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It was a welterweight showdown between Miguel “The Flame” Figueroa and Larry Mosley last night on a Golden Boy East promotion at the New Alhambra in Philadelphia on a ESPN2 Friday Night Fights broadcast. The two waged war for the vacant NABO title but at the end of twelve rounds the ringside officials couldn’t pick a winner and a draw was declared.
Round one: The fight starts with both fighters meeting at the center of the ring and firing off jabs. Both fighters look to be of even size and are only sizing each other up in the early going. Mosley lands the first punch of the fight, a straight right hand that was the second punch in a three punch combo. Figueroa recovers and presses Mosley against the ropes and fires off a pair of hooks to the body of Mosley. Mosley circles off the ropes and lands two hooks upstairs. Figueroa comes charging right back though and lands an uppercut through the guard and under the chin of Mosley.&nb! sp; Mosley once again escapes pressure and once again starts firing jabs from the outside before landing a straight right hand on the top of Figueroa’s head. The round comes to a close with Mosley landing a left hook to the guard of Figueroa.
Round two: Much like the first round, both fighters meet in the center of the ring stalking each other and firing off jabs. Mosley lands the first combo of the round, a right uppercut and a left hook that both land upstairs on Figueroa. Figueroa keeps pressing forward though but Mosley is taking advantage of him by catching him with jabs as Figueroa comes in. Figueroa has been unable to get inside two minutes into the round, and Mosley has been dominating thus far. Mosley gets inside for the first time with about 30 seconds left in the round but Mosley clinches. Figueroa comes straight ahead once again and lands a left hook to the body of Mosley and finishes the round with a right upper! cut that lands under the jaw of Mosley.
Round three: Unlike th e first two rounds, this round starts with both fighters engaging on the inside, where Figueroa wants to be, and Figueroa fires two left hooks to the body which both land on the guard of Mosley. Figueroa is really pressing forward with the fight thus far but Mosley has done good work with the jab and inside. The fight once again goes to the ropes with about a minute left in the round where
Round four: The round starts with both fighters meeting in the center of the ring where Figueroa once again stalks Mosley around the center of the ring. Mosley hasn’t been throwing the jab in the last two rounds that he did in the first two and that is allowing Figueroa to get inside at his will. Mosley lands his first big punch of the round halfway through the round, a counter right hand that wobbles Figueroa. Mosley is clinching every chance he gets on the inside, trying to get in the center of the ring. Mosley is very slick i! n the ring, bobbing and weaving avoiding most every punch Figueroa throws upstairs, however, with the small ring Figueroa is having success to the body. The round ends with Mosley landing a popping jab to the jaw of Figueroa.
Round five: Figueroa has had a lot of success thus far getting inside and keeping Mosley from dominating the fight on the inside. The small ring is almost crippling to Mosley, not allowing him to fight on the outside and out of Figueroa’s wheel house. A minute into the round the two trade uppercuts on the inside in the center of the ring. Both fighters are doing heavy work to the body, but Figueroa is probably having a little more success inside. With a minute left in the round, the two once again trade uppercuts, Figueroa getting the better of the exchange catching Mosley backing straight up with a right uppercut. Towards the end of the round, Figueroa lands a right hook to the jaw of Mosley that looks to ha! ve hurt Mosley but time runs out before Figueroa can put pressure on M osley.
Round six: Mosley is clearly losing this fight so far do to his inability to work on the outside. Mosley looks content working on the inside with the short puncher, Figueroa. Mosley has all but abandoned the jab and is allowing, even inviting, Figueroa on the inside. Figueroa isn’t really making him pay thus far, often falling victim to a Mosley clinch. As probably the most inactive round of the fight comes to a close, Mosley pops off a jab that lands to the nose of Figueroa.
Round seven: Following the suit of the last round, both fighters come out of the corner and immediately clinch, with some rabbit punching being done by Mosley. Mosley is warned about the punching in the clinch and immediately gets pressed up against the ropes where Figueroa tries to do some work inside. Mosley circles off the ropes and comes forward with a lunging left hook that is countered beautifully with a Figueroa left hook that lands to th! e jaw of Mosley. Mosley doesn’t look hurt and the two once again trade uppercuts on the inside. Mosley is doing a lot of punching this round as opposed to the first 6. The two trade blows as the round closes on the ropes, with Mosley landing a straight hand as the bell sounds.
Round eight: As has been the case in almost every round but the first two, Figueroa comes out of his corner and immediately presses forward and traps Mosley on the ropes. Mosley immediately circles off and throws a couple jabs that pop Figueroa’s head back. Figueroa recovers and gets pressed against the ropes where he is hit with a straight right hand that sends him kneeling over but not enough to put him down. Figueroa looks exhausted as he is letting Mosley press forward and fire off combinations at will while Figueroa fails almost every time to fire back. With about 20 seconds left in the round Mosley lands a combo to the body of Figueroa capped off! by a straight right hand that lands to the back of Figueroa’s head.
Round nine: The round starts with Figueroa and Mosley once again meeting on the inside. Figueroa lands the first punch of the round, a right hook to the chin that is quickly answered with a right hand from Mosley that fires over the shoulder of Figueroa. Mosley is really taking control of the fight on the inside so far, slipping most every Figueroa offering while firing his own in flurries. The round ends with Figueroa landing two right hooks to the face of Mosley.
Round ten: Mosley comes out of the corner after seemingly winning the last two rounds with a lead jab that pops the head of Figueroa back. The fight once again gets back to the ropes but the roles have reversed from earlier in the fight, with Figueroa on the ropes. Mosley gets lands two consecutive left hooks to the body of Figueroa but Figueroa clinches and then offers a jab of his own. Mosley stuns Figueroa about 2 minutes into the round with a ! monstrous straight right hand that stops Figueroa in his tracks. Mosley then tees off with a barrage of hooks and straight right hands from the outside.
Round eleven: Figueroa is really letting the fight slip away from him, lets see if he can come back. Mosley immediately presses forward and pins Figueroa on the ropes stunning Figueroa with two left hooks to the body. Mosley lets his punches fly, landing a barrage of punches that have Figueroa in grave danger. Figueroa clinches, and the fight gets back to the center of the ring where Mosley is looking to take a break, keeping away from Figueroa until the very end of the round. Mosley looks a little fatigued and he is bleeding from the nose and mouth.
Round twelve: The 12th and final round in what has been a thrilling fight thus far starts with the two meeting on the inside and trading with a couple of hooks that neither land before a clinch and a ref stoppage for a ! tape issue on Mosley’s hand. Mosley is clearly trying to assert his dominance on the inside in the twelfth round throwing him around in the clinch. Figueroa is the one pressing forward in this final round, chasing Mosley with the jab while Mosley tries to play keep away. Mosley is doing an almost Emmanuel Augustus like dance to fend off Figueroa on the inside. Figueroa challenges Mosley to come and trade in the late going, dropping his hands and standing still as Mosley dances around the ring. Mosley fails to accept this offer and an otherwise thrilling fight ends on a bit of an anticlimactic end.
Los Angeles native Larry Mosley’s record goes to 15-1-1 (6) while Miguel Figueroa of Camden, New Jersey moves to a 24-5-2 (14) mark.
