News Combo: Romero Wins On ShoBox; Andrade Gets W, More

SANTA YNEZ, Calif. (Sept. 22, 2012) – Unbeaten world-ranked super bantamweight Jonathan Romero (22-0, 12 KOs), of Cali, Colombia, dominated Efrain Esquivias Jr. (16-2, 9 KOs), of Gardena, Calif., en route to a near-shutout 12-round decision in the main event Friday on ShoBox: The New Generation live on SHOWTIME®.

Romero, in command from the outset, was victorious in an elimination fight for the No. 2 ranking in the IBF, by the scores of 120-107 and 119-108 twice. There were no knockdowns. Romero entered the ring ranked fifth in the IBF and WBO and ninth in the WBA.

In a collision of undefeated super bantamweights in the co-feature at Chumash Casino Resort, Roman Morales (13-0, 6 KOs), of San Ardo, Calif., registered a hard-fought eight-round unanimous decision over previously undefeated Jonathan Arellano (13-1-1, 3 KOs), of Ontario, Calif.

The up-and-coming Morales won by the scores of 78-72 twice and 77-73 in a scrap in which both boxers went down. Morales hit the deck from a left hook to the head in the third, Arellano from a left hook to the body in the seventh.

“Tonight we saw two good wins by fighters at different stages in their careers in the same weight class,'' ShoBox expert analyst Steve Farhood said afterward. “One was world-class, the other was a world class prospect.''

Farhood liked what he saw in the 5-foot-9, 25-year-old Romero, who was making his third start in a row in the United States, and fourth overall.

“Romero was impressive in several ways,'' Farhood said. “It was predictable that he'd be effective when he was on the move but for large portions of the fight he also fought Esquivias at his own game on the inside. To me the most important thing of all was Romero's energy level from round one to round 12.''
 
Morales won the toughest fight of his career to date. What surprised Farhood was the way he accomplished it.

“Morales was fighting a style a bit different than I expected,'' he said. “Once he hurt Arellano, he turned boxer, used the ring and picked his spots very effectively. He also got off the floor for the first time in his career and showed the ability to overcome adversity, something all prospects eventually have to do.''

Romero was pleased with his performance and is hopeful a world title shot is forthcoming.

“I felt very good every single round,'' he said. “I prepared hard for this fight. I sparred with guys that came forward all the time. I knew what he was coming to do because I'd seen him fight. I'm ready to become world champion. But to be a world champion I have to go through great fighters like Esquivias to get to my goal.''

The aggressive-minded, five-foot-four Esquivias spotted the winner five inches in height, but he never stopped pressing the issue. Esquivias even started quickly, which isn't the norm for him. But it did no good against the classy Romero.

“He fought his fight and he fought well,'' said Esquivias, who was docked a point after the seventh for a blatant late hit. “He didn't want to brawl, but he fought smart. He boxed and I couldn't catch him. There's really not much I could have done differently. I was little tired toward the end; it was my first 12-rounder. But I was still throwing punches at the end. He gave me problems with his movement. I wanted to make it an exciting fight for the crowd. Too bad he didn't want to stand and trade more.”

The 23-year-old Morales, making his fifth start this year and seventh at Chumash, was pleased with his performance despite getting knocked down.

“I felt I did well,'' he said, “I was just trying to listen to my corner. They were telling me to use my jab a lot and that's what I kept trying to do. They were also telling me to work the body more. I should have done that from the beginning.''

So what was it like getting floored for the first time in your career? “It was a new experience, something I never had felt before,'' Morales said. “It's part of boxing, but I said to myself that I have to keep coming forward and show some heart and respect for the game. It was a good fight and he's a good boxer.”

Arellano felt the scoring was a tad out of line. “I feel that it was a little high in his favor,'' he said. “I feel I won more rounds than they gave me. It was a good fight though. I don't take anything away from the kid. I thought I had him out when I dropped him. I was ready to jump on him but for some reason the ref kept me from going right after him and gave him more time. Then he hung in and made it through the round.''

Barry Tompkins called the action from ringside alongside Farhood. The executive producer of ShoBox is Gordon Hall with Richard Gaughan producing and Rick Phillips directing.
 
The Gary Shaw Productions doubleheader will re-air this week as follows:
 
DAY                                                                   CHANNEL
Tuesday, Sept. 25, 10:30 p.m. ET/PT            SHO EXTREME

Friday's fights will be available ON DEMAND beginning Saturday, Sept. 22

UPCOMING ON SHOWTIME: On Saturday, Oct. 20, there will be four world championship fights on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING (8 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the West Coast) from The Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.: Defending champion Danny Garcia (24-0, 15 KOs) vs. Erik Morales (52-8, 36 KOs) for the Unified Super Lightweight World Championship, Paulie Malignaggi (31-4, 7 KOs) vs. Pablo Cesar Cano (25-1-1, 19 KOs) for Malignaggi's WBA Welterweight title, Devon Alexander (23-1, 13 KOs) vs. Randall Bailey (43-7, 37 KOs) for Bailey's IBF Welterweight crown and Hassan N'Dam (27-0, 17 KOs) vs. Peter Quillin (27-0, 20 KOs) for Quillin's WBO Middleweight belt. Live undercard fights will precede the telecast on SHOWTIME EXTREME (7 p.m. ET/PT.

LOS ANGELES, September 21 – It will be High Noon in San Antonio on Saturday, October 27, when hard-hitting Antonio Escalante and perennial contender Rocky Juarez engage in an all-Texas shootout that will headline TeleFutura's “Sólo Boxeo Tecate” from the Freeman Coliseum.

Escalante vs. Juarez, a 10-round junior lightweight bout, is promoted by Golden Boy Promotions and Leija & Battah Promotions and sponsored by Cerveza Tecate and DeWalt Tools. On fight night, doors will open at 6:00 p.m., the first bell rings at 6:30 p.m. and the TeleFutura broadcast begins at 12:00 a.m. ET / 11:00 p.m. PT.

Tickets, priced at $125, $100, $75, $45 and $20 are available for purchase at all Ticketmaster outlets, online at www.ticketmaster.com and via Ticketmaster charge-by-phone lines at (800) 745-3000.

A native of Juarez, Mexico who has become the pride of his adopted hometown of El Paso, Texas, 27-year-old Antonio Escalante (27-4, 19 KO's) is in the midst of one of the best hot streaks of his career, having scored four consecutive knockout victories in the last 12 months. A former NABO super bantamweight champion with world title ambitions, Escalante has taken out Leonilo Miranda and then unbeaten Jose Camacho in his last two fights, but a win over Rocky Juarez will be a major statement to the 130-pound weight class.

There is perhaps no one in the 130-pound division that has faced the level of competition that Houston's Rocky Juarez has faced over the course of a career that began in 2001 after he won a silver medal in the 2000 Sydney Olympics. From Marco Antonio Barrera and Juan Manuel Marquez to Jorge Barrios and Chris John, the 32-year-old Juarez (28-10-1, 20 KO's) has faced them all, and this all-action battler knows that he has the experience cool off Escalante's hot streak on October 27.

LOS ANGELES, September 21 – FOX Deportes Boxing Classics is back on Sunday, September 23, with two fights featuring four of this era's premier superstars. In the main event, fight fans will see 2000's epic 12 round battle for the WBC Welterweight World Title between “The Golden Boy” Oscar De La Hoya and Sugar Shane Mosley and in the co-feature, we travel back to 2007 when Floyd “Money” Mayweather defended his WBC and Ring Magazine World Championships against Ricky “The Hitman” Hatton in another spectacular welterweight championship fight. The doubleheader will air on FOX Deportes beginning at 6:00 p.m. ET/3:00 p.m. PT.

On June 17, 2000 fans wondered whether jumping from lightweight to a welterweight title fight with Oscar De La Hoya after just two fights at 147 pounds was too big of a leap for former 135-pound champion Sugar Shane Mosley. After a tightly-contested and dramatic battle in front of their hometown fans at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, the unbeaten Mosley shocked the world and claimed pound-for-pound supremacy with a 12 round split decision victory over “The Golden Boy.”

Seven years later, on December 8, 2007 in front of a raucous sell-out crowd at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, another superstar, Floyd Mayweather, cemented his place atop the pound-for-pound list when he followed his win over De La Hoya seven months earlier with a blistering 10th round technical knockout victory over previously unbeaten British icon Ricky Hatton to retain his WBC and Ring Magazine World Championships.

Don't miss the exciting classic action, Sunday night, September 23 on FOX Deportes at 6:00 p.m. ET/3:00 p.m. PT.

MANCHESTER, N.H. (September 20, 2012) – World-ranked junior middleweight Demetrius “Boo Boo” Andrade (18-0, 13 KOs) displayed his entire arsenal tonight, stopping Alexis “Hurricane” Hloris (16-4-2, 12 KOs) in the second round, headlining the11th annual Fight To Educate Pro-Am card at Verizon Wireless Center in Manchester, New Hampshire.

The 24-year-old Andrade, a 2008 U.S. Olympian, dropped Fernandez early in the second round with a straight left and then finished the show with a right hook. Fernandez beat the count but the referee halted the action as the second round ended.

“I wouldn't say I was rusty, just cautious in the first round, feeling him out to see what he had,” Andrade said after the fight. “I established my jab. I came out in the second round knowing he had trouble with my jab and left. I put some power and speed behind my punches. I showcased it (his entire arsenal); it looked good and sealed the deal.

“I want (Sergie) Dzinziruk (former WBO champion, 37-1, 27 KOs). His only loss was to the best, Sergio Martinez, and he just had a draw (Jonathan Gonzalez). His name would look good on my resume.”

Andrade, fighting out of Providence (RI), is co-promoted by Joe DeGuardia's Star Boxing and Banner Promotions. The slick southpaw is ranked No. 4 by the International Boxing Federation (IBF) and No. 5 by the World Boxing Organization (WBO), as well as No. 10 by the World Boxing Council (WBC) and No. 15 by the World Boxing Association (WBA).

Undefeated Vermont welterweight Chris Gilbert improved to 5-0 (4 KOs) with a win over Antonio Chaves Fernandez. Gilbert dropped Fernandez midway through the opening round, trapped Fernandez on the ropes in the fourth and ended the fight by way of technical knockout with a powerful right uppercut

Fight To Educate, presented this year in part by Absolute Broadcasting WGAM, The Game, is a unique charity event that combines a love of sports with the vision of assisting children and seniors in need, who with fundraisers like this could be 'down for the count.' During the past 10 years, Fight To Educate has raised more than $500,000 in donations benefitting local New Hampshire non-profit organizations.

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