Former Contender star Sergio Mora went one better when he wrested the WBC light-middleweight title from Vernon Forrest in a huge upset in June and became the first fighter from the boxing reality TV series to win a world title (Pete Manfredo and Alfonso Gomez had previously failed).
The unbeaten Los Angeles man, who picked up a million bucks for winning Contender in 2005, shrugged off a slow start and dominated the later rounds against the established but aging Forrest to snatch a majority decision in Connecticut. Now the new champion has to do it all over again when he defends against Forrest on the Joel Casamayor-Juan Manuel Marquez show in Las Vegas this Saturday (September 13).
Forrest, "The Viper" from Atlanta, claims he was "flat" last time but clearly underestimated his opponent and clearly banked on an early win. This time we can expect him to be much sharper, mentally and physically, although you do wonder about his freshness after 16 years and three world title spells as a pro. Mora, by way of contrast, turned pro eight years ago and is 10 years the younger man at 27. Not a great puncher, "The Latin Snake" is slick and busy and looks strong at light-middleweight, after dropping down from middle. He will be determined to prove his moment of triumph was no fluke - just as Forrest will be out to make amends for what was really a shockingly bad performance (by his standards).
It could go either way, although one leans towards Mora.
Also this Saturday, California's Timothy Bradley makes the first defence of his WBC light-welterweight title in Biloxi, Mississippi, on the Nate Campbell-Joan Guzman bill. Opponent is Edner Cherry.
Bradley won the title with an upset split decision over Bradford's Junior Witter in Nottingham in May. The 25-year-old from Palm Springs came over as the mandatory challenger but was largely untested and - stocky and aggressive - looked made for the counterpunching, switch-hitting Witter. Bradley showed fast hands, though, and dropped Witter with a big right in the sixth and maintained a high tempo throughout to prove an impressive, worthy winner in his first 12-rounder, despite the split.
Witter is not an easy guy to look good against, let alone beat.
The improving, unbeaten Bradley moves on to the useful Cherry, a 26-year-old Floridian who comes off an imposing 10-round stoppage of former lightweight star Stevie Johnston and, in recent years, has lost only to current IBF light-welterweight champ Paulie Malignaggi, who takes on Ricky Hatton in Las Vegas in November.
Altogether, Cherry is 24-5-2 (12).
Won or lose, Cherry comes in as a threat but will be fighting out of his natural weight class, which is lightweight. In seven years as a pro the chunky challenger has never scaled within two pounds of light-welter (heaviest is the 9st 11¾lbs he came in for Malignaggi). It will help him that Bradley is a chunky fellow himself. Cherry is tough, willing and pours it on late in his fights. He's never been stopped.
The champion, however, is the natural light-welterweight and thus the stronger man and clearly relishes the limelight and his new-found status. He is on fightnews virtually every day. The bottom lime reads, if Bradley can beat Witter in England, he can get past Cherry in the States.
A cracking match on the Ryan Rhodes-Jamie Coyle British title bill in Sheffield on September 20 pairs Liverpool's Derry Matthews and Martin Linsday of Belfast in a 10-round eliminator for the British featherweight title held by precocious Scot Paul "Chuckles" Appleby.
The tall Matthews, former British Young Boxer of the Year, has licked good men in Salford threat Stephen Foster (floored, picked off and easily outscored over 12), top Londoner Matthew Marsh (stopped in 11) and Greenock's gritty John Simpson (busted up and outpointed over 12), although Derry was down in the first round against Simpson and reverted to plenty of rough stuff in a bloody encounter in his home city of Liverpool, which he got away with.
At 20-0 it was all looking so good for Matthews when aging Mongolian hard man Choi Tseveenpurev simply walked through him in April in Bolton, flooring him FIVE times on the way to a fifth-round stoppage, although Tseveenpurev could do that to anyone, domestically.
There was talk of the Scouser, now 21-1 (11), moving up a weight afterwards but he came back at the weight with a wide eight-round decision over Kenya's previously unbeaten John Gicharu in Liverpool in the summer, despite cuts over both eyes, and boils down again for the unbeaten Lindsay, a talented, versatile exponent who has done much of his boxing overseas and outscored tough Londoner Marc Callaghan in an eight-rounder in Italy last time out in May (Callaghan now fights talented Josh Wales on this bill). Lindsay is much less experienced than Matthews at 12-0 (4) but enjoyed a top class amateur career and has mixed in North American rings as a pro. He looks a great prospect - the new Barry McGuigan, say some - although the Irishman flopped in the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, where he was stopped on the outclassed rule by another Liverpudlian, Mark Moran. Barry McGuigan won Commonwealth Games gold at 17. As a pro Lindsay hasn't really been tested.
It could be close, and it could be bloody. "Dirty" Derry looked vulnerable to body shots against Tseveenpurev, and Lindsay has every shot in the book, if not bags of power. Everything considered, one fancies the big, strong, more seasoned Matthews, still a young man at 24 and actually younger than Lindsay, and probably the harder hitter of the two, to come through.
Pick of the Pops
Re: Pick of the Pops
Contenders Anthony Small and Freddy Curiel square up in a good-looking international at Grosvenor House on swanky Park Lane in London this Friday (September 12), a light-middleweight 10-rounder that tops F rank Warren's annual charity dinner show.
Curiel is the American who floored and stopped Crawley's Ross Minter in the dying seconds of a thrilling eight-rounder in Newcastle last year, as part of a seemingly one-off UK vs USA Contender Challenge event. The swarthy, solidly built, stiff-hitting New Jersey man was in trouble earlier in the fight but stayed on his feet, rode out the storm, eased back into it and nailed Minter with a perfect right hand to seal a big, big win. Minter, son of former undisputed world middleweight champion Alan, beat the count but was 'gone' and indeed fell back down to the canvas. It was waved off.
Londoner Small won himself on the same night but his last round was one he would like to forget. Against Seattle battler Walter "Two Guns" Wright, and after a bright start, the cocky, flashy Small ran out of steam and was very nearly stopped in the eighth before picking up a split decision. Remarkably, Small blew up again when he challenged tall Welshman Bradley Pryce for the Commonwealth light-middleweight title a few months later and this time was rescued on the ropes, shipping a series of right hands, in round seven. Small had pretty well dominated up to then. He lost his unbeaten record.
Since then, Small has stopped a faded Takaloo and Weston-Super-Mare's inexperienced George Katsimpas in seven and eight rounds respectively but the fights were too one-sided to judge his stamina again. Small is quick and talented - he definitely has the edge in speed and boxing ability over "Furious" Freddy - but his flashes of brilliance are interspersed with raggedness, a porous defence and that questionable stamina. One big advantage for him in this one is size. Small is well-built for the light-middleweight division whereas stocky Curiel has done much of his boxing at welter - the Minter cracker was was at welter 18 months ago. Curiel really banged up in that fight, by the way.
One had to admire the way Curiel switched tactics after Minter really hurt him in the fourth round. He rarely stood still and potshotted effectively, and Minter couldn't catch him again. Curiel showed real guile. He was actually ahead on points (to me Minter looked well ahead) when he pulled out that stunning right hand to close the show with 40 seconds remaining. A pro since 1992 (at 17), Freddy has masses of experience and knows how to stretch anyone, although he has been stopped once or twice and never been a particularly busy fighter. He's fought only twice since Minter: one win and a loss, the loss on points.
Curiel is also knocking on at 33 (Small is 27).
On home turf, everything considered, Small looks to have the freshness, speed, agility and natural boxing skills to take a good 10-round decision.
Curiel is the American who floored and stopped Crawley's Ross Minter in the dying seconds of a thrilling eight-rounder in Newcastle last year, as part of a seemingly one-off UK vs USA Contender Challenge event. The swarthy, solidly built, stiff-hitting New Jersey man was in trouble earlier in the fight but stayed on his feet, rode out the storm, eased back into it and nailed Minter with a perfect right hand to seal a big, big win. Minter, son of former undisputed world middleweight champion Alan, beat the count but was 'gone' and indeed fell back down to the canvas. It was waved off.
Londoner Small won himself on the same night but his last round was one he would like to forget. Against Seattle battler Walter "Two Guns" Wright, and after a bright start, the cocky, flashy Small ran out of steam and was very nearly stopped in the eighth before picking up a split decision. Remarkably, Small blew up again when he challenged tall Welshman Bradley Pryce for the Commonwealth light-middleweight title a few months later and this time was rescued on the ropes, shipping a series of right hands, in round seven. Small had pretty well dominated up to then. He lost his unbeaten record.
Since then, Small has stopped a faded Takaloo and Weston-Super-Mare's inexperienced George Katsimpas in seven and eight rounds respectively but the fights were too one-sided to judge his stamina again. Small is quick and talented - he definitely has the edge in speed and boxing ability over "Furious" Freddy - but his flashes of brilliance are interspersed with raggedness, a porous defence and that questionable stamina. One big advantage for him in this one is size. Small is well-built for the light-middleweight division whereas stocky Curiel has done much of his boxing at welter - the Minter cracker was was at welter 18 months ago. Curiel really banged up in that fight, by the way.
One had to admire the way Curiel switched tactics after Minter really hurt him in the fourth round. He rarely stood still and potshotted effectively, and Minter couldn't catch him again. Curiel showed real guile. He was actually ahead on points (to me Minter looked well ahead) when he pulled out that stunning right hand to close the show with 40 seconds remaining. A pro since 1992 (at 17), Freddy has masses of experience and knows how to stretch anyone, although he has been stopped once or twice and never been a particularly busy fighter. He's fought only twice since Minter: one win and a loss, the loss on points.
Curiel is also knocking on at 33 (Small is 27).
On home turf, everything considered, Small looks to have the freshness, speed, agility and natural boxing skills to take a good 10-round decision.
Re: Pick of the Pops
He still looks like a boy though. Thanks for posting about this fight, Bennie. It's the first I've heard about it.bennie wrote:Curiel is also knocking on at 33 (Small is 27).