“Bam Bam” makes good on his KO promise

After all the trash talking and verbal beat downs, it was time to “put up or shut up” for sluggers Brandon Rios (28-0-1, 20 KOs) and Urbano Antillon (28-3, 20 KOs) as they faced off Saturday night at the Home Depot Center in Carson.

Scheduled for 12 rounds, this was one battle that really had the boxing community on edge for the past month. The pair of Mexican gladiators had waged a war of words leading up to their fight with many expecting a “Fight of the Year” candidate in this Socal showdown.

Everyone was anticipating fireworks in the ring. Arriving at the outdoor stadium, I could already feel the excitement brewing amongst the crowd. Walking toward the entrance I ran into tons of familiar faces from our L.A. boxing scene and beyond. I caught up with two local fighters, Jesus Soto Karass and Oscar Meza, who both fight out of the Goossen gym. Both are familiar with WBA titleholder Rios and Antillon and let’s just say Meza knows Brandon very well. Having fought three of the boxers that were on the card–Mercito Gesta, Jorge Pimentel and Brandon Rios, Meza was familiar with these featured fighters. I asked the guys for their prediction in the main event.

“RIOS!” both Meza and Karass quickly replied. Meza got TKO’d by the spark plug Rios in their 2009 bout so his opinion was one hard-earned.

The outspoken “Bam Bam” from Oxnard appeared to be the favorite going into the fight but one can never count out the pure heart and courage of Maywood’s Antillon, especially after his last clash versus Humberto Soto, which he lost in a very close match.

As the fans streamed into the venue, both camps had large groups of supporters. Rios’ team were all sporting black and orange T-shirts, headbands and “Bam” sticks in support of their favorite fighter; title challenger Antillon had his own contingent of fans cheering his name and wearing Team Antillon shirts. With this hard-hitting duo, the boisterous crowd knew they’d get more bang for their buck.

And with two aggressive come-forward, no-quit power punchers, anything could happen, right? In this tennis stadium at the Home Depot Center, fans usually see tennis balls lobbed back and forth. On this night it was going to be fists of fury lobbed during this championship bout promoted by Top Rank and airing on Showtime.

But as it often is in boxing, could this ring war possibly live up to its high expectations?

In the wake of the Wladimir Klitschko vs. David Haye disappointment and in the aftermath of the Paul Williams vs. Erislandy Lara controversial scoring, there’s no guarantee that any fight can really live up to all of the build up and promoter’s hyperbole.

Rios–Antillon? Finally an exciting fight that actually lived up to its hype.

It’s no cliché to say that both Rios and Antillon went toe to toe, mano y mano in their explosive high-octane clash, not expected to go the distance.

In a Showtime poll, 50% of the fans thought the fight would end during the 5th to 8th round in this war of attrition.

Originally set to collide last May, the pair of pugs have never been warm and fuzzy toward each other. In fact, things were never really civil between the two. At last month’s fight kickoff, an intense and rowdy Rios and Antillon almost came to blows at the podium. They were already at the boiling point when “Bam Bam” announced in June that he would knock his foe out.

During this first press conference, the unbeaten Rios told Antillon and all of us watching on that he would “end his career” and knock him out. “You’re never gonna fight for a title again,” Brandon warned his rival. “I will knock you out. That’s a promise; and I don’t break my promises.”

Rios made good on that promise, needing less than nine minutes to deliver on his promised KO.

SIGNED, SEALED, DELIVERED–and “sealed with a fist” as he convincingly defended his WBA Lightweight title.

They say styles make fights. And this matchup wasn’t exactly fire and ice. Take two highly-charged pressure fighters with blistering offensive attacks and you get fire–and more fire! In the case of Rios vs. Antillon, it’s like pouring more gasoline on that incendiary fire and lighting the match. We all expected pure firepower in this fistic explosion with no one expecting any “feel out” rounds.

With the blistering sun finally setting, the crowd was amped and ready to go. As both prizefighters had spirited live bands heralding their walkouts, the spectators were on their feet roaring for the action to begin. Brandon had Antonio Margarito in his corner; the two share a trainer in Robert Garcia. Before the opening bell, 25-year-old Rios was pacing back and forth, looking like a bull ready to be released from the pen. Once the action started, it never stopped. In the first frame, leather was traded with Rios’ left hooks and fierce uppercuts finding their mark. Antillon was in the game landing solid body shots of his own. Their was a crazy roar that echoed in the stadium in what could arguably deemed “Round of the Year.”

The sizzling action continued in the second stanza as the two combatants had the fans screaming, applauding and stomping their feet as the boxers kept up their unbelievable pace with some brutal inside fighting. When the bell rang in this round, the duo ended up literally forehead to forehead, locked in a war–both holding their ground. While Rios’ won the first two rounds, Antillon was keeping things competitive; we were all salivating for more as both warriors landed about half of their power punches.

Then came round three. Rios, wearing leopard print trunks, came out determined and on fire. The champ came out swinging and within 20 seconds of this round knocked Antillon down with a vicious hook. Antillon went skidding to the canvas as loud chants of “Bam Bam” could be heard in the arena. Brandon went in for the kill with unfortunately for Urbano, plenty of time left on the clock.

After punishing left hooks and crushing rights, the courageous Antillon (who had a slight cut on his nose) fell face forward. After referee David Mendoza administered the count for a second time, action was set to resume. But when the official saw Urbano stumbling near the corner, Mendoza stepped in to protect the brave veteran from further harm. Protecting the fighter at all times, the fiery and brutal bout was stopped with just a scant few seconds to go as Rios and his team celebrated. As his coach Robert Garcia lifted him on his shoulders, Brandon whooped it up jumping on the ring posts unleashing his famous war cry. With the third round stoppage, Rios retains his title and continues to stake his claim in the lightweight division. No need for any rematch as the rising superstar made his statement heard–and felt–loud and clear.

And after all the profanity-laced verbal taunts, the brash Rios showed great sportsmanship, maturity, and yes, even a touch of class when he went to sincerely acknowledge his foe after their turf war.

And finally, we had a bout that lived up to all the hype. The crowd showed its appreciation by sticking around for as long as they were allowed while they celebrated the three-round brawl. Fans in the Southland are notorious for leaving large arenas early to beat traffic. But on this night, all remained. One nice advantage about having fights in this building is that the open-air stadium makes it a great place to watch boxing and since the post-fight press conference was held upstairs fans streaming by were able to catch some of the proceedings as well further prolonging the excitement of the night.

Gaining more fans in his sensational victory, “Bam Bam” now looks toward the future. The young champion, and father of three, first earned his WBA strap in his come-from-behind win against Miguel Acosta in February. With this spectacular KO, the sky’s the limit, says the fighter and his camp. Get used to seeing more of Brandon Rios as his profile continues to rocket ahead. At ringside witnessing the young boxer’s impressive KO were Mexican legends Julio Cesar Chavez and Marco Antonio Barrera, as well as fellow champs Abner Mares, John Molina Jr., Vanes Martirosyan, among others.

At the post-fight presser, Rios repeated that he still hopes to fight the famed “Baby-Faced Assassin” Marco Antonio Barrera–or anyone at 135 before Rios moves up in weight.

And what’s next for Antillon, a ten-year pro who’s just 28 years old? With Big Bear’s well-regarded trainer Abel Sanchez by his side, time will tell when Urbano, always full of heart and never lacking in courage, will return. His three defeats came at the hands of Rios, Humberto Soto and Miguel Acosta but the always-tough fighter has scored 20 knockouts of his own.

But on Saturday it was Rios’ night. He rocked the show with his razor sharp performance–and rocked the crowd by dropping his longtime nemesis Antillon.

Catching up with trainer Robert Garcia’s nephew, pro fighter Javier “Pelos” Garcia, the lightweight told me he wasn’t surprised by his stablemate’s commanding performance inside the ropes. “I was Brandon’s sparring partner,” 22-year-old Javier, who won his own bout on July 1, told me after the fight. “So I know his power!”

The knockout punch is already a YouTube classic. If you’d like to watch the entire fight replay it’s airing Tuesday night, July 12 on Showtime Extreme at 10 PM.

It was a powerful performance by Brandon “Bam Bam” Rios who lowered the mighty boom on Urbano Antillon.

Photos by Maria Hedrick