LAKELAND, Florida – Gary Antonio Russell said his late father-trainer used to tell him of fighters like Colombia’s Dervin Rodriguez, “When a dog chases you, don’t run. Sometimes, you’ve got to tame him.”
Executing that direction to near perfection Friday night on the ProBox TV card from RP Funding Center, Russell cruised past Rodriguez, to a unanimous decision victory by three scores of 80-72.
“I’m a big believer that the smarter fighter should win most of the time,” Russell said. “I’m not going to say he didn’t respect my punching power, but he couldn’t get past my boxing IQ and when he decided to press the issue, I had to sit there and tame him.”
By mixing his boxing skill with resistance to Rodriguez’s bullish aggression, Russell, 21-1 (13 KOs), enhanced his position in the junior-featherweight division and moved toward a possible next showdown with recent title challenger Ramon Cardenas.
Russell, the brother of former featherweight champion Gary Russell Jnr and current 140lbs champion Gary Antuanne Russell, is ranked the No. 2 junior-featherweight by the WBA, behind champion Naoya Inoue, September 14 challenger (and interim champion) Murodjon Akhmadaliev and No. 1-ranked Cardenas.
“Any of the top opponents that put me in line for a belt, I’d love to take. I like the matchup. I wouldn’t mind going up against him,” Russell, 32, said. “It makes a whole lot of sense.”
With Russell Jnr in his corner and Gary Antuanne watching from ringside, Gary Antonio Russell relied on an effective left from his southpaw stance to score in the first round, and answered Rodriguez’s more rugged style by jabbing and moving to start the third, setting up an impressive combination and then knocking Rodriguez’s mouthpiece to the canvas by sizing him up and delivering a stiff left.
Rodriguez, 11-3-1 (8 KOs), wasn’t deterred, maintaining pressure in the fourth.
But Russell peppered Rodriguez with lefts in the fifth, ducking some blows that made Rodriguez appear less refined. Even when Rodriguez cornered Russell late in the round, Russell stood firm and got the better of the exchange. The toll of that skill divide seemed to dull Rodriguez in the sixth, and his head was jarred by a three-punch combination to open the seventh.
Two more followed, leaving Rodriguez to forcefully pound his gloves, acting as if getting outboxed wasn’t hurting him.
Thunderous combinations by Russell in the eighth, along with the scorecards, said otherwise.
Earlier, three fighters scored victories in their professional debuts during the night’s first four bouts.
Tampa’s junior featherweight and professional debutant Kenyan Valle, 21, showcased the benefit of his height and reach advantages by popping rights to the face of Myanmar-born opponent Lai Thang. When Thang, 2-4, brought pressure, Valle stepped back, recalibrated and answered with head punches from distance.
Judges scored the bout unanimously for Valle by three scores of 40-36.
Valle, the younger brother of Friday fighter Marques Valle and unbeaten junior lightweight Dominic Valle, extended his lead in the third with powerful flurries and effective hooks.
Valle’s variety with the left – uppercuts, hooks and power blows – allowed him to seal the victory in the fourth round in front of an audience that begged for more from the prospect.
“Hearing the crowd – the ‘oohs’ and ‘ahhs’ from my punches – was the best part,” Valle said.
Valle said he felt his poise shined during the showing, knowing his physical attributes were substantial.
“Everytime I go in the ring, most guys are smaller than me,” Valle said. “So that’s what I know how to do and that’s what works: my reach.”
New York junior welterweight Miguel Mendez flashed a sudden, hard left to land the defining shots and score a knockdown in his pro debut against Andrew Flamm, winning by scores of 39-36, 39-36 and 38-37.
Mendez, 22, knocked down Flamm with a punishing right-left with the second punch to the body sending Flamm careening to the canvas. An onslaught of power blows – mostly to the head – followed before the wounded Flamm retreated to the safety of his stool.
Mendez uncorked a third-round right that opened a cut on Flamm’s left eyelid. Flamm, 1-2, displayed grit by delivering power rights in the fourth, drawing applause at the final bell.
Narek Hovhannisyan, an Armenian debutant, pursued the plucky Kenneth Sene for six rounds, hurling heavy blows throughout and largely dominating. The three judges agreed, scoring the bout 60-54.
Sene, who had lost his last two outings on points, struggled to keep the fiery Hovhannisyan off him early and the theme was set. Varied attacks from the debutant seemed to hurt Sene, particularly raids to the body punctuated by spiteful hooks.
“We need to slow him down a little bit,” Sene’s corner urged in the second round but the 27-year-old, based in Los Angeles, continued at pace, his left hook proving particularly potent.
Sene – nicknamed “Tyson” – proved plucky enough, however. He scored with a left hook of his own in the third which got Hovhannisyan’s attention, momentarily sending him to the ropes, before the favorite quickly regained control.
Hovhannisyan would not be contained in the fourth, and in the fifth, a clubbing right hand caused Sene’s knees to dip. The sustained and painful attacks continued into the sixth round and Sene, always trying but falling to 4-3 (1 KO), did well to hear the final bell.
Hawaii lightweight Noah Timoteo opened the card, making his pro debut with a first-round knockout of veteran Alexander Taylor at the 2:34 mark.
Timoteo quickly backed up Taylor, 21-49-2, with hard jabs and hooks, then floored him with a hard right to the head that caused Taylor to lean on the canvas and spit out his mouthpiece as the count reached 10.
Timoteo said he experienced nerves before his first pro bell because “anything can happen in there, but as soon as it rings, instinct locks in. When I get in that ring, it’s business.
“I go in there to be victorious each time.”
Timoteo manager Robert Diaz said he plans to schedule a minimum of six fights for Timoteo during the next year.
Check out the latest boxing news.
