Pictured: Trainer Mustapha Ouicher and former WBO World Middleweight Champion Hassan N'Dam N'Jikam


On Wednesday, October 1, two fighters ranked by the participating members of TTR as being among the best in their respective weight classes were in action. One, Hassan N'Dam, emerged victorious while the other, Carlos Buitrago, suffered a narrow defeat.

Buriram, Thailand-

Vacant WBA Interim World Minimumweight Title-
Niyomtrong "Knockout" CP Freshmart (AKA Freshmart Niyomtrong; WBA #6, WBC #21; 9-0, 5 KOs)
Unan. Dec. 12
Carlos Buitrago (TTR #5, The Ring #5, WBA #5, WBO #5, TBRBoard #6, WBC #18; 27-1-1, 16 KOs)
- CP Freshmart won by three 115-113 scores.
- Jake Donovan of BoxingScene.com and the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board had CP Freshmart winning and wrote, "Buitrago's fate was ultimately decided in rounds 10 and 11, as Niyomtrong dialed up the pressure. The majority of rounds appeared close to the naked eye, but the local strawweight plugged away until he had no more to give. It appeared that moment for Niyomtrong came at the start of round 12, as he was running on fumes. Buitrago closed strong, fighting like a visiting boxer determined to sway the judges. It made the fight that much closer in the end, but the earlier lead proved insurmountable."
- Antoine Patry DesLauriers of TTR and Derek Bonnett of SecondsOut.com and TTR both had Buitrago as the winner. Antoine wrote, "Knockout didn't win this fight... Buitrago boxed from the backfoot using his straight punch arsenal to catch Knockout from distance and used liver work when Knockout got closer. Knockout walked him down trying to land big hooks, missing a lot and being off balance. Yes, Knockout was the aggressor but. in my opinion, he was far from the most effective. In the second half, Buitrago started to move and throw a little less and Knockout was still as active. But again i doubt he was the most effective. Home town decision here in my opinion." Derek added, "Buitrago was way more effective. The Thai crowd literally cheered every punch KOCPF threw."
- I had the fight even after nine rounds (four rounds apiece, one round even) and agree with Jake that CP Freshmart won the tenth and eleventh stanzas. I also saw Buitrago clearly winning the final round. As a result, I ended up scoring the bout 115-114 for the new WBA interim champ, Knockout CP Freshmart.

Santa Monica, California, USA-

IBF World Middleweight Title Eliminator-
Hassan N'Dam (Hassan N'Dam N'Jikam; IBF #7, The Ring #9, TTR #11, WBC #14, WBA #15; 31-1, 18 KOs)
Unan. Dec. 12
Curtis "Showtime" Stevens (WBC #3, IBF #6, WBO #6, WBA #14; 27-5, 20 KOs)
- N'Dam dropped Stevens in the eighth round and went on to win by the scores of 116-111, 116-111, and 119-108.
- Teddy Atlas of ESPN scored the bout 118-109 for N'Dam.
- Scoring the bout for TTR, I had N'Dam winning 117-110.