The long awaited return to the ring for Cuban Yuriorkis Gamboa (22-0, 16) saw the talented Cuban claiming the interim WBA Super Featherweight title as he defeated the unheralded Filipino Michael Farenas (34-4-4-1, 26). Despite the fact Farenas was all but unknown prior to this fight he proved to be a genuinely worthy adversary for Gamboa's return to the ring after 14 months out.
The opening round saw Gamboa looking like he had never been away as the fast handed Cuban landed some wonderful combinations on Farenas who struggled to catch him before he got away. The hand speed was again evident in the following round as Gamboa dropped Farenas who immediately got up as if nothing had happened.
Sadly for Farenas head clashes in the third round saw him suffering two massive cuts that bled through out the remainder of the fight. Despite the cuts however Farenas refused to go away and refused to just roll over and instead he rocked Gamboa at the start of the fourth round as he proved he had the power to hurt the Cuban. Although Gamboa seemed to take the round off it was still interesting to see that Farenas had the power to rock him.
Farenas showed again in round 5 that he wasn't there just to collect the pay day he willingly traded with Gamboa and really brought the action to the Cuban. Whilst Gamboa showed he was a class above his Filipino opponent he also seemed to be slowing and this allowed Farenas chances to land to both the head and body of Gamboa. The battling between the two saw Gamboa rocked in the 6th and 8th however he dropped Farenas in the 7th to really open up the lead on the scorecards.
Due to how much Farenas' shots were hurting Gamboa it only made sense for Gamboa to start to use his boxing skills and box cautiously and that's what he started to do for long periods of rounds. In round 9 however Gamboa went for the finish and was surprisingly dropped by a beauty of a shot by Farenas that seemed to not only drop Gamboa but also scramble his legs for the rest of the round. Sadly for Farenas he couldn't capitalise and Gamboa eventually recovered and appeared to do enough to reestablish himself over the later rounds as he took a clear decision.
Whilst I feel the cards were wide, Gamboa was a clear winner, though he's a fighter who needed a fight like this, a grueling 12 rounds against a crude but tough and hurtful fighter to really shake off every bit of rust that he'll have acquired due to his long lay off.
For Farenas this was the sort of showing that shows he belongs in the ring with the top fighters, for Gamboa it was him saying "I'm back".
Showing posts with label Cuba. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cuba. Show all posts
Saturday, 8 December 2012
Saturday, 15 September 2012
Guillermo Rigondeaux v Robert Marroquin
Former Cuban amateur superstar Guillermo Rigondeaux (11-0, 8) retained his WBA Super Bantamweight by defeating the somewhat disappointing Robert Marroquin (22-2, 15) via a clear decision.
In the early rounds Rigondeaux dominated the bout, controlling both the distance the pace of the bout at will with his accurate jab, fantastic footwork and hurtful counter straight. He was helped somewhat by the fight that Marroquin did little to upset the rhythm of the Cuban champion.
In round 3 Marroquin had his first real success as he rocked Rigondeaux with several hard right hands, though he failed to follow up on any of the shots and almost seemed to allow Rigondeaux off the hook. Marroquin was simply throwing single shots with no real confidence to land any sort of combinations
Having lost the 3rd round Rigondeaux immediately re-claimed control of the bout and landed several hard and hurtful shots on Marroquin including 3 solid left hands at the end of the round. The Cuban's control of the bout was solidified in the 5th when he dropped Marroquin for the first time and literally did as he wished through out the rest of the round. This was followed by 3 rounds of Rigondeaux dominating with out ever looking like forcing a stoppage.
Having fallen well behind on the cards it was obvious that Marroquin was going to have to do something special late on. Whilst the challenger once again rocked the champion in round 9 he failed to follow up and allowed Rigondeaux to create the space he needed to recover his legs, this was to be the final chance for Marroquin who failed to land anything of note in the final 3 rounds. Instead the final rounds were all Rigondeaux who would go on to damage the nose of the challenger and drop him again in round 12 to claim a clear decision.
Whilst the performance was less than stellar by Rigondeaux it was an easy victory in all honesty and that was because Marroquin allowed it to be easy. Marroquin stood off Rigondeaux all night and allowed the Cuban to do as he wished. Even when Marroquin hit Rigondeaux he allowed the Cuban the space and time to recover, perhaps signalling that the fight simply came too early for Marroquin who was brave but looked very limited. The bout was maybe too boring for Rigondeaux who perhaps felt too comfortable though if he fights someone like Nonito Donaire like this, he will be made to pay.
In the early rounds Rigondeaux dominated the bout, controlling both the distance the pace of the bout at will with his accurate jab, fantastic footwork and hurtful counter straight. He was helped somewhat by the fight that Marroquin did little to upset the rhythm of the Cuban champion.
In round 3 Marroquin had his first real success as he rocked Rigondeaux with several hard right hands, though he failed to follow up on any of the shots and almost seemed to allow Rigondeaux off the hook. Marroquin was simply throwing single shots with no real confidence to land any sort of combinations
Having lost the 3rd round Rigondeaux immediately re-claimed control of the bout and landed several hard and hurtful shots on Marroquin including 3 solid left hands at the end of the round. The Cuban's control of the bout was solidified in the 5th when he dropped Marroquin for the first time and literally did as he wished through out the rest of the round. This was followed by 3 rounds of Rigondeaux dominating with out ever looking like forcing a stoppage.
Having fallen well behind on the cards it was obvious that Marroquin was going to have to do something special late on. Whilst the challenger once again rocked the champion in round 9 he failed to follow up and allowed Rigondeaux to create the space he needed to recover his legs, this was to be the final chance for Marroquin who failed to land anything of note in the final 3 rounds. Instead the final rounds were all Rigondeaux who would go on to damage the nose of the challenger and drop him again in round 12 to claim a clear decision.
Whilst the performance was less than stellar by Rigondeaux it was an easy victory in all honesty and that was because Marroquin allowed it to be easy. Marroquin stood off Rigondeaux all night and allowed the Cuban to do as he wished. Even when Marroquin hit Rigondeaux he allowed the Cuban the space and time to recover, perhaps signalling that the fight simply came too early for Marroquin who was brave but looked very limited. The bout was maybe too boring for Rigondeaux who perhaps felt too comfortable though if he fights someone like Nonito Donaire like this, he will be made to pay.
Yoan Pablo Hernandez v Troy Ross
German based Cuba Yoan Pablo Hernandez (27-1, 13) successfully defended his IBF Cruiserweight title despite being given a really torrid time by Canadian challenger Troy Ross (25-3, 16) in a thoroughly entertaining bout that really left more questions than answers about Hernandez.
The bout started well for Hernandez who managed to keep Ross at range in the opening round but the challenger swiftly grew into the bout and after a competitive second round seemed to steal the third. Despite being the much taller, and longer man Hernandez was stupidly fighting Ross' fight and getting involved in a tear up.
Ross found his best success in round 5 a round that he completely dominated not only dropping Hernandez but having the Cuban holding on for dear life. Hernandez seemed almost ready to be finished but showed incredible heart to survive the round and despite not looking great in round 6 he did manage to regain his legs by the end of it.
After regaining his legs Hernandez managed to start to actually show his ability and easily out boxed Ross in rounds 7 and 8 by controlling the distance, using his legs and jab to keep Ross at a safety distance. It appeared that Hernandez was going to manage to do what he was expected to do and actually control the bout with his excellent boxing ability.
Sadly for Hernandez, Ross had different ideas and by the end of round 9 both men were wildly flinging leather at each other looking for the knockout. Whilst both guys were rocked and Hernandez arguably took the round it appeared as if the fight was turning back in the way of Ross who was much more suited to the all action style of a brawl. Luckily for Hernandez the follow up round was a much slower paced one with both guys catching their breath as very little of note was landed.
In the final two rounds a very tired looking Hernandez did very, very little and almost gave the rounds away to the busier Ross. Despite giving away the final 2 rounds it was a close fight overall. Sadly for Ross he was fighting and Germany and this was probably the telling factor with Hernandez taking a close unanimous decision (114-113, 115-112, 116-112).
Whilst the fight was genuinely excellent and ebbed wonderfully, despite a number of quiet rounds, their will be numerous complaints aimed at British broadcaster Boxnation who managed to missed a sizable chunk of the 12th round as their broadcast randomly cut to adverts. Despite this we didn't miss anything too important to the result.
For Hernandez this bout really did leave a lot of question marks. Just how physically tough is Hernandez? He seemed to be wobbled repeatedly by Ross, and it's hard to imagine that Marco Huck wouldn't have gone after a hurt Huck at the start of round 12. We know he's been stopped before, and down numerous times, but is Hernandez killing himself to make 200lbs? He's a giant at 6'4" and may do better at Heavyweight with his punch resistance hopefully shored up. A mooted bout with Huck, as Boxnation were talking about, would be a seriously painful night for the Cuban.
For Troy Ross he may be able to talk himself into a rematch, claiming he was robbed, though in all honesty it was a close bout, if he doesn't manage to bag a rematch however he'll likely be questioning his future in the sport. With his age (37) he may struggle to get another big fight like this. If he can get a fight with Huck (instead of Hernandez getting the bout) then that will be one that the fans would love, however if that doesn't happen Ross may well end up bowing out with his head held high.
The bout started well for Hernandez who managed to keep Ross at range in the opening round but the challenger swiftly grew into the bout and after a competitive second round seemed to steal the third. Despite being the much taller, and longer man Hernandez was stupidly fighting Ross' fight and getting involved in a tear up.
Ross found his best success in round 5 a round that he completely dominated not only dropping Hernandez but having the Cuban holding on for dear life. Hernandez seemed almost ready to be finished but showed incredible heart to survive the round and despite not looking great in round 6 he did manage to regain his legs by the end of it.
After regaining his legs Hernandez managed to start to actually show his ability and easily out boxed Ross in rounds 7 and 8 by controlling the distance, using his legs and jab to keep Ross at a safety distance. It appeared that Hernandez was going to manage to do what he was expected to do and actually control the bout with his excellent boxing ability.
Sadly for Hernandez, Ross had different ideas and by the end of round 9 both men were wildly flinging leather at each other looking for the knockout. Whilst both guys were rocked and Hernandez arguably took the round it appeared as if the fight was turning back in the way of Ross who was much more suited to the all action style of a brawl. Luckily for Hernandez the follow up round was a much slower paced one with both guys catching their breath as very little of note was landed.
In the final two rounds a very tired looking Hernandez did very, very little and almost gave the rounds away to the busier Ross. Despite giving away the final 2 rounds it was a close fight overall. Sadly for Ross he was fighting and Germany and this was probably the telling factor with Hernandez taking a close unanimous decision (114-113, 115-112, 116-112).
Whilst the fight was genuinely excellent and ebbed wonderfully, despite a number of quiet rounds, their will be numerous complaints aimed at British broadcaster Boxnation who managed to missed a sizable chunk of the 12th round as their broadcast randomly cut to adverts. Despite this we didn't miss anything too important to the result.
For Hernandez this bout really did leave a lot of question marks. Just how physically tough is Hernandez? He seemed to be wobbled repeatedly by Ross, and it's hard to imagine that Marco Huck wouldn't have gone after a hurt Huck at the start of round 12. We know he's been stopped before, and down numerous times, but is Hernandez killing himself to make 200lbs? He's a giant at 6'4" and may do better at Heavyweight with his punch resistance hopefully shored up. A mooted bout with Huck, as Boxnation were talking about, would be a seriously painful night for the Cuban.
For Troy Ross he may be able to talk himself into a rematch, claiming he was robbed, though in all honesty it was a close bout, if he doesn't manage to bag a rematch however he'll likely be questioning his future in the sport. With his age (37) he may struggle to get another big fight like this. If he can get a fight with Huck (instead of Hernandez getting the bout) then that will be one that the fans would love, however if that doesn't happen Ross may well end up bowing out with his head held high.
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