Fox Sports 1: Jermell Charlo vs. Jose Rodriguez & Errol Spence vs. Emanuel Lartey RBR

"He tried giving away that round to you like a freebie but you still lost it. You need a damn knockout..."

Damn, ELL's coach is harsh. :-(

The man just scored really nicely, maybe a little positive reinforcement and tell him to build on what he did right?

 

Round 4

Spence is pushing Lartey into the ropes and digging hard right and left hooks under the elbows, landing with loud dull thuds. Lartey is twisting against the ropes, countering with right jabs on Spence's forehead and trying to push his way free. Solid left hand by Lartey but Spence rolls with it doing a half-turn and popping his shoulder up. Lartey is getting sliced with hard body shots underneath his guard. Spence is aiming perfectly, keeping everything clearly in the scoring area with nothing even bordering on a low blow. Lartey begins to answer back with left uppercuts to Spence's rib cage but his shots are fewer and further between and not as authoritative. Spence spins off the ropes, turning Lartey and making him miss a slow left uppercut.

10-9 Spence

40-36 Spence

 

Spence is making some mistakes, but for a guy who came in with only 25 minutes of professional experience heading in tonight, few enough to not distract from how impressive many facets of his game are looking already.

 

Round 5

Spence is jabbing in and exchanging straight lefts with Lartey. Both are landing cleanly and collapsing into tie-ups, quickly broken up. Lartey is backing up and jabbing the body as Spence walks forward and bops him over the ear with a long right hook. Lartey is held against the ropes and hooked twice in the face while shelling up, securing a previously somewhat close round for Spence.

10-9 Spence

50-45 Spence

 

Stats through five:

Spence 95 of 358, 27%

Lartey 78 of 289, 27%

 

Round 6

Spence is taking the bait as Lartey inches toward the ropes, then drops and jabs Spence in the body as he moves in to trap him. Lartey then ducks out the side door and leaves a left hand to the head as a parting gift. Nice left uppercut to the body by Lartey, continually working off the ropes as Spence jogs in and out and misses his 1-2. Lartey is caught by a left cross lackadaisically sagging back into the ropes but misjudging the distance without seeing them. Hard left hand, right hook by Spence. Another left hand. Lartey is hurt and pushed into a corner. Big flurry by Spence. Lartey drops his arms in a gorilla shimmy when Spence backs out, showboating and playing it cool. Lartey backs up and jabs into the air. Spence moves in, slipping jabs with exaggerated leans and sways, held rigid from the waist up with his spine, neck and arms unmoving. Swooping lefts to the body by Spence coming in under Lartey's jab. This round has gone an extra 45 seconds to a minute long. The timekeeper wasn't paying attention.

10-9 Spence

60-54 Spence

 

All four minutes of it. :yep Lartey still had some moments. He definitely isn't here to lose.

 

Round 7

Spence is curling his back and tucking his chin to potato-bug his way under Lartey's jab while still coming forward. Big flurries to body and head by Spence. Lartey is driven into a corner as Spence punches nonstop. A lot of them are merely arm punches, especially the shoeshines and right hooks downstairs, but Spence is mixing in some hard straight lefts between the gloves. Lartey is hurt. Lartey creeps out along one set of ropes and squats to jab Spence's belly as he comes forward. Long looping right to the body by Lartey while circling away. Spence comes in with a 1-2 and ducks to decline his receipt, but gets cuffed with a right hook. Solid shot by Lartey just before the bell.

10-9 Spence

70-63 Spence

 

Pipes! :hi: What's flowing, man?

 

Round 8

HARD body shots by Lartey, aggressive throughout the first minute. Spence is forced on the back foot, dipping and swaying to dodge head shots but with lots of punishment shipped downstairs as he gets physically rag-dolled by the strong Ghanaian. Spence is doing nothing but move and hold as Lartey drops bombs all over his body. Now Lartey brings the shots up top in the final minute, gunning for the quick KO looking for a short return on his two minutes' worth of investment. Honestly from a strategic point of view it's the best thing Lartey could have tried for in the eighth...but alas, Spence is clever and tough enough to make it until the final bell.

10-9 Lartey

79-73 Spence

 

Final stats:

Spence 186 of 630, 30%

Lartey 137 of 498, 28%