ESPN FNF Special Edition: Ray Beltran outslugs Ji-Hoon Kim in Las Vegas

photo credit: Chris Farina/Top Rank

In Thursday night's ESPN Friday Night Fights Special Edition main event, NABF lightweight champion Ray Beltran retained his belt via a 98-92, 98-92 and 97-94 unanimous decision victory over the very game Ji-Hoon Kim at The Mirage Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. The wide margin in the scorecards does not mirror the brawl that ensued right after the opening bell, when both fighters traded knockdowns to usher the 10-round firefight.

It was a hard-earned win for Ray Beltran (27-6, 17 KO), who for years was Manny Pacquiao's main sparring partner, against one of the toughest brawlers in the division in Ji-Hoon Kim (24-8, 18 KO) of South Korea, who was on a three-fight win streak and ranked no. 3 by the IBF.

It was sweet victory for Ray Beltran, the perrenial "sparring partner" who for years was fighting for respect as a fighter. The Mexican fighter did not get his due against the likes of Sharif Bogere and Luis Ramos Jr. wherein he found himself at the short end of the decisions. He did not get the respect that he deserved even in a win against highly-touted Hank Lundy, who by the way, is still ahead of him in many sanctioning bodies' rankings.

But in this particular fight, Ray Beltran earned his due and got the respect that he deserved -- rankings, ratings and sanctioning bodies be damned.

The epic first round...

Ji-Hoon Kim immediately jumped into Ray Beltran right from the start with hard albeit wild shots, which Ray Beltran tried to evade by backtracking as he tried to time and counter his opponent. But with 1:44 in the round, Beltran found himself on the canvas after receiving a short left to the jaw from Kim.

Ray Beltran beat the count as Ji-Hoon Kim swarmed him, throwing wildly with power shots, but Beltran never panicked and and landed a counter left, smacking Kim in the jaw. Kim staggered backwards and smiled as he acknowledged the hard shot that he just received. It was a see-saw battle from then on as the two fighters tried to outland and outbomb each other.

With less than 10 seconds left in the round, Ray Beltran snuck in a left hook to the jaw that downed Ji-Hoon Kim. Visibly shaken while the referee administered the mandatory eight count, Kim was saved by the bell as he wobbly walked back to his corner.

For whom the bell tolls...

The second round found Ray Beltran and Ji-Hoon Kim continuing where they left off: Going toe-to-toe in the pocket; Beltran digging to the body and hooking upstairs. Kim, on the other hand, continued to head hunt. In the last 10 seconds, Beltran hurt Kim with several hard shots, but Kim was again saved by the bell.

Ray Beltran showed his patience while under fire (even absorbing a low blow with 2:12 minutes left in the round) and was very methodical and accurate with his punches when attacking the wild punching Ji-Hoon Kim. Still, Beltran has a cut above his left eye to show after the round, caused by one of the bombs that his opponent landed on him.

In the third round, a minor snafu in his corner did not deter Ray Beltran from engaging Ji-Hoon Kim in trench warfare. With the referee stopping the fight and ensuring that he had his mouth guard on him, Ray Beltran and Ji-Hoon Kim continued putting the hurt on each other. While Ji-Hoon Kim continued to head hunt, Ray Beltran began digging on his opponent's rib cage. And the Korean would wince every time Ray Beltran's right would land on his side with a thud.

And with 15 seconds remaining, Ji-Hoon Kim found himself on the receiving end of Ray Beltran's assault. Again, the bell played its spoiler role and Kim survived the onslaught.

From rounds 4-10, the trend of the fight was throwing bombs all the way. Every punch thrown was packed with mean intentions. Every punch landed with thunderous explosions.

The hardnosed battle showed both fighters trading hard shots in trying to outgun and outpower each other inside the pocket. But while Ji-Hoon Kim continued to come forward and head-hunt, Ray Beltran always varied his approach to the fight -- a right hook to the body, a left hook to the face -- tactics that proved a menace to Ji-Hoon Kim's cause in the end.

In a tit-for-tat war, Ray Beltran's very methodical approach negated Ji-Hoon Kim's wild hard punches. In the brutal exchanges, Jin-Hoon Kim's vaunted artillery failed him. Ray Beltran's investment in the body early took its toll on Ji-Hoon Kim's power and aggresiveness later on. In the end, Ray Beltran's accuracy in the trenches proved to be the difference, while Ji-Hoon Kim's weapons faltered when it mattered the most.

Note: This article was previously posted on Detroit Fight Sports Examiner

Jessie Magdaleno grabs NABO super bantamweight title in easy win over Jonathan Arellano

Prospect Jessie Magdaleno stamped his class over Jonathan Arellano during the ESPN Friday Night Fight Special Edition on Thursday night, sweeping the three judges' scorecards 80-70, 80-70, 80-69, for a unanimous decision win to keep his unblemished record intact (13-0, 9 KO) and claim the NABO super bantamweight belt at The Mirage Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.

Jessie Magdaleno brought the fight to Jonathan Arellano (13-2-1, 3 KO) right from the opening bell as he immediately unloaded on his opponent. But Arellano withstood the early barrage to escape the round unscathed.

The second round proved to be Jessie Magdaleno's best round of the fight as he put down Jonathan Arellano on the canvas with a well-timed right hook on top of the head with just 1:24 left in the round. Still, Jonathan Arellano regained his bearing on time and survived the round.

Jessie Magdaleno continued his double-fisted attack in the third canto: Pummeling Jonathan Arellano at every chance he got -- driving him into a corner, or pinning him on the ropes with a variety of shots. But Jonathan Arellano was able to counter with a left hook to the face that backtracked Jessie Magdaleno.

In the 4th round, Jessie Magdaleno boxed beautifully, timing and countering with hooks everytime Jonathan Arellano tried to mount an attack. But in this round, Jonathan Arellano would not be denied as he landed three consecutive hard left hands on Magdaleno just before the round ended.

With 1:08 left in the 6th round, Jessie Magdaleno once again pummeled and downed Jonathan Arellano to the canvas. Magdaleno tried to finish him off but Arellano was able to grab for dear life to survive the round.

Both fighters bartered shots throughout the 7th with Jessie Magdaleno sneaking several uppercuts, while Jonathan Arellano landed some left hooks of his own. But at this point, Jessie Magdaleno was way ahead in  the scorecards, and barring a freak knockout, is already assured of victory.

The last round was anti-climactic as Jessie Magdaleno elected to fight in spurts as he easily cruised to a unanimous decision victory over the overmatched Jonathan Arellano.

First Take: Larry Merchant sells his take on Mayweather-Pacquiao megafight

photo credit: HBO Boxing

This morning, respected boxing analyst Larry Merchant graced ESPN's First Take in what host Stephen A. Smith called as "ESPN collaborating with HBO on boxing," that was hailed by many boxing observers as a move in the right direction for the networks.

For people who regularly follow the show, the guest appearance of Larry Merchant was like a breath of fresh air after being exposed for far too long to the daily diatribes of the two hysterical, loquacious, and hilarious motormouths in Skip Bayless and Stephen A. Smith. On a side note, the addition of Cari Champion as the moderator between the two protagonists is a welcome addition, too.

Larry Merchant, a hard-hitting veteran of the boxing circuit, who is not afraid to speak his mind on any topic, knows his boxing really well. He will not hold any punches to dish out verbal jabs, hooks and straights on anyone if he deems it necessary to convey his point. He is a straight-shooter inside and outside the ring and is probably one of the greatest, if not the greatest, TV boxing analysts of all time.

The topic of the discussion was: "Running Scared: Is Floyd Mayweather really afraid of Manny Pacquiao?", showing video snippets of Pacquiao proclaiming on one of his earlier appearances on First Take that he is willing to accept a lower percentage of the fight revenue (45%-to-55%) and that his earlier objection to random drug testing is now a non-issue ("No problem even at the night of the fight, no problem").

But the most telling piece was when Manny Pacquiao was asked whether Floyd Mayweather, Jr. is afraid of him. Manny Pacquiao laughed at the question and seriously stated that he believes that Floyd Mayweather, Jr. is really afraid of him -- "I think it's kind of that."

But true to form, Larry Merchant had a different opinion on the matter: "Mayweather is not afraid of fighting Manny Pacquiao. I think, number one, what's held up this fight, and I've been in the 'yes it's going to happen' category when the nos have been carrying the day for a few years, is that there's a disincentive financially."

He further explained that both fighters are "making upwards of 40-50 million a year: Pacquiao by fighting twice, Mayweather by fighting once. There's no urgency. It's a business as well as a sport."

Stephen A. Smith then offered his 'solution' of "stop buying the pay-per-view other than a Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather, Jr." fight and went on to say that he believes that Floyd Mayweather will win it because "he is the best boxer on the planet."

Larry Merchant went on length to convey his views on Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather, Jr. -- "They are the heavyweight champions in America in terms of their popularity, in terms of reaching beyond boxing to the casual fans."

"I think Floyd Mayweather thinks he's going to beat Manny Pacquiao. He will be the favorite. What Mayweather is afraid of more than anything else is an L, a loss. He has marketed himself as this unbeaten and unbeatable fighter, and to a lot of new fans or unsophisticated fans, they think that's a big, big deal, which it never has been, because if you fight enough good, young fighters in their prime, somebody's gonna beat you. It happened to Pacquiao even in a bad decision, but against a tough, good kid."

Skip Bayless pressed Larry Merchant further, "Does Floyd think he'll win or lose to Pacquiao?"

"I think he thinks that Pacquiao is the greatest threat to him. Why take, in the risk-reward equation, if I can make $40 million for fighting some guy (and) I've only got to give him $3 million to take the fight, why am I going to do that (fight Pacquiao)? There have been comparable situations in the past. Lennox Lewis and Tyson didn't fight 'til well into their careers and broke records; they were past their primes. So, it's business. Will the heat still be there? Will they both have maintained their star status? Will they lose it? It's not unprecedented in boxing. Hopefully it'll happen someday. Meanwhile, we've got 3 big pay-per-view events in boxing in a year instead of one big blowout."

And Stephen A. Smith, not to be outdone, posited this silly question to Merchant-

"Who's the best boxer on the planet right now?"

"I think Mayweather is on top and I think Pacquiao is right there." Merchant then confessed though that he "likes Pacquiao's style as a puncher-boxer."

Then Larry Merchant added this nugget of a wisdom on the possible Mayweather-Pacquiao scenario:
"The old expression "good defense beats good offense." It was the pitcher for the Pirates Bob Veale who said, "good pitching beats good hitting" and vice versa. It's the good hitting that sometimes beats good pitching."

The round-table discussion continues with Skip Bayless interjecting that he is on record that Floyd Mayweather, Jr. is "ducking Manny Pacquiao because he fears that Manny is equal to him in hand quickness but has more punching power, and for the first time in Floyd's career, not only does he stand to take the L but he stands to get hurt, to get caught."

Larry Merchant, in his own irrepressible way, delivered the counterpunch: 'I'm surprised that Skip has such strong opinions on this thing" that elicited laughter among themselves.

"My attitude about the fight is I wanna see it happen. Mayweather fought Cotto; it was a good fight, a better fight than expected, and the 4th Marquez-Pacquiao fight may be a better one than the first three, all of which were good fights."

Cari Champion then asked that if Mayweather and Pacquiao get together, "Who do you think is gonna win the fight?"

Larry Merchant refused to answer the question directly but has this to say:

"I'm gonna wait 'til it happens. And because things happen between now and then, there's no doubt that Mayweather will be the favorite. And that if you go by the history of these things, the boxer, the guy who comes out of the dressing room with his first and second thoughts are 'I'm not gonna get hit' and is a master at that," and in Merchant's opinion, "it's hard to beat him."

Many fight fans are hoping that Larry Merchant's first appearance on the show will not be his last. And even if we do not agree with some of his views, it is refreshing to listen to somebody as knowledgeable and eloquent as Larry Merchant sharing his thoughts regarding some of the issues plaguing the sport.

Note: This article was previously published on Detroit Fight Sports Examiner

ESPN First Take: Mayweather-Pacquiao Saga Continues

ESPN First Take: Manny Pacquiao, Juan Manuel Marquez