Canada’s confidence man Pascal prevails over cagey Bute in points win

Photo courtesy of Will Hart / HBO

Canada’s confidence man Pascal prevails over cagey Bute in points win

MONTREAL, Quebec – Jean Pascal (29-2-1, 17 knockouts) recorded a unanimous decision win over Lucian Bute (31-2, 24 KOs) in last night’s underwhelming light heavyweight WBC title eliminator billed as Canada’s “Super Bowl.”

The opening rounds were mostly tense with little to separate the two as the combatants scouted each other out – the early action seeing Bute keeping Pascal at range and countering his single lead punches without difficulty.

Clearly conserving his energy, Pascal exploded into action at the end of the fourth and fifth rounds with looping hooks to Bute’s body and head. By the seventh round it was evident that each were showing respect for the others punching power in their contrasting styles – but Pascal’s precise and bombing flurries catching the judges eyes over Bute’s tentative and uncommitted stance.

Bute hit the canvas in round eight as he was caught behind the head and off-balance from a collision of legs. To Pascal’s chagrin his accurate and snapping punches went without reward with referee Michael Griffin correctly ruling a slip. Neither was able or willing to dominate rounds eight and nine before an unintentional head butt seemed to spur Bute into action in the tenth – as an eccentric and erratic Pascal appeared to be running out of steam.

Pascal’s output continued to dwindle in the penultimate frame, employing further tactical kidology to appear stationary in the corner to the bemusement of Bute – who had been fighting his way back into the contest. This trend would continue as Bute recorded his best round in the last, however it was not enough as Pascal withstood the southpaw’s assault and saw out the final three minutes out on his feet to win a disappointing fight on all three judges’ cards. The fact that the twelfth offered the only real action speaks volumes about the preceding eleven.

The scorecards (116-112, 117-110, 117-11) were a touch too wide for some observers liking, but few could dispute that Bute simply hadn’t imposed his will enough on his opponent nor landed many significant shots. The economics of Canadian boxing may dictate a rematch but Le Tombeur’s showing in Montreal certainly didn’t warrant a second chance.

Bute’s career now surely hangs by a thread in limbo as he slumps to his second defeat in his last three outings. The Romanian native had hoped a win would entice Carl Froch to fight him a second time but commented after his defeat that he should have let his hands go much earlier in the contest. A very satisfied Pascal now progresses past his longstanding Canadian-based rival and, jokes of rematches aside, was coyly non-committal on 175lb champion Adonis Stevenson when asked in his post-fight interview.

Elsewhere on the HBO and Sky Sports televised card, below-par Cuban heavyweight contender Mike Perez (20-0-1, 12 KOs) escaped with a majority draw against Carlos Takam (29-1-1, 23 KOs) in a WBC-sanctioned 10 rounder. Eleider Alvarez (14-0, 8 KOs) also handed last-minute Oosthuizen replacement Andrew Gardiner (10-1, 6 KOs) his first defeat in a points victory to maintain his rising stock in the light heavyweight division.

- “Showtime“ Stephen Lynch

-Contributor for www.BehindTheGloves.com