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Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Groenteman Wins Rubber Match

Barry Groenteman defeated Vango Tsirimokos for the second consecutive time in their third fight. Groenteman, who weighed 143.3 pounds won by unanimous decision on Monday at Topsportcentrum in Rotterdam, Netherlands.

The judges scored the fight 59-55, 59-56, 58-56 all for Groenteman who improves his record to 11-7-2 with 2 KOs. He is 8-3-1 in his last 12 fights. Tsirimokos is now 6-7 with one KO and has lost his last five fights.

Monday, May 26, 2014

Ahrens Has Potentially Career-Ending Injury

Twenty year old junior middleweight Danny "Kid"Ahrens has dealt with an injured hand since his fourth pro fight in October. According to Barry Toberman of TheJC.com, the injury worsened during his next fight a month later.

The 5-0 Israel native has undergone surgery and will need rest to have any chance to come back to the ring. Danny's manager, Robert Waterman, told Toberman, "Danny wanted to do nothing other than professional boxing since he was a child. He is devastated."

Wednesday, May 21, 2014

Wohlman Feeling More Comfortable in the Ring

Zachary Wohlman defeated Eddie Cordova by unanimous decision last Saturday at the Forum. Wohlman told The Jewish Boxing Blog that his victory was "a good win mentally," although he recognizes he has things to work on in the ring. The fight was the first match in a big time venue since his November 2012 loss to Alonso Loeza at the Staples Center, a fact that made Wohlman admittedly nervous.

Interestingly, Wohlman-Cordova was scheduled as a swing bout, meaning that the fighters did not know at what time they would be in the ring until the last moment. But Wohlman explained that the bout took place over an hour earlier than he expected. "My hands weren't even wrapped when they told me it was time."

The scheduling miscommunication actually aided Wohlman, because he was nervous heading into the fight due to the legacy of the Forum. Since the fight time was earlier than he had thought, Wohlman didn't have a chance to be extra nervous in the moments before he strolled to the ring.

The win not only allowed Zac to move past being starstruck by big venues, but he felt more comfortable in the ring than before. He talked about working on sitting down on his punches more, but acknowledged that he likes his current box and move style. He said tongue in cheek, "It's called boxing, not stand there and get punched in the face."

With regards to his perceived lack of power, Wohlman discussed his admiration for the legendary Jewish boxer Benny Leonard. Zac noted, "They never talk about how much power he had; they talk about how smart he was." Wohlman also expressed his respect for the recently retired former champion, Yuri Foreman, "Personally, I love his style."

Wohlman plans to get back into the gym tomorrow. He feels rededicated to boxing after a recent visit to Israel and a moving tour of Yad Vashem. Wohlman explained that the trip had a profound impact on him. "When I got my tattoo (of the Star of David on his torso), I was 21 years old and I thought it was a religious thing. But seeing all of those flags at Yad Vashem, I realized it's bigger than that. I have the flag of a whole country on me. I feel the responsibility that comes with it."

Tuesday, May 20, 2014

Yuri Foreman Announces Retirement

In a strange turn of events, Yuri Foreman announced his retirement yesterday. As part of his comeback, Foreman was scheduled to face Jorge Melendez on the undercard of the June 7 pay per view battle between Sergio Martinez and Miguel Cotto.

He wrote on Facebook, "Unknowingly I signed a very harmful contract regarding my boxing [career]. I tried all possible ways to free myself from it, but nothing else I can do, [then] announce my retirement from boxing. So from now I'm on to bigger and better things. Much blessings."

Len Zimmerman of Lenco Sports management has been Foreman's new manager since it was announced on July 10.

Foreman's promoter, Lou DiBella addressed the situation, "Yuri Foreman has been training hard for his fight on June 7 against Jorge Melendez. At this moment, there is a dispute within Yuri's team that does not involve DiBella Entertainment. Yuri has worked very hard on his comeback to get to an opportunity like this. Lou DiBella and DBE have a great working and personal relationship with Yuri. We are awaiting a phone call and hope to see him fight on June 7th at MSG. This will be resolved very shortly."

Foreman, who is 33 years old, won the WBA junior middleweight belt in 2009 and relinquished the title in a memorable match against Cotto the following June. If this is the end of Foreman's boxing career, it is an unfortunate conclusion for one of the best Jewish boxers in recent memory.

Saturday, May 17, 2014

Wohlman Outboxes Cordova

Zachary "Kid Yamaka" Wohlman defeated Eddie Cordova by unanimous decision earlier tonight at the Forum in Inglewood, California. Wohlman outboxed a game Cordova throughout the four-round affair.

After the opening bell, Wohlman and Cordova raced at each other and traded punches. Wohlman got the better of the exchange by sticking to the body first and then working his way up to his opponent's head. Halfway through the round, Wohlman transitioned to boxing. He slipped Cordova's attack while landing jabs and left hooks.

Wohlman landed more blows over the next two rounds as he backed up. By moving as he punched, Wohlman neutralized his own power, however. He also fell into a tendency of releasing one punch at a time, although Zac was very accurate. Cordova gallantly chased Wohlman, but couldn't cut off the ring and was thus ineffective. In the second round, Cordova featured a cut over his left eye. By the third, Cordova began to slow down.

Before the third round, Wohlman's trainer, Eric Brown, advised Zac to come forward and back up Cordova. Wohlman eventually tried in the fourth, but his natural inclination when on the inside is to hold. Since Cordova's only real hope was to land something when both men were in close, Zac expertly pinned Cordova's arms so Eddie was unable to throw punches. Wohlman would then potshot the journeyman from the outside.

Though the fourth round was more competitive, the outcome of the fight was never in doubt. Tony Crebs scored the fight 40-36 while David Mendoza and Raul Caiz Jr. both saw it 39-37. The Jewish Boxing Blog had it 40-36 in favor of Kid Yamaka.

Wohlman improves his record to 8-1-1 with one KO. Cordova is now 4-8-1 with one KO.

Friday, May 16, 2014

Groenteman to Face Tsirimokos is Rubber Match

Junior welterweight Barry Groenteman is scheduled to face Vango Tsirimokos for a third time on May 26 at Topsportcentrum in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Each has won once against the other.

Tsirimokos (6-6, 1 KO) won by unanimous decision last October. After winning the next month, the 28 year old has lost four straight. One of those four came in the rematch against Groenteman.

Groenteman (10-7-2, 2 KOs), who is also 28 years old, won by unanimous decision in March against Tsirimokos, which snapped a two fight losing streak. The first fight in that streak was against Tsirimokos.

With the score even at one, their third bout is scheduled for six rounds.

Thursday, May 15, 2014

Wohlman to Fight This Week

Welterweight Zachary Wohlman is scheduled to be back in the ring on Saturday at the Forum in Inglewood, California on the undercard of Juan Manuel Marquez-Mike Alvarado. Wohlman's opponent is slated to be journeyman Eddie Cordova.

Wohlman (7-1-1, 1 KO) has won his last three fights, including a majority decision over Luis Hernandez in February. The 25-year old California native is a slick boxer who has been more aggressive at times in recent fights. In his lone loss to Alonso Loeza in 2012, stamina was a problem.

Cordova (4-7-1, 1 KO) is a 35-year old from Utah. Cordova has lost 6 of his last 7 fights. The only win came over Hernandez last summer. Cordova lost two unanimous decisions in April as a junior middleweight. Last July, Eddie was stopped in the first round against Olympian Errol Spence after a body shot. Cordova is a come-forward fighter who is often off balance.

This fight is scheduled for four rounds.