Featured Articles
Avila Perspective, Chap. 248: Canelo vs Charlo plus Weekend Boxing Notes

Dare to be great.
Looking to take a page out of Saul “Canelo” Alvarez’s own playbook, Jermell Charlo will jump up two weight divisions to tangle with one of the greats of this era, it was announced today.
Only the true champions take these type of contests.
Undisputed super welterweight champion Charlo (35-1-1, 19 KOs) will meet undisputed super middleweight champion Alvarez (59-2-2, 39 KOs) on Saturday Sept. 30, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Showtime pay-per-view will televise the Premier Boxing Champions event.
“I’m very happy that we got to make a fight of this magnitude between two undisputed champions,” said Canelo, 33, winner of four division world titles.
It’s not a surprise by any means.
For the past month it was cited at various times on social media that the two were in negotiations. Today it became official.
It was expected that Jermall Charlo, who actually fights at the heavier middleweight division and looking to move up to super middleweight, would be the twin brother to face Canelo. But the lighter 154-pound brother known as “Iron Man,” jumped in front and basically asked for the match.
It was a gutsy move.
“This is the biggest fight in boxing and I’m coming to leave it all in the ring like I do every time. I manifested this fight into existence and earned it with everything I’ve done in this sport so far,” said Charlo, 33.
Charlo avenged a loss and a draw in spectacular fashion by knocking out both foes. First, he stopped Tony Harrison by stoppage four years ago in Ontario, Calif. It was a remarkable display of correcting earlier mistakes and taking back the WBC super welterweight belt he lost to Harrison a year earlier.
A year ago, May 2022, Charlo avenged a draw against Argentina’s Brian Castano with a brutal knockout in the 10th round to become undisputed super welterweight champion in Carson, Calif. Maybe Charlo should be fighting in California again, he’s had tremendous success in the Golden State.
In terms of physical dimensions, Charlo has several advantages in height and reach. He also has never been stopped and displays a mean streak that will help inside the ropes.
Mexico’s Alvarez has experience, plenty of experience.
Canelo has been fighting professionally since he was 15 years old and after beating Mexico’s best, he invaded “El Norte,” in October 2008. There the Mexican redhead discovered the American style of boxing and nearly stumbled against Larry Mosley at Morongo Casino. But he prevailed and he soon returned back to Mexico undefeated. Barely.
When Alvarez returned two years later, he was matched carefully against various styles not prevalent in Mexico. For the next three years he fought former champions such as Carlos Baldomir, Kermit Cintron, Shane Mosley, Austin Trout and then he went after the big dog Floyd “Money” Mayweather in 2013.
He got a crash course on the American style of fighting by the master and suffered his first loss. It proved beneficial and forced the Mexican fighter to learn new techniques and defenses. He used these new weapons to defeat Miguel Cotto, Amir Khan, Liam Smith, Sergey Kovalev, and emerge upright three times against powerful Gennady Golovkin.
Canelo’s only loss other than Mayweather came by decision against light heavyweight titlist Dmitry Bivol. No shame in that.
Now he’s encountering someone who dares take the same path to greatness.
“Canelo is a great fighter, but he’s gonna see what Lions Only is all about. When the fight’s over, people are gonna have to recognize that I’m the best fighter in the sport,” Charlo said.
Canelo seems pleased that Charlo asked for the test.
“Jermell Charlo has also faced the best in his division, and I’m glad that the fans are going to enjoy a world class fight between us on September 30,” said Alvarez.
Mexican war in Phoenix
WBO super featherweight titlist Emanuel Navarrete (37-1, 31 KOs) finds ways to emerge victorious but this time faces former featherweight champion Oscar Valdez (31-1, 23 KOs) on Saturday at Desert Diamond Arena in Phoenix.
Navarrete could no longer make the featherweight division weight limit, so he jumped up a division and took the WBO super featherweight title away from Australia’s Liam Wilson in a heated battle. Both fighters were knocked down. Does he have anything left?
Valdez lost the WBC super featherweight title to Shakur Stevenson a year ago and recently beat Adam Lopez in their rematch last May. This fight with Navarrete was the plan all along.
Bantamweights in DC
Puerto Rico’s Emmanuel Rodriguez (21-2, 13 KOs) and Nicaragua’s Melvin Lopez (29-1, 19 KOs) meet for the vacant IBF bantamweight world title on Saturday at MGM National Harbor in Oxon Hill.
Fights to Watch
Fri. DAZN 5:30 p.m. Albert Bell (23-0) vs Presco Cacosia (11-2-1).
Sat. DAZN 11 a.m. Anthony Joshua (25-3) vs Robert Helenius (32-4).
Sat. ESPN 7 p.m. Emanuel Navarrete (37-1) vs Oscar Valdez (31-1).
Sat. Showtime 7 p.m. Emmanuel Rodriguez (21-2) vs Melvin Lopez (29-1).
To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE
Featured Articles
Skavynskyi and Bustillos Win on a MarvNation Card in Long Beach

Skavynskyi and Bustillos Win on a MarvNation Card in Long Beach
LONG BEACH, Ca.-A cool autumn night saw welterweights and minimumweights share main events for a MarvNation fight card on Saturday.
Ukraine’s Eduard Skavynskyi (15-0, 7 KOs) experienced a tangled mess against the awkward Alejandro Frias (14-10-2) but won by decision after eight rounds in a welterweight contest at the indoor furnace called the Thunder Studios.
It was hot in there for the more than 600 people inside.
Skavynskyi probably never fought someone like Mexico’s Frias whose style was the opposite of the Ukrainian’s fundamentally sound one-two style. But round after round the rough edges became more familiar.
Neither fighter was ever damaged but all three judges saw Skavynskyi the winner by unanimous decision 79-73 on all three cards. The Ukrainian fighter trains in Ventura.
Bustillo Wins Rematch
In the female main event Las Vegas’ Yadira Bustillos (8-1) stepped into a rematch with Karen Lindenmuth (5-2) and immediately proved the lessons learned from their first encounter.
Bustillos connected solidly with an overhand right and staggered Lindenmuth but never came close to putting the pressure fighter down. Still, Bustillos kept turning the hard rushing Lindenmuth and snapping her head with overhand rights and check left hooks.
Lindenmuth usually overwhelms most opponents with a smothering attack that causes panic. But not against Bustillos who seemed quite comfortable all eight rounds in slipping blows and countering back.
After eight rounds all three judges scored the contest for Bustillos 78-74 and 80-72 twice. Body shots were especially effective for the Las Vegas fighter in the fifth round. Bustillos competes in the same division as IBF/WBO title-holder Yokasta Valle.
Other Bouts
In a middleweight clash, undefeated Victorville’s Andrew Buchanan (3-0-1) used effective combination punching to defeat Mexico’s Fredy Vargas (2-1-1) after six rounds. Two judges scored it 59-55 and a third 60-54 for Buchanan. No knockdowns were scored.
A super lightweight match saw Sergio Aldana win his pro debut by decision after four rounds versus Gerardo Fuentes (2-9-1).
Photos credit: Al Applerose
To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE
Featured Articles
Tedious Fights and a Controversial Draw Smudge the Matchroom Boxing Card in Orlando

Matchroom Boxing was at the sprawling Royale Caribe Resort Hotel in Orlando, Florida tonight with a card that aired on DAZN. The main event was a ho-hum affair between super lightweights Richardson Hitchins and Jose Zepeda.
SoCal’s Zepeda has been in some wars in the past, notably his savage tussle with Ivan Baranchyk, but tonight he brought little to the table and was outclassed by the lanky Hitchins who won all 12 rounds on two of the cards and 11 rounds on the other. There were no knockdowns, but Zepeda suffered a cut on his forehead in round seven that was deemed to be the product of an accidental head butt and another clash in round ten forced a respite in the action although Hitchins suffered no apparent damage.
It was the sort of fight where each round was pretty much a carbon of the round preceding it. Brooklyn’s Hitchins, who improved to 17-0 (7), was content to pepper Zepeda with his jab, and the 34-year-old SoCal southpaw, who brought a 37-3 record, was never able to penetrate his defense and land anything meaningful.
Hitchins signed with Floyd Mayweather Jr’s promotional outfit coming out of the amateur ranks and his style is reminiscent in ways of his former mentor. Like Mayweather, he loses very few rounds. In his precious engagement, he pitched a shutout over previously undefeated John Bauza.
Co-Feature
In the co-feature, Conor Benn returned to the ring after an absence of 17 months and won a unanimous decision over Mexico’s Rodolfo Orozco. It wasn’t a bad showing by Benn who showed decent boxing skills, but more was expected of him after his name had been bandied about so often in the media. Two of the judges had it 99-91 and the other 96-94.
Benn (22-0, 14 KOs) was a late addition to the card although one suspects that promoter Eddie Hearn purposely kept him under wraps until the week of the fight so as not to deflect the spotlight from the other matches on his show. Benn lost a lucrative date with Chris Eubank Jr when he was suspended by the BBBofC when evidence of a banned substance was found in his system and it’s understood that Hearn has designs on re-igniting the match-up with an eye on a date in December. For tonight’s fight, Benn carried a career-high 153 ½ pounds. Mexico’s Orozco, who was making his first appearance in a U.S. ring, declined to 32-4-3.
Other Bouts of Note
The welterweight title fight between WBA/WBC title-holder Jessica McCaskill (15-3-1) and WBO title-holder Sandy Ryan (6-1-1) ended in a draw and the ladies’ retain their respective titles. Ryan worked the body effectively and the general feeling was that she got a raw deal, a sentiment shared by the crowd which booed the decision. There was a switch of favorites in the betting with the late money seemingly all on the Englishwoman who at age 30 was the younger boxer by nine years.
The judges had it 96-94 Ryan, 96-95, and a vilified 97-93 for Chicago’s McCaskill.
In the opener of the main DAZN stream, Houston middleweight Austin “Ammo” Williams, 27, improved to 15-0 (10) with a 10-round unanimous decision over 39-year-old Toronto veteran Steve Rolls (22-3). All three judges had it 97-93. Rolls has been stopped only once, that by Gennady Golovkin.
Photo credit: Ed Mulholland / Matchroom Boxing
To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE
Featured Articles
Zhilei Zhang KOs Joe Joyce; Calls Out Tyson Fury

Joe Joyce activated his rematch clause after being stopped in the sixth frame by Zhilei Zhang in their first meeting. In hindsight, he may wish that he hadn’t. Tonight at London’s Wembley Stadium, Zhang stopped him again and far more conclusively than in their first encounter.
In the first meeting, Zhang, a southpaw, found a steady home for his stiff left jab. Targeting Joyce’s right eye, he eventually damaged the optic to where the ring doctor wouldn’t let Joyce continue. At the end, the fight was close on the cards and Joyce was confident that he would have pulled away if not for the issue with his eye.
In the rematch tonight, Zhang (26-1-1, 21 KOs) closed the curtain with his right hand. A thunderous right hook on the heels of a straight left pitched Joyce to the canvas where he landed face first. He appeared to beat the count by a whisker, but was seriously dazed and referee Steve Gray properly waived it off. The official time was 3:07 of round three.
Zhang, who lived up to his nickname, “Big Bang,” was credited with landing 29 power punches compared with only six for Joyce (15-2) who came in 25 pounds heavier than in their first meeting while still looking properly conditioned. One would be inclined to say that age finally caught with the “Juggernaut” who turned 38 since their last encounter, but Zhang, 40, is actually the older man. In his post-fight interview in the ring, the New Jersey resident, a two-time Olympian for China, when asked who he wanted to fight next, turned to the audience and said, “Do you want to see me shut Tyson Fury up?”
He meant it as a rhetorical question.
Semi-Windup
Light heavyweight Anthony Yarde was matched soft against late sub Jorge Silva, a 40-year-old Portuguese journeyman, and barely broke a sweat while scoring a second-round stoppage. Yarde backed Silva against a corner post and put him on the deck with a short right hand. Silva’s body language indicated that he had no interest in continuing and the referee accommodated him. The official time was 2:07 of round two.
A 30-year-old Londoner, Yarde (24-3, 23 KOs) was making his first start since being stopped in eight rounds by Artur Beterbiev in a bout that Yarde was winning on two of the scorecards. Silva, a late replacement for 19-3-1 Ricky Summers, falls to 22-9.
Also
Former leading super middleweight contender Zach Parker (23-1, 17 KOs) returned to the ring in a “shake-off-the-rust” fight against 40-year-old Frenchman Khalid Graidia and performed as expected. Graidia’s corner pulled him out after seven one-sided rounds.
In his previous fight, Parker was matched against John Ryder who he was favored to beat. The carrot for the winner was a lucrative date with Canelo Alvarez. Unfortunately for Parker, he suffered a broken hand and was unable to continue after four frames. Tonight, he carried 174 pounds, a hint that he plans to compete as a light heavyweight going forward. Indeed, he has expressed an interest in fighting Anthony Yarde. Graidia declined to 10-13-4.
The Zhang-Joyce and Yarde-Silva fights were live-streamed in the U.S. on ESPN+.
To comment on this story in the Fight Forum CLICK HERE
-
Featured Articles2 weeks ago
Christian Mbilli Demolishes Demond Nicholson to Inch Closer to a Title Shot
-
Featured Articles4 weeks ago
Oleksandr Usyk Recovers from a Wicked Body Punch to KO Daniel Dubois
-
Featured Articles3 weeks ago
Results from Manchester where Chris Eubank Jr Avenged a KO Loss in a Dominant Fashion
-
Featured Articles1 day ago
Tedious Fights and a Controversial Draw Smudge the Matchroom Boxing Card in Orlando
-
Featured Articles3 weeks ago
Avila Perspective, Chap. 250: Liam Smith vs Chris Eubank Jr II in Manchester
-
Featured Articles2 weeks ago
Derby’s Sandy Ryan Poised to Unify the Welterweight Title in Her U.S. Debut
-
Featured Articles4 weeks ago
A Conversation With Award-Winning Boxing Writer Lance Pugmire
-
Featured Articles1 week ago
William Zepeda Wins by KO; Yokasta Valle Wins Too at Commerce Casino