Usyk v Chisora, a look ahead.

                                 

The long awaited heavyweight battle between former unified cruiserweight king Oleksandr Usyk and former British, European champion and world title challenger Derrick Chisora is barely 24 hours away and many well educated onlookers have varied views on the outcome. Chisora came in looking a ready 255 having dug deep into a rigorous 10 week camp under the watchful eye of David Haye, the usually unhinged, unpredictable Version seems a million miles from the Derrick Chisora of today who appears calculated and very well equipped for the job in hand..  Usyk by contrast is everything Chisora is not, he’s an outside the box thinking maverick, who is calculated and often emotionless before fights, his 215 pounds barely stepped into the weight category and he prefers to allow his fists to do the talking as opposed to lip service. Oleksandr’s style at cruiserweight was dominant, he was almost untouchable, his fast feet and exceptional use of range made him almost impossible to overcome, however the move to heavyweight has shifted the playing field, opponents are naturally much bigger and stronger, leaving his options much slimmer when it comes to physical conflict. Usyk laboured when he appeared to struggle to subdue club fighter Chazz Witherspoon in his heavyweight debut, unable to impose his presence on a bigger man..  On this occasion the bigger man is a better man, an experienced and proven world class performer, Derrick has appeared on numerous pay per view shows, and win or lose has never once failed to bring 100% to the table, often driven by emotion it took him to a 2012 shot at then champion Vitali Klitschko, in a gallant showing that brought his name to the world stage.. since then Chisora has boxed 23 times losing only to the more prominent names in the division..  Derrick brings the one thing the Cruiserweight division couldn’t provide, an intensity and relentlessness outside of Usyk’s comfort zone, something that we won’t know the outcome of until it happens..  Oleksandr was a natural heavyweight throughout his amateur days, and understands the perils of mixing it amongst the monsters, but as a professional this may be an undesirable baptism that may either bring out the best in Usyk, or be to his detriment..   Either way, the respective styles make for a terrific show..  Many expect Usyk to dominate over the distance, whilst the more savvy of the oddsmakers can see Chisora pressing the Ukrainian into uncomfortable places he’s never been before, leading to a sizeable upset..  regardless, tomorrow’s show at Wembley should be memorable..   

RIP Angelo Rottoli..

Dreadful news came this week about the passing of former world cruiserweight title challenger Angelo Rottoli along with his parents from Corona virus in Italy... Angelo was a quality fighter who only lost 3 fights in a 34 fight career which included holding the European title and beating names like Guido Trane, Magne Havnaa and Bash Ali.. Pictured here following his only stoppage loss, in his bid to arrest the WBC title from the great Carlos Deleon.. RIP Angelo..

The WBC talk..... Judging..

Friday was the 5th session of the WBC Talks.
The subject of the day was boxing judges and was broken into both English and Spanish speaking sessions..
The English speaking panelist’s included Hubert Minn, the WBC Ring Officials Committee Chairman, Las Vegas Judge Duane Ford (NABF President)
Committee vice chairman Steve Morrow, WBC judge Craig Metcalfe, WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman and Victor Silva as moderator..

The panelists, who are some of the best boxing judges in the world, had an enlightening conversation regarding vital judging aspects:

Points in question were, Judging Criteria.. Affective aggression.. scoring a 10-8 round without a knockdown.. Along with memories of each judges first title fight... Scoring controversial rounds... Pressure and neutrality.. Code of Ethics.. Honourability.. and finally, how most judges get their score, along with several other connected aspects..

The Spanish speaking panelist’s consisted of..
WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman, José Manzur (Judge).. Juan Carlos Pelayo (Judge).. Omar Mintum (Judge) among with Victor Silva acting as Mediator..

The President of the WBC, Mr. Mauricio Sulaimán opened the conversation, thanking all those who have made this possible, those who have followed the broadcasts and of course all the panelists who have gathered throughout the week to share your experiences and knowledge.
He explained that the task of a judge is of vital importance since they are the ones who administer and temper justice inside the ring. They must, therefore, conduct themselves with absolute integrity and honor. A judge must have eyes on the fight during the three minutes of the round, must have no preference for any boxer or country and be absolutely impartial.
Assuring that the World Boxing Council has honorable judges who would never compromise or betray the basic values of the WBC.

Mr. Jose Manzur explained that the greatest quality that a judge must have is impartiality and the ability to focus since sometimes it is difficult to achieve this, since being in the arena many factors can affect concentration. He assured that when he receives an appointment for a fight The first thing he does is watch videos of the fighters to find out their styles to make himself familiar with each participant..

For Omar Mintum, the work of a judge must be very precise, since they must record on the cards what is happening above in the ring and, like our other panelists, it is very important to arrive prepared for the fight that was assigned to them.

He assured that all the judges, like fighters should start their career with four-round fights and from there, according to their results, they climb until they reach the more meaningful fights, slowly progressing..

Juan Carlos Pelayo, was emphatic when saying that the impartiality with which he qualifies has to do with the judge’s experience since one must identify the most effective fighter. it is his responsibility to judge him impartially and fairly. He added that passion for boxing is essential for a judge because that is the origin of the need to become the man who administers justice.

Among many of the topics that were addressed, was the fear that many judges have when giving a score of 10-8, However, the leader of the organization assured that one of the tasks of the WBC is to educate the judges that when a fighter has been visibly punished and has not given adequate resistance, the round should be given on 10-8.
Responding to the doubts of the fans, who should be noted were very active, the invited judges as well as the President of the WBC, assured that the score of 10-10 exists, although it is not seen much, as there is usually always a winner of the round. However, it can happen even though some commissions are prohibited from 10-10.

To conclude, our judges agreed after seeing some examples of how to qualify a fight, that to give a fighter the round, he must show effective aggressiveness and that a fight is not won in a single round (unless there is a knockout) but round after round.

The WBC concluded by taking the time to offer Jose Manzur family their best prayers and wishes as his daughter is fighting against COVID-19. The WBC are sure she will win this fight by KO!

Recent Covid19 boxing news..

Amidst the hysteria surrounding the Corona virus outbreak it was revealed the WBA/IBF/WBO world heavyweight title holder Anthony Joshua is currently under self-quarantine after a recent meeting with Prince Charles.. The prince tested positive for Coronavirus only days later.. Anthony has not show any symptoms as of yet, and remains scheduled to defend his titles against mandatory challenger Kubrat Pulev in London on June 20..
It was revealed yesterday that both a boxer and trainer from the Turkish team have been infected by the coronavirus. Both men were present at a recent Olympic qualifier in London. The Olympic committee revealed in a statement that it’s “not possible to know the source of infection.”
Former World Champion Amir Khan has generously offered a new 60,000 square foot four-story event facility building designed as a wedding venue and retail outlet to the British National Health Service to help people affected by the coronavirus, a wonderful gesture by Amir.

Roger Mayweather passes..

Last week we lost one of the iconic 1980s boxing characters, when we heard about the passing of Roger Mayweather.. Roger was thee original World champion Mayweather and paved the way for his talented nephews meteoric rise..

Roger won the WBA super featherweight title and WBC super lightweight world titles during a career where he compiled a record of 59-13 with 35 KOs. After retiring from the ring Roger became an award winning trainer, taking charge of his nephew Floyd jr..

Roger had suffered from health problems stemming from chronic diabetes since the 90’s
and had slowly been declining in private..
He was just 58 years of age.

Rest in Peace, Black Mamba. 

Derrick Jefferson in Detroit hospital with Covid19.

Detroit’s Former WBO heavyweight title challenger Derrick Jefferson is currently fighting for his life in Michigan after testing positive for the Corona Virus.. According to WXYZ in Detroit, Jefferson 53 is in a medically induced coma and on a ventilator after being admitted to Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan last week..
Close family and friends did however confirm that his condition is slowly improving..
Jefferson first caught national exposure when he scored a devastating knockout over Maurice Harris in November of 1999, The fight that was televised live on HBO is still regarded as possibly the most exciting heavyweight bout of the 1990s..
2 years later Jefferson met Wladimir Klitschko for the WBO world heavyweight title, but was unfortunately knocked down 3 times before losing via second round knockout..
Throughout his 10 year career, Derrick faced notable names, Bert Cooper, Wladimir Klitschko, Oleg Maskaev, Phil Jackson, David Izoneratei and Levi Billups..
Jefferson last appeared in 2005 where he was stopped by hard punching Davarryl Williamson, leaving a record of 28-4-1 (21 Ko’s)

We wish DJ a speedy recovery..

Queensbury Boxing postpone upcoming events.

Following the cautionary guidelines advised by the British Government and The Boxing Board of Control, Queensberry Promotions have called an immediate halt to any of its scheduled live Boxing promotions throughout April and May. The Coronavirus situation is evolving at a rapid pace and we will continue to closely follow the Government’s guidelines to ensure the Health and Safety of all concerned.. Regarding the two high profile events we currently have on sale; The ‘Seek and Destroy’ Card at the O2 featuring Daniel Dubois v Joe Joyce on April 11 has now been rescheduled to Saturday July 11th, Tickets will remain valid for the rescheduled date, however people who cannot attend the new date can obtain a refund from their original point of purchase.

The May2nd return of Josh Taylor at the SSE Hydro in Glasgow will no longer take place on this date. Refunds are available from the point of purchase. We are currently working with the Arena, Top Rank and MTK Global to arrange a suitable alternative date to reschedule in Scotland..

Queensberry Promotions and Top Rank have agreed terms for Carl Frampton to challenge Jamel Herring for the WBO World Super-Featherweight Championship in Belfast possibly in June. This event was due to be announced in the coming days. At this particular time we are hopeful of being able to stage this event in, however, we will observe the ever-changing landscape surrounding the dreadful Pandemic. Changes to any dates,venues and location will be announced in good time..

Charles Martin heads decent undercard in Las Vegas on Saturday.

The majority of the Fury v Wilder rematch card has been put in place this coming Saturday, With 33 year old California based Former IBF heavyweight champion Charles Martin 27-2-1 faces a decent challenge in former WBC title Challenger Gerald Washington 20-3-1 in a crossroads match that acts as chief support to the huge Las Vegas show.. Martin is coming off a couple of decent showings in 2019 with inside the distance victories over Daniel Martz and the undefeated Greg Corbin.. The physically imposing Washington is coming off a decent win on paper, stopping the once promising Robert Helenius in July.. Both fighters have come up short against New York based Pole, Adam Kownacki, Charles losing a close decision in 2018, whilst Washington suffered a 2nd round knockout 13 months ago..

WBO super bantamweight Champion Emanuel Navarrete 30-1 will make the 5th defence of the title that he won back in 2018, against Jeo Santisima 19-2 in an intriguing bout with neither fighter having tasted defeat for the last 6 years..

Coachella’s 22 year old 6 foot 5 inch Super welterweight Sebastian Fundora 13-0-1 will take on undefeated Australian Daniel Lewis 6-0 in a special attraction whilst Longtime team Fury member, unbeaten featherweight Isaac Lowe 19-0-3 takes on Alberto Guevara 27-5..

The Event is Promoted by Leon Margules’ Warriors Boxing, Tom Browns TGB Promotions along with Bob Arums Top Rank Inc.

Ryan Garcia gets rid of Francisco Fonseca in 1..

High rising Victorville Lightweight Ryan Garcia 20-0 (17 KOs) returned to action on Friday night and made short work of Nicaragua’s Francisco Fonseca 25-3-2 (19 KOs) scoring a first round, double-quick knockout at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, headlining in the feature bout on DAZN’s Valentine’s Day card..

Garcia had barely got his measure before unleashing a short left hook that put Fonseca away, referee Raul Caíz immediately waved off the action at 1:20 of the first.

Garcia later revealed that he would have preferred more live action, but saw the opening early and took it..

Following the victory Garcia went head to head with possible future opponent, WBC champion, Devin Haney..

Caleb Plant retains his IBF crown with 10th round stoppage.

Undefeated Las Vegas based IBF super middleweight champion Caleb Plant 20-0 (12 KOs) scored a dominant tenth round stoppage over German challenger Vincent Feigenbutz 31-3 (28 KOs) on Saturday night at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee.
Plant, highly favoured by the bookmakers at 38:1, controlled the action from the start, and methodical dismantled Feigenbutz until the bout was halted at 2:23 of the 10th by referee Malik Waleed..

Plant, originally a Nashville native revealed that he’d dedicated the victory to his daughter, mother, grandfather and to his birth city..
The champion also made it very clear that his he definitely aims to unify and meet fellow undefeated WBC counterpart, David Benavidez.

Jimmy Thunder passes.

1990s heavyweight fringe contender Jimmy Thunder 35-14 (28 Ko’s) sadly passed away this week due to complications following surgery to remove a small brain tumour in his native Auckland, New Zealand.. Jimmy was only 54 but like a colourful and eventful life.
The huge punching Thunder faced 8 legitimate world champions throughout his 49 fight career, including Tim Witherspoon, Chris Byrd, JB Williamson, Tony Tubbs and Trevor Berbick..
Thunder Picked up the vacant WBF heavyweight championship by stopping Jamaican Melton Bowen in 1993, before losing it the same year to future cruiserweight world champion Johnny Nelson..
A year later he won the IBO title beating tough Richard Mason, making two defences over the next twelve months beating both Tony Tubbs and Ray Anis..
Jimmy twice attempted to win the commonwealth title against Henry Akinwande and Derrick Williams before making a vain attempt to lift the NABF title in 1997 losing a marginal split decision to future WBA champion John Ruiz...

Despite falling upon hard times in the mid 2000s, Thunder appeared to find his feet when he married a Native American lady by the name of Iris Whitemagpie in 2008, although a year later the New Zealander was rumoured to have been living rough on the streets of Las Vegas.. in 2011 Thunder ran into immigration issues when his US visa was revoked following several run ins with the law... Jimmy was deported back to his country of birth in 2012 where he remained until his passing.. Jimmy held the honour of scoring the fastest knockout in history in 1997 when he poleaxed Crawford Grimsley after just 1.5 seconds of the opening session..

Thunder really was a huge star in his native country and could have been a legitimate champion has the stars fallen into place.. A man that I only met on occasion, but found to be warm hearted and good natured..

RIP James Thunder.