Thurman Edges Porter on CBS, Kownacki Rises
By Robert Brizel, Head Real Combat Media Boxing Correspondent- Ringside
New York, NY (June 28th, 2016)– In the main event of a nine bout card at Barclays Center on Saturday evening, June 25, 2016, promoted by Premier Boxing Champions and DiBella Promotions, the first live boxing telecast on the CBS Network in 38 years since Muhammad Ali versus Leon Spinks II, Keith Thurman retained his World Boxing Association World Welterweight title with a close controversial decision over challenger Shawn Porter which had the crowd booing. All three judges consistently scored the bout 115-113 for Thurman. Real Combat Media scored the bout 115-113 for Porter.
The bout was exciting, with the crowd cheering every punch which landed by both combatants. Over twelve thousand boxing fans crowd into Barclays Center to watch the card, the second largest attendance in the brief history of the Barclays Center. The gross ticket sales were over 1.1 million dollars, the box office record for Barclays Center.
Thurman, 27-0 with 22 knockouts, Clearwater, Florida, and Porter, 26-2 with 16 knockouts, Las Vegas, Nevada, came to put on an entertaining show, and gave fight fans at the live event as well as CBS television viewers, the fight of a lifetime-and much more.
They went at it for all 12 rounds. Porter began with fantastic foot movement, trying pressure the defensive Thurman and walk him down. Porter appeared to win the majority of the first nine rounds, enough to win the fight, by putting a decent whupping on the defensive Thurman, whose shell like defense had holes Porter punctured with consistent here and there power shots. Porter’s pursuit of Thurman was relentless, but by the eighth round both combatants had relaxed in the ring. This change in ring posture enabled Thurman to get back into the bout to a certain extent and win rounds. The pace had slowed, enabling Thurman to score some harder punches on Porter, was not moving as much and not landing very much through Thurman’s crackerjack defense by that point.
Thurman clearly won the last three rounds. Some rounds in the bout were close to score.
The crowd booed the decision. Most press had the bout a point or two in either direction.
It appeared Thurman’s status as world champion enabled him to win the bout on the cards, and a televised rematch could be justified. The real winner of the event was CBS Television, who got 22 rounds of entertaining excitement for public broadcast. Every boxing fan in attendance at Barclays, and those who watched on television at home, got their money’s worth and more. The different between the prime time CBS of today and the prime time CBS of yesterday is back in the Tim Ryan, Gil Clancy and Sugar Ray Leonard era, CBS broadcast professional boxing outright. In the new era of USA Showtime and Premier Boxing Champions, the CBS television slot had to be purchased. Viewership ratings will have to justify CBS doing this again. The initial preliminary response seems promising in the result, in terms of Premier Boxing Champions and CBS Television putting on another public television event in the near future in 2016.
Argentinian fans waved flags and were in attendance, however the previously scheduled World Boxing Association World Featherweight title bout defense between champion Jesus Marcelo Andres Cuellar of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Mexican-American challenger Abner Mares was cancelled when one of Mares eyes tested less than the minimum 10/200 required by the New York State Athletic Commission.
Result: Keith Thurman Win 12 Shawn Porter, Welterweights
Thurman retains the World Boxing Association World Welterweight title.
Scoring: 115-113, 115-113, and 115-113 for Thurman. No knockouts, clean bout.
Referee: Steve Willis
In the preliminary to the main event, super welterweight prospect Jarrett Hurd of Accokeek, Maryland, went to 17-0 with 12 knockouts, with an impressive tenth round stoppage of ex-Olympian Oscar Molina, now 13-1-1 with ten knockouts, Norwalk, California. Molina’s last two opponents have a combined record of 34-0. Coming off a ten round draw with 17-0 Dominique Dalton, Molina got dropped for a flash knockdown after getting hit with an uppercut in round one, forcing Molina’s glove to touch the canvas briefly. There was no count. Hurd gained momentum, though. Molina trailed Hurd on all three scorecards from that point on. One judge had Hurd winning the first nine rounds.
Hurd, who demonstrated he had power to go along with his height and reach advantage, fought smartly, scoring with his jab to win most rounds on points but without punching himself out. By round eight, Molina, having been hit with a great many head and body shots, needed a knockout to win, but he was tiring. A flurry of power shots had Molina reeling backwards with his hands down, causing referee Ricky Gonzalez to stop the contest.
Result: Jarrett Hurd TKO 10 Oscar Molina, Super Welterweights (2:02)
Molina was down in the first round. Referee: Ricky Gonzalez
A televised memorial ten count was done for Muhammad Ali. Announcer: Jimmy Lennon
An untelevised memorial ten count was done for noted boxing writer Jack Obermeyer (1944-2016), who died the morning of the Thurman-Port fight card at his home in Staten Island, New York and missed the event. During his 50 year career as a boxing journalist which began in 1965, Obermeyer covered 3,914 boxing cards in 49 American states in over 400 cities. Announcer: David Diamante.
Barclays Center Bout Results on Untelevised Portion of Card
Referees: Ricky Gonzalez, Shada Murdaugh, and Harvey Dock (Dock-Walkout Bout Only)
Regis Prograis TKO 4 Luis Eduardo Florez, Super Lightweights (1:47)
Prograis drops taller opponent in first, and stops him in fourth round with power shots.
Prograis wins vacant NABF Junior Super Lightweight title. Supervisor: Jill Diamond
David Benevidez TKO 7 Francy Ntetu, Light Heavyweights (1:30)
Referee Shada Murdaugh strangely stops bout in midst of competitive exchange between both boxers. Ntetu held much during the contest without penalty. Referee’s privilege.
Adam Kownacki TKO 3 Jesse Barboza, Heavyweights (0:56, Walkout Swing Bout)
14-0 Polish heavyweight prospect Kownacki landed power shots on covering 11-1 Barboza.
Only bout of night refereed by Harvey Dock. Available for TV if main event ended early.
Heather Hardy Win 8 Kirstie Simmons, Female Featherweights (Two Minute Rounds)
World ranked 17-0 female featherweight Hardy near ready for world title shot by DiBella.
Jonathan Alonzo Win 6 Brian Jones, Welterweights
10-0 Dominican super lightweight Alonzo wins every round. Fought at welterweight.
Josue Vargas Win 4 Ryan Picou, Welterweights
4-0 welterweight prospect Vargas, age 18, had hands full with 2-10-1 Vegas ringer Picou.
Nicklaus Flaz KO 1 Mack Babb, Junior Middleweights (1:13)
3-0 DiBella Junior middleweight prospect Flaz wasted no time getting down to business.
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