Boxing | Erik Bazinyan expeditious, like the gala

Like a gala punctuated by six knockouts in seven fights, Erik Bazinyan was quick in his final against Billi Facundo Godoy, getting rid of him before the end of the third round, Thursday evening, at the Casino from Montreal.

To be honest, the 37-year-old Argentine veteran, who admitted to being at the end of his career at the weigh-in the day before, didn’t seem to want it anymore when he got up at the end of the count of 10, convincing the referee to put an end to this unequal duel.

Two jabs from the right, with around thirty seconds left, made Godoy (41-7, 20 KOs) bend in a corner of the small ring.

“He no longer had any legs,” Bazinyan said after taking his immaculate record to 32 victories, the 23^e by KO. “I saw in his eyes that he was hurt. »

The 28-year-old from Laval, who retained his NABF super-middleweight belt, believes he should have been credited with another fall to the floor during the initial assault. The referee, however, ruled that it was he who had thrown Godoy with his arms.

Claiming to be injured, Godoy tried to return to his corner, but the referee refused him this grace. “He was pretending,” said Bazinyan, who nevertheless praised the “gentlemanly” side of his rival, from whom he received warm congratulations at the medical check-up.

Encouraged by strong “Erik, Erik”, the local favorite imposed himself both technically and physically against an opponent more accustomed to playing at middleweight. Godoy’s coach also spread his arms in front of the Quebecer of Armenian origin to illustrate how much stronger he seemed.

“I am now 28 years old, I am more mature, I am in my physical peak,” agreed Bazinyan, who surprised himself by adding two more plates on the weightlifting bar in the gym.

Beating a guy like Godoy is all well and good, but someone who is ranked among the top five contenders in all associations is obviously aiming higher. On this subject, he reiterated that he trusted Camille Estephan, president of Eye of the Tiger Management (EOTTM), organizer of the evening, and his trainer Marc Ramsay.

In the absence of the Mexican Canelo Alvarez, absolute master of the category whose course he dictates, the promoter says he has tried everything to convince aspirants like Diego Pacheco, Edgar Berlanga, John Ryder or Jaime Munguia.

“You have no idea how many times I’ve tried to book them, but they don’t want to. They all want to fight Canelo. But it will unlock, that’s for sure. It’s a matter of a few months. »

Ramirez: dominant without convincing

The 600 enthusiasts gathered at the Cabaret du Casino asked for nothing better, they who were not spoiled by the vigor of the opponents of local athletes.

As expected, the most hotly contested clash turned out to be the semi-final between newcomer Albert Ramirez and Artur Ziyatdinov.

Dominant without being completely convincing, Ramirez never left any doubt about the outcome of the fight, winning by unanimous decision.

In his first appearance in Canada, the Venezuelan was favored 100-90, 99-91 and 98-92 by the judges, which allowed him to get his hands on the WBA international light heavyweight belt (175 lbs).

Ranked among the top 10 contenders in three of the four major sanctioning bodies, Ramirez (18-0, 15 KOs) hasn’t been able to land his power shots as often as he wanted.

The Ukrainian Ziyatdinov (15-2, 12 KOs), a former EOTTM, was not the latest arrival either, he who had agreed to replace Charles Foster, the planned opponent who injured a few weeks ago.

With his low guard and quick hands, Ramirez was especially incisive during the first four rounds, after which Ziyatdinov, most warmly cheered by the crowd, adjusted to bore his opponent with a tighter defense. Despite the loud commands of his coach Jesse Ross Thompson, the one who trains in Montreal, however, was unable to turn things around.

Claggett would have wanted more

Small disappointment for Steve Claggett (38-7-2, 26 KOs): the Calgary native signed his ninth consecutive victory since his association with Montreal trainer Mike Moffa, but he would have liked to offer more to the amateurs . At the start of the third round, the Mexican Marcos Gonzalez Barraza (23-4), who had nevertheless defended himself well until then, remained seated in his corner, to everyone’s surprise, a fishtail ending as for the Mary Spencer’s previous duel.

“I pinched him with an uppercut as his head was dropping,” Claggett said. It was a sharp blow and it hurt. So I don’t blame him. It’s part of the game, it’s a pain business. »

Ranked eighth at lightweight contender by the WBC, Claggett now wants to test himself against a top-10 counterpart. “I would love to show what I can do in front of a top opponent, in Montreal, the fighting capital. »

Spencer chases away nervousness and returns to victory

Despite a rapid abandonment by her counterpart, Mary Spencer (8-2, 6 KOs) breathed a huge sigh of relief: after two defeats in world championship fights against the Belgian Femke Hermans, the adopted Montrealer stopped the American Sonya Dreiling (6-4), who remained seated at the bell announcing the start of the second round.

“ [Sonya] simply told me: ‘Girl, you hit hard, you have a great career ahead of you,’” said Spencer, 39. She added: “You have heavy hands.” She’s tough, she also does hand-to-hand combat, she’s fought up to 170 pounds. Coming from a girl like her, it’s appreciated. »

Camille Estephan was not impressed by the behavior of his American guest. “It’s not ballet,” he hissed.

Three-time amateur world champion, Spencer admitted to feeling nervous heading into this super-middleweight (154 lb) fight. “My last win was a year and a half ago, you know what I mean? You don’t realize how much it affects your confidence until you go to the [combat] following. »

The protege of coach Samuel Décarie-Drolet is now eager to return between the cables, possibly as early as March 7, the date of the next EOTTM gala at the Casino, which Camille Estephan promises to be as spectacular as possible. “I would love to be a part of it, otherwise I’ll be screaming in the stands, because it’s going to be quite a show,” Spencer concluded.

Orobio continues demolition

Jhon Orobio (6-0) continued his demolition exercise that began less than a year ago, scoring a sixth knockout. consecutive, this time at the expense of the Mexican Juan Carlos Garcia (5-5). The 20-year-old Colombian, a protégé of Marc Ramsay, applied himself to his opponent’s abdomen to make him bend twice, the second at the very end of the second attack. Saved by the bell, he did not get up after the restart, confirming the sixth success of the adopted Quebecer.

4^e K.O. for Wilkens Mathieu

Twelve days after his first professional confrontation in his hometown, Quebec, Wilkens Mathieu (7-0, 4 KOs) served up another great demonstration against a last minute replacement, the Mexican Oscar Soto Quintana ( 6-4), a heavier (173 lb) and potentially more dangerous rival. “It’s my best fight, I think,” assessed the 19-year-old, who multiplied the precise combinations before extinguishing Quintana, who refused to fall, with a straight right. to the face at the start of the fourth round. The Mexican held on to his neck, but his trainer judged enough. “I told myself that this would be my hardest fight in my career, but when the challenge is higher, I take it up a notch,” said Mathieu, who is already looking forward to putting on the gloves again on March 7 .

Fendero continues to build his cathedral

Also active in Quebec, Moreno Fendero (4-0, 3 KOs) did not last long at the opening of the gala. The original Chartrois, now domiciled in Montreal, continued the scaffolding of his cathedral by making the Mexican Ricardo Lara (22-12) kneel three times before the referee put an end to hostilities at 1 min 46 s of the second round. Very good work from the 24-year-old left-hander, a middleweight also expected to put on the gloves again on March 7.

With the fallout from the co-promotion of Artur Beterbiev’s gala in Quebec on January 13, Camille Estephan says she is preparing “for the big war.” On this account, Thursday night’s episode felt more like a skirmish.