British Scene Weekend Recap: Booth Stops Hunter

Matt Chudley recaps this past Friday's British super-bantamweight title match-up between Jason Booth and Michael Hunter.

Jason Booth successfully defended his British super-bantamweight title for the 2nd time with an impressive one sided 5th round stoppage of Michael Hunter at the Seaburn Centre in Sunderland on Friday. It was a career best win for the slick Nottingham fighter, who also holds the Commonwealth bantamweight title.

Booth bobbed and weaved, as he looked capitalize on openings afford to him by Hunter who came out looking to use his size and strength and set a fast pace. The 5’4 man from Nottingham was able to time the 5’7 southpaw on several occasions with short left hooks in the first and really started to settle into his rhythm in the second.

With Booth quickly moving in and out of range and accurately countering, the challenger decided to set his feet to gain more purchase on his punches, but succeeded only in making himself even more of a stationary target as his poor timing and accuracy failed to improve. Having been out of the ring for 10 months, and without meaningful activity since losing in a bid for the IBF title to Steve Molitor in 2006, Hunter's rust was very evident.

By the third round it was now Booth who was the aggressor, pushing Hunter back as the former European champion fighter seemed out of ideas and was getting peppered by the smaller man.

After a dominant 4th from Booth who seemed to be picking his shots at will, Hunter’s corner sensed the fight was getting completely away, and gave their man a stern talking to, advising him to go out and give it his all. He responded by coming out with real intent for the 5th, but the fight slipped back into the same pattern with Hunter unable to pin the slick champion down. He was then forced to hold on, after Booth punished his body, before picking him apart for the remainder of the frame.

After the round, having failed to change the one-sided course of the fight, a dejected Hunter was retired by his corner without argument. Having looked out of sorts all night, he may very well need to give strong consideration to retirement from the sport.

Following the win, rumors of a big all Nottingham showdown with friend Rendall Munroe were quieted by promoter Frank Maloney and the two fighters. With a lack of domestic competition at 122lbs and the European and Commonwealth avenues blocked by Munroe, Booth will probably look to the 118lb division for his next opponent.

The obvious option is a rubber match with Ian Napa, should the Londoner regain his Lonsdale belt against Gary Davies next week. Booth could also be in the mix to take on European 118lb champion, Malik Bouziane.

On the undercard...

Tony Jeffries was given by far the toughest outing of his young career by Belarussian light-heavyweight champion Artem Solomko. Jeffries won every round on referee Andrew Wright's card in a scrappy contest but never came close to stopping Solomko, as he was extended the distance for the first time as a pro.

In his first fight under the Maloney banner, David Price looked unimpressive against Liridon Memishi who retired after two rounds due to a hand injury. Price seemed unable to press home his physical advantages and though in control, never looked like inflicting serious punishment on the German novice.

Also turning out for Maloney for the first time, much hyped super-middleweight prospect George Groves looked impressive in stopping an extremely negative Tadas Jonkus. With Jonkus (4-4) purely looking to survive, Groves forced the stoppage from referee Gary Williams in the 4th round after pinning the Lithuanian in the corner and firing in a barrage of unanswered punches.

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British Scene: Jason Booth vs Michael Hunter Preview

Matt Chudley previews tomorrow night's British super-bantamweight title showdown between Jason Booth and Michael Hunter.

Tomorrow night at the Seaburn Centre in Sunderland, Jason Booth makes the 2nd defense of his British super-bantamweight title, and faces his first true test at the weight in the form of former world title challenger Michael Hunter.

With Sunderland's favourite son Tony Jeffries anchoring the card there are also a number of Britain’s finest prospects on show including the latest addition to the Frank Maloney stable, heavyweight Olympic Bronze medalist David Price in only his second pro fight.

Friday's action will also mark Frank Maloney return to the business after the tragic death of young charge Darren Sutherland and his own heart issues, with the amiable Londoner back in the fold sooner than his doctors would like but giving assurances that he will sit back in the stands and try to become less involved in the fights themselves.

Having shown much promise early in his career, but failing to capture a European title on three previous occasions, Booth has spent much of his career bouncing around the shallow lower weights in the UK. Now at age 31, it looks like he may have just found his niche in the super-bantamweight division. Having moved up in weight back in April for a shot at the vacant British title against Mark Moran on only 10 days notice, the Nottingham slickster put forth arguably the best performance of his career in outclassing the previously undefeated Moran.

While Booth has looked impressive at the weight thus far, it remains to be seen if that is more down to the opponents in the untested Moran and the game but limited Rocky Dean. Against Hunter, he’ll be giving up a significant height and reach advantage and will be looking to once again rely on his quick hands and sharp reflexes to better the naturally bigger man.

Should Booth come through this tough assignment, a big local Derby with friend Rendall Munroe, who defends his European title in November could lie ahead or the possibility of a rubber match with longtime rival Ian Napa.

A former holder of the British, Commonwealth and European Super-Bantamweight titles, Michael Hunter returns to the limelight for the first time since being stopped by Steve Molitor back in November of 2006. Fighting in his hometown of Hartlepool, Hunter was favoured by many going into the fight, but was conclusively stopped by Molitor after 5 one sided rounds. He has since taken three tune-up fights but has yet to fight in 2009.

Named the mandatory challenger for Booth's Lonsdale belt by the board of control, Hunter will be looking to reassert his dominance on the domestic scene. Well supported and not travelling too far from home, he should be able to count on a larger contingent of supporters despite not being the house fighter and can probably count on the support of the many Tony Jeffries fans who will be filling out the arena. Tall for the weight at over 5'7, Hunter will be looking use his size advantages and renowned work rate to press Booth and will likely look to attack the body early to slow the skilled title holder down.

On The Undercard...

The main attraction for the locals and already one of the bigger ticket sellers in the UK, Tony Jeffries will be looking to make it a perfect 4-0 to start his career when he takes on 10-17 Belarussian light-heavyweight champion Artem Solomko.

Having left Hayemaker Promotions after the collapse of Setanta, Olympic Bronze Medalist David Price will be making his debut under the FTM banner against 0-1 German Liridon Memishi. The 6’8 scouser will be eager to get back in the ring having been on the sidelines since March, and will be looking to come through unscathed as he’s scheduled to fight again in Bolton on the 23rd.

Another casualty of the Setanta fiasco, George Groves will be looking to prove that he is still one of the hottest prospects in the UK against 4-4 Lithuanian Tadas Jonkus. Also vying for plaudits, is Groves's amateur nemesis Travis Dickinson who faces debuting Steffan Hughes a division up at light heavy.

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Lopez Barely Holds Off Mtagwa in Dramatic Brawl

By Andrew Fruman

Douglas over Tyson, Honeyghan over Curry, Turpin over Robinson, Braddock over Baer…

One more round – heck maybe just a dozen more seconds – separated Rogers Mtagwa, the Tanzanian born Philly fighter from a stirring come from behind upset that would have ranked right up there with some of the biggest shockers the sport has ever seen.

With 12 losses to his name, and a wide open come forward style that seemed perfect fodder for the destructive fists of the belt holder (the WBO 122 pound strap if you care about such things), Mtagwa was given a spot in Saturday night’s Latin Fury 12 main event for the sole purpose of getting hammered by Top Rank’s rising young star. Instead, the tough as nails journeyman brawler produced a stirring effort in pushing the fancied house fighter to the brink.

While Lopez banked the early rounds, landing a number of heavy right hooks and straight lefts, Mtagawa never stopped coming. He relentlessly waded through the leather, and kept banging away with his own artillery, and slowly but surely the flow of the fight began to change - and by the mid-rounds, the expected blow out had turned into a give and take battle of attrition highlighted by a number of fierce exchanges.

By the 11th round of the fast paced bout, both men had absorbed a great deal of punishment and were looking tired, but it was the wide swinging Mtagwa that seemed to have more left and looked to be the more willing and confident fighter. However, it was not until the closing seconds of the round that he found a real break through.

It came in the form of a big left hook that badly shook Lopez, who appeared dazed as he headed back to his corner. Had the punch landed a little earlier, Lopez might very well have been finished.

As it was, even with the precious 60 second break, Lopez did not appear fully recovered when he came out for the final frame. It was a heart stopping 3 minutes, with Mtagwa desperately going for the finish, as Lopez in full on survival mode, staggered all over the ring.

As the final moments ticked down, the reeling title holder looked up at the Wumu Theater time clock to see how much time was left. It was heady, but desperate stuff from Lopez, who somehow managed to still be on his feet when the bell sounded.

Lopez had survived – winning on the cards by scores of 116-111, 115-111 and 114-113.

While he may have come up just short, it was a championship effort from Mtagwa that will not soon be forgotten. Bob Arum made it clear he wouldn’t be getting another crack at Lopez, but if there’s any justice, he'll be in there with another name opponent, and hopefully receive a decent payday to go with it.

After 13 hard working years as a pro, giving it everything he has each time out, it's the least he deserves.

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Battle at the O2: Bernard Dunne vs. Poonsawat Kratingdaenggym Preview

Michael Nelson previews Saturday's super-bantamweight clash between Ireland's Bernard Dunne and Thailand's Poonsawat Kratingdaenggym.

The bout will be streamed live worldwide on RTE.ie with the broadcast starting at 9:30 PM GMT / 4:30 EST / 1:30 PST.

While most believe that Juan Manuel Marquez' thrilling knockout over Juan Diaz in February is the runaway fight of the year thus far, there are many, including me, who see Bernard Dunne's war against Ricardo Cordoba the following month as perhaps even more scintillating. Dunne came back from being nearly knocked out in the 5th round to brutally stop the favored Panamanian in the 11th.

Don't be surprised if you see a similar level of action and drama when Dunne meets Thailand's Poonsawat Kratingdaenggym this Saturday.

Kratingdaenggym (somehow I think the commentators are just going to call him 'the Thai guy') is a relentless pressure fighter that cuts off the ring well. His battles with Somsak Sithchatchawal and Ricardo Cordoba were gems, with the 28 year old getting inside on his significantly taller opponents and ripping a variety of shots to the body and head. It's unlikely that Poonsawat has been in too many dull fights.

At 5'3 1/2, he'll be at a significant height disadvantage against the 5'8 champion from Ireland. Cordoba used his height and reach to almost defeat Kratingdaenggym in 2005 by constantly punching and turning for long stretches of the bout, reminiscent of the game plan Robert Guerrero executed against Malcolm Klassen last month. While it's not Dunne's style to enact the same strategy, he'll look to use his jab and straight right hand to keep the little bulldog at bay. When Poonsawat does make his way inside, Dunne has a strong left hook waiting for him, the same left hook that fell Cordoba on multiple occasions.

Another obstacle for the Thailand native to overcome is geography. The fight will take place in Dublin, Ireland, Bernard's hometown, which will mark only the second time in 40 fights Poonsawat has fought outside of Thailand. The only other time, a 2006 bout against Wladimir Sidorenko in Germany, resulted in his lone loss.

Still, Dunne has weaknesses that the smaller man can exploit. The 29 year old boasts a tremendous heart but his whiskers are iffy. His career got temporarily derailed when Kiko Martinez knocked him out in one round two years ago. And of course, Ricardo Cordoba badly hurt him a number of times during their war in March. Kratingdaenggym won't be mistaken as a knockout artist, but he does have a stern punch, and he has the stamina to keep his hands busy for 12 rounds. Barring Dunne scoring an early KO (and Poonsawat has a sturdy chin), he'll have to endure a good deal of punishment, particularly to the body as the challenger will have no qualms with slamming right hands into his sternum if Dunne decides to fight tall.

There's action guaranteed for however long it lasts. The big heavyweight fight in Los Angeles on the same night will get more attention, but this should serve as the tasty appetizer that may be better than the main dish.

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British Scene: Jason Booth Defeats Rocky Dean

At a sweltering York Hall on Tuesday evening, a late arriving Jason Booth soundly defeated Rocky Dean to retain his British Super-Bantamweight Title with arguably one of the best performances of his 13 year pro career.

Matt Chudley has the recap.

Check out Matt's preview of the show: Booth vs Dean Preview

Tuesday June 30 Booth Scores Wide Points Win By Matt Chudley Onlookers could never have guessed that Booth arrived at the venue less than 40 minutes before the contest began - the result of a traffic incident - as he put on a clinical display in thoroughly outclassing the naturally bigger and stronger Rocky Dean. Despite suffering a small but deep cut on his forehead in the opening round, Booth stayed composed throughout, throwing over 1000 punches in out-thinking and out-boxing the East Anglia fighter. Dean had stated in the pre-fight build-up that he expected to do the better of his work in the second half of the fight and would be relying on his highly regarded stamina to grind down the smaller man. From the third round onwards, he attempted to make good on his claim as he started to press the action but it appeared that he had already let Booth settle into his rhythm. As Dean pushed forward, he managed to catch many of the free swinging Nottingham man's punches on his arms and gloves, but still found himself peppered with short punches and hooks. He also found it difficult to land, as Booth constantly presented angles while moving side to side. Aware that he was in with a durable opponent and a few pounds up from his comfort zone, Booth was content with a high volume assault and rarely loaded up, though he did stun Dean in the fifth with a straight right hand. With the early start, both fighters must have been feeling the heat from what was London’s hottest day of the past 3 years, but admirably continued to fight at a high pace as the bout moved into the later rounds. Dean’s best round of the fight came in the 9th when he really upped the pace on a tiring Booth, but still found the mark with few eye catching punches, and suffered a cut of his own from a clash of heads during the frame. He did manage to take the round on 2 of the 3 scorecards, saving himself from a total shutout on the cards. Booth seemed to find a second wind in the 10th, going back to his tidy work on the inside. Still light on his feet, he closed out the fight in the same slick way he started to keep the Lonsdale belt with scores of 120-108 and 119-109 twice. Next on the cards for the impressive Midlander appears to be an attractive fight with comebacking former world title challenger and once beaten Michael Hunter, who has now been named as the mandatory challenger for the British 122lb title. Should promoter Frank Maloney not want to risk his resurgent charge against Hunter, then a rubber match with Ian Napa in the more familiar confines of the bantamweight class could await Booth - provided of course that Napa first re-captures the British Bantamweight title on July 24th against Gary Davis. On the under-card… Unheralded Jamie Arthur (15-2) upset previously unbeaten Akaash Bhatia on referee Dave Paris's score of 96-95 over ten rounds in a British featherweight eliminator. Bhatia had received considerable hype during his assent up the ranks, though the level of his competition had been extremely limited and the North London fighter may not have been fully prepared for the step-up in class. Darren Sutherland was given the first test of his professional career against Gennadiy Rasalev. The tough Ukrainian seemed unfazed by Sutherland’s credentials, giving the Olympic bronze medalist some trouble in the second round, but by the time the bout was halted due to cuts in the 4th round, Sutherland had regained control. Also on the card, 6'6 Heavyweight prospect Tom Dallas punished the 3-1 Stas Belokon, dropping him 3 times before referee Dave Paris had seen enough. Flyweight Ashley Sexton kept busy with a 6 round decision win over Kemal Plavci ahead of a potential September clash with British and Commonwealth champion Chris Edwards. e-mail Matt Chudley

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British Scene: Jason Booth vs Rocky Dean Preview

Having claimed the title after stepping in on 12 days notice last time out, British super-bantamweight champion Jason Booth makes a quick first defense against the always game but limited Rocky Dean at the historic York Hall in East London on Tuesday evening.

Matt Chudley has the preview.

Check out Matt's recap of the show: Booth vs Dean Recap

Tuesday June 30 Jason Booth vs Rocky Dean (Sky 2) By Matt Chudley A former holder of the lightly regarded IBO flyweight title, the classy Booth looked at home in the 122lb division in thoroughly out boxing and stopping the previously unbeaten Mark Moran last time out. Booth, also the holder of the Commonwealth bantamweight title had been scheduled to challenge Lee Haskins for the British super-flyweight crown in April, but stepped up to take on Moran for the 122lb version after both Haskins and Moran's opponent Matthew Marsh pulled out. With his future still likely to play out in the bantam and super-flyweight divisions, the Nottingham man will be looking to stay sharp but may have more trouble than expected if he is already looking ahead to bigger fights with the likes of Haskins, Malik Bouziane or a rubber match with Ian Napa. While his eagerness to take on all comers has seen him successfully fluctuate through the weights at home it has also cost him on European title level. All three of his previous attempts at the blue belt have seen his fate resting in the hands of the judges overseas in defeats to David Guerault, Alexander Mahmutov and a technical decision loss to Mimoun Chent who had been cut by an accidental headbutt. The 14-10-2 Dean is best known for his exciting trilogy with former British Champion Matthew Marsh. Though he may have lost all three, Dean gave a good account of himself in losing the first two fights by a couple of rounds and the third on a majority decision. Renowned as a tough, game fighter on the UK circuit the man from the Fens will have to rely on his natural size advantage as a career featherweight and super bantam if he is to find any success against the Nottingham slickster. Dean will be looking to lean on Booth against the ropes and drag him into the trenches otherwise he will likely be picked apart by the skillful smaller man. The co-featured British title eliminator and potentially most competitive fight on the card sees highly regarded prospect Akaash Bhatia (14-0) taking a decent step up in class against the Welsh based Jamie Arthur (14-2). Bhatia has shown flashes of potential thus far but has been matched carefully and would suddenly find himself in line to fight the likes of Martin Lindsay, Paul Appleby and John Simpson should he be successful this time out. Despite the 2 losses, Arthur has also been kept out of harms way and will find himself an underdog for the first time in his career. In other action, former European Bantamweight champion Ian Napa (18-7) stays active against the 4-0-1 Stuey Hall over 6 rounds ahead of a July 24th challenge for the British 118lb title against Gary Davis. Also in action is Beijing bronze medalist Darren Sutherland who takes on 2-1 Ukranian Gennady Rasalev in a super-middlewight contest over 6 rounds. With promoter Frank Maloney ready to crank up the pace, Sutherland will find himself back in the ring 10 days later in Sunderland should he come through unscathed. e-mail Matt Chudley

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Live Blog: Lopez vs Lontchi & Ortiz vs Maidana

Welcome to The Boxing Bulletin's live blog coverage of Saturday night's twin-bill action with round by round updates of both the Top Rank PPV and HBO BAD shows.

Coverage will start at 9 PM EST with the under-card of the Top Rank show. We'll then jump over to HBO at 10 PM to cover Victor Ortiz (pictured right) vs Marcos Rene Maidana, and then back to Top Rank in plenty of time for the main-event between Juan Manuel Lopez and Olivier Lontchi.

Thanks for joining us for tonight's Boxing Bulletin live blog coverage. If you've been with us before for a live blog, welcome back. If this is your first time, thanks for checking us out. Feel free to participate by giving your scores and comments.

Top Rank PPV starts at 9 PM EST Main-event: Juan Manuel Lopez 121.5 lbs (25-0) vs Oliver Lontchi 120 lbs (18-0-2) Also on the show: Vanes Martirosyan vs Andrey Tsurkan (10 rounds at 154), Cornelius Bundrage vs Yuri Foreman (12 rounds at 154) & Jorge Arce vs Fernando Lumacad (12 rounds at 115) HBO BAD starts at 10 PM EST. Victor Ortiz (24-1-1) 139.7 lbs vs Marcos Rene Maidana (25-1) 140 lbs Vicious Victor Ortiz pictured right in his quick TKO win over Jeffrey Resto last December, photo © Ray Kasprowicz Just one fight on the HBO show due to the cancellation of the rematch between Chris John and Rocky Juarez. If you are here early, check out The Boxing Bulletin's previews for tonight's big fights: Victor Ortiz vs Marcos Rene Maidana Preview Juan Manuel Lopez vs Olivier Lontchi Preview

Refresh this page often as updates will be frequent Coverage will start at 9 PM EST. 8:15 EST... The Boxing Bulletin's live blog coverage of tonight's events will start in 45 minutes. Please join us then. 9:05... Martirosyan and Tsurkan will open up the show. Jimmy Lennon Jr. will be handling the intros momentarily. 9:06... Jimmy Lennon... "Welcome to Boardwalk Hall..." 9:07... Steve Smoger is the ref. 9:08... Intros are complete. Smoger with the final instructions. 9:09... We're underway. 9:12... Vanes landed a couple of nice right hands. Tsurkan is the one coming forward, and he's getting caught clean on the way in. Vanes just went to the body hard with a hook, and was warned for straying a little low. 1:00 left in the opening round. Tsurkan keeps plodding forward, while Vanes is circling and landing all the clean shots. There's the bell for round 1. 9:16... Vanes just landed a good upper-cut just over a minute into the second round. Much the same pattern as the first with Tsurkan moving forward, and Vanes circling away and loooking to counter. Vanes is also sticking the jab home. Tsurkan is following but not too busy and when he does throw is having a tough time landing clean. Meanwhile Vanes is landing clean jabs, while mixing in the occasional right hand. Round 2 in the books. 9:16... Tsurkan's corner is telling him he needs to get busier in there. 9:20... Raul Marquez just commented that Tsurkan is lunging in and starting to look like a walking punching bag. Vanes just nailed him with a clean right upper-cut. Tsurkan keeps moving forward, but he's having a tough time getting set. When he does open up, he's also getting tagged. Vanes just landed a nice combo. Vanes looking very comfortable in there. That's it for round 3. 9:24... Marquez just commented that it's 3-0 on his card. That goes without saying. It's been one way traffic. Vanes just landed a solid shot on the button that buckled Tsurkan's knees. About 50 seconds left in the 4th, and Vanes just landed a nice hard combo that seemed to momentarily stagger Tsurkan. There's a clean upper-cut as well. Round 4 coming to a close. This is starting to get a bit pointless. 9:25... The doctor is in Tsurkan's corner having a look. He's getting tagged flush a lot, and there's a swelling developing under his left eye. 9:28... About 2:00 minutes left in round 5. Tsurkan just got drilled with a clean right hand. He's taken a lot of punishment and it's still early. Clean shots on the button. Raul Marquez comments that Tsurkan is just taking a beating. Rich Marotta says Tsurkan needs to get inside and rough Vanes up. He's not quick enough. Let's be honest - there's really nothing he can do here. He's outclassed. There's the bell. 9:29... "Don't put me in a position here, you've got to throw shots!" - Tsurkan's corner. I imagine that's a threat that they'll stop it if he doesn't get back in the fight. I'd say if round 6 resembles the previous 5, that's a very good idea. 9:32... Marotta comments that Vanes is doing a great job not letting Tsurkan get set to throw. He's moving nicely and disrupting his rhythm with his jab. About 1:30 left in the round. Tsurkan just landed a decent left hook. Give him credit for battling on. Just not quick enough to get inside. Round 6 coming to a close. It's been a quieter one for Vanes. There's the bell. 9:33... There's a conference in Tsurkan's corner. Tsurkan wants 1 more round, but it looks like he's being overruled. This one is done. Good stoppage. 9:35... Jimmy Lennon with the announcement. He tells us that the ringside physician suggested Steve Smoger call this one off. 9:36... Next up is Cornelius Bundrage vs Yuri Foreman. This one's an eliminator and scheduled for 12. 9:38... Rich Marotta says that Foreman is on his way to becoming a rabbi. At 28, he's the younger man by 8 years. 9:39... Eddie Cotton is the ref for this one. 9:41... Jimmy Lennon giving the intros. Bundrage is wearing light blue with yellow trim. Foreman is wearing black with gold trim. 9:45... Marquez comments that Foreman's not a big puncher - "big asset is his footwork." We're about a minute in, and nothing's happened so far. A few catcalls from the crowd on the lack of action. Foreman then bulls Bundrage into the corner, and they clinch. A bit of rough stuff there from both guys as Bundrage reacted by whacking Foreman in the back of the head while in the clinch. Marquez says that Bundrage can't be waiting here, he's got to put the pressure on or he'll get outboxed. Round 1 coming to a close. The crowd not enthusiastic about this one so far. 9:46... Just a reminder, we'll be jumping over to the HBO for Ortiz vs Maidana, and then coming back to the Top Rank show. Foreman's corner by the way told him to stop feinting with the jab and actually throw it. 9:49... Curt Menefee just commented that Rich Marotta's having some technical issues. I assume his mike is not working. Not much for Rich to comment on. Not much for me to comment on either. Round 2 is almost in the books. Bundrage has been a little more aggressive, but the action has still been limited. 9:53... Bundrage just tried to land a right, but Foreman pulled away. Now they clinch. A lot of clinches so far. A lot of moving, feinting, clinching... not many clean shots landed. Foreman using his jab. Bundrage trying to attack here and there. Rich Marotta (he's back) just said that Bundrage can't be backing away. He's got to get aggressive in there. Foreman jumps in with a quick combo and gets out quickly. Bundrage is trying to land his right hand, but not having much success. There's another clinch. Foreman just landed a nice hard overhand right that really got Bundrage's attention, and Marquez think that buzzed Bundrage a little bit. Bundrage just whacked Foreman on the break and is warned by Eddie Cotton. There's the bell. 9:54... Foreman was cut in that round around the right eye from an accidental headbutt. 9:55... This one is over, and it's a no contest. That cut is nasty. Just over the right eye. 9:57... The clash of heads actually took place immediately after Foreman landed that hard right hand. 9:58... Jimmy Lennon... "Yuri Foreman the recipient of an unintentional head-butt and deemed unfit to continue by the ringside physician... no decision." 9:58... Up next is Jorge Arce vs Fernando Lumacad, but we'll be heading over to HBO. 10:01... First though, we've got Rich Marotta interviewing Juan Manuel Lopez, who's having his hands wrapped. Through the translator..."I'm excited. This is where I won my title a year ago." Is he effected by the raised expectations? "No pressure, of course I know the expectations are out there, and I'm looking to deliver on those expectations, but no pressure at all." Marotta asks about Lontchi - "We've seen a lot of tape... he doesn't have the style to beat me..." 10:02... "We have to come prepared for every fight. It's not a question of being over-confident. It's a question of doing your work and being confident about what you've done." 10:03... Off to HBO. 10:05... Bob Papa, Max Kellerman and Emanuel Steward handling the commentary. 10:06... This one's at Staples Center in LA. 10:10... HBO's showing a little feature on Victor Ortiz' story. I'll have to watch that later, but for now let's flip back to the Top Rank show, as a quick check reveals that the fighters are in the ring and ready to go. 10:12... Arce and Lumacad is underway. 10:14... Arce edging forward. He just tried a sweeping right hand, and missed as Lumacad ducked underneath it. Action in the center of the ring. Every so often, Arce edges forward, and Lumacad backs away and circles. Arce flicking out a few jabs. He's now short with a hook. Caution action here so far. Lumacad now tries a hook that misses. there's a clinch with a bout 20 seconds left. Very much a feeling out round. There's the bell. 10:15... We'll stick with this one for a little longer. Maidana is entering the arena over in LA. I'd say that one's still at least 5 or 6 minutes from starting. 10:18... Marquez comments that this isn't the Arce we usually see. "We usually see him start fast." Arce comes forward with a hook that is short, and a right hand that misses as well. Lumacad is moving nicely here. Marquez says Arce needs to get more aggressive and try and work the body. Arce tries to throw a right, that's blocked. He's showing more initiative than Lumacad, but hasn't had much luck yet. Lumacad is moving side to side, circling. Under a minute left in round 2. Lumacad ties Arce up as he tries to get inside. Lumacad now misses a hook. Lumacad goes to the body and then ties Arcue up again. Lumacad is moving when he can, and looking to try and beat Arce to the punch and tie him up in close. This round is coming to a close. 10:19... Arce suffered a cut just under his eye at some point during the round. It apparently won't be a problem. 10:20... Maidana and Ortiz are in the ring. The intros are underway. 10:20... The ref is Raul Caiz Sr. 10:21... Heading back quickly to Arce vs Lumacad... and it's over. Wow. Okay, let's see what happened here. 10:21... Hopefully I can catch a quick replay before heading back to the start of Ortiz vs Maidana. 10:22... Here's the replay. Huge right hand counter over the top of Lumacad's left jab. Right on the chin. That was that. 10:23... Wer're back with Ortiz and Maidana. Round 1 is underway. 10:26... Maidana off to a good start early. He just landed a nice counter right hand as Ortiz came inside. Ortiz though kept coming, and landed his own shot. Maidana tried to fire back, and was dropped along the ropes. Now Ortiz is down by a huge right hand! Wow. They traded knockdowns. Ortiz doesn't look good. He's unsteady and Maidana is after him. Ortiz is trying clinch. Maidana is banging the body. Now Ortiz comes back hard and drives Maidana into the ropes. 20 seconds left in the round. Maidana tries to bang the body and Ortiz holds on tight. Ortiz now fires a combo. Maidana fires back! There's the bell. What a round! 10:26... Crazy action round 1. Immediately after the fight resumed after the first knockdown - which was a right hook by Ortiz - Maidana landed a short straight right on the button. 10:27... Harold has it 10-10. I gave it to Maidana. His knockdown was certainly the better one, and I thought he had a slight edge in the round. 10:30... Maidana is putting the pressure on, trying to make this a brawl. He just landed a hard looping right hand. He's getting inside on Ortiz, and digging the body as well. Ortiz firing back with a straight left, and Maidana backs off. Terrific fight so far. Maidana is short with a right hand as he backs Ortiz up. He's got Victor backing up here. Now they clinch along the ropes, but both guys working in the clinch. 50 seconds left in round 2. A little clash of heads, but no blood. Now Ortiz just loaded up with a huge left. He missed. But he came back with another huge right, that caught Maidana and dropped him. Ortiz trying to finish now! Maidana trying to survive the round. 10 seconds left. Maidana is down again. He's up quickly. There's the bell. Wow! 10:31... Here's the replay of the knockdowns. A big right hook dropped Maidana the first time. The second time looked like a right hook as well. Not quite as crisp though. 10:31... 10-7 round for Ortiz on Harold's card. He has it 20-17. 10:34... Maidana just missed with a wild hook. Ortiz patient so far this round. He's not going full out trying to step on the advantage he had at the end of last round. Maidana catches him with a good right hand, and Ortiz responds by coming back hard with a flurry that drove Maidana into the ropes. Maidana came right back with a right hand though. 1:30 to go in round 3. Action now in the center of the ring. Maidana looking to line up the right. They clinch, but work out of it. Caiz yelling for them to let go. Ortiz just got the better of a good exchange. Ortiz misses with a hook, and Maidana counters to the body. They clinch again. 30 seconds left in round 3. Maidana is just short with a hook. Ortiz just misses with a big left hand, and follow up right hook. Steward comments that Maidana is getting a little wide with his punches. There's the bell. Round 3 is in the books. 10:35... Round 4 is underway. 10:35... Harold has it 30-26. 10:38... Maidana just caught Ortiz with a little right hand, as Harold is explaining his score. Kellerman comments that Maidana is getting a little sloppier, but is still very dangerous. Ortiz just landed a nice straight left hand. He's backed Maidana up for a moment. Another good left from Ortiz. He's just short with another one. Maidana trying to dig to the body with his left hand. Steward comments that if Ortiz utilized his right jab a bit more, he'd be having an easier time. 30 seconds left in round 4. Maidana tries to jump in with a right, and they clinch. Action a bit slower here. Ortiz fires off a combo and landed a left hand. He landed it just after the bell. 10:39... Round 5 is underway. 39-36 on Harold's card. 10:42... Ortiz with a hard right hook, that started off a nice flurry. Maidana ties him up. Steward comments that Ortiz just doesn't need to trade his much. Maidana lands a solid right. They clinch and Maidana is warned for hitting behind the head. Ortiz with a nice right hook. Another clinch. With Ortiz fighting out of the southpaw stance, they are coming together awkwardly a bit, resulting in a lot of these clinches. Maidana tries to come forward, and lands an uppercut. Ortiz responds with a combo. They exchange power shots. I think Maidana got the better of that exchange, but Ortiz fires right back immediately. Great action there. 45 seconds left in the round. Ortiz was cut during that exchange. Might have been a clash of heads. Ortiz misses with a counter hook, as Maidana tried to come inside. They clinch with about 15 seconds left. Maidana with a hard right hand down the middle that snapped Ortiz' head back. Another huge right hand by Maidana as the round ends. Some solid shots there. 10:43... The ruling was a punch caused the cut. Ortiz' corner is frantic. They aren't pleased with defensive lapses. It was a right hand on the eye that caused the cut. 10:44... Maidana immediately comes out and rips Ortiz with a right hand. Maidana is landing his right hand clean almost at will. Ortiz is in trouble. He's backing up. Maidana is going after him. Victor is in big trouble. Down he goes. The ref is taking him over the doctor. This is over. Marcos Rene Maidana with a stunning stoppage victory over Victor Ortiz. 10:45... Ortiz got up after the knockdown, but didn't look eager to continue, prompting Caiz to took him over to the doctor. 10:46... That's a nasty cut just over Victor's eye. The time of the stoppage is 46 seconds of round 6. Terrific fight. 10:47... Back over to the Top Rank show. The main-event still looks like it's at least a few minutes from starting. Neither fighter has made their entrance yet. 10:49... Back to HBO. Max Kellerman interviewing Maidana. He's asking how badly hurt he was early in the fight. "I was okay. My legs were a little shaky, but I was okay." 10:50... Max asks Maidana how he was able to get up from the knockdowns. "I was well prepared. Well trained." Maidana also says Ortiz was making some mistakes and he knew that he could eventually take him. 10:54... Victor's eyes don't look good. He's being interviewed now. Big swelling under the left eye. Nasty cut over the right eye. Victor says after he'd put Maidana down twice in the 2nd round, he was still in a bit of a daze. Kellerman asks Ortiz what convinced him to stop fighting. "I was hurt. I'm going to lay down on my back for nobody. That way I can sleep well when I'm older." 10:54... Over to the Top Rank show. Juan Manuel Lopez is ready to make his entrance and the crowd is buzzing. 10:56... Both men are in the ring. Jimmy Lennon Jr. with the intros. 10:58... From Montreal Quebec, by way of Cameroon... Olivier Lontchi. A very mild reception for Olivier. 10:59... The crowd with a big ovation as Lopez is introduced. 11:00... The ref is Alan Huggins. 11:00... We're underway. 11:03... JuanMa is stalking already. He's short with a right hand. Lontchi circling to his left, now to his right. He lands a jab, and Lopez counters. Lopez now comes forward behind his jab and fires off a combo, as Lontchi backs away. Lontchi ties Lopez up on the inside. Lontch tries to come inside, and trips over JuanMa's foot and goes down. No knockdown. 1:30 to go in round 1. Lontch tries to throw a right hand, but gets hit with a counter left. JuanMa misses with a hook, and Lontch tries to clinch, but gets pushed down by Lopez instead. No knockdown there either. Almost a clash of heads there. Lontch is doing a lot of holding early. He's playing spoiler here early. JuanMa pushing forward, misses with a left, but digs a hook to the body. Lontchi lands a right hand and quickly gets on the move and then ties up Lopez. There's the bell. 11:04... Lopez' trainer telling him that he's got to throw the right hook. 11:04... Round is underway. 11:07... Lontch tries to work the body, but he's not standing in. He's throwing one shot quickly and getting out of there real quick. Lopez steadily pushing forward. He just missed with a hook, and Lontchi ties him up. Lopez edging forward. Lontchi bouncing around on the move. Juanma tries to dig downstairs with a hook. Olivier not standing still at all. And I said that, he got caught in the corner... and down he went. He's up quickly. 1:30 to go. Lopez trying to jump on him. Lontchi looks to have his legs here. He's on the move again. Juanma is chasing. Lontchi trying to jab and move now. He's in full scale defense mode. Lopez with a combo as he catches Lontchi on the ropes. Lontchi quickly gets out of there and tries to throw a right hand, but he's short. Marotta comments that Lontchi is getting the occasional shot home, but it's not enough to discourage Lopez from steadily coming forward. Round 2 coming to a close. There's the bell. 11:08... Howard Grant asks Lontchi if he was hurt. "No, I'm okay." The knockdown was a glancing right hand that caught Lontchi maybe a bit off balance. 11:11... Lontchi moving from side to side. Lopez tries to jump in with a hook, and they clinch. Lopez stalking Lontch from one side of the ring to the other. Lontchi backing away and circling. Lopez just short with a left hand. Lopez chasing. Lontchi running. Now Lontchi clinching. Come'on Olivier... let's get in there. Now Lopez tries to back him up along the ropes, but can't get Lontchi to stand still. Now Lopez backs Lontchi into the corner, but gets tied up. Lopez is getting frustrated from all the holding. Lopez with a counter, and Lontchi ties him up again. This is not thrilling stuff. Round 3 is done. 11:12... "Relax Juan, the knockout will come." - the word from Juanma's corner. 11:15... Lontchi tries to jump in with the occasional shot, but it always seems very hesitant. He's kind of jumping in, looking to maybe land and then hold right away. Now JuanMa pushes him back into the ropes and tries to flurry, but Lotchi fights his way out of danger. Lontchi throwing a few more shots this round. Juanma misses with a left, and Lontchi tries to flurry. Again a bit of a flurry by Lontchi. He's letting his hands go a little more. Lopez steadily coming forward. Lontchi standing his ground a little bit more thoug. Now Juanma pushes him back again, and they clinch. Marquez comments that Lopez needs to put his punches together a little better. Lopez throws a right, and Lontchi ducks under. Another clinch. 20 seconds left in the round. Another clinch. More holding and grabbing, as Lopez misses and gets tied up. That's it for round 4. 11:16... Lontch is being told he needs to hold ground more and throw some punches. I think we'd all like to see it as this isn't very entertaining so far. 11:19... Lopez is not having much luck with his straight left. Lontchi is ducking under it almost every time. Now Juanma comes forward, tries to throw a combo, but gets tied up. Lopez again misses over the top. If Juanma went to the body a little bit more, I think he'd have some more success. Suddenly Lontchi lands a decent right hand. Now Lontchi disgs to the body. Lopez tries to counter, and they clinch again. Lontchi looking a little bit more confident. Lontchi again lands a clean right right. That was on the button. Suddenly things are looking up from the man from Canada. Lopez keeps pushing forward. Lontchi firing back though. Good round from the big underdog. Lopez a little frustrated as he pushes Lontci back against the ropes. Lopez is short with a left hand. Lopez tries to flurry, as Lontchi dances away. Much better performance from the challenger. 11:20... "You've got to use your jab, JuanMa" - Lopez' corner. 11:20... Round 6 is underway. 11:23... Raul Marquez gave Lontchi the 5th round. Marotta agrees. Lopez edging forward. Lontchi gets away from a left hand and tries to jump in with a combo, and then quickly dances away. Juanma again missing over the top with a left. Juanma should be using that jab, going to the body. He's not having much luck going upstairs. Lontchi with a right hand. Decent left by Lopez. Lopez is short with a left. 1:00 left in the round. Lopez with a couple of left hands. Lontchi fired back though. Lopez fires off a left, and there's another clinch. Now Juanma goes downstairs hard with a couple shots, but Lontchi responds again by throwing back. There's the bell. 11:24... "You've got to get inside and hit him in the body." - Lontchi's corner. 11:28... Lontchi fires off a right hand into the guard. Lopez short with a left. Lontchi with a right hand into the guard. Lopez with a nice left hand to the body. Lontchi gets caught with an uppercut. Lopez follows up with a hook, but it's over the top and misses. Lontchi fires back with a right, but it's ahort. Lopez keeping plugging forward, trying to land his power shots. Lontchi dancing away to his left. He flurries, and gets out quickly. Lopez witha hard digging left hand to the body. Lonchi with his guard up, is vulnerable downstairs. Lopez with a hard combo and drives Lontchi into the ropes. Lopez forces Lontchi in the corner, and flurries, only for Lontchi to fight his way out of the corner. Lotnch now grabs a hold of Lopez in close, trying to buy a few seconds. Now much time left in the the round. Lopez comes forward and digs another hard hook to the body as the round ends. That's really what he should be doing. Lontchi has the guard up, but he's open downstairs. 11:29... I should mention The Boxing Bulletin's Michael Nelson said he thought Lontchi had a good chance to go the distance. He's almost 2/3rds of the way there. 11:31... Lopez is making a concerted effort to go to the body here. Lontchi on the move. Lopez with a nice combo. Lontchi trying to come back with something, and they clinch. Lontchi's legs perhaps starting to show the effect of all his moving. He just landed a decent counter right though. Lopez keeps coming forward though. Lopez with a decent combo. Lontchi ties him up though. Lontchi tried to hold on there, and Lopez pushes his head down. Lopez with a decent uppercut. A clash of heads. Looks like no damage. They touch gloves. Juanma pushing forward. He's digging downstairs. Now he catches Lontchi with a little hook. Very good round here for Lopez. Lontchi is looking a little ragged as the bell rings. 11:32... Lontchi's corner tells him he's losing energy moving so much. He's got to stand and try and work on the inside. Easier said than done with the power of Lopez. 11:36... Round 9. Lopez backs Lontchi into the ropes, and flurries. He backs Lontchi into the ropes and bangs him downstairs. Lontchi fires back, but it's low and Lontchi is warned. Lopez takes a quick breather, and gets back in there. Lopez fires over the top with his straight left. Lontchi tries to fire his right, but misses. Lontchi back on the move. He tries to stop and throw, and then quickly back to circling. Lopez with a big left hand. That landed flush, and down goes Lontchi. He's up. He doesn't look steady though. Lopez patiently comes in to try and finish. He catches Lontchi with another hook. Lontchi managing to hold on though. Lontchi has a hold of Lopez' left. Lontchi hanging in there and now throwing back. 10 seconds to go in the round. There's the bell. 11:36... The knockdown came from a jab, followed up by a straight left. 11:37... This one is over. Lontchi's corner has stopped it. Good move. He wasn't going to win, and he was starting to get banged up. 11:38... Raul Marquez applauds the decision to call it a day. 11:40... Jimmy Lennon Jr. with the official announcement. "Upon advice of the corner, the fighter is unable to continue... winner by knockout, Juan Manuel Lopez." 11:44... Rich Marotta with Lopez for the post-fight interview. "Every fight is a learning experience. Tonight I learned a lot. He was a difficult tough guy style wise." Juanma says he took his time, he knew he had him. Marotta mentions the 5th round where Lontchi landed a few clean rights, did they hurt? "I did feel his punches. He doesn't have a lot of knockouts, but he does have a hard punch." Marotta asks about Juanma's body punching... "In the corner, they told me don't forget the body, you go to keep throwing there to slow him down. I listened to my corner and it worked." Who's next? "1 more defense at 122 in September or October, then moving up." 11:46... That's it for The Boxing Bulletin's live coverage of tonight's shows. We'll be back in a couple weeks for Vic Darchinyan vs Joseph Agbeko on July 11. Check out Michael Nelson's story on Maidana's come from behind win over Ortiz: Maidana Forces Himself Into Forefront With Scintillating Upset

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Molitor Edges Past Ruiz

Andrew Fruman recaps last night's Casino Rama main-event between Steve Molitor and Heriberto Ruiz.

Scattered boos met the action last night in Rama, Ontario as Steve Molitor laboured to a split decision win over Mexico’s Heriberto Ruiz. It was hard to blame the crowd’s frustration, as the fight was a listless affair from the get go with shows of initiative rare by either man.

Molitor had his best success when he came forward throwing combos, with his straight left and right hook finding the mark when he did let his hands go. It was however not a common occurrence as The Canadian Kid appeared tight and overly tentative throughout the dull 12 rounder.

A little caution was understandable given what took place last November against Celestino Caballero, but with a clear edge in speed and skills over the plodding, wide swinging Ruiz, it was frustrating to watch Molitor lay back round after round.

Ruiz was just as guilty for the lack of action, seemingly content to sit back and look for countering opportunities. He landed the occasional decent right hand, but was mostly too slow to react and came up short with most of his counters.

Adding to Molitor’s struggles was a nasty gash high on the left side of his forehead suffered during a 7th round clash of heads. It was the typical southpaw-orthodox situation with Molitor trying to come inside with a left hand as Ruiz leaned in to throw a right.

To his credit, Molitor apologized to the crowd after the bout and promised better in the future. He’ll have to deliver on that, because this type of performance won't get the desired results against the elite of the division.

The scores were 116-112 twice for Molitor, and 116-112 for Ruiz on the other card.

After the bout, promoter Allan Tremblay said Molitor will likely meet the winner of Kiko Martinez and Takalani Ndlovu next time out. That will possibly take place on September 4, but it could happen as late as November, depending on when Martinez and Ndlovu go at it.

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Juan Manuel Lopez vs Olivier Lontchi Preview

Andrew Fruman previews Saturday night's Top Rank PPV main event between Juan Manuel Lopez and Olivier Lontchi.

This Saturday night at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, in the main event of Top Rank’s Latin Fury PPV show (on Super Channel in Canada) unheralded Montreal super-bantamweight Oliver Lontchi takes on arguably the sport’s most talented young star in Puerto Rico's Juan Manuel Lopez.

Make sure to check out The Boxing Bulletin's live blog coverage of this event

The fight will be a huge jump in class for the 26 year old Cameroonian born Canadian, who only a little less than 3 months ago had his hands full with Cecilio Santos. While Santos has challenged for titles at lower weights, and held his own with world class opposition, he’s nowhere near the same level as Lopez.

This isn’t the first time GYM has rolled the dice, sending an unproven fighter into the lion’s den. Back in January of 2007, Herman Ngoudjo another Cameroonian born Canadian (Ngoudjo and Lontchi arrived together as part of Cameroon's team at the 2001 Francophone games held in Ottawa) from the GYM stable took on former lightweight champ Jose Luis Castillo as part of an HBO double-header that also featured Ricky Hatton and Juan Urango.

The card was designed to hype a Castillo/Hatton showdown, with the little known Ngoudjo expected to be no more than cannon fodder. Instead, Ngoudjo very nearly upset the planned showdown by pushing Castillo to the brink in narrowly losing a split decision.

Can Lontchi pull off a similar surprise by giving Lopez a run for his money?

The odds are certainly stacked against him – more so than they were against Ngoudjo.

While it’s true that Castillo was considered a P4P fighter at the time, it’s also safe to say that he was on the downside of his career. Plus, the bout was at 140 pounds, and the grinding physical style that Castillo employed was bound to not be as effective with the jump in weight.

Juan Manuel Lopez on the other hand has likely not even reached his peak, and looked better than ever last time out against Gerry Penalosa. The crafty Filipino managed to last until the end of the 9th round, but took a beating for his troubles.

Prior to that, Lopez had been on a destructive run that had seen him knock out Sergio Manuel Medina, Cesar Figueroa and Daniel Ponce de Leon all in under a round.

If there was a criticism to be levied against Lopez it was that he was perhaps too reliant on his devastating right hook – but against Penalosa he mixed up his punches together nicely in steadily hammering out a dominating win.

While mostly untested at the world class level, it’s clear that the quick handed Lontchi also brings some solid attributes to the table.

Besides fast hands, he’s a determined body puncher. He throws more than one shot at a time downstairs, and often finishes combinations up by firing off a couple salvos to the mid-section. It’s paid off well, especially in his last two fights, as he finished off Santos with a left hook to the liver, and stopped Ruben Estanislao with a right hand to the solar plexus. Both men dropped in agony.

While some speedy fighters try and get in and out quickly, Lontchi instead prefers to fire off multi-punch combinations from mid-range. It’s a style that makes him exciting to watch but also vulnerable to getting tagged in return. He keeps his gloves up, but he isn’t particularly slippery and can be countered.

In a nutshell, he’s quick and scrappy, but not really a slick operator, and it’s hard to imagine Lopez not catching him clean – so how well he does will come down to his durability. He’s going to have to take some hard shots, and in order to last, his capacity for punishment will need to be world class.

Realistically, the underdog from Canada's chances are slim. There are few tougher opponents to make a splash on the world stage against than Lopez. But Lontchi has enough ability to make a really solid showing, and if he can give the Puerto Rican knockout artist some trouble, it would dramatically raise his stock.

e-mail Andrew Fruman

Make sure to check out The Boxing Bulletin's live blog coverage of this event

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JuanMa Keeps Getting Better

Michael Nelson gives his thoughts on the performance of Juan Manuel Lopez in his victory over Gerry Penalosa this past Saturday night.

Juan Manuel Lopez passed the second big test of his career Saturday night. Thoroughly answering many of the remaining questions left about his game, he overwhelmed the durable Gerry Penalosa and left trainer Freddie Roach with little choice but to call an end to the fight after the 9th round.

JuanMa had blown out the vast majority of his opponents before Penalosa within four rounds. Against the only man he couldn't run over, Hugo Dianzo in August 2007, he showed vulnerabilities that young fighters tend to have by slowing down late in the fight and not paying much attention to Dianzo's body.

He came much more prepared for Gerry Penalosa. Displaying incredible conditioning, he swamped the 36 year old with power punches while remaining responsible defensively, picking off or slipping most of Penalosa's counters. With the bigger, stronger Lopez working every minute of every round, Penalosa was never able to back him off. Worst, the deep waters Gerry and Freddie were hoping for never arrived. Lopez hardly took a deep breath during the action.

Even more impressive was the variety of punches Lopez threw. Understanding that Penalosa's guard would catch most of the blows directed at his head, Lopez was determined to rip the body. Also understanding that Penalosa likes to get low and duck under his opponent's punches, Lopez wasn't nearly as reliant on the right hook as he was in previous fights. He handcuffed Penalosa's head movement by consistently shooting the uppercut underneath. Trainer Alex Caraballo came up with a great game plan, and Lopez executed it with perfection.

Perhaps the only scantron bubble left unmarked pertains to how fast Lopez will escalate up the pound-for-pound ratings. Right now, it seems to be more of a matter of when than if. With the violence of the Israel Vasquez-Rafael Marquez trilogy taking a huge chunk out of the careers of both men, I'm not sure who at 122 pounds would threaten to beat the 25 year old phenom. Celestino Caballero is on quite a run and may be the man with the tools to test Lopez' whiskers. But with Celestino's leaky defense, it's hard to favor him in a shootout.

Meanwhile, a word must be said about Gerry Penalosa. Clearly outgunned throughout the fight, Gerry could have easily gone into survival mode and dropped a lopsided decision instead of having a TKO by 9 on his record.

But Penalosa has never been about just surviving. Regardless of who he's up against and where the fight is taking place, he believes he can win and he does his damndest to make that belief into reality. So while it's likely he'll fall just short of the Hall of Fame, Gerry's a special fighter who has had some tremendous performances during his 20 year career.

Freddie Roach did the right thing in pulling him out. He knows his fighter. He knows that the word 'quit' won't be found in Penalosa's vocabulary. Someone needed to do what was best, and look out for the interests of the remainder of Penalosa's career, and more importantly, his life beyond boxing.

As often happens in boxing, a young man shined brightest at the behest of an older man's fading glimmer. But neither fighter's performance last night will soon be forgotten.

e-mail Michael Nelson
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Saturday Night Fights Live Blog

We're trying something new tonight at The Boxing Bulletin. We're going to do some live blogging. We'll be following along with both cards, starting with the Showtime broadcast at 9 PM EST, and switching over to the HBO show after Froch/Taylor finishes.

Coverage will start at 9 PM EST. I'll be commenting throughout the evening, and will definitely remark on all the key events, but it won't be a truly comprehensive blow by blow coverage. If you're looking for that, I recommend checking out Bad Left Hook's live blog. Those guys do an excellent job every week.

9:04...We're under way. Gus Johnson and Al Bernstein are handling the duties for Showtime. 9:08... Carlos DeLeon Jr and Allan Green are both in the ring. Jimmy Lennon Jr. has the intros. 9:11... We're underway. Al Bernstein mentions how important the early part of the bout will be for DeLeon, as he's making a big jump up in class. Decent opening round. Green landed a really nice combo with about 20 seconds left, and there was some good action to close the round, with both guys ripping shots. 9:15... DeLeon certainly didn't look out of his depth in the first round. Green won it, but the action was competitive. And just as I say that, Green lands a huge left hook, sending DeLeon crashing to the canvas. He's up at 6. Doesn't look too fresh, but chooses to get back in there and start trading... and he's down again. 1:40 still left in the round. DeLeon is in big trouble, and down he goes. He doesn't have his legs, but he's back in there. 1:10 still to go in the round. DeLeon is down again. That's it. 9:21... The time of the stoppage was 1:06 of the 2nd round. DeLeon never really had his legs after the first knockdown. He jumped back in right away and landed a left hook, but immediately got caught again with a hook, and sent back towards the ropes before he went down again. 9:22... Green tells Jim Gray that he wants the winner of Froch/Taylor next. On the first knockdown: Green says that DeLeon kept throwing a long left jab to the body, and he kept countering with his right hand, and was just waiting for DeLeon to get a little brave, so he could open up with the hook. 9:24... Green's picking Froch to win the main-event. 9:32... Showtime's filling some time at the moment with highlights from last night's Shobox card. 9:38... Bernstein's going over the "Keys to victory". For JT, it's - use the jab, no rounds off and land the right. "Froch can be hit with right hands, and Taylor will need to land it early and often." For Froch, the keys are - keep the left up, don't lunge and land the uppercut. "Froch has fight ending power in his uppercuts, and he can deliver that punch with both hands... and since Kelly Pavlik used the uppercut well against Taylor on the inside, expect to see this tonight from Froch." 9:47 Taylor starts with a big right over the top. Very crisp jabs and a few other right hands over the jab. They've worked on that in camp obviously. Froch finds his way a little in the middle of the round. Cute hook by Taylor ends the round. Taylor's round. 9:54.. Round 2 could have gone either way though I though Froch got more of what he wanted. Both are lining each other up. Mostly a battle of jabs, though they exchanged wildly to end it. 9:58... Great 3rd round. Taylor caught Froch with a huge right hand, only for Froch to come right back. A little later on, with about 45 seconds left, Taylor hurt Froch and put him down with a right. Froch was clearly buzzed, but got up and got right back in there. Great stuff. 10:02... Froch is okay after the rough ending to the 4th round, and the action was a bit more cautious in the 4th. Froch is getting a chewing out from his trainer. Press row has Taylor up 40-35, 39-36 and 39-36. 10:06... Taylor landed a really nice left hook to the body about 45 seconds in the round. Froch is showing quite a bit of respect here. Taylor meanwhile is looking very comfortable. He just slipped a right, and tied Froch up in close. Taylor was just warned after a left hook that landed around the belt-line. 10:10... Froch opens up the 6th trying to work the jab. Soemething he hasn't done enough of. Froch just landed a thudding right hand that backed up Taylor for a second, but he took it well given how clean it looked. Now Froch getting a little more aggressive. Tainer Rob McCracken told Froch to throw 1-2's between rounds, and it's working for him here. Better from Froch in the 6th, although Taylor had a good flurry to finish it. 10:14... Gus Johnson comments on Taylor's defense being excellent. It has been good, and he's looked fairly comfortable when under attack. Froch is now starting to put a bit of pressure on, but JT manages though to keep working his jab, and not let Froch load up too much. Interesting 7th round. Froch was the more aggressive of the two, but Taylor landed some nice clean jabs. 10:17... Froch is starting to find the range here in the 8th with his right hand. Taylor's not really letting his hands go at the moment. Bernstein comments that JT looks like he's trying to buy some time here. Taylor is using the ring here, backing away. After Froch controlled the first 2:50 of the round, Taylor had an excellent flurry at the end. He caught Froch with a couple really nice clean shots, and I think wobbled him a bit. McCracken isn't pleased. 10:19... The big punch from JT at the end was a left uppercut. Landed flush and shook Froch. 10:20... Bernstein is saying that Froch should stick to the 1-2's. They've been what's working for him. 10:22... Froch is moving forward here, while Taylor is using his jab to keep a comfortable distance. Round 9 has been a close one. JT's in retreat, but Froch is only cautiously attacking and not landing anything of note, while JT catches him with the occasional counter. Press Row has it 87-83, 86-85 and 86-84 for Taylor. 10:26... Froch comes out aggressively in the 10th and has some success. Froch firing off some 1-2's. 1:30 into the round and JT hasn't really let his hands go at all. JT is giving ground here. Froch continues to press and he's landing. JT occasionally opens up with something flashy. Good round for Froch. 10:27... The scores are tightening on press-row...96-93, 95-95 and 95-94. 10:30... Froch is fighting like he knows he needs these final 2 rounds to have a chance. JT being very cautious. Froch lands a looping right hand on the side of Taylor's head. JT loads up and misses with a big uppercut. Froch has been open for that when he lunges in. JT misses with a right and eats an uppercut and holds on. Froch is having things mostly his way here, and then suddenly JT opens up with some combos and catches Froch clean. Froch digs back though. Exciting action here. Froch lands a hard right hand. Froch with an uppercut. Still a minute left in the round. Froch eats a hard right, but fires right back. They are trading power shots. Taylor with a right hand over the top. Exciting stuff here. Froch forces Taylor into the corner. Hell of a round. Great stuff! 10:31... Press row has it a draw right now. 1-1-1. Bernstein has Taylor up by 2. 10:34... Froch coming forward. JT looking to counter, and he does with a huge right hand that sends sweat flying. Froch roars back though. This is really exciting stuff. Froch has opened up, and JT has hung in there and met him head on. 2:00 minutes left. Froch with a jab and a huge right hand! Taylor is in trouble. Froch chases him! Taylor backs off and holds on. 1:30 left. Taylor was badly hurt and is still in trouble. Froch comes forward trying to finish. Does Froch have enough left. He's pouring it on. JT backs into the corner and he's in big trouble. He's wobbling backwards and eats another big shot, but he somehow throws back! Wow. Froch pours it on and JT is down. 30 seconds left. He's up at 8. He's a little unsteady. He's allowed to continued. He's in bad shape. Froch trying to finish. JT's done. It's over! Wow! One of the greatest finishes you'll ever see. What a fight! 10:35... JT is getting checked out by the doctor. He took some big punishment there, and really dug deep to stay on his feet as long as he could. Really ballsy effort. 10:36... Taylor is on his feet (he was on his feet at the time of the stoppage, but was sitting down while being examimed). He's okay. Absolutely stunning. Showtime are showing the replay, and the camera's on Taylor sitting on the floor in the corner with 25 seconds left. There's no way it looks like he can get up. But he does, and he desperately tries to fight on. 10:37... I need to catch my breath. 10:38... According to Gus Johnson, if Taylor would have managed to finish the fight, he would have won on the cards. The time of the stoppage was 2:46. 10:40... Froch is talking with Jim Gray. "I needed a big round and I got it." 10:42... Froch says he'll definitely give Taylor a rematch. Taylor wants it. No surprise there. I think we'd all love to see it. 10:45... Jim Gray is asking referee Michael Ortega why he didn't let the fight go. Given the state Taylor was in, this seems like a bizarre question. There was still 15 seconds left, and Taylor's hands had dropped. He was clearly done. I don't think it's even debatable. To his credit, Taylor had no issues with Ortega's decision. 10:47... The judges cards at the time of the stoppage where 106-102 twice for Taylor and 106-102 for Froch on the other card. Off to HBO! 10:49... Just in time to hear Harold Lederman going over the rules. Lopez has a 3 pound advantage, as he'd hydrated back up to 131 while Penalosa is at 128. 10:54... The fighters are in the ring, and Michael Buffer is doing the intros. 10:57... Final instructions have been given, and we're seconds away from getting underway. 11:01... Lopez is edging forward a little, while Penalosa appears very composed as he looks to counter. Penalosa manages to tie Lopez up and the youngster whacks him in the body for his troubles. Lopez is warned for a left hand that landed on the hip. Penalosa is managing to slip most of Lopez' stuff upstairs, but he's digging the occasional nice shot downstairs. Interesting opening round. Penalosa stood his ground over the final 20 seconds and didn't take the worst of it. 11:05... We're into round 2. Something new for JuanMa given his recent history. Lopez coming forward, firing heavy looking combos. He's also following up by digging downstairs, while Penalosa attempts to duck and dodge before firing back. Every once in awhile, Penalosa comes back with a flurry, but he's mostly on the defensive. Lopez just looks like the stronger man whenever they exchange, and he's really letting his hands go nicely. I might be wrong, but I think some of those shots downstairs will have Penalosa in a bad way before long. 11:06... Harold has it 2-0 for Lopez. 11:09... Lopez comes right out putting the pressure on. Firing the jab, following it up with hooks, up and down. Penalosa digs downstairs with his own body shot, and jumps in with a combo. He's countering nicely in spots, but he's getting banged around a bit in the process. JuanMa just keeps pushing forward. Gerry's now standing his ground more, and he's bouncing a little, but Lopez comes firing back and pushes him back. He's throwing some really nice little shots inside. Penalosa trying to rip back now, as they slug it out at the end of the 3rd. 11:10... HBO shows a graphic indicating the body work Lopez has been hammering Penalosa with. Harold has it 3-0. 11:11... Harold comments that Penalosa is fighting the wrong fight when he bangs in the middle of the ring. Not sure what options he has. He's going to get run over if he just backs up. He needs to do something to keep JuanMa honest. 11:13... Lopez now forcing Penalosa from one side of the ring to the other, as the older man is again in retreat. Kellerman comments on JuanMa's accuracy and patience. He's banging Penalosa along the ropes here. Gerry tries to counter back. 11:14... Lopez is averaging 101 punches thrown per round. Many of them of the hurtful variety. 11:17... Gerry's doing his best here to keep Lopez at bay. He's got his guard up, elbows tucked, moving his head, sticking the jab and countering when he can. But he doesn't have the firepower and Lopez just keep pushing forward, digging in with a variety of hard shots thrown in combination. They exchange right hands, and Lopez lands with more authority and he pushes Penalosa back into the ropes. Penalosa fires back, and JuanMa comes back and keeps firing. High quality stuff. 11:18... Harold has it 5-0. 11:21... Lopez comes right out, moving forward, letting his hands go. Penalosa moving from side to side, trying to keep Lopez at bay, but the pressure is relentless. It's a controlled pressure. Steady, with lots of body work mixed in. Lopez just digging hard shots in here. Penalosa trying to fire back, but he's getting the worst of it. He's looking like he's in a bit of trouble. Lopez presses forward. Hooks to the body. Heavy shots upstairs. Penalosa is on the ropes here. He tries to fire back, but Lopez with his head down, just keeping banging away. Not sure how much longer Penalosa can take this. Lopez again bangs hard to the body, and Penalosa backs into the ropes. Gerry gets away from the ropes, but Lopez follows him and keeps up the pressure. Roach tells Penalosa in the corner he's getting hit too much. You've got to feel that another round like that and Freddie might call this off. 11:25... Every once in awhile, Penalosa lands a nice clean counter, but it's not making a dent on Lopez, who keeps pushing forward. Lopez chases Penalosa into the corner and continues his assault. Gerry slips out of there, but JuanMa's on him right away. Penalosa fires off a nice combo, but JuanMa forces him backwards again. There's really nothing Penalosa can do. He's showing guts, but I can't see this lasting too much longer. Lopez is just landing some heavy shots, but Penalosa fires back. "The fact that Penalosa is having his moments here is unfathomable," says Kellerman. 11:26... Lopez asked his corner if he was winning after that round. That's a real testament to the gutsy display Penalosa's giving here. 11:29... Lopez continues to press. Hooks to the body, and some uppercuts. Penalosa has his back to the ropes. Lopez is drilling him with some hard shots, but Penalosa rips a counter right. He's having success with those. Gerry's now managing to keep the action in the center of the ring for a bit, only to get forced back again. Lopez is digging with some uppercuts, while Gerry flurries back. Good action here. "Gerry Penalosa is not human, I can't believe what I'm seeing." - Kellerman 11:29... Roach is thinking about stopping this. He's going to give Gerry one more round. 11:30... Harold has it 8-0. 11:33... Lopez comes out banging some more power shots in while pressing forward. Gerry gets backed into the corner, but slips away. Lopez never lets up though. It's just constant pressure. He pushes Gerry into the ropes again. Bob Papa comments that Lopez has lost a little of his technique. The action is a little bit slower here, but JuanMa then turns it up with about 20 seconds to go, and they exchange bombs. Penalosa got his own in there. Interesting decision Roach will have here, because Gerry had one of his better rounds. That's it. Roach has called an end to it. 11:35... Good move from Roach. Really gutsy effort from Gerry Penalosa, but he wasn't going to win and he was taking too much punishment. 11:38... Max Kellerman asks Lopez why he asked his corner after the 6th if he was winning. Through the translator..."Because every time I fight, I always ask for guidance from the corner." Kellerman presses to ask if Lopez felt Penalosa's power? "Definitely, his right hook is his most powerful punch and several times he did get me." 11:39... Lopez mentions Marquez and Vasquez as opponents he'd like to face, although he admits he won't stay at 122 much longer. 11:41... Bob Papa says that Gerry Penalosa received a huge ovation from the crowd for his efforts. 11:42... Alright, that's it for tonight. Hope you enjoyed the debut of The Boxing Bulletin's live blog coverage. We'll be back next week for Pacquaio/Hatton.

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Juan Manuel Lopez vs Gerry Penalosa Preview

Michael Nelson previews this Saturday's intriguing HBO Boxing After Dark main-event between Juan Manuel Lopez and Gerry Penalosa.

Photo © Marty Rosengarten / Ringsidephotos.com

Puerto Rican heritage isn't the only thing Felix Trinidad and Juan Manuel Lopez have in common.

Trinidad's left hook terrorized the Welterweight and Jr. Middleweight divisions during his reign. Thrown with the power to discombobulate his opponent at any moment during a fight, it was perhaps the most feared punch in boxing.Southpaw JuanMa Lopez' right hook is quickly gaining a similar reputation. He has finished his last three opponents with it inside the first round, including Ponce De Leon, a man notoriously hard to hurt.

But like Trinidad, while Lopez has a great deal of talent, he has apparent vulnerabilities that are covered up by the deadly efficiency of his money punch. He head hunts a bit too much. He doesn't have much of an uppercut. And his left hand is more often than not simply used as a diversion to set up his right hook. Sum it up and it'll be very interesting to see how he deals with an elite defensive fighter.

Enter Gerry Penalosa.

Never stopped in 62 fights, Penalosa's six losses have all been close or controversial. Recently, the 36 year old took Ponce De Leon to school for long stretches of their bout, only to be rewarded with miserable scorecards that suggested he got dominated.

No matter. He bounced back with a surprising come-from-behind knockout victory over the talented and rangy Jhonny Gonzales. Far from a fluke shot, he slipped Gonzales' long right hand and expertly placed a left on Jhonny's liver before he could regain position. Gonzales took a step back and dropped to a knee, paralyzed with pain. KO 7.

The main ingredient behind Penalosa's success is his defensive acumen; he deflects or slips the vast majority of punches thrown in his direction, particularly at his head. Always calm and never changing expression, Gerry's style is like Winky Wright's without the monstrous forearms - making him susceptible to being outworked as well as providing openings for a dedicated body attack.

Lopez, also a calm operator who's fairly economical with his punch output, will have to deviate from his usual game plan if he wants to outwork Penalosa or consistently rake his body. Otherwise, it could be a long night for the 25 year old Phenom.

It should be noted that Gerry has shown vulnerabilities against fellow southpaws in his younger days, as he has been hurt or dropped by the right hook in previous fights. Gerry got staggered by a Hiroshi Kawashima hook in his 1997 WBC Super Featherweight title winning effort, and suffered a first round knock down as a result of getting nailed with a right hook from Young-Joo Cho a few fights later. Although those bouts took place more than a decade ago when Penalosa was far less seasoned, he can ill afford to make similar mistakes against JuanMa Lopez. Look for him to circle away from Lopez' right hand for the majority of the night.

Lopez can firmly entrench himself as one of the top 3 young talents in the sport with a spectacular victory over a well respected boxer like Penalosa. Likewise, Penalosa can make an intriguing argument for Canastota recognition if he overcomes Lopez' size and youth to stymie the meteoric rise of a potential pound-for-pound player. There's a uniquely wide range of possibilities - neither a quick Lopez knockout or a comfortable Penalosa decision would shock me.

The only thing clear about this fight is that it's a must-see. If you're watching the competing Showtime card, make sure to set your DVR or VCR. You don't want to miss this one.

e-mail Michael Nelson
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British Scene Weekend Recap

Dave Oakes recaps all the action from this weekend's British super-bantamweight title bout between Jason Booth and Mark Moran.

Friday April 17 Booth Too Smooth For Moran By Dave Oakes Jason Booth became the new British super-bantamweight champion on Friday night after defeating Mark Moran at the Indoor Sports Centre, Leigh, England. Booth took his time in the first couple of rounds, being content to pick his punches and move out of range before Moran had the chance to land anything of note. Moran was struggling to catch Booth clean and was wasting a lot of energy punching arms and missing wildly. Booth picked the pace up in the third and was starting to catch Moran with some hurtful looking hooks to body and head. Moran tried in vain to land something meaningful to help him get a foothold in the fight but failed to do so and was looking seriously out of his depth at championship level. The fourth and fifth were big rounds for Booth as he continued to up the pace against a tiring Moran. Moran’s stamina and strength were thought to be his main advantages over Booth coming into this fight but these two rounds showed that wasn’t the case as he struggled to keep pace with the man four years his senior. He was continually getting backed up and was being caught with quick punches whenever he came forward. The end came in the sixth after an accidental head clash opened up a huge cut above Moran’s left eye. Booth had started the round quick and was teeing off on Moran when the end came. Moran complained bitterly, but in truth, it saved him from taking further punishment with a stoppage for Booth looking like a serious possibility. Booth seems to be enjoying an Indian summer to his career after going through a difficult spell a couple of years back due to alcohol addiction. He’ll now be looking to finally win the European title that has evaded him three times so far in his career. He has options from flyweight to super-bantamweight and will be looking at fights against the likes of Malik Bouziane and Lee Haskins. e-mail Dave Oakes

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British Scene Weekend Preview

Dave Oakes previews Friday night's match-up for the vacant British super-bantamweight title between Commonwealth bantamweight champion Jason Booth and undefeated southpaw Mark Moran.

Friday April 17 Jason Booth vs Mark Moran (SKY) By Dave Oakes Jason Booth faces Mark Moran this Friday in an exciting and intriguing fight for the vacant British super-bantamweight title at the Indoor Sports Centre, Leigh, England. Booth, the Commonwealth bantamweight champ, will be taking part in his first fight up at super-bantamweight after a long and distinguished career in both flyweight and bantamweight divisions. He was originally scheduled to challenge Lee Haskins in a British super-flyweight title fight, whilst Moran was originally due to face Matthew Edmonds. The fight was made after both Edmonds and Haskins pulled out, Edmonds was struggling to make the weight and Haskins picked up an unspecified arm injury in training. Despite the step-up in weight for Booth, there isn’t a great size difference between the two men. Moran is half an inch taller than Booth and is slightly bigger built but they both have the same reach. The major gulf between them will be experience and technical ability, both of which favour Booth. The fight has to be considered as a big step up in class for the unbeaten Moran. This will be his first major title fight; whereas Booth will be participating in his twelfth. Booth has also boxed quality opponents like Damaen Kelly and Dale Robinson for minor belts. Moran is an aggressive southpaw who likes to fight for the full three minutes of every round. This has suited him well so far in his short career but he’s only boxed four and six rounders in all but one of his fights. He was looking to be running out of energy in his only fight scheduled for ten rounds before he produced a late rally to stop the game but limited Danny Wallace in the ninth round. Booth won’t be bothered by Moran’s southpaw stance as he’s fought many southpaws in his career, including a superb win last time out against Sean Hughes, who he out-boxed and stopped in ten one-sided rounds. Booth will be looking to counter Moran and box in flashy bursts rather than trying to match the younger mans work rate. I’d be surprised if Moran won this fight but I expect him to put up a brave fight. I believe Booth will be too fast, slick and skillful for Moran to cope with, with Moran losing on points in what should be an enjoyable fight for the fans. e-mail Dave Oakes

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Boxing Bulletin British Scene

Welcome to the first edition of the The Boxing Bulletin's new weekly column on British Boxing. Each Monday, Dave Oakes and Matt Chudley will bring you all the action involving British and Irish fighters over the previous weekend.

This week, the focus is on the memorable super-bantamweight scrap between Bernard Dunne and Ricardo Cordoba, as well as Ian Napa's European bantamweight title fight against France's Malik Bouziane

Dave and Matt will also be previewing upcoming bouts in a column that will appear later in the week.

Saturday March 21 High Drama in Dublin: Dunne Topples Cordoba By Matt Chudley Photo © Eoin Campbell, check out the rest of Eoin Campbell's photos from the night's action here. In outlasting Ricardo Cordoba through an all out war which saw both men downed on multiple occasions Bernard Dunne walked away with a portion of the *WBA super-bantamweight title, in what just may have been one of the most thrilling fights ever staged on Irish soil. The home fighter’s victory completed a great day for sports in Ireland as it came mere hours after the Irish Rugby team had captured their first grand slam since 1948. Dunne, who entered the bout as a sizable underdog with the book-makers was also making his first return to the sold out O2 Arena in Dublin, since his lone professional defeat there in August of 2007. On that night, when the venue was known as The Point, Dunne was dropped twice by Spain’s Kiko Martinez, and failed to make it out of the first round. Perhaps the memory of the Martinez fight still lingered in Dunne’s mind, as he came out in the first round holding his gloves uncharacteristically high. The Panamanian southpaw also began cautiously, mainly using a range finding jab to try and set up his straight left. Dunne reverted to his natural stance in the second working behind a purposeful jab, with Cordoba still working the 1-2, jab-left attack. In the third round, Dunne began to find a home for his left hook, and with 30 seconds remaining in the round, a perfectly placed hook sent Cordoba stumbling backwards across the ring, before landing on the canvas. The punch caught Cordoba, who was leaning in while throwing a right hand to the body, flush on the side of the jaw and lit a fire under the partisan crowd. Dunne jumped on the attack as soon as referee Hubert Earle had finished administering the count but there was not enough time left in the round to press home the advantage. The interval gave the game Panamanian enough time to recover and showing his fighting spirit he was happy to engage his Irish opponent in the fourth round, but was still shipping left hooks. A head clash midway through the round left Dunne with a cut above his left eyebrow. In the opening seconds of the fifth round, Cordoba touched down from what appeared at first to be a clean left hook to the head but referee Earle signaled that he believed it to have been a slip. Replays indicated, Cordoba’s lead right foot may have tripped over Dunne’s left, after the punch had landed. Later in the round after a flush right hook staggered Dunne, Cordoba followed up with a barrage of punches along the ropes, culminating with a left-right combination that sent Dunne to the canvas. Dunne was up at the count of 3, and tried to battle his way out of trouble, but was put down again later in the round, this time from a sweetly placed right hook. He was up quickly though and after nodding that he was okay, managed to tie up Cordoba’s follow-up attack, and last out the remaining 35 seconds of the round. During the next few rounds the action became scrappier though both boxers continued to favor the same punches which had provided them with knockdowns earlier in the fight. Perhaps showing that the pace of the contest was getting to him Cordoba stumbled when seemingly unforced a couple of times during the eighth round. The steady pace continued into the ninth and tenth rounds, with the tiring Cordoba remaining steadfast in his determination to hang on to his WBA strap. Despite his condition appearing to waver slightly, the little Panamanian warrior used his size advantage to press Dunne up against the ropes, half catching him numerous times. Midway through the eleventh round, with both fighters looking exhausted, but still battling hard, Dunne hurt Cordoba during an exchange in the middle of the ring. Dunne, who later learned that he was trailing on all three judge’s cards, immediately pursued Cordoba to the ropes and launched a steady flow of punches that sent Cordoba stumbling backwards along the ropes, crashing to the canvas near the corner. Cordoba was up quickly, but looked like a beaten man. With plenty of time left in the round and realizing the end may be in sight Dunne continued his assault. Cordoba seemed too tired to keep his hands up or clinch effectively when in close, but bravely tried to fight back, before being put down again from another left hook. At this point, it could well have been appropriate to call an end to the fight but Earle let the tough champ continue until another left hook sent him down for the final time. Without a count, the fight was waved off. The time was 2:59 of round eleven. Cordoba stayed down for some time and was escorted from the ring on a stretcher. He was quickly taken to hospital for precautionary tests, which thankfully all turned up clear. It was a rough ending, to a brutal war of attrition that saw both men pushed to their limits. Undoubtedly we’ll be talking about this one again at the end of the year, when the FOTY debates heat up. *The WBA’s super-bantamweight champion, Celestino Caballero was elevated to “Super” champion after his win over Steve Molitor in a title unification bout last year. The undercard... Middleweight Andy Lee returned to action for the first time in 10 months in what appeared to be a measured test against his former sparring partner Alexander Sipos, although didn’t seem that way when Lee was cut above the right eye in the first. With the exception of the first and ninth rounds Lee used his ring generalship to keep the rugged Sipos at a distance and put the German down in the sixth with a perfectly placed right hook. There where a few hairy moments for Lee throughout the fight when Sipos managed to work his way in close; Lee showing that his defense on the inside is still rather suspect. e-mail Matt Chudley

Friday March 20 Bouziane Claims Euro Title By Dave Oakes Malik Bouziane became the European bantamweight champion on Friday night with an emphatic points victory over Ian Napa. Bouziane controlled the pace early on with quick jabs and straight rights before darting out of range. That was a glimpse of things to come as he dominated the fight in that fashion until the final bell. The odds-on favourite Napa was never in the fight and despite a late surge, he never made an impression on the athletic Frenchman. The judges scores were 118-110, 117-111 and a bizarre 115-113. Bouziane moves to 11-1 and would be better served defending his title for the time being. He showed good movement and speed but seems to lack power. Despite the one-sided nature of this bout, I can’t see Bouziane being a threat at world level and think he would struggle against a more aggressive style of opponent. Napa, meanwhile, must look at going back down to either flyweight or super-flyweight to rebuild his career. It’s become clear that his lack of size will count against up at bantamweight. The undercard... Featherweight prospect Akaash Bhatia kept his undefeated record with a one round knockout of Elemir Rafael on a quiet undercard. Bhatia moves to 14-0 and must be moved into British title level before his career stagnates any further than it already has done in the past 12 months. A shot against British champion Paul Appleby or Commonwealth champion John Simpson must be the target for the amiable Londoner. e-mail Dave Oakes

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