Darley Perez Wins a Split Decision Over Baha Mamadjonov
By Aaron Lloyd
Columbian lightweight prospect Darley Perez narrowly remained unbeaten on Friday night after taking a tough split decision victory over Uzbek Bahodir Mamadjonov by scores of 95-94, 95-94, and 93-96. Perez came out a bit lethargic and gave away the early rounds as he struggled to deal with Mamadjonov’s movement and hand speed, however, In the middle rounds, Perez began to close the distance, and behind a high, tight guard, managed to get inside and have success putting Mamadjonov on the ropes. Perez was clearly the aggressor throughout the last half of the fight, and in round number eight he dropped Mamadnojov with a right uppercut that solidified his standing in the fight. Although several of the closing rounds were close and Mamadjonov may have stolen a few of them (particularly the last), it was Perez’s forward aggression and willingness to take the fight to his fleeing opponent that deservedly won him the decision. With the win, Darley Perez improved to 26-0 with 19 knockouts, while Mamadjonov, suffering the first defeat of his career, fell to 11-1 with 7 KO’s.
Round By Round
Rd-1 Cautious opening round. Baha dives in occasionally and Perez bats him away. Baha is throwing & landing straight lefts to the body. Perez is trying to throw the counter left and missing. Feeling out round that could go either way. A 10-10 is definitely justified, but I will give it to Baha 10-9
Rd-2 Perez is punching more this round, closing the distance a bit. Very little is being thrown, and even less is landing cleanly until the 30 second mark when Baha lands a big left hook that hurts Perez, he wobbles a bit and grabs. The round ends, and Perez looks OK, but Baha made a much needed statement. (20-18 Baha)
Rd-3 Baha is much more active. Perez is waiting and not throwing. Baha is circling and giving Perez troubles with the movement. Perez has to let his hands go. He looks lost at this point. (30-27 Baha)
Rd-4 Both fighters are throwing from distance and missing. Perez is too hesitant, and Baha is making him miss every time he throws. Very little offense to this point. Perez is throwing wide hooks and Baha is slipping and moving away. He would do well to throw straight down the middle. Perez had a better round from an activity point. Neither fighter landing anything, but Perez was busier (39-37 Baha)
Rd-5 Perez closes the distance more this round. Baha is fighting a slick defensive fight but offering up very little on the offense end. Perez is coming forward trying to make the fight. He is having little success getting to Baha, but his effort is improving (48-47 Baha)
Rd-6 Both fighters are showing too much respect for each other, making for a rather dull fight. Baha leaps in with a good straight left, but Perez comes forward and tries to pin Baha on the ropes. Baha is boxing WAY more than advertised. Perez is keeping his guard up nicely, and he is stepping up the attack more. Baha looks like he is fighting to survive. (57-57)
Rd-7 Perez is walking Baha down. He is still throwing too wide, and could use the jab to help him get inside, but he has become the aggressor over his smaller opponent. Perez is finally able to get to him, put him on the ropes and land the much harder shots. Baha doesn’t seem to have the ability to hurt him at this point (67-66 Perez)
Rd-8 Perez is catching Baha with short, clean shots this round. At 1:15 he lands a big right uppercut that puts Baha on the seat of his pants. Baha rises, and doesn’t look hurt, but is on the bicycle. Just as the bell sounds, Baha lands a HUGE right on Perez that looked the best punch of the night. Perez staggers back to the corner. This is about to get interesting. (77-74 Perez)
Rd-9 Not seeing the power or the tenacity from Baha that was promised. Perez is the one coming forward, blocking shots and delivering the goods. Baha had his moments, leaping in with straight lefts, but Perez landed the better shots in the round. (87-83 Perez)
Rd-10 Decent exchange to start the round. Baha is throwing big shots but Perez is blocking them with a tigh, high guard. Baha probably did more in the final round, but another close round. The final bell sounds, Perez looks to have done enough to get the win. I have Perez winning by a 96-93 margin, 6 rounds to 4 with an extra point for the knockdown.
On the Undercard: Chris Avalos 20-2 (15) W12 Yenifel Vicente 23-1-2 (15)
Rd-1 Both fighters keeping the distance, throwing sharp crisp punches. Avalos doubling up and following with the straight. Avalos is stepping forward throwing combinations. Vicente is fighting well, but Avalos is a little sharper. He lands a good right to punctuate the round. 10-9
Rd-2 Avalos threw 115 punches in the first frame. Excellent action to start round 2. Avalos is firing combinations, and at 1:22 he lands a 2-punch combo that staggers Vicente a bit. At :45 Avalos drills him with a straight left. Avalos is doing good work this round, boxing smart, letting his hand speed do the work. Clear round for Avalos (20-18 Avalos).
Rd-3 Vicente is throwing wildly and missing. Avalos is picking punches off and firing back accurately. With the minute to go Vicente does his best work of the fight, landing a left hook/ straight right. Avalos steps back and makes him pay. Vicente is fighting with more urgency, still behind 3-0 (30-27 Avalos)
Rd-4 Clash of heads to start round 4, but no cut. Avalos is putting punches together well, standing in front of Vicente and backing out. With a minute to go Vicente puts Avalos on the ropes and hammers him with a couple shots. Good finish for Vicente. Avalos won the first 2/3 but Vicente came on strong and may have stolen it in the last 30 seconds. (39-37 Avalos)
Rd-5 Vicente lands a good right to start the round. At the 2:30 mark Avalos lands his own right that drops Vicente! Vicente makes it up, and he doesn’t appear too hurt. But Avalos pursues and hurts Vicente with another right. Vicente backs off, wobbly, and lands some good shots of his own. Excellent action from both. Vicente survives, but he is in trouble. (49-45 Avalos)
Rd-6 Avalos is busier and more accurate this round. Vicente looks to be in good condition. Avalos is landing good combinations, but nothing lands with much power. Vicente has lost some of his will. Clear round for Avalos (59-54 Avalos)
Rd-7 Good action to start round 7. Vicente comes out throwing bombs, missing most, but does catch Avalos with a good shot. Avalos is still faster and busier, putting punches together where Vicente is loading up looking for the knockout. It is desperation time for Vicente. He still has the puncher’s chance, but Avalos is winning every round (69-63 Avalos)
Rd-8 Through 7 rounds, Avalos has thrown twice as many punches. At 2:30 Vicente lands a big right on the break. The referee stops the action. Avalos takes a moment to recuperate. Good back and forth action. With under a minute to go Avalos lands several hard shots in a row to win the round in convincing fashion. (79-72 Avalos)
Rd-9 Vicente comes out swinging hard. He still looks to have plenty of power, but he is getting hit too much. Avalos needs to be fighting more cautiously, but he still chooses to stand in front of Vicente and pepper him with shots. He is in control and cruising right now (89-81 Avalos)
Rd-10 Vicente lands several good left hooks. Both fighters trade and Vicente is getting the better of it. Avalos is falling in, looking to hold. Avalos finishes with an excellent combination, and the two continue trading after the bell. Excellent fight! Avalos is a clear winner, but Vicente fought a tough, game fight and has nothing to be ashamed of (98-91 Avalos)
Chris Avalos is the winner 97-92 on all 3 judges’ cards!
Lightweight contender John Molina buried some skeletons on Friday Night when he registered an impressive 4th round KO over the hard punching St. Louis native Dannie Williams. Molina started cautiously, and Williams seemed to steal the early action with his hand speed, movement and the occasional overhand right. In round three, however, Molina began to close the distance, and after getting the better end of a clash of heads, he upped his attack and went on the offensive. Molina was stalking in the 4th frame, and just under the 2:30 mark he landed a right hand to the temple of Williams that sent him through the ropes and onto the ring apron. Williams struggle to his feet, but was still standing outside the ring at the count of ten. With the win, Molina improves to 25-2 (20 KO’s), while Williams, suffering his 2nd loss in his last 3 fights, falls to 22-3 (18 KO’s).
July 6, 2012- Dominican junior lightweight Javier Fortuna continued his impressive string of knockout victories on Friday after stopping veteran Cristobal Cruz in the second round of their ESPN televised bout. Fortuna came out as explosive and wild as ever, knocking down Cruz once in the first and finishing him off for good in the second. Just 30 seconds into round two, Fortuna landed a beautiful, picture-perfect straight left hand that floored Cruz, and while he managed to get to his feet, referee Robert Byrd immediately waved off the action, and awarded the victory to Fortuna. 
