Jessie Vargas Throws His Hat in the Political Ring and Finds Himself an Underdog Again

Published

1 year ago

November 10, 2021

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Few professional boxers have a plan for what they will do when they can no longer box. Jessie Vargas is an exception. The LA-born, Las Vegas-raised prizefighter, a former world title-holder at 140 and 147 pounds, aspires to a career in politics. On Monday, Nov. 8, Vargas, 32, took the first step toward reaching that goal when he announced his candidacy for the United States Congress where, if elected, he would represent Nevada’s District 4, a district whose population is overwhelmingly concentrated in North Las Vegas.

Vargas won his first 26 pro fights but is 3-3-2 in his last eight. The defeats came at the hands of Timothy Bradley, Manny Pacquaio, and Mikey Garcia. All three bouts were reasonably competitive although Judge Dave Moretti’s 114-113 card for Pacquiao was a bit of a stretch; the fight wasn’t quite that close.

Vargas was an underdog in all three fights – a sizeable underdog to Pacquiao and Garcia – and in his first foray into the political arena he finds himself an underdog again. For one thing, he is running as a Republican in a blue state. Democrats have won five of the last seven presidential elections. Nevada currently has a Democratic governor. Both Senators and three of the four emissaries in the House are Democrats.

On the state level, few organizations are as politically powerful as Nevada’s Culinary Union Local 226 and affiliated Bartenders Local 165. Members include not only kitchen workers and food and drink servers, but bellmen, porters, housekeepers and laundry workers. The district that Vargas hopes to represent includes several upscale communities, but is predominantly blue-collar.

In Nevada, the 2020 U.S. presidential race pit the Union, whose leadership pushed hard for Biden, against the late casino mogul Sheldon Adelson, Donald Trump’s biggest donor. The Union, more than 60,000 strong, 45 percent immigrant, prevailed. Nevada stayed blue.

Before he can challenge incumbent Steven Horsford, who will almost certainly seek a third consecutive term, Vargas must get by the primary. Two others have declared their intention to run as Republicans including Colombian-American political operative Carolina Serrano who will undoubtedly drain some Hispanic votes away from the prizefighter. Moreover, Nevada’s voters have been partial to women lately. Four of the six members of Congress are female.

Jessie Vargas, however, has a lot going for him. He’s photogenic and he’s well-spoken in two languages. He’s been involved in the community. Among other things, he has taught self-defense to recruits at the Las Vegas Police Academy. He’s worked as a color commentator for HBO Latino and DAZN, expanding his profile.

Vargas is a lapsed Democrat. Judging from the results of the recent gubernatorial races in Virginia and New Jersey, he has a lot of company. Moreover, in Nevada, Republicans have been making some inroads, however slight. Trump garnered 47.7 percent of the Silver State vote in 2020, up from 45.5 in 2016. Jessie Vargas’s entry into the political arena as a convert to Republicanism may have come at just the right time, but as the old saying goes, a year is an eternity in politics.

Is Vargas done with boxing? Not necessarily. He acknowledges that he is considering some offers. He had an agreement in principle to fight on the undercard of Canelo Alvarez’s May 8 tilt in Texas with Billy Joe Saunders – it would have been Jessie’s first venture at 154 – but promoter Eddie Hearn was unable to dredge up a suitable opponent. Liam Smith called out Vargas last month after he blew past Anthony Fowler in the “Battle of Liverpool.” Since Smith is aligned with Hearn, that would be an easy fight to make.

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Should Vargas win a seat in Congress, he would hardly be the first boxer to make his mark in politics.

During the 19^th century, as the Irish were seizing control of the political machinery in many large cities, the boxer-politician came to the fore. Bare-knuckle boxer John Morrissey, who was a young child when his Irish immigrant parents brought him to America, raised the bar.

During his fighting days that culminated with him winning the American championship, Morrissey became a pet of Tammany Hall, New York’s notoriously corrupt Democratic machine. With Tammany support he became a two-term U.S. Congressman and then, when a schism developed in Tammany over the pay of New York City’s municipal workers, declared himself the workingman’s candidate and was elected to the New York State Senate. He would be best remembered as the founding father of the Saratoga racetrack.

Many ex-boxers, when they entered the political arena, chose some branch of the judiciary that didn’t require a law degree. Voters in many communities were partial to the two-fisted variety of sheriff, men that didn’t need to un-holster their gun to chase away the bad guys.

Tommy Gibbons, who followed his brother Mike Gibbons into the International Boxing Hall of Fame, was elected sheriff of Ramsey County, Minnesota, in 1934 and served six four-year terms. Ramsey County encompassed the city of St. Paul where Gibbons was born to Irish immigrants.

The great Alexis Arguello was the mayor of Managua, Nicaragua, when he took his own life in 2009. His case was different as he was a reluctant office-seeker, a tool of the Sandanistas with whom he became disenchanted. Vitali Klitschko is the mayor of Kiev, the capitol city of the Ukraine, a post he has held since 2014.

There was no hesitation on the part of Manny Pacquiao when he threw his hat into the political ring. The amazing PacMan came up short in his first bid for political office, but went on to win a seat in the Filipino Senate and is now favored at off-shore betting sites to become the president of a nation of 111 million people.

This, needless to say, is a very short list of boxer-politicians. As for Jessie Vargas, wouldn’t it be interesting if his hoped-for career in politics takes flight? Among other things, it would certainly enhance the value of any keepsakes from the Pacquiao-Vargas fight.

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Arne K. Lang

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Boxing Odds and Ends: Paul vs. Fury, the Mike Tyson Statue and More

Jake Paul vs Tommy Fury on Feb. 26 in a Potential Pay-Per-View Blockbuster

Published

4 hours ago

January 27, 2023

Arne K. Lang

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It’s now official. The twice-postponed “grudge match” between Jake Paul and Tommy Fury will come to fruition on Sunday, Feb. 26, at Riyadh in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. An 8-rounder contested at a catch-weight of 185 pounds, the match and several supporting bouts will air in the U.S. on ESPN+ PPV at a cost of $49.99.

The hook for this promotion – a come-hither that will be hammered home incessantly in the coming weeks – is that Jake Paul will finally touch gloves with a legitimate professional boxer. Paul’s previous opponents were a fellow YouTube influencer (AnEsonGib), a retired NBA player (Nate Robinson), and three former MMA champions: Ben Askren, Tyron Woodley, and Anderson Silva. He fought Woodley twice.

Tommy Fury, the half-brother of reigning WBC world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, made his pro debut in December of 2018 in a four-round bout in his hometown of Manchester. He was two fights into his pro career when he became a contestant on the TV reality show “Love Island.” An enormously popular show in Great Britain, especially among the coveted 18-34 demographic, “Love Island” was in its fifth season.

Fury was paired with supermodel Molly-Mae Hague with whom he finished second. They developed a great chemistry, on and off the set, became engaged, and purportedly welcomed a baby girl this week.

What about Tommy Fury the boxer? How legitimate is he?

Fury’s record currently stands at 8-0 (4 KOs). His first opponent was a professional loser from Latvia whose current ledger reads 10-113-3. His next six opponents were a combined 4-73-2. Finally, in his last fight, which occurred in April of last year, he met an opponent with a good record, Poland’s Daniel Bocianski, who was 10-1. But look closer and one discovers that all but one of Bocianski’s 10 triumphs came against opponents with losing records. The exception was a 6-round decision over a fellow Pole whose record currently stands at 18-16-1 and who has been stopped 13 times.

Fury bloodied Bocianski and won a wide 6-round decision, but his performance was underwhelming. “Fury had the Hollywood teeth, tan, and diamante-colored shorts,” wrote Chasinga Malata of the London Sun, “leaving only his performance without sheen and sparkle.”

There is nothing in Tommy Fury’s background, aside from his biological pedigree, to suggest that he has the tools to become a world-class boxer. If he were a member of the Three Stooges, he would be Shemp.

Jake Paul, by contrast, may actually be legit. Those in the know that have watched him train have come away impressed. It says here that Paul isn’t moving up in class on Feb. 26; it’s the other way around.

In the co-feature, Ilunga Makabu (29-2, 25 KOs) will make the third defense of his WBC world cruiserweight title against Badou Jack (27-3-3, 16 KOs). A Congolese-South African, Makabu is the older brother of heavyweight contender Martin Bakole. Jack, four years older than Makabu at age 39, formerly held world titles at 168 and 175 pounds.

Although Badou Jack was born in Sweden and keeps a home in Las Vegas where he has long been affiliated with the Mayweather Boxing Club, he will have the home field advantage in Saudi Arabia where he has cultivated a loyal following. A devout Muslim, Jack will be making his fourth straight start in the Persian Gulf Region. In his last outing, he outpointed Richard “Popeye” Rivera at Jeddah, winning a 10-round split decision.

Badou Jack

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Avila Perspective, Chap. 223: A Lively Weekend in SoCal with Three Fight Cards in Two Days

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10 hours ago

January 27, 2023

David A. Avila

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Avila Perspective, Chap. 223: A Lively Weekend in SoCal with Three Fight Cards in Two Days

Big money prizefighting returns to the Los Angeles area with back-to-back shows. First, Serhii Bohachuk heads a 360 Promotions card on Friday and then Alexis Rocha is featured on Saturday in a Golden Boy Promotions production. And on the same day Riverside’s Saul Rodriguez fights in his hometown.

Bohachuk, Rocha, and Rodriguez are aggressive big hitters.

Ukraine’s Bohachuk seeks to regain footing in the super welterweight division. He was rapidly climbing up the ratings ladder when first he was defeated by Brandon Adams two years ago. And then the invasion of his home country Ukraine stalled him even more.

On Friday Jan. 27, at the Quiet Cannon in Montebello, Calif. Bohachuk (21-1, 21 KOs) meets Nathaniel Gallimore (22-6-1, 17 KOs) in the main event. UFC Fight Pass will stream the 360 Boxing Promotions card.

Few fighters are as well-liked outside of the prize ring as Bohachuk. Always amiable, he’s one of the handful of fighters that always smiles. Inside the ring, he’s a killer. No one leaves without someone getting knocked out.

Gallimore, 34, is no slouch. He has a knockout win over former world titlist Jeison Rosario and has battled almost all of the top super welterweights. He is a veteran and very crafty.

The Quiet Cannon venue is not very large, but it does have a patio and good food and drink. Most of the crowd ventures from all over Southern California to attend the fights at that venue. It gets packed.

Golden Boy in Inglewood

Welterweight contender Alexis Rocha headlines the Golden Boy Promotions card on Saturday, Jan. 28, at the brand new YouTube Theater in Inglewood, Calif. DAZN will stream the fight card.

Rocha (21-1, 13 KOs) faces George Ashie (33-5-1) in the main event set for 12 rounds. Finally, there is an opponent for the left-handed fighter from Santa Ana. It didn’t look like he was going to fight after opponent after opponent fell out for one reason or another.

“You have to be ready for anybody they put in front of you. If it’s you or George Ashie, I have to prepare for it. I have to focus on what I can do,” said Rocha.

Others on the card include super middleweight Bektemir Melikuziev (10-1) vs Ulises Sierra (17-2-2) set for 10 rounds. Also, good looking lightweight prospect Floyd Schofield (12-0, 10 KOs) meets Alberto Mercado (17-4-1).

Schofield fights out of Austin, Texas and looks like someone to watch.

Doors open at 3 p.m.

Neno Returns in San Bernardino

Garcia Promotions stages a boxing card on Saturday Jan. 28, at the Club Event Center in San Bernardino. Garcia Promotions is associated with trainer Robert Garcia and family whose training compound is located in nearby Riverside.

A primarily local fight card featuring all fighters from Garcia’s gym will be performing.

Headlining is Saul “Neno” Rodriguez out of Riverside, California.

It’s been nearly three years since Rodriguez (24-1-1, 18 KOs) last fought and he faces Mexico’s Juan Meza Angulo (6-1, 3 KOs) in the co-main event.

At one time Rodriguez was a big fan favorite because of his fast work and knockout ability. Once he got to the top plateau he ran into another knockout puncher in Miguel Angel Gonzalez and lost by stoppage.

Prizefighting is a tricky road. One loss can mean difficulty in finding a big-time promoter or it can mean discovering what you need to do to re-establish your skills. A fighter can go the road of Kermit “The Killer” Cintron and find out other ways to win without a kill-or be-killed style. Or they can travel the road of Marco Antonio Barrera who was knocked out by Junior Jones but adapted a more boxer-puncher style that allowed him to defeat Erik Morales twice and Prince Naseem Hamed.

Rodriguez, 29, still has time to make a good run for a title bid. It all starts on Saturday.

Others on the Garcia Promotions card are fighters who are part of trainer Garcia’s stable including Gabriel Muratalla, Leonardo Ruiz, Jose Rodriguez and others.

Doors open at 4 p.m. with amateurs opening the boxing program.

Fights to Watch

Fri. UFC Fight Pass 7 p.m. Serhii Bohachuk (21-1) vs Nathaniel Gallimore (22-6-1).

Sat. ESPN+ 11:30 a.m. Artur Beterbiev (18-0) vs Anthony Yarde (23-2).

Sat. DAZN 5 p.m. Alexis Rocha (21-1) vs George Ashie (33-5-1).

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Artur Beterbiev: “I’d prefer to fight Bivol because he has the one thing I need”

Published

2 days ago

January 25, 2023

J.J. Alvarez

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Russian Artur Beterbiev, triple champion of the 175-pound division, is the only current world champion who, thanks to the enormous power he wields in his fists, has won all his fights inside the distance.

Beterbiev has 18 victories by way of chloroform since he debuted as a professional fighter in June 2013 when he anesthetized retired American, Christian Cruz, in the tenth round at the Bell Center in Montreal where Beterbiev currently resides.

Beterbiev, who turned thirty-eight last Saturday, will defend his WBC, IBF, and WBO titles against Brit Anthony “The Beast from the East” Yarde (23-2, 22 KOs) on Saturday, January 28th at the OVO Arena in London.

Beterbiev obtained the WBO belt on June 18^th this past year when he defeated American Joe Smith (28-4, 22 KOs) in the second round at Madison Square Garden. This was Smith’s second defense of the belt.

Earlier, in November 2017, Beterbiev won the vacant IBF belt after defeating German Enrico Koelling (28-5, 9 KOs) by knockout in the twelfth round in Fresno, California.

Two years later, Beterbiev seized the WBC belt from Ukrainian Oleksandr Gvozdyk (17-1, 14 KOs) in Philadelphia. Three knockdowns in the tenth round forced referee Gary Rosato to stop the lopsided bout with 11 seconds remaining in the round. Beterbiev maintains that although his intention is to win each fight, in no way does he want to harm his rival and that his greatest wish is for both of them to leave the ring healthy.

Referring to his upcoming matchup, Beterbiev told BoxingScene that “after the fight, I just hope he (Yarde) is okay.”

He acknowledged that he does not know much about the British boxer, although he has watched several of his fights: “He’s a good fighter, has good experience as a professional and he’s a boxer. He’s dangerous so I have to prepare for this fight like I always do.”

Beterbiev said that his main motivation is to successfully defend the three belts he owns and that is why he will try to be one hundred percent ready and then it will be evident who is the better fighter.

Regarding his knockout streak, Beterbiev emphatically denied that he enjoys knocking out his opponents: “No. There’s no pleasure in it. I just hope everything is OK with them. I just want to do good boxing, not hit people.”

Beterbiev smiles enigmatically and stares at the horizon when they ask him to what he attributes the strength of his fists to. “I know for sure, 1000 percent, that the secret to my power is somewhere in my boxing gym but I don’t know exactly where,” he adds. “I don’t know which exercise or bag gave me this secret. I don’t know where it comes from. I wasn’t always like this either, it has come from working every day. But really my dream is to be a good boxer one day.”

Aside from the upcoming fight with Yarde, Beterbiev acknowledges in each interview that his goal is to be the undisputed champion of the division, which means facing (and defeating) the undefeated Russian Dmitry Bivol (21-0, 11 KOs), who holds the WBA light heavyweight super championship belt.

“I need Bivol,” Beterbiev admits. “I’d prefer to fight Bivol because he has the one thing I need. I hope I fight him in 2023 but the hold-up is not from my side, it’s from their side. In the last three years he always says he will fight me next but in this time we’ve done unification fights against Oleksandr Gvozdyk and Joe Smith. We’ve done that whereas he has just been talking about it.

Beterbiev recalled that he was with Bivol on the Russian national team where they were amateurs. “I knew him then, but he is younger than me. We haven’t talked for 10 years now. He was 75kg back then, too small for me. We were never friends.”

Article submitted by Jorge Juan Alvarez in Spanish.

Please note any adjustments made were for clarification purposes and any errors in translation were unintentional.

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