The International Boxing League

[kenyan_cheena]

ARIAKE COLISEUM HOSTS
IBL'S ANTICIPATED JAPAN DEBUT

Friday 30 August 2002

An event that Japanese boxing fans have long been waiting for finally arrived tonight as Tokyo's Ariake Coliseum hosted not only the nation's first International Boxing League fight card but also the first fight card (in either the IBL or HBF) to feature Japanese competitors. The Middleweight division's Asia/Oceania/Africa region has three Sydney Olympic medallists numbered amongst it's twelve combatants: Australian Light-Middleweight silver winner Les Darcy, Nigeria's bronze medallist Dick Tiger (also in the LMW division) and Japan's own Koichi Wajima, a bronze medallist in the Middleweight division who was scheduled to headline the card. Understandably, all three have been tipped to finish in the group's top four and book a spot in the World Championship tournament and tonight they took their first step towards that goal.

This card had really needed no promotion in the lead up as it was the main topic of conversation amongst Japan's sports-following public and, truth be told, amongst the general public also. The excitement over seeing Wajima and the other three Japanese fighters in the group - Tadashi Mihara, Shinji Takehara and Masashi Kudo (the latter two would be squaring off against each other) - was something that exceeded anything else that the sport had brought to the nation before now. Everyone knowns that outside of the USA, Japan has been the HBF and IBL's most ardent supporter. That's been the case without a single Japanese fighter stepping in the ring but tonight that drought was finally broken and the atmosphere in the Ariake Coliseum was beyond electric.

A number of Japan's other IBL representatives were in attendance in front row seats and each of them were introduced to the adoring crowd in the minutes before the evening's opener. These included local-born Lightweight Yamada Tsubasa and Olympians Mitsonuri Seki (Featherweight) and Jaguar Kakizawa (Lightweight), each dressed sharply in designer suits of various colours. The crowd was in a celebratory mood and all the anticipation and excitement exploded as the Australian fighter Dave Sands made his way to the ring for the night's first event, where he would clash with Tadashi Mihara...

(to be continued)

[kenyan_cheena]

(continuation)

Opening Bout

17 year-old Dave Sands had slipped in and out of the IBL's June selection trials in Sydney almost unnoticed, quickly returning to his hometown of Stockton near Newcastle on the New South Wales central coast once they were over. The modest teenager attracted little attention before, during and after the trials, the exception being that a number of IBL officials definitely noticed him and signed him to a contract to participate in the league's Middleweight regional qualifiers. IBL Chief Director Raymond Bell had been very impressed by Sands' boxing ability but the young man's reserved nature seemed to work against him as he was not recognised as a genuine tournament contender at the trial's conclusion. Strangely, Sands has garnered little publicity outside of Stockton, Australian boxing writers preferring to focus on names such as Peter Jackson, Jeff Fenech and Albert Griffiths. However, there's little doubt that after tonight's performance Sands will start getting noticed in his homeland as he kicked off the event with a clear cut unanimous decision win over Tadashi Mihara (58-55, 59-54, 58-55).

Working against both a parochial crowd and an opponent desperate for victory Sands had little trouble in securing the verdict. It was obvious after the 1st round that he was a class above Mihara, a swift jab and rapid-fire combinations keeping the Japanese fighter on the back foot. Sands followed the same gameplan throughout the fight, picking off his determined foe with precision lefts and rights. The Australian wore knee-length trunks of white with green trim, SANDS stencilled in yellow on the waistband. His calm, controlled demanour remained a constant, even when Mihara had the crowd on their feet with his first sustained success of the contest in the final round.

Japanese fight fans are nothing if not fair and even though their support was fully behind Mihara they applauded Sands' masterful display once the bout was over. The Australian showed little emotion after the verdict, simply raising his left fist in acknowledgment of the audience. Mihara was close to tears, appearing ashamed that, as the first Japanese fighter to appear in the tournament, he had failed to achieve victory. Sands landed 150 of 446 punches (33.6%), Mihara 82 of 330 (24.8%).

Sands is clearly a reserved, introverted individual and while those characteristics won't help to improve his public profile, there's no denying that he's one skilled boxer. It appears that silver medallist Les Darcy will have some stiff competition as far as the title of Australia's best Middleweight is concerned.

(to be continued)

[kenyan_cheena]

Sorry, folks. No posts in the IBL/HBF today. I was working on setting up an OOTP6 historical league. I should be able to get the Tokyo card finished tomorrow.

[kenyan_cheena]

(continuation)

Preliminary 1

Fighting the Australian Troy Waters, South Africa's Giovanni Pretorious won what must surely be the most hard-earned unanimous decision verdict in the brief history of either the HBF or IBL. On paper this bout didn't look like being anything special as neither man had stood out at their respective selection trials. But it turned out to be the fight of the night, a fiercely competitive contest that had the audience on their feet throughout.

After a fast-paced back and forth opening round Waters was in command of the 2nd until Pretorious caught him with a jolting uppercut midway through. The shot rattled the Aussie and allowed Pretorious to finish the round brilliantly, landing a damaging combination and a flush left hook to sway the judge's favour. Once again Waters dominated the early stages of round three, a hard jab and a snapping uppercut putting the South African on the back foot. But then, entirely against the run of play Waters was floored by a three-punch combo, a flush right hook staggering him and a follow-up left-right sending him to the canvas. Waters was up at seven and like in the 2nd, Pretorious controlled the rest of the round, the Australian struggling to both clear his head and stay out of trouble.

Incredibly, round four followed the same pattern as the previous two but this time Waters really had Pretorious in trouble. The 20 year-old tagged the South African with a succession of scoring shots before seemingly putting an exclamation point on his work with a crushing right cross. Pretorious was breathing heavy and looking tired but after backing Waters off with a sharp uppercut he then dropped him with an even more damaging uppercut just eight seconds before the bell. Waters made it back to his feet as the round ended, shaking his head as he returned to his corner.

Despite all his hard work, round five would be the first one awarded in Waters' favour on any of the scorecards, two judges giving it to him after a spirited, exciting three minutes from both men. It would only be the final stanza when the pace would finally slow, neither man able to produce a final furious flurry. The crowd gave them a standing ovation when it was over, Waters and Pretorious embracing and exchanging compliments.

The verdict did the Australian no justice at all, Pretorious winning by scores of 59-55, 60-54 and 59-54. A look at the cards showed that even in rounds three and (especially) round four, where Waters had dominated before being knocked down, none of the judges had taken his work into account, all three scoring both rounds 10-8. Waters had actually outlanded Pretorious 42-17 in the 4th.

Punch totals

Giovanni Pretorious: 124/374 (33.2%)
Troy Waters: 153/327 (46.8%)

As intimated earlier, neither of these men have warranted a mention as far as World Championship berths are concerned but if they can produce the type of effort they came up with tonight in future contests they'll definitely cause some headaches.

Preliminary 2

Having been heavily involved in promoting the IBL and boxing in general during the lead up to these regional qualifiers, Nigerian bronze medallist Dick Tiger made a victorious start to his pro career with a unanimous decision win against South Africa's Charlie Weir. The final scorecards all showed a 58-53 verdict, a victory margin that did not reflect the tough time that Tiger had in the opening rounds.

Round one was mostly a cautious affair, the combatants only coming out of their shells as it reached its conclusion. Tiger was employing a weary disposition, mindful of Weir's reported KO power. In the 2nd he experienced it first hand as, after a tight first 2:24 a wild overhand right caught Tiger flush on the jaw and sent him to the canvas! He made it to one knee and for a moment it looked like he might not beat the count. But he was on his feet at nine and although he survived the round the Nigerian was clearly perturbed.

Tiger would later confirm that it was a combination of embarrassment and fear that fuelled him through the rest of the bout as he would go on to dominate proceedings, steadily wearing Weir down during the 3rd, 4th and 5th before sending him to the canvas twice in the final stanza. Having landed a combined 46 punches in rounds one and two, Tiger would connect with 160 over the course of the final four, including 45 in a dazzling 3rd and 51 in a punishing 5th. When it was all said and done Tiger had set a new regional qualifiers record for punches landed in a fight with 206 (out of 494, for an accuracy rate of 41.7%). Weir landed just 76 of 202 (37.6%), 45 of those connecting in the first two rounds.

"It's a big relief," a smiling Tiger said. "Especially after that second round. That was a scary moment but I think it really did me a favour. It was like I was shocked back into action and I didn't let him into the fight after that."

The bronze medallist is one of the favourites to finish on top of the Asia/Oceania/Africa region standings and based on tonight's effort it's not hard to see why.

(to be continued)

[kenyan_cheena]

Sorry 'bout my lack of activity here during the last couple of days. Back on Sunday I was writing up the rest of the Tokyo card and when I was about five minutes from finishing it my PC decided to reboot itself and I hadn't saved the notepad file yet. One hour of solid work vanishing in a heartbeat. That's the type of thing that really makes it hard for me to get straight back into it. I'm gonna try to finish it tomorrow during my lunchbreak at work.

[kenyan_cheena]

(continuation)

Support Bout

Australia's Olympic silver medallist Les Darcy is regarded by many as one of the truly legitimate contenders for the IBL's inaugural World Middleweight Championship. Having lost to Jamaica's Mike McCallum in the gold medal match in Sydney the 19 year-old has spoken in the past of how hungry he is to go that one step further in the professional ranks.

"It's not really beating McCallum that I'm after," said Darcy earlier this week. "Of course, that would be nice but I want to prove to the world, to the people who follow boxing that I belong amongst the top Middleweights in our sport. I don't think I'll be able to say that if I fail in the tournament."

Well, Darcy took the first step towards his goal tonight with a dominant unanimous decision victory against the Filipino fighter Ceferino Garcia (60-55, 60-56, 60-55). After an entertaining and competitive opening round Darcy settled into a rhythm and was never in trouble for the duration of the contest. His best work came in the 2nd, 3rd and 6th rounds, where he mystified Garcia with his defensive prowess and handspeed, snapping his head back time and again with a constant, potent jab and rapid-fire combinations.

Punch totals

Darcy 175/363 (48.2%)
Garcia 71/407 (17.4%)

"More than anything, I was happy with my defense," said Darcy, smiling. "We really worked on that aspect of the gameplan leading in and I'm thrilled that it paid off. This is a satisfying way to start the tournament, no doubt."

Across most of boxing's weight divisions (HBF included), Australia has at least one competitor who can be considered a genuine chance at World Championship glory. Darcy certainly fits that description in the Middleweight division.

(to be continued)

[kenyan_cheena]

(continuation)

Co-Feature

The moment that Japanese fight fans had been waiting for finally arrived as Shinji Takehara and Masashi Kudo arrived in the ring. The crowd was pretty evenly split but there was only one thing that really mattered: barring a draw, a Japanese fighter would be victorious at the contest's conclusion. The applause from the audience was thunderous when each man made the walk into the arena, as if they all knew that, despite the country's fanatical support of the sport up to now, this was the moment when boxing would really, truly arrive in Japan.

When it was all over, Masashi Kudo was awarded a split decision victory (57-56, 56-57, 57-56), the bout coming very close to living up to the lofty expectations placed upon it. Kudo's triumph was an admirable one as he fought back from losing the opening two rounds on all three cards, Takehara coming out strong in the 1st and then dominating round two. Kudo turned the tide with an aggressive 3rd and then flooored his compatriot with a single left hook thirty seconds into the 4th, the knockdown proving crucial to the outcome. Takehara gave himself every chance with a convincing, explosive round five but Kudo did just enough in the final stanza, two of the judges awarding it to him. In the final outcome Kudo had been the much more aggressive, busy fighter, even though Takehara could claim ownership of the best individual rounds of the fight (the 2nd and 5th).

Both men exchanged compliments and admiration afterwards before being carried around on their trainer's shoulders, a spontaneous display of national pride and joy. Yes, it really mattered little who had won this fight, only that the winner was Japanese.

Punch totals

Kudo: 110/538 (20.4%)
Takehara: 121/353 (34.3%)

Main Event

Having just seen the first victory by a Japanese fighter in the IBL the audience did not have to wait long for the second one as bronze medallist Koichi Wajima took a majority decision verdict against the tough Australian Michael Dyson (58-56, 57-57, 58-56). Wajima made his way to the ring surrounded by a large entourage, bronze medal hanging around his neck. he was flanked by large Japanese flags and wore a silk robe of white with red trim, aswell as a white and red bandana. He was greeted like an all-conquering hero, the crowd launching into a chant of "Wa-ji-ma! Wa-ji-ma! Wa-ji-ma!"

The chant, aswell as the sight of his fellow countrymen electrifying the audience a half hour earlier clearly had an effect on the Olympian as he came out smoking, unleashing a ferocious assault in the opening round. To his great credit Dyson rallied, using a penetrating jab and precision combinations launched on the counter to sweep the next two rounds. His work succeeded in silencing the crowd and pulled a blanket of consternation over them. That was quite a feat, but Wajima didn't win that bronze medal by accident. He was able to dominate the bottom half of the contest, his efforts in round four on a par with those in the 1st. After a close 5th it was clear early in the final round that Dyson had little left and Wajima showed little mercy, punishing the Aussie.

The punch totals showed the extent of Wajima's domination in rounds one, four and six. He landed 175 of 553 shots (31.6%), Dyson 84 of 468 (17.9%). The victor wore a smile from ear-to-ear, waving, bowing and blowing kisses to the audience, pumping his fists in the air jubilantly.

"I knew he would be a very tough opponent," said Wajima. "He didn't disappoint me and I have a lot of respect for him. He worked really hard during the fight but I was able to succeed in either dodging or blocking a lot of his shots. Maybe he was a bit excited at times, maybe a bit too eager to land his punches."

Wajima was still in the ring when the matchups for the group's second series of bouts were announced. As has been the case with three of the other four regional qualifiers held this week, this one also featured a blockbuster showdown...

SHINJI TAKEHARA (0-1-0) vs CEFERINO GARCIA (0-1-0)
KOICHI WAJIMA (1-0-0) vs TROY WATERS (0-1-0)
CHARLIE WEIR (0-1-0) vs DAVE SANDS (1-0-0)
TADASHI MIHARA (0-1-0) vs MICHAEL DYSON (0-1-0)
GIOVANNI PRETORIUS (1-0-0) vs MASASHI KUDO (1-0-0)
LES DARCY (1-0-0) vs DICK TIGER (1-0-0)

[kenyan_cheena]

SUMMARY OF RESULTS
INTERNATIONAL BOXING LEAGUE FIGHT CARD
FRIDAY 30 AUGUST 2002
ARIAKE COLISEUM, TOKYO, JAPAN

IBL WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
REGIONAL QUALIFYING TOURNAMENT, SERIES ONE
MIDDLEWEIGHT DIVISION
REGION: ASIA/OCEANIA/AFRICA


OPENING BOUT

Dave Sands UD6 Tadashi Mihara

PRELIMINARY 1

Giovanni Pretorious UD6 Troy Waters

PRELIMINARY 2

Dick Tiger UD6 Charlie Weir

SUPPORT BOUT

Les Darcy UD6 Ceferino Garcia

CO-FEATURE

Masashi Kudo SD6 Shinji Takehara

MAIN EVENT

Koichi Wajima MD6 Michael Dyson

[Romdawg88]

Originally Posted by kenyan_cheena

LES DARCY (1-0-0) vs DICK TIGER (1-0-0)

Wow, another huge second round matchup.

[kenyan_cheena]

Originally Posted by Romdawg88

Wow, another huge second round matchup.

Yep, another one to add to the Middleweight list. I'm happy to get that card finished after what happened with it on the weekend. Next up will be a little break from the action with a story on one of the HBF's top contenders before I tackle the FC series card and the Friday night HBF event from LA.

[kenyan_cheena]

NIGERIAN TEENAGER MAKES
VICTORIOUS DEBUT IN HOMELAND

Friday 30 August 2002

Fighting in front of a hometown crowd at Lagos' Surelere Stadium, Nigeria's Tebiro Diaw made a successful start to his Future Contender series campaign with a 5th round TKO of Argentina's Juan Rivero. The 19 year-old was in control of the contest through the first four rounds, having cut Rivero in the 3rd. When a hard left hook worsened the wound two minutes into round five the ringside doctor and referee agreed that the fight should not continue.

Diaw hails from the same Lagos neighbourhood as IBL Light-Heavyweight competitor Celestine Amakochi and Heavyweight Boxing Federation slugger Omovo Okocha. Both men accompanied him to the ring before the bout, their presence only adding to the applause that resonated throughout the stadium. Diaw is one of twelve Nigerians numbered amongst the ranks of the International Boxing League and based on tonight's performance he has a solid future ahead of him.

In the evening's Co-Feature Japan's Hiromi Kamamoto scored another victory for his homeland, taking a dominant unanimous decision against Congo fighter Lomana Wamba (59-55, 58-56, 59-55). The 19 year-old showed some impressive skills, in particular a killer left jab that gave Wamba all sorts of trouble.

The event saw a first in either the HBF or IBL when New Orleans native Charley Joseph won by a technical unanimous decision against Utah's Don Fullmer. Joseph was well on his way to victory before an accidental headclash late in round four opened a terrible gash over Fullmer's left eye. The bout was stopped and with it having passed the midway point Joseph was declared the winner, as he was leading 30-27 on all three cards. Mention should also be made of the action-packed stoush between the Australian David Gibbs and Argentina's Diego Kempes. The two men landed a combined total of 310 punches (Gibbs 173, Kempes 147), the verdict being a draw...

SUMMARY OF RESULTS
INTERNATIONAL BOXING LEAGUE FIGHT CARD
FRIDAY 30 AUGUST 2002
SURELERE STADIUM, LAGOS, NIGERIA

IBL FUTURE CONTENDER SERIES
MIDDLEWEIGHT DIVISION - GROUP TWO, SERIES ONE


OPENING BOUT

Coley Welch D6 Guillermo Carriles

PRELIMINARY 1

Charley Joseph TUD4 Don Fullmer

PRELIMINARY 2

David Gibbs D6 Diego Kempes

SUPPORT BOUT

Steve Belloise UD6 Mariano Ronaldo

CO-FEATURE

Hiromi Kamamoto UD6 Lomana Wamba

MAIN EVENT

Tebiro Diaw TKO5 Juan Rivero

[kenyan_cheena]

FRENCHMAN JACQUOT SCORES UPSET WIN
IN FRONT OF FELLOW COUNTRYMEN

Saturday 31 August 2002

Fighting in the main event of tonight's IBL Future Contender series fight card in Poiters, lightly regarded crowd favourite Rene Jacquot scored an upset victory over California's Dave Shade, winning by technical split decision (48-47, 47-48, 48-47). A cut above Jacquot's right eye that had been caused by an accidental headclash midway through the opening round became gradually worse as the fight progressed before the ringside doctor declared the contest should be stopped one minute into the final stanza. In an uncanny situation, it was the second IBL bout in two days to end in such a manner following yesterday's fight between Charley Joseph and Don Fuller in Nigeria.

It had been quite an entertaining contest through the first five rounds, one of those bouts where neither man was able to hold onto the momentum for more than a round at a time. After an evenly-fought opening two rounds Shade started to show some of the skills that had prompted IBL scouts to sign him up after the California selection trials, the 17 year-old landing a series of damaging combinations. But Jacquot answered back in a superior manner, rocking the American in the 4th to the delight of the parochial crowd. The 5th was a closer affair but despite the fact that Shade appeared to be more effective during it two of the judges gave it to Jacquot, decisions that would sway the bout in his favour.

An ill-advised left hook from Shade fifty seconds into the 6th reopened Jacquot's cut to the point of no return, the Californian banging his thigh in frustration knowing that his fate was now in the lap of the judges. His cornercrew had told him after each round to stay away from the cut but it appeared that he just couldn't help himself. When the verdict was announced the crowd exploded jubilantly, Shade bowing his head and trudging back to his corner. Jacquot was a cut, bleeding mess but he was a smiling one also, pumping his fist and shouting back to the crowd triumphantly. It was one of the more extraordinary post-fight scenes during these past eight months of boxing action...

SUMMARY OF RESULTS
INTERNATIONAL BOXING LEAGUE FIGHT CARD
SATURDAY 31 AUGUST 2002
FUTUROSCOPE, POITERS, FRANCE

IBL FUTURE CONTENDER SERIES
MIDDLEWEIGHT DIVISION - GROUP THREE, SERIES ONE


OPENING BOUT

Jimmy Beau MD6 Robert Villemain

PRELIMINARY 1

Tony Janiro SD6 Jesus Enamorado

PRELIMINARY 2

Claudio Fernandez MD6 Anthony Jones

SUPPORT BOUT

Davey Moore D6 Vincent Pettway

CO-FEATURE

Dwight Davison UD6 Franz Szuzina

MAIN EVENT

Rene Jacquot TSD6 Dave Shade

[kenyan_cheena]

GANS AND VALDEZ MAKE
LIGHT WORK OF IBL DEBUTS

Saturday 31 August 2002

It would be true to say that of the six groups in the International Boxing League's Middleweight regional qualifiers, the South American group is the weakest. Beyond Panama's silver medallist Joe Gans and the hard-hitting Colombian Rodrigo Valdez, there's really not much to get excited about. However, putting a positive spin on it, of the other members in the group at least two of them are going to step up and become quite well known during the coming twelve months. Action in the group kicked off tonight at the Olympia Stadium in Panama City and, fighting in the Main Event and Co-Feature respectively, Gans and Valdez scored solid if unspectacular unanimous decision victories to start their pro careers.

Valdez had been hailed for his punching power and aggression during May's Colombian selection trials and those traits were in abundance tonight. He showed more than enough to maintain the belief that he'll be one of the favourites once the World Championship tournament rolls around. After a steady start Valdez opened up in round four and then floored his overmatched Panama-born opponent Rolando Lombardo in both the 5th and 6th rounds before being awarded a 58-54, 60-52, 59-53 decision. Valdez landed 156 of 644 punches (24.2%), Lombardo 87 of 315 (27.6%). The Colombian was subdued afterwards, clearly aware that in the greater scheme of the tournament the victory meant little.

Gans was greeted by a hero's welcome as he made his way to the ring, surrounded by Panama flags and wearing a robe of its colours, blue, red and white. Along with Roberto Duran (the young Lightweight discovered at Panama's June selection trials) Gans is carrying his nation's hopes for success in the IBL on his shoulders. It's a burden he seems comfortable with and while he didn't set the world on fire in his debut, he was a comfortable victor against the Colombian Santiago Lopez (58-56, 59-55, 58-56). Gans is known much more for his quickness and ring movement than punching power and tonight he used those premier attributes to befuddle and frustrate Lopez. Gans came out firing in the opening round as if intent to end the fight early. He didn't maintain that breakneck pace through the remainder of the contest but his efforts were sufficient to control the fight.

The silver medallist connected with 137 of 505 punches (27.1%) while Lopez could only find the mark with 60 of 282 (21.3%), Gans' defensive prowess making him look foolish at times. Gans was helped by the parochial Olympia Stadium crowd, who cheered and celebrated every time he landed one of those sizzling combinations or got himself out of a tight spot with his fast feet.

It goes without saying that it will be quite a clash once Gans and Valdez step in the ring against each other...

THE PANAMA CITY UNDERCARD

Opening Bout

Brazil's Miguel DeOliveira got the night off to a lively start with a unanimous decision victory against Argentina's Juan Roldan. After a slow first couple of rounds DeOliveira put himself right into the contest with a dominant 3rd before sending Roldan to the canvas almost for the full count two minutes into round four.

The knockdown permanently turned the fight in DeOliveira's favour and he punished Roldan in the 5th before cruising through the final round. The scorecards favoured the Brazilian to the tune of 59-55, 57-56 and 59-54.

Preliminary 1

In a clear example of revenge, Argentina's Andres Selpa ambushed the Brazilian Fabio Autran, knocking him out in the 2nd round. The fight was an even affair up to the midpoint of round two when Selpa staggered his opponent with a right cross. A right hand followed at the two minute mark before a left hook was the opener of a smashing four punch salvo that had Autran on his back. He didn't move and was counted out 2:34 into the round.

Selpa celebrated mightily, shouting and hollering and pumping his fists, the audience responding enthusiastically. Brazil and Argentina are spirited rivals in the football arena and so if tonight had been a football game the final score would have been 1-1.

Preliminary 2

Miguel Castellini gave Argentina a second victory on the night with a dominant unanimous decision win against Guyana's Kenny Bristol (60-54, 59-55, 60-54). Admittedly, Bristol came into the ring badly underdone but even if he'd been in perfect shape the result would have been no different. Castellini was simply too aggressive and determined for the Guyanan, landing almost three times as many punches.

All the damage was done in the opening four rounds, Castellini sweeping them on two of the judge's cards before being content to jab his way through the final two rounds.

Support Bout

In one of the most extraordinary fight endings seen in either the HBF or the IBL, Argentina's Carlos Herrera stole victory from the jaws of defeat when he knocked out Panama slugger Omar Endara at the end of the final round. Without a doubt this one was the fight of the night, a back and forth affair that Herrera never looked like winning but somehow did.

They split the first two rounds, Endara dominating round one before Herrera controlled the 2nd. The Argentine silenced the crowd when he dropped Endara with a jolting uppercut sixteen seconds into round three. The hometown hero beat the count and survived the round before a fantastic 4th had the audience on their feet, Herrera in command early before Endara stormed back into it late.

Round five was another cracker, although not to quite the extend of the 4th. Then came the extraordinary events of the final round, three minutes the type of which might not be seen for some time in a boxing ring. Following is a partial transcript of the HBO commentary team's call of the round...

"-and Endara puts Herrera on the backfoot with that jolting right cross, the Argentinian putting some distance between the two ... Oh, Endara just rocked Herrera with a three punch combination! One minute down here in the final round ... and once again Herrera is rocked, a left hook then a right and another left wobbling him. Endara might be able to finish it off here if he keeps this up ... Endara snapping herrera's head back with the jab now ... and Herrera really looks spent as this incredible contest approaches its final minute ... Oh! Big uppercut from Endara! Herrera's legs have turned to jelly! Can he stay on his feet! ... Endara works the body there with a hard right to the ribcage, only forty seconds out from the final bell now ... and there's the timekeeper signalling the final ten seconds, Endara will probably be the victor- OH!!!!! Endara is down! Endara is down!! A right cross has floored him only a few seconds before the bell! The crowd are in shock and the count is up to five, and six, seven, he's not going to get up! That's it! It's over! Unbelieveable! With a knockout here at the end of the final round Carlos Herrera has scored one of the most improbable victories we've seen in boxing! The Argentine has gone nuts, his corner team have swarmed him in the ring and the audience here are just in shock! They can't believe it and neither can I!"

Going into the final round, two judges had it all tied up at 47-47 while the third favoured Herrera 49-45. If Endara had been able to stay on his feet to the bell there's no doubt that all three judges would have awarded him round six, therefore making him a victor by split decision. Just to indicate how much he dominated that final round, Endara outlanded Herrera 42-6 during it. The final punch totals were:

Herrera: 103/587 (17.5%)
Endara: 142/348 (40.8%)

***

Matchups for series two...

MIGUEL DEOLIVEIRA (1-0-0) vs OMAR ENDARA (0-1-0)
RODRIGO VALDEZ (1-0-0) vs MIGUEL CASTELLINI (1-0-0)
CARLOS HERRERA (1-0-0(1)) vs JOE GANS (1-0-0)
FABIO AUTRAN (0-1-0) vs ROLANDO LOMBARDO (0-1-0)
JUAN ROLDAN (0-1-0) vs ANDRES SELPA (1-0-0(1))
SANTIAGO LOPEZ (0-1-0) vs KENNY BRISTOL (0-1-0)

[kenyan_cheena]

SUMMARY OF RESULTS
INTERNATIONAL BOXING LEAGUE FIGHT CARD
SATURDAY 31 AUGUST 2002
OLYMPIA STADIUM, PANAMA CITY, PANAMA

IBL WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
REGIONAL QUALIFYING TOURNAMENT, SERIES ONE
MIDDLEWEIGHT DIVISION
REGION: SOUTH AMERICA


OPENING BOUT

Miguel DeOliveira UD6 Juan Roldan

PRELIMINARY 1

Andres Selpa KO2 Fabio Autran

PRELIMINARY 2

Miguel Castellini UD6 Kenny Bristol

SUPPORT BOUT

Carlos Herrera KO6 Omar Endara

CO-FEATURE

Rodrigo Valdez UD6 Rolando Lombardo

MAIN EVENT

Joe Gans UD6 Santiago Lopez

[Jeff1787]

I haven't been around for a while. It took me some time to get caught up. Great write-ups!!!