Connect with us

Featured Articles

Contender or Prospect? Gilberto Ramirez Wins a Unanimous Decision Over Maxim Vlasov

Published

on

Gilberto Ramirez stepped up in class tonight against Russian Maxim Vlasov and scored a unanimous decision victory. The score cards came in 96-94 with the other two judges scoring it 97-93. Compubox found Ramirez with a 179-115 edge for the rangy Mexican.

Praised as an up and coming Super Middleweight contender (#2 WBC/WBO, #3 WBA/IBF), southpaw Gilberto Ramirez entered the ring with a sparkling 30-0 record with 24 KOs. The charismatic Mexican fighter had won his previous four fights by KO over solid opposition, including Fulgencio Zuniga last November and Junior Talipeau in July. Still, the consensus top 10 ranked contender, Maxim Vlasov (30-1, 15 KOs), promised to be his strongest opponent yet.

Vlasov was riding high on an 11 fight winning streak since suffering his only loss to Isaac Chilemba by unanimous decision in February of 2011. Three of his last four wins were by KO, with his most recent victory ending by 7th round stoppage against Ruben Eduardo Acosta.

Fighting at a catch weight of 171, both fighters were stepping up in class and were hoping to position themselves for a near future title shot.

Onto the rounds:

Round One: Cagey first round early on. More movement than punches, although they are throwing some. Decent combo by Vlasov inside the final minute. Good right jab by Ramirez. The very definition of a feeling out round. Close round, but Ramirez out landed Vlasov 12-4.

Round Two: Vlasov starts out quickly. Lands a solid left hook. Ramirez picks up the pace in response. Starting to look for Vlasov’s body some. Nice jab by Ramirez at the mid-point. Ramirez lands a nice body blow. Excellent straight right by Vlasov snaps Ramirez’s head back. Ramirez begins to work his jab. Vlasov lands another straight right to end the round. Close again, but this time Vlasov appears to have the edge.

Round Three: Fast start by both fighters in the third. Letting their hands go from the start. Vlasov bullies Ramirez on the ropes. Nothing hard landed, but Vlasov is trying to force his will on the Mexican fighter. Ramirez may have stung Vlasov to the body. Ramirez very committed to Vlasov’s torso. Ramirez seems to have stolen the starch from Vlasov with the body shots. Clear round for Ramirez. Ramirez lands 25 power shots to 7.

Round Four: Vlasov approaching Ramirez with more caution now. The body blows are making a difference. Ramirez starting to do work. Vlasov does land a nice uppercut and a decent body blow. Ramirez’s punches seem to have more effect though. Good uppercut by Ramirez. Letting his hands go right after. Solid right at the end of the round by Vlasov. Still looks like a Ramirez round, but closer than round three.

Round Five: Strong blow on the belt line by Ramirez. Referee, Curtis Thrasher (great name), calls it low. Vlasov is tough, but can’t move Ramirez with his punches. Ramirez just keeps landing to the body at will. A straight right from Vlasov draws blood from the nose of Ramirez. Ramirez goes to his nose multiple times after. Vlasov showing signs of fatigue as he goes to his corner. Vlasov outlands Ramirez 18-14. Perhaps his best round.

Round Six: Vlasov lands a counter right and his straight right leads find a home regularly. Ramirez’s left is just working Vlasov’s right side. Pace slows in this round. Some boos from the crowd. Vlasov lands a sharp two punch combo at the end of the round. The fight is starting to tighten. It’s not impossible that the judges could have this fight even after 6. Harold Lederman has it 5-1 Ramirez.

Round Seven: Solid straight right by Ramirez midway through the round. Nothing big landing either way, but Ramirez is more active by far. Excellent left cross by Ramirez. A good round for the Mexican contender.

Round Eight: Ramirez continues to dig to the body. Vlasov goes head hunting and a good left hook lands. Every clean body shot by Ramirez seems to pause Vlasov. Jim Lampley reports that Vlasov’s corner is saying the Colorado altitude is affecting their fighter. Vlasov lands two more straight rights, but just isn’t active enough overall.

Round Nine: Nice up jab by Vlasov to start the 9th. Ramirez picks up the pace in response–once again, to the body. Good left by Ramirez. Vlasov has never been hurt upstairs despite taking a number of shots. Ramirez is starting to swell considerably under his left eye. The product of the Russian’s straight right leads. Ramirez backs up and then comes forward with more body work. Crowd boos some more. Both fighters looking a little gassed, but you would rather be Ramirez right now than Vlasov.

Round Ten: Hard right jab by Ramirez at the outset. Right cross by Vlasov and more body work from Ramirez. While Ramirez has out thrown and out landed Vlasov throughout, this is the kind of fight where the scorecards could be…interesting. The straight rights by Vlasov could be easier to see for the judges than the body work by Ramirez. Vlasov lands four solid punches in a row. Both fighters go to their corners gasping. Mile high air, baby. Lederman scores it 97-93. Which seems pretty fair.

Ramirez’s handlers may have been hoping for a big coming out party for their fighter tonight. If so, they did not get it. Ramirez outworked Vlasov, but showed a number of defensive deficiencies. He was particularly susceptible to straight right hands. While Ramirez’s commitment to working the body was admirable, bordering on slavish, the more limited in talent Russian gave Ramirez issues, as his considerably swollen left eye would attest.

Mid fight there was a mini-feature showcasing Ramirez in a pre-fight interview with Lampley and Andre Ward. Ramirez implied an interest in fighting Ward. If his team has any sense, they won’t be in a hurry to make that fight. Their man is clearly not ready for that.

— Photo Credit : Chris Farina – Top Rank

Follow David Phillips on the Twitter:

WATCH RELATED VIDEOS ON BOXINGCHANNEL.TV

Featured Articles

Canelo-Charlo Gets All the Ink, but Don’t Overlook the Compelling Match-up of Gassiev-Wallin in Turkey

Published

on

Canelo-Charlo-Gets-All-the-Ink-but-Don't-Overlook-This-Compelling-Match-in-Turkey

Canelo-Charlo Gets All the Ink, but Don’t Overlook the Compelling Match-up of Gassiev-Wallin in Turkey

The eyes of the boxing world will be on Las Vegas this Saturday where Mexican superstar Saul “Canelo” Alvarez risks his four super middleweight title belts against unified 154-pound champion Jermell Charlo. Earlier that day at a luxury resort hotel in the city of Antalya on the Mediterranean coast of Turkey, there’s a heavyweight match sitting under the radar that may prove to be the better fight. It’s an intriguing match-up between former world cruiserweight title-holder Murat Gassiev and Swedish southpaw Otto Wallin, a bout with significant ramifications for boxing’s glamour division.

Gassiev (30-1, 23 KOs) and Wallin (25-1, 14 KOs) have only one loss, but those setbacks came against the top dogs in the division. Gassiev was out-boxed by Oleksandr Usyk back in the days when both were cruiserweights. Wallin gave Tyson Fury a world of trouble before losing a unanimous decision.

Since those fights, both have been treading water.

Gassiev

Gassiev was inactive for 27 months after his match with Usyk while dealing with legal issues and an injury to his left shoulder. He is 4-0 (4 KOs) since returning to the ring while answering the bell for only eight rounds. The only recognizable name among those four victims is German gatekeeper Michael Wallisch. After stopping Wallisch, Gassiev was out of action for another 13 months while reportedly dealing with an arm injury.

A first-round knockout of Carlouse Welch, an obscure 40-something boxer from the U.S. state of Georgia on Aug. 26, 2022, in Belgrade, Serbia, was promoted as a title fight. The sanctioning body was the Eurasian Boxing Parliament (insert your own punchline here). Gassiev followed that up with a second-round knockout of former NFL linebacker Mike Balogun who came in undefeated and was seemingly a legitimate threat to him.

Although he has yet to fight a ranked opponent since leaving the cruiserweight division, Gassiev — a former stablemate of Gennady Golovkin who has been living in Big Bear, California, training under Abel Sanchez – is one of the most respected fighters in the division because he has one-punch knockout power as Balogun and others can well attest. The rub against the Russian-Armenian bruiser is that he is somewhat robotic.

Wallin

Otto Wallin, a 32-year-old southpaw from Sweden who trains in New York under former world lightweight champion Joey Gamache, fought Tyson Fury on Sept. 14, 2019 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. There was a general feeling that the Swede would be a stroll in the park for Fury, but to the contrary, he gave the Gypsy King a hard tussle while losing a unanimous decision.

Wallin is 5-0 since that night beginning with victories over Travis Kauffman (KO 5) and Dominic Breazeale (UD 12), but his last three opponents were softer than soft and all three lasted the distance. In order, Wallin won an 8-round decision over Kamil Sokolowski, who was 11-24-2 heading in, won a 10-round decision over ancient Rydell Booker, and won an 8-round decision over Helaman Olguin. His bout with Utah trial horse Olguin was at a banquet hall in Windham, New Hampshire.

It isn’t that Wallin has been avoiding the top names in the division; it’s the other way around. His promoter Dmitriy Salita reportedly came close to getting Wallin a match with Anthony Joshua whose team had second thoughts about sending Joshua in against another southpaw after back-to-back setbacks to Oleksandr Usyk.

Gassiev vs Wallin is a true crossroads fight. Both are in dire need of a win over a credible opponent. At last look, Gassiev, who figures to have the crowd in his corner, was a 3/1 favorite.

To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE

 

 

Continue Reading

Featured Articles

Skavynskyi and Bustillos Win on a MarvNation Card in Long Beach

Published

on

Skavynskyi-and-Bustillos-Win-on-a-MarvNation-Card-in-Long-Beach

Skavynskyi and Bustillos Win on a MarvNation Card in Long Beach

LONG BEACH, Ca.-A cool autumn night saw welterweights and minimumweights share main events for a MarvNation fight card on Saturday.

Ukraine’s Eduard Skavynskyi (15-0, 7 KOs) experienced a tangled mess against the awkward Alejandro Frias (14-10-2) but won by decision after eight rounds in a welterweight contest at the indoor furnace called the Thunder Studios.

It was hot in there for the more than 600 people inside.

Skavynskyi probably never fought someone like Mexico’s Frias whose style was the opposite of the Ukrainian’s fundamentally sound one-two style. But round after round the rough edges became more familiar.

Neither fighter was ever damaged but all three judges saw Skavynskyi the winner by unanimous decision 79-73 on all three cards. The Ukrainian fighter trains in Ventura.

Bustillo Wins Rematch

Applerose2

In the female main event Las Vegas’ Yadira Bustillos (8-1) stepped into a rematch with Karen Lindenmuth (5-2) and immediately proved the lessons learned from their first encounter.

Bustillos connected solidly with an overhand right and staggered Lindenmuth but never came close to putting the pressure fighter down. Still, Bustillos kept turning the hard rushing Lindenmuth and snapping her head with overhand rights and check left hooks.

Lindenmuth usually overwhelms most opponents with a smothering attack that causes panic. But not against Bustillos who seemed quite comfortable all eight rounds in slipping blows and countering back.

After eight rounds all three judges scored the contest for Bustillos 78-74 and 80-72 twice. Body shots were especially effective for the Las Vegas fighter in the fifth round. Bustillos competes in the same division as IBF/WBO title-holder Yokasta Valle.

Other Bouts

In a middleweight clash, undefeated Victorville’s Andrew Buchanan (3-0-1) used effective combination punching to defeat Mexico’s Fredy Vargas (2-1-1) after six rounds. Two judges scored it 59-55 and a third 60-54 for Buchanan. No knockdowns were scored.

A super lightweight match saw Sergio Aldana win his pro debut by decision after four rounds versus Gerardo Fuentes (2-9-1).

Photos credit: Al Applerose

To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE

 

Continue Reading

Featured Articles

Tedious Fights and a Controversial Draw Smudge the Matchroom Boxing Card in Orlando

Published

on

Tedious-Fights-and-a-Controversial-Draw-Smudge-the-Matchroom-Boxing-Card-in-Orlando

Matchroom Boxing was at the sprawling Royale Caribe Resort Hotel in Orlando, Florida tonight with a card that aired on DAZN. The main event was a ho-hum affair between super lightweights Richardson Hitchins and Jose Zepeda.

SoCal’s Zepeda has been in some wars in the past, notably his savage tussle with Ivan Baranchyk, but tonight he brought little to the table and was outclassed by the lanky Hitchins who won all 12 rounds on two of the cards and 11 rounds on the other.  There were no knockdowns, but Zepeda suffered a cut on his forehead in round seven that was deemed to be the product of an accidental head butt and another clash in round ten forced a respite in the action although Hitchins suffered no apparent damage.

It was the sort of fight where each round was pretty much a carbon of the round preceding it. Brooklyn’s Hitchins, who improved to 17-0 (7), was content to pepper Zepeda with his jab, and the 34-year-old SoCal southpaw, who brought a 37-3 record, was never able to penetrate his defense and land anything meaningful.

Hitchins signed with Floyd Mayweather Jr’s promotional outfit coming out of the amateur ranks and his style is reminiscent in ways of his former mentor. Like Mayweather, he loses very few rounds. In his precious engagement, he pitched a shutout over previously undefeated John Bauza.

Co-Feature

In the co-feature, Conor Benn returned to the ring after an absence of 17 months and won a unanimous decision over Mexico’s Rodolfo Orozco. It wasn’t a bad showing by Benn who showed decent boxing skills, but more was expected of him after his name had been bandied about so often in the media. Two of the judges had it 99-91 and the other 96-94.

Benn (22-0, 14 KOs) was a late addition to the card although one suspects that promoter Eddie Hearn purposely kept him under wraps until the week of the fight so as not to deflect the spotlight from the other matches on his show. Benn lost a lucrative date with Chris Eubank Jr when he was suspended by the BBBofC when evidence of a banned substance was found in his system and it’s understood that Hearn has designs on re-igniting the match-up with an eye on a date in December. For tonight’s fight, Benn carried a career-high 153 ½ pounds. Mexico’s Orozco, who was making his first appearance in a U.S. ring, declined to 32-4-3.

Other Bouts of Note

The welterweight title fight between WBA/WBC title-holder Jessica McCaskill (15-3-1) and WBO title-holder Sandy Ryan (6-1-1) ended in a draw and the ladies’ retain their respective titles. Ryan worked the body effectively and the general feeling was that she got a raw deal, a sentiment shared by the crowd which booed the decision. There was a switch of favorites in the betting with the late money seemingly all on the Englishwoman who at age 30 was the younger boxer by nine years.

The judges had it 96-94 Ryan, 96-95, and a vilified 97-93 for Chicago’s McCaskill.

In the opener of the main DAZN stream, Houston middleweight Austin “Ammo” Williams, 27, improved to 15-0 (10) with a 10-round unanimous decision over 39-year-old Toronto veteran Steve Rolls (22-3). All three judges had it 97-93. Rolls has been stopped only once, that by Gennady Golovkin.

Photo credit: Ed Mulholland / Matchroom Boxing

To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE

Continue Reading
Advertisement
Christian-Mbilli-IDemolishes-Demond-Nicholson-to-Inch-Closer-to-a-Title-Shot
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

Christian Mbilli Demolishes Demond Nicholson to Inch Closer to a Title Shot

Results-from-Manchester-where-Chris-Eubank-Jr-Avenged-a-KO-Loss-in-a-Dominant-Fashion
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

Results from Manchester where Chris Eubank Jr Avenged a KO Loss in a Dominant Fashion

Tedious-Fights-and-a-Controversial-Draw-Smudge-the-Matchroom-Boxing-Card-in-Orlando
Featured Articles3 days ago

Tedious Fights and a Controversial Draw Smudge the Matchroom Boxing Card in Orlando

Avila-Perspective-Chap-250-Liam-Smith-vs-Chris-Eubank-Jr-in-Manchester
Featured Articles4 weeks ago

Avila Perspective, Chap. 250: Liam Smith vs Chris Eubank Jr II in Manchester

Derby's-Sandy-Ryan-Poised-to-Unify-the-Welterweight-Title-in-Her-US-Debut
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Derby’s Sandy Ryan Poised to Unify the Welterweight Title in Her U.S. Debut

Skavynskyi-and-Bustillos-Win-on-a-MarvNation-Card-in-Long-Beach
Featured Articles2 days ago

Skavynskyi and Bustillos Win on a MarvNation Card in Long Beach

A-Conversation-With-Award-Winning-Boxing-Writer-Lance-Pugmire
Featured Articles4 weeks ago

A Conversation With Award-Winning Boxing Writer Lance Pugmire

William-Zepeda-Wins-by-KO-Yokasta-Valle-Wins-Too-at-Commerce-Casino
Featured Articles1 week ago

William Zepeda Wins by KO; Yokasta Valle Wins Too at Commerce Casino

Luis-Alberto-Lopez-Retains-His-IBF-Title-Upends-Joet-Gonzalez-in-Corpus-Christi
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Luis Alberto Lopez Retains his IBF Title, Upends Joet Gonzalez in Corpus Christi

Ruben-Villa-The-Pride-of-Salinas-Returns-to-the-Ring-on-Friday
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Ruben Villa, the Pride of Salinas, Returns to the Ring on Friday

From-Palookaville-to-the-Pinnacle-A-Closer-Look-at-Elite-Trainer-Bomac
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

From Palookaville to the Pinnacle: A Closer Look at Elite Trainer ‘Bomac’

Fierro-Nips-Zamarripa-in-Tujuana-Erika-Cruz-and-Sjye-Nicholson-Win-Too
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Fierro Nips Zamarripa in Tijuana; Erika Cruz and Skye Nicholson Win Too

Ricky-Burns-Seeks-C;losure-on-a-Card-with-A-Father-Son-Duo
Featured Articles4 weeks ago

Ricky Burns ‘Seeks Closure’ on a Card with a Father/Son Duo

An-Ods-to-the-Polo-Grouns-on-the-Belated-100th-Anniversary-of-Dempsey-Firpo
Featured Articles4 days ago

An Ode to the Polo Grounds on the (Belated) 100th Anniversary of Dempsey-Firpo

Zhilei-Zhang-KOs-Joe-Joyce-Calls-Out-Tyson-Fury
Featured Articles3 days ago

Zhilei Zhang KOs Joe Joyce; Calls Out Tyson Fury

Avila-Perspective-Chap-251-Golden-Boy-Returns-to-Roots
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Avila Perspective, Chap, 251: Golden Boy Returns to Roots

International-Brotherhood-of-Prizefighters-Rankings:-Chris-Eubank-Jr
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

International Brotherhood of Prizefighters Rankings: Week of September 3, 2023

Avila-Perspective-Chap-251-Raul-Curiel-vs-Courtney-Pennington-Ignites-September
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

Avila Perspective, Chap. 251: Raul Curiel vs Courtney Pennington Ignites September

Raul-Curiel-Wins-by-Stoppage-in-Kast-Seconds-at-Fantasy-Springs
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

Raul Curiel Wins by Stoppage in Last Seconds at Fantasy Springs

Hot-Rod-Kalajdzic-TKOs-Mickey-Ellison-on-a-Garry-Jonas-Promotion-in-Florida
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

‘Hot Rod’ Kalajdzic TKOs Mickey Ellison on a Garry Jonas Promotion in Florida

Canelo-Charlo-Gets-All-the-Ink-but-Don't-Overlook-This-Compelling-Match-in-Turkey
Featured Articles2 hours ago

Canelo-Charlo Gets All the Ink, but Don’t Overlook the Compelling Match-up of Gassiev-Wallin in Turkey

Skavynskyi-and-Bustillos-Win-on-a-MarvNation-Card-in-Long-Beach
Featured Articles2 days ago

Skavynskyi and Bustillos Win on a MarvNation Card in Long Beach

Tedious-Fights-and-a-Controversial-Draw-Smudge-the-Matchroom-Boxing-Card-in-Orlando
Featured Articles3 days ago

Tedious Fights and a Controversial Draw Smudge the Matchroom Boxing Card in Orlando

Zhilei-Zhang-KOs-Joe-Joyce-Calls-Out-Tyson-Fury
Featured Articles3 days ago

Zhilei Zhang KOs Joe Joyce; Calls Out Tyson Fury

An-Ods-to-the-Polo-Grouns-on-the-Belated-100th-Anniversary-of-Dempsey-Firpo
Featured Articles4 days ago

An Ode to the Polo Grounds on the (Belated) 100th Anniversary of Dempsey-Firpo

Avila-Perspective-Chap-253-Oscar-De-La-Hoya-Reloading-in-LA-and-More
Featured Articles5 days ago

Avila Perspective, Chap. 253: Oscar De La Hoya Reloading in LA and More

Conor-Benn-A-Lightning-Rod-for-Controversy-Returns-to-the-Ring-on-Saturday
Featured Articles6 days ago

Conor Benn, a Lightning Rod for Controversy, Returns to the Ring on Saturday

International-Brotherhood-of-Prizefighters-Rankings-Week-Ending-September-17,-2023.jpg
Featured Articles7 days ago

International Brotherhood of Prizefighters Rankings: Week of September 17, 2023

Kenshiro-Teraji-TKOs-Hekkie-Budler-on-a-Monday-Night-in-Tokyo
Featured Articles1 week ago

Kenshiro Teraji TKOs Hekkie Budler on a Monday Night in Tokyo

William-Zepeda-Wins-by-KO-Yokasta-Valle-Wins-Too-at-Commerce-Casino
Featured Articles1 week ago

William Zepeda Wins by KO; Yokasta Valle Wins Too at Commerce Casino

Fierro-Nips-Zamarripa-in-Tujuana-Erika-Cruz-and-Sjye-Nicholson-Win-Too
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Fierro Nips Zamarripa in Tijuana; Erika Cruz and Skye Nicholson Win Too

Luis-Alberto-Lopez-Retains-His-IBF-Title-Upends-Joet-Gonzalez-in-Corpus-Christi
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Luis Alberto Lopez Retains his IBF Title, Upends Joet Gonzalez in Corpus Christi

Avila-Perspective-Chap-251-Golden-Boy-Returns-to-Roots
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Avila Perspective, Chap, 251: Golden Boy Returns to Roots

Derby's-Sandy-Ryan-Poised-to-Unify-the-Welterweight-Title-in-Her-US-Debut
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Derby’s Sandy Ryan Poised to Unify the Welterweight Title in Her U.S. Debut

International-Brotherhood-of-Prizefighters-Rankings:-Week of September-23.jpg
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

International Brotherhood of Prizefighters Rankings: Week of September 10, 2023

Ruben-Villa-The-Pride-of-Salinas-Returns-to-the-Ring-on-Friday
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Ruben Villa, the Pride of Salinas, Returns to the Ring on Friday

Christian-Mbilli-IDemolishes-Demond-Nicholson-to-Inch-Closer-to-a-Title-Shot
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

Christian Mbilli Demolishes Demond Nicholson to Inch Closer to a Title Shot

Raul-Curiel-Wins-by-Stoppage-in-Kast-Seconds-at-Fantasy-Springs
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

Raul Curiel Wins by Stoppage in Last Seconds at Fantasy Springs

Hot-Rod-Kalajdzic-TKOs-Mickey-Ellison-on-a-Garry-Jonas-Promotion-in-Florida
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

‘Hot Rod’ Kalajdzic TKOs Mickey Ellison on a Garry Jonas Promotion in Florida

Avila-Perspective-Chap-251-Raul-Curiel-vs-Courtney-Pennington-Ignites-September
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

Avila Perspective, Chap. 251: Raul Curiel vs Courtney Pennington Ignites September

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

Trending

Advertisement