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04/08/2008 Archived Entry: "Mario Hernandez Claims First Regional Title"
Mario Hernandez Claims First Regional Title
Photos and report by Ricardo Ibarra
Marrio Hernandez presses the action
CALDWELL, Idaho--Fighting in front of a packed and boisterous hometown crowd, Mario Hernandez (10-0 3KOs 147 ½ lbs.) delivered an exciting performance, winning the vacant North West Boxing Association welterweight title with a unanimous eight round decision over Daniel Gonzalez (8-14-2 2KOs 147 lbs.) this past Saturday, April 5th at the O’Conner Field House in Caldwell, Idaho.
Originally scheduled as a lightweight contest, Hernandez surprised many when he came in at a career high weight of 147 ½ lbs., forcing the bout up to the welterweight limit. There was concern that he was giving his opponent an unnecessary advantage as Gonzalez was the naturally bigger man. Those concerns were quickly dispelled as Hernandez asserted his dominance early in the bout.
Using his superior foot work and a snapping right jab, Hernandez set a fast pace early as he stepped in and out of the pocket, landing with precise three and four punch combinations. He easily battered his opponent around the ring for most of the early rounds, snapping his head back on numerous occasions. Gonzalez, as is usually the case, remained undeterred and continued to press forward, looking for openings and landing sporadically with hard hooks to the body. His determination paid off in the last two rounds as the body attack, and perhaps the extra weight, seemed to slow Hernandez.
Gonzalez (right) lands the uppercut
Gonzalez pressed the fight in the seventh round, seemingly understanding that he needed a knockout to win. He found his mark early in the round with left-right hook combinations. Hernandez, visibly tired, stood his ground and answered his opponents attack with his own volley of punches, giving the local crowd some see-saw moments of back and forth action. Gonzalez, though, had the edge in the round and closed it out strong, connecting with a big straight left that had Hernandez in some trouble. Hernandez came out determined to take back control of the bout in the last round. He stepped in with solid power punches, choosing to trade with his opponents rather than box. The crowd stood and roared in appreciation as the two fighters traded wildly to close out the bout. All three judges scored the bout 79-73 for Hernandez.
Mario Hernandez proudly wears his new belt
The bout proved to be a solid test for the young aspiring prospect. He displayed solid technical skills, but, more importantly, he came back strong from a tense situation and displayed the kind of heart and determination you want to see in a young fighter. His next bout is scheduled for June in Texas.
In the evening’s co-main event, local favorite Miguel Albares (5-4-1 2KOs 126 ½ lbs.) lost a six round majority decision to Albuquerque, New Mexico’s Scott Furney (2-3-1 1KO 125 ½ lbs.). As a professional fighter, Furney has had an inauspicious start to his career, losing three of his first four pro bouts. However, he’s had a resurgence of sorts in 2008. In February he was well on his way to securing an upset victory over amateur standout Robert Vargas when a head-butt caused a stoppage and a technical draw. This time out he fought like a fighter eager to add a win to his record. He pressed the fight early, firing off solid hooks to the head, controlling the early portions of the fight. Albares found success in the middle portions when he was able to control the distance with his jab. But, Furney was the busier fighter, rallying late to secure the win. Final judges scores 58-55, 58-55, 57-57 in awarding Furney a unanimous decision victory.
Local Jr. Middleweight Edgar Hernandez (7-2-1 158 lbs.) turned in a dominant performance in his win over Browning, Montana’s James Sangrey (1-5 1KO 151 lbs.). Patiently working behind his jab, Hernandez hurt his opponent early in the first round with a solid right hand. A left hook wobbled Sangrey once again and a right hand forced him to take a knee. After the mandatory eight-count Hernandez pressed the fight, firing off hard power punches. A left hook wobbled Sangrey once again and sent him reeling back to the ropes where Hernandez teed off, punishing his opponent for the remainder of the round. In between rounds Sangrey’s corner wisely stopped the bout, awarding the win to the local favorite Edgar Hernandez.
Former amateur standout David Lopez (2-0 160 lbs.) managed to keep his undefeated record intact after a shaky start, winning a four round unanimous decision over Michael Birthmark (1-2 160 lbs.). Lopez, a skilled boxer, began the bout uncharacteristically looking to trade with his opponent. He paid the price as he caught two consecutive uppercuts on the chin, the second of which put him on the seat of his trunks. After the eight-count Lopez maintained his distance and regained his composure. By the end of the round he was finding success with his counter left from his southpaw stance. In the second round he took control with solid boxing, landing repeatedly with straight left-right hook combinations. For the remainder of the bout he countered and avoided most of his opponent’s punches, winning the remaining three rounds on all three judges’ scorecards. The final scores read scores of 39-37, 38-37, 38-37.
A scheduled four round heavyweight bout between Boise, Idaho’s Ija Flapping Eagle (2-1-2 2KOs 261 lbs.) and Denver, Colorado’s Shidevin Brown (2-3-1 1KO 301 lbs.) ended in disappointing fashion after only two rounds of action. The two fighters opened up early, swapping heavy punches from the opening bell. Flapping Eagle dug into his opponent’s body with hard hooks. Brown fired back, landing with right hands. In the second round a big right hand buckled the knees of Brown and sent him back to the ropes. As Flapping Eagle rushed in, the two fighters clashed heads, opening a cut along the eye brow of Brown. The referee called time to allow the doctor to inspect the cut and while the fight was allowed to continue for the remainder of the round, in between rounds the doctor stopped the bout. The bout was declared a technical draw due to the unintentional head-butt.
Garcia (left) stumbles to the canvas
In one of the best fights seen in the Pacific Northwest in recent years, Cristobal Garcia (0-2 146 lbs.) of Caldwell, Idaho and Josh Flynn (1-0 148 ½ lbs.) of Sandpoint, Idaho engaged in four rounds of wild, back and forth, non-stop action. Flynn pressed the fight early, opening up with hard hooks to the head. Garcia fired back with power punches of his own. A big left hook pushed Garcia back to the ropes. As Flynn rushed in, Garcia retaliated with a barrage of punches forcing a wild exchange to close out the round. In the second round Flynn rocked his opponent early with an overhand right-left hook combination. A straight right sent Garcia to the canvas. After the eight-count Flynn rushed his opponent, opening up with punches from all angles, looking for the knockout.
Just as Garcia looked to be out on his feet, he managed to launch a right hand that caught Flynn flush on the jaw, buckling his knees. The tables turned and it was Garcia teeing off and fairly close to scoring the KO. Flynn managed to buy some time as he landed a left hook that sent the mouth piece of his opponent flying out of his mouth. The referee momentarily stopped the action to replace it. As the action resumed both fighters met in the middle of the ring and engaged in a wild flurry that drew enthusiastic cheers of support from the crowd.
The third round saw more of the same as both fighters engaged in another three minutes of frenzied action. Garcia, with his chin high in the air, pressed the action and almost tasted the canvass once again as his knees buckled from a right hand midway through the round. They finished out the round swapping punches, without much concern for defense. In the fourth round Flynn came out swinging, looking to end the bout. He almost succeeded as he caught Garcia with a big right hand on the chin. But, as was the case throughout this bout, Garcia immediately retaliated. A hard right hand stunned the onrushing Flynn. The two fighters stood their ground and exchanged vicious punches until one fell. Garcia sank to the canvas from a right hand. After the mandatory eight-count Garcia looked to be out on his feet. Flynn rushed his opponent, firing wild looping punches and in the process leaving himself wide open for a counter punch, which Garcia landed on the top of the head, buckling the knees of Flynn. The two fighters finished the bout trading punch for punch. The crowd finished the bout on their feet, applauding in appreciation for the brutally exciting fight they had just witnessed. The judges’ scorecards read 39-38, 40-37, 39-36 all for Flynn. As good as this bout was there needs to be a rematch. Whether these two could stand to see one another again remains to be seen.
In the evenings opening bout, Jess Salway (3-9-1 142 ½ lbs.) scored his first win in over two years, scoring a four round majority decision over Caldwell, Idaho native Rudy Valdez (2-3 1KO 146 ½ lbs.). Salway, who had made a career of fighting anyone they put in front of him, had gone eight straight without winning. He spoke of a renewed dedication to the sport before the bout and it showed in the ring. Weighing in at the lowest weight of his career, Salway looked quicker, using his jab and good lateral movement to control the range and patiently break down his opponent. He finished out a dominant first round with a jarring left hook to the chin, dropping his opponent for an eight count. Salway pressed for the knockout, but, to the credit of Valdez, the local fighter was resilient. In the third round Salway lost a point for hitting on the break. Either than that, the fight was not close as Salway maintained control for the remainder of the bout. The judges’ scored the bout 40-36, 39-37 and 37-37.
The seven bout card was the second in the area for R&B Promotions. Their third show is scheduled for August.
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