UFC targets Mexico expansion in 2014

Canada, Brazil, Britain and Australia have all been recent targets of the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s ambitious expansion plans. However, after years of the world’s most prominent mixed martial arts promotion teasing the possibility, Mexico could finally be next.

To date the UFC has never ventured south of the border despite Mexico’s quickly growing circuit of regional fight promotions. But the pieces are falling into place, including a new TV deal and a planned Spanish-language version of The Ultimate Fighter reality series.

UFC executive Marshall Zelaznik, who serves as a managing director of international development, had hoped an event could take place in Mexico this year, but said that’s probably a bit too ambitious.

“I think it’ll probably slide to next year, in Mexico City,” he told USA TODAY Sports. “If we can get The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America and get the live event in Mexico City, that will really token charge our business there.”

In addition to 17 American seasons of its competition/reality series, the UFC has hosted three international installments of TUF. The second wrapped Saturday in Brazil, and an Australia vs. Britain version took place in 2012. Zelaznik said TUF: Latin America could feature fighters from a host of Spanish-speaking countries.

“It’s all one language, so it’s very workable,” he said.

The UFC also would have a suitable TV presence. This past month the organization announced a joint-venture deal with Televisa Networks. As in Brazil, where the organization has a partnership with media company Globo, the Televisa deal will include free UFC programming on existing channels, including the popular Canal 5 in Mexico, and the launch of a new pay-TV channel. It could launch as soon as September.

“It’s significant because Televisa is as big in Mexico and Latin America as Globo is in Brazil,” Zelaznik said. “To have the complete ownership and management of Televisa behind it, I think is going to speak well for how quickly this channel can grow.”

Of course, as with other markets, the UFC’s success in Mexico could hinge on its ability to build and promote local talent. Mexican-American Cain Velasquez, the UFC’s reigning heavyweight champion, is already a star in the country, and bantamweight Erik Perez is a rising bantamweight contender.

In January UFC officials went to Mexico for a scouting trip. More than a hundred UFC hopefuls attended, and UFC President Dana White said it could lead the UFC to adopt its ninth weight class, a 115-pound strawweight division, built primarily around Mexican fighters.

“The culture in Mexico, they’re fighters,” White said at the time. “The greatest fighters in history come from Mexico, and there’s that whole famous Mexican style of fighting.”

If the UFC’s expansion into Mexico proves successful, it could set the blueprint for the rest of the world. That’s especially true of the pay-TV channel. “For us internationally, there’s a lot of opportunity,” Zelaznik said. “Pay TV is growing, and our ability to launch a channel like this becomes very scalable very quickly.” (Source)

Fun Facts and Stats About UFC 161’s Rashad Evans, Dan Henderson and Roy Nelson

UFC 161 is fast approaching, and barring some last-minute injury, the fight card is locked in.  The main event may not be the fight that was originally scheduled for the June 15 event, but fans should still be very happy with the fact that Rashad Evans and Dan Henderson are now occupying the headlining spot.

In the co-main event, Roy Nelson stepped up to the card on short notice and accepted a fight with Stipe Miocic.

As the clock ticks down toward the next UFC pay-per-view, here are a few handy stats and facts to get you ready for the fight card—well, at least for the main event and co-main event. (Source)

UFC on Fuel 10 Results: Musings on the Nogueira vs. Werdum Fight Card

UFC on Fuel 10 sure tested the patience of the fans viewing the card on television on Saturday night. That's no reflection on the fighters, who did a fine job of not letting the fights go to the judges. However, those early stoppages had their drawbacks, the main one being that the UFC and Fuel TV had a lot of time to fill. To fill that time, we were treated to an endless loop of the same commercials.

Let's try to put that behind us and just focus on what happened inside the Octagon on Saturday night in Brazil. (Source)

Late Gatti enshrined among greats of boxing

Mike Sciarra was wearing a blue warm-up suit with the word “GATTI” written across the back. On his wrist was a watch circled in diamonds that his friend Arturo Gatti had given him for his 44^th birthday six years ago.

“I don’t usually wear stuff like this,” Sciarra said, referring to the expensive watch. “But Arturo said I had to look good if I was going to be with him during special occasions.”

There could be no more special occasion than Gatti’s induction yesterday into the International Boxing Hall of Fame. Gatti died in 2009, his body found in a beachfront condo in Brazil. Brazilian law enforcement officials have ruled his death a suicide though some closest to Gatti believe he was murdered.

“Arturo would never give up. He’d never throw in the towel,” longtime manager Pat Lynch told the audience assembled for the ceremony. “Arturo Gatti never quit in the ring and I guarantee you he’d never quit in life.”

Lynch, along with Main Events promoter Kathy Duva and foe-turned-friend Micky Ward, accepted Gatti’s enshrinement on behalf of the Gatti family. At one point Lynch lifted Gatti’s 7-year-old daughter, Sofia Bella, to the microphone. In a brave voice, she told the crowd: “Thank you for my Daddy.”

This was a day to celebrate Gatti’s career and not debate the circumstances of his death, though emotions remain raw.

“I miss him to death every day and I think about him every day,” Ward said. “He’s always with me and I know he’s here.”

Added Lynch: “This is a tough moment for all of us.”

Though he was a three-time world champion, compiled a record of 40-9 with 31 knockouts and repeatedly sold out Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, there are those who challenge his credentials to receive boxing’s ultimate honor. But friends Sciarra and Chuck Zito insist their friend is worthy.

“He was the original blood-and-guts warrior,” Zito said. “Every fight, he gave you your money’s worth. He never took a step back. That was just the kind of fighter he was. That’s why he would have died in the ring instead of taking his own life.”

Sciarra added: “When he stepped in that ring, he stepped in that ring with his heart and his soul to honor his family. Nobody fought like him unless you watch fights from the ’50s when we weren’t born. He was a throwback fighter. When he fought, you never sat in your chair.”

Also enshrined yesterday were referee Mills Lane, ring announcer Jim Lennon Jr., British journalist Colin Hart and South Korean boxer Myung-Woo Yuh. The living inductees were all introduced and seated before Gatti’s name was mentioned before a list of Hall of Famers who died in the last year.

Ward recalled the three fights he had with Gatti, a trilogy of 10-round bouts that were all-time classics. “It was 30 rounds of non-stop action,” Ward said. “I became great friends with him after we fought. Obviously, he was a great fighter, but he was a great person.”

Zito tweeted Gatti’s plaque in the Hall of Fame museum and was thrilled by the response.

“They said he was a human pit bull, a true warrior and that you don’t see fighters like that anymore,” Zito said. “I’m glad I’m here.”

So were a bevy of Gatti fans, including his son, 4-year-old Arturo Gatti Jr., who wasn’t acknowledged but was in attendance after making an 8-hour drive from Montreal with a family friend.

“I came to see my daddy,” he told The Post. His mother, Amanda Rodrigues, who was briefly jailed for suspicion of Gatti’s murder and was later released, was not in attendance. (Source)

Ranking the 10 Best Cities to Host a Marquee Boxing Event

Who doesn’t love a huge fight?

Marquee boxing matches, despite the naysayers who proclaim the sky is falling, are still huge sporting events. There’s a reason that the top two people on the recently released Forbes magazine list of the highest grossing pro athletes are boxers.

A lot of things need to come together for a huge event. You obviously need fighters who can make a good fight, and who people want to see. But you also need a good location. The atmosphere in the arena, the fans, the host city can make or break an event.

While we can’t take care of the fighters part of the equation, we certainly can rank the 10 best cities to host a marquee boxing event. (Source)

China seeking four titles in Cuban boxing tournament

Four Chinese boxers have reached the finals of the Cuban 43^rd International Boxing Tournament Giraldo Cordova Cardin, which ends Sunday in Havana after almost one week of fights.

Li Bing, from the 49-kilogram category, Wen Yinhang, from the 75-kg, Wang Xuanxuan, from the 91-kg and Zhang Zhilei, from the over 91-kg, will go up the boxing ring searching for victory on Sunday.

Li defeated Venezuelan Ronald Chacon in a close fight while Wen was much better than Karl Heel from Bahamas. Wang won by disqualification of Colombian Deivi Blanco and super heavyweight Zhang easily won by default of his teammate Gu Guangming.

The other Chinese boxer in semifinals, Men Fanlong, from the 81-kg division, lost to Cuban world champion Julio Cesar La Cruz, who showed more offensive effectiveness, as well as mastery to shun and shift.

One of the most expected final fights is the one between Zhang, Olympic runner-up in Beijing 2008, and Yoandi Toirac, who is considered Cuba’s currently greatest boxer.

Wang will face Cuban boxer Erislandy Savon, while Wen takes on Russian Petya Khamukov and Li meets Cuban Yosbani Veitia. (Source)

Conquering Irish boxing heroes welcomed at airport

Another year can only mean another triumphant homecoming at Dublin Airport for Ireland’s amateur boxers.

Ireland’s four medal winners came home last night from Minsk as pound-for-pound the best team in Europe, second in the medal table behind the Goliath that is Russia, which has 25 times the population.

The haul of two gold medals, for Jason Quigley and John Joe Nevin, and two silvers, for Paddy Barnes and Michael Conlon, could have been even more had light-heavyweight Joe Ward’s ambitions to win back-to-back European championships not been derailed by, of all things, a clash of knees.

Light-flyweight Barnes was thwarted in his attempt to go for gold by a broken nose.

“My modelling career is still intact,” said Olympic bronze medal winner Barnes, as adept with the jokes as he is with his fists.

The colourful Nevin clan were out in force to welcome home John Joe, who not only won gold in his bantamweight division but was also chosen the boxer of the tournament.

Nevin’s two-year-old son, Martin, was there to welcome home his father, who turned 24 on Friday, as was Nevin’s mother, Winnie.

Emotional hug

There was an emotional hug between father Conor Quigley and his triumphant son, who won a surprise gold in the middleweight division.

Jason Quigley sported two black eyes from his epic semi-final battle with Ievgen Khytrov, and was understandably looking forward to the long trek back to Stranorlar in Co Donegal, his own bed and his mother’s home cooking, having been away for four weeks.

“When you are away in these countries, the food can be dodgy enough,” he quipped, a remark that is unlikely to win him plaudits from Belarus tourism board.

His father is head of Ireland’s boxing high-performance coaching unit and also his son’s coach, but could not travel to Belarus because his visa did not arrive on time. “We’re running about pinching ourselves to see if we are still alive. It’s an unbelievable achievement for a young lad who has just turned 22,” he said. (Source)

Arturo Gatti’s finest day: Hall of Fame induction

Boosted so she could reach the microphone and speak on a most special day for her late father, 7-year-old Sofia Gatti beamed.

“Thank you from my dad,” she said Sunday as Arturo “Thunder” Gatti was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

On a day that included six deceased inductees, Gatti remained fresh on the mind of everybody, especially his longtime manager Pat Lynch.

“It’s a tremendous accomplishment for Arturo. This little girl here shall have this memory forever,” said Lynch, who fought back tears when he spoke. “It was so great to see his mom and all of them come down to celebrate such a brilliant career. It’s a truly deserving award for him. I know he’s looking down with a big smile on his face.”

Also inducted were: Virgil “Quicksilver” Hill, a five-time world champion who won a silver medal at the 1984 Olympics and defended his light heavyweight title 20 times over his two reigns; two-time light flyweight champion Yuh Myung-woo of South Korea; lightweight Wesley Ramey and middleweight Jeff Smith in the old-timer (posthumous) category; 19^th century Irish boxer Joe Coburn in the pioneer category; referee Mills Lane, whose “Let’s get it on” prefight chant endeared him to boxing fans; ring announcer Jimmy Lennon Jr.; manager Arturo “Cuyo” Hernandez; cartoonist Ted Carroll; and journalist Colin Hart.

Inductees were selected by the Boxing Writers Association and a panel of international boxing historians.

Born in Calabria, Italy and raised in Montreal, Gatti moved to Jersey City, N.J., as a teenager. He retired in 2007 with a record of 40-9 with 31 knockouts and won titles in two divisions.

Gatti died at age 37 in Brazil in July 2009. His body was found at an apartment that he had rented with his wife and their infant son in a seaside resort. Police initially held Gatti’s wife as a suspect, but eventually released her and concluded Gatti hung himself from a staircase railing using a handbag strap.

He was selected for the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.

“He always used to say to us, ‘Do you think I’m going to be in the Hall of Fame?’ “ Lynch said. “I said, ‘Of course. They can’t stop you from being in the Hall of Fame. You’re deserving.’ It’s just a great celebration.”

“Irish” Micky Ward had three memorable bouts with Gatti. Ward won his first junior welterweight fight against Gatti, blood streaming down his face as he captured a majority decision in May 2002. Gatti avenged the loss in Atlantic City, N.J., knocking down Ward in the third with a punch that shattered one of Ward’s eardrums and sent him face-first into a stanchion. Gatti broke his right hand in the fight and won a unanimous 10-round decision.

Gatti triumphed over Ward with a 10-round decision in the rubber match in June 2003, and it was another brutal slugfest. It wasn’t a title fight but had that feel as a raucous sellout crowd of 12,643 _ the largest ever for a non-heavyweight fight in Atlantic City _ packed Boardwalk Hall.

Gatti was in control for most of the bout, outpunching Ward and never allowing him to get close enough to throw one of his signature left hooks to the body. Bleeding from an early pounding, Ward rallied after Gatti reinjured the right hand he’d broken seven months earlier.

Over the last four rounds the exhausted fighters stood toe-to-toe, teeing off on one another. After the fight, the two shared a bottle of water and hugged, then went to Atlantic City Medical Center, where they lay side by side in the emergency room while being treated.

Small wonder that Ward was touched on this day.

“It’s funny how I became great friends with him,” said Ward, who spoke briefly. “Even though he beat me, I miss him to death every day. I know he’s here. I’m just happy for his family. I’m proud of him like you wouldn’t believe. With the people being here and his family and friends and his daughter being here, it made it worthwhile.”

The 76-year-old Lane, who suffered a stroke in 2002 that left him partially paralyzed and unable to speak, was helped onstage by his two sons. Lane, who refereed the infamous “bite fight” between Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield, waved triumphantly to the crowd, holding aloft his new ring and smiling broadly.

“This is the happiest I’ve seen him, which is so important,” Tommy Lane said. “We’ll treasure this the rest of our lives. Let’s get it on!”

Touched, too, by the moment, Lennon credited his dad, a ring announcer for nearly a half-century, with his success. Lennon, who began his career as a backup to his father at the Olympic Auditorium and the Forum in Los Angeles before moving to Showtime in 1991, said it felt odd getting inducted before his dad and made a pitch for that to happen.

“He used to tell me what I did well instead of what I did wrong,” Lennon said. “When his health was failing and he was in the hospital and not able to get the fights on TV, he would be on the phone with my mom on the other end holding her receiver up to the television so he could at least hear me announce.” (Source)

Boxing: What more could Angulo have given us?

Cus D’Amato once said, “When two men are fighting, what you’re watching is more a contest of wills than of skills, with the stronger will usually overcoming the skill.”

On Saturday night in Carson, Calif., Erislandy Lara’s demonstrative advantage of skill over Alfredo Angulo only served to inflame Angulo’s reserve of willpower. The elegance of Lara’s skills simply weren’t capable of removing Angulo’s will from the equation of the fight. Then, in the fourth round, Angulo’s fiendish efforts were rewarded when he dropped Lara, the first knockdown Lara has suffered as a professional. For the duration of the round, every fan in attendance stood to roar approval. Round after round, Angulo took even more risks, applying pressure and striving to close out the fight while eating enough leather to reconfigure his face. Again Angulo dropped Lara, yet the Cuban got off the deck to continue.

In the 10^th round, Angulo ate nearly everything Lara threw at him in order to land something meaningful of his own. Then a crisp left hand from Lara struck the swelling over Angulo’s eye. Angulo grimaced as another left followed, then another, and finally the referee called off the bout, fearing a broken orbital bone.

Boos. Beer tossed into the ring. “Tijuana style!” a writer next to me laughed. Everywhere you looked, aggrieved faces contorted in expressions of betrayal.

It was all a little incomprehensible to me. Everyone on hand had enjoyed a brilliant fight stopped only after one fighter’s health was gravely in danger.

Boos?

Wait a minute. When exactly was enough enough? What was the expectation here?

Victor Ortiz quit against both of Saturday’s headliners, Marcos Maidana and Josesito Lopez. Were those unreasonable decisions? In one of those fights, Ortiz’s jaw was broken in two places. Should he have been booed for not fighting on with a broken jaw, as Muhammad Ali did against Ken Norton? Ali was praised for such courage. Oscar De La Hoya was fully capable of getting off his stool to continue against Manny Pacquiao, yet sensibly recognized the futility. Does he get a pass? At the time, his corner asked if he felt like continuing, and Oscar didn’t launch much of a protest when it was suggested he not bother. Joe Frazier was legally blind in the only good eye he had left against Ali in the “Thrilla in Manilla.” Was his trainer, Eddie Futch, right to call off the fight? Did Futch betray his fighter?

What about the most famous quitter in boxing history? Is Duran’s “No Mas” a more defining moment in his career than his victory over Sugar Ray Leonard in their first fight? For many, it is. Mike Tyson notoriously looked for a way out against Evander Holyfield when it was clear Holyfield had his number. Suddenly, Tyson’s cowardice in gnawing off Holyfield’s ear overshadowed nearly everything he had accomplished as a fighter. Twice, Andrew Golota snatched defeat from the jaws of victory against Riddick Bowe when he swung gratuitously low. His career never recovered.

So in boxing, when is it acceptable to quit? How much abuse is a fighter expected to endure before he can be allowed to show some concern for his own welfare? Anyone who has been around fighters knows they all share the same secret: They are more afraid of embarrassment and humiliation than injury. Do fans and writers use this fact against them in what we celebrate or criticize?

In the documentary “Facing Ali,” nearly half the fighters involved required subtitles despite speaking English, their speech slurred by the physical toll of their ring lives. This was their reward for testing their furthermost physical and mental boundaries.

As Guillero Rigondeaux’s recent near-shutout of 2012 ESPN.com fighter of the year Nonito Donaire demonstrated, the days of fans cheering Willie Pep for winning a round without throwing a punch are long over. Arturo Gatti’s induction into the Boxing Hall of Fame is further testament of boxing giving fans what they clearly reserve their loudest cheers for: fighters who lay their lives on the line at every possible moment of every fight. The truth is, fighters have always done this. We just didn’t used to boo the ones who committed the cardinal sin of trying to minimize some of the risk. (Source)

Boxing: Fury v Haye ‘99 per cent done’

The unbeaten Mancunian made the claim after speaking to Haye’s manager Adam Booth at James DeGale’s successful WBC super-middleweight silver title defence against Stjepan Bozic in Bluew

Speaking on Channel 5, the 25-year-old Fury said:

“I was minding my own business over there and I bumped into Adam Booth, so we got him on camera and we asked him: ‘Why is the David Haye fight not being done,’ and he said: ‘Do you want the fight?’ so I said: ‘Two million per cent. The ball is in your court so call me tomorrow morning.’

“He said: ‘I cant see why this fight cannot be done’ - so there it is from the horse’s mouth. Adam Booth says he wants this fight. The fight is 99 per cent baby!”

Talks had been reportedly ongoing for some time, but Fury’s comments imply any contact was only made recently.

Fury later told SportsMail that he would love to fight Haye in Manchester, but would be happy with London.

“I’d love it to happen in Manchester but we might flip a coin to see where it happens.

“I can beat David Haye because I’m the greatest fighter that’s ever lived; that’s ever stepped out of Britain.

“My plan is to knock out Haye, then Klitschko, Klitschko. And then vacate a title for my younger cousin Hughie Fury to beat Mike Tyson’s record to become youngest ever heavyweight champion,” Fury added.

An injured Fury recently pulled out of an IBF eliminator clash with Kubrat Pulev, which would have given the winner a mandatory challenge against champion Wladimir Klitschko.

Haye, 32, is a former WBA world champion but failed in his bid to take Wladimir’s three belts in 2011. He then retired, although reversed his decision to fight fellow Londoner Dereck Chisora in 2012. (Source)

Boxing: DeGale eyes rematch with Groves

Fresh from defending his WBC silver super-middleweight title against Stjepan Bozic, James DeGale has called for a rematch with fellow Brit George Groves.

DeGale collected the victory over Bozic on Saturday thanks to a technical knockout in the fifth round, and notched up his sixth win on the spin since losing out to Groves in 2011 by a close points decision.

And the Olympic gold medallist wants to take on Groves at Queen’s Park Rangers’ Loftus Road in a potential eliminator for a super-middleweight world title fight.

“I’d box Groves in my next fight, but I swear to God he does not want to box me. He doesn’t want it,” DeGale said.

“That’s a massive fight. That could sell out QPR football stadium. I’d love to fight there. That’s my local club. I was brought up on that club - my granddad is a mad supporter.”

DeGale’s promoter Mick Hennessy added the fight against the WBA holder Groves should be for the vacant WBC belt.

“Why not a final eliminator with George Groves for the WBC title [where] everything’s on the line?” he said. (Source)

Huck retains WBO title against Briton Afolabi in Berlin

German Marco Huck retained his WBO light heavyweight title by defeating Briton Ola Afolabi for a second time on points in Berlin.

Huck’s victory was not unanimous, with two favouring the Serbian-born fighter (117-111, 115-113) and the other scoring it level (114-114).

Huck rocked the Londoner - who had ‘Kryptonite’ written on his waistband - in the fourth then Afolabi came back to finish strongly, landing a few hard blows, but it was not enough.

Huck, 28, improves to 36-2-1 (25 KOs) in making the 11^th defence of his title while Los Angeles-based boxer Afolabi, 33, is now 19-3-4 (9 KOs).

It was the third confrontation between the two men: Huck won the first on points in 2009 and the rematch in 2012 ended in a draw.

Early last year Huck fought WBA heavyweight champion Alexander Povetkin of Russia but lost on points. (Source)