The gruesome Abraham versus Miranda fight
In the world of boxing, one of the highest cardinal sins to be committed is quitting. Despite whatever injuries or damage one takes, fighters are generally expected to soldier on. This is why pugilists such as “Vicious” Victor Ortiz, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr and Acelino “Popo” Freitas are so villainized. Quitting once is bad, yet quitting more than once is tantamount to treason.
Conversely, tremendous praise and honors await those boxers who do find the moxie to weather particularly difficult storms. Such was the case when “King” Arthur Abraham and Edison “Pantera” Miranda locked horns for the first time. Going into that September 23, 2006 fight, both men were undefeated and Abraham was the IBF middleweight champion.
Miranda traveled to King Arthur’s native Germany to make his first attempt at a world title. It was Abraham’s third defense, and definitely his most painful. The third man in the ring that night was referee Randy Neumann. Together these three staged an unforgettable twelve rounds.
FIRE RIGHT FROM THE START
The fight got off to a quick pace and forecasted the overall script for the entire duel. Miranda consistently came forward and threw more shots, while Abraham primarily posted behind his high guard. Yet, when King Arthur unraveled his defense and threw punches, he landed well. Throughout the bout he periodically buzzed Miranda. At the same time, as the bout progressed, Pantera grew increasingly crafty in finding ways to bypass or slice through Abraham’s guard.
At the end of the second round the two men briefly fought after the bell. Over the next two periods, Miranda continued to set the pace and throw more blows. However, a few winging shots toward the end of the third appear to win the round for the champ. Then, in the fourth, a counter right stopped the Columbian in his tracks and appeared to have dazzled him. For the remainder of the round, his face was heavily thumped and head frequently snapped back.
The events that made this prizefight unforgettable began to unfold in the fifth. Abraham and Miranda began the three minutes letting their hands go with gusto. While throwing a punch, King Arthur got clipped with a right hook that caused him to slightly tip forward. Then a few moments later, blood begins leaking from his open mouth. Deeper into the round, during a clinch, Edison Miranda clearly intentionally headbutts the IBF champ. Even though, the shot did not look all that hurtful in replays.
THAT LOOKS NASTY!
From the moment that referee Randy Neumann stopped the action to access the damage of the foul, he became an active participant in the fight, and this turned out to not be a good thing! For a good number of minutes, confusion prevailed. Initially after being examined by the ringside doctor, it was deemed Abraham was too damaged to continue. Neumann even said out loud that he could not go on so they should take it to the cards.
However, once it was communicated that if Abraham could not continue it would be a TKO win for Miranda, the gears shifted. A second doctor examined the champ and now the mangled mandible bone was deemed fit enough to continue. And just like that, referee Neumann had them squared off because the fight was back on. Before the action resumed however, Neumann deducted two points from Miranda for the headbutt. When the action recommenced, the floppy-jawed Abraham fought well.
In the beginning of the seventh period, ref Neumann abruptly snatched the Columbian by the arm and deducted him a point. He was penalized for a supposed low blow. Replays captured a belt line shot at best. Then, moments later, Neumann took another point for another questionable low blow. This time the referee shouted, “Stop hitting him in the balls!”
The eighth was the first period where Abraham flat-out clinched through chunks of the round. He still got in a few offensive flurries, but he was all about keeping his nauseating oozing mouth out of harm’s way. This was also the first time that referee Neumann broke up the action for no discernable reason. During an exchange in during the final moments, Abraham got hurt, shelled up and bent over at the waist. When Miranda went to deliver some shots, the ref grabbed him until the champ was ready. This was extremely odd.
SOLDIER’S SONG
The pace slowed in the ninth as the two traded shots. Only now, the Columbian’s left eye was badly swollen. Edison Miranda easily took the tenth as he battered Abraham around the ring with impunity. Yet, during this round, referee Neumann once again mysteriously saves King Arthur from damage mid-round.
In eleventh, the champion employed a few tools from the Actor’s Studio. By milking a belt line shot, Abraham talked his way into an injury timeout. When the action resumed, Neumann took another point from Miranda. Outside of continuing to look at Abraham’s stomach churning dripping jaw, nothing much of note transpired in the final round. Unsurprisingly, the champ won wide on three judge’s cards when they were read.
Overall though, to fight more than half of a full twelve round bout with a badly broken jaw is remarkable. Not to mention the confusion with the ring staff and blatant bias of the ref. Due to all these elements, Abraham v Miranda I will always be a classic fight.
By: Bakari Simpson
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