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Andrew Cancio Repeats Upset Victory over Puerto Rico’s Alberto Machado

(By special correspondent Tarrah Zeal) INDIO, Ca.-Andrew Cancio showed the boxing world his first win over Alberto Machado was no fluke. Cancio (21-4-2, 16 KO)s retained his WBA super featherweight title belt by a third-round knockout.
“I feel like the fight is going to end the way the first fight ended,” Cancio said in a conference call several weeks prior to Friday’s rematch at Fantasy Springs Casino in Indio, CA.
Before a sold-out crowd, the fighter from Blythe, Calif. who goes by the name “Chango” repeated his win of four months ago and delivered Machado (21-2, 17 KOs) to a heavier weight division with the loss.
In the opening three minutes of round one, Machado came out stronger and more focused than he did in their first match back in February. There was back and forth action between the two, but overall Machado landed the cleaner and more effective blows. A nice left uppercut upon the chin of Machado ended the first round, but he was able to take it well.
Machado, looking to get his revenge, caused a cut over Cancio’s left eye at the start of the second round. A quick and powerful flurry of punches created an uproar in the crowd as Cancio attacked Machado.
Despite Machado’s efforts to keep his distance, Cancio walked him down to continue fighting on the inside. After Cancio landed multiple body shots, he staggered Machado in the end of the round, giving him trouble in finding his corner after the attack.
In the early seconds of round three, Cancio landed a vicious left hook and a flurry of combinations, pounding away upon Machado’s body in efforts to keep him on the defense. Then a left hook to the body forced Machado to the take a knee and he could not beat the count. The official time was 1:01 of the third frame.
Cancio’s impressive showing was further affirmation that he is here to stay in the super featherweight division. Possibilities for upcoming battles include unification matches with Rene Alvarado, Gervonta Davis and Tevin Farmer.
Machado claimed, “Look I was ready to get up and the referee decided to stop the fight, I wanted to keep going.” But wobbly legs showed us otherwise.
Soto Takes WBO Title from Acosta
In the co-main event, scheduled for 12-rounds, Angel “Tito” Acosta (19-2, 19 KOs) of San Juan, Puerto Rico made his fifth world title defense against Elwin Soto (14-1. 10 KOs) of Mexicali, Mexico.
In a shocker, Mexicali’s Soto scored a 12th round TKO. It was an intense fight up until the last round and ended in controversy over the question of whether the referee had prematurely stopped the fight.
This light flyweight battle began right away with an action-packed opening round. By round three Soto had Acosta in trouble. A big left hand and right cross combo sent Acosta to the floor. When Acosta made it to his feet, Soto showed no mercy but Acosta survived the round.
In round four, a huge right hand from Soto had Acosta hurt and a double left hook had Acosta evading the power and staying out of range of Soto. But with so much at stake, Acosta stayed into the fight and actually took control in the middle rounds, landing multiple combinations to Soto’s head and body.
Entering the later rounds, Acosta began to outwork his opponent. It was clear Acosta had regained control of the fight heading into the final round.
As the bell for the last round clanged, Acosta opened up bombs on Soto and the Mexican fighter curled up with his hand covering his face. In an attempt to engage back, Soto countered with a powerful left hook to the chin that stunned Acosta and sent him back against the ropes. Soto rushed Acosta and began to throw body combos but not before referee Thomas Taylor stepped in. The fight, an outright war, was waived off after only 23 seconds had elapsed in round 12.
The controversial stoppage infuriated Acosta. Soto was jubilant. “This victory means a lot and I dedicate this belt to my family,” said the the new WBO light flyweight champion. “To be honest I thought I was going to lose and thank God I landed that punch and won the fight”.
“Sure he hurt me but it wasn’t enough for the stoppage.” said the downtrodden former champion who said he would welcome a rematch (and I’m sure boxing fans wouldn’t be opposed to that).
In the main preliminary, a 10-round super lightweight contest, Milwaukee’s Luis Feliciano (12-0, 8 KOs) of Milwaukee, Wisconsin remained undefeated with a seventh round stoppage of veteran Fernando Carcamo (23-10, 18 KOs) of Sonora, Mexico. Feliciano trains with boxing star trainer Ben Lira.
Feliciano landed a left hook that stunned the southpaw Carcamo in round one, but Carcamo was able to take the punch. Round by round, Feliciano began to pick apart his opponent, landing great combinations and big left hands but Carcamo, who had been stopped five previous times, was determined to show he deserved to be in the ring with Feliciano and continued to move forward. But Feliciano eventually finished him, unloading a series of rights that folded Carcamo to the canvas.
In the DAZN TV opener, Las Vegas, Nevada’s Blair “The Flair” Cobbs — a flamboyant character inside and outside of the ring — took on Houston’s Robert Redmond Jr. (7-2-2, 6 KOs) in a scheduled 8-round welterweight battle.
In round one, Cobbs (11-0-1, 7 KOs) aggressively showboated, throwing wild but powerful punches, forcing Redmond to adjust to his style. Both fighters came out swinging but a left hook to the chin of Redmond stunned him in the first round.
Within 30 seconds of round 2, a right hand to the chin had Redmond on the canvas. Another wild but big right-hand backed Redmond up against the ropes as he tried to figure out the awkward and wild style of Cobbs.
By round three, Redmond’s right eye started to swell. Before the start of round five, the doctor was called in to examine it and let the fight continue. Fighting with a sense of urgency, Redmond landed a straight right hand to Cobbs chin, but the more experienced fighter used his stamina to finish Redmond off with powerful blows to the body. At the 1:52 mark of round six, at the request of Redmond’s corner, the referee stopped the bout.
Other Bouts
The first bout of the night was a four-round battle in the middleweight division. The fight, an all-action affair between Clay Collard of Cache Valley, Utah (1-1-2) and Emilio Rodriguez (3-1-1, 2 KO) of Van Nuys, California, ended in a draw. One judge had it 40-36 for Rodriguez but the other two had it 38-38.
In a 4-round super bantamweight match, 19-year-old Anthony Garnica (3-1, 2 KOs) of Oakland, CA took on 30-year-old Gilberto Duran from Yakima, WA (3-2, 3 KOs).
A decorated amateur, trained by Manny Robles (who also trains heavyweight champ Manny Robles), Garnica dominated the contest, winning by scores of 40-35 on all three cards.
Also, undefeated Aaron McKenna (8-0, 5 KO) of Monoghan, Ireland, scored a second round stoppage over Daniel Perales (10-18-2) of Monterrey, Mexico. The official time was 0:42.
“Once I landed the first hard shot, I knew he wouldn’t be able to take more. I stepped it up, and that’s how I got the second-round victory.” said McKenna after his win.
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Mercito Gesta Victorious Over Jojo Diaz at the Long Beach Pyramid

LONG BEACH, CA.-Those in the know knew Mercito Gesta and Jojo Diaz would be a fight to watch and they delivered.
Gesta emerged the winner in a super lightweight clash between southpaws that saw the judges favor his busier style over Diaz’s body attack and bigger shots and win by split decision on Saturday.
Despite losing the main event because the star was overweight, Gesta (34-3-3, 17 KOs) used an outside method of tactic to edge past former world champion Diaz (32-4-1, 15 KOs) in front of more than 5,000 fans at the Pyramid.
The speedy Gesta opened up the fight with combination punching up and down against the peek-a-boo style of Diaz. For the first two rounds the San Diego fighter overwhelmed Diaz though none of the blows were impactful.
In the third round Diaz finally began unloading his own combinations and displaying the fast hands that helped him win world titles in two divisions. Gesta seemed stunned by the blows, but his chin held up. The counter right hook was Diaz’s best weapon and snapped Gesta’s head back several times.
Gesta regained control in the fifth round after absorbing big blows from Diaz. He seemed to get angry that he was hurt and opened up with even more blows to send Diaz backpedaling.
Diaz targeted his attack to Gesta’s body and that seemed to slow down Gesta. But only for a round.
From the seventh until the 10th each fighter tried to impose their style with Gesta opening up with fast flurries and Diaz using right hooks to connect with solid shots. They continued their method of attack until the final bell. All that mattered was what the judges preferred.
After 10 rounds one judge saw Diaz the winner 97-93 but two others saw Gesta the winner 99-91, 98-92. It was a close and interesting fight.
“I was expecting nothing. I was the victor in this fight and we gave a good fight,” said Gesta. “It’s not an easy fight and Jojo gave his best.”
Diaz was surprised by the outcome but accepted the verdict.
Everything was going good. I thought I was landing good body shots,” said Diaz. “I was pretty comfortable.”
Other Bouts
Mexico’s Oscar Duarte (25-1-1, 20 KOs) knocked out Chicago’s Alex Martin (18-5, 6 KOs) with a counter right hand after dropping him earlier in the fourth round. The super lightweight fight was stopped at 1:14 of the round.
A battle between undefeated super welterweights saw Florida’s Eric Tudor (8-0, 6 KOs) emerge the winner by unanimous decision after eight rounds versus Oakland’s Damoni Cato-Cain.
The taller Tudor showed polished skill and was not bothered by a large cut on his forehead caused by an accidental clash of heads. He used his jab and lead rights to defuse the attacks of the quick-fisted southpaw Cato-Cain. The judges scored the fight 80-72 and 78-74 twice for Tudor.
San Diego’s Jorge Chavez (5-0, 4 KOs) needed less than one round to figure out Nicaragua’s Bryan Perez (12-17-1, 11 KOs) and send him into dreamland with a three-punch combination. No need to count as referee Ray Corona waved the fight over. Perez shot a vicious right followed by another right and then a see-you-later left hook at 3.00 of the first round of the super featherweight match.
Photo credit: Al Applerose
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Jojo Diaz’s Slump Continues; Mercito Gesta Prevails on a Split Decision

At age 30, Jojo Diaz’s career is on the skids. The 2012 U.S. Olympian, a former world title holder at 126 and 130 pounds and an interim title holder at 135, Diaz suffered his third straight loss tonight, upset by Mercito Gesta who won a split decision at the Walter Pyramid in Long Beach, CA.. The scoring was strange with Gesta winning nine of the 10 rounds on one of the cards and only three rounds on another. The tie-breaker, as it were, was a 98-92 tally for Gesta and even that didn’t capture the flavor of what was a closely-contested fight.
Originally listed as a 12-rounder, the match was reduced to 10 and that, it turned out, did Diaz no favors. However, it’s hard to feel sorry for the former Olympian as he came in overweight once again, having lost his 130-pound title on the scales in February of 2021.
Diaz also has issues outside the ropes. Best elucidated by prominent boxing writer Jake Donovan, they include a cluster of legal problems stemming from an arrest for drunk driving on Feb. 27 in the LA suburb of Claremont.
With the defeat, Diaz’s ledger declined to 32-4-1. His prior losses came at the hands of Gary Russell Jr, Devin Haney, and William Zepeda, boxers who are collectively 83-2. Mercito Gesta, a 35-year-old San Diego-based Filipino, improved to 34-3-3.
Co-Feature
Chihuahua, Mexico super lightweight Oscar Duarte has now won nine straight inside the distance after stopping 33-year-old Chicago southpaw Alex Martin in the eighth frame. Duarte, the busier fighter, had Martin on the deck twice in round eight before the fight was waived off.
Duarte improved to 25-1-1 (20). Martin, who reportedly won six national titles as an amateur and was once looked upon as a promising prospect, declined to 18-5.
Other Bouts of Note
New Golden Boy signee Eric Tudor, a 21-year-old super welterweight from Fort Lauderdale, overcame a bad laceration over his right eye, the result of an accidental clash of heads in round four, to stay unbeaten, advancing to 8-0 (6) with a hard-fought unanimous 8-round decision over Oakland’s Damoni Cato-Cain. The judges had it 80-72 and 78-74 twice. It was the first pro loss for Cato-Cain (7-1-1) who had his first five fights in Tijuana.
In the DAZN opener, lanky Hawaian lightweight Dalis Kaleiopu went the distance for the first time in his young career, improving to 4-0 (3) with a unanimous decision over 36-year-old Colombian trial horse Jonathan Perez (40-35). The scores were 60-52 across the board. There were no knockdowns, but Perez, who gave up almost six inches in height, had a point deducted for a rabbit punch and another point for deducted for holding.
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‘Big Baby’ Wins the Battle of Behemoths; TKOs ‘Big Daddy’ in 6

Lucas “Big Daddy” Browne weighed in at a career-high 277 pounds for today’s battle in Dubai with Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller, but he was the lighter man by 56 pounds. It figured that one or both would gas out if the bout lasted more than a few stanzas.
It was a war of attrition with both men looking exhausted at times, and when the end came it was Miller, at age 34 the younger man by nine years, who had his hand raised.
Browne was the busier man, but Miller, whose physique invites comparison with a rhinoceros, hardly blinked as he was tattooed with an assortment of punches. He hurt ‘Bid Daddy’ in round four, but the Aussie held his own in the next frame, perhaps even forging ahead on the cards, but only postponing the inevitable.
In round six, a succession of right hands knocked Browne on the seat of his pants. He beat the count, but another barrage from Miller impelled the referee to intervene. The official time was 2:33. It was the 21st straight win for Miller (26-0-1, 22 KOs). Browne declined to 31-4 and, for his own sake, ought not fight again. All four of his losses have come inside the distance, some brutally.
The consensus of those that caught the livestream was that Floyd Mayweather Jr’s commentary was an annoying distraction that marred what was otherwise an entertaining show.
As for what’s next for “Big Baby” Miller, that’s hard to decipher as he has burned his bridges with the sport’s most powerful promoters. One possibility is Mahmoud Charr who, like Miller, has a big gap in his boxing timeline. Now 38 years old, Charr – who has a tenuous claim on a WBA world title (don’t we all?) — has reportedly taken up residence in Dubai.
Other Bouts of Note
In a 10-round cruiserweight affair, Suslan Asbarov, a 30-year-old Russian, advanced to 4-0 (1) with a hard-fought majority decision over Brandon Glanton. The judges had it 98-92, 97-93, and a more reasonable 95-95.
Asbarov was 12-9 in documented amateur fights and 1-0 in a sanctioned bare-knuckle fight, all in Moscow, entering this match. He bears watching, however, as Glanton (18-2) would be a tough out for almost anyone in his weight class. In his previous fight, at Plant City, Florida, Glanton lost a controversial decision to David Light, an undefeated Australian who challenges WBO world title-holder Lawrence Okolie at Manchester, England next week.
A 10-round super featherweight match between former world title challengers Jono Carroll and Miguel Marriaga preceded the semi-windup. Carroll, a 30-year-old Dublin southpaw, overcame a cut over his left eye suffered in the second round to win a wide unanimous decision in a fairly entertaining fight.
It was the sixth straight win for Carroll (24-2-1, 7 KOs) who elevated his game after serving as a sparring partner for Devin Haney. Marriaga, a 36-year-old Colombian, lost for the fourth time in his last five outings, declining to 30-7.
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