Tweet
By Jake Donovan - In what we can only hope to become a growing trend, youth was served for a change in the light heavyweight division as undefeated Tavoris Cloud exploded onto the scene with a 10th round stoppage of faded former linear light heavyweight champion Julio Cesar Gonzalez.
The bout headlined ESPN2's Friday Night Fight's telecast, which aired live from the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago, IL.
The fight represented a huge step up in class for Cloud, but didn't prevent the chiseled Tallahassee (FL) native from starting out the same way as any of his previous bouts – full steam ahead, making his opponent feel his pain. Cloud took the fight right to Gonzalez, turning the fight into a high-volume affair less than a minute in.
A right hand midway through the round drew a collective "ooh" from the rabid crowd on hand at the Aragon Ballroom. Gonzalez was able to play matador defense, forcing Cloud to expend energy as he was missing with his power shots. But very little was coming back in return, as was also the case in the second round.
The third round was fought in a phone booth, with both fighters standing and trading in center ring. Gonzalez was looking for any opening to turn the tide, but Cloud always had an answer. When the action drifted toward the ropes, Cloud kept just enough distance to avoid Gonzalez' looping shots while nailing him with jabs and arcing right hands. [details]
The bout headlined ESPN2's Friday Night Fight's telecast, which aired live from the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago, IL.
The fight represented a huge step up in class for Cloud, but didn't prevent the chiseled Tallahassee (FL) native from starting out the same way as any of his previous bouts – full steam ahead, making his opponent feel his pain. Cloud took the fight right to Gonzalez, turning the fight into a high-volume affair less than a minute in.
A right hand midway through the round drew a collective "ooh" from the rabid crowd on hand at the Aragon Ballroom. Gonzalez was able to play matador defense, forcing Cloud to expend energy as he was missing with his power shots. But very little was coming back in return, as was also the case in the second round.
The third round was fought in a phone booth, with both fighters standing and trading in center ring. Gonzalez was looking for any opening to turn the tide, but Cloud always had an answer. When the action drifted toward the ropes, Cloud kept just enough distance to avoid Gonzalez' looping shots while nailing him with jabs and arcing right hands. [details]
Comment