BIGGEST WINNER

Deontay Wilder: I was among those critical of Wilder’s choice of opponent this past Saturday in Birmingham, Alabama, Johann Duhaupas. I understand it, though. His handlers are still in the process of building his brand. Hence the showcase on NBC. More important, it’s no secret that Wilder is still learning his trade. We all are aware of his power; 34 knockouts in 35 fights are hard to miss. And he demonstrated when he took the WBC heavyweight title from Bermane Stiverne in January that he has remarkable athletic ability for his height (6 feet 7 inches) and is developing his skills. However, he remains a work in progress. He is going to have to grow as a boxer if he hopes to have a long reign as a heavyweight titleholder. And he surely grew against Duhaupas (32-3, 20 knockouts), who proved to be tougher than expected before he was finally stopped in the 11^th round. That said, Wilder shouldn’t wait too long before jumping in with an opponent who at least is perceived to have a chance of beating him. People will begin to lose interest – and their patience – if he has too many Johann Duhaupases on his resume.

RABBIT PUNCHES

Anselmo Moreno (35-4-1, 12 KOs) came up short against WBC bantamweight titleholder Shinsuke Yamanaka (24-0-2, 17 KOs) in a very close fight Tuesday in Tokyo, losing a split decision in Yamanaka’s hometown. That has to be disappointing for the former titleholder, who has now lost two in a row and three of five. However, there’s good news for Moreno: He proved by fighting on even terms with Yamanaka – No. 9 on THE RING’s pound-for-pound list – that he remains an elite fighter in spite of his setbacks. ÔǪ Juan Francisco Estrada (33-2, 24 KOs) did a number on veteran Hernan Marquez Saturday in Puerto Penasco, Mexico, and that number was seven. That’s how many times Marquez went down before the fight was stopped at 1:26 of Round 10, allowing Estrada to keep his flyweight titles. Estrada is 7-0 (6-0 in world title fights) since he gave Roman Gonzalez all he could handle in 2012, clearly demonstrating that he is among the best fighters in the world. ÔǪ Kazuto Ioka and Juan Carlos Reveco set up a compelling flyweight rematch with victories this weekend. Ioka (18-1, 10 KOs) nearly shut out Roberto Sosa (26-3-1, 14 KOs) on Sunday in Osaka, Japan. And Reveco (36-2, 19 KOs) easily outpointed journeyman Breilor Teran (14-13-1, 7 KOs) on Saturday in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Ioka defeated Reveco by a razor-thin majority decision in April in Osaka.