Per Ake Persson
French jr welterweight Willy Blain takes on Panamanian Juan Mosquera for the vacant WBO I/C 140 lb title on August 22 at the Universum Gym in Hamburg. Also on the bill, the real headliner for most fans, is the Ukrainian heavyweight clash between Taras Bidenko and Alex Mazikin.
The WBC will review the case with Juan Carlos Gomez´s positive (cocaine) doping test after he beat Oliver McCall on October 15, 2005, in Duesseldorf, during their convention in Croatia Oct 29-Nov 4. Gomez is under a one year suspension from the German Federation but the result remain unchanged as the BDB feel it´s up to the WBC to change it. According to Fight Fax Gomez is not under suspension in the US - and according to Fight Fax CEO Anibal Miramontes, the WBC doesnt have the right nor the power to change any results.
WBA heavyweight champ Nikolai Valuev is in training at a high altitude in Armenia in preparations for a planned October defense in the US. Valuev´s trainer Manuel Gabrelian hails from Armenia and the champ has made it a tradition to begin his training there. At the end of August Valuev heads for the Max Schmeling Gym in Berlin for sparring.
Gankor Promotions in Romania have been forced to cancel its planned August show with light heavyweight Adrian Diaconu on top. Diaconu will now most likely fight on the undercard on a show in Montreal on September 15 headlined by super middleweight Lucien Bute.
Steel Ring promotes on September 2 and 23 in Finland, there´s a show in Kemi on September 16 and there will also be a pro/am show on September 15 in Pori with heavyweight newcomer Riku Rapelo, who is trained by Kai Kauramaki and managed by Jaakko Helminen.
Pro Box Austria´s Chilean lightweight Freddy Chura will fight on Spotlight Boxing´s show on September 19 in Cuxhaven.
Norwegian super bantamweight Reidar Walstad has turned down an offer to take on WBO I/C 126 lb ruler Andres Meszaros early September in Hungary. Walstad will instead fight September 2 in Oulu and then fight on the big show in Helsinki on October 6 where EBU 160 lb champ Amin Asikainen makes the first defense of the title he won from Sebastian Sylvester.
