World Championships

[Crimson]

Sunday, September 27th, 1992
West Martin Field; Laredo, TX
Miguel Lora 40-2 (17) Columbia WBA
vs.
Orlando Canizales 35-1-2 (27) Texas IBF
(This is the same venue that Canizales defended his belt against Sergio Reyes in 1994 on CBS television.)

- A canopy was put up over the infield of this outdoor minor league baseball stadium to provide the fighters with some shade from the mid-afternoon 90 degree heat. Seating 5,000 fans, the field was packed. Gil Clancy and Tim Ryan called the fight for CBS.
- Due to the cut he had sustained in his exciting win over Eddie Cook, Miguel Lora’s training contained less sparring than he admittedly would have liked.
- The 3-2 odds slightly favored a Canizales win.
- Miguel Lora had an excellent opening round. Easily landing straight right and left hands, while avoiding the attack of Canizales. It would end up being his best round of the fight.
- Canizales took over in the second round, as he found the range and tattooed Lora with head and body blows. For the most part, that’s how the rest of the fight went.
- After 6 rounds Ringside Expert Lee MacRae had it 58 to 56 favoring Canizales.
- Punches landed favored Canizales 148 to 97.
- Lora tired badly over the final 6 rounds from the relentless Canizales body assault.
- The final punches landed numbers were reasonably close at 286 to 211, favoring Canizales who had landed the heavier punches throughout.
- Both fighters finished the fight unmarked, aside from some puffiness around the right eye (3) of Lora.
- Ringside Expert Lee MacRae had it 117 to 112 for Canizales.
- The official Judges had it: 116-113, 117-112, and 119-111 all for the winner by unanimous decision and belt holder of the IBF and WBA titles……ORLANDO CANIZALES!!!!!
Orlando Canizales Wu12 Miguel Lora (wins WBA title and defends IBF title)
Junior Jones and Orlando Canizales will now fight at "The Mirage" in Las Vegas on Saturday the 19th of December 1992 for the BANTAM WEIGHT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP and all 4 world title belts.

(Below is a link to the 1994 Canizales-Reyes fight. Provides an idea of how the atmosphere might have been for this make believe Canizales-Lora fight at "West Martin Field".)
YouTube - Orlando Canizales Vs. Sergio Reyes (1) - (Wu12) - 10-15-1994 - I.B.F. Bantamweight Title - Martin Field, Laredo, Texas, Orlando's 16th Title defense, Breaking the record of the late great Manuel Ortiz's 15!

Orlando Canizales vs. Paul Gonzales II
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tW6jC...eature=related

Orlando Canizales Knockouts
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2Qq7yyBoCg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxR84...eature=related

Orlando Canizales vs. Rolando Bohol
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQrWU...eature=related

Orlando Canizales vs. Gerardo Martinez
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NV-VD...eature=related

Orlando Canizales vs. Jimmy Navarro
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSMXZ...eature=related

Orlando Canizales vs. Paul Gonzales I
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZuXR...eature=related

Orlando Canizales vs. Kelvin Seabrooks
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiC7D...eature=related

Orlando Canizales vs. Wilfredo Vasquez
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBs4o...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srcft...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEhxN...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uMNjG...eature=related

[Crimson]

Originally Posted by Infinity

With a fight that close, a rematch is in order!

Ha! Ha! Yes, I'm all in favor of that. It was razor close and boxing fans are left to wonder what might have been had Adams not sustained his "undisclosed injury" in the 1st round.

Adams will have to wait though until after Junior Jones vs. Orlando Canizales takes place in December 1992. I'm thinking Adams deserves the opportunity to fight on the undercard of that matchup in a "World Championship Eliminator", with the winner getting to challange for the WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP in early 1993.

Any suggestions on who "Bones" Adams should fight in that matchup. Below are the leading contenders, all are in the top #20 and willing to fight the teenager!

Jorge Julio - Columbia
Victor Rabanales - Mexico
Joichiro Tatsuyoshi - Japan
Eddie Cook - Nevada
Israel Contreras - Venezuela
Javier Leon - Mexico
Harold Mestre - Columbia
Gerardo Martinez - California
Rafael Del Valle - Puerto Rico
Miguel Lora - Columbia
Greg Richardson - Ohio
Luisito Espinosa - Philippines
Duke McKenzie - England

[Crimson]

Below are the rankings going into the December 19th World Championship fight between Orlando Canizales and Junior Jones. Fighting on the undercard in an elimination fight to determine the #1 mandatory contender is Bones Adams vs. a yet to be determined top #10 opponent.

BANTAM WEIGHT DIVISION WORLD RANKINGS
as of December 18, 1992

WORLD CHAMPION: vacant
1# Orlando Canizales - Texas
2# Junior Jones - New York
3# Bones Adams - Kentucky
4# Miguel Lora - Columbia
5# Eddie Cook - Nevada
6# Rafael Del Valle - Puerto Rico
7# Gerardo Martinez - California
8# Luisito Espinosa - Philippines
9# Joichiro Tatsuyoshi - Japan
10#Victor Rabanales - Mexico

11# Israel Contreras - Mexico
12# Javier Leon - Mexico
13# Harold Mestre - Columbia
14# Greg Richardson - Ohio
15# Duke McKenzie - England
16# Billy Hardy - England
17# Derrick Whiteboy - South Africa
18# Dadoy Andujar - Philippines
19# Jesus Sarabia - Mexico
20# Juvenal Berrio - Columbia

Below are photos of 7 contenders (Miguel Lora, Eddie Cook, Rafael Del Valle, Gerardo Martinez, and Joichiro Tatsuyoshi) who are hoping to be selected to fight Adams in the eliminator. Anyone wishing to cast a vote for one of them, or propose an additional Bantam weight fight between top #20 contenders to fighting on the 12-19-92 card, please do! Thanks.

[Crimson]

No requests? Darn.

I'm gonna put #4 contender Eddie Cook in their with Bones Adams on the Bantam Championship undercard. That's a fight I find interesting! Results to be posted soon along with who won the Bantam Weight World Championship between Orlando Canizales and Junior Jones.

[Crimson]

Saturday, December 19th, 1992
The Mirage; Las Vegas, NV
1# Orlando Canizales 35-1-2 (27) Texas IBF WBA
vs.
2# Junior Jones 28-0-2 (17) New York WBC WBO
15 Rounds for the
BANTAM WEIGHT WORLD CHAMPIONSHP

AND
3# Bones Adams 26-1-1 (16) Kentucky
vs.
5# Eddie Cook 17-1 (15) Nevada
12 Rounds Bantam World Championship Eliminator and NABF title
After 4# contender Miguel Lora passed on the opportunity to fight Bone Adams in an eliminator, Eddie Cook (ranked 5#) was offered the opportunity and gladly accepted. Thrown into the mix was the vacant NABF title. The winner was guaranteed a fight for the Bantam Weight World Championship as some point in 1993.
Fight notes:
- Bones Adams was listed as a 3-2 favorite.
- The right eye of Adams began to swell in the 4th round.
- After 5 rounds Ringside Expert Mark Somogyi had 48-48.
- Adams after 5 rounds had out landed Cook 102 to 91.
- Adams was hurt in round 9 and was having trouble seeing punches out of his ½ shut right eye (14).
- Adams was dropped by a combination for the count of 8 in round 10 and then again in round 12.
- Ringside Expert Mark Somogyi had it for Cook 117-111.
- Punches landed favored Adams 249 to 242.
- The official judges had it unanimously 116-111, 116-112, and 117-111 for the new NABF champ…..
EDDIE COOK!
Eddie Cook Wu12 Bones Adams (wins NABF title)



Pre-fight:
- Las Vegas odds listed Junior Jones as a slight 3-2 favorite.
- Canizales focused on his conditioning in particular during training, and was reportedly in the best shape of his career.
- Both fighters entered the ring in peak condition.
- The referee was Mills Lane, the judges were from South Africa, USA, and England.

Ring introductions: Both fighters appeared anxious to get things started. After Mill’s famous line, “Let’s get it on!” the fighters touched gloves and returned to their corners waiting for the bell.

Round 1: Canizales went at Jones, but was met with solid counters. Jones looked good and easily evaded the charging Canizales, stunning him with a left-right combo (14-4 Jones).

Round 2: A much better round for Canizales. The facial expression of Jones reflected the discomfort Canizales body shots were causing (15-6 Canizales).

Round 3: After a Jones flurry Canizales face had blood flowing down it from a pretty bad cut under his right eye. Canizales showed no sign of being fazed by the cut and continued to trade with Jones at every opportunity. The crowd stood in appreciation of the battle that was starting to unfold (13-11 Canizales).

Round 4: The cutman for Canizales, Jim Strickland, managed to stop
the bleeding prior to the start of the round. Following the instructions of his trainer, Joey Fariello, Junior Jones boxed more aggressively in the fourth. It was a slam bam round. It was the kind of round that Canizales wanted. However, it was Jones who landed the more effective punches (Jones 16-12). After 4 rounds Ringside Expert Andreas Raht had it 39-38 for Jones. HBO’s Harold Lederman had it EVEN 38-38. Punches landed favored Jones 106 to 86.

Round 5: Jones was boxing superbly and a hook midway into the round stunned Canizales. The Texan displayed why he is one of the best fighters in the world and replied with hard punches of his own. To Jones’ credit he was able to take the blows well (Jones 14-12). For the second time in the fight the crowd was on their feet cheering at the bell.

Round 6: Jones continued to box extremely well and appeared to be getting the best of Canizales. The Texan though was unrelenting with his pressure infighting and one had to wonder how long Jones would be able to keep up with the pace Canizales was setting. Jones was breathing with his mouth open toward the end of the round. Except for his now closed cut, Canizales seemed as fresh as he had for the first round. Mills Lane issued Canizales a warning for a very low blow (Jones 12-10).

Round 7: Less than 20 seconds into the round the heads of Canizales and Jones collided. Referee Mills Lane ruled that the head butt was intentional and took the obviously hurt Jones to the ringside doctor. Jones was given several minutes to see if he could continue. With his trainer yelling that he could not continue. The doctor then informed the referee that Jones was not fit to continue. Since the head butt had been ruled as an “Intentional Foul”, Mills Lane had no choice other than to disqualify Orlando Canizales!

Junior Jones Wdq7 Orlando Canizales
(wins Bantam Weight World Championship IBF WBA titles and defends WBC WBO titles)

Post-fight: The crowd stood and booed in disbelief and disappointment for several minutes. Orlando Canizales, Jesse Reid, and the rest of the Canizales team argued vehemently, stating that the head butt was “NOT!” intentional.
Ringside Expert Andreas Raht had it 59-56 for Junior Jones after 6 rounds. HBO’s Harold Lederman had it 58-56 for Junior Jones. The HBO announcing team debated if Junior Jones really was or was not unable to continue? Was Junior Jones aware he’d win by DQ if he couldn’t continue on? What would have happened if he had continued? Replays seemed to indicate that it was an “Intentional” head butt by Canizales, and had been in retaliation to a head butt from Junior Jones, delivered a moment earlier.

Final punches landed numbers favored Junior Jones 159 to 144. The South African and English judges both had it 58-56 for Canizales, while the USA judge had it EVEN 57-57.

Junior Jones has until 12-31-93 to make his mandatory defense against the new 1# contender Eddie Cook.

Junior Jones vs. Marco Antonio Barrera
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-qh7PqBpoY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7R2E...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Id-aY...eature=related

Junior Jones vs. Francisco Alvarez
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60C6c...eature=related

Junior Jones vs. John Michael Johnson
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CcKT0...eature=related

Junior Jones Highlights
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2cm4...eature=related

Junior Jones vs. Kennedy McKinney
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LcdS...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0JLg...eature=related

Junior Jones vs. Erik Morales
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-h6Q...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZMFZ...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TX8Pk...eature=related

[Crimson]

Odds of winning the 1992 Jr. Feather Weight World Championship Tournament
3-1 Tracy Patterson WBC
4-1 Welcome Ncita IBF
6-1 Wilfredo Vasquez WBA
8-1 Daniel Zaragoza
12-1 Jesse Benavides WBO
15-1 Jesus Salud HI
20-1 Jamal Hinton
20-1 Pedro Decima
25-1 Kennedy McKinney
30-1 Raul Perez
35-1 Kiyoshi Hatanaka
40-1 Thierry Jacob

[Crimson]

I forgot to add the Jr. Feather bracket!

[Crimson]

Thursday, June 4th, 1992
Blaisdell Center; Honolulu, HI
Jesus Salud 41-4 (22) Hawaii
vs.
Kiyoshi Hatanaka 25-5-2 (16) Japan
Fight Notes:
- Odds were EVEN on who would win.
- Salud put special emphasis on his endurance during training.
- A fairly even fight of back and forth slugging turned decisively in Jesus Salud’s favor when he scored two knockdowns in round 9.
- The scorecard of Ringside Expert Andreas Raht reflected what a close fight it was at 95 to 95.
- Punches landed favored Salud 237 to 228.
- The 3 judges, all from Hawaii had it unanimously 99-91, 96-92, and 95-94 for the “Hawaian Punch” JESUS SALUD!!!
Jesus Salud Wu10 Kiyoshi Hatanaka
Next up for Hawaii's Salud is a shot at the WBC Jr. Feather belt against Tracy Harris Patterson in July.

[Crimson]

Friday, June 4th, 1992
Arena Maucalpo; Mexico City, Mexico
Daniel Zaragoza 51-2-2 (21) Mexico
vs.
Raul Perez 51-3-2 (32) Mexico
Fight Notes:
- The famous Mexican wrestling arena was packed with boxing fans eager to witness two of the best Jr. Feather’s in the world battle for the opportunity to challenge Wilfredo Vasquez battle for the WBA title.
- Raul Perez came into the ring a 2-1 betting favorite.
- There was some concern leading up to the fight that Daniel Zaragoza may have over trained.
- Daniel Zaragoza seemed to get the better of the first 3 rounds, but did sustain a small cut to his forehead during round 3.
- A big round 4 for Zaragoza had Perez exhausted by rounds end, with his hands at his side.
- The cut of Zaragoza looked much worse in round 5and the referee called time to have the doctor take a look at it.
- Fearing the doctor or referee might stop the fight due to the cut, Zaragoza came out for round 6 desperate to score a knockout.
- Zaragoza’s loaded up punches were finding nothing but air and the sharp counters of Perez soon had Zaragoza’s face a crimson mask of blood.
- After conferring with doctor, the referee stopped the fight at 1:03 of round 6.
- Next up for Raul Perez is a clash in Puerto Rico with Wilfredo Vasquez for the WBA title.
- Zaragoza had landed 181 punches to 78 for Perez when the fight was stopped.
- Ringside Expert Rocco Del Sesto had Zaragoza winning 49 to 46 at the time of the stoppage.
- The 3 judges had it for Zaragoza 49-46,49-46, and 50-45 at the time of the stoppage.
Raul Perez TKO6 Daniel Zaragoza

Daniel Zaragoza vs. Erik Morales
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oj55U5ZdhPg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmCW7...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0eXt...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jv2KO...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzAos...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZ1o7...eature=related

Daniel Zaragoza Highlights
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGEmc...eature=related

Raul Perez vs. Wilfredo Vazquez II
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKTFD0TsibE

Raul Perez vs. Pepillo Valdez
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6_lF...eature=related

[Crimson]

Saturday, June 5th, 1992
Calais; Par-de-Calais, France
Thierry Jacob 39-5 (20) France
vs.
Kennedy McKinney 20-2-2 (12) Nevada
Fight notes:
- Kennedy McKinney was a slight 3-2 betting favorite to beat Thierry Jacob in France.
- The steadfast body bombardment from McKinney had Jacob with hands dropped to his sides for protection by round 5.
- At the end of 8 rounds Ringside Expert Don Koss had it for McKinney 78 to 75.
- Punches landed also favored McKinney after 8 rounds, 196 to 192.
- Jacob finished the fight with a badly swollen right eye (10).
- The judges saw it as a split decision: 96-95 Jacob, 98-93 and 97-93 for Kennedy McKinney.
- Next month Kennedy McKinney will travel to Texas, where he will face Jesse Benavides for the WBO title.
Kennedy McKinney Ws10 Thierry Jacob


Thierry Jacob vs. Kelvin Seabrooks
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKuwjPDqWWA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBG9S...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFOrg...eature=related

Thierry Jacob vs. Tracy Harris Patterson
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jW774...eature=related

Kennedy McKinney vs. Marco Antonio Barrerra
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wa2_tTjeDVM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIWvh...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QpUYq...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HDWs...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_dJj...eature=related

Kennedy McKinney vs. Welcome Ncita
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYECYPrXj1A

Kennedy McKinney vs. Paul Banke
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLcuy...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMnBM...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jDcT...eature=related

Kennedy McKinney vs. Richard Duran
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLrl5...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSLz8...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToXET...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TwDq...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLWN3...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hnvt...eature=related

[Crimson]

Sunday, June 6th, 1992
Coba Arena; Detroit, MI
Jemal Hinton 23-2-2 (18) Michigan
vs.
Pedro Decima 31-5 (19) Argentina
Ring notes:
- Pedro Decima had fought in the 1988 Olympics, representing Argentina, and the odds makers had established him as a 2-1 favorite to repeat his April victory over Jemal Hinton. In April of 1992, the two fighters put on a tremendous fight for the fans in Venezuela, with a close decision being awarded to Decima.
- Now the two would fight in a nationally televised fight by ABC from the historic Cobo Arena of Detroit.
- Alex Wallau and Dan Dierdorf would call the fight for ABC.
- Hinton put in extra roadwork and entered the ring in peak condition.
- Hinton came right at Decima at the bell to start the fight and walked into a right hand almost immediately that deposited him on the canvas and clearly hurt bad. Hinton was up at the count of 8 on shaky legs.
- Hinton had an improved round 2, as he followed the instructions of trainer, Emanuel Steward, and boxed Decima.
- Pedro Decima landed a powerful shot of the top of Hinton’s head to start round 3. He grimaced and turned his back to Hinton. When Decima remained with his back to Hinton and holding his hand in pain the referee stopped the fight and declared Jemal Hinton the winner by TKO3!
- Hinton will now face the undefeated South African, Welcome Ncita for the IBF title.
Jemal Hinton TKO3 Pedro Decima

Pedro Decima vs. Rudy Zavala
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eg978c7nSuc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_r6Pm...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jgm6J...eature=related

[Crimson]

Saturday, July 4th, 1992

Freeman Coliseum; San Antonio, TX
Jesse Benavides 35-5 (23) Texas WBO
vs.
Kennedy McKinney 21-2-2 (12)

- The camp of Kennedy McKinney expressed that they had focused on increasing the leverage of McKinney’s punches in training and had no intention of allowing the fight to go to the scorecards in Benavides hometown of San Antonio.
- The 3 judges were from Las Vegas, Switzerland, and Mexico.
- The third man in the ring was Japanese referee Kazumasa Kuwata.
- With Emanuel Steward providing the training, Benavides planned on using his brain to outsmart McKinney.
- The odds were dead even on who would win.
- Both fighters reportedly had fantastic training camps and met all of their training goals.
- McKinney sustained a cut over his right eye in round 4.
- Ringside Expert markus Heinshohn had it 39 to 37 for McKinney after 4 rounds.
- Punches landed after 4 rounds were virtually the same at 78 to 77.
- After being cut McKinney fought a more defensive minded battle.
- Benavides was on rubbery legs in round 8, courtesy of a McKinney combination., and some puffiness around his right eye (2).
- Benavides had his hometown fans on their feet in round 9 when he hurt McKinney to the body and forced him to hold, while also reopening the cut over his right eye.
- In round 10 it was McKinney’s turn to take charge again, when he hurt Benavides with a left hook, and swelled up his right eye (7).
- After 10 rounds Ringside Expert Markus Heinsohn had McKinney ahead by 2 points, 96 to 94. Punches landed remained the same at 197 landed for each fighter.
- Emanuel Steward instructed Benavides to let it all hang out prior to the bell for round 11. In the corner of Kennedy McKinney, trainer Kenny Adams told Kennedy to box.
- In an action packed round 11, Benavides reopened the cut of McKinney just before the bell.
- The cutman for McKinney, Jacob Duran, did an excellent job of keeping the cut closed.
- The final scorecard of Markus Heinsohn read 115 to 113 for Kennedy McKinney. The punches landed slightly favored McKinney 253 to 229.
- Both fighters were paraded around the ring by their corner, as if they had clearly won the fight.
- The official judges had it: The Las Vegas judge had it 117-111 Kennedy McKinney, which was met by boos from the pro-Benavides crowd. The Mexican judge had 116-113 for Jesse Benavides, which was met by cheers. The German judge had it 115 to 115! A DRAW and Benavides will retain his title.
- Jesse Benavides will advance in the tournament, due to holding the title.
Dm12 (Benavides retainsWBO title)



Jesse Benavides vs. Duke McKenzie
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtP9ANONzrQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYzfr...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kR_Pp...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FwpXa...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVbRr...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPnph...eature=related

[Crimson]

Tuesday, July 7th, 1992
Cobo Arena; Detroit, MI
Jemal Hinton 24-2-2 (19) MI
vs.
Welcome Ncita 35-0-1 (14) South Africa IBF
- This fight was a rematch. During the “World Team Championship” they had fought to a 4 round draw in South Africa.
- The undefeated IBF title holder had looked very good during “World Team Championship” matches, beating Kiyoshi Hatanaka, Thierry Jacob, Kennedy McKinney, and Pedro Decima. All of those wins were by decision.
- Sean O’Grady and Al Albert called this fight for USA networks “Tuesday Night Fights”.
- Welcome Ncita was a 2-1 favorite to successfully defend his title.
- Hinton sustained a gash under his left eye in round 2 along with some minor swelling (5), in a very good round for Ncita.
- Following the instructions of his trainer, Emanuel Steward, Hinton began to utilize his speed and boxing skills with effectiveness in rounds 3 thru 5.
- After 5 rounds Ringside Expert Steve McCarthy had it 59 to 57 for Hinton. Punches landed after 5 rounds favored Hinton 114-108.
- In round 6 the closing left eye (9) of Hinton began to bother him.
- Despite being exhausted, Hinton managed to fight Ncita on even terms in rounds 7-8.
- Ncita went all out for the kayo late in the fight and although he never hurt Hinton, he impressively won the final 3 rounds.
- At the fights conclusion Hinton could barely see out of his left eye (13). Punches landed favored Ncita 293 to 192.
- Ringside expert Steve McCarthy had it 115 to 114 for Hinton.
- The USA judge had 116-114 for Hinton, the Panama judge had it 118 to 112 for Ncita, and the 2nd USA judge had it 115 to 114 for the winner by split decision and…..
NEW IBF Jr. Feather Weight Champion JEMAL HINTON!!!!
- There were many in the press who derided the decision, or at least questioned it, as pure hometown verdict. Television announcers Sean O’Grady and Al Albert pointed out that the punches landed numbers favored Ncita by over 100 blows! They also pointed to Ncita’s punches being the more damaging, as evidenced by the damage done to Hinton’s face. Nicta by comparison appeared virtually unmarked.
- The judges may have been impressed by the higher volume of punches thrown by Hinton, although he missed 751 to 371 for Ncita.
- Hinton’s gash under his left eye was a “gusher” (6 worst rated), he will need some time to let it heal.
- Ncita and his camp were very disappointed with the decision and demanded a rematch. Hinton, however will move on in the tournament to next face the winner of Friday nights Tracy Patterson vs. Jesus Salud battle.
Jemal Hinton Ws12 Welcome Ncita (wins IBF title)

[Crimson]

Friday, July 10th, 1992
Mid-Hudson Civic Center; Poughkeepsie, NY
Tracy Harris Patterson 43-3 (32) New York WBC
vs.
Jesus Salud 42-4 (22) Hawaii
- Tracy Patteson was a slight 3-2 favorite to successfully defend his title against Jesus Salud.
- Fighting in front of local fans, Patterson easily managed to sell out the Mid-Hudson Civic Center in Poughkeepsie, NY with a paid attendance of 3,050.
- The referee was Kenny Zimmer. The judges were from New York, Mexico, and Mexico.
- After a decent opening round, Patterson was stunned in round 2 and forced to hold on.
- Round 4 was another difficult one for Patterson as the aggressive slugging style of Salud was giving him trouble. After 4 rounds Ringside Expert Max Davis had it 39 to 37 for Sauld. Punches landed favored Salud 113 to 66.
- A crowd pleasing round 5 saw big punches exchanged with Patterson buckling the legs of Salud.
- Patterson had found his rhythm in round 6 and Salud found himself on the receiving end of most exchanges and was breathing from his mouth by the rounds end.
- Patterson had become the aggressor and was controlling the action by round 7.
- In round 9 the left eye of Salud was puffy (3) and his arms were by his side. Patterson still looked reasonably fresh.
- After 9 rounds the score card of Ringside Expert Max Davis reflected the recent success of Patterson and favored him 86 to 85.
- Patterson continued to take the fight to the now completely exhausted Salud. In round 10 Patteson emerged from a clash of heads with the beginnings of a swollen right eye (6).
- The superior conditioning of Patterson was on display in round 11, when he had his best round of the fight.
- Going into the final round Ringside Expert Max Davis had it 105 to 104 for Patterson.
- Believing himself to be well ahead on the score cards, Tracy Patterson boxed defensively over the final 2 rounds of the fight.
- The judges had it: Mexican judges had it 117-11 and 115-113 for Patterson, the New York judge had it 115 to 115 EVEN.
Tracy Patterson Wm12 Jesus Salud (Patterson retains WBC title)

[Crimson]

Friday, July 10th, 1992
Hiram Bithorn Stadium; San Juan, Puerto Rico
Wilfredo Vazquez 32-6-3 (27) WBA
vs.
Raul Perez 52-3-2 (33) Mexico
- This fight would be the third meeting between the two fighters. In 1988 Raul Perez won a unanimous 10 round decision in Inglewood, CA. The rematch was fought earlier this year (March 1992)in Mexico, and in a minor upset Vasquez took Perez’ WBA title with a TKO in the third.
- Vazquez was a slight 3-2 betting favorite to win this rubber match in front of his home country fans.
- Raul Perez had not looked impressive in his previous outing, when he stopped Daniel Zaragoza due to a cut, in a fight that Perez had been losing.
- Physically Vazquez and Perez both appeared to be in shape. However, Vazquez’ trainers had a difficult time keeping him in at night. This was to be Vazquez first world title fight fought in Puerto Rico and there was some concern that perhaps he had to many friends at home wanting to spend time with him, and it may have impacted his training.
- All 18,264 seats were sold at San Juan’s Hiram BIthorn Stadium.
- Vasquez did not look sharp early. At the end of 4 rounds he was already breathing heavy and on the scorecard of Ringside Expert Richard Plunkett was down 39 to 37. Punches landed numbers favored Perez 95 to 89.
- Vazquez became excessively aggressive in round 5 and soon found himself taking some hellacious shots from the long armed “Jibaro”. With Vazquez taking some punishment along the ropes, but still defending himself the referee stopped the fight and heard a deafening cascade of boos in reply.
Raul Perez TKO5 Wilfredo Vazquez (wins WBA title)

In September Raul Perez will now fight Jesse Benavides in a WBA/WBO unification battle. While Tracy Harris Patterson and Jemal Hinton will rumble in a WBC/IBF unification battle. The winners will then face off for all the marbles in December of 1992.

(Attached is the 3-27-92 fight between Wilfredo Vazquez and Raul Perez, won by Vazquez.)
YouTube - Wilfredo Vazquez Vs. Raul "Jibaro" Perez (2) - (TKO-3) - 03-27-1992

Wilfredo Vazquez vs. Prince Naseem Hamed
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPJwb...om=PL&index=23

[Crimson]

Sunday, September 27th, 1992
Martin Field; Laredo, TX
Jesse Benavides 35-5-1 (23) Texas WBO
vs.
Raul Perez 53-3-2 (34) Mexico WBA
- Certain future Hall of Fame trainer, Emanuel Steward, found himself possibly having both of his fighters, Jesse Benavides and Jemal Hinton, should each win their unification matches having to fight one another for the Jr. Feather Weight World Championship.
- Officials for the fight were: referee Vincent Rainone, the 3 judges were from England, USA, and Italy.
- Perez focused on his defense in training and planned on utilizing his reach advantage to keep the slugging Benavides at a distance.
- Jesse Benavides was an exceptional amateur with a record of 320-20 and that background was expected to serve him well with the highly experienced Raul Perez.
- The betting odds were EVEN on who would win.
- Reports out of Benavides camp were that he had a fantastic one and that the sparring sessions with stable mate Jemal Hinton were better them many main event fights.
- After 3 rounds, Benavides was giving his fans plenty to cheer about. Perez was bleeding from a cut right eye and behind on the scorecard of Ringside Expert Jason Wood 29-28.
- At 1:25 of round 4 a perfect Benavides left hook caught Perez flush and he was counted out by referee Vincent Rainone.
Jesse Benavides KO4 Raul Perez (wins WBA and defends WBO title)

(Jesse Benavides vs. Duke McKenzie)
YouTube - Benavides vs McKenzie pt1

[Crimson]

Tuesday, September 29th, 1992
Mid-Hudson Civic Center; Poughkeepsie, NY
Tracy Harris Patterson 44-3 (32) New York WBC
vs.
Jemal Hinton 25-2-2 (19) Michigan IBF
- Jemal Hinton’s camp insisted that the horrible cut Jemal received in his July 7th fight with Welcome Ncita was now fully healed and had not impacted his training. This claim was verified by all who attended those workout sessions.
- Patterson was a 2-1 favorite to win this highly looked forward to unification battle.
- Once again the 3,050 seat Mid-Hudson Civic Center was sold out, with many more turned away at the door.
- Officials for the fight were: referee Arthur Mercante Jr., the 3 judges were from New York, Wisconsin, and South Korea.

- “Caesar” Patterson jumped right on Hinton and had his fans cheering every blow he threw, while bullying Hinton around the ring in round 1.
- The pace was furious and both fighters were cheered enthusiastically for their efforts at the end of every round.
- The bulldog pressure of Patterson was quickly tiring Hinton and his hands were beginning to drop as early as round 3.
- The tiring Hinton met Patterson on the inside in round 5 and was getting the worst of the exchanges, when a beautiful uppercut scored a flash knockdown of Patterson! Up before the count reached 2, Patterson appeared more disgusted with himself for getting nailed than hurt.
- After 5 rounds of action Ringside Expert Mirco Mizera had Patterson ahead 48-47. The punches landed favored Patterson 138 to 114.
- In round 7 it was Patterson who appeared to be the more tired fighter and in need of catching his second wind.
- Like two matadors the fighters stormed out of their corners to start round 8, each looking to pulverize the other. The gladiators took turns blasting one another throughout the round.
- With 19 seconds gone in round 9 Patterson floored Hinton with a barrage of punches. Barely up at 9, Hinton was in desperate trouble. Gamely he fought back enough to prevent the referee from stopping the fight.
- Hinton displayed the fighting heart of a Champion as he managed to back Patterson up and land some impressive right hands. The crowd was going hoarse in approval of the action. Both fighters returned to their corners after round 11 with a small cut over their right eye.
- Believing he had the fight won on the scorecards, Patterson came out for the final round and followed the instructions of his trainer and adopted father Floyd Patterson by looking to move and protect his cut. Hinton was beyond exhausted and had to be lifted off his stool for the final round. Neither fighter landed anything of significance in round 12, but it was Hinton who was the aggressor.
- At the fights conclusion Ringside Expert Mirco Mizera had it a 115-115 draw. Punches landed numbers were about even 249 to 245. The faces off both displayed the damage of a hard fought battle, with bruises and minor cuts.
- Ring Announcer Ron Scott Stevens announced the decision, with the New York judge having it 117-111 Hinton, which the drew a gasp from the sold out crowd. The Wisconsin judge had it 117-111 for Patterson, and the judge from South Korea 115-113 for the winner by split decision and now the unified WBCand IBF champion…….
JEMAL HINTON!
- The crowd reacted with thundering jeers and boos!
- A look at the scorecards showed that Hinton swept the final 3 rounds on the cards of the New York and South Korean judge to pull out the unlikely win.
- Calling the fight for “Tuesday Night Fights”, both Al Alberts and Sean O’Grady expressed their belief that the decision was fair and could have gone either way.
Jemal Hinton Ws12 Tracy Patterson (wins WBC and defends IBF title)

[Crimson]

Jr. Feather Weight Division World Rankings (as of December 20th, 1992)
WORLD CHAMPION *** vacant
1# Jesse Benavides - Texas
2# Jemal Hinton - Maryland
3# Kennedy McKinney - Nevada
4# Tracy Patterson - New York
5# Welcome Ncita - South Africa
6# Wilfredo Vazquez – Puerto Rico
7# Jesus Salud - Hawaii
8# Raul Perez - Mexico
9# Daniel Zaragoza - Mexico
10# Rudy Zavala - California

11# Luis Mendoza - Columbia
12# Julio Gervacio – Dominican Republic
13# Pedro Decima - Argentina
14# Vuyani Bungu – South Africa
15# Paul Banke - California
16# Kiyoshi Hatanaka - Japan
17# Thierry Jacob - France
18# Richard Duran - California
19# Jae-Won Choi - Korea
20# Freddy Cruz – Dominican Republic


Saturday, December 26th, 1992
Washington DC Convention Center; Washington, DC
Jemal Hinton 26-2-2 (19) Maryland IBF WBC
vs.
Jesse Benavides 36-5-1 (24) Texas WBO WBA
- The day after Christmas will decide who the undisputed World Champion of the Jr. Feather Weight division is, when Jemal Hinton returns close to his boyhood home of District Heights, Maryland to fight Jesse Benavides at the Washington DC Convention Center. With Don King doing his usual excellent job of promoting all seats to the 7,000+ venue quickly sold out weeks in advance. Tickets sold were packaged together as a “Christmas Special” and each ticket sold included an autographed photo of Jemal Hinton and Jesse Benavides posing for the cameras in a staredown, along with the April 1993 edition of “Ring Magazine”.
- As the trainer of both fighters, Emanuel Steward chose to not work the corner of either. So instead, Hinton trained for the fight with his father in Washington and reports were that it went well. Benavides had Tony Ayala Sr. working his corner, which he had done in the past.
- The odds makers had installed the Texan as a 3-1 favorite to emerge as the Jr. Feather Weight World Champion. The odds of winning the entire tournament when it started had been 12-1 for Benavides and 20-1 for Hinton.

[Crimson]

.....help from boxing fans on his 12-96-1992 boxing card at the "Washington D.C. Convention Center. On the undercard Don King would like to feature a title elimination match, with the winner guaranteed a shot at the newly undisputed Jr. Feather Weight World Championship at some time in 1993.

To be eligible as a mandatory title shot fight, both fighters in the contest must be ranked in the top 10# of the World Rankings. Since Jesse Benavides and Jemal Hinton, the current 1# and 2# contenders are already fighting one another for the World Championship, that leaves 2 of the following fighters the opportunity to do battle in the marquee 12 round contest:

3# Kennedy McKinney - Nevada
4# Tracy Patterson - New York
5# Welcome Ncita - South Africa
6# Wilfredo Vazquez – Puerto Rico
7# Jesus Salud - Hawaii
8# Raul Perez - Mexico
9# Daniel Zaragoza - Mexico
10# Rudy Zavala - California
Don King has promised that the 2 fighters with the most votes from boxing (TBCB) fans will do battle on the card in the "eliminator".

(So...anyone willing to help me out and cast a vote for one of the fighters listed above, please go ahead and post a vote. Thanks!)

[Crimson]

Don King has promised to add other fights to the undercard if fans express an interest. So, if there are any other 1992 Jr. Feather Weight fighters of interest, fights that never happened that you would have found interesting if they had, please let Don King know by posting the fighters name and who you'd like to see them fight.

(I'll do my best to make Don King aware and see that the fight or fighter is put on the card! )