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New ‘‘Get Gatto’’ boxing integrity laws will probably ensnare others involved in the sport, Mick Gatto has said.
Speaking to radio station 3AW, Mr Gatto said the amendment to the Professional Boxing and Combat Sports Act targeted him, but would ‘‘inevitably’’ see some of the 330 other industry operators banned under a new integrity test.
‘‘I am sorry that I have caused this for them,’’ Mr Gatto said.
Earlier told 3AW that his ban from casinos and race tracks was based on a crime for which he was acquitted.
Mr Gatto was acquitted in 2005 of murdering Andrew "Benji" Veniamin in a Carlton restaurant, claiming self defence.
‘‘Is this the Mick Gatto law or what?’’ Mr Gatto told 3AW.
He said he could not fight a licence cancellation but would seek legal advice on whether he could fight it once the legislation was passed.
Mr Gatto had planned a post-Ashes boxing event with English former world champion, now promoter, Ricky Hatton. It was to be held in December and would have been billed as a Commonwealth World Title.
He had also discussed a boxing promotion with former World Champion Mike Tyson.
‘‘I don’t know why they are targeting me everyone deserves a second chance I have been doing the right thing for the last 20 years,’’ Mr Gatto said.
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Ken Lay will review the permits of all boxing officials and promoters to ensure they pass a "fit and proper person" test under amendments to the Professional Boxing and Combat Sports Act to be introduced on Wednesday.
Under amendments, if the Chief Commissioner’s review finds that any person is not "fit and proper" their licence would be cancelled by the Professional Boxing and Combat Sports Board.
State Sports Minister Hugh Delahunty told 3AW that the current rules meant the board had to approve any promoter candidate as long as they knew the act and could prove they could run an event.
He said other states’ licence rules already had integrity clauses.
‘‘All the people there, promoters, time keepers all of them, they will be looked at under the act,’’ Mr Delahunty said.
‘‘We must ensure that we protect the integrity of sport and we must ensure that we have people of good character running this sport, particularly for the safety and quality of events that are put on,’’ he said.
The boxing board’s chairman Bernie Balmer has previously said convicted mass murderer Julian Knight could ‘‘probably’’ obtain a boxing licence under the current act.
‘‘If you are banned from [the] casino or banned from racecourses you may well be banned from holding a boxing promotions permit,’’ Mr Balmer told radio station 3AW.
He said Mr Gatto was ‘‘most likely’’ to have his licence cancelled under the rule change.
Mr Balmer, a lawyer, has previously represented Mr Gatto but did not vote on his promoter’s permit. Mr Balmer said despite previous reports Mr Gatto had not used his licence to promote a boxing event.
Mr Delahunty said applicants and permit holders will also have to pass a ‘‘public interest’’ test.
Read more: Mick Gatto may be banned from boxing promotion under new laws
Speaking to radio station 3AW, Mr Gatto said the amendment to the Professional Boxing and Combat Sports Act targeted him, but would ‘‘inevitably’’ see some of the 330 other industry operators banned under a new integrity test.
‘‘I am sorry that I have caused this for them,’’ Mr Gatto said.
Earlier told 3AW that his ban from casinos and race tracks was based on a crime for which he was acquitted.
Mr Gatto was acquitted in 2005 of murdering Andrew "Benji" Veniamin in a Carlton restaurant, claiming self defence.
‘‘Is this the Mick Gatto law or what?’’ Mr Gatto told 3AW.
He said he could not fight a licence cancellation but would seek legal advice on whether he could fight it once the legislation was passed.
Mr Gatto had planned a post-Ashes boxing event with English former world champion, now promoter, Ricky Hatton. It was to be held in December and would have been billed as a Commonwealth World Title.
He had also discussed a boxing promotion with former World Champion Mike Tyson.
‘‘I don’t know why they are targeting me everyone deserves a second chance I have been doing the right thing for the last 20 years,’’ Mr Gatto said.
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Ken Lay will review the permits of all boxing officials and promoters to ensure they pass a "fit and proper person" test under amendments to the Professional Boxing and Combat Sports Act to be introduced on Wednesday.
Under amendments, if the Chief Commissioner’s review finds that any person is not "fit and proper" their licence would be cancelled by the Professional Boxing and Combat Sports Board.
State Sports Minister Hugh Delahunty told 3AW that the current rules meant the board had to approve any promoter candidate as long as they knew the act and could prove they could run an event.
He said other states’ licence rules already had integrity clauses.
‘‘All the people there, promoters, time keepers all of them, they will be looked at under the act,’’ Mr Delahunty said.
‘‘We must ensure that we protect the integrity of sport and we must ensure that we have people of good character running this sport, particularly for the safety and quality of events that are put on,’’ he said.
The boxing board’s chairman Bernie Balmer has previously said convicted mass murderer Julian Knight could ‘‘probably’’ obtain a boxing licence under the current act.
‘‘If you are banned from [the] casino or banned from racecourses you may well be banned from holding a boxing promotions permit,’’ Mr Balmer told radio station 3AW.
He said Mr Gatto was ‘‘most likely’’ to have his licence cancelled under the rule change.
Mr Balmer, a lawyer, has previously represented Mr Gatto but did not vote on his promoter’s permit. Mr Balmer said despite previous reports Mr Gatto had not used his licence to promote a boxing event.
Mr Delahunty said applicants and permit holders will also have to pass a ‘‘public interest’’ test.
Read more: Mick Gatto may be banned from boxing promotion under new laws
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2006/12/07
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A press conference to announce the details of a boxing bout between Anthony Mundine and Shane Moseley took place today at Tony Mundine’s gym in Redfern.
It is predicted that this fight will either reignite Mundine's career or prove to be fatal if he doesn't beat the ageing boxing legend.
But Mundine wasn't the only big name star to turn up in the gym today.
After going missing from last week’s training, all eyes were on suspended Centre, Blake Ferguson when he stepped into Tony Mundine’s Gym in Redfern today.
Refusing to answer questions directly, Anthony Mundine gave his thoughts on Ferguson’s situation but laughed off concerns about his immediate playing future.
"I know he’s a good kid, he’s got all the talent in the world and he'll bounce back and that’s why he’s going to take some time off to rebuild and see where he is. Basically, he’ll have the biggest year of his life next year," says Mr Mundine.
Mundine will have his work cut out for him when he takes on boxing legend Sugar Shane Mosely later this month and says the 41-year-old is not to be taken lightly.
"He’s never ever been stopped and he always gave a competitive fight, so I know what I’ve got in store for me and I’m just going to prepare my best. Like I said, I just want my country to be behind me," says Mr Mundine.
Anthony ‘The Man’ Mundine will take on Sugar Shane Mosely at the Sydney Entertainment Centre, October 23.
Blake Ferguson will have a big year: Mundine | SBS News
It is predicted that this fight will either reignite Mundine's career or prove to be fatal if he doesn't beat the ageing boxing legend.
But Mundine wasn't the only big name star to turn up in the gym today.
After going missing from last week’s training, all eyes were on suspended Centre, Blake Ferguson when he stepped into Tony Mundine’s Gym in Redfern today.
Refusing to answer questions directly, Anthony Mundine gave his thoughts on Ferguson’s situation but laughed off concerns about his immediate playing future.
"I know he’s a good kid, he’s got all the talent in the world and he'll bounce back and that’s why he’s going to take some time off to rebuild and see where he is. Basically, he’ll have the biggest year of his life next year," says Mr Mundine.
Mundine will have his work cut out for him when he takes on boxing legend Sugar Shane Mosely later this month and says the 41-year-old is not to be taken lightly.
"He’s never ever been stopped and he always gave a competitive fight, so I know what I’ve got in store for me and I’m just going to prepare my best. Like I said, I just want my country to be behind me," says Mr Mundine.
Anthony ‘The Man’ Mundine will take on Sugar Shane Mosely at the Sydney Entertainment Centre, October 23.
Blake Ferguson will have a big year: Mundine | SBS News
Join:
2006/12/07
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Team Snooki Boxing has been on a hiatus, but not to worry, fans of the diminutive MTV persona, the dream isn't dead. Team Snooki Boxing is still a viable entity, if one in transition.
Poughkeepsie's Mike Pascale of Final Round Promotions, helps run the day-to-day operations along with Snooki's dad Andy Polizzi. Pascale told NYFightBlog that his crew has been busy, even if they haven't been putting on shows, with the last one coming on Dec. 8, 2012, in Las Vegas.
"Yes, we are still doing Snooki boxing," he told me, referring to the promotional outfit which debuted in January 2012. "We have not been active as of late due to some management issues with (top Snooki talent) Patrick Hyland. I hope to have the issues resolved soon." The 29-year-old Dubliner Hyland, who has a 29-1 mark, last scrapped on the December 2012 card, dropping a 12-round unanimous decision to Javier Fortuna.
Pascale did report something else in the works, something in a realm well known to the Polizzis. No, he's not referring to the news that Snooki will put on her dancing shoes, for the upcoming season of "Dancing With the Stars."
"We have been asked to do a reality TV show," Pascale said. "It will be called 'Family of Fighters.' We've been told by the producer that five networks are interested in it. We will know which one in the near future. As far as [Snooki] appearing on the show, that has yet to be determined."
Team Snooki Boxing - ESPN New York
Poughkeepsie's Mike Pascale of Final Round Promotions, helps run the day-to-day operations along with Snooki's dad Andy Polizzi. Pascale told NYFightBlog that his crew has been busy, even if they haven't been putting on shows, with the last one coming on Dec. 8, 2012, in Las Vegas.
"Yes, we are still doing Snooki boxing," he told me, referring to the promotional outfit which debuted in January 2012. "We have not been active as of late due to some management issues with (top Snooki talent) Patrick Hyland. I hope to have the issues resolved soon." The 29-year-old Dubliner Hyland, who has a 29-1 mark, last scrapped on the December 2012 card, dropping a 12-round unanimous decision to Javier Fortuna.
Pascale did report something else in the works, something in a realm well known to the Polizzis. No, he's not referring to the news that Snooki will put on her dancing shoes, for the upcoming season of "Dancing With the Stars."
"We have been asked to do a reality TV show," Pascale said. "It will be called 'Family of Fighters.' We've been told by the producer that five networks are interested in it. We will know which one in the near future. As far as [Snooki] appearing on the show, that has yet to be determined."
Team Snooki Boxing - ESPN New York
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2006/12/07
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29893
It's been three days since a promising young boxer with Olympic aspirations was murdered, and Phoenix police are still searching for leads in the case.
Alexis Urbina, 17, died at a Valley hospital on Wednesday, the day after he was found beaten inside his family's south Phoenix home. A friend said Urbina had severe head trauma.
No assailants were identified as of Friday. And although the case is being investigated as a robbery/homicide, officials say there's no clear motive.
"There are absolutely no leads at all," said friend Ralph Velez Jr., a local boxing promoter. "They have nothing, and that's the sad part."
It didn't appear that anyone forced their way into the home, but items were missing, including some of Urbina's personal effects that had little monetary value, Velez said.
Urbina's South Mountain High School classmates will host a car wash with proceeds to go to Urbina's family 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday at Taco Bell on Southern and Seventh avenues in Phoenix, said Craig Pletenik, a Phoenix Union High School District spokesman.
Urbina had high aspirations and great promise, Velez said, adding that both Urbina and his sister both hoped to win spots on the men's and women's U.S. boxing team for the 2016 Olympics.
Urbina was a 2013 USA Boxing National Champion at junior welterweight, or 141-pounds, in the Youth Men's Division.
In June, he was part of Team USA at the Klitschko Brothers Tournament in Berdychiv, Ukraine. The Klitschko brothers are two of boxing's heavyweight champions.
"This kid was the next Oscar De La Hoya," Velez said. "He was that talented. It's really, really sad."
Phoenix police search for leads in murder of youth boxing champion beaten to death
Alexis Urbina, 17, died at a Valley hospital on Wednesday, the day after he was found beaten inside his family's south Phoenix home. A friend said Urbina had severe head trauma.
No assailants were identified as of Friday. And although the case is being investigated as a robbery/homicide, officials say there's no clear motive.
"There are absolutely no leads at all," said friend Ralph Velez Jr., a local boxing promoter. "They have nothing, and that's the sad part."
It didn't appear that anyone forced their way into the home, but items were missing, including some of Urbina's personal effects that had little monetary value, Velez said.
Urbina's South Mountain High School classmates will host a car wash with proceeds to go to Urbina's family 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday at Taco Bell on Southern and Seventh avenues in Phoenix, said Craig Pletenik, a Phoenix Union High School District spokesman.
Urbina had high aspirations and great promise, Velez said, adding that both Urbina and his sister both hoped to win spots on the men's and women's U.S. boxing team for the 2016 Olympics.
Urbina was a 2013 USA Boxing National Champion at junior welterweight, or 141-pounds, in the Youth Men's Division.
In June, he was part of Team USA at the Klitschko Brothers Tournament in Berdychiv, Ukraine. The Klitschko brothers are two of boxing's heavyweight champions.
"This kid was the next Oscar De La Hoya," Velez said. "He was that talented. It's really, really sad."
Phoenix police search for leads in murder of youth boxing champion beaten to death
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2006/12/07
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As the world once hypnotised by Muhammad Ali watches the inexorable decline of the most important sportsman of the 20th century with a mixture of admiration, pity and disbelief, compelling evidence has finally emerged about the death of the anti-Ali, Sonny Liston. A tragic mystery now in its fifth decade, it will surprise few that the latest chapter reads like a deleted scene from The Godfather.
Descents don't come much quicker or crueller than Liston's. If Ali was the face of the civil rights movement, Sonny, as Norman Mailer noted, was "the bad nigger". In 1962 the Mob-managed ex-con with fists like hams captured the world heavyweight title for the Mafia with brutish nonchalance, demolishing Floyd Patterson in two minutes; three years later, in the second of his fruitless and endlessly controversial duels with Ali, a farcical first-round knockout in Lewiston, Maine, extinguished what was left of his credibility.
On 5 January 1970, he was found lying at the foot of his bed in the Las Vegas home where he had spent the loneliest of Christmases. He had been dead for six days. The coroner cited natural causes stemming from lung congestion; Geraldine, Liston's fiercely loyal wife, claimed it was heart failure; nobody else was convinced on either count, not least since one of the victim's arms bore needle tracks.
According to Warjac: Most Wanted, a newly completed book by Greg Swaim about his late father, Dale Cline, aka James John Warjac, the Mob hitman admitted he had helped kill Liston via an enforced heroin overdose, a popular Mob execution technique.
Liston was always destined to meet a sticky end. Feared inside the ring, loathed outside, he needed the aid of gangsters to secure opponents. So long as he was winning he was useful; after Lewiston, he became increasingly dispensable.
Unwilling to ingratiate himself, he did little to help his own cause. For some, the last straw was his alleged refusal to throw a bout with Chuck Wepner, the uncultured bruiser who inspired Sylvester Stallone's Rocky franchise. Liston also knew far too much: who knew what he might he let slip about those Ali bouts? At the time, it was deduced that Liston had fallen while preparing for bed and struck his head on a bench. Police sergeant Gary Beckwith, however, discovered some heroin in a balloon and a syringe near the body. More-over, the autopsy ascertained that Liston's blood contained traces of codeine and morphine – common when heroin is broken down.
Yet as Al Braverman, one his more trustworthy managers, assured me while I was researching my biography of Liston, Sonny Boy, his fear of needles was pathological.
In the early 1980s, when Swaim was 30, his grandmother died, leaving a batch of press clippings about Warjac, who had once been on the FBI's "most wanted" list. Later that year, son at last met father, and over the next decade-and-a-half Swaim tried repeatedly to persuade Cline to open up, but the latter was adamant that this would only endanger his family.
Eventually, during a night of vigorous drinking, the old man relented. He told Swaim about his role in both Liston's death and that of a showgirl who had wed a Texas oilman, depriving his family of a handsome inheritance: another enforced overdose, he claimed. Cline also apprised Swaim of the existence of a movie script that would explain all.
Swaim heeded the warnings, locking away any potentially incriminating material, but his curiosity was aroused anew after he discovered he had a Texan half-sister who shared his yearning for the truth. Together they began working on a book that also links Cline with Robert Kennedy, Frank Sinatra and the notorious über-Mobster Mickey Cohen.
"My father told me the story about Sonny's death – he was there when he was killed, along with others in the Mob," confirms Swaim.
"He was very careful not to disclose too much to me – I assume he was worried about the pressure the Mob may [impose], using his children as a threat."
Those fears were borne out shortly after Cline's death in 1997. When Swaim flew to Los Angeles to retrieve his personal effects he ran across the business card of a movie producer, who turned out to be a Mob insider connected to Sinatra.
"Let it lie," the producer advised. "Too many people are still alive who won't want you to know about this. Your life will be in danger."
The public's addiction to good-fellas and gangster lore remains strong, but even now, as he seeks a publisher, Swaim is probably still taking his life into his hands.
Boxing: Sonny Liston was murdered by Mob, claims hitman's son - Others - More Sports - The Independent
Descents don't come much quicker or crueller than Liston's. If Ali was the face of the civil rights movement, Sonny, as Norman Mailer noted, was "the bad nigger". In 1962 the Mob-managed ex-con with fists like hams captured the world heavyweight title for the Mafia with brutish nonchalance, demolishing Floyd Patterson in two minutes; three years later, in the second of his fruitless and endlessly controversial duels with Ali, a farcical first-round knockout in Lewiston, Maine, extinguished what was left of his credibility.
On 5 January 1970, he was found lying at the foot of his bed in the Las Vegas home where he had spent the loneliest of Christmases. He had been dead for six days. The coroner cited natural causes stemming from lung congestion; Geraldine, Liston's fiercely loyal wife, claimed it was heart failure; nobody else was convinced on either count, not least since one of the victim's arms bore needle tracks.
According to Warjac: Most Wanted, a newly completed book by Greg Swaim about his late father, Dale Cline, aka James John Warjac, the Mob hitman admitted he had helped kill Liston via an enforced heroin overdose, a popular Mob execution technique.
Liston was always destined to meet a sticky end. Feared inside the ring, loathed outside, he needed the aid of gangsters to secure opponents. So long as he was winning he was useful; after Lewiston, he became increasingly dispensable.
Unwilling to ingratiate himself, he did little to help his own cause. For some, the last straw was his alleged refusal to throw a bout with Chuck Wepner, the uncultured bruiser who inspired Sylvester Stallone's Rocky franchise. Liston also knew far too much: who knew what he might he let slip about those Ali bouts? At the time, it was deduced that Liston had fallen while preparing for bed and struck his head on a bench. Police sergeant Gary Beckwith, however, discovered some heroin in a balloon and a syringe near the body. More-over, the autopsy ascertained that Liston's blood contained traces of codeine and morphine – common when heroin is broken down.
Yet as Al Braverman, one his more trustworthy managers, assured me while I was researching my biography of Liston, Sonny Boy, his fear of needles was pathological.
In the early 1980s, when Swaim was 30, his grandmother died, leaving a batch of press clippings about Warjac, who had once been on the FBI's "most wanted" list. Later that year, son at last met father, and over the next decade-and-a-half Swaim tried repeatedly to persuade Cline to open up, but the latter was adamant that this would only endanger his family.
Eventually, during a night of vigorous drinking, the old man relented. He told Swaim about his role in both Liston's death and that of a showgirl who had wed a Texas oilman, depriving his family of a handsome inheritance: another enforced overdose, he claimed. Cline also apprised Swaim of the existence of a movie script that would explain all.
Swaim heeded the warnings, locking away any potentially incriminating material, but his curiosity was aroused anew after he discovered he had a Texan half-sister who shared his yearning for the truth. Together they began working on a book that also links Cline with Robert Kennedy, Frank Sinatra and the notorious über-Mobster Mickey Cohen.
"My father told me the story about Sonny's death – he was there when he was killed, along with others in the Mob," confirms Swaim.
"He was very careful not to disclose too much to me – I assume he was worried about the pressure the Mob may [impose], using his children as a threat."
Those fears were borne out shortly after Cline's death in 1997. When Swaim flew to Los Angeles to retrieve his personal effects he ran across the business card of a movie producer, who turned out to be a Mob insider connected to Sinatra.
"Let it lie," the producer advised. "Too many people are still alive who won't want you to know about this. Your life will be in danger."
The public's addiction to good-fellas and gangster lore remains strong, but even now, as he seeks a publisher, Swaim is probably still taking his life into his hands.
Boxing: Sonny Liston was murdered by Mob, claims hitman's son - Others - More Sports - The Independent
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Apart from the flattened noses, swollen eyes and higgledy-piggledy faces that end up looking more like fresh ginger roots, boxing tends to have an image problem.
Saturday night was all right for fighting but the end result left a sour taste.
Not for the first time in the colourful history of the sport, the cliché "we wuz robbed" was being bawled from one corner of the ring. Even the legendary MC, Michael Buffer, wore a slightly bemused face when he was handed the scorecards at the finale of Ricky Burns' World Boxing Organization lightweight title fight with Raymundo Beltran in a rumbling SECC in Glasgow at the weekend.
If the warbling Michelle McManus had thrown the singing masses off course by belting out three verses of 'Flower of Scotland' in the build-up to the bout, then many of those in attendance were left even more taken aback when the 12-round tussle ended in a draw.
The decision ensured that Burns, the 30-year-old from Coatbridge who showed remarkable spirit and teeth-grinding toughness to plough on through with a broken jaw, would retain his belt, but the sense of injustice in the Beltran camp will linger for a long time.
The Mexican had the Scot on the canvas in the eighth round, and when the final bell sounded, the 32-year-old bounded into his corner with the purposeful bounce of a man who felt he had done enough to secure a first world title. The decision by English judge Ritchie Davies to score the fight 114-114 with the deciding card meant Burns held on to his crown, although the general feeling of awkwardness all round was tangible.
"Scoring-wise, if I'm being honest, I gave it to Beltran, but I had it very, very close," admitted Burns' manager, Eddie Hearn. "If people think he lost the fight they have to report on that but I would like people to say, 'fair play to him, he is a brave son of a bitch'."
Steve Feder, Beltran's manager, delivered a calm, yet strong, airing of his views and claimed the sport of boxing as a whole had taken the most savage blow of all, and that its credibility had been left hanging forlornly on the ropes. He used words such as "corruption" to illustrate his sense of injustice, while all the while maintaining a quiet eloquence and a respect for those involved. "It is not the only day like that the sport has had," he said. "When you say he was robbed that makes it about us and last night [Saturday] was about boxing, and boxing was robbed. I don't blame Eddie or anyone at Matchroom [the boxing stable]. They were embarrassed. I think they're gentlemen and they're here because they love the sport but if I read them right, they're embarrassed.
"I don't think it sits well with them. Most importantly, Ricky didn't want to put that belt on. What does that say to you? It says that this guy is a real champion and he doesn't want to be given anything. This country should be incredibly proud of Ricky. This isn't about him. Ricky didn't rob us."
Hearn has admitted that "morally, a rematch would be the right thing", but that seems unlikely.
"Right now, this is a mourning period," added Feder. "I want to put together a situation where Ray will get a fair shake. I can't blame Scotland or the UK for this. Sometimes you go to a place and you think 'tough spot, the fix is in', but I never thought that here. But this could have been a great moment for the sport. We could have had a rematch in the States with this great Rockyesque story and everyone would have felt like reinvesting themselves in boxing because there is justice in it. It would have been great for his [Burns'] career and great for Ray's too."
The jaw injury sustained by Burns has put everything on hold, of course. His victory over Jose Gonzalez in May was not one of his more vintage performances and some are already questioning whether the Scot has reached his peak.
"I don't think so," responded Hearn, who expressed a desire to see Burns move up to light-welterweight and strive to become a three-weight world champion.
"Ricky is very driven, he lives the sport. I asked the team, looking ahead, where do we want to go? I am new to the team and the camp. I have never really butted in, but he is a world champion and he doesn't have a nutritionist, he doesn't have a strength-and-conditioning coach and I have employed those kinds of people for lesser fighters, so I think it is time to look at all these things. I think we need to spend our money and up our game in that respect."
The sport of boxing, meanwhile, will continue to deal with another blow to its bruised and battered image.
Boxing left on the ropes by questionable verdict | Herald Scotland
Saturday night was all right for fighting but the end result left a sour taste.
Not for the first time in the colourful history of the sport, the cliché "we wuz robbed" was being bawled from one corner of the ring. Even the legendary MC, Michael Buffer, wore a slightly bemused face when he was handed the scorecards at the finale of Ricky Burns' World Boxing Organization lightweight title fight with Raymundo Beltran in a rumbling SECC in Glasgow at the weekend.
If the warbling Michelle McManus had thrown the singing masses off course by belting out three verses of 'Flower of Scotland' in the build-up to the bout, then many of those in attendance were left even more taken aback when the 12-round tussle ended in a draw.
The decision ensured that Burns, the 30-year-old from Coatbridge who showed remarkable spirit and teeth-grinding toughness to plough on through with a broken jaw, would retain his belt, but the sense of injustice in the Beltran camp will linger for a long time.
The Mexican had the Scot on the canvas in the eighth round, and when the final bell sounded, the 32-year-old bounded into his corner with the purposeful bounce of a man who felt he had done enough to secure a first world title. The decision by English judge Ritchie Davies to score the fight 114-114 with the deciding card meant Burns held on to his crown, although the general feeling of awkwardness all round was tangible.
"Scoring-wise, if I'm being honest, I gave it to Beltran, but I had it very, very close," admitted Burns' manager, Eddie Hearn. "If people think he lost the fight they have to report on that but I would like people to say, 'fair play to him, he is a brave son of a bitch'."
Steve Feder, Beltran's manager, delivered a calm, yet strong, airing of his views and claimed the sport of boxing as a whole had taken the most savage blow of all, and that its credibility had been left hanging forlornly on the ropes. He used words such as "corruption" to illustrate his sense of injustice, while all the while maintaining a quiet eloquence and a respect for those involved. "It is not the only day like that the sport has had," he said. "When you say he was robbed that makes it about us and last night [Saturday] was about boxing, and boxing was robbed. I don't blame Eddie or anyone at Matchroom [the boxing stable]. They were embarrassed. I think they're gentlemen and they're here because they love the sport but if I read them right, they're embarrassed.
"I don't think it sits well with them. Most importantly, Ricky didn't want to put that belt on. What does that say to you? It says that this guy is a real champion and he doesn't want to be given anything. This country should be incredibly proud of Ricky. This isn't about him. Ricky didn't rob us."
Hearn has admitted that "morally, a rematch would be the right thing", but that seems unlikely.
"Right now, this is a mourning period," added Feder. "I want to put together a situation where Ray will get a fair shake. I can't blame Scotland or the UK for this. Sometimes you go to a place and you think 'tough spot, the fix is in', but I never thought that here. But this could have been a great moment for the sport. We could have had a rematch in the States with this great Rockyesque story and everyone would have felt like reinvesting themselves in boxing because there is justice in it. It would have been great for his [Burns'] career and great for Ray's too."
The jaw injury sustained by Burns has put everything on hold, of course. His victory over Jose Gonzalez in May was not one of his more vintage performances and some are already questioning whether the Scot has reached his peak.
"I don't think so," responded Hearn, who expressed a desire to see Burns move up to light-welterweight and strive to become a three-weight world champion.
"Ricky is very driven, he lives the sport. I asked the team, looking ahead, where do we want to go? I am new to the team and the camp. I have never really butted in, but he is a world champion and he doesn't have a nutritionist, he doesn't have a strength-and-conditioning coach and I have employed those kinds of people for lesser fighters, so I think it is time to look at all these things. I think we need to spend our money and up our game in that respect."
The sport of boxing, meanwhile, will continue to deal with another blow to its bruised and battered image.
Boxing left on the ropes by questionable verdict | Herald Scotland
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Former Australian boxing champion Vinnie Cervi was a soft-hearted, sensitive mummy's boy who started using drugs about two years before he was allegedly murdered, a court has heard.
Mr Cervi's older brother, Claudio, told the Supreme Court that Vinnie had been "timid".
"He was shy, he was quietly spoken, a gentle giant," Claudio said.
"He didn't like confrontations. Soft-hearted, sensitive mummy's boy actually, you know, it doesn't matter, but he was.
"I've never seen him angry in my whole life and the only time he really got angry, he would sulk. He'd walk away sulking."
Claudio Cervi was giving evidence on Tuesday at the trial of boxing trainer and manager David Allan Curran, 49, who has pleaded not guilty to murdering Vinnie on March 9, 2009.
Vinnie, 41, died after being shot in the leg and stomach during a confrontation with Mr Curran on the front lawn of his home at Preston.
Claudio said Vinnie had been a natural boxer who turned professional in 1985 when he was 18.
Vinnie went on to win the Australian heavyweight title in 1995 and the Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation heavyweight title a year later.
He quit the sport in 1997 after having lost his national heavyweight title to 'Aussie' Joe Bugner.
Claudio told the jury Vinnie, a qualified carpenter, started using drugs in about 2007.
"He said to me he was doing drugs, and I thought 'So what?'.
"I said as long as you've done a day's work and you don't owe money to anybody, do what you like."
Crown prosecutor Andrew Tinney, SC, in his opening address to the jury on Monday, said there had been some tension between Vinnie and Mr Curran before the shooting.
Mr Tinney said Mr Curran was angry when he drove to Vinnie's house armed with a handgun.
"His (Mr Curran's) intention in going there must have been at least to confront in some way Vinnie Cervi and possibly to attack him," Mr Tinney said.
"The evidence as a whole will be relied on as indicating that the accused took that Ruger pistol to those premises for some reason. From the time of his arrival at the home of the deceased (Vinnie), the accused (Mr Curran) showed himself to be in an angry, aggressive frame of mind."
But defence barrister Christopher Dane, QC, in his opening address on Tuesday, described Vinnie as "an enraged, drug fuelled ex-boxer" who was the one armed with the gun.
"It's said by the defence that Vinnie had the gun. So you get to a self defence ... Vinnie produces the gun and Dave struggles with it to defend himself."
Mr Dane said a central issue in the trial would be Vinnie's character and background.
"Who was this man that confronted Dave in the moments prior to his death?
"How did he get to this point?
"You'll hear that this man was an Australian boxing champion.
"How does an elite sportsman get to the position of financial ruin and drug ravaged?
"Drugs is a central issue in this case. This is another case about ice.
"Now, we know how Vinnie died; it was a gunshot wound to his stomach.
"The issue is who discharged the gun that made the wound? Was it Dave? Was it Vinnie? Was it just unknown by reason of the struggle between these men over the gun, and it just went off?"
The trial, before Justice Terry Forrest, continues.
Read more: Boxing trainer pleads not guilty to murdering Vinnie Cervi
Mr Cervi's older brother, Claudio, told the Supreme Court that Vinnie had been "timid".
"He was shy, he was quietly spoken, a gentle giant," Claudio said.
"He didn't like confrontations. Soft-hearted, sensitive mummy's boy actually, you know, it doesn't matter, but he was.
"I've never seen him angry in my whole life and the only time he really got angry, he would sulk. He'd walk away sulking."
Claudio Cervi was giving evidence on Tuesday at the trial of boxing trainer and manager David Allan Curran, 49, who has pleaded not guilty to murdering Vinnie on March 9, 2009.
Vinnie, 41, died after being shot in the leg and stomach during a confrontation with Mr Curran on the front lawn of his home at Preston.
Claudio said Vinnie had been a natural boxer who turned professional in 1985 when he was 18.
Vinnie went on to win the Australian heavyweight title in 1995 and the Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation heavyweight title a year later.
He quit the sport in 1997 after having lost his national heavyweight title to 'Aussie' Joe Bugner.
Claudio told the jury Vinnie, a qualified carpenter, started using drugs in about 2007.
"He said to me he was doing drugs, and I thought 'So what?'.
"I said as long as you've done a day's work and you don't owe money to anybody, do what you like."
Crown prosecutor Andrew Tinney, SC, in his opening address to the jury on Monday, said there had been some tension between Vinnie and Mr Curran before the shooting.
Mr Tinney said Mr Curran was angry when he drove to Vinnie's house armed with a handgun.
"His (Mr Curran's) intention in going there must have been at least to confront in some way Vinnie Cervi and possibly to attack him," Mr Tinney said.
"The evidence as a whole will be relied on as indicating that the accused took that Ruger pistol to those premises for some reason. From the time of his arrival at the home of the deceased (Vinnie), the accused (Mr Curran) showed himself to be in an angry, aggressive frame of mind."
But defence barrister Christopher Dane, QC, in his opening address on Tuesday, described Vinnie as "an enraged, drug fuelled ex-boxer" who was the one armed with the gun.
"It's said by the defence that Vinnie had the gun. So you get to a self defence ... Vinnie produces the gun and Dave struggles with it to defend himself."
Mr Dane said a central issue in the trial would be Vinnie's character and background.
"Who was this man that confronted Dave in the moments prior to his death?
"How did he get to this point?
"You'll hear that this man was an Australian boxing champion.
"How does an elite sportsman get to the position of financial ruin and drug ravaged?
"Drugs is a central issue in this case. This is another case about ice.
"Now, we know how Vinnie died; it was a gunshot wound to his stomach.
"The issue is who discharged the gun that made the wound? Was it Dave? Was it Vinnie? Was it just unknown by reason of the struggle between these men over the gun, and it just went off?"
The trial, before Justice Terry Forrest, continues.
Read more: Boxing trainer pleads not guilty to murdering Vinnie Cervi
Join:
2006/12/07
Messages:
29893
The numbers are staggering.
How about $19,212 per second? Or $1.15 million per minute?
That's how much pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather will earn on Saturday night if his super welterweight title fight against Mexican superstar Saul "Canelo" Alvarez goes the full 12 rounds. Mayweather, 36, nicknamed "Money," will make wheelbarrows full. He is guaranteed a record $41.5 million for his night's work, nearly $10 million more than his previous record set in his last fight in May against Robert Guerrero. Alvarez, 23, will earn by far his biggest payday, $12.5 million, more than anyone else who's fought in the USA this year besides Mayweather.
The highly anticipated Showtime pay-per-view fight, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on Saturday (9 p.m. ET), seems to be putting up record numbers from every corner.
The live gate will produce $19,905,000, beating by about $1.5 million the mark Mayweather helped set at the MGM Grand in 2007 for his fight against Oscar De La Hoya. This event, which promoters said sold out in less than a day, is being handled by the company De La Hoya founded, Golden Boy Promotions. That Mayweather-De La Hoya fight, on HBO pay-per-view, set boxing's PPV record of 2.4 million buys. It remains to be seen if "The One", the title of this card, can break the record, considering the love-hate relationship Mayweather has with the general boxing public, and the rock-star status Alvarez enjoys in his home country and his growing popularity among Mexican-Americans. He drew a crowd of 40,000 for his last fight against Austin Trout in San Antonio.
"We still can break the record, and we don't have to do 2.5 (million buys)," Mayweather said during a recent conference call. "You have to realize we're talking about financially. That was six years ago. ... The price of pay-per-view is higher now. So we don't have to do 2.5 to break the record from a financial standpoint."
Showtime Sports boss Stephen Espinoza says the record is irrelevant.
"We don't put together events to set records," he said. "In terms of the buys, the chips will fall where they may. If it breaks the record, that's wonderful. And if it doesn't break the record, it's still going to go down as one of the most memorable cards in boxing in a long, long time." Not only because the two boxers in the main event are unbeaten, but also because the card is stacked with big fights. The secondary fight, unified undefeated 140-pound champion Danny Garcia vs. power-punching Lucas Matthysse — is big enough to host its own pay-per-view event.
Watching the fight, no matter how and where you do it, will be costly. Closed circuit viewing at six properties in Las Vegas started with 12,000 seats at $100 a pop, and were expanded to 25,000 seats. They are almost sold out, according to Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe.
PPV will cost $60 to $75 for HD. The fight will also be shown in 542 theaters at a suggested price of $25 around the USA, adding another 125,000 or so viewers.
Despite the heady numbers, a recent story on Mayweather and Alvarez in ESPN The Magazine, and comments by Michael Wilbon of ESPN's Pardon The Interruption, suggested that boxing was dying, being kept on life support by Mayweather.
That didn't sit well with boxing Hall of Famer Al Bernstein, who spent 23 years with ESPN.
"I am not some crazy crusader for the sport of boxing. I am simply a person who's saying let's judge every sport with some context," Bernstein, the lead analyst for Showtime for the Mayweather-Alvarez fight card, told USA TODAY Sports.
"You can't create a narrative that boxing is dying when the sport is producing great fight after great fight, drawing great numbers," Bernstein said. "You can't just create that narrative because you want to create it. It's lazy, stupid journalism. ... It's endemic now in the ESPN system to create a narrative and push it forward."
Mayweather-Alvarez numbers suggest boxing isn't dying
How about $19,212 per second? Or $1.15 million per minute?
That's how much pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather will earn on Saturday night if his super welterweight title fight against Mexican superstar Saul "Canelo" Alvarez goes the full 12 rounds. Mayweather, 36, nicknamed "Money," will make wheelbarrows full. He is guaranteed a record $41.5 million for his night's work, nearly $10 million more than his previous record set in his last fight in May against Robert Guerrero. Alvarez, 23, will earn by far his biggest payday, $12.5 million, more than anyone else who's fought in the USA this year besides Mayweather.
The highly anticipated Showtime pay-per-view fight, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on Saturday (9 p.m. ET), seems to be putting up record numbers from every corner.
The live gate will produce $19,905,000, beating by about $1.5 million the mark Mayweather helped set at the MGM Grand in 2007 for his fight against Oscar De La Hoya. This event, which promoters said sold out in less than a day, is being handled by the company De La Hoya founded, Golden Boy Promotions. That Mayweather-De La Hoya fight, on HBO pay-per-view, set boxing's PPV record of 2.4 million buys. It remains to be seen if "The One", the title of this card, can break the record, considering the love-hate relationship Mayweather has with the general boxing public, and the rock-star status Alvarez enjoys in his home country and his growing popularity among Mexican-Americans. He drew a crowd of 40,000 for his last fight against Austin Trout in San Antonio.
"We still can break the record, and we don't have to do 2.5 (million buys)," Mayweather said during a recent conference call. "You have to realize we're talking about financially. That was six years ago. ... The price of pay-per-view is higher now. So we don't have to do 2.5 to break the record from a financial standpoint."
Showtime Sports boss Stephen Espinoza says the record is irrelevant.
"We don't put together events to set records," he said. "In terms of the buys, the chips will fall where they may. If it breaks the record, that's wonderful. And if it doesn't break the record, it's still going to go down as one of the most memorable cards in boxing in a long, long time." Not only because the two boxers in the main event are unbeaten, but also because the card is stacked with big fights. The secondary fight, unified undefeated 140-pound champion Danny Garcia vs. power-punching Lucas Matthysse — is big enough to host its own pay-per-view event.
Watching the fight, no matter how and where you do it, will be costly. Closed circuit viewing at six properties in Las Vegas started with 12,000 seats at $100 a pop, and were expanded to 25,000 seats. They are almost sold out, according to Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe.
PPV will cost $60 to $75 for HD. The fight will also be shown in 542 theaters at a suggested price of $25 around the USA, adding another 125,000 or so viewers.
Despite the heady numbers, a recent story on Mayweather and Alvarez in ESPN The Magazine, and comments by Michael Wilbon of ESPN's Pardon The Interruption, suggested that boxing was dying, being kept on life support by Mayweather.
That didn't sit well with boxing Hall of Famer Al Bernstein, who spent 23 years with ESPN.
"I am not some crazy crusader for the sport of boxing. I am simply a person who's saying let's judge every sport with some context," Bernstein, the lead analyst for Showtime for the Mayweather-Alvarez fight card, told USA TODAY Sports.
"You can't create a narrative that boxing is dying when the sport is producing great fight after great fight, drawing great numbers," Bernstein said. "You can't just create that narrative because you want to create it. It's lazy, stupid journalism. ... It's endemic now in the ESPN system to create a narrative and push it forward."
Mayweather-Alvarez numbers suggest boxing isn't dying
Join:
2006/12/07
Messages:
29893
Oscar De La Hoya has admitted himself to a treatment facility as he continues to fight his substance abuse.
The former boxer issued a statement Tuesday saying he voluntarily admitted himself to an unnamed facility. The move comes on the eve of the biggest fight of the year for his promotion company Saturday night when Floyd Mayweather Jr. takes on Canelo Alvarez.
"I will not be at the fight this Saturday to cheer Canelo to victory since I have voluntarily admitted myself into a treatment facility," De La Hoya said in his statement. "I explained this to Canelo and he understood that my health and long term recovery from my disease must come first."
De La Hoya first admitted two years ago that he was an alcoholic and drug user and had been in treatment. He told the Los Angeles Times last month that he sometimes attends Alcoholics Anonymous meetings six days a week, but had slipped at times in his treatment.
"The fight life, that was easy," he told the paper. "This is a battle I have every day."
De La Hoya is a partner in Golden Boy Promotions, which promotes Alvarez and is promoting the fight against Mayweather. He appeared several times on Showtime's "All Access" show cheering on Alvarez in what is expected to be one of the richest fights in boxing history.
Former boxing champ Oscar De La Hoya checks into rehab
The former boxer issued a statement Tuesday saying he voluntarily admitted himself to an unnamed facility. The move comes on the eve of the biggest fight of the year for his promotion company Saturday night when Floyd Mayweather Jr. takes on Canelo Alvarez.
"I will not be at the fight this Saturday to cheer Canelo to victory since I have voluntarily admitted myself into a treatment facility," De La Hoya said in his statement. "I explained this to Canelo and he understood that my health and long term recovery from my disease must come first."
De La Hoya first admitted two years ago that he was an alcoholic and drug user and had been in treatment. He told the Los Angeles Times last month that he sometimes attends Alcoholics Anonymous meetings six days a week, but had slipped at times in his treatment.
"The fight life, that was easy," he told the paper. "This is a battle I have every day."
De La Hoya is a partner in Golden Boy Promotions, which promotes Alvarez and is promoting the fight against Mayweather. He appeared several times on Showtime's "All Access" show cheering on Alvarez in what is expected to be one of the richest fights in boxing history.
Former boxing champ Oscar De La Hoya checks into rehab
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2006/12/07
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29893
As boxing fans and professionals are preparing for what may be the richest fight in history Saturday, they are also extending best wishes to one of the sports' biggest names as former champion and current mega promoter Oscar De La Hoya surprised many when he returned to rehab to battle his own demons.
This is the second time since 2011 that De La Hoya, who is an admitted alcoholic and has a history with cocaine, has sought treatment for substance abuse.
The timing of this makes a dramatic statement itself considering he will miss Saturday night's huge fight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Saul "Canelo" Alvarez at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, which is promoted by De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions.
Alvarez, the undefeated young Mexican who De La Hoya has mentored, was one of the first to wish De La Hoya well after hearing the shocking announcement Tuesday.
"I support him in his life battle," Alvarez said via a translator. "I am sure he is going to win his battle, and I am going to win mine."
De La Hoya went public with his decision in this statement:
"Canelo Alvarez and I have big fights coming up this weekend. His is in the ring and mine in treatment. I will not be at the fight this Saturday to cheer Canelo to victory since I have voluntarily admitted myself into a treatment facility. I explained this to Canelo and he understood that my health and long-term recovery from my disease must come first. Thank you for your understanding. I ask for your support and privacy during this difficult time for me and my family."
Richard Schaefer, Golden Boy's CEO and friend of De La Hoya, said that the former champ told him last week that problems were resurfacing, although Schaefer did not realize the enormity of those problems until he was among those surprised by the announcement and told ESPN's Dan Rafael "I am nobody's baby-sitter."
Still, Schaefer fully supports De La Hoya's decision, regardless of the timing.
"He really sounded very bad," Schaefer said of De La Hoya, per Rafael. "It wasn't one of the things where you can wait until next week. When you're sick, you go get help, but I was surprised. But at the same time I was very supportive.
"I didn't try to convince him that he had to be here. It wouldn't have been the advice of a friend. I was hoping it wouldn't happen, but it did happen. I'm very proud of him (for seeking help). It's not perfect timing, but what is? The show must go on. Oscar has a fight where he is and we have a big fight here."
Saturday's fight is expected to rival pay for view buys of the 2007 bout between De La Hoya and Mayweather.
Although their relationship is not a warm one, Mayweather was among those who showed support for De La Hoya's difficult decision.
"I wish him nothing but the best," Mayweather said. "Hopefully, he can pull through, like a true champion."
Y! SPORTS
This is the second time since 2011 that De La Hoya, who is an admitted alcoholic and has a history with cocaine, has sought treatment for substance abuse.
The timing of this makes a dramatic statement itself considering he will miss Saturday night's huge fight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Saul "Canelo" Alvarez at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, which is promoted by De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions.
Alvarez, the undefeated young Mexican who De La Hoya has mentored, was one of the first to wish De La Hoya well after hearing the shocking announcement Tuesday.
"I support him in his life battle," Alvarez said via a translator. "I am sure he is going to win his battle, and I am going to win mine."
De La Hoya went public with his decision in this statement:
"Canelo Alvarez and I have big fights coming up this weekend. His is in the ring and mine in treatment. I will not be at the fight this Saturday to cheer Canelo to victory since I have voluntarily admitted myself into a treatment facility. I explained this to Canelo and he understood that my health and long-term recovery from my disease must come first. Thank you for your understanding. I ask for your support and privacy during this difficult time for me and my family."
Richard Schaefer, Golden Boy's CEO and friend of De La Hoya, said that the former champ told him last week that problems were resurfacing, although Schaefer did not realize the enormity of those problems until he was among those surprised by the announcement and told ESPN's Dan Rafael "I am nobody's baby-sitter."
Still, Schaefer fully supports De La Hoya's decision, regardless of the timing.
"He really sounded very bad," Schaefer said of De La Hoya, per Rafael. "It wasn't one of the things where you can wait until next week. When you're sick, you go get help, but I was surprised. But at the same time I was very supportive.
"I didn't try to convince him that he had to be here. It wouldn't have been the advice of a friend. I was hoping it wouldn't happen, but it did happen. I'm very proud of him (for seeking help). It's not perfect timing, but what is? The show must go on. Oscar has a fight where he is and we have a big fight here."
Saturday's fight is expected to rival pay for view buys of the 2007 bout between De La Hoya and Mayweather.
Although their relationship is not a warm one, Mayweather was among those who showed support for De La Hoya's difficult decision.
"I wish him nothing but the best," Mayweather said. "Hopefully, he can pull through, like a true champion."
Y! SPORTS
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2006/12/07
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It has been a public relations battle that boxing has been fighting for years -- commentators and columnists looping the sport in with the decline of horse racing, a sport that, with boxing, was once top of mind. Disappointing bouts, too many belts to give out, and not enough content outside of pay-per-view events to grow its casual fan base were all part of the narrative. But it's becoming harder to make a sound case that the sport is anywhere close to the graveyard.
"People who think boxing is dead or is dying are either ignorant or lazy," said Stephen Espinoza, executive vice president of Showtime Sports and Event Programming, which signed a six-fight deal with Floyd Mayweather Jr. in February. "It's a mindset that says, just because it doesn't hit their own radar or they are not aware of it, it must not be important. But if you do the research, you can see the boxing market is thriving."
Critics of the sport's health like to point to the big bouts as anomalies that stand out against a background of generic names, with trunks and gloves on, that the general public knows nothing about. But it's hard to deny that those in charge of sports programming have committed to boxing more than ever before. Forget Saturday night's main fight, in which Mayweather, the highest-paid American athlete, will earn a guaranteed $41.5 million. This year, Showtime will broadcast two times the number of hours of boxing it had last year. The thirst for content, as the cable sports landscape grows more competitive, has been kind to boxing.
The CBS Sports Network, which owns Showtime, has expanded its coverage, as has NBC Sports, which added a Main Events series in January. New entrant Fox Sports 1 debuted a Monday night series last month to join mainstay ESPN and its "Friday Night Fights" franchise.
As sports rights fees have skyrocketed, boxing has delivered from both a revenue and time-filling standpoint.
"Boxing is cost-efficient and has a lower barrier of entry," Espinoza said. "Plus, you can pick and choose a la carte at different price points. In 2013, there will be more boxing on television than there was in any of the last 20 years."
While boxing insiders take offense to those who constantly challenge the sport's place in the world, the truth is that the constant talk has pushed them to deliver. And while so many have looked to the Ultimate Fighting Championship to replace boxing, the reality is the model created by UFC has actually changed how promoters and boxers look at their own sport.
Unable to control quick takedowns and tapouts, UFC champions frequently lose, and the audience doesn't seem to mind. That's in stark contrast to the boxing world's agenda in past decades, which included giving its biggest stars easy fights to inflate their record.
"The boxing world has finally understood that their job is to create the best fights," said Richard Schaefer, CEO of Oscar De La Hoya's outfit, Golden Boy Promotions. "In that sense, I think everyone has taken something from the UFC playbook. They've realized that you can have champions who are 8-4 and people don't care that much." Schaefer says the boxers have gotten the message, too.
"They know that it doesn't matter if you are undefeated or close to undefeated," Schaefer said. "If you aren't cautious and you don't dance around the ring like you are scared to lose, you will be rewarded."
Schaefer points to a boxer such as Marcos Maidana, who started his career 25-0, but has lost three times in his past 12 bouts.
"Marcos is a big puncher who is going to lose when he makes mistakes, but he's a joy to watch," Schaefer said. "Networks are going to pay him because he's fun to watch."
Saturday's main event between Mayweather and Canelo Alvarez, two undefeated fighters, likely will break all financial records, but it's what is happening at the lower levels that makes those involved in the sport so excited.
"Millions of people in this country watch one fight a year," Espinoza said. "But if they have a really good experience, we believe they'll watch two or three."
Saturday is that chance, as Showtime's budget for the undercard alone is record-breaking. Driven by the appeal of Alvarez, who is extremely popular in Mexico, Corona has come back to the American boxing scene. Why is that so important? Because Mexican beer brand Tecate, which had pumped so much into the sport in the past couple of years, isn't widely distributed in the U.S. Compare that to Corona Extra, which is the second-best selling non-light beer in the country, trailing only Budweiser.
The numbers for Saturday are eye-popping. All indications are pointing to the pay-per-view record of 2.44 million home buys from the 2007 bout between Mayweather and De La Hoya falling. Then add in all of the bars paying $2,000 to $5,000, depending on capacity, the 26,000 closed-circuit tickets being sold in Vegas and the more than 550 theaters across the country charging $100 a head. The live gate revenue will top $20 million, which likely will be second all-time when factoring for inflation (Lennox Lewis-Evander Holyfield II in 1999 is No. 1). Although prices might have seemed high when they were announced in late June -- the lowest price being $350, the highest being $2,000 -- tickets sold out in less than 24 hours. And that doesn't include the resale market, where the get-in price for the worst seat has hovered at about $1,700. Brokers say that number could come closer to $3,000 as the fight gets closer and as Mexican fans, historically cash buyers, start showing up in droves.
Only 20 percent of the tickets went to the casinos, many of which give the tickets away to bring their high rollers into town. As Vegas competes with Macau for the world's biggest whales, this fight is important.
"Only one fighter brings the huge high rollers from the Far East, Russia and the Ukraine, and that's Floyd Mayweather," Espinoza said. If projections pan out, Mayweather's total
"People who think boxing is dead or is dying are either ignorant or lazy," said Stephen Espinoza, executive vice president of Showtime Sports and Event Programming, which signed a six-fight deal with Floyd Mayweather Jr. in February. "It's a mindset that says, just because it doesn't hit their own radar or they are not aware of it, it must not be important. But if you do the research, you can see the boxing market is thriving."
Critics of the sport's health like to point to the big bouts as anomalies that stand out against a background of generic names, with trunks and gloves on, that the general public knows nothing about. But it's hard to deny that those in charge of sports programming have committed to boxing more than ever before. Forget Saturday night's main fight, in which Mayweather, the highest-paid American athlete, will earn a guaranteed $41.5 million. This year, Showtime will broadcast two times the number of hours of boxing it had last year. The thirst for content, as the cable sports landscape grows more competitive, has been kind to boxing.
The CBS Sports Network, which owns Showtime, has expanded its coverage, as has NBC Sports, which added a Main Events series in January. New entrant Fox Sports 1 debuted a Monday night series last month to join mainstay ESPN and its "Friday Night Fights" franchise.
As sports rights fees have skyrocketed, boxing has delivered from both a revenue and time-filling standpoint.
"Boxing is cost-efficient and has a lower barrier of entry," Espinoza said. "Plus, you can pick and choose a la carte at different price points. In 2013, there will be more boxing on television than there was in any of the last 20 years."
While boxing insiders take offense to those who constantly challenge the sport's place in the world, the truth is that the constant talk has pushed them to deliver. And while so many have looked to the Ultimate Fighting Championship to replace boxing, the reality is the model created by UFC has actually changed how promoters and boxers look at their own sport.
Unable to control quick takedowns and tapouts, UFC champions frequently lose, and the audience doesn't seem to mind. That's in stark contrast to the boxing world's agenda in past decades, which included giving its biggest stars easy fights to inflate their record.
"The boxing world has finally understood that their job is to create the best fights," said Richard Schaefer, CEO of Oscar De La Hoya's outfit, Golden Boy Promotions. "In that sense, I think everyone has taken something from the UFC playbook. They've realized that you can have champions who are 8-4 and people don't care that much." Schaefer says the boxers have gotten the message, too.
"They know that it doesn't matter if you are undefeated or close to undefeated," Schaefer said. "If you aren't cautious and you don't dance around the ring like you are scared to lose, you will be rewarded."
Schaefer points to a boxer such as Marcos Maidana, who started his career 25-0, but has lost three times in his past 12 bouts.
"Marcos is a big puncher who is going to lose when he makes mistakes, but he's a joy to watch," Schaefer said. "Networks are going to pay him because he's fun to watch."
Saturday's main event between Mayweather and Canelo Alvarez, two undefeated fighters, likely will break all financial records, but it's what is happening at the lower levels that makes those involved in the sport so excited.
"Millions of people in this country watch one fight a year," Espinoza said. "But if they have a really good experience, we believe they'll watch two or three."
Saturday is that chance, as Showtime's budget for the undercard alone is record-breaking. Driven by the appeal of Alvarez, who is extremely popular in Mexico, Corona has come back to the American boxing scene. Why is that so important? Because Mexican beer brand Tecate, which had pumped so much into the sport in the past couple of years, isn't widely distributed in the U.S. Compare that to Corona Extra, which is the second-best selling non-light beer in the country, trailing only Budweiser.
The numbers for Saturday are eye-popping. All indications are pointing to the pay-per-view record of 2.44 million home buys from the 2007 bout between Mayweather and De La Hoya falling. Then add in all of the bars paying $2,000 to $5,000, depending on capacity, the 26,000 closed-circuit tickets being sold in Vegas and the more than 550 theaters across the country charging $100 a head. The live gate revenue will top $20 million, which likely will be second all-time when factoring for inflation (Lennox Lewis-Evander Holyfield II in 1999 is No. 1). Although prices might have seemed high when they were announced in late June -- the lowest price being $350, the highest being $2,000 -- tickets sold out in less than 24 hours. And that doesn't include the resale market, where the get-in price for the worst seat has hovered at about $1,700. Brokers say that number could come closer to $3,000 as the fight gets closer and as Mexican fans, historically cash buyers, start showing up in droves.
Only 20 percent of the tickets went to the casinos, many of which give the tickets away to bring their high rollers into town. As Vegas competes with Macau for the world's biggest whales, this fight is important.
"Only one fighter brings the huge high rollers from the Far East, Russia and the Ukraine, and that's Floyd Mayweather," Espinoza said. If projections pan out, Mayweather's total
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2006/12/07
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Floyd Mayweather turned one of the richest fights ever into just another $41.5 million payday today by dominating Saul `Canelo' Alvarez from the opening bell to enhance his reputation as the best boxer in the world.
Fighting off his shortest layoff in years, Mayweather was sharp, efficient and sometimes brutal in dismantling an unbeaten fighter who was bigger and was supposed to punch harder. He frustrated the Mexican early, pounded him with big right hands in the middle rounds, and made him look just like he said he would like any other opponent.
Mayweather was favored 117-111 and 116-112 on two ringside scorecards while a third surprisingly had the fight 114-114. The Associated Press scored it 119-109 for Mayweather.
"I just listened to my corner, listened to my dad,'' Mayweather said. ``My dad had a brilliant game plan, and I went out there and got the job done.''
Mayweather remained unbeaten in 45 fights and added another piece of the junior middleweight title to his collection in a fight that was fought at a catchweight 68.9 kilogram (152-pound) limit.
Alvarez weighed in at that weight, but was an unofficial 74.8 kilograms (165 pounds) when he got into the ring while Mayweather was an even 68 (150).
Mayweather's speed was the difference all night as he was able to land straight rights and left jabs, then get out of the way before Alvarez was able to respond. But while Mayweather used great defense, he wasn't afraid to attack often and at different angles, finding Alvarez with punches he couldn't anticipate.
"He's very talented, very elusive,'' Alvarez said.
Alvarez was supposed to be Mayweather's greatest challenge and he did his best to force the action. Like others, though, he spent much of his night punching at an opponent who had already moved away from him.
"I didn't know how to get him, it's extremely simple,'' Alvarez said. ``He's a great fighter, very intelligent. The frustration was getting in there, but he's a great fighter. We tried to catch him.''
The sellout crowd at the MGM Grand tried its best to urge Alvarez on, but the cheers of "Canelo! Canelo!'' were faint by the late rounds.
Alvarez kept trying to force the fight, but every time he went after Mayweather he paid for it with a counter right or a combination to the head. By the fourth round he was beginning to get frustrated, landing a low blow that angered Mayweather, who was further angered when Alvarez refused to touch gloves with him to resume the fight.
The fight was one of the richest ever if not the richest ever with a live gate of $20 million and at least another $100 million from pay-per-view. Tickets were so hot that celebrities were actually offering to buy them and some tickets were being offered online for as much as $29,000.
Mayweather was the big beneficiary of that, making a guaranteed $41.5 million to $5 million for Alvarez. Add in his purse from his win over Robert Guererro in May and Mayweather made $73 million in two fights.
The fight was on free TV in Mexico, and some estimates were that 70 million people would watch.
Boxing: Mayweather dominates Alvarez for easy decision win - Sport - NZ Herald News
Fighting off his shortest layoff in years, Mayweather was sharp, efficient and sometimes brutal in dismantling an unbeaten fighter who was bigger and was supposed to punch harder. He frustrated the Mexican early, pounded him with big right hands in the middle rounds, and made him look just like he said he would like any other opponent.
Mayweather was favored 117-111 and 116-112 on two ringside scorecards while a third surprisingly had the fight 114-114. The Associated Press scored it 119-109 for Mayweather.
"I just listened to my corner, listened to my dad,'' Mayweather said. ``My dad had a brilliant game plan, and I went out there and got the job done.''
Mayweather remained unbeaten in 45 fights and added another piece of the junior middleweight title to his collection in a fight that was fought at a catchweight 68.9 kilogram (152-pound) limit.
Alvarez weighed in at that weight, but was an unofficial 74.8 kilograms (165 pounds) when he got into the ring while Mayweather was an even 68 (150).
Mayweather's speed was the difference all night as he was able to land straight rights and left jabs, then get out of the way before Alvarez was able to respond. But while Mayweather used great defense, he wasn't afraid to attack often and at different angles, finding Alvarez with punches he couldn't anticipate.
"He's very talented, very elusive,'' Alvarez said.
Alvarez was supposed to be Mayweather's greatest challenge and he did his best to force the action. Like others, though, he spent much of his night punching at an opponent who had already moved away from him.
"I didn't know how to get him, it's extremely simple,'' Alvarez said. ``He's a great fighter, very intelligent. The frustration was getting in there, but he's a great fighter. We tried to catch him.''
The sellout crowd at the MGM Grand tried its best to urge Alvarez on, but the cheers of "Canelo! Canelo!'' were faint by the late rounds.
Alvarez kept trying to force the fight, but every time he went after Mayweather he paid for it with a counter right or a combination to the head. By the fourth round he was beginning to get frustrated, landing a low blow that angered Mayweather, who was further angered when Alvarez refused to touch gloves with him to resume the fight.
The fight was one of the richest ever if not the richest ever with a live gate of $20 million and at least another $100 million from pay-per-view. Tickets were so hot that celebrities were actually offering to buy them and some tickets were being offered online for as much as $29,000.
Mayweather was the big beneficiary of that, making a guaranteed $41.5 million to $5 million for Alvarez. Add in his purse from his win over Robert Guererro in May and Mayweather made $73 million in two fights.
The fight was on free TV in Mexico, and some estimates were that 70 million people would watch.
Boxing: Mayweather dominates Alvarez for easy decision win - Sport - NZ Herald News
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Pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather stretched his unbeaten string to 45 straight fights with a 12-round majority decision over Mexican champ Saul Alvarez on Saturday.
The 36-year-old, who earned the biggest purse in boxing history at $41-million, managed to win the showdown between the two undefeated fighters and wrest Alvarez's World Boxing Council and World Boxing Association super welterweight belts.
"It is about skills," Mayweather said. "I came out tonight and showed my skills.
"I just took my time and took the opportunities when I got them. I can't say this is my best performance."
Mayweather fought a brilliant tactical fight against the younger and stronger Alvarez in front of the crowd of 16 746 at the MGM Grand Hotel's Grand Garden Arena.
He used his jab and superior hand speed to keep Alvarez at bay, but Mayweather still only managed to win on two of the three judge's scorecards.
Judge CJ Ross surprisingly scored it a draw, 114-114, while Craig Metcalfe had it 117-111 and Dave Moretti scored it 116-112 in favour of Mayweather.
Prison release
"I'm not in control of what the judges do," Mayweather scoffed. "I am in shock [by] whoever had it even."
This was just the second fight for Mayweather since he was released from prison after serving a sentence for assaulting the mother of his children.
Mayweather gave away 13 years in age and 15 pounds to the younger and stronger Alvarez, who moved down in weight for the showdown.
The seventh was one of Mayweather's best rounds as he landed several combination punches early before backing Alvarez up into a corner and hitting him with a right uppercut that snapped the Mexican's head back.
Mayweather came into the fight at 150 pounds, just a couple pounds lighter than he was at Friday's weigh in.
Alvarez was first to step into the ring, followed by Mayweather, who walked slowly into the sold-out arena flanked by rap artist Lil Wayne and Canadian teen heartthrob Justin Bieber.
The Mexican fighter entered the fight at 165, 13 pounds heavier than he was at Friday's weigh in.
Alvarez, who turned pro at age of 15 in 2005, suffered the first loss of his career.
"Obviously I didn't want to leave with a loss," said Alvarez, who dropped to 42-1-1. "It happens and it hurts."
Olympic style fight
Alvarez said he thought Mayweather fought an Olympic style fight by impressing the judges with the volume of punches he landed not the quality.
"He is very fast and accurate. His punches weren't that strong but he is making points and very fast," Alvarez said.
Mayweather connected on three times as many jabs (139-44) as Alvarez and landed almost double the number of total punches, 232-117.
This was the second in Mayweather's six-bout, 30-month contract with Showtime that could pay him more than $200-million.
Saturday's fight marked the first time since 2007 that he has fought twice in a calendar year and Mayweather said he plans to repeat that schedule in 2014 by fighting in May and September.
Some questioned why Mayweather would choose to fight Alvarez instead of accepting even more money to fight Filipino superstar Manny Pacquiao, who Mayweather has been accused of dodging.
Mayweather said that Pacquiao is no longer on his radar.
'I am not thinking about Manny Pacquiao'
"I want to take my promotion to another level. I am not thinking about Manny Pacquiao," Mayweather said.
On the undercard, Danny Garcia kept his World Boxing Council and World Boxing Association super lightweight titles with a unanimous decision over challenger Lucas Matthysses.
Garcia knocked Matthysses down in the 11th round and then the two went toe-to-toe in the final seconds of the 12-round showdown with both looking to end the bout with a knockout.
"We had a game plan and we stuck to it," Garcia said. "I stood focused and disciplined.
"I faced adversity before and he hadn't. I knew I would get this win."
Garcia improved to 27-0 but Argentina's Matthysses made him work for it as he sent Garcia's mouthpiece flying with a hard right hand in the 11th.
Carlos Molina also won the International Boxing Federation's junior middleweight title with a split-decision victory over Ishe Smith.
Mayweather's $41m win - biggest in boxing history | News | Sport | Mail & Guardian
The 36-year-old, who earned the biggest purse in boxing history at $41-million, managed to win the showdown between the two undefeated fighters and wrest Alvarez's World Boxing Council and World Boxing Association super welterweight belts.
"It is about skills," Mayweather said. "I came out tonight and showed my skills.
"I just took my time and took the opportunities when I got them. I can't say this is my best performance."
Mayweather fought a brilliant tactical fight against the younger and stronger Alvarez in front of the crowd of 16 746 at the MGM Grand Hotel's Grand Garden Arena.
He used his jab and superior hand speed to keep Alvarez at bay, but Mayweather still only managed to win on two of the three judge's scorecards.
Judge CJ Ross surprisingly scored it a draw, 114-114, while Craig Metcalfe had it 117-111 and Dave Moretti scored it 116-112 in favour of Mayweather.
Prison release
"I'm not in control of what the judges do," Mayweather scoffed. "I am in shock [by] whoever had it even."
This was just the second fight for Mayweather since he was released from prison after serving a sentence for assaulting the mother of his children.
Mayweather gave away 13 years in age and 15 pounds to the younger and stronger Alvarez, who moved down in weight for the showdown.
The seventh was one of Mayweather's best rounds as he landed several combination punches early before backing Alvarez up into a corner and hitting him with a right uppercut that snapped the Mexican's head back.
Mayweather came into the fight at 150 pounds, just a couple pounds lighter than he was at Friday's weigh in.
Alvarez was first to step into the ring, followed by Mayweather, who walked slowly into the sold-out arena flanked by rap artist Lil Wayne and Canadian teen heartthrob Justin Bieber.
The Mexican fighter entered the fight at 165, 13 pounds heavier than he was at Friday's weigh in.
Alvarez, who turned pro at age of 15 in 2005, suffered the first loss of his career.
"Obviously I didn't want to leave with a loss," said Alvarez, who dropped to 42-1-1. "It happens and it hurts."
Olympic style fight
Alvarez said he thought Mayweather fought an Olympic style fight by impressing the judges with the volume of punches he landed not the quality.
"He is very fast and accurate. His punches weren't that strong but he is making points and very fast," Alvarez said.
Mayweather connected on three times as many jabs (139-44) as Alvarez and landed almost double the number of total punches, 232-117.
This was the second in Mayweather's six-bout, 30-month contract with Showtime that could pay him more than $200-million.
Saturday's fight marked the first time since 2007 that he has fought twice in a calendar year and Mayweather said he plans to repeat that schedule in 2014 by fighting in May and September.
Some questioned why Mayweather would choose to fight Alvarez instead of accepting even more money to fight Filipino superstar Manny Pacquiao, who Mayweather has been accused of dodging.
Mayweather said that Pacquiao is no longer on his radar.
'I am not thinking about Manny Pacquiao'
"I want to take my promotion to another level. I am not thinking about Manny Pacquiao," Mayweather said.
On the undercard, Danny Garcia kept his World Boxing Council and World Boxing Association super lightweight titles with a unanimous decision over challenger Lucas Matthysses.
Garcia knocked Matthysses down in the 11th round and then the two went toe-to-toe in the final seconds of the 12-round showdown with both looking to end the bout with a knockout.
"We had a game plan and we stuck to it," Garcia said. "I stood focused and disciplined.
"I faced adversity before and he hadn't. I knew I would get this win."
Garcia improved to 27-0 but Argentina's Matthysses made him work for it as he sent Garcia's mouthpiece flying with a hard right hand in the 11th.
Carlos Molina also won the International Boxing Federation's junior middleweight title with a split-decision victory over Ishe Smith.
Mayweather's $41m win - biggest in boxing history | News | Sport | Mail & Guardian
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Aaron Levie’s Box is a quickly growing, enterprise-facing file storage company that has accreted to itself enough in-house technical prowess to expand its feature footprint to new niches that fit on top of its core product, allowing it to become a vertically integrated digital information behemoth.
Or, in simpler verbiage, Box has built a small tool called Box Notes that brings, for the first time, file editing capabilities to its file storage solution.
This is at once small news, as it is small surprise, and important for the future, as it is only the first of what I expect to be a long string of upcoming tools that will allow Box to take full advantage of its role as the Holder Of Your Stuff. The argument here is simple: Box stores the files of 180,000 business clients. The editor closer to the file is generally the tool that wins usage. Therefore, Box, having moved files from the desktop to the cloud, has put itself in the position of providing document- and file-editing capabilities to companies large and small.
Innocuous in itself, but important as that’s been Microsoft’s domain, I think, since before I was actually born. That same dominion has also been curator of Microsoft’s bottom line for almost as long. Box is nibbling Microsoft’s pond and I doubt that Redmond is happy. Box will happily tell you that it isn’t out to get Office, but please.
I spoke to Levie and Box more generally about the tool, and they expect that a lightweight tool could be “Editor enough” for the average computing user. To quote the group, “most of today’s tools have overshot customer needs to solve [their] problems.”
So, Box Notes. The goal, and I paraphrase Box here, is to avoid fitting our work to the tools that we have, and instead fit our tooling to our needs. This is implicit knocking of Word and the rest of the Office suite that has become — through time and agglomeration of new bells, whistles and buttons unknown — a bit bloated.
That’s the goal of Box Notes, which is a simple real-time editing tool that combines collaborative typing with the Box file stack. If your company uses Box already, this will eventually (the beta will remain small for now) be an option for you and your colleagues to bang out simple documents. A feature called ‘NoteHead,’ think Facebook’s ChatHead feature for analog, let’s you see who is typing and where. It’s a simple editor.
Box Announces Box Notes, A Lightweight Editing Tool That Is An Opening Salvo Against Microsoft Office | TechCrunch
Or, in simpler verbiage, Box has built a small tool called Box Notes that brings, for the first time, file editing capabilities to its file storage solution.
This is at once small news, as it is small surprise, and important for the future, as it is only the first of what I expect to be a long string of upcoming tools that will allow Box to take full advantage of its role as the Holder Of Your Stuff. The argument here is simple: Box stores the files of 180,000 business clients. The editor closer to the file is generally the tool that wins usage. Therefore, Box, having moved files from the desktop to the cloud, has put itself in the position of providing document- and file-editing capabilities to companies large and small.
Innocuous in itself, but important as that’s been Microsoft’s domain, I think, since before I was actually born. That same dominion has also been curator of Microsoft’s bottom line for almost as long. Box is nibbling Microsoft’s pond and I doubt that Redmond is happy. Box will happily tell you that it isn’t out to get Office, but please.
I spoke to Levie and Box more generally about the tool, and they expect that a lightweight tool could be “Editor enough” for the average computing user. To quote the group, “most of today’s tools have overshot customer needs to solve [their] problems.”
So, Box Notes. The goal, and I paraphrase Box here, is to avoid fitting our work to the tools that we have, and instead fit our tooling to our needs. This is implicit knocking of Word and the rest of the Office suite that has become — through time and agglomeration of new bells, whistles and buttons unknown — a bit bloated.
That’s the goal of Box Notes, which is a simple real-time editing tool that combines collaborative typing with the Box file stack. If your company uses Box already, this will eventually (the beta will remain small for now) be an option for you and your colleagues to bang out simple documents. A feature called ‘NoteHead,’ think Facebook’s ChatHead feature for analog, let’s you see who is typing and where. It’s a simple editor.
Box Announces Box Notes, A Lightweight Editing Tool That Is An Opening Salvo Against Microsoft Office | TechCrunch
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Veteran Las Vegas boxing judge C.J. Ross probably has worked her final fight.
Ross, 64, said Tuesday she has excused herself from working fights for the immediate future in the wake of her controversial scoring decision Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden.
Ross scored the world junior middleweight unification title fight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Saul “Canelo” Alvarez a draw, giving Mayweather a majority decision in a bout he clearly won.
Ross, who has been judging fights for 22 years, sent Nevada Athletic Commission executive director Keith Kizer an email Tuesday indicating she is placing herself on an indefinite leave of absence. The email read, in part: “I will be taking some time off from boxing but will keep in touch.”
Ross did not return phone calls seeking comment on her decision.
Her judge’s license expires at the end of the year. One of two scenarios then are likely — either Ross won’t reapply for a license, or, if she does, the commission won’t renew it.
Ross scored the fight 114-114. The other judges — Craig Metcalfe of Canada and Dave Moretti of Las Vegas — had Mayweather winning 117-111 and 116-112.
Ross’ score set off a firestorm of controversy throughout the boxing world, and, while she defended her work Sunday, she decided Tuesday to step aside for the good of the sport and the commission.
“She feels bad the focus is on her, not Mayweather,” Kizer said. “We recognize and respect C.J.’s decision.”
Mayweather co-manager Leonard Ellerbe said after hearing the news: “Things happen in the sport, and it could have been a lot worse than it was. But we want to be positive about what happened Saturday.”
NAC chairman Bill Brady said the negative publicity Nevada has received since the fight because of Ross’ scoring had caught the attention of Gov. Brian Sandoval, who appoints commission members.
Brady said he talked briefly Tuesday with Sandoval and that their conversation was mostly positive.
“I apologized to the governor for any embarrassment we may have caused the state,” Brady said. “He made me aware of his concerns. He wants things done right.”
Brady said there will be changes to the process for selecting officials beginning Sept. 25, when the commission will make assignments for the WBO welterweight title fight between Timothy Bradley and Juan Manuel Marquez on Oct. 12 at the Thomas &Mack Center.
“There will be more questions asked, and Keith will be held accountable for his recommendations,” Brady said. “We won’t be a rubber stamp anymore.”
Bradley’s last fight in Las Vegas, against Manny Pacquiao on June 9, 2012, at the MGM Grand, also ended in controversy because of Ross’ scoring. She had Bradley winning a fight many believe Pacquiao won handily.
However, unlike the Mayweather-Alvarez fight, which Mayweather won despite Ross’ scoring, her work in the Bradley-Pacquiao fight helped Bradley win a split decision
.That increased the scrutiny of Ross’ work Saturday.
And when she scored the fight a draw, more controversy ensued and eventually led to her decision Tuesday.
“We appreciate C.J. Ross’ action,” Brady said. “She is a good person who cares about the sport.”
Kizer said there will be a mandatory seminar in October or November for Nevada judges.
“We were planning to do a seminar before this happened,” he said. “We usually do one every couple of years, just like we do for our referees, our inspectors and others.”
Brady said the ultimate goal is to turn a negative situation into a positive one.
“I think it’s a new day for the commission, a new day for boxing and a new day for the state,” he said.
C.J. Ross to take leave of absence as boxing judge | Las Vegas Review-Journal
Ross, 64, said Tuesday she has excused herself from working fights for the immediate future in the wake of her controversial scoring decision Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden.
Ross scored the world junior middleweight unification title fight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Saul “Canelo” Alvarez a draw, giving Mayweather a majority decision in a bout he clearly won.
Ross, who has been judging fights for 22 years, sent Nevada Athletic Commission executive director Keith Kizer an email Tuesday indicating she is placing herself on an indefinite leave of absence. The email read, in part: “I will be taking some time off from boxing but will keep in touch.”
Ross did not return phone calls seeking comment on her decision.
Her judge’s license expires at the end of the year. One of two scenarios then are likely — either Ross won’t reapply for a license, or, if she does, the commission won’t renew it.
Ross scored the fight 114-114. The other judges — Craig Metcalfe of Canada and Dave Moretti of Las Vegas — had Mayweather winning 117-111 and 116-112.
Ross’ score set off a firestorm of controversy throughout the boxing world, and, while she defended her work Sunday, she decided Tuesday to step aside for the good of the sport and the commission.
“She feels bad the focus is on her, not Mayweather,” Kizer said. “We recognize and respect C.J.’s decision.”
Mayweather co-manager Leonard Ellerbe said after hearing the news: “Things happen in the sport, and it could have been a lot worse than it was. But we want to be positive about what happened Saturday.”
NAC chairman Bill Brady said the negative publicity Nevada has received since the fight because of Ross’ scoring had caught the attention of Gov. Brian Sandoval, who appoints commission members.
Brady said he talked briefly Tuesday with Sandoval and that their conversation was mostly positive.
“I apologized to the governor for any embarrassment we may have caused the state,” Brady said. “He made me aware of his concerns. He wants things done right.”
Brady said there will be changes to the process for selecting officials beginning Sept. 25, when the commission will make assignments for the WBO welterweight title fight between Timothy Bradley and Juan Manuel Marquez on Oct. 12 at the Thomas &Mack Center.
“There will be more questions asked, and Keith will be held accountable for his recommendations,” Brady said. “We won’t be a rubber stamp anymore.”
Bradley’s last fight in Las Vegas, against Manny Pacquiao on June 9, 2012, at the MGM Grand, also ended in controversy because of Ross’ scoring. She had Bradley winning a fight many believe Pacquiao won handily.
However, unlike the Mayweather-Alvarez fight, which Mayweather won despite Ross’ scoring, her work in the Bradley-Pacquiao fight helped Bradley win a split decision
.That increased the scrutiny of Ross’ work Saturday.
And when she scored the fight a draw, more controversy ensued and eventually led to her decision Tuesday.
“We appreciate C.J. Ross’ action,” Brady said. “She is a good person who cares about the sport.”
Kizer said there will be a mandatory seminar in October or November for Nevada judges.
“We were planning to do a seminar before this happened,” he said. “We usually do one every couple of years, just like we do for our referees, our inspectors and others.”
Brady said the ultimate goal is to turn a negative situation into a positive one.
“I think it’s a new day for the commission, a new day for boxing and a new day for the state,” he said.
C.J. Ross to take leave of absence as boxing judge | Las Vegas Review-Journal
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Former heavyweight champion Ken Norton, who beat Muhammad Ali in 1973 and then lost a controversial decision to him in their third and final bout in Yankee Stadium three years later, has died.
Norton's son said his father had passed away at the age of 70 at a local care facility in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The fighter had been in poor health for the past several years after suffering a series of strokes, a friend of Norton said.
"He's been fighting the battle for two years," said Gene Kilroy, Ali's former business manager. "I'm sure he's in heaven now with all the great fighters. I'd like to hear that conversation."
Norton broke Ali's jaw in their first bout, beating him by a split decision in San Diego, California.
They fought six months later in Inglewood, California, with Ali winning following another split decision.
The two men met for a third time on September 28, 1976, at Yankee Stadium in New York and Ali narrowly won to keep his heavyweight title.
Norton won a heavyweight title eliminator the following year and was declared champion by the World Boxing Council.
On June 9, 1978, he lost a bruising 15-round fight to Larry Holmes in what many regard as one of boxing's epic heavyweight bouts and would never be champion again.
The boxer finished with a record of 42-7-1 and 33 knockouts.
Norton later embarked on an acting career, appearing in several movies, and was a commentator at fights.
He lost only once in his early fights but had fought few fighters of any note when he was selected to meet Ali.
At the time, Ali was campaigning to try to win back the heavyweight crown he lost to Joe Frazier in 1973.
Few gave Norton much of a chance against Ali in San Diego, but his awkward style and close-in pressing tactics confused Ali and the win put him in the top echelon of heavyweight fighters.
Norton's son said his father had passed away at the age of 70 at a local care facility in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The fighter had been in poor health for the past several years after suffering a series of strokes, a friend of Norton said.
"He's been fighting the battle for two years," said Gene Kilroy, Ali's former business manager. "I'm sure he's in heaven now with all the great fighters. I'd like to hear that conversation."
Norton broke Ali's jaw in their first bout, beating him by a split decision in San Diego, California.
They fought six months later in Inglewood, California, with Ali winning following another split decision.
The two men met for a third time on September 28, 1976, at Yankee Stadium in New York and Ali narrowly won to keep his heavyweight title.
Norton won a heavyweight title eliminator the following year and was declared champion by the World Boxing Council.
On June 9, 1978, he lost a bruising 15-round fight to Larry Holmes in what many regard as one of boxing's epic heavyweight bouts and would never be champion again.
The boxer finished with a record of 42-7-1 and 33 knockouts.
Norton later embarked on an acting career, appearing in several movies, and was a commentator at fights.
He lost only once in his early fights but had fought few fighters of any note when he was selected to meet Ali.
At the time, Ali was campaigning to try to win back the heavyweight crown he lost to Joe Frazier in 1973.
Few gave Norton much of a chance against Ali in San Diego, but his awkward style and close-in pressing tactics confused Ali and the win put him in the top echelon of heavyweight fighters.
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Former super welterweight champion Saul "Canelo" Alvarez is known to be wildly popular in his native Mexico, but now we have an idea just how popular the fighter with the distinctive red hair is.
Golden Boy Promotions announced Wednesday that nearly 80% of households in Mexico with a television tuned in to Televisa to watch Alvarez, 23, lose a majority decision to Floyd Mayweather Saturday in what is expected to be the richest fight in boxing history.
The fight got a national rating of 41.1 points, which equates to a 77% share, 22.1 million viewers and 5.9 million television households, making it the highest-rated boxing program ever on television in Mexico.
The telecast peaked with a national rating of 42 points (78.4% share/22.6 million viewers, 6 million television households) and the total program average 30.1 points (16.2 million viewers).
"Boxing fans demanded "The One" and when we gave it to them they responded with these record ratings," said Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions. "This proves that great fights with great fighters like Floyd Mayweather and Canelo Alvarez will always strike a chord with viewers and that Canelo is undisputed as the biggest star Mexican boxing has today."
The last time a sporting event rated this high on Televisa was in 1999, for a Copa Confederaciones soccer final between Mexico vs. Brazil.
The previous viewership high for Canelo, who has never garnered less than 7.5 million viewers for one of his eight appearances on Televisa, was his April bout against Austin Trout, which pulled in a 28 point rating and more than 15 million viewers.
Mayweather-Alvarez Mexican TV's biggest boxing event
Golden Boy Promotions announced Wednesday that nearly 80% of households in Mexico with a television tuned in to Televisa to watch Alvarez, 23, lose a majority decision to Floyd Mayweather Saturday in what is expected to be the richest fight in boxing history.
The fight got a national rating of 41.1 points, which equates to a 77% share, 22.1 million viewers and 5.9 million television households, making it the highest-rated boxing program ever on television in Mexico.
The telecast peaked with a national rating of 42 points (78.4% share/22.6 million viewers, 6 million television households) and the total program average 30.1 points (16.2 million viewers).
"Boxing fans demanded "The One" and when we gave it to them they responded with these record ratings," said Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions. "This proves that great fights with great fighters like Floyd Mayweather and Canelo Alvarez will always strike a chord with viewers and that Canelo is undisputed as the biggest star Mexican boxing has today."
The last time a sporting event rated this high on Televisa was in 1999, for a Copa Confederaciones soccer final between Mexico vs. Brazil.
The previous viewership high for Canelo, who has never garnered less than 7.5 million viewers for one of his eight appearances on Televisa, was his April bout against Austin Trout, which pulled in a 28 point rating and more than 15 million viewers.
Mayweather-Alvarez Mexican TV's biggest boxing event
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To understand why the pay-per-view sales of Floyd Mayweather's masterpiece victory over Canelo Alvarez last week in Las Vegas did so well, it requires some understanding of why so many want to throw dirt onto boxing and bury it.
Boxing historically has been one of the most poorly organised, poorly run sports in professional athletics. Even in its heyday, it was a loosely run business where the rules were adjusted on the fly, or ignored altogether, to suit the needs of a given promoter.
There were no business plans written, outlining strategies for success. Anyone who wants to be a promoter, with just a few dollars in the bank, can do so. There is no barrier to entry and so no end of miscreants, naïve dreamers and con artists who have called themselves promoters.
If boxing were a publicly traded company, it would have been committed to the history books long ago.
For decades, there have been too many titles and too many cheaters and too many mismatches and plenty of ignorance about sound business practices.
In February, shortly after Mayweather shocked the sports world by signing a six-fight, 30-month deal with Showtime, he announced he would fight Robert Guerrero in May. Not long after that, Alvarez opted not to fight on Mayweather's undercard and instead chose to headline a Showtime card in San Antonio in April.
At the time, it seemed like an ill-advised choice by Mayweather to not make certain Alvarez fought on his undercard. I said at the time that putting Alvarez on the Mayweather-Guerrero undercard would have added at least 250,000 sales to the total.
The public never was particularly intrigued by the Mayweather-Guerrero match. Many casual fans had never heard of Guerrero, and the Hispanic fans, particularly the Mexican and Mexican-Americans who are such a large part of boxing's constituency, didn't consider Guerrero "Mexican enough" and opted not to buy the fight.
There was no heat surrounding the bout and little expectation that Guerrero had a chance. The publicity for the fight, which hadn't been good to begin with, really tumbled when Guerrero was arrested for trying to bring a gun onto a plane midway through the promotion and essentially went undercover. He barely spoke to the media again after the arrest until the week of the fight, when the public had long since decided it was not interested.
Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer told Yahoo Sports the fight sold 1.02 million pay-per-view units, a massive number for pay-per-view but a disappointment for a Mayweather fight. Sources told Yahoo Sports the figure was actually less than 900,000, but Schaefer and Showtime Sports executive vice president/general manager Stephen Espinoza strongly deny that.
Whatever the truth, there is no arguing the public was less than enthralled with the event.
When it ended, executives from Golden Boy, Showtime and Mayweather Promotions got together and examined their work. They looked at what they did correctly and what didn't work.
The result was perhaps the finest promotion in boxing history, a well-conceived effort that created an incredible demand for the product. Their efforts were a spectacular success, resulting in 2.2 million pay-per-view sales that generated nearly $150 million.
Those executives at HBO who were chortling at Showtime's struggles with the Mayweather-Guerrero fight were laughing no more. More likely, they were physically ill, because Mayweather fought most of his career with HBO, and HBO allowed him to walk to its top competitor.
Mayweather made a savvy choice by agreeing to fight Alvarez. Alvarez had the credibility as an opponent that Guerrero did not. Many believed that the 42-0-1 Alvarez not only had a chance to beat the 44-0 Mayweather, but that he might even knock the smaller man out.
The public must believe the star – Mayweather – can be beaten to make it an over-the-top success, and in this case, it did.
Those seeds were sown in April, when Alvarez met Austin Trout before 40,000 fans at the Alamodome in San Antonio on Showtime. Trout was coming off an impressive victory over the great Miguel Cotto; Cotto had been coming off an impressive effort in a loss to Mayweather. The public understood that Trout was no joke.
Alvarez knocked Trout down en route to a victory by decision, a win that confirmed that he was, indeed, one of boxing's elite. He wasn't just a small guy moving up to take on the top name in the sport, as Guerrero was doing. Alvarez was the bigger man and was not only a big draw in his own right, but was perceived to be nearly as talented.
The narrative that the Mayweather camp had been pushing for so long, that its man was the greatest boxer who ever lived, would be sorely tested by Alvarez, the thinking went.
To showcase its match, promoters took Mayweather on an expensive cross-country tour. It cost $2.5 million, but it generated enormous media coverage that came with a consistent theme: This is a real fight; Alvarez has a chance. It would be no walkover.
The thought of seeing Mayweather lose seemed to energize the Alvarez-leaning media, as well as the young star's burgeoning fan base. The fans chanted and cheered Alvarez's name again and again, while the reporters turned him into a larger-than-life figure that made him appear the equal, on paper, of his legendary countryman, the great Julio Cesar Chavez.
The message was delivered not only via the media, but by the promoters themselves. The support material for the fight – the countdown shows, the tour highlights, the previews – were delivered online like never before. Anywhere boxing fans congregated on the Internet, they could find Mayweather-Alvarez content.
For several years now, boxing promoters have staged what they call "an arrival ceremony" for big fights in Las Vegas. It matters not, for instance, that Mayweather actually lives in Las Vegas. Promoters set up this elaborate ruse that the fighters are just landing in town and urge fans t
Boxing historically has been one of the most poorly organised, poorly run sports in professional athletics. Even in its heyday, it was a loosely run business where the rules were adjusted on the fly, or ignored altogether, to suit the needs of a given promoter.
There were no business plans written, outlining strategies for success. Anyone who wants to be a promoter, with just a few dollars in the bank, can do so. There is no barrier to entry and so no end of miscreants, naïve dreamers and con artists who have called themselves promoters.
If boxing were a publicly traded company, it would have been committed to the history books long ago.
For decades, there have been too many titles and too many cheaters and too many mismatches and plenty of ignorance about sound business practices.
In February, shortly after Mayweather shocked the sports world by signing a six-fight, 30-month deal with Showtime, he announced he would fight Robert Guerrero in May. Not long after that, Alvarez opted not to fight on Mayweather's undercard and instead chose to headline a Showtime card in San Antonio in April.
At the time, it seemed like an ill-advised choice by Mayweather to not make certain Alvarez fought on his undercard. I said at the time that putting Alvarez on the Mayweather-Guerrero undercard would have added at least 250,000 sales to the total.
The public never was particularly intrigued by the Mayweather-Guerrero match. Many casual fans had never heard of Guerrero, and the Hispanic fans, particularly the Mexican and Mexican-Americans who are such a large part of boxing's constituency, didn't consider Guerrero "Mexican enough" and opted not to buy the fight.
There was no heat surrounding the bout and little expectation that Guerrero had a chance. The publicity for the fight, which hadn't been good to begin with, really tumbled when Guerrero was arrested for trying to bring a gun onto a plane midway through the promotion and essentially went undercover. He barely spoke to the media again after the arrest until the week of the fight, when the public had long since decided it was not interested.
Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer told Yahoo Sports the fight sold 1.02 million pay-per-view units, a massive number for pay-per-view but a disappointment for a Mayweather fight. Sources told Yahoo Sports the figure was actually less than 900,000, but Schaefer and Showtime Sports executive vice president/general manager Stephen Espinoza strongly deny that.
Whatever the truth, there is no arguing the public was less than enthralled with the event.
When it ended, executives from Golden Boy, Showtime and Mayweather Promotions got together and examined their work. They looked at what they did correctly and what didn't work.
The result was perhaps the finest promotion in boxing history, a well-conceived effort that created an incredible demand for the product. Their efforts were a spectacular success, resulting in 2.2 million pay-per-view sales that generated nearly $150 million.
Those executives at HBO who were chortling at Showtime's struggles with the Mayweather-Guerrero fight were laughing no more. More likely, they were physically ill, because Mayweather fought most of his career with HBO, and HBO allowed him to walk to its top competitor.
Mayweather made a savvy choice by agreeing to fight Alvarez. Alvarez had the credibility as an opponent that Guerrero did not. Many believed that the 42-0-1 Alvarez not only had a chance to beat the 44-0 Mayweather, but that he might even knock the smaller man out.
The public must believe the star – Mayweather – can be beaten to make it an over-the-top success, and in this case, it did.
Those seeds were sown in April, when Alvarez met Austin Trout before 40,000 fans at the Alamodome in San Antonio on Showtime. Trout was coming off an impressive victory over the great Miguel Cotto; Cotto had been coming off an impressive effort in a loss to Mayweather. The public understood that Trout was no joke.
Alvarez knocked Trout down en route to a victory by decision, a win that confirmed that he was, indeed, one of boxing's elite. He wasn't just a small guy moving up to take on the top name in the sport, as Guerrero was doing. Alvarez was the bigger man and was not only a big draw in his own right, but was perceived to be nearly as talented.
The narrative that the Mayweather camp had been pushing for so long, that its man was the greatest boxer who ever lived, would be sorely tested by Alvarez, the thinking went.
To showcase its match, promoters took Mayweather on an expensive cross-country tour. It cost $2.5 million, but it generated enormous media coverage that came with a consistent theme: This is a real fight; Alvarez has a chance. It would be no walkover.
The thought of seeing Mayweather lose seemed to energize the Alvarez-leaning media, as well as the young star's burgeoning fan base. The fans chanted and cheered Alvarez's name again and again, while the reporters turned him into a larger-than-life figure that made him appear the equal, on paper, of his legendary countryman, the great Julio Cesar Chavez.
The message was delivered not only via the media, but by the promoters themselves. The support material for the fight – the countdown shows, the tour highlights, the previews – were delivered online like never before. Anywhere boxing fans congregated on the Internet, they could find Mayweather-Alvarez content.
For several years now, boxing promoters have staged what they call "an arrival ceremony" for big fights in Las Vegas. It matters not, for instance, that Mayweather actually lives in Las Vegas. Promoters set up this elaborate ruse that the fighters are just landing in town and urge fans t
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Former world heavyweight champion David Haye has had to postpone a September 28 bout with fellow-Briton Tyson Fury in Manchester after suffering a cut over his left eyebrow in training.
Haye, who lost his WBA belt in July 2011 to Ukrainian Vladimir Klitschko, was sparring with Croatian Filip Hrgovic on Friday when he suffered the wound that needed six stitches.
Promoters Hayemaker Boxing said in a statement that the stitches would have to remain in place for between five and seven days. No date was set for any rescheduled fight.
"Even when everything seems to be right on track, sometimes life throws you a curveball," said the 32-year-old Haye. "I will somehow have to try and make the best of this horrible situation. But, right now, I'm in bits about what has happened."
Haye's previous planned fight, against Germany's Manuel Charr, was cancelled in June when the Briton suffered a hand injury. He has not fought since July 2012, when he beat compatriot Dereck Chisora.
Fury is a former British and Commonwealth champion.
Boxing - Haye pulls out of Fury bout due to cut - Yahoo Eurosport UK
Haye, who lost his WBA belt in July 2011 to Ukrainian Vladimir Klitschko, was sparring with Croatian Filip Hrgovic on Friday when he suffered the wound that needed six stitches.
Promoters Hayemaker Boxing said in a statement that the stitches would have to remain in place for between five and seven days. No date was set for any rescheduled fight.
"Even when everything seems to be right on track, sometimes life throws you a curveball," said the 32-year-old Haye. "I will somehow have to try and make the best of this horrible situation. But, right now, I'm in bits about what has happened."
Haye's previous planned fight, against Germany's Manuel Charr, was cancelled in June when the Briton suffered a hand injury. He has not fought since July 2012, when he beat compatriot Dereck Chisora.
Fury is a former British and Commonwealth champion.
Boxing - Haye pulls out of Fury bout due to cut - Yahoo Eurosport UK
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Morrison tested positive for HIV in 1996 before a fight with Arthur Weathers, effectively ending his boxing career. In the years that followed, he denied having HIV and also challenged the existence of the virus. Trisha Morrison, who married Morrison in 2011, picked up that fight, and in a recent interview with ESPN-com insisted that Morrison had Guillain-Barre Syndrome, not HIV.
Holden declined to comment on the cause of Morrison's death, telling reporters: "I don't know what the official cause of death at the hospital will be. You prepare for things like this, and still you feel like you got hit by a truck when you hear the news."
Morrison was one in a line of Great White Hopes in the 1980s and 1990s but he actually delivered when he beat the ageing George Foreman on points to win the WBO heavyweight title. He came into the fight with a run of 28 wins, some against decent fighters.
But hopes he had hit the big time - a unification fight with Lennox Lewis was being lined up - evaporated when he was knocked down three times in the first round against Michael Bentt.
He came back but was never the same and in 1995 he lost to Lewis. Months later he tested positive for AIDS and his career was over. "Tommy had a hard time with it back then," Holden told ESPN. "People wouldn't shake his hand, wouldn't come close to him, wouldn't let babies next to him. You took a kid from this height of stardom, being in movies, to the point where everyone wanted to be Morrison's friend to the point where, man, nobody wanted to be in the same room with him. I witnessed it. And it was heartbreaking."
Morrison blamed his condition on a "permissive, fast and reckless lifestyle"' and away from the ring he struggled. After a string of arrests he was sent to prison in 2000 and thereafter most stories concerned his health. He went to great lengths to mask his deteriorating physical condition, including at one stage having pectoral implants.
He also gained fame for his role in the 1990 movie Rocky V, in which he portrayed Tommy Gunn, a rookie boxer who is trained by Rocky Balboa, portrayed by star Sylvester Stallone. Morrison, as Gunn, goes on to win the heavyweight title in the movie and then later fights and loses to his mentor.
Former WBO heavyweight Tommy Morrison dies at 44 | Boxing News | ESPN.co.uk