Not every fighter has the luxury of building up his record against “tomato cans” before being tested in the ring. Without the backing of a powerful manager or big time promoter, most young fighters have to come up the ranks the hard way. You won’t likely see a Golden Boy Promotions or Top Rank-promoted young prospect in an even money match-up before they have run their record up to 15-0. However, some of the most entertaining fights take place away from the bright lights of national television in smaller arenas between evenly matched, hungry young fighters. One such fight took place on September 19th at the Warner Center Marriot in Woodland Hills, California between young welterweights “Mad” Max Skayzer and Johnny “The Bulldog” Suarez.
West Covina, California’s Skayzer entered the ring at (3-0-1, 1 KO), while Suarez, of Burbank, California, came in at (2-0-2, 1 KO). Both fighters entered the ring after earning draws in their previous outings. Suarez turned pro in 2007 in Chicago, Illinois, fighting most of his fights there despite training in Burbank under Jeff Langton. Skayzer, a Ukrainian import, turned pro in March and has fought mainly in Southern California.
It must be hard for some trainers and fighters to gauge what type of fight they are in store for at this level. Without the luxury of video tape, or some other scouting, you can only go on their record. As many in boxing would tell you, you cannot tell everything about a fighter by their record. “I don’t think either of them knew how tough of a fight it would be,” Kahren Harutyunyan, whose Art Of Boxing Promotions promoted the bout, told 15rounds.com.
Two fighters, with everything to prove, did just that.
For the four scheduled rounds, Suarez and Skayzer put on a show. “It was the fight of the night, one of the most exciting four-round fights of the year,” Suarez’ trainer Jeff Langton told 15rounds.com. “I have worked 40 world title fights, but this one was a barnburner.” Two knockdowns, scored in the in the first and third rounds, helped give the still undefeated Skayzer a decision win. “It was probably the second best fight of the night, behind [Art] Hovhannesyan and [Jose Alfredo] Lugo, which was a six-round brawl,” recalls promoter Harutyunyan. “This fight was a four-round brawl from beginning to end. Max was the bigger puncher and scored two knockdowns. If it were not for the knockdowns, the fight would have been much closer on the scorecards.”
In defeat, Suarez lost his undefeated record, but gained valuable experience and the respect of any one who saw the fight. “He got knocked down, but he got up,” says Langton. Suarez proved his heart and willingness to fight. “He’s a crowd pleaser, he fights like Jake LaMotta.” Some fighters might be devastated after dropping their “0.” Some fighters lose their sense of invincibility and are never the same. Suarez sounds like a fighter that will only use the loss to improve himself. “It humbles you,” says Suarez. “There are people out there working just as hard as you are. You just have to work harder.”
Other than move on to the next one, all Suarez can do is think about what he would do differently should they cross paths again. “I just made a couple of mistakes and got caught,” says Suarez. “I would box more, instead of just banging with him. I would keep my hands up this time.” Suarez has been asked to keep his hands up by his trainer before. “You can tell a fighter to keep his hands up,” says Langton, “You can tell a fighter a billion times, but the first time they get knocked down, it’s the first time you told them.”
Despite the rough fight, Langton would like to see his young fighter get another chance against Skayzer, although not right away. “I think that Max should give Johnny another opportunity. I want that kid to give Johnny another chance, but this time for six rounds,” says Langton. “I think if it went six rounds, Johnny would have won.” Harutyunyan would be interested in matching Suarez and Skayzer again if both parties wanted the fight, but sees it happening down the road. “At this stage rematches don’t happen very often,” says Harutyunyan. “It would make more sense if they met up later in their careers, after they have established themselves.” It says a lot about the type of fighter Suarez is that he, and his team, would like another go with Skayzer. “They just tell me who to fight and I fight them,” says Suarez.
Spoken like a fighter.
Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at ortega15rds@lycos.com