Written By William Trillo

Photos: Naoki Fukada
 

 

Not all of the outcomes went the way Bob Arum might have wanted, but make no mistake about it, the Top Rank promoted PPV card was exactly what the long time promoter promised.

 

The fights were all action packed and the pace of the show for both the PPV audience as well as those in attendance was fast paced and quick, hopefully this will be the new trend in boxing broadcasts, because what we have seen over the last decade or more just is not working anymore.

 

As to the fights themselves, it was not a bad night in the ring either.

 

The outside distractions that Manny Pacquiao has did not cause him to lose this battle to the tougher than expected Jorge Solis, but before Manny could dispose of the challenger in round number 8 we saw glimpses of a fighter who just may have too many outside the ring adventures to give his boxing 100% of his attention. The upcoming elections in his country, in which he is running for office may have come into play, no question about that. 

 

But the one thing that couldn't have been real comfortable is the sudden appearance of Freddie Roach, who was given the weekend off from his present employer Oscar De La Hoya, which freed Roach up to sit in as the Chief second in Paq's corner on Saturday night, even though it was Justine Fortune who put in the hard work and spent weeks of training with Pacquiao. Whispers from deep inside are more than hinting that it's not all rosy in Manny's corner these days.

 
 

Loosely translated, "El Travieso" means the naughty one, and if Arce has been behaving naughty in his last fights, as we have been lead to believe, then WBC Flyweight Champion Cristian Mijares gave him the whipping every bad boy deserves.

 

It's not clear why Arce was matched up with the longer and leaner fighter who hasn't lost since 2002, but somewhere around the sixth round Bob Arum was in plain view of the camera and he did not look like a man who held out any hope for his fighter to misbehave long enough to get himself back into the fight. Arce became a bloody mess before the fights and just the fact that he lasted the entire 12 rounds without needing a blood transfusion is a miracle onto itself.

 
 

The third time was not a charm for Brian Viloria who after his loss to Edgar Sosa must be wondering if it's really in his future to become a Champion once again. With the Light Flyweight title on the line, Viloria started out well and it looked as though he may have overcome the demons that haunted him in his last two fights. But it was the possessed Sosa who never gave up and with constant pressure and a never say die attitude he began to take over and the tide of the battle made a subtle turn and Viloria never could get it back.

 

By the end of the fight Viloria's face was lumpy and red and when the decision was announced Viloria was left scratching his head while a jubilant Sosa told everyone, "I told you so!"  

 
 

Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.....um...ahh...hmmm. I know if you can't say something nice about someone it's best not to say anything at all. Look, he is a nice enough kid and his people are telling him things he wants to hear, but c'mon, beating Anthony Shuler is not going to do anything for this kid but pad his already Sealy Posturepedic like record.

 

At the fights end Jr. proclaimed that he was going to be the next Welterweight Champion of the World. That's fine, every young man has dreams. Tell you what, Jr....another star that is destined to strap on 147 Champion hardware is Andre Berto. Why don't you step up to the plate now and take a few swings at some of the fastballs Andre has to offer?? 
Jr?      
Julio?      
Helloooo???????

Hmmm....I guess Chavez left the room.

Questions Or Comments? Email Will "The Thrill" Trillo