COSTA MESA, CALIFORNIA — Both prospect Luis Ramos Jr. and recently returned contender James Kirkland notched victories as expected on Friday night at the Orange County Fair & Event Center, but neither appear ready for the names they have been linked to in recent weeks just yet.
On paper, Ramos (18-0, 8 KOs) of Santa Ana, California seemed to be meeting his toughest challenge to date in the rugged Jose Hernandez (10-5-1, 4 KOs) of Fort Worth, Texas. That belief proved to be true, as Ramos, 139.4, earned a hard-fought eight-round majority decision in the Telefutura Solo Boxeo main event.
Hernandez, 135.2, has upset some prospects in his career, and taken others to the limit. He did the latter Friday night, but ultimately Ramos’ superior boxing and well-timed counter-punching won out over Hernandez’ pressure and solid inside game.
Ramos boxed well in the first and seemed to score a knockdown in the second round with a short right counter. Hernandez’ fall was ruled a slip by referee Lou Moret, but a replay on the large screen in between rounds indicated that a knockdown was perhaps the right call. There was some contact between Hernandez’ left foot and the right foot of Ramos, but the punch seemed to be the cause of the fall. Hernandez was undeterred either way and landed two good right uppercuts moments later. Ramos, as was the case often in the bout, was a little quicker on the draw and caught Hernandez with a right as the Texan looked to fire one of his own.
Round four was a good one for the out-of-towner, but the most memorable blow was one from Ramos that dislodged the mouthpiece from Hernandez’ mouth. The fifth featured solid two-way action before Hernandez had another good round in the sixth. Against conventional wisdom, it was the taller Hernandez doing better on the inside. The shorter Ramos was more effective boxing from the outside and countering the aggressive Hernandez.
Ramos boxed smart for much of the seventh by keeping Hernandez at the end of his one-two and tying up or moving out of range when his opponent moved in close. Hernandez did manage to get inside in the last thirty seconds, landing a solid left hook and stiff right uppercut. Ramos answered back, landing two clean, short punches before the bell.
Again Ramos boxed well for much of the eighth, as his subtle defensive movements made it difficult for Hernandez to land anything clean. That changed again in the last thirty seconds, when Ramos, likely a bit winded, stayed on the inside. Hernandez landed two solid hooks in the last seconds that may have hurt Ramos, but it could have also been the Santa Ana resident’s fatigue showing through.
In the end, one judge had the fight even, 76-76, but was overruled by tallies of 79-73 and 77-75 for Ramos. “I’m happy with the performance,” Ramos said after the fight. “I got hit, but that is a part of boxing.”
Ramos’ manager Frank Espinoza had mentioned possibly matching Ramos against another prospect, such as Mercito Gesta, but it would appear to be wise if a fight like that was put on hold for a bit. Ramos is ready for a move up to ten rounds, and probably would already have had one or two set for that distance by now if it were not for the 90 minute timeslot of the Solo Boxeo program which has aired his last few fights.
James Kirkland (27-0, 24 KOs) of Austin, Texas shook off a little more rust as he disposed of journeyman Jhon Berrio (15-9, 11 KOs) of Monteria, Cordoba, Columbia inside of two rounds in the co-feature.
Berrio, 161.6, opted to trade with Kirkland, 163.4, early, not usually a great idea, but the journeyman did surprisingly find some success in the opening frame. Kirkland did show his strength as he pressed Berrio around the ring for much of the round. However, the Columbian landed a straight right that seemed to clearly hurt the “Mandingo Warrior.” Kirkland would later claim it was the headbutts that hurt him in the first, but when Berrio landed that right it forced his left leg to shiver.
Kirkland held briefly after Berrio’s solid right, but quickly regained his footing and controlled the rest of the round while fighting mostly on the inside. Berrio did employ some rough tactics, such as headbutts and forearms, which Kirkland complained of in the second round.
About a minute in to the second, Kirkland dropped Berrio, lastly landing a glancing jab. Berrio began to rise on all fours, but plopped back down to the mat, prompting referee Zack Young to wave off the contest. The crowd ringside was not convinced Berrio could not continue, which was something the California State Athletic Commission would debate themselves after the bout.
While the glancing jab was the last punch landed, if the knockout was legitimate, it was either a straight left to the body or an overhand left that landed high on Berrio’s head that really did the damage. Those blows were thrown and landed with Berrio in a corner, just before he moved to the ropes and took the jab.
While kneeling over to be inspected by the physician, Berrio pointed to his head, seemingly indicating the overhand left was the reason he did not get up. Later Berrio told a member of the Commission he was coughing up blood, which would indicate the body shot stopped him. There was talk of withholding Berrio’s check due to his non-effort in the bout. No word on how that shook out as of press time. Officially the stoppage came at 1:05 of round two, and now Kirkland can look ahead to bigger and better things.
Immediately ahead, Kirkland is slated to appear on the pay-per-view undercard of the April 9th clash between Erik Morales and Marcos Maidana at the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. Kirkland’s manager Cameron Dunkin, who admittedly wanted a softer touch for tonight’s fight, said he and Golden Boy Promotions’ matchmaker Eric Gomez are still discussing potential opponents for that date.
Looking further down the road, at the end of last week’s HBO telecast of recognized middleweight king Sergio Martinez’ victory over Serhiy Dzinziruk, commentator Max Kellerman anointed Kirkland as the potentially intriguing contender to the middleweight throne. “That’s right down the street,” said Kirkland Friday of a potential Martinez clash. “That’s right in the area where I need to be at. Sergio Martinez is a great fighter, but he is not one of the best fighters and I want to expose him and put him out there, because that is a fight I do want.”
While Kirkland would like to get a fight with Martinez, the top 160-pounder, he does not plan to campaign at middleweight at this time. “As far as middleweight, this is just me coming back and taking it real nice and slow,” said Kirkland, who has fought just twice since March 2009. “I am dropping weight and I will be back at 154, junior middleweight.”
Considering Kirkland was incarcerated for 17 months and has fought under five minutes since regaining his freedom, it is fairly incredible that he is already being mentioned in the same breath as Sergio Martinez or even getting ready to fight on pay-per-view. These developments are not lost on Kirkland. “It is more than overwhelming to get back into this position,” said Kirkland. “To show my talent amongst people who really care, and amongst fans and around people who really supported me and helped get me back to this position.”
Light welterweight prospect Antonio Orozco (9-0, 6 KOs) of San Diego, California by way of Tecate, Baja California, Mexico made short work of Manuel Aguilar (6-2, 4 KOs) of Agua Prieta, Sonora, Mexico thanks to a concentrated body attack.
Orozco, 140.8, landed two well placed lefts to the body set up a right upstairs and yet another left to the ribs that ended the night for Aguilar, 140.4, early. Referee Zack Young counted to ten with Aguilar hunched over on one knee for a stoppage at the 1:42 mark of the first round.
Unbeaten lightweight prospect Francisco Contreras (16-0, 13 KOs) of Irvington, New Jersey by way of La Romana, Dominican Republic failed to impress ringside observers as he cruised to a six-round unanimous verdict over journeyman Adolfo Landeros (20-18-1, 9 KOs) of Hidalgo, Nuevo Leon, Mexico.
After a methodical round-and-a-half, Contreras, 133.8, sprang to life in the second and began to put his punches together. Contreras’ fighting style can be more sizzle than steak, as he throws quick, showy combinations and moves around the ring on his toes. However, the number of punches he threw with real conviction probably could have been counted on two hands through the first four rounds. The limited but game Landeros, 133, continuously came forward, but could not land anything of real significance.
By the fifth round, Contreras must have realized that Landeros could not hurt him, as the New Jersey transplant really began to toy with his Mexican counterpart. Contreras offered up everything from long range uppercuts to bolo punches, but never really pressed for the knockout that was there for the taking. When the final bell rang, all three scorers handed in identical 60-54 scorecards for Contreras.
Making his professional debut, Humberto Zatarain (1-0) of Whittier, California did what few fighters manage to do in their entire careers: get off the canvas and win a unanimous four-round decision. Jose Manuel Sanchez (3-2, 1 KO) of Santa Ana dropped Zatarain with a straight left in close midway through the first round, but was unable to follow up to any great effect, and it ended up costing him.
Zatarain, 127.6, came out in round two looking to change the course of the fight, which he did as he rocked and bloodied Sanchez, 127.2, with a flurry in the early moments of the round. Each fighter had their moments in an all-action third and fourth rounds to close out the solid scrap, but ultimately it was Zatarain that impressed the judges en route to a 38-37 victory on all three cards.
Steffan Lugo (1-0, 1 KO) of Newport Beach, California spoiled the professional boxing debut of veteran mixed martial artist J.J. Ambrose (0-1) of San Jose, California via third-round stoppage. The action was a bit frantic early, but it was Ambrose, 166.6, that landed the most telling blow of the first, a left hook which forced Lugo to hold on momentarily. Lugo, 165.2, recovered quickly and got in the last shot of the round just before the bell.
The local favorite Lugo began to take control in the second, as his right uppercut began to find a home regularly. Lugo kept up the pressure, landing a straight right midway through the third round. The end came when Lugo landed a hard right hook which sent Ambrose towards the mat. As Ambrose took his ascent, Lugo landed another left just to make sure he would not be allowed to continue. Referee Lou Moret called a halt to the contest at 1:49 mark of round three.
In the final bout of the evening, Bobby Chavez (1-2) of Santa Ana got into the win column with a third-round stoppage of Stephen Rubalcava (0-3) of Lindsay, California. Chavez, 152.2, pressed the action from the outset with constant punching. Rubalcava, 151, weathered the onrush early, but never landed anything of note in retort.
Chavez continued his into the third with mostly arm punches, though a right uppercut had Rubalcava holding on in the second round. In the third, a straight right forced a delayed reaction knockdown as Rubalcava took a knee. When the action resumed, Rubalcava was left taking shots against the ropes before his cornerman Repo Ric threw in the towel to signal referee to stop the fight. Official time was 1:14 of the third round.
Friday’s event was a special edition of the “Fight Club OC” series at the Orange Country Fair & Event Center promoted by Roy Englebrecht Promotions. Fights take place in the building known as The Hangar. The next fight card, which will feature both boxing and mixed martial arts, takes place on April 21st.
Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at ortega15rds@lycos.com.
