Arnold Barboza Heading For A Title Shot By Beating Jack Catterall
With a junior welterweight title shot hanging in the balance, Arnold Barboza Jr (32-0, 11KO) moves on to fight for the title after edging Jack “El Gato” Catterall (30-2, 13KO) by SD.
In the early rounds, Barboza did a good job of keeping the fight at mid-range behind the jab. He limited El Gato’s escape ability with solid foot placement.
Catterall failed to be first in the early rounds and was looking to counter instead of using the jab and angles.
As things picked up, Catterall started finding a home for those counter shots. He managed to take advantage of Barboza fighting off the backfoot with solid shots.
Yet, Barboza was able to land some eye-catching right hands. He wobbled the number one WBO contender with a perfect right hand.
In round ten, the crowd erupted thinking Catterall scored a knockdown, yet the referee ruled it a slip good call.
It was a close fight going into the championship rounds. Barboza was like a sniper with straight right hands. Catterall was landing counter shots. Down the stretch, both fighters fought with a sense of urgency.
One judge scored it 115-113 for Catterall, with two giving it to Barboza 115-113. Although 3kingsboxing ruled it a draw, this author isn’t mad at the decision. It was a close fight, and a close fight is no robbery.
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