Articles

Kayode To Collide With Godfrey On Showtime

Published

13 years ago

June 10, 2011

LATEEF KAYODE & MATT GODFREY
CHRIS AVALOS & KHABIR SULEYMANOV
ARCHIE RAY MARQUEZ & ART HOVHANNISYAN
FINAL WEIGHTS AND QUOTES

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TOMORROW, Live on SHOWTIME, 11 p.m. ET/PT

Lateef Kayode: 199.5 pounds
Matt Godfrey: 200 pounds
Chris Avalos: 120 pounds
Khabir Suleymanov: 120 pounds
Archie Ray Marquez: 133 pounds
Art Hovhannisyan: 133 pounds

NOTE: WEIGHTS (June 9, 2011) – It’s June so no better time than Friday for Graduation Day for three talented ShoBox: The New Generation alums returning for a Friday night tripleheader LIVE on SHOWTIME® (11 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the West Coast).

Lateef Kayode (199.5 pounds), Chris Avalos (120 pounds) and Archie Ray Marquez (133 pounds) all hit their contracted weights just a day before they attempt to move one step closer from prospect to contender.

In the main event, the power-punching Freddie Roach-trained Kayode (16-0, 14 KOs) will risk his unbeaten mark against the more experienced Matt “Too Smooth” Godfrey (20-2, 14 KOs) of Providence, R.I., in a 10-round cruiserweight bout at Chumash Resort Casino in Santa Ynez, Calif. Godfrey weighed in at 200 pounds.

Other bouts on a Gary Shaw Productions-promoted event include Avalos (18-1, 15 KOs) of Lancaster, Calif., facing undefeated Khabir “Crazy Russian” Suleymanov (11-0, 5 KOs) of Los Angeles by way of Chelybinsk, Russia, in a 10-round super bantamweight match and Marquez (12-0, 8 KOs), of Albuquerque, N.M., and Armenian-born Art “Lionheart” Hovhannisyan (13-0, 7 KOs), of Glendale, Calif., clash in an eight-round battle of unbeaten lightweights. Like their opponents Avalos and Marquez, Suleymanov and Hovhannisyan weighed in at 120 and 133 pounds, respectively.

The telecast will originate from the Chumash Casino Resort in Santa Ynez, Calif., and will be promoted by Gary Shaw Productions, LLC.

What the fighters had to say on Thursday:

LATEEF KAYODE:
“We didn’t want to take a step back. We have a lot to prove after my last fight. I just wasn’t feeling right. You will see a different fighter on Friday night.
“We’ve been sparring with a lot of southpaws. We’ll be ready for whatever he throws at us. We could have taken another tune-up, but for what? To drop a guy in the second round? We get more out of sparring at Wild Card.
“I’ve been sparring with Chris Arreola and feel great. This is my moment to go from prospect to contender
“We’re in the perfect situation. I hope Godfrey brings it because we need that kind of fight. I think he will. I didn’t see any tape on (Nicholas Iannuzzi) but I have of Godfrey. I have more information on this guy than on any fight I’ve ever had.”

MATT GODFREY:
“I fought for a world title and came up short so in order to get back to that level you have to beat someone who is one step away from that as well. So this is big for me.
“Styles are so much different in Europe. They don’t appreciate boxing. Here you box around a guy for three rounds and the crowd goes crazy. Over there, they’re all straight-up fighters. They don’t appreciate guys just going out and boxing.
“I think Lateef’s team is a little bit crazy because they think they have more than what they have. For me this is perfect. They’ve been on SHOWTIME a couple times, he has a great record and he has a good punch and that makes for good TV and what the fans want to see, but experience wise I’m just light years ahead. It’s going to be great for me to exploit that on this network, a great network.
“They’re going by the result of my last fight but I fought the best guy in the division (Marco Huck). They’re thinking they will be able to duplicate what he was able to do but he’s just not at that level and it’s just not going to happen.
“They’re thinking they are going to capitalize on that loss and that I’m bringing that last fight into this one and they’re dead wrong.
“I’ve hit the mitts with Freddie (Roach) before but that was a long time ago. He’s so busy that I don’t’ think he’d even remember it.
“If I win tomorrow night I might just end up in Europe again.
“I’m not insulted that (Kayode) picked me to fight. It’s a business for him. They have to get a return on their investment. They have to fight the best to get to where they want to be.”

CHRIS AVALOS:
“My loss to Chris Martin is done and over with. It’s a closed chapter. So we can now move on. I learned from it.
“I’m not going to look for the knockout but if it’s there I’ll take it.
“I’ve actually sparred with (Suleymanov) when I was 18. I’ve watched him spar at Wild Card.”

KHABIR SULEYMANOV:
“I’ve seen (Avalos) fight. I know this a fight I can win. He’s a good boxer and a tough kid. But he can’t stay 10 rounds with me.
“We’re not just going to go to the body. We’re going to go everywhere.
“Some people compare me to Vic (Darchinyan). Not so much his style but his aggressiveness and his power.
“I’ll knock him out in around the fourth round. That’s my prediction.”

ARCHIE RAY MARQUEZ:
“The first time I was on ShoBox against (Derrick) Campos I was a little nervous because it was in New Mexico and I just wasn’t aggressive. I showed what I could do against (Juan) Santiago.
“(Art) is a pretty tough guy. From what I hear he’s slow. You’ll see a lot of different looks from me.
“I have no issues injury-wise. I’m only 22 and can see myself knocking on my door and can be a Top 10 contender after this fight.
“I’ve been working most on my defense. I’ve gotten hit on stupid shots and punches I shouldn’t have got hit with.
“I like to change it up. I don’t like to do the same things over and over. Against Santiago I used my angles and put a lot of pressure on him.
“Winning comes first. It’s important to be exciting and I can be.”

ART HOVHANNISYAN:
“I don’t watch tape. I don’t need that. I don’t like it. I will stop him with pressure. I can drive him back and I will come forward. I can box and I can fight. It’s as simple as that.
“After I win I don’t think this should be called an upset.
“I think (Archie Ray) is better than the guys I’ve fought but he doesn’t have that many skills. When he goes up against someone like me who can box and move and punch then it’s going to be a quick night of work.”
Curt Menefee will call the ShoBox action from ringside with Steve Farhood serving as expert analysts. Gordon Hall is the executive producer of ShoBox with Richard Gaughan producing and Rick Phillips directing.

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The Sweet Science

Articles

2015 Fight of the Year – Francisco Vargas vs Takashi Miura

Published

8 years ago

January 4, 2016

The Sweet Science

The WBC World Super Featherweight title bout between Francisco Vargas and Takashi Miura came on one of the biggest boxing stages of 2015, as the bout served as the HBO pay-per-view’s co-main event on November 21st, in support of Miguel Cotto vs Saul Alvarez.

Miura entered the fight with a (29-2-2) record and he was making the fifth defense of his world title, while Vargas entered the fight with an undefeated mark of (22-0-1) in what was his first world title fight. Both men had a reputation for all-out fighting, with Miura especially earning high praise for his title defense in Mexico where he defeated Sergio Thompson in a fiercely contested battle.

The fight started out hotly contested, and the intensity never let up. Vargas seemed to win the first two rounds, but by the fourth round, Miura seemed to pull ahead, scoring a knock-down and fighting with a lot of confidence. After brawling the first four rounds, Miura appeared to settle into a more technical approach. Rounds 5 and 6 saw the pendulum swing back towards Vargas, as he withstood Miura’s rush to open the fifth round and the sixth round saw both men exchanging hard punches.

The big swinging continued, and though Vargas likely edged Miura in rounds 5 and 6, Vargas’ face was cut in at least two spots and Miura started to assert himself again in rounds 7 and 8. Miura was beginning to grow in confidence while it appeared that Vargas was beginning to slow down, and Miura appeared to hurt Vargas at the end of the 8th round.

Vargas turned the tide again at the start of the ninth round, scoring a knock down with an uppercut and a straight right hand that took Miura’s legs and sent him to the canvas. Purely on instinct, Miura got back up and continued to fight, but Vargas was landing frequently and with force. Referee Tony Weeks stepped in to stop the fight at the halfway point of round 9 as Miura was sustaining a barrage of punches.

Miura still had a minute and a half to survive if he was going to get out of the round, and it was clear that he was not going to stop fighting.

A back and forth battle of wills between two world championship level fighters, Takashi Miura versus “El Bandido” Vargas wins the 2015 Fight of the Year.

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Articles

Jan 9 in Germany – Feigenbutz and De Carolis To Settle Score

Published

8 years ago

January 4, 2016

The Sweet Science

This coming Saturday, January 9th, the stage is set at the Baden Arena in Offenburg, Germany for a re-match between Vincent Feigenbutz and Giovanni De Carolis. The highly anticipated re-match is set to air on SAT.1 in Germany, and Feigenbutz will once again be defending his GBU and interim WBA World titles at Super Middleweight.

The first meeting between the two was less than three months ago, on October 17th and that meeting saw Feigenbutz controversially edge De Carolis on the judge’s cards by scores of (115-113, 114-113 and 115-113). De Carolis scored a flash knock down in the opening round, and he appeared to outbox Feigenbutz in the early going, but the 20 year old German champion came on in the later rounds.

The first bout is described as one of the most crowd-pleasing bouts of the year in Germany, and De Carolis and many observers felt that the Italian had done enough to win.

De Carolis told German language website RAN.DE that he was more prepared for the re-match, and that due to the arrogance Feigenbutz displayed in the aftermath of the first fight, he was confident that he had won over some of the audience. Though De Carolis fell short of predicting victory, he promised a re-vamped strategy tailored to what he has learned about Feigenbutz, whom he termed immature and inexperienced.

The stage is set for Feigenbutz vs De Carolis 2, this Saturday January 9th in Offenburg, Germany. If you can get to the live event do it, if not you have SAT.1 in Germany airing the fights, and The Boxing Channel right back here for full results.

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Articles

2015 Knock Out of the Year – Saul Alvarez KO’s James Kirkland

Published

8 years ago

December 29, 2015

The Sweet Science

On May 9th of 2015, Saul “Canelo” Alvarez delivered a resonant knock-out of James Kirkland on HBO that wins the 2015 KO of the Year.

The knock-out itself came in the third round, after slightly more than two minutes of action. The end came when Alvarez delivered a single, big right hand that caught Kirkland on the jaw and left him flat on his back after spinning to the canvas.Alvarez was clearly the big star heading into the fight. The fight was telecast by HBO for free just one week after the controversial and disappointing Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao fight, and Alvarez was under pressure to deliver the type of finish that people were going to talk about. Kirkland was happy to oblige Alvarez, taking it right to Alvarez from the start. Kirkland’s aggression saw him appear to land blows that troubled the young Mexican in the early going. Alvarez played good defense, and he floored Kirkland in the first round, displaying his power and his technique in knocking down an aggressive opponent.

However, Kirkland kept coming at Alvarez and the fight entered the third round with both men working hard and the feeling that the fight would not go the distance. Kirkland continued to move forward, keeping “Canelo” against the ropes and scoring points with a barrage of punches while looking for an opening.

At around the two minute mark, Alvarez landed an uppercut that sent Kirkland to the canvas again. Kirkland got up, but it was clear that he did not have his legs under him. Kirkland was going to try to survive the round, but Alvarez had an opportunity to close out the fight. The question was would he take it?

Alvarez closed in on Kirkland, putting his opponent’s back to the ropes. Kirkland was hurt, but he was still dangerous, pawing with punches and loading up for one big shot.

But it was the big shot “Canelo” threw that ended the night. Kirkland never saw it coming, as he was loading up with a huge right hand of his own. The right Alvarez threw cracked Kirkland in the jaw, and his eyes went blank. His big right hand whizzed harmlessly over the head of a ducking Alvarez, providing the momentum for the spin that left Kirkland prone on the canvas.

Saul “Canelo” Alvarez went on to defeat Miguel Cotto in his second fight of 2015 and he is clearly one of boxing’s biggest stars heading into 2016. On May 9th Alvarez added another reel to his highlight film when he knocked out James Kirkland with the 2015 “Knock Out of the Year”.

Photo by naoki fukuda

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