Julio Cesar Martinez & Oleksandr Gvozdyk Win By Stoppage; Gollaz Decisions Spark
WBC flyweight champion Julio Cesar Martinez (20-2, 15KO) came alive late to score the eleventh-round stoppage over Ronal Batista (15-3, 9KO).
Batista took advantage of the champion’s slow start by landing combination punches with ease. Moreover, he attacked the body every time Martinez was up against the ropes. Although he was deducted a point for hitting after the bell.
The champion struggled early to find a rhythm and switched from orthodox to southpaw looking to mount an offense. Yet, he kept getting hit with flush shots before landing body shots that halted the challenger’s attack.
In a weird moment in the eighth round, WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman called the referee to look at a replay to overturn a slip ruling into a knockdown. Martinez put together a late rally by unloading a barrage of punches that had Batista hurt against the ropes. The onslaught forced the referee to stop the fight in the eleventh round.
Martinez excited the pro-Mexican crowd with this victory and may be headed toward unification with IBF champion Sunny Edwards.
GABRIEL GOLLAZ WINS A QUESTIONABLE SPLIT DECISION OVER STEVE SPARK
In a hard-fought junior welterweight battle, Gabriel Gollaz (27-3-1, 16KO) picked up a questionable split decision victory over Steve Spark (16-3, 14KO).
Both men came out throwing bombs looking to test each other’s chin. Spark was the sharper fighter with the jab and the overhand right. Gollaz went to the body early and wasted no time applying pressure with the uppercut.
Spark was coming on strong until a compact right hand followed by a punishing body shot dropped him in the sixth round. However, he got back up and managed to regain control of the fight with straight right hand.
Down the stretch, Gollaz continued applying the pressure to the body. Spark couldn’t miss landing the straight right hands and was getting the better of the phonebooth exchanges. One judge had it 95-94 for Spark. However, the score was overruled by the other two that had it 96-93 and 95-94 for Gollaz. 3Kings Boxing felt Spark was a victim of some home cooking.
OLEKSANDR GVOZDYK SCORES BIG STOPPAGE VICTORY OVER RICARDS BOLOTNIKS
Former WBC light heavyweight champion Oleksandr “The Nail” Gvozdyk (19-1, 15KO) scored a statement-making stoppage over WBA #4 contender Ricards Bolotniks (19-7-1, 8KO).
After a successful return to the ring on February 11, Gvozdyk was ready to take on a top contender in Bolotniks. In the early portion of the fight, he seemed to be just going through the motions by looking to land the jab, often fighting off the back foot.
Bolotniks came on strong, testing his opponents with hard right hands and stiff body shots. He fought well off the front foot and was successful in landing good counter-shots over Gvozdyk’s jab.
In the sixth round, The Nail came out fighting with conviction. He employed hammering right hands against Bolotnik’s temple that short-circuited his legs. He continued landing a barrage of punches that sent his opponent crumbling to one knee. The referee took a look at the his body language and blood pouring down Bolotniks’ face and quickly stopped the fight.
This was the type of victory the former champion needed to send a message that he is back.
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