Teofimo Lopez defended his WBO super lightweight title for the second time at the James L. Knight Center in Miami Beach, defeating Steve Claggett for a crushing twelve-round points victory.
Claggett tried to impose himself in the early rounds, but although he was the aggressor, Lopez constantly counterattacked and outboxed the challenger. Lopez maintained this pattern throughout the fight, and in the fifth fight, he countered Claggett with several uppercuts, then fought mostly from the ropes, fending off any attacks Claggett could muster before the championship rounds.
In the tenth set, Lopez landed at least four right hands to the head of his opponent, and another right hand a round later bloodied the nose of Claggett, who had long been racing to win. He never stopped trying, however, and in the final frame landed a solid left hand that was probably his best of the fight, but the result was academic as both were exposed.
Two scores of 120-108 and a third of 119-109 reflected dominance for Lopez, who will be hoping to step into a gigantic fight next time out.
Ramirez returns in devastating form
Robeisy Ramirez (14-2, 8 KO) returned from his last loss of the WBO featherweight title, and the Cuban scored in the seventh round against Brandon Leon Benitez (21-3, 9 KO) to win the vacant WBO NABO title. A huge uppercut dropped Benitez to the canvas and everything at sea, and the fight ended spectacularly.
Santana finally hears the final bell
Also in the featherweight division, Yan Santana (12-0, 11 KO) went the distance for the first time in his career, and the Dominican defeated Brandon Valdes (15-5, 7 KO) and secured a comfortable points victory. Santana won by scores of 98-91 (twice) and 96-93.
Full Undercard Summary
Super lightweight prospects Elvis Rodriguez (16-1-1, 13 KOs) and Jino Rodrigo (12-4-2, 10 KOs) both went down in the first round of their clash, but it was Rodriguez who came out on top over the course of ten rounds, winning by two scores of 98-91 and a third by a score of 97-92.
In eight-round fights, welterweight hope Rohan Polanco (13-0, 8 KO) defeated Luis Hernandez Ramos (23-5, 20 KO) in two rounds, and in the middleweight division Euri Cedeno (9-0-1, 8 KO) needed less than minutes to knock out Dormedes Potes (14-7-1, 10 KO).
in six rounds Nico Ali Walsh (10-1, 5 KO) took revenge for his only defeat in his career, scoring points in six rounds against Sona Akale (9-2, 4 KO), where he knocked down Ali in the third round. Walsh’s favor decided about their middleweight fight.
— Sky Sports Boxing (@SkySportsBoxing) June 30, 2024
Emiliano Vargas (11-0, 9 KO) scored another quick victory, this time against Jose Zaragoza (9-9-2, 3 KO), needing just over 90 seconds to win their super lightweight fight. In the heavyweight division, Lorenzo Medina (11-0, (9 KO) was forced to go the distance against Detrailous Webster (7-4, 3 KO), winning wide on the card.
Tyson Fury will lose almost half of his earnings after the highly anticipated rematch with Oleksandr Usyk. The 36-year-old British boxer is expected to earn around £60 million for fighting the Ukrainian in Saudi Arabia.
However, if Usyk, who handed Fury a split decision victory in their first meeting in May, wins again, it won’t be the only thing Fury will lose. According to data analyst JeffBeta, Fury will receive almost £30 million in prize money deducted by the taxman for income tax and national insurance, which he will have to pay when he returns to the UK.
In total, around 47 per cent of his winnings will go to HM Revenue and Customs. He will have to pay around £28 million in tax and an additional £1.2 million in National Insurance contributions.
The fight purse shared by Usyk and Fury is believed to be valued at a staggering £150 million. With a victory in the first fight, Usyk is expected to take home a larger share of the purse, estimated at around 60 percent.
Discussing the tax treatment of Fury’s earnings, a JeffBet spokesperson commented: “If you are a UK resident you must pay tax on your earnings abroad in the same way and this remains the same regardless of how much someone may earn.
“Good tax advice is always crucial and in this case you can be sure that the Fury camp will consider the most advantageous deal.”
While financial aspects play their part, Fury, better known as the Gypsy King, is determined to fix his only professional failure. He recently confessed that he had not spoken to his wife Paris for three months in order to maintain absolute concentration.
On his approach to the upcoming fight, Fury revealed: “If anything, a little more focus. More laser focus and less clowning around.
“If I put two things into my game plan, it will be a little more effective. There are no large advantages here. They only gave him a point [it could have been] either way, split decision, draw, whatever. So there’s not much we can change easily.
“But how about this one? How about I won the round 10-8 in round nine? This is no longer a draw or a one-point victory, it is a decisive victory. A little less cheating and a little more focus, laser focus and I should get my job done.
Pacheco (22-0, 18 KO) is getting closer to a world title as a challenger to the WBO world title. The Los Angeles star will headline his sixth straight appearance and second appearance in Las Vegas, where he defeated Shawn McCalman on points in April before returning to his home stadium in August to record his 18th victory at the distance in a nauseating KO victory over Maciej Sulecki via body shot – performances that further strengthened his position as one of the hottest talents in the game, as confirmed by ESPN’s ranking of Pacheco in 2nd place on the list of the best players in the category 25, second only to star player and stablemate Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez.
Nelson (20-0, 16 KO) was gearing up for a huge fight and now he has a chance to thwart Pacheco’s rise to the top and take the great position his adolescent opponent has achieved. The 36-year-old last got a taste of action in August in Los Angeles, defeating Marcos Rodriguez via fifth-round stoppage thanks to a victory over his good friend and fellow Omaha fighter, Terence Crawford.
“I am very excited to return to the ring in early 2025 against another undefeated opponent – the DP show goes on,” Pacheco said.
“This is the type of fight I wanted, so I could show the world who I am,” Nelson said.
Diego Pacheco will defend his WBO International super middleweight title against Steven Nelson at The Chelsea at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas on Saturday, January 25, live worldwide on DAZN – and Cuban Olympic star Andy Cruz will face Omar Salcido and Ernesto Mercado will face Jose Pedraza in his Matchroom debut.
Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk were separated after a long, intense staredown that turned into a heated exchange during a recent press conference.
Both fighters stared into each other’s eyes for more than 10 minutes, exchanging insults in a heated atmosphere ahead of this weekend’s long-awaited rematch.
Fury, 36, refused to step down, and Usyk, 37, firmly came to a bizarre conclusion about the pair’s relatively tranquil recent media appearance.
The press conference began with Usyk arriving with a live band and a vast group of vocalists, after which both players gave brief answers to questions.
Fury, however, took a more grave tone, stating: “I’m going to cause a lot of pain, definitely put that motherfucker in the injured locker. “I have nothing to say except it will be very hurtful and painful. The conversation was over.
“The first fight I talked about, I was joking. Throughout my entire career. This time I’m grave and I’m going to do some damage.”
Tensions rose as the pair faced each other at the end of the event, with the room filled with cameras and spectators jostling for a good vantage point. Looking down for a long time gave everyone ample opportunity to capture the moment.
The situation escalated when Fury began hurling insults at the WBA, WBC and WBO heavyweight champion. Usyk retaliated, which seemed to enrage Fury even more, causing him to break out in a sweat as his team tried to drag him away from the scene.
When Usyk finally left the stage, he walked up a nearby staircase, pumping his fist in appreciation of the audience as some of his band members chanted his name.
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