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02/18/2006 Archived Entry: "Kelley Flushes Ramirez in ‘Flash,’ KO’s Him in Two!"
Kelley Flushes Ramirez in ‘Flash,’ KO’s Him in Two!
By Juan C. Ayllon at ringside
Kevin Kelley (left) finishes Juan Carlos Ramirez (photo by Tom Barnes)
CICERO, IL, February 17, 2006 – Renowned as a young man’s sport, boxing has a way of enticing faded former champions and contenders to give it one more go. Some, like George Foreman, succeed. Many others fail.
At 38, former two-time World Featherweight Champion and sometime boxing commentator, Kevin “The Flushing Flash” Kelley staked his claim that he belonged in the former camp, as he knocked out a perennial contender 10 years his junior, Juan Carlos Ramirez, in two rounds.
Boxing from a southpaw stance, Kelly stalked a surprisingly tentative and respectful Ramirez in round one. Momentarily trapping him in a corner, he bounced a hard straight left off Ramirez’ head. Continuing to press, he caught him with another stiff left, while Ramirez remained largely defensive and looking to counter.
Ramirez is out! (photo by Tom Barnes)
Early in round two, Kelley speared him with a straight right, forcing him to hold momentarily. Busier this round, Ramirez knocked Kelley back with a hard right. Planting his head on Kelley’s chest, he winged hooks hard to the body. However, his surge was short-lived. Kelley rocked him with a left hook, stunned him with a flurry and flattened him with a whistling straight left.
Referee Tim Adams counted Ramirez out at 2:29 into round two.
Afterwards, Kelley said, “It felt good. My defense was working. [My trainer] Don House has me working on defense more. I don’t have to throw punches all the time.” Asked about the knockout, he said, “First, I kind of hung his head up with the right hook, then I hit him with the straight left.”
That was some straight left. Promoter Dominic Pesoli said, “It was great. Impressive!”
Ramirez is tended to by Referee Adams (left) and Dr. Bynum after the knockout (Tom Barnes photo)
Ironically, this last November, Kelley stopped Sandro Marcos, the fighter who crushed former Super Flyweight, Bantamweight and Featherweight Champion Johnny Tapia's comback attempt in September with a single left hook to the ribs.
With stoppage losses to Prince Naseem Hamed in 1997, Erik Morales in 2003, and Marco Antonio Barrera in 2003, nay-sayers suggested that Kelley’s involvement in boxing should remain outside the ropes. However, Kelley had other ideas and—at least for now—he appears vindicated.
With this win, Kevin Kelley, who weighed 131 lbs., has 58 wins, six losses, two draws and 39 knockouts. Juan Carlos Ramirez, 130.5 lbs., slips to 37 and nine with 16 knockouts.
In the co-main event, hard-swinging Chicagoan welterweight Luciano Perez thrilled the crowd as he overcame a speed and boxing skills deficit in stopping Carson Jones in six torrid rounds.
Circling well in round one, Jones landed a hard lead right to Perez’ head. Quicker to the punch, Jones banged a couple other potent lead rights off Perez’ head as he continued to out-speed and outwork Perez, who looked a full step behind his antagonist. Frustrated at his inability to catch him, Perez landed an uppercut off his head moments after the bell rang. This drew choice words from Jones, who walked back to his corner with a smirk.
Round two initially appeared be payback time for the late blow, as Jones abused Perez repeatedly about the head with sharp lefts and rights. Perez finally drove him to the ropes with a ponderous right to the chest. However, the boxing lesson continued. At one point, Perez held Jones’ head with his left and dug desperate rights to the body.
Jones (right) drills Perez with a right to the head (Tom Barnes photo)
Repeatedly warned, his frustration soon gave way to satisfaction as, almost imperceptibly, Perez began closing the gap. Working the body well with leaden lefts and rights, he set up his attack to the head.
This was quite literally a gut check for Jones: Could he take the heavy punishment to the body or not?
Suddenly, Perez bounced a heavy left off Jones’ head. A thudding right to the head dropped Jones’ hands. Gone was the smirk and air of confidence.
Jones got on his bike. Perez repeatedly trapped him on the ropes, pounding his body, then his head with a primordial savagery. Escaping momentarily, he found himself once again, trapped on the ropes and taking heavy fire. He fought furiously with both fists to repel Perez’ attack.
Perez bounces a left hook off Jones' head (Tom Barnes photo)
As the crowd screamed with lusty approval, the two traded furiously until the bell gonged. Caught up in the moment, Perez dug a heavy right to Jones’ hip—perhaps to slow his movement later—and drew a counter from Jones before the referee intervened.
As round three got underway, Jones snapped Perez’ head back with a stiff right. Perez drilled the body in a corner and bounced a thudding right off Jones’ head. Following him across the ring in a heated exchange, Perez dug a right into the middle of Jones’ back when it was turned, drawing a warning by Referee John O’Brien.
Jones bore a look of concern as Perez tore into him with the fury of a pit bulldog, savaging his body with both fists and bobbling his head at least a half dozen times. It was all Jones could do to keep upright in the latter half of the round.
In round four, a clubbing right and a follow up right nearly floored Jones, as did another huge left hook later. To his credit, Jones unleashed a two-fisted assault of his own, driving Perez back on his heels and momentarily giving him respite.
Another thudding left to the head on the ropes, followed by a savage display of power punching rocked Jones again. However, the ref intervened and gained him momentary reprieve. Afterwards, Jones fought back hard in bunches, while Perez continued to edge in power.
Jones crumples to the canvas from two vicious rights to the body (Tom Barnes photo)
As round five got on, a concussive left hook nearly floored Jones yet again. A two fisted assault to the body and a right to the head finally dropped him. Upon arising, Perez swarmed with both fists. Suddenly Jones struck back, stunning and backing him off with screaming lefts and rights to the head. Trapping Perez on the ropes, Jones did his best to finish him. Defense went out the window as the two traded wildly in a frenzied and sustained exchange. Jones slipped to the canvas at rounds end.
In round six, a heavy right knocked Jones back a step. As the two traded, he bounced a jarring right to Perez’ head. Another heavy right knocked Carson back halfway across the ring onto the ropes. Clubbing with both fists, Perez dropped Jones with a right to the stomach. Rising at about the six count, Jones found himself again covering on the ropes. Suddenly, two digging rights to the ribs behind Jones’ left guard ended matters, dropping him in agony. As he rolled on the canvas in clear pain, Referee O’Brien waved it off at 2:37 into round six.
With this technical knockout, Perez, 149 lbs., is now at 13-3-1 and 12 knockouts, while Carson Jones, 150, slips to 8-2-1.
Undefeated Chicago middleweight Jorge Gonzalez boxed with precision and snap in overcoming hulking and wide-swinging Derrick Findley for a majority decision.
Findley (right) lands a hard right to Gonzalez' head (photo by Juan C. Ayllon)
It was ring science versus brute force, as the looser-limbed and superior boxing Gonzalez covered well when attacked, steeled himself well when hit, and landed with greater speed, snap and accuracy, whereas Findley’s swipes cut a wide, more cumbersome swath, often visibly moving Gonzalez bodily when they landed with a thud, but rarely hurting him. They say it’s the punch you don’t see that hurts you. However, seeing Findley’s punches didn’t appear to pose a problem for Gonzalez tonight.
In round one, Gonzalez used superior speed and crisp combinations in tandem to dominate perhaps 2/3 of the round. However, the hulking Findley bounced a couple of rights off Gonzalez’ head that appeared to rock him, but was countered hard at the bell by Gonzalez.
Gonzalez continued to box smartly in round two, peppering crisply with both fists, while Findley continually advanced, swinging wide and hard ponderous blows.
Gonzalez acknowledges the crowd from atop a turnbuckle (photo by Juan C. Ayllon)
When bulled to the ropes by Findley’s clubbing shots, Gonzalez fought his way clear with cat quick combinations and turned the table on Findley, trapping him on the ropes for a good 30 seconds. The two traded for the remainder of the round.
Findley swarmed in round three, knocking Gonzalez’ head back with a heavy right. Up on his toes, Gonzalez speared with the jab, circled and ripped a sharp hook to Findley’s eye. Another left hook to the head appeared to stun Findley. A pair of left hooks knocked Findley backwards. And another. As the two traded at rings center, Findley appeared to be unraveling. Sure, he threw ponderous blows with malevolence, but he was catching more as Gonzalez surged.
Four the first two minutes of round four, Gonzalez circled, reversed direction, jabbed, and repeatedly did the three step stroll away, followed by a sudden pivot and shift into a punch move made famous by Jersey Joe Walcott. Always moving forward, in the latter third of the round, Findley caught Gonzalez along the ropes and unleashed clubbing shots over and under to the head, knocking him off balance a couple of times.
Gonzalez is declared the winner by Referee Pete Podgorski (photo by Juan Ayllon)
In the fifth round, the two traded freely throughout. It was Findley’s power and pressure versus Gonzalez’s faster and more accurate punching. Spinning free of a corner, Gonzalez banged away with both fists. The two reversed along the ropes then traded at rings center. They jarred each other with heavy power shots—Gonzalez with the left hook and Findley with clubbing rights at about the halfway mark.
Findley appeared to be imposing his power, seemingly stunning Gonzalez as he swayed him with stupefying, looping punches. However, throwing caution to the wind, Gonzalez dug in, took his lumps, fired back hard and fast with both fists and drove him to the ropes where he pinned him and unloaded his own thunder.
After the bell, Findley nodded and voiced his approval of Gonzalez’ efforts.
The judges scored the bout 57-57, and 58-56 twice for Gonzalez, who won by majority decision.
Gonzalez, 159 lbs., advances to 4-0, while Derrick Findley, 157 lbs., drops to 2-1 and two knockouts.
The referee was Pete Podgorski.
In a spirited bout pitting youth and strength versus age and experience, Humberto Chavez did enough effective punching to win over testy, but less powerful Carlos Cisnero by unanimous decision.
Chavez (background) attacks Cisnero along the ropes (Juan C. Ayllon photo)
Starting off early in round one, Chavez nailed Cisnero with a heavy lead right. Relaxed, Chavez shrugged off its effects and came back swinging hard.
Chavez slipped to the canvas and was hit with a left to the head while down. This drew a warning from the referee. The two engaged in back and forth swapping as the round progressed.
In the second, Chavez all but knocked down Cisnero, hurting him with digging rights and lefts to the head. However, after he had emptied his guns, he resorted to mocking his opponent’s awkward herky-jerky style, drawing boos from the crowd. This was clearly Cisnero’s round.
The third saw Chavez open with a heavy right to the head, only to catch one back flush on the face moments later. Dominating, Cisnero repeatedly stuck his chin out in mocking fashion, drawing more boos from the crowd.
The fourth round saw Cisnero swarm Chavez with both fists winging. However, they weren’t hurting Chavez, who often smiled and taunted as he tried to squelch this older man’s offense with fire of his own.
Wilting under the pressure, Cisnero bent down and touched the canvas with a glove. Suddenly, Chavez blatantly hit Cisneros. Referee John O'Brien had seen enough, intervening and deducting one point.
When the fighting resumed, Cisnero let his hands go freely, landing often, although not heavily. Meanwhile, Chavez continued to land the far more effective blows.
Jaime Sandoval lands a hard right to Nash's head (Tom Barnes photo)
The two hugged as the final bell sounded. Jumping onto the turnbuckle of the ropes, Cisnero received a rousing ovation worthy of any victor. However, his was only a poetic victory, as the judges scored the bout 39-36 all for Chavez.
With this fight, Humberto Chavez, 146 lbs., moved to 9-4-2 and five knockouts, while Carlos Cisnero, 147 lbs., dropped to 6-12-1 and four knockouts.
IBF Lightweight Champ Jesus Chavez’ kid brother, Jaime Sandoval, dominated, knocked down and ultimately won a unanimous decision over stubborn Reggie Nash.
Sandoval landed the hard rights early on, but suffered a three-inch abrasion from his right eye halfway down his face. Nash kept things interesting with his own counters and rights. A big overhand right rocked Nash. At rounds end, a pair of heavy rights to the head had Nash hanging on for dear life.
Nash lands a hard right of his own to Sandoval's head (Tom Barnes photo)
Round two, Nash was staggered several times by heavy rights, but also mixed his punches well and snapped Sandoval’s head back with a stiff right.
In round three, Nash gave a better account of himself in a more even round. Whereas the heavier hands belonged to Sandoval, the quicker combinations belonged to Nash.
Round four, Sandoval clearly sought to break down and stop Nash. However, Nash kept him honest with fast counters with both fists, especially a sneaky right that landed now and again.
Sandoval unloads as Nash covers (Tom Barnes photo)
Bleeding from nose and mouth, Nash used guile, movement and tenacity to avoid being knocked out as Sandoval gave him a fearful beating in the fifth round.
In the sixth and final round, Nash tried to stem the tide with a fusillade of blows, but it was no use. Ripping through with heavy rights and lefts, Sandoval quickly put Nash back in survival mode. A left hook to the abdomen nearly dropped Nash. A ripping left to the body dropped Nash for several seconds near rounds end.
Judges scored the bout 59-54 twice and 60-52 for a unanimous decision victory for Jimmy Sandoval.
Sandoval, who weighed 135.5 lbs., advanced his record to 10-1 and eight knockouts, while Nash, 136 lbs., dropped to 9-13-1 and two knockouts.
And with that, Dominic Pesoli’s 8 Count Productions and Bob Arum’s Top Rank co-promoted another exciting and successful evening of boxing from Cicero Stadium in Cicero, Illinois. Several of the fights were broadcast by Telefutura’s “Solo Boxeo” show.
Editor's note: A special, heartfelt thanks goes out to Tom Barnes for his oustanding photos. Tom's work has appeared in the Chicago Tribune, amongst other places. He can be contacted at:
Tom E. Barnes
630-784 1547 Cell 630-258 8930
www.tomba-images.com Glendale Heights, IL
Carlos Cisnero raises his hand as his right glove is removed (Juan C. Ayllon photo)
Humberto Chavez has his hand raised by Referee John O'Brien (Juan C. Ayllon photo)
Kevin Kelley discusses the fight with his corner as a cameraman looks on (Juan C. Ayllon photo)
Kevin Kelley and his significant other visit prior to his fight (above) and after (below) (photos by Juan C. Ayllon)
Popular Chicagoan fighter, Omar Reyes, noshes on pizza near the concession stand
(photo by Juan C. Ayllon)
