Errol Spence Jr. and Shawn Porter thrilled the crowd at Staples Center in Los Angeles in a unification bout that saw Spence walk away with both the IBF/WBC Welterweight titles via thrilling split decision in a terrific action contest.
The fight did not lack action as Porter pushed the fight, but that left him open for some great body work from Spence. Porter was able to get inside and throw and occasionally land some hard overhand rights that would land flush on the side of the head of Spence. Spence’s work was made up mostly of solid counters and good work along the ropes.
The two took turns being the boss and taking rounds. The fight seemed to be sealed in round 11 when Spence landed a short left hand that sent Porter to a knee. The two pleased the crowd one more time as the fought at a furious pace for the last three minutes of the bout.
Spence, 147 of Dallas, TX took two cards 116-111 while Porter won on a card by a 115-112 tally.
Spence is 26-0. Porter, 147 lbs of Akron, OH is 30-3-1.
“It feels good to win,” said Spence. “This is a lifetime dream. It shows hard work pays off. Thanks Shawn Porter, my whole team and all my Texas people for coming out.”
“Shawn Porter is a rough and awkward fighter,” said Spence. “I didn’t get off what I wanted to. He’s a true champion. He made it tough.”
“He’s a strong kid,” said Porter. “We both came in to do the job. I think I had a little more than what he expected, but he handled it. Congratulations to him and his team. We’re proud of what we did.”
“I think that knockdown was the difference,” said Porter. “I couldn’t come back to the corner with my head down after that.”
“All my punches have bad intentions,” said Spence. “By boxing Mikey Garcia, I wanted to show people I could do it with that style. Porter was throwing a lot. I wanted to show I was the bigger and stronger welterweight.”
It looks like Spence will now defend against Danny Garcia.
“It was a top dog fight tonight,” said Garcia. “I want you next Errol. It was a tough rugged fight. Shawn Porter is a tough fighter. I’m here to say I want next.” “My how the tables have turned,” said Spence. “I’ve told my team, you line them up, I’ll knock them down.”
David Benavidez regained the WBC Super Middleweight title with a 9th round stoppage over Anthony Dirrell.
In round six, Dirrell was cut over the right eyelid from a straight right hand from Benavidez.
The opened up the floodgates for Benavidez as he started to slowly breakdown and eventually batter Dirrell in the 9th frame until the bout was stopped at 1:39.
Benavidez, 167.6 lbs of Phoenix, AZ is 22-0 with 19 knockouts. Dirrell, 167.6 of Flint, MI is 33-2-1.
“Everything just fell in place perfectly,” said Benavidez. “From the suspension to all the big fights I’ve been in. All of that helped me out in this fight. I did not make a mistake or open myself up more than I needed to. I worked behind my jab and got the stoppage. Things are going to get better and get tougher and I’m ready for the challenge.”
“He hit me with a clean shot,” said Dirrell. “That’s my first time ever being cut by a punch. It opened up. There was nothing I could do about it. I couldn’t see the whole fight after that. My corner did a good job on it, but I really couldn’t see.”
“There are so many emotions coming at me at once,” said Benavidez. “We put so much hard work into this training camp. We left home and were away from everything. But I had the dream to become the youngest two-time super middleweight world champion and I made my dreams come true.”
“I would have kept going in there,” said Dirrell. “I’m not quitting against anybody. Everyone saw I didn’t go down. My legs were still strong, but I couldn’t do anything about it. “We’re going back to the drawing board. I’m still fighting. We won’t end on a loss. You can put anybody in there with me.”
Mario Barrios captured the WBA Super Lightweight title with a 12-round unanimous decision over Batyr Akhmedov.
Mario Barrios captured the WBA Super Lightweight title with a 12-round unanimous decision over Batyr Akhmedov.
In round four, Barrios dropped Akhmedov with a double left that was followed by a right. Akhmedov made a hard charge over the next several rounds, and wound up outlanding Barrios by over 100 punches.
Barrios sealed the fight with a hard right hand in round 12 that sent Akhmedov to the canvas.
Barrios, 140 lbs of San Antonio, TX won by scores of 116-111, 115-111 and 114-112 to go to 25-0. Akhmedov of Uzbekistan is 7-1.
“I knew this was going to be a war,” said Barrios. “He was getting dirty in there but the Mexican warrior in me was not going to let this opportunity pass me by. I dug deep and got the victory.”
“The plan was to gradually grow the activity,” said Akhmedov. “I knew that I had to win by a wide margin. After the first knockdown, I knew that I had to add activity more quickly than I had planned. So I started being more aggressive. I did everything I could to try to stop him.”
“I promised my city of San Antonio that I would bring this title back home and I did it,” said Barrios. “The judges see better than I can from the ring,” said Akhmedov. “I did everything I could. I thought I won the fight. They decided that he won the fight. When I watch the fight I’ll be able to tell you what it looked like. My job is to do everything to win. The judges are supposed to judge correctly. “I tried to do everything I could. I was told that I wouldn’t be able to handle his experience, but he was on the ropes most of the fight. I beat him up and I thought I won the fight.”
Josesito Lopez stopped John Molina Jr. in round eight of a scheduled 10-round welterweight bout,
In round one, Lopez dropped Molina twice. 1st with a right and then seconds later with a body shot. Lopez won most of the rounds, but Molina was dangerous at times as he landed hard rights from time to time.
In round seven, Lopez landed a double left that was followed by a right that sent Molina down for a 3rd time. In the eighth, Lopez landed a couple more hard shots, and the bout was stopped.
Lopez, 146.6 lbs of Riverside, CA is now 37-8 with 20 knockouts. Molina, 146.2 lbs of Covina, CA 30-9.
“We both carry power in our hands so it wasn’t a surprise someone went down,” said Lopez. “It easily could have happened to me with the power he has. I was able to catch him early, find openings and get the finish.”
“You can never take the fight out of a fighter,” said Molina. “I have a never say die attitude and I have my whole career. It was a tough fight, but the better man won tonight.”
“I knew he wasn’t going to quit,” said Lopez. “He’s a warrior. I had to keep on the pressure. I was thinking that hopefully the ref and the team made the right call to finish it at the right time.”
“I wanted to keep going at the end,” said Molina. “I thought I was still coherent and could still move well. But you can’t go against what the referees say.”
“There’s a lot more ‘Riverside Rocky’ left,” said Lopez. “Robert Garcia has turned my career around. I’m a race car and like NASCAR, I’ve got a whole team behind me. I’m a top 10-level fighter. I’m going to give any fighter and any world champion a run for their money. I want memorable fights and I want the best.”
Former world champion Robert Guerrero won a lackluster 10-round unanimous decision over Jerry Thomas in a welterweight bout.
Guerrero146.8 lbs of Gilroy, CA is now 36-6-1. Thomas, 146.6 lbs of St. Marys, KS is 14-2-1.
“I want to get back into those bigger fights,” said Guerrero. “I moved around and stayed smart in there tonight. The goal was to stick to the game plan and I did until the end of the fight, but then I got right back on it. You just have to keep working out the kinks and that’s what I’m going to keep doing.”
Joey Spencer remained undefeated by stopping Travis Gamberdella in round three of their welterweight bout.
In round one, Spencer was dominant, and dropped Gambderlla twice. In round two, Spencer came out like gangbusters and dropped Gamberdella with a big left to the body.
In round three, Spencer landed a huge combination, and the bout was stopped at 53 seconds.
Spencer, 155.8 lbs of Linden, MI is now 9-0 with seven knockouts. Gamberdella, 155 lbs of Revere, MA is 5-1-2.
“The body shots weren’t really the plan going in,” said Spencer. “I started off with head shots and he was taking those well. I put one downstairs and I instantly saw it affect him badly. I knew it was a wrap. I was going to keep going to the body.”
“I thought the referee was going to stop it in the second round,” said Spencer. “When he let him go I took a deep breath and made sure not to punch myself out. I stuck to my jab and let the rest take care of itself.”
“I’m so happy with the improvements that I was able to show tonight on the big stage,” said Spencer. “I’m really excited for what’s to come.”
Fabian Maidana dismantled Ramses Agaton with a 1st round stoppage in a scheduled eight-round welterweight bout.
Maidana floored Agaton in the opening seconds with a hard right hand. Maidana sent Agaton down again the opening frame with a body shot. Maidana finished the deal with another body shot that put Agaton down, and the fight was stopped at
Maidana, 146 lbs of Margarita, ARG is 17-1 with 13 knockouts. Agaton, 147 lbs of Mexico is 21-11-3
Leon Lawson III stopped Alan Zavala in round three of a scheduled eight-round super welterweigt bout.
Lawson dropped Zavala hard with a right hand in the corner, and Zavala stayed on the seat of his pants for the 10-count at 2:27.
Lawson, 157.4 lbs of Flint, MI is 12-0 with five knockouts. Zavala, 157 lbs of Tijuana, MX is 15-7.
Alfonso Olvera scored an upset by winning a eight-round unanimous decision over previously undefeated Amon Rashidi in a welterweight bout.
Olvera, 147 lbs of Nogales, MX won by scores of 79-73 twice and 78-74, and is now 14-6-3. Rashidi, 146.3 lbs of Dallas, TX is 7-1.
In a battle of Dallas based featherweights, Juan Antonio Lopez decisioned Fernando Garcia.
Lopez is 15-7. Garcia is 12-2.
