Posts Tagged ‘KO’

[Video] Vic Darchinyan Brutalizes Javier Gallo in Top Rank Debut

Posted: May 12, 2013 in Fight Reports
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LAREDO, TX — 37-year-old Vic Darchinyan overcame a few hiccups to re-establish his concussive power at super bantamweight via a multiple knockdown, fourth round TKO win over Javier Gallo last night at the Uni-Trade Stadium.

Darchinyan used much of the first round letting Gallo take the lead and walking him into corkscrew left uppercuts. Darchinyan mixed in his quick straight left at times, but was caught and wobbled late in the round off a counter overhand right.

The danger woke up Darchinyan, who came out blazing in the second round and promptly dropped Gallo with a jarring left cross. Darchinyan would keep his power punches straight and use the shot to drop Gallo twice more in the round. Gallo attempted to rebound by overwhelming his tormentor with volume, but Darchinyan’s power edge coupled with his accuracy only brought more significant punishment on Gallo in the third.

The fourth round saw Darchinyan wipe out Gallo once more with a left cross, prompting the referee to call off the bout sans a ten count.

With the win, Darchinyan is now ranked #1 by the WBO and #2 by the WBC, making him the prime candidate to challenge Top Rank stablemate Guillermo Rigondeaux, who holds both titles.

On the undercard opener, former Olympian Oscar Valdez upped his undefeated record to 5-0 (3 KOs) with an easy first round TKO over Rocco Espinoza. Valdez dominated Espinoza with his power, scoring two knockdowns apiece with left and right hooks to get the stoppage with just seconds remaining in the opening round.

The entire card is available below.

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Vic Darchinyan has been one of my favorite fighters since about 2006. It’s amazing he’s still trucking along at 37 years old (absolutely ancient for a lower weight class fighter). I was surprised when looking over his record to see this was his first knockout since 2009. Ever since leaving the super flyweight division (where he made history unifying the titles), his power has ebbed with the climb to bantamweight and super bantam. And even with the decline, he’s remained competitive against the very best (Abner Mares, Anselmo Moreno, Joseph Agbeko).

Still, Darchinyan has not posted a victory over a top name since his technical division win over Yonnhy Perez in 2011. The win over prospect Luis Orlando Del Valle last September was a good start. He’ll get the ultimate chance soon as he’ll likely face Rigondeaux. I can only see that ending with Darchinyan looking at the lights, but he won’t lay back and let Rigo just potshot him all night. Vic will go for it and bow out on his shield.

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[Video] 70 Seconds: Deontay Wilder Bombs Out Audley Harrison

Posted: April 27, 2013 in Fight Reports
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SHEFFIELD, United Kingdom — Deontay Wilder needed just 55 seconds to dispatch Audley Harrison before his countrymen at the Motorpoint Arena earlier this afternoon.

Harrison was put in trouble by the only solid punch of the fight, a Wilder counter right. With Harrison hurt and trapped in a corner, Wilder swung wild haymakers until Harrison crumpled to the canvas. Although Harrison beat the count, the ref quickly waved it off.

Wilder’s perfect KO record remain in tact with all of his 28 wins coming inside the distance.

The first round KO mirrors the result of Harrison’s last significant fight. Last year, David Price also defeated Harrison via first round knockout.

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What took you so long, Deontay! Seriously, Harrison is just cannon fodder at this point for any decent fighter. In the above pic, the look on the ref’s face seems to say “get the hell out of the ring with this nonsense.” Check out the full fight below and see what I mean.

[Video] Too Big, Too Strong — Tyson Fury KO7 Steve Cunningham

Posted: April 20, 2013 in Fight Reports
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NEW YORK CITY, NY — Tyson Fury rose from a massive second round knockdown in his American debut to overpower and knock out Steve Cunningham yesterday afternoon at Madison Square Garden.

There had been a lot of jawing back and forth between these fighters and Fury continued it during the opening bell by mocking Cunningham’s jab. That disdain was quickly wiped off Fury’s face in the second when Cunningham took full advantage of a low guard and dropped Fury flat on his back with an overhand right  (think the first Marquez knockdown on Pacquiao in their fourth fight). Fury took time to collect himself and while he tied up Cunningham effectively, Fury remained buzzed for the rest of the round.

Realizing the peril with continuing to box with a faster opponent, Fury smartly changed the contest to an inside fight. He utilized his massive 6’9 frame and 40 pound weight advantage to manhandle Cunningham in clinches. In addition, Fury landed short, hard hooks and uppercuts during these inside exchanges that began taking effect within a few rounds.

It would be a right uppercut while Cunningham was trapped on the ropes that badly stunned him in the seventh. Fury kept him on the ropes and used his left forearm to hold Cunningham’s head in place to smash home a crushing right hook. Cunningham toppled backwards onto the canvas and couldn’t beat the ten-count.

The win was an IBF eliminator, putting Fury in line to face champion Wladimir Klitschko.

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It was really cool to have this fight going on in the Garden at the same time the Knicks were beginning their playoff race in the main building. Fury brought out a good crowd and handled business. That knockdown was strictly due to his arrogance and lack of respect for Cunningham. But to Fury’s credit, he adapted and started using his physical advantages. It was a nasty KO and reminds me of what you’d see someone do in a street fight.

Cunningham was very sour after the defeat. There was disbelief in there as I’m sure he really thought it was over after that second round knockdown. If he had landed that on a cruiserweight, the answer would have been yes. Getting stretched like he was after dealing with the Adamek robbery is a tough reality to swallow.

As for Fury-Klitschko, I hope we see that by the end of the year. Wlad is the massive favorite of course, but I’d like to see if Fury can get any work done inside and be the boss with the clinches. It’s his only chance and he’s sure big enough to do it.

FULL FIGHT

KO of the Year Contender — Mendez Wipes Out Salgado

Posted: March 10, 2013 in Fight Reports
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...on this occasion there will be no controversy decision. I know I’m better and I will prove it in the ring with a big win. -Argenis Mendez

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COSTA MESA, CA —  There was no hyperbole in Argenis Mendez’s above statement as he needed just four rounds to drop Juan Carlos Salgado twice in route to a fourth round TKO.

Mendez landed stiff jabs from the outset and dropped Salgado late in the first with a counter right hand. In addition, Salgado got strafed with a several left hooks before being saved at the bell.

From there on it was simple target practice. Mendez would catch most of Salgado’s shots on his gloves, arms and shoulders before firing back with varied amd accurate right hands. Those righ came in an assortments of hooks, uppercuts, crosses and overhand shots.

The closing sequence featured Salgado pressing inside with body shots and getting caught flush with a head-snapping left hook. Salgado crash backwards onto the canvas with referee Wayne Hedgepeth immediately waving it off.

The win gives Mendez his first major belt in the IBF super featherweight title. In his post-fight interview, he mentioned his desire to face Adrien Broner and Yuriorkis Gamboa. The victory is also sweet revenge, as Mendez dropped a unanimous decision to Salgado in 2011 (Mendez was dropped in the 12 round).

The entire fight hasn’t hit the net yet, but check the below gif to view one of the best KOs you’ll see this year.

Mendez KOs Salgado

UPDATE

[Video] Broner Wins Handily, But Rees Reveals New Questions About ‘Da Problem’

Posted: February 17, 2013 in Fight Reports
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Last night’s HBO main event between Adrien Broner and Gavin Rees was deemed a mismatch and that soon became clear with Broner needing just just five rounds to overwhelm the much smaller Rees in route to a TKO stoppage.

Maybe the 80-1 odds against Rees were a little harsh, but once Broner found Rees’s rhythm in the third it was just a matter of time. Nonetheless, Rees made good on a few of his prefight predictions and showed why we shouldn’t think Broner will just waltz to the top of the Pound4Pound rankings.

REES’S GAME PLAN AND CRITIQUES: Gavin Rees said beforehand that Broner’s recent record was made up mostly of guys who stood in front of him flat-footed. Rees showed the success a fighter he can have when they give Broner angles. Rees used upper body movement in the first two rounds to evade Broner’s shots while ripping his own to the body. In addition, he reminded everyone that timing works just as good as speed when he was able to punch with Broner to land left hooks.

Unfortunately, it was a game plan that Rees just didn’t have the physical dimensions or skill to keep up for long. Broner started to time Rees with his own left hook and head-jarring lead right potshots. The gulf in punching power was massive as Rees’s shots seemed to do little more then annoy while Broner’s clean shots to the body and head had a visible damaging effect.

Two big knockdowns off a right uppercut and the other from a slashing left hook to the body had Rees reduced to hapless displays of taunting bravado by the fifth round. His trainer Gary Lockett rightly threw in the towel to end the beating, and Rees had high praise for the man he previously called an “arrogant prick.”

“He’s [Broner] the best I have ever been in [the ring] with,” said Rees. ‘It’s not a case of whether he will go on to be a super star… he is already there. I made a lot of mistakes and I believe I have a better skill set than that.”

“I knew he [Broner] hit hard, but his power just stunned me. I got reckless and that was the end of the night, but I was always going to get back up. I would have gone on until I was knocked out cold. I disagree with Gary pulling me out, but he knows that I would have gotten hurt. We are good friends and he was just looking out for me.”

BRONER’S QUESTION MARKS: Broner looked to be two weight classes bigger than Rees last night so it stands to believe his days at lightweight are numbered. Once he moves up to 140, here are the questions that we need to see answered.

1. Fighters His Size. Broner has proven to be a legit puncher at lightweight, but will it translate on fighters he doesn’t have a distinct weight advantage over?

2. Dealing with Speed and Pressure. Broner has destroyed the pressure fighters he’s faced thus far at lightweight. Rees correctly pointed out they simply came at him head-first. At 140 there are pressure fighters who are much more craftier in their attacks in addition to possessing heavy hands. Guys like Lucas Matthysse and Brandon Rios would connect just as Rees as able to do. Does Broner’s chin hold up? Would Broner be able to outbox a guy like Lamont Peterson, who would keep coming all night?

On the speed end, the guy that stands out who could match Broner at 140 is Amir Khan. Rees over those first two rounds made Broner reach with his punches. Unfortunately, Rees’s short reach prevented him from really being able to counter. How Broner’s defense holds up under faster hands would be intriguing.

BRONER’S LAST LIGHTWEIGHT BUSINESS: Before leaving the lightweight division, Adrien Broner has one more assignment. The WBO (Ricky Burns) and IBF titlists (Miguel Angel Vazquez) will face off to unify their belts on March 16. With the WBA strap being vacant, the winner of that matchup should be Broner’s #1 target by the summer. Either one is a tough assignment (with Vazquez maybe being a bit trickier because of his running tendencies). Burns is the favorite to beat Vazquez, but let Broner tell it at last night’s post-fight press conference, Burns is another night of easy work.

“If I fought Ricky Burns, he would get burnt out,” he boasted. “I want to fight him, but if he doesn’t want to fight me. Oh well.”

Broner made an offer to Burns to be last night’s opponent, but the low money made little sense considering Burns has a considerably bigger fanbase in the UK. We’ll see how much money becomes an issue in sealing this one should Burns get by Vazquez.

BIKA DOMINATES: With new trainer Kevin Cunningham in his corner, a more patient Sakio Bika had an easy time outboxing (!) Nikola Sjekloca. Bika worked behind the jab and did his best work inside with vicious body shots. The issue was after about the sixth, you felt like Bika wasn’t upping his output to knock out Sjekloca. The crowd began to share those sentiments and boo despite the bout having solid to decent action in most rounds. Funnily enough, this fight has made Bika the #1 contender to Andre Ward’s title. Ward already holds a tough (but clear) victory over Sakio. I don’t think there’s any doubt that a rematch will not be happening. Whenever Bika gets his next title shot, it’ll be his fifth crack at a super-middleweight strap.

Let’s hear you thoughts. Are you convinced that Broner is a “problem” that no one at lightweight and junio welterweight will be able to solve?

FULL FIGHT LINK

[Video] Friday Night Fights Recap: Rodriguez Dominates Tahdooahnippah

Posted: February 16, 2013 in Fight Reports
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UNCASVILLE, CT — Delvin Rodriguez added another scalp to his tenured Friday Night Fights resume with a systematic beatdown of previously undefeated George Tahdooahnippah at the Mohegan Sun.

The entire card was promoted around Rodriguez’s being one of the best action fighters in Friday Night Fights history and he sure didn’t disappoint.

 

THE FIGHT: After about a minute and a half of both starting fast and landing good shots, it became clear where this fight as headed. Rodriguez settled into his offense and began timing overhand rights and left hooks to the body. Rodriguez was landing most of these shots off the backfoot with the much slower Tahdooahnippah plodding forward into traps.

This one nearly ended early in the second when Rodriguez hurt Tahdooahnippah badly with the overhand right. Tahdooahnippah stumbled into the ropes where he received a series of rights that had his head grotesquely careening over the top rope. Referee Eddie Cotton was seconds away from stopping it at as the ring bell sounded. And in an ironic twist, Cotton misunderstood Tahdooahnippah’s corner and briefly called off the fight before the truth was discovered.

Sadly for the Tahdooahnippah, the fight being stopped in the second would have been much better for his health. Rodriguez went back to work and remained in cruise control — the overhand rights could not miss and every solid left hook downstairs had Tahdooahnippah doubling over. Tahdooahnippah wisely held time he was hurt, but Rodriguez finally hurt him for good in the sixth. Falling back into the ropes, Tahdooahnippah’s head did a replay of the second round by getting snapped back and forth under Rodriguez’s right hand before the ref stoppage.

 

RODRIGUEZ BACK FOR ANOTHER SHOT: Rodriguez had an ugly performance in his last fight back in September against Austin Trout. This win did a lot of justify him possibly earning another shot on Showtime or maybe HBO. I’m not sure if Gabriel Rosado would look at it as a step back after battling Golovkin to face a guy like Rodriguez, but that fight would be straight warfare. And I’m sure Friday Night Fights would have no problems airing a fight with Rodriguez against Brian Vera, who just scored a knockout of Sergiy Dzinziruk a few weeks back.

 

TAHDOOAHNIPPAH’S REALITY CHECK: George Tahdooahnippah was undefeated coming into last night (31-0, 23 KOs). The knock on him was he had zero notable names over his eight-year career (last night was his first 10 round bout). During the ring walk, with a rapper in tow and clad in the attire of his Comanche Indian roots, Tahdooahnippah had the look on his face of a fighter happily anxious to meet the moment that would define his professional career. But as the beating mounted, Tahdooahnippah wore the mask of a man helpless too change his fate. He tried for sure — Tahdooahnippah continued coming forward in hopes Rodriguez would make a mistake. But there were none and every Tahdooahnippah flaw, from his lack of head movement to the tendency to lean with his punches, was exploited in merciless fashion.

Next week Friday Night Fights returns with the excellent matchup of Lamont Peterson vs. Kendall Holt.

[Video] Bombs Away: Kimbo Slice Survives Scare, KOs Tilyard in Rd.2

Posted: January 30, 2013 in Fight Reports
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SYDNEY, Australia — Kimbo Slice survived getting badly stunned by several hooks in the first round to finish Shane Tilyard in the second with a left hook to the body on the undercard of Daniel Geale vs. Anthony Mundine II earlier today.

Slice stormed out and pinned Tilyard against the ropes with power shots only to be wobbled by repeated left hooks. Slice was forced to hold on and fell to the canvas, but the referee ruled it a slip.

Slice got settled in the second and dropped Tilyard to his knees with a short left hook downstairs to end the contest.

The win keeps Slice undefeated with a record of 7-0 (6 KOs). Tilyard falls to 6-7 (6 KOs)

[Video] KO of the Year Contender: Matthysse Blows Away Dallas in Round One

Posted: January 27, 2013 in Fight Reports
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LAS VEGAS, Nevada — Lucas Matthysse does not work on the clock. The Argentinian slugger needed less than three minutes to dispose of Mike Dallas Jr., landing a crushing counter right for a face-down knockout earlier tonight at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino.

Dallas showed his speed and worked a sharp jab while Matthysse remained patient in looking to counter. Before the KO, Matthysse landed several solid shots to the body and a few left hands that got Dallas’s attention.

The deciding right hand put out Dallas before he hit the canvas and the referee wisely called off the bout.

Lucas Matthysse is now the #1 contender for Danny Garcia’s WBC title, which will be defended in two weeks against Zab Judah.

On the undercard, Jesus Soto Karass got a career revitalizing decision victory over Selcuk Aydin, and Jermell Charlo made easy work of Harry Joe Yorgey via an eighth round TKO. Aydin, struggling with Karass’s size, jab and left hook to body, tried to outbox his opponent off the backfoot and potshot. The stragegy failed as Karass remained the aggressor and outlanded Aydin in the majority of the rounds, taking the decision by scores of 95-95, and 97-93 twice. Charlo dominated Yorgey from the start in scoring 2 knockdowns and repeatedly nailing Yorgey with jabs and straight rights. The latter punch resulted in the last knockdown and the stoppage.

FULL FIGHT

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Matthysse the Beast: Lucas is coming for that WBC belt, whether it’s Zab or Danny holding it. I’m not confident that whoever wins will be in a hurry to fight him. At least after this fight, maybe Garcia will chill on his comments of Matthysse being a nobody.

Aydin Falls Flat: This was Aydin’s fight to shine. Jesus Soto Karass had been on a bit of a slide lately puncuated by his KO loss to Marcos Maidana last September. He’s slow and the consensus was he’d be there for Aydin to hit. Instead, Karass proved to be too strong inside for Aydin, who opted to stay on the move for the entire fight to stay away from those left hooks to the body. Aydin looked absolutely devastated afterward, but this is completely on him. Trying to box is not his game and it was Soto Karass who showed the urgency in the last round. And the judge who had it 95-95 was way off.

Charlo Is the Real Deal: I hadn’t seen Harry Joe Yorgey since Alfredo Angulo bombed him out a few years back. He slowly worked his way back to TV but ran into a much more talented fighter in 22 year old Jermell Charlo. Charlo’s right hands were locked on to Yorgey’s head the entire fight. Yorgey made a go of it but it was obvious early on it was a lost cause. The only criticism I saw was Charlo got a little too complacent and didn’t go for the kill a few rounds earlier when it was clear Yorgey had nothing for him. Other than that, I looked forwar to seeing him progress.

[Video] Right Hook, Sweet Dreams – John Molina KO 4 Dannie Williams

Posted: January 12, 2013 in Fight Reports
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SANTA FE, New Mexico — John Molina erased the memory of his 40-second meltdown at the hands of Antonio DeMarco with a devastating one-punch knockout of Dannie Williams last night in the main event of ESPN’s Friday Night Fights.

After a quiet opening round for both fighters, Molina began to pick up his pressure despite having his left jab countered by right hands. A bad clash of heads in the third temporarily rattled Williams. Adding to his woes, Molina stunned him with a slashing left hook.

Molina focused on the body with wide, powerful hooks in the fourth that forced Williams to hold. While backpedaling, Williams was caught on the top of the temple with a short right hook that immediately destroyed his equilibrium. He fell to the floor writhing under the bottom rope and clutching his head. Although he made it to his feet, it was too late to beat the count.

John Molina Jr. improves his record to 25-2 (20 KOs). The KO defeat, the first of Williams’s career, drops his to 22-3 (18 KOs).

Robbery of the Year Contender: Undeserved Decision Ruin Barthelemy vs. Usmanee

Posted: January 5, 2013 in Fight Reports
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MIAMI, Fl. – We couldn’t even have a few weeks of peace before the nonsense started. Not even a full week into 2013, boxing fans have been reminded that not much has changed about our beloved sport with ESPN’s Friday Night Fights kicking off their season with a good main event sullied by an absolute robbery decision victory for Rances Barthelemy. Let’s review the embarrassing turn of events.

 

ONCE AGAIN, A FIGHTER GETS POINTS JUST FOR COMING FORWARD: In the first two rounds, it appeared that Afghan fighter Arash Usmanee was headed to a knockout loss. Barthelemy was landing hard, compact left hooks at well and countering Usmanee’s offense with stiff jabs. The latter punch was so effective that twice it stunned Usmanee as if it were a power shot. But starting in the third, Usmanee began slipping the punches effectively and throwing excellent body shots around Barthelemy’s long arms. By the middle rounds the tide had completely turned with Barthelemy reduced to haymaker shots that lost more and more steam as the rounds (and body shots) mounted. By the end, Barthelemy was spent and it looked to be on his was out in the 12th when Usmanee abused him on the ropes.

I only gave Barthelemy a round after the second so imagine my incredulity at Barthelemy being awarded the fight on scores of 115-113 and 116-112 twice. To even have this fight remotely close, you have to completely ignore clean punching (especially to the body), defense and ring generalship, things I thought were the part of the criteria judges are supposed to score.

 

ANOTHER OBSTACLE FOR USMANEE TO OVERCOME: Before the fight, we got a nice video package of Usmanee’s tough upbringing in Afghanistan and losing his father in the war-torn country. By the end, yyou understood all the adversity he’s overcome just to make it to America and progress a fighter. To wtiness all that work derailed by shoddy judging made this robbery feel much worse. Usmanee had no words and immediately stormed from the ring. Teddy Atlas was outraged to the point of hoarseness and appropriately so. He posed the rhetorical question of when things will change, citing the need for federal intervention as the only way to stifle much of the cavalier corruption running amuck in this industry.

Unfortunately, with the “fiscal cliff” controversy and the majority of America living check to check, the government doesn’t have the time nor funds to justify spending the millions needed to investigate, clean up and provide a new infrastructure for boxing. For the foreseeable future, we’re on our own. And best believe the shady characters are fully aware of this.

 

A NICE OPENING KO AND A MID-CARD DUD: The junior featherweight four-rounder to start the night ended in a lovely KO courtesy of 19-year-old Hairon Socarras, who dropped Josh Bowles flat on his back with an overhand fight. Then it was became a chore watching the yawning waltz that was Johnathan Gonzalez’s majority decision victory over Derek Ennis. If you saw Gonzalez’s draw against Serhiy Dzinziruk last September, you saw the same plodding fighter last night. Kudos if you can stay awake through it.

Friday Night Fights heads to Sante Fe, New Mexico next week for a show headlined by a lightweight clash been John Molina Jr. and Dannie Williams

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