Oscar Valdez tuned up for a fall showdown with Miguel Berchelt by stopping veteran Jayson Velez in the final round of their 10-round junior lightweight bout at The MGM Grand in Las Vegas,

In the waning seconds of round five, Valdez dropped Velez with a powerful left hook to the chin.

In round nine, Velez was deduced a point for a low blow. In round ten, Valdez put Velez down with a left hook. Upon getting up, Velez ate more left hook that made him stumble in to the ropes, and the bout was stopped at 2:23.

Valdez, 129.9 lbs of Nogales, MEX is 28-0 with 22 knockouts. Berchelt, 130 lbs of Juncos, PR is 29-7-1.

“Miguel Berchelt is the fight I want. He has the WBC title at 130 pounds. I want the WBC title. Miguel and I would make for a great fight,” Valdez said. “Velez was everything I expected, a tough warrior who fought his heart out. I commend him for a great performance and a great fight.”

Berlanga keeps 1st round KO in streak; Stops Moon in 1!!

Edgar Berlanga kept his perfect 1st round knockout streak in-tact as he stopped Eric Moon in the opening frame of their scheduled eight-round super middleweight fight.

Berlanga landed some hard body shots that was followed by a crushing right to the head that dumped Moon on the canvas. Moon tried to get up, but he fell back down, and the fight was stopped at 1:02.

Berlanga, 169 lbs of Brooklyn is 14-0 with 14 knockouts. Moon, 1687.7 lbs of Marietta, GA is 11-3.

“It was another step-up fight for me. We prepared to go rounds, but I got him hurt and got him out of there,” Berlanga said. “I still have so much room to grow as a fighter. The power is there, but I will show everyone that I am a well-rounded fighter. The knockout streak is cool, but there is more to me than first-round knockouts.”

Former world champion Isaac Dogboe stopped former world title challenger Chris Avalos in the final round of their scheduled eight-round featherweight bout.

Dogboe hurt Avalos with a hard combination and landed a booming left hook that had the fight stopped at 2:25.

Dogboe, 126 lbs of Ghana is now 21-2 with 15 knockouts. Avalos, 125.9 lbs of Lancaster, CA 27-8.

“I was off for 14 months. This was a long time coming. I felt great with my new trainer, Barry Hunter. We’re only getting warmed up,” Dogboe said. “I wanted to show everyone that Isaac Dogboe never went away. I’m still here, and I am only getting better.”

Elvis Rodriguez stopped Dennis Okoth in round two of their scheduled six-round junior welterweight bout.

Rodriguez, 141.8 lbs of The Dominican Republic is 8-0-1 with eight knockouts. Okoth, 141.5 lbs of Kenya is 4-4-1.

Kim Clavel won an eight-round unanimous decision over Natalie Gonzalez in a light flyweight bout.

Clavel out-landed Gonzalez 131-58.

Clavel, 109.8 lbs of Montreal, CAN won by scores of 80-72 on all cards is now 12-0. Gonzalez, 109.9 lbs of New Rochelle, NY is 6-1.

“I knew it would be a hard fight because she’s a good fighter. She had a good amateur background,” Clavel said. “This was my first time here. I had some pressure, but with every round, I felt better and better in the ring with my coach. We won all the rounds. This is what we wanted.

“I would love to stay active and fight again before the end of 2020. I want to be the best in the light flyweight division.”   

Atlanta, GA – September 23, 2019 — On Saturday, September 26 at Buckhead Theater in Atlanta, World Boxing Association Fedalatin Champion Carlos Monroe, in his biggest fight to date, defends his title against former world title challenger Javier Francisco Maciel. In the co-feature, Eric Moon will fight Mike Guy for the American Boxing Federation (ABF) title, as there will be eight bouts in all.

Proceeds from the event will go to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta.

Carlos Monroe (16-0, 13 KOs) was born in Chicago and moved to Atlanta age 3. As an amateur he won NINE consecutive Georgia State Golden Gloves tournaments. He also was two-time Florida State Golden Gloves champion. “Every year I competed n the state Golden Gloves, I won,” stated Carlos. In the 2015 Olympic trials, even though Carlos won his final bout, he was unable to fight further due to a major cut from an accidental head butt.

Monroe, coached by trainer of world champions Stacie McKinley, made his professional debut on December 16, 2017 and had ten fights in 2018, and this will be his sixth this year. “This is my biggest fight, to date,” said Carlos. “ I have been training in Pompano Beach, Florida, with a lot of sparring partners with different styles, so I am good about making adjustments on the fly. I don’t feel any threats in the ring. Javier is a game opponent and fought a few big names. He comes forward and is a pressure fighter, and I like that.” Monroe likes to work the body and “most of my stoppages have come from body shots.” Carlos lives about twenty minutes outside of Atlanta and will have many family and friends at the fight.

“Carlos is very smart, listens well and is a hard worker,” said McKinley, who has trained Mike Tyson and numerous middleweight world champions. “He has unusual hand speed, and power at the same time. This fight is a step up for him and after that, there will be another step up. I have big plans for him. He leaves home and comes here for to train, has a fight, goes home for week then comes back for another six to eight weeks. He is not just training boxing, he is living boxing and that’s what you need to do to become great. He has a young daughter now and a wonderful promoter, Judy Starkey, who has invested a lot in Carlos to provide for him what he needs to be successful.”

Javier Francisco Maciel (33-8, 23 KOs) from Buenos Aires, Argentina, has fought for the World Boxing Association world middleweight championship and has won numerous regional titles. Maciel has fought world champion Dmitry Pirog and world title challengers Willie Monroe Jr., Francisco Antonio Mora.

“We are so thankful to partners like this that support the nearly 3,000 kids that attend our Clubs each day and help them reach their full potential,” said Missy Dugan, CEO, Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta. “Through sports, youth build skills that will serve them now and throughout their lives including self-confidence, good sportsmanship, discipline, and an appreciation of healthy living and exercise.” Kids from several local Clubs will attend. Event organizers are Judy Starkey, an accomplished Atlanta businesswoman and Harry Barnett, who has been involved in boxing for over sixty years as a boxer, manager and promoter.