Shumenov Solidifies Title Reign

LEMOORE, CALIFORNIA — Beibut Shumenov may have only eleven pro fights to his name, but Friday night at the Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino he strengthened his claim as a title holder at 175-pounds with a dominant twelve-round decision over previously unbeaten mandatory challenger Vyacheslav Uzelkov.

Shumenov (10-1, 6 KOs) of Las Vegas, Nevada by way of Chimkent, Kazakhstan was making the first defense of the WBA Light Heavyweight title he won in controversial fashion earlier this year. Uzelkov (22-1, 14 KOs) of Vinitza, Ukraine was expected to provide a stern test for the unproven champion. Outside of one punch in the first round, the fight was completely controlled by Shumenov, who also defended his IBA Light Heavyweight title.

Shumenov, 175, outworked Uzelkov, 172, for the first minute-and-a-half of the fight before the Ukrainian unleashed a left hook to score a knockdown. Uzelkov’s greatest moment in the fight may have been to his detriment, because he seemed content looking to land that same punch throughout the remainder of the contest and his success would not be repeated.

Shumenov’s aggression took over the fight in the second round against a completely defensive Uzelkov. Shumenov pressed the fight as Uzelkov covered up and offered little in return. Uzelkov seemed to be looking for the opening to counter with an overhand right, but most times his attempt would miss the mark. Then, just before the end of the third, Uzelkov stood in front of Shumenov after throwing a shot and was met with a straight right hand the sent him to the canvas.

Through the first three rounds, their fight had the potential to turn into a back-and-forth classic. By the end of the fight, the competitive beginning was a distant memory. Shumenov continually placed precision shots, especially to the body, as a reluctant Uzelkov remained in a defensive posture.

The pace slowed in later rounds, as Shumenov was even more selective with his shots and took breaks by clinching or moving. Still, Uzelkov was far too inactive to take any advantage of the lull in Shumenov’s output. In the eighth, Uzelkov turned to taunting Shumeov, as he feinted that the champion’s punches did not hurt. Shumenov quickly landed a solid right uppercut that hurt Uzelkov against the ropes.

Shumenov turned up the heat to start the eleventh before cruising to the decision victory. Scores were deservedly one-sided, reading 117-109 and 118-108 twice for Shumenov. “The first round knockdown was a lucky punch and I improved every round after,” said Shumenov. “My opponent was very good, he was 22-0 and he knocked out my last opponent which shows you how much I have improved in one fight.” When asked who he would like to fight, Shumenov responded, “I want a unification fight.”

According to the WBA, Shumenov must defend his title against his next official challenger within the next nine months, but may make an interim defense. Shumenov’s next mandatory is Gabriel Campillo, the man who he won the title from earlier this year.

Rising super bantamweight contender Rico Ramos (17-0, 9 KOs) of Pico Rivera, California outclassed Cuahtemoc Vargas (15-4-1, 10 KOs) of Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico to score an eight-round unanimous decision. Ramos, the WBO #3/IBF #15 ranked 122-pounder, was too complete a fighter for Vargas to handle.

Ramos, 121, set the tone from the start, flashing his speed and athleticism against the straight-ahead style of Vargas, 121.5. Ramos gave Vargas a moment of hope early in the fourth, as he backed himself into a corner. However, Vargas was tentative to open up offensively and was quickly boxed back into the center of the ring. By the sixth, Ramos began to move Vargas back with some stinging shots. In the end, all three judges scored the fight in favor of Ramos, 79-73 and 80-72 twice. With the victory, Ramos successfully defended his WBO NABO Youth title.

2008 U.S. Olympian Shawn Estrada (7-0, 7 KOs) of East Los Angeles ended a twelve-month layoff, but got only 53 seconds of work against Eddie Hunter (3-4-1, 1 KO) of Kent, Washington. Estrada, 167.2, dropped Hunter, 167.5, with a cuffing punch just a few ticks into the bout. Hunter got up, but was downed twice more inside the first minute, prompting the referee to wave off the fight.

In the opening bout of the evening, Stan Martyniouk (10-0, 1 KO) of Sacramento, California used his size and range to outbox Jonathan Bobadilla (4-3) of Los Angeles, California over four rounds en route to a unanimous decision. The much taller Martyniouk, 135, kept a busy pace and kept Bobadilla, 134.8, away with his jab. By the fourth round, Bobadilla’s face looked the worse for wear. Scores read 40-36 and 39-37 twice all for Martyniouk, who is penciled in fight on the August 13th undercard of the Chris Arreola-Manuel Quezada fight at Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario, California.

In a rematch, Michael Ruiz Jr. (4-0, 1 KO) of Fresno, California scored a dominant six-round unanimous decision over the game as always Juan Tepoz (4-4-1) of Santa Rosa, California. Ruiz Jr., 118, was punishing Tepoz, 120.6, with combinations by the third round. Still, Tepoz refused to back down or turn defensive. Finally, Ruiz broke through Tepoz’ armor with a left hook in the fourth and dropped his durable foe to a knee with the follow-up barrage.

Many fighters would have bowed out of the fight in after rounds like the third and fourth, but Tepoz continued on and tried his best to turn the fight around. Ruiz, a former amateur star, refused let Tepoz back into the fight and closed out the final two rounds by outboxing his adversary. Final tallies read 59-54 and 60-53 twice for Ruiz. Last month, Tepoz dropped Ruiz for the first time in his career, but dropped a unanimous four-round decision. Ruiz is tentatively scheduled to return to the ring on the August 13th card in Ontario.

Ravshan Hudaynazarov (13-0, 11 KOs) of Las Vegas by way of Andijan, Uzbekistan remained undefeated with a fifth-round stoppage over Pavel Miranda (16-6-1, 8 KOs) of Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico. Hudaynazarov, 148.4, applied a punishing inside attack from the onset of the fight. Miranda, 148.2, was able to withstand unrelenting pressure before remaining on his stool before the sixth. Official time was 3:00 of the fifth round.

Gayrat Ahmedov (15-0-1, 9 KOs) of Las Vegas by way of Andijan made short work of usually durable Dallas Vargas (22-5, 16 KOs) of Toledo, Ohio in the final fight of the evening. Ahmedov, 174.2, ended the fight with a left to the body of Vargas, 174.4, late in the first round. Official time of the stoppage was 2:43 of the first round. After the fight, Ahmedov, the WBA #9 ranked light heavyweight, grabbed the house microphone and called out Glen Johnson. It is unlikely Johnson will get word of Ahmedov’s request, considering the crowd was fairly scarce by the time the final bout’s winner was declared. Ahmedov and Hudaynazarov are slated to fight November 13th in Kazakhstan.

Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at ortega15rds@lycos.com.