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Joshua Buatsi vs Paweł Stępień
Published
4 months agoon
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J. HumzaJoshua Buatsi appeared for the first time this year and won confidently in ten rounds against Paweł Stępień at Resorts World in Birmingham.
Buatsi made his debut under the Boxxer banner after ending his cooperation with Matchroom and had a points victory over Craig Richards. Stepien was also undefeated, and in March a competition with Callum Smith was canceled at brief notice.
Buatsi (17-0, KO13) started patiently, keeping Stępień (18-1-1, KO12) at bay and controlling the action for the first few rounds. Buatsi finally picked up the pace early in the fourth period, landing combinations, but went back to being patient and waiting for his openings fairly quickly. Stepien was tidy and did his job well and was gaining in confidence as he enjoyed a decent finish to fifth, but Buatsi stuck to his game plan, staying on top and in control. The situation lasted until the final bell, when the result was beyond doubt.
Joshua Buatsi looks edged 🔥😮💨 pic.twitter.com/7XKd9B6Y88
— Sky Sports Boxing (@SkySportsBoxing) May 6, 2023
Buatsi won by scores of 100-90, 98-92 and 97-94.
The act made history when Lauren Price (4-0, KO1) became the inaugural British champion, winning the vacant welterweight title with a crushing points victory over Kirstie Bavington (7-4-2, KO2). Price was one step ahead throughout and won all ten rounds on all three judges’ scorecards.
Just too good @LLPrice94 so far 👏
Olympic gold medalist hits Kirstie Bavington with lots of shots and avoids anything that gets knocked back 🥊 #BuatsiStepien | Now | Resorts World, Birmingham | @SkySportsBoxing pic.twitter.com/djd4CWQ4eF
— BOXXER (@boxxer) May 6, 2023
Tyler Denny (17-2-3, KO0) won the vacant EBU external middleweight title, defeating the unfortunate Macaulay McGowan (17-4-2, KO3) in a ten-round split decision. Two verdicts prevailed, 96-94 for Denny, and McGowan’s 97-93 verdict was deemed unnecessary.
In a thrilling fight, Sean McComb (16-1, KO5) defended his WBO European super lightweight title, defeating Kaisee Benjamin (16-3-1, KO6) by unanimous decision over ten rounds. In the direct fight, the Irishman from Northern Ireland obtained three winning verdicts: 97-94, 97-93 and 96-95.
Respect at the last bell after a great fight! Warriors 👏 pic.twitter.com/ARqXmy4YA7
— Sky Sports Boxing (@SkySportsBoxing) May 6, 2023
Ben Whittaker (3-0, KO2) made his first appearance of 2023 and it was a typically brilliant performance from the Olympic silver medalist, who stopped Jordan Grant (6-4, KO0) at dawn in the third of a scheduled six heavyweight bout. Grant was dropped in round two, and a sweeping right hand in round three knocked his legs out, with the referee waving his hand to end the fight as the towel came in.
The showman has begun 😅@BenGWhittaker talks to the audience, mocks Jordan Grant and dances around the ring 🕺#BuatsiStepien | Now | Resorts World, Birmingham | @SkySportsBoxing pic.twitter.com/8hKdNsq4xt
— BOXXER (@boxxer) May 6, 2023
Return 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭 for @BenGWhittaker 😮💨
He won by TKO in the third round. Who would you like to see him against? 👀#BuatsiStepien | Now | Resorts World, Birmingham | @SkySportsBoxing pic.twitter.com/sk5bkANAQZ
— BOXXER (@boxxer) May 6, 2023
Shakan Pitters (18-2, KO6) returned from a loss to Dan Azeez, beating Joel McIntyre (20-7, KO5) for eight years in the lithe heavyweight division. Pitters won every round, winning 80-72.
Right hand peach from @ShakanPitters 🍑#BuatsiStepien | Tonight | Sky Sports Action, 7pm | @SkySportsBoxing pic.twitter.com/LhUcfGD9N5
— BOXXER (@boxxer) May 6, 2023
Jimmy First (14-2, KO4) upset Cori Gibbs (18-1, KO3) in their original meeting, which was bizarre, but Gibbs got his revenge, winning in eight rounds this time, with a 78-74 nod from the judge.
Danny Quartermaine (9-0, KO3) opened the gala, defeating Christian Lopez Flores (14-25-2, KO12) in the fourth and final round in the lightweight division.
Start the evening with a well-received victory 💪 @dannyqboxer finishes Christian Lopez Flores in the final round after his third knockdown, much to the delight of his vocal local support 👏#BuatsiStepien | Tonight | Sky Sports Action, 7pm pic.twitter.com/QO0F27ube8
— BOXXER (@boxxer) May 6, 2023
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Mexican superstar Canelo Alvarez defended his unified super middleweight title with a major unanimous decision over Edgar Berlanga in Las Vegas.
PBC promoted the Canelo vs Berlanga fight, with DAZN and Amazon Prime sharing broadcast rights.
The 27-year-old Puerto Rican entered the contest as a clear underdog and it seemed like he had a chance early on. He was immediately pushed onto his back leg by Alvarez, refused to let go of his hands and bit challenging at the champion’s feints.
In the third round, Canelo absolutely floored him with a left hook and passed Berlanga’s defender at a speed so quick it bordered on cartoonish. To his credit, “The Chosen One” didn’t look seriously hurt and survived the rest of the round well.
Getting him on the canvas seemed to somehow solidify Berlanga’s position in the contest, and he gradually gained confidence from there. While he didn’t win many rounds, the Brooklyn boxer had moments of success later in his career and showed impressive defense on the ropes—not to mention a forceful chin.
The left hook that dropped Berlanga was felt in San Juan 🇵🇷. #CaneloBerlanga pic.twitter.com/QP94bYobdc
— Premier Boxing Champions (@premierboxing) September 15, 2024
There were some violent moments, most notably when Canelo landed a pristine right hand after the referee called a stoppage, though it was somewhat of a justified response to the blatant utilize of the head by his youthful opponent.
However, at the end of the incredibly emotional final round, the pair immediately hugged, with Berlanga thanking the Guadalajara star for the opportunity before admitting that he is his idol.
Nothing beats boxing in Vegas during Mexican Independence weekend. 🇲🇽 RESPECT 🇵🇷#CaneloBerlanga pic.twitter.com/TxOiFmOp8i
— Premier Boxing Champions (@premierboxing) September 15, 2024
To the surprise of no one at T-Mobile Arena, Alvarez won by unanimous decision and marches on with his three-word titles. Berlanga, though well beaten, answered several long-standing questions that cast a shadow over him and proved he has plenty of substance to back up his fervor.
Lara defends herself against Garcia
In the veterans’ fight, Cuban Erislandy Lara (31-3-3, 19 KO) defended his WBA middleweight world title by defeating Danny Garcia (37-4, 21 KO).
Garcia looked a shadow of his former self and retired after nine rounds. Lara, 41, is still enjoying the Indian summer and has won six matches in a row.
Shipping plants or McCumby
Former super middleweight world champion Caleb Plant (23-2, 14 KOs) made his first fight since losing to David Benavidez last year with a ninth-round stoppage of unannounced Trevor McCumby (28-1, 21 KOs).
Plant, who survived an early knockdown, currently holds the interim belt at 168 pounds and could be in line for another world title fight in 2025.
IT’S OVER!! REVENGE TOURISM CONTINUES WITH ANOTHER KO BY @SweetHandsPlant! #PlantMcCumby
Order #CaneloBerlanga Now: https://t.co/TTL3b5uHde pic.twitter.com/thEITuxwpq
— Premier Boxing Champions (@premierboxing) September 15, 2024
Romero is back in form
Polarizing super lightweight Rolando Romero (16-2, 13 KOs) returned to action at T-Mobile following a loss to Isaac Cruz in March.
Manuel Jaimes (16-2, 11 KO), who had previously only fought in compact gyms, was forceful and powerful but found himself on the wrong side of a unanimous decision win over “Rolly,” who had been earmarked as a potential opponent for Ryan Garcia’s comeback.
Fulton squeaks fit for Castro
In his first fight at 126 pounds, former super bantamweight world champion Stephen Fulton (22-1, 8 KOs) found himself in a tougher fight than advertised against the rugged Carlos Castro (30-3, 14 KOs).
“Scooter” was clamorous on several stages and even fell challenging, but managed to clinch the victory by a split decision on the scorecards.
Lots of action in #FultonCastro with 💣s landed by both players and Castro gets the KD. How did you score that?
Order #CaneloBerlanga Now: https://t.co/TTL3b5uHde pic.twitter.com/lM78e5gis0
— Premier Boxing Champions (@premierboxing) September 15, 2024
Villa surprised by Salas
It was a night to remember for Jaron Ennis’ former opponent, Romain Villa (26-3, 24 KOs), who suffered a shock third-round defeat to Ricardo Salas Rodriguez (20-2-2, 15 KOs).
Villa came out on the attack as usual but unleashed a devastating right hand that ended the contest.
Ricardo Salas makes his US debut with a KO finish over Romain Villa in RD3. #WillaSalas
Order #CaneloBerlanga Now: https://t.co/TTL3b5uHde pic.twitter.com/3FKD4ldCmw
— Premier Boxing Champions (@premierboxing) September 14, 2024
Further Undercard Recap
In eight rounds, both Yoenli Hernandez (5-0, 5 KOs) and Laurence King (17-1, 14 KOs) scored second-round KO victories over Jose Sanchez Charles (21-6-1, 12 KOs) and Vaughn Williams (12-2, 8 KOs), while Jonathan Lopez (17-0, 12 KOs) had to settle for a decision victory over Richard Medina (15-3, 8 KOs).
Undefeated Kazakhstan’s Bek Nurmaganbet (12-0, 10 KOs) needed just two of six to dispatch Joshua Conley (17-7-1, 11 KOs) in the first set.
DAZN broadcast the Mayweather vs Gotti fight live on television.
The two met last June, with Mayweather outclassing Gotti with speed and timing before the referee threw both fighters out for constant trash-talking and fouls, leading to full-scale brawl between both boxing camps.
Mayweather, 47, retired in 2017 to take his place among the greatest laced-glove fighters of all time, but has since traveled the world for lucrative speaking engagements and exhibition competitions. Gotti fought primarily in mixed martial arts, with only two sanctioned boxing matches under his belt before facing Mayweather in 2023.
Dressed in the colors of the Mexican national flag, Mayweather was warmly welcomed into the arena as he entered the ring, and after the national anthems and eliminations, things got down to business.
Mayweather began with a pointed jab and a body kick to Gotti, who was initially cautious. In the second round, the referee admonished Mayweather for a shot to the back of the head, and the corners began to tie up again before the referee was replaced midway through the round.
The fight resumed and in the third Mayweather opened up on Gotti, landing multiple shots to the head and body of his opponent and although Gotti stepped forward Mayweather was able to avoid everything that came his way. The pace dropped and Mayweather continued to maintain control, landing his jab and remaining fluid on the defensive end and the pair locked horns as the fight went into the final two frames.
Mayweather let his hands go in round seven, landing several vicious body shots, and Gotti dared to meet them head on, and in the final round he covered up well under fire as the fight came to an end.
With no judges to score, Mayweather claimed a moral victory, and the two hugged after the fight.
Subcard Summary
Another exhibition took place on the undercard, and Victor Ortiz, Mayweather’s former foe and potential future exhibition opponent, failed to impress in his scoreless fight with Rodrigo Damian Coria.
Alan Picasso Romero (29-0-1, 16 KO) improved his class and regained the WBC Silver super bantamweight title with a points victory over former world title challenger Azat Hovhannisyan (21-5, 17 KO). It was a lopsided fight, but Romero won by unanimous decision.
In a ten-round super bantamweight bout, Luis Rodriguez Ocana (15-1, 14 KOs) suffered the first defeat of his career, defeating Cesar Vaca (17-1-1, 11 KOs) by majority decision. Vaca scored 98-92 and 97-94 on a 95-95 card.
In the super middleweight division, Aaron Silva (15-1, 12 KOs) stopped Alfonso Flores (13-3, 9 KOs) in the third round, and Cecilia Nino Rodriguez (13-1-1, 6 KOs) took care of the last fight. – notice the replacement opponent Arlenn Sanchez Aguirre (5-7-4, 1 KO) in the airy flyweight fight, who scored 80-72, 79-74 and 78-74 in eight rounds.
John Easter (7-0, 7 KOs) put in a great performance to beat Luis Morales Duran (5-2, 5 KOs) by stoppage in the airy heavyweight division, while Trenton Joseph Brown (3-0, 1 KO) did the same in his super welterweight fight against Jose Antonio Munoz Guadarrama (2-3, 1 KO).
Dutch lightweight Jursly Vargas (3-0, 2 KOs) maintained his unbeaten record with a points win over Brian Eduardo Carrillo (3-2, 2 KOs) in the lightweight division, while Sekaye Terry (1-0, 0 KOs) made his debut and scored a four-round victory over Carlos Rosas (1-2, 0 KOs) in the super featherweight division.
Denzel Bentley successfully defended his WBO International middleweight title, defeating Derrick Osaze in the second round of their meeting at York Hall.
Bentley (20-3-1, 17 KOs) lost his British title in a majority decision loss to Nathan Heaney last November, but won it back with a two-round stoppage over Danny Dignum in April. Osaze (13-2, 3 KOs) has been largely inactive since winning the BOXXER tournament in 2019, and was last seen in March stopping Joel Julio in a third-place finish in Bulgaria.
Both men got off to a busy start in the first round, with Osaze taking the fight to “2 Acute” in the second, causing problems for the champion until he found the surefire equalizer, flattening the 30-year-old with a powerful right uppercut that sent him face down to the canvas and the contest was abruptly ended.
Bentley, who is ranked second by the WBO, is in line for a rematch with the unified WBO and IBF champion, Janibek Alimkhanulywho defeated him on points in November 2022.
The 29-year-old could also target the winner of the September 21 clash between Tyler Denny and Hamzah Sheeraz.
Junior secures first lanes
Aloys Jr. won his first professional titles, winning the full ten rounds and capturing the vacant WBA and IBO Continental cruiserweight titles with a narrow points victory over Oronzo Birardi.
Junior (8-1, 7 KO) was tested by Birardi (8-1, 6 KO) but largely controlled the fight and edged the winner by two scores of 97-93 and a third of 98-92.
Defeat defeats Rodriguez
The only eighth-round contender was in the super welterweight division, where Ben Fail went the distance to defeat Omir Rodriguez on points.
A tiny left hand put Rodriguez (15-20-1, 6 KOs) on the deck in the second round, but a shootout ensued after that and it was Fail (7-0, 5 KOs) who secured the victory in a 77-74 judge’s score.
Remaining Undercard
Joshua Frankham (10-0, 2 KOs) had his first fight of 2024, and the super welterweight did as he pleased, taking all six sessions against Artjom Spatar (4-10-1, 1 KO).
In the super featherweight division, Billy Adams (4-0) impressed by winning all six rounds against Marvin Solano (24-19, 8 KOs).
William Hamilton (6-0, 3 KO) earned a narrow points victory in the heavyweight division against Perry Howe (5-17-1, 1 KO), triumphing 60-54 over six rounds.
Mykyle Ahmed (1-0, 1 KO) made his super flyweight debut and came away with a victory over Stephen Jackson (1-53-1, 1 KO), who has only lost twice early in his 54 previous fights.
Mason Payne (1-0) also bowed out and scored a points win in his welterweight fight against John Henry Mosquera (5-17, 1 KO).
Frankie Wood (1-0) was the third to make his professional debut, with the super featherweight winning all four rounds in his clash with the experienced Engel Gomez (8-35-3, 4 KOs).
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