Gennady Golovkin continued to make his case as boxing’s number one fighter and attraction as he scored an 8th round one-sided beatdown of David Lemieux to retain his WBA and WBC Interim and win the IBF Middleweight title at a sold-out Madison Square Garden
Golovkin dominated the action and did as he wanted as he set the tone with a piston like jab in round one. In round five, he sent Lemiux to the canvas from a short right hand. Golovkin continues the assault with thunderous punches that started to bloody the face of the Canadian. Finally in round 8, Golovkin landed a big flurry of punches that forced referee Steve Willis to mercifully stop the bout at 1:32 of round eight.
Said Golovkin, “I feel great, it was a great fight”
“I felt his power, but I was strong tonight
and my punches hurt him.”
“He is a great champion and I’m glad to beat him.”
“I want all the belts, now I have two. The winner of Cotto/Canelo
for sure.”
“I’m not sure who will win that fight, but I want to fight the winner next.”
“I’m staying at 160 until I have all the belts.”
Said Lemieux, “I feel like the referee called the fight too early. I am fine. When he stopped it I wasn’t event on the mat, I can keep going.
“I have a lot of respect for Golovkin as a fighter. We prepared well for this fight but I feel like I waited too long to take some shots tonight and that really hurt me.”
“I want another chance at Golovkin and I will take advantage of it.
said referee Steve Willis, “I had to do something”
“David is very competitive fighter and as long as he was able to throw punches he was going to keep on trying but his chances of winning were decreasing as the fight went on”
“Against a guy(golovkin) like that he was going to get really hurt and I’m here to protect the fighters health and that’s my top priority ”
“I couldn’t let him continue to receive punishment ”
“I gave him every chance I could and i still hesitated too much. It was over.”
Said Lemieux manager Camile Estephan, Camille:
“It was too early to stop the fight. That punch that Golovkin threw didnt even bring David to the mat. David fought valiantly, he showed a lot of heart and skills. But Golovkin’s defense was great, I think that his defense is underestimated.
Said Bernard Hopkins, “Today was a great night of boxing. David did a great job and put on a great performance. But today Golovkin was better and proved that he deserves to be the unified middleweight champion.
Roman Gonzalez remained perfect with a 9th round stoppage to retain the WBC Flyweight title over Brian Viloria.
In round three, Gonzalez sent Viloria to the deck with a perfect counter right.
Gonzalez dominated the fight as Viloria did well to the body bit Gonzalez’s furious punching battered the face of Gonzalez. In round nine, Gonzalez landed a right to the head that backed Viloria up to the ropes and then landed a hard flurry of punches until the bout was stopped at 2:53 of round nine.
Gonzalez, 111.4 lbs of Managua, NIC is 44-0 with 38 knockouts. Viloria, 111.4 lbs of Waipahu, Hi is now 36-5.
Said Viloria, “Roman is a tremendous fighter. I have nothing but respect for him. I had prepared for a different Roman and he surprised me with his defense and his speed. I do feel like the fight was stopped prematurely, I feel good and can keep going. If I had an opportunity to take him on again I would. I feel like I learned a lot today and would use that for the next time around.”
Heavyweight Luis Ortiz annihilated Matias Ariel Vidondo in round three of their scheduled 12-round WBA Interim Heavyweight title bout.
Ortiz dropped Vidondo in round two from a left and ended things in round three when he landed a crushing left that made Vidondo land face first at 17 seconds of round three.
Ortiz, 237.8 lbs of Miami, FL is 23-0 with 20 knockouts. Vidondo, 261 lbs of Rosario, ARG is now 20-2-1.
Said Ortiz, “I deserve this win and deserve to fight the best. Vidondo did hit hard but he wasn’t good enough to face me. Everyone can see that I dominated the fight. I want to fight the best and I want Golden Boy Promotions to keep its promise and get me the best. I am ready for Klitschko, I know he is running from me. I am going to come after him. I am just ready to become the heavyweight champion of the world.
Taureano Johnson won a 12-round unanimous decision over Eamonn O’Kane on a Middleweight elimination bout.
It looked like it was going to be an early night as Johnson dropped O’Kane twice in round one. First from a double right hook and again from a sweeping right hook.
Johnson was able to grind out the tough rounds in close and win by scores of 119-107, 118-108 and 117-109.
Johnson, 159.4 lbs of Nassau, BAH is 19-1. O’Kane, 160 lbs og Belfast. IRE is 17-2-1.
Said Johnson, “This is my first time going 12-round and man does it feel good. It was a tough fight, no matter how many times O’kane went down he kept coming at me. I have respect for him as a fighter. Winning this title eliminator really makes everything for me come full circle and legitimizes me as a true threat in the middleweight division. You know this was a great fight that everyone enjoyed a true brawl, very Mexican Style. This is the beginning for me, the sky is the limit.”
Ruslan Madiyev won a 4-round unanimous decision over Sean Gee in a Welterweight bout.
Madiyev scored a knockdown in round two from a right hand.
Madiyev, 139.6 lbs of Karagabda, KAZ won by scores of 40-35 twice and 39-36 and is now 6-1. Gee, 142.6 lbs of Chicago, IL is now 2-3.
Said Madiyev, “I’m very happy with my performance, it was an honor to
fight on such a big card here at Madison Square Garden.”
“He was a little awkward but I was able to figure him and
win the fight.”‘
“Thanks very much to Gennady for having me on his card. I look
forward to fighting again as soon as possible.”
Lamont Roach Jr. won a 6-round unanimous decision over Jose Bustos in a Lightweight bout.
Scores were 59-55 on all cards for Roach, 131.4 lbs of Washington, DC who is now 9-0. Bustos, 130.4 lbs of Ciudad, MX is now 7-6-3.
Said Roach, “Bustos came to fight. He was not backing down throughout the fight but I did not feel threatened by him. I feel like I dominated the fight and was giving him my all. I wanted to end the fight impressively via knock out but he has a strong jaw. This is my last six-rounder and will move up to eight rounds in my next fight, very excited to go there.”
Maurice Hooker won a split decision over Ghislain Maduma in a 10-round Jr. Welterweight bout.
Hooker dropped Maduma in round three with a left hook. Maduma came to back in round six to rock Hooker several times on the ropes before Hooker spit out his mouthpiece.
Hooker, 139.4 lbs of Dallas, TX won by scores of 95-94, 95-93 and Maduma took a card 95-93.
Hooker is now 19-0-2. Maduma, 139.2 lbs of Montreal is 17-2.
Said Hooker, “I think the fight went a good pace and Maduma was a good fighter. He came prepared to fight. I knew I had him from the first round when I hit him with my left. By the fourth round, I grew confident that I was in the lead once I dropped him. But I grew too confident I think and that is when he caught me by surprise in the sixth round. I wasn’t as focused as I should have been so I made sure to listen to my corner and keep him at a distance with my jab for the remaining rounds. I feel that I am ready for a bigger fight and feel confident I can make a statement at 140 pounds. I would love a shot at Broner or any Golden Boy Promotions fighter at 140 pounds, like Antonio Orozco, I can take him.”
