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When Thomas Mashaba walked into the ring at Foxwoods Casino in Mashantucket, CT for the sixth defense of his IBO featherweight title this past Friday night as the main event on ESPN2ʼs
Friday Night Fights, he believed that this would lead to bigger and better things. This would be the first time that he would fight in the USA and what a fight it turned out to be. The night was full of exciting bouts from beginning to end and none of them were tactical sleepers. Each and every one of them saw bomb after bomb being dropped as we watched two title fights and three great undercards.
The styles of Mashaba and challenger Cristobal Cruz were perfect for an exciting fight. Mashaba is an accurate puncher who can land from range who also fights well on the inside and he was clearly the better boxer, but Cruzʼs dizzying work rate is enough to make any man back up as he throws from all angles and never stops.
Cruz comes out of his corner in the first round and immediately begins working Mashabaʼs body with hard hooks. Mashaba lands a hard left, right hook combination that staggers Cruz, who does not look so much hurt as surprised. They drop bombs on each other in a vicious exchange.
At this rate, the fight does not look like it has any hope of going the distance. Mashaba begins to land at range and puts Cruz on his back foot. Cruz rushes inside to continue his onslaught to the body. Mashaba ends the round by landing a few good combinations of hooks and uppercuts.
Cruz immediately goes back to it in the second. It is beginning to become evident that he is outlanding Mashaba. Cruz begins to back Mashaba up and the Mexican’s best work is being done inside. He buries his head into the chest of Mashaba and blasts away but Mashaba makes Cruz pay as he steps back and damages the challenger with a big hook. In the last twenty seconds ,they trade violently with neither man giving any ground to the other.
Cruz rushes Mashaba to start the third and throws four hooks wildly with both hands. Mashaba takes the opportunity given to him, slides and lands a great counter. Mashaba is trying everything to keep the swarming Cruz off and starts to land the uppercut, hook combination.
Cruz is hit on the hip in the next exchange and tries a lackluster acting job. Referee Steve Smoger doesnʼt buy it and tells the men to fight on. The work rate of Cruz is seeming to carry him as Mashaba waits to land his cleaner shots. As Cruz throws and lands, thatʼs exactly what Mashaba does and he gets battered until the bell.
Cruzʼs work rate has dropped in the fourth and Mashaba is starting to find more openings for his cleaner shots. After one minute of the round has passed, Cruz seems gassed all of a sudden. Mashaba uses this short rest as a time to land as he drops his straight shots right through Cruzʼs guard and begins to land with regularity. But Cruz will have none of it and gets back into that phone booth but Mashaba lands good hooks to the body as Cruzʼs energy comes back up.
Mashaba is still trying to find room to fight in the fifth when he is hit hard and wobbled by a fantastic hook. Mashaba has a good beard as he recovers to land ands a few jabs. Cruz goes back to his inside game but Mashaba wins this round as it is his best inside work all night. He parries punches with his forearms and counters beautifully.
The sixth is a brutal, close round with both men testing each other’s conditioning with hellacious hooks to the body. Then, as if reading each other’s minds, they trade right hooks upstairs. Mashaba takes the last 30 seconds of the round off and Cruzʼs work rate steals the frame.
Cruz lands a series of punches to start the seventh and Mashaba attempts to fire back. Cruzʼs energy is a lot to keep up with and it is showing. Mashaba gains distance and lands a few jabs, then a right. Cruz is taking a few seconds off and who can blame him? His inside work has been great all night.
They clash again on the inside and dig in, bombing away at each other, going first to the body before traveling up to the head and back down. I canʼt believe that with this much ammunition expended, that this fight has lasted this long.
As round eight starts, itʼs anyoneʼs fight. Cruz seems to be ahead with his energy and although Mashaba is landing the cleaner shots, he needs to land more frequently or the Champ will lose his belt. Both men are still hitting with conviction. Mashaba forces Cruz back against the ropes with good straights and they trade inside.
More of the same infighting characterizes the ninth as both men are desperately trying to outland the other. They are literally going punch for punch. Cruz finally pays the price for burying his head into the chest of Mashaba as he is ripped with a monstrous uppercut. Cruz is wobbled and heʼs hurt. Mashaba steps back and strafes him, but Cruzʼs determination leans him back in. He gets his legs back and begins hooking to the body. Great action.
Both men look tired by the tenth as this fight has been all energy. They both go to the body trying to take the steam from the other. They both clutch. They are mirror images of each other as they hook to the body with the right hand at exactly the same time. Neither man gives any ground. Cruz lands two hard blows as the round ends.
Mashabaʼs left eye is near closed by the eleventh and he paws at it. Cruz takes control of the round early but Mashaba comes straight ahead and walks smack into a Cruz right hook. Cruzʼs work rate is still unbelievable for the eleventh round and while Mashaba is firing back, he is still unable to overcome the sheer volume of punches coming at him. Mashaba tries to steal the round, but Cruz wonʼt allow it and negates the champion’s effort.
Mashaba lands his jab in the final round but Cruz crashes a hook into his face. Mashaba is trying to box but Cruz lands a wild hook from the outside and badly hurts Mashaba, who is in serious trouble. There is not much time left in the round but Cruz lands over and over ,trying to finish the wounded Mashaba. Cruz is landing but Mashaba begins to get his legs back as the challenger’s tank runs dry. Cruz digs deep and they trade for the final ten seconds in a great exchange with both men landing. Cruz had Mashaba hurt for the majority of the last minute and a half. What a great round! What a great fight!
Mashaba looks dejected but his team picks him up and has his hands up. Cruzʼs handlers clearly are already celebrating as their man is announced as “…and the new IBO featherweight champion!”
Cristobal Cruz improves to 36-11-1 (23) as the scorecards of judges Glenn Feldman: Even 114-114, Tom Miller: Cruz 115-113 and Mike Pernick: Cruz 115-113 are read to award him the IBO title. Mashaba sees his ten fight win streak snapped as he drops to 20-2-4 (12).
Chief support of the bill was provided vacant NABF Junior Middleweight title fight between unbeaten prospect Jason LeHoullier and opponent Jose Gonzalez.
In a very competitive first round, the taller Gonzalez jabbed Lehoullier and also unveiled the uppercut early and found it landing. The offensive force from Gonzalez brought out the guns of LeHoullier in the form of monstrous left hooks. Gonzalez seemed to land at will, but took punishment for it.
The men try to take each other apart early in the second but end up fighting at range. LeHoullier is attempting to jab, but his hooks are his best weapons. He stuns his rival with two big shots but Gonzalez fires back to the body. Gonzalez was damaged that round.
Gonzalez’s lack of head movement in the third means it’s target practice for right and left hooks from LeHoullier, who’s slight redness in the second round has turned to purple and he begins to swell. LeHoullier gets the better of the exchanges but Gonzalez came to fight. Another exciting round.
Gonzalez begins to show that he has more in the tank than LeHoullier in the fourth by landing a higher volume of punches but the only problem is they arenʼt as hard. Although Gonzalez’s punches are causing swelling, they aren’t getting LeHoullier in trouble. Gonzalez is landing in bunches from all angles; hooks, uppercuts, overhand rights and jabs. Gonzalez takes the round but seems to be tiring.
LeHoullier lands furiously with four huge hooks to start the fifth but it just spurs on Gonzalez. The man has heart; when he takes one, he gives one. Gonzalez comes back to even the score but while he flurries, LeHoullier makes him pay. At the bell, Gonzalez is still punching as LeHoullier holds on.
Both men come out firing in the sixth with LeHoullier looking for a big shot as heʼs been loading up. They trade in the center of the ring and although Gonzalez is throwing many more punches, LeHoullier is landing the harder, cleaner shots. Gonzalez stuns LeHoullier with a solid flurry. In the process, he gets caught by a LeHoullier left hook. In the last minute, Gonzalez seemed to steal the show, fighting toe to toe, slipping shots and landing his own.
In the seventh, LeHoullier lands some big shots but Gonzalez is game and continues to come forward. This round would be tough to score for anyone as they both gave as good as the got in the center of the ring.
LeHoullier is swelling badly by the eighth and he walks in with his hands low and gets ripped. LeHoullier tries to deliver back and they trade jabs. LeHoullier continues to land the hook and the scores with a big one to the body at the mid point in the round. Gonzalez flurries and ducks LeHoullier as he misses with a big hook and they hold at the end of the round.
LeHoullier looks very swollen and purple in the ninth as both combatants hit each other and Gonzalez’s mouthpiece ends up on the mat. While Gonzalez has it rinsed off, many in the crowd boo LeHoullier, feeling he may be losing the fight. LeHoullier instantly reacts by throwing hard, looking for a KO but he wonʼt get it. Both fighters look exhausted.
Gonzalez comes out firing in the tenth and final round, landing most of his punches. LeHoullier is stalking and looks for the big punch but Gonzalez takes control with his volume of punches. LeHoullier looks depleted. He can only throw slow, weary shots as Gonzalez digs deep and fires the last of his flurries with conviction!
Both men raise their hands and I am almost positive that Gonzalez won by unanimous decision. The result is announced as a draw with the scorecards being read as George Smith: Gonzalez 97-93, Don Trella: LeHoullier 96-94 and Clark Sammartino: Even 95-95.
The NABF title remains vacant as Gonzalez sees his record to 11-2-1 (9) and LeHoullier moves to 21-0-1 (8).
Other action on the bill included exciting Russian prospects as middleweight Maxim Vlasov, 11-0 (3), stopped Rodrigo Aguiar, 4-3 (3), at 2:27 of the fifth when Rodrigo’s corner threw in the towel and light welter Ruslan Provodnikov, 7-0 (6), forcing a referee stoppage upon Jose Angel Roman, 10-22-5 (4), at 2:28 of the first.
Light flyweights Qa’id Muhammad and Mario Gaxiola were also in action. This fight was one of those undercard contests that are placed as a swing bout. It swung alright. Muhammad was making his pro debut and what a debut it was.
In the first frame, Muhammad showed that he was fast and agile, proving extremely hard for Gaxiola to hit. Muhammad strafed him with shots until Gaxiola fell hard toward the end of the round.
In the second, it was more of the same, but it was clear that Muhammad was having fun in there, trying different things and just outclassing Gaxiola. Muhammad put his opponent down hard toward the end of the round once again.
The third round showed that Muhammadʼs upper body movement would not allow him to be hit with regularity and he continued to damage Gaxiola. The fourth round opened and Muhammad showed that he wanted his first win to be a KO while Gaxiolaʼs corner was urging their man to keep moving.
At the ten second mark, it was no holds bared as both fighters went after each other. As the bell was about to to be sounded, a brutal hook connected on the jaw of Gaxiola and he was out before he hit the mat. His eyes lay eerily open at 2:59 of the fourth and final round.
Muhammad got his KO.
Muhammad win his debut while Gaxiola falls to 0-3 (0).
