Archive for Allan Green

Light Heavyweight: 2013, Oct 21-27

Posted in Light Heavyweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on December 24, 2013 by danboxing
Undefeated Australian prospect Blake Caparello easily out-boxed and out-punched a clearly disinterested Allan Green, who heralded his inauspicious performance by showing up 6.5 pounds overweight for what was supposed to be a minor title fight.   Caparello won by scores of 117-111, 118-110, and 119-109.  I agreed with the first score, since Caparello did take a round or two off himself, but all were reasonable.

 

Hmm…how to evaluate the win.  Allan Green is a relatively big, flashy name, even after a few years of weight issues and inconsistency.  He was kinda-sorta in the Super Six.  He beat Renan St. Juste recently, and showed guts in doing so.  But he also came in overweight for that fight.  In the 3 years since he lost to Glen Johnson in his last fight at 168, he’s made 175 only twice.  And frankly I think he was a fair bit overrated even back then.  I can’t see him as much more than a #35-range gatekeeper at this point, and by his obvious lack of desire, I think that is a bit on the flattering side. 

 

Given that assessment of Green, this ends up going in the books as just a modest step up for Caparello.  He’s now got 3 top-50 wins on his resume, but still hasn’t scored one quite impressive enough to overcome the likes of a Dmitry Sukhotsky.  As a result, he settles in right at the edge of what I call fringe contention- essentially the top 25.

 

Oh, and apparently Hadillah Mohoumadi snuck in a first-round TKO over some nobody named Raimonds Sniedze in France.

 

No changes this week.

 

Dan’s Top 20 (weeks in current position-weeks in top 10 (if applicable)-weeks in top 20)
Champ: Andre Ward (59-59-59)
Last Fight: 9/8/2012- TKO10 Champ Chad Dawson (at SMW)
Next Fight: 11/16/2013- vs. #14 Edwin Rodriguez (at SMW)
After tons of posturing, Ward-Rodriguez is now done for 11/16 in Ontario, California.
1) Adonis Stevenson (20-20-20)
Last Fight: 9/28/2013- TKO7 #8 Tavoris Cloud
Next Fight: 11/30/2013- vs. #6 Tony Bellew
Stevenson is set to fight Tony Bellew on November 30 in a quick turnaround from his fight two months earlier.
2) Bernard Hopkins (59-385-385)
Last Fight: 3/9/2012- UD12 #6 Tavoris Cloud
Next Fight: 10/26/2013- vs. Karo Murat (UNR)
Hopkins-Murat has been reset for October 26, with Showtime televising.
3) Sergey Kovalev (19-40-40)
Last Fight: 8/17/2013- TKO4 #8 Nathan Cleverly
Next Fight: 11/30/2013- vs. Ismayl Sillakh (UNR)
Kovalev will fight Ismayl Sillakh on a twin bill with Stevenson-Bellew on HBO November 30.
4) Chad Dawson (19-386-386)
Last Fight: 6/8/2013- L(TKO1) vs. SMW #6 Adonis Stevenson
Next Fight: Unknown
Dawson may be returning sometime in November.
5) Andrzej Fonfara (10-10-67)
Last Fight: 8/16/2013- KO9 #6 Gabriel Campillo
Next Fight: 12/6/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent
Fonfara will return on December 6, on the Chicago undercard of Wlodarczyk-Fragomeni III.
6) Tony Bellew (10-106-106)
Last Fight: 5/25/2013- UD12 #7 Isaac Chilemba
Next Fight: 11/30/2013- vs. #1 Adonis Stevenson
Bellew will fight Stevenson on his November 30 birthday.
7) Gabriel Campillo (10-174-174)
Last Fight: 8/16/2013- L (KO9) vs. #14 Andrzej Fonfara
Next Fight: Unknown
Campillo might be on his way to deserved obscurity after being robbed of deserved prominence for so much of his career.  He still has plenty of boxing skill, but his will might be fading just a bit.
8) Tavoris Cloud (10-217-217)
Last Fight: 9/28/2013- L (TKO7) vs. #1 Adonis Stevenson
Next Fight: Unknown
Cloud should probably get himself back in the win column at some point.
9) Nathan Cleverly (10-194-194)
Last Fight: 8/17/2013- L (TKO4) vs. #3 Sergey Kovalev
Next Fight: Unknown
After originally indicating retirement as a possibility, Cleverly has now called for a rematch with Kovalev.  He obviously could stand to rebuild a bit first, though.  More recently, he’s hinted at a possible move to Cruiser.
10) Isaac Chilemba (10-30-90)
Last Fight: 5/25/2013- L (UD12) vs. #9 Tony Bellew
Next Fight: 11/16/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent
Chilemba has recently signed with Main Events, the Northeastern US-based promotional outfit whose NBC affiliation has them solidly in the 2nd tier of American promotional firms, behind Golden Boy and Top Rank.  They’ll have him back in the ring on November 16 in New York.
11) Cornelius White (10-97)
Last Fight: 6/14/2013- L (TKO3) vs. #5 Sergey Kovalev
Next Fight: Unknown
White was blasted out by Kovalev, but at least he has good company in that regard.
12) Jürgen Brähmer (9-79)
Last Fight: 8/24/2013- UD12 Stefano Abatangelo (UNR)
Next Fight: 12/14/2013- vs. Marcus Oliveira (UNR)
Since getting dominated in your title fight, fighting journeymen, and then taking two years off is the required resume for becoming a WBA Super Champion, Beibut Shumenov has now assumed that dubious title.  Braehmer will now fight prospect Marcus Oliveira for the “regular” title on December 14 in Neubrandenburg, Germany.
13) Cedric Agnew (9-28)
Last Fight: 4/12/2013- UD12 #14 Yusaf Mack
Next Fight: Unknown
Agnew was approved by HBO as a potential November 30 opponent for Kovalev, but reportedly turned down the opportunity.
14) Edwin Rodriguez (10-15)
Last Fight: 7/13/2013- TKO1 #16 Denis Grachev
Next Fight: 11/16/2013- vs. Champ Andre Ward (at SMW)
See Ward’s notes, above.
15) Lucian Bute (15-51)
Last Fight: 11/3/2012- UD12 #16 Denis Grachev
Next Fight: 1/18/2014- vs. Jean Pascal (UNR)
Bute-Pascal has been pushed back to January 18.
16) Hadillah Mohoumadi (15-17)
Last Fight: 10/17/2013- TKO1 Raimonds Sniedze (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
17) Eleider Alvarez (4-39)
Last Fight: 9/28/2013- UD10 Edison Miranda (UNR)
Next Fight: 1/18/2013- vs. #6 SMW Thomas Oosthuizen
Alvarez is scheduled to fight Oosthuizen in January, but likely only if Oosthuizen gets past Maderna in November.
18) Enzo Maccarinelli (4-10)
Last Fight: 8/17/2013- TKO11 Ovill McKenzie (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Maccarinelli has revitalized his career to an extent with the gutsy McKenzie win.
19) Denis Grachev (4-78)
Last Fight: 7/13/2013- L (TKO1) vs. #13 SMW Edwin Rodriguez
Next Fight: Unknown
20) Dmitry Sukhotsky (4-156)
Last Fight: 6/4/2013- KO3 Mikhail Krinitsin (UNR) (at SMW)
Next Fight: 11/23/2013- vs. Eduard Gutknecht (UNR)
Looks like Sukhotsky is returning to 175 just in the nick of time to save his ranking, clashing with former 168 contender Eddy Gutknecht on November 23.

 

The Week Ahead: The big fight this week features #2 Bernard Hopkins- now closing in on 49 years old- looking to continue his improbable streak of wins at his advanced age, and doing so against a pretty solid and possibly underrated opponent in Karo Murat.  I believe Murat was ranked around #6 when he was removed due to his failure to schedule a fight after being snubbed by Nathan Cleverly for a title shot, and he earned a draw with Campillo to get there.  He’s obviously not the name that Pascal and Cloud were, but both of those guys fought with flawed game plans that allowed the geriatric Hopkins to cruise to victories that were much easier than they ought to have been.  If Murat just fights an honest, aggressive fight, he should be more than capable of testing Hopkins- especially if he’s been winning partly on smoke and mirrors as I rather suspect.  We’ll find out Saturday, in Atlantic City and on Showtime.

 

Earlier in the night, on the Arthur Abraham undercard in Oldenburg, undefeated but crude German prospect Robert Woge will take a major step up in competition against Ukrainian gatekeeper Anatoliy Dudchenko.  Dudchenko is unofficially ranked #31 in my private rankings, while Woge barely escaped his last major outing, hitting what was akin to an 11-run homer in knocking out Hakim Zoulikha in the 11th round after not legitimately winning any of the first ten.  I strongly favor Dudchenko to get the better of the contest, but it’s hard to beat a Sauerland fighter on a Sauerland card.  Case in point- in the aforementioned Woge-Zoulikha fight, all of the pathetic judges had Woge up, and two of them had him up big.  That, in a fight that was 98-92 Zoulikha at the absolute minimum.  Needless to say, I’ll probably watch this one for accuracy even if Woge wins what looks like a clear decision.

Light Heavyweight: 2013, Oct 14-20

Posted in Light Heavyweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on December 20, 2013 by danboxing
Thursday in Auckland, New Zealand fringe contender Robert Berridge predictably knocked out low-level Argentine journeyman Mariano Riva in three rounds.  

 

The following night in Parkville, Australia, middleweight prospect Jarrod Fletcher won every round of a 6-rounder against low-level Queensland journeyman Tim Kanofski.

 

Saturday in Guarulhos, Brazil, one-loss Brazilian prospect Jackson Junior got probably as big a win as he’s had since winning the Brazilian title a couple years ago, stopping veteran Argentine journeyman Francisco Mora in three.

 

Dan’s Top 20 (weeks in current position-weeks in top 10 (if applicable)-weeks in top 20)
Champ: Andre Ward (58-58-58)
Last Fight: 9/8/2012- TKO10 Champ Chad Dawson (at SMW)
Next Fight: 11/16/2013- vs. #14 Edwin Rodriguez (at SMW)
After tons of posturing, Ward-Rodriguez is now done for 11/16 in Ontario, California.
1) Adonis Stevenson (19-19-19)
Last Fight: 9/28/2013- TKO7 #8 Tavoris Cloud
Next Fight: 11/30/2013- vs. #6 Tony Bellew
Stevenson is set to fight Tony Bellew on November 30 in a quick turnaround from his fight two months earlier.
2) Bernard Hopkins (58-384-384)
Last Fight: 3/9/2012- UD12 #6 Tavoris Cloud
Next Fight: 10/26/2013- vs. Karo Murat (UNR)
Hopkins-Murat has been reset for October 26, with Showtime televising.
3) Sergey Kovalev (18-39-39)
Last Fight: 8/17/2013- TKO4 #8 Nathan Cleverly
Next Fight: 11/30/2013- vs. Ismayl Sillakh (UNR)
Kovalev will fight Ismayl Sillakh on a twin bill with Stevenson-Bellew on HBO November 30.
4) Chad Dawson (18-385-385)
Last Fight: 6/8/2013- L(TKO1) vs. SMW #6 Adonis Stevenson
Next Fight: Unknown
Dawson may be returning sometime in November.
5) Andrzej Fonfara (9-9-66)
Last Fight: 8/16/2013- KO9 #6 Gabriel Campillo
Next Fight: Unknown
See Kovalev’s notes, above.
6) Tony Bellew (9-105-105)
Last Fight: 5/25/2013- UD12 #7 Isaac Chilemba
Next Fight: 11/30/2013- vs. #1 Adonis Stevenson
Bellew will fight Stevenson on his November 30 birthday.
7) Gabriel Campillo (9-173-173)
Last Fight: 8/16/2013- L (KO9) vs. #14 Andrzej Fonfara
Next Fight: Unknown
Campillo might be on his way to deserved obscurity after being robbed of deserved prominence for so much of his career.  He still has plenty of boxing skill, but his will might be fading just a bit.
8) Tavoris Cloud (9-216-216)
Last Fight: 9/28/2013- L (TKO7) vs. #1 Adonis Stevenson
Next Fight: Unknown
Cloud should probably get himself back in the win column at some point.
9) Nathan Cleverly (9-193-193)
Last Fight: 8/17/2013- L (TKO4) vs. #3 Sergey Kovalev
Next Fight: Unknown
After originally indicating retirement as a possibility, Cleverly has now called for a rematch with Kovalev.  He obviously could stand to rebuild a bit first, though.  More recently, he’s hinted at a possible move to Cruiser.
10) Isaac Chilemba (9-29-89)
Last Fight: 5/25/2013- L (UD12) vs. #9 Tony Bellew
Next Fight: 11/16/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent
Chilemba has recently signed with Main Events, the Northeastern US-based promotional outfit whose NBC affiliation has them solidly in the 2nd tier of American promotional firms, behind Golden Boy and Top Rank.  They’ll have him back in the ring on November 16 in New York.
11) Cornelius White (9-96)
Last Fight: 6/14/2013- L (TKO3) vs. #5 Sergey Kovalev
Next Fight: Unknown
White was blasted out by Kovalev, but at least he has good company in that regard.
12) Jürgen Brähmer (8-78)
Last Fight: 8/24/2013- UD12 Stefano Abatangelo (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown Date- vs. Marcus Oliveira (UNR)
Since getting dominated in your title fight, fighting journeymen, and then taking two years off is the required resume for becoming a WBA Super Champion, Beibut Shumenov has now assumed that dubious title.  Braehmer will now fight prospect Marcus Oliveira for the “regular” title.  The fight will reportedly be held later this year, likely in Berlin.
13) Cedric Agnew (8-27)
Last Fight: 4/12/2013- UD12 #14 Yusaf Mack
Next Fight: Unknown
Agnew was approved by HBO as a potential November 30 opponent for Kovalev, but reportedly turned down the opportunity.
14) Edwin Rodriguez (9-14)
Last Fight: 7/13/2013- TKO1 #16 Denis Grachev
Next Fight: 11/16/2013- vs. Champ Andre Ward (at SMW)
See Ward’s notes, above.
15) Lucian Bute (14-50)
Last Fight: 11/3/2012- UD12 #16 Denis Grachev
Next Fight: 1/18/2014- vs. Jean Pascal (UNR)
Bute-Pascal has been pushed back to January 18.
16) Hadillah Mohoumadi (14-16)
Last Fight: 6/29/2013- TKO7 CW #20 Pawel Glazewski
Next Fight: Unknown
Mohoumadi’s fight with De Carolis was briefly rescheduled, but then appears to have been cancelled entirely.
17) Eleider Alvarez (3-38)
Last Fight: 9/28/2013- UD10 Edison Miranda (UNR)
Next Fight: 1/18/2013- vs. #6 SMW Thomas Oosthuizen
18) Enzo Maccarinelli (3-9)
Last Fight: 8/17/2013- TKO11 Ovill McKenzie (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Maccarinelli has revitalized his career to an extent with the gutsy McKenzie win.
19) Denis Grachev (3-77)
Last Fight: 7/13/2013- L (TKO1) vs. #13 SMW Edwin Rodriguez
Next Fight: Unknown
20) Dmitry Sukhotsky (3-155)
Last Fight: 6/4/2013- KO3 Mikhail Krinitsin (UNR) (at SMW)
Next Fight: 11/23/2013- vs. Eduard Gutknecht (UNR)
Looks like Sukhotsky is returning to 175 just in the nick of time to save his ranking, clashing with former 168 contender Eddy Gutknecht on November 23.

 

The Week Ahead: Thursday in Flemington, Australia, fringe contending undefeated local prospect Blake Caparello battles veteran gatekeeper Allan Green.

Light Heavyweight: 2013, Jul 1-7

Posted in Light Heavyweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on July 4, 2013 by danboxing
#17 Super Middleweight Hadillah Mohoumadi moved up on Saturday, taking on should-be undefeated prospect Pawel Glazewski in Ostrada, Poland, and coming up with a win in his opponent’s backyard by way of TKO in round 7.  Glazewski had previously been robbed of a clear win over Roy Jones, and Mohoumadi was arguably heisted against James DeGale and Nikola Sjekloca. 

 

Fringe contender Ismayl Sillakh appeared in Montebello, California on Friday against no-account journeyman Alvaro Enriquez, but it was several pounds over the limit, his third consecutive cruiserweight fight.  For what it’s worth, he scored a knockout in less than 2 minutes.

 

With his win, Mohoumadi adds a light heavyweight ranking to his 168-pound resume, debuting at #15.  This forces last week’s #20 Glen Johnson out of the rankings after 7 consecutive weeks in.

 

Dan’s Top 20 (weeks in current position-weeks in top 10 (if applicable)-weeks in top 20)
Champ: Andre Ward (43-43-43)
Last Fight: 9/8/2012- TKO10 Champ Chad Dawson (at SMW)
Next Fight: Unknown
Ward has offers more or less on the table to fight Froch or Stevenson.  He is trying to split with promoter Dan Goossen, though, which could conceivably complicate matters.
1) Adonis Stevenson (4-4-4)
Last Fight: 6/8/2013- TKO1 #1 Chad Dawson
Next Fight: Unknown
Stevenson and Hopkins reportedly wanted to fight each other, but HBO threw a tantrum and won’t do business with Hopkins because he’s a Golden Boy fighter.  Way to hurt the sport, HBO.  We really needed more of that.
2) Bernard Hopkins (43-369-369)
Last Fight: 3/9/2012- UD12 #6 Tavoris Cloud
Next Fight: Unknown
Murat’s visa issue appears to have been cleared up, and there is talk of the fight being rescheduled for September 21.  Kovalev was briefly the mandatory, but he has signed to fight Cleverly.
3) Sergey Kovalev (3-24-24)
Last Fight: 6/14/2013- TKO3 #10 Cornelius White
Next Fight: 8/17/2013- vs. #8 Nathan Cleverly
Kovalev had the inside track to fight Hopkins, but instead opted for a sure thing against Cleverly.
4) Chad Dawson (3-370-370)
Last Fight: 6/8/2013- L(TKO1) vs. SMW #6 Adonis Stevenson
Next Fight: Unknown
Dawson’s career is suddenly in an all-out tailspin just 2 fights after winning the lineal title from Hopkins.
5) Tony Bellew (3-90-90)
Last Fight: 5/25/2013- UD12 #7 Isaac Chilemba
Next Fight: Unknown
Bellew’s ultimate triumph over Chilemba has now set him up with a mandatory shot at Stevenson, which would continue the trend of the best fighting the best at 175.
6) Gabriel Campillo (4-158-158)
Last Fight: 6/14/2013- TKO2 Ionut Trandafir Ilie (UNR)
Next Fight: 8/16/2013- vs. #13 Andrzej Fonfara
Campillo will fight Fonfara in an interesting crossroads fight at Comiskey Park in Chicago.
7) Tavoris Cloud (4-201-204)
Last Fight: 3/9/2013- L (UD12) vs. #2 Bernard Hopkins
Next Fight: Unknown
There is apparently HBO interest in Stevenson-Cloud, but nothing solid at this point.
8) Nathan Cleverly (4-178-178)
Last Fight: 4/20/2013- UD12 Robin Krasniqi (UNR)
Next Fight: 8/17/2013- vs. #3 Sergey Kovalev
Kovalev-Cleverly is done for 8/17 in Cardiff, with HBO to televise in the states.
9) Isaac Chilemba (4-14-74)
Last Fight: 5/25/2013- L (UD12) vs. #9 Tony Bellew
Next Fight: Unknown
Chilemba may have lost the second fight to Bellew in his opponent’s back yard, but between the two fights, he’s managed to elevate himself somewhat.
10) Cornelius White (4-51-81)
Last Fight: 6/14/2013- L (TKO3) vs. #5 Sergey Kovalev
Next Fight: Unknown
White was blasted out by Kovalev, but at least he has good company in that regard.
11) Cedric Agnew (4-12)
Last Fight: 4/12/2013- UD12 #14 Yusaf Mack
Next Fight: Unknown
Agnew may have caught a fading Yusaf Mack at the right time, but he’s clearly a climber, having now beaten both Mack and Otis Griffin.
12) Jürgen Brähmer (4-63)
Last Fight: 4/27/2013- TKO2 Tony Averlant (UNR)
Next Fight: 8/24/2013- vs. Stefano Abatangelo (UNR)
Braehmer will take on low-level Italian gatekeeper Abatangelo on August 24, while awaiting a title shot.
13) Andrzej Fonfara (4-51)
Last Fight: 11/16/2012- TKO7 Tommy Karpency (UNR)
Next Fight: 8/16/2013- vs. #6 Gabriel Campillo
Fonfara will get a huge opportunity to launch himself into the top 5 when he takes on Gabriel Campillo in Chicago.
14) Lucian Bute (4-35)
Last Fight: 11/3/2012- UD12 #16 Denis Grachev
Next Fight: 12/7/2013- vs. Jean Pascal (UNR)
Bute-Pascal has been rescheduled tentatively for December 7 after Bute suffered a hand injury.  They’ve also reserved January 25 as a back-up plan.  Either way, it will be in Montreal.
15) Hadillah Mohoumadi (1-1)
Last Fight: 6/29/2013- TKO7 CW #20 Pawel Glazewski
Next Fight: Unknown
Often robbed at 168, Mohoumadi took matters into his hands in his first major outing at 175 by stopping the local favorite.
16) Denis Grachev (1-62)
Last Fight: 3/30/2013– W* (SD10) vs. Zsolt Erdei (UNR) (should be draw)
Next Fight: 7/13/2013- vs. SMW #13 Edwin Rodriguez
Grachev will be fighting Edwin Rodriguez at a catchweight of 171.5 in Monte Carlo for a million dollar prize.
17) Dmitry Sukhotsky (1-140)
Last Fight: 6/4/2013- KO3 Mikhail Krinitsin (UNR) (at SMW)
Next Fight: Unknown
Sukhotski may be sticking around at 168 from now on, but only time will tell.  He has until December to schedule a fight at 175 if he wants to keep his ranking.
18) Eleider Alvarez (1-23)
Last Fight: 3/22/2013- TKO3 Nicholson Poulard (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/5/2013- vs. Allan Green (UNR)
Alvarez’s fight with Green, which was oddly canceled at the last minute on 6/8, has been reset for July 5- this time on a Friday Night Fights card in Hartford, Connecticut.
19) Yunieski Gonzalez (1-16)
Last Fight: 6/15/2013- KO7 Emiliano Cayetano (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Gonzalez snuck in a very low-profile knockout over low-level journeyman Emiliano Cayetano in the Dominican Republic.   Strictly stay-busy material.
20) Doudou Ngumbu (1-13)
Last Fight: 3/16/2013- UD12 #14 Vyacheslav Uzelkoff
Next Fight: 7/5/2013- vs. Igor Mikhalkin (UNR)
Ngumbu takes on 1-loss Russian prospect Igor Mikhalkin in France on July 5.

 

The Week Ahead: Friday features 3 notable fights.  The first is in Auckland, New Zealand, where fringe contender Robert Berridge gets what should be an easy time against Japanese journeyman Shintaro Matsumoto. 

 

Later that day, #20 Doudou Ngumbu battles one-loss Russian prospect Igor Mikhalkin in Thiase, France.

 

When evening kicks in stateside, we’ll see undefeated Colombian Eleider Alvarez against gatekeeper Allan Green on Friday Night Fights from Hartford, Connecticut. 

 

In Saturday’s only significant scrap, gatekeeper Edison Miranda mixes it up with highly inactive Montenegrin one-loss prospect Konni Konrad in Dortmund, Germany.

Light Heavyweight: 2013, Jun 3-9

Posted in Light Heavyweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on June 6, 2013 by danboxing
Still no word (at least in English) on the result (if any) of the Joey Vegas-Hany Atiyo rematch in Kampala, Uganda.  An undefeated Atiyo was stopped by Vegas in round 11 of their 2012 fight, laying the foundation of Vegas’ current top-40 ranking on Boxrec.  If news of the fight ends up reaching US shores (assuming it even happened), I’ll report it if it is significant.  Another Vegas win probably won’t be worth bringing up that long after the fact, frankly.

 

The biggest deal in the division this week, though, is the fact that #12 Beibut Shumenov hasn’t fought in over a year and has nothing scheduled, and is thus removed.  He hasn’t fought a clearly top 50 opponent in nearly 3 years.  Everyone ranked #13 and below last week moves up, and the #20 vacancy is filled by British-based Jamaican Ovill McKenzie.

 

Dan’s Top 20 (weeks in current position-weeks in top 10 (if applicable)-weeks in top 20)
Champ: Andre Ward (39-39-39)
Last Fight: 9/8/2012- TKO10 Champ Chad Dawson (at SMW)
Next Fight: Unknown
With Pascal-Bute postponed, one of Ward’s best options went with it.  There is now serious discussion of a Ward-Froch rematch, potentially in England.  On one hand, we’ve seen it before, but on another, Froch is clearly still the most worthy challenger for Ward, to the point where he would be the undisputed champion at 168 if Ward didn’t exist.
1) Chad Dawson (39-366-366)
Last Fight: 9/8/2012- L(TKO10) vs. SMW Champ Andre Ward (at SMW)
Next Fight: 6/8/2013- vs. SMW #6 Adonis Stevenson
Dawson will fight Adonis Stevenson (who moves up from 168) on June 8 in Montreal.
2) Bernard Hopkins (39-365-365)
Last Fight: 3/9/2012- UD12 #6 Tavoris Cloud
Next Fight: 7/13/2013- vs. Karo Murat (UNR)
All the buzz had been revolving around a Hopkins-Cleverly showdown, but with little or no warning, he signed to fight his mandatory, the slightly more proven but inactive Karo Murat, instead.
3) Tony Bellew (2-86-86)
Last Fight: 5/25/2013- UD12 #7 Isaac Chilemba
Next Fight: Unknown
Bellew’s ultimate triumph over Chilemba has now set him up with a mandatory shot at the Dawson-Stevenson winner, which would continue the trend of the best fighting the best at 175.
4) Sergey Kovalev (2-20-20)
Last Fight: 1/19/2013- TKO3 #4 Gabriel Campillo
Next Fight: 6/14/2013- vs. #9 Cornelius White
Kovalev is back in action against another pretty tough opponent on June 14.
5) Gabriel Campillo (2-154-154)
Last Fight: 1/19/2013- L(TKO3) vs. Sergey Kovalev (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/14/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent
Campillo will fight Fonfara in an interesting crossroads fight at Comiskey Park in Chicago, but appears to have scheduled a tune-up on June 14 in Madrid, as well.
6) Tavoris Cloud (2-197-197)
Last Fight: 3/9/2013- L (UD12) vs. #2 Bernard Hopkins
Next Fight: Unknown
Cloud’s manager expects him back in action by the end of the year.  Normally that wouldn’t be saying much, but that would be against type for Cloud.
7) Nathan Cleverly (2-174-174)
Last Fight: 4/20/2013- UD12 Robin Krasniqi (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Cleverly wants to fight Froch at 175, but Froch appears a bit more interested in Ward at the moment.  He even says he’d drop down to 168 for the fight, but it still doesn’t sound like one of Froch’s top 2 or 3 options.
8) Isaac Chilemba (2-10-70)
Last Fight: 5/25/2013- L (UD12) vs. #9 Tony Bellew
Next Fight: Unknown
Chilemba may have lost the second fight to Bellew in his opponent’s back yard, but between the two fights, he’s managed to elevate himself somewhat.
9) Cornelius White (2-47-77)
Last Fight: 3/9/2013- UD8 Otis Griffin (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/14/2013- vs. #4 Sergey Kovalev
Moment of truth time for White.  On June 14 we’ll find out if he’s more the guy that beat up Dmitri Sukhotski, or the guy that got sparked out in just seconds by Don George.  If he’s the latter, Kovalev should prove it pretty quickly.
10) Cedric Agnew (4-4-8)
Last Fight: 4/12/2013- UD12 #14 Yusaf Mack
Next Fight: Unknown
Agnew may have caught a fading Yusaf Mack at the right time, but he’s clearly a climber, having now beaten both Mack and Otis Griffin.
11) Jürgen Brähmer (4-59)
Last Fight: 4/27/2013- TKO2 Tony Averlant (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Braehmer made an easy first defense of his European belt against Averlant.  He is currently the mandatory for Cleverly’s alphabet strap, as well, though it sounds like the Welshman would prefer bigger fish- or at least fish with bigger belts.
12) Andrzej Fonfara (1-47)
Last Fight: 11/16/2012- TKO7 Tommy Karpency (UNR)
Next Fight: 8/16/2013- vs. #5 Gabriel Campillo
Fonfara will get a huge opportunity to launch himself into the top 5 when he takes on Gabriel Campillo in Chicago.
13) Lucian Bute (1-31)
Last Fight: 11/3/2012- UD12 #16 Denis Grachev
Next Fight: 12/7/2013- vs. Jean Pascal (UNR)
Bute-Pascal has been rescheduled tentatively for December 7 after Bute suffered a hand injury.  They’ve also reserved January 25 as a back-up plan.  Either way, it will be in Montreal.
14) Denis Grachev (1-58)
Last Fight: 3/30/2013– W* (SD10) vs. Zsolt Erdei (UNR) (should be draw)
Next Fight: 7/13/2013- vs. SMW #13 Edwin Rodriguez
Grachev will be fighting Edwin Rodriguez at a catchweight of 171.5 in Monte Carlo for a million dollar prize.
15) Dmitri Sukhotski (1-136)
Last Fight: 12/8/2012- TKO1 Vladimir Borovsky (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/4/2013- vs. Mikhail Krinitsin (UNR)
Sukhotski will fight in Barnaul, Russia on June 4 against low-level Kazakh journeyman Mikhail Krinitsin.
16) Eleider Alvarez (1-19)
Last Fight: 3/22/2013- TKO3 Nicholson Poulard (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/8/2013- vs. Allan Green (UNR)
Alvarez will now be fighting Green on the Dawson-Stevenson undercard.
17) Yunieski Gonzalez (1-12)
Last Fight: 3/15/2013- KO8 Rowland Bryant (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Gonzalez took a huge step up in competition and made good, knocking out strong fringe contender Bryant. 
18) Doudou Ngumbu (1-9)
Last Fight: 3/16/2013- UD12 #14 Vyacheslav Uzelkoff
Next Fight: Unknown
19) Glen Johnson (1-4)
Last Fight: 4/19/2013- TKO2 Junior Ramos (UNR) (at CW)
Next Fight: Unknown
Strangely, even though Johnson looks completely spent, he is once again ranked (barely) at both 175 and 168.
20) Ovill McKenzie (1-1)
Last Fight: 11/9/2012- TKO2 Enzo Maccarinelli (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown

 

The Week Ahead: Plenty of action at 175 this week:

 

In his hometown of Barnaul, Russia, #15 Dmitri Sukhotski leads us off on Tuesday with a stay-busy outing against low-level Kazakh journeyman Mikhail Krinitsin.

 

On the Afolabi-Huck undercard in Berlin, undefeated German prospect Robert Woge collides with fellow undefeated Dariusz Sek of Poland.  This is the toughest test of either man’s career.  Woge pulled one out of the fire in his last fight, knocking out journeyman Hakim Zoulikha in the 11th after being dominated up to that point, while Sek has been getting by with decisions against a similar level of opponent.

 

Also on the card, gatekeeper Eduard Gutknecht looks to get back on a winning track against low-level super middleweight journeyman Richard Vidal of Uruguay.

 

Across the pond in Montreal, Quebec, #1 Chad Dawson defends his alphabet title against big-time super middleweight puncher Adonis Stevenson, who fights an aggressive power-punching style that Dawson really hasn’t seen much of in recent years.

 

On that undercard, undefeated Colombian prospect and #16 Eleider Alvarez takes on perhaps his toughest opponent in gatekeeper Allan Green.

Light Heavyweight: 2012, Oct 29- Nov 4

Posted in Light Heavyweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on October 31, 2012 by danboxing
Gusmyr Perdomo and his 7-pound weight advantage destroyed late replacement opponent Dario Matorras in Caracas on Saturday, with a 2nd-round stoppage.  The fight was a woeful mismatch in more ways than just the weight, too.  Their numerical records were similar, but Perdomo has been in with the likes of Mikkel Kessler, while Matorras has only beaten 4 men with even a single win, and has never beaten an opponent with a winning record.  No changes to the rankings this week.

 

Dan’s Top 20 (weeks in current position-weeks in top 10 (if applicable)-weeks in top 20)
Champ: Andre Ward (8-8-8)
Last Fight: 9/8/2012- TKO10 Champ Chad Dawson (at SMW)
Next Fight: Unknown
Ward and Pavlik’s promoters have both confirmed that talks are underway for a February 23 fight on HBO.
1) Chad Dawson (8-335-335)
Last Fight: 9/8/2012- L(TKO10) vs. SMW Champ Andre Ward (at SMW)
Next Fight: Unknown
Rumors of a Dawson-Pascal rematch are now floating around.
2) Bernard Hopkins (8-334-334)
Last Fight: 4/28/2012- L(MD12) vs. #2 Chad Dawson
Next Fight: Unknown
Hopkins is currently non-committal on whether or not he’ll fight again.
3) Jean Pascal (8-176-176)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- L(UD12) vs. #1 Bernard Hopkins
Next Fight: 12/14/2012- vs. Unknown Opponent
Pascal will come back in December following his long inactivity and hand injury (thus retaining his ranking), with venue and TV problems ensuring that the Cloud fight could not be rescheduled until 2013.  No opponent has been announced.  Pascal is on thin ice with me, though.  He didn’t have to wait as long as he did to schedule the fight with Cloud in the first place, and so if it ever appears that he is no longer returning in December, he will be promptly removed.
4) Gabriel Campillo (8-123-123)
Last Fight: 2/18/2012- L*(UD12) vs. #3 Tavoris Cloud (Robbery)
Next Fight: Unknown
It now looks likely that Campillo will reschedule his fight with hot prospect Sergei Kovalev, from which he withdrew with injury this summer.  It looks like the fight will be the main event of a NBC Sports card from Bethlehem Pennsylvania on January 19.
5) Tavoris Cloud (8-166-166)
Last Fight: 2/18/2012- UD12* vs. #4 Gabriel Campillo (Robbery)
Next Fight: 11/16/2012- vs. #9 Karo Murat
Dan Rafael reports that Cloud-Murat is tentative for November 16 in Venezuela.
6) Cornelius White (8-16-46)
Last Fight: 7/14/2012- UD12 #10 Dmitri Sukhotski
Next Fight: Unknown
White is on a tear.  Is he really top-5 good?  I wouldn’t think so, but he proves me wrong every time I feel I might be overrating him.
7) Nathan Cleverly (8-143-143)
Last Fight: 2/25/2012- UD12 Tommy Karpency (UNR)
Next Fight: 11/10/2012- vs. Unknown Opponent
Don King pulled a real a-hole move and ripped the Cleverly fight right out from under Ryan Coyne via a lawsuit, forcing Clev to look for a new opponent, which will be announced any day.
8) Tony Bellew (16-55-55)
Last Fight: 9/8/2012- TKO9 Edison Miranda (UNR)
Next Fight: 11/17/2012- vs. Roberto Feliciano Bolonti (UNR)
Bellew now has an opponent for his appearance on the Froch-Mack undercard: Argentine Champion Roberto Feliciano Bolonti.
9) Karo Murat (8-57-78)
Last Fight: 6/2/2012- TKO7 Sandro Siproshvili (UNR)
Next Fight: 11/16/2012- vs. #5 Tavoris Cloud
With Pascal’s injury, Murat will get his alphabet title shot a little earlier than expected, with November being the apparent target.
10) Beibut Shumenov (8-119-123)
Last Fight: 6/2/2012- UD12 Enrique Ornelas (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
11) Yusaf Mack (8-123)
Last Fight: 7/7/2012- UD6 Sabou Ballogou (UNR)
Next Fight: 11/17/2012- vs. #1 SMW Carl Froch (at SMW)
In a fairly sudden development, Mack will drop back down to 168 to fight Carl Froch.
12) Isaac Chilemba (8-39)
Last Fight: 9/29/2012- UD8 Rayco Saunders (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Chilemba came in a bit heavy, but performed as expected, shutting out journeyman Rayco Saunders.
13) Vyacheslav Uzelkoff (8-39)
Last Fight: 7/21/2012- W(MD12) vs. Mohamed Belkacem (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Cleverly understandably skipped out on him for a shot on HBO.  No new plans announced for the Ukrainian.
14) Andrzej Fonfara (8-16)
Last Fight: 7/13/2012- UD10* SMW #16 Glen Johnson
Next Fight: 11/16/2012- vs. Tommy Karpency (UNR)
Fonfara will fight journeyman Tommy Karpency in Chicago in mid-November.
15) Jürgen Brähmer (8-28)
Last Fight: 4/21/2012- UD10 Vikapita Meroro (UNR)
Next Fight: 12/15/2012- vs. Eduard Gutknecht (UNR)
Braehmer gets a shot at very vulnerable paper titlist Eduard Gutknecht in December.  That sounds like a fight safe enough to actually show up to.
16) Denis Grachev (8-27)
Last Fight: 4/27/2012- TKO8 #15 Ismayl Sillakh
Next Fight: 11/3/2012- vs. SMW #4 Lucian Bute
Grachev will fight Lucian Bute at a 170 pound catchweight in November.
17) Dmitri Sukhotski (8-105)
Last Fight: 7/14/2012- L(UD12) vs. #16 Cornelius White
Next Fight: Unknown
The White loss must be a bitter disappointment for Sukhotski, who had been in line for a shot at an alphabet strap held by Cleverly for some time, but with Cleverly blatantly ducking him to great effect.
18) Mikkel Kessler (8-24)
Last Fight: 5/19/2012- TKO4 Allan Green (UNR)
Next Fight: 12/8/2012- vs. Brian Magee (UNR) (at SMW)
Kessler will fight Irish fringe contender Brian Magee on December 8 in Denmark.  The fight will be at 168 it would seem.
19) Tony Averlant (8-31)
Last Fight: 3/31/2012- L*(SD12) vs. #12 Eduard Gutknecht (Robbery)
Next Fight: Unknown
I don’t know if Averlant is now considered too high-risk, low-reward after getting robbed against Gutknecht, but he sure hasn’t fought since then.
20) Ismayl Sillakh (8-94)
Last Fight: 4/27/2012- L(TKO8) vs. Denis Grachev (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Sillakh and his manager are apparently in a very bitter dispute at present, and so Sillakh may have difficulty securing another fight anytime soon.

 

The Week Ahead: Two significant fights in the division, both in Montreal on Saturday.  Super middleweight #4 Lucian Bute moves up to fight #16 Denis Grachev at a 170-pound catchweight, after gatekeepers Renan St. Juste and Allan Green both look to get back in the win column on the undercard.

Light Heavyweight: 2012, May 21-27

Posted in Light Heavyweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on May 23, 2012 by danboxing
The most notable fight of this weekend was between two recent super middleweights: Mikkel Kessler and Allan Green.  This fight was scheduled as part of the Super Six a couple of years ago, but Kessler had to withdraw with an eye injury.  The only thing withdrawn this time was Green’s consciousness.  Green actually came out looking very good in the first .  He appeared noticeably bigger, stronger, and even crisper with his punches.  He even knocked Kessler down.  Unfortunately, he couldn’t come close to putting the Dane away, and Kessler came back strong in the second.  It appeared that Green’s body language changed a great deal when it became clear that Kessler wasn’t going away, and the Viking Warrior took over the fight completely.  Early in the 4th round, Kessler caught Green throwing a lazy punch and countered him with a crushing left hook.  Green was out before he ever hit the canvas, and the ref waved it off immediately.

 

The same night in Marseille, France, gatekeeper Nadjib Mohammedi won by TKO in 4 when journeyman Mehdi Amar could not continue with an injury.

 

The previous night, Australian undefeated prospect Blake Caparello won a 10-round decision over less advanced Kiwi undefeated prospect Robert Berridge in Flemington, Australia.  Unfortunately I can’t locate a video of what was said to be a very close fight.  News reports I’ve read are mixed.  One (the most detailed) was fairly adamant that Berridge seemed to have won a close fight.  Others were more equivocal or didn’t take a strong position one way or the other.  Frankly I don’t trust random reporters any more than I trust random judges, so it’s hard to form any kind of opinion.  I have little choice but to take it at face value as what appears to be a pretty hard-fought win for Caparello.

 

It’s a little tricky to decide what to do with Kessler.  Green hadn’t really established himself as a credible light heavyweight, but he does have a significant overall resume.  In addition, neither guy came in to the fight more than halfway to the light heavyweight limit.  I figure I have to put him ahead of Erdei, who hasn’t beaten anybody as good as Green (strange to say) in 5 years- or at least not at 175.  I’m going to put him ahead of Cornelius White too.  My feeling is that Despaigne- who was beat by White- is a slightly better mark than is Green, but then again a 4th round knockout is better than a 6-round decision.  If that yields a tie between the two, it’s broken by a combination of common sense and Kessler’s much more impressive overall career.  Diaconu hasn’t done anything in 4 years, but back in the day he beat a contender or two, and he at least hasn’t lost to anyone at Green’s level.  So Kessler parks himself at #16.  Eduard Gutknecht is forced out after a shade over a year in the rankings.

 

Dan’s Top 20
Champ: Chad Dawson (4-312-312)
Last Fight: 4/28/2012- W (MD12) Champ Bernard Hopkins
Next Fight: 9/8/2012- vs. SMW Champ Andre Ward (at SMW)
Wow- it really is happening!  Dawson will reportedly drop down to 168 to challenge Andre Ward for the World Championship at Super Middle.  For my money, it will also be an opportunity for Ward to capture Dawson’s light heavyweight title.  He’s fighting the 175 champion under the 175 limit.  I’m not sure this scenario has ever played out in the history of boxing…and it’s pretty exciting- even if the fight itself may not  be.
1) Bernard Hopkins (4-311-311)
Last Fight: 4/28/2012- L(MD12) vs. #2 Chad Dawson
Next Fight: Unknown
I’m not sure what he thinks he can or still wants to prove, but 47-year-old Hopkins has shrugged off retirement talk and there is talk of potential fights with Lucian Bute and Nathan Cleverly.
2) Jean Pascal (4-153-153)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- L(UD12) vs. #1 Bernard Hopkins
Next Fight: 8/11/2012- vs. #4 Tavoris Cloud
Showtime has kindly provided the date of August 11 for the Pascal-Cloud tilt.  That’s more than 14-months since Pascal’s last fight…just sayin’.
3) Gabriel Campillo (14-100-100)
Last Fight: 2/18/2012- L*(UD12) vs. #3 Tavoris Cloud (Robbery)
Next Fight: Unknown
With Cloud apparently sidestepping not only Campillo, but also a mandatory with Karo Murat in favor of an even better match with Pascal, I wonder if Campillo might get the rematch with Murat, instead.
4) Tavoris Cloud (14-143-143)
Last Fight: 2/18/2012- UD12* vs. #4 Gabriel Campillo (Robbery)
Next Fight: 8/11/2012- vs. #2 Jean Pascal
It appeared certain that Cloud would fight Murat next, but now he’s fighting Pascal instead.
5) Nathan Cleverly (32-120-120)
Last Fight: 2/25/2012- UD12 Tommy Karpency (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Originally scheduled to fight the underwhelming Robin Krasniqi, a virus scuttled that fight for him.  Not that anyone’s complaining.  Barring a rescheduling, which would be problematic from the WBO’s perspective, Cleverly may be looking toward his mandatory with Sukhotski next, though there’s some talk of a Hopkins fight, as well.
6) Karo Murat (34-34-55)
Last Fight: 10/1/2011- Draw (SD12) vs. #4 Gabriel Campillo
Next Fight: Unknown
Not sure where Murat goes from here after his mandatory shot at Cloud was at least delayed for Cloud to seek greener pastures.  My vote: Campillo-Murat II.
7) Tony Bellew (32-32-32)
Last Fight: 4/27/2012- TKO5 #20 Danny McIntosh
Next Fight: Unknown
After demolishing McIntosh for the British title, Bellew has renewed his calls for a rematch with Cleverly.  He also named Cloud and Shumenov as guys he’s ready for.
8) Beibut Shumenov (16-96-100)
Last Fight: 7/29/2011- TKO9 Danny Santiago (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/2/2012- vs. Enrique Ornelas (UNR)
How this guy gets to keep even an alphabet title while fighting exactly William Joppy, Danny Santiago, and Enrique Ornelas over what will become more than a 2-year span is well beyond me.  And that’s setting aside the fact that he got totally worked in the fight that “won” him the title in the first place.  I know for a fact that Adrian Diaconu wanted to fight him, so it’s not like he’s being ducked by every name fighter out there.
9) Yusaf Mack (16-64-100)
Last Fight: 4/27/2012- UD12 Omar Sheika (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Mack called out Cloud and Dawson after beating Sheika.  Sure, he’s a top 10 fighter, but that still feels like a stretch for him.
10) Dmitri Sukhotski (16-16-82)
Last Fight: 10/8/2011- TKO2 Nadjib Mohammedi (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
The WBO originally demanded that Cleverly fight Sukhotski rather than the mediocre Krasniqi, but then backed down and gave Cleverly an extra 4 months to take the fight.  Now that Cleverly got sick and cancelled on Krasniqi, surely this fight will have to happen now…
11) Isaac Chilemba (16-16)
Last Fight: 2/3/2012- UD10 #16 Edison Miranda
Next Fight: Unknown
Chilemba, a former super middleweight, now has the highest ranking of his career at either weight after beating fringe contender Miranda.
12) Vyacheslav Uzelkov (8-16)
Last Fight: 5/12/2012- UD8 Ravshanbek Jabbarov (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Deserved much better than a unanimous decision loss against Gutknecht, and is rewarded for it in my rankings.
13) Jürgen Brähmer (5-5)
Last Fight: 4/21/2012- UD10 Vikapita Meroro (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Braehmer has showed up for his last two fights, which at least feels like a record for him. 
14) Denis Grachev (4-4)
Last Fight: 4/27/2012- TKO8 #15 Ismayl Sillakh
Next Fight: Unknown
Yes, it was a flukey win, and it’s clear from his performance on its face that, at least at this point, he’s not this good.  But honestly the result in black and white could have supported a rating as high as around #10.  Common sense can only demote a guy so far (in conjunction with relative inexperience) when his actual resume calls out for a decent ranking.
15) Adrian Diaconu (4-263)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- L(UD12) vs. #2 Chad Dawson
Next Fight: Unknown
Last chance for Diaconu to schedule a fight.  He gets 6 days more than usual because the leap year threw off the cycle a bit.
16) Mikkel Kessler (1-1)
Last Fight: 5/19/2012- TKO4 Allan Green (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
It’s not clear where Kessler will compete from now on, but the fact that he came in under 170 for his light heavyweight fight with Allan Green might be an indication.
17) Cornelius White (1-23)
Last Fight: 5/12/2012- KO2 Anthony Bowman (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
White, who was blown out in one round by prospect Don George at super middleweight early in 2011, may be a fluke.  But at least for one night, he looked a lot better against former top amateur Yordanis Despaigne than did established fringe contender Edison Miranda.
18) Zsolt Erdei (1-79)
Last Fight: 6/4/2011- KO6 Byron Mitchell (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Had a fight with Pascal lined up, but Showtime couldn’t come up with the money to make it happen.
19) Tony Averlant (1-8)
Last Fight: 3/31/2012- L*(SD12) vs. #12 Eduard Gutknecht (Robbery)
Next Fight: Unknown
Averlant is probably closer to the journeyman he was on 3/30 than the solid fringe contender he became on 3/31, but a win is a win…even when it’s a loss (in Germany).
20) Ismayl Sillakh (1-71)
Last Fight: 4/27/2012- L(TKO8) vs. Denis Grachev (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
I didn’t see that coming at all.  I trust Sillakh will bounce back from the upset loss to Grachev.  But wow.

 

The Week Ahead: No action to report this week.

Light Heavyweight: 2012, May 14-20

Posted in Light Heavyweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on May 22, 2012 by danboxing
Friday in Meridian, Mississippi, #16 Cornelius White destroyed the hapless Anthony Bowman midway through the 2nd round of a scheduled 6.  As if  Bowman’s 9-40 record didn’t make him enough of an underdog, he was also giving up ELEVEN POUNDS on the official scales, and even more than that in terms of natural size.  Bowman usually fights as a smallish 154-pounder.  The following night in the Ukraine, #12 Vyacheslav Uzelkov won an 8-round decision over totally unproven 10-2 journeyman Ravshanbek Jabbarov.  Can’t say that’s all that impressive.  Jabbarov has never been stopped, but he also has to be considered a rank novice who had never fought anybody.  He also managed to win an average of one round per scorecard.  No changes to the rankings.

 

Dan’s Top 20
Champ: Chad Dawson (3-311-311)
Last Fight: 4/28/2012- W (MD12) Champ Bernard Hopkins
Next Fight: Unknown
All hail the new Champ!  But let’s hope he gets in against some opponents that will make him come out of his shell, because his coronation was excruciating to watch.  I want to see him in against either Campillo or the Pascal-Cloud winner.  He also said he wants Andre Ward, and will even fight him at 168.  I’ll believe that when I see it.
1) Bernard Hopkins (3-310-310)
Last Fight: 4/28/2012- L(MD12) vs. #2 Chad Dawson
Next Fight: Unknown
I’m not sure what he thinks he can or still wants to prove, but 47-year-old Hopkins has shrugged off retirement talk and there is talk of potential fights with Lucian Bute and Nathan Cleverly.
2) Jean Pascal (3-152-152)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- L(UD12) vs. #1 Bernard Hopkins
Next Fight: 8/11/2012- vs. #4 Tavoris Cloud
Showtime has kindly provided the date of August 11 for the Pascal-Cloud tilt.  That’s more than 14-months since Pascal’s last fight…just sayin’.
3) Gabriel Campillo (13-99-99)
Last Fight: 2/18/2012- L*(UD12) vs. #3 Tavoris Cloud (Robbery)
Next Fight: Unknown
With Cloud apparently sidestepping not only Campillo, but also a mandatory with Karo Murat in favor of an even better match with Pascal, I wonder if Campillo might get the rematch with Murat, instead.
4) Tavoris Cloud (13-142-142)
Last Fight: 2/18/2012- UD12* vs. #4 Gabriel Campillo (Robbery)
Next Fight: 8/11/2012- vs. #2 Jean Pascal
It appeared certain that Cloud would fight Murat next, but now he’s fighting Pascal instead.
5) Nathan Cleverly (31-119-119)
Last Fight: 2/25/2012- UD12 Tommy Karpency (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Originally scheduled to fight the underwhelming Robin Krasniqi, a virus scuttled that fight for him.  Not that anyone’s complaining.  Barring a rescheduling, which would be problematic from the WBO’s perspective, Cleverly may be looking toward his mandatory with Sukhotski next, though there’s some talk of a Hopkins fight, as well.
6) Karo Murat (33-33-54)
Last Fight: 10/1/2011- Draw (SD12) vs. #4 Gabriel Campillo
Next Fight: Unknown
Not sure where Murat goes from here after his mandatory shot at Cloud was at least delayed for Cloud to seek greener pastures.  My vote: Campillo-Murat II.
7) Tony Bellew (31-31-31)
Last Fight: 4/27/2012- TKO5 #20 Danny McIntosh
Next Fight: Unknown
After demolishing McIntosh for the British title, Bellew has renewed his calls for a rematch with Cleverly.  He also named Cloud and Shumenov as guys he’s ready for.
8) Beibut Shumenov (15-95-99)
Last Fight: 7/29/2011- TKO9 Danny Santiago (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/2/2012- vs. Enrique Ornelas (UNR)
How this guy gets to keep even an alphabet title while fighting exactly William Joppy, Danny Santiago, and Enrique Ornelas over what will become more than a 2-year span is well beyond me.  And that’s setting aside the fact that he got totally worked in the fight that “won” him the title in the first place.  I know for a fact that Adrian Diaconu wanted to fight him, so it’s not like he’s being ducked by every name fighter out there.
9) Yusaf Mack (15-63-99)
Last Fight: 4/27/2012- UD12 Omar Sheika (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Mack called out Cloud and Dawson after beating Sheika.  Sure, he’s a top 10 fighter, but that still feels like a stretch for him.
10) Dmitri Sukhotski (15-15-81)
Last Fight: 10/8/2011- TKO2 Nadjib Mohammedi (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
The WBO originally demanded that Cleverly fight Sukhotski rather than the mediocre Krasniqi, but then backed down and gave Cleverly an extra 4 months to take the fight.  Now that Cleverly got sick and cancelled on Krasniqi, surely this fight will have to happen now…
11) Isaac Chilemba (15-15)
Last Fight: 2/3/2012- UD10 #16 Edison Miranda
Next Fight: Unknown
Chilemba, a former super middleweight, now has the highest ranking of his career at either weight after beating fringe contender Miranda.
12) Vyacheslav Uzelkov (7-15)
Last Fight: 5/12/2012- UD8 Ravshanbek Jabbarov (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Deserved much better than a unanimous decision loss against Gutknecht, and is rewarded for it in my rankings.
13) Jürgen Brähmer (4-4)
Last Fight: 4/21/2012- UD10 Vikapita Meroro (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Braehmer has showed up for his last two fights, which at least feels like a record for him. 
14) Denis Grachev (3-3)
Last Fight: 4/27/2012- TKO8 #15 Ismayl Sillakh
Next Fight: Unknown
Yes, it was a flukey win, and it’s clear from his performance on its face that, at least at this point, he’s not this good.  But honestly the result in black and white could have supported a rating as high as around #10.  Common sense can only demote a guy so far (in conjunction with relative inexperience) when his actual resume calls out for a decent ranking.
15) Adrian Diaconu (3-262)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- L(UD12) vs. #2 Chad Dawson
Next Fight: Unknown
The leap year buys Diaconu an extra week to schedule a fight, so he will not be removed next week since technically his year anniversary occurs during that week.
16) Cornelius White (7-22)
Last Fight: 5/12/2012- KO2 Anthony Bowman (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
White, who was blown out in one round by prospect Don George at super middleweight early in 2011, may be a fluke.  But at least for one night, he looked a lot better against former top amateur Yordanis Despaigne than did established fringe contender Edison Miranda.
17) Zsolt Erdei (4-78)
Last Fight: 6/4/2011- KO6 Byron Mitchell (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Had a fight with Pascal lined up, but Showtime couldn’t come up with the money to make it happen.
18) Tony Averlant (4-7)
Last Fight: 3/31/2012- L*(SD12) vs. #12 Eduard Gutknecht (Robbery)
Next Fight: Unknown
Averlant is probably closer to the journeyman he was on 3/30 than the solid fringe contender he became on 3/31, but a win is a win…even when it’s a loss (in Germany).
19) Ismayl Sillakh (3-70)
Last Fight: 4/27/2012- L(TKO8) vs. Denis Grachev (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
I didn’t see that coming at all.  I trust Sillakh will bounce back from the upset loss to Grachev.  But wow.
20) Eduard Gutknecht (3-54)
Last Fight: 3/31/2012- W*(SD12) vs. Tony Averlant (UNR) (Robbery)
Next Fight: Unknown
Lost a close but clear fight against Averlant, but got the decision.  That’s two at least questionable verdicts in a row for Gutknecht, both against extremely unranked fighters.

 

The Week Ahead: Friday in Flemington, Australia, undefeated prospects Blake Caparello of Australia and Robert Berridge of New Zealand collide.  Berridge has actually had more fights, but Caparello has been in against the better competition and is further along in his development thus far.

 

Two fights of note on Saturday: Super Middleweight #3 contender Mikkel Kessler moves up to challenge former super middleweight fringe contender Allan Green in Denmark, while in France, local gatekeeper Nadjib Mohammedi battles countryman and journeyman Mehdi Amar in Marseille.  The former fight could have interesting implications in the rankings.  Neither Kessler nor Green has yet established himself in this weight class, but off the top of my head I’d say both guys likely carry enough credibility with them from 168 to potentially support a rating for the victor.

Light Heavyweight: 2011, Nov 7-13

Posted in Light Heavyweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on December 24, 2011 by danboxing
I made a bit of a mistake last week in advertising Sillakh-Ismailov.  Evidently the fight was never going to be fought at 175, which I should have known based on Ismailov’s history of never having fought below cruiserweight.  I’ve already published my cruiserweight update and the fight is inconsequential to the rankings, so I’ll just mention here.  Suffice it to say Sillakh continued Ismailov’s streak of stoppage losses with a 4th round TKO.

 

Allan Green won a comfortable decision over local favorite Sebastian Demers in Quebec City on Saturday.  Demers came in just a shade over 168, and while he was probably still a top-50 fighter at that weight, I’m not sure he does a ton for Green’s resume at 175.

 

 Undefeated prospect Marcus Oliveira, who has been fighting infrequently against poor opposition, stopped Chris Eppley- a 10-1 fighter who has fought exclusively bums- in four rounds.

 

In a fight that was announced very late, #18 Thierry Karl fought the awful Mile Nikolic at cruiserweight, knocking him out in 1.

 

All of this action, however, pales in comparison to non-action on behalf of prospect and #19 contender Luis Garcia, who has been inactive for a year, doesn’t have a fight scheduled, and accordingly is bounced from the rankings due to inactivity.  Marcus Johnson returns to the rankings at #20 after three weeks away.

 

For comparison, here are the current Ring Magazine Ratings:
Champ: Bernard Hopkins
1) Jean Pascal
2) Tavoris Cloud
3) Chad Dawson
4) Nathan Cleverly
5) Adrian Diaconu
6) Zsolt Erdei
7) Beibut Shumenov
8) Karo Murat
9) Gabriel Campillo
10) Ismayl Sillakh

 

Dan’s Top 20
Champ: Bernard Hopkins (25-283-283)
Last Fight: 10/15/2011- NC* vs. #2 Chad Dawson
Next Fight: Unknown
The first official blow against Pat Russell’s bad TKO decision has been struck, as the WBC announced that its title would stay with Hopkins despite the call.
1) Jean Pascal (25-125-125)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- L(UD12) vs. #1 Bernard Hopkins
Next Fight: Unknown
Dawson wants Pascal, but a Dawson-Hopkins rematch may supersede that before it’s all said and done.
2) Chad Dawson (47-284-284)
Last Fight: 10/15/2011- NC* vs. Champ Bernard Hopkins
Next Fight: Unknown
See Hopkins’ notes, above.
3) Tavoris Cloud (47-115-115)
Last Fight: 6/25/2011- TKO8 #8 Yusaf Mack
Next Fight: 12/31/2011- vs. #14 Zsolt Erdei
Cloud looks to close out the year in fine fashion by beating arguable lineal title claimant Zsolt Erdei as the ball drops on 2011.
4) Gabriel Campillo (4-72-72)
Last Fight: 10/1/2011- Draw (SD12) vs. #14 Karo Murat
Next Fight: Unknown
Campillo had my sympathy after being robbed against Shumenov, but hasn’t helped his case with a long stretch of inactivity against good fighters followed by a back-and-forth draw with Murat.
5) Nathan Cleverly (4-92-92)
Last Fight: 10/15/2011- W*(MD12) vs. Tony Bellew (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
The WBO has ordered him to fight Dmitri Sukhotski in 2012.
6) Karo Murat (6-6-27)
Last Fight: 10/1/2011- Draw (SD12) vs. #4 Gabriel Campillo
Next Fight: Unknown
I never thought this would happen, but I now rate the long-overrated Murat even higher than does Ring Magazine.
7) Tony Bellew (4-4-4)
Last Fight: 10/15/2011- L*(MD12) vs. #4 Nathan Cleverly
Next Fight: Unknown
Deserved better than a majority decision loss against Cleverly.  I thought he won the fight or deserved, at worst, a draw.
8) Eduard Gutknecht (4-27-27)
Last Fight: 7/16/2011- UD12 Lorenzo Di Giacomo (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Ho-hum victory over Di Giacomo.  Hopefully he steps back up soon.
9) Beibut Shumenov (4-68-72)
Last Fight: 7/29/2011- TKO9 Danny Santiago (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
10) Yusaf Mack (4-36-72)
Last Fight: 6/25/2011- L(TKO8) vs. #3 Tavoris Cloud
Next Fight: Unknown
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.
11) Dmitri Sukhotski (4-54)
Last Fight: 10/8/2011- TKO2 Nadjib Mohammedi (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
See Cleverly’s notes, above.
12) Adrian Diaconu (4-235)
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.
13) Ismayl Sillakh (4-43)
Last Fight: 11/4/2011- TKO4 Ali Ismailov (UNR) (at CW)
Next Fight: Unknown
14) Zsolt Erdei (4-51)
Last Fight: 6/4/2011- KO6 Byron Mitchell (UNR)
Next Fight: 12/31/2011- vs. #3 Tavoris Cloud (UNR)
See Cloud’s notes, above.
15) Danny McIntosh (4-72)
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.
16) Yordanis Despaigne (4-15)
Last Fight: 7/29/2011- W(DQ5) vs. Edison Miranda (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
There was talk immediately after the Miranda fight of a rematch taking place, but no new news on that.
17) Jesus Gonzales (4-18)
Last Fight: 7/8/2011- UD12 Francisco Sierra (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
His present and future are probably both at 168, but he beat a good enough light heavyweight to earn this ranking, nevertheless.
18) Thierry Karl (4-72)
Last Fight: 11/5/2011- KO1 Mile Nikolic (UNR) (at CW)
Next Fight: Unknown
Karl is a threat to be removed in late January if he doesn’t schedule a light heavyweight fight soon.
19) Dyah Davis (1-33)
Last Fight: 10/21/2011- UD6 Darnell Boone (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
20) Marcus Johnson (1-1)
Last Fight: 4/8/2011- L*(UD10) vs. #19 Dyah Davis
Next Fight: 11/19/2011- vs. Billy Bailey (UNR)

 

The Week Ahead:  Nothing doing.

Light Heavyweight: 2011, Oct 31 – Nov 6

Posted in Light Heavyweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on December 23, 2011 by danboxing
Nothing going on this week at 175.

 

For comparison, here are the current Ring Magazine Ratings:
Champ: Bernard Hopkins
1) Jean Pascal
2) Tavoris Cloud
3) Chad Dawson
4) Nathan Cleverly
5) Adrian Diaconu
6) Zsolt Erdei
7) Beibut Shumenov
8) Karo Murat
9) Gabriel Campillo
10) Ismayl Sillakh

 

Dan’s Top 20
Champ: Bernard Hopkins (24-282-282)
Last Fight: 10/15/2011- NC* vs. #2 Chad Dawson
Next Fight: Unknown
The first official blow against Pat Russell’s bad TKO decision has been struck, as the WBC announced that its title would stay with Hopkins despite the call.
1) Jean Pascal (24-124-124)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- L(UD12) vs. #1 Bernard Hopkins
Next Fight: Unknown
Dawson wants Pascal, but a Dawson-Hopkins rematch may supersede that before it’s all said and done.
2) Chad Dawson (46-283-283)
Last Fight: 10/15/2011- NC* vs. Champ Bernard Hopkins
Next Fight: Unknown
See Hopkins’ notes, above.
3) Tavoris Cloud (46-114-114)
Last Fight: 6/25/2011- TKO8 #8 Yusaf Mack
Next Fight: 12/31/2011- vs. #14 Zsolt Erdei
Cloud looks to close out the year in fine fashion by beating arguable lineal title claimant Zsolt Erdei as the ball drops on 2011.
4) Gabriel Campillo (3-71-71)
Last Fight: 10/1/2011- Draw (SD12) vs. #14 Karo Murat
Next Fight: Unknown
Campillo had my sympathy after being robbed against Shumenov, but hasn’t helped his case with a long stretch of inactivity against good fighters followed by a back-and-forth draw with Murat.
5) Nathan Cleverly (3-91-91)
Last Fight: 10/15/2011- W*(MD12) vs. Tony Bellew (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
The WBO has ordered him to fight Dmitri Sukhotski in 2012.
6) Karo Murat (5-5-26)
Last Fight: 10/1/2011- Draw (SD12) vs. #4 Gabriel Campillo
Next Fight: Unknown
I never thought this would happen, but I now rate the long-overrated Murat even higher than does Ring Magazine.
7) Tony Bellew (3-3-3)
Last Fight: 10/15/2011- L*(MD12) vs. #4 Nathan Cleverly
Next Fight: Unknown
Deserved better than a majority decision loss against Cleverly.  I thought he won the fight or deserved, at worst, a draw.
8) Eduard Gutknecht (3-26-26)
Last Fight: 7/16/2011- UD12 Lorenzo Di Giacomo (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Ho-hum victory over Di Giacomo.  Hopefully he steps back up soon.
9) Beibut Shumenov (3-67-71)
Last Fight: 7/29/2011- TKO9 Danny Santiago (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
10) Yusaf Mack (3-35-71)
Last Fight: 6/25/2011- L(TKO8) vs. #3 Tavoris Cloud
Next Fight: Unknown
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.
11) Dmitri Sukhotski (3-53)
Last Fight: 10/8/2011- TKO2 Nadjib Mohammedi (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
See Cleverly’s notes, above.
12) Adrian Diaconu (3-234)
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.
13) Ismayl Sillakh (3-42)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- TKO3 Hamza Wandera (UNR) (as CW)
Next Fight: 11/4/2011- vs. Ali Ismailov (UNR)
Sillakh is slated to fight in Moscow on November 4 against Ali Ismailov.
14) Zsolt Erdei (3-50)
Last Fight: 6/4/2011- KO6 Byron Mitchell (UNR)
Next Fight: 12/31/2011- vs. #3 Tavoris Cloud (UNR)
See Cloud’s notes, above.
15) Danny McIntosh (3-71)
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.
16) Yordanis Despaigne (3-14)
Last Fight: 7/29/2011- W(DQ5) vs. Edison Miranda (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
There was talk immediately after the Miranda fight of a rematch taking place, but no new news on that.
17) Jesus Gonzales (3-17)
Last Fight: 7/8/2011- UD12 Francisco Sierra (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
His present and future are probably both at 168, but he beat a good enough light heavyweight to earn this ranking, nevertheless.
18) Thierry Karl (3-71)
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.
19) Luis Garcia (3-42)
Last Fight: 11/6/2010- TKO2 Byron Mitchell (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Garcia is at risk of being removed from the rankings after this week.
20) Dyah Davis (3-32)
Last Fight: 10/21/2011- UD6 Darnell Boone (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown

 

The Week Ahead:  Friday in Moscow, #13 Ismayl Sillakh takes on cruiserweight journeyman Ali Ismailov.  Ismailov was at one time a notable fighter, but is coming off four consecutive stoppage losses. 

 

Saturday, Allan Green faces off with Sebastian Demers in Quebec City for a collision of two recent super middleweight fringe contenders.  Also, painfully inactive undefeated prospect Marcus Oliveira fights Chris Eppley, who at 10-1 has fought exclusively nobodies, and has lost to one of them in the process.    That fight is in Hollywood, Florida.

 

Also, if #19 Luis Garcia doesn’t schedule a fight by the end of the week, he will be removed from the rankings for a year’s inactivity.

Cruiserweight: 2011, Aug 15-21

Posted in Cruiserweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on September 7, 2011 by danboxing
A bloated 185 pound version of recent Super Middleweight fringe contender Allan Green had little trouble beating total non-entity Craig Gandy by 2nd round TKO in Miami, Oklahoma on Saturday.  The general consensus is that Green belongs at light heavyweight now after looking completely awful in his last few fights at 168.

 

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) Antonio Tarver
7) Giacobbe Fragomeni
8) Ola Afolabi
9) Guillermo Jones
10) Danny Green


Dan’s Top 20
Champ: None
1) Denis Lebedev (4-80-80)
Last Fight: 5/21/2011- TKO10 Roy Jones, Jr. (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
At last check, there were talks underway to fight Wlodarczyk.
2) Steve Cunningham (4-374-374)
Last Fight: 2/12/2011- UD12 #14 Enad Licina
Next Fight: Unknown
Says he wants Tarver, but he may already have a fight in the works with Yoan Pablo Hernandez.
3) Antonio Tarver (4-4-4)
Last Fight: 7/20/2011- RTD9 #7 Danny Green
Next Fight: Unknown
Has established himself at probably #2 on the pound-for-pound list among fighters over 40 behind Hopkins.
4) Marco Huck (4-245-245)
Last Fight: 7/16/2011- KO10 Hugo Garay (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Had more trouble with Garay before putting him out than you might have hoped if you’re a Huck fan.
5) Ola Afolabi (4-127-127)
Last Fight: 7/2/2011- KO1 Terry Dunstan (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
After disposing of Dunstan, Afolabi said he wants to get Lebedev in the ring.
6) Yoan Pablo Hernandez (4-60-60)
Last Fight: 2/12/2011- KO7 #12 Steve Herelius
Next Fight: Unknown
May have Steve Cunningham on the horizon.
7) Guillermo Jones (4-46-46)
Last Fight: 10/2/2010- TKO11 Valery Brudov (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
8) Krzysztof Wlodarczyk (20-321-321)
Last Fight: 4/2/2011- W(SD12*) vs. Francisco Palacios (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Might be negotiating for a fight with Lebedev.
9) Danny Green (4-89-89)
Last Fight: 7/20/2011- L(RTD9) vs. Antonio Tarver (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
After having considered retirement prior to facing Tarver, we’ll see where he goes from here after the loss.
10) Giacobbe Fragomeni (4-144-144)
Last Fight: 7/8/2011- UD6 Remigijus Ziausys (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
11) Alexander Frenkel (4-48)
Last Fight: 9/18/2010- KO7 #12 Enzo Maccarinelli
Next Fight: 10/22/2011- vs. #17 Enad Licina
The Licina fight is now set for late October.
12) B.J. Flores (4-60)
Last Fight: 7/23/2011- RTD5 Nick Iannuzzi (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
His team wants to fight Tarver, and he has said he intends to fight in Springfield, MO again for his next fight.
13) Francisco Palacios (4-20)
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.
14) Lateef Kayode (4-39)
Last Fight: 6/10/2011- UD10 #19 Matt Godfrey
Next Fight: 9/9/2011- vs. Unknown Opponent
Kayode will fight on ShoBox September 9.  Ryan Coyne was originally discussed as an opponent, but Coyne opted out.
15) Troy Ross (4-129)
Last Fight: 10/30/2010- UD10 Carl Handy (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
The IBF has ordered an eliminator between Ross and gatekeeper Garrett Wilson.
16) Steve Herelius (4-59)
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.
17) Enad Licina (4-60)
Last Fight: 5/7/2011- KO1 Michele De Meo (UNR)
Next Fight: 10/22/2011- vs. #11 Alexander Frenkel
Will take on Alexander Frenkel in late October.
18) Enzo Maccarinelli (4-60)
Last Fight: 9/18/2010- L(KO7) vs. Alexander Frenkel (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
We’re still waiting to hear any significant details about Maccarinelli’s anticipated return at 175.
19) Firat Arslan (4-5)
Last Fight: 7/15/2011- TKO5 Lubos Suda (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Arslan has finally got his comeback on the right track after the Herelius setback by destroying the decent Suda.
20) Alexander Alexeev (4-31)
Last Fight: 6/11/2011- TKO2 Damian Norris (UNR)
Next Fight: 9/3/2011- vs. Ismail Abdoul (UNR)
Will fight decent journeyman Ismail Abdoul in early September in Germany.

 

THE WEEK AHEAD:  No action to discuss this week.