Rafael Marquez stops Israel Vazquez in three
by Scott Christ on May 22, 2010 10:51 PM EDT
in Boxing Results and Post-Fight Analysis
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As many expected, the old eye injuries were a problem for Israel Vazquez, and the warrior was stopped in the third round by his great rival, Rafael Marquez.
Marquez (39-5, 35 KO) and Vazquz (44-5, 32 KO) battled hard in the first round, but by the end of it, Vazquez was already bleeding from his left eye. The second was all Marquez, and the third saw Vazquez bleeding heavily from over both eyes. Vazquez took a knee at one point, fought on, and referee Raul Caiz Jr. was forced to stop the action just moments later.
This was exactly what I expected. That is not Israel Vazquez anymore, because he can't make it out of a round with anyone remotely capable and not have his eyes bust open. Marquez may not be the fighter he once was, but he still looks to have something left. Vazquez just doesn't. I scored the first round for Israel on some good power shots, but I don't think he has the power anymore, either.
But nothing about Vazquez's pure remaining skill is the problem. It's the eyes. He's not going to be able to win fights without knocking guys out fast.
There's talk of a fifth fight now. If they sign that, I'll flat-out protest. There is no need. This exact same thing will happen once again. I don't want to see Pacquiao-Morales IV, either. Erik Morales ain't Erik Morales anymore, and Israel Vazquez is not even close to the fighter he used to be. He's going to need more surgery, which Israel hinted at after the fight, and at some point, enough is more than enough.
In the co-feature, Yonnhy Perez (20-0-1, 14 KO) retained his IBF bantamweight title in a very good fight against Abner Mares (20-0-1, 13 KO) with a majority draw. One judge scored it 115-113 for Mares, and the other two had it 114-114. Bad Left Hook scored it 116-112 for Mares, and almost all of us in the live thread had it for the challenger. It was a hell of a good fight that deserves an immediate rematch. I think a rematch could be even better, given what they learned about one another in this one.
Near the end of the broadcast, Vazquez and Marquez were shown in the ring holding up five fingers each. Gary Shaw smiled and did the same. I groaned.
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ARGHHHH!!! Guess who missed this fight thinking it would start later?
I came back home just in time to see Vasquez’s gigantic looking cut. Such a shame. And reading the RBR I assume that Israel is a shot fighter and was a shell of his former self against Rafael.
Also, does Jim Gray speak fluent Spanish? He just nodded to everything Marquez said in that interview.
"It's fourth and fifteen and you're looking at a full-court press." - Lt. Frank Drebin, Police Squad
Israel still has a BIT of offensive spark, but he couldn’t trade with Rafael like he used to. And it doesn’t take Rafael Marquez power to open up those cuts either. Far lesser fighters than Rafael Marquez are going to be able to beat him from here on out. Angel Antonio Priolo isn’t any damn good at all and was giving Vazquez problems last year. He’s not even close to what he used to be.
Bad Left Hook
"To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day..."
by Scott Christ on May 22, 2010 10:59 PM EDT up reply actions
By the way, I’m not meaning to criticize Vazquez. He is the way he is because he fought the way he did, and he sure as hell gave us great fights, more than just the Marquez trilogy. He’s one of the few guys I’ll gladly call a “warrior” and he’ll always be one of my favorite fighters. He was genuinely inspiring to watch. But he can’t do that anymore.
Bad Left Hook
"To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day..."
by Scott Christ on May 22, 2010 11:00 PM EDT up reply actions
He is totally done. That scar tissue is the worse I have ever seen. He is done. Damaged goods,but he was and is a
warrior.
Good, so it can’t go any deeper – Arturo Gatti after being told he was cut to the bone
by The Midnight Rambler on May 22, 2010 11:01 PM EDT up reply actions
Look at the good news. You at least missed Gus Johnson who continues to lead in the voting for worse announcer in history.
I particularly liked it when he said that these two guys fought 3 times within one year, and the added that two of their fights were “Fight of the Year.” Guy is an imbecile who does not understand boxing or what is going on during a fight. Thank God for Tarver.
Good, so it can’t go any deeper – Arturo Gatti after being told he was cut to the bone
by The Midnight Rambler on May 22, 2010 11:08 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Meant for SSreporters
Good, so it can’t go any deeper – Arturo Gatti after being told he was cut to the bone
by The Midnight Rambler on May 22, 2010 11:08 PM EDT up reply actions
They did fight three times within one year. March 2007-March 2008. And two fights won Fight of the Year (second and third fights).
Bad Left Hook
"To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day..."
by Scott Christ on May 22, 2010 11:08 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
No disagreement there. OOH! JAB! OOH!
Bad Left Hook
"To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day..."
by Scott Christ on May 22, 2010 11:41 PM EDT up reply actions
Gus will be on Madden '11.
I can take his screaming there even if Madden once again fails to deliver.
"It's fourth and fifteen and you're looking at a full-court press." - Lt. Frank Drebin, Police Squad
by SSreporters on May 22, 2010 11:51 PM EDT up reply actions
ugh
It’ll be like playing NFL Blitz or something
Bad Left Hook
"To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day..."
by Scott Christ on May 22, 2010 11:57 PM EDT up reply actions
If whenever chris johnson breaks away from the defense, Gus proudly says “He’s got running away from the cops speed” then I might have to buy that game.
by Waldo Rastel on May 24, 2010 4:42 AM EDT up reply actions
AARRRGH
Good, so it can’t go any deeper – Arturo Gatti after being told he was cut to the bone
by The Midnight Rambler on May 23, 2010 10:33 AM EDT up reply actions
Tarver gets better every time I hear him
And he and Al have very nice rapport .
Although detractors decry (MMA) as a brutal, bloody form of human cockfighting, aficionados know it is a brutal, bloody, totally fucking awesome form of human cockfighting. -The Onion
by The Kittitas Kid on May 23, 2010 6:53 PM EDT up reply actions
Definitely
I beat the “Al is awesome” drum a lot, but I feel that he deserves it. The man is well spoken and really, really knows boxing.
"All the time he's boxing, he's thinking. All the time he was thinking, I was hitting him." - Jack Dempsey
by Drunken cutman on May 24, 2010 6:41 AM EDT up reply actions
Bernstein’s the best in the business.
Bad Left Hook
"To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day..."
by Scott Christ on May 24, 2010 3:11 PM EDT up reply actions
Agreed
Watching this fight was depressing for me. Izzy is one of my favorite fighters and watching those cuts open up was gruesome. It’s not so much that Izzy lost that hurts- it’s the realization that this proud warrior should not fight any more. Congrats to Marquez and good luck to Izzy.
by AsianSensation on May 22, 2010 10:55 PM EDT reply actions
Me too
Good, so it can’t go any deeper – Arturo Gatti after being told he was cut to the bone
by The Midnight Rambler on May 22, 2010 11:01 PM EDT up reply actions
Ditto that
watching this was like watching adults busting a Pinata. not fun at all.
Ultimately this was a race to see if Vasquez could land some kind of game changer early enough to stop the inevitable: a stoppage on cuts predisposed to open upon contact.
I see some people are comparing this to Pacquiao-Morales III, which IMO is daft. Morales was overwhelmed by a physical force. Vazquez was overwhelmed by his own eyelids more than anything.
Bad Left Hook
"To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day..."
Agreed
there is no comparison. Marquez had one mission. Cut him and get him out as fast as possible. That he did so is fair enough …but comparing Manny’s growth and domination of Morales is daft indeed.
I hope to not do a FP post about this, but if anyone really thinks a fifth fight between these two is a good idea, they’re either stupid or cruel.
Bad Left Hook
"To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day..."
by Scott Christ on May 22, 2010 11:11 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs
Word.
Although detractors decry (MMA) as a brutal, bloody form of human cockfighting, aficionados know it is a brutal, bloody, totally fucking awesome form of human cockfighting. -The Onion
by The Kittitas Kid on May 23, 2010 6:54 PM EDT up reply actions
I thought this fight was a bad idea…only Bob Arum would try to make a fifth fight.
by Waldo Rastel on May 24, 2010 4:45 AM EDT up reply actions
Or both
I would hope though not expect that Marquez would be sportsman enough not to do so either.
This fight should have never been allowed to happen
That eye cut was both predictable and about the nastiest thing I’ve ever seen. It was worse than the Lewis-Klitschko cut. Much worse. As Antonio Tarver put it, it was almost like his eyebrow was flipped back over itself. And you could see as Vasquez walked in before a punch was thrown.
So what do we get? A cheap fight with a great champion truly injured, another great fighter with a phyric victory and a silver worthless belt, and fans left waiting for a rematch of the first fight of the night, not the last one.
Vote Quimby
by mason_beer on May 22, 2010 11:26 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs
dont care what no one says..
Get that eye fixed and Bring on Vazquez vs. Marquez 5. I love these guys. True warriors
by LJchamp on May 23, 2010 12:20 AM EDT via mobile reply actions
Those eyes can’t be fixed. The scar tissue is obscene and will bust open every single time against every single opponent who can hit him.
Bad Left Hook
"To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day..."
by Scott Christ on May 23, 2010 12:29 AM EDT up reply actions
That sucks..and I’m not stupid or cruel by the way for wanting them to fight again. I just assumed it could happen since Vazquez is so down for it. I’m no doctor so yeah..but anyway. They put on a hell of show in their trilogy fights. Forever classics in boxing history.
by LJchamp on May 23, 2010 12:33 AM EDT via mobile up reply actions
I love both guys, and you’re not the “stupid/cruel” type I was referring to either. I hate seeing Vazquez as wrecked up as he is. The spirit is not even close to out of him, but physically he just can’t do it. And it’s not like it’s a huge trigger issue or anything like that, just that his eyes are going to get fights stopped inside of five rounds no matter what he does. Unless he takes a guy out VERY fast, he’s screwed from now on. Which sucks, of course.
Bad Left Hook
"To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day..."
by Scott Christ on May 23, 2010 1:10 AM EDT up reply actions
But hey, at least we got the trilogy fights to watch over and over. Am I right ? :) it be so sick if they make a blu-ray dvd set of the trilogy fights.
by LJchamp on May 23, 2010 1:24 AM EDT via mobile up reply actions
I do too. Vic’s just too small. I don’t think there’s ever a point in Vic’s career where he can overcome Marquez’s power and size advantages. Darchinyan couldn’t dent Agbeko at 118, he’s not going to beat Marquez. But Vic taking that fight (and he’d take it) is pretty ballsy.
Bad Left Hook
"To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day..."
by Scott Christ on May 23, 2010 2:37 AM EDT up reply actions
off topic but,
have you guys read this already? — They quoted Manny saying that he already agreed to Floyd’s stipulations on testing, but then Floyd said he wanted tests done right before the fight starts… http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=577359&publicationSubCategoryId=69
Vasquez is a great warrior.
The very fact that he walked out into the center of the ring to meet Marquez in the 3rd round with that cut already ghastly spoke volumes. There he was ….not simply wounded but mutilated yet nevertheless ready for more. To go out fighting. Thankfully, for him and for us it was not on his shield.
I was reminded sentimentally of one of my ATF, Smokin’ Joe Frazier; a man whose heart and spirit sadly were housed in an architecture to short and ultimately too small for the warriors he so valiantly fought. Joe would have ( and virtually did) fought blind if necessary . Nor he would he ever have stopped or quit. Thankfully, Eddie Futch was for there to protect Joe.
I hope someone is for Israel
Teddy Atlas got this one right and his comments touched on "The Ghosts of Manilla."
Good, so it can’t go any deeper – Arturo Gatti after being told he was cut to the bone
by The Midnight Rambler on May 23, 2010 10:37 AM EDT reply actions
One of the easiest fight to predict in recent memory.
Good, so it can’t go any deeper – Arturo Gatti after being told he was cut to the bone
by The Midnight Rambler on May 23, 2010 2:47 PM EDT reply actions
I don’t recall ever being so sure about my own pick before. Usually I try to see both sides as fully as I can, and it often leads me to see what doesn’t happen as much as what does. This one there was no question. There was not a remote chance that Vazquez won this fight, IMO.
Bad Left Hook
"To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day..."
by Scott Christ on May 23, 2010 2:49 PM EDT up reply actions
Absolutley a slam dunk pick. I agree with you. It was never who; it was when.
Good, so it can’t go any deeper – Arturo Gatti after being told he was cut to the bone
by The Midnight Rambler on May 23, 2010 7:19 PM EDT up reply actions
I'm glad that the promoters don't seem
to want a fifth fight—showing some decency or fiscal awareness.
Either way, let the next time these two meet be over a Tecate.
by Don From Prov on May 23, 2010 4:49 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs
Over a Tecate when one of them is inducted into the Hall of Fame, and then over another one when the second man enters.
Bad Left Hook
"To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day..."
by Scott Christ on May 23, 2010 5:08 PM EDT up reply actions
obv depends on their retirement, but that could be pretty rad. i can imagine them being a little older doing the fight conference pose but at the HoF instead of some shtity stage.
Texans 19-0 in 2010-2011 season PERIOD
by battle axe of doom on May 24, 2010 3:34 AM EDT up reply actions
over a san miguel*
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dbMd4QOsfDA
Texans 19-0 in 2010-2011 season PERIOD
by battle axe of doom on May 24, 2010 3:34 AM EDT up reply actions
Hilarious!
How old is that? Pacquiao looks a bit younger than he is now.
"All the time he's boxing, he's thinking. All the time he was thinking, I was hitting him." - Jack Dempsey
by Drunken cutman on May 24, 2010 6:43 AM EDT up reply actions
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