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Riddick Bowe Had Hall of Fame Talent, But Not a Hall of Fame Career

It was Saturday, October 31, 1992, Halloween night, when heavyweight contenders Lennox Lewis (21-0) and Donovan “Razor” Ruddock (25-3-1) met in a title elimination bout. The winner of Lewis-Ruddock was set to challenge the winner of the upcoming undisputed heavyweight title bout between champion Evander Holyfield (28-0) and top contender Riddick Bowe (31-0).
In some ways it was a reflection back to 1974 when the top four contenders met in two elimination bouts to determine the undisputed champ. It played out as follows. In January of 1974 Muhammad Ali decisioned Joe Frazier to win their rematch, and then in March heavyweight champ George Foreman knocked out second ranked Ken Norton. The winners Ali and Foreman met for the undisputed title in October and it was then and there that Ali’s victory over Foreman signified the re-birth of the Ali legend.
Well, in the 90s version of the top four elimination, Lewis demolished Ruddock in two rounds and was assumed to be the next challenger for the Holyfield-Bowe winner. And on Friday night November 13, 1992, 13 days after Lewis-Ruddock, Holyfield and Bowe staged the most action packed heavyweight title bout, one that was voted fight of the year by Ring Magazine, since Larry Holmes won a 15-round split decision over Ken Norton in June of 1978 to claim the WBC title.
Bowe fought the signature fight of his career against Holyfield that night and won a 12-round unanimous decision to become undisputed heavyweight champion. During his title winning effort Bowe displayed HOF skill. It looked as if on that night he could’ve lived with and competed against any heavyweight who had ever worn the heavyweight crown, that’s how good he looked. Riddick displayed a piston like jab, an unconventional but hard and accurate right hand, and his in-fighting for a big man was remarkable. His uppercuts and hooks were tight and compact and really had Holyfield on his heels when he tried to get inside and crowd Bowe during their bout. After beating Holyfield, Bowe was on top of the world and looked as if he was about to get revenge against Lewis who stopped him at the 1988 Olympics in the gold medal round four years earlier.
But it never happened…
A month after winning the title from Holyfield, Bowe threw his WBC belt in the trash and vacated the title instead of meeting Lewis, who was the number one contender. Unfortunately for Bowe, he threw away his chance to be a legitimate hall of famer along with the belt because other than fighting Holyfield, three times in total, there aren’t enough quality wins on his resume to deserve induction. Make no mistake about it, Bowe had HOF skill. Riddick had height and reach, he could punch with both hands and could also fight inside and outside. His toughness and heart were questioned after he lost at the Olympics to Lewis, but his showing against Holyfield the first time they fought erased that.
However, other than fighting Holyfield three times, he never fought or beat another elite heavyweight, unless you count a washed up Michael Dokes, Larry Donald, Herbie Hide and Jose Luis Gonzalez. He also fought Andrew Golota twice and won by disqualification both times when Andrew repeatedly fouled him during both bouts. But everyone knows that Golota was also knocking the hell out of Bowe for a majority of both meetings. And the reality is most observers see the two Golota fights as losses for Bowe.
Riddick Bowe 43-1 (33) made a career out of fighting Evander Holyfield. Bowe defeated Holyfield two of the three times they met and stopped him in their final bout after Evander dumped him on the canvas earlier in the fight. But it’s not like Bowe owned Holyfield. In their first fight he gave Evander a memorable beating, but he was also worked over and punched around by him too. When they met the second time a year later, Bowe wasn’t in the shape he was for their first fight and Holyfield adjusted his style and out boxed Bowe using lateral movement and combination punching to win by decision. When they met in the rubber match, it was much like the rubber match between Ali and Frazier. Both Evander and Riddick had slipped and couldn’t get out of each other’s way, and like it was with Frazier against Ali, by the time the third fight rolled around for Holyfield and Bowe…Riddick’s height, weight and reach were too much for the smaller Holyfield to overcome.
When looking at Bowe’s career in totality, it doesn’t measure up with his career rivals Holyfield, Lewis and Mike Tyson when comparing the quality of opposition that they each faced. Riddick fought Evander and there isn’t much after that. Holyfield fought Bowe three times, and owns a win over him. He fought both Tyson and Lewis twice each when he was on the decline more than they were and went 2-1-1. Lewis fought both Holyfield and Tyson when they were past their prime and went 2-0-1 against them. And we know why he and Bowe never fought, because Riddick wouldn’t fight him. As for Tyson, he was win-less in three fights with Holyfield and Lewis, but he did fight them. Yes, he and Bowe missed each other because Tyson was in prison for three years and that hurts the legacy of both Tyson and Bowe.
Not only did Bowe never fight two of the big three of his era (Lewis & Tyson) he never fought any other stalwarts and title holders of the era, the likes of Ray Mercer, George Foreman, Michael Moorer, David Tua, Oliver McCall, Razor Ruddock and Tommy Morrison. Bowe’s prime was too short and his quality of opposition doesn’t make the grade to merit HOF honors.
Had Bowe fought Lewis in the spring of 1993 as it was intended, his career may have unfolded completely differently. After Lewis beat Ruddock and Bowe beat Holyfield for the title, Bowe-Lewis was to the early 1990s what Mayweather-Pacquiao is to this generation regarding anticipation. I remember thinking when they turned pro that it was Lewis who would have the better career as opposed to Bowe. However, Bowe really did blossom under trainer Eddie Futch and by the end of 1992, Riddick looked to be the better and more finished fighter than did Lennox. I always felt that Bowe was unfairly criticized after losing to Lewis at the Olympics. Everyone forgets that Lewis participated at the 1984 games and lost to American Tyrell Biggs. Having already competed as an Olympian before gave him a distinct advantage over Bowe at the 1988 games, and it showed. Lennox was harder mentally and physically than Riddick was at that time. But Bowe was busier and fought better opposition out of the chute as pros than Lewis did and it showed.
Bowe was in his prime circa 1992-93, whereas Lewis didn’t fully flower until three or four years later under trainer Emanuel Steward. Had they fought when they were originally scheduled to, I would’ve picked Bowe. Sadly for Bowe the fight never happened and it is Lewis who went on to become a legitimate Hall Of Famer.
On the night of 11/13/92 Riddick Bowe looked like a can’t miss Hall of Fame fighter. The Bowe who fought Holyfield the first time was too much for Evander, and if forced to speculate he probably would’ve been too much for Tyson and Lewis on their best nights too. The problem is, we just don’t know and there weren’t enough of those nights after Holyfield I to justify his induction into the Hall of Fame, aside from the fact that he’s still alive and can participate and speak during the festivities in June of next year.
Lastly, I’m glad for Riddick Bowe that he’ll be inducted into the IBHOF despite thinking he didn’t have the longevity and enough quality wins to make the cut, because he’s more deserving than some others who have already had their fist cast in stone.
Frank Lotierzo can be contacted at GlovedFist@Gmail.com
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Conor Benn, a Lightning Rod for Controversy, Returns to the Ring on Saturday

In a surprise announcement, Matchroom honcho Eddie Hearn has announced that Conor Benn will return to the ring this Saturday on the undercard of his promotion at the Caribe Royal in Orlando, Florida. Benn (21-0, 14 KOs) is matched against Mexico’s Rodolfo Orozco who is 32-3-3 (24) and has never been stopped. The match is slated for 10 rounds at 154 pounds and will mark the first test for both fighters outside their native countries.
The main event on the Matchroom card is a 12-round contest in the super lightweight division between Richardson Hitchins (16-0, 7 KOs) and Jose Zepeda (37-3, 28 KOs). Hitchins, born in Brooklyn, represented his parents’ homeland of Haiti in the 2016 Rio Olympics where he lost his opening round match to amateur nemesis Gary Antuanne Russell. Zepeda, a 34-year-old Mexican-American southpaw, is best remembered for his 2020 rumble with Ivan Baranchyk, the runaway pick for the Fight of the Year. The chief supporting bout pits England’s Sandy Ryan against Chicago’s Jessica McCaskill with the WBA, WBC, and IBF female welterweight belts on the line. The show will be live-streamed on DAZN.
Conor Benn last fought in April of last year when he TKOed South African veteran Chris Van Heerden in the second round. He was slated to return to the ring on Oct. 8, 2022 against Chris Eubank Jr, but — as is common knowledge – that bout fell to pieces when it came out that Benn had tested positive for a banned substance identified as Clomifene, a fertility drug in women that boosts testosterone in men. Making things worse for Benn, it came out that he had tested positive on VADA-administered tests on two separate occasions spaced several weeks apart. Try as they may, promoter Eddie Hearn and his partner Kelle Sauerland were unable to sway the British Boxing Board of Control into backing off on their edict that prevented the fight from going forward; the authorities wouldn’t budge.
As noted in a story that ran on this website, the Benn-Eubank Jr implosion was a particularly infernal shipwreck. The plug wasn’t pulled until two days before the fight, by which time all 20,000 seats at London’s O2 Arena had reportedly been sold.
Conor Benn predictably insisted that he was innocent, calling it a witch-hunt. The World Boxing Council subsequently lifted its suspension of Benn, citing a report in a medical journal that showed that Clomifene could appear in one’s system via an excessive consumption of eggs. With his father Nigel, a former two-division world champion at his side, Conor argued his case on a popular British TV talk show and persuaded many to see him as a sympathetic figure, the victim of a flawed testing process.
Interest in a Benn-Eubank Jr fight dissipated when Eubank was knocked out by Liam Smith, but was then rekindled when Eubank won the rematch in a dominant fashion. Various news reports say that Hearn has begun preliminary negotiations to resurrect the fight with his eye on a date in December.
As noted by several prominent fight writers, notably Dan Rafael, Conor Benn hasn’t yet been cleared to resume his career in the UK. An independent National Anti-Doping Panel gave him the green light, but the BBBofC is appealing that decision. Promoter Frank Warren, Eddie Hearn’s chief rival, has ventured the opinion that Team Benn is disrespecting the sport by returning to the ring before the process has run its course. In rebuttal, Eddie Hearn says the Benn-Orozco fight has the blessing of the (USA) Association of Boxing Commissioners which made this determination after consulting with the BBBofC.
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International Brotherhood of Prizefighters Rankings: Week of September 17, 2023

Here’s to guessing that the days of the best willing to fight the best on a regular basis is now forever but a distant memory.
105lbs
â™› Vacant
1Â Â Â Â Â Â Thammanoon Niyomtrong (Knockout CP Freshmart)Â (Thailand)
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Panya Pradabsri (Petchmanee CP Freshmart)Â (Thailand)
3Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Oscar Collazo (USA)
4Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Ginjiro Shigeoka (Japan)
5Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Daniel Valladares (Mexico)
6Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Yudai Shigeoka (Japan)
7Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Melvin Jerusalem (Philippines)
8Â Â Â Â Â Â Masataka Taniguchi (Japan)
9Â Â Â Â Â Â Rene Mark Cuarto (Philippines)
10Â Â Â Â Â Yudai Shigeoka (Philippines)
108lbs
â™› Kenshiro Teraji (Japan)
1Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Jonathan Gonzalez (Puerto Rico)
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Masamichi Yabuki (Japan)
3Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Sivenathi Nontshinga (South Africa)
4Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Hekkie Budler (South Africa)
5Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Elwin Soto (Mexico)
6Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Regie Suganob (Philippines)
7Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Shokichi Iwata (Japan)
8Â Â Â Â Â Â Carlos Canizales (Venezuela)
9Â Â Â Â Â Â Daniel Matellon (Panama)
10Â Â Â Â Â Miel Fajardo (Philippines)
112lbs
â™› Vacant
1Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Sunny Edwards (England)
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Artem Dalakian (Ukraine)
3Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Julio Cesar Martinez (Mexico)
4Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Angel Ayala Lardizabal (Mexico)
5Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â David Jimenez (Costa Rica)
6Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Jesse Rodriguez (USA)
7Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Ricardo Sandoval (USA)
8Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Felix Alvarado (Nicaragua)
9Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Seigo Yuri Akui (Japan)
10Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Taku Kuwahara (Japan)
115lbs
â™› Juan Francisco Estrada (Mexico)
1Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Roman Gonzalez (Nicaragua)
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Kazuto Ioka (Japan)
3Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Fernando Martinez (Argentina)
4Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Junto Nakatani (Japan)
5Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (Thailand)
6Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Kosei Tanaka (Japan)
7Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Andrew Moloney (Australia)
8Â Â Â Â Â Â Francisco Rodriguez Jr. (Mexico)
9Â Â Â Â Â Â Pedro Guevara (Mexico)
10Â Â Â Â Â Donnie Nietes (Philippines)
118lbs
â™› Vacant
1Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Emmanuel Rodriguez (Puerto Rico)
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Alexandro Santiago (Mexico)
3Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Jason Moloney (Australia)
4Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Vincent Astrolabio (Philippines)
5Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Gary Antonio Russell (USA)
6Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Takuma Inoue (Japan)
7Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Nonito Donaire (Philippines)
8Â Â Â Â Â Â Ryosuke Nishida (Japan)
9Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Keita Kurihara (Japan)
10Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Paul Butler (England)
122lbs
â™› Vacant
1Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Naoya Inoue (Japan)
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Marlon Tapales (Philippines)
3Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Stephen Fulton (USA)
4Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Luis Nery (Mexico)
5Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Murodjon Akhmadaliev (Uzbekistan)
6Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Sam Goodman (Australia)
7Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Azat Hovhannisyan (Armenia)
8Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Kevin Gonzalez (Mexico)
9           Ra’eese Aleem (USA)
10Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Liam Davies (England)
126lbs
â™› Vacant
1Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Luis Alberto Lopez (Mexico)
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Leigh Wood (England)
3Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Brandon Figueroa (USA)
4Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Rey Vargas (Mexico)
5Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Mauricio Lara (Mexico)
6Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Robeisy Ramirez (Cuba)
7Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Mark Magsayo (Philippines)
8Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Josh Warrington (England)
9Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Reiya Abe (Japan)
10Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Otabek Kholmatov (Uzbekistan)
130lbs
â™› Vacant
1Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Emanuel Navarrete (Mexico)
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Joe Cordina (Wales)
3Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Hector Garcia (Dominican Republic)
4           O’Shaquie Foster (USA)
5Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Oscar Valdez (Mexico)
6Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov (Tajikistan)
7Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Otar Eranosyan (Georgia)
8Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Lamont Roach (USA)
9Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Eduardo Ramirez (Mexico)
10Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Kenichi Ogawa (Japan)
135lbs
â™› Devin Haney (USA)
1Â Â Â Â Â Â Gervonta Davis (USA)
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Vasily Lomachenko (Ukraine)
3Â Â Â Â Â Â Isaac Cruz (Mexico)
4Â Â Â Â Â Â William Zepeda Segura (Mexico)
5Â Â Â Â Â Â Frank Martin (USA)
6Â Â Â Â Â Â Shakur Stevenson (USA)
7Â Â Â Â Â Â Maxi Hughes (England)
8Â Â Â Â Â Â George Kambosos Jr (Australia)
9Â Â Â Â Â Â Keyshawn Davis (USA)
10Â Â Â Â Â Raymond Muratalla (USA)
140lbs
â™› Teofimo Lopez (USA)
1Â Â Â Â Â Â Regis Prograis (USA)
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Jose Ramirez (USA)
3Â Â Â Â Â Â Jose Zepeda (USA)
4Â Â Â Â Â Â Jack Catterall (England)
5Â Â Â Â Â Â Subriel Matias (Puerto Rico)
6Â Â Â Â Â Â Arnold Barboza Jr. (USA)
7Â Â Â Â Â Â Gary Antuanne Russell (USA)
8Â Â Â Â Â Â Zhankosh Turarov (Kazakhstan)
9Â Â Â Â Â Â Elvis Rodriguez (Dominican Republic)
10Â Â Â Â Â Josh Taylor (Scotland)
147lbs
â™› Terence Crawford (USA)
1Â Â Â Â Â Â Errol Spence (USA)
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Jaron Ennis (USA)
3Â Â Â Â Â Â David Avanesyan (Russia)
4Â Â Â Â Â Â Cody Crowley (Canada)
5Â Â Â Â Â Â Alexis Rocha (USA)
6Â Â Â Â Â Â Rashidi Ellis (USA)
7Â Â Â Â Â Â Souleymane Cissokho (Senegal)
8Â Â Â Â Â Â Roiman Villa (Venezuela)
9Â Â Â Â Â Â Egidijus Kavaliauskas (Lithuania)
10Â Â Â Â Â Shakhram Giyasov (Uzbekistan)
154lbs
â™› Jermell Charlo (USA)
1Â Â Â Â Â Â Tim Tszyu (Australia)
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Brian Mendoza (USA)
3Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Jesus Alejandro Ramos (USA)
4Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Sebastian Fundora (USA)
5Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Erickson Lubin (USA)
6Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Michel Soro (Ivory Coast)
7Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Magomed Kurbanov (Russia)
8Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Tony Harrison (USA)
9Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Israil Madrimov (Uzbekistan)
10Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Bakhram Murtazaliev (Russia)
160lbs
â™› Vacant
1Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Gennady Golovkin (Kazakhstan)
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Carlos Adames (Dominican Republic)
3Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Zhanibek Alimkhanuly (Kazakhstan)
4Â Â Â Â Â Â Chris Eubank Jr. (England)
5Â Â Â Â Â Â Liam Smith (England)
6Â Â Â Â Â Â Sergiy Derevyanchenko (Ukraine)*
7Â Â Â Â Â Â Vincenzo Gualtieri (Germany)
8Â Â Â Â Â Â Felix Cash (England)
9Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Michael Zerafa (Australia)
10Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Esquiva Falcao (Brazil)
168lbs
â™› Canelo Alvarez (Mexico)
1Â Â Â Â Â Â David Benavidez (USA)
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Caleb Plant (USA)
3Â Â Â Â Â Â Christian Mbilli (France)
4Â Â Â Â Â Â David Morrell (Cuba)
5Â Â Â Â Â Â John Ryder (England)
6Â Â Â Â Â Â Pavel Silyagin (Russia)
7Â Â Â Â Â Â Vladimir Shishkin (Russia)
8Â Â Â Â Â Â Carlos Gongora (Ecuador)
9Â Â Â Â Â Â Jaime Munguia (Mexico)
10Â Â Â Â Â Demetrius Andrade (USA)
175lbs
â™› Artur Beterbiev (Canada)
1Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Dmitry Bivol (Russia)
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Joshua Buatsi (England)
3Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Callum Smith (England)
4Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Joe Smith Jr. (USA)
5Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Gilberto Ramirez (Mexico)
6Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Anthony Yarde (England)
7Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Dan Azeez (England)
8Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Ali Izmailov (Russia)
9Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Michael Eifert (Germany)
10Â Â Â Â Igor Mikhalkin (Germany)
200lbs
â™› Jai Opetaia (Australia)
1Â Â Â Â Â Â Mairis Breidis (Latvia)
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Chris Billam-Smith (England)
3Â Â Â Â Â Â Richard Riakporhe (England)
4Â Â Â Â Â Â Aleksei Papin (Russia)
5Â Â Â Â Â Â Badou Jack (Sweden)
6Â Â Â Â Â Â Arsen Goulamirian (France)
7Â Â Â Â Â Â Lawrence Okolie (England)
8Â Â Â Â Â Â Yuniel Dorticos (Cuba)
9Â Â Â Â Â Â Mateusz Masternak (Poland)
10Â Â Â Â Â Ilunga Makabu (So. Africa)
Unlimited
â™› Oleksandr Usyk (Ukraine)
1Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Tyson Fury (England)
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Zhilei Zhang (China)
3Â Â Â Â Â Â Deontay Wilder (USA)
4Â Â Â Â Â Â Anthony Joshua (England)
5Â Â Â Â Â Â Filip Hrgovic (Croatia)
6Â Â Â Â Â Â Andy Ruiz (USA)
7Â Â Â Â Â Â Joe Joyce (England)
8Â Â Â Â Â Â Arslanbek Makhmudov (Russia)
9Â Â Â Â Â Â Frank Sanchez (Cuba)
10Â Â Â Â Â Luis Ortiz (USA)
Pound-for-Pound
01 – Terence Crawford
02 – Naoya Inoue
03 – Oleksandr Usyk
04 – Juan Francisco Estrada
05 – Dmitry Bivol
06 – Tyson Fury
07 – Canelo Alvarez
08 – Artur Beterbiev
09 – Teofimo Lopez
10 – Shakur Stevenson
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Kenshiro Teraji TKOs Hekkie Budler on a Monday Night in Tokyo

Kenshiro Teraji, the best Japanese boxer not named Naoya Inoue, successfully defended his WBC and WBA 108-pound titles in the Koto City ward of Tokyo tonight (before dawn in parts of the U.S.) with a ninth-round stoppage of South African veteran Hekkie Budler. Although Budler had his moments, Teraji (22-1, 14 KOs) was comfortably ahead on the cards when referee Jose Guadalupe Garcia pulled the plug at the 2:19 mark of round nine with Budler backed against the ropes and Teraji connecting with a barrage of unanswered punches.
Teraji, a second-generation prizefighter in his second reign as a 108-pound champion, is now 13-1 in world title fights. He avenged his lone defeat and did it in grand style with a third round KO of countryman Masamichi Yabuki. The 35-year-old Budler, a former two-division title-holder who has answered the bell for 341 rounds, declined to 35-5.
Nakatani-Cortes
Junto Nakatani, a two-division title-holder making the first defense of his WBO world super flyweight title, won a lopsided 12-round decision over Mexico City’s Argi Cortes. Nakatani, tall for the weight class, scored three knockdowns with body punches, two coming in round five, en route to winning by scores of 118-107 and 119-106 twice.
A massive favorite in the 18/1 range, Nakatani (26-0, 19 KOs) was coming off a dominant showing against Andrew Moloney in Las Vegas, a bout that ended with Nakatani scoring a brutal, one-punch knockout. Cortes (25-4-2) had lost only one of his previous 25 fights, that a narrow but unanimous decision rendered against him by pound-for-pound-list occupant Juan Francisco Estrada. This was his first appearance outside Mexico.
Nakatani appears to be on a collision course with 30-2-1 countryman Kazuto Ioka who holds the WBA version of this title.
Also
In a super flyweight contest slated for eight rounds, Anthony Olascuaga (6-1, 4 KOs) scored a seventh-round stoppage of Giemel Magrano who was on his feet and likely ahead on the cards when the referee halted the contest with three seconds remaining in round seven.
Olascuaga, LA-born and raised, had suffered his lone defeat in this very ring in April, succumbing in nine rounds to Kenshiro Teraji. In that contest, Olascuaga acquitted himself well in defeat considering his inexperience and the fact that he took the bout on 10 days’ notice. Magrano, a 28-year-old Filipino, declines to 28-4.
Nasukara
In a bout that directly preceded the main event, Tenshin Nasukawa pitched a shutout over Mexican import Luis Guzman, winning 80-70 on all three cards after scoring a knockdown in the opening round.
Outside Japan, Nasukawa, now 2-0 as a professional boxer, is best known for his quasi-exhibition with Floyd Mayweather in December of 2019, a match in which he suffered the indignity of being stopped in the opening round. Inside Japan, he is recognized as one of the greatest kickboxers of all time. Guzman, recognized as the bantamweight champion of Mexico, lost for the third time in 13 pro bouts.
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