Peter solidifies WBC Crown;
stops Maskaev in six!

March 11, 2008

By Matt Richardson and David Robinett at ringside<br>
Photos: David Martin Warr/DKP

Good things come to those who wait.

No one knows that better than Samuel Peter. It was a long fourteen month struggle for Peter (30-1, 23 KOs) to secure a shot against WBC champion Oleg Maskaev (34-6, 26 KOs).

When the two finally squared off at the Plaza de Toros bull fighting ring on Saturday night in Cancun, Mexico, Peter made the most of his long awaited opportunity as he knocked out Maskaev inside of six rounds in the main event of HBO´s World Championship Boxing card promoted by Don King Productions.

A hard right at the mid-point of the fight buckled Maskaev´s legs badly and Peter jumped on him. Maskaev backed into the ropes and took a barrage of punches as he covered up. A left hook inside hurt Maskaev again and shot him back into a neutral corner. As Maskaev backed up Peter connected with a solid right that snapped Maskaev´s head back which prompted referee Guadalupe Garcia to correctly call it off with four seconds remaining in the sixth round.

Up to the point of the knockout it had been a largely uneventful fight that was reminiscent of the Wladimir Klitschko - Sultan Ibragimov bout two weeks prior. Neither Peter nor Maskaev appeared eager to bang with the other early on although did they exchange shaky moments in the third.

Both men were tentative at the start. Peter landed a quick left hook but both men later missed with wide rights. Peter landed two good rights on his Russian opponent as Maskaev came back with a left hook of his own.

Maskaev landed a light left hook in the second while Peter landed a stiff jab. Peter missed with a wild left towards the end of the round.

Maskaev complained of being hit behind the head in the third however Peter ignored the complaints and connected with a hard right that made Maskaev´s knees buckle. Maskaev covered up but stopped throwing punches as Peter pounded him to the body along the ropes.

When Maskaev regained his footing he hurt Peter with a hard right of his own. Neither fighter was able to capitalize on their earlier success and put the other away as the round came to a close.

Maskaev landed a left hook but jumped in awkwardly in the fourth and paid the price for it when he caught by a quick left hook counter by Peter. Garcia warned Peter for hitting behind the head and Maskaev came back with a left hook and later with a right.

The WBC elected to use open scoring for the fight and after four completed rounds all three official judges had Peter winning comfortably by scores of 40-38 and 39-37 twice.

Peter landed a hard right uppercut to the body in the fifth. Maskaev landed a right but Peter came back with a right of his own that slowed Maskaev. Maskaev landed a hard right on Peter but he came back with a right of his own that backed Maskaev up.

Peter was warned for hitting behind the head again in the sixth though he continued to outwork Maskaev. He landed a good right but Maskaev spun out of range afterwards. A hard right buckled Maskaev´s knees again. Maskaev backed onto the ropes and continued to take punishment.

Maskaev complained of getting hit behind the head again but subsequently forgot the cardinal rule of protecting yourself at all times and Peter smashed him in the face with a left hook. Another right by Peter rocked Maskaev back along the ropes. A left hook propelled Maskaev into the corner and another right landed as he fell backwards prompting Garcia to call a halt to the fight.

Time of the stoppage was 2.56

Peter is inevitably now in line for bigger fights either against WBC ¨Champion Emeritus¨ Vitali Klitschko or against Vitali´s brother, Wladimir.

Maskaev meanwhile pledged to continue on with his career.

In attendance ringside at this history making event located close by to the world headquarters of the WBC were Larry Holmes, Thomas Hearns, Julio Caesar Chavez, Gerry Cooney, Nicolay Valuev, and pound for pound king Floyd Mayweather Jr. – Matt Richardson

Campbell Dethrones Diaz

Longtime lightweight contender Nate “Galaxxy Warrior” Campbell finally got the elusive victory that he has worked and trained for his entire career.

Not only did Campbell capture his first world title, but he also collected two others as well picking up three championship belts in total. He received the IBF, WBA, and WBO lightweight crown by dethroning former Juan “Baby Bull” Diaz by split decision. Scores of the bout were 115-112 and 116-111 for Campbell while the third judge saw the fight 114-113 for Diaz.

The most impressive part about the outcome is that Campbell (32-5-1, 25 KOs) defeated Diaz, (33-1, 17 KOs) who at 24 was generally recognized as the best lightweight in the world, in the same manner that Diaz had done to so many of his previous opposition. Campbell used Diaz own strategy against him by breaking him down physically in the later rounds to pull away with the victory.

The fight started out explosively as both combatants immediately went toe-to-toe as Campbell landed heavy right hands low to Diaz’s body with Diaz returning the favor by ripping combinations to the “Galaxxy Warrior’s” sides and midsection. The action slowed slightly towards the end of the round as both fighters continued exchanging punches that drew rousing cheers from the capacity crowd. A slight clash of heads caused a small cut on the left eye of Diaz.

The frenetic pace continued in rounds two through four as both fighters landed a high volume of punches. It appeared that Diaz was able to let his hands go a little more freely than his opponent giving him a slight edge. Campbell was still landing punches effectively but seemed to be targeting his offense a little more deliberately. This allowed Diaz to slip in a few extra punches he needed to ultimately win him the early rounds on the judges’ cards.

Campbell began to box a little more in round five as he tried to regain control by establishing his jab. Although Diaz was the better man in close quarters to this point in the fight, Campbell’s effectiveness increased when he kept a little distance from Diaz and worked off his jab. Blood continued to trickle more out of the left eye of Diaz. His corner however has done a good job of controlling the situation.
The turning point in the fight occurred in round six when a sneaky left hook from Campbell ripped open a nasty gash over Diaz’s left eye just as the referee was in the process of breaking the two fighters up. Since he was on the opposite side of where the punch had landed, referee Jesus Salcedo incorrectly called it as an intentional head butt and deducted a point from Campbell. Furious about being deducted the point on the cards Campbell pleaded his case to the HBO crew seated below.

The next few moments were electrifying when action resumed as a hurt Diaz and an angry Campbell tore into each other with video game-like intensity until both settled down moments before the bell sounded to end the round.

At the start of round seven Diaz visibly favored the cut over his left eye, turning away from Campbell as they fought inside. He pressed his left hand high against his eye to protect it from further damage.

Whether it was from the steady body work by Campbell, thinking about the cut, or a combination of the two, Diaz no longer seemed to have the intensity he once had during the first half of the fight. This gave Campbell the opening that he needed as he continued to apply pressure. He strafed Diaz’s left eye and consistently beat Diaz to the punch in round seven and throughout the rest of the fight.

Diaz’s body language and punch output appeared to suggest he was fading in the tenth, and by the final round Campbell was in complete control as he simply imposed his will on the younger Diaz. This was a remarkable role reversal for the former champion who had made his mark up to this point by doing just the same to so many previous challengers.

After the fight, a joyous Campbell was quick to point out that he always had faith in himself. “He was the best,” said Campbell. “But now I am the best! I told everyone that this was going to happen. I knew he couldn’t take it and I knew I was the stronger fighter.”

For his part, Diaz acknowledged that he had trouble from the sixth round on. “When I got cut it affected me a lot,” said Diaz. “But I wasn’t going to give up. I have a lot of heart and I was going to finish this fight out no matter what.”

Diaz did not say what his next step would be but aside from regrouping after the first loss of his career, he will also be searching for a new promoter following a very public split with Don King during the week leading up to the fight. – David Robinett

Ruiz and McCline Tango

John Ruiz had done a lot of talking prior to this fight about his new and improved style as he hoped to erase fans’ memories of countless rounds of clinching and hugging that has left him as one of the least watchable heavyweight titlists in recent memory.

Unfortunately the new fan-friendly John Ruiz looked nearly identical to the old version. Ruiz had the last laugh by grappling and mauling Jameel McCline over twelve rounds to win a unanimous decision by scores of 117-111, 118-110, and 119-109.

To his credit, Ruiz is very good at what he does having captured a heavyweight title and defended it several times against solid competition. His one-punch and clinch style is awkward to defend and has helped him to defeat many heavyweights who were bigger, faster, or stronger. Nevertheless, boxing is equal parts competition, excitement, and entertainment. Despite his accomplishments, the entertainment quotient of John Ruiz has been largely absent.

In this fight, Ruiz came in at a trim 233 pounds which is the lightest he’s been since his loss to Roy Jones Jr. in 2003. He was facing a significantly larger challenger in Jameel McCline, who came in at 268 pounds and was coming off a solid performance against the now undisputed WBC heavyweight champion Samuel Peter. He knocked Peter down three times early in their encounter before losing a close decision.

In this contest, McCline was anything but a fast starter as he stared right at Ruiz, who in turn stared right back at him. Neither man was willing to commit to anything more than pawing a jab or wandering too far from the safety of a clinch.

The crowd in Cancun was amused at first while whistling at the two hugging heavyweights much like they were at the ring card girls between rounds. As the fight wore on however, the whistles turned to a large amount of boos and catcalls that continued until the final bell.
McCline tried at times to utilize his boxing skills to avoid the clinches, but seemed only able to muster a jab followed sporadically by a straight right hand or hook. Ruiz was able to walk through the jab at times, and other times avoid it all together, often landing a clean left hand before throwing himself into McCline’s arms.

Another effective strategy for Ruiz was to hit McCline with his right hand while his left arm was locked with McCline’s arm during a clinch. Although the action was far from fast-paced Ruiz was able to land while McCline was not. This accounted for the growing margins on the scorecards for Ruiz which were announced to the crowd before the fifth round (39-37, 39-37, 40-36) and once again before the ninth round (78-74, 78-74, 79-73) thanks to the WBC’s open scoring policy.
From about the ninth round on, what little resistance McCline was offering had vanished. This allowed Ruiz to open up his attack, relatively speaking, to land a few effective combinations. This included two consecutive left-right-left combinations on a fading McCline in round eleven that was Ruiz’s best sequence of the fight.

Ultimately Ruiz did what he does best and in doing so may have worked himself back into the heavyweight title picture. With the win, Ruiz improves to (43-7-1, 29 KOs) while McCline drops to (39-9-3, 23 KOs). – David Robinett

Beltran Stops Perez

“Sugar” Ray Beltran (22-3, 14 KOs) captured the WBC Continental Americas super featherweight title with a workmanlike performance by stopping local fighter Moises "Cucharas" Perez (6-5, 5 KOs) by TKO at 2:42 of round nine.

The end came for Perez following a devastating ninth round by Beltran in which he left Perez bleeding heavily from cuts near both eyes. He endured a little more punishment before referee Gelasio Perez stepped in to wave the fight over.

Prior to the stoppage it was largely Beltran who fought at a measured pace while mostly avoiding the big swinging attempts from the limited yet determined Perez.

Beltran opened the fight in complete control of the pace as he comfortably picked off the incoming Perez with a combination of jabs and quick combinations to the head and body. Perez established early on that his strategy was to put his head down and swing for the fences while hoping to catch Beltran with some big punches. He easily avoided most of Perez’s shots towards the end of the first round.

Beltran would lay back into the ropes and gave Perez a stationary target which was a habit that would get him into some brief trouble later in the fight.
The pattern continued for several rounds with Beltran clearly superior in the center of the ring, steady and in control. He continued to fall back into the ropes and allow Perez to pound on him with heavy punches, many of which Beltran blocked or avoided. As the fight progressed however more and more of these shots were eventually finding their mark.
Finally in round six after Beltran once again retreated to the ropes, Perez connected with a stunning right hook that had rocked him and opened up a cut over his left eye. Spurred by the crowd’s sudden buzzing at this change of events, Perez pressed the attack as he connected with two more clubbing right hands that sent Beltran retreating into the corner. Perez continued to press but not very accurately as he smothered his punches and allowed Beltran to regain his composure to slip out of the corner moments before the bell ended the round.
With the crowd expecting a new fight beginning in round seven, Perez instead appeared to have spent himself the previous round. This allowed Beltran to dissect him from the center of the ring with an array of jabs, straight right hands, and a couple of short left uppercuts.

Beltran appeared to learn his lesson about lying against the ropes, and instead continued to dominate the bout through the ninth round when he stepped up his attack leading up to the eventual stoppage. – David Robinett

Hernandez TKOs Keb Bass

In other action following the conclusion of the evening’s main event, undefeated flyweight prospect Adrian "El Confesor" Hernandez, (13-0, 11 KOs) punished former flyweight title challenger Gilberto Keb Bass (28-17-2, 16 KOs) before referee Daniel Van de Wiele halted the bout at 2:56 of round four.

Hernandez knocked Keb Bass down once in the second, third, and finally in the fourth round before Van de Wiele stepped in to save Keb Bass from further damage.
Keb Bass, a two-time flyweight title challenger with solid credentials but not quite the talent to beat the top fighters in his weight class, had a few good moments against the young prospect. He popped several solid jabs into the face of the more aggressive Hernandez.

Ultimately Hernandez was the younger, fresher, and stronger fighter than the rugged veteran Keb Bass, who has been fighting as a professional since 1995 at the age of 18.

The first knockdown by Hernandez came courtesy of a pair of body shots, a right to the belly, and a straight left to the chest that dropped Keb Bass for nearly the full count. Keb Bass beat the count but in the next round a pair of right hands to the head followed by another stinging right hook dropped him once again.

Finally in round four a left hook to the body by Hernandez sent Keb Bass reeling back into the ropes where Hernandez finished him off with a crisp right hook that crumpled Keb Bass down to the canvas. He once again beat the count refusing not to quit, but this time the referee Daniel Van de Wiele decided that was enough and stepped in to stop the fight.
This is the second impressive knockout win in a row for Hernandez who has also knocked out former 105 and 108 pound title challenger Rodel Mayol in his last bout.

With the win Hernandez retains his WBC Continental Americas light flyweight title and picks up the NABF flyweight belt. – David Robinett

Sanchez Stops Romero in Two

Another attraction on the card was Salvador Sanchez, a nephew of late Mexican ring legend and namesake Salvador Sanchez, who fought in a scheduled six-round bantamweight matchup.

The younger Sanchez, (10-3-2, 5 KOs) who looks very much like his famous uncle had a rough time with another young fighter Alejandro Romero (6-5-1, 0 KOs). Sanchez got rocked several times, including one arguable knockdown when Romero connected with a right hook that sent him stumbling backwards into the ropes. The ropes were the only thing that kept Sanchez from falling to the canvas.

Nevertheless, Sanchez gamely battled back in the second round as he connected with a textbook double left hook to the body that dropped Romero for the full count and left him down for about another minute after. The official time of the knockout was 2:11 seconds into round two. – David Robinett

Other Action

Local super lightweight Antonio Fitch (10-1, 9 KOs) cruised to an easy four-round unanimous decision over Manuel Garcia (6-2-1, 20 KOs). No scores were ever announced by either the officials at ringside or the ring announcer.

Undefeated but untested heavyweight prospect David Rodriguez, (28-0, 26 KOs) unproven with a quick first-round stoppage of Iowa club fighter, Josh Gutcher (18-9, 13 KOs). Rodriguez dropped Gutcher with a combination to the body that kept him down for several minutes. Gutcher appeared no worse for the wear after the fight, which amounted to little more than some short cardio work for Rodriguez. Rodriquez notched his 22nd first-round knockout, albeit against very limited opposition. – David Robinett