By Jake Donovan
Hot junior lightweight prospect Eloy “The Prince” Perez maintained his winning ways, taking an eight round decision over Roger “Speedy” Gonzalez on Friday night at the Longshoreman Hall in San Francisco, California.
Scores were 80-72 across the board in their Telefutura-televised main event.
What was advertised as a crossroads bout instead became only a moderately entertaining showcase, something that Perez was hoping to avoid as ‘win today, look good the next time’ wasn’t exactly what he had in mind against the 32-year old Gonzalez.
The fight was by no means a rout, but also never reached a point where the threat of an upset ever surfaced. Perez was content to box and pose, while Gonzalez mainly played keep away.
Moments of promise came midway through, when Perez planted his feet and went to work on Gonzalez’ midsection. It was the closest either fighter came to inflicting any sort of damage on the other, though the bout wasn’t without its toe-to-toe exchanges.
As the night wore on, Gonzalez became more aggressive – if not desperate – while Perez fought at a measured pace. It wasn’t as if he wanted to press more than was the case, but was instructed by his corner to keep it strictly to boxing, and to avoid at all costs any type of exchanges that would give his opponent any hope of landing something dramatic.
Luckily for the crowd and the viewers, Perez didn’t completely follow script.
The pace of the eighth and final round suggested that the combatants would simply coast to the finish line and accept the night’s fate for what it was. But that was before Gonzalez began taking risks, enough to where Perez felt compelled to take action.
The reaction from the crowd suggests the reward was well worth the risk.
A right hand just barely missed for Perez, but a clean-up left hook connected in a big way. The shot rocked Gonzalez and seemed to have collectively brought the crowd to its feet in one fell swoop. Perez connected with a right hand moments later, further reminder of the gulf in talent and ability that existed between he and his steppingstone opponent eight years his senior.
The strong finish was precisely what Perez needed as he cruises to 20-0 (5KO). The Californian continues to win, but didn’t exactly blow the boxing world out of the water with his 2010 campaign, which saw an upgrade in competition but somewhat of a leveling off in skill level.
Meanwhile, Gonzalez officially falls from steppingstone to doormat. The loss is his third straight, as he falls to 27-4 (18KO). It wasn’t exactly the royal welcome for which he hoped after a two-year hiatus from the ring. If there’s a moral victory to be gained, it’s that it was his first loss that went to the cards, having been previously stopped by Yuriorkis Gamboa, Cornelius Lock and Jhonny Gonzalez.
With just five knockouts in 21 fights going into the evening, it was doubtful that very many expected Perez to provide similar damage. But by night’s end, he managed to remind the sport why he’s one of the sport’s more promising prospects, which carries just as much bang as any knockout blow.
In the evening’s co-feature, undefeated super bantamweight prospect Mercito “No Mercy” Gesta had an even easier time in his rematch with Genaro Trazancos, forcing his familiar foe to quit on his stool after three rounds.
Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of Boxingscene.com. Follow Jake on Twitter at twitter.com/JakeNDaBox or submit questions/comments to JakeNDaBox@gmail.com.
