The Past Week in Action 18 July 2017 - Part I
By Eric Armit
PhilBoxing.com
Wed, 19 Jul 2017
Eubank (L) pounds Abraham.
Highlights
-Miguel Berchelt outclasses Takashi Miura to retain WBC title
-Chris Eubank Jr thrashes Arthur Abraham and may have brought the former two division champion?s career to an end
-Lee Selby retains IBF title with unanimous decision over Jonathan Barros
-Jezreel Corrales holds on to his WBA title with technical decision over Robinson Castellanos
-CP Freshmart retains WBA minimumweight title
-Omar Figueroa floors Roberto Guerrero five times and Guerrero announces his retirement
-Marcus Browne destroys Sean Monaghan in two rounds in clash of unbeaten light heavies
- Pole Michal Syrowatka gets late stoppage of unbeaten Robbie Davies and Kid Galahad, Martin Joseph Ward, Sullivan Barrera, Mercito Gesta, Adam Kownacki and Antoine Douglas get wins in busy weekend
July 14
Los Angeles, CA, USA: Super Feather: Rene Alvarado (26-8) W TKO 7 Roger Gutierrez (15-1-1). Feather: Edgar Valerio (11-0) W PTS 8 Jairo Ochoa (18-12).
Alvarado vs. Gutierrez
Alvarado spoils the Golden Boy debut of Venezuelan prospect Gutierrez. It was a case of Gutierrez starting slow and never really getting into the fight. By the second Alvarado was banging home jabs and fast combinations and he rocked Gutierrez with a left hook in the third. Alvarado was landing more and more and Gutierrez was throwing less and less. A left hook staggered Gutierrez in the fifth and opened a cut under his left eye. Alvarado continued to score heavily in the sixth and in the seventh Gutierrez?s corner threw in the towel to save their man. Although the 28-year-old Nicaraguan was 5-6 in his last 11 fights every one of the losses was against top level opposition and he showed here he is not yet ready to just be a stepping-stone. ?Kid? Gutierrez, 22, the WBA No 11, had reportedly just signed a five year contract with Golden Boy after winning 10 of his last 11 fights by KO/TKO but Alvarado was a much higher level of opposition.
Valerio vs. Ochoa
Valerio and Ochoa traded knockdowns early but Valerio took over the fight after that early excitement and emerged a clear winner. After some feeling out a left from Valerio put Ochoa down. The fireworks continued in the second with Ochoa flooring Valerio with a left hook. When Ochoa tried to capitalise on that Valerio banged back and this time it was Ochoa going down from a left hook. Ochoa was still competitive in the third but after that it was Valerio?s fight. He made use of his height and reach to outbox and outworked Ochoa landing more and better quality punches opening a cut under the left eye of Ochoa in the fifth. It was Valerio?s first eight round fight and he tired a bit over the last two rounds but outfought Ochoa to the bell. Scores 80-71 twice and 79-72 all for Valerio. The tall 22-year-old Mexican ?Kid Neza? looks promising. Ochoa was 6-2 in his last 8 fights and gave Valerio a good test.
Miami, OK, USA: Middle: Antoine Douglas (22-1-1) W KO 4 Juan De Angel (20-7-1). Super Light: Rolando Chinea (15-1-1) W PTS 8 Kenneth Sims (12-1).Super Light: Ivan Baranchyk (17-0) W PTS 8 Keenan Smith (11-1). Middle: Charles Conwell (4-0) W TKO 2 Rick Graham (4-17-2).
Douglas vs. De Angel
Douglas halts late replacement De Angel. Douglas used a focused body attack to cut down the Colombian. After hurting De Angel with body shots in each round Douglas ended it in the fourth with yet another body punch. The 24-year-old ?Action? continues to rebuild as he gets his third win since a crushing loss to Avtandil Khurtsidze in March last year. He retains his WBC Fecarbox title and wins the vacant WBA-NABA title. He and his sister Tyrieshia grew up in the foster care system and are both now pro fighters with Tyrieshia holding the UBF female super flyweight title. De Angel 30 falls to 2-4 in his last 6 fights.
Chinea vs. Sims
ShoBox shows can be hard on unbeaten fighters as they always aim for competitive matches to test the credentials of up and coming youngsters. Sims lost his unbeaten run here on a majority decision against unfancied Chinea. As expected Sims showcased his excellent skills early being quicker than Chinea. Despite that Chinea kept pressing and used his aggression to stay in the fight. In the end it was a fight won in the late rounds as despite fighting hard Sims could not match the work rate of Chinea over the seventh and eighth rounds allowing Chinea to open a winning gap. Scores 77-75 twice for Chinea and 76-76. Puerto-Rican born Lancaster- based Chinea lost a majority decision to unbeaten Ismail Muwendo in 2015 but this victory extends his current unbeaten run to 5 fights. Sims, 23, was a three-time PAL and a US national champion and big thing were expected from him but he admitted that it was a struggle to stay at super light and he will aim to move up to welter.
Baranchyk vs. Smith
Baranchyk batters his way to victory over Smith. In a wild opening round Smith first tried to throw Baranchyk over the top rope and then threw him to the canvas. Baranchyk put himself on the floor when he missed with a punch. As for the fighting in the first Baranchyk was his usual swarming aggressive self shaking Smith with a couple of rights but with Smith scoring with some good straight southpaw lefts and doing enough to edge the round. Baranchyk began to find the target with rights in the second as Smith was holding too much and not throwing enough. Their styles did not match well and at times it was untidy but the third saw Baranchyk doing the scoring and some needle crept in as they both looked to throw punches after the bell. Baranchyk continued to press in the fourth landing two good rights and Smith was given a severe warning for holding. Baranchyk made a fast start to the fifth and an under pressure Smith lost a point for holding as Baranchyk put him under increasing pressure. Baranchyk shook Smith with a big left and Smith was again holding hard. Smith did better in the sixth and seventh as he stood and traded more but he was still being outworked by Baranchyk and blasted by short hooks inside. Smith started the last brightly moving and scoring but then he tired allowing Baranchyk to land some heavy head punches and an exhausted Smith fell to the canvas twice before the final bell but his earlier work probably earned him at least a share of the round. Scores 80-71, 79-72 and 78-73 all for Baranchyk. Fighting in his adopted home town the 24-year-old ?Beast? from Belarus, the IBF 5(4), is finding things a little tougher now. After a run of eight wins on the bounce by KO/TKO he has had to go the distance for a win in each of his last four fights. Philadelphian Smith showed some good moves but lacked the power to keep Baranchyk out.
Conwell vs. Graham
Conwell gets another quick win as he halts Graham inside two rounds. The 2016 Olympian now has two first round wins and two second round wins in his four fights. Still only 19 the Cleveland youngster was twice the USA Youth champion, won the gold medal at the 2015 National Golden Gloves and was voted 2015 Boxing Youth Male Boxer of The Year in the USA before winning through the US and Americas qualifications to get to Rio. I guess when you are the second youngest of nine kids fighting comes naturally. Poor Graham is now 1-12 in his last 13 fights.
Melbourne, Australia: Light Heavy: Blake Caparello (25-2-1) W TKO 6 Jordan Tai (10-4). Super Light: Czar Amonsot (34-3-3,1ND) ND 2 Martin Escobar (17-3,1ND).
Caparello vs. Tai
Caparello moves back up to light heavy and gets win over substitute Tai. It was six rounds of work but no real test for ?Il Capo?. Caparello had height, reach, more experience and superior skills and slowly broke down the New Zealander until the referee stopped the fight in the sixth. The 30-year-old southpaw?s losses have been to Sergey Kovalev for the WBO light heavy title in 2014 and to Andre Dirrell in April last year. This win gets him the vacant WBA Oceania title and puts him back on the ratings ladder. Tai, 35, a former New Zealand super middle champion, came in at eight days notice.
Amonsot vs. Escobar
This one was over before it even warmed up. A clash of heads in the second round saw Amonsot suffer a cut on his left eyebrow and as the cut was too bad for Amonsot to continue it was declared a No Decision. The 31-year-old Filipino/Australian, the WBA No 3, is now 16-0-2 1ND in his last 19 fights. Argentinian Escobar had lost only one of his last 13 fights but against abysmally low opposition.
Santiago de Chile, Chile: Super Middle: Julio Alamos (6-0) W KO 3 Arnoldo Poblete (11-9-1). Poblete loses his title on the scales and is then kayoed by Alamos. In the first Alamos was pressing the fight only for Poblete to bang back hard early in the second but Alamos turned the fight his way again before the end of the round. In the third an uppercut followed by a straight right shook Poblete and opened a cut over his right eye. Alamos followed up with a hail of punches that put Poblete down and out. The 26-year-old Alamos was Chilean amateur champion and competed at the Pan American Championships but failed to get through the America?s qualifiers for the 2016 Olympics. He has three wins by KO/TKO. Poblete came in 3lbs over the limit and declined to make any attempt to sweat it off.
Mexico City, Mexico: Feather: Josue Veraza (19-8-2) W PTS 10 Romulo Koasicha (25-7). Veraza pulls of upset as he wins wide unanimous decision over WBO title challenger Koasicha. Veraza controlled this one all of the way. He had a plan and he kept to it. He boxed on the outside countering Koasicha and controlling the pace of the fight. A peach of a left hook put Koasicha down in the second and he also showed a cut and swelling under his left eye as Veraza dominated the action. Koasicha kept advancing but never really got into the fight as Veraza cruised to victory. Scores 99-90 twice and 98-91 all for Veraza. The 24-year-old local wins the vacant WBO Latino title, his first title as a pro. He was 5-5-1 in his last 11 fights so a rank outsider. Koasicha lost to Lee Selby for the WBC International title in 2014 and to Vasyl Lomachenko for the WBO title in 2015 but this was his first fight since losing to Orlando Cruz in March last year.
Bangkok, Thailand: Welter: Teerachai (38-0) W PTS 12 Ramadhani Shauri (22-12-1).
Teerachai (Tewa Kiram) vs. Shauri
Teerachai overcomes an early shock to outpoint game Tanzanian. Teerachai was barrelling forward landing heavily with both hands and Shauri soaked up a bundle of punishment. In the second round Teerachai had Shauri with his back to the ropes unloading when a counter right from Shauri sent Teerachai down on his rear. He was up quickly and was soon back to pounding on Shauri who took his bumps and lasted to the last bell. Scores 118-109 from all three judges for Teerachai who retains his WBA PABA title. He is No 1 with the WBA but has yet to face an opponent even remotely close to being rated. Shauri was 4-7 in his last 11 fights and that is better than many of Teerachai?s opponents.
Las Vegas, NV, USA: Middle: Orlando Lora (33-7-2) W TKO 7 Hector Camacho Jr (58-7-1). Heavy: Ronald Johnson (15-1,1ND) W PTS 8 Sergio Ramirez (14-4).
Lora vs. Camacho
An irresponsible Camacho gets stopped by Lora. Camacho missed the contract weight by a whopping 6 ? lbs and at a second weight the difference was up at 9lbs and that caught up with him. After being competitive for three rounds he tired and was under constant pressure from Lora until being floored early in the seventh and the referee stopped the fight. Mexican Lora faded out of the scene in 2014 after going 4-5 with all of the losses by KO/TKO and all against high level opposition. Camacho, 38, was having his first fight since August 2014.
Johnson vs. Ramirez
Johnson gets another win on his return to the ring as he decisions Mexican Ramirez. Scores 78-74 twice and 79-73. The Las Vegas-based 31-year-old returned to the ring in August last year after almost seven years away and this is his fourth win since then. Ramirez is now 3-4 in his last 7 fights
July 15
London, England: Super Middle: Chris Eubank Jr (25-1) W PTS 12 Arthur Abraham (46-6). Feather: Lee Selby (25-1) W PTS 12 Jonathan Barros (41-5-1). Super Light: Michal Syrowatka (19-1) W TKO 12 Robbie Davies Jr (15-1). Feather: Kid Galahad (23-0) W TKO 10 Jose Cayetano (21-6). Super Feather: Martin Joseph Ward (18-0-2) W PTS 12 Anthony Cacace (15-1). Middle: Patrick Wojcicki (9-0) W PTS 6 Darryl Sharp (5-18).
Eubank vs. Abraham
Eubank outclasses an ageing Abraham to retain the IBO title and perhaps finish Abraham?s career.
Round 1
Abraham walked forward behind his high guard as usual. He had some success with his jab but Eubank was quicker and scored well with his own jab and landed a useful right uppercut.
Score 10-9 Eubank
Round 2
Eubank outscored Abraham throughout the round. He was getting through with his jab and firing quick combinations going to head and body under and around Abraham?s high guard and frustrated Abraham?s attempt to sage a strong finish to the round.
Score 10-9 Eubank 20-18
Round 3
Abraham had a much better third simply because he stopped using the high guard so much and threw and landed more punches. Eubank showed his own frustration late in the round swiping out with some wild punches.
Score 10-9 Abraham 29-28
Round 4
Eubank?s round . He took Abraham to the ropes and after scoring with hooks to the body he sent series of right uppercuts through the guard of Abraham. Abraham opened his arms to show he was not hurt and Eubank promptly repeated the right uppercuts with Abraham opening his arms for a second time which showed that Eubank?s punches had got through. Abraham tried to finish the round strongly but good footwork and upper body movement from Eubank prevented that.
Score 10-9 Eubank 39-37
Round 5
This was a closer round. Abraham started well making good use of his jab. Eubank launched a series of attacks and Abraham hid behind his high guard. Eubank was getting through with left hooks to the body and right uppercuts. Abraham came back later in the round to make it close but Eubank had done enough to take it.
Score 10-9 Eubank
Round 6 49-36
Abraham was back to the static high guard which is a pity as he was more effective when he boxed in an orthodox style and letting his hands go but old habits die hard. Eubank was firing punches from both hands and although many were being blocked he was throwing and landing more punches than Abraham.
Score 10-9 Eubank 59-55
Round 7
Eubank dominated this round. He was firing punches to head and body with Abraham forced to back up. On a couple of occasions Eubank was confident enough to just walk away showing his customary arrogance and then start blasting home combination. When Eubank went backwards at the end of the round his clever defensive work stymied any attempts by Abraham to land a punch.
Score 10-9 Eubank 69-64
Round 8
Over the early part of this round Eubank outboxed Abraham being quick and accurate with his jab. He then pierced Abraham?s high guard with lefts and rights to the body and uppercuts. Abraham was strong over the last minute scoring with a good straight right but that was not enough to cancel out the early work from Eubank.
Score 10-9 Eubank 79-73
Round 9
Easy round for Eubank. He outboxed Abraham on the outside and the challenger spent much of the round against the ropes behind his high guard as Eubank rained combinations and seemed to shake Abraham with a right.
Score 10-9 Eubank 89-82
Round 10
Eubank gave this round away. He spent much of it prowling around in a semi-crouch with both arms by his side. He was a difficult target for Abraham but you have to throw punches to win a round and Eubank did not.
Score 10-9 Abraham 98-92
Round 11
This one was closer as Abraham threw more punches and Eubank seemed to be tiring and only fought in bursts but his punches were the more accurate and he just did enough to edge the round.
Score 10-9 Eubank 108-101
Round 12
Eubank dominated the last round. He had Abraham on the defensive behind his high guard and jerked Abraham?s head back with hooks and uppercuts. Abraham tried to land a big right late in the round but Eubank dodged them with ease.
Score 10-9 Eubank 118-110
Official scores: 118-110, 118-110 and 120-108
Biggest career win so far for Eubank and a fairly easy one at that. His speed and movement nullified Abraham?s attempts to walk him down. The 27-year-old IBO champion not only retained his title but also moved on to the lucrative quarter-finals of the World Boxing Super Series where he will face the unbeaten, tough Turk Avni Yildirim with the winner to face either George Groves or Jaime Cox. At 37 it might be the end for ?King Arthur? although that has been said before. He needed two trips to make the weight and that must have taken something out of him. He has an economic style and is strong so he might decide to continue although his long time coach said the he though Abraham should retire as he no longer had the heart for fighting. This was Abraham?s 22nd world title fight and he is now 5-2 against British opponents with the other loss being to Carl Froch.
Selby vs. Barros
Selby settles business with Barros as he easily outpoints the Argentinian as revenge for missing his big night in Las Vegas which fell apart due to Barros? medical papers not being in order. Selby took charge from the start with his clever boxing and strong jab he was too quick for the Argentinian. In the second Selby continued his attacks with Barros spending time trapped on the ropes as Selby went for body punches. Whilst winning Selby did not seem as dominant as expected and Barros proved a strong opponent who took a good punch, landed some good shots of his own and had patches of success that saw him take a round here and there. A clash of heads opened a cut over the right eye of Selby but it never became a factor in the fight. Selby continued to pocket the rounds but was never able to badly shake Barros who put on some pressure over the late rounds. Selby?s far superior skills meant that Barros was never really in the fight with a chance. Selby had been looking to land a big left hook throughout the fight and he finally found the target with it in the last round and put Barros down. The challenger made it to his feet and to the bell without further scares. Scores 117-110 twice and 119-108 all for Selby. The Welshman had tragically lost his mother to cancer just a few days before the fight but had decided to go through with the match. This is only his second fight in 15 months and he was making the third defence of his IBF title. Beating his No 1 contender gives Selby some room for a voluntary defence and with the IBF ratings including Scott Quigg at No 2, Carl Frampton who attended this fight at No 3 and Josh Warrington at No 5 there is every chance of a big all-British match down the line. Barros, a former holder of the secondary WBA title, had won his last seven fights and owed his No 1 to a victory by split decision over rated Japanese fighter Satoshi Hosono in October 2016.
Syrowatka vs. Davies
Syrowatka gets last round victory over Davies in an exciting scrap. Syrowatka made a good start taking the fight to Davies in the first scoring with some strong rights. Davies landed a few of his own late in the round and had a good second as he boxed tidily and switching stances. By the third Syrowatka was already showing puffiness around his eyes as Davies looked to take control of the fight. Syrowatka showed his power with a hard left in the fourth but an even better left from Davies in the fifth looked to have Syrowatka hurt. They traded punches in the sixth with Davies getting the better of the exchanges but he emerged with a cut over his left eye. Davies continued to force the fight in the seventh and eighth and in the ninth a left from Davies knocked Syrowatka off balance and as his gloves touched the floor it was rightly ruled a knockdown. A gruelling tenth saw two tired fighters still exchanging heavy punches but late in the eleventh Syrowatka got through with a series of head punches. The Pole came out firing in the last and floored Davies with a heavy right. Davies only just made it to his feet before the ten was reached but he was very badly shaken. The fight could have been stopped then and after a series of punches from Syrowatka the referee did stop the fight just as the towel came in from Davies corner. Davies was taken from the ring on a stretcher and taken to hospital as a precaution but recovered to assure his fans he was OK. Big win for Syrowatka in his first fight outside Poland as a pro. He lifts the WBA Continental title and with Davies rated No 4 by that body it will also get him a high world rating. The 29-year-old is a former Polish amateur champion. He was stopped in four rounds by former European champion Rafal Jackiewicz in 2015 but outpointed Jackiewicz in a return last year. Davies, 27, was in front 106-102 on two cards and 106-103 on the third before the finish. At 27, he is young enough to come again.
Galahad vs. Cayetano
Galahad impresses as he outclasses Mexican Cayetano. The speed and skills of Galahad were just too much for the limited Cayetano to deal with. Galahad was able to score with ease with his southpaw right jab and was switching effortlessly to head and body. Cayetano was always a step behind but kept rolling forward into heavy counters. The Mexican had some minor success with rights of his own even switching to southpaw to see if that would alter the flow of the fight but Galahad was still in control. Galahad landed a great right/left combination in the fourth but after a couple of warnings lost a point in the fifth for another low blow. Cayetano did a bit better in the sixth but Galahad was soon back slotting home his jabs and firing home hurtful lefts. Cayetano was signalling Galahad to bring it on in the seventh which he did. He pounded Cayetano throughout the eighth and ninth and was unloading on the Mexican in the tenth as the referee stepped into stop the fight. The 27-year-old former unbeaten British, European and Commonwealth champion collects the vacant IBF Inter-Continental as he climbs back into contention after his ban,. He is No 10 with the IBF and will be hoping to get in the mix with Lee Selby, Carl Frampton Scott Quigg and Josh Warrington. Cayetano won his first 19 fights but as the quality of opposition has gone up he has gone down being 5-5 in his last 10 fights. In there is a good win over Felipe Orucuta , a loss on points against Leo Santa Cruz and a ninth round stoppage against Scott Quigg.
Ward vs. Cacace
Ward gets narrow unanimous decision over Cacace. The styles did not mix well but it was a close, hard fought contest all the way. Both fighters were cautious over the first two rounds. Cacace choose to start out fighting southpaw as usual but changed around during the fight. Ward was the busier fighter early getting in landing short punches and out again with Cacace not throwing as much mainly looking to land strongly with his left. The rounds continued to be close with neither boxer really committing himself. Cacace was switching guard in the sixth a round in which a punch opened a cut above the left eye of Ward. Ward?s higher work rate had him in the lead but Cacace seemed the fresher and the Belfast fighter looked to have pulled level by the end of the ninth but Ward outscored Cacace in the tenth. The last two rounds saw some very scrappy action with neither man landing enough clean punches to clearly take the rounds and in the end the judges decided that Ward had done enough to merit the decision. Scores 116-113, 116-114 and 115-114 all for Ward. Leeds-born Ward, 26, is a member of the Travelling community which is enjoying considerable success right now through the Fury brothers and Billy Joe Saunders. This was Wards third defence of his British title which means he has a Lonsdale belt to keep. He also won the vacant Commonwealth title and he also keeps that belt so he now has two of the most beautiful belts in boxing for his trophy collection. He is No 2 with the EBU so adding an EBU belt could be his next target. Cacace thought he had done enough to win this one and you can be sure he will press for a return or go for another title.
Wojcicki vs. Sharp
Wojcicki made sure that Germany had one winner on the night as he outpointed clever survivalist Sharp. The 25-year-old from Wolfsburg is one of the best prospects in Germany. As an amateur the Volkswagen toolmaker was German champion in 2009/2010 and 2011 and represented Germany at the 2012 Olympics. After the Olympics he went over the kickboxing and won the German title and was victorious at the World Cup. No names on his record yet and he is being built at a sensible pace. Sharp keeps his record of never losing by KO/TKO.
Click here for Part II.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Eric Armit.
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