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Home Field Advantage: Fan Favorite Sean O’Malley Bulldozes Sterling at UFC 292, Chris Weidman’s Return Sparks Talk of Retirement, Katona vs. Gibson Earns Fight of the Night…and much more from the UFC’s return to Boston last Saturday

Août 27, 2023 FNU47 Laisser un commentaire

Par: Rich Bergeron

UFC 292 was the first UFC event I attended in 16 ans. As the MMA writer most known for exposing the Xyience scandal (see www.xyiencesucks.com), I dug out my old Xyience hat to commemorate the occasion. Once the UFC’s most prolific sponsor, Xyience is now primarily an energy drink company and does not even associate with any MMA league anymore. Il va sans dire, I was the only one in the entire arena sporting Xyience merch.

I paid for my own tickets this time, but I couldn’t avoid thinking about what my UFC 292 experience would have been like if my UFC 78 de l'expérience, paid for by Xyience, had turned out much differently for me almost 16 il y a des années.

I will be ruminating more on the personal story of my own Boston homecoming and the changes we’ve seen for the UFC between the last fight I attended and this one in a new piece I plan to write on www.paythefighters.com. Stay tuned for that, but first let’s get to the UFC’s well constructed fight card for Saturday night.

It began with a tale of two flyweight Silvas: Karine Silva and Natalia Silva. Those bouts ended with two Silva wins by two different methods, but each fighter proved dominant in their particular styles. Karine dispatched Maryna Moroz with a last-second guillotine choke just before the end of the first round. It was a fantastic start to a show that had a few peaks and valleys as far as the entertainment value of some of the match-ups. Natalia took her time and picked apart a game Andrea Lee from a distance for the majority of the contest. She cruised to a unanimous decision by being cautious and careful with her striking aim.

Suivant, a controversial split decision gave the odds-makers’ favorite fighter Andre Petrovski a win over Gerald Meershaert. Petrovski did not appear to have the cardio to hang with the seasoned veteran Meerschaert. All that was lacking in this fight was the concentrated striking power from Meershaert to put Petrovski down and out. Les deux combattants ont eu leurs moments, but it seemed obvious to me Gerald was the busier and more effective fighter. He was only one of the robbery victims accosted by the judges Saturday night after clearly winning a primarily technical fight. The touches of slugfest sprinkled in from time to time seemed to always favor the more game and eager Meerschaert. He definitely deserved the win. We’ll talk about another robbery of equal caliber a bit later.

A pair of Ultimate Fighter Finale fights came next with Bantamweights Brad Katona and Cody Gibson kicking it off by earning “Fight of the Night” honors. Their toe-to-toe kickboxing match that rarely hit the ground for very long certainly had the crowd riled up from start to finish. Katona ended up being a second quicker on the draw and sharp enough with his jabs and counters to secure a win in a scrap where he often had to take one good punch to land two of his own. Gibson wore the results of Brad’s accuracy on his battered face at the final bell, but he also earned great respect for his never-quit approach from both the crowd and the organization. The UFC offered both fighters contracts for their efforts instead of only the winner getting the nod.

Kurt Holobaugh had to fight friend and fellow Team Chandler fighter Austin Hubbard in the Lightweight finale. It was a fight that started better for Hubbard than it ended. Eventually after a short feeling out process, Holobaugh took the momentum away and secured a phenomenal Triangle Choke just 2:39 dans le deuxième cadre. Both fighters had their dominating moments, but it was Holobaugh’s black belt jiu jitsu skills that won the night and the TUF trophy.

Gregory Rodrigues absolutely demolished Russian Dennis Tiuliulin in a middleweight fight that had the Beantown crowd chanting “USA” briefly while rooting for a Brazilian fighter. “Robocop” enjoyed the crowd support and quickly obliged their cheers with his finishing skills in full display. Rodrigues coincidentally looks a bit like the main character in Netflix’s “The Lincoln Lawyer,” if the character bulked up after a few rounds of steroids. Rodrigues certainly laid down the law and pummeled the Russian into unconsciousness with a machine-like precision. He took just one minute and 43 seconds to give the crowd their last stoppage until the main event.

Five straight decisions followed, two of them decided by perfect placement of monstrous leg kicks from the victors. The most painful of those two bouts to watch was Chris Weidman finishing out the preliminaries by facing off with Brad Tavares in a punishing middleweight battle. Weidman, coming back from a vicious rubber chicken leg injury where he tried to plant on a completely broken leg against Uriah Hall, looked rusty as rusty can be. Every takedown he attempted seemed to get stuffed easily by Tavares.

Every punching exchange seemed to be too little, too late for Weidman to come back from the constant leg kicks peppering both the leg with the old injury and Weidman’s other leg for good measure. Even with a torn MCL or ACL (according to Dana White who compelled Weidman to retire after the fight), Weidman stalked Tavares around the cage and tried his best to take the fight to him despite the busted wheel. Tavares won a very strategic and smart fight, disappointing the entire pro-Weidman crowd hoping for that miracle comeback performance that never came.

Marlon “Chito” Vera and Pedro Munhoz opened up the main card with a one-sided affair showcasing Vera’s patience, striking acumen, and nearly-flawless technique. Munhoz finished the fight on his feet, but he endured plenty of facial damage getting there. Chito stayed at a safe range for the majority of the bout and took few risks on the way to his unanimous decision win. The reach and speed of Vera seemed to be the most effective advantages he enjoyed against the shorter and stockier Munhoz. Vera, boring as he may be to watch at times, proved he deserves his own bantamweight title shot.

The third-straight decision gave Mario Bautista a very controversial unanimous decision win over Da’Mon Blackshear. Bautista edged out Blackshear in terms of ground control, but Blackshear was more accurate in his striking and landed more significant strikes in the featherweight scrap. I certainly thought he did enough to win, but the judges did not see the fight the same way and gave the contest to Bautista.

Ian Garry and Neil Magny clashed next in a mismatched welterweight contest. Magny showed tremendous heart in getting back up after every knockdown, but he could not overcome the incessant leg kicks thrown by Garry. Referee Keith Peterson came close to stopping the bout a few times, but Magny kept doing just enough to keep it going, hopping around on one leg at times. Garry’s striking was just as on point as his trash talk game, evoking the spirit of Nate Diaz with a few well-timed hand gestures. The crowd celebrated his continued dominance with Garry telling them about his desire to be the best fighter on the face of the earth someday in his post-fight speech. Magny will have to find an answer to his recent struggles if he wants to remain relevant in the UFC.

Weili Zhang and Amanda Lemos squared off in an epic title fight next. Lemos nearly secured a couple miraculous submission attempts, but the strawweight title fight turned into a question of whether or not Lemos could survive until the final bell. Zhang showcased her talents in all her areas of expertise, and Lemos could only hope to win by way of a couple Hail Mary submission attempts Zhang wriggled out of. Zhang’s speed, power and durability overwhelmed Lemos and left her struggling to avoid a stoppage through much of the later rounds. Somehow she managed to do it, taking a tremendous amount of damage on her way. Zhang walked away retaining her title, much to the delight of fans who backed her through the entire fight.

Finalement, the main event arrived, well after midnight. Sean O’Malley entered the arena first, and the crowd erupted. Many of them sported green or pink wigs to imitate O’Malley’s signature look. O’Malley honestly looked pretty petrified, as if he didn’t even sleep at all the night before the event. Aljamain Sterling entered the cage to a chorus of boos he attempted to make light of by egging the crowd on to boo him more.

The first round was mostly a showcase of footwork from both fighters. O’Malley’s head games might have worked on Sterling, because he promised in pre-fight interviews he would secure a first round TKO of his own. Rather than rely on his greatest strength, his wrestling, Sterling wanted to beat O’Malley at his own game. That turned out to be the wrong strategy, a fact Sterling eventually realized by the time he ended up on the wrong side of that TKO. There were scant attempts to take O’Malley down, and all of them were completely stuffed. Sterling folded and fell to the canvas after getting hit with an O’Malley counter punch early in the second round. The rest was history as O’Malley closed “the Suga show” with some McGregor-esque ground and pound.

Both fighters gave great post-fight speeches, true to form. Sterling was gracious in defeat and showed his respect for O’Malley striving to reach his dream. Considering Sterling criticized O’Malley before the fight for being Dana White’s pet project and not deserving a title shot, it was a huge mea culpa. Aussi, if it was indeed all about being favored by Mr. Blanc, O’Malley might have ticked off the Baldfather by indicating he’d like to fight Boxer Gervonta Davis more than any other actual UFC fighter.

As only the second Dana White Contender Series fighter to earn a world title, O’Malley can certainly call his own shots to some extent, but a boxing crossover is a very sensitive subject in the wake of Francis Ngannou recently making waves for backing out of his UFC contract and signing up for a heavyweight boxing match with Tyson Fury that will eclipse his career UFC earnings by a mile. Only Conor McGregor has been able to convince UFC brass to go all in on a crossover fight into boxing so far. Dana White has since completely scrapped tentative plans to create “Zuffa Boxing” to account for his fighters wanting to emulate McGregor’s profile, financial track record and bold bravado that earned him that opportunity to fight Floyd Mayweather in an exhibition bout.

Often, to get Dana White’s attention and respect, fighters simply have to sell themselves enough for that to translate into massive merchandise and ticket sales generated off their buzz. Much like the WWE, big personas and colorful characters often win out on opportunities in the UFC over athletes who just concentrate on their physical skill sets. Strikers are especially favored, because they deliver on the UFC’s implied “put on a show” standard of excellence imposed on every fighter who steps into the cage. It’s a style of management and carrot and stick leadership that fools fighters into thinking it’s better for their careers to constantly come forward with little concern for defense and take tremendous risks to be much more exciting and entertaining than they need to be to win a particular fight.

Now this kid O’Malley confesses to want to be like Dana himself, comfortable enough financially to bet $250,000 per poker hand. The most special talent prior to O’Malley used his own rising star persona to build his own name brands and buy his own whiskey company. He has a yacht and a Lamborghini, and he’s still the most talked about and called out fighter in the organization even after losing such a one-sided battle with Dustin Poirier and being sidelined with a broken leg for a few years. The fact that O’Malley can realize and internalize that he’ll probably never get to Conor’s level without a huge crossover fight in boxing speaks volumes about where the UFC is at today.

It is the kind of development I have to chuckle at knowing how hard it’s been to bring all the fighter pay and contract issues to court without an army of lawyers to face the UFC’s formidable legal team. One such legal army recently secured the go ahead to pursue a class action anti-trust lawsuit on behalf of over 1,200 anciens combattants de l'UFC. The judge in the case appears to be already siding with the plaintiffs. Reaction to UFC class-action lawsuit certification: What happened, and what’s next? (msn.com)

Whenever the organization is confronted by statistics that show the revenue share for fighters is minuscule compared to other major sports with players’ associations, the response is typically something to the effect of: “We’ve made so many millionaires. Our fighters are doing just fine, and they all get plenty of financial opportunities with the fame we’ve helped them achieve.”

As an expert on the UFC’s financial history and an audience member at UFC 292, I couldn’t avoid confronting the reality that so many “UFC Nut-hugger” journalists get all the fringe benefits of press privileges because they play along so well with that “Zuffa Myth” mentality. The folks who put the UFC on the map subliminally seduce their supporters with access and promises of fame and opportunity, and fighters and media members alike get sucked into those kind of management theatrics. À son tour, you don’t end up with much investigative reporting in MMA media circles, and fighters who ask a lot of questions and demand better contract conditions don’t get re-signed or set up with prime fight match-ups.

It took the main event result to really clarify the issue for me of how the UFC constantly keeps the focus on their supposed ability to create superstars just by letting a fighter sign any contract with the organization. Some who agree that’s the case would say it was the organization’s ability to see enough talent in O’Malley to put him on Dana White’s Contender Series that led to the spectacular rise to fame the new champ’s riding. Sûrement, O’Malley wouldn’t have even been in Boston Saturday night if he never got into the organization. Cependant, there have been plenty of DWCS fighters who didn’t get any more UFC opportunities because they lost that entry-level fight. O’Malley had to win and keep winning to be where he was on Saturday night.

Le point est: Sean O’Malley’s cult following and tremendous self-confidence is a result of his own personal crusade to be someone special with unlimited potential and amazing talent. He would never even be in the conversation for a title if he did not put in all the untold hours in the gym striving to be better. The UFC did not create Sean O’Malley, they just gave him a platform to show what kind of fighter he could be. And while he is enjoying the superstardom the UFC will credit themselves for, O’Malley has to know the only way he can maximize his earning potential is to eclipse the organization itself. He has to go above and beyond their restrictive financial borders to a sport where the revenue share is so much better and a guy like Francis Ngannou can make more in one fight than he made in his entire UFC career.

Si, If Dana White really did make Sean O’Malley his pet project as Aljamain Sterling suggested, Il a fait un excellent travail. Malheureusement, the monster he created may come back to bite him in the long run. Another UFC co-promoted boxing card will get too many of their employees trying to take the same route and wondering why Dana’s little buddy is getting all the breaks and benefits. Veterans and newcomers will both likely look at any hyped up Davis vs. O’Malley boxing match as an admission by their leadership that the UFC can’t pay their fighters enough to keep them in the cage.

“Kid, you have no idea how much money you’re gonna to make,” Dana White told O’Malley after the win according to a recent O’Malley interview. I imagine in his head, Dana finished that thought with “us.”

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SHOWTIME SPORTS® UNVEILS LOADED BOXING SCHEDULE FEATURING MARQUEE MATCHUPS FROM PREMIER BOXING CHAMPIONS

Mars 18, 2022 FNU47 Laisser un commentaire

TWO WORLD TITLE UNIFICATIONS, SEVEN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOUTS AND THREE WORLD TITLE ELIMINATORS ACROSS FIVE MONTHS

Star-Studded Lineup Is Highlighted by Errol Spence Jr., Gervonta Davis, Jermell Charlo, David Benavidez and Jermall Charlo

NEW YORK - Mars 15, 2022 - SHOWTIME Sports and Premier Boxing Champions today announced nine boxing events across the first half of 2022 featuring some of the sport’s most accomplished and dynamic stars in highly competitive matchups. The lineup pits champions against champions and top contenders against top contenders to form the strongest and most ambitious schedule in the industry. The robust lineup includes:

Nine marquee events across five months featuring 21 undefeated fighters;

Two world championship unifications bouts, one for all four world title belts and the coveted title of Undisputed Champion, and one for three world title belts;

Seven world championship matches with at least 13 world title belts at stake and three world title eliminators;

All of the top-six ranked super welterweights fighting in a seven-week span;

Several pivotal crossroads fights from super bantamweight to super middleweight with an average of two events per month through July.

The massive schedule features the sport’s biggest stars: Errol Spence, Jr., Gervonta «Tank» Davis, Jermell Charlo, David Benavidezet Jermall Charlo. There are also 18 fighters aged 27 years and younger including unified world championStephen Fulton, Jr., and highly regarded, concurrent invaincu de poids welterJaron «Bottes» Ennis. With this emphasis on youth and kingmaking, SHOWTIME Sports and Premier Boxing Champions are well positioned to carry the sport into the future. Led byStephen Espinoza, Président, Sportif & Programmation de l'événement, Showtime Networks Inc., and four-time Emmy^® Award-winning executive producerDavid Dinkin, Jr., who guides an all-star cast of commentators and production aces, AFFICHER L'HEURE^® remains the most tenured and trusted platform in boxing. Arguably the best active welterweight of this era, the undefeated Spence, already a unified champ, will seek to collect a third world title when he puts his WBC and IBF straps on the line against WBA World ChampionYordenis Ugas surSamedi,Avril 16 in the main event on SHOWTIME PPV^® à AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys. Spence-Ugas is only the 12^e unification match in the history of the welterweight division, joining classic matchups such as«Sucre» Ray Leonard contre.Thomas Hearnsje etFloyd Mayweather contre.Manny Pacquiao. The match is rich with intrigue as Spence attempts to claim supremacy in one of boxing’s deepest divisions, while Ugas, who nearly quit the sport, aims to complete a stunning turnaround after beating eight-division world champion Pacquiao in August. Boxing superstar and five-time, champion du monde trois divisionsRéservoirDavis will headline his fourth straight SHOWTIME PPV event against nemesisRolando Romero surSamedi, Mai 28, au Barclays Center à Brooklyn, New York, for Davis’ WBA Lightweight World Title. The bout comes on the heels of Davis’ hard-fought 12-round unanimous decision win overIsaac "Pitbull" Cruz in which Davis overcame an injury in front of a star-studded, sellout crowd in Los Angeles last December. WBO 154-pound No. 1-classé aspirantTim Tszyu, the son of Hall of FamerKostya Tszyu, who fought many of his most memorable bouts on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING, fera son U.S. débutSamedi, March 26contre 2012 U.S.. Olympian and top contenderTerrell Gaushaat The Armory in Minneapolis. The streaking southpawsErickson Lubin etSebastian Fundora will engage in a Super Welterweight Title Eliminator, for the WBC interim title, in the second of back-to-back, intriguing crossroads matchups in the division onSamedi, Avril 9 from Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas. Jermell Charlo et Brian Brown once again will seek to become the first undisputed 154-pound champion in the four-belt era and just the third overall undisputed champion today when they meet in a rematch of their 2021 classic onSamedi, Mai 14 à Los Angeles. Plus, rising welterweight starEnnis, peut-être the most talented boxer yet to win a world title, returns as the co-feature againstCustio Claytonin an IBF Welterweight Title Eliminator. Former two-time world championBenavidez renvoie à l'action surSamedi,May 21against knockout artistDavid Lemieux à 168 pounds in Phoenix, Arizona, in a bout between two of the sport’s biggest punchers. Fulton, in his first bout since his title unification win in the 122-pound division againstBrandon Figueroa, will defend his titles onSamedi, Juin 4 à Minneapolis, against former unified world championDanny Roman in another can’t miss matchup. Jermall Charlo will defend his WBC Middleweight World Championship for the fifth time onSamedi, Juin 18, when he faces former world title challenger, WBC Non. 6-classéMaciej Sulecki on the Juneteenth holiday weekend in Houston. OnSamedi, Juillet 9, à San Antonio, Texas, newly minted WBC Featherweight World ChampionMark Magsayo will make his first title defense since dethroningGary Russell Jr., on SHOWTIME against unbeaten mandatory challenger and former super bantamweight titleholderRoi Vargas.
Additional high-stakes matches will be announced as individual fight cards fill out. “It’s a good time to be a boxing fan and SHOWTIME viewer with so many high-level, consequential matchups on our schedule,», A déclaréEspinoza, Président, Sportif & Programmation de l'événement, Showtime Networks Inc. “We continue to grow the sport at every level, from our grassroots seriesShoBoxto crowning unified and undisputed champions across boxing’s deepest divisions. When you consider the competitive nature of these fights, the star power of fighters like Errol Spence, Jr., ‘Tank’ Davis, David Benavidez, the Charlo brothers—and the youthful vitality of Stephen Fulton, Jr., Jaron Ennis and Brandun Lee—it’s never been clearer that SHOWTIME is the destination for the most compelling fights and will be for years to come. This SHOWTIME Boxing lineup is hands down the most potent of any network or platform in 2022.” The SHOWTIME Sports boxing schedule features seven editions of SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING^® and two significant SHOWTIME PPV events, all presented by Premier Boxing Champions: ·Mars 26 - Showtime Championship BoxingThe Armory, Minneapolis, À partir de.
o Tim Tszyu vs. Terrell Gausha, Super Welterweight Bouto Michel Rivera vs. Joseph Adorno, Lightweight Bouto Elvis Rodriguez vs. Juan Jose Velasco, Poids super-léger (142 LBS) Bout ·Avril 9 - Showtime Championship Boxing__The Theatre at Virgin Hotels, Las Vegas
o Erickson Lubin vs. Sebastian Fundora, WBC Super Welterweight Interim Titleo Tony Harrison vs. Sergio Garcia, Super Welterweight Bouto Kevin Salgado vs. Bryant Perrella, Super Welterweight Bout ·Avril 16 – SHOWTIME PPV__AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas
o Errol Spence Jr. vs. Yordenis Ugas, WBC, WBA & IBF Welterweight World __Championship Unification
Showtime Championship Boxing (preceding PPV):o Radzhab Butaev vs. Eimantas Stanionis, WBA Welterweight Title Bouto Brandun Lee vs. Zachary Ochoa, Poids super-léger Bout ·Mai 14 - Showtime Championship Boxing__Los Angeleso Jermell Charlo vs. Brian Castaño II, Undisputed IBF, WBA, WBC & WBO Super __Welterweight World Championship Unificationo Jaron Ennis vs. Custio Clayton, IBF Welterweight Eliminator ·Mai 21 - Showtime Championship Boxing__Phénix
o David Benavidez vs. David Lemieux, Super Middleweight Bouto Yoelvis Gomez vs. Jorge Cota, Super Welterweight Bout ·Mai 28 – SHOWTIME PPV__Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York
o Gervonta Davis vs. Rolando Romero, WBA Lightweight World Championship ·Juin 4 - Showtime Championship Boxing__Minneapolis
o Stephen Fulton, Jr. vs. Danny Roman, WBO & WBC Super Bantamweight World Championshipo David Morrell vs. Kalvin Henderson, WBA Super Middleweight World Title ·Juin 18 - Showtime Championship Boxing__Houston
o Jermall Charlo vs. Maciej Sulecki, WBC Middleweight World Championship ·Juillet 9 - Showtime Championship Boxing__San Antonio
o Mark Magsayo vs. Roi Vargas, WBC Featherweight World Championship\

For more information and future fight announcements visitwww.SHO.com/sports, www.PremierBoxingChampions.com, suivre sur Twitter @ShowtimeBoxing, @PremierBoxing et @TGBPromotions sur Instagram @ShowtimeBoxing, @PremierBoxing et @TGBPromotions ou devenez fan sur Facebook àwww.Facebook.com/SHOBoxing. Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), une filiale en propriété exclusive de Paramount, possède et exploite le service premium SHOWTIME^®, qui présente des séries originales acclamées par la critique, documentaires provocateurs, films à succès au box-office, comédies et musique spéciales et sports percutants. SHOWTIME est disponible en tant que service de streaming autonome sur tous les principaux appareils de streaming et Showtime.com, ainsi que par câble, DBS, fournisseurs de services de télécommunications et de vidéo en streaming. SNI also operates the premium services THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ and FLIX^®, ainsi que des versions à la demande des trois marques. SNI commercialise et distribue des événements sportifs et de divertissement pour l'exposition aux abonnés sur une base pay-per-view par Showtime PPV^®. Pour plus d'informations, aller àwww.SHO.com.

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GERVONTA “TANK” DAVIS REMAINS UNDEFEATED WITH THRILLING UNANIMOUS DECISION OVER ISAAC “PITBULL” CRUZ

Décembre 7, 2021 FNU47 Laisser un commentaire

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Description générée automatiquement — ***Sebastian Fundora Outpoints Sergio Garcia in Co-Main Event;***
***Carlos Adames Defeats Sergiy Derevyanchenko in an Exciting Fight,***
***and Eduardo Ramirez Dominates Miguel Marriaga***
***in SHOWTIME PPV Undercard Action***

**Cliquez** **ICI** **for Photos from Ryan Hafey / Premier Champions de boxe**

**Cliquez** **ICI** **for Photos from Esther Lin / AFFICHER L'HEURE**

**Cliquez** **ICI** **pour des photos de Sean Michael Ham / Promotions Mayweather**

**LOS ANGELES** (Décembre 5, 2021) –Boxing superstar and five-time world champion Gervonta «Tank» Davis put his boxing skills on display, winning a rousing 12-round round unanimous decision over the relentless **Isaac "Pitbull" Cruz** to retain his WBA Lightweight World Title in front of a star-studded, sellout crowd of 15,850 at STAPLES Center live on SHOWTIME Pay-Per-View, dans un événement présenté par Premier Champions de boxe.

Scorecards lus 116-112 and two scores of 115-113, all for Davis.

The atmosphere in the arena was electric, with scores of current and former NBA stars in attendance, including Earvin “Magic” Johnson, Kawhi Leonard, Dwight Howard, Kenny Smith, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce among others.

Accompanied by superstar rapper Lil Durk, Davis entered the ring in Laker purple and gold; tassels along his trunks with the late Kobe Bryant’s number “8” and “24” on each side. Cruz celebrated his Mexican heritage with a mariachi band behind him as he strode toward the ring.

There was no feeling-out process in the first. Cruz charged at the defending champion, pinning him against the ropes and wailing away.

“That’s my style. ‘Pitbull’ is always going to be on the attack,», A déclaré Cruz. “I think we retained rhythm from the start to the end.”

Davis found his rhythm in the second and third, circling the ring and walking Cruz into shots. In the fourth, Cruz concentrated his attack on the body, pounding Davis’ ribs.

The 27-year-old Baltimore native turned on the power in the fourth, alternating between the right hook and left cross behind his southpaw stance. More punishing blows came from Davis during the fifth.

“He’s a shorter fighter, so I was throwing down on the top of his head,», A déclaré Davis. “I hit him with my knuckle and messed it up. Je me suis blessé la main dans le sixième tour. No matter if the opponent is taller or shorter, I’ve got to get through it. Il est un guerrier. Even though he didn’t win, a star was born tonight.”

“It was right around the fifth round I saw that his hand wasn’t working correctly,” Cruz observed.

Davis boxed beautifully in the middle rounds, firing quick shots and pivoting away from the return fire. A right hook in the eighth briefly buzzed Cruz and brought the audience to their feet. But just when it appeared as if the fight was slipping away, Cruz fought fire with fire, landing a flush uppercut seconds before the bell.

The 23-year-old Mexican picked up the pace in the latter rounds, keeping Davis on his toes and pounding away. Davis held his own, fighting back on even terms until the fight’s end.

Naturellement, Cruz believed he deserved the victory.

“Viva Mexico. I have nothing to say, the fans are speaking on who won this fight,"Il a dit.

Following a successful title defense, Davis said he’s ready for all comers.

“L.A., we did it for Kobe,», A déclaré Davis. “At the beginning of the fight, he came on strong. I felt as the fight was going, he was breaking down. But I hurt my hand, so I wasn’t able to get him out of there.

“Whatever the best opportunity is for me, I’ll do it. All of them guys are easy work. I’m the top dog.”

En cas de co-principal, **Sebastian “Towering Inferno” Fundora** moved closer to a world title shot with a 12-round unanimous decision over the previously-unbeaten **Sergio Garcia** dans un éliminateur de titre WBC Super Welterweight.

Final scores read 118-110, 117-111 et 115-113.

Fundora established control quickly in the first, snapping Spain’s Garcia’s head back with a booming left. The two traded evenly through the early rounds. Garcia had his moments, including a sharp overhand right in the fifth that drew blood from Fundora’s nose.

The 23-year-old Fundora found his range in the sixth, pumping the jab and using his 6-foot-5 frame and 80-inch reach to keep Garcia at bay.

“I was using my distance a lot more. I wanted to display something different than what I’m used to,» A déclaré Fundora. “Height was definitely a difference in this fight.”

Garcia struggled to land during the second half of the bout, save for a couple moments in the 12^e when the two combatants stood toe-to-toe.

“Maybe things could have been different if I had been more aggressive from the beginning,”A déclaré Garcia. “I shouldn’t have let myself get carried away by what he was doing.”

Fundora believes he’s ready for a world title shot.

“We just beat the No. 2 dans la WBC, so we have No.1, and we have the champion,» A déclaré Fundora. “Whoever they give us next, we’re ready for.”

In a thrilling back and forth, **Carlos Adamès** (21-1, 16 KOs) overcame a stiff challenge from former world title challenger **Sergiy Derevyanchenko** (13-4, 10 KOs) to win a 10-round majority decision in their WBC Middleweight World Title Eliminator.

Both combatants had their moments, but facing the toughest opponent of his career, the 27-year-old Adames shined. One judge scored the middleweight bout even at 95-95, while the other two scored it for Adames by scores of 96-94 et 97-93.

“This means a lot for me in my career and this is a big accomplishment winning against a fighter of his caliber,” said Adames, who was born in the Dominican Republic and fights out of Washington Heights in New York City.

“I am aggressive and speedy by nature, so I came in ready to do my thing. He started slow, wanting to see what would happen, and simply had the wrong game plan. He got a bit tired as the fight went on, took a lot of hard shots from me and it was evident that I caused him a lot of damage.”

“I expect my opponent to fight the same style. It was nothing special for me, just a quality fight,», A déclaré Derevyanchenko.

“He stayed southpaw, that was the difference in the fight. I don’t know what I’ll do next. I need a little bit of rest and then I will go back to the gym because I love boxing and I love the show.”

“This gives me an opportunity to move on,” said Adames. “I dominate at both 154 et 160, so wherever they give me the opportunity to fight for a championship is where I’ll go.”

Dans le combat d'ouverture de la télédiffusion SHOWTIME PPV, super featherweight contender **Eduardo “Zurdito” Ramirez** (26-2-3, 12 KOs) was in peak form, winning a wide 10-round unanimous decision over former world title challenger **Miguel Mariaga**.

“I would like to thank the fans, SHOWTIME and the Montiel family for supporting me. Marriaga was a tough opponent, but I managed to dominate,” said Ramirez. “I had a varied fighting style and kept him on his toes the whole time.”

Marriaga (30-5, 26 KOs) a été l'agresseur tout au long, particularly in the first round as he backed Ramirez up with combination punching. The latter found his range midway through the frame, utilizing an accurate jab. Dans la troisième, a right hook followed by an overhand left floored an off-balance Marriaga for a flash knockdown.
“We started out strong, but then things got progressively harder. Having said that, we are pleased with the work we put in today,” said Marriaga. “We should have been more savvy, but we tried our hardest in the face of a great opportunity that unfortunately we could not take advantage of.”

Ramirez dominated after scoring the knockdown, punishing Marriaga from then on with an assortment of shots to the head and body. Final punch stats had Ramirez landing 280 de 762 (36.7%) total punches to Marriaga’s 159 en dehors de 689 (21.3%).

“Now I’m going to relax with my family and enjoy the holidays,” said Ramirez. “Then hopefully 2022 will come with a title shot for me.”

Tonight’s blockbuster pay-per-view event will re-air on SHOWTIME this Saturday, Décembre 11 à 10 p.m. ET/PT. The delayed telecast of Davis vs. Cruz will open the telecast featuring WBC Bantamweight World Champion and future Hall of Famer Nonito Donaire as he will defend his title against undefeated top contender and fellow Filipino countryman Reymart Gaballo headlining in a Premier Boxing Champions event from Dignity Health Tennis Stadium in Carson.

Le commentateur sportif vétéran Brian Custer a animé la télédiffusion SHOWTIME PPV tandis que la voix polyvalente des sports de combat Mauro Ranallo a géré une action coup par coup aux côtés de l'analyste du Temple de la renommée Al Bernstein et du champion du monde en trois divisions Abner Mares. Three Hall of Famers rounded out the SHOWTIME telecast team – Emmy® award winning reporter Jim Gray, unofficial scorer Steve Farhood, et l'annonceur de renommée mondiale Jimmy Lennon Jr. Le producteur exécutif a été quatre fois lauréat d'un prix Emmy®, David Dinkins, Jr. L'émission a été dirigée par Bob Dunphy. L'ancien champion du monde des poids moyens juniors Raúl «El Diamante» Marquez et le sportif Alejandro Luna ont été analystes experts en espagnol sur la programmation audio secondaire (SAP).

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Pour plus d'informations, visitez www.SHO.com/sports, www.PremierBoxingChampions.com, suivre sur Twitter @ShowtimeBoxing, @PremierBoxing, MayweatherPromo, TGBPromotions, sur Instagram @ShowtimeBoxing, @PremierBoxing, @MayweatherPromotions, @TGBPromotionss ou devenez fan sur Facebook à www.Facebook.com/SHOBoxing et https://www.facebook.com/MayweatherPromotions/.

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Gervonta Davis défendra le titre mondial des poids légers WBA contre Isaac Cruz – Dimanche, Décembre 5

Novembre 5, 2021 FNU47 Laisser un commentaire

La quintuple championne du monde invaincue Gervonta Davis défendra le titre mondial des poids légers WBA contre le percutant Isaac Cruz dimanche, Décembre 5 sur Showtime PPV^®

Cruz remplace Rolando Romero dans le Main Event à

STAPLES Center à Los Angeles

Billets en vente maintenant!

LOS ANGELES (Novembre 3, 2021) – Cinq fois champion du monde invaincu et attraction la plus chaude de la boxeGervonta «Tank» Davis défendra son championnat WBA des poids légers contre les coups dursIsaac « Pitbull » Cruz le dimanche, Décembre 5 en direct sur SHOWTIME PPV du STAPLES Center à Los Angeles dans un événement Premier Boxing Champions.

Croix, Non classé. 2 dans l'IBF, remplace Rolando Romero.

Les billets pour l'événement en direct, qui est promu par Mayweather Promotions, GTD Promotions et Promotions TGB, sont maintenant en vente et peuvent être achetés àAXS.com.

La troisième attraction consécutive de Davis en tête d'affiche à la carte le verra combattre l'intransigeant Cruz, qui a valu à juste titre le surnom de « Pitbull » au cours de sa carrière professionnelle.

« Cela va être un combat formidable sur SHOWTIME PPV,», A déclaré Leonard Ellerbe, PDG de Promotions Mayweather. "Isaac Cruz était prêt pour cette grande opportunité et je m'attends à ce qu'il soit prêt à livrer le combat de sa vie. Cependant, Gervonta Davis est un talent générationnel qui ne fait que s'améliorer. Ce combat va se terminer de façon spectaculaire le 5 décembre.

« ., Pay per view combat contre l'une des stars les plus brillantes de la boxe à Gervonta Davis,'' a déclaré Tom Brown, Président de TGB Promotions. « Cruz présente une autre, et certains diraient un défi plus difficile à Tank Davis. Cruz ne reculera pas et il apportera le combat à Davis dès la cloche d'ouverture. Nous avons tous vu le mélange de superbes compétences de boxe et de puissance explosive de Gervonta, et on sait de quoi il est capable. Ce sera la force irrésistible contre l'objet immobile, ce qui signifie des feux d'artifice au STAPLES Center et sur SHOWTIME PPV le dimanche, 5 décembre.’’

Davis (25-0, 24 KOs), star de l'écurie Mayweather Promotions, a ajouté une autre performance remplie de moments forts en juin, alors qu'il arrêtait Mario Barrios, invaincu auparavant, pour remporter un titre de 140 livres et devenir un champion du monde en trois divisions. Le natif de Baltimore a remporté son championnat des poids légers avec un 12^e-élimination directe de l'ancien champion Yuriorkis Gamboa en décembre 2019.

"Je respecte Isaac Cruz pour avoir intensifié et pris le combat, mais tout le monde sait ce que je fais,», A déclaré Davis. "Je viens chercher le KO et c'est exactement ce que je vais faire dans ce combat. Je suis de retour à Los Angeles où les étoiles brillent et je vais l'illuminer contre Isaac Cruz au STAPLES Center le 5 décembre.''

Cruz, 23 ans (22-1-1, 15 KOs) cherchera à bousculer Davis et à le faire faire des heures supplémentaires s'il veut remporter la victoire. Originaire de Mexico, Cruz a grimpé dans le classement des poids légers 2020, annonçant sa présence avec un KO électrisant au premier tour contre le vétéran Diego Magdaleno en septembre. Cruz a suivi cela dans 2021 en remportant une décision unanime contre Matías Romero, invaincu, en mars, et plus récemment en battant l'ancien champion Francisco Vargas par décision en juin. Depuis qu'il a fait ses États-Unis. débuts en décembre 2019, le joueur de 23 ans est resté invaincu lors de ses quatre prochaines apparitions sur le ring, apparaissant sur SHOWTIME trois fois en plus de battre Magdaleno sur le Gervonta Davis vs. Leo Santa Cruz SHOWTIME PPV undercard.

"Je tiens d'abord à remercier Gervonta Davis et son équipe pour cette opportunité - une opportunité que je ne laisserai pas passer,'' dit Cruz. « Si Dieu le veut, je serai champion du monde en décembre 5. Ce combat est une très grande motivation pour moi en tant que professionnel et comme objectif personnel. Je suis sûr qu'après décembre 5 tout le monde en boxe connaîtra le nom d’Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz.’’

Pour plus d'informations, visitezwww.SHO.com/sports, www.PremierBoxingChampions.com, suivre sur les plateformes de médias sociaux #DavisCruz, sur Twitter @ShowtimeBoxing, @PremierBoxing, MayweatherPromo, TGBPromotions, sur Instagram @ShowtimeBoxing, @PremierBoxing, @MayweatherPromotions, @TGBPromotionss ou devenez fan sur Facebook àwww.Facebook.com/SHOBoxing ethttps://www.facebook.com/MayweatherPromotions/.