By Cliff Rold

Team USA lost another. 

While 23-year old middleweight Shawn Estrada of East Los Angeles, California’s draw in the 2008 Beijing 165 lb. tournament indicated all along that a medal might be out of reach, his losing performance against Great Britain’s 22-year old James Degale lacked the fire of a man who wanted to overcome the odds.  In the end, it was 11-5 and the score was friendlier than the outcome as America is left before even the start of the Quarterfinals with only three men alive.

While both battlers were listed at six-foot tall, Degale appeared the slightly taller man as they stepped towards each other to start the first.  As he had in the first fight, Estrada played off his right back foot, leaping in with offense but landing nothing through the first minute.  The southpaw Degale did appear to land a lead right but…no point.  A landing left from Estrada was followed by another right landed by the Brit in the final fifteen seconds and again…no points.  The nothing-nothing tie was indicative of a round where, well, nothing really happened.

Pinning Estrada to the ropes thirty seconds into the second, Degale landed a long left; Estrada landed a right to the body thirty seconds later…no points.  Finally Degale got his first point for a pawing shot and then another for a clean left to pull ahead 2-0.  In the final thirty seconds, each landed with their power hand to trade points as the button masher woke up for the end of what had been a long night.  Round two ended 3-1 and Estrada was not impressing, rarely moving his hands as he waited (and waited) for the faster Degale to lead so that he could counter.

Estrada lunged and fell into Degale with wide shots at the beginning of the third and the Brit locked him up, a strategy more naked as the round went on.  A right hand from Estrada narrowed the slim lead for Degale but seconds later a lead right got the point back and another right put Degale ahead 5-2.  They traded lead hand points before a lengthy clinch brought a caution to both young men.  With two minutes to go Estrada trailed 6-3, a deficit equal to the number of Olympians it was starting to look like Team USA would be whittled down to.

Estrada threw next to no jabs through the third and maintained the potshotting hopes that were getting him beat in the fourth, eating a scoring lead Degale right for his trouble.  With a minute left, Estrada blasted through with a right but received no credit and the sand through the hourglass thinned.  With thirty seconds remaining, a right scored and then the two men traded points before Degale closed with three scoring blows to finish the bout 11-5. 

To lose is without shame; to lose seemingly without a sense of urgency until the closing moments of the final round on the World’s biggest stage was inexplicable.

Round Two Grade: D+

Win or lose in the round of 16, it was unlikely that Estrada would have made it past the quarterfinals.  The man many thought would be the Games best fighter, Russia’s reigning two-time World champion Matvey Korobov, had lost one fight prior in an upset to 2004 Welterweight Gold Medalist Bakhtiyar Artayev of Kazakhstan, but that upset was no boon for Estrada.  He would have lost badly to either.

He gave his all to get as far as he did and is to be commended but there was no escaping that Estrada did not fight like a man willing to do anything to win.  He entered the ring with Degale looking to win with a particular game plan.  When it didn’t work he made no adjustments, no shifts and didn’t begin moving his hands until it was far too late.  He may have wanted to win, but he didn’t need it. 

Degale wanted and needed it.

America has three studs left, all of whom fight with the urgency and need lacking tonight in Estrada.  They all have the potential to Medal but given the unpredictable flow of these Games, there are no safe predictions.  Hopes are pinned to Light Flyweight Luis Yanez, the sole member of the team left to go in the round of 16, to again provide the spark he did in the round of 32.

Falling behind on your Olympic boxing intake? Catch up by clicking on the following link for the complete archive of Boxingscene.com’s unmatched Olympic coverage:

BOXINGSCENE.COM 2008 OLYMPIC BOXING CATALOG

Stay with BoxingScene for the best Olympic Boxing coverage on the World Wide Web

Cliff Rold is a member of the Ring Magazine Ratings Advisory Panel and the Boxing Writers Association of America.  He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com