Ward Bullies the Bully

Andre Ward stamped himself a legitimate contender on Saturday night, thoroughly beating Edison Miranda over twelve rounds in front of 7,818 hometown supporters at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California.

Finally making his first appearance in an Oakland ring, Ward (19-0, 12 KOs) delighted his hometown crowd with a dominant twelve round drubbing of Miranda (32-4, 28 KOs) of Buenaventura, Colombia. Ward, 167 ½, looked like a complete fighter as he both outfought and outboxed Miranda, 167 ½, in nearly every round of their super middleweight battle.

WBC #2/ WBO #2 ranked Ward decided to fight Miranda, ranked WBO #6/IBF #8, on the inside early in the first round and paid for it after suffering a cut around his left eye from a headbutt. However the cut would be a complete non-factor in the contest. For much of the first half of the fight, Ward surprisingly fought Miranda at his fight – and did quite well. With the fight fought at close quarters, Ward outworked Miranda who could only land one hard shot at a time.

As the fight progressed, Ward converted back to his usual box and move style, which brought him even more success. The left hand became Ward’s primary weapon, as the Oakland native landed it to great effect over the course of the fight. Miranda looked like a gassed and beaten fighter down the stretch, as he refused to set up any of his shots and looked to land a homerun punch to get back into the bout to no avail. Ward proved to be the far superior fighter in every way. In the end, Ward won by the final tallies of 116-112 and 119-109 twice.

By toppling Miranda, Ward scored the biggest win of his career in his first fight at home in Oakland. “Just seeing all these people out here, it just really touched me,” Ward commented after the fight. “I feel a sense of duty to continue to show up here, work hard and bring home a championship.” The win likely will elevate Ward, who defended his WBO NABO and NABF Super Middleweight titles, to the top of the WBC rankings at 168-pounds. While he did mention WBC kingpin Carl Froch specifically, Ward said he would take on any of the divisions titlists. “I want any champion with a belt,” Ward declared.

Lightweight prospect John Molina (17-0, 13 KOs) of Covina, California stopped an utterly outgunned Frankie Archuleta (25-7-1, 14 KOs) of Albuquerque, New Mexico in the second round of a scheduled eight-round bout. Molina, 132, was clearly the bigger, stronger fighter from the outset. Archuleta, 128, appeared stunned by a straight right hand in the first and was downed by a flurry with just over a minute to go in the second. Archuleta reluctantly rose to his feet, but did not have the body language of a fighter looking to continue on. The bout was stopped at the 2:06 mark of the second round, much to the dismay of the onlookers in Oakland. “I didn’t want to win like this,” said Molina after the bout. “I thought he would fight a tough fight, but I can’t have heart for the both of us.”

Welterweight prospect Karim Mayfield (9-0-1, 6 KOs) of Daly City, California remained unbeaten with a second-round knockout of Roberto Valenzuela (49-47-2, 40 KOs) of Agua Prieta, Sonora, Mexico. Mayfield, 149, roughed up Valenzuela, 150, in the first round, landing several clean shots. Valenzuela decided to mix it up a little more early in the second round and got caught clean in an exchange. The punch almost spun Valenzuela around. Mayfield pounced on the hurt fighter, unleashing a flurry before the referee stopped the bout at the 1:12 mark of the second.

In a completely dominant performance, Rico Ramos (10-0, 5 KOs) of Pico Rivera, California scored a third-round stoppage over trial horse Trinidad Mendoza (24-21-2, 19 KOs) of Guaymas, Sonora, Mexico in a super bantamweight bout. Ramos, 124 ½, landed punches from all angles, and kept Mendoza, 124, off balance and on defense. The difference in skill level was readily apparent from the outset and too much for Mendoza to overcome. With Ramos picking a hapless Mendoza apart in the third round, the referee called a halt to the bout. Official time of the stoppage was 1:57 of the third round.

Former amateur standout Mel Crossty (3-0-1, 1 KO) of Cincinnati was surprisingly held to a majority draw by rugged journeyman Jaime Rodriguez (4-4-3, 2 KOs) of Reno, Nevada in a four-round lightweight bout. Crossty, 130, held Rodriguez, 131, at bay with his boxing ability for much of the first two rounds. Rodriguez turned up the aggression in the third, landing well with both hands. After a close fourth round, Judge Marty Sammon scored the bout 39-37 for Crossty, but was overruled by Judges Steve English and Marshall Walker, who both scored the bout even, 38-38.

In the opening bout of the evening, 2008 U.S. Olympian Shawn Estrada (6-0, 6 KOs) of East Los Angeles, California scored a one-sided first round stoppage of late replacement Cory Jones (5-6, 1 KO) of Brooklyn, New York. Estrada, 164 ½, dropped Jones, 159, midway through the first with a clubbing right hand. Jones roses on unsteady legs and immediately went into retreat. Estrada pressed Jones to the ropes, forcing referee Jon Schorle to stop the bout with a two-handed flurry. Official time of the stoppage was 1:31 of the opening round.

Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at ortega15rds@lycos.com.