Beterbiev Embellishes His Claim as Top Light Heavy in Stopping Gvozdyk

Published

6 years ago

October 19, 2019

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Minutes after Artur Beterbiev had scored three knockdowns of Oleksandr Gvozdyk that did count in the 10^th round, prompting referee Gary Rosato to wave an end to an historic and entertaining light heavyweight bout, someone asked the winner if he knew he was actually behind on two of the three official scorecards at the time of the stoppage.

The bearded, Montreal-based Russian, who now has won all 15 of his professional outings inside the distance, didn’t seem to mind or care that he might have been in danger of losing on points, had it come to that. When you are accustomed to scoring knockouts, taking the outcome out of the hands of judges with pencils, the perhaps natural tendency is to assume that the familiar pattern will again play itself out as it always had.

“First knockdown, second knockdown, third knockdown, I don’t count,” Beterbiev said of a performance that wasn’t exactly flawless, but nonetheless might have embellished his claim of being the best 175-pound on the planet. “I am just working. I just continue working until the referee stop it.”

Now, about that bit of history that was made Friday night, before a pro-Gvozdyk on-site turnout of 3,283 in the Liacouras Center on Temple University’s North Philadelphia campus, and an ESPN viewing audience. It marked the just the fifth unification of the light heavyweight division since 2000. No fighter has held all four alphabet-organization titles since the dawn of the 21^st century, something Beterbiev is eager to correct and Top Rank founder and CEO Bob Arum is just as eager to help him accomplish moving forward. Now that Beterbiev has added Gvozdyk’s WBC strap to the IBF belt he already held, not to mention the lineal title that also had belonged to the slick-boxing Ukrainian, Beterbiev believes he deserves to be more widely acknowledged as best of the best.

Although Beterbiev’s next fight, early in 2020, almost certainly will come against his IBF mandatory challenger, China’s Meng Fanlong (16-0, 10 KOs), he envisions more unification showdowns, against WBA champ Dmitry Bivol (17-0, 11 KOs) and the winner of the Nov. 2 pairing of WBO ruler and fellow Russian Sergey Kovalev (34-3-1, 29 KOs) and WBA/WBC middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez (51-1-2, 35 KOs), especially if the survivor is Kovalev.

“Unification or mandatory, it doesn’t matter,” Beterbiev said. “I just continue. I’m focused on titles, not names.”

There might also be a rematch with Gvozdyk (17-1, 14 KOs) to be fitted into his schedule at some point, given the fact that “The Nail” actually led on the scorecards of judges John McKaie (87-84) and Ron McNair (86-85) through the nine completed rounds. John Poturaj was the dissenter, having Beterbiev ahead by 87-83.

Punch statistics seemingly did not support the tallies of McKaie and McNair, as Beterbiev outlanded Gvozdyk, 161 to 118, in total punches and 113-94 on power shots. But statistics alone do not tell the story; although Gvozdyk had his moments, Beterbiev did not seem visibly affected when he was on the receiving end. The same could not be said of Gvozdyk, who clinched often in the ninth round and visibly appeared to be gassed and hurting prior to the climactic 10^th.

“Gvozdyk was outboxing him early, but the `Beast’ just wore him down and finally took him out,” said Bob Arum, who has both fighters in his deep promotional stable. “He’s one of the strongest light heavyweights I’ve ever seen. He has tremendous energy, takes a great punch and stays in there until he finally wears his opponent out.”

It also would appear that Beterbiev is not easily distracted, as evidenced by what happened in the closing moments of the first round, which Gvozdyk appeared to be winning. When Beterbiev wrestled Gvozdyk to the canvas without a punch being thrown, Rosato initiated a count, potentially turning a 10-9 round for Gvozdyk into a 10-8 for Beterbiev. Greg Sirb, head of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission, quickly ruled that there had been no knockdown, but the possibility of a three-point swing in the very first round might have been unnerving to a lot of fighters. Not so with Beterbiev.

Twice more before the fateful 10^th did Gvozdyk wind up on the deck, both times being ruled slips by Rosato, whom, Arum said, “didn’t cover himself in glory the whole fight.”

Despite the disappointingly small attendance — a majority of attendees apparently Ukrainian expatriates or visitors to the U.S. — the main event drew a Who’s Who of boxing notables: Tyson Fury, Bernard Hopkins, Vasiliy Lomachenko, Oleksandr Usyk, Andre Ward, Teofimo Lopez, Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller, Richard Commey, Paulie Malignaggi and Jesse Hart.

In other bouts:

*The ESPN-televised lead-in to Beterbiev-Gvozdyk also was a star turn of sorts for Uzbekistani welterweight Kudratillo Abdukakhorov (17-0, 9 KOs), the IBF’s No. 1 contender who took a wide nine-round (yes, that’s right) unanimous decision over Luis Collazo (39-8, 20 KOs), the 38-year-old former WBA 147-pound title-holder from Brooklyn. An unintentional clash of heads in the 10^th round opened a nasty cut in Collazo’s right eyelid, a companion piece to the cut above the left eye he had suffered earlier in the fight. If all that wasn’t enough, Collazo, a southpaw, appeared to have injured his left bicep in the fifth round.

“I would like to fight for the title next,” said Abdukakhorov, whose No. 1 ranking puts him at or near the front of the line for a shot at IBF champion Errol Spence Jr., who is recovering from a recent automobile accident. “If he’s ready to fight soon, I would like to fight him. If he has to vacate the title, then I will fight whoever they put in front of me.”

*Brothers Joseph Adorno and Jeremy Adorno, both from Allentown, Pa., continued to look like future stars. Joseph (14-0, 12 KOs), a 20-year-old lightweight, floored Argentina’s Damian Sosa (9-3, 7 KOs) twice en route to an emphatic first-round stoppage, while Jeremy (3-0, 1 KO), an 18-year-old super bantamweight, was never pressed in scoring a four-round unanimous decision over Misael Reyes (1-3), of Kansas City, Kan.

*South Philadelphia heavyweight Sonny “The Bronco” Conto (5-0, 4 KOs), a sparring partner of lineal champion Tyson Fury, gave local fans something to cheer about, if only briefly, when opponent Steve Lyons (5-6, 2 KOs), from Larose, La., embarrassed himself by quitting on his stool after the first round of a scheduled four-rounder. During the three minutes during which Lyons gave the impression that he’d rather be back on the bayou, Conto landed a couple of hard, snapping jabs and pronounced himself as having the best in the division other than Fury’s. “He’s the present, I’m the future,” Conto said of Fury, who accompanied him during his ring walk.

*Julian “Hammer Hands” Rodriguez (14-0, 12 KOs), a super lightweight from Hasbrouck Heights, N.J., put Leonardo Doronio (17-17-3, 11 KOs) down and out with a nifty left hook to the jaw in the sixth round of a scheduled six-rounder.

*Super lightweight Josue Vargas (15-1, 9 KOs), of the Bronx, N.Y., pitched an eight-round shutout at Johnny Rodriguez (9-5-1, 6 KOs), of Denver, winning by 80-72 margins on all three scorecards. Vargas also registered a flash knockdown in in round two, so perhaps he was even shorted a point on those cards.

*On a night where light heavyweights topped the marquee, Michael Seals (24-2, 18 KOs), of Atlanta, did his best to drop his name into the mix of future challengers with a one-round stoppage of Argentina’s Elio Trosch (14-9-2, 7 KOs), the put-away coming on a left hook off a right cross.

Photo credit: Mikey Williams for Top Rank

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Avila Perspective, Chap. 322: Super Welter Week in SoCal

Published

10 hours ago

April 18, 2025

David A. Avila

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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

Published

2 days ago

April 16, 2025

TSS Press

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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 11^th 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

Published

3 days ago

April 15, 2025

Arne K. Lang

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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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