BeatsBoxingMayhem is providing a live stream of the weigh-in for Showtime’s double-header featuring Jermell Charlo vs. Austin Trout and Leo Santa Cruz’s rematch against Abner Mares. The link opens at 3 p.m. with the card airing Saurday night at 10 p.m. ET.
Jermell Charlo told Erickson Lubin that he wasn’t ready. It would take the WBC super welterweight title-holder less than three minutes to make those words true as he scored a shocking one-punch KO.
What looked to be a feel-out round with each fighter probing jabs evaporated when the southpaw Lubin ducked a jab and ran blindly into a right uppercut. The shot crumpled Lubin sideways on the canvas, where the former Prospect of the Year convulsed rigidly in an unsettling, arms-outstretched pose. The referee killed the count midway to give Charlo the second successful defense of his title.
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There was a little drama afterward with Jermell claiming someone ringside threw a chair at his twin brother Jermall. In an emotionally-charged scene that resembled the aftermath of Jermall’s KO win over Julian Williams, Jermell yelled into the mic about taking on all comers and how Lubin was not in his league.
There are those who will be turned off by the Charlo’s “sore winner” antics. I’m not because it’s clear they take the prefight hype personally to fuel their fire inside the ring. You can’t argue with the results — both brothers are knocking out all comers, including wiping out fellow young guns that most observers predicted would give them tough fights (J-Rock, Lubin).
Like it or not, the Charlos are legit and a danger to any fighter competing from 154-160. You’ve been warned.
As for Lubin, this crushing defeat will start raising more questions about how the PBC has moved their prospects. For all his natural talent, Lubin didn’t have any competition to prepare him for a champion like Charlo. Not even a decent gatekeeper on the level of a Gabe Rosado or Vanes Martirosyan. He’s still young and probably more embarrassed than sustaining any significant physical damage, but you never know the psychological effects of that first defeat on a fighter.
BROOKLYN, NY — WBC titlist Jermell Charlo ended an 11-month sabbatical with a one-sided technical knockout over Charles Hatley at the Barclays Center.
After suffering a cut above the left eye from a head clash in round two, Charlo took over by controlling Hatley with a stiff jab and right hands that exploited the challenger’s dangerous habit of moving straight back into punches.
A simple 1-2 floored Hatley in the third. Charlo upped the pressure and by the sixth, Hatley was forced to exchange just to survive. Hatley’s wide punches proved to be his undoing as Charlo drilled him with a straight right that ended the bout with a face-first knockdown.
The win is Charlo’s first defense of the WBC title he won last May against John Jackson. Charlo named IBF title-holder Jarrett Hurd as a potential next opponent.
Photo Credit: Amanda Westcott/Showtime
BROOKLYN, NY — The weights are in for tomorrow’s welterweight showdown between Shawn Porter and Andre Berto, and the junior middleweight title clash of Jermell Charlo against Charles Hatley.
Porter had to strip down to make the 147 limit. Berto came in at 146.5.
PREDICTION: Mark me down as one who feels Porter is catching Berto at the perfect time. The 33-year-old former titlist has a lot of wear and tear on him via his brutal wars (Ortiz I, Soto Karass, Guerrero) and injuries. Despite his chiseled frame, Berto has always been undersized at 147 and prone to getting bullied by bigger fighters. Porter and his “bull in a china shop” style fits the mold. Berto doesn’t have the footwork to keep Porter on the end of his counters and the Ohio native displayed a formidable chin in the Thurman bout.
I see an early frenetic pace where both men land heavy before Porter’s mauling takes its toll in the second half. A stoppage is possible, but the more likely outcome is a Porter UD.
CHARLO VS. HATLEY: Jermell Charlo is making the first defense of the vacant WBC title with a come from behind KO over John Jackson last May. Charlo should have a much easier time against Hatley, who is shorter, has less reach, and tends to telegraph his shots and leave his chin the air. CHARLO BY MID-ROUND KO.
Rounding out the card will be Amanda Serrano vs. Dahiana Santana, and Juan Miguel Borrego vs. John Delperdang.
The card airs on Showtime at 9:30 p.m. ET.
Photo Credit” Stephanie Trapp/Showtime
LAS VEGAS — Showtime’s “Night of Champions” is in the books with WBA light middleweight champion Erislandy Lara settling the score with Vanes Martirosyan, and the Charlo brothers making history as the first twins to hold titles in the same weight class simultaneously. Yes, all the favored fighters won, but there was a bit of intrigue in every bout.
VIC DRAKULICH ENDS MARTIROSYAN’S BID: Despite all the trash talk between Erislandy Lara and Vanes Martirosyan headed into their rematch, anyone with common sense knew their matchup was going to be another tactical affair.
With that said, I found this bout much more entertaining than their first scrap nearly four years ago. Lara did less running and stood more in the pocket behind a southpaw high guard, looking to shoot the straight left down the middle (which he did to great effect). This allowed Martirosyan plenty of opportunities to get his left hook to the body working and keep himself in the fight.
.@Laraboxing connects with a wide left against @VanesBoxing #NightOfChampions #LaraMartirosyan https://t.co/7H9gkLzSN7
— SHOWTIME SPORTS (@SHOsports) May 22, 2016
I had the bout even after eight with Lara starting to creep ahead by closely winning rounds 9 and 10 on my card. Martirosyan’s chances then went off the rails when referee Vic Drakulich deducted a point in the  11th for a “low blow.” Vanes was disgusted and rightly so. He had received previous warnings for hitting on the belt-line. Considering that Lara’s belt-line covered his belly button, those shots should have been considered legal.
The deduction totally took Martirosyan out of his game. He started lunging impatiently with head shots and abandoned his body work. Lara let Martirosyan outwork in the 12th, but the fight was already a foregone conclusion.
.@Laraboxing and @VanesBoxing trade shots in round 12 before the scorecards. #NightOfChampions #LaraMartirosyan https://t.co/jhalk5cHoX
— SHOWTIME SPORTS (@SHOsports) May 22, 2016
My score was identical to the one judge who had it 115-112. The other two, who had it 116-111, seemed a bit wide but justifiable depending on your scoring preference.
Lara mentioned wanting to get a rematch with Canelo or a middleweight showdown with Gennady Golovkin. The chances of either are minimal. More likely is a defense against fellow PBC fighter Kanat Islam, who earlier this month scored a sixth round TKO over Juan De Angel and is currently ranked #7 by the WBA.
JERMALL CHARLO UD12 AUSTIN TROUT: I came away impressed with both guys in this one. I really thought Trout was ripe for the taking from a younger, stronger and bigger man in Charlo, but he hung tough and kept it competitive all the way through. Trout was at his best when he shot counter straight lefts down the middle, and worked in southpaw right hooks after turning his foe. The insurmountable climb for Trout was the fact all of Charlo’s clean shots were heavier, causing more facial damage and knocking Trout off-balance.
.@FutureOfBoxing and @NoDoubtTrout getting scrappy in their title bout. #NightOfChampions #CharloTrout https://t.co/I6w7lTXAJI
— SHOWTIME SPORTS (@SHOsports) May 22, 2016
Trout had to fight near perfect rounds to avoid this and more often than not, wasn’t able to do so. I scored the bout 115-113 for Charlo, giving Trout rounds 1, 2, 8, 9, and 11.
Thankfully, Charlo reneged on his promise to test middleweight and will stick aroound to face his mandatory challenger Julian “J Rock” Williams. It’s exactly the type of matchup that the PBC brand should be making their name on — two undefeated, young and ambitious fighters.
JERMELL CHARLO TKO8 JOHN JACKSON: Protect yourself at all times! John Jackson surprised everyone by electing to box instead of brawl with Charlo, holding a 69-64 lead on all three scorecards. Jackson counter-punched well off the backfoot and thoroughly confused Charlo with his switch-hitting. In the eighth, Jackson lingered in the pocket too long and got caught with a slashing overhand right, which stiffened his legs and made Jackson turn away in bewilderment.
Charlo wisely pounced with a hook and forced referee Tony Weeks to halt the contest. Jackson later claimed the shot dislodged his mouthpiece and he was turning away to readjust it. Look, when the only thing on your mind is fixing your mouthpiece after being clocked (think Tyson after getting floored by Douglas), you’re seriously hurt.
Charlo didn’t look impressive, but wins like this show a lot of character. He should learn a lot from this.
Photo Credit: Stephanie Trapp/Showtime
LAS VEGAS — Tonight’s Showtime card is headlined by Erislandy Lara defending his WBA 154 pound title against Vanes Martirosyan in a rematch, and the Charlo twins in undercard bouts. Onto the predictions…
LARA: 153.5
MARTIROSYAN: 153.8
PREDICTION: When I went over my wish list of fights for 2016, this rematch was not one that made the cut. Lara and Martirosyan’s first bout was filled with awkward exchanges and clinching that made rounds difficult to score simply from boredom.
There’s no reason to think the rematch will be any different. Lara will be on the move and landing accurate, laser-sharp lefts hands whenever he decides to throw. Martirosyan will be stalking and hold an edge in the later rounds with a higher workrate. Don’t be surprised by wildly different scores, but Lara is a step above Martirosyan and should win this rematch by majority decision.
JERMALL CHARLO: 153.2
TROUT: 154
PREDICTION: Trout is a very capable fighter, but he’s outgunned in this one. He gets caught in every fight and in this case he’s facing the harder punching and more aggressive Charlo. To date, Trout has always got up from his knockdowns, but I feel his soft competition since losing to Lara means Charlo is catching him at the right time. Charlo KO somewhere in the middle rounds.
JERMELL CHARLO: 153.8
JACKSON: 153.5
PREDICTION: This is a solid fight for both guys. Jermell is the more technical boxer of the twins and will hold the advantage in most rounds. Jackson has good power, but not the otherworldly power of his father that he’d need to hurt Charlo with one shot. He’ll need an accumulation to get the job done, and Charlo will be a bit too elusive for him to pull it off. CHARLO WIDE UD.
JUNIOR WRIGHT: 199.6
SHUMENOV: 199
PREDICTION: This a cruiserweight title matchup that’s fallen under the radar (probably because it’s for the WBA strap). Shumenov is more experienced, hits harder, and been in with the better competition. Yes, Shumenov is still crude, but Wright has a tendency to go to the ropes too easily and that’s where we’ll see his undoing. SHUMENOV KO4
Photo Credit: Ed Diller/ DiBella Entertainment
Entire Bout Sheet: DOWNLOAD
BROOKLYN — Former middleweight titlist Peter Quillin and Michael Zerafa tipped the scales at 160 and 162 respectively for their Saturday afternoon PBC card on NBC. Usually, a fight like this would be seen as a typical exhibition for Premier Boxing Champions. But this one has significant implications as it serves as a setup for a December showdown between Quillin and WBA titlist Danny Jacobs.
QUILLIN: 160
JACOBS: 162
PREDICTION: Quillin has become an afterthought at 160 since vacating his WBO title to avoid facing then mandatory challenger Matt Korobov last year. The potential for a big matchup is finally on the horizon if he can get past Zerafa. This shouldn’t be a problem as Zerafa is little known and little accomplished, having turned pro in 2011 as a junior middleweight. Zerafa is decent fighting off the backfoot and counterpunching, but Quillin is too strong and big for him. QUILLIN TKO5
CHARLO: 153
BUNDRAGE: 153
PREDICTION: A Bundrage title reign is always on borrowed time. Jermall Charlo is the puncher and more aggressive fighter of the two brothers. That power, in addition to his size, should neutralize Bundrage’s propensity to maul and make it ugly. Being 42 years old doesn’t help Bundrage, either. CHARLO UD
BROWNE: 175
CAMPILLO: 179
PREDICTION: I haven’t decided yet if Al Haymon is rewarding Campillo for derailing Thomas Williams Jr.’s career, or punishing him with these recent matchups. After receiving a brutal KO at the hands of Artur Beterbiev five months ago, he’s getting thrown in with another power puncher in Marcus Browne. Browne is more refined than Williams, so I don’t see the veteran Campillo getting a chance to get any footing in this one. BROWNE KO4
