Ten of the best boxers in the world gathered on Tuesday morning in Xiamen for the WSB Season VIII Leg One Weigh-In, with the Astana Arlans Kazakhstan and Cuba Domadores teams both going for the glory. The intensity was palpable, and the mind-games began early as the Kazakh and Cuban athletes faced-off ahead of what […]
Twenty of the best boxers in the world gathered on Friday morning in Astana for the WSB Season VII Weigh-In, with the Astana Arlans Kazakhstan and Cuba Domadores teams both going for a historic third title on Saturday afternoon. The intensity was palpable and the mind-games began early as the Kazakh and Cuban athletes faced-off […]
Momentous night of boxing sees the magnificent Cuba Domadores beat the brave British Lionhearts to lift the WSB trophy for a second time Saturday saw an unforgettable night of WSB boxing in the Uzbekistan capital of Tashkent, as the Cuba Domadores earned their second WSB title in three years with a near-perfect win over the […]
Bold British Lionhearts look to make history in first WSB final while ever-impressive Cuba Domadores seek second title in three years The Uzbekistan capital of Tashkent is warming up to host the sixth World Series of Boxing final on Saturday 4 June, and whilst the Cuba Domadores are no strangers to this stage of the […]
The British Lionhearts were on dazzling form in London’s York Hall on Friday night, going one better than their 3-2 first leg win to record a famous 4-1 victory over the titleholders to reach their first ever WSB final. The 7-3 aggregate score means they will now meet the Cuba Domadores in the final in […]
The Cuba Domadores booked their place in WSB Season VI Finals in emphatic fashion on Friday night, repeating their superb first-leg whitewash of Uzbek Tigers to take the match 10-0. The Cuban side were once again in unstoppable form, punishing the slightest mistake from their opponents and showing just why they will be many people’s […]
WSB Season IV champions Cuba Domadores bounced back from their defeat to Ukraine Otamans a fortnight ago with a comprehensive 5-0 whitewash of Turkiye Conquerors on Friday night. It was the Cubans’ first home match of the current campaign, and Havana provided a predictably testing atmosphere for a Turkish side now with just one win in five.
The tone was set for a difficult evening for the visitors as the hosts’ 24 year-old light flyweight Santiago Amador dazzled Conquerors’ Tolgahan Ozturk in the opening bout with some trademark fast footwork and rapid combinations. Debutant Ozturk, a last-minute replacement for Hamza Kartal, could find no answer across the five rounds, and a unanimous points decision gave Cuba the 1-0 lead.
The Domadores’ AIBA Youth World Champion Javier Ibanez Diaz, standing in for London 2012 Olympic Champion Robeisy Ramirez, then made a spectacular WSB debut. The bantamweight looked nervous during a tactical opening exchange with Turkey’s Nurettin Ovat, but grew in stature as the contest wore on, and with Ovat first on the floor and then on the ropes in the third round, his corner had no choice but to end the bout early and the hosts found themselves 2-0 up.
The match was put out of reach when Domadores’ London 2012 Olympic Games bronze medallist Yasniel Toledo Lopez out-manoeuvered Yakup Sener with a controlled points win. What followed proved even more emphatic, with Cuban middleweight Arlen Lopez’s landing a perfect left jab early in the second round to secure a quick TKO win over Evren Tibukoglu and have his team cruising at 4-0.
A superb duel between two tough heavyweights rounded off the night in Havana, with Domadores’ Frank Sanchez and Conquerors’ Seyda Keser both going into the ring undefeated in Season VI. The Cuban, one of the hardest hitters in the weight class, managed to keep Keser’s attacks at bay and his stamina ultimately proved decisive, earning a deserved points win and Cuba a third whitewash of the season. All eyes will now be back on Havana on 31 March, when the city welcomes Ukraine Otamans for a decisive top-of-the-table clash.
Ukraine Otamans’ unbeaten home record in Season VI faces its stiffest test yet on Saturday night as the team welcomes Season IV champions Cuba Domadores to the Palace of Sports. After comfortable wins against China Dragons and Turkiye Conquerors, the Otmanas will need to be at their very best if they are to overcome Julio Cesar La Cruz and his team, who have yet to drop a bout in the current campaign.
Reigning Ukrainian Flyweight Champion Maksym Fatych earned a brilliant win over China Dragons star Hu Jianguan on his WSB debut in Week 3, but Yosbany Veitia, a member of that championship winning side two years ago, represents an even bigger challenge in the evening’s opening bout.
Up second it’s the turn of Ukraine’s new lightweight star Viktor Slavinskyi, who knocked down China Dragons’ Shan Jun in Week 3, but will also need to put in a career-best performance to halt another of Cuba’s WSB champions and last year’s AIBA Worlds gold medalist, Lazaro Alvarez.
Bocskai Memorial Tournament silver medallist Otamans’ Serhii Bohachuk had a strong debut win against China, but he won’t have faced many better than his opponent on Saturday, London 2012 Olympic Champion Roniel Iglesias, who dominated his opening Season VI win over Türkiye Conquerors’ Serhat Guler. After already showcasing three incredibly talented boxers, the Domadores are able to call upon their captain and triple AIBA World Heavyweight Champion Julio Cesar la Cruz, who will be favourite to control his match against Maksym Kots.
The hosts’ Rostyslav Arkhipenko then rounds off the action at his newly adopted super heavyweight category, charged with the task of defeating Domadores’ two-time Pan-American Games winner Leinier Eunice Pero, who replaces Yohandi Toirac in the Otamans’ side.
After getting WSB Season VI off to a winning start against China Dragons in Week 1, Türkiye Conquerors will be hoping to repeat the perfomance against Group A favourites Cuba Domadores on Saturday night. Winning the last three bouts of their opening match will have left the Conquerors high on confidence while for the Domadores, unbeaten in the group stage last season, this will be a testing opening fixture in Istanbul.
The Cubans made their WSB debut in style back in Season IV, winning the team title in emphatic fashion. Only the tough Astana Arlans were able to halt them in the last match of Season V, and underlining their stature, seven of the squad have already qualified for Rio 2016, two of whom – Lazaro Alvarez and captain Julio Cesar La Cruz, both AIBA World Champions – make an appearance on Saturday.
First in the ring and making his WSB debut for Türkiye Conquerors’ will be Ferhat Pehlivan, brought in to the national squad back in 2006 and a quarter-finalist at the London 2012 Olympic Games. He faces 19 year-old Cuban Frank Saldivar, stepping in for Yosbany Veitia at flyweight after a solid semi-final win over Mexico Guerreros’ Orlando Huitzil last season.
Turkish lightweight Yasin Yilmaz only joined the elite team last year but has already earned himself a hard-hitting reputation, ending several bouts by Technical Knockout. He may well need to do the same on Saturday if he is to overcome three-time AIBA World Champion and WSB Season IV Team Champion Lazaro Alvarez in the second bout of the evening.
Young welterweight Serhat Guler faces a huge challenge in the form of Cuba’s reigning Olympic Champion Roniel Iglesias, and compatriot Nadir Unal will also need to summon the performance of his life if he is to halt the Domadores’ other three-time AIBA World Champion and WSB Team Champion Julio Cesar La Cruz, currently one of the best boxers on the planet.
The last bout of the night sees the veteran of two Olympic Games, Bahram Muzaffer, move up to super heavyweight to round off the match against the young but experienced Cuban Yohandi Toirac, in what has the potential to be a spectacular finale.
The USA Knockouts, Puerto Rico Hurricanes and Caciques de Venezuela tap-up new talent as 16 teams complete their line-ups for a hotly anticipated new campaign at WSB Season VI Draft
The World Series of Boxing Season VI Draft was finalised this morning in Lausanne, Switzerland, with several franchises seizing the opportunity to heavily strengthen their line-ups ahead of what is set to be another compelling season of boxing’s unique team competition. The USA Knockouts, Puerto Rico Hurricanes and Caciques de Venezuela were particularly active as they look to close the gap on last year’s champions the Kazakhstan Astana Arlans and beaten finalists the Cuba Domadores.
“We are gearing up for an exciting Season VI of WSB starting in January and I am thrilled to see a wealth of new boxing talent emerging in our competition,” said WSB CEO Karim Bouzidi. “The addition of new franchises and new boxers demonstrates the dynamic development of WSB in key markets across the globe and the growing international appeal of our sport, and I eagerly await the return of this exceptional boxing competition, along with our thousands of fans all over the world.”
The event opened with WSB Commission Chairman Franco Falcinelli welcoming two new franchises making their debuts in Season VI: Uzbekistan Tigers and Turkey Bosphourous. Shortly afterwards, Boxam silver medallist Damian Biacho became the first athlete to be drafted, with the British Lionhearts snapping up the Spanish middleweight talent.
It was a busy morning for the Lionhearts, who also secured the services of Armenia’s Koryun Soghomonyan (52kg), EUBC European Confederation Boxing Championships bronze medalist Petar Belberov (+91kg), Strandja Memorial Tournament winner Radoslav Pantaleev (81kg) and Hungary’s London 2012 Olympic Games quarter-finalist Zoltan Harcsa (75kg).
Even more active were the USA Knockouts, who landed a real coup in the form of Croatia’s super heavyweight star Filip Hrgovic. The former Astana Arlans boxer won all of his Season V contests, helping the team to the championship title and setting himself on course for a place at Rio 2016. Also among the eight new faces added to the Knockouts’ team were India’s red-hot flyweight Gaurav Bidhuri and French light heavyweight Souliman Abdourachidov.
Rafako Hussars Poland will be able to count on the considerable abilities of Ireland’s double-Olympic bronze medalist Patrick Barnes after they drafted in last year’s top light flyweight. Barnes delivered a 7-0 record for Italia Thunder in Season V, and he will be joined by Germany’s promising super heavyweight Florian Schulz, compatriot and 2015 European Games bronze medalist Kastriot Sopa, and Italy’s Riccardo D’Andrea.
France’s top-ranked welterweight Souleymane Cissokho, Colombia’s AMBC American Confederation Champion Jorge Luis Vivas and Germany’s Chemistry Cup winner Leon Bunn were the key names to join Mexico Guerreros, while among the new Caciques de Venezuela are Hector Luis Garcia and Hungary’s former EUBC European Confederation Champion Balazs Bacskai.
The Puerto Rico Hurricanes’ management kept its focus on the traditionally heavily contested upper weight classes of the draft, bringing in the services of Colombia’s Julio Carrillo (81kg), Germany’s Roman Fress (91kg), Armenian Narek Manasyan (+91kg), Ireland’s Dean Gardiner (+91kg) and Mantas Valavicius (+91kg) of Lithuania.
The opening matches of WSB Season VI, with the number of groups expanded from two to four this season in order to accomodate all sixteen teams, will take place in January 2016.
World Series of Boxing Group Draw has set the stage for the upcoming Season VI, as current Champions Astana Arlans face Azerbaijan Baku Fires, Puerto Rico Hurricanes and Uzbekistan team. Season V runners-up Cuba Domadores are facing a varied collection of opponents including Algeria Desert Hawks, Ukraine Otamans and China Dragons.
AIBA President Dr Ching-Kuo Wu, who opened the Draw, said: “Season VI will be an extraordinary competition as we will be able to witness 16 truly amazing and legendary teams go head to head for the honour to compete in WSB Finals”.
He added: “I am confident that all teams will offer a magnificent spectacle and that this will be one of the best boxing seasons our fans have ever seen”.
The 16 teams were drawn into four groups of four teams with the top seed in each group occupied by Season V semi-finalists:
Group A: Cuba Domadores, Algeria Desert Hawks, Ukraine Otamans, China Dragons
Group B: Mexico Guerreros, USA Knockouts, Morocco Atlas Lions, British Lionhearts
Group C: Russian Boxing Team, Rafako Hussars Poland, Argentina Condors, Caciques de Venezuela
Group D: Astana Arlans Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan Team, Azerbaijan Baku Fires, Puerto Rico Hurricanes.
Followign the Draw the General Manager of Cuba Domadores Alberto Puig de la Barca said: “All the teams are very strong this year. All the franchises will do a god job and it will not be easy to beat any of them. We have been matched against three very good teams and we will have to plan well. The format of Season VI is really good with four groups and less matches, which will allow the boxers to be in a perfect shape throughout the whole Season”.
Two teams from each group will progress further and will contest play-offs to determine the last four and ultimately two finalist teams to battle it out in the World Series of Boxing Team Finals.
The gloves are on for World Series of Boxing teams, who will gather in Vargas, Venezuela on 14 August for the official Season VI Group Draw. 16 teams will face each other in four groups of four teams for the coveted WSB Trophy.
“World Series of Boxing is the home for the world’s greatest boxers, including future and past Olympic and World Champions. In Season VI the boxers, who have already won the quota for Rio 2016 and those, who will contest their chance for the Olympic ticket will face each other in a series of remarkable matches. It will truly be the battle of the best”, said AIBA Executive Director and CEO of the World Series of Boxing Karim Bouzidi.
“I would also like to welcome newcomers Uzbekistan, whose arrival to WSB demonstrates the competition’s global appeal to a vast audience all over the world”, he added.
According to World Series of Boxing Draw procedure, Astana Arlans Kazakhstan, Cuba Domadores, Mexico Guerreros and Russian Boxing Team will be seeded as Season V semi-finalists. The rest of the teams will be placed each based on the team ranking position in the Regular Season V of the World Series of Boxing.
“It is a huge honour to host Season VI World Series of Boxing Group Draw in Vargas. Caciques Venezuela have been competing in WSB for the first time last season and we are hoping to progress even further this time and face the world’s best boxing teams”, said General Manager of Caciques Venezuela Fran Lopez.
The following 16 teams will be drawn into four groups (A-D) of four teams each with the top seed in each group occupied by Season V semi-finalists:
Pot 1:
Astana Arlans Kazakhstan
Cuba Domadores
Mexico Guerreros
Russia Boxing Team
Pot 2:
Ukraine Otamans
Azerbaijan Baku Fires
Venezuela Caciques
Morocco Atlas Lions
Pot 3:
USA Knockouts
Puerto Rico Hurricanes
Rafako Hussars Poland
China Dragons
Pot 4:
British Lionhearts
Algeria Desert Hawks
Argentina Condors
Uzbekistan Team
Two teams from each group will progress further and will contest play-offs to determine the last four and ultimately two finalist teams to battle it out in the World Series of Boxing Team Finals.
The Draw will also determine the weight categories for tiebreaker bouts for the play-off stage of Season VI of the World Series of Boxing.
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