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 Taylor Opens “Monday Night Fights” with Big Win; Alvarez Retains Title
 by Thomas Gerbasi (April 1, 2003)
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With possibly his most impressive performance as a pro, middleweight prospect Jermain Taylor remained unbeaten with a five round thrashing of Marcos Primera before a raucous crowd at the Statehouse Convention Center in Little Rock, Arkansas.
“Overall, I give myself a B,” said Taylor, who brought his “A” game against Primera, who replaced original opponent Brian Barbosa in the “Monday Night Fights” opener.
Working almost exclusively behind his jab in the first, Taylor let his hands go a bit in the final minute, and by the time the bell sounded, Primera was flinching from Taylor’s feints.
It was more of the same in the second (which was only two minutes long), and Taylor finally seems to have shed some of the mechanical habits of his early bouts, though it must be said that Primera’s style was tailor-made (excuse the pun) for “Bad Intentions”.
Primera was game from the outset, but he ate everything that came his way, with his only response against the quick fists of Taylor being his mouth - an offense that was quickly halted by referee Elmo Adolph.
Taylor continued to pound Primera in the fourth, and late in the frame, he scored a knockdown with a beautiful series of punches started with a right uppercut to the head. Primera survived the round, yet was visited between rounds by Adolph, who seemed on the verge of stopping the bout.
The Venezuelan attempted to mount an offense in the fifth, but Taylor was just too much. After Primera was sent to the canvas by a counter left hook for the second time, Adolph waved off the bout at the 2:12 mark.
With the win, Taylor moves to 15-0 (11 KOs). Primera, who was coming off a KO win over Taylor’s 2000 Olympic teammate, Dante Craig, drops to 14-4-1 with 9 KOs.
The third match between Rosendo Alvarez and Beibis Mendoza wasn’t the ‘Thrilla in Manila’, but after 12 fast-paced rounds, the co-featured ‘Lash up in Little Rock’ called for a fourth bout after Alvarez retained his WBA junior flyweight title via a majority decision.
Scores were 116-112 (twice) and 114-114 for the 32-year-old Alvarez, who also picks up The Ring 108-pound championship belt for his efforts.
Not surprisingly, the bout started fast, with both men bobbing, weaving and throwing leather, much of which missed. Yet by the second round, the punches started landing and the fight was on, with Alvarez landing some hard shots but Mendoza coming back with slashing jabs and uppercuts that brought taunts from ‘El Bufalo’, as well as some extracurricular activity after the bell.
Mendoza was able to keep Alvarez at bay with his jab, but when the Nicaraguan was able to corner Mendoza, like he did late in the fifth, the champion was able to score effectively.
In the fourth, Alvarez suffered a cut on the back of his head from an accidental headbutt, and while both men committed their share of infractions during the bout, referee Elmo Adolph allowed the two to fight it out.
The champion continued to get closer with his punches in the sixth, and after a seventh round clash of heads opened a cut on Mendoza’s left eyelid, Alvarez saw his best chance to make the fight into a brawl materialize.
Yet while the distance between the two shortened, Mendoza kept to his game plan and refused to let Alvarez dictate the pace. As the ninth opened, Mendoza, seeing blood (on Alvarez’ shoulders), ripped combinations through the Nicaraguan’s guard, and though he seemed to tire slightly, he took the round comfortably.
Alvarez inched closer again in the tenth, and as the championship rounds approached, he landed some solid shots both inside and from long-range.
Looking to take back his title, Mendoza came out fast for the 12th round, but like many of the previous 11 frames, picking a winner was difficult between the two evenly matched combatants.
With the win, Alvarez (32-2-1, 21 KOs) takes a 2-1 edge in the series over Mendoza (28-2, 23 KOs), who won the first bout between the two via disqualification, but later lost a split decision.
In a lightweight contest, Angel Manfredy kept his place among the better 135-pounders in the world secure with a seventh round stoppage of a game Moises Pedroza.
Coming off a nine-month layoff, Manfredy ( 41-6-1, 30 KOs) took a couple of rounds to shake the rust off, but by the third he started to find his rhythm, and in the fourth he took control, scoring with an array of hooks and crosses on the inside as Pedroza backed off from his own aggressive attack.
“It’s been nine months since I fought so I wanted to take my time,” said Manfredy.
Manfredy continued to pick up the pace in the fifth and sixth, and Pedroza (24-5-1, 21 KOs) finally started to show signs of wear on his face (a cut and bruised right eye) and in his actions, though he still kept battling.
In the seventh, Manfredy caught Pedroza with a couple of stiff right hands and though the Colombian attempted to fight back, a follow-up flurry brought in referee Joe Miller to halt the bout at the 1:17 mark.
To open the “Monday Night Fights” telecast, Eric Kirkland scored a ninth round TKO over previously unbeaten Derek Bryant in a battle of heavyweight prospects.
Lethargic and uninterested from the opening bell, Bryant ate a steady diet of right hands from Kirkland, who was unable to seriously hurt his foe, but was dominant throughout.
Kirkland was able to land seemingly at will on Philly’s Bryant (who suffered a nasty gash over his left eye), and “Stone Kold” enjoyed his good fortune, as he showboated, dropped his hands, and even spoke to his right hand before throwing it.
Speaking of senseless banter, the most even exchange of the bout occurred in the fifth round when both heavyweights jawed at each other. But once fists were involved, the “One Man Riot” was woefully outgunned and his disappointing night reached a conclusion at 56 seconds of the ninth when referee Joe Miller wisely stepped in after a flurry by Kirkland went unanswered by Bryant.
Kirkland ups his record to 15-1 (11 KOs) with the win. Bryant drops to 16-1 (14 KOs)
E-Mail Thomas Gerbasi at tgerbasi@mindspring.com
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