Boxing
Willie Pep and how to win the round without throwing a blow
Published
2 years agoon
Willie Pep is my favorite senior -school warrior. Two hundred and twenty -nine wins compared to 11 losses and one draw, won and regained the title of a featherweight, competed in three decades, and this is my favorite, he defended his title six months after the accident accident and told him that he never boxed again.
His defense and movement were legendary. He wore the nickname “Will about ‘The Wisp” because he slipped and left the ring, stopping to counteract and cause damage. He was stunning for watching and worth a deep diving on YouTube to recognize his championship.
As with many figures larger than life, the legend is surrounded by PEP. Perhaps the most strong legend is that PEP promised writers that he would win the round without throwing a blow. Before fighting Jackie Graves, a very solid opponent, he reportedly announced in the third round that he would win, having a zero crime. He often reports as truth in documentary films about PEP, and even wore two of three results cards in the third night.
The answer is definitely, probably not.
We know that PEP won the fight, but there is no movie. It was before reporters and filmmakers reported official results cards, so we can’t rely on it. In fact, reporting was so inconsistent in this era that AP and UPI did not agree to how many times Graves fell in the fight – one information service said twice and the other reported four charm.
Pep liked to talk about the round and said that he even wore an article about a fight that allegedly verified that he won the round without throwing a blow. Some even claimed that Willie wrote the article himself. At the end of his life, Graves said that he did not remember if he lost the round without throwing a blow, but he said that it was possible because it is hard to hit him.
“I believe he did it. The man was a legend and a star outside of boxing. He spent time spent with men such as Jackie Gleason and Frank Sinatra – why would he have to come up with something to seem to seem to seem to seem to seem to seem to seem to seem to seem to seem to seem to seem to seem to seem to seem to seem to seem to seem to seem to seem to see “James Madio says. Madio played Featherweight, Bio-PIC 2024 PEP. Modern Yorker He said in his release of the academy that Madio should have been nominated for the best actor.
Regardless of whether the myth is true, he remains the fact that Willie Pep was one of the most elusive boxers who have ever entered the ring. His defense skills were really something that could be seen and you could see his influence on fighters such as Ali, Camacho and Whitaker. His leg work and lateral movement, his feelings and incorrect management and movement of the head made opponents stunned and often frozen. He slipped, hit, waited and paired with absurd balance.
Or is it all without throwing a blow to win the round?
“While the second boxer did not throw any blows, you can’t win a round without a blow,” says Joe Cusano. Cusano is for many years Pro Ref and a judge who appeared in the film-playing, of course, a judge. “He would have to throw something.” (Cusano’s book, MountainsIN will be released later this year.)
Could charisma Pepa facilitate him win a round without a blow? One part of the legend is that he told the judges what he was going to do.
“Hey, if Willie leaned over the ropes and talked to the judges who could have in their head and maybe influenced them,” says Madio. It would not be the first or last time the fighter influenced the judges.
To justify shooting a round for a warrior who did not throw a single blow, would require quite abstract thinking. After applying four scoring criteria, this would mean that there will be no pure impact and zero aggression, not to mention effective aggression. It seems to me that you can get points for general defense and ring, but usually these two supporting criteria count when they lead to a pure blow. If the warrior simply avoids without counteracting, this is not really worthy of points.
The opponent, as Joe Cusano emphasizes, would have to be complicit in his passivity, losing all his blows, and maybe even throwing. I think that if one warrior does not throw any blows at all, and the other boxer threw the blows that did not land, it is probably enough to give this warrior a round.
“I spent the whole day with Willie in Hall of Fame and we talked a lot about it,” says Mark Baker, a biographer of PEP. “It has always sounded shaky, and the more I caused, the more the story fell apart. In the end, Willie said that he probably stabbed or threw blows, but did not land. “
Ripping and throwing blows that may not land is completely different than not throwing everyone strikes. You can certainly win the round by doing these things.
“Willie was quite a figure and he had some stories of high stories,” says Baker.
Baker also has an insight into how the article was written and how the legend developed.
“At that time, reporters and writers sent their accounts through the wire,” he explains. “Their relations with the fighting were often quite faulty. On the Night of the Pep-Graves fight there was a lot of sun activity that would interrupt the broadcast. It would leave many holes in the relationship with the fight. The guy who wrote the article that Willa was carrying with him was a rather unclear reporter and could take this opportunity to write something sensational. “
Featherweight It will have a wide version in May at various stream points. Marek Baker’s book Willie Pep: Biography 20th The greatest feather knowledge of the century It is available at Amazon and the same applies to the upcoming boxing book Joe Cusano Mountains.
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Boxing
Moses Itauma Calls Out Next Opponent After Stunning Loss to Filip Hrgovic
Published
7 hours agoon
September 1, 2026
Moses It will hurt suffered a surprising defeat to Filip Hrgovic on Saturday, and the 21-year-old has now revealed who he wants to face upon his return.
Itauma looked to be fulfilling his destiny and dominating his Croatian opponent during the opening rounds at the O2 Arena over the weekend, but his success soon turned to desperation when Hrgovic’s chin held up and his own stamina did not.
An exhausted Itauma eventually collapsed in round nine of the contestwith Hrgovic pulling off a remarkable upset to throw the heavyweight scene a huge curveball, hand Itauma a first career loss and get his hands on the IBF heavyweight world title.
In an interview with talkSPORT Boxingpromoter Frank Warren revealed that Itauma has already asked for a rematch with ‘El Animal’.
“In that last round, he was still firing back. He has got a firing heart, he is a very brave young man, very brave. It’s now about what he does, how he prepares, he is saying to me, ‘can we get the rematch on?’, which is a natural reaction.”
Despite the 21-year-old’s desire to take on Hrgovic for a second time, it seems as though the latter will be made to face Cuba’s Frank Sanchez, who agreed to a step-aside deal to allow Itauma and Hrgovic to fight for the IBF title under the condition that he would face the winner.
Continuing, Warren seemed to confirm that a scrap between Hrgovic and Sanchez will be next, advising Itauma to take some time off before rushing into a second shot at the heavyweight throne.
“I told him, ‘you have got to just switch off from boxing, go and chill out, go and spend some time with your family and then come back, recharge your batteries and then we will get to work again,’
“The landscape is what it is, he is a a part of it, he has shown that he belongs at that level and provided that we learn and he learns some lessons from the fight, I think that he can go on and do some great things.”
In his post-fight interview, newly-crowned IBF champion Hrgovic spoke of his desire for a bout on home soil in Croatia; where he has not fought since 2019.
As a result, Warren may next target Zagreb for a clash between Hrgovic and Sanchez, which should take place within the next six months.
Boxing
Shawn Porter Expects a Dazzling Comeback from Canelo Against Explosive Prospect Mbilli
Published
7 hours agoon
September 1, 2026
Canelo Alvarez is hoping to regain one of his former super-middleweight titles at the first time of asking when he makes his comeback this October against WBC champion Christian Mbilli. Two-time welterweight ruler Shawn Porter has revealed his prediction for the fight.
Alvarez lost all four of his belts at 168lbs to Terence Crawford last September and has since been sidelined due to an elbow injuryas Crawford’s retirement saw the coronation of four new world champions.
One of those beneficiaries was Mbilli, who had been in possession of the WBC Interim crown when ‘Bud’ decided to hang up the glovesallowing him to be elevated to full champion and then lined up for a showdown with Canelo.
Canelo’s remaining quality at the age of 36 is an ongoing debate amongst fans and analysts, leading many to predict an intriguing and potentially even fight. Yet, speaking on The PorterWay Podcast‘Showtime’ said that Alvarez will look like an ‘A++ fighter’ come fight night.
“Canelo truly does have that fast twitch; he is explosive, but he is explosive with speed and quickness and that fast twitch is going to get Canelo to that mark a little bit quicker.
“Yeah, I think [he can still do it] at 36. If you think about it, even though Canelo is not that ‘A++’ fighter that he used to be, he is still a solid ‘A’ and that solid ‘A’ will beat a solid ‘B’ [in Mbilli].
“That solid ‘B’ will make a solid ‘A’ look like an ‘A++’, so I think that he is going to look ‘A++’.”
Canelo-Mbilli takes place on Saturday, October 31, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The super-middleweight duo will top a ‘Mexico vs. The World’ themed bill, which could feature a bantamweight title unification between WBA champion and pound-for-pound sensation Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez and WBO titleholder Christian Medina.
Boxing
Undefeated KO Artist Moves Closer to Canelo Fight After Latest Stoppage: Its Going to Happen
Published
1 day agoon
August 31, 2026
Canelo Alvarez could be ordered to enter an immediate title defence if he emerges victorious against Christian Mbilli on October 31.
The Mexican has not fought since September 2025, when he was relieved of his undisputed super-middleweight crown after losing a unanimous decision to Terence Crawford.
On that same card, Mbilli retained his WBC ‘interim’ strap following a 10-round draw against Lester Martinezmaintaining his position as one of the top contenders at 168lbs.
The Frenchman was then upgraded to full world champion in December, with Crawford having relinquished his four major titles and announced his retirement as a three-division undisputed king.
Canelo will therefore have the opportunity to reclaim one of his old belts in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with Mbilli making a first defence of his WBC title.
The winner of their showdown may then be ordered to face Martinez, as the unbeaten mandatory challenger comes off two successful defences of his WBC ‘interim’ strap.
Most recently, the 30-year-old scored a 10th-round stoppage of Luka Plantic last weekend, which followed his unanimous decision victory over Immanuwel Aleem in March.
Speaking at the post-fight presser following his win against Plantic, Martinez said through a translator that he expects to eventually face both Canelo and Mbilli.
“No, look, at the end of the day, I’ve said it before: the second fight [with Mbilli] will happen, possibly next year or the year after. But either one of those fights makes sense for us.
“We know the eyes of the world are going to be on [Mbilli-Canelo]and because we’re going to be there, we’re going to take advantage of all of that. But both fights are going to happen.”
Having already created the “blueprint” to defeat Canelo, Crawford trainer Brian ‘BoMac’ McIntyre said afterwards that he is supremely confident in guiding Martinez to victory against either Alvarez or Mbilli.
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