2011 Official Boxing Thread: 12/30 Jermain Taylor + Andre Dirrell return on ShoBox.

mextra45 · Mar 21, 2011

Bute Places his body shots very well just put them right on the money and dudes fall apart , i hope him and Kessler can get something worked out .

Sooo Vitali hit Solis and Blew his Knee out damn torn his ACL and MCL

proshares · Mar 21, 2011

As long as Kessler's eye is almost fully healed I'm sure they could make the fight. He's said before he wouldn't mind fighting in Canada. Would be a hell of stretch for Bute though to possibly get Kessler in the fall then the Super Six winner 1st Q 2012.

proshares · Mar 21, 2011

As long as Kessler's eye is almost fully healed I'm sure they could make the fight. He's said before he wouldn't mind fighting in Canada. Would be a hell of stretch for Bute though to possibly get Kessler in the fall then the Super Six winner 1st Q 2012.

proshares · Mar 21, 2011

Spoiler [+]

Saturday at Cologne, Germany
Heavyweight
Vitali Klitschko KO1 Odlanier Solis
Retains the heavyweight title
Records: Vitali Klitschko, 42-2, 39 KOs; Solis, 17-1, 12 KOs

Rafael's remark: What a massive disappointment, but don't blame Klitschko. Blame Solis and his handlers. The fight began nicely enough with Klitschko using his big jab and size advantage while Solis, with his quick hands, landed a sneaky right hand that got Klitschko's attention. But just as a competitive first round was coming to a close, Klitschko landed a decent right hand to the head. Solis did not appear hurt from the punch, but he stepped back and lost his footing. He went down, and it was quickly clear that Solis was in trouble -- but not because of his head. He had a problem with his right knee and was unsteady as he struggled to get to his feet by pulling himself up as he grabbed on to the ropes. As Solis struggled to move on the bad knee, referee Guadalupe Garcia called off the fight as the opening round was coming to a close.

The nearly 20,000 fans at sold-out Lanxess Arena probably had barely gotten comfortable before the fight was over. First-round knockouts are one thing, but when a fight ends without even a big punch, it is a huge disappointment. But that's life in boxing. However, not when a fighter hid a medical issue. German media reported that Solis and his team admitted they knew there was a problem with the right knee before the fight, but went through with the bout anyway, undoubtedly because Solis was looking at a career-high payday. That is fraud, and all those people who traveled and bought tickets for the fight were ripped off. And how about Epix? The new American premium cable network decided to get into boxing with this as its first event and paid for the rights to the fight. Instead, it was sold a bill of goods. Solis, who was diagnosed with torn ligaments and cartilage after the fight, and his people should be punished in some way.The Solis camp denied to ESPN.com any admission of knowledge of a pre-fight injury and claims the media reports in Germany falsely quoted a Solis spokesman.

Solis, 30, a decorated amateur and 2004 Cuban Olympic gold medalist, had not even really done anything as a professional to warrant the mandatory title shot, but that's the horrible WBC for you. Solis' claim to fame as a pro was a second-round knockout of long-faded contender Monte Barrett and an ugly disqualification win against journeyman Ray Austin in a December title eliminator. So Ukraine's Klitschko, 39, racked up the sixth defense of his third title reign without really breaking a sweat in another easy victory. Now Klitschko is poised to face either fellow titlist David Haye this summer or top contender Tomasz Adamek in September. Champion Wladimir Klitschko, Vitali's younger brother, is supposed to fight Haye this summer, but he is also still recovering from an abdominal injury. If he is not ready to go, Vitali would get the call. Adamek is also signed to fight one of the brothers -- their choice -- in the fall. So there will be more Klitschko action to come this year. Hopefully, it won't be as terribly disappointing as this mess with Solis.

Saturday at Montreal
Super middleweight
Lucian Bute TKO10 Brian Magee
Retains a super middleweight title
Records: Bute, 28-0, 23 KOs; Magee, 34-4-1, 24 KOs

Rafael's remark: With Showtime so heavily invested in the super middleweight division with the Super Six World Boxing Classic, the network -- which had left Bute out of the tournament when it began in late 2009 -- signed him to a multi-fight contract late last year. The idea was to make sure that whomever emerged from the Super Six would have a big-time opponent to face. But Bute, 31, a native of Romania now living in Montreal (where he is a major star), can't just sit idle until that fight comes. So, in his first bout under the new Showtime deal, faced Ireland's Magee, 35, a second-tier contender who always comes to fight. He entered the fight 9-0-1 in his last 10 fights and had not lost since an 11th-round knockout to Carl Froch (who now owns a title and is in the Super Six semifinals) in 2006. So the fact that he hung in there against Bute for as long as he did, and made it competitive in the early going, was no surprise. However, Bute was simply too big, too strong, too fast and too good for Magee, a fellow southpaw, to survive.

With 12,219 at the Bell Centre, Bute's home arena, cheering him on, Bute put on a fantastic display of body punching as he broke poor Magee down. Bute, who made his seventh title defense, was winning most of the rounds, but it was a competitive fight through five rounds. But that changed in the sixth round, when Bute landed a left hand to the body to drop Magee. In the seventh round, Bute landed an even nastier left uppercut to the gut for another knockdown. But referee Pete Podgorski whiffed on it badly and ruled it was caused from a low blow. It was clean to the naked eye and clearly above the beltline on Showtime's replays. Moments later, Bute landed another similar punch and Magee went down again. This time it was correctly ruled as the second official knockdown. Bute continued the body attack in the eighth and Magee was slowing down and in pain. Finally, in the 10th round, Bute landed a brutal left uppercut to Magee's chin and he dropped to his knees, prompting Podgorski to call it off at 2 minutes, 4 seconds. It was Bute's fifth consecutive knockout and another extremely impressive performance. Sitting ringside was former titleholder Mikkel Kessler of Denmark, who won a vacant belt in the Super Six in his last fight in a terrific battle with Carl Froch. But before his next tournament fight, Kessler withdrew because of an eye injury. It's been 11 months since that fight but now he is nearly ready to return. He wants to fight Bute and Bute is willing to fight him. So Showtime got the drumbeat rolling for that fight as Kessler sat in for some commentary and the two fighters spoke about each other in postfight interviews. If Kessler is medically cleared, a fight with Bute probably will happen this summer. That's a really good fight.

Junior middleweight
Vanes Martirosyan TKO2 Bladimir Hernandez

Records: Martirosyan, 29-0, 18 KOs; Hernandez, 18-5, 16 KOs

Rafael's remark: Martirosyan, 24, a 2004 U.S. Olympian born in Armenia but living in Glendale, Calif., is on the verge of some sort of title opportunity. However, his momentum stalled somewhat because he had not fought since June, when he outpointed Joe Greene on HBO at Yankee Stadium on the Miguel Cotto-Yuri Foreman undercard. Martirosyan was mentioned for various fights, including one against Cotto, but they fell through, which was part of the reason for the long layoff. But he returned and made quick work of Mexico's Hernandez, 25, who lost his fourth fight in a row by knockout. Martirosyan ended the fight suddenly 57 seconds into the second round when he landed a solid right hand that dropped Hernandez. He scrambled to his feet to barely beat the count, but referee Michael Griffin called it off. With Martirosyan winning and coming out of the fight uninjured, Top Rank has him lined up to face veteran Saul Roman in the main event of its April 23 "Top Rank Live" card.

Saturday at Dublin
Junior featherweight
Guillermo Rigondeaux TKO1 Willie Casey
Retains an interim junior featherweight title
Records: Rigondeaux, 8-0, 6 KOs; Casey, 11-1, 7 KOs

Rafael's remark: Rigondeaux, 30, as any fight fan should know, was a two-time Cuban Olympic gold medalist and one of the greatest amateur fighters in history. He defected and turned pro in 2009 and, because of his age and obvious amateur pedigree, was put on an accelerated pace immediately. In his seventh pro fight, he won a vacant interim belt (yes, one of those extremely annoying trinkets handed out by the despicable WBA) by outpointing veteran Ricardo Cordoba in November on the Manny Pacquiao-Antonio Margarito undercard. The fight was supposed to be a coming-out party for Rigondeaux. However, even though he won, it was a horrible fight as Rigondeaux, a southpaw, fought defensively the whole time, refused to engage and stunk Cordoba out.

Because of that performance, Rigondeaux simply was not in demand by any of the American television networks. Instead he went to Ireland to fight hometown fighter Casey, 29, who had won the European title in his previous fight in November. Casey, however, was no match for Rigondeaux. None whatsoever. Instead of doing what he did against Cordoba, Rigondeaux came out with purpose against Casey. Rigondeaux attacked him with a heavy dose of body punching in the first minute. Casey was on the run and covering up his flanks. Rigondeaux eventually caught him with a hard left to the body and Casey went down. He ate a couple of more body shots and then a left to the head that dropped him for the second time. Rigondeaux attacked him yet again as soon as the fight resumed and connected with several shots, including another left to the head that sent him to the canvas for a third time as referee Stanley Christodoulou stepped in to stop it at 2 minutes, 38 seconds. This was a sensational performance from Rigondeaux. It shows you what he is capable of when he is interested in being aggressive. We need to see more of this explosive, exciting Rigondeaux in the future, not the one who bored everyone to tears in November.

Saturday at Puebla, Mexico
Junior flyweight
Roman Gonzalez W12 Manuel Vargas
Retains a junior flyweight title
Scores: 119-109, 116-112 (twice)
Records: Gonzalez, 28-0, 23 KOs; Vargas, 29-8-1, 14 KOs

Rafael's remark: Gonzalez, 23, of Nicaragua, is one of the most exciting and biggest punchers among boxing's smaller weight fighters. He is a former strawweight titleholder who made three title defenses before moving up in weight. Now at junior flyweight, he made his first title defense against Vargas, 29, of Mexico, a former interim strawweight titlist, who has generally lost when facing top opposition. It was no different for him against Gonzalez in the main event of "Top Rank Live." Vargas, however, did not come to lay down against Gonzalez. They turned in a spirited fight, but one that Gonzalez dominated.

Saturday at Manukau City, New Zealand
Heavyweight
David Tua W10 Demetrice King

Scores: 100-90 (twice), 100-91
Records: Tua, 52-3-2, 43 KOs; King, 15-20, 13 KOs

Rafael's remark: Mired in financial problems, Tua, the onetime top heavyweight contender and former title challenger, has to fight it seems even though he is way past his prime at 38. In July, he was shockingly held to a majority draw by Monte Barrett, an even more faded former contender, who dropped the iron-chinned Tua for the first time in his long career. Tua has designs on a summer rematch and took this tuneup fight with King and rolled to a shutout decision. Tua, who was fighting in at home, normally knocks out journeymen opponents. However, despite King's poor record, the 26-year-old from Flint, Mich., has only been stopped twice in his 20 defeats, by Shannon Briggs in 2005 and Oquendo in February 2010. King lost his third in a row.

Friday at Hollywood, Fla.
Welterweight
Brad Solomon W10 Demetrius Hopkins

Scores: 99-91 (twice), 97-93
Records: Solomon, 17-0, 7 KOs; Hopkins, 30-2-1, 11 KOs

Rafael's remark: Solomon, 27, of Lafayette, La., was a three-time national Golden Gloves winner and emerged as a quality prospect after a shockingly easy near-shutout decision of prospect Kenny Galarza on ESPN2's "Friday Night Fights" in June. Solomon took another significant step up as he outboxed former title challenger Hopkins for the obvious decision win on "Friday Night Fights." It was not the most exciting fight and there were too many clinches, but Solomon was clearly superior against Philadelphia's Hopkins, 30, who appeared somewhat disinterested in fighting. Solomon was busier, quicker and was able to hit and move away from anything dangerous coming back at him. Hopkins, the nephew of all-time great Bernard Hopkins, had failed to make weight (what else is new?) and appeared sluggish. This was an important fight for him if he wanted to keep himself in contention for a bigger fight. He failed. He has talent, but just does not seem to have the mentality or discipline to be a champion. Solomon, who idolizes Roy Jones Jr., however, has a chance, even if his style is not going to thrill fans.

Friday at Costa Mesa, Calif.
Lightweight
Luis Ramos Jr. W8 Jose Hernandez

Scores: 79-73, 77-75, 76-76
Records: Ramos Jr., 18-0, 8 KOs; Hernandez, 10-5-1, 4 KOs

Rafael's remark: Ramos, 22, of Santa Ana, Calif., got the victory in an entertaining main event on Telefutura's "Solo Boxeo Tecate," but it was not his best performance. Ramos probably deserved a close decision, but the 79-73 scorecard just seemed way out of whack. Nonetheless, Hernandez was in the fight all the way and landed a lot of solid shots, especially early on. But Ramos, a southpaw, was a bit more polished and worked his jab nicely. Golden Boy has kept Ramos pretty busy and has high hopes for him, but he'll need to pick up his game and dominate opponents such as Hernandez, 24, of Fort Worth, Texas, who dropped to 0-4-1 in his past five bouts as a good test for several prospects. Among the up-and-comers he has faced (and lost to): Sharif Bogere, Mike Perez, Matt Remillard and Mickey Bey Jr.

Middleweight
James Kirkland KO2 Jhon Berrio

Records: Kirkland, 27-0, 24 KOs; Berrio, 15-9, 11 KOs

Rafael's remark: The all-action Kirkland turned 27 the day after the fight and scored an early birthday present with an easy knockout of Berrio. Kirkland had been one of boxing's fastest-rising contenders before going to prison for 18 months on a gun charge. He finally returned to the ring and scored a 34-second knockout of Ahsandi Gibbs on March 5. After that, Golden Boy planned to have Kirkland in a fight on the April 9 Erik Morales-Marcos Maidana HBO PPV card. But because Kirkland's return was so quick, it immediately booked him for a fight on Telefutura's "Solo Boxeo" and he again made quick work of his opponent.

Although Kirkland, of Austin, Texas, still looked rusty -- no surprise after the layoff -- and was wide with his punches, his aggression is unmatched and makes for exciting television. Berrio briefly stunned Kirkland with a right hand in the first round, but other than that, this was all Kirkland. He put together some combinations and had Berrio in retreat. Kirkland landed a nice body shot, but then seemed to miss with a combination. Nonetheless, Berrio dropped to his knees and took the full count. Sure didn't seem like he got hit with anything damaging enough to result in a 10-count. In any event, it was another fight to help Kirkland shake off the rust of the layoff as he moves toward a more serious opponent. He is still scheduled to return on the April 9 pay-per-view against an opponent to be determined.

Berrio, 25, of Colombia, had been scheduled to face 2008 U.S. Olympian Demetrius Andrade on the March 12 Sergio Martinez-Sergiy Dzinziruk undercard, but when Andrade dropped out a few days before the fight because of a sprained ankle, Berrio took the fight with Kirkland on short notice and lost his third in a row.

proshares · Mar 21, 2011

Spoiler [+]

Saturday at Cologne, Germany
Heavyweight
Vitali Klitschko KO1 Odlanier Solis
Retains the heavyweight title
Records: Vitali Klitschko, 42-2, 39 KOs; Solis, 17-1, 12 KOs

Rafael's remark: What a massive disappointment, but don't blame Klitschko. Blame Solis and his handlers. The fight began nicely enough with Klitschko using his big jab and size advantage while Solis, with his quick hands, landed a sneaky right hand that got Klitschko's attention. But just as a competitive first round was coming to a close, Klitschko landed a decent right hand to the head. Solis did not appear hurt from the punch, but he stepped back and lost his footing. He went down, and it was quickly clear that Solis was in trouble -- but not because of his head. He had a problem with his right knee and was unsteady as he struggled to get to his feet by pulling himself up as he grabbed on to the ropes. As Solis struggled to move on the bad knee, referee Guadalupe Garcia called off the fight as the opening round was coming to a close.

The nearly 20,000 fans at sold-out Lanxess Arena probably had barely gotten comfortable before the fight was over. First-round knockouts are one thing, but when a fight ends without even a big punch, it is a huge disappointment. But that's life in boxing. However, not when a fighter hid a medical issue. German media reported that Solis and his team admitted they knew there was a problem with the right knee before the fight, but went through with the bout anyway, undoubtedly because Solis was looking at a career-high payday. That is fraud, and all those people who traveled and bought tickets for the fight were ripped off. And how about Epix? The new American premium cable network decided to get into boxing with this as its first event and paid for the rights to the fight. Instead, it was sold a bill of goods. Solis, who was diagnosed with torn ligaments and cartilage after the fight, and his people should be punished in some way.The Solis camp denied to ESPN.com any admission of knowledge of a pre-fight injury and claims the media reports in Germany falsely quoted a Solis spokesman.

Solis, 30, a decorated amateur and 2004 Cuban Olympic gold medalist, had not even really done anything as a professional to warrant the mandatory title shot, but that's the horrible WBC for you. Solis' claim to fame as a pro was a second-round knockout of long-faded contender Monte Barrett and an ugly disqualification win against journeyman Ray Austin in a December title eliminator. So Ukraine's Klitschko, 39, racked up the sixth defense of his third title reign without really breaking a sweat in another easy victory. Now Klitschko is poised to face either fellow titlist David Haye this summer or top contender Tomasz Adamek in September. Champion Wladimir Klitschko, Vitali's younger brother, is supposed to fight Haye this summer, but he is also still recovering from an abdominal injury. If he is not ready to go, Vitali would get the call. Adamek is also signed to fight one of the brothers -- their choice -- in the fall. So there will be more Klitschko action to come this year. Hopefully, it won't be as terribly disappointing as this mess with Solis.

Saturday at Montreal
Super middleweight
Lucian Bute TKO10 Brian Magee
Retains a super middleweight title
Records: Bute, 28-0, 23 KOs; Magee, 34-4-1, 24 KOs

Rafael's remark: With Showtime so heavily invested in the super middleweight division with the Super Six World Boxing Classic, the network -- which had left Bute out of the tournament when it began in late 2009 -- signed him to a multi-fight contract late last year. The idea was to make sure that whomever emerged from the Super Six would have a big-time opponent to face. But Bute, 31, a native of Romania now living in Montreal (where he is a major star), can't just sit idle until that fight comes. So, in his first bout under the new Showtime deal, faced Ireland's Magee, 35, a second-tier contender who always comes to fight. He entered the fight 9-0-1 in his last 10 fights and had not lost since an 11th-round knockout to Carl Froch (who now owns a title and is in the Super Six semifinals) in 2006. So the fact that he hung in there against Bute for as long as he did, and made it competitive in the early going, was no surprise. However, Bute was simply too big, too strong, too fast and too good for Magee, a fellow southpaw, to survive.

With 12,219 at the Bell Centre, Bute's home arena, cheering him on, Bute put on a fantastic display of body punching as he broke poor Magee down. Bute, who made his seventh title defense, was winning most of the rounds, but it was a competitive fight through five rounds. But that changed in the sixth round, when Bute landed a left hand to the body to drop Magee. In the seventh round, Bute landed an even nastier left uppercut to the gut for another knockdown. But referee Pete Podgorski whiffed on it badly and ruled it was caused from a low blow. It was clean to the naked eye and clearly above the beltline on Showtime's replays. Moments later, Bute landed another similar punch and Magee went down again. This time it was correctly ruled as the second official knockdown. Bute continued the body attack in the eighth and Magee was slowing down and in pain. Finally, in the 10th round, Bute landed a brutal left uppercut to Magee's chin and he dropped to his knees, prompting Podgorski to call it off at 2 minutes, 4 seconds. It was Bute's fifth consecutive knockout and another extremely impressive performance. Sitting ringside was former titleholder Mikkel Kessler of Denmark, who won a vacant belt in the Super Six in his last fight in a terrific battle with Carl Froch. But before his next tournament fight, Kessler withdrew because of an eye injury. It's been 11 months since that fight but now he is nearly ready to return. He wants to fight Bute and Bute is willing to fight him. So Showtime got the drumbeat rolling for that fight as Kessler sat in for some commentary and the two fighters spoke about each other in postfight interviews. If Kessler is medically cleared, a fight with Bute probably will happen this summer. That's a really good fight.

Junior middleweight
Vanes Martirosyan TKO2 Bladimir Hernandez

Records: Martirosyan, 29-0, 18 KOs; Hernandez, 18-5, 16 KOs

Rafael's remark: Martirosyan, 24, a 2004 U.S. Olympian born in Armenia but living in Glendale, Calif., is on the verge of some sort of title opportunity. However, his momentum stalled somewhat because he had not fought since June, when he outpointed Joe Greene on HBO at Yankee Stadium on the Miguel Cotto-Yuri Foreman undercard. Martirosyan was mentioned for various fights, including one against Cotto, but they fell through, which was part of the reason for the long layoff. But he returned and made quick work of Mexico's Hernandez, 25, who lost his fourth fight in a row by knockout. Martirosyan ended the fight suddenly 57 seconds into the second round when he landed a solid right hand that dropped Hernandez. He scrambled to his feet to barely beat the count, but referee Michael Griffin called it off. With Martirosyan winning and coming out of the fight uninjured, Top Rank has him lined up to face veteran Saul Roman in the main event of its April 23 "Top Rank Live" card.

Saturday at Dublin
Junior featherweight
Guillermo Rigondeaux TKO1 Willie Casey
Retains an interim junior featherweight title
Records: Rigondeaux, 8-0, 6 KOs; Casey, 11-1, 7 KOs

Rafael's remark: Rigondeaux, 30, as any fight fan should know, was a two-time Cuban Olympic gold medalist and one of the greatest amateur fighters in history. He defected and turned pro in 2009 and, because of his age and obvious amateur pedigree, was put on an accelerated pace immediately. In his seventh pro fight, he won a vacant interim belt (yes, one of those extremely annoying trinkets handed out by the despicable WBA) by outpointing veteran Ricardo Cordoba in November on the Manny Pacquiao-Antonio Margarito undercard. The fight was supposed to be a coming-out party for Rigondeaux. However, even though he won, it was a horrible fight as Rigondeaux, a southpaw, fought defensively the whole time, refused to engage and stunk Cordoba out.

Because of that performance, Rigondeaux simply was not in demand by any of the American television networks. Instead he went to Ireland to fight hometown fighter Casey, 29, who had won the European title in his previous fight in November. Casey, however, was no match for Rigondeaux. None whatsoever. Instead of doing what he did against Cordoba, Rigondeaux came out with purpose against Casey. Rigondeaux attacked him with a heavy dose of body punching in the first minute. Casey was on the run and covering up his flanks. Rigondeaux eventually caught him with a hard left to the body and Casey went down. He ate a couple of more body shots and then a left to the head that dropped him for the second time. Rigondeaux attacked him yet again as soon as the fight resumed and connected with several shots, including another left to the head that sent him to the canvas for a third time as referee Stanley Christodoulou stepped in to stop it at 2 minutes, 38 seconds. This was a sensational performance from Rigondeaux. It shows you what he is capable of when he is interested in being aggressive. We need to see more of this explosive, exciting Rigondeaux in the future, not the one who bored everyone to tears in November.

Saturday at Puebla, Mexico
Junior flyweight
Roman Gonzalez W12 Manuel Vargas
Retains a junior flyweight title
Scores: 119-109, 116-112 (twice)
Records: Gonzalez, 28-0, 23 KOs; Vargas, 29-8-1, 14 KOs

Rafael's remark: Gonzalez, 23, of Nicaragua, is one of the most exciting and biggest punchers among boxing's smaller weight fighters. He is a former strawweight titleholder who made three title defenses before moving up in weight. Now at junior flyweight, he made his first title defense against Vargas, 29, of Mexico, a former interim strawweight titlist, who has generally lost when facing top opposition. It was no different for him against Gonzalez in the main event of "Top Rank Live." Vargas, however, did not come to lay down against Gonzalez. They turned in a spirited fight, but one that Gonzalez dominated.

Saturday at Manukau City, New Zealand
Heavyweight
David Tua W10 Demetrice King

Scores: 100-90 (twice), 100-91
Records: Tua, 52-3-2, 43 KOs; King, 15-20, 13 KOs

Rafael's remark: Mired in financial problems, Tua, the onetime top heavyweight contender and former title challenger, has to fight it seems even though he is way past his prime at 38. In July, he was shockingly held to a majority draw by Monte Barrett, an even more faded former contender, who dropped the iron-chinned Tua for the first time in his long career. Tua has designs on a summer rematch and took this tuneup fight with King and rolled to a shutout decision. Tua, who was fighting in at home, normally knocks out journeymen opponents. However, despite King's poor record, the 26-year-old from Flint, Mich., has only been stopped twice in his 20 defeats, by Shannon Briggs in 2005 and Oquendo in February 2010. King lost his third in a row.

Friday at Hollywood, Fla.
Welterweight
Brad Solomon W10 Demetrius Hopkins

Scores: 99-91 (twice), 97-93
Records: Solomon, 17-0, 7 KOs; Hopkins, 30-2-1, 11 KOs

Rafael's remark: Solomon, 27, of Lafayette, La., was a three-time national Golden Gloves winner and emerged as a quality prospect after a shockingly easy near-shutout decision of prospect Kenny Galarza on ESPN2's "Friday Night Fights" in June. Solomon took another significant step up as he outboxed former title challenger Hopkins for the obvious decision win on "Friday Night Fights." It was not the most exciting fight and there were too many clinches, but Solomon was clearly superior against Philadelphia's Hopkins, 30, who appeared somewhat disinterested in fighting. Solomon was busier, quicker and was able to hit and move away from anything dangerous coming back at him. Hopkins, the nephew of all-time great Bernard Hopkins, had failed to make weight (what else is new?) and appeared sluggish. This was an important fight for him if he wanted to keep himself in contention for a bigger fight. He failed. He has talent, but just does not seem to have the mentality or discipline to be a champion. Solomon, who idolizes Roy Jones Jr., however, has a chance, even if his style is not going to thrill fans.

Friday at Costa Mesa, Calif.
Lightweight
Luis Ramos Jr. W8 Jose Hernandez

Scores: 79-73, 77-75, 76-76
Records: Ramos Jr., 18-0, 8 KOs; Hernandez, 10-5-1, 4 KOs

Rafael's remark: Ramos, 22, of Santa Ana, Calif., got the victory in an entertaining main event on Telefutura's "Solo Boxeo Tecate," but it was not his best performance. Ramos probably deserved a close decision, but the 79-73 scorecard just seemed way out of whack. Nonetheless, Hernandez was in the fight all the way and landed a lot of solid shots, especially early on. But Ramos, a southpaw, was a bit more polished and worked his jab nicely. Golden Boy has kept Ramos pretty busy and has high hopes for him, but he'll need to pick up his game and dominate opponents such as Hernandez, 24, of Fort Worth, Texas, who dropped to 0-4-1 in his past five bouts as a good test for several prospects. Among the up-and-comers he has faced (and lost to): Sharif Bogere, Mike Perez, Matt Remillard and Mickey Bey Jr.

Middleweight
James Kirkland KO2 Jhon Berrio

Records: Kirkland, 27-0, 24 KOs; Berrio, 15-9, 11 KOs

Rafael's remark: The all-action Kirkland turned 27 the day after the fight and scored an early birthday present with an easy knockout of Berrio. Kirkland had been one of boxing's fastest-rising contenders before going to prison for 18 months on a gun charge. He finally returned to the ring and scored a 34-second knockout of Ahsandi Gibbs on March 5. After that, Golden Boy planned to have Kirkland in a fight on the April 9 Erik Morales-Marcos Maidana HBO PPV card. But because Kirkland's return was so quick, it immediately booked him for a fight on Telefutura's "Solo Boxeo" and he again made quick work of his opponent.

Although Kirkland, of Austin, Texas, still looked rusty -- no surprise after the layoff -- and was wide with his punches, his aggression is unmatched and makes for exciting television. Berrio briefly stunned Kirkland with a right hand in the first round, but other than that, this was all Kirkland. He put together some combinations and had Berrio in retreat. Kirkland landed a nice body shot, but then seemed to miss with a combination. Nonetheless, Berrio dropped to his knees and took the full count. Sure didn't seem like he got hit with anything damaging enough to result in a 10-count. In any event, it was another fight to help Kirkland shake off the rust of the layoff as he moves toward a more serious opponent. He is still scheduled to return on the April 9 pay-per-view against an opponent to be determined.

Berrio, 25, of Colombia, had been scheduled to face 2008 U.S. Olympian Demetrius Andrade on the March 12 Sergio Martinez-Sergiy Dzinziruk undercard, but when Andrade dropped out a few days before the fight because of a sprained ankle, Berrio took the fight with Kirkland on short notice and lost his third in a row.

proshares · Mar 22, 2011

The NFL lockout has allowed Tom Zbikowski to pursue his passion for boxing. He already has won one fight this year and now he's being trained by a Hall of Famer for his next bout.

http:///sports.espn.go.com/espn/gallery/enlargePhoto?id=6246212&story=6246198">http://sports.espn.go.com...246212&...idth=440,height=750,scrollbars=no,noresize'); return false;" href="http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=6246198#">[+] Enlarge

Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty ImagesTom Zbikowski, standing, defeated Richard Bryant in the first round of their fight earlier this month.

Emanuel Steward told SI.com that he is training the Baltimore Ravens safety and will be in his corner for his fight Saturday night in Atlantic City, N.J., on the Yuri Gamboa-Jorge Solis undercard. He is training Zbikowski in Detroit at the Kronk Boxing Gym.

"He told me boxing was his first love," Steward told SI.com. "I don't know where this is going to go right now but he seems committed to it."

Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti has no problems with Zbikowski boxing during the lockout.

"I think it's awesome," Bisciotti told The Baltimore Sun. "I wanted to walk him into the ring but I'm not allowed to communicate with him. I would get the Don King hair going."

Fighting for the second time as a pro, Zbikowski barely broke a sweat earlier this month when he stopped Richard Bryant at 1:45 of the first round of a scheduled four-round fight on the undercard of the Miguel Cotto-Ricardo Mayorga 154-pound title fight.

Steward told SI.com that he watched tape of Zbikowski's victory and was impressed, saying his movements were "beautiful."

The former Notre Dame star had a stellar amateur boxing career, going 75-15 and reaching the finals of the Chicago Golden Gloves, where he had to withdraw because of a family emergency.

He turned professional before his senior season with the Fighting Irish, and knocked out Robert Bell in the first round at Madison Square Garden on June 10, 2006. He then shelved his boxing ambitions when it became apparent that he would be a high NFL draft pick.

[h4]AFC North blog[/h4]

ESPN.com's James Walker writes about all things AFC North in his division blog.

• Blog network: NFL Nation

Baltimore selected him in the third round in 2008, and he's made 10 starts in 39 games.

Before his first fight this month, Zbikowski said he believes he has the Ravens' support based on his previous boxing experience.

Steward says Zbikowski looks like he belongs in the ring.

"He has such beautiful balance. He has a great natural rhythm and he's always in position when he is punching," he told SI.com. "He doesn't box like a football player. He boxes like a boxer."

Former junior welterweight titlist Paulie Malignaggi has lost to one member of the Cotto family and will now try to even the score when he faces another.

Malignaggi, now fighting as a welterweight, will fight Puerto Rico's Jose Cotto in a scheduled 10-rounder on April 9 (HBO PPV) at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on the televised undercard of the Erik Morales-Marcos Maidana main event.

"I think it's a good opportunity. It's a logical next step up in level of opponent for me at welterweight," Malignaggi told ESPN.com on Monday night. "It's a great opportunity to be showcased on a card like this. It'll give me some good TV exposure. I'm very happy with the progress I'm making and this is the next step to get back up the ladder. It's a good fight for me. Las Vegas, MGM Grand, HBO PPV. I'm excited. How could I not be?"

[h4]Rafael's Boxing Blog[/h4]

Get the latest scoop and analysis on the world of boxing from ESPN.com's Dan Rafael in his blog.

In 2006, almost a year to the day before Malignaggi won a junior welterweight belt, he challenged Miguel Cotto, a 140-pound titleholder at the time, and lost a unanimous decision. Cotto doled out a beating to Malignaggi, breaking his orbital bone, but was unable to stop him.

Now Malignaggi will be facing his older brother.

The 33-year-old Jose Miguel Cotto (32-2-1, 24 KOs) was stopped in the ninth round by Saul Alvarez, whom he had badly hurt with a left hook in the first round, on the Floyd Mayweather-Shane Mosley undercard at the MGM Grand last May. Cotto returned to stop Christopher Henry in the fourth round in November.

"Cotto is an action fighter. He comes to fight, he comes forward," Golden Boy promoter Richard Schaefer said. "This is a big opportunity for him to be in Las Vegas and on pay-per-view again against Paulie Malignaggi. He feels it is a very winnable fight and he is convinced he will win. For Malignaggi, he's been a champion at 140 pounds. Now he wants to make a name for himself at 147."

Malignaggi, 30, a New Yorker now living in Los Angeles, said revenge on the Cotto family is not really on his mind.

"I really don't think about that too much, but I guess when you do think about it, that factors into it," Malignaggi said. "I fought Miguel Cotto, now I'm fighting Jose Miguel Cotto. They're brothers, but I fought the better Cotto back in 2006. But having fought a Cotto, I know you have to come prepared. Jose Miguel Cotto may not have the resume of his brother, but he's a good fighter. Both of his losses (to Alvarez and a lightweight title bout to Juan Diaz in 2006) came to name fighters. Both of our records have losses that have come only to name fighters. He's always solid, always gives his best. But he's a guy, if I am going to make my way back up the boxing ladder, he's a guy I'm supposed to beat. He's a guy I should beat pretty handily. I shouldn't have a competitive fight with Jose Miguel Cotto in my eyes."

After Malignaggi (28-4, 6 KOs) was stopped by junior welterweight titlist Amir Khan in the 11th round last May, he signed with Golden Boy and moved up to welterweight, where he knocked out Michael Lozada in the sixth round on Dec. 18 on the Jean Pascal-Bernard Hopkins undercard in Quebec City.

"Following his loss to Khan, Paulie wanted to move up to welterweight. He felt it was time to see what he can do at 147 pounds," Schaefer said. "He's a very talented fighter. He's a very good boxer, but not known as a knockout puncher. But to move up to 147 and the first guy he fights, he not only wins, he knocks him out. I have to say I was pretty impressed. It was a great first impression at 147 and first impressions count. I was impressed with that performance. So here he goes again at 147 against Cotto, a fighter who [Alvarez] had a little bit of trouble with."

Malignaggi-Cotto was added to the card to take the place of the middleweight fight that had been scheduled between Winky Wright and Matthew Macklin. That fight was canceled when Wright recently withdrew because of a hand injury. Golden Boy moved Macklin to Khan's undercard on April 16 and matched him with Khoren Gevor.

Click to expand...

proshares · Mar 22, 2011

The NFL lockout has allowed Tom Zbikowski to pursue his passion for boxing. He already has won one fight this year and now he's being trained by a Hall of Famer for his next bout.

http:///sports.espn.go.com/espn/gallery/enlargePhoto?id=6246212&story=6246198">http://sports.espn.go.com...246212&...idth=440,height=750,scrollbars=no,noresize'); return false;" href="http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=6246198#">[+] Enlarge

Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty ImagesTom Zbikowski, standing, defeated Richard Bryant in the first round of their fight earlier this month.

Emanuel Steward told SI.com that he is training the Baltimore Ravens safety and will be in his corner for his fight Saturday night in Atlantic City, N.J., on the Yuri Gamboa-Jorge Solis undercard. He is training Zbikowski in Detroit at the Kronk Boxing Gym.

"He told me boxing was his first love," Steward told SI.com. "I don't know where this is going to go right now but he seems committed to it."

Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti has no problems with Zbikowski boxing during the lockout.

"I think it's awesome," Bisciotti told The Baltimore Sun. "I wanted to walk him into the ring but I'm not allowed to communicate with him. I would get the Don King hair going."

Fighting for the second time as a pro, Zbikowski barely broke a sweat earlier this month when he stopped Richard Bryant at 1:45 of the first round of a scheduled four-round fight on the undercard of the Miguel Cotto-Ricardo Mayorga 154-pound title fight.

Steward told SI.com that he watched tape of Zbikowski's victory and was impressed, saying his movements were "beautiful."

The former Notre Dame star had a stellar amateur boxing career, going 75-15 and reaching the finals of the Chicago Golden Gloves, where he had to withdraw because of a family emergency.

He turned professional before his senior season with the Fighting Irish, and knocked out Robert Bell in the first round at Madison Square Garden on June 10, 2006. He then shelved his boxing ambitions when it became apparent that he would be a high NFL draft pick.

[h4]AFC North blog[/h4]

ESPN.com's James Walker writes about all things AFC North in his division blog.

• Blog network: NFL Nation

Baltimore selected him in the third round in 2008, and he's made 10 starts in 39 games.

Before his first fight this month, Zbikowski said he believes he has the Ravens' support based on his previous boxing experience.

Steward says Zbikowski looks like he belongs in the ring.

"He has such beautiful balance. He has a great natural rhythm and he's always in position when he is punching," he told SI.com. "He doesn't box like a football player. He boxes like a boxer."

Former junior welterweight titlist Paulie Malignaggi has lost to one member of the Cotto family and will now try to even the score when he faces another.

Malignaggi, now fighting as a welterweight, will fight Puerto Rico's Jose Cotto in a scheduled 10-rounder on April 9 (HBO PPV) at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on the televised undercard of the Erik Morales-Marcos Maidana main event.

"I think it's a good opportunity. It's a logical next step up in level of opponent for me at welterweight," Malignaggi told ESPN.com on Monday night. "It's a great opportunity to be showcased on a card like this. It'll give me some good TV exposure. I'm very happy with the progress I'm making and this is the next step to get back up the ladder. It's a good fight for me. Las Vegas, MGM Grand, HBO PPV. I'm excited. How could I not be?"

[h4]Rafael's Boxing Blog[/h4]

Get the latest scoop and analysis on the world of boxing from ESPN.com's Dan Rafael in his blog.

In 2006, almost a year to the day before Malignaggi won a junior welterweight belt, he challenged Miguel Cotto, a 140-pound titleholder at the time, and lost a unanimous decision. Cotto doled out a beating to Malignaggi, breaking his orbital bone, but was unable to stop him.

Now Malignaggi will be facing his older brother.

The 33-year-old Jose Miguel Cotto (32-2-1, 24 KOs) was stopped in the ninth round by Saul Alvarez, whom he had badly hurt with a left hook in the first round, on the Floyd Mayweather-Shane Mosley undercard at the MGM Grand last May. Cotto returned to stop Christopher Henry in the fourth round in November.

"Cotto is an action fighter. He comes to fight, he comes forward," Golden Boy promoter Richard Schaefer said. "This is a big opportunity for him to be in Las Vegas and on pay-per-view again against Paulie Malignaggi. He feels it is a very winnable fight and he is convinced he will win. For Malignaggi, he's been a champion at 140 pounds. Now he wants to make a name for himself at 147."

Malignaggi, 30, a New Yorker now living in Los Angeles, said revenge on the Cotto family is not really on his mind.

"I really don't think about that too much, but I guess when you do think about it, that factors into it," Malignaggi said. "I fought Miguel Cotto, now I'm fighting Jose Miguel Cotto. They're brothers, but I fought the better Cotto back in 2006. But having fought a Cotto, I know you have to come prepared. Jose Miguel Cotto may not have the resume of his brother, but he's a good fighter. Both of his losses (to Alvarez and a lightweight title bout to Juan Diaz in 2006) came to name fighters. Both of our records have losses that have come only to name fighters. He's always solid, always gives his best. But he's a guy, if I am going to make my way back up the boxing ladder, he's a guy I'm supposed to beat. He's a guy I should beat pretty handily. I shouldn't have a competitive fight with Jose Miguel Cotto in my eyes."

After Malignaggi (28-4, 6 KOs) was stopped by junior welterweight titlist Amir Khan in the 11th round last May, he signed with Golden Boy and moved up to welterweight, where he knocked out Michael Lozada in the sixth round on Dec. 18 on the Jean Pascal-Bernard Hopkins undercard in Quebec City.

"Following his loss to Khan, Paulie wanted to move up to welterweight. He felt it was time to see what he can do at 147 pounds," Schaefer said. "He's a very talented fighter. He's a very good boxer, but not known as a knockout puncher. But to move up to 147 and the first guy he fights, he not only wins, he knocks him out. I have to say I was pretty impressed. It was a great first impression at 147 and first impressions count. I was impressed with that performance. So here he goes again at 147 against Cotto, a fighter who [Alvarez] had a little bit of trouble with."

Malignaggi-Cotto was added to the card to take the place of the middleweight fight that had been scheduled between Winky Wright and Matthew Macklin. That fight was canceled when Wright recently withdrew because of a hand injury. Golden Boy moved Macklin to Khan's undercard on April 16 and matched him with Khoren Gevor.

Click to expand...

proshares · Mar 23, 2011

@danrafaelespn Heard some stuff today: 1. Paul Williams' June 4 return to be pushed back later in summer. 2. Diaconu likely out of fight vs Dawson. #boxing

proshares · Mar 23, 2011

@danrafaelespn Heard some stuff today: 1. Paul Williams' June 4 return to be pushed back later in summer. 2. Diaconu likely out of fight vs Dawson. #boxing

scott frost · Mar 24, 2011

Nate Campbell coming out of retirement

By Dan Rafael
ESPN.com

When former unified lightweight titleholder Nate Campbell announced his retirement in November, he did so with a heartfelt statement a few days after a shocking eight-round decision loss to journeyman Walter Estrada. "I know it's time for me to hang it up," Campbell said at the time. "I've reached the point where I can still see the openings, but I just can't get my shots there in time. In this business, a tenth of a second delay is too much. ... If I do struggle in fights like this, then what would that mean for me against a top-tier fighter? I didn't enter this sport to be anyone's opponent. I entered this sport to become a world champion. I am fortunate that I was able to accomplish that goal. I would have liked to continue on to win titles in other divisions. However, when your body tells you that it's time to go, then it's time to go." And now, it's time for Campbell to make a comeback.
[h4]Rafael's Boxing Blog[/h4]

Get the latest scoop and analysis on the world of boxing from ESPN.com's Dan Rafael in his blog.
Although Campbell said he meant those words when he said them, he has changed his mind and has signed to face rising junior welterweight Danny Garcia (20-0, 14 KOs), a standout amateur who has developed into one of Golden Boy's top prospects. Campbell (33-7-1, 25 KOs) is, by far, the best opponent of Garcia's career. They will meet in a scheduled 10-round fight April 9 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on the Erik Morales-Marcos Maidana undercard, although Garcia-Campbell is not slated to be part of the HBO PPV telecast. "I can get up for this," Campbell told ESPN.com on Wednesday night. "Everybody is counting me out. I kinda like it. I don't have anything to prove. All the weight is on him. He is supposed to beat the old man up. He can't have a bad second. I guarantee you this: After my sparring session [Wednesday], an old guy ain't what you want to call me." Campbell said after he retired, he was still going to the gym and training, even though he did not intend to fight again. "I was missing the ring," Campbell said. "I just kept working out, kept training. I was going to the gym like I always had. I'm a gym rat. I was sparring. There was no pressure. I was able to do my thing." He said he made the decision to come out of retirement a couple of months ago after talking to his 21-year-old daughter, Jazmyn. "My daughter knew I was missing the ring and said to me, 'Daddy, do you really want to retire?' I'm like, 'I'm good.' Then one day I was in the gym and had a great day in the gym and I was like, 'Hold on.' My daughter asked me a simple question: 'Did you give everything you had in your last fight?' I said no." As for his retirement announcement, Campbell said, "I shouldn't have said nothing. I miss boxing. I didn't want to go in the gym for a few days after I lost, but then I said I would just go to the gym and work out. I wasn't training for anything in particular, but I would go to the gym. And what's the saying? If you hang around the barbershop long enough, you will get a haircut." And now Campbell is what he said he did not want to be -- somebody's "opponent." Garcia, who turned 23 on Sunday, is the fighter on the rise and an important step for young fighters on the way to a title shot is to get the name of a former champion on their record. That is why Campbell was offered the fight. "Golden Boy believes I am done, let's be honest. I'm OK with that," Campbell said. "I realize this. If they thought that I had an ounce of fight left in me I wouldn't be getting this fight. But I like to be the underdog, so I am getting what I like." Campbell, who turned 39 on March 7, said he has felt good in training and has the proper focus going into the fight. He compared the fight with Garcia to his 2005 match with Almazbek "Kid Diamond" Raiymkulov. Campbell, who was coming off a loss, was a big underdog to Raiymkulov, then a rising contender. But Campbell knocked him out in the 10th round to rejuvenate his career. In 2008, Campbell outpointed Juan Diaz to claim three lightweight world titles in another upset. "For the first time in a long time I am focused on this fight," Cambell said. "This fight is the first time I have made a decision to cut everything off and train for the love of what I'm doing, not for the publicity or the money, just to be a fighter. I came in as a fighter and I told my [three] girls that I will go out fighting, really fighting and giving it everything I got. "I ran this morning. I'm having fun training with John David [Jackson]. John told me the other day, 'I knew that you weren't retiring because there's too much fight left in you.' Roy Jones told me the same thing. When I told Roy I was taking a fight, he told me, 'There ya go, that's what I'm talking about.' Everyone else knew I would fight again. I meant everything I said when I retired, but my daughter asked me that simple question. When I made the [retirement] statement, I felt like I had done everything I could." Campbell, who did not begin boxing until he was 24 and did not turn pro until he was 28, said he has been making money since retiring by selling car engines. "I was doing OK, but it's not boxing money," he said. "But it keeps steaks in the fridge. I'm no millionaire, but at the same time, this [comeback] isn't about money. I just want to fight. Let's see what I got left and how I feel about what I'm doing. "I am at a place in my life where I don't care what people think. I used to. Now I don't. I am at peace with the decision I am making." Dan Rafael covers boxing for ESPN.com. Follow him on Twitter.

scott frost · Mar 24, 2011

Nate Campbell coming out of retirement

By Dan Rafael
ESPN.com

When former unified lightweight titleholder Nate Campbell announced his retirement in November, he did so with a heartfelt statement a few days after a shocking eight-round decision loss to journeyman Walter Estrada. "I know it's time for me to hang it up," Campbell said at the time. "I've reached the point where I can still see the openings, but I just can't get my shots there in time. In this business, a tenth of a second delay is too much. ... If I do struggle in fights like this, then what would that mean for me against a top-tier fighter? I didn't enter this sport to be anyone's opponent. I entered this sport to become a world champion. I am fortunate that I was able to accomplish that goal. I would have liked to continue on to win titles in other divisions. However, when your body tells you that it's time to go, then it's time to go." And now, it's time for Campbell to make a comeback.
[h4]Rafael's Boxing Blog[/h4]

Get the latest scoop and analysis on the world of boxing from ESPN.com's Dan Rafael in his blog.
Although Campbell said he meant those words when he said them, he has changed his mind and has signed to face rising junior welterweight Danny Garcia (20-0, 14 KOs), a standout amateur who has developed into one of Golden Boy's top prospects. Campbell (33-7-1, 25 KOs) is, by far, the best opponent of Garcia's career. They will meet in a scheduled 10-round fight April 9 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on the Erik Morales-Marcos Maidana undercard, although Garcia-Campbell is not slated to be part of the HBO PPV telecast. "I can get up for this," Campbell told ESPN.com on Wednesday night. "Everybody is counting me out. I kinda like it. I don't have anything to prove. All the weight is on him. He is supposed to beat the old man up. He can't have a bad second. I guarantee you this: After my sparring session [Wednesday], an old guy ain't what you want to call me." Campbell said after he retired, he was still going to the gym and training, even though he did not intend to fight again. "I was missing the ring," Campbell said. "I just kept working out, kept training. I was going to the gym like I always had. I'm a gym rat. I was sparring. There was no pressure. I was able to do my thing." He said he made the decision to come out of retirement a couple of months ago after talking to his 21-year-old daughter, Jazmyn. "My daughter knew I was missing the ring and said to me, 'Daddy, do you really want to retire?' I'm like, 'I'm good.' Then one day I was in the gym and had a great day in the gym and I was like, 'Hold on.' My daughter asked me a simple question: 'Did you give everything you had in your last fight?' I said no." As for his retirement announcement, Campbell said, "I shouldn't have said nothing. I miss boxing. I didn't want to go in the gym for a few days after I lost, but then I said I would just go to the gym and work out. I wasn't training for anything in particular, but I would go to the gym. And what's the saying? If you hang around the barbershop long enough, you will get a haircut." And now Campbell is what he said he did not want to be -- somebody's "opponent." Garcia, who turned 23 on Sunday, is the fighter on the rise and an important step for young fighters on the way to a title shot is to get the name of a former champion on their record. That is why Campbell was offered the fight. "Golden Boy believes I am done, let's be honest. I'm OK with that," Campbell said. "I realize this. If they thought that I had an ounce of fight left in me I wouldn't be getting this fight. But I like to be the underdog, so I am getting what I like." Campbell, who turned 39 on March 7, said he has felt good in training and has the proper focus going into the fight. He compared the fight with Garcia to his 2005 match with Almazbek "Kid Diamond" Raiymkulov. Campbell, who was coming off a loss, was a big underdog to Raiymkulov, then a rising contender. But Campbell knocked him out in the 10th round to rejuvenate his career. In 2008, Campbell outpointed Juan Diaz to claim three lightweight world titles in another upset. "For the first time in a long time I am focused on this fight," Cambell said. "This fight is the first time I have made a decision to cut everything off and train for the love of what I'm doing, not for the publicity or the money, just to be a fighter. I came in as a fighter and I told my [three] girls that I will go out fighting, really fighting and giving it everything I got. "I ran this morning. I'm having fun training with John David [Jackson]. John told me the other day, 'I knew that you weren't retiring because there's too much fight left in you.' Roy Jones told me the same thing. When I told Roy I was taking a fight, he told me, 'There ya go, that's what I'm talking about.' Everyone else knew I would fight again. I meant everything I said when I retired, but my daughter asked me that simple question. When I made the [retirement] statement, I felt like I had done everything I could." Campbell, who did not begin boxing until he was 24 and did not turn pro until he was 28, said he has been making money since retiring by selling car engines. "I was doing OK, but it's not boxing money," he said. "But it keeps steaks in the fridge. I'm no millionaire, but at the same time, this [comeback] isn't about money. I just want to fight. Let's see what I got left and how I feel about what I'm doing. "I am at a place in my life where I don't care what people think. I used to. Now I don't. I am at peace with the decision I am making." Dan Rafael covers boxing for ESPN.com. Follow him on Twitter.

milkman dead · Mar 24, 2011

From Steve Kim's, from Max Boxing, Twitter:

Two sources have told me talks are taking place for a Mayweather-Spadafora bout in July, HBO is involved in those discussions 29 minutes ago via ÜberSocial

, This has to be some kind of joke, right?

milkman dead · Mar 24, 2011

From Steve Kim's, from Max Boxing, Twitter:

Two sources have told me talks are taking place for a Mayweather-Spadafora bout in July, HBO is involved in those discussions 29 minutes ago via ÜberSocial

, This has to be some kind of joke, right?

proshares · Mar 24, 2011

I sure hope so

@danrafaelespn The issues surrounding Dawson-Diaconu have been worked out. Fight is on for 5/21. @yvonmichelgym announced it officially today. #boxing

proshares · Mar 24, 2011

I sure hope so

@danrafaelespn The issues surrounding Dawson-Diaconu have been worked out. Fight is on for 5/21. @yvonmichelgym announced it officially today. #boxing

proshares · Mar 24, 2011

@danrafaelespn It's on: Roy Jones-Denis Lebedev cruiserweight fight is signed for May 22 in Moscow. #boxing

RIP RJJ Jr. this dude Lebedev can crack, take a punch and move well.

proshares · Mar 24, 2011

@danrafaelespn It's on: Roy Jones-Denis Lebedev cruiserweight fight is signed for May 22 in Moscow. #boxing

RIP RJJ Jr. this dude Lebedev can crack, take a punch and move well.

proshares · Mar 25, 2011

Gamboa & Notes.

Spoiler [+]

Top Rank's Bob Arum is the one who said it, said that he would take his two exciting featherweight titleholders, Yuriorkis Gamboa and Juan Manuel Lopez, and build toward an eventual fight between them.

He said it might take a year and a few fights apiece but that the match would be made after it "marinated" for a little while. It is, after all, one of the matches that fight fans crave. Arum, understandably, did not believe it was ready to be made right away, so he put both of them on the same pay-per-view card in October 2009 to whet the appetite of fans and media members. They both won their fights, so Arum put them both on the same card again, this time on HBO in January 2010.

They both scored impressive victories. Gamboa blasted out Rogers Mtagwa (the opponent Lopez struggled with in the previous fight) in two rounds, and Lopez, who was moving up in weight, knocked out Steven Luevano in the seventh round to win a title.

Now, more than a year later, however, we are no closer to seeing a Lopez-Gamboa fight happen. Lopez, who has fought twice since beating Luevano, is now a regular on Showtime and defends his title against Orlando Salido, Gamboa's most recent victim, on April 16.

Gamboa, meanwhile, fights on HBO. He also has fought twice since appearing on the same card with Lopez and goes for a third time when he defends his unified 126-pound belts against interim junior lightweight titlist Jorge Solis, who is moving down in weight, on Saturday night (HBO, 9:45 ET/PT) at the Adrian Phillips Ballroom at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J.

Even Gamboa (19-0, 15 KOs), who stands to make a career payday should the fight with Lopez ever come about, is sick of talking about the proposed showdown.

"In reality, I don't feel rushed to make that fight, but by the same token, there has been so much talk of me facing him, but it still hasn't come to fruition," Gamboa said through translator and manager Tony Gonzalez. "If it's going to happen, I want it to happen, but I don't have a desire to keep talking about it."

Gamboa, 29, who lives in Miami, was a 2004 Cuban Olympic gold medalist before defecting and turning pro in 2007. He has been on the fast track since the first day of his professional career. He has won a pair of world title belts and, in Solis, is facing a very credible opponent.

Lopez, Gamboa said, is just another good opponent he would someday like to face. But he is not going to think seriously about it until the fight is made.

"I'm just thinking that Juanma is one of the champions in our division," Gamboa said. "The thing that bothers me most is that they have created the expectations in the press and they keep talking about this fight. But I can't make it happen. So I will tend to my business and keep collecting my belts and fighting. If it happens, great; if it doesn't, OK."

Top Rank president Todd duBoef said he would like to eventually make the fight but that it will happen when it is ready and can be the biggest it can be.

He would have preferred that Arum, his boss and stepfather, not outline a particular timetable as he did more than a year ago.

"We don't do well with timelines," duBoef said. "We do better building a business around each guy, and when it's ready to go, it's ready to go. We've seen them both progress substantially over the past 12 months."

So while Lopez perhaps is on the minds of others, Gamboa has Solis in front of him. Solis (40-2-2, 29 KOs), 31, of Mexico, will be fighting in the United States for the first time since an eighth-round knockout loss to Manny Pacquiao in a 2007 junior lightweight fight in San Antonio. However, Solis put up a strong effort against Pacquiao and made it an interesting fight for several rounds before succumbing to Pacquiao's pressure.

For Gamboa, Solis said, he is well prepared, because Gamboa is also a pressure fighter.

"I've arrived at 100 percent," Solis said. "I had a strong and intense preparation in Guadalajara. [Last] Friday I did 14 rounds [of sparring] with great intensity, and they went smooth. I left with a lot of motivation to win. I'm a natural 126-pounder, and I went to junior lightweight because there came the opportunity to win a world title. I'll be strong at this weight.

"We have several strategies to address the Cuban. We have analyzed his strengths and weaknesses, and plan to decrease his speed with blows to the body. He is a very fast and strong opponent but goes down when you attack and does not know what to do. Beating Gamboa will bring me to the big leagues of boxing -- big purses, and that's what I want."

Gamboa has no plans to allow that to happen.

"In my opinion, I push myself to win by knockout," Gamboa said. "It's something everyone likes, but I won't lose my concentration in that pursuit. I am just going to fight, showcase my talents and abilities, and come out with a victory."

Said Gonzalez, "He's ready for Solis. He knows he is going up against an experienced fighter, but he feels he will overmatch Solis."

In the opening bout of the "Boxing After Dark" doubleheader, featherweight prospects Miguel Angel "Mikey" Garcia (24-0, 20 KOs), 23, of Oxnard, Calif., faces Matt Remillard (23-0, 13 KOs), 24, of Manchester, Conn., in a scheduled 12-rounder. The winner certainly could loom as an eventual opponent for the main-event winner.

Also on the card, cruiserweight Tommy Zbikowski (2-0, 2 KOs) will face Caleb Grummet (0-0-1) in a four-rounder. Zbikowski is the Baltimore Ravens safety who is boxing professionally during the NFL lockout. He fought once in 2006, when he was still at Notre Dame, but had his second pro fight March 12 on the Miguel Cotto-Ricardo Mayorga pay-per-view undercard. HBO will air highlights of Saturday's fight, Zbikowski's first under the tutelage of Hall of Fame trainer Emanuel Steward.

http:///sports.espn.go.com/espn/gallery/enlargePhoto?id=6237499&story=6256156">http://sports.espn.go.com...237499&...idth=640,height=550,scrollbars=no,noresize'); return false;" href="http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/boxing/columns/story?columnist=rafael_dan&id=6256156#">[+] Enlarge

Christof Koepsel/Bongarts/Getty ImagesVitali Klitschko, right, took out Odlanier Solis, left, with a right hand to the head in the final second of the first round Saturday.
[h3]Klitschko-Solis fallout[/h3]
Arena-Box promoter Ahmet Oner apologized for his meltdown at the news conference following Odlanier Solis' first-round TKO loss to heavyweight titleholder Vitali Klitschko this past Saturday in Cologne, Germany.

"I simply overreacted, and I'm sorry for that," Oner said. "I lost control because of all the provocations, and I shouldn't have done it. Period. I already apologized to Vitali at the press conference. I respect him. He is a great champion. Now the most important thing is that Solis will be able to fight again. We are doing all we can to get his knee fixed as soon as possible."

The fight ended prematurely when Solis fell to the canvas with a right knee injury and was unable to continue. Solis, the mandatory challenger and 2004 Cuban Olympic gold medalist, was scheduled for surgery Thursday in Germany. Arena-Box announced that Solis had suffered a torn ACL in his knee as well as a damaged meniscus.

Oner also dismissed reports in the German media that Solis and the team hid a pre-existing injury and went through with the fight anyway, for which Solis was due a career-high $1.8 million. "This rumor is based on a false quotation spread in the German press," Oner said. "Everybody knows that there are a lot of medical tests for fighters who want to compete in a world title fight. Every professional athletes has some small problems every now and then. But all documents prove that Solis was fit and ready for this fight. In addition to that, he was in a very tough training camp for eight weeks, where he was under permanent observation without any problems, and he moved extremely well in the first round, and the whole world has seen that. You simply cannot do this with a serious knee injury."

• Dmitry Pirog (17-0, 14 KOs) of Russia will make the first defense of his middleweight belt against Argentina's Javier Francisco Maciel (18-1, 12 KOs) on Saturday in Ekaterinburg, Russia. ESPN3.com will stream the entire world feed of the card live beginning at 11:45 a.m. ET, meaning it will include undercard bouts, including welterweight Felix Diaz, a 2008 Olympic gold medalist, in an eight-rounder against Russia's Andrey Berdishev. The main event is expected to begin at about 2 p.m. ET. It will be Pirog's first fight since winning the vacant belt when he scored an upset fifth-round knockout of Daniel Jacobs in July on the Juan Manuel Marquez-Juan Diaz II HBO PPV undercard.

• When 20-year-old Saul "Canelo" Alvarez (36-0-1, 26 KOs) claimed a vacant junior middleweight title March 5, he did it by easily outpointing England's Matthew Hatton. When Alvarez makes his first defense, slated for June 18, he likely will face another Englishman in Ryan Rhodes (45-4, 31 KOs), 34, who was appointed as his mandatory challenger. Golden Boy Promotions plans on staging the card in Guadalajara, Mexico, Alvarez's hometown. Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer said they are negotiating with Rhodes for the bout. Schaefer said he also is negotiating the television arrangements for the bout.

• Middleweight James Kirkland's third fight since coming out of prison, which will take place on Golden Boy's April 9 HBO PPV card at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, will come against former junior middleweight titlist Nobuhiro Ishida (22-6-2, 7 KOs) of Japan, Golden Boy's Richard Schaefer told ESPN.com. Kirkland (27-0, 24 KOs) has scored a pair of quick knockouts since returning to action March 5. In Ishida's last fight, in October, he dropped a split decision and his interim belt to Rigoberto Alvarez, the older brother of Saul "Canelo" Alvarez. "James is fighting a former titleholder, so it's definitely a step up for him and it's an interesting fight," Schaefer said. "We're getting his opposition up. That's exactly what this fight is going to do. No question that this is his toughest test since he's been back." Schaefer also said he received a notification from the WBO approving the Robert Guerrero-Michael Katsidis fight on the card to be for the organization's vacant interim belt. Schaefer said the reason the WBO approved it was because it had been informed by champion Juan Manuel Marquez that his next fight would take place outside of the lightweight division, even though he has no fight officially set.

[h4]Rafael's Boxing Blog[/h4]

Get the latest scoop and analysis on the world of boxing from ESPN.com's Dan Rafael in his blog.

• Promoter Dan Goossen made it official that the Super Six World Boxing Classic semifinal between super middleweight titlist Andre Ward (23-0, 13 KOs) and Arthur Abraham (32-2, 26 KOs) on May 14 (Showtime) will take place at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. "I'm also happy to return to the Home Depot Center," Ward said. "I fought there once before and I think it's a great outdoor venue. Arthur should have a lot of fans there with the large Armenian contingency in Los Angeles, and I will have a lot of fans as well." Ward is from Oakland, Calif., and Abraham, an Armenian from Germany, said he is not concerned with fighting in his home state. "There is a huge Armenian community in Los Angeles, and I will put on a spectacular fight for them," he said. "I am very grateful to have their fantastic support and I can already promise them a very special evening. It will be good to have their backing. It will give me a huge boost." Heavyweight contender Cristobal Arreola (30-2, 26 KOs), from nearby Riverside, Calif., will meet Nagy Aguilera (16-5, 11 KOs), who has lost three of four, in the co-feature. Their fight is not scheduled to be part of Showtime's telecast.

• The Super Six World Boxing Classic semifinal between super middleweight titlist Carl Froch (27-1, 20 KOs) and Glen Johnson (51-14-2, 35 KOs), originally scheculed for May 21, is moving to a new date, likely June 4, Johnson co-promoter Leon Margules told ESPN.com. Showtime is not anxious to butt heads with a major HBO card the same night that features the Jean Pascal-Bernard Hopkins light heavyweight championship rematch. Margules said the site is still up in the air, but the leading contenders are Quebec City and Atlantic City, N.J. "It could be either of them," Margules said. "Atlantic City became a player when the Nonito Donaire fight that was supposed to be there fell through." Top Rank had planned to do a Donaire fight in Atlantic City in conjunction with Caesars Atlantic City on May 28, but that is off now that Donaire has jumped to rival Golden Boy Promotions. Regardless of what happens in the eventual lawsuit over the move, if Donaire still fights May 28, it will be on the West Coast, leaving Caesars to look for another significant early summer fight.

• Julio Cesar Chavez will challenge middleweight belt holder Sebastian Zbik -- who got his belt only when Sergio Martinez was stripped by the WBC -- on June 4 on HBO. Top Rank's Carl Moretti said three sites in Southern California are being looked at as possibilities to host the fight, which will take place a week before Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. is inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame: Staples Center, Dodger Stadium and the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. Moretti said he expected a competitive fight. "Zbik is not the easiest guy in the world to fight," he said. "He kees his hands up. He doesn't open himself up. He waits to counter, so I think it's an interesting fight." The opening HBO bout hasn't been worked out yet.

• Welterweight Alfonso Gomez, a star of the first season of "The Contender," is scheduled to return against Calvin Greene in the main event of "Top Rank Live" (Fox Deportes) on May 21 at the Morongo Casino Resort Spa in Cabazon, Calif., Top Rank's Moretti told ESPN.com. Gomez has not fought since scoring a sixth-round stoppage of former lightweight champ Jose Luis Castillo last March on the Manny Pacquiao-Joshua Clottey undercard at Cowboys Stadium. Gomez was due to fight Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in December but withdrew a week before the fight because of a torn ligament in his left arm. If Gomez (22-4-2, 11 KOs) is successful in his return from the injury, Moretti said he would like to match him with Mike Jones "sometime in the very near future." Green (21-5-1, 13 KOs) has been idle since suffering a seventh-round knockout loss to Sergio Mora last April on the Bernard Hopkins-Roy Jones Jr. II undercard.

• The working date for Top Rank's proposed rematch between junior middleweight titlist Miguel Cotto and Antonio Margarito is July 16. If the fight is signed, it will be on pay-per-view, although it has not been determined if it will be on Showtime PPV, which did Cotto's 12th-round knockout of Ricardo Mayorga on March 19, or on HBO PPV, which has a long history of putting on Cotto events. If the fight is made, former welterweight titlist Kermit Cintron, who is now with Top Rank -- although promoter Lou DiBella remains financially involved -- could land on the undercard. "We don't have a specific date yet for Cintron, but we know we have to get him a fight," Top Rank's Carl Moretti said. "Bob [Arum] believes he fits in with any of the top guys at welterweight or junior middleweight, so there are some attractive fights."

• Cruiserweight titlist Marco Huck will make his sixth defense against substitute Ran Nakash on April 2 in Halle, Germany, Sauerland Event announced. Huck (31-1, 23 KOs) was supposed to meet former titlist Giacobbe Fragomeni (27-3-1, 11 KOs). However, Fragomeni suffered a cut over an eye in training and withdrew from the fight last Friday. Nakash (25-0, 18 KOs), a native of Israel living in Philadelphia, accepted the fight as a replacement. "I don't care about the late change," Huck said. "It will not exactly be a walk in the park, but as the world champion, I will find a way to deal with it. I will be prepared for Nakash and I will defeat him just like I defeat anybody who wants to take the belt away from me." Also on the card, heavyweight prospect Robert Helenius fights former titlist Samuel Peter.

• Former heavyweight titlist Sergei Liakhovich's first fight since his recent signing with promoter Main Events will come April 9 (Integrated Sports PPV, $29.95) at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., on the undercard of heavyweight contender Tomasz Adamek's fight against Kevin McBride. Liakhovich (25-3, 16 KOs), who has not fought since May 2010 and only three times since late 2006, will face club fighter Johnnie White (22-4, 18 KOs) in the 10-round co-feature. Welterweight Sadam Ali, a 2008 U.S. Olympian, is also slated for the pay-per-view undercard.

•Welterweight Delvin Rodriguez has been scratched from the ESPN2 "Friday Night Fights" main event against Michael Medina on April 22 because of a wrist injury and flu-like symptoms that have had him under the weather for the past week. Rodriguez was already ill when he went to the gym a few days ago to try to train. During the session, he injured his wrist. "It's the first fight he's ever pulled out of to my knowledge, and I've worked with him for many years," Star Boxing matchmaker Ron Katz said. "It's the first time he's been unable to make a fight. He never says no. He's fought with injuries, but between the wrist and the bug he can't get rid of, it was best for him to pull out of this fight." No word yet on a replacement main event, although junior middleweight prospect Demetrius Andrade is slated for an eight-rounder in the co-feature at the Mohegan Sun resort in Uncasville, Conn.

• Japanese promoter Akihiko Honda has moved his world title tripleheader on April 8 from Tokyo to the southern Japanese port city of Kobe because of the problems in Tokyo, including limited electricity, in the aftermath of the recent earthquake and tsunami disaster. Hozumi Hasegawa (29-3, 12 KOs) defends his featherweight belt against former bantamweight titlist Jhonny Gonzalez (47-7, 41 KOs) of Mexico in the main event. Also, junior featherweight titlist Toshiaki Nishioka (37-4-3, 23 KOs) will meet Argentina's Mauricio Munoz (21-2, 9 KOs), and junior lightweight titleholder Takahiro Ao (20-2-1, 9 KOs) defends against Humberto Gutierrez (28-2-1, 20 KOs) of Mexico.

• Heralded Puerto Rican lightweight prospect Jose Pedraza, who made his pro debut in Puerto Rico in February, will make his New York debut March 29 on promoter Lou DiBella's "Broadway Boxing" card at the BB King Blues Club. Pedraza (1-0, 1 KO), 21, a standout before turning pro under the guidance of promoters DiBella, Gary Shaw and Javier Bustillo, will face Corben Page (1-1, 0 KOs) in a four-rounder. Pedraza was a 2008 Olympian and 2009 silver medalist at the amateur world championships. In his pro debut, he knocked out Felix Rivera in the first round.
[h3]Quotables[/h3]
"Marcos Maidana is an exciting young fighter, and there is no quit in either of us. Like true warriors, we will keep fighting until the end. I know my hand will be raised as the winner when it is over." -- former three-division champion Erik Morales, on his junior welterweight fight against Maidana on April 9 (HBO PPV) at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

"Erik Morales is one of the greatest fighters of all time, and I'm honored and excited to be fighting him. But when the bell rings, I will put respect aside and do what I do best, which is knock my opponent out." -- Maidana, on his upcoming fight with Morales.

Calderon fight.

Spoiler [+]

Puerto Rico's Ivan "Iron Boy" Calderon, the former strawweight and junior flyweight world champion, had never lost until Giovani Segura (26-1-1, 22 KOs) knocked him out in the eighth round in August to claim the 108-pound title in one of the most exciting fights of 2010.

Calderon had rarely even come close to losing since turning pro after the 2000 Olympics -- nor had he ever been in a truly exciting fight. He was perhaps the most technically gifted boxer in the sport during the 2000s. He wasn't all that exciting to watch, but he could outbox anyone.

After the loss to Segura, though, the biggest fight available for Calderon was a rematch, which is set for April 2 on Segura's turf in Mexicali, Mexico -- the first fight was in Puerto Rico. Calderon will be seeking revenge in the Integrated Sports pay-per-view main event (9 p.m. ET, $39.95).

I have a hard time seeing Calderon, who has lost a step, beating Segura, who is much bigger and more powerful. But I would never count out a supreme technician such as Calderon.

Calderon said that he has no worries about going to Mexico and that he has revamped his training camp to get ready for the rematch.

"I'm working hard in training to make sure that I do better than I did in the first fight against Segura," Calderon said. "My fans will be in Mexico with me in spirit. I know a lot of people will be booing me there, but I know how to control that and remain focused in the ring. My first loss has me hungrier and I'm training differently. For the first time in 10 years I'm not living at home with my family. I stay at camp and live in my trainer's house. It's just me and him, none of my family around. I've also been doing more work with weights to strengthen my arms and legs."

Calderon (34-1-1, 6 KOs) claimed he was hampered by leg injuries in the first fight, so he was not able to move the way he usually does. As a pure technician, Calderon has always relied on movement and boxing ability, not pure power and pressure, like Segura.

"I didn't train right for our first fight," Calderon said. "My leg muscles were injured. I couldn't run and training days were suspended in the gym. I usually spar 100 rounds, but all I had was 45 for the last fight. No excuses, he did the job, but that wasn't the Ivan everybody knows. I need to be able to move my legs to control the fight. I couldn't move because of my legs and he worked my body good. I had to go toe-to-toe with him. He controlled the fight.
"He's not a good technical fighter, but he's strong and keeps pressure on his opponent. He did hurt me with body shots. I believe this fight will be different because I will box more. I will leave Mexico with my belt. Mexicans don't like to watch my style of boxing, but I don't care if they yell or boo. I will fight my fight and make the judges love my style, so I get the decision."

proshares · Mar 25, 2011

Gamboa & Notes.

Spoiler [+]

Top Rank's Bob Arum is the one who said it, said that he would take his two exciting featherweight titleholders, Yuriorkis Gamboa and Juan Manuel Lopez, and build toward an eventual fight between them.

He said it might take a year and a few fights apiece but that the match would be made after it "marinated" for a little while. It is, after all, one of the matches that fight fans crave. Arum, understandably, did not believe it was ready to be made right away, so he put both of them on the same pay-per-view card in October 2009 to whet the appetite of fans and media members. They both won their fights, so Arum put them both on the same card again, this time on HBO in January 2010.

They both scored impressive victories. Gamboa blasted out Rogers Mtagwa (the opponent Lopez struggled with in the previous fight) in two rounds, and Lopez, who was moving up in weight, knocked out Steven Luevano in the seventh round to win a title.

Now, more than a year later, however, we are no closer to seeing a Lopez-Gamboa fight happen. Lopez, who has fought twice since beating Luevano, is now a regular on Showtime and defends his title against Orlando Salido, Gamboa's most recent victim, on April 16.

Gamboa, meanwhile, fights on HBO. He also has fought twice since appearing on the same card with Lopez and goes for a third time when he defends his unified 126-pound belts against interim junior lightweight titlist Jorge Solis, who is moving down in weight, on Saturday night (HBO, 9:45 ET/PT) at the Adrian Phillips Ballroom at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J.

Even Gamboa (19-0, 15 KOs), who stands to make a career payday should the fight with Lopez ever come about, is sick of talking about the proposed showdown.

"In reality, I don't feel rushed to make that fight, but by the same token, there has been so much talk of me facing him, but it still hasn't come to fruition," Gamboa said through translator and manager Tony Gonzalez. "If it's going to happen, I want it to happen, but I don't have a desire to keep talking about it."

Gamboa, 29, who lives in Miami, was a 2004 Cuban Olympic gold medalist before defecting and turning pro in 2007. He has been on the fast track since the first day of his professional career. He has won a pair of world title belts and, in Solis, is facing a very credible opponent.

Lopez, Gamboa said, is just another good opponent he would someday like to face. But he is not going to think seriously about it until the fight is made.

"I'm just thinking that Juanma is one of the champions in our division," Gamboa said. "The thing that bothers me most is that they have created the expectations in the press and they keep talking about this fight. But I can't make it happen. So I will tend to my business and keep collecting my belts and fighting. If it happens, great; if it doesn't, OK."

Top Rank president Todd duBoef said he would like to eventually make the fight but that it will happen when it is ready and can be the biggest it can be.

He would have preferred that Arum, his boss and stepfather, not outline a particular timetable as he did more than a year ago.

"We don't do well with timelines," duBoef said. "We do better building a business around each guy, and when it's ready to go, it's ready to go. We've seen them both progress substantially over the past 12 months."

So while Lopez perhaps is on the minds of others, Gamboa has Solis in front of him. Solis (40-2-2, 29 KOs), 31, of Mexico, will be fighting in the United States for the first time since an eighth-round knockout loss to Manny Pacquiao in a 2007 junior lightweight fight in San Antonio. However, Solis put up a strong effort against Pacquiao and made it an interesting fight for several rounds before succumbing to Pacquiao's pressure.

For Gamboa, Solis said, he is well prepared, because Gamboa is also a pressure fighter.

"I've arrived at 100 percent," Solis said. "I had a strong and intense preparation in Guadalajara. [Last] Friday I did 14 rounds [of sparring] with great intensity, and they went smooth. I left with a lot of motivation to win. I'm a natural 126-pounder, and I went to junior lightweight because there came the opportunity to win a world title. I'll be strong at this weight.

"We have several strategies to address the Cuban. We have analyzed his strengths and weaknesses, and plan to decrease his speed with blows to the body. He is a very fast and strong opponent but goes down when you attack and does not know what to do. Beating Gamboa will bring me to the big leagues of boxing -- big purses, and that's what I want."

Gamboa has no plans to allow that to happen.

"In my opinion, I push myself to win by knockout," Gamboa said. "It's something everyone likes, but I won't lose my concentration in that pursuit. I am just going to fight, showcase my talents and abilities, and come out with a victory."

Said Gonzalez, "He's ready for Solis. He knows he is going up against an experienced fighter, but he feels he will overmatch Solis."

In the opening bout of the "Boxing After Dark" doubleheader, featherweight prospects Miguel Angel "Mikey" Garcia (24-0, 20 KOs), 23, of Oxnard, Calif., faces Matt Remillard (23-0, 13 KOs), 24, of Manchester, Conn., in a scheduled 12-rounder. The winner certainly could loom as an eventual opponent for the main-event winner.

Also on the card, cruiserweight Tommy Zbikowski (2-0, 2 KOs) will face Caleb Grummet (0-0-1) in a four-rounder. Zbikowski is the Baltimore Ravens safety who is boxing professionally during the NFL lockout. He fought once in 2006, when he was still at Notre Dame, but had his second pro fight March 12 on the Miguel Cotto-Ricardo Mayorga pay-per-view undercard. HBO will air highlights of Saturday's fight, Zbikowski's first under the tutelage of Hall of Fame trainer Emanuel Steward.

http:///sports.espn.go.com/espn/gallery/enlargePhoto?id=6237499&story=6256156">http://sports.espn.go.com...237499&...idth=640,height=550,scrollbars=no,noresize'); return false;" href="http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/boxing/columns/story?columnist=rafael_dan&id=6256156#">[+] Enlarge

Christof Koepsel/Bongarts/Getty ImagesVitali Klitschko, right, took out Odlanier Solis, left, with a right hand to the head in the final second of the first round Saturday.
[h3]Klitschko-Solis fallout[/h3]
Arena-Box promoter Ahmet Oner apologized for his meltdown at the news conference following Odlanier Solis' first-round TKO loss to heavyweight titleholder Vitali Klitschko this past Saturday in Cologne, Germany.

"I simply overreacted, and I'm sorry for that," Oner said. "I lost control because of all the provocations, and I shouldn't have done it. Period. I already apologized to Vitali at the press conference. I respect him. He is a great champion. Now the most important thing is that Solis will be able to fight again. We are doing all we can to get his knee fixed as soon as possible."

The fight ended prematurely when Solis fell to the canvas with a right knee injury and was unable to continue. Solis, the mandatory challenger and 2004 Cuban Olympic gold medalist, was scheduled for surgery Thursday in Germany. Arena-Box announced that Solis had suffered a torn ACL in his knee as well as a damaged meniscus.

Oner also dismissed reports in the German media that Solis and the team hid a pre-existing injury and went through with the fight anyway, for which Solis was due a career-high $1.8 million. "This rumor is based on a false quotation spread in the German press," Oner said. "Everybody knows that there are a lot of medical tests for fighters who want to compete in a world title fight. Every professional athletes has some small problems every now and then. But all documents prove that Solis was fit and ready for this fight. In addition to that, he was in a very tough training camp for eight weeks, where he was under permanent observation without any problems, and he moved extremely well in the first round, and the whole world has seen that. You simply cannot do this with a serious knee injury."

• Dmitry Pirog (17-0, 14 KOs) of Russia will make the first defense of his middleweight belt against Argentina's Javier Francisco Maciel (18-1, 12 KOs) on Saturday in Ekaterinburg, Russia. ESPN3.com will stream the entire world feed of the card live beginning at 11:45 a.m. ET, meaning it will include undercard bouts, including welterweight Felix Diaz, a 2008 Olympic gold medalist, in an eight-rounder against Russia's Andrey Berdishev. The main event is expected to begin at about 2 p.m. ET. It will be Pirog's first fight since winning the vacant belt when he scored an upset fifth-round knockout of Daniel Jacobs in July on the Juan Manuel Marquez-Juan Diaz II HBO PPV undercard.

• When 20-year-old Saul "Canelo" Alvarez (36-0-1, 26 KOs) claimed a vacant junior middleweight title March 5, he did it by easily outpointing England's Matthew Hatton. When Alvarez makes his first defense, slated for June 18, he likely will face another Englishman in Ryan Rhodes (45-4, 31 KOs), 34, who was appointed as his mandatory challenger. Golden Boy Promotions plans on staging the card in Guadalajara, Mexico, Alvarez's hometown. Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer said they are negotiating with Rhodes for the bout. Schaefer said he also is negotiating the television arrangements for the bout.

• Middleweight James Kirkland's third fight since coming out of prison, which will take place on Golden Boy's April 9 HBO PPV card at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, will come against former junior middleweight titlist Nobuhiro Ishida (22-6-2, 7 KOs) of Japan, Golden Boy's Richard Schaefer told ESPN.com. Kirkland (27-0, 24 KOs) has scored a pair of quick knockouts since returning to action March 5. In Ishida's last fight, in October, he dropped a split decision and his interim belt to Rigoberto Alvarez, the older brother of Saul "Canelo" Alvarez. "James is fighting a former titleholder, so it's definitely a step up for him and it's an interesting fight," Schaefer said. "We're getting his opposition up. That's exactly what this fight is going to do. No question that this is his toughest test since he's been back." Schaefer also said he received a notification from the WBO approving the Robert Guerrero-Michael Katsidis fight on the card to be for the organization's vacant interim belt. Schaefer said the reason the WBO approved it was because it had been informed by champion Juan Manuel Marquez that his next fight would take place outside of the lightweight division, even though he has no fight officially set.

[h4]Rafael's Boxing Blog[/h4]

Get the latest scoop and analysis on the world of boxing from ESPN.com's Dan Rafael in his blog.

• Promoter Dan Goossen made it official that the Super Six World Boxing Classic semifinal between super middleweight titlist Andre Ward (23-0, 13 KOs) and Arthur Abraham (32-2, 26 KOs) on May 14 (Showtime) will take place at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. "I'm also happy to return to the Home Depot Center," Ward said. "I fought there once before and I think it's a great outdoor venue. Arthur should have a lot of fans there with the large Armenian contingency in Los Angeles, and I will have a lot of fans as well." Ward is from Oakland, Calif., and Abraham, an Armenian from Germany, said he is not concerned with fighting in his home state. "There is a huge Armenian community in Los Angeles, and I will put on a spectacular fight for them," he said. "I am very grateful to have their fantastic support and I can already promise them a very special evening. It will be good to have their backing. It will give me a huge boost." Heavyweight contender Cristobal Arreola (30-2, 26 KOs), from nearby Riverside, Calif., will meet Nagy Aguilera (16-5, 11 KOs), who has lost three of four, in the co-feature. Their fight is not scheduled to be part of Showtime's telecast.

• The Super Six World Boxing Classic semifinal between super middleweight titlist Carl Froch (27-1, 20 KOs) and Glen Johnson (51-14-2, 35 KOs), originally scheculed for May 21, is moving to a new date, likely June 4, Johnson co-promoter Leon Margules told ESPN.com. Showtime is not anxious to butt heads with a major HBO card the same night that features the Jean Pascal-Bernard Hopkins light heavyweight championship rematch. Margules said the site is still up in the air, but the leading contenders are Quebec City and Atlantic City, N.J. "It could be either of them," Margules said. "Atlantic City became a player when the Nonito Donaire fight that was supposed to be there fell through." Top Rank had planned to do a Donaire fight in Atlantic City in conjunction with Caesars Atlantic City on May 28, but that is off now that Donaire has jumped to rival Golden Boy Promotions. Regardless of what happens in the eventual lawsuit over the move, if Donaire still fights May 28, it will be on the West Coast, leaving Caesars to look for another significant early summer fight.

• Julio Cesar Chavez will challenge middleweight belt holder Sebastian Zbik -- who got his belt only when Sergio Martinez was stripped by the WBC -- on June 4 on HBO. Top Rank's Carl Moretti said three sites in Southern California are being looked at as possibilities to host the fight, which will take place a week before Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. is inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame: Staples Center, Dodger Stadium and the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. Moretti said he expected a competitive fight. "Zbik is not the easiest guy in the world to fight," he said. "He kees his hands up. He doesn't open himself up. He waits to counter, so I think it's an interesting fight." The opening HBO bout hasn't been worked out yet.

• Welterweight Alfonso Gomez, a star of the first season of "The Contender," is scheduled to return against Calvin Greene in the main event of "Top Rank Live" (Fox Deportes) on May 21 at the Morongo Casino Resort Spa in Cabazon, Calif., Top Rank's Moretti told ESPN.com. Gomez has not fought since scoring a sixth-round stoppage of former lightweight champ Jose Luis Castillo last March on the Manny Pacquiao-Joshua Clottey undercard at Cowboys Stadium. Gomez was due to fight Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in December but withdrew a week before the fight because of a torn ligament in his left arm. If Gomez (22-4-2, 11 KOs) is successful in his return from the injury, Moretti said he would like to match him with Mike Jones "sometime in the very near future." Green (21-5-1, 13 KOs) has been idle since suffering a seventh-round knockout loss to Sergio Mora last April on the Bernard Hopkins-Roy Jones Jr. II undercard.

• The working date for Top Rank's proposed rematch between junior middleweight titlist Miguel Cotto and Antonio Margarito is July 16. If the fight is signed, it will be on pay-per-view, although it has not been determined if it will be on Showtime PPV, which did Cotto's 12th-round knockout of Ricardo Mayorga on March 19, or on HBO PPV, which has a long history of putting on Cotto events. If the fight is made, former welterweight titlist Kermit Cintron, who is now with Top Rank -- although promoter Lou DiBella remains financially involved -- could land on the undercard. "We don't have a specific date yet for Cintron, but we know we have to get him a fight," Top Rank's Carl Moretti said. "Bob [Arum] believes he fits in with any of the top guys at welterweight or junior middleweight, so there are some attractive fights."

• Cruiserweight titlist Marco Huck will make his sixth defense against substitute Ran Nakash on April 2 in Halle, Germany, Sauerland Event announced. Huck (31-1, 23 KOs) was supposed to meet former titlist Giacobbe Fragomeni (27-3-1, 11 KOs). However, Fragomeni suffered a cut over an eye in training and withdrew from the fight last Friday. Nakash (25-0, 18 KOs), a native of Israel living in Philadelphia, accepted the fight as a replacement. "I don't care about the late change," Huck said. "It will not exactly be a walk in the park, but as the world champion, I will find a way to deal with it. I will be prepared for Nakash and I will defeat him just like I defeat anybody who wants to take the belt away from me." Also on the card, heavyweight prospect Robert Helenius fights former titlist Samuel Peter.

• Former heavyweight titlist Sergei Liakhovich's first fight since his recent signing with promoter Main Events will come April 9 (Integrated Sports PPV, $29.95) at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., on the undercard of heavyweight contender Tomasz Adamek's fight against Kevin McBride. Liakhovich (25-3, 16 KOs), who has not fought since May 2010 and only three times since late 2006, will face club fighter Johnnie White (22-4, 18 KOs) in the 10-round co-feature. Welterweight Sadam Ali, a 2008 U.S. Olympian, is also slated for the pay-per-view undercard.

•Welterweight Delvin Rodriguez has been scratched from the ESPN2 "Friday Night Fights" main event against Michael Medina on April 22 because of a wrist injury and flu-like symptoms that have had him under the weather for the past week. Rodriguez was already ill when he went to the gym a few days ago to try to train. During the session, he injured his wrist. "It's the first fight he's ever pulled out of to my knowledge, and I've worked with him for many years," Star Boxing matchmaker Ron Katz said. "It's the first time he's been unable to make a fight. He never says no. He's fought with injuries, but between the wrist and the bug he can't get rid of, it was best for him to pull out of this fight." No word yet on a replacement main event, although junior middleweight prospect Demetrius Andrade is slated for an eight-rounder in the co-feature at the Mohegan Sun resort in Uncasville, Conn.

• Japanese promoter Akihiko Honda has moved his world title tripleheader on April 8 from Tokyo to the southern Japanese port city of Kobe because of the problems in Tokyo, including limited electricity, in the aftermath of the recent earthquake and tsunami disaster. Hozumi Hasegawa (29-3, 12 KOs) defends his featherweight belt against former bantamweight titlist Jhonny Gonzalez (47-7, 41 KOs) of Mexico in the main event. Also, junior featherweight titlist Toshiaki Nishioka (37-4-3, 23 KOs) will meet Argentina's Mauricio Munoz (21-2, 9 KOs), and junior lightweight titleholder Takahiro Ao (20-2-1, 9 KOs) defends against Humberto Gutierrez (28-2-1, 20 KOs) of Mexico.

• Heralded Puerto Rican lightweight prospect Jose Pedraza, who made his pro debut in Puerto Rico in February, will make his New York debut March 29 on promoter Lou DiBella's "Broadway Boxing" card at the BB King Blues Club. Pedraza (1-0, 1 KO), 21, a standout before turning pro under the guidance of promoters DiBella, Gary Shaw and Javier Bustillo, will face Corben Page (1-1, 0 KOs) in a four-rounder. Pedraza was a 2008 Olympian and 2009 silver medalist at the amateur world championships. In his pro debut, he knocked out Felix Rivera in the first round.
[h3]Quotables[/h3]
"Marcos Maidana is an exciting young fighter, and there is no quit in either of us. Like true warriors, we will keep fighting until the end. I know my hand will be raised as the winner when it is over." -- former three-division champion Erik Morales, on his junior welterweight fight against Maidana on April 9 (HBO PPV) at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

"Erik Morales is one of the greatest fighters of all time, and I'm honored and excited to be fighting him. But when the bell rings, I will put respect aside and do what I do best, which is knock my opponent out." -- Maidana, on his upcoming fight with Morales.

Calderon fight.

Spoiler [+]

Puerto Rico's Ivan "Iron Boy" Calderon, the former strawweight and junior flyweight world champion, had never lost until Giovani Segura (26-1-1, 22 KOs) knocked him out in the eighth round in August to claim the 108-pound title in one of the most exciting fights of 2010.

Calderon had rarely even come close to losing since turning pro after the 2000 Olympics -- nor had he ever been in a truly exciting fight. He was perhaps the most technically gifted boxer in the sport during the 2000s. He wasn't all that exciting to watch, but he could outbox anyone.

After the loss to Segura, though, the biggest fight available for Calderon was a rematch, which is set for April 2 on Segura's turf in Mexicali, Mexico -- the first fight was in Puerto Rico. Calderon will be seeking revenge in the Integrated Sports pay-per-view main event (9 p.m. ET, $39.95).

I have a hard time seeing Calderon, who has lost a step, beating Segura, who is much bigger and more powerful. But I would never count out a supreme technician such as Calderon.

Calderon said that he has no worries about going to Mexico and that he has revamped his training camp to get ready for the rematch.

"I'm working hard in training to make sure that I do better than I did in the first fight against Segura," Calderon said. "My fans will be in Mexico with me in spirit. I know a lot of people will be booing me there, but I know how to control that and remain focused in the ring. My first loss has me hungrier and I'm training differently. For the first time in 10 years I'm not living at home with my family. I stay at camp and live in my trainer's house. It's just me and him, none of my family around. I've also been doing more work with weights to strengthen my arms and legs."

Calderon (34-1-1, 6 KOs) claimed he was hampered by leg injuries in the first fight, so he was not able to move the way he usually does. As a pure technician, Calderon has always relied on movement and boxing ability, not pure power and pressure, like Segura.

"I didn't train right for our first fight," Calderon said. "My leg muscles were injured. I couldn't run and training days were suspended in the gym. I usually spar 100 rounds, but all I had was 45 for the last fight. No excuses, he did the job, but that wasn't the Ivan everybody knows. I need to be able to move my legs to control the fight. I couldn't move because of my legs and he worked my body good. I had to go toe-to-toe with him. He controlled the fight.
"He's not a good technical fighter, but he's strong and keeps pressure on his opponent. He did hurt me with body shots. I believe this fight will be different because I will box more. I will leave Mexico with my belt. Mexicans don't like to watch my style of boxing, but I don't care if they yell or boo. I will fight my fight and make the judges love my style, so I get the decision."

GTA 809 · Mar 25, 2011

Watched friday night fights
I wish boxing fights were an odd number of rounds. I hate draws and not having a decisive winner.
Or after a draw have one more decisive round like OT

Jk about the last part guys takes it easy.

GTA 809 · Mar 25, 2011

Watched friday night fights
I wish boxing fights were an odd number of rounds. I hate draws and not having a decisive winner.
Or after a draw have one more decisive round like OT

Jk about the last part guys takes it easy.

gunna get it · Mar 25, 2011

Erislandy Lara just got a gift decision

Him and rigedeaux have dailed to impress me at all in their last couple fights.

gunna get it · Mar 25, 2011

Erislandy Lara just got a gift decision

Him and rigedeaux have dailed to impress me at all in their last couple fights.

proshares · Mar 25, 2011

I thought Lara could go toe to toe with anyone at 154 before this fight. He struggled badly with a dude who hasn't fought in about a year and a half.

Pirog fight starts at 11:45am tomorrow

proshares · Mar 25, 2011

I thought Lara could go toe to toe with anyone at 154 before this fight. He struggled badly with a dude who hasn't fought in about a year and a half.

Pirog fight starts at 11:45am tomorrow

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2011 Official Boxing Thread: 12/30 Jermain Taylor + Andre Dirrell return on ShoBox.

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