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Middleweight: 2014, Jul 21-27

Posted in Middleweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on December 25, 2014 by danboxing
No notable middleweights saw action last week.

 

Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in Current Position-Weeks in Top 10 if applicable-Weeks in Top 20)
Champ: Miguel Cotto (7-7-7)
Last Fight: 6/7/2014- RTD10 Champ Sergio Martinez
Next Fight: Unknown
Cotto is the Champion.  The only question now is whether he will risk that Championship against the dominant #1 contender against whom he probably would have very little chance.  His thoughts seem to be more in the direction of Canelo.
1) Gennady Golovkin (32-99-162)
Last Fight: 2/1/2014- TKO7 Osumanu Adama (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/26/2014- vs. #5 Daniel Geale
Golovkin-Geale is official for July 26 in New York.
2) Sam Soliman (8-32-32)
Last Fight: 5/31/2014- UD12 #2 Felix Sturm
Next Fight: Unknown
His trainer wants Cotto, but Martin Murray looks more likely.  Soliman himself says he wants the winner of Golovkin-Geale.  On the other hand, the winner of N’Dam-Stevens will become his mandatory.
3) Sergio Martinez (7-223-223)
Last Fight: 6/7/2014- L (RTD10) vs. #8 JMW Miguel Cotto
Next Fight: Unknown
When assessing Maravilla’s viability as a contender at this point, it really comes down to one question: is his base athletic level and chin as bad as his performance against Cotto, or can it be blamed on a knee or other sort of leg injury?  If the latter, he might stand some chance to come back given enough recuperation time.  If the former, then he’s one of the most obviously finished fighters I’ve ever seen.  His manager ominously said after the fight that his only injury was a broken nose.  That’s incredible, if true, considering how bad his legs looked.  He says he plans to continue fighting.
4) Felix Sturm (7-566-566)
Last Fight: 5/31/2014- L (UD12) vs. #8 Sam Soliman
Next Fight: Unknown
Sturm passed on an eliminator with Curtis Stevens, right after David Lemieux passed on an eliminator with Sturm.  Apparently nobody wants the IBF title.
5) Daniel Geale (7-266-266)
Last Fight: 2/19/2014- RTD6 Garth Wood (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/26/2014- vs. #1 Gennady Golovkin
See Golovkin’s notes, above.
6) Martin Murray (5-138-138)
Last Fight: 6/21/2014- UD12 #15 Max Bursak
Next Fight: 10/25/2014- vs. Domenico Spada (UNR)
Murray will essentially tread water against formerly significant journeyman Domenico Spada in Monte Carlo in late October.  He’s apparently the #1 contender for Cotto’s title, so we’ll see if that materializes at some point thereafter.
7) Peter Quillin (5-92-113)
Last Fight: 4/19/2014- UD12 Lukas Konecny (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
The WBO has ordered Quillin-Korobov.
8) Matthew Macklin (7-161-252)
Last Fight: 12/7/2013- UD10 Lamar Russ (UNR)
Next Fight: 8/30/2014- vs. Jorge Sebastian Heiland (UNR)
Macklin is back on August 30 in Dublin against Argentina’s Sebastian Heiland, who I guess qualifies as a minor threat after technically stopping Billi Godoy.
9) Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam (7-32-32)
Last Fight: 4/16/2014- UD10 Fulgencio Zuniga (UNR)
Next Fight: 9/30/2014- vs. #19 Curtis Stevens
N’Dam-Stevens is set for September 30, with the winner getting a shot at Soliman’s belt.
10) Sergio Mora (7-56-56)
Last Fight: 5/31/2014- TKO5 Samuel Rogers (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Mora wants Quillin or Golovkin.
11) Osumanu Adama (7-25)
Last Fight: 2/1/2014- L (TKO7) vs. #1 Gennady Golovkin
Next Fight: Unknown
Not the most pleasant entry into the rankings we’ve ever seen, but his resume stacks up pretty well as long as he’s active and on weight.
12) Dmitry Chudinov (7-17)
Last Fight: 6/1/2014- UD12 Patrick Nielsen (UNR)
Next Fight: 8/9/2014- vs. Mehdi Bouadla (UNR)
Russian Chudinov will be in action in Sevastopol- a city his country is currently occupying in the Ukraine- against decent French journeyman Mehdi Bouadla on August 9.
13) Marco Antonio Rubio (7-182)
Last Fight: 4/5/2014- KO10* Domenico Spada (UNR)
Next Fight:Unknown
Rubio wants a shot at Cotto.
14) Matt Korobov (4-4)
Last Fight: 6/28/2014- UD10 Jose Uzcategui (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
See Quillin’s notes, above.
15) Jarrod Fletcher (4-25)
Last Fight: 2/1/2014- W* (UD12) vs. #12 Max Bursak
Next Fight: 8/9/2014- vs. Daniel Jacobs (UNR)
Fletcher will fight fringe contender Daniel Jacobs on August 9 for a trumped up (aka WBA) title.
16) Max Bursak (4-182)
Last Fight: 6/21/2014- L (UD12) vs. #7 Martin Murray
Next Fight: Unknown
Monte Carlo isn’t kind to Bursak.  He lost a debatable decision to Jarrod Fletcher there, and then was more or less dominated by Martin Murray.
17) David Lemieux (4-9)
Last Fight: 5/24/2014- KO3 Fernando Guerrero (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Lemieux’s eye-popping domination of Guerrero has fueled idle speculation of a potential shot at Peter Quillin, who is short on options for high-level opponents due to the ongoing Showtime-HBO feud.  In the meantime, he’s reportedly turned down an eliminator with Sturm.
18) Caleb Truax (7-44)
Last Fight: 1/3/2014- Draw (UD10) vs. Ossie Duran (UNR) (at SMW)
Next Fight: 7/25/2014- vs. Derek Ennis (UNR)
Truax has a new opponent for 7/25, with a slight downgrade to Derek Ennis.
19) Curtis Stevens (7-51)
Last Fight: 4/4/2014- TKO10* Tureano Johnson (UNR) (at SMW)
Next Fight: 9/30/2014- vs. #9 Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam
The winner of Stevens-N’Dam will get a shot at Soliman’s belt.
20) Andrey Meryasev (7-37)
Last Fight: 4/26/2014- UD10 Carlos Baldomir (UNR) (at SMW)
Next Fight: Unknown
Meryasev dominated in pedestrian fashion against the now-retired Baldomir.

 

The Week Ahead: It’s a middleweight bonanza this week.
Friday
Michel Soro vs. Antoine Douglas; Verona, New York; Showtime (US)
Douglas is an untested undefeated prospect, while Soro would be undefeated if he hadn’t been robbed in what was technically a title fight with Zaurbek Baysangurov at 154.  This is a total toss-up fight, and well-matched.

 

#18 Caleb Truax vs. Derek Ennis; Chicago, Illinois; ESPN2 (US)
Ennis would have been a good test for Truax about 4 years ago, but he’s been rather inactive since 2011, and has had only one significant fight since then.  His career really jumped the rails earlier that year, when he was inexplicably stopped by low-level journeyman Giorbis Barthelemy.  Truax had a poor outing his last time out in a draw against Ossie Duran, but he was on a bit of a roll before that.  We’ll see which Truax shows up.  If it’s the good one, it might be a short night.

 

Billi Godoy vs. Martin Rios; Buenos Aires, Argentina; TV Publica (ARG)
Godoy, who has come up as a golden prospect in Argentina, was once ranked here, but has been tagged with 2 losses now.  He should arguably still be undefeated.  I had his loss to Sergio Sanders a draw back in 2012, and when he was unjustly stopped against Jorge Heiland in November, I was set to score that fight a draw if the 12th had played out with no new knockdowns.  Still, struggling to that degree against that level of competition doesn’t exactly make him look like the next Maravilla.  Rios is a one-loss fringe prospect.  His only loss is a reasonably respectable decision setback to the solid Luciano Cuello, but he does have two draws already against lesser competition.  

 

Saturday
Billy Joe Saunders vs. Emanuele Blandamura; Manchester, England; BoxNation (UK)
This is a good matchup of legit prospects.  England’s Saunders owns wins over fellow prospects Jarrod Fletcher (though it was very prematurely stopped) and John Ryder, while Rome’s Blandamura comes off his career-best win over fellow prospect Marcos Nader in a convincing decision.  The cards in that fight were ludicrously close overall, but it was something like a 118-11o win in reality.  You’d have to lean toward Saunders due to his better overall experience coming up in the British system, but you never know what can happen when two legitimately unbeaten guys with top 50 wins on their record meet up.

 

#1 Gennady Golovkin vs. #5 Daniel Geale; New York, New York; HBO (US)
Looking at the names on each man’s resume alone, this one figures to be a barnburner.  On the other hand, it’s almost impossible for me to picture Geale winning.  By comparison, the Australian contender is woefully feather-fisted.  He wins most of his high-level fights in close fashion by throwing a ton of volume.  You’d think all the destructive Golovkin would have to do was time him a few times per round and it would be a short night.  And that’s even assuming Geale could get the necessary respect to avoid being actively walked down by GGG.  Nice matchup in terms of the standings, but it has all the signs of a relatively easy night for the #1 contender anyway.

 

#20 SMW Don Mouton vs. Larry Smith; Humble, Texas; Off TV
Mouton takes on the abysmal Larry Smith in a fight so one-sided, it’s not worthy of further mention.
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Middleweight: 2013, Dec 2-8

Posted in Middleweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , , , , on January 29, 2014 by danboxing
Neuquen, Argentina played host on Friday to a rematch between #17 Billi Godoy and gatekeeper Jorge Heiland, both of that country.  I don’t know what kind of buzz the result is generating locally, but for me, it rings a bit controversial.  By my reckoning, Godoy led 105-103 heading into the 12th round (it may have been even, or Godoy may have been up fairly big).  Godoy had scored a flash knockdown in an otherwise close 3rd, and had been dropped himself- and harder- in the 7th.  Heiland, perhaps knowing the outcome was likely in doubt, dropped the favorite hard.  Godoy rose well before the count reached 8, but referee Cesareo Morales stopped it.  The decision was inexplicable from where I was sitting.  Perhaps there was something troubling in the eyes of Godoy that none of the replays showed, but from all the views I saw, the stoppage was unnecessary, and gave Heiland a TKO win where he had thus far only earned a draw by his efforts.

 

On the Stevenson-Bellew undercard in Quebec City on Saturday, fringe contender David Lemieux got a very good win against fringe contender Jose Miguel Torres, dropping the veteran six times in under seven rounds, at which point the fight was mercifully halted.  Torres, in fairness, had more moments than that result might suggest, but simply couldn’t stay on his feet against the heavy-handed power of Lemieux, who dropped his man to both the head and body.  But there’s one catch for Lemieux: the fight was contested a couple pounds over the middleweight limit, and thus he still hasn’t made Middleweight in 2 years.  This makes him ineligible for a ranking that he certainly would have achieved otherwise.

 

#10 Anthony Mundine also fought, but that will be discussed at 154, where it was contested.

 

Regarding Godoy-Heiland, it’s a difficult situation.  First, I’m not ready to go on record and say that the stoppage was definitely wrong.  I think it’s about 90-10 that it was, based on what I saw, but I’m going to give the ref the benefit of that 10.  Furthermore, while I had the fight even after assuming a 10-8 12th, it wouldn’t have been unreasonable for another judge to have seen the knockdown as propelling Heiland to victory, even if the fight had gone the distance.  Finally, there’s no proof, even at that, that Heiland would not have gone on to more conclusively stop Godoy if allowed to continue.  For this reason, I must give Heiland the benefit of the doubt (albeit somewhat marginally), in reshuffling my rankings.  Godoy falls from the top 20 after 15 consecutive weeks in.  Jacobs and Chudinov move up to fill the gap, while Heiland debuts at #19, held back a bit by the awkwardness of the result, and even more so by a handful of losses and draws in his past- some acceptable and some not so much.  Akio Shibata hangs on at #20.

 

Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in Current Position-Weeks in Top 10 if applicable-Weeks in Top 20)
Champ: Sergio Martinez (190-190-190)
Last Fight: 4/27/2013- UD12* #9 Martin Murray (Robbery- draw at best)
Next Fight: Unknown
Martinez wants to fight Miguel Cotto at 158, and considers Marco Antonio Rubio his fallback plan.  Sergio reportedly has a $15 million offer on the table to Cotto, with June 7th being the target.
1) Martin Murray (32-105-105)
Last Fight: 4/27/2013- L* (UD12) vs. Champ Sergio Martinez (Robbery- D at worst)
Next Fight: 12/14/2013- vs. Sergey Khomitsky (UNR)
Murray’s fight with Khomitsky for the Froch-Groves undercard was cancelled on 3 days’ notice on account of a virus, but has been rescheduled for December 14.
2) Gennady Golovkin (23-66-129)
Last Fight: 11/2/2013- RTD8 #15 Curtis Stevens
Next Fight: 2/1/2014- vs. Unknown Opponent
Golovkin returns February 1 in Monte Carlo.  Originally it looked like Murray was the opponent, but that appears to be a no-go.  He says he’s willing to fight Mayweather at 154 or Ward at 168.
3) Darren Barker (16-16-112)
Last Fight: 8/17/2013- W (SD12) vs. #3 Daniel Geale
Next Fight: 12/7/2013- vs. #4 Felix Sturm
Another excellent middleweight match-up in 2013, as Barker will take on Felix Sturm in Germany on December 7.
4) Felix Sturm (23-533-533)
Last Fight: 7/6/2013- TKO4 Predrag Radosevic (UNR)
Next Fight: 12/7/2013- vs. #3 Darren Barker
See Barker’s notes, above.
5) Daniel Geale (16-233-233)
Last Fight: 8/17/2013- L (SD12) vs. #15 Darren Barker
Next Fight: Unknown
Geale wants a rematch, but will probably have to wait until at least 2014, since it appears likely Barker will make a mandatory defense in December against Sturm, instead.  March appears to be the current target.
6) Matthew Macklin (16-128-219)
Last Fight: 6/29/2013- L (KO3) vs. #4 Gennady Golovkin
Next Fight: 12/7/2013- vs. Lamar Russ (UNR)
Macklin’s original 12/7 opponent, Willie Nelson, injured his elbow in sparring, and so far Macklin turned down Matt Korobov and was turned down by Max Bursak.  The new opponent is borderline top 50 undefeated prospect Lamar Russ.
7) Peter Quillin (32-59-80)
Last Fight: 10/26/2013- TKO10 Gabriel Rosado (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Golden Boy is looking to match Quillin with Danny Jacobs in Brooklyn on February 1.  A recent interview indicates he might prefer to fight some of the top contenders, instead.  Unfortunately most of them fight on HBO in this division, while Quillin’s promoter is tied to Showtime.
8) Sergio Mora (7-23-23)
Last Fight: 11/16/2013- KO5 Milton Nunez (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
9) Marco Antonio Rubio (7-9-149)
Last Fight: 7/27/2013- KO2 Dionisio Miranda (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Rubio looks poised to take on Sergio if Maravilla’s intended fight with Cotto falls through.
10) Anthony Mundine (7-7-149)
Last Fight: 11/27/2013- TKO7 #4 WW Shane Mosley (at JMW)
Next Fight: Unknown
Mundine has renewed his familiar call for a shot at Mayweather after beating Mosley.  That’s highly unlikely, given Mundine’s low profile stateside.
11) Max Bursak (7-149)
Last Fight: 9/21/2013- UD12 Nick Blackwell (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Bursak had the opportunity to fill in for Willie Nelson for an HBO date against Matthew Macklin, but turned down that chance.
12) Caleb Truax (7-11)
Last Fight: 9/21/2013- TKO4 Ceresso Fort (UNR)
Next Fight: 1/3/2014- vs. Derek Ennis (UNR)
Truax’s January 3 fight will likely be the first notable fight of the New Year.  He’ll face Derek Ennis.
13) Bryan Vera (7-59)
Last Fight: 9/28/2013- L* (UD10) vs. Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. (UNR) (at LHW)
Next Fight: 3/1/2014- vs. Julio Cesar Chavez (UNR)
Vera-Chavez II now looks likely for March 1 in either Vegas or Texas, after a proposed February date was abandoned over concerns related to Olympic conflicts.
14) Grzegorz Proksa (7-138)
Last Fight: 6/28/2013- L (UD10) vs. Sergio Mora (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Proksa had another hand operation in August, but thinks he’ll be ready to go for a proposed February fight in Poland with undefeated prospect Maciej Suleckim.
15) Curtis Stevens (7-18)
Last Fight: 11/2/2013- L (RTD8) vs. #2 Gennady Golovkin
Next Fight: 1/24/2014- vs. Unknown Opponent
Stevens will make a surprisingly quick return from a grueling battle with Golovkin.
16) Andrey Meryasev (4-4)
Last Fight: 11/4/2013- UD10 Sergio Sanders (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
I’ve still yet to see Meryasev in action, but his win over Sanders at this point in his career proves that he’s a real prospect.
17) Danny Jacobs (1-15)
Last Fight: 8/19/2013- TKO3 Giovanni Lorenzo (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Golden Boy is apparently looking to match Jacobs and Quillin on February 1 in Brooklyn.
18) Dmitry Chudinov (1-15)
Last Fight: 9/21/2013- W (PTS8) vs. Max Maxwell (UNR) (at SMW/LHW)
Next Fight: 12/21/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent
Chudinov makes his return in Moscow on December 21.
19) Jorge Heiland (1-1)
Last Fight: 11/29/2013- TKO*12 #17 Billi Godoy
Next Fight: Unknown
After two closely-contested battles, there’s already talk of a trilogy with Godoy.
20) Akio Shibata (4-9)
Last Fight: 8/25/2013- L (TKO2) vs. Ryoto Murata (UNR) (at SMW)
Next Fight: Unknown

 

The Week Ahead: Friday in Tokyo, ranked Super Middleweight Ryoto Murata- really just a middleweight who fought at a contract weight in his only fight- meets low-level and inactive Minnesota prospect Dave Petersen.

 

Saturday in Stuttgart, Germany, #3 Darren Barker and #4 Felix Sturm meet in a high-stakes battle that figures to be very closely contested.

 

Former junior middleweight contender James Kirkland returns to the ring on Saturday after a long layoff of nearly two years, fighting undefeated power puncher Glen Tapia in Atlantic City.  The fight’s real implications will probably be at 154 in the real world, but it’s being fought at a 156 pound catchweight.

 

On the same card, #6 Matthew Macklin takes on prospect and late replacement Lamar Russ in what could be viewed as a potential crossroads fight.

 

And even deeper on the card, undefeated perennial prospect Matt Korobov continues his largely mediocre diet of competition, taking on somewhat low-level journeyman Derek Edwards.

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Middleweight: 2013, Nov 25- Dec 1

Posted in Middleweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on January 20, 2014 by danboxing
Nothing significant to report from last week at 160.

 

Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in Current Position-Weeks in Top 10 if applicable-Weeks in Top 20)
Champ: Sergio Martinez (189-189-189)
Last Fight: 4/27/2013- UD12* #9 Martin Murray (Robbery- draw at best)
Next Fight: Unknown
Martinez wants to fight Miguel Cotto at 158, and considers Marco Antonio Rubio his fallback plan.
1) Martin Murray (31-104-104)
Last Fight: 4/27/2013- L* (UD12) vs. Champ Sergio Martinez (Robbery- D at worst)
Next Fight: Unknown
Murray’s fight with Khomitsky for the Froch-Groves undercard was cancelled on 3 days’ notice on account of a virus.
2) Gennady Golovkin (22-65-128)
Last Fight: 11/2/2013- RTD8 #15 Curtis Stevens
Next Fight: 2/1/2014- vs. Unknown Opponent
Golovkin returns February 1 in Monte Carlo.  Originally it looked like Murray was the opponent, but that appears to be a no-go.  He says he’s willing to fight Mayweather at 154 or Ward at 168.
3) Darren Barker (15-15-111)
Last Fight: 8/17/2013- W (SD12) vs. #3 Daniel Geale
Next Fight: 12/7/2013- vs. #4 Felix Sturm
Another excellent middleweight match-up in 2013, as Barker will take on Felix Sturm in Germany on December 7.
4) Felix Sturm (22-532-532)
Last Fight: 7/6/2013- TKO4 Predrag Radosevic (UNR)
Next Fight: 12/7/2013- vs. #3 Darren Barker
See Barker’s notes, above.
5) Daniel Geale (15-232-232)
Last Fight: 8/17/2013- L (SD12) vs. #15 Darren Barker
Next Fight: Unknown
Geale wants a rematch, but will probably have to wait until at least 2014, since it appears likely Barker will make a mandatory defense in December against Sturm, instead.  March appears to be the current target.
6) Matthew Macklin (15-127-218)
Last Fight: 6/29/2013- L (KO3) vs. #4 Gennady Golovkin
Next Fight: 12/7/2013- vs. Lamar Russ (UNR)
Macklin’s original 12/7 opponent, Willie Nelson, injured his elbow in sparring, and so far Macklin turned down Matt Korobov and was turned down by Max Bursak.  The new opponent is borderline top 50 undefeated prospect Lamar Russ.
7) Peter Quillin (31-58-79)
Last Fight: 10/26/2013- TKO10 Gabriel Rosado (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Golden Boy is looking to match Quillin with Danny Jacobs in Brooklyn on February 1.  A recent interview indicates he might prefer to fight some of the top contenders, instead.  Unfortunately most of them fight on HBO in this division, while Quillin’s promoter is tied to Showtime.
8) Sergio Mora (6-22-22)
Last Fight: 11/16/2013- KO5 Milton Nunez (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
9) Marco Antonio Rubio (6-8-148)
Last Fight: 7/27/2013- KO2 Dionisio Miranda (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Rubio looks poised to take on Sergio if Maravilla’s intended fight with Cotto falls through.
10) Anthony Mundine (6-6-148)
Last Fight: 1/30/2013- L (UD12) vs. #1 Daniel Geale
Next Fight: 11/27/2013- vs. #4 WW Shane Mosley (at JMW)
Mosley-Mundine has been rescheduled for a rather short-noticed date of November 27.
11) Max Bursak (6-148)
Last Fight: 9/21/2013- UD12 Nick Blackwell (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Bursak had the opportunity to fill in for Willie Nelson for an HBO date against Matthew Macklin, but turned down that chance.
12) Caleb Truax (6-10)
Last Fight: 9/21/2013- TKO4 Ceresso Fort (UNR)
Next Fight: 1/3/2014- vs. Derek Ennis (UNR)
Truax’s January 3 fight will likely be the first notable fight of the New Year.  He’ll face Derek Ennis.
13) Bryan Vera (6-58)
Last Fight: 9/28/2013- L* (UD10) vs. Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. (UNR) (at LHW)
Next Fight: Unknown
Vera-Chavez II now looks likely for March 1 in either Vegas or Texas, after a proposed February date was abandoned over concerns related to Olympic conflicts.
14) Grzegorz Proksa (6-137)
Last Fight: 6/28/2013- L (UD10) vs. Sergio Mora (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Proksa had another hand operation in August, but thinks he’ll be ready to go for a proposed February fight in Poland with undefeated prospect Maciej Suleckim.
15) Curtis Stevens (6-17)
Last Fight: 11/2/2013- L (RTD8) vs. #2 Gennady Golovkin
Next Fight: Unknown
Stevens might be back on January 24.
16) Andrey Meryasev (3-3)
Last Fight: 11/4/2013- UD10 Sergio Sanders (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
I’ve still yet to see Meryasev in action, but his win over Sanders at this point in his career proves that he’s a real prospect.
17) Billi Godoy (3-15)
Last Fight: 7/19/2013- UD12 Mateo Veron (UNR)
Next Fight: 11/29/2013- vs. Jorge Heiland (UNR)
Godoy will fight high-level domestic journeyman Jorge Heiland in Neuquen, Argentina on November 29, in a rematch of their July 2012 fight.
18) Danny Jacobs (3-14)
Last Fight: 8/19/2013- TKO3 Giovanni Lorenzo (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Golden Boy is apparently looking to match Jacobs and Quillin on February 1 in Brooklyn.
19) Dmitry Chudinov (3-14)
Last Fight: 9/21/2013- W (PTS8) vs. Max Maxwell (UNR) (at SMW/LHW)
Next Fight: 12/21/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent
Chudinov makes his return on the undercard of a Roy Jones showcase in Moscow on December 21.
20) Akio Shibata (3-8)
Last Fight: 8/25/2013- L (TKO2) vs. Ryoto Murata (UNR) (at SMW)
Next Fight: Unknown

 

The Week Ahead: Friday in Neuquen, Argentina, we’ve got an intriguing rematch between #17 Billi Godoy and gatekeeper and countryman Jorge Heiland.

 

2-loss prospect David Lemieux gets a golden opportunity to jump-start his rather sputtering career, as he takes on Jose Miguel Torres, a fighter I have ranked very near the top 20, but whom I expect is probably overrated at that position based on a single win over a prospect.

 

#10 Anthony Mundine is also in action, on Wednesday against Shane Mosley, but that fight is at 154 and will be discussed in more detail there.

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Middleweight: 2013, Jul 22-28

Posted in Middleweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on July 24, 2013 by danboxing
One-loss Argentine prospect (who would be undefeated if my scores carried the day) Billi Godoy won a pretty average 12-round decision over gatekeeper and countryman Mateo Veron in Neuquen, Argentina on Friday by margins of 4, 4, and 6 points.  Last week I billed Veron as a journeyman, which is normally my shorthand for a non-top-50 fighter.  I was in error, as Veron had revenged his earlier loss to Jorge Heiland last month in a fight that apparently didn’t make it to boxrec in time to catch my eye, and in doing so earned top 50 status once again.  As such, Godoy’s victory over him gained a level of significance that I hadn’t anticipated.  More on that below.

 

In last week’s preview, I billed recently-ranked Dmitry Chudinov’s fight with Patrick Mendy as a walkover for the Russian, and called the battle of undefeated prospects between Englishman Billy Joe Saunders and Irishman Gary O’Sullivan as a competitive battle.  It seems I was mistaken yet again.

 

Saunders pretty much dominated O’Sullivan, losing a total of one round among the three cards.  Meanwhile, on the same card, Chudinov struggled mightily with the lowly Patrick Mendy, a mid-level Gambian journeyman.  With no title at stake, the referee doubled as sole judge as happens in the UK, and he had it dead even at 76-76.  I can’t really criticize that.  I had Chudinov winning 77-75, but it could reasonably have gone anywhere between 79-73 Chudinov and 77-75 Mendy.  A draw is a pretty fair result, and a very unexpected one.  Mendy fought like a pure boxer for the most part, trying to potshot off the back foot.  He threw mostly arm punches, but outworked Chudinov enough to give himself an argument anyhow.  Chudinov came forward and mostly kept Mendy with his back more or less to the ropes, but didn’t cut the distance quickly enough to impose his will consistently or land squarely with any regularity.  He made a strategic error by headhunting way too often, and noticeably faded in the last couple rounds- perhaps as a consequence of so many whiffs.

 

Godoy’s win pays off for him, as he regains a ranking at #20 for the first time since October.  With that, Nobuhiro Ishida’s 72-week stint as a top-20 middleweight comes to an end.  Chudinov’s draw might end up as a blip on the radar, but for now it moves him back just a couple places further from a ranking that he held just a few weeks ago.

 

Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in Current Position-Weeks in Top 10 if applicable-Weeks in Top 20)
Champ: Sergio Martinez (171-171-171)
Last Fight: 4/27/2013- UD12* #9 Martin Murray (Robbery- draw at best)
Next Fight: Unknown
Martinez is now making noise to the effect that he intends to fight Gennady Golovkin in 2014, but more recently stated that he wants the Mayweather-Canelo winner.
1) Martin Murray (13-86-86)
Last Fight: 4/27/2013- L* (UD12) vs. Champ Sergio Martinez (Robbery- D at worst)
Next Fight: Unknown
Murray looks like a good bet to fight Golovkin on November 2, in what would be the best matchup at 160 of 2013.
2) Gennady Golovkin (4-47-110)
Last Fight: 6/29/2013- KO3 #5 Matthew Macklin
Next Fight: Unknown
See Murray’s notes above.
3) Daniel Geale (4-214-214)
Last Fight: 1/30/2013- UD12 #11 Anthony Mundine
Next Fight: 8/17/2013- vs. #15 Darren Barker
Geale will get back to action on August 17, making his US debut in just his 3rd fight outside Australia when he takes on Darren Barker at the Turning Stone in New York state.
4) Felix Sturm (4-514-514)
Last Fight: 7/6/2013- TKO4 Predrag Radosevic (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Sturm wants to fight Geale by the end of the year if the Australian gets by Barker.
5) Matthew Macklin (13-109-200)
Last Fight: 6/29/2013- L (KO3) vs. #4 Gennady Golovkin
Next Fight: Unknown
Macklin has now suffered his 2nd knockout loss at the top level, but still has plenty of cred against anyone not in the top 5.
6) Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. (13-112-130)
Last Fight: 9/15/2012- L (UD12) vs. Champ Sergio Martinez
Next Fight: 9/7/2013- vs. #18 Bryan Vera (at SMW)
Bob Arum confirms Chavez-Vera, but on a new date of September 7, at Staples Center.  Apparently it will be at a contract weight “a few pounds” over the middleweight limit.  This is potentially problematic for Chavez’s continued ranking here.
7) Peter Quillin (13-40-61)
Last Fight: 4/27/2013- TKO7 Fernando Guerrero (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Golden Boy intends to put Quillin on an October card in Brooklyn.  There are signs that his opponent might be Danny Jacobs.  If so, that’s a ridiculous match-up.  Jacobs has fought only ham-and-eggers since being knocked out by Pirog in 2010 and winning a fight with cancer.  A fight with Golovkin has been discussed, but that is complicated by the opposing network loyalties of the two fighters.
8) Dmitry Pirog (13-156-156)
Last Fight: 5/1/2012- UD12 #20 Nobuhiro Ishida
Next Fight: Unknown
A recent interview with Pirog seemed to reveal underlying doubts as to his ability to return in August as planned and/or hoped for, but he says that return is still possible.  He says he won’t know until he puts a “heavy load” (ie fight camp) on his back if it will respond adequately or not.  If we don’t have positive news, at least, by the end of August, I’ll remove him, as it’s really been too long to keep hoping for a return.
9) Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam (4-21-143)
Last Fight: 10/20/2012- L (UD12) vs. #20 Peter Quillin
Next Fight: Unknown
10) Sergio Mora (4-4-4)
Last Fight: 6/28/2013- UD10 #9 Grzegorz Proksa
Next Fight: Unknown
Mora is hoping for a shot at Golovkin off the Proksa win.
11) Marco Antonio Rubio (19-130)
Last Fight: 3/23/2013- UD12 Marcus Upshaw (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/27/2013- vs. Dionisio Miranda (UNR)
Rubio will stay busy against Colombian journeyman Dionisio Miranda on July 27.
12) Anthony Mundine (19-130)
Last Fight: 1/30/2013- L (UD12) vs. #1 Daniel Geale
Next Fight: Unknown
There is serious discussion of a fight with Shane Mosley in Australia, likely in October.
13) Osumanu Adama (19-122)
Last Fight: 3/16/2012- W(SD10) vs. Grady Brewer (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/26/2013- vs. Doel Carasquillo (UNR)
Adama is back in action 7/26 against Puerto Rican journeyman and late replacement Doel Carasquillo.
14) Akio Shibata (12-12)
Last Fight: W (TD9) vs. #18 Makoto Fuchigami
Next Fight: 8/25/2013- vs. Ryota Murata (UNR)
This is a bit stunning.  After proving himself the best Asian middleweight against Fuchigami, Shibata will follow up with a high-risk, no reward fight against Ryota Murata, a fighter making his pro debut, but an Olympic Gold Medalist, as well.
15) Darren Barker (12-93)
Last Fight: 3/9/2013- RTD4 Simone Rotolo (UNR)
Next Fight: 8/17/2013- vs. #3 Daniel Geale
Barker will get his second big opportunity to rise to the top, as he takes on #2 Daniel Geale in New York state August 17.
16) Max Bursak (12-130)
Last Fight: 7/13/2013- UD12 Prince Arron (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Bursak may be back in September, and his EBU-mandated opponent will likely be Domenico Spada.
17) Demetrius Andrade (12-101)
Last Fight: 1/25/2013- UD10 Freddy Hernandez (UNR) (at JMW)
Next Fight: Unknown
Gatekeeper and (technically) titlist Zaurbek Baysangurov hurt his back and had to withdraw from the “title defense” against Andrade.  It looks like Andrade might fight for the vacant or interim version against Vanes Martirosyan, all of this being at 154, and likely on the Pacquiao-Rios undercard.
18) Bryan Vera (12-40)
Last Fight: 3/29/2013- TKO7* Donatas Bondorovas (UNR)
Next Fight: 9/7/2013- vs. #6 Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr.
Vera’s fight with Chavez has been delayed to September 7.
19) Grzegorz Proksa (4-119)
Last Fight: 6/28/2013- L (UD10) vs. Sergio Mora (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Proksa is an enigma.  He looked like the next big thing against Sylvester, but did practically nothing against Mora. 
20) Billi Godoy (1-1)
Last Fight: 7/19/2013- UD12 Mateo Veron (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
So Veron is a naturally smaller domestic trial horse.  But Godoy has piled up wins of that kind, and the Argentine scene isn’t half bad overall.  His volume of wins like this are enough in my view to offset his debatable loss to Sanders.

 

The Week Ahead: Friday in Cicero, Illinois, #13 Osumanu Adama looks to rebound from his nearly disastrous performance in March against Grady Brewer.  He’ll fight low-level Puerto Rican journeyman Doel “Amish Guy” Carasquillo, a late replacement for the somewhat better Elco Garcia.

 

In Chihuahua, Mexico the following evening, #11 Marco Antonio Rubio stays busy against decent Colombian journeyman Dionisio Miranda. 

 

On the undercard, Mexican prospect Marcos Reyes looks to avenge the only loss of his career, from 2010, against otherwise unremarkable Argentine journeyman Amilcar Funes.  Funes has incidentally trimmed down since that fight and enters as the naturally smaller man, having contested his last bout at welterweight.

 

The Minneapolis fight between Derrick Findley and Phil Williams is between two guys who are probably reasonably capable of making 160, so there’s a small possibility- in the absence of specific information on the contract weight- that they might decide to make it a middleweight contest, and I will mention it here if it becomes relevant.

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Middleweight: 2013, Jul 15-21

Posted in Middleweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on July 20, 2013 by danboxing
#12 Junior Middleweight Lukas Konecny won a average-to-solid 12-round decision over mid-level Tunisian journeyman Moez Fhima in Dresden on Saturday in his second consecutive fight at middleweight.

 

#16 Max Bursak also saw action on Saturday, easily outpointing a tough, very big-looking, but relatively limited Prince Arron in Monaco.  Arron was once the British champ and a top 10 contender at 154, but has fallen off drastically since losing in dominant decision to unheralded prospect Brian Rose in 2011.

 

No changes this week.

 

Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in Current Position-Weeks in Top 10 if applicable-Weeks in Top 20)
Champ: Sergio Martinez (170-170-170)
Last Fight: 4/27/2013- UD12* #9 Martin Murray (Robbery- draw at best)
Next Fight: Unknown
Martinez is now making noise to the effect that he intends to fight Gennady Golovkin in 2014.
1) Martin Murray (12-85-85)
Last Fight: 4/27/2013- L* (UD12) vs. Champ Sergio Martinez (Robbery- D at worst)
Next Fight: Unknown
Murray looks like a good bet to fight Golovkin on November 2, in what would be the best matchup at 160 of 2013.
2) Gennady Golovkin (3-46-109)
Last Fight: 6/29/2013- KO3 #5 Matthew Macklin
Next Fight: Unknown
See Murray’s notes above.
3) Daniel Geale (3-213-213)
Last Fight: 1/30/2013- UD12 #11 Anthony Mundine
Next Fight: 8/17/2013- vs. #15 Darren Barker
Geale will get back to action on August 17, making his US debut in just his 3rd fight outside Australia when he takes on Darren Barker at the Turning Stone in New York state.
4) Felix Sturm (3-513-513)
Last Fight: 7/6/2013- TKO4 Predrag Radosevic (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Sturm wants to fight Geale by the end of the year if the Australian gets by Barker.
5) Matthew Macklin (12-108-199)
Last Fight: 6/29/2013- L (KO3) vs. #4 Gennady Golovkin
Next Fight: Unknown
Macklin has now suffered his 2nd knockout loss at the top level, but still has plenty of cred against anyone not in the top 5.
6) Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. (12-111-129)
Last Fight: 9/15/2012- L (UD12) vs. Champ Sergio Martinez
Next Fight: 9/7/2013- vs. #18 Bryan Vera (at SMW)
Bob Arum confirms Chavez-Vera, but on a new date of September 7, at Staples Center.  Apparently it will be at a contract weight “a few pounds” over the middleweight limit.  This is potentially problematic for Chavez’s continued ranking here.
7) Peter Quillin (12-39-60)
Last Fight: 4/27/2013- TKO7 Fernando Guerrero (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Golden Boy intends to put Quillin on an October card in Brooklyn.  There are signs that his opponent might be Danny Jacobs.  If so, that’s a ridiculous match-up.  Jacobs has fought only ham-and-eggers since being knocked out by Pirog in 2010 and winning a fight with cancer.  A fight with Golovkin has been discussed, but that is complicated by the opposing network loyalties of the two fighters.
8) Dmitry Pirog (12-155-155)
Last Fight: 5/1/2012- UD12 #20 Nobuhiro Ishida
Next Fight: Unknown
A recent interview with Pirog seemed to reveal underlying doubts as to his ability to return in August as planned and/or hoped for, but he says that return is still possible.  He says he won’t know until he puts a “heavy load” (ie fight camp) on his back if it will respond adequately or not.  If we don’t have positive news, at least, by the end of August, I’ll remove him, as it’s really been too long to keep hoping for a return.
9) Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam (3-20-142)
Last Fight: 10/20/2012- L (UD12) vs. #20 Peter Quillin
Next Fight: Unknown
10) Sergio Mora (3-3-3)
Last Fight: 6/28/2013- UD10 #9 Grzegorz Proksa
Next Fight: Unknown
Mora is hoping for a shot at Golovkin off the Proksa win.
11) Marco Antonio Rubio (18-129)
Last Fight: 3/23/2013- UD12 Marcus Upshaw (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/27/2013- vs. Dionisio Miranda (UNR)
Rubio will stay busy against Colombian journeyman Dionisio Miranda on July 27.
12) Anthony Mundine (18-129)
Last Fight: 1/30/2013- L (UD12) vs. #1 Daniel Geale
Next Fight: Unknown
There is serious discussion of a fight with Shane Mosley in Australia, likely in October.
13) Osumanu Adama (18-121)
Last Fight: 3/16/2012- W(SD10) vs. Grady Brewer (UNR)
Next Fight: 7/26/2013- vs. Elco Garcia (UNR)
Adama is back in action 7/26 against Mexican journeyman Elco Garcia.
14) Akio Shibata (11-11)
Last Fight: W (TD9) vs. #18 Makoto Fuchigami
Next Fight: 8/25/2013- vs. Ryota Murata (UNR)
This is a bit stunning.  After proving himself the best Asian middleweight against Fuchigami, Shibata will follow up with a high-risk, no reward fight against Ryota Murata, a fighter making his pro debut, but an Olympic Gold Medalist, as well.
15) Darren Barker (11-92)
Last Fight: 3/9/2013- RTD4 Simone Rotolo (UNR)
Next Fight: 8/17/2013- vs. #3 Daniel Geale
Barker will get his second big opportunity to rise to the top, as he takes on #2 Daniel Geale in New York state August 17.
16) Max Bursak (11-129)
Last Fight: 7/13/2013- UD12 Prince Arron (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Bursak had a decent night in his first European title defense against Arron.
17) Demetrius Andrade (11-100)
Last Fight: 1/25/2013- UD10 Freddy Hernandez (UNR) (at JMW)
Next Fight: Unknown
Gatekeeper and (technically) titlist Zaurbek Baysangurov hurt his back and had to withdraw from the “title defense” against Andrade.  It looks like Andrade might fight for the vacant or interim version against Vanes Martirosyan, all of this being at 154, and likely on the Pacquiao-Rios undercard.
18) Bryan Vera (11-39)
Last Fight: 3/29/2013- TKO7* Donatas Bondorovas (UNR)
Next Fight: 9/7/2013- vs. #6 Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr.
Vera’s fight with Chavez has been delayed to September 7.
19) Grzegorz Proksa (3-118)
Last Fight: 6/28/2013- L (UD10) vs. Sergio Mora (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Proksa is an enigma.  He looked like the next big thing against Sylvester, but did practically nothing against Mora. 
20) Nobuhiro Ishida (3-72)
Last Fight: 3/30/2013- L (KO3) vs. #3 Gennady Golovkin
Next Fight: 8/4/2013- vs. Elly Pangaribuan (UNR)
Ishida said before the Golovkin fight that he would retire if the lost.  Having not heard post-fight confirmation, I decided to leave him ranked until I found out he was indeed finished.  Turns out I made the right decision, as Ishida is already scheduled to be back in the ring on August 4 in Osaka, against Indonesian novice Elly Pangaribuan.

 

The Week Ahead: Friday in Neuquen, Argentina, prospect Billi Godoy and high-level journeyman Mateo Veron do battle.  Godoy always seems to fight to the level of his opposition and produce close entertaining fights, and I have little doubt this will fit that mold.

 

The Chisora-Scott undercard in London features a couple worthwhile middleweight fights.  Recently ousted #20 contender Dmitry Chudinov looks to keep his unbeaten record intact against mid-range Gambian journeyman Patrick Mendy. 

 

The more competitive of the two features England’s Billy Joe Saunders against fellow undefeated prospect Gary O’Sullivan of Ireland in a very interesting rivalry scrap.

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Middleweight: 2013, Apr 15-21

Posted in Middleweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on April 24, 2013 by danboxing
In last week’s most significant fight, fringe contender and EU titlist Roberto Santos of Spain gave Austrian prospect Marcos Nader a rematch of their nip-and-tuck draw from last fall, and yet again was served an unsatisfactory outcome in his opponent’s backyard.  I scored both fights 115-113 for Santos, but I can’t say that Nader didn’t have an argument in both.  In the first few rounds, a nimble Nader grossly out-boxed a sluggish-looking Santos to build an early lead.  Most of the rounds between 4 and 11 could have gone either way, though Santos was building momentum and closing the distance progressively round-by-round.  By the final round, Nader was in full retreat with Santos bum rushing him with plenty of flush shots.  Nader won by scores of 116-112 (x2) and 115-113.  I can’t say any of the scores were completely out of line, but I do think they reflect a highly partisan Nader crowd. 

 

Staying with the Marcos theme for the moment, one-loss Mexican prospect Marcos Reyes stopped journeyman Eric Mitchell late in the 5th round of their fight in Hidalgo, Mexico.

 

And in Neuquen, Argentina, local one-loss prospect Billi Godoy successfully continued his rebound from his debatable first loss, establishing a 2-fight winning streak by outpointing weak Brazilian journeyman Valdevan Pereira.  The only problem is that he probably was expected to stop Pereira sometime before the final bell rang to close the 10-round contest.

 

No changes to the rankings, as the Santos-Nader fight will be treated much like a draw given the nature of the decision.

 

Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in Current Position-Weeks in Top 10 if applicable-Weeks in Top 20)
Champ: Sergio Martinez (157-157-157)
Last Fight: 9/15/2012- UD12 #4 Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr.
Next Fight: 4/27/2013- vs. #9 Martin Murray
Martinez will look to come back strong from knee surgery when he takes on Martin Murray in Argentina on April 27.  The fight will be revolutionary in that instant replay will be available to the referee.
1) Daniel Geale (95-200-200)
Last Fight: 1/30/2013- UD12 #11 Anthony Mundine
Next Fight: Unknown
With Soliman testing positive for a PED, his expected fight with Geale is probably out.  Perhaps a Sturm rematch is the most obvious follow-up.  Sergio has also expressed interest in a fight with him after Murray.
2) Felix Sturm (7-500-500)
Last Fight: 2/1/2013- L* (UD12) vs. #12 Sam Soliman (on PEDs)
Next Fight: Unknown
Sturm says on Twitter that he’s resumed light training, and will soon announce his plans for his next fight, which he describes as a big event.
3) Gennady Golovkin (7-33-96)
Last Fight: 3/30/2013- KO3 #19 Nobuhiro Ishida

Next Fight: 6/29/2013- vs. #4 Matthew Macklin
Golovkin-Macklin appears to be on for June 29 on HBO, and that’s huge.
4) Matthew Macklin (7-95-186)
Last Fight: 9/15/2012- TKO1 Joachim Alcine (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
See Golovkin’s notes, above.
5) Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. (7-98-116)
Last Fight: 9/15/2012- L (UD12) vs. Champ Sergio Martinez
Next Fight: 6/22/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent
Lots of Chavez news breaking.  He’s staying with Freddie Roach after it looked like they were splitsville.  It looks likely that Darren Barker is likely his guy for 6/22, and he’s saying that Andre Ward and Gennady Golovkin are his top choices for a fall fight, rather than a rematch with Martinez.
6) Peter Quillin (7-26-47)
Last Fight: 10/20/2012- UD12 #6 Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam
Next Fight: 4/27/2013- vs. Fernando Guerrero (UNR)
Quillin’s fight with Guerrero has been postponed from February 9 to April 27 due to an injury to the card’s headliner, Danny Garcia.
7) Dmitry Pirog (7-142-142)
Last Fight: 5/1/2012- UD12 #20 Nobuhiro Ishida
Next Fight: Unknown
After bleak reports of his back injury situation surfaced over recent weeks, finally we get a bit of hopeful news, as Pirog’s US promoter Art Pelullo says that Pirog is hoping to return in late August if all goes well.
8) Grzegorz Proksa (7-105-105)
Last Fight: 2/9/2013- UD6 Norbert Szekeres (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/28/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent
Proksa will bounce back from a hand injury and return on June 28 in the US.  No further details yet.
9) Martin Murray (7-72-72)
Last Fight: 11/24/2012- TKO6 Jorge Navarro (UNR)
Next Fight: 4/27/2013- vs. Champ Sergio Martinez
Murray will look to prove that he belongs at or above the level he achieved by drawing with Sturm when he fights the Champ in Argentina on April 27.
10) Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam (7-7-129)
Last Fight: 10/20/2012- L (UD12) vs. #20 Peter Quillin
Next Fight: Unknown

N’Dam was recently seen sparring at Mayweather’s gym with some of his top prospects.  This has fueled speculation of his possibly signing with Mayweather Promotions, himself.
11) Marco Antonio Rubio (5-116)
Last Fight: 3/23/2013- UD12 Marcus Upshaw (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown

Rubio seems to be the mandatory for both the Quillin-Guerrero and the Martinez-Murray winner unless I’ve missed something.
12) Anthony Mundine (5-116)
Last Fight: 1/30/2013- L (UD12) vs. #1 Daniel Geale
Next Fight: Unknown
Mundine expects to fight again in June, but doesn’t know against whom or in what division yet.  He has hinted he may be moving back down to 154.
13) Osumanu Adama (5-108)
Last Fight: 3/16/2012- W(SD10) vs. Grady Brewer (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Adama came in heavy and nearly lost to 42 year-old Grady Brewer.  The fact that he missed weight by only a half pound gives him the opportunity to schedule a middleweight fight by September 7 to maintain a ranking, though.
14) Darren Barker (6-79)
Last Fight: 3/9/2013- RTD4 Simone Rotolo (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Barker is the leading candidate for a 6/22 fight with Chavez.
15) Max Bursak (6-116)
Last Fight: 2/2/2013- TKO3 Julien Marie Sainte (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Bursak is now the EBU champion after destroying journeyman Sainte.
16) Demetrius Andrade (6-87)
Last Fight: 1/25/2013- UD10 Freddy Hernandez (UNR) (at JMW)
Next Fight: 7/6/2013- vs. Zaurbek Baysangurov (UNR) (at JMW)
Andrade will finally have a significant fight at the 154 pound limit, as he challenges the ridiculous title of Russia’s Zaurbek Baysangurov in either Kiev or Odessa in the Ukraine.
17) Bryan Vera (7-26)
Last Fight: 3/29/2013- TKO7* Donatas Bondorovas (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Vera looked like absolute crap against ordinary journeyman Donatas Bondas, getting a potential gift from the referee in a highly questionable 7th round stoppage, which saved him from needing the robbery that the judges were cooking up on the scorecards.  He remains one of the top candidates to fight JCC in June.
18) Curtis Stevens (7-13)
Last Fight: 1/19/2013- KO1 Elvin Ayala (UNR)
Next Fight: 4/20/2013- vs. Derrick Findley (UNR)
Stevens will fight on the Fury-Cunningham undercard at MSG on 4/20 against veteran journeyman Derrick Findley.
19) Makoto Fuchigami (3-7)
Last Fight: 10/12/2012- RTD6 Marlon Alta (UNR)
Next Fight: 5/4/2013- vs. Akio Shibata (UNR)
Fuchigami has a good domestic-level opportunity on his hands, fighting essentially a peer in junior middleweight fringe contender Akio Shibata.
20) Nobuhiro Ishida (3-59)
Last Fight: 3/30/2013- L (KO3) vs. #3 Gennady Golovkin
Next Fight: Unknown
Ishida said before the Golovkin fight that he’d retire if he lost.  But that could have just been posturing.  I won’t remove him as a retired fighter until I find some post-fight confirmation of his intentions.

 

The Week Ahead: Two notable middleweight fights to report next week, both on Saturday:

 

In the middle of the afternoon, #18 Curtis Stevens opens NBC’s live broadcast from Madison Square Garden with a showcase fight against durable journeyman Derrick Findley. 

 

That evening in Mexico City, undefeated prospect Gilberto Ramirez takes on very capable Colombian journeyman Dionisio Miranda.

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Middleweight: 2013, Apr 8-14

Posted in Middleweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on April 9, 2013 by danboxing
One-loss Australian prospect Jarrod Fletcher unanimously won every round and then stopped mid-range and much smaller Filipino journeyman Randy Suico in Altona North, Australia.  No changes to the rankings.

 

Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in Current Position-Weeks in Top 10 if applicable-Weeks in Top 20)
Champ: Sergio Martinez (156-156-156)
Last Fight: 9/15/2012- UD12 #4 Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr.
Next Fight: 4/27/2013- vs. #9 Martin Murray
Martinez will look to come back strong from knee surgery when he takes on Martin Murray in Argentina on April 27.  The fight will be revolutionary in that instant replay will be available to the referee.
1) Daniel Geale (94-199-199)
Last Fight: 1/30/2013- UD12 #11 Anthony Mundine
Next Fight: Unknown
With Soliman testing positive for a PED, his expected fight with Geale is probably out.  Perhaps a Sturm rematch is the most obvious follow-up.
2) Felix Sturm (6-499-499)
Last Fight: 2/1/2013- L* (UD12) vs. #12 Sam Soliman (on PEDs)
Next Fight: Unknown
Sturm says on Twitter that he’s resumed light training, and will soon announce his plans for his next fight, which he describes as a big event.
3) Gennady Golovkin (6-32-95)
Last Fight: 3/30/2013- KO3 #19 Nobuhiro Ishida

Next Fight: 6/29/2013- vs. #4 Matthew Macklin
Golovkin-Macklin appears to be on for June 29 on HBO, and that’s huge.
4) Matthew Macklin (6-94-185)
Last Fight: 9/15/2012- TKO1 Joachim Alcine (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
See Golovkin’s notes, above.
5) Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. (6-97-115)
Last Fight: 9/15/2012- L (UD12) vs. Champ Sergio Martinez
Next Fight: 6/22/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent
Lots of Chavez news breaking.  He’s staying with Freddie Roach after it looked like they were splitsville.  It looks likely that Darren Barker is likely his guy for 6/22, and he’s saying that Andre Ward and Gennady Golovkin are his top choices for a fall fight, rather than a rematch with Martinez.
6) Peter Quillin (6-25-46)
Last Fight: 10/20/2012- UD12 #6 Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam
Next Fight: 4/27/2013- vs. Fernando Guerrero (UNR)
Quillin’s fight with Guerrero has been postponed from February 9 to April 27 due to an injury to the card’s headliner, Danny Garcia.
7) Dmitry Pirog (6-141-141)
Last Fight: 5/1/2012- UD12 #20 Nobuhiro Ishida
Next Fight: Unknown
After bleak reports of his back injury situation surfaced over recent weeks, finally we get a bit of hopeful news, as Pirog’s US promoter Art Pelullo says that Pirog is hoping to return in late August if all goes well.
8) Grzegorz Proksa (6-104-104)
Last Fight: 2/9/2013- UD6 Norbert Szekeres (UNR)
Next Fight: 6/28/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent
Proksa will bounce back from a hand injury and return on June 28 in the US.  No further details yet.
9) Martin Murray (6-71-71)
Last Fight: 11/24/2012- TKO6 Jorge Navarro (UNR)
Next Fight: 4/27/2013- vs. Champ Sergio Martinez
Murray will look to prove that he belongs at or above the level he achieved by drawing with Sturm when he fights the Champ in Argentina on April 27.
10) Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam (6-6-128)
Last Fight: 10/20/2012- L (UD12) vs. #20 Peter Quillin
Next Fight: Unknown

N’Dam was recently seen sparring at Mayweather’s gym with some of his top prospects.  This has fueled speculation of his possibly signing with Mayweather Promotions, himself.
11) Marco Antonio Rubio (4-115)
Last Fight: 3/23/2013- UD12 Marcus Upshaw (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown

Rubio seems to be the mandatory for both the Quillin-Guerrero and the Martinez-Murray winner unless I’ve missed something.
12) Anthony Mundine (4-115)
Last Fight: 1/30/2013- L (UD12) vs. #1 Daniel Geale
Next Fight: Unknown
Mundine expects to fight again in June, but doesn’t know against whom or in what division yet.  He has hinted he may be moving back down to 154.
13) Osumanu Adama (4-107)
Last Fight: 3/16/2012- W(SD10) vs. Grady Brewer (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Adama came in heavy and nearly lost to 42 year-old Grady Brewer.  The fact that he missed weight by only a half pound gives him the opportunity to schedule a middleweight fight by September 7 to maintain a ranking, though.
14) Darren Barker (5-78)
Last Fight: 3/9/2013- RTD4 Simone Rotolo (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Barker is the leading candidate for a 6/22 fight with Chavez.
15) Max Bursak (5-115)
Last Fight: 2/2/2013- TKO3 Julien Marie Sainte (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Bursak is now the EBU champion after destroying journeyman Sainte.
16) Demetrius Andrade (5-86)
Last Fight: 1/25/2013- UD10 Freddy Hernandez (UNR) (at JMW)
Next Fight: Unknown
Andrade has impliedly called out Keith Thurman, Erislandy Lara, and explicitly challenged Ishe Smith.
17) Bryan Vera (6-25)
Last Fight: 3/29/2013- TKO7* Donatas Bondorovas (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Vera looked like absolute crap against ordinary journeyman Donatas Bondas, getting a potential gift from the referee in a highly questionable 7th round stoppage, which saved him from needing the robbery that the judges were cooking up on the scorecards.  He remains one of the top candidates to fight JCC in June.
18) Curtis Stevens (6-12)
Last Fight: 1/19/2013- KO1 Elvin Ayala (UNR)
Next Fight: 4/20/2013- vs. Derrick Findley (UNR)
Stevens will fight on the Fury-Cunningham undercard at MSG on 4/20 against veteran journeyman Derrick Findley.
19) Makoto Fuchigami (2-6)
Last Fight: 10/12/2012- RTD6 Marlon Alta (UNR)
Next Fight: 5/4/2013- vs. Akio Shibata (UNR)
Fuchigami has a good domestic-level opportunity on his hands, fighting essentially a peer in junior middleweight fringe contender Akio Shibata.
20) Nobuhiro Ishida (2-58)
Last Fight: 3/30/2013- L (KO3) vs. #3 Gennady Golovkin
Next Fight: Unknown
Ishida said before the Golovkin fight that he’d retire if he lost.  But that could have just been posturing.  I won’t remove him as a retired fighter until I find some post-fight confirmation of his intentions.

 

The Week Ahead: Saturday features three notable middleweight fights. 

 

In Schwechat, Austria, two Spanish-born fighters square off for the European Union title.  Marcos Nader is unquestionably the home fighter.  He has lived in Austria for most of his life, and his father is Austrian.  Santos is the European Union titlist, and is on quite a hot streak in terms of his performances (slightly less so in terms of his actual results).  He was a confirmed journeyman in February of last year and coming off a 6-round decision loss to a 6-2-1 opponent when he somehow got a shot at the vacant EU title against undefeated German Dominik Britsch.  Santos clearly beat Britsch, but was robbed by Dave Parris and especially the pathetic Zvonko Rukavina, by way of a split draw, only to remove it from the judges’ hands in the rematch, stopping Britsch in 8.  In his first official defense of the belt, he got a very close fight from Nader.  I scored it 115-113 Santos, but did think it could have gone the other way.  The judges had it a draw, setting up Santos’ second rematch in four fights.  I would like to give a similarly detailed breakdown of Nader’s recent career,  but the only thing I can really say is that he’s undefeated and had been consistently fighting mid-range journeymen prior to Santos.

 

Fringe contending one-loss prospect Billi Godoy continues to rebuild after his debateable first loss, fighting weak Brazilian journeyman Valdevan Pereira in Godoy’s hometown of Neuquen, Argentina.

 

Finally, one-loss prospect Marcos Reyes takes on mid-level journeyman Eric Mitchell in Hidalgo,  Mexico.

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Middleweight: 2012, Dec 24-30

Posted in Middleweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on December 26, 2012 by danboxing
Billi Godoy won a solid 10-round decision over a fellow Argentine- journeyman Cristian Rios- Friday in Caleta Olivia, Argentina.  This was Godoy’s first fight since an excruciatingly narrow decision loss to Sergio Sanders- the first of his career. 

 

Saturday’s action focused in Morelia, Mexico.  #13 Marco Antonio Rubio headlined the card, dropping quality Mexican journeyman Michel Rosales in the opening round before putting him down for good in the 11th.  On the same card, prospect Marcos Reyes once again struggled with veteran journeyman Julio Cesar Garcia, and was able to scratch out just a majority decision over 8 rounds.  The pair met up in September, with Reyes winning a very close unanimous decision.  In the most recent installment, Reyes actually went down in the second round, but Garcia gave the point back in round 6, when he was deducted for a headbutt.  I can’t find any video of the fight, so I can’t do anything but accept the close result in Reyes’ favor.

 

#14 Osumanu Adama- inactive since March- was scheduled to fight Derrick Findley in Chicago, but that fight was abruptly canceled at the last minute.
 

The biggest event of the week was really a non-event.  #15 Avtandil Khurtsidze has now been inactive for a year and is thus removed.  This allows everyone rated #16 and below last week to advance one spot each, and makes room for a new #20.  That spot was a tricky call.  The three candidates were Garth Wood, Jose Miguel Torres, and Makoto Fuchigami.  Wood has by far the best win of the 3- a knockout of Anthony Mundine from 2010.  But that win was subsequently avenged by Mundine, and Wood went on to lose to a gatekeeper-level Sam Soliman in his last fight which, by the way, was way back in February.  Torres has an unblemished record at 160, having beat a fringe contending (unofficially 24th-ranked) Patrick Majewski a year ago.  But Torres has some losses at junior middleweight and even welterweight that would call his legitimacy at 160 into question despite that win.  Fuchigami is best known outside Japan as a Golovkin knockout victim, but his mastery of an active if unspectacular Japanese scene has had him in or near the top 25 for a while.  His only significant red ink was entirely expected (Golovkin) or subsequently avenged (a 2009 SD loss to Tetsuya Suzuki, whom he later stopped).  Close call to be sure, but I think Fuchigami’s resume looks like that of the presently higher-quality fighter.  He therefore becomes my new #20 contender.

 

Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in Current Position-Weeks in Top 10 if applicable-Weeks in Top 20)
Champ: Sergio Martinez (141-141-141)
Last Fight: 9/15/2012- UD12 #4 Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr.
Next Fight: 4/27/2013- vs. #9 Martin Murray
Martinez will look to come back strong from knee surgery when he takes on Martin Murray in Argentina on April 27.
1) Daniel Geale (79-184-184)
Last Fight: 9/1/2012- W*(SD12) vs. #4 Felix Sturm
Next Fight: 1/30/2013- vs. #11 Anthony Mundine
Geale now has a date and location for the Mundine fight: January 30, in Sidney.
2) Felix Sturm (17-484-484)
Last Fight: 9/1/2012- L*(SD12) vs. #1 Daniel Geale
Next Fight: 2/2/2013- vs. #12 Sam Soliman
Sturm will fight Aussie Sam Soliman in Germany in early February.
3) Gennady Golovkin (17-17-80)
Last Fight: 9/1/2012- TKO5 #3 Grzegorz Proksa
Next Fight: 1/19/2013- vs. JMW #? Gabriel Rosado
Golovkin fights at Madison Square Garden against junior middleweight contender Gabriel Rosado.  The fight will be on HBO, and Golovkin’s trainer says the fight will be at a catchweight of perhaps 158.
4) Matthew Macklin (15-79-170)
Last Fight: 9/15/2012- TKO1 Joachim Alcine (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Andy Lee recently called Macklin out.
5) Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. (15-82-100)
Last Fight: 9/15/2012- L (UD12) vs. Champ Sergio Martinez
Next Fight: Unknown
Chavez is expecting to return in May, and then- provided both men win their spring fights- rematch Martinez in September.
6) Peter Quillin (10-10-31)
Last Fight: 10/20/2012- UD12 #6 Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam
Next Fight: 1/19/2013- vs. Fernando Guerrero (UNR)
After originally being rumored to be working on a fight with Jermain Taylor, Quillin will instead be fighting fringe contending one-loss Dominican Fernando Guerrero on January 19th’s Showtime tripleheader.
7) Dmitry Pirog (34-126-126)
Last Fight: 5/1/2012- UD12 #20 Nobuhiro Ishida
Next Fight: 3/2/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent
Pirog will return to the ring- and the US- fighting an opponent to be announced March 3 on HBO.
8) Grzegorz Proksa (17-89-89)
Last Fight: 9/1/2012- L(TKO5) vs. #13 Gennady Golovkin
Next Fight: Unknown
After a taxing TKO loss to Golovkin (and a fairly busy first 3 quarters of the year), Proksa now says he’ll take a rest until at least January.
9) Martin Murray (17-56-56)
Last Fight: 11/24/2012- TKO6 Jorge Navarro (UNR)
Next Fight: 4/27/2013- vs. Champ Sergio Martinez
Murray will look to prove that he belongs at or above the level he achieved by drawing with Sturm when he fights the Champ in Argentina on April 27.
10) Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam (10-113-113)
Last Fight: 10/20/2012- L (UD12) vs. #20 Peter Quillin

Next Fight: Unknown
As it turns out, N’Dam had a rematch clause in his contract with Quillin, but he also has expressed interest in Golovkin, Geale, Martinez, and Chavez.  Quillin has scheduled a fight with Fernando Guerrero, as well.
11) Anthony Mundine (10-100)
Last Fight: 7/14/2012- TKO7 Bronco McKart (UNR)
Next Fight: 1/30/2013- vs. #1 Daniel Geale
A big opportunity for Mundine in the rematch of his split decision victory over Geale.
12) Sam Soliman (10-45)
Last Fight: 8/24/2012- UD12 Giovanni Lorenzo (UNR)
Next Fight: 2/2/2013- vs. #2 Felix Sturm
Soliman is fighting Sturm all of a sudden.
13) Marco Antonio Rubio (10-100)
Last Fight: 12/22/2012- KO11 Michel Rosales (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
After Rubio’s win over Rosales, he called out Golovkin, Quillin, Martinez, and the field.
14) Osumanu Adama (10-92)
Last Fight: 3/7/2012- L(UD12) vs. #1 Daniel Geale
Next Fight: Unknown
Adama’s scheduled return against Derrick Findley was abruptly canceled at the last moment.  I don’t know why, nor when he might be back again.
15) Max Bursak (1-100)
Last Fight: 7/21/2012- KO1 Sergei Melis (UNR)
Next Fight: 1/26/2013- vs. Julien Marie Sainte (UNR)
Bursak will be fighting for a European title over what should be a pretty easy opponent in Frenchman Julien Marie Sainte- essentially a journeyman.  The one bit of intrigue is that the fight is taking place in France.
16) Demetrius Andrade (1-71)
Last Fight: 9/20/2012- TKO2 Alexis Hloros (UNR)
Next Fight: 1/25/2013- vs. Freddy Hernandez (UNR)
No word on why, but junior middleweight gatekeeper Freddy Hernandez is replacing Javier Maciel in the January 25 fight with Andrade.  The fight will be on ShoBox.
17) Darren Barker (1-63)
Last Fight: 12/8/2012- TKO4 Kerry Hope (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Barker wants Macklin and Murray, although Murray is obviously otherwise occupied for some months to come.
18) Nobuhiro Ishida (1-43)
Last Fight: 5/1/2012- L(UD12) vs. #8 Dmitry Pirog
Next Fight: Unknown
Barely challenged Pirog at all, but has enough mileage left on the Kirkland upset to remain ranked for the moment.
19) Bryan Vera (1-10)
Last Fight: 8/11/2012- W (MD12) vs. Sergio Mora (UNR)
Next Fight: 1/25/2013- vs. Sergei Dzinziruk (UNR)
Vera will get a big opportunity to establish himself as a contender when he fights once very highly ranked contender Sergei Dzinziruk on Friday Night Fights.
20) Makoto Fuchigami (1-1)
Last Fight: 10/12/2012- RTD6 Marlon Alta (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Fuchigami- the Japanese champion- still has yet to conquer any other shores.

 

The Week Ahead: Nothing notable going on in the division this week.

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Middleweight: 2012, Dec 17-23

Posted in Middleweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on December 24, 2012 by danboxing
Two-loss fringe prospect David Lemieux needed just two rounds to dispose of low-level Russian journeyman Albert Ayrapetyan in Montreal on Friday.  The following night on the Johnson-Groves undercard in London, undefeated Billy Joe Saunders won a unanimous decision over fellow English prospect Nick Blackwell, whose only prior loss was to Martin Murray.  The fight was competitive, but Saunders pulled it out comfortably on two of the cards, with a strong effort down the stretch.  No change to the rankings.

 

Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in Current Position-Weeks in Top 10 if applicable-Weeks in Top 20)
Champ: Sergio Martinez (140-140-140)
Last Fight: 9/15/2012- UD12 #4 Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr.
Next Fight: 4/27/2013- vs. #9 Martin Murray
Martinez will look to come back strong from knee surgery when he takes on Martin Murray in Argentina on April 27.
1) Daniel Geale (78-183-183)
Last Fight: 9/1/2012- W*(SD12) vs. #4 Felix Sturm
Next Fight: 1/30/2013- vs. #11 Anthony Mundine
Geale now has a date and location for the Mundine fight: January 30, in Sidney.
2) Felix Sturm (16-483-483)
Last Fight: 9/1/2012- L*(SD12) vs. #1 Daniel Geale
Next Fight: 2/2/2013- vs. #12 Sam Soliman
Sturm will fight Aussie Sam Soliman in Germany in early February.
3) Gennady Golovkin (16-16-79)
Last Fight: 9/1/2012- TKO5 #3 Grzegorz Proksa
Next Fight: 1/19/2013- vs. JMW #? Gabriel Rosado
Golovkin fights at Madison Square Garden against junior middleweight contender Gabriel Rosado.  The fight will be on HBO.
4) Matthew Macklin (14-78-169)
Last Fight: 9/15/2012- TKO1 Joachim Alcine (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Andy Lee recently called Macklin out.
5) Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. (14-81-99)
Last Fight: 9/15/2012- L (UD12) vs. Champ Sergio Martinez
Next Fight: Unknown
Chavez tested positive for marijuana for his fight with Martinez, and is likely to be suspended.  That won’t affect his rating here at all because he lost anyway, and because it’s not a performance enhancer.  The suspension is likely to last about 6 months, and Sergio recently stated that he wants Olympic testing as a precondition to a rematch.
6) Peter Quillin (9-9-30)
Last Fight: 10/20/2012- UD12 #6 Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam
Next Fight: 1/19/2013- vs. Fernando Guerrero (UNR)
After originally being rumored to be working on a fight with Jermain Taylor, Quillin will instead be fighting fringe contending one-loss Dominican Fernando Guerrero on January 19th’s Showtime tripleheader.
7) Dmitry Pirog (33-125-125)
Last Fight: 5/1/2012- UD12 #20 Nobuhiro Ishida
Next Fight: 3/2/2013- vs. Unknown Opponent
Pirog will return to the ring- and the US- fighting an opponent to be announced March 3 on HBO.
8) Grzegorz Proksa (16-88-88)
Last Fight: 9/1/2012- L(TKO5) vs. #13 Gennady Golovkin
Next Fight: Unknown
After a taxing TKO loss to Golovkin (and a fairly busy first 3 quarters of the year), Proksa now says he’ll take a rest until at least January.
9) Martin Murray (16-55-55)
Last Fight: 11/24/2012- TKO6 Jorge Navarro (UNR)
Next Fight: 4/27/2013- vs. Champ Sergio Martinez
Murray will look to prove that he belongs at or above the level he achieved by drawing with Sturm when he fights the Champ in Argentina on April 27.
10) Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam (9-112-112)
Last Fight: 10/20/2012- L (UD12) vs. #20 Peter Quillin

Next Fight: Unknown
As it turns out, N’Dam had a rematch clause in his contract with Quillin, but he also has expressed interest in Golovkin, Geale, Martinez, and Chavez.  Quillin has scheduled a fight with Fernando Guerrero, as well.
11) Anthony Mundine (9-99)
Last Fight: 7/14/2012- TKO7 Bronco McKart (UNR)
Next Fight: 1/30/2013- vs. #1 Daniel Geale
A big opportunity for Mundine in the rematch of his split decision victory over Geale.
12) Sam Soliman (9-44)
Last Fight: 8/24/2012- UD12 Giovanni Lorenzo (UNR)
Next Fight: 2/2/2013- vs. #2 Felix Sturm
Soliman is fighting Sturm all of a sudden.
13) Marco Antonio Rubio (9-99)
Last Fight: 9/8/2012- RTD4 Carlos Baldomir (UNR) (at SMW)
Next Fight: 12/22/2012- vs. Michel Rosales (UNR)
Rubio will fight top-notch journeyman Michel Rosales in Torreon, Mexico on December 22.
14) Osumanu Adama (9-91)
Last Fight: 3/7/2012- L(UD12) vs. #1 Daniel Geale
Next Fight: 12/22/2012- vs. Derrick Findley (UNR)
Adama will just be looking to get active again on December 22 when he fights journeyman Derrick Findley in Chicago.
15) Avtandil Khurtsidze (9-99)
Last Fight: 12/18/2011- W(MD12) vs. Ossie Duran (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Khurtsidze has a new promoter in DiBella, but will need to sign a fight by Christmas Eve to stay ranked.
16) Max Bursak (9-99)
Last Fight: 7/21/2012- KO1 Sergei Melis (UNR)
Next Fight: 1/26/2013- vs. Julien Marie Sainte (UNR)
Bursak will be fighting for a European title over what should be a pretty easy opponent in Frenchman Julien Marie Sainte- essentially a journeyman.  The one bit of intrigue is that the fight is taking place in France.
17) Demetrius Andrade (9-70)
Last Fight: 9/20/2012- TKO2 Alexis Hloros (UNR)
Next Fight: 1/25/2013- vs. Freddy Hernandez (UNR)
No word on why, but junior middleweight gatekeeper Freddy Hernandez is replacing Javier Maciel in the January 25 fight with Andrade.  The fight will be on ShoBox.
18) Darren Barker (9-62)
Last Fight: 12/8/2012- TKO4 Kerry Hope (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Barker wants Macklin and Murray, although Murray is obviously otherwise occupied for some months to come.
19) Nobuhiro Ishida (30-42)
Last Fight: 5/1/2012- L(UD12) vs. #8 Dmitry Pirog
Next Fight: Unknown
Barely challenged Pirog at all, but has enough mileage left on the Kirkland upset to remain ranked for the moment.
20) Bryan Vera (9-9)
Last Fight: 8/11/2012- W (MD12) vs. Sergio Mora (UNR)
Next Fight: 1/25/2013- vs. Sergei Dzinziruk (UNR)
Vera will get a big opportunity to establish himself as a contender when he fights once very highly ranked contender Sergei Dzinziruk on Friday Night Fights.

 

The Week Ahead: Friday: One-loss Argentine prospect Billi Godoy looks to come back from his razor-thin first career loss from back in October, when he takes on another (weaker) Argentine journeyman in Cristian Rios.

 

Saturday: In Chicago, #14 Osumanu Adama steps back between the ropes for the first time since his March decision loss to Daniel Geale.  He will fight top-level jouirneyman Derrick Findley.  Meanwhile, in Morelia, Mexico, #13 Marco Antonio Rubio tangles with another high-level journeyman in fellow Mexican Michel Rosales.  On the undercard, prospect Marcos Reyes re-matches the very experienced and credible journeyman Julio Cesar Garcia.  Their first fight in September ended with a very close decision.  Their last fight was an 10 rounder, this time they will be a bit more concise, fitting their work into an 8-round distance.

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Middleweight: 2012, Oct 22-28

Posted in Middleweight, Rankings with tags , , , , , , , on December 8, 2012 by danboxing
I’m not sure what is more impressive- knocking down your opponent 6 times in one fight, or coming within a hair’s breadth of winning the fight despite getting knocked down 6 times.  The win-loss record would indicate the former, but I think perhaps both the winner and the loser of N’Dam vs. Quillin have at least enhanced their cache with fans. 

 

Quillin’s left hook cut through N’Dam’s chin like a scythe through wheat, felling the French contender nearly every time it landed.  Meanwhile, N’Dam proved himself to be a gutsy and classy boxer, probably winning every round in which he stayed on his feet, but ultimately couldn’t adequately handle Quillin’s power.  On my card, he lost 112-111.  While it ultimately didn’t affect the outcome, I must say that to my eyes, none of the judges Lederman, Stewart, or Trella had a credible card.  Regardless, it was the night’s most compelling fight.

 

Now for the night’s most surprising and potentially controversial one.  In Buenos Aires, Argentina, undefeated #18 Billi Godoy of Neuquen, Argentina traveled to Buenos Aires to fight in his countryman Sergio Sanders’ backyard.  Sanders was a journeyman whom Godoy had knocked out in February 2011.  Godoy has made it a point lately of just barely maintaining his ranking by just managing to squeak by against rather mediocre opposition. 

 

Before I go further, a note of explanation.  Argentina uses a modified version of the 10-point must system that awards half points for toss-up rounds (ie 10-9.5) and gives 10-9 only for clear rounds.  I hope that I understand the finer points of it, and I believe I might because my own score is very compatible with those of the judges. 

 

Applying the local scoring system as best I know how, I had the fight 76.5-76.5- all even- with Godoy closing a 2-point deficit with a fairly dominant 8th and final round in which he knocked Sanders down.  I also examined my card and determined that under the standard system, my score would have been 76-75 Godoy since he got my nod more often in the close rounds.   But in either system, the fight could have gone either way.  In a very reasonable result in which the judges all did a very creditable job, Sanders took a split decision. 

 

Regardless of whether the Sanders fight is best viewed as a loss or something more like a draw, Godoy is bounced from the top 20.  Sanders fails to assume a position by quite a long shot, since he has far too much red ink on his ledger for that.

 

For his part, Quillin soars from #20 all the way to #6.  N’Dam slumps to #10 despite his brave effort.  This forces everybody rated 10 and below last week down a place, including Anthony Mundine, who exits the top 10 for the first time in 38 weeks.  Godoy’s exit allows Bryan Vera to debut (at least at 160) at #20.
 
 
 
Dan’s Top 20 (Weeks in Current Position-Weeks in Top 10 if applicable-Weeks in Top 20)
Champ: Sergio Martinez (132-132-132)
Last Fight: 9/15/2012- UD12 #4 Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr.
Next Fight: Unknown
Summary of the latest news: Sergio will have knee surgery on November 12, and hopes to return in April or May.  He is interested in a rematch with Chavez if Chavez takes Olympic-style drug tests, and is also interested in Mayweather and Canelo, but not interested in Golovkin.
1) Daniel Geale (70-175-175)
Last Fight: 9/1/2012- W*(SD12) vs. #4 Felix Sturm
Next Fight: Unknown Date- vs. #11 Anthony Mundine
Geale has reached an agreement to fight Anthony Mundine in a big domestic showdown, with details yet to come.
2) Felix Sturm (8-475-475)
Last Fight: 9/1/2012- L*(SD12) vs. #1 Daniel Geale
Next Fight: Unknown
Golovkin says he’d like to fight Sturm.
3) Gennady Golovkin (8-8-71)
Last Fight: 9/1/2012- TKO5 #3 Grzegorz Proksa
Next Fight: Unknown
With Sergio uninterested in a fight with him, Golovkin learned recently that HBO is interested in a 4-man elimination tournament of middleweight contenders to include him, Geale, Macklin, and Pirog. 
4) Matthew Macklin (6-70-161)
Last Fight: 9/15/2012- TKO1 Joachim Alcine (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Macklin’s name is among those being mentioned for a possible HBO tournament to include himself, Golovkin, Geale, and Pirog.
5) Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. (6-73-91)
Last Fight: 9/15/2012- L (UD12) vs. Champ Sergio Martinez
Next Fight: Unknown
Chavez tested positive for marijuana for his fight with Martinez, and is likely to be suspended.  That won’t affect his rating here at all because he lost anyway, and because it’s not a performance enhancer.  The suspension is likely to last about 6 months, and Sergio recently stated that he wants Olympic testing as a precondition to a rematch.
6) Peter Quillin (1-1-22)
Last Fight: 10/20/2012- UD12 #6 Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam
Next Fight: Unknown
After a fairly long period as a prospect/fringe contender, Quillin is now a full-blown contender.
7) Dmitry Pirog (25-117-117)
Last Fight: 5/1/2012- UD12 #20 Nobuhiro Ishida
Next Fight: Unknown
Pirog had a short-lived entry on his calendar to fight Golovkin in August, but withdrew very quickly with a back injury.
8) Grzegorz Proksa (8-80-80)
Last Fight: 9/1/2012- L(TKO5) vs. #13 Gennady Golovkin
Next Fight: Unknown
After a taxing TKO loss to Golovkin (and a fairly busy first 3 quarters of the year), Proksa now says he’ll take a rest until at least January.
9) Martin Murray (8-47-47)
Last Fight: 6/16/2012- UD10 Karim Achour (UNR)
Next Fight: 11/24/2012- vs. Jorge Navarro (UNR)
Murray will return on 11/24, and will be fighting for an “interim title”  against untested but undefeated prospect Jorge Navarro.
10) Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam (1-104-104)

Last Fight: 10/20/2012- L (UD12) vs. #20 Peter Quillin
Next Fight: Unknown
As it turns out, N’Dam had a rematch clause in his contract with Quillin, but he also has expressed interest in Golovkin, Geale, Martinez, and Chavez.
11) Anthony Mundine (1-91)
Last Fight: 7/14/2012- TKO7 Bronco McKart (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown Date- vs. #1 Daniel Geale
Mundine has reportedly agreed to a fight with Geale, though no details yet.
12) Sam Soliman (1-36)
Last Fight: 8/24/2012- UD12 Giovanni Lorenzo (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
Soliman is now the mandatory for Geale, which is a potential big-money domestic showdown in Australia.  However, Geale seems to be occupied with yet another Australian, Anthony Mundine.
13) Marco Antonio Rubio (1-91)
Last Fight: 9/8/2012- RTD4 Carlos Baldomir (UNR) (at SMW)
Next Fight: Unknown
14) Osumanu Adama (1-83)
Last Fight: 3/7/2012- L(UD12) vs. #1 Daniel Geale
Next Fight: Unknown
Adama came up short against Geale, but has nothing to be ashamed of.  He frequently took the #1 contender out of his game plan and looked entirely in his league at that lofty level.
15) Avtandil Khurtsidze (1-91)
Last Fight: 12/18/2011- W(MD12) vs. Ossie Duran (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
16) Max Bursak (1-91)
Last Fight: 7/21/2012- KO1 Sergei Melis (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
After Martin Murray declined the opportunity, the EBU has ordered a fight between Bursak and Julien Marie Sainte for the European title.  I’m not honestly sure what Sainte in particular ever did to deserve that, but oh well.
17) Demetrius Andrade (1-62)
Last Fight: 9/20/2012- TKO2 Alexis Hloros (UNR)
Next Fight: Unknown
18) Darren Barker (1-54)
Last Fight: 10/1/2011- L(KO11) vs. Champ Sergio Martinez
Next Fight: 12/8/2012- vs. Kerry Hope (UNR)
If Barker’s body holds up, he has a date with tough Welsh journeyman Kerry Hope on December 8.
19) Nobuhiro Ishida (22-34)
Last Fight: 5/1/2012- L(UD12) vs. #8 Dmitry Pirog
Next Fight: Unknown
Barely challenged Pirog at all, but has enough mileage left on the Kirkland upset to remain ranked for the moment.
20) Bryan Vera (1-1)
Last Fight: 8/11/2012- W (MD12) vs. Sergio Mora (UNR)

Next Fight: Unknown

 

The Week Ahead: Water-treading undefeated Russian prospect Matt Korobov returns to action for the first time in nearly a year against an opponent to be announced in El Paso, Texas on Saturday.

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