ONTARIO, Calif. – In an exciting contest between two former world champions determined to return to world title glory, Brandon “The Heartbreaker” Figueroa improved round-by-round to win a unanimous choice over Mark “Magnifico” Magsayo, capturing the vacant Interim WBC Featherweight Title stay on SHOWTIME from Toyota Enviornment in Ontario, Calif. topping a Premier Boxing Champions occasion.
“Man, I simply went on the market and wished it and took the battle proper to him,” stated Figueroa. “I wished this battle so dangerous. He got here again a little bit, however as soon as I hit him with a physique shot it affected him and I put stress, stress, stress on him.”
In a battle that didn’t seem as one-sided because the judges’ scorecards, Figueroa (24-1-1, 18 KOs) received by scores of 117-109 twice and 118-108. SHOWTIME’s Corridor of Fame unofficial scorer Steve Farhood noticed the battle 114-112 in favor of Figueroa, with two Magsayo level deductions for holding the distinction within the battle on his scorecard.
“I assumed the battle was a lot nearer than the scores indicated,” Magsayo stated. “I don’t know the best way to clarify the scorecards or the purpose deductions. It’s very disappointing. I plan to maneuver as much as 130 kilos after this battle.”
Figueroa, who averages 92 punches thrown per spherical all through his profession, was restricted to 54 punches thrown per spherical towards Magsayo (24-2, 16 KOs). Figueroa threw 60 extra punches than Magsayo however landed three fewer punches and the fighters had been separated by greater than 4 landed punches in simply three of the twelve rounds.
Figueroa began slowly and needed to face up to Magsayo’s greatest photographs early within the battle, demonstrating that he has top-of-the-line chins in boxing. However Magsayo drained because the rounds went on and was twice penalized for holding in rounds eight and eleven.
Figueroa, the previous 122-pound world champion, is now in line to face WBC Featherweight World Champion Rey Vargas subsequent. Vargas was ringside Saturday night time.
“I felt robust,” the 26-year-old native of Weslaco, Texas stated. “I simply don’t cease. I don’t get drained and I’m relentless and I got here ahead and I wished the battle. Whoever needs to battle me, I’ll battle. I need to battle for a world title. I simply need to give the followers the fights they need.”
In a slugfest of a co-main occasion, power-punching Mexican Armando Reséndiz (14-1, 10 KOs) delivered a star-making efficiency, battering “Swift” Jarrett Hurd (24-3, 16 KOs) and spoiling the previous unified 154-pound world champion’s comeback battle. The ringside doctor stopped the competition 5 seconds into the tenth and ultimate spherical as a consequence of a extreme laceration on Hurd’s lip.
The decided Reséndiz outworked Hurd, touchdown 280 of his 780 punches thrown, essentially the most linked punches of any Hurd opponent. Within the spirited middleweight scrap, Hurd had his moments on the assault, connecting on 228 of his 562 (40 p.c) punches thrown. Nonetheless, Hurd, in his first battle in 21 months, was unable to beat Reséndiz’s stress and quantity punching. Reséndiz landed 206 energy punches, ultimately opening up a deep reduce on Hurd’s lip that precipitated the battle to finish. On the time of the stoppage, Reséndiz was forward on all three judges’ scorecards.
“I used to be visualizing this battle for thus lengthy, how I used to be going to win this battle,” Reséndiz stated within the ring by means of SHOWTIME interpreter Felix DeJesus. “It was all about coronary heart, however I do know I may be even higher and also you’ll see what I imply in my subsequent battle. I instructed everybody I used to be keen to go to struggle, I’m Mexican, in spite of everything. It was a robust, bodily battle similar to we anticipated. The outcomes communicate for themselves.”
Hurd tried working his jab early, touchdown a complete of 27 jabs in rounds three and 4, however combating for simply the third time in over three years, Hurd pale because the rounds went on. In rounds six by means of 9, Reséndiz landed 106 energy punches whereas limiting Hurd to 69 landed energy punches.
“I knew this was going to be a tricky, toe-to-to battle based mostly on our types,” stated the 32-year-old Hurd, who misplaced inside the gap for the primary time in his profession. “However I solely needed to make it another spherical. I want I might have completed it, however my lip was reduce too dangerous. So, congratulations to Reséndiz. I positively want I might have continued. At no level was I harm in any respect in that battle, however I’ve to respect what the medical doctors say and there’s nothing I can do about it.”
Within the telecast opener, fast-rising teenager Elijah Garcia (14-0, 12 KOs) rose to the event in an enormous step-up battle, dropping and stopping beforehand undefeated middleweight contender Amilcar Vidal, Jr. (16-1, 12 KOs) with a barrage of punches at 2:17 of the fourth spherical. Watch the KO HERE.
From the opening bell, Garcia initiated a two-way motion battle that got here to a sudden finish when Vidal was shocked by a proper hand to the top and retreated towards the ropes in quest of cowl. The 19-year-old Garcia sensed he had harm his opponent and pounced, unleashing a flurry of punches that dropped Vidal and compelled referee Jack Reiss to cease the battle.
“That is what everybody desires of, so this isn’t a shock,” stated Phoenix’s Garcia, who has now stopped six of his final seven opponents. “That is what I labored for since I turned professional so we’re going to maintain transferring ahead one step at a time.”
By means of simply three-and-a-half rounds of a back-and-forth affair, each fighters had been bloodied and mixed for 189 punches landed and 593 punches thrown. The facility punches had been the distinction within the battle as Garcia landed 54 p.c of his energy punches to Vidal’s 46 p.c. Within the fourth spherical, Garcia landed 62 p.c of his energy punches together with the all-decisive ultimate blows.
“I keep prepared and mentally I’m robust,” Garcia continued. “I do know mentally I might need misplaced the primary couple of rounds, however I used to be breaking him down. He began backing up. He’s a fantastic opponent. No disrespect to him. I caught him and I completed him. I’m undecided what I harm him with, however I do know I harm him and for me being 19 I’ve the maturity to inform in the event that they’re harm or not.”
After emphatically saying himself to the boxing world in his nationwide tv debut, Garcia promised that his newly earned followers could be seeing lots extra of him.
“I’d turn out to be a champion earlier than I’m 21 or 22,” he stated. “I could be forward of schedule.”
In SHOWTIME BOXING COUNTDOWN motion that streamed stay on the SHOWTIME SPORTS YouTube channel and SHOWTIME Boxing Fb web page, U.S. Olympian and tremendous welterweight contender Terrell Gausha (23-3-1, 12 KOs) scored three fast knockdowns to overpower and cease Brandyn Lynch (12-2-1, 9 KOs) within the ninth spherical. Plus, sensational welterweight prospect Travon Marshall (8-0, 7 KOs) scored a thunderous third-round knockout over veteran Justin DeLoach Dock (19-6, 10 KOs) and SHOBOX veteran Samuel Teah (19-4-1, 8 KOs) rode a primary spherical knockdown to a unanimous choice victory over beforehand undefeated tremendous light-weight Enriko Gogokhia (13-1-2, 8 KOs).
Roberto Villa is the CEO, Founder, Government Author, Senior Editor of FightBook MMA. Has a ardour for Fight Sports activities and in addition a podcast host for Sitting Ringside. He’s additionally a former MMA fighter and Kickboxer.
