By Cliff Rold
  
37-year old Russian former IBF Jr. Middleweight titlist and current Middleweight hopeful Roman Karmazin (40-3-1, 26 KO) of Los Angeles, California, showed that while he might be aging he still has the heart of the champion.  Hurt badly in the fourth and dropped in the ninth, he recovered to score two knockdowns for a stoppage win in the tenth round over 27-year old Colombian Dionisio Miranda (20-5-2, 18 KO) of Miami, Florida, on Friday night at the Civic Auditorium in Glendale, California.

Both men weighed in below the division limit of 160 lbs., Karmazin at 158 ½ and Miranda at 155 ½.

The battle of lanky Middleweights kicked off with the taller Miranda jabbing and lobbing right hand bombs while Karmazin shot combinations in spurts.  As the round developed, Karmazin showed the greater calm, taking short steps backwards and to the side when Miranda came forward, probing for counters.

Miranda found it increasingly difficult to land the right in round two with Karmazin holding his left wisely close to the cheek.  With greater variety in his punch selection, Karmazin landed some stuffing left hooks.  He managed to keep his man from landing cleanly until Miranda made a statement with ten seconds to go, a right hand forcing a lengthy clinch from Karmazin.

The Miranda right which appeared to trouble Karmazin at the end of the second certainly did the trick in round three.  Just thirty seconds in, a massive Miranda right sent Karmazin towards the ropes on shaky legs and the veteran was immediately in survival mode.  Dipping and moving away from the Colombian, Karmazin would apply token offense, still landing the left hook to keep Miranda honest, but was a target with his back often to the ropes until getting the fight back to mid-ring in the final minute. 

A largely uneventful fourth ended with crimson drama, an accidental clash of heads opening a cut on the left eyebrow of Miranda.  The flow of blood brought a spark to Karmazin as he slipped Miranda’s best right hands and land accurately when he decided to let his hands go.

In round five, the story of the fight remained the same with Miranda more aggressive and steady but Karmazin more accurate, building momentum in his output as the round wore on.  Karmazin absorbed a big right in the first half of round six, unhurt and responding shortly after with left hooks to the body and head.  Two rights missed for Karmazin in the final minute and a sweeping left from Miranda sailed wide off the gloves of Karmazin.  Each man attempted to flurry in the closing seconds to little affect but the crowd reacted with cheers to the determination of both.

Doubling and tripling the jab early in the seventh, Miranda still sought the right hand he hadn’t found again since the third.  It almost landed with less than thirty seconds to go, catching Karmazin behind the ear and sending him quickly into a stumble but the former titlist gathered himself right away.

When next he stumbled, it would be all the way to the floor.  Inside the first minute of the ninth, Miranda landed a hard right to the side of the head.  Karmazin, bending at the waist, reached out to clinch and Miranda shot his left hook short two times while Karmazin grappled and then stepped out.   Before he could get his hands back up Miranda unleashed a crushing right, sending Karmazin to the ropes while another right clubbed him behind the head as he went to his knees.  Up before the count of four and shaking his right leg, Karmazin nodded his okay as referee James Jen-Kin tolled the mandatory eight.  Action resuming, he held immediately, leaning to his right away from Miranda’s best shots.  It took until the final minute for Karmazin’s legs to again show life, his jab returning while he shot some loose rights and lefts. 

Both men landed hard shots in the closing seconds but victory appeared to be slipping away from Karmazin.

The Russian had something to say about that in round ten. 

With a minute to go, Karmazin used a sweeping right to the body to set up a left hook upstairs and then a right hand which snaked through the guard of Miranda.  A pause came over Miranda as he let loose with a punch only to feel his legs go out from beneath him, toppling sideways from center ring all the way to the ropes near the ring corner.  Wiping his nose and struggling to his feet at six, Miranda covered up but did not hold as Karmazin let loose with both hands.  Two final right hands flattened Miranda who collapsed to his back, hands splayed, head under the ring ropes as Jen-Kin waved the fight over at 2:34 of round ten.

With the win, Karmazin keeps his career going as he pursues a second major title.  Friday’s win was an eliminator for the IBF Middleweight belt and Karmazin makes a big move towards their current titlist, 29-year old German Sebastian Sylvester (32-3, 15 KO).  Miranda suffers his third loss in five outings and his fourth career knockout loss.

The televised undercard provided a look at young hopefuls.

31-year old Ukrainian Light Heavyweight Anatoliy Dudchenko (8-2, 6 KO), 175 ¾, started strong with a knockdown of 19-year old Issac Atencio (2-2-1, 2 KO), 174 ¾, of Denver, Colorado, in round one and added drops in rounds two and five.  Atencio made the final bell in the six round affair but it would be his only victory as Dudchenko cruised to three scores of 60-51, or six rounds to none.  It was Dudchenko’s fifth straight win after suffering defeats by knockout and six round decision in his fourth and fifth contests.  The referee was James Jen-Kin.

In the televised opener, 23-year old Russian Heavyweight Andrey Fedosov (21-1, 17 KO), 223, used a pair of knockdowns in scoring a stoppage of 41-year old Lionel Butler (32-16-1, 25 KO), 276 ¾, of Bogalusa, Louisiana at 2:37 of round two.  Fedosov’s lone loss came in a six round decision in 2004.  Butler was attempting a comeback in his first bout since 2003.  The referee was Lou Moret.

The card was televised as the season premiere of ESPN2’s Friday Night Fights, promoted by Art of Boxing Promotions in association with Bash Boxing.

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