Mark “Too Sharp” Davis (18-1, 5 KOs), ran into a left handed buzz saw tonight on the Wednesday edition of ESPN‘s Friday Night Fights.
Davis talked heavily before the fight of being able to steamroll over Michael Farenas (38-4-4, 30 KOs), but it appeared during the fight as though he’d never even seen a southpaw fighter before.
Davis circled to his right, directly into Farenas’ wicked left hands. Farenas attacked right from the opening bell, switching from straight lefts to the head and body to looping shots around Davis’ guard.
The prospect Davis clearly had the faster hands, but just when he’d get into the fight, Farenas would nail him with a big left and then attack. The Filipino fighter, who dropped Yuriorkis Gamboa when they met last year, opened up a cut over Davis’ right eye early in the first round, and things just went downhill from there for “Too Sharp.”
By the fifth round, it was clear that Davis was in trouble and it seemed like a matter of time before Farenas caught him with something big.
At the end of the fifth, Farenas drilled Davis with a straight left, and then several other unanswered shots, sending Davis reeling into the ropes. He somehow stayed on his feet, but his corner pleaded with him to start going to the body and circling left.
In the sixth, Davis seemed to have recovered and was doing well in the round until he was once again nailed with a power shot while he kept his hands at his waist.
Referee Steve Smoger, who usually waits for EKG results before stopping a fight, looked gravely concerned for Davis as he went to his corner. The ringside doctor told his corner that they would stop the fight if he took any further punishment.
Davis then went out and had a solid seventh round as Farenas appeared to take the round off.
The reprieve was brief.
Farenas nailed Davis with a big left hand about one minute into the eighth, sending Davis stumbling across the ring and into the ropes. Smoger immediately stopped the bout, and the young prospect took his first loss.
It was an absolutely sensational performance by Farenas. He mixed in the right hook with his nasty straight left, and totally befuddled his opponent. He set himself up nicely for a title shot in the 130-pound division.
Note to ESPN – more of him please. And less Billy Dib.
As for Davis, he’s obviously got talent and a big heart, but he has serious defensive liabilities and quite frankly seemed utterly unprepared for what Farenas brought to the ring.
50 Cent did not have a good week.
