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Avila’s Las Vegas Journey: Marquez-Pacquiao

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An historic prizefight weekend began on a Thursday afternoon as we roared through the high deserts of Victorville-Barstow, then the low desert that passes through Baker at an estimated speed that could be a smidge faster than a thrown ball. Temperatures ranged from 70 to 75.

Three days of boxing cards were being staged in various parts of Las Vegas beginning with the Mirage Casino Resort on the Las Vegas Strip. We had just enough time to make the opening of the arena doors around 4 p.m.

Whenever there’s a big fight weekend you can bet that the boxing journalists are going to descend on the glitzy strip from all over the world. Even on Thursday evening several dozen reporters from Asia, South America and Europe were already checked into their hotels. Sitting in the arena were the Las Vegas regulars and a number of celebrities.

Over the years I’ve made a number of friends in Las Vegas such as journalist Chuck Giampa and his wife Lisa who is currently a boxing judge in Nevada. Other recognizable faces are Richie Sandoval the former bantamweight world champion who now works for Top Rank. And, also Bob Arum, the head man at Top Rank. And then there are the numerous match makers such as Brad Goodman, Bruce Trampler and Sean Gibbons who were waiting to observe the various boxing matches. Those are just a few of those in attendance. Matchmakers catch as many fights as possible. Their job depends on it.

A crowd began to form midway through the second fight as both Sugar Ray Leonard and Tommy “The Hitman” Hearns walked into the arena. After all these years they still carry an air of royalty from the boxing crowd that saw them fight in person or on television. Even those born after their last mega fight know that they’re the elite of the elite. People can thank ESPN, HBO and Fox for airing many of their old fights.

Also in the second row was Oxnard’s Brandon “Bam Bam” Rios who has suddenly streaked like a meteor especially after his big knockout win over Colorado’s Mike Alvarado a few months back in California. The hard-hitting Rios is scouting possible opponents. One is Manny Pacquiao. In two nights that dream fight will burst like a water bubble.

It’s a very long night as several of the match ups go the entire route. One of the most exciting is the lightweight clash pitting Raymundo Beltran against Ji-Hoon Kim of South Korea. In the first round they blast each other down via the left hook. But the two warriors fought the entire 12 rounds with Beltran, who is trained by Freddie Roach, going the distance and winning the unanimous decision. Both fighters belted each other.

The other interesting fight was Las Vegas boxer Jessie Magdaleno fighting Ontario’s Jonathan Arellano in a junior lightweight bout. Magdaleno erupted looking for the early knockout but Arellano’s speed and defense allowed him to escape the big blows. He would get knocked down a few times but finished the fight on his feet. Magdaleno is looking tougher and tougher.

After the final match my photographer Al Applerose and I headed toward the casino area to look for a place to eat. The National Rodeo tournament is being held at the Thomas & Mack Center and cowboys from all over the country are roaming inside the Mirage and every spot on the Strip. It reminds me of the late 60s and early 70s when cowboys were a common sight in Las Vegas. Now it’s merely nostalgia. I remember when anything west of the Strip was vast desert sands. No buildings and no homes. Only sand.

Where the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino currently is perched used to be the old Hacienda Hotel and Casino. They had sawdust on their floors among the slot machines. Visitors used to come in trucks, campers and trailers and all wore cowboy hats. A few blocks north were the Aladdin Hotel where guys with New York and Chicago accents were plentiful. In those days there we no sports books inside the casinos. One of the few sports books was next door to the Aladdin and Tropicana Hotel. Inside the room was filled thick with cigar smoke and deli sandwiches were the meal of choice. Chalk boards had numbers written on them representing racetracks and sporting events throughout the country. It was loud and crazy with mostly men inside hooting and hollering. Boxing was also a favorite pastime to put a wager on. I remember wanting to put a bet on the Muhammad Ali vs. George Foreman fight. But I had already bet at my work with a dozen people. Everyone at my plant wanted to take Foreman who they felt surely would massacre Ali. They all were certain I was a fool for taking Ali. I didn’t have any more money to bet in Las Vegas in 1974. But later I’d clean up and return to Las Vegas with my Ali winnings. It was a good year.

After munching on some $12 hamburgers in the Mirage we headed back to the hotel. I was groggy from the long fight card and wanted to get an early start on Friday.

Friday

I have this habit of getting up at 7 a.m. no matter what time I go to sleep at night. Downstairs I grab a coffee and open up my laptop to see if I missed any important messages. Nothing going on. The coffee at the Orleans is not very good. Plus, I won’t drink that toilet coffee they leave in the rooms. Who knows what they do to those coffee makers.

Applerose meets me downstairs and we grab something to eat for breakfast. While eating an omelet we plan out the day. After a few hours we head to the MGM Grand to the press room set up next to the MGM Garden Arena. It’s already crowded with journalists, fighters and promoters.

I found an open spot to plug in the computer and while doing it someone tells me that there is no food. Journalists love free food, especially photographers. If you ever look at a boxing photographer notice that they’re mostly all beefy guys. They all know each other and if you ever want to know when the food is going to arrive, just ask a photographer.

A commotion stirs toward the back with dozens of people following a bald guy who I can’t distinguish at first. So I walked toward the back of the large convention room and see that it’s Iron Mike Tyson about to give a radio interview. Nobody is more popular than Tyson, well, perhaps Muhammad Ali, but that’s it. Whenever Tyson appears at an event of any kind the focus goes to him. Recently he has agreed to do a nationwide tour of a one-man show where he talks to the audience and answers any questions. He seems very happy about the tour and patiently answers the questions of the radio jock. When he leaves an entourage of 30 people leave with him. Suddenly it’s quiet again.

As Tyson leaves another boxer enters the press room: middleweight world champion Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez. He’s wearing a t-shirt and looks fit and ready to go. He had just endured a knee surgery but says everything is ok. One journalist after another questions the Argentine who is extremely honest.

Finally the weigh-in begins and crowds can be heard shuffling toward the arena. I stay in the press room and watch the proceedings on a large television screen. I’m surprised that Manny Pacquiao weighs 147 and Juan Manuel Marquez only 143. Usually Pacquiao comes in much lighter. The crowd is mostly pro-Marquez which is another surprise. Pacman’s fans are usually rabid and come in droves. I guess they’re expecting another ho-hum victory. After all, it is the fourth fight. Not many people want to see the fourth encounter.

A friend based in Las Vegas, who is quite a boxing historian, says that any fight between Marquez and Pacquiao is worth seeing. “These are two of the elite fighting each other,” he says. “They’re possibly the greatest fighters of their generation. Who would not want to see them fight each other?”

It’s a very good point.

After the weigh-ins we head through the crazy Vegas after work traffic. I zigzag through various streets to get to the Texas Station Casino north of downtown Las Vegas. We make it but the fights have already started. Luckily, the fight I want to see is up next. It’s the heavyweights.

Usually I don’t like heavyweight fights. They’re too ponderous and don’t throw as many punches as the smaller guys. But on this night undefeated Andy Ruiz, a Mexican heavyweight, is going to face Elijah McCall, the son of former heavyweight champion Oliver McCall.

Ruiz does what I expected especially with those fast hands and surprising footwork for a heavy guy. He opens up with some strong counters that force McCall to unload with bigger bombs. It only leaves him open for Ruiz’s fast counters. The Mexican heavyweight plows through McCall with some big shots and knocks down the other prospect. Eventually, the referee stops the fight when it gets too one-sided. Ruiz is a heavyweight to keep an eye on. I saw his first two fights in Mexico and also saw him spar Riverside’s Chris Arreola and Lateef Kayode. Ruiz can fight.

I receive a telephone call and have to leave the arena. I head toward one of the ritzy hotels where I meet a few business partners to discuss some issues. Later, I head back to the MGM where we run into a few boxing trainers, cut men and journalists near the hotel reservation area. We spend two hours talking about the big fight and one of the trainers asks who we’re all picking. I tell him for the first time I’m picking Marquez. I tell him that Pacman didn’t look good against Timothy Bradley and could not fight the entire three minutes of a round. He opted to fight in the last 30 seconds and do what is called “stealing a round.” Against Marquez, that’s a bad idea.

As we’re talking, Marquez’s conditioning coach stops by and shares some insight on the recent debates. One of the other journalists, Lem Satterfield, recently interviewed him and he just wants to thank him for the fair journalism. While we talk about boxing several cowboys see the Marquez coach and ask to take a photo with him. He obliges and spends the next hour doing it. Poor guy.

Me and Applerose break off and I hear someone calling my name. It’s Tony Rivera, one of the great cut men in boxing and a veritable historian as well. In his career he worked the corner of Alexis Arguello, Roberto Duran and Marco Antonio Barrera. As we talk a bit another guy comes up to shake my hand and say hello. It’s 50 Cent, but I didn’t recognize him without his hat and gear at first. I wish him luck. His fighter is Cuba’s Yuri Gamboa who fights Filipino southpaw Michael Farenas.

We spend another three hours in the bar where we sit and talk with ace flack Mario Serrano who handles the “Ghost” Robert Guerrero among many others. But Guerrero is his main guy. They came up together in the boxing world. A few other journalists stop by and before you know it, its 4 a.m.

Saturday

I get three hours of sleep and get up at 7 a.m. I can’t seem to fool my internal alarm clock. I head to Starbucks and make some calls to start the busy day. It’s a big fight and we have to pick up credentials, find parking and get something to eat.

After setting up my computer in the press room, I look for a place to eat inside the MGM. We were supposed to meet a boxer but she can’t make it. So we decide to get something to eat at a pizza place. While we’re eating I spot IBF lightweight titlist Miguel Vazquez waiting in line to grab a Nathan’s hot dog. He downs the hot dog then later I see him with an ice cream cone munching like a contented kid. I ask Applerose if that’s a good thing to do? We’ll find out later that night.

Inside the press room reporters are scurrying around the tables and preparing for the fight card to begin. It’s around 4 p.m. and I head toward the arena. Top Rank’s Lee Samuels is walking toward the arena at the same time. We walk in as one fight has already commenced.

Unlike mixed martial arts, boxing fans do not begin arriving until 6 p.m. or later. Most only want to see the main event. They’re nuts, especially those who spend $500 and up.

A few fights have passed when Bob Arum shouts to Satterfield and I that Republican governor Mitt Romney will be in the audience today. Some mutter a few things upon hearing the news. I begin thinking Romney is going to be smack in the middle of a boiling ethnic melting pot filled with mostly Mexicans and Filipinos. It makes me chuckle. It would have been better served if he had experienced it before the election. Romney attends with his wife.

Several fights pit Mexicans or Latinos versus Filipinos. On this night, only one Filipino Dodie Boy Penalosa emerges victorious. All three of the other Filipinos including Pacquiao will go down in defeat.

When the Marquez-Pacquiao fight begins I look at their stares. Both have done this three times before so there should be no changes or surprises technically. At this stage of their career they are what they are. The big surprise however, is when Marquez decks Pacman with a long overhand right from seemingly across the ring. Pacquiao hits the deck hard with his black hair flopping wildly. The fight resumes but the Filipino southpaw doesn’t seem hurt, just upset.

Marquez looks confident until Pacquiao catches him walking into a short left cross. Down goes the Mexican boxer extraordinaire. When he gets up Pacman attacks as if his life depends on it. In some ways it does.

In the sixth round Pacquiao tries to knock Marquez out but the Mexican knows all of the tricks. After about one minute I noticed that Pacquiao’s legs are quivering as if he’s tiring rapidly. He shakily begins to move toward Marquez who stands in front and receives a volley of punches. Marquez suddenly moves backwards, but almost as if he’s setting a trap. Pacquiao moves in and feints once and Marquez reads the feint and holds back his counter, then Pacman attempts to fire the left and is met with a short right cross to the chin that catches Pacman walking into the punch. Boom. Down he goes. An entire arena jumps in surprise, including Jim Lampley who is sitting in front of me. Fans along ringside can be seen with their mouths opened wide and some with hands to their face. Even Romney has a look of shock. Pacquiao is down for the count.

But after that savage knockout, many of the fans are somewhat quiet. Pacquiao is still on the floor, not moving. Minutes pass and still no movement. Then, he slowly is raised to his feet and the pro-Marquez fans can finally cheer in earnest.

I’ve been following Pacquiao since the Lehlo Ledwaba fight and Marquez since his days at the Inglewood Forum. Now here they are at the top of the pyramid. Temporarily, Pacquiao has been toppled like all other kings have been toppled in the past. It’s another era gone. Not just for the Filipino slugger but for Marquez too. Both should end their careers on this note.

After the fights, its pandemonium in the MGM Grand. We leave the arena and meet friends including Melinda Cooper, the beautiful and talented boxer from Las Vegas. About 10 of us spend four hours at a sushi bar until 3:30 a.m. I head to the hotel and sleep at 4 a.m. and get up at 7 a.m. Then I head back to California all the while talking to Applerose about the tiring but exciting journey.

Oh yeah. And about the lightweight champ Vazquez who we saw eating hot dogs and ice cream. He won by unanimous decision. I guess that stuff is good for you.

Next stop is California.

 

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R.I.P. IBF founder Bob Lee who was Banished from Boxing by the FBI

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“The image some people have of me is disappointing,” said Bob Lee in a 2006 interview, “but I also feel I had a positive impact on the sport…”

Lee, the founder of the International Boxing Federation who died yesterday (Sunday, March 24) at age 91, spoke those words to Philadelphia Daily News boxing writer Bernard Fernandez who was the first person to interview him when he emerged from a federal prison in 2006. Lee served 22 months on charges that included racketeering, money laundering, and tax evasion.

Born and raised in northern New Jersey and a lifelong resident of the Garden State, Lee, a former police detective, founded the International Boxing Federation (henceforth IBF) in 1983 after a failed bid to win the presidency of the World Boxing Association. At the time, there were only two relevant sanctioning bodies, the WBA, then headquartered in Venezuela, and the WBC, headquartered in Mexico. Both organizations were charged with favoring boxers from Spanish-speaking countries in their ratings at the expense of boxers from the United States.

Bob Lee’s brainchild, whose stated mission was to rectify that injustice, achieved instant credibility when Marvin Hagler and Larry Holmes turned their back on the established organizations. Hagler’s 1983 bout with Wilford Scypion and Holmes’ 1984 match with Bonecrusher Smith were world title fights sanctioned exclusively by the IBF, the last of the three extant organizations to do away with 15-round title fights.

Lee’s world was rocked in November of 1999 when a federal grand jury handed down an indictment that accused him and three IBF officials, including his son Robert W. “Robby” Lee Jr., of taking bribes from promoters and managers in return for higher rankings. The FBI, after a two-year investigation, concluded that $338,000 was paid over a 13-year period by individuals representing 23 boxers.

The government’s key witness was C. Douglas Beavers, the longtime chairman of the IBF ratings committee who wore a wire as a government informant in return for immunity and provided video-tape evidence of a $5000 payout in a seedy Virginia motel room. Promoters Bob Arum and Cedric Kushner both testified that they gave the IBF $100,000 to get the organization’s seal of approval for a match between heavyweight champion George Foreman and Axel Schulz (Arum asserted that he paid the money through a middleman, Stan Hoffman). In return, the IBF gave Schulz a “special exemption” to its rules, allowing the German to bypass Michael Moorer who had a rematch clause that would never be honored. (In a sworn deposition, Big George testified that he had no knowledge of any kickback).

After a long-drawn-out trial that consumed four months including 15 days of jury deliberations, Bob Lee was acquitted on all but six of 32 counts. His son, charged with nine counts, was acquitted on all nine. The jury simply did not trust the veracity of many that testified for the prosecution. (No surprise there; after all, they were boxing people.) But neither did the jury buy into the argument that whatever money Lee received was in the form of gifts and gratuities, a common business practice.

The IBF was run by a court-appointed overseer from January of 2000 until the fall of 2003. Under its current head, Daryl Peoples, who came up from the ranks, assuming the presidency in 2010, the IBF has stayed out of the crosshairs of federal prosecutors.

As part of his sentence, Bob Lee was prohibited from having any further dealings with boxing and that would have included buying a ticket to sit in the cheap seats at a boxing card. This was adding insult to injury as Lee’s passion for boxing ran deep. As a boy working as a caddy at a New Jersey golf course, he had met Joe Louis and Sugar Ray Robinson, two of the proudest moments of his life.

As for his contributions to the sport, Lee had this to say in his post-prison talk with Bernard Fernandez: “We instituted the 168-pound [super middleweight] weight class. We took measures to reduce the incidence of eye injuries in boxing. We changed the weigh-in from the day of the fight to the day before, which prevented fighters from entering the ring so dehydrated that they were putting themselves at risk. All these things, and more, were tremendously beneficial to boxing. I’m very proud of all that we accomplished.”

Bob Lee was a tough old bird. Diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes in 1986, he was insulin-dependent for much of his adult life and yet he lived into his nineties. Although his coloration as a shakedown artist is a stain that will never go away, many people will tell you that, on balance, he was a good man whose lapses ought not define him.

That’s not for us to judge. We send our condolences to his loved ones. May he rest in peace.

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Australia’s Nikita Tszyu Stands Poised to Escape the Long Shadow of His Brother

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They held a confab for the boxing media last week at the spacious Las Vegas gym where WBO super welterweight champion Tim Tszyu has been training for his forthcoming match with Sebastian Fundora. Tim was there, of course, as were many of the fighters in the supporting bouts plus Tim’s younger brother Nikita who was inconspicuous in this gathering.

Nikita Tszyu isn’t on Saturday’s card and so was never spotlighted, but it’s likely that most of the media-types there knew nothing about him. Had they been Aussies, he wouldn’t have been able to blend into the scenery as the Sydneysider is already a major sports personality in the Land Down Under. More than that, he is seemingly on pace to become as big a star as his older brother who has been called the face of boxing in Australia.

In his last start, Nikita wrested the Australian 154-pound title from previously undefeated (10-0) Dylan Biggs. Their bout in the Australian harbor city of Newcastle headlined a pay-per-view telecast.

Nikita was down in the first 45 seconds of the contest and was buzzed in the third, but had Biggs in dire straits in the fourth and ended matters in the next frame with a wicked left hook to the liver. Biggs somehow made it to his feet, but the bout was waived off seconds later as Biggs’ corner was throwing in the towel.

It improved Nikita’s record to 8-0 (7 KOs) and burnished the reputation of the Tszyu dynasty. Collectively, the three Tszyu’s – his Hall of Fame father Kostya, his bother Tim and Nikita – are 48-0 in Australian rings.

Outside the squared circle, Nikita Tszyu, who is 26 years old and looks younger, comes across as thoroughly unspoiled. Talking with him, what started as a formal interview quickly became a relaxed chat between two old souls (as Nikita described himself) enjoying each others company. And as prizefighters go, he sure is different. A college grad, Nikita cited gardening, of all things, when we inquired if he had any hobbies.

As amateurs, Nikita had a deeper background and was more decorated than Tim. But in 2017, he turned his back on boxing to pursue a degree in architecture. He was away from boxing for five years before deciding to give the sport another fling.

“I wanted to be the first person in my family to be smart,” he says tongue-in-cheek when asked how he could abandon a sport that was seemingly in his blood. “My mom wanted one of us to get a college degree,” he says, elaborating. “When it wasn’t going to work out for Tim, it fell on my shoulders.”

As is well known, Nikita’s parents divorced (Nikita was then just starting high school) and his dad then returned to his native Russia and started a new family. But the brothers and their father remain on cordial terms – they speak on the phone periodically – and they are close to Kostya’s parents (their paternal grandparents) who live near Nikita in the Sydney area and are currently watching Nikita’s three dogs, a husky, a French Bulldog, and a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. “I can’t imagine a life without them,” says Nikita who, unlike his brother, has no special lady living under his roof.

The family tie extends to the brothers’ trainer Igor Goloubev who is married to their aunt (Kostya’s sister). Uncle Igor, a training partner of Kostya Tszyu in the old days, came to Sydney in 1997 with a touring Russian amateur team and, unlike the famous boxer, never left.

During the lull between the two generations of fighting Tszyus, Igor Goloubev founded a construction company that he still owns. While working for an architectural firm (working remotely because of Covid), Nikita was able to work part-time for his uncle which was good hands-on experience for a future architect.

When Goloubev counsels one of the brothers between rounds, the old becomes new again and this blast from the past doesn’t stop there. The brothers are managed by Newcastle NSW businessman Glen Jennings who formerly managed Kostya, widely considered one of the two or three best junior welterweights of all time. (Jennings says that as a boxer Nikita is more like his dad whereas Tim is more of a pressure fighter.)

Glen Jennings Flanked by Tim and Nikita

Glen Jennings flanked by Tim and Nikita

This is Nikita Tszyu’s second trip to Las Vegas. He was here last year when Tim was preparing for a match with Jermell Charlo. When that match fell out, Nikita used the occasion for a little holiday, the highlight of which was a hike through Northern California’s Redwood Forest, home to the world’s tallest trees.

“Your national parks are the coolest things about America,” he says. As for the food? ”Too much fat,” he says, wrinkling his nose, but that’s a moot point as Team Tszyu now travels with its own chef.

Nikita Tszyu will defend his Australian title on April 24th. At this writing, the opponent is uncertain. Three leading candidates fell by the wayside, two because they lost a fight they were supposed to win, ruining their credibility, and another because he got injured. Finding good opponents may prove to be a recurrent hassle in part because Nikita, unlike his brother, is a southpaw.

Coming up the ladder, Tim Tszyu looked forward to fighting at the MGM Grand where his father won his first title (TKO 6 over Jake Rodriguez in 1995) and had one of his most memorable fights, a second-round stoppage of Zab Judah in 2001. The T-Mobile Arena didn’t exist back then, but sits on MGM Grand property, so Saturday’s fight is a dream come true for the older Tszyu brother.

Looking down the road, it’s easy to envision Nikita becoming a headline attraction here too.

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Dalton Smith KOs Jose Zepeda and Sandy Ryan Stops Terri Harper in England

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Dalton Smith KOs Jose Zepeda and Sandy Ryan Stops Terri Harper in England

England showed off its talent in Sheffield.

Super lightweight prospect Dalton Smith advanced into the championship level and Sandy Ryan proved to be not just another world titlist on Saturday.

Dalton Smith (16-0, 12 KOs) faced the venomous punching power of Jose “Chon” Zepeda (37-5, 28 KOs) and eliminated him with a body shot knockout that left the world title challenger gasping for air at Sheffield Arena in Sheffield, England.

“I had to be on my game. He (Zepeda) puts people to sleep,” said Smith.

If any questions existed on Smith’s ability to compete at the championship level, the 27-year-old answered emphatically with a clinical and professional-style win.

Smith walked into the prize ring realizing that southpaw slugger Zepeda could end the night with a single punch. He carefully measured the California-based fighter’s movements and punching power before stepping on the gas from the second round on.

“He’s a great fighter,” explained Smith of Zepeda. “That’s what made me train harder.”

During the first several rounds the two hard-hitting punchers were able to score. Zepeda clipped Smith with quick rights and occasional lefts but discovered that the British fighter has a chin. That seemed to allow Smith to open-up slightly more with one-two combinations.

After Smith gained serious momentum in the third and fourth rounds, Zepeda shortened up his stride and looked to put on more pressure. In the fifth round Zepeda moved closer into firing range and ran into a right cross to the belly that took the strength out of his legs. Down went Zepeda for the count at 1:25 of the fifth round.

“I was hitting him with clean shots and it wasn’t doing anything,” said Smith of his head attack.

Apparently, the body shot was the answer.

Sandy Ryan Wins Battle of Champions

WBO welterweight titlist Sandy Ryan won the battle between British champions with a pile-driving stoppage of Terri Harper who, after dropping down a weight division but was unable to be competitive.

Ryan (7-1-1, 3 KOs) walked into enemy territory and quieted the pro-Harper (14-2-2, 6 KOs) crowd with a riveting attack at Sheffield Arena. There was no stopping her on this night.

“I’m just happy,” said Ryan, 30, of Derby England.

After spending months in Las Vegas, Nevada living and training away from her home in England, the tall slender fighter Ryan finally was able to lure a fellow British world champion in the boxing ring.

“I was away from family and friends for so long,” Ryan said.

A close first round between the two female champions saw Ryan open up the second round behind a riveting left jab and body shots that made Harper hesitant and gun shy to counter.

Ryan seemed to sense early that she was in control and opened up with five- and six-punch combinations. And when Harper retaliated, Ryan returned fire again almost daring her rival to engage in a free-for-all.

Harper clinched several times in the third round to stymie Ryan’s constant attack, but it was not enough. The WBO titlist seemed even more eager to win by knockout and opened up with little concern of Harper’s counters.

In the fifth round it was obvious that Ryan was in complete control, the only question was if she could maintain the frenetic pace. Again, she opened up with punishing combinations as Harper looked for a solution. Instead, rights and lefts pummeled the super welterweight titlist until the end of the round.

Harper’s corner decided to end the fight, Referee Marcus McDonnell declared Ryan the winner at the end of the fifth round by technical knockout.

“I felt her fading,” said Ryan.

The win by Ryan sets her up for a rematch against Jessica McCaskill who holds the WBA and WBC welterweight titles. Their first encounter ended in a split draw after 10 rounds last September in Orlando, Florida.

Ryan expressed a desire to face any champion.

“Any big fight. All the big names,” Ryan said.

Other Results

Ishmael Davis (13-0) defeated Troy Williamson (20-3-1) by unanimous decision after 12 rounds for a regional middleweight title.

James Flint (14-1-2) handed Campbell Hatton (14-1) fis first defeat as a pro by unanimous decision after 10 rounds in a super lightweight match.

Photo credit: Mark Robinson / Matchroom

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