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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