A recap and a look at the next great Cruiserweight

Right a recap of the past few weeks and a new piece all rolled into one, I've been lazy with the world cup and a new addiction (oooh I'm a naughty boy).
Results of tipped guys:
Kenny Glarza L pts Brad Solomon
McWilliams Arroyo L pts Takashi Okada
Demetrius Andrade * Quandray Robertson
Maxim Vlasov WTKO3 Jerson Ravelo
Sherzod Husanov W pts Jhon Berrio
Mark Tucker W Pts Billy Bailey
Edwin Rodriguez WTKO5 Ibahiem King
Frankie Gomez WKO1 Jaime Orrantia
Jose Benavidez WKO1 Josh Beeman

The only losers were Puerto Rican power punchers.
*Denotes fighter didn't fight during the month despite being pencilled in. Not entirely sure what happened though.

So this week's fighter. How do you like the Cruiserweight division? Not much right? They're are just wannabe heavy's but not big enough right? Well here's a name to add to your boxrec “watch” list Rakhim Chakhkiev. A classy Russian amateur who has now turned his attention to taking over the professional ranks and he may well be one of those fighters that can really help establish the “bastard” division. With his amateur background being highlighted by Gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and a Silver medal at the 2007 World Amateur Championships both at heavyweight he's turned to the professional ranks in a relative blaze of glory.

He started his career by stopping Tayar Mehmed in late 2009 and has stopped all 5 of his opponents as a professional with heavy hands, excellent technical abilities and a style possibly more suited the the pro ranks than the amateur one. With Michael Timm training him and a major German promoter behind him he'll likely remain hidden from American audiences for a while though this does have it's rather cool advantages. At the moment the top Cruiserweights are based in Europe which means that he'll get the competition he needs by facing the faded cruisers out there and the smaller heavyweights as he learns the trade and likely gets fast tracked to the top.

With fighters like Steve Cunningham, Marco Huck, Herbie Hide, Denis Lebedev, Alexander Alexeev, Ola Olafabi, Yoan Pablo Hernandez, Krzysztof Wlodarczyk, Grigory Drozd, Pawel Kolodziej, Giacobbe Fragomeni, Firat Arslan, Steve Herelius and Enzo Maccarinelli all based in or signed to European promoters it seems likely that the division will see the best fighters over here (I'm based in the UK so it's over here ;-)). With that in mind it's likely only a few fights before Chakhkiev will be stepping up in competition.

At the time of posting Rakhim is pencilled in for a bout on July 3^rd on the undercard of Firat Arslan v Steve Herelius and Ina Menzer v Jeannine Garside, though there is no opponent currently named. It's likely to be a solid step up in opponent for a fighter than some are seeing as the future of the division and at 27 years old he may well dominate for a while.

Jose Benvidez...The best prospect in the world

So week 3, and as promised a "super prospect", if you need to put your money on any fighter features in this column ever making it to being a world champion this is the banker, the NAP if you will. 18 year old Mexican-American amateur star Jose Benavidez, undoubtedly the most highly sought after teenager in boxing history prior to signing for Bob Arum's Top Rank (the same company that also have training mate Manny Pacquiao). Having been the youngest fighter in history to win National Golden Gloves Champion (aged just 16) his signature was sought after high and low by professional promoters wanting to sign him, though at the same time dreams of Olympic success were also acting as a battling force, he would likely be amongst the US' best chance at the 2012 games in London having matured into a young 20 year old under the wing of famed trainer Freddie Roach. Although he had options like few other amateur stars it was the guidance of Roach that eventually lead Benavides to turning professional with the trainer applying for a professional Nevada license. Despite needing to be 18 to get the license the NSAC gave special dispensation to Benavidez due to his advanced skills, that rivalled that of seasoned professionals. In fact even before he had turned professional he had been sparring with seasoned and high level professionals such as Amir Khan who Freddie Roach was quoted as saying he'd been "Dead Even" with in sparring.

Stood at a gangly 5 foot 11 and with an unassuming personality the likeable kid (who has now turned 18) is currently campaigning as a professional in either the Lightweight (135lbs) or the Light

Welterweight (140lbs) divisions both of which he stands as a relative giant. With the commentators on TV before his debut explaining that Benavidez was being likened to Sugar Ray Robinson it was easy to take an immediate dislike to the hype behind the youngster before he had even stepped into the ring, though within just 81 seconds you could see that this wasn't meaningless hype. He debuted on one of the Top Rank TV shows back in January and faced the unbeaten Steven Cox (1-0), having had a massive build up it would have been easy to expect Benavidez to freeze, though he came out and performed like a seasoned pro, showing the skills of someone with years of experience. He seemed not only able to do the simple things, like establish his jab (which, with his 74 inch reach, is likely to be one of his most potent weapons) but also manage to work his opponent into the places where he'd want him before landing a beautiful and powerful left hand that sent Cox down. Even after Cox got up to his feet Benavides wouldn't relent and cleverly picked Cox apart before the referee waved it off. Inside 81 seconds Benavidez had gone from a 17 year old that no one outside of the most extreme of boxing fans had known about into a fighter that looked like he had stardom written in his destiny.

Since then Benevidez has just been improving, showing more and more aspects to his game and although his opponents so far have been there for no other purpose than to allow the youngster to get confident in the ring and improve as a professional he has managed to beat them with out looking like the youngster that he is. In fact from his first 6 opponents only one has managed to survive into the 3rd round, with 4 being stopped in the opener. For a youngster Benavidez really has it all, speed, natural talent, power of which you wouldn't have expected and maybe more crucially the ability to pick his punches beautifully to both head and body. The most recent victory for him being a clinical first round stoppage of Ronnie Peterson after a body shot that seemed to to just sap the fight right out of the 3-1-0-1 Peterson (who had only previously suffered a loss after damaging his shoulder).

For Benavidez, who wears glasses outside of the ring and looks like a typical bully victim with his slim build and innocent smile, the up coming test against Steve Hall in the Alamodome on Saturday as part of the undercard of John Duddy's fight with Julio Cesar Chavez Jr should be a rather easy nights work. Hall coming in with a 2-1 (2) record has stopped his last 2 opponents though against Benavidez he's meeting a special kind of fighter. Hall is only going to last as long as Benavidez wants him to, that's not a knock on Hall but a simple explanation of just how good Benavidez is, in fact you could make a solid case for him being better schooled than either of the main event fighters.

Also on the card is Mexican idol Marco Antonio Barrera, perhaps bowing out his career on the same card as Benavidez establishing his

Week 3 part 1 Edwin "La Bomba" Rodriguez

As part of a double header of prospects for this week (it’s a busy week) as well as a mid week column we’re going to look at probably the best prospect in the world in the second one, though for this column we have a Super Middleweight who seems like he’s being matched better than most in his position. 25 Year old Edwin Rodriguez from the Domican Republic is one of the more well known prospects in boxing today though it worth a look at. With a record of 15-0 (11) since he turned professional in 2008 he has come along nicely and has kept relatively busy learning his trade as he goes.

A talented amateur Rodriguez won both the US Championships in 2005 and the 2006 National Golden Gloves at Middleweight establishing himself as one of the hottest amateurs in the country. Though he failed to make the Olympic team for Beijing after compiling an 84-9 amateur record he decided to move on, knowing life in the professionals would suit him and give him a well earned financial security. Although life hasn’t been plain sailing from then outside of the ring it has inside for the 6 foot man known as “La Bomba”. His battles outside of the ring have circled around the lives of his 2 twins, who were both born with medical problems. Instead of campaigning to get into the Olympic team Edwin put his dreams on hold instead concentrating on the lives of his children.

Having signed with Lou DiBella and the DiBella Entertainment promotional company and managed by Larry Hazard who sees Edwin as a friend as well as a client he has a solid pairing behind him. Though it’s the fact that Edwin is an intelligent and nice guy that has really seen him gaining the sort of attention he has had. Edwin has spent time doing things for those less fortunate than himself, such as playing hide and seek with disabled children and is also a graduate from Holy Cross where he earned a degree in Political Science.

Though with out repeating these facts it’s hard for many to understand what an all round star he is and it’s not just his boxing ability that has seen him become a star. His 15-0 record has seen him beating progressively better opponents such as Darnell Boone who’s 16-12-2 has been spent facing mainly the stiffest prospects out there (such as Erislandy Lara, Craig McEwan and Brandon Gonzales) and George Armenta (who has faced Yuri Foreman, Sachew Powell and last weeks midweek update fighter Mark “TNT” Tucker). In his upcoming fight Rodriguez faces the experienced Gabriel Holguin (25-8-1 with 9KO’s). A loss to Holguin would likely seriously damage Rodriguez’s career though it would be a major upset, as Holguin has only a single win in his last 4 fights, however he has only been stopped once in his career back in 2004, a stoppage win for Rodriguez would be incredibly impressive, though the bout is a good test for “La Bomba’s” stamina as it’s to be his first 10 rounder.

Expect a wide decision for a very talented fighter who will hopefully be moved onto top 30 type fighters as he has the talent to try and get in with some of the fighters from the Super 6 come the end of 20111

I'm a lil bit beyond tipsy so excuse me

You've got to hate this sport of ours, it keeps good fighters off TV and instead shows the ilk of Allan Green, the heartless fighter who talked a good fighter but delivered as if he was impersonating the England football team at this world cup. So over the past 2 nights two of the top American prospects managed to avoid TV coverage, people who read my last piece on this site will know who they are, others are about to find out.

First was Demetrius Andrade, possibly the most hyped young American fighter out here right now, he fought on the un-televised undercard of ESPN's “Friday Night Fights”.Although originally pencilled in to face Qunadray Robertson his opponent was changed to Dumont Welliver, even now on Sunday morning my time (BST) the result isn't on boxrec. Sadly it seemsno one else has released the result for that one as many of us wait in wonder as to who won. The other fighter I noted was Mark “TNT” Tucker who fought on the the undercard of Ward's dominant win over Allan Green. Tucker's fight, also not televised has had a record in boxrec at this time.

Tucker, a talented fighter who started his career as if he was a power puncher looks to be the fighting pride of his home city, though on recent performances he has been less and less impressive. His most recent fight on Saturday proved that he's not the star many were expecting him to be, as he out pointed Billy Bailey over 8 rounds. Thought he got the win it was in an uninspiring and close performance that saw the man known as “The Billy Goat” losing by 1 round (2 cards) and 2 rounds (the final card). Bailey a very standard journeyman shouldn't have given Tucker any problems if Tucker's fans are to believed,though the fact he did is a worry as TNT was meant to be something special.

For those interested my views on the Green v Ward fight can be found on Helium, and their's also a piece on a special talent coming later this week. Otherwise, it seems the top US prospects have been over looked, a real shame.

We want results

The failure of McWilliams Arroyo last week was an upset, though this week we had a host of prospects fighting as they dominated ESPN's Friday Night Fights. A mix of international talent and US talent were on the card with Sherzod Husanov and Maxim Vlasov both giving it an Eastern European feel whilst Demetrius Andrade was a stand out American amateur.. Though the card had been set for a while Kinglsey Ikeke had been taken off the card and replaced by Jerson Ravelo, which links us nicely to tomorrow. Ravelo has faced both Andre Ward and Allan Green who fight tomorrow, on that card is Mark “TNT” Tucker, another fighter who appears to be one to watch. Though Tucker's result will be featured next week, the others are here and now as we round off week 2 of Prospect Scotting.

The card started with the more experienced Jerson Ravelo (20-4 with 12KO's going in) facing Maxim Vlasov (17-0 8KO's going in). Ravelo did come into the bout with a weeks notice (due the the aforementioned Ikeke pull out, caused by a broken jaw in sparring) and at times looked a bit unprepared for the Russians style who was busier and better and seemed to have his foe much better scouted. Controversy at the end of the second saw Ravelo's face cut up from a clash of heads (that looked deliberate from Vlasov), that was the nasty side of Vlasov, but the beautiful side of him was shown the following round. A right hand hook effectively put Ravelo out of it whilst an uppercut merely rubbed salt into the round and helped result in a 3^rd round TKO to help the Russian climb to 18-0 (9).

Sherzod Husanov an unbeaten (14-0-1 with 7KO's)* Uzbek who was a former top amateur was making his US debut for the shows main event when he took on hard hitting Colbian Jhon Berrio (15-6 with 11KO's) who was also making his US debut. Husanov impressed midway through the opening round, through deadly accurate straight right hands that connected sweetly on Berrio's chin as he the Uzbek took the centre of the ring trying to establish himself straight away. The second seemed to be a more brawling round, that should have suited Berrio but his slow looping wide punches were ineffective against a better schooled and faster foe. Although Husanov had dominated the early part of the fight he wasn't being particularly intelligent about it, and Berrio although lacking in finesse was turning the the fight to be a brawl, and seemed to be earning his way into the fight. The score cards gave the decision in the end to Husanov who managed to just about do enough to deserve the majority decision he got though he seemed to lack that spark that a truly great prospect has.

Overall the prospects looked good but not great whilst Andrade was kept of TV sadly and at time of posting his result wasn't known publicly though he had a late change of opponent from Quandray Robertson to Dumont Welliver, probably on paper an easier opponent. Like Tucker his result will be mentionedat the start of next week.


*ESPN reported that Husanov was 9-0-1 (5) boxrec have him at 14-0-1

Midweek Prospect Spotting Tucker, Vlasov and Husanov

Although thus weeks Prospect Scotting is about Demetrius Andrade there is several other names worth looking thus this secondary column for this week. Firstly, on the same card as Andrade v Robertson is a Russian 23 year old who's got some people talking and is taking on a solid if faded name. Maxim Vlasov (17-0 with 8KO's) faces Kingsley Ikeke (27-3 with 14KO's) who faced Arthur Abraham in an IBF Middleweight title fight in 2005. Vlasov won't be well known to most and his record looks like he lacks a punch but the 6 foot 3 Super Middleweight has scored 7KO's in his last 8 fights and seems to be growing into his power. Though against the tough Ikeke it won't be his power that's getting tested but his stamina heart and skill, of which only the skill has been shown so far.

Vlasov's record so far only features one recognisable name, Jonathan Reid (former WBA Middleweight contender) who was by then a faded force and having been a professional for 5 years this is a bit disappointing for Vlasov. Though he is regarded as a super prospect, one of many signed by Banner Promotions who seem to be getting themselves a nice stable of youngster. A victory over Ikeke would help Vlasov get his foot in the door and his names on the tongue of fight fans, though it's not a given that he will win. Ikeke is tough and the fight will be Vlasov's first 10 rounder, if the Russian fails to establish a pace that helps him Ikeke could well springing an upset.

The main event of the card in the Northern Quest Casino sees yet another unbeaten fighter that some are tipping in Uzbek fighter Sherzod Husanov (14-0-1 (7)) who faces Jhon Berrio (15-6 (11)). At 30 Husanov, a Light Middleweight will have to be fast tracked if he intends to make an impact, sadly though it's been over 3 years since he turned professional and he's been taking his time so far. Despite a deep amateur career Husanov failed to win the big ones though regularly medalled in world championships.

Maybe the most notable prospect for the weekend outside of Andrade is Mark “TNT” Tucker (13-0 with 7KO's), who fights on the undercard of the fight between Andre Ward and Allan Green (WBA Super Middleweight fight as well as part of the “Super 6”). 22 year old Tucker faces Billy Bailey (10-7 with 4KO's) in what should be an easy tests but one that comes on a high profile card. So far Tucker has been able to fight mainly at home in Maryland, hidden away from vast swathes of the boxing public. Although popular at “home” this should be a good day out for the 6 foot 1 Light Heavyweight prospect who many are tipping to be a star. Apparently a quiet man his website has the excellent motto “When in doubt knock 'em out”, although he failed to do so against Rubin Williams he did out point the former IBF Super Middleweight contender. Although his record features 7KO's his last 5 fights have gone the distance, and this one likely will as well.

So there you go the mid week “Prospects Scotting”

Andrade an emerging American force

You want a super prospect? Well for week 3 we have a piece on possibly the most hyped young American fighter in recent history, as well as a special look at at least 1 other fighter in what will be once of the busiest weeks. All I’ll say for now is that that fighter has been compared to Sugar Ray Robinson already and has sparred with Manny Pacquiao and Amir Khan (he was said to have been “Dead Even” with Khan).

For this week however we have Demetrius Andrade as our fighter of interest, one of a host of young Americans on their way up. Andrade, an unbeaten 22 year old with a record of 10-0 (7) has been around for what seems like years despite having only been a pro for just over a year and a half. The thing about him is that many will remember “Boo Boo” being surrounded with hype as he turned professional. The hype of his amateur days followed him through as he signed a pro deal, having been one of the USA’s great hopes at the 2008 Olympics. Although he flopped in Beijing going out in the quarter finals to Kim Jung-Joo from South Korea he had gone in as one of the favourites having won the 2007 World Amateur Champions Gold at the Welterweight division in Chicago. This gold was in addition to the Pan Am silver he won in Rio the same years which had seen him become one of the best prospects for the US at the games and in the eyes of many, he had been robbed there by poor officials.  

The talented amateur star wasn’t willing to wait until 2012 to try and improve his Olympic record so instead turned to the pro ranks where he’s slowly amassed his record since October 2008. Having debuted on the undercard of an IBF featherweight title fight where he knocked Patrick Cape in the second round Andrade has been brought along carefully and slowly as he gets used to fighting with out the head gear. Having had 4 easy KO’s in his first 4 fights he was given a stiffer test in the 8-1-1 (4) Tony Hirsch who managed to see the final bell with Andrade. Although “Boo Boo” won every round on every card in a controlled performance he showed that perhaps he hadn’t full grown into his power and at 21 it’s perhaps to be expected. Since then he has won 5 more fights against low key opponents with both Chris Chatman and Geoffrey Spruiell extending him the 6 round schedules only losing a single round on a single card combined.  

At 6 foot 1 it’s unlikely that Light Middleweight will be the weight in which Andrade really establishes himself, in fact it’s quite likely he’ll end up as high as Light Heavyweight before his career comes to a close though at 22 and whilst able to make the 154lbs limit it’s looking likely that he’ll remain here for the foreseeable future. In his next fight, which is scheduled for 6 rounds he faces the experienced (37 years old) Quandray Robertson a fighter who has fought between Welterweight and Middleweight in a 24 fight career since 1997 winning 15 (with 10KO’s) and losing 9 (8 losses by stoppage). It would be hoped that Andrade will be able to get rid of the veteran inside the distance, though he has only been stopped inside 6 rounds twice in his career (one of those coming against Sergiy Dzinziruk). It’s a bout that should be a safe one for a fighter as highly talented as Andrade is, as he slowly starts to step up his opponents over the next 12 months or so.

If he manages to, as expected, beat Robertson, don’t expect him in a difficult contest for a while as Arthur Pelullo and his Banner Promotions are likely to bring him along slowly on the under cards of their bigger fighters building his record and experience before letting the confident and lanky youngster loose.

McLoser Arroyo fails to shine

It was on a Top Rank live show that Bob Arum first showed the world his boxing super kid Jose Benavidez and now it was time to allow both of the highly hyped Puerto Ricans Gabriel Bracero and McWilliams Arroyo some of the same TV time as they too featured on a Top Rank live show. The main event may well have been Calderon v Iribe but for some this was the card of the new generation not the ageing “Iron Boy”.

29 year old Bracero 89-0 was the first to fight, having turned pro a long time ago (considering his age), in fact he debuted in 2001 and racked up a 5-0 record before taking 7 years out of the sport only to return in 2009 and increasing his record to 9-0. A bit of a mystery fighter it was obvious from his record with 0KO's that he wasn't going to try and stop his opponent (the 7-6 Julias Edmonds also 0KO's). It didn't take long to see why Bracero hadn't scored a stoppage, he relied on a single weapon that he knew how to use, his jab. He was a true stick and move fighter landing his fast accurate but powerless jab then moving and repeating it over and over with great work rate. Although he looked rather amateurish in style with his clean and crisp jab with lots of movement he looked talented and able even when he did occasionally mix up his shots he still moved in and out quickly.

Having improved to 10-0 Bracero looks like he's effective at what he does but will really struggle to make it big, his lack of a punch but good movement saw him perhaps being compared to Calderon though he's not likely to ever be on that level he could be one of the best “pure boxing” prospects pout there.

So onto the big guy for the week, McWilliams Arroyo who came in with the opposite sort of punch to Bracero, the former World Boxing Cup champion was 3-0 (3) going in and seen as one of the most talented young fighters out there. Or so we thought thought.

He went into the bought against Japanese fight Takashi Okada 1-0-1 as a fighter almost expecting a gimme and found out that in this sport you're given nothing solely on your amateur experience. Having won the opening round he was dropped in the second cut in the third and unable to establish himself en route to losing 39-36 and 38-37 (twice), the later two cards noticeably closer than the 39-36 I had it.

McWilliams perhaps learning that his power isn't as good we thought or that he failed to make the transition. Whatever it was this was an upset, and one that few so coming. Can McWilliams recover from it? Well both yes and no. He is talented but a loss against the likes of 26 year old Okada really isn't a good thing this early in your career. A poor performance in an exciting bout was punished with a poor result.

Star of the week-David Lemieux...WOW!

Are we seeing the spirit of Joe Louis?

David Lemieux isn't a fighter that was ever scheduled to appear in this column, that's why this is coming up at an usual timing considering how I originally intended to do this column. However Lemieux's fight with Elvin Ayala was a notable one. He was originally ignored due to the fact that many seemed to know about him more than I did and he also seemed a bit too highly ranked to be a prospect, he was 22-0 (21) highly tipped as one of the rising stars of Canada, he'd appeared on TV State side and had Canadian fans telling us about their power punching star. Yvon Michel was pushing him as the next big star to the Canadian rings and aged 21 he certainly had time on his side as he slowly stepped up his competition. Having stepped up in recent fights beating the likes of Walid Smichet (KO3), Delray Raines (KO2), Jason Naugler (decision over 10) and Donny McCrary (KO1) Elvin Ayala seemed the logical sort of next step.

Though early on the card Michel had seen one of his fighters upset, Sebastian Demers was stopped in the 3^rd round by exciting journeyman Brian Vera, was Ayala going to make it 0-2 for the promoter?

For many Ayala was a giant step up, Ayala 20-4-1 (9) had only been stopped once, by Arthur Abraham in the 12^th round of an IBF title fight in 2008. Although he had twice lost to David Banks they were close contests and a loss to the solid Simon Lujuan isn't anything to be ashamed by and also held Sergio Mora to a draw over 12. A win for Lemieux would put him on the B tier at worse, a fringe contender waiting for his chance for a 160 title fight. Though a loss would see him being shown up, making it obvious he was perhaps being rushed slightly, so which was it?

Also worth mentioning was the pre-fight controversy, Ayala's corner wanted to check on Lemieux's wraps, then the opposite happened causing both camps to re-wrap.

Lemieux is one of those rare types, like Gatti was and Oscar was, a good looking fighter, a genuine pretty boy that has the look that can draw in a cross over female audience. Good looks, power and youth, he has the ingredients to be a draw, though against a hardened fighter like Ayala you need to be more than just a pretty boy. Though he was quick to prove he was skilled, powerful, fast and simply brilliant, dropping the tough Ayala thrice in the first and forcing an automatic stoppage inside the opening minute.

Problem with including him as a prospect is that he's almost certainly already in the top 10's of many at middleweight hardly fair to consider him a prospect, despite the fact he's young and stupidly talented. Nailed on super star ready to really face the top 10 level of guys on a regular basis. Remember Ayala went 12 with Abraham, he couldn't last a round with Lemieux. The style, power, combination, speed...he reminded me a bit of the great Brown Bomber. In fact had Louis been a white middleweight it'd have been hard to tell the difference.

In an interesting result on the card Wayne John a 30 year old moved to 4-0 (2) by stopping the well respected but generally gate keeper level Patrice L'Heureux in 5 rounds. Could John be the next great North American heavyweight? Aged 30 he'll likely have to make his move in the next 3 to 4 years if he ever wants a title fight.

Banner Promotions, the promotions of the future

Despite this column being mainly about prospects I’ve decided every week (or rather when I can be bothered) will have a mid week piece, either a round up of other prospects fighting, results or just something of interest to those who follow prospects. Well with no other note worthy prospects fighting this week I’ve decided to take it on a slight tangent in looking at Artie Pelullo promotional company, Banner Promotions. I think Banner Promotions are going to be a major player in the coming years for the talent spotting, especially of Eastern European fighters who are yet to emerge in the US, or have just began to emerge.

Although they do have the occasional star, such as Ricky Hatton who is (or was) signed to Banner and even the likes of Cristobal Cruz, the former IBF Featherweight champion and Sergey Dzinziruk the WBO Light Middleweight champion who is looking to make waves in the US. Though as this is Talent Scotting, we’re not interested in those fighters but the youngsters, who seem like they will become a staple of this very column.

Demetrius Andrade is the first to be mentioned in the column (next week infact) though along side him is Maxim Vlsaov (who will be featured in one of these mid week pieces I’ve just spoken about). Though South Korean Ji Hoon Kim (21-5 (18KO’s)) may not be regarded as too much of a prospect having won an eliminator for the IBF Lightweight title he’s one that could well seen the company take off. A powerful hitting fighter who aged just 23 looks to be making waves that could hit the bigger shows next year.

Though how about some of these names:
Ruslan Provodnikov, a 5 foot 6 Light Welterweight with a pressure style, heavy hands and an exciting prospect with plenty of ability. Although he’s relatively old for a prospect at 26 he’s being moved along quickly in his last few fights. With a record of 16-0 (11) and wins against the likes of Victor Hugo Castro, Javier Jauregui and Emanuel Augustus in his last 3 he’s hot on the tails of the top fighters around 140 and has been exposed to the US market.

Garrett Simon an unbeaten 18 year old American heavyweight (4-0 with 3KO’s) who could well be a decent name at cruiserweight at his young age (he’s only around the 200lb limit at the moment). Stood at 6 foot 5 you’d expect him to build into a heavyweight prospect worth remembering though sadly American heavyweight sin recent years have been memorable for all the wrong reasons. Sadly Banner Promotions don’t seem to have much to say on young Garrett though he has a chance to make a big impression next Friday (18th June) as he fights on an ESPN2 undercard.

Alisher Rahimov despite being in his 30’s (32) the Super Featherweight is unbeaten at 20-0 (11) and has held a few fringe titles. Although not well known as such he does have one or two recognisable name son his record (such as Oleg Yefimovych-the Current EBU Featherweight champion). Probably never going to get his name back into title contention and probably to old to be a prospect hopefully Rahimov, a class amateur will step up at some point.

An almost mystery fighter on Banner’s list is Jackson Junior, who appears to be a Brazilian Light Heavyweight with a record of 7-0 (6) which looks nice on paper and includes wins over more experienced fighters, though sadly having made his debut in 2004 he’s just not been active enough to make much of a note of.

Although Banner Promotions aren't one of the big names hopefully they will keep bringing fighters like Kim and Provodniov to the US and getting them TV time.

The start of a new era

In so many ways this really is the start of something new, I'm writing under my real name, the column is brand new, the personal blog site it's on is brand new, and more importantly in the case of many of the fighters that are going to be featured in this column they are the start of a new era in boxing. 

Although their are no "rules" as such for the column's fighters outside of the fact they aren't allowed to be world champions or have had long reigning title reigns. They can be any age and have any amount of fights though the vast majority will be youngsters in their early fights often with a solid amateur background. One condition to be featured that is "generally" kept is that only 1 fighter can appear per week (though some exceptions will apply to this rule) and the fighter must be penciled down to fight that week (again some exceptions will apply).

So for the first fighter to be featured in this segment (which still doesn't have a name folks if you want to volunteer one that beats “Prospect Scotting”) we take a look at McWilliams Arroyo, one of a pair Puerto Rican twins who only started their professional careers at the start of this year. Both Arroyo brothers are 3-0 though it's McWilliams that seems to be the more exciting of the two having stopped all 3 opponents so far (whilst twin brother McJoe Arroyo has 1 stoppage). The pair came to international prominence in the amateurs with McWilliams being the more impressive of the two. He would win Gold at the Central American and Caribbean Games in 2006 before adding the Gold at the 2007 Pan Am games and then his crowning glory, Gold at the 2009 World Boxing Cup. The victory over Tugstsot Nyambayar of Mongolia in the World Boxing Cup was a masterclass with a score of 18-2 in the final as Arroyo captured the first gold in the tournament for his nation in 35 years. 

Having been chased by several promoters both brothers would sign with PR Best Boxing and debut on a card in Bayamon, Puerto Rico on the undercard of Wilfredo Vazquez Jr's triumphant WBO super bantamweight title fight. Both brothers would score KO's with McWilliams needing just 106 seconds to make an impact on fellow debutant Eliecer Sanchez. Sanchez was flattened by a straight right which seemed to badly hurt his opponent who seemed out of it for quite a while. Since then McWilliams has been matched well for a young professional. His second bout for example came against the 4-1 (3) Francisco Rosario from the Dominican Republic a former national champion as a professional who had never been stopped. Having won the opening 2 rounds McWilliams would turn it on in the 3^rd and force the stoppage against a capable opponent. Mexican Samuel Gutierrez went in with a 5-6-1 and came out with a 5-7-1record with McWilliams needing just over 1 and a half rounds to add to his growing reputation.

McWilliams Arroyo takes part in his 4^th contest as a professional on 12^th June only 2 weeks after having beaten Gutierrez., This will be the first time he has fought with out his brother on the card as a professional and also the first time he fights out side of his homeland as a pro. Facing off against unbeaten (1-0-1 (1)) Japanese fighter Takashi Okada in Madison Square Garden on the undercard of Ivan Calderon's WBO light flyweight title defence against Jesus Iribe, Arroyo is almost certain to see his stock rise through the roof with an impressive win on American soil in front of the sports written media.

Whether the 24 year old super flyweight will ever manage to headline a card in “The Garden” is up for debate though if he continues doing what he's done so far he may well become the Puerto Rican star many thought Kenny Galarza was going to be. It's always nice to see a technically able fighter, with fast hands and power, even more so when they are a little guy and the power is rather unexpected though in McWilliams Arroyo the lighter weights seem to have a real star in the making.

Boxrec record for McWilliams Arroyo