By Cliff Rold
Going into the weekend, only one of the fights lined up for HBO’s Boxing After Dark had the look of real competitiveness. In the end, it turned out to be an 0 for 3 showing on those terms but the night didn’t result in a lack of entertainment. Two young faces were further developed and a new one was unleashed, at the age of 33, on a Jr. Middleweight division in desperate need of excitement beyond its field of excellent prospects.
As the credits for the latest night of B.A.D. rolled, the favored Sergio Martinez, Alfredo Angulo, and Yuriorkis Gamboa all left the Pechanga Resort & Casino in Temecula, California having lived up to the burden of their billing with victory. Not all victory is equal.
Let’s go to the report card(s).
Sergio Martinez
Speed: A
Power: B
Defense: B
Intangibles: A
In the days before the fight, the 33-year old Martinez (44-1-1, 24 KO) of Argentina looked to have pulled the short straw as far as tough matches go. Alex Bunema (30-6-2, 16 KO) of Congo, also 33, was on one of the best runs of his career…running him straight into what turned out to be a brick wall in Martinez. There’s little bad to say about what Martinez did in notching his 28th straight win and setting up a mandatory with WBC Jr. Middleweight titlist Vernon Forrest. He beat Bunema to the punch, controlled the pace and geography of the bout, scored a knockdown and forced an eighth round stoppage in the corner. It was his first major appearance on HBO and one sure to see him welcomed back.
There were some signs of future trouble. When Bunema let his hands go, the right hand was open and landing against a Martinez with low hands. He rolled well off of the occasional offense thrown at him, but what happens with a younger, faster foe? Beyond that, Martinez showed speed, athleticism and technique which were eye opening for the multitude of fans who knew him before only as a name on Antonio Margarito’s record. He’s more than that now; it remains to be seen if he can stay more.
He’ll get his chances and Martinez-Forrest, if it were to happen, would be a fight worth watching.
Alfredo Angulo
Speed: B-
Power: B+
Defense: B+
Intangibles: A
Those who weren’t looking to Martinez-Bunema to be the fight of the night were looking at the second HBO appearance in 2008 for the 26-year old Mexican Jr. Middleweight Angulo (14-0, 11 KO). In the second bout on this televised card, Angulo was simply devastating, walking the more experienced 30-year old Andrey Tsurkan (26-4, 17 KO) of Ukraine just as efficiently as he had veteran Richar Gutierrez earlier this year. Angulo isn’t a particularly fast fighter, but for an aggressor he’s got better defense than it looks like he has, blocking well with the arms and gloves and employing effective head movement. Against Tsurkan, that resistance meant a multiplying affect of punches landed as he wore the older man down. One and two solid blows landing in combination became four and five and then an unending rain of blows which went on at least two rounds too long. The official stoppage came in the tenth and final round but it was over for certain as early as the eighth and Tsurkan’s career will be the shorter for it.
Angulo is inching towards the top ten in his division and provides Boxing with a serious young star to watch at a time when young stars are needed immediately. Look at the HBO schedule for most of the rest of 2008 and you’ll see too many of the best names from 1998. Historically it is the Angulo’s of the world, young fighters of substance before hype, who come along to clean out the old and replace them atop the sport. Given the thrills he and fellow Jr. Middleweight prospect James Kirkland are providing versus the reluctance of some of their elders to mix it up in middle age, the day can’t come soon enough.
Yuriorkis Gamboa
Speed: A
Power: A
Defense: C-
Intangibles: B-
On the other end of the rising star spectrum, it’s hard not to wonder if the 26-year old Cuban defector and Jr. Lightweight hopeful Gamboa (12-0, 10 KO) might just be more hype than substance. Yes, the former Gold Medalist was a great amateur but the unpaid game is so far removed stylistically from the paid these days that it’s just not a safe gauge. In stopping 27-year Marcos Ramirez (25-1, 16 KO) of Kansas in only two rounds, Gamboa bolstered his record but the “KO 2” in his record didn’t tell the story. With an assist from Ramirez’ head and elbow, Gamboa was dropped for the third time in his short career and showed wobble from various other hard shots he shouldn’t be getting hit clean with.
But he does get hit shower clean. Gamboa’s amateur background is hurting him, as he still relies on clean striking blows which call for quick in and out movements that come too often in straight lines and with his chin hanging like a dead curveball waiting to be bleachered. Like first-round clocked British sensation Amir Khan showed a few weeks back after narrowly avoiding disaster too often on the way up, Gamboa appears to be waiting for the right power puncher to change his life.
It obviously wasn’t all bad. There were signs of improvement since his last bout with Darling Jimenez. He had his hands high early and chin tucked, but the heat of the battle undid his discipline. The new trainer he has will need time to combine professional needs with obvious God-given gifts.
As was the case after the Jimenez fight, it must be suggested that big stages are premature for Gamboa. 2004 U.S. Olympic Gold Medalist Andre Ward worked off-stage for much of the last two years, tightening his defense and refining his fundamentals, only recently beginning to look the part of potential champion. Gamboa has the talent but the spotlight could waste it before it’s fully developed. Gamboa being taken back a step before pushing him forward might be the best thing for him before he’s had to hear someone count ten over him to learn his lessons.
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