ESPN Friday Night Fights

In the first match of the co-main event was Carl Drummond (26-1, 20 KO’s) vs Derric Rossy (21-2, 12 KO’s) for the WBA Latin and WBC North American heavyweight titles. Rossy put on quite a performance although the hits were relatively mild in this one.

It was a bout that fed the notion that the heavyweight division while still enticing as show does not live up to the feuds of the past. It begs the question; what is it about this division that can not produce the great characters of the past? It was a slow moving, cat and mouse chase which only began getting interesting in the 5th round half way through the bout when punches began landing.

If the future of the heavyweight division is in the hands of these two heavyweights, it is to be a slow paced tedious future. Rossy would show life in his hands in the later rounds allowing the crowd at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino to rally behind him.

In the end Derric Rossy would claim the victory by unanimous decision and a score of 99-91, 99-91, 99-91. In an interview with Total-E-Sports.com immediately after winning the titles, Derric had this to say, “This is everything I ever wanted. We had a great camp and I feel like I could go a couple more rounds.”

Between main event matches there would be a moving tribute and moment of silence for two time welterweight champion Vernon Forrest, who passed away on the 25th of July after being shot during an attempted carjacking in Atlanta, GA.

The second main even match pitted Victor Cayo (22-0, 14 KO’s) vs
Julio Diaz (36-5, 26 KO’s for the WBA Fede Caribe Featherweight Championship.
The champion, Cayo, looked impressive early on with an unusual but effective stance. He gracefully moved around the ring making Diaz chase and miss.

Of interesting note was the way in which Cayo lead his punches not with his body but with his face. With his hands low and his face exposed it was as if he was daring Diaz to hit him. Diaz would tag Cayo with a couple of lefts to the face as a result of this challenge.

After 10 rounds of championship boxing the bout would go to the scorecards and Victor Cayo would successfully defend his title for the 5th time since winning the belt in October of 2008. The judges’ decision was a unanimous one 97-93, 96-94, and 98-92.

In other Notable Bouts

Arthur Szpilka (4-0, 2 KO’s) defeated Jeremy May (0-1) in an uneventful bout which ended in a 2nd round TKO at 1:20

Danny O’Conner (7-0, 2 KO’s) continued what thus far has been an impressive career against James Helmes (6-3, 1 KO) winning a 6th round decision 60-54, 59-55, 59-55.

Jonathan Gonzalez (3-0, 3 KO’s) remained perfect in his pro career after knocking down Jorge Barajas (5-3, 2 KO’s) 3 times within the 1st round to gain a TKO victory in 1:05.

Luis Franco (Pro Debut) made quick work of Leroy Padilla (1-0, 1 KO) disposing of him in a 2:14 TKO.