Following the news that Tim Tze could face Vergil Ortiz Jr. on the US card of the Riyadh season, it was his younger brother Nikita who took to the stage to firmly defend the Australian strap… Still, light heavyweight Malik Zinad stole the show. He scored a convincing victory over Jerome Pamperone.
There was drama the night before the battle. Easygoing and careless, Tszyu had to lose weight and made Creati wait on stage. Elsewhere, a meeting between Mr. Pampelone and Mr. Zinado threatened to cause chaos, forcing officials to beef up security the night before.
In qualifying, it was female flyweight fighter Jasmine Parr who made what appeared to be the first surgical stoppage in her burgeoning career.
Ben Hussein vs Mason Smith
Hussein’s performance was as much as a walkout in the early rounds, but a few rough middle rounds peppered with low blows marred the performance slightly. The exchange was even throughout, but Hussein was clearly more comfortable applying pressure. Smith appeared to come back late in the round, but suffered an apparent knockdown at the hands of Hussein, who stopped him in the 10th round. It looked like Hussain hadn’t even hit all the gears yet, but he’s definitely a fighter to watch with Hussain now holding the WBA Oceania super welterweight title.
Mateo Tapia vs Keever Gonzalez
Tapia, the clear favorite to win, was harassed by Gonzalez throughout, forcing Tapia to take a knee, which was ruled a blunder. Tapia’s sharp, experienced jab kept Gonzalez at bay, but Gonzalez seemed to work better under pressure. Around round seven, Tapia worked his head and body, clearly bothering Gonzalez. They refused to go down, proving that they were made of marble. Mateo Tapia narrowly won the fight and won the WBO Latin American middleweight title.
Clara Rescruat vs Lynn Sandström
Rescruir clearly had the upper hand from the opening bell, showing his champion qualities by landing and throwing every punch while blocking Sandstrom’s attacks. Sandstrom seemed to be operating on a different time scale than Resklua, and Resklua continued to blame her endlessly. Sandstrom had no answer from start to finish in Rescruato’s shutout. The Argentinian once again retained the WBA world super flyweight title.
Jerome Pamperone vs Malik Zinado
The war between Pamperone and Ginado, steeped in bad blood, turned into more chaos than expected. From the offset, Zinad looked more comfortable than the “Panther”, as he took devastating blows with a smile and returned powerful blows. Pamperone tried to wobble Zinado with a left hook, but a big shot midway through the fight staggered Pamperone. Despite a little blood oozing from his nose, Jinado continued to run strong to the end. Monster shots from both men excited the crowd more than any previous match, and Pamperone refused to go down despite obvious pressure from Zinado. In the end, the night belonged to Jinad. Jinad overcame a mountain of adversity and delivered a shutout performance, ensuring he will be in contention for the IBF strap.
Nikita Tzi vs Danilo Creti
The main event was more lukewarm, almost a typical Tszyu performance. Due to his excessive power, his national level boxing ability was lost. Creati was awkward and tricky in the first round, but seemed unable to regain his presence after the initial knockdown that occurred in the second round. That said, with the exception of the sixth, he managed to sway Tszyu with slippery counters. Tzu shook off attacks to his torso and cornered and pinned Creaty in a relatively subdued display, much less explosive than in the semi-main event. As Tse progressed into a round he had never experienced before, his gas tank proved strong and he refused to slow down. Hook ultimately won his Tszyu fight, as despite some spectacular head movements, nothing worked for Creati.
Ultimately, the card shocked the Australian boxing scene and proved to be exciting and engaging. This is especially true when it comes to changing straps at the Pacific Rim level. Without a doubt, Pamperone and Zinado’s fight stole the night with a show that was sure to be satisfying on a world level.
