Whyte outpoints Franklin in disputed majority decision.

Dillian Whyte returned to the ring tonight with a highly disputed majority points victory over tough unheralded and unbeaten Jermaine Franklin at Wembley Arena. Franklin got off to a spirited start with well selected sharp combinations, stamping his authority on the fight. Whyte found his range in the middle rounds but appeared to try too hard to land single shots. As Whyte raised his tempo, Franklin matched him for spirit and guts. The bout appeared in the balance as Franklin appeared to slow, offering Whyte opportunities to break through. At the end of the ninth Whyte walked onto a short hook which seemed to stun him, as he reeled towards the corner the Michigan fighter moved in with a series of shots only to be cut short by the bell that possibly saved Whyte from a compromising spot. Whyte himself seemed to fade towards the closing rounds as Franklin seemed to spring to life with explosive bursts of intermittent punches. Whyte was told to forget about knockouts by James McGirt in the corner between rounds and to stay in his shell. The final round again was a close affair with Franklin acting defiantly, Whyte did rally towards the end of the session and managed to stun Franklin with a highly entertaining bout coming to its conclusion. Many at ringside felt the fight could have gone either way but all appeared to agree that it was extremely close. Unfortunately despite one judge scoring accurately with a 115-115 draw, both of the other officials at ringside saw it necessary to score the bout a one sided 116-112. I scored the bout with one round in favour of the American but it remains that Whyte moves on to a potential meeting with Anthony Joshua in the summer. Jermaine Franklin a gracious loser voiced his opinions on the scores but made it very clear that very few people have the heart to get into the ring with him, his stock does rise significantly.

Whyte and Franklin weigh in, drama ensues during glove selection.

At todays weigh in for the heavyweight double header scheduled for Wembley arena tomorrow night, former WBC world heavyweight title challenger Dillian Whyte, a distinct 10-1 favourite scaled 251 pounds whilst imported yet undefeated underdog Jermaine Franklin scaled a soft 257. Both men conducted themselves well at the weigh in and it looks like an intriguing battle of styles for the feature event.  The chief support features undefeated Fabio Wardley of Ipswich who scaled a solid 240 pounds for his British title challenge against the once beaten Nathan Gorman of Nantwich who tipped in at a whopping 271 pounds. Gorman appeared to struggle the sole time that he stepped up in class and is facing a man who seems to be moving on a fast-track making some bold statements along the way. Wardley is extremely confident and well conditioned whilst a lot could be said for the Manchester mans appearance.  Following a rather cordial weigh in both camps of the main event bout headed to the conference centre for the glove selection ceremony where high drama unfolded. Dillian Whyte’s representative chose two sealed packets of white, prepared gloves by the manufacturer Fly. Joshua the man selecting gloves for Dillian appeared happy with the gloves from the second packet and alerted the BBBC official to mark the, as selected for Whyte to use tomorrow night. The Franklin team didn’t appear to have any issues with this and were handed a selection of packages containing the gloves that they had requested. Jermaine and his team opened a pack of Black coloured gloves by the manufacturer ‘Loaded’ and agreed to use that pair after trying on the gloves. As this was taking place, the representative from team Whyte ‘Joshua’ checked the gloves which Franklin had chosen and alerted a BBBC official to the fact that the gloves appeared as though they were broken in or had been worn previously, something that is against the rules of the commission. Whyte then got himself involved and himself noticed that it appeared as if tape had been removed from the knuckle area and had left residue. Team Whyte made it very clear that they were opposed to Franklin wearing these particular gloves. A BBBC official made some enquiries as to where the gloves had been stored and whether or not they were in fact sealed from the manufacturers factory. Some verbal exchanges took place between the camps and Dmitri Salita the promoter for Franklin challenged team Whyte accusing them of trying to get under the underdogs skin and bad gamesmanship. In the midst of this Whyte made a comment directed at Jermaine’s trainer Jesse Addison stating “If he keeps talking he will get checked” Addison appeared infuriated at this comment and an exchange of words took place. Once this was diffused Whyte made an offer the resolve the situation saying that he’d have two identical pairs of Fly gloves sent from the factory that both parties could agree on. A BBBC official handed Franklin a pair of white and purple Fly gloves which Jermaine tried on, even though he had no solid opposition to the gloves he and his immediate team were now dead set of sticking to their guns in being allowed to use the gloves that they had requested as neither the promoter or the officials were in favour of backing team Whyte’s claims up regarding the gloves being tampered. Franklin and his team were eventually granted the opportunity to wear Black Loaded gloves whilst Whyte had stuck with the White pair by the Fly brand. It appears as though a touch of last minute mind games had been employed by team Whyte, which didn’t actually seem to phase the away fighter who continued to maintain his composure regardless. 

Former jr Middleweight Champion Buster Drayton passes aged 70.

Philadelphias Former world light middleweight champion Buster Drayton, sadly passed away this week at the age of 70. The news was announced by the Atlantic City Boxing Hall of Fame last Sunday, and was later confirmed by his daughter, Melanie. 

Moses Drayton was born on March 2, 1952, and at the age of 19 was enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps, Drayton would rise quickly through the ranks to the level of Sergeant. Buster found boxing whilst in the marines and would embark on a pro career 6 years later. 

Drayton soon built his reputation as a durable rugged fighter by traveling the world to take on all comers usually heavily favored opposition like Sumbu Kalambay in Italy, tough contenders Jimmy Cable and Mark Kaylor in successive fights in the Uk. Drayton earned his stripes and gained huge experience at home in the local Philadelphia gyms, where he would become a regular and reliable main sparring partner to then-middleweight champion Marvin Hagler.

Drayton broke out of the stereotypical journeyman mould in 1986 when he grabbed the opportunity with both hands and defeated Carlos Santos to win the vacant IBF junior middleweight title by majority decision.

Drayton would make two successful defenses overseas, defeating Davey Moore and Said Skouma in France, both by tenth round stoppage, before losing a unanimous decision to Matthew Hilton in Canada, losing the belt a year after winning it. 

Drayton continued to fight on until 1995, but never regained his championship status, losing to Julian Jackson by third round stoppage in a 1988 challenge for the WBA junior middleweight title and again by decision to rising contender Terry Norris in back to back outings. 

Drayton finished his career with a record of 40-15-1 (28 knockouts), and later worked as a police officer in Philadelphia and later at the Veterans Affairs hospital in Philadelphia. Buster’s passing has prompted a huge amount of tribute to those who knew or fought him, John Scully, Charles Brewer and Al Bernstein all testified that he was one of the finest individuals in the game with a wealth of knowledge that he was always willing to pass on. Buster was a no nonsense fighter with explosive power in both hands, but as a man was one of the most gentle and caring people one could ever wish to meet, he will be sadly missed. 

Bentley offers brave challenge for Alimkhanuly’s 160 pound WBO title.

                               

Undefeated Janibek Alimkhanuly 13-0 (8 KOs) was forced to dig deeper than expected to earn a unanimous decision victory over British Middleweight Champion Denzel Bentley 17-1-1 (14 KOs) on Saturday night at the Pearl Theater at The Palms Hotel Casino in Las Vegas. Bentley came into the bout as a 20:1 underdog to challenge Alimkhanuly for his WBO 160lb title but offered a gallant performance giving the champion all he could handle throughout the fight. Alimkhanuly managed to break through and visible shake Bentley in the final round but was unable to register a stoppage. Scores were 116-112, 116-112, 118-110.

Alimkhanuly gave Bentley huge praise afterwards, stating that ‘Anything can happen in the ring, he came well prepared, I respect my opponent because he was completely prepared, he was 100 percent, but I am a champion and I fought all 12 rounds as a champion…I am ready for any champion, for unifications. I am ready. Let’s fight.’ 

A subdued Bentley stated, ‘thought I was in the fight, in the fifth round, my coach told me we weren’t in front and to pick up the pace, so I picked up the pace.” Bentley must go away from this experience with so much confidence, very little was actually expected of him and he gave an excellent account of himself. 

This was the first title defense for Alimkhanuly, who picked up the WBO strap when he was elevated from interim champion when Demetrius Andrade opted to move up in weight rather than defend against him.

Expect a routine night for Dillian on the 26th against untested Franklin.

                              
On November 26th at Wembley Arena, Dillian Whyte makes his first appearance since his disappointing defeat at the hands of Tyson fury back in April in his sole attempt at a world title to date, the man employed on this night to offer some stubborn resistance is the undefeated American Jermaine Franklin, a 29 year old native of Saginaw Michigan who has an impressive record of 21-0 (14 Ko’s) and has served as a sparring partner for Whyte’s more recent Victor, Tyson Fury. Unfortunately, despite some impressive statistics and some good spiel, Franklin has only boxed once in 38 months and on that night only beat a 20-21 Rodney Moore who has previously boxed as light as super middleweight. Jermaine has looked impressive in victories over the notable Rydell Booker and Pavel Sour, where a tenacious work-rate and respectable power won the day. The unfortunate yet notable statistic regarding Franklin’s record is a 2019 bout with the durable yet average Jerry Forrest where most ringside onlookers had Forrest a clear winner despite a shady decision in Jermaine’s favour. Whyte himself 29-3 (19 Ko’s) is coming off 2 knockout losses in his last 4 outings and needs an impressive showing to ensure that the top tier fights remain on table. Victory here and an impressive one at that could potentially secure an AJ rematch and at 35 the Brixton puncher knows that slip ups aren't an option.  Franklin has to understand that he is stepping several echelons above the level of anyone that he has ever stepped foot in the ring with and in my opinion one appearance in 3 years against inept opposition and a move around with Fury wearing headgear and 18 ounce gloves aren’t enough to sharpen your tools for a live version of Whyte. Franklin may be busy enough and brave enough to offer Dillian a nice workout but let’s make it clear, this should be routine work for Whyte and a stark education for Franklin about how there are levels to this sport. 

Trevor Bryan meets Daniel Dubois Saturday in Florida for WBA regular strap.

                            

WBA regular champion Trevor Bryan was much more lively than his usual self at the weigh in for his highly anticipated defence against Britains Daniel Dubois where he weighed in 18 pounds heavier than the challenger at 259lbs. Don King promoted Bryan insists that he has been overlooked and is largely unknown by the public but promises to deliver tomorrow evening at what he considers his coming out party against a legitimate threat. Dubois 17-1 (16 Ko’s) appeared much the calmer at the weigh in and played down the brash intimidation tactics from the belt holder understanding that his fists will do the talking on fight night. Bryan referred to Dubois as a glorified amateur and emphasised that his submission against Joyce is an indication of what will happen on Saturday. Dubois and Francis Warren maintained their composure throughout the final presser and weigh in and allowed the American contingent to carry the show with outlandish predictions and highlight grabbing antics (Offering Dubois sanitary towels) whilst conducting a face off. The truth is that it’s balls to the wall for Bryan as his claim to a championship may be nearing its end as Dubois edges the odds as a substantial favourite, Bryan 22-0 (15 Ko’s) made a feeble defence in January over an inept Jonathan Guidry, where he appeared lucky to hold on to his unbeaten run. Bryan has evaded many of the bigger names in the division, often accusing them of turning down lucrative offers to meet him, and has never seemed to bring a fully conditioned polished version of himself to the public eye, even in his biggest win, a 2021 stoppage of a shopworn Bermaine Stiverne he appeared lacklustre and grossly out of shape. Don King and Stacy McKinley moved Trevor away from the distractions of Florida and chose to base training camp in Las Vegas at Clarence Adams gym, bringing former champion Larry Holmes into camp for a morale boost. McKinley, no stranger to quality heavyweights says that they have left no stones unturned and Dubois is in for a big surprise. Dubois, trained by Shane Mcguigan arrived in Florida 14 days ago and seem more than ready to take the opportunity by the horns and thrust onto the colourful title picture ahead of his conqueror Joyce. Bryan v Dubois heads a stacked card promoted by Don King Productions at the Jai Alai events centre in Miami Florida, televised on PPV in the US and BT sports in the Uk. It’s an intriguing matchup with both guys largely untested at world level despite the regular world championships being on the line. 

Haney shuts out Kambosos in Melbourne to become Undisputed.

                                                  

Devin Haney 28-0 (15 KOs) travelled half way across the world to score a lop sided twelve round unanimous points decision over George Kambosos Jr 20-1 (10 KOs) on Sunday morning at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne Australia in front of 40.000 partisan spectators. Haney conducted a boxing clinic throughout the whole fight, measuring Kambosos with a laser precise jab and perfect timing. Haney left no room for dispute and never allowed Kambosos any room to gain any momentum with a busy high work rate. The fight wasn’t easy on the casual viewers eye but served a purpose in crowning a new unified champion. Scoring was 116-112, 116-112, 118-110. 

The official attendance number was revealed at 41,129. This makes this bout second biggest attendance in Australian boxing history. And stands as the largest attended fight ever in the state of Victoria ahead of the Azumah Nelson v Jeff Fenech bout from 1992. 

A gracious Kambosos gave huge praise to Haney after the bout stating that he was the best man on the night but emphasized that this defeat had lit a fire of determination under him and he was looking forward to executing the rematch clause that had been put in place. Haney gave all praises to God and stated that he will fight anyone in the division if it makes good sense.  

Buatsi looks towards a World title shot as he out-hustles game Richards.

On Saturday night at the O2 in Greenwich London, Joshua Buatsi remained on course for a shot at the WBA light heavyweight title by securing a hard earned unanimous points victory over the tough former world title challenger Craig Spider Richards 17-3 (10 Ko’s.) Buatsi, 174lbs got off to the busier start, out working the more conservative Richards with fast flurries behind the jab, Richards managed to land eye catching counters throughout the early rounds but boxed too economically to pinch the rounds. Buatsi and Richards engaged more through the middle rounds as the bout turned far more fan friendly. Buatsi appeared in control by the 7th but was allowing Richards opportunities to slide back in by easing off the gas. Richards capitalised on this in the 8th when he shook Buatsi up with a short uppercut, Joshua weathered the storm and survived the session by closing the distance and smothering Craigs work. Joshua turned the tables in the 10th a hurt Richards on a couple of occasions forcing the underdog to create distance and survive, Buatsi remained reluctant to rush in and opted to land selective shots from range. Buatsi was warned on a couple of occasions for low punching but managed to hurt Richards with legitimate body shots. Both fighters decided to stand and trade in the closing session in what was a last ditch attempt to catch the eyes of the ringside judges after such a lively fight. Buatsi was given the nod by scores of 116-112 (Jan Christiansen) 115-113 (Gustavo Padilla) and 115-113 (Bob Williams) Richards gracious in defeat praised Buatsi for the crafty way he survived when hurt in the 8th and coming back strong towards the closer. Buatsi had equal praise for Richards who still remains an active player after such a game and lively showing. Buatsi made it clear that he is absolutely ready for a world title shot now against whoever it may be. Joshua showed a lot of maturity in this fight and showed how versatile he can be at the highest level. 

Wood overcomes shaky start to stop Conlan at the final hour.

                                 

Nottingham’s WBA featherweight champion Leigh Wood 26-2 (16 KOs) came from behind in an extraordinary fight to score a spectacular twelfth round KO over former Irish Olympian Michael Conlan 16-1 (8 KOs) last night on home soil at Motorpoint Arena in Nottingham, England.

Conlan established himself early in the bout scoring a heavy knockdown at the end of the opener, with the title holder being saved by the bell to end the session. Conlan continued to dominate Wood, landing frequently with clever counters and finding his mark with the lead left hook that dropped the champion early. The gritty Wood closed the distance in the middle rounds and found done success at close range, forcing Conlan to fight his fight. Conlan hurt Wood to the body in the late rounds but the champion responded equally to force the challenger onto the back foot. In round 10 Wood appeared to break through with a barrage of hurtful shots, leaving Conlan looking despondent for the first time in the bout, referee Steve Grey unfortunately interfered in the action and allowed Conlan off the hook. The 11th saw Wood score a knockdown which the visiting corner contested was a slip, regardless Conlan appeared to be comfortably leading and just needed to coast the final session. In a remarkable final round Leigh Wood took the initiative to force Conlan back to the ropes and apply constant pressure, as the challenger appeared to slip shots against the ropes Wood clipped him with a cluster of punches, forcing an exhausted Conlan to fall unconscious out of the ring. The time was 1:25.

Wood appeared to be a long way behind throughout the bout, but was surprisingly only a handful of points trailing at the time of stoppage. 104-103, 105-102, 104-103 on the official scoresheets. 

The conclusion of the bout saw Conlan attended to by medics as a precaution and later rushed by ambulance to the hospital.

BBB of C downgrade Ian John Lewis’ officiating status following review.

                              
The British Boxing Board of control have reviewed the recent controversial scoring of the Josh Taylor v Jack Catterall world title bout and called ringside official Ian John Lewis to explain his erratic 114-111 scorecard. Following the review the BBB of C have decided to downgrade John Lewis’s officiating status from A Star Class to A Class official. The board did have issue with the margin of Ian’s scorecard but didn’t think that the scorecard affected the overall result of the contest. The board of control have decided to evaluate the performance of each A star official after every bout in addition to each officials annual review in an attempt to maintain a high standard of consistency amongst British officiated bouts. The board have recommended to each of the governing bodies that Jack Catterall be instated as mandatory challenger for each of their respective titles. 

Michael Marley passes.

                                  

Sad news for the boxing world as former established writer, boxing manager and highly regarded fight sage Michael Marley passed away Wednesday at his Cape Cod home. Marley was an all rounder who before embarking on boxing management made a name for himself, writing first for the Las Vegas Sun, then earning a spot as a columnist for the New York post. Michael boxed briefly as an amateur whilst studying at UNR and loved the sport ever since starting the Cassius clay fan club as a 12 year old boy. Michael moved into boxing management in the early 1990s when he turned a charismatic yet raw young heavyweight called Shannon Briggs into a household name with his own unique style of public relations. Mike would manage several other successful fighters over the next 20 years including Orlin and Terry Norris, Robert Garcia and Nigerian heavyweight King Ipitan before turning his attention to a career as a practicing attorney alongside working as head of public relations for Don King Productions. Michael was a likeable and personable man who adored boxing and boxing personalities of all types. Marley had been privately battling Parkinson’s syndrome and was 72 years of age, his passing is a real loss to our sport.