Photo by Naoki Fukada
Bermane “B.Ware” Stiverne (23-1, 21 KOs) knocked out Chris “The Nightmare” Arreola (36-4, 31 KOs) in the sixth round to win the vacant World Boxing Council Heavyweight Championship.
The bout was held at the USC Galen Center on the campus of the University of Southern California and was presented by Goosssen Tutor Promotions, Don King Productions, and ESPN.
To begin the fight, Stiverne calmly backed himself up to the ropes to allow Arreola to make mistakes in the first round. It seemed that Stiverne’s game plan was to use Arreola’s aggression to land powerful counterpunches.
Arreola tried to be the aggressor, but by the round’s end was wobbled by Stiverne’s left hook and right hand.
Stiverne’s game plan backfired as Arreola landed a powerful overhand right to begin a flurry that hurt Stiverne. Stiverne shook his face as if to suggest that he was unfazed, but he was clearly wobbled.
Both fighters exchanged words at the end of the second before a raucous crowd at the Galen Center voiced their support for Arreola.
In the third round, Arreola would land another flurry, once again while Stiverne was calmly against the ropes. Stiverne landed occasional counterpunches, but were few and far between.
Stiverne used a bit more footwork in the in the fourth round and was able to land clean punches, but not before Arreola would land more flurries before the round’s end.
In the sixth round, a tired Arreola slowly came out of his corner, throwing soft jabs and sluggishly pushing forward. Soon after, Stiverne knocked Arreola down two times with powerful right hands.
Arreola looked seriously hurt as he struggled to come to his feet on both occasions. Stiverne followed the second knockdown with a flurry that would put an end to the fight.
Stiverne is now the first Haitian Canadian to win a Heavyweight title, while Arreola misses his opportunity to become the first Mexican American Heavyweight champion.
Amir Imam (14-0, 12 KOs) vs. Yordenis Ugas (15-2, 7 KOs)
In the first telveised bout, Amir Imam scored a unanimous decision victory over Yordenis Ugas in an eight-round Junior Welterweight fight.
Imam worked from a long jab early in the fight, picking his shots as Ugas tried to close the distance. Ugas was hurt early in the round with an uppercut, but managed to hurt Imam as well with an overhand right before the round ended.
In the second and third rounds, Ugas landed more clearly and frequently. Imam did his best to use his footwork to evade Ugas’ offense, but was caught with a powerful right hand to finish the third round.
In the fourth round, Imam found his rhythm, landing harder shots and hurting Ugas with a right hand to finish the fourth. Ugas was not pushing forward with the same intensity that he had earlier in the fight.
Imam took advantage of the defensive curl Ugas had gotten into in the seventh round, throwing more punches without much response from Ugas.
Ugas increased his activity in the eighth and final round,but Imam was too firmly within his rhythm, timing most of Imam’s punches.
The judges scored the bout 79-73, 78-74, and 78-74.
Mario Barrios (3-0, 1 KO) vs. Jaxel Marrero (1-3-1)
Mario Barrios scored a unanimous decision victory over Jaxel Marrero in a four-round Super Bantamweight fight.
Marrero, who recently lost to Diego De La Hoya, was the aggressor in this fight, but was unable to land on a much taller and slicker opponent.
Barrios used his reach to successful keep Marrero off of him, picking his shots until the fourth and final round.
All judges scored the bout 30-46.
Razvan Cojano (10-1, 5 KOs) vs. Rodricka Ray (5-7-1, 2 KOs)
Razvan Cojano knocked out Rodricka Ray in the fifth round of a scheduled six-round Heavyweight bout.
Cojano used his reach to deter Ray’s offense early, hurting him the first round. Cojano would use his reach to frustrate Ray until finally knocking him down in the fifth round.
Ray managed to pick himself up after an eight-count, but only to be knocked down and out.
Calen Hunter Plant (1-0, 1 KO) vs. Travis Davidson (2-3, 2 KOs)
Calen Hunter Plant knocked out Travis Davidson in the first round of a scheduled six-round Middleweight bout.
Davidson was clearly was overmatched as he responded easily to Plant’s feints, often dropping his hands completely any time Plant moved.
This allowed Plant to land a solid right hand, winning his professional debut by way of knockout.
BJ Flores (29-1-1, 19 KOs) vs. Adam Collins (12-10, 8 KOs)
BJ Flores (29-1-1, 19 KOs) defeated Adam Collins (12-10, 8 KOs) in the first round of a scheduled six-round Cruiserweight fight.
Flores walked Collins down for most of the first round before landing a right hand that quickly ended the fight.
