ESPN2: Óscar Rafael Valdez Fierro vs. Scott Quigg & Erick De León vs. Andy Vences RBR

Round 4

De León is leaping away from the 1-2 downstairs, a diversion from Vences, elevating the right hand and throwing it as a lead punch while De León is still airborne, just before he lands. Vences able to be first with the jab after making De León watch the birdie with some fake-out ramping lefts and then stabbing him in the underside of the right arm when De León tries his own. Vences repositioning and landing the jab from a side angle, usually from a partial crouch.

10-9 Vences

39-37 Vences

 

Round 5

De León is starting to double his right jab. Game changer. Landing it very effectively now. Left hands behind it. Vences is flinching away from De León's southpaw 1-1-2 and cricking his neck just so in rhythmic jerks, to keep the head a liquid asset, slipping almost everything from his opponent. Vences reaching under the double jab to poke the body with his right hand, making a counter-adjustment.

10-9 Vences, close

49-46 Vences

 

EDL seems like a good fighter, just getting out-brained tonight by what otherwise might be an evenly matched foe whose ring IQ edges his.

 

Round 6

De León is chasing, earmuffs on, letting Vences nick the body here and there but forcing him to fly in the face of constant pressure. Vences getting blocked when he sets his feet and headhunts, briefly, with mostly jabs. De León manages to slightly rock Vences with a left hand and grins as he keeps pressing. De León is unimpressed when Vences turns southpaw himself, perhaps thinking it would perturb De León and throw him off his game. No such luck. More pressure. Vences retreats, still boxing lefty.

10-9 De León

58-56 Vences

 

Round 7

De León is lunging with left hand leads, coming straight at Vences, getting tapped on his abdomen with pinball machine paddles from Vences with both hands before slinking out in a low crouch and quickly breaking into lateral movement. Vences lures De León into the corner repeatedly and dodges his 1-2s and lefts by snap-pivoting while rushing out, flashing both hands up high and then working the body as De León follows. Right hook by De León, catching Vences as he gets overconfident spiraling in too close moving to his own left (directly into the strike zone for that secondary - yet potent nonetheless - power shot). Another lands for De León.

10-9 Vences, close, almost stolen.

68-65 Vences

 

Round 8

De León is controlling the distance and pace now, forcing Vences to back straight up with the yo-yo jab and then springing his trap with either the left hand lead or right hook depending on which direction Vences chooses to circle. Vences hurt a couple of times. De León is sticking to his game plan even as Vences turns southpaw again, reaching in with redoubled effort on the right hook and still landing it. Vences is just flashing right jabs, unable to find a way to be effective in this stance. 1-2-3 by De León, the jab & cross partially blocked and the hook banging into Vences' temple flush.

10-9 De León

77-75 Vences

 

Round 9

De León is tossing long shuriken left hand leads at the face of Vences, then punishing him with a descending right hook on the side of the head when Vences tries ducking to his left to escape. Vences is back in his orthodox stance, flipping jabs off the left hip ineffectively, stuffed between the crossed arms of De León. Jab battle now being won by De León. Nice body combo by Vences. De León is faking a left, with his right shoulder drooping and left glove telegraphing, but pulling it, waiting for Vences to react and then recalibrating his aim to throw the real left, and grazing Vences with it. De León's ring IQ might be higher than I thought.

10-9 De León

86-85 Vences

 

This is a very handy co-feature, and would be a perfectly suitable (and in fact better than average) ShoBox or ESPN2 main event on a Friday night.