On The Watch “It’s All About Errol Spence Jr. vs Yordenis Ugas”

WBA/WBC/IBF Welterweight Unified Champion

Last night’s Showtime PPV Main Event between WBC/IBF Welterweight Champion Errol Spence Jr. (28-0, 22 Kos) and WBA “Super” Welterweight Champion Yordenis Ugas (27-5, 12 Kos) at the AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas, was simply an excellent display of how great Errol can be when dialed in inside that squared circle. Real Talk!

Both combatants showed up in tip top shape ready to go to war with one another but it was Errol who hadn’t fought in over 16 months, and had to recover from retina surgery to be back healthy for this bout he had the look and the aura of a man who wasn’t going to be deterred by no means, regardless of the opponent inside that squared circle.

Errol let his hands go early and did not stop pounding his opponent right from the jump. Both combatants surprisingly fought from the “phone booth” style not giving each other an inch but it was Spence who was getting most out of that tactic due to the higher volumes of punches being thrown with power.

I was surprised by Ugas’ “game plan” or lack of considering going toe to toe with Errol requires you to dish out a punch output to at least deter him from coming forward. Ugas gave back but was looking more at placing his punches rather than keeping up with Spence. Allowing Spence to have his way helps him build his confidence and encourages him to keep applying nonstop pressure with no real fear of anything coming at him.

Ugas had some moments inside that squared circle and even caught Spence slipping in the 6th round with a couple of heavy shots that caught Spence’s attention and visibly hurt him, but Ugas didn’t capitalize on that momentum and once Spence shook it off, he went back into “beast mode” throwing heavy punches looking for that get back.

As the rounds progressed Ugas’ right eye was swollen shut from the pounding, he was receiving from Spence who by then was breaking his opponent down round by round. The inevitable was near.

By the tenth round Ugas became a punching bag, absorbing punishment after punishment coming from all angles prompting the referee to send Yordenis to the ringside Doctor who than decided Ugas could no longer continue seeing out the right eye. Errol won by technical knockout and became the New Unified WBA “Super”/WBC/IBF Welterweight Champion of the World. Well done.

Errol Spence Jr. is “The Truth” hands down inside that squared circle. This performance by Spence last night proved once and for all that your Boy is back 100% from all previous setbacks. The only thing next to do is to challenge WBO Welterweight Champion Terence Crawford (38-0, 29 Kos). Two undefeated Champions laying it all on the line for Undisputed.

Who you got?

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Blair Cobbs vs Alexis Rocha”

Welterweight Showdown

Last night the fast talking, trash talking Welterweight prospect Blair Cobbs (15-1-1, 10 Kos) got himself humbled when he took on Alexis Rocha (19-1, 13 Kos) inside that squared circle as the Main Event of the night at the USC Galen in Los Angeles, California on the Golden Boy/DAZN card.

Cobbs talked the talk but clearly underestimated his opponent when he first stepped foot inside that squared circle. Cobbs boxed and moved not looking too concerned about his opponent, right until he got caught and chin checked in the second round which opened up a clear flaw in Cobbs defense as the rounds progressed.

Alexis’ left hand was landing at will all night clearly rocking Cobbs who then started to move way too much to win any rounds. Cobbs was having some serious problems figuring out Alexis who was growing stronger as the rounds progressed.

Alexis’ “game plan” was simple but effective. His patience and steady aggressive approach troubled Cobbs enough to land another hard left chin checked and dropped Cobbs for a quick 8 count in the eighth round. Cobbs, who was clearly hurt struggled heavily to survive the end of the round.

The “End Game” was near and in the ninth round a visibly weakened Cobbs continued to absorb a burst of unanswered punches from body to head and again chin checked out on his feet prompting the referee to call an end to the bout.

Prior to the bout, Alexis had promised to hurt Blair inside that squared circle but went a step further and silenced the flamboyant one permanently.

This bout was a reality check for Cobbs who prior to the bout was calling out the top Welterweights in the Division. There are levels to this Boxing sh*t and this one showed you where you at, but it’s nothing you can’t bounce back from. Keep your head up Blair.

As for Alexis, congratulations on your convincing win keep up the momentum.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Errol Spence Jr. vs Yordenis Ugas”


WBA/WBC/IBF Welterweight Title Unification Championship

It has now officially been announced that WBC/IBF Welterweight Champion Errol Spence Jr. (27-0, 21 Kos) will be going into a Unification bout with WBA “Super” Welterweight Champion Yordenis Ugas (27-4, 12 Kos) April 16, 2022 at the AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas.

Errol, who has been sidelined by an eye injury, hasn’t graced the squared circle since December 2020 when he last conquered Danny Garcia, is now ready and able and itching to return to once again continue his quest on becoming Undisputed Welterweight Champion of the World.

In order to attain that quest Errol will have to pry the WBA “Super” World Title from a highly motivated combatant Yordenis who last defended the prized belt by convincingly defeating the legend Manny Pacquiao (62-9-2, 38 Kos) as a replacement on 10 days’ notice.

While many peeps in the boxing community believe that Errol will have an easy night ahead of the bout, I personally anticipate this bout will be quite competitive. Real Talk! Peeps shouldn’t sleep on Ugas, this Kat is an exceptional boxer with a very high Boxing IQ when focussed and highly motivated, and having beaten a legend in Pacquiao to now gracing the ring with a Pound-for-Pound Champion like Errol, that alone will definitely bring that warrior mentality needed to maybe upsetting the odds against him.

I’m quite intrigued by this bout and can’t wait to see the outcome when both combatants will be putting their Championship Belts up for this highly anticipated Unification bout that will bring the Champion one step closer to Undisputed April 16, 2022 at the AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Keith Thurman vs Mario Barrios”

Welterweight Throwdown

Last night’s Premier Boxing Champion/Fox Pay-Per View Main Event between Keith Thurman (30-1, 22 Kos) and Mario Barrios (26-2, 17 Kos) at the Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas was a very crowd-pleasing entertaining bout.

Keith, who hasn’t graced the squared circle in nearly two years, appeared in tip top shape and ready to rumble right from the first bell. Keith looked sharp, strong and very accurate with his punch selection. Going toe to toe with a big first timer in the Welterweight Division in Mario Barrios is not an easy task. Barrios looked strong and big as well at the weight and very rangy with his reach and height creating a stiff challenge to Keith.

That said Keith, boxed with confidence and clearly displayed a higher boxing IQ round by round. I gotta tip my “B” hat to Barrios for stepping into the lion’s den and taking on such a proven competitor as his first fight into the Division. As good of a boxer Mario is he was levels below the highly experience Thurman inside that squared circle. Barrios held his ground, fought well and proved that he will be a problem to the rest of the Welterweight Division.

Keith was on point last night, firing heavy shots from all angles and moved beautifully from round 1 to 12 without displaying any fatigue or ring rust. Quite impressive.

After 12 full rounds of action the Judges scored it 118-110, 118-110 and 117-111 all in favor of Keith Thurman.

Thurman needed to prove to the 147-Pound Division that he was back and last night’s performance was adequate enough but the question still remains: will he still have what it takes to dethrone the current Champions in IBF/WBC Errol Spence Jr. (27-0, 21 Kos), WBO Terence Crawford (38-0 29 Kos) and WBA Super Yordenis Ugas (27-4, 12 Kos) holding the belts?

Until then, congratulations Keith on your comeback win. I can’t wait to see who your next challenger will be.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Terence Crawford vs Shawn Porter”

WBO Welterweight Challenge

Last night’s Top Rank Main Event between WBO Champion Terence Crawford (38-0, 29 Kos) and Shawn Porter (31-4-1, 17 Kos) at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino’s Michelob ULTRA Arena, was a statement-type performance by the Champion that definitely lived up to the hype. Real Talk!

Everybody in the building knew what Porter was going to bring inside that squared circle but nobody knew how Crawford was going to deal with it. Porter brought the heat straight from round one and on and didn’t stop applying pressure making it a real fight. The “game plan” looked simple on Porter’s side but he wasn’t dealing with an average-type of fighter in Crawford.

The key for Crawford was to not get caught up in Porter’s “game plan” but to settle down and execute his own by being patient and sticking to his exceptional boxing skills. He could not get caught stuck exchanging leather for leather letting himself open at times giving unnecessary opportunities which he did, giving Porter successful rounds.

The back and forth both combatants were dishing out was exciting and definitely crowd pleasing to the fans in attendance.

That said, as the rounds were piling up, I could sense Crawford needed to do something spectacular to slow down the momentum Porter had going for himself at that point. Crawford needed to remind the Boxing World why he was on the Pound-for-Pound list.

In the 10th round, Crawford caught Porter with a well-placed short left to the dome that sat him down for a quick 8 count. Porter, who looked surprised, bounced right back up on his feet but the inevitable was looming over Porter’s head. Porter proceeded to go at Crawford with aggression only to be met with a heavy two-piece combo that severely rocked a still concussed and frustrated Porter to the floor for second time. Although Porter managed to beat the 10 count, Shawn’s Dad, Kenny Porter had seen enough and waved the referee to stop the bout. Just like that Crawford put an end to “Showtime” Shawn Porter by TKO in the 10th round.

This was the type of a performance that Terence needed to silence all the naysayers that doubted his greatness inside that squared circle. Porter brought the “heat” and asserted himself quite well but Terence showed to have the equalizer to shut the show down.

This was by far the most noteworthy and hardest combatant to date in Terence’s career and he prevailed in an impressive fashion.

Congratulations Terence on retaining your WBO Welterweight Championship. You truly are one of the Pound-for-Pound greats in the game today.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Conor Benn vs Adrian Granados”

Welterweight Showdown

Conor Benn (19-0, 12 Kos) had himself another step-up bout tonight when he took on the tough and durable Adrian Granados (21-9-3, 15 Kos) on the Matchroom/DAZN card at the Headingley Stadium in Leeds, England.

There was a lot of trash talking coming from both sides but the one combatant who backed up the tough talks was Conor, hands down! Conor was clearly on a seek and destroy mission from rounds one to ten.

Conor came inside that squared circle to please the fans in attendance and to show the boxing world that he’s world class ready. Conor’s aggression was quite visible and affective at times administering some heavy power punches from head to body with seemingly no resistance coming from Granados.

Adrian showed toughness as usual absorbing the onslaught coming his way but his lack of commitment to go toe to toe with Conor made things quite easy to judge round by round. Granados had absolutely no power to his punches tonight and his constant movement did not add up to the right “game plan” to disrupt Conor’s nonstop aggressive punch output.

Although Adrian completed the full ten rounds, his performance tonight was very lackluster. Granados looked more like a fighter who wanted to survive then the always gamed warrior we were accustomed to seeing.

That being said, after 10 rounds of somewhat action the Judges scored it 100-90, 90-91 and 97-93 unanimously in favor of Conor Ben.

Conor may have been unable to stop Adrian within the 10 rounds tonight but he did get some much-needed rounds in that showed us how improved of a boxer he has become in a such a short professional career to date.

Keep the momentum going Conor, your time is coming. Until then congratulations on your latest win.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Manny Pacquiao vs Yordenis Ugas”

WBA “Super” welterweight Challenge

Last night’s PBC/FOX Sport Pay-Per-View Main Event at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas between Manny Pacquiao (62-8-2, 39 Kos) and WBA “Super” Champion Yordenis Ugas (27-4, 12 Kos) was a shocking type of an event that saw the underdog Yordenis silence all the critics when he handily defeated the Legendary “Pacman” by unanimous decision.

It was a beautiful display of boxing by Ugas who stuck to the “game plan” from the jump and executed it perfectly. Ugas’ strong and steady jab was key all night in preventing Manny from rushing him with his flurry of punches. Ugas asserted himself and imposed and utilized his size and reach the right way.

Pacquiao looked surprisingly confused at times, not able to get into a proper offensive flow to offset Ugas, who kept it really simple but effective enough to trouble Pacquiao round by round.

I was very impressed by Ugas’ patience inside that squared circle, never letting the moment of fighting a legend deter him or distract him off his mission at hand.

Watching the way this bout unfolded it was evident to me that Pacquiao underestimated Ugas’ ability to box the way that he did. I tip my “B” hat to Ugas for showing us that he can still elevate his game as the competition steps up. Ugas came into this bout as the underdog but walked out earning Pacquiao’s respect the hard way, inside that squared circle.

After 12 full rounds of non-stop action, all three Judges scored it 116-112, 116-112, 115-113 in favor of Yordenis Ugas. By far the best win of his career to date.

With this convincing win, Yordenis retained his WBA “Super” Welterweight Title and reinforced his position in 147-Pound Division. With the momentum on his side, Ugas is now looking forward to a unification bout with WBO Welterweight Champion Terence Crawford (37-0, 28 Kos) or an encounter with Unified IBF/WBC Welterweight Champion Errol Spence Jr. (27-0, 21 Kos).

Regardless of the opponent, both combatants would have the making of an exciting bout.

Until then Yordenis congratulations on your latest triumph.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Virgil Ortiz Jr. vs Egidijus Kavaliauskas”

Welterweight Showdown

Last night’s Golden Boy/DAZN Main Event at The Ford Center at The Star, Frisco, Texas, was well worth the wait. Real Talk! Vergil Ortiz Jr. (18-0, 18 Kos) and Egidijus Kavaliauskas (22-2-1, 18 Kos) showed us fans what two hungry fighters can produce when matched up properly.

The warrior that Egidijus is came out early and asserted himself quite well by pressuring Vergil in the first few rounds even catching him with a barrage of punches and a right uppercut on the chin that clearly dropped Ortiz but the referee called it a slip. That said, Ortiz survived the round and returned the favor in the third round when he also chinned Egidijus and dropped him for a quick 8 count right before the bell.

As the rounds were piling up so was the action inside that squared circle. Both combatants brought the “Heat”. Egidijus proved to be the test Virgil needed at this point but it was only a matter of time before he’d figured Kavaliauskas out.

As great as the back-and-forth action was inside that squared circle, Virgil’s power and precision shined bright in the eighth round when a well-placed left shot to the body dropped Egidijus for a quick eight count then a left hook to the chin for the second knockdown, another eight count then chinned checked again for a third knockdown, another eight count but then came the “End Game” a barrage of unanswered heavy punches dropped “Mean Machine” for the fourth and final time which then prompted the referee to officially stop the bout.

It was a beautiful display of boxing by Virgil who encountered some solid resistance but prevailed big time when it was all said and done.

That being said, Virgil wants next with WBO Welterweight Champion Terence Crawford (37-0, 28 Kos) or any other Champions in the Division. Your Boy is out here looking for all that smoke.

Who really want it with the Kid Virgil Ortiz Jr. cause he got next!

Blaze

On the Watch ” It’s All About Jaron Ennis vs Sergey Lipinets”

Welterweight Showdown

Jaron Ennis (27-0, 25 Kos) walked it like he talked when he completely destroyed tough and durable adversary Sergey Lipinets (16-2-1, 12 Kos) at last night’s Showtime Main Event card from the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut.

It was business as usual for Jaron when he stepped inside that squared circle with absolutely no sign of fear. Once the bell rang in the first round Jaron established himself as the more physical combatant with his size and strength while boxing and moving effectively preventing Sergey from ever setting up his own offence.

Sergey usually gets around to imposing himself but last night he clearly lacked the proper “game plan” to counter Jaron’s steady calculated offence.

Jaron’s ring generalship and perfectly timed switch-hitting style was visibly confusing Sergey inside that squared circle.  The number of heavy shots that Sergey was absorbing was quite worrisome outside looking in. I personally expected Sergey to be more competitive with his work rate but the punishment that he was enduring by the sixth-round cost him heavily when he got caught cold with a right-left devastating combination that flatted him out to the canvas and prompted the referee to instantly call an end to the bout at 2:11 of the sixth-round.

This was a very impressive performance by Jaron considering Sergey had never been stopped before or punished in such a dominant fashion.

Jaron is making it be known that he’s coming for that Number 1 Spot in the Welterweight Division. My only question is who will volunteer to derail the young lion?

Congratulations Jaron on another great performance. Goodluck to the competition!

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Errol Spence Jr. vs Danny Garcia”

IBF/WBC Welterweight Challenge

Last night’s Main Event between Errol Spence Jr. (27-0, 21 Kos) and Danny Garcia (36-3, 21 Kos) at Arlington Texas inside the AT&T Stadium, answered a lot of questions that we the fans had when it came to EJ. After 12 rounds of action all was revealed to the boxing world.

EJ dusted off his shoulders last night inside that squared circle and showed all the doubters and his supporters that your Boy was back 100%. Spence’s car accident in October 2019 left a lot of us fans wondering if Errol could ever get back to his championship form, he once held before the car crash and, with last night’s dominant performance against Danny, your Boy EJ defied all odds.

EJ is “The Truth” inside that squared circle hands down. Errol made Danny, who is one of the top strong Welterweights, in the Division, looked like a pedestrian inside that squared circle. Spence kept that pressure on Danny all night with a stiff effective jab that prevented Danny from applying any type of successful offence.

Whatever “game plan” Danny’s corner constructed for the night became obsolete the minute EJ’s jab started touching Danny at will. EJ’s jab was key last night and clearly marked Danny up from all angles. Danny showed some grit and a strong will to compete but just didn’t have the right output to keep up with EJ. Had Danny applied more pressure the outcome could have definitely been different.

That being said, EJ showed us once again that he’s levels above all competitors who dare to challenge him for that No. 1 Spot inside that squared circle. The Judges were all in agreeance tonight with the score of 116-112, 116-112 and 117-111 for Errol Spence Jr.

With this dominant performance by Spence, he now retains his IBF and WBC Titles while putting the 147-Pound Division back on notice that “The Truth” is back like he never left.

Congratulations Errol on another great performance.

Who’s next?

Blaze