In a genuine fight of the year contender Omar Figueroa (22-0-1, 17) successfully claimed the WBC "interim" Lightweight title with a very hard fought 12 round decision over Japanese challenger Nihito Arakawa (24-3-1, 16).
The fight started at a hectic pace with Figueroa unloading hard shots in flurries whilst Arakawa tried to hold on and see out the first round. It was well known going in that Figueroa was incredibly dangerous in the opening round and it was obvious that Arakawa was trying to weather out the early storm.
Despite seeing out the opening round Arakawa was hurt in the second round and the referee controversially scored a knockdown from what appeared to be a push during a clinch. Sure Arakawa had been hurt prior to the knockdown but the call was certainly a questionable one from Lawrence Cole.
Despite the knockdown against him in the second round Arakawa had actually had some success being able to push Figueroa against the ropes. Unfortunately for the Japanese fighter he failed to really have any success with Figueroa on the ropes.
Arakawa would continue to push Figueroa on to the ropes in many of the following rounds as he tried to out-muscle the youngster. Despite being pushed around Figueroa kept exploding away from the ropes with amazing flurries of fast hurtful shots that landed time and time again. It was these flurries that were clearly the eye catching and classy work which allowed the American to rack up the rounds and hurt Arakawa.
In round 5 the bout saw another moment of note as a clash of heads lead to a cut on the nose of Figueroa. The cut, whilst correctly ruled to be from a head clash seemed to bleed profusely through out the bout leading to a line of blood that almost continually covered the centre of Figueroa's face and later on the shoulder or Arakawa who had out-done most predictions by even surviving to round 5. In fact actually you could have made a case for the round to have belong to Arakawa who had had genuine sustained success for the first time in the bout.
We saw controversy again in round 6 as the referee again gave a count against Arakawa despite the Japanese fighter again remaining on his feet. Yes once again he as hurt, but the count seemed to come whilst he was taking several rabbit shots. Oddly the count probably saved Arakawa from being stopped, as it arguably had done in round 2.
Although Figueroa had looked to have slowed in rounds 4 and 5 the knockdown call in his favour in round 6 seemed to rejuvenate him and he came out all guns blazing in round 7 trying to finish off the job. Although he could do it in round 7 Figueroa did have Arakawa stumbling around the ring in round 8 as it appeared the referee was going to give yet another standing count until Arakawa held on and cleared his head.
Having been in serious trouble in round 8 it was a surprise to see Arakawa having one of his best rounds in round 9 as both men traded shots. By now though Figueroa was clearly a slowing fighter and he seemed unable to sustain any attack for more than 20 seconds. Fighting in these short bursts made the rounds close though Arakawa seemed unable to ever hurt Figueroa despite him slowing in terms of work rate.
Despite being unhurt Figueroa did look very unhappy in his corner at the end of round 9. It was obvious that he was really tiring though so too was was Arakawa who, whilst still applying pressure and pushing Figueroa to the ropes, was unable to really land much of significance allowed the odd burst of punches from Figueroa to take the round.
Figueroa's tiredness continued to effect him in the final two rounds as Arakawa went searching for a stoppage and seemed to rattle the youngster a time or two with Figueroa managing to see out the storm. Although Figueroa had dominated most of the first 10 rounds it seemed as if Arakawa did have a slim chance of stealing the fight with a remarkable stoppage of a tired opponent.
Impressively Figueroa showed not only the heart to see out the hard times late in the bout but also the experience and boxing intelligence to do as Arakawa did in the opening round and hold on to see out round. For a man known for his explosive power it was probably as impressive that he knew how to see out the clock and survive.
With the WBC "interim" Lightweight title around this waist it seems like a waiting game for Figueroa who I expect will be upgraded to full champion when Adrien Broner decides on his next fight. This fight, whilst a clear decision win for the youngster will have done him more good than his previous 20-odd bouts as he was tested in ways almost nobody expected. He showed off his heart, his relatively impressive stamina and also his faults, he squares up a lot and doesn't have the greatest of technique, allowing him to correct things in the gym.
For Arakawa this was a painful night though a night in which he'll have made a lot of new friends stateside. He showed himself to be a tough as nails warrior who is high in action and will refuse to quit. Hopefully some other top Lightweights give him a chance even if he is a nightmare to fight due to his heart and toughness
Showing posts with label WBC interim. Show all posts
Showing posts with label WBC interim. Show all posts
Saturday, 27 July 2013
Saturday, 26 January 2013
Lucas Martin Matthysse v Mike Dallas Jr
Aggressively minded Argentinian Lucas Martin Matthysse (33-2-0-1, 31) made the first successful defense of his interim WBC Light Welterweight title as he viciously stopped Mike Dallas Jr (19-3-1, 8) inside a round.
Although Dallas started the round well with his speed it didn't take long for Matthysse to connect on him and shake up Dallas. Dallas tied up Matthysse after getting rocked though it appeared from then on that Dallas was living in fear having tasted Matthysse's power and with good reason.
Whilst Dallas had managed to see out the first storm he didn't get to see out the first round as Matthysse landed a monster right hand that rendered Dallas unconscious. As Dallas was on his way down Matthysse tried to tag him with 2 more shots though neither connected cleanly as Dallas crashed to the canvas. With Dallas out cold Robert Byrd just waved off the fight with Matthysse having scored a spectacular opening round KO.
Prior to the fight however there was some controversial as Matthysse was seen taking a pill by Virgil Hunter, Dallas' trained .According to Hunter it was an Amino-500 though Matthysse, via a translator explained it as being a vitamin pill. We will all be waiting for the test results to come back, though if it was a vitamin pill, I dare say Hunter should have kept his mouth shut for his fighters safety.
Although Dallas started the round well with his speed it didn't take long for Matthysse to connect on him and shake up Dallas. Dallas tied up Matthysse after getting rocked though it appeared from then on that Dallas was living in fear having tasted Matthysse's power and with good reason.
Whilst Dallas had managed to see out the first storm he didn't get to see out the first round as Matthysse landed a monster right hand that rendered Dallas unconscious. As Dallas was on his way down Matthysse tried to tag him with 2 more shots though neither connected cleanly as Dallas crashed to the canvas. With Dallas out cold Robert Byrd just waved off the fight with Matthysse having scored a spectacular opening round KO.
Prior to the fight however there was some controversial as Matthysse was seen taking a pill by Virgil Hunter, Dallas' trained .According to Hunter it was an Amino-500 though Matthysse, via a translator explained it as being a vitamin pill. We will all be waiting for the test results to come back, though if it was a vitamin pill, I dare say Hunter should have kept his mouth shut for his fighters safety.
Saturday, 24 November 2012
Robert Guerrero v Andre Berto
Robert "The Ghost" Guerrero (?-?) successfully defended his WBC Interim Welterweight title against Andre Berto (?-?) in a thoroughly sloppy, though equally entertaining bout that had controversy, action and an awful lot of wrestling.
The fight started well for Guerrero who knocked down Berto in both of the opening 2 rounds and really messed up Berto's right eye as "The Ghost" started fast and took advantage of Berto's wild shots and slow foot work. Whilst Guerrero took a clear lead, there was controversy over the first knockdown which seemed to come from a clear case of hitting and holding and the second seemed to also have a case of a thumb to the eye of Berto. It was clear after the first 3 rounds that Guerrero was 5 points up he had dominated the early action and with the knockdowns was in an almost unassailable lead.
Just as the fight appeared a lost cause Berto then managed to fight his way back into the bout and seemed to take a number of the middle rounds as the fight combined a lot of holding and wrestling as well as numerous thunderous shots from both men. Whilst it looked like Guerrero was forcing Berto on to the ropes it was clear that Berto was having his success from them with thunderous uppercuts that seemed to snap Guerrero's head back time and time again.
As the rounds went on the fight seemed to be getting closer and closer with Berto's powerful uppercuts and hooks bouncing off Guerrero's head, bagging him several rounds. Sadly however the style of much of the bout wasn't fun to watch with a lot of holding and wrestling and little clear action as both men seemed to prefer a messy inside game rather than a true war. This left several rounds almost actionless as Lou Moretti was forced to repeatedly split the men with out anything notable landing.
In the later rounds both men appeared tired and the action slowed with fewer and fewer back and forths, though the bout heated up in an engaging 12th round that saw both men leaving it all on the line. Sadly it was the 12th round that left a sour taste in many peoples mouth with Guerrero landing 3 or 4 shots well after the bell, though by that point the round, and the fight was over.
When it came to the score cards, it was fair to say that you really could have had almost any scoreline with the best result for Berto likely being a 113-113 draw, however, rather surprisingly all three judges had it 116-110 to Guerrero, a rather odd scoreline considering just how many close rounds the bout had.
Guerrero, like he did after defeating Selcuk Aydin, called out Floyd Mayweather Jr, though in all honesty, Guerrero would get destroyed by Mayweather, however both men did seem to hint that a rematch may be possible and that may well be the best option for both.
The fight started well for Guerrero who knocked down Berto in both of the opening 2 rounds and really messed up Berto's right eye as "The Ghost" started fast and took advantage of Berto's wild shots and slow foot work. Whilst Guerrero took a clear lead, there was controversy over the first knockdown which seemed to come from a clear case of hitting and holding and the second seemed to also have a case of a thumb to the eye of Berto. It was clear after the first 3 rounds that Guerrero was 5 points up he had dominated the early action and with the knockdowns was in an almost unassailable lead.
Just as the fight appeared a lost cause Berto then managed to fight his way back into the bout and seemed to take a number of the middle rounds as the fight combined a lot of holding and wrestling as well as numerous thunderous shots from both men. Whilst it looked like Guerrero was forcing Berto on to the ropes it was clear that Berto was having his success from them with thunderous uppercuts that seemed to snap Guerrero's head back time and time again.
As the rounds went on the fight seemed to be getting closer and closer with Berto's powerful uppercuts and hooks bouncing off Guerrero's head, bagging him several rounds. Sadly however the style of much of the bout wasn't fun to watch with a lot of holding and wrestling and little clear action as both men seemed to prefer a messy inside game rather than a true war. This left several rounds almost actionless as Lou Moretti was forced to repeatedly split the men with out anything notable landing.
In the later rounds both men appeared tired and the action slowed with fewer and fewer back and forths, though the bout heated up in an engaging 12th round that saw both men leaving it all on the line. Sadly it was the 12th round that left a sour taste in many peoples mouth with Guerrero landing 3 or 4 shots well after the bell, though by that point the round, and the fight was over.
When it came to the score cards, it was fair to say that you really could have had almost any scoreline with the best result for Berto likely being a 113-113 draw, however, rather surprisingly all three judges had it 116-110 to Guerrero, a rather odd scoreline considering just how many close rounds the bout had.
Guerrero, like he did after defeating Selcuk Aydin, called out Floyd Mayweather Jr, though in all honesty, Guerrero would get destroyed by Mayweather, however both men did seem to hint that a rematch may be possible and that may well be the best option for both.
Saturday, 8 September 2012
Lucas Martin Matthysse v Olusegun Ajose
Many "interim" title fights feel like out and out cash spinners by the organisation who have their title attached to the bout. For some reason however the WBC "interim" Light Welterweight title fight between Lucas Martin Matthysse (32-2-0-1, 30) and Olusegun Ajose (30-1, 14) felt like like a genuine world title fight. We had 2 world class talents, 2 contrasting styles and a fight that just seemed to yell "great fight", it delivered.
The opening round saw both men giving and taking in an entertaining round that perhaps had a touch of being a "feeling out round" though was certainly more active than your typical opening round. The following round however saw both men putting their foot on the gas and trading up close. Sadly for Ajose he decided to fight in the pocket and was punished by Matthysse who rocked him hard in the final minute. It appeared at the end of round 2 that this could be an early night.
Despite surviving through round 2 Ajose was rocked repeatedly in both rounds 3 and 4 as Matthysse started to grind down the Nigerian, landing to both the the head and body of his opponent. On more than 1 occasion it appeared that Ajose was ready to drop though his heart, rock solid chin and fighter spirit kept him upright, some how. By the middle rounds it was getting painful to watch as Ajose refused to give up despite taking a real shellacking from the Argentinian banger.
Although he had been hurt, rocked, shaken and rattled repeatedly through out the bout Ajose was refusing to give up and actually had his most successful rounds in rounds 7 and 8, making a genuine case to have at least claimed one of them. His success however would be short lived as Matthysse regrouped well and started to impose himself once again in round 9 against a tiring Ajose.
At this point no one would have complained had Ajose retired in his corner, or been retired by his corner, instead however he went out for round 10 knowing he needed a KO. Sadly for Ajose he was too beaten, too battered and too damaged to do much and was eventually dropped in the 10th round. The referee (Russell Mora) had seen enough and waved off the bout before Ajose had been given a chance to recover to his feet, probably a good decision in all honesty as Ajose had really been given a hiding.
Whilst the bout was really one sided it was also an entertaining bout. Ajose refused to go down whilst landing his own shots, shots that sadly did little more than irritate Matthysse who just walked through them whilst landing his own blows. Neither man appeared to really slow down and it was just really, really enjoyable.
For Ajose this is likely the end of his hard luck story, a genuine shame that he had to wait this long for his opportunity at the big time. At 32 years old he may still have a few fights in him but this beating will have cut his career short and certainly ended his dreams of a world title.
Matthysse on the other hand will be licking his lips at the thought of facing the winner of the up coming match up between Danny Garcia and Erik Morales, a win over the victor of that bout would see Matthysse become the #1 guy at 140lbs.
The opening round saw both men giving and taking in an entertaining round that perhaps had a touch of being a "feeling out round" though was certainly more active than your typical opening round. The following round however saw both men putting their foot on the gas and trading up close. Sadly for Ajose he decided to fight in the pocket and was punished by Matthysse who rocked him hard in the final minute. It appeared at the end of round 2 that this could be an early night.
Despite surviving through round 2 Ajose was rocked repeatedly in both rounds 3 and 4 as Matthysse started to grind down the Nigerian, landing to both the the head and body of his opponent. On more than 1 occasion it appeared that Ajose was ready to drop though his heart, rock solid chin and fighter spirit kept him upright, some how. By the middle rounds it was getting painful to watch as Ajose refused to give up despite taking a real shellacking from the Argentinian banger.
Although he had been hurt, rocked, shaken and rattled repeatedly through out the bout Ajose was refusing to give up and actually had his most successful rounds in rounds 7 and 8, making a genuine case to have at least claimed one of them. His success however would be short lived as Matthysse regrouped well and started to impose himself once again in round 9 against a tiring Ajose.
At this point no one would have complained had Ajose retired in his corner, or been retired by his corner, instead however he went out for round 10 knowing he needed a KO. Sadly for Ajose he was too beaten, too battered and too damaged to do much and was eventually dropped in the 10th round. The referee (Russell Mora) had seen enough and waved off the bout before Ajose had been given a chance to recover to his feet, probably a good decision in all honesty as Ajose had really been given a hiding.
Whilst the bout was really one sided it was also an entertaining bout. Ajose refused to go down whilst landing his own shots, shots that sadly did little more than irritate Matthysse who just walked through them whilst landing his own blows. Neither man appeared to really slow down and it was just really, really enjoyable.
For Ajose this is likely the end of his hard luck story, a genuine shame that he had to wait this long for his opportunity at the big time. At 32 years old he may still have a few fights in him but this beating will have cut his career short and certainly ended his dreams of a world title.
Matthysse on the other hand will be licking his lips at the thought of facing the winner of the up coming match up between Danny Garcia and Erik Morales, a win over the victor of that bout would see Matthysse become the #1 guy at 140lbs.
Sunday, 29 July 2012
Robert Guerrero v Selcuk Aydin
American Robert "The Ghost" Guerrero (30-1-1, 2, 18) successfully returned from over a year out of the ring by out pointing Turkish hardman Selcuk Aydin (23-1, 17) in a thoroughly entertaining bout for the WBC Interim Welterweight title.
In the early rounds Guerrero, who was making his Welterweight debut, used his speed and jab to out work his shorter and stockier opponent. The natural speed and the boxing ability of Guerrero combined with a high work rate allowed him to win the early rounds with out too much off a worry, though Aydin seemed like he was biding his time. Whilst inactive the Turk was accurate and his shorts had an air of truly raw power to them, especially the body shots.
By the middle rounds Guerrero had started to slow, the combination of his high work rate and the sapping body shots of Aydin and whilst Guerrero was still winning most of the rounds he was now being caught more, especially up close where Aydin was able to land his neck snapping upper cuts and more solid hurtful body blows. Guerrero may have bagged the rounds but he was starting to show signs of fatigue and continued to fade gradually as the bout went on with Aydin starting to out land him in the championship rounds.
Although comfortably up on the scorecards Guerrero was looking desperately tired going into the final round, Aydin, knowing the title was going to Guerrero if he didn't manage to score the stoppage went all out and seemed to hurt Guerrero a number of times. Although hurt Guerrero showed a lot of heart and courage to hold on and refuse to go down as he took a solid victory on the cards with scores of 117-111 and 116-112 (twice). Personally I felt the scores were a little wide but Guerrero, a former title holder at Featherweight, Super Featherweight and Lightweight did just enough to deserve a close victory.
Following the fight Aydin revealed that mentally he wasn't himself, years of boxing politics left him feeling drained going into this bout and as a result he lost. Guerrero on the other hand continued his pursuit for a mega payday with Floyd "Money" Mayweather (43-0, 26) calling out the unbeaten man who is generally regarded as the pound-for-pound top fighter in the world. Whilst Guerrero seems to want that fight I feel that Mayweather would put a real beating on the well liked Guerrero who is easily a level below Mayweather.
On the undercard unbeaten American Shawn Porter defeated Alfonso Gomez in an exciting 10 round affair (UD10) whilst British youngster George Groves defeated Francisco Sierra (TKO6) in anthother thoroughly entertaining bout.
In the early rounds Guerrero, who was making his Welterweight debut, used his speed and jab to out work his shorter and stockier opponent. The natural speed and the boxing ability of Guerrero combined with a high work rate allowed him to win the early rounds with out too much off a worry, though Aydin seemed like he was biding his time. Whilst inactive the Turk was accurate and his shorts had an air of truly raw power to them, especially the body shots.
By the middle rounds Guerrero had started to slow, the combination of his high work rate and the sapping body shots of Aydin and whilst Guerrero was still winning most of the rounds he was now being caught more, especially up close where Aydin was able to land his neck snapping upper cuts and more solid hurtful body blows. Guerrero may have bagged the rounds but he was starting to show signs of fatigue and continued to fade gradually as the bout went on with Aydin starting to out land him in the championship rounds.
Although comfortably up on the scorecards Guerrero was looking desperately tired going into the final round, Aydin, knowing the title was going to Guerrero if he didn't manage to score the stoppage went all out and seemed to hurt Guerrero a number of times. Although hurt Guerrero showed a lot of heart and courage to hold on and refuse to go down as he took a solid victory on the cards with scores of 117-111 and 116-112 (twice). Personally I felt the scores were a little wide but Guerrero, a former title holder at Featherweight, Super Featherweight and Lightweight did just enough to deserve a close victory.
Following the fight Aydin revealed that mentally he wasn't himself, years of boxing politics left him feeling drained going into this bout and as a result he lost. Guerrero on the other hand continued his pursuit for a mega payday with Floyd "Money" Mayweather (43-0, 26) calling out the unbeaten man who is generally regarded as the pound-for-pound top fighter in the world. Whilst Guerrero seems to want that fight I feel that Mayweather would put a real beating on the well liked Guerrero who is easily a level below Mayweather.
On the undercard unbeaten American Shawn Porter defeated Alfonso Gomez in an exciting 10 round affair (UD10) whilst British youngster George Groves defeated Francisco Sierra (TKO6) in anthother thoroughly entertaining bout.
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