Tough tests in store for devastating Duddy

IRISH Ropes are lining up two more stern tests for John Duddy after the Derryman came through the successful defence of his WBC Continental Americas title in New York at the weekend.

Fighting on the undercard of the Miguel Cotto-Paulie Malignaggi junior welterweight world title contest at Madison Square Garden, Duddy took his unbeaten record to 17-0 when Chicago’s Freddie Cuevas retired at the end of the seventh round with a broken and cut nose and with cuts to his right eye.

Referee Arthur Mercante Jr stopped the fight after consulting with Cuevas’ manager, Alfonso Ortiz Sr and both agreed there was little point in the 36-year-old veteran risking further injury.

It gave Duddy his 15th knockout as a professional.

The decision delighted an estimated 5,000 Duddy fans in a 14,369 crowd, but as his supporters celebrated, the Derryman’s management team were already plotting their fighter’s next moves.

Next up, says Eddie McLoughlin — whose Irish Ropes company signed 26-year-old Duddy to a three-year management deal last month — could be a return to the Garden on August 5 as part of an HBO pay-per-view card.

This could see the Irishman face New York-based Dominican Giovanni Lorenzo.

Lorenzo is 25 and unbeaten after 20 fights, 12 by knockout. He would represent another stiff test for Duddy as he and Irish Ropes plot a course to a world title shot.

Also on the cards is a challenge to Irish middleweight champion Jim Rock’s crown, with the Dubliner travelling to New York to take on Duddy on an Irish Ropes promotion at Madison Square Garden’s Theatre on September 29.

McLoughlin was in Dublin to see Rock regain the Irish title from Kevin Phelan via a seventh-round TKO.

He said: “We’re considering a number of possibilities. Rock could happen, who knows, there’s been a lot of talk about it recently.”

Whoever McLoughlin lines up, Duddy is likely to prepare for his next opponent by training in camp in Las Vegas.

Speaking ringside after his victory he said: “I know I’ve got a lot to work on. I didn’t get out second gear, I didn’t come out as ferociously as I usually do.”

Meanwhile, Bernard Hopkins rolled back the years to pull off arguably the most amazing win of his long and distinguished career by easily out-pointing world light-heavyweight champion Antonio Tarver in Atlantic City.

The 41-year-old Executioner has claimed wins over ring legend Oscar de la Hoya and the great Felix Trinidad during a 10-year reign as world middleweight champion. This also included a record 20 successful title defences.

However, those opponents were moving up in weight, while this time it was Hopkins who was venturing into the unknown by stepping up two divisions and over a stone.

But Hopkins made light of that disadvantage by continuously outworking and out-thinking Tarver, who entered the ring on the back of wins over Glencoffe Johnson and Roy Jones.

Hopkins insisted he had always been confident of beating Tarver, declaring: “I could have moved up to this weight five years ago and I’ve always been good against southpaws.

“Tarver has a good punch, I could see why he knocked Roy Jones out, but I didn’t give him a clean target.”

Hopkins claimed before the fight that this would be his final bout, but after his win he admitted that could change if he was offered enough money for a rematch with Tarver.

“I wanted to make history in the middleweight division and then go up and fight the winner of Roy Jones and Tarver — that was my plan last year and I’ve completed that.

“But Tarver is a great champion, a man that I’ve got a lot of respect for, and if I was to consider coming back, this is the only man that I’d give a rematch to and not Roy Jones Jr.”

Israel Vazquez retained his WBC super-bantamweight title when fellow Mexican Ivan Hernandez was forced to retire at the end of the fourth round due to cuts.

Meanwhile, Puerto Rico’s Miguel Cotto retained his WBO light-welterweight title for the sixth time by out-pointing Paul Malignaggi at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Cotto looked set for an easy night when Malignaggi suffered a cut above his left eye in the first round and was then floored with a solid left-hand counter in the second.

However, Italian-American Malignaggi showed great heart to get back into the fight and caused the champion plenty of problems with his superior hand speed.

Cotto continued to produce the heavier punches, though, and eventually got the nod from all three judges by scores of 115-112 and 116-111 twice.