ESPN Boxing

Rafael's remark: The fight was terrific, an unexpected barnburner that deserves serious consideration when the time comes to pick the fight of the year. As good as the action was throughout the fight, the end was as dramatic as anything you'll ever see in a boxing ring: Lopez, clearly winning the fight, was badly hurt and desperate to get to the final bell before Mtagwa knocked him out. Lopez had been hurt in the 10th round, barely survived the 11th and then was out on his feet for almost the entire 12th round, yet somehow was able to do just barely enough to keep referee Eddie Cotton from stopping the fight. It was truly amazing. Mtagwa was perhaps one solid punch away from ending the fight but couldn't land it.

The entire fight was entertaining, but Lopez had opened a big lead in the first half, winning rounds 1-6 on all three judges' scorecards. However, Mtagwa was still doing damage and slowing down Lopez before making a big comeback in the late rounds. If there is anything to compare it to, it's the epic first fight between Julio Cesar Chavez and Meldrick Taylor. It was like a light version of that classic, in which Taylor was easily winning but Chavez was doing serious damage and coming on strong until finally flooring Taylor in the 12th round and getting the massively controversial stoppage with two seconds left. The biggest difference here (other than the fact neither fighter is as good as Chavez or Taylor) was that Mtagwa could not get Lopez off his feet, as Lopez barely made it to the final bell with virtually everyone in the boisterous crowd of 3,152 on their feet.

Lopez, 26, Puerto Rico's top rising star, had the crowd behind him and was making his fifth title defense against Mtagwa, a rough, tough fighter from Tanzania who now lives in Philadelphia. He doesn't have a great record, but if you've ever seen him, you know Mtagwa makes entertaining fights and is better than his record looks. He sure deserves another notable money fight after this game performance. He came close to derailing some big plans for Lopez, whom Top Rank hopes can become the next big Puerto Rican star, following in the footsteps of Felix Trinidad and Miguel Cotto. To that end, Lopez was showcased on the card with featherweight titlist Yuriorkis Gamboa in the co-feature. Top Rank wants to match them next summer in what would be a very exciting fight. First, however, is a tentative HBO doubleheader Jan. 23 in Puerto Rico in which they would fight separate opponents again. Of course, given that Lopez was cut from one of the many head-butts Mtagwa landed and was banged up pretty good, it remains to be seen whether he'll be ready to fight that soon.

Lopez started off well. He sent Mtagwa to the canvas twice in the first round for what appeared to be flash knockdowns, but Cotton did not have a good night and missed both calls (and basically ignored the dozens of Mtagwa head-butts). Nonetheless, Lopez did get credit for a flash knockdown in the fifth round, which put Mtagwa further down on the scorecards until his strong comeback. Whew! What a fight.

Rafael's remark: There are few fighters as exciting as Gamboa, who brings an electricity and fury to the ring that makes it impossible to turn away when he's fighting. The 2004 Cuban Olympic gold medalist, who later defected and turned pro in 2007, has as much charisma as anyone in the sport -- not to mention speed and power. He used it all to destroy the overmatched Garcia, a 28-year-old from Panama who dropped to 0-2 in world title bouts, having also been stopped by Jorge Linares in the fifth round of a 2008 junior lightweight title challenge. Gamboa, 27, was not remotely challenged by Garcia, who was defensive from the start of the fight. Eventually, Gamboa got to him with a fast left hook that dropped him face-first in the fourth round. Garcia didn't seem much interested in continuing after the knockdown but reluctantly did. Moments later, Gamboa had him pinned on the ropes and was blasting him with unanswered punch after unanswered punch, leaving referee Steve Smoger no option but to pull the plug.

It was a sensational performance for Gamboa, albeit against a less-than-impressive opponent. The fight was showcased on the card because Top Rank's Bob Arum -- who recently signed Gamboa to a co-promotional deal with his original promoter, Arena-Box -- wants to match Gamboa with junior featherweight titlist Juan Manuel Lopez, who headlined this show. The tentative plan is for them to fight on another card together on Jan. 23, with Gamboa possibly facing tough Filipino contender Bernabe Concepcion with an eventual meeting against Lopez penciled in for June on the eve of the annual National Puerto Rican Day Parade in New York.

As good as Gamboa is, however, his title is crapola. He was making the first defense of the belt handed to him by the WBA, which is a complete joke. Chris John is the long-reigning WBA titleholder, but was "elevated" to the so-called "super champion" even though he isn't a unified titleholder -- the weak reason the WBA gave for creating a second title in one division in the first place. In any case, Gamboa claimed the unwarranted interim belt in April by stopping Jose Rojas. Then, for no apparent reason, Gamboa was elevated to "regular" titleholder, while John's status was changed to "super champion." So now the WBA gets to line its pockets with multiple sanctioning fees in the same division. It's quite a racket, one the fighters and their handlers happily and stupidly go along with.

Rafael's remark: Following Solis' impressive knockout of former title challenger Barrett, Top Rank promoter Bob Arum -- Solis' co-promoter with Arena Box -- declared himself back in the heavyweight business. He just might be right. It's a poor division, but Solis could give it some added punch. Although he came in at a career-heavy 271 pounds, he was still effective and looked pretty good dismantling the 38-year-old Barrett, who has seen better days but still was the best opponent of Solis' career. Solis, 29, won a gold medal in the 2004 Olympics and defected before turning pro in 2007 with teammates Yuriorkis Gamboa and Yan Barthelemy. He has been moved pretty quickly and, along with his handlers, declared himself ready for a serious test after the Barrett blowout. Barrett, who was 218½ pounds, took the fight on four days' notice after Fres Oquendo was forced out of the bout because of legal issues at home in Chicago. Barrett gave it his best shot, but he was no match for Solis' size, power or even hand speed, which was impressive for such a big man. Solis clipped Barrett with a left hook -- one that didn't look nearly at full power -- in the second round and knocked him down. A follow-up attack put Barrett on the canvas again, and referee Wayne Kelly called it off. Solis knocked out Barrett three rounds quicker than former cruiserweight champ David Haye did last year in his first notable heavyweight fight. After such a tremendous amateur career, Solis is probably ready for a major step up. Doesn't a showdown with American Cristobal Arreola have "great fight" written all over it?

Rafael's remark: What a good scrap to open Top Rank's pay-per-view card. Wolak and Nascimento brawled from the outset in a fight that went from competitive in the first couple of rounds to a dominant, bloody beatdown for Wolak, 28, a native of Poland living in New Jersey who has always made good fights. Wolak cut Brazil's Nascimento, 31, in the first round, and there was bloodshed for the rest of the fight. Neither guy showed any semblance of defense, so it was a caveman type of fight as they whaled on each other. But Wolak got hit with less and dished out more. He dropped Nascimento in the fifth round with a left hand and finally forced referee David Fields to stop the bout on the advice of the ringside doctor, with a beaten and battered Nascimento on his stool after five hellish rounds. Wolak won his fourth in a row since dropping a decision to Ishe Smith in August 2008. Nascimento, whose only previous loss came via 11th-round knockout in a challenge of junior middleweight titlist Sergei Dzindziruk in Germany in 2007, had his eight-fight winning streak snapped.

Rafael's remark: Duddy's career hit bottom in April when he suffered his first loss to journeyman Billy Lyell in an 10-round split-decision upset. Duddy, 30, the popular Irish brawler based in New York, had gone from being a likely challenger to middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik to a virtually forgotten fighter. But promoter Bob Arum is trying to rebuild Duddy as best as he can. Reunited with his longtime trainer, Harry Keitt, Duddy shook off the loss and bounced back with a near-shutout decision against Munoz, a club fighter from Topeka, Kan. The good news for Duddy, who has been known to get cut badly in fights, was that the worst damage he suffered was a bloody nose in the first round. This one was all Duddy. Munoz stood right in front of him and didn't throw nearly enough punches to get much credit from the judges. Duddy, meanwhile, kept his hands moving and was tagging Munoz throughout the fight. Arum would like to match Duddy with Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. next year in a pay-per-view fight that, although not all that meaningful, probably would attract a lot of attention and be a highly entertaining slugfest between limited fighters.

Rafael's remark: This was another excellent fight on a card that was very entertaining overall -- the televised bouts as well as this gem of an untelevised fight. Diaz, 22, a New Jersey prospect, brought a supportive crowd with him and rewarded them with an exciting and dramatic victory. He came into the ring wearing the blue and white colors of the late Arturo Gatti and with Gatti's "Thunderstruck" anthem playing behind him. Diaz looked up to Gatti; is handled by his longtime manager, Pat Lynch; and is trained by Mikey Skowronski, Gatti's close friend and longtime assistant trainer. Diaz honored Gatti's memory the best way a fighter could -- by pulling out a memorable victory in the same ring where Gatti had scored one of his most compelling victories, the unforgettable comeback against Wilson Rodriguez. Diaz was stepping up in class against former amateur star Barthelemy, 29, a 2004 Cuban Olympic gold medalist who had defected and turned pro in 2007 with teammates Yuriorkis Gamboa and Odlanier Solis, who both also fought on this card. Barthelemy, a slick defender, fought on even terms until the fourth round, when Barthelemy wobbled Diaz and had him in trouble. However, in the sixth round, Diaz uncorked a tremendous left hook that knocked Barthelemy down face-first and out cold. The crowd roared. Gatti would have been proud.

Rafael's remark: Chavez, 19, is the younger fighting son of former three-division champion and Mexican icon Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. Although Chavez is a brawler and a crowd pleaser, his skills are just not there to become a serious contender. He may draw fans because of his name and fighting style, but it's hard to see him moving up to the top level of the sport. With 19 bouts, he still is fighting club fighters such as Ventry, a very limited guy who relies strictly on his heart and determination. It was a good fight to watch, but Chavez was in command most of the way. For Chavez, it was a good bounce-back from his last fight. He won that bout on July 18 via fourth-round knockout, but his opponent, Marco Antonio Nazareth, died later from injuries suffered in the fight. The situation has weighed heavily on Chavez, but he's trying to move on with his career. The fight with Ventry was a good way for him to get back on the horse.

Rafael's remark: At long last, Vazquez, the 31-year-old former junior featherweight world champion from Mexico, made his comeback. It had been 19 months since he last fought, when he put the cap on his 2-1 trilogy victory against Rafael Marquez in their now-legendary rivalry. But those three vicious fights took their toll. Vazquez needed three eye surgeries on the detached retina in his right eye, one of the key reasons for such a long layoff. So when he returned, it was no surprise that Vazquez was rusty, uncertain of himself and a bit out of sorts. It's also why his handlers selected Priolo, 35, of Colombia, as his opponent: He was supposed to be non-threatening. After all, Priolo came into the fight having lost six fights in a row (five of them by knockout) in lower weight classes. Yet Vazquez, who said he stressed defense while training but showed no evidence of that, struggled mightily. Through seven hard-fought rounds, two judges had the fight 76-76 and the third had Vazquez with a 78-74 margin. It was way tougher than it was supposed to be. The bad cut that Vazquez suffered over his left eye didn't help matters. But finally, with a flair for the dramatic, Vazquez dropped Priolo three times in the ninth round to score the victory. Vazquez did not look good. Maybe it was the rust. Maybe he's just a shot fighter after so many hard fights, the eye problem and the layoff. Whether he ever regains his championship form or not, he'll fight on. Vazquez wants a fourth fight with Marquez. Promoter Golden Boy is once again talking to Marquez's handlers about putting it together. It's the biggest money fight for both warriors despite the damage it will likely do to both of them if it happens. It is nice to have Vazquez back, but how much longer can he put himself through these kind of fights before the impact is lifelong? As an aside, kudos to Golden Boy for working things out on a few days' notice so that the fight -- part of a monthly series Golden Boy puts on in conjunction with HBO Plus throughout Latin America, South America and Mexico -- was available to American television viewers on Fox Sports En Español. Maybe it can happen on a regular basis. That would be nice.

Rafael's remark: Japan's Nishioka, 33, made his third defense in easy fashion, blowing out Mexico's Hernandez, 26, a former junior bantamweight titlist. Hernandez quit after the third round because of what he said was a broken jaw. Through the brief fight, Nishioka was the more polished fighter. He used a nice right jab and moved well while Hernandez was simply looking to come forward and attack. Nishioka, a southpaw, was able to pick him apart and slip punches. In the second round, an accidental head-butt left Hernandez with a cut on his forehead. Because of the WBC's atrocious rule, Nishioka, the uncut fighter, had a point deducted by referee Mike Griffin. It wound up not making a difference. Nishioka took the third round and then Hernandez retired on his stool. Nishioka, who has won 12 fights in a row since losing a bantamweight title fight to Veeraphol Sahaprom in 2004, said after the fight that he'd like to face former champ Rafael Marquez or fellow titleholders Juan Manuel Lopez or Celestino Caballero.

Rafael's remark: In perhaps the upset of the year, Mexico's Salgado, 24, destroyed the heralded Linares in just 73 seconds to snatch away his 130-pound title in shocking fashion. Linares, 24, who is from Venezuela but based in Japan, was a massive favorite and was being groomed for stardom. Just a few weeks ago, Linares -- promoted by Japan's most powerful promoter, Teiken Boxing -- signed a co-promotional contract with Golden Boy. Linares was expected to take care of Salgado and then come to the United States to fight on HBO in early 2010. So much for the best-laid plans. He may wind up with a rematch against Salgado. Linares, a former featherweight titlist making his second junior lightweight defense, simply never saw the punch that did him in. It was the first solid blow from Salgado, a left hook to the chin. It floored Linares, who never fully recovered from the punch. He made it to his feet but was unsteady. Salgado attacked immediately, drove Linares into the ropes and pounded on him until he fell to the canvas again, onto his rear end in a corner. Although Linares beat the count, he was out on his feet, and referee Luis Pabon appropriately stopped the fight, giving Salgado the stunning victory. Linares had trained for the fight in Las Vegas and, from what we hear from multiple sources, had been knocked out cold in the gym in sparring by prospect Lonnie Smith and had a hard time with another prospect, Brandon Rios. Perhaps whatever Linares' issues were came with him into the fight.

Rafael's remark: Boytsov, 23, made a big statement when he stopped Taras Bidenko in impressive fashion in the sixth round in June. In his next fight, he was matched with Gavern, a 32-year-old American who was not nearly as dangerous as Bidenko. However, Boytsov, a Russian living in Germany, still found something to do impressively against Gavern: He became the first to stop him. Boytsov, who shares trainer Fritz Sdunek with heavyweight titlist Vitali Klitschko, dropped Gavern in the first round with a counter right hand. Gavern was down again from a left hook in the second round. It was all Boytsov. There was another knockdown in the sixth round and fourth and final knockdown in the seventh round. Boytsov is one of the most notable young heavyweight contenders in the world. Gavern saw his modest three-fight winning streak end.

Rafael's remark:Guerrero, one of the most exciting prospects in boxing after a standout amateur career, continued to pack in fans in his adopted hometown of Salisbury. The 22-year-old, who was born in the Dominican Republic, drew a crowd of about 5,000 to a minor league baseball stadium to watch him take his biggest step up in class against the battle-tested Duran. Guerrero, busier than most of his opponents, suffered a cut over his left eye in the eighth round as the result of an accidental head clash. Duran was credited with a flash knockdown in the 10th round, although Guerrero contended that it was a slip caused by rain from earlier in the day that had made the canvas slick. Ultimately, it didn't affect the outcome, as Guerrero took the majority decision. Duran, 32, a native of Ghana living in New Jersey, was moving up from junior middleweight and dropped to 0-3-1 in his last four bouts.