Huck retains WBO Jr. Heavyweight belt with KO of Rossi

Baden –  Wurttemberg, Germany (Sports Network) – Marco Huck knocked out Rogelio Omar Rossi in the sixth round to retain his WBO cruiserweight title on Saturday.

Germany’s Huck (34-1, 25 KO) knocked down Rossi (17-3, 11 KO) in the third round and sent him to the canvas twice more in the fifth.

At the beginning of the sixth, Huck pounded Rossi with a combination of punches. Rossi eventually went down cold and laid on the mat for several minutes. The ref called the fight as soon as Rossi hit the ground.

After getting up, Rossi was taken away on a stretcher.

The weights are in for Saturday’s big event in Ludwigsburg. Marco Huck will defend his WBO cruiserweight title against tough Rogelio Rossi. In the co-feature, Dominik Britsch will face Billy Lyell in a middleweight contest, and Kubrat Pulev takes on Travis Walker in a battle of heavyweights. Photos by Photo Wende

FULL WEIGHTS AND PHOTOS

Rogelio Rossi: 89,6 kg [197.5-pounds]

http://www.boxingscene.com/photos-weights-huck-vs-rossi-britsch-vs-lyell-pulev–45180

WBO Cruiserweight Champion Captain Huck (33-1, 24 KOs) could not believe his eyes when he met challenger Rogelio Rossi (17-2-1, 11 KOs) at today’s press conference in Ludwigsburg, Germany. Listed at 6’6, the “Argentinian Giant” turned out to be much smaller than that. “Maybe he shrunk of fear,” Captain Huck said. “Doesn’t matter anyway. I don’t care what size he is. I have knocked out taller and smaller opponents. I will clinch a spectacular victory on Saturday night. He will not get my title.” Huck then measured his opponent. The result: 6’3 and a half!

Rossi seemed to enjoy the confusion regarding his height. “It’s true, I’m not two meters tall,” he stated. “But I will still defeat Huck. If you’re scared, your opponent looks much bigger than he actually is. I guess this has happened to Huck. I will take his title on Saturday night. I have trained hard and I will win.”

German coaching legend Ulli Wegner said Rossi’s actual size will make no difference. “We have done sparring with tall guys and with small guys, we are prepared for everything,” he stated. “If Rossi was clever, he would have stood on tiptoes during the face-to-face to look bigger than he is. I don’t think he can cope with Huck’s explosiveness and aggressiveness anyway.”

In the co-featured main event, IBF Intercontinental Middleweight Champion Dominik Britsch (25-0, 9 KOs) defends his title against Billy Lyell (24-9, 5 KOs), while unbeaten heavyweight sensation Kubrat Pulev (13-0, 6 KOs) takes on Travis Walker (38-6-1, 30 KOs) for the IBF International Heavyweight Title.

Photos: Sauerland Event
http://www.fightnews.com/Boxing/rossis-size-stuns-huck-99083

WBO Cruiserweight Champion Captain Huck (33-1, 24 KOs) could not believe his eyes when he met challenger Rogelio Rossi (17-2-1, 11 KOs) at today´s press conference in Ludwigsburg, Germany. Listed at two meters by BoxRec, the “Argentinian Giant” turned out to be much smaller than that.

“Maybe he shrunk of fear,” Captain Huck said. “Doesn´t matter anyway. I don´t care what size he is. I have knocked out taller and smaller opponents. I will clinch a spectacular victory on Saturday night. He will not get my title.” Huck then measured his opponent. The result: 192 centimeters!

Rossi seemed to enjoy the confusion regarding his height. “It´s true, I´m not two meters tall,” he stated. “But I will still defeat Huck. If you´re scared, your opponent looks much bigger than he actually is. I guess this has happened to Huck. I will take his title on Saturday night. I have trained hard and I will win.”

German coaching legend Ulli Wegner said Rossi´s actual size will make no difference.

“We have done sparring with tall guys and with small guys, we are prepared for everything,” he stated. “If Rossi was clever, he would have stood on tiptoes during the face-to-face to look bigger than he is. I don´t think he can cope with Huck´s explosiveness and aggressiveness anyway.”

http://www.boxingscene.com/photo-huck-says-rossi-shrunk-final-presser–45114

Erfurt, Germany – Rising heavyweight WBO Intercontinental champion Robert Helenius (16-0, 11KOs) knocked out former WBO champion Sergei Liakhovich (25-4, 16KOs) in the ninth round. At the time of the stoppage, Helenius was winning on the official cards by way of a split decision, with scores of 77-74 and 76-75 for Helenius and 76-75 on the third for Liakhovich.

Liakhovich did not arrive to Germany to lay down. He gave it his all, swelling the face of Helenius in the early rounds and digging to the head and body. Liakhovich was having problems breathing with a possible broken nose, with Helenius taking over the fight with hard punches to the former champion’s face.

In the eight round, Helenius began to batter Liakhovich with hard punches to send him down to his knees in the final twenty seconds. Liakhovich made it up before the bell.

At the start of the ninth, Helenius unloaded on Liakhovich with massive shots to send him down for a second time. The referee stopped the fight as Liakhovich’s corner threw in the towel at the same time.

By Alexey Sukachev
http://www.boxingscene.com/?m=show&opt=printable&id=43096#ixzz1b9KVSSML

Former WBO heavyweight champion Siarhei Liakhovich (25-3, 16 KO’s) faces young heavyweight contender Robert Helenius (15-0, 10 KO’s) in two weeks on August 27th at the Messehaille, Erut, Thuringen, Germany. Helenius, 27, ranked #2 WBO, #3 IBF, #9 WBA, #13 WBC, is quickly moving up the heavyweight rankings after an impressive 9th round TKO win over Samuel Peter on April 2nd. Helenius beat Peter even more impressively than world champion Wladimir Klitschko did in beating Peter last September.

Helenius has good size at 6’6″ 240 lbs, and is hard to hit because of his long reach and ability to fight on the outside. He doesn’t hit as hard as the Klitschkos, but he’s got good enough power to worry any heavyweight in the division. It’s interesting that Wladimir and Vitali Klitschko haven’t gone after him yet, because he’s easily the best option available in the heavyweight division right now. He would be a very tough fight for either of the Klitschkos. Although I think they’re both too good for him right now, this could change in the near future if he continues to improve.

Liakhovich, 35, hasn’t done much since losing his World Boxing Organization title to Shannon Briggs in 2006. For some reason, Liakhovich has fought only three times since that defeat, losing another fight to Nikolay Valuev two years later in February 2008, and then beating a couple of B level fighters in Jeremy Bates and Evans Quinn to get to this fight. It goes without saying that Liahovich has really wasted a lot of time with his career. He easily should have fought at least 14 times since the loss to Briggs, and it’s mind boggling how much time and money he’s lost out on by being so inactive. At 35, it’s hard to see Liakhovich having much of an impact on the heavyweight division. However, it’s possible if he can somehow win this fight that he could find himself in against one of the Klitschko brothers to get a nice payday.

Helenius will probably be too big and powerful for the 6’4″ Liakhovich in this fight. It really depends on which Liakhovich shoves up for the fight. If he fights like he did in beating Lamon Brewster by a 12 round decision to capture the WBO title in April 2006, then I can see him possibly beating Helenius. However, if Liakhovich fights the same way he did against Valuev by fighting passively, then it’s going to be an easy win for Helenius.

By Jason Kim

Helenius vs. Liakhovich will be a war while it lasts

Maxim Pediura (13-2-1, 11 KOs) is one of the sparring partners for rising heavyweight giant Robert Helenius (15-0, 10 KOs), who trains hard in camp for his upcoming fight on August 27th in Germany, when he fights for the WBO intercontinental belt against former heavyweight champion Sergei Liakhovich (25-3, 16 KOs).

By Wilhelm Springer, box-info.net
http://www.boxingscene.com/photos-robert-helenius-training-hard-liakhovich–42614

Marco Huck (33-1, 24 KOs) will defend his World Boxing Organization (WBO) Cruiserweight Title for the eighth time in Ludwigsburg, Germany next Saturday when he is challenged by Argentinian southpaw Rogelio Rossi (17-2-1, 11 KOs). Boxing-online.com has caught up the Captain in his training camp base in Kienbaum near Berlin.

Q: After knocking out Hugo Hernan Garay in July, you got married. Does being a husband change anything inside the ring?

MH: “Not at all. Inside the ring, it does not matter whether I am married or not. I am all by myself. There is only my coach Mr. Wegner who is trying to push me as hard as he can. But at the end of the day it´s just me and my opponent.”

Q: Your challenger Rogelio Rossi is taller than you. Have you changed anything in your preparation?

MH: “I have done sparring with a lot of tall guys. I don´t care what size Rossi is. He will go down. I enter the ring to win and to please my fans. And they can again expect an explosive performance.”

Q: Argentinian fighters always seem to have a very big heart, great fighting spirit and superb condition. How do you think the fight will go?

MH: “I have trained for 12 rounds. I think the fight will last long because, as you say, the guys from Argentina really come to fight. I will give everything from the first second onwards and it will be an exciting clash.”

Q: Two years ago, you made your first title defence in Ludwigsburg against Ola Afolabi. In retrospect, what do you think of that fight?

MH: “It was a big win for me. I defended my belt but I had to overcome some tough moments. The fans carried me when things got rough and that helped me a lot. I know I can count on their support again this time out.”

Q: What has changed since that fight?

MH: “A lot of things. I am an accomplished world champion these days. I have defended my title seven times. When I started, it was my dream to get a professional contract with Sauerland Event, and now I am a proven champion. That´s great. And I still have a lot of things to accomplish. But first of all, I need to defend my title against Rossi.”

http://www.boxingnews24.com/2011/10/qa-marco-%E2%80%9Ccaptain%E2%80%9D-huck-%E2%80%9Crossi-will-go-down/