Dmitry Bivol Iced the Cake at an Eastern European Soiree in Atlantic City

Published

6 years ago

November 25, 2018

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – If ever there was proof that life sometimes imitates art, consider what took place here Saturday night in the Mark G. Etess Arena at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. The eight-bout card was a veritable smorgasbord of Eastern European boxing talent, the centerpiece of which was WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol’s wide and efficient unanimous decision over shopworn but still reasonably dangerous former WBC light heavy titlist Jean Pascal. It was a historic occasion, in light of the fact that that it was the final telecast for HBO World Championship Boxing, ending the premium-cable network’s signature affiliation with boxing after a run of 45 years. But there was historical context of another sort, perhaps missed by spectators in the half-filled arena and HBO viewers.

Calling the action at ringside was the HBO broadcast crew of veteran blow-by-blow announcer Jim Lampley and commentators Max Kellerman and Roy Jones Jr., all of whom played themselves in Creed II, the eighth film in the iconic Rocky franchise, which opened nationwide just three days earlier. The fairly standard revenge plot is an outgrowth of 1985’s Rocky IV, which introduced audiences to Ivan Drago, the remorseless Russian Olympic champion who is his country’s first professional boxer. Drago fatally bludgeons former heavyweight titlist Apollo Creed in the ring and tries his best to more or less do the same to Rocky Balboa in a climactic slugfest in Moscow. Thirty-three years after the original East-meets-West storyline, Creed II has Apollo’s son mixing it up with Ivan Drago’s remorseless, intimidating son in a matchup that no longer seems unique because Russian pros – really, quality fighters from throughout Eastern Europe – are now commonplace in America and just about everywhere else where punching for pay is allowed.

Asked about the post-Iron Curtain makeup of the card, which included three fighters from Russia, three from Uzbekistan, four from Mexico, four from the U.S., one from Uganda and one from Canada by way of his native Haiti (Pascal), Bivol said it was a natural progression after a new generation of fighters from the former Soviet Union discovered the joys of capitalism and freedom of movement previously denied to their forebears.

“Before it wasn’t (possible) because we had USSR,” said Bivol, who was born in the former Soviet republic of Kyrgyzstan and now resides in St. Petersburg, Russia, in explaining the ever-increasing presence of highly skilled Eastern European fighters in bouts staged around the globe. “When there was USSR (which fragmented in 1991), there was no professional boxing, only amateur. Now it has kind of opened up with a lot of opportunities for these good amateurs to come out and fight in the world. They have really good backgrounds and they are showing it in the professional ring.”

After his turn at the post-fight podium, Bivol – whose English is surprisingly good, if heavily accented – posed for a sort of class picture with heavyweights Evgeny Tischenko and Sergey Kuzmin (both Russia), welterweight Shakhram Giyasov (Uzbekistan) and super bantamweight Murodjon Akhmadaliev (Uzbekistan), all of whom won their bouts in impressive fashion.

But make no mistake, the star of the show was Bivol (15-0, 11 KOs) who is too polite and a bit too light at 174.4 pounds to conjure thoughts of Drago the Terrible. Presumably just entering his prime at 27 (he turns 28 on Dec. 18), Bivol is a boxer-puncher who goes into every fight thinking knockout but is not displeased if his path to victory is more readily achieved with basic fundamentals and tactical superiority. There were moments in the methodical disassembly of Pascal – which one ringside observer described as “a competitive ass-kicking” – when it appeared that Bivol could conclude matters early and with a flourish, but his reticence in pressing his advantage owed at least in part to sparring sessions he had with Pascal two years earlier.

“When I sparred with Jean Pascal two years ago I felt his power,” Bivol said. “He is a really strong guy. He looks like Cross-Fit man.”

Impressive musculature or not, it soon became apparent that the 36-year-old Pascal is on the downhill side of a nice career and did not have enough weapons to seriously jeopardize Bivol’s hoped-for rise to the very top of the 175-pound weight class. After being semi-shellacked in the seventh round, Pascal –- chastised in the corner by his trainer, Stephan Larouche – came out in desperation mode to start round eight, winging wide and wild shots that Bivol easily stepped away from until the challenger’s furious assault gave way to fatigue.

The official scorecards – judges Carlos Ortiz and Lynne Carter each had it 119-109 for Bivol, with Henry Grant a bit more generous to Pascal at 117-111 – were reflective of the punch statistics tabulated by CompuBox, which showed Bivol connecting on 217 of 678, 32 percent, to 60 of 357 (16.8 percent) for Pascal, who chose not to convey his thoughts to the inquiring minds at the post-fight press conference. Pascal, a resident of the Montreal suburb of Laval, Quebec, had mentioned in the lead-up to the fight that he was on his “farewell tour,” a journey that appears to be accelerating to its conclusion, if it hasn’t arrived there already.

To his credit, Bivol is both a realist and as humble as most fighters of his stature ever get. He wants the kind of marquee fights his rising stock suggests are in his immediate future, but it takes two to tangle, as his consolation-prize pairing with Pascal demonstrated. Had he had his way, Bivol would have instead squared off in a unification bout with WBO champion Eleider “Storm” Alvarez (24-0, 12 KOs), but Alvarez instead elected to defend that title in a rematch against the man from whom he took the title, Russia’s Sergey Kovalev (32-3-1, 28), which will take place on Feb. 2 at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas.

“Every time I say to my team I want big fights,” Bivol said. “I want big names. I want belts. (But) if you can’t get me unification fights in my division, maybe I can go down a weight class. I want to make it big in boxing. I am ready. I have one belt and of course I want more.”

Which is Bivol’s way of saying that he does not have a strong enough argument to make a compelling case for being recognized as the indisputably best light heavyweight around, not with Alvarez, IBF champ Artur Beterbiev (13-0, 13 KOs) and WBC ruler Adonis “Superman” Stevenson (29-1-1, 24 KOs) all claimants to that designation. And don’t go to sleep on Kovalev, who might still have enough gas left in the tank at 35 to turn the tables on Alvarez, who knocked him out in seven rounds on Aug. 4, also at the Hard Rock in Atlantic City.

Those big fights to which Bivol refers are plentiful, at least in theory. In addition to the other titleholders against whom he’d love to test himself, there are Oleksandr Gvozdyk (15-0, 12 KOs), Badou Jack (22-1-3, 13 KOs), Marcus Browne (22-0, 16 KOs) and Joe Smith Jr. (24-2, 20 KOs). It should be noted that Beterbiev is a Montreal-based Russian and Gvozdyk a Ukrainian, making for even more Eastern Europeans splashing around in the deep end of the light heavyweight pool.

“These guys are the best,” he said in the sort of nod to other light heavyweight titlists that goes against the grain of the standard braggadocio found in boxing at the highest levels. “I am not the best in light heavyweight division. I am only one of four. We should make fights to understand who is the best.”

Should his preferred targets at 175 pounds prove difficult to land, Bivol said he has the frame to comfortably pare down to 168 and test himself against the biggest fish in that division, which likely will be Mexican superstar Canelo Alvarez (50-1-2, 34) should he succeed, as expected, in wresting the WBC super middleweight crown from the United Kingdom’s Rocky Fielding (27-1, 15 KOs) on Dec. 15 at Madison Square Garden.

“Many fighters want to fight against Canelo,” Bivol said of his willingness to move down if necessary. “Of course, me too. I’m not a big guy. I can make (168).”

In the other HBO-televised bout, Akhmadaliev (5-0, 3 KOs), a 2016 Olympic bronze medalist, defended his WBA Intercontinental super bantamweight title on a ninth-round stoppage of fellow southpaw Isaac Zarate (16-4-3, 2 KOs), of San Pedro, Calif. And if you think Akhmadaliev won his minor belt in rapid fashion, consider Madrimov, who won the vacant WBA Regional super welter championship in his pro debut, on a sixth-round TKO of Mexico’s Vladimir Hernandez (10-3, 6 KOs).

Another Olympian, this one a 2016 gold medalist – Tischenko (3-0, 2 KOs) – put away Mexico’s Christian Marischal (11-2, 5 KOs) in two rounds.

Two U.S. fighters, lightweight Karl Dargan (19-1, 9 KOs) of Philadelphia and welterweight Logan Yoon (14-0, 11 KOs), upheld American pride in this night of Eastern European dominance, Dargan scoring an eight-round decision over Moises Delgadillo (17-13-2, 9 KOs) of Mexico and Yoon (14-0, 11 KOs) stopping Uganda’s Hamizah Sempewa (12-11, 6 KOs) in five rounds.

Bernard Fernandez is the retired boxing writer for the Philadelphia Daily News. He is a five-term former president of the Boxing Writers Association of America, an inductee into the Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Atlantic City Boxing Halls of Fame and the recipient of the Nat Fleischer Award for Excellence in Boxing Journalism and the Barney Nagler Award for Long and Meritorious Service to Boxing.

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Jorge Garcia is the TSS Fighter of the Month for April

Published

2 days ago

April 28, 2025

Arne K. Lang

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Jorge Garcia has a lot in common with Mexican countrymen Emanuel Navarrete and Rafael Espinoza. In common with those two, both reigning world title-holders, Garcia is big for his weight class and bubbled out of obscurity with a triumph forged as a heavy underdog in a match contested on American soil.

Garcia had his “coming of age party” on April 19 in the first boxing event at the new Frontwave Arena in Oceanside, California (roughly 35 miles north of San Diego), a 7,500-seat facility whose primary tenant is an indoor soccer team. It was a Golden Boy Promotions event and in the opposite corner was a Golden Boy fighter, Charles Conwell.

A former U.S. Olympian, Conwell was undefeated (21-0, 16 KOs) and had won three straight inside the distance since hooking up with Golden Boy whose PR department ballyhooed him as the most avoided fighter in the super welterweight division. At prominent betting sites, Conwell was as high as a 12/1 favorite.

The lanky Garcia was 32-4 (26 KOs) heading in, but it was easy to underestimate him as he had fought extensively in Tijuana where the boxing commission is notoriously docile and in his home state of Sinaloa. This would be only his second fight in the U.S. However, it was noteworthy in hindsight that three of his four losses were by split decision.

Garcia vs. Conwell was a robust affair. He and Conwell were credited with throwing 1451 punches combined. In terms of punches landed, there was little to choose between them but the CompuBox operator saw Garcia landing more power punches in eight of the 12 rounds. At the end, the verdict was split but there was no controversy.

An interested observer was Sebastian Fundora who was there to see his sister Gabriela defend her world flyweight titles. Sebastian owns two pieces of the 154-pound world title where the #1 contender per the WBO is Xander Zayas who keeps winning, but not with the verve of his earlier triumphs.

With his upset of Charles Conwell, Jorge Garcia has been bumped into the WBO’s #2 slot. Regardless of who he fights next, Garcia will earn the biggest payday of his career.

Honorable mention: Aaron McKenna

McKenna was favored to beat veteran campaigner Liam Smith in the co-feature to the Eubank-Benn battle this past Saturday in London, but he was stepping up in class against a former world title-holder who had competed against some of the top dogs in the middleweight division and who had famously stopped Chris Eubank Jr in the first of their two encounters. Moreover, the venue, Tottenham Hotspur, the third-largest soccer stadium in England, favored the 36-year-old Liverpudlian who was accustomed to a big fight atmosphere having fought Canelo Alvarez before 50,000-plus at Arlington Stadium in Texas.

McKenna, from the small town of Monaghan, Ireland, wasn’t overwhelmed by the occasion. With his dad Feargal in his corner and his fighting brother Stephen McKenna cheering him on from ringside, Aaron won a wide decision in his first 12-round fight, punctuating his victory by knocking Smith to his knees with a body punch in the 12^th round. In fact, if he hadn’t had a point deducted for using his elbow, the Irishman would have pitched a shutout on one of the scorecards.

“There might not be a more impressive example of a fighter moving up in class,” wrote Tris Dixon of the 25-year-old “Silencer” who improved his ledger to 20-0 (10).

Photo credits: Garcia/Conwell photo compliments of Cris Esqueda/Golden Boy; McKenna-Smith provided by Mark Robinson/Matchroom

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Chris Eubank Jr Outlasts Conor Benn at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

Published

3 days ago

April 27, 2025

David A. Avila

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Feudal bragging rights belong to Chris Eubank Jr. who out-lasted Conor Benn to
emerge victorious by unanimous decision in a non-title middleweight match held in
London on Saturday.

Fighting for their family heritage Eubank (35-3, 26 KOs) and Benn (23-1, 14 KOs)
continued the battle between families started 35 years ago by their fathers at Tottenham
Hotspur Stadium.

More than 65,000 fans attended.

Though Eubank Jr. had a weight and height advantage and a record of smashing his
way to victory via knockout, he had problems hurting the quicker and more agile Benn.
And though Benn had the advantage of moving up two weight divisions and forcing
Eubank to fight under a catch weight, the move did not weaken him much.

Instead, British fans and boxing fans across the world saw the two family rivals pummel
each other for all 12 rounds. Neither was able to gain separation.

Eubank looked physically bigger and used a ramming left jab to connect early in the
fight. Benn immediately showed off his speed advantage and surprised many with his
ability to absorb a big blow.Chris Eubank Jr Outlasts Conor Benn at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

Benn scrambled around with his quickness and agility and scored often with bigcounters.

It took him a few rounds to stop overextending himself while delivering power shots.

In the third round Benn staggered Eubank with a left hook but was unable to follow up
against the dangerous middleweight who roared back with flurries of blows.

Eubank was methodic in his approach always moving forward, always using his weight
advantage via the shoulder to force Benn backward. The smaller Benn rocketed
overhand rights and was partly successful but not enough to force Eubank to retreat.
In the seventh round a right uppercut snapped Benn’s head violently but he was
undeterred from firing back. Benn’s chin stood firm despite Eubank’s vaunted power and
size advantage.

“I didn’t know he had that in him,” Eubank said.

Benn opened strong in the eighth round with furious blows. And though he connected
he was unable to seriously hurt Eubank. And despite being drained by the weight loss,
the middleweight fighter remained strong all 12 rounds.

There were surprises from both fighters.

Benn was effective targeting the body. Perhaps if he had worked the body earlier he
would have found a better result.

With only two rounds remaining Eubank snapped off a right uppercut again and followed
up with body shots. In the final stanza Eubank pressed forward and exchanged with the
smaller Benn until the final bell. He simply out-landed the fighter and impressed all three
judges who scored it 116-112 for Eubank.

Eubank admitted he expected a knockout win but was satisfied with the victory.
“I under-estimated him,” Eubank said.

Benn was upset by the loss but recognized the reasons.

“He worked harder toward the end,” said Benn.

McKenna Wins

In his first test in the elite level Aaron McKenna (20-0, 10 KOs) showed his ability to fight
inside or out in soundly defeating former world champion Liam Smith (33-5-1, 20 KOs)
by unanimous decision to win a regional WBA middleweight title.

Smith has made a career out of upsetting young upstarts but discovered the Irish fighter
more than capable of mixing it up with the veteran. It was a rough fight throughout the
12 rounds but McKenna showed off his abilities to fight as a southpaw or right-hander
with nary a hiccup.

McKenna had trained in Southern California early in his career and since that time he’s
accrued a variety of ways to fight. He was smooth and relentless in using his longer
arms and agility against Smith on the outside or in close.

In the 12 th round, McKenna landed a perfectly timed left hook to the ribs and down went
Smith. The former champion got up and attempted to knock out the tall
Irish fighter but could not.

All three judges scored in favor of McKenna 119-108, 117-109, 118-108.

Other Bouts
Anthony Yarde (27-3) defeated Lyndon Arthur (24-3) by unanimous decision after 12 rounds. in a light heavyweight match. It was the third time they met. Yarde won the last two fights.

Chris Billam-Smith (21-2) defeated Brandon Glanton (20-3) by decision. It was his first
fight since losing the WBO cruiserweight world title to Gilberto Ramirez last November.

Viddal Riley (13-0) out-worked Cheavon Clarke (10-2) in a 12-round back-and-forth-contest to win a unanimous decision.

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Avila Perspective, Chap. 323: Benn vs Eubank Family Feud and More

Published

5 days ago

April 24, 2025

David A. Avila

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Next generation rivals Conor Benn and Chris Eubank Jr. carry on the family legacy of feudal warring in the prize ring on Saturday.

This is huge in British boxing.

Eubank (34-3, 25 KOs) holds the fringe IBO middleweight title but won’t be defending it against the smaller welterweight Benn (23-0, 14 KOs) on Saturday, April 26, at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London. DAZN will stream the Matchroom Boxing card.

This is about family pride.

The parents of Eubank and Benn actually began the feud in the 1990s.

Papa Nigel Benn fought Papa Chris Eubank twice. Losing as a middleweight in November 1990 at Birmingham, England, then fighting to a draw as a super middleweight in October 1993 in Manchester. Both were world title fights.

Eubank was undefeated and won the WBO middleweight world title in 1990 against Nigel Benn by knockout. He defended it three times before moving up and winning the vacant WBO super middleweight title in September 1991. He defended the super middleweight title 14 times before suffering his first pro defeat in March 1995 against Steve Collins.

Benn won the WBO middleweight title in April 1990 against Doug DeWitt and defended it once before losing to Eubank in November 1990. He moved up in weight and took the WBC super middleweight title from Mauro Galvano in Italy by technical knockout in October 1992. He defended the title nine times until losing in March 1996. His last fight was in November 1996, a loss to Steve Collins.

Animosity between the two families continues this weekend in the boxing ring.

Conor Benn, the son of Nigel, has fought mostly as a welterweight but lately has participated in the super welterweight division. He is several inches shorter in height than Eubank but has power and speed. Kind of a British version of Gervonta “Tank” Davis.

“It’s always personal, every opponent I fight is personal. People want to say it’s strictly business, but it’s never business. If someone is trying to put their hands on me, trying to render me unconscious, it’s never business,” said Benn.

This fight was scheduled twice before and cut short twice due to failed PED tests by Benn. The weight limit agreed upon is 160 pounds.

Eubank, a natural middleweight, has exchanged taunts with Benn for years. He recently avenged a loss to Liam Smith with a knockout victory in September 2023.

“This fight isn’t about size or weight. It’s about skill. It’s about dedication. It’s about expertise and all those areas in which I excel in,” said Eubank. “I have many, many more years of experience over Conor Benn, and that will be the deciding factor of the night.”

Because this fight was postponed twice, the animosity between the two feuding fighters has increased the attention of their fans. Both fighters are anxious to flatten each other.

“He’s another opponent in my way trying to crush my dreams. trying to take food off my plate and trying to render me unconscious. That’s how I look at him,” said Benn.

Eubank smiles.

“Whether it’s boxing, whether it’s a gun fight. Defense, offense, foot movement, speed, power. I am the superior boxer in each of those departments and so many more – which is why I’m so confident,” he said.

Supporting Bout

Former world champion Liam Smith (33-4-1, 20 KOs) tangles with Ireland’s Aaron McKenna (19-0, 10 KOs) in a middleweight fight set for 12 rounds on the Benn-Eubank undercard in London.

“Beefy” Smith has long been known as one of the fighting Smith brothers and recently lost to Eubank a year and a half ago. It was only the second time in 38 bouts he had been stopped. Saul “Canelo” Alvarez did it several years ago.

McKenna is a familiar name in Southern California. The Irish fighter fought numerous times on Golden Boy Promotion cards between 2017 and 2019 before returning to the United Kingdom and his assault on continuing the middleweight division. This is a big step for the tall Irish fighter.

It’s youth versus experience.

“I’ve been calling for big fights like this for the last two or three years, and it’s a fight I’m really excited for. I plan to make the most of it and make a statement win on Saturday night,” said McKenna, one of two fighting brothers.

Monster in L.A.

Japan’s super star Naoya “Monster” Inoue arrived in Los Angeles for last day workouts before his Las Vegas showdown against Ramon Cardenas on Sunday May 4, at T-Mobile Arena. ESPN will televise and stream the Top Rank card.

It’s been four years since the super bantamweight world champion performed in the US and during that time Naoya (29-0, 26 KOs) gathered world titles in different weight divisions. The Japanese slugger has also gained fame as perhaps the best fighter on the planet. Cardenas is 26-1 with 14 KOs.

Pomona Fights

Super featherweights Mathias Radcliffe (9-0-1) and Ezequiel Flores (6-4) lead a boxing card called “DMG Night of Champions” on Saturday April 26, at the historic Fox Theater in downtown Pomona, Calif.

Michaela Bracamontes (11-2-1) and Jesus Torres Beltran (8-4-1) will be fighting for a regional WBC super featherweight title. More than eight bouts are scheduled.

Doors open at 6 p.m. For ticket information go to: www.tix.com/dmgnightofchampions

Fights to Watch

Sat. DAZN 9 a.m. Conor Benn (23-0) vs Chris Eubank Jr. (34-3); Liam Smith (33-4-1) vs Aaron McKenna (19-0).

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