By Jake Donovan

 

With a single punch very late in the fight, the crowd at the Mile High Events Center in Denver, Colorado went from bored and displeased to receiving their money’s worth, as hometown favorite Mike Alvarado extended his unbeaten streak with a last-second knockout of Emmanuel Clottey in the evening’s main event.


The bout aired live on Azteca America, and was presented by Top Rank Inc.


There was literally nothing to talk about for most of their ten round junior welterweight bout.
Alvarado stalked, trying to create openings to break up the monotonous pace that developed early and for most of the night never changed gears. 


Clottey’s lone goal of the evening appeared to be to last the full ten-round distance, spending the entire night fighting behind an airtight guard while offering nothing in the way of an offensive attack.


All of that changed with less than ten seconds to go in the fight, in the best possible example of what separates boxing from other sporting events.


With the fight in the bag long ago, Alvarado could’ve easily coasted to the finish line and chalked up the evening to an old boxing cliché, “Win today; look good the next time.”


Easier said than done for the young contender, who wasn’t about to leave his loyal hometown fans with a dull decision win as their final memory of the evening.


Instead, it was one for the highlight reel.


All it took was one opening to change the course of the fight. It came with less than ten seconds to go, a rare occasion where Clottey opted to let his hands go. Alvarado avoided a right hand and landed one of his own. Clottey was knocked out upon impact, forcing an immediate stoppage.


The official time was 2:55 of the tenth round.


The fight ended with Clottey flat on his back, where he remained for more than two minutes. Efforts to peel himself off the canvas were unsuccessful, as he required assistance in order to stand up and be taken out of the ring.


It was the second straight time Clottey came just short of going the distance with a rising junior welterweight star. His previous fight, more than 18 months ago against Victor Ortiz, was just as uncompetitive, and ended with one second to go.


At age 34, it’s doubtful Emmanuel ever comes close to matching the accolades of younger brother Joshua Clottey, as he falls overall 24-9 (14KO). The loss was his third straight, with this last win coming nearly three years ago.


Alvarado sails in the opposite direction. The knockout was his fifth straight, all in the span of less than ten months, as he improves to 25-0 (18KO).


In a year where bringing the sport back to the boxing fans is a running theme, Alvarado continues to prove himself as a hometown draw, making his third straight ring appearance in Denver. His last fight served as the main event of the final Solo Boxeo telecast on Telefutura, where he quickly became a favorite son of the series.


If he doesn’t continue on the Azteca America version beyond Saturday night, it’s because he has outgrown the series. His next fight is slated for May 2, on the pay-per-view undercard of the lineal junior welterweight title fight between Ricky Hatton and Manny Pacquiao.


Having advanced from prospect to contender, there’s no question Alvarado will have his eyes affixed on the main event. How soon he will be ready for such a fight remains to be seen. Until that time comes, his job will be to continue winning.


And as he showed Saturday night, he can also look good doing so, even when the opportunity doesn’t always present itself.


Undercard :

It was a good night for the home team, as Robert Frankel continues to turn his career around. The latest installment in the resurgence of the Denver journeyman came in the evening’s co-feature, taking a well-earned majority decision of Ricardo Dominguez in their ten-round lightweight bout.


The win is Frankel’s sixth straight as he improves – in every sense of the word – to 27-9-1 (4KO).


Domin
guez falls to 26-5-2 (15KO) and is now .500 in his past six contests.


Please feel free to submit any comments or questions to Jake at JakeNDaBox@gmail.com.