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By: William Holmes
Besides tonight’s main event, Saul Alvarez takes on Alberto Gomez and Erik Morales takes on last minute replacement Pablo Cesar Cano.
Jessie Vargas(16-0) vs. Josesito Lopez (29-3); Junior Welterweight
Round 1:
Both fightesr come out to the middle of the ring and Lopez comes out aggressive with his jab. Vargas comes back with a multi punch combnation to the body and head of Lopez. Vargas gets off a jab cross combination to the head. Lopez works to the body against the ropes. Vargas lands a left hook, and rolls off four punches with his back against the ropes. Vargas lands two nice overhand rights, and follows with a left hook straight right combo. Vargas lands a hard right hook to the body. Vargas lands another hard left hook to the head of Lopez. Lopez answers with a right hook to Vargas’ head. Vargas landing the crisper punches this round. Vargas finishes the round with a nice three punch combination. 10-9 round for Vargas.
Round 2:
Vargas comes out strong with the jab. During exchanges Vargas gets off his punches first and lands cleanly. Vargas working behind his jab very effectively so far. Fighters exchange body blows in the middle of the ring. Vargas’ left hook is also landing nicely. Lopez works off two punches to Vargas against the ropes. Vargas shows off nice hand speed with a four punch combination that is partially blocked. Lopez pushes Vargas against the ropes but the referee is quick to break it up. Lopez lands a hard right hook, and Vargas answers with a hard body shot of his own. Vargas lands a shot that may be considered a low blow. Fighters exchange hard hooks while tied up. Closer round than the first but 10-9 round for Vargas.
Round 3:
Lopez comes out more aggressive in the third round, but Vargas comes back and works behind his jab. Vargas lands a hard right hook to the head of Lopez. Vargas is being very effective at keeping Lopez at bay with his jab. Vargas lands a hard overhand right hook. Lopez is coming forward, and has Vargas trapped in the corner. Lopez hammers away at the body of Vargas. Vargas snapping off his jab, and lands two hard body blows. Lopez has Vargas trapped in the corner again and lands a hard uppercut and hook to the head of Vargas. Lopez is using his physical strength advantage to keep Vargas in the corner. Fight returns to the center of the ring and lands a few jabs. Lopz lands two hard punches to the head of Vargas. Towards the end of the round Lopez lands some hard punches on Vargas near the ropes. 10-9 round for Lopez.
Round 4:
Vargas comes out in round four and listens to his corner by working behind his jab. Lopez again briefly traps Vargas in the corner and works on his body. Lopez is continuing to come forward and put the pressure on Vargas. Vargas lands a hard counter hook as Lopez comes forward. Vargas lands a hard body shot on Lopez. Lopez still comes forward and lands some hard shots on Vargas with his back against the ropes. Lopez fires off a jab to the body of Vargas, and Vargas answers with a few jabs and crosses. Vargas lands a right cross and ends the round throwing off a combination. 10-9 round for Vargas.
Round 5:
Lopez comes out firing and his punches cause Vargas to retreat. Vargas lands a hard body head combination. Lopez is able to shrug off most of Vargas’ punches and come forward to apply the pressure. Vargas fires off two punches then moves. As long as Vargas doesn’t get trapped in the corner or against the ropes, he lands the harder and crisper punche, and he has been doing that so far this round. An uppercut lands cleanly for Vargas. Lopez pushes Vargas against the ropes and lands a few punches while clinched. Vargas lands a hard body uppercut. Vargas is being much more effective at avoiding the pressure of Lopez this round. Lopez lands a lead left hook near the end of the round. 10-9 round for Vargas.
Round 6:
Lopez comes out trying to work his jab, but Vargas’ jab is crisper and quicker to land. Lopez fires off two hooks to the head of Vargas. Lopez is still pressuring and coming forward. Vargas lands a nice left hook and right cross. Vargas again lands a two punch combination on Lopez. Lopez lands a lead left jab and right cross. Vargas is starting to look tired and Lopez’s pressure is beginning to work. Lopez fires off two punches to the body of Vargas and lands a brutal uppercut. Lopez has a cut near his right eye. Lopez increasing the pressure and is wearing Vargas down. 10-9 round for Lopez.
Round 7:
Lopez off course comes out at the start of the round pressing forward. Lopez lands a left hook to the body of Vargas. Vargas appears to be on full backpedal mode. Vargas lands two body shots on Lopez. Vargas firing off his jabs, but almost looks to be in retreat mode. Lopez lands a lead left hook to the head of Vargas. Vargas fires off three quick jabs. Lopez traps Vargas in the corner again and fires off a four punch combination. Fighters appear to clash heads in the middle of the ring. Lopez chasing Vargas around the ring. The cut by the eye of Lopez is starting to get worse, and Vargas looks to take advantage of that cut. Close round, but scored it 10-9 for Vargas.
Round 8:
Vargas still backing up to the pressure of Lopez. Lopez lands a clean left hook to the jaw of Vargas. Vargas lands two body punches. Lopez falls to the ground after an apparent low blow. The referee takes a point away from Vargas, which may cost him dearly at the end of the fight. Lopez lands a hard right cross, and the fighters appear to clash heads again. Lopezlands a hard right hook straight left combination. Vargas throwing more punches after getting the point taken away, but Lopez answers with an overhand right. Vargas pops off a few jab cross combinations. Vargas lands a hook to the body of Lopez, and multiple jabs. A right cross by Lopez lands and appears to stun Vargas, and Lopez follows up with another left hook right cross combination. Another tough round to score, but 10-8 for Lopez.
Round 9:
Vargas working behind his jab again, lands many In succession. Lopez and Vargas briefly clinch and Vargas falls to the ground but correctly not rules a knockdown. Lopez lands an overhand right, but Vargas answers with a multi punch combination, a pause, and a straight overhand right. Vargas is outworking Lopez this round and appears to have caught his wind. Lopez lands a jab and a cross while Vargas is backing up. Vargas lands a short left hook. Vargas now has a cut near his right eye. Vargas comes forward with a three punch combination. Vargas fires off two punches to the body of Lopez. Vargas clearly outworked Lopez this round. 10-9 round for Vargas.
Round 10:
Last round of a very close fight. Vargas throwing and landing some very clean punches. Vargas looks to be the fresher fighter and landing most of his jabs and crosses. Lopez lands a nice check hook left. Vargas responds by coming forward with his jab. Vargas lands a very nice left hook jab combination. Fighters again clash heads. Vargas firing off his jab at the head of Lopez. Vargas lands a hard hook to the head of Lopez. Vargas lands a hard overhand right. Lopez tries to trap Vargas in the corner but Vargas wisely clinches. Vargas is letting his hands go, but Lopez lands a left hook that momentarily stuns Vargas. Lopez going for a knockout and throwing wildly, and Vargas is slipping and ducking out of trouble. 10-9 round for Vargas.
Official scores are 95-94 for Lopez, 96-93 for Vargas, and 95-94 for Vargas. Jessie Vargas wins by split decision.
Erik Morales (51-7) vs. Pablo Cesar Cano (23-0); Super Lightweight
Round 1:
Fighters touch gloves in the center of the ring, and Cano fires off a few jabs as he tries to find his range. Morales lands a jab to the body of Cano, and Cano lands a hard jab to the head of Morales. Morales lands a jab and Cano answers by throwing a two punch combination. Cano fires off a double jab. Cano looks to be the faster fighter, as his jabs land first when the fighters throw at the same time. Cano ducks under a Morales cross and lands a hook to the body. Cano lands two hard jabs. Morales answers with a hard jab of his own. Cano lands two left hooks to the head of Morales. Morales connects with a jab. A hard left hook by Cano causes Morales to back up. 10-9 round for Cano.
Round 2:
Cano looks to be the quicker fighter on his feet. Morales lands a left hook right cross combination. Morales comes forward and throws another combination, and tags Cano with a straight left. Cano lands a short uppercut. Morales lands a jab cross combination. Morales lands a nice overhand right. Cano lands two successive jabs that rock Morales. Cano catches Morales coming in with a check left hook. Cano lands a jab to the body of Morales. Cano lands a right to the temple of Morales. Cano’s jab goes through Morales’ defense. Morales lands a straight right to the body of Cano. Cano lands an overhand right near the end of the round. 10-9 round for Cano.
Round 3:
Cano flicks out his jab towards the head of Morales. Morales comes forward with his jab and lands a few crisp ones. Nothing really hard or clean lands in the first minute and a half of round 3. Morales lands a cross jab combination on Cano. Two consecutive jabs land for Morales. Morales lands an overhand right and Cano answers with a short left hook. Morales is applying the pressure this round. Morales catches Cano with a quick right hook and a short left hook. Cano lands a hard jab cross combination on Morales. Morales lands three jabs in a row towards the end of round 3. Close round, but 10-9 for Morales.
Round 4:
Cano throws out a couple of jabs but none land. Cano lands a quick right cross. Morales lands a right cross to the body of Cano. Morales throws out a quick jab and follows with a right cross to the body of Cano. Morales catches Cano with a hard right hand, but Cano answers quickly with a three punch combination. Morales snaps Cano’s head with a jab, and contuse to come forward. Morales lands a right that gets the crowd’s attention. Cano lands two hard right corsses, but Morales comes firing right back. Morales lands two jabs to the body of Cano. There is a cut over the right eye of Cano. Three jabs land for Morales. 10-9 round for Morales.
Round 5:
Morales is starting to look more confident and lighter on his feet. Morales lands a few jabs to the head of Cano. Cano flicks out a jab and a cross at Morales but doesn’t land anything clean. Morales lands a jab to the stomach of Cano. Morales lands a hard overhand right. Morales lands a right left combination. Morales throws three jabs in a row but Cano lands a jab that snaps the head of Morales. Cano lands a right cross to the body of Morales, and catches Morales with a hard uppercut by the ropes. Cano continues to comefoward throwing multiple punches. Morales ducks most of them not all. Morales lands an overhand right on Cano by the ropes. Both fighters are slugging it out with Morales landing more of the punches. This was a very tough round to score. 10-9 for Cano.
Round 6:
Morales flicks out a jab to the head of Cano. Cano lands a soft check left hook. Cano’s head snaps back after a Morales jab. Morales lands a jab to the body of Cano. Morales lands two consecutive overhand rights. Morales lands a left hook, but Cano answers with two body blows. A straight right lands for Cano. Morales again lands a jab to the body of Cano. Morales lands a hard right cross on Cano and continues to stalk him. Morales lands a left hook that causes Cano to move backwards. Morales lands another short inside left hook. 10-9 round for Morales.
Round 7:
The right eye of Cano is really starting to swell. Cano lands a quick short left hook. Morales bobs and weaves and lands an overhand right hand. Morales again throws a jab to the body of Cano. Cano lands a quick right hand. Morales lands two quick overhand rights. Cano lands a hard uppercut that appears to hurt Morales. Cano lands a straight right, and Morales lands two punches of his own. Morales is now bleeding. Cano lands a hard right cross. Morales lands another right hand. Cano tries to catch Morales in the corner but Morales lands an overhand right. Cano lands an uppercut that noticeably snaps the head of Morales. Better round for Cano, 10-9 for Cano.
Round 8:
Cano comes out firing and lands a hard right cross. Morales though is stalking Cano. Cano lands a few hard body shots. Morales’ jab lands flush on the on the nose of Cano. Both fighters have puffy faces and are bleeding. Morales and Cano land simultaneous punches. Morales lands a nice left hook, and lands a very hard right hand. Cano’s face is really looking mangled. Cano lands two hard lefts, but Morales answers back with an overhand right. Morales lands a hard left hand, and Cano answers with a right cross. Cano lands two quick punches to the body of Morales. Morales lands another hard overhand right. Cano’s face is really starting to show the effects of the punishment of Morales’ pressure. 10-9 round for Morales.
Round 9:
Cano has a very bad cut over his left eye. Cano comes out and lands two quick jabs. Morales misses wildly with a left hook. An overhand right lands for Morales. Morales throws out a jab and follows with a cross to the body of Cano. A hard left hook lands for Morales. Morales’ straight rights are landing hard and more often. Cano is pawing at the cut on his eye and it looks to be nearly shut closed. Morales lands another overhand right, and follows with a jab cross combination. The ringside doctor may want to look at the eye of Cano. Morales is landing the harder shots this round and looks to be more relaxed. Another 10-9 round for Morales.
Round 10:
Cano throws out a few jabs, but Morales answers and his lands. Morales lands an overhand right, again. Morales lands a quick two punch combination. Cano lands a straight right that rocks Morales’ head back. Blood is streaming from the left eye of Cano. A straight right by Morales lands very cleanly and gets the attention of the crowd. Cano is a bloody mess. Morales comes forward, and the referee calls time to have the ring side doctor look at the eye of Cano. The doctor lets the fight continue. Morales now throwing his jab towards the right eye of Cano. Two very hard punches land for Morales and Cano is visibly trying to wipe the blood away from his eye. Morales lands a short check hook. Easily a 10-9 round for Morales, the doctor may want to stop this fight.
The referee wisely stops the fight as the eye of Cano looks badly damaged. Morales wins by 10th round TKO.
Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (37-0) vs. Alfonso Gomez (23-4-2); Junior Middleweight
Round 1:
Alvarez looks to be the bigger fighter of the two. Alvarez lands a short hook to the body of Gomez. Alvarez lands a quick left hook to the head of Gomez. A jab lands for Alvarez and he looks very poised and confident. Gomez throws an uppercut that misses, and Alvarez lands a short hook to the body. Alvarez lands an overhand right and a hook to the body. Gomez lands a quick two punch combination and throws two jabs to the body. Alvarez lands a hard body shot. Alvarez lands a crisp jab and knocks Gomez down. Referee gives Gomez a standing 8 count. 10-8 round for Alvarez.
Round 2:
Gomez paws his jab out to try and find range. Alvarez lands a quick jab. Alvarez lands two quick hooks to the head of Gomez. Gomez lands a straight right and Alvarez quickly backs out. Two jabs land for Gomez. Gomez swings wildly and Alvarez ducks under it. Gomez lands three punches to the head of Alvarez and then lands two shots to the body. Alvarez lands another quick jab, but Gomez answers with a straight right. Alvarez unleashes a combination on the body of Gomez. Gomez lands a quick jab. Alvarez is staying out of the range of Gomez and lands three quick punches. Close round, but 10-9 for Gomez.
Round 3:
Gomez coming forward and trying to work behind his jab. Gomez is showing good head movement and Alvarez is looking stiff in comparison. Alvarez lands a hard left jab hook combination on Gomez. Gomez throws a jab cross combination but it is blocked. Alavarez lands two hard body blows, and another jab hook combination. Alvarez lands a quick uppercut and throws a left hook that lands cleanly. Gomez throws a jab to the body of Alvarez and follows with two hooks to the body. Alvarez throws a quick jab and a short right hook. A straight right lands for Gomez and he continues to work on the body. The right hand is finding it’s home for Gomez. Alvarez lands a hard right uppercut but Gomez answers with a straight right hand. Another close round, but 10-9 for Alvarez.
Round 4:
Gomez comes out to start round 4 coming forward, and lands a quick right cross. Gomez gets tagged by three punches from Alvarez. The right cross for Gomez is consistently landing. Alvarez appears to be trying to catch Gomez in a trap. A quick jab lands for Alvarez and a uppercut, but Gomez lands a few straight rights. An overhand right lands for Gomez. Alvarez lands two quick left hooks but Gomez lands another straight right hand. Alvarez lands two quick right uppercuts, and Gomez answers with a left hook of his own. Alvarez is looking for the knockout shot, but Gomez is staying the busier fighter. 10-9 round for Gomez.
Round 5:
Alvarez throws out three quick jabs. A hard jab lands for Alvarez. Gomez tries to trap Alvarez in the corner but he is able to dance his way out. Gomez lands two overhand rights that catch the attention of Alvarez. Two punches land for Gomez. A short uppercut lands for Alvarez. Gomez is again the more active fighter and is throwing more punches this round. Alvarez throws a quick combination and lands two right hands. Gomez lands a straight right hand. Alvarez lands two hard hooksthat momentarily stuns Gomez, but Gomez comes right back firing. Alvarez lands a short check hook as the round ends. 10-9 round for Alvarez.
Round 6:
Gomez throws out two quick jabs and Alvarez answers with a jab of his own. Gomez is coming forward and is trying to stalk Alvarez. Alvarez lands a short left hook to the head of Gomez. Gomez lands a left hook and follows with a left jab. Alvarez throws two quick left uppercuts , and lands a crisp straight left hand. Gomez is still the busier fighter, but Alvarez is landing the hard punches. A straight right by Alvarez hurts Gomez and Alvarez follows up with a barrage of punches. Alvarez is punishing Gomez against the ropes and the referee stops the fight. Gomez was hurt, but that was a questionable stoppage.
Saul “Canelo” Alvarez wins by 6th round TKO.
