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Monday, June 27, 2022

Some Fight Rumblings for Alaverdian and Oknin

Even if boxers have a fight date set, their fights can disappear in a flash. David Alaverdian and Mor Oknin don't even have that, but both revealed on Instagram when they are looking to fight next.

Alaverdian, last seen losing a disputed decision in the European amateur boxing championships in May, said there is potential to fight either in late July or early August. After the judges awarded the decision in his quarterfinal match to his opponent, David retired from amateur boxing.

The European tournament was run by IBA (formerly AIBA). Though it's too late for David, it was recently decided that IBA will be banned from running the boxing tournament in 2024 for the second straight Olympics. This is welcome news as the allegations of corruption made against IBA are lengthy.

Oknin fought most recently in an unsanctioned boxing match in Tel Aviv last month. Trained by Dan Mor- a boxing coach, actor, and diamond dealer- Oknin came away with the victory. He said he hopes to fight in Mexico or on the West Coast in the US in September. He hinted something may come up in Israel in late July.

Both Alaverdian and Oknin are currently in Israel. Unlike heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, neither Israeli super flyweight should have trouble getting into the country. Fury was reportedly denied entry into the United States due to his ties with alleged drug kingpin Daniel Kinahan. Kinahan was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department in April. MTK Global, the boxing management and promotional firm he founded with former middleweight Michael Macklin, folded shortly thereafter.

No Jewish boxers have been swept up in the Kinahan scandal, but the ire of Alaverdian's eye, Sunny Edwards, has. Edwards, a beltholder at flyweight, was part of the MTK Global team, often taking to Twitter to vouch for Kinahan. If Alaverdian and Edwards ever do fight down the road, the sun has likely set on it taking place in the U.S.

Wednesday, June 15, 2022

Stefi Cohen to Fight in July

Dr. Stefanie Cohen is scheduled to fight on July 8 in her adopted hometown of Miami, Florida, USA. The bout is slated for the Airport Hilton.

A native of Caracas, Venezuela, Cohen is 2-0-1 with one KO during her first year as a pro boxer. She has exhibited impressive improvement in each of her first three pro fights. In addition to boxing, Stefi is also a world-record-setting powerlifter, entrepreneur, and social media star.

The 30 year old has had at least three scheduled fights called off during this past year. She had been scheduled to fight in the Dominican Republic last November, Switzerland in December, and Mississippi last month.

No opponent has yet been announced. The number of rounds has also not yet been announced. The event will be shown on Fite TV.

Thursday, June 9, 2022

Seldin-Jkitou Off

Cletus Seldin had been scheduled to fight Rachid Jkitou on Saturday at the Paramount Theatre in Huntington New York, USA.  Jkitou, 28-0 20 KOs, had to pull out due to a medical issue. Seldin said there was a problem with Jkitou's MRI.

An attempt to find a replacement was made, but when none was found, the fight was called off. Fighting Cletus Seldin on two days notice is not exactly an enticing prospect, and with Seldin's record at 26-1 with 22 KOs, the opponent must be of a certain quality. Fighters at that level typically don't take fights so late.

Seldin released a statement on Instagram saying, "The training and fight continues! I appreciate your support and will continue to work hard and persevere."

Seldin had a fight canceled last September when the authenticity of the opponent's eye records came into question. he then fought in October and scored a seventh round KO of William Silva.

Friday, June 3, 2022

Kaminsky's Fight is Off

Middleweight David Kaminsky has endured several postponements of his comeback fight this summer. Originally, he was supposed to fight in May, then it was late June, which became early July. He no longer has a scheduled fight date, but hopes to be back in late summer.

Kaminsky likely dodged a bullet with the postponement of his May date. He had been scheduled to fight on a Triller card on May 14 featuring Sergey Kovalev and Kubrat Pulev in separate bouts. According to Dan Rafael of Big Fight Weekend, Triller has not paid Kovalev, Pulev, or Kovalev's opponent, Pulev's brother Tervel.

Kaminsky, a California-based Israeli, will go more than two years without a prizefight the next time he enters one. Some of that time was spent recovering from a knee injury. The southpaw is 6-1 with 3-0 KOs. He's just 21 years old, so he has plenty of time to reinvigorate his boxing career.

Wednesday, June 1, 2022

Cletus Seldin to Fight Rachid Jkitou

Cletus Seldin is scheduled to fight Rachid Jkitou on June 11 at the Paramount Theatre in Huntington, New York, USA. Jkitou is an undefeated knockout puncher, but Seldin holds many advantages.

Seldin (26-1, 22 KOs) is a 35 year old New Yorker. The "Hebrew Hammer" will be making his 18th appearance in the ring at the Paramount, so he'll have the hometown advantage. Seldin has been far more active than Jkitou and has faced the better opposition. Last October, Seldin came from behind to score a stunning seventh round KO against William Silva.

Though Jkitou has not yet fought a world class opponent, 28-0 with 20 KOs is an impressive record no matter who you face. The 36 year old has primarily fought in France and Morocco. Only eleven of Jkitou's 28 opponents sported a winning record when they fought, including three different 1-0 fighters. Conversely, 24 of Seldin's 28 (including one "No Contest") opponents came in with winning records.

Indisputably, Cletus has one-punch knockout power. Jkitou's power, however, is up for debate. Of his twenty KOs, six opponents retired after the completion of a round and ten were stopped by TKO. While the guts of Jkitou's opponents cannot be questioned, after reviewing the footage, many did not exactly go out on their shields. In their 2017 bout, Jkitou put Shawn Miller down for the ten count. Miller leaned forward and Jkitou landed a right to the back of the head. The referee ignored the unintentional foul and reached the count of ten.

Jkitou has fought only eight times since 2011 and his last bout came on September 19, 2019. Cletus turned pro in 2011 and last fought in October although that fight ended a long layoff. But the Moroccan man does have some advantages.

Taller than Seldin, Jkitou is also the naturally bigger man. Though he was a welterweight for his last fight, Jkitou fought Miller for a minor sanctioning body's light heavyweight world title belt. Rachid has spent much of his career as a super middleweight. In his last three bouts, Seldin weighed in 35 pounds lighter than the light heavyweight limit. June 11's fight is apparently for Seldin's regional belt, which would make the limit 140. We'll see if making weight drains the man from Marrakesh.

Though he'll likely start out cautious behind the jab, Jkitou will soon try to press forward. He's good at picking the right punches on the inside but doesn't possess quick hands. Though not a punching bag, Rachid has some defensive deficiencies. He can block, parry, and slip against slower fighters, but his hands tend to lower a bit as his fights progress, which leaves him a sucker for the overhand right. The overhand right happens to be Seldin's best punch.

Come fight night, Seldin can count on one more advantage. He'll certainly have the better hair.
This fight is scheduled for ten rounds or fewer. Count on fewer.