Photo by DiBella Ent./Ed Diller
Blake Caparello (19-0, 6 KOs) won a unanimous decision over Elvir Muriqi (40-5, 24 KOs) in the main event of the January 31, 2014 edition of Friday Night Fights.
As a veteran of the sport for fifteen years, Muriqi once fought Antonio Tarver for a vacant IBF title in 2007. Muriqi went into tonight’s fight with six consecutive wins, but had not fought for over a year.
Despite his experience, Muriqi could not deal with Caparello’s awkward style. The Australian made a successful American debut by using his height and reach advantage to keep Caparello off of him for ten rounds.
Caparello remains undefeated, and the judges scored the bout 100-90, 100-90, 98-92.
In the co-main event, undefeated prospect Luis Rosa (16-0, 7 KOs) took on Jorge Diaz (17-3, 10 KOs) in a Junior Featherweight fight.
The fight began at a quick pace, with both fighters throwing combination punches. Diaz’s momentum was stopped, however, by a low blow that was landed in a powerful exchange.
By third round, Rosa was clearly in control, landing a solid left hook that wobbled Diaz. Diaz tried to recover, falling down as he grabbed Rosa to engage in a clinch. The referee, not seeing how Diaz was fell, ruled it a knockdown.
The fourth round began at a similar pace and Diaz was knocked down again, this time by a solid right hand. Rosa continued his quick pace and outworked Diaz for the rest of the fight. The final two rounds, in fact, had Diaz taking a lot of damage.
The judges scored the bout 78-72, 79-71, 80-70. Diaz was subsequently taken to a hospital. ESPN‘s Bernardo Osuna reported that Diaz “will go to a local hospital for a CT scan and observation for head trauma.”
Jorge Diaz has been taken from the Cody Arena in an ambulance. He will go to a local hospital for a CT scan and observation for head trauma.
— Bernardo Osuna (@osunaespn) February 1, 2014
The first televised bout featured the debut of Dusty Harrison-Hernandez as he took on Tim Witherspoon Jr. (10-4, 2 KOs) in an 8-round Welterweight fight.
Harrison-Hernandez used his size and strength advantage to overpower Witherspoon, often taking several punches as he swung for the fences without properly closing the distance with a jab.
Harrison won the fight clearly on all cards, but relied heavily on his strength to overpower Witherspoon and was often hit with shots as he came in. Harrison-Hernandez has been receiving a lot of attention on various social media networks and remains undefeated with 20 fights.