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Caruso, Character With A Capital “C,” Promises Nadjib Will Be Competitive
In a sport littered with them, he stands out as a capital C character, a study in behavior and life arc which deserves an extra measure of attention.
Vince Caruso is enjoying his time on the stage as we tick down to the main event tussle Saturday night, which pits his fighter, Frenchman of Algerian descent Nadjib Mohammedi, against a man who is supposed to bash him about like a pinata.
The New Jersey native, now a die-hard left-coaster, has a bit of the pro wrassler in him, you hear it when he’s at the mic at the final presser for the scrap, which runs at Mandalay Bay, and on HBO. There is a brashness, a theatrical stamp of surety in his voice, a comprehension of vocal tension and dynamics, which suggests he’s built for this moment. And indeed, Caruso did a stint in the pro wrestling world, acting as a manager after his run with Marco Antonio Barrera petered out, as the boxer left the arena, and he searched for other things to keep his attention.
Caruso actually manages Mohammedi (34-3) along with another guy not cut from the typical fight manager cloth, Jon Ali.
The Frenchman Ali does this on the side, as he’s a budding pop star in France and grew his fanbase with a stint on a reality show which draws viewers in hordes over there, Les Anges 7. Those guys, along with trainer Abel Sanchez and Sullivan Barrera and Joel Diaz, drove three hours from Cali to Vegas and came to Sin City Tuesday night. The vibe, Caruso told me, was upbeat. This isn’t a boxer put off by the odds, which indicate that the smarts thinks he has very little chance to derail the Kovalev pain train.
They enjoyed the county issuing a proclamation that Saturday will be Nadjib Mohammedi Day, which Caruso and I both found…interesting..and had us wondering if maybe fate wasn’t lining up to throw a curve ball and offer us the upset of the year at Mandalay…
“Mo is in the best shape he’s ever been in, there are no excuses, he’s healthy, Mo is ready to go! Win lose or draw, no excuses,” Caruso told me.
Caruso informed me how he got together with these cats, who he seems to have a true-blue bond with. He was handling Anatoliy Dudchenko, and got Dud a squareoff against Mo, on NBC cable, with Main Events, last June. Ali got to know Caruso during that fight week, and Caruso said he was actually more impressed with how Ali and Mo acted that week than his own guy. And the fight, same thing, Dud was just that, and Mo wanted it more, and got the W.
Caruso dumped Dudchenko immediately, disgusted with his attitude and then was pleasantly surprised when Ali reached out to him weeks later.
I saw what you did with Dud, he said, maybe you can help us with Mo? Caruso has music contacts, being that he got into showbusiness with Eazy-E, of NWA fame. He liked Vinces’ mettle when he went on his college radio show and offered him entry into that world when the kid said he wanted to learn some ropes. Caruso traveled to LA with $80 and a bag, and climbed his way upward, getting a toehold into the music and then boxing worlds. “Nadjib and me have been friends since we were kids, he wanted to be Muhammad Ali, I wanted to be Sam Cooke,” Ali told Caruso. They hooked on together and targeted Kovalev, and the top slot in the IBF rankings. Caruso would sometimes thunder and kvetch about the lack of speed in the upward ascent, get pissed off because that IBF top slot wasn’t resulting in a faceoff as quick as he’d like. Then, he had to jostle and harangue to get the sort of payday he deemed acceptable. Feathers were ruffled, as he sometimes brought that wrassler manager sort of intensity, which by the way is not a put on, into negotiations. Kathy Duva and Caruso have gone back and forth a few times, not always using sweetest voices…
“Ali is a great singer, Nadjib is a hungry fighter, and I’ve always wanted to be manager of the year in boxing,” said Caruso, who helped advise Marco Antonio Barrera, and was knee deep when he shocked the world against Naseem Hamed.”So Ali asked me, and you ain’t gotta ask me twice,” Caruso recalls. “Dudchenko didn’t have the mental strength to be champion but Nadjib does. Now, he was fighting in France, and couldn’t sell out a room with a capacity of 150. So so far, I think we have done a good job. Now last year, Nadjib would not have been ready for this, but I don’t think any fighter has progressed the way he has! See, I didn’t want him to become Karo Murat.”
Anyway, we came to town, these guys are smiling, they are in awe of nobody and I love the fact that nobody gives this guy a chance. Nadjib, he’s like guys like Nigel Benn, Davey Hilton, they show up and fight, no BS. They’d do it in a parking lot.”
I have the utmost respect for these teams, no trash talking…And people should know, those who say this is “just” a mandatory, Nadjib can fight! Now, he might not win, but I bet you this…win, lose or draw Nadjib will be on TV again, and not as an opponent! Arturo Gatti made a career out of losing, Gabe Rosado hasn’t won since George HW Bush was in office. The kid is not a punching bag, it will be competitive, I’m not worried at all! We are not taking the sacrificial lamb route, like this is a nice Vegas vacation for us. Nadjib carries himself like a champion! He’s got a quality like Gennady Golovkin, and him and Gennady have spent time together, hung out, this has helped him, to see how Triple G carries himself. Nadjib thinks, I can do that. Him and “Honest Abe” Abel Sanchez, it’s been a blessing, they have shown him how to be a professional.”
Now, people point to Nadjib’s losses…Caruso asked him about those. The Cleverly fight, he took it five days before the bout, Tony Bellew was supposed to have it. And the loss to Dmitriy Sukhotsky, there was a flash knockdown, he got up, was defending himself, and the Russian ref in the fight in Russia gave him a quick hook, he explained to Caruso.
Nadjib’s will to climb came about from a humble start. He grew up in a French ghetto, and could have made bucks hooking on with OC there. He spurned it, though his dad jetted when he was an infant, and his mom and three siblings had it hard. Nadjib learned to cook, worked in the garment industry there, and didn’t take the easy money, possible if he’d traded his principles. “Talk about willpower!” Caruso marveled. “I think he is the second coming of Fabrice Tiozzo. My guy, he’s not scared. So many of the guys who fought Kovalev were beat before they started because they were scared. Nadjib is not!”
Photo Credit : David Spagnolo/Main Events
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Skylar Lacy Blocked for Lamar Jackson before Making his Mark in Boxing
Skylar Lacy, a six-foot-seven heavyweight, returns to the ring on Sunday, Feb. 2, opposing Brandon Moore on a card in Flint, Michigan, airing worldwide on DAZN.
As this is being written, the bookmakers hadn’t yet posted a line on the bout, but one couldn’t be accused of false coloring by calling the 10-round contest a 50/50 fight. And if his frustrating history is any guide, Lacy will have another draw appended to his record or come out on the wrong side of a split decision.
This should not be construed as a tip to wager on Moore. “Close fights just don’t seem to go my way,” says the boxer who played alongside future multi-year NFL MVP Lamar Jackson at the University of Louisville.
A 2021 National Golden Gloves champion, Skylar Lacy came up short in his final amateur bout, losing a split decision to future U.S. Olympian Joshua Edwards. His last Team Combat League assignment resulted in another loss by split decision and he was held to a draw in both instances when stepping up in class as a pro. “In my mind, I’m still undefeated,” says Lacy (8-0-2, 6 KOs). “No one has ever kicked my ass.”
Lacy was the B-side in both of those draws, the first coming in a 6-rounder against Top Rank fighter Antonio Mireles on a Top Rank show in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, and the second in an 8-rounder against George Arias, a Lou DiBella fighter on a DiBella-promoted card in Philadelphia.
Lacy had the Mireles fight in hand when he faded in the homestretch. The altitude was a factor. Lake Tahoe, Nevada (officially Stateline) sits 6,225 feet above sea level. The fight with Arias took an opposite tack. Lacy came on strong after a slow start to stave off defeat.
Skylar will be the B-side once again in Michigan. The card’s promoter, former world title challenger Dmitriy Salita, inked Brandon Moore (16-1, 10 KOs) in January. “A capable American heavyweight with charisma, athleticism and skills is rare in today’s day and age. Brandon has got all these ingredients…”, said Salita in the press release announcing the signing. (Salita has an option on Skylar Lacy’s next pro fight in the event that Skylar should win, but the promoter has a larger investment in Moore who was previously signed to Top Rank, a multi-fight deal that evaporated after only one fight.)
Both Lacy and Moore excelled in other sports. The six-foot-six Moore was an outstanding basketball player in high school in Fort Lauderdale and at the NAIA level in college. Lacy was an all-state football lineman in Indiana before going on to the University of Louisville where he started as an offensive guard as a redshirt sophomore, blocking for freshman phenom Lamar Jackson. “Lamar was hard-working and humble,” says Lacy about the player who is now one of the world’s highest-paid professional athletes.
When Lacy committed to Louisville, the head coach was Charlie Strong who went on to become the head coach at the University of Texas. Lacy was never comfortable with Strong’s successor Bobby Petrino and transferred to San Jose State. Having earned his degree in only three years (a BA in communications) he was eligible immediately but never played a down because of injuries.
Returning to Indianapolis where he was raised by his truck dispatcher father, a single parent, Lacy gravitated to Pat McPherson’s IBG (Indy Boxing and Grappling) Gym on the city’s east side where he was the rare college graduate pounding the bags alongside at-risk kids from the city’s poorer neighborhoods.
Lacy built a 12-6 record across his two seasons in Team Combat League while representing the Las Vegas Hustle (2023) and the Boston Butchers (2024).
For the uninitiated, a Team Combat League (TCL) event typically consists of 24 fights, each consisting of one three-minute round. The concept finds no favor with traditionalists, but Lacy is a fan. It’s an incentive for professional boxers to keep in shape between bouts without disturbing their professional record and, notes Lacy, it’s useful in exposing a competitor to different styles.
“It paid the bills and kept me from just sitting around the house,” says Lacy whose 12-6 record was forged against 13 different opponents.
As a sparring partner, Lacy has shared the ring with some of the top heavyweights of his generation, e.g., Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte. He was one of Fury’s regular sparring partners during the Gypsy King’s trilogy with Deontay Wilder. He worked with Joshua at Derrick James’ gym in Dallas and at Ben Davison’s gym in England, helping Joshua prepare for his date in Saudi Arabia with Francis Ngannou and had previously sparred with Ngannou at the UFC Performance Center in Las Vegas. Skylar names traveling to new places as one of his hobbies and he got to scratch that itch when he joined Whyte’s camp in Portugal.
As to the hardest puncher he ever faced, he has no hesitation: “Ngannou,” he says. “I negotiated a nice price to spend a week in his camp and the first time he hit me I knew I should have asked for more.”
Lacy is confident that having shared the ring with some of the sport’s elite heavyweights will get him over the hump in what will be his first 10-rounder (Brandon Moore has never had to fight beyond eight rounds, having won his three 10-rounders inside the distance). Lacy vs. Moore is the co-feature to Claressa Shields’ homecoming fight with Danielle Perkins. Shields, basking in the favorable reviews accorded the big-screen biopic based on her first Olympic journey (“The Fire Inside”) will attempt to capture a title in yet another weight class at the expense of the 42-year-old Perkins, a former professional basketball player.
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Mizuki Hiruta Dominates in her U.S. Debut and Omar Trinidad Wins Too at Commerce
Japan’s Mizuki Hiruta smashed through Mexico’s Maribel Ramirez with ease in winning by technical decision and local hero Omar Trinidad continued his assault on the featherweight division on Friday.
Hiruta (7-0, 2 KOs), who prefers to be called “Mimi,” made her American debut with an impressive performance against Mexican veteran Maribel Ramirez (15-11-4) and retained the WBO super flyweight world title by unanimous decision at Commerce Casino in Commerce, Calif.
The pink-haired Japanese southpaw champion quickly proved to be quicker, stronger and even better than advertised. In the opening round Ramirez landed on the floor twice after throwing errant blows. On one instance, it could have been ruled a knockdown but it was not a convincing blow.
In the second round, Ramirez again attacked and again was met with a Hiruta check right hook and down went the Mexican. This time referee Ray Corona gave the eight-count and the fight resumed.
It was Hiruta’s third title defense but this time it was on American soil. She seemed nervous by the prospect of getting a favorable review from the more than 700 fans inside the casino tent.
For more than a year Hiruta has been training off and on with Manny Robles in the L.A. area. Now that she has a visa, she has spent considerable time this year learning the tricks of the trade. They proved explosively effective.
Though Mexico City’s Ramirez has considerable experience against world champions, she discovered that Hiruta was not easy to hit. Often, the Japanese champion would slip and counter with precision.
It was an impressive American debut, though the fight was stopped in the eighth round after a collision of heads. The scores were tallied and all three saw Hiruta the winner by scores of 80-71 twice and 79-72.
“I’m so happy. I could have done much more,” said Hiruta through interpreter Yuriko Miyata. “I wanted to do more things that Manny Robles taught me.”
Trinidad Wins Too
Omar Trinidad (18-0-1, 13 KOs) discovered that challenger Mike Plania (31-5, 18 KOs) has a very good chin and staying power. But over 10 rounds Trinidad proved to be too fast and too busy for the Filipino challenger.
Immediately it was evident that the East L.A. featherweight was too quick and too busy for Plania who preferred a counter-puncher attack that never worked.
“He was strong,” said Trinidad. “He took everything.”
After 10 redundant rounds all three judges scored for Trinidad 100-90 twice and 99-91. He retains the WBC Continental Americas title.
Other Bouts
Ali Akhmedov (23-1, 17 KOs) blasted out Malcolm Jones (17-5-1) in less than two rounds. A dozen punches by Akhmedov forced referee Thomas Taylor to stop the super middleweight fight.
Iyana “Roxy” Verduzco (3-0) bloodied Lindsey Ellis in the first round and continued the speedy assault in the next two rounds. Referee Ray Corona saw enough and stopped the fight in favor of Verduzco at 1:34 of the third round.
Gloria Munguilla (7-1) and Brook Sibrian (5-2) lit up the boxing ring with a nonstop clash for eight rounds in their light flyweight fight. Munguilla proved effective with a slip-and-counter attack. Sibrian adjusted and made the fight closer in the last four rounds but all three judges favored Munguilla.
More Winners
Joshua Anton, Tayden Beltran, Adan Palma, and Alexander Gueche all won their bouts.
Photos credit: Al Applerose
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Avila Perspective, Chap. 309: 360 Promotions Opens with Trinidad, Mizuki and More
Avila Perspective, Chap. 309: 360 Promotions Opens with Trinidad, Mizuki and More
Best wishes to the survivors of the Los Angeles wildfires that took place last week and are still ongoing in small locales.
Most of the heavy damage took place in the western part of L.A. near the ocean due to Santa Ana winds. Another very hot spot was in Altadena just north of the Rose Bowl. It was a horrific tragedy.
Hopefully the worst is over.
Pro boxing returns with 360 Boxing Promotions spotlighting East L.A.’s Omar Trinidad (17-0-1, 13 KOs) defending a regional featherweight title against Mike Plania (31-4, 18 KOs) on Friday, Jan. 17, at the Commerce Casino in Commerce, Calif.
“I’m the king of L.A. boxing and I’ll be ready to put on a show headlining again in the main event. This is my year, I’m ready to challenge and defeat any of the featherweight world champions,” said Trinidad.
UFC Fight Pass will stream the Hollywood Night fight card that includes a female world championship fight and other intriguing match-ups.
Tom Loeffler heads 360 Promotions and once again comes full force with a hot prospect in Trinidad. If you’re not familiar with Loeffler’s history of success, he introduced America to Oleksandr Usyk, Gennady “GGG” Golovkin and the brothers Wladimir and Vitaly Kltischko.
“We’ve got a wealth of international talent and local favorites to kick off our 2025 in grand style,” said Loeffler.
He knows talent.
Trinidad hails from the Boyle Heights area of East L.A. near the Los Angeles riverbed. Several fighters from the past came from that exact area including the first Golden Boy, Art Aragon.
Aragon was a huge gate attraction during the late 1940s until 1960. He was known as a lady’s man and dated several Hollywood starlets in his time. Though he never won a world title he did fight world champions Carmen Basilio, Jimmy Carter and Lauro Salas. He was more or less the king of the Olympic Auditorium and Los Angeles boxing during his career.
Other famous boxers from the Boyle Heights area were notorious gangster Mickey Cohen and former world champion Joey Olivo.
Can Trinidad reach world title status?
Facing Trinidad will be Filipino fighter Plania who’s knocked off a couple of prospects during his career including Joshua “Don’t Blink” Greer and Giovanni Gutierrez. The fighter from General Santos in the Philippines can crack and hold his own in the boxing ring.
It’s a very strong fight card and includes WBO world titlist Mizuki Hiruta of Japan who defends the super flyweight title against Mexican veteran Maribel Ramirez. It’s a tough matchup for Hiruta who makes her American debut. You can’t miss her with that pink hair and she has all the physical tools to make a splash in this country.
Two other female bouts are also planned, including light flyweight banger L.A.’s Gloria Munguilla (6-1) against Coachella’s Brook Sibrian (5-1) in a match set for six rounds. Both are talented fighters. Another female fight includes super featherweights Iyana “Right Hook Roxy” Verduzco (2-0) versus Lindsey Ellis (2-1) in another six-rounder. Ellis can crack with all her wins coming via knockout. Verduzco is a multi-national titlist as an amateur.
Others scheduled to perform are Ali Akhmedov, Joshua Anton, Adan Palma and more.
Doors open at 4:30 p.m.
Boxing and the Media
The sport of professional boxing is currently in flux. It’s always in flux but no matter what people may say or write, boxing will survive.
Whether you like Jake Paul or not, he proved boxing has worldwide appeal with monstrous success in his last show. He has media companies looking at the numbers and imagining what they can do with the sport.
Sure, UFC is negotiating a massive billion dollar deal with media companies, as is WWE, both are very similar in that they provide combat entertainment. You don’t need to know the champions because they really don’t matter. Its about the attractions.
Boxing is different. The good champions last and build a following that endures even beyond their careers a la Mike Tyson.
MMA can’t provide that longevity, but it does provide entertainment.
Currently, there is talk of establishing a boxing league again. It’s been done over and over but we shall see if it sticks this time.
Pro boxing is the true warrior’s path and that means a solo adventure. It’s a one-on-one sport and that appeals to people everywhere. It’s the oldest sport that can be traced to prehistoric times. You don’t need classes in Brazilian Jiujitsu, judo, kick boxing or wrestling. Just show up in a boxing gym and they can put you to work.
It’s a poor person’s path that can lead to better things and most importantly discipline.
Photos credit: Lina Baker
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