Category: Boxing / UFC / MMA

British heavyweight boxer who twice took on Muhammad Ali and beat Henry Cooper in 1971

Joe Bugner, who has died aged 75, twice went the distance with the great Muhammad Ali – the second time in a failed 1975 world title challenge – and also lost to the fearsome Joe Frazier in an epic contest. But the British sporting public never loved him in the way of heavyweight boxers such as Frank Bruno, Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury.

Perhaps he was never forgiven for defeating Henry Cooper at Wembley, three days after his 21st birthday in March 1971, by the narrowest of margins in a points decision that remained a subject of controversy for decades to come.

Continue reading...

• Bugner was a British, Commonwealth and European champion

• BBBoC announces Bugner’s death at care home in Brisbane

Joe Bugner, the British heavyweight who went the distance with boxing legends Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier in the 1970s, has died aged 75, it has been announced.

Bugner twice held the British and Commonwealth heavyweight titles and was a three-time European heavyweight champion, holding all three for the first time when defeating Henry Cooper in 1971.

More details to follow

Continue reading...

• British heavyweight destroyed Dillian Whyte

• Khan thinks Joseph Parker a good option for youngster

Moses Itauma should continue to steadily build his journey through the heavyweight ranks rather than risk getting hurt by taking a showdown with Oleksandr Usyk “too early”, according to the former unified light-welterweight world champion Amir Khan.

The Chatham southpaw Itauma extended his perfect record through 13 professional fights with an impressive first-round knockout of his British rival Dillian Whyte in Riyadh on Saturday. The 20-year-old’s devastating performance against the former WBC interim heavyweight champion Whyte, 37, led to Tyson Fury claiming that Itauma would beat the undisputed world heavyweight champion, Usyk.

Continue reading...

• Winner extends perfect record and closer to world title shot

• Veteran sent crashing to canvas within two minutes

Moses Itauma blew away Dillian Whyte with a devastating first-round knockout in their all-British heavyweight clash in Riyadh. The 20-year-old extended his perfect record through 13 professional fights as he sent veteran Whyte sprawling to the canvas inside two minutes.

The 37-year-old Whyte, a former WBC interim heavyweight champion, was not given any time to settle as Itauma – who had been made to wait in the ring by a delayed walk-in from his British rival – immediately went on the front foot.

Continue reading...

The Japan Boxing Commission will crack down on rapid dehydration to ‘make weight’, which experts say makes the brain susceptible to bleeding

Boxing authorities in Japan will introduce stricter safety measures after the sport was left in shock by the deaths this month of two boxers competing in the same event.

Officials from the Japan Boxing Commission (JBC) told reporters this week the changes would include pre-bout urine tests, tougher rules on rapid weight loss and improvements in ringside medical services.

Continue reading...

• Hiromasa Urakawa passes days after Shigetoshi Kotari died

• Pair had been injured in fights at same event in Tokyo on 2 August

Two Japanese boxers have died days after suffering brain injuries in separate fights on the same card, boxing associations and media reports said.

Shigetoshi Kotari died on Friday and Hiromasa Urakawa on Saturday after being injured in their fights at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo on 2 August, Japanese media said.

Continue reading...

• Shields wins on points before 15,366 in Detroit

• Defends undisputed women’s heavyweight title

• Daniels offers some resistance but is outclassed

Claressa Shields retained her undisputed women’s heavyweight championship with a commanding unanimous decision over Lani Daniels on Saturday night at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.

The judges scored the bout 100-90, 99-91 and 99-91 in favor of Shields, who improved to 17-0 (3 KOs). It marked the third straight main event appearance in Detroit for the 30-year-old Flint native and two-time Olympic gold medalist, who remains the only boxer in the four-belt era to become an undisputed champion in three different weight classes.

Continue reading...

The champion explains how he learned from his previous win against the Briton and introduces ‘Ivan’, the left hook that closed the show

Just before midnight on Saturday, in the depths of Wembley Stadium, Oleksandr Usyk stroked his moustache as he listened to another question which followed his magisterial destruction of Daniel Dubois. The 38-year-old Ukrainian had once again become the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world after a performance filled with light, panache and a kind of battering precision that had normally sober ringside observers reaching for words such as “genius” and “magician”.

After such savage alchemy, someone asked Usyk another question which made his face light up again. After all he had done, and with almost desperate speculation as to who might be able to challenge him now, how did Usyk find the motivation to keep fighting? “Oh, listen, bro,” he said, as he made a distinction crucial to any clear understanding of his extraordinary achievements in and out of the ring, “I don’t have motivation. I have discipline. Motivation? It’s temporary. Today, for example, you have motivation. But tomorrow you wake up early and you don’t have motivation.”

Continue reading...

• Pacquiao, 46, fights to majority draw in comeback bout

• Barrios keeps WBC title after strong final three rounds

• As it happened: Manny Pacquiao MD 12 Mario Barrios

By the time the final bell rang, Manny Pacquiao had done everything but win the fight. He out-threw, out-landed and out-hustled a champion 16 years his junior on Saturday night in Las Vegas, but the scorecards told a different story.

Pacquiao’s spirited return to the ring after a four-year layoff ended in a majority draw against WBC welterweight titleholder Mario Barrios. One judge scored it 115–113 for Barrios, while the other two had it 114–114, allowing the 30-year-old Texan to retain his belt by the narrowest of margins. (The Guardian scored it 115-113 for Pacquiao.)

Continue reading...

• Pacquiao, 46, fights Barrios to 12-round majority draw

• Sydney’s Tim Tszyu stopped by Fundora in rematch

Ring announcer Jimmy Lennon Jr has made the fighter introductions. The final instructions have been given by referee Thomas Taylor, the seconds are out and we’ll pick it up with round-by-round coverage from here!

And here comes Pacquiao. The happy warrior emerges from the tunnel to Hall of Fame by The Script and will.i.am. Rowdy cheers of “Man-ny! Man-ny!” for the Filipino legend, who is wearing a black robe with thin gold trim. He’s into the ring and on both knees praying in his corner as Survivor’s Eye of the Tiger blasts over the MGM Grand Garden Arena sound system.

Continue reading...

• American wins by TKO after Australian agrees to seventh-round stoppage

• Third loss in past four bouts leaves 30-year-old’s boxing future up in air

Tim Tszyu has suffered another devastating setback, losing once again to American Sebastian Fundora in the pair’s much-hyped world title rematch in Las Vegas.

Tszyu had been hunting redemption after losing a split-decision bloodbath to Fundora 16 months ago.

Continue reading...