Results from Las Vegas where Alimkhanuly Overcame Pesky Denzell Bentley

Results from Las Vegas where Alimkhanuly Overcame Pesky Denzell Bentley

Top Rank was at the Pearl Theater at the Palms for a nine-bout card topped by Janibek Alimkhanuly’s first fight in the role of a middleweight champion and the first defense of his newly bequeathed WBO diadem. In the opposite corner was British middleweight champion Denzel Bentley, a 27-year-old Londoner of Ghanian extraction.

Alimkhanuly, nicknamed “Qazaq style,” did not live up to his billing as boxing’s most avoided fighter but was fairly returned the winner in a fight that confounded the experts by lasting the full 12 rounds. The decision was unanimous: 116-112, 116-112, and a wayward 118-110.

Bentley fought timidly in the early rounds, wary of Alimkhanuly’s power, but he became more confident as the fight wore on, more willing to let his hands go, and forced the well-touted Kazakh to dig deep for his bone. The final round was Alimkhanuly’s best round of the fight, the only round in which it appeared that a knockdown was imminent, but Bentley, who bears a passing resemblance to Deontay Wilder, stayed the course and was flailing away in the waning seconds.

Alimkhanuly improved to 13-0 (8) but saw his knockout skein end at six. It was the second loss in 20 fights for Bentley whose record falls to 17-2-1.

Co-Feature

Seniesa Estrada successfully defended her WBA strawweight title with a unanimous decision over Jazmin Gala Villarino. For further details, check out David Avila’s ringside report.

Other Bouts

In a lightweight contest slated for eight rounds, Fontana, California’s Raymond Muratalla improved to 16-0 (13 KOs) with a sixth-round stoppage of feisty but outclassed Miguel Contreras (12-2-1). Muratalla caught Contreras against the ropes and fired off 13 unanswered punches forcing the referee to intercede. The time was 2:23 of round six.

The Top Rank debut of 18-year-old Emiliano Vargas was a smashing success. The youngest of three fighting sons of former IBF and WBA junior middleweight champion Fernando Vargas, Emiliano scored a one-punch knockout of 19-year-old Indiana import. Julio Cesar Martinez. A left hook did the damage. Martinez was unconscious before he hit the canvas. The well-spoken teenager with matinee idol good looks seemingly has the ingredients to become a major star in the sport.

Milwaukee super middleweight Javier Martinez, who is managed by David McWater and trains at Robert Garcia’s Riverside (CA) Boxing Academy, scored a unanimous 6-round decision over Turlock, California’s Marco Delgado, advancing his record to 8-0 (2). The scores were 60-54 and 59-55 twice. It was a rather drab fight and an unimpressive showing by Martinez who had a significant height and reach advantage. The stubborn Delgado declined to 7-5.

Las Vegas native Floyd “Cashflow” Diaz, a 19-year-old super bantamweight, improved to 8-0 (3 KOs) with a fourth-round stoppage of New Jersey southpaw Edgar Joe Cortez (9-7-1). The flashy Diaz caught Cortez was a right hook after missing with a left hook. Cortez went down hard. He beat the count, but had a disoriented look about him and referee Mike Ortega waived it off. The time was 1:14 of round four.

Brisbane, California lightweight Charlie Sheehy (5-0, 4 KOs) needed only 97 seconds to dismiss North Carolina’s Markus Bowes (2-1) who was fighting for the third time in five weeks. Bowes went down awkwardly from a right-left combination and the fight was stopped several moments later. ESPN commentator Mark Kriegel paid Sheehy the ultimate compliment calling him a Janibek look-alike.

In an 8-round lightweight contest, 2016 U.S. Olympian Karlos Balderas (14-1, 12 KOs) stopped Tijuana’s Esteban Sanchez at the 1:02 mark of the final round. Balderas knocked Sanchez to the canvas in the opening round, but Sanchez (18-3) was game and almost made it to the final bell. He was on the feet when referee Raul Caiz stopped the fight which struck some as premature.

In the lid-lifter, Iowa behemoth Antonio Mireles (6-0, 6 KOs) knocked out Georgia butterball Eric Perry in the opening round. An assortment of punches knocked Perry to the canvas face-first and he failed to beat the count. The official time was 2:26. None of Mireles’ previous opponents lasted beyond the second frame.

Photo credit: Al Applerose

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