90s acts rock downtown Vegas amidst heavy heat

90s acts rock downtown Vegas amidst heavy heat

Mark E. Ortega

June 30, 2013

If a near record-setting Las Vegas temperature wasn't hot enough Saturday night, additional heat was brought by the Summerland Tour as part of Fremont Street's Rock of Vegas 2013 free concert series in downtown Las Vegas.

Popular nineties acts Everclear, Live, Filter, and Sponge played over the course of more than three hours in front of a packed crowd that braved temperatures more than one hundred degrees. This despite the sun having set hours before.

The bands played condensed sets in order to get through the show by 12:30. Due to this, each act played through their recognizable hits while also throwing in a new track or two to bring attention to new albums they are or will soon be peddling.

Mora outpoints Proksa in return on FNF

Mora outpoints Proksa in return on FNF
Mark E. Ortega
RingTV.com
June 28, 2013


Sergio Mora said he knew he had to deliver a more crowd pleasing style in order to get back in the mix after returning to the ring for the first time in nearly ten months.

Friday night, Mora was a bit more exciting than in previous bouts, but more importantly, he was more effective, as he outpointed Grzegorz Proksa over 10 rounds in ESPN2’s Friday Night Fights main event in Jacksonville, Fla.

Mora was coming off a second loss to Brian Vera last August, his lone fight in 2012, and was a slight underdog heading in. Sporting a newly grizzled look, a bearded Mora showed he wasn't just a different fighter in appearance, as he outclassed Proksa for much of the duration of their middleweight bout.

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Guzman fails to make weight--again

Guzman fails to make weight--again
Mark E. Ortega
RingTV.com
June 27, 2013

There aren't many fighters that have been blessed with as much natural talent as Joan Guzman of the Dominican Republic. Of that crop, few have squandered their talent away as badly as Guzman, a former titleholder at 122 and 130 pounds.

Thursday evening, Guzman added to his list of career woes as he missed the junior welterweight limit of 140 pounds for his WBA interim title bout against Vicente Mosquera (himself attempting to rebound from career demons).

Guzman didn't just miss the 140 pound limit. If this were a welterweight bout, he would have tipped the scales heavy by 1.2 pounds, as he came in at 148.2.

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Foreman returns July 24

Foreman returns July 24
Mark E. Ortega
RingTV.com
June 26, 2013


Comebacking junior middleweight Yuri Foreman will return to action on July 24, taking on journeyman Tony Hirsch in an eight-round bout at the Roseland Ballroom in New York City. Marlon Sullivan, Hirsch's manager, confirmed the information to RingTV on Wednesday afternoon.

This will mark Foreman's third fight since returning to the ring following a nearly two-year layoff. He announced his retirement after losing to Pawel Wolak in March of 2011. The loss was Foreman's second in a row, having lost his previous bout to Miguel Cotto in front of a raucous crowd at Yankee Stadium.

Foreman (30-2, 8 KOs) lost to Cotto after injuring his leg during the fight but showed tremendous heart in continuing on one leg until the fight was stopped in round nine. Cotto picked up Foreman's WBA 154-pound title with the win.

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Final chapter, final Page likely written for former champ

Final chapter, final Page likely written for former champ
Mark E. Ortega
RingTV.com
June 18, 2013

A week ago today, former WBA welterweight titlist James Page was arrested in Northern California in connection to six bank robberies that took place around the Bay Area over the past six months. According to the Bay Area News Group, he is being held on $395,000 bail.

It was just over a year ago that Page emerged from prison following an 11-year sentence stemming from a bank robbery in Atlanta in 2001. After serving his time, Page left prison a cut and ripped 159 pounds, intent on returning to the ring in an attempt to find old glory.

Page's comeback received little fanfare, though he took it much more seriously than most fortysomethings coming off more than a decade of inactivity. Page sparred with the late Omar Henry at King's Gym in Oakland, as well as junior middleweight contender Alfredo Angulo under the watchful eye of Angulo's trainer, Virgil Hunter.

In doing a story for the February edition of the UK publication Boxing Monthly, this writer recalls discussing Page with Hunter when it first became apparent that he was out of jail and looking to return to the ring. Hunter instantly brushed off the idea of it. He'd had a change of heart after seeing Page go toe-to-toe with Angulo in sparring.

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Famous Fight Fan: Rosie Perez

Famous Fight Fan: Rosie Perez
Mark E. Ortega
RingTV.com
June 12, 2013


There are famous boxing fans, and then there is Rosie Perez.

Made a household name by movies such as Do the Right Thing and White Men Can't Jump, and nominated for an Oscar for her role in Fearless, the actress has embraced boxing as much as any celebrity and has an impressive following of fight fans on Twitter.

She even served as grand marshal of this past weekend's International Boxing Hall of Fame parade, an honor that caught her off guard.

"I was beyond surprised," Perez told RingTV.com.

"Steve Farhood contacted me and said (Showtime Sports executive VP) Stephen Espinoza gave him my e-mail. He told me they were throwing around names for this and my name came up. I asked, 'Why me?,' and he said he thinks I'm great for boxing."

This year's list of inductees included the late Arturo Gatti, Virgil Hill, Myung-Woo Yuh, referee Mills Lane, ring announcer Jimmy Lennon Jr., and journalist Colin Hart.

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Sanchez Jr. loses title but outpoints Sosa

Sanchez Jr. loses title but outpoints Sosa
Mark E. Ortega
RingTV.com
June 9, 2013


It was previously reported early Saturday morning on RingTV.com that though IBF 115-pound titleholder Juan Carlos Sanchez Jr. came in two ounces overweight, the IBF allowed him to defend his title against Argentine challenger Roberto Domingo Sosa.

That morning, the IBF decided to change their tune, vacating the title and allowing only Sosa to fight for it. Sanchez Jr.'s promoters, Zanfer and Panchito Promotions, were upset at this development as their fighter would have been granted an additional try to make the weight had it been discussed at the weigh-in.

Though Sanchez Jr. lost his title on the scales, he prevailed unanimously over a game Sosa in a mostly technical fight. Sanchez Jr. did his best work in an action-packed fourth round and then later in the 12th, when he knocked down Sosa to close the show.

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Bits & Pieces: Weight controversy in Vegas

Bits & Pieces: Weight controversy in Vegas
Mark E. Ortega
RingTV.com
June 8, 2013


While HBO and Showtime go head-to-head tonight with shows from Montreal and Carson, Calif., respectively, Top Rank and Zanfer Promotions have a card at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas that will be televised on UniMas’ Solo Boxeo. Here are some notes compiled from Friday's weigh-in.

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