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Canelo Alvarez Dominates but Goes the Distance with Stubborn John Ryder
A massive crowd in Guadalajara celebrated the return of their native son as Saul “Canelo” Alvarez battered but could not finish England’s strong John Ryder in retaining the undisputed super middleweight championship by unanimous decision on Saturday.
It was a competitive spectacle that pleased both sides.
“Feels different because there is a lot of responsibility,” said Alvarez about the hometown crowd. “It’s very special for me.”
In his first fight after surgery to his left hand, Alvarez (59-2-2, 39 KOs) powered past the southpaw Ryder (32-6, 18 KOs) in front of more than 50,000 fans at Estadio Akron. Despite the hometown fans yearning for a knockout win, it would not come.
But it almost did.
Alvarez scored a riveting knockdown with a one-two combination to the point of Ryder’s chin in the fifth round and down he went. It looked like the end for the British fighter who defeated Daniel Jacobs, but he would not quit. He rallied for the remainder of the round.
“He’s a strong fighter. I’m not surprised about it,” said Alvarez about Ryder’s tenacity.
With blood flowing from his nose as early as the third round, Ryder pushed on and never stopped trying to fight Mexican strongman Alvarez on the inside. The London fighter connected often with left uppercuts inside but never cleanly enough to hurt Alvarez.
Alvarez blasted away at the British fighter’s body, arms and chest and when the openings came the Mexican redhead connected to the head with precision. But Ryder seemed more accustomed to the power and absorbed them much better.
In the ninth round Alvarez blasted away at Ryder who reeled and wobbled from the blows to the head. It looked like the end was coming for the British fighter but somehow he mustered up determination and fought back as hard as possible.
Alvarez took notice.
“He’s a very strong fighter. Man, you know when he’s going for everything he’s turning it on,” said Alvarez about Ryder.
Ryder rallied in the 10th round with blows up and down against Alvarez’s defense. Not everything landed but some connected and it seemed to be the British fighter’s round. He was not about to quit.
Alvarez grabbed the next round back with accurate rights and the same combination that dropped Ryder earlier in the fight. This time the Londoner was able to survive the impact.
Strangely, it was obvious that Alvarez seldom used the left hook to the head. Was it because of the surgery or was it because of the southpaw stance of Ryder. Was Alvarez confident in his left hand?
“Not in the beginning,” Alvarez said adding that he is now confident in his left. “I needed to start punching and now I know.”
Knowing that only a knockout could win the fight, Ryder mustered up a good effort and out-punched Alvarez in the last round. But no punch came close to hurting the undisputed super middleweight champion.
Alvarez was judged the winner 120-107, 118-109 twice by the judges and remains the world champion.
“It’s an historic moment for me. I’m blessed to be here with my people,” said Alvarez.
After the win Alvarez said he wants Dmitry Bivol next, to avenge his last loss to the light heavyweight world titlist.
“We want Bivol. If the fight does not happen then we will see,” Alvarez said.
WBC Flyweight Title
WBC flyweight titlist Julio Cesar Martinez (20-2, 15 KOs) had a rough time figuring out Panama’s Ronal Batista (15-3, 9 KOs) but after a knockdown midway through the fight the antidote was clear as he proceeded to knock out the challenger.
Martinez looked to overpower Batista who pecked away at the Mexican fighter’s body with success. Though the Mexican power puncher connected it didn’t seem to phase his foe.
In the sixth round Martinez floored Batista with a left hook but the referee ruled it a slip. After the round ended WBC’s Mauricio Sulaiman walked over to inform the referee that a further review on tape showed a clear knockdown and not a slip or trip. The round was given to Martinez.
From that point on the Mexican fighter seemed to gain momentum and behind a strong jab closed the distance with Batista and began to connect with big blows.
Batista rallied and pecked away at the head and boy of Martinez but it wasn’t enough to match the Mexican’s power shots.
Finally, in championship rounds, Martinez turned on the power and unloaded a dozen unanswered blows that pinned Batista against the ropes and forced referee Celestino Ruiz to stop the fight at 1:00 of the 11th round.
Other Bouts
A knockdown proved critical as Mexico’s Gabriel Gollaz (27-3-1, 16 KOs) won by split decision over Australia’s Stevie Spark (16-3, 14 KOs) in a super lightweight title match pitting two hard-hitters.
Spark started quickly with his pressure style and Mexico’s Gollaz was content to counter with uppercuts and long lefts and rights. It looked like the Australian would dominate until Gollaz unloaded with 14 unanswered blows including a body shot that floored Spark.
The Australian pressure fighter survived and managed to win three of the next four rounds but that wasn’t enough. One judge gave Spark the win 95-94 but two others saw Gollaz the winner 96-93 and 95-94. The knockdown proved the difference.
Pico Rivera, California’s Nathan Rodriguez (11-0, 7 KOs) was hand-picked by Canelo’s trainer to become a disciple and showed polished skills in defeating Nicaragua’s solid veteran Alexander Mejia (19-6, 8 KOs) by majority decision.
It was Rodriguez, 18, first 10-round bout and the tall featherweight looked smooth and composed on defending against the aggressive approaches of Mejia. From the first round to the eighth round Rodriguez hit and moved around the small ring against Mejia who unloaded with blows to the head and body nonstop.
Perhaps unsure of his own stamina Rodriguez finally opened up in the ninth and 10th round and stood his ground in countering, weaving and firing lethal uppercuts with right and lefts. It was mesmerizing stuff to see the accuracy.
Mejia withstood the uppercuts and fought on but was not accurate enough as one judge saw it a draw 95-95, but two others scored for Rodriguez 96-93 and 96-94.
In a light heavyweight clash Ukraine’s Oleksandr Gvozdyk (19-1, 15 KOs) needed time to figure out Latvia’s Ricards Bolotniks (19-7-1, 8 KOs) before lowering the boom with a volley of blows ending in knockout at 1:53 of the seventh round.
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Skylar Lacy Blocked for Lamar Jackson before Making his Mark in Boxing
Skylar Lacy, a six-foot-seven heavyweight, returns to the ring on Sunday, Feb. 2, opposing Brandon Moore on a card in Flint, Michigan, airing worldwide on DAZN.
As this is being written, the bookmakers hadn’t yet posted a line on the bout, but one couldn’t be accused of false coloring by calling the 10-round contest a 50/50 fight. And if his frustrating history is any guide, Lacy will have another draw appended to his record or come out on the wrong side of a split decision.
This should not be construed as a tip to wager on Moore. “Close fights just don’t seem to go my way,” says the boxer who played alongside future multi-year NFL MVP Lamar Jackson at the University of Louisville.
A 2021 National Golden Gloves champion, Skylar Lacy came up short in his final amateur bout, losing a split decision to future U.S. Olympian Joshua Edwards. His last Team Combat League assignment resulted in another loss by split decision and he was held to a draw in both instances when stepping up in class as a pro. “In my mind, I’m still undefeated,” says Lacy (8-0-2, 6 KOs). “No one has ever kicked my ass.”
Lacy was the B-side in both of those draws, the first coming in a 6-rounder against Top Rank fighter Antonio Mireles on a Top Rank show in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, and the second in an 8-rounder against George Arias, a Lou DiBella fighter on a DiBella-promoted card in Philadelphia.
Lacy had the Mireles fight in hand when he faded in the homestretch. The altitude was a factor. Lake Tahoe, Nevada (officially Stateline) sits 6,225 feet above sea level. The fight with Arias took an opposite tack. Lacy came on strong after a slow start to stave off defeat.
Skylar will be the B-side once again in Michigan. The card’s promoter, former world title challenger Dmitriy Salita, inked Brandon Moore (16-1, 10 KOs) in January. “A capable American heavyweight with charisma, athleticism and skills is rare in today’s day and age. Brandon has got all these ingredients…”, said Salita in the press release announcing the signing. (Salita has an option on Skylar Lacy’s next pro fight in the event that Skylar should win, but the promoter has a larger investment in Moore who was previously signed to Top Rank, a multi-fight deal that evaporated after only one fight.)
Both Lacy and Moore excelled in other sports. The six-foot-six Moore was an outstanding basketball player in high school in Fort Lauderdale and at the NAIA level in college. Lacy was an all-state football lineman in Indiana before going on to the University of Louisville where he started as an offensive guard as a redshirt sophomore, blocking for freshman phenom Lamar Jackson. “Lamar was hard-working and humble,” says Lacy about the player who is now one of the world’s highest-paid professional athletes.
When Lacy committed to Louisville, the head coach was Charlie Strong who went on to become the head coach at the University of Texas. Lacy was never comfortable with Strong’s successor Bobby Petrino and transferred to San Jose State. Having earned his degree in only three years (a BA in communications) he was eligible immediately but never played a down because of injuries.
Returning to Indianapolis where he was raised by his truck dispatcher father, a single parent, Lacy gravitated to Pat McPherson’s IBG (Indy Boxing and Grappling) Gym on the city’s east side where he was the rare college graduate pounding the bags alongside at-risk kids from the city’s poorer neighborhoods.
Lacy built a 12-6 record across his two seasons in Team Combat League while representing the Las Vegas Hustle (2023) and the Boston Butchers (2024).
For the uninitiated, a Team Combat League (TCL) event typically consists of 24 fights, each consisting of one three-minute round. The concept finds no favor with traditionalists, but Lacy is a fan. It’s an incentive for professional boxers to keep in shape between bouts without disturbing their professional record and, notes Lacy, it’s useful in exposing a competitor to different styles.
“It paid the bills and kept me from just sitting around the house,” says Lacy whose 12-6 record was forged against 13 different opponents.
As a sparring partner, Lacy has shared the ring with some of the top heavyweights of his generation, e.g., Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte. He was one of Fury’s regular sparring partners during the Gypsy King’s trilogy with Deontay Wilder. He worked with Joshua at Derrick James’ gym in Dallas and at Ben Davison’s gym in England, helping Joshua prepare for his date in Saudi Arabia with Francis Ngannou and had previously sparred with Ngannou at the UFC Performance Center in Las Vegas. Skylar names traveling to new places as one of his hobbies and he got to scratch that itch when he joined Whyte’s camp in Portugal.
As to the hardest puncher he ever faced, he has no hesitation: “Ngannou,” he says. “I negotiated a nice price to spend a week in his camp and the first time he hit me I knew I should have asked for more.”
Lacy is confident that having shared the ring with some of the sport’s elite heavyweights will get him over the hump in what will be his first 10-rounder (Brandon Moore has never had to fight beyond eight rounds, having won his three 10-rounders inside the distance). Lacy vs. Moore is the co-feature to Claressa Shields’ homecoming fight with Danielle Perkins. Shields, basking in the favorable reviews accorded the big-screen biopic based on her first Olympic journey (“The Fire Inside”) will attempt to capture a title in yet another weight class at the expense of the 42-year-old Perkins, a former professional basketball player.
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Mizuki Hiruta Dominates in her U.S. Debut and Omar Trinidad Wins Too at Commerce
Japan’s Mizuki Hiruta smashed through Mexico’s Maribel Ramirez with ease in winning by technical decision and local hero Omar Trinidad continued his assault on the featherweight division on Friday.
Hiruta (7-0, 2 KOs), who prefers to be called “Mimi,” made her American debut with an impressive performance against Mexican veteran Maribel Ramirez (15-11-4) and retained the WBO super flyweight world title by unanimous decision at Commerce Casino in Commerce, Calif.
The pink-haired Japanese southpaw champion quickly proved to be quicker, stronger and even better than advertised. In the opening round Ramirez landed on the floor twice after throwing errant blows. On one instance, it could have been ruled a knockdown but it was not a convincing blow.
In the second round, Ramirez again attacked and again was met with a Hiruta check right hook and down went the Mexican. This time referee Ray Corona gave the eight-count and the fight resumed.
It was Hiruta’s third title defense but this time it was on American soil. She seemed nervous by the prospect of getting a favorable review from the more than 700 fans inside the casino tent.
For more than a year Hiruta has been training off and on with Manny Robles in the L.A. area. Now that she has a visa, she has spent considerable time this year learning the tricks of the trade. They proved explosively effective.
Though Mexico City’s Ramirez has considerable experience against world champions, she discovered that Hiruta was not easy to hit. Often, the Japanese champion would slip and counter with precision.
It was an impressive American debut, though the fight was stopped in the eighth round after a collision of heads. The scores were tallied and all three saw Hiruta the winner by scores of 80-71 twice and 79-72.
“I’m so happy. I could have done much more,” said Hiruta through interpreter Yuriko Miyata. “I wanted to do more things that Manny Robles taught me.”
Trinidad Wins Too
Omar Trinidad (18-0-1, 13 KOs) discovered that challenger Mike Plania (31-5, 18 KOs) has a very good chin and staying power. But over 10 rounds Trinidad proved to be too fast and too busy for the Filipino challenger.
Immediately it was evident that the East L.A. featherweight was too quick and too busy for Plania who preferred a counter-puncher attack that never worked.
“He was strong,” said Trinidad. “He took everything.”
After 10 redundant rounds all three judges scored for Trinidad 100-90 twice and 99-91. He retains the WBC Continental Americas title.
Other Bouts
Ali Akhmedov (23-1, 17 KOs) blasted out Malcolm Jones (17-5-1) in less than two rounds. A dozen punches by Akhmedov forced referee Thomas Taylor to stop the super middleweight fight.
Iyana “Roxy” Verduzco (3-0) bloodied Lindsey Ellis in the first round and continued the speedy assault in the next two rounds. Referee Ray Corona saw enough and stopped the fight in favor of Verduzco at 1:34 of the third round.
Gloria Munguilla (7-1) and Brook Sibrian (5-2) lit up the boxing ring with a nonstop clash for eight rounds in their light flyweight fight. Munguilla proved effective with a slip-and-counter attack. Sibrian adjusted and made the fight closer in the last four rounds but all three judges favored Munguilla.
More Winners
Joshua Anton, Tayden Beltran, Adan Palma, and Alexander Gueche all won their bouts.
Photos credit: Al Applerose
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Avila Perspective, Chap. 309: 360 Promotions Opens with Trinidad, Mizuki and More
Avila Perspective, Chap. 309: 360 Promotions Opens with Trinidad, Mizuki and More
Best wishes to the survivors of the Los Angeles wildfires that took place last week and are still ongoing in small locales.
Most of the heavy damage took place in the western part of L.A. near the ocean due to Santa Ana winds. Another very hot spot was in Altadena just north of the Rose Bowl. It was a horrific tragedy.
Hopefully the worst is over.
Pro boxing returns with 360 Boxing Promotions spotlighting East L.A.’s Omar Trinidad (17-0-1, 13 KOs) defending a regional featherweight title against Mike Plania (31-4, 18 KOs) on Friday, Jan. 17, at the Commerce Casino in Commerce, Calif.
“I’m the king of L.A. boxing and I’ll be ready to put on a show headlining again in the main event. This is my year, I’m ready to challenge and defeat any of the featherweight world champions,” said Trinidad.
UFC Fight Pass will stream the Hollywood Night fight card that includes a female world championship fight and other intriguing match-ups.
Tom Loeffler heads 360 Promotions and once again comes full force with a hot prospect in Trinidad. If you’re not familiar with Loeffler’s history of success, he introduced America to Oleksandr Usyk, Gennady “GGG” Golovkin and the brothers Wladimir and Vitaly Kltischko.
“We’ve got a wealth of international talent and local favorites to kick off our 2025 in grand style,” said Loeffler.
He knows talent.
Trinidad hails from the Boyle Heights area of East L.A. near the Los Angeles riverbed. Several fighters from the past came from that exact area including the first Golden Boy, Art Aragon.
Aragon was a huge gate attraction during the late 1940s until 1960. He was known as a lady’s man and dated several Hollywood starlets in his time. Though he never won a world title he did fight world champions Carmen Basilio, Jimmy Carter and Lauro Salas. He was more or less the king of the Olympic Auditorium and Los Angeles boxing during his career.
Other famous boxers from the Boyle Heights area were notorious gangster Mickey Cohen and former world champion Joey Olivo.
Can Trinidad reach world title status?
Facing Trinidad will be Filipino fighter Plania who’s knocked off a couple of prospects during his career including Joshua “Don’t Blink” Greer and Giovanni Gutierrez. The fighter from General Santos in the Philippines can crack and hold his own in the boxing ring.
It’s a very strong fight card and includes WBO world titlist Mizuki Hiruta of Japan who defends the super flyweight title against Mexican veteran Maribel Ramirez. It’s a tough matchup for Hiruta who makes her American debut. You can’t miss her with that pink hair and she has all the physical tools to make a splash in this country.
Two other female bouts are also planned, including light flyweight banger L.A.’s Gloria Munguilla (6-1) against Coachella’s Brook Sibrian (5-1) in a match set for six rounds. Both are talented fighters. Another female fight includes super featherweights Iyana “Right Hook Roxy” Verduzco (2-0) versus Lindsey Ellis (2-1) in another six-rounder. Ellis can crack with all her wins coming via knockout. Verduzco is a multi-national titlist as an amateur.
Others scheduled to perform are Ali Akhmedov, Joshua Anton, Adan Palma and more.
Doors open at 4:30 p.m.
Boxing and the Media
The sport of professional boxing is currently in flux. It’s always in flux but no matter what people may say or write, boxing will survive.
Whether you like Jake Paul or not, he proved boxing has worldwide appeal with monstrous success in his last show. He has media companies looking at the numbers and imagining what they can do with the sport.
Sure, UFC is negotiating a massive billion dollar deal with media companies, as is WWE, both are very similar in that they provide combat entertainment. You don’t need to know the champions because they really don’t matter. Its about the attractions.
Boxing is different. The good champions last and build a following that endures even beyond their careers a la Mike Tyson.
MMA can’t provide that longevity, but it does provide entertainment.
Currently, there is talk of establishing a boxing league again. It’s been done over and over but we shall see if it sticks this time.
Pro boxing is the true warrior’s path and that means a solo adventure. It’s a one-on-one sport and that appeals to people everywhere. It’s the oldest sport that can be traced to prehistoric times. You don’t need classes in Brazilian Jiujitsu, judo, kick boxing or wrestling. Just show up in a boxing gym and they can put you to work.
It’s a poor person’s path that can lead to better things and most importantly discipline.
Photos credit: Lina Baker
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