Tavoris Cloud Brings the Thunder, Juan Urango Brings the Pain

Michael Nelson gives his thoughts on last night's FNF show.

Tavoris Cloud and Juan Urango delivered career performances against game opposition last night in a very solid Friday Night Fights doubleheader. Cloud captured his first world title at 27 years old while Urango retained his IBF strap in the gripping main event.

Cloud's opponent didn't come from the UK to lay down. The grizzled Clinton Woods fought the Tallahassee, Florida native on even terms through the early going, which included a second round that had Woods snapping off a variety of hard uppercuts and straight right hands. It looked like the beginnings of a long night for young Tavoris.

But Cloud found a groove in the middle rounds, being more selective with his punches while landing sharp counters against his taller foe. His James Toneyesque shoulder-roll-right-hand was especially effective in snapping Clinton's head back. Once he began digging in with beautiful triple left hooks - one to the head, one to the midsection, and another one up top as Woods would pull back - he started doing damage. A series of hooks left Woods in serious trouble in the ninth round.

The heart and resiliency he displayed in his trilogy against Glen Johnson though was still evident at 37 years old. Woods refused to go down as Cloud rained blows on him, and came back to hold his own during the championship rounds. Surprisingly, all three scorecards at the end read 116-112, which meant the judges in Cloud's hometown gave Woods most, if not all, of the close rounds. After last week, it was nice to be reminded that hometown bias isn't a guarantee in boxing.

What is guaranteed is action whenever Tavoris steps inside the ring. A showdown with Glen Johnson would be breathtaking. Fights with Jean Pascal or Chad Dawson wouldn't be short of thrills either. Let's just hope he's more active as a titlist than he was as a contender.

Juan Urango had his own set of problems as a belt holder in the main event, getting put on his back for the first time in his career.

The fight went as expected through five rounds. The brute southpaw stalked Randall Bailey and tore into his body while mixing in clubbing right hooks and left hands. Randall tried to maintain distance, paw with his jab, and drop in the occasional right hand.

The script was flipped in the sixth. One of those right hands deposited Urango on the canvas, and for a moment it looked as if he wasn't going to get up. Using the same recovery skills he showed when Nasser Athumani badly staggered him two years ago, he managed to beat the count and make it out of the round without further issue. But he was now sporting a nasty cut and lump under his right eye.

Juan went back to work immediately. He continued chopping Bailey down, taking his older opponent's legs piece by piece with every thudding body punch landed. In the ninth round, Bailey's legs were completely gone as a left hand took him off his feet. He struggled up at the count of nine and suffered a sustained beating until trainer John David Jackson rightly called an end to the proceedings in the 11th.

Urango's flaws are what they are; he has cement feet, and even after seven years of fighters tying him up on the inside, he still refuses to work inside a clinch. He may always struggle against a quick, durable opponent. But match him correctly, and blood and drama will not be far behind.

A dry FNF season ended with a monsoon thanks to all four combatants. Hopefully, it sets the pace for the remainder of 2009.

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Tavoris Cloud vs Clinton Woods Preview

Michael Nelson previews tonight's FNF light-heavyweight clash between Tavoris Cloud and Clinton Woods.

Tavoris Cloud took the Light Heavyweight scene by storm last August when he demolished Julio Gonzales in an IBF title eliminator. But instead of staying busy, he chose to sit on his position as Chad Dawson's mandatory as Dawson fought Tarver twice, and then dropped the belt to rematch nemesis Glen Johnson. The winner of tonight's bout will be rewarded with the vacant strap.

Needless to say, Cloud is looking to be more Cumulonimbus than calm against rugged Englishman Clinton Woods. Having grown up in desolate conditions, Tavoris fights as if he's been famished all his life. He's unlikely to take this opportunity lightly.

Clinton isn't either. This will be his final chance at regaining a stronghold in the division. The last time Woods was seen on American television, he allowed Antonio Tarver to camp in the middle of the ring and move his hands without consequence. If the 37 year old doesn't show more Grizzly against Cloud, it may be a short night in Hollywood, Florida.

Woods will hold a four inch height advantage over Cloud, but his fight is not one of maintaining distance. Expect Teddy Atlas' dialog throughout the bout to revolve around the real estate battle and how Woods is losing it. He's not comfortable moving for long stretches of a bout. Being one of the bigger and stronger men at Light Heavyweight though, he generally accustoms himself well in close.

How well he expects to do banging with the explosive 27 year old Floridian is a question that might not take long to answer. Cloud in many ways is reminiscent of Andre Berto, except he loves to fight on the inside rather than clinch. He loads up on powerful right hands and lead left hooks while mixing in violent uppercuts to keep a ducking opponent honest. And when he remembers to go to the body, he's cruelly effective. A normally sturdy Gonzales winced every time Cloud landed a hook underneath the rib cage.

As evident in his trilogy with Glen Johnson, Clinton is worryingly open for a right hand, Cloud's bread-and-butter. Johnson chopped him down with straight rights to the point where he was nearly out on his feet in the 9th round of their rubber match. To Woods' credit, he survived and won a split decision.

But that was on his home turf in the UK when he was three years younger. Now fighting on Cloud's stomping grounds, the odds are against him. If he gets slammed with as many right hands tonight as he did against Johnson, it's unlikely he sees the final bell, much less win a decision. He'll have to rely on his experience, stamina, and guile to blunt Cloud's charges and outwork his untested opponent.

While most indicators point to it being the younger man's time to shine, the steely veteran can't be counted out. He has defied the critics more than once in his 15 year career. The Friday Night Fights finale shouldn't disappoint.

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