Ricardo Pinell squared off against late replacement John Thompson — who replaced Cleotis Pendarvis after Pendarvis failed to make weight — in the second televised bout of ESPN’s 2015 junior middleweight Boxcino tournament.
Coming into this fight Pinell seemed to have the edge with Thompson having a one day notice. However, Thompson came to win and nobody told him otherwise.
There were little aspects to Thompson’s game that seemed fine tuned since the last time we saw him, a KO loss to Frank Galarza last month, but his activity level and movement were the keys to his victory, not to mention the use of his jab against a guy like Pinell, specifically.
Pinell couldn’t or wouldn’t cut the ring off against Thompson and that allowed Thompson to dictate where the fight took place and for how long. Pinell would’ve been better served utilizing a jab of his own and finding a way inside to plan shots, but he was having a hard enough time finding his opponent.
Sensing he was down on the cards, Pinell got a bit desperate and opened up and although Thompson’s style might not be the most fan-friendly style around he was able to impress with his sharp shooting.
Perhaps the late starter in boxing Pinell allowed his inexperience to hinder his performance or maybe Thompson seized his opportunity with the knowledge that it could be his last in boxing — probably a little of both — either way it was Thompson that separated himself early and only furthered the gap as the fight progressed.
All three judges score the fight 60-54 for Thompson, giving him the unanimous decision and advancing to the semi-finals to meet Skorokhod.