Former sparring partners Ward and Conroy clash on ESPN+

Steven Ward and Liam Conroy will collide for the WBO European light-heavyweight title on the #MTKFightNight at Belfast’s Ulster Hall on June 21 – live on ESPN+ in association with Top Rank.

Ward (11-0, 4 KOs), who will enjoy home advantage, said: “Winning the European title would mean the world to me. It’s a step up I’m ready for and victory will open up so many more doors.

“We’ve done a lot of sparring ahead of his fight with Buatsi. It was good sparring and we got on well. There’s no need to change any preparations based on the sparring we had.

“I’m confident in my boxing and once you get in there, Liam’s in the way of where I want to go. Our paths have crossed and getting past him will put me another rung up the ladder.”

Barrow-in-Furness’ Conroy (16-4-1, 8 KOs) added: “I’m going to the lion’s den again but I’m looking forward to it. I hope it’s a good atmosphere because I thrive off hostile environments. I’ve heard great things about that venue.

“He’s been my sparring partner and we’ve helped each other a lot in the past so there’s not too much homework to do. Myself and Johnney Roye really focus on my strengths and weaknesses anyway.

“I still want to build myself back up to the British title mandatory position. It’s still my dream and I won’t stop until I get it.”

Further announcements on fights and fighters for the show, which will also be broadcast on iFL TV, will be forthcoming in due course.

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Ekaterinburg, Russia (May 9, 2016)–This past Friday night, in Ekaterinburg, Russia, undefeated WBO European Super Featherweight champion Evgeny Chuprakov made the second defense of his title, when he stopped previously undefeated Sebastian Tlatlik in the fifth round of their scheduled 10-round bout.

Chuprakov (16-0, 8 KO’s) of Ekaterinburg is currently ranked number-7 by the WBO and number-14 by the IBF.

Chuprakov dominated the action and finally the fight was halted by the referee in the 5th round. This was the third undefeated opponent that Chuprakov has beaten, as he continues to fight top-level competition; He already has a stoppage victory over former world champion Dmitry Kirillov.

“This is a great win for Evgeny. He stopped an undefeated fighter, and now we are looking to bring him back to the United States and put him in a meaningful bout. He has proven that he is a contender at junior lightweight, and we hope to have him back in the ring in August,” said Banner Promotions President, Arthur Pelullo.

www.philboxing.com/news/story-119076.html

wboconvday1-680By David Finger \ Photos: Joel Colon/WBO

The World Boxing Organization 27th Annual Convention kicked off in full force this morning at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas as members from around the world introduced themselves and we subsequently treated to a video presentation highlighting last year’s convention in Budapest. The first order of business for the executive committee was the Championship Committee report, which highlighted the strong position of the WBO in regards to participating in championship fights. In 2011-2012 the WBO made a strong statement to the boxing world as they had an impressive 38 championship fights. However, as that number dipped to 32 in 2012-2013, the WBO was keen on making a strong statement and to bounce back. The Championship Committee was happy to report that the WBO more than exceeded expectations here.

“This year we came back fierce and strong,” commented Luis Batista Salas, chairman of the Championship Committee. “We came back with 40 championship fights. We had more championship fights than the other organizations together.” Batista Salas also commented on the growth, and strength, of WBO Women’s boxing. “We have 25 champions in the female division, and we only began three years ago with female championship fights.”

Perhaps most noteworthy for the Championship Committee was the prominent role that mandatory defenses played in WBO championship fights. “Mandatory fights are something we take very seriously,” Batista Salas added, “(The WBO) had 32 mandatory fights! This is also a record. That is also something to be proud of.”

From there President Valcarcel announced that the President’s Report would be postponed until after lunch to allow him to speak at length about some issues, including his planned announcement for the second day of the convention, in which the WBO will petition Senator John McCain and the ABC to propose amendments to the Muhammad Ali Act, proposals that would strengthen the bill and impose harsher penalties for violations. He then took a jab at the other organizations, and in particular the recent summit of boxing organizations in Cancun, Mexico that was hosted by the WBC.

“I wasn’t there to waste time in Cancun for some public relations stunt where nothing gets done,” Valcarcel said to the Executive Committee, “there were two of them in the past and nothing got done. We didn’t intend to go and waste our time.”

Valcarcel indicated a desire to continue working with local commissions and the ABC to promote safety and proposed rule changes, noting that local laws will always trump the WBO rules, and therefore it was important to work closely with these commissions. He also added that he will be meeting with the chairman of the IBF tomorrow, as the chairman will be visiting with the WBO in Las Vegas.

The Grievance Committee report followed, and in what could considered a “short and sweet” summary, the Grievance Committee chairman Alberto Rodriguez was happy to announce that there were no complaints submitted to the committee in 2014. He then discussed the process for a party to submit to the grievance committee.

A short video followed featuring WBO women’s bantamweight champion Carolina Duer, followed by Ms. Duer thanking the WBO and expressing her appreciation for the WBO. “Since I’ve been a world champion I’ve always been only a WBO champion,” Duer said to the executive committee, “I am very proud to represent this organization.”

The next order of business was the regional vice presidents report, starting with Istvan “Koko” Kovacs and WBO Europe. Kovacs was pleased to report a very successful year for the WBO Europe. “We had the pleasure to organize the second WBO congress (in Budapest) in 2013 and according to the feedback and your comments, it was very successful. Already after the 2009 (WBO Congress) we saw an increase in the nonetheless already significant activities of WBO Europe. But I must admit that I did not expect to have such extraordinary accomplishments (in 2014).”

WBO Europe increased overall, and although WBO International saw a slight decrease, much of that was attributed to tighter restrictions and higher standards. “We tightened the requirements for the belt,” Kovacs said, “we had less fights but there is higher prestige to the belt.”

However, any drop in activity to WBO International was more than made up by the increase in activity from the WBO European titles. It went from 11 fights in 2013 to 27 in 2014. The number of WBO regional titles in Europe nearly doubled from 29 in 2013 to 53 in 2014, Kovacs then discussed the increase in activity across the board for the WBO in Europe, citing the increased number of fights from the WBO Youth (from 4 to 9) and WBO female championships (from 5 to 9). In 2014 there were also 10 WBO championship fights in Europe, which was the same number as in 2013.

Kovacs then discussed the overall history of the WBO European title since 2009, noting that they have had 92 championship fights, with 54 champions, of which 13 would go on to fight for the title, and of which 3 world champions would emerge. Kovacs then discussed the financial situation with WBO Europe, noting that since 2009 the WBO Europe brought in $95,600 for the WBO in 2014 alone, thus making it the most successful year ever for WBO Europe. Since 2009 WBO Europe has collected over $325,000 in sanctioning fees for the WBO. Kovacs then took a few moments to discuss the ways in which WBO Europe took part in the WBO Kids Drug Free program.

From there WBO Asia Pacific Vice President Leon Panoncillo took the floor to discuss both the state of boxing in Asia and in Africa.

“Asia Pacific has shown positive growth, with 17 sanctioned fights since last year’s convention,” Panoncillo said. He also added that WBO Asia Pacific brought in $28,011.57 in revenue since the last convention and that he expected to sanction five more fights before the end of the year.

He then discussed the WBO Oriental title, adding that since the last convention he sanctioned 30 Oriental Championship matches, collecting a total of $44,250 in revenue since the last convention. The impressive increase in activity marked a dramatic rise in activity for the WBO Oriental title, making 2014 one of the most successful years in the history of WBO Oriental and in striking range of being the most successful year ever for the title. Panoncillo then went on to discuss the WBO Africa, noting that WBO Africa has sanctioned 16 total championship fights since the last convention and that it has raised $21,400 in revenue. Panoncillo then closed out with a discussion of the state of affairs with WBO Asia Pacific Youth, noting that the WBO sanctioned three youth titles and subsequently raised $2,525 in revenue for the WBO since the last convention.

From there WBO first vice president John Duggan discussed the China Zone development, and his hopes to see the WBO continue to grow in the region.

After Duggan’s discussion of China the WBO handed out several awards, with Marco Huck being the most notable. Huck was recently named a WBO Super Champion, and although he did not have a Super Championship belt yet, he was awarded a plague commemorating his accomplishment.

“This is a very rare and great honor,” Huck said after receiving the award, “I am very proud to be named Super Champion after 13 title defenses.”Also given awards were Osvaldo Rivero, who was named Latin America promoter of the year by the WBO. Also given an award was Patrick Teixeira, who was awarded the OMB Latino Champion of the year.

From there Jorge Molina presented his report on WBO Latino, noting that he still embraced the philosophy that “the sky’s the limit” when considering the future of the organization. Since the last convention, Molina noted that the WBO has sanctioned 30 championship fights, an increase from 25 in 2013. Of those 30 fights, 10 were held in Argentina, 10 were held in Brazil, six were held in the United States, 3 were held in Mexico, and 1 was held in Puerto Rico. Five fights were in the welterweight division, five were in the junior bantamweight division, and four were in the junior middleweight division. Molina then discussed the proud history of the OMB Latino championship, noting that the WBO Latino held an astounding 526 title fights since 1996. Of those who fought for the WBO Latino title, 134 would go on to fight for the world title, while 41 would go on to win world championships. Molina then added that since the last convention three OMB Latino Champions have gone on to win world titles as well. Molina then closed out with a video presentation that highlighted some of the greatest moments of WBO Latino, highlighting some legendary champions like Michael Carbajal and Ener Julio.

The executive committee took a short recess for lunch, and upon returning from lunch, resumed with the treasurer’s report. WBO CPA Jaime Ceballero advised that the strength of the WBO financial situation, adding that the WBO had $1,242,724 in savings, an increase in revenue of 302%. The increase in revenue was the largest ever in the history of the WBO. He then added that the WBO accounts included nearly $2,000,000 when added with the accounts of all of the regional organizations. He then added that, if the WBO were to pay off all of their debts today, they would still hold in excess of a million dollars. The positive report prompted President Valcarcel to ask if the WBO could spend more money on the WBO Kids Drug Free program. Unfortunately there was one area where regional organization in which WBO didn’t have tremendous success initially in 2014: the NABO.

The NABO had recently changed leadership in February of 2014 after reporting substantial losses in 2013 and early 2014. New NABO Vice President Jose Izquierdo, however, had done much to turn that ship around since taking over. One area of strength was the increase in fights on “important” cards such as the Manny Pacquiao-Timothy Bradley PPV card, or the recent Floyd Mayweather-Marcos Maidana PPV in 2014. Since taking over the helm at NABO, Izquierdo has sanctioned 12 NABO title fights and 14 Inter-Continental title fights, helping fuel a dramatic turnaround for the NABO financially.

“There is a dramatic decrease in the amount owed,” Izquierdo said, “over 46% decrease. And a 790% increase for cash on hand.”

Izquierdo has taken a much more inclusive approach to spearhead the NABO’s sudden resurgence. “I’ve called local commissions to have them recommend fighters to be considered and become part of the rankings of the NABO,” Izquierdo said.

The positive changes in the direction of the NABO prompted vice president Luis Batista Salas to sing Izquierdo’s praises during his presentation. “He has changed the face of the NABO,” Batista Salas said of Izquierdo.

From there President Francisco “Paco” Valcarcel presented the WBO President’s Report, and as expected, he took time to again discuss a topic that has become his cause belle: the proliferation of titles in boxing. Valcarcel first commended Jose Izquierdo on scoring a knockout with WBO’s presence on social media like Facebook.com and Twitter. Noting how WBO’s Facebook page went from 7,000 followers to 334,996 followers in only one year, he commended Izquierdo for helping turn WBO boxing into one of the most popular boxing pages on the internet.

“It is the fastest way to get resolutions out and give the public an outlet (to communicate with us).” Valcarcel said.

Valcarcel then spoke time to speak about the WBO champions, noting that “the WBO is very lucky, because we have the money makers. We have the best champions around the world.”

He then took a jab at a rival organization, noting that former WBO middleweight champion Peter Quillin was making more money in his title defenses than a rival organizations champion who had become a regular fixture on television. He also noted that at the bantamweight weight class, the WBO recently received a $600,000 purse bid from a promoter for a title fight and that Marco Huck is highly successful in the cruiserweight division, earning tremendous paydays as a cruiserweight. Valcarcel then took another jab at the rival organizations and the proliferation of numerous “copper, platinum, silver, and aluminum” titles.

“We have the WBO (world) champion and that’s it! We call Klitschko a Super Champion and that’s it. We don’t have anyone (other champion) behind him. I want to be polite, but I have to speak the truth. Who cares about Alex Povetkin? The champion is Klitschko!”

Explaining the difference between the WBO and some of the other sanctioning organizations in how they recognize champions.

“We have regional titles, but others, they have 3, 4, 5 titles.” Valcarcel added. “We only have one Latino Champion…that means the WBO Latino title carries prestige. We want to keep it that way. We don’t want to have a bunch of titles.”

From there discussions turned to recent litigation involving the WBO, including a case in Puerto Rico that threatens the tax-exempt status of the WBO.

“Our financial success has attracted the attention of inland revenue in Puerto Rico,” WBOs legal counsel associated with the case told the commission, “due to new tax laws in Puerto Rico and the recession in Puerto Rico, and the degradation of Puerto Rican bonds. Puerto Rico has imposed further taxes to cover this.”

Although the WBO is a recognized non-profit according to the United States federal government, the government of Puerto Rico has refused to give full faith and credit to this designation, and their decision had initially been upheld by the Puerto Rican court of appeals. Although the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico initially refused to hear the case, the WBO remained confident that they still had a strong appeal.

Jose Izquierdo made a motion to give the President the authority to unilaterally name a committee to take on this issue at his discretion, a motion that was passed unanimously.

The second issue discussed was the issue of a trademark registration in Europe, and a fraudulent company that sent an unsolicited letter demanding payment to “register” the WBO trademark. This letter was disregarded when the WBO European Council assured the executive committee that the WBO trademarks are registered for the next several years.

Closing out the first day of the meeting, President Valcarcel again discussed the issue of the WBO’s refusal to take part in the joint summit of boxing sanctioning organizations held in Cancun earlier this year.

“We can work with other commissioners regarding safety,” Valcarcel said, “that doesn’t mean we have to meet up (with rival organizations) for it. I never heard of Coca-Cola and Pepsi having a meeting together. You have your own flavor, we don’t have to meet anyone, we don’t have to go anywhere because we are very busy. We are busy working with kids, enhancing the image of the sport. We had a meeting in 2011 and we talked about the same issues. We are doing much more than other organizations. Did you hear of other organizations doing as much for kids?”

WBO European member Markus Aslani then chimed in, “We stick to our rules and we don’t take part in the inflation of titles.”

“I think the main problem in boxing is that you have more than one champion in each division,” Valcarcel added.

“One organization that shall remain unnamed had 41 champions in 17 weight classes,” Jose Izquerdo added.

“We have the support of the most respected boxing writers of the world,” Valcarcel added, “I think in boxing, honesty is the best policy. If we are recognized as the honest organization, we are going to have success.”

From there President Valcarcel added that he will discuss proposals to Senator John McCain and Harry Reid in regards to amendments to the Muhammad Ali Act, and that the WBO would “not tolerate corruption in its ranks.”

Rounding off the opening day was a presentation on the still developing China Zone, which discussed its plans for 2015. The event closed off with a cocktail party that evening, and is set to resume tomorrow at 8:30 AM.

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http://www.fightnews.com/Boxing/giant-wbo-2014-convention-day-one-report-266381

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Story and photos by David Finger

The 26th Annual WBO Congress officially kicked off Tuesday morning at the InterContinental Hotel in downtown Budapest as boxing insiders from around the world came to celebrate some of the exciting developments in the World Boxing Organization in 2013. The event kicked off with roll call, followed by an invocation. After approving the prior minutes from the 2012 Convention, the congress moved forward with the regional Vice President’s reports. Starting off was Vice President Mark Reels, who did reports from the NABO and the WBO Intercontinental. Although the NABO and the WBO Intercontinental both saw a slight drop in activity it still was a productive and profitable year for the regional organizations.

The NABO held an impressive 12 championship fights (with revenue of $46,760) while the Intercontinental held 20 championship fights (with a revenue of $68,560). Reels also discussed the success of the WBO in developing world class fighters. Reels discussed how the NABO has seen 54 of the 262 fighters who fought for the belt subsequently fight for the WBO title. Although Reels downplayed the statistic, expressing a desire to see that number rise, it nonetheless impressed many at the table, with President Francisco “Paco” Valcarcel calling it “impressive.”

“Our issue is with quality over quantity,” Reels said during his presentation, “we have criteria for a fighter who is able to fight for a title.” Reels, however, did want to see some leniency on the issue of fighters getting sanctioned for NABO and WBO InterContinental fights, noting some good fighters who technically fell short of the high standards set by the WBO in regards to qualifications. President Valcarcel expressed concern over the idea.

Still, with all 15 NABO championship fights since last year’s convention being televised by a major TV network, Reels had an impressive year by nearly any standard. “As far as activity levels go, it is low,” Reels added, “but we really are recognized the world over.” Reels then discussed the revenue of the Intercontinental, confirming that the WBO Intercontinental collected over $40,000 of the $68,560 income in 2013.

From there Vice President Istvan “Koko” Kovacs presented his report on the WBO Europe. Although he admitted it was a “quiet year” he still was happy to announce that it Iwas still a productive year for the European continent. There were 13 Intercontinental title fights, with 9 taking place in Europe. There were also 14 International title fights, with 9 taking place in Europe, as well as 11 WBO European title fights. There were 6 WBO Youth title fights, with 4 taking place in Europe, 21 female title fights, with 5 taking place in Europe, and 32 world title fights with 10 taking place in Europe. Overall the WBO had 29 fights in Europe, a drop from 38 the previous year. WBO Europe’s revenue in 2013 was $40,500. Kovacs also commented on the previous issue with the British Boxing Board, commenting on how the WBO no longer has any problems working with the BBB. The BBB refused to recognize the WBO in previous years.

Next was Vice President Jorge Molina’s report on the WBO Latino. Molina admitted it had been a “hard year” for the Latino, with “only 25 Latino title fights in 10 months.” Still, Molina was able to point to the WBO Latino’s proud tradition and was able to proudly say that the WBO Latino continued that tradition in 2013. “#7 WBO Latino Champions became world champions,” Molina said, “and four of our WBO Latino champions have become world title holders (this year).” The WBO Latino raised $26,000 in the 25 title fights since the last convention, with 13 planned title fights to round out the year.

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From there a short video on the WBO’s widely successful WBO Kids Drug Free program was shown.

Next was Andrew Smalle’s WBO Africa regional report. Smalle admitted it was a slow year, with 7 WBO Africa fights since the last convention. From November of 2012 to December of 2012 there were three title fights, with revenue of $5,050. From January of 2013 to August of 2013 there were 4 WBO Africa title fights with revenue of $4,800. However, Smalle confirmed that additional income was expected as some sponsorship allocation was expected to kick in before the end of the year. Smalle also commented on the WBO’s commitment to high standards for the quality of the fighters who compete for the WBO African belt. Smalle’s commitment to the highest standards for WBO title fights has resulted in a lower number of championship fights, but also of a growing reputation in the continent.

“It’s been a challenge but I don’t see it as a negative at all,” Smalle admitted, “it can only go up from where it’s at now. We are a young organization, and one of our proudest moments was one of our fighters winning a championship earlier this year.” Smalle noted that despite the low activity, the WBO Africa’s high standard has resulted in it being the only regional African organization that has seen all of its champions ranked in the world rankings after winning a regional belt.

Next came Leon Panoncillo’s report from WBO Asia. Similar to the other organizations WBO Asia saw a slight decline in revenue, but it has continued its commitment to quality. Since the last convention the Asia-Pacific held 14 championship fights, raising $27,700. Panoncillo also anticipated holding 10 more fights before the end of the year. The WBO Oriental title had 5 fights, with 8 more planned for the end f other year. The WBO Asia Pacific Youth title had three title fights, raising $3,750. Although Panoncillo admitted that the Youth title has “not taken off” he was optimistic that a major Filipino television network was interested in partnering up with the WBO Asia-Pacific to award a youth belt to the winner of a “Contender” like reality series involving young prizefighters in the Philippines. Panoncillo’s biggest coup came with the exciting developments of his newest title: the WBO International championship. In just one year the WBO International title has become a highly prestigious belt, with Manny Pacquiao and Brandon Rios fighting for the vacant belt in Macao on November 24th. Panoncillo confirmed that the WBO has custom made a new belt for the winner of that fight.

The next report came from Zhang Tao on the China Zone. Although the WBO China Zone held only 7 fight shows, the WBO is still making headway into the world’s largest market, and Tao informed the board that he looked forward to hosting the WBO in China. Joe Hernandez then spoke of the Cuban boxing scene, and his desire that the situation in Cuba would soon open up. “When it (Cuba) does come free, the WBO will be at the forefront.”

Markus Aslani followed with his report on female boxing in the WBO. He proudly announced that the WBO had a good year, with an emphasis on quality in regards to female championship fights.

After lunch there was a brief discussion on ratings by Luis Perez, followed by a report by Luis Bautista Salas, which not only focused on “loyalty” but also discussed the successful year of the WBO, with 54 total championship fights (33 men’s championship fights and 21 female championship fights). There was a brief discussion on the growth of the WBO in the British boxing scene.

“We have good working relations and we want to see how we can continue this in the future,” President Valcarcel said.

A discussion from representatives from the Japan Boxing Commission followed, which was a clear sign of the WBO’s success in breaking into a new market. At the last congress in Budapest in 2009 there was a controversy over the WBO’s inability to operate in Japan. The growth in Japan since then was a clear victory for the WBO as it moved forward in Japan.

Next came the legal report, in which the WBO legal representatives discussed several pending legal issues. Several issues regarding trademark registration was discussed, with several brands extended into 2018. They then followed up with a discussion on the recent litigation in Puerto Rico. Some confusion emerged in 2012 in regards to the administrative level, with the Puerto Rican Department of treasury moving forward with legal action against the WBO in regards to its tax exempt status.

“It’s confusion over what we actually do,” one of the legal advisors for the WBO said, “It’s a lack of knowledge of the working issues of the organization.” Although the WBO is confident that they will prevail, several members understood that even if they do not prevail in litigation, it will have little major impact on the WBO. If there is an issue we will simply change the way we disperse funds,” one legal advisor of the WBO said.

Rounding off Day One, WBO President Francisco “Paco” Valcarcel gave a special shout out to WBO Asia Vice President Leon Panoncillo over the impressive developments in Macao and the Philippines.

“We control Asia from A to Z,” Valcarcel said, “everything that occurring Asia is very important to us.”

Rounding off the night, boxing insiders visited the Lázár Lovaspark, where they were delighted by a traditional Hungarian horseshow as well as a traditional Hungarian dinner.

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http://www.fightnews.com/Boxing/wbo-congress-day-one-report-221703

Eduard Gutknecht (24-1, 9 KOs) believes that Juergen Braehmer´s (38-2, 30 KOs) time is over. Today the current European Light Heavyweight Champion and his mandatory challenger met for the first time since the announcement of their upcoming clash in Berlin on February 2. The all-German affair will take place at the Max-Schmeling-Halle and the winner will not only be able to call himself the King of Europe but also gets a crack at the WBO World Championship.

It was the Champion himself who had the first word at today´s official press conference and he did not wait long to make his intentions clear. “I wanted to fight him years ago while we were still at Universum,” said Gutknecht. “Back then he was the European as well as the WBO World Champion. He was at the top of the game. But in my opinion he has already peaked a long time ago and his time in the spotlight is over. Of course, he wants another chance to get back to where he was. But I’m the champion now and I won’t give him that chance.”

Surprisingly his opponent of the night, Juergen Braehmer, did not really respond to that provocative statement. Instead, he decided to tell the media about his new training group headed by his old and new coach Karsten Roewer. “My preparations with Karsten Roewer, who I already worked with during my days as an amateur, are going really well,” said Braehmer. “I have a lot of fun with the other guys of the group and that is exactly what I need. Having fun while working hard motivates me.”

Gutknecht used that comment for another dig at the former champion. “I am not a joker. I take this sport seriously.” And his coach Ulli Wegner confirmed that there was not as much laughter in his camp. “We don’t have that much fun in my group – the guys can have fun during their spare time.”

Towards the end of the press conference, the challenger did make one thing clear. “When I am fully trained and in the right shape it is pretty much impossible to stop me. Once again, I have the chance to become to European Champion and after that the WBO World Champion. I will grab that opportunity with both hands.”

http://www.fightnews.com/Boxing/gutknecht-confrontational-braehmer-relaxed-151760

WBO Europe-Kids Drug Free- Celebrated a 5 days training Camp, that took place in BalatonBerény, on the biggest lake in Hungary.

There were 43 boxingclubs invited to the camp and brought a total of 240 young boxers to participate in it. The youngest kid was 9 years old, and the oldest 17.

Here are some of the pics from the camp!

Enjoy,


WBO European champion Arthur Abraham (34-3, 27KOs) is ready for the challenge of facing full WBO king Robert Stieglitz (41-2, 23KOs). BoxingScene.com reported on Wednesday that British boxer George Groves (14-0, 11KOs) was removed from the mandatory position – and the sanctioning organization approved Abraham (34-3, 27KOs) as the new mandatory challenger to Stieglitz.

Groves was scheduled to face Stieglitz (41-2, 23KOs) on May 5th in Germany. On Tuesday he withdrew with a nose injury. Stieglitz was given the option of making a voluntary defense on May 5, but then he has 90 days to fight Abraham.

Abraham wants the fight and he was confident his countryman would have defeated Groves.

“I think Stieglitz would beat Groves because he is a lot stronger. I want to [face] Stieglitz, because he also lives in Germany – and for German fans [the two of us fighting] for a world title will be very interesting,” Abraham said.

 

By Ruslan Chikov

http://www.boxingscene.com/?m=show&opt=printable&id=51940

Nuri Seferi (31-6, 19KOs) will defend the WBO European cruiserweight title on May 11th at the EWS Arena in Goeppingen, Germany. The card will be headlined by the European cruiserweight title clash between champion Alexander Alekseev and veteran Firat Arslan.

Seferi returns from a serious leg injury to his shin. The opponent for May has not been finalized.

“For three months after my surgery, I was unable to do anything, but I am very glad that the healing process has not lasted any longer. During the past few weeks, I found myself back in training and got the green light from my doctor and I am looking forward to making the third defense of my title,” Seferi said.

 

By Ruslan Chikov

http://www.boxingscene.com/?m=show&opt=printable&id=51307

Sparkassen-Arena, Kiel, Germany – “King” Arthur Abraham (34-3, 27 KOs) continued his renaissance after two disappointing years of defeats and letdowns, with his second win this year and once again versus a capable opponent. WBO #2 and WBA/IBF #4 Abraham used his power and some brute male force to beat down Polish contender Piotr Wilczewski over twelve, fairly one-sided rounds. All three judges saw the fight almost the same: 118-109 (Zoltan Enyedi and Michael Leu) and 119-108 (Ingo Barrabas) for the defending WBO European champion, who didn’t look his best or his his worst either, while BoxingScene had it a bit closer at 116-111.

 

http://www.boxingscene.com/?m=show&opt=printable&id=51282

Piotr Wilczewksi (30-2, 10 KOs) is the last obstacle between Arthur Abraham (33-3, 27 KOs) and another world title shot. “If Arthur wins on Saturday night, he will be the highest-ranked challenger in the WBO ratings and face the winner of Stieglitz-Groves,” promoter Kalle Sauerland said at today´s press conference. “It´s all or nothing for Arthur. He needs to win against Wilczewski.”

Abraham is ready to make things happen. “It will be a tough fight, but I have trained well,” he stated. “We have trained very hard and I am in good shape. I will win on Saturday, that´s all I want to say right now.”

After missing yesterday´s public work-out due to an airport strike in Germany, his opponent showed up on time today for the press conference. “Being stuck at Munich airport was no problem for me,” said Wilczewski, a former European Super-Middleweight Champion. “I just trained at the airport. I eventually reached Kiel at 20:30 last night. It does not bother me. I am ready for Abraham. We know what he will do and we don´t expect any surprises.”

In the co-featured main event, European Light Heavyweight Champion Eduard Gutknecht (23-1, 9 KOs) takes on Tony Averlant (17-5-2, 4 KOs). “I have to defend my belt because my kids want to keep playing with it,” Gutknecht said with a smile. Also in action will be unbeaten cruiserweight sensation Mateusz Masternak (25-0, 19 KOs), who comes face-to-face with Felipe Romero (15-4-1, 9 KOs). “European champion Alexander Alekseev better watches this clash closely,” Kalle Sauerland stated. “We plan to challenge him very soon with Mateusz. He has great potential.”

 

http://www.fightnews.com/Boxing/abraham-closing-in-on-world-title-shot-111449

“All strenghes are on my side and with my fans in the back I’ll beat Ushona”- former world champion Jan Zaveck will show his world champion ambitions against Betuel Tyson Ushona

Slovenian national hero returns March 24th against Ushona from Namibia

The fight will be shown on live TV on “Das Vierte” (8.15pm MEZ)

A press conference was held today in the Primus Hotel Ptuj / Maribor, Slovenia for Saturday’s clash between Slovenian national hero and former IBF welterweight champion Jan Zaveck (31-2-0 (18)) and WBO Africa beltholder Bethuel Tyson Ushona (25-1-0 (8)) from Namibia. The Tabor-Arena in Maribor with over 5.000 seats is completely sold out.

Jan Zaveck: “In my preparation time, we focused deliberately on my strengths. Ushona is a good fighter, of course, WBO African champions and now he’s the current WBO number 5. He is also very awkward to box, but I’ll deal with that with my strengths: better boxing technique, better stamina and, of course, my wonderful fans backing me. I will win!”

 

Bethuel Tyson Ushona: “We have the same dreams. Jan Zaveck wants once again to be and I want to be world champion. But, I have boxed and defeated anyone who stood in the way for my dream. It will be the same for Zaveck!”

 

 

 

SES-Trainer Dirk Dzemski: „The fans would be können sich am Samstag auf ein großartiges Erlebnis freuen. Jan Zaveck is well prepared on the point. With this fight and a noticeable win we’ll show up for a new chance to get a world title bout. To be world champion is a must for Jan Zaveck!“

 

 

Ushona coach Tobias Nashilongo: „We’ve a lot of respekt for Jan Zaveck. But God will give, that  Ushona will win here in Slovenia!“

 

SES Boxing

Photo credit: bostjansfoto.com

Light heavyweight Denis Simcic (27-1, 14 KOs) has been added to the March 24 boxing card in Maribor, Slovenia headlined by former world champion Zan Zaveck against Betuel Tyson Ushona. Simcic will face unbeaten Czech Adam Hubinger (14-0, 10 KOs) in a clash for the WBO European belt.

SES Boxing has also announced an exclusive TV deal with Germany’s “Das Vierte” network. “In the current media landscape you must always open up new doors and build new partnerships,” said promoter Ulf Steinforth. “After very good meetings and negotiations with Das Vierte, I am very optimistic that we are now working to build a new power for ‘Live Boxing.’ For our attractive sport, for the boxing fans, for our great boxers, and also for our business partners and sponsors, this added TV platform is an acknowledgment of the good work in recent years and an important new building block for the future. We welcome everyone to the huge ‘Live Boxing’ premiere with Das Vierte on March 24 live from Maribor.”

 

http://www.fightnews.com/Boxing/simcic-hubinger-added-ses-boxing-lands-new-tv-deal-110361

Hard-hitting German heavyweight contender Konstantin Airich returned back home to Hamburg after stopping WBO#6 Ondrej Pala in the ninth round of an exciting brawl in Tekirdag (Turkey) on Friday night. With this win the “Sandman“ added the WBO European championship to the IBF intercontinental championship which he had won by annihilating Varol Vekiloglu in one round in Regensburg (Germany) last October. At the airport Airich was welcomed by his nine-year-old twins Alexia and Max.

“This is the moment I have been fighting and working for”, said proud dad Airich after his arrival. “Once you look into these eyes you know that it’s been worth all the sweat, blood, tears and pain. I had to promise to my son that I will come home with two belts so I have one for each of my kids. I cannot say how proud and happy I am that I managed to keep my word. Now I will take off some time to spend with my family, I think we all earned this.”

When 33-year-old Airich is not fighting he works as a bricklayer or travels around the world as sparring partner. Most recently he has spent four weeks in Austria with both Vitali and Wladimir Klitschko.

His win over Pala should lift Airich into a top 10 position in both WBO and IBF which may open him a door to fight Wladimir Klitschko in a voluntary title defense making his way from a sparring partner to a world title challenger.

“I don’t even want to fantasize about this at the moment”, says Airich. “For the moment I am happy to be back home. I will take my rest and then discuss the next steps with my management. I am sure that we will find the right fight. I can only promise that whoever I face in the ring – I will give it my all and try to win for Alexia and Max!”

http://www.boxingscene.com/?m=show&opt=printable&id=50536

 

“I am very proud that I can bring another belt home to my son”, said the always exciting IBF #15 rated heavyweight Konstantin “Sandman” Airich after his come-from-behind ninth round TKO over WBO #6 rated Ondrej Pala on Friday night in Tekirdag, Turkey. “I thank everybody who kept on believing in me especially in the hard times I went through – foremost, of course, my family and my coach Hans-Jürgen Witte.” With the win, the German heavyweight added the WBO European championship to his IBF Intercontinental title and will surely move up in the world ratings.

“I am very happy for Konstantin,” says promoter Ahmet Oner. “He is a hard worker who really earned himself this win. After a spectacular performance like this he has bigger paydays coming up. It’s sad for Ondrej Pala that he couldn’t bring home the victory when he was leading on the scorecards but he’s only 27 years old. He will learn from this loss and come back stronger than ever.”

 

http://www.fightnews.com/Boxing/airich-speaks-after-big-win-109929

In an upset, 33-year-old German veteran Konstantin Airich sensationally stopped fight favorite Ondrej Pala (30-3, 21 KOs) of the Czech Republic to add Pala’s WBO European heavyweight title to his already owned IBF I/C belt. IBF #15 Airich was losing the fight but he found some inner resources not only to defeat the uncharacteristically slow Pala, but also to resurrect his stagnating career.

WBO #6 Czech, who hasn’t lost for well over five years since his injury-insisted TKO loss to Denis Boytsov, was in firm control of the fight in the opening rounds. Pala was slow and mostly inactive but so was Airich, while Pala’s punches were much sharper and landed flashier on the Kazakh expatriate’s chin. Airich was taking the punch well but he was steadily given an unnecessary diet of leather, which didn’t look good for him. However, he stayed solidly on his feet, and at the end of the third the Czech’s bell was rung, when he was shaken by Airich’s big right hand. The next couple of rounds were once again for Pala, 27, whose strong jab and big right hands were the difference.

It has all changed in the sixth, when Airich landed a huge combination in the center of the ring to wobble Pala badly. The Czech was on the verge of going down but wisely dropped his mouthpiece. Referee Yuri Koptsev did a terrible job of bringing the fighters together and gave the Czech every chance to survive, which he surely did.

Ondrej looked rather good in the seventh but Airich’s confidence was still intact and he began beating Pala to the punch in the eighth. Round nine turned out to be a personal holocaust for the Czech. First, he was pinned to the ropes and ate a number of clean punches, which were enough to stop the contest. However, referee Koptsev gave Pala every chance to survive and took him back to his corner to insert his mouthpiece once again. The Czech was deducted a point, but it wasn’t necessary. Airich immediately went in for the kill and punched an almost senseless Pala until Koptsev stepped in at 1:10 to stop the carnage.

A huge win for Konstantin Airich, who has slowly put his career back on track. Pala is young enough to come back as a serious European contender but he definitely needs to improve his defense. Airich also avenged his majority decision loss to Pala, which took place three years ago.

By Alexey Sukachev

http://www.boxingscene.com/?m=show&opt=printable&id=50444

 

WBO #6 Ondrej Pala (30-2, 21 KOs) and IBF #15 Konstantin Airich (22-5-2, 16 KOs) showed up in great shape and very self-confident at the weigh-in for their combined IBF intercontinental / WBO European championship bout tomorrow (Friday, March 9th) in Tekirdag, Turkey. The clash between the technically skilled Czech and the hard-hitting German will be broadcasted live on Eurosport (starting at 21:00h / 9pm Central European Time). It is a re-match of a 10-rounder in March 2009 which saw Pala getting away with a close Majority Decision win in Cuxhaven, Germany.

aid Pala who weighed in at 246 lbs. (111.5 kg), “I have beaten Airich before and I will beat him again. But this time it will be no hard work for the judges. I never promise to knock somebody out but I will make it very clear that I am better than him.”

Naturally Airich who weighed in at 229 lbs. (104.0 kg) has a different point of view: “I am perfectly prepared for this fight. I have been in training camp with Vitali and Wladimir Klitschko in Austria. And I know that I can and will beat Ondrej Pala. I can see in his eyes that he knows that I can beat him. He already felt my power in the first fight and he will feel it even harder this time. I will show the world why I call myself “the Sandman” – I will put Pala to sleep!”

Promoter Ahmet Oner is proud to present this heavyweight showdown in his hometown Tekirdag. “I expect a very close and exciting fight”, says Oner. “One thing is for sure: Both of these guys are a lot better than Wladimir’s last so called opponent Jean Marc Mormeck. I am not saying that these guys could beat Wladimir but if he ever faces seither one they would surely come to fight. Everybody who likes honest and good heavyweight boxing better than lasershows and gigantic walk-ins should watch this fight!”

http://www.boxingnews24.com/2012/03/pala-and-airich-ready-to-go/

This Friday (March 9th) two promising European heavyweight contenders clash when WBO#6 rated Ondrej Pala (Czech Republic) squares offagainst IBF #15 Konstantin Airich (Germany) at Atatürk Spor Salonu in Tekirdag,Turkey in a clash for Airich’s IBF intercontinental championship and Pala’s WBOEuropean champion title. Airich vs. Pala will be the main event for a big showbroadcasted live on Eurosport (starting at 21.00h / 9pm Central European time).

„Whoever wins this bout will make a huge step towards aworld title fight“, says promoter Ahmet Oner. „We all know who the unified WBOand IBF world champion is. And I am one hundred percent sure that both, Airichand Pala, would show a lot more effort and a way better performance againstWladimir Klitschko than Jean Marc Mormeck did last week. I am not saying thatthese two guys could beat Klitschko right away – but at least they would tryand bring the fight to him.“

Airich and Pala have met before. In March 2009, the Czechwarrior managed to get away with a close mid-decision win over Airich inCuxhaven, Germany. Now the hard-hitting German „Sandman“ wants to make up for thatloss and get in position for a possible title shot.

“Of course, every fighter dreams of challenging the worldchampion“, says Airich. „I know Wladimir quite well and he knows me, too. I havespent lots of training camps with both Klitschkos, most recently I was withthem in Austria when Vitali got in shape for the Chisora fight and Wladimirprepared for Mormeck. Right now my only focus is on beating Pala. I know that Iam stronger than him. And I want to show the world that I can beat him. I amnot thinking past this fight. All that counts for me is winning this Fridaynight.”

 

Author: ARENA BOX PROMOTIONS

http://www.boxeomundial.net/boxeo.php?category=english&id=27910

It was officially announced today that WBO Europe super middleweight champion Arthur Abraham (33-3, 27 KOs) will take on Piotr Wilczewski (30-2, 10 KOs) at the Sparkassen-Arena in Kiel, Germany on March 31. “It´s all or nothing for Arthur,“ promoter Kalle Sauerland said at a press conference in Kiel. “He needs to beat Wilczewski to put himself back in a position to fight for the world title.” Abraham, who celebrated a successful return in January when he knocked out Pablo Farias in the fifth round, knows it´s make or break. “I know there is a lot of pressure but I will make a good fight and beat Wilczewski,” he stated. “I have high goals. I want to be world champion again.” Added coach Ulli Wegner: “We don´t fight any push-overs or easy opponents. It´s very simple, I expect a good fight from Arthur and a victory.” Said Wilczewski, a former European Super-Middleweight Champion: “I´m coming here to win. Arthur is a strong guy but I will defeat him.”

 

http://www.fightnews.com/Boxing/abraham-wilczewski-presser-109216

 

As we previously reported, Piotr Wilczewski (30-2, 10 KOs) will be the opponent for WBO Europe Super Middleweight champion Arthur Abraham (33-3, 27 KOs) on the 31st of March in Kiel. Abraham’s trainer Ulli Wegner, has a lot of respect for the Polish boxer and expects a much tougher challenge than the one presented by Abraham’s opponent in January, Pablo Farias.

“Wilczewski is a very versatile fighter. He was a good amateur, and last year he won the championship belt of Europe while fighting in rough terrain in Finland. He is a much more demanding fighter than Farias. I am confident that fans in Kiel will see an interesting fight,” said Wegner.

For his part, Arthur Abraham said – “We have already started preparations for the fight in Kiel. First I have to overcome Wilczewski, and then I’ll get a world title fight.”

 

By Luke Furman

http://www.boxingscene.com/?m=show&opt=printable&id=49884