Sulem Urbina 12-0 (2) 1 NC from Phoenix, AZ
Marlen Esparza 7-1 (1) USA Olympic Bronze 2012 Games from Houston, TX
Esparza black pink Urbina White
WBC flyweight eliminator to take on champion Ibeth Zamora Silva
Round 1: Urbina out with the jab and left hook. Urbina the aggressor as the heads coming in . Esparza was cut badly in her loss to Estrada. Non stop punching neither being hurt. Tie up near the end as they exchange hooks inside. Very close and active first round for both competitors.
Round 2: High pace in the middle of the ring with back and forth. Urbina put an overhand right over the jab and scored. Inside Esparza held and Urbina scores with the free hand. Esparza again looks to grab and Urbina slings a right over the arm and scores. Urbina tries a left hook to the body as Esparza comes over the top with a looping right hand. Urbina flurries to finish the round. Kind of like Taylor vs Persoon with skill vs pressure. Urbina pushing the pace and taking counters but Esparza moving effectively.
Round 3: Urbina starts straight ahead behind the jab but is not taking her head off the line. Esparza is staying lower and trying to time Urbina. They exchange body flurries. Esparza ducks under and scores with a counter hook. Esparza tries a flurry but Urbina lands a hard left hook. Esparza bounces on her toes confidently facing her corner. This is a close fight. In between rounds the corner works closely on Esparza’s left eye though there is not any clear damage.
Round 4: Esparza throws 3 or 4 as a flurry but a hook mixes in with solid power. Esparza backing up and digging in to fire her 1-2 as she times Urbina. Urbina goes a little more defensive as she sits back and slips a few jabs. Solid left hook from Urbina as Esparza tries to finish a flurry and get out. Urbina lets both hands go at the ten second clap, tight round. Urbina may have carried it.
Round 5: Urbina comes out bobbing and weaving and bolos with her right hand. Esparza is staying sharp with the left hook to the body and then doubling it to the head. Esparza stays on the left hook with the first missing but a follow up getting through. Urbina ate a solid left hook with little time in the round looks like the mouthpiece fell out. Esparza comfortably took the round as Urbina struggled to land.
Round 6: Urbina pursues in a high guard with a more patient pressure, Urbina tries an overhand right as Esparza charges in but it is ineffective. Esparza stays just on the outside as Urbina is following her but not sticking the jab out enough. Esparza lined up a hard straight right to the body. Urbina tries a double jab as Esparza counters back. A few misses by Urbina but a good work rate as Esparza is creating misses but not always countering effectively. Another close round.
Round 7: Urbina’s left eye shows the damage of a tough 6 round fight. Esparza catching and shooting with a left hook. Urbina tries a 3 punch combo but is caught with a right hand down the middle. Urbina wades in as Esparza uses her left hand to block her off. Urbina tries a left hook body then head but it lacked snap and Esparza returned the favor with a hook to the body of her own. Esparza pumps her fist at the bell feeling good heading into the final round.
Round 8: Urbina is bobbing in but ducking her head right into Esparza’s right hand. Urbina scores and traps Esparza as Esparza is then shoved to the canvas. Esparza tries a jab, cross, hook and Urbina slips around the shots but cannot score back. Esparza keeps a tight stances in mid range behind her jab. Urbina tries to throw hooks but the shots are off the mark. Active 8th round. This fight is close. I did not score it myself but this fight feels like 77-75 for Esparza maybe even 78-74. Urbina threw a lot but Esparza was the quality over the quantity.
Final: Rudy Barrigan and Lou Moret 80-72 and Chris Migliore 78-74 unanimous decision for Esparza
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