Monday, August 06, 2007 Mayol TKOed in 8; Morales retires
RODEL “Magnum Force” Mayol was on his way to become a world champion and showed the world he could dominate Ulises Solis.
However, he got too careless and it caused him his downfall as the Mexican champion connected a solid right to the jaw that ended the scheduled 12-round contest in the 8th round at the All-State Arena in Chicago.
Mayol, whose hopes and sacrifices to attain his dreams fell down at the 1:13 mark, was even able to beat the count, but referee John O’Brien decided to stop the contest as the Filipino warrior was clearly shaken badly by the punch.
After a tentative start, Mayol dominated the fight from the fourth and got his chances when he connected a left hook on Solis that sent the champion on the floor.
However, instead of calling it a legitimate knock down, O’Brien ruled it a slip, while Solis was clearly shaken with rubbery legs.
In television replays, a solid left clearly put down Solis on the canvas and TV commentators and analysts aired their disagreement on O’Brien’s ruling.
The seventh still belonged to Mayol as Solis tried to bully his way but instead got tagged by a dangerous right that forced him to clinch.
Mayol had the control early on the eighth, keeping Solis at bay with a series of one-two punch combinations until he walked into a trap that caused him his chances to win the title.
Solis set up his right with a jab and Mayol took the bait and after getting hit, Mayol’s head flew back and he fell face first to the canvas.
Mayol could have survived the fall if he was in the best condition ever.
Mayol got the notice to fight Solis shortly before the end of June and he started his training camp at the Top Rank Gym in Las Vegas only on the first week of July, barely over a month ago.
And for a fighter, who was inactive for almost a year and who also needed to go up one division higher, his one month training is just not enough.
Other Pinoys win
In consolation, WBC youth super bantamweight champion Bernabe Concepcion annexed the vacant NABF 122-pound belt after scoring a technical knockout win over Gabriel Elizondo at the 2:11 mark of the fourth round, while Cebuano Mercito Gesta won by majority decision (58-56; 58-56; 57-57) over Mexican Carlos Madrid after six rounds.
In the main event, WBC lightweight champion David Diaz refused to let Erik Morales make history at his expense, denying his bid to become the first Mexican to win world titles in four weight classes with a unanimous decision on Saturday.
Morales, an almost certain Hall of Famer, announced his retirement before the decision was announced.
“This is it,” he said. “I’m not going to fight anymore. I’ve taken far too many punches, particularly to the head area. Punches to the head are really beginning to bother me. Diaz is a very strong fighter.”
Diaz (33-1-1) had Morales (48-6) against the ropes after a flurry late in the 12th round, but Morales countered. The crowd rose to its feet, and Diaz poured it on again, sending the challenger against the ropes and whipping the fans into another frenzy as the bout came to a finish.
Diaz, a Chicagoan making his first defense, had his opponent against the ropes in the opening round when, out of nowhere, Morales sent the champion to the canvas with 11 seconds left. That drew a loud reaction from the large contingent of Mexicans among the crowd of 9,735.
Diaz returned the favor in the second, knocking down Morales with a left uppercut.
It was an intense, physical, start to a bout between a fighter trying to make history and another looking to cement his status as a champion.
“Did I earn it today?” Diaz asked, his right eye swollen and black and blue.
Diaz landed a shot to the face with about a minute left in the seventh and was pounding away at Morales’ midsection as the bell sounded. And Morales spent much of the eighth on the ropes before slugging it out late in the round. (RCM with AP)
