Welcome to The Boxing Bulletin's live blog coverage of tonight's HBO PPV event featuring Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto.
Our coverage will begin with the start of the broadcast at 9:00 PM EST. We'll be providing detailed round by round updates of the main event, as well as periodic updates of the under-card bouts.
If you're watching at home, please feel free to contribute by posting your scores and opinions of the fights.
Manny Pacquiao 49-3-2 (144) vs Miguel Cotto 34-1 (145)
Daniel Santos 32-3-1 (154) vs Yuri Foreman 27-0 (154)
Julio Cesar Chavez 40-0-1 (160) vs Troy Rowland 25-2 (159)
Alfonso Gomez 20-4-2 (145 1/2) vs Jesus Soto-Karass 24-3-3 (147 1/2)
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6:45 PM EST... Please check back in a little over 2 hours for the start of our coverage.
7:50... The wait is almost over. Updates will start at 9 PM EST. Just over an hour to go until we're up and running with tonight's show.
7:55... If you're here early, check out Jeff Pryor's preview of tonight's main event: The Rise & Fall of Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto.
8:30... 30 minutes until we're underway.
8:50... Almost fight time. Get your snacks and drinks ready.
9:00... The show's starting.
9:02... Live from Las Vegas at the MGM. Jim Lampley is introducing tonight's line-up. First up will be Gomez vs Soto-Karass.
9:04... Gomez has re-hydrated to 152 tonight, while Soto-Karass is up to 158.
9:05... Neither of these two welters are world beaters, but both come to fight and this should be a good one.
9:06... Michael Buffer is doing the intros.
9:07... Vic Drakulich is the ref.
9:08... Final instructions are being given.
9:09... Larry Merchant is with Lampley in the booth.
9:12... Round 1... Action in the middle of the ring to start this one. Gomez is warned to keep them up after straying low with a body shot. Manny Steward is the 3rd man in the booth. He just commented that we haven't had any clinches. Solid action so far. Both guys willing to trade. "More mean intentions on Gomez' punches." - Larry. Good first round. Both men used the jab, both looked to go to the body, and both had their moments.
9:13... Lederman has it 1-0 for Gomez.
9:16... Manny Steward just said that he feels Soto-Karass has already shown he's got more pop and is looking more authoritative with his jab. "Very tough fight to score." - Steward. "Because Soto-Karass will have a good 20 seconds, and then Gomez will have a good 20 seconds." - Lampley Steward is impressed with Gomez. "He's very sharp and accurate." Gomez' mop of hair is drifting over his eyes, and he's had to brush it away with his gloves on a couple occasions. Gomez just landed a really nice combo. Soto-Karass just came back with a solid body shot, but Gomez responded nicely. Very good fight so far.
9:16... 2-0 on Harold's card for Gomez.
9:20... "More snap and intensity in the punches of Gomez, but more strength in Soto-Karass." - Merchant. Action in the middle of the ring, as it's been more most of the fight. No clinches, just good action. Soto-Karass is edging forward ever so slightly, but Gomez backs him off with a couple of nice right hands. There was an accidental clash of heads, and it looks like Gomez has been cut by his eye. The doctor is going to have a look at it. Action resumes. A real nice exchange in the middle of the ring, punctuated by a low blow from Soto-Karass... and he's going to lose a point for it. Action resumes again. Soto-Karass a little wide with his shots. Gomez a little sharper, and more accurate. Gomez with another nice combo, as the round comes to a close.
9:21... The cut is just on the side of Gomez' eye. Harold has him up 3-0, plus the deduction. 30-26.
9:24... Gomez sticking his jab in nicely, and landing his right as well. Soto-Karass just drilled him low again, and Drakulich is taking another point. Gomez is looking a little messy with the blood. It's streaming down from the eye. if this one is stopped, it will go to the cards and Gomez should have it, so Soto-Karass might start to think about throwing caution to the wind and going for something big here. Soto-Karass is going hard to the body, and straying low. There's always the chance of a DQ at this rate before the fight might be stopped because of the cut. Gomez with a nice sequence to close the round.
9:25... The cut is on the side, but also a bit above the actual eye. It's not in a good spot, and they aren't have much success stopping the flow of blood so far.
9:25... 30-24 on Harold's card.
9:28... Soto-Karass is edging forward, and ripping shots downstairs. Gomez is doing a nice job of catching him on the way in. He just landed a really nice combo, and Soto-Karass responded with a very nice right hand. "Soto-Karass far more aggressive in this round." - Lampley A good series from Soto-Karass, punctuated with a couple nice body shots. Good round for Soto-Karass here. Gomez is still bleeding freely. he just wiped away the blood with his glove. Very good finish to the round from Soto-Karass. A bit of the snap might be going from Gomez.
9:29... Miguel Cotto is at ring-side watching the fight.
9:29... 4-1 on Harold's card. 49-44.
9:32... This one is scheduled for 10 by the way. Not sure if I mentioned that yet or not. Gomez is looking a little disheveled, with his hair and the blood. The HBO crew are suggesting that the corner of Gomez stop working on the cut so that they can get a stoppage. Steward points out that the blood just hasn't stopped flowing. Gomez keeps pawing at the cut. It's in a real bad spot, and it hasn't stopped flowing. Drakulich has just taken Gomez over to the doctor for a look at the cut, and this one is over.
9:33... We just saw a replay of the clash of heads that caused the cut earlier in the fight. At the same point as their heads clashed, Soto-Karass landed a low blow. Larry points out the double foul with a chuckle.
9:33... We await the cards. The 6th round will be scored as well.
9:35... 58-54, 57-55, 57-55 all for Alfonso Gomez.
9:36... While the decision was being read by Buffer, Gomez' was having the belt (whatever belt this was for) wrapped around his waist. "That does kind of take away from the suspense." Lampley points out.
9:38... Manny Pacquiao arrived at his dressing room a couple minutes ago.
9:39... Manny Steward's keys to victory for Pac. Stay off the ropes - use footwork and upper body movement - attack up the middle - maintain poise.
9:40... Manny on what Miguel needs to do. Maximize size edge - work the body - force an inside fight - back Pac up.
9:41... Santos is 173 tonight. Foreman is 161. That's just crazy.
9:43... Yeah, the rules are the same for everyone, but fighters are making a mockery of the system. 19 pound weight increase? We've got a light heavy vs a middle in this one.
9:43... Jay Nady is the ref for this one.
9:44... Final instructions are being given, and we're moments away from starting.
9:45... "Santos blames his inactivity of almost a year and a half on Don King." - Larry
9:48... Steward points out Foreman's edge in speed. Santos is trying to edge forward, while Foreman is boxing from the outside, looking to get in and out. Foreman just landed a couple quick rights. We've got a lefty/righty match-up here I should mention, so there's always the danger of a clash of heads. Santos is the southpaw. Not much happening so far. Santos in the middle of the ring, edging forward but not very active. Foreman circling, also not too active. Not really a big surprise. Santos just managed to get close enough at the end to land a couple shots.
9:49... Santos 1-0 on Lederman's card.
9:52... Not too much happening in round 2. Steward points out that Foreman is moving nicely, but hasn't really managed to land any of his combos upstairs. Now there's a clinch, and Foreman whacks Santos as they break free. Action in the middle of the ring. Santos just landed a solid counter left. Foreman quickly backed off and Santos chased him, but then Foreman fired back and Santos went back to looking to counter. Foreman just landed a nice right, and Santos fires a hard left hand counter which almost knocked Foreman down. Now Foreman puts Santos down! Santos is claiming it was a shot to the back of the head, but it's ruled a knockdown. We'll have to see that again.
9:53... Let's see the replay. They were in the clinch, and Foreman landed a right hand to the side of Santos' head, and down he went. Perhaps their feet might have got tangled as well, but tough to tell on the replay.
9:56... 19-18 on Harold's card for Foreman. Action slow to start round 3. Santos stalking, with Foreman circling. Foreman with a quick shot to the body. Steward comments on Foreman's movement bothering Santos. Santos tries to press forward, but Foreman slides off to the side. Santos is slow on the counter with a left. Steward feels the fight will continue in this pattern with Foreman being too fast. Foreman comes forward with a little flurry. Steward comments that while Santos appears like the bigger stronger man, Foreman is doing well in the clinches. Foreman with a clean right hand. There's the bell. Santos really not doing much of anything so far. He'll have to pick things up.
10:00... Harold has it 2-1 Foreman. 29-27. Foreman with a lead right that lands. "The way I see this fight, Santos is just not doing enough." - Harold. Santos with a left hand that lands. Foreman with a right, and then grabs on. Foreman with a little flurry. he's picking his spots nicely. Santos with a 1-2 into the guard. "Santos trying to land that one big left that could change the fight." - Lampley. "That's the only punch he's trying to land." - Steward. "In the meantime, Foreman is picking up points." - Steward. Santos with a left hand, and then Foreman with a hard right hand counter that lands. Santos is hurt and backs up into the ropes. Foreman goes hard after him, and Santos holds on. Some excitement to end the 4th.
10:01...Foreman followed up the first hard right with another as Santos backed up into the ropes.
10:01... 3-1, 39-36 on Harold's card for Foreman.
10:04... Foreman with another hard right hand early in the 5th. Foreman will have to be careful when he jumps in there, but he's having success so far. Foreman with a little counter hook that lands. Now Santos is edging forward, showing a little more urgency, as Foreman circles away. Foreman jumps in with a right, and holds on. Foreman comes with a little flurry, and Santos backs up. "This is fascinating, because Santos is fighting in such a placid style that he's making Foreman look like the aggressor." - Larry. There's the bell.
10:05... 4-1 Foreman on Harold's card.
10:08... Santos just went down, but it was from a slip. Lampley thought Foreman may have landed to the body at the same time. Santos is now backing up, as Foreman flurries. We just got a clash of heads, and Foreman is cut. Not sure how bad it is. We'll find out after the round. Santos still not doing much. He's getting beaten to the punch, and not having much success finding the mark with left hand counters. Santos by the way missed the fighter meetings because he was struggling to get down to 154. Foreman tries to jump in with a shot, and Santos gets him in a headlock. Both fighters are warned for the roughness. Foreman offers his glove to Santos, but Santos declines to touch up. Foreman tries to jump in, and there's another clinch. Not a thrilling round.
10:12... 5-1 on Harold's card. "19 pound weight gain or not, Daniel Santos better get busy." - Harold. "It's like watching a totem pole, this guy standing in the middle of the ring doing so little." - Harold. Santos just landed a decent left hand. Lampley seems to think maybe Santos is ready to step things up. Santos just went down, and it's ruled a clash of heads by Nady. According to Lampley, it was a headbutt as someone on the crew just watched the replay and told him. Nady just took Foreman over to the doctor to check out the cut. The "action" has resumed. "All Foreman has to do is make Santos miss the big left hand shot, and then do what he has to." - Steward. "Foreman's in and out footwork is causing a big problem for Santos." - Steward. Santos just missed with a big left. Foreman tries to jump in with a right, but he misses and they clinch. There's the bell.
10:13... The cut is on Foreman's left eye. We just saw a replay of the "knockdown". It was definitely a clash of heads.
10:13... Harold has it 5-2. Foreman up by 4 points.
10:16... Nady warns Foreman about the head clashes. Foreman is jumping in with rights, and occasionally his head is running into Santos. I don't think it's intentional, but we've got the southpaw/righty thing happening. Foreman with a right hand that lands. "Santos is acting like a baby now." - Steward on Santos' complaining. Santos just misses with a left hand. Foreman jumps in with a body shot. Not much action here, and it's kind of awkward when they do exchange. Santos is edging forward, hoping Foreman opens up so he can fire the left. Instead we get a clinch. Santos with a left, but it doesn't land flush. There's the bell.
10:17... Manny Pacquiao is having his hands wrapped. Two members of Cotto's team are watching carefully.
10:20... 6-2 on Harold's card. By the way, Manny is wrapping his own hands. Not much happening here with Foreman and Santos. Santos edging forward, with Foreman circling. Neither man opening up. Foreman just tries to jump in with a right, but misses. Foreman now misses with a left. Foreman lands a lead left. Foreman with a little shot on the inside. Santos with a left that lands. Every once in awhile Santos lands a left, but it hasn't had any effect on Foreman. Santos just landed a decent combo, which got a reaction out of some of the Puerto Rican's in the crowd. Foreman with a nice right hand. Santos responds with a decent uppercut. Foreman though responds nicely with a couple good rights. Some decent action there. Now Santos presses forward with a little urgency as Foreman backs into the ropes, but he can't land anything. Not much action, but Larry mentions it's an interesting fight anyway.
10:24... 6-3 on Harold's card. Foreman just landed a nice right hand counter. Santos edges forward and lands a left. There's another clash of heads. That looked a little rough, as Santos immediately turns away. Santos turned away in similar fashion to the way Agbeko did against Perez, but thankfully Nady was on top of things. Santos edging forward here. Foreman jumps in with a body shot. "Santos is still looking for one big shot." - Lampley. Foreman with a lead right that lands. Foreman with a left to the body. Foreman with a nice hard right hand that lands clean. Santos comes forward and lands a jab, and then they clinch. Foreman jumps in with a little flurry. Foreman makes Santos miss and lands a right hand. Good round here for Foreman. Santos trying to press forward, but Foreman circles away. There's the bell.
10:25... Cotto is having his hands wrapped. I imagine the footage is being shown in the arena, as the crowd starts buzzing.
10:29... Foreman catches Santos with a right to start the round. Another right from Foreman. He's up 7-3 on Harold's card. Plus, the knockdown and it's a 5 point fight. Foreman with a nice right hand that backs Santos up. Now Foreman presses Santos in the ropes and flurries. Now the action moves back into the middle of the ring. Foreman with a jab, and they clinch. Santos tries to whack Foreman in the clinch. Santos edging forward with some purpose here. Foreman circling away though, and he catches Santos with a little hook on the way in. There's another clinch. Santos misses with a left in close. Lampley comments on how every once in awhile Foreman stops and catches Santos. There's a bit of blood coming from the right eye of Santos. Santos trying to push forward and rough Foreman up, but can't land anything. Santos is now being taken over to the doctor by Nady to have a look at the cut. The doctor gives the go ahead to get back in there. Santos following, but not landing here. Now he lands a shot as the round comes to a close.
10:30... "You're ahead, now don't get stupid!" - Foreman's corner.
10:33... There's a clinch to start the round. Santos misses with a left over the top. Santos trying to get close, pressing forward. Foreman ties him up. Now Santos just misses witha left. He's showing some real urgency here, but Foreman's playing it real safe. Now Foreman with a little right hand. Santos following, and Foreman ties him up. Santos just short with a left. If only he'd shown this kind of agression earlier. Nady tells Foreman not to hold. Always nice to see a ref actually doing something about holding. Santos with a left hand that partially lands. "Unless there is some very unusual scoring, if Foreman can stand up for another minute, he'll have achieved something very big for him." - Lampley. Foreman's mouth piece just came out, and his corner put it back in. Santos just walked into a left hand, and down he goes. He's up quickly. 35 seconds to go. Foreman with a right hand that lands. "That probably cements the victory." - Steward. Santos trying to close the gap and Foreman ties him up. Foreman on the move here as the seconds wind down. This one's over.
10:34... The left hand tht put Santos down looked like it landed just behind the ear on the inside.
10:35... We await the cards.
10:36... 116-110, 117-109, 117-109 all for the winner Yuri Foreman.
10:37... I'm guessing the next time we see Santos will be as a middleweight. At his age, you have to assume that all the weight cutting has caught up with him. That wasn't scintillating, but Foreman did what he had to. He stayed away from Santos' left, moved in and out nicely, and won going away.
10:40... Next up is Chavez Jr. vs Rowland.
10:43... Tony Weeks is the ref. No fight night weights for this one.
10:43... We're ready to go.
10:44... Troy Rowland's brother is in a medically induced coma after coming down with swine through. Best wishes to Troy's brother and the Rowland family.
10:46... "Chavez is trying to get to the inside and land his left hook to the body." - Steward. Decent action so far. Both guys fighting it out in the middle of the ring. Rowland just threw a nice flurry downstairs. Lampley comments that Rowland has been the busier of the two fighters. There's the bell.
10:47... Harold gave the opening round to Chavez.
10:50... Larry feels that Chavez while not as busy, is the one landing the heavier shots so far. He's digging hard to the body with the left. he's having the better of things here early in the 2nd. He just landed a decent right hand. Rowland responded with a couple of shots. Lampley points out that Rowland doesn't have much pop. Steward has a feeling that Rowland can't hang in there for too long. He's doing okay so far though. A nice right hand from Rowland with 10 seconds left. Good action in the middle of the ring to end the round. "Both fighters fighting like the other guy can't hurt them." - Larry
10:54... Lampley mentions that Rowland threw 74 punches in both the 1st and 2nd rounds. Steward mentions that while he's busy, his shots just don't have much pop. maybe so, but he's letting his hands go, landing a fair bit, and making a solid fight of it. Chavez with a solid left hook. Action in the middle of the ring. Both guys letting their hands go. "Even though Rowland is landing a lot of punches, Chavez is walking him down." - Steward. "At this weight, I don't think Chavez Jr. is much of a puncher either." - Larry. He's landing that left hook, but it hasn't seemed to bother Rowland much.
10:55... Harold has it 2-1 for Chavez.
10:58... Rowland having a little bit of the better of things early in the 4th. he just backed Chavez up with a flurry. Action now starts to slow a bit. "Rowland definitely not afraid being in Vegas for the first time." - Lampley. "I think this is a disappointing match-up for a big night like this." - Merchant. Rowland doing nicely this round. he's had Chavez backing up, and he's tagging him. Rowland with a couple right hands that land. Chavez tries to flurry as the round comes to a close.
11:02... Harold gave the last round to Chavez. They are battling it out in the middle of the ring, while the HBO crew blathers on about whether or not Margarito's gloves were loaded when he faced Cotto. Chavez digs a nice left hook to the body. Rowland keeps throwing though. he's staying busy, as the two men battle it out. I don't think we've had a cinch so far by the way. Both fighters landing. Rowland has been landing his jab, and his right hand. Chavez' best shots have been his left hook. Each time Chavez lands, Rowland pops him right back. Chavez with a nice right hand. Rowland responds with his own. Chavez with a left hook, followed by a right hand to end the round.
11:03... Harold has it 4-1 for Chavez.
11:06... Steward comments that the absence of a jab is a bit of a worry for Chavez, as he's not a big enough banger to get away with it. Chavez with a decent right hand. Lammpley comments that Rowland's punch output has dropped this round, and he's looking a little tired. Lampley also mentions that the difference in power is audible. Rowland keeps plugging away though. He's sticking the jab, following up with right hands. Going to the body as well. All arm punches, but he's landing shots. Rowland is starting to swell a little around both eyes.
11:07... Merchant just mentioned that Manny Pac is consuming 8,000 calories a day to keep the weight on. Harold has this one 5-1 after 6.
11:10... Harold points out that Rowland's face is starting to bust up. Neither Harold or Lampley though are confident on Chavez' ability to fight world class opposition. Chavez is starting to back Rowland up a bit. he's landing some solid right hands to go with the left hooks. Rowland still throwing back though. Chavez with a decent left hook. Chavez with another left hook. Rowland still plugging away though. Now he fires a right hand, and backs Chavez up, although it looks like Chavez is just taking a bit of a rest. now Chavez responds with a right hand. Chavez with another decent right hand. Rowland looks like he's fading a little.
11:14... 6-1 on Harold's card. Rowland keeps pressing forward here. perhaps he's still got something in his tank. Now Chavez backs him up with a right hand and a left hook. Chavez with a decent right hand. Rowland responds with a 1-2. I think Rowland is a bit tired. Chavez with a flurry as the round comes to a close.
11:17... We're in the 9th round of this one. 2 to go. This round is more of the same. Between rounds, Larry merchant talked with Manny Pacquiao about tonight's fight with Cotto, as well as Z Gorres, the Filipino fighter that Manny co-promotes who was critically injured last night. Manny will be praying for him. You always hate to hear about something like that, and The Boxing Bulletin extends our best wishes to Gorres. Let's hope he pulls through this okay. Larry mentioned that after the interview, Manny came up to him and told him that in the Philippines when he was younger, a fighter died in his arms. "This is what we do. This is what we signed up for." Pac said to Larry.
11:23... Rowland still hanging in there. Chavez Jr. still landing the harder shots. Not much else to say about this one. I think we're definitely seeing some of Chavez Jr's limitations. Very easy to hit, and perhaps not much pop at 160. It's hard to see him as much of a threat to anyone near the top of the division in the near future. Rowland keeps plugging away. "Troy Rowland has fought all the way through this." - Lampley. The final seconds tick away.
11:24... Here's Buffer with the decision. 99-91, 98-92 and 97-93 for Chavez Jr.
11:25... The prelims are over. The main-event awaits.
11:28... Michael Buffer is back. Time for the anthems.
11:36... The Anthems have been performed. We're moments away from the ring walks. No fight night weights by the way. No surprise there, since Cotto is fighting.
11:37... When was the last time Miguel weighed in for HBO? I don't remember. It would be nice though to have some idea of what the actual weight difference is. I'd guess Pac is around 148 and Cotto somewhere around 158.
11:38... Manny has left his dressing room, and is making his way towards the arena.
11:39... Here comes Manny. He's got a grin on his face as he waves his glove to some well wishers.
11:40... Manny looks very relaxed. He's bouncing up and down, and having a hard time holding his smile in as he makes his way towards the ring.
11:41... "Has ever a man smiled so much on route to such a serious task?" - Larry Merchant. Steward says Manny reminds him of Roberto Duran.
11:42... Cotto is now making his way from his dressing room to the arena entrance.
11:43... Quite a contrast between the two men. Cotto is almost expressionless.
11:43... "This is a very serious individual." - Lampley "Very serious and very realistic." - Steward
11:44... Here's Buffer again with the intros.
11:45... Buffer is going through the sponsors.
11:46... Byrd, Ford and Moretti are the judges. Kenny Bayless is the man in charge.
11:47... The intros are over. The crowd is buzzing. This one is mere moments from getting underway.
11:48... Bayless with the final instructions.
11:51... We're underway. Both guys sizing each other up in the middle. Cotto with a solid jab to start. Pac flicks out his jab. Cotto leans in with a hook that misses. Now Manny with a little right hand that glances. Cotto is short with a right hand. ACtion in the middle of the ring. Both men lookin for openings. pac probing with the jab. He just misses with a left. Steward comments that Cotto is pushing Pac back when he jabs. manny comes forward and lands a straight left. Steward feels it was blocked. Cotto edging forward behind the jab, and tries to dig to the body. Cotto short with a jab. 1:00 to go. There's our first clinch. manny is short with a left. Cotto commanding the middle of the ring, while Pac circles to his left. Cotto with a little flurry on the inside. Cotto misses with a hook and Pac lands a counter. pac with a left to the body. Cotto fires back, but misses with a body shot. There's the bell.
11:52... Cotto's corner is happy with their man's opening round.
11:55... Harold has it 1-0 for Cotto. manny is short with a straight left. Cotto is short again. Cotto tries to counter, but he's short with his return fire. Cotto edges forward, working behind the jab. Now Manny lands a left hand up the middle. Cotto fires the jab out there. Manny moving to his left. Cotto with a left to the body, and Manny responds with a left. Manny with another left. Cotto tries to dig the body, and then lands a jab. manny with a nice combo up the middle. Manny with another nice combo and catches Cotto with a left hand. Cotto fires back with a body shot. Now Manny with another straight left. Cotto with a solid left hook that got Manny's attention. Cotto edges forward, and fires a right hand to the body. Bayless warns him to keep it up. Pac walks forward and fires a hard left hand up the middle. Cotto fires to the body. Pac digs hard to the body. Pac with another shot to the body and Pac with a very quick combo. Pac having a very good stretch here. Pac with another straight left. Cotto tries to dig to the body. Pac with another hard left hand. Pac with a nice combo. Cotto fires back hard with a right. Cotto digs to the body. There's the ball. Fantastic action over the final minute of the 2nd.
11:56... Cotto's corner not so happy after this round. "Use your jab!"
11:59... 1-1 on Harold's card. Cotto comes out trying to push Manny back with the jab like his corner asked. Manny circles away to his left. Cotto again firing out the jab. Cotto with a glancing hook. Manny with a right hook that lands. Manny with a straight left. Cotto with a jab. manny with a right hook and down goes Cotto! He's up quickly though. Bayless counts to 8. Cotto says he's okay. We're back at it. Manny sticks a jab to the Cotto's body and circles away. That looked more of a flash knockdown than anything else. Now Cotto with a left hook that lands. Cotto trying to back Manny up here. Manny fires back though. Cotto digs to the body with a hook. Cotto with another solid body shot. Manny with a left hand. Manny with a right hook. Cotto digs to the body, and there's a clash of heads. Now Cotto rips the body with a combo. Cotto pressing manny back here, but Manny circles away. manny flicks out his jab. Manny misses with a combo. Manny with a left hand that is short, and Cotto lands a solid counter hook. Cotto with a combo upstairs. Cotto with a solid uppercut. Now Cotto rakes Manny's body. Cotto is fighting back hard since the knockdown. There's a clinch and Cotto pushes manny's head down. There's the bell. Heck of a round.
12:00... Cotto had a real strong close to the round. Landed some heavy shots. Freddy Roach is not happy about it. "Stop fighting his fight!"
12:04... 2-1 on Harold's card for manny. 29-27. Cotto comes out aggressively here in the 3rd, backing Mannyup with the jab. Manny circles away. Both lookin for openings. Cotto digs hard to the body, and then lands a hook upstairs. Now Manny fires back with a left hand. Manny with a body shot. "Pac seems to be taking Cotto's shots well." - Merchant. Now there's a clinch and Bayless quickly gets the action moving. Pac with a nice combo. Cotto presses forward with the jab. Cotto just short with a hook to the body. Now Manny with a straight left to the body. A big combo from Manny. Cotto responds with a left. Manny fires back with his left. Now Cotto pushes Pac back, and fluries with Pac along the ropes. Pac with the gloves up, taking this flurry. Steward thinks Manny is taking a breather. Now Manny fires back. Cotto presses forward though and keeps Manny's back to the ropes. manny finally circles away. Now manny fires back and lands a big left hand. manny with a big counter right hook! Down goes Cotto!! Cotto is up quickly again. he looked a bit hurt though. manny tries to press his advantage, but there's the bell! This is FANTASTIC stuff! Tremendous action so far.
12:04... It was a left hand that put Cotto down.
12:07... Cotto comes pressing forward to start the 5th. Cotto trying to work the jab, as Pac circles away. Cotto with a decent right hand. Pac takes it well and slips away. Cotto with a solid jab. Pac circling to his left. Cotto pressing forward behind the jab. manny moving from side to side, looking for opening. Now Pac explodes with a 1-2 combo that lands. he makes Cotto miss and drills him with a left. he lands a solid hook. Lampley thinks Cotto is slowing down. "His punches don't have the same snap." Action now in the middle of the ring. "Pac's 2 hands have been better than Cotto's 1." - Merchant. Cotto just landed a decent little uppercut. Manny catches him with a right on the way in though. Manny with a left, and Cotto lands a shot to the body. Now Cotto presses Pac back agaist the ropes and lands an uppercut. Cotto with a solid uppercut. Pac with a straight left. Pac with a jab. Pac just misses with a straight left. Cotto tries to respond and they clinch. Pac tries to flurry at the end of the round, and there's the bell.
12:08... Roach is telling Pac to "back him up with the in and out motion." Cotto's corner is trying to build up his spirits. "You can do it. You can turn it around."
12:12... harold gave the 5th to Cotto. he's got Pac up by 3 points. Cotto treis to press forward behind the jab, and throws his right. Steward comments that pac is just fresher and crisper with his punches. The crew commented between rounds that Cotto's corner sounded desperate. manny with a nice combo, punctuated with a hard left. Manny with another combo. Manny with a left. Cotto responds with a left. Pac with a right hook. pac jumps in and almost got caught with a hook. But he lands a hard shot, and then backs Cotto up. pac with a a big right hook. Pac with a straight left. Manny with a jab. Manny with another straight left that lands. Cotto comes back and just misses with a hard left hook. Pac responds with a combo and backs Cotto into the ropes. Cotto gets out of there though. Pac with a digging body shot. There's a clinch. A nice exchange in the middle of the ring where they both land shots. Cotto comes forward and firs a combo into the gloves. Cotto with a jab. manny with a jab, and Cotto misses witha counter hook. manny presses forward and nearly puts Cotto down with a solid left. Cotto responds though with a solid right. Manny grins as he walks away.
12:12... Cotto's corner is telling him to stay off the ropes and jab and move.
12:15... Harold has Pac up 4-2 and by 4 points overall. Harold is raving about Pac as he gives his score. pac with a solid right hook that lands. pac with a big flurry. Cotto tries to fire back, and they clinch. Cotto is warned for pushing Pac's head down in the clinch. Pac with a jab, and a left hand. pac with another jab. Cotto tries to dig the body, as pac circles away. Pac with a left hand. pac just beating Cotto to the punch over and over. Cotto tries to fight back by digging the body. pac with a right hook. Pac with a combo. "It doesn't look good for Cotto." - Steward. "It looks like just a matter of time." - Lampley. Cotto tries to fire back. he's now on his toes tryng to fight fromt he outside. Manny is stalking. Cotto is the one circling on the defensive. Cotto stops and tries to fire a hook, but it's blocked. Manny with a left hand. Manny with a hook. Cotto is trying to win this from a distance with his jab, and it's not happening.
12:16... Manny's father give the thumbs up to the HBO cameras.
12:16... A member of the commission went to Cotto's corner between rounds just to check on him. Cotto told him he was fine.
12:19... 5-2 on Harold's card after 7. 5 point difference for Pac. Cotto trying to work the jab here early in the 8th. He's on his toes. Circling away from Pac. Pac looking for openings as he edges forward. Manny with his gloves up catches Cotto's fire as Cotto stopped to throw a combo. Manny stalking, as Cotto circling away to his left. Manny catches Cotto on the way in with a jab. Cotto circles away again. manny with a jab, and a straight left. Cotto fires back with a 1-2 of his own. Manny is pressing forward here. He catches Cotto wtiha right hook. Now he drilles Cotto with a left hand. Cotto is backing away. "He seems to be in full tactical retreat." - Larry on Cotto. Cotto on his toes, backing up and circling away. Manny catches him with a left hand. Cotto with a decent right hand as he catches Pac coming in. Pac with a combo. pac pushes Cotto back againt the ropes and lands a flurry. Cotto gets away and backs away to the other side of the ring. There's the bell.
12:20... Cotto needs to do something here. he can't just back away and give these rounds up. He needs to try and make one big stand and go for it.
12:23... Steward says if he was in Cotto's corner he would be thinking about stopping the fight. 6-2 on harold's card after 8. manny with a left hand. Cotto tries to fire back with a combo. Now Cotto bangs the body. Manny responds with a left hand. Cotto standing his ground a bit more here. Cotto lands a jab. Action in the middle of the ring. Cotto with a decent hook, and then circles away. Cotto now on his toe again. now Cotto tries to come forward witha flurry. manny fires back with a combo and lands a hard left uppercut. Now Manny bangs Cotto with another flurry and forces Cotto intot he corner. manny trying to unload as Cotto backs up. Cotto tries to counter, but he's too slow. Manny pushes Cotto into the ropes again and flurries with both hands. Cotto gets out of there and backs away. Manny chases him down and lands a hard left. Manny with another hard left. Cotto is in retreat here. Cotto land a decent combo, but manny just fires back and again chases Cotto into the ropes. now they clinch. Cotto trying to jab and move. Manny following him. Manny firing his jab. manny with a hard left hand. Cotto backs away. Manny is chasing. Cotto is backing from one side of the ring to the other. It's all Manny here. Cotto is taking a beating.
12:24... Cotto's corner is going to give him 1 more round.
12:27... Cotto's wife and son left the arena at the end of the last round. 7-2 on Harold's card. Harold says that they should stop this fight. Larry feels that Cotto deserves the chance to go out on his terms. Cotto misses with a left hook. Pac patiently stalking. Pac lands the jab as he comes forward. Cotto misses with a jab. Cotto tries to flurry wtih a combo. Cotto with a hook that is blocked. manny edges froward as Cotto cirles away to his left. This has been a slow round so far. Steward feels Pac is taking a breather. Now Pac starts to attack and Cotto circles away. Pac pressing forward now. Cotto dances away to his left. Cotto tries to fire back but not much on his shots here. Pac fires a straight left that lands. Pac presses Cotto into the ropes, but Cotto flurries and gets out of there. 30 seconds left in the round. Cotto with a flurry intot he gloves. Pac with a left hand. Cotto with a decent combo that lands. pac tries to flurry as the round comes to a close. He lands a straight left just as the bell rings.
12:28... Cotto's corner wants another round like the previous one.
12:31... We're in the 11th. 8-2 on Harold's card. Lampley is pondering Mayweather vs Manny. Cotto is moving from side to side here. Pac is following. Pac looking for openings as he follows. Cotto on his toes, circling away. Cotto with a hook that is way short. Pac probing witht he jab as Cotto backs away. Now Manny gets Cotto on the ropes and rakes him to the body with a combo. Now manny flurries upstairs and Cotto backs away. Manny looking to attack here. Cotto fires a jab in there and moves away. Manny lands a right hand as he backs Cotto up. Cotto is in full retreat. 1:00 to go in the 11th. manny again gets Cotto along the ropes and flurries, but Cotto gets out of there. manny with a jab. Cotto backing up. Manny now stands in the middle of the ring and tries to get Cotto to come to him. He doesn't and manny gets back to following. Cotto on his toes, backing away, moving from side the side. Manny with a jab as he chases Cotto. The crowd starting to boo here.
12:32... Cotto's face is a swollen bloody mess.
12:32... Cotto's corner is telling him to keep with the plan. The survival plan I assume.
12:34... Manny chases after Cotto to start the 12th. Cotto back away. Cotto in full retreat. Pac looks at Cotto and then looks at Bayless, perhaps wondering what the point of this continuing is. Manny with a hard left hand as Cotto backs away. manny immediately tries to press his advantage and Bayless showing very good judgment, jumps in there and stops it. We didn't need to see Cotto laid out. Good move from Bayless. This one's over. A masterful performance from the best fighter in the world.
12:35... Lampley asks if Pac is good enough to beat Floyd? Let's hope we get to see it in the near future.
12:36... Michael Buffer with the official announcement. 55 seconds of round 12 is the time of the stoppage.
12:38... I imagine Larry will be with the winner shortly.
12:40... Here's Larry with Manny. "Our plan for the fight was to be careful in the early rounds." - Manny. Larry asks if Cotto ever hurt him. "I was trying to test his power in the early rounds. I wanted to get hit in the body and the head. Then when I wanted to control the fight, I got aggressive.
12:41... "I heard he was bigger and stronger than me. That's why I wanted to fight him toe to toe." Larry asks Manny what his thoughts were late in the fight. "I made sure I was cautious. He was looking for a big shot. I kept pressuring, but I was careful of his counters."
12:42... Merchant asks Manny about a potential Mayweather fight. "My job is to fight in the ring. It's up to my promoter Arum to negotiate that fight."
12:43... Manny tells Merchant that he won't be going up to 154, after Merchant asks if this is the last weight class Manny intends to compete in.
12:45... Freddy Roach is now with Merchant. "Early in the fight, he was laying on the ropes a bit too much, but he eventually got into his rhythm." Roach admits he was a little worried early in the fight when Cotto was landing some decent shots.
12:45... Roach wants Mayweather next for Manny.
12:47... Cotto is now with Merchant. Larry asks Cotto if Manny's ability to hit him with shots he couldn't see make a big difference. Cotto acknowledges that it was key. "Manny is one of the best of all-time." - Miguel
12:47... Merchant asks Cotto if he will continue to fight. "Yes, I will."
12:49... That's it for our coverage of tonight's show. I hope you enjoyed it, and please check us out again for more of our live round by round blog coverage.
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Manny Pacquiao vs Miguel Cotto - Round by Round Coverage
Posted by Andy at 6:45 PM 15 comments
Labels: boxing bulletin live blog, manny pacquiao, miguel cotto, welterweight
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Round by Round Blog: Chad Dawson vs Glen Johnson II, plus Angulo vs Yorgey
Welcome to The Boxing Bulletin's live blog coverage of HBO's Championship Boxing Show, featuring the rematch between Chad Dawson and Glen Johnson. Also on the bill is a junior-middleweight clash between Alfredo Angulo and Harry Joe Yorgey.
The HBO broadcast starts at 9:30 PM EST, and we'll be doing detailed round by round updates for both fights.
If you're watching at home, please feel free to contribute by posting your scores and opinions of the fights.
Chad Dawson 28-0 (175) vs Glen Johnson 49-12-2 (173 1/2)
Alfredo Angulo 16-1 (153 1/2) vs Harry Joe Yorgey 22-0-1 (153 1/4)
Read more!
Refresh this page often as updates will be frequent
6:45 PM EST... Check back in with us at 9:30 PM EST for the start of the show, as round by round coverage will begin with Angulo vs Yorgey.
9:20... Coverage will start in 10 minutes.
9:31... The show's starting. Updates will begin momentarily.
9:35... With Angulo's fight up first, Lampley and Kellerman are going over the top names at 154 to start the show.
9:36... Angulo is 164 tonight, while Yorgey has re-hydrated to 166.
9:37... The fighters are in the ring, and the introductions are underway.
9:38... From Bridgeport, PA... Harry Joe Yorgey.
9:38... From Mexicali, Mexico... Alfredo Angulo.
9:39... We're ready to go.
9:42... Manny Steward is joining Kellerman and Lampley in the booth. Angulo coming forward, with Yorgey fighting from the outside to start things off. Angulo presses forward, firing hooks and rights and pushes Yorgey into the ropes. Yorgey slips away, but Angulo keeps the pressure on. Yorgey moving side to side, as Angulo presses. Yorgey flicking jabs out from the outside. Angulo with his elbows tucked, and gloves up, edging forward. He's sticking out the jab as he moves in. 1:30 to go in the round. Yorgey keeping his distance here. Angulo jabbing his way in, and then hooking to the body. Yorgey trying to jab and move. Angulo backs Yorgey into the ropes, and unloads and lands a solid right. Yorgey on the move, Anuglo stalking. Yorgey trying to counter off the ropes, but he's not doing anything to keep Angulo honest right now. Angulo digging in as he pushes Yorgey to the ropes to end the round.
9:47... I don't think this one's going to last too long. Angulo's closing the distance and managing to unload in close when he does. Round 2 underway. Harold has it 1-0 for Angulo. Yorgey moving to his left, then to his right, and flicks out a jab. Angulo pumps the jab as he moves forward. Yorgey backs into the ropes and then fires a combo, but Angulo keeps stalking. Angulo jabbing his way in, and Yorgey slides away to his right. Angulo lands a right to the body. Angulo presses Yorgey into the ropes and fires a right. Yorgey gets out of there, but Angulo is on him right away and gets him along the ropes again. Yorgey is strictly fighting from the outside, while Angulo stalks. Angulo with a hard shot with Yorgey along the ropes. That hurt him. Anuglo goes after him. Yorgey in trouble along the ropes. Angulo pouring it on and down goes Yorgey. He's up, and takes the count. He's on the move, but Angulo's after him hard. Yorgey is in bad trouble. Angulo is pouring it on, landing hard shots. Hooks, right hands, shots to the body. Yorgey is in desperate trouble, as he can't keep distance. Angulo pouring it on with Yorgey on the ropes. Yorgey to his credit is trying to fight back, but he's taking a real beating here. There's the bell.
9:47... It was a hard right hand that hurt Yorgey.
9:49... Angulo immediately starts chasing to start round 3. Yorgey is in trouble, but he's fighting back. He's taking a beating though, and down he goes. He's up immediately, but the ref should really think about stopping this. Angulo pours it on, as Yorgey retreats to the ropes. He's getting pounded here. The ref would be very wise to stop it. Angulo with a huge right hand and down goes Yorgey. He's out.
9:50... Yorgey really didn't need to take that last shot. He was in desperate trouble BEFORE the round started. When he went down early, it was enough. There was no need for that final flurry. Why let a fighter clearly out of his depth take all that extra punishment??
9:50... That was vicious. It was a left hand, right hand combination that ended the fight. Yorgey is finally up. Good to see he's okay.
9:51... The official time - 1:03 of round 3.
9:57... There was an odd sequence late in the 2nd round which I should mention. Not sure exactly what happened, as I was struggling to type as fast as the action, but I just took another look. Yorgey was on the ropes, and kind of turned around as he came off the ropes and Angulo hit him in the back of the head. The ref came between them and Yorgey retreated to the other corner, and Angulo didn't chase, but seemed to wait for the ref to rule, but the ref backed off and the action started up again.
10:00... We just got a shot of Johnson and Dawson warming up in their dressing rooms. They both look ready to go, so despite the short nature of the first fight, it looks like this one might be starting reasonabl soon.
10:04... I just watched the first knockdown from the second round again. Very questionable decision making from the ref. Yorgey was clearly down, being held up by the ropes and Angulo was teeing off on him, and the ref didn't do a thing. Oh well... not like the result would have been any different, but the man in charge certainly didn't do Yorgey any favors.
10:05... Dawson is 191 tonight, and Johnson is 189. Supposedly Dawson is intersted in fighting in the super six. Hard to imagine him getting all the way down to 168, if he's re-hyrdating all the way up to 191. I think he was around 185 for Tarver II. Either way, it looks like he's filled into a big light heavy.
10:07... Glen Johnson has just stepped into the ring. He's decked out all in yellow, with black trim.
10:08... Dawson is making his entrance. He's in black, with orange trim.
10:09... Mark Lichtenfeld with the introductions.
10:10... Michael Ortega is the ref.
10:11... Johnson looks all business as his name is announced.
10:11... Chad Dawson gets a nice ovation. He's the hometown man.
10:12... Final instructions have been given. We're ready to go.
10:15... Here we go. Johnson immediately begins moving forward. He lands an early right hand. Johnson circling away to his right. Dawson flicking his right jab out. Johnson pressing forward. He's firing the jab, and then coming with the right hand. Dawson staying at long range for now. He's flicking mostly jabs. Glen with his gloves up, pressing forward. He flicks a jab out, and then lands a right hand. Action in the middle of the ring now. Dawson sticking out his right, but not getting close enough to really land it. He's cautious so far. Johnson with a right hand over the top. Dawson with a jab, and a straihgt left to the body. Dawson flicking the jabs out. Now he lands a left hand. Johnson short with a right hand. Dawson comes back with a left, but is short. Johnson moving his head, as he flicks the jab, and tries to comg in with a right hand. Dawson backs away as it misses. Dawson now lands a left hand. Chad doing better in the last minute of the round, while Johnson had the better of things early. There's the bell.
10:15... Dawson's corner tell him they want to see more jabs.
10:16... Glen's corner also wants to see him jabbing.
10:19... Lampley is spouting off punch-stat numbers. Harold has it 1-0 for Dawson. Action in the middle of the ring to start the 2nd. Johnson edging forward, as Dawson slides away to his right. Dason sticking the jab in there. Glen following, trying to get in range. Glen is short with a jab. Dawson is short with a counter left. Johnson with a jab. Dawson misses a left. Dawson sticking home a jab. Glen just misses with a right hand. Now he misses again as he shoots it over the top. Johnson short with a right hand. Dawson flicking out the jab, keeping Johnson from getting off here. Dawson lands a left. Johnson with a jab, and fires a right to the body. Glen edging forward, and is short with another right, as Dawson slips away to his right. Johnson is flicking out the jab, "pawing with it" Lampley points out. Dawson with a left hand. Now Johnson with a right to the body. Johnson now pushes Dawson to the ropes and tries to flurry, but Dawson gets out of there. Now Dawson responds with a nice combo. There's the bell.
10:19... Might be my imagination, but Glen looks like he's pushing his shots a bit. Doesn't seem to have the sting he did during the first fight.
10:23... Round 3. Harold's got it 2-0. Not sure about the first, but Dawson definitely won the 2nd. Dawson with a combo, and slides away to his right. Johnson follows. Dawson flicks the jab out, and Johnson tries to fire a right hand but misses. Dawson moving from side to side, keeping Johnson from getting set and loading up. Johnson follows, and gets tagged with a left. Dawson with a jab. Johnson is short with a right hand. Johsnon now misses with a right hand as Dawson ducks underneath. Now Dawson unloads with a nice 3 punch combo. Dawson looking good this round. Johsnon follows and fires a jab/right, but Dawson avoids both shots. Dawson now lands another combo. Good round for Chad here. Glen fires a hard right, but misses with it. He's just not finding the range with that right hand. Dawson lands a straight left. Johnson edges forward, and misses with another right. Dawson really keeping his distance nicely. Now he lands a left hand. Johnson keeps following, keeps edging forward, now he tries to flurry, but again Dawson slips away without any damge. They exchange with about 10 seconds left. There's the bell.
10:24... Glen's corner telling him he's got to go to the body.
10:27... Johnson comes out moving forward, while Dawson slides off to his right, now his left, and then again to his right as Glen follows. Dawson flicks the jab out to the body and moves away again. Johnson follows, flicking his jab out and then fires a right hand. Might have glanced off Dawson there. Glen pawing with the jab, and trying to follow up with a right, but misses. Glen now jabs, and fires a right to the body. Action in the middle of the ring. Dawson with a jab, and a left hand. Johnson presses forward, and fires the right, but I don't think it landed. Dawson moves things back to the middle of the ring. Glen flickign the jab out, trying to line up his right hand. Now he bangs a right to the body. DAwson responds with a left. Dawson flicking out the jab and moves. Now DAwson fires a hard left. Johnson comes forward with the jab, and fires the right to the body, but Dawson backs away and it doesn't land. Now Glen misses with a hook. Dawson with a nice jab. Dawson flicking out the jab, and Johnson not so eager to attack at this stage as the round comes to a close. There's the bell.
10:28... Johnson's corner is trying to get their man moving. They are telling him he's down 4 rounds. That might be the case, although he may have taken the opening frame.
10:31... Harold has it 4-0. Johnson pressing forward to start the round. Dawson circling. JOhnson trying to get close, but Dawson slides away to his right. Dawson keeping his distance here. Johnson with a 1-2 that lands. Johnson pressing, with Dawson circling to his right. Now Dawson moves to his left and Johnson chases. Johnson with a right hand to the body. Johnson with a right that misses. Dawson lands a jab and then gets out of there. Now Glen closes the distance, but Dawson immediately gets out of there. Dawson with a combo, and then gets on the move again. Dawson was standing his ground a lot more in the previous rounds. He's strictly on the move in this one. Johnson following, but not having much luck. Glen with a 1-2, and Dawson then slips away. Dawson flickng the jab and moving. Glen with a jab, and tries to go to the body with a right. Dawson throws a left. There's the bell.
10:35... Round 6. Harold has it 5-0 for Dawson. I think Johnson had a good argument for the 5th. Dawson circling and keeping his distance. Johnson following, trying to get close enough to land his right. Dawson is flicking that jab, and keeping Glen from unloading. Now Glen with a nice jab. Glen with a nice right hand downstairs. Action in the middle of the ring here. Dawson flicking the jab out. Glen probing with his jab. Glen just misses with a right hand. Dawson coutners with a left. Johnson with a jab. Glen edging forward, and Dawson slides away to his right. Glen comes forward and I think he landed a right hand. Glen with a jab. DAwson coutners with a left. Dawson with a nice left. Dawson on the move again. Johnson short with a jab, and misses witha right hand. Johson with a right hand, and Dawson lands a counter left. There's the bell.
10:36... Johnson's corner is telling him he hasn't won a round.
10:40... Harold gave Johnson the 6th. He's got it 5-1. Glen pressing forward as usual to start the 7th. Lampley says he think if Johnson's won a round, it was the 5th. I agree with Jim. Johnson moving forward, but Dawson circling and picking his spots nicely. He just landed a nice body shot. Glen is stalking, but just not finding the range. Dawson's moving very nicely, and landing most of the clean punches. Action in the middle of the ring now. Glen is not steadily coming forward as much as he was earlier. Now he edges forward, as Dawson circles away to his right. Dawson with a straight left. Johnson tries to fire back with a right. Glen misses with a right hand. Glen now pawing with the jab as he edges forward. Dawson firing the jab out. There's the bell. Not a thrilling round. Johnson looks like he's slowing down a little, and given what the scorecards probably look like, that doesn't bode well for him.
10:43... 6-1 on Harold's card. I'd guess the official judges have similar scores. Johnson presses forward, but Dawson circles away. Now Dawson stops and fires a combo. Glen gets on the attack, but again Dawson stops and fires a combo. Dawson now with a straight left, and turns Johnson and slips away. Johnson follows, as Dawson moves away to his right. Now Dawson moving to his left, as he flicks a couple of jabs out. Glen now presses Dawson into the ropes and fires a right, but again Dawson slips away. Dawson in control here. Glen edging forward, flicking the jab out and trying to find the range with his right, but he's just not landing it. Dawson nicely slips away to his right, and then peppers Glen with a jab/left. Glen keeps coming though. He jabs to the body and follows as Dawson backs away. Dawson now circles to his right, and pops Johnson with a couple jabs. Johnson fires a right hand, but misses with it. Dawson on the move here and Johnson unable to get close enough to land. There's the bell.
10:44... Lampley just said that this is the closest Johnson has ever looked to being an "old fighter". I'd have to agree. He just doesn't seem to have the same snap on his shots as he did last time. He just looks slower all around.
10:47... Round 9. Harold has it 7-1. Glen comes forward, and Johnson smacks him with a combo, and then slides away to his left. Dawson now bangs home a couple of body shots. Johnson keeps coming, as Dawson slides away to his right. Johnson trying to get close, but not having any luck. Dawson flicking out a couple jabs that land. Glen tries to fire a right hand, but doesn't get through. Now Glen lands a decent right hand. Dawson though fires back with a left and slips away. Glen presses forward and tries to dig downstairs, but it's Dawson that responds with what looked like the harder body shot. Now Johnson fires a right hand that may have landed. Dawson though slips away, and then stops and lands a combo. Glen with a right hand into the guard as Dawson backs away. Dawson looking very comfortable. Johnson with a 1-2 that's short. Action in the middle of the ring now. Glen was pressing early in the round, but now he's eased up. He fires a right hand that lands. Dawson responds with a left. Now DAwson with a combo. Johnson might have got a right hand in return. Dawson fires a combo, and Johnson responds as the bell goes.
10:51... Round 10. Alfredo Angulo is ringside, and he gives the thumbs up to the cameras. Glen comes out pressing, while Dawson circles to his left. Now Dawson goes right. Glen pushes forward, and lands a right hand. Glen digs to the body. Dawson responds with his bown body shot. A nice combo from Dawson. Harold has it 8-1. Dawson now flicks the jab as he backs away. Glen follows, but Dawson on the move, keeping a comfortable distance. Glen trying to jab his way in, but Dawson circles away. Glen trying to jab his way in again, and he gets Dawson along the ropes, but Dawson slides off. Now Glen fires a right hand that glanced off Dawson. Glen edginf forward, as Dawson backs away. Dawson stops and fires a shot to the body, and then a straight left. Now Dawson gets on the move again, flicking out his jab. Glen comes forward and misses a right hand. Glen just looks slower tonight. He's again short with a right, and Dawson lands a left in response. Glen closes the gab, and fires a 1-2. Now he misses with a shot. Dawson responds with a decent combo. There's the bell.
10:52... Dawson's corner tells him he's won every round. "Just don't get careless."
10:52... Glen's corner tells him that when he sees Dawson sliding along the ropes, he's got to take chances and go after him.
10:55... Harold has it 9-1. Johnson edges forward, as Dawson slips away, flicking the jab as he does so. Glen flicking out the jab as he comes forward, but he's not getting close enough. Glen fires a hook that misses. Glen is short with a 1-2. Glen lands a right hand. Dawson fires back with a combo. Dawson stuck around a traded there, but then slips away. Now Glen backs Dawson into the ropes and rips a couple shots to the body, but Dawson takes them and slips away. Johnson is short with a couple jabs, as Dawson backs away. Dawson lands a nice left hand. Dawson with a nice combo. Glen keeps coming though, but Dawson circles away. Dawson now rips a left hand on the inside that just missed. Glen edges forward, but a little tentaively now. Dawson hanging around on the inside for a moment, and now flicks the jab out and slips away. Another round in the books.
10:56... "Keep the jab going," Dawson's corner tells him. "You can't stop swinging." - the advice from Johnson's corner.
10:59... Round 12. 10-1 on Harold's card. Johnson with some urgency here, moving forward, while Dawson circles away to his left. Now Dawson moves to his right. Glen with a jab that lands. Glen digs hard to the body. Glen now tries to follow up with a right, but it whizzes over DAwson's head. Now Glen keeps pressing. Dawson backs away. Dawson now fires back with a real nice quick combo and gets out of there. Glen presses forward. He's jabbing his way in, and trying to land a right. Dawson fires off another quick combo, and that drove Johnson back into the ropes. Dawson gets on the move again. He's moving to his right. Action now in the middle of the ring. Glen tries to land a right, but is short. Glen flicking the jab out as he edges forward. Dawson sticks his jab out and moves. Glen gave a good charge to start the round, but now is looking a little tired, as he's not pressing. Dawson circling, but Glen can't get close. Now Glen tries to edge forward, but he's a little tenative and there's the bell to end it.
11:00... Johnson raised his hands at the end, but I'm sure he's aware that he's come up well short. He gave it his all, but he was in wtih a younger, fresher, quicker fighter tonight. Dawson was on the top of his game.
11:01... Harold gave the 12th to Johnson.
11:02... Here are the scores. 115-113, 115-113, and 117-111... all for Chad Dawson. I'm surprised at how close those scores were.
11:04... That wasn't thrilling, but Dawson did what he had to. He moved very well, picking his spots, and managed to have things mostly his way.
11:05.... Dawson is with Kellerman for the post fight interview. "I outboxed him every round. I used my legs. I used my speed. I outclassed him."
11:07... Kellerman mentions Jean Pascal and Tavoris Cloud as possible opponents, and asks Dawson who he'd like to fight. "Bernard Hopkins." Dawson acknowledges that if he can't fight Hopkins, he'd like to fight Pascal.
11:08... Looks like we're not going to hear from Glen Johnson. I think that kind of sucks. Yeah, he didn't come close to winning, but I think it would have been nice to give him a chance to say a few words.
11:09... Well that's it for our round by round coverage. I hope you enjoyed it.
Posted by Andy at 6:45 PM 0 comments
Labels: alfredo angulo, boxing bulletin live blog, chad dawson, glen johnson, harry joe yorgey, junior-middleweight, light-heavyweight
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Round by Round Blog: Joseph Agbeko vs Yonnhy Perez
Welcome to The Boxing Bulletin's live blog coverage of Showtime's bantamweight clash between Joseph Agbeko and Yonnhy Perez.
Round by round updates should start at approximately 10 PM EST, but check back in with us earlier in case Showtime's opening bout ends quikly.
Joseph Agbeko 27-1 (118) vs Yonnhy Perez 19-0 (118)
Read more!
Refresh this page often as updates will be frequent
8:55 PM EST... Round by round coverage will start with the main-event. I'll post the occasional update of the DeMarco/Alfaro bout.
9:19... We're through 2 rounds of DeMarco vs Alfaro and DeMarco is in control. He's keeping Alfaro at range, and started to really unload with some hard power shots in the last minute of the 2nd.
9:31... Through 5, it's mostly all DeMarco. Occasionally Alfaro gets through with something, but it's a pretty one sided fight so far.
9:40... We're now in round 8. DeMarco firmly in control.
9:46... All 3 judges on press row have it 80-72 for DeMarco. Round 9 is winding down.
9:51... DeMarco puts Alfaro down 3 times in the 10th, and this one's over.
9:52... A big right hook started things off for DeMarco. It sent Alfaro almost through the ropes, and he never recovered.
9:54... Official time is 2:07 of the 10th round.
9:57... The official judges had it 90-81, 89-82 and 89-82.
10:00... Jim Gray is with a cheerful Mike Tyson and Don King. He just asked Mike if there's any chance of a comeback. Mike's answer..."I'm too fat." Don's got a big grin on his face.
10:05... Al Bernstein and Steve Albert are chatting about the Super Six. Hopefully we'll be seeing Agbeko and Perez shortly.
10:11... Yonnhy Perez is making his way in.
10:13... Here comes Agbeko. He's playing up the Halloween theme, as he follows a stunning blonde who I assume is supposed to be Ann Darrow to the ring, while wearing a King Kong mask.
10:16... Jimmy Lennon Jr. with the intros. The ref is Robert Byrd.
10:19... Final instructions are being given. We're moments away from starting.
10:22... Here we go. Both guys immediately begin trading in the middle of the ring. Agbeko's told to watch his head. Both guys unloading, although it's Agbeko's who's appearing to be winning these early exchanges. He's letting both his hands go, and going hard to the body. Al comments that it's not the best idea for Perez to lay on the inside with Agbeko. 1:30 to go. Action in the middle of the ring. Perez is standing in and firing back. He's landing some decent counters. Heavy leather being traded here. Agbeko is sticking the jab, and then firing hard shots, but Perez just landed a nice hard counter left hook. And he just landed another one. Some great action towards the end of what was a very good round.
10:23... That was a hell of a round. Impossible to give a blow by blow, as there was just so many clean shots landed. Just hard intense action.
10:27... Agbeko is pushing forward, but he's not backing Perez off. "The non-stop punching continues." - Steve Albert. Just some terrific exchanges here. Agbeko is pushing the action, but Perez is landing hard counters. None of them are backing Agbeko off though. It's just relentless stuff. Agbeko just ate another hard counter, but he just keeps pouring it on. 1:30 to go. Right now, I'd say Perez is landing the cleaner more precise stuff. Agbeko just landed a hard right hand on the button, but Perez took it without blinking. Agbeko with another hard right hand. Perez again took it very well. Perez is standing in and ripping counters in return. Perez with a hard right hand that Agbeko takes well. Both fighters just unloading. Al comments that he's never seen Perez' left hook look so good. Another good exchange before the bell. Through round 2, this is fantastic stuff.
10:27... Both these guys are showing very good chins, as they've traded bombs so far without showing much effect.
10:31... Round 3... Agbeko again comes forward trying to press the action. He just landed a nice hard combo, but Perez stands right in there on the inside and fires back. Now Agbeko with a hard left hook. Agbeko with a solid right. Agbeko having the better of things here early in round 3, but he eats a counter left hook. "Can these guys do this for 12 rounds?" - Albert. I can't imagine that they can. Somebody has to crack under this kind of heat. Agbeko just ate a hard right hand, and immediately fired back. Agbeko with a right hand. Agbeko just landed another really nice right hand that seemed to snap Perez' head back, but he took is well, and he's back throwing immediately. 50 seconds left in the round. Big left hand from Perez! And Agbeko immediately fires back. This is terrific stuff. Good body work as well. It's hard bruising action. "What I love about this fight is that technique has not gone out the window." - Al Bernstein. There's the bell.
10:34... Round 4 is underway. As usual it's Agbeko pressing forward and taking the lead, but with Perez standing right in and firing back. Press row has it 29-28 accross the board for Perez. Al agrees. No let up here in round 4. Both men standing in the middle of the ring and unloading on the inside. It's very much like Castillo/Corrales 1. Agbeko is using his jab a little more now. I think he'd be wise to slow things down a little. He's also jumping in with lead rights. The last minute has been fought at a quick pace, but not really the same quantity of power shots exchanged. Agbeko is now backing Perez up a little, but he's getting countered in the process. More heavy body shots exchanged. Both fighters going downstairs well. There's the bell.
10:38... Round 5. Action in the middle of the ring here to start the round. Now it's Perez pushing Agbeko back, and it's Agbeko responding with a hard right hand, as he gets off the ropes. Action back in the middle fo the ring. Agbeko banging the body in close, and he's warned to keep his shots up. He's trying to use some more head movement, rather than recklessly trading here. Now he comes forward, unloading as he backs Perez on the ropes. He landed a hard left hand during that sequence, which Perez as usual took very well. Perez came firing back as he quickly got off the ropes. Agbeko again drilling the body hard, and he's again warned by Robert Byrd to keep them up. Al says those were marginal and he hopes those warnings done stop Agbeko from going downstairs. He just landed a nice right hand. More good exchanges as the round ends. It might be my imagination but I think Perez is slowing down just a touch.
10:43... Al thinks Agbeko's body work was the difference in the 5th. Agbeko is sticking the jab here early in the 6th. He's landing it through Perez' guard. Perez is looking to counter with his left hook. Now Perez comes forward and bangs the body hard. Perez with a nice right hand. Action in the middle of the ring. Perez with a nice 1-2 combo. Perez with another combo. Perez with a hard right hand. A good sequence here from Yonnhy Perez. Agbeko keeps coming though. A hard exchange with both men getting through with power shots. Both using their jab here, and Perez landed a nice counter right. 45 seconds left in the round. More bruising stuff from both fighters. Agbeko with a nice upper-cut on the inside. Now he bangs the body with a hook. Agbeko pushes Perez back to the ropes, but Perez slips away back to the middle of the ring. There's the bell.
10:43... That was a solid round for Perez, although Agbeko came on strong at the end of the round.
10:46... Perez suffered a cut in the 6th due to an accidental clash of heads. Not sure how bad it is. Agbeko's started quickly here in the 7th. He's going hard here in the first minute, backing Perez up with some hard shots. Press row has it 58-56, 58-56 and 57-57 for Perez. Al has it 57-57. So far Agbeko is having a very good round. Perez is now standing his ground though firing back. "Amazing pace to this right." - Albert. Al thinks Perez's shots are lacking a bit of steam compared to the last round. Action in the middle of the ring as usual. No clinches in this one. Just a lot of hard exchanges. Al again mentions that Perez' shots aren't quite as sharp, that he's pushing a little with his punches. There's the bell for round 7.
10:47... We just saw a clip of Agbeko landing his head on Perez' jaw in the 7th. Maybe there's no holding in this one, but it's certainly not all clean.
10:51... Action in the middle of the ring here in round 8. The action is a little sloppier here in this round. Agbeko suddenly seemed bothered by something, and started backing up and Perez chased him. Now Agbeko fires back, but he's got his back along the ropes. Now he tries to hold on. Now Agbeko fires back with a right hand. "Just went you thought Perez was on the downslide, he comes back." - Al commenting on a good round so far from Perez. I'm having trouble keeping up with the blow by blow here. Some heavy exchanges in the middle of the ring, with Perez landing a hard right hand that was the best shot during that sequence. Now Agbeko comes back, pushing Perez into the ropes and unloading. "Unbelievable action." - Steve Albert. It's really too good for me to properly capture.
10:55... Round 9. Action in the middle of the ring. Both letting their hands go. Now Perez pushes Agbeko back, and AGbeko responds by backing Perez off. Action back in the middle of the ring. Now Perez with a nice combo that backs Agbeko off momentarily. Perez with a good stretch here, as he's again landing the cleaner shots. Press row has it 77-75 for Perez twice, and 77-75 for Agbeko. Al has it 76-76. Action in the middle of the ring. Agbeko with a good sequence now, as he lands a couple good right hands. I think both men are a little fatigued. Now quite the same sharpness from either as we saw earlier. It's been a grueling battle of attrition. More good action, as Perez landing some decent counters only for Agbeko to push him back, and then for Perez to fire back. Agbeko with a couple decent rights near the end of the round.
10:59... Round 10. The fighters immediately start exchanging in the middle of the ring. Both are warned for using their head, although I think that's clearly something Agbeko is initiating. Al comments that Perez' left hook is not the weapon it what earlier in the fight. It's a little wider. Agbeko is the one pushing the action in this round and having the better of it. He's catching Perez with hard shots, and then Perez fires back with a hard right hand counter that landed flush. Agbeko keeps pressing through. Perez fires back with another nice counter. Agbkeo pushing forward. Perez maybe taking a breather, or a little tired. Agbeko using his jab well in this round.Something happened to Agkbeo's eye, and he turned around and then got clocked by Perez. He's up quickly. I think there might have been a clash of heads, but Byrd missed it. That will count as a knockdown. Agbeko fires back as the round ends. Let's see that again. That could be a huge moment when it comes to the scoring as that was a very good Agbeko round up to that point.
10:59... There was a clash of heads, and Agbeko immediately turned, and Byrd didn't see it as he was on the other side of the action.
11:03... Hard intense action here to start round 11. Both men exchanging in the middle of the ring. All 3 judges have Perez up. 2:00 left in the 11th. Good exchanges here in the middle of the ring. Agbeko I think having the edge in these exchanges, but Perez is landing his share of counters. Just intense action on the inside. Both men just ate hard left hands. Agbeko pushing Perez back a little, but Perez landing counters, and now works his way off the ropes. Terrific round from two tired, but very determined fighters.
11:07... Both men immediately start exchanging in the middle of the ring. Agbeko with a big left hook, and Perez took it well, and he comes back with a hard right hand on the button. Great exchange there. Al says he'll be shocked if the judges have it more than a point or two either way. Al has Perez up by 1. 2:00 to go here in round 12. Ferocious action in the center of the ring. This is amazing stuff. Agbeko having a bit the better of it, with his right hand. Perez is firing back and landing though. "What a sensational fight." - Albert. 50 seconds left. Now they have slowed just a touch, as Perez backs away for a second. Agbeko goes after him, but he's tired. 20 seconds left. Both fighters clearly tired here. They have given a hell of a lot. There's the bell. What a fight.
11:09... We await the cards.
11:10... Here's Jimmy Lennon with the result. 116-111, 117-110, 117-110 all for Yohhny Perez.
11:11... I'm very surprised at those scores. I thought it was razor close. 9-3?
11:12... Jim Gray is with the two fighters.
11:15... A rematch? "Whenever he wants it, I'll be right here." - Perez
11:18... Not surprisingly, Agbeko wants a rematch. I'd love to see it. That was a hell of a fight. For sustained action, I don't think there was a better one this year.
11:19... Press row had it 116-111 and 115-112 for Perez, and 114-113 for Agbeko.
11:20... All 3 press row judges and all 3 official judges obviously scored the knockdown round 10-8. That's just lazy scoring. A knockdown does not automatically give a fighter a 10-8 round, especially if he clearly lost the majority of the round. Anyway, I don't want to complain too much, as that was a fantastic fight, and I think Perez was a fair winner... but I really can't see it being nearly that wide. I hope you enjoyed our coverage of the fight, and check back next week for our live round by round coverage of Glen Johnson vs Chad Dawson.
Posted by Andy at 8:55 PM 9 comments
Labels: bantamweight, boxing bulletin live blog, joseph agbeko, yonnhy perez
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Vitali Klitschko vs Chris Arreola: Round by Round Blog
Welcome to The Boxing Bulletin's live round by round blog coverage of the heavyweight showdown between Vitali Klitschko and Chris Arreola.
The HBO broadcast is set to begin at 10 PM EST, and updates will start as soon as the show starts.
Vitali Klitschko 37-2 (252) vs Chris Arreola 27-0 (251)
If you are here early, check out some of our recent stories...
The Man to Beat Floyd Mayweather Jr... by Jeff Pryor
The Mayweather vs Marquez Big Screen Experience by Jeff Pryor
Chris Arreola Has The Tools To Rise Above Expectations by Michael Nelson
Has Arreola Sacrificed Enough To Beat Klitschko by Lee Payton
Read more!
Refresh this page often as updates will be frequent
9:50 PM EST... 10 minutes until the show starts.
10:05... HBO is live from the Staples Center, but first they are replaying last weekend's Mayweather/Marquez fight. According to Jim Lampley, it will be another hour before the heavyweights come on. I'll be back then for the round by round of Klitschko vs Arreola.
10:40... The Mayweather/Marquez replay is through 8 now. Hopefully tonight's fight will be starting around 11.
11:02... After the replay, Lampley interviewed Mayweather. Nothing really worth relaying, as Floyd didn't give anything away regarding his future plans.
11:04... Arreola is pacing inside his dressing room. Now HBO's going to do a little hyping with a Ring Life piece on the challenger.
11:10... Merchant on Arreola... "He jiggles in place he shouldn't jiggle in."
11:13... Now we're seeing some clips of Vitali. Neither fighter has made their way towards the ring yet.
11:15... Tale of the tape... Vitali has a 3 1/2 inch height advantage, plus a 3 1/2 edge in arm length.
11:16... Here comes Arreola.
11:17... Arreola is in the ring. He's wearing a black robe with silver trim, with the words "Chris The Nightmare" emblazoned on the back.
11:17... Vitali making his way towards the ring.
11:18... "Two very big men in the ring... let's go to Michael Buffer for the official introductions." - Lampley
11:19... The ref is Jon Schorle.
11:20... The crowd is buzzing as Arreola is introduced.
11:22... Not quite the same warm reception for Vitali.
11:22... Final instructions have been given. We are moments from starting.
11:25... Vitali with his left low, pawing with the jab as Arreola trying to get close. Arreola trying to get inside and eats a right hand. Vitali backing away as Arreola tries to get inside, and manages to tie Arreola up and get away. Arreola charges forward, but doesn't catch the big man. Now Vitali with a 1-2 that's blocoked. Vitali sticking a couple jabs home from long range. Vitali with a right hand uppercut. 1:30 to go. Arreola looking to get close, but no luck so far. Now Vitali ties him up. Vitali with a right hand, and another one. Now Vitali with that awkward jab/hook of his. 45 seconds left. Vit with a jab. Another jab, and a right that's blocked. Vit now misses with a right. Arreol is coming forward, but Vit keeping him at his range. 15 secnds left. Arreola tries to jab his way in, and gets one home. Now Vitali with a 1-2 that is short. Arreola tries to respond, but doesn't connect. There's the bell.
11:26... A lot of celebs in attendance. Mike Tyson got a big hand. Stallone and Arnold are there too. So is Kobe.
11:30... 1-0 on Harold's card for Vitali. Arreola with a couple jabs. Vit with a jab in response. Arreola with a right hand to the body, and Vit fires back. Vit with a 1-2, and Arreola fires back and pushes Vit into the ropes, but gets tied up. Vit with a jab. Vit sticking the jab home. Now a 1-2 from the big guy. Arreola coming forward, but not getting close enough. Now he eats a 1-2 again. Vit lands and then gets out of there. Arreola keeps following, but eats another right hand. Vit with a jab. Another jab and a right. Arreola keeps coming, but he's getting hit for his troubles. Arreola now chases Vitali accross the ring, but doesn't really land anything in the process, and Vit resumes banging Arreola with the jab and right hand. Another 1-2 from Vitali. Vit is also working that hook in there too. Arreola having to lunge to get close. There's the bell. Another round for Vitali.
11:30... Arreola is making Vitali work hard, but is he's taking some punishment in the process. Not sure he can do that for too long. We'll see.
11:33... 2-0 on Harold's card. Vit with a jab. Lampley commenting on Vitali breathing through his mouth, and then adds that he always does that. Vitali with a right hand. Arreola tries to respond, but misses. Vitali with a hook/jab. Vit just sticking the jab in ther as Arreola follows him around the ring. Vit is circling to his left. Now he catches Arreola with a 1-2. Arreola did get his own right hand in though. Now Arreola lunges in with a right, and gets caught again. 1:20 to go. Vit with a 1-2. Arreola keeps edging forward, he's got his gloves up when he does, but his head is too stationary and he's getting tagged with jabs. Vit with another 1-2. Arreola making Vitali use his legs a lot here. Vit with another jab. Arreola tries to respond just before the bell, but gets tied up.
11:37... Lampley mentions that Arreola's face is beginning to redden and show some damage. 3-0 on Harold's card. Arreola comes forward, eats a jab, but lands a right hand. Vitali on the move... going left. Arreola chases him and throws a 1-2, but is short as Vitali gets away. Vit moves back to the middle of the ring. Arreola comes forward and eats a jab. Vitali with a jab, but misses the follow up right hand. Vit with another jab. Arreola chases Vit into the ropes, and fires off a right hand that lands. Vit responds with a 1-2. Vit with a jab. Vit with a right. 1:00. Merchant commenting that Arreola is closing the distance a little bit, but still catching a lot more than he's landing. Vit with a jab. Arreola misses with a right hand. Vit sticking out the jab, and Arreola fires a right hand to the body. Vit with a jab. Vit with his left hand low keeps sticking out the jab when Arreola comes forward. There's the bell.
11:38... Between rounds, we got a highlight of a little left hook that Arreola landed on the inside.
11:41... 4-0 on Harold's card. Arreola coming forward, leans in with a jab that's short. Vitali responds with a right hand that lands. Vitali with another right, and then he slips away to his left. Now he goes to his right and Arreola tries to chase him down. Vitali though sticks the jab and moves. Vitali with another jab. Arreola lunges in and gets tied, but he bangs the body in the clinch. 1:40. Arreola charges forward, eats a jab, but keeps pressing and pushes Vitali into the ropes. Vitali with a right. Vit with another right. Vit is landing a lot of shots, but Arreola keeps coming. Another jab. "Arreola has got to find a way to get inside if he wants to stay in this fight." - Merchant. "Vitali not fighting like a 38 year old." Larry adds. Vitali with another jab. Vitali moving to his right. Sticking the jab home when Arreola advances. Now a right hand. Now a jab. Steward thinks Arreola's confidence is growing. Vitali with a 1-2 just before the bell.
11:46... Round 6 underway. 5-0 on Harold's card. Vitali moving to his right. He sticks the jab in. Arreola tries to respond, but doesn't have any luck as Vitali backs away and then slips off to his right. Vitali with a jab. Follows up with a right hand. Arreola edging forward, but Vitali bangs home a 1-2. Arreola pushes Vitali into the ropes and gets tied up. Vitali with a right uppercut. Vit with a jab. Action now in the middle of the ring. Arreola just not able to get inside, and he's not presing the way he did this round as he was in the previous round. Just as I say that, he forces Vitali into the ropes. Now Vitali lands a right, and Arroela comes back and presses Vitali again, but I don't think he got his shot home. Viali with a jab. 40 seconds left in the round. Vitali with a right hand to the body. Vit with a jab. Vit with a 1-2. Vit with a right hand. And another right. Arreola with a couple jabs, but is short with them. He tries to land a right, but Vitali backs away and the round ends.
11:50... 6-0 on Harold's card. I'd assume all 3 judges have it the same. Arreola eats a 1-2 as he tries to get inside. Vit with a right hand. Arreola rushes forward, firing his right hand, but Vitali escapes without getting tagged with anything serious. Vitali now moving away to his left. 2:00 to go in the round. Vit with a jab, and slips away to his left, now moves to his right and gets back in the middle of the ring. Arreola resumes following, but just can't get inside. Vitali sticks home a body shot. Vitali with a right hand. Vit with a jab. 1:00 to go. Vit got turned around and Arreola whacked him in the back. He's given a quick word by the ref. Vitali with a 1-2. Vitali with a right hand to the body. Larry comments on Vitali's fantastic conditioning. The pace of this round is a little slower. Arreola tries to get something started in the last few seconds and rushes Vitali. There's the bell.
11:50... Vitali has to be getting tired with all this movement, but at the same time, Arreola's pace seems to have slowed as well, and he's taken a great deal of punishment so far. Even if Vitali tires a little, not sure if Arreola will have anything left to press him with him.
11:54... Arreola resumes following Vitali around. He gets inside and Vitali grabs him, but with a free hand he bangs the body. The ref has been very quick to break them on the inside as he does so on that occasion. Harold pointed that in the previous round. That's certainly not helping Arreola. Now Arreola chases Vitali into the ropes, and he lands a hard left hand that got Vitali's attention. He followed up with a right hand, and Vitali was forced to hold on. Vitali fires back, but Arreola with some real energy fired off another right hand that forced Vitali to clinch. Now Vitali ties him up again. Vitali with a right hand. Arreola rushes forward, eats a right, but keeps coming and pushes Vitali into the ropes. Arreola looks like he's going for a broke here. Vitali fires to the body. Arreola fires a right hand. Lampley points out that blood is coming from Arreola's nose. Vitali fires a right hand. Vitali with a right hand. Arreola appeared to tag him with a counter, and then chases the big guy into the ropes. There's the bell. Definitely Arreola's best round so far.
11:54... Arreola's corner tells him to keep doing what he's doing.
11:54... Vitali's corner urging him to keep using his jab.
11:58... Arreola comes forward to start the round. Vitali with his hands down, firing off the jab. Arreola now tries to jab his way in, but Vitali slips away to his right. Vitali with a jab. Arreola pushes forward and eats a 1-2. Action in the middle of the ring now. Arreola fires off a hook, but misses. Vitali digs to the body with a right hand. Arreola comes forward and wings a right hand, but gets tied up. Now Vitali slips away and sticks Arreola with the jab. Now they clinch. Vit with a 1-2. Vit with a hard right hand that got Arreola's attention, but Arreola immediately comes forward. Vit with a right hand. Merchant comments that this is as one sided as last week's Mayweather/Marquez fight. Arreola tries to get inside, but gets tied up. Vit with a jab. Vit with another jab. Arreola is looking tired here and Vitali backs him into the ropes just as the round ends.
12:02... Round 10 coming up. Harold has it 8-1. Arreola comes out pressing. Vitali keeping his distance with the jab. Arreola following Vitali and eating jabs here. Arreola trying to get inside, but having no luck. He just chased Vitali into the ropes but couldn't land anything and Vitali responded with a 1-2. Vitali digs a shot to the body. Vitali with a 1-2. Vit with another 1-2. Arreola not pressing with the same enthusiasm he was earlier. His rushes forward are getting increasingly infrequent. Now he comes forward and misses witha hook. Vit with a jab. Vit with a right hand. Vit with another right hand. Vit with a jab. Vit with another jab. This is very one sided stuff. Vit with a 1-2.
12:02... It's over. Arreola's corner has ended it.
12:03... Or maybe the ref is the one that called an end to it. Either way it was a good decision, because the last two rounds were extremely one sided and it was looking like it was only going to get worse.
12:05... Here's Michael Buffer with the official announcement. He asks for a round of applause for the courageous challenger. "Referee Jon Schorle steps in and calls a halt to the bout at the end of round 10. The winner by TKO, Dr. Iron Fist, Vitali Klitschko."
12:06... Merchant is with Vitali. "Was this as easy for you as it looked to us?" Merchant asks. "It's never easy."
12:08... Arreola comes over and has a congratulatory word for Vitali. Now Larry's talking to Arreola, and he's really broken up. "I didn't want to quit. I wanted to the full 12 rounds."
12:09... "I just couldn't get to him, man." - Arreola
12:10... Larry tells him that he gained a lot of fans tonight. He gave it his all tonight, you have to give him that.
12:11... That's it for our coverage. I hope you enjoyed it and please check us out again next time.
Posted by Andy at 8:10 PM 0 comments
Labels: boxing bulletin live blog, chris arreola, heavyweight, vitali klitschko
Friday, September 25, 2009
Jean Pascal vs Silvio Branco: Round by Round Blog
Welcome to The Boxing Bulletin's live round by round blog coverage of the light-heavyweight clash between Jean Pascal and Silvio Branco. If you're looking to watch the fight live, the show is being broadcast via online PPV at GoFightLive.tv.
Make sure to check us out tomorrow night as well, as we'll be doing a live round by round blog of the heavyweight match-up between Vitali Klitschko and Cristobal Arreola.
Jean Pascal 23-1 (175) vs Silvio Branco 59-9-2 (174.2)
If you are here early, check out some of our recent stories...
British Scene: Matthew Macklin vs Amin Asikainen Preview by Dave Oakes
Battle at the O2: Bernard Dunne vs. Poonsawat Kratingdaenggym Preview by Michael Nelson
The Man to Beat Floyd Mayweather Jr... by Jeff Pryor
The Mayweather vs Marquez Big Screen Experience by Jeff Pryor
Chris Arreola Has The Tools To Rise Above Expectations by Michael Nelson
Has Arreola Sacrificed Enough To Beat Klitschko by Lee Payton
Read more!
Refresh this page often as updates will be frequent
8:10 PM EST... Right now, the 3rd preliminary bout of the evening between cruiserweights David Whittom and Carl Handy is in the 5th round (scheduled for 6). Still to come before the main-event is an 8 rounder between Sebastian Demers and Jose Spearman as well as a scheduled 12 rounder between Adonis Stevenson and Jermaine Mackey.
I would estimate Pascal and Branco will be coming on between 10:00 and 10:30, and updates will start as soon as soon as the fighters make their way towards the ring. Check back with us earlier though in case the show moves along a little quicker than expected.
8:21... Handy just finished pounding out a unanimous decision over Wittom. Scores were 59-55, 58-56 and 60-54. Wittom finished the bout with some nasty looking brusing under his right eye.
8:24... Jose Spearman is in the ring, with Sebastian Demers on his way in. I'll give periodic updates of these next two bouts, but will save the detailed round by round updates for the main-event.
8:31... Just over a minute into the opening round, Demers dropped Spearman for the 10 count with a right hand, followed by a left hook to the body. It looked like the right hand did most of the damage and I think Spearman was already heading down when the body shot landed. The official time was 1:18.
8:34... On the replay it looks like Spearman was definitely finished by the right hand. He had his gloves up high with his back to the ropes, and the punch looked like it caught him just behind his guard.
8:44... Adonis Stevenson is heading in. Jermain Mackey is already in the ring. This one's scheduled for 12, and I'll be giving periodic updates.
8:52... First round is in the books. Stevenson looked like he hurt Mackey with a left hand to the body with about 30 seconds left in the round, and backed the visiting man up into the ropes with a follow-up flurry.
8:56... Not too much to report from round 2, although during the closing seconds, Mackey stuck his chin out at Stevenson, daring the Canadian to take a shot. Stevenson responded with a jab and a 1-2, but couldn't connect as Mackey dodged his head out of the way. Guy Jutras has it 2-0 for Stevenson.
9:00... A good round for Stevenson. Mackey's a shifty customer, able to slip most shots upstairs, but Stevenson has made a concerted effort to fire to the body with both hands and has had success doing so.
9:05... Stevenson put Mackey down at the end of the 4th round, putting an exclamation mark on a very one sided round. He landed a couple of hard straight lefts early in the frame, while continuing to work the body. With about 45 seconds left, he landed another hard straight left, and landed several more, which had Mackey in all kinds of trouble before he went down just before the bell.
9:07... That's it. This one's over. It looked like they might might stop it before the 5th round, as the doctor took a look at Mackey before allowing the round to begin. Stevenson immediately went on the attack, and after it appeared the ropes prevented Mackey from going down near the corner, the ref jumped in and called it off. Good stoppage.
9:08... The official time is 0:20 of round 5. Stevenson the winner by TKO.
9:12... With Demers and Stevenson both winning early, we might be in for a bit of a wait before the main-event. I'll keep you posted.
9:20... While we wait for Pascal and Branco, highlights from the night's earlier bouts are being shown. I'm going to guess we'll be waiting at least another 15-20 minutes before the main-event starts.
9:24... Adonis Stevenson is chatting with the commentators. If I could understand French, I still wouldn't be able to relay what's being discussed as the audio from the booth isn't coming through at all. That's been the story throughout the broadcast. I'm wondering if the American GoGightLive.tv feed is any different from the Canadian feed? English commentary? Or is it the exact same broadcast?
9:29... Now Joachim Alcine is helping to fill some air time.
9:34... I just checked Bad Left Hook's fight night coverage, and they're reporting no audio from the commentary booth as well. Not a big deal, as at least we're getting the sounds from the arena, the ring announcer, etc.
9:37... Now a more worrisome concern than the lack of audio has developed, as the picture has frozen up a few times in the last couple minutes. Hopefully that does not happen during the fight.
9:40... Yvon Michel just had his turn in the booth. Now it's Antonin Decarie. Still having some picture problems.
9:46... There are flags in the ring visible behind the commentators. That's a good sign. Anthems must be coming up very shortly... then the fight.
9:51... Branco's in the ring, and Pascal is about to join him there.
9:52... The ring announcer is Christian Gauthier.
9:53... Gerry Bolan is the ref.
9:56... The crowd's buzzing as Pascal's name is announced. Looks like we're moments from getting under-way. Bolan about to give the fighters their final instructions.
10:01... We're underway. Branco immediately moves forward looking to press the action, while Pascal circles. Pascal moving to his left. Branco with a probing jab. Pascal keeps moving. Now he sticks a jab out. Branco short with a jab to the body. No punches landed in the opening 60 seconds. Pascal is short with a jab, and then gets on the move. Now he jumps in, but doesn't land. Branco is short with his jab. Branco short with another jab. Cautious stuff here. Branco now fires a right hand over the top, which may have just landed. Now Pascal fires back, but misses with a hook. 30 seconds left in the opening round. Pascal with a jab, and lands a follow-up glancing right. There's the bell.
10:02... 1-0 to Branco on Jutras' card.
10:05... Pascal circling to his left as Branco follows. Pascal now stops and jabs to the body, but is short with it. Branco with a 1-2, but neither lands. The right hand was blocked. Branco misses witha jab. Pascal fires back with a right hand, but he's short with it. Neither man really committing much here in the early going. Pascal with a 1-2, but he's short. Branco misses a right hand, and misses with a follow-up left hook. Now Pascal coming forward, and throws a right hand, but doesn't connect. Now he gets one home. Branco short with the jab. Pascal moving to his left, then his right, then to his left. Now Branco comes forward and Pascal ties him up. 30 seconds left in the round. Branco with a couple jabs that are short. Pascal jabs to the body. Now they exchange, but neither man gets anything home, and Pascal wildly goes forward and misses. Pascal misses with a hook. Two rounds in the book and neither man has landed a telling punch yet.
10:09... Round 3 is underway. Branco is up off his stool first. 1-1 on the Jutras score-card. I'd say that's about right. Not much has happened so far, and neither man deserves an edge. Branco with a right hand that's blocked. Pascal standing his ground a little more to start the round, but now he's on the move again. He throws a jab to the body that is short. Now Pascal edges forward, and tries to get in a jab, but Branco ties him up. Action in the center of the ring here. Branco looks to have caught Pascal during an exchange and I think Pascal is a bit buzzed, He backs off to the ropes with his gloves up and Branco goes after him. Now it looks like the Canadian is okay as he comes back throwing. 1:00 to go in round 3. Pascal throws a a bit of a wild 1-2 as he comes forward. Now he paws with the jab. Branco just misses with a 1-2. Pascal fires wildly back with his right hand. Some action here. A little sloppy, but both men looking willing to throw. Pascal with a jab, catching Branco on the way in. Pascal tries to fire off a lead hook. There's the bell to end round 3.
10:10... We're getting a replay of the moment when Pascal was slightly buzzed. Looked like a little right hand thrown in the clinch did it.
10:14... 2-1 Branco on Jutras' card. Branco comes out pressing, with Pascal circling. Branco with a right hand that got through as Pascal had backed up near the corner. Now the action shifts back to the middle of the ring. Pascal trying to jab his way in... very cautiously, and doesn't land. Pascal with a jab to the body which he's short with. Pascal now fires home a jab. Branco jabs to the body. 1:30 to go. Pascal looks a little unsure of himself here tonight. Now he comes forward with some aggression, backing Branco into the ropes, but the Italian fires back and backs Pascal off. 1:00 to go. Branco with a jab, and a left hook that's blocked. Pascal now comes forward with a jab and a hook. Branco ties him up. 30 seconds left. Pascal with a 1-2, but the right hand sails too high. Now Pascal gets home a right hand and aggressively goes after Branco. He throws him to the ground. The ref is counting. Is he calling that a knockdown? That happened just at the bell. Branco's up. We'll have to see that again.
10:14... It looked like a right hand from Pascal landed on the back of Branco's head while the two were tangled along the ropes.
10:15... The ref ruled that a knockdown, and that's going to be a 10-8 round. I think that's a little crazy, but that appears to be the way it was called.
10:18... Pascal a little more aggressive here in round 5. He's coming forward and letting his hands go. Now he backs off and looks to counter. Branco edges forward and Pascal fires a left hook that's blocked. Now Pascal catches Branco with a counter. Branco comes back with a 1-2 that lands. Now Pascal is on the move again, circling away to his left. He jumps in with a right hand that misses. 1:00 to go. Branco edging forward and tries to flurry, but Pascal ties him up. Pascal with a jab, but he's short. Now Pascal backs up and Branco follows him to the other side of the ring. Branco with a series of jabs into Pascal's high guard. Pascal now edges forward and throws a chopping right that is blocked. Branco fires his own right hand that doesn't get through. There's the bell.
10:22... Round 6 is underway. Jutras gave the 5th to Pascal. He's got him up 3-2, plus the alleged knockdown. A decent exchange as both men let their hands go and appeared to land. Pascal with a jab. Branco with a 1-2, but misses. Now Pascal fires a right hand over the top that misses. Branco misses with a jab. Pascal to the body with a jab. Branco edging forward here. He flicks out the jab. Now he fires a 1-2 into the guard. Pascal responds with a couple of shots to the body. Now Pascal witha bit of energy, fires off a hard flurry. Pascal now digs to the body. Branco on the ropes now fires back and gets out of there. Some good moments for Pascal. He's really not gone to the body at all in the early going with any purpose, but made a real effort to during that sequence. Branco now edging forward. He jabs into Pascal's guard, and now Pascal slips away to his left. Pascal now comes forward and fires off a 1-2 and I think the right hand got home. Both men fire off shots as the bell rings.
10:23... 4-2, 58-55 on Guy Jutras' scorecard.
10:27... Branco came out and backed Pascal in the corner and fired off a right hand. Pascal got out of there, firing off his own. Now Pascal with a combo. Pascal misses with a hook. Branco coming forward, with Pascal moving to his left. Now Pascal goes to his right and fires off a 1-2, but misses. Branco resumes coming forard. Pascal with his back to the ropes, looking to counter. Branco fires a right, and gets tied up. Pascal with a hold of Branco, who tries to fire a right in the clinch. Branco jabs into Pascal's guard. Now Branco with a hold of Pascal, and Pascal bangs a right hand to the back of Branco's head during the clinch. He's warned about it and the ref spots some loose tape. Action resumes and Pascal lands a right hand. Branco tries to fire back and then grabs a hold of Pascal's left hand. 15 seconds left in the round. Pascal with a right hand to the body, and then tries to flurry with both hands downstairs and then tosses Branco to the canvas... and this is called a knockdown. That didn't look like it. We'll have to see the replay, but I think Mr.Bolan has got it wrong again.
10:27... Looked like Pascal was throwing a punch, but still looked more like a push than anything else. Ruled a knockdown though.
10:31... 68-63 on Jutras' card after 7. Pascal is short with a jab to the body. Branco misses with a right hand. Pascal tries to rush forward, but he doesn't get anything home. Now Branco misses with a 1-2 and Pascal fires a right hand counter. Pascal misses with a sweeping hook. Pascal lands with a couple shots to the body. Now he gets home a right hand, and Branco grabs a hold of him. Pascal tries to flurry, but gets tied up. 1:30 to go. Branco fires a right hand that may have just landed. He's edging forward. Pascal moving to his left. Now Pascal has his back to the ropes. Branco pawing with the jab, looking to throw the right, but he doesn't let go with it. Now Pascal ties him up. 45 seconds left in the round. Action in the middle of the ring. Pascal misses with an overhand right. Pascal fires an uppercut, and then slips away. Branco gives chase. Branco goes to the body with a right hand and Pascal fires back with his own. 10 seconds left in the round. Branco with a couple of jabs that are short. Pascal fires back, and Branco comes back with a couple shots, although not sure if either landed. There's the bell.
10:36... 78-72 on Jutras' card. Branco comes out moving forward and misses with a right hand. Pascal is moving to his left. Now Pascal tries to flick a couple of jabs and come forward, but neither landed, and he goes back to the ropes looking to counter. Branco with a jab into the guard. Branco with a right hand that's blocked. Branco flicking out the jab, but not landing it. Now he fires a 1-2. Pascal fires a right hand in response. Branco tries to flurry, and Pascal fires back with a right hand. Not sure if it landed though. Branco immediately resumes coming forward. He fires a right hand into the guard. 1:00 to go. They clinch. Action in the middle of the ring. Branco tries to fire a hook, but misses. Pascal with a counter but doesn't connect. Now Pascal comes forward winging shots, as Branco backs up into the ropes. Down goes Branco. Not sure if he was hit low, but he suddenly went to the canvas. He's got some loose tape on his gloves anyway and Bolan takes him over to the corner for some work. They are back at it, but there's the bell to end the round.
10:37.. While Branco was having the tape on his gloves fixed, they showed a replay. Wasn't really clear if Pascal hit him low or not. Pascal fires to the body with both hands, and after a second, Branco went down. 88-81 on Jutras' card after 9.
10:40... Branco came out pressing as usual. Not much success though. Pascal just missed with a wild hook. Branco now pushing forward. He throws a 1-2 into the guard with Pascal's back along the ropes. Pascal now jumps forward with a hook to the body. Branco coming forward, missing with the right hand. Pascal meanwhile misses with a counter hook. Now Branco edges forward, firing a 1-2 into the guard. As the action moved in the center of the ring, Pascal catches Branco with something and sends him down. He's claiming he was hit behind the head, but he's up at the count of 9. Pascal goes after him, with both hands. Pascal lands a hook and down goes Branco again, and his corner quickly jumps into the ring and this one is over.
10:41... The first knockdown was a right hand that caught Branco while he was bending over. It did kind of catch him behind the head, but the way he was leaning over, that couldn't have been helped. Pascal went after him hard, and landed a couple decent hooks, the last of which sent Branco down again, prompting his corner to throw in the towel.
10:43... Pascal now has the microphone and is saying a few words to the crowd.
10:45... I didn't think Pascal really looked all that sharp tonight. Very tentative early, and didn't go to the body the way he's capable of. Still, he got the job done.
10:47... Pascal's now chatting with the commentators, and since there's no audio and I wouldn't be able to translate anyway, I might as well sign off. I hope you enjoyed our coverage of tonight's show and check back in with us tomorrow night for the Klitschko/Arreola heavyweight showdown.
Posted by Andy at 8:10 PM 1 comments
Labels: boxing bulletin live blog, jean pascal, light-heavyweight, silvio branco
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