Boxing
Nigeria’s Efe Ajagba outpoints Stephan Shaw for unanimous decision
Efe Ajagba fared better against an unbeaten boxer-puncher early Sunday morning in Nigeria (but Saturday night in the US) than the last time he fought one.
Two fights after his one-sided, unanimous-decision defeat to Frank Sanchez, Ajagba won what mostly amounted to a jabbing contest against previously undefeated Stephan Shaw by unanimous decision. Nigeria’s Ajagba was the aggressor for almost all 10 rounds, whereas Shaw seemed reluctant to engage with the hard-hitting heavyweight contender in a main event ESPN broadcast from Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, New York.
Judges Eric Marlinski, John McKaie and Don Trella scored their uneventful encounter identically, 96-94 for Ajagba.
“I went back to the corner and they told me to let my hands go, keep throwing punches, my jab,” Ajagba said. “I controlled the fight, so that’s how I won the fight.”
According to CompuBox, Ajagba landed 33 more punches overall than Shaw (111-of-430 to 78-of-341). CompuBox credited Ajagba for landing more jabs (90-of-350 to 48-of-237) and Shaw for landing more power punches (30-of-104 to 21-of-80).
“He tried to land the big shots,” Ajagba said. “I watched him to see what he was going to do. He kept throwing the jab, using the jab more.”
Ajagba (17-1, 13 KOs), a 2016 Olympian, won a second straight fight since Sanchez beat him. Cuba’s Sanchez (21-0, 14 KOs) dropped Ajagba in the seventh round and comfortably out-pointed him on all three scorecards in a 10-rounder that was part of the Tyson Fury-Deontay Wilder pay-per-view undercard in October 2021 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Ajagba underwent surgery on both elbows following his loss to Sanchez. Healthier and more confident, he promised he would box better against Shaw than he did versus Sanchez.
St. Louis’ Shaw, meanwhile, was unable to capitalize on the biggest opportunity of his nine-year professional career.
Without hesitation, Shaw (18-1, 13 KOs, 1 NC) took this fight against Ajagba on less than one month’s notice. Ajagba was supposed to fight Colombian contender Oscar Rivas (28-1, 19 KOs), but Rivas suffered a detached retina while training last month.
Shaw was already training to battle Italian prospect Guido Vianello (10-1-1, 9 KOs), who was stopped due to a cut by Jonnie Rice (16-6-1, 11 KOs) in the seventh round of ESPN’s co-feature Saturday night.
By the time the 10th round of the main event began, it seemed clear that Ajagba and Shaw would go the distance.
Ajagba’s right hand knocked Shaw backward with just over a minute remaining in the 10th and final round.
Ajagba’s right hand backed Shaw into the ropes with 1:25 to go in the 10th round.
Shaw lunged forward and landed a left hook with just under 20 seconds to go in the ninth round. Just before the ninth round ended, Shaw landed a right hand from long range.
Shaw snuck in a left hook with just under 30 seconds on the clock in the eighth round.
Ajagba’s left landed with about 1:15 to go in the eighth round. Shaw’s power jab landed a little less than 20 seconds into the eighth round.
Shaw connected with a right hand with 1:15 to go in the seventh round. They mostly continued to trade jabs in the seventh round.
A power jab by Ajagba backed Shaw into the ropes 40 seconds into the sixth round. Shortly thereafter, Shaw landed a left hook while they were in the center of the ring.
Shaw was more aggressive at times in the fifth round, yet he still fought mostly off his back foot and avoided Ajagba’s power.
A sweeping left hook by Shaw connected with just over 35 seconds remaining in the fourth round. A right-left combination by Ajagba connected a minute into the fourth round.
Ajagba avoided Shaw’s right hand and quickly came back to land a right hand of his own with 1:35 to go in the third round.
Ajagba and Shaw slipped power punches in the second round, when they again focused mostly on pumping their jabs.
Ajagba and Shaw traded stiff jabs with just over 15 seconds to go in the first round. Otherwise, neither fighter landed consequential punches in the opening three minutes.
U.S. immigration authorities have arrested Mexican boxer Julio Cesar Chavez Jr in Los Angeles and plan to deport him, they said on Thursday, just days after he lost a high-profile bout to American rival Jake Paul.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said Chavez was determined to be in the country illegally last week after he made fraudulent statements on a 2024 application for permanent residence. He is married to a U.S. citizen, it said.
Michael Goldstein, a lawyer for Chavez, said more than two dozen immigration agents arrested the boxer at his home in the Studio City area of Los Angeles on Wednesday.
“The current allegations are outrageous and appear to be designed as a headline to terrorize the community,” Goldstein said.
Homeland Security said that the 39-year-old boxer, son of Mexican world champion fighter Julio Cesar Chavez, is suspected of ties to Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel, which Washington has designated a foreign terrorist organization.
Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. speaks at press conference in anticipation of his fight against Jake Paul at Avalon Hollywood Theater. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images/File Photo
His wife, Frida Munoz Chavez, was previously married to the son of former Sinaloa cartel leader Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, who is serving a life sentence in a U.S. prison. The son, Edgar, was assassinated in 2008.
Chavez is the target of a Mexican arrest warrant on allegations of involvement in organized crime and firearms trafficking, DHS said.
In Mexico, Chavez’ family said in a statement they “fully trust in his innocence.”
Chavez lost to influencer-turned-boxer Paul, 28, last weekend before a sold-out crowd in Anaheim, California, in a unanimous decision after 10 rounds.
He was allowed to enter the United States temporarily in early January under former President Joe Biden, DHS said. He had previously overstayed a tourist visa, it said.
The agency said Chavez was convicted in Los Angeles in 2024 on weapons charges. Goldstein denied he was convicted, saying he pleaded not guilty and was granted mental health diversion which will result in dismissal of the charges.
Chavez won the WBC middleweight championship in 2011, but lost the title the next year.
His career has been overshadowed by controversies including a suspension after testing positive for a banned substance in 2009 and a fine and suspension after testing positive for marijuana in 2013.
His record stands at 54 wins, six losses and one draw, with 34 knockouts.
Reporting by Brendan O’Brien and Bhargav Acharya, Lizbeth Diaz, Angelica Medina, Diego Ore and Kylie Madry in Mexico City, Amy Tennery in New York; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Bill Berkrot
-Reuters
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Manny Pacquiao will come out of retirement to face Mario Barrios for the WBC welterweight championship on July 19 in Las Vegas, the 46-year-old Filipino boxer said on Wednesday.
Pacquiao is the only boxer to win world championships in a record eight weight divisions while he was also the oldest welterweight world champion in history at the age of 40 in 2019.
A Filipino senator from 2016 to 2022, Pacquiao had retired from boxing in 2021 while he also ran for president in 2022.
“I’m back. On July 19, I return to the ring to face WBC Welterweight Champion Mario Barrios at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Let’s make history,” Pacquiao wrote on Instagram.
The southpaw, who has 62 wins, eight losses and two draws in a 72-fight career, was also elected to the International Boxing Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2025.
Barrios, a Mexican-American boxer, has 29 wins in 32 bouts, winning 18 by knockout and losing twice.
-Reuters
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The body of Segun Olanrewaju, the Nigerian boxer who slumped and died in the ring in Ghana on Saturday is still in a mortuary in Ghana. The President of the Nigerian Boxing Board of Control (NBB of C), Dr Rafiu Oladipo, informed Sports Village Square that an autopsy will be conducted on Wednesday.
He said that the NBB of C is closely monitoring the events in Ghana, even as the Director General of the National Sports Commission, Bukola Olopade has asked for updates on the sad incident.
On Monday, a delegation of the NBB of C visited the family of the late boxer in Sango Otta in Ogun State. Oladipo said he was still in shock at the death of the boxer who he considered fit having fought last December 29.
He revealed that one of the members of the Nigerian delegation to Ghana stayed behind to follow up on the autopsy.
He narrated that the late boxer took part on Thursday in the mandatory weigh-in which is normally conducted 24 hours before a fight. Additionally, a medical check-up is also to be conducted.
“But in this instance, there was no medical check. On this ground, Oladipo blamed the Ghana Boxing Authority.
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