LAS VEGAS, NEVADA — Later tonight, David Benavidez meets David Morrell in a light heavyweight title eliminator from T-Mobile Arena. Action began early at 12:30 PM.
WBA #1/WBC #7 ranked middleweight Yoenli Feliciano Hernandez (7-0, 7 KOs) of Providence, Rhode Island by way of Camaguey, Cuba stayed busy with a fifth-round stoppage over Angel Ruiz (18-4-1, 13 KOs) of Los Angeles, California by way of Culiacan, Sinaloa, Mexico.
Feliciano Hernandez, 158.4, defending his regional WBA Continental Latin America title, gave Ruiz, 159.6, a tough inside fight for the duration. Despite fighting at the distance Ruiz probably wanted, Feliciano Hernandez was able to create angles and space, which made it difficult for the Mexican fighter to find any success. Feliciano Hernandez began to turn up the offense in the third round, spinning Ruiz’s head around with his right.
By the fifth, Ruiz began to wither, holding back on his offense to create less counter opportunities. With Feliciano Hernandez landing a flurry in the blue corner, referee Allen Huggins decided he had seen enough and waved the fight off to a middle protest from Ruiz. Time of the stoppage was 1:06 of round five.
With the win, Feliciano Hernandez, who ascended to the WBA #1 ranking without a recognizable name on his professional resume, continues to bide time until his management team decides to pull the trigger on a fight worthy of a top contender.
In the first fight of the preliminary broadcast, Curmel Moton (7-0, 6 KOs) of Las Vegas stopped Frank Zaldivar (5-2, 3 KOs) of Miami, Florida by way of Santiago de Cuba, Cuba in the third round of a scheduled eight.
Moton, 134.8, and Zaldivar, 135.8, traded in the center of the ring for much of the first. Zaldivar took the head shots well, but when Moton found his body late in the round, that seemed to bother the Mexican fighter. Zaldivar continued to show his toughness in the second, withstanding some clean power shots and still offering back as the round came to a close.
Moton upped his intensity a notch in the third round and quickly had Zaldivar in trouble along the ropes. With Zaldivar backed into a neutral corner and no longer answering back, referee Harvey Dock leapt in to stop the contest at 1:51 of round three.
In a stirring battle between two previously unbeaten super middleweights, former amateur star Daniel Blancas (12-0, 5 KOs) of Milwaukee, Wisconsin was tested by Juan Barajas (11-1-2, 7 KOs) of Victorville, California before notching what was scored as a wide unanimous decision.
Blancas, 166.2, a regular David Benavidez sparring partner, and Barajas, 159.6, fought on fairly even terms in the early rounds. Blancas was a successful aggressor, but found a decent counter-puncher in Barajas.
Blancas came out aggressively to start the fifth, landing a short left hand, followed by a right in close that rocked Barajas momentarily. Blancas kept up the pressure, but Barajas was willing and landed occasionally with his own rights inside, while circling away from his opponent’s power hand. After some clean right hands snapped back the head of Barajas in the sixth, the Victorville native was less apt to counter and more focused on his foot movement and defense.
Barajas found his second wind early in the eighth, treating the early onlookers to some great two-way action as he engaged with Blancas in the center of the ring for much of the round. Each fighter had their moments in an excellent action round.
In the end, the official scorers did not give Barajas much credit. Patricia Morse Jarman and Don Trella had all but one round for Blancas, 79-73, while judge Cory Santos scored the bout a shutout, 80-72.
Mayweather Promotions’ super middleweight John Easter (8-0, 7 KOs) of Las Vegas remained unbeaten but was taken the distance for the first time as a professional by a tough Joseph Aguilar (6-3-1, 3 KOs) of Portland, Oregon.
Easter, 169.4, and Aguilar, 171.8, engaged in a rough-and-tumble inside fight for the duration. Accidental headbutts and elbows caused cuts from the early moments.
Easter turned up the offense as he landed with power combinations late in the fifth. Aguilar had a few moments in the sixth, but ultimately lost the decision wide, as judges Chris Maggliore and David Sutherland scored the bout 60-54, while judge Fernando Villarreal had it 59-55, all for Easter.
Nearly eight hours before he would be sitting ringside in support of his younger brother, Jose Benavidez Jr. (29-3-1, 20 KOs) of Phoenix walked down an unwilling Danny Rosenberger (20-10-4, 10 KOs) of Youngstown, Ohio, eventually forcing a fifth-round stoppage.
Benavidez, 163, only had trouble with himself, earning warnings for late punches and a low blow that forced a time-out in the first round. Rosenberger, 159, was on his bike for much of the bout, but Benavidez was not in a rush at the start.
Rosenberger quickly found himself in trouble in the fifth, as Benavidez landed with an uppercut and kept up the pressure until referee Allen Huggins had seen enough. With Rosenberger backed into his own corner, taking punishment, Huggins leaped in to call for the stoppage at 2:39 of round five.
In a bout which took place before the paying public was allowed inside, Gabriela Tellez (4-0, 1 KO) of San Antonio, Texas had to dig down deep, but managed to get by a willing Abril Anguiano (4-1, 2 KOs) of Garland, Texas via six-round majority decision.
The southpaw Anguiano, 125.2, was strong to start, landing with regularity in exchanges. Tellez, 127.8, began to really come on in the fifth, sitting down on her punches, while Anguiano appeared to be reaching for a second wind.
After a competitive sixth that Tellez probably cinched late, judge Chris Migliore scored the bout a draw, 57-57, but was overruled by judges Eric Cheek and Fernando Villarreal, who both scored the bout 58-56, for Tellez.
Photos by Ester Lin/Premier Boxing Champions
Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at [email protected]
