Welterweight Belts United

Los Angeles: For only the eleventh time in the history of the Welterweight Division, titles have been unified. “The Truth” Errol Spence, Jr. (26-0, 21 KOs) won a split decision over “Showtime” Shawn Porter (30-3-1, 17 KOs) at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California in the late night hours on the west coast Saturday night. Former 2-time champion, Porter, gave Spence all he could handle, as Porter had Spence hurt and wobbled on a couple of occasions and didn’t let off the gas for a minute. Fighting inside of a phone booth was Porter’s gameplan, and the fight was that way throughout. Spence, a southpaw, landed a perfectly placed power left hook that knocked down Porter late in the 11th Round. That punch may have been all of the difference in the fight. After the knockdown, it was too late for Porter to steal the round, and he seemed a bit off his game as the final round began. In the end, the fans got what they expected, an all-out brawl with two of the sport’s best. Although Spence held his hand up in victory, Porter has no reason to feel ashamed. “Showtime” landed 172 punches, more than any other opponent Spence has faced. At only 31 years of age, Porter can certainly find himself making another run for a belt within a couple of years. As for Spence, what’s next?

In the co-main event, Anthony “The Dog” Dirrell put his WBC Super Middleweight Title on the line against the former champ, David “El Bandera Roja” Benavidez. The fight was full of back and forth action until the middle rounds where Dirrell was cut over his right eye (again) and his vision became impaired (again). The doctor allowed the fight to continue, because the champion demanded it. Eventually, the cut worsened and Dirrell was getting hit with all he could handle. It was inevitable, and the fight was finally stopped. Although the cut itself could have been the reason for the stoppage and loss for Dirrell, it was the barrage of punches which ultimately created the TKO victory for Benavidez. Dirrell now falls to 33-2-1 with 24 KOs, having suffered his first stoppage loss. At 34 years old, his clock is ticking, but there’s still just enough time to compete for a belt one last time. The issues, though, are that of his constant issue with his cuts and the fact that the Super Middleweight Division is stacked with some of the best talent in the sport. Benavidez stays perfect at 22-0 with 19 KOs and just missed the mark of becoming the youngest 2-time champion by a single day. At 22 years old, in a land of big fight possibilities, he now finds himself in a very, very good position. Look for him to defend his reacquired WBC strap one time before then attempting to unify against the likes of Caleb Plant, Callum Smith, or Billy Joe Saunders, all of whom are undefeated!

Prior to the two main bouts, Mario Barrios (25-0, 16 KOs) got more than he could handle en route to winning his first title, the WBA Super Lightweight Championship. Highly decorated amateur and former Olympian, Batyr Akhmedov (7-1, 6 KOs) suffered his first defeat as a professional… or did he? Many in attendance were upset by the judge’s scorecards and ultimate decision on a Barrios victory, as they thought Akhmedov did just enough to earn the victory.

In the first fight of the main card, Josesito Lopez (37-8, 20 KOs) who was coming off of a stellar performance against Keith Thurman earlier this year, basically pulverized John Molina, Jr. (30-9, 24 KOs) for probably longer than necessary to earn his TKO victory. After a couple of first-round knockdowns, it didn’t seem as if Molina would even make it to see Round 2. But, that warrior spirit within kept him going deep into the fight. Molina may prove to be a gatekeeper of sorts in the division, but another title shot seems very unlikely. Lopez, however, probably put himself back in position to fight for another belt after one more stellar performance.

-Mike Feinberg
TFN Reporter