The Unloved Junior Lightweights

In professional boxing, often who you know, or, more to the point, who you are represented by, goes a long way to determining opportunity. Time after time, we see the same names get recycled at the top level of the sport, even if fighters have had bad performances or knockout losses. These are fighters who have connected promoters and managers. Their representatives have been able to successfully leverage their own standing in the sport to get their guys additional chances. 

Yet, there is another group of top fighters. These fighters often wait years for a shot, irrespective of their talent level. It doesn't matter if they have shiny records or beat quality opposition; they remain on the outside looking in. 

Albert Bell (from Toledo, Ohio) and Jordan White (from the Washington D.C. area) are two such fighters. Despite dominating credible opposition for years, they still wait for a title shot. Bell, already 33 years old, sports a sterling record of 27-0. He's a brilliant boxer who uses his range and athleticism to outbox opponents. Once upon a time he was signed with Top Rank and despite beating solid, undefeated prospect Andy Vences in 2019, by 2021 he was shown the door. 

Albert Bell after his latest victory
Photo courtesy of Vick Green

Years ago, I had asked a Top Rank executive about Bell and the exec was less than thrilled with him. I said to him that Bell had the ability to win a title, and I'm paraphrasing here, but the exec said not on his watch. 

Bell's knock is a lack of power. He only has nine knockouts in his career and four of those have occurred after he was relegated to the promotional wilderness.

White's position is even more baffling. At 27, he's 19-1. He lost his fifth pro fight to Adam Lopez (no shame in that) where he claimed that he suffered a serious arm injury during the bout. White had been a solid amateur with international experience. He also sports 12 knockouts in his 20 pro fights. He's heavy-handed, aggressive and has a TV-friendly style. He's boxed on a Golden Boy show many years ago and also featured in two Showtime cards where he stopped both opponents, yet the big opportunities didn't come. 

Both Bell and White have spent most of their career in and around the junior lightweight division, a weight class that has been mostly transient over the last five years. Title winners have come and gone and few have had significant periods of dominance. Yes, Oscar Valdez had a nice run and Emmanuel Navarrete achieved several notable victories, but in this four-belt era, it belies belief that neither of these two has even sniffed a title shot, especially when considering some of the opponents who have been marched out as "challengers."

Bell and White continue to soldier on. They both fought this month and had dominant victories. Vick Green has been promoting Bell on smaller shows and White had his last bout as a headliner on ProBox. Both remain formidable. 

I won't pretend that Bell and White are perfect fighters. Bell certainly doesn't like it on the inside and his brand of technical boxing isn't everyone's cup of tea. But his skills are obvious. White may load up too much and as a shorter fighter he may be susceptible to opponents who have length and craft. But they are credible fighters who are long past a shot at a title. 

Jordan White after his victory earlier this month
Photo courtesy of ProBox

Bell in particular has suffered at the hands of the WBO, who refused to call him as a mandatory challenger even though he was ranked highly in the organization at one point. They dropped him because he was no longer facing as they called it "top opposition," but of course this stance reinforces the vicious circle of professional boxing. If no one credible will face a top fighter, then the fighter gets penalized, all because he is inconvenient to fight. 

The current junior lightweight champs are Navarrete, O'Shaquie Foster, and Lamont Roach (the IBF title is currently vacant). Those are three solid fighters, but none of them are without warts and vulnerabilities. I'm not sure if Bell can still make 130 (his last fight was at lightweight), but there's no one at 130 who should scare him. And White would certainly relish his opportunity to bang it out with any of them. 

As boxing continues to load up on big cards in the present era, realize that several top fighters remain in the wilderness. It's clear that by now if someone notable wanted to give Bell and/or White a title shot, it would have already happened. And without support from the sanctioning bodies, these fighters won't get mandatory opportunities. Thus, they remain in purgatory. 

Bell and White are just two of many in this position throughout the sport. Sure, they might not be huge names and don't have significant followings, but make no mistake, on their night they could give the best in the division real problems. And that may be why they continue to wait. And wait. And wait. And so it goes. 

Adam Abramowitz is the founder and head writer of saturdaynightboxing.com. 

He's a contributing writer for Ring Magazine, a member of the Ring Magazine Ratings Panel, the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board, and the Boxing Writers Association of America.

Email: saturdaynightboxing@hotmail.com

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SNB Stock Report 7-30-20

It's time for another edition of the SNB Stock Report. July featured a number of prominent fighters in the ring and it's time to assess their performances. The (+) indicates fighters whose stock rose. The (-) denotes fighters whose stock fell and the (NC) is for fighters whose stock has remained unchanged after their most recent performance.  

Vergil Ortiz (+) 

Photo Courtesy of Stacey Verbeek

Ortiz returned to the ring with a fantastic power-punching display against Samuel Vargas, earning a seventh-round stoppage. Vargas put forth a game effort, but he was outgunned by Ortiz's blistering combination punching. Ortiz is now ready for contenders in the welterweight division. With his high Ring IQ and myriad offensive gifts, he's going to be a handful. At only 22, it's scary to think that he may have even more room for improvement.

Alex Saucedo (+) 

Saucedo performed solidly in his victory against Sonny Fredrickson, winning by a wide unanimous decision. He had Fredrickson hurt a couple of times early in the fight, but he didn't fully sell out for the knockout. Saucedo remains a tough and rugged customer at 140; however, his defense is still a problem. Even a trainer switch hasn't cleaned up that aspect of his game. But as long as his chin holds up, he'll be fun to watch.

Jose Pedraza (+) 

Pedraza has always run a little hot-and-cold. It was a pleasant surprise to see him dialed in and focused against the Mikkel LesPierre. Pedraza scored two knockdowns in the fight and was close to getting a stoppage; he won by a wide decision. However, there was a debatable call in the fifth round where he went down and it was subsequently ruled as a slip by the Nevada instant replay official. Still, it was an overall solid and confident performance.  

Albert Bell (NC) 

The Ohioan remains a frustrating figure in the ring. With tremendous boxing skills and fast feet, Bell boxed to a shutout points victory over Mark Bernaldez. However, it was disappointing to see Bell not attempt to inflict more damage. Bell will eventually become a top spoiler in the junior lightweight division. He possesses championship-level talent. But he's going to have to go through the sanctioning body game to get his chance. His style in the ring doesn't create much demand for his services. 

Jose Zepeda (+) 

Zepeda boxed his way to a comfortable victory over late replacement Kendo Castaneda. Zepeda has 25 KOs in his 32 victories, but it's clear that he's become much more comfortable as a boxer than a slugger. He still possesses excellent punch placement and a wide arsenal of punches, but his emphasis on defense in recent fights has led to less risk taking. He's one of the top fighters at 140 lbs. His well-rounded skill set should give him a good chance to win a title over the next 12-18 months.  

Joe Joyce (+) 

Photo Courtesy of Queensberry Promotions

"The Juggernaut" faced Michael Wallisch this month in a marking-time bout. He was supposed to face Daniel Dubois earlier this year before COVID scrapped those plans. Joyce wasted little time with Wallisch, scoring three knockdowns and earning a third-round stoppage. He still gets hit a lot, his punches can be timed with a sun dial, but he has heavy, heavy hands when he connects. Expect Joyce to face Dubois later this year. 

Carlos Takam (NC) 

Takam was in camp for another fight when he received the call to face Jerry Forrest on short notice. And he started off the fight excellently, displaying fine footwork and boxing skills to go along with his usual assortment of solid power punches. He did fade a bit as the fight progressed. Perhaps he wasn't in the best shape with a shortened camp. It's also worth considering that he's 39 and maybe he no longer has a full gas tank. He did win a decision, but didn't exactly put the division on notice. He remains a contender in the thin heavyweight division, but most likely his best days are behind him.  

Andy Vences (-) 

First things first, Vences deserved the decision against Luis Lopez. Lopez was effectively awkward at times and certainly landed his share of odd-angled punches, but over the course of the bout, Vences did the better work. Nevertheless, Lopez was awarded a split decision victory. Despite being hard done by the officials, it was not a strong performance by Vences. He displayed far too much caution at points in the fight and didn't seem to have a solid game plan as the match progressed. He was also badly hurt in the second half of the fight and a punch or two away from being knocked out. He's now lost two of his last three fights and any momentum that he once had in his career is now long gone.  

Felix Verdejo (+) 

Photo Courtesy of Mikey Williams

Verdejo made quick work of the capable Will Madera, stopping him in the first round with an impressive volley of power punches. Verdejo, once a prized prospect for Top Rank, had seen his shine diminish over the past few years. However, in teaming with noted trainer Ismael Salas, Verdejo seems to have regained his confidence. Still only 27, he remains an intriguing name in the deep lightweight division.  

Carlos Castro (+)

Castro made a strong statement by stopping former title contender Cesar Juarez after four rounds. Castro, at 26-0 and already 26 years of age, has yet to sniff a title shot, but it certainly looks as though he has the skills to compete at the top level of the junior featherweight division. Developed mostly around the Phoenix area, he's only been with Top Rank a couple of years. They might have found a diamond in the rough here.   

Oscar Valdez (NC) 

On the plus side, Valdez became the first fighter to stop Jayson Velez, a serviceable opponent who has given a number of solid boxers tough nights at the office. However, Valdez went through long periods of the fight where he seemed stuck between styles. He once had been an aggressive boxer-puncher, but under the tutelage of Eddy Reynoso, he has attempted to become more of a classic boxer. After a number of fights together, Valdez still doesn't look comfortable in the new style. Nevertheless, his left hook remains a real weapon. He scored two knockdowns in the fight and stopped Velez in the final round. 

Isaac Dogboe (+) 

After taking over a year off after his second defeat to Emanuel Navarrete, Dogboe returned to the ring with new trainer Barry Hunter. Immediately, one could observe the difference, as Dogboe was trying to fight with more defensive responsibility against Chris Avalos. Dogboe wasn't flying open with wide power shots as much and overall his performance was more contained. Avalos, a former title contender who has definitely seen better days in the ring, was in good shape and put forward a good effort, but Dogboe's power shots were the difference. That Dogboe stopped Avalos in the eighth round isn't particularly noteworthy, but the fact that he's listening to his new coach and trying to learn from his past mistakes certainly is. He wants to make another run at 122-lbs. He remains a fun TV fighter, but the junior featherweight division is filled with excellent talents. He will need the right type of opponents (shorter, not huge punchers) in order to win another belt. 

Adam Abramowitz is the founder and head writer of saturdaynightboxing.com. He's a member of Ring Magazine's Ring Ratings Panel and a Board Member for the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board.  

Email: saturdaynightboxing@hotmail.com.

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