Terence Crawford vs. Viktor Postol will battle on Saturday, July 23, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
It will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 9:00 pm, EST / 6:00 pm, PST.
Two-time Mexican Olympian and undefeated No. 1 featherweight contender Oscar Valdez, will headline the pay-per-view undercard in a rumble against No. 2 world-rated contender Matias Rueda, for the vacant WBO featherweight world title.
The pay-per-view telecast will open with former interim world champion Jose Benavidez Jr. risking his undefeated record and top-10 world-rating, in a 10-round welterweight battle against Francisco Santana.
Join RBRBoxing‘s Shelbi Keyes, who will be covering the fights live at the MGM Grand, for complete fight-card results.
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RESULTS:
Terence Crawford vs. Viktor Postol
Terence Crawford (28-0, 20 KOs) and Viktor Postol (28-0, 12 KOs) are fighting in the WBO/WBC Junior Welterweight title unification bout to determine who is king of the 140-pound weight class. This is a much anticipated fight, both fighters are undefeated and both are looking to keep it that way. BUT someone’s 0 has got to go.
The fight begins with no touching of gloves. Both fighters start slow in the first round, trying to get a feel for each other – neither landing anything substantial.
Postol is using his reach advantage – dictating the fighting distance in Round 2. Crawford lands a left hook at the end of the round, which looks to momentarily stun Postol.
We are in Round 3 and Postol is still doing a good job of dictating the pace and the fighting distance – making it hard for Crawford to get inside.
Crawford is starting to land in the fourth round, getting the crowd on their feet. Postal is also beginning to be more aggressive. Both fighters are throwing and landing.
Seconds into Round 5, Crawford lands a “right hook” and Postol’s knee hits the canvas – there feet also got tangled. After an exchange, Postol momentarily hits the canvas yet again.
Crawford has been moving a lot, working the ring in both the sixth and seventh round – Postol is starting to get frustrated. Crawford continues to land on the move.
Crawford’s movement and speed are the difference here tonight. Crawford hurts Postol in Round 9 with a flurry of awkward punches.
We are in the twelfth and final round of the bout. Postal is being extremely aggressive while Crawford is moving around the ring as much as possible. Crawford hurts Postol but somehow Postol is still pressing forward.
We go to the scorecards, two judges score the bout 118-107 and the other scores it 117-108. Terence “Bud” Crawford remains undefeated and he is now the WBC and WBO Junior Welterweight Champion.
Oscar Valdez vs. Matias Carlos Adrian Rueda
Two undefeated prospects, Oscar “The King” Valdez (19-0, 17 KOs) and Matias Carlos Adrian Rueda (26-0, 23 KOs) are fighting for the vacant WBO World Featherweight title. Barring a draw, one of these up-and-coming fighters will lose for the first time tonight.
Valdez is showing off his impeccable boxing skills in the first round. He is landing several vicious shots to the body and head of Rueda. Valdez lands a left hook at the end of the round that instantly bruises the face of Rueda.
Rueda goes down in Round 2 after a left hook to the body, but he is able to get up before the 10-count. Valdez attacks Rueda again with combination punching and sends Rueda to the canvas again with another mean left to the body. The bout ends at 2:18 of Round 2, Oscar Valdez Jr. improves his record to 20-0, 18 KOs. He is the new WBO Featherweight champion.
Jose Benavidez vs. Francisco Santana
The undefeated Top Rank prospect Jose Benavidez (24-0, 16 KOs) is taking on Francisco Santana (24-4-1, 12 KOs). These two welterweights are ready to go toe-to-toe for ten rounds. This is expected to be a very competitive fight, Santana is a solid opponent, with losses to only Karim Mayfield (twice), Jermell Charlo, and Sadam Ali. This will be yet another tough test for Benavidez.
In both Round 1 and Round 2, Benavidez is showing off his power. Santana keeps getting pressured up against the ropes, as Benavidez continues to land shot after shot.
We are in Round 3 and it has turned into an all out brawl in the middle of the ring.
Both fighters look tired and we are only in the sixth round of the bout. Benavidez continues to throw but it looks as if it’s in slow motion. Santana has now turned into the aggressor – he is taking advantage of the fact that Benavidez is extremely tired.
In Round 7, Benavidez keeps finding himself with his back up against the ropes. Though he is moving slow, Santana keeps pushing forward and landing against Benavidez.
Going into Round 9, both fighters are moving even slower than before – throwing less accurate punches. Benavidez gets a second wind and lands a flurry of shots.
We made it to the tenth and final found of this welterweight contest. Santana is working to continually force Benavidez up against the ropes. They are back in the middle of the ring, both holding as much as possible to try and withstand the last 30 seconds of the round.
We go to the scorecards to find out the winner. Benavidez wins via unanimous decision – the judges scoring the bout 100-90, 96-94, and 98-92. Benavidez remains undefeated in a very close, competitive fight.
Oleksandr Gvozdyk vs. Tommy Karpency
Gvozdyk (10-0, 8 KOs) originally from Ukraine, fighting out of Oxnard, California is taking on the experienced Karpency (26-5-1, 15 KOs) from Adah, Pennsylvania. This fight will be for the NABF Light Heavyweight title.
In the first minute of Round 1, Karpency lands a mean right hook to the chin of Gvozdyk, knocking him down. Gvozdyk recovers quickly though.
We are in Round 3 and it is now a very even fight. Both fighters are moving, working the ring and landing clean shots.
Though the fight looks to be going in Gvozdyk’s favor in Round 5 – Karpency hurts Gvozdyk again late in the round. Somehow Gvozdyk manages to stay on his feet.
Again, Gvozdyk is dominating. Gvozdyk lands a straight right to the body of Karpency and he is unable to get up.
Oleksandr Gvozdyk wins the bout via KO – remains undefeated and is still the NABF Light Heavyweight champ.
Ryota Murata vs. George Tahdooahnippah
This fight is a ten round bout. Ryota Murata (10-0, 7 KOs) from Japan will be taking on “Comanche Boy” George Tahdooahnippah (34-2-3, 24 KOs) from Lawton, Oklahoma. This will easily be Murata’s his biggest test to date. Murata is fighting for the second time in the U.S. and he is taking on a very tough opponent with a lot more ring experience than himself.
Well if you blinked you could have missed it. Murata lands a left to the body of Tahdooahnippah in the first minute of the first round, sending him to the canvas. Tahdooahnippah gets up, but the bout is stopped 1:52 of Round 1. Murata improves his record to 11-0, 8 KOs.
IK Yang vs. Leonardo Zappavigna
In this twelve round bout, Australia’s Lenny Zappavigna (34-2, 24 KOs) and China’s IK Yang (19-1, 14 KOs) are fighting in the IBF Junior Welterweight eliminator. The winner of this bout will receive the No. 2 slot in the IBF rankings. “Zappa” has won nine straight fights following back-to-back losses to Miguel Vazquez and Ammeth Diaz in 2011. Yang is coming off his first and only loss to Cesar Cuenca last July in Macau. This should be a very competitive fight; we are in for a treat.
In Round 1, Zappa is the aggressor but both fighters are landing clean shots. As the fight progresses, it seems to be a pretty even fight.
Zappa is starting to land the more powerful punches in the third round but Yang can take a punishment. Zappa lands two left hooks that seem to stun Yang momentarily.
Seconds into Round 4, Zappa lands a mean right hook that wobbles Yang. Yang regains his composure and keeps coming forward. Yang forces Zappa against the ropes, as he lands clean combinations.
Zappa lands a vicious straight right sending Yang into the corner. Zappa jumps on him and the fight is stopped 43 seconds into Round 6. Lenny Zappavigna wins via TKO.
Edward Williams vs. Christon Edwards
Welterweights Edward Williams (11-1-1, 4 KOs) from Detroit, Michigan and Christon Edwards (6-1, 3 KOs) from Houston, Texas are going toe-to-toe in a six round bout.
In Round 1, the fighters were getting a feel for each other. Both were moving a lot around the ring and landing short flurries.
We are in Round 3, there is a lot of holding going on and neither fighter has landed anything game changing thus far. As the round whines down, Williams starts to land to the body of Edwards.
In Round 4, Edwards is the clear aggressor. Edwards is moving in and out, landing the cleaner shots.
In a rather unexciting fight, we are in the sixth and final round of the bout. While Williams is easily the fan favorite here at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, this will be a tough fight to score.
Two judges score the bout 59-55, the other scores it 58-56. Edward Williams walks out of the arena victorious, improving his record to 12-1-1, 4 KOs.
Stanyslav Skorokhod vs. Hakim Bryant
These two middleweights, Stanyslav Skorokhod (10-1, 8 KOs) and Hakim Bryant (6-0, 4 KOs) will fight six rounds tonight. There is a lot on the line for both fighters – Bryant is looking to stay undefeated, and Skorokhod is looking to regain his momentum and prove he is a middleweight contender.
Both fighters come out of their corners throwing. Skorokhod knocks down Bryant with a right hand. Bryant barely survives the round as Skorokhod continues to land devastating straight rights.
Bryant looks refreshed and ready to fight going into Round 2. Bryant is letting his hands go now and starting to throw sleek combinations. Yet, Skorokhod keeps coming forward and continues to sneak in the straight right.
Skorokhod is working the ring, doing a good job of moving in and out – landing cleans combos and avoiding punishment. Bryant’s face is starting to look battered but he keeps moving forward, throwing everything he’s got.
Bryant comes out of his corner in Round 5 with a more aggressive demeanor than in previous rounds. Skorokhod is doing his best to fight at a distance but Bryant continues to attack.
We are in the sixth and final round. Both fighters are throwing and landing. Bryant keeps dropping his left, allowing Skorokhod to land clean shots too often.
This bout goes to the scorecards. One judge scores the bout 59-53, and the other two score it the same, 60-52 – all in favor of the winner Stanyslav Skorokhod.
Stephen Nelson vs. Tim Meeks
In this four round light heavyweight bout, Stephen Nelson (2-0, 2 KOs) is looking to stay undefeated against a tough contender Tim Meeks (5-2-1, 3 KOs).
Stephen Nelson came out of his corner extremely aggressive. Nelson continues to land impressive combinations. Even with great ring movement, Nelson catches Meeks and knocks him down with an overhand right at the end of Round 1. Meeks is able to regain his composure seconds before the bell rang.
In Round 2, Meeks is doing his best to stay mobile as much as possible. Nelson continues to try to hunt him down, looking for the knockout.
The referee asks the doctor to check on a cut above Meeks left eye. The doctor lets the fight continue but it doesn’t look like Meeks has much fight left in him.
We are in the fourth and final round; Nelson continues to smother Meeks with devastating combinations – working the head and body. Meeks’ corner makes the decision to stop the bout.
The bout is stopped 32 seconds into the fourth and final round. Stephen Nelson wins the bout via TKO and improves his record to 3-0, 3 KOs.
