Omar Figueroa, Adrien Broner Examples of Why Mental Health is a Serious Issue

Published

3 years ago

August 16, 2022

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COVID-19, the global pandemic that never seems to go away entirely, doggedly living on as various strains have emerged, has emphasized the need to prioritize mental health during a time when school children and working adults alike have increasingly been traumatized by imposed restrictions that have inexorably altered their daily lives.

As someone who has twice been dealt grievous blows by the effects of such utter despair – an uncle and a cousin so felt that walls were closing in on them that they took their own lives – I cannot make light of the circumstances that have led to Saturday night’s PBC on SHOWTIME revised 12-round main event, in which junior welterweight Omar Figueroa Jr. (28-2-1, 19 KOs) takes on late replacement Sergey Lipinets (16-2-1, 12 KOs) at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla. Figueroa, a former WBC lightweight champion, has been quite open about the “dark place” from which he has been trying to emerge after making the difficult decision to seek counseling and therapy for a wide range of mental issues including ADHD (attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder), Bipolar disorder, clinical depression, anxiety, OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder) and a more severe form of PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) known as “complex” PTSD.

Lipinets, 33, was already scheduled to appear on Saturday night’s card, in an eight-rounder against Carlos Portillo (22-4, 17 KOs), but the former IBF junior welterweight titlist moved up to the marquee bout when Figueroa’s originally scheduled opponent, four-division ex-champion Adrien “The Problem” Broner (34-4-1, 24 KOs) withdrew Monday because of – and this is not really a shock, given his history of erratic behavior — mental health concerns.

Asked when he realized that his brain was not conjuring only happy images of sunshine and lollipops, the now-32-year-old Figueroa said, “I think, for me, it was when I was 17 or 18 years old. That’s when I got really, really bad. Obviously, this past year I feel like I had a psychotic break because of everything that was going on, then getting hit with news that I really did have all this stuff going on. It’s been a roller-coaster, man. It’s been interesting to say the least.”

It is incredible, given all that he has had to deal with out of the ring, that Figueroa was able to perform at such a high level until the whirling dervishes inhabiting his mind became more of a threat to his career and general well-being than gloved opponents seeking to batter him into submission. His most recent victory, a 10-round unanimous decision over John Molina Jr., was 42 long months ago. He has fought only twice since then, a points loss to Yordenis Ugas on July 20, 2019, and an ineffectual, sixth-round stoppage at the hands of Abel Ramos on May 1, 2021, that made it abundantly clear that something was terribly wrong and needed to be fixed if he was to salvage the one aspect of himself that ever had made him feel special.

“I don’t know,” Figueroa said when asked why the wheels came off the way they did against Ramos. “I wish I knew what the heck happened in that fight. My legs just weren’t there. That’s the most frustrating thing that can happen because we went through a whole camp and whenever I’m in camp I’m 100% and I dedicate myself. I did everything I had to do to be perfect for that fight. In the first round I knew I hurt him and I know I could have finished him, but when I tried to put in that little extra effort to finish him, my legs just weren’t there. I don’t know what happened to my body at that point, but that’s also what started me on my introspective journey. I started looking into mental health and I realized how important that was.”

Once he was certain he had restored enough mental tranquility to return to the travails of his trade, Figueroa felt confident enough to skip any minimally challenging warmup bouts and go directly to Broner, whom he was originally scheduled to face in 2018 until that bout fell through. So assured was Figueroa, a Texan by birth and Mexican by heritage, that he would emerge victorious that he was moved to say “I think we’re both at a point in our careers, especially with our age (Broner is 33) and our trajectories, I wanted to make a challenge to Broner and say, `Whoever loses this fight should retire.’”

In stepping aside on Monday, Broner, who had said earlier that he was “ready for whatever (Figueroa) brings,” might have stamped himself as irreparably damaged goods. He issued his reason for withdrawing via social media, offering that “Man I’m going thru a lot at this moment in my life, but I ain’t (gonna) give up. I set more goals and I ain’t stopping until I finish what I started but sorry to say this but I’m not fighting (Saturday night).”

Broner

It will be interesting to see if Broner commits himself as fully as did Figueroa to repairing his jumbled thought processes. His talent inside the ropes is such — or was — that some observers once dared to list him as a possible addition to the list of legendary Cincinnati boxers headed by Ezzard Charles and Aaron Pryor, but mark me as unconvinced until further notice. In a story I did for The Sweet Science that was posted on Feb. 16, 2017, I wrote that “his decision-making out of the ring has been baffling, his conduct outrageous, his irresponsibility legendary.” Noted trainer and longtime ESPN boxing analyst Teddy Atlas said of the best of Broner that did not always manifest itself once the bell rang that “from a physical standpoint he is extremely skilled. Whoever he gets in with, he just looks faster, smarter and better than all of them.”

In that 2017 story, however, Broner did say that “It’s not about me anymore. It’s about my children and that’s what I’ve based my career on as of now. I’m doing everything for them. I just want to do better and be in better situations. That’s all. When you try to do it your way and it don’t work, then you got to make the right choices and start following the right steps.”

Given that many mental health issues are hereditary, Broner’s once-expressed concern for his children does provide a glimmer of hope that just maybe he is a leopard that can finally change its spots, as Figueroa is in attempting to not only transform himself as a fighter, but as a proper dad and role model for his kids.

All of which stamps Figueroa vs. Lipinets as a far more interesting case study of human behavior borne of the intricacies of the mind than of the standard plot of one fighter having to change course to a different opponent on short notice.

“What are we going to do?” Figueroa asked, rhetorically. “It’s fight week. It’s not like I have time to change stuff in sparring, or training, or anything. I just have to trust myself and the work that we’ve done and move forward as best we can.”

Bernard Fernandez, named to the International Boxing Hall of Fame in the Observer category with the Class of 2020, was the recipient of numerous awards for writing excellence during his 28-year career as a sports writer for the Philadelphia Daily News. Fernandez’s first book, “Championship Rounds,” a compendium of previously published material, was released in May of last year. The sequel, “Championship Rounds, Round 2,” with a foreword by Jim Lampley, is currently out. The anthology can be ordered through Amazon.com and other book-selling websites and outlets.

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

Published

6 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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