Showing posts with label Boxer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Boxer. Show all posts

Monday, May 16, 2011

Manny Pacquiao

Emmanuel Dapidran Pacquiao (born December 17, 1978), also known as Manny Pacquiao, is a Filipino professional boxer and politician. He is an eight-division world champion, the first boxer in history to win ten world titles, the first to win in eight weight divisions, and the first to win the lineal championship in four different weight classes. He was named "Fighter of the Decade" for the 2000s by the Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA). He is also a three-time The Ring and BWAA "Fighter of the Year", winning the award in 2006, 2008, and 2009. Currently, Pacquiao is the WBC Super Welterweight World Champion and WBO Welterweight World Champion (Super Champion). He is also currently rated as the "number one" pound-for-pound best boxer in the world by most sporting news and boxing websites, including The Ring, BoxRec.com, Sports Illustrated, ESPN, NBC Sports, Yahoo! Sports, Sporting Life and About.com. Aside from boxing, Pacquiao has participated in acting, music recording, and politics. In May 2010, Pacquiao was elected to the House of Representatives in the 15th Congress of the Philippines, representing the province of Sarangani. He is the only active boxer to become a congressman in the Philippines. At the age of 14, Pacquiao moved to Manila and lived, for a time, on the streets. He started boxing and made the Philippine national amateur boxing team where his room and board were paid for by the government. Pacquiao reportedly had an amateur record of 64 fights (60–4). In 1995, the death of a young aspiring boxer and close friend Eugene Barutag spurred the young Pacquiao to pursue a professional boxing career. Pacquiao started his professional boxing career when he was just 16 years of age, stood at 4'11'', and weighed 98 pounds (7 pounds under the minimumweight division). He admitted before American media that he put weights in his pockets to make the 105-pound weight limit. His early light flyweight division fights took place in small local venues and were shown on Vintage Sports' Blow by Blow, an evening boxing show. His professional debut was a four-round bout against Edmund "Enting" Ignacio, on January 22, 1995, which Pacquiao won via decision, becoming an instant star of the program. Pacquiao's weight increased from 106 to 113 pounds before losing in his 12th bout against Rustico Torrecampo via a third-round knockout. Pacquiao failed to make the required weight, so he was forced to use heavier gloves than Torrecampo, thereby putting him at a disadvantage.

Following the Torrecampo fight, Pacquiao continued undefeated for his next 15 fights. He went on another unbeaten run that saw him take on the vastly more experienced Chokchai Chockvivat in flyweight division. Pacquiao knocked out Chockvivat in the fifth round and took the Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation (OPBF) Flyweight title. After one official defense and two non-title bouts, Pacquiao got his first opportunity to fight for a world title. Pacquiao captured the World Boxing Council (WBC) Flyweight World Title (his first major boxing world title as well as the flyweight lineal title) over Chatchai Sasakul by way of knockout in the eighth round. He defended the title successfully against Mexican Gabriel Mira via a fourth-round technical knockout. However, Pacquiao lost the title in his second defense against Medgoen Singsurat, also known as Medgoen 3K Battery, via a third-round knockout. The bout was held in Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand. Singsurat got Pacquiao on the ropes and landed a flush straight right to the body coiling Pacquiao over and keeping him there. Technically, Pacquiao lost the belt at the scales, as he surpassed the weight limit of 112 pounds.Following his loss to Singsurat, Pacquiao gained weight anew and skipped the super flyweight and bantamweight divisions. This time, Pacquiao went to super bantamweight or junior featherweight division of 122 pounds, where he picked up the WBC Super Bantamweight International Title. He defended this title five times before his chance for a world title fight came. Pacquiao's big break came on June 23, 2001, against former IBF World Super Bantamweight champion Lehlohonolo Ledwaba. Pacquiao stepped into the fight as a late replacement on two weeks' notice but won the fight by technical knockout and won the International Boxing Federation (IBF) Junior Featherweight World Title belt, his second major boxing world title. The bout was held at the MGM Grand Las Vegas, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Pacquiao went on to defend this title four times under head trainer Freddie Roach, owner of the famous Wild Card Gym in West Hollywood.On November 15, 2003, Pacquiao faced Marco Antonio Barrera at the Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas, in a fight that many consider to have defined his career. Pacquiao, who was fighting at featherweight for the first time, brought his power with him and defeated Barrera via technical knockout in the eleventh round and won The Ring Featherweight World Title (as well as the lineal featherweight champion), making him the first Filipino and Asian to become a three-division world champion, a fighter who won world titles in three different weight divisions. He defended the title twice before relinquishing it in 2005On March 19, 2005, Pacquiao moved up in super featherweight or junior lightweight division of 130 pounds, in order to fight another Mexican legend and three-division world champion Érik Morales for vacant WBC International and IBA Super Featherweight Titles. The fight took place at the MGM Grand Las Vegas. In this fight, Pacquiao sustained a cut over his right eye from a from an accidental clash of heads in the fifth round. He lost the twelve-round match by a unanimous decision from the judges. All three scorecards read 115–113 for Morales.

On June 28, 2008, at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Pacquiao defeated David Díaz in lightweight division via ninth-round knockout and won the WBC Lightweight World Title. With the victory, Pacquiao became the first and only Filipino and Asian to become a five-division world champion, a fighter who won world titles in five different weight divisions, and also became the first Filipino fighter to ever win a world title at lightweight. During the fight, which Pacquiao dominated, Díaz was cut badly on his right eye in the fourth round. After the bout, Díaz acknowledged Pacquiao's superior hand speed, stating "It was his speed. It was all his speed. I could see the punches perfectly, but he was just too fast."On December 6, 2008, Pacquiao moved up to the welterweight division, in order to face the six-division world champion Oscar De La Hoya at the MGM Grand Las Vegas, in a fight called "The Dream Match". Presented by Golden Boy Promotions and Top Rank, the bout was scheduled as a twelve-round, non-title fight contested at the 147-pound welterweight limit. Although Pacquiao went into the fight widely recognized as the leading pound-for-pound boxer in the world, some boxing pundits had speculated that 147 pounds could be too far above his natural weight against the larger De La Hoya. However, due to rehydration after the weigh in, De la Hoya came into the fight actually weighing less than Pacquiao, and close to 20 pounds under his usual fighting weight. Pacquiao dominated the fight, and after eight rounds De La Hoya's corner was forced to throw in the towel, awarding Pacquiao the win via technical knockout. On May 2, 2009, Pacquiao fought at light welterweight or super lightweight division for the first time against Ricky Hatton at the MGM Grand Las Vegas, in a fight billed as "The Battle of the East and West". Pacquiao won the bout via knockout to claim the International Boxing Organization (IBO) Junior Welterweight and The Ring Junior Welterweight World Titles (as well as the lineal light welterweight title). In doing so, Pacquiao became the second man in boxing history to become a six-division world champion, a fighter who won world titles in six different weight divisions and the first man ever to win lineal world titles in four different weight classes. On November 14, 2009, Pacquiao defeated Miguel Cotto via technical knockout in the twelfth round, at the MGM Grand Las Vegas, in a fight billed as "Firepower". Although the bout was sanctioned as a world title fight in the welterweight division, where the weight limit is 147 pounds, Cotto agreed to fight at a catchweight of 145 pounds. Pacquiao dominated the fight, knocking Cotto down in round three and round four, before the referee stopped the fight at 0:55 of round twelve. With this victory, Pacquiao took the World Boxing Organization (WBO) Welterweight World Title and WBO Super Champion belts, to become the first seven-division world champion, the first fighter in boxing history to win world titles in seven different weight divisions. Pacquiao also won the first and special WBC Diamond Championship belt. This belt was created as an honorary championship exclusively to award the winner of a historic fight between two high-profile boxers. After the fight, promoter Bob Arum stated "Pacquiao is the greatest boxer I've ever seen, and I've seen them all, including Ali, Hagler and Sugar Ray Leonard." Miguel Cotto said in a post fight interview: "Miguel Cotto comes to boxing to fight the biggest names, and Manny is one of the best boxers we have of all time." Cotto showed heart and fans regarded this as one of the year's best fights. On July 23, 2010, Bob Arum announced that Pacquiao would fight Antonio Margarito on November 13, 2010. The fight for the vacant WBC Super Welterweight World Title gave Pacquiao the chance to win a world title in his eighth weight class, the light middleweight or super welterweight division. A catchweight of 150 pounds was established for the fight although the weight limit for the light middleweight division is 154 pounds. During the pre-fight, Pacquiao weighed in at a low 144.6 pounds, while Margarito weighed in at the limit of 150 pounds. Pacquiao said he was pleased with his weight because he loses too much speed when he gains pounds. During the fight itself, Pacquiao weighed 148 lbs, 17 pounds lighter than Margarito's 165.[On May 7, 2011, Pacquiao successfully defended his WBO World Welterweight title against three-division world champion Shane Mosley via lopsided unanimous decision at the MGM Grand Arena. Rapper LL Cool J performed as Mosley entered first the arena, while vocalist Jimi Jamison of the rock band Survivor sang Eye of the Tiger as Pacquiao approached the ring. Pacquiao knocked Mosley down in the third round using a one-two capped with a left straight. Mosley was left dazed by the knock down but managed to stand up. Mosley floored Pacquiao in the tenth round with a push, but referee Kenny Bayless inexplicably ruled it a knockdown. None of the judges seemed to have bought it judging from the scores. Replays showed that Pacquiao was throwing a punch off balance, slipped and went down with a little help from Mosley's right hand. Bayless apologized to Pacquiao after the fight for the mistake. Pacquiao gained one-sided verdicts from all three judges - 119-108, 120-108 and 120-107. Pacquiao reported that the only thing preventing him from knocking out Mosley was a cramp in his legs. Freddie Roach said that Pacquio had problems with cramping before but usually in training sessions and not in the middle of bouts.

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Shane Mosley

Shane Mosley (born September 7, 1971) is a professional boxer from Pomona, California. He has won world titles in three weight divisions, and is the former WBA Welterweight Super Champion. His ex-wife Jin Mosley is a Korean American who was born and raised in New York. Therefore, he would always attach the Taegukgi, which is the flag of South Korea to his trunks when he fought. They have three children together, Najee Jamarr, Taiseki Justin and Mee-Yon Jinae. Shane also has one other child Shane Jr., who is following in his father's footsteps and training to be a boxer as well. It was announced on HBO, minutes before his fight with Margarito, that he and Jin had separated. Later, it was revealed that she had filed for divorce. In 2010, Mosley teamed up with PETA to protest dog fighting and to protest the seal fur trade in Canada. Sugar Shane started his pro career in 1993, By 2000 he had fought 34 times amassing a 34–0 (32) record, beating undefeated Phillip Holiday to win the IBF Lightweight title. He made 9 title defenses with all inside the distance, but never unified belts. Mosley relinquished his lightweight title to move up 2 divisions, facing Oscar De La Hoya for his Welterweight title.

On June 17, 2000, Mosley met De La Hoya in Los Angeles for the WBC and IBA Welterweight titles. After twelve rounds, Mosley emerged with a split decision victory. During the fight neither man was in danger of going down, but both had badly swollen faces at the end and De La Hoya was bleeding from the nose for several rounds. Mosley earned a minimum of $15 million, while De La Hoya was guaranteed $35 million. It was later that Mosley was accused of using illegal performance enhancing drugs prior to his 2003 bout with Oscar De La Hoya. He ran a successful string of defenses of his Welterweight title (he vacated his title after the fight), but against three unheralded fighters. When he finally did step up his competition, it was against former Olympian Vernon Forrest. Early in the second round, the fighters clashed heads and both staggered backward as referee Steve Smoger called time. Mosley sustained a cut on the hairline. When action resumed, Forrest knocked Mosley down twice in the round. It was the first time Mosley had ever been down in a bout. The final scorecards read 115-110, 117-108, 118-108, in favor of Forrest. They had a rematch six months later at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indiana, and Mosley once again lost by a unanimous decision. On February 8, 2003, Mosley's bout with former IBF world Light Middleweight champion Raúl Márquez ended in a no contest when Mosley accidentally head butted Marquez twice in round three, which caused two very bad cuts above the eyes of Marquez. He and De La Hoya faced each other for the second time on September 13, this time with De La Hoya's WBC and WBA Light Middleweight belts on the line. Mosley defeated De La Hoya by a close 12 round unanimous decision, and joined the exclusive group of world boxing champions that have reigned in three or more divisions. Mosley testified in 2003 that he injected himself with the notorious doping agent EPO as he prepared for his Light Middleweight title fight against Oscar De La Hoya, according to grand jury transcripts and doping calendars. On March 13, 2004, Mosley lost his WBC and WBA world Light Middleweight titles in a unification bout with IBF Jr. Middleweight champion Winky Wright, by a unanimous twelve-round decision. On November 20, Mosley and Wright fought their rematch, and although it was scored much closer by the three judges (115-113 twice for Wright and a 114-114 tie), Mosley lost by a twelve-round majority decision. On September 17, he beat another previously undefeated fighter, Jose Luis Cruz, by a ten-round decision. Mosley then defeated Fernando Vargas on February 25, 2006 by TKO in the tenth round at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, due to a massive swelling which closed Fernando's left eye. At the time of the stoppage, Mosley was winning on two scorecards 86-85, while Vargas held an 86-85 advantage on the other scorecard. A rematch was announced almost immediately. Mosley defeated Fernando Vargas in the rematch on July 15, 2006. Mosley dominated Vargas from start to finish, eventually ending the fight via a sixth-round TKO. Shane defeated Luis Collazo on February 11, 2007, with a unanimous decision after 12 rounds, knocking Collazo down once, to capture the WBC interim Welterweight title.

Mosley and undefeated WBA welterweight Champion Miguel Cotto met on Nov. 10, 2007, at Madison Square Garden in a fight broadcasted on HBO Pay-Per-View. Cotto beat Mosley in a close fight. Soon after that match, Mosley was scheduled to face Zab Judah in a Welterweight bout in Las Vegas, Nevada on May 31. Due to an arm injury suffered by Judah, the fight was cancelled. Mosley-Mayorga was originally scheduled for Oct. 11 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer and Mosley's wife and advisor, Jin Mosley, told ESPN.com. On July 18, 2008, it was reported on ESPN.com's quick hits that The fight between Mayorga and Mosley was moved to the Home Depot Center in Carson, California and set for September 27 because of the Pavlik-Hopkins fight agreement for October 18 on HBO PPV. And the good news for fight fans was that the Mayorga-Mosley bout was not to be on HBO PPV, instead it was shown on HBO at no cost. Shane Mosley Stopped Ricardo Mayorga with one second left in the 12th round of their junior middleweight bout, Mosley led by one point on judge Nelson Vasquez's scorecard and five on Tony Crebs' entering the 12th round. Mayorga had a one point lead on judge Pat Russell's card. The Associated Press had "Sugar" Shane Mosley ahead by three points entering the 12th. Prior to one of the biggest fights of his career, Mosley began training with Naazim Richardson. Mosley regained the WBA Welterweight "Super" championship from Antonio Margarito on January 24, 2009 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. Mosley, now 37 years old, came in to the fight as a 4-1 underdog with the bookies after Margarito had spectacularly stopped Cotto 6 months earlier. Prior to the bout nobody gave Mosley a chance of prevailing- everybody believing that Margarito was too strong and that Mosley was too old. The conventional wisdom was that this was a mismatch, which would end in a brutal retirement-forcing stoppage for Sugar Shane. A comparison of their last fights- the aforementioned destruction of Cotto by Margarito and a last-gasp knockout by Mosley in a hard twelve round struggle against Mayorga- did not bode well for Sugar Shane. Some predicted a massacre. And it was - only it was Margarito that was ruthlessly clubbed about the ring, unable to land any meaningful shots. On 1 May 2010 Mosley fought undefeated Floyd Mayweather. Boxing purists had called for the fight for over ten years. On the night Mosley stunned Mayweather with two right-hand shots in the second round. Mayweather recovered well and dominated the remainder of the fight with superior hand speed, eventually winning a wide decision on the scorecards to hand Mosley the sixth defeat of his professional career. On May 22, 2010 Shane Mosley was stripped of his WBA "Super" Welterweight Title, which in turn made "Regular" champion Vyacheslav Senchenko the sole WBA titlist in the welterweight division. Mosley fought Sergio Mora on September 18 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The bout ended up in a split draw. Scores (Mora 115–113, Mosley 116–112, 114–114).On May 7, 2011, Mosley lost the fight to Manny Pacquiao for the welterweight title on the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Due to Mosley's defeat, Pacquiao may be looking at a November matchup against either Floyd Mayweather, Victor Ortiz or a third fight with Juan Manuel Marquez.

Monday, May 2, 2011

Tommy Morrison

Tommy David Morrison (born January 2, 1969) is an American heavyweight boxer and a former World Boxing Organization champion. He lost only three out of a total of 52 professional fights. Morrison's nickname, "The Duke," is based on disputed claims that he is a grandnephew of Hollywood star John Wayne. Morrison was a co-star with Sylvester Stallone in the 1990 boxing movie Rocky V. Morrison's professional boxing career effectively ended when he tested positive for HIV in 1996. Beginning in 2006, Morrison attempted a comeback, stating that he did not have HIV and, later, that HIV is a "myth." His claims are refuted by boxing and medical authorities. After his enforced retirement in 1996, Morrison has been charged with multiple assault, weapon, intoxication, and drug offenses. He was sentenced to jail on several occasions, and served part of one sentence in 2000-2001. Morrison is of Scottish decent. In 1988, Morrison won the Regional Heavyweight Title - Kansas City Golden Gloves from Donald Ellis and advanced to the National Golden Gloves in Omaha, Nebraska, where he lost a split decision to Derek Isaman. Two weeks later, Morrison took part in the Western Olympic trials in Houston, Texas winning the Heavyweight Title and garnishing the "Most Outstanding Fighter" of the tournament. Two weeks after that at the Olympic Trials, held in Concord, California, Morrison lost a split decision to Ray Mercer, who would go on to win the gold medal at the Seoul Olympics. Morrison's combined professional and amateur record is 343-24-1, with 315 wins by knockout.

Tommy Morrison During The Match

Tommy Morrison Got A Medals

orrison started his professional boxing career on November 10, 1988, with a first-round knockout of William Muhammad in New York City. Three weeks later, he scored another first-round knockout. In 1989, Morrison had 19 wins and no losses, 15 by knockout. Among the fighters he defeated were Lorenzo Boyd, Dan Maloney, David Jaco, Lorenzo Canady, Steve Zouski and Ken Lakusta. In 1991, Morrison, already the recipient of much television exposure, won fights against opponents James Quick Tillis and former world champion Pinklon Thomas. He was given an opportunity to face fellow undefeated fighter Ray Mercer, the WBO title holder in a Pay Per View card held on October 18, 1991. Morrison suffered the first loss of his career, losing by 5th round knockout. Morrison had six wins in 1992, including fights with Art Tucker and Joe Hipp, who would later become the first Native American to challenge for the world heavyweight title. In the Hipp fight, held June 27, 1992, Morrison was suffering from what was later discovered to be a broken hand and broken jaw, but rallied to score a knockout in the ninth round. After two wins in 1993, including one over two-time world title challenger Carl "The Truth" Williams, Morrison found himself fighting for the WBO title again, against heavyweight boxing legend George Foreman, who was himself making a comeback. As both men were famed for their punching power, an exciting battle was expected, but Morrison chose to avoid brawling with Foreman and spent the fight boxing from long range. Morrison was able to hit and move effectively in this manner, and after a closely contested bout he won a unanimous 12-round decision and the WBO title. Morrison's first title defense was scheduled against Mike Williams, but when Williams withdrew on the night of the fight, Tim Tomashek stood in as a replacement. Although Tomashek had been prepared to fight as a backup plan, some news reports created the impression that he had just been pulled out of the crowd. The WBO later rescinded their sanctioning of this fight due to Tomashek's lack of experience. Almost immediately, talks of a fight with WBC world champion Lennox Lewis began, but were halted when virtually unknown Michael Bentt upset Morrison in his next bout. Bentt knocked Morrison down three times, and the fight was stopped in the first round in front of a live HBO Boxing audience. Morrison recovered by winning three bouts in a row in 1994, but his last fight of the year, against Ross Puritty, ended with a draw. Morrison won three fights in 1995 before meeting former contender Razor Ruddock for the IBC Heavyweight Championship. Ruddock dropped Morrison to his knees in the first round, but Morrison recovered to compete on even terms for five rounds. In the sixth round, Ruddock hurt Morrison with a quick combination, but just as it seemed Morrison was in trouble, he countered with a tremendous hook that put Ruddock on the canvas. Ruddock regained his feet, but Morrison drove him to the ropes and showered him with an extended flurry of blows. Just as the bell was about to sound, the referee stepped in and declared Morrison the winner by TKO. The much-anticipated fight with Lewis, who had also lost his world championship, finally took place following the Ruddock match. Morrison was knocked out in the sixth round.

Tommy Morrison Is Best Boxer

Tommy Morrison Proud With Himself

Tommy Morrison Innocent Pose

Morrison has been arrested several times for drunk driving, assault, drug, and weapons charges. He was charged in 1991 with driving under the influence. In 1993, he allegedly struck a University of Iowa student from behind in a bar, stating that the student had been staring at him. Morrison pled guilty to assault and public intoxication charges but said that he was innocent. Earlier in the year, Morrison had been cleared of charges in an alleged altercation at a nightclub. In 1995, assault charges were filed against Morrison after he allegedly punched the mother of his son in the face and bit another woman at a Jay, Oklahoma party. Morrison pled guilty in 1996 to transporting a loaded weapon. In 1997, he was charged in two drunk driving incidents, one of which left three people injured, but he avoided jail time. Another Oklahoma traffic incident followed in 1998, and Morrison was charged with weapon and drug possession in Arkansas in April, 1999. In September, 1999, Morrison was given a two-year suspended sentence for driving while intoxicated in Oklahoma. A week later, Fayetteville, Arkansas police stopped and searched Morrison's car after a near collision with a police cruiser. Morrison was allegedly intoxicated and driving without insurance, and the police found cocaine and marijuana, a weapon, and literature on methamphetamine production. While awaiting trial, Morrison was again arrested on charges of intoxication and possessing a weapon while a felon in November of 1999. Morrison had fled the scene of a car accident, and police found drugs and six loaded guns in the car. In January, 2000, Morrison was convicted of the September, 1999 drugs and weapons charges and sentenced to two years incarceration. He spent the next 14 months in prison, where he is said to have become a born-again Christian. In 2002, he was sentenced to another year in prison after violating parole, but the judge excused him from serving the sentence. Morrison was reportedly arrested again on drug charges in 2010 and 2011. Also in 2011, Morrison admitted to heavy methamphetamine use in the past.

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Vijender Kumar

Vijender Singh Beniwal (born October 29, 1985) (also known as Vijender Singh or Vijender Beniwal) is an Olympic Medalist Indian boxer from Kalwas, Bhiwani district in Haryana. He belongs to a Haryanvi family of Jat ethnicity. Vijender’s early days were spent in his village where he did his schooling, after which he received a bachelor’s degree from a local college in Bhiwani. He practiced boxing at the Bhiwani Boxing Club where coach Jagdish Singh recognized his talent and encouraged him to take to professional boxing. Vijender went on to compete at the sub-junior nationals where he won a silver medal for two years in succession. Having won medals in different competitions at the national level, Vijender was picked to train and compete at several international level competitions such as the 2004 Athens Summer Olympics and the 2006 Commonwealth Games. At the 2006 Asian Games in Doha, he won the bronze medal after losing the semifinal bout against Kazakhstan's Bakhtiyar Artayev. At the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics, he defeated Carlos Góngora of Ecuador 9–4 in the quarterfinals which guaranteed him a bronze medal—the first ever Olympic medal for an Indian boxer. After this historic win, Vijender was felicitated with a number of awards, including the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award—India's highest sporting honour. In 2009, he participated at the World Amateur Boxing Championships where he won the bronze medal. In the same year, the International Boxing Association (AIBA) announced Vijender as the top-ranked boxer in its annual middleweight category list with 2800 points. He is credited for bringing back the sport of boxing into the limelight in India.



In 1990, boxer Raj Kumar Sangwan got the Arjuna Award; as a craze for boxing in India increased. The sport became one of the main job avenues in India. In order to ensure a better life for their poor family, Vijender and his elder brother Manoj decided to learn boxing. Vijender was inspired by his elder brother Manoj, a former boxer himself, to join the sport of boxing. After Manoj succeeded to enter into the Indian Army in 1998 with his boxing credentials, he decided to support Vijender financially so he could continue his boxing training. Vijender's parents decided to not pressurise him to continue his studies, as they felt that he had a talent and passion for boxing. For Vijender, boxing quickly grew from an interest and passion to a career choice. He practiced at the Bhiwani Boxing Club, where former national-level boxer and coach Jagdish Singh recognised his talent. Working part-time, he even tried his hand at modelling to financially support his coaching. The first recognition for Vijender came when he won a bout in the state level competition. Vijender won a silver medal in his first sub-junior nationals in 1997 and went on to bag his first gold medal at the 2000 Nationals. In 2003, he became the all-India youth boxing champion. After beating a good boxer at that time, he said in an interview that he got confidence and belief in himself as a boxer. The turning point, however, came in the 2003 Afro-Asian Games. Despite being a junior boxer, Vijender took part in the selection trials and was picked for the meet where he fought valiantly to win a silver medal. His boxing style, hooks and uppercut are compared by the media with style of actor Sylvester Stallone as the character Rocky Balboa in the Rocky film series. Vijender cites him as one his primary influences, along with boxers Mike Tyson and Muhammad Ali, and boxing promoter Don King.



In January 2010, Vijender was awarded the Padma Shri award, for outstanding contribution to Indian sports. Later, he participated in the invitational Champions of Champions boxing tournament in China, and won a silver medal, losing 0-6 to Zhang Jin Ting in the 75 kg middleweight final. At the 2010 Commonwealth Boxing Championship held in New Delhi March 18, 2010, he along with five other fellow Indians won gold medal. Vijender defeated England's Frank Buglioni 13–3. At the 2010 Commonwealth Games, Vijender Singh was beaten by England's Anthony Ogogo in the semi-finals. Leading 3–0 on points going into the final round, Singh was twice given a two point penalty by Canadian referee Michael Summers, the second for coming just 20 seconds before the end of the bout, leading Ogogo to win by 4 points to 3. The Indian Boxing Federation (IBF)launched an unsuccessful appeal, leaving Singh with a bronze medal. IBF Secretary General P K Muralidharan Raja said, "The jury reviewed the bout and came to the conclusion that Vijender was holding his opponent and the referee was right in warning him. When the Indian team pointed out that even Ogogo was holding Vijender, the jury felt it was not the case." Singh lashed out saying that the penalties were "harsh and unfair. The warnings were unfair and harsh. If the referee thought I was holding Ogogo then he should have penalised this guy as well. He was also holding me. It's a joke that somebody has won by scoring points just out of warnings." Vijender won gold medal in the 2010 Asian games in Guangzhou ,china.He thrashed the defending World champion Abbos Atoev of Uzbekistan 7-0 ,thus taking revenge for the earlier loss suffered to him .

Thursday, March 31, 2011

Yuriorkis Gamboa

Yuriorkis Gamboa Toledano (born December 23, 1981) is a Cuban professional boxer who, as an amateur boxer, won an Olympic gold medal in the flyweight division at the 2004 Summer Olympics and the current Unified IBF and WBA Featherweight champion. Gamboa's younger brother is fellow professional boxer Yoelvis Gamboa.

Yuriorkis Gamboa Ready To Match

Gamboa made his professional boxing debut on April 27, 2007, in Hamburg, Germany against Alexan Manvelyan. Gamboa put Manvelyan on the canvas in the third round and beat up his foe throughout the fight for the unanimous decision victory. Two months later, he defeated Araik Sachbazjan by fourth round technical knockout. After winning his next four fights, Gamboa made his United States debut on October 30, 2007, at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida against Adailton De Jesus. De Jesus was dropped to the canvas halfway through the first round. A Gamboa slip in the fourth round was ruled a knockdown by the referee. Gamboa's relentless pressure eventually forced a stoppage in the sixth and final round.


Boxing - Yuriorkis Gamboa's US Debut vs Adailton De Jesus

Yuriorkis Gamboa Perfect Body

Yuriorkis Gamboa Celebration

Gamboa had a very dominating first round. He buzzed Mtagwa several times from several angles and scored a knockdown in the final ten seconds with a counter hook. He continued the damage in the second round, battering Mtagwa and sending him down two more times before the fight was stopped.

Gamboa also took the oportunity to proclaim his desire to fight higher caliber featherweight boxers such as Indonesian Chris john and puertorican Juan Manuel Lopez who was attending the fight as a spectator and decided to come up to the ring and proclaim his desire for a posible fight with Gamboa as he also made the observation that it was a business decision to be taken by their shared promoter Bob Arum. Both Juan Manuel Lopez and Gamboa displayed a true sportsmanship conduct as they forecasted a possible fight between them in the future.

Saturday, January 29, 2011

Evander Holyfield

Evander Holyfield (born October 19, 1962) is a professional boxer from the United States. He is a former World Undisputed Champion in both cruiserweight and heavyweight divisions, earning him the nickname "The Real Deal". Holyfield won the bronze medal in the Light Heavyweight division at the 1984 Summer Olympics. He is the only boxer to win the World Heavyweight title four times. Holyfield holds notable wins over the likes of George Foreman, Larry Holmes, Riddick Bowe, Michael Moorer and twice defeated Mike Tyson. Evander Holyfield was born on October 19, 1962, in the mill town of Atmore, Alabama. The youngest of nine children, Holyfield and his family moved to Atlanta in the summer of 1964, at the age of two. He began boxing at age 12 and won the Boys Club boxing tournament. At 13, he qualified to compete in his first Junior Olympics. By age 15, Holyfield became the Southeastern Regional Champion, winning this tournament and the Best Boxer Award. By 1984 he had a record of 160 wins and 14 losses, with 76 KO. When he was 20 years old, Holyfield represented the U.S. in the 1983 Pan American Games in Caracas, Venezuela, where he won a silver medal after losing to Cuban world champion Pablo Romero. The following year, he was the National Golden Gloves Champion, and won a bronze medal in the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles, California after a controversial disqualification in the second round of the semi-final against New Zealand's Kevin Barry.

Holyfield started out professionally as a light heavyweight with a televised win in six rounds over Lionel Byarm at Madison Square Garden on November 15, 1984. On January 20, 1985 he won another six-round decision over Eric Winbush in Atlantic City, New Jersey. On March 13, he knocked out Fred Brown in the first round in Norfolk, Virginia, and on April 20, he knocked out Mark Rivera in two rounds in Corpus Christi, Texas. Both he and his next opponent, Tyrone Booze, moved up to the cruiserweight division for their fight on July 20, 1985 in Norfolk, Virginia. Holyfield won an eight-round decision over Booze. Evander went on to knock out Rick Myers in the first round on August 29 in Holyfield's hometown of Atlanta. On October 30 in Atlantic City he knocked out opponent Jeff Meachem in five rounds, and his last fight for 1985 was against Anthony Davis on December 21 in Virginia Beach, Virginia. He won by knocking out Davis in the fourth round. He began 1986 with a knockout in three rounds over former world cruiserweight challenger Chisanda Mutti, and proceeded to beat Jessy Shelby and Terry Mims before being given a world title try by the WBA's world cruiserweight champion Dwight Muhammad Qawi. In what was called by The Ring as the best cruiserweight bout of the 1980s, Holyfield became world champion by defeating Qawi by a narrow 15 round split decision. He culminated 1986 with a trip to Paris, France, where he beat Mike Brothers by a knockout in three, in a non-title bout. In 1987, he defended his title against former Olympic teammate and Gold medal winner Henry Tillman, who had beaten Mike Tyson twice as an amateur. He retained his belt, winning by seventh round knockout, and then went on to unify his WBA belt with the IBF belt held by Ricky Parkey, knocking Parkey out in three rounds. For his next bout, he returned to France, where he retained the title with an eleven round knockout against former world champion Ossie Ocasio. In his last fight of '87, he offered Muhammad Qawi a rematch, and this time, he beat Qawi by a knockout in four. 1988 was another productive year for Holyfield; he started by becoming the first universally recognized world cruiserweight champion after defeating the WBC's defending world champion Carlos De León at the Las Vegas. The fight was stopped after eight rounds.


Video from Evander Holyfield

After that fight, he announced he was moving up in weight to pursue the world heavyweight crown held by Tyson. His first fight as a Heavyweight took place on July 16, when he beat former Tyson rival James "Quick" Tillis by a knockout in five, in Lake Tahoe, Nevada (Tillis had gone the distance with Tyson). For his third and final bout of '88, he beat former world heavyweight champion Pinklon Thomas, also by knockout, in seven rounds. Holyfield began 1989 meeting another former world heavyweight champion, Michael Dokes. This fight would also be named one of the best fights of the 1980s by Ring magazine, as best heavyweight bout of the 1980s. Holyfield won by a knockout in the tenth round, and then he met Brazilian champion Adilson Rodrigues, who lasted two rounds. His last fight of the 1980s was against Alex Stewart, a hard punching fringe contender. Stewart shocked Holyfield early, with quick, hard punches, but eventually fell in eight. In 1990, Holyfield beat Seamus McDonagh, knocking him out in four rounds. By this time, Holyfield had been Ring Magazine's Number 1 contender for two years and had yet to receive a shot at Tyson's heavyweight title. Holyfield had been promised a title shot against Tyson in 1990. Before that fight could occur, in what many consider to be the biggest upset in boxing history, relatively unknown boxer, 29-year old, 231 lb. James "Buster" Douglas defeated the 23-year old, 218 lb. Mike Tyson in ten rounds in Tokyo to become the new undisputed heavyweight champion. Instead of fighting Tyson, Holyfield would be Douglas' first title defense. They met on October 25, 1990. Douglas came into the fight at 246 lb. and offered little in the fight against Holyfield, who was in great shape at 208 lb. In the third round Douglas tried to start a combination with a big right uppercut. Holyfield countered with a straight right hand that was lightning quick, and Douglas went down for the count. Holyfield was the new undefeated, undisputed heavyweight champion of the world. At the time of the knockout, Holyfield was ahead on all three judges' scorecards, all seeing it 20–18 for Holyfield. In his first defense, he beat former and future world champion George Foreman by unanimous decision in 12. The fight was billed as a "Battle for the Ages", a reference to the age differential between the young undefeated champion (28 years old), and the much older George Foreman (42 years old). Holyfield weighed in at 208 pounds and Foreman weighed in at 257 pounds. Foreman lost the fight by a unanimous decision, but surprised many by lasting the whole 12 rounds against a much younger opponent, even staggering Holyfield a few times and knocking him off balance in the seventh round.

Then a deal was signed for him to defend his crown against Mike Tyson in November 1991. Tyson delayed the fight, claiming he was injured in training, but was then convicted for the rape of Desiree Washington and sentenced to six years in prison, so the fight did not happen at that time. They would fight in 1996 (Holyfield won by a TKO in 11) and a rematch in 1997 (Holyfield won by disqualification in 3, after Tyson bit both of his ears). Holyfield made his next defense in Atlanta against Bert Cooper, who surprised him with a very good effort. Holyfield scored the first knockdown of the fight against Cooper with a powerful shot to the body, but Cooper returned the favor with a good right hand that sent Holyfield against the ropes; while not an actual knockdown, referee Mills Lane gave Holyfield a standing 8-count. Having suffered the first technical knockdown of his professional career, Holyfield regained his composure quickly and administered a beating that left Cooper still on his feet, but unable to defend himself. Holyfield landed brutal power shots, culminated by repeated vicious uppercuts that would snap Cooper's head back. Referee Mills Lane stopped the bout in the seventh. In his first fight of 1992, he faced former world heavyweight champion Larry Holmes, who was 42 years old, and had just pulled off an upset against Ray Mercer. During the bout, Holyfield suffered the first scar of his career with a gash opening up over his eye, the result of Holmes' elbow.The fight ended with a unanimous decision in favor of Holyfield. In the beginning of a trilogy of bouts with the 25-year old Riddick Bowe, who had won a silver medal in the 1988 Olympics, in the Super Heavyweight division, he suffered his first defeat when Bowe won the undisputed title by a 12-round unanimous decision in Las Vegas. Round Ten of that bout was named the Round of the Year by Ring Magazine. Holyfield was knocked down in round 11. He made the mistake of getting into a slugfest with the younger, bigger and stronger Bowe, leading to his defeat. He began 1993 by beating Alex Stewart in a rematch, but this time over the 12-round unanimous distance.

Then came the rematch with Bowe on November 6, 1993. In what is considered by many sporting historians as one of the most bizarre moments in boxing's history, during round seven the crowd got off their feet and many people started to run for cover and yell. Holyfield took his eyes off Bowe for one moment and then told Bowe to look up to the skies. What they saw was a man in a parachute flying dangerously close to them. The man almost entered the ring, but his parachute had gotten entangled in the lights, and he landed on the ropes and apron of the ring, and he was then pulled into the crowd, where he was beaten by members of Bowe's entourage. Bowe's pregnant wife, Judy, fainted and had to be taken to the hospital from the arena. Twenty minutes later, calm was restored and Holyfield went on to recover his world heavyweight titles with a close 12 round majority decision. The man who parachuted down to the middle of the ring became known as The Fan Man and the fight itself became known as the Fan Man Fight. His victory over Bowe that year helped Holyfield being named as ABC's Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year for 1993. His next fight, April 1994, he met former WBO light heavyweight and heavyweight champion of the world Michael Moorer, who was attempting to become the first southpaw to become the universally recognised world heavyweight champion. He dropped Moorer in round two, but lost a twelve round majority decision. When he went to the hospital to have his shoulder checked, he was diagnosed with a heart condition, and had to announce his retirement from boxing. It would later surface that the chairman of the medical advisory board for the Nevada State Athletic Commission believed his condition to be consistent with HGH use. However, watching a television show hosted by preacher Benny Hinn, Holyfield says he felt his heart heal. He and Hinn subsequently became friends, and he became a frequent visitor to Hinn's crusades. In fact, during this time, Holyfield went to a Benny Hinn crusade in Philadelphia, had Hinn lay hands on him, and gave Hinn a check for $265,000 after he was told he was healed. He then passed his next examination by the boxing commission. Holyfield would later state that his heart was misdiagnosed due to the morphine pumped into his body.In 1995, Holyfield returned to the ring with a ten round decision win versus former Olympic gold medalist, Ray Mercer. He was the first man to knock down Mercer. Holyfield and Bowe then had their rubber match. Holyfield knocked Bowe down with a single left hook but Bowe prevailed, by a knockout in eight. Holyfield would later claim that he contracted Hepatitis A before the fight.

1996 was a very good year for Holyfield. First, he met former world champion Bobby Czyz, beating him by a knockout in six. Then, he and Mike Tyson finally met. Tyson had recovered the WBC's and the WBA's world heavyweight championship and, after being stripped of the WBC title for not facing Lennox Lewis, defended the WBA title against Holyfield on November 9 of that year. Tyson was heavily favored to win, but Holyfield made history by defeating Tyson in an 11th round TKO. This was the third occasion on which Holyfield won the WBA heavyweight title—however, the fight was not recognised as being for the linear heavyweight championship, which was held by George Foreman at the time. Muhammad Ali remains the only heavyweight champion to hold the linear championship three times. Holyfield's rematch with Tyson took place on June 28, 1997. Known as "The Bite Fight," it would go into the annals of boxing as one of the most bizarre fights in history. The infamous incident occurred in the third round, when Tyson bit Holyfield on one of his ears and had two points deducted. Referee Mills Lane decided to disqualify Tyson initially, but after Holyfield and the ringside doctor intervened and said Holyfield could continue, he relented and allowed the fight to go on. However, Tyson went on to bite Holyfield again, this time on the other ear. Tyson, with his teeth, tore off the top of his ear, known as the helix, and spit the flesh out on the ring. The immediate aftermath of the incident was greeted by instant bedlam. Tyson was disqualified and a melee ensued. Tyson claimed his bites were a retaliation to Holyfield's unchecked headbutts, which had cut him in both fights. Others argued that Tyson, knowing he was on his way to another knockout loss, was looking for a way out of the fight. His former trainer, Teddy Atlas, had predicted that Tyson would get himself disqualified, calling Tyson "a very weak and flawed person."

On October 13, 2007, Holyfield was defeated by Sultan Ibragimov. Although unable to defy his critics by winning a fifth heavyweight title, Holyfield refused to be backed up by the young champion and even rattled him in the closing part of the 12th round. The fight was mostly uneventful, however, with neither fighter being truly staggered or knocked down. In most exchanges, Sultan was able to land two punches to Holyfield's one. The end result was a unanimous decision for Ibragimov, with scores of 118–110, and 117–111 twice. He told BBC Scotland's Sports Weekly "I'm gonna fight, be the heavyweight champion of the world one more time. Then I'm gonna write another book and tell everybody how I did it." On December 20, 2008 he fought, at the Hallenstadion in Zürich Switzerland, the WBA heavyweight champion Nikolai Valuev for a paycheck of $600,000, the lowest amount he has ever received for a championship fight. At the weigh-in, he weighed 214 pounds, Valuev weighed a career low of 310 pounds. Valuev defeated Holyfield by a highly controversial majority decision after a relatively uneventful bout. One judge scored the bout a draw 114–114, while the others had Valuev winning 116–112 and 115–114. Many analysts were outraged at the decision, thinking Holyfield had clearly won. There was talk of a rematch in 2009. The WBA did their own investigation into the controversial decision; "As the World Boxing Association (WBA) always cares about and respects the fans' and the media's opinion, the Championship Committee has ordered a panel of judges to review the tape of the fight between Nikolai Valuev and Evander Holyfield, for the WBA heavyweight title", read a statement from the WBA. The organization also expressed that they "will give a decision accordingly in the following weeks." Many speculated that an immediate rematch would be the most likely scenario, but this never materialised. Valuev lost the WBA title in his next fight against British boxer David Haye.

Holyfield is the younger brother of actor and dancer, Bernard Holyfield, and currently lives and trains in Fayette County, Georgia with his third wife Candi and their two children; he has at least eleven children. By 1992, Holyfield was already a household name, announcing multiple products on television, such as Coca Cola and Diet Coke. He also had a video game released for the Sega Genesis and the Sega Game Gear: Evander Holyfield's Real Deal Boxing. After his conversion, he started professing his Christianity everywhere, reminding the public before and after his fights that he is a born-again Christian. In 1996 Holyfield was given the opportunity to carry the Olympic torch when it was on its way to his hometown of Atlanta for that year's Olympics. October 4 of this year he was married to Dr. Janice Itson, with whom he had one child. He founded Real Deal Records which signed the briefly successful group Exhale. On September 22, 2007 Holyfield released the Real Deal Grill cooking appliance via TV infomercials. The Real Deal Grill is manufactured by Cirtran Corp. Holyfield's popularity has led to numerous television appearances for the boxer. His first television show appearance was the Christmas special of the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in 1990, playing himself. In 2005, Holyfield came in fifth place on ABC's Dancing with the Stars with his partner Edyta Sliwinska. He also made an appearance on the original BBC Strictly Come Dancing "Champion of Champions" showdown, which featured the final four teams from the 2005 edition of the British series, plus two celebrities from spinoff versions, paired with British professional dancers, one featuring Holyfield paired with Karen Hardy, and Rachel Hunter paired with Brendan Cole. Holyfield also had minor roles in three movies during the 1990s, Summer of Sam, Necessary Roughness, and Blood Salvage (which he also produced). He made a guest appearance on Nickelodeon's Nickelodeon GUTS during its third season in 1994. He appeared once in an episode of Phineas and Ferb. In the episode he is an animated character but the producers wanted to make the most of Holyfield's ear, so his animated character was only given half an ear. On August 13, 2007, Holyfield was confirmed to participate in a boxing match at World Wrestling Entertainment's Saturday Night's Main Event against Matt Hardy. He replaced Montel Vontavious Porter, who had to pull out after being legitimately diagnosed with a heart condition that was not part of a storyline. In late 2007 and early 2008, Holyfield was among a number of celebrities to be doing television ads for the restaurant chain Zaxby's. In June 2008 a legal notice was placed by Washington Mutual Bank stating that Holyfield's $10 million, 54,000-square-foot (5,000 m2), 109 room, 17 bathroom suburban Atlanta estate would be auctioned off on July 1, 2008 due to foreclosure. Adding to his financial problems, Toi Irvin, mother of his 10 year old son, filed suit for non-payment of two months child support (he pays $3,000 per month for this child). A Utah landscaping firm also has gone to court seeking $550,000 in unpaid debt for services.

Monday, January 24, 2011

Laila Ali

Laila Amaria Ali (born December 30, 1977) is a former professional boxer. She is the daughter of boxing legend Muhammad Ali and his third wife Veronica Porche Ali. Laila has a total of eight brothers and sisters. She has six sisters, whose names are (half-sisters) Rasheeda, Jamilla, Maryum, Miya, Khalilah and older sister Hana (born March 27, 1976 to Ali and mother Veronica), an author and poet. Her two brothers are half-brothers Muhammed, Jr. and Asaad. Laila is the most successful out of all of her siblings. But her parents had very successful careers as well. Laila's father, Muhammad Ali, is a retired three-time world heavyweight boxing champion. Laila's mother, Veronica Porsche Ali, is a former model.

Laila Ali and The Medals

Laila Ali Hairstyle

Laila Ali Looks Beautiful

Laila Ali is an empowering female icon. As an international figure for health and wellness, the embodiment of female empowerment, and a global humanitarian; the Laila Ali Brand will encompass a multitude of categories from apparel, footwear and accessories to sporting goods and health and wellness products for girls and women of all ages.


Laila made her professional boxing debut on October 8, 1999, and in a sign of things to come, she knocked out her opponent, April Fowler, 31 seconds into the 1st round. Laila retired from boxing as the undefeated Super Middleweight Boxing Champion of the world with a 24-0 record, with 21 knock-outs. In her last fight, on February 3rd, 2007, Laila knocked out her opponent, Gwendolyn O’Neal, in just 56 seconds. The bout, held in Johannesburg, South Africa, was attended by Nelson Mandela, a long time family friend. Laila currently resides in Los Angeles, California, with her husband, former NFL star, Curtis Conway, and their son, Curtis Jr.


Laila Ali Sexy Pose

In 2002 Ali wrote (with co-author David Ritz) the book Reach! Finding Strength, Spirit, and Personal Power, meant to motivate and inspire young people. In this book Laila discusses how she felt isolated at times because of her parents fame. Laila has also spent some time in jail. In the book Laila describes the physical abuse, stinks and arrests that she experienced in jail. Critics say that Laila's book has a good foundation to it but she doesn't give the readers advice in the book, rather she just talks about her own experiences. Ali married Johnny "Yahya" McClain on August 27, 2000. She met McClain through her sister Hana at her father's 57th birthday party. McClain became Ali's manager and helped guide her career. In late 2005 Ali and McClain divorced and McClain quit managing Ali. On July 23, 2007, Ali married former NFL player Curtis Conway in Los Angeles. Laila has three stepchildren with Conway, 15-year-old twin sons Cameron and Kelton and 11-year-old Leilani. On August 26, 2008 Laila gave birth to her son, Curtis Muhammad Conway Jr. On September 29, 2010, Ali announced that she and Conway were expecting their second child together. Laila's interests include cooking and doing pilates to stay in shap

Monday, December 6, 2010

Chris Jhon

Yohannes Christian John was born at September 14, 1979 in Banjarnegara, Central Java, Indonesia) is an Indonesian professional boxer. He is the current WBA featherweight boxing super champion. John is the fourth Indonesian to win a boxing world title.


Chris Jhon hits the rival


Chris Jhon expression when he won the match


Chris Jhon celebration


Chris Jhon and his medals


Chris Jhon doing training


Chris Jhon in his press conferences


Chris Jhon between Indonesian President and Indonesian Minister


Smile of Chris Jhon


Chris Jhon and his family
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