By Ricardo Ibarra
Photos by Mike Blair/Boxingprospects.net

Undefeated Pacific Northwest light heavyweight Richard Vansiclen (7-0, 3 KOs) added his seventh consecutive win on Saturday night at Green River College in Auburn, Washington, defeating Fife, Washington’s Cameron Sevilla-Rivera (7-6-3, 5 KOs).

Fighting in the main event of PNW Professional Boxing Promotions’ annual Halloween card, Vansiclen used his superior movement and more accurate punching to control most of the fight, dropping Sevilla-Rivera twice in the fifth en route to a six round unanimous decision win.

Vansiclen, of Seattle, found his range early in the fight with sharp one-twos and elusive lateral movement. Working out of a southpaw stance, Vansiclen repeatedly tagged his opponent with accurate shots upstairs and thudding hooks to the mid-section, dominating the opening round. He continued to score on his opponent in the second round as Sevilla-Rivera pressed his way in close, looking to close the distance but not throwing enough to stifle Vansiclen’s counter shots.

In the third Vansiclen continued to move in and out of the pocket, focusing much of his attack on the body before pivoting away from his opponent’s response. As the round progressed, though, Vansiclen slowed his movement, choosing instead to trade more often in the pocket, a move which gave Sevilla-Rivera more opportunities to land.

Sevilla-Rivera began to shift the momentum of the fight in the fourth, punching in combinations instead of the single shots he’d been throwing before, and finding his target repeatedly with heavy over-hand rights and left hooks in the pocket. The round was a close one with both fighters having their moments, but it was Sevilla-Rivera’s heavier shots that did the most damage.

Vansiclen took back control of the tempo in the fifth, establishing his jab early in the round and landing often from range, slamming Sevilla-Rivera with hard right hands and straight lefts. As Vansiclen began to increase his output, Sevilla-Rivera pressed forward looking to trade, and as he did so, stepped into a vicious left to the chin that buckled his knees. Vansiclen pounced, unloading with a heavy barrage, slamming his opponent with a sustained attack. A hellacious left hook-right uppercut snapped back the head of Sevilla-Rivera and sent him crashing to the canvas. Vansiclen began to tee off as the action resumed and promptly dropped him again with an onslaught along the ropes. The round ended before Vansiclen could inflict any more serious damage.

In the sixth the pace slowed, with Vansiclen choosing instead to work patiently from range instead of pressing the issue against the still game Sevilla-Rivera. The fight closed out with Sevilla-Rivera pushing forward even as Vansiclen peppered him with combinations. All three judges scored the fight for Vansiclen with scores of 59-53 and 58-55 twice.

The win was the second of the year for Vansiclen, who before his last fight this past January had spent fourteen months inactive. Sevilla-Rivera, meanwhile, drops his sixth loss overall in his first fight back in a boxing ring in two years. Four additional fights made up the remainder of the card, courtesy of promoter Keith Weir.

In a Jr. welterweight contest, the increasingly popular William Hernandez-Gomez (3-0, 2 KOs) wasted little time in claiming his third professional win, scoring a first-round knockout victory over Great Falls, Montana’s Steven Hellman (0-2). Hernandez-Gomez unloaded early and quickly deposited Hellman on the canvas with a thudding hook to the body. Hellman was up quickly but began to take punishment as the fight continued. A jarring left hook followed by an uppercut sent Hellman down for one last time. Referee Louis Jackvony waved the fight off at 1:09 of the opening round.

Fifteen fight veteran Kevin Davila (5-8-2, 1 KOs) claimed his third consecutive win, eking out a four round majority decision victory over Redmond, Washington’s Hamilton Ash (0-5). Davila, of nearby Tacoma, closed the distance quickly as the fight got underway, stepping inside the pocket and unloading with a sustained attack to the body. Ash, while trying to establish his jab, had trouble finding his distance early on. Davila continued to press early in the second, drilling Ash to the body and head. But as the round wore on, Ash started to land effective jabs and catch Davila in close. Ash set his range in the third, snapping his jab and catching Davila as he moved in close. In the final round, Ash continued to work well off his jab, while Davila pressed forward and unloaded in the pocket. The final tallies read 38-38 and 39-37 twice for Davila, awarding the majority decision win to the Tacoma fighter. The bout was contested in the welterweight division.

Scoring his first win in nine fights, Yakima, Washington’s Antonio Neal (5-12-1, 3 KOs) dominated Clarence Brown (0-7), of Houston, Texas, over four rounds to take a shut-out decision victory. Neal began the fight working steadily to the body and slowly amped up his output as the fight went on. He maintained a constant work rate throughout, tagging Brown consistently with hard over-hand rights and left hooks in close. He buckled the knees of Brown in the third with a left hook and again had him in some trouble late in the fight. All three judges scored the contest 40-36 for Neal. The fight took place in the middleweight class.

A grueling welterweight battle opened the show, with Bellingham, Washington’s Josh Wheeler (0-0-1) and Margarito Hernandez (0-0-1), of Mabton, Washington, fighting to a majority draw. The two quickly set a fast pace to the fight, with Wheeler using good lateral moment and quick counter punching to outland the oncoming Hernandez in a close first round. Wheeler dropped Hernandez moments into the second round, connecting with a precise left-right combination that sent him reeling to the canvas. After the mandatory eight-count, Wheeler swarmed his opponent, slamming him with vicious power shots and rocking him badly. Hernandez, though, fired back throughout even as he took punishment and, as the round wound down, capitalized on his persistence, buckling Wheeler with an accurate right hand. Hernandez swarmed and hurt Wheeler again as the round closed. Hernandez let his hands go early in the third, trading in some vicious, back and forth exchanges that saw both fighters land their fair share of leather. The momentum shifted between the two combatants repeatedly in a very close round, but Hernandez seemed to inflict the greater amount of damage. Hernandez opened the fourth with a big over-hand right, catching Wheeler on the chin and dropping him for a count. As the two reengaged, Hernandez continued to outwork his foe, cracking him with hard combos. Late in the round, the pendulum swung back again as Wheeler began to slam Hernandez with heavy artillery, closing out one of the best fights seen in the region this year. The official scores read 38-37 for Wheeler, and 37-37 twice, for the majority draw. Both fighters were making their pro debuts.

A scheduled fight between Sebastian Baltazar and Jeremy Morales was canceled when Baltazar was unavailable the day of the weigh-ins.

A knowledgeable fight crowd packed into the event center at Green River College and were not disappointed as PNW Professional Boxing Promotions put on an eventful night at the fights. For more information on upcoming events, visit the PNW Professional Boxing Promotions Facebook page.

–