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Stevenson & Nakathila Cure Insomnia
By William Trillo @ Ringside
Photos: Mikey Williams - Top Rank via Getty Images
When the referee must step in between the boxers and
admonish them to fight it’s not a good sign. When he is
forced to do that a second time…it’s awful. Such was the
case for Super Featherweights Shakur Stevenson (16-0, 8
KO’s) Jeremia Nakathila (21-2, 17 KO’s) who lulled the crowd
to sleep with one of the most boring fights seen in 2021. By
the time the final bell rang the fans in the new Virgin
Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas were booing in displeasure of
a pathetic performance. And lest we forget, this bout was
for the WBO Interim World Super Feather Title.
When asked if he thought he could have stepped it up and
gotten Nakathalia out of there Stevenson said, “I tried to
get him out of there a little bit, but I started getting hit
with some solid shots. I ain’t really like it…”
Really? What do you think is going to happen when you get in
the ring with the likes of Jamel Herring or Oscar Valdez?
For the record Stevenson pitched a shutout on all cards
getting a unanimous decision with scores of 120-107 across
the board.
Switching from Southpaw to Orthodox with the greatest of
ease Super Lightweight Jose Pedraza (29-3, 14 KO’s)
dominated and neutralized the formally undefeated Julian
Rodriguez (21-1, 14 KO’s). This fight that had all the
earmarks of one that was sure to be a war, but instead
turned into a huge statement for Pedraza. The Puerto Rican
put on a magnificent display against a fighter who did not
have a blemish on his record.
By the mid-rounds Pedraza looked comfortable as he was in
control of all the action inside the ring. Rodriguez however
looked at a loss for answers and when his nose started
pouring blood in round eight, he began to look desperate.
That was the last we would see Rodriguez as after the round
his corner threw in the towel letting the ref know he was
not fit to continue. Officially mark this down as a TKO for
Pedraza after the conclusion of the eighth round.
On his performance Pedraza said, “My experience was too much
for him. As the fight went on, I could see him weakening,
and I took advantage. I was hungrier than him, and he was
just another obstacle in my journey to become a
three-division world champion. That is my goal. I want all
the big names at 140 pounds. With this performance, I sent a
message to those big names. The ‘Sniper’ is on the hunt. I
want to make history for Puerto Rico.”
Super Featherweight Manuel Rey Rojas (21-5, 6 KO’s) taught
Tyler McCreary (16-2-1, 7 KO’s) an unbelievably valuable
lesson in this eight-round skirmish. That lesson is a good
hard-nosed fighter willing to engage will beat a flashy
pretty boy who doesn’t want to risk getting hit 99% of the
time. Coming forward and throwing punches Rojas made easy
work of McCreary.
On his side, the hardest work McCreary did when he was
shaking his head “no” after getting caught flush with
punches, and that happened a lot. In the end Rojas was won
on all cards 80-72 twice and one card read 70-73, (I
personally do not see how McCreary won even one round). This
fight was living proof that all that glitters is not always
gold…or fur…or whatever the heck those ugly trunks were made
of.
Super Lightweight Christon Edwards (12-3, 6 KO’s) came out
to start the fight without his mouthpiece in the first round
against John Bauza (15-0, 6 KO’s). Edwards had the guard
inserted, and it’s a good thing. From that point on Bauza
started busting him in the mouth from pillar to post. After
dropping Edwards once in round one Bauza put him down again
twice in round two before the ref brought a merciful end to
the bout at the 40 second mark of that second round.
Welterweight Larry Fryers (11-4, 4 KO’s) ran into the young
Top Rank buzz saw Xander Zayas (9-0, 7 KO’s) in this
scheduled six round battle. The tough Fryers was game and
willing to go to war, but the groomed prospect Zayas showed
why he is a fighter on the rise. Zayas could not put Fryers
down but after a series of unanswered blows the ref saw fit
to bring this one to and end at the 1:02 mark of the third
round giving Zayas the TKO victory.
Someones 0 had to go in this battle of undefeated Super
Featherweights Bryan Lua (8-0, 3 KO’s) and Frevian Gonzalez
Robles (4-1, 1 KO). Early on it was apparent this fight was
going to have some heated exchanges, and it did not
disappoint. But early bodywork by Lua set the tone in the
fight. Robles was game and did some fine work but was not
able to get the edge over the tough Lua. Final scores all in
favor of Lua read 58-56 and 60-54 x 2 helping him secure the
unanimous decision.
It was a Middleweight slugfest between LaQuan Evans (4-2, 2
KO’s) and Troy Isley (2-0, 1 KO) until the ref stepped in
and brought an extremely questionable end to the battle at
the 2:26 mark of round four. Truthfully, Isley was dropping
some bombs on Evans, but Evans was far from being in trouble
and was answering back, albeit with some very weak punches.
It just seemed like an incredibly early stoppage to most in
the house including this writer.
This undercard fight gave us the boxer versus the brawler in
a four round Welterweight attraction. Southpaw Kasir
Goldston (3-0, 1 KO) used a good stiff jab to keep his foe
Maurice Anthony (3-2, 3 KO’s) bobbing and weaving the entire
fight. Goldston set up some nice straight left hands that
found their mark as well. Anthony was game but could not get
inside to do any real damage. Final scores read 40-36 x 3
giving Goldston the unanimous decision nod.
Welterweights Jahi Tucker (4-0, 2 KO’s) and Ysrael Barboza
(3-2-1, 3 KO’s) opened the show with a decent little four
round scrap. Tucker used superior boxing skills to keep the
rugged Barboza at bay. Final scores all in favor of Tucker
read 40- 36 across the board.
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