Juan Carlos Martinez snatches split decision from Alejandro Perez

Juan Carlos Martinez snatches split decision from Alejandro Perez

LAS VEGAS–All featherweight Alejandro Perez had to do Saturday night was get by journeyman Mexican Juan Carlos Martinez while also avoiding cuts and injury and a May 31 title shot in Macau against Nicholas Walters was all but guaranteed.

Not only did Perez suffer a cut at some point during the bout, but he was actually outworked by Martinez, losing a ten round split decision to the nearly .500 fighter.

Perez had chosen to fight once more before his projected title shot as he didn’t want to go into the ring with his last action being in November. Perez showed up a bit flat and ran into a fighter that was coming off the best training camp of his entire life.

Martinez worked with Joel Diaz for seven weeks for this fight and received sparring against the likes of Timothy Bradley and Diego Magdaleno among others. It is further proof what world class preparation and sparring can do for a fighter’s confidence, as Martinez swallowed the power punches of Perez with ease.

Despite a reputation as a big puncher at 126 pounds, Perez was unable to really hurt Martinez, who almost always answered back when Perez looked as though he was starting to rally. The lack of defense on both sides produced an enjoyable fight with scores of 96-93 twice favoring Martinez, while one judge had it 96-93 the other way for Perez.

For Perez, it’s back to the drawing board as he tries to work himself back into position from square one.

Though it was a career best victory for Martinez, he’ll run into roadblocks due to his less than appealing record. It isn’t often a fighter can become a regular on TV as a win some, lose some fighter, but if Martinez can build on the momentum and foundation set by Joel Diaz, there will be more opportunities.

2012 US Olympian Jose Ramirez (9-0, 7 KOs) of Avenal, Calif., took a round and a half to dispose of Kansas City’s Boyd Henley. Henley (10-4-1, 9 KOs) was game but severely outgunned, ultimately getting stopped at 2:32 of the second.

Ramirez has a fight May 17 in Fresno, Calif., to which nearly 4,000 tickets were sold in the first day. That card also features Diego Magdaleno and will be televised on UniMas.

Returning to the ring for the first time since losing his titles to Juan Francisco Estrada last year in Macau, Brian Viloria looked a bit rusty as he won a ten round unanimous decision over unheralded Juan Herrera of Puerto Rico.

Viloria (33-4, 19 KOs) showed the effects of a long layoff, needing a few rounds to get things going. Viloria’s accuracy began to pick up in the third, but defensively he allowed Herrera (9-8, 4 KOs) to land too many shots that were leapt in with. Viloria slowed down a bit down the stretch but Herrera wasn’t the kind of opponent meant to push him in the late rounds. Scores were 98-92 twice and 97-93 for the former champion.

In the walkout bout, 21-year old welterweight prospect Jose Benavidez of Phoenix, Ariz., outpointed Prince Doku Jr. of Ghana over six rounds, continuing his comeback from a year long layoff stemming from multiple hand injuries. Benavidez looked sharp but still showed he’s a few years away from tangling with a top contender. Scores were 60-54 thrice.

Unbeaten blue chip featherweight Toka Kahn-Clary impressively stopped the usually tough Chris Lopez of Tampa, Fla., in four rounds. Providence, R.I.’s Kahn-Clary (11-0, 8 KOs) didn’t hesitate to trade with Lopez (7-2, 2 KOs), who came right at him. Kahn-Clary utilized his mobility to keep Lopez at the proper distance, ultimately dropping Lopez at the end of the third. Lopez was still badly hurt and was stopped after an unanswered barrage at 0:18 of round four.

It was a long time coming, but Las Vegas welterweight Michael Finney (12-1, 10 KOs) was exposed as Jaime Herrera (11-2, 6 KOs) of Franklin Park, Ill., stopped him in the fifth round of an action-packed bout. Time of stoppage came at 2:58.

Oxnard, Calif. welterweight Egidjus Kavaliauskas (5-0, 4 KOs) needed just 1:13 to stop James Harrison (3-6-1, KO) of Marrero, La. The Lithuanian represented his country in the 2012 Olympics. Time of stoppage came at 1:13.

East Los Angeles featherweight Vic Pasillas (7-0, 3 KOs) scored a six-round shutout over game Jerry Guevara (8-2-1, 6 KOs) of Brownsville, Tex. Scores were all 60-54.

-Mark E. Ortega / @MarkEOrtega
-Managing editor at www.BehindTheGloves.com