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Analysis

Crawford vs. Madrimov: Pitbull Cruz, Andy Ruiz, Santa Cruz vs. Mares 3

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Crawford vs. Madrimov: Pitbull Cruz, Andy Ruiz, Santa Cruz vs. Mares 3

Terence “Bud” Crawford is scheduled to move up to 154 pounds and face WBA titleholder Israil Madrimov on Saturday, August 8. 3 at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles.

Today, Salvador Rodriguez of ESPN reports that three fights are set or almost set on the pay-per-view undercard:

  • Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz vs. Jose “Rayo” Valenzuela
  • Andy Ruiz Jr vs. Jarrell “Large Baby” Miller
  • Leo Santa Cruz vs. Abner Mares 3

Cruz (26-2-1, 18 KO) just won the WBA super lightweight title by defeating – unless you’re referee Chris Flores – Rolly Romero. 30. Valenzuela (13-2, 9 KO), after a controversial defeat to Colbert in March last year, defeats Chris Colbert by knockout in a rematch. 2023.

Valenzuela, 24, competes at lightweight, but Cruz, 25, is also a lightweight.

Ruiz (35-2, 22 KO) hasn’t fought since September. A 2022 victory over Luis Ortiz, and since his embarrassing performance in the rematch of his loss to Anthony Joshua in tardy 2019, he has fought just two fights. Now 34, Ruiz is still in great shape as a heavyweight contender, and if he’s watching, given the money floating around the division with Saudi backing, he really should want to get back into the game.

The 35-year-old Miller (26-1-1, 22 KO) has suffered his first defeat in the professional ring, having been stopped in the 10th round by Daniel Dubois in December last year in Riyad. Neither he nor Ruiz are known for their discipline and dedication, and Miller was arrested in early January in Florida. Rodriguez notes that this fight hasn’t been confirmed yet, but it’s close enough to reality to be included.

The final fight will raise eyebrows among some. Santa Cruz and Mares are 35 and 38 years vintage respectively and have not been lively. Santa Cruz (38-2-1, 19 KO) hasn’t fought since the beginning of 2022, and last faced a sedate opponent in October. Lost by knockout in 2020 to Gervonta “Tank” Davis. Mares (31-3-2, 15 KO) has only had one fight since losing in the rematch with Santa Cruz in 2018, and it was a draw in 2022 with Miguel Flores.

Mares, in particular, had eye problems that forced him to leave the ring, and he has been a commentator on PBC shows for years, moving on to the Prime Video team when Showtime closed up shop.

The last time a rivalry went a step too far involving a guy with an eye problem was the Israel Vazquez vs. Rafael Marquez IV match in 2010, which no one remembers fondly and most people would rather just forget. Anyway, this isn’t a Vazquez-Marquez rivalry; Santa Cruz is 2-0 against Mares, and the fights weren’t as classic as Vazquez-Marquez either.

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Analysis

Brandun Lee signs a contract with Queensberry Promotions

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Brandun Lee signs a contract with Queensberry Promotions

American super lightweight Brandun Lee has signed with Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions.

The 25-year-old Lee (28-0, 23 KO) has not fought for 15 months. He first started making his mark on ShoBox cards and then became a regular on Premier Boxing Champions shows.

Most recently, he defeated Pedro Campa by 10-round decision. Lee had gained some momentum as an thrilling prospect but has seen it fade a bit and of course the long period of inactivity hasn’t helped that, but getting back vigorous will certainly facilitate.

It’s also a notable move because Warren’s company hasn’t looked much outside the UK for talent acquisition to date. The company also announced the signing of Nathan Lugo, a standout American amateur who turned professional in April as a super middleweight on Overtime Boxing.

It looks like Queensberry are looking to expand their talent signing map. It’s unclear whether this means Warren will look to promote in the United States – as Matchroom’s Eddie Hearn did – but it’s also a fresh time in boxing, with Saudis supporting cards purportedly promoted by Warren and/or Hearn.

This may simply indicate that Warren sees an opportunity to expand his lineup with more options on these cards, as well as his own in the UK. Lee is a promising fighter who can quickly become a contender in a currently unstable (and intriguing) division, Lugo is a viable prospect and these are good moves considering the talent.

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Analysis

Jack Catterall vs Josh Taylor fight justified, says Bob Arum

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Jack Catterall vs Josh Taylor fight justified, says Bob Arum

Top Rank promoter Bob Arum still admits he was not thrilled with the official results of the rematch between Josh Taylor and Jack Catterall, which saw Catterall take a unanimous decision on scores of 116-113, 117-111 and 117-111. Interview with Sky SportsArum claims he was personally involved in the fight and believes the score was too high in Catterall’s favor.

“Let me explain. I was in Leeds for that fight. I watched this fight closely. The fight could have ended in three ways: Catterall 7-5 [in rounds]7-5 Taylor, even 6-6,” Arum said Heavenly sports.

Arum continued by saying that the judges’ official ratings were unacceptable, although he refrained from making any accusations of corruption. With that in mind, he truly believes Taylor did no favors, which is what caused his post-fight reaction.

“I was really nervous because Taylor is my fighter, we promote him. But not necessarily because I thought he definitely won the fight. I just thought it did him a disservice that the scorecards were so broad. I was sitting next to Eddie Hearn, whose player was Catterall, and he scored a goal and it was a very, very close fight.”

In lithe of the result and the split between Taylor and Catterall after the two fights, Arum feels he naturally deserves a third fight, especially given the fan reaction to the event, but says he will have to see how it all really comes together point in this fight.

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Analysis

Bam Rodriguez takes 115, but where is Teofimo at 140?

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Bam Rodriguez takes 115, but where is Teofimo at 140?

The next update will appear on Monday, July 22. So this will be quite an extensive update, with many ranked fights taking place over the course of three weeks, but – well, you can see the list of these fights below.

Ranked fights during this period:

  • average weight: (1) Janibek Alimkhanuly vs (9) Andrei Mikhailovich, July 13
  • welterweight: (1) Jaron “Boots” Ennis vs. (9) David Avanesyan, July 13
  • Delicate: (3) Shakur Stevenson vs. Artem Harutyunyan, July 6
  • Delicate: (4) William Zepeda vs. Giovanni Cabrera, July 6
  • Delicate: (8) Keyshawn Davis vs. Miguel Madueno, July 6
  • Super Featherweight: (1) O’Shaquie Foster vs. (6) Robson Conceicao, July 6
  • featherweight: (8) Ruben Villa vs. Sulaiman Segawa, July 13
  • Super bantamweight: (6) Sam Goodman vs. Thachtana Luangphon, July 10
  • Super bantamweight: (7) Liam Davies v Shabaz Masoud, 20 July
  • bantam weight: (1) Junto Nakatani vs. (10) Vincent Astrolabio, July 20
  • Super fly: (2) Kazuto Ioka vs (3) Fernando Martinez, July 7
  • Super fly: (10) Suzumi Takayama vs. Isao Aoyama, July 18
  • Super fly: (5) Kosei Tanaka vs. Jonathan Rodriguez, July 20
  • Junior Flyweight: (9) Shokichi Iwata vs. Jahzeel Trinidad, July 6
  • Junior Flyweight: (3) Carlos Canizales vs. Ivan Garcia, July 19
  • P4P for women: (4) Chantelle Cameron vs. Elhem Mekhaled, July 20
  • P4P for women: (5) Amanda Serrano vs. Stevie Morgan, July 20
  • P4P for women: (1) Claressa Shields vs. Vanessa Lepage-Joanisse, July 27

Upcoming Fights: (8) Jared Anderson vs. (10) Martin Bakole, August. 3 … (3) Anthony Joshua vs. (6) Daniel Dubois, September 21 … (1) Oleksandr Usyk vs. (2) Tyson Fury, December. 21


Upcoming Fights: TBA


Upcoming Fights: (10) Radivoje Kalajdzic vs. David Morrell, August. 3 … (4) Joshua Buatsi vs. Willy Hutchinson, September. 21


Comments: Caleb Plant is out due to inactivity, so in comes Oselys Iglesias.

Upcoming Fights: (3) Christian Mbilli vs. (4) Sergiy Derevyanchenko, August. 17 … (10) Oselys Iglesias vs. TBA, August. 17 … (5) Diego Pacheco vs. (8) Kevin Lele Sadjo, TBA


Upcoming Fights: (1) Janibek Alimkhanuly vs. (9) Andrei Mikhailovich, July 13 … (7) Liam Smith vs. Josh Kelly, September 2013 21


Comments: Josh Kelly moves up to 160 pounds ahead of his September fight with Liam Smith. Bakhram Murtazaliev, who won the vacant IBF belt in April, is in second place. 8 scoffs as it was some neat up but only a miniature amount. The division is in a strange place right now, but it’s not monotonous.

Upcoming Fights: (3) Israil Madrimov vs. Terence “Bud” Crawford, August. 3 … (6) Serhii Bohachuk vs. (7) Vergil Ortiz Jr, August. 10


Comments: A change in defense as Crocker didn’t blow the door down against Conah Walker, but it was a win and the division is uncertain at the moment.

Upcoming Fights: (1) Jaron “Boots” Ennis vs. (9) David Avanesyan, July 13


Comments: I don’t think I would pick Teofimo Lopez to beat Jack Catterall, Jose Ramirez or Alberto Puello right now, but he could do it. I also don’t know if he would do well against Subriel Matias. In fact, there are plenty of people who are closer to 50/50 on paper if you eliminate the ESPN hype and evaluate actual performances.

But he beat Steve Claggett, he beat him convincingly, he basically did what he needed to do other than being a “showman”, which is a witty bit of marketing because the man is not a particularly fun fighter to watch.

Teofimo is weird, but he wins fights, and no one has done better lately either. He has arguments for “no”. 1st place, at least you can create it, but you can also easily argue with him outside the top 5.

Upcoming Fights: (7) Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz vs. Jose Valenzuela, August. 3


Upcoming Fights: (3) Shakur Stevenson vs. Artem Harutyunyan, July 6… (4) William Zepeda vs. Giovanni Cabrera, July 6… (8) Keyshawn Davis vs. Miguel Madueno, July 6… (6) Andy Cruz vs. Antonio Moran, August. 3


Comments: Bringing Emanuel Navarrete back to his ancient spot as he actually intends to get back to 130 pounds. That knocks out Andres Cortes, which is good enough because Cortes didn’t set the world on fire in his June 21 fight against Abraham Nova.

Upcoming Fights: (1) O’Shaquie Foster vs. (6) Robson Conceicao, July 6… (5) Anthony Cacace vs. Josh Warrington, September 21… (3) Emanuel Navarrete vs. (4) Oscar Valdez, TBA


Comments: Both Rafael Espinoza and Robeisy Ramirez have won since the last update and appear to be heading towards a rematch. Maybe. Josh Warrington is out of the fight as he approaches 130 pounds and will have a fight with Anthony Cacace in September.

Upcoming Fights: (8) Ruben Villa vs. Sulaiman Segawa, July 13… (1) Luis Alberto Lopez vs. (10) Angelo Leo, August. 10


Upcoming Fights: (6) Sam Goodman vs. Thachtana Luangphon, July 10… (7) Liam Davies vs. Shabaz Masoud, July 20


Upcoming Fights: (1) Junto Nakatani vs. (10) Vincent Astrolabio, July 20


Comments: Bam Rodriguez takes over as no. 1st place after the break and victory over Juan Francisco Estrada, who basically led this fight. Estrada drops to 1st 4, with no guarantee that he will fight again or that he will fight in this division. But he’s not retired or anything. Bam is a fantastic juvenile fighter, a legitimate rising star in the P4P discussion and he continues to prove it.

Upcoming Fights: (2) Kazuto Ioka vs. (3) Fernando Martinez, July 7… (10) Suzumi Takayama vs. Isao Aoyama, July 18… (5) Kosei Tanaka vs. Jonathan Rodriguez, July 20


Upcoming Fights: (4) Angel Ayala vs. (8) Dave Apolinario, TBA


Comments: Jonathan “Bomba” Gonzalez vacated his belt to move up, so he’s out, and Adrian Curiel moved up to 112 pounds, so he’s out. It appears that Kenshiro Teraji is also planning on moving up to 112 pounds, so he will likely leave the field soon.

Upcoming Fights: (9) Shokichi Iwata vs. Jahzeel Trinidad, July 6… (3) Carlos Canizales vs. Ivan Garcia, July 19


Upcoming Fights: (2) Ginjiro Shigeoka vs. (9) Pedro Taduran, July 28


Upcoming Fights: (4) Chantelle Cameron vs. Elhem Mekhaled, July 20… (5) Amanda Serrano vs. Stevie Morgan, July 20… (1) Claressa Shields vs. Vanessa Lepage-Joanisse, July 27… (2) Katie Taylor vs. (5) Amanda Serrano, November 2013 15

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