Derric Rossy Rages Against the Machine, Bad Judges and Not Getting Over the Hump

Published

10 years ago

February 10, 2015

Michael Woods

34.

Not old.

But not young, not for a boxer not named Hopkins.

Clock ticks, screwjobs by judges stick in the craw, but can’t let the ire derail you, must use injustices and close calls as motivator, not let cynicism dampen desire.

But oh does it sting.

To know that on March 14, the guy you know you beat, in every fiber of your 6-3, 235 pound bodily vessel, gets a shot in an IBF title eliminator, that smarts more than any liver shot could, because it’s an emotional blow.

Derric Rossy is a 34-year-old old contender who hasn’t yet been able to get over that proverbial hump fight and get that needed W which makes him a graduate of “B School,” of that that certain level of talent and accomplishment, into a realm where he could get a title crack. He told me on Tuesday that I will see on Saturday that he has dealt with the slings, arrows and screwjobs as well as can be. I will see for myself on Saturday night, on CBS Sports Network, as Rossy headlines against stocky power-hitter Akhror Muralimov, in the first foray into cable scraps for that BCS cable property. Mike Lee (13-0 with 7 KOs; age 27; from Chicago), the Notre Dame grad, will also strut his stuff, in the ring against 6-3-1 Gary Tapusoa, and also at the announce table with Col. Bob Sheridan and Benny Ricardo.

“Yep, I got the L in a couple of those fights, I’m stuck in a little story,” the Medford (Long island), NY native Rossy told me. The ex Boston College (2003 graduate) footballer, who had some pro tryouts but was seen as a “tweener,” too big for linebacker, to small to play end, stated that he’s not in woe is me mode. No self pity did I hear; “I’m still a contender. And anyone in the ring with me, they know it’s gonna be a fight.”

I had the Bruce Springsteen channel on in the background, and found myself getting pumped up as “Promised Land” played. Does he like Broooce, does he use music to motivate, I wondered? Somewhat, Rossy told me. Hell, I was happy he knows who Bruce is, being that some of the prospects I talk to don’t, lol. But desire to get to that place where the Pianetas, and Leapais have been, getting a shot at Wladimir Klitschko, that definitively does fuel him.

His record isn’t gleaming, he’s 29-9 with 14 KOs, and he’s been stopped out five times, maybe one or two dubiously. In step up fights, it hasn’t gone his way. Losses to Eddie Chambers, Kubrat Pulev, Audley Harrison, Fres Oquendo and Czar Glazkov mean some folks think Rossy is of a certain caliber. Is he better than the Chars and Pianetas and Leapais, who had those records of gleaming plausibility which helped land them lottery ticket fights…if not better, than no worse…

Oh…that Glazkov fight.

Does that sting something fierce.

Indeed.

He feigned acceptance, then dropped the pretense. “Glazkov is fighting in an IBF eliminator March 14. Am I pissed? It hurts. It stings. I think it was stolen from me. I deserved it (Glazkov won MD on 8-9-14), the whole of me thinks so…there’s not an inch of me that thinks otherwise. A layman who watched would understand…but part of me has to be like, it is what it is. Glazkov was in supreme condition. But it stings. In the long run, judges don’t realize what they take away from you. But I still gotta do my thing. In the future I have to send a message that they can’t steal it from me, that they have to take it from my dead hands.”

Rossy isn’t an eyes tightly closed type. He knows 34 is 34 and he ain’t Hopkins.

“Is this clock ticking? I feel great. I started late, at 24, in Golden Gloves. I was looking to get lean and keep muscle, and my dad (Carlos Rossy, fought in Army, fought as pro, trains Derric) suggested a boxing workout. I met my first trainer, Al Gavin. He made me fall in love with the sport. He was nurturing, a really good guy. He gave me a passion I didn’t know I had. It’s like being introduced to a woman you don’t know you’re going to fall in love with. Like a really great blind date! And sometimes it can be a sonuvabitch, it’s not all happiness. But when you’re passionate about it, you stick with it.”

Rossy turned pro in 2004, and with a few bad judging outings, and the stoppages and the like, I wondered if he’d been close to saying eff it once or twice… “A couple times,” he said. “You reach a boiling point, when it’s not going your way. When the sport betrays you…But you have to have that blind faith, deep in you, it’s your calling to do this.”

The faith is still present, he maintains. And his foe, a 27-year-old Uzbeki living in Texas, on Saturday will pay the price for the betrayals, he tells me.

Now, it can be argued he is what he is…so how does he get over that hump? For one thing, after a loss to Joey Dawejko, Rossy gave up his 9 to 5, construction work, and is now a full time fighter. He saved up dough to invest in himself, basically.

“I figured, I want to work at it one hundred percent, or stop. And I see the progress, it’s day and night.” He seeks to work smarter, not harder, throw more combos, not go home-run hunting so much, be a more cerebral fighter, he said. He says he’ll need to be that smart fighter Saturday, as his foe is “not polished, stocky, strong, you stand in front of him, you disappear. And not getting over the hump to this point, there’s nothing deterring me. It motivates me more.”

We talked some about that fine line between acceptance, and realism, and self doubt, which can plant negative, self defeating thoughts in you…

“Oh yes, when I’ve lost, I’ve scrutinized myself. The self doubt creeps in. But hope comes back. The reassurance, ‘I can do this.’ What separates these fighters, the ‘A’ and ‘B’ fighters, it’s a fine line.”

We could see a greener Muralimov (16-0 with 13 KOs) look to land a filthy one, get off balance, and get countered by this more cerebral Rossy on CBS, friends. Rossy doesn’t think he has an iffy chin, so he won’t get stopped for a sixth time, he said. “But I can’t fall asleep,” he noted.

34. Not old.

But not young.

“Is it my last chance? There’s a little bit of that, I can’t lie. But I rage against the machine. I still feel good. And we fighters, we know this sport is dangerous. We accept that. I want to send a message, that you put me in a fight, you see fireworks. No matter what, when I fight, it is a fight, it could be with Klitschko, you know you’re getting my best. And when I think about the Glazkov fight, it does more than hurt, it makes you furious. I was being light hearted about it, but it was so close, I could smell it, taste it. When those guys are on TV, I see me. I gotta use it, this guy’s gonna feel my fury. I’m gonna project on Muralimov whatever needs to be projected, the frustration built up, I’m gonna let it go. You’re gonna see a person who is worth that title shot. I’m just as good as anybody.”

Follow Woods on Twitter, and get note when trouble’s busing in from outta state.

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Michael Woods

Bivol Evens the Score with Beterbiev; Parker and Stevenson Win Handily

Published

14 hours ago

February 22, 2025

David A. Avila

Bivol-Evens-the-Score-with-Beterbiev-Parker-and-Stevenson-Win-Handily

It was labeled the best boxing card in history.

That’s up for debate.

And there was some debate as Dmitry Bivol avenged his loss to Artur Beterbiev to become the new undisputed light heavyweight world champion on Saturday by majority decision in a tactical battle.

“He gave me this chance and I appreciate it,” said Bivol of Beterbiev.

Bivol (24-1, 12 KOs) rallied from behind to give Beterbiev (21-1, 20 KOs) his first pro loss in their rematch at a sold out crowd in the Venue Riyadh Season in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Like their first encounter the rematch was also very close.

Four months ago, these two faced each other as undefeated light heavyweights. Now, after two furious engagements, both have losses.

Beterbiev was making his first defense as undisputed light heavyweight champion and made adjustments from their first match. This time the Russian fighter who trains in Canada concentrated on a body attack and immediately saw dividends.

For most of the first six rounds it seemed Beterbiev would slowly grind down Bivol until he reached an unsurmountable lead. But despite the momentum he never could truly hurt Bivol or gain separation.

Things turned around in the seventh round as Bivol opened up with combinations to the head and body while slipping Beterbiev’s blows. It was a sudden swing of momentum. But how long could it last?

“It was hard to keep him at the distance. I had to be smarter and punch more clean punches,” said Bivol.

Beterbiev attempted to regain the momentum but Bivol was not allowing it to happen. In the final 10 seconds he opened up with a machine gun combination. Though few of the punches connected it became clear he was not going to allow unclarity.

Using strategic movement Bivol laced quick combinations and immediately departed. Betebiev seemed determined to counter the fleet fighter but was unsuccessful for much of the second half of the fight.

Around the 10^th round Beterbiev stepped on the gas with the same formula of working the body and head. It gave Bivol pause but he still unleashed quick combos to keep from being overrun.

Bivol connected with combinations and Beterbiev connected with single body and head shots. It was going to be tough for the referees to decide which attack they preferred. After 12 rounds with no knockdowns one judge saw it a draw at 114-114. But two others saw Bivol the winner 116-112, 115-113.

“I was better. I was pushing myself more, I was lighter. I just wanted to win so much today,” said Bivol.

Beterbiev was gracious in defeat.

“Congratulations to Bivol’s team” said Beterbiev. “I think this fight was better than the first fight.”

After the match it was discussed that an effort to make a third fight is a strong possibility.

Heavyweight KO by Parker

Joseph Parker (36-3, 24 KOs) once again proved he could be the best heavyweight without a world title in knocking out the feared Martin Bakole (21-2, 16 KOs) to retain his WBO interim title. It was quick and decisive.

“Catch him when he is coming in,” said Parker, 33, about his plan.

After original foe IBF heavyweight titlist Daniel Dubois was forced to withdraw due to illness, Bakole willingly accepted the match with only two days’ notice. Many experts and fans around the world were surprised and excited Parker accepted the match.

Ever since Parker lost to Joe Joyce in 2022, the New Zealander has proven to be vastly improved with wins over Deontay Wilder and Zhilei Zhang. Now you can add Bakole to the list of conquests.

Bakole, 33, was coming off an impressive knockout win last July and posed a serious threat if he connected with a punch. The quick-handed Bakole at 310 pounds and a two-inch height advantage is always dangerous.

In the first round Parker was wary of the fighter from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He kept his range and moved around the ring looking to poke a jab and move. Bakole caught him twice with blows and Parker retaliated.

It proved to be a very important test.

Parker refrained from moving and instead moved inside range of the big African fighter. Both exchanged liberally with Bakole connecting with an uppercut and Parker an overhand right.

Bakole shook his head at the blow he absorbed.

Both re-engaged and fired simultaneously. Parker’s right connected to the top of the head of Bakole who shuddered and stumbled and down he went and could not beat the count. The referee stopped the heavyweight fight at 2:17 of the second round. Parker retains his interim title by knockout.

“I’m strong, I’m healthy, I’m sharp,” said Parker. “I had to be patient.”

Shakur Wins

Despite an injured left hand southpaw WBC lightweight titlist Shakur Stevenson (23-0, 11 KOs) won by stoppage over late replacement Josh Padley (15-1, 6 KOs). It was an impressive accomplishment.

Often criticized for his lack of action and safety-first style, Stevenson was supposed to fight undefeated Floyd Schofield who pulled out due to illness. In stepped British lightweight Padley who had nothing to lose.

Padley was never hesitant to engage with the super-quick Stevenson and despite the lightning-quick combos by the champion, the British challenger exchanged liberally. It just wasn’t enough.

Even when Stevenson injured his left hand during an exchange in the sixth round, Padley just couldn’t take advantage. The speedy southpaw kept shooting the right jabs and ripping off right hooks. At the end of the sixth Stevenson briefly switched to a right-handed fighting style.

Stevenson used his right jabs and hooks to perfection. Double right hooks to the head and body seemed to affect the British challenger. A clean left to the body of Padley sent him to the floor for the count in the ninth round. It was a surprising knockdown due to his injured left. Padley got up and the fight resumed. Stevenson unloaded with right hooks to the body and down went the British fighter once again. He got up and tried to fight his way out but was met with another left to the body and down he went a third time. Padley’s corner tossed in a white towel to signify surrender. The referee stopped the fight at the end of the round. Stevenson scored his 11^th knockout win.

Photo credit: Mark Robinson / Matchroom

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Early Results from Riyadh where Hamzah Sheeraz was Awarded a Gift Draw

Published

17 hours ago

February 22, 2025

Arne K. Lang

Early-Results-from-Riyadh-where-Hamza-Sheeraz-was-Awarded-a-Gift-Draw

After two 6-round appetizers, British light heavyweights Joshua Buatsi and Callum Smith got the show rolling with a lusty 12-round skirmish. Things went south in the middle of the seven-fight main card when WBC middleweight champion Carlos Adames locked horns with challenger Hamzah Sheeraz. This was a drab fight owing to a milquetoast performance by the favored Sheeraz.

Heading in, the lanky six-foot-three Sheeraz, whose physique is mindful of a young Thomas Hearns, was undefeated in 21 fights. Having stopped five of his last six opponents in two rounds or less, the 25-year-old Englishman was touted as the next big thing in the middleweight division. However, he fought off his back foot the entire contest, reluctant to let his hands go, and Adames kept his title when the bout was scored a draw.

Sheeraz had the crowd in his corner and two of the judges scored the match with their ears. Their tallies were 115-114 for Sheeraz and 114-114. The third judge had it 118-110 for Adames, the 30-year old Dominican, now 24-1-1, who had Ismael Salas in his corner.

Ortiz-Madrimov

Super welterweight Vergil Ortiz Jr, knocked out his first 21 opponents, begging the question of how he would react when he finally faced adversity. He showed his mettle in August of last year when he went a sizzling 12 rounds with fellow knockout artist Serhii Bohachuk, winning a hard-fought decision. Tonight he added another feather in his cap with a 12-round unanimous decision over Ismail Madrimov, prevailing on scores of 117-111 and 115-113 twice.

Ortiz won by adhering tight to Robert Garcia’s game plan. The elusive Madrimov, who bounces around the ring like the energizer bunny, won the early rounds. But eventually Ortiz was able to cut the ring off and turned the tide in his favor by landing the harder punches. It was the second straight loss for Madrimov (10-2-1), a decorated amateur who had lost a close but unanimous decision to Terence Crawford in his previous bout.

Kabayel-Zhang

No heavyweight has made greater gains in the last 15 months than Agit Kabayel. The German of Kurdish descent, whose specialty is body punching, made his third straight appearance in Riyadh tonight and, like in the previous two, fashioned a knockout. Today, although out-weighed by more than 40 pounds, he did away with Zhilei “Big Bang” Zhang in the sixth round.

It didn’t start out well for Kabayel. The New Jersey-based, six-foot-six Zhang, a two-time Olympian for China, started fast and plainly won the opening round. Kabayel beat him to the punch from that point on, save for one moment when Zhang put him on the canvas with a straight left hand.

That happened in the fifth round, but by the end of the frame, the 41-year-old Zhang was conspicuously gassed. The end for the big fellow came at the 2:29 mark of round six when he couldn’t beat the count after crumbling to the canvas in a delayed reaction after taking a hard punch to his flabby midsection.

Kabayel remains undefeated at 26-0 (18 KOs). Zhang (27-3-1) hadn’t previously been stopped.

Smith-Buatsi

The all-British showdown between light heavyweights Joshua Buatsi and Callum Smith was a grueling, fan-friendly affair. A former 168-pound world title-holder, Smith, 34, won hard-earned unanimous decision, prevailing on scores of 115-113, 116-112, and a ludicrous 119-110.

There were no knockdowns, but Liverpool’s Smith, who advanced to 31-2 (22) finished the contest with a bad gash in the corner of his right eye. It was the first pro loss for Buatsi (19-1), an Olympic bronze medalist who entered the contest a small favorite and was the defending “interim” title-holder.

This contest was also a battle of wits between two of America’s most prominent trainers, Buddy McGirt (Smith) and Virgil Hunter (Buatsi).

Check back shortly for David Avila’s wrap-up of the last three fights.

Photo credit: Mark Robinson / Matchroom

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Cain Sandoval KOs Mark Bernaldez in the Featured Bout at Santa Ynez

Published

1 day ago

February 21, 2025

David A. Avila

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Northern California’s Cain Sandoval remained undefeated with a knockout win over Mark Bernaldez in a super lightweight battle on Friday on a 360 Promotions card.

Sandoval (15-0, 13 KOs) of Sacramento needed four rounds to figure out tough Filipino fighter Bernaldez (25-7, 14 KOs) in front of a packed crowd at Chumash Casino in Santa Ynez.

Bernaldez had gone eight rounds against Mexico’s very tough Oscar Duarte. He showed no fear for Sandoval’s reputed power and both fired bombs at each other from the second round on.

Things turned in favor of Sandoval when he targeted the body and soon had Bernaldez in retreat. It was apparent Sandoval had discovered a weakness.

In the beginning of the fourth Sandoval fired a stiff jab to the body that buckled Bernaldez but he did not go down. And when both resumed in firing position Sandoval connected with an overhand right and down went the Filipino fighter. He was counted out by referee Rudy Barragan at 34 seconds of the round.

“I’m surprised he took my jab to the body. I respect that. I have a knockout and I’m happy about that,” Sandoval said.

Other Bouts

Popular female fighter Lupe Medina (9-0) remained undefeated with a solid victory over the determined Agustina Vazquez (4-3-2) by unanimous decision after eight rounds in a minimumweight fight between Southern Californians.

Early on Vazquez gave Medina trouble disrupting her patter with solid jabs. And when Medina overloaded with combination punches, she was laced with counters from Vazquez during the first four rounds.

Things turned around in the fifth round as Medina used a jab to keep Vazquez at a preferred distance. And when she attacked it was no more than two-punch combination and maintaining a distance.

Vazquez proved determined but discovered clinching was not a good idea as Medina took advantage and overran her with blows. Still, Vazquez looked solid. All three judges saw it 79-73 for Medina.

A battle between Southern Californian’s saw Compton’s Christopher Rios (11-2) put on the pressure all eight rounds against Eastvale’s Daniel Barrera (8-1-1) and emerged the winner by majority decision in a flyweight battle.

It was Barrera’s first loss as a pro. He never could discover how to stay off the ropes and that proved his downfall. Neither fighter was knocked down but one judge saw it 76-76, and two others 79-73 for Rios.

In a welterweight fight Gor Yeritsyan (20-1,16 KOs) scorched Luis Ramos (23-7) with a 12-punch combination the sent him to the mat in the second round. After Ramos beat the count he was met with an eight punch volley and the fight was stopped at 2:11 of the second round by knockout.

Super feather prospect Abel Mejia (7-0, 5 KOs) floored Alfredo Diaz (9-12) in the fifth round but found the Mexican fighter to be very durable in their six-round fight. Mejia caught Diaz with a left hook in the fifth round for a knockdown. But the fight resumed with all three judges scoring it 60-53 for Mejia who fights out of El Modena, Calif.

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