Chris Colbert can be brash but he has a soft side.
Take his hair color, for example. The fact his hair will be bright orange when he steps into the ring to fight Tugstsogt Nayambayar on Saturday in Carson, Calif., isn’t a mere fashion statement. It’s part of his color-coded efforts to bring attention to various causes.
The orange represents multiple sclerosis, which afflicted a gym mate of Colbert’s in New Jersey.
Other colors he has dyed his hair: pink for breast cancer, green for epilepsy, red for sickle cell anemia and gold for childhood cancer.
“I’m going to continue [doing this] … if my hair don’t fall off,” he said during the final news conference before the fight at Dignity Health Sports Park (Showtime).
Colbert (15-0, 6 KOs) said that in this fight he’s honoring his gym mate, who he identified as Dave.
“One of my boys in the gym back in Jersey, he has it,” Colbert said. “… He just came up to me and we started talking. He was telling me a story of how he was paralyzed … as a kid. He has MS. I saw him in the gym two days later. I saw him walking on the Stairmaster for an hour.
“I thought, ‘Wow. He was paralyzed and he’s on a Stairmaster for an hour.’ There are no excuses I can make [not] to come into the gym. I’m perfectly healthy. I should never have an excuse for not working out and being in the gym.”
Real reason? Nayambayar (12-1, 9 KOs) jumped at the chance last week to replace the injured Yuriorkis Gamboa as the opponent for Colbert, one of the hottest young fighters in the world.
The Los Angeles-based Mongolian is moving up from 126 pounds to 130 and will have had limited time to prepare but he couldn’t pass up such a high-profile opportunity, they type of which doesn’t come around often.
Colbert believes there’s another reason Nayambayar is taking such a big risk.
“You have to remember [that] COVID just happened,” he said. “So they need the money. You know where I’m going with this. People need money [because they couldn’t] fight for a long time. I understand why he took the fight.”
Nayambayar, sitting next to Colbert, didn’t respond to that comment but he made it clear that he isn’t showing up simply for a paycheck. The 2012 Olympic silver medalist is confident he can acquit himself well.
Said the underdog: “I believe in my speed, I believe in my power, I believe in the myself.”
Chris Colbert can be brash but he has a soft side.
Take his hair color, for example. The fact his hair will be bright orange when he steps into the ring to fight Tugstsogt Nayambayar on Saturday in Carson, Calif., isn’t a mere fashion statement. It’s part of his color-coded efforts to bring attention to various causes.
The orange represents multiple sclerosis, which afflicted a gym mate of Colbert’s in New Jersey.
Other colors he has dyed his hair: pink for breast cancer, green for epilepsy, red for sickle cell anemia and gold for childhood cancer.
“I’m going to continue [doing this] … if my hair don’t fall off,” he said during the final news conference before the fight at Dignity Health Sports Park (Showtime).
Colbert (15-0, 6 KOs) said that in this fight he’s honoring his gym mate, who he identified as Dave.
“One of my boys in the gym back in Jersey, he has it,” Colbert said. “… He just came up to me and we started talking. He was telling me a story of how he was paralyzed … as a kid. He has MS. I saw him in the gym two days later. I saw him walking on the Stairmaster for an hour.
“I thought, ‘Wow. He was paralyzed and he’s on a Stairmaster for an hour.’ There are no excuses I can make [not] to come into the gym. I’m perfectly healthy. I should never have an excuse for not working out and being in the gym.”
Real reason? Nayambayar (12-1, 9 KOs) jumped at the chance last week to replace the injured Yuriorkis Gamboa as the opponent for Colbert, one of the hottest young fighters in the world.
The Los Angeles-based Mongolian is moving up from 126 pounds to 130 and will have had limited time to prepare but he couldn’t pass up such a high-profile opportunity, they type of which doesn’t come around often.
Colbert believes there’s another reason Nayambayar is taking such a big risk.
“You have to remember [that] COVID just happened,” he said. “So they need the money. You know where I’m going with this. People need money [because they couldn’t] fight for a long time. I understand why he took the fight.”
Nayambayar, sitting next to Colbert, didn’t respond to that comment but he made it clear that he isn’t showing up simply for a paycheck. The 2012 Olympic silver medalist is confident he can acquit himself well.
Said the underdog: “I believe in my speed, I believe in my power, I believe in the myself.”
Chris Colbert says Tugstsogt Nyambayar’s mission on Saturday night is impossible.
Yuriorkis Gamboa? Tugstsogt Nyambayar? Wouldn’t matter to Chris Colbert which one he faces. The result, he said, would be the same.
Colbert, the hot 24-year-old junior lightweight contender from Brooklyn, was scheduled to face Gamboa on Saturday in Carson, Calif., but the Cuban pulled out with an injury last week. Nyambayar, the 2012 Olympic silver medalist, will take his place.
Colbert was planned to stop Gamboa. And he has the same thing in mind for Nyambayar, who is moving up from featherweight for the fight.
“He’s a good fighter,” Colbert told me and Kenneth Bouhairie on The PBC Podcast, referring to Nyambayar. “He’s an Olympian, right? He got an Olympic medal. But he’s never fought ‘Prime Time.’ I think I’m too fast, too big, too strong.
“Him coming up in weight and taking the fight on a week and half notice? That’s dangerous.”
Could Colbert (15-0, 6 KOs) have problems adjusting to a new opponent so close to the fight?
Nah. First, he believes Gamboa and Nyambayar (12-1, 9 KOs) have similar styles, slick, somewhat quick, sneaky power. And, second, he described himself as a “human adapter, one who’s “ready for anything they bring to the table.”
He even believes he knows how the fight will play out.
“Me being smart the first round or two,” he said. “See what he’s got, test him out, feel his power. After the second round, start applying my pressure and start applying my power and show him there’s levels to this s—.
“You can’t take a fight against a monster like myself on a week’s notice and move up in weight to fight me at that and think you’re going to win.”
Colbert’s prediction? “I don’t plan to have this fight go the distance.”
Chris Colbert says Tugstsogt Nyambayar’s mission on Saturday night is impossible.
Yuriorkis Gamboa? Tugstsogt Nyambayar? Wouldn’t matter to Chris Colbert which one he faces. The result, he said, would be the same.
Colbert, the hot 24-year-old junior lightweight contender from Brooklyn, was scheduled to face Gamboa on Saturday in Carson, Calif., but the Cuban pulled out with an injury last week. Nyambayar, the 2012 Olympic silver medalist, will take his place.
Colbert was planned to stop Gamboa. And he has the same thing in mind for Nyambayar, who is moving up from featherweight for the fight.
“He’s a good fighter,” Colbert told me and Kenneth Bouhairie on The PBC Podcast, referring to Nyambayar. “He’s an Olympian, right? He got an Olympic medal. But he’s never fought ‘Prime Time.’ I think I’m too fast, too big, too strong.
“Him coming up in weight and taking the fight on a week and half notice? That’s dangerous.”
Could Colbert (15-0, 6 KOs) have problems adjusting to a new opponent so close to the fight?
Nah. First, he believes Gamboa and Nyambayar (12-1, 9 KOs) have similar styles, slick, somewhat quick, sneaky power. And, second, he described himself as a “human adapter, one who’s “ready for anything they bring to the table.”
He even believes he knows how the fight will play out.
“Me being smart the first round or two,” he said. “See what he’s got, test him out, feel his power. After the second round, start applying my pressure and start applying my power and show him there’s levels to this s—.
“You can’t take a fight against a monster like myself on a week’s notice and move up in weight to fight me at that and think you’re going to win.”
Colbert’s prediction? “I don’t plan to have this fight go the distance.”
Tugstsogt Nyambayar is excited to fight Chris Colbert and coming to win on Saturday in Carson, Calif.
Tugstsogt Nyambayar was taken aback when he received the call last week.
Promoter Tom Brown was on the phone with an offer to fight young 130-pound star Chris Colbert on short notice after original opponent Yuriorkis Gamboa pulled out with an injury. Nyambayar paused for a moment and then said, in so many words, “Heck yes.”
He will meet Colbert on Saturday at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The fight will be televised on Showtime.
“When they offered the fight, I was like, ‘Whaaaaaaat?’” he told Boxing Junkie through a translator. “I was kind of surprised. I talked it over with my trainer John [Pullman] and accepted the fight.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VPlxTDRvPk
Nyambayar (12-1, 9 KOs) certainly isn’t lacking in confidence given the challenge he faces. Not only is Colbert one of the most-gifted fighters in the world, the Mongolian will have to move up from 126 pounds for the fight and has had limited time prepare.
The 2012 Olympic silver medalist, who is gifted himself, had been in the gym but he didn’t begin training specially for Colbert until about a week ago.
“It doesn’t really matter now because I accepted the fight on short notice,” he said. “If you’re a real fighter, you have to be ready to fight no matter what. … I will do everything I can to win the fight.
“I’m here to win, not just to take the fight.”
Fans might see this as a daunting challenge for Nyambayar but he’s certainly not fazed. Pullman made that clear.
“Tug has been fighting elite competition his whole life,” the trainer said. “Chris Colbert is very good, I respect his skills, his natural talent. He’s a gritty, hungry, successful young fighter. But he doesn’t do anything Tug hasn’t seen.
“… It’s just his whole DNA makeup. He’s a fighter to his core. Nothing intimidates him, nothing worries him.”
Not even moving up in weight? Nope.
Pullman described 126 pounds as his fighter’s “sweet spot” but he hearkened back to the past, when “junior” and “super” weight divisions didn’t exist. Lightweights jumped to welterweight and welterweights jumped to middleweight, which worked out fine.
He said he’s more concerned about Colbert’s ability than the weight issue.
“If it’s the right fight, the right opponent, then [weight] isn’t a problem,” Pullman said.
Nyambayar’s take on participating in his first fell-fledged junior lightweight bout? “I will tell you after the fight,” he said.
One might say his limitations were exposed in those fights. He says the experience gained in those setbacks will make him a better fighter.
“I learned a lot in those fights,” he said. “I just regrouped and [maintained] my motivation for future fights. … Colbert is a good fighter, a good boxer. I’m also a good fighter. Let’s see what happens.”
Tugstsogt Nyambayar is excited to fight Chris Colbert and coming to win on Saturday in Carson, Calif.
Tugstsogt Nyambayar was taken aback when he received the call last week.
Promoter Tom Brown was on the phone with an offer to fight young 130-pound star Chris Colbert on short notice after original opponent Yuriorkis Gamboa pulled out with an injury. Nyambayar paused for a moment and then said, in so many words, “Heck yes.”
He will meet Colbert on Saturday at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The fight will be televised on Showtime.
“When they offered the fight, I was like, ‘Whaaaaaaat?’” he told Boxing Junkie through a translator. “I was kind of surprised. I talked it over with my trainer John [Pullman] and accepted the fight.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VPlxTDRvPk
Nyambayar (12-1, 9 KOs) certainly isn’t lacking in confidence given the challenge he faces. Not only is Colbert one of the most-gifted fighters in the world, the Mongolian will have to move up from 126 pounds for the fight and has had limited time prepare.
The 2012 Olympic silver medalist, who is gifted himself, had been in the gym but he didn’t begin training specially for Colbert until about a week ago.
“It doesn’t really matter now because I accepted the fight on short notice,” he said. “If you’re a real fighter, you have to be ready to fight no matter what. … I will do everything I can to win the fight.
“I’m here to win, not just to take the fight.”
Fans might see this as a daunting challenge for Nyambayar but he’s certainly not fazed. Pullman made that clear.
“Tug has been fighting elite competition his whole life,” the trainer said. “Chris Colbert is very good, I respect his skills, his natural talent. He’s a gritty, hungry, successful young fighter. But he doesn’t do anything Tug hasn’t seen.
“… It’s just his whole DNA makeup. He’s a fighter to his core. Nothing intimidates him, nothing worries him.”
Not even moving up in weight? Nope.
Pullman described 126 pounds as his fighter’s “sweet spot” but he hearkened back to the past, when “junior” and “super” weight divisions didn’t exist. Lightweights jumped to welterweight and welterweights jumped to middleweight, which worked out fine.
He said he’s more concerned about Colbert’s ability than the weight issue.
“If it’s the right fight, the right opponent, then [weight] isn’t a problem,” Pullman said.
Nyambayar’s take on participating in his first fell-fledged junior lightweight bout? “I will tell you after the fight,” he said.
One might say his limitations were exposed in those fights. He says the experience gained in those setbacks will make him a better fighter.
“I learned a lot in those fights,” he said. “I just regrouped and [maintained] my motivation for future fights. … Colbert is a good fighter, a good boxer. I’m also a good fighter. Let’s see what happens.”
Jaron Ennis and Jose Pedraza gave strong performances on separate cards Saturday night.
A critical look at the past week in boxing
GOOD
Juan Carlos Abreu couldn’t stay on his feet against fearsome Jaron Ennis. Amanda Westcott / Showtime
Jaron Ennis doesn’t need any undue pressure at this stage of his career. He’s only 23. And I hesitate to read too much into his knockout victory over Juan Carlos Abreu on Saturday because the Dominican’s limitations are obvious.
Still, I have to say it: Ennis reminds me of one of his role models, Roy Jones Jr.
Ennis’ style is similar to Jones’ when the latter was at his peak, fighting patiently – with his hands down much of the time – and then exploding with unusual speed and power to overwhelm his opponents.
I didn’t particularly like when Jones’ hands were at his waist but he had the reflexes to get away with it when he was at his best. Ennis (26-0, 24 KOs) will be OK for the time being.
Abreu, who came in three-plus pounds overweight, didn’t know what hit him. The look on his face the first few times he ate Ennis’ uber-quick, hard shots said to me, “What the hell is this?” The underdog was as durable as billed for four-plus rounds and then he became too familiar with the canvas.
Ennis, a fiery finisher, put Abreu (23-6-1, 21 KOs) down once in the fifth and twice more in the sixth – all three knockdowns coming within little more than a minute – to end the slaughter.
How dominating was Ennis? I don’t rely too heavily on CompuBox statistics but sometimes they provide a valuable perspective on certain fights. Consider the numbers in this one:
Ennis outlanded Abreu overall 117-23. That’s as one-sided as it gets. He landed 39.3% of his punches (298), Abreu 14.6% (157). Even more striking were the power punches: Ennis landed 92 of 165, 55.8%, which is off-the-charts accuracy.
And Ennis became the first to knock out Abreu, who went the distance in losses to Humberto Soto, Jamal James, Alex Martin, Egidijus Kavaliauskas and Alexander Besputin. That’s a big statement.
In other words, Ennis couldn’t have performed much better than he did on Saturday.
That doesn’t mean he’ll perform on that level when he steps up his opposition. He probably won’t dominate the top 154-pounders, gifted fighters like Jermell Charlo, Jeison Rosario, Erickson Lubin, Julian Williams and Tony Harrison.
Probably.
It remains to be seen whether he’s the next Jones, which is an extremely high bar. I believe he’s special, though. And I won’t be the least bit surprised if he ends becoming one of the top fighters in the world.
BAD
Jose Pedraza is on a roll after back to back victories over Mikkel LesPierre and Javier Molina. Mikey Williams / Top Rank
You have to feel for Javier Molina. The 2008 U.S. Olympian rebuilt a broken career and seemed to be on the verge of realizing his potential only to lose a wide decision and his momentum against Jose Pedraza on Saturday in Las Vegas.
Molina (22-3, 9 KOs) is only 30. I hope he learns from the setback and gets back to work. The talent is still there and he’s relatively fresh. It would be a shame for him to give up now.
Pedraza? Well, he’s just a bad man.
The former two-division titleholder from Puerto Rico seemed to be in decline when he was stopped by Gervonta Davis and lost decisions to Vasiliy Lomachenko and Jose Zepeda in a span of seven fights between 2017 and last year.
Some thought he was finished as an elite fighter.
He obviously had a different perspective. He bounced back from the Zepeda loss to dominate both Mikkel LesPierre and Molina, thus repairing his credentials as a bona fide threat to the best 140-pounders.
Indeed, he looked terrific Saturday night in the MGM Grand “bubble,” outboxing and methodically wearing down a good all-around fighter in Molina. He looked like the young man who won major belts at 130 and 135 pounds.
Could Pedraza (28-3, 13 KOs) have similar success against, say, the winner of a projected title-unification fight between Jose Ramirez and Josh Taylor? That’s hard to say. The 140-pound beltholders are among the best fighters in the world regardless of weight.
I wouldn’t put anything past the fighter we saw on Saturday, though. He looked that good.
“I do believe I’m ready for a world title opportunity,” he said after the Molina fight. “Whoever it happens to be between Josh Taylor and Jose Ramirez, I want the winner of that fight.”
WORSE
Erickson Lubin (left) and Terrell Gausha didn’t get rolling until late in their fight. Amanda Westcott / Showtime
I don’t understand the way Erickson Lubin, Terrell Gausha and Tugstsogt Nyambayar fought Saturday night on Showtime.
Lubin, who fought Gausha in the main event, was the least egregious offender. He didn’t do much in the first seven rounds of the fight but he didn’t have to. He was winning. Then, when Gausha picked up his pace, so did Lubin.
That said, Lubin (23-1, 16 KOs) had hoped to show the world that he belonged in the conversation with the best fighters in the deep 154-pound division. You must fight with more fire than he did to accomplish that.
Lubin emerged victorious but he didn’t make the statement he had hoped to make.
Gausha? I’m still scratching my head. He threw an average of 31 punches per round in the first seven rounds, landing 4.3 per stanza. In other words, he wasn’t there. And it’s difficult to win a 12-round fight when you arrive in Round 8.
The former Olympian was in a title eliminator. A victory would’ve set up an opportunity to realize a dream. Gausha (21-2-1, 10 KOs) didn’t fight like it, at least not until it was too late.
Nyambar, fighting for the first time since he lost to a wide decision to Gary Russell Jr., also had hoped to demonstrate that is among the best featherweights. And he looked the part early in the fight, putting Cobie Breedy down in each of the first two rounds.
Then the hard-punching Mongolian allowed himself to be outworked the rest of the way by a more determined fighter in Breedy, who won six of the final 10 rounds on two cards and nine of 10 on the third.
The final scores were 114-113 and 114-112 for Nyambayar and 115-111 for Breedy. One just scored the first round 10-9 for Nyambayar in spite of the knockdown.
Like Lubin, Nyambayar (12-1, 9 KOs) had his hand raised. That’s the objective. However, even in victory, his stock might’ve slipped.
I can’t get in the heads of the fighters. I don’t know why some of them fail to throw punches at a rate that puts them in position to win or look good regardless of the result. I suspect many of them, after watching the fight on video that night or the next day, say to themselves or those around them: “Damn, I wish I had been a little busier.”
Jaron Ennis and Jose Pedraza gave strong performances on separate cards Saturday night.
A critical look at the past week in boxing
GOOD
Juan Carlos Abreu couldn’t stay on his feet against fearsome Jaron Ennis. Amanda Westcott / Showtime
Jaron Ennis doesn’t need any undue pressure at this stage of his career. He’s only 23. And I hesitate to read too much into his knockout victory over Juan Carlos Abreu on Saturday because the Dominican’s limitations are obvious.
Still, I have to say it: Ennis reminds me of one of his role models, Roy Jones Jr.
Ennis’ style is similar to Jones’ when the latter was at his peak, fighting patiently – with his hands down much of the time – and then exploding with unusual speed and power to overwhelm his opponents.
I didn’t particularly like when Jones’ hands were at his waist but he had the reflexes to get away with it when he was at his best. Ennis (26-0, 24 KOs) will be OK for the time being.
Abreu, who came in three-plus pounds overweight, didn’t know what hit him. The look on his face the first few times he ate Ennis’ uber-quick, hard shots said to me, “What the hell is this?” The underdog was as durable as billed for four-plus rounds and then he became too familiar with the canvas.
Ennis, a fiery finisher, put Abreu (23-6-1, 21 KOs) down once in the fifth and twice more in the sixth – all three knockdowns coming within little more than a minute – to end the slaughter.
How dominating was Ennis? I don’t rely too heavily on CompuBox statistics but sometimes they provide a valuable perspective on certain fights. Consider the numbers in this one:
Ennis outlanded Abreu overall 117-23. That’s as one-sided as it gets. He landed 39.3% of his punches (298), Abreu 14.6% (157). Even more striking were the power punches: Ennis landed 92 of 165, 55.8%, which is off-the-charts accuracy.
And Ennis became the first to knock out Abreu, who went the distance in losses to Humberto Soto, Jamal James, Alex Martin, Egidijus Kavaliauskas and Alexander Besputin. That’s a big statement.
In other words, Ennis couldn’t have performed much better than he did on Saturday.
That doesn’t mean he’ll perform on that level when he steps up his opposition. He probably won’t dominate the top 154-pounders, gifted fighters like Jermell Charlo, Jeison Rosario, Erickson Lubin, Julian Williams and Tony Harrison.
Probably.
It remains to be seen whether he’s the next Jones, which is an extremely high bar. I believe he’s special, though. And I won’t be the least bit surprised if he ends becoming one of the top fighters in the world.
BAD
Jose Pedraza is on a roll after back to back victories over Mikkel LesPierre and Javier Molina. Mikey Williams / Top Rank
You have to feel for Javier Molina. The 2008 U.S. Olympian rebuilt a broken career and seemed to be on the verge of realizing his potential only to lose a wide decision and his momentum against Jose Pedraza on Saturday in Las Vegas.
Molina (22-3, 9 KOs) is only 30. I hope he learns from the setback and gets back to work. The talent is still there and he’s relatively fresh. It would be a shame for him to give up now.
Pedraza? Well, he’s just a bad man.
The former two-division titleholder from Puerto Rico seemed to be in decline when he was stopped by Gervonta Davis and lost decisions to Vasiliy Lomachenko and Jose Zepeda in a span of seven fights between 2017 and last year.
Some thought he was finished as an elite fighter.
He obviously had a different perspective. He bounced back from the Zepeda loss to dominate both Mikkel LesPierre and Molina, thus repairing his credentials as a bona fide threat to the best 140-pounders.
Indeed, he looked terrific Saturday night in the MGM Grand “bubble,” outboxing and methodically wearing down a good all-around fighter in Molina. He looked like the young man who won major belts at 130 and 135 pounds.
Could Pedraza (28-3, 13 KOs) have similar success against, say, the winner of a projected title-unification fight between Jose Ramirez and Josh Taylor? That’s hard to say. The 140-pound beltholders are among the best fighters in the world regardless of weight.
I wouldn’t put anything past the fighter we saw on Saturday, though. He looked that good.
“I do believe I’m ready for a world title opportunity,” he said after the Molina fight. “Whoever it happens to be between Josh Taylor and Jose Ramirez, I want the winner of that fight.”
WORSE
Erickson Lubin (left) and Terrell Gausha didn’t get rolling until late in their fight. Amanda Westcott / Showtime
I don’t understand the way Erickson Lubin, Terrell Gausha and Tugstsogt Nyambayar fought Saturday night on Showtime.
Lubin, who fought Gausha in the main event, was the least egregious offender. He didn’t do much in the first seven rounds of the fight but he didn’t have to. He was winning. Then, when Gausha picked up his pace, so did Lubin.
That said, Lubin (23-1, 16 KOs) had hoped to show the world that he belonged in the conversation with the best fighters in the deep 154-pound division. You must fight with more fire than he did to accomplish that.
Lubin emerged victorious but he didn’t make the statement he had hoped to make.
Gausha? I’m still scratching my head. He threw an average of 31 punches per round in the first seven rounds, landing 4.3 per stanza. In other words, he wasn’t there. And it’s difficult to win a 12-round fight when you arrive in Round 8.
The former Olympian was in a title eliminator. A victory would’ve set up an opportunity to realize a dream. Gausha (21-2-1, 10 KOs) didn’t fight like it, at least not until it was too late.
Nyambar, fighting for the first time since he lost to a wide decision to Gary Russell Jr., also had hoped to demonstrate that is among the best featherweights. And he looked the part early in the fight, putting Cobie Breedy down in each of the first two rounds.
Then the hard-punching Mongolian allowed himself to be outworked the rest of the way by a more determined fighter in Breedy, who won six of the final 10 rounds on two cards and nine of 10 on the third.
The final scores were 114-113 and 114-112 for Nyambayar and 115-111 for Breedy. One just scored the first round 10-9 for Nyambayar in spite of the knockdown.
Like Lubin, Nyambayar (12-1, 9 KOs) had his hand raised. That’s the objective. However, even in victory, his stock might’ve slipped.
I can’t get in the heads of the fighters. I don’t know why some of them fail to throw punches at a rate that puts them in position to win or look good regardless of the result. I suspect many of them, after watching the fight on video that night or the next day, say to themselves or those around them: “Damn, I wish I had been a little busier.”
Erickson Lubin got a victory against Terrell Gausha on Saturday night in Uncasville, Conn. But did he make a statement? Probably not.
Erickson Lubin got a victory against Terrell Gausha on Saturday night in Uncasville, Conn., which is the overriding objective of boxing. But did he make the statement he hoped to make? Probably not.
Lubin defeated Gausha by a unanimous decision in the junior middleweight title eliminator, thus putting himself in position to challenge the winner of the title-unification fight between Jermell Charlo and Jeison Rosario next week.
The 24-year-old from Orlando just didn’t look particularly good in the process.
Lubin (23-1, 16 KOs) did just enough to win the majority of the first seven rounds, which isn’t saying much because Gausha (21-2-1, 10 KOs) was curiously inactive.
They both picked up the pace beginning in Round 8 to pump some life into the fight and create a little drama. The most-dramatic moment might’ve come late in Round 10, with Gausha wobbled Lubin with a right hand but Lubin survived and went on to sting Gausha late in the final round.
Otherwise, the fight was forgettable.
The final scores were 115-113, 116-112 and 118-110, all in favor of Lubin. Boxing Junkie had it 117-111 for Lubin.
Lubin has now won five consecutive fights since he was stopped in one round by Charlo in October 2017. And, in his opinion, he did make a statement against Gausha.
“I’d give myself a B- tonight,” he said. “I think the layoff had a little to do with it, but Gausha is a top competitor. He’s at the top of the weight class for a reason. I just want to stay active and get my title shot.
“… I definitely made a statement. I beat one of the top guys in the division, and that’s always a statement. I feel like I beat one of the top 154-pounders, and I’m going to keep doing that. I’m going to stay in the gym and keep getting better.”
Lubin is confident he’ll do well if he gets his title shot.
“I think Jermell Charlo is going to come out on top against Jeison Rosario,” he said. “I’m ready for a rematch if he can take care of business like I did. I changed up a lot since the first fight. I have a master trainer in my corner in Kevin Cunningham, along with my longtime trainer Jason Galarza.
“I’m just all around a better fighter since the first time we fought.”
Gausha, a former U.S. Olympian, is in a difficult position. The 33-year-old is now 1-1-2 in last four fights, with losses against Erislandy Lara and now Lubin. The Gausha of the first seven rounds on Saturday would be no threat to any top 154-pounder. The Gausha of the last five … maybe.
“I take my hat off to Erickson Lubin, he was the better man tonight,” Gausha said. “I bit down and showed true grit, and I have nothing to hang my head for. We both are highly skilled fighters, and we had respect for each other’s game. We were both being cautious and we knew we couldn’t get hit by each other.
“I know I hurt him in the 10th round, but he was able to recover. I was trying to step on the gas and finish him off but he was the better man tonight. I have to give him credit. He was fast, and I was trying to counter him. I make no excuses. We just have to get better.”
Erickson Lubin got a victory against Terrell Gausha on Saturday night in Uncasville, Conn. But did he make a statement? Probably not.
Erickson Lubin got a victory against Terrell Gausha on Saturday night in Uncasville, Conn., which is the overriding objective of boxing. But did he make the statement he hoped to make? Probably not.
Lubin defeated Gausha by a unanimous decision in the junior middleweight title eliminator, thus putting himself in position to challenge the winner of the title-unification fight between Jermell Charlo and Jeison Rosario next week.
The 24-year-old from Orlando just didn’t look particularly good in the process.
Lubin (23-1, 16 KOs) did just enough to win the majority of the first seven rounds, which isn’t saying much because Gausha (21-2-1, 10 KOs) was curiously inactive.
They both picked up the pace beginning in Round 8 to pump some life into the fight and create a little drama. The most-dramatic moment might’ve come late in Round 10, with Gausha wobbled Lubin with a right hand but Lubin survived and went on to sting Gausha late in the final round.
Otherwise, the fight was forgettable.
The final scores were 115-113, 116-112 and 118-110, all in favor of Lubin. Boxing Junkie had it 117-111 for Lubin.
Lubin has now won five consecutive fights since he was stopped in one round by Charlo in October 2017. And, in his opinion, he did make a statement against Gausha.
“I’d give myself a B- tonight,” he said. “I think the layoff had a little to do with it, but Gausha is a top competitor. He’s at the top of the weight class for a reason. I just want to stay active and get my title shot.
“… I definitely made a statement. I beat one of the top guys in the division, and that’s always a statement. I feel like I beat one of the top 154-pounders, and I’m going to keep doing that. I’m going to stay in the gym and keep getting better.”
Lubin is confident he’ll do well if he gets his title shot.
“I think Jermell Charlo is going to come out on top against Jeison Rosario,” he said. “I’m ready for a rematch if he can take care of business like I did. I changed up a lot since the first fight. I have a master trainer in my corner in Kevin Cunningham, along with my longtime trainer Jason Galarza.
“I’m just all around a better fighter since the first time we fought.”
Gausha, a former U.S. Olympian, is in a difficult position. The 33-year-old is now 1-1-2 in last four fights, with losses against Erislandy Lara and now Lubin. The Gausha of the first seven rounds on Saturday would be no threat to any top 154-pounder. The Gausha of the last five … maybe.
“I take my hat off to Erickson Lubin, he was the better man tonight,” Gausha said. “I bit down and showed true grit, and I have nothing to hang my head for. We both are highly skilled fighters, and we had respect for each other’s game. We were both being cautious and we knew we couldn’t get hit by each other.
“I know I hurt him in the 10th round, but he was able to recover. I was trying to step on the gas and finish him off but he was the better man tonight. I have to give him credit. He was fast, and I was trying to counter him. I make no excuses. We just have to get better.”
