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Power-punching junior welterweight Shohjahon Ergashev had his struggles tonight, but in the end picked up another win in a ShoBox main event, beating Mykal Fox by scores of 96-94, 98-92, and 98-92.
BLH had the fight 96-94 for Fox, but that’s not an argument that this was a robbery. The 98-92 scores for Ergashev were wide, but Ergashev getting the win isn’t terrible or anything.
Ergashev (16-0, 14 KO) got a learning experience if nothing else, although he’s unlikely to fight many more 6’4”, 140-pound opponents. The native of Uzbekistan, now based in Detroit, struggled to land power shots on Fox (19-1, 5 KO), who tried to use his size and reach to his advantage.
Right now, Ergashev is a fighter who seems to load up too much and relies too frequently on nothing but power shots. He landed two of 104 jabs in this fight, and against higher-level, skilled opposition, things like that could be a major problem.
But he does have explosive power, which we got at least a little glimpse of in the 10th round, which he won clearly. He didn’t wind up needing it, but he fought like he did, and that was good to see. He’s definitely still a prospect to watch, and again, it’s not like he’s going to face a lot of guys who are as awkward as Fox.
For the fight, Ergashev landed 68 of 329 (21%) of his total punches, and 66 of 225 (29%) power shots. Fox landed 93 of 433 (21%) total punches, and 41 of 153 (27%) power shots, and out-jabbed Ergashev 52-2.
In the co-feature, British super bantamweight prospect Thomas Patrick Ward was very impressive, dominating Jesse Hernandez in the co-feaure. Ward (26-0, 4 KO) won on scores of 98-91, 99-90, and 100-89. BLH had it 99-90 for Ward, giving Hernandez (12-2, 7 KO) only the final round. Hernandez was down in the fourth round.
Ward, 24, landed 207 total power punches, and more importantly, landed at an excellent 52% clip. He battered the 28-year-old Hernandez for the majority of the bout, picking him apart to the point that referee Bill Clancy warned Hernandez a few times that he was close to stopping the fight. It never quite got there, but it was an outstanding U.S. debut for Ward.