All photos by Ismael Gallardo/RBRBoxing
At the end of another hot summer day in Downtown Los Angeles, California, Golden Boy Promotions returned to the Belasco Theater for the August 6th edition of LA Fight Club.
The intimate venue, which is quickly turned back into a popular night club for young folks about 30 minutes after a boxing event, has been the home for prospect-filled cards for the past six months.
On Thursday night, Abraham Lopez (19-0, 14 KOs) headlined the event as he outworked and overpowered Jorge Diaz (18-4-1, 10 KOs) en route to a ninth-round TKO victory.
The fight was televised on Fox Deportes in the U.S, and was Lopez’s first headlining fight.
Lopez, 27, got an early lead in Round 1 as he dropped Diaz in a powerful exchange. Diaz got back on wobbly legs and even tried to punch back, but he was nonetheless given the eight-count.
Lopez pushed forward for most of the fight and, instead of leading with a jab, spent the fight looking for thudding left hooks, which could be heard throughout the venue.
“I thought Diaz was a tough fighter. He took a lot of punishment from me and that was the plan from the beginning, to put on a lot of pressure,” said Lopez, who punished Diaz from one side of the ring to the other.
“I was looking for the knockout but he was very resilient,” said the native of La Puente, California.
Indeed he was, and he even managed to land some of his own left hooks on Lopez.
Nevertheless, Lopez was better skilled and stronger, and eventually forced Diaz to quit on his stool at the end of Round 9.
“As the rounds evolved, his strength was a bit overwhelming,” said Diaz, a 27-year-old native of New Brunswick, New Jersey.
“I tried to land punches but he caught them and was hurting me with his shots. That skinny guy is strong,” said Diaz, who also displayed his ability to take a lot of punishment despite being severely overwhelmed.
After his victory, Lopez said he was satisfied with the outcome and that he is looking forward to the future.
“I know there are great things coming my way, and to all the fans, stay tuned,” said Lopez, who hopes to fight for a world title as early as next year.
In the co-main event, Roy Tapia (10-0-2, 5 KOs) stopped Juan Luis Hernandez (18-5-1, 9 KOs) in the third round of a scheduled eight-round Featherweight fight.
Tapia, of East Los Angeles, California, had some trouble finding his distance early, but eventually caught up to Hernandez.
After hard exchanges in Round 2, Hernandez was dropped hard by a shot to the chin.
Hernandez, of Tijuana, Mexico, looked badly hurt, but the round ended before Tapia could capitalize.
In the following round, however, Tapia would land another combination that promptly ended the fight.
“It wasn’t expecting a knockout but I worked for it, the win,” said Tapia.
“I did things this training camp that I had never done before and it showed. I did strength training and conditioning, and I worked with a nutritionist. I was physically and mentally ready for this fight,” said Tapia.
Hector Tanajara Jr.(1-0, 1 KO) scored a first-round KO victory over Thomas De Leon (0-2).
De Leon fought awkwardly and was elusive for about a minute.
Experience, however, took its toll, and Tanajara quickly adjusted and knocked De Leon out before Round 1 could end.
“After I dropped him in the first round, my corner told me to remain calm and that is what I did. I came back and got him with a right hand,” said Tanajara.
Johnathan Navarro (1-0, 1 KO) made his pro debut with a first-round knockout of Andrew Gomez (0-1).
“I was trying to figure him out–if he was a counter puncher or an aggressor. I got a clean shot the first time. Next, I threw a jab. He went down and that was it,” said Navarro.
Navarro, of East Los Angeles, California is a newly-signed prospect who, along with Tanajara and Joshua Franco, is being trained by Robert Garcia.
Navarro made quick work of Gomez with powerful combinations, bringing the fight to a close at 1:08 of Round 1.
LA Fight Club returns on September 4. Diego De La Hoya, Jesus Ivan Delgado and Rafael Gramajo will all fight on the card.
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