Solo Boxeo comes to Mohegan Sun

By Alex Pierpaoli

Photos by Brendon Pierpaoli 

Southpaws are avoided by plenty of fighters.  Their style--the right foot and shoulder forward and the jabbing done with the right fist instead of the left--is awkward and the reverse of the orthodox style used in the sweet science since the Marquis of Queensbury rules became the accepted dogma to which the sport adhered.  Southpaws can make an orthodox fighter look clumsy as they adapt to dealing with everything as a mirror image of what is normally in front of them. 

On Friday July 21^st, when Solo Boxeo, Telefutura's weekly boxing telecast came to the Mohegan Sun, the Main Event and Co-Feature pitted crafty southpaws against rugged and durable orthodox opponents.  The results were awkward but effective victories for the two southpaws and more fuel to fire the southpaw stereotypes for the defeated. 

The Spanish language program's main event pitted Steve Luevano versus Cristobal Cruz  in a twelve rounder for the NABO featherweight title.  Luevano used constant movement and power punch pot-shots to bust Cruz up and wear him down.  But Luevano was no stranger to roughhousing either and he landed several hard shots below the belt during the night which sent Cruz to the canvas twice, clearly in pain.  But despite the illegal blows, Luevano landed far more legal shots than his opponent and after twelve; Luevano was declared the unanimous decision winner. 

Cruz fell to 32-8-1 (21), while Steve Luevano improved to 31-1 (14).

In the evening's co-feature, Juan Manuel Lopez defeated Edel Ruiz by technical knockout after six rounds.  Ruiz tried to turn the fight into a scrap while Lopez used distance and movement to keep Ruiz on the defensive.  The fighters clinched and grabbed often due to the clash of styles and although Lopez didn't seem to be roughhousing Ruiz on purpose he fouled consistently with elbows to the back of Ruiz's head while they were in close.  In the fifth after being brushed to the canvas from a forearm and elbow by Lopez, Ruiz looked to the referee and seemed to be hoping he could get a DQ win but Ref. Johnny Callas ruled it an official knockdown and Ruiz dragged himself to his feet.  Lopez landed with numerous clean blows in the sixth and Ruiz had enough; refusing to answer the bell for round 7.  Lopez improved to 13-0 (11) and Edel Ruiz fell to 28-15-4 (19).

Manchester CT's Matt Remillard, 10-0 (7), put on the crowd pleasing performance of the night with his fourth round tko win over Oscar De La Cruz, 4-3 (2).  Remillard, fighting with a more patient and professional air about him than in previous bouts, used hard left hooks and right uppercuts to break down De La Cruz and finish him off. 

In the night's walkout bout, Boston area fighter, the six foot five

inch Tyrone Smith, got off to a good start over the much shorter Dione Craig.  As the rounds went by Craig closed the distance and battered the body of Smith opening up shots to the head as a result of well-placed punishment to Smith's ribs.  After four rounds the judges saw the fight as a majority decision for the diminutive Craig who improved to 3-5 (1).  Tyrone Smith dropped to 5-3-1 (2).

Cruiserweight Carlos Lovato, 2-1 (2), made short work of Deric Flores, 3-7 (2), stopping him at :31 seconds of round two.  Lovato landed easily with both hands through out round one and Flores was never able to fend Lovato off or even protect himself from clean hard blows.  Ref. Arthur Mercante had seen enough in round two and waved off the fight. 

New Haven's Elvin Ayala, now 16-0 (7), got the evening started with a 19 second TKO over John Gottschling, 10-12-1 (7), of  Bay City, Michigan.

Send comments or questions to Alex Pierpaoli at: alex@kofantasyboxing.com

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