the what fights did you watch today\scorecard thread.

Still a horrible robbery regardless of the official result, though.

 

Fight 68: Gavilan vs Basilio

1: 10-9
2: 8-10
3: 9-10
4: 9-10
5: 10-9
6: 9-10
7: 9-10
8: 10-9
9: 10-9
10: 10-9
11: 10-9
12: 9-10
13: 10-9
14: 10-9
15: 10-9

143-141

Basilio proved very strong in the early rounds and his over hand rights proved very problematic for Gavilan who was still trying to find success up close by jabbing his way in.

At the half way point Gavilan kept going strong and Basilio was fading and the cut was worsening. What turning point that crimson tide was.

Ultimately given the strong finish by Gavilan I don't see the controversy here, round 12 could easily have gone his way as well.

When Gavilan adjusted his offence Basilio struggled to get inside of him. It was a strange adjustment because he fought with more urgency but in a calmer manner. Strange.

Glorious display against a great opponent though. An exceptionally modern display as well how can anyone watch a WW fight today and say the sport has evolved past these times. Is there a single WW active who looks as smooth and sharp as Gavilan? Not in my opinion.

 

Fight 69: Burley vs Smith

We all know the story of this one, Burley in his prime against a bigger but overmatched LHW contender. Basically looks like a Roy Jones clone.

He dominates with footwork and handspeed and really does look untouchable. If he was this good against the better men of the day it's easy to see where the hype comes from.

I'm always cautious with Murderers Row because the height of their powers was whilst the champions where at war so it's hard to say how great they really were.

We all know timing beats speed so it's understandable why a few of the better technicians defeated Burley but he looks incredible here.

I'm not convinced he's athletic enough to stay out of range from Robinson but someone with that movement is gonna give anyone problems.

The reason I rank Jones Jr higher is because I've seen him do this to Hopkins and Toney.

 

Fight 70: Zamora vs Zarate

1: 9-10
2: 9-10
3: 8-10
4: tko

This is brutal. The only question is who took a bigger beating between Zamora and the man with the grey shorts.

Zamora is often sold short imo. He's a top 15 BW and had knocked Pedroza out as one of his defences.

Zarate just straight beat him up, he walked him down and battered him up close. He ate some flush hooks and brushed them off.

Zarate is the real deal at 118.

 

Fight 71: Rose vs Olivares

1: 9-10
2: 8-10
3: 9-10
4: 9-10
5:tko

Has anyone ever looked devastating on the back foot?

This is what Donaire tried to be like but obviously he isn't as good a fighter as Ruben.

Rose was a very respectable BW champion but here he was against a true legend of the sport. Olivares was far too quick and powerful and Rose just had no answer for him.

Utter domination.

 

Fight 72: Pep vs Saddler

I forgot how good Pep looked in this fight. He really frustrates Saddler at times and the stoppage was quite unexpected.

Saddler's biggest weakness is his hand speed, he can be timed and out boxed by someone following a strict game plan. However his relentless pressure is gonna ensure anyone has a tough night against him. His chin is raw iron and it would take a special FW to drive him back and out punch him.

He shows here he has a very long jab and a high work rate but his best punch for me is the uppercut to the stomach. Very hard to avoid due to his range.

I think he would have stopped Pep without the arm injury as there was 8 more rounds to go and Pep was working hard to stay away and those body shots were bound to take a toll.

A murderous puncher with a high work rate and a solid chin is gonna be a tough night for any 126 fighter in history.

 

Fight 73: Olivares vs Arguello

1: 10-9
2: 10-9
3: 10-9
4: 10-9
5: 9-10
6: 9-10
7: 10-9
8: 10-9
9: 10-9
10: 10-9
11: 10-9
12: 10-9
13: tko

For those who don't believe any smaller HW fighters could have success today, watch this fight. Look how Olivares uses his speed advantage to nullify the 5 inch gap in height and reach.

This is actually a schooling but even against a legend like Ruben, Alexis only needs one punch.

The first half of the fight sees Alexis stalk forward and get totally out boxed aside from rounds 5 and 6 when he has some success.

Round 7 onwards sees Olivares back Alexis up and gain in confidence. He is going in for the finish when Alexis lands that peach of a left hook.

From there it's a case of throwing shots until he drops again, which he did after a huge right uppercut.

Great fight.

 

Scored this one about a year ago. This is what I wrote:

Ruben Olivares vs. Alexis Arguello through 12 rounds, California scoring of one point for a winning round and none for an even round.

Round 1: Even
Round 2: Arguello
Round 3: Olivares
Round 4: Olivares
Round 5: Arguello
Round 6: Even
Round 7: Olivares
Round 8: Olivares
Round 9: Olivares
Round 10: Olivares
Round 11: Olivares
Round 12: Olivares
Round 13: KO for Arguello

Total: 8-2 Olivares through 12 completed rounds

Quite amazing the way Olivares at 5'5" put the hurt on the 5'10" Arguello. Of course, it's the way I saw it, but I would like to hear from others on this one.

 

Scored the first Julio Caesar Chavez-Frankie Randall fight today. Here we go, 10 point must system in effect.

Round 1: 10-9 Randall
Round 2: 10-9 Randall
Round 3: 10-9 Randall
Round 4: 10-9 Chavez
Round 5: 10-9 Chavez
Round 6: 10-9 Chavez
Round 7: 10-9 Randall (scored it an even round but Chavez lost a point for a low-blow)
Round 8: 10-9 Randall
Round 9: 10-10 Even
Round 10: 10-9 Chavez
Round 11: 10-7 Randall (Randall scores a knockdown and Chavez loses a point for another low-blow)
Round 12: 10-9 Chavez

Total: 115-112 Randall

Can't believe one of the judges tried to steal this from Randall, but it's par for the course in boxing.

 

It was incredible how overcame a 5 inch deficit and battered him from range and up close.

The left hook that dropped Olivares was a peach, just as good as Walcott against Charles

 

Fight 74: Canto vs Gonzalez

Canto vs Gonzalez

1: 10-9
2: 10-9
3: 10-9
4: 10-9
5: 9-10
6: 10-9
7: 10-9
8: 10-9
9: 9-10
10: 10-9
11: 10-9
12: 10-9
13: 9-10
14: 10-9
15: 10-9

147 - 138

Canto is a fighter that has really grown on me since I first saw him.

I used to consider relatively poor on the eye test but every time I way him I see something new to the point now where I consider him one of the most complete fighters in history.

Awesome performance by one of the true greats of the division.

 

Fight 75: Rosario vs Chavez

1: 9-10
2: 9-10
3: 9-10
4: 9-10
5: 9-10
6: 9-10
7: 9-10
8: 9-10
9: 9-10
10: 9-10
11: tko

This is a fantastic performance that sees Rosario try to be the aggressor.

I say try because Chavez was just too strong and too relentless and kept pushing Edwin back to the ropes.

There weren't many outside exchanges but Chavez did show patience with his work, he clearly respected the power of Rosario as his head movement was really on point.

The stoppage was inevitable by the time it got to the 11th.

He was an absolute legend though was JCC he actually resides outside my top 5 at LW but that's only because the division is ridiculously stacked.

 

Fight 76: Hopkins vs Trinidad

1: 10-9
2: 10-9
3: 10-9
4: 10-9
5: 10-9
6: 9-10
7: 10-9
8: 10-9
9: 10-9
10: 10-9
11: 10-9
12: tko

This was a proper domination. One of the best displays of footwork and timing I've ever seen.

I'm not really sure who had the quicker hands but Hopkins was able to constantly beat him to the punch, but then used his strength to follow through.

That straight right hand of Hopkins is a beautiful punch though and he really couldn't miss with it.

Tito is a great fighter and had trounced Joppy just prior to this.

It's not too hard to imagine this man out boxing any aggressive MW in history. What a masterclass.

 

Lionel Rose W15 Alan Rudkin

This is my first look at Rudkin, I'm embarrassed to admit, and I like what I see. He's exceptionally tough and throws quick, jolting punches in combination as and is not shy about mixing it up. Good conditioning too.

Rose starts off beautifully, scorching Rudkin early with left hooks and hard jabs that snap the Englishman's head back. His shots are crisp and hard enough for Rudkin to respect them and not just wade in, even if he isn't overtly hurt.

In the third or maybe it was the fourth, Rose scores with a snapping right that draws blood from Rudkin's left eye. He is undeterred however, and continues his battle of incremental pressure, never really swarming Rose and perhaps allowing him too much room in the early going, but he's getting closer and closer, and trying to counter with rights to the body here, and left hooks to the head there, most of which miss but he's making Rose cautious anyhow.

Rose breezes through five, and then the sir seems to go out of his balloon starting about round six. He seems more labored, the punches are fewer and he's allowing Rudkin into the fight. Rudkin isn't crushing Rose in the next four rounds, but his activity level allows him to steal some points when he needs them most. After ten I have this really close, at 5-4-1 in rounds.

Then Rose proves what champions are made of by throwing more and deciding to fight his way out of the mess he's suddenly in. His sharp punching takes the 11th through the 13th, and he's back in command.

But wait..........Rudkin has other ideas and finally, in the 14th, makes the fight messy which to my eyes he should have been doing earlier. Granted, it's easy enough to say that from the comfort of my chair here, but he's regained momentum over the now badly wilting Rose (see what I did there?). He sweeps the last two to make this an interesting fight indeed. Here's my card......

Rose: 1,2,3,4,5,11,12,13
Rudkin: 6,7,8,9,14,15
Even: 10

144-142 Rose

 

Fight 77: McFarland vs Welsh

Packey looks much better here than he does against Gibbons imo.

He has a good control of range, excellent footwork and quality timing.

Easy to see why he was such a revelation in his time as even today he passes the eye test.

I'd say he is still a top ten LW even with the modern era accounted for but I couldn't pick him to out box Carlos Ortiz.

I do think he's above DeJesus though.