HIGHLIGHTS:
- Katie Taylor brings down the curtain on her remarkable career as she outpoints Flora Pili in defence of her IBF, IBO, WBA, WBC and WBO super lightweight titles.
-Dave Allen vs. Thomas Carty ends in a No Contest in the first round when Carty falls out of the ring and there are wins for Paddy Donovan and Joe McGrail
-Polish heavyweight Daian Knyba floors and outpoints a returning Andy Ruiz also Vito Mielnicki outpoints Austin Williams and Eridson Garcia decisions previously unbeaten Alan Chaves
-in Germany there are wins for both Slawa Spomer and Fedor Michel and Ibo Diallo and Shefat Yusufi fight to a draw
-In Canada Lenar Perz halts Thabiso Mchunu and Moreno Fendero, Jhon Orobio and Wyatt Sanford score wins
MAJOR SHOWS:
SEPTEMBER 5
DUBLIN, IRELAND: SUPER LIGHT: KATIE TAYLOR (26-1) W PTS 10 FLORA PILI (12-1). HEAVY: DAVE ALLEN (27-9-2,1 NC) NC 1 THOMAS CARTY (11-1,1 NC). WELTER: PADDY DONOVAN (16-2) W TKO 4 TYRONE MCKENNA (25-7-1). SUPER MIDDLE: TAYLOR BEVAN (10-0) W TKO 6 EMMET BRENNAN (6-1). SUPER BANTAM : JOE McGrail (14-0) W KO 5 MATTHEW BORELAND (7-1).
Taylor vs. Pili
On an emotional night in Croake Park before 83,000 spectators TAYLOR brought the curtain down on her great career with a unanimous decision over France’s PILI. In was inconceivable that Piri should spoil the evening and Taylor showed the talent that had made he such an exciting and important figure in female boxing. Pili marched forward for the whole fight but was simply outclassed. Taylor was picking her off with single shots at distance, countering when she came forward ducking under and around Pili’s punches and then bobbing up to fire multi-punch combinations. Pili showed plenty of dedication but basically was outclassed by one of the most talented boxers in the history of female fighters. Taylor did not get carried away by the occasion but showcased the skills that have made her such a star. Pili, a former IBO champion did enough to make a couple of rounds close but the scores of 100-90 twice and 98-92 tell the story. Taylor was defending the IBF, IBO, WBA, WBC and WBO titles already having held the IBF, WBA, WBC and WBO belts at lightweight. (see observations for more on Katie Taylor.
Allen vs. Carty
The ALLEN vs. CARTY fight lasts less than two minutes. After the two locked horns briefly in a brawl was Allen standing leaning against the ropes Carty drove forward head down. He missed Allen and fell out through the ropes and off the ring apron to the floor and was unable to continue.
Donovan vs. McKenna
DONOVAN wins this clash of southpaws with a stoppage of McKENNA. These two know each other well and they were cautious at the start. Donovan had the better of the early exchanges scoring with fast right jabs and straight lefts. McKenna was short with his jabs and a lightning quick left to the body in the second saw him take a couple of steps back and then sent him down to one knee. He beat the count and tried to take the fight to Donovan in the third. He had some success but Donovan was landing fast, accurate shots. In the fourth a left from Donvan opened a gash over McKenna’s right eye and Donovan did more damage as he drove McKenna around the ring until the referee stopped the fight. He called the doctor to examine the injury and the doctor immediately indicated the fight should be stopped. Donovan’s losses have come in back-to-back fights against Lewis Crocker. The first was a disqualification for landing a punch after the bell and the second a split decision in a fight for the vacant IBF welterweight title. This is Donovan’s second useful win this year. He is No 1 with the IBF so another title shot looks on. Fourth loss in his last 5 fights for McKenna
Bevan vs. Brennan
BEVAN scores multiple knockdowns on the way to stopping BRENNAN in the sixth. Bevan took control early with some damaging body punches. The third was a disastrous round for Brennan as he was dropped by a left hook and put down again later in the round. Bevan handed out more punishment in the fourth then put Brennan down again with a body punch in the fifth. Two more knockdowns in the sixth were enough and the referee stopped the fight. Bevan, 25, a bronze medallist at the Commonwealth Games, gets his eighth inside the distance win. Dubliner Brennan, who was 3-0 in fights in America, was having his first fight for 18 months.
McGrail vs. Boreland
McGRAIL beats BORELAND on a fourth round kayo. McGrail boxed on the back foot over the early rounds showing solid defence and countering well. Boreland boxed strongly behind his jab and exerted plenty of pressure and it was proving a tougher fight than expected for McGrail but he put together some impressive combinations in the fourth. There were some fierce exchanges in the fifth until a left hook to the body sent Borland down in pain and he was unable to beat the count. McGrail 23, makes it 7 wins by KO/TKO.
SEPTEMBER 3
MONTREAL: CANADA: CRUISER: LENAR PEREZ (17-0) W TKO 8 THABISO MCHUNU (25-9). SUPER MIDDLE: MORENO FENDERO (16-0) W PTS 10 STEPHANE FONDJO (15-3-1). SUPER LIGHT: JHON OROBIO (19-0) W TKO 4 ANTONIO MORAN (31-9-1). LIGHT: WYATT SANFORD (8-0) W TKO 2 COSTIN ION (11-6-2).
Perez vs. Mchunu
Cuban PEREZ gets off the floor to stop seasoned pro MCHUNU in the eighth. Perez was sailing through this one controlling the fight with his jab and scoring with hard rights. He had a wakeup call in the fifth when he walked onto a right counter and went down. He was up quickly and in the sixth Mchunu was forced to take a knee under heavy attacks from Perez. Perez was in control again in the seventh and ended the fight with two knockdowns in the eighth. The 6’5” French-based Cuban gets his fifteenth inside the distance victory and retains the WBA Continental Americas title. He is No 4 with the WBA. Former WBO and WBC title challenger Mchunu, now 38, suffers his fourth inside the distance defeat
Fendero vs. Fondjo
FENDERO wins a wide unanimous decision over Cameroons fighter FONDJO to retain the WBC Continental Americas title. French southpaw Fendero made a promising start dropping Fondjo in the second but he let Fondjo off the hook by not following up strongly on that success. He was far superior in skill and power but by not pressing hard enough he turned what could have been an impressive twelfth win by KO/TKO into a flat, unimpressive performance although winning on scores of 99-90 twice and 97-92. Fondjo is now 2-2 in Canada having won a couple of preliminary bouts but being stopped in nine rounds by Steven Butler in November.
Orobio vs. Moran
Colombian OROBIO blasts out experienced Mexican MORAN in four rounds.Orobio put Moran down with a right in the second but Moran made it to his feet and survived. Orobio handed out more punishment in the third and ended the fight in dramatic fashion in the fourth. A fierce attack had Moran pitching forward trying to grab Orobio to say upright. Orobio shook him off and Moran went to the canvas on his knees. He manage to get up and was allowed to box on but a shattering straight right to the head put him down on his back. Somehow he got up but was unsteady and bloodied and the referee stopped the fight. Orobio, 23, has 17 early finishes in his 19 fights and has only once gone past seven rounds for a win. He was defending the WBA and WBC Continental Americas belts and is No 7 with the WBA. He has beaten useful opposition in Xolisani Ndongeni and Yomar Alamo but probably needs a couple more fights against rated opposition before he is ready to go for the title. Moran, 33, has faced tough opposition such as Devin Haney, Arnold Barbza, Andy Cruz and Ernesto Mertcado and outpointed 22-0-2 Mykquan last year.
Sanford vs. Ion
Southpaw SANFORD demolishes Spanish-based Romanian ION in two rounds. Sanford handed out relentless punishment to the overmatched, 5” inch smaller Ion before the referee stopped the fight in the second round. With an Olympic bronze medal and Pan American Games gold big things are expected from Sanford and he is making steady progress. Only one win in his last 4 fights for Ion.
SEPTEMBER 4
NEWARK, NJ, USA: HEAVY: DAMIAN KNYBA (18-1) W PTS 12 ANDY RUIZ (35-3-1). MIDDLE: VITO MIELNICKI (24-1) W PTS 10 AUSTIN WILLIAMS (20-3). LIGHT: ERIDSON GARCIA (24-2) W PTS 10. ALAN CHAVES (22-1) . SUPER FEATHER: ZAQUIN MOSES (8-0) W RTD 5 ANGEL CONTRERAS (187-11-2).
Knyba vs. Ruiz
Poland’s KNYBA springs a huge surprise as he floors and outboxes returning RUIZ over twelve rounds.
Ruiz was having his first fight in two years, was 5 inches smaller than the 6’7” Knyba who also had a 12 inch advantage in reach and was six years younger. All of those factors proved just too much for Ruiz to overcome. From the start Knyba set out to box at distance spearing Ruiz with jabs and banging home straight rights. It was difficult to tell whether an operation to his right knee might have slowed Ruiz. He just could not get forward fast enough to seriously threaten Knyba. The Pole was just throwing jab after jab and although most of them were short or blocked the constant stream kept Ruiz busy dealing with them. If Ruiz did get past Knyba’s jabs Knyba was clinching to stop Ruiz working. Knyba was not looking to exchanged punches with Ruiz he kept circling Ruiz poking out jabs Ruiz had some success in getting inside and landing rights in the sixth and then the only real drama in the night came in the seventh. Ruiz was again having some success but with just 40 seconds remaining in the round Knyba stepped forward and connected with a right and a left to the head. Ruiz legs turned to spaghetti and Knyba bombarded him with punches forcing Ruiz to the ropes. A series of punches to the head had Ruiz’s neck snapped back. The referee jumped in, presumably to stop the fight, just as Ruiz dropped to the canvas. Ruiz staggered up at six but was wobbly and it looked as though the referee might stop the fight this time but he allowed it to continue. Knyba jumped on Ruiz and with Ruiz pinned against the ropes he landed a burst of head shots. Ruiz’s hands began to come down leaving him open but the bell went and Ruiz survived. Remarkably Ruiz came out for the eighth and had a good round but Knyba was back in charge from the ninth and continued to box his way to victory. Scores 114-113 twice and 117-110 for Knyba. It is difficult to understand the two 114-113 scores as Knyba looked to have won nine or ten of the rounds and if it was not for the knockdown it would have been a draw! There were a few big fights supposedly waiting for Ruiz if he won but now retirement looks the most likely outcome. Knyba’s lone loss was a third round stoppage against Agit Kayayel in January and with Kabayel now the WBC champion he obviously hopes to get a title shot.
Mielnicki vs. Williams
Local favourite MIELNICKI floors and decision WILLIAMS. An exciting start saw Williams down in the first from a left hook. Williams beat the count and was fighting back hard at the end of the round. Williams struggled to get back in the fight as Mielnicki was much the better boxer. He shook Williams again at the end of the third and the end of the fifth. Mielnicki continued to dominate the action with his pace and accuracy but Williams showed he could still be a danger when he connected with a strong right in the eighth and had Mielnicki bleeding heavily from the nose in the ninth. They traded punches throughout the tenth as Williams looked for the knockout he needed but an uppercut from Mielnicki wobbled him and Mielnicki took the round and the decision. Scores 98-91 for Mielnicki on all three cards. Mielnicki, 24, was defending the WBO Global and WBA Continental Americas belts. He is No 3 with the WBO, 7 with the WBC and 9 with the IBF. The two previous losses suffered by Williams are a stoppage defeat against Hamza Sheeraz and a points loss against Carlos Adames in a challenge for the WBC middleweight title.
Garcia vs. Chaves
GARCIA upsets the odds as he floors 7-1 favourite CHAVES on the way to a unanimous decision.
Argentinian Chaves was taking the fight to fellow-southpaw Garcia but was slower not really cutting off the ring just following Garcia who whilst on the back foot fired bursts of counters. A left and a right dropped Chaves early in the second. He made it to his feet but was then staggered by a another left. Garcia continued to box on the back foot and in the fifth sent Chaves down twice from body punches. In the sixth it was Garcia who was given a count but it looked as though he slipped trying to avoid the punches from Chaves. The Argentinian continued advance to put Garcia under pressure but was just too slow and open to counters with a right hook putting him down again in the ninth. Chaves needed a knockout so came forward over the tenth but Garcia found him an easy target. Scores 99-87, 99-88 and 98-88 for Garcia. Dominican Garcia wins the WBO Latino title from Chaves and the vacant IBF International title. had been knocked out in one round by Jordan Whiteand was coming off a loss to 24-0 Andres Cortes in May. Despite his 22-0 record Chaves was a disappointment as he lacked the speed or skill to match Garcia.
Moses vs. Contreras
MOSES puts on an impressive performance as he forces experienced Mexican CONTRERAS to retire after five rounds. Moses, a cousin of Shakur Stedvenson, had his right jab working well from the start. He showed great balance and fast hands varying his attacks from head to body. There was some first round drama as Moses landed a very low left at the same time as their heads clashed. Contreras went down on one knee and was given some recovery time and passed a doctors examination as to whether he had suffered any damage in the head clash. The fight continued and Moses ramped up the pressure round by round. He used his speed to spear Contreras at distance and scored with counters when Contreras lunged forward. It was one-way traffic as he landed heavily to the body over the fourth and fifth and Contreras decided not to come out for the sixth. Fourth win by KO/TKO for 21-year-old Moses and fourth inside the distance defeat for Contreras.
SEPTEMBER 5
LUDWIGSHAFEN, GERMANY: WELTER: SLAWA SPOMER (22-1) W RTD 6 FAISAL ABUBAKARI (21-1-1). CRUISER: IBO DIALLO (15-1-1) DREW 10 SHEFAT ISUFI (41-5-2), LIGHT HEAVY: FEDOR MICHEL (13-0) W PTS 10 RALFS VILCANS (19-4).
Spomer vs. Abubakari
SPOMER proves too strong for Ghanaian ABUBAKARI. Spomer was aggressive from the start forcing Abubakari on the defensive. Abubakari was more competitive over the second and third but was soaking up punishment over the fourth and fifth. It was one-way traffic in the sixth as Spomer pinned Abubakari in a corner and bombarded him with punches. Abubakari slid out of the corner but Spomer continued to land heavily with both hands driving Abubakari along the ropes to another corner. He kept Abubakari under fire there until the bell and Abubakari did not come out for the seventh. Spomer, 33, wins the vacant WBA Inter-Continental title. He caused a big surprise when he stopped 20-0 Milan Prat in 2023. That win led to a fight against Xander Zayas in February last year but he was stopped in nine rounds. He was Thern out for a year and this is his second win since returning. Abubakari is a former Ghanaian and WBO African champion but his opposition has been modest at best.
Diallo vs. Isufi
DIALLO and ISUFI fight to a draw. Diallo looked to have built a lead after six rounds but he only just avoided disaster in the seventh. He was dropped early in the round but beat the count only for a devastating right to the head to drop him face down on the canvas. He again beat the count and the bell went before Isufi could strike again. Isufi could not find a finished but he looked to have swept the last three rounds. The judges scored it a draw 95-93 Diallo, 95-93 Isufi and 94-94. Since losing on points in a challenge to Billy Saunders for the WBO super middle title in 2019 Serbian-born Isufi is 15-1 in his last 16 fights. Diallo is rebuilding again after being beaten by Jacob Bank in 2024.
Michel vs. Vilcans
MICHEL gets a majority decision over Latvian VILCANS. This was a hard fought contest and close over the early rounds but Vilcan’s was the fighter on the front foot and looked to be just ahead. German Michel just could not handle the Latvian’s aggression and over the second half of the fight he was rocked often by shoots from Vilcans. Michel was never out of the fight but his head was being snapped back by left hooks and he was hurt by body punches. He kept firing counters but Vilcans looked to have done enough to take the decision. Scores 97-93 and 96-94 for Michel and 95-95. Michel wins the vacant IBO international title . Vilcans has lost tough fights against Jacon Bank, Anthony Yarde and unbeaten Mehmet Unal but was unlucky here.
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA: SUPER BANTAM: KHAYA MLATA (11-0) W TKO 6 HASSAN MILANZI (15-5-1).
MLATA wins the vacant WBC International Silver title with a sixth round stoppage of Zimbabwean MILANZI. Mlata got the better of the exchanges in the early action and despite brave fighting by Milanzi he wore down the Zimbabwean’s resistance and when Milanzi dropped to a knee in the sixth the referee halted the fight. Sixth victory by KO/TKO for Mlata and third inside the distance defeat for Milanzi.
BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA: MIDDLE: BALTAZAR NORIA (17-0) W TKO 4 LORENZO GEREZ (11-5-1).
NORIA wins the vacant South American title as a cut rules out GEREZ. Noria had edges in hand and foot speed and was probably in front by the end of the third. In the fourth a punch sliced open a cut over the left eye of Gerez and the doctor ruled Gerez could no longer continue and the fight was stopped. Noria, 23. had won a close points decision over Gerez in October.
OBSERVATION:
Katie Taylor won her first title, the vacant WBA light, in 2017 and went 20-1 in title fights losing only on a majority decision against Chantelle Cameron in 2023 but beating Cameron on a majority decision is a return bout. She had 189 amateur fights , losing only 10. She won a gold medal at the 2012 Olympics, gold five times are the World championships, seven times at the European Games/Championships /EU championships and somehow fitted in playing football at Youth, Senior and International level. She and Amanda Serrano topped the bill at a sold-out Madison Square Garden, the first time a woman’s bout had headlined the Garden. A huge indicator of how popular female boxing had become. She was the first Irish fighter to sell-out Croke Park and the fight on Saturday was the first boxing show at Croke Park since Muhammad Ali fought Alvin Lewis there in 1972. Her talent drew the crowds to boxing matches but every bit as important was her personality and the way she conducted herself in life in general. She projected an acceptable and eventually highly admired and respected personality in a professional sport which not too long ago was banned in Ireland and she alone changed that perception of the sport in her country. She has inspired many other women to take up boxing and will continue to do so and that will also be part an important of her legacy.
About the Author
Born in Scotland, Eric Armit started working with Boxing News magazine in the UK in the late 1960’s initially doing records for their Boxing News Annual and compiling World, European and Commonwealth ratings for the magazine. He wrote his first feature article for Boxing News in 1973 and wrote a “World Scene” weekly column for the magazine from the late 1970’s until 2004. Armit wrote a monthly column for Boxing Digest in the USA and contributed pieces to magazines in Mexico, Italy, Australia, Spain, Argentina and other countries. Armit now writes a Weekly Report covering every major fight around the world and a bi-weekly Snips & Snipes column plus occasional general interest articles with these being taken up by boxing sites around the world. He was a member of the inaugural WBC Ratings Committee and a technical advisor to the EBU Ratings Committee and was consulted by John McCain’s research team when they were drafting the Ali Act. He is a Director and former Chairman of the Commonwealth Boxing Council. Armit has been nominated to the International Boxing Hall of Fame the past two years (2019 and 2020) to which he said, “Being on the list is an unbelievably huge honour.”
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