Eddie Hearn has questioned the nature of David Haye's preparation ahead of Haye's eagerly-anticipated heavyweight showdown with Tony Bellew. The British pair fight at London's O2 Arena on March 4. While Hearn claimed his fighter Bellew had been obsessively focused throughout the build-up, the promoter seemed less than impressed at Haye's approach.
Undefeated super lightweight powerhouse Ivan “The Beast” Baranchyk (14-0, 10 KOs) scored a hard fought ten round unanimous decision over Abel Ramos (17-2-2, 12 KOs) on Friday night at the Buffalo Run Casino & Resort in Miami, Oklahoma.
Bantamweight Zhanat Zhakiyanov (26-1, 18 KOs) captured the WBA 118lb title with a twelve round split decision over reigning champion Rau’shee Warren (14-1, 4 KOs) on Friday night at the Huntington Center in Toledo, Ohio. It looked like it would be a short night when Warren knocked down Zhakiyanov not once, but twice in round one. Zhakiyanov bounced back in round three, and controlled the action for the next few rounds. It was a hard fight the rest of the way as Zhakiyanov scored a twelve round split decision. Scores were 115-111, 116-110 for Zhakiyanov and 115-111 for Warren.
IBF lightweight champion Robert Easter Jr. (18-0, 14 KOs) successfully defended his title scoring a twelve round unanimous decision over Luis Cruz (22-4-1, 16 KOs) on Friday night at the Huntington Center, Toledo, Ohio. Cruz controlled the action throughout the entire fight. In round ten Easter dropped Cruz to the canvas and Cruz barely survived the round. At the end of round eleven Easter hit Cruz with a straight right, knocking him down again. Easter dropped Cruz for the third time in round twelve with 20 seconds left in the fight. Scores were 119-106, 118-107, 117-108.
Defending champion Bilal Laggoune had a good start closely winning the first 2 rounds. French visitor Doudou Ngumbu edged the next 2 rounds with fast and accurate combinations. After 4 rounds with the WBC open scoring all 3 judges had it 38-38.
Wladimir Klitschko has claimed that fighting Anthony Joshua in front of 90,000 fans at Wembley represents an "upgrade" to his storied career. Former world champion, Klitschko -- who reigned for almost a decade before being beaten by Tyson Fury in November, 2015 -- faces Joshua for the Briton's IBF title as well as the vacant WBA and IBO belts on April 29.
Unbeaten heavyweight Gerald “El Gallo Negro” Washington held an open workout Thursday at Pullman’s Gym in Burbank for Los Angeles-area media as he prepares to challenge unbeaten heavyweight world champion Deontay “The Bronze Bomber” Wilder on February 25 from Legacy Arena at the BJCC in Birmingham, Alabama. The bout will be nationally televised on FOX.
Argentine slugger Lucas Matthysse will return from a 19-month layoff in one of the featured bouts on the Canelo Alvarez-Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. undercard in Las Vegas, Golden Boy Promotions president Eric Gomez told ESPN on Thursday. Matthysse, who is moving up from the junior welterweight division to welterweight, will take on an opponent to be determined. The fight card will take place May 6 at T-Mobile Arena and will be televised on HBO Pay-Per-View.
Top-rated contender and Chicago native Adrian Granados opens up in an extensive interview with Sports Emmy Award-Winning Writer Mark Kriegel in advance of his welterweight showdown with former four-division world champion, Adrien Broner - Saturday, Feb. 18.
