Tag Archives: Fight of the Year

Erislandy Lara to Defend WBA Middleweight Title Against Danny Garcia

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Erislandy Lara is going on the defensive…

The 41-year-old Cuban professional boxer will defend his WBA middleweight title against Danny Garcia on September 14 in Las Vegas, PBC has announced.

Erislandy LaraThe fight will serve as the pay-per-view co-feature on the Canelo Alvarez–Edgar Berlanga card.

Lara-Garcia was originally slated for August 2023 and then was scheduled for the fall.

However, the bout never materialized as PBC network partner Showtime ceased sports programming at the end of the year.

When the fight was planned last year, it was set to take place at a 155-pound catchweight.

Lara (30-3-3, 18 KOs) is coming off a second-round TKO victory over Michael Zerafa in March.

A former 154-pound champion, Lara’s résumé includes a controversial decision loss to Paul Williams, a split-decision defeat to Alvarez and a victory over Austin Trout.

Lara is ESPN’s No. 6 middleweight. His split-decision defeat by Jarrett Hurd in a 154-pound title unification was ESPN’s 2018 Fight of the Year. Lara’s draw with Brian Castano the following year was one of the best fights of 2019.

Garcia (37-3, 21 KOs) is a former unified 140-pound champion and 147-pound titleholder. He rose to prominence with an upset fourth-round TKO victory over Amir Khan in 2012 and followed with a dominant victory over Lucas Matthysse the following year.

His lengthy résumé includes wins over Erik Morales, Zab Judah and Lamont Peterson, along with tight decision defeats to Keith Thurman and Shawn Porter.

The 36-year-old Philadelphian made his 154-pound debut in July 2022 with a majority decision win over Jose Benavidez Jr. He hasn’t competed since.

That was Garcia’s first fight since a December 2020 decision loss to Errol Spence Jr.

Luis Nery to Reportedly Fight Naoya Inoue in Tokyo This May

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Luis Nery is heading back to the ring in the near future…

The 29-year-old Mexican boxer and Naoya Inoue have agreed to a deal for a May fight in Tokyo for Inoue’s undisputed junior featherweight championship, per ESPN sources.

Luis NeryInoue (26-0, 23 KOs) claimed ESPN Fighter of the Year honors when he KOed Marlon Tapales in Round 10 last month to become undisputed champion.

The Japanese star’s victory followed an eighth-round TKO win over Stephen Fulton in July, when Inoue claimed two titles in his 122-pound debut. Inoue, 30, is ESPN’s No. 2 pound-for-pound boxer.

Nery (34-1, 26 KOs) received an indefinite suspension from the Japan Boxing Commission in March 2018, but officials involved have been assured the Mexican will be reinstated, sources said.

The ban was handed down following Nery’s pair of stoppage wins over Japan’s longtime champion Shinsuke Yamanaka.

Nery scored a fourth-round TKO win over Yamanaka to capture the WBC bantamweight title in August 2017, but was suspended afterward when the banned substance zilpaterol was found in his system.

Nery argued the adverse finding was the result of tainted meat consumed in Mexico.

In the March 2018 rematch, Nery stopped Yamanaka in Round 2 but did so after he weighed 121 pounds for a 118-pound title bout. The pair of violations led to the ban.

But Nery earned a shot against Inoue, who usually fights in Japan, when he scored an 11th-round KO over Azat Hovhannisyan in February. The WBC title eliminator was named ESPN‘s runner-up for Fight of the Year.

Nery has won four consecutive fights since his lone professional defeat, a seventh-round TKO vs. Brandon Figueroa in a May 2021 title fight. Nery is rated No. 3 by ESPN at 122 pounds.

Against Inoue, Nery faces long odds to become a two-time junior featherweight champion. “The Monster” is a generational talent fighting at the peak of his powers.

Inoue’s undisputed title victory over Tapales was remarkably his second in as many weight classes in the past year. Inoue stopped Paul Butler in the 11th round of their December 2022 meeting to become undisputed champion at 118 pounds.

Inoue also reigned as champion at 108 and 115 pounds.

Rafael Espinoza Upsets Robeisy Ramirez to Claim WBO Championship

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Rafael Espinoza has pulled off a massive upset…

The 29-year-old Mexican boxer, an unheralded featherweight contender, shocked the boxing world on Saturday, after upsetting two-time Olympic gold medalist Robeisy Ramirez to claim the WBO championship.

Rafael Espinosa, Espinoza (22-0, 18 KOs) entered the bout with a pristine professional record, although the majority of his work had come against relatively unknown competition in Mexico.

Ramirez (13-2, 8 KOs) was a 15-1 betting favorite, and the bout took place in front of a very pro-Ramirez crowd at Dodge City Center near Miami. It was seen as Ramirez’s fight to lose.

Espinoza clearly didn’t see it that way. The lanky featherweight, in his first world title appearance, threw nearly 1,000 punches over the course of 12 rounds and won a majority decision via scores of 115-111, 114-112 and 113-113.

The 12-round affair immediately qualified as a fight of the year candidate. Espinoza went down from a right hook to the chin in the fifth, while Ramirez took his turn on the canvas from a barrage of punches in the 12th.

Despite not having fought past a third round in three years, Espinoza looked as if he could have fought another 12 at the conclusion. Volume was his greatest weapon, and he out-landed Ramirez 103 to 33 in the final three rounds.

The fight played out in three chapters. Espinoza’s length and volume frustrated Ramirez early, and Espinoza jumped out to a four-round lead on most scorecards. Everything turned in the final second of the fifth, when Ramirez dropped Espinoza with a short right hand. Espinoza barely survived the count and was saved by the bell as soon as action resumed.

Ramirez, 29, of Cuba, hurt Espinoza several more times in the middle frames. Espinoza’s right leg also appeared compromised at one point, after an awkward lower body clash between the two competitors. By the eighth round, it looked like normalcy had returned to the ring and Ramirez was in control, but Espinoza then somehow hit another gear.

The gutsy fighter from Guadalajara threw 995 punches to Ramirez’s 376, according to Compubox. Ramirez was far more consistent, as Espinoza only landed 222 to Ramirez’s 119. But there was no question the volume had taken its toll on the defending champion by the 12th round, and Ramirez was running on fumes. Espinoza threw 120 punches in the 12th round alone.

Ivan Calderon Voted into International Boxing Hall of Fame

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Ivan Calderon has entered the Hall…

The 48-year-old Puerto Rican former professional boxer, a two-weight world champion who competed from 2001 to 2012, has been elected to the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Ivan CalderonThe 13-member class was voted by members of the Boxing Writers Association of America and a panel of international boxing historians.

Calderon (35-3-1, 6 KOs) held the WBO mini flyweight title from 2003 to 2007, making eleven successful defenses and being recognized as super champion by the organization. He also held the WBO, Ring magazine, and lineal light flyweight titles from 2007 to 2010 (making six successful defenses).[1] Additionally, his August 2010 bout against Giovani Segura was named fight of the year by Ring magazine.

As an amateur Calderón represented Puerto Rico in international competitions, including the 2000 Olympics.

Diego Corrales, who died two years after winning a 2005 bout voted “Fight of the Year,” is the other member of the Hall’s 2024 class from the men’s modern category.

The enshrinement ceremonies will be June 6-9.

Corrales went 40-5 with 33 KOs and is best remembered for his 2005 victory over Jose Luis Castillo, when he was knocked down twice in the 10th round but then rallied later in the round to stop Castillo.

The former super featherweight and lightweight champion died in 2007 from injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident.

Ana Maria Torres of Mexico was elected from the women’s modern category. The 43-year-old Mexican former professional boxer competed from 1999 to 2012. She held the WBC female super flyweight title twice between 2007 and 2012, and challenged once for the WBC female bantamweight title in 2006.

Luis Angel Firpo in the old-timer category was also voted into the hall.

The late Argentine boxer was the first Latin American in history to challenge for the world heavyweight title. His bout against Jess Willard set a world record for boxing attendance. And his heavyweight title bout against Jack Dempseywas namedRing Magazine Fight of the Year for 1923.

Jaime Munguia to Fight John Ryder in a Super Middleweight Bout in January

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Jaime Munguia has secured his next opponent…

The 27-year-old Mexican professional boxer, who held the WBO junior middleweight title from 2018 to 2019, will meet John Ryder in a super middleweight bout on January 27 in Phoenix.

Jaime MunguiaMunguia (42-0, 33 KOs), a native of Mexico, is coming off a career-best victory, a unanimous-decision win over Sergiy Derevyanchenko in June. Munguia scored a 12th-round knockdown to pull out the decision in a leading candidate for ESPN‘s Fight of the Year.

Now, Munguia will enter what shapes up as another slugfest.

England’s Ryder is coming off the biggest bout of his career, a spirited unanimous-decision loss to Canelo Alvarez in May.

Ryder (32-6, 18 KOs) was floored in Round 5 and suffered a broken nose against boxing’s top star but was able to land some effective blows down the stretch in Alvarez’s homecoming bout in Guadalajara, Mexico.

Munguia, ESPN‘s No. 6 boxer at 168 pounds, was a titleholder at 154 pounds and is hoping for his own crack at Alvarez next year.

Ryder, ESPN’s No. 4 super middleweight, defeated former champion Daniel Jacobs in 2022 in a career-best win.

Mauricio Lara to Fight Leigh Wood in WBA Featherweight Title Fight

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Mauricio Lara is taking on a champion…

The 24-year-old Mexican professional boxer is set to fight Leigh Wood, who is hoping to defend his WBA featherweight title, on February 18 in Nottingham, England, according to promoter Matchroom Boxing.

Mauricio Lara,The bout, which shapes up as a slugfest between two aggressive fighters, was scheduled for September before Wood suffered a torn biceps while sparring.

Wood (26-2, 16 KOs) defended the 126-pound title with a thrilling 12th-round knockout of Michael Conlan in February, a bout that was named ESPN‘s Fight of the Year and KO of the Year. Wood, 34, was floored in Round 1 but rallied to send Conlan through the ropes for the brutal finish.

It was a raucous atmosphere in Nottingham, and now Wood will return home for his second title defense. Leo Santa Cruz, who hadn’t defended his WBA title since 2019, relinquished the belt in December, meaning Wood will fight as a full-fledged champion for the first time.

“Mauricio Lara has made things personal between us with the disrespect he showed me regarding my injury and my country,” said Wood, ESPN’s No. 7 featherweight. “I’m going to show him what I’m all about.”

While the Englishman recovered from the biceps injury, Lara (25-2-1, 18 KOs) stayed busy with a third-round KO of journeyman Jose Sanmartin in October in his hometown, Mexico City.

Lara is no stranger to fighting on the road in England. He broke out in February 2021 with an upset victory over Josh Warrington before the rematch seven months later in Leeds resulted in a two-round no contest due to a clash of heads.

“I have been waiting for this opportunity for two years and I am not going to waste it,” said Lara, ESPN’s No. 2 featherweight. ” … The WBA 126-pound world title goes to Mexico, that I promised to my daughter, my family, my team and to my whole country. Your time has come Leigh Wood, no ‘injury’ can save you now from this.”

Roberto Durán to Be Featured in Showtime’s Docuseries “The Kings”

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Roberto Durán is returning to the limelight…

The 69-year-old Panamanian former professional boxer, known as “Manos de Piedra,” will be among four high-impact boxers featured in the Showtime docuseries The Kings.

Roberto Durán

In addition to Durán, who held world championships in four weight classes: lightweight, welterweight, light middleweight and middleweight, the docuseries will also feature Sugar Ray Leonard, Marvelous Marvin Hagler and Thomas “The Hitman” Hearns.

The first of the show’s four episodes will premiere on Sunday, June 6, at 8:00 pm ET/PT on linear and streaming, the ViacomCBS premium network announced.

Nicknamed the Four Kings during their remarkable, overlapping careers, the quartet contested nine championship fights among them from 1980 to 1989. Their distinct styles and vivid personalities helped spark a renaissance in the sport of boxing, which had endured a downturn after Muhammad Ali’s storybook run concluded.

The backdrop of the series is the 1980s, a go-go decade marked by pronounced socioeconomic and political upheaval in the U.S. as President Ronald Reagan left his mark.

Hagler died last month at age 66.

“These four men defined an era in boxing,” said Stephen Espinoza, president of Showtime Sports, in a press release. “Their individual stories, forever linked by the spectacular battles they waged, reflect a tumultuous period in American culture and history. The Kings takes the viewer beyond the glorious action of some of history’s most memorable prizefights to illuminate each man’s dramatic journey and the societal context that made them stars of sports and popular culture.”

Leonard’s first fight with Durán came in 1980 and kicked off years of tightly contested battles in the ring and surging global popularity outside of it. The four boxers, joined in the latter years of the 1980s by the up-and-coming Mike Tyson, became some of the biggest names in sports and popular culture.

The Boxing Writers Association of America voted each of the four Fighter of the Year every year but one from 1979 to 1985. The Ring magazine named three of their title bouts Fight of the Year and picked Round 1 of Hagler-Hearns as Round of the Year.

The show is premiering during a year that marks the 45th anniversary of Leonard’s Olympic gold medal win and the 40th anniversary of a high point for the Four Kings: Leonard vs. Hearns.

The Kings is produced by Box To Box Film in association with Ingenious Media.