Eric’s Snips and Snipes – The Past Week In Action

The Past Week in Action

Highlights:

-Naoya Inoue crushes Filipino Michael Dasmarinas with body punches in three rounds to retain the IBF and WBA bantamweight titles

-Jermall Charlo scores wide unanimous decision over brave Juan Montiel in WBC middleweight title defense

-Jaime Munguia’s power proves too much for Pole Kamil Szeremeta who retires after six rounds

-Former WBO super bantamweight champion Isaac Dogboe takes majority verdict over Adam Lopez in featherweight clash

-Gabriel Rosado flattens unbeaten Bektemir Melikuziev with one stunning right hand

-Felix Sturm continues his comeback with a points win over James Kraft

-South African Ludumo Lamati wins the vacant IBO super bantamweight title with majority decision against Mexican Jose Estrada Garcia

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World Title/Major Shows

19 June

Las Vegas, NV, USA:

Bantam: Naoya Inoue (21-0) W TKO 3 Michael Dasmarinas (30-3-1).

Feather: Isaac Dogboe (22-2) W PTS 10 Adam Lopez (15-3.)

Inoue vs. Dasmarinas

In another “monster” performance Inoue destroys Filipino Dasmarinas inside three rounds.

Round 1

Inouye was tracking the constantly moving Dasmarinas looking to land with his right. Dasmarinas kept moving a poking out jabs but was wary of Inoue’s power. A right to the body and a left hook to the head gave Inoue the round.

Score:10-9 Inoue

Round 2

Dasmarinas showed more aggression in the second leaping inside and scoring with some southpaw lefts. Inoue continued to hunt Dasmarinas. He shook the challenger with a right and landed a quick combination that saw Dasmarinas drop to his hands and knees. He was up at five and when the action resumed Inoue landed some wicked left hooks to the body but Dasmarinas made it to the bell.

Score: 10-8 Inoue                             Inoue 20-17

Round 3

Dasmarinas jabbed and moved in the third with Inoue stalking him and looking to land more lefts to the body. He finally caught up with Dasmarinas and a series of punches ending with a left hook to the body sent Dasmarinas down in pain. He made it to his feet but Inoue rushed him to the ropes and connected with another left hook to the body and as Dasmarinas went down the referee waived the fight over.

Inoue retains the IBF and WBA titles with his eighteenth inside the distance victory. He is now 16-0 in world title fights with 14 wins by KO/TKO in those 16 fights-and at 28 there is more to come. Dasmarinas did not have strong credentials with a win over Karim Guerfi and a draw with Manyo Plange his only tests against world rated opposition and he just could not stand the power of the Inoue left hooks to the body.

Dogboe vs. Lopez

Dogboe continues his featherweight campaign as he holds off a strong late surge by Lopez to take a majority decision. The little Ghanaian was in control over the first two rounds putting Lopez under pressure and scoring with hard rights. Lopez had a better third getting on the front foot and outscoring Dogboe.

Dogboe was giving away considerable height and reach but he was able to get inside in the fourth and was still dangerous with rights. The fifth and sixth were close with Lopez pressing harder and Dogboe boxing more and probably just edging them. Dogboe rocked Lopez in the seventh but Lopez had Dogboe holding on after landing a right in the eighth. Lopez had a big ninth shaking Dogboe with a couple of rights and he outlanded Dogboe in the last but his late dominance was not enough to get the decision.

Scores 97-93 and 96-94 for Dogboe and 95-95. Second win for the former WBO super bantam title holder since suffering back to back losses against Emanuel Navarette. Lopez’s other two losses have been a majority verdict against current WBO super bantamweight title holder Stephen Fulton back in 2017 and a stoppage by Oscar Valdez in which Valdez was down early.

Houston, TX, USA:

Middle: Jermall Charlo (32-0) W PTS 12 Juan Montiel (22-5-2) .

Charlo retains the WBC title with a wide decision over a limited but extraordinary tough and very strong Montiel. Charlo was hurting Montiel early in the first two rounds with body punches but Montiel was looking to stay in front of Charlo switching guards and trading punches despite getting the worse of the exchanges. Charlo had Montiel under heavy pressure in the third connecting well to the body.

Montiel landed a good left which was his best punch to this point but Charlo was again landing with both hands. Although Montiel again found the target with a left he was taking punishment to the body. After Charlo rocked Montiel with a right at the start of the fourth a low punch from Montiel paused the action. Montiel tried to walk through some wicked left hooks from Charlo and they traded punches to the bell. Charlo could have made this easier for himself but he was looking to take Montiel out instead of boxing.

Charlo staggered Montiel with a right in the fifth and piled on the punches but Montiel showed a good chin. He looked on his way out when Charlo trapped on the ropes in the sixth and unloaded with punch after punch but Montiel came back and landed two crisp left hooks to the body late in the round. The pace dropped in the seventh and eighth with a dogged Montiel rolling forward constantly changing guards taking whatever Charlo threw and firing long punches. Charlo suffered a small cut over his right eye and his work was looking ragged as Montiel took the eighth.

Somehow Montiel just kept walking through some savage punishment in the ninth and Charlo, whilst doing most of the scoring, was nowhere near as cool or dominant and he could not stop Montiel almost sauntering forward as Montiel connected with a strong left hook straight right combination. Absorbing punches does not win you rounds, landing them does. Montiel was doing a great job of absorbing punches over the tenth and eleventh and although he also scored with some clubbing body punches Charlo was landing more even as he looked arm weary from hitting Montiel so much for so long. Charlo wanted to box through the last but after doing that for the first half of the round he was forced to brawl at the end.

Scores 120-108, 119-109 and 118-109 for Charlo. Fourth defense of the WBC title for Charlo. On the basis of punches landed the score reflected Charlo’s advantage but not the resilience and strength of Montiel. The fact that Jaime Munguia knocked Montiel out in two rounds, the only time Montiel has lost inside the distance. shows just how powerful Munguia is and as he is No 1 with the WBC we could see an explosive title fight later this year.

El Paso, TX, USA:

Middle: Jaime Munguia (37-0) W RTD 6 Kamil Szeremeta (21-2).

Super Middle: Gabriel Rosado (26-13-1) W KO 3 Bektemir Melikuziev (7-1).

Munguia vs. Szeremeta

Munguia pounds a gutsy Szeremeta to defeat in six rounds. A low-key even first round saw both fighters trying to establish their jabs. Munguia turned up the heat in the second banging home left hooks to the body and putting together some flashy and hurtful combinations before rocking Szeremeta with a left hook to the head.

In the third Munguia was boxing more than he has in the past but it was the power in his long sweeping hooks and body punches that were doing the damage. Szeremeta tried to fire back but lacked the power to match Munguia and his head was being snapped back by uppercuts in the fourth and fifth. Munguia handed Szeremeta a savage beating in the sixth driving Szeremeta around the ring connecting with straight rights, left hooks and uppercuts and Szeremeta wisely retired at the end of the round.

The former WBO super welterweight champion’s skills are improving but it is the power that has brought him 30 inside the distance wins that makes him such a force. He is No 1 with both the WBC and WBO so a title shot this year looks on. Szeremeta was having his first fight since retiring after seven rounds against Gennady Golovkin in an IBF title fight in December.

Rosado vs. Melikuziev

Rosado comes off the floor to flatten heavy favourite Melikuziev with a single right thunderbolt in the third round. After a slow start Melikuziev attacked fiercely at the end of the first round with Rosado dropping to one knee under a shower of clubbing head punches. He did not look too badly hurt and the bell went as he arose at eight.

Melikuziev scored with straight southpaw lefts and body punches throughout the second and was too quick for the slower Rosado. It was looking too easy for the Uzbek and he made a confident start to the third darting in and landing with body shots. An overconfident Melikuziev was coming with his hands down and the next time he did it Rosado met him with a thunderous counter right that froze Melikuziev before he pitched face down to the canvas. Melikuziev tried to rise but fell on his side with the referee waiving the fight off and summoning help for the Uzbek.

In his last fight in November 2020 the 35-year-old Rosado had lost a very close split decision to Daniel Jacobs. He lost to Gennady Golovkin and Peter Quillin in world title shots  but with Melikuziev No 7 with the WBA that right might earn him a third title shot. Big setback for Melikuziev but at 25 he can come again perhaps with a little less arrogance next time.

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16 June

Sydney, Australia:

Heavy: Justis Huni (5-0) W TKO 10 Paul Gallen (11-1-1).

Middle: Andrei Mikhailovich (16-0) W TKO 2 Alex Hanan (13-1).

Huni vs. Gallen

Huni retains the Australian title with last round stoppage of outclassed but brave Gallen. Huni was 6” taller, 15lbs heavier and 17 years younger than Gallen and all of those factors together with Huni’s superior speed and mobility left Gallen with little chance of winning. Huni rocked Gallen with a right in the first and came close to a stoppage in the third. He then used his longer reach to score with hard body shots with Gallen rolling forward but with the exception of a close fifth having little success.

The body punches tired Gallen and by the ninth he had little left and only just survived the round. In the tenth a huge left from Huni floored Gallen. He climbed to his feet but the referee stopped the fight. All three judges had Huni in front 89-82 at the finish. The 22-year-old Huni from Brisbane was making the third defense of the national title and he will now go on to compete at the Tokyo Olympics. Gallen, 39, a former Rugby player, showed tremendous heart but was out of his league in every sense here.

Mikhailovich vs. Hanan

In a clash of unbeaten fighters Mikhailovich stops Hanan in two rounds. A beauty of a left hook put Hanan on the floor in the second. He beat the count but was floored by another left hook and although he made it too his feet the fight was stopped. The 23-year-old Russian-born “Renegade” has nine wins by the quick route and was too good for Hanan who had never really been tested previous to this fight.

19 June

Kempton Park, South Africa:

Super Bantam: Ludumo Lamati (18-0-1) W PTS 12 Jose Estrada Garcia (12-2-1).

Lamati wins the vacant IBO title with a majority decision over Mexican Garcia in a fight that would have graced any title. Lamati had to be at his best to withstand the pressure from Garcia. Boxing when he could Lamati had the edge in skill but the pulsating pressure from Garcia too often found Lamati forced to stand and trade punches.

The South African had scored well when he could create some space and established a good lead after nine rounds but Garcia had more left and he rocked Lamati and opened a cut under his right eye in the tenth. Lamati was under pressure again in the eleventh and a cut was opened over the South Africa’s right eye. Despite the cuts Lamati showed a warrior’s spirit somehow finding the strength to fight hard to the last bell to emerge a deserved winner-but only just.

Scores 116-112 and 115-113 for Lamati and 114-114. Wins over experienced opposituion such as Luis Melendez, 27-2 Alexis Kabore and Filipino Richie Mepranum have lifted Lamati to No 7 with the WBC and now he has a title. Garcia was 10-0-1 in his last 11 fights including a victory over 17-1-1 Luis Lebron last year.

Hamburg, Germany:

Light Heavy: Felix Sturm (42-5-3,1ND) W PTS 10 James Kraft (19-1-1).

Sturm continues his comeback with unanimous demission over unbeaten Kraft. The 18-year younger Kraft tried to set a fast pace and take the fight to Sturm and made the former title holder work hard. Kraft threw plenty of punches rocking Sturm in the fifth but Sturm’s experience was the important factor. He stayed cool scoring with solid, accurate punching and when under pressure blocked, dodged and used clever upper body movement to get away from Kraft’s punches. There were no knockdowns and neither fighter was ever in trouble so Sturm managed ten rounds of useful work to prepare himself for bigger fights.

Scores 99-93, 97-94 and 96-94 for Strum. At 42 and having been out of the ring for almost four years before returning with a win in December Sturm has a limited shelf life. Kraft had been kept away from any tough tests but boxed well here and is still only 24.

Guadalajara, Mexico:

Cruiser: Anderson Silva (2-1) W PTS 8 Julio Cesar Chaves Jr (52-5-1,1ND).

Middle: Ramon Alvarez (29-8-3,1ND) W PTS 8 Omar Chavez (38-7-1)

Silva vs. Chavez

Another black eye for boxing as UFC senior citizen Silva takes a split decision over Chavez Jr. The contract weight for this fight was 182lbs and, not for the first time, Chavez came in 2.4lbs over and this time he had to pay $100,000 to Silva for that failure. Although Chavez made a good start, over the second half of the bout Silva, 42, out threw and outlanded Chavez who was 10lbs heavier than in his last fight in November.

That indicated how hard he trained for this one and he tired badly late in the fight as Silva continued to find the target with jabs and some punches out of his UFC bag of tricks. A cut and exhausted Chavez just faded out of the fight and squandered his early lead.

Scores 77-75 twice for Silva and 77-75 for Chavez but Silva looked to have won this one clearly. Silva who some consider to be the best of all time in MMA, had one pro fight in 1998 which he lost and one in 2005 which he won. He aims to continue in boxing. Chavez, 35, really should retire.

Alvarez vs. Chavez

In a clash of two members of Mexican boxing’s first families Alvarez goes 2-1 ahead in his series of bouts with Chavez as he wins a unanimous decision. Alvarez was the aggressor throughout. A clash of head opened a deep gash on the forehead of Chavez in the fourth but the fight continued with Alvarez landing more and the harder punches.

Scores 80-73 twice and 79-73. First fight for Alvarez, Canelo’s elder brother, since being knocked out by Erislandy Lara in fight for the vacant WBA secondary title in August 2019. Chavez, the son of Julio Cesar, had lost to novice Oziel Santoyo in his last fight in June 2019.

Panama City, Panama:

Super Fly: Keiver Fernandez (23-1-1) W PTS 9 Keyvin Lara (30-4-1).

Panamanian-based Venezuelan Fernandez just gets by Nicaraguan Lara on a split decision. It was eight rounds of war and a candidate for Panamanian Fight of the year. Fernandez won on two scores of 86-85 with the third judge going for Lara by the same score. Fernandez wins the vacant WBA Fedelatin title but his impressive figures hide a standard Venezuelan padded record with 18 of those he has beaten having “amassed” six wins between them. Lara was knocked out in the eleventh round by Kazuto Ioka in a challenge for the secondary WBA flyweight title in 2016

Fight of the week (Significance): The victories for Naoya Inoue, Jermall Charlo and Jaime Munguia could all prove to be significant over the next six months.

Fight of the week (Entertainment): Ludumo Lamati vs. Jose Estrada Garcia was war all the way with honourable mention to Keiver Fernandez vs. Keyvin Lara in Panama

Fighter of the week: Inoue again lives up to his “Monster” billing

Punch of the week: The left to the body from Inoue that finished Dasmarinas was fearful but that single right counter from Rosado that flattened Melikuziev gets my vote.

Upset of the week: UFC veteran Anderson Silva outpointing Julio Cesar Chavez Jr was an upset but Chavez brought it on himself

Prospect watch: Russian-born New Zealand middleweight Andrei Mikhailovich 17-0 is progressing well

Observations

It was good to see the career of the great Julio Cesar Chavez celebrated in Guadalajara. JCC boxed an exhibition with Hector Camacho Jr. and his sons Julio Cesar Jr and Omar also boxed on the show. The Chavez dynasty was not the only family in attendance as Ramon Alvarez, the elder brother of Saul, won over Omar Chavez and Canelo climbed in the ring to be in JCC’s corner for the last round of the exhibition-whisper it but there is another Alvarez about as young Johan, a nephew of Saul and Ramon, won his first pro fight on the show.

Despite having to be pulled from the tournament due to an injury from the Gallen fight,  Australian heavyweight champion Justis Huni was off top compete at the Tokyo Olympics. Gone are the days when the Games were for amateurs.