Boston Beacon
February 16, 1958
Pastrano Outpoints Maxim
By Danny McGill
Willie Pastrano used a combination of youth and speed to earn a majority decision over former light heavyweight champion Joey Maxim last night at Boston Garden.
For the first three rounds Pastrano was just too quick for Maxim and demonstrated his impressive bxong skills along the way. Pastrano frequently beat his man to the punch and moved in and out with great effect, using his jab to set up rapid combnations.
By the fourth round, however, Maxim appeared to find his rhythm. He slowed down the pace and was able to work inside Pastrano's defense, scoring hooks to the body and uppercuts to the head.
Over the next three round, the match see-sawed back and forth. Pastrano used his speed of foot and hand to catch the incoming Maxim while the veteran ex-champ was able on occassion to bull his way inside and deal some damage.
The first seven rounds moved at a rapid pace and seemed to hold the interest of the attending fans. Neither man is known for a heavy punch, and nobody was ever in any sort of serious trouble. Nevertheless, the styles and skills of the fighters proved entertaining.
In round eight, things slowed down markedly. Both men appeared to tire, and the remainder of the match appeared to be in slow motion. Clinching rather than punching tended to be the theme as Pastrano and Maxim seemed to prefer dancing to punching.
The judges were rather conflicted in the scoring at the end of the contest. One judge saw Pastrano as a runaway winner at 98-92. A second saw Pastrano edging out Maxim 96-94 while the third saw it tied at 95-95. Thus, the final result was a majority decision in Pastrano's favor.
The win breaks a four bout losing streak for Pastrano who was ranked among the top ten heavyweights a year ago. Loses to John Holman, Mike DeJohn, Alex Miteff, and Pat McMurtry caused his to drop rapidly among the division's upper tier fighters.
It's become increasingly obvious that the thirty-six year old Maxim's glory days are far behind him, and he needs to give serious consideration to hanging up the gloves. Now fighting as a heavyweight, he's not fared well recently. This past November he turned in a poor performance against England's Brian Londen who dropped him twice en route to a unanimous decision.
Last night's boxing card is the result of the city's effort to bring major fights to the Garden. Next month there will be a special St. Patrick's Day event featuring an all-Irish card. Ten days later Archie Moore will face Sweden's Ingemar Johansson in a much-anticpated match.