Maurice Hooker draws with Darleys Perez in unsatisfying Ward-Kovalev co-feature

Maurice Hooker draws with Darleys Perez in unsatisfying Ward-Kovalev co-feature
Mark E. Ortega
USA TODAY
November 19, 2016


LAS VEGAS — Fringe contender Maurice Hooker fought former beltholder Darleys Perez in the pay-per-view co-feature of the most important boxing match of the year.

That fact serves as a perfect indictment of what boxing has become in 2016. The result of the fight was as poetically unsatisfying as the undercard that it topped.

It’s not that Hooker (21-0-3, 16 knockouts) isn’t a solid if not unspectacular fighter or Perez (33-2-2, 21 KOs) a solid step up for him. But this fight is more in line with a ShoBox main event than the main appetizer for such an important event.

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Olympic bronze medalist Oleksandr Gvozdyk passes test against Issac Chilemba

Olympic bronze medalist Oleksandr Gvozdyk passes test against Issac Chilemba
Mark E. Ortega
USA TODAY
November 19, 2016

LAS VEGAS — Olympic bronze medalist Oleksandr Gvozdyk passed his stiffest test to date.

The light heavyweight prospect took a big step up with the Isaac Chilemba assignment, a well-traveled veteran gatekeeper. Chilemba’s trainer, legendary trainer Roy Jones Jr., halted the bout after eight rounds when Chilemba suffered an injury to his right arm.

Chilemba is known for giving guys fits, almost as much as he’s known for participating in uninteresting fights. Though Gvozdyk’s decision victory followed a similar script to most Chilemba fights, he won in convincing fashion.

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Curtis Stevens sleepwalks to decision victory over James De La Rosa after hand injury

Curtis Stevens sleepwalks to decision victory over James De La Rosa after hand injury
Mark E. Ortega
USA TODAY
November 19, 2016

LAS VEGAS — A hand injury for Curtis Stevens may have robbed us of what was shaping up to be an excellent fight between two gatekeepers.

Stevens, squaring off with James De La Rosa in the opening fight of the pay-per-view portion of the Sergey Kovalev-Andre Ward mega fight, hurt his left hand in the third round. It brought what was a solid action fight to a slowed pace as Stevens’ activity level dropped.

That didn’t keep Stevens (29-5, 21 KOs) from winning a lopsided decision, though the activity through the second half of the fight would have led you to believe it to be closer than the cards indicated. Stevens prevailed by scores of 98-90 and a more realistic 96-92 twice.

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Andre Berto earns redemption, knocks out Victor Ortiz in rematch

Andre Berto earns redemption, knocks out Victor Ortiz in rematch
Mark E. Ortega
USA TODAY
April 30, 2016

CARSON, Calif. — It may have come many years later than he hoped, but Andre Berto finally got sweet redemption against Victor Ortiz.

Climbing off the canvas in the second round, Berto fought his way back and stopped Ortiz in the fourth round of their PBC on FOX main event at the StubHub Center in front of 7,760 fans. He avenged the first defeat of his professional career, a decision loss to Ortiz back in April of 2011 that was many people’s Fight of the Year.

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Thomas Williams Jr. passes audition with second-round KO of Edwin Rodriguez; is Adonis Stevenson next?

Thomas Williams Jr. passes audition with second-round KO of Edwin Rodriguez; is Adonis Stevenson next?
Mark E. Ortega
USA TODAY
April 30, 2016

CARSON, Calif. – Two fights ago, Thomas Williams Jr. had his top prospect status revoked when he was stopped by former champion Gabriel Campillo. Williams has now emerged as a legitimate contender at 175 pounds after stopping Edwin Rodriguez in the second round of their slugfest.

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Leo Santa Cruz stops Kiko Martinez in 5th round in early fight of year candidate

Leo Santa Cruz stops Kiko Martinez in 5th round in early fight of year candidate
Mark E. Ortega
USA TODAY
February 27, 2016

ANAHEIM, Calif. — There were many in the boxing community expecting a Fight of the Year candidate to come out of Saturday night. Most didn’t expect it to come from the Showtime main event between Leo Santa Cruz and Kiko Martinez, but Santa Cruz’s fifth-round TKO victory against Martinez is an early sleeper pick two months into 2016.

Santa Cruz was expected to handle veteran Martinez with relative ease, and through the first few rounds, it looked to follow the script. Santa Cruz put Martinez down twice in the first as he bludgeoned Martinez from the outset. Martinez launched a miniature comeback that was brought to an end in the fifth round when referee Raul Caiz Sr. stopped the bout at the 2:09 mark after Martinez was battered in the corner. Santa Cruz retained the WBA featherweight belt he earned against Abner Mares last August.

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Hugo Ruiz stops Julio Ceja in first round to take 122-pound title; Ceja injures ankle

Hugo Ruiz stops Julio Ceja in first round to take 122-pound title; Ceja injures ankle
Mark E. Ortega
USA TODAY
February 27, 2016

ANAHEIM, Calif. — If Hugo Ruiz was hoping to redeem himself from last August’s fifth-round TKO loss at the hands of Julio Ceja, he did so in emphatic fashion.

Ruiz dropped Ceja with pretty much the first right hand he landed in the fight’s opening seconds. Ceja got back up but was clearly in trouble, and appeared to injure his ankle. This allowed Ruiz to finish him with a volley of punches on the ropes. Referee Tom Taylor halted the bout 51 seconds into the first round, setting up a potential rubber match between the two.

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Abner Mares: Leo Santa Cruz 'never really wanted to face me'

Abner Mares: Leo Santa Cruz 'never really wanted to face me'
Mark E. Ortega
USA TODAY
July 15, 2015

LYNWOOD, Calif. — Leo Santa Cruz and Abner Mares have been on a collision course for several years. With the two finally due to square off, Mares says there’s only one person to blame that it hasn’t happened sooner.

“I pushed for this fight, he never really wanted to face me,” Mares said. “I’ve wanted to fight him for a while. We fought on the same card at Staples Center and I’ve wanted to fight him since then.”

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