By Cliff Rold
When any version of Israel Vazquez-Rafael Marquez ends up being a walk out bout, something good must have been going on in the ring.
Something good was definitely going on in the ring on Saturday night.
After a week of speculation about whether or not they could steal the show, Yonnhy Perez and Abner Mares did just that with twelve spirited rounds. It was a tale of three fights, the first and last of them making the bout one of the best of 2010 so far. The IBF Bantamweight titlist Perez (20-0-1, 14 KO) and the 2004 Mexican Olympian Abner Mares (20-0-1, 13 KO) began with a sizzling first few rounds, settled into an anxious middle portion, and then finished with panache in a fight where it looked impossible at the end to know who truly won.
Looks were not deceiving as Perez retained his belt in his first defense on a majority draw over twelve rounds which served only to create a need for twelve more.
There should be no call, and there is certainly no need, for even one more round of Vazquez and Marquez against each other. Who should Marquez share his rounds with then?
Let’s go to the report cards.
Grades
Pre-Fight: Speed – Perez A-; Mares A-/Post: Perez A-; Mares A
Pre-Fight: Power – Perez B; Mares B/Post: Same
Pre-Fight: Defense – Perez B; Mares B/Post: Perez B; Mares B+
Pre-Fight: Intangibles – Perez A; Mares B/Post: Perez A; Mares A-
Who doesn’t love Bantamweight right now? Seriously. Show of hands.
Hot on the heels of Anselmo Moreno-Nehomar Cermeno and Fernando Montiel-Hozumi Hasegawa (and that’s just the best stuff from this year so far), two men who acknowledge being friends over the years showed that familiarity can breed remarkable competition.
Mares opened strong, slipping and landing the cleaner blows in the first two rounds even as the whirlwind punching of Perez began to find traction towards the end of round two. Mares remained elusive in the third, choosing his spots to engage while Perez pressed forward still struggling to land his left hook clean. Throwing in synch with Mares, his back to the ropes, Perez absorbed some hard rights to the head and lefts to the belly while finding some room for his right hand. By the closing seconds of the round, both were returned to the ropes after a brief respite, each letting loose with both hands.
They were shoulder to shoulder immediately in the fourth, Perez sneaking in the left underneath and Mares shooting the right to the face. A left hook from Perez sent Mares cycling away and another has Mares banging his gloves together in invitation for more. Bulling Perez into the corner, Mares worked downstairs while Perez wisely maneuvered back to mid-ring where his longer frame allowed him to work more fluidly.
Perez landed a series of peppering left hooks shortly into round five, Perez taking a deep breath and stepping out to return to boxing and picking his shots. Perez was a stream of activity and by mid-round, he was comfortable against the ropes in a prolonged exchange. Before long, it was Perez who was leading, Mares to the ropes and forced to leg it away as the sheer volume of offense Perez presented brought hints of fatigue to the Mexican’s face.
Round five was sort of a transition point into the anxious portion of the fight. Hinted at in earlier rounds, the movement of Mares drew increasingly louder boos in spots throughout the sixth, his offense sparse in the face of constant pressure. It was not until the final thirty seconds that Mares really opened up, and even then not for long. Mares engaged more readily in the seventh, but for long stretches circled away and forced Perez to give chase. When punching range was reasonable, both men managed single hard shots but the sustained action of the earlier rounds was fading.
A crescendo of boos again descended from the paying customers in round eight, Perez hushing it when Mares slowed at mid-ring and he could let loose with both hands. Both fighters landed stinging rights in the frame, Perez making the bulk of the action and offense in the final minute of the round.
Panache followed.
At risk of allowing the aggression of Perez to build a too-wide lead on the cards, Mares came out with jabs and right hands to start the ninth. Staying almost entirely in front of Perez, the fighters kept a methodical and hammering pace, matching each other almost blow for blow as the challenger halted the momentum of Perez.
Indeed it seemed Mares had pulled momentum back to himself as round ten unfolded, Mares digging to the body and forcing Perez backwards for the first time in several rounds. Perez whipped in a nasty left hook just before the middle of the round but Mares absorbed it and answered shortly after with a punishing left to the body. Staying low, Mares had Perez dancing away a bit, Mares catching him with a big right near the ropes and buckling the knees of the titlist in the last thirty seconds.
Two rounds remained in a fight where neither man could feel comfortably ahead. Mares bolted from the corner and pushed Perez back early in the eleventh with a long right to the abdomen. Moving to set traps rather than just to move, mares found a home for a lead uppercut and lead left hook as a flagging Perez pushed for a last surge. Mares had Perez again against the ropes in the last minute of the round but Perez managed to get away from the rush and was moving his hands as the penultimate round closed.
Three minutes to go and the two men, who once roomed together as amateurs, touched gloves and exchanged hooks to begin the twelfth. Perez clipped Mares with a flush left hook near the corner thirty seconds in, Mares unshaken and answering with a flashy triple left hook thirty seconds later. Mares doubled the left up twice in succession, Perez reaching to grab briefly and then winging in a right and left. Perez was clean with a left hand but Mares shook it and came forward, ripping downstairs as Perez was bulled into the strands. With the crowd on its feet, Mares closed the show coming forward, a left right noticeably rocking Perez in the final seconds. He remained on his feet and victory, for champion or challenger, was left in the hands of the judges.
It turned out there would be no victor at all. This scribe scored the contest 115-113 for Mares, as did one of the judges, but this was the rare case where a draw was fitting. Mares could be argued as costing himself a win with his tactics in the middle of the fight. It’s hard to say whether those saved his legs for the late push or whether he was just learning on the fly how to deal with a grueling twelve rounder against a guy who wasn’t, ever, going to stop coming.
Regardless, the deep digging Mares did late showed off what his first twenty fights could not, showed off a professional of substance and a factor in a loaded Bantamweight field. That was already known of Perez and Saturday was merely further proof. What could, and should, lie ahead for both will be answered below. For now, let’s turn to the icons that headlined at the Home Depot Center in Southern Cali.
Grades
Pre-Fight: Speed – Vazquez B; Marquez B/Post: Vazquez C+; Marquez B
Pre-Fight: Power – Vazquez A; Marquez A/Post: Vazquez B; Marquez A
Pre-Fight: Defense – Vazquez B; Marquez B-/Post: Vazquez C-; Marquez B-
Pre-Fight: Intangibles – Vazquez A; Marquez A/Post: Same
It looked to these eyes like Vazquez might have done just enough with some short, sneaky hooks in the first round to steal the round, even as Marquez controlled the bulk of the round with his jab. It was a lone highlight.
The story of the night was that former Bantamweight and Jr. Featherweight leader Rafael Marquez (39-5, 35 KO) still has something in the tank. The former two-time lineal Jr. Featherweight champ Vazquez (44-5, 32 KO) doesn’t appear to. The soft flesh around his eyes, upon both gloved and skull contact, meant a frightening cut over Vazquez’s left eye and a simply ugly wound over the right by the end of round two. The left eye cut was made worse in the third as Marquez seemingly could not miss with (take a pick) jabs, crosses, hooks and uppercuts.
The proper cliché after Vazquez-Marquez III would have been that Vazquez left everything he had in the ring in the epic twelfth and final round, willing himself through a spirited closing three minutes to secure a knockdown call and victory. The cliché is typically meant figuratively, isolated to the given night. It turns out it might well be literally true. Vazquez looked worn in his lone other fight since, against former Flyweight contender Angel Priolo, and simply lacked resistance as the bombs multiplied in Marquez IV. If this is his end, Vazquez can hold his head up for all of the five years which it will take to get him eligible for the Hall of Fame.
To his credit, Marquez went about his business with efficiency, professionalism, and skill. Now at Featherweight, can he do it against the best of the 126 lb. field?
Looking Ahead
That will be the question for Marquez going forward and let’s hope the answer isn’t “Vic Darchinyan.” The reigning champion at 115 lbs. would make for exciting television as long as it lasted but Darchinyan has similarly exciting and more (on paper) competitive matches to make at 115 and at 118 lbs. Marquez against young guns at Featherweight like WBO titlist Juan Manuel Lopez (28-0, 25 KO) and Yuriorkis Gamboa titlist (18-0, 15 KO) would be very dangerous, particularly the latter based on the Cuban’s speed. WBA “Super” (don’t ask) titlist Chris John (43-0-2, 22 KO) might be a point of intrigue needing the most exploration.
John holds a contentious decision win over Rafael’s brother, Juan Manuel, in 2006 and has more wear on his tires than the younger men even while still being seen as the best Featherweight in the world. John was hurt badly late against Rocky Juarez in their rematch and was stunned a few times versus Juan Manuel. Rafael is a bigger puncher than either and has the technical acumen to counter John’s excellent countering ability. Let the veterans square off and allow the kids in class to follow.
Marquez’s win was the report card picks loss as was the opening bout, though the choice of Mares as winner looked to be the case in the ring by narrow margins. At Bantamweight, pretty much any of the top eight can be mixed and matched to make a damn good fight. Mares or Perez versus Montiel, Moreno, Cermeno, Hasegawa, Joseph Agbeko or rising in weight versions of Darchinyan and Nonito Donaire? Yeah, that’s all good stuff.
Better stuff would be resolving their differences first. A fine fight without a winner merits a rematch that can give the world a clear verdict. Let’s see it again.
Sooner than later.
Report Card Picks 2010: 14-10
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
