Saturday Morning Notes: Witter-Alexander set, plus Michael Jackson and Sylvester Stallone

by Scott Christ on May 23, 2009 1:29 PM EDT in Boxing News Analysis

Devon Alexander will have his hands full on July 11 when he fights Junior Witter for the vacant WBC 140-pound title. (via cache.daylife.com)

The WBC has announced that promoters for Devon Alexander (Don King) and Junior Witter (Mick Hennessy) have come to an agreement to stage a bout between the two fighters on July 11. No location has been named, but the two that make the most sense are St. Louis and a smaller UK venue. I'd guess King will push really hard to get home field for Alexander (18-0, 11 KO), and same goes for Hennessy on behalf of Witter (37-2-2, 22 KO). Witter held the title from September 15, 2006 through May 10, 2008, when he lost it to Timothy Bradley. Bradley recently vacated/was stripped when he unified the strap with the WBO's title.

Amir Khan's upcoming fight with Andriy Kotelnik forced the postponement of a Michael Jackson concert in London. Jackson said because of other shows at the arena he doesn't have proper time to rehearse. Khan's people put out really calculated retort comments that don't sound like they would have ever been said by an actual person. In related news, Jackson remains a complete lunatic.

Here's an even weirder one: The Sydney Morning Herald reports that 53-year old cruiserweight Dexter "Dingo" Dunworth is training for a potential fight with... Sylvester Stallone. The article goes on to make this absolutely ridiculous statement:

Those in Dunworth's corner are predicting the match could be the highest-grossing fight in the sport's history.

This seriously overestimates the name value of a 62-year old Sylvester Stallone, who is fairly delusional himself. Great stuff all around. The article claims Showtime will pay big bucks for this four-round atrocity.

22-year old Nathan Cleverly won again last night, improving to 16-0 with his sixth knockout, a two-round win over Billy Boyle.

Jake LaMotta is 86 and really does appear to have seriously mellowed with age. The old man seems like a cuddly sort, even, a far cry from the man portrayed in Raging Bull, which was by all accounts no exaggeration. His brother, Joey, "enjoys boxing so much more than that kicking, wrestling crap." I'll give him this: That's probably my favorite MMA bash ever.

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I suspect that Witter is still the bigger draw in the UK

Witter-Bradley was very well attended, despite Bradley being a nobody. On the other hand, if he gets it in St. Louis, King can put Spinks on the undercard.

Other random news that probably isn’t worth a separate fanshot:

- Yordanis Despaigne, another Cuban defector and former national champion, won his pro debut as well. He’s older than the other Cubans and was never as successful as an amateur, but he could be a fringe contender type.

- Oliver McCall and Elijah McCall both won fights last night. Oliver beat Aussie jourrneyman John Hopoate by second round TKO, while Elijah beat a cabdriver.

- Buddy McGirt Jr. and Joe Spina won comeback fights in Providence.

- Kevin Mitchell made a comeback fight last night. He’s probably one of the better UK prospects, but he’s been waylaid with injuries for about the past year. He’s the #1 ranked contender for the WBO, and wants his shot at Roman Martinez next.

Vogt early, Vogt often.

by Brickhaus on May 23, 2009 1:48 PM EDT reply actions

Dunworth, who started boxing at 49, has a sizeable fan base in the US.

“He’s like a Crocodile Dundee – people love him here,” Goodson said.

"Boxing is dirty," said Casamayor. " The day I’m not ready to be a dirty fighter is the day I don’t fight anymore because it will mean that I have no heart for it anymore."

by Zocalo on May 23, 2009 5:29 PM EDT reply actions