Bad Left Hook - For Boxing Fans

Ring Magazine Champions

Accept nothing less! These are boxing's true CHAMPIONS -- anyone not listed here that claims to be a champion of a division is a titleholder.

Heavyweight
Wladimir Klitschko

Cruiserweight (200)
Vacant

Light Heavyweight (175)
Jean Pascal

Super Middleweight (168)
Vacant

Middleweight (160)
Sergio Martinez

Junior Middleweight (154)
Vacant

Welterweight (147)
Vacant

Junior Welterweight (140)
Vacant

Lightweight (135)
Juan Manuel Marquez

Super Featherweight (130)
Vacant

Featherweight (126)
Vacant

Super Bantamweight (122)
Vacant

Bantamweight (118)
Vacant

Super Flyweight (115)
Vacant

Flyweight (112)
Pongsaklek Wonjongkam

Junior Flyweight (108)
Giovani Segura

Strawweight (105)
Vacant

"The video speaks for itself."

--Manny Pacquiao's reaction to the Floyd Mayweather Jr. video that has caused outrage and disgust among fans and media alike (FanHouse)

about 1 hour ago Scott Christ 1 comment

Mandatory Eight Count: Stuff in the Basement

by Scott Christ on Sep 3, 2010 10:22 AM EDT in Boxing News Analysis Comment 5 comments

Geoff Burke - Getty Images for NASCAR

Evander Holyfield is still looking for the undisputed world heavyweight championship. (Photo by Geoff Burke/Getty Images for NASCAR)

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Dan Rafael's Weekend Notebook (ESPN.com)
Nothing major that we haven't already talked about this week, but always worth reading, and there are some tidbits in there, including Nonito Donaire being set for the Cotto-Chavez PPV, but not against Fernando Montiel (shocker!). The feature is on Klitschko-Peter II, which I think is a fight laying really low, and Cameron Dunkin has a lot to say about Kelly Pavlik.

Watt: Course and distance win for Ricky (Evening Times)
Former lightweight world champion Jim Watt believes fellow Scot Ricky Burns will need to thoroughly outbox Roman Martinez to become Scotland's 12th "world champion." He adds, "Ricky can do it, but it is going to take a career-best performance."

Canelo Alvarez workout (Fightnews.com)
Photo gallery and a quick quote from Saul "Canelo" Alvarez's Thursday workout in Guadalajara. Alvarez faces well-faded former welterweight champ Carlos Baldomir on Sept. 18 in Los Angeles.

Search still on for missing son of boxing promoter (The Associated Press)
John Arum, the 49-year-old son of Bob Arum, is still missing in the Cascade Mountains. Twelve searchers and two helicopters are looking for Arum, who was reported missing on Monday. Best wishes to the Arum family.

Get ready for Molitor-Ndlovu III (Fightnews.com)
Despite two wins over Takalani Ndlovu already, if Steve Molitor beats Jason Booth on Sept. 11, he'll be obligated to fight him a third time. Ndlovu beat Jeffrey Mathebula on Wednesday. "Who in the hell wants that fight?" wonders Molitor's promoter, Allan Tremblay. It's a really valid question.

Japanese Scene News & Notes: Updates on Hozumi Hasegawa, Takahiro Ao, Katsunari Takayama & Tomoki Kameda (The Boxing Bulletin)
As always, Sidney Boquiren keeps you abreast of all the latest developments in Japanese boxing.

Evander ‘Real Deal’ Holyfield talks up David Haye fight (Telegraph)
If you were a big Evander Holyfield fan, look away.

Thomas Hearns is not finished yet (Express & Star)
Tommy Hearns, who is about to turn 52, still wants to fight. It's genuinely sad how badly Hearns wants to still be the fighter he was 25 years ago.

5 comments |

A triple-header featuring Nicaraguan fighters Roman "Chocolatito" Gonzalez, Jose Alfaro and Moises Solis against Mexican opponents takes place tonight at 9pm EDT. A free, legal UStream broadcast is available for those interested.

about 11 hours ago Scott Christ 2 comments

James Toney set to box on Nov. 5, then back to MMA

by Scott Christ on Sep 3, 2010 6:51 AM EDT in Boxing News Analysis Comment 2 comments

Al Bello/Zuffa LLC - Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

James Toney is planning to box again before the end of the year, and then return to mixed martial arts. (Photo by Al Bello/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

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Steven Marrocco of MMA Junkie reports that James Toney is planning to box again on November 5 in New Orleans, after which he'll return to mixed martial arts. Toney, 42, was wildly unsuccessful in his foray into MMA at UFC 118 on August 28 in Boston, losing badly to Randy Couture.

Any return to MMA won't be in the UFC, though, according to Dana White.

"I thought we answered this question in 1993, but James came out and he picked a fight," White said. "We answered the question again in 2010. I don't think it needs to be answered again. I don't care if it's (Floyd) Mayweather or anybody else."

John "Pops" Arthur, Toney's long-time trainer, says that's fine, and that they'd like a release from the promotion if they don't plan to use Toney again. Arthur says there are three opponents under consideration for a November 5 fight, which Team Toney always makes sure to note is for his completely irrelevant and ignored "IBA heavyweight championship." Don't expect anyone special, if Toney does indeed fight at all. At best, we're likely to see him take on another shot former name.

Toney (72-6-3, 44 KO) has won his last three decisions in boxing, beating journeyman Danny Batchelder (both tested positive for steroids after the fight), getting a very controversial decision over Fres Oquendo, and stopping club fighter Matthew Greer after being rocked by the no-name in the first round. It's been a long time since James Toney was a top fighter in boxing, and a return to glory is not something anyone should anticipate.

2 comments |

Previously Unreleased Muhammad Ali Photographs

by Anton Tabuena on Sep 3, 2010 5:57 AM EDT Comment 3 comments

Cross-posted from BloodyElbow.com since boxing fans are more likely to appreciate these:

50 years ago, Muhammad Ali, then known as Cassius Clay, won the Olympic Gold Medal in Rome. To celebrate the occasion, his friend and award winning photographer, Michael Gaffney, released previously unseen pictures of the boxing legend.

More pictures here.

Gaffney also talked about the experience:

"I'd always wanted to photograph a true icon. I went off to photograph Ali at his Pennsylvanian training camp. Two weeks turned into a year. He simply told me I wasn't leaving and his words were 'I'm going to make you an offer you can't refuse'."

Gaffney was touched by Ali's genius. "I went everywhere with him. I took thousands of pictures. The pictures went all over the world, in every newspaper and magazine imaginable. But there are many in this exhibition that have never been seen."

3 comments |

ESPN3.com investing in boxing, Sturm-Lorenzo available Saturday

by Scott Christ on Sep 3, 2010 2:45 AM EDT in Boxing News Analysis Comment 7 comments

Friedemann Vogel - Getty Images

ESPN3.com will show Giovanni Lorenzo's challenge of Felix Sturm for a middleweight belt on Saturday. (Photo by Friedemann Vogel/Getty Images)

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ESPN3.com is showing new interest in the boxing business, with three notable overseas fights set for live airing on the broadband network.

Saturday's fight between WBA middleweight titlist Felix Sturm and New York-based Dominican challenger Giovanni Lorenzo is the first of the bouts to air, starting at 3:30pm EDT. On September 11, Wladimir Klitschko defends the world heavyweight championship against Samuel Peter in a rematch, and a month later on October 16, Wladimir's brother Vitali defends the WBC heavyweight belt against Shannon Briggs. All three fights will be live from Germany.

That's the good news. The bad news is that a lot of people still can't access ESPN3. The network is available depending on whether or not your ISP has paid for the service. A full list of affiliates can be viewed here.

As a user of the service, I can say it's not the most reliable thing just yet, but the quality is very good when everything's working properly. All in all, it's only good that ESPN is using the service to pick up fights. As internet streaming becomes more and more of a factor in the way people watch television programs, it'll grow into a bigger and better entity, and hopefully that will mean more fights legally available for U.S. viewers. For those looking for more fights to air in the U.S., hopefully this will be a trail-blazing effort.

7 comments |

Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s Idiotic Rant Shows Insecurity, Ignorance

by Scott Christ on Sep 3, 2010 1:54 AM EDT in Features and Boxing Commentary Comment 38 comments

This is not safe for work because of language, and I'll also say if you've got headphones on, turn them down first and work your way up from there. Sound quality is terrible.

"Once I kick the midget ass, I don't want y'all to jump on my d**k. ... Once I stomp the midget, I'm gonna make that motherf***er make me a sushi roll and cook me some rice. ... Rice with a little bit of cat, rice with a little bit of barbecued dog..."

And it basically devolves from there.

This is really the first time Mayweather has talked in a while, and holy hell, could he have not come off worse. "Money" sounds insecure, at a loss for anything intelligent to say, childish, and ignorant. This is a complete waste of time. There is good trash talking, stuff that drives interest in a fight, and then there is "trash talk" that just makes you seem like a stupid 13-year-old trapped in a millionaire 33-year-old man's body. This is the latter. Mayweather has driven zero interest in a fight with his moronic ranting in this video.

Pretty "Madison Avenue," huh?

You stay classy, "Pretty Boy."

DO NOT post any racist, homophobic, hateful, etc., type comments in this thread. You will be banned immediately and your comments will be removed. It's not worth the effort. Instead of meeting this with a reaction that matches it, try to be above it.

38 comments |

Pacquiao and Margarito visit Cowboys-Dolphins game, will be in Dallas on Friday

by Scott Christ on Sep 3, 2010 1:35 AM EDT in Boxing News Analysis Comment 8 comments

More photos » LM Otero - AP

Nobody's quite sure if Rowdy is licensed by the state of Texas, but he probably is. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

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Manny Pacquiao and Antonio Margarito were at Cowboys Stadium today to start local promotion for their November 13 fight. The two appeared during the Dallas Cowboys-Miami Dolphins final preseason game. Dallas won, 27-25, on a 31-yard field goal from David Buehler, about whom Jerry Jones expressed great excitement after the game.

There's your potential fantasy football tip for the day.

For those in the area and interested, tomorrow the two fighters will be part of a news conference at the stadium, which is open to the public. It starts at Noon CDT at the East End Zone Platform. Parking is available in Lot 3, and you can enter the stadium at Entry B.

It's the final event of the short press tour for the fight, which began in Los Angeles on Tuesday and moved to New York on Wednesday.

Also on SB Nation
SB Nation Dallas-Ft. Worth
Blogging the Boys
The Phinsider

8 comments |