Day Two.

USA

Flyweight: Roscoe Hill Stops Mario Lavegar of DR 

Team USA has started this tournament 3-0, which is a very good start. Hill, who has element of distance control similar to Floyd Mayweather, put it on Mario Lavegar to earn a stoppage win, and make a statement. The Texas fighter, Hill, will now need to use his feet against Artur Hovhannisyan of Armenia, as Hovhannisyan will test Hill’s endurance and toughness, along with skill.

Other Notables

Flyweight

Yuberjen Martínez, COL – One of the best flyweights in the world, and the man who lost the 2020 Olympic Games due to an awful slew of scores that did not replicate his fight should be the tournament favorite. Martinez is a solid pressure fighter, who throws more punches than anyone else in the division, and if he turned pro, could fight for a world title in less than ten fights. Martinez will next face Dzianis Salotskikh.

Ronaldo Bezerra, BRA – Very well-rounded, and like many Brazilian boxers of the past Bezerra has two traits I see pressure, and patiences. Bezerra will always pressure the action, but will not throw for the sake of throwing making him unique in that sense especially at the lower weight classes. Bezerra’s next fight will be against Federico Serra of Italy. 

Akhtem Zakirov, RUS – Zakirov is a high-volume Russian fighter, who looks the part to be a medalist. His opening bout win was impressive, and should showcase his skills nicely in the next round against Attila Bernáth of Hungary.

Carlos Ramírez, GUA – A very skilled fighter, who could go largely unnoticed with the slew of fights. Ramirez is able to box and move without it looking amateurish which is rare in world-level amateur boxing. He will face Miguel Ramos of Venezuela in the next round. 

Hasanboy Dusmatov, UZB – Despite losing in the opening round, Dusmatov, the 2016 Olympic Gold Medalist, still feels like one of the best fighters in the tournament. He appeared to drop Saken Bibossinov, KAZ, in the fight, but it was ruled as a slip. Dusmatov is overtly aggressive, and is not very reliant on a jab, but throws good combinations with power shots. Very surprised he didn’t win, Dusmatov is notable.

Light Welterweight

Andy Cruz, CUB – The best amateur in the world, who if he turned pro, would be a little less than stellar as a pro looks like the man to beat in this division. Cruz is fast with his feet, and hands, and also knows how to win as well as spoil. Cruz next faces Nicollás de Jesús of Brazil, who was awarded a first-round bye. 

Pavel Fedorov, SER – Outclassed his opponent from Germany with good movement, and is fighting in his home country. We will find out the ceiling of Fedorov when he faces a tough and durable brute in Kerem Özmen of Turkey in his next fight. 

Ashkan Rezaei, IRI – The most polished Iranian boxer I have seen in international competition to date. Rezaei fights like a pro, and has solid fundamentals as well. Very impressive, the only draw back is that he is a division with a lot of good fighters. In his next bout he will face Reese Lynch of Scotland.

Mateo Komadina, CRO – Gets hit way too much, but is very aggressive offensively. Knocked down his opponent in his first fight. Will be truly tested in his next bout against Denys Pesotskyy of the Ukraine. Komadina is a fighter, who knows who is, but who is, is someone who can struggle against the top of the class, but might look like a million bucks against someone just below his level. For fans of pro boxing he might be an interesting pro to keep tabs on to see how he develops. 

Middleweight

Salvatore Cavallaro, ITA – A good southpaw, who has some flaws, but his instincts are good, and his hand speed and combinations work like a charm. Cavallaro is someone who has the tools to go very far in this tournament. His next fight will be against Kiryl Samadurau of BEL. 

Diego Motoa, COL – Motoa is as dominant as anyone in the division, and scored a stoppage victory today. Motoa will next face Ansa Coker of Sierra Leone in the next round, and honestly seems to be the favorite to make it to the quarterfinals in his bracket. 

Light Heavyweight

Ren Umemura, JPN – Big, strong and smart. Umemura has a lot of traits of one of the greatest Japanese amateurs, Ryota Murata. In the next round, Umemura will face   Silab Noori, and honestly should be the fighter to come out of this bracket. Umemura has all the makings of being the next marquee Japanese fighter. 

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Day One.

Team USA

Jahmal Harvey, USA defeated Vasile Usturoi, BEL

Harvey is one of the most impressive amateurs to date, and has a similar vibe as a Shakur Stevenson or Keyshawn Davis, in being a dominant force in USA Boxing on the international scene, yet that is earned not given. Harvey demonstrated in this bout he could fight from both stances, was active, countered the counters of his opponents, as well as targets the body well. Harvey feels like a can’t miss pro, and a fighter who should medal at this tournament. Harvey will be in tough next though against Mirazizbek Mirzakhalilov of Uzbekistan, as Mirzakhalilov was my favorite to win gold at the 2020 Olympic Games, but lost a questionable decision to Ireland’s Kurt Walker. Beating Mirzakhalilov would be a massive statement.

Omari Jones walkover Djo Kayala Engulu

Jones is a very good fighter, whom we have been extremely high on. He got a walkover, so we didn’t get to see him fight, but the USA started out 2-0. Jones is awkward and powerful, and those two words often don’t go together, but fit Jones perfectly. Jones will next face Tyler Jolly of Scotland in his next bout, which should be a favorable match-up for Jones as Jolly has had limited success internationally.

Other notables

Featherweight

Serik Temirzhanov, KAZ – Termirzhanov competed at the 2020 Olympic Games inevitably losing to Olympic silver medalist and American hero, Duke Ragan. Temirzhanov is a solid boxer, but his greatest strength is his ability to throw a lot of power shots in succession, with his flaw being a lot of his punches come at the same speed. Temirzhanov is a fighter to follow. Next up for Temirzhanov is Reito Tsutsumi of Japan.

Osvel Caballero, CUB – Caballero is going to make it to the medal rounds as he knows how to win, has a good skillset and is fine making a fight ugly or slow. Will I set my alarm to watch Caballero – no, do I expect to see him go far in the tournament – yes. Caballero will next face Sajjad Mohammadpour of Iran in a fight that should also serve as fodder for his highlight reel.

Miguel Vega, MEX – One of three fighters to get a stoppage win today, and his might have been the most one-sided. An aggressive Mexican boxer, who has a pro-ready style, and is having success on the world stage. I can already see any competent promoter getting ready to offer Vega money to turn pro after his first performance. Vega will next face Puran Rai of Nepal. I am expecting a quarter-final showdown between Vega versus Caballero, which seems inevitable. 

Welterweight

Wanderson De Oliveira, BRA – One of my favorite welterweight Olympians from the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games is in this competition and scored a stoppage in his first fight. Oliveira is one of the fastest fighters in the tournament, is experienced and also pretty darn slick. Oliveira’s last losses have come to Olympic gold medalist Andy Cruz and seasoned veteran Dzmitry Asanau. Oliveira is growing into one of the most formidable fighters in the world-class amateur boxing in the welterweight division. Oliveira will be tested in his next round against Antonio Tkalčić of Croatia, but I suspect Oliveira will go deep into the tournament. 

Zhakshylyk Talaibekov, KGZ – Really strong, one of the three fighters to stop their opponents today. Still a bit raw in terms of being a traditional boxer, Talaibekov let’s his opponent know boxing is a physical sport, and has put the tools together around that to build a skillset that should be interesting on the world stage. Talaibekov will face Obada Al-Kasbeh of Jordan in the next round, and honestly, I would be very surprised if Talaibekov doesn’t at least make it to the quarter-finals.

Asadkhuja Muydinkhujaev, UZB – One of the best fighters in the tournament, a hybrid of a pro and amateur-style, Muydinkhujaev is physically strong and able to rack up scoring points at a high-volume, and has been fighting on the international stage for years – with a win over highly decorated professional boxer, Harley Mederos. Muydinkhujaev will face Ahmed Harara of Palestine in the next round. 

Dmitri Galagot, MDA – Galagot is a really well-schooled fighter, who throws good three-punch combos, and has smart feet that are above average in speed, and allows himself to get off punches in bunches. Galagot is formidable foe, who will cause problems for many and has a fast-paced style. Galagot will face Sewon Okazawa of Japan in the next round, who Okazawa had an extremely shaky 3:2 split decision win today. Galagot should be a heavy favorite in that fight.