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11/01/2008 Archived Entry: "Medina Defends C.A.M Title in another Thriller"
Medina Defends C.A.M Title in another Thriller
Story and Photos by Ricardo Ibarra
In what turned out to be one the toughest fights of his career, C.A.M welterweight title holder Favio Medina (20-1-2 8KOs 146 lbs.) had to dig down deep to keep his title and secure his twentieth victory with a twelve round unanimous decision over Henry Mitchell (8-8-1 1KO 145 lbs.) last Thursday at the Coeur D’Alene Casino of Worley, Idaho.
Mitchell proved to be a tough and determined opponent, pressing Medina immediately with quick and accurate combinations. Medina responded with a sustained flurry of his own, setting a furious pace to the bout. Throughout the first three rounds the two traded with intensity in close, with Mitchell seemingly having a slight edge in the early portion of the bout and even managing to stun Medina in the second with a series of right and left hooks along the ropes.
In the fourth round Medina began to assert some control in the bout, although not much. The local favorite pushed the fight hard, unloading with hard combinations to the head and body, pushing through his opponent’s counter attacks and landing the more effective shots.
By the fifth round the sustained body attack appeared to be slowing Mitchell as the wear of what had been up to that point an all out slugfest began to show. Attempts to get on his toes and work from a distance to keep his opponent away failed as Medina closed the gap with hard straight rights.
The resolute aggression of Medina did not let up in the final half of the fight. He never stopped coming forward, and while his opponent stayed firm and fought with him throughout, it was Medina’s assertiveness and conditioning that pulled the fight out for him. The final tallies read 117-111, 118-114, and 119-110, awarding Medina a well deserved unanimous win in a very good fight.
The co-main event featured local favorite Skyler Anderson 11-1-1 7KOs 249 lbs.) in his first step-up in competition. With more experience against higher quality opposition, Matt Hicks (13-3 12KOs267 lbs.) was considered to be the best opponent that Anderson had faced and a fighter that would give him problems. Hicks proved to be just that as he gave Anderson a few tense moments early on in the bout, unfortunately an injury gave the bout an unsatisfactory ending.
In the first round Hicks was able to step in and land hard right hands, pushing Anderson back onto the ropes where he was able to do further damage. Anderson spent the round working his jab and trying to match his opponent’s aggression, but Hicks appeared to land the more effective blows. Hicks was on his way to winning the second round using the same tactics, but as the round approached its final seconds a big left hook caught him on the chin, leaving him stumbling to maintain his balance in the middle for the ring.
Anderson picked up his pace in the third round, snapping his jab in the face of his opponent. Hicks continued to press forward with his right hand, trying to find the openings to the body. In one of those instances that Hicks threw a right to the body, the punch landed at an awkward angle. Hicks immediately reacted with a grimace, turning away from his opponent, prompting the referee to administer an eight count. After a brief discussion with the ringside doctor, the fight was allowed to continue. But, with only one healthy hand, Hicks was left unable to defend himself against his opponents’ aggression. Anderson was able to land at will, bombarding Hicks with a barrage of shots to the head and body. In between rounds the corner of Hicks informed the referee that they were unable to continue, awarding the victory to Anderson the end of the third round.
Medford, Oregon’s Juan Almaraz (4-0 146 lbs.) added his fourth victory to his undefeated record with a six round unanimous decision over rugged journeyman Daniel Gonzalez (9-18-2 3KOs 147 lbs.). Almaraz easily controlled the first three rounds with fundamental boxing. Using his jab and quick lateral movement to control the distance, Almaraz continuously peppered his opponent with crisp combinations.
Gonzalez, as is usually the case, bravely waded his way forward with constant pressure. He was able to get back into the fight in the fourth when Almaraz appeared to run out of gas, but in the fifth Almaraz assumed control once again with a steady work rate. The judges saw the fight for Almaraz by scores of 60-54, 60-54, and 59-55.
In a four round middleweight bout, Caldwell, Idaho’s David Lopez (3-1 160 lbs.) scored a unanimous decision win over Carson City, Nevada’s Wahacanka Wa’Ste Wilch (0-1 159 lbs.). Wilch controlled the bout early as he stepped in behind his jab while Lopez seemed content to lay back and wait for counter punching opportunities. In the second round Lopez picked up his pace and began to effectively counter Wilch with right-left hook combinations. As the bout wore on Wilch stepped up his work rate, but his opponent was able to counter on the inside and outland him throughout the bout. The judges scored the bout 40-36, 40-36 and 39-37.
In a wild four round heavyweight bout, Michael “Serious Greif” Moncrieff (2-5-1 1KO 239 lbs.) defeated Gary Tarr (0-1 240 lbs.) with a split decision. After a slow start to the bout, things quickly heated up in the second round with both fighters picking up their outputs and trading heavy punches. Mid-way through the round Moncrieff was dropped by a hard right hook. The momentary set-back seemed to energize Moncrieff as he swarmed his opponent immediately after the mandatory eight-count, landing a series of left hooks that sent Tarr down for an eight count. The two finished out the round trading thudding hooks along the ropes. Moncrieff continued to press for the remainder of the fight, while Tarr tried to remain on the outside, working his jab and occasionally opening up as Moncrieff closed the distance. The official judges scored the bout 39-37 and 40-36 for Moncrieff and 39-38 for Tarr.
Carson City, Nevada’s Adam Torres (1-0 1KO 155 lbs.) made an impressive professional debut, knocking out Clay Bailey (0-1 152 lbs.) in the second round. Torres patiently picked his spots in the first round stepping in with hard counter right hands over the top of Bailey’s left. A hard right-cross dropped Bailey for a mandatory eight-count at the end of the first round. Torres ended matters in the second round with a perfectly placed right hand, sending Bailey down and out. The referee reached the count of ten at 19 seconds of the second round.
