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By Chris Williams: The World Boxing Organization recently stripped their unbeaten super bantamweight champion Guillermo Rigondeaux for him having failed to defend the belt in 11 months.

The vacant WBO 122lb title will be on the line this Friday night for the clash between #1 WBO Cesar Juarez (17-3, 13 KOs) and #2 WBO Nonito Donaire (35-3, 23 KOs) at the Coliseo Roberto Clemente, in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Donaire, 33, has lost 2 out of his last 6 fights, and is a very poor option to be fighting for a world title after his defeats to Rigondeaux and Nicholas Walters. By stripping Rigondeaux and letting the guy that he easily beat just two years ago, the WBO is putting their organization in the position where they could wind up with a much weaker champion than the one they had when Rigondeaux was holding the title.

“As expected, WBO announces that Friday’s @filipinoflash-Cesar Juarez fight will be for organization’s vacant 122 world title. #boxing,” Dan Rafael said on his Twitter.
Juarez, 24, is an even worse candidate for the WBO’s 122lb title, as he’s previously been beaten by Hugo Partida, Jorge Lara and Edgar Lozano. Juarez has done nothing to deserve the #1 WBO ranking that he’s currently holding with the WBO. Juarez’s recent controversial 8 round decision win over Cesar Ceda appears to be the reason for him getting the No.1 ranking with the WBO.

That fight should have been a 12 round fight rather than an 8 rounder, and Juarez should have had to fight someone better than the guys he’s been fighting to get the ranking.

Donaire will likely win the WBO title and wind up being seen as a paper champion. It would be nice if Donaire volunteered to fight Rigondeaux to try and clear up his one-sided loss to him, but I don’t see that happening. Donaire’s 84-year-old promoter Bob Arum will likely never let him fight Rigondeaux ever again.

I think it was a really bad experience for Arum the last time that Donaire and Rigondeaux fought, because the loss for Donaire really took the wind out of the sails of his pro career. Donaire still hasn’t gotten his career back to where it was before his one-sided loss to Rigondeaux, and beating the little known Juarez with his inflated resume won’t do anything to make boxing fans forget about his loss to the Cuban star or to Nicholas Walters.

It’s like that Arum will look to match Donaire up against the winner of the Scott Quigg vs. Carl Frampton unification fight in 2016. Rigondeaux, who is seen as the best fighter in the 122lb division by many boxing fans, will probably be locked out of a fight against any of those guys, especially against Donaire. No way do I see Arum letting Donaire get schooled a second time by Rigondeaux, because the way that he was beaten by him suggests that the will always get beaten by him no matter how many times they fight.

In other news, Arum will be announcing Manny Pacquiao’s next opponent this Friday on the Donaire-Juarez card on truTV. The name that is being mentioned by boxing fans is WBO welterweight champion Tim Bradley in what would be a third fight between Pacquiao and Bradley.

You’ve got to wish Pacquiao and Arum good luck in trying to sell that fight to the boxing public. Even if they load up the undercard with top fighters, which seriously they will do, I doubt the Pacquiao-Bradley fight will do more than 400,000 PPV buys on HBO. I know their two previous fights have brought in between 800,000 to 900,000 PPV buys, but I see there being diminishing returns this time around.

It’s like when you play a movie at a theater for a month or so. Initially, people are interested in seeing it, but after a while people lose interest and stop coming out to see it. Finally, they just wish the theater will get a new movie and quit wasting time advertising something that people have already seen before.

It would better for Pacquiao to fight anyone else at this point as long as they’re someone new, and someone the boxing public actually cares about seeing on PPV. I don’t personally see Bradley as a PPV fighter, so I don’t have any interest at all in paying to see Pacquiao-Bradley 3. Maybe if Arum makes it a complimentary showing where it’s free, I might want to see it, but other than that, I can’t see myself paying to see a third fight between these two old timers.

http://www.boxingnews24.com/2015/12/donaire-juarez-to-fight-for-rigondeauxs-wbo-122lb-title/

hi-res-54c101ed4fb034e46543dace898c5e61_crop_north  Credit:  Photo by Alexis Cuarezma / Getty –

Former five-division champion Nonito “The Filipino Flash” Donaire (35-3, 23 KO) will look to move one step closer to another shot at a world title. On Friday night in San Juan, PuertoRico, the 33-year-old Donaire will take on 24-year-old Cesar Juarez (17-3, 13 KO) for the regional WBO International junior featherweight (super bantamweight) title.

The fight is the co-featured bout on a card that will also see young Puerto Rican star Felix Verdejo in a showcase fight against JosenilsonDos Santos.

Juarez is listed as the No. 1 contender in the WBO‘s latest rankings, per the organization’s official siteDonaire is second. Despite Juarez’s higher current ranking and possession of the WBO regional title, Donaire has far more experience, and it would appear he is the more talented fighter.

When: Friday at 10 p.m. ET

Where: Coliseo Roberto Clemente in San Juan, Puerto Rico

TV: truTV

Live Stream: truTV Live

Last Time Out

Juarez Guts Out Victory over Juan Carlos Sanchez Jr.

The Mexico native deserves credit for his heart and desire. In his last fight in July, Juarez faced Juan Carlos Sanchez Jr. The former never stopped coming forward, throwing punches and battling for the WBO International junior featherweight title. Juarez would drop Sanchez in the 10th round.

After 12 grueling frames, Juarez proved to have more in the tank than his opponent. He was rightfully awarded a unanimous-decision victory and the title. It was easily the biggest win of Juarez’s career.

hi-res-f3c241c3b3eb67df413a06e9ea7cfeca_crop_exact Credit:  Photo by Anthony Wallace / Getty Images –  Donaire punishes Settoul with a hard right hand in July.

In a vintage performance, Donaire disposed of Anthony Settoul in the second round. Donaire had all of his weapons on display in the short, but destructive bout.

He dropped Settoul twice in the first round with crushing left hooks to the body. In the second round, he masterfully slipped a Settoul jab and countered with a lighting-quick right hand over the top.

Settoul went down in a heap. Seconds later, his corner threw in the towel, giving Donaire the TKO victory.

Donaire Reflects and Looks Forward

Coming off such a spectacular win, Donaire has to feel a little better about his career than he did this time last year. In October 2014, Donaire lost his WBA Super World featherweight title when he was stopped for the first time in his career by Nicholas “Axe Man” Walters.

Top Rank Boxing tweeted a quote from Donaire discussing the loss to Walters:

CVtvZ7JUEAAkU5e 

“For the 1st time in my life, I touched the canvas.” – @filipinoflash on the @AxeManWalters fight

Since that loss, Donaire is 2-0, including the win over Settoul. He now has his eyes on some of the best fighters in the weight region. That includes WBO featherweight champion Vasyl Lomachenko:

“It’s not just @vasyllomachenko, who ever the best TR have , I want to be in there with them.” – @filipinoflash on possible opponents.

That said, Donaire doesn’t appear to be looking past Juarez. He was complimentary of his young opponent:

.@filipinoflash on Dec 11th opponent, Cesar Juarez -” He’s non stop all the time. He seems to get stronger every round ” .

Is that going to be enough for Juarez to pull off the improbable victory?

Prediction

There’s no way Juarez has a chance to compete with Donaire. The speed and quick-twitch athleticism are drastically in favor of the more decorated Filipino fighter.

The physical advantage says nothing of Donaire‘s decided edge in experience. If this fight makes it beyond the fourth round, it’ll be a testament to Juarez’s heart.

If it goes beyond the sixth, Juarez’s corner should be investigated for allowing their fighter to take unnecessary punishment. In any case, Donaire will win by KO/TKO.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2596967-nonito-donaire-vs-cesar-juarez-fight-time-date-live-stream-and-tv-info

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Credit:  Photos by:  Mickey Williams/Top Rank

By:  Ricardo Jimenez, Prensa Top Rank –

El clasificado mundial invicto Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramírez, uno de los boxeadores mexicanos más populares y carismáticos, se enfrentará al estadounidense Derek “The Black Lion” Edwards, intentando defender su título internacional de la Organización Mundial de Boxeo (OMB), encabezando una explosiva función este viernes en la arena State Farm de Hidalgo, Texas, Estados Unidos, que será televisada en vivo en la cuarta edición de la nueva serie boxística “The MetroPCS Friday Night Knockout en truTV” comenzando a las 10 p.m. (este). La serie es presentada truTV y Top Rank y producida en asociación con HBO Sports. Encuentre truTV en su área: http://trutvishere.com/.

Ramírez (31-0, 24 KOs), de Mazatlán, Sinaloa, expondrá su campeonato internacional de la OMB ante Edwards (27-4-1, 14 KOs), residente en Las Vegas, Nevada, en una duelo pactado a diez giros. En el duelo co estelar de la función que también será televisado, los clasificados mundiales, el estadounidense Diego Magdaleno (27-1, 11 KOs) y el puertorriqueño José “Chelo” González (24-1, 19 KOs) disputarán el título ligero internacional de la OMB que está pactado a doce giros, ya que también será un eliminatorio para disputar el campeonato de peso ligero de la OMB.

Hoy se realizó la última conferencia de prensa en la misma arena State Farm en donde este viernes será la esperada función.

Gilberto Ramírez:
“Estoy muy motivado y muy enfocado en esta pelea porque que tengo un rival duro este viernes y que necesito la victoria para seguir aspirando a cosas mejores en un futuro no muy lejano”, dijo Ramírez

“Yo confió mucho que la gente vera una gran pelea, un pelea explosiva entre dos boxeadores que venimos a darlo todo y quiero dedicarle esta pelea a la gran afición de Texas que siempre me apoyado”, agrego Ramírez.

Derek Edwards:
“La experiencia y la dedicación es muy importante en este deporte y algo que tengo de sobra. Estoy preparado para dejarlo todo sobre el ring y espero que Gilberto también lo haga para darle a los aficionados la pelea que se merecen este viernes”, dijo Edwards, quien es entrenado por Jeff Mayweather.

“Ya el trabajo está hecho, lo único que falta es subir al ring y conseguir esta victoria”, agrego Edwards.

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Diego Magdaleno:
“He trabajado muy fuerte con un nuevo equipo para volver a tener la oportunidad de disputar una corona mundial y un triunfo este viernes me pondrá esa posición y muy hacer todo lo necesario para salir con el brazo en alto este viernes”, dijo Magdaleno que entreno en Indio, California con Joel Díaz.

“Estoy seguro que lograre la victoria y que me llevare este cinturón a casa y con él la oportunidad de disputar el campeonato mundial de las 135 libras” agrego Magdaleno, quien disputara el titulo internacional de la OMB que está vacante.

José “Chelo” González:
“Estamos aquí para aprovechar esta oportunidad que se están dando ante Magdalego y la preparación será clave en esta pelea”, dijo González.

“Yo voy a dar lo mejor de mí mismo este viernes y espero que la pelea sea del agrado del público y así llevarme la victoria a casa “, agrego González.

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La función de este sábado que incluye a uno de los boxeadores más populares de la región Luis Castro y al medallista olímpico Falcao Esquiva de Brasil, quien esta invicto en el boxeo profesional.

Ramírez, de Mazatlán, Sinaloa, México es el clasificado mundial número dos en peso supermediano del Consejo Mundial de Boxeo (CMB) y de la Organización Mundial de Boxeo (OMB) y el número tres de la Asociación Mundial de Boxeo (AMB) y de la Federación Internacional de Boxeo (FIB).

Edwards, residente de Las Vegas, Nevada, cuenta con un nocaut sobre Badou Jack actual monarca de peso supermediano del CMB y en su más reciente actuación el pasado 19 de diciembre en Quebec, Canadá cayo por puntos ante Andre Dirrell en un duelo eliminatorio de la FIB.

Magdaleno, de Las Vegas, Nevada, ganó sus primeras 23 peleas profesional para alcanzar la clasificación número uno de la OMB en las 130 libras que lo llevo a disputar la corona mundial de peso ligero junior dicha organización y su oportunidad llego el 6 de abril del 2013 ante Román “Rocky” Martínez en Macao, China. En una pelea muy disputada, Martínez retuvo su corona por decisión dividida para propinarle su primera y única derrota profesional a Magdaleno.

González, de Toa Baja, Puerto Rico, ganó sus primeras 22 peleas profesionales, 17 de ellas por la vía rápida. Como clasificado número uno en peso ligero de la OMB, González disputo la corona mundial de la OMB el 11 de mayo del 2013 en Escocia y cayó ante el local Ricky Burns cuando una lesión en la mano lo obligo a retirarse del combate en el noveno asalto cuando estaba arriba en las tres tarjetas de jueces oficiales por puntuaciones idénticas de 87-83.

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http://www.notifight.com/ramirez-y-edwards-magdaleno-y-gonzalez-confiados-en-hidalgo/

June 2, 2015,Marina del Rey,Ca.   --- Undefeated Mexican knockout artist and No. 2-world-rated super middleweight contender  Gilberto "Zurdo" Ramirez works out for his upcoming all-action card which he will headline on Friday, June 26, at State Farm Arena in Hidalgo, TX.  Ramirez will be taking on DERECK "The Black Lion" EDWARDS in a 10- round super middleweight bout which will be televised live on The MetroPCS Friday Night Knockout on truTV® at 10:00 p.m. ET.  The live boxing series is presented by truTV and Top Rank®, and produced in association with HBO Sports®.  Find truTV on YOUR TV:  http://trutvishere.com/ Promoted by Top Rank and Zapari Boxing Promotions, in association with Nord Boxing Promotions and Zanfer Promotions,  tickets to the Ramirez-Edwards boxing event are priced at $35, $25, $15, plus VIP tables of ten (10) at $800, $650 and $550, tickets can be purchased at the State Farm Arena box office, online at www.ticketmaster.com or by phone at (956) 843-6688. ---   Photo Credit : Chris Farina - Top Rank (no other credit allowed)  copyright 2015

June 2, 2015,Marina del Rey,Ca. — Undefeated Mexican knockout artist and No. 2-world-rated super middleweight contender Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez works out for his upcoming all-action card which he will headline on Friday, June 26, at State Farm Arena in Hidalgo, TX. Ramirez will be taking on DERECK “The Black Lion” EDWARDS in a 10- round super middleweight bout which will be televised live on The MetroPCS Friday Night Knockout on truTV® at 10:00 p.m. ET. The live boxing series is presented by truTV and Top Rank®, and produced in association with HBO Sports®. 
Promoted by Top Rank and Zapari Boxing Promotions, in association with Nord Boxing Promotions and Zanfer Promotions, 
— Photo Credit : Chris Farina – Top Rank 

By Miguel Maravilla
Photos: Chris Farina / Top Rank

Undefeated super middleweight contender Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez (31-0, 24 KOs) of Mazatlan, Sinaloa, Mexico is days away from his next fight as he will take on Las Vegas’s Derek “The Black Lion” Edwards (27-4-1, 14 KOs) this Friday, June 26, at the State Farm Arena in Hidalgo, Texas, in the TruTV main event.

We caught up with Ramirez during training camp as he talked about his plans and upcoming fight with Edwards.

“Right now we are having an excellent camp in preparation for Derrick Edwards,” Ramirez told Fightnews.com. The 23-year-old is currently training in the coastal city of Oxnard, California with his longtime trainers Hector and Jesus Zaparri in preparation for Edwards.

“We are training in various gyms finding the best sparring. Working in Oxnard has been great. There has been quality sparring there,” Ramirez said.

He is coming off a hard fought ten round unanimous decision win against Maxim Vlasov this past January in Colorado making his HBO World Championship Boxing debut. “My last fight with Max Vlasov was a tough one and I had a great experience,” Ramirez said.

Edwards suffered a unanimous decision loss in his last fight against Andre Dirrell. Prior to that Edwards handed current WBC super middleweight champion Badou Jack his only loss in scoring a first round TKO. Edwards has also been in with current WBC light heavyweight champion Adonis Stevenson and former middleweight world title challenger Matt Korobov.

“He’s a tough strong fighter with lots of experience. A very difficult, tough fighter. We’re training hard to come out on top,” Ramirez said.

Rated number two by the WBC, Ramirez is closing in on a world title shot.

“First thing is to focus on Derrick Edwards. If all goes well, this is the year where we want to get a title shot,” Ramirez said. “In my division there is lots of talent like Badou Jack, Arthur Abraham, there’s a lot of strong fighters and champions.”

Ramirez vs. Edwards will be a scheduled ten round super middleweight bout headlining the Metro PCS Friday Night Knockout series on TruTV.

“Expect a war in the ring from my part. I expect Edwards to come well prepared to give the fans a great show,” Ramirez concluded.

June 2, 2015,Marina del Rey,Ca.   --- Undefeated Mexican knockout artist and No. 2-world-rated super middleweight contender  Gilberto "Zurdo" Ramirez works out for his upcoming all-action card which he will headline on Friday, June 26, at State Farm Arena in Hidalgo, TX.  Ramirez will be taking on DERECK "The Black Lion" EDWARDS in a 10- round super middleweight bout which will be televised live on The MetroPCS Friday Night Knockout on truTV® at 10:00 p.m. ET.  The live boxing series is presented by truTV and Top Rank®, and produced in association with HBO Sports®.  Find truTV on YOUR TV:  http://trutvishere.com/ Promoted by Top Rank and Zapari Boxing Promotions, in association with Nord Boxing Promotions and Zanfer Promotions,  tickets to the Ramirez-Edwards boxing event are priced at $35, $25, $15, plus VIP tables of ten (10) at $800, $650 and $550, tickets can be purchased at the State Farm Arena box office, online at www.ticketmaster.com or by phone at (956) 843-6688. ---   Photo Credit : Chris Farina - Top Rank (no other credit allowed)  copyright 2015

June 2, 2015,Marina del Rey,Ca.   --- Undefeated Mexican knockout artist and No. 2-world-rated super middleweight contender  Gilberto "Zurdo" Ramirez works out for his upcoming all-action card which he will headline on Friday, June 26, at State Farm Arena in Hidalgo, TX.  Ramirez will be taking on DERECK "The Black Lion" EDWARDS in a 10- round super middleweight bout which will be televised live on The MetroPCS Friday Night Knockout on truTV® at 10:00 p.m. ET.  The live boxing series is presented by truTV and Top Rank®, and produced in association with HBO Sports®.  Find truTV on YOUR TV:  http://trutvishere.com/ Promoted by Top Rank and Zapari Boxing Promotions, in association with Nord Boxing Promotions and Zanfer Promotions,  tickets to the Ramirez-Edwards boxing event are priced at $35, $25, $15, plus VIP tables of ten (10) at $800, $650 and $550, tickets can be purchased at the State Farm Arena box office, online at www.ticketmaster.com or by phone at (956) 843-6688. ---   Photo Credit : Chris Farina - Top Rank (no other credit allowed)  copyright 2015

June 2, 2015,Marina del Rey,Ca.   --- Undefeated Mexican knockout artist and No. 2-world-rated super middleweight contender  Gilberto "Zurdo" Ramirez works out for his upcoming all-action card which he will headline on Friday, June 26, at State Farm Arena in Hidalgo, TX.  Ramirez will be taking on DERECK "The Black Lion" EDWARDS in a 10- round super middleweight bout which will be televised live on The MetroPCS Friday Night Knockout on truTV® at 10:00 p.m. ET.  The live boxing series is presented by truTV and Top Rank®, and produced in association with HBO Sports®.  Find truTV on YOUR TV:  http://trutvishere.com/ Promoted by Top Rank and Zapari Boxing Promotions, in association with Nord Boxing Promotions and Zanfer Promotions,  tickets to the Ramirez-Edwards boxing event are priced at $35, $25, $15, plus VIP tables of ten (10) at $800, $650 and $550, tickets can be purchased at the State Farm Arena box office, online at www.ticketmaster.com or by phone at (956) 843-6688. ---   Photo Credit : Chris Farina - Top Rank (no other credit allowed)  copyright 2015

June 2, 2015,Marina del Rey,Ca.   --- Former world champion Shane Mosley(L) wishes undefeated Mexican knockout artist and No. 2-world-rated super middleweight contender  Gilberto "Zurdo" Ramirez good luck during the workout for his upcoming all-action card which he will headline on Friday, June 26, at State Farm Arena in Hidalgo, TX.  Ramirez will be taking on DERECK "The Black Lion" EDWARDS in a 10- round super middleweight bout which will be televised live on The MetroPCS Friday Night Knockout on truTV® at 10:00 p.m. ET.  The live boxing series is presented by truTV and Top Rank®, and produced in association with HBO Sports®.  Find truTV on YOUR TV:  http://trutvishere.com/ Promoted by Top Rank and Zapari Boxing Promotions, in association with Nord Boxing Promotions and Zanfer Promotions,  tickets to the Ramirez-Edwards boxing event are priced at $35, $25, $15, plus VIP tables of ten (10) at $800, $650 and $550, tickets can be purchased at the State Farm Arena box office, online at www.ticketmaster.com or by phone at (956) 843-6688. ---   Photo Credit : Chris Farina - Top Rank (no other credit allowed)  copyright 2015

http://www.fightnews.com/Boxing/zurdo-ramirez-set-to-headline-friday-295667