Time Warner Cable has First Leonard-Hearns Fight (Channel 548/ESPN/Classic Boxing)

by Paco Rivera, GAR1680 Boxing Talk

          Time-Warner Cable has the first Leonard-Hearns fight (1981) on their On-Demand channel this month and I watched it yesterday. Even though this was one of the greatest fights in the history of the sport, I had been avoiding watching this fight again over the years because I was a big Hitman Hearns fan and was devastated that night in ’81 when he lost. It did, however, bring back memories of when I viewed the fight on a big closed-circuit screen (no such thing as PPV back then). I remember how my whole body trembled uncontrollably as the fighters made their walk to the ring through the crowd to the sound of Rocky music. Those moments were electrifying. That kind of excitement is rarely seen today in the minutes leading to a bout. Unlike the situation of a Mayweather-Pacquiao fight from happening, it was a time when the two best fighters in the world did in fact face each other in the ring.

Charlotte Boxing Newsflash (December 30, 2012)

World of Champions Boxing posted a promotional banner for the upcoming event taking place on January 19. No other details (fighters competing, etc.) are yet available. Follow/Join this blog for updates. Tickets can be purchased on WOC’s website HERE. Please share this post with your Facebook and Twitter friends.

North Carolina Boxers Report (December 27, 2012)

Please comment if you know of other NC fighters that should be on this list. This report will be posted each time it is updated (a change occured). Any changes from previous report is shown in red.

Weekend Wrap-up in Boxing (December 21-22)

Surely the hope of passionate boxing fans around the world and, of course, all involved in the business of boxing, is to bring fans back to the sport. That possibility got a boost with television’s NBC network broadcasting their first live event since 2004 this past Saturday with their renewed “Fight Night” series featuring two heavyweight bouts. The fights took place at the Sands Casino Resort in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in a telecast that began at four in the afternoon (EST). Unfortunately, fans watched their beloved sport appearing to take yet another black eye when the main event was marred in controversy over the decision. Former cruiserweight champion Steve Cunningham of Pennsylvania fought 12 tough rounds with highly ranked Tomasz Adamek. Most observers and boxing writers reporting their views—and one of the three judges—clearly witnessed Cunningham having been the better of the two, yet two judges gave it to Adamek for a split decision win. During the post-fight press conference (not televised) an emotional and teary-eyed Cunningham expressed disgust at officiating in boxing today and stated that the only way to prove yourself is to knock the opponent out to keep it out of the hands of the judges. “That’s not boxing,” he roared out. “That’s slugging. And if that’s what they want, then they need to change the name of the sport from boxing to slugging.” Cunningham’s trainer further added that if that’s the kind of sport we are to have, then we should be gathering around two roosters at a cockfight.” In the undercard, the once-promising Tor Hamer, who was also the 2008 National Golden Gloves winner, was defeated by undefeated heavyweight Vyacheslav Glazkov of the Ukraine. Glazkov clearly dominated the fight, causing Hamer to retire in his corner at the end of the 4th round.

P. Rivera, GAR1680 Boxing Talk
Twitter: @GAR1680

Charlotte Boxing Scene: Pictures

From left to right:

Coach Al Simpson - President of the Board of Directors for the NC Chapter of USA Amateur Boxing. Has coached over 100 national champions, including four U.S. boxers who won gold. 

Kelvin Seabrooks - International Boxing Federation (IBF) bantamweight title holder in 1987 (defended title twice), US Olympic Trials Bronze Medalist, and ESPN Fighter of the Decade (1980s). 

Bellonora McCallum -  President of World of Champions boxing promotions. 

Tavoris Cloud - Current IBF light-heavyweight Champion with a professional record of 24-0 (19 KOs). 

Howard “Humpy” Wheeler - 42-2 amateur record, Golden Glove champ, former president and general manager of Lowe’s Motor Speedway, former executive chairman of the Carolinas Boxing Hall of Fame and current chairman of the Charlotte Boxing Academy.

Paco Rivera of GAR1680 with Coach Al Simpson, director of the Charlotte Boxing Academy.

Weekend Wrap-up in Boxing (December 14-15)

It appeared to be a marathon day of boxing this past Saturday, with multiple television networks taking turns broadcasting bouts throughout the day and evening, including on what many refer to as “regular television” when CBS featured several afternoon fights after a 15-year layoff from the sport. The nearly full day of boxing was headlined, however, by Nonito Donaire vs. Jorge Arce and Amir Khan vs. Carlos Molina, shown on HBO and Showtime respectfully. With so many in the boxing circuit having already chosen Nonito “The Filipino Flash” Donaire as Fighter of the Year for 2012 prior to Saturday’s fights, the junior-featherweight champion may have left no doubt, if any existed, and sealed that honor with a masterful performance and victory over Arce, a former four-division champion with 61 wins to his name. Donaire carefully picked apart his Mexican opponent from the opening bell and ended it with a TKO in the 3rd round. In what was likely a career-ending situation for junior-welterweight Amir “King” Khan had he lost, the former champion, who until last year was considered by many boxing enthusiasts as the best fighter in the world, entered the ring in Los Angeles to face undefeated Californian Carlos Molina. Despite Molina fighting in front of huge home crowd, Khan, from the UK, appeared to be his old self in demonstrating amazing hand speed and crushing power with both hands during 10 rounds of a scheduled 12-round bout. At the end of the 10th, Molina’s team asked the referee to end the bout and the request was granted. Prior to the stoppage, the referee was clearly heard several times warning Molina’s corner that if their fighter keeps getting hit and doesn’t hit back he will have to stop the fight.

P. Rivera, GAR1680 Boxing Talk
Twitter: @GAR1680

Charlotte Region (Winston-Salem) Boxing Newsflash

GAR1680 has learned that Anthony “The Tyger” Hanshaw (23-2-1) from Kernersville, North Carolina will be taking on one of his toughest opponents to date when he faces Derek Edwards (26-2) of Winston-Salem, N.C. The bout will take place in Edwards’ hometown of Winston-Salem on Saturday, February 16, 2013 and it will be for the NABA light-heavyweight title. Also on the card, undefeated heavyweight Josh “Too Tuff” Tufte of Kernersville, North Carolina will be fighting the toughest opponent he also has ever faced when he takes on David Saulsberry (7-5) of Greenville, Kentucky. Last February, Saulsberry fought and lost to Chazz Whitherspoon, who recently lost a world championship title elimination bout to Seth Mitchell. Despite the loss, he should be a solid test for Tufte’s boxing career.

GAR1680 will provide further details as the information becomes available. Join this blog to receive alerts; you can join by using your Yahoo, Twitter, Google, AIM, Netlog, or OpenID email account. Just click on the blue "Join this Site" button above (It is not required to have "Google Friend Connect").

Interview: Boxing Promoter Bellonora McCallum, World of Champions (Charlotte, NC)

          Professional boxing returns to Charlotte in 2013 thanks to the World of Champions promotional company headed by Bellonora McCallum, located in the Queen City. In 2012, WOC featured four evenings of boxing during the year, all taking place at the ReelWorks Studios Music Factory venue. We had a chance to catch up with Ms. McCallum, fondly known as “Bell”, to learn more about what to expect.

1) Ms. McCallum, the first thing most boxing fans around Charlotte probably want to know is if there will be any amateur or professional boxing events taking place in 2013 in our area. Are you actively planning any, and can you tell us about it?

BM: World of Champions will have its first boxing event of 2013 on January 19. We plan to continue to have events every other month in 2013. The Charlotte boxing Academy also promotes amateur events throughout the year. Coach Al and I have worked together on a couple of my cards. He places at least 3 amateur bouts on the card to start the show and then we have about 10 professional bouts the rest of the evening.

2) It seems you promoted boxing events taking place at the ReelWorks Studios Music Factory venue in Charlotte in February, June, August, and October. Looking back, how would you rate the success of those events?

BM: 2012 was a big year for World of Champions. We learned some important lessons that will prepare us for 2013. Our events continued to grow and our last show was our most successful.

3) What was the crowd’s demeanor and reactions throughout the events?

BM: The crowd always enjoyed our events. We continued to receive positive feedback. Everyone enjoyed our VIP area, the atmosphere, and the fights that were scheduled. WOC has created a growing fan base and we plan to increase these numbers in 2013.

4) Are there other names you would like to mention of those beside yourself that “helped make it all possible”?

BM: The entire McCallum Enterprise and World of Champions team are hard workers. I definitely could not continue to do these shows without them. Coach Al Simpson from the Charlotte Boxing Academy planted the seed that lead to these events. Special thanks to all of our fans that continue to support our events and all the fighters who enjoy fighting on our cards.

5) Should you be holding events in the near future, do you intend to continue using the Music Factory venue or other locations?

BM: The January 19 event will take place at Amos’ Southend on South Tryon.

6) Can we expect to once again see some of the bigger names in professional boxing such as the prizefighters that came to town in 2012? And more importantly, will our local North Carolina fighters be competing as well?

BM: WOC has always made a point of placing NC fighters on the card and more importantly Charlotte fighters. Our goal is to provide a platform for local fighters so that they can fight in front of their fans and family at home. WOC will have prizefighters again in the future, but we have to have Charlotte’s support to make this happen. We will continue to put together fantastic shows for Charlotte’s Boxing Fans.

7) What opinion would you offer about the state of boxing as a whole? Would you say it is making a comeback and the fan base is growing?

BM: I definitely think boxing is making a comeback. As a promoter, it’s my goal to get boxing fans really excited again. I constantly come in contact with fans who love boxing and would love to attend shows in the local area. The challenge is getting the word out in time.  Boxing fans will definitely come out if they are confident it will be a great show and they know about the show in advance.

8) Can you briefly summarize how you became involved with boxing promotions?

BM: I grew up watching boxing and wrestling. I have always enjoyed watching the sport. When I moved to Charlotte, I decided take boxing lessons as a form of exercise. I did some research and found Coach Al Simpson with the Charlotte Boxing Academy. Coach Al took the time to teach the techniques and mechanics of boxing and this sparked my interest even more. I took my research to the next level and decided that NC would be a great place to promote boxing. I talked to my team. They jumped on board and I planned my first show in February 2012.

9)  What is the best way for fans all around the Charlotte region to learn of upcoming events you may be involved with?

BM: Fans can visit www.wocboxing.com, visit www.facebook.com/woc.boxing and like our page, or follow us on twitter @wocboxing.

10) Would you like to add any comments?

BM: Thank you so much for your interest and support. WOC is very excited about 2013. We need all the help we can get to get the word out to boxing fans in the Charlotte area and all surrounding areas. We can’t continue without our fan’s support!

P. Rivera, GAR1680 Boxing Talk

Twitter: @GAR1680

Paco Rivera with Bellonora McCallum

 

Greater Charlotte Region Boxing Report (Winston-Salem – December 8, 2012)

GAR1680 would like to acknowledge Zeus King of MMA OPINION for his contribution to this report. Twitter: @ZeusJupiterMMAO


MMA was followed by boxing Saturday night at the Benton Convention Center in Winston-Salem, North Carolina in an event promoted by Ring of Dreams. The five bouts of boxing was preceded by a moment-of-silence and sounding of the bell in memory of Hector “Macho” Camacho. Approximately 550 fans attended the event. The crowd was made up of fans predominantly in their 40’s, who, for the most part, appeared to enjoy the event, but also seemed displeased by excessive clinching of fighters not broken up by passive referees.

Boxing began with Joseph “Spiderman” Benjamin of Miami, Florida entering the ring wearing a Spider-Man cape to take on Douglas Otieno Okola from Africa. The super-hero cape had apparently not provided the strength Benjamin needed against his opponent as Okala improved his record to 24-8 with a 6-round unanimous decision. Benjamin had displayed a very odd fighting style with very jerky movements from a flat footed stance.

That bout was followed by Greg “Lime Lite” Newby, fighting out of Washington D.C./Maryland, who TKO’d Donnie Moore in the 1st round. Newby is now 3-0. Greg Newby, who fights out of the Lime Lite Gym in D.C., came in looking very professional (new crisp shorts, robe, and black shoes with a neon-lime-green trim). The crowd seemed a bit in awe as he made short work of his opponent.

In other bouts, Boxing-360 fighter Keandre Leatherwood of Birmingham, Alabama defeated the North Carolina journeyman boxer, Marcos Primera, who has been fighting since 1996, including a loss to current junior-middleweight champion Austin Trout in 2009. Primera originates from Venezuela and resides in Asheboro. This was Leatherwood’s second straight match at the Benton Convention Center venue. The three judges scored the bout 59-53. He is now 12-1 with 8 KO’s.

Another journeyman fighter, 34-year-old William Gill of New Jersey, took on North Carolina’s own Anthony (Tony) “The Tyger” Hanshaw in a scheduled 8-round light-heavyweight bout in the main event. Hanshaw won every round on the judges’ scorecards. He is known for once having gone a full 12-rounds with Roy Jones Jr. for the vacant IBC light-heavyweight title, losing to Jones by unanimous decision. Hanshaw entered the ring on Saturday night with an impressive and flamboyant-looking silver sequined shorts and robe. He landed lots of heavy looping hooks and uppercuts, but Gill was tough and never gave up. Gill wasn’t able to mount any significant damage or combinations against Hanshaw, who seemed a little tired in the 3rd and 4th rounds, but came back strong in the 5th through 8th. Hanshaw was always the aggressor and even did some unusual taunting. After the bell sounded in one of the later rounds, he made a stalking move, kind of cat-like, at Gill. The crowd mobbed Hanshaw for pictures after the fight. His record is now 23-2.

Derek “The Black Lion” Edwards, of Winston-Salem, improved his record to 26-2 with a 6-round unanimous decision win over John Michael Terry, who falls to 4 wins and 24 losses following their super-middleweight bout. Terry displayed an odd stance and never seemed to be looking at his opponent. He was largely ineffective as Edwards, showing good technical skills, appeared to have his way with Terry, a seemingly tough veteran. Terry appeared frustrated as the fight went on and even spat at Edwards as he turned to go to his corner at the end of a round. This angered Edwards’ fans, who were some of the more vocal of the night. Edwards won easily on points.

Undefeated heavyweight Joshua “Too Tuff” Tufte (10-0) of Kernersville, North Carolina was also scheduled to fight on Saturday, but had to pull out because of injury

P. Rivera, GAR1680 Boxing Talk
Twitter: @GAR1680

Weekend Wrap-up in Boxing (December 7-8)

On Saturday, HBO Pay-Per-View broadcasted four bouts from Las Vegas in which it may be said that eight fighters were matched up against the toughest opponent they had ever faced. Shortly after waking and having breakfast, millions of people in the Philippines tuned in to those fights taking place live that evening in Las Vegas. The rest of their day was an unhappy one as all three Filipino fighters scheduled to compete suffered losses in the ring, including national hero Manny “PacMan” Pacquiao in the main event. With former presidential candidate Mitt Romney in a ringside seat near Pacquiao’s corner, he was knocked out by Juan Manuel Marquez with one second remaining in the 6th round. In their fourth meeting since 2004, Pacquiao appeared very aggressive and was the busier fighter throughout the fight, sometimes nearly rushing across the ring to attack Marquez when the bell sounded to begin a round. He connected more often than the Mexican fighter and was ahead on all three judge’s scorecards when the bout ended. Marquez seemed to have changed his game plan from previous fights with Pacquiao, preferring to avoid him as much as possible while looking for his chance to land the haymaker punch. That opportunity first happened in the third round when Marquez connected with a hard right hand that put PacMan flat on his back, but Pacquiao was up quickly and continued his assault over the following two rounds. A bloodied and face-swollen Marquez—now fighting with a broken nose causing breathing problems—was not deterred. Near the end of the 6th, Manny Pacquiao stepped in to land a right hand on Marquez, but he left the left side of his body unprotected. Marquez once again timed perfectly and connected a crushing right blow to Pacquiao's head. Pacquiao landed face down on the canvas and remained there several minutes as a doctor and his trainers attended to him. In the undercard, Cuban fighter Yuriorkis Gamboa got a 12-round unanimous decision win over rough and tough Filipino boxer Michael Farenas, and Mexican Miguel Vazquez got a decision over undefeated Mercito Gesta of the Philippines. The first PPV fight of the evening did not involve any boxers from the Philippines. It pitted two undefeated featherweights as Dominican boxer Javier Fortuna achieved a 12 round win over Irishman, Patrick Hyland, who resides in New York and is managed by a reality TV star known as Snooki. In Philadelphia, Bryant Jennings, who may be America’s next big hope for an American heavyweight champion, was knocked down early in the bout by his hard-hitting opponent, Bowie Tupou, only to bounce back and KO Tupou in the 5th round. Jenning’s knockdown was later ruled a slip by the referee. Jennings remains undefeated with a record of 16-0 and is listed in world rankings as fifth best in the division.

P. Rivera, GAR1680 Boxing Talk
Twitter: @GAR1680

Charlotte Boxing Newsflash

A permit has been issued by North Carolina's Boxing commission to WORLD OF CHAMPIONS promotional company to feature a boxing event in Charlotte on Saturday, January 19, 2013. The fighters or venue is unknown.

GAR1680 will provide further details as the information becomes available. Join this blog to receive alerts; you can join by using your Yahoo, Twitter, Google, AIM, Netlog, or OpenID email account. Just click on the blue "Join this Site" button above (It is not required to have "Google Friend Connect").

An October Night of Boxing in Charlotte

GAR1680 would like to acknowledge and thank Allen Branch (trainer of professional boxer Joshua Tufte) and his daughter for their contributions to this report and for sharing the video (below) that Allen’s daughter did an outstanding job with.

Charlotte’s most recent professional boxing event occurred a little over a month ago, on October 27. A total of 10 bouts had taken place that evening, with seven of them in the heavyweight division. A cheerfully excitable crowd of about 200 spectators attended the 3-hour event at the ReelWorks Studios Music Factory venue.

The co-main events featured undefeated Johua “Too Tuff” Tufte of Kernersville, North Carolina taking on Jamal Woods from Arkansas and Anthony “The Tyger” Hanshaw, also from Kernersville, in a match against John Michael Terry. Josh Tufte extended his unbeaten record to 10-0 with a 5th round stoppage of Woods and Tony Hanshaw got a 6 round unanimous decision over Terry.

The crowd, most which remained at the facility the entire time, often expressed excitement throughout the event and appeared pleased to have attended an excellent night of boxing promoted by Bellonora McCallum’s World of Champions organization. Ms. McCallum also served as ring announcer for the bouts. Fitness trainer Allen Branch, who trains Josh Tufte and other professional prizefighters, told GAR1680 that Ms. Bellonora McCallum was a nice lady. "She did well as promoter and announcer and was very professional with regards to dealing with all of us,” Branch said.

The event was not televised and there didn’t appear to be any reporters or media coverage, but other boxing promoters did attend. The facility was basically a remodeled warehouse with raw flooring and walls, but served well overall for a night of club fights. It was clean and had ample parking lot space. Snack type foods, pizza, and beverages were also available.

P. Rivera, GAR1680 Boxing Talk
Twitter: @GAR1680

Weekend Wrap-up in Boxing (November 30 - December 1)

On Saturday night, Austin “No Doubt” Trout entered the ring at Madison Square Garden in New York City as undefeated WBA junior middleweight champion against the Puerto Rican challenger Miguel Cotto. The Garden’s crowd of over 13,000 attendees were overwhelmingly fans of Cotto, who had never lost at that venue in eight previous bouts. Despite Trout being the underdog, even as champion, and a crowd loudly cheering Cotto on, he overcame the odds and pulled out a 12-round unanimous decision win. The match appeared mostly tactical, with both boxers engaging in fairly good exchanges early on and midway through the fight. Trout, however, poured it on in the later rounds, often using his size to muscle his way into Cotto’s body. The results appear to be a classic case of a rising young star retiring a great boxing legend. Cotto, however, has not made his intentions clear as to whether he will be hanging up the gloves for good. Earlier in the U.K., undefeated British heavyweight Tyson Fury won a unanimous 12-round decision over the American challenger, Kevin Johnson, well known for his somewhat excessive slipperiness and continually moving away from his opponent, as he did in a decision loss to world champion Vitali Klitschko in 2009. Johnson had not changed that game plan much during the bout with Fury, resulting in a rather slow-paced match that seemed to displease spectators. Fury is now slated to match up against Vitali Klitschko for the WBC World Heavyweight title. This coming Saturday, Manny Pacquiao will take on Juan Manuel Marquez for a fourth time. In previous bouts, both fighters fought to a draw and Pacquiao earned close majority and split decision wins. Many boxing experts and fans believe Marquez had won all three fights and have stated that this fourth matchup should ultimately settle the matter.

P. Rivera, GAR1680 Boxing Talk
Twitter: @GAR1680