Author: Paul Magno

In the combat sports world, there’s little funnier than the outrage of a boxing “purist.” A boxing “purist,” by the way, is defined by this writer as a sanctimonious type, who fetishizes the sport’s glorious past and rejects all moves forward in trying to fit boxing and its promotion into the present tense sports world. The “purists” are those who tinkle their panties at the very thought of someone/something tainting their pure and noble sport. It’s truly laughable that, in a sport plagued by corruption, incompetence, and a decades-long self-defeating business model, its “true” fans—who’ve LET the sport fall into…

If Shakur Stevenson were an Eastern-European fighter, the always-slanted boxing media would be calling him “the most feared man in boxing.” The two-division former world champ is finding out just how hard it is to get things done now that he’s waded into the deep waters of a lucrative, but complicated lightweight division. The undefeated ex-featherweight and super featherweight titlist has been fast-tracked to a WBC title eliminator opportunity, ranked no. 3 by the Mexico City-based organization. Unfortunately, he can’t find any bankable name willing to meet him for that challenge. Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz, the WBC’s No. 2 lightweight contender,…

Given social media banter and media coverage, one would expect Teofimo Lopez, in the wake of his shaky split-decision victory over Sandor Martin Saturday night, to be googlie-eyed crazy, running down Seventh Avenue with a boxing shoe on one foot and a scuba fin on the other, screaming “My enchiladas have been poisoned by aliens!” This kid must be bat-sh*t crazy! Well, yeah, the truth is that the 25-year-old former three-belt lightweight champion isn’t in the best state of mind at the moment. As a matter of fact, the Brooklynite has been “off” for quite a while. It certainly doesn’t…

Way back in 2019, I wrote about a potential classic rivalry brewing between two young talents and emerging stars, Devin Haney and Teofimo Lopez. The 20-year-old Haney had just destroyed the previously unstopped Antonio Moran in seven rounds. A month prior, 21-year-old Teofimo Lopez bludgeoned Edis Tatli en route to a fifth-round KO. The skill and natural talent of both young fighters, along with their personality profiles and a long history of animosity between the two, brought me to anticipate big things and even draw a very unpopular comparison to a legendary boxing rivalry of the past. “Could Devin Haney…

At this point, the only question regarding the December 3 WBC heavyweight title bout between Tyson Fury and Derek Chisora is whether fans are willing to pay the pay-per-view asking price. Broadcaster BT Sport Box Office has set the UK price at £26.95 (just over $32 USD) for Fury’s third defense of his second world heavyweight title reign. UK fans have expressed their extreme displeasure with the price of the event– tied for the most expensive of the British PPV era with the much more significant Anthony Joshua-Oleksandr Usyk 2 contest in August– for a bout many see as a…

In comparison to other years, there wasn’t a whole lot that happened in boxing’s historical glamour division. 2023, however, is looking like it will be a pivotal year in the heavyweight class. Here’s a look at what’s in store for the coming year and where that could take the big man division: Although Oleksandr Usyk holds three world titles (IBF/WBA/WBO) to Tyson Fury’s one (WBC), there’s a near consensus that “The Gypsy King” is the true heavyweight champ. Usyk will get a chance to change that if/when a unification clash takes place at some point in the year, which it…

Regis Prograis made a loud-and-clear statement Saturday night when he stopped tough-as-nails former world champ Jose Zepeda for the vacant WBC 140 lb. title. That statement was that he won’t be ignored anymore. After three years of being passed over for opportunities and ignored in calculated call-outs by top contenders, the former WBA junior welterweight champ is back on top again and has forced himself into the dialogue. “I feel like I showed a complete package. Of course,” Prograis said at the post-fight press conference when asked about his future plans. “This thing [WBC belt] is like gold. The last…

It’s a testament to the potential size and significance of the Gervonta Davis-Ryan Garcia bout that it has immediately garnered mainstream sports world interest before a dedicated media campaign has even been organized. Appearing on Stephen A. Smith’s First Take on ESPN, the 24-year-old Garcia talked up the 2023 high-profile showdown and continued to push the narrative of him being the relentless predator who forced this fight into being. “This fight means everything to me,” Garcia said. “Since I was a young kid I’ve always wanted the biggest fights in the world. It’s been my dream and it’s finally here.…

The big Errol Spence Jr-Terence Crawford welterweight unification bout isn’t happening, at least not any time soon. With talks breaking down and Crawford moving on to fight unheralded second-tier contender David Avanesyan for a reported $10 million guarantee on upstart streaming service BLK Prime this December 10, the fight world fell into a collective fit of mourning. Mourning time in boxing has become exceedingly brief in this age of social media, however, and it didn’t take long for fans to leap from the grief stage to the anger stage. In the wake of the big fight’s collapse, fingers have been…

It’s been confirmed by multiple sources, including the fighters themselves. The much-anticipated clash between 20-something undefeated rising superstars, Gervonta “Tank” Davis and Ryan “King Ry” Garcia is one giant step closer to happening. According to reports, the 28-year-old Davis and the 24-year-old Garcia will meet on April 15 at a venue to be announced. Each fighter will take one January bout first, however, as a prelude to the big one. Davis is already signed to face world titlist Hector Luis Garcia on January 7. Conflicting business arrangements and broadcast deals between the two fighters were the biggest hurdle to making…