For the co-main event of the Mayhem card, Leo Santa Cruz (27-0) won by TKO in the second round to former sparring partner Manuel Roman (17-2). Santa Cruz giving his opponent more credit than most fight fans did, by saying Roman is dangerous and deserves the opportunity.
For the first round, Santa Cruz quickly applied the pressure and Roman covered up on the inside absorbing a lot of punishment. The second round, and what was the last round of the fight, saw a strong right hand from Leo Santa Cruz that landed to the cheek of Roman, sending him to the canvas. Although Roman was able to get up before the ten count, he stumbled and forced the referee to end the fight. This was a quick precise performance from Santa Cruz who will have his eyes set on the higher ranked fighters.
Santa Cruz stated before he is ready to take on the bigger name fighters in his weight division. For his post-fight interview Santa Cruz called Guillermo Rigondeaux, “I’m not scared, I’m ready”. We shall see if both teams can make that fight, but for now Santa Cruz remains undefeated and still the WBC Super Bantamweight Champ.
In the lackluster fight between Miguel Vasquez (34-3) and Mickey Bey (20-1) for the IBF lightweight title, Bey became the new champ in a shocking result. For twelve rounds, both fighters threw wild punches, not connecting much and never able to find their range.
Vasquez fought in his usual awkward style, and Bey had a hard time being quick to the draw. The only exciting moment of the fight was the reading of the scorecards. Lederman scored the bout 115-113 for Bey. Judge Adalaide Byrd scored the bout 115-113 for Vasquez. The shocker came from judge Robery Hoyle who scored the bout 119-109 for Bey, to have his hands raised and hear, “And New”. This was shocking result as many had Vasquez up on the cards, only for the judges to think otherwise.
Kicking off the night in Sin City, for the opening bout on PPV, James De la Rosa (22-4) won by unanimous decision against Alfredo Angulo (22-2). The two middleweights went all ten rounds, but not in the best fashion. De la Rosa began the fight switching stances, using his movement to hit Angulo from all angles. Angulo went down in round two and suffered a cut over the right eye in round six. Angulo was deducted a point for a low blow after several warnings in round seven. With the referee warning Angulo’s trainer, Virgil Hunter, of stopping the fight, Angulo came out into round nine with speed and power. De la Rosa being drawn into more exchanges, gave Angulo more of an advantage in round nine and ten. With no more rounds left, it just wasn’t enough for the 32 year old Angulo. With judges scoring 98-90, 96-92, 99-89 James De la Rosa improved to 23-2 and celebrated with a back flip in center ring.
– Leann Perez / @LeannPerez_
– Contributor for www.BehindtheGloves.com
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