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Jaron Ennis’ new promoter Eddie Hearn insisted the prime priority is for the 27-year-old to unify a welterweight division devoid of longtime champions Errol Spence Jr and former undisputed king Terence Crawford, as the appetite for the Philly fighter to finally face the latter has again intensified following his fifth-round TKO win over former Crawford opponent David Avanesyan on home turf.
Continue reading “Crawford again the buzzword, as Ennis stops Avanesyan in Philly homecoming”
44 knockout wins in 46 combined bouts. Both look to make a splash on the world championship scene come Aug. 10 at Las Vegas’ Mandalay Bay, a week after now-former undisputed welterweight king Terence Crawford goes for more greatness in a fourth weight division vs. WBA titleholder Israil Madrimov. Tim Tszyu might now be a spectator, but who said the 154lb division was dead? Continue reading “Bohachuk-Ortiz on Aug. 10: Tszyu’s cut created this, but we’re richer regardless”
Alex Pereira sent Jiri Prochazka into another pressing phase of self-reflection after a definitive head kick knockout finish in their rematch, as the light-heavyweight champion made defence #2 of his 205lb title to headline a second UFC PPV in 11 weeks – after Las Vegas resident Dan Ige stepped up on four hours’ notice and produced a spirited effort vs. Diego Lopes in the co-main. Continue reading “UFC 303: Pereira’s switch kick sends Prochazka packing, Lopes-Ige saves card”
Islam Makhachev outstruck Dustin Poirier on the feet, and gave the three-time title challenger a familiar sense of deja vu as Khabib watched on after beautifully transitioning to a D’Arce choke submission midway through the final round of their tense, entertaining lightweight championship clash. Then, he doubled down on his ambitions to become a two-weight world titlist post-fight.
Continue reading “UFC 302: Makhachev masterful as he scores R5 sub title win vs. spirited Poirier”
Many expected Ryan Garcia would get outclassed in a surprise world title shot at 140lbs before the 25-year-old missed weight, leading to more controversy and a financial penalty as the ugly build-up intensified before his duel against amateur foe Devin Haney last weekend. He dropped the two-division champion three times en route to a stunning upset win though, so what’s next for both? Continue reading “A week on: Ryan Garcia’s stunning MD12 upset win over Devin Haney, what’s next?”
Erin Blanchfield’s boxing deficiencies were painfully laid bare under the lights over 25 minutes against an economical Manon Fiorot display in their main event title eliminator, while Joaquin Buckley’s move down a weight class continues to pay off as he’ll have a number next to his name at 170lbs this coming week after making longtime contender Vicente Luque look ordinary en route to a R2 finish.
Continue reading “UFC Atlantic City: Blanchfield has a big problem, Buckley boosted by Luque scalp”
No-one likes to fight down in the rankings, not least seasoned veterans more eager to boost their championship credentials and especially on short-notice. While not indirectly, Dustin Poirier’s stoppage win over Benoit Saint-Denis has resonated with others in a similar situation – including longtime contender Vicente Luque, facing unranked Joaquin Buckley in New Jersey this weekend. Continue reading “Luque taking a leaf out of the Poirier playbook with unranked Buckley next”
Natasha Jonas has had a month to rest, relax and savour her latest win, a main event matchup vs. former unified world champion Mikaela Mayer, but the IBF welterweight champion revealed post-fight that 2024 would likely be the final year competing, and she wanted to finish on a high. There are options aplenty, but her promoter Ben Shalom confirmed they remain in the Scouser’s hands. Continue reading “Mayer rematch? Ben Shalom: Natasha Jonas’ future is up to her, after SD10 win”
During the main card of an underwhelming Fight Night card over the weekend, welterweight Randy Brown scored his first stoppage win for almost three years in round one vs. Muslim Salikhov, then called to feature on the UFC 300 card – angling to prove why he’s top-15 calibre at 170lbs. Michael Chiesa unwittingly became an example fuelling the fire for him and other non-ranked contenders. Continue reading “Randy Brown’s respectful, pointed Chiesa callout exemplifies the UFC’s ranking issue”
Continue reading “Tszyu gets inactive Thurman; Romero-Cruz compelling on Prime Video debut”
It certainly divided opinion across the boxing world, but IBF welterweight world champion Natasha Jonas secured a career-best win via split decision against former unified super-featherweight titlist Mikaela Mayer in their Liverpool headliner. Billed as a 50-50 duel, they battled for 20 minutes and it flew by – relive my round-by-round coverage, and more from BOXXER’s latest show.
Continue reading “Relive the action as Jonas outpoints Mayer to retain IBF welterweight title in slugfest”
Riding a five-fight win streak since their main event ended abruptly after an accidental eye poke rendered him unable to continue, #2 welterweight Belal Muhammad has persistently poked Leon Edwards who now holds UFC championship gold three years later. If he gets his long-awaited wish at a title shot as expected, the 35-year-old cannot underperform as Colby did last month. Continue reading “Belal barking up an Edwards-shaped storm that very soon, he’ll have to back up”
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