The Argentine team secured its first two unanimous victories at the Amateur Boxing World Championship, organized by the International Boxing Association (IBA) and taking place in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
In the preliminary bouts that began at 10 AM Argentina time, Thomas Casazza and Matías Verón brought the country its first two joys, representing the Argentine Boxing Association (AAB).
In the first session of the day, covered by the Argentine News Agency, Casazza achieved Argentina's first win in Dubai. In the sixth bout on Ring B, in the blue corner, he defeated the Greek Dimitrios Nikolaou by unanimous decision after completing three rounds in the up to 67 kg weight category.
The Argentine controlled the fight at his own pace, using the classic amateur boxing style: entering and exiting to land punches at the right moment. He took the first round with a precise right hook to the liver that staggered the Greek. Although he suffered some well-connected punches from the European in the following minutes, Casazza dodged, played his game well in the clinch, and held on to secure the victory and a place in the quarter-finals, where he will face Australian Jake van Rooyen.
Later on Ring A, in the twelfth bout, Verón made his debut in the heavyweight division (92 kg) and defeated India's Akash Kachari by a unanimous decision from the five judges.
Like Casazza, Verón set the pace for the Indian, showing patience and composure to win the fight on the judges' scorecards. The young man from González Catán also advanced to the quarter-finals of the tournament.
In the quarter-finals, Verón will face the Cuban competing for Azerbaijan, Lorenzo Alfonso Domínguez, a tough rival who won two medals at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics (bronze) and Paris 2024 (silver), and was also an IBA amateur champion in Belgrade 2021 and silver medalist in Tashkent 2023.
In the coming hours, the dates and times for the bouts of Guillermo Freire in the flyweight (51 kg) and Lucas Villaba in the super lightweight (63 kg) categories will be announced, though it is known they will face the Turkish Samet Gumus and the Kenyan Caleb Wandera, respectively.
How the tournament works The World Championship began this Thursday, December 4, with the preliminary bouts and will continue until the 11th with the quarter-finals, semi-finals, and finals of the 13 different weight categories. The finals for each weight class will be held on Saturday, December 13, at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium.
The prize structure includes $150,000 for the runners-up, $75,000 for the third-place finishers, and $10,000 for those who finish fifth, with a distribution that includes a share for the boxer, coaches, and national federations.
