Updated: April 23, 2007, 3:29 PM ET
Scorecard: Holt wins yawner, earns first title shot
Dan Rafael recaps last week's notable boxing results from around the world.
A roundup of last week's notable boxing results from around the world:
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Jorge Barrios KO3 Decho Bankluaygym |
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Records: Barrios, 47-3-1, 34 KOs; Bankluaygym, 24-9-2 |
| Rafael's remark: Last September, Barrios was over the 130-pound junior lightweight limit at the weigh-in for his defense against Joan Guzman and was stripped of his world title. The next night, he lost a decision to Guzman, who claimed the vacant belt. Almost seven months to the day later, Barrios made his return in his native Argentina, and you know what? This time, Barrios made weight, coming in at 129¾ pounds to make it clear he intends to gun for another junior lightweight title. Barrios survived a first-round knockdown at the hands of his Thai opponent but rallied to knock out Bankluaygym with a body shot in the third round. If Barrios can continue to make 130 pounds, there are some interesting potential fights in store for him. Matches against Juan Manuel Marquez or Manny Pacquiao would certainly be entertaining. If he decides to make the move to lightweight, how about a rematch with Acelino "Popo" Freitas? |
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Kendall Holt W12 Mike Arnaoutis Title eliminator Scores: 118-109 (twice), 117-110 |
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Records: Holt, 22-1; Arnaoutis, 17-2-2 |
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Rafael's remark: The good news for Holt: Using his superior speed and movement, he scored a well-deserved lopsided victory to earn a mandatory shot against the winner of the April 28 bout between 140-pound titlist Ricardo Torres and Arturo Morua. The bad news: Peeewwww! This fight was horrible and a big disappointment.
Going in, the "ShoBox" main event figured to be an interesting match between the New Jersey-based young contenders. Instead, both guys stunk the joint out. But despite the lack of action, it was a major victory for Holt, 25, who easily outboxed the lethargic Arnaoutis, 27, for long stretches to earn his first title shot. Arnaoutis, originally from Greece, is typically much more aggressive than he was against Holt, although the southpaw did try to turn up his intensity late in the match. However, that effort came way too late in the game. Arnaoutis was hoping to earn a rematch with Torres, against whom he lost a debatable decision in a shot at a vacant title this past fall. Instead, Arnaoutis earned a trip to the doghouse with his sleep-inducing performance. At least Holt closed strong, putting a cherry on top of his win by landing a counter right hand in the 12th round that knocked Arnaoutis down for the first time in his career. If only Holt could have done it earlier, maybe he would have saved us all from suffering through this one. When Holt and (presumably) Torres meet later this year, Holt will have an outstanding shot to lift the title. He's faster than Torres and a better boxer. But Torres has the great equalizer -- excellent power. Holt will have to protect the chin that was exposed in his only loss, a first-round knockout to Thomas Davis in 2004. |
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Mike Marrone W8 Malachy Farrell Scores: 78-74 (twice), 76-76 |
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Records: Marrone, 18-0; Farrell, 15-1 |
| Rafael's remark: Although Marrone, the 21-year-old Lou Duva-trained heavyweight, won a majority decision to maintain his perfect record, it was an unpopular one inside Bally's ballroom. Farrell, 27, appeared to deserve the nod in a close fight that served as the "ShoBox" opener on Showtime. Regardless who you thought won, however, one thing is pretty clear: Neither one of these guys is the answer to our heavyweight prayers. Marrone was more aggressive than Farrell, but what good is it when nothing is landing? |
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Mzonke Fana W12 Malcolm Klassen Wins a junior lightweight title Scores: 116-113, 116-112 Fana; 115-114 Klassen |
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Records: Fana, 26-3; Johnson, 19-4-2 |
| Rafael's remark: Pathetic. That is what the IBF 130-pound belt has become since the organization forced Marco Antonio Barrera to vacate it shortly after winning it in late 2005. Since then, it has changed hands in four consecutive fights with four mediocre fighters winning it. From Cassius Baloyi claiming the vacant belt against Manuel Medina to Gairy St. Clair beating Baloyi to Klassen defeating St. Clair to Fana edging Klassen on a split decision, the belt has become a symbol of how worthless some sanctioning organization titles have become. By the way, Fana would be the same Fana who was destroyed in two rounds by Barrera in early 2005 as the WBC's joke mandatory challenger. Since then, Fana won three bouts against Tom, Dick and Harry to become the mandatory challenger for his South African countryman Klassen's trinket. If you ranked all the fighters who hold titles in the four most notable organizations -- roughly 65 fighters -- Fana might be the weakest of them all. Who wants to bet he loses the belt in his first defense? |
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Abner Mares TKO6 Angel Priolo |
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Records: Mares, 12-0, 8 KOs; Priolo, 30-6 |
| Rafael's remark: Mares, the 21-year-old 2004 Mexican Olympian, scored the most significant victory of his blossoming career. Although Priolo lost his fifth in a row and was fighting a few pounds heavier than usual, he is experienced against excellent opposition, including Brian Viloria and Jorge Arce. Mares dusted him with relative ease, knocking him down in the sixth and having the fight called off after a shaky Priolo managed to get to his feet. Mares has been a serious prospect since Golden Boy signed him out of the Olympics. Now that he is being trained by legendary Ignacio "Nacho" Beristain, Mares is as close to a can't-miss prospect as there is in boxing. |
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Oscar Andrade WDQ6 (excessive low blows) Jonathan Oquendo |
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Records: Andrade, 36-26-1; Oquendo, 12-1 |
| Rafael's remark: Oquendo was supposed to do what so many other prospects have done before him -- beat Andrade, the ultimate journeyman, and gain experience doing it. Oquendo, however, failed in his mission. Instead, he went Andrew Golota on Andrade and was disqualified in the sixth round when he knocked Andrade down with yet another low blow. There was no reason for Oquendo to go low again because he was winning the fight with ease and already had been penalized two points (after being warned) for the same infraction earlier in the fight. He had to know that one more shot south of the border could cost him the fight. A mentally strong fighter would have resisted the urge. |
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Middleweight Howard Eastman W12 Evans Ashira Wins vacant Commonwealth title Scores: 116-113 (twice), 116-112 |
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Records: Eastman, 42-4; Ashira, 26-3 |
| Rafael's remark: Although Eastman admitted afterward that it was not his best performance, he nonetheless won his second in a row after a three-fight losing streak to the elite of the middleweight division: Edison Miranda, Arthur Abraham and Bernard Hopkins. Eastman's shaky win netted him the Commonwealth title for the second time in his career. Unfortunately, it came in a bout in which there was an awful lot of wrestling and grappling. Ashira, whose previous defeats came to Maselino Masoe in a middleweight title bout and to Joe Calzaghe in a super middleweight title challenge, rocked Eastman in the final minute of the fight but was unable to capitalize. |
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Chris Byrd TKO7 Paul Marinaccio |
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Records: Byrd, 40-3-1, 21 KOs; Marinaccio, 22-3-2 |
| Rafael's remark: Almost a year to the day since he lost his world title in a bloody seventh-round TKO loss to Wladimir Klitschko in Germany, Byrd quietly returned to headline ESPN2's "Wednesday Night Fights." Unfortunately, the comeback came against 40-year-old Marinaccio, a man who donates much of his earnings to charity but doesn't really belong in the same ring with such a skilled fighter as the former titlist. Byrd was able to dominate Marinaccio, which was probably the idea of the comeback fight. After all, how often do you see Byrd coming forward and being the aggressor? Byrd won every second of the fight until Marinaccio retired on his stool one second into the seventh round, claiming an injured right arm. It was Byrd's first stoppage victory since a third-round TKO of journeyman Jeff Pegues in 2002. |
Dan Rafael is the boxing writer for ESPN.com.
