Interview with Jerson Ravelo

1. You fought a tough hard great fight with Then undefeated Allan Green, how do you bounce back from a tough defeat?

It wasn’t a tough defeat for me, i mean losing is always tough, but i wasn’t myself in that fight, and i can’t get down on myself about a fight that i know i wasn’t 100%in, but bouncing back for me has never been a problem, i have bounced back from harder things than a defeat in life.

2. How did you get involved with the Contender?

I myself don’t really know how i got involved, i know I was offered a fight against Sergio Mora and the fight never happened, later on a fight with Manfredo was offered to me and that never happened, and I’m now getting promoted by the contender.

3. We know your next fight is vs Paul Buchanan which will be aired on espn as part of the Contender series, Is it different training and fighting overseas in England? If so how is the atmosphere

Traning wasn’t different, because wherever we are we still have to train the same way the do back home, the only different factor was the time difference, but other than that everything was pretty much normal, fighting out in the UK was a great experience for me, i would love to go out and challenge one of their champions soon.

4. You are ranked in the Top 15 by a few Regional Belts in North America, how would you feel about fighting for one of them to help propel yourself in the Title mix?

To tell you the thruth i’m not sure how i’m not ranked in the top 10 of the main belts, there are some fighters who have not fought in years, come back fight one fight and i see they’re ranked in the top 10, when Jeff Lacy was 8-0 he was ranked in the top 10, when i was 13-0 i was never ranked in the top 10, now i’m 18-2 I lost to Allan Green who’s ranked in the top 10 in every major belt, i come back win and still not even top 20 for Ravelo, that’s part of the struggle in boxing when you’re managing yourself and no money to smooth things out.

5. Would you want to pursue a rematch with Allan Green? As of right now he is scheduled to fight Samuel Miller of Colombia

samuel miller is a 154lbs ain’t he? I know that guy, of course i would want a rematch with Green no questions about it, I had a bad night just how he had one against Miranda, whenever he’s ready i’m here waiting.

6. Who do YOU want to fight as of right now in the Super Middleweight Division?

I want to fight whoever my promoters put in front of me, anybody at 168lbs or 160, I would love to fight Jermain Taylor, they say noone wants to fight him at home, please i’ll fight him in his kitchen, while cooking him a meal, bring it.

Jerson, thanks for your time man, you dont know how much I really appreciate this, Good luck with training

Cotto Wins in Bizarre Ending

Oktay Urkal came into tonight’s fight as the known underdog and he knew it. Urkal was the mandatory challenger for Cotto. This fight was suppose to be a showcase fight in front of the home crowd and it was suppose to provide excitement for the June 9th fight between Zab Judah and Miguel Cotto.

The fight began with both boxers feeling each other out. Cotto was winning the rounds but working the body hard. Urkal was throwing back punches and most were power punches that landed, but they did not have the power Cotto’s had. Cotto was the aggressor from Round 1 to 6. He was out landing him Urkal and landing the more cleaner shots, he also stunned him a few times. Nonetheless it was a very tactical fight. Although things would take a turn when Cotto was cut by a head butt.

In Round 7 things were beginning to look better for Urkal. It seemed that Cotto took this round off. Urkal was the busier fighter and he was throwing and landing more than him. Urkal seemed to be on the way to winning the round until referee Luis Pabon took a point away from Urkal for head butts.

The blood from the cut seemed to bother Cotto. Round 8 was a round Urkal was winning. He was landing the bigger more cleaner shots and the bigger combos. This round Pabon called time for the doctor to check the cut, but the doctor said it was fine. Urkal won this round on my card.

In Rounds 9 and 10 Cotto started to wake up and throw more punches. Cotto wobbled him in both rounds and Urkal switched to fighting defensively. Cotto was working the body and it proved to be effective. At the end of round 10, things began to become bizarre when during a clinch, Cotto attempted to pick up Urkal and he nearly flipped him. According to Hbo’s Jim Lampley, it looked like a WWF move.

Round 11 began and Cotto stunned him. He worked the body and landed a hard jab. Then Urkal seemed to head butt Cotto and referee Luis Pabon took away another point. Then Urkal’s trainer Ulli Wegner threw in the towel.

In a post fight interview with HBO, Wegner said the reason for the stoppage was because of the feeling that they could not win. Also they felt that Urkal was getting hit with illegal punches and they knew they were already losing because of the open scoring. Lastly he knew that Urkal would not be able to pitch a comeback since Cotto is another class of a fighter than Urkal.

Cotto is now scheduled to fight Judah in June, this fight will be finalized if Judah wins his tuneup fight in April.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Miranda-Green Fight Report!

This may have been on of the most anticipated fights so far in 2007. Both fighters appeared to have have a dislike for each other. The fans were on the side of Miranda and they also had a dislike for Green.

ROUND BY ROUND
In the 1st round Both fighters started off using the Jab. Miranda lands a big right hand and stunned him. Both then start to use the jab. Both then start to slightly exchange in the middle of the ring, Miranda seemed to get the better of it. Miranda then begins to land the jab. The round ends and i scored it for Miranda. 10-9

Round two begins and both start off using the jab. Green landed more jabs. Miranda then threw a flurry of punches, a few were low and Miranda was warned. Both begin to use the jab. Miranda starts to use the right and lands them. Green starts to box. Green seemed to win the boxing part of the fight. But Miranda outlanded him and i score it for Miranda, 20-18.

Round 3 they once again begin the round using the jab. Green lands a good combination of punches. Green begins to complain to the ref about a foul, Miranda takes advantage of this and lands a big shot. Green throws a good body shot then Miranda lands a combination and stuns him. Miranda is the agressor of this round and therefore wins it. 20-27

Round4 they are are fighing tactical in the middle of the ring. Green then lands a hook. Miranda starts to taunt Green. Miranda throws a right hand. They both start to jab in the middle of the ring. They both begin to clinch. Miranda lands a big right hang and slightly stuns Green. Miranda wins this round. 40-36

Round 5 They fight in the middle of the ring. Miranda is using the jab more. Green throws a body shot and Miranda start to taunt him. Miranda lands a big right hand. At this point of the fight all of Miranda’s rights seem to land. Miranda wins this round 50-45

Round 6 Miranda starts off throwing the jab. Green at this point is being outboxed. The crowd was becoming bored. Green is also fighting scared. Green is on the defensive. Miranda is warned for hitting low. Miranda wins this round 60-54

Round 7 They start off jabbing. Green is throwing more but they arent landing. Both are tactical, and start clinching. Miranda begins to box, and taunts at the end of the round. Miranda won this round 70-63.

Round 8 begins with both holding and hitting. Green then knocks down Miranda with a left hook. Both begin to fight. Green lands a big right hand. Then they both begin to throw the jab. Green lands a left hook, and they clinch. Green wins this round 78-73

Round 9 both start jabbing in the middle of the ring. Miranda then stuns him with a right. Miranda throws combinations that land. Green tries to jab. Miranda also jabs. Miranda then throws a left hook. Both start to box and clinch. Miranda stuns Green with a small left hook. Miranda wins this 88-82

The final round begins tactically. They start fighting against the ropes then they clinch and move to the middle of the ring. They move back against the ropes and Miranda lands a big right hand and then landed more shots. Green is stunned, they start clinching and Miranda becomes eager to get a knockout. He lands a combination on the ropes and a huge right hand and down went Green. Green makes the count but has no legs. Miranda lands another right hand, Green goes down again, but makes the count and has no legs what so ever. Green lands a bg right at the bell and the fight ends. Green wins this round and the fight on my card 98-91.

Although Miranda did get the decision. The fight was not what the fans thought. It was a dissapointment since most people believed it to be a possible fight of the year. Miranda who improves his record to 28-1, now will search for a possible title fight with one of the current champions.

Lightweight Rankings

1. Joel Casamayor

After calling out several lightweight contenders, Casamayor still has not gotten himself a fight and was stripped of the Interim WBC title. ”El Cepillo” has not had a fight since his last SD win over the overweight Diego Coralles. He is number one for now since he is the only lightweight to have faced the best out there in the division. Look for him to drop if he cannot get a fight with another worthy contender.

2. Juan Diaz

After the disposing of unworthy contender Fernando Angulo last summer, Diaz has not fought in another fight since this past summer. Many have questioned his punching power and and skills since many say he has not fought the best in the business. Diaz is the most skillful fighter in the division and although he power may not be there, he speed and accuracy blows the other fighters out of the water. Diaz will finally get the chance to prove himself on April 28th against Acelino Freitas.

3. Julio Diaz

There is now another Diaz champion in the Division. Julio Diaz won the title in a unspectacular form against Jesus Chavez, in which Chavez was unable to continue to fight after a knew injury, awarding Diaz the title. Diaz as of now has not proven to be a real champion. Diaz did call out Juan Diaz after the fight, but Julio will most likely have to face the winner of Ricky Quiles-Nate Campbell.

4. Acelino Freitas

Freitas has been on a near 10 month layoff since beating former contender Zahir Raheem. After potential fights with Joel Casamayor and David Diaz fell through, Freitas Layoff continued. Finally the Juan Diaz camp and Freitas camp have agreed on a fight for Diaz’s WBA title on April 28th. Which will mark a 11 month 30 day layoff for Freitas. Many will wonder if such a long layoff will affect Freitas in his fight with Diaz. Freitas must bring his A game and not bring in any ring rust to the fight.

5. Nate Campbell

In Campbell’s last fight he won a one sided IBF title eliminator over Matt Zegan. He has been an underachiever his whole career and has yet to win a World Title. He will have his chance March 2nd on a ESPN nationally televised card against Ricky Quiles, another journey man who is seeking his 1st world title. A loss will virtually end his career.

6. Michael Katsidis

Katsidis won a part of the WBO title with his 5 round Technical Decision win over Graham Earl. It was a action packed fight and Katsidis’ power proved to be more powerful. This was the biggest step up in competition for Katsidis. Before this fight he had not fought anyone near the top of the division. Now being the WBO Interim champ, look for him to fight the winner of the Diaz-Freitas fight in a unification bout in late 2007.

7. Kid Diamond

Kid Diamond seemed to be on his way to the top of the lightweight division. After had a controversial draw with Joel Casamayor he fought Nate Campbell and was TKO in the 10th round. Kid Diamond won his last fight in a one sided schooling of journeyman Emmanuel Augustus. And before that fight he had a TKO win over Jairo Ramirez for the NABF title. Diamond needs one legitimate win to get him into the lightweight mix .

8. David Diaz

Diaz has now been titled champion of the WBC after being interim champ. We now have a 3rd Diaz as champion. Diaz last fought on the Maskaev-Rahman undercard vs. Jose Armando Santa Cruz. He was being dominated though the first nine rounds and out of no where came back to knockout Santa Cruz in that round. His will to win was proven that night. There have been talks of a Diaz-Erik Morales fight this coming may or summer. A win of this caliber would solidify his spot in the division.

9. Ricky Quiles

Quiles will be fighting Nate Campbell in a IBF eliminator match. A win would set up a rematch with IBF champion Julio Diaz. If Quiles loses this bout his career could be over. He like Campbell has yet to win a World Title

10. Jose Armando Santa Cruz

In his comeback fight after being upset by David Diaz, Santa Cruz got up from a 1st round knockdown to win a one sided decision over Luis Antonio Arceo. Santa Cruz needs another fight and hopefully we can see him get a rematch with David Diaz.

Paulie Dominates Cherry!

After being beaten physically and mentally by Miguel Cotto, Paul Maglinaggi was left with a broken jaw and in the crossroads. Lou Dibella and company still had high hopes for the Magic Man.

Tonight was the night for Paulie to make a comeback in front of a sellout crowd at Hammerstein ballroom and in-front of the nation on a nationally televised bout. Edner Cherry was the perfect opponent to showcase his skills. Cherry who is a exciting boxer was no match for the speed and skills of Paulie Maglinaggi.

It was a typical boxer vs puncher matchup. Paulie immediately began to stick and move. He began using the jab to keep off Cherry and started to use the entire ring. Cherry really could not get started. The instructions from the corner were to work the body, but Cherry really couldn’t get inside since Paulie was dominating with the jab. Cherry at times was successful and did get in, and won two rounds on two of the judges cards. Cherry did not throw as many punches as fight fans may have expected.  This may have been because of the quick jab Paulie threw all night long. Although it was a boring fight, his stick and move technique did win him a one sided decision. The Scores were 100-90, 98-92 and 98-92. This fight could propel him into a fight with WBO titlist Ricardo Torres, WBC champ Junior Witter or even LovemoreN’Dou the IBF champ who was in attendence last night.

Undercard Action

 

Sechew Powell won a 10 round decision over Contender contestant Ishe Smith. Powell was winning from the start of the bout. Neither boxer really threw a lot of punches so neither boxer was really dominating, Powell just was the busier boxer. This may have been because of Smith’s style as a counter puncher. A turning point in the bout was the knockdown of Powell. After the knockdown Smith began to pickup the pace but it was too little too late. All the judges agreed with the score of 97-92. After the decision the crowd seemed to be dissapointed and showed it with the boos. Powell record improves to 21-1 with 12 ko’s.

 

Welterweight prospect Andre Berto was in action and looked explosive. He fought contender season 2 contestant Norberto Bravo. Bravo who was a late substitution for Ben Tackie who had Visa problems, was out muscled, out classed, and out skilled. This was proven when Berto knocked down Bravo three times in the 1st round which led to a stoppage since the 3 knockdown rule was in effect. Berto now has a record of 17 wins-0 loses and 15 of them by knockout.

PREVIEW-Edison Miranda vs Allan Green

On March 3rd, Edison“Pantera”Miranda(27-1 24ko’s) will clash with unbeaten middleweight prospect Allan“Sweetness”Green(23-0 16ko’s) live as the co main event on HBO which has Miguel Cotto vs Oktay Urkal as the main event in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Miranda is most famous for the fight with Arthur Abraham. Abraham won by decision while fighting with a broken jaw and with the help of 5 point deductions from Miranda.

Green is most famous for the knockout win over Jaidon Condrington in which he literally knocked him out and led to “The Ring Magazines knockout of the year”.

They say that styles make fights. Well this night will definitely prove that statement. Miranda seems to be a boxer brawler. He is 6’0 tall with a great build and he packs a strong punch. His power was proven when he broke the Jaw of Abraham’s with a punch. He really hasn’t been battle tested. His other notable fight was a TKO win over a past prime Howard Eastman. Miranda does have a strong chin and the will to win. He isn’t the type of slick boxer Green proves to be. Allan Green is the literal boxer in this match up. He can be slick but at the same time he does have power as shown in the Fight with Codrington. Green has been in with good competition, although none are notable opponents they are boxers with solid records. The biggest question remains is the strength of Green’s chin. He was nearly knocked out by Donnie McCrary who is no where near the top of any boxing rankings. If Green cannot handle the power of someone at that level, we can only imagine what could happen once he tastes the power of Miranda who has first round knockout power.

Conclusion

Miranda will be the favorite to win the fight. Born in Colombia, Miranda trains in Puerto Rico so you can bet the fans will be on his side and they will do anything to help to make sure he wins. If Miranda wants to win the fight, he must not try to box the more skilled boxer. He needs to do his best to fight on the ropes and to land big shots. Landing big body shots would help take away Green’s legs and could keep him from running around the ring if he chooses to do so. If Miranda can easily land Right Hands and hooks look for it to be a long night for Green. Fighting in the middle of the ring would benefit Green’s boxing skills. Green needs to do his best to make this a boxing contest. Although it could be boring he needs to stick and move and make sure he is out of the way of Miranda. Utilizing the jab and landing a right hand if Miranda throws wildly will land him a win in this fight. The thing he cannot do is trade shots with the harder puncher, in doing this, it could lead to Green getting knocked out.

 

Prediction

Miranda will want to put on a show for the crowd, also he wants to make sure he looks good in this win so that it will send a message to all the World Champions at the 160 pound weight division particularly Jermain Taylor who Miranda says is scared of him or maybe even a rematch with IBF Champ Arthur Abraham. Green on the other hand who is 27 years old, has not yet been in a world title bout. A win this night would defiantly get him in the middleweight mix. After all this being said I do not see see Allan Green winning this fight. Green will do his best to box him and keep away from Miranda but he may get caught up in the mayhem of the crowd and look to trade with Miranda. In trading with Miranda I see him landing the bigger shots than Green and this will lead to a knockout. My prediction is that Miranda wins by a early knockout maybe in the 5th round and will get a title shot with the WBA title holder Mariano Carrera. A rematch with Abraham would be too early to say since he has not fully recovered from the broken jaw.

The Unwatched Sport

These days if you go up to any sports fan most likely they are unable to name five current world boxing champions. Why is this? Is it because the sport is boring? No Boxing stars? No marketing? Many questions are asked why boxing isnt watched by the majority of sports fans anymore. The Nba, MLB, and Nfl, are watched by fans nearly everyday. Why is this? It is because it is FREE.

Now a days inorder to watch boxing, most likely you must need digital cable. As of now the only “free” boxing on non cable is Solo Boxeo on Telefutura. They do show very entertaining fights but they are in spanish and not all the boxing fans are hispanic. Other channels that show live boxing are Espn and Vs. They also show great fights but you need to have cable to view them. The best fights however are on HBO and Showtime, and to see them you must cough up a little extra cash since they are also premium movie channels.

So what if you have cable? You now can see quality fights every weekend on these sports network which is great for the average boxing fan, but wait, what if your favorite boxer is someone like Mike Tyson, Roy Jones, Oscar De La Hoya, or Floyd Mayweather? These are the biggest names in boxing and most people have heard of them at one time or another. Well guess what, being at the top of the sport means big money for them and big money out of your pocket.

The BEST fights that are televised are most likely on pay per view. Meaning you have to pay around 50 bucks to see the fight. 50 dollars often scares away sport fanatics, but for the hardcore boxing fans 50 dollars can be worth it. Then there are those fights that are dissapointing and boring which makes you mad you wasted money and makes people say that it shouldnt have been on pay per view. Most people think it is a scam but in reality it is not. Big names in boxing means big money and a lot of viewers. Having people pay makes money for the network and helps pay the boxers.

Solution? A solution to getting boxing popular would be to broadcast them on the major networks such as ABC NBC, and CBS. Another would be to cut down on pay per views. Showing a big name for free every now and then dosent hurt and this helps bring in boxing fans. Lastly would be to make boxing a more affordable sport to watch. You cant always show the big names for free, so charge the people but for a more affordable price. Lastly would be to show highlights on major sports networks such as ESPN. ESPN only shows highlights of the major fights that occured and when they do they only show them breifly, but this isnt their fault. ESPN is not able to show knockouts on there shows because the network will charge them. Therefore ESPN backs off and they really dont care since it is only boxing. Nonetheless boxing has a long way to go until it gets back on mainstream T.V but we can only hope it comes sooner than later.