Featured Articles
Road Of The Little Titans Timothy Bradley & Manny Pacquiao

When Timothy “Desert Storm” Bradley first stepped into the professional prize ring the crowd didn't know what to expect that blistering hot day in Corona as he faced another debuting boxer.
The fight took place outdoors at Omega Products International where temperatures can soar to a sweaty 115 degrees in August. As both fighters engaged at the sound of the bell it was obvious there was a difference in not only physical appearance, but Bradley was simply too athletic for the other fighter.
Bradley forced a stoppage of the fight in round two as referee Lou Moret decided that the other debuting prizefighter Francisco Martinez had run into a buzz saw. From that moment on a lot of other boxers were cut to pieces by the Bradley buzz saw.
Nearly eight years have passed and now Bradley (28-0, 12 KOs) looks to topple one of the top prizefighters in the world in Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao (54-3-2, 38 KOs) on Saturday June 9, at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The Filipino southpaw has a similar story.
The first time I saw Pacquiao perform in person was in 2003 against Emmanuel Lucero. The fight fittingly occurred at the Olympic Auditorium where a number of great Filipino fighters of the past like Speedy Dado and Ceferino Garcia had engaged in numerous battles before sold out crowds at the boxing palace in downtown Los Angeles.
Lucero was an undefeated Mexican fighter out of New York City. Pacquiao had been training at the Wild Card Gym for a couple of years under Freddie Roach. Before the fight the trainer was relaying to me about his trip to the Philippines with Pacquiao. He had no concerns about the fight. He was right. A vicious Pacman left uppercut ended the night for the bob and weave style of Lucero in round three.
It was the first and last time Pacquiao would fight in the Olympic Auditorium. The venerable boxing venue would be sold two years later and changed into a Korean church.
Pacquiao was about to change the landscape of boxing in his next fight that came four months later in San Antonio. Marco Antonio Barrera would find out first hand the speed and power of Pacquiao. He overwhelmed the Mexico City warrior and stopped him in 11 rounds.
Six months later another Mexico City warrior Juan Manuel Marquez would be dropped three times before realizing how to fight Pacquiao on May 2004. Several months later Bradley would become a professional.
Crowd booed
In the beginning Bradley was a mix of speedy footwork and fancy blistering combinations. He would dance around the ring and perform Muhammad Ali-like movements to the disdain of the crowd. When he fought Raul Nunez in October 2004, at the Doubletree Hotel in Ontario, the crowd booed Bradley though he won easily. That seemed to end the showmanship antics.
One month later Bradley returned to the Doubletree Hotel and fought Luis Medina. The fight lasted 18 seconds as the “Desert Storm” showed up and obliterated Medina. Referee Jack Reiss stopped it. From that point on the Palm Springs boxer became a professional prizefighter intent on ending the fight as quick as possible.
Under the tutelage of Joel Diaz, the eldest of the Coachella's fighting Diaz brothers, the Palm Springs junior welterweight began to morph into a fighting machine capable of stopping bigger and seemingly stronger opponents.
Perhaps Bradley's most significant victory came on July 21, 2005 when he faced Brazil's Marcos Andre Rocha Costa. His record said no victories and one defeat, but his trainer said the tall Brazilian southpaw was actually 10-1. When the two combatants entered the ring Bradley had to crane his neck to look at Rocha who was clearly 6-feet tall. Nobody told the promoters that the Brazilian was a southpaw. It looked pretty bad for Bradley.
In the first few rounds Bradley had problems trying to figure out Rocha who knew how to use his size and reach. Around the third round Bradley decided to go for broke and saw some success. But in round four he ran into a Rocha left hand and was wobbled. It looked bad for Bradley who fought out of the Brazilian's onslaught.
Round five began and the partisan-Bradley crowd sensed their fighter was in trouble. He wasn't. The desert prizefighter erupted on Rocha with a fury and shocked the taller fighter who expected to dominate. Instead, the Brazilian was dominated by Bradley who attacked so furiously that even the crowd was in shock. Bradley stopped Rocha at 2:15 of the fifth round. It was Bradley's moment of truth and he proved that he indeed had a fighter's heart and determination.
Now here they are Bradley and Pacquiao.
Equal size and heart
“Bradley is a different type of fighter and we don't take this fight lightly. We have trained hard for Bradley because he is the type of fighter we cannot underestimate. Tim Bradley is undefeated and he is a champion,” said Pacquiao, 33, during a conference call. “The fights are all different.”
Indio's desert fighter Bradley is confident that Pacquiao has not faced his style or intensity before.
“I systematically break guys down. I get in the ring and they (opponents) say I don't have any power but then they feel me and feel my strength. As soon as they get hit they want to hold me. The last couple of fights guys have been holding me all night,” Bradley, 28, said.
Both champions are rather small for the welterweight weight class of today. Of course back in the 1950s and earlier welterweights like Carmen Basilio were of similar size and height. And like that Hall of Fame boxer, both have the heart.
“Bradley beat a pretty good fighter in Lamont Peterson,” said Top Rank's Bob Arum, adding that at the time both fought he was promoting Peterson. “Peterson was and is a very good fighter.”
Of course the world knows how good Pacquiao is and gets an opportunity to measure Bradley's abilities on Saturday. The fight will be shown on HBO pay-per-view.
Tecate pay-per-view rebate information
Here are the five quick steps they must follow to redeem (JPEG below my signature):
1. Visit the “Cupón Carácter” Tab on www.Facebook.com/TecateBoxing (direct URL: http://on.fb.me/M4JHvs)
2. Select your state of residence and click on the link to access the coupon
3. Make sure to read through all the fine print and follow the directions to qualify to receive up to $40 by mail in the purchase of the HBO PPV event of Pacquiao vs. Bradley and Tecate product (where necessary)
4. Qualifying beer purchase must be made before 6/9/12. All coupons and accompanying materials must be postmarked by 7/15/12 and received by 7/31/12, to the address listed in the coupon. Allow 8-10 weeks for delivery of rebate check.
Featured Articles
Boxing Notes and Nuggets from Thomas Hauser

In recent years, there has been lavish praise and extensive criticism regarding Turki Alalshikh’s boxing initiative. Some of it has been warranted and some hasn’t. One issue deserves greater comment.
The judging has been pretty good.
Scoring a fight is subjective, which can open the door to bias, incompetence, and corruption.
Most people in boxing know who the good judges are. But some bad ones keep getting high-profile assignments. Why? Because they shade things toward the house fighter which is where the money lies.
When there’s a bad decision in boxing, almost always it favors the house fighter.
Overall, Turki Alalshikh’s fights have been marked by honest scoring.
Oleksandr Usyk went the distance four times against Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua. Fury-Usyk I and Usyk-Joshua II could legitimately have been scored either way. It was in the Saudi’s financial interest (not to mention the interests of Frank Warren and Eddie Hearn) that Fury and Joshua win those fights. Yet Usyk won all four decisions.
Clearly, Turki Alalshikh wanted Hamzah Sheeraz to defeat Carlos Adames. Yet Adames retained his title when that bout was credibly scored a draw.
The list goes on.
Bad scoring trickles down from the top. Judges know that the monied interests behind a promotion want a certain fighter to win and that their receiving lucrative judging assignments in the future often depends on scoring the fight at hand a certain way.
The judging for Turki Alalshikh’s fights so far seems to have been based on the instruction, “Be fair. Get it right.”
Kudos for that.
****
Six years ago after unifying the four major cruiserweight titles, Oleksandr Usyk was honored by the Boxing Writers Association of America as its “Fighter of the Year.” That designation was repeated in 2024 in recognition of his unifying the heavyweight crown.
While in New York to accept his most recent honor, Usyk sat with former NFL MVP Boomer Esiason for an interview that will air in early-June on the nationally syndicated television show Game Time.
Oleksandr came across as thoughtful and likeable during the conversation.
He shared memories of his father: “My father was a military guy. He teach me like a street fight, to work a knife, shooting. I use jujitsu, karate, wrestling, kickboxing. I say, ‘Poppa, what we do this for?’ . . . He says, ‘We prepare’ . . . ‘For what we prepare?’ . . . ‘For life.’”
Usyk won a gold medal in the 201-pound heavyweight division at the 2012 London Olympics. But his father died before Oleksandr could return home and show the medal to him. After Usyk beat Tyson Fury to unify the heavyweight crown, he cried as he proclaimed, “Hey, poppa, we did it.”
“A lot of people in Ukraine who hear that, they cry too,” Oleksandr told Esiason. “Is normal. [Some] people, ‘Hey man! Don’t cry.’ Why not cry? I like to cry.”
Speaking of the size differential between Fury and himself, Usyk noted, “For me, is like a story. David and Goliath. I not afraid because boxing is a sport. Yeah, it’s a guy a little bigger for me. No problem.”
Asked how he would describe his fighting style,” Oleksandr answered, “It’s a wonderful style.”
“Boxing for me is a gentleman’s sport,” he added. “Just respect for my opponents. A lot of people make a show. But if you make a good show and then bad boxing – [with a wave of his hand] PFFFTHF! First in boxing is class and skill; then the show.’
He explained how his training regimen includes holding his breath underwater: “I make like a fight time. Three minutes underwater, one minute rest, twelve rounds. Is hard.”
What’s the longest that Usyk has held his breath underwater?
“My record is 4 minutes 47 seconds.”
The interview closed with Oleksandr appealing directly to the American people to support his Ukrainian homeland in its defense against Russian aggression.
“I’m not political. I’m just [a] man who lives in Ukraine who’s worried for my people.”
And he talked of having brought some Ukrainian soldiers to his fights as guests: “They’re my power, my angels.”
****
Don King has been the subject of an endless stream of anecdotes. Jody Heaps (who spent three decades as a senior creative director and executive producer at Showtime) adds one more to the mix.
“Don had just brought Mike Tyson to Showtime,” Heaps recalls. “We were doing a shoot with Don sitting in a barber chair and he was in a great mood. Toward the end, someone came over to me and said, ‘If Don has the time, could you ask him about his favorite movie scene for a promotion we’re doing.’ So I asked Don what his favorite movie scene was. He told me movies weren’t his thing and said, ‘You tell me. What’s my favorite scene?’
“I talked it over with the crew,” Heaps continues. “Then I suggested the shower scene in Psycho. I figured Don had seen it. Everybody has seen it. But Don told me, ‘I don’t know anything about it. What happens in that scene?’ So I explained that you see Janet Leigh in shower. Then you see a silhouette on the shower curtain. The shower curtain is pulled aside. You see the knife plunging in again and again. And the last thing you see is blood circling down the drain.”
“Don says, ‘Okay; I’ve got it.’ He looks right at the camera and, with incredible drama, starts recreating the scene. Five seconds in, everyone is mesmerized. He takes us through Janet Leigh in the shower, the silhouette on the shower curtain, the knife plunging in again and again, the blood circling down the drain. And at the end, he laughed that loud booming laugh of his and proclaimed, ‘It was a clean kill!’
“There was stunned silence,” Heaps says in closing. “Don made it sound like it was real and he’d been there when it happened.”
****
Like most sports fans, I watched the first round of the NFL draft on April 24. I’ll do the same when the NBA draft is held on June 25. Allow me the following thoughts.
Adam Silver seems like a basketball fan.
Roger Goodell seems like a fan of making money.
Adam Silver looks sincere when he hugs a draftee.
Roger Goodell looks like he wants to take a shower.
Adam Silver comes across as though he has a sense of humor and can laugh at himself.
Roger Goodell comes across as though he doesn’t and can’t.
Adam Silver has James Dolan to deal with and keeps him in line.
Roger Goodell can’t put a lid on Jerry Jones.
Adam Silver is booed in good-natured fashion by fans at the draft.
Roger Goodell is booed with rabid enthusiasm
****
And last; a memory of Turki Alalshikh’s May 2 fight card in Times Square . . .
Security was tight. The police had been instructed to keep pedestrians on the sidewalk moving as they passed the ring enclosure which was blocked from view by a ten-foot-tall fence. Well before the event began, a young man with a video camera planted himself on the sidewalk across the street from the enclosure. A uniformed police officer approached and the following colloquy occurred.
Cop: I’m sorry, sir. You’ll have to move.
Young man: I’m with the media.
Cop: And I’m with the New York Police Department. You’ll have to move.
Thomas Hauser’s email address is thomashauserwriter@gmail.com. His next book – The Most Honest Sport: Two More Years Inside Boxing – will be published this month and is available for preorder at: https://www.amazon.com/Most-Honest-Sport-Inside-Boxing/dp/1955836329
In 2019, Hauser was selected for boxing’s highest honor – induction into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE
Featured Articles
Hiruta, Bohachuk, and Trinidad Win at the Commerce Casino

Hiruta, Bohachuk, and Trinidad Win at the Commerce Casino
A jam-packed fight card featuring a world champion, top contenders and knockout artists delivered the action but no knockouts on Saturday in the Los Angeles area.
You can’t have everything.
Mizuki “Mimi” Hiruta (8-0, 2 KOs), fresh with a multi-year 360 Boxing Promotion’s contract deal, once again fought and defended the WBO super fly world title and this time against Argentina’s Carla Merino (16-3, 5 KOs) at Commerce Casino.
It was expected to be her toughest test.
Hiruta, who is trained and managed by Manny Robles, showed added poise and a sharp jab that created and established an invisible barrier that Merino could never crack. It was as simple as that.
A sharp right jab from the southpaw Japanese world champion in the opening round gave Merino something to figure out. When the Argentine fighter tried to counter Hiruta was out of range. That distance was a problem that Merino could not solve.
The pink-flame-haired Hiruta looks like an anime figure incapable of violence. But whenever Merino dared unload a combination Hiruta would eagerly pounce on the opportunity. It was clear that the champion’s speed and power was a problem.
For more than a year Hiruta has been training in Southern California and has sparred with numerous styles and situations in the talent-crazy Southern California area. Each time she fights the poise and polish gained from working with a variety of talent and skill partners seems to add more layers to the Japanese fighter’s arsenal.
After six rounds of clear control by Hiruta, the Argentine fighter finally made an assertive move to change the momentum with combination punching. Both exchanged but Hiruta cornered Merino and opened up with a seven-punch barrage.
In the eighth round Merino tried again to force an exchange and again Hiruta opened up with a three-punch combo followed by a four-punch combo. Merino dived inside the attack by the Japanese champion and accidentally butted Hiruta’s head. No serious damage appeared.
Merino tried valiantly to exchange with Hiruta but the strength, speed and agility were too much to overcome in the last two rounds of the fight. Left hand blows by the champion connected solidly several times in the final round.
After 10 rounds all three judges saw Hiruta the winner by decision 98-92 twice and 99-91. The fighter from Tokyo retains the WBO super fly title for the fourth time.
Bohachuk Wins
Ukraine’s Serhii Bohachuk (26-2, 24 KOs) defeated Mykal Fox (24-5, 5 KOs) by unanimous decision but had problems corralling the much taller fighter after 10 rounds in a super welterweight match.
It was only the second time Bohachuk won by decision.
Fox used movement all 10 rounds that never allowed Bohachuk to plant his feet to deliver his vaunted power. But though Fox had moments, they were not enough to offset the power shots that did land. Two judges scored it 97-93 for the Ukrainian and another had it 98-92
“Good experience for me,” said Bohachuk of Fox’s movement.
King of LA
In a super featherweight match Omar “King of LA” Trinidad (19-0-1, 13 KOs) dominated Nicaragua’s Alexander Espinoza (23-7-3, 8 KOs) but never came close to knocking out the spirited fighter. But did come close to dropping him.
The fighter out of the Boyle Heights area in the boxing hotbed of East L.A. was able to exchange freely with savage uppercuts to the body and head, but Espinoza would not quit. For 10 rounds Trinidad battered away at Espinoza but a knockout win was not possible.
After 10 rounds all three judges favored Trinidad (100-90, 99-91, 98-92) who retains his regional WBC title and his place in the featherweight rankings.
“I’m living the dream,” said Trinidad.
Maywood Fighter Medina on Target
Lupe Medina (10-0, 2 KOs) proved ready for the elite in knocking down world title challenger Maria Santizo (12-6, 6 KOs) and winning by unanimous decision after eight rounds in a minimumweight match up.
Medina, a model-looking fighter out of Maywood, Calif, accepted a match against Santizo who had fought three times against world titlists including L.A. great Seniesa Estrada. She looked perfectly in her element.
Behind a ramrod jab and solid defense, Medina avoided the big swinging Santizo’s punches while countering accurately. For every home run swing by the Guatemalan fighter Medina would connect with a sharp right or left.
In the fifth round, Santizo opened up with a crisp three-punch combination and Medina opened up with her own four-punch blast that seemed to wobble the veteran fighter. Medina stepped on the gas and fired strategic blows but never left herself open for counters.
Medina didn’t waste time in the sixth round. A crisp one-two staggered Santizo who reeled backward. The referee ruled it a knockdown and Santizo was in trouble. Medina went into attack mode as Santizo pulled every trick she knew to keep from being overrun by the Maywood fighter.
In the last two rounds Medina seemed to look for the perfect shot to end the fight. Santizo kept busy with short shots and stayed away from meaningful exchanges. Medina also might have been gassed from expending so many punches in the prior round.
The two female fighters both seemed to want a knockout in the eighth round. Santizo was wary of Medina’s power and dived in close to smother Medina’s firing zone. Neither woman was able to connect with any significant shots.
After eight rounds all three judges scored in favor of Medina 77-74, 76-75 and 80-71.
It was proof Medina belongs among the top minimumweight fighters.
Other Bouts
In a super welterweight fight Michael Meyers (7-2) defeated Eduardo Diaz (9-4) by unanimous decision in a tough scrap. Mayers proved to be more accurate and was able to withstand a late rally by Diaz.
Abel Mejia (8-0) defeated Antonio Dunton El (6-4-2) by decision after six rounds in a super feather match.
Jocelyn Camarillo (4-0) won by split decision after four rounds versus Qianyue Zhao (0-2) in a light flyweight bout.
Photos credit: Al Applerose
To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE
Featured Articles
David Allen Bursts Johnny Fisher’s Bubble at the Copper Box

The first meeting between Johnny Fisher, the Romford Bull, and David Allen, the White Rhino, was an inelegant affair that produced an unpopular decision. Allen put Fisher on the canvas in the fifth frame and dominated the second half of the fight, but two of the judges thought that Fisher nicked it, allowing the “Bull” to keep his undefeated record. That match was staged last December in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, underneath Usyk-Fury II.
The 26-year-old Fisher, who has a fervent following, was chalked a 13/5 favorite for the sequel today at London’s Copper Box Arena. At the weigh-in, Allen, who carried 265 pounds, looked as if he had been training at the neighborhood pub.
Through the first four rounds, Fisher fought cautiously, holding tight to his game plan. He worked his jab effectively and it appeared as if the match would go the full “10” with the Romford man winning a comfortable decision. However, in the waning moments of round five, he was a goner, left splattered on the canvas.
This was Fisher’s second trip to the mat. With 30 seconds remaining in the fifth, Allen put him on the deck with a clubbing right hand. Fisher got up swaying on unsteady legs, but referee Marcus McDonnell let the match continue. The coup-de-gras was a crunching left hook.
Fisher, who was 13-0 with 11 KOs heading in, went down face first with his arms extended. The towel flew in from his corner, but that was superfluous. He was out before he hit the canvas.
A high-class journeyman, the 33-year-old David Allen improved to 24-7-2 with his 16th knockout. He promised fireworks – “going toe-to-toe, that’s just the way I’m wired” – and delivered the goods.
Other Bouts of Note
Northampton middleweight Kieron Conway added the BBBofC strap to his existing Commonwealth belt with a fourth-round stoppage of Welsh southpaw Gerome Warburton. It was the third win inside the distance in his last four outings for Conway who improved to 23-3-1 (7 KOs).
Conway trapped Warburton (15-2-2) in a corner, hurt him with a body punch, and followed up with a barrage that forced the referee to intervene as Warburton’s corner tossed in the white flag of surrender. The official time was 1:26 of round four. Warburton’s previous fight was a 6-rounder vs. an opponent who was 8-72-4.
In the penultimate fight on the card, George Liddard, the so-called “Billericay Bomber,” earned a date with Kieron Conway by dismantling Bristol’s Aaron Sutton who was on the canvas three times before his corner pulled him out in the final minute of the fifth frame.
The 22-year-old Liddard (12-0, 7 KOs) was a consensus 12/1 favorite over Sutton who brought a 19-1 record but against tepid opposition. His last three opponents were a combined 16-50-5 at the time that he fought them.
Also
In a bout that wasn’t part of the ESPN slate, Johnny Fisher stablemate John Hedges, a tall cruiserweight, won a comprehensive 10-round decision over Liverpool’s Nathan Quarless. The scores were 99-92, 98-92, and 97-93.
Purportedly 40-4 as an amateur, Hedges advanced his pro ledger to 11-0 (3). It was the second loss in 15 starts for the feather-fisted Quarless, a nephew of 1980s heavyweight gatekeeper Noel Quarless.
Photo credit: Mark Robinson / Matchroom
To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE
-
Featured Articles4 weeks ago
Gabriela Fundora KOs Marilyn Badillo and Perez Upsets Conwell in Oceanside
-
Featured Articles4 weeks ago
Floyd Mayweather has Another Phenom and his name is Curmel Moton
-
Featured Articles4 weeks ago
Arne’s Almanac: The First Boxing Writers Assoc. of America Dinner Was Quite the Shindig
-
Featured Articles4 weeks ago
Avila Perspective, Chap. 323: Benn vs Eubank Family Feud and More
-
Featured Articles3 weeks ago
Chris Eubank Jr Outlasts Conor Benn at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
-
Featured Articles3 weeks ago
Jorge Garcia is the TSS Fighter of the Month for April
-
Featured Articles2 weeks ago
Rolly Romero Upsets Ryan Garcia in the Finale of a Times Square Tripleheader
-
Featured Articles3 weeks ago
Avila Perspective, Chap. 324: Ryan Garcia Leads Three Days in May Battles