Maurice ‘Mighty Mo’ Hooker looking to make like Aaron ‘The Hawk’ Pryor

Maurice Hooker/Photo courtesy of Roc Nation Sports

 

Maurice “Mighty Mo” Hooker is another in a long line of fighters hopeful of becoming recognizable figures in the boxing world. Hooker will have a tremendous chance to do that Saturday when he takes on former interim lightweight champion Darleys Perez in the junior welterweight semi-main event Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

They will tangle underneath the light heavyweight title fight between champion Sergey Kovalev and Andre Ward (on HBO pay-per-view).

Hooker, of Dallas, is 21-0-2 with 16 knockouts. He has a solid knockout ratio of 70 percent. It sounds like his idol is Aaron “The Hawk” Pryor (39-1, 35 KOs), the late Hall of Fame junior welterweight champion whose knockout ratio was an amazing 88 percent.

“Aaron Pryor is one of the best,” Hooker said. “He brought a lot of knockouts. He was a great fighter whom a lot of people dodged. Like him, I’m coming into this fight with people dodging me. They are afraid because they don’t know what I can do. This fight means a lot … an opportunity to show them who I am. I am going to bring the knockout just like ‘The Hawk’ would.”

Hooker actually put his intentions regarding Perez into more, well, colorful words.

“My prediction for Saturday is a knockout,” he said. “I love knockouts. I am always going for the knockout. With every punch that I throw, even the jab, I am going to try to take Darleys Perez’s head off.”

Hooker, 27, is ranked as high as No. 9 in the world by one organization.

Perez, 33, is from Colombia. He is 33-2-1 with 21 knockouts.

 

 

 

 

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Rancho Cucamonga’s Daniel Franco stays unbeaten with KO of Gallardo

Daniel Franco/Photo courtesy of BoxRec.com

 

Daniel Franco of Rancho Cucamonga on Saturday remained unbeaten when he knocked out Marcello Gallardo at 44 seconds of the fifth round of their scheduled eight-round featherweight bout at Oracle Arena in Oakland. They tangled underneath the light heavyweight fight between Andre Ward and Alexander Brand, won by Ward via wide decision.

Franco, 24, decked Gallardo in the first and fifth rounds. Franco is now 14-0-3 with nine knockouts.

“I felt great right from the start,” Franco said afterward. “Everything we worked on in training camp came together tonight. I’ll take a short time off and it will be back in the gym to get ready for my next fight.”

Gallardo, of Renton, Wash., is 7-4-2.

 

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Andre Ward believes Alexander Brand could be dangerous on Saturday

Andre Ward/Photo courtesy of Roc Nation Sports

 

Alexander Brand of Colombia has 26 professional fights, with all but four of them taking place in his homeland. Three were in the States, but none on a big stage. The other was in the Dominican Republic.

Brand (25-1, 19 KOs) is therefore nothing close to a known commodity. But Andre Ward, who Saturday will tangle with Brand in the light heavyweight main event at Oracle Arena in Oakland (on HBO), says he knows what he needs to know about the 39-year-old Colombian.

“I know enough about Brand,” said Ward, a former super middleweight champion. “He’s got everything to gain and nothing to lose. He swings for the fences with every punch. He’s a dangerous guy to fight.”

Brand has a knockout ratio of 73 percent. Ward’s, at 29-0 with 15 knockouts, is 52 percent. But Ward is so much better, that disparity won’t mean much when he squares off with Brand.

A victory for Ward will mean he’ll next challenge Sergey Kovalev for his light heavyweight title Nov. 19 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

 

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Andre Ward to take on Alexander Brand as fight with Sergey Kovalev looms

Andre Ward stares at Sakio Bika after decking Bika in their November 2010 fight at Oracle Arena in Oakland/Associated Press photo by Jeff Chiu

 

Former super middleweight champion Andre Ward appears headed for a showdown with light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev, as the two are slated to tangle Nov. 19 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. However, both fighters first must get past other opponents and Ward’s next one was announced Tuesday.

Ward will take on Alexander Brand (25-1, 19 KOs) of Colombia in the main event Aug. 6 at Oracle Arena in Ward’s native Oakland (on HBO).

Ward, 32, is in can’t-wait mode.

“We can get it on right now,” he said. “Aug. 6, I will be ready.”

Ward (29-0, 15 KOs) currently fights under the Roc Nation Sports banner. Its COO – David Itskowitch – knows how important it is for Ward to stay focused on the task at hand so as not to upset the apple cart.

“Andre Ward’s quest to become the best light heavyweight on the planet and boxing’s No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter continues on Aug. 6,” Itskowitch said. “Alexander Brand has been waiting for this fight since last year and we have no doubt he is going to enter the ring hungry for a huge victory. There’s a lot on the line in this fight for Andre, who knows he can’t look past Brand toward a much-discussed clash with unified light heavyweight world champion Sergey Kovalev.”

Ward and Brand were supposed to fight in November, but Ward had to pull out with a leg injury.

Kovalev will defend his three titles against Isaac Chilemba of South Africa on July 11 in Kovalev’s native Russia (on HBO).

 

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Miguel Cotto-Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez set for Nov. 21 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas

Saul ‘Canel’ Alvarez/Photo courtesy of Golden Boy Promotions

 

Miguel Cotto of Puerto Rico will defend his middleweight world title against Saul “Canelo” Alvarez of Mexico on Nov. 21 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas (on HBO pay-per-view). It took some time for an accord to be reached, but the fight was finally announced Thursday by Golden Boy Promotions and Roc Nation Sports.

Cotto, 34, is 40-4 with 33 knockouts. He’ll be looking to make the second successful defense of his title.

Alvarez, a former junior middleweight champion, is 45-1-1 with 32 knockouts.

Cotto is coming off a fourth-round technical knockout of Daniel Geale in June in Brooklyn. Alvarez most recently knocked out James Kirkland in the third round in May in Houston.

“I will give the fans the fight they want to see,” Cotto said. “As I have always said, during my whole career, I am here to fight the best names and the best fighters. This will be another chapter in my career and I will be ready for him. Fans will enjoy a real fight, another classic battle in the Puerto Rico vs. Mexico rivalry.”
Alvarez was equally stoked that a fight fans want is a done deal.
“Historically, mega-fights are made because fans demand them,” Alvarez said. “In this case, the fans have spoken out, longing for this fight and it is my pleasure to say that it is finally happening. All fights at this level are very important, but this fight in particular has something more. It will hold a special place in history as part of the big rivalry between Mexico and Puerto Rico, and I promise all the fans that this is going to be an event that will not disappoint.”
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