The World This Week by Oliver Fennell Oct 23rd 2007

Oliver Fennell sums up the international action of interest. Results with relevance to British boxing are in bold. October 16 Youth conquered experience as European lightweight champion Yuri Romanov outscored 41-year-old Stefano Zoff in Misnk, Belarus. The highly-rated Romanov, 25 retained the European lightweight title with a unanimous decision. Zoff, a former world champion, was attempting to become a four-time European king. Both men are well known to British fans. Romanov defeated Steve Murray, Bobbie Vanzie and Steve Conway before being pegged back by Graham Earl last year. Zoff, meanwhile, lost to Billy Hardy and Jason Cook before upsetting David Burke. There were mixed results for two stars of the original series of The Contender. In the main event of this Carson, California, promotion, series winner Sergei Mora had his world title ambitions put into perspective when he was held to a draw by little-known middleweight Elvin Ayala. More impressive was welterweight Alfonso Gomez, who notched a wide, unanimous decision over veteran Ben Tackie. Gomez is best known for ending the career of Arturo Gatti in July, and has also beaten Martin Concepcion in the UK v USA Contender show in March. The ever-durable Tackie pushed Ricky Hatton to a 12-round decision in 2003. Another “Contender” also featured in a less important undercard match. Freddy Curiel – who was in the UK v USA fight of the night when he knocked out Ross Minter – marked time with a fourth-round stoppage of Fontaine Cabell at light-middleweight. October 18 Former two-time world heavyweight champion Hasim Rahman stepped in at late notice to replace old rival David Tua in the main event in Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan. Rahman didn't have much to beat in trialhorse Cerrone Fox, who he dispatched in the first round, but looked in good shape at 240lb – 10lb down from his last fight, a month ago, and 21lb less than his lethargic effort against Taurus Sykes in June. Rahman is scheduled to compete again next month and if the man who famously knocked out Lennox Lewis in 2001 can build momentum and stay in shape, he could yet figure in the title picture once more. October 19 Touted Canadian Lucian Bute fulfilled his potential by lifting the IBF super-middleweight crown from Alejandro Berrio. Undefeated Bute delighted his home fans in Montreal by stopping Colombian Berrio, making his first defence, in the 11th round. Oliver McCall's remarkable middle-aged run has hit a roadblock as he lost on points to old foe Juan Carlos Gomez in Berlin. McCall, 42, was fighting for another shot at his old WBC heavyweight title – which he lost back in 1995 – but was outworked for a unanimous decision loss. The two were fighting again after a 2005 encounter because Gomez had failed a post-fight cocaine test and what was a win for him was changed to a no-contest. Now, having cleared up his record and taking McCall's WBC International title, he becomes the organisation's number one world championship contender (after interim champion Samuel Peter and champion emeritus Vitali Klitschko …) In his prime, McCall won and lost against Lennox Lewis and dropped his world belt to Frank Bruno. Gomez, a former cruiserweight monarch, once defended his title against Bruce Scott. On the undercard, Sinan Samil Sam, who has lost to McCall but beaten Danny Williams, won the WBC Mediterranean heavyweight trinket with a unanimous decision over Ivika Perkovic of Croatia, and light-heavyweight veteran ex-champ Silvio Branco, 41, picked up a technical decision over Peter Venancio. It was for a couple of regional straps and was Branco's first fight since losing his WBA title six months ago. Branco has beaten Robin Reid and lost to Richie Woodhall. North Korea's first women's world champion, Myung Ok Ryu, regained the WBC female super-flyweight title she was stripped of for inactivity. She scored a split decision over new champion Ana Maria Torres of Mexico in Gaeseong to start her second reign. How much further her career progresses depends on how far she will be allowed to travel, as a citizen of possibly the world's most insular country. A trio of Argentinians familiar to British fans were in action in different locations. In Santa Fe, world class welterweight Sebastian Lujan showed the fire which was missing from his match with Jamie Moore earlier this year, upsetting recent world title challenger Walter Matthyse via fifth-round TKO. In Laboulaye, Jon Thaxton victim Jorge Daniel Miranda outscored Adolfo Rios over six rounds. Miranda is now up at welterweight, having lost to Thaxton at 9st 9lb. Finally, In Cordoba City, heavyweight brawler Fabio Moli knocked out Luis Ricail in two rounds. Moli lost to Matt Skelton in 2005. Recent world title challenger Ricardo Castillo picked up the WBC Caribbean featherweight title in Cabazon, California,with a 10-round unanimous decision over Andres Ledesma of Colombia. Mexican Castillo lost to Celestino Caballero in a WBA super-bantamweight attempt seven months ago. Ageing little man Kermin Guardia has presumably been eliminated from future world title contention after losing his WBC and WBO Latino light-flyweight titles to Juan Esquer in Miami. Guardia, ancient for the weight at 37, reigned as WBO world strawweight champion from 1998 to 2001. October 20 Three-time world middleweight champion Felix Sturm was held to a draw by American mandatory contender Randy Griffin in Halle, Germany. Sturm, who most famously took Oscar De La Hoya to the wire in 2004, was making the second defence of his second WBA reign, having also held the WBO equivalent one time. Krzysztof Wlodarczyk eased back into the winning column following the loss of his IBF cruiserweight belt in May by beating American visitor Dominic Alexander in one round. Wlodarczyk, who goes to 38-2 with this Warsaw win, stopped John “Buster” Keeton in tree rounds in 2005. Junior Witter victim Krzysztof Bienias saw undercard action, outscoring journeyman Lubos Priehradnik over six at light-welterweight. WBC super-flyweight champion Cristian Mijares enjoyed an easy night's work as he stopped French challenger Franck Gorjux in the opener. How Gorjux got this shot is not known, given he had a spotty 16-7 record going in and had not beaten anyone of even remotely international repute. The gimme went down in Cancun. Recently deposed flyweight kingpin Vic Darchinyan resurfaced one division up, claiming the vacant IBO super-fly crown with a 12th-round TKO of Filipino Federico Catubay in Sydney. Darchinyan dropped his world belt to Nonito Donaire three months ago in one of the year's bigger upsets. Mancunian teenager Prince Arron was really thrown to the lions in Dublin, as he was matched with undefeated world-ranked John Duddy at late notice. No signs of a Kiko Martinez-like upset here, as middleweight Duddy did as expected, seeing off the massive underdog in two rounds. It wasn't an edifying match, but it couldn't be helped, as the main event had been hit by two withdrawals. Significant undercard action featured Brits Matthew Hatton and Matthew Macklin. Hatton – brother of Ricky – forced a sixth-round retirement over Samuli Leppiaho at welterweight, and middleweight Macklin stopped Itali's Alessio Furlan in eight rounds.

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