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Category Archives: boxing
Mykal Fox to battle Adam Mate this Friday night at the historic Racetrack in Fort Washington, Maryland
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JAMES DEGALE DEFENDS SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT TITLE IN QUEBEC CITY THRILLER OVER HOMETOWN FAVORITE LUCIAN BUTE SATURDAY ON SHOWTIME®
Eleider Alvarez Earns Right To Face WBC Light Heavyweight Champion
Adonis Stevenson, Who Calls Out Sergey Kovalev For June Unification
Adrian Granados Shocks Undefeated Amir Imam On SHO EXTREME
Catch The Replay This Monday At 10 p.m. ET/PT On SHOWTIME EXTREME
Click HERE To Download Photos From Amanda Westcott/SHOWTIME
QUEBEC CITY, Canada (Nov. 29, 2015) – James DeGale defended his IBF Super Middleweight World Championship in a thriller over hometown favorite and former champion Lucian Bute on Saturday in the main event of SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING.
It was the first title defense for DeGale, the 2008 Olympic gold medalist from Britain who went on the road to Boston to win the title earlier this year and chose to defend in hostile territory.
Bute, who was attempting to win back the IBF belt he defended nine times between 2007 and 2012, put on an inspired and gutsy performance in an electric atmosphere to open the new Videotron Centre in Quebec City. But the unbelievable pace, as well as an arsenal of overhand rights, body shots and combos from the younger DeGale (22-1, 14 KOs) proved to be the difference as DeGale prevailed 116-112, 117-111 (twice).
“I’m young and I’m fresh. I’m peaking right now,” DeGale said. “I’m ready for the best in the world. Credit to Bute – he’s a great champion and believe me, he will be back.”
“Like I’ve said in the past, he is a world-class fighter. I’ve still got things to work on in the next three or four years and I’m going to be my best.”
Bute (32-3, 25 KOs) didn’t look anything like the fighter that lost to Carl Froch in 2012. But while the 35-year-old stalked the switch-hitting DeGale with a relentless attack, he couldn’t do enough to overpower the supremely active Brit, who threw 524 power punches compared to 278 for Bute.
“I think it was a great fight. I did my best tonight,” Bute said. “I think it was a close fight. He’s an Olympic champion, he’s a world champion. If the judges give him the decision I respect that. I’ll be back in the gym to work hard and continue to fight. I think it was a very close fight. I’m happy with my performance and I’ll be back in the gym to get back in the ring one more time.
“The last three years were difficult for me. After I lost to Carl Froch that was a very difficult period for me. I took a break, and now I’m back. I feel great, I feel healthy and now I have one more chance to be back on the top.
“Maybe a few rounds I waited too much and didn’t put the punches together and I let James fight me. When I pushed pressure and pushed back I won the round.”
In the opening bout on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING, Eleider Alvarez earned the right to face WBC Light Heavyweight World Champion Adonis Stevenson with a close majority decision over Isaac Chilemba, scored 114-114, 118-110, 115-113.
Alvarez, ranked No. 2 by the WBC at 175 pounds, started quick and pocketed rounds against the No. 1 ranked contender Chilemba. But Chilemba weathered the storm and fought his way back in the fight as Alvarez couldn’t keep up the pace he established in the earlier rounds.
Both fighters came out with a sense of urgency in the 12th and deciding stanza and if Chilemba had won the final round the fight would have been ruled a draw.
“I knew I had to finish the later rounds strong, but I believe I did enough to win the fight,” Alvarez said. “I’m ready to accept the challenge and face Stevenson. To be the world champion, you have to beat the champion. So that’s what I aim to do.”
Chilemba argued that Alvarez, who fights out of nearby Montreal, was the beneficiary of a “hometown decision,” although the judge who ruled the fight a draw was a local and the other two were from neutral territories.
“I thought I did enough to win it,” Chilemba said. “But it is what it is. I guess you can call it a hometown decision.”
After the fight, SHOWTIME Sports host Brian Custer sat down with Stevenson to get his thoughts on Alvarez-Chilemba and his future.
“It was a close physical fight,” Stevenson said. “He (Alvarez) won this fight but it was very close.”
“We talk about Kovalev because the WBC still ranks him the No. 1 contender. I want this fight to happen. The fans want it to happen. I said June is perfect for me. He said ‘OK, June,’ Kathy Duva said ‘No problem, June.’ Then she said on HBO. I said, ‘Forget about the TVs, let them talk.’ We want the fight to happen. Let the TVs work together and make it happen.
“I want to fight Kovalev. That’s the best opportunity for me because I want his titles. For sure, this fight will happen in June. I don’t have a problem; my team doesn’t have a problem. I want this fight in June.
Kovalev is scared. I talked to him, saw it in his eyes that he’s scared of me. It will happen, but I know Kovalev is scared. I want Kovalev. I’m very hungry to get his titles.”
Adrian Granados survived a first-round knockdown to shock undefeated super lightweight prospect Amir Imam in the opening bout of SHOWTIME BOXING ON SHO EXTREME with an eighth round TKO (2:34).
It was a crushing defeat for Imam, who entered the fight as the No. 1 mandatory challenger to WBC Super Lightweight World Champion Viktor Postol.
Imam looked like he was going to finish the fight early after a nice left-right combo floored the Chicago native. But after escaping the first, Granados dictated the tempo of the fight, worked the inside and prevented Imam – considered one of boxing’s most talented young contenders – from establishing his jab. With Imam unable to keep the fight at a distance, Granados picked apart the Don King-promoted fighter. After seven rounds of punishment and Iman gasping for air against the ropes Granados finished his opponent with a series of devastating combo shots.
An elated Granados (15-3-2, 10 KOs), who has losses to fighters with a combined record of 49-0, pleaded his case to become the mandatory challenger.
“I believe I should be the mandatory challenger,” Granados said. “He was in line and I stopped him. What does that mean? Come on. I was the underdog, but I just came to take it. I came to take it.
“It feels great. Once I had him wobbled I was like, ‘you’ve got to get him now. This time you’re not taking it from me.’ It was a flash knockdown. He caught with the right hand, but I was alright. I just popped right up and I knew he was going to try and finish me. We got out of it and went right back to work.”
Despite the demoralizing loss, Imam (18-1, 15 KOs) doesn’t regret taking a fight that will likely knock him out of title contention.
“I know people might say I shouldn’t have taken this fight, but I needed this fight in between as a tune-up for my next fight because I didn’t want to wait for the six to eight months for the world title shot.
“The key to the fight was my jab, I just didn’t use it enough,” Imam said. “But that’s the way it goes and I’m going to definitely come back stronger. I wasn’t thinking anything after that first-round knockdown. I’ve done that many times and didn’t think the fight was over. I wasn’t surprised at all by the way he came out. I know how he fights. He’s a good fighter and that’s all there is to it.”
In the opening bout of SHOWTIME BOXING ON SHO EXTREME, undefeated heavyweight prospect Oscar Rivas (18-0, 13 KOs) knocked out veteran Joey Abell (31-9, 29 KOs) at :46 of the second round.
Saturday’s SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast will re-air onMonday, Nov. 30 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on SHOWTIME EXTREME while the SHOWTIME BOXING ON SHO EXTREME will re-air on Wednesday, Nov. 2 at 10 p.m. ET/PT. Both telecasts will be available On Demand beginning this Sunday.
Mauro Ranallo called the SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING action with Hall of Fame analyst Al Bernstein and former world champion Paulie Malignaggi commentating and Jim Gray reporting. In Spanish, Alejandro Luna called the blow-by-blow with former world champion Raul Marquez serving as color commentator. Barry Tompkins called the SHOWTIME EXTREME action from ringside with boxing historian Steve Farhood serving as expert analyst.
The executive producer of SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING is David Dinkins Jr. with Bob Dunphy directing.
Cave KO’s Rojas To Secure World Crown
In front of a big crowd at the Dartmouth Sportsplex in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, local hero Tyson Cave secured the World Boxing Union (WBU) Super Bantamweight World Championship with a sensational second round knockout of tough late replacement Walter Rojas (24 wins 23 by way of KO and 7 losses).
Cave showcased his exceptional boxing and defensive skills against the big punching Argentinian throughout the first round, dancing around the ever forward coming Rojas before picking the Argentinian off with some sharp shots.
Early in the second Cave landed a pin point accurate shot to send Rojas to the canvas.
Right from the restart Rojas went hard and fast on the attack once more, Cave’s exceptional ring craft enabled the Halifax born and bred fighter to avoid some seriously fast big rights, then as before Cave landed another pinpoint accurate shot to send Rojas to the canvas for a second time.
On the restart this time it was Cave that went in hard and fast, landing a massive shot to the temple of the Argentinian that sent him down and through the ropes.
Rojas tried desperately to get to his feet, but didn’t have enough coordination to pull himself up using the ropes, as Referee Hubert Earl’s count was coming to a conclusion, Rojas collapsed so the highly experienced Earl waived the bout of so that the distressed Argentinian could receive medical assistance on the one minute and fifty second mark.
Following the announcement and Championship belt presentation the newly crowned Champ said.
“Listen I want to thank the WBU for making my dreams come true, I want to thank Rio (WBU Europe President Gianluca Di Caro) and his organization for making this happen.
I must thanks my team, my father and Tony Makhoul of TMG Entertainment for being there for me and making this happen.
Walter is a true warrior, he stood in at that last minute after Jesus Rios didn’t get his visa, he was ready to go, no hesitation he took the fight and came to save the show, a true warrior.
I think I proved I have the skills to get anybody out of there, thank you, thank you, thank you.
I’m no longer the Prince of Hali, hey listen up I’m no longer the Prince of Hali, my new name is KING CAVE.
My first order is we’re going to war in England, we’re coming over to fight Paul Economides, then we want Scott Quigg or Carl Frampton, whoever wins that fight, that’s who we want.”
JERMALL CHARLO DEFENDS SUPER WELTERWEIGHT WORLD TITLE WITH FOURTH-ROUND STOPPAGE OF WILKY CAMPFORT ON PREMIER BOXING CHAMPIONS ON NBC FROM DALLAS
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Jerry Odom to fight Michael Mitchell on Friday, December 11th at the Parsippany PAL in Parsippany, New Jersey
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AMIR IMAM VS. ADRIAN GRANADOS, OSCAR RIVAS SHOWTIME BOXING ON SHO EXTREME PRESS CONFERENCE QUOTES & PHOTOS
SHOWTIME BOXING ON SHO EXTREME Live at 9 p.m. ET/PT
From Vidéotron Centre in Quebec City, Canada
Click HERE For Photos From Amanda Westcott/SHOWTIME
QUEBEC CITY, Canada (Nov. 26, 2015) – Undefeated WBC No. 1 ranked super lightweight Amir Imam (18-0, 15 KOs) and Adrian Granados (16-4-2, 11 KOs) faced off on Thursday ahead of their 10-round bout on Saturday, Nov. 28, on SHOWTIME BOXING on SHO EXTREME.
The SHOWTIME BOXING on SHO EXTREME telecast begins live at 9 p.m. ET/PT from the Vidéotron Centre in Quebec City prior to that evening’s SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast. In the SHO EXTREME opener, undefeated heavyweight and former international amateur star Oscar Rivas (17-0, 12 KOs) will face Joey Abell (31-8, 29 KOs) in a 10-round bout.
IBF Super Middleweight World Champion James DeGale (21-1, 14 KOs) will defend his belt against former 168-pound champ Lucian Bute (32-2, 25 KOs) in the main event of SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING live on SHOWTIME®(11 p.m. ET/PT). In the co-feature, the WBC’s No. 1-ranked 175-pound fighterIsaac Chilemba (24-2-2, 10 KOs) will square off with No. 2-ranked Eleider Alvarez (18-0, 10 KOs) in a light heavyweight world title eliminator for the right to face WBC Champion Adonis Stevenson.
Here is what the SHO EXTREME participants had to say on Thursday:
AMIR IMAM
“I know I’m taking a risk by taking this fight but I’m going to take advantage of this. I really don’t need rest because I’m in the gym anyway. So let’s just get this fight out of the way and I’ll just wait for the world title fight.
“I don’t feel pressure. I know what I jumped into when I got into this professional boxing game, and I have a good team around me. We’re a tight circle and very strong, and when the opportunities come, I’ll be ready to take advantage of it.
“People are talking about me wanting to fight Errol Spence and getting revenge (on a past U.S. Olympic boxing trials loss). I don’t have revenge on my mind. I mean, we could definitely do it when I move up a weight class, but right now I’m focused on a 140-pound title shot. I want that title shot in early 2016 against (current WBC world champion) Viktor Postol.
“(Postol) is a good fighter and he got the title for a reason, but you can’t hide and run for too long and my time is coming next year. You get one defense and then it’s all me. It’s all Young Master.”
ADRIAN GRANADOS
“I would say this is the biggest fight of my career. It’s going to be a great fight and I’m looking forward to a great night.
“(Imam’s) got a lot of tools and he’s very talented. We’ll take it round by round and make adjustments as the fight goes.
“I’ve rebounded well. I’m not satisfied with the way my career has gone and had a lot of bad decisions and management problems. I wasn’t brought along like my opponent was. But it’s helped me grow some thick skin and attributes to why I’m here today.
“I’ve faced tough fighters before and it’s not the first time I’ve been the underdog. I will pull off this upset.
“I’m looking to shock the boxing world on Saturday night.”
OSCAR RIVAS
“My strength is my speed and the way I put pressure on my opponent. So I’m going after (Abell) and will put a lot of pressure on him until he falls.
“I’m so thrilled and elated to fight again on a big stage. I fought on ShoBox in my last fight and it was amazing. It’s so important for me to get seen so I can fulfill my dream and get into the top 10 in my division.
“This is the biggest fight of my career and the biggest opportunity I’ve ever had. I just want to make sure I grab it and look spectacular.”
STACY McKINLEY, Imam’s manager and trainer
“I can’t find anything we need to work on. Amir is strong and technically sound and he’s getting more experienced every time he fights. He’s a devastating puncher. He’s the full package and that’s very tough to find. They don’t come around too often.
“I’d like him to fight Adrien Broner next year. I’d like to fight all the guys and unify all the titles next year. Boxing is going to need a new superstar now that Floyd Mayweather is gone, and we’re not going to wait 15 years to make another one. I think Amir unifies all the titles at 140 and 147, then we’d have our new superstar within 36 months.
“He has to use his jab to win on Saturday. He’s got a beautiful jab, the best jab in boxing. And everything has to come right behind it.”
# # #
The event, billed as “THE RECLAMATION”, is a presentation of Vidéotron in collaboration with Mise-O-Jeu. Tickets are on sale at the Vidéotron Centre box office, on www.ticketmaster.ca, at GYM (514) 383-0666, at InterBox (450) 645-1077 or at Champion boxing club (514) 376-0980.
@butelucian, @jamesdegale1, @yvonmichelGYM, @interboxca,@stormalvarez, @SHOsports,
ERISLANDY LARA KNOCKS OUT JAN ZAVECK IN THIRD ROUND OF PREMIER BOXING CHAMPIONS ON ESPN FIGHT CARD FROM HIALEAH PARK RACING & CASINO IN MIAMI
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King’s Promotions to stage card at the Historic Horse Racing Track in Fort Washington, Maryland on Friday, December 4th
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UNBEATEN CONTENDER JUAN DOMINGUEZ & YENIFEL VICENTE SQUARE-OFF ON PREMIER BOXING CHAMPIONS TOE-TO-TOE TUESDAYS ON FS1 & BOXEO DE CAMPEONES ON FOX DEPORTES AT 9 P.M. ET/6 P.M. PT
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