Palicte KO’s Rodriguez in Austin

Palicte KO’s Rodriguez in Austi

By Marc Livitz at ringside:Aston “Mighty” Palicte boxed effectively, landed power shots and ultimately closed the show against Jose Alfredo “Torito” Rodriguez in the fifth round by way of a “can’t fail” body shot in the fifth round for the NABF super flyweight title at the Sports Center in the northern Austin, Texas suburb of Round Rock.

The two fighters exchanged shots in the opening seconds of the contest. Palicte (23-2, 20 KO’s) of Bago City, Philippines snapped his left jab while Rodriguez (32-7, 19 KO’s) looked to counter. Aston connected with an impressive left uppercut in the second as Jose moved in to attack the body. Successive unanswered rights were followed by a left hook to the head courtesy of “Mighty” Palicte to close the period. Another left hook opened the third round. He moved to the body shortly thereafter and landed few shots to the outer waist. A firefight ensured in the dying seconds. “Torito” Rodriguez landed back to back body shots just before “Mighty” Palicte answered up high.

The action continued a minute later. Jose had Aston up against the ropes and rocked his head with a good right hook. A heavy shot to the head was the highlight of the stanza. Less than a minute into round five, a well placed right to the body from Palicte immediately had Rodriguez on the retreat. The delayed shock of such a shot took hold of the Mazatlan, Sinaloa, MX fighter and he took a knee in his own corner. He was able to rise to his feet before the count of ten, yet referee Mark Calo-oy clearly saw that he was in no way able to continue and the bout was waved to a halt at the :45 mark. Palicte captured the vacant NABF super flyweight title with the win as well as moved into place for a future world title shot sometime in the coming year.

Co-Main Report - Akhmedov Decisions Webster

In a ten round light heavyweight contest between two unbeaten competitors, Ali Akhmedov of Kazakhstan successfully defended his NABF as well as WBC Youth titles via unanimous decision against a rough and game DeShon Webster.

Webster (9-1, 6 KO’s) attempted to test his Kazakhstani opponent with a bit of pressure after the opening bell. Akhmedov (10-0, 7 KO’s), by contrast seemed content to wait and look for a good opening to surface. He landed a hard left to the body in the closing minute, after which ‘Lethal Weapon’ Webster double and tripled his jab to keep him at bay. The two fought in closer quarters in the second. Ali looked to establish his jab so that he could connect with his power right, however DeShon continued to fire away with his left jab to satisfactory effect. Akhmedov was beginning to get closer and closer with his left hook which may have convinced Webster that losing a point for excessive holding in round three was worth the risk. More shots were exchanged.

Webster was hit with another point deduction one minute into the fourth, once again for holding. Akhmedov was starting to land the harder, more meaningful shots. A thudding left hook to the face got Webster’s full attention late in round five. The sixth had its moments as Webster looked to be much more on the defensive. He had Akhmedov hot on his heels throughout the seventh. Ali would chase him to a corner, land a nice combination and then have DeShon find a way out.

Round eight was much of the same. Some fans began to loudly complain that they were witnessing a sparring session. Akhmedov landed his absolute best punch of the night midway through the ninth. A hard right to the head found the target, but it wasn’t enough to end the contest. On to the tenth and final round this contest would go. Referee Gregorio Alvarez quickly determined that what looked to be a knockdown of Akhmedov wasn’t one. Ali visibly wanted the stoppage, yet it wasn’t to be.

Judges Jennie Cardenas and Perry Hillin turned in scores of 100-88, while Richard Lord saw it 99-89, all for Ali Akhmedov, who tonight retained his two titles with the unanimous decision win.

Further Results from Round Rock

Kenton Sippio-Cook UD6 Rudy Lozano

Reshard Hicks D6 Jonathan Steele - Welterweight
Antonio Castillo SD 4 Manuel Mondragon - Featherweight
Giovanni Loya KO 1 Stetson Horne - Super Middleweight