Noche de Campeones” (Night of Champions)
Cristian Mijares vs. Alexander Munoz
WBC/WBA Unification Super Flyweight Championship
PLUS: Omar Salado vs. Julio Cesar Miranda
WBC Flyweight Eliminator Gomez Palacio, Durango, Mexico
LIVE ON PPV - SATURDAY, MAY 17th

In his biggest fight to date, Current WBC Flyweight Champion Cristian Mijares defended his strap against Mexican crowd favorite Jorge “Travieso” Arce back in Early ’07. Mijares was able to repeatedly counterpunch Arce with crushing combinations and even appearing to almost stop Arce in the eleventh and the twelfth rounds. Now Mijares faces his toughest challenge to date as he goes against only twice beaten and current WBA champion Alexander Munoz in a rare super flyweight unification match. MyBoxingFans spoke with the man who beat Jorge Arce.

My Boxing Fans: Thank you Mijares for this exclusive interview.
Mijares: The Pleasure is all mine.

My Boxing Fans: Did you think that win over Jorge Arce was going to be easy?
Mijares: I knew it was going to be a tough fight. I have seen Arce fight and that is why I was well prepared.

My Boxing Fans: Your pro career started pretty shaky wins three losses early on, but you are in a 20+ fights undefeated streak, what changed?
Mijares: Self-confidence, I know in this sport you loose some and you win some. I set my mind to win and that helped me gain my self-confidence.

My Boxing Fans: Even though you are ranked in the top of five in your weight division on all the major lists but you are hardly known in the US and Mexico, what do you think needs to happen to change that?
Mijares: Your right and that’s my goal, I want everyone to know who I’m.   After my win against Jorge Arce I got great exposure so my plan is to continue to fight big names.

My Boxing Fans: On paper Alexander Munoz seems to be your toughest challenge, how ready are you for this fight?
Mijares: Munoz is a difficult fighter; he is a boxer and that is why I’m 100% percent ready and if God is with me, I will come home with a belt.

My Boxing Fans: Did you train for this fight as any other or did you work on specific techniques for Munoz?
Mijares: I’m training the same, I didn’t change my techniques; every thing has worked for me in my past fights so I am keeping every thing the same.

My Boxing Fans: Do you want to unify the division, maybe going after Montiel if you come out victorious against Munoz?
Mijares: I’m physically well and well prepared to fight anyone. I keep hearing rumors that Jorge Arce wants a rematch so I will prefer to fight him again since it was a big success.

My Boxing Fans: Munoz is considered a hard puncher, are you worried about his power?
Mijares: I am not worry, I’m going to be cautious, I have been in the ring with powerful boxers, Arce hits hard.  The fact that Munoz is a power puncher doesn’t bother me, I have a great chin.

My Boxing Fans: We all know that no fighter likes to look ahead or past their next opponent, but are planning on staying at 115 for long are you ready to conquer other divisions?
Mijares:  That’s part of the plan to move up in division.

My Boxing Fans: How do you feel about Jorge Arce fighting on the same night as you?
Mijares:  It doesn’t bother me; fans are going to watch my fight instead. Arce looks like his ready for retirement, his promoters are trying to bring him back, but fans will follow me you will see.

My Boxing Fans: Being the only man to break Jorge Arce’s undefeated streak, do feel any pressure?
Mijares: It’s a big responsibility.  I can’t let my boxing fans down, after winning against Arce fans expect me to win.

My Boxing Fans: Your final thoughts…
Mijares: First I will like to thank all my boxing fans and on May 17 you will see two warriors in the ring so don’t miss my fight.

Mijares has a lot of class and a lot of speed and nice defense — Styles make fights and the May 17 unification title bout between WBC champion Cristian Mijares and WBA title-holder Alexander “El Explosivio” Munoz has all the makings of an instant classic.

Scores were 115-113, 114-113, and 112-115 for Bradley, who used a sixth round knockdown of Witter to help earn the victory.

"This is a dream come true, not only to win a world championship, but to wear the green WBC belt all fighters want to hold," said Bradley. "I thank Junior Witter for this opportunity, and the judges for rendering a fair verdict even though I was a challenger fighting in the champion's home country. Witter and I showed what world-class boxing was all about tonight, and I promise that I will hold on to this belt for a long, long time."

The 24-year old Bradley, a two-time National amateur champion, improved to 22-0 with 11 knockouts in his first pro bout outside of his native California.

"I couldn't be prouder of Timothy Bradley after this performance," said Ken Thompson, President of Thompson Boxing Promotions, Bradley's co-promoter. "His win tonight proved what we've been saying about Timothy for years - that he is the best junior welterweight in the world and one of the game's future superstars."

Added Gary Shaw, President of Gary Shaw Productions, Bradley's co-promoter, "I knew when I signed Timothy Bradley that he would be world champion.  Bradley's spectacular work ethic combined with his hunger were the elements that worked tonight.  He is a class act with alot of character and good family values that add to his commitment to the sport.  It is those attributes that catapulted him into being a champion for such as stellar organization as the World Boxing Council.  I am always confident in the WBC's selection of judges and tonight reaffirms the faith that I have in them."

A hostile crowd in the beginning received the judges decision with solid applause and appreciation for the new champion in what became a huge upset in boxing.

"I couldn't have done this without my team, and I can't wait to see where we go from here," said Bradley. "Look out world - we're here."

Bob Arum of Top Rank announced last month that WBA welterweight champion Miguel Cotto would defend his title against Antonio Margarito of Tijuana, BC on July 26 at New York's Madison Square Garden.

Insiders have just notified MyBoxingFans that a new location has been chosen for this Mega fight between Puerto Rico vs. Mexico  the fight will be at the beautiful MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The fight is expected to land on HBO pay-per-view.

On a previous poll we did in the beginning of April we asked who you taught would win between Miguel Cotto vs. Anoino Margarito, The results were:

55% said Antonio Margarito will win by KO
20% said Antonio Margairto will win by Decision 12% said Miguel Cotto will win by Decision and 11% said Miguel Cotto will win by KO.

It’s defiantly a fight you can’t miss and MyBoxingFans will keep you update as new information is being released.

If you haven’t subscribe to MyBoxingFans.com is never to late the subscription button is on the top left side bar. Subscribing is totally free.

Three-time champ in two divisions, Zab Judah, 36-5, 25 KOs was going to face Four-time champ in three divisions, Shane Mosley, 44-5, 37 KOs, for the chance to get a rematch against undefeated Miguel Cotto.

Notice I said WAS, insiders are saying that the May 31st fight between Mosley and Zab is off and so is the co-main event Jorge Barrios vs. Rocky Juarez. Judah suffered multiple severe lacerations on his right forearm and received 50 stitches to close the wounds suffered in an accidental fall. As a result, Judah will be unable to train for four weeks and was forced to withdraw from the bout.The Hight Stakes was schedule to take place at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, on May 31.

MyBoxingFans was the first to announce this breaking news and will be the first to information you how zab cut him self. An inside source  spoke with Jack Mosley  (Shane Mosley's Father)  who stated  Zab Judah cut him self from a shower glass door and that is why he received  50 stitches to close the wounds. Apparently he fell in the shower.

Undefeated 24-year-old boxer Timothy Bradley, of Palm Springs, has traveled approximately 2,100 miles total for his 21 professional fights.  In fact, he has fought exclusively in California and never traveled farther than 230 miles from his hometown.  Since turning pro in August 2004, Bradley has fought in Ontario (11 times), Corona (five times), Santa Ynez (three times), Los Angeles (once) and Lancaster (once).

On Saturday, that will change dramatically, however, when the WBC super lightweight No. 1 contender travels 5,300 miles to challenge WBC Super Lightweight Champion Junior Witter in Nottingham, England.  SHOWTIME will televise the world title bout at 10:45 p.m. PT

Ask any boxing fan and I guarantee they can recall in vivid detail where they were at on the morning of May 7, 2007 when news broke of Corrales' fatal motorcycle accident.
I remember when I first met Corrales for the first time at the Staple Center in Los Angeles my brother and couple other friends we’re watching the Erik Morales vs. Zahir Raheem fight when Corrales came from backstage to watch the fight, I remember he was surrounded by boxing fans every one asking to take a picture or get his autograph at that time our seats where not that great it was the upper level, my brother yells from the bleachers “Corrales do you have time for the little people!” and I remember it like it was yesterday Corrales stopped looked at us and started to walk towards us and said “I have time for all the little people” and he just chilled with us for couple of minutes, and to us that was priceless for some one like Corrales to take the time to say hi to nobodies he earn our respect.

Diego "Chico" Corrales (August 25, 1977 – May 7, 2007) was a former super featherweight and lightweight world boxing champion. "Chico" had a professional record of 40-5-0, with 33 wins coming by way of knockout. His first confrontation with Jose Luis Castillo on May 7 2005 will go down as one of the greatest fights ever; this was the fight that sealed his legacy as one of the greatest lower division fighters ever.

Despite amassing the majority of an amateur record of 75 bouts with 53 wins and 22 losses in Kansas including a bronze medal in the ’01 Junior Olympics and silver in the ’02 games, the “Simple Man” decided to move to Tecate, Mexico.  About forty miles east of San Diego the small border enclave has given fruit in better opportunities within the sport “in Kansas there wasn’t many opportunities or we had to travel a long way for tournaments and such so I decided to move in with my uncle in Tecate.”

The twenty year old Orozco earned a bronze medal at the ‘08 Mexican Nationals and owns wins over current US ‘08 Olympic team member Javier Molina and Jessie Vargas of the ’08 Mexican squad.

“Those were about my 5th and 6th fights with the Barragan team.  They helped me get well prepared.  Both were great boxers with a lot of movement but we were able to win both bouts with controlled pressure and by fighting intelligently.  I guess I had the upper hand.”

Waking up at dawn to make the long trek from Tecate to the Barragan Gym in National City, Orozco is completely focused at the task at hand on May 22nd, his first fight as a professional “I’m working on maintaining calm.  As far as the fight, I am going to study the first round and then see if I should come out aggressive for the rest or be cautious and fight intelligently.   Either way, I’m comfortable.”

Barragan Jr. adds “we have been training hard.  He has been looking very promising in sparring so if the KO comes, then that would be the icing on the cake.”

The boxer-puncher who admires current WBA welterweight champ Miguel Cotto for his calm and non flashy demeanor inside the ring feels nervous in regards to his first time in the squared circle in the punch for bucks game ‘like everybody else I do feels somewhat nervous (chuckles), but I’m focusing on concentration and motivation.”

With the full support of his family back in Kansas, his uncle in Tecate and the mother of his soon to be born child in Texas, Orozco has many eyes on him and he feels confident that he will make everyone proud “my family believes as well as I do that I have what it takes to make it in this sport.  I love the discipline that you need to become successful.  I don’t run away from it.”

Carlos Barragan Jr., mirrors the sentiment “he is very much disciplined.  We were at a tournament in Mexico and while everybody else was playing video games, he was reading a book, Of Mice and Men, which is why we call him ‘Simple Man’ because that is just what he is, very simple and well mannered.

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After twelve lopsided rounds (official scores 120-108, 119-109 twice) were fought between Oscar De La Hoya and former lightweight champion Steve Forbes Saturday night in front of 27,000 fans at the Home Depot Center soccer field, many questions were answered.  But the responses to those queries, De La Hoya might not like.

De La Hoya walked away with his 38th win in forty four fights, with only five defeats but was not able to add to the thirty finishes within the distance as he had hoped for.  Even though he seemed like the welterweight De La Hoya of old, he also appeared exactly that, old.

In the pre fight press, De La Hoya stated time and time again that he needed to finish this fight in a spectacular fashion so that he could put his best foot forward towards a September rematch with the pound for pound best Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Through out the fight, De La Hoya showed his intent as he tried to administer devastating power punches to the much shorter and physically smaller Forbes.  But he never seemed to land cleanly against the one of the best purveyors of the Mayweather defensive style.  It is not obvious what De La Hoya can change or improve on in the next five months for when he meets the best example of the shoulder roll tactic in Floyd Jr.

Even though the second dose of DLH-Mayweather will be for the latter’s WBC welterweight title, its significance within the division will not be much even if its viewership and popularity eclipses the true fight fan’s dream come true match up of Cotto-Margarito on July 26th. 

As for Forbes, he might have lost more than the fight which leaves him with a 33-5, 9KO ledger.  Even though one of the reason he might of decided to take the challenge of De La Hoya along with the $600K other ones might have been the exposure he received, from specially designed Tecate beer cans emblazoned with both fighter’s image, four thousand billboards across the nation and the most rated countdown show on HBO, he might of shot himself in the foot.

He might have proved to the rest of the junior welterweight division, which he plans to travel back to after swelling up to 150 lbs. to meet the “Golden Boy”, that he might be the toughest 140 pounder across the board.  Never knocked down or out, Forbes through out Saturday night was able to keep De La Hoya at bay with speed, defensive skills and over all ring smarts.  Not enough to win more than a round according to the judges but enough to survive the twelve round affair unscathed.

So why would the current title holders at 140 lbs step in the ring with Forbes unless they had to? 

By Felipe Leon, SDFights.com

Due to the mega zenith that is Oscar De La Hoya and what was his “Homecoming” this last weekend in southern California, I am sure that not many boxing fans knew or had the opportunity to watch the excellent Showtime produced documentary featuring the Vazquez-Marquez trilogy Saturday night.

Just like the “Golden Boy”-“Two Pounds” bout, the conclusion of the trilogy is known by all those in the know in the sport of boxing.  But to be able delve into the thoughts on the trilogy by respected boxing scribes such as Doug Fisher and Steve Kim of Maxboxing.com, David Ayala of the Riverside Press and Robert Morales of the L.A. Daily News as well as  the two courageous fighters themselves was a treat in itself.

I had the honor and opportunity to attend the first fight of the trilogy in March ’07 at the Home Depot Center.  Even though the contest was not well attended, I knew that it was going to be one for the ages and I did all I could to attend.  Unfortunately, I was not able to secure a spot on the Fightnews writing team which is usually how I get to sit ringside for the major boxing events that occur in the southern California region.  But thru well placed connections I was able to guarantee myself a spot as a second for one of the under card fighters which allowed me free rein of the floor of the event.

As the fight drew near, I found myself a seat in the first row where I was sure not to miss any of the action.  Even though there was an almost tragedy in the semi main event when the Armenian Vic Darchinyan completely devastated a physically over matched Victor Burgos while defending his IBF flyweight title, by the time Jimmy Lennon Jr. gave his now famous “Its Showtime!” tagline, all those in attendance were ready to see the fireworks go off.

As a boxing fan first and a fight reporter second, I was ready to cheer on Israel Vazquez since I believed that he had the upper hand in the bout since he is a natural super bantamweight.  The fact that he is promoted by local Sycuan Ringside Promotions didn’t hurt either.  Given that I was at the fights not as a Fightnews writer but as a fan, I had no qualms in cheering for one of my favorite fighters. 

My plan of willing Vazquez to victory with my claps and hoots was somewhat brought to an end as none other than Nacho Beristain’s youngest daughter ended up in the seat next to mine which made it quite difficult to cheer against the former bantamweight kingpin Marquez.  So I was satisfied to cheer on both fighters in what turned out to be an instant classic.

What I remember most about the night was that the three minute rounds seemed to only last thirty seconds since they were so action packed.  The fact of having two superb ring technicians coupled with their unwillingness to retreat style created a frenzy of power shots and movement that up to that point and after I have never seen.  I grew tired as a tried to concentrate on the subtleness of the fight as I tried to watch their footwork, hands and head movement to see with my own set of eyes two masters at work.

Even though my pick did not leave victorious that night but instead broken and bloodied, nobody and I mean nobody in the whole building felt like a loser.

By Felipe Leon, SDFights.com

IBF/WBO/WBA lightweight Nate Campbell is calling out Juan Manuel Marquez to fight him late July or August. Campbell had this to say: "Let's do this. I'm ready to fight right now I'm ready to fight. I've BEEN ready to fight. I'm getting married in two weeks, and I can go straight to camp after my honeymoon.”

Campbell continues by saying Golden boy promotions is only a broker for TV networks. "That's the problem today. See, all these cats sit around and only fight twice or three times a year, because their "promoter" won't do anything without HBO or Showtime paying the freight. I'm with Don King and One Punch. Now I leave the business stuff up to them, but I'm sure that if Golden Boy came with a reasonable number for Marquez, then Don could do this fight on PPV himself, and not sit around for seven months waiting on a damn date. Doesn't anybody actually promote fights anymore? A reporter who I like a lot told me one time, I won't say his name cause I don't want to jam him up, but anyways, he told me that Don and Arum are the only real "promoters" left anymore. That everyone else are just booking agents for the TV networks. Man, that cat knows his sh-t. So my thing is this. If Golden Boy really wants to make the Marquez fight, and isn't talking about November just to make both me and Marquez unavailable for a possible Pacquiao fight around that time, then lets go ahead and do this. Come up with a reasonable number for Marquez, get out of the way, and let Don distribute the damn fight.

"And one other thing. At least have the damn respect to notify the WBO that after playing all these games with us (Team Campbell and the WBO) for the past month regarding Casamayor fighting me, that you're still gonna do Casamayor-Diaz instead. That way, the WBO can strip his a--, and get him out of the way so either Khan or Peterson could be my WBO mandatory. Not only are you holding me up, but you're holding up these other guys who just want their shot. The shot that they fought for and earned, and the shot that you don't even want. Do the right thing, and stop playing these silly a-- games with peoples' careers."

Photo by Big Joe Miranda on 05/02/08

Vicente Escobedo began landing impressive jabs at the sound of the bell, then unloaded several 1-2 combinations by the third round Arrieta’s right eye started to bleed, Arrieta landed several powerful over hand rights but it was Escobedo’s quick jab that was controlling the fight.

“I looked better than my last fight,” said Escobedo.

By the fourth and fifth round Arrieta change his strategy and worked the body in hopes of slowing Escobedo down, which became effective and weekend the Californian, but he managed to escape the heat. The crowd began to yell “Chente”, Chente!” that was enough to energize Escobedo stiff jab and fired a left-right combination sending Arrieta to the canvas by end of round six.
  
“This guy was durable,” said Escobedo “He connected well to the body, but I was in better shape.”

With blood dripping from your right eye and nose Arrieta survive the schedule ten rounder, but not before unleashing a bag punches with good back-and-forth action but at the end it was Vicente Escobedo who won a unanimous decision.

“He has a bright future,” Arrieta said of Escobedo. “He just needs to work on the small details like defense.”

Some people say Escobedo might be the next Golden Boy and some say Escobedo is Oscar De La Hoya double you be the judge. The judges scored it 99-90 twice and 97-92 for Escobedo.

Other bouts

New York’s Jeffrey Resto (22-2, 13 KOs) from the Bronx pulled out a majority decision in a junior welterweight fight with Tulare, California’s Hector Alatorre (15-4).

“I didn’t feel well I had a pain in my stomach, I felt like vomiting” said Resto “I think it was the water during the rounds that upset my stomach.”
 
The crowd was not pleased at all with the lack of fireworks. In the last three rounds, Resto discover his jab and rallied behind good upper body movement that made it difficult for Alatorre. Alatorre pressed the action with constant flurries against the taller Resto but couldn’t land a telling blow.

“His really tall and has a nice reach, but I think I won the fight you heard the crowed booing him” stated Hector Alatorre who lost the co-main event. The judges scored it 95-95 and 99-92 twice for Resto.

Colombia’s Yonnhy Perez out-boxed Mexican Manuel Sarabia from Culiacan with a pinpoint attack to the head and body thru out the schedule 6 rounds.

Though the judges scored it unanimously for Perez 60-54 twice and 59-55, the experienced Sarabia battled every round like it was his last. It was a tremendous action fight between two very skilled boxers.

Marteze Logan (26-32-2, 6 KO’s) from Tennessee and wearing leopard trunks began the bought like a Leon being unleashed for the first time rushing his pray, but it was Ernest Johnson (17-2-1, 7 KO’s) speed that kept him focus landing 1-2 combinations thru out the rounds.

The fifth round started with a low blow from Johnson, after Logan’s recovery Johnson took advantage of the situation by displaying burst of quick left and rights to the body winning the crowed back and the judges. All three judges scored the bout 60-54 all in favor of San Diego’s favorite Marteze Logan.

Mexican fighter Esau Herrera (13-3-1, 6 KO’s) won a unanimous decision against Sergio Rios (17-6, 15 KOs) in a good back-and-forth action junior middleweights contest. The Oxnard slugger seemed to have the middle rounds but Herrera used his jab to keep distance and win a unanimous decision all three judges score the about 60-54.

In an exciting junior welterweight bout Hector Ramos (2-0) was dropped three times in a schedule four round fight and his opponent Shawn Waite (0-1) was knocked down twice. Ramos overcame three knockdowns to win a unanimous decision. Judges scored the bout 39-38, 38-37 twice all in favor of Hector Ramos.

Photos by Big Joe Miranda

Cabazon, California (May 2, 2008) – Morongo Casino, Resort & Spa has showcased some of boxing’s top fighters in the past year, but what many don’t realize is that Morongo is showcasing some the sport’s top up-and-coming prospects.  Morongo’s May 16 fight card is no different, featuring four top fighters many predict to be future stars in the sport, including undefeated lightweight Michael “The Little Warrior” Franco from Riverside.
Since entering the pro ranks two years ago, Franco has feasted on his competition, amassing an unbeaten record of 10 wins and no losses.  He has displayed his extreme power with seven wins by way of knockout. Franco’s father and trainer Albert Franco, has high hopes for the 20 year old.  He says he has the potential and work ethic to be a top contender.

“Michael is a coach’s dream,” says the elder Franco, “I’ve be involved in boxing for over 40 years and I’ve never seen a fighter as dedicated and work as hard.”  Besides his great power Michael is also a good technical fighter.  He showed his technical game after suffering an injury to his hand.   He was injured for two of his fights that went the distance.  Unable to use his power he simply out boxed his opponents winning both fights by unanimous decision.

“Michael is the real deal and very well rounded fighter,” added his father, “If he keeps up the pace he is about two years away from doors really starting to open.”

Oscar De La Hoya’s, Golden Boy Promotions brings three other top prospects to the May 16, card.  Welterweight and lightweight sensations Juan and Carlos Valazquez return for their third consecutive bout at Morongo along with former amateur star, heavyweight Ashanti Jordan.  The twins hail from Puerto Rico and are both are undefeated; Juan with is 7-0 (4 KO’s) and Carlos is 7-0 (6 KO’s).  Carlos was an Olympian in 2004 and won a gold medal in the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games.  Jordan from San Francisco, a former top ranked amateur is 3-0 (3-KO’s) and is returning for his second consecutive fight at Morongo.

The main event of this card will feature former world champion and Ring Magazine’s sixth rated, junior featherweight, Jhonny Gonzalez 37-6 (31 KO’s) as he battles Mauricio Pastrana 34-8-2 (22 KO’s).  Tickets for this event start at $35 plus applicable taxes and handling fees and are now on-sale at the Morongo box office at 1-800-252-4499 or through Ticketmaster at www.Ticketmaster.com All major credit cards are accepted. 

UNDEFEATED TIMOTHY "DESERT STORM" BRADLEY WEIGHS IN AT 142.6lbs at
WBC MANDATED 7 DAY WEIGH IN

Undefeated and championship-ready Timothy Bradley will battle Junior Witter on Saturday, May 10 from Nottingham Arena in Nottingham, England. The exciting match will be televised on ShoBox: The New Generation Special Edition 10:45 p.m. ET/PT

In his last outing, Witter (36-1-2, 21 KOs), of Bradford, England, finished off Vivian Harris with a stunning, seventh-round knockout.  In his outing before that, Witter again looked every bit the world champion that he is by out-boxing Arturo Morua en route to a ninth- round TKO for his first successful title defense.

Bradley (21-0, 11 KOs), of Palm Springs, Calif., will make his fourth ShoBox appearance. If victorious against Witter, the promising unbeaten will become the 25th ShoBox fighter to win a world title.  Bradley, long considered one of the super lightweight division's top prospects, has won his last two fights by lopsided unanimous decisions.