Boxing Blog – TSS Tidbits

Miranda-Porras, a 10 round super middleweight bout, headlines a hard-hitting night of world-class boxing presented by Seminole Warriors Boxing and DiBella Entertainiment, in association with Arena Box Promotions and the Seminole Tribe of Florida. Tickets, priced at $152, $102, $52, and $27, are on sale now, and may be purchased at the Hard Rock Live Box Office and all TicketMaster Outlets.

FIGHT WEEK

PRESS CONFERENCE
Date……………Monday, October 29th
Time…………..1:00pm to 4:00pm
Place………….”The Park”

WEIGH-IN
Date……………Monday, October 29th
Time…………..5:00pm
Place………….Hard Rock Live……VIP Room

FIGHT NIGHT
Date……………Tuesday, October 30th
Time…………..Doors – 6:30pm…..First Fight – 7:30pm
Place………….Hard Rock Live

Also in action on October 30th will be unbeaten super middleweight James ‘Buddy’ McGirt Jr. (17-0, 9 KOs), a Vero Beach native who is returning to fight in Florida for the first time in two years against Jason Naugler (17-6-1, 11 KOs). And featured on the undercard will be unbeaten Cuban Olympic Gold Medalists Yan Barthelmy (2-0) and Yuriorkis Gamboa (5-0, 4 KOs), who are scheduled to make their United States professional debuts at the Hard Rock.

Additional bouts on the October 30th undercard will feature a star-studded lineup of rising stars and established contenders.
All bouts subject to change. Doors open at 6:30pm and the first bout is at 7:30pm.

Two-time WBA heavyweight champion John “The Quietman� Ruiz (42-7-1, 29 KOs), rated No. 3 by the WBA, has gone through a complete metamorphosis and his often criticized “clutch-and-grab� style has been replaced by an exciting, aggressive attack, flashing back to the days before he first captured the world title in 2001.
In his recent second-round demolition of veteran Otis Tisdale (view @ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6oU_QU4b30), Ruiz demonstrated a much more crowd pleasing style, firing vicious shots to the body that ultimately set-up devastating uppercuts.

“I feel that hunger inside,� Ruiz explained. “It’s back; I kind of lost track of things for awhile. But I made some changes to my team and my interest in boxing is back. I’m more motivated to succeed than ever. My new trainer, Many Siaca, Sr., has been very important. He’s been working me hard and getting me back to the basics. My style has improved each fight but two of my last three fights were overseas and the last off TV. I’m totally rejuvenated. I’m bobbing and weaving more, throwing a lot more combinations, and I’m punching with more power than ever. Every day in the gym Manny always mentioned my uppercut. We saw what a good punch it was (for Jameel McCline) in the (against Samuel) Peter fight. Manny said I had a better uppercut than that and I need to use it more.�
Even his harshest critics have admitted that Ruiz has always been willing to fight anybody, never ducking a worthy challenger, and he took the fight against Tisdale because former WBO champion Sergio Liakhovich wouldn’t fight him. Tisdale, in fact, was the first foe Ruiz has fought this century that wasn’t either a world champion, former title challenger, or rated in top 10 – Evander Holyfield (trilogy), Kirk Johnson, Roy Jones, Jr., Hasim Rahman, Fres Oquendo, Andrew Golota, James Toney, Nicolay Valuev and Ruslan Chagaev.

“Yeah, people tend to forget that I didn’t have any easy fights,� Ruiz said. “I fought everybody they put in with me. My last fight was supposed to be against Liakhovich for the mandatory, but he didn’t show up and I fought a replacement. I was very excited to be fighting for the first time in nearly a year. I even felt a little nervous going into the fight after being out for so long, but that went away when the first bell rang.

“I am a two-time WBA champion; Liakhovich was the WBO champion. He has never fought for the WBA title but, they (WBA) held the No. 2 spot for him and are giving him a shot at No. 1 (Valuev in a title eliminator), after losing his last fight (Shannon Briggs) a year ago. Liakhovich he’s never fought any other top fighters other than (Lamon) Brewster who had a detached retina. Where does that leave me? The WBA needs to fix things. How is Liakhovich No. 2? I should be fighting – Valuev, Liakhovich or anybody else — to find out who the No. 1 contender is. I challenged Liakhovich but he wasn’t willing to fight me.â€?

For the record, Ruiz lost the WBA title to Valuev on a controversial majority decision and the title eliminator to Chagaev by split decision, both in their adopted country, Germany. Ruiz now waits to hear about his next fight, one that he wants to happen sooner rather than later.

Talk about saving the best for last! SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING will present a world title tripleheader as its season finale featuring light heavyweight champion ANTONIO “MAGIC MAN� TARVER, super welterweight champion VERNON “THE VIPER� FORREST and flyweight champion NONITO DONAIRE, on Saturday, December 1.

Promoted by Gary Shaw Productions, the Tarver-Forrest-Donaire world title extravaganza will be televised live from Foxwoods Resort Casino, beginning at 9 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the west coast.)

Tickets, priced at $250, $150, $125, $100 and $75, are on sale now and can be purchased at www.foxwoods.com or by calling (800) 200-2882.

Tarver (25-4, 18 KOs), from Tampa, Fla., who is serving his fourth term as light heavyweight champion, will be defending his IBO title against former WBC interim world champion and current top-five contender Danny Green. For Tarver, this fight brings him full circle, back to Foxwoods where he won his first world championship belts — the vacant WBC and IBF titles — via a unanimous decision over former world champion Montell Griffin (120-106 on all three judges’ cards) on April 26, 2003.

There was no looking back for Tarver as he sought to challenge the biggest names in his division, backing up his patter with extraordinary victories. Tarver’s roster of world champion victims reads like a who’s who of boxing: Roy Jones, Jr. (KO 2, W 12), Glen Johnson (W 12), Reggie Johnson (W 12) and Griffin. He recaptured the IBO title in his last fight, winning a 12-round decision over Elvir Muriqi (34-3, 21 KOs), on June 9 on SHOWTIME. Boxing’s true Renaissance man, Tarver has expanded his horizons into the entertainment field where he landed a feature role in last year’s blockbuster motion picture “Rocky Balboa,� starring Sylvester Stallone, garnering boffo reviews.

Green (24-3, 22 KOs), from Perth, Australia, is looking for his second world title in as many divisions when he challenges Tarver. Green has won eight (six by knockout) of his last 10 bouts, including the WBC interim super middleweight title by knocking out former WBC champion Eric Lucas in 2003. He has won his last three fights by stoppage, all for the IBF Pan Pacific and PABA light heavyweight titles, and has moved solidly into the Top-10 world rankings at No. 3 in the IBF, No. 5 in the WBC, No. 8 in the WBO and WBA.

Forrest (39-2, 28 KOs), from Atlanta, Ga., is a two-time welterweight champion. He added world title no. 3 to his trophy case in July when he fought a masterclass against former world champion Carlos Baldomir, to capture the vacant WBC super welterweight title. For Forrest it was as much a personal triumph as it was a professional one.

Forrest, who has suffered a variety of physical ailments for most of his career, returned to the ring after successful shoulder surgery happy and healthy for the first time in many years. Forrest’s unanimous decision victory over Baldomir capped one of boxing’s best comeback stories in recent years. With a resume that boasts victories over world champions Sugar Shane Mosley (twice), Ike Quartey and Vince Phillips, Forrest has only lost to one man in his professional career – Ricardo Mayorga.

Since losing a very close majority decision to Mayorga in 2003, Forrest finally had shoulder surgery, returning to the ring after extensive physical rehabilitation in 2005, and fashioning a four-fight winning streak against Sergio Rios, Elco Garcia, Quartey and Baldomir. The combined record of this quartet when Forrest faced them was a sterling 116-16-7 – a winning percentage of 83%.

Forrest will have his hands full when he faces mandatory challenger Michele Piccirillo (48-3, 30 KOs), from Modugno, Puglia, Italy. Piccirillo is no stranger when it comes to fighting for world titles since he held the IBF welterweight title, capturing it in 2003 via unanimous decision over two-division world champion Cory Spinks. Piccirillo, whose professional resume includes victories over world champions Rafael Pineda, Juan Martin Coggi and Frankie Randall, returns to the ring riding a four-fight winning streak, including EBU title victories over Lukas Konecny, Luca Messi and Michael Jones, who had a combined record of 83-9-1 – a winning percentage of 89% when he fought them.

Donaire (18-1, 11 KOs), from General Santos City, The Philippines, returns to the ring fresh from the upset victory of the year – his July 7 demolition of undefeated IBF/IBO flyweight champion Vic Darchinyan on SHOWTIME. Darchinyan, who had successfully defended his title seven times – six by knockout – during his three-year reign, was totally befuddled by the boxing clinic the fearless Donaire was putting on. But nothing prepared Darchinyan for the one-punch knockout Donaire leveled on him in round five. So devastating was the knockout that Darchinyan had to be shown the replay to believe he had actually been knocked out.

For Donaire, it was the end of fighting in obscurity. A resident of San Leandro, California, Donaire was honored with a parade in his native Philippines, where he was feted by government officials and fans. He is riding a six-year, 17-bout winning streak.

The training is done, the talking is over. Now all former world heavyweight champion Oliver “The Atomic Bull� McCall wants to do is knock out Juan Carlos Gomez in their highly-anticipated rematch tonight.

“Just ring the bell, man, just ring the bell,� said McCall, who is looking to extend his unbeaten streak to 12 at the expense of Gomez, a former world cruiserweight champion who battled “The Atomic Bull� to a ten round no contest in 2005. “Me and Gomez have unfinished business, and I’m gonna finish it once and for all on October 19th.�

McCall-Gomez, a bout which will be waged for the WBC International Heavyweight Championship at the Estrel Convention Center in Berlin, Germany, will air live on SecondsOut TV beginning at 4pm eastern. The fight will be broadcast LIVE around the world on SecondsOut including North America, UK and Germany. This event will NOT be available to buy online in Canada.

McCall (51-8, 36 KOs) is best remembered for winning the WBC Heavyweight title in 1994 by stopping future Hall of Famer Lennox Lewis in two rounds. He successfully defended his crown by defeating heavyweight legend Larry Holmes before losing it to Frank Bruno in 1995. Since then, McCall has been on a tear, going 25-2 with 2 no contests, including wins over WBC heavyweight champ Oleg Maskaev (KO1), Henry Akinwande (KO10), and Sinan Samil Sam (W12).

For a sixth straight season, millions of UFC® fans around the world watched competitors on The Ultimate Fighter® do battle in an attempt to become one of the newest stars in the UFC organization. But fans are also watching another battle rage, this one between the two coaches, UFC welterweight champion Matt “The Terror� Serra and former UFC champion Matt Hughes. Now, the coaches will have their chance to face off inside the Octagon™, with the world welterweight title at stake. The Ultimate Fighting Championship® presents UFC 79: NEMESIS live from the Mandalay Bay Events Center Saturday, December 29, 2007.

“Matt Hughes and Matt Serra did an awesome job as coaches on The Ultimate Fighter and now they are set to fight for Serra’s UFC Welterweight World Championship,� said Dana White, UFC President. “Serra wants to hold on to his title and Hughes wants it back. The show left little doubt about the dislike these two have for each other, and I think this is going to be an explosive fight.�

Tickets for UFC 79: NEMESIS go on sale Wednesday, Oct. 24 at 10am PST and are priced at $1,000, $750, $500, $300, $200 and $100. Tickets will be sold at any Mandalay Bay box office and all Las Vegas Ticketmaster locations (select Smith’s Food and Drug Centers, Macy’s West at the Fashion Show Mall and Ritmo Latino). To charge by phone with a major credit card, call the Mandalay Bay box office at (702) 632-7580 or Ticketmaster at (702) 474-4000. Tickets also are available for purchase at www.ufc.com, www.mandalaybay.com or www.ticketmaster.com. ;

Boasting a combined record of 156 victories – 109 by knockout – against just 23 losses, the three-bout pay-per-view undercard for “Fast & Furious!� promises to live up to its name! Former welterweight champion ANTONIO MARGARITO will take on GOLDEN JOHNSON in a 12-round battle for the vacant WBO Intercontinental welterweight title, two-division world champion JOEL CASAMAYOR will defend his WBC interim lightweight title against former WBC interim lightweight champion JOSE ARMANDO SANTA CRUZ and power-punching phenomenon VICTOR ORTIZ will be taking a big step up when he faces former super lightweight champion CARLOS MAUSSA in a 10-round welterweight rumble.

Promoted by Golden Boy Promotions and Top Rank, in association with Madison Square Garden, and sponsored by Rums of Puerto Rico and Puerto Rico Tourism, Paramount Pictures new film Beowulf, Tecate Beer and Southwest Airlines, “Fast & Furious!� will be headlined by the WBA welterweight championship fight between Puerto Rico’s Miguel Cotto and Sugar Shane Mosley of Pomona, California. “Fast & Furious!� takes place Saturday, November 10, at the “Mecca of Boxing,� Madison Square Garden in New York City. HBO Pay-Per-View will produce and distribute the four-bout pay-per-view card live, beginning at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT.

In the first of three consecutive ShoBox: The New Generation telecasts that will feature promising heavyweight prospects, hard-hitting, undefeated Travis Walker will defend his International Boxing Association Continental Americas (IBA) heavyweight title against former national amateur champion T.J. Wilson on Friday, Oct. 19, 2007, (live on SHOWTIME at 11 p.m. ET/PT delayed on the west coast).

Also coming up on ShoBox, IBF No. 10 heavyweight contender “Fast� Eddie Chambers will face International Boxing Federation (IBF) No. 3 contender Calvin Brock in a 12-round IBF heavyweight title elimination bout on Nov. 2, 2007, in Tacoma, Wash. Additionally, on Nov. 16, 2007, in a special ShoBox event airing live from the beautiful Eastern Caribbean Island of St. Lucia, (World Boxing Council) WBC No. 7 contender Cristobal Arreola will face dangerous undefeated challenger Teke Oruh in a 10-round heavyweight fight for the WBC Continental Americas title.

The Oct. 19th ShoBox telecast will originate from Raley Field in Sacramento, Calif., and will co-feature Omri Lowther against Jesus “Chuy� Rodriguez in an eight-round junior welterweight bout. Duva Boxing in association with Goossen Tutor Promotions will promote the event. (NOTE: Lowther, 9-0, 8 KOs) is a late replacement for Patrick Lopez and the third cousin of Sugar Ray Robinson.)

After two easy wins against outclassed opponents, Walker hopes to secure a convincing victory over the dangerous Wilson and elevate his status in the heavyweight division. Nicknamed “The Freight Train� for his ability to plow over opponents with devastating power in both hands, Walker will fight for the third time on the critically acclaimed ShoBox series in less than one year.

“We continue to showcase the best and brightest heavyweight prospects in America,� said ShoBox Executive Producer Gordon Hall. “Through their match-ups on ShoBox, Eddie Chambers and Chris Arreola have turned from prospects into world-ranked contenders. Walker, with an impressive performance against Wilson, can do the same.�

“This is my third time fighting on SHOWTIME,� said the six-foot-four-inch Walker. “ShoBox has given me the opportunity to show that I am the No. 1 heavyweight prospect in America. I plan to prove that on Oct. 19.�

Walker, who has fought mostly right-handed fighters, is not worried about taking on a dangerous southpaw in Wilson.

“As long as I pressure Wilson, he will fold,� Walker said. “Fighting a lefty does not bother me. It is a little different because I fight orthodox so much. I feel like Wilson will be a little easier to fight. I can hook him with each side. Lefties are always there for my right hand, and that’s where my power is.

“It’s not good for a lefty to fight me.�

Walker (25-0-1, 19 KOs), of Houston, Texas, by way of Tallahassee, Fla., had only 32 amateur fights, but has made up for lost time since turning pro in July 2004. Despite being brought along slowly, he fought eight times in 2006 and sparred against IBF Heavyweight Champion Wladimir Klitschko.

“I am the new look at heavyweight, and I am going to show that on Oct. 19,� Walker said. “Anyone that has been watching my career since I turned pro knows that I have advanced a lot in a short amount of time.�

Walker has spent the last two years dealing blows to heavyweight prospects with promising careers. After this fight against Wilson, Walker says he wants to take on the world’s best fighters.

“I want to establish myself as the premier American heavyweight,� Walker said. “I hope this will be my last fight against a fellow prospect.�

In his last ShoBox appearance on April 6, 2007, Walker captured the vacant IBA heavyweight crown with a 10-round split decision over previously unbeaten prospect George Garcia at Target Center in Minneapolis, Minn. With the victory, Walker avenged a 2004 defeat at the Olympic Trials and became the first heavyweight from Tallahassee to win a pro heavyweight title.

Walker blames the 10-round split decision over the five-foot-10-inch Garcia on a size mismatch.

“I had to change up to fight a little guy like Garcia,� Walker said. “I really just wanted to avenge my loss to him in the amateurs.

“Now, I’m going to fight somebody bigger than me, and boxing fans will see my real style. I really love fighting a big guy like Wilson because it’s better to fight big guys.�

Since the close victory over Garcia, Walker has defeated his last two opponents, Douglas Robertson and Cornelius Ellis, via technical knockout.

Walker has made a name for himself by defeating heavyweight prospects who were at one time some of the best amateur fighters in the country. “The Freight Train� has derailed the rising careers of three-time National Amateur champion and Olympian Jason Estrada in November 2006, and Garcia, who was No. 2 in the amateurs.

Now, Walker will face another decorated amateur and highly regarded pro prospect in Wilson. The former two-time National Amateur champion and two-time National Olympic alternate was the 2000 Boxing USA National champion at super heavyweight and was an Olympic alternate in 1996 and ‘00.

Wilson (11-1, seven KOs), of Atlanta, Ga., owns impressive amateur wins over Calvin Brock and Dominick Guinn. Currently training in Miami, Wilson returned from Germany in mid September after he helped Oliver McCall and Nicolay Valeuv train for upcoming bouts.

Even though he describes himself as a boxer and a puncher, Wilson intends to take it to Walker when the pair square off on ShoBox.

“I am going to dispense 10 rounds of pressure and pain,� Wilson said. “You know I’m coming.�

The southpaw has learned his lesson from the sole blemish on his record, a third-round knockout loss to Willie Chapman on April 12, 2003.

“I should have handled Chapman very easily,� Wilson said. “But I took my eye off the ball and suffered the consequences because of it. I was in absolute control of every second. I didn’t get touched until I got touched. I have never dropped my hands and walked in on anybody.

“As an amateur, I took better shots from better fighters. I’ll never make that mistake again. But you get a little cocky, you get a little full of yourself, and sometimes you have to learn a hard lesson.�

The confident Wilson warns Walker’s team not to take him lightly.

“If they think they have an easy win, they have another thing coming,� Wilson said. “Walker better be ready because I am going to bring my best. I am going to win.�

Lowther (9-0, 8 KOs), of Atlanta, Ga., turned professional in October 2006. Lowther usually employs a furious pace that allows him to attack his opponents from all angles.

“Every time I come into a fight, I am coming in to put on a show,� Lowther said. “I am here to let the fans know that I am the best 140 pound prospect out here.�

One of the most interesting stories surrounding the young Lowther is that he is a third cousin to the legendary Sugar Ray Robinson.

“I model my style after my cousin (Sugar Ray Robinson), now I’m not comparing myself to him, because he did some of the most beautiful boxing in the sport during his time,� Lowther continued. “But if there was anybody for me study, he would be the guy.�

Rodriguez (16-2, five KOs), of Salinas, Calif., is a powerful boxer puncher who has defeated eight consecutive opponents. Currently training with Shane Mosley in Big Bear, Calif., Rodriguez is learning from one of the best in the business.

“It’s a big plus because Mosley tells me what I need to work on after we spar,� Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez, who won the vacant California junior welterweight title with a 10-round unanimous decision over Hector Alatorre on July 14, hopes his preparation and training pay off.

“I am an exciting, in your face fighter but I try to play smart, too,� Rodriguez said.