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The Educator Schools Razor
Sharp!
Gallegos Hangs On to Top Lightweight Spot With Impressive
Decision Over Romero
ringside
report & photos by chris
cozzone
The
Telefutura TV crews mightíve been there for Goyo Vargas, but the
real main event of the eveningóthe fight New Mexico fans
wanted to seeówas the lightweight showdown between top prospect
Shawn ìthe Educatorî Gallegos and Jacob ìRazor Sharpî Romero.
Attempting a
comeback after four years off, could Romero hang with the
Educator? And if so, could Gallegos, who has been down three
times in has last four fights, hold up to 10-1 Romero?
The answer
was ìyes,î to both questions. But last night, ìhang withî just
wasnít good enough to win rounds, let alone a fight, for Romero.
While he held his own, the younger, more aggressive Gallegos
proved too tough a fight after a four year layoff.
Gallegos came
on strong from the start, pressuring Romero and utilizing a
stiff jab while loading up on right hands. Bleeding from a cut
near his left eye from an accidental headbutt, Romero landed a
couple of his own right hands but it wasnít enough to persuade
Gallegos to back off.
Gallegos
continued to drive Romero back in the 2nd, adding
left hooks to his attack. Romero just wasnít busy enough.
The 3rd
was a better round for Razor Sharp. While Gallegos was the
aggressor, Romero landed the better punches of the round with
his counterpunching left hooks and body shots.
Gallegos,
though, turned up the heat in the 4th and once again,
Romero held back. The best exchange of the fight at the end of
the round had both fighters trading blowsóRomero dropping
defense to unload a slew of wild punches. Still, it was another
round in the bank for Gallegos whose right hands and jabs were
making the difference.
Rounds 5 and
6 were more of the same: Romero holding back and Gallegos
pushing forward. Both fighters finished up with some great
exchanges but Gallegosí chin and sharper defense held up,
securing a lopsided decision for the Las Vegas prospect.
Scorecards
read 60-54 twice and 59-55, which is how I had itóall for
Gallegos.
After the
fight, Romero said that heíd taken too tough of a fight to stage
a comeback after four years.
ìI didnít do
enough and I felt the ring rust,î said Romero. ìI couldnít put
it together, although I thought I hurt him a couple times.î
Romero has
not yet decided whether heíll continue fighting:
ìThis was a
trial for me of some sort,î he said. ìWho knows what Iíll do
now. Iíll have to see . . . .î
Gallegos, on
the other hand, is ready to go forward at full speed.
ìI kept to
game plan in this fight, listened to my corner and did okay
tonight,î he said. ìAnd my chin held upóI guess I put enough
Superglue on it.
ìI went out
there to box tonight, not just try and knock someone out to
impress the crowd. I got the power but I realize that if the
knockout comes, itíll come. I can win by boxing.î
Gallegos, who
rises to 8-1, hopes to fight again in May.
# # #
photos by chris cozzone
GALLEGOS
VS. ROMERO
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Vargas Takes Sanchez-Leon!
Co-Main: Molitor Clinics Coronel
ringside
report & photos by chris
cozzone
Former champ Goyo Vargas mightíve looked a little pudgy
last night, and he mightíve worried his fans after giving away
the first few rounds to the crafty Julio Cesar-Sanchez, looking
like a comeback was about as plausible as filling Sandia
Casinoís 4,200-seat arena after Danny Romero pulled out due to
illness, but he showed what fans were there what he was
made of.
Throughout
the fight, Vargas pressed the action, while Sanchez-Leon played
evasive with a counterpunching strategy. It worked beautifully
for the first half of the fight for Sanchez-Leon. He not only
landed the harder, cleaner punches, but by the end of the 3rd,
was actually beginning to drive Vargas back with his hard left
hooks and body shots.
Goyo
looked old; like his timing was off. Just when he would close
the distance and start to fire away, Sanchez-Leon would come off
first, then disappear before Vargas could get to work.
But age
and Vargasí tardiness in connecting started to melt away right
around the second half of the 4th round.
Vargas
started to close the gap, corner Sanchez-Leon and let loose.
Punch output increased, connect shots intensified and
Sanchez-Leon started to hurt. Vargas had him in a bit of trouble
in the 6th and 7th but Sanchez-Leon
bounced back in the 8th, returning to his original
game plan rather than trade punches with the stronger Vargas.
The
exchanges increased, though, in the 9th and 10th,
with Vargas giving more than getting, and Sanchez-Leon started
to get on his bike and coast to the finish line. Due to the
early rounds, it was looking like a close fight after ten
rounds.
I had it 6
rounds to 4, for Vargas, although there were a couple rounds
that couldíve gone the other way. Judges, though, saw it for the
former champ: 96-94 twice and 97-93.
Hoping for
another title shot, Vargas moves to 43-7-1 (30 KOís);
Sanchez-Leon falls to 20-14-1 (14 KOís).
In the
televised co-main event, unbeaten Canadian contender Steve
Molitor, whoíd stepped in for Danny Romero earlier in the week,
took on the rugged Columbian Julio Coronel.
While
Coronel had an arsenal of weaponsómainly his headóMolitorís
southpaw stance and superior skills made the Columbian look
foolish.
Coronel
lost a point for hitting behind the head in the 2nd;
he was also down in the 4th when a bad call ruled a
push a knockdown. Other than that, for ten rounds, it was a
boxing clinic, with Molitor popping Coronel with jabs and quick
combos. Any close exchanges were suppressed when Molitor tied
up; and from the Canadian spending most of his time trying to
protect himself from Coronelís torpedo forehead from butting.
At the end
of ten, it was a no-brainer. I had it an easy shutout for the
skillful Molitor, 100-89. Judges had it 99-89, 98-90 and 100-89.
# # #
photos by chris cozzone
VARGAS VS.
SANCHEZ-LEON
MOLITOR VS. CORONEL
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 Undercard
Action
Munoz
Shows Grit; Garcia Stops Why Not; Alderete, Condit Sweep Foes
Santa Feís
Bryan Garcia opened up the action with a two-round thriller
against Phoenixís Jorge ìWhy Notî Lopez, accomplishing what
David Martinez, Cesar Lopez and Alex Becerra could not do: stop
Lopez.
The first
round was close. While Garcia was more accurate, Loepzís punches
were harder, giving him the round.
In the 2nd,
though, Garcia landed a right hand that hurt Lopez. An onslaught
of body punches, then, had Lopez hanging on. After the ref broke
ëem apart, Lopez had little left and after Garcia went to town
on him, the ref stopped the fight at 2:47.
ìHurricaneî
Hector Munoz was up next, taking on pro debuter from Texas
Geoffery Sprewell.
A lean Munoz
went to work behind a jab and midway through the first, a
beautiful short uppercut put Sprewell on the canvas. Sprewell
made the count and made it to the end.
In the 2nd,
Sprewell bounced back, counterpunching the aggressive Munoz who
was trying to close the distance to hammer him down again. But
in the 3rd, after a few successful countershots,
Sprewell started to get braver. In the last minute, he landed a
hard right and bam! The Hurricane went down.
Showing
heart, he got up and went right back to work.
The 4th
was a slugfest, but Munoz pulled it off, eking out the round to
a less-enthusiastic Sprewell.
At the end of
four, judges all had it for Munoz, 38-36 twice and 39-36.
ìI got caught
in the 3rd and my ear popped,î Munoz said afterward.
ìIt was frustrating but Iím getting more experience.î
Munozís
trainer, Danny Romero, Sr. called the fight a success, saying
that Munoz showed a lot of heart and poise.
ìYou canít
teach that in the gym,î he said.
After the
televised portion of the fight, cruiserweight Mike Alderete took
on pro debuter Ray Encinas in a four-round brawl.
It was an
awkward fight, with the shorter, stocky Alderete rushing in to
grapple, bomb away at the taller Encinas, who took the 1st
by staying busier.
Alderete
changed gears and came out strong in the 2nd, bombing
away at Encinas who took a knee in the last minute from body
shots. He didnít seem too anxious to continue but made it to the
end of the round.
Encinas
nearly refrained from coming out for the 3rdóand he
might as well have. He was spent and unwilling. Ref Rocky Burke
stopped the fight at 2:30 when Encinas was no longer putting up
a fight.
In the final
fight of the evening, a special four-round mixed martial arts
fight, Carlos Condit had an easy time with the less-experienced
Eloy Lucero.
It was over
in 23 seconds. The two traded kicks, Condit took his man down
and applied a choke hold that had Lucero tapping out.
ìHe put me to
sleep,î Lucero said after the fight. ìThat kid is good . . . .î
# # #
MUNOZ VS. SPREWELL
GARCIA VS. LOPEZ
ALDERETE VS. ENCINAS
CONDIT VS. LUCERO
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