Notebook: Holyfield to face fellow Tyson conqueror McBride in exhibition
Dubois return set; Kambosos speaks out; Shields' new deal
Evander Holyfield hoped to return to face old rival Mike Tyson in an exhibition bout between legendary former heavyweight champions.
But with a deal for the bout falling apart, Holyfield will instead have a six-round exhibition fight with the man who sent Tyson into retirement via sixth-round knockout in 2005: Kevin McBride.
Triller Fight Club formally announced the expected match on Friday at a news conference in Atlanta for its pay-per-view event headlined by unified lightweight world champion Teofimo Lopez Jr. against mandatory challenger George Kambosos on June 5 at a South Florida site to be announced. They held the news conference in Atlanta, coincidentally Holyfield’s hometown, because that is where Triller brass is for Saturday night’s Jake Paul-Ben Askren PPV event at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
The 58-year-old Holyfield (44-10-2, 29 KOs), the only four-time heavyweight titleholder in boxing history, has not fought since stopping Brian Nielsen in the 10th round in his home country of Denmark in May 2011.
McBride (35-10-1, 29 KOs), an Ireland native based in Brockton, Massachusetts, was a career journeyman except for one big night in Washington, D.C., where he upset Tyson. McBride, who turns 48 in May, went 2-6 thereafter and retired in 2011.
“I am proud to be able to join Triller Fight Club as they are exactly what our industry needed,” Holyfield said in a news release. “They have re-imagined the sport of boxing in a very exciting new way. Their combination of young talent, music, entertainment and special matchups is setting a new standard for our sport, and my return to the ring for this fight is one that everyone, myself included, will enjoy, and I am proud to help take this to the next level.”
Dubois returns vs. Dinu
Heavyweight Daniel Dubois will return from his first defeat to face Bogdan Dinu for the WBA’s vacant interim belt on June 5 in London, promoter Frank Warren announced on Friday.
Dubois (15-1, 14 KOs), 23 of England, was the most heralded up-and-coming heavyweight around when he faced countryman Joe Joyce for the European, British and Commonwealth titles on Nov. 28. Dubois was ahead on two scorecards but suffered a broken left orbit bone. When he got dropped in the 10th round he remained on a knee due to the terrible eye injury.
Dubois has since replaced trainer Matt Bowers with Mark Tibbs and gotten the all clear from his doctor.
“I am excited to be back in the ring on June 5 after the frustration of being kept out of the gym and doing what I love to do for a number of months after my last fight,” Dubois said. “This is my chance to remind people of what I am really about, which is winning fights in a devastating fashion. I don't need to make any excuses for the Joe fight because everybody could see the issue with my vision, but Joe won fair and square and we move on.
“Time is on my side but I don't intend to slow down my progress and I am more than happy to be returning to the ring in a big title fight that puts me right back in the picture. I respect Dinu and accept that he could provide a tough test, but I can only see one outcome and that is me leaving the ring with another major championship belt for my collection.”
Said Warren: “It is an opportunity for Daniel to post a ‘business as usual’ statement to the public and the rest of the heavyweight division following his setback against Joe. Daniel's enthusiasm to reach the very top has not diminished in the slightest and, even though it is a bit of an old cliché, it is true that he will only learn and benefit from the experience of taking a first loss and rebuilding from it. Dinu is a high-quality and respected opponent who in no way can Daniel take lightly.”
Dinu (20-2, 16 KOs), 34, of Romania, has won two fights in a row since back-to-back knockout losses to Jarrell Miller (in the fourth round in 2018) and Kubrat Pulev (in the seventh round in 2019).
“This is the most important fight for me and I will be prepared for a war in the ring,” said Dinu, who is promoted by American Greg Cohen. “It's my perfect moment to win and to get to the big fights. I'm fighting in London to become the first Romanian heavyweight champion of the world.”
iFL TV interview
I had a chat with my friends at iFL TV on Thursday and we covered a number of boxing topics. We kicked it off with my thoughts on Demetrius Andrade’s middleweight title defense against Liam Williams, which takes place on Saturday on DAZN. Then we discussed the latest on efforts to finalize a site deal for the Tyson Fury-Anthony Joshua undisputed heavyweight title fight and the future of welterweight up-and-comer Conor Benn, who notched his biggest win last week. Make sure to check out the video here:
Kambosos speaks out
When unified lightweight world champion Teofimo Lopez Jr. and mandatory challenger George Kambosos Jr. square off for the title on June 5 in the main event of a Triller Fight Club pay-per-view card, it won’t be the first time they come face to face.
Before Friday’s chippy news conference, they had met twice before and been friendly with each other, even posing for a photo together. But now with the fight signed, Kambosos is not interested in being friendly. “There’s no peace. F--- peace. It’s war now. I’m not coming for peace,” Kambosos said. “Whatever was in the past, whatever interaction we’ve had -- and we’ve been gentlemen to each other -- that’s fine. But now it is war.”
I spoke at length with Kambosos on the specifics of when he and Lopez met each other as well as his thoughts on Lopez promoter Bob Arum’s criticism of the fight and what he thought of Lopez’s championship win over Vasiliy Lomachenko. Please read my story on BoxingScene here: https://www.boxingscene.com/kambosos-on-teofimo-lopez-fight-theres-no-peace-f-peace-its-war-now--156944
Shields extends deal with Salita
Undisputed women’s junior middleweight champion Claressa Shields, who has unified titles in three divisions and is a two-time U.S. Olympic gold medalist, has signed a contract extension to remain with Salita Promotions.
“I am delighted to extend my relationship with Claressa Shields,” Dmitriy Salita said. “She is a once-in-a-generation athlete who is breaking records and stereotypes every time she steps in the ring.”
Although Shields (11-0, 2 KOs), 26, of Flint, Michigan, is making her MMA debut in June with the Professional Fight League, she intends to compete in both sports and will be back boxing after her PFL fight.
“This is an important time for me, as I begin my two-sport journey,” Shields said. “Dmitriy (Salita) has been with me for the majority of my career and his support of me and women’s boxing is unwavering. I appreciate what Dmitriy, and his company Salita Promotions, have done for me. I’m happy to extend our relationship moving forward in boxing as I take on MMA at the same time. Boxing history will continue to be made.”
Mark Taffet, the president of Mark Taffet Media and Shields’ career-long manager, has worked closely with Salita and endorsed the new deal, for which terms were not disclosed.
“No one has supported Claressa’s efforts and goals more than Dmitriy and Salita Promotions,” Taffet said. “He is one of the leading advocates of women’s boxing in the world. We are proud to work with him and have him on our team as Claressa Shields continues to make history and blaze new trails for women’s boxing and women’s combat sports.”
Navarrete-Diaz undercard
Top Rank has announced the slate of preliminary bouts for its ESPN card April 28 headlined by featherweight titlist Emanuel Navarrete defending against Puerto Rico’s Christopher Diaz at Silver Spurs Arena Kissimmee, Florida.
The prelims, heavy on Puerto Rican talent because the region is home to a large Puerto Rican community, will stream on ESPN+ beginning 6 p.m. and include Puerto Rico’s Josue Vargas (18-1, 9 KOs) against Willie Shaw (13-2, 9 KOs), of Oakland, California, in a 10-round junior welterweight bout.
“It is time to show the world who ‘The Prodigy’ is,” Vargas said. "Fighting in Kissimmee is like fighting in Puerto Rico. After this fight, the Puerto Rican fans will talk about me. I am going to put on a show. I’ve seen some videos of Shaw on YouTube. I’m not going to take anything away from him, but he doesn’t have skills like I do. I have more experience than him. It’s time for me to break him down and show the world I’m a contender.”
Also on the card:
Lightweight Joseph Adorno (14-0-1, 12 KOs), coming off a nearly 16-month layoff, will face Jamaine Ortiz (14-0, 8 KOs) in an eight-rounder.
Featherweight Orlando Gonzalez (16-0, 10 KOs), a Puerto Rican southpaw, meets Juan Antonio Lopez (15-8, 6 KOs) in an eight-rounder.
Welterweight prospect Xander Zayas (7-0, 5 KOs), 18, who was born in Puerto Rico but lives in Florida, will face Demarcus Layton (8-1-1, 5 KOs). Zayas, who won 11 national titles as an amateur, recently spent time in training camp sparring with lightweight star Gervonta Davis and former world titleholders Adrien Broner and Robert Easter Jr.
Junior featherweight Jeremy Adorno (4-0, 1 KO) meets Ramiro Martinez (2-0-2, 1 KO) and junior lightweight Jaycob Gomez (1-0, 1 KO) faces Mobley Villegas (3-1, 2 KOs). Both are four-rounders.
In the co-feature on the ESPN part of the show (10 p.m. ET), Puerto Rican New Yorker Edgar Berlanga (16-0, 16 KOs) will go for his 17th consecutive first-round knockout against Demond Nicholson in a scheduled eight-round super middleweight fight.
Quick hits
Middleweight contender Jaime Munguia (36-0, 29 KOs) has been rescheduled to fight on June 19 at the Don Haskins Center on the campus of the University of Texas at El Paso in the main event of a DAZN card, Golden Boy Promotions announced. Munguia was due to fight at the same arena on April 23, but former world title challenger Maciej Sulecki (29-2, 11 KOs) suffered a back injury and withdrew. He was replaced by D’Mitrius Ballard (20-0-1, 13 KOs), but when he pulled out this week because of an elbow injury the entire card was postponed. Munguia will face an opponent to be announced, but it could be Sulecki or Ballard if either is ready by then.
Top Rank initially planned to hold the Jose Ramirez-Josh Taylor undisputed junior welterweight title fight on May 22 (ESPN) at either the MGM Grand or its sister property Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas with some spectators. However, when Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, the newly refurbished former Hard Rock, offered a better deal, Top Rank elected to put the fight there, where there will also be a limited number of spectators permitted, sources with knowledge of the plans told Fight Freaks Unite, confirming a report from The Athletic.
Weights from Hollywood, Florida, for the Matchroom Boxing card Saturday on DAZN (3 p.m. ET): Demetrius Andrade 159.8 pounds. Liam Williams 160 (for Andrade’s WBO middleweight title); Carlos Gongora 167.12, Christopher Pearson 167.8; Mahammadrasul Majidov 232, Andrey Fedosov 224.8; Arthur Biyarslanov 136.8, Israel Mercado 136.12; Otha Jones III 134.8; Jorge Castaneda 135; Aaron Aponte 140, Javier Martinez 138.4; Alexis Espino 166.4, Ty McLeod 164.4.
Weights from Los Angeles for the PBC on Fox card on Saturday (8 p.m. ET): Tony Harrison 154.8 pounds, Bryant Perrella 153.8; Omar Juarez 142, Elias Araujo 141.8; Vito Mielnicki Jr. 151.2, James Martin 152; Efetobor Apochi 198.2, Deon Nicholson 193.6 (cruiserweight title eliminator); Chavez Barrientes 122.6, Luis Javier Valdes 123; Angel Barrientes 120.8, Ulises Rosales 121; Darwin Price 142, Saul Corral 143.8.
Weights from Atlanta for Saturday night’s Triller Fight Club PPV card ($49.99, FITE, 9 p.m. ET): Jake Paul 191.5 pounds. Ben Askren 191; Regis Prograis 143, Ivan Redkach 142; Steve Cunningham 206, Frank Mir 276; Joe Fournier 187, Reykon 178.5; Junior Younan 171.5, Jeyson Minda 171; Quinton Randall 149, William Jackson 144.
Former women’s featherweight titlist Heather Hardy came down with a non-Covid-19 illness, forcing her to miss more than a week of training, so promoter Lou DiBella has postponed the all-women’s card on UFC Fight Pass from April 23 in Tampa to May 14 in the Nashville suburb of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. The card remains the same with Hardy (22-1, 4 KOs), of Brooklyn, New York, facing Montreal’s Jessica Camara (7-2, 0 KOs) in the eight-round main event. Also in eight-rounders, bantamweight Mikiah Kreps (1-0, 1 KO), of Niagara Falls, New York, will face Alex Love (3-0, 2 KOs), of Brighton, Colorado, in the co-feature and Brooklyn’s Melissa St. Vil (13-4-4, 1 KO) will face Winnipeg, Canada’s Olivia Gerula (18-18-2, 3 KOs). The event marks the 18th anniversary of DiBella’s “Broadway Boxing.”
Show and tell
Kelly Pavlik had knocked out Jermain Taylor in sensational fashion to win the unified middleweight world title, beat him again in a nontitle rematch and made three successful defenses (each by knockout), although he dropped an upset decision to Bernard Hopkins in a nontitle bout in between defense No. 1 and 2. Still, Pavlik was the favorite when he defended against Sergio Martinez, who had held a junior middleweight belt but was officially 0-1-1 in his previous two fights, a controversial majority decision loss to Paul Williams and an absurd draw with Kermit Cintron.
I was ringside at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey, as Pavlik and Martinez fought a highly competitive fight. But it was Martinez, with a big kick, who dominated the late rounds after opening a terrible cut over Pavlik’s right eye in the ninth round. Pavlik had clueless cutman Sid Brumback in his corner. He was unable to stop, or even slow, the flow of blood, which clearly distressed Pavlik. In the end, Martinez won a unanimous decision, 116-111, 115-111 and 115-112, to take the lineal, WBC and WBO titles on April 17, 2010 — 11 years ago on Saturday. Here’s a rare glossy HBO poster in my collection.
Holyfield photo: Courtesy Evander Holyfield; Shields/Salita photo: Salita Promotions
Thanks for the updates. Andrade didn’t exactly make a compelling argument that he should be in the conversation as the best of the best.
Thanks Mr. Rafael for all the nice fight updates