Joe Smith Jr. knocks out Andrzej Fonfara in a massive upset

Joe Smith Jr. impresses in the home crowd of massive favorite Andrzej Fonfara scoring a huge upset in the very first round.

Part time construction worker, Joe Smith Jr. (22-1, 18 KOs) scored a counter overhand right when Andrzej Fonfara (28-4, 16 KOs) was on offensive, and Smith ultimately stopped the crowd favorite Fonfara of their light heavyweight title on PBC on NBC UIC Pavilion, Chicago, in Illinois.

Smith's overhand right landed clean on the chin and sent Fonfara hard to the floor. Fonfara was obviously hurt and looked shock by the power of Smith.

Smith Jr, 26, an excellent finisher, waited nothing and immediately jumped to finished the work at hand. He unleashed power shots that sent again Fonfara hard to the floor in the corner of the ring. Referee Hector Afu waived off the fight as he saw Fonfara not in the position to continue.

The official time of the stoppage 2:32 in Round 1.

Smith Jr. said after the fight that he hopes to be a full time boxer now. Smith said that he work also as a construction worker. He planned to take several days off have some barbecue and get back to training preparing for expected bigger fights ahead of his massive upset on Fonfara.

In the previous fight Fonfara set the record for the number of punches thrown at the 175-pound division. Fonfara threw more than 1,400 punches in his previous fight against Nathan Cleverly of which he won by decision.

Tonight, Fonfara thrown 56 punches and landed 21, while Smith thrown 67 and landed 22.

Erickson Lubin stops Daniel Sandoval, stays unbeaten

Erickson Lubin (16-0, 12 KOs) knocks out Daniel Sandoval (38-4, 35 KOs) in Round 3, Saturday at the UIC Pavilion, Chicago, in Illinois on PBC on NBC.

Lubin was able to overwhelm Sandoval with a barrage of hammers towards the ropes.

Sandoval looked hurt but still on his feet as he absorbed combinations from Lubin. Referee Mark Nelson had seen enough and jumped in to save Sandoval for more hammers from Lubin who's still there to unload more.

The official time of the stoppage was 2:37 in Round 3.

Andre Ward vs Sergey Kovalev set for Nov. 19

It's not always about Saul Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin. Well, there's even bigger! The much-anticipated fight between both undefeated fighters Andre Ward and Sergey Kovalev is set for November 19, 2016, at the T-Mobile Arena.

"The Kovalev-Ward fight, which was signed long ago but is contingent on each remaining undefeated through interim bouts, will take place Nov. 19 (HBO PPV) at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas," per Dan Rafael of ESPN.com

This is by far the biggest fight of both fighters who were listed inside the top 10 on anyone's pound-pound list. Ward is undefeated in 29 bouts, 15 wins inside the distance, while Kovalev is undefeated with 29 wins,  a draw, but with a mind-boggling 26 stoppages, that's 87 KO percentage.

Ward, 32, was the former middleweight champion and will move up to light heavyweight to fight Kovalev, 33, who held titles at the LH division.

Both men are expected to have one bout prior to their 19th Nov. fight. They have to win accordingly in order to make them happen and to make the fight even bigger. I hope there's no spoiler here. Kovalev is scheduled to face Isaac Chilemba on July 11, while Ward may fight on Aug. 6 in California.

Golden Boy Promotions' statement on jury decision over All-Star Boxing

Golden Boy Promotion got a "favorable" decision over All-Star Boxing with regards to contract issue with Mexican Star Saul "Canelo" Alvarez.

However Canelo was ordered to pay $8.5 million to All-Star Boxing for an amount determined as "unjust enrichment."

Below is the full statement from Golden Boy Promotions, Canelo's boxing promoter.

"We are extremely pleased that not only did the jury find that no contract ever existed between Canelo and All-Star Boxing, but issued a judgment against All-Star Boxing and ordered them to pay Golden Boy's substantial legal fees.

Over the last five-plus years, many questioned why we wouldn't just settle the case before trial. The answer is simple: We would not be extorted. It was clear from the beginning that neither Canelo Alvarez nor Golden Boy Promotions had acted inappropriately in any way. We are grateful that the jury was able to see that.

However, it is absurd to think that All-Star Boxing provided anywhere near that amount of value that the jury awarded under a separate claim. We will appeal this part of the decision, and are confident we will win, just as we did on the contract dispute."

Outside of appealing the financial damages, we now look forward to putting this episode behind us and working with Canelo Alvarez to continue his meteoric rise though the boxing ranks."

John Molina Jr. defeats Ruslan Provodnikov by UD

John Molina Jr. was able to outbox Ruslan Provodnikov and won via unanimous decision. But it was not easy for Molina as he took the best shots of the hard-hitting Russian.

After the fight, Molina's face tells everything that happened inside the ring against Ruslan Provodnikov for the 140-pound title eliminator on Showtime's main card, Saturday night at the Turning Stone Resort & Casino, Verona, New York. Bruised and bloodied.

The same can be said on Provodnikov. Provodnikov (25-5, 18 KOs) now a resident of Los Angeles, California was cut over his left eye and bloodied.

With the style of Molina, I didn't expect an all-out slugfest. I expect Molina to engage and disengage creating favorable punching room to connect on points. Indeed Molina outmaneuvered Provodnikov and was able to land clean that impressed the judges. He maintained composure and punches back.

I likened the performance of Molina (29-6, 23 KOs) to that of Mike Alvarado when Alvarado defeated Rios on points during the second fight. Molina was not completely lured to a brawl. Instead, he brawled for a while then maneuvered to punch back without getting hit that much.

Molina employed also more jabs from the outside that would derail Provodnikov's track forcing Provo to reset.

Provodnikov pointed out, during the post-fight interview, that it was the right decision, and that he wasn't as hungry as he used to be.

With the victory, Molina is back to the 14o-pound contention.

Watch: Muhammad Ali Funeral

Watch live it live on the above embedded video the funeral of boxing legend and "the Greatest" Muhammad Ali at his hometown in of Louisville, Kentucky, USA.

Watch: Janazah (Jenazah) Muslim Prayer Service for Muhammad Ali

Watch the Muslim Prayer service for Muhammad Ali in his hometown in Louisville, Kentucky, USA.

Thousand of people trooped to hear the prayer service of a great man inside and out of the boxing ring.

The full funeral service of Muhammad Ali's remains will take place tomorrow, Friday 10th June 2016 at 11:00 AM PT. Prominent boxing personalities are expected to come for tomorrow's funeral to pay their last respect of boxing legend, the one and only Mohammad Ali.

Manny Pacquiao spent PHP 66 million, no donations

Senator-elect Manny Pacquiao spent PHP 66,428,468.88 during the senatorial campaign according to Statement of Contributions and Expendtures (SOCE) submitted to the Comission on Elections (Comelec).

Pacquiao, a boxer turned legislator, did not receive any cash and in-kind contributions from any sources or from his political party.

With no donations, "Pacman" can function his duties, agree to a bill he wanted to support, and create his own bill without taking any consideration the vested interest of donors. Pacquaio being known to his constituent in Sarangani where he serves as congressman for two terms in providing services funded from his own pocket.

According to the law, the salary of a Philippine senator is PHP 90,000 per month. This is equivalent to PHP 6,480,000 total salary in the 6-year term.

Philippine president-elect Rodrigo Duterte vowed to end corruption in government once he assumes office in the afternoon of 30th June 2016. He said that he will use PDAP (also known as pork barrel fund or discretionary funds) to increase the salaries of the police force and military.

Congressmen and Senators were provided with millions of funds coming from PDAP for the improvement of their constituents but the said funds have been misused.

According to Merriam Defensor Santiago, senators earn as much as PHP 5 million monthly from other senate funds. This is not included the "discretionary funds under the control of a senator could also range from P2.7 million to P4.5 million," according to Santiago.

Goodbye Muhammad Ali, your memory will stay forever

It's time to say goodbye! But your memory will never be forgotten.

Boxing legend Muhammad Ali, also known as "the Greatest", died late Friday at a hospital in Phoenix, Arizona. He was 74 years old.

He had been confined in the hospital early this week from a respiratory illness. He's also been suffering from Parkinson's disease.

Ali not only showed greatness inside the ring but also out of it. He defied the US government over the Vietnam war. He refused to join the armed forces and lost the heavyweight championship and went to jail for three years.

Ali was a three-time heavyweight champion as a professional boxer.  He also competed at the Rome Olympics in 1960 and was the light heavyweight gold medalist.

He has been an inspiration for many people inside and outside the sport of boxing.

Man.

Boxer.

Determination.

Inspiration.

Humanity.

Great.

All-time.

Goodbye, the only Muhammad Ali!

 

Francisco Vargas vs Orlando Vargas weigh-in live stream

Francisco Vargas and Orlando Salido will meet at Carson Double Tree Hotel, The Champagne Ballroom for the official weigh-in for their anticipated fight on Saturday night at the StubHub Center, in Carson, California.

Francisco "El Bandido" Vargas (23-0-1, 17 KOs) vs Orlando "Siri" Salido (43-13-3, 30 KOs) will be televised live on HBO Boxing After Dark.

Salido said during the media workout that they are both "warriors" and the winner will be the fans come Saturday night.

“I’m a warrior and Vargas is a warrior. The ones who will win will be the fans,” Salido said.

Watch the weigh-in to gauge how ready the combatants on fight night.

Salido: I'm a warrior and Vargas is a warrior

Former world champion Orlando Salido stated during media workout that the winners will be the fans, when he meets undefeated Francisco Vargas for their world super featherweight title fight, Saturday, at the StubHub Center, in Carson, California.

Salido (43-13-3, 30 KOs) is a warrior, a spoiler, and a very exciting fighter to watch. He’s a heckler who harasses an opponent using only both hands. He's the underdog most of his fight, but he's not a walk in a park when paired with any favorite fighters.

He spoiled the soaring career of a supposed Puerto Rico's 'next big thing' in boxing Juan Manuel Lopez. He took the precious 'O' in the record of Vasyl Lomachenko and took a vacant title, throwing out the window Loma's chance to become a world titlist in his second pro-fight.

"I'm a warrior and Vargas is a warrior. The ones who will win will be the fans,” Salido said.

Salido, 35, without question, has a heart of a lion.

Phoenix, Arizona resident went down thrice and got back up thrice and continued an epic battle with Terdsak Kokietgym. Expect Salido rolling on the floor, but never count him out soon.

"When you get into boxing, you are mentally prepared to get knocked down. Every time I've been knocked down, I just get back up again and fight. I like to prove everyone wrong and that's what I plan to do when I go in and fight this young undefeated fighter," said Salido.

With Francisco Vargas in the opposite corner of Salido an all-out war is expected as both men are warriors.

Vargas (23-0-1, 17 KOs) said that he’s a “technical fighter” but it will come down to his “intelligence”.

"The only thing on my mind is to win this fight on Saturday. It's up to the fans to decide if I'm number one. I'm a technical fighter but it will come down to my intelligence. This will be a very difficult fight on Saturday."