By Jake Donovan
The list of 2009’s Fight of the Year contenders just grew a little longer.
In a terrific matchup of British super welterweight southpaws, Ryan Rhodes overcame a rough start to once again resurrect his career with a seventh round stoppage of Jamie Moore at the Friday evening in Bolton, Lancashire United Kingdom.
Both fighters weighed 153 ½ lb for their super welterweight elimination bout, which aired live on Sky Sports.
Moore opened the fight with a thudding left to the body as Rhodes spent much of the early going searching for openings while fighting in reverse. Rhodes was able to score with his right hook to the body, but his lack of commitment to a sustained attack allowed Moore to regain control by rounds end.
Rhodes’ trademark slippery style allowed for a quick start in the second round, picking his spots from the outside, then darting out of harm’s way. Moore was successful in cutting off the ring, but his attempt to force an inside fight saw Rhodes stand his ground and employ slick head movement to avoid the incoming. Moore’s jab was getting through as the round progressed, allowing him to control the distance between the two and the tempo of the fight.
Toe-to-toe action was on display in the third round. Moore fought behind a heavy jab, which slowly began to break down Rhodes, no longer the elusive target he proved to be earlier in the fight. Several straight lefts landed cleanly upstairs, though it was a left hand and right hook that provided the most damage, causing Rhodes to stutter step.
Sensing wounded prey, Moore picked up the pace earlier in the fourth, forcing a frenetic pace. Consecutive head shots upstairs late in the round drew a rise from the partisan crowd, to which Rhodes backed off in efforts to regroup. The strategy worked, as Rhodes enjoyed his best sequence of the fight with a combination upstairs at the end of the round.
The action remained on the inside in a fifth round of an already furiously paced fight. Moore appeared well on his way to doing serious damage until a right hook strayed very low, affording Rhodes a much need breather. The brief rest period wasn’t entirely fruitful, as evidenced by Rhodes breathing heavily in his corner in between rounds.
Meanwhile, Moore showed no signs of slowing down, once again taking the fight directly to Rhodes. A brief momentum shift came a minute into the round, when Rhodes landed a combination upstairs. Moore regained his composure midway through the round and unloaded with a fusillade of power shots as Rhodes was beginning to run out of answers.
That was, until the seventh round began,
Missing in the past few rounds from Rhodes’ attack was lateral movement, which he employed at the start of the round. Moore mistook the approach as an unwillingness to engage and plodded forward.
Rhodes made him pay dearly, slipping a right hook and coming back with a booming right hookercut to send Moore crashing into the ropes and eventually the canvas. Moore was up early into the mandatory eight count, and regained his composure well enough to weather the ensuing volley and force a war.
Only now, Rhodes was more than willing to reciprocate.
Moore was wild with his attack, ultimately punching himself out, while Rhodes remained as calm as an assassin. Switching to a conventional stance, Rhodes pinned a now defenseless Moore on the ropes, battering him unmercifully until referee Howard John Foster stepped in to rescue the fallen puncher.
The official time was 2:35 of round seven.
It was a must-win of epic proportions for Rhodes, who refuses to go away quietly as he improves to 43-4 (29KO). The win, his eighth straight, was by far the biggest of his 14-year career. There were times where it appeared it would never occur, though “Spice Boy” insists it was his plan all along.
“We knew the first half would be tough,” acknowledged Rhodes, “but we knew we’d take over in the second half.”
He took over at precisely that point, and never allowed Moore to get back into the fight.
“It’s obviously not what I wanted at the end of the day,” stated a dejected Moore, who falls to 32-4 (23KO).
The loss ends a five-year, 12-fight win streak. Wins over former titlists and contenders Michele Piccirillo and Sebastian Lujan put him within reach of his first shot at a major title. There were talks of a possible showdown with Julio Cesar Chavez Jr early next year to determine the mandatory challenger to the title currently owned by Sergio Martinez.
Now it’s back to the drawing board after falling apart in a fight he had well in hand.
“I wasn’t on my game,” claimed Moore after the bout. “Not to take anything away from (Rhodes)’ he just beat me at my own game. He beat me fair and square.”
Because he did, Rhodes once again resurrects a career that had been long on potential but short on results.
Though only 32, Rhodes is a veteran of the game, having turned pro shortly after his 18th birthday. The all-UK showdown with Moore was viewed as his last crack at the big time, a risk he knew was the right move to make, even if not entirely necessary for either fighter.
“We both could’ve gone another road, but we chose to fight each other. All respect to Jamie Moore; I’ve followed him for years and hope he can come back.
“But now it’s time for me to go for a world title.”
A point to which he’s arrived in highlight reel fashion.
NAPA SQUEAKS PAST DAVIES
In a minor upset, bantamweight journeyman Ian Napa barely edged out Merseyside prospect Gary Davies with a 12-round majority decision in their co-feature battles.
Scores were 116-112, 115-114 and 114-114.
Napa put away rounds early in the fight, and withstood a late rally from the heavy-handed Davies to score a much-needed win in a career that quickly unraveled in recent years.
The win advances the 31-year old Napa to 19-7 (7KO). Davies falls to 9-3-2 (7KO), snapping a seven-fight unbeaten streak in the process.
Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of Boxingscene.com and an award-winning member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Contact Jake at JakeNDaBox@gmail.com.
