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By: William Holmes
ESPN Friday Night Fights brought an exciting card to Las Vegas featuring a main event of a light heavyweight matchup between former title challenger and veteran Edison Miranda taking on prospect Isaac Chilemba. Also on tonight’s card was a matchup between undefeated lightweight prospects Hylon Williams Jr. and Rances Barthelemy.
The night’s opening matchup was a nonstop action affair between Hylon Williams Jr. and Rances Barthelemy. It was obvious from the opening bell that Barthelemy was clearly the bigger fighter of the two, and was able to stay way more active throughout the fight than Williams. Barthelemy’s constant pressure and constant switching of stances between orthodox and southpaw proved to be too much for Williams as he coasted to a decision victory.
The second bout of the evening featured a heavyweight bout between two undefeated heavyweights, Pedro Rodriguez and Magomed Abdusalamov. Abdusalamov record going into this bout was 12-0, with all twelve wins coming by way of knockout. Afterwards, Abdusalamov was 13-0, with all thirteen wins coming by way of knockout. Despite his soft appearance, Rodriguez came out surprisingly strong in round one, but fell to Abdusalamov onslaught in round two and succumbed by way of knockout.
The main event was a sloppy and bloody affair between Edison Miranda and Isaac Chilemba. Miranda came on strong early, but faded in the later rounds as Chilemba was able to land the cleaner and harder shots. The cut over Miranda’s right eye may have been the difference maker, as he began to lose rounds as the cut worsened. By the last round Chilemba’s body was covered in blood, but it was Miranda who was losing the blood. Chilemba won a bloody and hard fought decision over the tough Edison Miranda.
Round by round results are as follows:
Hylon Williams Jr. (15-0) vs. Rances Barthelemy (14-0); Lightweight
Round 1:
As Barthelemy and Williams come out and Barthelemy looks to be the much bigger man. They come out and touch gloves, and Barthelemy stays behind his jab. Barthelemy takes the center of the ring and lands a left hook to the bod yof Williams. Wililams lands a quick jab. Barthelemy bangs at the body of Williams and has his punches upstairs blocked. Barthelemy lands a stiff jab, and Williams answers and connects with a jab of his own. Williams ducks under a hook from Barthelemy. Barthelemy lands a straight right hand by the corner, and bangs some hooks to the body of Williams. Williams lands a nice short left hook, and v answers with a cross and a jab to the head of Williams. Williams lands another short left hook. Williams lands a nice counter right hook, and Barthelemy answers with two jabs. Williams throws a head body jab combination, landing the jab downstairs. Barthelemy has Williams backing up, and is applying more pressure. Barthelemy lands two hard right crosses upstairs as the round ends. 10-9 round for Barthelemy.
Round 2:
Barthelemy comes right back out and acts as the aggressor. Barthelemy has Williams by the ropes and they exchange blows. Barthelemy gets the better of Williams with some hard body shots. Barthelemy lands the first of a double jab combination. Barthelemy lands a short right uppercut and Williams answers with a left hook upstairs. Williams lands a nice double left hook, and then a right hook right uppercut. Barthelemy shakes off those shots and stays active with his jab cross combinations. Williams is starting to open up more this round and connects with a hard counter left hook. Most of Barthelemy’s punches are being blocked by the defense of Williams. Williams lands a hard right uppercut on Barthelemy while his back is against the ropes. Barthelemy is firing off punches, and Williams is responding by landing the harder shots inside. Williams bangs a three punch combination at the defense of Barthelemy and Barthelemy nods his head no at his punches. Barthelemy lands a hard right cross near the end of the round. Closer round, but 10-9 Barthelemy.
Round 3:
Barthelemy continues to apply the pressure behind his jab, and lands a solid one to the body of Williams. Barthelemy has Williams against the ropes again but Williams is able to move out of the way of danger. Williams lands a stiff jab. Williams is able to slip the jabs of Barthelemy. Williams appears to be catching the timing of Barthelemy. Williams lands a short right uppercut to the body of Barthelemy. Williams lands a check left hook on Barthelemy. Williams lands the latter of a double jab. Barthelemy partially connects with a straight right hand and lands a right hook upstairs. Williams ducks under a jab from Barthelemy and tags Barthelemy with a right uppercut. Williams lands a lead overhand right. Barthelemy bangs a left hook at the body of Williams. Williams connects with a double hook to the body and head of Barthelemy. Referee warns Barthelemy for a possible low blow. 10-9 round for Williams in another close round.
Round 4:
Williams connects with a two jab right cross combination upstairs. Barthelemy lands a decent jab on Williams. Barthelemy continues to stay active with his jab but is having trouble finding his range at the beginning of round four. Williams misses with a wild hook but is abl e to land one to the body of Barthelemy. Williams ducks under a cross from Barthelemy and lands a hook to the body. Barthelemy is keeping his left hand real low. Barthelemy lands a short left hook upstairs. Barthelemy is continuiously switching his stances from southpaw to regular. Barthelemy lands a decent right hook to the body of Williams. They tie up by the ropes, and Williams throws some soft hooks to the body while tied up. Referee warns both fighters about headbutts. Barthelemy I susing his jab to keep Williams at bay. Barthelemy connects with a decent right cross to the body of Williams near the end of the round.
Round 5:
Barthelemy comes right back out and continues to stay active with his jab and backs Williams up. Barthelemy throws out a left uppercut left hook combination. Williams lands a hard counter left hook to the temple of Barthelemy. Barthelemy doesn’t appear to be too fazed from the hook and continues to stalk Williams. Barthelemy onnects with a decent left cross and a right hand on the inside. Williams throws out a double jab to the body, and Barthelemy lands a left uppercut to the body of Williams. Barthelemy is constantly switching again, it has to be confusing Williams. Barthelemy lands a nice left jab at the nose of Williams. Barthelemy digs a left cross to the body of Williams, and moves out of the way of two jabs from Williams. 10-9 round for Barthelemy.
Round 6:
Barthelemy is using his left jab to keep Williams at bay. Williams lands a straight right hand to the body of Barthelemy, but Barthelemy answers with more punches to the body and head of Williams. Williams throwing at Barthelemy before Barthelemy is able to throw and connects with some quick jabs and crosses upstairs to Barthelemy. Barthelemy momentarily has Williams caught by the ropes and lands some short left and right uppercuts on Williams. Barthelemy connects with two right corsses upstairs on Williams. Barthelemy catches Williams with a right hook to the body as Williams lunges forward. Barthelemy connects with a left jab upstairs, and Williams answers with a a jab cross combination that is blocked. Barthelemy connects with a short hook to the body, and Wililams answers with a three punch combination. Williams punches Barthelemy with a stiff jab to the head near the end of the round. Closer round, 10-9 for Barthelemy.
Round 7:
Both fighters step out to the center of the ring and exchange combinations, and Williams appears to get the better of Barthelemy in the early exchange. Barthelemy lands a decent left hook the body and Williams replies with a combination upstairs. Barthelemy doesn’t appear to be tiring and tags Williams with a hard straight left hand. Barthelemy must know that he landed a hard shot on Williams as he throws continuous short uppercuts on the inside. Barthelemy tags Williams with a short right uppercut. Barthelemy lands two more short uppercuts, and Williams answers with a short left hook to the temple of Barthelemy. Barthelemy throws three hard uppercuts at Williams, and at least one got through. Williams lands a nice two punch combination that snaps the head of Barthelemy. 10-9 round for Barthelemy.
Round 8:
Barthelemy misses with a left uppercut, and Williams replies with a good double jab. Barthelemy lands a short left hook upstairs and a double hook downstairs on Williams. Barthelemy lands another good left uppercut on Williams. Barthelemy barely misses with a hard left cross. Barthelemy again is continuing to switch from southpaw to orthodox stance and stays active with his punches. Wililams connects with a decent double jab, and Barthelemy begins to show off by doing a whirlwind motion with his right hand. Williams should be applying more pressure, as he gets tagged with a hard left hand from Barthelemy. Williams eats another left uppercut and a right uppercut from Barthelemy. Barthelemy is coasting this round, and lands a thudding left jab near the end. 10-9 round for Barthelemy.
Official scores are 80-72, 79-73, 79-73 for Rances Barthelemy.
Magomed Abdusalamov (12-0) vs. Pedro Rodriguez (7-0); Heavyweight
Round 1:
Abdusalamov looks to be in much better shape than Rodriguez. Abdusalamov easily moves out of the way of a right cross form Rodriguez. Rodriguez comes forward and misses with a right cross, but connects with a right hand by the ropes on Abdusalamov. Rodriguez also lands some decent shots to the body of Abdusalamov. Abdusalamov bangs a two punches to the chin of Rodriguez. Rodriguez chases Abdusalamov back with a straight left and right hand. Rodriguez lands another straight right hand. Abdusalamov bangs a left hook to the body of Rodriguez. Abdusalamov connects with another straight right hand. Abdusalamov lands a short right uppercut. Abdusalamov bangs a right hook to the body and head of Rodriguez. Rodriguez connects with another straight right hand. Rodriguez connects with a jab and has his hooks blocked by Rodriguez. Rodriguez throws out two consecutive straight right hands. Abdusalamov misses with a wild right hook, and then eats a two punch combination from Rodriguez. Surprisingly, Rodriguez takes this round 10-9.
Round 2:
Abdusalamov comes out the aggressor and throws out looping wild hooks. Rodriguez answers with straighter punches, but Abdusalamov lands two hard left crosses to the head of Rodriguez. Abdusalamov lands two hard hooks to the body of Rodriguez and Rodriguez looks hurt. Abdusalamov lands a hard jab and bangs many shots to the body and head of Rodriguez. Rodriguez is not answering and a hard left hook to the head by Abdusalamov causes Rodriguez to fall to the ground. The referee stops the fight as Abdusalamov wins by TKO.
Magomed Abdusalamov wins by KO at 1:04 of round two.
Isaac Chilemba (18-1-1) vs. Edison Miranda (35-6); Light Heavyweight
Round 1:
Miranda and Chilemba come out to the center of the ring, and Chilemba is the much bigger fighter. Miranda misses with a jab cross combination, and Chilemba stabs a jab at the body of Miranda. Chilemba lands a jab to the nose of Miranda, and Miranda answers with a hard right cross. Miranda bangs a short left hook at the defense of Chilemba. Miranda lands a nice counter straight right hand. Chilemba lands a lead straight right hand. Miranda bangs a straight right hand at the bodyt of Chilemba. Miranda throws out a double jab, and lands a left hook to the body. Chilemba lands a right hook to the body, and sticks out a double jab upstairs. Miranda throws a dboule jab to the body of Chilemba. Chilemba left hand connects for Miranda at the body of Chilemba. Miranda lands another jab upstairs on Chilemba, and Chilemba connects with a jab of his own. Chilemba lands a nice right hand near the end of the round. 10-9 for Miranda.
Round 2:
Miranda takes the center of the ring and has Chilemba backing up with his jab. Miranda lands an overhand right, but eats a lead left hook in the process. Miranda gets warned for pushing off with his elbow. Chilemba lands a short right uppercut and the fighters than clinch. Chilemba barely misses with a two punch combination. Chilemba connects with two jabs, and Miranda lands a nice left uppercut and an overhand right. Chilemba is backing up and eats another right uppercut in the process. Miranda again has Chilemba backing up. Miranda lands anoverhand right, and Chilemba answers with a straight right hand of his own. Chilemba and Miranda tie up by the ropes. Chilemba connects with a short left hook upstairs. Miranda misses with a lunging left hook. Fighters clinch and both connect with shots behind the head. Close round, 10-9 for Miranda because he was the aggressor.
Round 3:
Chilemba is told by his corner to use his legs and not lay in the corner. Chilemba stabs a jab at the body of Miranda. Chilemba lands a right hook to the body and the fighters than tie up. Chilemba lands another jab to the body and an overhand right. Miranda is unable to find the range with his jab on the bigger Chilemba. Mirand bangs a right hand to the body of Chilemba by the ropes, and Chilemba connects with a left hook upstairs. Chilemba is momentarily caught by the corner but is able to spin out of danger. Chilemba lands a decent combination in the center of the ring and then step out of the way of danger. Chilemba digs a hook to the body of Miranda. Chilemba lands a jab and then circles out of danger again. Miranda has Chilemba by the ropes and digs some body shots and hooks to the defenses of Chilemba. Chilemba’s back is against the corner and he is able to dig a hook to Miranda’s body. Miranda lands a hard overhand right and has blood coming from his left eye. The referee has a doctor check on it and is allowed to continue. They exchange more blows by the corner and Chilemba gets the better of Miranda, and lands a hard uppercut in the process. 10-9 round for Chilemba.
Round 4:
Chilemba comes out standing behind his jab, and lands an early overhand right. Miranda holds the back of Chilemba’s head and lands some short right uppercuts. The cut of Miranda has opened back up, and Chilemba lands a thudding straight right hand. Chilemba misses with a wild overhand right, but connects with one to the body. Miranda lands a straight left hand by the corner that rocks the head of Chilemba. Miranda is pawing at his cut trying to keep the blood from going into his eye. Chilemba punches Miranda with a straight right hand at the eye of Miranda. Chilemba lands a straight right hand and a short left hook. Both fighters connect with body shots. Miranda lands a straight right hand on Chilemba. Chilemba connects with a short inside right uppercut and a left hook to the cheek of Miranda. Chilemba digs a right hand to the body of Miranda, but then eats a straight right hand from Miranda. The blood is starting to pour down Miranda’s face. 10-9 for Chilemba.
Round 5:
Miranda ducks under two jabs from Chilemba and throws a wild right hand. The referee warns both fighters for landing rabbit punches. Chilemba connects with a solid overhand right, and Miranda tries to trap Chilemba in the corner but is unable to do so. Miranda lands a left uppercut to the body of Chilemba. The referee takes a point away from Miranda and Chilemba for rabbit punches. Chilemba lands a hard straight right hand on Miranda. Chilemba digs another straight right hand to the body of Miranda. Miranda misses with a n overhand right, and eats another right hook upstairs. Miranda bangs some punches to the body of Chilemba by the ropes, and lands a leaping left hook upstairs. Chilemba hits Miranda with a stiff jab, and Miranda buries a hook to the body of Chilemba. Miranda lands a short uppercut while they are tied up. Chilemba connects with a nice overhand right near the end of the round. Close round, 10-9 for Miranda.
Round 6:
Miranda stays the aggressor, and tries to trap Chilemba by the corner. He bangs several jabs at the guard of Chilemba. Chilemba lands a nice jab to the body cross to the head combination. Miranda lands two hooks to the body of Chilemba, but Chilemba lands harder hooks to the head of Miranda. Miranda again paws at the blood by his eye. Chilemba misses with a wild straight right hand, but connects with a jab cross combination immediately afterwards. Miranda’s lead left hook is partially blocked. Chilemba connects with another right cross to the body of Miranda. Chilemba lands a short left hook upstairs on Miranda. Not many clean shots have landed this round. Fighters clinch, and Miranda’s blood is all over the face and arm of Chilemba. Miranda connects with a straight right hand near the end of the round. 10-9 for Miranda in another close round.
Round 7:
Chilemba lands an overhand right. Miranda has a lead left hook partially blociked. Chilemba pop shots with two jabs and a hard right hand. Probably the hardest punch of the night as Miranda attempts to tie up with Chilemba. Miranda misses with a wild right hand. Chilemba connects with a check hook as Miranda tries to charge in. Chilemba lands another hard right uppercut on the inside. Miranda comes forward and tries to catch Chilemba by the corner but is unable to. Chilemba connects with another lead right hand on Miranda. Chilemba buries a two punch combination o Miranda’s face near the corner. Referee warns Miranda for rabbit punching again, and has the doctor check on the cut of Miranda. Miranda misses with a wild lead left hook. Chilemba hits Miranda with another hard overhand right. 10-9 round for Chilemba.
Round 8:
Chilemba digs a right hook to the body of Miranda, and Miranda barely misses with a right cross upstairs. Chilemba partially lands a four punch combination on Miranda. Miranda eats an overhand right, and another straight right hand. Chilemba connects with two more straight right hands. Blood is flowing badly from Miranda’s face. Chilemba’s straight right hand is finding it’s mark everytime it’s thrown now. Referee warns Miranda again for rabbit punches. Miranda misses with a wild left hand and Chilemba ducks under a hook from Miranda. A lead straight right hand is partially blocked by Miranda. Chilemba lands two jabs and a two punch combination on Miranda. Chilemba lands another two punch combination on Miranda. By far Chilemba’s best round and the most convincing round of the right. 10-9 for Chilemba.
Round 9:
Miranda lands an early lead left hook on Chilemba. Chilemba ducks out of the way of a left hook from Miranda. They clinch by the center of the ring and Chilemba lands a jab and an overhand right. Chilemba connects with another right hook. Blood is all over the left arm of Chilemba, and it isn’t his blood. A jab from Chilemba gets through the defense of Miranda. Miranda ties up with Chilemba and lands some questionable punches that could be considered rabbit. Chilemba again easily ducks under a right hand from Miranda, and connects with a straight right hand. Fighters clinch by the corner after neither lands any clean shots. Chilemba places a jab in the face of Miranda, and partially lands an overhand right. Chilemba digs a right hook to the body of Miranda, and Miranda again lands some shots that questionably near the back of Chilemba’s head. Chilemba connects with a good left hook upstairs near the end of the round. Closer round, 10-9 for Chilemba.
Round 10:
Miranda is bleeding very badly from his cut. Chilemba lands a straight right hand, and follows it with a three punch combination. Chilemba mises with a two punch combination, and Miranda digs a right hand to the body of Chilemba. Both fighters get warned for rabbit punches by the referee again. Chilemba connects with a stiff jab, and a left hook to the body of Miranda. Chilemba connects with a heavy right hand, and Miranda buries some shots to the body of Chilemba. Miranda comes forward and throws some sild shots that is partially blocked. Blood is all over the left arm and chest of Chilemba. Chilemba lands another straight right hand and a double jab. Chilemba lands a lead left hook and Miranda wipes away the blood from his eye. Chilemba has Miranda in the corner and throws multiple punches to try to keep Miranda there. Chilemba lands a jab late in the round, and Miranda is a bloody mess. 10-9 round for Chilemba.
Official scores are 97-91, 96-92, 96-92 for Isaac Chilemba.
