| 27 June 2010
Results from Saturday night 's Top Rank "Latin Fury 15: La Furia de Mexico" from the Alamodome in San Antonio:
(All photos © Edward Garza/NorthTexasFisticuffs.com)
12 RD WBC Middleweight Silver Championship Title Fight
Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (41-0-1, 30 KOs) UD 12 John Duddy 29-2, 18 KOs)
Scores: 120-108, 116-112, 117-111
Make no mistake about it; Chavez’s impressive showing has much to do with his decision to finally take this sport seriously as Duddy’s lack of defensive acumen. There is no doubt in my mind that the old Chavez would have wilted under the non-stop pressure that Duddy provides. However, under the masterful tutelage of Freddie Roach Chavez seems more poised, is in better shape, and is all around a better fighter after having spent this training camp out at the Wild Card Boxing Gym. Chavez and Duddy’s style meld perfectly together to create the type of fistic explosion that makes for a great fight. In this respect neither fighter failed to deliver on this unspoken promise as the two went at it over twelve grueling rounds. Duddy’s attempt to try and grind Chavez down were all in vain as Chavez 2.0 showed much improved defensive techniques, but also a penchant for returning artillery of his own in concussive salvos. Chavez’s attack eventually dented the granite chin of Duddy who was wobbled on more than one occasion but try as he might; Chavez was unable to stop the tough Irishman. In many respects, Saturday night’s fight was a coming out party for Chavez. He looked bigger, stronger, faster, and displayed a warrior mentality that most felt he lacked. Chavez may very well go from a gimmick fighter to a legitimate title contender. Time will tell if he can replicate this performance.
10 RD Super Lightweight Co-Feature Fight
Marco Antonio Barrera (66-7, 43 KOs) UD 10 Adailton DeJesus (26-5, 21 KOs)
Scores: 100-90, 98-92, 99-91
BA-RRERA, BA-RRERA! This was the chant voiced to thunderous decibles by the partisan crowd in the Alamadome as the sure-fire Hall of Famer was introduced. It’s clear that despite clearly being on the tail end of his career, Barrera will always hold a special place in the hearts of his fans. After all, it’s hard not to adore a fighter who has given fight junkies so many memorable wars. While many were happy to see Barrera slip into retirement, apparently his competitive juice still flowed in his veins. Against DeJesus, a fighter hand picked to come forward and bang, Barrera appeared to have a bad case of ring rust. This was to be expected given his long layoff, but it does not bode well for Barrera’s stated desire to capture a fourth title in as many weight classes. All in all, the fight was pretty devoid of action but maybe I’ll reserve further judgment until I see Barrera in the ring again.
10 RD Texas Junior Bantamweight Title Fight
Raul Martinez (27-1, 16 KOs) TKO 7 Gabriel Elizondo (22-4-1, 10 KOs)
Official time of the stoppage: 2:00 in round seven.
In a battle of San Antonio natives, Raul Martinez reigned supreme. Make no mistake about it, there was an air on animosity between the two throughout the fight but Martinez never let loose control of the action. Not that Elizondo was uncompetitive; actually, he was game throughout. But Martinez is simply on another level in terms of experience and skill. In against Elizondo this fact was pretty apparent. While Elizondo tried to utilize movement and box from the outside, Martinez applied smothering pressure throughout. Eventually, Martinez began to erode the confidence of Elizondo and flooring him in the fifth, sixth, and seventh before the referee mercifully stopped the fight.
8 RD Featherweight Fight
Tomas Villa (23-7-4, 14 KOs) UD 8 Salvador Sanchez II (19-4-2, 9 KOs)
Scores: 77-75, 79-73, 78-74
Sanchez is the product of the boxing hype machine, or more specifically, the Top Rank hype machine. Though a mid-level fight at best, Top Rank, motivated by the unsettling resemblance to his late uncle – Mexican legend Salvador Sanchez, has done their best to force-feed us Salvador Sanchez II. While I do thoroughly enjoy the retro gimmick employed by Top Rank (I love the terry cloth boxing trunks) Sanchez is an honest fighter, but not a supremely talented one. This was quite clear as grizzled veteran Tomas Villa relentlessly pressured Sanchez, punishing the young fighter over the course of the fight. Sanchez looked uncomfortable in the ring and Villa used this to his advantage, bullying Sanchez around the ring. This fight was all Villa, plain and simple.
4 RD Super Lightweight Fight
Jose Benavidez (7-0, 7 KOs) KO 1 Josh Beeman (4-7-2, 2 KOs)
Official time of KO: 1:20 round one
It’s easy to see why many are high on the Freddie Roach trained Benavidez. Against Beeman, Benavidez wasted no time in making his presence felt, landing two hooks to the body that put Beeman down and out for the fight. The ring walks lasted longer than the fight itself.
4 RD Middleweight Fight
Omar Henry (10-0, 8 KOs) UD 4 Hilario Lopez(12-10, 8 KOs)
Scores: 40-34, 40-34, 40-34
Look, we all know how good Henry is. The kid is an animal in the ring and as such, funding opponents is becoming an increasingly difficult endeavor. While Henry decimated Lopez from pillar to post, you have to admire Lopez’s will and heart. Though he ate a tremendous amount of leather, he never stopped trying to win. Lopez was beaten, battered, and bloodied but courageously made it through the fight with his head held high. While I may be a moral victory of the smallest order, Lopez can brag that he has done what few could up until now, make Henry work for twelve solid minutes. As for Henry, the kid is supremely talented but he would be wise to pace himself better should fights like this become more common.
4 RD Middleweight Fight
Emanuel Ledezma (9-1-1, 2 KOs) UD 4 Nelson Ramos (4-1, 2 KOs)
Scores 39-37, 40-36, 39-37
With only five professional fights under his belt, Houston’s Ramos is a relative infant in the fight game. This means that there are abundant critical flaws in his game that could be exploited if the opponent is savvy enough. Ledezma was just the type of gutsy fight who was able to exploit the numerous defensive flaws in Ramos’ game. The proof was in the fight as Ledezma landed shot after shot through the porous defense of Ramos in earning a well deserved unanimous decision.
6 RD Super Lightweight Fight
James Cantu (6-0, 3 KOs) UD 4 Antonio Gamez (3-3-1, 1 KO)
Scores: 39-36, 39-36, 40-35
In a battle of South Texas boxers James Cantu and Antonio Gamez spent what seemed like the entire fight swapping leather with each other. Cantu was clearly the more polished fighter and came out the gates firing vicious salvos to the head and body of Gamez. Undeterred by the punishment taken, Gamez seemed all too happy to become a willing participant in the four round battle. While Cantu’s unrelenting arsenal should be applauded, the heart and determination of Gamez was the real story of the fight.
6 RD Welterweight Fight
Jose Juan Fuentes (6-1, 3 KOs) TKO 5 Rogelio Barron (12-7, 4 KOs)
Time of stoppage: 1:12 round five
A good ole fashioned slugfest kicked things off on the evening’s card. Despite outclassing Barron through most of the fight, Barron would not go away quietly. In fact, Barron’s tenacity allowed him to rally back to drop Fuentes once in the first round, and again in the second round. But, just as things were getting going for Barron, Fuentes managed to rally back and after dropping Barron with a left hook, a follow up flurry of shots prompted the referee to stop the bout.
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