Feb. 19, 2011Ryan Maquiana
CSNBayArea.com
Its been a decade since the national cameras came to San Francisco for a boxing telecast, but last Friday night was well worth the wait for rabid fight fans in The City.At Longshoremens Hall in Fishermans Wharf, a vibrant crowd braved what seemed like a torrential downpour to support their local fighters on Telefuturas latest episode of Slo Boxeo Tecate.They would not go home disappointed, as Eloy The Prince Perez of Salinas and Filipino sensation Mercito No Mercy Gesta kept their unblemished records intact in separate victories.Currently ranked No. 2 in the WBO super featherweight rankings, Perez utilized his speed and boxing ability to outpoint Roger Speedy Gonzalez on all three judges cards over eight rounds.Perez rises to 20-0-2 (5); Gonzalez has now dropped his third straight, descending to 27-4 (18).While Gonzalez had proven to be a dangerous opponent in the past, having decked current WBA featherweight champ Yuriorkis Gamboa in a late knockout loss, the Chino, Calif., natives two-year inactivity became a factor as the bout progressed.With the sizable Salinas contingent screaming, Lets Go E-loy,Perez called on his superior quickness,accurate jab, and impenetrable defense to rack up round after round.Despite an accidental clash of heads late in the fight that caused a minor cut under Perezs left eye, he was in no danger of losing at any point.I did what I needed to do and dominated, said Perez. Rogers a strong fighter, but I was ready for him and now Im 20-0. I had to outbox him and I did just that.His opponent reflected honestly on the fight. He was too fast, said Gonzalez. I just couldnt catch him. I started getting aggressive after the headbutt, but he was the better man tonight.We had the plan of working off the jab and going round by round by boxing, added Dean Familton, who co-trains Perez with Max Garcia. Gonzalez is a decent body puncher with the left hand and we had to stay away from that.Scores were 80-72 in favor of Perez on all three cards.He now faces a world title eliminator against Luis Cruz on Apr. 9 in Las Vegas, a card that also includes Gilroys Robert Guerrero against fellow lightweight Michael Katsidis.Gesta, who is on the cusp of entering the WBO lightweight top ten, quickly finished off Genaro Trazancos, scoring a technical knockout after the third round. In a rematch of their meeting last August when Gesta defeated Trazancos by seventh-round knockout, the Filipino had little trouble repeating the feat in less time.After a dominant initial two rounds, Gestas preferred weapon, the straight left hand, commenced the final onslaught. As the brave Trazancos attempted to return fire, Gesta unleashed a series of vicious combinations highlighted by a counter right hook before the bell sounded to end round three.After referee Ray Balewicz ventured to the corner of Trazancos before the fourth frame, Dr. Smith Ketchum had seen enough and called the bout.Our plan was to knock him out early, said Gesta. I hit him with some hard punches but he wouldnt go down easy so I respect this guy. This time for the rematch, I wanted to get hit with less punches and I executed the plan.Gestas record jumps to 21-0-1 (11). Trazancos, of Los Mochis, Mex., falls to 22-14-1 (13).Vicente Escobedo, another lightweight from Sacramento, has become Team Gestas next target for their next bout in the spring.In other action on the undercard, former amateur star Joe Gumina of San Bruno, who once worked at Aliotos Restaurant across the street from Longshoremens Hall, stopped fellow light heavyweight Jose Jesus Hurtado, 3-3 (3) in the first round to make an emphatic statement in his pro debut.Two-time National Golden Gloves bronze medalist Richard Hargraves of San Francisco, 2-0-1 (2), battled San Joses Clint Coronel, 3-1-2 (1), to a four-round majority draw in a light middleweight bout.Light middleweights Adolfo Gonzalez of Salinas and Jose Leon of Visalia fought to a draw over four rounds; both fighters now have 1-0-1 records.San Francisco welterweight Karim Mayfield, 13-0-1 (8), and featherweight Aaron Garcia, 9-1-1 (2), were pulled off the card due to scheduling conflicts.The event was presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Don Chargin Productions.In what appears to be a welcome addition to the Bay Area fight schedule, they plan to hold another show in either Fairfield or Vacaville on Mar. 25 that will also air on Telefutura.
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