Herrera Shocks Williams!
Estrada Wins...

May 22, 2008 - Twin River Events Center, Lincoln, RI
Ringside Report: Scott Ploof at Ringside
Photos: Emily Harney

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There is only one thing that is for certain in the sport of professional boxing and that is nothing is for certain.

Such was the case on Friday night at the Twin River Events Center in Lincoln, Rhode Island as in the main event of ESPN2's Friday Night Fights, Jose Luis "Pantera" Herrera (16-4, 16 KOs) scored the biggest victory of his career as he stopped previously undefeated "Awesome" Aaron Williams (17-1-1, 12 KOs) midway through the fifth round of their scheduled ten round bout. The "Ring Warriors" fight card was promoted by Jimmy Burchfield's Classic Entertainment and Sports.

It was Williams however who dominated the bout from the opening round. He came out firing hooks at his stunned opponent causing Herrera to fall to the canvas. Herrera was able to recover from the knockdown only to be greeted with more right hooks from the aggressive Williams. As the first came to a close it seemed as if it would only be a matter of time before Williams stopped him and ended the main event early.

Showing his toughness by coming out of his corner for round two, Herrera landed a hook that appeared to land almost on the back of Williams' head. Williams missed with a hook and was quickly countered by Herrera who at this point seemed to get his legs back underneath him. After having a busy first round, Williams appeared to significantly slowed his output as he was looked for an opening to land one hard shot that could put Herrera right back into trouble. This opening became harder and harder to find for Williams as the fight wore on.

Herrera worked well with his jab in the third round as he kept the charging Williams at a safe distance and off balance. Williams did connect with a big left and right hook combination that had Herrera backed into the ropes. Herrera missed and Williams countered with three strong body shots at the end of the round that again appeared to take its toll.

As the fourth round commenced, Herrera landed a big right hook on his adversary. Williams had slowed down his aggressive style while his opponent continued to throw and land jabs. Williams still landed the stronger and harder punches in the round, but they were sporadic. It was at the end of the round that Herrera could sense that Williams was getting tired in there as he watched him head back towards his corner.

Herrera continued to land and stun Williams with his jab and straight right hand as the fifth round commenced. Williams took a lot of punishment from Herrera without a counter or response. He then landed a big right hook that sent Williams flying backward that the ropes were the only thing that kept him from hitting the canvas. This prompted referee Charlie Dwyer to administer a standing eight count. Williams staggered around the ring but appeared at least in the view of the referee to be able to continue the contest. It was clear that he didn't know where he was as he stumbled around the ring a bit.

When the fight resumed, Herrera instantly charged after Williams who basically then fell to the canvas very noticeably hurt to avoid the onslaught his opponent was about to bring. After getting knocked down twice in the fifth round, Williams was then examined by the ringside physician. He determined at that time that Williams was unable to continue as it seemed that he was unaware of his surroundings. Herrera scored the shocking TKO victory at 1:58 of the fifth round.

After the fight, Jose Luis Herrera as translated by his manager Luis de Cubas Jr. spoke with the media about his big victory. He was first asked if he was surprised by the outcome of the fight. "At first he caught me early with a really good shot and thanks to my trainer, who put me through a hell of a camp, basically gave us a chance to recoup and then come up big. So I really showed the world who I am tonight."

When asked what got him through the first round, Herrera responded by saying, "He hit me with a huge shot, a knockout punch and had me out on my feet but thanks to my veteran abilities and the corner told me not to worry and not to rush it, let the fight come little by little. If the fight comes little by little, this guy is going to run out of gas and that is exactly what happened. Then I caught him with the big shot."

He was then asked how badly hurt was he early on. "I was really, really hurt I am going to be honest but with my conditioning, I basically moved a little, got my legs back under me, and made a fight out of this," Herrera replied afterwards. "It was a very complicated situation but with me being a veteran I felt I needed to get control of myself. I kept moving side to side and when I went back to my corner after the round was over, they were telling me that this was a ten round fight. That this kid has never been that distance and that he would not last that long in there. That the knockout was going to come and we could tell he was tired and fighting in there with his mouth wide open, so it was only a matter of time."

On the knockdown and then the stoppage of Williams, "I was a little shaken after I knocked him down and then afterwards he fell down again, I could tell that the kid was really hurt. When he got back up I knew there was still plenty of time left in the round, so I was going to stay on my game. The kid was so out on his feet that the doctor stopped the fight. That sometimes is how things play out in this sport."

When asked if he was glad about the doctor stopping the fight, Herrera responded by saying, "He is a young fighter and a great, great fighter, very slick and he has all the tools. It was definitely the best thing they could have done was stop the fight because he was out on his feet and at that point I could have hurt him really bad if it were to continue."

Herrera was then asked if he should remain at this current weight of 190 pounds or return back to fighting at the light heavyweight limit of 175. He responded by saying, "This is my weight 100 percent. I feel strong here. I kept doing 175 pounds but kept feeling really weak. I was doing it just to come over here to fight and my old management team wanted me to stay at 175. I came in with my new team here at this weight and feel really strong here which is why I was able to recover early on when I did and one day I am going to be a champion at 200 pounds and that is a promise."

Herrera vs Williams Photos

Lundy Decisions Almarez!

In an excellent display of great matchmaking by matchmaker Ted Panagiotis, two young up and coming junior middleweights were featured on national television in the ESPN2 swing bout. Featured was Philadelphia's "Hammering" Hank Lundy (11-0-1, 6 KOs) as he kept his perfect record intact by capturing a close and hard fought four round unanimous decision over current Texas state title holder Steve Almarez (7-1, 4 KOs) in an all action fight that left the fans wanting more. Scores of the bout were 38-37 twice and 38-36.

Both fighters were sent to the canvas in the first round. Almarez first sent Lundy to the canvas and it was ruled a knockdown however it appeared more of a slip. Lundy later in the round sent Almarez to the canvas with a right hook. He was able to recover and finish out the explosive round that showed both give it their all.

Lundy continued to outwork Almarez by beating him to the punch and by landing effective combinations in the second and third rounds. He continued to utilize his speed with his fast footwork as he was explosive working off his jab to land straight left and right hook combinations.

Early in the fourth and final round, Almarez dropped Lundy with a right hook that appeared to connect at the same time as he slipped with his footing which caused a standing eight count. Lundy got right up and showed he was not hurt at all as he went right back to work connecting with a combination to the body and a right hook that landed flush on the jaw of his foe as the final bell sounded ending the fight.

With such great back and forth action from both fighters, a rematch would definitely not be out of the question. Both fighters displayed great heart and in particular "Hammering" Hank Lundy as he came off of the canvas twice in the fight to still walk away with the unanimous decision victory.

Lundy vs Almarez Photos

Estrada Stops Witherspoon!

"Big Six" scored a big victory in the co-feature of ESPN2's Friday Night Fights as Jason "Big Six" Estrada (13-1, 3 KOs) was able to record his third professional knockout in front of a nationwide audience as he stopped veteran Moultrie Witherspoon (20-5-1, 17 KOs) halfway through the seventh round. Referee Joey Luppino stopped the bout at 1:38 of the round as Witherspoon was not fighting back and unable to defend himself.

The 2004 Olympian Estrada had Witherspoon hurt and almost out in the second round but the toughness of Witherspoon kept him in the fight and able to continue. From there Estrada was dominant in connecting with his right hand which Witherspoon was unable to stop all night.

Estrada went right after Witherspoon immediately in the first round as he landed with hooks to his rib cage. "Big Six," who with only two prior stoppages over his thirteen fight professional career has not been known for his explosive punching ability, however tried to prove his critics wrong as he went right after his opponent working well on the inside of the much taller Witherspoon.

Witherspoon continued to trade with Estrada as he countered with a punishing right hook and uppercut combination. Estrada countered as the first came to a close as Witherspoon after receiving a left hook, right hook, and uppercut combination was backed into the ropes and seemed dazed as the bell sounded.

In the second round, Estrada went right after his adversary like a shark on the hunt as he continued to be successful in landing the uppercut and right hook combination on Witherspoon. Another big right hook from Estrada and now Witherspoon is bleeding from his face. It appeared as if referee Joey Luppino was literally inches away from stepping in to stop the fight as Estrada had landed several unanswered punches. "Big Six" looking a little perplexed by the situation stopped throwing punches as if he thought the fight was going to be over. With the brief pause in action, this gave Witherspoon the time he needed to regain his balance and get back into the fight. Estrada landed another straight right as the round came to a close.

"I thought he was going to go right out but he staggered around early but there was no standing eight count so that was a little different for me because I have not fought like that since my first pro bout. That was a little new to me because when I caught him early and I hurt him, I thought the referee was going to jump in and stop it so I took a little step back, so I have to get used to that. All in all it was a good fight and he is a good guy and came in here to survive and he took some good shots," said Estrada about the second round afterwards.

By the start of round three, both fighters began to settle down as Estrada continued to connect to the body of Witherspoon with short hooks to his midsection, while Witherspoon continued to find a way to get some offensive pressure on his hometown opponent.

The body work began to show its dividends in the fourth round as "Big Six" continued to chip away at Witherspoon with hooks to the body and a right hook that did not miss the jaw of his opposition all night long. Witherspoon continued to absorb punishment while moving around the ring. He was not throwing many punches as he continued to find a way to keep "Big Six" away from him.

The pace of the bout continued into the seventh round as Estrada stunned Witherspoon with an uppercut and left hook to the body as if "Big Six" were chopping away at an oak tree. Estrada continued to land with hard shots until referee Joey Luppino had seen enough and waived his arms in the air stopping the bout.

"It was a good win," said Estrada to the media afterwards. "The dude was a little tougher than I thought. He kind of got smarter after I hit him with a couple shots, he got on his bike and I had to come up with another game plan. I tried to break him down to the body and once I caught him it was a wrap. Once I caught him with a couple of body shots, he could not really run that well anymore so I finished him off."

When asked about the exchange at the beginning of the fight, Estrada said, "I think the punch at the beginning of the fight caught him off guard because of listening to that hype of he can't punch, he can't punch, but then as soon as he got hit he knew there was a problem. The last ones were a lot harder because I was really trying to get him out of there."

A member of the press then asked what was next for "Big Six," he responded by saying, "Whoever wants to fight me, I am right here. I have been trying to get fights with the other (Chazz) Witherspoon, (Chris) Arreola, and (Michael) Marrone and eventually one way or another they are going to have to fight me."

Estrada vs Witherspoon Photos

McCreedy Defeats Mayes by Split Decision!

"Irish" Joe McCreedy (8-2, 5 KOs) did not disappoint the fans that travelled all the way from his hometown of Lowell, MA as he won a split decision victory over the rugged native from Baltimore, MD, Henry Mayes (7-6-1, 4 KOs). Scores of the bout were 60-56 and 58-56 for McCreedy and 58-57 for Mayes.

McCreedy came out firing in the first round as he lunged at Mayes throwing vicious hooks to the body and head of his opponent keeping him on the defensive. He continued to use his aggression to keep control of the bout in the first round as he kept Mayes backed against the ropes.

Mayes started to figure out McCreedy's inside tactics early in the second round as he started to catch him with uppercuts as he went on the inside. McCreedy was able to adjust after getting hit with hooks to the body from Mayes, as he side stepped his opponent to connect with a nice left hook counter. As the second round came to a close it was clear that McCreedy continued to land the more powerful shots.

Mayes moved around the ring well as he landed his jab in the third round. He threw more punches in the round and his increase in activity kept a constantly charging McCreedy away from getting in close.

McCreedy came out in the fifth round and landed a right to the body and a left hook to the head of Mayes that sent him reeling backwards. He continued to land combinations that made referee Charlie Dwyer question whether the action should continue or not as it appeared he was close to stopping the fight then and there. Mayes then showed his heart and fired some straight lefts at McCreedy that kept him in the fight as the round came to an end.

Both fighters gave it their all in the sixth and final round as McCreedy with his fellow New England fans cheering him on got the better of the exchanges. He continued to get inside and work the body of Mayes, while his opponent was unable to answer with anything significant. The final round proved to be the most important of the bout as McCreedy walked away with the close split decision win. as (11-0, 9 KOs) when his back was to the ropes.

McCreedy vs Mayes Photos

Camacho Jr. Remains Unbeaten!

Nearby Johnston, RI native and undefeated super middleweight Angel Camacho Jr. (10-0, 4 KOs) showed his toughness as he defeated the durable Andre Hemphill (6-8-2, 3 KOs) by four round unanimous decision. Scores of the bout were 39-37 twice and 38-37 as Camacho beat Hemphill to the punch throughout their battle. Camacho landed punishing combinations on Hemphill that he was unable to answer. Hemphill did absorb some good punches from Camacho and proved his durability as he did not hit the canvas even though most other fighters would have.

Camacho vs Hemphill Photos

Starnino Stops Royal!

Fighting just outside of his hometown of Providence, Rhode Island, middleweight Bobo "The Bull" Starnino was victorious in the opening bout of the evening when he easily defeated Charlestown, South Carolina native Richard Royal by stopping him in the third round. The stoppage occurred at 1:28 when after taking several hard left hands from Starnino, a staggered Royal was hit with a right hand that sent him stumbling into the ropes. It was at that time that referee Joey Luppino had seen enough as Royal was unable to defend himself.

Starnino was also credited with a knockdown late in the first round as a left hook found its mark sending Royal on his back. After that knockdown and coming into round two it was evident that it would be only a matter of time before Starnino found a way to finish the fight. With the victory Starnino scores just the second knockout of his career (9-3-1, 2 KOs), while Royal (5-3-1, 2 KOs) goes back home to South Carolina not with the result he had hoped for.

Starnino vs Royal Photos