Danielle Cohen's Fight Cancelled

Danielle Cohen was scheduled to fight tomorrow in Fort Lauderdale, but the entire card was cancelled to due several unforeseen events. Next LVL Promotions announced that it hoped to have a show in August. Cohen, whose fight was scheduled to take place in the junior featherweight division, is 2-0 with one KO.

Unfortunately, multiple Jewish boxers had fights cancelled this month. After an exciting four month period for Jewish boxing, it seemed as if the trend would continue in June, but it was not to be. July currently looks like a slow month, but the in-ring action should heat back up in August.

Israel-Iran Hostilities Affecting Jewish Boxers

The fallout from the current Israeli-Iranian conflict has affected the world of boxing. Not only did the hostilities force Igor Lazarev to forego a big opportunity in Canada this week, but it has impacted Brooklyn "The Big Deal" Barwick's merchandise as well. She was advised by a third party that an international warehouse would not make her merchandise if it contained "any Israeli flags or anything alluding to Judaism." She was told that it would be "destroyed in transit by workers."

Barwick, who wore an Israeli flag on her trunks last fight, is devastated. "It hurts," she told The Jewish Boxing Blog. "Censoring the Star of David is wrong. I wouldn't care if the opposite side had their symbols because it's what they represent. I proudly represent a lot of things and respect others who represent their culture and religious beliefs." As of this writing, a ceasefire is holding between Israel and Iran. The hope is the ceasefire will help usher in a swift end to the conflict.

A junior featherweight, Barwick is scheduled to fight on August 16. She is 2-0 with 2 KOs.

Lazarev off Thursday's Card in Canada

Igor Lazarev was scheduled to face hot prospect Wyatt Sanford this Thursday, but he and his team are unable to make the fight. Lazarev is based in Israel and the hostilities between the country and Iran have made it too difficult to leave for the fight in Canada. Lazarev was scheduled to arrive tomorrow.

Eye of the Tiger Promotions, the company hosting the event, shared a bout sheet earlier today with Lazarev's name still present. His team, however, told The Jewish Boxing Blog that he had passed up the fight.

Lazarev was going to be in tough against Sanford, a former Olympian. Igor, who holds a record of 9-4-1, hasn't fought in over two years. But it was a great opportunity for the 38 year old veteran. The event will be broadcast on ESPN+, and a good showing certainly would've helped Lazarev's career. Of course, a bad performance could've spelled the end.

Sanford is now scheduled to face Mark Andrejev.

News and Notes

Cleaning up some news from the previous weekend: cruiserweight Daniel Ivanovski had been scheduled to fight in Kentucky last Saturday, but that entire card was cancelled a little while ago. Ivanovski is scheduled to put his 4-0 record on the line on August 16 in Greenville, North Carolina.

David Malul was briefly on the schedule to fight last Saturday. He observes Shabbat, which makes it difficult for him to fight on Saturdays during the summer because the sun sets so late in New York in those months.

Odelia Ben Ephraim has left the Blagnac Boxing Club. She's recovering from hand surgery, taking care of an injury that has plagued her for nearly two years. In the meantime, she signed with Insideout Boxing's Eoin Mundow.

Yonatan Landman has been working with famed trainer John David Jackson in Florida. The 7-0 flyweight has not been in the ring this year so far after a very busy 2024.

Brooklyn Barwick, now 2-0 with 2 KOs, is scheduled to come back to the ring on August 16. More details to come.

Boxing.5 Promotions is holding a tournament at Carnival City in South Africa on August 23. We'll see if Joshua Feldman and/or Doron Zinman fight on that card.

The Human Sponge: Alf Ros

Few fighters fit the mold of a true road warrior as well as Alf Ros. From 1921 until 1939, Ros fought on four continents against countless good and great opponents. He battled Jackie Fields, Ben Jeby, Vince Dundee, Tommy Freeman, Young Corbett III, and Lou Brouillard: all current, or future world champions when Ros faced them.

Jewish boxers from North Africa have a tradition of success. Victor "Young" Perez, Alphonse Halimi and Robert Cohen are the best remembered, but there were many quality Jewish boxers coming out of Algerian, Tunisian, and Morocco. Ros was the first to make a name for himself.

Alfred Ros was born on January 20, 1903 in Oran, Algeria to a Spanish mother and an Algerian father. France had taken control of Algeria in 1830 and incorporated the country into France in 1848. Algerian Jews were given French citizenship in 1870 as part of France's strategy to divide and conquer. Though considered part of France, Oran had a significant Spanish influence with much of the city's large European population hailing from Spain.

Ros started his professional career in Morocco in 1921. He fought under the first names Alf or Fred and his surname was sometimes spelled "Ross." After several fights in Morocco, he began campaigning in France the following year against good competition. Following a fight in Italy, he made his homecoming on March 3, 1923 when he fought Pedro Sáez, a notable boxer from Spain.

Sáez was recovering from a devastating low blow in sparring and began the bout firmly in survival mode. In the seventh round, Ros butted Sáez, who was knocked to the ground. The referee gave Sáez a minute's rest to recover, but Sáez was unable to continue and the fight was ruled a TKO victory for Ros. Later than night, Sáez saw the referee at a concert of Bizet's "Carmen" and futilely confronted him about his ruling, believing he should have won by disqualification. It was the only time Sáez was ever stopped in his career.

Ros fought a few more times in Oran, then several times back in Casablanca, before relocating to France and sneaking in a fight in Belgium. He was based in Bois-Colombes, a suburb northwest of Paris. One of his best wins came against Arthur Schaekels on September 2, 1925 in France's capital city. Ros won the ten-rounder by decision. A famed denizen of the city took notice. The following January, Ernest Hemingway wrote to a friend that Schaekels's dominance in Mexico immediately after the Ros fight - even winning the Mexican welterweight title - showed just how tough Ros was (pg. 3).

In 1926, Ros married Hélène, a French woman a year older than himself. That year, he beat future French welterweight champ Yvan Laffineur and drew with the current champ Emile Romerio before traveling to London. Ros was constantly in the ring, learning veteran tricks along the way. On January 11, 1927 Ros lost a rematch for the French title against Romerio, but picked up a big win twenty days later in London when he avenged a loss to Joe Rolfe with a 13th round knockout.

Alf Ros

Back in Paris, Ros went on a rampage in the ring. On September 7, 1927 Ros stopped French welterweight champion Alfred Pegazzano in the seventh round, but Ros was overweight so the title didn't change hands. Despite multiple efforts, he never would win the coveted French crown.

On November 20 and 21, 1927 Ros fought in back-to-back fifteen rounders in London. He lost to veteran Billy Bird and then drew with Billy Adair. Alf only fought twice in 1928 before setting sail for the new world. He received his visa to travel to the United Sates on August 23. Boarding the Rochambeau at Havre, France on October 31, Ros arrived in New York ten days later. He worked in two fights in Puerto Rico before the end of the year, traveling with fellow a Wahrani boxer named Antoine Ascencio.

On February 22, 1929 Ros fought in the continental United States for the first time. The venue happened to be the center of boxing: Madison Square Garden. Ros upset veteran Billy Adler, battering him around the ring for nine rounds before the fight was stopped. Ros was "the real hit of the night" and described as "a pocket-edition of Tom Sharkey."

On March 11 at MSG, Ros couldn't get inside against the much taller future welterweight world champion Tommy Freeman. He then lost to quality fighters like Nick Testo, Canada Lee, and My Sullivan. His biggest win in New York came against future middleweight world champion Ben Jeby, but he lost the rematch in October. Still, Ros was "hailed as one of the hardest hitting European welterweights."

In New York, Ros was a stablemate of the Spanish heavyweight Paulino Uzcundun, known as "The Basque Woodchopper." Alf lived on 111th Street in Manhattan with his wife, who arrived on May 28, 1929 and Americanized her name to Elaine. Fellow fighter Gaston LeCadre, "The Fighting Apache of Paris," lived two doors down.

On January 6, 1930 Ros fought the welterweight world champion Jackie Fields in a nontitle affair. The two fighters thrilled the Philadelphia crowd with their constant exchanges. Fields typically boxed, but against the shorter Ros, he was forced to fight, and it made for an exciting showing. Alf's stock rose.

He lost to future middleweight world champion Vince Dundee and future welterweight world champion Young Corbett III in successive months. Ros went down in the fourth and ninth rounds against Corbett, a tricky southpaw. He came back to decision Abe Attell's nephew, Gilbert on June 25.

Described as "a human sponge" because he could absorb so much punishment, Ros was something of an enigma to the American press. They called the short, stout fighter with the hairy chest "swarthy." They alternately labeled him as Spanish, Moroccan, Belgian, South African, Armenian, French, Algerian, and Hebrew.

One scribe declared, "Ros is heralded around New York as the greatest club fighter of all time." During his ten year career and likely over a hundred fights to that point, Alf had never been stopped.

On February 6, 1931 Alf fought future two-division world champion Lou Brouillard. In the sixth of an eight-rounder at Boston Garden, Ros was finally stopped. It would be the first of only two times he lost by knockout.

After a few more losses, Ros traveled to Mexico and fought there for a year, including a draw against the popular Mexican-American Bert Colima. He spent the next year and a half toiling in Costa Rica. In October of 1933 Ros faced an old nemesis, Arthur Schaekels, in Chile of all places. They fought to a draw. The next year, Ros stopped Felix "Kid" Thomas, the Nicaraguan welterweight titlist, in the fourth round in Managua. Ros then relocated to Peru, where he fought until 1936, with one comeback fight in 1939.

According to BoxRec, Ros's record was 57-37-16 with 24 KOs, but due to the itinerant nature of his career, he surely fought more. Alf's legacy extends beyond his own personal accomplishments, though. He laid the foundation for generations of North African Jewish boxers who were able to build upon Ros's labor and create championship careers.

Sources

Eckersall, Walter. "Mandell Meets Vicentini at Stadium Tonight." Chicago Daily Tribune. Sep. 6, 1929. Pg. 21.

"Fast Bouts Await Fans Who Attend Moose Hall Bouts." Shamokin News-Dispatch. Apr. 22, 1931. Pg. 6.

Hughes, Ed. "Paulino's Slugging Too Big a Puzzle for Christner to Solve." Brooklyn Eagle. Feb. 23, 1929. Pg. 10.

Vackner, Charles. "Braddock Demonstrates Punching Prowess Stopping Slattery." The Brooklyn Daily Times. Mar. 12, 1929. Pg. 23.

Immigration records, New York City, 1928, 1929.

U.S. Census, 1930.

The Top 10 Jewish Boxers according to Teddy Atlas and Ron Katz

Teddy Atlas is a Hall of Fame trainer and announcer. Ron Katz is a legendary matchmaker who belongs in the Hall of Fame. Atlas gave his top ten Jewish boxers on his podcast. Katz announced his on Twitter/X.

Rank	Atlas	Katz
1	Benny Leonard	Benny Leonard
2	Abe Attell	Barney Ross
3	Barney Ross	Ted Lewis
4	Maxie Rosenbloom	Maxie Rosenbloom
5	Ted Lewis	Abe Attell
6	Lew Tendler	Lew Tendler
7	Louis Kaplan	Battling Levinsky
8	Benny Bass	Joe Choynski
9	Jack Berg	Jack Berg
10	Jackie Fields	Max Baer

Atlas also named two honorable mentions: Battling Levinsky and Mike Rossman

Devin Strübin Beats Jasmin Ramic

Devin Strübin defeated Jasmin Ramic by two majority decision at Stadthofsaal in Uster, Switzerland today.

Strübin put Ramic down in the fifth round. Referee Thomas Walser deducted a point from Ramic in the same round. The loss of the two points proved to be the difference in the fight. One judge scored it even at 56. He was overruled by the other two judges who scored the bout 58-54 and 57-55.

Strübin improves has s record to 8-1-1. Ramic is now 1-4.

Devin Strübin Weighs In

Devin Strübin and his opponent, Jasmin Ramic, weighed in ahead of their six-round super middleweight clash tomorrow at Stadthofsaal in Uster, Switzerland.

Strübin weighed 168.3 pounds. The lightest of his career has been 167 pounds while the heaviest was 174 for his last fight. Ramic, who flew in from Bosnia & Herzegovina today, was 164.5 pounds. He has been as light as 152 pounds back in 2019 and as heavy as 167.5.

Ramic & Strübin at the weigh-in

For a preview of the fight, visit here.

Brooklyn Barwick Calls Out Danielle Cohen, Cohen Responds

After scoring her second career knockout and tackling the Team Combat League in the span of eight days, Brooklyn "The Big Deal" Barwick is looking for bigger challenges. One such challenge could be a fellow Jewish fighter, Danielle "Pitbull" Cohen.

"I'm the only female Jewish professional boxer in the U.S." Barwick told The Jewish Boxing Blog. "Cohen's a Jewish combat sports athlete. She's ain't a boxer; she's an MMA girl."

The 25 year old junior featherweight had a message for Cohen, a 28 year old lightweight from Florida, "If she wants to come down to featherweight, I'll whoop her ass."

"Tell her management to contact my manager," Cohen responded. "Let's book the fight."

Both fighters are 2-0. Barwick has two KOs while Cohen has one. Cohen has a fight scheduled for June 28. Barwick last fought on May 30.

Cohen is taller, bigger, and has more combat experience, but Barwick has made great strides recently. If it happens, it'll surely be an exciting battle. Barwick is a come-forward fighter who can bang to the body. Cohen is typically a potshot artist from the outside. It all makes for a fascinating clash of styles.

There's also the possibility of history being made. The great champion Hagar Finer faced Jewish opponents in Israel early in her career, but a fight between Barwick and Cohen would potentially be the first professional boxing match between two Jewish women in the United States.

Barwick

Cohen

Igor Lazarev to Face Olympian Wyatt Sanford

Junior welterweight Igor Lazarev is in tough on June 27 against 2024 Olympic bronze medalist Wyatt "The Kennetcook Kid" Sanford at Centre Videotron in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. Lazarev heads into the fight with quite a few disadvantages.

The only advantage the Russian-born resident of Ashdod, Israel possesses is pro experience. Lazarev's record stands at 9-4 with 3 KOs. He's boxed 56 professional rounds in nine different countries, including six dominant rounds against Polish prospect Dominik Harwankowski in 2022. Lazarev completely exposed the home fighter, but was robbed blind by the Polish judges. Igor has also faced prospects Angelo Peña and Greg McGuiness.

Lazarev is now 38 years old and hasn't fought in two years and four months. He'll have a slight height disadvantage, and his hands aren't as fast as Sanford's, which are blazing quick. Sanford, a highly-touted 26 year old prospect from Kennetcook, Nova Scotia, is a southpaw. He's 2-0 with two first round stoppages and is signed with the home promoter, Eye of the Tiger. The Canadian is also the naturally bigger man. He likes to lead in order to counter the opponent's counter. His hands are fast and fluid and he knows when to go to the body.

In Sanford's pro debut last month, he scored a knockdown with a right hook, but his straight left is also very dangerous. His second fight took place last Thursday, when he wiped out Tomas Lastra.

The overhand right is the premier punch for Lazarev, who is also a vicious body puncher. He'll need to set up his power shots because Sanford is too slick to get hit by lead rights. The two-time Olympian poses a tall task for the tough Israeli. With everything against him, if Igor gets out of the first round, consider it a win.

courtesy of Nir Roitman

Devin Strübin to Face Jasmin Ramic on Saturday

Devin "The Honey Badger" Strübin is scheduled to fight Jasmin "The Lion's Heart" Ramic on Saturday at Stadthofsaal in Uster, Switzerland. Ramic will pose a tougher test that his record suggests.

Strübin (7-1-1, 6 KOs) is a 30 year old from the nearby town of Urdorf. The southpaw super middleweight will apply smart pressure as he attempts to wear down Ramic. Strübin, who has spent some of his training camp in Israel, last fought in December, a fourth round TKO victory over veteran Zdenk Bule.

Ramic is from Biljeljina, Bosnia & Herzegovina. And before Mauricio Sulaiman and his ilk stir up any faux outrage: in the Balkans, Jasmin is typically a male name. As a boxer, Jasmin is only 1-3 and hasn't fought since 2022, but he has tons of experience as a kickboxer. Strübin also began as a kickboxer but made the switch ten years ago while Ramic has never left the sport.

Though there are key differences between boxing and kickboxing - some obvious and some less so - plenty of fighters have made the transition successfully. Chris Algieri and Tenshin Nasukawa are just a couple of examples.

A member of the Roma community and a farmer, Ramic throws hard clubbing punches. Since Strübin won't be hard to find, it should be an exciting fight for as long as it lasts. This bout is scheduled for six rounds.

Barwick Game in TCL Debut

Brooklyn "The Big Deal" Barwick was game in losing her Team Combat League debut by unanimous decision to Anna Verbeek at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Florida, USA.

Barwick represented the Phoenix Fury, who faced the Miami Assassins tonight. Miami won the eight "launch" rounds by a score of 77-72 on the back of Victor Abreu, who stopped Joseph Rivas in the second to grab a 10-7 round. When Barwick stepped into the ring for round eleven, her Fury were trailing 97-90.

Barwick, who gave up at lest five inches of height, rushed forward, targeting Verbeek's body. Barwick was so anxious to let her punches go, she was warned twice by referee Luis Pabon for hitting after he had yelled for the action to stop.

Verbeek had some success catching Barwick on the way in and landed a sweet left hook towards the end of the round. Barwick absorbed the punches as if they were love taps, though. Her looping right to the body needed to be tightened up, but her foot movement was more fluid than in the past. There's no doubt that Brooklyn has a great chin, a ton of heart, and a mountain of grit. Her skills continue to improve as well.

Verbeek was awarded the round by unanimous decision, 10-9, which increased Miami's lead to 107-99. This was a great experience for Barwick, who cheered for her teammates from ringside after her round. This tussle against Verbeek should help Brooklyn's pro career, which has started with two straight knockout victories.

Miami beat Phoenix 230-222.

Introducing Devin Strübin

Devin "The Honey Badger" Strübin is a 7-1-1 super middleweight with six knockouts. The 30 year old southpaw from Urdorf, Zurich, Switzerland turned pro in 2022.

"My fighting style is to make pressure," Strübin told The Jewish Boxing Blog. "I look for the infight and make pressure, punch by punch, round by round, until my opponent is broken."

He made the switch from kickboxing ten years ago and his stance reveals that experience. Though a pressure fighter, he's not a volume puncher, preferring to set up big accurate shots. But his come-forward approach tests the will of his opponents.

"Physically, he's incredibly strong," his coach Mortiz Hager told Zo Online, "He's rather calm and thoughtful, certainly not a hothead."*

Strübin picked up the nickname "The Honey Badger" because he initially fought at a heavier weight, which put him at a height disadvantage. He battled so ferociously, "The trainer said I fought like a honey badger," he told The JBB. He researched the animal and learned they are naturally aggressive and surprisingly fearless for their size. He felt the nickname was apropos.

"Working with Devin is a dream," said Coach Hager in the same Zo Online interview. "He's humble, always tries to implement my instructions, and isn't someone who's too proud to repeat the same exercise over and over again. He knows how important certain automatisms are."

After stopping his first two opponents, he faced 13-fight veteran Valeri Gojiashvili on June 10, 2023. Strübin's pressure and power punches behind a high guard wore down his more experienced foe, but Gojiashvili's hands were more active. The Georgian lost a point in the fourth and fifth rounds for excessive holding, which was his main defense against fatigue. Even with the point deductions, the judges unfairly saddled Strübin with a majority draw.

After a TKO victory, Strübin fought Yoncho Markov on December 2, 2023. During Strübin's ring-walk, Markov stood in the center of the ring and gyrated in an awkward attempt at dancing. In the second round, Strübin battered Markov to the canvas with lefts and then imitated Markov's "dance" before waving for him to get up. Markov became enraged, but his anger signified nothing as The Honey Badger stopped him in the next round.

On April 14 last year in only his sixth pro bout, Strübin fought 45-fight veteran Sandro Jajanidze. Though he used his customary pressure, he was too cautious early and Jajanidze scored a knockdown in the first. Devin did better in the middle rounds, but Jajanidze's experience carried him home. Though Strübin has fought all of his contests in Switzerland and this was a six-rounder like eight of his nine fights, this bout has been his only experience without judges. The sole arbiter, referee Diana Drews Milani, felt the knockdown was the difference and scored the contest 57-56 for Jajanidze.

After a comeback TKO victory in July, Devin faced Eman Rekanovic last September 8. In the second round, a ring malfunction delayed the fight for an extended period. In the fourth round, Rekanovic was disqualified for repeatedly keeping his head too low. After the fight, Strübin proposed to his girlfriend in the ring. She said yes!

He last fought in December, a fourth round TKO victory over the experienced Zdenko Bule in the light heavyweight division.

The son of a Yemeni Jewish mother from Israel, Devin recently worked with undefeated flyweight David Alaverdian at the Nakash Gym in Tel Aviv. "I held the pads for him, and he can definitely crack," Alaverdian told The JBB. "In this boxing circle, I've met a lot of bad people, but I can honestly say he is a good person."

Strübin is scheduled to fight next on June 14 in Ulster, Switzerland. He is certainly one to watch.

*Coach Hager's quotes are translated from German.

Brooklyn Barwick to Fight Saturday for Phoenix Fury in TCL

Fresh off her second pro KO last week, Brooklyn "The Big Deal" Barwick is scheduled to fight on Saturday at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Florida, USA as part of the Phoenix Fury of the Team Combat League. Phoenix faces the Miami Assassins.

The Team Combat League involves matches between two clubs, each representing a city. Each team puts up 24 boxers who fight in one three-minute round. Of the nine men's and three women's weight classes, each team fields two fighters. Barwick will represent Phoenix in one of the two women's featherweight rounds.

Brooklyn is in tough against Ana Maria Verbeek, who is 2-1 in her four Team Combat League rounds. The 30 year old native of Breda, Netherlands will boast a five-inch height advantage. Verbeek is 1-0 as  a pro.

This should be good experience Barwick, who starched her two opponents so quickly, she hasn't even fought two minutes of pro action yet. Her aggressive, volume-punching style is well suited for this format.

More information about the contest can be found here.

Danielle Cohen Back on June 28

Lightweight Danielle "Pitbull" Cohen is scheduled to fight on June 28 at Xtreme Action Park in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA. Cohen is 2-0 as a boxer and has a wealth of combat experience.

Cohen is a 28 year old from Plantation, Florida. In her 2023 debut, she outboxed Danielle Wynn, effectively dictating range and landing eye-catching potshots from the outside. Her second fight, this past April, was one of the more bizarre contests in recent boxing history. Her opponent, Amber Clark, was visibly frazzled at the opening and immediately took a knee before a punch was landed. The fight was stopped after just ten seconds and Cohen awarded a TKO victory.

Cohen will be anxious to show her skills after the brevity of her last outing. This will be her second fight in her home state. No opponent has been announced yet.