The US has a number of very young but very, very promising prospects coming through at the moment with one of those being 20 year old Frankie Gomez (12-0, 9) a fighter many are tipping as a sure-fire star of the future. Not only due to his links with Golden Boy Promotions and their head honcho Oscar De La Hoya, who has praised Gomez highly since he signed but also his exceptional amateur pedigree.
Gomez first became a "fighter to watch" in 2007 when he won the 54KG division at the World Cadet Championships in Baku. On route to winning the competition he stopped 3 of his 4 opponents, with only finalist Elvin Aliyev managing to survive the schedule with Gomez.
Gomez's success would continue in the amateur as he went on to claim the 2009 US National Championships, beating the highly touted Jose Benevidez Jr in the final. Whilst the victory over Benevidez was a notable win, the year just got better for Gomez who went on to claim the Silver medal at the 2009 World Championships, losing in the final to Cuban superstar Rosniel Iglesias (who went on to claim Gold at the 2012 Olympic Games).
Following his amateur success Gomez decided to turn professional in 2010 rather than remaining in the amateur ranks for the 2012 Olympic Games. He swiftly signed on to Oscar De La Hoya's "Golden Boy Promotions" and made his professional debut in April of that year stopping Clayvonne Howard in the 3rd round of a bout on the under-card of Bernard Hopkins v Roy Jones Jr II.
By the end of 2010 Gomez had swiftly and effectively moved his professional record on to 7-0 (6) with only the experienced Ramon Montano managing to survive the distance. The following year saw Gomez continue his development, and his winning run as he scored 5 more wins (3 by T/KO) however for the first time as a professional he struggled as the under-rated Adrian Granados pushed him close.
Since defeating James Hope in December 2011, Gomez hasn't fought, however he returns to the ring this coming Saturday to face experienced Mexican Manuel Leyva (21-9, 12). Whilst on paper Leyva is a good opponent, it needs to be noted that Leyva ia 1-7 in his last 8 contests dating back over 3 years and has been stopped 5 times over those 8 bouts.
Showing posts with label Unbeaten. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Unbeaten. Show all posts
Thursday, 1 November 2012
Wednesday, 31 October 2012
Tyron Zeuge
In the past boxing's super power has been America with a high number of big fights and top fighters all hailing from the states. In recent years however boxing has grown in popularity across Europe with Germany now becoming a major player in both the top fights and top fighters.
Germany has become a bit of safe haven for not only boxers from around Eastern Europe, such as the Klitschko's from the Ukraine or Arthur Abraham from Armenia, but also boxers from around the world, such as Cuban Yoan Pablo Hernandez and Brit Ola Afolabi. Despite this Germany also has a crop of their own, home grown fighters and one such fighter is the very promising youngster Tyron Zeuge (3-0, 3).
The 20 year old Zeuge, a talented Super Middleweight turned professional earlier this year following an excellent amateur career that saw him winning various national and international championships. Included in those competition victories were the 2009 European Youth Championships (75KG) and the 2010 German National Championships (81KG) (amongst many others) as Zeuge became one of the most highly sought after amateurs in Germany.
After missing out on a place at the World Amateur Champions in 2011 Zeuge seemed set to turn professional however he remained an amateur until the end of 2011 allowing him to compete at the 2011 German National Championships (where he was controversially beaten in the semi final). In early 2012 he finally made the long awaited move over to the professional ranks and in March Zeuge made his professional debut by stopping the over-matched Yauheni Bohdanouski in just 74 seconds.
Just weeks after his professional debut Zeuge secured his second victory as a professional by stopping Venezuelan born Italian Santo Drago in 3 rounds, becoming the first man to stop Drago in 7 bouts. More recently Zeuge stopped Spanish based Ecuadorian Carlos Caicedo, also in 3 rounds. Whilst Caicedo might not be anything special, the fact that Zeuge, in just his 3 bout as a professional, did a quicker job on him than the much more experienced "world level" Dimitri Sartison is rather impressive (it took Sartison 5 rounds).
Zeuge is looking for his fourth professional win this coming weekend when he faces unbeaten Belgian Matingu Kindele (3-0). Hopefully a win over Kindele will help Zeuge progress on to more meaningful bouts as he continues his development, however at just 20 years old he has a lot of time to develop and the natural ability to really become something special.
Germany has become a bit of safe haven for not only boxers from around Eastern Europe, such as the Klitschko's from the Ukraine or Arthur Abraham from Armenia, but also boxers from around the world, such as Cuban Yoan Pablo Hernandez and Brit Ola Afolabi. Despite this Germany also has a crop of their own, home grown fighters and one such fighter is the very promising youngster Tyron Zeuge (3-0, 3).
The 20 year old Zeuge, a talented Super Middleweight turned professional earlier this year following an excellent amateur career that saw him winning various national and international championships. Included in those competition victories were the 2009 European Youth Championships (75KG) and the 2010 German National Championships (81KG) (amongst many others) as Zeuge became one of the most highly sought after amateurs in Germany.
After missing out on a place at the World Amateur Champions in 2011 Zeuge seemed set to turn professional however he remained an amateur until the end of 2011 allowing him to compete at the 2011 German National Championships (where he was controversially beaten in the semi final). In early 2012 he finally made the long awaited move over to the professional ranks and in March Zeuge made his professional debut by stopping the over-matched Yauheni Bohdanouski in just 74 seconds.
Just weeks after his professional debut Zeuge secured his second victory as a professional by stopping Venezuelan born Italian Santo Drago in 3 rounds, becoming the first man to stop Drago in 7 bouts. More recently Zeuge stopped Spanish based Ecuadorian Carlos Caicedo, also in 3 rounds. Whilst Caicedo might not be anything special, the fact that Zeuge, in just his 3 bout as a professional, did a quicker job on him than the much more experienced "world level" Dimitri Sartison is rather impressive (it took Sartison 5 rounds).
Zeuge is looking for his fourth professional win this coming weekend when he faces unbeaten Belgian Matingu Kindele (3-0). Hopefully a win over Kindele will help Zeuge progress on to more meaningful bouts as he continues his development, however at just 20 years old he has a lot of time to develop and the natural ability to really become something special.
Friday, 26 October 2012
Tremaine Williams
Over the past few years people have been declaring boxing in the US a dying sport. This is despite the high profile success of fighters like Floyd Mayweather Jr and the rise (and rise) of Adrien Broner and Andre Ward. Another fighter expected by many to follow in their foot steps is teenager Tremaine Williams (3-0, 2) who many insiders are tipping as one of the sports genuinely elite talents.
The 19 year old Williams first came to prominence in the amateur side of the sport where he was a genuine super talent despite being so young. In fact it's fair to say that the first glimpse of Williams' superstar potential came back when he was just a 16 year old at the 2009 USA Junior National Championships. Despite failing to win the tournament Williams shone in the 52KG division making his way to the final before losing by a single point to Ray Ximenez.
After his success in the 2009 Junior championships a lot was expected from Williams going in to the 2010 US National PAL Championships, though sadly his tournament came to an early end after just a bout as he suffered a walk-over "loss" in the Quarter-Finals to John Herrera before Rau'shee Warren eventually won the tournament.
With the disappointment of the 2010 PAL Championships behind him, Williams had an outstanding 2011. He was sensational in the US National Golden Gloves winning the tournament in the 56KG division beating Gary Russell III (the younger brother of professional prospect Gary Russell) along the way. Sadly, despite his Golden Gloves triumph, Williams did fail at the Olympic Qualifiers, losing twice to O'Shanique Foster (the eventual runner up).
Having missed out on his Olympic dream, Williams wouldn't wait long to start his professional career and in April 2012 he made his debut in the paid ranks. On debut Williams was sensational stopping Jesse Anguiano in just 141 one sided seconds as he looked every bit the star in the making. Whilst it was one sided, no one could have asked to have seen more from Williams than what he showed with poise, patience and lightning quick speed.
Since his debut Williams has fought twice, defeating Theo Johnson (KO3) and Jazzma Hogue (UD4) to progress his record against limited opposition. This coming weekend Williams is set for yet another test of his professional abilities as he fights for the fourth time in the paid ranks. A win here is almost certain and will hopefully progress Williams to facing tougher fighters that won't be shell shocked by his speed and natural ability.
Whilst we've yet to see Williams tagged by anything notable it's unlikely that any opponent he is likely to face in the next 24 months will really be too testing. Expect him to be developed well by manager James Prince who knows how to guide a young fighter very well, and hopefully by the age of 22 Williams will have managed to get the attention of a major promoter and maybe even some TV exposure on ESPN.
The 19 year old Williams first came to prominence in the amateur side of the sport where he was a genuine super talent despite being so young. In fact it's fair to say that the first glimpse of Williams' superstar potential came back when he was just a 16 year old at the 2009 USA Junior National Championships. Despite failing to win the tournament Williams shone in the 52KG division making his way to the final before losing by a single point to Ray Ximenez.
After his success in the 2009 Junior championships a lot was expected from Williams going in to the 2010 US National PAL Championships, though sadly his tournament came to an early end after just a bout as he suffered a walk-over "loss" in the Quarter-Finals to John Herrera before Rau'shee Warren eventually won the tournament.
With the disappointment of the 2010 PAL Championships behind him, Williams had an outstanding 2011. He was sensational in the US National Golden Gloves winning the tournament in the 56KG division beating Gary Russell III (the younger brother of professional prospect Gary Russell) along the way. Sadly, despite his Golden Gloves triumph, Williams did fail at the Olympic Qualifiers, losing twice to O'Shanique Foster (the eventual runner up).
Having missed out on his Olympic dream, Williams wouldn't wait long to start his professional career and in April 2012 he made his debut in the paid ranks. On debut Williams was sensational stopping Jesse Anguiano in just 141 one sided seconds as he looked every bit the star in the making. Whilst it was one sided, no one could have asked to have seen more from Williams than what he showed with poise, patience and lightning quick speed.
Since his debut Williams has fought twice, defeating Theo Johnson (KO3) and Jazzma Hogue (UD4) to progress his record against limited opposition. This coming weekend Williams is set for yet another test of his professional abilities as he fights for the fourth time in the paid ranks. A win here is almost certain and will hopefully progress Williams to facing tougher fighters that won't be shell shocked by his speed and natural ability.
Whilst we've yet to see Williams tagged by anything notable it's unlikely that any opponent he is likely to face in the next 24 months will really be too testing. Expect him to be developed well by manager James Prince who knows how to guide a young fighter very well, and hopefully by the age of 22 Williams will have managed to get the attention of a major promoter and maybe even some TV exposure on ESPN.
Thursday, 25 October 2012
Miguel Angel Gonzalez
As we all know boxers start young in Mexico, and 17 year old Miguel Angel Gonzalez (7-0, 7) was no exception to that rule when he debuted in September 2011 as just a baby faced 16 year old. Since his debut however "Miguelito" has been spoken about in glowing terms by the likes of WBC head honcho Jose Sulaiman (who mentioned "Miguelito" on his Suljosblog).
Gonzalez debuted against Mexican tomato can Javier Castro (currently 1-12 (1), having won his last fight) and forced an opening round stoppage after just 152 seconds. Whilst the performance wasn't great Gonzalez did what he needed to to get the win under his belt and ease his nerves in the ring. Just weeks later Gonzalez returned to the ring and defeated the debuting Joaquin Morales (KO1) and managed to end the year with his 3rd successive opening round KO win, this time stopping Norberto Gamez.
After a busy 2011, Gonzalez kept up his busy schedule and fought for the first time this year way back in February stopping Antonio Gonzalez (KO2) in brutal fashion leaving his namesake on the canvas down and out. Shockingly, this has been "Miguelito's" only bout to progress beyond the opening round as he has since rolled off 3 more opening round victories including stopping debutant Santos Lozoya and the previously unbeaten Francisco Camargo in just 44 seconds!
Having had things his own way so far, Gonzalez is expected to be tested for the first time this weekend as he faces the 2-0 Emir Montano. Whilst Montano is yet to score a stoppage, he is also yet to decisively lose a round in his professional career. Whilst not much is known about Montano it's fair to assume he will not be wanting to roll over and give up his unbeaten record with out a fight which is why this is hopefully going to be a decent test for Gonzalez.
Whilst I'm not great at Spanish, it seems as if Miguelito is actually the brother of Robert "Tito" Manzanarez (20-0, 16) (however this maybe a case of brothers being "boxing brothers" rather than biological brothers) however from his record it's fair to say that bother men have a few things in common. Both are young, exciting, hard hitting Mexicans who are likely to go a very long way in this sport.
It may be a whilst before "Miguelito" is in a really notable bout, though I'd advise fight fans the world over to keep their eyes open for this kid.
Gonzalez debuted against Mexican tomato can Javier Castro (currently 1-12 (1), having won his last fight) and forced an opening round stoppage after just 152 seconds. Whilst the performance wasn't great Gonzalez did what he needed to to get the win under his belt and ease his nerves in the ring. Just weeks later Gonzalez returned to the ring and defeated the debuting Joaquin Morales (KO1) and managed to end the year with his 3rd successive opening round KO win, this time stopping Norberto Gamez.
After a busy 2011, Gonzalez kept up his busy schedule and fought for the first time this year way back in February stopping Antonio Gonzalez (KO2) in brutal fashion leaving his namesake on the canvas down and out. Shockingly, this has been "Miguelito's" only bout to progress beyond the opening round as he has since rolled off 3 more opening round victories including stopping debutant Santos Lozoya and the previously unbeaten Francisco Camargo in just 44 seconds!
Having had things his own way so far, Gonzalez is expected to be tested for the first time this weekend as he faces the 2-0 Emir Montano. Whilst Montano is yet to score a stoppage, he is also yet to decisively lose a round in his professional career. Whilst not much is known about Montano it's fair to assume he will not be wanting to roll over and give up his unbeaten record with out a fight which is why this is hopefully going to be a decent test for Gonzalez.
Whilst I'm not great at Spanish, it seems as if Miguelito is actually the brother of Robert "Tito" Manzanarez (20-0, 16) (however this maybe a case of brothers being "boxing brothers" rather than biological brothers) however from his record it's fair to say that bother men have a few things in common. Both are young, exciting, hard hitting Mexicans who are likely to go a very long way in this sport.
It may be a whilst before "Miguelito" is in a really notable bout, though I'd advise fight fans the world over to keep their eyes open for this kid.
Jorge Sanchez
Panama's boxing scene isn't thriving, though they do have some excellent fighters, one of which is the unbeaten prospect Jorge Sanchez (7-0, 5). Known as "El Bufalo" the 22 year old Sanchez is seen as one of Panama's most exciting youngsters in a generation, and with good cause as he appears to be something very special.
Sanchez made his professional debut back in February 2011 when he took a 4 round decision win over compatriot Osvaldo Diaz. By the end of the year Sanchez had swiftly added 4 more victories, stopping 3 of those 4 opponents including the previously unbeaten Jesus Munoz (TKO3) and the much more experienced Nando Vailarin (KO1). interestingly the combined record of his first 5 opponents was an impressive 20-8-3 (prior to facing Sanchez).
Whilst Sanchez' debut year was really successful, he's continued to develop well through 2012 as well scoring a further 2 victories so far, both by TKO, taking out Ezequiel Hamilton (TKO3) and Nelson Guillen (TKO2) as he's continued to improve.
Sanchez's next bout will be his toughest so far as he faces hard hitting Venezuelan Franklin Manzanilla (9-1, 8). Whilst Sanchez is rightfully considered the favourite, this is far from a bygone conclusion, due in part to the fact that Manzanilla is a genuinely hard hitter who has only gone the distance twice (including his losing effort to Nelson Guillen and a victory over the experienced Michael Isaac Carrero).
If Sanchez gets beyond Manzanilla expect him to be developed for another year or two before hopefully fighting in either Mexico or the US in 2014 before being brought on further and developed in to a title contender.
Sanchez made his professional debut back in February 2011 when he took a 4 round decision win over compatriot Osvaldo Diaz. By the end of the year Sanchez had swiftly added 4 more victories, stopping 3 of those 4 opponents including the previously unbeaten Jesus Munoz (TKO3) and the much more experienced Nando Vailarin (KO1). interestingly the combined record of his first 5 opponents was an impressive 20-8-3 (prior to facing Sanchez).
Whilst Sanchez' debut year was really successful, he's continued to develop well through 2012 as well scoring a further 2 victories so far, both by TKO, taking out Ezequiel Hamilton (TKO3) and Nelson Guillen (TKO2) as he's continued to improve.
Sanchez's next bout will be his toughest so far as he faces hard hitting Venezuelan Franklin Manzanilla (9-1, 8). Whilst Sanchez is rightfully considered the favourite, this is far from a bygone conclusion, due in part to the fact that Manzanilla is a genuinely hard hitter who has only gone the distance twice (including his losing effort to Nelson Guillen and a victory over the experienced Michael Isaac Carrero).
If Sanchez gets beyond Manzanilla expect him to be developed for another year or two before hopefully fighting in either Mexico or the US in 2014 before being brought on further and developed in to a title contender.
Monday, 3 September 2012
Miguel Berchelt
Mexican Super Featherweight Miguel Berchelt (15-0, 12) may not currently be a big name but it's hard to imagine that the 20 year old will not, sometime soon, become a name on the lips of every hardcore boxing fan.
The unbeaten fighter based in Mérida, Yucatán made his professional debut less than 2 years ago having had a solid amateur career. On Debut he stopped Armin Chan in just 2 rounds before racking up 7 more consecutive T/KO victories to swiftly move to 8-0 (8). He wasn't stopping his early opponents but he was stopping them quickly with his bouts rarely going into a 3rd round.
Miguel's T/KO streak came to an end in his ninth bout, which coincidentally was his first bout to go beyond 3 rounds. Despite going beyond 3 rounds it failed to go to the final bell as Miguel Chi got himself disqualified in round 5 following a deliberate headbutt. following his win over Chi, Berchelt was again taken beyond 3 rounds, this time stopping the unbeaten Pablo Batres in the 5th round.
Amazingly it wasn't until his 11th bout that Berchelt was taken to the final bell as the tough journeyman Cristian Palafox managed to see out the 6 round distance, though lose a clear decision.
By the end of 2011 Berchelt had swiftly moved his record to an impressive 12-0 (10) and whilst he hadn't faced anyone of note he had still be very impressive for such a youngster. It was earlier this year however that Berchelt started to really make waves. Not only did he start the year by blasting out Alberto Chuc (who had amazingly taken the hard punching Carlos Cuadras to a split decision). Berchelt then beat the previously unbeaten Carlos Orozco, dropping Orozco in round 2 on-route to a 6 round decision. Most recently Berchelt took out Sergio Lopez in 99 seconds to move to 15-0 (12).
In just a few days time Berchelt will be looking for win #16 as he faces the much more experienced Nicaraguan Berman Sanchez (26-4-3, 18) who has made his name fighting in Costa Rica. Despite losing last time out, Sanchez has scored a very notable draw with current IBF Super Featherweight champion Juan Carlos Salgado though admittedly that was way back in 2005. This should be a very credibly test for Berchelt who, if he wins, will likely move on to better fights in the near future.
Video below is thanks to porrork93 and shows an early bout of Berchelt's in which after a poor opening round he shows impressive body shots in the second before forcing the stoppage.
The unbeaten fighter based in Mérida, Yucatán made his professional debut less than 2 years ago having had a solid amateur career. On Debut he stopped Armin Chan in just 2 rounds before racking up 7 more consecutive T/KO victories to swiftly move to 8-0 (8). He wasn't stopping his early opponents but he was stopping them quickly with his bouts rarely going into a 3rd round.
Miguel's T/KO streak came to an end in his ninth bout, which coincidentally was his first bout to go beyond 3 rounds. Despite going beyond 3 rounds it failed to go to the final bell as Miguel Chi got himself disqualified in round 5 following a deliberate headbutt. following his win over Chi, Berchelt was again taken beyond 3 rounds, this time stopping the unbeaten Pablo Batres in the 5th round.
Amazingly it wasn't until his 11th bout that Berchelt was taken to the final bell as the tough journeyman Cristian Palafox managed to see out the 6 round distance, though lose a clear decision.
By the end of 2011 Berchelt had swiftly moved his record to an impressive 12-0 (10) and whilst he hadn't faced anyone of note he had still be very impressive for such a youngster. It was earlier this year however that Berchelt started to really make waves. Not only did he start the year by blasting out Alberto Chuc (who had amazingly taken the hard punching Carlos Cuadras to a split decision). Berchelt then beat the previously unbeaten Carlos Orozco, dropping Orozco in round 2 on-route to a 6 round decision. Most recently Berchelt took out Sergio Lopez in 99 seconds to move to 15-0 (12).
In just a few days time Berchelt will be looking for win #16 as he faces the much more experienced Nicaraguan Berman Sanchez (26-4-3, 18) who has made his name fighting in Costa Rica. Despite losing last time out, Sanchez has scored a very notable draw with current IBF Super Featherweight champion Juan Carlos Salgado though admittedly that was way back in 2005. This should be a very credibly test for Berchelt who, if he wins, will likely move on to better fights in the near future.
Video below is thanks to porrork93 and shows an early bout of Berchelt's in which after a poor opening round he shows impressive body shots in the second before forcing the stoppage.
Tuesday, 24 July 2012
George Groves
Throughout the short history of the Super Middleweight division the Brits have always been amongst the best in the world, in fact the first ever Super Middleweight champion was Britain's very own Murray Sutherland (who was the IBF champion back in 1984). Since Sutherland we've seen British champions such as Nigel Benn, Chris Eubank, Robin Reid, Richie Woodhall, Joe Calzaghe and current champion Carl Froch. With this in mind it should be little wonder that Britain currently has some of the top Super Middleweight prospects, including the unbeaten and very highly regarded "Saint" George Groves (14-0, 11).
The 24 year old Groves from Hammersmith, London first made his name in the amateurs where he became a 2-time ABA champion. It was whilst still fighting as an amateur that Goves and fellow British prospect James DeGale first crossed paths with the two men now having a heated rivalry which has crossed over into the professional ranks.
Groves turned professional debut following his 2008 ABA Middleweight triumph and debuted in November 2008 under the "Hayemaker" banner. On his debut Groves defeated Kirill Psonko out pointing him over 6 rounds on the same card as David Haye faced Monte Barrett.
Following his successful debut Groves was kept active stopping Romaric Hignard in 3 rounds in February of 2009 and then stopping hard hitting Brit Paul Samuels in a single round the following month. Amazingly by the end of 2009 Groves had managed to run his record to 7-0 (5) and had managed to show case his talents not only in his native UK but also in Germany as he out pointed the teak tough Kanstantsin Makhankou (UD8) on the undercard of David Haye's WBA Heavyweight title fight with Nikolay Valuev.
Groves would step up considerably in 2010 and after stopping Grigor Sarohanian (TKO3) in his first fight of the year he would go on to claim the Commonwealth Super Middleweight title by destroying the teak tough Charles Adamu in an incredibly impressive display that really put him on the map. Later the same year Groves made his US debut by stopping Alfredo Contreras (TKO6) before being involved in a war with Scottish hardman Kenny Anderson. Against Anderson (who had been given little notice for the fight) Groves was dropped twice before stopping a tiring Anderson in 6 rounds. It's the bout with Anderson that still looms over Groves' head as a professional with many feeling Groves was incredibly lucky to escape the bout with win.
In 2011 Groves managed to record another 3 wins. Firstly Groves stopped the tough Daniel Adotey Allotey (TKO4) before managing to score a notable (and controversial) majority decision win against former amateur rival, and Olympic gold medal winner James DeGale. The victory over DeGale, in what was a highly anticipated bout saw Groves maintaining his unbeaten record whilst inflicting the first professional loss to DeGale. The DeGale bout also saw Goves unifying his Commonwealth title with the British Super Middleweight title to become the #1 fighter domestically (and only behind Carl Froch in terms of Top British fighters in the division). Groves would defend both titles once, stopping former British champion Paul Smith in 2 rounds.
Since beating Smith Groves' career has been really disappointing as he's pulled out of a number of fights with various injuries. Amongst those bouts that he has pulled out of was a rematch with Kenny Anderson and a world title bout with Robert Stielgltiz. Groves however does look set to return to the ring this coming weekend as he's scheduled to face hard hitting Mexican Francisco Sierra (25-5-1, 22) and if he wins he is expected to fight again in September in Wembley. Against Sierra, Groves will go in as the favourite though he will need to be careful not to be caught by Sierra who has got genuine power and is actually going into this bout on the back of an upset against the previously unbeaten Rogelio Ruvalcaba.
Groves, trained by Adam Booth, is seen by many as a future world champion and at just 24 years old he has got a lot of time to pick up a title, though he does still make mistakes that Booth will need to iron out sooner rather than later.
The video below is thanks to JSFIGHTTV
The 24 year old Groves from Hammersmith, London first made his name in the amateurs where he became a 2-time ABA champion. It was whilst still fighting as an amateur that Goves and fellow British prospect James DeGale first crossed paths with the two men now having a heated rivalry which has crossed over into the professional ranks.
Groves turned professional debut following his 2008 ABA Middleweight triumph and debuted in November 2008 under the "Hayemaker" banner. On his debut Groves defeated Kirill Psonko out pointing him over 6 rounds on the same card as David Haye faced Monte Barrett.
Following his successful debut Groves was kept active stopping Romaric Hignard in 3 rounds in February of 2009 and then stopping hard hitting Brit Paul Samuels in a single round the following month. Amazingly by the end of 2009 Groves had managed to run his record to 7-0 (5) and had managed to show case his talents not only in his native UK but also in Germany as he out pointed the teak tough Kanstantsin Makhankou (UD8) on the undercard of David Haye's WBA Heavyweight title fight with Nikolay Valuev.
Groves would step up considerably in 2010 and after stopping Grigor Sarohanian (TKO3) in his first fight of the year he would go on to claim the Commonwealth Super Middleweight title by destroying the teak tough Charles Adamu in an incredibly impressive display that really put him on the map. Later the same year Groves made his US debut by stopping Alfredo Contreras (TKO6) before being involved in a war with Scottish hardman Kenny Anderson. Against Anderson (who had been given little notice for the fight) Groves was dropped twice before stopping a tiring Anderson in 6 rounds. It's the bout with Anderson that still looms over Groves' head as a professional with many feeling Groves was incredibly lucky to escape the bout with win.
In 2011 Groves managed to record another 3 wins. Firstly Groves stopped the tough Daniel Adotey Allotey (TKO4) before managing to score a notable (and controversial) majority decision win against former amateur rival, and Olympic gold medal winner James DeGale. The victory over DeGale, in what was a highly anticipated bout saw Groves maintaining his unbeaten record whilst inflicting the first professional loss to DeGale. The DeGale bout also saw Goves unifying his Commonwealth title with the British Super Middleweight title to become the #1 fighter domestically (and only behind Carl Froch in terms of Top British fighters in the division). Groves would defend both titles once, stopping former British champion Paul Smith in 2 rounds.
Since beating Smith Groves' career has been really disappointing as he's pulled out of a number of fights with various injuries. Amongst those bouts that he has pulled out of was a rematch with Kenny Anderson and a world title bout with Robert Stielgltiz. Groves however does look set to return to the ring this coming weekend as he's scheduled to face hard hitting Mexican Francisco Sierra (25-5-1, 22) and if he wins he is expected to fight again in September in Wembley. Against Sierra, Groves will go in as the favourite though he will need to be careful not to be caught by Sierra who has got genuine power and is actually going into this bout on the back of an upset against the previously unbeaten Rogelio Ruvalcaba.
Groves, trained by Adam Booth, is seen by many as a future world champion and at just 24 years old he has got a lot of time to pick up a title, though he does still make mistakes that Booth will need to iron out sooner rather than later.
The video below is thanks to JSFIGHTTV
Tuesday, 24 January 2012
Milan Melindo
At just 23 years years old Filipino prospect Milan Melindo (25-0, 9) may well be one of the most nailed on future champions in the sport. Born in Cagayan de Oro City, Misamis Oriental though now based in Cebu City, Cebu Melindo is a fighter who has flown under the radar amazingly well despite some of the sweetest skills in the sport and one of the most under-rated records of any fighter out there, in fact some may argue with even classing him as a prospect.
Melindo started boxing as a youngster and there are reports that he fought over 500 amateur bouts, including winning gold twice at the Palarong Pambansa (the Filipino national games). Melindo would then turn professional way back in 2005 aged just 17 by winning a decision on his debut against Meljun Grumo and since then he has slowly crafted a very solid career.
After 2 years as a professional Melindo picked up his first title when he defeated Pongpan Patanakan Gym for the WBO Asia Pacific minimumweight title. Less than a year later Melindo would add the WBA Inter-Continental light flyweight title to trophy cabinet, though it wasn't until his 18th fight that Melindo proved his class as he faced former world champion Muhammad Rachman. At the time Rachman's record stood at an impressive 62-6-5 with only a single loss in the previous decade (a narrow points loss to the power punching Florante Condes) with Melindo seen as taking a giant step up in class. Melindo would be too quick for Rachmann who despite never giving up looked to be a level behind the young speedy upstart who took a clear unanimous decision and put the first big name on his record.
Following the win over Rachman it would have made sense for Melindo to push on with his career though instead he had 4 fights against lesser opponents (including 2 time PABA Super Flyweight champion Komrit Lukkuongmuekol) as he spent the following 18 months remaining busy. It wasn't until November 2010 that Melindo would again mix with world level level fighters as he faced former IBF Flyweight champion Carlos Tamara. In his previous bout Tamara had controversially lost the IBF title to Argentinian Luis Alberto Lazarte though at times Melindo make it look easy as he took a wide decision over Tamara to claim the second scalp of a former world title holder.
Again it looked like time for Melindo to kick on with things and start challenging for world titles of his own, though instead he decided to blow out Mexican veteran Rosendo Vega (KO1). Again it looked like Melindo's momentum had been killed off until he returned to the ring in September 2011 and defeated former title challenger Francisco Rosas. Despite Rosas weighing more on the scales than Melindo the Filipino eased to victory as he forced Rosas to retire after 10 one sided rounds.
Melindo will defend his WBO Inter-Continental flyweight title this coming weekend as he faces Juan Esquer, Melindo is expected to defeated Esquer (a former world title challenger himself). Whilst Melindo has perhaps padded his record somewhat it is impressive that 23 year old already holds wins over 2 former champions and looks to add a second title challenger to his record. Though hopefully this will be the last fight for Melindo, a supremely talented and lightning quick fighter, before he looks for a world title fight of his own. Whilst his division is one of the tougher ones (with champions including future hall of famer Pongsaklek Wonjongkam, My 2011Fighter of the Year Brian Viloria, the hard hitting Hernan "Tyson" Marquez and South African Moruti Mthalane) he has the skills to hold his own with any of them.
Video below thanks to MrPacman4ever
Melindo started boxing as a youngster and there are reports that he fought over 500 amateur bouts, including winning gold twice at the Palarong Pambansa (the Filipino national games). Melindo would then turn professional way back in 2005 aged just 17 by winning a decision on his debut against Meljun Grumo and since then he has slowly crafted a very solid career.
After 2 years as a professional Melindo picked up his first title when he defeated Pongpan Patanakan Gym for the WBO Asia Pacific minimumweight title. Less than a year later Melindo would add the WBA Inter-Continental light flyweight title to trophy cabinet, though it wasn't until his 18th fight that Melindo proved his class as he faced former world champion Muhammad Rachman. At the time Rachman's record stood at an impressive 62-6-5 with only a single loss in the previous decade (a narrow points loss to the power punching Florante Condes) with Melindo seen as taking a giant step up in class. Melindo would be too quick for Rachmann who despite never giving up looked to be a level behind the young speedy upstart who took a clear unanimous decision and put the first big name on his record.
Following the win over Rachman it would have made sense for Melindo to push on with his career though instead he had 4 fights against lesser opponents (including 2 time PABA Super Flyweight champion Komrit Lukkuongmuekol) as he spent the following 18 months remaining busy. It wasn't until November 2010 that Melindo would again mix with world level level fighters as he faced former IBF Flyweight champion Carlos Tamara. In his previous bout Tamara had controversially lost the IBF title to Argentinian Luis Alberto Lazarte though at times Melindo make it look easy as he took a wide decision over Tamara to claim the second scalp of a former world title holder.
Again it looked like time for Melindo to kick on with things and start challenging for world titles of his own, though instead he decided to blow out Mexican veteran Rosendo Vega (KO1). Again it looked like Melindo's momentum had been killed off until he returned to the ring in September 2011 and defeated former title challenger Francisco Rosas. Despite Rosas weighing more on the scales than Melindo the Filipino eased to victory as he forced Rosas to retire after 10 one sided rounds.
Melindo will defend his WBO Inter-Continental flyweight title this coming weekend as he faces Juan Esquer, Melindo is expected to defeated Esquer (a former world title challenger himself). Whilst Melindo has perhaps padded his record somewhat it is impressive that 23 year old already holds wins over 2 former champions and looks to add a second title challenger to his record. Though hopefully this will be the last fight for Melindo, a supremely talented and lightning quick fighter, before he looks for a world title fight of his own. Whilst his division is one of the tougher ones (with champions including future hall of famer Pongsaklek Wonjongkam, My 2011Fighter of the Year Brian Viloria, the hard hitting Hernan "Tyson" Marquez and South African Moruti Mthalane) he has the skills to hold his own with any of them.
Video below thanks to MrPacman4ever
Monday, 5 December 2011
Yohei Tobe
Even thought it is rare for me to talk about Japanese fighters on this blog Yohei Tobe is a fighter I simply cannot shut up about. The 24 year old Bantamweight was a former two-time national amateur champion before turning professional in February 2011. On his debut he made an immediate impact by stopping the Korean Super Flyweight champion Jin-Ki Jung in just 70 seconds. Just 4 months later Tobe would fight in his second bout when he took on the experienced Wandee Singwancha (who entered with a record of 66-13-1, 17KO's). Singwancha had been WBC interim champion at both Minimumweight and Light Flyweight and despite fighting above his best weight it was still hugely impressive that Tobe took him out at 1:58 of the second round.
Whilst Tobe's first 2 victories were impressive it was his 3rd professional contest that has really got the hardcore boxing fans excited as Tobe faced. In October Tobe faced the very tough Kohei Kono, a 2-time world title challenger who had lost a close to Nobuo Nashiro and a wider loss to Tomas Rojas. Although Kono, at 30 was the more experienced fighter he was made to look amateurish at times as he charged in only to be caught by uppercuts and jabs by the intelligent and much taller Tobe who took a close but unanimous decision over 8 rounds.
Whilst Tobe's 2011 has been an amazing rise from amateur star to genuinely exciting prospect whats maybe most amazing is that Tobe is currently ranked at #22 with the WBC after just 3 fights!
Tobe is one of the 11 boxers on the list of prospects to watch in 2012, and is arguably the most exciting addition to the list. If Tobe can continue his rise in 2012 we may well see him challenging the likes of Koki Kameda (the WBA Bantamweight champion) or dropping down to Super Flyweight (the division where we will likely see him competing in the short term) and facing Tomonobu Shimizu (the WBA Super Flyweight champion) in an all Japanese world title fight.
The footage of Tobe's first two professional bouts are below thanks to ibatetsu1
If you would like to follow Yohei on boxrec his record can be found here
Whilst Tobe's first 2 victories were impressive it was his 3rd professional contest that has really got the hardcore boxing fans excited as Tobe faced. In October Tobe faced the very tough Kohei Kono, a 2-time world title challenger who had lost a close to Nobuo Nashiro and a wider loss to Tomas Rojas. Although Kono, at 30 was the more experienced fighter he was made to look amateurish at times as he charged in only to be caught by uppercuts and jabs by the intelligent and much taller Tobe who took a close but unanimous decision over 8 rounds.
Whilst Tobe's 2011 has been an amazing rise from amateur star to genuinely exciting prospect whats maybe most amazing is that Tobe is currently ranked at #22 with the WBC after just 3 fights!
Tobe is one of the 11 boxers on the list of prospects to watch in 2012, and is arguably the most exciting addition to the list. If Tobe can continue his rise in 2012 we may well see him challenging the likes of Koki Kameda (the WBA Bantamweight champion) or dropping down to Super Flyweight (the division where we will likely see him competing in the short term) and facing Tomonobu Shimizu (the WBA Super Flyweight champion) in an all Japanese world title fight.
The footage of Tobe's first two professional bouts are below thanks to ibatetsu1
If you would like to follow Yohei on boxrec his record can be found here
Tuesday, 24 May 2011
Robert Manzanarez
The sport of boxing currently has a handful of professional fighters who are just 16 years old. These were the youngest fighters I could find, the youngest individual was Robert Manzanarez who was born on December 17th 1994. Now you may be thinking, a 16 year old Mexican, a fighter just starting his career, nothing to be too excited about, right? Well kinda. Mazanarez certainly is just starting his professional career in the scope of things, though he's already the most experienced 16 year old out there. With a record of 10-0 (7) he's not as inexperienced as we perhaps expected when we learnt his date of birth.
Robert was born in Phoenix, Arizona though is now based in the wonderful fighting city of Los Mochis, Sinaloa in Mexico. It was in Los Mochis that a 15 year old Robert would step into the professional ring for the first time. Robert had turned 15 just 3 three months before his debut, an age perhaps too young to be fighting. He would win that night by stopping Jose Rosario Lopez in 32 seconds and just 8 days later he would return to the ring to defeat Julio Carmona in 3 rounds.
Between the start of April 2010 and the end of June that same year Robert hand managed to notch up 5 more wins and had already amassed an impressive record of 7-0 (6). All those opponents he faced, apart from the man he faced on his debut, were making their own debuts though it was still impressive that the youngster was beating them with such ease. Even the man who had made it to the final bell, Ricardo Carrillo, was dropped from a body blow in a white wash decision of 40-35 on all 3 cards.
To end the year Robert would step up his competition slightly and beat the 1-3 Rafael Moreno in 2 rounds before out pointing Omar Martinez over 4 rounds. Before his 16th birthday Robert was 9-0 (7) though then he'd take a break. After 6 months out of action Robert “Tito” Manzanarez would have his next fight and face the 1-4 fighter Luis Angel Hernandez. Against Hernandez we would see the young prospect go 6 rounds en route to winning the decision. This would be the first time Manzanarez would go 6 rounds and even in this fight he would knock down his opponent to take a wide decision (60-51 on one card).
The 5'7” 16 year old has only fought once this year, the victory over Hernandez, though of course as a teenager will almost certainly have other things on his mind. It's very, very unlikely that we'll see him in a meaningful fight any time soon, if ever to be honest, he's too young for us to assume he'll be a star. Though hopefully when he next returns to the ring he'll have decided which weight he's suited at as he's boxed as low as Flyweight and at his heaviest has been over the Super Bantamweight limit. With a record of 10-0 (7) and a total of 28 rounds under his belt he's far from experienced, though as far as 16 year olds go, he's one of the most experienced we'll find in our great sport.
Video thanks to larazabox
Robert was born in Phoenix, Arizona though is now based in the wonderful fighting city of Los Mochis, Sinaloa in Mexico. It was in Los Mochis that a 15 year old Robert would step into the professional ring for the first time. Robert had turned 15 just 3 three months before his debut, an age perhaps too young to be fighting. He would win that night by stopping Jose Rosario Lopez in 32 seconds and just 8 days later he would return to the ring to defeat Julio Carmona in 3 rounds.
Between the start of April 2010 and the end of June that same year Robert hand managed to notch up 5 more wins and had already amassed an impressive record of 7-0 (6). All those opponents he faced, apart from the man he faced on his debut, were making their own debuts though it was still impressive that the youngster was beating them with such ease. Even the man who had made it to the final bell, Ricardo Carrillo, was dropped from a body blow in a white wash decision of 40-35 on all 3 cards.
To end the year Robert would step up his competition slightly and beat the 1-3 Rafael Moreno in 2 rounds before out pointing Omar Martinez over 4 rounds. Before his 16th birthday Robert was 9-0 (7) though then he'd take a break. After 6 months out of action Robert “Tito” Manzanarez would have his next fight and face the 1-4 fighter Luis Angel Hernandez. Against Hernandez we would see the young prospect go 6 rounds en route to winning the decision. This would be the first time Manzanarez would go 6 rounds and even in this fight he would knock down his opponent to take a wide decision (60-51 on one card).
The 5'7” 16 year old has only fought once this year, the victory over Hernandez, though of course as a teenager will almost certainly have other things on his mind. It's very, very unlikely that we'll see him in a meaningful fight any time soon, if ever to be honest, he's too young for us to assume he'll be a star. Though hopefully when he next returns to the ring he'll have decided which weight he's suited at as he's boxed as low as Flyweight and at his heaviest has been over the Super Bantamweight limit. With a record of 10-0 (7) and a total of 28 rounds under his belt he's far from experienced, though as far as 16 year olds go, he's one of the most experienced we'll find in our great sport.
Video thanks to larazabox
Tuesday, 19 April 2011
Joe Hanks
American heavyweights have become a global boxing joke in recent years, the term seems synonymous with “old and faded” or “fat and never was”. A look at the top young American heavyweights include blubber boy Chris Arreola, Eddie “Chubby” Chambers and Chazz “My dads name is what I have” Witherspoon. The older bunch include Evander “How old is he now?” Holyfield, Ray “The Oldman” Austin and Hasim “The Crock” Rahman.
Although it's somewhat difficult to know which heavyweight is going to be a star one of America's best hopes is unbeaten Joe “The Future” Hanks. Hanks has a record that reads 15-0 (10) and is seen as a developing heavyweight who is several years from reaching his prime. As a resultof this he has has so far faced relatively average opponents. This trend seems set to continue in his next fight (where as part of a card televised by ESPN 2 as part of “Friday Night Fights” Terrell Nelson) though he's being given time to learn the ropes and get rounds under his belt.
Hanks turned professional in December 2007 after a solid amateur career in the US but doesn't quite seem to have progressed as many hoped he would have. He deburted by defeating Joseph Rabotte in the 2nd round then got taken 4 rounds by Corey Winfield, though his first opponent of note came 15 months after his debut when he faced trail horse Alvardo Morales. Morales had scored a draw with Seth Mitchell and had never been stopped prior to facing Hanks, though Hanks needed just 172 seconds to change that. This was followed by several steps up and was highlighted when he beat the then 10-0 Ashanti Jordan by decision. At this point it seemed like Hank's was being pushed as an emerging heavyweight saviour
Hanks' career though wouldn't continue in the same vein. 2010 seemed a mostly wasted year for Hanks who despite fighting 5 times seemed to regularly take one step forward to take 2 steps back. Wins over journeyman Cliff Couser and the once hotly tipped Johnnie White were followed by fights with novice Marcus Dickerson and Villi Bloomfield (who was coming in on 2 straight losses). It seemed as if Hanks' career management flicked between being confident of their man and being unsure of his capabilities.
The fights he has been given have left some fans as unsure on him as his team appear to be. He has shown good but not great power and speed, technically he looks flawed and sometimes as if he is fighting well within himself. Although having a bit of a “Shannon Briggs” look to him he lacks that fight changing power and destructiveness of “The Cannon” and at times looks like a mini Briggs. He stands at around 6'4” and weights 230-240, with an athletic but muscular build, a far cry from so many other American Heavyweights of today. Hanks is now 28 and will have to make a move in the next 12 months if he wants to become a major player in the division. Sadly his up coming fight on Friday is against Terrell Nelson (8-11, with 2 No Decisions and 5KO's). Nelson enters the bout aged 39 and having gone 0-7, 2ND in his last 9 fights (dating back to 2007), hardly the step up that Hanks needs in his career.
Although it's somewhat difficult to know which heavyweight is going to be a star one of America's best hopes is unbeaten Joe “The Future” Hanks. Hanks has a record that reads 15-0 (10) and is seen as a developing heavyweight who is several years from reaching his prime. As a resultof this he has has so far faced relatively average opponents. This trend seems set to continue in his next fight (where as part of a card televised by ESPN 2 as part of “Friday Night Fights” Terrell Nelson) though he's being given time to learn the ropes and get rounds under his belt.
Hanks turned professional in December 2007 after a solid amateur career in the US but doesn't quite seem to have progressed as many hoped he would have. He deburted by defeating Joseph Rabotte in the 2nd round then got taken 4 rounds by Corey Winfield, though his first opponent of note came 15 months after his debut when he faced trail horse Alvardo Morales. Morales had scored a draw with Seth Mitchell and had never been stopped prior to facing Hanks, though Hanks needed just 172 seconds to change that. This was followed by several steps up and was highlighted when he beat the then 10-0 Ashanti Jordan by decision. At this point it seemed like Hank's was being pushed as an emerging heavyweight saviour
Hanks' career though wouldn't continue in the same vein. 2010 seemed a mostly wasted year for Hanks who despite fighting 5 times seemed to regularly take one step forward to take 2 steps back. Wins over journeyman Cliff Couser and the once hotly tipped Johnnie White were followed by fights with novice Marcus Dickerson and Villi Bloomfield (who was coming in on 2 straight losses). It seemed as if Hanks' career management flicked between being confident of their man and being unsure of his capabilities.
The fights he has been given have left some fans as unsure on him as his team appear to be. He has shown good but not great power and speed, technically he looks flawed and sometimes as if he is fighting well within himself. Although having a bit of a “Shannon Briggs” look to him he lacks that fight changing power and destructiveness of “The Cannon” and at times looks like a mini Briggs. He stands at around 6'4” and weights 230-240, with an athletic but muscular build, a far cry from so many other American Heavyweights of today. Hanks is now 28 and will have to make a move in the next 12 months if he wants to become a major player in the division. Sadly his up coming fight on Friday is against Terrell Nelson (8-11, with 2 No Decisions and 5KO's). Nelson enters the bout aged 39 and having gone 0-7, 2ND in his last 9 fights (dating back to 2007), hardly the step up that Hanks needs in his career.
Wednesday, 30 March 2011
Carlos Ivan Velasquez
I would like to welcome you to the new boxing prospects blog, a blog that continues the work I used to do for Ringnews24.com under the title of “Prospect Scotting”. Due to a series of changes in life and work this blog is effectively taking over from what was, for some of last year, a weekly column talking about a prospect. Unlike last years column however these prospects don't need to have a fight lined up but need to just be a solid, talent prospect. To start this off we'll be looking at a very promising Puerto Rican fighter called Carlos Ivan Velasquez .
Carlos Ivan Velasquez is 26 years old and is unbeaten as a professional in 13 fights with 11 wins by KO. So far he has fought for 39 rounds as a professional with no fights having gone beyond 6 rounds, though has past solid tests already in his short career. Velasquez was a top amateur (more about that later) prior to turning professional in 2007. In his debut he defeated Stephan Arnold in 86 seconds whilst his twin brother and fellow prospect Juan Carlos Velasquez (currently 10-1, 5KO's as a professional) defeated Manuel Angulo over the 4 round disance.
Carlos Ivan would progress quickly as a professional having only 3 fights to ease himself into the professional ranks before facing substantially more experienced fighters. He would stop the tough experienced David Maund, who was difficult to stop despite being a “career loser” (he took a 4-13 record to the ring having been stopped only twice) and face several similar type of opponents. Carlos would prove to be too good for these types of tough men who are expected to test the stamina of prospects. It wasn't until Velasquez fought Manuel Sarabia that the Puerto Rican would hear the final bell. Sarabia had been stopped several times previously though his record going in was 16-24-9 with 11 stoppage losses he was a tough fighter. Sarabia had taken Mickey Garcia the 6 round distance, ending an 8 fight KO streak from the Oxnard man and would go on to take Abner Mares 6 rounds after Velaquez fought him.
Along side Sarabia as men to last the schedule is Juan Nazario (who entered 6-1-1). Nazario recently proved his toughness by going up to Light Welterweight to face Russian Khabib Allakhverdiev and last the distance. Since beating Nazario Velasquez' stock has been on the rise with impressive victories coming in his last two fights. Firstly was the stoppage of Ira Terry (who was 24-2 at the time and had never been stopped). Terry was bullied around by a faster, stronger heavier man in Velasquez who just dominated his opponent and stopped him as shown in the video below. In his last fight Velasquez had 5 round, easy on the eye war with Eduardo Arcos showed that Valeasquez can trade, bang, box and wear opponents down.
As a professional boxrec.com rank Velasquez as the 73rd best Super Featherweight in the world, and the 5th best from Puerto Rico (behind former world champion Roman Martinez, the capable Daniel Jimenez, Martinez's next opponent the unbeaten Luis Cruz and the 2 time title contender Mario Santiago). The IBO's computer ranking system rank him at 43rd in the world at Featherweight, a division that he has never actually made as a professional. He is the 2nd highest ranked Puerto Rican at the weight according to the IBO who rank Luis Cruz at 38th in the world at featherweight.
As well as being a promising professional Velasquez was a very good amateur. He went to the 2004 Athens Olympics as a 20 year old Featherweight and was unlucky to go out to to Edvaldo Oliveira in the round of 32 (on countback of a 43-43 draw). Although the excellent Aleksei Tishchenko would take the gold (and would have almost certainly beaten Velasquez had the two met) Velasquez would prove how good he was over the following years. His stand out amateur highlight was winning gold at the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games in Cartagena, Colombia. On his route to gold he would defeat Marlon Almagro, Ronald de la Rosa (in the final) and the excellent Yuriorkis Gamboa in the Semi Final. Gamboa had won Flyweight gold in the 2004 Olympics is one of the most talented Featherweights in the world today having won both the WBA and IBF titles as a professional.
Velasquez is certainly one of the most promising and exciting young Puerto Ricans prospects around at the moment and hopefully 2011 will see him building on a great 2010.
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