STAR BOXERS Yosvany VEITIA
Julio César LA CRUZ
Youngster Yosvany Veitia came into the Finals as the No.1 individual ranked Light Flyweight in the WSB after a solid campaign which saw him win all of his fights in the regular season and the play-offs. A win in the Finals meant that the 2013 World Boxing Championships bronze medalist racked up a total of eight straight victories in Season IV. The 49kg kingpin is a quicksilver master of evasion who strikes and slips away almost simultaneously and utilises every inch of the ring to fleet-foot his way out of danger, constantly making his opponent work and forcing him to miss.
A double world champion, who won back to back World Championships titles in 2011 and 2013, la Cruz’s record of international success speaks for itself. In WSB competition, the Cuban has won four from five bouts, and was unbeaten in two in the regular season. In the Finals, the Light-Heavyweight put in a key performance in the deciding match knowing that a win would give his side the Season IV title in their debut season while a loss would hand Azerbaijan the win. La Cruz heroically bested Baku Fires’ Mikhail Dauhaliavets to send the match to Tiebreaker.
Roniel IGLESIAS
Arisnoidys DESPAIGNE
In 2012 the southpaw reached the zenith of athletic competition by winning London Olympic Games gold medal to add to his 2009 World Championship title. In the WSB, Iglesias has proved to be invaluable, beating world class fighters in the play-offs such as Gabriel Maestre (USA Knockouts) and Russia’s Andrei Zamkovoy, the latter a victory that clinched Cuba’s place in the Finals where he won his match to end the season undefeated in five bouts. As a fighter he is a fine craftsman of the noble art, he has composure, skill and fighting spirit and is one of Cuba’s most reliable performers.
Cuba’s Erislandy Savon dominated the Heavyweight (91kg) division in Season IV, amassing a flawless 7-0 record, and was rarely even hit clean let alone troubled in the ring. As the nephew of the Cuban legend Felix Savon, he has the weight of his proud boxing nation on his shoulders every time he fights, but the pressure never got to him during his seven fights, three of which he won by stoppage. Perhaps his finest moment was his Finals win over Azerbaijan’s Abdulkadir Abdullayev, who famously became the first man to knock out Italian legend Clemente Russo in the quarter-finals. Aged just 24, he is very young for a Heavyweight, and he looks set to maintain his reputation as the best boxer in WSB for a very long time to come.
WSB YEARBOOK : SEASON IV, 2013-2014 – FINALISTS – 99