Unbeaten lightweight Gabriel Flores, Jr. (18-0, 6 KOs) took a one-sided ten round unanimous decision over Josec Ruiz (21-3-3, 14 KOs) on Thursday night inside “The Bubble” at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Flores dropped Ruiz in round two, then cruised to a 100-89 3x verdict. The 20-year-old Flores, in his first scheduled 10-rounder, signed with Top Rank when he was 16 years old. Apparently there was a $187,000 wager placed on Flores at the MGM Sportsbook. The bettor earned about $4,000.
In an upset, unorthodox super middleweight Clay Collard (6-3-3, 2 KOs) won a six round split decision over previously unbeaten prospect David Kaminsky (6-1, 3 KOs). Collard outworked and busted up Kaminsky to win 58-56, 58-56 on two cards. Kaminsky was somehow ahead 58-56 on the third card. Collard outlanded Kaminsky 158-102.
In a clash of unbeaten bantamweights, Robert “Biggie” Rodriguez (8-0-1, 4 KOs) scored a second round TKO over Adrian “Sharky” Servin (9-1-1, 3 KOs). Rodriguez dropped Servin in round two and got the stoppage with a barrage of shots. Time was 2:48.
Super lightweight Victor Rodriguez (3-0, 1 KO) swept Justin Horsley (0-2, 0 KOs) 40-36 3x.
Super featherweight Frevian Gonzalez (3-0, 1 KO) topped Jose Martinez (2-1, 1 KO) over four 39-37, 39-37, 40-36.
Only a Class A fool would wager nearly $200K for a chance at winning only 2% of that amount.
I saw some good things in Flores’ performance. He boxes well, moves around the ring easily, and punches hard enough to keep his opponents honest. He was very sharp tonight. He is excellent in changing direction quickly and had his opponent facing the wrong direction often during the right. However, I did see some weaknesses that he really needs to work on if he is to have success against the top fighters.
The weaknesses: he lacks a body attack in his arsenal. Mixing up his punches to body and head would enhance his ability to stop the tough fighters he is certain to face as he progresses in his career. It could also save his hands from excessive damage caused by punching exclusively to the head.
He also doesn’t seem to know how to fight inside. He avoided inside fighting all night long. In addition, his movement was excessive in this fight. That could be a problem for him in future fights. He needs to conserve his energy a little better by setting down on his punches and giving his opponents angles after he punches.
He also needs to listen to his corner and follow their instructions. He was told repeatedly to go to the body, but ignored those instructions for the most part. I see a lot of promise in Flores, but only if he works on incorporating body punching and inside fighting into his game. He should also focus on conserving his energy by cutting down on all that movement around the ring. It wasn’t a problem in this fight because his opponent’s attack was predictable, but it could be an issue in future fights.
Looked OK, but not like the second coming that the commentators were describing. Too defensive instead of going for the KO that would make you want to see him again.
THANK GOD KAMINSKY IS OKAY,WHAT GUTS TO STAY IN THERE.LEARN MORE OR GET OUT OF BOXING. ZAI GAZUNT
Jerry, I completely agree. Kaminsky’s defense is almost non-existent. Long-term damage in boxing is unforgiving.