Ringside Boxing Report: Carlos Quintana vs. Paul Williams

Click for larger image © Mike Worden / Saddo Boxing

In front of a standing room only crowd last night in the Grand Ballroom of the Pachanga Casino in Temecula, California, Carlos Quintana, 25-1 (19), wrestled away the WBO Welterweight title from Paul Williams, 33-1 (24), by a hard fought 12 round unanimous decision.

From the opening bell, Quintana came out of the gate aggressive. He began the first few rounds by landing hard looping left hands that Williams was unable to defend against. By utilizing his speed, rugged style and his willingness to trade with the taller man, Quintana was able to negate the height advantage of Williams and win his share of the welterweight title.

Williams was never fully able to find a groove in the fight. For the first half of the bout, he chased the faster Quintana around the ring, unable to find any range for his shots. Through the middle section, he managed to cut off the ring and land his stiff jab.

As Quintana continued to find his left, by the ninth round, Williams had cuts above both eyes. From that round on it was all Quintana. Staying close to Williams, he was able to smother any punches that the champ was able to get off.

To add to the Williams’ difficulties, the crowd in attendance was wildly pro-Quintana from the start, fueling him as the rounds went on.

The official scores were 115-113 and 116-112 (twice). SaddoBoxing scored the fight 117-111 for Quintana.

Rising welterweight star Andre Berto, 21-0 (18), won a lopsided TKO over the former European Champion Michel Trabant, 43-3-1 (19). Fighting for the first time outside of his native Germany, Trabant found himself outgunned and overmatched against the hard hitting Berto.

Berto established his power and speed early by shooting hard shots between the gloves of Trabant. While pacing himself well, Berto slowly ratcheted up the pressure throughout the first two rounds.

Berto took his cue from the crowd and began pouring it on halfway through the third round. Throwing punches from every angle, Berto began to break through the guard of Trabant by landing some vicious left hooks to the body.

As the fourth and fifth gave us more of the same, Berto started the sixth with fury, throwing huge hooks that were landing more frequently. As Trabant tried to fire back, it was obvious that the speed and power of Berto was way beyond what he could handle. At the end of the round, Trabantʼs corner had seen enough, and sensing the inevitable, informed the referee to stop the fight.

The victory helps to continue the rise of Andre Berto from prospect to contender. The list of names as possible opponents is long, however it remains to be seen if he will take another step forward or sideways.

Rising heavyweight prospect Cristobal “The Nightmare” Arreola, 23-0 (21), needed less than 120 seconds to dispose of journeyman Cliff Couser, 26-14-2 (14). From the opening bell, the heavy handed Arreola was all over Couser, landing a flush right hand at about the :30 second mark to send his opponent reeling. Arreola wasted no time and jumped all over Couser, prompting the ref to call a stop to the fight.

Arreola is currently ranked #7 in the WBC and the fight was yet another stepping stone in his rise through the division. A local favorite of the Southern California boxing scene, Arreola is building a fairly large fan base, and is proving to be a draw in his own right.

Junior welterweight Omri Lowther, 10-1 (8), improved his record by scoring a unanimous decision against the rugged Braulio Lopez, 6-7-1 (2).

In an all action junior middleweight bout, Raymond Biggs Jr., 7-0 (5), needed only two rounds to dispense of the game, but overmatched challenger Bryan Mullins, 4-3-1 (2).