Boxing
Donald Trump runs commentary at Holyfield boxing bout
Former US President Donald Trump provided ringside commentary for the Holyfield boxing bout at Seminole Hard Rock casino in Hollywood, Florida. Trump, who tirelessly boosted Holyfield throughout his undercard commentary, seemed taken aback by the ex-champ’s performance.
“No, he’s not the same,” Trump said. “Right from the beginning he was not the same fighter. He lost a lot. It was not Evander Holyfield.”
Trump received a rapturous welcome from fans at the Florida venue, where he arrived after visiting New York on the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
He got in a dig at President Joe Biden and a plug for his friend Dana White, promoter of mixed martial arts brand Ultimate Fighting Championship, in low key commentary alongside his son Donald Trump Jr.
The former president is no stranger to boxing, his hosting of major fights at his hotels and casinos having earned him a place in New Jersey’s boxing Hall of Fame.
Trump’s commentary for the card put together by Triller, the music video app that is trying to break into boxing with its Triller Fight Club streaming platform, included remembrances of fights and fighters past along with random observations on the sport.
“It’s like elections, it could be rigged, too,” Trump noted of some questionable fight results he has seen in the past.
On the undercard, Britain’s former cruiserweight and heavyweight world champion David Haye carried his buddy Joe Fourier, a business magnate turned mid-life boxer, over eight easy-going two-minute rounds on the way to a unanimous decision victory.
Haye, 40, had not fought in three years, when he retired from the ring with a record of 28-4 with 26 knockouts.
He said before the bout that he had no intention of making a “traditional comeback” to the ring, but could not resist calling out fellow Brit Tyson Fury, the reigning World Boxing Council heavyweight world champion, after his victory.
“There’s one man I’ll come back to professional boxing to fight… Tyson Fury,” said Haye, who twice pulled out of fights against Fury. “I know his kryptonite. The old man’s coming for the big dosser.”
Mixed martial arts legends Anderson Silva and Tito Ortiz – both 46 – took their talents to the boxing ring with Silva scoring a brutal first-round knockout.
Ortiz paid the price for an aggressive start when a counter from Silva sent him to the canvas for the count.
“This fight I thought was amazing, even though it was very short,” Trump opined. “We didn’t have to wait around all night long.”
-AFP
U.S. immigration authorities have arrested Mexican boxer Julio Cesar Chavez Jr in Los Angeles and plan to deport him, they said on Thursday, just days after he lost a high-profile bout to American rival Jake Paul.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said Chavez was determined to be in the country illegally last week after he made fraudulent statements on a 2024 application for permanent residence. He is married to a U.S. citizen, it said.
Michael Goldstein, a lawyer for Chavez, said more than two dozen immigration agents arrested the boxer at his home in the Studio City area of Los Angeles on Wednesday.
“The current allegations are outrageous and appear to be designed as a headline to terrorize the community,” Goldstein said.
Homeland Security said that the 39-year-old boxer, son of Mexican world champion fighter Julio Cesar Chavez, is suspected of ties to Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel, which Washington has designated a foreign terrorist organization.
Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. speaks at press conference in anticipation of his fight against Jake Paul at Avalon Hollywood Theater. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images/File Photo
His wife, Frida Munoz Chavez, was previously married to the son of former Sinaloa cartel leader Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, who is serving a life sentence in a U.S. prison. The son, Edgar, was assassinated in 2008.
Chavez is the target of a Mexican arrest warrant on allegations of involvement in organized crime and firearms trafficking, DHS said.
In Mexico, Chavez’ family said in a statement they “fully trust in his innocence.”
Chavez lost to influencer-turned-boxer Paul, 28, last weekend before a sold-out crowd in Anaheim, California, in a unanimous decision after 10 rounds.
He was allowed to enter the United States temporarily in early January under former President Joe Biden, DHS said. He had previously overstayed a tourist visa, it said.
The agency said Chavez was convicted in Los Angeles in 2024 on weapons charges. Goldstein denied he was convicted, saying he pleaded not guilty and was granted mental health diversion which will result in dismissal of the charges.
Chavez won the WBC middleweight championship in 2011, but lost the title the next year.
His career has been overshadowed by controversies including a suspension after testing positive for a banned substance in 2009 and a fine and suspension after testing positive for marijuana in 2013.
His record stands at 54 wins, six losses and one draw, with 34 knockouts.
Reporting by Brendan O’Brien and Bhargav Acharya, Lizbeth Diaz, Angelica Medina, Diego Ore and Kylie Madry in Mexico City, Amy Tennery in New York; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Bill Berkrot
-Reuters
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Manny Pacquiao will come out of retirement to face Mario Barrios for the WBC welterweight championship on July 19 in Las Vegas, the 46-year-old Filipino boxer said on Wednesday.
Pacquiao is the only boxer to win world championships in a record eight weight divisions while he was also the oldest welterweight world champion in history at the age of 40 in 2019.
A Filipino senator from 2016 to 2022, Pacquiao had retired from boxing in 2021 while he also ran for president in 2022.
“I’m back. On July 19, I return to the ring to face WBC Welterweight Champion Mario Barrios at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Let’s make history,” Pacquiao wrote on Instagram.
The southpaw, who has 62 wins, eight losses and two draws in a 72-fight career, was also elected to the International Boxing Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2025.
Barrios, a Mexican-American boxer, has 29 wins in 32 bouts, winning 18 by knockout and losing twice.
-Reuters
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The body of Segun Olanrewaju, the Nigerian boxer who slumped and died in the ring in Ghana on Saturday is still in a mortuary in Ghana. The President of the Nigerian Boxing Board of Control (NBB of C), Dr Rafiu Oladipo, informed Sports Village Square that an autopsy will be conducted on Wednesday.
He said that the NBB of C is closely monitoring the events in Ghana, even as the Director General of the National Sports Commission, Bukola Olopade has asked for updates on the sad incident.
On Monday, a delegation of the NBB of C visited the family of the late boxer in Sango Otta in Ogun State. Oladipo said he was still in shock at the death of the boxer who he considered fit having fought last December 29.
He revealed that one of the members of the Nigerian delegation to Ghana stayed behind to follow up on the autopsy.
He narrated that the late boxer took part on Thursday in the mandatory weigh-in which is normally conducted 24 hours before a fight. Additionally, a medical check-up is also to be conducted.
“But in this instance, there was no medical check. On this ground, Oladipo blamed the Ghana Boxing Authority.
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