World series of boxing schedule. Hook is no longer "cake"
Super Series 2017 (World Boxing Super Series) has already begun! 16 best boxers from all over the world will meet in the rings to compete for a mind-blowing trophy - the Muhammad Ali Cup! We advise you to study the schedule of fights of the world series of boxing, as well as the tournament table of knockout fights, and of course, we share information where you can watch each fight live.
The 2017 World Boxing Super Series is an annual professional boxing tournament. The prize fund of the tournament is $50 million, and the winner will receive 4 belts and acquire the WBC, WBA, IBF, WBO champion titles.
The fight of the World Boxing Super Series will be held - ¼ finals - the period September-October 2017, ½ finals - in January-February 2018, the finals - May 2018. So far, we are following the quarter-final matches.
Participants of the boxing super series are represented by eight people in two weight categories - the first heavy weight(up to 90.7 kg) and the second average weight(up to 76.2 kg).
Participants - heavyweights:
Participants - super middleweights:
Schedule of fights of the World Boxing Super Series - date and time, as well as live broadcast of fights:
23 September, 6:00 local time: Dmitry Kudryashov - Yunier Dorticos , the first heavyweight fight will take place in the USA, Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas. The broadcast was announced on the channel "Match!" . Time - 4:30 am on September 24, Sunday.
September 30th: Mike Perez - Mairis Briedis , the first heavy weight. The meeting will take place in Riga, at the Riga Arena of the same name. WITH according to the schedule of broadcasts "Match!" , the meeting will take place at 00:00 local time. Time in Riga coincides with Moscow.
October 7th: Chris Eubank - Avni Yildirim , second average weight. The fight will take place in Stuttgart, Germany.
October 14: fight George Groves – Jamie Cox , second average weight. The fight will take place in London at the Wembley Arena.
October 21: Murat Gassiev - Krzysztof Wlodarczyk , the first heavy weight. The two heavyweights will meet in Newark, New Jersey, USA.
27th October: Jurgen Bremer - Rob Brant , second average weight. Bremer and Brant will fight in a ring in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
It is reported that all the fights for the Mohammed Ali Cup will be conducted by the Match! . The poster will be updated in the future, the exact time of the super series fights will be published, taking into account Moscow time, as well as forecasts for fights - on.
The results of the first fights of the World Boxing Super Series:
9th of September in Berlin, a fight took place between a Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk and German Marco Hook in the first severe weight class. The result - Usyk's victory in the 10th round: technical knockout. Hook leaves the tournament.
16 of September in Liverpool there was a fight between Briton Callum Smith and Swede Eric Skoglund . The result - the victory of Calum Smith by decision of the judges.
According to standings, Oleksandr Usyk's next opponent will be determined in a duel between Briedis and Perez, and Smith will get either Bremer or Brant.
Over its long history, boxing has taught fans to wait. In the hope of a duel between two superstars, lovers of the oldest species combat sports carried out long months, and sometimes years of reading news about complex negotiations between promotional firms, organizers and TV channels. And if it did come to the fight itself, it was often too late. It is worth remembering the fight of the century between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao. Fans were eager to see the fight between the two most stellar representatives of the sport, but the fight was repeatedly postponed.
Negotiations between the athletes have been going on since 2010, but the fight was organized only five years later. During this time, the Filipino lost his former condition and managed to be in the hardest knockout in the battle with the Mexican Juan Manuel Marquez. What should have been the biggest event in the history of boxing has been remembered by the fans as a mediocre fight, the most remarkable aspect of which is the incredible fees of the athletes. It is worth noting that Pacquiao's income amounted to $ 150 million, and Mayweather - twice as much, and this does not include sales of television broadcasts.
This fight is the most famous example of a side of boxing that is impossible to love. This type sports includes 19 weight categories, each of which determines champions in four main versions (the World Boxing Association (WBA), the World Boxing Council (WBC), the International Boxing Federation (IBF) and the World boxing organization(WBO), and this is without taking into account other nuances, such as "linear" and "regular" championships.
Do not forget about the presence of many promotional companies that have the rights to organize fights of their athletes, ready to fight for every extra banknote. And when the interests of all intersect, it becomes very difficult to arrange a duel between two people. As a result, viewers have to watch the defending champions fight against second-rate contenders and dream of someday seeing something that is really worthy of attention.
The birth of an idea
Kalle Sauerland, the son of the famous promoter Wilfried Sauerland, in 2009 made the first attempt to circumvent the laws of sports and organize a tournament the best representatives one weight category. The tournament called the Super Six World Boxing Classic brought together six of the most talented middleweight boxers under its auspices, and the WBA and WBC world championship belts, as well as The Ring magazine, were at stake in the competition. The tournament was held according to a system similar to the format of the World Cup: it began with a group stage, which moved on to the playoff stage. The fighters were supposed to hold three fights in a tournament, and the winner was to unify the WBC and WBA titles.
But Sauerland Jr.'s first pancake came out lumpy. The tournament lasted more than two years and ended only in December 2011, two years after its start. In addition, four boxers refused to participate in the competition, they had to look for a replacement, which led to an increase in the actual participants in the tournament to eight people. The pause between the end of the group stage and the semi-finals was seven months, which also did not benefit the competition.
The winner of the tournament was American Andre Ward, known to all Russian boxing fans in fights against Sergey Kovalev, who announced his retirement the day before. In the final, he defeated British Carl Froch by unanimous decision. Sauerland's idea was partly successful: the fans managed to see some of the best representatives of the middle weight category in one competition, but the unsuccessful organization nullified all the advantages of the tournament. The Super Six World Boxing Classic did not receive favorable reviews and the project to organize tournaments among the best boxers in the world was curtailed.
A new beginning
As it turned out six years later, Sauerland did not abandon his idea of organizing a boxing super tournament. Instead, the promoter took into account the shortcomings of the previous version, radically changed the format and presented the world with an updated version of their offspring.
In March 2017, he, together with Richard Schafer and Comosa AG, announced the World boxing super series(World Boxing Super Series), the participants of which were to be 16 boxers from two weight categories. It was announced that prize fund of the competition will be $50 million, and the two winners will receive about $10 million for three fights, respectively.
The fights of the tournament will be held in the first heavy and second middle weight categories. It is noteworthy that the reward for winning the super series will be not only money, but also championship belts in the most prestigious versions. Among the titled fighters agreed to take part in the competition, reigning champions peace. Among the participants in the super middleweight tournament are famous British athletes: International Boxing Organization (IBO) title holder Chris Eubank Jr. and WBA (Super) world champion George Groves. And they will be accompanied by young talents - another representative of the UK, Callum Smith, and the Turks, Avni Yildirim, who have not yet known defeat in their careers.
But even if these names did not interest you, the organizers of the super series have prepared a real gift for Russian fans of this sport. In the tournament among boxers of the first heavy weight, Russia will be represented by two athletes at once - IBF world champion Murat Gassiev and Dmitry Kudryashov. The composition of the participants in this weight category is really amazing. Sauerland and company managed to put together an amazing line-up, which included world title holders in all major versions, with the exception of the WBA. Denis Lebedev, the owner of the WBA world champion belt, refused to participate in the tournament, but his place was taken by the regular champion in this version, Cuban Yunier Dorticos. Thus, the winner of the light heavyweight tournament will unify three titles, becoming almost the absolute champion.
Sauerland himself, satisfied with the representation of the super series, compared it with the main football club tournament in Europe. “This project should become a boxing Champions League. To organize such an event was a big statement on our part. I think that in terms of participants in the tournament, we got much more than we expected, ”Sauerland told the BBC.
It is noteworthy that the World Boxing Super Series and football are united by another circumstance, namely: the main trophy that will be awarded to the winners of the tournament is the Muhammad Ali Cup. Named after the legendary boxer, the trophy was designed by Silvio Gazzaniga, the same man who in 1971 conceived and embodied the image of the World Cup Cup.
Super Series Features
The World Boxing Super Series was officially opened on September 9 with a duel between WBO light heavyweight champion Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk and German Marko Hook. The Ukrainian boxer, seeded at the tournament under the first number and being the main favorite of the competition, showed an impressive level of boxing and easily dealt with his opponent. A week later, on September 16, the super middleweight tournament also started - Briton Callum Smith defeated the representative of Sweden, Eric Skoglund, by unanimous decision of the judges.
Separately, it is worth noting the draw of the tournament. According to the idea of the organizers, according to the rating, a list of seeded and unseeded athletes was compiled. Boxers who received seeding numbers had to choose who would be their opponent in the quarterfinals of the competition. So Usyk, seeded under the first number, chose Hook as his rival, saying that he had long wanted to meet the German in the ring. And the second number - WBC world champion Maris Briedis - settled on the candidacy of Mike Perez, a 31-year-old Cuban whose career includes a defeat from Russian heavyweight Alexander Povetkin. At the same time, Gassiev became an exception to the rule and was deprived of the choice of an opponent - his opponent turned out to be a contender for the IBF belt, owned by a Russian, Pole Krzysztof Wlodarczyk. Thus, the last representative of Russia, Dmitry Kudryashov, got the Cuban Dorticos.
Another unfortunate coincidence for the Russians was that they are in the same part of the tournament bracket, so domestic fans will not be able to see the Russian final in the first ever World Boxing Super Series. But the chance to see the confrontation between Gassiev and Kudryashov in the semi-finals of the tournament seems more than real. Wlodarczyk, along with Perez, is one of the main outsiders of the super series, while Dorticos is a very dangerous opponent, but it is impossible to call him a clear favorite in a duel with Kudryashov.
The tournament is held according to the Olympic system. Sauerland abandoned the idea of holding group stages and opted for a playoff format. From this comes another interesting feature super series, namely, how the organizers solved the problem of draw results in battles. Since a winner must be determined in each match, in the event that a draw is recorded on the cards of three judges, the reserve fourth arbiter will decide the fate of the match. If it turns out that even he cannot name the winner, he will be the one who won the last, 12th round. But if there is equality in the final round, the results of previous rounds will be taken into account in descending order. It follows from this that in the final three minutes, the audience certainly will not be bored.
Nine months of boxing
The first fights of the tournament showed that the idea of the World Boxing Super Series has the right to life. Duels Usyk - Hook and Smith - Skoglund were a success, giving the fans a real spectacle. But if in the first fight the fight did not work out, and the Ukrainian confidently confirmed the status of the main favorite of the tournament, while allowing the audience to enjoy the amazing level of boxing, then the second fight turned out to be exciting precisely from the point of view of intrigue.
Smith, who started the fight very confidently, gave up the initiative by the middle, but still managed to win and reach the semifinals. The Super Series quarter-finals will take place every week until October 27, when middleweights Jurgen Bremer and Rob Brant face off in the final match. By the way, it is the winner of this confrontation who will compete for reaching the final of the tournament with Smith.
The semi-finals are scheduled to take place in January and February 2018, with the finals scheduled to take place in May. Thus, in just nine months, 14 fights between fighters of the highest class will take place, which is an unprecedented feast for boxing fans. And if this time it is possible to avoid problems with injuries and failures of the participants, then the venture can be safely considered successful.
The ideological inspirer of the tournament is also striving for this, for which in the first place is not the banal identification of the best of the best, but filled storylines book. “This tournament will bring together many stories. The World Boxing Super Series is not just about determining the winner. By telling the story of our tournament, we want to give the fans real joy,” said Sauerland.
So the quarterfinal stage of the WBSS (World Boxing Super Series) tournaments has ended, which determined the four boxers in the 1st heavyweight division, who will calculate the absolute leader of the division, and the owner of the super prize in the form of a large monetary reward and the Muhammad Ali Cup.
The ½ final is scheduled for January-February 2018. Let's take a look at the list of remaining members. Behind four fights in which victories were won Alexander Usik, Murat Gassiev, Yunier Dorticos And Mairis Briedis.
Oleksandr Usyk
Ukrainian world champion according to WBO Oleksandr Usyk in September he fought against the German Marco Hook on his territory in Germany, and was able to demonstrate everything so that the audience understood that this was the No. 1 favorite in this tournament.
Usyk literally smashed his opponent technical knockout in the 10th round, clearly dominating throughout the entire distance of the battle. Now, the Ukrainian is waiting for the semifinal meeting with the WBC title holder Latvian Mairis Briedis.
Murat Gassiev
IBF world champion 24-year-old Russian Murat Gassiev (25-0, 18 KOs) held the final fight of the quarterfinal stage on October 21 in Newark (New Jersey, USA), where he special problems cleanly knocked out a blow to the liver of a Polish veteran of the ring Krzysztof Wlodarczyk (53-4-1, 37 KOs).
Together with Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk, Murat is also considered one of the favorites of the tournament. In case of successful performance of both boxers in their next fights, they will be able to determine the best cruiserweight fighter of today in a confrontation.
In the semi-final duel, Gassiev will fight against the formidable Cuban Yunier Dorticos, who, in turn, managed to upset another Russian in the quarterfinals - Dmitry Kudryashov.
Mairis Briedis
Latvian WBC Champion Mairis Briedis (23-0, 18 KOs) before the tournament was considered one of the main candidates for victory. But, after his not very convincing victory on points over the outsider of the championship, the Cuban Mike Perez (22-3-1, 14 KOs), which dried up in the cruiserweight category from the heavyweight category - Briedis faded into the background behind Usyk and Gassiev.
Let us remind you once again that Briedis will fight Usyk in the semi-finals.
Yunier Dorticos
One of the main discoveries of the tournament was the undefeated Cuban puncher Yunier Dorticos (22-0, 21 KOs), who at the end of September in San Antonio (Texas, USA) very quickly dealt with the Russian Dmitry Kudryashov (21-2, 21 KOs) labeled himself " dark horse".
Dorticos will have his semifinal fight with IBF champion Murat Gassiev, but now no one puts the Cuban in the place of an obvious underdog.
20-01-2018, 18:34
01/20/2018 - 14:04
The World Boxing Super Series - the Muhammad Ali Cup has reached the semi-finals. What will the magnificent eight semi-finalists demonstrate in 2018? We publish the schedule of all WBSS fights - when, where, what time.
The winner of the World Boxing Super Series will become the owner of $50 million (this is the prize fund of the tournament), the most valuable trophy - the Muhammad Ali Cup, and will also take possession of the WBC, WBA, WBO, IBF belts.
Introducing the semi-finalists of the Boxing Super Series 2018 and the schedule of upcoming fights:
January 27, 23:30 Moscow time. Fight Oleksandr Usyk (13-0, 11 KOs) – Mairis Briedis (23-0, 18 KOs), heavyweight bout. The fight will also be a title fight: Briedis will defend the WBC title, and Usyk will defend the fourth WBO title. The meeting will take place on the territory of Briedis - in Riga. Broadcast on a TV channel "Match!". Recall that Briedis reached the semi-finals, beating in September 2017 Mike Perez, and Usyk had previously successfully passed Marco Huka.
February 3, 22:00 Moscow time. Fight Murat Gassiev (25-0, 18 KOs) – Yunier Dorticos (22-0, 21 KOs), the first heavy weight. One of the most anticipated meetings for the Russian public. The fight will take place in Sochi, during the international boxing forum. Gassiev made his way to the ½ finals by passing Krzysztof Wlodarczyk in October last year, and Dorticos beat the Russian Dmitry Kudryashov.
February 17, 00:00 Moscow time Boy George Groves (27-3, 20 KOs) vs. Chris Eubank Jr. (26-1, 20 KOs), second average weight. The opponents will meet in the UK, at the Manchester Arena. Earlier, Groves made it to the semi-finals by driving his fists on Jamie Cox in October 2017, and Eubank sent it back to Turkey Avni Yildirim soon after it.
February 24, time to be announced. Fight Callum Smith (23-0, 17 KOs) – Jurgen Bremer (49-3, 35 KOs), second average weight. The last meeting of the ½ final, when the rest of the finalists will already be known. Smith and Bremer will meet in the ring in Nuremberg, Germany. Bremer pushed further in the tournament by sending a young Rob Brant back to the States, and Smith sent Eric Skoglund to the buffet.
Boxing is the most unambiguous sport. But the language will not turn to call it ideal. There is one flaw in boxing, one might even say a flaw.
For example, why Anthony Joshua, winning Wladimir Klitschko in a fight that is already a world champion? A Deontay Wilder, who is also a world champion? Why Vasily Lomachenko must one after the other just because no one wants to go into the ring with him? Why amateurs have the highest rank - Olympic champion, and professionals simply hide behind the abbreviations of an infinite number of organizations? Someday this had to come to an end.
In March 2017, a new professional boxing tournament was announced - the World Boxing Super Series (WBSS). Maybe at least he will be able to change something in a sport that is losing its old school champion character and simply becomes a way to extort money from the audience.
What it is?
Simply put, it's something like Football League champions or the same Olympic Games among amateurs. The goal of the WBSS is to gather the most strong boxers and find out who is really the best.
Due to the large number of organizations that have their own champions (WBC, WBA, WBO and IBF), it is sometimes impossible to determine who is the strongest. The bureaucracy that devours and kills the sport sometimes makes it simply impossible to organize unification fights (how much Golovkin demanded a fight from Saunders?), but the strongest must be determined.
The organizers of the tournament decided to deal first with heavy weight (up to 90 kg, 200 pounds) and with the second medium (up to 76 kg, 168 pounds). Firstly, there is not a single boxer here who owns several belts. Secondly, these are divisions with a relatively high percentage of knockouts, which is good for the viewer. Thirdly, there are no superstars here who can refuse to sign a contract to participate.
The format of the event is extremely simple. 16 boxers will take part in WBSS (8 in each weight). The priority task is to collect four champions each (there are no questions for heavyweights) and four more eminent boxers from the top 15 rating of any of the world organizations.
The draw will then take place in Monaco on 8 July, where the champions will recognize their quarter-final opponents. First round tournament will be held in September-October. The winners advance to the semi-final (January-February), and then to the final (May). At stake in the final fight will be the Muhammad Ali trophy, $ 10 million in prize money, as well as championship belts. Title holders automatically put them on the line of fights in which they take part.
At the same time, the participants of the quarterfinals are guaranteed to receive one million dollars each, and the total prize fund of the tournament will be $50 million.
Tournament bracket WBSS
Where will the fights take place?
The organizers plan that exactly half of the 14 matches of the tournament will take place in the US arenas: New York's Madison Square Garden and Barclays Center in Los Angeles, as well as at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. There is no territorial restriction on the conduct of other battles, however, Europe, namely Britain and Germany, is in priority.
Has there ever been something like this?
Yes it was. And by the way, not too long ago. In 2009-11, the Super Six World Boxing Classic tournament was already held in super middleweight, in which WBC and WBA champions took part.
Then Showtime gathered six of the strongest boxers in one grid: Karl Forch, Andre Ward, Arthur Abraham, Andre Dirrell, Mikkel Kessler and Jermaine Taylor. Boxers had to fight three fights on group stage. 3 points were awarded for a knockout win, 2 points for a decision and 1 point for a draw.
The top four boxers advanced to the semi-finals. The one who took first place fought with the fourth number, and the second - with the third.
On December 17, in Atlantic City, USA, Carl Froch and Andre Ward clashed in the final match. As a result, the American defeated Froch by unanimous decision: 115-113, 115-113, 118-110.
It was at this tournament that Froch suffered the only defeats of his career, and Ward became the world champion for the first time.
Who will compete in WBSS?
The participation in the tournament of three heavyweights was the first to be announced: the IBF champion Murata Gassiev(24-0, 17 KOs), WBC champion Mairis Briedis(22-0, 18 KOs) and former champion IBF and WBC, as well as the leader of the IBF rating Krzysztof Wlodarczyk(53-3-1, 37 KOs).
The next official confirmation of participation was given by the regular WBA champion Yunier Dorticos(21-0, 20 KOs), shortly after he gave his consent to participate in the tournament Marco Hook(40-1-4, 27 KOs).
According to ESPN insider Dan Rafael, the contract was also signed with the Pole. Krzysztof Glowacki(27-1, 17 KOs), but the official WBSS website has not yet confirmed these words.
But the most interesting for the Ukrainian fan is another name. WBO Champion Oleksandr Usyk(12-0, 10 KOs) has repeatedly stated that he wants to unify the belts in his weight and does not understand why tournaments are not held where it is not determined best fighter. Therefore, it is not strange that, in the opinion of his manager Egis Klimas,.
Also contenders for getting into tournament bracket heavyweights are called Ilunga Makabu(20-2, 19 KOs) and Matheus Masternak(39-4, 29 KOs). At the same time, none of the messages mentions the name of the Russian WBA Super champion. Denis Lebedev(29-2, 22 KOs), who is scheduled to fight with Mark Flanagan(22-4, 15 KOs) on the ninth of July.
Usyk will take part in the Boxing Champions League / Facebook Heavy weight:
Oleksandr Usyk(12-0, 10 KOs) - WBO
Mairis Briedis(22-0, 18 KOs) - WBC
Murat Gassiev(24-0, 17 KOs) - IBF
Yunier Dorticos(21-0, 20 KOs) - WBA
Krzysztof Wlodarczyk(53-3-1, 37 KOs)
Marco Hook(40-1-4, 27 KOs)
Likely participants:
Krzysztof Glowacki(27-1, 17 KOs)
Ilunga Makabu(20-2, 19 KOs)
Matheus Masternak(39-4, 29 KOs)
In the super middleweight division, such an influx of champions is not yet noticeable. In general, there is less talk about this division.
The first contract to participate in the tournament was signed by the Briton George Groves(26-3, 19 KOs), who has the WBA belt. It seemed, well, now - now trample, but no.
The following gave their consent to non-existence earlier Swede Eric Skogland(26-0, 12 KOs) and Briton Jamie Cox(22-0, 12 KOs). A couple, to be honest, so-so. Records, of course, are ideal, but the names, to put it mildly, are very modest. If heavyweight looks really champion, then there is still work to be done. Well, the latest WBSS acquisition so far is the former WBA and WBO light heavyweight champion Jurgen Bremer(48-3, 35 KOs), who will drop in weight to participate in the tournament.
This means that there are still four places left, but there are no rumors about the super middleweight participants at all, so it's worth looking at the ratings, who would you like to see.
So, several of the remaining five places may well be claimed by the champions: James DeGale(23-1-1, 14 KOs) - IBF and Gilberto Ramirez(35-0, 24 KOs) - WBO.
Also, the public would not mind seeing the leader of the WBO rating in the case Arthur Abraham(46-5, 30 KOs) and his chatty British IBO champion Chris Eubank Jr.(24-1, 19 KOs), as well as the first WBC number - Callum Smith(22-0, 17 KOs), and the Swede Badu Jack (21-2-1, 12 KOs).
But while the activity of the organizers in this weight class clearly leaves much to be desired, however, we'll see.
Groves to compete in super middleweight tournament / Boxing News Second Middleweight:
George Groves (26-3, 19 KOs) - WBA
Eric Skogland (26-0, 12 KOs)
Jamie Cox (22-0, 12 KOs)
Jürgen Bremer (48-3, 35 KOs)
Interesting facts:
The trophy of the tournament was created by the designer of the World Cup Cup Silvio Gazzaniga.
The WBSS organizers plan to sign a contract with Showtime to show the tournament's fights.
Tournament promoter Wilfried Saurland was also one of the organizers of the Super Six World Boxing Classic.
Fights will not be postponed due to boxers' injuries, a technical defeat will be counted immediately.
The names of the first participants in the tournament were announced the day before the anniversary of the death of Muhammad Ali.
The WBSS is funded by Highlight, which started the rebranding of the UEFA Champions League in the early 1990s.
Initially, it was planned to hold a tournament in the second middle and first welterweight divisions.
