Keith Thurman Wins Via Unanimous Decision
Boxing was at its best this weekend when Keith Thurman and Shawn Porter met to decide who would be considered the top welterweight in the world. After 12 rounds, Thurman walked away with a unanimous decision victory to the ire of the 12,718 fans in the Barclays Center.
From the outset, the two let it be known that this fight would live up to the hype.
(Photo Credit: Esther Lin/Tom Casino/SHOWTIME)
In the first round, Thurman landed two left hooks and a pair of hard right hands to win the opening stanza. However in rounds 2 and 3, Porter was explosive, chasing down Thurman, cutting off the ring constantly and throwing punches in bunches to the head and body, frustrating his opponent and clinching the rounds.
(Photo Credit: Esther Lin/Tom Casino/SHOWTIME)
In the fourth round, Thurman rocked Porter with a vicious left hook and keep up that pace for most of the fifth and sixth round, yet Porter never wavered, continuing his forward attack and aggression each round.
(Photo Credit: Ryan Greene / Premier Boxing Champions)
Thurman staggered and nearly felled Porter with a left hook in the tenth round, finally nailing him with another hard headshot in the eleventh round to seal his victory.
(Photo Credit: Esther Lin/Tom Casino/SHOWTIME)
When the scores of 115-113 were read across the board, fans began to boo as Thurman raised his arms to the sweet sound of, and still…, retaining his WBA title. The feeling amid the crowd was that the decision should have been a split or a majority decision and some even thought it was a draw.
(Photo Credit: Esther Lin/Tom Casino/SHOWTIME)
Thurman immediately stated during the post-fight interview that he was willing to give Porter a rematch to which Porter willingly accepted, vowing to take the belt upon their next encounter.
The co-main event featured a matchup of undefeated super welterweights as Jarrett Hurd dominated with a tenth round TKO over Oscar Molina.
The bout replaced the scrapped Abner Mares vs. Jesus Cuellar bout, where Mares was forced to withdraw due to a lack of medical clearance.
Hurd (18-0, 12 KOs) took the opportunity to shine, flooring Molina for the first time in his career in the opening round with a powerful counter right uppercut. The domination continued as Hurd dismantled the previously unbeaten Mexican Olympian.
With Molina taking a brutal beating and seemingly defenseless in the final minute of the final round, the referee stepped in to halt the contest at 2:02.
(Photo Credit: Ryan Greene / Premier Boxing Champions)
The event, which was the first fight on CBS in 35 years, began with a 2.0 rating and grew to a 2.6 in the final half hour with ratings increasing each half-hour from 9:00 to 11:30PM, ET.
Overall, the 2 hour broadcast earned 1.8 overnight rating which is 80-percent higher than when Chris Algieri fought Errol Spence, Jr., back in April 2016, and will probably be ranked as the fight of the year.
Anthony Joshua KOs Dominic Breazeale in 7th Round
Across the pond at the O2 Arena, Anthony Joshua successful defended his IBF Heavyweight title with a seventh round stoppage of Dominic Breazeale.
(Photo Credit: ibtimes.co.uk)
Dominating every round and looking crisp in every aspect of the fight, Joshua stamped why he is the only Heavyweight not named Deontay Wilder to watch. Although Europe has known the prowess of the Englishman since his 2012 gold Olympic medal, now the U.S. has twice seen his dominance.
Joshua gains his 17th knockout in 17 total fights, continuing a march to a showdown with Wilder, who has to get past Chris Arreola in July.
Rampage Jackson Takes Split Decision Over Ishii
After a year off from fighting due to legal battles between the UFC and Bellator over who had the rights to his services, Rampage returned to combat in the Bellator cage.
(Photo Credit: Cage Insider)
Jackson unceremoniously won a split decision victory over Satoshi Ishii in a catchweight fight of 225lbs that was largely fought for grappling positioning on the ground.
Initially, the fight was supposed to be a catchweight of 215lbs, however, both fighters agreed to the change. The boring snoozer took place at the Scott Trade Center in St. Louis, MO.
Also on the card, Michael Chandler regained the Bellator lightweight title with a vicious KO of Patricky Pitbull Freire at 2:14 of round one.
