On a night filled with boxing action, we made our way to the Citizens Bank Arena for some fights, with the main event being between Chris “The Nightmare” Arreola (35-2, 30 KOs), who was taking on Bermane “B-WARE” Stiverne (22-1-1, 20 KOs). This was for the WBC heavyweight championship elimination. The fans were very much behind the man from Riverside, and stayed on his side the entire time, trying to rally him to victory.

We saw a very active first round from Arreola, as his quick hands and accuracy allowed him to keep finding his target. He worked the head and body of Stiverne with success. Bermane came out a bit stronger in the second round, and connected on Arreola, but Chris came back with a vengeance.

In the third, while it seemed Arreola was going to stay in total control, a monster right hook from Stiverne put him on the canvas. He got up at the bell and went to his corner. The fourth round saw a lot of action from both, but Bermane was still able to connect with that right hand. Arreola had blood all over his face since the knockdown, and one had to wonder if his nose had been broken, which would obviously make it hard for him to breathe. And yes, it was.

In the fifth Chris came back a little bit, but whether or not it was enough to win these last few rounds was anyone’s guess. He did land some punches, but the problem was Bermane was not sitting still; he was still throwing and landing as well, and at a higher rate than Arreola.

Round six and Arreola was getting in some really good shots now. He staggered Stiverne a couple of times, and Bermane appeared to be a bit tired. This was the best round for Chris since the second.

After that really good work in the sixth, nothing happened for Arreola in the seventh. He didn’t get pounded by Stiverne like earlier, but Bermane was still working the body a lot, and taking some more of that crucial air away from Chris.

Arreola fans were getting more and more worried in the eighth, as Bermane continued to run the show. He had Chris all over the ring, taking little potshots at him and connecting. Arreola was able to do little. But in the last 30 seconds Chris did land some leather on the face of Stiverne. In the tenth round Arreola had his way. He was able to let both hands go and they found their target, doing some damage to Stiverne.

Chris needed the final several rounds, and it was a big question as to whether or not he got them. Stiverne remained the more accurate fighter. In the twelfth and final, Arreola came out on fire, but would it be too little too late? Unfortunately for Arreola, it was. After those opening seconds Bermane just controlled the fight again. Chris’ face was a mess by this time, and the last seconds Chris was just done. He was bleeding everywhere, including from a cut over his left eye, and it was obvious that, while he never quit, he had no more to give. The scores were 117-110 twice, and 118-109, all for Stiverne. Bermane fought a great fight, and Arreola was gracious in defeat.

Tony Grano (20-3-1, 16 KOs) fought to keep his NABF heavyweight title belt against Eric Molina (20-2, 14 KOs). This fight was for a scheduled 10 rounds – more about that later. The first round was a slow one, and the fans made no secret that they were already disappointed. The second round has a bit more action – barely – and again the boos were pretty consistent.

Finally, some punches thrown in the third, and they even landed. The fourth was much the same. In the fifth round, right at the bell, a huge right hook from Molina put Grano on the floor. He got up and the round ended. No real damage was done in the round following, even though Eric did land a few good punches.

Round seven was by far the most exciting. Grano might not have gone down, but Molina was landing his big overhand right repeatedly, and the exchanges continued for the entire round. Even the fickle fans applauded when the round ended.

The next two rounds were slow – again. At last, it was the tenth and final. Whoops, wait, the fight is going 12. Everything I saw said 10. OK, six more minutes of total action! Yeah, well. It did look as if Molina was going to end the fight in the first 30 seconds of the round, but he didn’t follow through on the promise.

Let’s try this again. Now, the TWELFTH and final round!!! Actually, this was quite a round. Grano landed a big right hand out of nowhere that felled Molina like a tree in the forest. Eric got up, but man, what a punch. Nonetheless, we had to go to the scorecards. The judges had it 114-112 and 116-110 twice for the winner, and NEW NABF champion, Eric Molina!

Oscar Molina (5-0, 3 KOs) put that record on the line when he walked in the ring with Jose Martell (2-8-1, 2 KOs). This fight was in the light middleweight division and was scheduled for four.

It took no time at all for Molina to not only take control, but to stop the fight. At only .55 seconds of the very first round a well-placed left was enough to lay Martell out. Our 2012 Olympian continued to impress.

In a fight scheduled for four rounds in the featherweight division, Juan Funez (2-0) went up against Christian Cartier, who was making his professional debut. Unfortunately for Cartier, it did not go so well for him. He was completely controlled by Funez, and at 1:14 of the second round referee Pat Russell had to jump in and put an end to the torture.

The second fight of the afternoon was a good, albeit very fast, one. Charles Huerta (17-3, 10 KOs) and Jonathan Alcantara (6-9-2, 1 KO) stood across from each other in a super featherweight fight scheduled for six rounds. Huerta received a lot of backing from the still small crowd that was in attendance.

The fans had a lot to cheer about in a very short time. Huerta could not miss with his left jab, and then he threw a clean right hand that decked Alcantara. He got up, fell back down, and just like that we were finished. The time of the stoppage was 1:30 in that opening round.

Jose Garcia (2-6-1, 1 KO) and Vladimir Gavrilov (2-1, 1 KO) started off this early afternoon in a featherweight bout that was scheduled for four rounds. This was a hard hitting contest throughout that saw one of the fighters hit the canvas once in the first. I must admit that I had just arrived and missed the knockdown and never got an answer as to who it was with any certainty. I do know that in the third round Gavrilov was down, got up, and was immediately attacked by Garcia once again, causing the referee Raul Caiz Jr. to put an end to the fight at 2:20. This was a surprise victory for Garcia.

This was an enjoyable night of boxing, and with the fights starting so early, the evening ended at an extremely decent hour, giving everyone time to watch the many other bouts that were on for our viewing pleasure.


Be safe and God Bless,
Viva La Raza,
Barb.