UFC 149 results: Renan Barao dominates Urijah Faber, wins interim title

By Matt Erickson

CALGARY – The UFC has another Brazilian champion.
It’s an interim title, but a title nonetheless. Renan Barao dominated Urijah Faber for five rounds on Saturday to win the UFC’s interim bantamweight belt, which was up for grabs with champion Dominick Cruz on the shelf following knee surgery. Barao cruised to win a unanimous decision with scores of 49-46, 50-45 and 49-46.
The interim bantamweight title fight served as the main event of Saturday’s UFC 149 event at Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary. It aired on pay-per-view following prelims on FX and Facebook.
Barao joins Nova Uniao teammate Jose Aldo, the UFC’s featherweight champ; middleweight champ Anderson Silva; and heavyweight champ Junior Dos Santos as current UFC champions from Brazil.
It was apparent early in the five-round title fight that Barao’s strategy was similar to that of Aldo’s when he fought Faber in the WEC – do damage to Faber with leg kicks. And though Barao didn’t do nearly the damage to Faber that Aldo did in April 2010, it still was a game plan that Faber could find little answer for.
Barao was able to land significant strikes in each round, sometimes with highlight-reel potential behind them. And though Faber never was in true danger, he found it hard to get inside on Barao and do any real damage himself.
Faber didn’t attempt a full-fledged takedown until midway through the third round, but he couldn’t land it. And though he was able to score some points with his counter-strikes, he never was able to get any real momentum going offensively.
“I knew he was good at keeping distance, and he was able to keep his kicks from pretty far out,” Faber said. “I knew he was tough. He hurt me pretty early with a knee to the rib, and I think I might have a broken rib. It was nothing like Aldo. Aldo really took my leg apart. I felt (Barao’s) kicks for sure, but it wasn’t the same thing.”
Barao jumped up and down and ran across the octagon shouting after the scores were read, then rubbed the interim belt as UFC president Dana White put it around his waist.
“I came very well prepared for everything,” Barao said through his translator. “I knew Faber was a great athlete and a great fighter. But I prepared myself very well, and that was the result. My coaches told me to keep [kicking the legs], but it was not only that.”
Barao (29-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC) had his amazing unbeaten streak extended to 30 fights with 29 wins and a no contest over that stretch. Faber (26-6 MMA, 2-2 UFC) again goes back to the drawing board, losing for the fifth straight time in a title fight – three featherweight title losses in the WEC and two bantamweight title losses in the UFC.

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Urijah Faber's positivity can't hurt in UFC 149 bantamweight title bout against Renan Barão

by Kevin Iole

Urijah Faber is the Norman Vincent Peale of mixed martial arts. Nobody puts the power of positive thinking to better, or more frequent, use than the UFC's bantamweight star.
Talk to Faber for any length of time and you'll hear the same phrases repeated incessantly: "I believe," "I can," "I will," and "I'm not worried."
Urijah Faber's positive attitude has a lot to do with his run of success. (Getty Images)Peale once wrote, "People become really quite remarkable when they start thinking that they can do things. When they believe in themselves they have the first secret of success."
It's a phrase that Faber, a former World Extreme Cagefighting featherweight champion, lives by.
He'll fight highly regarded Renan Barão for the interim bantamweight title Saturday in the main event of UFC 149 at the Scotiabank Saddledome and, typically, he expressed little concern about either the possibility of losing or the pressure to perform.
Barão is on an 18-fight winning streak, a 31-fight unbeaten streak and is regarded as one of the best finishers in the sport. Faber, though, has a ready answer when confronted with the problems Barão presents.
"He hasn't faced me yet," Faber says, chuckling. "He's done all these things to other guys, but he hasn't fought me. He's human like anyone else."
The walls in Faber's bedroom in his Sacramento, Calif., home are dotted with goals and motivational quotes. His primary goal now is, once again, to have a championship belt strapped around his waist.
It's been 3½ years since Faber held a world title, yet he's remained at the top of his class in terms of opportunity and performance.
He was set to meet arch rival Dominick Cruz for the bantamweight title at UFC 148 on July 7 in Las Vegas after coaching opposite Cruz on "The Ultimate Fighter Live." But Cruz tore up his knee and could be out for more than a year.
As a result, Faber was pitted against Barão for the interim belt. Though many believe an interim belt is meaningless, Faber is not among that group.
As he would say, when he wins Saturday he won't feel like a phony champion. He lost an excruciatingly close decision to Cruz for the belt at UFC 132 a year ago that evened the series between them at a win apiece. Faber submitted Cruz in 2007.
"I basically go out there and I think that when I beat Renan Barão, I'll be the best fighter in the world," Faber said. "I feel Dominick and I had a super close fight last time. He got the nod from the judges, but I don't feel like he beat me up. I feel I definitely did some damage to him.
"It was a close fight, but I felt walking away, as a man, I handled business. I'll feel like the champion, for sure, but I definitely want the opportunity to make sure that's the case."
Faber has always sought the best opposition he can face, which has earned him the everlasting respect of UFC president Dana White.
When White was going through the process of choosing a replacement opponent for Cruz, there was no doubt where Faber stood.
Barão was the guy with the record and the reputation. And while several other names were bandied about, Faber was hopeful White would choose Barão.
"The guy is 30-1, [and] he's a tough guy; he's a very, very tough fighter," White said of Barão. "And Urijah Faber who went through that whole season of The Ultimate Fighter to fight Cruz, you know absolutely, 100 percent, [he] not only accepted the fight with Renan Barão, but before it was even announced said, 'I hope it's Renan Barão.' "
Faber's belief in his ability is so absolute that he won't accept less than the best opposition. Eight of his last 10 opponents were either WEC or UFC world champions.
It can be a daunting task, getting no break from the stream of top contenders, but it's why Faber is far and away the biggest star among the lighter weight fighters in the sport.
He's been beaten by Cruz, the bantamweight champion, and Jose Aldo, the featherweight champion, but his star shines much brighter than either of theirs.
"My goal is to be successful as a fighter, as a businessman and as a person, and I work on that all the time," he said. "There's no reason to worry when you know you've done everything you need to do to reach a goal. I'm confident, I believe in myself, because I know I have prepared and done what I need to do to reach my goals."
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Roach: Ariza’s absence not a factor in Khan’s KO loss to Garcia

by Lem Satterfield


Five-time Trainer of the Year Freddie Roach says the absence of strength and conditioning guru Alex Ariza for only the second time in Amir Khan’s past 10 fights was not among the reasons that the former titleholder was knocked out in the fourth round by Danny Garcia in last Saturday night’s HBO-televised bout.
Garcia’s triumph added Khan’s WBA junior welterweight belt as well as the division’s RING championship to the WBC crown he already owned, this, after referee Kenny Bayless asked Khan if he still could continue before waving an end to the fight at 2 minutes, 28 seconds following the third knockdown — the second of the fourth round.
During an interview with RingTV.com, Bayless said that among the reasons was the fact that “in my opinion, Amir’s leg’s were shot, and his balance was off.”
Ariza, who has been replaced by Ruben Tabares, could not be reached for commment. But during an interview with RingTV.com nearly a year ago to the day, Ariza said that the strengthening of the legs is important in supporting the neck.
“I don’t think that [Ariza's absence was a factor.] The new strength coach is a hurdler,” said Roach, who has denied that Khan has specifically expressed the desire to end their association, contrary to reports.
“And I don’t think that Amir’s legs gave out in three rounds. I thought that the new guy did a very good job. But Ariza is very good at what he does also.”
In the past, Ariza contended that it was the strength in Khan’s legs that facilitated his survival through the treacherous 10th round of his unanimous decision victory over Marcos Maidana in December of 2010.

“When he was hurt by Marcos Maidana, I told Freddie that all we needed was about 15 seconds and that he would come right back. I think that the biggest misconception is that theory about the chin, and this is just a theory of mine, and that is that the strength of the chin has to do with something in the neck or the jaw muscles or things like that. But really, when you get hit, what’s the first thing that goes? The legs. So, so much of my work that I do for these fighters is that I concentrate on the legs,” said Ariza.
“So the drills, the balancing, the positions I put them in where the legs are stable when you’re completely fatigued, I think that that was the key element for Amir against Marcos Maidana. I knew that once Amir was able to get a few seconds in, moving around, that his legs would find their stability because they had been there before. Amir has been there where he feels like they’re not under him and things like that. So these are things that we’ve done before, so it was nothing new for him to feel like that and to recover from it.”
Khan began working with Roach and Ariza following his 54-second knockout loss to Breidis Prescott as a lightweight in Sept. of 2008.
From there, Khan won eight straight fights, four of them by knockout, and earned two title belts. That stretch also included knockouts of New Yorkers Zab Judah and Paulie Malignaggi, as well as victories over former beltholders Maidana, Marco Antonio Barrera and Andreas Kotelnik.
The loss to Garcia was the second in a row for Khan, whose winning streak under Roach ended with December’s controversial split-decision loss to Lamont Peterson.

Ariza was absent from Khan’s corner just one other time during the winning spree — that being Khan’s six-round, technical decision victory over Paul McCloskey in April of last year — but returned for Khan’s fifth-round stoppage of Judah.
Khan also shares Roach with eight-division titlewinner Manny Pacquiao and WBC middleweight titleholder Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., whose respective training regimens took place in preparation for title bouts they participated in last month.
First into the ring was Pacquiao, who dropped a controversial split-decision to then-WBO junior welterweight titleholder Tim Bradley that dethroned him as WBO welterweight beltholder on June 9. A week later on June 16, Chavez Jr. scored an impressive seventh-round knockout victory over southpaw challenger Andy Lee.
Roach said Khan chose to end his relationship during a stretch when Ariza left the Philippines, where Khan was training alongside Pacquiao, to be with Chavez Jr.
“Alex left Amir high and dry in the Philippines, and we had to make a choice. We had to go with someone else, and Ruben was available and Ruben did very well,” said Roach.
“He put Amir on a very, very good diet, Amir made weight very easily. He made weight four days before the fight. I thought that Ruben did a very good job.”

Chavez Jr. will be back in the ring on Sept. 15 for a defense against RING champion Sergio Martinez. Pacquiao has a targeted return date of Nov. 10, perhaps against Bradley or for a fourth bout opposite Juan Manuel Marquez, with whom Pacquiao has battled through a draw, as well as split- and majority decision victories, respectively.
Roach said that he expects Khan to return to the ring in December, adding that he would like to get a rematch with Garcia. Roach also said that he recently met with Khan and the fighter’s father, Shah Khan, regarding how to navigate the time spent working with Chavez Jr., Pacquiao and Khan in the future.
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Photo by Naoki Fukuda
Photo by Tom Hogan, Hogan Photos/Golden Boy Promotions
Photo by Naoki Fukuda
Photo by Tom Hogan, Hogan Photos/Golden Boy Promotions

Martinez and Chavez Jr. have a war of words

Martinez and Chavez Jr. have war of words
by Dan Rafael

Sergio Martinez, the real middleweight champion, has wanted to fight Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. for more than a year, ever since Chavez won a belt -– which had been stripped from Martinez -- from Sebastian Zbik.
Chavez Jr. has also wanted to fight Martinez in order to shut him up and show he’s for real.

Top Rank, Chavez’s promoter, understandably didn’t want to make the fight until it felt that Chavez was ready for such a gigantic step up in competition. But after seeing how Argentina’s Martinez (49-2-2, 28 KOs) has had at least some struggles in knockout wins against Darren Barker and Matthew Macklin in his past two bouts, and how good Mexican star Chavez (46-0-1, 32 KOs) has looked in his past two defenses -- a points rout of Marco Antonio Rubio and a seventh-round knockout of Andy Lee (a southpaw to boot, like Martinez) -- the fight has finally been made.

They’ll hook up in one of the biggest fights of the of the year on Sept. 15 (HBO PPV) at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas in what is shaping up to a be a serious war or words before the actual fight.

Martinez and Chavez don’t seem to like each other much. Martinez, 37, feels like the 26-year-old Chavez has been handed everything he has because of his famous name as the son of all-time great Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. That has rubbed Junior the wrong way.

Before any major pay-per-view, the fighters go out on tour to promote the event, which Martinez and Chavez did, hitting the road last week with stops in Los Angeles, Las Vegas and New York followed by a final news conference on Tuesday in Mexico City.

Throughout the tour, they sounded like they were ready to throw down already.

"This is the fight I've always wanted,” Chavez said during the tour. “Martinez has said a lot of bad things. Let's see if he wants to go to the center of the ring and fight like a man. I have real one-punch knockout power. I don't think Martinez has that power. After all his verbal bravado, I just hope he stands in the middle of the ring and fights like a man.

"I have this great opportunity to shut Martinez's mouth. On Sept. 15 he will finally realize he has underestimated me -- when the referee is counting to 10 over him. My dad always stressed body punching. I have a very good chin. I can take a good punch and I can throw a good punch and those will be two very hard lessons Martinez will learn on Sept. 15.”

Martinez has never been one to talk smack before his fights, but he has for Chavez. He seems as pumped up for the fight as any he’s had.

“There is no way Chavez Jr. can beat me,” he said during the Mexico City tour stop. “I will knock him out inside seven rounds. I gave his father a baby bottle (at the press conference) so he can take it to his baby after I give Junior a real beating. He won’t be eating solid food with the few teeth remaining after I get through with him."

Earlier on the tour, Martinez said, “I am a much better fighter now than when I won the middleweight titles. Chavez Jr. cannot match up to the knowledge and experience I have acquired in the ring. Chavez may think the sun rises with him in Culiacan (Mexico) but on Sept. 15 he's going to find out that it's going to set on him in Las Vegas."

Martinez also addressed Chavez Sr., who turned 50 last week while accompanying his son on the tour.

"Mr. Chavez, take a look at your son now because you will not recognize his face without DNA after we have fought. I will beat him up."

2012 Unofficial UFC Knockout of the Year

Edson Barboza KOs Terry Etim

by Thomas Gerbasi

We only go with a Top Five for the unofficial half-year awards, and without fail, the best knockout category is always the toughest to narrow down to single digits. In 2012, it seems like it’s even harder to pick, but hey, here they are, and let the debates begin… 5 – Stephen Thompson KO1 Dan Stittgen When it was announced that Stephen Thompson was making his Octagon debut at UFC 143 in February, diehard combat sports fans were excited to see the unbeaten kickboxing star getting his shot in the big show in MMA. Cynics, on the other hand, were waiting for him to fall so they could say that a pure kickboxer just couldn’t compete at the elite level in this hybrid sport. Thompson answered many of those questions against Dan Stittgen, the main one being, if he hits you flush with a kick to the head, it doesn’t matter who you are – you’re going down. That was the end result for Stittgen, who was knocked out with a picture perfect head kick at 4:13 of the first round (Watch Here).
4 – Dan Hardy KO 1 Duane Ludwig Dan Hardy needed a win bad. Loser of four in a row, the former world title challenger was on the brink of UFC extinction when he stepped into the Octagon to meet up with Duane “Bang” Ludwig at UFC 146 in May. The good news was that he wasn’t going to be facing a smothering wrestler; the bad news was that Ludwig is one of the best technical strikers in the sport today. So with all the pressure on, “The Outlaw” bit down on his mouthpiece, landed a sizzling left hook on the button, and finished “Bang” at 3:51 of the first round (Watch Event). Awesome knockout? Yes. A redemptive one as well? Absolutely. 3 – Michael McDonald KO1 Miguel Angel Torres While former WEC bantamweight champion and pound for pound list entrant Miguel Angel Torres was quietly crafting a comeback, California’s Michael McDonald was loudly crashing the UFC’s bantamweight division with increasingly impressive performances. At UFC 145 in April, these two diverse paths collided in Atlanta, and the 21-year old “Mayday” not only proved that he was ready for prime time by beating Torres (Watch Event), but he proved that he may even be ready for a shot at the title with a crushing first round knockout of the Indiana veteran. If you could think of a better coming out party, I’d sure like to hear it, because this one would be hard to top.
2 – Anthony Pettis KO1 Joe Lauzon Let’s not mince words here. The Anthony Pettis that showed up against Clay Guida and Jeremy Stephens just wasn’t the “Showtime” we had come to know and love from his flashy days in the WEC. But at UFC 144 in February, the king of the highlight reel returned in style, knocking out fellow contender Joe Lauzon with a left kick to the head in just 81 seconds (Watch Event). After the bout, the gracious and self-effacing Lauzon simply tweeted “I’m in Japan for a few more days and was gonna look at buying a sword, but I think I’m gonna invest in a helmet instead.” The rest of the lightweight division would be wise to do the same. 1 – Edson Barboza KO3 Terry Etim The ESPYs may have gotten it wrong in not awarding this its Play of the Year award, but the finalist there is a winner here, and in a year with some spectacular knockouts thus far, Edson Barboza’s wheel kick finish of Terry Etim at UFC 142 in January is far and away the best of the half-year. It had it all – speed, power, technique, accuracy, and pure ‘wow’ effect (Watch KO Watch Event). Etim was out the second he got caught by Barboza, and the scary part is that when asked about the finisher, the Brazilian Muay Thai expert said, “To be honest, no, I don’t train that kick much. I like to train the basic things like body kicks or low kicks. But I’ve known how to do that kick since I was eight years old, when I started training Muay Thai. I think I have been keeping it inside of my mind, and when I need it I throw it out.” Wow.
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Froch thinks Khan should retire

Froch thinks Khan should retire
by Harry Pratt

Carl Froch has stated he would retire if he ever suffered a crushing loss on the scale of Amir Khan’s shocking fourth-round KO by new RING junior welterweight champion Danny Garcia.
Khan, the former WBA and IBF titleholder from Bolton, England, no doubt was nursing a badly battered body and utterly shattered pride when he awoke the morning after a devastating night in Las Vegas. Fair to say, much of the expert post-mortem punditry back in his homeland would have done nothing to improve his depressed mood.
Khan’s career is definitely in no-man’s land, having been derailed by an extraordinary performance from Garcia (24-0, 15 knockouts), who also holds the WBC and WBA titles at 140 pounds. If talk of a ”super-fight” between Khan and Floyd Mayweather Jr. at welterweight sounded far-fetched before the weekend, it is now totally redundant.
Last Thursday, countryman Froch, the three-time super middleweight titleholder from Nottingham, had warned that Khan’s handlers were once again getting ahead of themselves and appeared to be underestimating the threat of the unbeaten American. Well, on Saturday at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, those words came chillingly true, with Khan (26-3, 18 KOs) being thumped and dumped – in a fashion that brought memories of his first round loss to Breidis Prescott four years ago flooding back.
That is why Froch, 35, who could never be accused of giving up on anything lightly, is deadly serious when discussing the idea of 25-year-old Khan hanging up the gloves.
He wonders if the Bolton boy has already realized his potential, whether he can ever bounce back from a second knockout blow to his career and if there is any point in him even attempting to pick up the pieces.
"I would retire if that happened to me," the 168-pound IBF titleholder told BBC 5 Live's Sportsweek first thing Sunday morning. "Why? Because I am not in this sport to get beaten, knocked out or outclassed. It's a personal decision whether or not you retire, but to get stopped in the fourth round when you have previously been knocked out in your career, is just very, very damaging."
Froch has suffered two defeats but both were on points and therefore did not have a lasting, detrimental effect on his confidence to compete against the elite. Indeed, following his loss to Andre Ward in last year’s Super Six World Boxing Classic final, he returned in April and destroyed the previously-unbeaten Lucien Bute. Froch (29-2 21 KOs) does not believe Khan will be able to recover so quickly.
“You have to consider that he was badly knocked out by Breidis Prescott and he lost to Lamont Peterson as well,” he said. “I hope he can come back, he's got enough years left and, if he has the ambition and desire to come back, he could. He's still a good fighter.
“Although you can say I've lost twice, I lost a very, very close points decision to one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world in Andre Ward and I've come back and beaten an unbeaten fighter, Lucian Bute, the very next time, so I'm world champion.

'If I had lost to Bute, though, I would have retired, because I am in this game to be at the very top and stay at the top. I'm not in this game to make up the numbers.”

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Khan and Garcia both weigh 139 for unification bout

Khan and Garcia both weigh 139 for unification bout
by RingTV

LAS VEAGS -- Junior welterweight beltholders Amir Khan and Danny Garcia both tipped the scales at 139 pounds at Friday's weighin for their RING, WBA, WBC title unification bout at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas on Saturday.
Khan (26-2, 18 knockouts) and Garcia (23-0, 14 KOs) looked fit and comfortable for their HBO-televised showdown, weighing one pound under the junior welterweight division limit.
The fighters on the seven-bout undercard to the Golden Boy Promotions event also weighed in on Friday.
Middleweight prospect Fernando Guerrero (23-1, 18 KOs) and Jose Medina (17-10-1, 7 KOs) both weighed 162 pounds for their scheudled 10 rounder.
Welterweight prospect Phil LoGreco (23-0, 12 KOs) weighed in at 149 pounds for his scheduled eight-round bout against Brandon Hoskins (16-1-1, 8 KOs), who weighed 146.
Middleweight prospect J Leon Love (11-0, 7 KOs) weighed 162 pounds for his scheduled eight-round bout against Joseph Dos Santos (10-9-3, 4 KOs), who weighed 158.
Junior middleweight prospect Daquan Arnett (4-0, 2 KOs) weighed 153 pounds for his scheduled six-round bout against Eddie Cordova (3-2-1, 1 KO), who weighed 151.
Lightweight prospect Jamie Kavanagh (10-0-1, 5 KOs) weighed 135 for his scheduled eight-round bout against Paul Valverde (3-1-3), who weighed 136.
Both lightweight prospect Abner Cotto (13-0, 5 KOs) and Juan Manuel Montiel (7-5-3, 2 KOs) weighed 135 pounds for thier schuelded eight-round bout.


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Photo / Naoki Fukuda

Garcia speaks up for himself at final presser for Khan

Garcia speaks up for himself at final presser for Khan
by Doug Fischer

LAS VEGAS – Danny Garcia has been content to let his father and trainer Angel Garcia to do the pre-fight trash talking to his opponents throughout his pro career.
The undefeated 140-pound beltholder continued to allow his father to handle the “smack talk” during the build up to his junior welterweight title unification bout against Amir Khan – a task his bombastic father ran wild with during media events and interviews – but Garcia spoke up for himself at the final press conference on Thursday at the Mandalay Bay, the site for Saturday’s HBO-televised showdown.
“My dad has talked s__t 23 times before I fought and 23 times I backed it up,” Garcia (23-0, 14 knockouts) said during his turn behind the podium. “On Saturday, it will be 24 times I’ve backed it up. We’re a team, my father and I.”
So far, they have been a successful duo. Angel Garcia guided his son to two U.S. national amateur titles before turning him pro in late 2007. Three and a half years after his pro debut, Garcia took on his first former titleholder, Nate Campbell, who he outpointed over 10 rounds last April.
Garcia followed the Campbell victory with decisions over former 140-pound beltholder Kendall Holt last October and WBC titleholder Erik Morales in March. Angel Garcia talked a lot trash and caused his share of ruckus at the press conferences and weigh-ins for those two bouts, but the 49-year-old trainer took his antics to another level for the Khan fight. Some would say he took it straight into the gutter by disrespecting the British star’s Pakistani heritage and perhaps taking a stab at Khan’s Islamic beliefs.
“I ain’t never met a Pakistani who can fight,” the elder Garcia told RingTV videographer Bill Emes during an exclusive interview at his North Philadelphia gym.
“Khan’s an overrated European fighter. He got knocked out in Europe, that’s the truth. He blamed it on his God and came to America to hide behind (trainer) Freddie Roach. This fight is going to come down to who’s stronger mentally, physically and spiritually; and I know Khan’s God already – his God is a punishing God – my God is a loving God.”
Khan (26-2, 18 KOs) is not at all amused by Garcia’s vulgar brand of irreverence, and the 26-year-old WBA titleholder vented a little bit during his turn behind the podium on Thursday.
“I promise you – and I never make these kinds of guarantees – but I will knockout Danny Garcia,” Khan said as the members of his huge entourage cheered loudly. “And I can’t wait until after the fight to see what you (Angel Garcia) will have to say.
“He says he’s never seen a Pakistani who can fight but he’s going to see one on Saturday night.”
Khan’s heated words led into an intense staredown immediately following the presser, during which time Garcia demanded that the 5-to-1 favorite look directly into his eyes.
“I told him to be a man and look into my eyes,” Garcia told RingTV.com. “He was looking at my nose. I know that trick. Some guys look into your eyes and it throws their clicker (heart) off. They try to get around that by looking at a dude’s nose.
“So I told him to look me in my eyes.”
Garcia believes Khan’s knockout prediction is proof that his father’s words have gotten under the Brit’s skin.
“He’s not being real,” Garcia said. “We all know his game is boxing and moving and staying on the outside. If he comes to me and tries to fight me, we know what will happen; he’s the one getting knocked out. He’s the one with the suspect chin.”
Khan maintains that Garcia has suspect pro credentials.
“He’s going to find out the difference between being a titleholder and an elite fighter,” he said. “I’m an elite fighter. No disrespect to Erik Morales but he had his day. He was done when he fought Garcia.
“Garcia fought someone who was way past his best.”
Garcia says a faded “El Terrible” is still a tougher fighter than Khan.
“I learned a lot in the Morales fight,” said Garcia, who dropped the Mexican legend hard in the 11^th round of the bout he won by scores of 118-109, 117-110 and 116-112. “He’s got a lot of heart. I don’t know if Amir Khan has that much heart.
“Can Khan take the punches that Morales took from me?”
YOUNG GUNS
Many boxing insiders believe that Garcia, who turned 24 four days before the Morales bout, isn’t ready to face a fighter of Khan’s talent and experience.
Apart from predicting that “every boxing writer who picked Khan to win will choke on his own foot on Saturday,” Angel Garcia believes that young standouts – especially titleholders – should fight each other. And Khan, despite his many accomplishments, is only 25.
“That’s the way it used to be in boxing,” he said. “The biggest fights used to be between young men. Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Tommy Hearns, Felix Trinidad vs. Fernando Vargas, Oscar De La Hoya vs. Shane Mosley – all of these fighters were in their 20s.
“They were young and they were champions, so they fought each other. That’s why boxing was more popular then.”

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Upcoming Fight Schedule

JULY


July 13

At Chicago (ESPN2/ESPN3): Glen Johnson vs. Andrej Fonfara, 10 rounds, light heavyweights; Jose Luis Castillo vs. Ivan Popoca, 10 rounds, welterweights; Jaime Herrera vs. Tyrone Chatman, 6 rounds, welterweights; Elijah McCall vs. Jason Massie, 6 rounds, heavyweights; Paul Littleton vs. Ramiro Bueno Jr., 5 rounds, super middleweights; Vilier Quinonez vs. Rogelio Santana, 4 rounds, light heavyweights; Juan Bustamante vs. Michah Branch, 4 rounds, junior lightweights; Junior Wright vs. Covon Graham, 4 rounds, cruiserweights


At Mexico City (Telemundo): Edgar Jimenez vs. Julian Rivera, 12 rounds, flyweights; Pablo Farias vs. Alvaro Enriquez, 8 rounds, super middleweights; Rodolfo Martinez vs. Ulises Jimenez, 6 rounds, welterweights; Angel Molina vs. Guillermo Medina, 6 rounds, lightweights; Jose Armando Valdez Bernal vs. Edwin Pena, 4 rounds, flyweights; Julio Cesar Juarez vs. Jorge Barrera, 4 rounds, lightweights; Juan Manuel Benitez vs. Manuel Martinez, 4 rounds, bantamweights


At Sydney, Australia: Billy Dib vs. Juan Antonio Rodriguez, 10 rounds, junior lightweights



July 14

At Las Vegas (HBO): Danny Garcia vs. Amir Khan, 12 rounds, for Garcia's WBC and vacant WBA junior welterweight title; Fernando Guerrero vs. Jose Medina, 10 rounds, super middleweights; Phil Lo Greco vs. Brandon Hoskins, 8 rounds, junior welterweights; Daquan Arnett vs. Eddie Cordova, 6 rounds, junior middleweights; Jamie Kavanagh vs. Paul Velarde, 8 rounds, lightweights; Abner Cotto vs. TBA, 8 rounds, lightweights; J'Leon Love vs. Joseph De Los Santos, 8 rounds, middleweights


At London (Epix and EpixHD.com): Dereck Chisora vs. David Haye, 12 rounds, heavyweights; Liam Walsh vs. Domenic Urbano, 12 rounds, junior lightweights; Matthew Hall vs. Gary O'Sullivan, 12 rounds, middleweight title; Ronnie Heffron vs. Peter McDonagh, 8 rounds, welterweights; Bradley Saunders vs. TBA, 6 rounds, lightweights; Sergej Rozvadovsky vs. Gabriel Lecrosnier, 8 rounds, super middleweights


At Humble, Texas (Telefutura): Marco Antonio Periban vs. James Parison, 10 rounds, super middleweights; Antonio Capulin vs. TBA, 6 rounds, junior lightweights; Juan Lejia vs. Aaron Fernandez, 6 rounds, junior bantamweights; Joe Lamas vs. Gilberto Cancio, 4 rounds, junior lightweights; Karim Martinez vs. Marteze Logan, 6 rounds, junior welterweights; Oscar Cantu vs. TBA, 6 rounds, junior featherweights; Jesus Armendariz vs. Roy Garcia, 4 rounds, junior welterweights; Jonathan Borja vs. Carlos Orenday, 4 rounds, junior featherweights; Christian Chapa vs. Eduardo Alvarado, 4 rounds, junior welterweights


At Tepic, Mexico (Fox Deportes): Edwin Diaz vs. Jesus Sylvestre, 12 rounds, for vacant WBA interim strawweight title; Janeth Perez vs. Riyo Togo, 10 rounds, female bantamweights
At Culiacan, Mexico: Hernan Marquez vs. Fernando Lumacad, 10 rounds, junior bantamweights; Tomas Rojas vs. Manuel Herrera, 10 rounds, junior featherweights; Ricardo Dominguez vs. Gilberto Gonzalez, 8 rounds, lightweights


At Las Vegas (Wealth TV PPV): Anthony Mundine vs. Bronco McKart, 10 rounds, middleweights; Dmitry Sukhotsky vs. Cornelius White, 12 rounds, light heavyweights; Ahror Muraalimov vs. Andrae Carthron, 8 rounds, heavyweights; Anatoliy Dudchenko vs. Carlos Reyes, 4 rounds, light heavyweights; Juan Heraldes vs. Yusmani Abreu, 4 rounds, welterweights; Alexis Hernandez vs. Pedro Martinez, 4 rounds, featherweights; Edwin Reyes vs. Yosigey Ramirez, 4 rounds, junior flyweights; Richard Colas Quesada vs. Chico McQueen, 4 rounds, junior welterweights


At Pittsburgh: Monty Meza-Clay vs. Emmanuel Lucero, 10 rounds, junior lightweights; Lennox Allen vs. Michael Walker, 6 rounds, super middleweights

At Udine, Italy: Leonard Bundu vs. Stefano Castellucci, 12 rounds, for Bundu's European welterweight title



July 16

At Saitama, Japan: Takashi Uchiyama vs. Michael Farenas, 12 rounds, for Uchiyama's WBA junior lightweight title; Sonny Boy Jaro vs. Toshiyuki Igarashi, 12 rounds, for Jaro's WBC flyweight title



July 19

At Lincoln, R.I.: Vladine Biosse vs. TBA, 8 or 10 rounds, super middleweights; Matt Godfrey vs. Jesse Oltmanns, 6 rounds, cruiserweights; Keith Kozlin vs. Reynaldo Rodriguez, rematch, 6 rounds, super middleweights; Kevin Cobbs vs. Donte Wiggins, 4 rounds, light heavyweights; Thomas Falowo vs. Rahman Yusebov, 6 rounds, middleweights; Benny Costantino vs. Dennis Ogboo, 4 rounds, middleweights; Zack Ramsey vs. TBA, 4 rounds, lightweights; Jansy Rivera vs. TBA, 4 rounds, welterweights



July 20

At Laughlin, Nev. (ESPN2/ESPN3): Juan Carlos Burgos vs. Cesar Vazquez, 10 rounds, junior lightweights; Aaron Martinez vs. Prenice Brewer, 8 rounds, welterweights; Vitor Jones vs. Jose de Jesus Rosel, 4 rounds, junior lightweights; Brett Rather vs. Zack Bunce, 4 rounds, heavyweights; Brice Ritani-Coe vs. TBA, 4 rounds, heavyweights; Daniel Yanez vs. Luis Hernandez, 4 rounds, junior welterweights


At Santa Ynez, Calif. (Showtime): Miguel Acosta vs. Art Hovhannisyan, 10 rounds, lightweights; Julian Williams vs. Said El Harrak, 8 rounds, junior middleweight; Roman Morales vs. Alexis Santiago, 8 rounds, junior featherweights; Ruffino Serrano vs. Rob Diezel, 6 rounds, featherweights; Francisco Santana vs. Larry Smith, 8 rounds, welterweights; Jonathan Maicelo vs. Daniel Attah, 6 or 8 rounds, lightweights; Edgar Alvarado Jr. vs. Eric Prado, 4 rounds, flyweights; Tureano Johnson vs. Donyil Livingston, 8 rounds, middleweights


At Ontario, Calif.: Charles Huerta vs. Eduardo Arcos, 8 rounds, junior lightweights; Miguel Diaz vs. Evaristo Primero, 8 rounds, flyweights; Daulis Prescott vs. Pablo Torres, 6 rounds, featherweights; Rigoberto Flores vs. Hector Garza, 6 rounds, junior welterweights; Sergio Nunez vs. Jesus Mendez, 4 rounds, junior lightweights; Isaac Zarate vs. Jeremy Longoria, 4 rounds, junior bantamweights; Giovanni Santillan vs. Alberto Espinoza, 4 rounds, junior welterweights



July 21

At Cincinnati (HBO): Adrien Broner vs. Vicente Escobedo, 12 rounds, for Broner's WBO junior lightweight title; Keith Thurman vs. TBA, 10 rounds, welterweights


At Cancun, Mexico (Fox Deportes): Johan Perez vs. Pablo Cesar Cano, 12 rounds, for Perez's WBA interim junior welterweight title


At Hollywood, Fla. (Telefutura): Argenis Mendez vs. Martin Honorio, rematch, 12 rounds, IBF junior lightweight eliminator; Felix Diaz vs. Miguel Angel Mungia, 6 rounds, junior middleweights; Ed Paredes vs. Vivian Harris, 10 rounds, welterweights; Joan Guzman vs. Jorge Pimentel, 10 rounds, junior welterweights; Claudio Marrero vs. Juan Jose Beltran, 10 rounds, featherweights; Juan Carlos Payano vs. John Alberto Molina, 10 rounds, bantamweights; Glendy Hernandez vs. Tobias Rice, 6 rounds, heavyweights; Jessy Cruz vs. Jesus Lule, 6 rounds, featherweights; Lenin Castillo vs. Ricardo Campillo, 4 rounds, light heavyweights


At Tijuana, Mexico: Jorge Paez Jr. vs. Omar Chavez, rematch, 10 rounds, welterweights; Bryan Vazquez vs. Jorge Lacierva, 12 rounds, for Vazquez's WBA interim junior lightweight title

At TBA, Italy: Ermanno Fegatilli vs. Devbis Boschiero, 12 rounds, forFegatilli's European junior lightweight title


At Panama City, Panama: Alberto Mosquera vs. Miguel Callist, 12 rounds, junior welterweights



July 25

At Perth, Australia: Danny Green vs. Danny Santiago, 12 rounds, light heavyweights



July 27

At Atlantic City, N.J. (ESPN2/ESPN3): Hank Lundy vs. Raymundo Beltran, 10 rounds, lightweights; Richard Pierson vs. Farah Ennis, 10 rounds, super middleweights; Thomas LaManna vs. TBA, 6 rounds, junior middleweights; Moses Molina vs. TBA, 4 rounds, lightweights



July 28

At San Jose, Calif. (Showtime): Robert Guerrero vs. Selcuk Aydin, 12 rounds, for vacant WBC interim welterweight title


At Indio, Calif. (Telefutura): Ronny Rios vs. TBA, 10 rounds, junior lightweights; Julio Diaz vs. TBA, 10 rounds, welterweights; Kenny Williams vs. William Williams, 6 rounds, junior welterweights; Jose Correra vs. TBA, 4 rounds, junior lightweights


At Chihuahua, Mexico: Orlando Salido vs. Moises Gutierrez, 10 rounds, junior lightweights


At Leon, Mexico: Edgar Sosa vs. Shigetaka Ikehara, 12 rounds, flyweights


At Huntington, N.Y.: Chris Algieri vs. Raul Tovar, 8 rounds, welterweights; Manny Gonzalez vs. Chazz McDowell, 8 rounds, junior lightweights; Cletus Seldin vs. Jonathan Garcia, 6 rounds, welterweights; Alan Gotay vs. Ray Velez, 4 rounds, junior welterweights; Raul Nuncio vs. Anthony Jones, 4 rounds, middleweights; Anthony Karparis vs. TBA, 4 rounds, junior welterweights


At Broadbeach, Australia: Les Sherrington vs. Yory Boy Campas, 12 rounds, middleweights