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UK Boxing

Cristiano Ronaldo’s gesture noticed during the Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk match

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Cristiano Ronaldo appeared to point to his watch as he made an impromptu gesture during the historic world heavyweight title fight between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury. The former Real Madrid and Manchester United superstar was among the distinguished guests who attended the fight, including Anthony Joshua and Steven Gerrard, as well as Wladimir Klitschko and Andriy Shevchenko.

The star-studded crowd showed just how much was at stake in Riyad, in what was arguably the most essential boxing match of a generation. Ultimately, Usyk won, and the Ukrainian secured his sporting immortality by becoming the first unified champion in the weight class since Lennox Lewis in 2000.

The man known as “The Cat” started robust in the first few rounds before “The Gypsy King” showed his famed staying power as he grew in the competition. However, the scales swung in Usyk’s favor in round 7 before Fury was saved by the bell after a series of jabs that left him writhing on the ropes in round 9.

Ultimately, the judges scored the fight 115-112, 114-113 and 114-113, when the Ukrainian fighter won and will go down in history alongside great champions. Despite this, it looked like football star Ronaldo was looking at his watch mid-fight, as the camera caught him watching his watch.

As the local time reached 2am, striker Al-Nassr was spotted pointing at his £1.2m watch, clearly concerned about being up until the early hours of the morning. However, there was no knockout that evening and the fight was fought at a distance during a memorable spectacle.

Before this moment, Ronaldo had the opportunity to chat with fellow soccer star Neymar Jr. as they embraced before a fight after bumping into each other. Their conversation began with the former asking his peer: “How are you, are you okay? What about the injury?” before Neymar replied: “Everything is fine, oh your son is with you,” to which Ronaldo replied: “He has school tomorrow. I told him you’ll come watch boxing with me, but remember you’ll wake up early tomorrow.”

Speaking to the press before the competition, former Barcelona forward Neymar pinned his hopes on Fury being able to defeat his nemesis in an event that would change an entire era. Supporting the British colossus, he predicted an enjoyable fight, saying: “Obviously Tyson, but it’s a great fight, an amazing fight.”

Meanwhile, Liverpool great Gerrard was also present at the Kingdom Arena building and confirmed that he simply couldn’t resist a trip to see both players fight for a unified title. Now manager of Saudi Pro League club Al-Ettifaq, the Anfield great admitted he’s a fan of fair-weather boxing, but still seemed excited to be there.

With obvious anticipation, he said: “I’m usually an armchair when it comes to boxing, I’m a massive fan, but I like watching it on TV. When it’s undisputed, when it’s Tyson Fury, when it’s this massive, when it’s happening in Arabia, I have to be here to witness it.

Making his own prediction, the Kop hero added: “Tyson all the way, I’ve been a massive fan for a very long time. I’m not a boxing expert, but the size, reach, weight and what I have have seen him before. I think he’s going to have to deal with a very awkward client, we all know that, but Tyson Fury all day long.

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UK Boxing

Jake Paul accused of breaking rules in Mike Tyson fight that gave him a ‘huge advantage’

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Former boxing champion Tony Bellew has launched a scathing attack on Jake Paul and accused him of wearing “full boxing gloves” during his triumph over Mike Tyson.

An internet personality who switched to boxing outclassed the iconic boxer in a weekend bout in Texas.

Although Paul suggested that his goal would be a knockout, in the end he only managed to secure victory for the 58-year-old athlete. The fight was overwhelmingly dominated by Paul, with Tyson landing just 18 punches compared to Paul’s 78.

However, Bellew, a former WBC cruiserweight titleholder, believes Paul’s choice of gloves gave him an unfair advantage.

On X (previously on Twitter), Bellew confessed: “The gloves Mike has look heavily padded, while Jake has full punching gloves on his feet. There is a huge difference between them and I only watch from my bed. “

Moreover, Bellew tore to shreds the very idea of ​​a brawl taking place: “We are all guilty of this man! We’re all talking and watching! We have to stop this fool [Paul]!

“Don’t count on him until he fights someone vigorous, not his grandfather! Any decent boxing person helping Paul should take a look at themselves! It’s just depressed.”

Despite his irritation with Paul, Bellew admitted he had some respect for the younger player. Paul, 27, said after the fight that he held back to prevent Tyson from being seriously harmed.

Bellew commented: “I don’t like that stupid idiot kid, but I will say this… he stopped beating Mike and showed him respect and dignity by letting him live. He wasn’t looking for KO there, just leave him and leave him alone.

After the fight, both fighters received mandatory suspensions from the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, with a required rest period of 24 days due to the duration of the fight.

Despite this, both are already planning to return to the ring – Paul aims to fight Canelo Alvarez, and Tyson challenges his brother Logan.

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UK Boxing

Gilberto Ramirez vs. Chris Billam-Smith – results and post-fight report

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Gilberto Ramirez wins cruiserweight unification fight via unanimous decision against Chris Billam-Smith in Riyad. Photo source: BBC Sport (x.com)
Gilberto Ramirez wins cruiserweight unification fight via unanimous decision against Chris Billam-Smith in Riyada. Photo source: BBC Sport (x.com)

The Riyad season hosted a Latin night, with Gilberto Ramirez adding the WBO cruiserweight title to his WBA belt with a high-octane points win against Chris Billam-Smith.

Former WBO super middleweight champion Ramirez (47-1, KO30) moved up to cruiserweight last year and followed up a wide-scoring victory over Joe Smith Jr. won the WBA belt in March by defeating Arsen Goulamirian ten rounds to two. Billam-Smith (20-2, KO13) won the WBO belt with a majority decision victory over Lawrence Okolie in May last year and was last eliminated in June, taking revenge on Richard Riakporhe by scoring at Selhurst Park.

Billam-Smith had a very good start in the first round, landing some solid punches, but Ramirez found his moment in the second round, landing a piercing left arm that sent the Englishman into a frenzy and his combinations worried the WBO boss. In the fourth, Billam-Smith was bleeding from the nose, and Ramirez landed a phenomenal right hand and landed several impressive combinations to the body before crushing his opponent with the sheer number of punches he was throwing.

Ramirez kept his foot on the gas pedal as the doctor looked at Billam-Smith’s eye ahead of the seventh round, and although the Bournemouth man continued to work tough, he struggled to cope with the cumulative effects of Ramirez’s work. Billam-Smith did rally to the distance, but couldn’t find the punches to break Ramirez’s spirit, and the Mexican was able to maintain enough accuracy to keep his fighter at bay, and after the pair left it all in the ring in the final round the winner was decided by scorecards.

Two scores of 116-112 and a third of 116-113 sent Ramirez home as the unified world champion.

The WBO super lightweight title eliminator didn’t catch fire, but Arnold Barboza Jr (31-0, KO11) did enough to earn a ten-round decision and win over former unified world champion Jose Carlos Ramirez (29-2, KO18) . It was a stop-start match, but Barboza mostly had the advantage and outscored the winner by two scores of 96-94 and one of 97-93.

The interim WBC lightweight title was won by William Zepeda (32-0, KO27), defeating Tevin Farmer (33-7-1, KO8) by an extremely high score, and getting up from the floor in the process. Zepeda was clotheslined in the fourth round, keeping him on the canvas with a powerful left hand, and the fight lasted a full ten rounds, during which Zepeda scored two scores of 95-94 compared to a third score for former world champion Rolnik.

Oscar Collazo (11-0, KO8) defended his WBO minimumweight world title for the fourth time and impressed with a seventh-round victory over Thammanoon Niyomtrong (25-1, KO9). Niyomtrong trailed in the sixth round and trailed twice more before the break.

Oscar Duarte (28-2-1, KO22) won his ten-round super lightweight fight on points against Botirzhon Akhmedov (10-4, KO9). Duarte won by scores of 98-92, 97-93 and 96-94.

Welterweight prospect Ziyad Almaayouf (6-0-1, KO1) suffered a defeat after drawing to a six-round draw against Juan Carlos Ramirez Garcia (5-6-1, KO0). One judge declared Almaayouf the winner 58-56, but two scores of 57-57 ensured the fight ended in a stalemate.

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UK Boxing

Oscar Collazo defeats Thammanoon Niyomtrong to become unified mini flyweight champion

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November 16, 2024

Puerto Rican Oscar Collazo made history by defeating Thailand’s Thammanoon Niyomtrong to become the Unified Mini Flyweight Champion in a thrilling tactical battle in Riyad, Saudi Arabia. WBO titleholder Collazo added Niyomtronga’s WBA belt to his collection with his TKO victory. The official stoppage time was 1:29 of the seventh round.

In the fight, Collazo’s superior movement and counter-attacking skills neutralized Niyomtrong’s aggressive style. Despite some sturdy moments from Niyomtrong, particularly in the early rounds, the southpaw’s precise combinations and excellent defense began to control the fight from the middle rounds, and he knocked down the former champion three times before claiming Niyomtrong’s title and perfect record.

With this victory, the 27-year-old Collazo cements himself as the recent face of the 105-pound division, holding both the WBA and WBO titles. The Puerto Rican star, long considered one of the sport’s brightest prospects, is now the undisputed mini flyweight champion. After the fight, Collazo expressed gratitude to his team and fans, stating, “This is for Puerto Rico, for all the people who believed in me.”

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