Antonio Diaz Retains IBA Title
Dateline: 02/13/99Last night's edition of the Friday Night Fights on ESPN2 didn't feature any household names, but produced a handful of competitive fights nevertheless.
In the opener, Bronco McKart (36-2, 25 KO), now managed by Ray Leonard, made his return from an 8½ month layoff a successful one. McKart knocked down Rene Herrera (25-9, 17 KO) with a right hook at the end of round eight, prompting the doctor to stop the junior middleweight contest before the start of the ninth.
In another junior middleweight bout, Carlos Bojorquez (7-1-3, 6 KO) made it two straight over Blaise Soares (10-2, 8 KO) with a four round majority decision. Bojorquez KO'd Soares in two back on November 20.
In the main event, junior welterweight Antonio Diaz (25-2, 19 KO) defended his IBA title with a surprisingly easy second round KO of Mauro Lucero (34-5-1, 20 KO), finishing off his overmatched opponent with a flurry of punches, punctuated by a straight right to the head.
Finally, middleweight Julio Garcia (13-0-2, 5 KO) scored two knockdowns and cruised to a six-round, unanimous decision victory over journeyman Eric Holland (21-22-3, 4 KO).
In the studio, Brian Kenny and Max Kellerman proposed a return to eight weight categories to recognize boxing's 'true' champions and to rank their challengers. I have long advocated a simplified classification system of this sort in order to help clear up the confusion and resulting fan apathy that today's myriad of 'champions' has created. An upcoming feature will explore this issue in greater depth.
Next week: Hard-hitting light heavyweight David Telesco (20-2, 17 KO) takes on Eric Harding (15-0-1, 4 KO) before a hometown crowd in Port Chester, NY. Telesco is aiming for a shot at Roy Jones Jr. and an impressive showing against Harding, who recently decisioned Montell Griffin (the only man to 'defeat' Jones), may just do the trick. I'll be covering the Telesco-Harding fight from ringside and will report next week on the winner's chances in a possible match-up with boxing's best pound-for-pound fighter.
