Iron Boy 52

By Steve Ward, Ringside

The Celebrity Theatre in Phoenix played host to a night of pure pugilistic bliss as Iron Boy Promotions presented Iron Boy 52. After some young fighters from the Phoenix chapter of USA Boxing were given their moment in the spotlight for four amateur contests, the pros took center stage as the capacity crowd bared witness to six exhilarating professional bouts. As always, Iron Boy showcased the finest local talent, primarily from Arizona, as they progress on their young campaigns towards hopeful superstardom.

Allen Navarez (2-2-0, 1 KO) vs. Deshawn Boyd (4-0-0, 2 KOs) Four Rounds, 132 lbs

Decision: Deshawn Boyd via UD (39-37, 39-37, 40-36)

Allen Navarez attempted to bring the fight to Boyd for the duration of round one, unfortunately for him, it was to no avail. Boyd displayed great composure as he played more of a counter-puncher role peppering Navarez with shots each time he was able to avoid his advances all with a smile on his face for the majority of the round. Navarez continued to push the action in round two, however, his reckless abandon did leave him open for a few solid shots from Boyd that he was luckily able to sustain. Rounds three and four saw Boyd begin to answer less of Navarez’ offense, however, the punches he did land were with more conviction as his power game came into play. The judges were all in accordance as the unanimous decision was awarded to Boyd keeping his perfect campaign intact.

Chad Davis (5-15-0, 1 KO) vs. Waldo Cortez Acosta (4-2-0, 2 KOs) Six Rounds, Heavyweights

Decision: Waldo Cortez Acosta via TKO in round 3

Round one of this clash of heavyweights, each from Phoenix, turned into an extended feeling out process. The two fighters stood toe to toe with little to no movement aside from a couple brief flurries. Round two saw an uptick in the action but the most exciting moment of the round arguably was when Davis almost bulldozed Acosta through the ropes in the closing seconds. Acosta was like a man possessed as round three commenced. Acosta proceeded to deliver a vicious barrage of shots to Davis that was capped with a right uppercut that dropped him to the canvas. While Davis was able to answer the referee’s count, Acosta continued his relentless assault which quickly lead the referee to put a stop to the action.

Damarias Russell (0-1-0) vs. Eduardo Ayala (5-0-1, 2 KOs) Four Rounds, 165 lbs

Decision: Eduardo Ayala via TKO in round 2

Marine Corps combat veteran Damarias Russell made his professional debut against the undefeated Eduardo Ayala. Round one showed there would be no feeling out process as the two pugilists went after each other immediately. Russell may have been a bit overzealous as he was quickly knocked down but quickly recovered and immediately snapped Ayala’s head back with a stiff jab. Russell attempted to push the action in round two landing some nice shots, most notably a strong left hook. This wasn’t enough with Ayala’s strong jaw absorbing the brutal blow. Russell again left himself open late in the round and Ayala was able to capitalize with a stiff right to the jaw that again dropped Russell to the canvas. Russell was able to return to his feet but he clearly did not know he was in Phoenix as the referee called a stop to the action.

Vernon Brown (11-1-1, 7 KOs) vs. Roberto Yong (6-17-2, 4 KOs) Six Rounds, 151 lbs

Decision: Vernon Brown via SD (57-56 Yong, 59-54 Brown, 58-55 Brown)

After a rather uneventful first round and a half, the action picked up in the closing moments of round two. Yong decided to drop his hands and showboat a bit which Brown did not appreciate much as he answered with a right hook that dropped him to the canvas. After Yong returned to his feet, Brown trapped him on the ropes and teed off on Yong as he did his best to cover up for the remainder of the round - shockingly without a stoppage by the ref. In round three, Brown was able to continue to put in some solid work as he exploited Yong’s lack of defense with another right hook that rattled his cage but Yong was again able to survive the round. Rounds four through six saw Brown control the tempo of the fight as he continued to cut off the ring and continue to exploit Yong with his right hook much to the chagrin of his corner. To Yong’s credit, he continued to attempt to answer Brown and demonstrated a solid chin throughout the fight. As is often the case with judges from the Arizona Athletic Commission, the decision was a bit questionable as one judge gave the fight to Yong, nonetheless, Brown was able to walk away with the split decision victory.

Co-Main Event

Francisco Dominguez (7-11-1, 1 KO) vs. Jesus Ibarra (9-0-0, 4 KOs) Six Rounds, 126 lbs

Decision: Jesus Ibarra via UD (60-52, 59-53, 60-53)

Dominguez certainly did not come out in round one looking like a fighter with 10 losses as he brought the fight to Ibarra until he was dropped to the canvas with a left hook – one that Dominguez and his corner argued was to the back of the head and they may have had a legit argument. For the next two and a half rounds, Dominguez appeared to slow down a bit until Ibarra snapped his head back with a straight right in round four that reinvigorated him making the second half of this round quite competitive. Dominguez tried to continue to get back into the fight at the onset of round five until another straight right broke through his guard and landed him on the canvas. Perhaps it was fatigue or erring on the side of caution, but rather than pounce on Ibarra, Dominguez elected to strategically pick his punches for the remainder of the round as he firmly asserted control.

Main Event

Omar Garcia (6-9-0, 1 KO) vs. Trini Ochoa (7-0-0, 4 KOs) Six Rounds, 140 lbs

Decision: Trini Ochoa via TKO in round 6

Trini Ochoa demonstrated outstanding ring generalship throughout this fight as he barely allowed Garcia to land any meaningful shots while he kept him at bay with a quite effective jab which he used to open the opportunity for some very effective body work. Garcia also had a tendency to lift his arms in a “V” every time Ochoa landed a combo to his body-while Garcia seemed to be trying to tell Ochoa he wasn’t hurting him, I’d beg to argue that he was more in search of relief for some ailing ribs. In round six, Garcia had a significant cut open up above his right eye from an accidental head-butt that initially caused the ring doctor to be called upon to check him. After Garcia was allowed to continue, Ochoa immediately went after the eye and despite Garcia’s attempts to answer his attack, referee Wes Melton stepped in to call an end to the contest.

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