Nobuhiro Ishida vs. Rigoberto Alvarez: WBA 154 title RBR

Victor Terrazas just scored a 6th round TKO in a co-featured Mexico vs. Japan match-up.

The main event should be up next.

 

Felix Sturm fought a nihon-jin two defenses ago.

 

Round 1

Alvarez is ducking awkwardly and throwing lots of lumbering uppercuts. Ishida is floating around him in little waves from one side to the other, jabbing him mercilessly. Pattern holds and repeats. Alvarez takes a 2-3-2 on the chin very well.

Ishida 10-9

 

Round 2

El Espanola sticking with the sort of pawing, pushing right jab as he ducks down to set up his weapon of choice: the left uppercut from the shoe-tying position. Ishida is eating this style up, hooking and jabbing around that lazy lead and brazenly circling to his own right (into the path of the left hand of Alvarez).

20-18 Ishida

 

It's hard to say, since he's bald. :yep

If there is a close-up of him on the stool during a break, his eyebrows will be examined. :good

 

Round 3

Ishida is clowning a bit now, holding his hands low and grinning ear to ear. Alvarez clubs him with a few lefts that get the crowd's blood pumping and some chants building into a furor. It gets a bit ugly as Ishida adopts a bit of jab-and-grab to offset the newly aggressive mindset of Alvarez. Again, some punches glance and the Mexicans go plum loco. To be fair, Alvarez is landing better this round, as Ishida isn't complementing the jab-and-grab with much else and isn't landing all of his jabs. They get into a bit of a wild exchange at the bell.

29-28 Ishida

 

Round 4

Alvarez nearly throws his back out thrusting out the right jab to the body more forcefully, but it is no less slow and telegraphed. Alvarez is really gunning for Ishida now, keeping the pressure on with the straight left cross behind the jab and keeping his eyes trained on the prize of Ishida's mandible. Ishida plays the outboxer role but is giving up many counter opportunities, offering only feeble and non-serious right leads when he runs around to get an angle with Alvarez nowhere near squared up on him. Alvarez is catching him with some long reaching punches, including a nice right hook that develops a mean curve at nearly full extension and detours right into Ishida's cheek.

Even through 4.

 

Round 5

Ishida unloads a litany of hacking jabs interspersed with right leads, trying to snuff any feigned or intended movement of Alvarez by throwing by reflex at the first sign of life. Alvarez lets him get away with that for about a minute and then starts wailing with the hard but avoidable southpaw 1-2.

I gotta go Ishida on activity, although he didn't land all that much and an even or Alvarez round on someone else's card wouldn't really incite me to argue.

48-47 Ishida

 

Round 6

Ishida clowning again, wiggling his shoulders and leaving his head exposed. He backs it up a bit by literally boxing circles around Alvarez with his jab, but it's getting a bit stale. Yes, Nobuhiro - we all know Rigoberto is slow. It isn't difficult to look quick against him. How about you focus on not getting KTFO in a stupid moment?

Alvarez is literally falling forward with every straight left he throws (and the term "straight" is generously applied here). Ishida slips several wild punches and literally sprints to a neutral corner after leaving Alvarez chopping air in the opposite one.

58-56 Ishida

 

Round 7

Alvarez commiserates with his old friend, the combination of a right jab and a left uppercut to the body. It scores, and the crowd eggs him on. Ishida doesn't seem too bothered, and keeps annoying Alvarez with his light shower of jabs and quick stutter-step out of the pocket. There's the left hand knockdown Alvarez has been looking for!!! Ishida looks shocked more than hurt (like "How the hell did that happen?"). Alvarez is composed and stalks Ishida with his right jab looking to set up another big left but it doesn't come before the end of the round.

10-8 Alvarez

66-66

 

Round 8

Alvarez throws monster hooks to the body, almost doing unintentional acrobatics each time. Ishida takes evasive action and doesn't risk anything to leave himself open beyond a long jab while moving backward. Alvarez finally slows down and tries to tighten his punching up a bit. He might be a little punched out, and Ishida certainly thinks so as he dares a few quick steps forward to throw stiffer jabs and even an odd 1-2. Alvarez is throwing arm punches now - yeah, he blew his wad this round. Ishida might have Alvarez hurt! He tags him repeatedly with straight right hands while spinning his head on its axis to avoid the tired swings of Alvarez.

10-9 and 76-75 Ishida

 

Round 9

Ishida is leaving his jab hanging out for an extra second or two and Alvarez is trying lamely to deflect it but just can't channel any snap into his arms. Ishida is starting to target the right eye socket of Alvarez with his increasingly assertive jab. Ishida looks very relaxed and is not quite clowning but clearly settling into a comfortable groove, with his hands coming down a bit and his posture slack. His face is all business, though - unlike when he was monkeying about earlier. Alvarez just looks miserable trying to will extra strength into the muscles of his limbs and not finding it in the reserves.

10-9 and 86-84 Ishida