In what turned out to be the fight of the night, Jose Roman (17-1-1, 12 KOs), bloodied and knocked down three times in the first round, orchestrated a masterful come-from-behind win to capture the vacant WBC CABOFE Lightweight Championship by unanimous decision over the power-punching Luis Solis (12-3-4, 10 KOs) of Mexico. The 10-round main event capped Thompson Boxing Promotions “New Blood” 14th Anniversary Championship Triple-Header, from the Doubletree Hotel in Ontario, Calif. Scores were 94-93, 95-92, 94-93.
Solis, a lanky yet powerful lightweight, dropped Roman three times in the opening round by three separate right upper cuts resulting in a broken nose for Roman. Blood began pouring out, and just like that, Solis had built a sizeable lead that most fighters would not be able to overcome.
Roman, however, battled through the early set back and began to work himself back into the fight round by round. By the fifth, his corner stopped the bleeding and Roman began to time Solis’ advances with left hooks to the head and body. By the sixth round, Roman mixed overhand rights with left hooks to the body that made Solis double-check his movements.
Roman would win the majority of the rounds by beating Solis to the punch. He was the quicker counter puncher and the more efficient boxer.
“It’s not an ideal way to win a fight, but I’ll take it,” said Roman, who is promoted by Thompson Boxing Promotions. “It was hard to breathe for basically the entire fight, but I fought through it and managed to bring the title to Garden Grove.”
“Adversity doesn’t show character, it reveals it, and Jose has a ton of it,” said Ken Thompson, president and founder of Thompson Boxing. “It just shows how mentally tough this kid is to be able to forget what happened in the first round and grind out a tough, hard fought win. He showed the resiliency required to move on to bigger fights.”
In other action, the super bantamweight showdown between Riverside-native Juan Reyes (10-1-3, 1 KO) and Isaac Zarate (7-2) projected as a barn-burner, and it certainly lived up to the prefight hype. Zarate, a southpaw from Los Angeles, gave Reyes fits in the opening round. Reyes, however, quickly established his high paced rhythm in the second, and by the fourth, it appeared as though Zarate was gassed.
Zarate, however, found his second wind in the fifth and started to work the scorecards in his favor. He countered nicely and appeared the stronger fighter heading toward the finish. Reyes, on the other hand, after starting fast and tapering off, realized he needed a big finish to seal the win. He came out in the eighth and final round looking for a knockout, but it didn’t come.
The fight ended in a majority draw with Reyes ahead on one scorecard (77-75), while the other two were knotted at 76-76.
In the final championship fight of the night, world champion Sindy Amador (12-1, 1 KO) successfully defended her IFBA World Light Flyweight Championship against the previously unbeaten and rugged Maria Suarez (8-1-1) of Santa Maria, Calif. Amador, from nearby Riverside, won via split decision with scores 96-94, 97-93, 94-96.
The 10-round world championship fight was somewhat difficult to score because the rounds run for 2-minutes instead of the customary three that you see in male fights. Nevertheless, the fight delivered on many levels. Amador, known for her relentless pressure and constant motor, might have met her match against Suarez.
Suarez was able to withstand Amador’s movements, and even appeared to hurt Amador from time to time with a lead right and timely body punching. Amador, meanwhile, never slowed her attack and stringed together better quality combinations throughout the fight. She showed the hallmarks of a true world champion: confidence, consistency, and grit.
“I’m pleased with the way I battled tonight,” said Amador, who was making her first title defense. “Maria is an excellent fighter, but I’m just happy I was able to win and make my fans proud.”
Developing junior lightweight Cesar Valenzuela (6-3, 3 KOs) of Phoenix took home a 6-round majority decision win over Mario Amador (5-1, 3 KOs) of Texas. Scores were 56-56 and 58-54 twice. Amador showed limited defensive ability, which opened countless opportunities for Valenzuela to score points. Both offered spirited exchanges, but Valenzuela landed consistently round-over-round.
The second fight of the fight between lightweights Cesar Villarraga (3-0, 2 KOs) of Colombia and Wilberth Lopez (3-3, 1 KO) of Tucson, Ariz. thrilled the capacity crowd. Villarraga jumped on Lopez early in the second, throwing punches from a variety of angles. He eventually scored a knockdown as the ropes saved Lopez from eating the canvas. Villarraga came out feeling knockout in the fourth and final round. He kept his hands on the taller Lopez throughout the round, forcing referee Jack Reis to stop the fight at the 2:20 mark.
Heavyweight prospect LaRon Mitchell (4-0, 4 KOs) kicked things off with a first round knockout of Derrick Williams. Mitchell, a southpaw from San Francisco, floored Williams early with a counter left hook. Moments later, the same punch dropped him for good at the :55 mark. Williams, from Turlock, Calif., remains winless at 0-3.
“New Blood” was presented by Thompson Boxing Promotions and sponsored by Lucas Oil, in association with KCAL 96.7 Rocks!, KOLA 99.9, and LATV Networks.
