LIGHT-HEAVY WEIGHTS FOR JONES’ UNDISPUTED WORLD TITLE

Roy Jones Jr. by unanimous decision over Julio Gonzalez (12 rounds)

Jones was a cannon and Gonzalez, game but overmatched, was a six-shooter. Jones, the longtime champion from Pensacola, Fla., with a 45-1 record, was simply too fast and too strong for Gonzalez, the Huntington Beach boxer who was 27-0 coming in, but who spent much of the night walking into Jones’ rights and lefts. Jones knocked Gonzalez down three times and kept the taller Gonzalez chasing and flailing at air all night. When it ended, Jones told Gonzalez in the ring, “Hold your head up high. You fought a good fight.”

FEATHER WEIGHTS FOR MORALES’ WBC TITLE

Erik Morales by unanimous decision over Injin Chi (12 rounds)

Morales, the Tijuana flash with a 40-0 record coming in, had his hands full against the feisty and demonstrative Korean. The slugfest ended with both fighters flailing away. Both were exhausted and Morales’ left eye was completely shut, the result of a butt earlier. Chi, now 24-2, not only battled Morales until the end but taunted the champion throughout with smiles and shrugs and gestures that seemed to add up to the same thing: Is that all you got?

Afterward, Morales said of Chi, who was penalized a point after repeated rabbit punches, “He was a dirty fighter.”

He also said, “I hit him with a lot of good shots, and he took them. I didn’t go for the knockout because of my eye.”

Chi, who won a lot of fans with his heart, said, “I thought I won the fight. I hope he gives me a rematch. I think I deserve it.”

WELTER WEIGHTS FOR LEWIS’ WBA TITLE

Andrew “Six Heads” Lewis and Ricardo Mayorga, no contest

The first title fight of the scheduled three ended in a bloody, and inconclusive, mess. Just over a minute into the the second round of this match between Mayorga, of Costa Rica, and Lewis, of Brooklyn, there was an inadvertent butt and Lewis suddenly was not only Six Heads but a couple of bloody eyes. The fight was stopped immediately by referee Marty Denkin. Lewis had a nasty cut under his left eye and another smaller one on his right eyelid. And the ring was spattered with blood. Afterward, Lewis, the champion, said he was sorry the fight ended so quickly and that, when he healed, he would give Mayorga another shot.

NON-TITLE FIGHTS

Javier Mora over Brad Rone, unanimous decision (four rounds, heavyweights)

Rone, of Cincinnati, entered the match with a 7-30 record and departed at 7-31. He lost when Mora, of Los Angeles, whose record is now 10-0-1, hit him everywhere and every way. Rone stood in strong against Mora, took everything Mora sent his way, most of it on his chin, and kept smiling all the way through the final, and obvious, decision.

Carlos Urias over Lemuel Nelson, split decision (eight rounds, lightweights)

This was in the category of an upset, maybe even a big one, had anybody ever heard of either fighter. Urias, of Mexico, had nine fights, had won four and was going against a veteran, Nelson, of Pensacola, Fla., who came in with a 20-4 record. Urias spent most of the fight chasing Nelson into one corner or another and, while taking a beating in those corners, was enough of an aggressor to convince the judges.

Mia Rosales St. John, majority draw with Imelda Arias (four rounds, junior lightweights)

If the previous fight was an upset, this one was a stunner. St. John, of Calabasas, who boxes and appears in Playboy Magazine--in no particular order of priority--has a career programmed for perfection, including no marks on her centerfold face. She entered with a 22-0 record, and suffice to say none of the opponents have exactly been Wonder Woman. So, when Arias entered the ring, all 4 feet 11 inches and 135 pounds to St. John’s 5-7 and 128, this one looked like the best belly laugh yet. But Arias, dressed in her best gym suit in stark contrast to St. John’s pretty-in-pink offering, had black and blue on her mind. St. John would come in and flail away, Arias would cover up and take it, then lunge back and score to the head when St. John stopped throwing. It looked like Wilt Chamberlain trying to punch a bowling ball. At the end, they kissed in the ring and St. John went backstage to be made up.

Cristian Bejarno, by TKO over Lee Willis (four rounds, lightweights)

This one matched two newcomers, the lefty Bejarno, of Mexico, with a 3-0 record and Willis, of Houston, 1-1. It was a lively match, hard to score until Bejarno made that academic with a flurry of punches near the end of the last round that left Willis rubbery-legged and glazy-eyed as the referee called off the rest of the proceedings. All three of Bejarno’s previous victories had been by knockout.

Miguel Cotto knocked out Arturo Rodriguez (six rounds, welterweights)

Cotto, of Puerto Rico, extended his record to 6-0 and enhanced his future greatly with an impressive show against Rodriguez of Tijuana. He hit Rodriguez with two lefts early in the second round and Rodriguez took a nine-count before rising. Seconds later, Cotto connected with another left and Rodriguez sank slowly to the canvas, where he stayed for the entire 10-count, eyes open, watching the referee count him out. Said Cotto’s manager, Peter Rivera: “The most important thing is he stayed calm, poised.”

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JUDGES’ SCORING

Robert Byrd:Jones, 119-106

Larry Rozadilla: Jones, 118-107

Peter Trematerra: Jones, 119-106

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BY THE NUMBERS

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Category Gonzales Jones Total Punches Thrown 609 375 Total Punches Connected 91 192 Total Pct. Connected 15% 51% Jabs Thrown 209 44 Jabs Connected 22 4 Jabs Pct. Connected 11% 9% Power Punches Thrown 400 331 Power Punches Connected 69 188 Power Punches Pct. Conn. 17% 57% Records 27-1 45-1

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JUDGES’ SCORING

Lou Filippo: Morales, 116-111

James Jen Kin: Morales, 117-110

Daniel Van De Wiele: Morales, 116-112

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BY THE NUMBERS

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Category Morales Chi Total Punches Thrown 645 641 Total Punches Connected 213 173 Total Pct. Connected 33% 27% Jabs Thrown 241 151 Jabs Connected 57 42 Jabs Pct. Connected 24% 28% Power Punches Thrown 404 490 Power Punches Connected 156 131 Power Punches Pct. Conn. 39% 27% Records 41-0 24-1

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