July | 2011 | Dan's Weekly Boxer Rankings and Blog

Archive for July, 2011

Junior Middleweight: 2011, Jun 27-Jul 3

Posted in Junior Middleweight, Rankings on July 31, 2011 by danboxing

#3 Cornelius Bundrage battled #11 Sechew Powell in St. Charles, MO on Saturday in a fight I saw from ringside. Bundrage was more methodical this time around than he was in his last fight against Cory Spinks, which allowed Powell to have his moments. I gave Powell 3 rounds and thought he had a decent argument for a couple more, as well. But ultimately they were too few and far between against the bigger and stronger Bundrage, who mauled his way to a hard-fought 12-round decision victory.

On the undercard, Bundrage’s previous victim, #14 Cory Spinks, returned against journeyman Shakir Ashanti who basically served as a punching bag for 10 rounds, all of which were won by Spinks. Meanwhile, undefeated Polish prospect Damian Jonak knocked out experienced but mediocre journeyman Mamadou Thiam in the first round in Poland.

Ranking this division is really tricky right now. Heck, even my #7 contender has an argument to be #1. On one hand, I want to think that Bundrage should stay put at #3 because Angulo has both the more impressive overall resume in the last 5 years and a better single win in terms of rankings in #8 Joachim Alcine than does Bundrage in #11 Powell. On the other hand, I think Angulo’s win over Alcine is roughly canceled out by Bundrage’s win over Powell, especially when you add nearly a year’s inactivity into the mix since Angulo scored that knockout. Angulo still has lots of wins against fringe contenders and such, but Bundrage’s win over Cory Spinks (unranked due to inactivity but had been ranked #2 two weeks before the fight was signed) is by far the best prior win that either man has on his resume, and even that was more recent than Angulo’s last fight. It’s a very close call, but Bundrage just does sneak by Angulo to claim the #2 spot he lost last week. Sechew Powell’s resume is marginally still better than #12 Gabriel Rosado’s, and he thus stands pat at #11 despite the loss.

For Comparision, here are the current Ring ratings for the division:

Champ: Vacant

1) Miguel Cotto

2) Kermit Cintron

3) Alfredo Angulo

4) Saul Alvarez

5) Vanes Martirosyan

6) Cornelius Bundrage

7) Pawel Wolak

8) Sergei Dzinziruk

9) Sechew Powell

10) Austin Trout

Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in Current Position-Weeks in Top 10 if applicable-Weeks in Top 20)

Champ: None

1) Saul Alvarez (2-17-32)

Last Fight: 6/18/2011- UD12 #7 Ryan Rhodes

Next Fight: Unknown

In a division with a lot of parity at the top, Canelo’s victory over Rhodes suffices to earn him the top spot.

2) Cornelius Bundrage (1-47-47)

Last Fight: 6/25/2011- UD12 #11 Sechew Powell

Next Fight: Unknown

Reclaimed the #2 position after a workmanlike decision over the solid Powell.

3) Alfredo Angulo (1-92-92)

Last Fight: 7/17/2010- TKO1 #8 Joachim Alcine

Next Fight: 8/20/2011- vs. Unknown Opponent

We finally have a return date for Angulo: August 20. Opponent to be determined.

4) Miguel Cotto (2-56-56)

Last Fight: 3/12/2011- TKO12 Ricardo Mayorga (UNR)

Next Fight: 12/3/2011- vs. Antonio Margarito (UNR)

Cotto-Margarito II now appears to be set again, this time for December 3.

5) Pawel Wolak (2-16-16)

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.

6) Paul Williams (2-21-21)

Last Fight: 11/20/2010- L (KO2) vs. MW Champ Sergio Martinez (at MW)

Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. #17 Erislandy Lara

Williams will now take on Erislandy Lara after HBO nixed Ishida.

7) Kermit Cintron (2-109-109)

Last Fight: 5/8/2010- L (TD4) vs. MW #2 Paul Williams

Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. #19 Carlos Molina

Now apparently has an opponent for the 7/9 Showtime card in sturdy #18 Carlos Molina.

8) Ryan Rhodes (2-88-88)

Last Fight: 6/18/2011- L(UD12) vs. #8 Saul Alvarez

Next Fight: Unknown

Rhodes’ stock is significantly diminished after being dominated by Alvarez, but he still has a noticeably more complete resume than #9 Arron and thus only slides one position after the defeat.

9) Prince Arron (7-7-7)

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) Austin Trout (3-3-21)

Last Fight: 6/11/2011- UD12 David Lopez (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

An impressive victory over David Lopez in enemy territory has Trout on a steep upward career trajectory.

11) Sechew Powell (3-67)

Last Fight: 6/25/2011- L(UD12) vs. #3 Cornelius Bundrage

Next Fight: Unknown

Put forth a solid effort in a losing cause against Bundrage, and still has the bona fides to hold onto his #11 spot.

12) Gabriel Rosado (3-21)

Last Fight: 2/26/2011- TKO12 Jamaal Davis (UNR)

Next Fight: 7/15/2011- vs. Allen Conyers (UNR)

Harry Joe Yorgey was injured in training, and recent Carlos Molina victim Allen Conyers has quickly stepped in to take his place.

13) Manny Pacquiao (3-21)

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.

14) Cory Spinks (3-21)

Last Fight: 6/25/2011- UD10 Shakir Ashanti (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

Dominated sacrificial lamb Ashanti. We’ll see if he will try to climb the ladder again now that he’s back in the win column.

15) Shane Mosley (3-21)

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.

16) Vanes Martirosyan (3-4)

Last Fight: 6/4/2011- TKO7 Saul Roman (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

I still don’t view him as highly as a lot of people do because he got handled by Kassim Ouma a while back, but he’s earned at least this much respect after displaying his handspeed, power, and resiliency against Roman.

17) Erislandy Lara (3-21)

Last Fight: 3/25/2011- Draw (MD10) vs. Carlos Molina (UNR)

Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. #6 Paul Williams

After originally losing out to Nobuhiro Ishida, Lara will fight Williams after Ishida was bumped by HBO.

18) Grady Brewer (2-2)

Last Fight: 6/17/2011- TKO4 JMW #20 Fernando Guerrero

Next Fight: Unknown

For a guy that’s often considered a journeyman, Brewer has compiled a nice little resume with the Guerrero win.

19) Carlos Molina (2-14)

Last Fight: 4/29/2011- TKO7 Allen Conyers (UNR)

Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. #7 Kermit Cintron

His busy schedule and near-victory over Erislandy Lara has earned him a big fight with Cintron for the Rios-Antillon undercard.

20) Yuri Foreman (2-91)

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.

The Week Ahead: Nothing big to report this time.

Leave a comment »

Middleweight: 2011, Jun 27-Jul 3

Posted in Middleweight, Rankings on July 29, 2011 by danboxing

#1 Felix Sturm and #11 Matthew Macklin squared off in Cologne on Saturday in a highly controversial fight. I must admit that I only saw the fight on a somewhat low-res YouTube stream. From what I could see, it appeared that Macklin was obviously throwing many more punches, but it appeared to me that Sturm was catching the vast majority of them on his gloves, while being much more effective when he actually decided to throw. I scored the fight a draw, though I felt that that was the absolute best outcome legitimately available to Sturm, while I wouldn’t have argued with anyone giving as many as 4 additional rounds to Macklin. I haven’t felt so tentative about any call I’ve made on here since the Cloud-Johnson fight that I saw differently on TV and in person, but I am going to overturn the unsupportable victory that Sturm was awarded for the purposes of my ratings, but I will not go quite so far as to award the fight to Macklin. I will treat the fight as if it were a draw. Watch for an update, because I’m considering trying to find a clearer stream and re-scoring the bout.

James Kirkland was back in action on Friday for the first time since he was destroyed by Nobuhiro Ishida in a shocking upset a few months back, and he knocked low-level journeyman Dennis Sharpe around. Sharpe went down twice in the first round and didn’t get up the second time.

Gatekeeper Ossie Duran of Ghana stopped journeyman Latif Mundy late in the 10th and final round in Newark. Grzegorz Proksa was also in action, but the fight was contested at 168 and wasn’t against a live opponent whatsoever.

Unfortunately for Sturm, it just doesn’t seem right to me for a #1 fighter to get the worse of what was at best a draw against a #11 fighter and still retain his #1 position when the #2 fighter has recently beat a #3 contender, himself. As a result, Sturm slips below Daniel Geale, who takes over the #1 slot. Macklin is the big winner, as he jumps from #11 to #3. Everyone rated 3-10 last week drops one spot each to accommodate.

For Comparision, here are the current Ring ratings for the division:

Champ: Sergio Martinez

1) Felix Sturm

2) Daniel Geale

3) Paul Williams

4) Matthew Macklin

5) Sebastian Sylvester

6) Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr.

7) Sebastian Zbik

8) Dmitry Pirog

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 (63-63-63)

Last Fight: 3/12/2011- TKO9 JMW #9 Sergiy Dzinziruk

Next Fight: 10/1/2011- vs. #19 Darren Barker

Martinez has reached an agreement to fight Darren Barker. There’s nothing wrong with Barker, who has gotten through multiple gatekeepers and remains undefeated, but it’s still got to be considered a disappointing matchup for the Middleweight Champ, as Barker isn’t even really that close to being a top 10 fighter. There are literally probably a dozen or more better choices that would be willing to take the fight.

1) Daniel Geale (1-106-106)

Last Fight: 5/7/2011- W(SD12) vs. #3 Sebastian Sylvester

Next Fight: 8/31/2011- vs. Eromosele Albert (UNR)

Geale will follow up his huge win over Sylvester by fighting Nigerian gatekeeper Eromosele Albert at the end of August.

2) Felix Sturm (1-406-406)

Last Fight: 6/25/2011- W*(SD12) vs. #11 Matthew Macklin

Next Fight: Unknown

Got a gift against Macklin. I’ll give him credit for a dubious draw, but that’s about the best you could possibly say.

3) Matthew Macklin (1-1-92)

Last Fight: 6/25/2011- L*(SD12) vs. #1 Felix Sturm

Next Fight: Unknown

Almost certainly deserved the nod against Sturm.

4) Paul Williams (1-116-116)

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.

5) Sebastian Sylvester (1-307-307)

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.

6) Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam (1-35-35)

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.

7) Dmitry Pirog (1-48-48)

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, though there are also talks of it landing in an obscure city in Russia.

8) Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. (1-4-22)

Last Fight: 6/4/2011- W(MD12) vs. #19 Sebastian Zbik

Next Fight: Unknown

The name mentioned most often in recent days as Chavez’ next opponent is Peter Manfredo, Jr. Chavez has already begun looking forward to 2012, too, saying he wants Cotto and Martinez.

9) Marco Antonio Rubio (1-12-22)

Last Fight: 6/4/2011- TKO3 Ricardo Ramallo (UNR) (at LHW)

Next Fight: Unknown

Rubio is the mandatory for Chavez, and has recently courteously but very directly challenged Chavez to take that fight.

10) Grzegorz Proksa (1-11-11)

Last Fight: 6/23/2011- TKO2 Peter Vecsei (UNR) (at SMW)

Next Fight: Unknown

Looks to be not ready for prime time when he settles for a 2-1 opponent as he did in June.

11) Anthony Mundine (1-22)

Last Fight: 6/5/2011- TKO7 Xavier Tolliver (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

Staying busy, but guys like Tolliver are mostly a waste of time. Says he wants to move down to 154.

12) Maxim Bursak (4-22)

Last Fight: 5/28/2011- vs. Carlos Jerez (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

Absolutely dominated Jerez.

13) Osumanu Adama (4-14)

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.

14) Garth Wood (4-22)

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.

15) Billy Lyell (11-22)

Last Fight: 5/5/2011- TKO1 Brian Paul (UNR)

Next Fight: 7/1/2011- vs. Michael Walker (UNR)

16) Nobuhiro Ishida (11-12)

Last Fight: 4/9/2011- TKO1 James Kirkland (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

There is some talk of a potential Manfredo-Ishida fight, which would figure to be a fairly even fight.

17) Gennady Golovkin (2-2)

Last Fight: 6/17/2011- KO10 Kassim Ouma (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

Hot prospect Golovkin has finally arrived with a good win over Ouma.

18) Avtandil Khurtsidze (2-22)

Last Fight: 6/11/2011- KO1 Dionisio Miranda (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

Disposed of Miranda (who nearly beat Roman Karmazin not long ago) in surprisingly short order, moving him past future Martinez challenger Barker for now.

19) Darren Barker (2-22)

Last Fight: 4/30/2011- UD12 Domenico Spada (UNR)

Next Fight: 10/1/2011- vs. Champ Sergio Martinez

A couple weeks after announcing a defense of his European title on July 23, Barker has instead signed for a Middleweight Championship shot with Sergio Martinez.

20) Billi Godoy (2-7)

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: Billy Lyell takes on journeyman Michael Walker in Youngstown, Ohio on Friday.

Leave a comment »

Super Middleweight: 2011, Jun 27-Jul 3

Posted in Rankings, Super Middleweight on July 29, 2011 by danboxing

#14 Bryan Vera knocked out low-level journeyman Eloy Suarez, but surprisingly took the full 8 rounds to do it.

Here are The Ring’s top 10 for comparison purposes:
1) Andre Ward

2) Carl Froch

3) Lucian Bute

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 (31-110-110)
Last Fight: 5/14/2011- UD12 #6 Arthur Abraham
Next Fight: Unknown Date- vs. #2 Carl Froch

Will now fight Carl Froch for the Super Six and World Championships, likely in the Fall.

2) Carl Froch (31-263-263)
Last Fight: 6/4/2011- W(MD12) vs. #12 Glen Johnson
Next Fight: Unknown Date- vs. #1 Andre Ward

After doing what he needed to do against Johnson, Froch now has a shot at the World Championship when he fights Ward for the Super Six title.

3) Lucian Bute (31-272-272)
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 (31-342-342)
Last Fight: 6/4/2011- TKO6 Mehdi Bouadla (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown

Kessler has recently been named the mandatory challenger for Robert Stieglitz’ strap, and Kessler’s promoter has referred to a Stieglitz fight as his primary target.
5) Robert Stieglitz (12-96-96)
Last Fight: 4/9/2011- W(DQ10) vs. Khoren Gevor (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown

#4 Kessler has been named Stieglitz’ mandatory challenger, and Kessler appears to want that fight.

6) Arthur Abraham (9-88-88)
Last Fight: 5/14/2011- L(UD12) vs. #1 Andre Ward
Next Fight: Unknown

After initially dismissing the possibility of returning to Middleweight, Abraham has recently told reporters he’s considering it.

7) Dimitri Sartison (8-48-52)
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 (8-9-9)

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. (8-8-8)

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) Thomas Oosthuizen (4-4-52)
Last Fight: 6/4/2011- UD12 William Gare (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown

Most people thought Chilemba deserved the nod in their 2010 draw, but Oosthuizen has beaten the more accomplished fighters outside that fight and earned a top 10 berth.

11) Sakio Bika (4-221)
Last Fight: 11/27/2010- L(UD12) vs. #2 Andre Ward
Next Fight: Unknown

Too talented to be #11, but inactivity, a key foul, and a tendency to fight (and lose to) elite fighters when he does fight have conspired to make Bika start sliding down the rankings.

12) Glen Johnson (11-34)

Last Fight: 6/4/2011- L(MD12) vs. #2 Carl Froch

Next Fight: Unknown

Another close loss for Johnson. At 42, he could conceivably move back up to 175, stay at 168 (where he looks a little bit drained to me), or retire. We’ll keep you posted.

13) Isaac Chilemba (9-52)

Last Fight: 3/26/2011- UD12 Vikapita Meroro (UNR) (at LHW)
Next Fight: Unknown

Chilemba seems to be toying with the idea of moving up to 175. We’ll have to see if he ultimately takes that route or not.

14) Bryan Vera (4-21)

Last Fight: 6/24/2011- KO8 Eloy Suarez (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

Vera is talking about giving #15 Andy Lee a rematch in perhaps October.

15) Andy Lee (4-16)

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.

16) Ezequiel Maderna (4-17)

Last Fight: 5/28/2011- TKO1 Martin Abel Bruer (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

17) Jesse Brinkley (4-52)
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.

18) George Groves (4-6)

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.

19) James DeGale (4-5)

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.

20) Garth Wood (4-4)

Last Fight: 4/13/2011- L(UD10) vs. MW #20 Anthony Mundine (at MW)

Next Fight: Unknown

Wood really backs into the #20 spot by default, as both he and his principal competitor, Allan Green, lack any recent good wins at this weight. Still, they are a cut above some up-and-comers that have yet to reach the same level of achievement.

The Week Ahead: Slow week.

Leave a comment »

Light Heavyweight: 2011, Jun 27-Jul 3

Posted in Light Heavyweight, Rankings on July 29, 2011 by danboxing

Tavoris Cloud vs. Yusaf Mack headlined the week at 175, and I was there to catch all the action from ringside. Mack was knocked down hard in the 8th and beat the count, but failed (it appeared by choice) to walk to the ref afterward, causing the bout to be waved off. I haven’t seen it on TV yet, but I have heard that the fight was considered close at the time of the stoppage. From where I was sitting, I can’t see how. The fight was certainly more tactical than you’d expect from Cloud after seeing him go toe-to-toe with Glen Johnson 10 months ago. He wasn’t beating Mack down to that point, but he was clearly the stronger man and the harder puncher, and appeared to me to be affecting Mack a great deal, wearing him down round after round. I scored each and every round for Cloud, without noticing a single swing round. I thought the 6th was close enough for debate, but that’s about it. I was sitting next to a veteran fighter named Lil Joe Hutchinson, a one-time fringe contender at Welterweight, who saw the fight the same way I did, for what it’s worth.

Polish prospect Dawid Kostecki won a comfortable 10-round decision over gatekeeper Lolenga Mock, who is up from 168, in Poland. Rounding out Saturday’s action, local undefeated prospect Braimah Kamoko won a fairly average decision over solid Namibian journeyman Vikapita Meroro in Accra, Ghana.

Friday, Cuban prospect Sullivan Berrera scored two knockdowns en route to a second-round knockout of 11-1 Frank Paines, who had never beaten anyone. And earlier on Thursday, fringe contender Nadjib Mohammedi of France dominated inexperienced journeyman George Tevdorashvili to a 12-round decision.

Tavoris Cloud holds steady at #3, as Chad Dawson still far outpaces him by beating top 5 contenders on multiple occasions. Mack falls one spot to allow the promotion of Beibut Shumenov to #8. Kostecki, meanwhile, displaces Tony Bellew at #20 based on his victory over Mock and an earlier win over Dario Cichello.

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) Zsolt Erdei

8) Karo Murat
9) Beibut Shumenov

10)Gabriel Campillo

Dan’s Top 20
Champ: Bernard Hopkins (6-264-264)
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 (6-106-106)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- L(UD12) vs. #1 Bernard Hopkins
Next Fight: Unknown

All indications are that Pascal’s next fight will be against either Cloud or Erdei. Pascal was ringside at Cloud-Mack.

2) Chad Dawson (28-265-265)
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 (28-96-96)
Last Fight: 6/25/2011- TKO8 #8 Yusaf Mack
Next Fight: Unknown

Cloud easily handled #8 Mack, but that’s still not enough to move him past Dawson.

4) Glen Johnson (46-419-419)
Last Fight: 6/4/2011- L(UD12) vs. SMW #2 Carl Froch (at SMW)
Next Fight: Unknown

Johnson’s loss to Froch means he retains his ranking at 175 since he can still schedule a light heavy bout before the 1-year anniversary of his close loss to Tavoris Cloud.
5) Gabriel Campillo (46-53-53)
Last Fight: 4/15/2011- TKO5 Sergei Beloshapkin (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown

Campillo might have yet another tune-up (ugh) followed by a decent match-up with Karo Murat on the horizon.

6) Nathan Cleverly (41-73-73)
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 (8-8-8)

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) Beibut Shumenov (1-49-53)

Last Fight: 1/8/2011- KO6 William Joppy (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/29/2011- vs. Danny Santiago (UNR)

After all the talk of unification, it’s a little disappointing that Shumenov is settling for a journeyman coming off a 14-month layoff, but I guess when you consider his promotional issues and opponents failing to show at the last minute, we should be a little grateful he’s fighting at all.

9) Yusaf Mack (1-17-53)
Last Fight: 3/4/2011- W(SD12) vs. #18 Otis Griffin
Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. #3 Tavoris Cloud

Mack looks a little too small to compete with the top guys at this weight, but still has a good enough resume to avoid dropping too far.

10) Dmitri Sukhotski (6-6-35)

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 (8-216)
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 (6-24)

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 (6-32)

Last Fight: 6/4/2011- KO6 Byron Mitchell (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

There is some buzz at present about a potential fight with Pascal.

14) Danny McIntosh (6-53)
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 (6-8)

Last Fight: 5/7/2011- TKO11 #17 Otis Griffin

Next Fight: Unknown

Reportedly looking to fight Gabriel Campillo in the fall.

16) Thierry Karl (6-53)

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 (6-24)

Last Fight: 11/6/2010- TKO2 Byron Mitchell (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

18) Dyah Davis (6-14)

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 (6-12)

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) Dawid Kostecki (1-1)

Last Fight: 6/25/2011- UD10 Lolenga Mock (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

The Week Ahead: The division takes another breather this week.

Leave a comment »

Cruiserweight: 2011, Jun 27-Jul 3

Posted in Cruiserweight, Rankings on July 28, 2011 by danboxing

#20 Mateusz Masternak became the first man to stop Latvian designated opponent Arturs Kulikauskis. Kulikauskis is absolutely terrible at winning, but until this week had proved excellent at surviving. Kulikauskis managed to last to the 7th round of a scheduled 8, so at least Masternak got some work in. Gatekeeper Valery Brudov destroyed the equally bad but less durable Jim Franklin on the Alexander/Matthysse card in St. Charles, MO, knocking Franklin down 3 times in one round and change before the fight was stopped.

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 (164*-367-367)

Last Fight: 2/12/2011- UD12 #14 Enad Licina

Next Fight: 8/26/2011- vs. Unknown Opponent

* Not actually sure how long he’s been rated #1, but it has been at least this number of weeks.

Cunningham has a date on 8/26 in Germany, with an opponent TBA.

2) Marco Huck (53-238-238)

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 (28-73-73)

Last Fight: 5/21/2011- TKO10 Roy Jones, Jr. (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

At last check, there were talks underway to fight Wlodarczyk.

4) Ola Afolabi (28-120-120)

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 (20-53-53)

Last Fight: 2/12/2011- KO7 #12 Steve Herelius

Next Fight: Unknown

Hernandez’ 6/25 date was nixed when Guillermo Jones canceled his fight scheduled the same day due to “injury.” It appears both sides want the Hernandez-Jones fight sooner rather than later.

6) Guillermo Jones (13-39-39)

Last Fight: 10/2/2010- TKO11 Valery Brudov (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

See Hernandez’ notes, above.

7) Danny Green (13-82-82)

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 (13-314-314)

Last Fight: 4/2/2011- W(SD12*) vs. Francisco Palacios (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

Might be negotiating for a fight with Lebedev.

9) Giacobbe Fragomeni (32-137-137)

Last Fight: 4/30/2011- TKO7 Laszlo Hubert (UNR)

Next Fight: 7/8/2011- vs. Remijius Ziausys (UNR)

Now set to fight journeyman Ziausys.

10) Alexander Frenkel (32-32-41)

Last Fight: 9/18/2010- KO7 #12 Enzo Maccarinelli

Next Fight: 7/18/2011- vs. Silvio Branco (UNR)

Frenkel-Branco has been postponed to 7/18.

11) B.J. Flores (17-53)

Last Fight: 11/17/2010- L(UD12) vs. #9 Danny Green

Next Fight: 7/23/2011- vs. Nick Iannuzzi (UNR)

Will come home to Southwest Missouri to fight Nick Iannuzzi in a fight I will likely see live.

12) Francisco Palacios (13-13)

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) Lateef Kayode (3-32)

Last Fight: 6/10/2011- UD10 #19 Matt Godfrey

Next Fight: Unknown

Completely outclassed and beat down Matt Godfrey.

14) Troy Ross (3-122)

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.

15) Steve Herelius (3-52)

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.

16) Enad Licina (3-53)

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.

17) Enzo Maccarinelli (3-53)

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.

18) Alexander Alexeev (13-24)

Last Fight: 6/11/2011- TKO2 Damian Norris (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

After a year of no-hopers, it’s time for him to challenge himself again.

19) Matt Godfrey (13-129)

Last Fight: 6/10/2011- L(UD10) vs. #17 Lateef Kayode

Next Fight: Unknown

Appears destined for journeyman status, but this division is so shallow he might be a fixture in the top 20 for a while yet.

20) Mateusz Masternak (13-17)

Last Fight: 6/25/2011- TKO7 Arturs Kulikauskis (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

THE WEEK AHEAD: #4 Ola Afolabi takes on gatekeeper Terry Dunstan in Hamburg on Saturday in the division’s only meaningful action.

Leave a comment »

Heavyweight: 2011, Jun 27-Jul 3

Posted in Heavyweight, Rankings on July 28, 2011 by danboxing

In a fight that I saw from the 2nd row, #20 Ray Austin mostly cruised through the first 5 rounds, keeping Hatian-Canadian puncher Bermane Stiverne- a fringe prospect- at bay with a busy jab and occasional stiff right hand. Stiverne’s pressure (though not necessarily his punch output) began to catch up with Austin in the 6th, and I had the fight even after 9 rounds and a point deduction against Austin. In the 10th, Stiverne dropped Austin with a right hand to the top of the head that caught the older man in an awkward position. Austin had been badly hurt multiple times in the fight but always recovered quickly. This time, Austin beat the count, but referee Mike England waved the fight off. Austin was legitimately on wobbly legs, but he was not so defenseless that I believe the fight should have been stopped at that point, especially given his quick recoveries earlier in the night and the closeness of the contest. Nevertheless, Stiverne appeared as if he was coming on in the fight and was likely to pull out a victory regardless. Whether Stiverne will ultimately rise to the top of the division remains to be seen. He hadn’t proven anything prior to the fight, and struggled with Austin’s boxing skills and height through most of the contest. He does have really good power, but he may run into the same problem that Arthur Abraham has suffered from recently- being soundly outboxed because of a tendency to load up instead of firing. I certainly don’t see Stiverne beating a Klitschko, since the brothers have a similar style to Austin but are much more athletic and powerful.

After the fight, I spoke to Austin, who said he didn’t know who he’d fight next. He said it would definitely be a tune-up. Fair enough. Austin is 40 years old and has lost two tough battles with up-and-coming power punchers in a row. He deserves a bit of a breather, as long as he understands his hopes of ever getting to the division’s upper crust are more or less lost at this point. I must say Austin was very cordial and gracious in speaking to me at the end of the night. Stiverne was also approachable, but I didn’t attempt to speak to him much because I wasn’t sure how good his English would be. With a bad loss and equally bad draw now well behind him, Stiverne checks in at #16. Austin naturally is forced out.

In other action, Lebanese/Syrian prospect Manuel Charr stopped former contender and current journeyman Danny Williams in the 7th in Cologne, while prospects Kevin Johnson and Travis Walker each stopped bad opponents in Georgia.

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 (105-318-318)

Last Fight: 9/11/2010- KO10 #6 Samuel Peter

Next Fight: 7/2/2011- vs. #2 David Haye

It appears Wlad-Haye is really going to happen this time.

1) Vitali Klitschko (142-142-142)

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 (65-119-119)

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 (20-117-117)

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 (13-13-57)

Last Fight: 4/2/2011- KO9 #6 Samuel Peter

Next Fight: 8/27/2011- vs. Sergei Liakhovich (UNR)

Helenius-Liakhovich is set for August 27 in Germany.

5) Alexander Povetkin (13-192-192)

Last Fight: 12/18/2010- UD8 Nicolai Firtha (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

Povetkin-Chagaev now looks very likely.

6) Ruslan Chagaev (13-241-241)

Last Fight: 11/19/2010- UD8 Travis Walker (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

See Povetkin’s comments above.

7) Tomasz Adamek (22-62-62)

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 (22-57-57)

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 (22-57-57)

Last Fight: 12/4/2010- TKO4 Harold Sconiers (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

Treading water like nobody’s business.

10) Odlanier Solis (28-28-57)

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 (14-24)

Last Fight: 3/26/2011- TKO12 Albert Sosnowski (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

Appears likely to fight journeyman Michael Sprott on either August 19 or 20.

12) Chris Arreola (14-119)

Last Fight: 5/27/2011- TKO7 Kendrick Releford (UNR)

Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. Friday Ahunanya (UNR)

Arreola’s opponent for the 7/9 Showtime fight is journeyman Friday Ahunanya.

13) Denis Boytsov (14-106)

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 (14-41)

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 (14-57)

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) Bermane Stiverne (1-1)

Last Fight: 6/25/2011- TKO10 #20 Ray Austin

Next Fight: Unknown

The only thing impressive about Stiverne’s performance against Austin was his power, but a win is a win.

17) Samuel Peter (1-57)

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.

18) Franklin Lawrence (1-5)

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.

19) Kubrat Pulev (1-33)

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.

20) Francesco Pianeta (1-57)

Last Fight: 4/2/2011- TKO3 Ivica Perkovic (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

Cancer survivor Pianeta is staying busy, but not against credible opposition.

THE WEEK AHEAD: Wlad vs. David Haye from Hamburg on HBO on Saturday is the most significant fight in the division since at least Wlad vs. Chagaev two years ago and probably since Vitali vs. Lewis. It’s almost funny to even mention any other heavyweight fight this week, but middling prospect Johnathan Banks will take on the aptly named but mostly inept 7’1″ journeyman Julius Long in Flint, Michigan, as well.

Leave a comment »

Junior Middleweight: 2011, Jun 20-26

Posted in Junior Middleweight, Rankings on July 25, 2011 by danboxing

The first notable fight this week was the Friday Night Fights main event between Fernando Guerrero- my #20 Middleweight- and quatrogenarian gatekeeper Grady Brewer, who won the second season of The Contender in 2006. Brewer appeared in the better condition of the two despite his age and perhaps because of Guerrero’s weight of 153- the lowest of his career, and was the aggressor throughout. The first two rounds were both very close, and Guerrero appeared to be taking control in the third, but the fourth was a different story as Guerrero, apparently exhausted, fell forward during a prolonged all-out assault by Brewer as referee Jon Shorle stepped in to stop the fight. The result was just another in a long line of big upsets on Friday Night Fights this year.

The biggest fight of the week, however, was the HBO-televised tilt between #8 Saul “Canelo” Alvarez and the #7 contender, England’s Ryan Rhodes, in Guadalajara. I honestly expected a tight battle, but Rhodes simply failed to compete. He was passive when faced with Canelo’s power. He looked physically weak compared to his opponent and quite surprisingly made Canelo’s prior opponent Matthew Hatton look like a relative world-beater. Alvarez completely dominated the bout with a fighter that appeared a match for him going in.

In other action, France’s Cedric Vitu handled and stopped Finnish journeyman Kai Kuramaki in 7 for the European Union title.

Now for the rankings updates. Last week’s numbers 1-8 were so bunched up with parity that Kermit Cintron was rated #6 despite having beaten last week’s #1 Alfredo Angulo and not having lost justly since. Saul Alvarez had beaten two fringe contenders and a gatekeeper at 154, and lacked only a top 10 win to really reach the upper echelon. Now that he’s beaten Rhodes, his resume compares very favorably to anyone else in the division. Obviously he moves past Rhodes. He moves past Cintron because Kermit’s only significant wins in the division are now fairly stale and are headlined by a competitive decision over a version of Angulo that was still developing and was not yet ranked in the top 10, two years ago. He moves past Paul Williams, who boasts arguably the best win of any active junior middleweight against then-#2 Verno Phillips, but who has not won meaningfully at 154 since that fight 2 1/2 years ago. He moves past Pawel Wolak, who does have a win over the then-5th-ranked Yuri Foreman, but whose only other significant win was over gatekeeper Ismail Arvin (while a half-pound overweight), and who has also lost to a gatekeeper in Ishe Smith a while back. Also, my sense is that Foreman may have been slightly overrated at #5 and probably wasn’t significantly better than was Rhodes at #7. He moves past Miguel Cotto, who also relies on a win over a 5th-ranked version of Foreman, and who struggled to beat a gatekeeper in Ricardo Mayorga for his only other win at 154. He moves past Cornelius Bundrage, who beat a version of Cory Spinks that would have been ranked 2nd by the Ring had he not been inactive for about 2 weeks too long, but whose next most recent win of note was 2 1/2 years ago and who had lost to lesser competition a couple times during his career as a contender. Finally, he moves past Angulo, since he has beaten a gatekeeper, two fringe contenders, and now the #7-ranked junior middleweight since Angulo’s last fight nearly a year ago. The sheer size of Angulo’s resume is enticing, but ultimately his inactivity costs him the top spot when added to the Cintron loss.

With Grady Brewer’s impressive knockout of Guerrero, he claims the #18 spot, displacing Carlos Molina in what was a close call for me. Brewer has defeated two gatekeepers and a fringe contender (Cornelius Bundrage) in the last 5 years, while Molina has beaten just one gatekeeper. The reason it’s close is that Molina got the better of a fight that was scored a draw with Lara, while Brewer lost to the Cuban prospect convincingly. Nevertheless, Brewer checks in just below his former conqueror in the rankings. Last week’s #20 Joachim Alcine exits the rankings for the first time since I began publishing them.

For Comparision, here are the current Ring ratings for the division:

Champ: Vacant

1) Miguel Cotto

2) Kermit Cintron

3) Alfredo Angulo

4) Saul Alvarez

5) Sechew Powell

6) Vanes Martirosyan

7) Pawel Wolak

8) Sergei Dzinziruk

9) Cornelius Bundrage

10) Austin Trout

Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in Current Position-Weeks in Top 10 if applicable-Weeks in Top 20)

Champ: None

1) Saul Alvarez (1-16-31)

Last Fight: 6/18/2011- UD12 #7 Ryan Rhodes

Next Fight: Unknown

In a division with a lot of parity at the top, Canelo’s victory over Rhodes suffices to earn him the top spot.

2) Alfredo Angulo (1-91-91)

Last Fight: 7/17/2010- TKO1 #8 Joachim Alcine

Next Fight: 8/20/2011- vs. Unknown Opponent

We finally have a return date for Angulo: August 20. Opponent to be determined.

3) Cornelius Bundrage (1-46-46)

Last Fight: 8/7/2010- TKO5 Cory Spinks (UNR)

Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. #11 Sechew Powell

Bundrage-Powell is now official for June 25 in St. Charles, MO. I’ll be there ringside.

4) Miguel Cotto (1-55-55)

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. Chavez is also a possibility.

5) Pawel Wolak (1-15-15)

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.

6) Paul Williams (1-20-20)

Last Fight: 11/20/2010- L (KO2) vs. MW Champ Sergio Martinez (at MW)

Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. #17 Erislandy Lara

Williams will now take on Erislandy Lara after HBO nixed Ishida.

7) Kermit Cintron (1-108-108)

Last Fight: 5/8/2010- L (TD4) vs. MW #2 Paul Williams

Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. #19 Carlos Molina

Now apparently has an opponent for the 7/9 Showtime card in sturdy #18 Carlos Molina.

8) Ryan Rhodes (1-87-87)

Last Fight: 6/18/2011- L(UD12) vs. #8 Saul Alvarez

Next Fight: Unknown

Rhodes’ stock is significantly diminished after being dominated by Alvarez, but he still has a noticeably more complete resume than #9 Arron and thus only slides one position after the defeat.

9) Prince Arron (6-6-6)

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) Austin Trout (2-2-20)

Last Fight: 6/11/2011- UD12 David Lopez (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

An impressive victory over David Lopez in enemy territory has Trout on a steep upward career trajectory.

11) Sechew Powell (2-66)

Last Fight: 3/19/2010- W (MD12) vs. #4 Deandre Latimore

Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. #3 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.

12) Gabriel Rosado (2-20)

Last Fight: 2/26/2011- TKO12 Jamaal Davis (UNR)

Next Fight: 7/15/2011- vs. Allen Conyers (UNR)

Harry Joe Yorgey was injured in training, and recent Carlos Molina victim Allen Conyers has quickly stepped in to take his place.

13) Manny Pacquiao (2-20)

Last Fight: 5/7/2011- UD12 #15 Shane Mosley (at WW)

Next Fight: 11/12/2011- vs. LW Champ Juan Manuel Marquez (at WW)

14) Cory Spinks (2-20)

Last Fight: 8/7/2010- L (TKO5) vs. Cornelius Bundrage

Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. Shakir Ashanti (UNR)

Spinks will now look to rebound from last year’s ugly loss to K9 Bundrage with what should be an easy win against journeyman Shakir Ashanti on the Matthysse-Alexander card in St. Charles.

15) Shane Mosley (2-20)

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.

16) Vanes Martirosyan (2-3)

Last Fight: 6/4/2011- TKO7 Saul Roman (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

17) Erislandy Lara (2-20)

Last Fight: 3/25/2011- Draw (MD10) vs. Carlos Molina (UNR)

Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. #6 Paul Williams

After originally losing out to Nobuhiro Ishida, Lara will fight Williams after Ishida was bumped by HBO.

18) Grady Brewer (1-1)

Last Fight: 6/17/2011- TKO4 JMW #20 Fernando Guerrero

Next Fight: Unknown

For a guy that’s often considered a journeyman, Brewer has compiled a nice little resume with the Guerrero win.

19) Carlos Molina (1-13)

Last Fight: 4/29/2011- TKO7 Allen Conyers (UNR)

Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. #7 Kermit Cintron

His busy schedule and near-victory over Erislandy Lara has earned him a big fight with Cintron for the Rios-Antillon undercard.

20) Yuri Foreman (1-90)

Last Fight: 3/12/2011- L (RTD6) vs. Pawel Wolak (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

The Week Ahead: On the same card in St. Charles, MO (a card I will be attending at ringside), #3 Cornelius Bundrage battles #11 Sechew Powell in a fight that is inexplicably on the non-televised portion of the HBO card, and #14 Cory Spinks- a Bundrage victim in their mutual last fight- takes on journeyman Shakir Ashanti in a fight meant to get him back on the winning track. The same evening in Poland, undefeated prospect Damian Jonak will fight experienced but mediocre Senegalese journeyman Mamadou Thiam.

Leave a comment »

Middleweight: 2011, Jun 20-26

Posted in Middleweight, Rankings on July 22, 2011 by danboxing

#20 Fernando Guerrero fought a division to the south this week and was stopped in 4 rounds by the resurgent Grady Brewer. While this would probably have obligated me to remove him from the rankings anyway, Gennady Golovkin at least made choosing his successor easier by stopping sturdy veteran gatekeeper Kassim Ouma in round 10 Friday in Panama City. Golovkin- a top prospect in the sport- debuts at #17, forcing down everyone ranked #17 and below last week, and bouncing Guerrero after a two-week stint.

In the week’s other action, gatekeeper Makoto Fuchigami of Japan stopped journeyman Hidenori Tajima for the Japanese title in Tokyo on Monday. On Friday, former Welterweight Champion Carlos Baldomir dominated young journeyman Eduardo Flores (who came in under 154) in Argentina, losing only one round on one card. The same night, 114 fight veteran Yori Boy Campas stopped journeyman Rogelio Medina in 6 from Mexico. Finally on Saturday, 8-0 but untested prospect Nick Blackwell’s corner stopped the fight after 5 rounds with more advanced prospect Martin Murray in England.

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) Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr.

7) Sebastian Zbik

8) Dmitry Pirog

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 (62-62-62)

Last Fight: 3/12/2011- TKO9 JMW #9 Sergiy Dzinziruk

Next Fight: 10/1/2011- vs. #19 Darren Barker

1) Felix Sturm (102-405-405)

Last Fight: 2/19/2011- TKO7 Ronald Hearns (UNR)

Next Fight: 6/25/2011- vs. #11 Matthew Macklin

Now officially scheduled to fight #11 Matthew Macklin on June 25 in Cologne, after an original date of July 2 was scrapped.

2) Daniel Geale (7-105-105)

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 (7-115-115)

Last Fight: 11/20/2010- L(KO2) vs. Champ Sergio Martinez

Next Fight: 7/9/2011- vs. JMW #15 Erislandy Lara (at JMW)

4) Sebastian Sylvester (7-306-306)

Last Fight: 5/7/2011- L(SD12) vs. #4 Daniel Geale

Next Fight: Unknown

5) Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam (16-34-34)

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 (16-47-47)

Last Fight: 3/26/2011- UD12 Javier Maciel (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

7) Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. (3-3-21)

Last Fight: 6/4/2011- W(MD12) vs. #19 Sebastian Zbik

Next Fight: Unknown

The name mentioned most often in recent days as Chavez’ next opponent is Peter Manfredo, Jr. Chavez has already begun looking forward to 2012, too, saying he wants Cotto and Martinez.

8) Marco Antonio Rubio (3-11-21)

Last Fight: 6/4/2011- TKO3 Ricardo Ramallo (UNR) (at LHW)

Next Fight: Unknown

Rubio is the mandatory for Chavez, and has recently courteously but very directly challenged Chavez to take that fight.

9) Grzegorz Proksa (3-10-10)

Last Fight: 4/15/2011- KO9 #16 Pablo Navascues

Next Fight: 6/23/2011- vs. Peter Vecsei (UNR) (at SMW)

Proksa’s follow-up to the huge win over Navascues is a pointless tune-up against Peter Vecsei, who is just 2-1.

10) Anthony Mundine (3-10-21)

Last Fight: 6/5/2011- TKO7 Xavier Tolliver (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

Staying busy, but guys like Tolliver are mostly a waste of time. Says he wants to move down to 154.

11) Matthew Macklin (3-91)

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.

12) Maxim Bursak (3-21)

Last Fight: 5/28/2011- vs. Carlos Jerez (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

Absolutely dominated Jerez.

13) Osumanu Adama (3-13)

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.

14) Garth Wood (3-21)

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.

15) Billy Lyell (10-21)

Last Fight: 5/5/2011- TKO1 Brian Paul (UNR)

Next Fight: 7/1/2011- vs. Michael Walker (UNR)

16) Nobuhiro Ishida (10-11)

Last Fight: 4/9/2011- TKO1 James Kirkland (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

There is some talk of a potential Manfredo-Ishida fight, which would figure to be a fairly even fight.

17) Gennady Golovkin (1-1)

Last Fight: 6/17/2011- KO10 Kassim Ouma (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

Hot prospect Golovkin has finally arrived with a good win over Ouma.

18) Avtandil Khurtsidze (1-21)

Last Fight: 6/11/2011- KO1 Dionisio Miranda (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

Disposed of Miranda (who nearly beat Roman Karmazin not long ago) in surprisingly short order, moving him past future Martinez challenger Barker for now.

19) Darren Barker (1-21)

Last Fight: 4/30/2011- UD12 Domenico Spada (UNR)

Next Fight: 10/1/2011- vs. Champ Sergio Martinez

A couple weeks after announcing a defense of his European title on July 23, Barker has instead signed for a Middleweight Championship shot with Sergio Martinez.

20) Billi Godoy (1-6)

Last Fight: 5/14/2011- W(TD9) vs. Claudio Abalos (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

The Week Ahead: This week isn’t quite as busy as last week, but we still have three fights featuring top 50 fighters. The most important is Saturday’s alphabet title showdown between #1 Felix Sturm and #11 Matthew Macklin in Cologne, Germany. Obviously the winner is going to tend to be the natural top contender for Martinez. The night before, James Kirkland returns to the ring for the first time since his shocking knockout loss to Nobuhiro Ishida when he takes on weak journeyman Dennis Sharpe in Texas. Wednesday is also in play, as Ghanaian gatekeeper Ossie Duran takes on journeyman Latif Mundy in Newark, New Jersey. #9 Grzegorz Proksa is also in action against a joke of an opponent a division to the North.

Leave a comment »

Super Middleweight: 2011, Jun 20-26

Posted in Rankings, Super Middleweight on July 22, 2011 by danboxing

To quote myself from last week, “No action at 168 this week. Makes my job that much easier.”

Here are The Ring’s top 10 for comparison purposes:
1) Andre Ward

2) Carl Froch

3) Lucian Bute

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 (30-109-109)
Last Fight: 5/14/2011- UD12 #6 Arthur Abraham
Next Fight: Unknown Date- vs. #2 Carl Froch

Will now fight Carl Froch for the Super Six and World Championships, likely in the Fall.

2) Carl Froch (30-262-262)
Last Fight: 6/4/2011- W(MD12) vs. #12 Glen Johnson
Next Fight: Unknown Date- vs. #1 Andre Ward

After doing what he needed to do against Johnson, Froch now has a shot at the World Championship when he fights Ward for the Super Six title.

3) Lucian Bute (30-271-271)
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 (30-341-341)
Last Fight: 6/4/2011- TKO6 Mehdi Bouadla (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown

Kessler has recently been named the mandatory challenger for Robert Stieglitz’ strap, and Kessler’s promoter has referred to a Stieglitz fight as his primary target.
5) Robert Stieglitz (11-95-95)
Last Fight: 4/9/2011- W(DQ10) vs. Khoren Gevor (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown

#4 Kessler has been named Stieglitz’ mandatory challenger, and Kessler appears to want that fight.

6) Arthur Abraham (8-87-87)
Last Fight: 5/14/2011- L(UD12) vs. #1 Andre Ward
Next Fight: Unknown

After initially dismissing the possibility of returning to Middleweight, Abraham has recently told reporters he’s considering it.

7) Dimitri Sartison (7-47-51)
Last Fight: 7/31/2010- UD12 Khoren Gevor (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown

8) Peter Quillin (7-8-8)

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. (7-7-7)

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) Thomas Oosthuizen (3-3-51)
Last Fight: 6/4/2011- UD12 William Gare (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown

Most people thought Chilemba deserved the nod in their 2010 draw, but Oosthuizen has beaten the more accomplished fighters outside that fight and earned a top 10 berth.

11) Sakio Bika (3-220)
Last Fight: 11/27/2010- L(UD12) vs. #2 Andre Ward
Next Fight: Unknown

Too talented to be #11, but inactivity, a key foul, and a tendency to fight (and lose to) elite fighters when he does fight have conspired to make Bika start sliding down the rankings.

12) Glen Johnson (10-33)

Last Fight: 6/4/2011- L(MD12) vs. #2 Carl Froch

Next Fight: Unknown

Another close loss for Johnson. At 42, he could conceivably move back up to 175, stay at 168 (where he looks a little bit drained to me), or retire. We’ll keep you posted.

13) Isaac Chilemba (8-51)

Last Fight: 3/26/2011- UD12 Vikapita Meroro (UNR) (at LHW)
Next Fight: Unknown

Chilemba seems to be toying with the idea of moving up to 175. We’ll have to see if he ultimately takes that route or not.

14) Bryan Vera (3-20)

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 #15 Andy Lee a rematch in perhaps October.

15) Andy Lee (3-15)

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.

16) Ezequiel Maderna (3-16)

Last Fight: 5/28/2011- TKO1 Martin Abel Bruer (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

17) Jesse Brinkley (3-51)
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.

18) George Groves (3-5)

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.

19) James DeGale (3-4)

Last Fight: 5/21/2011- L(MD12*) vs. George Groves (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

20) Garth Wood (3-3)

Last Fight: 4/13/2011- L(UD10) vs. MW #20 Anthony Mundine (at MW)

Next Fight: Unknown

The Week Ahead: Bryan Vera is set to most likely beat down Eloy Suarez in Frisco, Texas this Friday.

Leave a comment »

Light Heavyweight: 2011, Jun 20-26

Posted in Light Heavyweight, Rankings on July 22, 2011 by danboxing

Nothing to see here.

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 (5-263-263)
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 (5-105-105)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- L(UD12) vs. #1 Bernard Hopkins
Next Fight: Unknown

All indications are that Pascal’s next fight will be against either Cloud or Erdei.

2) Chad Dawson (27-264-264)
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 (27-95-95)
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 (45-418-418)
Last Fight: 6/4/2011- L(UD12) vs. SMW #2 Carl Froch (at SMW)
Next Fight: Unknown

Johnson’s loss to Froch means he retains his ranking at 175 since he can still schedule a light heavy bout before the 1-year anniversary of his close loss to Tavoris Cloud.
5) Gabriel Campillo (45-52-52)
Last Fight: 4/15/2011- TKO5 Sergei Beloshapkin (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown

Campillo might have yet another tune-up (ugh) followed by a decent match-up with Karo Murat on the horizon.

6) Nathan Cleverly (40-72-72)
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 (7-7-7)

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 (7-16-52)
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 (5-48-52)

Last Fight: 1/8/2011- KO6 William Joppy (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/29/2011- vs. Danny Santiago (UNR)

10) Dmitri Sukhotski (5-5-34)

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 (7-215)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- L(UD12) vs. #2 Chad Dawson
Next Fight: Unknown

12) Ismayl Sillakh (5-23)

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 (5-31)

Last Fight: 6/4/2011- KO6 Byron Mitchell (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

There is some buzz at present about a potential fight with Pascal.

14) Danny McIntosh (5-52)
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 (5-7)

Last Fight: 5/7/2011- TKO11 #17 Otis Griffin

Next Fight: Unknown

Reportedly looking to fight Gabriel Campillo in the fall.

16) Thierry Karl (5-52)

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 (5-23)

Last Fight: 11/6/2010- TKO2 Byron Mitchell (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

18) Dyah Davis (5-13)

Last Fight: 4/8/2011- UD10* Marcus Johnson (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

19) Marcus Johnson (5-11)

Last Fight: 4/8/2011- L(UD10*) vs. #19 Dyah Davis

Next Fight: Unknown

20) Tony Bellew (5-5)

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: After a two-week respite, the top 50 light heavyweights leap back into action this week.

Leading off on Thursday, French fringe contender Nadjib Mohammedi takes on inexperienced journeyman George Tevdorashvili in France.

Friday, under-the-radar Cuban prospect Sullivan Barrera takes on unproven fringe prospect Frank Paines in Miami.

Saturday is headlined by Tavoris Cloud vs. Yusaf Mack on HBO, a fight I will see from the 2nd row ringside, and one that will have significant implications on the divisional rankings. Another pretty good matchup can be found in Poland, where local prospect Dawid Kostecki takes on gatekeeper Lolenga Mock, who is moving up from 168. Finally, in Accra, Ghana, local undefeated prospect Braimah Kamoko will fight fringe prospect Vikapita Meroro of Namibia for an African alphabet title.

Leave a comment »

Archive for July, 2011

Pages