Ringside at the Toyota Center: Munguia Rebuffs Relentless Inoue

Published

5 years ago

January 27, 2019

Houston, TX — Undefeated WBO junior middleweight champion Jaime Munguia found himself in the pit of hell against previously unknown Japanese pressure cooker Takeshi Inoue on Saturday night at the Toyota Center in Houston. Inoue forced Munguia to dig deep over the course of 12 grueling rounds, which saw both fighters swing for the fences for all three minutes of just about every round.

At the end of a hard-fought battle, Munguia (32-0, 26 KOs) survived his third, and most difficult, title defense, winning the action-packed fight by scores of 120-108, 120-108 and 119-109. While the scores might seem too wide to some observers, it’s important to note that not all close fights are scored that way in boxing.

Munguia began his professional prizefighting career at the tender age of 16 in Tijuana, Mexico. Almost six years later, averaging a grueling schedule of five fights a year, primarily within the confines of the city limits in which he was born, Munguia entered the ring having essentially punched his way out of Tijuanan obscurity into the new global sports streaming space pioneered by sudden industry leader DAZN.

Inoue (13-1-1, 7 KOs) didn’t care about any of that. All the 29-year-old stocky puncher seemed concerned with heading into the biggest fight of his prizefighting life was shocking the world.

Having seen Munguia’s monstrous frame tower over his comparatively diminutive opponent during prefight festivities, when the two met in the center of the ring, it looked a lot like what one might expect when seeing a parent pick up a child after school.

Except that when the bell rang here, it wasn’t going to be an audio cue for the kids to pack up their books and saunter toward the exits. Instead, the bell’s ominous toll meant it was time for Munguia to wreck Inoue with what might as well be G-O-D-Z-I-L-L-A emblazoned across his trunks.

Come to think of it, this fight seemed at the outset to be the shortest, most unnecessary portion of the Godzilla movie franchise yet. Bring forth the army! Call forth the National Guard! Nah, nevermind. Just bring in this lonely little man in the center of the ring far from home with nowhere to run.

Except that Inoue did run, and it was right into the action. He was a brave, defiant challenger leaving everything he had of himself inside the ring during every round.

Overall, the fight boiled down to what happened during the first round repeating itself over and over again. Munguia was content to box from a distance, throwing hard jabs, deep left hooks and sizzling straight right hands all over his would-be usurper’s head and body.

But Inoue was undeterred. He lunged forward like an angry bear, landing hard punches coming from wide, looping angles whenever he could get close enough to Munguia to land them, which had to be way more often than Munguia had hoped.

Munguia took the best of Inoue when he could stay off the ropes and out of the corner, but Inoue seemed to get him in one or both of those places for at least some portion of every round.

Both landed hellacious shots. At times, they took turns snapping each other’s head back, only to realize when their heads came back down that both them and their opponent was somehow still standing right there.

The fight was simply this: hard punch, defiant smirk, rinse and repeat. Over and over and over again, Munguia boxed with precision, power and class. Over and over and over again, Inoue kept charging forward.

Munguia came very close to getting the defining moment he probably wanted when he countered Inoue almost into oblivion. But almost is never good enough in a fight like this, and Inoue withstood the storm with just seconds left in the round.

Both men fought bravely. If the wideness of the scores bothers Inoue, it shouldn’t. That’s just how math sometimes works in fights where one fighter just happens to edge out most all of the rounds by a hair. Inoue fought excellently and should be commended for the amazing performance, as should Munguia who had clearly just been in the fight of his life.

If you think about it, Munguia was the anti-Inoue of 2018. Like Inoue, the Mexican was also an unknown when he was presented to the Nevada State Athletic Commission as a possible opponent for Gennady Golovkin in May.

But unlike Inoue, fate kept Munguia out of harm’s way when the NSAC wouldn’t authorize him as a credible opponent. Or maybe it was just Nevada.

Because in retrospect Inoue’s resume looks way worse than Munguia’s did. How was this fight approved while the other one wasn’t? Would Nevada have sanctioned this one? Most anyone who witnessed what happened in Houston was probably glad they didn’t have the say.

Perhaps the most amazing thing is that Inoue, who incidentally isn’t related at all to bantamweight superstar Naoya Inoue, had no credible wins–at least at the world level–on his resume before bravely storming across the Pacific Ocean to make his American boxing debut.

The fact that Inoue was able to compete for Munguia’s world title at all is an example of how politics almost always trumps perceived fair play in the grand, ole sport of professional boxing, and sometimes that might not be a bad thing.

Because Inoue didn’t look like a worthy challenger. He didn’t win his first fight, a six-round draw against Daishi Nagata in 2014 and hadn’t fought outside his home country of Japan except once.

Inoue’s last three wins didn’t look great on paper either. He had notched victories over two single-digit win fighters, Niwat Kongkan and Iku Nagahama, and a 41-year-old Yuki Nonaka.

And Munguia?

His rise had been fast and furious in a way that bookmakers tabbed him a -5000 favorite against Inoue. A 22-year-old world champion going from zero to hero in less than a year, title belt in tow with a lucrative opportunity to help usher in this new global boxing streaming age was surely going to wreck this no-hope fighter from all the way around the world.

Wasn’t he?

But that’s not what happened. Munguia, perhaps destined to become boxing’s next big thing, and Inoue, a fighter some considered just a Japanese club fighter flown in specifically so he could be butchered for the sake of some predetermined, 10-second-or-less, Mungia-hyping video assets, fought an excellent fight that no one saw coming.

Can Upsets Rojas for WBA title

Nobody expected featherweight Xu Can to defeat Jesus Rojas in the co-main event of Munguia-Inoue, but Xu used relentless combinations and old-fashioned stick-to-itiveness to secure his first world title honor.

Rojas, 32, had the odd displeasure of defending his secondary WBA featherweight world title right after losing his last fight, a 12-round unanimous decision to Joseph Diaz in August 2018. But Diaz missed weight for the fight, so despite grabbing the win, he didn’t walk away with Rojas’ title.

So Rojas made good on the opportunity created by the WBA rule, which allowed him to stay champion despite the loss, and Can, 24, made good on the wishes of a surprisingly strong and vocal contingent of Chinese fans to produce some stylistically scintillating action on the way to the upset victory.

Rojas is an aggressive, come-forward fighter who only moves back at times to catch his breath. Can is more of a boxer, but really lets his hands go both inside and out. The result was some true featherweight fireworks in a fight DAZN’s Chris Mannix called an early Fight of the Year candidate for 2019.

Both fighters fought to win, but neither possessed enough power really to hurt the other significantly. The judges favored Can (16-2, 2 KOs) because of his harder thrown punches and the way he kept the pedal to the metal when Rojas (26-3-3, 19 KOs) would tire.

Judges scored the fight 118-110, 117-111 and 116-112 for Can.

Ortiz Jr. Continues KO Streak

Junior welterweight prospect Vergil Ortiz Jr. defeated Jesus Valdez by fifth-round knockout running his impressive stoppage streak to 12 KOs in 12 fights. Ortiz (12-0, 12 KOS) might only be 20 years old, but he fights with an aggressive sort of patience befitting an older, more experienced fighter. The Dallas native sure looks like he’s on his way to a bright future.

Ortiz wore Valdez (23-5-1, 12 KOs) down, battered him into a bloody mess and secured the stoppage win when the referee had seen enough of Valdez’s blood hit the canvas. Ortiz is a hard puncher, but more impressive is the gumption with which he instigates the action and his ability to counter his opponent’s combinations.

Those are the kinds of things that bode well for the prospect’s future. Before the fight, Ortiz said he intends to challenge for a world title by the end of 2019. He’s probably not quite ready for that, but he could be with a few more of the right kinds of fights in the near future.

Other Undercard Bouts

Junior featherweight prospect Alberto Melian (4-0, 2 KOs) stopped Mexico’s Edgar Ortega (10-2-2, 5 KOs) in the 10th round to remain unbeaten. The fight started rough for the Argentinian, but Melian’s Olympic pedigree came through as the fight progressed to the later rounds.

Dallas-based junior middleweight prospect Alex Rincon, 23, beat a very game, Jeremy Ramos in a six rounder. Rincon (6-0, 5Os) had to work hard but stayed unbeaten by steadily outworking Ramos (10-6, 4 KOs).

His older brother, George Rincon (6-0, 3 KOs), knocked out Emmanuel Valadez (5-7, 4 KOs) in the first round of the opener. Rincon, 27, dropped Valadez less than a minute into the fight. The bout was halted soon after.

Photo credit: Amanda Westcott

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A Closer Look at the Weslaco ‘Heartbreaker’ and an Early Peek at Inoue-Nery

Published

1 day ago

April 30, 2024

Arne K. Lang

A-Closer-look-at-the-Weslaco-Heartbreaker-and-an-Early-Peek-at-Inoue-Nery

Brandon Figueroa returns to the ring on Saturday after a 14-month absence. He meets Jessie Magdaleno in a 12-round featherweight affair at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas with the winner potentially headed to a match with Japanese superstar Naoya Inoue. Figueroa vs. Magdaleno will be part of the four-fight pay-per-view telecast topped by Canelo Alvarez’s super middleweight title defense against Jaime Munguia.

Akin to Magdaleno, Figueroa (24-1-1, 18 KOs) is a former super bantamweight (122-pound) champion. He won the WBA version of the world title with a 10^th-round stoppage of Damien Vazquez and added the WBC belt with a seventh-round KO of previously undefeated Luis Nery who fights Inoue this coming Monday at the “Big Egg” in Tokyo.

Throughout history, many prominent boxers have been identified with the place that hewed them. Students of boxing history can identify the Saginaw Kid, the Terror Haute Terror, the Cincinnati Cobra – the list is long – and even casual fans can name the Brockton Blockbuster, the immortal Rocky Marciano.

Brandon Figueroa hails from Weslaco, a small city in the southern tip of Texas. It is part of the Lower Rio Grande Valley, commonly abbreviated RGV, and the locals feel an emotional tie to the entire valley, a place where the unofficial language among the adult population is Spanglish, a melding of Spanish and English.

Brandon’s older brother Omar Figueroa Jr, who retired in 2022 with a record of 28-3-1 after losing his last three fights, became a local hero after becoming the first boxer from the Valley to win a world title, in his case the WBC lightweight diadem. Brandon, 27, has the opportunity to out-do him by becoming the first boxer from the Valley to win titles in two weight divisions.

The brothers were introduced to boxing by their father, Omar Figueroa Sr. A mailman now in his twenty-seventh year working for the U.S. Postal Service, the elder Figueroa never boxed but followed the sport closely and hoped that one of his sons would follow in the footsteps of his sporting heroes Julio Cesar Chavez and the late Salvador Sanchez. Brandon borrowed a page from the Chavez playbook when he scored his signature win over Luis Nery. A left to the solar plexus ended the match. Nery replied with a sweeping left hook, but it was all instinct. In a delayed reaction, he crumpled to the canvas after launching the errant punch and was counted out.

Although Omar Sr has a picture in his cell phone of Brandon in fighting togs when Brandon was two years old, he insists that he discouraged his younger son from pursuing a career in boxing. “He was too skinny and didn’t have Omar’s natural talent,” the elder Figueroa told this reporter when we chatted at Las Vegas’ Pound4Pound Boxing Gym. “Then, when Brandon was about 12 or 13, he started hurting bigger boys with punches to the body in sparring and I thought, hold on, maybe I have something here.”

Omar Sr. opened a gym, Pantera Boxing, to give his sons a leg up and eventually enough kids from the neighborhood started coming by to field an amateur boxing team.

Omar Figueroa Sr was born in Northern Mexico and came to the United States at age nine. Many of his siblings – he was one of nine children — reside in Mexico but close enough for family get-togethers. The Figueroa family has crossed the international bridge that connects the two countries on many occasions. Returning to Weslaco, they share the span with border-crossers seeking refuge in the United States.

“One of the things I’ve noticed,” says Brandon, “is that there are a lot more Europeans crossing over that bridge into the U.S. than we used to see, especially people from countries like Russia and Ukraine.”

About that nickname: Brandon acquired it while visiting relatives in Rio Bravo, Mexico, situated roughly 18 miles from Weslaco. He was just a boy, perhaps 11 or 12, and it was teenage or pre-teen girls who affixed the “Heartbreaker” label to him. Indeed, in the looks department, he could give Ryan Garcia a run for his money. (Back off, ladies, Brandon has a steady girlfriend.)

Brandon Figueroa doesn’t want boxing to define him. “I’m also a businessman,” he says, noting that he owns several parcels of Weslaco real estate and owns stock in one of his sponsors, LOCK’DIN, a start-up, high-performance beverage company whose Board of Directors includes Manny Pacquiao.

Brandon Pacquiao

In high school, Brandon took classes in theater. He has a role in a forthcoming Amazon Prime movie, “Find Me,” and a starring role in the first episode of the reconstituted “Tales from the Crypt” which will air on HBO Max.

When Brandon quits boxing, will Hollywood beckon? “I can’t imagine settling down anywhere but in the Valley,” he says. “The Valley will always be a part of me.”

In his last outing, Figueroa won an interim WBC featherweight title with a lopsided decision over Mark Magsayo. In theory, that boosted him into a fight with Rey Vargas who was allowed to keep his WBC featherweight title after moving up to 130 where he suffered his first defeat at the hands of O’Shaquie Foster. But in boxing, “money” trumps “mandatory” and Vargas jumped at the chance to fight in Saudi Arabia where he was fortunate to retain his title when he received a draw in his match with Liverpool’s Nick Ball.

The most lucrative fight out there would be a match with four-belt super bantamweight champion and pound-for-pound king Naoya Inoue who has expressed an interest in moving up to featherweight after disposing of Luis Nery. Yes, that’s putting the cart before the horse, but Brandon Figueroa thinks the challenger from Tijuana, despite his impressive record (35-1-1, 27 KOs) has scant chance of winning. “I found a hole in Nery’s style,” he said, “and knew that once fatigue set in for him, he would be mine.”

Inoue vs. Nery is a very big deal in Japan in part because there’s a hero and a villain. Luis Nery is the only man to defeat the popular Shinsuke Yamanaka, a long-reigning title-holder who quit the sport after Nery knocked him out twice. After their first meeting, Nery’s “A” and “B” samples tested positive for a banned substance and he came in three pounds overweight for the rematch (a substantial edge in a small weight class), for which he was suspended and dropped from the WBC rankings. Nery, wrote TSS correspondent Tamas Pradarics, “repeatedly cheated on the Japanese in ugly and disgusting ways,” and the Japanese haven’t forgotten.

If Brandon Figueroa goes off to Japan some day to oppose Naoya Inoue, it will take some doing to contort him into a villain. “I love the Japanese people and the Japanese culture,” he says, “the whole Samurai thing which is so in tune with the warrior spirit of Mexicans.”

—

The pay-per-view portion of Saturday’s show is available for purchase on various cable and satellite platforms including Prime Video, DAZN.com, and PPV.com. First bell is slated for 8 pm ET/5 pm PT.

Brandon Figueroa vs. Jessie Magdaleno will be the second bout on the four-fight PPV program. It will follow the WBA world welterweight title fight between Eimantas Stanionis and Gabriel Maestre and will precede the WBC interim world welterweight title fight between Mario Barrios and Fabian Maidana.

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Ramirez Outpoints Barthelemy and Vergil Ortiz Scores Another Fast KO in Fresno

Published

4 days ago

April 27, 2024

David A. Avila

Ramirez-Outpoints-Barthelemy-and-Vergil-Ortiz-Scores-Another-Fast-KO-in-Fresno

Northern California favorite Jose Ramirez avoided an upset and knockout artist Vergil Ortiz destroyed his opponent on Saturday to set up a showdown with Australia’s power-punching Tim Tszyu.

After a 13-month layoff Ramirez (29-1, 18 KOs) shook off ring rust and avoided an upset by Cuba’s Rances Barthelemy (30-3-1, 15 KOs) in a battle between former world champions at Save Mart Center in Fresno.

It was Ramirez’s first bout under Golden Boy Promotions and he was nearly derailed by the slick counter-punching southpaw in the third and six rounds with laser left counters that connected every time. Though he was floored in the third round it was ruled a push down by referee Jack Reiss.

Fans gasped.

“He throws that left hand and I got hit with it in one round,” Ramirez said. “It motivated him.”

Once Ramirez figured out the remedy, he kept the fight inside and attacked the body and head. Barthelemy was unable to uncork one of his long lefts at close distance.

From the seventh round on the former super lightweight champion took control and kept the Cuban fighter against the ropes and unloaded shots to the body and head. He nearly forced a stoppage in the 11^th round.

Barthelemy survived but all three judges scored it big for Ramirez after 12 rounds: 119-109 twice and 118-110.

Vergil KOs Number 21

Knowing a win sets up a massive showdown against Aussie slugger Tim Tszyu, the Texas slugger Vergil Ortiz (21-0, 21 KOs) wasted no time in blasting out Puerto Rico’s Thomas Dulorme (26-7-1, 17 KOs) with a perfectly placed left hook to the body. Dulorme collapsed to the ground in agony.

Referee Tom Taylor stopped counting at 2:39 of the first round.

“It was a very calculated punch,” Ortiz said.

It was a commanding one round performance that sets up the showdown against the equally powerful Tszyu who despite losing a split decision to Sebastian Fundora last month by split decision, retains his reputation as a dangerous puncher.

Ortiz, who has 21 knockouts in 21 fights, will probably be fighting Tszyu in Los Angeles on June 1 if all negotiations go smoothly.

“Tim (Tszyu) I know you are watching the fight,” said Ortiz. “I’m ready. Let’s put on a great performance.”

Other Bouts

Oscar Duarte (27-2-1, 22 KOs) proved his knockout loss against Ryan Garcia would not stop him from improving as he defeated Jojo Diaz (33-6-1) by knockout at 2:32 of the ninth round in a super lightweight match. Referee Michael Margado wisely stopped the bludgeoning as a towel came flying in almost simultaneously.

It was the first time Diaz was ever defeated by knockout, though he never touched the canvas. It was also the first time Duarte trained with Robert Garcia and the difference was notable as he repeatedly walked through incoming fire and attacked the smaller fighter continuously.

“I want to fight the best in the world,” Duarte said.

Female Title Fight

A rematch battle for the flyweight championship saw Argentina’s Gabriela Alaniz (15-1) defeat Marlen Esparza (14-2) this time with a two-fisted attack to win by split decision after 10 rounds.

Esparza failed to make weight and walked in three pounds overweight and Alaniz took advantage to win the WBA, WBC, and WBO flyweight titles in the rematch. Once again the scores were puzzling but this time in favor of Alaniz 97-93, 96-94, and 92-98.

Alaniz now holds the WBO, WBA, WBC flyweight world titles.

Welterweights

Mexico’s Raul Curiel (15-0, 13 KOs) busted body shots on Jorge Marron Jr. (20-5-2) and floored him twice in the first round. The second body blow left Marron paralyzed and unable to continue at 1:31 of the first round as referee Thomas Taylor counted him out.

Curiel, who is managed by Frank Espinoza and son, proved he’s ready for the upper levels of the welterweight division.

“I think I’m ready for the bigger names,” Curiel said. “You see the results.”

Photo credit: Cris Esqueda / Golden Boy

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Avila Perspective, Chap. 282: Ryan’s Song, Golden Boy in Fresno and More

Published

6 days ago

April 26, 2024

David A. Avila

Avila Perspective, Chap. 282: Ryan’s Song, Golden Boy in Fresno and More

Don’t call it an upset.

Days after Ryan Garcia proved the experts wrong, those same experts are re-tooling their evaluation processes.

It’s mind-boggling to me that 95 percent thought Garcia had no chance. Hear me out.

First, Garcia and Haney fought six times as amateurs with each winning three. But this time with no head gear and smaller gloves, Garcia had to have at least a 50/50 chance of winning. He is faster and a more powerful puncher.

Facts.

Haney is a wonderful boxer with smooth, almost artistic movements. But history has taught us power and speed like Garcia’s can’t be discounted. Think way back to legendary fighters like Willie Pep and Sandy Sadler. All that excellent defensive skill could not prevent Sadler from beating Pep in three of their four meetings.

Power has always been an equalizer against boxing skill.

Ben Lira, one of the wisest and most experienced trainers in Southern California, always professed knockout power was the greatest equalizer in a fight. “You can be behind for nine rounds and one punch can change the outcome,” he said.

Another weird theory spreading before the fight was that Garcia would quit in the fight. That was a puzzling one. Getting stopped by a perfect body shot is not quitting. And that punch came from Gervonta “Tank” Davis who can really crack.

So how did Garcia do it?

In the opening round Ryan Garcia timed Devin Haney’s jab and countered with a snapping left hook that rattled and wobbled the super lightweight champion. After that, Garcia forced Haney to find another game plan.

Garcia and trainer Derrick James must have worked hours on that move.

I must confess that I first saw Garcia’s ability many years ago when he was around 11 or 12. So I do have an advantage regarding his talent. A few things I noticed even back then were his speed and power. Also, that others resented his talent but respected him. He was the guy with everything: talent and looks.

And that brings resentment.

Recently I saw him and his crew rapping a song on social media. Now he’s got a song. Next thing you know Hollywood will be calling and he’ll be in the movies. It’s happened before with fighters such as Art Aragon, the first Golden Boy in the 50s. He was dating movie stars and getting involved with starlets all over Hollywood.

Is history repeating itself or is Garcia creating a new era for boxing?

Since 2016 people claimed he was just a social media creation. Now, after his win over Devin Haney a former undisputed lightweight champion and the WBC super lightweight titleholder, the boxer from the high desert area of Victorville has become one of the highest paid fighters in the world.

Ryan Garcia has entered a new dimension.

Golden Boy Season

After several down years the Los Angeles-based company Golden Boy Promotions suddenly is cracking the whip in 2024.

Avila

Vergil Ortiz Jr. (20-0, 20 KOs) returns to the ring and faces Puerto Rico’s Thomas Dulorme (26-6-1, 17 KOs) a welterweight gatekeeper who lost to Jaron “Boots” Ennis and Eimantas Stanionis. They meet as super welterweights in the co-main event at Save Mart Arena in Fresno, Calif. on Saturday, April 27. DAZN will stream the Golden Boy Promotions card live.

It’s a quick return to action for Ortiz who is still adjusting to the new weight division. His last fight three months ago ended in less than one round in Las Vegas. It was cut short by an antsy referee and left Ortiz wanting more after more than a year of inactivity in the prize ring.

Ortiz has all the weapons.

Also, Northern California’s Jose Carlos Ramirez (28-1, 18 KOs) meets Cuba’s Rances Barthelemy (30-2-1, 15 KOs) in a welterweight affair set for 12 rounds.

It’s difficult to believe that former super lightweight titlist Ramirez has been written off by fans after only one loss. That was several years ago against Scotland’s Josh Taylor. One loss does not mean the end of a career.

“My goal is to get back on top and to get all those belts back. I still feel like I am one of the best 140-pounders in the division,” said Ramirez who lives in nearby Avenal, Calif.

An added major attraction features Marlen Esparza in a unification rematch against Gabriela “La Chucky” Alaniz for the WBA, WBC, WBO flyweight titles. Their first fight was

a controversial win by Esparza that saw one judge give her nine of 10 rounds in a very close fight. Those Texas judges.

In a match that could steal the show, Oscar Duarte (26-2-1, 21 KOs) faces former world champion Jojo Diaz (33-5-1, 15 KOs) in a lightweight match.

Munguia and Canelo

Don’t sleep on this match.

Its current Golden Boy fighter Jaime Munguia facing former Golden Boy fighter Saul “Canelo” Alvarez in a battle between Mexico’s greatest sluggers next week at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on May 4.

“I think Jaime Munguia is going to do something special in the ring,” said Oscar De La Hoya, the CEO for Golden Boy.

Tijuana’s Munguia showed up at the Wild Card Boxing gym in Hollywood where a throng of media from Mexico and the US met him.

Munguia looked confident and happy about his opportunity to fight great Canelo.

“It’s a hard fight,” said Munguia. “Truth is, its big for Mexico and not only for Mexicans but for boxing.”

Fights to Watch

Fri. DAZN 6 p.m. Yoeniz Tellez (7-0) vs Joseph Jackson (19-0).

Sat. DAZN 9:30 a.m. Peter McGrail (8-1) vs Marc Leach (18-3-1); Beatriz Ferreira (4-0) vs Yanina Del Carmen 14-3).

Sat. DAZN 5 p.m. Vergil Ortiz (20-0) vs Thomas Dulorme (26-6-1); Jose Carlos Ramirez (28-1) vs Rances Barthelemy (30-2-1); Marlen Esparza (14-1) vs Gabriela Alaniz (14-1).

Photo credit: Cris Esqueda / Golden Boy Promotions

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