On The Watch “It’s All About Ryan Garcia vs Conor Benn”

WBC Welterweight Showdown

Last night’s Zuffa Boxing/Paramount +/DAZN Main Event between WBC Welterweight Champion Ryan “King Ry” Garcia (26-2, 21 Kos) and mandatory challenger Conor “The Destroyer” Benn (25-2, 14 Kos), was a showcase type of an event where the Champion secured the first defense of his WBC Title in a very impressive fashion at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Many anticipated this bout to be a very competitive night of action but what transpired was the complete opposite. Ryan waked it like he talked it and took “The Destroyer” apart by negating Conor’s aggressive style of fighting with a stiff and fast jab landing at will.

Conor felt the power of that jab right away but refused to respect it and continued to press the action in an aggressive manner but paid dearly for it by his own lack of awareness when he got dropped by a heavy overhand right in the second round. Conor bounced back to his feet after the standing 8 count but was clearly not ready for the unanswered onslaught, some misses with some landed coming his way, which then prompted the referee to stop the bout saving Conor from further unnecessary punishment. 

Some will say this bout was stopped prematurely but truth be told, the inevitable was near. This version of Conor (possibly drained from a mean weight cut) was absolutely no match for “King Ry” who was stronger, faster and shooting from all cylinders on the night.

Conor talked a good game on the build-up to the fight but fell miserably short on the night it counted most. Real Talk! With this win Ryan successfully defended his WBC Welterweight Title and his now setting his eyes on a unification bout with newly crowned WBA Super Welterweight Champion Teofimo Lopez.

Until then, congratulations Ryan on a great win!

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Jai Opetaia vs Noel Mikaelian”

Cruiserweight Showdown

Last night’s Zuffa Boxing/Paramount +/DAZN Co-Main Event between Ring Magazine/Zuffa Boxing Cruiserweight Champion Jai Opetaia (31-0, 24 Kos) and WBC Cruiserweight Champion Noel Mikaelian (28-4, 12 Kos) was quite interesting at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Noel, known for his durability and good boxing mind, came into this bout with the utmost confidence and stood his ground as best he could but quickly found out that there are levels to this boxing sh*t and when entering that squared circle opposite of Jai Opetaia, you are bound to find out the hard way.

Jai is rated as the best in the Cruiserweight Division. His skill set does the talking inside that squared circle. That being said, Jai boxed and broke down Noel round by round. Noel did his best to survive and fought back gracefully but eventually succumbed at the hands of the superior combatant. Jai was simply too good and too strong to deterred inside that squared circle.

The pace the combatants were fighting at was simply too much for Noel to keep up with. Noel’s defence was suffering for it and cost him dearly in the ninth round as he got pressed with a barrage of well-placed punches that dropped him into the ropes forcing a standing 8 count where the referee felt Noel hadn’t regained enough of his senses to continue and decided to waive the bout at the 1:30 mark of the round.

With this win, Jai administered Noel his first TKO of his career, retained his Ring Magazine/Zuffa Boxing Cruiserweight Championship Titles but was robbed of receiving Noel’s WBC Cruiserweight Title due to the politics of the sanctioning body. Unbelievable!

Only time will tell who will be the last man standing above the Cruiserweight Division when Jai Opetaia and David Benavidez finally collide, but until then, congratulations Jai on another impressive win.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Rolando Romero vs Teofimo Lopez”

WBA Welterweight Challenge

Last night’s PBC/DAZN/Prime Video Main Event between WBA Welterweight Champion Rolando “Rolly” Romero (17-3, 13 Kos) and Teofimo Lopez (23-2, 13 Kos), was and intriguing matchup that went down at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Fresh off losing his WBO Junior Welterweight Title to Shakur Stevenson and now entering his first bout in the Welterweight Division, Teofimo Lopez did not disappoint. Lopez came in this bout laser focussed with a well-constructed “game plan” that had him looking like the Teo from the pass.

Lopez was sharp, aggressive and active with a steady jab that controlled the action round by round. As for Romero’s approach it was quite underwhelming to say the least. Romero looked disengaged at times and lacked the activity to deter Lopez from pressing the action. Although Romero did have some moments and did manage to cut Lopez over the right eye, Romero neglected to listen to his corner and capitalized as instructed.

  As the rounds progressed, Lopez continued to outwork the champ from all angles by steadily remaining active and on the front foot applying nonstop well calculated pressure, clearly preventing Romero from ever getting any type of offensive action going his way. Romero’s low punch output was very concerning considering what was at stake on the night.

After 12 rounds of one-sided action, the Judges at hand scored it 116-112, 115-113 and 114-114 edging the victory to Teofimo Lopez.

That Judge scoring the bout a draw was straight suspect but the right combatant definitely won this bout.

Congratulations Teofimo on becoming the new WBA Welterweight Champion of the World and a Three-Division World Champion in the process.

Well done, Champ!

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Gilberto Ramirez vs David Benavidez”

WBA/WBO Cruiserweight Showdown

Last night’s PBC/PPV Prime Video Main Event surpassed my expectations when WBA/WBO Cruiserweight Champion Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez (48-2, 30 Kos) took on WBC Light Heavyweight Champion David “The Mexican Monster “Benavidez (32-0, 26 Kos) and completely got dominated by the younger man who was moving up in weight to do battle at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

I anticipated these two warriors who are very familiar with one another after sparing over 100 rounds or so in the past to give us a mind-blowing boxing match but what transpired was the complete opposite.

 Ramirez came out the gate with a “game plan” in mind and proceeded to execute it as instructed in the first few rounds but soon found out that once Benavidez started to let his hands go that this “Mexican Monster” was the real deal under them bright lights.

Ramirez quickly threw the original “game plan” out the ring as Benavidez started to pick up the pace and forced Ramirez into a shootout. As I’ve mentioned in the past going toe-to-toe with “The Mexican Monster” while not being properly prepared is a death trap which Ramirez fell right into. Not being able to match Benavidez punch for punch is detrimental to your health.  

The hand speed in which Benavidez comes at you with has a tendency of breaking most combatants down and it did just that in the final seconds of the fourth round when Benavidez unleashed a barrage of unanswered punches to the head of Ramirez, dropping him to a standing 8 count.

Ramirez either refused or ignored his cornerman’s instructions but the inevitable was near. Ramirez wrongfully continued to stand toe-to-toe and attempted to bang with Benavidez but was visibly breaking down, unable to stand his ground as Benavidez’s speed and clip rate was too much to contend with and eventually succumbed to a deadly three-piece punch combination that closed the show in the sixth round prompting the referee to halt the bout.

To simply put it, Ramirez was outgunned on every level. It was a very impressive and dominate performance by “The Mexican Monster” who now enters History as the first combatant to win Titles at Super Middleweight, Light Heavyweight and now Cruiserweight.

With Benavidez now holding the WBA/WBO Cruiserweight Titles and the WBC Light Heavyweight Title, his options are quite interesting. I can’t wait to see which avenue he decides to tackle next.

Until then, congratulations David.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Mario Barrios vs Ryan Garcia”

WBC Welterweight Showdown

A focussed and more matured Ryan Garcia is a dangerous man and that is who we witnessed at last night’s Ring Magazine/DAZN Main Event when WBC Welterweight Champion Mario Barrios (29-2-2, 18 Kos) defended his title against a hungry looking Ryan Garcia (24-2, 20 Kos) at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Ryan established himself early in the first round after dropping Mario with a well-placed right hand to the dome giving him a standing 8 count and that was a perfect introduction to Ryan’s power.  That one moment in the bout was a game changer as it dictated from the jump how this bout was going to unfold.

Ryan looked sharp, fit, strong and was very accurate with his punch output and visibly more active than what we’re used to seeing from him. Ryan’s ring generalship was on full display. Ryan showed the bigger man absolutely no respect inside that squared circle and dominated the champion from every angle.

That being said, Mario had the wrong “game plan” on the night and looked a shell of himself for it. Ryan’s jab was on point the entire night and Mario had absolutely no clue how to deter Ryan from having success against him. The speed and the power of Ryan’s jab was too much for Mario to contend with. The work rate that Ryan brought inside that squared circle could not be matched by Mario.

After twelve full rounds of one-sided action, the Judges at hand had an easy night of scoring this bout 120-107, 119-108 and 118-109, unanimously for Ryan Garcia.      

There are levels to this boxing sh*t and last night Ryan showed the world what a disciplined “King Ry” can accomplish when dedicated. With this dominant performance under his belt, Ryan has now captured his first World Title as the New WBC Welterweight Champion of the World.

Well done, Ryan. This was by far your best performance to date.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Naoya Inoue vs Ramon Cardenas”

Undisputed Junior Featherweight Showdown

Last night’s Top Rank/ESPN+ Main Event between Undisputed IBF/WBA/WBC/WBO/Ring Magazine Junior Featherweight Champion Naoya Inoue (30-0, 27 Kos) and challenger Ramon Cardenas (26-2, 14 Kos), single handedly saved the entire heavy weekend of boxing by giving us fans the excitement that was missing throughout the weekend when these two warriors graced the inside of that squared circle at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

This bout was action packed from start to finish. Both combatants were very sharp and brought the “HEAT” while exchanging some serious leather with “BOMBS” coming from both sides. Inoue’s aggressive style is very crowd pleasing but can sometimes leave openings when not careful and that is exactly what transpired when he got caught late in the second round with a counter left hook and tasted the canvas for a quick standing 8 count. He brushed himself off though while the fans in attendance erupted with “HYPE” as the action was about to blow up!

From round three, the action picked up from both combatants. I was impressed by Cardenas who stood his ground and fought toe-to-toe and asserted himself quite well and made it an entertaining bout as the rounds progressed.

That being said, a highly motivated Inoue stepped his game up and his pressure as he started to walk down his opponent while administering some heavy shots loaded with combinations. The inevitable was near as Inoue’s onslaught was becoming painfully hard for Cardenas to avoid and he eventually folded in the corner to a standing 8 count in the seventh round. The crowd once again erupted to their feet as Cardenas survived the round.

By the start of round eight the unanswered onslaught came in hot and Cardenas was pinned on the ropes absorbing some serious leather which then prompted the referee to halt the bout. Some will say that the stoppage was premature but truth be told, the end was truly inevitable as the punches were coming in at a higher clip with some serious power behind them.

With this convincing win now under his belt, Naoya Inoue retained his Undisputed IBF/WBA/WBC/WBO/Ring Magazine Junior Featherweight Championship Titles and continues to reign supreme.

Well done, Champ.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About David Benavidez vs David Morrell”

Light Heavyweight Showdown

Last night’s PBC/PPV Prime Video Main Event between WBC Interim Light Heavyweight Champion David Benavidez (30-0, 24 Kos) and WBA “Regular” Light Heavyweight Champion David Morrell (11-1, 9 Kos) was a very entertaining bout from start to finish that lived up to the “HYPE” at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Both combatants wasted no time with the introduction once the first bell rang and proceeded to throw mad leather to feel each other’s power right from the jump. Two very big and strong combatants with different skill sets trying to earn each other’s respect inside that squared circle.

Morell showed power, intelligence and durability and a different type of resistance that Benavidez wasn’t used to dealing with inside that squared circle but what Morell lacked was the professional experience to deter a strong and active warrior with Benavidez’s experience.

Morell found out that going toe-to-toe with the “Mexican Monster” wasn’t the brightest idea. Benavidez’s punch output was key last night. Morell had a hard time keeping up punch for punch with Benavidez as the rounds progressed. Although Morell had his moments and made it a lot tougher on Benavidez, the activity of Benavidez punch connection ratio swayed the rounds in his favor. Those uppercuts and straight body shots landing at will by Benavidez could not be ignored.

That being said, Morell did do good work at times landing some good heavy shots, clearly showing his power and even scored a knock-down with a quick right hook on Benavidez in the 11th round that had the crowd on their feet but surprisingly, the benefit of the knock-down was useless when the referee penalized Morell for hitting after the bell. A suspect call if you ask me.

Benavidez got seriously touched up last night but his offence did a good job at hiding his lack of defence but proved once again that he’s a tough Dude with a higher work rate than most of his opponents inside that squared circle.

That said, after 12 full rounds of action, the Judges at hand scored it 115-111, 115-111 and 118-108 unanimously for David Benavidez. I don’t have a problem with Benavidez being declared the winner but that score of 118-108 is straight out of pocket!

With this solid win now under his belt Benavidez retained his WBC Interim Light Heavyweight Title and snatched the WBA “Regular” Light Heavyweight Championship Title from Morell, giving him an even clearer path to challenge the winner of the Undisputed Light Heavyweight Championship between Undisputed Light Heavyweight Champion Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol on February 22, 2025, at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh Saudi Arabia.

Until then, congratulations David.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About David Benavidez vs David Morrell”

Light Heavyweight Showdown

A very interesting match up has officially been announced. WBC Interim Light Heavyweight Champion David Benavidez (29-0, 24 Kos) will be putting his undefeated record on the line once again by challenging the strong and powerful undefeated WBA “Regular” Light Heavyweight Champion David Morrell (11-0, 9 Kos) on February 1, 2025, in a PPV on PBC/Prime Video Main Event at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Although Morrell has only been in the professional ranks for a short period of time, he has been yearning for a chance to take down Benavidez and prove to the world that although Benavidez is one of the “top dogs” in the Division, he is not the “Mexican Monster” or the “Boogieman” that some in the boxing community perceive him to be.

That being said, Benavidez is a proven warrior who has been taking out the willing contenders brave enough to challenge him one by one. Benavidez is a big Dude who puts his punches together in such a fashion that usually overwhelms his opponents into submission.

Benavidez’s style is what makes this bout interesting to me because Morrell is also big and strong at the weight and has exceptional boxing skills to go along with his own power that could give Benavidez some serious problem on the night.

The trash talking was heavy at the press conference, but one thing was clear to me is that both combatants seemed confident and showed no fear of backing down from one another.

A lot of questions will be answered at the conclusion of this bout. Is this fight too soon for Morrell? Has Benavidez truly met his match by facing Morrell? Who will prevail the No. 1 challenger to the Undisputed Light Heavyweight Champion Artur Beterbiev?

Tune in on PBC PPV Prime Video Saturday night February 1, 2025, live from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and witness this very intriguing showdown unfold.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Canelo Alvarez vs Edgar Berlanga”

WBA/WBC/WBO Super Middleweight Challenge

Last night’s PBC/Matchroom/Prime Video/DAZN Main Event between Unified WBA/WBC/WBO Ring Magazine Super Middleweight Champion “Kingpin” Canelo Alvarez (62-2-2, 39 Kos) and WBA mandatory challenger Edgar Berlanga (22-1, 17 Kos) definitely lived up to the “HYPE” surrounding the Mexico vs Puerto Rico saga at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Real Talk!

Berlanga, who was a massive underdog of the night, surprisingly asserted himself quite well. Edgar stood his ground and felt the pressure of being inside that squared circle opposite of the ‘Kingpin”. Sh*t got real quicky as Berlanga tasted the canvas early in round three from being chin checked by Canelo’s strong left hook but took his standing 8 count like a “G” and proceeded to continue to stand his ground.

That being said, Canelo came out the gate quite aggressive and very active with his hands showing the bully and the bigger fighter Berlanga that things are different when you’re going toe-to-toe with the “Kingpin”.

Although Canelo was visibly the smaller of the two combatants, he was controlling the action inside that squared circle from start to finish. Granted Berlanga had a good strong and effective jab but it had little effect opposite Canelo who walking through his attack while systematically breaking Edgar down round by round.

There are levels to this boxing sh*t and last night school was in session and Canelo was the instructor. Canelo outworked and outpunched Berlanga from every angle. The experience that Canelo possessed was key and quite visible. Although Berlanga did well, the inexperience of facing such a high caliber opponent was a major factor.

After 12 rounds of entertaining action the Judges at hand scored it 117-110, 118-109 and 118-109 unanimously for Canelo Alvarez.

Another young and hungry Lion has tasted defeat for the first time at the hands of the “Kingpin’ and still Unified WBA/WBC/WBO/Ring Magazine Super Middleweight Champion of the World.

Well done, Canelo. Now who’s next?

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Canelo Alvarez vs Edgar Berlanga”

WBA/WBC/WBO Super Middleweight Challenge

It has now officially been announced: the “Kingpin” Unified WBA/WBC/WBO/Ring Magazine Super Middleweight Champion Canelo Alvarez (61-2-2, 39 Kos) will be defending his Crown on September 14, 2024, at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas against Edgar Berlanga (22-0, 17 Kos) giving us that feel of Mexico vs Puerto Rico to look forward too.

Berlanga, who has been chasing this opportunity for quite some time now will be competing in his first world title bout come fight night. Berlanga has been talking up a storm about how he’s the chosen one to beat Canelo and dethrone him of his Crown and No. 1 spot in the Super Middleweight Division but backing those tough talks is a whole different story when you step foot inside that squared circle with the ‘Kingpin” opposite of you.

Mexico vs Puerto Rico has always been a good sell in boxing but the hate that Berlanga has been receiving for being Canelo’s chosen opponent is overshadowing the possibilities this bout could actually bring. Berlanga has no choice but to prove the naysayers wrong by bringing his A game and his best performance come fight night.

We already know what Canelo brings every time out. He takes no opponent lightly and always performs at his best on the biggest stage. This may not be the fight that everyone was looking for but regardless of his opponent Canelo will make this event memorable for all fans in attendance.

Tune in on DAZN/PBC on Prime Video PPV Saturday night September 14, 2024, live at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Blaze