Eric Armitt
Highlights of past week's activities
The five-on-five match between Queensberry and Matchroom was won by Queensberry 5-0.
Dmitry Bivol stopped Malik Zinad to retain his IBO and WBA light heavyweight titles.
Nick Ball defeated champion Raymond Ford by split decision to win the WBA featherweight title.
Zhang Zilei knocked out Deontay Wilder in five rounds.
Daniel Dubois knocked out Filip Hrgovic in the eighth round.
Hamza Sheeraz defeated Austin Williams in the 11th round.
Willie Hutchinson beat Craig Richards on points.
Michel Soro and Milan Prat took an inside-the-distance victory in Lyon.
The Polish-themed night in New York saw victories for Maciej Sulecki, Przemysław Lunowski, Piotr Lacz and Georgia's Avtandil Kurzydze, while Kamil Raszczyk was defeated 30-0.
Who is this week's winner?
Most importantly: Not one. A Bivol victory means a Bivol vs. Beterbiev unification fight will happen later this year. Dubois' win over Hrgovic likely leads to a Dubois vs. Anthony Joshua fight. Willie Hutchinson has been invited by the WBO to fight Joshua Buatsi for the interim title.
The most interesting one: The Ball-Ford match was the highlight of the night in Riyadh and elsewhere.
Fighter of the WeekHonorable mentions also go to Nick Ball, who won the world title in his second try. And Daniel Dubois, who withstood everything Hrgovic threw at him before breaking him down physically and mentally.
Punch of the WeekI'd vote for the left hook used by Argentina's Augustin Marini to beat Mariano Gudino, but Michel Soro's left hook to the body that finished off Oziel Santoyo was also incredible.
Upsets of the weekDominican Republic's Johan Vazquez had lost his previous three fights, so his second-round stoppage win over 30-0 Kamil Raszczek was unexpected.
Prospect WatchMexican super bantamweight boxer David Cuellar (27-0) could be fighting for the title next year.
Consideration of the match card
rosette: For everyone involved in Riyadh, the show was made possible thanks to funding, but Frank Warren and Eddie Hearn risked their top talent to compete in the show. It was a good night for Frank Warren. Queensberry won $3 million.
Red Cards: Deontay Wilder is It was pathetic. He gave a non-combative performance and his fight with Zhang was the worst on the show.
The term interim title is a misnomer. The correct term is “provisional title.” In English, the word “interim” describes a temporary situation in which the title holder (champion) is unable to perform their duties (cannot defend the title).
But that, too, has been distorted by the sanctioning bodies, because in most cases the fight for the interim title continues even after the champion has regained health and defended the real title again.
I was amazed to see Georgian Avtandil Khurtsidze fight in New York over the weekend. In April 2017, Khurtsidze defeated Tommy Langford to win the WBO interim (temporary) title and was scheduled to fight Billy Joe Saunders for the real title on July 8th, 2017 in London.
But those plans fell apart when Khurtsidze was arrested in New York in June as federal authorities rounded up 33 people for allegedly being involved in a New York-based Georgian crime ring that was allegedly involved in extortion, robbery, soliciting murder and other illegal activities.
Kurtzidze was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison. He was stabbed in the face while in custody. He was released after serving five years of his 10-year sentence. Prior to his win over Langford, he had beaten Melvin Betancourt 29-2 and Antoine Douglas 19-0-1, giving him plenty of chances to win the title. At 44 years old, he may never get a chance to win a title, but that's his own fault.
June 1
Bold Bivol sharply criticizes brave Zinad
Dmitry Bivol defended his IBO and WBA titles, knocking out Malik Zinad in the first round and stopping him in the sixth. Zinad replaced the injured Artur Beterbiev. It has robbed us of another united fight.
The fight is set to be rescheduled for October, unless the IBF/WBC or WBO disqualify Beterbiev for not facing his country's number one fighter. Zinad showed great skill and should be well-rewarded for taking on Bivol on short notice.
Chang pushes disastrous Wilder towards retirement
Zhang Zhilei stopped a badly weakened Deontay Wilder in the fifth round. In the final seconds, Zhang landed a right punch that sent Wilder staggering across the ring and falling onto his back. Wilder grabbed the ropes to get up, but was unsteady and the referee called the bout over.
This was a big win for Zhang, who lost a majority decision to Joseph Parker in March. Zhang is 41 and ranked #2 by the WBO, so he may not have to give up on his title dreams. Also, who knows if title stripping or title fabrication will happen in the future. Weider is declining and should retire. He was never a great boxer, but his punches got him out of trouble. He hasn't been the same since his last two fights with Fury. In this fight, he was timid and didn't land the punch that might have saved him.
Dubois puts Hrgovic on the edge – is AJ next?
Daniel Dubois defeated a bloodied and exhausted Filip Hrgovic to win the vacant IBF interim title.
In the final round, Dubois saw that Hrgović was ready to be taken down and attacked hard, forcing Hrgović into a corner, with a bloody face as he tried to hold on.
Dubois had Hrgovic backed into the ropes and was landing a flurry of hooks when the referee stopped the bout and escorted Hrgovic to the ringside doctor, who recommended the fight be stopped.
Hrgovic's power was the slight advantage here, but Dubois was quick to counter even the hardest punches, punching back and forcing Hrgovic to pick up the pace. There is talk of a match against Anthony Joshua at Wembley Stadium later this year. The loss of Hrgovic helped the IBF get out of a tight spot.
Daniel Dubois lands a right hook on Filip Hrgovic.
Sheilas ensures Williams runs out of bullets.
Hamza Sheeraz dominated Austin Williams in a matchup of unbeaten prospects. Sheeraz was drunk early on, but he rocked Williams with an uppercut in the 11th round and then slammed him across the ring until the referee stepped in to save Williams.
Wins over Dmytro Mitrofanov and Liam Williams have seen Shiraz promoted to No. 1 ranked by the WBO and No. 2 ranked by the WBC.
Hutchinson v Richards
In the opening bout of the Matchroom vs Queensberry event, Scotland's Willie Hutchinson won by unanimous decision over Craig Richards. The fight broke out in the tenth round, with Richards drawing Hutchinson into a ferocious exchange of punches, both fighters landing ferocious punches, with Hutchinson in serious danger from Richards' onslaught.
Hutchinson won by scores of 119-109, 117-111 and 116-112 to lift the vacant WBC Silver belt and give Queensberry a strong start to the night.
Hutchinson celebrates the biggest win of his career after beating Craig Richards
For more details on the Ray Ford vs. Nick Ball match, check out our separate Score article.
May 31
Sadness for Santoyo after finishing with a body shot
Michel Soro knocked out Oziel Santoya in the second round, his first fight since losing a split decision to Magomed Kurbanov in Russia last May. Nevertheless, he was sharp in the first round, landing some good blows to the head and body.
In the second round, Santoyo was counted out after writhing in pain on the floor after a rib-bending left hook to the body. The 36-year-old Solo will need to be more aggressive if he is to regain his popularity.
He was inactive in 2020, lost by stoppage to Israil Madrimov in his only fight in 2021, fought a technical draw with Madrimov in 2022 and fought Kurbanov as his only fight in 2023, making him four fights in five years. Mexico's Santoyo had wins over Omar Chavez and former IBF titleholder Carlos Molina but was coming off a defeat.
Sulecki in a bad mood after weak performance against Montgomery
Maciej Sulecki had to get up off the court to beat Rowdy Montgomery on points. The Pole boxed well with his jab and then scored with a right, but never found comfort in the occasional wild shot from Montgomery.
Sulecki was shaken by a right hook in the fourth round and then knocked down by a body punch in the sixth, but he beat the count just a little.
Sulecki then regained his composure and won by scores of 96-93 twice and 95-94.
Devyatov outclasses Kumar in Australia
Russian-born Australian Alexander Devyatov won the vacant WBA Oceania title by unanimous decision over India's Karthik Kumar. Devyatov's record is 99-91 in the second round, 98-92. Prior to this bout, Devyatov had won 12 consecutive bouts by knockout/tko. Kumar was stopped in the second round by Sam Nokes in April last year for the vacant Commonwealth and WBC International titles.
Dangerous David Cuellar defeats Velazquez
David Cuellar maintained his 100% record with a dominant points victory over the more experienced Jose Velazquez of Chile. The three judges scored the bout 99-91 in Cuellar's favor.
Hovhannisyan has a huge advantage over the fat Pascual
In a farcical bout, Armenian hulk Gurgen Hovhannisyan stopped an underpowered Mexican Luis Pascual. Hovhannisyan was six inches taller than the corpulent Pascual and knocked him out in the second round, when Pascual withdrew at the end of the round. Pascual was always underpowered, but usually fought to the end.
Hovhannisyan is 6'7″. Pascual is 6'1 1/2″, but Hovhannisyan weighed 274 pounds and Pascual weighed 293 3/4 pounds. In the 2014 fight, Pascual weighed 174 pounds, meaning he was carrying 119 extra pounds.
“Prince” Buddy wins in Canada
Lucas “Prince” Badi knocked out Jose Rodriguez in the seventh round after Badi was in control of the bout before landing a right hook to Rodriguez's head.
