Fight Report

Tonight on Showtime’s split-location Doubleheader (Herning, Denmark and Temecula, CA), Mikkel Kessler and Andre Ward both scored TKOs thus paving the way for their November bout in the opening round of the network’s highly anticipated Super Middleweight tournament.

Kessler was first up in a tape-delayed bout that took place earlier in the day. He handled number one contender Gusmyr Perdomo with relative ease. Effective pressure from Kessler forced Perdomo into several close range exchanges. Perdomo fought back gamely and even landed a decent amount of shots due to Kessler’s ring rust but he could not match his opponent’s power.

Despite being outgunned, Perdomo managed to keep round two competitive but in the third he was dropped by a blow to the shoulder. He was off-balance when the punch landed but the round still clearly belonged to Kessler.

Perdomo began the fourth by landing well to the body, but seconds later Mikkel landed a sharp right to the head that staggered Gusmyr. The Dane quickly moved in and landed several more lefts and rights until referee Russell Mora stopped the bout. Official time of the stoppage was 0:51 of round two.

With the win Kessler improves to 42-1, 32 KOs while Gusmyr Perdomo drops to 16-3, 10 KOs.

WARD TOO MUCH FOR PUDWILL

In the Main Event of the card held at the Pechanga Casino in Temecula, CA, Andre Ward (20-0, 13 KOs) dominated Shelby Pudwill (22-4-1, 9 KOs) in three one-sided rounds.

Ward’s speed advantage was evident from the start and Pudwill quickly fell into a defensive mode. It made no difference since Andre mixed his attack to the body and head beautifully. By the end of the second round, Pudwill’s face was beet red, and in the third he hit the canvas after receiving a left to the head. Pudwill beat the count and after a cut beneath his left eye was checked the bout continued.

Ward aggressively moved in for the kill. He battered Pudwill with shots to the head and body and finally beckoned for referee Pat Russell to stop the bout. He did just that at 2:16 of round three.

After the fight Ward told reporters he did not watch the Kessler fight so he could focus on Pudwill. He also added that it was important for him to score a knockout in order to send message to other tournament fighters.

Ward and Kessler are now scheduled to meet in Oakland on November 21. This is the best of the three opening matchups in the Middleweight tournament since the fight is so even. Based what I saw today I would give Andre a slight advantage due to his quickness and Mikkel’s ring rust.

TONEY LIGHTEST OF HIS HEAVYWEIGHT CAREER

On the undercard of the Ward-Pudwill bout, James ‘Lights Out’ Toney (72-6-3, 44 KOs) destroyed Matthew Greer (12-6, 11 KOs) in just two rounds. Greer, who weighed 240lbs and has a 92% KO ratio, tried to add another victim to his record but Toney was too quick and seasoned for him. Toney, who weighed 217lbs and was the lightest during his tenure as a Heavyweight, used Greer’s pressure against him and punished him relentlessly to the body. Greer managed to score a big blow to the head which drew oh’s from the crowd but James was never in trouble.

In the second, Greer trapped Toney in the corner but James escaped by countering well to the big guy’s mid-section. The body shots took their toll on Greer and Toney did not let up. A nasty left hook to the ribs dropped Greer and after he got up James had a sitting duck in front of him. He landed four individual lead punches that landed flush on Greer’s face and referee Ray Corona ended the fight. Official time of the stoppage was 2:33 of round two.

In the post-fight presser, promoter Dan Goossen said he plans on entering James into the WBC’s upcoming heavyweight contender tournament.

SANTANA SPLIT DECISIONS HIRSCH

In other action, Francisco Santana (11-1, 5 KOs) earned a controversial decision over Tony Hirsch (9-3-1, 5 KOs) in a six round Jr. Middleweight clash.

Santana spent most of the fight coming forward but he had trouble landing clean shots. Hirsch used excellent movement to keep the fight at a favorable distance and although Santana blocked many of his punches enough got through to do damage. Whenever Santana closed the distance, Hirsch effectively tied him up.

Santana’s best moments of the fight came in round four after landing a solid hook and at the end of round five when he scored well with a multiple punches at the end of the round.

Official scores of the bout were 58-56 Santana, 58-56 Santana, and 60-54 Hirsch. (Fight Report had it 58-56 for Hirsch.)

WILLIAMS SCORES FIRST KO AS A PRO

Welterweight Terrell Williams (2-0, 1 KOs) completely outclassed Joshua Zurfluh (1-7-1, 5 KOs) in just two rounds in the third bout of the evening.

Zurfluh came into the bout sporting a 1-6-1 record and had lost his last five. He was clearly fodder for the newly-turned pro Terrell Williams.

Wiliams’ speed was his biggest advantage. He battered Zurfluh with quick shots and if rounds lasted three minutes and ten seconds he would have scored a first round knockout. Instead, he got the job done in round two after a solid right staggered Zurflah and turned him to the side. Referee Pat Russell ended the mismatch at the 1:55 mark.

Despite fighting someone with limited skills, Williams showed he has good potential and should be someone fans keep an eye on.

DALLAS JR DOMINATES ARROYO IN JR. WELTER SCRAP

The second bout of the night saw Mike Dallas Jr. (10-0-1, 2 KOs) unanimously decision Vincent Arroyo (9-1, 6 KOs) in six.

Both guys threw a lot of wide punches during the bout but Dallas Jr. won the majority of the exchanges due to superior hand speed. He landed good leather that knocked Arroyo’s mouthpiece out twice in the third and once in the fourth. (No warning given because it did not affect the fight.)

Despite absorbing serious punishment to the face, Arroyo continued a spirited attack and his efforts nearly paid off in the final round. Behind on the scorecards, he rocked Dallas Jr. with a big right to the head that backed him to the ropes. Unfortunately Arroyo could not finish him because Dallas Jr. wisely held on to the end.

Official scores of the bout were 60-54, 59-54, and 59-54.

JR. FEATHERWEIGHT RICO RAMOS – PROSPECT OF THE NIGHT

This kid impressed me the most last night. Undefeated at 12-0, 8 KOs he has the style and the skills to go places. He completely destroyed Victor Martinez (15-6, 11 KOs) in three, exciting rounds.

Ramos mixed his attack well from the get go. He scored a knockdown in the first with a vicious body shot and later in the round delivered some punishing combinations to the head.

Martinez began holding more in the second but Ramos’ punches still got through. A three punch combo rattled Martinez but he hung tough. In the third Ramos stepped up his attack and finally forced Martinez to succumb to an overwhelming body attack. The fight was called by Ray Corona at 1:46 of the third.

Abner Mares stopped Carlos Fulgencio with a nice left hook to the liver on last night’s Versus card.

Mares had been battering Fulgencio pretty good throughout the fight but the body blow was the definite fight-ender. Fulgencio writhed around on the canvas in agony for several seconds after the punch landed so you know it hit him right on the button. Official time of the stoppage was 2:24 of round six.

Abner remains undefeated at 19-0, 12 KOs and will likely challenge for one of the Bantamweight belts in 2010. Fulgencio drops to 11-3-1, 7 KOs.

Here’s a nice shot from Diaz on Paulie. Like most fans, I thought the fight was close (I had Malignaggi winning 115-113). But what was up with Gale Van Hoy’s scorecard? 118-110 reeks of corruption. Malignaggi said this would happen to him prior to the fight and he was right.

Antonio Pitalua laid out Jose Reyes with a beautiful right hand last night on Telemundo’s Boxeo show. Pitalua was coming off a loss to fellow slugger Edwin Valero so it was good to see him get back in the win column.

Pitalua improves to 47-4, 41 KOs, while Reyes drops to 23-7, 8 KOs.

Tonight at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, Manny Pacquiao (49-3-2, 37 KOs) completely destroyed Ricky Hatton (45-2, 32 KOs) in two brutal, one-sided rounds.

It was a frightening performance from Manny. Frightening because of how violently he ended the fight, and frightening because it was so easy for him.

Hatton pressured Manny from the beginning. He rushed in and Pac cracked him with right hooks. The punches hurt Ricky and he quickly resorted to desperate slugging. Hatton threw a wide left hook and before the punch was even launched, a right hook from Manny crashed into his jaw. Hatton dropped to his hands and knees and waited until referee Kenny Bayless counted to eight before he got up.

With about 40 seconds left in the round, Pac pounced on him and landed several more punches that shook Ricky. A straight left sent Hatton down the second time. Again Ricky waited until Bayless counted to eight before rising but this time the bell saved him.

In the second round Hatton came forward even more aggressively. To his credit he decided to go out on his shield. He desperately tried to land a big punch but it never came. Instead Manny began landing his left with more frequency.

With less than ten seconds left in round two, Manny threw a right jab-left hook that knocked Hatton cold. Ricky’s head hit the canvas and he ended up lying on his back with his hands to his sides. His eyes were half shut and the left side of his mouth drooped. Referee Kenny Bayless halted the count and waved the doctors into the ring. Hatton remained on the canvas for several minutes before making it to a stool. He was eventually taken to the hospital for further examination.

Official time of the stoppage was 2:59 of rd 2.

Punchstat – Total Punches
Pac: 73/127 (57%)
Hatton: 18/78 (23%

Manny Pacquiao followed up the greatest performance of his career with an even greater performance. At this point he is miles ahead of any other boxer in the pound-for-pound rankings. If Floyd Mayweather Jr. can get past Juan Manuel Marquez on July 18th he may be able to reclaim ownership of that coveted title. But even if the fight is at Welterweight, Pacquiao may be too much for him.