Saturday 18th December 2010 - Before I start this fight report, Could someone please hand me Bernard Hopkins’ Birth Certificate because it is hard to believe that a 45 nearly 46 year old man can outwork, out hustle and at times be able to dominate a solid champion like he did against Jean Pascal on Saturday night.

Bernard entered the bout wearing his trademark executioner’s mask where ultimately it turned out to be the judges that should have been wearing masks along with perhaps a stripy jumpers as they robbed Hopkins of his victory with a shady majority draw verdict.

True, it can be said that throughout the first two, maybe three rounds it was Pascal who started the better of the two men. He dictated the pace, he moved effectively plus he scored what turned out to be two crucial knockdowns.

Bernard complained of a punch to the back of the head was the cause for the first knockdown and I suppose an argument could be made for both parties, was he hit behind the head or was it a shot to the ear? On closer inspection I think the referee called it correctly and there was no complaint for the second knockdown as Bernard was out of position left more embarrassed than hurt from a Pascal hook.

It was a Do or Die moment from the fourth round on, Bernard knowing he had a steep hill to climb began to win back rounds using his vast boxing knowledge knowing as many of you do, the champion should start to fade from the middle rounds.

Former light heavyweight champion Glencoffe Johnson sitting at ringside called the fight superbly, when asked his opinions on the fight he said he envisaged that the champion would start the better of the two but from the middle rounds on is where Hopkins would start to dominate.

Couldn’t have been a truer reflection as indeed from the sixth round, Bernard came on strong using an effective attack to the body to make the champion feel shall we say incredibly uncomfortable. Bernard highlighted this in the press conference afterwards where he told reporters “Pascal looked like he was tired from the 5th round to the 12th,”

Pascal after which time looked hesitant to stand and trade, fatigued and outworked the champion now decided to move while throwing the occasional pot shot to get him over the line.

Coming into the final round I personally had Bernard up by a point on my unofficial scorecard so as the round ended I had the fight scored 114-112 in favor of the executioner, the same score as one of the judges at ringside, as the other two scores came in I was left a little frustrated more towards the Belgium judge than the other.

I have to say I whole heartedly agree with Richard Schafer when he questioned the judge’s decision to award Pascal the tenth round because I believe this was definitely a B-Hop round which if scored correctly would have put him a point in front after the twelve rounds, it was this decision which ultimately meant the living legend would walk away with a draw on his record instead of a well deserved win.

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE OUR TOPCLASS SCORECARD FOR THE FIGHT

Saturday 11th December 2010 - The WBA title holder Amir Khan went into Saturday’s fight looking to make a statement within the Light Welterweight division, which was accomplished to a certain extent but not without a little drama throughout the course of the fight.

It was Amir who personally requested the challenge of Maidana, highlighting the Argentine as the biggest puncher in the division, so what better fighter to pick to prove a point? This looked to be a very shrewd choice on behalf of Amir who started the first round using his quicker hands to push the oncoming Maidana back.

Before the fight had started many were claiming that the Argentine was the fighter who possessed the bigger power from the two but on reflection of the fight I would honestly say it could be viewed as a 50/50 split.

First blood though went to Amir whose power got through in the opening stanza where he was able to score a crucial knockdown after landing a two punch combination to the body, leaving Maidana writhing in agony on the canvas.

Seeing Maidana drop to the canvas with the look of pain in his face I kind of got the feeling within those split seconds that the end could quite possibly be in sight while also second guessing myself, knowing that from his past encounter with Victor Ortiz this could in fact act as a wakeup call. Maidana remarkably rose at the count of eight from what I feel is the kind of shot that would have had many calling time.

Khan was now in command after punctuating the issue that he too has brilliant power. His lightening quick hand speed came into play and was certainly having an effect on the plodding Maidana who wondered forward undeterred and unfazed but who also formed an easy target which Amir found with his accuracy at an increasing rate.

Maidana was quote obviously down on each of the judges’ scorecards through the first two rounds but things got far worse in the third. Maidana knew to win the fight he would have to make this an inside fight but as the two men came together and the referee Joe Cortez stepped in to separate them, Maidana frustratingly threw a elbow seemingly hitting Cortez rather than Amir but ultimately leaving him with a point deduction in any case as the round drew to a close in a 10-8 round in favour of the champion.

The Maidana camp afterwards were furious at Joe Cortez actions saying “Maidana, indeed, seemed to let his elbow out, but just out of frustration after Cortez was bothering him all the time. It can be seen that he had no intention to hit Amir"

All this being said, by the time of the sixth round the fight was slowly creeping away from the Argentine who up until this point was being totally out boxed. In the sixth and seventh Maidana's pressure though started to have an effect as Khan was starting to get exposed by the Argentine's hard shots most notably the uppercut which seemed to catch Khan at an alarming rate.

In between rounds we could hear Freddie Roach and Alex Ariza tell Amir to use his speed but I noticed that he was having a problem with the high pace of the fight although I may be mistaken.

Eight and nine were both scored in favour of Amir on our unofficial scorecard but the turning point in the fight came in the tenth where you guessed it, Amir's chin was again exposed.

A lack of concentration and a touch of over confidence on Amir's behalf left him open to a BIG overhand right which caught the British fighter, leaving Amir looking totally out on his feet. Cortez let the action continue as both he and Freddie looked on to see if Amir could weather the storm of shots coming his way.

I have to admit at the time I thought the white towel may have come into the ring as Amir tried in vain to ward off the onslaught but somehow he managed to get through the round using his heart and improved defensive abilities.

Maidana full of confidence now fancied a late stoppage and went out throughout the next three rounds to get the job done, Amir though is a much improved fighter and long gone is the one who was stopped against Breidis Prescott, maybe he has learnt his lesson where this is concerned because although he boxed the next two rounds under pressure and perhaps losing each of the rounds he was also able to limit the amount of damage from Maidana, fighting off the back foot while using his impressive hand speed to blunt the Maidana attack.

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE DAN'S TOPCLASS SCORECARD FOR THE FIGHT

Saturday 4th December 2010 - The Absence of Julio Cesar Chavez Jr from the Top Rank PPV card on the weekend went relatively unnoticed as Humberto Soto and Urbano Antillio took centre stage in a fight that many considered to be this year’s best.

Chavez as you may have read was forced out of his bout with Pawel Wolak because of a case of the flu which meant that the accolade for the headliner to Top Rank’s main event was to be shared between Soto v Antillion and Donaire v Sydorenko which may have been a blessing in disguise as both fights drew a lot of attention for the performances that were produced.

Soto v Antilion was a fight which simply took my breath away at times as I got swept along in the drama of the back and forth war which had everything you could hope for in a boxing fight except a knockdown as each of the rounds blurred into one.

The fight was fought at such a high pace that as early as the second round Top Rank’s commentator at ringside Nick Charles questioned his colleagues as to whether this fight could go the full twelve rounds.

The champion we knew before hand was by far the more technically gifted of the two, as he threw brilliant combinations from the back foot while all the time scoring throughout with his impressive uppercuts which were landed at will. The tough Urbano Antillion's tactics were mainly centred around taking the fight into the trenches where he envisaged himself taking the upper hand over the champion this we all know didn’t happen but what he did was use his size and perhaps being a little stronger was able to pressure and push the champion until he got into position to fire off his trademark body shots and clubbing overhand right.

Scoring the fight, I was of the opinion that Soto was always in front but not enough to really take his foot off the gas as the wave after wave of Antillion's attacks were countered by Combinations. Close quarters is obviously where Antillion wanted the fight to take place, this is where he was able to find a element of success but due to that closeness, the fighters at times would inadvertently clash heads which led to a cut over Urbano’s eyes.

NONITO DONAIRE V WLADIMIR SIDORENKO - In the co-main event Nonito Donaire was hoping to validate his standing within the world’s pound 4 pound lists where a convincing win over the always durable Wladimir Sidorenko would surely raise his stake for a high placing.

Well convincing he most certainly was. The Filipino Flash wasted little time in disposing of Sidorenko where over the four rounds the Ukrainian was made to mimic that of a punch bag as he was dropped on three separate occasions.

Nonito came under some scrutiny lately where some corners of the fight community were of the impression that his style was somewhat boring (don’t ask me why) and it was because of this reason he set out in this fight to prove his naysayers wrong. This he did with distinction using his quick hands, frightening combinations and ring smarts to outgun Sidorenko maybe for the first time in the ex world champion’s career. Between rounds two and three the Ukraine’s face looked reddened and bruised with his face showing the effect of a one sided affair, knowing that he wasn’t good enough on the night he finally took a knee in the fourth as the referee took a close look before waving off contest, sparing Sidorenko anymore punishment

Conclusion - The WBC lightweight champ, Humberto Soto showed in his defence over Urbano Antillio that he can elevate his game accordingly while showcasing a wide variety of skills in doing so. 2010 has been a tough year for the Mexican who stated afterwards of his intentions to rest up before facing Ronnie Rios, Antillion confessed that his heart is still set on capturing the WBC title while Bob Arum offered an intriguing alternative in the form of IBF champion Miguel Vazquez with a potential win setting up another chance at that elusive WBC title.

Nonito Donaire's stock continues to rise and this win highlights why he is a cert within many of the web's pound 4 pound lists so much so that already fight fans have started to draw comparisons with his fellow countryman Manny Pacquiao. A super fight is now scheduled for him to face the formidable Fernando Monitiel which is sure to bring us another great night of boxing, so to end the story I would like to congratulate Humberto on his great win, Urbano on his gritty and determined performance, Nonito for his knockout display and last but not least to Bob Arum for putting on a great night of boxing for us fight fans.

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE MY TOPCLASS SCORECARD FOR THE FIGHT

Saturday 27th November 2010 - On a cold night in Helsinki, Finland, Carl "The Cobra" Froch executed his game plan to perfection, handing out a twelve round dismantling to former Middleweight champ "King" Arthur Abraham whilst also taking back his prized WBC title in the process.

"Punch perfect" was the exact words from Heavyweight champion David Haye when asked to comment on the Nottingham fighters performance and to be honest I couldn’t agree more. What impressed Haye as well as myself in the performance was Froch's discipline and ability to control the fight using his movement and in reality made the fight look very easy at times.

Thoughts of Arthur Abraham being too strong and too powerful beforehand, quickly evaporated like the snow falling on the hot arena roof as the neutral venue witnessed Carl control the action behind a stiff accurate jab, taking advantage of his speed over the German as Arthur plodded around the ring with his face showing the signs of frustration with every passing round.

Following the blueprint left to him from Abraham's previous defeat, Froch like Andre Dirrel before him was able to unload sharp combinations around Abraham's high guard whilst hitting the body with some thudding shots that could be heard from ringside (that’s if you could hear over Carl's girlfriends shout's of encouragement).

The early rounds were always going to be tough on Abraham who in the past has been known as a notoriously slow starter but a fighter who usually starts to ignite from round five onwards. In truth the ignition was never really switched on. Froch's wave of attacks left no opening for Arthur's big right hand instead having to feed off single shots.

Uli Wagner would scold his fighter before the later rounds where he could be heard yelling “this is really cowardly, he’s laughing to himself that you’re half dead! Press him properly, don’t screw around!"

Arthur did take on board his trainers comments and showed signs of coming alive in the last two rounds where he landed a couple of hard shots, but the punch he was looking for which resembled the one landed on Jermain Taylor failed him as the rounds ticked away.

As the final bell sounded to mark the end of the contest, there was no doubt who had won the contest and all that was left was for Jimmy Lennon Jr to confirm the victory by a near shutout twelve round decision, as Carl "The Cobra" Froch walked away with his glisterning WBC title and a huge grin on his face.

Conclusion

Carl Froch certainly showed a different side to his talents on Saturday night, neglecting to stand and trade like he may have done in the past, instead he used his head like his camp had requested to out box the stern Abraham.

People have already started talking about a potential Super Six final involving Andre Ward which may be a little premature at this point in time. In 2011 Carl will be faced with a tricky contest against the tough veteran ex-world champion Glencoffe Johnson which will not be an easy fight for either man.

Arthur on the other hand will need to go back to the drawing board and correct a lot of mistakes. The German is no doubt a great fighter but I just wonder whether the Super Middleweight division may be too big for him at this moment in his career. In the Middleweight division he looked a completely different prospect, Strong, Powerful and perhaps more importantly he was dominant in the defence of his title.

Next up for him will be the American Andre Ward who has looked on a different level throughout this tournament. This is by no means a foregone conclusion but looking at the progress of each man you can’t really see past Andre Ward.

I remember the looks I got when telling people of my thoughts that Andre would win the whole competition. Many overlooked him for the likes of Mikkel Kessler and Arthur but following his progress from the amateurs it becomes clear to see that the man from Oakland, California has gained the most from the tournament and although I would put him as the divisions number one I think both Carl and Lucian Bute would have something to say about this.

What I do know though is that the Super Six Classic have gone a long way to crowning a Super Middleweight King and we can only cross our fingers and hope that a couple of the other divisions will start to be interested in staging their very own Super competition.

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE MY TOPCLASS SCORECARD FOR THE FIGHT

Saturday 27th November 2010 - Written by Dan Foley - Juan Manual Marquez put on a boxing clinic on Saturday night when he took on the tough Australian brawler Michael Katsidis for his WBO Lightweight title.  Leading up to the fight many speculated that we could witness a potential fight of the year and that is exactly what happened as each fighter left everything they had in the ring.

Marquez came out and took the lead early in the fight, taking the first two rounds by landing clean accurate combinations, but Katsidis continued to pile on the pressure and come forward. 

The 3rd round saw the fight was turned on it’s head when Katsidis landed a big left hook that put Marquez on the canvas.  The Mexican managed to get to his feet at the count of 8 while Katsidis then proceeded to turn up the heat and almost had Marquez wobbled again as he trapped him in the corner and rattled off his punches with bad intentions.  Despite the onslaught Marquez did well to regain his legs and finish the round strong. 

It was back to business in the 4th & 5th rounds as Marquez picked off Katsidis with his accurate counter punches.  Both fighters had their moments in round six, with neither guy willing to back down as they continued to trade leather until the rounds end. 

Round seven continued where the 6th had left off and could have been fought in a phone booth as neither fighter gave an inch, both standing in close quarters trading punch for punch. 

Katsidis fought well in the 8th landing a lot more power shots & stealing the round from Marquez, however just as the Australian seemed to be getting back into the fight, Marquez unleashed some vicious combinations in the 9th before moving in for the kill and forcing referee Kenny Bayliss to step in and call the fight to a close. 

Juan Manual Marquez put on an excellent technical display in this fight and this win will surely send a message to Manny Pacquiao, who Marquez has been begging to fight for a third time since losing a controversial re-match. 

f the super fight between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao cannot be made then this surely has to be the biggest fight out there and I for one cannot wait to see a 3rd fight to complete the trilogy.

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO SEE DAN'S TOPCLASS SCORECARD OF THE FIGHT

When you have two big punchers with a tendency to make the occasional trip to the canvas and you throw in the rivalry of Puerto Rico and Mexico, you get a fight which is a guaranteed winner amongst the boxing community.

The MGM Grand in Las Vegas played host to the fascinating bout which witnessed the Puerto Rican sensation Juan Manuel Lopez impressively retain his WBO title with an eighth round stoppage over former two divisional titleholder Rafael Marquez with the Mexican citing a shoulder injury which prevented him from continuing.

Juanma standing at the podium of the post fight press conference said “Marquez is a great warrior, A lot of people thought he was done. He didn’t look done to me.” and personally he didn’t look done to me either as the Mexican warrior put on a hell of a show and quite nearly pulled out the win in the fourth round as he had the champion in survival mode and on the verge of losing his title.

The fight itself took a few rounds to warm to the occasion as both men looked to jab and fight from the outside, occasionally throwing the overhand right or a counter hook in the process. This lasted just a couple of rounds but from around the arena there was the anticipation that when the first big punch landed we would get an all out brawl, as the Mexican fans started to chant the name of "Marquez" round three exploded into action where both men started to land at a higher rate.

There was an obvious difference in power and strength in favour of Juanma throughout the bout as the Puerto Rican seemed to move Marquez with every shot but the heart and determination kept Rafael in the contest and could have pulled off the win with a barrage of shots in the fourth punctuated by a hard accurate left hook which sent the Puerto Rican reeling, unsteady on his feet and perhaps ready to go, Rafael showed his experience as he kept his composure and looked for openings but after already being warned on a number of occasions Juan took the opportunity to again throw a rabbit punch which Tony Weekes had no option but to dock a point for. This may have been a master stroke from Lopez because due to the time taken between warning, docking a point and making sure Marquez was okay to continue meant his head was now clear as he narrowly escaped the round

The ensuing rounds were a brutal affair mixed with power, speed and a battle of wills that raised comparisons with Jose Luis Castillo and Diego Corrales first fight back in 2005 as both men started to tee off, neglecting any kind of attack to the body as they went searching for a finish.

Conclusion

Although it was a shame we didn’t get to witness the entire fight due to the injury to Marquez, we certainly got our monies worth in an incredible fight that except for a knockdown had it all in what could potentially be on the shortlist of some fight of the year candidates.

Each time out I get more and more impressed by Juanma which was the case in a careers highlight victory on Saturday night. He showed us a bit of everything that has made him a great champion and proved to some doubters that he can of course take a shot and compete with the very best.

Marquez did his part in this incredible fight showing once again his warrior instincts and in the process may have proved a point to his doubters who claimed he may be finished.

This fight report was originally supposed to be a segment on Sugar Shane Mosely's clash with Sergio Mora, one which I thought would contain a fascinating array of styles but was in fact one which fell flat on its face, giving the fight fans in LA an ugly affair to watch in a fight that was unworthy of headlining in my opinion.

Instead I’ve decided to turn my attention to Britain's Mega fight card "The Magnificent Seven" where it was only right for me as a Welshman to give my account on one of our own, as Nathan Cleverly took part in his first world title eliminator against the now formerly unbeaten Karo Murat of Germany.

Saturday night also served as a bitter sweet moment for me where although we got to see Nathan decisively outpoint and ultimately stop Murat, but also got to watch the annihilation of one our country's favourite fighters as Enzo Maccarinelli's career may have come to a brutal end at the hands of Alexander Frenkel.

Earlier in the evening we witnessed James Degale stop Carl Dilks in less than one round, then Lukas Konecny retired Manchester's Matthew Hall for the European strap before Kell Brook showed glimpses of his extensive skill set, stopping Michael Jennings on a cut in the fifth.

Derek Chisora was next up and he impressed enough in his destruction of Sam Sexton to potentially land him a shot at the Giant Nicolay Valuev and before Cleverly took to the ring Matthew Macklin kept the British advantage with a one sided master class over Shalva Jomardashvili where he successfully reclaimed his European title and on to our featured fight:

Nathan Cleverly v Karo Murat- The Valley's Boy Steps Up In Class....

Karo Murat was billed to give Nathan the sternest of tests but like his maths degree, he passed this one also with flying colours.

Start to finish, Nathan had a game plan to outslug his German opponent which became a double edged sword. It was great from a fight fans perspective, we were able to witness one of the best fights of the year but on the other hand Nathan's corner especially Dean Powell was pleading with his fighter to box a smarter fight behind his long jab in turn making the fight an altogether easier one for the Cefn Forrest fighter.

Uli Wenger is known throughout boxing to have trained some of the most determined and toughest fighters in the sport and that's exactly the fighter he brought to Birmingham in Karo Murat. The German based fighter was rock solid throughout, standing toe to toe for the full nine rounds the bout lasted.

However, Nathan was not to be denied and proved to his doubters that (A) he has a great chin (B) He has an abundance of determination and lastly and more importantly (C) He firmly belongs on the world stage.

His shot selection and stamina was too much for Murat on the night and left him looking bewildered by the ninth as the ringside doctors stopped the bout at the start of the very next round.

When asked by Ian Darke of Sky Sports why he employed his tactics of going toe to toe with a power puncher, Nathan stated that he had already witnessed Murat have success against fighters who stayed on the outside which made him draw up a game plan to attack from the start using his better stamina to get the job done.

Frank Warren on the other hand thought that the Mathematician had lost his mind but agreed that it was a great fight and perhaps by the end of the interview even sided with Nathan on the game plan.

Enzo Maccarinelli v Alexander - Nice Guys Really Do Finish Last...

Enzo Maccarinelli may have possibly been on his way to a points decision on Saturday night which could have been the successful defence of his European title but a lapse of concentration was enough for the BIG German fighter Alexander Frenkel to take advantage as his heavy hands instead left Maccarinelli's future in tatters as he lay motionless on the LG Arena's canvas.

This was a fight that left me angry beyond belief though, not because Alexander Frenkel walked away with the win, No, my anger was directed firmly at Enzo's corner and the referee who was employed to look after the fighter’s welfare.

This did not happen and both were guilty. Instead Enzo was left to continue in the seventh when a more experienced referee or even one with half a brain would have stopped the contest at the point of the first brutal knockdown. Although Enzo did manage to make it to his feet, even Ray Charles could see that the Welshman showed the look of a man that had nothing left in the tank, his legs were like jelly and with a glazed look in his eye. I anticipated the referee would have waved off the bout accordingly but he willingly let Enzo continue, sorry to rant but In this situation it is the referee's job to protect the fighter from himself, a fighter will always look to continue and when the adrenaline and pride starts to take over it is up to the man in charge (The Referee) to make the decision. A few seconds later, Enzo hit the canvas for a second time this time with a huge thud that rang around the arena. Now there was no getting up as doctors rushed to the ring to administer first aid and I couldn’t help but see visions of Gerald McClellan's bout with Nigel Benn. Frenkel postponed his celebrations and showed a champions respect as he waited anxiously in his corner with a nervous look written all over his face.

After a few moments of oxygen, Enzo make it to his stool looking more embarrassed than hurt, but in seeing the fight unfold and his previous encounters with David Haye amongst others, I seriously hope for his sake he retires because he has given the sport everything and I for one hope that we will still see Enzo in another capacity within the sport, whether it be a promoter or trainer.

Alexander Frenkel on the other hand, impressed me immensely, he looks a future champion in the cruiserweight division, with decent hand speed, patience and the fact he hits like a Mack truck. I am sure he could capture a title at the weight class and from seeing his fight, he certainly has the tools for the job.

Conclusion

Enzo on the other hand along with Matthew Hall may have seen their careers come to a dead end. Matthew we know has already stated his intention to quit the fight game and Enzo in my opinion should follow suit, this was his fourth brutal knockout in the last couple of years and this knockout could possibly have been the worst of the lot.

As a fight fan and admirer of the man's skills I would hate to see Enzo becoming a journeyman, fighting just for pride and potentially ending up punch drunk slurring from the beatings he has already incurred. I honestly see nothing left for him to prove, he is a former world champion, former European champion and will always be a fight fans champion and I for one would like to take this moment to thank Enzo for the highlight reel knockouts he has produced over the years and I can honestly say he is one fighter I will miss seeing in the Cruiserweight division.

In front of an all star audience that included the likes of Wilfredo Gomez, Juan Manuel Lopez, Fernando Montiel and Felix Trinidad both the WBO champ Ivan Calderon and the WBA champ Giovanni Segura took centre stage on Saturday night as they put on a great show for the people of Puerto Rico and the many fight fans around the world.

A rivalry has always existed between the two countries of Puerto Rico and Mexico which is one that spans generations of boxing history. In the past we have seen the two countries go to war in the ring with match ups like Salvador Sanchez' stoppage of Wilfredo Gomez, Tito Trinidads five knockdown fight with Fernando Vargas and more recently we saw Miguel Cotto being grinded down by the infamous Antonio Margarito.

At the time each of these fights made a claim for fight of the year and on Saturday night we may have witnessed one of 2010's as Giovanni "The Aztec Warrior" Segura stopped Ivan "Iron Boy" Calderon in the eighth round of an absolute stunner of a fight that had all the ups and downs of a rollercoaster.

The Fight

In his ring walk Giovanni Segura was joined by the Bantamweight king Fernando Montiel, Segura dressed as an Aztec Warrior like his nickname suggests looked determined and ready as he casually made his way through the pro Calderon crowd on his entrance to the ring.

Next up was the hometown hero standing at 5' tall Ivan Calderon bounced on his toes looking loose and focused on the job at hand, he made his entrance to a chorus of cheers touching hands along the way to the ring.

As the ring Into's were made the referee brought both fighters to the centre of the ring for their final instructions and as both fighters met each other’s stare there is an obvious size differential as Segura only 5'4 himself towers over the smaller stature of Calderon. The instructions come to an end and the fighters touched gloves and wandered back to their respective corners ready to start the eagerly anticipated bout.

To start the first round Segura almost leaps across the ring as he pressures Calderon from the outset looking to land something early. Calderon is precise in his shots beating Segura to the punch with his whip like jab and although he is considered the lighter puncher of the two he still succeeds in rocking the Mexican with a lead left hand that obviously gets Giovanni's attention.

More of the same going into rounds two and three with Calderon fighting off the back foot using his lateral movement while Segura is using effective pressure which is drawing Calderon in to a toe to toe battle

This tactic worked brilliantly for the Mexican where the fourth round erupted into a slugfest with both men planting their feet and hammering away with both hands as Calderon started to play into Segura's game plan. The excitement of the round could be felt at ringside as Segura's countryman and Bantamweight king Fernando Montiel was seen shadow boxing as he urged his friend on to victory.

The Iron boy's eyes looked puffy between rounds as the momentum swayed in Segura's direction as he took a strong fifth round with wave after wave of attacks, backing Calderon up against the ropes as the Puerto Rican now looked every day his 35 years, looking tired as he slipped to the canvas under the continuous attack. It was almost as if Ivan tried to take the round off in a tactic to restore his energy but one which ultimately backfired.

The Sixth like the fourth played out as another slugfest with both men again standing firm looking for that all important fight ending shot but as the two men traded this time it was Calderon who seemed to be throwing the more hurtful shots, using his shoulder to roll Segura's while coming back with lead left hands.

Round seven was a fought at a much slower pace but as round eight began the name IVAN, IVAN, IVAN rang out from the Puerto Rican fans but this was Segura's night and he would not be denied as he again pressured Calderon pushing him to the ropes while rattling off body and head combinations before planting anaccurate hard shot right to the liver. Calderon dropped to the canvas in obvious discomfort as the referee continued his count from 1 to 10 without any movement from the now former champion.

Segura now the unified Light Flyweight king immediately showed the mark of a true champion by embracing the former champion before being lofted above his team with both the WBA and WBO belts draped safely around him.

Conclusion

I have no doubt whatsoever that Ivan even at the age of 36 will return strong in 2011. Due to his style of fighting he is a fighter that defies his advancing years but I am uncertain as to whether he would fare better in a rematch against the new unified champion which could ultimately return the same result.

There are still goals available to accomplish for the Puerto Rican in one of the 105, 108 or 112Ib divisions so his options could be (A) Take the rematch with Giovanni Segura (B) move up in weight to the 112Ibs division and maybe face someone like Omar Narvaez or (C) Move back down to Minimum weight where he could face the Nicaraguan hard hitter Roman Gonzalez. All of which are incredibly intriguing bouts.

Giovanni Segura on the other hand is a fighter with the world now at his feet. He’s a fighter who has risen to the top of the division and could soon stake his claim for a place in anyone's Pound 4 Pound list.

As with Calderon, the same options are open to him but holding two of the divisions major titles one thing is for sure, to get to the top of the division the contenders will need to go through him which as we know is no easy task.

As one Iron Boy cracks an Aztec Warrior takes his place at the top where he rightfully belongs.

It was a fight that was supposed to showcase Devon Alexander’s skills and one which could also serve as an opportunity to show the divisions other champions and contenders what they potentially would be up against in the future, neither of which were convincing enough, although he did walk away with his title intact, but more questions than answers were raised from the encounter.

Earlier in the week Devon stopped by the St Louis Rams training headquarters and was given an insight into how professional footballers train and workout in preparing for the new season. At the end of which Devon was asked to give a pep talk to the team which was focused primarily on digging deep in the final few minutes of a game, advice which he ultimately also had to take on board last Saturday night as he went into the championship rounds of the gruelling encounter.

The Fight .

The opening stanza saw Alexander pump out his jab which he mixed with a good accurate body shot and this seemed to be working throughout the start of the bout while Kotelnik just came forward working a perhaps more accurate jab while also looking for a home for his straight right hand.

As we got to the middle rounds, as we watched the fight unfold we saw the reactions and advice change from Alexander’s corner with trainer Devon's trainer Kevin Cunningham looking a bit unsettled by the amount of success the Ukraine fighter was starting to achieve.

Cunnigham told Devon not to stand in front of Kotelnik and to slide to the side something which he did with little success, instead he was playing right into Andriy’s hands and on occasion the Ukraine fighter was able to rock the St Louis fighter which had Alexander’s camp in mild disarray.

Going into the later rounds I had Devon up by a couple of points but in the back of my mind knew that he would need to close out the bout more emphatically.

Looking at Devon in between rounds we saw his mouth gape open which I maybe thought was an indication on him getting tired, when the bell sounded to signal the start of another round he just got back into his rythem and back to his high output of punches and looked fine physically the fight was mentally tiring for the young star..

Conclusion

I agree that this wasn’t Devon’s finest hour but what did impress me more than anything was the fact that although it obviously didn’t go to plan he was still able to show the mark of a true world champion to keep working and come out victorious.

Now with the Kotelnik fight behind him, fight fans attention immediately turn to Alexander’s future opponent with forums all over the web getting inundated with opinions on how he would fare against the likes of Tim Bradley and Amir Khan.

Whatever the next step for Devon is, I am sure we will see a different fighter and one who will continue to progress and get better.

Remember the kid is only 23 and has already captured the IBF and WBC titles.

WBO Junior welterweight champion Timothy Bradley (25-0, 11 KOs) made the move up to the Welterweight division look easy on Saturday night, when he not only beat one of the better fighters within that division, he totally out boxed him on route to a wide unanimous decision.

The fighter Bradley was matched with had this fearsome reputation as a straight up banger with the record to show for it. Before Saturday’s bout Luis Carlos Abregu from Argentina entered the bout with a 79% knockout ratio meaning that from the 29 opponents that had faced him only six had stayed the distance.

This led many to believe that an upset could be the order of the day and prompted an influx of bets to be put on the Argentinean as the fight drew closer.

The Fight .

Luis Carlos Abregu informed members of the press before the fight of his intentions of making a statement in the first three rounds of this fight but as the bell sounded to start the contest the Argentinean looked slow and sluggish, totally overwhelmed by Bradley’s speed and movement.

Both men were bloodied in the opening stanza from an accidental head butt which left both with a war wound (Bradley over his right eye and Abergu's on the hairline) nothing that was really fight threatening.

The second was more of the same with Bradley dictating the pace and distance with his jab and while we were expecting that BIG shot to come from Abregu it was actually the lighter punching Bradley that unleashed a massive right hand to stun the South America and bag the second.

The third continued in the same vein and it took until the forth to finally see anything of note from Abregu who in this round was able to score with a couple of decent right hands. Still though Bradley was the more dominant fighter and continued to put points on the board and added the fifth and sixth rounds to his tally.

In the Seventh there was another accidental clash of heads as both men were looking to fight inside the others guard, Abregu dropped to the canvas in pain and seemed shaky on the return to his feet. When the action continued both fighters looked to fight in close and Bradley took full advantage of this tactic, hammering short venomous left hands to the right side of Abregu’s face which shook the Argentine to his core again.

The rest of the bout saw Bradley coast at times using his better timing and movement to leave Abregu out of answers and totally out of the fight. Bradley stunned him again in the ensuing rounds and as Abregu looked to set something up Bradley was there every time with a hard accurate jab to stop him from ever really setting his feet for his power shots.

When the judges rendered their decision it was a surprise to no one who won the fight and the scores agreed with that assessment of 118-110, 117-111, 116-112 in a one sided bout.

Conclusion

This was another impressive display from Bradley who’s intentions on moving up in weight class was in the hope of baiting one of the sports bigger names.

He announced to Max Kellerman of HBO afterwards that he was interested in a showdown with Manny Pacquiao saying “I’m making a challenge right now, baby. Manny Pacquiao, come break down this wall. Manny, come break down this wall. I challenge Manny Pacquiao at 147 pounds”.

I don’t think Bob Arum of Top Rank will be in a hurry to get the contracts drawn up but what this fight has done is opened the door to a potential Bradley v Khan or Bradley v Alexander or possible Bradley v Maidana matchup.

When asked apart from Pacquiao what fight interests him the most he said, “Anybody, any of the top guys out there—especially you Devon Alexander. If everything is alright and the money’s right and everything’s signed up, I’ll fight you next. Devon, Maidana, and Khan—I’ll fight all of them. I’m a throwback fighter, baby.”

All I know is that any of these bouts would provide the fight fans with a great matchup and an intriguing spectacle. In a time where many of today’s champions have ducked a challenge, it is refreshing to see a top fighter come out and publically announce he is there for a challenge, so for that I salute you Timothy Bradley.

Written By TopClass writer Daniel Foley

Juanma was certainly a man on a mission Saturday night producing an explosive performance that left Bernabe Concepcion's title challenge in tatters with just over 40 seconds remaining of the second round.

In fact Concepcion couldn’t have had enough time to warm up before crashing to the canvas on three separate occasions, the last being in the second round where the referee made the right decision to stop the contest.

Coming into this fight Juanma had a lot on the line knowing that a win here would setup his future super fight with Rafael Marquez.

The Fight .

There was a tentative start from both fighters to the bout as they each tried to establish their jabs but failed to do so. First blood went to Lopez who caught Concepcion with a short right hook followed by a straight left that also connected. Just under a minute into the round Lopez forced Concepcion to fall back into the ropes after landing another left hand. Lopez then calmly stalked Concepcion around the ring before landing another big shot which resulted in the first knockdown of the fight. After returning to his feet Concepcion started trading with Lopez but failed to land many punches. After finding a home for the straight left over and over, Lopez became a bit too careless & got dropped with 18 seconds left in the round after Concepcion landed a counter left hook.

Concepcion came out looking more confident in the second round, going straight after Lopez, but Juanma used his counters well to keep Bernabe at bay and after just 20 seconds he put Concepcion on the mat again with yet another straight left that connected cleanly. Concepcion returned to his feet but Juanma began to up the pressure with around 40 seconds left in the round & after landing some solid shots he put Concepcion down for the 3rd and final time as the referee called an end to the fight after Concepcion was unable to answer the count.

Conclusion

Andre Ward took the next step in the Super Six contest, guaranteeing his spot in the Semi Finals with a fight to spare while putting on a great performance in outpointing Allan Green over twelve one sided rounds at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, Los Angeles on Saturday night.

From the outset this contest was hyped up by marketing personal to be a back and forth contest with a puncher vs boxer type scenario being quoted around the event and I have to be honest, although I had Andre to win a unanimous decision before hand I still bought into the hype of Green’s punch power and how dangerous he could be in this type of competition.

On Sunday morning though my opinion’s had changed drastically, having watched the fight I came to the conclusion that (A) Ward is not only the best fighter within the Super Six competition but one of the best in boxing, and (B) Allan Green is still not ready to compete at this level (my opinion only).

Don’t get me wrong I believe Allan is a great fighter and has the tools for the job but mentally I think he falls over and when he is up against the likes of Ward, Kessler, Abraham, Bute and so on I believe he will just come up short time and time again.

I know that this may sound a little harsh to many of you but anyone who has watched the fight on the weekend could see that he was out of his depth for much of the fight and in fact at times Allan was made to look like a human punch bag getting hit at will by an exceptional Andre Ward.

The Fight

The first two rounds were utilised as a feeling out process by both men but while both were throwing jabs only one man was actually landing and you can guess who this was. Rounds three to five were all Andre Ward who looked as though he had figured Green out and knew that he was offering little in the way of danger, from there on it was all about Andre, backing up Green to the point that his back was against the ropes where he started finding a home for his combinations to the head and body.

Everything that Allan tried had failed. He couldn’t do anything with Ward on the night he was out jabbed, out muscled and totally out boxed and by round ten it became hard to watch as Ward tee’d off at an alarming rate,

In the run up to the fight many labelled Green a Bully but come fight night the Bully got totally bullied as Ward was able to execute his team’s game plan to the letter with distinction, in a truly brilliant performance.

Conclusion

Green revealed afterwards that he had problems in training and that on the night of the fight he felt drained but in truth Ward has evolved so much since his gold medal winning days that I have no doubt that if a tip top condition Green had turned up on Saturday night the result would have been exactly the same.

Ward will now face his friend Andre Dirrell in November in what should be a great matchup and although both men are close, Andre’s smile when asked about the contest said everything that we needed to know. Dirrell went on to tell reporters that he plans on “being first” against Ward but some things are easier said than done. So good luck with that tactic Andre (Dirrell)

OLE, OLE was the sound coming from the fight fans in attendance on Saturday night as Jesus Iribe played the Bull to Ivan Calderon’s Matador.

It was vintage Calderon at the theatre in Madison Square Garden, a knockdown in the second being the only blemish on an otherwise outstanding performance.

Boxing’s most knowledgeable people compare Ivan with the likes of Willie Pep or Gene Tunney and this is no mistake on their part because like each of these past legends he too is an amazingly evasive fighter who in my opinion is possibly the best pure boxer throughout any weight class in boxing today. Saturday proved this point, although you probably won’t see Ivan propping up many people’s pound 4 pound lists and this is mainly due to his lack of punch power but on the basis of being a pure boxer, I assure you there is currently no better in our sport.

On the eve of the Puerto Rican Parade, Calderon was obviously looking to make a statement with his performance, revelling being in the main event, immediately starting well using the 20 foot ring to his full advantage moving around Iribe as the Mexican challenger was already looking to load up on his shots. The second was more of the same until out of nowhere a straight right hand landed that left the champion on the seat of his pants. Calderon made it to his feet seemingly unhurt by the shot, in fact looking more embarrassed by getting caught than anything else.

Going into the bout question marks remained over Calderon with regards to him sustaining cuts with each of his three previous bouts becoming a blood bath and yes he was cut again somewhere throughout the middle rounds after a clash of heads but unlike his previous encounters this one wasn’t fight ending and still allowed Calderon to fight his kind of fight with the rest of the bout being a true master class in ring generalship.

Towards the end of the fight Calderon moved with a swagger of a champion moving and boxing beautifully whilst unleashing four, five and at times six punch combinations in showing his quality by leaving the face of Iribe reddened and bruised. Aged 35, Ivan is one fighter who defies his age and going into the championship rounds he looked as fresh as the first.

When the bell signalled the end to the bout there was no doubt in terms of who the winner was. Calderon was even celebrating half way through round twelve so it came as no surprise when the ring announcer called the winner as the judges at ringside saw the fight the same as everyone in attendance rendering scores of 118-109, 118-109, 116-111 and with the win and still the WBO champion of the world Ivan “Iron Boy” Calderon.

CONCLUSION

Afterwards there was talk of potential matchup’s with one of the following: WBA Light Flyweight champion Giovanni Segura, Former two weight world champion Francisco Arce or Minimum weight king Roman Gonzalez . All I know is that each of these fights would be a joy to watch and one which is sure to bring the lighter weights more exposure and the attention it deserves.

Miguel Angel Cotto etched his name amongst the sports all time greats on Saturday night winning in the same arena of past greats such as Rocky Marciano, Joe Louis, Sugar Ray Robinson and of course Muhammad Ali.

Each of these fighters have in the past stepped through the ropes of this great arena in front of the great crowds and lights of the Yankee Stadium, each time producing something special and creating a little piece of history in the sport.

Like each of the fore mentioned fighters Miguel’s performance came to life in the great arena and with many beforehand contemplating a bleak future for the Puerto Rican, the fighter now trained by Emmanuel Steward sought out to prove people wrong and was able to rise to the occasion of being in the main event and with the expectation levels lowered, Miguel was able to fight a near perfect bout totally out boxing and ultimately out foxing the former WBA champion Yuri Foreman over nine one sided rounds.

Saturday night in my opinion produced three winners (1) Miguel (2) The return of the open air Stadium and (3) the referee Arthur Mercante Jr.

VENUE

Let me start with the venue, I have to admit that when I heard that the fight was to be held at the historic Yankee stadium in New York, a sense of excitement came over me with thoughts of the great fights from yesteryear, fights like Joe Louis v Max Schmelling II, Rocky Marciano v Archie Moore and Muhammad Ali v Ken Norton are the fights that spring to mind.

This is a venue which brings back fond memories amongst the diehard boxing fans and the thought of an open air fight encapsulates the great fights of the past.

Some of these venues have been long forgotten and instead everything seems to revolve around Las Vegas. Europe jumped the gun a little in recent times of producing these sort of bouts with both the Klitschko brothers and Joe Calazaghe amongst many others that have fought in front of a packed out football (soccer) arena.

Seeing the resounding success of these bouts prompted a party of business men which included Jerry Jones (owner of the Dallas Cowboys) and Bob Arum (CEO of Top Rank) to put one of boxing’s biggest stars,Manny Pacquiao under the bright lights of the newly built Cowboy’s arena in what turned out to be a great success both in terms of a fight fans standpoint and in terms of revenue. Let’s face it Manny Pacquiao + Cowboys Arena = AMAZING. The success of this bout led the way to this fight and again I am pleased to say, turned out to be a great success on all fronts and for me personally seeing thousands of fight fans packed into a sport stadium and raising the roof for their favourite fighter is music to my hears and with it I believe will breathe new life into this great sport.

Now on to the fight itself and like HBO’s Max Kellerman stated afterwards, this was a pleasant surprise and something that many thought would be a tactical affair but actually turned out to be a great match up of styles and the boxer (Foreman) was totally out boxed by the Slugger (Cotto)

THE FIGHT

Miguel will rightly so take the plaudit of the night but in losing I don’t think Yuri Foreman has done himself an injustice. It takes two good fighters to make a great bout and the fact is Yuri will probably have left the Yankee Stadium with more supporters than he originally had before due to his courageous effort in defence of his title.

Going in to the bout the emphasis was on Foreman being the taller, rangier and naturally heavier fighter, all advantages the fight fans anticipated Cotto would have problems with especially earlier on in the bout and to my own disbelief had many already writing the Puerto Rican off before the fight had even started.

This is what Miguel had wanted. His past fights with Antonio Margarito, Joshua Clottey and Manny Pacquiao had lifted an element of expectation on this fight as the boxing world watched to see whether the Caguas fighter was on the decline of his illustrate career.

In round one the sceptics had a partial answer. The full steam ahead Cotto of the past few bouts was nowhere to be seen and instead we witnessed a Miguel of old, one that was using his jab again to setup his power shot and one who showed a better sense of concentration and patience and like Steward had predicted better balance. In the round the Slugger which Cotto has often referred to actually became the boxer in a very one sided round.

The next couple of rounds continued in the same vein, Cotto listening to Steward’s instructions in between rounds and executing brilliantly, Jabbing and cutting off the ring as Foreman was obviously having problems with his timing and rhythm which his trainer Joe Grier picked up on and looked to correct.

Foreman had his best round in the fourth where he was able to score on Cotto from the outside, using his right hand effectively to bruise the face of Cotto. The fifth was a fairly even round with both men scoring with good shots but the bigger punch power of Cotto was having more of an effect as Foreman’s shots lacked the firepower to gain Cotto’s respect. Foreman got on his bicycle again in the sixth moving around the ring like a hamster in a training wheel while trying to stay away from Cotto’s famed left hook to the body.

Foreman came into this bout with his right knee in a brace which was the result of an old injury he had sustained in a bicycle accident years before, but it was this injury that would ultimately be the beginning of the end for Yuri’s title reign because while in the seventh round he trying to circle away from another Cotto attack only to suddenly hit the canvas. My first reactions were that he had slipped on water from the canvas but on seeing the replay we actually saw his right knee give way, leaving him in agony on the canvas. He rose and hobbled around taking the full five minutes the referee instructed and as the action continued the same right knee gave way for a second time. He rose again showing brilliant heart while Arthur Mercante Jr asked for the second time if he wanted to continue but Foreman was not going to just quit and give up his title so the bout continued but without the mobility he had earlier in the bout Foreman was forced to stand and trade with the power punching of Cotto and this often left him receiving some big shots as the round came to an end.

The most bizarre round in recent years occurred in the eighth when as the two men finished an exchange in the centre of the ring a white towel was thrown from what looked to be Yuri’s corner. Immediately TV exec’s and corner men filled the ring as the referee looked bemused by the stoppage, both fighters embraced each other on a great fight but all of a sudden Mercante prompted the ring announcer Michael Buffer to ask people to leave the ring after he didn’t get a definite answer from anyone on who actually threw in the towel. Mercante Jt decided to continue the action with over 1 minute remaining in the eighth round as both fighters shrugged it off and the action continued with Cotto back in the driving seat hurting the champion with shot after shot.

The round came to an end and as Foreman hobbled over to his corner the referee set out to try and find out who threw in the towel. It would have been easy for Cotto to argue the decision to continue but as always Miguel is a fighter first and decided to instead take the decision away from the judges and the referee and indeed the corner as he set out to stop Foreman in the ninth, which was accomplished with a hard accurately placed body shot that left Foreman on the canvas legitimately for the first time in the contest. This time there was no continue and although Foreman looked disappointed with the decision to end his title reign, the referee stopped Yuri from taking any further punishment and with the stoppage gave Cotto his fourth world title, three in different weight classes to end a great fight in a great arena.

Max Kellerman of HBO hit the nail on the head with his assessment afterwards saying that this was a better fight than anyone could have anticipated and I would have to full heartedly agree on this statement as there was good two way action, no clinching and an abundance of controversy, I ask what more could a fight fan want?

THE REFEREE

Lastly I have to take a moment to also praise the referee Arthur Mercante Jr in making a great fight. He knew a champion would never want to quit so he gave Foreman a number of chances to walk off the injury telling Yuri to “suck it up Kid” and he could have taken the easy way out in the eighth when a towel came into the ring. I take my hat off to Arthur in the wish that every referee would use their common sense in officiating a BIG fight of this magnitude, his actions on Saturday night was what a fight of this calibre needed, so on behalf of all us fight fans I would like to say THANK YOU ARTHUR.