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Atlantic City Shocker: Unknown Jaime Herrera Survives Two Knockdowns to Stop Mike Jones in Major Welterweight Upset

By Robert Brizel, Head RCM Boxing Correspondent- Ringside

*Photo Credit: Robert Brizel, Real Combat Media

Atlantic City, NJ (August 24, 2014)–Unknown welterweight Jaime Herrera came off the canvas twice to score one of the welterweight division’s biggest upsets in recent memory when he stopped former International Boxing Federation number two welterweight contender Mike Jones in seven rounds in the main event of an eight bout card in Atlantic City in the Grand Ballroom of Bally’s Hotel and casino promoted by Peltz Promotions.

Jones, 26-2, 19 knockouts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. inactive for over two years, took control, opening the bout with lightning fast jabs, and speedy effective jab combinations which easily won him the first three rounds of the contest. Jones put together an eight punch combination capped by a left hook which put Herrera down near the end of the second round. Herrera beat the count, but staggered off the ropes and appeared finished. However, referee Earl Brown led Herrera to his corner and gave him another chance.

Herrera, 12-2, seven knockouts, Franklin Park, Illinois, came out for round three reinvigorated, and established himself not only as a superior outside fighter to Jones, but a more powerful fighter than Jones as well. Jones seemed not to notice, landing another jab combination capped by a liver shot which put Herrera down on the canvas in the third round for the second time. A frustrated Herrera got up and angrily smashed his fists off the top rope, and appeared ready to take the bout to the next level.

In the exchange of punches from both fighters which followed, an accidental clash of heads opened up a mean cut on the corner of the right eye of Jones, who perhaps had become too overconfident after the second knockdown and underestimated Herrera’s power and will to win. Noted cut man Miguel Diaz did his best in the Jones corner, but Herrera kept landing power shots off the cut, keeping it bleeding and forcing Jones to keep his right hand up to protect the cut from getting worse. Herrera was hungry, and wanted it more.

Jones then tried to fight Herrera one-handed, throwing the left jab. Herrera answered by using both of his hands to land counter power shots and quickly close Jones left eye. The new development left Jones seeing only out of his right eye, with blood from the right eye cut affecting his vision. Herrera then gave Jones a meticulous and frightful beating for four rounds. At the end of round seven, the ringside physician mercifully stopped the bout, as Jones was Jones was defenseless bleeding, near blind, and done. Jones was still ahead 66-55 on all three scorecards, but he had lost the last four rounds staggering around the ring, tried to hang on along the ropes, and took a huge senseless whipping in the process.

Jones still had power, but he did not fight the classical Mike Jones type of fight as a marvelous technical boxer. After scoring the second knockdown, he did maintain the flawless level of consistency he had demonstrated in fights past during his career. In the commentary during Mike Jones versus Randall Bailey, Jones’ previous bout, the late Emanuel Steward noted after Jones got knocked down a failure in concentration that “The reason he (Jones) got caught (is) because he had just stunned Bailey himself, just prior to getting knocked down, and it is relaxation, that’s when he got caught. You need to get right back and try to get Bailey in trouble again.” Jones was thinking after the second knockdown he had done good things, mentally admiring his work with Herrera as he had against Bailey, and dropped his guard briefly, allowing the clash of heads to occur. Then Herrera, like Bailey, took advantage of Jones cut to create the win opportunity.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_5_c8UGlkM Jones versus Bailey 2012 cited highlight

At least one other journalist at ringside wondered why the referee and the ringside physicians had not stopped the bout before the start of round five and gone to the scorecards, in which case Jones would have won 20-17 or 30-25. Likely Jones indicated he felt he could handle it. If so, such a decision of overconfidence was a major tactical mistake.

Jones, who has not won a bout since 2011, and locked himself into contractual disputes before the Bailey bout and juggled his own corner, messed with the winning formula the delicate balance of the corner provides and spelled his own doom out in the process. Former World Middleweight champion Gerald McClellan did similar, pulling trainer Emanuel Steward from his corner before he fought Nigel Benn. Boxing historians, when looking back, must consider when the balance of a corner has demonstrated a proven track record of success, the corner should be left alone. Many fighters do not see it that way, and their careers pay a price. However talented, Iron Mike Tyson was never the same Cus D’Amato prototype fighter, in terms of movement or emotional stability, after dumping his trainer Kevin Rooney Sr. from his corner. Consistency has shown when a fighter thinks they know everything, they lose fights they should have won as mistakes accumulate.

Herrera, 12-2, seven knockouts, Franklin Park, Illinois, might have been regarded by the inactive Jones as a tune up opponent brought in to lay down. As the bout emerged, was evident this was not the case. Herrera came to win, and put his soul on the table, for better or for worse. When the bout ended, Herrera went down on his knees in prayer in a corner and cried. A possible world ranking, and the opportunities of a lifetime, had come true.

When Jones emerged from the dressing room, and later returned, he was cheered on by a harem of screaming women whose presence appeared other than of a fight fan nature. While nothing is proven, in the least it raised the question with this reporter as to how focused Jones was for this bout, and how seriously he took Herrera. A deeper look at Herrera’s record reveals he fought an eight round toe-to-toe action slugfest with Adrian Granados, the principal sparring partner of Juan Manuel Marquez. After eight rounds, one judge had it 77-75 Granados, which should have been a warning sign to Mike Jones great danger loomed on the horizon, and he had better than well-prepared for anything.
In Two of Herrera’s previous bouts, his opponents had a combined record of 17-0, and Herrera beat both unbeaten opponents, stopping 12-0 Michael Finney in five rounds in Las Vegas in March at Texas Station Casino, an indicator serious hard work had been done.

Result: Jaime Herrera Win Referee’s Technical Decision 7 Mike Jones, Welterweights
Referee: Earl Brown. Herrera was down in the second and third rounds.
Jones left eye was swollen shut. Jones right eye had a cut bleeding profusely ongoing.

Bally’s Undercard Fight Results, Referees David Fields and Earl Brown

15-0 Thomas ‘Cornflake’ LaManna Win 8 Jamaal Davis, Middleweights
LaManna landed jabs with power to win every round except the sixth round.
The more experienced Davis took his fight to the inside early, but still lost the rounds.
In rounds five, seven and eight, LaManna landed crisp jabs from the outside out of range.
In round six, Davis got inside with body shots. A defensive LaManna gave the round away.
Ishmael Garcia Win 6 Gilbert Alex Sanchez, Junior Middleweights
Power hitter Garcia had to work hard to beat technical fighter Sanchez.

Anthony Caramano Win 4 Marquise Pierce, Super Bantamweights
Pierce delivered round three knockdown surprise. Caramano in hard fought win.

Omar Curry Draw 4 Marvin Johnson, Debuting Lightweights
200 amateur bout debuting Johnson slugs it out with debuting Curry of Atlantic City.

Grashino Yancy Win Split Decision 4 Carlos Rosario, Debuting Junior Lightweights
Both fighters had amateur backgrounds and came to fight. Scoring depended on viewpoint.

Joe Cusomano KO 2 Randy Easton, Heavyweights (2:36)
8-1 Cusomano landed a liver shot, and knocked out Pennsylvania journeyman Easton.

Nick Valliere TKO 2 Greg Thomas, Junior Middleweight Swing Bout (1:20)
Wild wide swinging 2-0 New Jersey fighter Valliere, young and strong, beats 0-4 Thomas.

 

 

 

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