Cruiserweight: 2013: May 27- Jun 2
Argentine prospect Marcos Ahumada- who would be undefeated but for a ridiculous ruling of a TKO against him when he was cut with an obvious headbutt while leading in the 4th round of his last fight- set the record straight on Friday, knocking out top gatekeeper Alejandro Valori in, poetically, the 4th round. But don’t expect too much from Ahumada in terms of his ranking at this time. In both encounters, Valori- who has fought as high as 261 pounds in his career- met Ahumada- typically a light heavyweight- at a catchweight in the high 170s. I don’t know enough about Valori’s physique to say for sure that he was badly drained at that weight, but it is still a good 20 pounds south of the weight at which he had his greatest success. It can certainly be said that he met Ahumada way over half way. This is similar to the situation of Pawel Glazewski, a light heavyweight for all intents and purposes, who was nevertheless ranked here for beating Roy Jones in the low 180s. He has since been bumped out of the rankings, and Ahumada falls short as well.
1) Guillermo Jones (2-2-2) Last Fight: 5/17/2013- TKO11 #1 Denis Lebedev Next Fight: Unknown Jones wants to fight Wladimir Klitschko (he said the same a couple years ago), but the better bet at the moment appears to be Eddie Chambers at 200. 2) Yoan Pablo Hernandez (37-153-153) Last Fight: 9/15/2012- W*(UD12) vs. #20 Troy Ross Next Fight: Unknown Hernandez pulled out of his scheduled 2/2 fight with Eric Fields with a fractured hand. 3) Troy Ross (37-37-69) Last Fight: 9/15/2012- L*(UD12) vs. #1 Yoan Pablo Hernandez Next Fight: Unknown Quote from Ross’s Twitter: “If the right opportunity arises I will fight again.” That sounds more like a semi-retired fighter than the guy that just outfought the division’s #1 contender. Here’s hoping he starts hunting for good fights like a starving mountain man any second now. 4) Denis Lebedev (2-173-173) Last Fight: 5/17/2013- L (TKO11) vs. Guillermo Jones (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Lebedev says he suffered no long-term damage to his eye, which is lucky.
5) Ola Afolabi (2-220-220) Last Fight: 5/5/2012- Draw* (MD12) vs. #4 Marco Huck Next Fight: 6/8/2013- vs. #8 Marco Huck Sauerland is now promoting the Huck-Afolabi trilogy match after Don King botched it, and has limited the damage to about a month’s delay, with the fight now set for June 8 in Berlin. 6) Krzysztof Wlodarczyk (2-414-414) Last Fight: 9/22/2012- UD12 #13 Francisco Palacios Next Fight: 6/21/2013- vs. Rakhim Chakhkiev (UNR)
Apparently an agreement has been reached for Wlodarczyk to fight undefeated and fringe-contending Russian Olympian Rakhim Chakhkiev in Moscow, June 21. Wlodarczyk will reportedly have a rematch clause in the event he loses.
7) Firat Arslan (2-55-98) Last Fight: 4/27/2013- UD10 Varol Vekiloglu (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Arslan easily handled his first opponent under the Sauerland banner, but disappointed a bit in that he failed to stop him. 8) Marco Huck (2-338-338) Last Fight: 11/3/2012- W*(UD12) vs. #10 Firat Arslan (Robbery) Next Fight: 6/8/2013- vs. #5 Ola Afolabi See Afolabi’s notes, above. 9) Lateef Kayode (2-52-132) Last Fight: 6/2/2012- Draw (SD12) vs. ‘Roided up #3 Antonio Tarver Next Fight: Unknown There are indications that Kayode may be fighting Eddie Chambers next, though it’s unclear whether it is being discussed for cruiser or heavy. 10) Danny Green (2-29-182) Last Fight: 11/21/2012- UD12 Shane Cameron (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Green has been helping an Australian UFC fighter prepare for an upcoming fight, but still no word on whether he plans to fight again. 11) B.J. Flores (2-153) Last Fight: 10/6/2012- TKO2 David McNemar (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Flores appeared to have a fight lined up with Nuri Seferi on June 8 after the better match-up with Palacios fell through, but he hasn’t mentioned it on Twitter in weeks, doesn’t respond to my inquiries about it, and it never showed up on Boxrec. I’m assuming it’s off at this point.
12) Giacobbe Fragomeni (2-237) Last Fight: 12/15/2012- W*(SD12) vs. #13 Silvio Branco Next Fight: Unknown There is some speculation that Masternak might try to lure Fragomeni out of his mandatory shot at Wlodarczyk with a higher monetary offer that might put Masternak in the same position with a victory. 13) Silvio Branco (2-63) Last Fight: 12/15/2012- L*(SD12) vs. #12 Giacobbe Fragomeni Next Fight: Unknown Branco can still hang with whippersnappers like 43 year-old countryman Fragomeni, but you’ve gotta think his active days are numbered at 46. 14) Alexander Alekseev (2-124) Last Fight: 2/22/2013- UD12* Garrett Wilson (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Alekseev barely squeaked by after building an early lead against Wilson, but it’s still an improvement from his previous fight. 15) Mateusz Masternak (2-61) Last Fight: 4/13/2013- TKO9 Sean Corbin (UNR) Next Fight: 8/24/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent Masternak returns on August 24, but no other details are available. 16) Francisco Palacios (2-113) Last Fight: 9/22/2012- L(UD12) vs. #7 Krzysztof Wlodarczyk Next Fight: Unknown Palacios has been trying to convince Antonio Tarver to fight him. 17) Thabiso Mchunu (2-29) Last Fight: 11/10/2012- TKO5 #20 Danie Venter Next Fight: Unknown Mchunu and Eddie Chambers are currently involved in a rather entertaining Twitter war, though Guillermo Jones appears the more likely opponent for Chambers at this moment. 18) Dmytro Kucher (2-48) Last Fight: 3/21/2013- UD12 Julio Cesar Dos Santos (UNR) Next Fight: 7/13/2013- vs. Ilunga Makabu (UNR) A clash of good-looking prospects is on tap for July 13, as Kucher will meet Junior Makabu in Monaco. 19) Enad Licina (2-153) Last Fight: 11/10/2012- TKO2 Koeksal Orduhan Next Fight: 6/15/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent Licina announced a June 15 fight on Twitter, but no opponent yet. 20) Grigory Drozd (2-29) Last Fight: 12/17/2012- UD12 Jean-Marc Monrose (UNR) Next Fight: 6/8/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent Drozd will apparently be fighting in an unpronounceable Russian town in early June, but no opponent has been named yet. That’s assuming his recovery from hand surgery goes according to plan. But an ominous sign has popped up, as it no longer appears on boxrec.
Now for another weird situation. Fringe contending undefeated prospect William Fernando Souza Bezerra had a fight scheduled against journeyman Jose Robson Dos Santos. This fight’s result still does not show up on boxrec, and after googling the heck out of it, I still can’t find any indication that it took place. Boxrec really needs to get an editor for Brazil, and Brazil needs to get some sort of online boxing media. This is getting out of hand. There have been rumors swirling on the internet that Bezerra might not be a real fighter. That is due to the lack of media coverage or even pictures of him in the ring. I can tell you that I was finally able to locate a youtube video of him fighting, so I can verify that he has indeed been inside a prize ring. That being said, even that fight appeared sketchy to me. He scored a knockdown that ended the fight around 10 seconds after the round should have ended, and it seemed to me that the opponent went down from a body shot that barely landed, if at all. The ref didn’t even look like a real ref, as he counted VERY slowly and didn’t even start the count until about 2 seconds after the guy got up. Anyway, unless Bezerra is upset, his fight won’t affect the rankings anyway, so I’ll let it go. I know I have an occasional Brazilian and at least one Bezerra fan reading my blog, so if anyone can hook me up with Bezerra’s results in the future within a couple days of the fight, that would be great.
No changes.
Dan’s Top 20 (weeks in current position-weeks in top 10 (if applicable)-weeks in top 20) Champ: None
1) Guillermo Jones (2-2-2) Last Fight: 5/17/2013- TKO11 #1 Denis Lebedev Next Fight: Unknown Jones wants to fight Wladimir Klitschko (he said the same a couple years ago), but the better bet at the moment appears to be Eddie Chambers at 200. 2) Yoan Pablo Hernandez (37-153-153) Last Fight: 9/15/2012- W*(UD12) vs. #20 Troy Ross Next Fight: Unknown Hernandez pulled out of his scheduled 2/2 fight with Eric Fields with a fractured hand. 3) Troy Ross (37-37-69) Last Fight: 9/15/2012- L*(UD12) vs. #1 Yoan Pablo Hernandez Next Fight: Unknown Quote from Ross’s Twitter: “If the right opportunity arises I will fight again.” That sounds more like a semi-retired fighter than the guy that just outfought the division’s #1 contender. Here’s hoping he starts hunting for good fights like a starving mountain man any second now. 4) Denis Lebedev (2-173-173) Last Fight: 5/17/2013- L (TKO11) vs. Guillermo Jones (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Lebedev says he suffered no long-term damage to his eye, which is lucky.
5) Ola Afolabi (2-220-220) Last Fight: 5/5/2012- Draw* (MD12) vs. #4 Marco Huck Next Fight: 6/8/2013- vs. #8 Marco Huck Sauerland is now promoting the Huck-Afolabi trilogy match after Don King botched it, and has limited the damage to about a month’s delay, with the fight now set for June 8 in Berlin. 6) Krzysztof Wlodarczyk (2-414-414) Last Fight: 9/22/2012- UD12 #13 Francisco Palacios Next Fight: 6/21/2013- vs. Rakhim Chakhkiev (UNR)
Apparently an agreement has been reached for Wlodarczyk to fight undefeated and fringe-contending Russian Olympian Rakhim Chakhkiev in Moscow, June 21. Wlodarczyk will reportedly have a rematch clause in the event he loses.
7) Firat Arslan (2-55-98) Last Fight: 4/27/2013- UD10 Varol Vekiloglu (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Arslan easily handled his first opponent under the Sauerland banner, but disappointed a bit in that he failed to stop him. 8) Marco Huck (2-338-338) Last Fight: 11/3/2012- W*(UD12) vs. #10 Firat Arslan (Robbery) Next Fight: 6/8/2013- vs. #5 Ola Afolabi See Afolabi’s notes, above. 9) Lateef Kayode (2-52-132) Last Fight: 6/2/2012- Draw (SD12) vs. ‘Roided up #3 Antonio Tarver Next Fight: Unknown There are indications that Kayode may be fighting Eddie Chambers next, though it’s unclear whether it is being discussed for cruiser or heavy. 10) Danny Green (2-29-182) Last Fight: 11/21/2012- UD12 Shane Cameron (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Green has been helping an Australian UFC fighter prepare for an upcoming fight, but still no word on whether he plans to fight again. 11) B.J. Flores (2-153) Last Fight: 10/6/2012- TKO2 David McNemar (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Flores appeared to have a fight lined up with Nuri Seferi on June 8 after the better match-up with Palacios fell through, but he hasn’t mentioned it on Twitter in weeks, doesn’t respond to my inquiries about it, and it never showed up on Boxrec. I’m assuming it’s off at this point.
12) Giacobbe Fragomeni (2-237) Last Fight: 12/15/2012- W*(SD12) vs. #13 Silvio Branco Next Fight: Unknown There is some speculation that Masternak might try to lure Fragomeni out of his mandatory shot at Wlodarczyk with a higher monetary offer that might put Masternak in the same position with a victory. 13) Silvio Branco (2-63) Last Fight: 12/15/2012- L*(SD12) vs. #12 Giacobbe Fragomeni Next Fight: Unknown Branco can still hang with whippersnappers like 43 year-old countryman Fragomeni, but you’ve gotta think his active days are numbered at 46. 14) Alexander Alekseev (2-124) Last Fight: 2/22/2013- UD12* Garrett Wilson (UNR) Next Fight: Unknown Alekseev barely squeaked by after building an early lead against Wilson, but it’s still an improvement from his previous fight. 15) Mateusz Masternak (2-61) Last Fight: 4/13/2013- TKO9 Sean Corbin (UNR) Next Fight: 8/24/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent Masternak returns on August 24, but no other details are available. 16) Francisco Palacios (2-113) Last Fight: 9/22/2012- L(UD12) vs. #7 Krzysztof Wlodarczyk Next Fight: Unknown Palacios has been trying to convince Antonio Tarver to fight him. 17) Thabiso Mchunu (2-29) Last Fight: 11/10/2012- TKO5 #20 Danie Venter Next Fight: Unknown Mchunu and Eddie Chambers are currently involved in a rather entertaining Twitter war, though Guillermo Jones appears the more likely opponent for Chambers at this moment. 18) Dmytro Kucher (2-48) Last Fight: 3/21/2013- UD12 Julio Cesar Dos Santos (UNR) Next Fight: 7/13/2013- vs. Ilunga Makabu (UNR) A clash of good-looking prospects is on tap for July 13, as Kucher will meet Junior Makabu in Monaco. 19) Enad Licina (2-153) Last Fight: 11/10/2012- TKO2 Koeksal Orduhan Next Fight: 6/15/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent Licina announced a June 15 fight on Twitter, but no opponent yet. 20) Grigory Drozd (2-29) Last Fight: 12/17/2012- UD12 Jean-Marc Monrose (UNR) Next Fight: 6/8/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent Drozd will apparently be fighting in an unpronounceable Russian town in early June, but no opponent has been named yet. That’s assuming his recovery from hand surgery goes according to plan. But an ominous sign has popped up, as it no longer appears on boxrec.
THE WEEK AHEAD: Friday in Georgetown, Guyana, Barbados gatekeeper Shawn Cox takes on local journeyman Kurt Bess in a seemingly pointless rematch of their 2011 fight, in which Cox knocked Bess down 3 times en route to a first round stoppage win. What’s worse- Bess hasn’t fought since.
The following night in Mississauga, Ontario, undefeated and fast-rising local prospect Denton Daley battles high-level French journeyman Faisal Arrami in what should be the toughest fight of Daley’s career, which is only 9 fights deep.
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