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Prograis Skirts by Zorrilla in New Orleans; A Shocker on the Undercard

Whether it was hometown jitters or a phantom knockdown, Regis Prograis chased Puerto Rico’s Danielito Zorrilla and escaped with a split-decision victory to retain the WBC super lightweight title in New Orleans on Saturday.
Now on to the marquee fights.
For the first time in nearly five years Prograis (29-1, 24 KOs) fought in his hometown but discovered Zorrilla (17-2, 13 KOs) was not willing to serve as dessert for fans at the Smoothie King Center.
In the opening frame Zorrilla struck first with a sneak lead right that seemed to drop Prograis. But as the Puerto Rican fighter charged forward to follow up, he was wrapped up and tackled down. It appeared later on replay that it could have been declared a knockdown.
Even Prograis admitted as much. It was also the reason he hesitated to attack with his usual abandon after absorbing the Boricua’s sizzling right.
“I know he had the right hand, he caught me with it,” said Prograis.
Despite fearing Zorrilla’s right, the New Orleans native resumed attacking the taller and rangier fighter. In the third round Prograis connected with a long overhand left and down went Zorrilla on his back.
Zorrilla recovered quickly and began moving to his right for the remainder of the fight.
Fighting mainly in a counter-puncher mode, Zorrilla dared Prograis to enter the fire zone. And when it happened that sneak right and left hook awaited the local hero. And when Prograis connected, Zorrilla jumped on his scooter and moved around the ring until the last several seconds. Then he would connect with a right or left from long range and win the round as he did in the fifth.
It drew boos from the crowd, but it was the strategy used for most of the title fight.
“We chose Zorilla. We chose him because we thought he came to fight.,” said Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn. “He just ran. He never tried to win the fight.”
Though never anxious to engage, the threat of Zorrilla’s big right hammer kept Prograis from charging recklessly.
The last three rounds were the same as the earlier rounds with Prograis trying to get into range to score with power blows. Zorrilla never allowed more than a combination or two until the fight ended.
After 12 rounds one judge scored it for Zorrilla 114-113, but two others saw Prograis the winner by scores of 118-109 and 117-110. Prograis keeps the WBC title and now can face one of many marquee fighters available such as Devin Haney, Ryan Garcia, Teofimo Lopez or others.
“Like I said, it was a tough win. But just to see all my people out there I’m glad I brought it back here,” said Prograis. “Now I got to go back and work on some things.”
Julissa Guzman Shocks Ramla Ali
In a battle for a regional WBA super bantamweight title Mexico’s Julissa Guzman (13-2-2, 7 KOs) knocked out England’s Ramla Ali (8-1, 2 KOs) in the eighth round. It was a shocking upset for the previously undefeated former Olympian.
Ali’s team had arranged for her to fight the current WBC super bantamweight titlist Yamileth Mercado, if she won. Instead, it was Guzman who already fought the champion years ago and lost by decision.
Guzman suffered a fractured right forearm during her battle for the title against Mercado and fought until the end. But the injury put her on the shelf for two years. She returned to the prize ring last month and won by knockout. She was signed to face Ali on four weeks notice. It was plenty of time.
Ali had a speed advantage and used it wisely for the first two rounds. But it was evident that Guzman was using those rounds to gauge the timing of the Somalia native. Though she was absorbing combinations from Ali she was able to connect sporadically.
Everything turned around in the third round as Guzman connected multiple times with right hand counters that bounced off the noggin of Ali. The punches shook her legs.
Guzman dominated the fourth round with right after right. Ali tried to stand her ground but was met with powerful blows from the Mexican fighter. It was not wise for Ali to fight toe to toe and her corner advised her to box.
Ali was winning the fifth round but boxing and landing pot shots. But toward the end of the round she attempted a combination and was caught in-between with another counter right cross and down she went. She got up but was obviously dazed.
After warnings from her trainer to stay in boxing mode, Ali won the sixth by fighting at distance. It was her best round but still caught a right that wobbled her.
Ali seemed shook and not clear-headed in the eighth round. She received instructions but seemed listless. As she jabbed and fired a combination Ali was caught with a left hook she did not see. Down she went as if shot and could not beat the count.
Ali reached out to the referee as if to help her up and was counted out by referee Keith Hughes at 42 seconds of the eighth round. Guzman was ecstatic. Ali needed time to recuperate.
Ginny Fuchs wins
US Olympian Ginny Fuchs (3-0) willingly fought always tough Indeya Smith (6-8-2) and used sharp jabs and angles to defuse the constant charges of the smaller fighter in an eight round super flyweight match. All three judges scored it for Fuchs 80-72 twice and 79-73.
Welterweight eliminator
Shakhram Giyasov (14-0, 9 KOs) won a listless 12-round snoozer against Florida’s Harold Calderon (27-0, 18 KOs) by unanimous decision 120-108, 118-110, 116-112. Few moments were entertaining.
Giyasov was content to land single shots and Calderon was unwilling to take chances. Fans booed the timid affair.
Lightweights
Lightweight Jeremy Hill (19-3, 12 KOs) was in a tight struggle against Mark Davis (19-2) and then turned on the aggression and caught the shorter fighter with a looping right that sent him dangling through the ropes. As soon as Davis untangled himself, he was met with a crisp three-punch combination. They all connected and Davis collapsed to the floor. The referee Terry Boudreaux did not bother to count and ended the fight at 1:29 of the fourth round in the battle between two Louisiana fighters.
Photo credit: Ed Mulholland / MATCHROOM
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Skavynskyi and Bustillos Win on a MarvNation Card in Long Beach

Skavynskyi and Bustillos Win on a MarvNation Card in Long Beach
LONG BEACH, Ca.-A cool autumn night saw welterweights and minimumweights share main events for a MarvNation fight card on Saturday.
Ukraine’s Eduard Skavynskyi (15-0, 7 KOs) experienced a tangled mess against the awkward Alejandro Frias (14-10-2) but won by decision after eight rounds in a welterweight contest at the indoor furnace called the Thunder Studios.
It was hot in there for the more than 600 people inside.
Skavynskyi probably never fought someone like Mexico’s Frias whose style was the opposite of the Ukrainian’s fundamentally sound one-two style. But round after round the rough edges became more familiar.
Neither fighter was ever damaged but all three judges saw Skavynskyi the winner by unanimous decision 79-73 on all three cards. The Ukrainian fighter trains in Ventura.
Bustillo Wins Rematch
In the female main event Las Vegas’ Yadira Bustillos (8-1) stepped into a rematch with Karen Lindenmuth (5-2) and immediately proved the lessons learned from their first encounter.
Bustillos connected solidly with an overhand right and staggered Lindenmuth but never came close to putting the pressure fighter down. Still, Bustillos kept turning the hard rushing Lindenmuth and snapping her head with overhand rights and check left hooks.
Lindenmuth usually overwhelms most opponents with a smothering attack that causes panic. But not against Bustillos who seemed quite comfortable all eight rounds in slipping blows and countering back.
After eight rounds all three judges scored the contest for Bustillos 78-74 and 80-72 twice. Body shots were especially effective for the Las Vegas fighter in the fifth round. Bustillos competes in the same division as IBF/WBO title-holder Yokasta Valle.
Other Bouts
In a middleweight clash, undefeated Victorville’s Andrew Buchanan (3-0-1) used effective combination punching to defeat Mexico’s Fredy Vargas (2-1-1) after six rounds. Two judges scored it 59-55 and a third 60-54 for Buchanan. No knockdowns were scored.
A super lightweight match saw Sergio Aldana win his pro debut by decision after four rounds versus Gerardo Fuentes (2-9-1).
Photos credit: Al Applerose
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Tedious Fights and a Controversial Draw Smudge the Matchroom Boxing Card in Orlando

Matchroom Boxing was at the sprawling Royale Caribe Resort Hotel in Orlando, Florida tonight with a card that aired on DAZN. The main event was a ho-hum affair between super lightweights Richardson Hitchins and Jose Zepeda.
SoCal’s Zepeda has been in some wars in the past, notably his savage tussle with Ivan Baranchyk, but tonight he brought little to the table and was outclassed by the lanky Hitchins who won all 12 rounds on two of the cards and 11 rounds on the other. There were no knockdowns, but Zepeda suffered a cut on his forehead in round seven that was deemed to be the product of an accidental head butt and another clash in round ten forced a respite in the action although Hitchins suffered no apparent damage.
It was the sort of fight where each round was pretty much a carbon of the round preceding it. Brooklyn’s Hitchins, who improved to 17-0 (7), was content to pepper Zepeda with his jab, and the 34-year-old SoCal southpaw, who brought a 37-3 record, was never able to penetrate his defense and land anything meaningful.
Hitchins signed with Floyd Mayweather Jr’s promotional outfit coming out of the amateur ranks and his style is reminiscent in ways of his former mentor. Like Mayweather, he loses very few rounds. In his precious engagement, he pitched a shutout over previously undefeated John Bauza.
Co-Feature
In the co-feature, Conor Benn returned to the ring after an absence of 17 months and won a unanimous decision over Mexico’s Rodolfo Orozco. It wasn’t a bad showing by Benn who showed decent boxing skills, but more was expected of him after his name had been bandied about so often in the media. Two of the judges had it 99-91 and the other 96-94.
Benn (22-0, 14 KOs) was a late addition to the card although one suspects that promoter Eddie Hearn purposely kept him under wraps until the week of the fight so as not to deflect the spotlight from the other matches on his show. Benn lost a lucrative date with Chris Eubank Jr when he was suspended by the BBBofC when evidence of a banned substance was found in his system and it’s understood that Hearn has designs on re-igniting the match-up with an eye on a date in December. For tonight’s fight, Benn carried a career-high 153 ½ pounds. Mexico’s Orozco, who was making his first appearance in a U.S. ring, declined to 32-4-3.
Other Bouts of Note
The welterweight title fight between WBA/WBC title-holder Jessica McCaskill (15-3-1) and WBO title-holder Sandy Ryan (6-1-1) ended in a draw and the ladies’ retain their respective titles. Ryan worked the body effectively and the general feeling was that she got a raw deal, a sentiment shared by the crowd which booed the decision. There was a switch of favorites in the betting with the late money seemingly all on the Englishwoman who at age 30 was the younger boxer by nine years.
The judges had it 96-94 Ryan, 96-95, and a vilified 97-93 for Chicago’s McCaskill.
In the opener of the main DAZN stream, Houston middleweight Austin “Ammo” Williams, 27, improved to 15-0 (10) with a 10-round unanimous decision over 39-year-old Toronto veteran Steve Rolls (22-3). All three judges had it 97-93. Rolls has been stopped only once, that by Gennady Golovkin.
Photo credit: Ed Mulholland / Matchroom Boxing
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Zhilei Zhang KOs Joe Joyce; Calls Out Tyson Fury

Joe Joyce activated his rematch clause after being stopped in the sixth frame by Zhilei Zhang in their first meeting. In hindsight, he may wish that he hadn’t. Tonight at London’s Wembley Stadium, Zhang stopped him again and far more conclusively than in their first encounter.
In the first meeting, Zhang, a southpaw, found a steady home for his stiff left jab. Targeting Joyce’s right eye, he eventually damaged the optic to where the ring doctor wouldn’t let Joyce continue. At the end, the fight was close on the cards and Joyce was confident that he would have pulled away if not for the issue with his eye.
In the rematch tonight, Zhang (26-1-1, 21 KOs) closed the curtain with his right hand. A thunderous right hook on the heels of a straight left pitched Joyce to the canvas where he landed face first. He appeared to beat the count by a whisker, but was seriously dazed and referee Steve Gray properly waived it off. The official time was 3:07 of round three.
Zhang, who lived up to his nickname, “Big Bang,” was credited with landing 29 power punches compared with only six for Joyce (15-2) who came in 25 pounds heavier than in their first meeting while still looking properly conditioned. One would be inclined to say that age finally caught with the “Juggernaut” who turned 38 since their last encounter, but Zhang, 40, is actually the older man. In his post-fight interview in the ring, the New Jersey resident, a two-time Olympian for China, when asked who he wanted to fight next, turned to the audience and said, “Do you want to see me shut Tyson Fury up?”
He meant it as a rhetorical question.
Semi-Windup
Light heavyweight Anthony Yarde was matched soft against late sub Jorge Silva, a 40-year-old Portuguese journeyman, and barely broke a sweat while scoring a second-round stoppage. Yarde backed Silva against a corner post and put him on the deck with a short right hand. Silva’s body language indicated that he had no interest in continuing and the referee accommodated him. The official time was 2:07 of round two.
A 30-year-old Londoner, Yarde (24-3, 23 KOs) was making his first start since being stopped in eight rounds by Artur Beterbiev in a bout that Yarde was winning on two of the scorecards. Silva, a late replacement for 19-3-1 Ricky Summers, falls to 22-9.
Also
Former leading super middleweight contender Zach Parker (23-1, 17 KOs) returned to the ring in a “shake-off-the-rust” fight against 40-year-old Frenchman Khalid Graidia and performed as expected. Graidia’s corner pulled him out after seven one-sided rounds.
In his previous fight, Parker was matched against John Ryder who he was favored to beat. The carrot for the winner was a lucrative date with Canelo Alvarez. Unfortunately for Parker, he suffered a broken hand and was unable to continue after four frames. Tonight, he carried 174 pounds, a hint that he plans to compete as a light heavyweight going forward. Indeed, he has expressed an interest in fighting Anthony Yarde. Graidia declined to 10-13-4.
The Zhang-Joyce and Yarde-Silva fights were live-streamed in the U.S. on ESPN+.
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