BY RANDOM HITS
December 2, 2023
Source: Boxing Scene
Photo Source: Boxing Scene
Houstin, Texas - Mexican-born Omar Salcido Gamez (18-1, 12 KOs) bounced back from the first defeat of his professional career on Friday night at the “Owl’s Nest”, scoring a unanimous decision victory over Luis Coria (15-6, 7 KOs) in an action packed eight-round bout that served as the main event of Red Owl Boxing’s BOX FEST VI on DAZN.
After a competitive first round, the hard-hitting Gamez began to open up in the second frame and into the middle rounds, varying his attack and landing big shots to the head and body that were damaging Coria.
To his credit, Coria, who’s trained by the renowned Robert Garcia, fought valiantly throughout, using his durability and conditioning to endure Gamez’s attack, while landing some noteworthy shots of his own and even appearing to come on strong in the final rounds.
“I’m good, I could do a full 10-rounder right now,” Coria said in the ring following the bout. “I was prepared for a certain type of fight and he switched it up on me. I couldn’t get out of that rhythm.”
In the end, however, it was Gamez who consistently landed the more impactful blows. Now back to his winning ways, the 23-year-old is expecting a big 2024.
“I feel good,” Gamez said. “I’ve had a great team [and] a great camp. I want to thank my promoters, everyone who came out, [and] my hometown of Hermosillo. It was a war, but we got the win tonight.
“We’re going for more,” he added. “We’re going for way more. As long as I have my great team behind me, there’s no stopping.”
In the first co-feature bout of the evening, Mayweather Promotions product Jalil “Major” Hackett (8-0, 7 KOs) scored an emphatic and impressive third-round TKO victory over Adrian Gutierrez (12-2, 7 KOs) to win the vacant WBC youth welterweight title.
The 20-year-old Hackett, a Washington D.C. native, started fast from the opening bell, pushing the pace in round one and landing a powerful left hook as the round concluded that left Gutierrez wobbling and stumbling back to his corner.
The action continued in the ensuing rounds with Hackett proving he was unafraid to engage and trade on the inside and hurting Gutierrez with shots to the head and body as the two went toe-to-toe.
The third round, however, would prove to be the beginning of the end for Gutierrez as he was dropped by another powerful left hook. Although Gutierrez would continue, Hackett, smelling blood in the water, then pounced on his opponent, unleashing a barrage of blows that led referee Alejandro Leon to call a halt to the action at 2:23 of round three.
“It was a good performance,” Hackett said. “You know, we got him out of there, of course. A whole lot to work on. A lot of mistakes I made, but that’s what we got the gym for. We’re gonna go back and work on those mistakes in the gym, but for tonight, we gonna celebrate the good win against a tough opponent. Back to the drawing board Monday.”
With a title now in his possession, Hackett feels primed to continue his journey up the ranks at 147 pounds.
“It does a whole lot,” Hackett said of winning the WBC youth welterweight title. “We got the strap, so that’s a plus and it’ll definitely boost my stock at the welterweight division [and] put me at the top, which I already felt I was, of the prospects at the 147-pound division.”
In the second co-feature bout of the evening, former world title challenger Angelica Rascon (11-2, 2 KOs) scored an upset victory over Mia Ellis (7-2, 6 KOs), a Calvin Ford-trained Baltimore native promoted by Gervonta Davis’ GTD Promotions, to win the WBA Continental America super featherweight title.
Taking on a step up in competition, Ellis, the taller and rangier fighter, found success at times with jabs and uppercuts, but it was the relentless forward pressure and overwhelming volume of Rascon that led the three ringside judges to score the bout in her favor via majority decision (76-76, 77-75, 78-74).
Earlier on DAZN, Giovanni Marquez (8-0, 5 KOs), the son of former junior middleweight world champion Raul Marquez, who manned his son’s corner on Friday night, kept his undefeated professional record in-tact, putting on an offensive showcase in front of a hometown crowd and battering the durable Joshua David Rivera (8-4, 3 KOs) over the course of six rounds en route to a convincing unanimous decision victory (60-54, 60-54, 60-54).
While Rivera fought with great heart, taking Marquez’s best shots and continuing to move forward, it was Marquez who was doing the damage, working behind a piston-like jab and unloading a variety of thunderous power shots to the head and body.
Although unable to extend his knockout streak, the stance-switching Marquez picked up his fourth win of 2023 on Friday night and while not completely satisfied with his performance, he now looks ahead to what he hopes is an even busier 2024.
“I feel great,” Marquez said in the ring following his victory over Rivera. “I wasn’t too satisfied with my performance, but it’s a part of the learning process and I’m trying to trust in that process. Got a good six rounds, unanimous decision. I dominated every round and I’m excited. I’m gonna get some rest and then straight back to the gym and get ready for a big 2024.
“It’s very exciting having my friends [and] family here to support me,” he added. “It gives me that extra motivation to perform and without them, I wouldn’t have this much motivation to give them a show. 2024, you could expect more action-packed fights. I’m looking to stay busy [and] possibly get five fights in next year, stay very active, and I’m hoping to get a lot of great media exposure.”
Also featured on the DAZN undercard was a closely contested lightweight bout between Daniel “The Dedication” Bailey (12-1, 5 KOs) and Malik “The King” Warren (7-1, 6 KOs) that saw the two go toe-to-toe over the course of six rounds.
Warren, also a Ford-trained Baltimore native, started strong in the opening round, remaining calm and composed and finding success with his right hand. Bailey, a US Army veteran, however, remained undeterred, implementing his game plan of outworking Warren, throwing punches in volume, and using activity to his advantage to land clean shots of his own. In the end, it was Bailey who was deemed the winner via majority decision by the ringside judges (57-57, 58-56, 59-55).
“It was a very competitive fight,” Bailey said. “We both showed a lot of heart, we both seemed conditioned, and we both have the potential to be world champions, so hats off to him. Good, tough fight. I feel good. I’m blessed to be here at the BOX Fest. Yes sir. The first one. This won’t be the last. At all.”
In the opening fight of the night, rising bantamweight prospect Fabian Arredondo (2-0) extended his perfect professional record to 3-0 with a dominant victory over 36-year-old Robert Ledesma. Arredondo, a 20-year-old native of Freeport, Texas, used a vicious body attack and blistering combinations to overwhelm and overpower Ledesma, leading referee Alejandro Leon to step in at 1:56 of round two and handing Arrendondo the first stoppage victory of his career.
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