'Pretty' One-Sided
Mayweather wins WBC & lineal welterweight championship with uncrowning unanimous over Baldomir

Ringside by Albert Howell and Mike Sloan

Photos by Chris Cozzone
- FightWireImages.com

Entering the ring dressed as a gladiator, four-division world champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. (36-0, 24 KOs) turned the 2006 Cinderella story of Carlos Baldomir (43-10-6, 13 KOs) into a pumpkin, as he claimed Baldomir's WBC Welterweight title with a one-sided twelve round unanimous decision on Saturday night at the Mandalay Bay Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Baldomir unsuccessfully tried to neutralize Mayweather with pressure and a high punch output, but Floyd was much, much quicker, landing at close to a 50% clip. The boxing clinic went all twelve rounds with Floyd virtually shutting out Baldomir by scores of 120-108, 120-108, 118-110.

This fight was supposed to be a risky proposition for Mayweather. But in reality only the top of Baldomir's head posed a risk for Mayweather. In round six, Mayweather injured his right hand when he hit Baldomir on top of the head. Floyd believes he would have finished the show if not for the injury. “I think I would have gotten the knockout down the stretch if I would not have hurt my hand.” Despite the injury, Mayweather emphasized that this was an easy fight for him stating, “It was a cake walk in the park.”

Struggling to find his mark, Baldomir landed only six punches per round compared to the welterweight average of eighteen punches per round. Only in one out of the twelve rounds did Baldomir break single digits for punches landed.

Baldomir's plan was to be the aggressor and apply constant pressure to Mayweather and that is exactly what the defending champion did through most of the fight. Nevertheless, Mayweather's speed, defensive mastery, and counter punching prowess mitigated any advantage Baldomir may have hoped for. All night, Mayweather would catch Baldomir coming in with a short left hook, at times following up with an uppercut for punctuation.

Early on, the effective counter punching of Mayweather did not seem to dissuade Baldomir from coming forward. But, as the fight wore on and the accumulation of punches absorbed by Baldomir piled up, it became more difficult for Baldomir to apply the constant pressure.

Round four was really the only close round of the bout. Baldomir landed a couple of solid hooks downstairs, as he opened up in this round and although he missed many of his power shots it looked as though he might have done enough to steal the round on at least one of the judge's scorecards, which is exactly what transpired.

Many thought the naturally bigger Baldomir would be the one to test Mayweather's chin. But it turned out to be the opposite. In round five Mayweather landed a lead right upstairs a shot heard throughout the arena. Although Baldomir did not go down, it became apparent that this night it was Mayweather that was packing the bigger punch.

In round six Mayweather showed exactly why it is so hard to hit him. Even when Baldomir had Mayweather pinned against the ropes he found it almost impossible to strike the ever elusive Mayweather with a flush blow. During this particular exchange all of Baldomir's shots were avoided, blocked, or deflected.

By round eleven, it became obvious that the final chapter of Baldomir's Cinderella story was about to come to a close. Baldomir was clearly winded and weary of chasing Mayweather down only to be beaten to the punch. And, Mayweather completed round twelve with another fine display of his “hit and don't get hit” style of fighting.

In the end, Mayweather was just too fast for Baldomir who said after the fight that he remains proud of his 2006 accomplishments as he should be. “It has been a great year. I beat Judah and I beat Gatti. I have accomplished a lot.”

With the unanimous decision victory, the unbeaten Mayweather remains atop boxing's food chain where he is ranked the number one pound-for-pounder in the sport today. An emotional Mayweather stated at the post-fight press conference that he has accomplished everything in the sport of boxing that he set out to accomplish, and now he wants to lace up the gloves just one more time before retiring saying, "one more fight, and I am through."
-- Albert Howell

A Ghost in the Machine:
Salido upsets Guerrero

The co-main event of the evening was nothing to write home about as IBF Featherweight Champion Robert Guerrero and challenger Orlando Salido lulled the scattered few thousand fans in attendance almost to sleep.

Expectations were somewhat high for this fight being a thriller, but it seemed as though neither fighter wanted to take risks in the tussle, leaving too much to be desired. And for that alone, twelve grueling rounds of virtual non-action ensued, but there was at least an intriguing conclusion.

Neither fighter was dropped or ever in danger of being taken out during the skirmish. Guerrero did whatever he could in order to win the fight, but as it wore on, it was obvious that he was in for a long night. Salido is one of those tougher-than-nails types of fighters who give anybody fits, but this was designed to be a coming out party of sorts for Guerrero. He is one of the young hotshots of the featherweight/lightweight division and many expected him to be the torch bearer once the great trifecta of Barrera/Pacquiao/Morales calls it day.

But on this night, Guerrero, from Gilroy, CA, looked more like a crude prospect than a world champion ready to dominate his weight class. As it turned out, it was Salido, the journeyman with a modest record, who had his hands raised in triumph as he scored a mild upset over the once-beaten Guerrero and lifted his world title.

Many of the rounds were very close but it was Salido's work ethic and slightly more aggressive style that paved the way to victory. Guerrero was poised to win the bout and then look ahead to the bigger paydays, but the little tough guy from Obregon, Mexico threw the ultimate monkey wrench into the gear box.

At first look, it seemed as though Guerrero was having his way with the shorter, stockier Salido. His reach and height advantage would have been the key components for a victory, but Salido was just too tough and was able to break through his defenses. Salido plugged away at Guerrero’s body and pelted him with a vast array of shots from all angles, and even though his performance wasn’t the most aesthetically pleasing to behold, it was certainly effective. When the final bell sounded to cease the action inside the ring, most figured that Salido had done enough to score a close decision. To the surprise of many, he was awarded a landslide unanimous decision via tallies of 118-110, 117-111 and 115-113. FightNews favored Salido 116-112, who improved to 28-9-2 with 18 KOs. Guerrero dropped to 19-2-1 with 12 KOs and it seemed like he’ll have to once again ascend that arduous mountain back to title contention.
--Mike Sloan

Williams Punishes Pakau!

Unbeaten welterweight contender Paul "The Punisher" Williams (32-0, 24 KOs) lived up to his nickname, punishing late-sub Santos Pakau (27-4-1, 10 KOs) until the bout was mercifully stopped by referee Joe Cortez in round six of a scheduled eight.

Williams scored knockdowns in rounds one and two and pounded the game but outgunned Pakau until Cortez waved it off at 2:16 of the sixth. Pakau was a late substitute for Mauro Lucero who arrived at an astonishing 26 pounds over the contract weight.

In round one, Williams scored a knockdown by landing a combination that sent Pakau reeling to the ropes where he ending up kneeling on the canvas. In round two, Pakau found himself off balance after missing with a shot of his own only to be clipped on the chin by a Williams right cross that put him on the floor for the second time in the bout.

Williams was never in danger in this fight. Although a game opponent, Pakau was outclassed in this match-up. For much of the fight, Williams landed his shots almost at will. In the third round, Pakau attempted to employ his footwork to avoid Williams, but to no avail. Williams was totally dominant and at times it looked like he would make early work of Pakau. But every time Williams had Pakau hurt, he would find a way to dig deep and fight his way out of trouble. Pakau displayed tremendous courage as he absorbed a ton of punishment in this bout.

Pakau was looking to land the one big punch that would change the tide of the fight, but it was not meant to be. A Williams one-two combination followed by an uppercut and hook hurt Pakau badly. Lying against the ropes, Williams landed a three-punch combination. With Pakaus' defense virtually non-existent, Williams took target practice on his foe. After Williams landed an unanswered five-punch combination in the middle of the ring, referee Joe Cortez had seen enough and ended the bout at 2:16 of round six.

By keeping his unbeaten streak alive, Williams remains the WBO's number-one ranked contender and mandatory for WBO welterweight champion Antonio Margarito. The tall Williams has been compared to Tommy Hearns. Time will tell if the comparison rings true, as Williams continues his march towards becoming a world champion.
-- Albert Howell

Arreola Stops Wills in 7

What started out as a shockingly entertaining heavyweight affair quickly turned into a classic "big man" snooze-a-thon.

Two young undefeated heavyweight contenders were pitted against one another and after the first two rounds, it seemed as though the scattered thousand, or so, fans were to be treated to a rare heavyweight gem. Sadly, though, once the midway point of the third round surfaced, Chris Arreola and Damian Wills trudged through each other without much drama, scintillation, or excitement.

Riverside, California’s rugged and sturdy Arreola dominated the action from the outset and almost took out Hollywood, California’s Wills in the second. However, it was Wills' stubbornness and resilience that kept him afloat for another five rounds.

The end came in the seventh, when Arreola was able to stagger his opponent with a sneaky left hook and wound up flurrying against Wills in his own corner. Arreola landed several stinging shots and Wills wilted from the pressure, unable to properly defend himself.

At 2:17 of the seventh round, referee Kenny Bayless was forced to leap in and rescue Wills. Arreola remained undefeated, as he improved to 18-0 with his 16th knockout. For his efforts, Wills suffered the first loss of his pro career. He now stands at 21-1-1 (15).
--Mike Sloan

Sepulveda Earns KO in Debut!

In the opening bout, pro debuting welterweight Alejo Sepulveda (1-0, 1 KO) dropped Cedric Holmes (0-4, O KOs) twice in round two before the bout was halted at 1:09 of the second stanza of a scheduled four rounder.

Sepulveda landed an overhand right to begin the bout. Holmes answered back with two straight right hands. However, Sepulveda's jab kept Holmes at bay the rest of the round. Midway through the opening round, Sepulveda doubled up on his jab snapping back the head of his foe. Then a straight right by Sepulveda hurt Holmes, sending him reeling to the ropes. Sepulveda doubled up with a two hook combination downstairs before punctuating the round by landing two big right hands.

Sepulveda floored his adversary in round two with a left hook upstairs. After tasting the canvas, Holmes rose to his feet for the eight count. Before he could regain his wits, another left hook upstairs sent him crumbling again. As Holmes' bottom hit the floor, referee Kenny Bayless waived off the bout.

Sepulveda earned a knockout victory in his pro debut. Official time of the stoppage was 1:09 of round two. Holmes remains winless after four fights.
--Albert Howell

Bonus photos