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Three Punch Combo: A Look at Some Lead-in Fights to Canelo-Jacobs and More

THREE PUNCH COMBO — It is Canelo-Jacobs fight week and most of the attention of the boxing world will be fixated on this fight. But there is other action that deserves our attention this week. This includes a very intriguing middleweight crossroads fight between two former amateur standouts.
On Thursday, Golden Boy will present a card from the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas that will be streamed live on Facebook Watch. The event is headlined by middleweights Yamaguchi Falcao (16-0, 7 KO’s) and Christopher Pearson (16-2, 12 KO’s). This is actually a rematch of their 2011 encounter in the World Series of Boxing. Pearson, representing the LA Matadors, won that fight by split decision.
Falcao (pictured) had a very successful amateur career that included winning a bronze medal at the 2012 Olympics. He turned pro in 2014 and began his career as a fairly active fighter with 13 fights in his first three years. However, since then he has had only four fights. Moreover, he has yet to really step up his level of competition. At 31, time is becoming a factor.
Like Falcao, Pearson also had a very successful amateur career and entered the pro game with plenty of hype. And also like Falcao, Pearson has yet to tap into much of that potential as a pro. Pearson’s issue has been a questionable set of whiskers and there have also been questions about his dedication to the sport. The talent is there and at 28 Pearson still has time to turn things around but his window is also closing.
On paper, Falcao-Pearson is a very evenly matched fight. Both are southpaws though stylistically they differ in how they fight behind that stance. Falcao is aggressive and likes to press forward looking to work combinations behind the right jab. He also frequently looks to counter with the straight left and will sit back in spots waiting for his opponent to throw to create counter opportunities.
Pearson is a boxer-puncher who will look to use his legs and use the entire ring. He is athletic with good speed and possesses very fast hands. Pearson is going to look to box behind the right jab and land quick combinations behind that punch as Falcao attempts to close the distance.
Will Falcao’s pressure and counterpunching ability neutralize the speed and athleticism of Pearson? This is a very fascinating matchup in what is frankly a toss-up fight. I am looking forward to seeing how it plays out.
About The Canelo-Jacobs Undercard
The undercard for Canelo-Jacobs has certainly been ravaged by some bad luck. First, the original proposed co-feature between David Lemieux (40-4, 34 KO’s) and John Ryder (27-4, 15 KO’s) was postponed when Lemieux came down with a right hand injury. And then a fight that was certain to be all action between Pablo Cesar Cano (32-7-1, 22 KO’s) and Michael Perez (25-3-2, 11 KO’s) was also postponed when Cano suffered a hand injury. So what are we left with? Well, to be honest, mostly showcase bouts for the “A” sides.
The new co-feature showcases sizzling 140-pound prospect Vergil Ortiz Jr. (12-0, 12 KO’s) taking a step up in class against veteran Mauricio Herrera (24-8, 7 KO’s). Ortiz, 21, looks like the real deal. He has dynamic speed and blistering power. To say the sky is the limit for him would be an understatement.
Herrera, 38, has seen his better days. He is just 2-3 in his last five fights and frankly is looking shopworn. In his prime, he was a slick boxer-puncher with excellent movement inside the ring. But in his recent fights he has been more of a stationary target and much easier to hit.
While Herrera has never been knocked out, this is a fight where Ortiz not only needs to score a knockout but do so early. Ortiz has nothing to fear in regards to Herrera’s power and Herrera will be standing right in front of him all night long. It should be easy work for Ortiz and he needs to make the appropriate statement given his status on this event.
Joseph Diaz (28-1, 14 KO’s) is coming off a tough 2018. First, he dropped a twelve round decision to WBC featherweight champion Gary Russell Jr. Then, accorded a second shot at a world featherweight title, he was unable to make weight. He out-pointed WBA title-holder Jesus Rojas, but could not claim the coveted title belt and made a bad impression by missing weight in such a critical fight.
Diaz now fights at 130. He scored a solid win against Charles Huerta in February and now faces Freddy Fonseca on a bigger stage. Fonseca has a nice record of 26-2-1 with 17 KO’s but has fought very limited opposition. This is a spot where Diaz should shine and put on a dominant performance. Anything less would be unacceptable and drop his stock at a time when he can ill afford to do so.
Speaking of Canelo-Jacobs…
I am not going to give my prediction at this time. It will come later in the week when the other TSS writers have their say. But I want to point out a few subtle factors that will go a long way in determining the winner.
There is nobody in boxing today who commits to going to the body with as much ferocity as well as consistency as Canelo Alvarez. He will beat his opponent’s ribcage from the first round until the end of the fight. This calculated attack often wears down and softens up his opposition as the fight progresses.
It is not inconceivable that this fight could be very close after six rounds. And this is where the body assault for Canelo could come into play down the stretch. Jacobs has never faced an opponent who goes to the body as well as Canelo and how he responds will be critical.
Will the cumulative effect of the body punches impact Jacobs’ movement? Will it take a lot of zap from his punches? If Jacobs becomes more of a stationary target and can’t get Canelo’s respect, the second half of the fight could be all one-way traffic for Canelo.
Canelo’s commitment to going to his opponent’s body, particularly with the left hook, is one of his strengths, but it also can create plenty of countering opportunities for his opponent. This especially came to light when Canelo fought Mayweather and Golovkin.
The openings will be there for Jacobs to land the counter right when Canelo dips down to throw the left hook to the body. Often times when fighters face Canelo, they become too defensive and focused on blocking the body shots without looking towards their own offense. What will Jacobs do? He does have an excellent quick right hand and if he is willing to stand in there he can certainly land that punch flush. Particularly early when he is fresh, Jacobs could be very dangerous with this punch.
Finally, with a big third fight with Golovkin looming ahead, a massive big money legacy fight, one must ask if Canelo will be fully focused. There is no doubt that he is training hard and preparing for a tough fight, but with something so big on the horizon it’s only human nature to glance ahead. And sometimes in boxing, as well as sports in general, when a not-100% focused fighter or team fails to bring their “A” game it is ripe to be upset.
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Avila Perspective, Chap. 322: Super Welter Week in SoCal

Two below-the-radar super welterweight stars show off their skills this weekend from different parts of Southern California.
One in particular, Charles Conwell, co-headlines a show in Oceanside against a hard-hitting Mexican while another super welter star Sadriddin Akhmedov faces another Mexican hitter in Commerce.
Take your pick.
The super welterweight division is loaded with talent at the moment. If Terence Crawford remained in the division he would be at the top of the class, but he is moving up several weight divisions.
Conwell (21-0, 16 KOs) faces Jorge Garcia Perez (32-4, 26 KOs) a tall knockout puncher from Los Mochis at the Frontwave Arena in Oceanside, Calif. on Saturday April 19. DAZN will stream the Golden Boy Promotions card that also features undisputed flyweight champion Gabriela Fundora. We’ll get to her later.
Conwell might be the best super welterweight out there aside from the big dogs like Vergil Ortiz, Serhii Bohachuk and Sebastian Fundora.
If you are not familiar with Conwell he comes from Cleveland, Ohio and is one of those fighters that other fighters know about. He is good.
He has the James “Lights Out” Toney kind of in-your-face-style where he anchors down and slowly deciphers the opponent’s tools and then takes them away piece by piece. Usually it’s systematic destruction. The kind you see when a skyscraper goes down floor by floor until it’s smoking rubble.
During the Covid days Conwell fought two highly touted undefeated super welters in Wendy Toussaint and Madiyar Ashkeyev. He stopped them both and suddenly was the boogie man of the super welterweight division.
Conwell will be facing Mexico’s taller Garcia who likes to trade blows as most Mexican fighters prefer, especially those from Sinaloa. These guys will be firing H bombs early.
Fundora
Co-headlining the Golden Boy card is Gabriela Fundora (15-0, 7 KOs) the undisputed flyweight champion of the world. She has all the belts and Mexico’s Marilyn Badillo (19-0-1, 3 KOs) wants them.
Gabriela Fundora is the sister of Sebastian Fundora who holds the men’s WBC and WBO super welterweight world titles. Both are tall southpaws with power in each hand to protect the belts they accumulated.
Six months ago, Fundora met Argentina’s Gabriela Alaniz in Las Vegas to determine the undisputed flyweight champion. The much shorter Alaniz tried valiantly to scrap with Fundora and ran into a couple of rocket left hands.
Mexico’s Badillo is an undefeated flyweight from Mexico City who has battled against fellow Mexicans for years. She has fought one world champion in Asley Gonzalez the current super flyweight world titlist. They met years ago with Badillo coming out on top.
Does Badillo have the skill to deal with the taller and hard-hitting Fundora?
When a fighter has a six-inch height advantage like Fundora, it is almost impossible to out-maneuver especially in two-minute rounds. Ask Alaniz who was nearly decapitated when she tried.
This will be Badillo’s first pro fight outside of Mexico.
Commerce Casino
Kazakhstan’s Sadriddin Akhmedov (15-0, 13 KOs) is another dangerous punching super welterweight headlining a 360 Promotions card against Mexico’s Elias Espadas (23-6, 16 KOs) on Saturday at the Commerce Casino.
UFC Fight Pass will stream the 360 Promotions card of about eight bouts.
Akhmedov is another Kazakh puncher similar to the great Gennady “GGG” Golovkin who terrorized the middleweight division for a decade. He doesn’t have the same polish or dexterity but doesn’t lack pure punching power.
It’s another test for the super welterweight who is looking to move up the ladder in the very crowded 154-pound weight division. 360 Promotions already has a top contender in Ukraine’s Serhii Bohachuk who nearly defeated Vergil Ortiz a year ago.
Could Bohachuk and Akhmedov fight each other if nothing else materializes?
That’s a question for another day.
Fights to Watch
Sat. DAZN 5 p.m. Charles Conwell (21-0, 16 KOs) vs. Jorge Garcia Perez (32-4, 26 KOs); Gabriela Fundora (15-0) vs Marilyn Badillo (19-0-1).
Sat. UFC Fight Pass 6 p.m. Sadriddin Akhmedov (15-0) vs Elias Espadas (23-6).
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TSS Salutes Thomas Hauser and his Bernie Award Cohorts

The Boxing Writers Association of America has announced the winners of its annual Bernie Awards competition. The awards, named in honor of former five-time BWAA president and frequent TSS contributor Bernard Fernandez, recognize outstanding writing in six categories as represented by stories published the previous year.
Over the years, this venerable website has produced a host of Bernie Award winners. In 2024, Thomas Hauser kept the tradition alive. A story by Hauser that appeared in these pages finished first in the category “Boxing News Story.” Titled “Ryan Garcia and the New York State Athletic Commission,” the story was published on June 23. You can read it HERE.
Hauser also finished first in the category of “Investigative Reporting” for “The Death of Ardi Ndembo,” a story that ran in the (London) Guardian. (Note: Hauser has owned this category. This is his 11th first place finish for “Investigative Reporting”.)
Thomas Hauser, who entered the International Boxing Hall of Fame with the class of 2019, was honored at last year’s BWAA awards dinner with the A.J. Leibling Award for Outstanding Boxing Writing. The list of previous winners includes such noted authors as W.C. Heinz, Budd Schulberg, Pete Hamill, and George Plimpton, to name just a few.
The Leibling Award is now issued intermittently. The most recent honorees prior to Hauser were Joyce Carol Oates (2015) and Randy Roberts (2019).
Roberts, a Distinguished Professor of History at Purdue University, was tabbed to write the Hauser/Leibling Award story for the glossy magazine for BWAA members published in conjunction with the organization’s annual banquet. Regarding Hauser’s most well-known book, his Muhammad Ali biography, Roberts wrote, “It is nearly impossible to overestimate the importance of the book to our understanding of Ali and his times.” An earlier book by Hauser, “The Black Lights: Inside the World of Professional Boxing,” garnered this accolade: “Anyone who wants to understand boxing today should begin by reading ‘The Black Lights’.”
A panel of six judges determined the Bernie Award winners for stories published in 2024. The stories they evaluated were stripped of their bylines and other identifying marks including the publication or website for which the story was written.
Other winners:
Boxing Event Coverage: Tris Dixon
Boxing Column: Kieran Mulvaney
Boxing Feature (Over 1,500 Words): Lance Pugmire
Boxing Feature (Under 1,500 Words): Chris Mannix
The Dixon, Mulvaney, and Pugmire stories appeared in Boxing Scene; the Mannix story in Sports Illustrated.
The Bernie Award recipients will be honored at the forthcoming BWAA dinner on April 30 at the Edison Ballroom in the heart of Times Square. (For more information, visit the BWAA website). Two days after the dinner, an historic boxing tripleheader will be held in Times Square, the logistics of which should be quite interesting. Ryan Garcia, Devin Haney, and Teofimo Lopez share top billing.
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Mekhrubon Sanginov, whose Heroism Nearly Proved Fatal, Returns on Saturday

To say that Mekhrubon Sanginov is excited to resume his boxing career would be a great understatement. Sanginov, ranked #9 by the WBA at 154 pounds before his hiatus, last fought on July 8, 2022.
He was in great form before his extended leave, having scored four straight fast knockouts, advancing his record to 13-0-1. Had he remained in Las Vegas, where he had settled after his fifth pro fight, his career may have continued on an upward trajectory, but a trip to his hometown of Dushanbe, Tajikistan, turned everything haywire. A run-in with a knife-wielding bully nearly cost him his life, stalling his career for nearly three full years.
Sanginov was exiting a restaurant in Dushanbe when he saw a man, plainly intoxicated, harassing another man, an innocent bystander. Mekhrubon intervened and was stabbed several times with a long knife. One of the puncture wounds came perilously close to puncturing his heart.
“After he stabbed me, I ran after him and hit him and caught him to hold for the police,” recollects Sanginov. “There was a lot of confusion when the police arrived. At first, the police were not certain what had happened.
“By the time I got to the hospital, I had lost two liters of blood, or so I was told. After I was patched up, one of the surgeons said to me, ‘Give thanks to God because he gave you a second life.’ It is like I was born a second time.”
“I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. It could have happened in any city,” he adds. (A story about the incident on another boxing site elicited this comment from a reader: “Good man right there. World would be a better place if more folk were willing to step up when it counts.”)
Sanginov first laced on a pair of gloves at age 10 and was purportedly 105-14 as an amateur. Growing up, the boxer he most admired was Roberto Duran. “Muhammad Ali will always be the greatest and [Marvin] Hagler was great too, but Duran was always my favorite,” he says.
During his absence from the ring, Sanginov married a girl from Tajikistan and became a father. His son Makhmud was born in Las Vegas and has dual citizenship. “Ideally,” he says, “I would like to have three more children. Two more boys and the last one a daughter.”
He also put on a great deal of weight. When he returned to the gym, his trainer Bones Adams was looking at a cruiserweight. But gradually the weight came off – “I had to give up one of my hobbies; I love to eat,” he says – and he will be resuming his career at 154. “Although I am the same weight as before, I feel stronger now. Before I was more of a boy, now I am a full-grown man,” says Sanginov who turned 29 in February.
He has a lot of rust to shed. Because of all those early knockouts, he has answered the bell for only eight rounds in the last four years. Concordantly, his comeback fight on Saturday could be described as a soft re-awakening. Sanginov’s opponent Mahonri Montes, an 18-year pro from Mexico, has a decent record (36-10-2, 25 KOs) but has been relatively inactive and is only 1-3-1 in his last five. Their match at Thunder Studios in Long Beach, California, is slated for eight rounds.
On May 10, Ardreal Holmes (17-0) faces Erickson Lubin (26-2) on a ProBox card in Kissimmee, Florida. It’s an IBF super welterweight title eliminator, meaning that the winner (in theory) will proceed directly to a world title fight.
Sanginov will be watching closely. He and Holmes were scheduled to meet in March of 2022 in the main event of a ShoBox card on Showtime. That match fell out when Sanginov suffered an ankle injury in sparring.
If not for a twist of fate, that may have been Mekhrubon Sanginov in that IBF eliminator, rather than Ardreal Holmes. We will never know, but one thing we do know is that Mekhrubon’s world title aspirations were too strong to be ruined by a knife-wielding bully.
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