Archive for June, 2011
Posted in
Cruiserweight,
Rankings on June 22, 2011 by danboxing
Former Champion O’Neil Bell, who was inactive for over 3 years while dealing with personal issues, returned to the ring in Florida on Saturday against journeyman Richard Hall and was stopped in the 2nd round. This certainly seems to mean that Bell will not make a comeback to the top of the division. He has now lost three straight fights, including his last championship fight to Jean Marc Mormeck and his alphabet title fight with future champion Tomasz Adamek.
For Comparison, here are the Current Ring Magazine Cruiserweight Rankings:
Champ: None
1) Steve Cunningham
2) Marco Huck
3) Krzysztof Wlodarczyk
4) Denis Lebedev
5) Troy Ross
6) Danny Green
7) Giacobbe Fragomeni
8) Ola Afolabi
9) Guillermo Jones
10) Yoan Pablo Hernandez
Dan’s Top 20
Champ: None
1) Steve Cunningham (161*-364-364)
Last Fight: 2/12/2011- UD12 #14 Enad Licina
Next Fight: Unknown
* Not actually sure how long he’s been rated #1, but it has been at least this number of weeks.
Cunningham defeated Licina, and will likely fight next in Sauerland’s Super Six.
2) Marco Huck (50-235-235)
Last Fight: 4/2/2011- UD12 Ran Nakash (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/16/2011- vs. Hugo Garay (UNR)
Huck will fight Hugo Garay, a former light heavyweight contender who effectively moved up in weight almost a year ago. This will be Garay’s first worthwhile fight at the 200 pound limit, though.
3) Denis Lebedev (25-70-70)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- TKO10 Roy Jones, Jr. (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
After the horrific spectacle against Jones, Lebedev can probably now pick on guys his own size- and ability- when he enters Sauerland’s Super Six tournament.
4) Ola Afolabi (25-117-117)
Last Fight: 3/19/2011- TKO5 Lubos Suda (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/2/2011- vs. Terry Dunstan (UNR)
Afolabi will fight gatekeeper Terry Dunstan on July 2 in England.
5) Yoan Pablo Hernandez (17-50-50)
Last Fight: 2/12/2011- KO7 #12 Steve Herelius
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. Unknown Opponent
Still no opponent for Hernandez’ June 25 date. This fight might end up as part of the Sturm-Macklin card in Cologne, and is definitely taking place in Germany somewhere.
6) Guillermo Jones (10-36-36)
Last Fight: 10/2/2010- TKO11 Valery Brudov (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. Ryan Coyne (UNR)
It’s now set: Jones-Coyne, with the winner to fight Yoan Pablo Hernandez.
7) Danny Green (10-79-79)
Last Fight: 11/17/2010- UD12 #12 B.J. Flores
Next Fight: 7/20/2011- vs. Antonio Tarver (UNR)
It’s now official- Green will fight former light heavyweight champ Antonio Tarver on July 20.
8) Krzysztof Wlodarczyk (10-311-311)
Last Fight: 4/2/2011- W(SD12*) vs. Francisco Palacios (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Barely escaped with a hometown decision in one of the worst fights in recent memory with Palacios. His stock has got to be way down among those who saw the fight, but his stoppage win over Fragomeni keeps him well within the top 10.
9) Giacobbe Fragomeni (29-134-134)
Last Fight: 4/30/2011- TKO7 Laszlo Hubert (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Hopefully now that he’s healthy and has another win under his belt, Fragomeni will go back to his original plan of fighting top contenders like Huck.
10) Alexander Frenkel (29-29-38)
Last Fight: 9/18/2010- KO7 #12 Enzo Maccarinelli
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. Silvio Branco (UNR)
The long-rumored comeback fight for the injury-plagued Frenkel is finally made: Silvio Branco, June 25, in Italy.
11) B.J. Flores (14-50)
Last Fight: 11/17/2010- L(UD12) vs. #9 Danny Green
Next Fight: Unknown
I really don’t know why Flores doesn’t fight more. He was trying to get a fight with Lateef Kayode, but that failed months ago.
12) Francisco Palacios (10-10)
Last Fight: 4/2/2011- L (SD12*) vs. #6 Krzysztof Wlodarczyk
Next Fight: Unknown
In my opinion he did just enough to win one of the worst fights I’ve ever seen against Wlodarczyk, so I’m in no hurry to see him again. That being said, he performed well against a top 10 guy and deserved the win on that night, so I can’t exactly ignore that.
13) Troy Ross (10-119)
Last Fight: 10/30/2010- UD10 Carl Handy (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Ross is better than his ranking, but never fights. I don’t see how you get rooked out of a potential win against the best guy in the division and then waste a whole year by fighting only Carl Handy.
14) Steve Herelius (10-49)
Last Fight: 2/12/2011- L(KO7) vs. #6 Yoan Pablo Hernandez
Next Fight: Unknown
It’s always hard to come back from a knockout loss. Herelius could become a go-to quality opponent for the guys locked out of the Super Six.
15) Enad Licina (10-50)
Last Fight: 5/7/2011- KO1 Michele De Meo (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Easy win over an easy opponent. We’ll see what’s next.
16) Enzo Maccarinelli (10-50)
Last Fight: 9/18/2010- L(KO7) vs. Alexander Frenkel (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Looking to make his long-since announced debut at 175 in July. His whole strategy seems to be to fight Cleverly, but no word whether the younger man is interested.
17) Lateef Kayode (10-29)
Last Fight: 2/4/2011- UD10 Nicholas Iannuzzi (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/10/2011- vs. #19 Matt Godfrey
Very intriguing matchup looming for Kayode- who needs to look impressive- and Godfrey- who just needs a win.
18) Alexander Alexeev (10-21)
Last Fight: 4/9/2011- KO6 DeAndrey Abron (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/11/2011- vs. Damian Norris (UNR)
Now set to fight Damian Norris- a middling Cuban journeyman- on Saturday.
19) Matt Godfrey (10-126)
Last Fight: 8/21/2010- L(TKO5) vs. #2 Marco Huck
Next Fight: 6/10/2011- vs. #17 Lateef Kayode
See Kayode’s comments above.
20) Mateusz Masternak (10-14)
Last Fight: 3/11/2011- TKO5 Ali Ismailov (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
THE WEEK AHEAD: In the ShoBox main event on Friday, #17 Lateef Kayode will battle #19 Matt Godfrey in what might be viewed as a crossroads fight. Godfrey was a highly-regarded prospect not all that long ago, but appears to be on the downslope after bouts with both inactivity and Marco Huck left his career somewhat the worse for wear. The winner of this fight will obviously have moved past the ShoBox level of competition and might even flirt with a spot in the top 10.
The following night in Germany, #18 Alexander Alexeev meets Damian Norris, a renamed Cuban defector who is a rare Cuban fighter that never ascended beyond the level of a journeyman.
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Posted in
Heavyweight,
Rankings on June 22, 2011 by danboxing
There were three notables in action this week. On Friday, Cuban defector Luis Ortiz knocked out former cruiserweight fringe contender Luis Pineda in the 6th. Pineda has not had a ton of success since moving up to heavyweight, as he is now 1-2-1 since his last fight at 200. In fact, he was 0-4 immediately before that.
German prospect Edmund Gerber takes on the somewhat diminished former gatekeeper Zack Page. Page has a hard-earned reputation for fighting and occasionally beating prospects. He rarely fights anyone else, in fact. But he’s now lost seven straight, and so his stock is not what it once was. Gerber apparently had little trouble with the veteran, scoring a shutout on all 3 cards.
Finally, 41-year-old fringe contender Cedric Boswell, who recently won a convincing victory over even older but still capable Oliver McCall, stepped down in competition a bit and won just as convincingly over Trinidad and Tobago’s Kertson Manswell. Manswell was an untested 20-0 prospect until a few months ago, but in short order he has now lost 3 straight since stepping up. He was the only fighter to go even the 3-round distance in the recent international prizefighter tournament with Mike Perez, though he did go down and lost by 5 points.
For Comparison, here are the Current Ring Magazine Heavyweight Rankings:
Champ: Wladimir Klitschko
1) Vitali Klitschko
2) David Haye
3) Tomasz Adamek
4) Alexander Povetkin
5) Ruslan Chagaev
6) Eddie Chambers
7) Alexander Dimitrenko
8) Denis Boystov
9) Robert Helenius
10) Chris Arreola
Dan’s Top 20
Champ: Wladimir Klitschko (102-315-315)
Last Fight: 9/11/2010- KO10 #6 Samuel Peter
Next Fight: 7/2/2011- vs. #2 David Haye
Now there’s a definite date and venue for Klitschko-Haye: July 2 in Hamburg. Now all we have to do is see if Wlad’s “injury” stays healed and if Haye decides to actually show.
1) Vitali Klitschko (139-139-139)
Last Fight: 3/19/2011- TKO1 #10 Odlanier Solis
Next Fight: 9/10/2011- vs. #7 Tomasz Adamek
Originally it appeared that Vitali would fight a no-hoper in July and act as the understudy for his brother’s fight with Adamek in September, but somewhere along the line he decided to fight Adamek instead.
2) David Haye (62-116-116)
Last Fight: 11/13/2010- TKO3 Audley Harrison (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/2/2011- vs. Champ Wladimir Klitschko
With his mandatory with Ruslan Chagaev out of the way due to hepatitis and Wlad’s fight with Chisora apparently contingent on whether the Champ feels like it at any given moment, Haye has once again signed on to fight Wlad. With the contract signed, the odds of the fight actually happen have increased to about 50-50 in my estimation.
3) Eddie Chambers (17-114-114)
Last Fight: 2/11/2011- UD12 Derric Rossy (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Should have Tony Thompson next on his agenda, as Thompson’s win over Harris amounted to an eliminator to fight in an eliminator against Chambers…with the upshot at least theoretically being a Klitschko shot.
4) Robert Helenius (10-10-54)
Last Fight: 4/2/2011- KO9 #6 Samuel Peter
Next Fight: 7/16/2011- vs. Sergei Liakhovich (UNR)
Helenius’ return has now been bumped back to mid-July, and he will indeed fight Sergei Liakhovich.
5) Alexander Povetkin (10-189-189)
Last Fight: 12/18/2010- UD8 Nicolai Firtha (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Povetkin-Chagaev now looks very likely.
6) Ruslan Chagaev (10-238-238)
Last Fight: 11/19/2010- UD8 Travis Walker (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
See Povetkin’s comments above.
7) Tomasz Adamek (19-59-59)
Last Fight: 4/9/2011- UD12 Kevin McBride (UNR)
Next Fight: 9/10/2011- vs. #1 Vitali Klitschko
Time for Adamek to get serious, as he faces a live opponent for the first time in a long stretch this September.
8) Tony Thompson (19-54-54)
Last Fight: 5/27/2011- TKO3 Maurice Harris (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Eddie Chambers is likely Thompson’s next opponent, in an alphabet title eliminator.
9) Juan Carlos Gomez (19-54-54)
Last Fight: 12/4/2010- TKO4 Harold Sconiers (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Treading water like nobody’s business.
10) Odlanier Solis (25-25-54)
Last Fight: 3/19/2011- L (TKO1) vs. #1 Vitali Klitschko
Next Fight: Unknown
If anyone doubted the legitimacy of Solis’ injury, he is awaiting surgery for a torn ACL and meniscus. He wants a rematch, which of course seems unlikely- though I’d actually be interested.
11) Alexander Dimitrenko (11-21)
Last Fight: 3/26/2011- TKO12 Albert Sosnowski (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Stated recently that he will make a voluntary EBU title defense in August, which rules out his mandatory challenger Jean Marc Mormeck as his next opponent.
12) Chris Arreola (11-116)
Last Fight: 5/27/2011- TKO7 Kendrick Releford (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Staying busy. Hopefully he’ll step up in competition soon, as well.
13) Denis Boytsov (11-103)
Last Fight: 11/19/2010- KO2 Mike Sheppard (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Boytsov is now looking to return in August, but doctors have yet to give him full medical clearance due to his hand injuries.
14) Dereck Chisora (11-38)
Last Fight: 9/18/2010- TKO9 #20 Sam Sexton
Next Fight: 7/23/2011- vs. Tyson Fury (UNR)
After a brawl ringside at DeGale-Groves broke out between the two men, Chisora-Fury is now signed for July 23 at Wembley Stadium.
15) Jean Marc Mormeck (11-54)
Last Fight: 12/2/2010- SD12 #19 Timur Ibragimov
Next Fight: Unknown
Prospective opponent Dimitrenko is passing on his EBU mandatory defense with Mormeck in favor of a voluntary one with someone else.
16) Samuel Peter (10-54)
Last Fight: 4/2/2011- L(KO9) vs. #16 Robert Helenius
Next Fight: Unknown
We’ll have to see if and how Peter rebounds from his latest knockout loss- this one more brutal than the last. If the relatively young (30) Nigerian decides to forge on, he’ll have to overcome the reality of being treated as a stepping stone at least for tall up-and-comers.
17) Franklin Lawrence (2-2)
Last Fight:5/27/2011- RTD7 Jason Gavern (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
After a rocky time in his career where he lost and drew with fighters less advanced than he currently is, Lawrence has found himself at the ripe old age of 35 and begun a climb in the ranks.
18) Kubrat Pulev (2-30)
Last Fight: 5/7/2011- TKO5 Derric Rossy (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Rossy is no longer a great feather in the cap, but he’s still good enough to move Pulev up a couple rungs.
19) Francesco Pianeta (2-54)
Last Fight: 4/2/2011- TKO3 Ivica Perkovic (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. Jens Krull (UNR)
Cancer survivor Pianeta is staying busy, but not against credible opposition.
20) Ray Austin (2-54)
Last Fight: 12/17/2010- L(DQ10) vs. #17 Odlanier Solis
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. Bermane Stiverne (UNR)
Austin will fight Haitian fringe prospect Bermane Stiverne in St. Charles, MO on June 25 in what figures to be a very silly excuse for a title eliminator, even by alphabet standards.
THE WEEK AHEAD: According to Boxrec, prospect Kevin Johnson has a fight scheduled on Saturday against an opponent to be determined. This looks a bit suspect to me, though, since each of the fighters on the card has no opponent yet. Former champion Hasim Rahman is also in action, facing Missouri journeyman Galen Brown in Mississippi. Rahman is basically a gatekeeper at this point in his career.
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Posted in
Junior Middleweight,
Rankings on June 21, 2011 by danboxing
Czech fringe contender Lukas Konecny won a comfortable decision in his homeland against French gatekeeper Hussein Bayram. A little bit of a tricky situation presents itself in Konecny’s case. He has only beaten roughly gatekeeper-level opposition so far, but he has beaten five of them- two in the last year. Last week’s #20 Deandre Latimore has beaten a real contender in Sechew Powell, but that was about 3 years ago, and he has since lost (albeit in less convincing fashion than that in which he won) to the same opponent. He has also looked really bad at times (eg against journeyman Sammy Sparkman) even when he was more highly-ranked. So in this case, it’s a little too difficult for me to take quality over quantity due to the sheer size of the quantity and other factors that mitigate the quality. So Konecny debuts at #20, while Latimore once again exits.
In other action, Vegas-based Moroccan prospect Said Ouali took out journeyman Dumont Welliver in the 3rd round from St. Paul, Minnesota. Welliver was a same-day replacement for fellow journeyman Jhon Berrio, who inexplicably failed to show up.
For Comparision, here are the current Ring ratings for the division:
Champ: Vacant
1) Miguel Cotto
2) Kermit Cintron
3) Alfredo Angulo
4) Ryan Rhodes
5) Sechew Powell
6) Vanes Martirosyan
7) Pawel Wolak
8) Sergei Dzinziruk
9) Saul Alvarez
10) Cornelius Bundrage
Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in Current Position-Weeks in Top 10 if applicable-Weeks in Top 20)
Champ: None
1) Alfredo Angulo (17-88-88)
Last Fight: 7/17/2010- TKO1 #8 Joachim Alcine
Next Fight: Unknown
2) Cornelius Bundrage (17-43-43)
Last Fight: 8/7/2010- TKO5 Cory Spinks (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. #10 Sechew Powell
Bundrage-Powell is now official for June 25 in St. Charles, MO. I’ll be there ringside.
3) Miguel Cotto (28-52-52)
Last Fight: 3/12/2011- TKO12 Ricardo Mayorga (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Margarito is now set to begin sparring, and so Cotto-Margarito may be back on, though much later. October 1 and December 3 are now potential dates.
4) Pawel Wolak (12-12-12)
Last Fight: 3/12/2011- RTD6 #5 Yuri Foreman
Next Fight: 7/15/2011- vs. Delvin Rodriguez (UNR)
The Dzinziruk negotiations proved fruitless, as Wolak will now fight prospect Delvin Rodriguez on Friday Night Fights in mid-July.
5) Paul Williams (12-17-17)
Last Fight: 11/20/2010- L (KO2) vs. MW Champ Sergio Martinez (at MW)
Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. #15 Erislandy Lara
Williams will now take on Erislandy Lara after HBO nixed Ishida.
6) Kermit Cintron (17-105-105)
Last Fight: 5/8/2010- L (TD4) vs. MW #2 Paul Williams
Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. #16 Carlos Molina
Now apparently has an opponent for the 7/9 Showtime card in sturdy #16 Carlos Molina.
7) Ryan Rhodes (17-84-84)
Last Fight: 12/4/2010- TKO2 Rocky Junior (UNR) (at SMW)
Next Fight: 6/18/2011- vs. #8 Saul Alvarez
Now officially set to fight Alvarez in Mexico on June 18.
8) Saul Alvarez (13-13-28)
Last Fight: 3/5/2011- UD12 Matthew Hatton (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/18/2011- vs. #7 Ryan Rhodes
The winner of the June bout with Rhodes could skyrocket to very nearly the top of the division since there is such a large degree of parity at the top level.
9) Prince Arron (3-3-3)
Last Fight: 5/13/2011- TKO12 #14 Sam Webb
Next Fight: Unknown
Arron’s dramatic upset victory earned him the British title and a place in the top 10.
10) Sechew Powell (13-63-63)
Last Fight: 3/19/2010- W (MD12) vs. #4 Deandre Latimore
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. #2 Cornelius Bundrage
Powell rewarded my good faith by signing the rumored fight with Bundrage in a timely fashion after the 1 year anniversary of his last fight.
11) Gabriel Rosado (13-17)
Last Fight: 2/26/2011- TKO12 Jamaal Davis (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/15/2011- vs. Harry Joe Yorgey (UNR)
Rosado will meet veteran Harry Joe Yorgey in mid-July.
12) Manny Pacquiao (13-17)
Last Fight: 5/7/2011- UD12 #15 Shane Mosley (at WW)
Next Fight: 11/12/2011- vs. LW Champ Juan Manuel Marquez (at WW)
Pacquiao had already nearly finished signing a fight with lightweight champion and rival Juan Manuel Marquez before the Mosley debacle even went down. Unfortunately the talk is that the fight will be at a 144-pound catchweight. This fight is a natural for 140 pounds, but Pacquiao wants to drag Marquez up because he has the proven ability to carry the weight better than the lightweight. It’s a damn shame, because this could have been a good challenge at the right weight.
13) Cory Spinks (17-17)
Last Fight: 8/7/2010- L (TKO5) vs. Cornelius Bundrage
Next Fight: Unknown
If Spinks doesn’t need the money, he should probably consider retirement. He’s already exceeded the accomplishments of his Heavyweight Champion father Leon, and hopefully still has his health intact after being brutalized for five rounds by the beastly Cornelius Bundrage in August.
14) Shane Mosley (3-17)
Last Fight: 5/7/2011- L(UD12) vs. #12 Manny Pacquiao (at WW)
Next Fight: Unknown
My fervent hope is that the used-up Mosley retires well before I have to remove him for inactivity in September.
15) Erislandy Lara (3-17)
Last Fight: 3/25/2011- Draw (MD10) vs. Carlos Molina (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. #5 Paul Williams
After originally losing out to Nobuhiro Ishida, Lara will fight Williams after Ishida was bumped by HBO.
16) Carlos Molina (3-10)
Last Fight: 4/29/2011- TKO7 Allen Conyers (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. #6 Kermit Cintron
His busy schedule and near-victory over Erislandy Lara has earned him a big fight with Cintron for the Rios-Antillon undercard.
17) Austin Trout (3-17)
Last Fight: 2/5/2011- UD12 Rigoberto Alvarez
Next Fight: 6/11/2011- vs. David Lopez (UNR)
The undefeated Trout will have a road game coming up against Mexican David Lopez in the latter’s home country. Lopez is strangely ranked by the Ring, but even in reality is so close to the top 20 that he might default his way in if anyone drops out before the fight.
18) Yuri Foreman (3-87)
Last Fight: 3/12/2011- L (RTD6) vs. Pawel Wolak (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
What looked like a relatively easy fight turned into a disaster for Foreman as he was battered to a corner stoppage after six rounds with fringe contender/prospect Pawel Wolak. The stick-and-move boxer may have lost a step to a recurring knee injury, and we’ll see whether or not he’s finished as a serious contender.
19) Joachim Alcine (3-17)
Last Fight: 7/17/2010- L (TKO1) vs. Alfredo Angulo
Next Fight: Unknown
At one point months ago there was reportedly a fight in the works with Cory Spinks for April, but that appears to have been a non-starter. No recent reports on Alcine’s next move.
20) Lukas Konecny (1-1)
Last Fight: 5/27/2011- UD12 Hussein Bayram (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Konecny has snuck his way into the top 20 based on consistently beating good but not particularly impressive opponents. If he wants to climb much higher against this field, he’ll need to step up the level of his competition.
The Week Ahead: Four mentionable fights are spread over three days in the division this week. Friday, undefeated Cuban prospect Yudel Jhonson takes on journeyman Jose Miguel Torres in the Friday Night Fights main event on ESPN2. Torres was never a world beater and is coming off 2 years of inactivity, so Jhonson should have a relatively comfortable night.
Saturday, on the unfortunately non-televised portion of the Chavez-Zbik card, prospect/fringe contender Vanes Martirosyan battles the rugged Saul Roman. Martirosyan has been heavily promoted by Top Rank and is considered a rising star, but he is fighting a much less heralded fighter that won a close decision over a more highly-regarded version of Kassim Ouma than that which, in the opinion of most observers (including myself), deserved a win over Martirosyan a year and a half ago. To me, this is a 50-50 fight. On the same evening in Mexico City, Mexican prospect Marcos Reyes takes on mediocre journeyman Cristian Solano.
Finally, #9 Middleweight Anthony Mundine stays busy following his revenge victory over Garth Wood by moving down to 154 to fight Xavier Tolliver, a roughly average journeyman who is 2-0 against weak competition since coming out of a 4-year retirement almost a year ago.
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Posted in
Middleweight,
Rankings on June 19, 2011 by danboxing
Undefeated prospect Caleb Truax just edged out gatekeeper Andy Kolle for the Minnesota State Middleweight title on Friday by split decision. The close nature of the fight ensures that Truax will remain out of the top 20, though he has definitely improved his position in my super-secret overall ratings. Unfortunately I can’t find any video on the fight so as to contribute my take on the scoring for those who might care.
#11 Maxim Bursak dominated solid journeyman Carlos Jerez in Kiev on Saturday, winning every round on every card. Jerez even threw in a two point deduction for an intentional headbutt to make the scores unanimously 120-106. An impressive performance for Bursak, but not one that will advance him in the ratings because Jerez isn’t quite at the right level to build rankings upon.
For Comparision, here are the current Ring ratings for the division:
Champ: Sergio Martinez
1) Felix Sturm
2) Daniel Geale
3) Paul Williams
4) Sebastian Sylvester
5) Matthew Macklin
6) Sebastian Zbik
7) Dmitry Pirog
8) David Lopez
9) Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam
10) Marco Antonio Rubio
Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in Current Position-Weeks in Top 10 if applicable-Weeks in Top 20)
Champ: Sergio Martinez (59-59-59)
Last Fight: 3/12/2011- TKO9 JMW #9 Sergiy Dzinziruk
Next Fight: 10/1/2011- vs. Unknown Opponent
Martinez’ return was pushed back yet again. He now has an HBO date on October 1. He has said recently that he might move down to 154 since he can’t get a big-time opponent at 160. He still seems to be pursuing the Chavez-Zbik winner, though.
1) Felix Sturm (99-402-402)
Last Fight: 2/19/2011- TKO7 Ronald Hearns (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. #10 Matthew Macklin
Now officially scheduled to fight #10 Matthew Macklin on June 25 in Cologne, after an original date of July 2 was scrapped.
2) Daniel Geale (4-102-102)
Last Fight: 5/7/2011- W(SD12) vs. #3 Sebastian Sylvester
Next Fight: Unknown
Showed a great motor by soundly outworking the apparently stronger Sylvester to a decision victory in enemy territory. Has already said he wants Martinez, but unfortunately Martinez hasn’t reciprocated the sentiment.
3) Paul Williams (4-112-112)
Last Fight: 11/20/2010- L(KO2) vs. Champ Sergio Martinez
Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. JMW #15 Erislandy Lara (at JMW?)
HBO nixed his scheduled fight with Ishida after initially giving its blessing, and Williams is now fighting somewhat diminished prospect Erislandy Lara in a very interesting potential crossroads fight.
4) Sebastian Sylvester (4-303-303)
Last Fight: 5/7/2011- L(SD12) vs. #4 Daniel Geale
Next Fight: Unknown
Despite what a corrupt Danish judge might say, Sylvester lost in fairly close but clear fashion to Geale. Still, there’s not a ton of shame in that, and Sylvester remains soundly within the top 5.
5) Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam (13-31-31)
Last Fight: 4/2/2011- UD12 Giovanni Lorenzo (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Controversy aside, he probably deserved the win over Lorenzo and remains a force in the division.
6) Dmitry Pirog (13-44-44)
Last Fight: 3/26/2011- UD12 Javier Maciel (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Pirog is apparently deep in discussions with mandatory challenger Gennady Martirosyan. He hopes that fight would land on ESPN.
7) Marco Antonio Rubio (7-8-18)
Last Fight: 4/8/2011- TKO7 David Lemieux (UNR)
Next Fight: 5/28/2011- vs. Ricardo Ramallo (UNR)
Rubio is the mandatory for the Chavez-Zbik winner, but would prefer to fight Sergio Martinez. No word on whether either of those fights is actually likely to come off anytime soon, since Martinez also appears to want Chavez or Zbik.
8) Grzegorz Proksa (7-7-7)
Last Fight: 4/15/2011- KO9 #16 Pablo Navascues
Next Fight: Unknown
Out of nowhere, Proksa is a top-10 contender after knocking out Pablo Navascues, a sturdy fringe contender whose career was inexplicably in neutral since a 2007 draw with contender Javier Castillejo.
9) Anthony Mundine (7-7-18)
Last Fight: 4/13/2011- UD10 #7 Garth Wood
Next Fight: 6/5/2011- vs. Xavier Tolliver (UNR) (at JMW)
Mundine appears to be set to fight Xavier Tolliver in New Zealand on June 5. Strictly a stay-busy fight for Mundine.
10) Matthew Macklin (7-88-88)
Last Fight: 12/11/2010- UD12 Ruben Varon (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. #1 Felix Sturm
Now scheduled for a match with #1 Contender Felix Sturm in Cologne. The fight was originally scheduled for 7/2 but was quickly moved up to 6/25. The winner will become an obvious challenger for Sergio Martinez.
11) Maxim Bursak (7-18)
Last Fight: 5/28/2011- vs. Carlos Jerez (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Absolutely dominated Jerez.
12) Osumanu Adama (7-10)
Last Fight: 3/25/2011- TKO4 #19 Marcus Upshaw
Next Fight: Unknown
Displaced by Marco Rubio and company after a 2 week cup of coffee in the top 10.
13) Garth Wood (7-18)
Last Fight: 4/13/2011- L (UD10) vs. #20 Anthony Mundine
Next Fight: Unknown
Got dropped twice against Mundine en route to a loss in which he appears to have faded a bit late. Has a knockout win to his credit over the same opponent, so a trilogy appears appropriate.
14) Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. (7-18)
Last Fight: 1/29/2011- UD10 Billy Lyell
Next Fight: 6/4/2011- vs. #19 Sebastian Zbik
Chavez will take on one of the biggest challenges of his career in undefeated but thus-far overrated alphabet titlist Sebastian Zbik.
15) Billy Lyell (7-18)
Last Fight: 5/5/2011- TKO1 Brian Paul (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
16) Nobuhiro Ishida (7-8)
Last Fight: 4/9/2011- TKO1 James Kirkland (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Ishida’s fight with Paul Williams was killed by HBO. This might simultaneously be the best and worst thing that could have happened to the Japanese fighter.
17) Darren Barker (7-18)
Last Fight: 4/30/2011- UD12 Domenico Spada (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/23/2011- vs. Unknown Opponent
Will defend his European title against an unknown opponent on July 23.
18) Avtandil Khurtsidze (7-18)
Last Fight: 3/12/2011- UD12 Mariusz Cendrowski (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/11/2011- vs. Dionisio Miranda (UNR)
Will fight Dionisio Miranda on June 11. Miranda gave Roman Karmazin all he could handle about 18 months ago, and is coming off a December split decision win over fringe contender Lajuan Simon. Could be a good fight.
19) Sebastian Zbik (7-99)
Last Fight: 7/31/2010- UD12 Jorge Heiland (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/4/2011- vs. #14 Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr.
Undefeated Zbik will finally step up to the fringe contender level of competition, fighting Mexican star Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. this week.
20) Billi Godoy (3-3)
Last Fight: 5/14/2011- W(TD9) vs. Claudio Abalos (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Escaped from the riot in his last fight with a wildly controversial but ultimately correct technical decision and finds himself in the top 20 as a result. This may be one of those fights that demands a rematch, though.
The Week Ahead: The headlining fight of the weekend is #19 Sebastian Zbik vs. #14 Julio Cesar Chavez, ironically for Zbik’s goofy-ass alphabet title. This one could go either way. Chavez is still considered a little raw and perhaps not a top-flight talent, while Zbik is a clever but untested boxer who lacks serious pop in his fists. The fight is in L.A. and will be televised live by HBO on Saturday night.
#7 Marco Antonio Rubio takes on a disappointingly weak opponent in journeyman Ricardo Ramallo in Mexico City on that same night. Gatekeeper Giovanni Lorenzo fights for the 2nd time in under two months, but has little to worry about in very weak journeyman Jaison Palomeque to lead off our week on Monday. #9 Anthony Mundine is also in action Sunday, but that fight is expected to be contested at 154.
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Posted in
Rankings,
Super Middleweight on June 19, 2011 by danboxing
#18 Ezequiel Maderna had no problem at all with his countryman, mid-level journeyman Martin Abel Bruer on Saturday, stopping Bruer in the first round. Librado Andrade hasn’t made 168 in 18 months now, and accordingly exits the rankings, moving up everybody rated 16 or below last week, and making room for James DeGale to return after just one week out. This was a no-brainer, because I thought he won the fight with Groves and so it killed me to boot him out in favor of Groves in the first place.
Here are The Ring’s top 10 for comparison purposes:
1) Andre Ward
2) Lucian Bute
3) Carl Froch
4) Mikkel Kessler
5) Robert Stieglitz
6) Sakio Bika
7) Glen Johnson
8) Arthur Abraham
9) Dimitri Sartison
10) Thomas Oosthuizen
Dan’s Top 20
Champ: None
1) Andre Ward (27-106-106)
Last Fight: 5/14/2011- UD12 #6 Arthur Abraham
Next Fight: Unknown
After getting past Abraham, next stop is a fight (possibly for the World Championship) against either Carl Froch or Glen Johnson.
2) Carl Froch (27-259-259)
Last Fight: 11/27/2010- UD12 #7 Arthur Abraham
Next Fight: 6/4/2011- vs. #12 Glen Johnson
Froch’s fight with Johnson has been bumped back to June 4 from an original date of May 21 primarily due to a venue dispute. The fight will take place in Atlantic City, much to Froch’s dismay.
3) Lucian Bute (27-268-268)
Last Fight: 3/19/2011- TKO10 Brian Magee (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. Jean Paul Mendy (UNR)
Recently signed on for a pretty solid tune-up fight with Jean Paul Mendy to prepare for his prospective fight with Mikkel Kessler in the fall.
4) Mikkel Kessler (27-338-338)
Last Fight: 4/24/2010- UD12 Carl Froch
Next Fight: 6/4/2011- vs. Mehdi Bouadla (UNR)
Kessler will fight French journeyman Mehdi Bouadla on June 4 instead of Renan St. Juste, as had been the rumor. St. Juste is a little better, but on the other hand it’s just good to see the Viking Warrior back in action. The fight will take place in Copenhagen.
5) Robert Stieglitz (8-92-92)
Last Fight: 4/9/2011- W(DQ10) vs. Khoren Gevor (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Beat the good but somewhat dirty Khoren Gevor thanks to a controversial disqualification, though he appeared on his way to a solid if not overwhelming decision victory, anyway.
6) Arthur Abraham (5-84-84)
Last Fight: 5/14/2011- L(UD12) vs. #1 Andre Ward
Next Fight: Unknown
Abraham is now bounced from the Super Six. He claims he will remain at 168. I think he can certainly remain at least an excellent alphabet belt-level contender. And he’s still got the one-punch power, so who knows what he might yet accomplish.
7) Dimitri Sartison (4-44-48)
Last Fight: 7/31/2010- UD12 Khoren Gevor (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Sartison badly injured his knee in training and will be out until about October. He will be given adequate time to schedule a fight thereafter without being removed. I probably won’t even consider removing him until February.
8) Peter Quillin (4-5-5)
Last Fight: 4/29/2011- TKO3 #13 Jesse Brinkley
Next Fight: Unknown
Beat Brinkley in style to announce his arrival on the scene.
9) Aaron Pryor, Jr. (4-4-4)
Last Fight: 5/6/2011- W*(MD10) vs. #7 Librado Andrade
Next Fight: Unknown
Big upset against Andrade. I thought it was a draw, but he still deserves mad props.
10) Sakio Bika (33-33-217)
Last Fight: 11/27/2010- L(UD12) vs. #2 Andre Ward
Next Fight: Unknown
Expect Bika to take a nice long vacation and then fight a weak opponent or two before stepping back up, if he ever does.
11) Karoly Balzsay (8-48)
Last Fight: 11/19/2010- KO4 Misa Nikolic (UNR) (at LHW)
Next Fight: Unknown
Balzsay will join Andrade as a formerly-ranked fighter if he doesn’t schedule a super middleweight fight by the end of the rating week. He has not fought at or below 168 since December 4, 2009, but was given an extra six months since he came close last July for his non-title fight with Aziz Daari.
12) Glen Johnson (7-30)
Last Fight: 11/6/2010- TKO8 Allan Green (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/4/2011- vs. #2 Carl Froch
Johnson, a former light heavyweight champion, has a real shot at being top dog at 168. His path is clear: beat Carl Froch in June, Andre Ward later in the year, and then (possibly) clean up the division with Lucian Bute in early 2012. The odds are long, though, as the Road Warrior is already 42 and must go through perhaps all three of the division’s best fighters.
13) Isaac Chilemba (5-48)
Last Fight: 3/26/2011- UD12 Vikapita Meroro (UNR) (at LHW)
Next Fight: Unknown
14) Thomas Oosthuizen (5-48)
Last Fight: 3/26/2011- TKO9 Evert Bravo (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/4/2011- vs. William Gare (UNR)
Will now fight fringe contender William Gare in a pretty even match-up in early June.
15) Bryan Vera (1-17)
Last Fight: 2/4/2011- SD10 Sergio Mora (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/24/2011- vs. Eloy Suarez (UNR)
Vera will have a stay busy fight in late June, but is talking about giving #16 Andy Lee a rematch in perhaps October.
16) Andy Lee (1-12)
Last Fight: 5/18/2011- UD10 Alex Bunema (UNR) (at MW)
Next Fight: Unknown
May be looking at a rematch with the man who derailed his career over 3 years ago- Bryan Vera. Target date appears to be in October.
17) Ezequiel Maderna (1-13)
Last Fight: 5/28/2011- TKO1 Martin Abel Bruer (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
18) Jesse Brinkley (1-48)
Last Fight: 4/29/2011- L (TKO3) vs. Peter Quillin (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Brinkley’s career now appears a shambles after he was destroyed by rising star Peter Quillin.
19) George Groves (1-2)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- W(MD12*) vs. #20 James DeGale
Next Fight: Unknown
Very questionable outcome in his fight with DeGale, but Groves edges out his rival on the strength of the win.
20) James DeGale (1-1)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- L(MD12*) vs. George Groves (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Spent just a week on the outside looking in. That’s good, because I think he deserved better than the loss he was given by the judges, and also the boot from the ratings he got from me as a necessary consequence.
The Week Ahead: A full three interesting fights this Saturday. In Copenhagen, #4 Mikkel Kessler returns from injury against rugged French gatekeeper Mehdi Bouadla. In South Africa, #13 Thomas Oosthuizen takes on fringe contender and countryman William Gare. And the big one: from Atlantic City, #2 Carl Froch battles likely underrated #12 (#4 at 175) Glen Johnson for a spot in the Super Six Final against Andre Ward, and possibly for a chance to fight Ward for the legitimate Super Middleweight Championship, as well. Karoly Balzsay is also in danger of exiting the rankings unless he schedules a fight during this week.
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Posted in
Light Heavyweight,
Rankings on June 19, 2011 by danboxing
Kenyan gatekeeper Kariz Kariuki knocked down the truly abysmal Dechapon Suwunnalird twice in the first round on Saturday, at which point the referee did what the promoter should have done before the contracts were signed- stop the fight. Meanwhile, once-beaten prospect Vyacheslav Uzelkov did himself even less of a favor in Kiev, as he needed 6 rounds to stop his ham-and-egg opponent Ivan Maslov, even though he came in as a cruiserweight (and not just by a pound or two) against a guy that barely cracked the light heavyweight division.
For comparison, here are the current Ring Magazine Ratings:
Champ: Bernard Hopkins
1) Jean Pascal
2) Tavoris Cloud
3) Chad Dawson
4) Glen Johnson
5) Nathan Cleverly
6) Adrian Diaconu
7) Karo Murat
8) Beibut Shumenov
9) Gabriel Campillo
10) Isaac Chilemba
Dan’s Top 20
Champ: Bernard Hopkins (2-260-260)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- UD12 Champ Jean Pascal
Next Fight: Unknown
The oldest man to ever win a championship, though not the oldest one to hold one yet. All indications are that he’ll fight Dawson next, whom he ducked for years.
1) Jean Pascal (2-102-102)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- L(UD12) vs. #1 Bernard Hopkins
Next Fight: Unknown
After a draw and loss to 45-46 year old Hopkins back-to-back, it’s hard to say that Pascal hasn’t regressed since winning the Championship from Dawson.
2) Chad Dawson (24-261-261)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- UD12 #11 Adrian Diaconu
Next Fight: Unknown
Picked up a solid win over Diaconu, and now will probably fight Hopkins for the Championship in the fall or early winter.
3) Tavoris Cloud (24-92-92)
Last Fight: 12/17/2010- UD12 Fulgencio Zuniga (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. #8 Yusaf Mack
Cloud has now signed to fight his mandatory Yusaf Mack on a fairly loaded card outside St. Louis on June 25.
4) Glen Johnson (42-415-415)
Last Fight: 11/6/2010- KO8 Allan Green (UNR) (at SMW)
Next Fight: 6/4/2011- vs. SMW #2 Carl Froch (at SMW)
If he manages to beat Froch, he will fight for the Super Six Championship, and possibly the legitimate Super Middleweight Championship of the World. If not, maybe he moves back up to 175. If he beats Froch, he will most likely forfeit his 175 rating because the Super Six will tie him up beyond the year anniversary of his light heavyweight fight with Cloud.
5) Gabriel Campillo (42-49-49)
Last Fight: 4/15/2011- TKO5 Sergei Beloshapkin (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Since being robbed against Beibut Shumenov to start 2010, Campillo has behaved more like the loser of the fight than the guy who clearly deserved to win it- fighting only two generic journeymen since. In fairness, this most recent fight was supposed to be against top-15 contender Dmitri Sukhotski until he was left scrambling for a last-minute replacement by Sukhotski’s withdrawal. No excuses for the Spaniard next time, though.
6) Nathan Cleverly (37-69-69)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- TKO4 Alexei Kuziemski (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Beat up Kuziemski. Next up could be Bellew or Maccarinelli, or possibly Shumenov.
7) Eduard Gutknecht (4-4-4)
Last Fight: 5/7/2011- TKO8 #11 Danny McIntosh
Next Fight: Unknown
A former 168-lb. contender, Gutknecht looks to have increased his power along with his weight.
8) Yusaf Mack (4-13-49)
Last Fight: 3/4/2011- W(SD12) vs. #18 Otis Griffin
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. #3 Tavoris Cloud
Managed to fight off HBO and Zsolt Erdei to land his mandatory shot against Tavoris Cloud. The fight will happen 6/25 in St. Charles, Missouri on the Alexander-Matthysse HBO card.
9) Beibut Shumenov (2-45-49)
Last Fight: 1/8/2011- KO6 William Joppy (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Wants to unify another alphabet belt with his own. Best chance would probably be Cleverly, and second most likely would be Cloud. Hopkins will almost certainly fight Dawson next.
10) Dmitri Sukhotski (2-2-31)
Last Fight: 3/11/2011- TKO5 Konstantin Piternov (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Apparently was never fully on board for the proposed fight with #5 Campillo.
11) Adrian Diaconu (4-212)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- L(UD12) vs. #2 Chad Dawson
Next Fight: Unknown
A quality fighter, Diaconu is nevertheless slipping in the rankings simply because he never wins against anyone above the journeyman level. He ought to try and find some kind of mid-range fringe contender just to get a decent win, because fighting journeymen or top contenders isn’t working out for him.
12) Ismayl Sillakh (2-20)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- TKO3 Hamza Wandera (UNR) (as CW)
Next Fight: Unknown
Came in heavy but destroyed his unworthy opponent Hamza Wandera. Hopefully he’ll take a better fight again soon.
13) Zsolt Erdei (2-28)
Last Fight: 11/20/2010- UD8 Samson Onyango (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/4/2011- vs. Byron Mitchell (UNR)
Byron Mitchell isn’t exactly Tavoris Cloud, but, well….well….he’s just not Tavoris Cloud.
14) Danny McIntosh (2-49)
Last Fight: 5/7/2011- L(TKO8) vs. Eduard Gutknecht (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Significantly diminished by his loss to Gutknecht, but still has a better win in Thierry Karl than the two guys rated immediately below him: Karo Murat and…well…Thierry Karl.
15) Karo Murat (2-4)
Last Fight: 5/7/2011- TKO11 #17 Otis Griffin
Next Fight: Unknown
Still hasn’t quite justified his lofty Ring rating, but has finally earned some love on my blog. He must be ecstatic.
16) Thierry Karl (2-49)
Last Fight: 1/22/2011- L (TKO11) vs. #17 Danny McIntosh
Next Fight: Unknown
Will probably see a long layoff and a few tune-ups after being stopped by McIntosh. Karl might be done as a major contender.
17) Luis Garcia (2-20)
Last Fight: 11/6/2010- TKO2 Byron Mitchell (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
18) Dyah Davis (2-10)
Last Fight: 4/8/2011- UD10* Marcus Johnson (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Pulled off a bit of an upset in beating hot prospect Marcus Johnson on ShoBox. Seems to be a magnet for controversial scoring, though, as he’s now been on both the good and bad side of at least debatable scorecards in his last two fights.
19) Marcus Johnson (2-8)
Last Fight: 4/8/2011- L(UD10*) vs. #19 Dyah Davis
Next Fight: Unknown
It’s hard to say that a hot prospect could benefit from an upset loss, but in this case he lost to a rateable fighter, and arguably deserved to win. He gets credit for that here- especially considering the lack of good options in the division.
20) Tony Bellew (2-2)
Last Fight: 12/11/2010- vs. Ovill McKenzie (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/16/2011- vs. Ovill McKenzie (UNR)
Bellew is fighting mad over being bumped from the Cleverly fight due to weight, but it should cause minimal disruption to his career since he still has a pre-existing rematch scheduled with Ovill McKenzie.
The Week Ahead: Three notables in action on Saturday. German undefeated prospect Dustin Dirks continues his string of unnecessarily bad opposition by facing Juan Nelongo in Copenhagen. There’s no reason for this. Dirks has never really struggled in his career yet, so there’s no reason to baby him. I’m not saying he has to shoot for my top 20 right away, but he hasn’t yet even fought a good journeyman yet. His 20 wins have been totally empty. It’s a testament to the thinness of the division that I’m even mentioning him at this stage of his career, because he hasn’t proven or tried to prove jack yet except he can dominate nobodies endlessly.
In Atlantic City, former Champ Zsolt Erdei proves that he’s back to his old tricks by fighting a journeyman when by all rights he should be fighting top-10 opposition. His opponent is Byron Mitchell. Mitchell is a former Super Middleweight contender, but hasn’t done anything of note or been relevant since Joe Calzaghe retired him for over 4 years back in 2003. On the same card, recent Super Middleweight contender Edison Miranda, whose weight issues recently nixed a fight at 168 with Renan St. Juste, steps up in weight to fight solid journeyman Rayco Saunders.
Also, #4 Glen Johnson continues his campaign at 168 against Carl Froch. A win there would spell the end of his Light Heavyweight rating because he would be set to fight for the Super Six Championship over a year after his last fight at 175.
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Posted in
Cruiserweight,
Rankings on June 19, 2011 by danboxing
In the division’s only major fight action, Russian gatekeeper Alexander Kotlobay dropped weak journeyman Alex Mogylewski in the first before knocking him out in the second.
For Comparison, here are the Current Ring Magazine Cruiserweight Rankings:
Champ: None
1) Steve Cunningham
2) Marco Huck
3) Krzysztof Wlodarczyk
4) Denis Lebedev
5) Troy Ross
6) Danny Green
7) Giacobbe Fragomeni
8) Ola Afolabi
9) Guillermo Jones
10) Yoan Pablo Hernandez
Dan’s Top 20
Champ: None
1) Steve Cunningham (160*-363-363)
Last Fight: 2/12/2011- UD12 #14 Enad Licina
Next Fight: Unknown
* Not actually sure how long he’s been rated #1, but it has been at least this number of weeks.
Cunningham defeated Licina, and will likely fight next in Sauerland’s Super Six.
2) Marco Huck (49-234-234)
Last Fight: 4/2/2011- UD12 Ran Nakash (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Next stop for Huck is probably the Sauerland Super Six.
3) Denis Lebedev (24-69-69)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- TKO10 Roy Jones, Jr. (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
After the horrific spectacle against Jones, Lebedev can probably now pick on guys his own size- and ability- when he enters Sauerland’s Super Six tournament.
4) Ola Afolabi (24-116-116)
Last Fight: 3/19/2011- TKO5 Lubos Suda (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/2/2011- vs. Terry Dunstan (UNR)
Afolabi will fight gatekeeper Terry Dunstan on July 2 in England.
5) Yoan Pablo Hernandez (16-49-49)
Last Fight: 2/12/2011- KO7 #12 Steve Herelius
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. Unknown Opponent
Still no opponent for Hernandez’ June 25 date. This fight might end up as part of the Sturm-Macklin card in Cologne, and is definitely taking place in Germany somewhere.
6) Guillermo Jones (9-35-35)
Last Fight: 10/2/2010- TKO11 Valery Brudov (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. Ryan Coyne (UNR)
It’s now set: Jones-Coyne, with the winner to fight Yoan Pablo Hernandez.
7) Danny Green (9-78-78)
Last Fight: 11/17/2010- UD12 #12 B.J. Flores
Next Fight: 7/20/2011- vs. Antonio Tarver (UNR)
It’s now official- Green will fight former light heavyweight champ Antonio Tarver on July 20.
8) Krzysztof Wlodarczyk (9-310-310)
Last Fight: 4/2/2011- W(SD12*) vs. Francisco Palacios (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Barely escaped with a hometown decision in one of the worst fights in recent memory with Palacios. His stock has got to be way down among those who saw the fight, but his stoppage win over Fragomeni keeps him well within the top 10.
9) Giacobbe Fragomeni (28-133-133)
Last Fight: 4/30/2011- TKO7 Laszlo Hubert (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Hopefully now that he’s healthy and has another win under his belt, Fragomeni will go back to his original plan of fighting top contenders like Huck.
10) Alexander Frenkel (28-28-37)
Last Fight: 9/18/2010- KO7 #12 Enzo Maccarinelli
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. Silvio Branco (UNR)
The long-rumored comeback fight for the injury-plagued Frenkel is finally made: Silvio Branco, June 25, in Italy.
11) B.J. Flores (13-49)
Last Fight: 11/17/2010- L(UD12) vs. #9 Danny Green
Next Fight: Unknown
I really don’t know why Flores doesn’t fight more. He was trying to get a fight with Lateef Kayode, but that failed months ago.
12) Francisco Palacios (9-9)
Last Fight: 4/2/2011- L (SD12*) vs. #6 Krzysztof Wlodarczyk
Next Fight: Unknown
In my opinion he did just enough to win one of the worst fights I’ve ever seen against Wlodarczyk, so I’m in no hurry to see him again. That being said, he performed well against a top 10 guy and deserved the win on that night, so I can’t exactly ignore that.
13) Troy Ross (9-118)
Last Fight: 10/30/2010- UD10 Carl Handy (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Ross is better than his ranking, but never fights. I don’t see how you get rooked out of a potential win against the best guy in the division and then waste a whole year by fighting only Carl Handy.
14) Steve Herelius (9-48)
Last Fight: 2/12/2011- L(KO7) vs. #6 Yoan Pablo Hernandez
Next Fight: Unknown
It’s always hard to come back from a knockout loss. Herelius could become a go-to quality opponent for the guys locked out of the Super Six.
15) Enad Licina (9-49)
Last Fight: 5/7/2011- KO1 Michele De Meo (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Easy win over an easy opponent. We’ll see what’s next.
16) Enzo Maccarinelli (9-49)
Last Fight: 9/18/2010- L(KO7) vs. Alexander Frenkel (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Looking to make his long-since announced debut at 175 in July. His whole strategy seems to be to fight Cleverly, but no word whether the younger man is interested.
17) Lateef Kayode (9-28)
Last Fight: 2/4/2011- UD10 Nicholas Iannuzzi (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/10/2011- vs. #19 Matt Godfrey
Very intriguing matchup looming for Kayode- who needs to look impressive- and Godfrey- who just needs a win.
18) Alexander Alexeev (9-20)
Last Fight: 4/9/2011- KO6 DeAndrey Abron (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/11/2011- vs. Damian Norris (UNR)
Staying busy as he has a fight scheduled in June- no opponent yet.
19) Matt Godfrey (9-125)
Last Fight: 8/21/2010- L(TKO5) vs. #2 Marco Huck
Next Fight: 6/10/2011- vs. #17 Lateef Kayode
See Kayode’s comments above.
20) Mateusz Masternak (9-13)
Last Fight: 3/11/2011- TKO5 Ali Ismailov (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
THE WEEK AHEAD: Former Champion O’Neill Bell, who hasn’t fought in over 3 years due to some personal issues, as I understand it, makes his return against journeyman and fellow Jamaican Richard Hall on Friday in Hollywood, Florida.
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Posted in
Heavyweight,
Rankings on June 19, 2011 by danboxing
All the big fights in the division this week were on Friday- two of them on ESPN2. #8 Tony Thompson finally stepped back up in competition a little, stopping Maurice Harris in 3 after dropping him twice in the Friday Night Fights co-feature. Thompson, as usual, looked robotic and slow, but had more than enough ability and power to get the job done.
In the main event, #12 Chris Arreola stayed busy and lean, stopping mid-range journeyman Kendrick Releford in 7 while only adding 2 pounds since his knockout of Nagy Aguilera 13 days earlier. Arreola honestly looks to have lost a bit of power with his weight loss, but is better defensively and quicker in his current form, and is still landing plenty of hard thudding punches for the level at which he’s currently fighting. We’ll see how the new-look “Nightmare” fares when he steps back up to the world-class level. I wouldn’t be surprised to see that by the end of the year.
Now here’s an interesting bit of trivia: the WBC’s Caribbean Boxing Federation title was on the line this week. I know. Nobody really cares. But in this case I thought it was worth a mention. Why? Because first of all, the fight was held in the little-known Caribbean island of Delaware. But fair enough- importing a couple Caribbeans to Delaware for a title fight. No problem there. But the two challengers? Indiana’s own Franklin Lawrence and Virginia’s Jason Gavern. I’d say the WBC has lost me, but there’s nothing to say now that I haven’t said many times before. Despite the blatant silliness involved, this was actually probably the most important fight in the division this week.
On Saturday, highly-regarded undefeated prospect Alexander Ustinov predictably destroyed sacrificial lamb Guido Santana in Kiev in the first round of their mismatch.
Thompson picks up a good win in Harris, but not good enough to gain back the position Adamek took from him recently. In the case of Franklin Lawrence, his victory over Gavern, when added to the even more impressive victory over Jason Estrada a few months back, propels him very strongly into the rankings at #17. Timur Ibragimov is forced out by the shift.
For Comparison, here are the Current Ring Magazine Heavyweight Rankings:
Champ: Wladimir Klitschko
1) Vitali Klitschko
2) David Haye
3) Tomasz Adamek
4) Alexander Povetkin
5) Ruslan Chagaev
6) Eddie Chambers
7) Alexander Dimitrenko
8) Denis Boystov
9) Robert Helenius
10) Chris Arreola
Dan’s Top 20
Champ: Wladimir Klitschko (101-314-314)
Last Fight: 9/11/2010- KO10 #6 Samuel Peter
Next Fight: 7/2/2011- vs. #2 David Haye
Now there’s a definite date and venue for Klitschko-Haye: July 2 in Hamburg. Now all we have to do is see if Wlad’s “injury” stays healed and if Haye decides to actually show.
1) Vitali Klitschko (138-138-138)
Last Fight: 3/19/2011- TKO1 #10 Odlanier Solis
Next Fight: 9/10/2011- vs. #7 Tomasz Adamek
Originally it appeared that Vitali would fight a no-hoper in July and act as the understudy for his brother’s fight with Adamek in September, but somewhere along the line he decided to fight Adamek instead.
2) David Haye (61-115-115)
Last Fight: 11/13/2010- TKO3 Audley Harrison (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/2/2011- vs. Champ Wladimir Klitschko
With his mandatory with Ruslan Chagaev out of the way due to hepatitis and Wlad’s fight with Chisora apparently contingent on whether the Champ feels like it at any given moment, Haye has once again signed on to fight Wlad. With the contract signed, the odds of the fight actually happen have increased to about 50-50 in my estimation.
3) Eddie Chambers (16-113-113)
Last Fight: 2/11/2011- UD12 Derric Rossy (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Should have Tony Thompson next on his agenda, as Thompson’s win over Harris amounted to an eliminator to fight in an eliminator against Chambers…with the upshot at least theoretically being a Klitschko shot.
4) Robert Helenius (9-9-53)
Last Fight: 4/2/2011- KO9 #6 Samuel Peter
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. Unknown Opponent
Helenius is scheduled to return on June 25, with the most likely opponent being former contender Sergei Liakhovich.
5) Alexander Povetkin (9-188-188)
Last Fight: 12/18/2010- UD8 Nicolai Firtha (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Povetkin-Chagaev now looks very likely.
6) Ruslan Chagaev (9-237-237)
Last Fight: 11/19/2010- UD8 Travis Walker (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
See Povetkin’s comments above.
7) Tomasz Adamek (18-58-58)
Last Fight: 4/9/2011- UD12 Kevin McBride (UNR)
Next Fight: 9/10/2011- vs. #1 Vitali Klitschko
Time for Adamek to get serious, as he faces a live opponent for the first time in a long stretch this September.
8) Tony Thompson (18-53-53)
Last Fight: 5/27/2011- TKO3 Maurice Harris (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Eddie Chambers is likely Thompson’s next opponent, in an alphabet title eliminator.
9) Juan Carlos Gomez (18-53-53)
Last Fight: 12/4/2010- TKO4 Harold Sconiers (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Treading water like nobody’s business.
10) Odlanier Solis (24-24-53)
Last Fight: 3/19/2011- L (TKO1) vs. #1 Vitali Klitschko
Next Fight: Unknown
If anyone doubted the legitimacy of Solis’ injury, he is awaiting surgery for a torn ACL and meniscus. He wants a rematch, which of course seems unlikely- though I’d actually be interested.
11) Alexander Dimitrenko (10-20)
Last Fight: 3/26/2011- TKO12 Albert Sosnowski (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Dimitrenko is being targeted by Helenius, but the EBU has ordered a European title match between him and #15 Jean Marc Mormeck.
12) Chris Arreola (10-115)
Last Fight: 5/27/2011- TKO7 Kendrick Releford (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Another week, another stoppage win for Arreola. We’ll see if he comes back as quickly next time, and in as good of shape.
13) Denis Boytsov (10-102)
Last Fight: 11/19/2010- KO2 Mike Sheppard (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Probably safe to say at this point that his plan to fight stateside in May is not coming to fruition.
14) Dereck Chisora (10-37)
Last Fight: 9/18/2010- TKO9 #20 Sam Sexton
Next Fight: 7/23/2011- vs. Tyson Fury (UNR)
After a brawl ringside at DeGale-Groves broke out between the two men, Chisora-Fury is now signed for July 23 at Wembley Stadium.
15) Jean Marc Mormeck (10-53)
Last Fight: 12/2/2010- SD12 #19 Timur Ibragimov
Next Fight: Unknown
Now appears more likely to fight Dimitrenko than Povetkin, for the European title.
16) Samuel Peter (9-53)
Last Fight: 4/2/2011- L(KO9) vs. #16 Robert Helenius
Next Fight: Unknown
We’ll have to see if and how Peter rebounds from his latest knockout loss- this one more brutal than the last. If the relatively young (30) Nigerian decides to forge on, he’ll have to overcome the reality of being treated as a stepping stone at least for tall up-and-comers.
17) Franklin Lawrence (1-1)
Last Fight:5/27/2011- RTD7 Jason Gavern (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
After a rocky time in his career where he lost and drew with fighters less advanced than he currently is, Lawrence has found himself at the ripe old age of 35 and begun a climb in the ranks.
18) Kubrat Pulev (1-29)
Last Fight: 5/7/2011- TKO5 Derric Rossy (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Rossy is no longer a great feather in the cap, but he’s still good enough to move Pulev up a couple rungs.
19) Francesco Pianeta (1-53)
Last Fight: 4/2/2011- TKO3 Ivica Perkovic (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. Jens Krull (UNR)
Cancer survivor Pianeta is staying busy, but not against credible opposition.
20) Ray Austin (1-53)
Last Fight: 12/17/2010- L(DQ10) vs. #17 Odlanier Solis
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. Bermane Stiverne (UNR)
Austin will fight Haitian fringe prospect Bermane Stiverne in St. Louis on June 25 in what figures to be a very silly excuse for a title eliminator, even by alphabet standards.
THE WEEK AHEAD: Undefeated prospect Luis Ortiz of Cuba will fight mediocre journeyman Jason Barnett on the non-televised portion of the Friday Night Fights card from Tampa. The next night in Denmark, hot prospect Edmund Gerber of Germany takes on Zack Page. Page is a journeyman who always fights good prospects. Until recently, he succeeded often enough to be considered a gatekeeper, even with a losing record. However, he has lost his last 7 fights now, including some less advanced fighters, and is no longer the good mark he once was. Finally, in Hollywood, Florida later that night we go to the “Well” once more, as fringe contender Cedric Boswell takes on journeyman Kertson Manswell.
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Posted in
Junior Middleweight,
Rankings on June 18, 2011 by danboxing
On Thursday, New York-born Japan resident Charlie Ota won his Japanese title rematch with gatekeeper Tadashi Yuba in better style this time around, stopping the Japanese native in the 9th round. This obviously improves Ota’s stock- especially since Yuba is just as credible now as he was the day he lost to Ota last. But in a division which is chaotic at the top but very deep, Ota will probably need to beat a top-25 fighter before he can sneak into the top 20.
Friday, Serbian prospect Nikola Stevanovic- whose only loss was a decision over 2 years ago to Arthur Abraham’s brother- took out undefeated Italian prospect Stefano Castellucci in the 11th round in Belgrade. A nice win for Stevanovic, but Castellucci hadn’t beaten anyone and thus doesn’t give the Serbian much of a boost ratings-wise.
Later that night in Wales, undefeated Belarussian prospect Sergei Rabchanka traveled to the backyard of gatekeeper Bradley Pryce and came away with a fairly close decision. He’s about in the same boat as Ota in terms of rankability.
For Comparision, here are the current Ring ratings for the division:
Champ: Vacant
1) Miguel Cotto
2) Kermit Cintron
3) Alfredo Angulo
4) Ryan Rhodes
5) Sechew Powell
6) Vanes Martirosyan
7) Pawel Wolak
8) Sergei Dzinziruk
9) Saul Alvarez
10) Cornelius Bundrage
Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in Current Position-Weeks in Top 10 if applicable-Weeks in Top 20)
Champ: None
1) Alfredo Angulo (16-87-87)
Last Fight: 7/17/2010- TKO1 #8 Joachim Alcine
Next Fight: Unknown
The WBC is pushing for a tournament that would include Angulo vs. Ryan Rhodes, with the winner to fight the winner of Paul Williams vs. either Saul Roman or Vanes Martirosyan. The winner would earn the right to fight for a title held by a guy already less accomplished than 3 of the 5: Saul Alvarez.
2) Cornelius Bundrage (16-42-42)
Last Fight: 8/7/2010- TKO5 Cory Spinks (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. #10 Sechew Powell
Bundrage-Powell is now official for June 25 in St. Charles, MO. I’ll be there ringside.
3) Miguel Cotto (27-51-51)
Last Fight: 3/12/2011- TKO12 Ricardo Mayorga (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Margarito is now set to begin sparring, and so Cotto-Margarito may be back on, though much later. October 1 and December 3 are now potential dates.
4) Pawel Wolak (11-11-11)
Last Fight: 3/12/2011- RTD6 #5 Yuri Foreman
Next Fight: 7/15/2011- vs. Delvin Rodriguez (UNR)
The Dzinziruk negotiations proved fruitless, as Wolak will now fight prospect Delvin Rodriguez on Friday Night Fights in mid-July.
5) Paul Williams (11-16-16)
Last Fight: 11/20/2010- L (KO2) vs. MW Champ Sergio Martinez (at MW)
Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. #15 Erislandy Lara
Williams will now take on Erislandy Lara after HBO nixed Ishida.
6) Kermit Cintron (16-104-104)
Last Fight: 5/8/2010- L (TD4) vs. MW #2 Paul Williams
Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. #16 Carlos Molina
Now apparently has an opponent for the 7/9 Showtime card in sturdy #16 Carlos Molina.
7) Ryan Rhodes (16-83-83)
Last Fight: 12/4/2010- TKO2 Rocky Junior (UNR) (at SMW)
Next Fight: 6/18/2011- vs. #8 Saul Alvarez
Now officially set to fight Alvarez in Mexico on June 18.
8) Saul Alvarez (12-12-27)
Last Fight: 3/5/2011- UD12 Matthew Hatton (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/18/2011- vs. #7 Ryan Rhodes
The winner of the June bout with Rhodes could skyrocket to very nearly the top of the division since there is such a large degree of parity at the top level.
9) Prince Arron (2-2-2)
Last Fight: 5/13/2011- TKO12 #14 Sam Webb
Next Fight: Unknown
Arron’s dramatic upset victory earned him the British title and a place in the top 10.
10) Sechew Powell (12-62-62)
Last Fight: 3/19/2010- W (MD12) vs. #4 Deandre Latimore
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. #2 Cornelius Bundrage
Powell rewarded my good faith by signing the rumored fight with Bundrage in a timely fashion after the 1 year anniversary of his last fight.
11) Gabriel Rosado (12-16)
Last Fight: 2/26/2011- TKO12 Jamaal Davis (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/15-2011- vs. Harry Joe Yorgey (UNR)
Rosado will meet veteran Harry Joe Yorgey in mid-July.
12) Manny Pacquiao (12-16)
Last Fight: 5/7/2011- UD12 #15 Shane Mosley (at WW)
Next Fight: 11/12/2011- vs. LW Champ Juan Manuel Marquez (at WW)
Pacquiao had already nearly finished signing a fight with lightweight champion and rival Juan Manuel Marquez before the Mosley debacle even went down. Unfortunately the talk is that the fight will be at a 144-pound catchweight. This fight is a natural for 140 pounds, but Pacquiao wants to drag Marquez up because he has the proven ability to carry the weight better than the lightweight. It’s a damn shame, because this could have been a good challenge at the right weight.
13) Cory Spinks (16-16)
Last Fight: 8/7/2010- L (TKO5) vs. Cornelius Bundrage
Next Fight: Unknown
If Spinks doesn’t need the money, he should probably consider retirement. He’s already exceeded the accomplishments of his Heavyweight Champion father Leon, and hopefully still has his health intact after being brutalized for five rounds by the beastly Cornelius Bundrage in August.
14) Shane Mosley (2-16)
Last Fight: 5/7/2011- L(UD12) vs. #12 Manny Pacquiao (at WW)
Next Fight: Unknown
My fervent hope is that the used-up Mosley retires well before I have to remove him for inactivity in September.
15) Erislandy Lara (2-16)
Last Fight: 3/25/2011- Draw (MD10) vs. Carlos Molina (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. #5 Paul Williams
After originally losing out to Nobuhiro Ishida, Lara will fight Williams after Ishida was bumped by HBO.
16) Carlos Molina (2-9)
Last Fight: 4/29/2011- TKO7 Allen Conyers (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. #6 Kermit Cintron
His busy schedule and near-victory over Erislandy Lara has earned him a big fight with Cintron for the Rios-Antillon undercard.
17) Austin Trout (2-16)
Last Fight: 2/5/2011- UD12 Rigoberto Alvarez
Next Fight: 6/11/2011- vs. David Lopez (UNR)
The undefeated Trout will have a road game coming up against Mexican David Lopez in the latter’s home country. Lopez is strangely ranked by the Ring, but even in reality is so close to the top 20 that he might default his way in if anyone drops out before the fight.
18) Yuri Foreman (2-86)
Last Fight: 3/12/2011- L (RTD6) vs. Pawel Wolak (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
What looked like a relatively easy fight turned into a disaster for Foreman as he was battered to a corner stoppage after six rounds with fringe contender/prospect Pawel Wolak. The stick-and-move boxer may have lost a step to a recurring knee injury, and we’ll see whether or not he’s finished as a serious contender.
19) Joachim Alcine (2-16)
Last Fight: 7/17/2010- L (TKO1) vs. Alfredo Angulo
Next Fight: Unknown
At one point months ago there was reportedly a fight in the works with Cory Spinks for April, but that appears to have been a non-starter. No recent reports on Alcine’s next move.
20) Deandre Latimore (2-2)
Last Fight: 4/16/2011- vs. Dennis Sharpe (UNR) (at MW)
Next Fight: Unknown
Was on Paul Williams’ short list for his return bout. It’s good that he’s looking for big fights again.
The Week Ahead: Two notables in action on Friday: In the Czech Republic, Czech fringe contender Lukas Konecny takes on gatekeeper Hussein Bayram of France. This fight could earn the winner a rating. In St. Paul, Minnesota, Las Vegas-based Moroccan Welterweight contender Said Ouali meets Jhon Berrio, a journeyman who recently hurt James Kirkland before Kirkland came back to score a stoppage victory a short time later.
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Posted in
Middleweight,
Rankings on June 18, 2011 by danboxing
Andy Lee- ranked #17 at 168 where he does his best (or at least most important) work despite being a more natural middleweight- pitched a shutout on all three cards in Rosemont, Illinois on Wednesday against former contender Alex Bunema. Bunema took 2 years off after a loss to Willie Lee in St. Louis that I saw from ringside. It seems that Bunema was already fading before his hiatus, considering that Lee never really panned out, and so Lee doesn’t make any hay in the ratings. He does have to feel good about the win, though, after needing every bit of his will to grab victory from the jaws of defeat against Craig McEwan recently.
For Comparision, here are the current Ring ratings for the division:
Champ: Sergio Martinez
1) Felix Sturm
2) Daniel Geale
3) Paul Williams
4) Sebastian Sylvester
5) Matthew Macklin
6) Sebastian Zbik
7) Dmitry Pirog
8) David Lopez
9) Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam
10) Marco Antonio Rubio
Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in Current Position-Weeks in Top 10 if applicable-Weeks in Top 20)
Champ: Sergio Martinez (58-58-58)
Last Fight: 3/12/2011- TKO9 JMW #9 Sergiy Dzinziruk
Next Fight: 10/1/2011- vs. Unknown Opponent
Martinez’ return was pushed back yet again. He now has an HBO date on October 1. He has said recently that he might move down to 154 since he can’t get a big-time opponent at 160. He still seems to be pursuing the Chavez-Zbik winner, though.
1) Felix Sturm (98-401-401)
Last Fight: 2/19/2011- TKO7 Ronald Hearns (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. #10 Matthew Macklin
Now officially scheduled to fight #10 Matthew Macklin on June 25 in Cologne, after an original date of July 2 was scrapped.
2) Daniel Geale (3-101-101)
Last Fight: 5/7/2011- W(SD12) vs. #3 Sebastian Sylvester
Next Fight: Unknown
Showed a great motor by soundly outworking the apparently stronger Sylvester to a decision victory in enemy territory. Has already said he wants Martinez, but unfortunately Martinez hasn’t reciprocated the sentiment.
3) Paul Williams (3-111-111)
Last Fight: 11/20/2010- L(KO2) vs. Champ Sergio Martinez
Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. JMW #15 Erislandy Lara (at JMW?)
HBO nixed his scheduled fight with Ishida after initially giving its blessing, and Williams is now fighting somewhat diminished prospect Erislandy Lara in a very interesting potential crossroads fight.
4) Sebastian Sylvester (3-302-302)
Last Fight: 5/7/2011- L(SD12) vs. #4 Daniel Geale
Next Fight: Unknown
Despite what a corrupt Danish judge might say, Sylvester lost in fairly close but clear fashion to Geale. Still, there’s not a ton of shame in that, and Sylvester remains soundly within the top 5.
5) Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam (12-30-30)
Last Fight: 4/2/2011- UD12 Giovanni Lorenzo (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Controversy aside, he probably deserved the win over Lorenzo and remains a force in the division.
6) Dmitry Pirog (12-43-43)
Last Fight: 3/26/2011- UD12 Javier Maciel (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Pirog is apparently deep in discussions with mandatory challenger Gennady Martirosyan. He hopes that fight would land on ESPN.
7) Marco Antonio Rubio (6-7-17)
Last Fight: 4/8/2011- TKO7 David Lemieux (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Rubio is the mandatory for the Chavez-Zbik winner, but would prefer to fight Sergio Martinez. No word on whether either of those fights is actually likely to come off anytime soon, since Martinez also appears to want Chavez or Zbik.
8) Grzegorz Proksa (6-6-6)
Last Fight: 4/15/2011- KO9 #16 Pablo Navascues
Next Fight: Unknown
Out of nowhere, Proksa is a top-10 contender after knocking out Pablo Navascues, a sturdy fringe contender whose career was inexplicably in neutral since a 2007 draw with contender Javier Castillejo.
9) Anthony Mundine (6-6-17)
Last Fight: 4/13/2011- UD10 #7 Garth Wood
Next Fight: 6/5/2011- vs. Xavier Tolliver (UNR)
Mundine appears to be set to fight Xavier Tolliver in New Zealand on June 5. Strictly a stay-busy fight for Mundine.
10) Matthew Macklin (6-87-87)
Last Fight: 12/11/2010- UD12 Ruben Varon (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. #1 Felix Sturm
Now scheduled for a match with #1 Contender Felix Sturm in Cologne. The fight was originally scheduled for 7/2 but was quickly moved up to 6/25. The winner will become an obvious challenger for Sergio Martinez.
11) Maxim Bursak (6-17)
Last Fight: 9/4/2010- UD12 Bryan Vera
Next Fight: 5/28/2011- vs. Carlos Jerez (UNR)
Scheduled to fight a solid veteran journeyman in Carlos Jerez on Saturday.
12) Osumanu Adama (6-9)
Last Fight: 3/25/2011- TKO4 #19 Marcus Upshaw
Next Fight: Unknown
Displaced by Marco Rubio and company after a 2 week cup of coffee in the top 10.
13) Garth Wood (6-17)
Last Fight: 4/13/2011- L (UD10) vs. #20 Anthony Mundine
Next Fight: Unknown
Got dropped twice against Mundine en route to a loss in which he appears to have faded a bit late. Has a knockout win to his credit over the same opponent, so a trilogy appears appropriate.
14) Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. (6-17)
Last Fight: 1/29/2011- UD10 Billy Lyell
Next Fight: 6/4/2011- vs. #19 Sebastian Zbik
Chavez will take on one of the biggest challenges of his career in undefeated but thus-far overrated alphabet titlist Sebastian Zbik.
15) Billy Lyell (6-17)
Last Fight: 5/5/2011- TKO1 Brian Paul (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
16) Nobuhiro Ishida (6-7)
Last Fight: 4/9/2011- TKO1 James Kirkland (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Ishida’s fight with Paul Williams was killed by HBO. This might simultaneously be the best and worst thing that could have happened to the Japanese fighter.
17) Darren Barker (6-17)
Last Fight: 4/30/2011- UD12 Domenico Spada (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Won a fairly close decision to defend his European title over Spada.
18) Avtandil Khurtsidze (6-17)
Last Fight: 3/12/2011- UD12 Mariusz Cendrowski (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/11/2011- vs. Dionisio Miranda (UNR)
Will fight Dionisio Miranda on June 11. Miranda gave Roman Karmazin all he could handle about 18 months ago, and is coming off a December split decision win over fringe contender Lajuan Simon. Could be a good fight.
19) Sebastian Zbik (6-98)
Last Fight: 7/31/2010- UD12 Jorge Heiland (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/4/2011- vs. #14 Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr.
Undefeated Zbik will finally step up to the fringe contender level of competition, fighting Mexican star Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. in June.
20) Billi Godoy (2-2)
Last Fight: 5/14/2011- W(TD9) vs. Claudio Abalos (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Escaped from the riot in his last fight with a wildly controversial but ultimately correct technical decision and finds himself in the top 20 as a result. This may be one of those fights that demands a rematch, though.
The Week Ahead: Two notable fights this week:
Friday, two Minnesotans collide for that state’s title. Caleb Truax- an undefeated prospect who I’m almost certainly distantly related to- will fight Andy Kolle, who is probably something between a prospect and a gatekeeper. The 29 year-old Kolle has only two losses, and they are stoppages against Andre Ward and Paul Williams.
Saturday, #11 Maxim Bursak takes on solid journeyman Carlos Adan Jerez in Bursak’s hometown of Kiev, Ukraine.
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Dan's Weekly Boxer Rankings and Blog 