by Lee Groves/CompuBox

Every fighter who pursues upward mobility in a historical sense must first overcome a series of challenges that reveal not only a fighter’s skill but also his ability to endure severe mental stress. The weeding-out process often is harsh and unforgiving, but the reward for those who persevere is everlasting and utterly satisfying.

Saturday night’s HBO main event between Amir Khan and Marcos Maidana was billed as one of those trials by fire and in the end it didn’t disappoint. Each man imposed his strengths and exploited the other’s weaknesses to the fullest degree and when the dust settled Khan prevailed with a razor-thin but unanimous decision that finally united a ridiculously divided WBA junior welterweight title.

Khan looked a sure winner through the first nine rounds mathematically, aesthetically and statistically. A resounding body-shot knockdown late in the first and a Maidana point penalty for elbowing vaulted Khan into the lead while Khan’s lateral movement and swift combinations earned him geographical command. As for the stats, they were equally lopsided as Khan led 238-91 in total connects, 72-28 in jab connects and 166-63 in power connects.

But through it all Maidana kept throwing as he led 535-510 in attempted punches. Even as bomb after bomb harmlessly whiffed through the Las Vegas air, Maidana had faith that one of his mortars would eventually puncture Khan’s delicate chin. His trust was rewarded in the 10th when an overhand right rocked Khan to his core and transported him back to that nightmarish night when Breidis Prescott obliterated the Briton’s pristine record in just 54 seconds. From that point on, the fight assumed a vastly different complexion.

In rounds 10-12, Maidana out-landed Khan 65-35, out-threw him 232-93 and landed 59 power shots to Khan’s 24. The Argentine’s 26 connects in round 10 alone was nearly as many as he landed in the three previous rounds combined (29). Meanwhile, Khan’s 12 connects in the 10th was his lowest of the fight by six, when his 18 connects in round seven was the only previous time Khan had less than 20 total connects in a round.

With Maidana charging hard and Khan running for his life, vision of Oscar de la Hoya’s ignoble finish against Felix Trinidad raced through veteran heads. But in the fight’s final 20 seconds Khan summoned an inspired burst that saved his bacon, and, in some measure, his reputation.

The final totals masked Maidana’s extraordinary finishing kick as Khan went 273 of 603 overall (45 percent) to Maidana’s 156 of 767 (20 percent).

As expected, the longer-armed Khan dominated in jabs (83 of 243, 34 percent to 34 of 271, 13 percent) and his multi-punch bursts carried him to a solid lead in power punches (190 of 360, 53 percent to 122 of 496, 25 percent).

The PunchZone maps showed that 85 percent of Khan’s 273 total connects targeted the head. Of his 231 connects, 98 struck the chin, lefts produced 58 hits and rights racked up 75 connects. Of his 42 landed body shots, hooks netted 18 strikes while rights totaled 24.

While Maidana’s attack was somewhat more balanced, it still emphasized head shots (107 of 156, 68.5 percent). Of those, nearly half (48) hit Khan’s vulnerable chin while hooks produced 26 strikes and rights 33. Maidana was an equal opportunity body blaster as hooks produced 24 connects and rights netted 25. Neither registered a low blow.

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The co-feature between Victor Ortiz and Lamont Peterson was a classic crossroads fight for two men who sought to cast away the remnants of relatively recent losses. After 10 rounds of undulating and difficult-to-discern action the judges saw fit to award a majority draw.

This match pitted Ortiz’s precision power punching against Peterson’s prodigious volume and body attack. If the final CompuBox stats were the determining factor Ortiz was more effective in achieving his goals, for his lateral movement and the perceived power threat limited Peterson to just 33.3 punches per round, a total he produced in less than 30 seconds in most of his other fights. In fact, Peterson’s highest output was just 45 punches in round nine while Ortiz topped 50 three times (53 in the third, 52 in the eighth and 58 in the 10th).

Peterson had his successes too. Ortiz is known for his high-percentage power attack, but Peterson’s tight defense kept that in check as Ortiz exceeded 40 percent just once (20 of 44, 45 percent in round three). Otherwise, Ortiz was mired in the 20s and 30s and averaged just 33 power shots per round. Also, Ortiz’s jab was virtually non-existent as he connected on just two of 121 attempts. Ortiz missed his first 79 jabs over the first six rounds until he registered his first connect in round seven – a painful level of futility for someone campaigning at world level. Peterson’s jab wasn’t much better, but he did manage to land 21 of them over the first six.

As was the case in Khan-Maidana, Ortiz-Peterson had one major shift in momentum, except that the line of demarcation was perfectly split. In the first five rounds Ortiz effectively bottled Peterson up as he led 43-34 in total connects and 43-22 in landed power shots. But in rounds six through 10, Peterson took over by leading 77-52 overall and 60-50 in power connects.

The fight totals saw Peterson with leads in total connects (111-95), landed jabs (29-2) and jab attempts (146-121) while Ortiz prevailed in total attempts (457-333), power connects (93-82) and power attempts (336-187). Peterson’s superior marksmanship in all categories helped his cause, especially his 44 percent to 28 percent bulge in terms of power shots. This was especially evident down the stretch where Peterson’s power percentages from round four onward were 50, 42, 47, 39, 61, 44 and 37 while Ortiz’s was 15, 21, 22, 32, 29, 17 and 32 over the same stretch. Landed power shots are easier to see, and therefore easier to remember when marking down scorecards.

The PunchZone analysis for both men showed that their head attacks emphasized connects to the temples rather than to the chin. Ortiz connects 30 times to the right side, 29 to the left but only 11 to the chin while Peterson landed 28 to the right side, 22 to the left and 15 to the chin. One of the pivotal successes for Ortiz was limiting Peterson’s body attack to just 30 connects over 10 rounds (13 with hooks and 17 with rights), a total Peterson often reached in less than two rounds against lesser foes. Meanwhile, Ortiz registered 41 body connects, 18 of which came from hooks and 23 from rights. Neither recorded a connected low blow.