Boxing News – July 25, 2019

http://www.boxingnewsonline.net JULY 25, 2019 lBOXING NEWSl 19

Manny Pacquiao
(146 1/2lbs), 62-7-
(39), w pts 12 Keith
Thurman (146 1/2lbs),
29-1 (22); Yordenis
Ugas (147lbs), 24-
(11), w pts 12 Omar
Figueroa Jr. (147lbs),
28-1-1 (19); Sergey
Lipinets (147lbs),
16-1 (12), w rsf 2
Jayar Inson (147lbs),
18-3 (12); Luis Nery
(118lbs), 30-0 (24),
w ko 9 Juan Payano
(117 1/2lbs), 21-
(9); Austin Dulay
(136lbs), 14-1 (11),
w rsf 3 Justin Pauldo
(136lbs), 12-2 (6);
Caleb Plant (168lbs),
19-0 (11), w rsf 3
Mike Lee (167lbs),
21-1 (11); Efe Ajagba
(242lbs), 11-0 (9), w
pts 10 Ali Demirezen
(247 1/2lbs), 11-
(10); Peter Dobson
(146 1/2lbs), 11-
(7), w rsf 5 Emmanuel
Medina (147lbs),
16-1 (9); Abel Ramos
(147lbs), 25-3-
(19), w rsf 4 Jimmy
Williams (146 1/2lbs),
16-3-1 (5); Genisis
Libranza (113lbs),
19-1 (11), w rsf 4
Carlos Maldonado
(113lbs), 11-4 (7);
John Dato (
1/2lbs), 12-0-1 (8),
w ko 5 Juan Lopez
(127 1/2lbs), 14-7 (6).

FULL

RESULTS

himself, referee Jay Nady decided there

was no point in prolonging the bout,

waving it off at 0-57.

Original Lipinets opponent John

Molina pulled out a few days prior citing

a sudden back injury.

A clash between bantamweight

southpaws (set for 12) saw hard-hitting

Mexican Luis Nery stop the typically

rugged Dominican Juan Payano with a

body shot in the ninth round.

Payano, a former champion who had

comported himself well early on, took a

moment to gather himself before keeling

over on his back in obvious anguish as

referee Vic Drakulich finished out the

count at 1-43.

Nery came in a 1/2 pound over the

bantamweight limit — and though he

was able to clear himself with another

attempt at the scale, it illustrated once

more the reprobate’s haughty attitude

toward basic prizefighting regulation.

Nashville’s IBF-super-middleweight

title-holder Caleb Plant promised all

week that he would impart a painful

shellacking to former university

linebacker (and career light-heavyweight)

Mike Lee in his first title defence, and he

did just that, putting Lee to the canvas

three pitiful times en route to a third-

round stoppage.

In the opening stanza, Plant whipped a

lead left hook that put the Chicagoan Lee

on his rear for the first knockdown. In

the next round, Plant worked assiduously

behind the jab, mixing in straight rights,

while circling away from any return fire.

In the third, Plant landed a straight

right for his third knockdown, followed

by another hook that referee Robert Byrd

mistakenly deemed a push. Moments

later, Lee was down again from another

hair-trigger hook, as Byrd waved off

the fight at 1-29. A unification with the

Anthony Dirrell-David Benavidez winner

should be next. bn

THE VERDICTPacquiao reminds us

he’s one of the all-time greats.

right that forced Figueroa to stumble

backwards into the ropes, causing Russell

Mora to start the count. On the inside,

Ugas outmuscled Figueroa, raking his

body with hard left and rights while

mixing in stinging overhand rights.

Figueroa responded, per usual, by

absorbing punch after punch with his

trademark granite chin. He was not

much for creative on offence, in which

he landed few significant punches, save

for the dreary pitty-pat rabbit punches

during clinches.

Los Angeles-based Kazakh welter

Sergey Lipinets wiped out late sub

Jayar Inson from the Philippines in the

second round (set for 10).

After missing with a left hook, straight

right combination, Lipinets ducked an

incoming right and countered flush with

a left hook that caused Inson to topple

over on his face, seemingly in slow

motion. Though Inson was to upright

the presence of mind to take out his

mouthpiece while backpedalling so that

he could breathe more easily.

Thurman would survive the round

and go onto land his best punch of the

fight in the 11th, drilling Pacquiao with

the right cross, dazing him momentarily

before recovering his wits. “I can say that

he’s a heavy-handed man,” Pacquiao

said of Thurman’s punching power in the

postfight presser, “not like other opponent

that I faced before. This guy, he can fight.”

After the fight, Thurman graciously

owned up to his defeat. “I’ve got an ‘0’,

I’m not afraid to let it go,” he said. “If

you can beat me, beat me. I was beaten

tonight. And that’s the sport of boxing,

baby. But your boy Keith ‘One Time’

Thurman is here and I’ll be back.”

Pacquiao, who declined to say who he

wanted to fight next and insisted he will

be focusing on his senatorial duties for

the next few months, agreed. “Thurman’s

journey does not end tonight. He has a lot

of future to fight. Don’t be discouraged.

Your journey is not finished here.”

On the TGB Promotions undercard,

Cuba’s Yordenis Ugas pummelled

Welasco, Texas’ Omar Figueroa Jnr

over 12 mostly monotonous rounds in a

WBC welterweight eliminator. Incredibly,

this was the first defeat for Figueroa in

a career marked by footloose ambition,

DUIs and slothfulness.

All three judges (Eric Cheek, Julie

Lederman, Steve Weisfeld) scored the

bout 119-107 for Ugas, who gains

some sliver of satisfaction after losing a

hotly-disputed title fight against WBC

welterweight champ Shawn Porter.

The gulf in talent was evident from

the get-go. Late in the first round, Ugas

scored a knockdown with a straight

ONE WAY:

Ugas easily

outboxes

Figueroa

MISMATCH:

Plant crushes Lee

in three rounds

Photos: JOE CAMPOREALE/USA TODAY SPORTS