Boxing
Heavyweight Brandon Moore gets the opportunity he’s been waiting for against Richard Torrez
Published
8 months agoon
By
J. HumzaBrandon Moore has been waiting for his moment to prove his heavyweight potential.
According to Moore, that moment will come Saturday night at the expense of Richard Torrez, ensuring he has a successful career both in and out of the ring.
Moore will face Torrez in a fascinating clash of undefeated heavyweights at the Pechanga Arena in San Diego, California. The eight-round fight will begin a television broadcast consisting of three fights, the main character of which will be the fight for the vacant WBO world title between Emanuel Navarrete and Denys Berinchyk.
ESPN (10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT) will televise both fights, as well as the welterweight clash between undefeated welterweight Giovani Santillan, ranked No. 4 on The Ring at 147 pounds, and Brian Norman Jr. .
Both Moore (14-0, 8 knockouts) and Torrez will be promoted from Top Rank. The winner would put themselves in a position to face other undefeated or contenders in the division. As of Wednesday morning, Torrez is a -1,200 favorite to beat Moore, according to DraftKings Sportsbook.
Even though he is clearly the underdog, Moore believes he will be victorious.
“No disrespect to Torrez, but I’m going to destroy him,” Moore told The Ring last week. “I’m going to knock the hell out of him. He’ll come like a bull and I want him to do it. All I know is that this fight will end in a knockout.
I know the odds are in his favor and he’s 9-0, but he acts like he should be a ranked fighter. This fight is in San Diego and he’s from California.”
Torrez (9-0, 9 KO), based in Tulare, California, has five first-round knockouts since turning professional in March 2022. Torrez is the 2021 Olympic silver medalist who loses in the final to Bakhodir Jalolov, who will also advance through the Top Ranking.
The two fighters share a common opponent in goalkeeper Curtis Harper, whose southpaw Torrez stopped in the eighth round of their previous fight on December 9. Originally, Moore scored on a one-sided decision over Harper on April 22, but the fight was changed to a no. -decision of January 24 last year.
Moore believes he has fought the better opponents of both fighters and has achieved a lot in the ring while spending less time in the ring than Torrez.
“I don’t think he’s fought the caliber of guys I’ve faced,” said Moore, whose manager is Ryan Rickey. “I get better as the level of competition increases. I don’t think he’s faced anyone at my level. My story is that I struggled for six years and came through a harder road. He is 24 years ancient and has been an amateur for 16 years.
“I believe I am the perfect warrior. Look at every one of my fights where I won every round. In five or six fights I fought guys who used veteran tactics to avoid getting knocked out. I want to be in real fights, fight guys who want to win, not think they’re going to lose.
Moore, 30, trained by Marco Fazzini at Winter Haven Boxing, the oldest boxing gym in Florida, has sparred with the likes of Tyson Fury, Luis Ortiz, Deontay Wilder and Jared Anderson.
Moore comes from a sports background. He was a standout college basketball player at Southeastern University, where he was named The Sun Conference Student of the Year in 2013. His younger brother, Shaq Moore, is a member of the United States Men’s National Soccer Team and also plays for Major League Soccer team FC Nashville.
The 30-year-old recently appeared in a documentary by Steven Styles, in which he described his boxing career and future plans related to this sport.
Moore believes that signing a promotional contract with Top Rank will allow him to get the fights he wants on his way up the heavyweight ladder.
“I’m just grateful I got this opportunity,” Moore said. “Top Rank is one of the best promoters in the world that builds champions. My team did the research and I am blessed to work with them. They believe in me and I am sure I can become the face of the company.
Moore was born and raised in Lakeland, Florida. Once he hangs up his gloves, Moore would like to get involved in community service, even considering running for public office.
“I’m smarter than these heavyweights, both in and out of the ring. I look at boxing as a stepping stone. I want more. I would like to run for public office in Lakeland or Polk County.
“I want to become heavyweight champion of the world, but it’s bigger than boxing. I want to be a role model. I am 6 foot 6. I want to inspire the younger generation, talk to them and tell them to follow their dreams.
“I want to go as far as I can in this profession.”
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Boxing
Ryan Rozicki is waiting for Badou Jack’s consent to mandatory cooperation with the WBC
Published
5 days agoon
January 13, 2025The World Boxing Council (WBC) ordered world cruiserweight champion Badou “The Ripper” Jack (20-1-1, 19 KO) to make a mandatory title defense against Ryan “The Bruiser” Rozicki (20-1), number 1 in the WBC ranking – 1, 19 KOs).
If both camps fail to successfully negotiate an agreement, the WBC will organize a tender on February 4, followed by the Jack vs. Rozicki. Rozicki’s promoter, Three Lions Promotions, immediately sent Team Jacek an offer to promote the fight in Canada last week.
“We are waiting for their counteroffer,” explained promoter Dan Otter of Three Lions Promotions. “Boxing has had a huge resurgence in Canada and Ryan is leading the way. He is one of the most electrifying and hardest-hitting fighters in boxing, definitely in the cruiserweight division. He wants the WBC green belt and ultimately the unification of the division. Ryan will fight Jack anywhere for the belt.”
29-year-old Rozicki, born in Sydney (Nova Scotia) and living in Hamilton (Ontario), fought 22 professional fights against 21 different opponents (twice against Yamil Alberto Peralta), stopping 19 of the 20 opponents he defeated. an eye-opening 95-KO percentage.
Jack, 41, was a 2008 Olympian representing his native Sweden. He is a three-division world champion, as well as the WBC super middleweight and World Boxing Association (WBA) lightweight heavyweight title holder. Jack has a record of 5-0-2 (2 KO) in world championship fights.
“We respect Jack and I don’t want to sound disrespectful,” Otter added, “but he’s over 40 years vintage and has been relatively inactive for two years (only one fight). He brings a lot of experience and respect to the ring, but he will fight a newborn defender with a lot of power. Jack is going to struggle and honestly, I don’t think he’ll make it past the first few rounds.”
Ryan Rozicki is on a mission to become the first Canadian cruiserweight world champion.
The next move is Badou Jack’s.
Boxing
Floyd Mayweather’s record is not normal, it can’t happen in 70 years
Published
7 days agoon
January 12, 2025Floyd Mayweather’s incredible 50-0 record is not normal and cannot be repeated in sports for another seventy years.
This is the view of Saudi Arabian president Turki Alalshikh, who wants to adopt the UFC model in which fighters lose many fights during their career.
In a speech as he hosted the Ring Magazine Awards after acquiring the long-running boxing publication from Oscar De La Hoya, Alalshikh was unequivocal in his opinion.
“Now losing some fights in boxing must be normal,” he explained. “All fighters want a career similar to Floyd Mayweather – no losses. This may happen once every 50, 60 or 70 years.
“We need it [to be] like currently in the UFC model, where champions lose and win,” added the matchmaker during the Riyad season.
Mayweather rose through the sport in the tardy 1990s to become one of its youngest superstars. Mayweather’s professional success came after winning a bronze medal at the Olympics after losing to Serafim Todorov.
Winning world titles in five weight classes, Mayweather was untouchable. The Grand Rapids native only came close to defeat a few times. He dominated Manny Pacquiao and overtook Canelo Alvarez and Oscar De La Hoya after heated debates, with decisions that should have been made unanimously.
Towards the end of his career, Mayweather chose to face Andre Berto and Conor McGregor, easily winning and ending his boxing career at the age of 50 without ever going out. Calling himself “the greatest of all time,” Mayweather earned first-ballot Hall of Fame honors and is widely considered one of, if not the greatest defensive fighter of all time.
However, Alalshikh says this type of career needs to end so that fans can get the most out of boxing, as is the case with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Boxing needs to become more attractive, and Alalshikh sees the failures of top stars as a way to keep interest at an all-time high.
In this sport, many boxers enjoy undefeated streaks, the most notable of which is Oleksandr Usyk. The Ukrainian Pound for Pound King is 23-0 and has beaten the best he has to offer in his division and cruiserweight classification.
It remains a mystery how Alalshikh plans to make Usyk suffer while he dominates everyone else. By the time his grand plan goes into action, Usyk will be long gone, and Gervonta Davis, Shakur Stevenson and Devin Haney may be more realistic targets.
Boxing
Manny Pacquiao remains the favorite to win the title against Mario Barrios
Published
2 weeks agoon
January 6, 2025WBN understands that despite alternative options emerging, it is more likely that Manny Pacquiao will face Mario Barrios next.
Bob Santos, coach of WBC welterweight champion Barrios, told World Boxing News that he is currently in contact with Pacquiao’s team. Asked by WBN if he had spoken to Pacquiao or representatives of any other challenger, Santos replied: “Yes, Pacquiao’s promoter, Sean Gibbons.” Pressed on whether Barrios vs Pacquiao might happen next, he added: “It’s challenging to say. We’ll have to see how this plays out.”
WBN contacted Santos after Conor Benn emerged as a potential alternative to Barrios. The British fighter, who recently returned from a suspension following two positive drug tests, is keen to return to competition.
Benn showed favor with the World Boxing Council at the recent WBC Convention, the WBC Evaluation Committee and during an interview with the sanctioning body over the weekend. “The Destroyer” is ranked second in the rankings at 147 pounds, despite less than solid opponents during his time in exile, during which Benn competed twice in the United States while his career in the United Kingdom was in doubt.
As he battled to clear his name and with the British Anti-Doping Authority finding no evidence that Benn had intentionally taken ostarine, the 28-year-old’s career took a pointed nosedive. Despite this, he remains highly rated and at least one step away from fighting for an eliminator or one of the remaining championship titles.
However, Pacquiao remains Barrios’ favorite. Now it’s up to the boxing legend and Hall of Famer who got the first votes to secure his shot. WBN believes a July date – most likely at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas – is the most realistic date for a Nevada swan song.
Pacquiao could extend his record as the oldest welterweight champion by six years if he can secure a huge victory over the 29-year-old world champion. At 46 years antique, such a scenario remains unlikely, but he can never be compared to one of the greatest players of this generation.
Unlike heavier boxers and his training regiment, Pacquiao looks in great shape despite his advanced age. Everything is set for a massive return to the boxing capital of the world, provided Pacquiao and his team can manage his political ambitions, which are expected to run from this month until May. After that time, Pacquiao could find himself in the summer finals and become the all-time champion, regardless of the result.
Barrios is based in the city, where he trained with Santos, and would be the perfect opponent to see out the career of one of the greatest fighters in history.
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