Top Rank on ESPN+ Presents Murata vs. Brant Recap

Top Rank Boxing emanated from the Park Theater located within the lush confines of the Park MGM Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. The stacked, nine fight, card was headlined by two title fights-Ryota Murata vs. Rob Brant for the WBA World Middleweight Title and Antonio DeMarco vs. Maxim Dadashev for the NABF Super Lightweight Title. In case you missed the action on ESPN+, here’s a recap of all the action!

Noah LaCoste (2-0, 2 KOs) vs. David Kaminsky (2-0, 1 KO)

Four Rounds, Middleweights

Decision: David Kaminsky via TKO in round 2

Adam Lopez (10-1, 4 KOs) vs. Hector Ambriz (12-7-2, 6 KOs)

Eight Rounds, Featherweights

Decision: Adam Lopez via TKO in round 8

Joseph Adorno (9-0, 9 KOs) vs. Kevin Cruz (8-0, 5 KOs)

Six Rounds, Lightweights

Decision: Joseph Adorno via UD

Vladimir Nikitin (1-0, 0 KOs) vs. Clay Burns (5-4-2, 4 KOs)

Six Rounds, Featherweights

Decision: Vladimir Nikitin via UD (59-55, 59-55, 59-55)

Nicola Cipolletta (14-6-2, 4 KOs) vs. Michael Conlan (8-0, 5 KOs)

Eight Rounds, Featherweights

Decision: Michael Conlan via TKO in round 7

This bout featured 2012 Olympic bronze medalist Michael Conlan, a native of Belfast, Northern Ireland. Conlan proved to be every bit the Olympic caliber athlete for the duration of the fight as he simply outclassed Cipolletta. Conlan continuously cut off the ring and the little offense that Cipolletta attempted to mount was reciprocated with Conlan’s vicious counter-punching ability. The referee finally called a stop to the action in round seven as Conlan had Cipolletta against the ropes mounting a devastating assault to his body-as he had done for the majority of the fight. In a brief, albeit unnecessary, display of showmanship, Cipolletta decided to do some push-ups in the middle of the ring followed by a short shadow boxing display…perhaps he should have used this excess energy to put forth some offense.

Guido Pitto (25-5-2, 8 KOs) vs. Esquiva Falcao (21-0, 15 KOs)

Ten Rounds, Middleweights

Decision: Esquiva Falcao via UD (100-90, 100-90, 100-90)

This contest pitted Esquiva Falcao, who won the silver medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics, for his home country of Brazil against Guido Pitto, a veteran of 32 professional fights. The pace of this fight was quite pedestrian for the first eight rounds as the fighters held an extended feeling out process with each other. Rounds nine and ten finally saw the fighters exchange some effective combos with a slight edge on the side of Falcao. Apparently the few flashes of action displayed by Falcao in the final rounds were enough for the judges to warrant a unanimous decision for him.

NABF Super Lightweight Title

Antonio DeMarco (33-6-1, 24 KOs) vs. Maxim Dadashev (11-0, 10 KOs)

Ten Rounds, Super Lightweights

Decision: Maxim Dadashev via UD (97-93, 96-94, 98-92)

The co-feature of this card pitted Maxim Dadashev (11-0, 10 KOs), as he made the first defense of his NABF Super Lightweight Title, against ring veteran Antonio DeMarco (33-6-1, 24 KOs). This contest marked Dadashev’s first title defense since he earned the then vacant title by way of a tenth round TKO of Darleys Perez back in June. DeMarco entered this bout on a two fight win streak-a unanimous decision over Luis Solis in February 2017 and a first round knockout of Eddie Ramirez in October 2017. It should be noted, however, that DeMarco was on the wrong side of three consecutive unanimous decisions prior to those victories albeit in the form of top level contenders that included Omar Figueroa Jr. and Jessie Vargas. 

Antonio DeMarco looked hungry for this fight and was the aggressor for the first eight rounds as Dadashev seemed uncomfortable in the ring with the southpaw. DeMarco displayed some signs of fatigue in the final two rounds as Dadashev capitalized by finally landing some power punches that DeMarco had no answer for. This appeared to be an extremely close fight where a split decision would have been plausible. Surprisingly, and much to the chagrin of the clearly pro-DeMarco crowd, Dadashev was awarded the unanimous decision to retain his title.

WBA World Middleweight Title

Rob Brant (23-1, 16 KOs) vs. Ryota Murata (14-1, 11 KOs)

Twelve Rounds, Middleweights

Decision: Rob Brant via UD (118-110, 119-109, 119-109)

The main event of the evening featured 2012 gold medalist Ryota Murata (14-1, 11 KOs) as he made the second defense of his WBA World Middleweight title against Rob Brant (23-1, 16KOs). Murata earned the title in October 2017 when he was victorious over Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam, a rematch of their May 2017 encounter which N’Dam N’Jikam took by split decision. Murata’s opponent, Rob Brant, entered the fight on the heels of a first round knockout of Colby Courter back in March of this year prior to which he suffered the only setback of his career-a unanimous decision loss to Juergen Braehmer in October 2017.

The first two rounds of this fight saw Rob Brant attempt to maintain a frenetic pace like he consumed a case of Red Bull in the locker room. Brant without a doubt threw a significantly greater number of punches than Murata as he attempted to establish the jab but Murata’s guard stood up well to this flurry. In rounds three and four we witnessed Brant slow his tempo down as Murata began to land crisp combos that Brant was unable to guard against. As we entered round five, arguably the best of the encounter, both fighters stood toe to toe landing several head-snapping power punches that showed each combatant to have a cast iron chin. Rounds six through ten were more evenly contested as Brant’s feverish pace slowed slightly, however, the championship rounds seemed to be the final nails in the coffin of Murata’s title reign. Brant repeatedly broke through Murata’s guard as he landed several stiff rights with sniper-like precision. The judges obviously appreciated how busy Brant was, or even at times only appeared to be when he could not break through Murata’s guard, as he won a rather lopsided unanimous decision to become the new WBA Middleweight Champion.

Fazliddin Gaibnazarov (5-0, 2 KOs) vs. Wilberth Lopez (23-9, 15 KOs)

Eight Rounds, Super Lightweights

Decision: Fazliddin Gaibnazarov via TKO in round 2

Fazliddin Gaibnazarov, winner of the 2016 gold medal for his native Uzbekistan, squared off with Tucson, Arizona’s own Wilberth Lopez in the final bout of the evening after the ESPN+ broadcast concluded. Gaibnazarov was simply too much for Lopez to handle as he wouldn’t allow him any breathing room repeatedly cornering him. The bout came to it’s rapid conclusion as the referee stepped in to save Lopez from any additional abuse in round two.

-Steve Ward

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Top Rank Boxing Presents Vasyl Lomachenko vs. Jorge Linares Recap

Bob Arum's Top Rank Boxing returned to Gotham with a seven bout card, headlined by a WBA World Lightweight Title bout between Vasyl Lomachenko (11-1, 9 KOs) and defending champion, Jorge Linares (44-4, 27 KOs). The bout, which aired live on ESPN, was held at the Mecca of Boxing, Madison Square Garden.

In the main event, Linares landed a nice right to the body of Lomachenko, who answered with a multi-punch combo that was met with crowd approval in the second round. The big punch of this combo was a right upper cut to Linares' jaw. Lomachenko's speed was on display in the third round. He easily outscored Linares with a series of combos. 

In the fourth round, Linares was warned for rabbit punches that he threw in response to a Lomachenko right hook to the head. Lomachenko went on to hit Linares with a multi-punch combo to the head during this round. In the fifth round, Lomachenko landed a left upper cut that snapped Linares' head back. Later in the round, Linares was warned for low blows. Linares was warned for low blows again in the sixth round, which clearly frustrated the Venezuelan fighter. Linares knocked Lomachenko down with a right hand to the head later in the round. Lomachenko slowed down and fought more cautiously in the seventh round. 

The two men engaged in a good exchange of punches as the round neared its end. Linares let his hands go around 1:30 of the ninth round, and landed a nice multi-punch combo. Linares was sent crashing to the canvas in the tenth round, after Lomachenko pummeled his opponent with upper cuts and connected on a left hand to the body. The referee stopped the fight at 2:08 of the tenth round. This was the fourth time Linares has been knocked out over the course of his professional career.

The televised portion of the card began with a ten round contest in the welterweight division. Carlos Adames (14-0, 11 KOs) put his undefeated record on the line against Alejandro Barrera (27-5, 17 KOs). Adames landed a couple of nice right hands to Barrera's head that forced the Mexican fighter to backpedal to avoid any unnecessary damage. Adames hurt his opponent with a big multi-punch combo, highlighted by a big left hand, that staggered Barrera as the second round winded down. Barrera rebounded back in the third round. 

The third round ended with Adames and Barrera exchanging good blows to one another's body and head. Adames showboated in the fourth round by winding up on his punches inside the second minute of the round. He caught Barrera with a hard right hook to the head later in the frame. The two warriors were so focused on a violent exchange during this round, that they fought through the bell that marked the end of the fourth. 

Towards the end of the fifth round, Adames hurt Barrera with a right hand, but was unable to finish off his dazed opponent. Through five rounds, it was evident that the story of this fight would be missed opportunities for Adames to finish off his opponent. This was caused in large part due to the less experienced fighter's wildness at times with punches. The two fighters traded big shots at the end of the seventh round. Barrera had an offensive outburst in the eighth round as he pinned Adames up against the ropes, and landed right hands at will on his opponent. Barrera fought valiantly in the ninth, despite being caught with big shots to the head. The judges scored the bout 97-93, 96-94 and 98-92 for the winner by unanimous decision, Carlos Adames.

Ibon Larrinaga (10-2, 2 KOs) of Spain fought Ireland's Michael Conlan (7-0, 5 KOs) in an eight round bout. Conlan walked to the ring wearing New York Knicks' gear to appeal to the hometown fans. Conlan controlled the first three rounds of action. In the fourth round, Conlan lost his bearing when he threw Larrinaga into a neutral corner. In the fifth round, the two-time Olympian from Ireland landed a series of big hooks on Larrinaga. Later in the round, Conlan snapped his opponents head back with a hard right hand. Conlan cruised through the last three rounds, doing enough to win all three on the judges' scorecards. All three judges scored the bout 80-72 for the winner by unanimous decision, Michael Conlan.

Vitor Freitas (13-2, 7 KOs), a Brazilian lightweight, was knocked out at the 1:04 mark of the opening round by Teofimo Lopez (7-0, 7 KOs), a former Honduran Olympian from Brooklyn. Despite coming up as an amateur in the ranks of USA Boxing, Lopez opted to compete for his parents' homeland of Honduras at the 2016 Olympic Games. Lopez finished off Freitas with a right hand to the side of the head, that looked more like a graze than a hard blow to the head. Lopez has now won all seven of his professional bouts by way of knockout.

Female lightweights, Mikaela Mayer (5-0, 3 KOs) and Baby Nansen (6-3-1) squared off in a six round contest. Mayer, a 2016 Olympian for the United States, controlled the tempo of the bout by effectively utilizing her clear height and reach advantage This forced Hansen to try to fight on the inside. A number of her attacks were stopped by Mayer's solid defense. Mayer landed two big overhand rights to the face of Nansen in the fourth, that staggered her opponent. Nansen fought more cautiously in the fifth, having been hurt in the previous round. As the final bell rang, Nansen's face showed damage from the fight, as her right eye was badly swollen. All three judges scored the bout 60-54 for the winner by unanimous decision, Mikaela Mayer.

The Fighting Marine, Jamel Herring (17-2, 10 KOs) fought Mexico's Juan Pablo Sanchez (29-16, 14 KOs) in an eight round, lightweight bout. Herring controlled the first two rounds of action by landing the cleaner and more effective punches to his opponent's head and body. In the third round, Herring's right eye was busted open by what appeared to be the thumb of Sanchez's glove. The doctor examined Herring's eye and decided to allow the two men to keep fighting. In the fourth round, Herring, sensing the danger of his cut, snapped back the head of Sanchez with a straight left hand. In the final 40 seconds of this round, Herring landed a series of big shots to his opponent's head. The end of the fight came for Sanchez in the fifth round, when Herring pushed him into the ropes with a barrage of punches that left him defenseless. The punch that did Sanchez in was a Herring left hook to the head. The referee stopped the fight at the 1:28 mark of the fifth round.

The card opened up with a lightweight bout between Fazliddin Gaibnazarov (4-0, 2 KO) and Jesus Silveyra (8-6-2, 3 KOs). Silveyra recovered from a knockdown in the fourth round, only to be knocked out seconds later by a Gaibnazarov left hand to the jaw. The referee stopped the fight at the 2:05 mark of the fourth round of a scheduled eight round contest.

MW

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