Tonight saw the first ever boxing match at the Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE in downtown LA directly across from Staples Center. The fights were covered by ESPN’s Friday Night Fights series.
The first televised fight saw 2008 US Olympian Shawn Estrada completely dominate Ray Craig in one round. Not much to say about this one, no contest.
Fight #2 showcased young John Molina Jr. of Covina CA against Carlos Vinan. Molina received an expected loud ovation from his local following. Vinan stormed out of the gates throwing hooks, straights and uppercuts to Molina right away. Molina hung in well and countered with some big shots mid round.
Round 1 saw great two way action and both fighters gave and took.
Round 2 opened with more of the same. Clearly Vinan came to fight and not be an “opponent”. The pace was rapid and both fighters took some hard shots to the head. Vinan appeared to run out of gas late in the second and Molina took advantage of the slowdown to take out Vinan TKO style at 2:42 of round 2. Short fight but filled with action.
The Co-Main event saw the debut of another 2008 Olympian Javier Molina as he took on the also debuting Jaime Cabrera. Molina came out in the first and showed why he was an Olympian displaying quick hands, good defense and agile footwork. Molina easily won round 1 and looked every bit like a blue chip prospect. Molina took care of business and flattened Cabrera for his first pro win. Time was 1:50 of round 2.
The main event featured the Heavyweights. Sam Peter (30-2, 23 KO’s) took on Eddie Chambers (33-1, 18 KO’s) in a 10 round fight. Both fighters really needed a win to stay in the Heavyweight rankings and be considered a true threat in the division. Peter came in at a career high of 265 and Chambers weighed in at 223 lbs.
Round 1 opened with both guys feeling each other out. Peter lead with the jab and threw a few straights but did not apply much pressure. Chambers did a lot of posturing and some light body work. Chambers looked much lighter on his feet and did land a nice 1-2 in the middle of the round. Chambers continued to move in circles in round 2 and lived up to his nickname, “fast”. No big bombs by either combatant but Chambers controlled the round.
The 3rd was more was more of the same early but chambers started to apply pressure and land some hard shots on Peter’s dome. Chamber’s jab took over late in the round and clearly won him the 3rd.
Peter’s right eye was a bit swollen in the 4th and Chambers took full advantage of his skills as he slipped and landed first in the 4th. Peter tried to rally late in the round but Chambers put another one in the bank.
The 5th was another Chamber’s round and more of the same.
Round 6 ditto. Chambers blocked so many Peter shots and countered with a sharp jab. Things were getting desperate for team Peter. Peter probably had best round in the seventh but he still got hit with counter jabs and some nice leads by Chambers.
In the 8th, Chambers rallied and had a great round. Peter needed a big shot to turn the tide.
Round 9 did not provide the rally for Peter as Chambers continued to control the fight. Huge hole for Peter entering the 10th and final round. Peter gave it all in the 10th but Chambers hung in there and took care of his business. Scores to follow. The judges had it 95-95, 96-94 and 99-91 for Eddie Chambers who now improves to 34-1 with 18 KO’s.
All Photos by Raymond Rodriguez
The co-main was John John molina, so get your comments right. John John was the best fight of the night. the crowd was there to see John John molina…
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