Notebook: Title shot postponed, but Colbert still ready to shine vs. Garcia on Showtime

Worried Postol fights with family in Ukraine; Okolie defends on rare Sunday card; Quick hits; Show and tell

Feb 25, 2022

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When the WBA terminated recognition of all interim titleholders last summer, Chris Colbert was not at all disappointed by losing his interim junior lightweight belt.

As Colbert explained at the time, he saw the interim title designation merely as a step toward a real world title and he knew he would get a shot because he when the interim belt was stripped he was made the mandatory challenger for the WBA 130-pound title held by Roger Gutierrez.

The fight was made last fall but not scheduled to take place until Saturday. But less than two weeks ago, Gutierrez came down with Covid-19 and was forced out of the fight.

So, “Primetime” Colbert will instead face Hector Luis Garcia, who had been on standby in case there was an issue with either fighter, in a bout billed as a title eliminator in the main event of a Premier Boxing Champions tripleheader Saturday (Showtime, 10 p.m. ET) at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.

Colbert, of course, would have preferred to be boxing for a world title.

“I was a little disappointed when Roger Gutierrez dropped out of the fight,” Colbert said this week. “I had to put that disappointment aside and just hope that him and his team recover fast. Once I beat this guy right here, I want Gutierrez next.

“I want to thank Garcia for even taking this fight. Without that, I wouldn’t even be fighting on Saturday. Garcia is just a step in my way. We all have obstacles that we have to overcome, and this is another. I’m ready to test myself against the best.”

If Colbert (16-0, 6 KOs), 25, of Brooklyn, New York, beats Garcia, the WBA has mandated the bout with Gutierrez (26-3-1, 20 KOs), 26, of Venezuela, be rescheduled within 90 days.

Colbert is convinced he will win and fight for the title next.

“I’m not cocky, it’s just confidence in my skills,” Colbert said. “We’ve put in the work. I’m in Superman shape. I was ready to take that title.

“I want to fight the biggest fighters in the game. That’s going to be my legacy. (Former featherweight titlist) Gary Russell Jr. is a tremendous fighter and I’m willing to give him an opportunity to fight for the title at 130 pounds. We’re both dogs and I don’t want any easy fights. I can do it all in the ring. How are you going to beat me if I can do it all? I’m a real fighter and I want to give the fans tremendous action.”

Garcia (14-0, 10 KOs), 30, a southpaw from the Dominican Republic, is coming off a unanimous eight-round decision win against Isaac Avelar on a PBC card in Minneapolis on Dec. 18 and is also very confident.

“My team has worked tirelessly to have me ready for this great fight,” Garcia said. “I don’t consider this a dangerous fight, because I feel ready. Thanks to my team, I have the foundation to become victorious. I’m going to show the fans what I’m capable of Saturday night.

“I’ve seen Chris fight and what I really want to see, is if he’s all about boxing, or if he’s about the circus. I’m going to make him work for this.

“I jumped on the opportunity to take this fight against a great opponent like Chris Colbert. Boxing is what I am about. This is how I prove what I’m worth. There’s no greater motivation needed than that. Bottom line, I believe in my fists and my power. My boxing prowess as a whole and my ability to be versatile is going to help me win this fight.”

Postol has Ukraine on mind

While former junior welterweight titleholder Viktor Postol is preparing to fight blue chip prospect Gary Antuanne Russell, the 2016 U.S. Olympian, his mind is also on things back home in Ukraine, where his wife and twin sons are.

Neighboring Russia invaded Ukraine this week and while Postol is understandably worried about his family, he was already in United States and will go through with the with the 10-round bout on the Chris Colbert-Hector Garcia undercard on Saturday (Showtime, 10 p.m. ET) at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.

“The situation in Ukraine has escalated a lot and it’s hard not to think about it,” Postol said on Thursday. “I’m working on focusing on the fight. My family is in the middle of everything, but they are safe and that’s what is most important.”

Postol (31-3, 12 KOs), 38, trained in the U.S. with Freddie Roach at his Wild Card Boxing Club in Hollywood, California, and knows there would be little gained by withdrawing from the fight after a long camp and his first payday since losing a debatable majority decision challenging then-unified junior welterweight titlist Jose Ramirez in Las Vegas in August 2020.

“I’m so glad to be back fighting here in the U.S. again,” Postol said. “I was waiting for this fight and I’m very hungry and excited to get into the ring again. I feel young and strong. I believe in myself. I’m very confident that I will become world champion again. This fight is a step toward achieving that feat again.

“Having Freddie Roach as a trainer is a huge boost for me. He’s always able to give me the right adjustments in training and during the fight. It just helps my confidence even more.”

Russell, the younger brother of former featherweight titlist Gary Russell Jr., is as good a prospect as there in boxing but he is taking a major step up in completion.

“A fighter of his caliber, beating him in any form is a statement,” Russell said. “You can’t take anything away from what he’s done in this sport. He says he’s driven, well I’m driven too. A person who is determined can become dangerous. And I’m one of those determined people. We’re both going to bring our best. I’m coming to give a great performance.

“They’re going to say that I’m truly a superstar after this fight. That’s what I’ve been saying for a long time. I’m stamping it on Saturday night.”

Russell (14-0, 14 KOs), 25, a southpaw from Capitol Heights, Maryland, did acknowledge the troubles Postol’s country faces.

“I hope that with everything going on back home for Postol in Ukraine that it motivates him and makes him hungry to give the world a great fight on Saturday,” Russell said.

In the opening bout of the telecast, IBF junior bantamweight titlist Jerwin Ancajas (33-1-2, 22 KOs), 30, a southpaw from the Philippines, will make his 10th title defense against Fernando Martinez (13-0, 8 KOs), 30, of Argentina.

Okolie defends on Sunday

Typically, in the United States and Europe boxing cards with world title bouts take place on Fridays or Saturdays, but Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn and DAZN are experimenting with Sunday boxing this week.

WBO cruiserweight titlist Lawrence Okolie (17-0, 14 KOs), 29, of England, will defend his belt for the second time when he faces Michal Cieslak (21-1, 15 KOs), 32, of Poland, at The O2 in London (DAZN, 12 p.m. ET).

“I’ve always felt there is massive potential for Sunday boxing, and you’ll see it in full action and flow this weekend,” Hearn said.

The card also includes the professional debut of Galal Yafai, 29, the younger brother of former world titleholder Kal Yafai and winner of the flyweight gold medal for Great Britain at this past summer’s delayed 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. He will face Carlos Vado Bautista in a 10-rounder as he looks to move his pro career quickly.

Okolie is awfully confident ahead of the bout against Cieslak, whose lone loss was by unanimous decision when he challenged Ilunga Makabu for the vacant WBC cruiserweight title in January 2020. He has won two fights since.

“I’ve had 17 fights, 14 by KO,” Okolie said. “On the weekend it’ll be 18 and 15 by KO. Everyone can say what they want about the opponent until after I’ve beaten them and then we’ll be onto the next one and we’ll see what everyone says about him.

“Nothing else has mattered since the fight got signed. It’s up to me to wipe the smile off his face and all of his Polish teammates on Sunday. It’s a must — 100 percent ends in a KO, 1 million percent.”

Shane McGuigan, Okolie’s trainer, was a bit less boastful.

“Cieslak put on a fantastic performance against Makabu and I thought arguably could have won that fight,” McGuigan said. “He’s only got the one blemish on his record, but these are the fights we need for Lawrence Okolie. He is the best cruiserweight in the world. I know that for a fact. We just need to go out there a prove it.

“We’ve been doing a lot of work. He joined me in early 2019. He’s always had power and has now learnt how to maintain the distance, be a bit more disciplined, keep range, but he’s still learning all the time. That’s the scary thing — when he moves up to Heavyweight, I believe he’ll be a two-weight world champion. Massive hopes for Lawrence and I think it’ll be a showing of his true ability on Sunday.”

Quick hits

Weights from Glasgow, Scotland, for Saturday’s Top Rank/ESPN+ card: Josh Taylor 140 pounds, Jack Catterall 139 (for Taylor’s undisputed junior welterweight title); Robeisy Ramirez 126.3, Eric Donovan 126.3; Nick Campbell 254, Jay McFarlane 276; Ebonie Jones 125.3, Efty Kathopouli 124; John Docherty 172, Jordan Grant 176.3; Paddy Donovan 146, Miroslav Serban 145; Kurt Walker 129, Jaroslav Hriadel 127.3; Kieran Molloy 154.3, Damian Esquisabel 154.

Weights from Las Vegas for Saturday’s PBC card on Showtime: Chris Colbert 128.75 pounds, Hector Luis Garcia 129.5 (WBA junior lightweight eliminator); Gary Antuanne Russell 139.5, Viktor Postol 140.5; Jerwin Ancajas 114.5; Fernando Martinez 114.5 (for Ancajas’ IBF junior bantamweight title).

WBO president Paco Valcarcel on Friday said the organization is considering taking action against Russian boxers as a protest of Russia’s unprovoked invasion of neighboring Ukraine this week. He said the WBO “is considering not to sanction world titles and regional (title) bouts in Russia and not including Russian boxers in its rankings for as long as the invasion of Ukraine lasts.”

Welterweight titleholders Errol Spence Jr. and Yordenis Ugas, who meet in a three-belt unification fight on April 16 in a Showtime PPV main event at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, will come face to face ahead of fight week. They will see each other at the kickoff news conference hosted by Dallas Cowboys and stadium owner Jerry Jones on Wednesday at the stadium, Premier Boxing Champions announced.

Show and tell

Eight months after Mike Tyson reached the apex of his career in his 91-second demolition of Michael Spinks to retain the undisputed heavyweight title and claim the lineal championship, the “Baddest Man on the Planet” returned to the ring at the Las Vegas Hilton after what was, to that point, a career-long layoff to defend the crown against England’s Frank Bruno. Tyson’s return had been delayed because of various distractions outside the ring. He had broken his contract with manager Bill Cayton and broken his hand in a street fight with Mitch Green a few months earlier, which forced the bout with Bruno to be postponed. Then Tyson was in a car accident and in the midst of divorce proceedings with Robin Givens, forcing another postponement.

When he and Bruno finally met — Tyson’s first bout after firing longtime trainer Kevin Rooney — Tyson did not look great but he was sure good enough to take care of Bruno, who got dropped by a right hand in the first round and later in the round was docked one point for hitting Tyson behind the head. Tyson was pitching a shutout going into the fifth round when he bloodied Bruno’s nose and ferociously landed several brutal shots that had him helpless until referee Richard Steele waved it off. The fight was on Feb. 25, 1989 — 33 years ago on Friday. Here is a somewhat scarce site poster in my collection.

Colbert-Garcia and Postol photos: Stephanie Trapp/Showtime; Okolie-Cieslak photo: Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing; Taylor-Catterall photo: Mikey Williams/Top Rank

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