Weekend Round Up

WBC & IBF Junior Welterweight Title Unification – Saturday at Uncasville, CT
Devon Alexander (20-0, 13 KOs) TKO 8 Juan Urango (22-3-1, 17 KOs)

Make no mistake about it, undefeated Timothy Bradley is the man to beat at junior welterweight.  Saturday nigh, St. Louis’ Devon Alexander made a resounding case to be considered the number one threat to Bradley’s crown with this impressive stoppage of the never-before-been stopped Juan Urango. 

Prior to their Saturday night showdown we were already aware of two things: one, Alexander is supremely gifted, and two, Urango is a mountain of a man with a granite chin.  However, what we didn’t know is how dominating a performance Alexander would exhibit against Urango.  For all the attempts Urango used to muscle in and impose his will on Alexander, the St. Louis fighter had every answer.  Alexander used his jab and boxing ability to pepper Urango with shots, keeping him at bay.  As the round went on, Alexander became more and more dominant.  Things ended abruptly in the eight round when an uppercut by Alexander floored the iron-chinned Urango.  A follow up flurry by Alexander quickly dropped Urango again, prompting the referee to call a halt to the bout. 

Next for Alexander: A fight with Bradley for all the marbles at junior welterweight. 

WBC & WBA Super Flyweight Title Fight – Saturday at Rancho Mirage, CA
Vic Darchinyan (34-2-1, 27 KOs) UD 12 Rodrigo Guerrero (13-2-1, 9 KOs)
Scores: 120-108, 118-110, 117-111

Showtime’s ballyhooed ShoBox series was designed to showcase young up and coming fighters.  Saturday night were treated to a showcase of a world champion taking on a neophyte challenger.  As lopsided as this may have seemed on paper, fight fans were treated to a surprise as unheralded Guerrero showed all the heart and determination of a grizzled veteran. 

As many predicted, Darchinyan came out firing, landing bomb after bomb to the chin on the unknown Guerrero.  This habit repeated itself throughout the fight, but try as he might, Darchinyan could not knock his challenger out.  Guerrero seemed to have steel infused chin, eating every power punch in the book.  Hell, you could have hit Guerrero with a sledgehammer and the kid would not fall down.  Unfortunately, Guerrero’s talents ended there, and the poor kid was battered from pillar to post in a game, but losing effort.

Next for Darchinyan:  Darchinyan has been itching to get a rematch on with former conqueror Nonito Donaire.  It’s a rematch that the boxing world seems eager to see, however promotional strife between the two parties may make this harder than it needs to be.