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03/19/2017
CELEBRITY FIGHT NIGHT XXIII Scores Another Knockout
By: Albert Alvarez
It was another great night at Muhammad Ali Celebrity Fight Night that inncluded a special tribute to the late Muhammad Ali presented by Sharon Stone and Larry King.
Along with Ford, Stone, & King, many other special guests such as David Foster, Reba McEntire, Brooks & Dunn, Caroline Campbell, Colbie Callait, Mike Love, Brian McKnight, Sam Moore, Dennis Quaid and The Shadowboxers were on hand to help make it a very special night.
Other special attendees included Lonnie Ali, Laila Ali, Melissa Peterman, Larry Fitzgerald, Earnie Shavers, Nancy Lieberman, Michael Carbajal, Michael Phelps and more.
For the 12th consecutive year, Celebrity fight night was hosted by Grammy Award-winning country music superstar Reba McEntire.
The evening started with cocktails and a silent auction followed by dinner, an exciting live auction and entertainment that honored legendary actor Harrison Ford.
Celebrity Fight Night was once again held at the beautiful JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort & Spa.
About the The Muhammad Ali Celebrity Fight Night foundation and Awards: This great event was established as a way to acknowledge leaders in the sports, entertainment and business communities who best represent the qualities associated with the Champ’s fight to find a cure for Parkinson’s disease.
Previous award recipients throughout the years have included Halle Berry, Robin Williams, Billy Crystal, Howard Schultz, Jennifer Lopez, Steve Martin, Joe Montana, Tony Hawk, Robert De Niro, Kevin Costner, Magic Johnson, Reba McEntire, Michael Bublé, Jim Carrey, Forest Whitaker, Donald Trump, Clive Davis, Larry King, Jack Nicklaus, Emmitt Smith, Wayne Gretzky, Michael J. Fox, Michael Phelps, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Evander Holyfield to name a few.
Sponsors of this year’s event include The Bob & Renee Parsons Foundation, USA Today, Porsche, Zetta Jet, Tequila Patrón, GoDaddy, M Group Scenic Studios, and GO Media Companies.
Some red carpet highlights:
Legendary and former Arizona Wildcats basketball head coach Lute Olson, was on hand and when asked what does he feel are the Wildcats chances in this year's NCAA basketball tournament, Olson went on to say: "I think coach Miller is doing a great job and I feel that this Wildcats team is deep enough to win it all."
Fitness guru Billy Blanks mentioned to me when asked what does Celebrity Fight Night mean to him, " It means everything to me because we have all been blessed with the opportunity to continue to do this for the champ, together we will work with one another for such a great cause in hopes to one day find a cure for Parkinson's" Blanks went on to tell us that he is currently training Victor Ortiz and said that Ortiz is in great shape and will without a doubt defeat Brandon Rios when both do battle against one another.
Legendary former champion boxer and Valley of the Sun's very own Michael Carbajal told us that he really enjoys attending Celebrity Fight Night every year because of the great people coming together towards the same goal. When asked on his thoughts on junior bantamweight Chocolatito Gonzalez and his pound for pound fighter status, Carbajal said, " I like watching Chocolatito fight, he's a good fighter, if I were fighting against him I would stay right on him pressuring him non stop. I however don't think that Chocolatito is the best pound for pound fighter fighting today, I think Mikey Garcia is the best pound for pound fighter, and if Garcia were to fight Lomachenko, Garcia would beat Lomachenko and possibly knock him out."
Pictured: Michael Phelps, Gina Lee Nolin, Ernie Shavers
Top 10 Boxing Clashes To Look Forward To For The First Half Of 2017
By: Albert Alvarez
February 25
At Birmingham, Ala. (PBC on Fox and Fox Sports 1):
Tony Harrison (24-1) vs. Jarrett Hurd (19-0), 12 rounds, for vacant IBF junior middleweight title- Both fighters are looking to make a splash in a loaded junior middleweight division and their time is now to make a big statement. The winner will capture the now vacant IBF junior middleweight title vacated by Jermall Charlo.
March 4
At New York (CBS):
Keith Thurman (27-0) vs. Danny Garcia (33-0), 12 rounds, WBA/WBC welterweight unification- There is nothing better in boxing than a unification title fight between two young strong fighters in their prime of their careers.
March 11
At Verona, N.Y. (HBO):
David Lemieux (36-3) vs. Curtis Stevens (29-5), 12 rounds, middleweights- When you place two power punching fighters in the ring against one another, you'll more than likely get a very violent fight. Two words for you, LIGHTS OUT!
March 18
New York (HBO PPV):
Gennady Golovkin (36-0) vs. Daniel Jacobs (32-1), 12 rounds, for Golovkin's WBA/WBC/IBF middleweight title- Golovkin has had his eyes on Canelo Alvarez for quite some time, but he now is completely focused on another hard hitting fighter like himself in Jacobs.
March 25
At Manchester, England (Showtime):
Jorge Linares (41-3) vs. Anthony Crolla (31-5-3), rematch, 12 rounds, for Linares' WBA lightweight titlte- In their first fight, Linares was able to out point Crolla by unanimous decision in a action packed back and forth battle. For their rematch I anticipate another close toe to toe encounter.
April 8
At Oxon Hill, Md. (HBO):
Vasyl Lomachenko (7-1) vs. Jason Sosa (20-1-4), 12 rounds, for Lomachenko's WBO junior lightweight title- Sosa the road warrior faces his toughest test to date as he squares up against the matrix Lomachenko. This clash has skill versus will written all over it.
April 21
At Miami, Fla.:
Artur Beterbiev (11-0) vs. Sullivan Barrera (18-1), 12 rounds, IBF light heavyweight eliminator- Barrera is a heavy handed fighter and is battle tested, but never has he been in against a bone crushing puncher like Beterbiev.
April 29
At London:
Anthony Joshua (18-0) vs. Wladimir Klitschko (64-4), 12 rounds, for Joshua's IBF and vacant WBA heavyweight title- Wladimir along with his brother Vitali have both reigned in the heavyweight division for over a decade. Enter Anthony Joshua, a young powerful combination puncher.
May 6
At Las Vegas (HBO PPV):
Canelo Alvarez (48-1-1) vs. Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (50-2-1), 12 rounds, super middleweights- In terms of national media attention, this is the biggest fight made for the first half of this year. You have Canelo who is looking to be a legend in the sport in against the son of an all time great who is still desperately looking to make his own name. At the conclusion of this war, the only question to be answered will be if the winner of this fight will go on to face the winner of the Golovkin/Jacobs clash.
May 27
Sheffield, England
Kell Brook (36-1) vs. Errol Spence Jr. (21-0), 12 rounds, for Brook's IBF welterweight title- Other than his last fight against Gennady Golovkin, Brook had up to that point looked nearly unbeatable. Brook now will lock horns against a vicious younger fighter that is hungry and eager to collect championship belts.
12/31/2016
When the brand is bigger & better than the product
By: Albert Alvarez
First things first I write this as a drive-by UFC viewer, I don't really follow the sport. But I am however a combat sports fan so I do appreciate some of the skills that I see so I will tune in from time to time to catch a good tussle.
I've always admired the "F**k it, let's just fight" attitude about UFC fighters, but looking at it now, I now see that it's the same thing that in turn works against the fighters. A really sharp double-edged sword, and the thing is that the sport moves fast, too fast.
It's biggest priority & advantages of the UFC is their strength as a BRAND. UFC has a consistent following of hardcore die hard fans and much like WWE those same fans stay there to eat everything it puts out.
So last night after some Game of Thrones marathon, after re-watching 2016 fight of the year Bandido Vargas/Siri Salido, and after catching the final quarter of a great Florida State vs. Michigan game, I managed to find the time to peep out the return of Ronda Rousey.
I've always liked Rousey, her early and short run reminded me of Mike Tyson' early days of super fast demolishing of foes. So I just had to see how she would look after her loss to Holly Holm, I needed to see if the Rousey before Holm was back. And just like that, in less than a minute Rousey is stopped by Amanda Nunes. Ironically it's now Rousey who is on the receiving end of blazing quick stoppages.
Just as I was telling a friend earlier, when that psychological intimidating mental edge vanishes, from that point on it then becomes a very hard uphill battle. Even then, I don't feel sorry for Rousey, she has made some good coins and her past dominance opened the doors for other Women fighters and her impact even caused boxing to reopen the doors for women boxing. Rousey may now even have movie opportunities and WWE to fall back on.
I am then reminded that this is exactly why UFC NEEDED for Connor McGregor to beat Diaz in their rematch, he's their last consistent major star. But then again, maybe that's why McGregor is flirting with the idea to now take up professional boxing. McGregor wants all the leveraging room he can get, he realizes how quickly the tables turn so he's expanding the McGregor brand on his terms. Good thinking on his part because it's got to be difficult swimming among the sharks.
Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images
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