WBA Boxing

Stanyslav Kashtanov has defeated Jaime Barboza via a 10th-round knockout to retain the interim WBA Super Middleweight title. This was Kashtanov's first title defense since defeating Semer Yemurlayev to win the belt in November of 2012.

Here's how it all transpired.

Kashtanov targeted the body throughout the fight, looking to break through and weaken his opponent's stance. He succeeded in that regard, bringing Barboza's hands down and pummeling him with stiff blows to the head.

In the end, that opened the door for Kashtanov to clobber Barboza with a right uppercut and pick up the win in the 10th round.

Kashtanov moves to 31-1-0 with 17 knockouts, while Barboza drops to 18-8-0.

Kashtanov wasn't at his best, but he was methodical and targeted each of Barboza's openings. During the seventh round, Kashtanov knocked his opponent down with a deep body punch that ended up creating the opening he needed to close out.

Kashtanov was relentless, showing why he's champion.

There wasn't much doubt as to whether or not he'd win this fight once it was started, but he's still an unknown commodity. Due to his status as a fighter from the Ukraine, most in the United States are unfamiliar with his work.

After tonight, Barboza will tell you that Kashtanov is as real as they come.

This is yet another victory for Kashtanov, who made a successful opening title defense and proved that he is a force to be reckoned with. It's unclear whether or not he'll draw some of the top competition, but he's certainly made a name for himself with this win in Ukraine.

It may even earn him new recognition, as Dan Rafael of ESPN ranks Kashtanov outside of the top 10 in the super middleweight division.

On the surface, Kashtanov, 29, would be wise to take on other up-and-comers such as the 16-1 Jamie DeGale or 24-0 Edwin Rodriguez. Pending the result of the fight between George Groves and Carl Froch, he could potentially challenge one of those two fighters with bigger cards in sight.

Expect the latter to transpire.

Froch holds the "other" WBA super middleweight title, which means that a fight to determine the real title holder is needed. Both men are looking for some form of validity, and fighting each other is the only way to determine such.

In the end, the goal is clearly for Kashtanov to work his way up and face Super Middleweight king Andre Ward, who remains 26-0 and is likely hopeful to remove the interim title from Kashtanov's name and win it back.

Where he goes from here is unclear, but Kashtanov has displayed promise and does warrant consideration for top names. If Ward or Froch is to hope to take down an opponent in the title picture, Kashtanov would be the ideal target due to his interim status.

Until then, this was yet another win to add to a growing resume.

Nehomar Cermeno (22-5-1, 13 KOs) is the new WBA interim super bantamweight champion after defeating Oscar Escandon (22-1, 15 KOs) via split decision on Saturday night from the Megapolis Convention Center in Panama City, Panama.

While Cermeno was the one holding the belt at the end of the 12-round affair, fans are sure to debate the decision. The new champion took the fight 115-113 and 117-111 on two judges' cards, while the previously undefeated Escandon got the nod from one judge, 116-113, according to FightNews.com. 

Cermeno was the underdog coming in with five losses on his record but showcased his slight edge in experience. He was able to outbox the younger, more aggressive Escandon in enough rounds to win the decision. 

For Escandon, this is a bad loss. As an 29-year-old up-and-comer, this was supposed to be a step-up fight that would lead to bigger and better things as he made his way up the ladder in the super bantamweight division.  

Now, he'll have to find a way to climb the ladder once again. With the controversial nature of the loss, he might be fortunate enough to be rewarded with a rematch that could get him right back in the hunt for the title. 

However, it was a huge night for Cermeno, who had a 1-1-1 record in his previous three bouts, including a loss to undefeated Alexander Bakhtin and a draw against undefeated Yoandris Salinas. Now, he's a two-division interim champion after holding the interim WBA bantamweight title in 2009. 

The burden is now on Cermeno to prove that this win was more than a fluke in his next bout. 

"I took Malignaggi's title and his girl."

Adrien Broner took that verbal stab at former welterweight champion Paul Malignaggi after beating the hometown hero by split decision in the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., and now, he deserves a blockbuster fight. 

This fight was surrounded by verbal barbs and arguments that were better suited for the playground than the professional boxing ring. However, after it was all said and done, Broner earned the controversial victory on Saturday. 

Malignaggi, as Broner put it after the fight, "couldn't hit" Broner, who went on to say that Malignaggi "was shadowboxing." According to Compubox, Malignaggi was able to stick Broner but couldn't land anything significant. Broner worked the veteran through 12 rounds and was simply too much for the champ to handle, earning the split-decision victory and the belt when it was all said and done. 

Maybe you don't like Broner's abrasive style, maybe you don't like the judges' decision. One thing remains: That was an absolutely huge victory for "The Problem."

The dude also makes for great TV. 

The new champ remains undefeated at 28-0, with 22 of those wins coming by KO, but there is still one question on everyone's mind: What's next?

Promoter Richard Schaefer discussed Broner's possible opponents with Michael Woods of ESPN, saying that there were quite a few possibilities. Some of the names included were Marcos Maidana, Devon Alexander, Amir Khan, Shane Mosley or the winners from possible Andre Berto-Jesus Soto Karass and Danny Garcia-Lucas Matthysse fights. 

After Broner's impressive win on Saturday, he deserves a blockbuster, and in the boxing world no one says blockbuster like Floyd "Money" Mayweather. Money is getting set to tangle with Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, but after that they should go for the big money and give the fans what they want to see: role model vs "little bro," Adrien Broner against Floyd Mayweather. The Problem vs. The Pretty Boy. Let's see Broner back up all his trash talk and take on the best in the world. 

The fight would be a blockbuster. Who doesn't want to see the student take on the mentor? The young grasshopper take on the master? These two are both automatic money. Both overconfident and not scared to say what they're thinking, they would make for compelling TV.

Broner has said more than once that Money is like a big brother to him, even calling him "Big Bro" on occasion. While it seems like it's all respect and mutual appreciation between Broner and Mayweather, Broner has said that he doesn't want to fight his mentor because he wants him to retire undefeated. He doesn't want to beat him. There's some fuel right there. 

Broner wouldn't go into who he wants next after the fight with Malignaggi but said that he wants his fans to pick his next opponent. Some fans want to see him face 34-3 Marcos Maidana.

Other fans are hoping for a matchup with the current WBC Intercontinental Light Welterweight Champion Lucas Matthysse. 

Whether Broner can get a fight with Mayweather or not, he deserves something huge. He's gone all 28 of his professional fights without losing and, after earning his third championship, he's earned a shot at a big-name opponent. 

After what seemed like an eternity of verbal back and forth between Paul Malignaggi and Adrien Broner, the 147-pounders finally put their mouth guards in and let their gloves do the talking as they battled over the WBA Welterweight Championship...then the mouth guards came out and the war of words continued, looked at like so by Twitter users: 

Either way, Broner was able to cement his name with rare company as he won the title over Malignaggi in the epic encounter, but now as the pointed words between these two fade into the past, "The Problem" will look for another fight. 

According to boxing promoter Richard Schaefer, via Michael Woods of ESPN.com, there are a ton of potential opponents for Broner, who has been dubbed "The Next Big Thing in Boxing." One of the first names Schaefer threw out was Marcos Maidana. 

Maidana is a light welterweight who has a professional record of 34-3 with 31 of his wins coming from KO. Maidana's last fight came against Josesito Lopez, in which Maidana scored a sixth-round TKO victory to retain his WBA International Welterweight Championship. 

Other names tossed around include the winner of the Andre Berto-Jesus Soto Karass bout, Amir "King" Khan, Devon Alexander "The Great" and even veteran "Sugar" Shane Mosley, who is coming off a comeback victory over Pablo Cano. All of them would be great matchups for the lightning-quick, Floyd Mayweather clone Broner. 

Schaefer discussed the possibility of Broner taking on the winner of a possible Danny Garcia-Lucas Matthysse battle, which is still in the works, describing it as a "good fit for Broner."

One fight that we won't see unfortunately (at least not yet) is the dream matchup of Adrien Broner and his "Big Bro," Floyd "Money" Mayweather.

Not only is it a little early in Broner's career, at just 23 years of age, for him to face his mentor, but Broner has said it's a fight he doesn't want. He told Woods of ESPN.com that Mayweather is his role model and admitted that Money is boxing's "top dog." 

Broner did put his Adrien Broner spin on it, though, and added "I want my big bro to retire undefeated. I don't want to hand him a loss."

But if you watched the Broner-Malignaggi bout, it appears that Schaefer won't have a say in who Broner fights. Broner said in the post-match interview that he wants the fans to pick his next opponent.

Whether that happens or not is yet to be seen, but one thing is sure: Broner put on a great show, earned a new championship belt and will have a ton of people chasing him down to take it away. 

British light welterweight fighter Amir Khan is coming off some tough losses that have derailed his path to a title, but the 26-year-old isn’t letting anything stand in the way of his triumphant return to dominance and a potential super-fight in the near future.

Khan (27-3) is fresh off a win against Carlos Molina last December, but his previous two fights weren’t as generous to the fighter. He dropped a bout to Lamont Peterson a year earlier and followed up that disappointment with a defeat at the hands of Danny Garcia—the second and third losses of his career.

The former IBF titleholder has a chance to rebuild his momentum for a comeback Saturday evening, however, scheduled to take on Julio Diaz and his 40-7 record. With a win against Diaz, Khan will be on the right track to potentially set up a fight with undefeated Floyd Mayweather Jr.

According to Gareth A. Davis of Telegraph Sport, the English fighter is just “three wins away from a big-money bout with Floyd Mayweather,” and quotes Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer as sharing the same belief:

Is this the fight which could propel Amir Khan back on the path to Floyd Mayweather? Yes, absolutely. Ideally, Amir will box sensationally on Saturday night, get married, go on his honeymoon and then Ramadan, and come back in December and fight the winner of the four-man tournament between Danny Garcia, Zab Judah, Lamont Peterson and Lucas Mathysse.

Mayweather is undeniably the biggest target for any fighter looking to make a leap to boxing stardom, and provided Robert Guerrero doesn’t dispatch him May 4, Khan has to believe he’ll have a chance to end Mayweather’s undefeated streak should they face in the near future.

But a bout with the pound-for-pound kingpin won’t be in the cards if Khan fails to beat Diaz Saturday night. In fact, a third loss in four fights may spell the end for the fighter’s hopes of ever earning another superfight going forward.

Khan will have plenty of motivation to avoid that scenario, however. Apart from the possibility of lining up a fight with Mayweather, his fight with Diaz may be Khan’s last in England.

As quoted by David Anderson of Mirror Sport, the 26-year-old doesn’t know if he will fight again in his home country:

It's good to be back fighting in England. This could be one of my last times. The bigger fights will be in the US, but because I had this fight with Julio Diaz, I thought I would bring it back home.

It’s not hard to predict what fight he has in mind, either. There are few up-and-coming boxers without designs of taking down Mayweather.

It would take a major stumble for Khan to not upend his 33-year-old counterpart, though. With speed, power and youth on his side, Khan holds a definitive advantage in this fight. Provided he avoids his tendency to be overly aggressive and sticks to his game plan, there’s no reason Khan can’t find himself two fights from a mega-fight with Mayweather in the coming year.

Boxing has lacked true marquee bouts of late, but there has been no shortage of big fights in April. Canelo Alvarez and Austin Trout provided us with the latest exciting fight—one that will open new doors for the sport.

The fighters entered Saturday’s matchup undefeated, and what followed was mostly expected. While Alvarez was the favorite to remain undefeated, Trout put up a fight worthy of the billing and showcased two boxers with incredibly bright futures.

The bout also proved how badly boxing fans want to see the best going toe to toe.

We got a taste of that April 13 when Nonito Donaire and Guillermo Rigondeaux squared off at Radio City Music Hall. The outcomes were very different in the two fights, but the big picture has come into focus as a result. Fans want to see the best fighters in the biggest fights, and boxing has delivered.

Despite wildly inconsistent scoring (115-112, 116-111, 118-109), Alvarez and Trout put on a show Saturday worthy of the hype. Alvarez with his striking volume and Trout with his calculated attacks, the pair of undefeated boxers left it all in the ring.

Trout’s willingness to put his 26-0 record on the line also highlights the attitude boxing needs from its budding superstars. Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather have never been willing to step up to the plate (for various reasons), but there’s a new game in town. The younger generation is creating a revival.

This fight wasn’t all about the money (as we have seen from so many top-ranked fighters). There was more to it than pay-per-view subscriptions and the size of the purse—exactly what boxing needs to sustain both.

Alvarez’s brother Rigoberto lost the WBA title to Trout in 2011, and the 22-year-old was as motivated to avenge that loss as he was to improve on his 41-0-1 record (as quoted by USA Today):

“My brother was a big motivation for this. I did this for him. He beat my brother, and that's my blood.”

There were bigger fights to be made, but not by much. Alvarez and Trout are two of the most promising young fighters in the sport, and the exciting bout (paired with the motivations behind it) opens the door for boxing to give fans the fights they want to see.

As long as the new faces of the sport are willing to take on the biggest fights, the money will be there. Boxing no longer needs Pacquiao vs. Mayweather to sell seats and pay-per-view subscriptions.

It’s too early to predict the long-term effects of a fight like we saw Saturday night, but all indications point to a boost in future marquee bouts. As long as the best fighters are willing to fight and promoters are willing to make it happen, the money will be there.

Trout may not have come away with a victory Saturday, but everyone won. 

Despite a perfect 25-0 record thus far in his career, WBA light middleweight champion Austin Trout is getting used to being the underdog.

Heading into his last bout against popular former champion Miguel Cotto in New York, Trout was underrated and looked at as a stepping stone to the veteran's path back to prominence.  Needless to say, Trout showed Cotto who was the superior pugilist that night, but still finds himself in a similar situation this weekend.

Trout now faces Saul "Canelo" Alvarez on Saturday night in San Antonio, Texas, in the main event with both his and his opponent's titles on the line.  Just like in the Cotto fight, Trout is being looked at as an underdog as Alvarez stomps forward toward a potential showdown with boxing king Floyd Mayweather Jr. later this year.

The odds are against him once again, but Trout is ready to shock the world for a second time.

He knows eventually the crowds and the critics will fall to his side—it's just going to take some hard work and the right victories to do it.

"Whether I like it or not, I'm pretty used to it," Trout said of being the underdog.  "I would like to be cheered for eventually, but it's coming.  It will happen eventually. I've just got to pay some more dues and the cheers will come."

Oddsmakers have Alvarez currently sitting as a -190 favorite in the fight, but that doesn't affect Trout when it comes time to lace up the gloves and step through the ropes.  He knows his style matches up very well with Alvarez's, and he's happy to pull the upset again.

"I like Canelo as an opponent.  I think our styles mesh very nicely, he's a good fighter," Trout said.  "He's a champion in his own right.  He's undefeated in his own right.  We know it's not going to be an easy job but definitely a job that can be done.  He's going to make me work, but we ain't here for easy."

The fight between Trout and Alvarez will get headline attention this weekend, but still sits in the shadows of another major fight taking place in early May when Mayweather takes on Robert Guerrero.

Mayweather has already stated that he will be watching Trout and Alvarez very closely because most believe the winner will end up as his next opponent should he get past Guerrero. 

While that seems like that is the plan, Trout warns the world not to look past Guerrero because he could just be the matchup to finally hand Mayweather his first career loss.

"I think Guerrero's going to give Mayweather a much better fight than people think," said Trout.  "Guerrero's a tough, ballsy kid.  He can find ways to win.  I think he's going to make it uncomfortable for Mayweather."

Trout's focus isn't on Mayweather vs. Guerrero however—he's got his own fight to worry about.  That doesn't mean Trout can't see the big picture and he knows if he can win on Saturday, it could potentially land him the fight with Mayweather.

There's not a boxer anywhere in the world that doesn't want a piece of what Mayweather's built over the years, and Trout admits he's no different.

"He's in that position that I need to be in," Trout said about Mayweather.   "I would like to see that fight down the road as well."

Damon Martin is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report and all quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

After the fireworks boxing provided last weekend, Amir Khan and Carlos Molina have a lot to live up to when they lock horns in a grudge match at the Los Angeles Sports Arena on Saturday night. 

Khan has fallen on hard times recently. The 26-year-old star has lost his last two fights, against Lamont Peterson and Danny Garcia. There was some judging controversy in the Peterson fight, not to mention the fact that Peterson failed a drug test prior to their rematch. He is in desperate need of an official win in the ring right now. 

Molina is looking to elevate his star, while simultaneously send one of the best boxers of this generation further down the rabbit hole with no hope of rescue. He has been slowly building to this fight all his career, which has included two sterling unanimous decision wins already in 2012.

Where: Los Angeles Sports Arena, Los Angeles

When: Saturday, December 15 at 10:30 p.m. ET

Watch: Showtime

Live Stream: Showtime Anytime (Subscription to Showtime required)

Tale of the Tape

Stats courtesy of BoxRec.com

Khan's Keys to Victory

Use Long Limbs to Attack Smaller Molina; Go for the Finish Early

One of the biggest advantages that Khan has heading into this fight is size and reach. He has more than four inches in height on Molina, and his lanky body allows him to stand back to attack a smaller opponent. 

Khan can really create a lot of leverage behind his punches, particularly against a fighter like Molina. He needs to use that leverage, as well as his power, to get after Molina early and often. He is at his best when he is going for the knockout early; even if it doesn't happen, he wears down his opponents early that they are done before a fight gets to the later rounds. 

Another factor that will put Khan over the top is his defense. He tends to get so infatuated with his own ability to strike that he gets sloppy and leaves himself open to attacks from his opponents, which is what happened to Khan against Danny Garcia. 

Molina's Keys to Victory

Don't Turn the Fight into a Slug-Fest; Fight Backwards Against Khan

Khan is obviously going to have a power advantage in this fight. Molina's size and style does not lend itself to winning a lot of fights via knockout. He wants to wear down an opponent, take the fight into the later rounds and put his opponent away. 

Molina is smart enough to know that he shouldn't get into a slug-fest with Khan. His best path to victory will be to start fighting backwards early before turning the tables on Khan in the later rounds. 

By fighting backwards, I mean that Molina needs to play defense early, picking and choosing when he strikes and making the most of his attacks. As the fight moves along and Khan gets frustrated at not being able to put him down, Molina can use more combinations and power strikes. 

What They Are Saying

Molina is certainly not lacking for confidence heading into this fight, which is what you would expect from a young star on the rise. 

In an interview with The Boxing Lab this week, Molina made a point to say that Khan was foolish for making his comeback, which is ridiculous because he just fought five months ago, against someone like him. 

I haven't shown the best of myself in any fights. I've never had this type of training before. I've always been a very confident fighter, but knowing all the work we put in -- I was training alongside Abner Mares, and he was pushing me also. I'm just so motivated. This fight is going to showcase the type of fighter I am, is going to showcase my skills. I feel I have a little more pop at this weight. He's going to feel my punches.

Good for Molina. He is the unknown commodity coming into this fight. No one has any expectations for him—if he loses, well, he was supposed to—so why not put yourself out there. If you win, you will look like an even bigger star. 

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Khan is the star trying to revitalize his career. He has as much confidence as ever, but he is publicly saying (via UK Daily Mail) all the right things. He seems much more humble than he ever has. 

I’ve grown up and nothing will take my focus off my boxing. 

I will be smart and pick my moments to go for the finish. Just as I am insisting  on random blood testing for drugs before all my fights, so that I don’t suffer again the way I did in the previous defeat by Lamont Peterson,who we found was on steroids.

Khan needed to take a step back and examine himself and what he wanted out of boxing. Now that he has found some semblance of inner peace, he can take care of business to prove he is far from "over the hill."

Prediction

Khan made a calculated decision by picking Molina as his opponent. He wanted to fight someone who will challenge him in new ways, but is also not at his level when he is at the top of his game. Given how motivated he is for the fight, it's hard to bet against Khan. 

Khan wins via unanimous decision

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