By Sean Reed (photo by John Escobar)
Welcome to the pro ranks, Luis Yanez
The journey officially began Friday night, when the outspoken 2008 US Olympic boxer made his pro debut in from of 3,000 rabid hometown fans at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. The evening ended with a sigh of relief, as Yanez was forced to settle for a four-round majority decision over Julio Cesar Valadez (3-3).
The bout aired live on FoxSportsNet Southwest.
Among those in attendance were former Dallas Cowboys, Deion Sanders and Darren Woodson, as well as Paulie Ayala, a former world champion in two weight classes. The event itself was excellent but the headline bout was admittedly sloppy and several factors may or may not have contributed.
Eyebrows were raised from the moment Yanez, a 106 pounder in the Beijing Olympic Games, agreed to debut at 116. He had no problems whatsoever making weight in China and could comfortably campaign professionally as low as 108 pounds.
Yanez bolstered this belief by officially hitting the scales at 115 1/2, despite downing a Subway sandwich, cranberry juice and gallons of water in the hours leading up to the weigh-in. Conversely, Valadez took three tries to make the limit.
The scheduled number of rounds was also a point of contention. Yanez and Valadez both signed up for a six-rounder but strangely, the Texas Combative Sports Commission would only allow the standard four-round limit which normally accompanies pro debuts.
On the day of the bout, Yanez was physically ill to the point of vomiting and all he could stomach was fruit and liquids. Despite coming in less than one-hundred percent, there was no way he'd back out of the biggest day of his life, especially at home. The 20-year old instead sucked it up, put on his game face and persisted.
Yanez shared a dressing room with his idol, "Handsome" Hector Beltran (who fought on the undercard), as a mix of well-wishers, endorsers, family and friends stopped by to offer words of encouragement. Luis' trainer, Dennis Rodarte, kept the mood upbeat with his constant array of jokes and funny stories as members of his KO-N-1 Boxing Team showed off choreographed mitt routines.
All the while, Little Wayne, T.I. and others blared from a radio and a film crew catalogued Yanez's every move.
Part of Yanez's prizefighting package will be his showmanship. He didn't disappoint on this evening.
Donning a cape that blew in the wind, Yanez's entrance began with him striking his superhero pose behind a large white sheet. Once the music began, AAC became his boogie wonderland and Luis started dancing and gyrating. The silhouette of the "Latin Legend" shaking his "groove thang" was reminiscent of vintage Prince Naseem Hamed.
Yanez's first landed shot of the evening ripped a hole into the sheet and his ring walk commenced.
Following all of the entertainment and hype, a fight finally broke out in the ring.
As the opening bell rang, Yanez looked to counter as Valadez attacked with wild shots. Yanez circled his foe, landing southpaw jabs to the body and just missing with right hooks and straight lefts. Valadez' most memorable moments came for all of the wrong reasons; in less than three minutes, Valadez received two warnings for rough housing and hitting on the break.
A straight left caused Valdez to clinch early in the second round. By this point, the "Latin Legend" appeared to be easing into a comfort zone. He reached into his bottomless pit of signature moves and did the superhero pose once again (minus the cape this time), followed by his slow motion homage to the "Matrix".
From there, Luis looked down at the palms of each of his gloves before firing off a shot; a new maneuver that he calls the "Pick and Choose." A straight left followed, landing flush. The blatant showboating didn't set well with Valadez and he advanced with a salvo of his own. Yet another straight left knocked Valadez on his heels toward the end of the round.
Both fighters were more pocket oriented to begin the third. Yanez landed an uppercut and Valadez connected with a right cross. Though he was more stationary, the former Olympian defiantly held both hands behind his back and just missed with a left. As Valadez barged in and misfired with an overhand left, Yanez deftly spun and assisted him on his trip to the canvas. No knockdown of course, but mental damage was inflicted. Valadez bumrushed Yanez in search of payback; he was met with a steady barrage of left jabs to the body.
After eating a left hand in the fourth and final round, Valadez clutched Yanez as if they were lovers. A straight left by Yanez once again snapped back his opponent's head, prompting another clinch. As a left uppercut landed to his body, Valadez repeated his pugilistic embrace, drawing boos from the hometown crowd. Valadez's only offensive recourse was to lead with his head and shoulders enough to warrant a shampoo endorsement.
Upon hearing the final bell, the two fighters stared at each other before Valadez angrily nudged Yanez and returned to his corner.
As the scorecards were being tabulated, the handlers of each camp had to be restrained. Two of the men in Valadez's corner are Dallas area trainers (familiar with Yanez, Rodarte and their stable of fighters) who latched onto Julio at the press conference three days earlier. The two sides jaw-jacked, made genitalia references and then left it alone.
The official scores were 39-37 (twice) for Yanez and 38-38, giving the "Latin Legend" the nod by majority decision. Though the contest wasn't a barn burner, it was clear that Yanez won, which made the 38-38 scorecard seem a bit off.
Before the fight, Team Yanez promised everything just short of reinventing the sport. Once his first fight was in the books, Yanez showed his objective side.
"This was my first pro fight, but I promise everybody out there that it'll get better," admitted Yanez in his first fight since losing in the second round of the 2008 Olympic Games.
Even in his best effort to be humble, Yanez couldn't resist the urge to give a backhanded compliment.
"I heard (Valadez) was from San Antonio, but I don't believe it because San Antonio fighters don't fight like that."
Trainer Dennis Rodarte added, "We really wished the fight had been scheduled for six rounds and I think Luis could've possibly gotten him out of there by then. We just hope that the next opponent doesn't come from the WWE."
When asked why he didn't fulfill his promise of knocking out Valadez on his birthday (he turned 20 on fight night), Yanez said, "He never told me what round he wanted me to knock him out in!"
All in all, Team Yanez is glad to get the first one out of the way. The uncertainty that accompanies a pro debut and a first time production is now a thing of the past. Things will run much smoother henceforth and Yanez will move down a weight class or two until further notice.
NEXT ON TAP:
The Latin Legend returns to the ring on April 17th at American Airlines Center. The plan is to have at least 5 or 6 fights under his belt by the end of 2009.