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Dear Fight Fans,
Thank you for your patience as we have migrated to a new hosting service our site should now be operational. If you find any issues with the site we would really appreciate an email to jason.brown@mightygloves.com
Thanks again for your patience and we will be adding some great new content to the site in the coming weeks.
Keep Boxing,
Jason Brown
LAS VEGAS, NV - Unbeaten, Calvin Brock (29-0, 22 KOs) scored a unanimous decision against Timur Ibragimov (21-1-1, 13 KOs) Saturday night in a heavyweight bout at Caesar's Palace Open Air Roman Amphitheater in scorching 100 + degree temperatures.
In a typical heavyweight bout (it seemed a little like wrestling), Brock landed 104 out of 319 total punches for 33% while Ibragimov landed 59 of 321 for 18%. Brock landed 66 of 179 power punches (37%) and Ibragimov landed 41 of 150 (27%). The judges scored the bout 117-111, 119-109 and 115-113 all for Brock.
In a much more exciting WBA welterweight elimination bout, Challenger, Carlos Quintana (23-0, 18 KOs) unanimously defeated Joel Julio (27-1, 24 KOs), and handed him his first loss, in a highly anticipated 12 round bout. Quintana survived a flash knockdown by Julio in the first round, and controlled the remainder of the fight. Quintana earned a title shot against the winner of Ricky Hatton vs Oktay Urkal. The judges scored the bout 117-111, 115-112 and 118-110.
Junior Welterweight Eleazar Contreras (28-4-2, 10 KOs) won an 8 round split decision over Dorin Spivey (32-4, 23 KOs). Raul Martinez (15-0, 11 KOs) crushed Alex Becerra (18-4, 8 KOs) with a first round KO in a bantamweight bout, and Junior welterweight Jailer Berrio (9-1) won a unanimous decision over Jose Angel Roman (9-13-3, 4 KOs).
Story by Kathleen Holland
Mightygloves.com
The following is a brief synopsis of news and events in the sport of boxing for the week of June 17 to June 23. We attempt to bring you as much up to date information as possible. If we miss something, we apologize. Please let us know. Email us at info@mightygloves.com.
Mega Fight in Memphis, June 17 – Taylor vs Wright - 12 round bout for the undisputed middleweight championship of the world held at the FedEx Forum in Memphis. Bout ended in a split decision draw with the judges scoring the bout 115-113 for Taylor, 115-113 for Wright and 114-114. Taylor retains his belts and plans his next fight to be before his hometown crowd in Little Rock, Arkansas.
June 17, 2006 – Undercard to Taylor vs Wright – Undefeated Light Middleweight, Sechew Powell (20-0, 12 KO’s) scored a TKO in the 10th round over Willie Lee (14-5, 10 KO’s). Lightweight Issac Hlatshwayo (25-0, 9 KO’s) won a unanimous over Jeremy Yelton (17-6, 8 KO’s). Little Rock native, Terry Smith (28-1-1, 18 KO’s) stopped Dennis McKinney (27-40-1, 13 KO’s) in the 8th and final round. Smith is scheduled to fight Jameel McCline on July 21st. Andre Berto, (13-0, 11 KO’s) defeated Sammy Sparkman (18-15-1, 8 KO’s) in round 2 to win in scheduled 8 round Welterweight bout. Super Middleweight, Anthony Hanshaw (19-0, 13 KO’s) won a unanimous decision over James North (8-12-2, 3 KO’s) and Jose Angel Rodriguez, (7-0, 1 KO) scored a decision over Jesse Orta (6-8-1, 4 KO’s) in a light middleweight bout.
June 19, 2006 – Super-featherweight Joel Casamayor will meet Lamont Pearson in a 10 round bout in Phoenix, AZ on July7. The bout will be telecast live on ESPN2 Friday Night Fights.
June 20, 2006 – Floyd Mayweather’s advisor, Leonard Ellerbe announces that Mayweather will not be fighting Oscar De La Hoya in September, but plans to fight on November 4. His opponent has not been announced. A possible bout with De La Hoya may take place on February 24, 2007.
June 21, 2006 – Oscar De La Hoya announced that he will not fight again this year, but doesn’t rule out a possible Mayweather fight next year.
June 21, 2006 – Paulie Malignaggi(21-1, 5 KO’s) underwent successful surgery to repair his fractured right cheekbone which he suffered in his bout on June 10 against Miguel Cotto (27-0, 22 KOs).
June 22, 2006 – Steve Cunningham (19-0, 10 KO’s) will meet Guillermo Jones on July 8, as part of the undercard for Karmazin vs Spinks, which will air live on Showtime. The Cruiserweight bout is an exciting addition to the card.
June 23, 2006 – Laila Ali (22-0, 19 KO’s) announced that she will meet Ijeoma Egbunine (12-1) in a bout this summer in Cape Town, South Africa. Nearly 32 years ago, Laila’s father, Muhammad Ali knocked out George Foreman in the highly publicized bout, “Rumble in the Jungle”. Some of the proceeds of the August 5 bout will benefit the Nelson Mandela Foundation and is a part of a month long celebration of women’s empowerment in South Africa.
June 23, 2006 – Featherweight, Robert Guerrero (18-1-1, 11 KO’s) scored a sixth round knockout over Gamaliel Diaz (20-6-2, 9 KO’s) to avenge his only loss. Guerro becomes the mandatory challenger to WBC No 1 Contender, Nicky Cook. Andre Dirrell (8-0l 5 KO’s) scored a third round KO over Marcus Don Hall (11-2, 1 NC, 4 KO’s) and Anthony Dirrell scored his 6th opening round KO in 9 bouts against James Morrow (9-3-2, 1 NC, 4 KO’s)
June 23, 2006 – Joe Mesi (31-0, 25 KO’s) who returned to the ring for his second win since returning from a head injury he sustained in a bout against Vasilly Jirov in New York in 2004 ,beat Stephane Tessier (3-8) in a bout from Montreal that was televised on ESPN2 Friday Night Fights.
June 23, 2006 – Calvin Brock weighed in at 224 and Timur Ibragimov weighed 219 and Joel Julio weighed in at 145 and Carlos Quintana weighed 146 for Saturday’s scheduled bouts from Las Vegas, NV. which will be broadcast live on HBO Boxing After Dark beginning at 10:30 P.M. ET
One thing I have heard time and again from boxers, both professional and amateur, is how a boxing club or gym changed their life. These clubs or gyms give young people a place to go where they can let their aggressions come out in a positive way instead of gravitating to a negative lifestyle, which we see way too often.
The world famous Kronk Gym in Detroit, Michigan, which has been the training grounds for numerous professional champion boxers as well as amateurs, who only box for local competition and pure pleasure, and may be in danger of being shut down by the City of Detroit, has, arguably, the best trainer in the world in its corner, Emanuel Steward. Steward has been a major part in the campaign to save the Kronk, as well as the community and many celebrities and major organizations.
Unfortunately, there are many small boxing clubs in America that are not so fortunate to be world famous and have such support as the Kronk. Many of these gyms survive only on donations from outside sources, which are many times few or none. Boxing gyms shut down every day and not only does that take away a positive atmosphere for young people, it hurts the sport of boxing because it shows lack of support. 
We recently visited a local boxing club in North Little Rock, Arkansas, Riverside Boxing Club, which is a part of Rose City Boys and Girls Club, and has been working with children, teens and young adults for the last few years, helping mold these well mannered and dedicated young boxers into productive adults.
“When we opened the doors about four years ago in July,” according to Coach Abernathy, “we had about 300 to 350 kids. There was no air conditioning and we had about ten fights a day, when they would fight we would take the kids into the room, put boxing gloves on them, close the blinds so that the other kids couldn’t watch and let them go at it. It seemed they didn’t want to fight as much as they thought they did. We went from ten fights a day to zero fights a day and crime decreased in the community. A lot of those kids box here today.”
The Club has about 20 boxers ranging in age from 8 to 23. They are coached by Chonny Abernathy, Carlton Blakley (known as “Coach Fox”) and Charles Jackson. It is a big plus having Coach Fox, he has helped a lot to get this thing rolling with the kids.” said Coach Abernathy, and Coach Jackson brings in guys from Little Rock.”
They workout Monday through Thursday for about two and one-half hours each day. They start their workout by running about two and one-half miles, followed by calisthenics in the ring. The boxers then get their hands wrapped and put on their gloves for sparing and punching the bags. They take Friday off and they are back on Saturday for competition. Competitions run from November through May. Most have their eyes on the Silver Gloves and Golden Gloves Tournament and Junior Olympics.
Several of the Gym’s boxers have over 50 fights, they are: Deondre Malvin, age 15; 2004 Silver Gloves Championship , Demarcus Layton, age 14, 2005 World Ringside Championship; Lavale Wilson, age 14 “the crowd pleaser”; Rashad Ganaway, age 23; and Robert West, age 17.
There are two female members of the Club, Angel Thomas, age 15 and Angel Ford, age 16. Thomas has been boxing for about 6 years. She has been able to take her anger problem and turn it into a positive thing through boxing. She is also involved in basketball and hopes for a scholarship, but is also entertaining a professional boxing career. Angel Ford has been boxing for about one year and said that boxing is her favorite sport. She is looking forward to a future boxing career.
The Club has competed in events, including Silver Gloves, Golden Gloves, and Ringside World Championships, however due to the lack of funds, it limits the number of events they can attend. “The National Female Golden Gloves is in Fort Lauderdale in July and we were hoping to take the Angels,” said Coach Abernathy, “but unfortunately we don’t have the funds. These girls have a lot of heart and a promising future in boxing.”
The club also finds time to give back to the Community by helping the North Little Rock Women's Club with various projects, as well as other worthwhile community projects, such as Adopt a Block, putting up Christmas lights at a local Park, to name a few.
All the boxers interviewed had one thing in common, they had all improved in school and daily life since getting involved with the Riverside Boxing Club and the Rose City Boys and Girls Club. “It keeps the kids out of trouble and busy and keeps them off the streets,” said Coach Fox, boxing helps control aggression and discipline.”
If every boxing fan in America would get involved in their local boxing gym, either by contributing much needed funds or by donating valuable time to help these dedicated boxers, think how much positive it would do, not only for the local community, but for the sport of boxing as a whole. Yes, the sport is a dangerous sport, but so is football, auto racing, horseback riding competitions, and many, many others. In fact, I have seen some pretty disturbing scenes of injuries in baseball, which to me, is one of the more laid back sports. The more people who get involved, the more safety can be extended, either through new and better equipment and/or community involvement.
We at Mightygloves.com challenge each and every boxing fan to get out there and support a local boxing club. Get involved, not only is it fun, but it is extremely rewarding.
If you would like to make a donation to the Riverside Boxing Club, please send them to Rose City Boys and Girls Club, 400 Rose Lane, North Little Rock, AR 72117 and earmark it for “boxing”, or contact your local club and show your support.
Story by Kathleen Holland
Photography by Chris McGee
Mightygloves.com
MEMPHIS, TN A great fight is what boxing fans witnessed at the FedEx Forum in Memphis, TN on Saturday evening. Undisputed Middleweight Champion, Jermain Taylor (25-0-1, 17 KOs) and Ronald �Winky� Wright (50-3-1, 25 KOs) fought a very entertaining and aggressive fight. The fight, which was a split decision draw, was very close with Wright fighting a much better technical fight than the more powerful Taylor.
The fight could have gone either way, and several of the rounds were very hard to score. With the crowd so lopsided in favor of Taylor, one might wonder if the crowd noise might have been a possible distraction, or the fact that many of the shots that Taylor threw didn�t really connect, but his power moved Wright, which could have been mistaken for a landed punch. When the human element is involved many things can happen. Saying that it was a robbery may be a little strong, but Wright, who felt he clearly won the fight believes that is just what happened. He was so outraged at the decision that he abruptly left the ring and did not attend the post fight press conference.
Taylor, who suffered a ninth round head butt, which caused his left eye to swell shut, was very effective when he was fighting Wright in the middle of the ring, but would continually allow himself to be backed into the corner where Wright pretty much had his way with Taylor by landing, it seemed, almost every jab he threw. Taylor, on the other hand, was much more active in the fight and more effective with his power, even though he made many tactical mistakes. Taylor�s footwork was off balance and his defense was definitely lacking. He rarely kept his left hand up and that was the perfect opportunity for Wright�s viscous right jab.
Taylor, under the world class training of Emanuel Steward, will no doubt be a much more balanced and technically sharp fighter and should remain at or near the top of the middleweight division for quite some time. Taylor, 27, has trained for, and fought in three extremely tough bouts in one year and one day, two with new IBF Light Heavyweight Champion, Bernard Hopkins and this bout against Wright, the #2 pound for pound best fighter in the world. Looking at this accomplishment and being able to perform as well as he did with the number of mistakes he made shows just how good Taylor could be.
Wright, 34 is much more experienced, and has not gotten as much respect he probably deserves. He should be a future hall of famer and he is definitely a world class boxer. His ability in the ring is outstanding and he is a class act, even though the media would have appreciated the chance to get his opinion from him, personally, at the post fight press conference.
A Taylor and Wright rematch would be a great treat for boxing fans. It should be in a venue that is neutral, maybe, Atlantic City, and then, hopefully, the best middleweight in the world can be determined.
Story by Kathleen Holland, Mightygloves.com
MEMPHIS, TN - Jermain Taylor, (25-0-1, 17 KOs) retained his belts Saturday night at the FedEx Forum in Memphis as the Undisputed Middleweight Champion after a close, action packed fight with Winky Wright (50-3-1, 25 KOs) ended in a split decision draw.
Wright was furious with decision and stormed out of the ring, feeling he had been robbed again. (Wright lost a controversial decision to Fernando Vargas in 1999. Many of the media as well as fans believed that Wright had won the fight.)
The fight seemed very close, even though compubox stats were heavily in Wright's favor. Wright connected more punches and jabs, but Taylor's strength made it appear that he was moving Wright around the ring. Wright fought a good technical fight, with good defense and a piercing jab. Taylor, who has an obvious lack of balance, used his strength and desire to stay in the fight.
Taylor suffered a head butt in the 8th round which caused his left eye to swell shut, making it impossible to see out of that eye and causing him to change some strategy.
The fight, which could have gone either way, came down to the final round. Wright, feeling he was far enough ahead to win the fight without the last round didn't show up. He danced and maneuvered around the ring just as Oscar De La Hoya did against Felix Trinidad. Maybe Wright should have taken a lesson from Oscar. Oscar believed, as did many fans and media, that he had won that fight against Trinidad, and he too, gave up the twelfth round, which cost him the fight. Wright might have won the fight had he decided to box in the last round. The judges scored the fight 115-113 for Taylor, 115-113 for Wright, 114-114 for a split decision draw.
Taylor gave Wright his props at the post fight press conference, stating that he knew the fight was extremely close, however, Wright did not attend, he did not do his interview with Larry Merchant in the ring, and claimed he was robbed. Merchant did catch up with him in the locker room, and Wright agreed to the interview, but, unfortunately he did not answer questions for most of the media. Gary Shaw did most of the talking for Wright and informed the media that Wright was outraged with the decision and did not want to fight Taylor again. He also made it clear that Memphis had not been good to Team Wright and that Gary Shaw Productions would never again be back in Memphis to put on an event.
The fan support was overwhelmingly for Taylor since his hometown of Little Rock, Arkansas is a short two hour drive from Memphis, and even though the arena was only about half full, (9,678 out of 18,500 seats) the support in Taylor's favor seemed to upset Wright and his team, as they expressed that the crowd and venue may have influenced the decision.
Lou DiBella, Taylor's promoter, expressed to the media in the post fight press conference that the fight was close, and he did not feel that Wright was robbed. He also pointed out that Taylor had fought three very tough fights in the last twelve months, to two of the top pound for pound fighters, which is very stressful for such a short amount of time. He also was displeased with the lack of respect shown to Taylor.
Team Taylor has announced that his next fight will be in Little Rock, Arkansas before his hometown crowd, possibly in October or November.
Story by Kathleen Holland
Photography by Chris McGee
MEMPHIS, TN - Jasmine Villegas, 12 years old, treated the crowd at the FedEx Forum in Memphis, Saturday night, to a beautiful rendition of the Star Spangled Banner at the pre-fight ceremonies of Taylor vs Wright. Villegas is part of the Damon Dam Music Group and is extremely talented.
MEMPHIS, TN - Jermain Taylor (25-0, 17 KO;s) and Ronald "Winky" Wright (50-3, 25 KOs) will meet today at the FedEx Forum in Memphis to settle the debate on who is the best middleweight in the world.
Taylor was born in Little Rock, Arkansas on August 11, 1978. He began boxing in 1992 at the age of 13 and went on to compete in the 2000 Olympics where he won the bronze medal, after which Taylor teamed up with Promoter Lou DiBella of DiBella Entertainment. His professional debut was at Madison Square Garden on January 27, 2001 as a part of DiBella Entertainment's "Night of the Olympians" where he faced an experienced fighter, Chris Walsh (17-5-6, 6 KO�s) and won with a TKO in the fourth round. In August, 2003 Taylor married world class athlete Erica Smith, who was an outstanding guard for Louisiana Tech and was drafted by the WNBA's Washington Mystics in April, 2005. On December 14, 2004 Jermain and Erica became proud parents with the birth of their daughter, Nia and they now have a second child on the way.
On July 16, 2005 Taylor won the undisputed middleweight championship by winning a controversial split decision over future hall of famer, Bernard Hopkins. The two fighters met in a rematch on December 3, 2005 where this time Taylor won by unanimous decision and established his position in the boxing world leading up to tonights fight.
Wright was born on November 26, 1971 in Washington D.C. and now makes his home in St. Petersburg, Florida. Wright is the only three belt 154 pound World Champion in division history and is the WBC, WBA and WBO number one middleweight contender and mandatory challenger for the Middleweight Championship. Wright who is a much more experienced fighter and one of the best technical fighters today, teamed up with Dan Birmingham, his trainer, when he was 16 and has been with him ever since. Wright's rise to fame was a tough one. Even though he was proving to the world his abilities as a championship boxer, the big time promoters were passing him by. In December, 1999, Wright met Fernando Vargas, the undefeated IBF Jr. middleweight Champion and lost the bout by a controversial majority decision. Both media and fans alike thought Wright had won the fight. Wright went on to beat Sugar Shane Mosley twice, but his biggest accomplishment to date is his May 14, 2005 unanimous decision over Felix Trinidad in a dominating performance.
Tonight�s bout between Taylor and Wright promises to be an exciting match-up. The younger Taylor is taller and stronger, but Wright has much more experience and is one of the best technical fighters out there. This will be an interesting match-up and hopefully an exciting fight.
The bout will be telecast live on HBO beginning at 9:30 P.M. ET. Tickets are on sale at the FedEx Forum in Memphis.
Story by Kathleen Holland
MEMPHIS, TN - The Undisputed Middleweight Champion, Jermain Taylor weighed in on Friday at 160 lbs and Winky Wright, his Challenger, weighed in at 159 for Saturday's Mega Fight, which will be held at the FedEx Forum in Memphis.
The weigh-in was held at Handy Park on Beale St., but one might have thought they were in Arkansas because of all of the hog calling that was going on. Taylor, whose hometown is Little Rock, has a huge fan base on hand in Memphis and more Arkansans are expected to come in on Saturday.
Tickets are still available at the FedEx Forum Box Office. HBO will be airing the fight live beginning at 9:30 P.M. ET.
Story by Kathleen Holland
Photography by Chris McGee
Mightygloves.com
MEMPHIS, TN - Jermain Taylor, Undisputed Middleweight Champion of the World, and Winky Wright, his number one Contender, will meet Saturday night at the Fedex Forum in Memphis to decide who is the best middleweight in the world.
The only way to describe these two champion fighters is class. No trash talking, just respect for each others ability and determination to win. Both of these fighters bring a lot to boxing and a fight of this caliber is very good for the sport. The fight is hosted by the City of Memphis, which is about a two hour drive from Taylors hometown of Little Rock, Arkansas. The number of Taylor fans already in Memphis for the fight is astounding and many more are expected before Saturday's Mega Fight.
Wright, who would have preferred the fight to be in Las Vegas, hasn�t let Taylor�s fan base bother him. When we went to Puerto Rico to fight Trinidad, we pulled in this big arena in our car for the press conference and everybody was booing, said Gary Shaw, Wrights promoter, and Winky got up and said, I congratulate you for booing me, you should be cheering for Felix Trinidad, we are in Puerto Rico, and the same thing here. I think if you want me to predict what will happen assuming that Winky does the fight that I think he will, it will be very pro Jermain Taylor and very few Winky people. And then, as the fight progresses, it will get quieter and quieter until almost a complete lull, almost a disbelief, and then it will come on with people cheering for Winky.
Emanuel Steward, Taylors trainer has been working with him at the Kronk Gym in Detroit and had this to about training Taylor I would not try to change all of his style, he does a lot of things that are very bad. Basically, the fact that he is the middleweight champion of the world and he does so many basic fundamental things terrible, you have no idea, but it shows me just how good he is. Balance, position, a lot of things he do is wrong but I'm just hoping to get him through this fight, and if we can get through this fight, then by the time theres two or three fights he'll be like Wladimir Klitschko's became now, a much more balanced fighter.
Steward went on to say, Winky Wright to me, in my mind, is the best technical fighter out there today. I think he should be really above Mayweather, but thats regardless of what it may be, because, still nonetheless, I find it a challenge to go against, which is probably my favorite fighter in boxing today, and to try to defeat him, thats a big challenge.
The fight, which will be broadcast live on HBO Saturday beginning at 9:30 P.M. ET promises to be one of the most exciting bouts of the year. Tickets are still available and may be purchased at the Fedex Forum box office.
Story by Kathleen Holland
Photography by Chris McGee
Mightygloves.com
Seeing De La Hoya in the ring as a promoter instead of a boxer often led me to consider the questions, would he fight again, is he washed up, should he retire, and so on? For me, there had been too many good fights in boxing recently to remember the last time he looked spectacular with his great hand speed and defensive posture. A whole new generation had risen to the top. Jermain Taylor, Floyd Mayweather Jr., Diego Corrales and Jose Luis Castillo. I remembered Oscar's losses to Hopkins, Mosley and Trinidad and his lackluster performance against Felix Sturm. I had forgotten his bouts with Gatti, Vargas and Quartey. Even his legendary defeat of Julio Cesar Chavez in 1996 and his being named the "Ring Magazine Fighter of the Year" in 1995 had given way to my own doubts and skepticism.
Then after twenty months "The Golden Boy" returned to the ring as a fighter having pitted himself against a handpicked opponent in Ricardo El Matador Mayorga, a hard-nosed gunslinger from the streets of Nicaragua. His most impressive showings were victories over Cory Spinks and Vernon Forrest. De La Hoya publicized his reasoning for this choice of opponent. He explained during a post-fight interview that the personal-attacking, trash-talking style of Mayorga's pre-fight monologue would give De La Hoya the extra incentive to insure his own victory. I'm not so sure that this was really the reason why De La Hoya chose Mayorga for his comeback fight. In fact, during the fight, it became clear why Mayorga's wild brawling style made him a prime opponent.
On May 6, 2006 in Las Vegas the two fighters entered "The Danger Zone," as the fight was billed. Although both fighters weighed in at 153.5 lbs., Mayorga boasted that he now weighed 172 lbs., "Let's get it on," he said smiling at De La Hoya. The first bell sounded and De La Hoya weathered an introductory barrage from Mayorga that would have sent most opponents bolting backwards. But De La Hoya's newly encouraged defense allowed him to remain calmly in the center of the ring simply deflecting most punches with his gloves and throwing sharp counters at choice times. One found its target and lead to a combination that left Mayorga on the mat in less than a minute into the first round. De La Hoya starred down at him with a seemingly superior feeling of justification for Mayorga's pre-fight antics.
De La Hoya's unorthodox stance puts his strongest hand jabbing (his left) and his right hand as a power-punching weapon. Since his right hand leaves little to be desired, his left hand didn't need to be so active as to make him a one-sided or one-handed fighter. That he was able to pretty much control Mayorga with his left proves just how good he is. The right hand became icing on the cake for De La Hoya and a big knuckle sandwich for Mayorga. At the 1:09 point in the first round Mayorga, still wobbled from the early knock down, began holding to prevent sharp counters of his increasingly looping and lunging punches. Mayorga, wild, and angrily throwing the same punches that put Forrest and Spinks away, only set himself up for the sharp and perfect counters that De La Hoya brutalized him with throughout the fight. By the first round's end, De La Hoya's trainer Floyd Mayweather Sr. could be seen explicitly saying, "you can knock this m----- f----- out right now! Man use your jab! Use your jab!"
De La Hoya continued to shine throughout the fight. Forty seconds into round two; "The Golden Boy" produced a flurry including three right crosses, the last wobbled Mayorga again. Just as in his fight with Trinidad, Mayorga looked like an amateur who couldn't throw the short punches. Although he looked to be the stronger person, his boxing technique was utterly lacking and De La Hoya just picked him apart to the point where he could tee off with pure timing and power. Mayorga provided ample opportunity for De La Hoya's counters. With a minute left in the Third, Mayorga had developed a welp under his left eye. Mayorga's best punch of the fight was a left uppercut that landed flush with 30 seconds left in this round. It only proved that De La Hoya still has a pretty good chin. In my opinion it was not enough to win Mayorga the round.
In the fourth round De La Hoya landed a body blow and Mayorga raised his hands and smiled as if to say, "that didn't hurt." Any boxing fan knows that this behavior means, it hurt him badly. And I have to say, at the time, I did not remember that Hopkins ended the fight with the same kind of blow to De La Hoya in 2004 in the ninth round of De La Hoya/ Hopkins. For me "The Golden Boy" had already gained his previous prominence. By the fifth round De La Hoya began consistently beating Mayorga to the punch, connecting hard and confidently with the right hook every time he made a move. At the 2:05 mark of the sixth and final round, another viscous combo from De La Hoya sent Mayorga back to the canvas. Like a true warrior, Mayorga got up again, but only to run to the ropes where Oscar De La Hoya let on with more than a thirty-five-punch onslaught before ref. Jay Nady called the fight at a minute and twenty-five seconds. It was vintage De La Hoya again. He finished, as he is known to do, like the best in the business. Afterwards, the two men met in a respectful manner near Mayorga's corner where Mayorga congratulated De La Hoya.
This may have been a handpicked fight by "The Golden Boy," But the truth is, I didn't know how to predict the outcome and I want to see more of Oscar De La Hoya. As far as I'm concerned, the field is wide open. Any body in three or four weight divisions would love to fight him and I would love to see him fight several people including Zab Judah, Ricky Hatton, Sugar Shane Mosley again and yes, Floyd Mayweather Jr. who was ecstatic, jumping out of his seat during the first round knock down. Fighting "The Golden Boy" is almost better than fighting for a title because of its huge purse. Floyd knows that De La Hoya will probably pursue the lofty goal of obtaining Mayweather Jr.'s belts, despite the difficult trainer/father spot where Mayweather Sr. would be between the two fighters. Mr. Mayweather said he would step away from the event to avoid complications. I would like to see Mayorga fight more as well. There are many opponents that would make for a greatly entertaining fight and other better boxers that might not have what it takes to stay with Mayorga. Zab Judah comes to mind again, Castillo, even Sugar Shane would be interesting to say the least. There should be something said for anyone who takes a chance with a brawler like Mayorga.
One thing is for sure. Oscar can't retire after this fight. Mayorga may be a great warrior and may have knocked out fighters with good boxing skills, but he is not in the same class with Oscar De La Hoya. Although I think I can predict the outcome of an Oscar De La Hoya/ Floyd Mayweather fight, I still would like to see Oscar fight more skillful boxers, because I love the art and the sport of boxing.
Oh yeah, it goes the distance and Mayweather wins unanimously.
Story by Smitty Most
MEMPHIS, TN - Ronald "Winky" Wright (50-3, 25 KOs), number one WBC middleweight contender, who will be fighting defending champion, Jermain Taylor (25-0, 17 KOs) on Saturday for the WBC Middleweight Championship, worked out for fans Wednesday at the Grand Casino Events Center in Robinsville, MS
Wright began his workout by jumping rope, then wrapped his hands and worked out with the punch mits. Prior to his workout he answered some questions for reporters and fans were allowed to take pictures at this time.
When asked if he was fighting for respect and if he had something to prove in this fight Wright replied I have nothing to prove, man, ya'll got to remember I'm the guy who came from nowhere, I'm from St Petersburg, FL. I'm the guy that put that on the map, nobody knew where St. Pete was at, nobody knew Winky Wright. I came up through the amateurs, I came up through the pros, no big promotions, but look at me now, I"m fighting in mega fights, so can't nobody do nothing to my career.
The weigh-in will be held at the Pepsi Pavilion in Handy Park on Beale St. Friday, June 16 at 5:00 P.M. The fight will be broadcast live on HBO Saturday, June 17 beginning at 9:30 P.M. ET. Tickets are on sale and may be purchased at the FedEx Forum box office.
Story by Kathleen Holland
Photography by Chris McGee
Mightygloves.com
DETROIT, MI - A definite feeling of greatness all around describes the surroundings and emotion you get just from walking through the door of the world famous Kronk Gym which is housed in the Kronk Recreation Center in Detroit, Michigan.
The Kronk Recreation Center has been open for 85 years and is the oldest recreation center in the city. The famous Kronk Gym is housed in the basement and has been the training facility for over 30 champion boxers at various times in their careers. Some of the great boxers that have trained at the gym include Hilmer Kenty, Thomas Hearns, Milton McCrory, Mike McCallum, Dennis Andries, Jimmy Paul, Duane Thomas, John David Jackson, Michael Moorer, Steve McCrory, Gerald McClellan, Evander Holyfield, Lennox Lewis, Julio Cesar Chavez, Vladimir Klitschko, Leon Spinks, Aaron Pryor, Eddie Mustafa Muhammad, Prince Naseem Hamed, and Jermain Taylor.
The City of Detroit plans to close the facility much to the dismay of the community. The Kronk Gym has played an important role in the lives of many young people, giving them a positive atmosphere and a place where they can come to do constructive things for themselves as well as the community. Without the Kronk Gym many of these kids might have gravitated to a negative, self destructive lifestyle.
World famous trainer, Emanuel Steward has been training fighters at the Kronk Gym for decades and has a strong desire to keep the gym open. He has pledged to raise money to buy the Kronk and has pledges of over 2 million dollars, including $1.2 million promised by the MGM Grand Casino over the next three years.
The Community has rallied together to form �Neighbors United to Save the Kronk which has been dedicated to raising awareness of this issue and getting the neighborhoods support. The Emanuel Steward Foundation has been instrumental in saving the Kronk Gym, has gotten national and international media attention and is close to working out a deal with the City of Detroit to either run the center as a partnership or purchase the property completely to ensure that this historic gym is preserved. The center will remain open for at least the next five to six months while negotiations are finalized.
It would be unfortunate for the Kronk to be closed, not only because of the positive atmosphere it extends to the community, but for the history which it holds for the great sport of boxing.
Story by Chris McGee and Kathleen Holland
Photography by Chris McGee
Mightygloves.com
MEMPHIS - Jermain �Bad Intentions� Taylor, WBC and WBO Middleweight Champion treated fans to a public workout at Handy Park on Beale Street Tuesday.
Taylor, who will be fighting Winky Wright on Saturday, June 17 at the FedEx Forum in Memphis, TN, for the title began his workout with his trainer, Emanuel Steward, wrapping his hands, followed by light shadow boxing and stretching. Steward and Taylor then worked out for the crowd with the punch mits. After the workout, Taylor signed autographs and gave fans the opportunity to take pictures. The crowd, which seemed to be mostly Arkansans, called the Hogs several times, showing support for their "Hometown Hero".
Taylor, who beat Bernard Hopkins twice at the Middleweight level, took over the title of undisputed middleweight champion in July, 2005 and retained his title in a rematch in December, 2005.
Hopkins, who beat Antonio Tarver last Saturday for the IBO Light Heavyweight Championship, finally gave Taylor the respect he felt he deserved by acknowledging that he had left the middleweight division in good hands and hoped for a Taylor victory. I got a whole new outlook on Bernard, said Taylor he didn't have to do that, but he did, I don't know, I got a new respect for the guy.
Tickets are available through Ticketmaster or the FedEx Forum Box Office, and range in price from $75.00 to $1,250.00. The fight will be televised live on HBO beginning with a replay of Tarver vs Hopkins.
Story by Kathleen Holland
Photography by Chris McGee
Mightygloves.com
ATLANTIC CITY - Bernard Hopkins (47-4-1, 32 KOs) fought a masterful fight Saturday night at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, NJ and soundly defeated Antonio Tarver (24-4, 19 KOs) to become the new IBO Light Heavyweight Champion of the World and in the process sealing his place in boxing history, by achieving something that even his idol, Sugar Ray Robinson, could not achieve.
Hopkin's hometown of Philadelphia is a short one hour drive from Atlantic City, so it is no wonder that majority of the crowd was behind him. It seemed quite fitting that his last fight would be in Atlantic City, the place where he began his brilliant boxing career.
Tarver, who didn't have an answer for Hopkin's right hand, was knocked off balance in the fifth round and his glove touched the floor resulting in a standing 8 count. "Well sometimes you wake up and it's not your day, Tarver said, I take my hat off to Bernard." Hopkins was extremely aggressive, battering Tarver over and over with series of punches that took their toll on him. Hopkins clearly dominated the fight and won by unanimous decision. All Judges scored the bout 118-109.
Hopkins, former undisputed middleweight champion of the world, made history by successfully defending his title for 20 consecutive fights, and now, will retire as the IBO Light Heavyweight Champion.
Hopkins, President of Golden Boy Promotions East, has declared that this was his last fight, but he plans to stay active in Boxing and will be promoting young talented boxers.
A replay of this fight can be seen next Saturday, June 17 on HBO at 9:30 PM ET
Story by Kathleen Holland
Photography by Chris McGee
Mightygloves.com
DETROIT - This interview was conducted by MIGHTYGLOVES.COM publisher Chris McGee on Tuesday, May 30, 2006 at The Kronk Gym in Detroit, MI.
Mightygloves.com: Jermain, how has the transition been for you training here at the famous Kronk Gym in Detroit as opposed to your previous training locations.
Jermain Taylor: I fit right in. I feel like I'm at home in Detroit. I'm having a good time, and I like the gym. Emanuel Steward is teaching me a lot. I'm having a great time.
MG: We are aware that the city of Detroit is planning to shut down the Kronk Gym and MIGHTYGLOVES.COM as well as many fight fans around the world would not like to see that happen. So, what are your feelings about the necessity of the Kronk Gym.
JT: The Kronk gets kids off the streets, it gives them something positive to do, a kid that don't have anything to do will stay in trouble, because they don't have anything else to do. Manny having the Kronk Gym is amazing! I've seen so many kids since I've been here and how they look up to me, its amazing!
MG: When we first arrived here at the Kronk Gym, we had conversations with some of the fighters and staff and what we heard most was the fact that considering your success in boxing, you are still very down to earth, soft spoken, and easy to approach, but when you get into the ring, you turn into probably the most intense and ferocious competitor they've ever seen. That's saying a lot considering the multitude of talent that has come out of this gym over the years. They also wanted to thank you for the positive impression that you give to boxing.
JT: Thanks, I really appreciate that.
MG: What have you learned so far under the guidance of arguably the greatest boxing trainer in the history of the sport, Emanuel Stewart, about how to fight against a southpaw.
JT: Emanuel Steward is the kind of person that takes what you got and makes it better. He's not trying to change my style, if he sees something wrong, he'll adjust it a little bit, but overall he lets me do what I do and he just makes it better. I'm loving the Kronk Gym, I have a number of sparring partners, I've got the best guy coming up right now, Andy Lee, he's a southpaw and I've got my man over there Cory Johnson, he does great work.
MG: MIGHTYGLOVES.COM is curious about your feelings on women�s boxing, we've never heard your opinion on the subject so how do you feel about it?
JT: If a woman wants to box, let her do it! I love Leila Ali, I think she's pretty and can beat you up at the same time. I don't see anything wrong with it.
MG: We're glad to hear you say that! MIGHTYGLOVES.COM is also a big supporter of women's boxing and we couldn't agree with you more! So, how would you feel about your own daughter (Nia) becoming a fighter someday?
JT: I don't know about my baby girl now. She's kinda spoiled, but she don't have no temper about her.
MG: Do you have any predictions on the Winky Wright fight?
JT: Just predict me to go in there and do what I do best, that's box. I've trained hard and I'm ready to go in there and do what I gotta do to win the fight!
MG: In closing Jermain, what do you want to say to your fans?
JT: Just tell my fans that I'm not the type of person that does a lot of trash talk, I'm the type of person that works hard, hard work and dedication always pays off, and that's exactly what I do!
MG: Thanks Jermain, we appreciate you taking the time out of your busy training schedule to allow us an interview and good luck.
JT: Thank You.
ATLANTIC CITY - The official weigh-in for the highly anticipated light heavyweight championship bout between the current champ, Antonio Tarver (24-3, 18 KOs) and Bernard Hopkins (46-4-1, 32 KOs) took place Friday at the Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa. Both fighters weighed in at 174 lbs for Saturday's fight, which will be held at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. The fighters squared up, did a little trash talking, and left the stage without a scene.
Tarver, who recently had to gain more than 40 pounds to play Mason "the Line" Dixon in the upcoming Rocky Balboa movie, put the question to rest of whether or not he would make the 175 lb weight limit. Hopkins, on the other hand, moving up two weight classes had to gain approximately 15 lbs.
Hopkins, 41 has declared that this will be his last fight and plans to go out with a Light Heavyweight Championship, something that his idol, Sugar Ray Robinson, could not accomplish.
The fight titled "Fight to the Finish", a twelve round championship bout is presented by Oscar De La Hoya"s Golden Boy Promotions, Joe DeGuardia"s Star Boxing and the Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa and will be telecast live on HBO PPV beginning at 9:00 PM ET. Tickets are still available and may be purchased at The Boardwalk Hall.
Story By: Kathleen Holland
Photography By: Chris McGee
Mightygloves.com
ATLANTIC CITY - Current Light Heavyweight Champion, Antonio Tarver and Former Middleweight Champion, Bernard Hopkins are set to square off in what will be a historic boxing event Saturday, June 10 at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. Bernard Hopkins has moved up two weight classes to fight what he says will be his last bout.
Hopkins, who is coming off of two controversial losses to Jermain Taylor acknowledges that Tarver is a tough opponent, but is confident that he will be victorious on Saturday night. This is a good fight for boxing and this is a good challenge for myself, Bernard said, "I believe I am a 2-1 or 3-1 underdog, I wish I was more of a 5-1 or 4-1 but it is what it is, but this is where my comfortability is, being a guy that has to prove over and over and over that I can overcome big challenges and become one of , I hope one of the icons of an era that no one will ever forget 30, 40 or 50 years from now when we�re all sitting around talking about the old fights twenty plus years ago."
Antonio Tarver, whose role as Mason "The Line" Dixon in the upcoming Rocky Balboa movie had him weighing as much as 218 lbs. He reportedly had a struggle getting down to the 175 lb weight limit. Tarver has bet $250,000 that he will knock Hopkins out before the end of round five. A Hopkins win would earmark the money to the Make A Way Foundation.
A limited number of $400 and $600 tickets are still available and can be purchased at the Boardwalk Hall.
Story By Kathleen Holland
Photography by Chris McGee
Mightygloves.com
ATLANTIC CITY, NJ - A debilitating right cross thrown by Demetrius Hopkins at 1:59 of the 9th round sent Michael Warwick to the canvas with a dramatic knockout at the Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa. Warwick went down hard face first and laid there for quite some time before medical personnel revived him. He got up slowly and he was obviously still quite dazed.
Demitrius Hopkins (24-0-1 10 KOs) was ahead on all three of the judge's score cards at the time of the knockout, even though he had weighed in Tuesday at 143 lbs., which is over the weight limit of 142 lbs. He had to take off the excess weight in two hours and Hopkins felt that he may have been a little fatigued from this grueling process.
Hopkins is the nephew of Bernard Hopkins, who will be fighting light heavyweight Champion, Antonio Tarver, Saturday night in Atlantic City.
Michael Warwick (18-4) was coming in after a 14 month lay off and had lost his last three bouts.
The co-feature, a 10 round Junior Middleweight bout, featured Ishe Smith (17-1) a season one "Contender" participant and Patrick Thompson (10-6-1). Smith dominated the fight and won by unanimous decision.
The bouts were featured on ESPN2's Wednesday Night Fights.
Story by Kathleen Holland
Photography by Chris McGee
Mightygloves.com
LAS VEGAS - Jose Luis Castillo stepped on the scale with a worried look on his face. He stood on his tip toes and reached up as high as he could trying to fool the scales. Keith Kyzer, Executive Director of the Nevada State Athletic Commission announced 140 lbs. The crowd gasped and Castillo stepped on the scale for a second time to re-verify the weight. This time the announcement was 139 lbs, a whopping 4 lbs over the weight limit.
Castillo had two hours to reduce his weight. He would not make the 135 pound weight limit, but would try to take off two pounds. He would not be able to fight for the title. Castillo returned after two hours and proceeded to the scales again. He stepped up on the scale but to no avail. His weight remained at 139 lbs.
Diego "Chico" Corrales, who weighed in at the weight limit of 135 lbs was extremely upset and emotional. �Diego is extremely disappointed that he worked so very hard to come out and please all of you and obviously to get a payday for himself and that is not to be,� announced Gary Shaw, Corrales Promoter, �for the record, he does not get paid, so all the training that he did is for naught. Ken Hershman is head of boxing for Showtime has given Diego the opportunity to fight in July or September. He will not be fighting tomorrow, the fight is off, but don�t penalize Diego Corrales, who for close to 8 weeks was in a battle everyday for a guy over 6 foot trying to earn a payday and make 135 lbs. We are extremely disappointed. It is now up to the Commission to levy whatever fines or however they see fit to handle Jose Luis Castillo.�
Bob Arum, Promoter for Castillo had no sympathy for Castillo. �First I want to say, I�m mortified and embarrassed by what happened here. It�s inexcusable, there is just no explanation for what happened here, but we�re promoters and the show must go on,� expressed Arum, �we have a great great undercard, a terrific flyweight match. Anybody who has bought a ticket who doesn�t want to see the card can get a full refund.�
Castillo, who did not make weight for the second bout, had promised repeatedly that he would make weight this time. �Last time I put my man in danger and I won�t do it again, that�s why, the fight is off.� Gary Shaw said.
Making weight is a torturous ordeal. �It�s a little bit like being a prisoner of war when you are drying out that last week� explained Joe Goosen, trainer for Corrales, �they hold back your food, they hold back your water, they make you march through the heat. It�s like being tortured�. Speaking of Castillo�s attempt to make weight, Goosen said �my heart goes out to him, I mean, you know, I love fighters and he is our opponent, our enemy for the moment but I know what he is going through and it is a tough thing and to tell you the truth the guy isn�t a 35 pounder anymore. People still think he is but he isn�t. He is not a 35 pounder, he tried to be a 35 pounder but he hasn�t been a 35 pounder since the first time he made it against Diego over a year ago.�
When asked if wanted to fight, Corrales explained �I don�t want to harm my sport that I have grown to love all my life. I would never do anything that would harm the sport. I think that there is some nice factors involved. I was upset and I should be. I sacrificed a lot for this. I give my life for this game. I come to this ring knowing the risk that I run coming to work, you know people have been severely hurt in this job. I love my job. I come out here and prepare myself to the utmost to make sure this doesn�t happen. But these things add extra risk to the job.
Castillo apologized to Corrales after failing to make weight. �Sorry is an empty word,� said Corrales, �this is twice, not once. I think he knew, I think he knew. I think that he may not have told everybody the truth. Come on, he knows his body, he knows his weight, he�s got a scale. I mean I know what I weigh. I told you guys what I was weighing everyday.�
Corrales explained that his decision was based on his personal safety. �I have children, I have a wife, I want to see them grow up, I want to take my daughters down the aisle and I want to teach my son anything and everything that he would learn. The decision I am going to make is purely on my well being.�
Unfortunately, boxing fans have been robbed of a great fight and due to the fact that Castillo is clearly not a lightweight any more, the fight may never take place. The boxing world has suffered another black eye. Castillo should not have taken the fight knowing that he would not be able to make weight, but at the very least should have called off the bout before it got this far.
Story by Kathleen Holland
Photography by Chris McGee
Mightygloves.com
LAS VEGAS -- "War to Settle the Score" pretty much sums up the highly anticipated third and final installment of the trilogy between Diego "Chico" Corrales and Jose Luis Castillo which will take place on Saturday, June 3, 2006 at the Thomas and Mack Center.
The first bout, which took place on May 7, 2005 before a crowd of 5,168 was a grueling action-packed battle that ultimately won the 2005 Boxing Writer's Association "Fight of the Year" and set up a second bout which was fought on October 8, 2005 at the Thomas and Mack Center before a crowd of 15,000. Both fights had controversy with Corrales taking the first victory and Castillo winning the second.
The upcoming third and final bout of this trilogy promises to be an all out war and both fighters seemed focused and ready to settle the score once and for all.
In the first fight Corrales withstood two 10th round knockdowns to rally with a barrage of punches and ultimately winning with a Castillo TKO. But controversy arose over whether Corrales spit out his mouthpiece which gave him more recovery time and ensured a second fight.
Controversy in the second fight was due to Castillo coming in 3 pounds over weight which disqualified him from the title bout. The fight went on as a non-title bout and ended in the fourth round with Castillo winning with a Corrales TKO.
The third fight, which is a Showtime Production, will air Saturday June 3, 2006 on Pay Per View at 9:00 P.M. Eastern time. Some tickets to the fight are still available and may be purchased at the Thomas & Mack Center.