SWEATING IT OUT IN VEGAS

June 24, 2006

Michael Buffer said it: "Somebody's '0' has got to go," and Saturday night's fight goers saw just that. With temperatures reaching the 100s outside at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, both matches lasted the entire twelve rounds, testing the endurance and skill of all four fighters. But in the end someone had to give up that perfect record and both Joel Julio and Timur Ibragimov went home with that '0' no longer intact.

Ibragimov, unable to find his groove, struggled early in the fight to establish a good opening against a defensive and steady Brock. Ibragimov continually locked Brock up in a series of frustrating clinches through-out the first three rounds. The two fighters remained in a state of defensive tap-dancing until early in the fifth when Brock, seeing his opening, unleashed several solid rights in a single flurry, starting the gradual decline of Ibragimov's confidence and accuracy. The European fighter was unable to land any lasting blows, leaving Brock with numerous opportunities to land twice as many shots as his opponent. In the end it was a clear trip to the bank for Brock -- the match was scored 119/109, 117/111, and 115/113 -- who seemed confident that this was one step closer to answering questions about his ability to contend for the dominance of the Heavyweight division.

Joel Julio also seemed able to answer the question posed by recent press attention: "Can he take punches from a strong challenger and still return the action?" The answer was a resounding yes. However, Carlos Quintana had a much louder challenge, "What else you got?" While the aggressive first round showed a powerful Julio scoring a flash knockdown and head-hunting for a winning punch, Vegas heat and Quintana's experience gained an advantage quickly. By the third round, Quintana was out-classing the younger fighter with more patience, speed, skill, and confidence.

As the fight continued, Quintana's strategy of drawing Julio in, wearing him out with consistent jabs and shuddering body blows proved to be a winner. Though Julio rallied several times late in the fight, landing seemingly stunning blows several times, Quintana fought back, unfazed. An obviously tired and frustrated Julio, fighting past 10 rounds for the first time in his professional career, couldn't find Quintana's sweet spot as the fight closed in an upset, unanimous decision for Carlos Quintana after twelve well fought rounds.