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Smith Jr. Defeats Vlasov &
Grabs WBO Light Heavy Strap
"A Working Class Hero Is Something To Be"
By William Trillo
Photos: Mikey Williams - Top Rank via Getty Images
When it was announced that Light heavyweights Joe Smith
Jr. (27-3, 21 KO’s) and Maxim Vlasov (45-4,26 KO’s)
would meet in a battle for the vacant WBO World Light
Heavy Title those in the know marked their calendars,
this was a cannot miss attraction. Of course, we had to
wait a little longer than expected as Covid reared its
ugly head postponing the original date, but when the two
finally met in front of 500 fans in Oklahoma the fight
produced everything we expected and more.
Tossing the “feel out” rounds into the trash can, Smith
and Vlasov exploded into the bout with destruction on
their minds. Before the first round was over Smith was
bloodied over his right eye. That contusion was cause
and effect of a sharp left hand applied early and often
by Vlasov. The cut would become problematic for Smith
Jr. for the remainder of the fight.
The Russian Vlasov proved to be a very awkward and tough
foe. His herky-jerky style combined with surprisingly
good boxing fundamentals kept the hard-working New
Yorker Smith Jr. off balance in the early stages.
But, anyone who has seen Smith Jr. fight in the past
knew it was a matter of time before his tenacity and
power would begin to make a difference. Like clockwork
the Smith Jr. attack began to break Vlasov down in
rounds 4-6. Blood was beginning to spew from Vlasov’s
mouth and body shots seemed to render him unable to
remain in control.
The fight was at its midpoint and already it had lived
up to the large expectations. Both men saw that
Championship belt within their grasp and were ready to
give every ounce of themselves in order to get it. At
this point it was a toss-up, seemingly dead even.
It was nip and tuck over the next few rounds but
suddenly in rounds eight and nine the body language of
Smith Jr. gave the impression that he was running out of
gas. Maybe there was no more fight left in him. It
didn’t look good but again, anyone who has followed his
career knew he was never going to throw in the towel.
Getting his second wind Smith Jrs. punch output began to
increase and now it was Vaslov’s turn to show the
obvious signs of wear and tear. A relentless body attack
and that mouthful of blood was getting the best of him
now. Smith pounded Vaslov until a misguided blow to the
back of the head dropped Vaslov. The ref immediately
called the blow a “Rabbit Punch” and gave the collapsed
Vaslov almost five precious minutes to recover.
The fighters fought valiantly until the final bell rang.
It was one of the most grueling and hard-fought battles
seen this year. Still, it was near impossible to say who
was going to come out victorious. This one was going to
go to the scorecards and as expected, it was tight.
Final scores read 114-114 even,115-113 and 115-112 in
favor of the new Champion Joe Smith Jr.
Once again it was Joe Smith Jr., the everyman’s fighter,
who with hard work and a never say die attitude came out
victorious and took one more step up to the top of the
175 ladder. From knocking former Champions through the
ropes to winning fights no one said he could, Smith Jr.
is living proof that "A Working-Class Hero Is Something
To Be" (John Lennon).
After the fight the new champ said, “It’s a great
feeling. It was definitely a close, tough fight. I give
it to Vlasov. Great fighter. He really put on a great
show tonight and toughed it out. I believe that round
where I hurt him there… I believe he had his head down,
and I should’ve got the knockout. I think I would’ve got
the stoppage that round, but he pulled it off and made
it out on his feet. I believe I got the victory tonight
because they saw I landed the harder shots. He landed a
lot of punches. It was a great fight. I want the other
belts. I want the big fights out there. Now I gotta get
back in the gym and keep working on my technique and
stuff. I believe I’m going to start unifying belts.”
Top Rank Promotions Undercard Report
Ajagba Obliterates Howard
Efe Ajagba (15-0, 12 KOs) just crashed the heavyweight
contender parade. The 2016 Nigerian Olympian sent Brian
Howard into another orbit with a crunching right hand.
Howard twisted, fell face first, and the bout was
immediately stopped. Ajagba had not fought since last
September's decision win over Jonathan Rice, but he
re-established his place among the world's top young
heavyweights. At 26 years old, time is on his side.
Ajagba said, “I felt good. I tried to pick the punches,
use the jab. This guy is very slick sometimes. I tried
to do the job. He was shaky, so when I went back to the
corner after the first round, my coach told me to take
my time, start with the body, leave the head.
“I trained for this fight, took my time, started with my
boxing foundation, and came back strong. This camp was
the best one for me, the best camp ever in my boxing
career.
“It’s my time to shine, so I’m coming for the
heavyweights.”
Heavyweight: Jared Anderson (9-0, 9 KOs) KO 2
Jeremiah Karpency (16-3-1, 6 KOs), :34. Anderson, the
21-year-old prodigy from Toledo, added another speedy
knockout to his highlight reel, this time using a body
attack to end things early. He knocked down Karpency
with a body blow at the end of the first round, then
ended things with another right hand to the body early
in the second round.
Anderson said, “I knew he was going to find a spot to
fall. I respect him for getting in there and showing up
today. It’s a man’s sport. I’m just grateful to be here,
thankful for the opportunity.
“I {saw} the shot. His hands kept going up. I kept
throwing my jab, looking for openings, feinting, moving
around the ring, and it just came. It was a good shot,
and he didn’t want to get back up.
“Everybody who says they’re the biggest and the baddest,
come see ‘Big ‘Baby’ then.
“I want to thank Toledo, my city. A lot of them came out
to Oklahoma, and I wanted to put on a show for them. I
can’t wait for what is next.
Junior Lightweight: Albert Bell (18-0, 5 KOs) UD 8
Manuel Rey Rojas (20-5, 6 KOs). Scores: 78-74 3x.
Toledo's Bell used his length and reach to keep the
shorter Rojas at bay and ultimately cruised to a
one-sided decision. Bell, who outlanded Rojas 114-94, is
ranked in the top 15 by two of the major sanctioning
organizations.
Junior Lightweight: Robson Conceicao (16-0, 8 KOs)
TKO 7 Jesus Antonio Ahumada (17-4 11 KOs), 1:20. 2016
Olympic gold medalist Conceicao, from Bahia, Brazil, put
forth a workmanlike performance and beat down Mexican
veteran Ahumada. After a knockdown in the seventh,
referee Gary Ritter saw enough and saved Ahumada from
further carnage.
Heavyweight: Trey Lippe Morrison (17-0, 17 KOs) TKO
3 Jason Bergman (2-3, 2 KOs), 1:27. Lippe Morrison, son
of the late heavyweight Tommy Morrison, returned from a
nearly two-year layoff and stopped veteran Bergman in a
crowd-pleasing slugfest. Bergman appeared to knock down
Morrison in the first, but the referee missed the
knockdown call. In the third, Bergman rolled his ankle
and could continue, and Morrison was awarded the TKO
victory.
Featherweight: Duke Ragan (4-0, 1 KO) UD 6 Charles
Clark (3-7,-1 1 KO). Scores: 60-54 3x. In his first
fight away from the confines of the MGM Grand Las Vegas
Bubble, Cincinnati's Ragan outboxed Clark and won every
round on all three judges' scorecards. Through four pro
bouts, Ragan has yet to lose a round.
Heavyweight: Jeremiah Milton (3-0, 3 KOs) TKO 1
Jayvone Dafney (2-3, 2 KOs), 1:19. Tulsa native Milton
had a successful homecoming, icing Dafney in the opening
round with a right hand as Daffney was backed up against
the ropes. A dazed Dafney could not respond, and the
referee called the bout off.
Heavyweight: Sonny Conto (7-0, 6 KOs) KO 1 Waldo
Cortes (6-4, 3 KO), 1:41. Welcome back, Sonny! In his
first fight in 15 months, South Philadelphia native
Conto put Cortes down for the 10-count with a sweeping
right hand. Conto has now won three straight by
first-round stoppage.
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