From Glendale, Arizona from Top Rank Boxing on ESPN
On the comeback trail from his first defeat, Jaime Munguia dropped Erik Bazinyan for the count in the tenth round of what was an entertaining and competitive fight. Led by Mexican legend Erik Morales in his corner the twenty-seven year-old from Tijuana proved to be too much for the Armenian born Canadian challenger. The fight marks Munguia's first appearance since losing a unanimous decision against Saul Alvarez last May. Bazinyan came in at 32-0 23 KO's but was making a big step up in class.
The fight began as an interesting boxing match from the outside. Bazinyan was recognized by the ESPN team for having a 109-1 record as an amateur and it showed. Bazinyan came out strong and won the first two rounds behind an accurate jab. He was able to offset Munguia's offense early on in the bout. Munguia struggled to get a rhythm going early on and seemed to be in a hole after five rounds. Munguia gave us a preview for what would happen later in the contest during the third round. The Mexican slugger stepped up the attack coming forward and trying to get to Bazinyan's chest. He fired his left hook to the head, the body and brought in a straight right hand.
Bazinyan continued to jab and score his right hand effectively. Bazinyan scored plenty of highlight worthy right hands that snapped Munguia's head back. Munguia despite showing these vulnerabilities never looked on the verge of going down or rocked. Bazinyan was unable to follow up on these successes and press his advantage effectively. Bazinyan also did not offer much variety in his punching. He threw the occasional left hook and right uppercut but he ignored the body and really relied almost exclusively on his jab.
Munguia began to turn the tide in the sixth round as he began to step up his attack. Bazinyan had been able to control the tempo with his jab and footwork but he was only capable of holding off his opponent for so long. When Munguia upped the attack Bazinyan was unable to match the pace and turn it up when he needed to. The seventh round was the moment of the fight, Munguia threw a hard right hand over a jab from Bazinyan and had him hurt badly. Munguia threw everything in his arsenal at his wounded foe. Possibly overeager or misjudging his opponent's condition, Munguia seemed to punch himself out. Bazinyan was not lost on the moment and stepped up with both hands scoring hard punches. Munguia finished the round with some solid hooks.
Trainer Marc Ramsay begged Bazinyan to use his jab and keep at range. The fight looked much different on the outside than when Munguia could get inside with his body punches. The problem was Munguia was like a down hill sprinter and Bazinyan just could not hold him off. Munguia took a blow in the ninth round and Bazinyan took the round. ESPN commentator Mark Kriegel had it 76-76 even after eight rounds and that felt like the right score. With Bazinyan seeming to be slightly ahead after nine rounds trainer Erik Morales declared that Munguia needed to win the remaining three rounds.
Munguia listened to his trainer's advice and went on the attack in the tenth round. Reminiscent of the seventh round Munguia hurt Bazinyan again and once more went on the assault to end the bout. Again, Bazinyan rode out the storm, got his legs back, and began to go to work with his jab and right hand. Bazinyan came forward with Munguia with his back near the ropes and ate a huge counter left hook. Bazinyan saw his legs scrambled as he staggered back. Munguia wasted no time throwing shots with both hands until a bloodied Bazinyan fell to his hands and knees along the ropes. Munguia watched from the neutral corner as referee Thomas Taylor counted out Bazinyan.
The fight was entertaining and turned out to be a tough test for Munguia. The judges' scorecards had Munguia ahead and by a fairly wide margin. One judge only gave Bazinyan two rounds and another only awarded the Armenian Canadian three rounds. The Sutherland card was 86-85 for Munguia which felt closer to what occurred in the ring. I would be curious to see how the judges scored the rounds. Bazinyan in my eyes definitely won the first two and the ninth. Rounds four and five seemed like swing rounds. I felt a 87-84 Munguia is fair if you give him the swing rounds but I also feel 86-85 Bazinyan is quite possible too. This was a good fight where Bazinyan came to win and had his moments. I look forward to the opportunity to watch him compete again and he should be a serious contender in the future. A domestic fight with Christian Mbilli would be a good one.
Munguia advances to 44-1 with 35 KO's and remains a top contender in the division. Munguia is a fighter I have never been the highest on but he has improved over the years and accounted himself well in defeat vs Canelo Alvarez. The division has plenty of talent with guys like Mbilli, David Morrell, Caleb Plant, and several other young up and comers. Munguia is always a great watch given his power and work rate but also his defensive holes that allow him to get into tough and competitive fights. There are plenty of good 50/50 types of match ups in the division. The super middleweight division has some bright upside following last night's main event.
Undercard Results
American undefeated heavyweight prospect Richard Torrez won his eleventh bout by disqualification to break his knockout streak. Tough Joey Dawejko of Philadelphia came in looking for home run bombs but was out worked by a very busy Torrez. Torrez has been a come forward slugger so far in his career but he showed more craft in there with a veteran journeyman. Torrez showed a busy lead right hand with feints and jabs. He used his footwork to generate angles and even get behind his opponent. Fast left hands to the head and body took what he could get and wore down the tough Dawejko. Dawejko struggled to let his hands go and was looking to cash in on one shot. He did score a couple that got through which could spell danger down the road for Torrez but not last night. Dawejko kept spitting out his mouthpiece as the pace got higher and after several point deductions the fight was stopped. Dawejko was coming in on a 7-1 run in his last eight fights and was lighter than his most recent appearances but he was no match.
14-0 Alan Garcia was knocked out by a single right hand in a significant upset vs 15-13 Ricardo Hernandez
Undefeated fighters Emiliano Vargas and Charly Suarez extended their streaks last night with stoppage victories in fights where they received little resistance.
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