Fox Sports Network debuted a new Top Rank Promotions series on Saturday night. The
series, dubbed “Top Rank Live”, featured three exciting bouts.
The main event featured a super welterweight (154 lbs) bout between Vanes Martirosyan (27-0, 17 KO’s) and former world champion Kassim Ouma (26-7-1, 16 KO’s). The fight was an entertaining affair with good two way action.
The fight started with Martirosyan using the ring and back peddling while Ouma came forward and pressured. Martirosyan tried to counter Ouma as he came in, but he did not have much luck and seemed to get caught with some good shots. In the second round, Martirosyan seemed to have better luck with his countering style and landed flush shots to Ouma’s jaw. Ouma was not to be deterred however and continued to pressure Martirosyan throughout the fight. The pressure seemed to make Martirosyan uncomfortable and he never seemed to find his rhythm.
Martirosyan never came forward the entire fight, opting to continue to employ the backpedaling counter style. In the corner, his trainer Freddie Roach even advised him to “stop running.” In round nine, Ouma dropped Martirosyan with a short right hook. Martirosyan immediately leapt back to his feet and finished the round strong. Round ten was a seesaw affair that saw Martirosyan just edge it.
Judges scores read 97-92, 97-93, and 97-93, all for Martirosyan. The judges’ scores can be viewed as quite controversial. While someone could make a case that Martirosyan won by the slimmest of margins because of the closeness of some of the rounds, it is far more likely that Ouma won the fight. This writer scored the bout 96-93 for Ouma. It is a shame that the scorecards were so wide for Martirosyan.
Ouma has now lost five of his last six. He will have to decide whether he wants to continue or retire. For Martirosyan, he now knows that the next level is not an easy place to be and will have to work on his skills to be competitive.
In super featherweight action, Diego Magdaleno (13-0, 3 KO’s) of Las Vegas struggled against Gerardo Robles (9-9, 5 KO’s) of Kansas City, but managed to win the fight. Magdaleno used his quick hands and angles to outbox the tough journeyman. Robles had his moments however, stunning Magdaleno in a few of the rounds. Magdaleno stayed on his feet however and went on to win the fight by scores of 80-72, 78-74, and 78-74. Magdaleno is now scheduled to fight Floriano Pagliara (10-3, 6 KO’s) on February 13th at the Las Vegas Hilton.
Prospect Jose Benavidez (1-0, 1 KO) made his professional debut at 140 lbs, blitzing Steven Cox (1-1, 1 KO) in just one round. Benavidez dropped Cox and then followed up with a barrage of punches that forced the referee to step in. Benavidez is only seventeen years old and is training under the tutelage of Freddie Roach.
By MAZEN SARWAR
