Connect with us

Featured Articles

Repping Texas- Vergil Ortiz Jr., Hector Tanajara and Joshua Franco

Published

on

Repping-Texas-Virgil-Ortiz-Jr-Hector-Tanajara-and-Joshua-Franco

Those Texas boys are at it again.

Welterweight contender Vergil Ortiz Jr. led a media workout for his upcoming clash with Brad Solomon on Friday, Dec. 13, at Fantasy Springs Casino in Indio. He was joined by fellow Longhorns Joshua Franco and Hector Tanajara.

All three Texans live and train in the hills of Riverside, California. The San Antonio faction Franco and Tanajara are darn near being Californians after five years spent at the Robert Garcia Boxing Academy. Dallas native Ortiz Jr. only has two years in Riverside but a couple in Indio too.

Southern California works for them.

“I know all the places to go to now,” said Tanajara at the RGBA gym in Riverside on Tuesday. “We have our favorite places to go for Mexican food.”

Ortiz can’t afford to talk about food; he has an important date coming soon and maintaining weight remains a priority. He’s also banging on the doors of the upper tier in the welterweight rankings. It’s just a matter of time.

The compound where the fighters live and train recently expanded and a virtual army of prizefighters are available to glove up at any time. Because of the pure numbers they seldom need to venture outside for sparring.

“Sometimes we get fighters from other places to come here,” said Ortiz, 21. “But we don’t go outside too many times.”

Knockouts seem to happen whenever Ortiz touches his foes but it’s not a goal. The slender power-punching welterweight prefers the mental warfare between prizefighters – deciphering an opponent’s style appeals to him like a game of speed chess.

“You could say I like adapting and overcoming other fighter’s styles,” said Ortiz who has trained under Robert Garcia for nearly two years now. “I’m always looking for clues.”

Vergil Ortiz Sr. the father, also lives in Riverside and both like to work on picking apart an opponent’s technique and style. It keeps them up hours after they leave the boxing compound.

“Most people think he wants to blow them out but that’s not the case,” said Ortiz Sr. “He’s a boxer first. He can box, it’s just that he’s knocked them out before he can show people what he can really do.”

Ortiz Jr. (14-0, 14 KOs) will be facing the elusive style of Solomon (28-1, 9 KOs) at Fantasy Springs next week. The Golden Boy Promotions card will be shown by DAZN.

Solomon has not lost in three years and that was by split decision. The nearly six-foot welterweight fights out of Georgia and has beaten some talented contenders like Ray Robinson, Adrian Granados and Freddy Hernandez.

Fighting different boxing approaches like Solomon’s appeals to Ortiz.

“I like figuring out how to beat different styles. It’s fun,” said Ortiz who has six first round knockouts and has never fought past the sixth round. “I’ve learned a lot about pacing and strategy since I’ve been here.”

Ortiz can’t wait to enter the bigger stage, but business first next week. The father Ortiz Sr. foresees his son in a mega fight especially in his adopted home Southern California.

“I’d love to see Vergil fight in Los Angeles where the big boxing fans are,” said Ortiz Sr. “Los Angeles has the best boxing fans.”

San Antonio

Joshua Franco and Hector Tanajara both return home on Jan. 11, when they are scheduled to fight on the undercard of the Jaime Munguia middleweight clash with Gary O’Sullivan at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.

It’s an exciting homecoming for the duo.

Tanajara has never fought professionally in his hometown. The closest he fought to San Antonio was two years ago when he fought in Grand Prairie, Texas, a town located about 300 miles away.

Hector Tanajara

Hector Tanajara

“It’s giving me a lot of motivation to be fighting in San Antonio,” said Tanajara, 22, whose last fight was a defense of the WBC U.S. lightweight title against Ezekiel Aviles that resulted in a win by unanimous decision. “I want to put on a good show.”

The other San Antonio fighter, Josh Franco, has engaged in three of the toughest and most exciting battles of the year. All three wars saw the fighter known as “El Profesor” trade bombs with Colombia’s Oscar Negrete. Franco won once and the other two ended in draws. Now it’s time to decipher the rest of the fight world.

“We’re going to have a lot of friends and family coming to the Alamodome,” said Franco, 24, who has spent nearly five years in Southern California and now gets an opportunity to fight in front of the hometown crowd. “It’s going to be good.”

Joshua Franco

Joshua Franco

Neither Tanajara nor Franco has an opponent at this time, but both are scheduled to fight.

“We’re comfortable here in Riverside, but I’m not nervous about fighting in San Antonio,” said Franco. “It’s going to be fun.”

Those Texas boys are at it again.

Photos by Al Applerose

Check out more boxing news on video at The Boxing Channel  

To comment on this story in The Fight Forum CLICK HERE

Share The Sweet Science experience!

Featured Articles

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

Published

on

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).

To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE

 

 

Share The Sweet Science experience!
Continue Reading

Featured Articles

TSS Salutes Thomas Hauser and his Bernie Award Cohorts

Published

on

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.

To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE

Share The Sweet Science experience!
Continue Reading

Featured Articles

Mekhrubon Sanginov, whose Heroism Nearly Proved Fatal, Returns on Saturday

Published

on

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.

To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE

Share The Sweet Science experience!
Continue Reading
Advertisement
Bernard-Fernandez-Reflects-on-His-Special-Bond-with-George-Foreman
Featured Articles4 weeks ago

Bernard Fernandez Reflects on His Special Bond with George Foreman

A-Paean-to-George-Foreman-1949-2025-Architect-of-an-Amazing-Second-Act
Featured Articles4 weeks ago

A Paean to George Foreman (1949-2025), Architect of an Amazing Second Act

Spared-Prison-by-a-Lenient-Judge-Chordale-Booker-Pursues-a-World-Boxing-Title
Featured Articles4 weeks ago

Spared Prison by a Lenient Judge, Chordale Booker Pursues a World Boxing Title

Sebastian-Fundora-TKOs-Chordale-Booker-in-Las-Vegas
Featured Articles4 weeks ago

Sebastian Fundora TKOs Chordale Booker in Las Vegas

Boxing-Odds-and-Ends-The-Wacky-and-Sad-World-of-Livingstone-Bramble-and-More
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

Boxing Odds and Ends: The Wacky and Sad World of Livingstone Bramble and More

Avila-Perspective-Chap-318-Aussie-Action-Vegas-and-More
Featured Articles4 weeks ago

Avila Perspective, Chap. 318: Aussie Action, Vegas and More

Avila-Perspective-Chap-319-Rematches-in-Las-Vegas-Cancun-and-More
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

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

Ringside-at-the-Fontainebleau-where-Mikaela-Mayer-won-her-Rematch-with-Sandy-Ryan
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

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

Results-and-Recaps-from-Sydney-where-George-Kambosos-Upended-Late-Sub-Jake-Wyllie
Featured Articles4 weeks ago

Results and Recaps from Sydney where George Kambosos Upended Late Sub Jake Wyllie

William-Zepeda-Edges-Past-Tevin-Farmer-in-Cancun-Improves-to-34-0
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

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

History-has-Shortchanged-Freddie-Dawson-One-of-the-Best-Boxers-of-his-Era
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

History has Shortchanged Freddie Dawson, One of the Best Boxers of his Era

Avila-Perspective-Chap-320-Women's-Boxing-Hall-of-Fame-Heavyweights-and-More
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Avila Perspective, Chap. 320: Women’s Boxing Hall of Fame, Heavyweights and More

Results-and-Recaps-from-Las-Vegas-where-Richard-Torrez-Jr-Mauled-Guido-Vianello
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Results and Recaps from Las Vegas where Richard Torrez Jr Mauled Guido Vianello

Filip-Hrgovic-Fefeats-Joe-Joe-Joyce-in-Manchester
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Filip Hrgovic Defeats Joe Joyce in Manchester

Weekend-Recap-and-More-with-Accents-on-Heavyweights
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Weekend Recap and More with the Accent of Heavyweights

Remembering-Hall--Fame-Boxing-Trainer-Kenny-Adams
Featured Articles1 week ago

Remembering Hall of Fame Boxing Trainer Kenny Adams

Avila-Perspective-Chap-320:-Boots-Ennis-and-Stanionis.jpg
Featured Articles1 week ago

Avila Perspective Chap 320: Boots Ennis and Stanionis

Jaron-'Boots'-Ennis-Wins-Welterweight-Showdown-in-Atlantic-City
Featured Articles6 days ago

Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis Wins Welterweight Showdown in Atlantic City

Dzmitry-Asanau-Flummoxes-Franesco-Patera-on-a-Ho-Hum-Card-in-Montreal
Featured Articles1 week ago

Dzmitry Asanau Flummoxes Francesco Patera on a Ho-Hum Card in Montreal

Boxing-Notes-and-Nuggets-from-Thoas-Hauser
Featured Articles7 days ago

Boxing Notes and Nuggets from Thomas Hauser

Avila-Perspective-Chap-322-Super-Welter-Week-in-SoCal
Featured Articles14 hours ago

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

TSS-Salutes-Thomas-Hauser-and-his-Bernie-Award-Cohorts
Featured Articles3 days ago

TSS Salutes Thomas Hauser and his Bernie Award Cohorts

Mekhrubon-Sanginov-whose-Heroism-Nearly-Proved-Fatal-Returns-on-Saturday
Featured Articles4 days ago

Mekhrubon Sanginov, whose Heroism Nearly Proved Fatal, Returns on Saturday

Jaron-'Boots'-Ennis-Wins-Welterweight-Showdown-in-Atlantic-City
Featured Articles6 days ago

Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis Wins Welterweight Showdown in Atlantic City

Boxing-Notes-and-Nuggets-from-Thoas-Hauser
Featured Articles7 days ago

Boxing Notes and Nuggets from Thomas Hauser

Avila-Perspective-Chap-320:-Boots-Ennis-and-Stanionis.jpg
Featured Articles1 week ago

Avila Perspective Chap 320: Boots Ennis and Stanionis

Dzmitry-Asanau-Flummoxes-Franesco-Patera-on-a-Ho-Hum-Card-in-Montreal
Featured Articles1 week ago

Dzmitry Asanau Flummoxes Francesco Patera on a Ho-Hum Card in Montreal

Remembering-Hall--Fame-Boxing-Trainer-Kenny-Adams
Featured Articles1 week ago

Remembering Hall of Fame Boxing Trainer Kenny Adams

Weekend-Recap-and-More-with-Accents-on-Heavyweights
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Weekend Recap and More with the Accent of Heavyweights

Results-and-Recaps-from-Las-Vegas-where-Richard-Torrez-Jr-Mauled-Guido-Vianello
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Results and Recaps from Las Vegas where Richard Torrez Jr Mauled Guido Vianello

Filip-Hrgovic-Fefeats-Joe-Joe-Joyce-in-Manchester
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Filip Hrgovic Defeats Joe Joyce in Manchester

Avila-Perspective-Chap-320-Women's-Boxing-Hall-of-Fame-Heavyweights-and-More
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

Avila Perspective, Chap. 320: Women’s Boxing Hall of Fame, Heavyweights and More

History-has-Shortchanged-Freddie-Dawson-One-of-the-Best-Boxers-of-his-Era
Featured Articles2 weeks ago

History has Shortchanged Freddie Dawson, One of the Best Boxers of his Era

Ringside-at-the-Fontainebleau-where-Mikaela-Mayer-won-her-Rematch-with-Sandy-Ryan
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

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

William-Zepeda-Edges-Past-Tevin-Farmer-in-Cancun-Improves-to-34-0
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

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

Avila-Perspective-Chap-319-Rematches-in-Las-Vegas-Cancun-and-More
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

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

Boxing-Odds-and-Ends-The-Wacky-and-Sad-World-of-Livingstone-Bramble-and-More
Featured Articles3 weeks ago

Boxing Odds and Ends: The Wacky and Sad World of Livingstone Bramble and More

A-Paean-to-George-Foreman-1949-2025-Architect-of-an-Amazing-Second-Act
Featured Articles4 weeks ago

A Paean to George Foreman (1949-2025), Architect of an Amazing Second Act

Sebastian-Fundora-TKOs-Chordale-Booker-in-Las-Vegas
Featured Articles4 weeks ago

Sebastian Fundora TKOs Chordale Booker in Las Vegas

Bernard-Fernandez-Reflects-on-His-Special-Bond-with-George-Foreman
Featured Articles4 weeks ago

Bernard Fernandez Reflects on His Special Bond with George Foreman

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

Trending

Advertisement