Berto grows up…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
(Andre Berto finally has the Boneman’s Stamp of Approval in a gutty effort Saturday)
I hate to repeat the words of Max Kellerman, but he was right when he said what a way to start 2009.
Great weekend of fights.
In Tulsa on Friday, Oklahoma City light middleweight Carson Jones took that next baby step with a third-round knockout.
He’s so young, so talented and is starting to put it all together. Word on the street (what street?) is Tulsa would love Jones to come back in the spring.
And the main event saw a mini-upset with Orlando Cruz knocking out Leonilo Miranda in the fifth round.
In UFC 93, it was rather ho-hum from the reports I read. Dan Henderson won a decision against Rich Franklin while Shogun Rua stopped Mark Coleman in the third round.
The big news was that it appears UFC 96 will feature Rampage Jackson vs. Keith Jardine and UFC 97 will have Chuck Liddell vs. Rua.
And then late Saturday night, Andre Berto went through “his Baptism by fire.” Berto eked out a unanimous decision 114-113 (twice) and 116-111.
Personally, I had it 6-6 and with Berto losing the point for holding, a win for Luis Collazo.
However, the point deduction was a little harsh for me. Didn’t think it was warranted. Also, it is tough, extremely tough to give someone a fight who loses the final two rounds in a back-and-forth affair.
Berto dug deep in the championship rounds to pull this one out. Kudos to Oklahoma judge Gary Ritter for getting a respectable 114-113 nod to Berto.
Thumbs down to whoever had it 116-111 for Berto. Really, nine rounds to three?
Excellent way to kick off the year. I wanted to tell HBO’s Bob Papa that Berto was not knocked down in round 1. He was hurt but there was no knockdown.
The rounds in multiples of three were fantastic. All 12 were pretty solid, for the most part but 3, 6, 9 and 12 were the best.
I’ll stop knocking Berto because he showed he’s got the jam to be a warrior. I don’t know what to say about Collazo.
Again, kinda with Kellerman about that. How long do you say “well, he lost a tough fight.” He gets one more shot in the Boneman’s book (it’s a great book, by the way).
Fantastic fight and a great way to kick off my latest boxing DVD.
And now the good gets better as we head into the mega-showdown between Antonio Margarito and Shane Mosley.
Because of dumb spending by HBO in 2008, we’re the lucky ones as this fight will be on regular HBO next Saturday and not PPV.
If you enjoyed this post, please consider to leave a comment or subscribe to the feed and get future articles delivered to your feed reader.
Comments
No comments yet.
Leave a comment