By Jake Donovan
Noe Bolanos graduated from trialhorse to spoiler after scoring a shocking fifth round stoppage over late sub Gilberto Gonzalez in the Telefutura main event Friday evening in Guadalajara, Mexico.
The official time was 2:52 of the fifth round, though came under dubious circumstances, as Gonzalez was competitive, coherent and still throwing punches at the time of the stoppage.
That said, the fact that Bolanos was in position to pull off the feat is remarkable considering the tempo of the bout. Gonzalez put on a clinic in the first couple of rounds, boxing smartly in the first and landing heavy artillery in the second.
A right hook had Bolanos in trouble midway through the second, and Gonzalez jumped at the chance to end matters right then and there. The Mexico City product unloaded with both barrels, but came dangerously close to punching himself out as Bolanos wobbled but never wilted.
After going for broke in the second, Gonzalez slowed things down in the third, switching back and forth between conventional and southpaw stance. Bolanos did his best to punch his way back into the fight, finding success late in the round in what proved to be a pivotal moment in the fight.
By the fourth round, it was clear that something was off for Gonzalez. He didn’t appear fatigued, but began blinking his eyes profusely. Whatever the case, Bolanos took advantage, carrying over momentum from the end of the third to enjoy a successful fourth round, officially taking control of a fight that would prove to be the biggest of his career.
Gonzalez tried to box his way back into the fight in the fifth, but struggled to keep Bolanos at bay. His inability to land with conviction would prove to be his undoing, even if he was ultimately denied the chance to turn things around.
A right hand late in the round slightly staggered Gonzalez. The sequence was enough to have the referee respond as if he were double parked in a tow-away zone, stopping the fight on the spot. Gonzalez was furious, protesting immediately but to no avail.
The win is by far the biggest of Bolanos’ career, as he improves to 22-5-1-1NC (14KO). He entered the bout having won just two of his previous nine contests after sprinting out to a 20-0 start, but it stands to reason that this bout can serve as a career revival – or at the very least, earn him at least one big payday.
Gonzalez suffers his first loss in more than two years, with his record falling to 16-2 (12KO), although he was announced as 18-1 (13KO) prior to the fight.
Strangely enough, it was a main event that came on relatively short notice for both fighters. Bolanos was originally scheduled to face Brandon Rios on the December 4 Top Rank pay-per-view card. That bout was scrapped when Rios instead accepted a substitute assignment on the undercard of Manny Pacquiao’s whitewash win over Antonio Margarito last month.
The move allowed Bolanos to remain in his native country, where he agreed to the B-side on Friday’s Telefutura show. He was supposed to face another undefeated fighter in Pablo Cesar Cano, who was scratched from the show after falling victim to the flu.
Gonzalez stepped in on short notice, though it was Bolanos who reaped the rewards in the end.
UNDERCARD ACTION
Once promising prospect Charles Huerta turned back the challenge of Arturo Camargo, though requiring a pair of knockdowns to escape with a closer than expected decision win in their eight round televised co-feature.
Scores were 76-74 (twice) 77-73 in favor of Huerta, who was in control for the most part, particularly the fourth round when he twice sent the chinny Camargo to the canvas.
For whatever reason, he decided to ease off of the gas after that, throwing few punches with mean intentions over the course of the second half of the bout.
Camargo showed bravery beyond your typical happy-to-be-here journeyman, going for broke in a seventh round that saw Huerta momentarily go into a shell before regaining his composure and resuming control for the remainder of the bout.
Huerta improves to 16-1 (9KO) as he continues to pick up the pieces in his once promising career.
Golden Boy had big plans, hoping to make him a staple of their Fight Night Club series, only to get drilled in his first ever televised main event, suffering an embarrassing first-round knockout loss to Derrick Wilson.
The Californian has since rattled off five straight wins. While the talent is still evident, long removed is the new penny shine as he continues to rebuild.
Camargo falls to 26-19-2 (22KO) with the defeat. In a stat that probably warrants an investigation of the Mexican Boxing Commission, the thickly muscled Mexican somehow managed to squeeze in 13 fights in the past 50 weeks, despite having suffered four knockout losses in that span.
In a battle of pro debuting junior middleweights, Cristian Tapia made easy work of fleshy Angel Torres. Neither fighter showed much in the way of potential or even any semblance of talent, but Tapia landed enough clean punches to put away his countryman at 1:03 of the third round.
Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of Boxingscene.com. Contact Jake at JakeNDaBox@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @JakeNDaBox.