Body Blows: Barrera/Juarez II PPV Review

Results

Marco Antonio Barrera defeated Rocky Juarez last May in a close fight that was originally declared a draw. After an error was found in the scorecards, Barrera was awarded the split decision. A rematch was inevitable and fittingly headlined a pay-per-view card entitled Too Close To Call last weekend. Three world titles were on the line in bouts that oddsmakers practically had as pick’ems.

Marco Antonio Barrera vs. Rocky Juarez II

The main event featured Marco Antonio Barrera’s defense of his WBC Super Featherweight Title against Rocky Juarez. Fans of the first fight were hoping for a repeat of their action-packed slugfest but many left disappointed and even early. Barrera outboxed Juarez for 12 rounds, using his jab and defense to thwart Juarez’s offensive attacks. Patience and sticking to the gameplan were key for the Barrera victory. Juarez attempted to brawl with Barrera but the 32-year-old champion was content to let Juarez chase him and avoided his trademark left hooks.

The scorecards reflected a unanimous decision for Marco Antonio Barrera. One judge favored Barrera by a score of 117-111, a more accurate scoring than the other two judges’ scores of 115-113. Juarez’s aggressiveness kept him in the fight but it shouldn’t have been that close. Barrera fought a great technical fight, but that’s not always what the fans want to see.

Barrera wants to fight Manny Pacquiao next, but Pacquiao first needs to win his rubber match with Erik Morales in November. Fans of Barrera would love to see him fight either fighter because it would be much more exciting than what they saw in the rematch with Juarez. Over 10,000 fans filled the MGM Grand in Las Vegas and the majority of them booed the action in the ring, a rarity for Marco Antonio Barrera fights. In fact, the most drama in the fight came after the final bell when Barrera seemed to go after Juarez. That’s the fire we like to see during the fight, not after.

Israel Vazquez vs. Jhonny Gonzalez

Fortunately, the undercard was far more exciting than the main event, giving live fans as well as pay-per-view subscribers, their moneys worth. Israel Vazquez defended his WBC Super Bantamweight Title against Jhonny Gonzalez. Vazquez is making his second defense of his title and neither fighter has lost since 2002. This would prove to be an extremely exciting contest with a controversial ending.

Gonzalez controlled the fight early. He used his reach advantage to land stiff jabs and aggravate the champion. By the third round, Vazquez was showing swelling above his right eye. The fourth round was more of the same, but this time Gonzalez followed one of his jabs with a left hook that put Vazquez down to the mat. Vazquez got up and came after Gonzalez, even wobbling the challenger before the round ended. Both men were bleeding, Gonzalez from the nose, and the crowd was really getting behind both fighters. Gonzalez was sticking with his jab but Vazquez figured out the timing and distance to land some power shots. Vazquez did just that in the sixth round, hurting Gonzalez once again and backing him into the corner. As the round wore down, Vazquez was going for the knockdown, only he left himself susceptible to one himself. Gonzalez landed a perfect counter left hook that knocked Vazquez down again with less than ten seconds in the round. Vazquez made the count but he wasn’t looking good.

Vazquez came out in the seventh round looking like a new fighter. He rushed Gonzalez with right hands and Gonzalez seemed surprised by the constant pressure. Vazquez continued to be aggressive and when he doubled the right hand, Gonzalez went down to the canvas. The crowd was stunned at how quickly the momentum had shifted. Gonzalez made the count but this was clearly a new fight. Vazquez seemed to have figured out Gonzalez and the challenger was becoming more timid with his jab. Two more rounds of excellent brawling and incredible displays of heart followed until the controversial tenth round started.

Vazquez was behind on the scorecards and fighting like it. Gonzlaez was ahead on the scorecards but fighting like he was behind. It was a great scene. Two men going out there and fighting for a world title. Late in the 10th round, Vazquez crushed Gonzalez with a left hook that led to another knockdown for the champion. Gonzalez was down but got to his feet and the referee cleared him to continue. That’s when Vazquez started to celebrate. Gonzalez’s corner threw in the towel and stopped the fight, a fight their fighter was winning and a fight their fighter was able to continue. The stoppage shocked the crowd and stunned the HBO announcers. The referee even seemed a little surprised. To make matters more intriguing, this was Gonzlaez’s first fight with trainer Oscar Suarez. His previous 37 fights were cornered by his father.

It’s disappointing to see such a great fight end this way but in boxing it’s best to err on the side of caution. Gonzalez appeared willing and able to continue but perhaps his corner knew something no one else did. It is always better to see a fight stopped too early than to see a fight go too long. This was Vazquez’s last fight at super bantamweight and he hopes to have similar success as a featherweight.

Jorge Rodrigo Barrios vs. Joan Guzman

This bout was supposed to be for Barrios’ WBO Super Featherweight Title, but Barrios lost that title at the scales when he weighed in two pounds over the 130-pound limit. If Guzman were to win this fight he would be awarded the title, otherwise the title would become vacant.

This was another exciting championship fight. Guzman just looked intimidating in the ring and showed little respect for Barrios’ punches. Guzman left his hands down as he came in to engage Barrios on numerous occasions. Barrios is not a difficult fighter to scout. It’s clear he’s going to attack and be aggressive every time he fights. That’s what he did this night but Guzman was willing to do the same and was just the better man. The final score was a split decision for Guzman, a closer fight than many believed it should have been for the dominant Barrios. I agree that Guzman won the fight, but Barrios also stole some rounds with his constant activity. Guzman gave up a lot of easy shots with his lack of defense and got too comfortable with his lead at the end of the fight as Barrios kept plugging away.

The kicker in this fight is that Barrios was deducted a point for a low blow in the sixth round. Had that infraction not occurred, the fight would have been scored a draw. That would have been an injustice but I can see where the close scores came from. Guzman landed an insane 215 of 428 power punches. It’s hard to score against a guy landing nearly 18 power punches per round. The final scores were 115-112 and 114-113 Guzman and 114-113 Barrios.

This was another fight full of heart, as Barrios who had no chance to win a title, came out and gave it all he had in the entire fight. The twelfth and final round was amazing as both men slugged away like they were reenacting Gatti/Ward. Guzman is a scary fighter and it will be interesting to see where he goes next. Most notable featherweights will likely stay away from him because he is a dangerous fighter.

Other Results From Last Week

– Almazbek “Kid Diamond” Raiymkulov defeated Jairo Rafael Ramirez by 7th round TKO.

– Super middleweight Lucian Bute scored an 8th round TKO over James Obede Toney (no relation).

– Junior Witter captured the vacant WBC Light Welterweight Title with a unanimous decision over DeMarcus “Chop Chop” Corley.

– Terdsak Jandaeng rebounded quickly from his loss last month to Juan Manuel Marquez. The man with the funniest first name in boxing knocked out Abi Metiaman in the first round.

– Jorge Paez Jr won a majority decision over Derrick Campos in the Too Close To Call PPV opener. Both men went down in this exciting four-rounder.

– Joe Mesi continues his comeback from medical suspension as he won a four-round unanimous decision over Jason Weiss.