By Cliff Rold

There was a time where the fights that top this year’s list would have had almost no chance to be honored by a US-based media outlet. 

There was a time without YouTube. 

There was a time before cable network BeIn Espanol (or access to dozens of other outlets for fisticuffs via cable of satellite). 

For hardcore fight fans, this is a better time.  This might be the best time, in terms of seeing the full scope of boxing’s wonders, there has ever been.  Not everyone embraces the global approach.  Some people need more familiarity with the men in the ring or can’t invest in commentary they don’t understand.

There’s nothing wrong with that.

For them, this is not the best of times.

Many end-of-the-year reviews have decried the sometimes-sorry state of boxing in 2014 in the States.  Premium network and promotional issues have created almost two different leagues in boxing.

That sort of competition existed between WWF and WCW in the world of professional wrestling in the 90s and was great for a time.  Professional wrestling is based on fictional storytelling devices.

Boxing is reality based.  Competing leagues in boxing suck.  Press releases celebrating peak audiences that don’t even approach two million live homes suck too. 

Boxing isn’t dying.  That’s a nonsense narrative.  There is no escaping the state of affairs though. The existing niche isn’t growing much and the networks that push the sports biggest US draws are hit and miss. In much of the rest of the world, it’s still a big time sport.  Carl Froch and George Groves put over 80,000 butts in the seats this year.  Wladimir Klitschko does massive ratings and ticket sales abroad.  Some 13 million tuned in to see Juan Francisco Estrada-Giovani Segura in Mexico.

Yes, there is still plenty of sport outside of the pissing contests. 

If anyone reading hasn’t seen a choice for Fight of the Year listed here, give it a shot. 

Maybe the back-story is missing.

Perhaps the commentary is distracting.

The leather flying is a language all its own, universal to anyone who loves to see a good fight.  Boxing remains great.  It was great several times at home as well, as will be seen.  Our choice for top scrap was all fight, all the time, for twelve breathless rounds.   

2014 Fight of the Year: Francisco Rodriguez Jr. UD12 Katsunari Takayama

For the second time in the last four years, BoxingScene’s best fight of the year came in boxing’s smallest weight class.  In only the fourth unification match in the history of the division, these two diminutive warriors threw more punches in twelve rounds than seen in most other men’s last twelve fights. 

Then they threw some more.

Both men were well warmed up and lathered in sweat before the opening bell, bouncing anxiously in their corners.  They got underway and Takayama wasted no time bringing the fight to Rodriguez, letting his quicker hands go and then beginning to put his legs to work.  As is his pattern, Takayama circled constantly while working his left jab, stepping in with flurries and single right hands.  In the last minute, Rodriguez began to time Takayama with left hooks upstairs to make his early statement.

Takayama missed with two wild haymakers to start the second but found success to the body as the frame wore on.  Both men were letting their hands go but having a hard time landing much clean.  Takayama was getting in more but in the final thirty seconds Rodriguez caught him with a solid left and appeared to stun the Japanese veteran.

In the first minute of the third, the thudding power shots of Rodriguez broke through, a left hook sending Takayama to the seat of his trunks.  Takayama must have felt a sense of déjà vu having been dropped in the same round of his title winning effort over Mario Rodriguez in Mexico last year.

He responded the same way he had then.

Takayama leapt up, indicated he could go on and seemed to argue a slip.  Referee disagreed but let it continue after finishing the mandatory eight count.  Takayama immediately went to work, firing at Rodriguez to get his point back, staying on top of Rodriguez and handling the left hooks he left himself open for.

Round four was three minutes of sustained warfare as both men took turns landing in multiple.  While Takayama was the more active man, it was Rodriguez landing the harder blows.  Takayama closed the round strong, landing a flurry on Rodriguez against the ropes.

The relentless pace continued in round five, Takayama boxing and moving just a little bit more than in the last couple rounds and controlling the action for much of the round.  Rodriguez found him late in the round and they exchanged wildly into the bell of an increasingly pitched battle.

Scrapping forehead to forehead early in the sixth, both men winged away to the body.  A little space gave both room to aim upstairs and the punches kept flying until a slight lull two minutes in as Takayama used his legs to slow things down and find spots for haymakers.  Rodriguez kept pressing forward and closed the gap to resume the firefight as they worked towards the welcome respite of the bell.

Perhaps fatigued by the ceaseless onslaught of Takayama, Rodriguez appeared weary in the first minute of the seventh as he was backed to the ropes and left to cover up.  After taking the worst of it for the first half of the round, Rodriguez landed a jarring left to the face to push Takayama back for a moment and then aimed his attack downstairs.  As the round closed, Takayama was again landing more and in volume with Rodriguez pressing for a bomb.

Round eight opened with Takayama landing a flush right to the side of the head.  Undeterred, Rodriguez fought on with more energy than he’d shown in the seventh.  Waiting for Takayama to lead, Rodriguez used countering rights and lefts to rock Takayama and keep him often on the back foot, putting together his best round since the fourth.

Crossing himself on the stool before the start of the ninth, Rodriguez came out with fire again and landed some hard right hands.  Toe to toe they stood, taking the measure of one another through the first minute before Takayama wisely began to move.  Rodriguez taunted him, daring him to return to the trenches, and then chased him down and made him do it.  In the closing seconds it was all out war as neither man gave an inch and more punches flew than could seem to be counted.

Refusing to stop punching, Takayama willed himself to an edge in the tenth even as Rodriguez continued to paste him with the single hardest shots of the round.  The sheer volume of offense was Takayama’s boon.

He got a little carried away with it to start the eleventh, earning a warning when he charged Rodriguez and forced him to the floor in the corner prematurely.  Enraged, Rodriguez came after him hard but it was Takayama who briefly forced Rodriguez to the ropes.  Battling at mid-ring near the halfway mark, Rodriguez blasted Takayama with power shots and it was Takayama fighting off the ropes in the closing minute.  Rodriguez landed the last significant flurry of the round and they went to the corner with three minutes left to stake their claim.

Takayama was off the stool first for the final round.  Rodriguez’s face was a bruised mass but he could see his target.  A Takayama slip in Rodriguez’s corner was followed by a right hand, Rodriguez receiving a warning for hitting a down man.  Takayama appeared none the worse for it and they resumed action.  Hurting Takayama with a right hand near the minute mark, Rodriguez was tied up and Takayama quickly cleared his head.  In the final minute, it was Rodriguez landing more and trying to put his man away.  Takayama fittingly came up with one last assault, working Rodriguez on the ropes with one last salvo.  

The power shots of Rodriguez ultimately told the tale on the judge’s cards, though one score was egregiously unfair to the valiant effort of Takayama.  Rodriguez won by tallies 115-112, 116-111, and a patently absurd 119-108 to unify two of the four prominent sanctioning body titles.

Both men would fight once more before the year was over.  Rodriguez would vacate his titles and settle for a draw at Flyweight while preparing for a possible battle with Jr. Flyweight leader Donnie Nietes.  Takayama stopped Go Odaira to win the IBF and WBO titles Rodriguez left behind.  Both have plenty left to give.  If they never gave another ounce to this game, they’d always have the best fight of 2014.

Runner-Up: Tommy Coyle TKO12 Daniel Brizuela

Rising Lightweight Tommy Coyle was moving towards contention at year’s end.  Should he ever win a major title, this will be the trial by fire all recall.  It takes two to tango and Daniel Brizuela matched him every step of the way.  Bouncing each other off the floor eight times before it was over, Coyle and Brizuela gave each other and the fans everything they had.

There was everything you could imagine in a fight - knockdowns, point deductions, rumble and major controversy - all within one twelve-round package, as Tommy Coyle of the UK and his Argentinean opponent Daniel Eduardo Brizuela produced a natural thriller and a clear-cut Fight of the Year frontrunner, which featured eight knockdowns, three point deductions and a highly questionable stoppage. After a fog of war dispersed, and shouts became less noisy, Tommy Coyle came out as the winner by way of TKO… (at) 1:07 of the twelfth and final round.

After a slow start, Brizuela, who lost a close call to Daud Cino Yordan last year, found his distance and began applying real power. The soft spot in Coyle's defense was soon found, and it proved to be his liver section. After hurting Coyle several times with well-placed left hooks, Brizuela landed a cracking right hand to put the Brit down late into the second round. Amazingly, this setback motivated Coyle to engage even more into the fisticuffs. He turned back the tide in the third, using his right hand to tag the Argentinean several times throughout the stanza. He continued his way back into the contest in the fourth round and looked dominating in the fifth. However, referee Steve Grey also warned him harshly twice for hitting below the beltline.

Just when it seemed, Coyle was in relative safety, Brizuela made his biggest throttle, having a monstrous sixth round. Hitting repeatedly to the liver section, he finally put Coyle down again in pain. Then immediately the British fighter was decked again with the same shot. Clearly hurt with a mask of pain on his face Coyle managed to get an upright stance right before the count of ten to continue fighting. The way he fought back made the sixth a frontrunner for a Round of the year. And it was so for about ten-to-fifteen minutes.

As was the case in the third, a huge letdown motivated Coyle to fight with even more zeal. And he responded, taking the seventh round. The eighth round was a thriller again. This time Coyle has been finally deducted a point for hitting way too low. The score was very much 67-62 or 66-63 - for Brizuela at this point, meaning the Brit had something to do. And he did, finally scoring with a right haymaker to send the Argentinean down hard at the very end of the round. Actions continued to go his way in the ninth, when the referee - this time without any warnings - deducted a point from Brizuela for a low blow of his own (although it was just a single shot without any previous warnings). However, Argentinean looked better in the tenth, once again troubling Coyle's liver.

The eleventh proved to be the real apex of a whole encounter. Brizuela (25-3-2, 8 KOs) started it well, and finally found the same liver section to put Coyle down in pain. And once again he beat the count. Feeling the taste of blood Brizuela rushed in and immediately down, following a counter right from the Brit. He survived the first count but was very wobbly, and soon was knocked down again. Browsing a world of pain and despair, Brizuela got an unexpected aid from the referee, who deducted a point from Coyle for hitting after the break. Brizuela lasted the round, and started the twelfth actively. Coyle, however, turned it around and landed yet another damaging right hand to put Brizuela down. The Argentinean beat the count and looked ready to go, when Steve Gray unexpectedly waved the fight off, repeating a sad outcome of the Froch fight in what was a notch worse in skill but no way worse in drama performance.

Runner-Up, Part Two: Orlando Salido KO11 Terdsak Kokietgym

Orlando Salido had a big 2014 after losing and winning Featherweight belts in 2013.  He started the year with a decision over lauded Vasyl Lomachenko, losing his belt on the scales, and then moved in Jr. Lightweight with authority in this classic encounter.  By the time it was over, there would be seven recorded knockdowns and a devastating finishing knockout.   

It took no time for a fight to break out.  Battling at close quarters, the southpaw Kokietgym landed a crisp right hand to drop Salido less than a minute into the fight.  Salido beat the count and wasted little time getting close.  A low blow sent Kokietgym to the floor and the referee errantly ruled a knockdown.  Kokietgym was up and back in the fray, hurting Salido again in the final minute of a wild first round.

A fierce second round saw both men battling again inside, Salido seeming to get the better of it until the closing seconds.  A left hand down the pipe put Salido on the seat of his trunks and his face expressed as much surprise as the crowds.  He beat the count, up by eight, and the bell rang before any more punches could fly.

A short left inside wobbled Salido as they neared a minute to go in round three.  He kept his bearings and rocked Kokietgym with a right before the round was over and both men were launching bombs as the bell rang.

A Salido right hand landed in the fourth and Kokietgym hit the deck at mid ring but the referee correctly ruled their feet had been tangled so no knockdown.  Salido’s greater punch variety showed as he mixed it up to the head and body and laid it on the game Thai battler.  A right to the belly sent Kokietgym to the floor in the closing seconds to swing the momentum back in Salido’s direction and draw a roar from the crowd.  Kokietgym beat the count and fired back as Salido came forward before the bell.

Right away in the fifth, Salido pounced on Kokietgym with an all out attack to the body and paid a price.  A chopping left from Kokietgym sent Salido backwards, his gloves touching the floor to catch his fall for the fifth official knockdown of the fight.  Nonplussed, Salido kept grinding for the rest of the round while Kokietgym looked for the explosive counters that had paid dividends since the first.

Round six had some strange drama.  Outworking Kokietgym for most of the frame, Salido was on fire with a sustained attack and the referee jumped in leading some to believe he was calling the fight.  Salido began to celebrate.  Instead, the referee made clear he thought the bell had rung, which it had not.  They resumed action and the bell rang seconds later.

Trapping Kokietgym on the ropes in round seven, Salido nearly battered him out of the ring before nailing him with the knockdown blow.  Kokietgym beat the count of official knockdown number six and went right back into the trenches, landing a pair of notable uppercuts as time went on.  Both men exhausted, they caught their breath leaning into each other in the closing seconds of the round.

Salido hurt Kokietgym at the start of the eighth with a combination.  Kokietgym fired back and then covered as Salido dug to his body.  A right hand wobbled Kokietgym halfway through the round but he would not quit and winged back to stay in it.

The ninth began with both men landing hard, short shots inside but the pace was markedly slower as the round moved to the halfway mark.  It was ultimately a round off for both as Kokietgym moved more and Salido didn’t argue the point a ton.  He did in the tenth, steadily working over a Kokietgym who offered very little in return.

Moments into round eleven it was all over.  A left hook shook Kokietgym and left him open for a devastating right, left, right combination with a final grazing left for affect.  Kokietgym was down, out, and swarmed by ring doctors as referee Eddie Claudio waved their personal war complete at :16 seconds of round eleven.     

OTHERS RECEIVING CONSIDERATION

Travis Dickinson TKO6 Matty Clarkson: Six knockdowns and a questionable stoppage highlighted this brutal battle for the English Light Heavyweight crown:

Clarkson started confidently but was soon put down with a major right uppercut in the first round, which was a brief knockdown. More damaging was the knockdown in round two, when the champion put Clarkson down with a big counter left. The challenger got up and fought zealously in return but those rounds were both in favor of Dickinson.

Situation has started to turn around in the third. Clarkson was able to convert the quantity of his return fire into quality, putting Dickinson down with a major right hand. The fourth stanza was also in favor of the challenger bit it was way closer. The next round turned into a natural catastrophe for Dickinson, as Clarkson has found a weak spot in his liver section. He landed one painful shot that decked Dickinson down during the first minute of the round, and then continued to pound the champion. Dickinson fought on with a devilish grimace of pain and despair and was floored two more times. Every time he was put down, the feeling was he was millisecs of being counted out for good.

Instead he survived, not even knowing that the next round will be his and his opponent's last. But a big swelling on the Clarkson's left cheek played cards for him. On the first glance, the ringside physician allowed the fight to go. Dickinson jumped on Clarkson and landed several punches. Clarkson was hurt but wasn't unconscious or put down. Yet the referee dared to step in, provoking an extra round of boos.

Rodrigo Guerrero TKO7 Daniel Rosas: Guerrero, a former titlist at 115 lbs., came back from the brink of nowhere in this back and forth affair:

There was no title at stake or even the assurance of a title shot in Saturday’s fight with Rosas, but Guerrero fought as if his career was on the line. Perhaps it was, even at age 26 as he has been forced to work harder than most for everything he’s achieved.

That level of desire and willingness showed in the opening round, when Rosas was dropped hard and nearly taken out. Guerrero applied heavy pressure in the first couple of rounds, before Rosas was able to rally back in round three.

A deep cut over Rosas’ eye slowed his momentum in the fourth round, and perhaps played a factor in the fight, Guerrero didn’t show any mercy, pouring on the attack although Rosas was firing back plenty in return.

For boxing fans, the fight was one of the better entries in a weekend loaded with boxing action around the world. It’s doubtful that Rosas will be content with simply wearing that badge, as his days as an unbeaten fighter quickly came to an end. Guerrero had the rising young contender in considerable trouble before the fight was stopped in round seven.

Terrence Crawford TKO9 Yuriorkis Gamboa: Undefeated.  Skilled.  Fast.  Special.  All of those ingredients were on display in this fantastic Lightweight battle.  Crawford was making his first defense of the WBO title.  Gamboa was attempting to re-track a career that had slowed badly.  The leather flew:

Never before has a fighter from Nebraska won a title fight in state prior to Saturday evening. For about four rounds, Crawford seemed to suffer that same fate as Gamboa exuded confidence and fluidity, showing flashes of the supremely gifted boxer who claimed a Gold medal for his native Cuba in the 2004 Athens Olympics and entered the pro ranks to high accolades in 2007.

Crawford spent much of the evening fighting out of the southpaw stance, but was a sucker for right hands from Gamboa, who had the style well-timed and fought without a care in the world.

That level of arrogance proved to be a hindrance at times throughout his career, but always eventually resulted in victory. It ultimately cost him on this particular night, as his leaky defense and lack of discipline were horrible additions to the height and reach disadvantages with which he was met in just his third career fight outside of featherweight.

After falling behind early, Crawford turned up the heat in round five. The crowd was already literally dancing in the aisles from the moment their local favorite came out of the dressing room. The venue erupted when Gamboa was rocked courtesy of a counter right hook, eventually leading to the bout’s first knockdown.

Gamboa protested the call, insisting he was thrown to the canvas. His legs told a different story, as he staggered around the ring for most of the rest of the round. Crawford tried his damndest to close the show, only for Gamboa to survive a monster left hand to clinch his way to the bell.

It took more than a round for the Cuban boxer to regain his legs, but the magic had quickly vanished. Crawford dramatically closed the gap and had assumed control of the fight. That’s not to say Gamboa didn’t have his moments, as he was still able to initiate the action and take the lead in ensuing rounds.

The difference, however, was that Crawford was confident he could take his opponent’s best. Even more so, that he knew his best was enough to turn the tide at any given moment.

That scenario was perfectly encapsulated late in round eight. Gamboa marched forward, desperately trying to swing momentum back in his favor. The plan worked until it didn’t, largely due to his inability – or perhaps full disinterest – in keeping his hands up to guard against the incoming. Crawford waded through a swarm of punches to rock and drop Gamboa late in round eight, never looking back from that point onward.

Two more knockdowns came in round nine before referee Geno Rodriguez wisely stepped in to stop the contest.

The official time was 2:37 of round nine.  

Lucas Matthysse KO10 John Molina: The latest ‘most feared man in boxing’ turned out to be less scary in the ring with Danny Garcia in 2013 for the Jr. Welterweight crown.  Big puncher John Molina had him on the floor twice before he found out what Matthysse was all about:

It was no secret both guys had power and it didn’t take long for it to be put on display as both guys threw and landed bombs from the opening stanza. Molina landed two overhand rights that connected flush and stunned Matthysse. In the 2nd round, Molina would once again connect and this time Matthysse would go down for the first time in the fight.

Molina did a good job of controlling distance as he made sure to pull out of reach when Matthysse lunged in looking to land his power combinations. Sensing some urgency after tasting the canvas and suffering a cut from a headbutt in the 3rd round, Matthysse fought aggressively and traded with Molina. Lucas began closing the distance and finding a home for his big shots.

In the 5th round however, Molina would once again unleash his overhand right as he would put Matthysse down for the second time. At that point it appeared Molina was able to take Lucas’ power much better than the other way around. Even after being down twice and being stunned, Matthysse never stopped coming forward and punching.
Matthysse slowly began to take over the fight and he also put in a great body attack on Molina. The same punches Molina was able to evade earlier in the fight were now landing for Lucas much as he ripped him with right hands and left hooks. To his credit Molina was taking the shots but what he fired back in return wasn’t as effective as it was earlier.

By the 8th round, Molina was spending too much time against the ropes as Matthysse took advantage and unload his arsenal with almost all of it landing. Molina showed a great beard and heart but the punishment was taking its toll on him as he finally went down from a Matthysse left hand late in the 8th.

In the 10th round, another attack from Matthysse would force Molina to take a knee as he had no choice but to succumb to the punishment Lucas was dishing out. To his credit Molina fought and threw until the end but he would once again crumble in the 11th round as referee Pat Russell called a halt to the fight.

Steve Cunningham UD10 Amir Mansour: Often forgotten on lists of the sports best action fighters, Cunningham has been a reliable warrior at both Cruiserweight and Heavyweight.  This multiple knockdown affair was no different:

Steve Cunningham’s face was a bloody mess, the product of a cut that had been opened over his left eye early and had been punched several times since. He rose from the canvas once, then again, his legs weakened by the heavy shots that had landed, and the man that had thrown those punches was standing just feet away from him, hoping to finishing him off.

The bell rang. Cunningham survived. There were five rounds left. And while some might have thought those five rounds meant plenty more opportunities for Amir Mansour to clobber Cunningham, the experienced boxer used that additional time to recover, dodging wild shots thrown by the crude brawler, scoring a knockdown of his own and fighting his way to a unanimous decision win.

One judge had it 97-90 for Cunningham — seemingly far too wide at nine rounds to one, with two additional points taken from Cunningham from the pair of knockdowns in the fifth, and one point docked from Mansour for the knockdown in the 10th. The other two judges had it 95-92, or seven rounds to three.

Juan Carlos Reveco UD12 Felix Alvarado: In a division never short on action, during one of its finest eras in decades, this turned out to be the Flyweight Fight of the Year.  Grueling from start to finish, Reveco retained his piece of the WBA crown with Alvarado pushing him every step of the way:

The visiting boxer came out smoking in the opening round, catching Reveco off guard in jumping out to an early lead.

Reveco, who also enjoyed a stay as 108 lb. titlist earlier in his career, is almost always at a height disadvantage for any given flyweight title fight. At 5'2", the squat and stocky boxer is forced to keep the fight on the inside in order to neutralize Alvarado's stiff jab and combination punching from long range.

The defending titlist eventually settled in, darting in and out to disrupt Alvarado's rhythm. Rather than force a brawl, Reveco is wisely sitting back and setting traps, countering Alvarado whenever he misses from long range.

Alvarado refused to abandon his earlier body attack, though it proved more harm than good to his own chances. Another errant punch caught Reveco just below the belt towards the end of round seven, resulting in a point deduction. It was an untimely infraction as the 25-year old was threatening to regain momentum.

Despite the deduction, Alvarado kept a cool head, while Reveco's was beginning to fall apart from the outside. A tide-turning round seven saw the challenger well in control, landing right hands with great success while never sticking around long enough to leave himself open for counters.

By round's end, Reveco was bleeding profusely from his left ear, although his corner did a remarkable job in preventing from the wound becoming a factor. What wasn't happening was a reversal in momentum.

Alvarado continued to pour on the attack over the course of the second half of the fight. Reveco was visibly fatigued while Alvarado was fighting like a contender who learned a world of experience from his title challenge versus Kazuto Ioka last December.

With the fight threatening to slip away, Reveco dug deep for a strong showing in round 10. The local favorite wasn't in the lead for long, as Alvarado came out swinging in the championship rounds. His attack was steady, though perhaps a bit too overzealous. The Nicaraguan was warned for hitting while holding down on the back of Reveco's neck, before having another point deducted later in the round due to another stray shot below the belt.

The pair of point deductions appeared to be Reveco's bailout, as he was otherwise consistently beaten to the punch down the stretch. Alvarado continued to score with jabs and overhand rights, though a gasp could be felt anytime he habitually threw a body punch. Reveco took the shots well, but struggled to find a home for his left hook.

The closing seconds of the fight saw the two fighters trade at will, before embracing at the final bell.

It proved to be all for naught for Alvarado, who was given no chance on the final scorecards. Reveco was hailed a comfortable winner according to the three judges, thus who scored the bout 115-112, 115-110 and 112-109.

Robert Guerrero UD12 Yoshihiro Kamegai: Making his first, and to date only, start since a loss to Floyd Mayweather, the former Featherweight and Jr. Lightweight titlist Guerrero got all he could ask for from the valiant Kamegai:

From the opening bell, it was obvious this fight was not going to be a tune-up or a showcase fight for Guerrero. Kamegai came to fight and pressed the action in the first couple of rounds. Guerrero landed the telling blows from the beginning, but ate one punch after landing two or three of his own.

Just when it seemed as though Guerrero would land a series of blows to the head and body, Kamegai would land a hard enough punch to head or body that kept Guerrero honest.

Guerrero developed a nasty cut above his left eye courtesy of an uppercut from Kamegai in the sixth round. On top of that, the area around the cut swelled, almost closing the eye shut, which made it difficult for Guerrero to see.

"I couldn't see those overhand rights from him (Kamegai), but I was able to see those straight rights," said Guerrero afterwards. "I could feel he was slowing down from some of the body punches I was landing."

Kamegai did slow down and it looked by the ninth and 10th rounds, any sustainable attack by Guerrero could produce a knockdown. Much to a lot of people's surprise, Kamegai rallied in the 11th round, landing a series of punched onto Guerrero.

Both fighters traded valiantly in the final round. Kamegai went all in, hoping to hurt or knockdown Guerrero. It was not enough as Guerrero was able to make it out of the round and win a well-deserved decision.

All three judges scored the bout in favor of Guerrero, 117-111, 117-111, and 116-112.

BOXINGSCENE.COM 2014 AWARDS SEASON
Network of the Year: HBO
Comeback of the Year: Rocky Juarez
Prospect of the Year: Anthony Joshua
Event of the Year: Mayweather/NSAC
Fighter of the Year: Naoya Inoue
Knockout of the Year: Alexander Povetkin KO10 Carlos Takam
Robbery of the Year: Oscar Escandon SD12 Tyson Cave
Round of the Year: Francisco Rodriguez Jr.-Katsunari Takayama, Round 12
Upset of the Year: Vivian Harris SD10 Jorge Paez Jr.
Fight of the Year: Francisco Rodriguez Jr.-Katsunari Takayama

Cliff Rold is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene, a founding member of the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board, and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America.  He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com