Size Doesn’t Matter to Mikey Garcia who Dominates Robert Easter in L.A.

RINGSIDE REPORT BY SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT TARRAH ZAEL -Four-division world champion Mikey Garcia dominated Robert Easter Jr. with a machine-like performance to unify the WBC and IBF titles in the lightweight division on Saturday.

Forget about the size disadvantage, forget about the reach disadvantage, Garcia, victorious by unanimous decision, put on a masters class on the art of prizefighting at the elite level.

In a battle between lightweight world champions, Garcia (39-0, 30 KOs) proved in front of 12,560 fans at the Staples Center that size doesn’t matter as Easter (21-1, 14 KOs) suffered his first defeat as a pro.

Although, Toledo, Ohio’s Easter threw more punches in the first round, his flaws were easily spotted by Garcia. Jabs were fired like pistons but most of the taller fighter’s flashy blows touched only air or the gloves. But the few jabs Garcia fired landed like ramrod blows and snapped back Easter’s head. Though Easter won the first round he quickly discovered what was in store.

By round three, Garcia was a little more aggressive and began following up the retreats of Easter. During one of those exchanges Garcia connected with right hands and a left hook to the chin of Easter and down he went to the canvas. Upon arising, he tried to look for a counter against the careful approaches of Garcia but the bell sounded to end the round.

For the next couple of rounds, Garcia used his punching power to control the fight. Even against Easter’s longer arm reach, Garcia was still able to walk down his opponent, repeatedly putting him on the ropes. It seemed as though  after the first knockdown, Easter spent most of the rounds avoiding Garcia instead of battling it out. Survival seemed to be his primary concern.

It wasn’t until round nine that Easter found a burst of energy and went toe to toe with Garcia. But, Garcia stayed on top of the willing scrapper and easily tore him apart with powerful combinations that put Easter back on his defense.

From rounds 10 until the 12^th and final round, Garcia seemed comfortable pressing the issue behind a tight guard and ramming punches through Easter’s guard. The taller fighter tried countering through Garcia’s combinations but the openings simply were not there.

After 12 rounds, the judges saw the fight in Garcia’s favor with scores 116-111, 117-110 and 118-109.

Garcia’s definitive victory showed the Riverside fighter’s ability to move up and down in weight classes and easily dominate. During the post-fight interview Garcia called out current IBF world welterweight title holder Errol Spence Jr. who seemed ecstatic at the prospect of a super fight between them.

“I’m here for the biggest challenge and I don’t know if there is anyone that is a bigger challenge than Errol Spence Jr. I know he’s up to fight everyone, so let make it happen,” said Garcia.

“Definitely, I want that fight. I feel that’s the best fight available for me right now,” said Spence.

Not only did we hear and see a confident Garcia but talks about him possibly taking on yet another division weight class in the future have boxing fans reeling with anticipation.

It was an impressive showing for Garcia.

Other TV Bouts

Heavyweight southpaw Luis “King Kong” Ortiz, stepped back into the ring after suffering his first loss against Deontay Wilder back in March.

In round two, Cuba’s Ortiz (29-1, 25 KO) administered a quick jab and straight left to the chin of Romania’s Razvan Cojanu (16-3-, 9-1 KO), sending him to the floor. Cojanu wobbled and struggled to stand up but not before referee Jerry Cantu called the fight at 2:08. The first two rounds had Cojanu leaving his chin wide open for Ortiz to stay calm and perfectly calculate his two-punch knockdown.

It was an emotional win for Ortiz as he bounced back with a victory knockout win over Cojanu. Just five days prior to his flight, as he was boarding the plane, he got news from his wife that they found a cure for his daughter’s disease. His10-year-old daughter Lis Ortiz is battling epidermolysis bullosa, a disease that causes the skin to be very fragile and blister easily.

After his victory win, Ortiz sent a greeting to his wife and children before thanking God that a cure had been found for his daughter’s disease. However, regarding his lone defeat to Wilder, he was shaking his head.

“In my mind King Kong has not been defeated. I don’t feel I lost against Deontay Wilder,” said Ortiz.

As to a fight with current IBF, WBA and WBO world heavyweight title holder Anthony Joshua, Ortiz had this to say: “I want to fight Joshua, but he only fights boxers he’s sure he can defeat. I’m going to ask the government to put me on disability, maybe that way Joshua will fight me.”

Maybe one day we will see the two heavyweights battle it out in the ring.

The TV opener had two welterweight contenders battling it out for the vacant WBA International belt in a scheduled 10-round bout. Mario “El Azteca” Barrios (22-0, 14 KO) of San Antonio, Texas proved he belongs among the top 147-pound contenders by dominating his opponent Jose “El Gato” Roman (24-3-1, 16 KO) of Garden Grove, CA.

Barrios, who opened a cut over Roman’s eye in the first round, was the more technical and stronger fighter of the two.

In the fourth round Barrios decked Roman with a powerful left hook. In the ensuing rounds, Barrios stayed on top of Roman, walking him down with hooks to the liver and quick overhand rights to the head. Finally, at the suggestion of Roman’s corner, the bout was halted at the end of the eighth round giving Barrios the belt.

Other Bouts

Jose Balderas (4-0) of Santa Maria, CA dominated Alfredo Chanez of Tijuana, Mexico (6-5, 3 KO) in a four-round bantamweight bout. Balderas stayed calm against the bouncy frustrated Chanez. He used his height and longer arm reach and good defensive skill to win the rounds. All three judges scored the fight  42-35 for Balderas.

In a quick lightweight bout, Jerry Perez (8-0, 6 KO) of Oak Hills, CA took down his opponent Aaron Hollis (4-7-2, 1 KO) of Cincinnati, OH who absorbed too many left hooks to the chin.  Perez, who trains alongside Leo Santa Cruz, sent Hollis to the ground two times before the final knockdown in the second round at 1:34.

Showing amazing punching power like his older brother, Marcos Maidana, Argentina’s undefeated Fabian Maidana (16-0, 12 KO) overpowered Andrey Klimov (19-5, 9 KO) of Russia. The end came at 2:32 in the seventh round with hard blows to the chin of Klimov in a scheduled 10-round super lightweight bout.

Super featherweight Karlos Balderas (6-0, 5 KO) showcased his strong defensive skills while taking apart Giovanni Caro (27-24-4, 21 KO) of Mexico. Balderas, a former U.S. Olympian, put Caro down with straight lefts to the chin in the fourth round, scoring a knockout at 2:09.

Lina Lincona (2-0, 1 KO), a firecracker female prospect out of Long Beach, CA captured her second win in her early professional career by unanimous decision after four rounds in a light flyweight battle against Judit Hachbold (4-5) of Hungary. All three judges scored the fight 40-36.

In an evenly matched lightweight bout scheduled for eight rounds, Robert Marroquin (27-5-1, 20-1 KO) from Texas, went toe to toe with Ray Perez (23-10, 7 KO) of Philadelphia. Marroquin took a couple of rounds to get comfortable in the ring before finding his rhythm, but it was Perez who stayed on top with his power. In the final round, Perez connected his strong hooks on the head of Marroquin, causing a cut over the left eye. The referee stopped the bout at 1:03 in the eighth, giving Perez the victory by way of knockout.

Louie Coria (9-1-0, 4 KO) of Moreno Valley, CA,  who trains at the Robert Garcia Boxing Academy, was the stronger and more technical fighter over his opponent Guadalupe Arroyo (3-13) of Puebla, Mexico.  After six rounds in the featherweight bout, he won the unanimous decision with all three judges’ scoring the fight 60-54.

Brandon Glanton (7-2-0, 6 KO) of Atlanta, who also trains at the Garcia boxing academy, simply outclassed his opponent  Daniel Najera (7-3-1) of Monterrey, Mexico in a scheduled six-round heavyweight battle. Glanton was the stronger, more talented fighter with his uppercuts and hooks in route to stopping Najera at 1:35 in the third round.

A junior welterweight battle went all four rounds, Wesley Diana (6-0-0, 5 KO) of Kissimmee, Florida, won a unanimous decision over Lancaster, Pennsylvania’s Envicil Dixon (7-22-2, 2 KO).

Photo credit: Al Applerose

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