the what fights did you watch today\scorecard thread.

Cornelius Boza-Edwards vs Terrence Ali


For 9 rounds this is FOTY level action, but Ali runs and does not engage in 10, blowing perhaps (on my card he blew it!) a chance to win this fight. 1 judge had Boza by 4 (commentary agreed but not me) another Ali by 1 the 3rd even. To me the draw was the fair decision but Ali didn’t give himself the chance in the 10th! Epic slugfest for 9 rounds makes this a classic! Boza was mr. excitement!

1 Boza
2 Boza
3 Ali
4 Boza
5 Ali
6 Ali
7 Ali
8 Boza
9 Ali
10 Boza by default

95-95 draw on my card!

 

Julio Cesar Chavez vs. Terrence Alli


Well, I didn’t like the way Ali ran in round 10 vs Boza but I got to give him props for standing, trading and taking a beating from Chavez.

Like many Chavez opponents Ali rips Chavez before the fight saying he was no good and only his poor opposition makes him look that way....until they get in the ring.

I know Ali likes to storm out of his corner and engage immediately....but I am not sure why charging into Chavez seems like the smartest plan for anyone. Round 2 he learned his lesson it seemed...but round 3 he is back at it.

Ali was game and gave it his all, it just wasn’t enough. He has sequences every round where he does well in a few spots but he also has a few moments in each round where he is stunned and hurt by the power of Chavez. Rounds 3-4-5 he fights real hard, only to absorb more punishment than he can dole out. Round 5 he seemed like he might nip a close round but Chavez rally’s hard and takes it as Ali seems stunned again.

I never liked Carlos Padilla and still don’t! Chavez blitzes out in 6 and drops Ali. Terrence gets back up only to have Chavez pounce. Ali is hurt but still throwing when Padilla waves it off. Now I don’t know if Ali would survive that round and almost definitely not the entire fight...but the stoppage seemed premature.

50-45 Chavez at time of stoppage!

 

Cornelius Boza-Edwards vs Rolando Navarrete


Revisiting 2 of my childhood favorites! Not quite as action packed as they are known for but a decent fight nonetheless.

Boza starts slow as normal, but this time he is in with a dangerous puncher who rocks him twice in the first. Navarrete keeps the pressure on in round 2 and stuns Boza again, who does not seem to get into the fight until the end of 2. Both guys have cuts Boza over his left eye and Navarrete over his right (not sure how it happened?) Round 3 Boza is fully engaged and now he rocks Navarrete, and makes this a close fight. Boza’s eye is worse and I thought they might stop it. Navarrete turns up the pressure dropping Boza twice to take a commanding lead on the cards. Again I thought before 5 they would stop it on Boza’s cut...but they let him go, but no matter Navarrete catches him clean and it is all over!

 

Philly, you've been busy. These are great cards. Have you checked out the Boza-Edwards v Roberto Elizondo fight? If not, get ready for 10 of the most action-packed rounds you'll see in awhile.

 

I have it on tap for the next week or 3. Had the day off and the wife and kids were out so I sat down with like 10 or so today.

 

Danny Romero Jr vs Elidio Dominguez


Continuing to explore some Romero here 2 years into his career entering his 15th fight, against unknown (to me) Elidio Dominguez 10-8, but a step up in talent from some of Danny’s previous fights.

First since Dominguez will never have a thread discussion about him I want to give him some props for his toughness and fighting heart. Guys like this help keep our sport great!

Elidio surprises and stifles Danny early. Elidio may lack power but he shows quality skill and speed beating Danny to the punch and working the body real well. Takes the first round.

round 2 Elidio continues to stymie Danny who does not find a groove till halfway through 2. Dominguez continues to box and move, working combos to the body real well. Romero drives him to the ropes and settled into his range and unloads, but again Dominguez shows adeptness with his back to the ropes and counters great. I think Danny took this round but it was close enough to go to Elidio.

round 3 Same for a minute, but this time when Danny puns him to the ropes Dominguez can’t deter him, the blows come and down goes Dominguez.

Danny still needs some more polishing, to work on some defensive flaws and lapses in concentration. Even offensively as skilled and powerful as he can be Dominguez showed how an offensive attack to the body and counter punching can limit his effectiveness.

interested to watch how Danny progressed since I missed most of his career as it unfolded.

 

Danny Romero Jr vs Javier Cintron


Man I hate terms like “bum” and “tomato can” etc. Guys like Cintron who have a warrior spirit. Guys who have to know they are being used as a stepping stone in another fighters career yet still go out and fight and fight and fight even when the deck and the odds are stacked against them.

for 5 1/2 minutes these guys go back and forth with Cintron pushing Danny hard. Danny and his power take over in the final 30 rocking Cintron. But in 3 Cintron is back with him for half the round before he is just overwhelmed! Danny shows some patient finishing skills and the KO is brutal.

Romero in his 23rd fight 3 years into his career seems close to entering his prime. His defensive deficiencies are improved, he is not careless or reckless like 2 years earlier. He is fun and skilled to watch.

 

Alfonso Zamora vs Shinataro Uchiyama

Looking at some Zamora now in regards to a hypothetical h2h against Danny Romero. Zamora in just his 16th fight a year and a half into his pro career looks more polished and more of a finished/complete product than Romero but neither guy has gone against world level comp yet, but this is a stiffer test than Danny had faced at a similar point.

a couple of things stand out but I am still going to watch more of both guys. Romero and Zamora both have top shelf power but I get the sense that Romero throws consistently harder shots throughout. Zamora moves really well and has better upper body movement and foot speed, yet Romero has better balance and foot placement. Both guys are pre prime and both have a tendency to miss with wild punches and get out of position or off balance but did not face competition that could take advantage of it, hopefully both of them improve there. Romero has better and tighter defense although he can get careless with it from time to time, where Zamora is quicker with better reflexes relying on his speed to get in and out of danger rather than picking of shots. Zamora has much better punch output and variety of punches at this stage as well. Starting to form a pick and reason, but not ready to share it just yet. Romero vs Zamora is an intriguing h2h in my mind.

here Zamora is a late replacement for Zarate and he is up to the challenge. Uchiyama is no pushover and holds his own for 3 rounds up till the final 30 seconds of 3 where Zamoras power and skill stun him. In 4 Zamora is brilliant and drops Uchiyama twice not sure how he got up from either one of them. In 5 Uchiyama battles back but Zamora is just another level and drops him again before the bell.
Zamora stops him in 6 in a pretty fun fight.

I gave Zamora 1-3-4-5 (4 a 10-7and 5 a 10-8) and Uchiyama the 2nd round.

 

Froch vs Kessler 2.

Totally forgot there was some really intense action, particularly rounds 5 & 7. When I watched it live I had it close. But watching it years later Froch rocked Kessler more than a few times throughout the entire fight.

Some Judge named Toupin was the only one who had it close 115-113.

I had Froch winning 1st fight by a round, but no argument from me. 2nd fight maybe 8 rounds to 4 or 7-4- 1 even. Great stuff from Kess but he was just outhustled a bit in every round.

Side note- Kessler is one of those boxers who has good technique, fundamentals down, but couldn't reign. From Calzaghe to Froch, they are more unorthodox, yet they both beat a better boxer.

 

Danny Romero Jr vs Hipolito Saucedo

What a fun hard hitting fight this was, a little bit dirty with some fouling from both guys. I wonder how good saucedo could have been with better management and dedication to boxing. It’s hard when you step away for 7 years because you make more money laying carpet than boxing. For 7 rounds this is a hard hitting chess match with saucedo holding his own and showing solid infighting skills and a strong body attack. Romero lands a huge low blow in 7 and saucedo while still game never seemed to be a threat from that stage on. Danny loses a point in 3 and 7 for hitting while saucedo was down and hitting after the bell.

1 Romero
2 Saucedo
3 Romero 9-8
4 Saucedo
5 Romero
6 Romero
7 Romero 9-9
8 Romero
9 Romero
10 Romero
11 Romero 10-8

Romero 106-99 before stopping Saucedo in 12! A very fun fight worth the watch

 

Carlos Zarate vs Alfonso Zamora


A great fight that was not quite as exciting as I remembered it. Both guys start cautious until underwear man crashes the party before the police can dispose of him. Zamora rocks Zarate twice in the remainder of the round. Zarate is a brilliant boxer and counterpuncher and begins to sway control of the fight in his direction as he takes a close 2nd. Zarate is so accurate and patient and puts on a clinic dropping Zamora towards the end of 3. Zarate back on him in 4 and it’s all over,

 

Wilfredo Gomez vs Carlos Zarate


Man Bazooka is sooooo gooood!!!!! So smooth and switches seemlessy between a moving defensive counter puncher to a devastating stalking boxer puncher.

Zarate has some sequences but Gomez movement and defense minimized the impact of Zarate, and then he would pounce. By the 4th the aggression of Zarate plays right into Gomez who delivers a perfect right overtop of the jab....down goes Zarate again at the end of the round. In 5 a ferocious Gomez assault and in comes the towel. It’s all over!

 

George Foreman vs. Ron Lyle


I guess this was exciting as far as HW goes? All in all the skill level is low to me and the conditioning/stamina deplorable as by the 4th round both guys struggled to be able to raise their arms high enough past their waist that there was NO defense at all, both guys are holding on to the ropes to stand up, Modern HW’s seem to get ripped for lack of skill and conditioning...can you imagine how Wilder would get ripped for being unskilled if he ran out in 1 missed with a wild windmill and ran into the turnbuckle like Lyle...or if they could not block a punch after 3-4 rounds. Decent fight all in all, but not sure I find this great like most do,

1 Lyle
2 Foreman
3 Foreman
4 Lyle 10-9
Many might go 10-8 or 5-3 using scoring of the fight, I had Foreman just ahead when Lyle dropped him the 2nd tine, so went 5-4 instead of 5-3.

Full of drama/suspense? Yes
Exciting? Perhaps
Great? Nah

 

Sonny Liston vs Cleveland Williams I


I will likely never get overly excited about HW boxing but in contrast to the beloved Foreman/Lyle fight above, this is a much better fight IMO! The skill level is much higher, both guys exhibit a decent defense rather than just using their face to block punches. The punch variety and output is also at a much more skilled level. This is short but enjoyable for me.

1 Williams
2 Liston
3 Liston by KO!

 

Sonny Liston vs Cleveland Williams II


Once again this trumps the first encounter for me and round 2 delivers more skill and action than the entire Foreman vs Lyle fight. Round 2 is pretty fun and to me as enjoyable as a HW fight gets.