Steve Claggett Continues His Late Career Surge; Dominates Miguel Madueno in Montreal

Calgary junior welterweight Steve Claggett won his eighth straight fight tonight on an Eye of the Tiger promotion at the Montreal Casino. A swarmer with a motor that just won’t quit, Claggett (37-7-2, 25 KOs) set a torrid pace from the opening round and never let up, winning the 10-rounder by scores of 98-92 and 99-91 twice.

Miguel Migueno, nine years younger at age 25, was 30-1 heading in with 28 knockouts. His lone defeat had come at the hands of former 130-pound title-holder Jezzrel Corrales before a hostile crowd in Panama City. On paper, Clagett (pictured on the left) was matched tough, but he turned in one of his better performances, forcing the action with his relentless pressure. At the final bell, the crowd applauded his tenacity with a standing ovation.

Semi-windup

Longtime Eye of the Tiger house fighter Steven “Bang Bang” Butler rebounded from an ugly loss to defending WBO middleweight champion Janibek Alimkhanuly with a ninth-round stoppage of rugged Ivan Alvarez.

This bout, by all appearances, was deadlocked after eight rounds and Alvarez was making significant headway. But Butler came on with a flourish in round nine, scoring two knockdowns and forcing the referee to waive the fight off. Both knockdowns were the result of a flurry of punches that backed Alvarez into the ropes. Butler kept punching while Alvarez was sagging and the momentum pitched him through the ropes during the second knockdown. Alvarez beat the count and protested the stoppage which came at the 2:36 mark of round nine.

This was the first collaboration between Butler and the noted trainer/philanthropist John Scully, the former light heavyweight contender. Butler left his family in Montreal and hunkered down in Springfield. Massachusetts to train at Scully’s gym. It paid dividends as Butler improved to 33-4 (27 KOs). Alvarez, 35, falls to 32-15-4.

Also

In another bout of note, light heavyweight Imam Khataev, a former three-time Russian national amateur champion, currently domiciled in Sydney, Australia, continued to turn heads with a second-round stoppage of Mexican journeyman Fernando Galvan. Khataev, 29, put Galvan on the canvas in the opening round with a short left hook and ended matters in the opening minute of the next stanza, taking the starch out of Galvan (8-9-1) with a left hook to the body. Galvan fell to all fours and then reposed on his back, wincing in pain.

It was the fifth knockout in as many pro starts for the five-foot-10 Khataev whose thick physique is a carbon copy of Mike Tyson. He will return to Quebec in January where he will be showcased on the card headlined by Artur Beterbiev vs. Callum Smith.

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