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Euro Bureau Best of Last Year

Euro Bureau Best of Last Year
BLASTS PAST – GrandpaGloves ’11hobbles into the graveyard of calendars while Boxing Baby 2012 begins the crawl. New Year’s blessings to all.
We must bury Boxing2011 with few wreaths of greatness, but we can also praisemany honorable and entertaining duke-outsduring that past twelve months. The game itself deserves “Fighter of the Year”consideration for once again making naysayers look like trolls, slithering around beneath the ringside seats.
Even a bad year in boxing is as goodas a normal year in most sports.
Still, with persistent negative images,perceived miscues or improprieties and, perhaps most damaging; stars’ questionable efforts in “championship” events, this certainlywasn’t amongst the best seasons ever.It really wasn’t a bad year overall for the brand worldwide though, whileregrettable that two of the very biggest, potentially classicfights in the global spotlight, Pacquiao -Mosley and Klitschko – Haye, were complete duds.
As always, there were thousands more good scores or calls than bad, but last year it seemed there were far moreunsatisfactory callsin fights of the very highest profile, like Floyd Mayweather Jr – Victor Ortizstateside or Yoan Pablo Hernandez – USS Cunningham in Germany. Around here, the weirdest sour ending was whenVitali Klitschko stopped Odlanier Solis on a one punchleg injury.Uncommon and uncanny.
In European territory, there was sustained interest in local titles and local prospects, with limited coverage of theUS scene. In Germany, and probablyBritain, Mayweather got muchmore ink and screen time than Manny Pacquiao. Then again, in 2011 Floyd had many of what you could call more “newsworthy” days than other fighters.
Around this continent and the UK there was plenty of good action at the ground level. Boxing remains a bigger consumersport here than in the States. Pay per view is limited or non-existent in most regions. That means almost every big fight is on free TV. Makes a difference. In Germany the amount of viewers is usually quitesubstantial, a trend probablycommonin nearby domains. The businessmodel, kind of like ’50s USA, is apparently good for the sport.
The K2 promotional express rolled on, setting the standard for class, like a precision luxury coup gliding down the autobahn at warp speed. Newer muggs like Alexander Povetkin, Robert Helenius, Tyson Fury, Hernandez, and Amir Kahn became more regular in the sports pages.In Germany, “Smokin'” Joe’s passing was widely noted with respect of an appropriate magnitude.
There seems to be enough punch for profit going around Germany to makeeveryone happy. At least three major broadcasting companies (possible affiliations unknown) transmit fights relatively often, and stronglysupport them through a related media umbrella which includes high-def live streams.
Klitschko stadium galas, while not as red-hot or expensivea ticketas a couple years back, fill tens of thousands of seatsthree orfour times a yearwith no visible decline in the demand for premium VIP packages (maybe it should be VEP: very expensive person). Sauerland Event, the area’s most active premium promotional outfit, regularlyputs onexcellent major title cards that average aroundfour to six thousand customers. The club fight typescene looks very popularat many local gyms, which sponsor bouts for a couple hundred people.
Here, boxing is mainstream enough that advertising campaigns present boxing based images as a desirable, marketable attribute. Fitness, fashion and general goods get the gloved-uptreatment.Michael Buffer has been prominently featured for many months in promos for one of the biggest retail companies in Germany.
There is probably more general boxing coverage in the UK than other parts of Europe I’ve seen, with regular profiles outside usual immediate or upcoming fight time frames. German media provides good coverage of many fights immediately preceding specific events. In Germany there are many celebrity-based photos of boxersamong daily paper tabloids. Unlike UK Page 3 types, Deutschland’stopless frauleins adornpage one ofsome city newspapers.
European boxing’scurrent stateof the artexists incomplete self sufficiency, stablity and withan ongoing,replenished talent pool. Top amateur prospects may be less protected than many of the future USstars I saw. Overall, through size alonethe talent pool around Germany is farmore shallow thana place likeLA or Vegas in terms of global impact. Between strong national programs at both amateur and pro levels there is a considerable migration of former Soviet Union state area prospects who head west for more optimal training conditions.
Professionally, at the novice to mid-prelim range things look muchthe same as in the US. Maybe its something in the water, wine or workoutsthat later separatesanemergence of trueworld class performers. In 2011, the ambassadors from these Europeanpartsdidn’t fare so well in global arenas.German star Arthur Abraham got spanked in the Super Sixwhile respected Sebastian Zbik and Serhiy Dzinzirukalso met defeat onUS shores. Abraham gets back on lighter horse in around a week. Dzinziruk, who got stopped by worthy champion Sergio Martinez and Zbik, narrowly outpointed by improving JC Chavez Jr wentback to the drawing board with new opportunities. Sebastian Sylvester, who lost his IBF middleweight belt to Daniel Geale then got stopped by Grzegorz Proska, may digress to a spoiler role.
Perhaps the most shocking differencein theGerman scene is that here, the cruiserweight division is very strong and entertaining. No, I did not stay too long in Amsterdamfor NewYears’ (just long enough, actually).
There are many solid cruisers who will never earn a title but are no easy notch, a bit like fringe heavyweightcontenders of the 70-80s.Guys who probably hit the ring fight nightwell over 200 poundslike Ola Alofabi orDenis Lebedov arethe fringes of the 2010s.Guys like Hernandezand Cunninghammight have won bouts against previous heavies like James Tillis,Joe Mesior Tyrell Biggs.
Differences in nationalapplication and results cause no major deficiencies in anyone’s product.It’s still two women ortwomen, generally braver andin better shape than the average citizen, getting into a ring and throwing hands.
Consistent levels of Vegas main events and featured undercard bouts apparently still dwarfthe euroscene atop the fistic food chain, but the overall spectacleis much the same. Some Klitschko VIP parties rival glitter gulch presentations. For the record, as a fight destination nothing matches Vegas in the 80s-90s,probably the modern era’sheight of boxingglamour. So far.
Thatsummit may remain unmatched, but there are many fine fights and fighters to observe in these parts nowadays. Here’s the best of what I saw firsthandlast year.
Fighter(s)of the Year : The Kbros split this one by way ofboth dominant and dubious distinction. From one perspective, nobody really came close to matching the level of exemplaryprofessionalism Wlad and Vit have maintained forrelative eons now, in everything from proper preparation to charitablesidelines. On the other side of the coin,during 2011 there were few major Euros who hadvery good years. Lebedev pounding Roy Jones or James Toney in Moscowain’t exactly a Renaissance.
Fight of the Year – I’m goingwith Marco Huck’s (pictured) frenzied10th round KOversusHugo Garayin Munich’s Olympic Ice Stadium last July. It was not the most finesse based exercise ever conducted between the strands, but it was one heck of a two-way brawlthat made the 4,404 or so fans in attendance loco. Both men were stunned multiple times during huge exchanges. Garay was a perfect foil, and made an upset look entirely possible more than a couple times. Icing on the conking cake was Huck’s way over the top entrance featuring a live performance by pop-rocker Sera Lee, complete with unisex dancing boxersusing flaming gloves. A live cartoon.
There was less of the essential mauling mayhem, but in terms of top level technique the runner-up nod goes to the controversialFelix Sturm-Matthew Macklin endurance contest. Sturm’s subsequent draw againstMartin Murray looked nearly as good on TV, andHernandez-Cunningham shaped up as a thriller before an accidental cut.
Round of the Year: Sturm- Macklin round 12.A great promotion with a full house of 19,000 inCologne. Excellent battle, arguablyup for grabs down the stretch. I gave the round to Sturm by a punch,but the fight to Macklin by a point. Runner up: Povetkin-Chagaev round 6. Yes it wasa bit ofa big boy slog, but well-fought overallbehind plenty of heavy thuds.Maybe it takes a strong bruiser like Chagaev to bring out the best in Povetkin.Reminiscent of ’80selimination waltzes featuring guys like Dokes,Weaver or Cobb.
Event of the Year : Vitali K – Adamek in Wroclaw, Poland, where the locals showed why their economy is growing. Students of boxing loremay recall the Dempsy-Gibbons fiasco in Shelby, Montana. This was the other side of the payoffcoin, in a still under construction stadium area to be used again for the 2012 European football/soccer tournament. It looked like almost everyone in town came for the spectacle.As a heavyweight fight, it was merely an impressive performance by the much larger, more experienced Kbro, who did what he was supposed to do against a brave but overmatched foe. Nothing extraordinary. As a cultural gathering, it was a rare scene of mass humanity with boxing at the center. The last time I observedanything like it was Lewis-Tyson in Memphis.It was later sad to hear that Adamekwas parting ways with Main Events, whose quiet efficiency contributed to both an amazing event and Adamek’s overall status in the ranks. Nothing in these parts came close as a runner up.
Debacle of the Year :Goes hands and happy pants downto the Klitschko-Haye fight. As a fight scene, Hamburg was the opposite of Wroclaw.Imagine. A chancefor redemption of the marketability mothballed heavyweight division ona single July evening in Hamburg. Evena near constant, chillingdownpour couldn’t drown the highly-anticipated showdown. Six or seven thousand visiting Brit fans completely outcheered the rest in a soaked crowd that looked around 38,000 deep. Despite the drenching, when the last prefight fireworks went off, there was real, electrified anticipation in the air. That lasted around four more minutes, to a point in round two when most of the stadium started figuring out they were not in for a classic. The soggy Britvocalists put more heart into their effortthan Haye did into his,and sang formore frames than he fought.
Prospective International Star : There are currently a pair of potential primo punchers on the rise : ’04 Olympic silver medalistandWBA”something or other”middleweighttitlist Gennady Golovkin and ’08 heavyweight gold medalist Rakhim “The Machine” Chakhkiev, a southpaw cruiserweight.Hernandez could also be considered, but almost all his potential competition is based in Germany and the usual suspects are pretty muchunknowns. Right now Chakhkiev looks like a future heavyweight force, maybe a Denis Boytsov typewithout the hand issues.
KO :Afolabi’shugeblastout ofTerry Dunstanon the Klitschko-Haye undercardwas the most obvious calluntil December, when Glovovkincreamed the reportedly never dropped Lajuan Simon, who’d looked solid against Abraham and Sylvester. Whatever your preference, bothshort hooks produced splattering, crowd joltingfirst round stoppages.
Progress: Fury and Helenius moved themselves to the front of the Klitschko sweepstakes pack by staying busy. Though defeated, Zbik and Dzinziruk went from being unknowns in America to being unknowns in America who are now only another decent effort away from being well -knownenough for agood payday.
Comeback: Haye. Completely unearned, but somehow he rosefrom July mockery tocomfirmed year-end mention as most likely contender for an early summer stadium fight against Kbro Vitali.
Class Act:The Klitschko brothers again. Whenthe main knock, year after year,istheir complete lack of competition, they’re doing something a lot better than everybody else.
Country to country, the Americas still seemsuperior in the manly art.All said, if everythinglooked equal on paper, I’d pick Latin American or USbased fighters over their European counterparts at least seven times out of ten.
It’s a good sign that the new year starts witha return of the sport to a foundational network. NBC’s Chambers-Liakhovich free cable broadcast could well be the event of next year, one way or another.
Thepositive perspective, as usual, is that there were lots of good fights all over the lumping landscape by honorable, well prepared performers who maintained boxing’s best traditions and highest standards.
The fight gameremained a vibrant piece of the social equation last year,andthe planet continued to spin as old calendars and old champions were replaced.
There is a lot of middle ground between thriving and starving.
Boxing’s bellymay be lean, but it isn’t under-nourished.
Euro Bureau Best of Last Year / Check out more boxing news on video at The Boxing Channel.
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Nick Ball Wears Down and Stops TJ Doheny Before the Home Folks in Liverpool

Fighting in his hometown, Liverpool’s five-foot-two fireplug Nick “The Wrecking” Ball stopped TJ Doheny after 10 progressively more one-sided rounds to retain his WBA belt in the second defense of the featherweight title he won with a hard-earned decision over Raymond Ford in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Referee Michael Alexander, with the assent of Doheny’s corner, waived it off following the bell ending Round 10, much to the chagrin of the brave but mildewed Doheny who burst into tears. But then, Doheny’s right eye was closed shut and he was plainly exhausted. This may be the end of the line for the 38-year-old campaigner from Perth, Australia via Portlaois, Ireland who was 26-5 heading in following his first loss inside the distance which came against pound-for-pound king Naoya Inoue.
There were no knockdowns, but Ball (22-0-1, 13 KOs) was docked a point in round nine for throwing Doheny to the canvas after having previously been warned for this infraction. Earlier, both he and Doheny were warned for an incident that could have ended the bout prematurely. At the end of the first round, Ball extricated himself from a headlock by kicking Doheny in the back of his knee. The challenger’s leg appeared to buckle as he returned to his stool.
Going forward, Ball has many options. The 28-year-old Liverpudlian purportedly relishes a unification fight with WBC belt-holder Stephen Fulton, but the decision ultimately rests with Ball’s promoter Frank Warren.
Other Bouts of Note
In a 12-round bantamweight contest that was close on the scorecards but yet a monotonous affair, Liverpool’s Andrew Cain won a split decision over former WBC flyweight title-holder Charlie Edwards. The scores were 116-112 and 115-114 favoring Cain with judge Steve Gray submitting a disreputable 115-113 tally for Edwards. At stake were a trio of regional titles.
The science of boxing, they say, is about hitting without getting hit. Charlie Edwards is adept at the latter but the hitting part is not in his DNA. He was on his bicycle from the get-go, a style that periodically brought forth a cascade of boos. Cain, who trains in the same gym with Nick Ball, was never able to corner him – Edwards was too elusive – but Cain, to his credit, never lost his composure.
In improving to 14-1 (12), Cain achieved a measure of revenge, in a sense. In his last documented amateur bout, in 2014, Cain was defeated by Charlie’s brother Sunny Edwards, also a former world title-holder at the professional level. Heading in, Charlie Edwards (20-2, 1 NC) was unbeaten in his last 13 which included a comfortable decision over Cristofer Rosales in his flyweight title fight. Charlie relinquished that belt when he could no longer make the weight.
Showboating Cuban lightweight Jadier Herrera, who fought 13 of his first 14 pro fights in his adopted home of Dubai, advanced to 17-0 (15 KOs) with a seventh-round stoppage of spunky but outclassed Mexican import Jose Macias (21-4-2). The official time was 2:31 of round seven.
An all-Liverpool affair between super flyweights Jack Turner (11-0, 10 KOs) and Ryan Farrag (23-6) was over in a jiff. The match, which went next-to-last in the bout order, ended at the 42-second mark of round two. A barrage of punches climaxed by a left hook sent Farrag down hard and the referee waived it off.
The noted spoiler Ionut Baluta, whose former victims include Andrew Cain, forged another upset with a 10-round split decision over local fan favorite Brad Strand. The judges favored Baluta 98-91 and 96-94, out-voting the Italian judge whose 97-93 tally for Strand was deemed the most accurate by the TV pundits.
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Avila Perspective, Chap. 317: Callum Walsh, Dana White and More

As Callum Walsh stood on the observation deck at the top of the Empire State Building with fists clenched, it harked back to actor Jimmy Cagney, an actor of Irish descent, yelling “Top of the world, ma,” in the 1949 motion picture White Heat.
The Irish-born Walsh brings that kind of attitude.
Once again Walsh (12-0, 10 KOs) returns to New York City and this time faces Scottish warrior Dean Sutherland (19-1, 7 KOs) in a super welterweight match set for 10 rounds on Sunday, March 16, at Madison Garden Theater.
UFC Fight Pass will stream the 360 Promotions event.
Flanked by master trainer Freddie Roach and managed by Dana White it brings questions as to the direction that Walsh will be steered. It was just revealed that White will head a new boxing promotion outfit with big plans to make a more UFC type of organization.
Is Walsh part of the plans?
It’s a lot to digest as the hot prospect from Cork, Ireland proceeds toward world championship dreams. Can he cleanse his mind of this major distraction?
Walsh and Sutherland are both southpaws who are meeting at the crossroads in the heart of New York City. At this point of their careers a loss can mean rebooting and taking a few steps backward. The winner moves on to the next crucial step.
Sutherland, 26, hails from Aberdeen and has never fought outside of his native Scotland. It’s a lot to ask of someone whose country’s population of 5 million is dwarfed by New York City’s 8.2 million inhabitants all packed together.
Ireland’s population is also 5 million. So basically, both Walsh and Sutherland are on even terms when they enter the prize ring on Sunday.
Who knows what kind of competition Sutherland faced in Scotland. He beat two undefeated fighters and also conquered two foes who each had more than 100 losses on their resumes.
Meanwhile, Walsh has faced only one undefeated fighter but handled veterans like Benjamin Whitaker, Ismael Villareal and Carlos Ortiz Cervantes. But you never know until they meet face to face. Anything can happen in a prize ring.
Walsh has a three-fight knockout streak. Sutherland has slept two out of his last three foes. They will be joined by several Irish fighters on the card plus Cletus “The Hebrew Hammer” Seldin.
Dana, Turk and TKO
The announcement earlier in the week that Turki Alalshikh together with TKO Group Holdings that include Dana White and Nick Khan formed a new boxing promotion company.
White, who does not own UFC but guides the MMA ship, works for Endeavor, the parent company of UFC and WWE. Their events are all shown on ESPN, the powerful sports network (albeit WWE’s flagship weekly show “Raw” recently moved to Netflix). It seems Endeavor has decided to allow White to guide its boxing program too.
Where does that leave Top Rank?
It seems the partnership plans to rid boxing of the many sanctioning organizations and have only one champion per division. The champion will be given a Ring Magazine belt. Recently, Turki Alalshikh purchased The Ring magazine from Golden Boy Promotions. This seems to have been the plan all along.
Is this good for boxing?
Mark Shapiro, the president of TKO Group Holdings, said:
“This is a strategic opportunity to re-imagine the sport of boxing globally. TKO has the deep expertise, promotional prowess, and longstanding relationships. HE Turki Alalshikh and Sela share our passion and vision for evolving the current model. Together, we can bring the sweet science back to its rightful place in the forefront of the global sports ecosystem.”
DAZN all day
Three boxing cards take place on Saturday beginning with WBA featherweight titlist Nick Ball (21-0-1) the human cannonball, defending against former champion TJ Doheny from Liverpool, England. The first bout begins around 9:30 a.m. (Pacific Coast Time). Ball likes to charge forward and punch. Doheny is no slouch and has experience.
Later, Matchroom Boxing presents a show from Florida that features Edgar Berlanga (22-1) fresh off a solid contest against Canelo Alvarez. He fights undefeated Jonathan Gonzalez-Ortiz (20-0-1) in a super middleweight match. Also, Ammo Williams (17-1) returns to face dangerous Patrice Volny (19-1) in a middleweight clash. The card starts at 3:30 p.m. (Pacific Coast Time.
Saturday evening MarvNation presents Amado Vargas (11-0) meeting Eduardo Hernandez (8-2) in a super lightweight contest at Thunder Studios in Long Beach, California. Start time is set for 8 p.m. (Pacific Coast Time). The son of the great Fernando Vargas remains undefeated.
Fights to Watch
Sat. DAZN 11:30 a.m. Nick Ball (21-0-1) vs TJ Doheny (26-5).
Sat. DAZN 3:30 p.m. Edgar Berlanga (22-1) vs Jonathan Gonzalez-Ortiz (20-0-1) ; Ammo Williams (17-1) vs Patrice Volny (19-1).
Sat. DAZN 8 p.m. Amado Vargas (11-0) vs Eduardo Hernandez (8-2).
Sun. UFC Fight Pass 3 p.m. Callum Walsh (12-0) vs Dean Sutherland (19-1).
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A Fresh Face on the Boxing Scene, Bryce Mills Faces His Toughest Test on Friday

“He wants to test himself and find out just how good he really is,” said International Boxing Hall of Fame promoter Russell Peltz regarding super lightweight Bryce Mills. Peltz, who has dealt with a wide range of fighters throughout his lifetime in boxing, recognized the fire that burned inside Mills at a local show in Philadelphia in early 2022. At the time Mills had less than ten professional fights under his belt.
Mills hails from Liverpool in upstate New York and trains in nearby Syracuse. Currently 17-1 (6 KOs), he’s undefeated in his last 11 since losing a split decision to a Puerto Rican fighter from the Bronx who had fought much stiffer competition.
The fight in question that caught Peltz’s eye was arranged by the well-known and respected matchmaker Nick Tiberi who paired Mills in an intriguing fight against Daiyaan Butt, a tough and skilled fighter from the Philadelphia area. They fought at LIVE Casino in South Philadelphia on Feb. 24, 2022.
Although the crowd on hand that night favored Butt, Mills, although then only 20 years old, wasn’t intimidated and was the clear-cut winner at the end of their exciting, back-and-forth battle. This showed Peltz that Mills was serious about seeing just how far his ability could take him.
That’s why Peltz decided to join forces with Mills. Despite being semi-retired, Peltz is still active enough to help guide fighters through the ever-changing wild west landscape that is boxing. Since their union after Mill’s victory over Butt, Mills has been on a nine-fight winning streak heading into what Peltz believes is the toughest test of his career this Friday against Alex Martin 18-6 (6 KOs) of Chicago.
“I didn’t want him to take this fight, it’s a dangerous fight for him. Martin is a southpaw and is tricky, he’s a veteran and is experienced. His father (Mills’s father) called me and said that Bryce wanted the fight, to his credit,” says Peltz. One look at Martin’s resume and it confirms what Peltz stated. All six of Martin’s losses came against fighters with outstanding records including a former world title challenger. Martin also holds some quality wins over undefeated prospects that were at similar points in their careers to where Mills currently is in his development.
Bryce Mills looks like a fighter (he’s always in shape), acts like a fighter (testing his craft against all comers), walks the walk of a fighter, and fights with a fan-friendly pedal-to-the-metal style. That is a winning combination that could be the breath of fresh air the boxing world could surely use and on Friday night at the Wind Creek Events Center in Bethlehem, PA, live on DAZN, Mills is going to have the opportunity to put the boxing world on notice.
***
DAZN will televise the Mills-Martin fight along with a main event that features undefeated middleweight Euri Cedeno (10-0-1, 9 KO’s) against Ulices Rivera (11-1, 7 KO’s). Knockout artist Joseph Adorno (20-4-1, 17 KOs) and undefeated Reading, PA super featherweight Julian Gonzalez (15-0-1, 11 KOs) appear in separate bouts on the undercard. Tickets for the Marshall Kauffman’s Kings Promotion show are still available through Ticketmaster. Lobby doors open at 5:00 pm. First bell is at 7:00.
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