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Juan Francisco Estrada is planning a tetralogy with Chococalito Gonzalez, but is focusing on Bam Rodriguez

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RING 115-pound champion Juan Francisco Estrada addresses the media following a press conference on June 27 in Phoenix, Arizona. Photos: Amanda Westcott, Matchroom Boxing

Juan Francisco Estrada is ready to go through the present to revisit the past.

The reigning Ring/WBC junior bantamweight champion is set to share the ring with Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez once again. The pair of future Hall of Famers have fought three memorable bouts, with Estrada holding a 2-1 lead in each.

A fourth fight has not been ruled out after their great clash in December 2022, won by majority decision by Estrada (44-3, 28 knockouts). The 34-year-old from Hermosillo, Mexico must first defeat one of the best juvenile talents in the sport, 24-year-old Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez (19-0, 12 KO).

Needless to say, he’s up for the challenge.

“People sometimes disrespect fighters like me when they say, ‘Gallo Estrada is too ancient,’” Estrada said. “But on Saturday, I’ll show that’s not true and my career will continue to grow for a while. “A lot of people say we’re too ancient, but if Chocolatito becomes bantamweight champion, a fourth fight would be great.”

Estrada-Rodriguez headlines DAZN’s four-fight broadcast Saturday night from the Footprint Center, home of the NBA’s Phoenix Suns, as Estrada makes his seventh defense of The Ring junior bantamweight title.

For Estrada, this will be the first fight since the trilogy with Gonzalez (51-4, 41 KO). Injuries and an inability to secure a unification fight led to his 18-month layoff.

Interestingly, the division champions will target Kazuto Ioka (31-2-1, 16 KO) and Fernando “Puma” Martinez (16-0, 9 KO). Their WBA/IBF unification fight on July 7 will pit The Ring’s No. 2 and No. 3 junior bantamweights against each other in a fantastic matchup in Tokyo.

Estrada is still looking for fights in the older part of his Hall of Fame career. The two-division champion begins his fourteenth fight in his career, for the championship belt or The Ring championship.

That’s a high order compared to the near-perfect Rodriguez. Despite this, Estrada is undefeated for over six years and has a proven track record at the elite level.

Gonzalez, meanwhile, is launching his own comeback. The former four-division champion will face bantamweight contender Robert Berrera (27-5, 17 KOs) on July 12 at home in Managua, Nicaragua. If he wins, “Chocolatito” is expected to pursue the bantamweight title.

A fifth division title for the Nicaraguan legend would be the perfect incentive for Estrada to move up in weight.

“I think winning any world title in any division at our age would be nippy,” Estrada said. “Not everyone could do it. If Chocolatito becomes bantamweight champion, we will pursue him or any champion at that weight.”

Of course, there is still the issue of changing rates on Saturday.

“We can have plans and make plans, but first we have to focus on the fight in front of us,” Estrada admitted. “If they say they’re going to knock me out, they’re going to beat me, and then they’re going to go up the division they’re going to face [WBA 118 titlist Takuma] Inoue is their business, but we’ll see on Saturday.

“If Jesse Rodríguez beats me, it will be because he is a better boxer, not because of anything other than my age. They say a lot that I am ancient, that I am retiring, and on Saturday I will show that I am not.”

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Gvozdyk’s advice for Bivol to defeat Artur Beterbiev: “Run”

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Image: Gvozdyk's Advice for Bivol to Defeat Artur Beterbiev: "Run Away"

Oleksandr Gvozdyk recommends that Dmitry Bivol “run away” from Artur Beterbiev, not let him punch and stay away from the ropes next Saturday in the undisputed featherlight heavyweight championship fight in Riyad.

Former WBC 175-pound champion Gvozdyk was the favorite going into his fight against Beterbiev five years ago on October 18, 2019, but was knocked out in the tenth round.

Gwozdyk was leading 87–83 and 86–85 on two judges’ scorecards, and the third one was 87–83 by the break in the tenth period. Gvozdyk showed that Beterbiev can be attacked for a long time, but his strength does not require much to turn the tide of the fight.

Bivol (23-0, 12 KO) is more mobile and has a better combination punch than Gvozdyk did back then, but he’s not as mighty and mighty in the uppercut. For this fight, Bivol must give up striking combinations because it would expose him to Beterbiev’s counterattack. It is like a shark that hunts its prey for food to reach it and wants to land.

“He is very shrewd, has good footwork and has a very good and precise jab,” said Oleksandr Gvozdyk Round eight of boxingspeaking about Dmitry Bivol. “They are two different styles of fighters. Beterbiev is a brawler; it is coming and it is inexorable. He is very mighty and also very shrewd. People underestimate his boxing skills.

“Yes, because of his style, he just comes in and blows everyone away,” Gvozdyk said when asked if people underestimate Beterbiev’s technical skills. People think that’s all he can do, but he can also box.

Beterbiev is mainly engaged in boxing, but his strength is so great that it results in knocking out opponents. He has massive hands and even his thrusts have power. Bivol will, of course, box and try to stay away from Beterbiev throughout the fight. It won’t be uncomplicated.

“He was an amateur world champion where you can’t really operate your power for everyone. There are a lot of technical guys there. You are narrow to three rounds,” Gwozdyk said.

“Of course you prepare to avoid his punches. You must not block near the ropes, because it becomes really risky there,” Gwozdyk said about Beterbiev. “When he starts throwing punches at you [guard]you still feel them, and it’s not uncomplicated to fight this guy.”

Bivol won’t let Beterbiev grab him by the ropes, but that doesn’t mean he won’t get hit strenuous in the middle of the ring. Beterbiev doesn’t need to trap his opponents to hit substantial shots. Many of his knockouts take place inside the ring.

“He knows how to fight guys like that,” Gvozdyk said about Beterbiev knowing how to deal with mobile fighters who operate footwork. So I think it will be a really challenging task for Bivol.

“It’s challenging [to prevent Beterbiev from trapping you against the ropes]. When you’re fighting this type of guy, you’re constantly revving your engine and it really burns you out. In addition to the technical and tactical part, to be able to fight Beterbiev, you need to take care of your fitness very well,” said Gvozdyk.

It will be challenging for Bivol to move the entire fight to escape Beterbiev, because he will catch him with compact punches. Even when Bivol turns to run away, he will be hit by arrows. Unlike other power-hitting players, Beterbiev doesn’t weigh himself down with his shots. Throws compact, powerful shots that deal high damage.

“Don’t let him hit you and take advantage of you [backside] challenging,” said Gvozdyk on what advice he has for Bivol in defeating Beterbiev. “Run away, because it’s not worth resisting the ropes against him,” Gwozdyk said.

This will require Bivol to emphasize landing single punches and jabs to prevent Beterbiev from constantly hitting him with his punches. Movement is vital to Bivol, but he won’t win a fight if he doesn’t stand and fight at times.

The judges will not automatically award rounds to Bivol based on three minutes of movement and zero punch scoring against Beterbiev. This works for some fighters when they play for the A team and compete in their hometowns, but Saturday’s competition in Riyad is neutral for both sides.

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Manny Pacquiao vs. Mario Barrios is not dead and buried yet

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Manny Pacquiao vs Barrios PBC

LAS VEGAS — Team Barrios is still eager to fight Manny Pacquiao when they “take care of things” on November 15 when they face Abel Ramos.

Mario Barrios and Abel Ramos fight for the WBC welterweight world title in one of the biggest combat sports events of the year – Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

Bob Santos, Barrios’ trainer, recently told World Boxing News that they are in camp and focusing on Ramos.

“There’s nothing better than Netflix,” Santos told us.

With approximately 275 million subscribers worldwide, the possible reach of the Tyson vs Paul event on Netflix could make it one of the most watched boxing events of all time.

Ramos has been in the ring with Maurice Hooker, Regis Prograis, Ivan Baranchyk, Jamal James and Yordenis Ugas, but since losing to the Cuban boxer in 2020, he has only two wins in four fights.

Barrios and Ramos are one fight out of four so far, alongside the highly anticipated rematch of Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano.

Ramos is quite a surprise opponent for Barrios, as both Santos and Manny Pacquiao’s representative, Sean Gibbons, have been talking to World Boxing News all summer about a substantial fight between them later in the year, possibly even at a Premier Boxing Champions event.

“[The Pacquiao fight] for some reason it couldn’t come to fruition,” Santos told us. “We were in the middle of negotiations. I know Pacquiao wanted to fight. We wanted to fight. This would have been a great world title fight, but they just couldn’t get it together in time.

“This opportunity came up with Netflix and Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson,” Santos added. “And this is not just a boxing event, but one of the biggest events. The numbers will be crazy. Everyone loves Mike Tyson and everyone wants to support him in many ways. Of course there is publicity, especially with Jake Paul. This event – ​​it is huge.”

Even though Barrios will fight in the middle of next month, his team would still be content with a fight against Pacquiao. So they know they have to “take care of business” and maintain the championship.

It was this WBC world title that Pacquiao reportedly motivated the Filipino legend to return to the ring and attempt to break his own record as the division’s oldest champion.

“The only reason why Pacquiao [would] Of course, to come back at this stage is to make history and it would have to be a world title,” Santos told us.

“So if we don’t take care of business and keep the world championship, obviously this fight will fail.

“So first we have to focus 100% on Abel Ramos,” concluded Santos.

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“I was an enforcer in a gang,” admits Chris Eubank Jr

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CHRIS Eubank Jr currently mixes on the fringes of the world boxing scene, but he used to mix things up in a different arena. The boxer from Brighton, who will face Kamil Szeremeta on October 12, revealed video showing he was an enforcer in a gang.

“You just have to deal with it. You’re a child, you don’t know better. That’s one of the reasons I moved to Las Vegas, to get away from this scene, this lifestyle,” Eubank Jr. said.

Although Chris has now managed to escape his father’s shadow and gang life to pursue a career on his own, as quickly as things change, some things remain the same. The location, venue and pay packages may be different for the 33-3 (24 KO) pro, but the competitive spirit and desire for the scrap are still there.

“I liked the competition. I love challenges. I’ve got a guy in front of me trying to eliminate me, and I’m trying to eliminate him. And who will get there first? Who will strike the first blow? It’s always been just sexy to me. And that just turned me on. I don’t know why.

When it comes to street laws, the only way to prepare is to be ready, alert and trained for a fight. Born fighters often grow up in extreme poverty, where violence is the only universal language, and in the case of boxing, it is also a way out of the hood. Grainy footage of Chris taking part in an illegal war circulated years ago and now shows what his life has evolved from.

I don’t know how it happened, but I was a street kid. I was a man of the road who went home every evening to a million-pound mansion. It doesn’t make sense,” Eubank Jr. mused.

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