Maidana Forces Himself Into Forefront With Scintillating Upset

Micheal Nelson gives his thoughts on Marcos Rene Maidana's stirring come from behind upset win over Victor Ortiz.

Marcos Rene Maidana wore a discouraged look on his face, having just suffered his third knockdown within two rounds. His young opponent threw quicker, shorter punches to go along with jolting power Maidana had not yet encountered in his career.

He continued to fight on, looking to land the same right hand that deposited Victor Ortiz on the canvas in the opening round. But the speed and technique deficit became increasingly apparent in rounds three and four and the momentum was firmly in Ortiz' corner.

Still, the hard-hitting Argentinian confidently came forward. He had been here before, having engaged in a gut check four months earlier in Germany against WBA titlist Andriy Kotelnik. It went into the books as a split decision loss, but most who viewed the fight had a healthy respect for the grit Maidana displayed in the championship rounds as he tore into Kotelnik in hopes of taking the verdict out of the hands of the judges.

The 22 year old Victor Ortiz, while looking phenomenal in making short work of most of his victims, had never gone through anything close to that in a professional prize fight.

So perhaps it shouldn't have been a shock when Ortiz came away from a violent exchange in the middle of round 5 a changed man. While Maidana was becoming more comfortable with the young man's power, Ortiz was beginning to unravel. He had a gash over his eye from one of Maidana's slashing right hands. He got hammered with two more big right hands as the round ended and walked back to his corner on unsteady legs.

When his trainer threatened to stop the fight, Victor was silent. His fighting spirit had been broken by his aggressive opponent. He came out for the sixth, but Maidana ended the proceedings quickly as Ortiz crumpled under an onslaught of right hands. In conjunction with the fight doctor, he decided he had enough.

Having now been in two of the top ten fights of 2009, Maidana's future is promising. He makes for an excellent bout with any of the best that 140 has to offer. The winner of the July 18th matchup between Andriy Kotelnik and Amir Khan could be a natural fight to make... given that a Kotelnik win sets up an appealing rematch. I have my doubts that Khan's trainer Freddie Roach is ready to throw the explosive, but iffy-whiskered Brit into the lion's den.

A fight with fellow South American bangers Juan Urango or Ricardo Torres would be a treat as well. The jr. welterweight division has developed into a vibrant mix of young personalities within the last year, and with his scintillating victory over a highly touted knockout artist in a headlining HBO bout, Maidana has pushed himself out of obscurity and near the forefront.

Meanwhile, the way Victor Ortiz ended the fight and the subsequent comments made in his interview with Max Kellerman ("I'm young but I don't think I deserve to be getting beat up like this") can't be encouraging to fans hoping for an ascent to stardom for the Golden Boy Promotions (and by default, HBO) prodigy. But he's young and talented enough to bounce back. There's a good chance that the loss can make him a better, tougher fighter.

His time may still come. For now, Maidana has the spotlight. There's little doubt that he'll use it to make boxing a little brighter.

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Live Blog: Lopez vs Lontchi & Ortiz vs Maidana

Welcome to The Boxing Bulletin's live blog coverage of Saturday night's twin-bill action with round by round updates of both the Top Rank PPV and HBO BAD shows.

Coverage will start at 9 PM EST with the under-card of the Top Rank show. We'll then jump over to HBO at 10 PM to cover Victor Ortiz (pictured right) vs Marcos Rene Maidana, and then back to Top Rank in plenty of time for the main-event between Juan Manuel Lopez and Olivier Lontchi.

Thanks for joining us for tonight's Boxing Bulletin live blog coverage. If you've been with us before for a live blog, welcome back. If this is your first time, thanks for checking us out. Feel free to participate by giving your scores and comments.

Top Rank PPV starts at 9 PM EST Main-event: Juan Manuel Lopez 121.5 lbs (25-0) vs Oliver Lontchi 120 lbs (18-0-2) Also on the show: Vanes Martirosyan vs Andrey Tsurkan (10 rounds at 154), Cornelius Bundrage vs Yuri Foreman (12 rounds at 154) & Jorge Arce vs Fernando Lumacad (12 rounds at 115) HBO BAD starts at 10 PM EST. Victor Ortiz (24-1-1) 139.7 lbs vs Marcos Rene Maidana (25-1) 140 lbs Vicious Victor Ortiz pictured right in his quick TKO win over Jeffrey Resto last December, photo © Ray Kasprowicz Just one fight on the HBO show due to the cancellation of the rematch between Chris John and Rocky Juarez. If you are here early, check out The Boxing Bulletin's previews for tonight's big fights: Victor Ortiz vs Marcos Rene Maidana Preview Juan Manuel Lopez vs Olivier Lontchi Preview

Refresh this page often as updates will be frequent Coverage will start at 9 PM EST. 8:15 EST... The Boxing Bulletin's live blog coverage of tonight's events will start in 45 minutes. Please join us then. 9:05... Martirosyan and Tsurkan will open up the show. Jimmy Lennon Jr. will be handling the intros momentarily. 9:06... Jimmy Lennon... "Welcome to Boardwalk Hall..." 9:07... Steve Smoger is the ref. 9:08... Intros are complete. Smoger with the final instructions. 9:09... We're underway. 9:12... Vanes landed a couple of nice right hands. Tsurkan is the one coming forward, and he's getting caught clean on the way in. Vanes just went to the body hard with a hook, and was warned for straying a little low. 1:00 left in the opening round. Tsurkan keeps plodding forward, while Vanes is circling and landing all the clean shots. There's the bell for round 1. 9:16... Vanes just landed a good upper-cut just over a minute into the second round. Much the same pattern as the first with Tsurkan moving forward, and Vanes circling away and loooking to counter. Vanes is also sticking the jab home. Tsurkan is following but not too busy and when he does throw is having a tough time landing clean. Meanwhile Vanes is landing clean jabs, while mixing in the occasional right hand. Round 2 in the books. 9:16... Tsurkan's corner is telling him he needs to get busier in there. 9:20... Raul Marquez just commented that Tsurkan is lunging in and starting to look like a walking punching bag. Vanes just nailed him with a clean right upper-cut. Tsurkan keeps moving forward, but he's having a tough time getting set. When he does open up, he's also getting tagged. Vanes just landed a nice combo. Vanes looking very comfortable in there. That's it for round 3. 9:24... Marquez just commented that it's 3-0 on his card. That goes without saying. It's been one way traffic. Vanes just landed a solid shot on the button that buckled Tsurkan's knees. About 50 seconds left in the 4th, and Vanes just landed a nice hard combo that seemed to momentarily stagger Tsurkan. There's a clean upper-cut as well. Round 4 coming to a close. This is starting to get a bit pointless. 9:25... The doctor is in Tsurkan's corner having a look. He's getting tagged flush a lot, and there's a swelling developing under his left eye. 9:28... About 2:00 minutes left in round 5. Tsurkan just got drilled with a clean right hand. He's taken a lot of punishment and it's still early. Clean shots on the button. Raul Marquez comments that Tsurkan is just taking a beating. Rich Marotta says Tsurkan needs to get inside and rough Vanes up. He's not quick enough. Let's be honest - there's really nothing he can do here. He's outclassed. There's the bell. 9:29... "Don't put me in a position here, you've got to throw shots!" - Tsurkan's corner. I imagine that's a threat that they'll stop it if he doesn't get back in the fight. I'd say if round 6 resembles the previous 5, that's a very good idea. 9:32... Marotta comments that Vanes is doing a great job not letting Tsurkan get set to throw. He's moving nicely and disrupting his rhythm with his jab. About 1:30 left in the round. Tsurkan just landed a decent left hook. Give him credit for battling on. Just not quick enough to get inside. Round 6 coming to a close. It's been a quieter one for Vanes. There's the bell. 9:33... There's a conference in Tsurkan's corner. Tsurkan wants 1 more round, but it looks like he's being overruled. This one is done. Good stoppage. 9:35... Jimmy Lennon with the announcement. He tells us that the ringside physician suggested Steve Smoger call this one off. 9:36... Next up is Cornelius Bundrage vs Yuri Foreman. This one's an eliminator and scheduled for 12. 9:38... Rich Marotta says that Foreman is on his way to becoming a rabbi. At 28, he's the younger man by 8 years. 9:39... Eddie Cotton is the ref for this one. 9:41... Jimmy Lennon giving the intros. Bundrage is wearing light blue with yellow trim. Foreman is wearing black with gold trim. 9:45... Marquez comments that Foreman's not a big puncher - "big asset is his footwork." We're about a minute in, and nothing's happened so far. A few catcalls from the crowd on the lack of action. Foreman then bulls Bundrage into the corner, and they clinch. A bit of rough stuff there from both guys as Bundrage reacted by whacking Foreman in the back of the head while in the clinch. Marquez says that Bundrage can't be waiting here, he's got to put the pressure on or he'll get outboxed. Round 1 coming to a close. The crowd not enthusiastic about this one so far. 9:46... Just a reminder, we'll be jumping over to the HBO for Ortiz vs Maidana, and then coming back to the Top Rank show. Foreman's corner by the way told him to stop feinting with the jab and actually throw it. 9:49... Curt Menefee just commented that Rich Marotta's having some technical issues. I assume his mike is not working. Not much for Rich to comment on. Not much for me to comment on either. Round 2 is almost in the books. Bundrage has been a little more aggressive, but the action has still been limited. 9:53... Bundrage just tried to land a right, but Foreman pulled away. Now they clinch. A lot of clinches so far. A lot of moving, feinting, clinching... not many clean shots landed. Foreman using his jab. Bundrage trying to attack here and there. Rich Marotta (he's back) just said that Bundrage can't be backing away. He's got to get aggressive in there. Foreman jumps in with a quick combo and gets out quickly. Bundrage is trying to land his right hand, but not having much success. There's another clinch. Foreman just landed a nice hard overhand right that really got Bundrage's attention, and Marquez think that buzzed Bundrage a little bit. Bundrage just whacked Foreman on the break and is warned by Eddie Cotton. There's the bell. 9:54... Foreman was cut in that round around the right eye from an accidental headbutt. 9:55... This one is over, and it's a no contest. That cut is nasty. Just over the right eye. 9:57... The clash of heads actually took place immediately after Foreman landed that hard right hand. 9:58... Jimmy Lennon... "Yuri Foreman the recipient of an unintentional head-butt and deemed unfit to continue by the ringside physician... no decision." 9:58... Up next is Jorge Arce vs Fernando Lumacad, but we'll be heading over to HBO. 10:01... First though, we've got Rich Marotta interviewing Juan Manuel Lopez, who's having his hands wrapped. Through the translator..."I'm excited. This is where I won my title a year ago." Is he effected by the raised expectations? "No pressure, of course I know the expectations are out there, and I'm looking to deliver on those expectations, but no pressure at all." Marotta asks about Lontchi - "We've seen a lot of tape... he doesn't have the style to beat me..." 10:02... "We have to come prepared for every fight. It's not a question of being over-confident. It's a question of doing your work and being confident about what you've done." 10:03... Off to HBO. 10:05... Bob Papa, Max Kellerman and Emanuel Steward handling the commentary. 10:06... This one's at Staples Center in LA. 10:10... HBO's showing a little feature on Victor Ortiz' story. I'll have to watch that later, but for now let's flip back to the Top Rank show, as a quick check reveals that the fighters are in the ring and ready to go. 10:12... Arce and Lumacad is underway. 10:14... Arce edging forward. He just tried a sweeping right hand, and missed as Lumacad ducked underneath it. Action in the center of the ring. Every so often, Arce edges forward, and Lumacad backs away and circles. Arce flicking out a few jabs. He's now short with a hook. Caution action here so far. Lumacad now tries a hook that misses. there's a clinch with a bout 20 seconds left. Very much a feeling out round. There's the bell. 10:15... We'll stick with this one for a little longer. Maidana is entering the arena over in LA. I'd say that one's still at least 5 or 6 minutes from starting. 10:18... Marquez comments that this isn't the Arce we usually see. "We usually see him start fast." Arce comes forward with a hook that is short, and a right hand that misses as well. Lumacad is moving nicely here. Marquez says Arce needs to get more aggressive and try and work the body. Arce tries to throw a right, that's blocked. He's showing more initiative than Lumacad, but hasn't had much luck yet. Lumacad is moving side to side, circling. Under a minute left in round 2. Lumacad ties Arce up as he tries to get inside. Lumacad now misses a hook. Lumacad goes to the body and then ties Arcue up again. Lumacad is moving when he can, and looking to try and beat Arce to the punch and tie him up in close. This round is coming to a close. 10:19... Arce suffered a cut just under his eye at some point during the round. It apparently won't be a problem. 10:20... Maidana and Ortiz are in the ring. The intros are underway. 10:20... The ref is Raul Caiz Sr. 10:21... Heading back quickly to Arce vs Lumacad... and it's over. Wow. Okay, let's see what happened here. 10:21... Hopefully I can catch a quick replay before heading back to the start of Ortiz vs Maidana. 10:22... Here's the replay. Huge right hand counter over the top of Lumacad's left jab. Right on the chin. That was that. 10:23... Wer're back with Ortiz and Maidana. Round 1 is underway. 10:26... Maidana off to a good start early. He just landed a nice counter right hand as Ortiz came inside. Ortiz though kept coming, and landed his own shot. Maidana tried to fire back, and was dropped along the ropes. Now Ortiz is down by a huge right hand! Wow. They traded knockdowns. Ortiz doesn't look good. He's unsteady and Maidana is after him. Ortiz is trying clinch. Maidana is banging the body. Now Ortiz comes back hard and drives Maidana into the ropes. 20 seconds left in the round. Maidana tries to bang the body and Ortiz holds on tight. Ortiz now fires a combo. Maidana fires back! There's the bell. What a round! 10:26... Crazy action round 1. Immediately after the fight resumed after the first knockdown - which was a right hook by Ortiz - Maidana landed a short straight right on the button. 10:27... Harold has it 10-10. I gave it to Maidana. His knockdown was certainly the better one, and I thought he had a slight edge in the round. 10:30... Maidana is putting the pressure on, trying to make this a brawl. He just landed a hard looping right hand. He's getting inside on Ortiz, and digging the body as well. Ortiz firing back with a straight left, and Maidana backs off. Terrific fight so far. Maidana is short with a right hand as he backs Ortiz up. He's got Victor backing up here. Now they clinch along the ropes, but both guys working in the clinch. 50 seconds left in round 2. A little clash of heads, but no blood. Now Ortiz just loaded up with a huge left. He missed. But he came back with another huge right, that caught Maidana and dropped him. Ortiz trying to finish now! Maidana trying to survive the round. 10 seconds left. Maidana is down again. He's up quickly. There's the bell. Wow! 10:31... Here's the replay of the knockdowns. A big right hook dropped Maidana the first time. The second time looked like a right hook as well. Not quite as crisp though. 10:31... 10-7 round for Ortiz on Harold's card. He has it 20-17. 10:34... Maidana just missed with a wild hook. Ortiz patient so far this round. He's not going full out trying to step on the advantage he had at the end of last round. Maidana catches him with a good right hand, and Ortiz responds by coming back hard with a flurry that drove Maidana into the ropes. Maidana came right back with a right hand though. 1:30 to go in round 3. Action now in the center of the ring. Maidana looking to line up the right. They clinch, but work out of it. Caiz yelling for them to let go. Ortiz just got the better of a good exchange. Ortiz misses with a hook, and Maidana counters to the body. They clinch again. 30 seconds left in round 3. Maidana is just short with a hook. Ortiz just misses with a big left hand, and follow up right hook. Steward comments that Maidana is getting a little wide with his punches. There's the bell. Round 3 is in the books. 10:35... Round 4 is underway. 10:35... Harold has it 30-26. 10:38... Maidana just caught Ortiz with a little right hand, as Harold is explaining his score. Kellerman comments that Maidana is getting a little sloppier, but is still very dangerous. Ortiz just landed a nice straight left hand. He's backed Maidana up for a moment. Another good left from Ortiz. He's just short with another one. Maidana trying to dig to the body with his left hand. Steward comments that if Ortiz utilized his right jab a bit more, he'd be having an easier time. 30 seconds left in round 4. Maidana tries to jump in with a right, and they clinch. Action a bit slower here. Ortiz fires off a combo and landed a left hand. He landed it just after the bell. 10:39... Round 5 is underway. 39-36 on Harold's card. 10:42... Ortiz with a hard right hook, that started off a nice flurry. Maidana ties him up. Steward comments that Ortiz just doesn't need to trade his much. Maidana lands a solid right. They clinch and Maidana is warned for hitting behind the head. Ortiz with a nice right hook. Another clinch. With Ortiz fighting out of the southpaw stance, they are coming together awkwardly a bit, resulting in a lot of these clinches. Maidana tries to come forward, and lands an uppercut. Ortiz responds with a combo. They exchange power shots. I think Maidana got the better of that exchange, but Ortiz fires right back immediately. Great action there. 45 seconds left in the round. Ortiz was cut during that exchange. Might have been a clash of heads. Ortiz misses with a counter hook, as Maidana tried to come inside. They clinch with about 15 seconds left. Maidana with a hard right hand down the middle that snapped Ortiz' head back. Another huge right hand by Maidana as the round ends. Some solid shots there. 10:43... The ruling was a punch caused the cut. Ortiz' corner is frantic. They aren't pleased with defensive lapses. It was a right hand on the eye that caused the cut. 10:44... Maidana immediately comes out and rips Ortiz with a right hand. Maidana is landing his right hand clean almost at will. Ortiz is in trouble. He's backing up. Maidana is going after him. Victor is in big trouble. Down he goes. The ref is taking him over the doctor. This is over. Marcos Rene Maidana with a stunning stoppage victory over Victor Ortiz. 10:45... Ortiz got up after the knockdown, but didn't look eager to continue, prompting Caiz to took him over to the doctor. 10:46... That's a nasty cut just over Victor's eye. The time of the stoppage is 46 seconds of round 6. Terrific fight. 10:47... Back over to the Top Rank show. The main-event still looks like it's at least a few minutes from starting. Neither fighter has made their entrance yet. 10:49... Back to HBO. Max Kellerman interviewing Maidana. He's asking how badly hurt he was early in the fight. "I was okay. My legs were a little shaky, but I was okay." 10:50... Max asks Maidana how he was able to get up from the knockdowns. "I was well prepared. Well trained." Maidana also says Ortiz was making some mistakes and he knew that he could eventually take him. 10:54... Victor's eyes don't look good. He's being interviewed now. Big swelling under the left eye. Nasty cut over the right eye. Victor says after he'd put Maidana down twice in the 2nd round, he was still in a bit of a daze. Kellerman asks Ortiz what convinced him to stop fighting. "I was hurt. I'm going to lay down on my back for nobody. That way I can sleep well when I'm older." 10:54... Over to the Top Rank show. Juan Manuel Lopez is ready to make his entrance and the crowd is buzzing. 10:56... Both men are in the ring. Jimmy Lennon Jr. with the intros. 10:58... From Montreal Quebec, by way of Cameroon... Olivier Lontchi. A very mild reception for Olivier. 10:59... The crowd with a big ovation as Lopez is introduced. 11:00... The ref is Alan Huggins. 11:00... We're underway. 11:03... JuanMa is stalking already. He's short with a right hand. Lontchi circling to his left, now to his right. He lands a jab, and Lopez counters. Lopez now comes forward behind his jab and fires off a combo, as Lontchi backs away. Lontchi ties Lopez up on the inside. Lontch tries to come inside, and trips over JuanMa's foot and goes down. No knockdown. 1:30 to go in round 1. Lontch tries to throw a right hand, but gets hit with a counter left. JuanMa misses with a hook, and Lontch tries to clinch, but gets pushed down by Lopez instead. No knockdown there either. Almost a clash of heads there. Lontch is doing a lot of holding early. He's playing spoiler here early. JuanMa pushing forward, misses with a left, but digs a hook to the body. Lontchi lands a right hand and quickly gets on the move and then ties up Lopez. There's the bell. 11:04... Lopez' trainer telling him that he's got to throw the right hook. 11:04... Round is underway. 11:07... Lontch tries to work the body, but he's not standing in. He's throwing one shot quickly and getting out of there real quick. Lopez steadily pushing forward. He just missed with a hook, and Lontchi ties him up. Lopez edging forward. Lontchi bouncing around on the move. Juanma tries to dig downstairs with a hook. Olivier not standing still at all. And I said that, he got caught in the corner... and down he went. He's up quickly. 1:30 to go. Lopez trying to jump on him. Lontchi looks to have his legs here. He's on the move again. Juanma is chasing. Lontchi trying to jab and move now. He's in full scale defense mode. Lopez with a combo as he catches Lontchi on the ropes. Lontchi quickly gets out of there and tries to throw a right hand, but he's short. Marotta comments that Lontchi is getting the occasional shot home, but it's not enough to discourage Lopez from steadily coming forward. Round 2 coming to a close. There's the bell. 11:08... Howard Grant asks Lontchi if he was hurt. "No, I'm okay." The knockdown was a glancing right hand that caught Lontchi maybe a bit off balance. 11:11... Lontchi moving from side to side. Lopez tries to jump in with a hook, and they clinch. Lopez stalking Lontch from one side of the ring to the other. Lontchi backing away and circling. Lopez just short with a left hand. Lopez chasing. Lontchi running. Now Lontchi clinching. Come'on Olivier... let's get in there. Now Lopez tries to back him up along the ropes, but can't get Lontchi to stand still. Now Lopez backs Lontchi into the corner, but gets tied up. Lopez is getting frustrated from all the holding. Lopez with a counter, and Lontchi ties him up again. This is not thrilling stuff. Round 3 is done. 11:12... "Relax Juan, the knockout will come." - the word from Juanma's corner. 11:15... Lontchi tries to jump in with the occasional shot, but it always seems very hesitant. He's kind of jumping in, looking to maybe land and then hold right away. Now JuanMa pushes him back into the ropes and tries to flurry, but Lotchi fights his way out of danger. Lontchi throwing a few more shots this round. Juanma misses with a left, and Lontchi tries to flurry. Again a bit of a flurry by Lontchi. He's letting his hands go a little more. Lopez steadily coming forward. Lontchi standing his ground a little bit more thoug. Now Juanma pushes him back again, and they clinch. Marquez comments that Lopez needs to put his punches together a little better. Lopez throws a right, and Lontchi ducks under. Another clinch. 20 seconds left in the round. Another clinch. More holding and grabbing, as Lopez misses and gets tied up. That's it for round 4. 11:16... Lontch is being told he needs to hold ground more and throw some punches. I think we'd all like to see it as this isn't very entertaining so far. 11:19... Lopez is not having much luck with his straight left. Lontchi is ducking under it almost every time. Now Juanma comes forward, tries to throw a combo, but gets tied up. Lopez again misses over the top. If Juanma went to the body a little bit more, I think he'd have some more success. Suddenly Lontchi lands a decent right hand. Now Lontchi disgs to the body. Lopez tries to counter, and they clinch again. Lontchi looking a little bit more confident. Lontchi again lands a clean right right. That was on the button. Suddenly things are looking up from the man from Canada. Lopez keeps pushing forward. Lontchi firing back though. Good round from the big underdog. Lopez a little frustrated as he pushes Lontci back against the ropes. Lopez is short with a left hand. Lopez tries to flurry, as Lontchi dances away. Much better performance from the challenger. 11:20... "You've got to use your jab, JuanMa" - Lopez' corner. 11:20... Round 6 is underway. 11:23... Raul Marquez gave Lontchi the 5th round. Marotta agrees. Lopez edging forward. Lontchi gets away from a left hand and tries to jump in with a combo, and then quickly dances away. Juanma again missing over the top with a left. Juanma should be using that jab, going to the body. He's not having much luck going upstairs. Lontchi with a right hand. Decent left by Lopez. Lopez is short with a left. 1:00 left in the round. Lopez with a couple of left hands. Lontchi fired back though. Lopez fires off a left, and there's another clinch. Now Juanma goes downstairs hard with a couple shots, but Lontchi responds again by throwing back. There's the bell. 11:24... "You've got to get inside and hit him in the body." - Lontchi's corner. 11:28... Lontchi fires off a right hand into the guard. Lopez short with a left. Lontchi with a right hand into the guard. Lopez with a nice left hand to the body. Lontchi gets caught with an uppercut. Lopez follows up with a hook, but it's over the top and misses. Lontchi fires back with a right, but it's ahort. Lopez keeping plugging forward, trying to land his power shots. Lontchi dancing away to his left. He flurries, and gets out quickly. Lopez witha hard digging left hand to the body. Lonchi with his guard up, is vulnerable downstairs. Lopez with a hard combo and drives Lontchi into the ropes. Lopez forces Lontchi in the corner, and flurries, only for Lontchi to fight his way out of the corner. Lotnch now grabs a hold of Lopez in close, trying to buy a few seconds. Now much time left in the the round. Lopez comes forward and digs another hard hook to the body as the round ends. That's really what he should be doing. Lontchi has the guard up, but he's open downstairs. 11:29... I should mention The Boxing Bulletin's Michael Nelson said he thought Lontchi had a good chance to go the distance. He's almost 2/3rds of the way there. 11:31... Lopez is making a concerted effort to go to the body here. Lontchi on the move. Lopez with a nice combo. Lontchi trying to come back with something, and they clinch. Lontchi's legs perhaps starting to show the effect of all his moving. He just landed a decent counter right though. Lopez keeps coming forward though. Lopez with a decent combo. Lontchi ties him up though. Lontchi tried to hold on there, and Lopez pushes his head down. Lopez with a decent uppercut. A clash of heads. Looks like no damage. They touch gloves. Juanma pushing forward. He's digging downstairs. Now he catches Lontchi with a little hook. Very good round here for Lopez. Lontchi is looking a little ragged as the bell rings. 11:32... Lontchi's corner tells him he's losing energy moving so much. He's got to stand and try and work on the inside. Easier said than done with the power of Lopez. 11:36... Round 9. Lopez backs Lontchi into the ropes, and flurries. He backs Lontchi into the ropes and bangs him downstairs. Lontchi fires back, but it's low and Lontchi is warned. Lopez takes a quick breather, and gets back in there. Lopez fires over the top with his straight left. Lontchi tries to fire his right, but misses. Lontchi back on the move. He tries to stop and throw, and then quickly back to circling. Lopez with a big left hand. That landed flush, and down goes Lontchi. He's up. He doesn't look steady though. Lopez patiently comes in to try and finish. He catches Lontchi with another hook. Lontchi managing to hold on though. Lontchi has a hold of Lopez' left. Lontchi hanging in there and now throwing back. 10 seconds to go in the round. There's the bell. 11:36... The knockdown came from a jab, followed up by a straight left. 11:37... This one is over. Lontchi's corner has stopped it. Good move. He wasn't going to win, and he was starting to get banged up. 11:38... Raul Marquez applauds the decision to call it a day. 11:40... Jimmy Lennon Jr. with the official announcement. "Upon advice of the corner, the fighter is unable to continue... winner by knockout, Juan Manuel Lopez." 11:44... Rich Marotta with Lopez for the post-fight interview. "Every fight is a learning experience. Tonight I learned a lot. He was a difficult tough guy style wise." Juanma says he took his time, he knew he had him. Marotta mentions the 5th round where Lontchi landed a few clean rights, did they hurt? "I did feel his punches. He doesn't have a lot of knockouts, but he does have a hard punch." Marotta asks about Juanma's body punching... "In the corner, they told me don't forget the body, you go to keep throwing there to slow him down. I listened to my corner and it worked." Who's next? "1 more defense at 122 in September or October, then moving up." 11:46... That's it for The Boxing Bulletin's live coverage of tonight's shows. We'll be back in a couple weeks for Vic Darchinyan vs Joseph Agbeko on July 11. Check out Michael Nelson's story on Maidana's come from behind win over Ortiz: Maidana Forces Himself Into Forefront With Scintillating Upset

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Victor Ortiz vs Marcos Rene Maidana Preview

Yesterday, Michael Nelson previewed the main event of the June 27th HBO double-header (John vs Juarez II Preview). Today, he takes a look at the opening bout between Victor Ortiz and Marcos Rene Maidana.

Photo © Ray Kasprowicz

Victor Ortiz is an undefeated 22 year old knockout artist that HBO is looking to push. He's coming off a surprisingly easy victory over the normally tough Mike Arnaoutis - blowing him out in two - following dominant knockout wins over the likes of Emmanuel Clottey, Jeffrey Resto, and Carlos Maussa. Next Saturday night, he'll be facing an Argentinian fighter who has never been on American television and is coming off a loss.

Make sure to check out The Boxing Bulletin's live blog coverage of this event

Smells like another Boxing After Dark showcase for a young talent, right?

Not so fast. Marcos Rene Maidana is no "opponent". A young man himself, the 25 year old has knocked out 24 of his 25 victims. While those victims aren't exactly a who's who at light welterweight, some of them are hard nosed journeymen that he dispatched much easier than other players in the division. Arturo Morua beat Cosme Rivera, Carlos Maussa and Emmanuel Augustus, and went the distance with Ricardo Torres a year before he fought Maidana. Maidana destroyed him within three rounds. Manuel Garcia beat Maussa and controversially lost to Juan Lazcano before suffering a lopsided defeat to Timothy Bradley. Maidana took him out in eight.

His only blemish is the split decision loss to Andriy Kotelnik in February. The WBA World light welterweight title match was a hotly contested bout that could have gone either way. But as opposed to Kotelnik's bout with Junior Witter - in which Kotelnik swept the last several rounds and looked as if he could easily go 15 - he had to use every bit of grit and heart inside him to survive his encounter against Marcos. At the end, Kotelnik had a disfigured face featuring a badly swollen jaw, a twisted, bloodied nose, and a knot under his right eye.

In other words, we have two explosive, young bangers who are capable of ending a fight at any moment. Remember the pre-fight hype amongst the boxing faithful over James Kirkland against Joel Julio? This looks to be an even better matchup.

Yes, hindsight is 20/20. Kirkland-Julio failed to produce many thrills, as James proved too strong for Julio, whose game plan was to awkwardly leap around the ring like a gimpy gazelle. But the free-swinging Maidana is unlikely to take many backward steps and will provide plenty of counter opportunities for Ortiz, who like Kirkland, is a strong, aggressive southpaw. And while he's more patient than James, he lets his hands go in combination and will swarm when the smell of blood is in the air. There will be violence in spades. In all likelihood, there will be a knockout.

Given that both men are only into their fifth year as a professional boxer (and neither have exactly been on the fast track), both are bringing something into the ring that the other has never seen before. Ortiz has never faced a slugger with the power and durability of Maidana. Nor has he faced Maidana's crave to fillet a rib cage with slashing right hands and sharp left hooks. Meanwhile, Maidana has never faced a fighter with the power of Ortiz, or a southpaw nearly as talented as Ortiz.

The Kotelnik fight alone gives Maidana the definitive experience edge. Facing a tough, technically proficient titlist, Maidana opened the bout strong before getting soundly outboxed during the middle portion of the fight. As the waters began getting deep, he answered an examination that Ortiz hasn't been close to being challenged with by sucking it up and furiously rallying in the championship rounds. He showed enough stamina, heart, and bullheaded determination four months ago to be sure that he's not going to be intimidated by Ortiz at any point in their fight. He's coming to put the young lion to sleep and he'll walk through hell to do it.

Another learning experience Maidana can take from Kotelnik is how to deal with a fighter that has a tight guard. Ortiz' defense isn't dissimilar to Kotelnik's, keeping his hands near his cheeks at all times and exploding out of his shell with compact combinations. Maidana nailed Kotelnik with a number of uppercuts; he'll look to penetrate Victor's guard the same way while mixing in wide shots around the gloves and elbows.

Nevertheless, Victor has the clear edge in technique. His straighter punches should allow him to effectively counter the Argentinian and win most of the exchanges. Ortiz has shown solid footwork in the past as well; expect him to move around the ring in spots to lure Maidana into traps. He'll try to land powerful lead lefts inside of Maidana's looping right hands.

How many flush left hands and right hooks can Maidana take to the chin? And how will young Ortiz react if Maidana is still in his face after several rounds, ripping shots into his midsection and launching uppercuts between his guard? These type of questions don't make for a showcase, they make for vintage Boxing After Dark chaos.

I for one can't wait to find out the answers.

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FNF, Shobox and the Return of Chagaev

It's been a fairly busy weekend so far. Even with the highly anticipated main event between Vic Darchinyan and Jorge Arce still to come, we've already had plenty of fights worth touching on.

Last night, Yusaf Mack and Chris Henry battled it out on a FNF card that also featured middlewight propsect and crowd favourite Fernando Guerrero (photo © Cheryl Nemazie). 2004 Olympic gold medalist Andre Ward was in action on Shobox, while in Germany, Ruslan Chagaev made his return after more than a year on the shelf on a show highlighted by 140 pound belt holder Andriy Kotelnik and challenger Marcos Rene Maidana.


Yusaf Mack - Chris Henry

It was a solid, albeit a bit frustrating, Friday Night Fight headliner. Yusaf Mack showed that he carried his power up to light heavyweight, rocking Chris Henry multiple times with right hands en route to a split decision victory. He refused to put together combinations, however, and if he followed those right hands up with left hooks, he almost certainly would have knocked Henry out. Henry, for his part, actually appeared to out jab his quicker opponent. His wide right hands were the problem, as they continued to miss their mark throughout. Poor foot work and balance were also issues. Henry wasn't able to keep a proper distance on the inside, instead falling into clinches and smothering his own punches. Yusaf was badly gassed late in the fight; more body work with some uppercuts mixed in could have finished him off. Both men showed limitations that makes it difficult for me to place them among the elite at 175, although they would give most of the top 10 a rough outing. Mack's stamina issues will likely always be a problem, as will Henry's lack of accuracy and balance. - Michael Nelson

Mack has the skill to be a serious player. He's pretty good defensively, has quick hands, and can bang a little bit. The problem is in his stamina and focus. He had Henry wobbling around in the 6th round, but instead of taking advantage, he showed a lack of composure and started chucking wildly. He gassed himself in the process, and had little left in the tank for the final six rounds.

Mack will get more spots on TV because he tends to make exciting fights, but even at 30 years old, he has plenty of maturing to do if he is to fulfill his potential.

Even though Chris Henry lost, I was impressed with the way he kept plugging away. You had to admire the way he pushed the action, even while utterly exhausted. He carries certain useful tools, like above average punching power, a strong beard and all the inside stuff you want in a fighter and with work on a few technical elements he could take his game up a half a level or so.

I'd like to see simple head movement. The man is so wide open on his left side, it gave me flashbacks of Cliff Ettienne. That's a shame, because he is better than that. If Henry committed to the body with those booming rights, he would be a monster. Follow that up with a left hook and you've got yourself a dangerous man.

While dropping this fight is a definite setback, I believe this fighter has the guts and power to get back into contention.

I wouldn't mind seeing one of these guys fight Tavoris Cloud next.

Fernando Guerrero - Gabriel Rosado

The Co-feature pitted the extremely popular local prospect, Fernando Guerrero, against Gabriel Rosado. The kid from Salisbury, Maryland made sure the home crowd was not disappointed, as he pounded out a competitive unanimous decision win. This was a significant step up for the undefeated young fighter and he handled himself well, despite a flash knockdown.

We still don't know how he takes one on the chin or to the ribs, but he's an interesting personality with a devoted audience, so I look forward to checking him out again.

Andriy Kotelnik - Marcos Rene Maidana

In Germany, Andriy Kotelnik successfully defended his 140 title belt in a busted face effort against relatively unknown Argentinian banger, Marcos Rene Maidana.

The challenger came out fast, slamming several right hands around the guard while also splitting the gloves with lead left uppercuts that snapped Kotelnik's head back. He never stopped banging away for the first 3 rounds, while his opponent showed great resolve in standing up to the abuse and coming back to make it a very tight contest down the stretch.

It was Maidana's big swings and activity against Kotelnik's sharper blows and crowd reaction. In the end, the decision was a fair one. I thought the fight was 7-5 either way and the judges agreed.

Ruslan Chagaev - Carl Davis Drummond

The less said about Ruslan Chagaev's return, the better. It was one of the most timid performances I have ever seen. The opponent, Carlos David Drummond, was just as careful and it made for a yawn. It was one of those fights that make you angry. Neither guy wanted to lead at all so there were a lot of ugly collisions between the painfully few clean punches.

An accidental headbutt opened a cut over Chagaev's left eye brought an early end to things after the 6th round. He won the dreadfully boring decision that has pretty much forced me to avoid his fights for awhile.

The cut turned out to be the best thing about that "fight". It saved me from being bored for another 6 rounds.

-Lee Payton

Ward-Buchanen In his showcase on ShoBox, Andre Ward whitewashed Henry 'Sugar Poo' Buchanan, but his performance left plenty to be desired. Sugar Poo, more saccharin than pure cane, didn't put up much of a fight. His offensive output comprised mainly of 'don't touch me' jabs, and I feel when faced against a relatively harmless combatant, a prospect like Ward should do his best to take him out. Instead, he was content to potshot from the outside, never taking it to the next level. Getting inside and shredding Poo's midsection is something I would have liked to see him do. Nevertheless, Ward is obviously talented. But how sturdy his chin is and how he'd fare in a long, grueling fight remain the questions that Buchanan didn't have the capability or willingness to ask. -Michael Nelson

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Betting on Boxing: Andriy Kotelnik vs. Marcos Rene Maidana

By Michael Nelson

In a potential great fight that's flying under the radar in the boxing community outside of Europe, defending WBA Jr. Welterweight titlist Andriy Kotelnik faces a relatively unknown Argentinian banger named Marcos Rene Maidana on February 7th.

Maidana is 25-0 with 24 knockouts, but take a cursory look into this glossy record and you'll see he's fought weak, non-descript competition. Immediately, a stereotype might pop into your head. We've seen this before: seemingly 2-3 times a year, an undefeated South American boxer with a big knockout record travels to the US and gets flattened by a more experienced foe on Friday Night Fights. To be fair, there are some, like Edison Miranda, that end up being good fighters. But the majority of these men lack the seasoning to compete on a world class level.

Trying not to judge a book by its cover though, I got a hold of a few fights of Maidana. What I saw was pretty impressive. He has a wide array of punches, thrown in quick, compact fashion. He cuts off the ring very well. He invests heavily into body work. And he appears to have a pretty high ring IQ.

In his most telling fight, he fought a journeyman named Juan Carlos Rodriguez with a 56-21 record. Rodriguez was the only opponent of Maidana who had been in with recognizable names, losing to all of them. But he at least served as a gauge as far as comparing how Maidana did with how Cosme Rivera, Danny Perez, Antonio Diaz, Daniel Santos, Herman Ngoudjo, and other Rodriguez opponents did. Marcos passed the mini-test in that regard, winning virtually every minute of the fight, adapting and transitioning from relentless pressure to a more patient boxer-puncher style when he couldn't blow Rodriguez out in the first few rounds. Eventually, he placed a perfectly timed uppercut to Rodriguez' chin and knocked him cold in the 7th.

Because of the limited hand speed and offensive ability of Rodriguez, it is hard to discern exactly how good Carlos is defensively. He does roll his shoulders well, allowing him to get off crisp counter punches.

Andriy Kotelnik is the type of technical boxer we've become accustomed to seeing out of Germany. Similar to Felix Sturm and Arthur Abraham, his defense comprises of keeping earmuffs on; that is, walking to or circling around his opponent while deflecting punches off his forearms and gloves. While his opponent is busy figuring out how to penetrate his defense, he stings them with sharp jabs and straight right hands. Junior Witter caught his fair share of flack for struggling with this man, but the fact is his style is a difficult one to overcome.

Will it be too difficult for the inexperienced Marcos Maidana to overcome? It could be, but it certainly appears that Maidana has the right tools for the job. Kotelnik's earmuffs leaves his body open, and Maidana is a very busy, emphatic body puncher. He's also a dynamic one, mixing in with straight shots to the gut and uppercuts to the sternum to go with wider punches to the sides. That, and the multiple layers he has shown to have in his attack, leads me to believe he will win the title in a hotly contested battle. Fears of a homecooked decision may be somewhat of a concern, but Maidana has fought five times in Germany himself, and has developed a nice following there.

Betting Line - Andrily Kotelnik: -165 Marcos Rene Maidana: +140
My adjusted line - Andrily Kotelnik: +120 Marcos Rene Maidana: -150

Recommendation: Put some cash on the Argentinian prospect.

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