The first of 3 world title fights televised in Japan today saw WBA Light Flyweight champion Kazuto Ioka (14-0, 9) given one of his toughest bouts to date, as he took on Nicaraguan puncher Felix Alvarado (18-1, 15).
Although both men are, usually, very different fighters with Alvarado being an aggressive fighter who backs opponents up then quickly breaks them down whilst Ioka is a pure boxer-puncher they gelled perfectly here. Alvarado as everyone expected came forward though Ioka, for the most part, decided to stand his ground and fight fire with fire.
From the first round on wards the men stood in front of each other with Alvarado trying to take Ioka's head off with every shot. Ioka showed his intelligence and boxing ability by blocking and slipping before landing counters.
The fight started competitive with Alvarado having plenty of success as he rushed Ioka though as the fight went on Ioka began to time Alvarado more and more whilst also swelling his left eye and landing harder cleaner punches. It had been close through 4 rounds though through the middle stretch of the bout Ioka totally took over as Alvarado's lack of experience cost him dearly.
By round 9 Ioka had put the close start behind him and totally taken over. The steam had gone from Alvarado's attacks and his punches, which had been snappy early on were now pushed and slow, they were easier to counter and Ioka was in total control despite standing at close range to his Nicaraguan challenger.
With the champion dominating the middle and late rounds it was no shock that he retained his title comfortably on the scorecards, well 2 of them anyway with scores of 119-109, though I'm not sure what Sergio Caiz was watching scoring it 115-113 for Ioka who was in charge for 8 or 9 rounds of the 12.
Showing posts with label Nicaraguan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nicaraguan. Show all posts
Tuesday, 31 December 2013
Saturday, 30 November 2013
Merlito Sabillo v Carlos Buitrago
It seems incredibly rare now a days for the judges to actually get things right. They do occasionally. but the key word there is occasionally. Thankfully today saw one of those fights as the judges rightly scored a draw and saw Merlito Sabillo (23-0-1, 12) retain his WBO Minimumweight title against fellow unbeaten fighter Carlos Buitrago (27-0-1-1, 16).
The fight, at one point, looked like the title was going to change hands. After 3 rounds it was very hard to make a case for Sabillo winning. Buitrago was too quick, too skilled and too talented for Sabillo to continue to box with. The idea to box was a good one though one that failed to work in his favour.
Knowing he was behind Sabillo changed tactics in round 4 and started to try and cut the distance off to get to Buitrago. This began to work and although the champion may have lost round 4 he began to come back in to the fight over the following rounds, cutting the distance and unloading with sheer volume. This saw Sabillo turning the fight in his favour as he started to crawl back the rounds that he had lost early on.
Although Sabillo was coming back in to the fight in a big way, Buitrago was holding his own with the champion and seemed on the verge of a knockdown before Sabillo's street fighter mentality kicked in and he refused to go down instead fighting with more tenacity than ever.
By the time we got to the final bell it was obvious the fight was close and many had already began calls for a rematch. It had been competitive from the first round to the last and although both men had their clear rounds there was enough debate to see either man as the winner. This close and competitive nature was reflected perfectly in the score cards which were 115-113, 114-114 and 113-115.
I'll admit I've joined the chorus of people calling for a rematch and hopefully we'll get one sooner rather than later, something however tells me we could have these two in several bouts together and no one would come out as a clear winner barring a freak shot either way.
The fight, at one point, looked like the title was going to change hands. After 3 rounds it was very hard to make a case for Sabillo winning. Buitrago was too quick, too skilled and too talented for Sabillo to continue to box with. The idea to box was a good one though one that failed to work in his favour.
Knowing he was behind Sabillo changed tactics in round 4 and started to try and cut the distance off to get to Buitrago. This began to work and although the champion may have lost round 4 he began to come back in to the fight over the following rounds, cutting the distance and unloading with sheer volume. This saw Sabillo turning the fight in his favour as he started to crawl back the rounds that he had lost early on.
Although Sabillo was coming back in to the fight in a big way, Buitrago was holding his own with the champion and seemed on the verge of a knockdown before Sabillo's street fighter mentality kicked in and he refused to go down instead fighting with more tenacity than ever.
By the time we got to the final bell it was obvious the fight was close and many had already began calls for a rematch. It had been competitive from the first round to the last and although both men had their clear rounds there was enough debate to see either man as the winner. This close and competitive nature was reflected perfectly in the score cards which were 115-113, 114-114 and 113-115.
I'll admit I've joined the chorus of people calling for a rematch and hopefully we'll get one sooner rather than later, something however tells me we could have these two in several bouts together and no one would come out as a clear winner barring a freak shot either way.
Sunday, 27 October 2013
Bryan Vasquez v Rene Gonzalez
The most under the radar world title fight of this past weekend saw Costa Rican Bryan Vasquez (32-1, 17) becoming a 2-time WBA "interim" Super Featherweight champion.
The 26 year old Vasquez, known to some as "El Tequito", took on little known Nicaraguan visitor Rene Gonzalez (31-6-1-1, 23). Although Gonzalez isn't known to the wider boxing public he's a fighter who has been mixing on the fringes of world level for a while though often coming up short against the likes of Daniel Estrada, Humberto Mauro Gutierrez and Urbano Antillon.
Once again Gonzalez came up short, albeit in a controversial and somewhat confusing ending.
The fight started evenly with Gonzalez arguably fighting the better though Vasquez was clearly the crowd favourite fighting in front of his home fan. It was perhaps the crowds reaction to Vasquez's work that helped make the judges minds up in regards to the scoring, though it was certainly close. Vasquez was slightly the aggressor whilst Gonzalez was the more controlled man looking to fight off the defensive.
After 4 rounds it seemed like it was nip and tuck. Either guy could have been in the lead.
Sadly as the bout was beginning to really warm up an accidental clash of heads left Vasquez with a badly cut eye. Due to the accidental nature of the bout the judges score cards were called for. Of course due to the technical decision ruling the incomplete fifth round was also scored. This saw the judges coming back with scores that mostly reflected the close nature of the bout with a card of 48-48, 49.5-47.5 and 49-46.5 (yes using half point scoring!) with two of the 3 judges ruling Vasquez the winner.
The 26 year old Vasquez, known to some as "El Tequito", took on little known Nicaraguan visitor Rene Gonzalez (31-6-1-1, 23). Although Gonzalez isn't known to the wider boxing public he's a fighter who has been mixing on the fringes of world level for a while though often coming up short against the likes of Daniel Estrada, Humberto Mauro Gutierrez and Urbano Antillon.
Once again Gonzalez came up short, albeit in a controversial and somewhat confusing ending.
The fight started evenly with Gonzalez arguably fighting the better though Vasquez was clearly the crowd favourite fighting in front of his home fan. It was perhaps the crowds reaction to Vasquez's work that helped make the judges minds up in regards to the scoring, though it was certainly close. Vasquez was slightly the aggressor whilst Gonzalez was the more controlled man looking to fight off the defensive.
After 4 rounds it seemed like it was nip and tuck. Either guy could have been in the lead.
Sadly as the bout was beginning to really warm up an accidental clash of heads left Vasquez with a badly cut eye. Due to the accidental nature of the bout the judges score cards were called for. Of course due to the technical decision ruling the incomplete fifth round was also scored. This saw the judges coming back with scores that mostly reflected the close nature of the bout with a card of 48-48, 49.5-47.5 and 49-46.5 (yes using half point scoring!) with two of the 3 judges ruling Vasquez the winner.
Sunday, 21 July 2013
Carlos Buitrago v Julian Yedras
The only male world title fight of the past weekend saw Nicaraguan prospect Carlos Buitrago (27-0-0-1, 16) claim the WBO "interim" Minimumweight title.
Buitrago, fighting outside of his homeland for the first time in his career traveled to Mexico and faced fellow unbeaten fighter Julian Yedras (now 21-1, 13). Although the conditions were new the style wasn't as the talented Buitrago showed off his skills from early in the bout as he started to put rounds in the bag with his superior skills.
Whilst Yedras was unable to really cope with the extra gears Buitrago seemed to have he showed his courage and refused to be stopped as he made a number of rounds close. It was these close rounds that allowed Yedras to have any success on the scorecards though they were too limited to help him, even at home.
When the cards came back reading 118-110, 118-111 and 116-113 there was no doubt who the winner was (the only doubt seemed to be how one judge had it close).
Unfortunately for Buitrago (who clearly won here) he showed off some of his flaws, notably the way he rushes his attacks at times and despite his experience he still needs more time to mature before being put into a major fight.
With Filipino Merlito Sabillo holding the "full" version of the WBO world title a bout between Sabillo and Buitrago makes sense though unfortunately for the Nicaraguan I think it'd be a year or two too soon for him. Instead Buitrago needs fights to help him develop and get ready for Sabillo, a bout with someone like Pedro Guevara or Mario Rodriguez would test his mettle and help him "get ready" for Sabillo.
Buitrago, fighting outside of his homeland for the first time in his career traveled to Mexico and faced fellow unbeaten fighter Julian Yedras (now 21-1, 13). Although the conditions were new the style wasn't as the talented Buitrago showed off his skills from early in the bout as he started to put rounds in the bag with his superior skills.
Whilst Yedras was unable to really cope with the extra gears Buitrago seemed to have he showed his courage and refused to be stopped as he made a number of rounds close. It was these close rounds that allowed Yedras to have any success on the scorecards though they were too limited to help him, even at home.
When the cards came back reading 118-110, 118-111 and 116-113 there was no doubt who the winner was (the only doubt seemed to be how one judge had it close).
Unfortunately for Buitrago (who clearly won here) he showed off some of his flaws, notably the way he rushes his attacks at times and despite his experience he still needs more time to mature before being put into a major fight.
With Filipino Merlito Sabillo holding the "full" version of the WBO world title a bout between Sabillo and Buitrago makes sense though unfortunately for the Nicaraguan I think it'd be a year or two too soon for him. Instead Buitrago needs fights to help him develop and get ready for Sabillo, a bout with someone like Pedro Guevara or Mario Rodriguez would test his mettle and help him "get ready" for Sabillo.
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