Three Bold Predictions for 2019

Published

6 years ago

December 27, 2018

THREE PUNCH COMBO: In the final edition of “the combo” for 2018, I will get the crystal ball out and look ahead with three bold predictions for the upcoming year.

Bold Prediction One – Manny Pacquiao-Errol Spence Will Be The Biggest Event of 2019

When Manny Pacquiao added Al Haymon as his advisor late in 2018, it was widely assumed in the industry that this would facilitate a big money rematch with Floyd Mayweather Jr. sometime in 2019. While this is certainly possible, I see a different course for Pacquiao, at least in the near term.

First of all, if Mayweather wants the Pacquiao rematch then it will happen. And Mayweather will unquestionably be watching Pacquiao’s upcoming bout with Adrien Broner on January 19^th with vested interest. But I think after Mayweather watches Pacquiao-Broner that he will sour on the idea of facing Pacquiao later this year.

As we all know, styles make fights. Stylistically, I think Broner is the perfect opponent for Pacquiao at this point in his career. As a matter of fact, I would go as far as stating that Pacquiao is going to look close to the 2009 version of himself in this fight. Why? Broner is frankly a lazy fighter. He fights only in spots. Even a 40-year-old Pacquiao can easily out-work and out-hustle him.

But there is more. Broner also makes a lot of defensive mistakes and despite his lengthy history in the ring has never corrected these flaws. He does not move his head and often squares up to his opponents, making him an easy target to hit clean. Plus when he does let his hands go, he stands and poses after throwing. allowing himself to be easily countered.

Much like Marcos Maidana, Shawn Porter and Mikey Garcia exposed Broner’s flaws, so will Pacquiao. His hand speed and dazzling combinations will be on full display; PacMan will look sensational. And this will be cause for some concern for Mayweather who as we all know selects his opposition very carefully.

With Mayweather waffling, Haymon will be forced to look at other options. With Errol Spence in need of big name opponents, expect Haymon to look to make a super fight between Spence and Pacquiao later this year.

Of course, this assumes Spence beats Mikey Garcia in March. While I don’t think this will be an easy fight for Spence, it is one that I do see him ultimately winning. With Spence’s growing reputation and a win against Garcia under his cap, it will be tough to entice other top welterweights to face him unless they are heavily compensated. If someone is going to be heavily compensated to face Spence, they better bring a large audience with them. There is one fighter that could fit that criteria and that is Pacquiao.

Pacquiao-Spence would draw a lot of attention and sell big on pay-per-view. And for all these reasons, I expect the fight will happen.

Bold Prediction Two – Andre Ward Returns to Face the Winner of Alvarez-Kovalev II

Andre Ward is going to make a return to the ring. His cryptic social media posts as well as discussions with boxing media this past year can lead to no other conclusion.

But at what weight class will he return and whom will he fight? I speculated earlier this year that he could test the waters as a heavyweight. However, I now feel a return to the light heavyweight division seems more likely given recent happenings in the sport. And his opponent could very well be the winner of the February 2^nd rematch between Eleider Alvarez and Sergey Kovalev.

Follow me here for a second before dismissing this notion. ESPN and Top Rank purchased the rights to the Alvarez-Kovalev rematch despite not having a promotional tie to either fighter at the time (although Top Rank did eventually sign Alvarez to a co-promotional deal). This raised some eyebrows in the industry. Clearly, ESPN and Top Rank had something in mind down the road in purchasing this fight.

Ward currently serves as an analyst for ESPN. He is a very sharp person with a bright mind for the sport. The tail end of Ward’s career was managed brilliantly from a risk versus reward perspective and no doubt Ward had plenty of input as to how his affairs were handled.

In a comeback bid, Ward will look to maximize financial value while mitigating risk in a similar manner to how his career was managed leading up to his initial retirement. And given his relationship with ESPN/Top Rank, it would be fully expected that a Ward comeback would take place under their banner.

Thus, facing the winner of Alvarez-Kovalev II makes perfect sense. From Ward’s prospective, he’d be returning to face an opponent whom he’d be favored to defeat while making a very nice payday. If it is Kovalev there is a natural rivalry to sell as well as the controversies from each of the two fights.

ESPN and Top Rank have been looking to get into the pay-per-view market. An Andre Ward comeback against with Alvarez or Kovalev would sell and be the perfect way to test the pay-per-view waters.

Bold Prediction Three – Promoters and TV Networks Play A Bit Nicer With One Another In 2019

In 2018, we saw more events compete directly with one another for eyeballs than I can ever recall. Granted, a lot of that had to do with an unprecedented amount of live boxing that was available on either traditional television networks or live streaming services. With promoters having to fill so much air time, I guess some overlapping of fight cards was inevitable.

However, common sense dictates that whenever eyeballs are split between competing cards everyone loses. My guess is that at some point in 2019 we see promoters and TV networks begin to work together to alleviate this problem.

Top Rank and Golden Boy set the blueprint in 2018 for one way promoters can work with instead of against one another when they each have televised shows. On May 12^th, Top Rank and ESPN moved up the start time of their card so the main event between Vasyl Lomachenko and Jorge Linares did not interfere with the start of Golden Boy’s card on HBO. Fans were able to watch the main fights on both cards and eyeballs were not split so everyone won. Granted, this was a unique situation but at the very least this did provide a blueprint for how promoters can work together on such matters in the future.

Also, I see a scenario in 2019 where a deal is cut between major platforms to avoid competing cards. I don’t know who will do it but again it is to everyone’s benefit not to split eyeballs. Maybe Top Rank/ESPN cuts a deal with PBC or DAZN. Or PBC and DAZN come to some sort of an agreement. With so much money involved, business interests will at some point supersede the egos of the various parties. It is just common sense. And in 2019, I think we see rival promoters and networks come together at times to coordinate events for everyone’s mutual benefit.

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Ringside at the Fontainebleau where Mikaela Mayer Won her Rematch with Sandy Ryan

Published

2 days ago

March 30, 2025

Arne K. Lang

Ringside-at-the-Fontainebleau-where-Mikaela-Mayer-won-her-Rematch-with-Sandy-Ryan

LAS VEGAS, NV — The first meeting between Mikaela Mayer and Sandy Ryan last September at Madison Square Garden was punctuated with drama before the first punch was thrown. When the smoke cleared, Mayer had become a world-title-holder in a second weight class, taking away Ryan’s WBO welterweight belt via a majority decision in a fan-friendly fight.

The rematch tonight at the Fontainebleau in Las Vegas was another fan-friendly fight. There were furious exchanges in several rounds and the crowd awarded both gladiators a standing ovation at the finish.

Mayer dominated the first half of the fight and held on to win by a unanimous decision. But Sandy Ryan came on strong beginning in round seven, and although Mayer was the deserving winner, the scores favoring her (98-92 and 97-93 twice) fail to reflect the competitiveness of the match-up. This is the best rivalry in women’s boxing aside from Taylor-Serrano.

Mayer, 34, improved to 21-2 (5). Up next, she hopes, in a unification fight with Lauren Price who outclassed Natasha Jonas earlier this month and currently holds the other meaningful pieces of the 147-pound puzzle. Sandy Ryan, 31, the pride of Derby, England, falls to 7-3-1.

Co-Feature

In his first defense of his WBO world welterweight title (acquired with a brutal knockout of Giovani Santillan after the title was vacated by Terence Crawford), Atlanta’s Brian Norman Jr knocked out Puerto Rico’s Derrieck Cuevas in the third round. A three-punch combination climaxed by a short left hook sent Cuevas staggering into a corner post. He got to his feet before referee Thomas Taylor started the count, but Taylor looked in Cuevas’s eyes and didn’t like what he saw and brought the bout to a halt.

The stoppage, which struck some as premature, came with one second remaining in the third stanza.

A second-generation prizefighter (his father was a fringe contender at super middleweight), the 24-year-old Norman (27-0, 21 KOs) is currently boxing’s youngest male title-holder. It was only the second pro loss for Cuevas (27-2-1) whose lone previous defeat had come early in his career in a 6-rounder he lost by split decision.

Other Bouts

In a career-best performance, 27-year-old Brooklyn featherweight Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington (15-0, 9 KOs) blasted out Jose Enrique Vivas (23-4) in the third round.

Carrington, who was named the Most Outstanding Boxer at the 2019 U.S. Olympic Trials despite being the lowest-seeded boxer in his weight class, decked Vivas with a right-left combination near the end of the second round. Vivas barely survived the round and was on a short leash when the third stanza began. After 53 seconds of round three, referee Raul Caiz Jr had seen enough and waived it off. Vivas hadn’t previously been stopped.

Cleveland welterweight Tiger Johnson, a Tokyo Olympian, scored a fifth-round stoppage over San Antonio’s Kendo Castaneda. Johnson assumed control in the fourth round and sent Castaneda to his knees twice with body punches in the next frame. The second knockdown terminated the match. The official time was 2:00 of round five.

Johnson advanced to 15-0 (7 KOs). Castenada declined to 21-9.

Las Vegas junior welterweight Emiliano Vargas (13-0, 11 KOs) blasted out Stockton, California’s Giovanni Gonzalez in the second round. Vargas brought the bout to a sudden conclusion with a sweeping left hook that knocked Gonzalez out cold. The end came at the 2:00 minute mark of round two.

Gonzalez brought a 20-7-2 record which was misleading as 18 of his fights were in Tijuana where fights are frequently prearranged. However, he wasn’t afraid to trade with Vargas and paid the price.

Emiliano Vargas, with his matinee idol good looks and his boxing pedigree – he is the son of former U.S. Olympian and two-weight world title-holder “Ferocious” Fernando Vargas – is highly marketable and has the potential to be a cross-over star.

Eighteen-year-old Newark bantamweight Emmanuel “Manny” Chance, one of Top Rank’s newest signees, won his pro debut with a four-round decision over So Cal’s Miguel Guzman. Chance won all four rounds on all three cards, but this was no runaway. He left a lot of room for improvement.

There was a long intermission before the co-main and again before the main event, but the tedium was assuaged by a moving video tribute to George Foreman.

Photos credit: Al Applerose

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William Zepeda Edges Past Tevin Farmer in Cancun; Improves to 34-0

Published

2 days ago

March 29, 2025

David A. Avila

William Zepeda Edges Past Tevin Farmer in Cancun; Improves to 34-0

No surprise, once again William Zepeda eked out a win over the clever and resilient Tevin Farmer to remain undefeated and retain a regional lightweight title on Saturday.

There were no knockdowns in this rematch.

The Mexican punching machine Zepeda (33-0, 17 KOs) once more sought to overwhelm Farmer (33-8-1, 9 KOs) with a deluge of blows. This rematch by Golden Boy Promotions took place in the famous beach resort area of Cancun, Mexico.

It was a mere four months ago that both first clashed in Saudi Arabia with their vastly difference styles. This time the tropical setting served as the background which suited Zepeda and his lawnmower assaults. The Mexican fans were pleased.

Nothing changed in their second meeting.

Zepeda revved up the body assault and Farmer moved around casually to his right while fending off the Mexican fighter’s attacks. By the fourth round Zepeda was able to cut off Farmer’s escape routes and targeted the body with punishing shots.

The blows came in bunches.

In the fifth round Zepeda blasted away at Farmer who looked frantic for an escape. The body assault continued with the Mexican fighter pouring it on and Farmer seeming to look ready to quit. When the round ended, he waved off his corner’s appeals to stop.

Zepeda continued to dominate the next few rounds and then Farmer began rallying. At first, he cleverly smothered Zepeda’s body attacks and then began moving and hitting sporadically. It forced the Mexican fighter to pause and figure out the strategy.

Farmer, a Philadelphia fighter, showed resiliency especially when it was revealed he had suffered a hand injury.

During the last three rounds Farmer dug down deep and found ways to score and not get hit. It was Boxing 101 and the Philly fighter made it work.

But too many rounds had been put in the bank by Zepeda. Despite the late rally by Farmer one judge saw it 114-114, but two others scored it 116-112 and 115-113 for Zepeda who retains his interim lightweight title and place at the top of the WBC rankings.

“I knew he was a difficult fighter. This time he was even more difficult,” said Zepeda.

Farmer was downtrodden about another loss but realistic about the outcome and starting slow.

“But I dominated the last rounds,” said Farmer.

Zepeda shrugged at the similar outcome as their first encounter.

“I’m glad we both put on a great show,” said Zepeda.

Female Flyweight Battle

Costa Rica’s Yokasta Valle edged past Texas fighter Marlen Esparza to win their showdown at flyweight by split decision after 10 rounds.

Valle moved up two weight divisions to meet Esparza who was slightly above the weight limit. Both showed off their contrasting styles and world class talent.

Esparza, a former unified flyweight world titlist, stayed in the pocket and was largely successful with well-placed jabs and left hooks. She repeatedly caught Valle in-between her flurries.

The current minimumweight world titlist changed tactics and found more success in the second half of the fight. She forced Esparza to make the first moves and that forced changes that benefited her style.

Neither fighter could take over the fight.

After 10 rounds one judge saw Esparza the winner 96-94, but two others saw Valle the winner 97-93 twice.

Will Valle move up and challenge the current undisputed flyweight world champion Gabriela Fundora? That’s the question.

Valle currently holds the WBC minimumweight world title.

Puerto Rico vs Mexico

Oscar Collazo (12-0, 9 KOs), the WBO, WBA minimumweight titlist, knocked out Mexico’s Edwin Cano (13-3-1, 4 KOs) with a flurry of body shots at 1:12 of the fifth round.

Collazo dominated with a relentless body attack the Mexican fighter could not defend. It was the Puerto Rican fighter’s fifth consecutive title defense.

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Avila Perspective, Chap. 319: Rematches in Las Vegas, Cancun and More

Published

3 days ago

March 28, 2025

David A. Avila

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Rematches are the bedrock for prizefighting.

Return battles between rival boxers always means their first encounter was riveting and successful at the box office.

Six months after their first brutal battle Mikaela Mayer (20-2, 5 KOs) and Sandy Ryan (7-2-1, 3 KOs) will slug it out again for the WBO welterweight world title this time on Saturday, March 29, at the Fontainebleau in Las Vegas.

ESPN will show the Top Rank card live.

“It’s important for women’s boxing to have these rivalries and this is definitely up there as one of the top ones,” Mayer told the BBC.

If you follow Mayer’s career you know that somehow drama follows. Whether its back-and-forth beefs with fellow American fighters or controversial judging due to nationalism in countries abroad. The Southern California native who now trains in Las Vegas knows how to create the drama.

For female fighters self-promotion is a necessity.

Most boxing promoters refuse to step out of the usual process set for male boxers, not for female boxers. Things remain the same and have been for the last 70 years. Social media has brought changes but that has made promoters do even less.

No longer are there press conferences, instead announcements are made on social media to be drowned among the billions of other posts. It is not killing but diluting interest in the sport.

Women innately present a different advantage that few if any promoters are recognizing. So far in the past 25 years I have only seen two or three promoters actually ignite interest in female fighters. They saw the advantages and properly boosted interest in the women.

The fight breakdown

Mayer has won world titles in the super featherweight and now the welterweight division. Those are two vastly different weight classes and prove her fighting abilities are based on skill not power or size.

Coaching Mayer since amateurs remains Al Mitchell and now Kofi Jantuah who replaced Kay Koroma the current trainer for Sandy Ryan.

That was the reason drama ignited during their first battle. Then came someone tossing paint at Ryan the day of their first fight.

More drama.

During their first fight both battled to control the initiative with Mayer out-punching the British fighter by a slender margin. It was a back-and-forth struggle with each absorbing blows and retaliating immediately.

New York City got its money’s worth.

Ryan had risen to the elite level rapidly since losing to Erica Farias three years ago. Though she was physically bigger and younger, she was out-maneuvered and defeated by the wily veteran from Argentina. In the rematch, however, Ryan made adjustments and won convincingly.

Can she make adjustments from her defeat to Mayer?

“I wanted the rematch straight away,” said Ryan on social media. “I’ve come to America again.”

Both fighters have size and reach. In their first clash it was evident that conditioning was not a concern as blows were fired nonstop in bunches. Mayer had the number of punches landed advantage and it unfolded with the judges giving her a majority decision win.

That was six months ago. Can she repeat the outcome?

Mayer has always had boiler-oven intensity. It’s not fake. Since her amateur days the slender Southern California blonde changes disposition all the way to red when lacing up the gloves. It’s something that can’t be taught.

Can she draw enough of that fire out again?

“I didn’t have to give her this rematch. I could have just sat it out, waited for Lauren Price to unify and fought for undisputed or faced someone else,” said Mayer to BBC. “That’s not the fighter I am though.”

Co-Main in Las Vegas

The co-main event pits Brian Norman Jr. (26-0, 20 KOs) facing Puerto Rico’s Derrieck Cuevas (27-1-1, 19 KOs) in a contest for the WBO welterweight title.

Norman, 24, was last seen a year ago dissecting a very good welterweight in Giovani Santillan for a knockout win in San Diego. He showed speed, skill and power in defeating Santillan in his hometown.

Cuevas has beaten some solid veteran talent but this will be his big test against Norman and his first attempt at winning a world title.

Also on the Top Rank card will be Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington and Emiliano Vargas, the son of Fernando Vargas, in separate bouts.

Golden Boy in Cancun

A rematch between undefeated William “Camaron” Zepeda (32-0, 27 KOs) and ex-champ Tevin Farmer (33-7-1, 8 KOs) headlines the lightweight match on Saturday March 29, at Cancun, Mexico.

In their first encounter Zepeda was knocked down in the fourth round but rallied to win a split-decision over Farmer. It showed the flaws in Zepeda’s tornado style.

DAZN will stream the Golden Boy Promotions card that also includes a clash between Yokasta Valle the WBC minimumweight world titlist who is moving up to flyweight to face former flyweight champion Marlen Esparza.

Both Valle and Esparza have fast hands.

Valle is excellent darting in and out while Esparza has learned how to fight inside. It’s a toss-up fight.

Fights to Watch

Fri. DAZN 12 p.m. Cameron Vuong (7-0) vs Jordan Flynn (11-0-1); Pat Brown (0-0) vs Federico Grandone (7-4-2).

Sat. DAZN 5 p.m. William Zepeda (32-0) vs Tevin Farmer (33-7-1); Yokasta Valle (32-3) vs Marlen Esparza (15-2).

Sat. ESPN 7 p.m. Mikaela Mayer (20-2) vs Sandy Ryan (7-2-1); Brian Norman Jr. (26-0) vs Derrieck Cuevas (27-1-1).

Photo credit: Mikey Williams / Top Rank

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