On The Ropes

Jamie Myer wants a “Tweed Heads Stingrays v Australia” amateur card to precede four professional fights on his pro – am at Tweed Coolangatta Golf Club on Friday July 2.

Six Stingrays amateurs will be in action against opposition from across the country prior to the punch for pay part of the night.

Palm Beach battler Will Hadlow has secured a shot at Australian middleweight champion Johannes Mwetupungu in Melbourne on May 14. Will handed Mwetupungu (7-2, 4 ko’s) his first defeat back in 2007.

Despite having a losing record, Wills upset of Johannes and a 2006 draw in Melbourne against then WBA world no. 15 Pradeep Singh show he is no easy beat on his night. Will be at the Tweed Stingrays Greenway Drive gym sparring in the coming weeks.

The Ring magazine voted Kostya Tszyu and Vic Darchinyan as the best super lightweight and super flyweight fighters of the last decade.

Darchinyan and Anthony Mundine were voted three and seven at flyweight and super middleweight respectively while Perth trained Indonesian Chris John came in fourth in the featherweight votes.

Word is Mundine will meet Kazakstan’s Olympic silver medalist Gennady Golovkan (18-0, 15 ko’s) or Cameroons Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam (23-0, 16 ko’s) for the vacant WBA middleweight strap mid year. Golovkan is having a managerial dispute and negotiations stalled. Mundine is currently rated 1 by the WBA, Golovkan no. 2 and N’Dam J’ikam no. 3.

In a twelve rounder between two legends 45 year old Bernard Hopkins (51-5-1, 32 ko’s) avenged a 1993 loss winning a unanimous decision over 41 year old Roy Jones (54-7, 30 ko’s) in Las Vegas on Sunday. It was dissappointing bout even taking in the combined ages of 86.

Time both rode off into the sunset. Hopkins entered the ring rated in the top four fighters pound for pound but could even drop out of that list in coming months.

Also on Sunday, British star David Haye (24-1, 22 ko’s) stopped two time champion John Ruiz (44-9-1, 30 ko’s) in round nine to retain the WBA heavyweight title in Manchester, England. Haye dominated the38 year old veteran scoring four knockdowns, two n the first round.

While on Wednesday night, heavyweight David Tua widely out scored Friday Ahuyanya in New Zealand.