By Ricardo Ibarra
Photos by Mike Blair/Boxingprospects.net
Undefeated Jr. lightweight prospect Giovanni Cabrera Mioletti (11-0, 3 KOs) turned in the most impressive victory of his young career on Saturday night at the Emerald Queen Casino in Tacoma, Washington, stopping the previously unbeaten Ray Lampkin (11-1, 4 KOs), of Portland, Oregon, in the second round of a scheduled ten.
In the main event of Brian Halquist Productions’ ‘Battle at the Boat 115,’ Mioletti used his superior hand speed and longer reach to out-land the aggressive-minded Lampkin early on and went on to score a knockdown late in the second round before the referee stepped in and called it.
The fight kicked into high gear from the start with both fighters unloading early, each fighting out of a southpaw stance and firing off heavy artillery. For the first two minutes of the round they traded hard shots and traded momentum, Lampkin doing well when he closed the distance, and Mioletti landing better at range. Late in the round Mioletti, who fights out of Chicago but is originally from Seattle, began to take over, finding his comfort zone and getting to his target first with the quicker punches.
The fast pace continued in the second round, but Mioletti was starting to take control, reaching his opponent often, slamming him with hard one-twos and hooks to the head and body. A stiff jab rocked Lampkin back mid-way through the round. Mioletti followed up quickly, buckling him again with a straight left. Lampkin responded by firing back, but Mioletti countered well, landing the cleaner shots and pushing his opponent back. As the round wound down, Mioletti exploded with a vicious right hand followed by a left hook, sending Lampkin falling into the ropes. Referee Bobby Howard stepped in to issue a count and, after asking Lampkin to step forward and seeing him wobble, made the call to stop the contest at 2:46 of the second round.
“I trained hard as hell for this,” said Mioletti after the fight. “My respect to Ray, he tried. I could see he would back off every time he caught me with something, though. He would look at his work and then he would relax. I said hell no, if you’re going to beat me, we’re going to be in a fight every second of the fight until it’s over and he couldn’t handle it. He came forward and made it a tough two rounds, but I got the win. Everything lined up perfectly for this. It was my chance to show that I’m a real contender.”
With the win, Mioletti added his third career stoppage and his eleventh victory overall. Lampkin, meanwhile, suffers his first loss as a pro.
A five-fight undercard made up the rest of the line-up, courtesy of promoter Brian Halquist and matchmaker Andy Nance. In the semi-main event, former “The Contender” reality series participant Walter “2 Guns” Wright (16-4, 8 KOs) added his second win since coming back from a five-year hiatus, scoring a fifth round stoppage victory over Yakima, Washington’s Eduardo Torres (2-2-1, 1 KO). Wright stalked patiently in the early going, using his jab to set the range and following up with occasional right hands. A hard counter right hand caught Torres as he pressed in close and sent him down for a count late in the first round. Wright slowly upped his output as the fight went on, working behind his jab and stepping in with right hands and hooks to the body. Torres was a game fighter, but the difference in skill level was evident. In the fourth round Wright was firmly in control and finding his rhythm, and by the fifth he was peppering Torres with solid work from the outside and digging deep to the body when he stepped in close. In between rounds, Torres’ corner made the choice to stop the bout, giving Wright the fifth round TKO at 3:00. The contest was fought at the Jr. middleweight limit.
Renton, Washington’s Cris Reyes (2-0, 1 KO) made short work of Nicholas Credit (0-1) in a Jr. welterweight fight, scoring a first round stoppage win. Early in the fight it was a battle of real estate as Reyes looked to close the distance and Credit, the taller and longer armed fighter, looked to keep the fight on the outside. Reyes’ pressure quickly took over as he closed the gap and began to catch Credit with solid shots in the pocket. A vicious uppercut caught Credit flush on the chin and sent him crashing to the canvas face first. He popped up quickly but appeared dazed, clearly still feeling the effects of the punch. The action was allowed to continue, and Reyes quickly capitalized on the opportunity, buckling Credit again with a massive right hand to the jaw, leaving him wobbling badly in the corner. Referee Bobby Howard stepped in to rescue Credit from any further punishment, calling the fight at 2:08 of the opening round.
In a closely contested featherweight fight, Yakima’s Isaiah Najera (4-2, 1 KO) had to dig deep to get by nineteen-year-old Marcos Flores (1-1), of Kent, Washington, and claim a four round unanimous decision win. Najera boxed well in the first round, staying at range and working off his jab, occasionally stepping in close to work the body. Najera, who was fighting for the first time in two years, looked sharp, working his angles well and landing accurate combinations. In the second round, though, Flores stepped up the pressure and began to find success in close with clean, short punches. A big left hook stopped the elusive Najera in his tracks, putting him in serious trouble. Flores tried to capitalize, stepping into the pocket and unloading as Najera tried to hold on, but Najera battled back, trading in an intense back and forth exchange. Late in the round Najera buckled Flores momentarily. Najera went back to boxing in the third and by the beginning of the fourth he was controlling the range of the fight, landing at a distance with the more accurate punches. Reyes rallied back mid-way through the round, hurting Najera once again with a left hook. Najera recovered quickly, though, and closed the round strong. All three judges saw the fight for Najera with scores of 40-37, 39-38, and 39-37.
Seattle, Washington’s Jorge Linares (3-1, 3 KOs) rebounded from his lone pro defeat, knocking out Nicholaus Briannes (1-8) in the first round of scheduled four round Jr. welterweight bout. Linares stunned Briannes early with a right hand and briskly followed up, smashing him with an uppercut and a series of hooks that sent him crashing to the canvas, where he would stay. Referee Joel Scobie hit the count of ten at :32 of the first round.
In the evening’s opener Yakima’s Juan Gomez (1-0, 1 KO) made a successful entrance into the paid ranks, dispatching of Vancouver, Washington’s Benjamin Amezquita (0-2) in the first round. Gomez rocked Amezquita early with a left hook and quickly went on the attack, stepping in close and drilling his foe. Amezquita rallied back, making for a solid spurt of action, but it was Gomez who was getting the better of the exchange. A big right hand sent Amezquita down to a knee momentarily, prompting the referee to step in and issue a count. Gomez rocked his opponent again moments later with a left hook and followed up with a barrage along the ropes. Referee Joel Scobie stepped in and called it as Amezquita fell to the canvas. The end came at 2:36 of the round. Then fight was contested in the Jr. lightweight division
A sell-out crowd packed into the Emerald Queen Casino’s I-5 showroom for the 115th edition of the long-running Northwest boxing staple. The next ‘Battle at the Boat’ is scheduled for June 9th.
