LAS VEGAS – Alberto Puelo became the first fighter to outlast Gary “Antuan” Russell in a 12-round, scrappy fight Saturday at the MGM Grand.
Puello likely wouldn't care about the type of fight, as he won by margins of 115-112, 114-113 and then by a completely different score of 118-109.
The styles didn't quite gel, but it wasn't for a lack of trying — it was just a confusing clash between two southpaws, and that happens sometimes.
Puello, from the Dominican Republic, is now 23-0 (10 KOs) and won the WBC interim junior welterweight title, while Russell, from Capital Heights, Maryland, falls to 17-1 (17 KOs).
The bout had few highlights — Puello was penalized a point for holding in the ninth and Russell landed a close shot in the 12th — but the fight was a hard-fought one after the other. But the action never really picked up steam.
Russell started off on the offensive with quick, agile and compact movement, but Puelo landed two right hooks that reminded him just how dangerous Russell is.
The second was quiet, but by the third Russell seemed done with probing and looked more aggressive.
Puelo had some success with his back against the ropes in the fourth round, but the fight turned into a brawl, with Russell coming at him too eagerly up front, forcing Puelo to either push him back or attack him.
They both landed simultaneous hooks in the sixth, and Puello threatened with a long left hand against the ropes in the eighth, but he lost points in the ninth and was pinned by Russell.
Puello caught a left punch from Russell late in the 10th round, and Russell held on after receiving two left punches in the 11th round. There was also swelling under Russell's left eye.
In the 12th round, Russell was given time to recover from a shot that was deemed low but looked on the line, which finally led to the two fighters attacking each other in a final session that was more intense than the previous 11 rounds. Puelo also began to gain ground, catching Russell off guard with a pole-like shot to secure the win.
Carlos Adames successfully defended his WBC middleweight title for the first time, but failed to establish his authority in the division after a lackluster performance against Terrell Gausha.
Adames, from the Dominican Republic, won by margins of 119-109 and 118-110 (twice). The judges gave Adames credit for his forward thrust and downplayed Gauchat's methodical movements, especially in the second half of the bout.
“This win is very satisfying,” Adames said. “After a year off, being able to defend my title like this with a convincing decision is exactly what I wanted.”
After a lackluster first round, Adames tried to apply more pressure in the second, with Gauscha having little to go.
Through the third round, Adames' movement was predictable and he didn't trouble the Ohio challenger, but Gausha was simply not as busy in the fifth round, even though his jab and movement were more efficient.
The sixth was quiet, but Gausha came out strong on his next attack and started to ease up, but was hit with a right hand that forced him to take cover for a while.
But the veteran Gausha returned with calm, disciplined boxing and gained the upper hand against the champion's relatively wild punches, but was powerless to stop Adames from sealing them off himself.
Gausha got busy in the ninth, but his trainer Manny Robles, in his corner, told him he was “catching up” on the scorecards, and Gausha's smoother, textbook shots seemed to be winning the later rounds. Adames was trying to take his punches. Gausha was the more consistent and impressive.
The challenger was given time to recover after suffering a lower body injury in the 11th round and was told by his corner he needed to win the final round by a large margin, not knowing that the bout was already over.
For me, Gausha did a great job neutralizing Adames in the final round and making him look like a monotonous beast, but for the Ohio native, who has lost big bouts to Erislandy Lara, Eriksson Rubin and Tim Tsiu, he was just another bridesmaid.
It's fair to say Adames won, but to Gausha the margin of victory seemed unfair.
“Carlos Adames is a tough guy, a great fighter and a hard puncher, so I knew I had to be careful in the first few rounds,” admitted the 36-year-old Gausha. “My plan was to gain some momentum towards the end of the fight and I think that worked, but tonight it obviously wasn't enough.”
“The scorecards were a close call. I don't agree with that. I thought it was closer, but in the end he won, so that's how it is.”
