Why Tapales vs Akhmadaliev Promises Fireworks This Saturday

Published

2 years ago

April 3, 2023

Why-Tapales-s-Akhmadaliev-Promises-Fireworks-This-Saturday

When Marlon Tapales (36-3) out of The Philippines, and Murodjon Akhmadaliev (11-0) out of Uzbekistan meet atop a deep card in the Boeing Center at Tech Port at San Antonio this Saturday, boxing will be treated to the kind of fight that has been delivering consistent excellence in the first part of 2023.

In Luis Nery versus Azat Hovhannisyan, Brandon Figueroa versus Mark Magsayo and Artem Dalakian versus David Jiminez, we got solid, exciting, competitive and often vicious fights where the fistic public didn’t have to be plugged into social media to follow fight negotiations because the negotiations were carried out in private, as is right and proper. Boxing fans did not have to dig through a series of profane-laden videos straight to camera to try to decipher clues as to the state of negotiations between the two millionaire alpha male superstars and their huge teams of accountants, lawyers and agents but could, instead, trust that the two men would turn up and fight it out at the time stated in the TV guide.

January through March, just under or just over the radar depending upon the weight class, boxing has been delivering good to great fights at a high rate across the continents for one of the best beginnings to the year in my time as a fan. Tapales-Akhmadaliev is the latest of these.

Most importantly in trying to pick these jewels out ahead of time is the relative rankings of the two fighters in question. All the examples in paragraph two were fights contested between fighters who were closely ranked in any decent appraisal of their given division. The importance of this cannot be overstated, and the phrase “decent appraisal” is doing a lot of heavy lifting. You can’t trust the ABCs, for example. The WBA are usually the worst offenders in this regard, and as an example their heavyweight rankings would promise a scintillating contest between their number four, a man named Lenier Peno and their number eight, Jonathan Guidry – honest professionals, I’m sure, but minor players to put it politely.

Tapales and Akhmadaliev can be found ranked near the top of the pack in both print and digital media and in specialist independent ratings organisations such as TBRB who rank Akhmadaliev as the number two 122lb contender in the world, and Tapales, the number six (for the record I have them at 3 and 5 respectively). This is not a guarantee of competitiveness – ranked fighters stumble past their primes and achieve underserved spots based upon careful matchmaking all the time, that’s boxing – but it is close.

Akhmadaliev’s rise to 122lb eminence has been swift and violent. After a five-year amateur career which included some impressive moments, he turned professional strapped to a rocket more commonly associated with Olympic gold medal winners. He was first scheduled to fight over ten in just his fourth fight although nobody was able to carry him that far as he strung together knockouts to carry him into the 2020s and his first fight over the twelve-round distance.

His opponent was to be Daniel Roman, highly ranked, big, fast, and much more experienced. It is this fight that confirmed Akhmadaliev as special. His bulldog frame belied his grace and quickness in getting his punches into range – his sizzling inverted one-two was more impressive than Roman’s jab/uppercut combination. He outfought Roman in the first half and even more impressively out-lasted and out-monstered him down the stretch, sweeping eight through eleven on my card to pick up an inexplicably close decision on the official scorecards.

This was a big moment for Akhmadaliev who had never boxed more than nine rounds in his career but was clearly ready to do a difficult twelve and throw enough punches to win late rounds. Engine checked and in possession of two belts, he blasted out an overmatched Ryosuke Iwasa in his ninth fight – an important match we shall return to – before all but shutting out Jose Velasquez in twelve rounds in his tenth.

His most recent fight was a twelve-round knockout of Ronny Rios and there was a feeling watching this fight unfold that Rios was summitting. Azat Hovhannisyan got Rios out of there more quickly, but the systemic breakdown Akhmadaliev put forth was in many ways more impressive. His southpaw jab triggered three and four punch combinations, his footwork brought Rios on before taking Akhmadaliev out of harm’s way; he threw an uppercut through the middle and he hurt Rios to the body as early as the fourth, also the round in which he took near complete control over the fight, losing only one more round on my card. Mixing counterpunches with leads, if a fighter can do it competently, makes the fighting environment as hostile for the opponent as any boxing execution other than perhaps a barracked pressure-stalk. Akhmadaliev showed both and that he understood the detail of both against Rios.

He also proved he carries power late. The single power punches he elected to deploy when he had Rios hurt in the twelfth and final round were chilling, the crippling body shot to the solar plexus he used to break Rios a thing of horror. Akhmadaliev loaded up only at the very end when things were essentially already decided, though it might be noted that he started missing when he did.

Tapales will also have noted though that Akhmadaliev was there throughout for an uppercut to the body and might perhaps offer a thought on Ronny’s reluctance to throw the punch he had success with, such was his fear of Akhmadaliev’s counter left. Tapales had a more circumspect rise to the top, turning professional as a teenager and suffering excusable setbacks as he moved through the distances and into new classes. These “setbacks” must have seemed easy to him compared to life’s alternative; Tapales, one of eight children, worked on a pig-farm even before he was a fifteen-year-old professional.

Either way, post 2014, Tapales seemed to have found the formula to cohabiting learning and winning. He went 12-0 between then and his 2019 contest with Ryosuke Iwasa. We ran into Iwasa above when he succumbed to Akhmadaliev in five. Iwasa, for whatever reason, just did not have the hands to keep Akhmadaliev honest or off him. Akhmadaliev cruised into him in the second and dispatched him in the fifth, uppercuts doing the damage before many straight punches in tandem prompted a slightly premature intervention by the referee.

Tapales meanwhile, lost to Iwasa, his last loss, posted right at the end of the last decade, but there were circumstances. Tapales, who won the first two rounds clearly, incorrectly had a headbutt ruled as a knockdown in the third – worse, his right eye suffered serious damage in the clash and left him hampered. He won perhaps as few as two rounds in the remainder of the fight before succumbing in the eleventh, mainly to the Iwasa left, which he may have struggled to see coming.

Interpreting this fight may be key to understanding how Saturday night will unfold, but I don’t think so. Tapales may have learned his final lesson that night, and since then he has been ruthless in deploying his offence and controlling the fight rhythms. Indeed, he has actually become a victim of his own success, a new problem being inactivity – Tapales staged his comeback fight against the limited Eden Sonsona who he blasted out in two; he then moved back to the sharper end of the division against Hiroaki Teshigawara, who he also knocked out in two; another soft touch in Jose Estrella resulted in another KO2 and Tapales had managed to post just six rounds for the decade.

But he has clearly found the third punch in his combinations and has never looked a better, more complete fighter. Whatever the detail of his contest against Iwasa, Tapales is better now. Nevertheless, Akhmadaliev will start as the favourite as the higher ranked man, the beltholder, based upon the Iwasa result and finally that propensity for targeted body punching. It does all add up to Akhmadaliev being the right pick in a possible thriller that I’ll look to see finished by body punching perhaps late in the fight. Tapales will look to take control early while Akhmadaliev is appraising him, but the jab coming the other way plus the shots Akhmadaliev builds off it will prove to be just a little too much. The stakes are high. The winner is positioned to joust with Luis Nery in determining the next opponent for the victor of the Naoya Inoue-Stephen Fulton fight later this year.

Sharing top billing on this card, Jesse Rodriguez seeks to pick up a 112lb strap against the overmatched Cristian Gonzalez Hernandez. This will probably feel like something of a procession but with Hernandez on a short streak of quick knockouts, we may be treated to early fireworks.

To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE

Post Views: 0

Share The Sweet Science experience!

Matt McGrain

Up Next

Bobby Hinds (1931-2023): A Most Unusual Boxing Story

Don't Miss

Robeisy Ramirez Wins the WBO World Featherweight Strap; Outpoints Dogboe

Ringside at the Cosmo: Pacheco Outpoints Nelson plus Undercard Results

Published

1 day ago

January 25, 2025

Arne K. Lang

Ringside at the Cosmo: Pacheco Outpoints Nelson plus Undercard Results

LAS VEGAS, NV – Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Promotions was at the Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas tonight for the second half of a DAZN doubleheader that began in Nottingham, England. In the main event, Diego Pacheco, ranked #1 by the WBO at super middleweight, continued his ascent toward a world title with a unanimous decision over Steven Nelson.

Pacheco glides round the ring smoothly whereas Nelson wastes a lot energy with something of a herky-jerky style. However, although Nelson figured to slow down as the fight progressed, he did some of his best work in rounds 11 and 12. Fighting with a cut over his left eye from round four, a cut that periodically reopened, the gritty Nelson fulfilled his promise that he would a fight as if he had everything to lose if he failed to win, but it just wasn’t enough, even after his Omaha homie Terence “Bud” Crawford entered his corner before the last round to give him a pep talk (back home in North Omaha, Nelson runs the B&B (Bud and Bomac) Sports Academy.

All three judges had it 117-111 for Pacheco who mostly fought off his back foot but landed the cleaner punches throughout. A stablemate of David Benavidez and trained by David’s father Jose Benevidez Sr, Pacheco improved to 23-0 (18). It was the first pro loss for the 36-year-old Nelson (20-1).

Semi wind-up

Olympic gold medalist Andy Cruz, who as a pro has never fought a match slated for fewer than 10 rounds, had too much class for Hermosillo, Mexico’s rugged Omar Salcido who returned to his corner with a puffy face after the fourth stanza, but won the next round and never stopped trying. The outcome was inevitable even before the final round when Salcido barely made it to the final gun, but the Mexican was far more competitive than many expected.

The Cuban, who was 4-0 vs. Keyshawn Davis in closely-contested bouts as an amateur, advanced his pro record to 5-0 (2), winning by scores by 99-91 and 98-92 twice. Salido, coming off his career-best win, a 9^th-round stoppage of former WBA super featherweight title-holder Chris Colbert, falls to 20-2.

Other TV bouts

Ernesto “Tito” Mercado, a 23-year-old super lightweight, aims to become the next world champion from Pomona, California, following in the footsteps of the late Richie Sandoval and Sugar Shane Mosely, and based on his showing tonight against former Beijing Olympian and former two-division title-holder Jose Pedraza, he is well on his way.

After three rounds after what had been a technical fight, Mercado (17-0, 16 KOs) knocked Pedraza off his pins with an overhand right followed by short left hand. Pedraza bounced back and fell on his backside. When he arose on unsteady legs, the bout was waived off. The official time was 2:08 of round four and the fading, 35-year-old Pedraza (29-7-1) was saddled with his third loss in his last four outings.

The 8-round super lightweight clash between Israel Mercado (no relation to “Tito”) and Leonardo Rubalcava was fan-friendly skirmish with many robust exchanges. When the smoke cleared, the verdict was a majority draw. Mercado got the nod on one card (76-74), but was overruled by a pair of 75-75 scores.

Mercado came out strong in the opening round, but suffered a flash knockdown before the round ended. The referee ruled it a slip but was overruled by replay operator Jay Nady and what would have been a 10-9 round for Mercado became a 10-8 round for Rubalcava. Mercado lost another point in round seven when he was penalized for low blows.

The scores were 76-74 for Mercado (11-1-2) and 75-75 twice. The verdict was mildly unpopular with most thinking that Mercado deserved the nod. Reportedly a four-time Mexican amateur champion, Rubalcava (9-0-1) is trained by Robert Garcia.

Also

New Matchroom signee Nishant Dev, a 24-year-old southpaw from India, had an auspicious pro debut (pardon the cliché). Before a beaming Eddie Hearn, Dev stopped Oakland’s Alton Wiggins (1-1-1) in the opening round. The referee waived it off after the second knockdown.

Boxers from India have made large gains at the amateur level in recent years and Matchroom honcho Eddie Hearn anticipates that Dev, a Paris Olympian, will be the first fighter from India to make his mark as a pro.

Undefeated Brooklyn lightweight Harley Mederos, managed by the influential Keith Connolly, scored his seventh knockout in eight tries with a brutal third-round KO of Mexico’s Arturo de Isla.

A left-right combination knocked de Isla (5-3-1) flat on his back. Referee Raul Caiz did not bother to count and several minutes elapsed before the stricken fighter was fit to leave the ring. The official time was 1:27 of round three.

In the opener, Newark junior lightweight Zaquin Moses, a cousin of Shakur Stevenson, improved to 2-0 when his opponent retired on his stool after the opening round.

Photo credit: Melina Pizano / Matchroom

To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE

Post Views: 0

Share The Sweet Science experience!

Najee Lopez Steps up in Class and Wins Impressively at Plant City

Published

3 days ago

January 24, 2025

Arne K. Lang

Najee-Lopez-Steps-Up-in-Class-and-Wins-Impressively-at-Plant-City

Garry Jonas’ ProBox series returned to its regular home in Plant City, Florida, tonight with a card topped by a 10-round light heavyweight match between fast-rising Najee Lopez and former world title challenger Lenin Castillo. This was considered a step-up fight for the 25-year-old Lopez, an Atlanta-born-fighter of Puerto Rican heritage. Although the 36-year-old Castillo had lost two of his last three heading in, he had gone the distance with Dimitry Bivol and Marcus Browne and been stopped only once (by Callum Smith).

Lopez landed the cleaner punches throughout. Although Castillo seemed unfazed during the first half of the fight, he returned to his corner at the end of round five exhibiting signs of a fractured jaw.

In the next round, Lopez cornered him against the ropes and knocked him through the ropes with a left-right combination. Referee Emil Lombardo could have stopped the fight right there, but he allowed the courageous Castillo to carry on for a bit longer, finally stopping the fight as Castillo’s corner and a Florida commissioner were signaling that it was over.

The official time was 2:36 of round six. Bigger fights await the talented Lopez who improved to 13-0 with his tenth win inside the distance. Castillo declined to 25-7-1.

Co-Feature

In a stinker of a heavyweight fight, Stanley Wright, a paunchy, 34-year-old North Carolina journeyman, scored a big upset with a 10-round unanimous decision over previously unbeaten Jeremiah Milton.

Wright carried 280 pounds, 100 pounds more than in his pro debut 11 years ago. Although he was undefeated (13-0, 11 KOs), he had never defeated an opponent with a winning record and his last four opponents were a miserable 19-48-2. Moreover, he took the fight on short notice.

What Wright had going for him was fast hands and, in the opening round, he put Milton on the canvas with a straight right hand. From that point, Milton fought tentatively and Wright, looking fatigued as early as the fourth round, fought only in spurts. It seemed doubtful that he could last the distance, but Milton, the subject of a 2021 profile in these pages, was wary of Wright’s power and unable to capitalize. “It’s almost as if Milton is afraid to win,” said ringside commentator Chris Algieri during the ninth stanza when the bout had devolved into a hugfest.

The judges had it 96-93 and 97-92 twice for the victorious Wright who boosted his record to 14-0 without improving his stature.

Also

In the TV opener, a 10-round contest in the junior middleweight division, Najee Lopez stablemate Darrelle Valsaint (12-0, 10 KOs) scored his career-best win with a second-round knockout of 35-year-old Dutch globetrotter Stephen Danyo (23-7-3).

A native Floridian of Haitian descent, the 22-year-old Valsaint was making his eighth start in Plant City. He rocked Danyo with a chopping right hand high on the temple and then, as Danyo slumped forward, applied the exclamation point, a short left uppercut. The official time was 2:17 of round two.

To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE

Post Views: 0

Share The Sweet Science experience!

Japanese Superstar Naoya Inoue is Headed to Vegas after KOing Ye Joon Kim

Published

3 days ago

January 24, 2025

Arne K. Lang

Japanese-Superstar-Naoya-Inoue-is-Headed-to-Vegas-after-KOing-Y-Joon-Kim

Japan’s magnificent Naoya Inoue, appearing in his twenty-fourth title fight, scored his 11^th straight stoppage tonight while successfully defending his unified super bantamweight title, advancing his record to 29-0 (26 KOs) at the expense of Ye Joon Kim. The match at Tokyo’s Ariake Arena came to an end at the 2:25 mark of round four when U.S. referee Mark Nelson tolled “10” over the brave but overmatched Korean.

Kim, raised in a Seoul orphanage, had a few good moments, but the “Monster” found his rhythm in the third round, leaving Kim with a purplish welt under his left eye. In the next frame, he brought the match to a conclusion, staggering the Korean with a left and then finishing matters with an overhand right that put Kim on the seat of his pants, dazed and wincing in pain.

Kim, who brought a 21-2-2 record, took the fight on 10 days’ notice, replacing Australia’s Sam Goodman who suffered an eye injury in sparring that never healed properly, forcing him to withdraw twice.

Co-promoter Bob Arum, who was in the building, announced that Inoue’s next fight would happen in Las Vegas in the Spring. Speculation centers on Mexico City’s Alan Picasso (31-0-1, 17 KOs) who is ranked #1 by the WBC. However, there’s also speculation that the 31-year-old Inoue may move up to featherweight and seek to win a title in a fifth weight class, in which case a potential opponent is Brandon Figueroa should he defeat former Inoue foe Stephen Fulton next weekend. In “olden days,” this notion would have been dismissed as the Japanese superstar and Figueroa have different promoters, but the arrival of Turki Alalshikh, the sport’s Daddy Warbucks, has changed the dynamic. Tonight, Naoya Inoue made his first start as a brand ambassador for Riyadh Season.

Simmering on the backburner is a megafight with countryman Junto Nakatani, an easy fight to make as Arum has ties to both. However, the powers-that-be would prefer more “marination.”

Inoue has appeared twice in Las Vegas, scoring a seventh-round stoppage of Jason Moloney in October of 2020 at the MGM Bubble and a third-round stoppage of Michael Dasmarinas at the Virgin Hotels in June of 2021.

Semi-wind-up

In a 12-round bout for a regional welterweight title, Jin Sasaki improved to 19-1-1 (17) with a unanimous decision over Shoki Sakai (29-15-3). The scores were 118-110, 117-111, and 116-112.

Also

In a bout in which both contestants were on the canvas, Toshiki Shimomachi (20-1-3) edged out Misaki Hirano (11-2), winning a majority decision. A 28-year-old Osaka southpaw with a fan-friendly style, the lanky Shimomachi, unbeaten in his last 22 starts, competes as a super bantamweight. A match with Inoue may be in his future.

To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE

Post Views: 0

Share The Sweet Science experience!