WBA/WBO lightweight title: Juan Manuel Marquez vs. Juan Diaz
Vacant WBO middleweight title: Daniel Jacobs vs. Dmitry Pirog
Sakio Bika vs. Jean Paul Mendy
Jorge Linares vs. Rocky Juarez
Joel Casamayor vs. Robert Guerrero

Marquez-Diaz Rematch Highlights PPV Card originally appeared on About.com Boxing on Saturday, July 31st, 2010 at 17:34:31.

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Heavyweight champ Wladimir Klitschko is still fighting on Sept. 11 in Germany, but his opponent will no longer be undefeated Alexander Povetkin. Povetkin's promoters wanted him to take the fight, which would have resulted in a career-high payday of $2,078,250. However, Povetkin's trainer, Teddy Atlas, didn't think his fighter was ready to face Klitschko and apparently convinced Povetkin to pass on the title shot. Teddy undoubtedly has his fighter's best interest in mind but the 2004 Olympic Gold medalist is 30 years old. If he doesn't believe he's ready now, will he ever have the confidence required to be a champ?

Instead, Klitschko will give Samuel Peter a rematch. Peter has done nothing recently to merit a title shot but he did knock Klitschko down three times in their 2005 meeting (but still lost a unanimous decision because he lost every round in which he did not knock Klitschko down). After back-to-back losses to Vitali Klitschko and Eddie Chambers, Peter has won four straight ... but the wins have come against incredibly weak competition.

As much as Peter is no longer a particularly appealing opponent, he may have been the best available, so credit to Klitschko for keeping the date. David Haye and Nicolay Valuev don't appear genuinely interested in fighting Klitschko. Tomasz Adamek might have jumped at the opportunity if he didn't already have an Aug. 21 date scheduled with Michael Grant. Other veterans with recognizable names - Evander Holyfield, David Tua, Shannon Briggs and Hasim Rahman - have done even less than Peter recently to merit a title shot. So goes the heavyweight division.

New Opponent for Wladimir Klitschko originally appeared on About.com Boxing on Tuesday, July 27th, 2010 at 09:50:18.

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It feels like Zab Judah has been around forever ... yet he's still just 32 years old! That's what happens when you turn pro at 18, score a lopsided decision over Micky Ward at 20 and win your first title belt at 21.

Judah's greatest success came early in his career at junior welterweight (30-1), with only one loss to Kostya Tsztyu in 2001. Since moving to welterweight, Judah is just 8-5 and has consistently come up short when facing top level competition: Cory Spinks (first meeting), Carlos Baldomir, Floyd Mayweather Jr., Miguel Cotto and Joshua Clottey.

Judah has always possessed the physical skills and toughness to be an elite fighter ... but poor preparation, overconfidence and a lack of poise in the ring have derailed what once seemed destined to be a Hall of Fame career.

So, can a move back to junior welterweight, salvage what's left of Judah's career? If Friday night's bout with Jose Armando Santa Cruz is any indication, then the answer appears to be yes. Judah looked sharper - both mentally and physically - than he has in years, stopping the tough but easy-to-hit Santa Cruz via third-round TKO. Santa Cruz got up after being dropped by a perfect left uppercut but referee Benjy Estevez stopped the fight shortly thereafter.

Judah could be a factor at 140 ... if any of the division's elite - Timothy Bradley, Amir Khan, Devon Alexander and Marcos Maidana - are up for the challenge.

Zab Judah Sends a Message: I'm Back! originally appeared on About.com Boxing on Sunday, July 18th, 2010 at 14:32:37.

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Lots of fights - both on and off television - this coming weekend. On Friday night on ESPN2, Zab Judah returns to junior welterweight for the first time since 2003 to take on Jose Armando Santa Cruz. Showtime counters with Fernando Guerrero vs. Ishe Smith, Shawn Porter vs. Ray Robinson and Lanard Lane vs. Mike Dallas Jr.

On Saturday, HBO has rising pound-for-pound star Timothy Bradley vs. Luis Carlos Abregu and Alfredo Angulo vs. Joachim Alcine. Also in action on Saturday are beltholders Fernando Montiel and Juergen Braehmer, plus 37-year-old David Tua and 43-year-old Johnny Tapia.

For complete details, check out our schedule of upcoming fights.

Bradley, Judah, Tua in Action originally appeared on About.com Boxing on Wednesday, July 14th, 2010 at 13:43:30.

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Other fighters being discussed as possible opponents include Antonio Margarito and Miguel Cotto, but there are several other attractive options as well.

Cowboys Stadium, where Pacquaio defeated Joshua Clottey in March, is being considered as a possible site, though Mayweather would likely push for Las Vegas.

If Pacquiao and Mayweather are unable to come to terms, who would you like to see Pacquiao fight next? Vote in our poll.

Poll: Who Should Manny Pacquiao Fight Next? originally appeared on About.com Boxing on Friday, July 9th, 2010 at 09:34:07.

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Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. will likely never escape the shadow of his legendary father but he continues to convince fight fans that he is serious about becoming a champion and not just taking advantage of his family name. In his toughest test to date, Chavez (41-0-1) scored a twelve round unanimous decision over tough and durable John Duddy (29-2) at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.

Every Duddy bout provides good action and this was no exception but Chavez was more accurate, especially in the later rounds, and was awarded with scores of 120-108, 117-111 and 116-112.

After the fight, Miguel Cotto was mentioned as a possible future opponent. Chavez, still just 24, has successfully stepped up from Jason LeHoullier and Troy Rowland (his two prior opponents) to John Duddy. Whether he can step up from Duddy to the elite of the middleweight division remains to be seen.

In the co-feature, Marco Antonio Barrera (66-7), fighting for the first time in 15 months, pitched a near shut out over Adailton De Jesus (26-5). Scores were 100-90, 99-91 and 98-92. The 36-year-old Barrera weighed a career high 141 pounds for this bout but said he intends to drop down to 135 and challenge for a lightweight title.

Chavez Jr., Barrera Earn Decisions originally appeared on About.com Boxing on Sunday, June 27th, 2010 at 17:55:23.

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As the fight wore on, Ward unexpectedly fought on the inside - roughing up the taller and, supposedly, heavier handed Green. Once he discovered a style that frustrated Green, he stuck with it. By the later rounds, Green seemed more like a sparring partner that a title contender as he absorbed punishment but never displayed any urgency to try to turn the fight around with one big punch. In the end, Ward retained his WBA super middleweight belt with a literal shutout, with all three judges scoring the fight 120-108.

Showtime introduced a new punch stat in the fight - combos landed - and while any such stats are fairly subjective, it was telling that they showed Ward outlanding Green by a margin of 42 to 6.

With the win, Ward clinches a spot in the Super Six semi-finals. His next bout is against Andre Dirrell. Green, who replaced Jermain Taylor in the tournament, faces Mikkel Kessler next.

One other note, 41-year-old Showtime analyst Antonio Tarver announced he's moving up to heavyweight and warned the Klitschko brothers and David Haye that he's coming for their title belts. Trading fake punches with Sylvester Stallone while playing a heavyweight in the most recent Rocky movie is one thing, but getting in the ring with one of the Klitschkos? Bad idea.

Andre Ward Bullies Allan Green originally appeared on About.com Boxing on Sunday, June 20th, 2010 at 13:28:40.

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The venue was the star on Saturday night as Yankee Stadium outshone the action in the ring. In the main event, Miguel Cotto successfully moved up to 154 to take the WBA super welterweight title from previously undefeated Yuri Foreman by ninth round TKO. Cotto patiently outboxed the light hitting Foreman in the early rounds and appeared to be on cruise control towards an easy decision (or possibly a late stoppage).

However, things got interesting in round seven when Foreman's right knee - on which he was already wearing a brace - buckled. Foreman gamely continued but his knee was clearly bothering him. In the eighth round, Foreman's corner threw a towel into the ring and the fight appeared to be over as people began entering the ring ... until referee Arthur Mercante Jr. ordered everyone out of the ring so the fight could continue. The confusion only postponed the inevitable as Cotto had no trouble finding the immobile Foreman. Cotto dropped Foreman with a left to the body in round nine and Mercante waved a halt to the action without bothering to count. Cotto was far ahead on all three scorecards at the time of the stoppage (79-73 twice and 78-74).

Cotto looked good but not great in what has to be considered an unsatisfying victory. Foreman gained some respect with his toughness but, as expected, was in over his head in his first fight against a world class opponent.

The first fight at the "new" Yankee Stadium - 34 years after the last fight at the "old" Yankee Stadium - drew a crowd of 20,272 fans.

Cotto Takes Title from Gutsy but Outclassed Foreman originally appeared on About.com Boxing on Monday, June 7th, 2010 at 00:49:59.

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Tomorrow night, Miguel Cotto challenges Yuri Foreman for the WBA super welterweight title at Yankee Stadium, headlining the first fight card to be held at the Yankees' home ballpark since Sept. 28, 1976 when Muhammad Ali won a close 15 round decision over Ken Norton.

Cotto, a native of Puerto Rico, has headlined six fights at Madison Square Garden and has a large and loyal local following. Foreman, who lives in Brooklyn and is best known for training to become a rabbi, can count on the continued support of the New York's city's Jewish population.

Cotto is favored but is already showing signs of slowing down at age 29, following KO losses to Antonio Margarito in 2008 and Manny Pacquiao in 2009 (in addition to grueling wins over Zab Judah, Shane Mosley and Joshua Clottey). Foreman is a highly-skilled boxer but does not possess a lot of power (28-0 but only eight KOs) and has never been in the ring with anyone of Cotto's caliber.

Prediction: Forman boxes well for a while but Cotto eventually break him down and wins by TKO in round eight.

Boxing Returns to Yankee Stadium with Cotto vs. Foreman originally appeared on About.com Boxing on Friday, June 4th, 2010 at 12:52:43.

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The Klitschkos continue to dominate the heavyweight division with no truly threatening challengers on the horizon. Today it was 31-year-old Albert Sosnowski of Poland who got a crack at WBC champ Vitali Klitschko. Sosnowski proved a bit tougher than expected but - as usual - the title remained in the Klitschko family as 38-year-old Vitali scored a tenth round TKO.

Sosnowski landed more shots than recent Vitali opponents (Samuel Peter, Juan Carlos Gomez, Chris Arreola and Kevin Johnson) but was never a threat to actually win the fight. Klitschko hurt Sosnowski in the ninth and finally dropped him with a left-right combination in the tenth. Referee Jay Nady had seen enough and stopped the bout at the 2:20 mark of round ten.

While the title defense received almost no coverage in the U.S., approximately 60,000 fans packed a soccer stadium in Gelsenkirchen, Germany to watch the fight.

The only viable contender for either Vitali or Wladimir Klitschko is Britain's David Haye, a former cruiserweight champ who now holds the WBA heavyweight title. Haye talks a good game but so far hasn't demonstrated any desire to actually get in the ring with either Klitschko.

Vitali Klitschko Stops Sosnowski originally appeared on About.com Boxing on Sunday, May 30th, 2010 at 01:03:23.

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