Parker just could not get inside often enough to cause Dolan problems. Parker seemed to be tiring in the seventh but rallied in the eight to make it a tight round. Dolan was back on top in the ninth outworking Parker and did enough to take a close tenth. Scores 98-92, 98-93 and 97-94. Parker had won her last eight fights but Dolan was in a different class. Fury vs. Garber Fury hands out a one-sided beating to Garber but is far from impressive. Fury was chasing the retreating Garber down working hard to the body with Garber firing the occasional counter but never straying too far from the ropes. Garber was rocked a few times by long rights to the head but it was the body punches that were breaking him down. A right to the head in the fifth had an exhausted Garber dropping to one knee. He managed to beat the count but when the action resumed Fury trapped him in a corner and unloaded punches until the referee waived it off. Seventh win in a row for Fury but against modest opposition. Fury explained that he had injured his arm a few days before the fight but did not want to pull out. Garber had been stopped in one round by Moses Itauma last year. Crocker vs. Bradley In a clash of unbeaten fighters Crocker retains the IBF European title with a split draw against Bradley. Crocker had edges in height and reach and started on the back foot outboxing Bradley in the first. Bradley pressed harder to make the second and third close but Crocker landed more and better punches over the fourth and early in the fifth but late in the round Bradley connected with a heavy right. Bradley built on that strong finish having a big round in the sixth shaking Crocker with a right and then pouring on more punches to have Crocker rocking. Bradley was on a roll and he outscored Crocker in the seventh and eighth to take a lead into the closing rounds. Crocker dredged up some reserve of energy and was busiest in the ninth and a wild tenth was hard to score. The judges confirmed that as their scores came out as 97-93 for Crocker, 97-93 for Bradley and 95-95. Crocker was making the first defence of the IBF belt. Bradley was going ten rounds for the first time. Detroit, MI, USA: Heavy: Kristian Prenga (1-1) W KO 1 Willia Jake (11-7-2). Albanian Prenga had a quick look at what Jake offered and not being impressed he cut loose with a volley of punches that sent Jake down and out. All 18 of the 6’5” Prenga’s wins have come inside the distance including the last 13 in a row but his opposition has been substandard. Jake, 42, has lost six by KO/TKO. APRIL 5 Potsdam, Germany: Atom: Nina Ruprecht (15-1-1) W PTS 10 Sumire Yamanaka (8-1). Light Heavy: Mateusz Tryc (16-2) W TKO 10 Nick Hannig (14-2-1). Super Welter: Julian Vogel (17-0-1) W PTS 8 Milos Baranek (14-4-1). Heavy: Viktor Vykhryst (14-1) W PTS 8 Rydell Booker (28-8-1). Light Heavy: Armend Xhoxhaj (21-4) W KO 4 Esteban Mosquera (22-20-2). Ruprecht vs. Yamanaka Rupprecht makes history as she decisions Yamanaka and now holds all four versions of the Atomweight title. The first German fighter to achieve this. Although only 5’0” tall Rupprecht had height and reach over the 4’9 ½” Yamanaka and she needed those edges to box against the ever advancing Japanese southpaw. Rupprecht was at her best when she was moving around Yamanaka from side to side stabbing her with jabs and firing straight rights. Yamanaka kept pressing and was effective with overhand lefts and hooks to the body. There were plenty of furious exchanges which suited Yamanaka but the speed and movement of Rupprecht gave Yamanaka problems. Rupprecht looked to have built a good lead but Yamanaka kept coming and had more success over the late rounds as Rupprecht slowed. It was a close fight that could have gone either way. The judges scored it 99-91 (a ridiculous score from one of the two German judges) 96-95 and 95-95 both more reflective of the fight. Rupprecht already held the WBA, WBC and WBO titles and Yamanaka the IBF. Tryc vs. Hannig Pole Tryc spoils the night for the home fans as he stops Hannig in the tenth to win the WBO European title. This was a gruelling contest as Hannig attempted to steamroller Tryc and Tryc hammered home counters on Hannig as he barrelled forward. Hannig was trying to walk through Tryc’s punches behind a high guard and land clubbing shots inside. Tryc made Hannig pay for his porous defence and gradually broke Hannig down and dropped him with lefty’s in the tenth. Hannig made it to his feet but Tryc pounded him with punches and Hannig’s corner threw in the towel. Tryc’s career was on the rocks after he suffered consecutive inside the distance losses against modest opposition and this was his first fight for a year and only his second in two years but with the WBO European title will come a rating and more fights. Hannig, 38, has gone as far as he can go. There may be an attempt to rebuild him but I can’t see it succeeding. Vogel vs. Baranek Vogel is still WBO Youth champion after winning a tight decision over Czech Baranek. The visitor proved a more formidable opponent than expected but Vogel just had an edge in skill that made the difference and he took the decision on scores of 76-75 twice and 77-74. Vogel. 22 was making the third defence of the WBO title. All four of Beranek’s losses have come in the other guys backyard. Vykhryst vs. Booker Vykhryst wins unanimous decision over Booker. The whole story of this fight is told in the weights. Although Vykhryst is 6’5” and Booker is 6’3” Booker was 35 lbs heavier. In fact Booker was 47 lbs heavier than in his last fight in December. Vykhryst rumbled forward beind his jab following Booker around the ring banging punches against Bookers arms or his obese trunk, Booker rarely moved away from the ropes and rarely showed any fire as the eight rounds dragged by. All three scorecards read 80-72 for Vykhryst. He is being rebuilt after his eighth round stoppage loss against Lenier Pero in February 2023 and this is win No 3 in that project. Booker has a good chin and has only been beaten inside the distance once. Xhoxhaj vs. Mosquera Kosovan Xhoxhaj wins on a fourth round kayo of Mosquera. Xhoxhaj was knocked out in 5 rounds by Chris Billiam-Smith in 2022 but has won 7 of 8 since then. Colombian champion Mosquera was no real test but he had won the German International title with a first round stoppage of unbeaten Nino Kolicic in March. Philadelphia, PA, USA: Welter: Ricardo Salas (21-2-2) W TKO 2 Kent Cruz (17-2-3). Super Light: Antonio Moran (31-7-1) W PTS 10 Mykquan Williams (22-1-2). Super Feather: Geo Lopez (18-0) W PTS 10 Rene Alvarado (34-16). Super Feather: Haven Brady Jr (15-0) W PTS 8 D’Angelo Keyes (18-6). Salas vs. Cruz Mexican Salas sends Cruz down three times and gets the stoppage to win the vacant IBF North American title. Salas was aggressive from the start getting past Cruz’s longer reach forcing Cruz onto the back foot and banging away to the body. Salas continued to target the body in the second and the bout was quickly over. Body punches dropped Cruz three times and Cruz climbed up three times but was taking a beating against the ropes and the fight was stopped. Salas had scored a big win in September knocking out 26-2 Roiman Villa in the third round. In his previous fight Villa had lost on a tenth round stoppage against Jaron Ennis for the interim IBF belt. Cruz came in 5 lbs over the welterweight limit so had a bad night all round. Moran vs. Williams Mexican Moran overcomes some rocky moments in the first half of the fight to win the majority decision over previously unbeaten Williams. The 5’11” Moran had a 5” height advantage and much longer reach but Williams is used to that and worked hard to prevent Moran getting the full benefit from that. The first three rounds were close but Moran had to survive a bad fourth. A right from Williams had him staggering and stumbling and he only just survived the round. Williams did not press hard enough in the fifth allowing Moran to recover but he shook Moran again in the sixth. From there Moran took charge. He found plenty of gaps for his punches and he pressed hard Williams began to fade and Moran came near to finishing it when he had Williamson in trouble in the last. Moran won on scores of 97-93 twice and 95-95. The vacant WBO International title was on nthe line but Moran failed to make the weight. Moran had lost two of his last three fights but the losses were against Jamaine Ortiz and Andy Cruz in fights he was expected to lose. Williams has good backing and will be rebuilt. Lopez vs. Alvarado Lopez outpoints Alvarado. Lopez made a good start taking the fight to Alvarado and working to the body. Alvarado was livelier in the second and this time he was the one going to the body. Lopez outscored Alvarado over the third and fourth putting together some impressive combinations. He kept Alvarado under pressure with Alvarado using his experience to stifle some of Lopez’s work. Alvarado put in a huge effort in the seventh paying Lopez back for some of the body punishment he had endured but Lopez produced the stronger finish as Alvarado could not match the younger man’s pace over the closing rounds. Lopes won on scores of 100-90, 98-92 and 97-93 and it was a good learning experience for him. Lopez, 21, was in his first ten round fight. Nicaraguan Alvarado, 36, is very much acting as a useful scalp for younger boxers and is 2-8 in his last 10 bouts. Brady vs. Keyes Brady continues on his winning path with a victory over Keyes. This did not look much of a test for Brady based on the record of Keyes but Brady had to fight hard until the fast pace saw Keyes fade late. Brady had to settle for a split decision with two scores 78-74 and 79-73 for him and a 78-74 for Keyes. Brady is ready to move up to ten rounds. Keyes has won only one of his last five fights but did his job here. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Minimum: Sol Cudos (10-0-2) W PTS 10 Maria Sol Baumstarh (12-7-1) . Light Heavy: Pablo Corzo (23-0) W TKO 4 Diego Quinones (9-7-1). Super Feather: Maria Moneo (16-2) W PTS 10 Florencia Zalazar (6-2). Cudos vs. Baumstarh Cudos takes a unanimous decision over Baumstarh to win the vacant IBF title. Cudos used her better skills to offset the power of Baumstarh. The rounds were close with Cudos building a lead over the first five rounds. Baumstarh scored a knockdown with a left in the seventh to close the gap but Cudos staged a strong finish to win on scores of 96-93 twice and 95-94. Cudos had already won the South American and WBA Fedelatin in her short career. Baumstarh was moving down from light flyweight and had a ten-fight winning streak going into this one. Corzo vs. Quinones Corzo racks up another win as he beats Quinones in four rounds. Corzo took his time studying the southpaw style of Quinones but handed out a steady diet of punishment. A series of punches saw the referee give Quinines a count in the fourth and after the count Corzo connected with a couple of uppercuts which shook Quinones and the referee stopped the fight. Corzo, 24, moves to 20 wins by KO/TKO. Ecuadorian Quinones was listed as No 440 in the world by BoxRec and suffers his second loss by KO/TKO. Moneo vs. Zalazar Uruguayan Moneo picks up the vacant WBO Latino title as she takes a unanimous decision over Argentinian Zalazar but by a differing set of scores. This was a fierce battle for all ten rounds, Moneo used relentless pressure to keep Zalazar on the back foot but Zalazar fought hard in every round and at the end the fighters were given a standing ovation. The scores for Moneo were 100-90, 97-93 and 96-94! Moneo, a former WBA and WBC interim champion, lost on points against Caroline Dubois for the IBF and interim WBC belts at lightweight in August. Zalazar was in her first ten round fight and lacked the experience to win this one. Serevetal, Germany: Heavy: Peter Kadiru (20-1) W TKO 1 Osasu Otobo (12-3-1). Kadiru continues to rebuild his reputation as he stops Otobo in the first round. The 27-year-old German took a hit to his standing when he was knocked out in one round by Argentinian Marcos Ahumada in 2022. He has been carefully guided to six wins with this one round victory over Otobo. Unbeaten Teremoana Jr had knocked out Otobo in 57 seconds in January. Tokyo, Japan: Super Feather: Yamato Hata (17-2) W TKO 5 Takuya Watanabe (41-14-2). Super Feathyer: Kenichi Ogawa (30-2-1) W RTD 5 Melchor Roda (9-5). Hata vs. Watanabe Southpaw Hata hits too hard for Watanabe. Big puncher Hata was hounding Watanabe in the first but finding him an elusive target. He caught-up with Watanabe in the second dropping him with a left. Watanabe used his considerable experience to get though the third but Hata drove home a series of punches in the fourth weakening Watanabe. Hata scored heavily at the start of the fifth and the referee stopped the fight to save Watanabe from too much punishment. Hata has won 16 of his 17 victories inside the distance. He was defending the OPBF title for the first time. Now 36, Watanabe has only failed to go the distance twice in his 14 defeats. Ogawa vs. Roda Ogawa much too good for prelim-level Filipino Roda. Ogawa jarred and jolted Roda doubling and tripling up his jabs in the first and second. Things worsened for Roda when a punch opened a cut over his left eye in the third but he did not crumble and fought back hard in the fourth. Ogawa was unable to put Roda away but after some brutal punishment in the fifth Roda retired at the end of the round. Ogawa, 37, lost his IBF super feather title on a second round kayo loss against Joe Cordina in 2022. He has won his last four fights and is No 3 with the WBO so hopes for one last shot at a title. Roda had won his last 5 bouts but all over six or eight rounds. 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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