Petros Ananyan picks up a close unanimous decision over Subriel Matias
On the undercard of the highly anticipated Wilder v Fury rematch, Subriel “Browny” Matias (15-1, 15 KO’s) suffered a rather surprising loss at the hands of Petros Ananyan (16-2-2, 7 KO’s). Matias was last seen in a televised fight against the late Maxin “Mad Max” Dadashev (13-1, 11 KO’s). In fact, it was in his fight with Matias that Dadashev suffered the detrimental injury’s that lead to his ultimate demise.
IN THE TRENCHES
There was a big question of how Matias would look when he got back in the ring. Historically, many pugilists have lost their killer edge after taking the life of a fellow competitor in the ring. This did not appear to be the case with Browny.
Once in the squared-circle with Ananyan, he immediately pressed the action behind a snappy, persistent jab. Along with lead shot, Matias was doing a fantastic job of planting damaging punches on Ananyan’s chin, body and arms.
Ananyan was definitely a live dog in the fight. However he was clearly being outworked. In the fourth period, Ananyan notably picked up his pace and fought with a clear increase in ferocity. Even with his sudden burst of activity, it was not enough to give him the rounds.
A SUDDEN CHANGE IN FORTUNE
Matias was landing far more blows and pushed the Armenian opponent back at will. With the regular bodywork that Matias was putting in, the fight did not feel like it was going the distance. However, in the sixth round, Ananyan managed to land a series of overhand rights that stopped Matias in his tracks. In the new window of opportunity, Ananyan clobbered Matias with a solid left that left him seriously impaired.
Although he was unquestionably hurt, referee Robert Byrd halted the action to administer an extremely dubious standing 8-count. Without the conspicuous break in action, it appeared that Ananyan was going to claim an extreme upset stoppage. However, once Byrd was done with his count, a count that Ananyan overtly complained about, the round was over.
From this point on, it was a complete role-reversal with Ananyan pressing the action and getting the better of it. As he did, Matias never became complacent or ceased throwing, and landing, a fair amount of his power shots. At the same time, his fatigue was evident and Matias was not doing enough to claim the periods.
DEATH BY THE JUDGES
Ultimately, the fight would go to the scorecards where Ananyan would win a unanimous decision by way of 96-93 and 95-91 twice. This was a huge setback for the talented and hard-hitting Matias, who came into the bout with a perfect record and a 100% knockout ratio. It will be interesting to see where each fighter goes in their next bout.
By: Bakari Simpson
