LAS VEGAS – Getting the call from the bullpen at almost the last moment to face the indomitable Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz has to be like being handed a poisoned chalice. It's an opportunity to perform in front of a large crowd and earn some money, but there's also a decent chance you're going to get beaten up.
Under the circumstances, Omar Salcido did more or less as good a job as could be expected Saturday on the undercard of the Mario Barrios-Manny Pacquiao main event at the MGM Grand. He used his legs to move around the ring, and his reach to try and keep the shorter man at bay. But in the end, he wasn't good enough or strong enough to do anything except survive 10 rounds – which he did, just, despite a barnstorming finish from the former junior welterweight titlist Cruz.
From the very beginning, both men set out their stalls: Cruz, as ever, stalked forward with menace, while Salcido threw keep-away punches as best he could.
A sweeping right hand from Cruz, 28-3-1 (18 KOs), caught Salcido on the point of the chin as he was pulling back, briefly discombobulating him. A right hand dug to the kidney as Salcido moved to his right. A left hook at the end of a three-punch combo landed cleanly in the fourth, as did another right hand.
As Cruz maintained his pressure, Salcido, finding it ever more difficult to keep him at range, began holding tightly whenever Cruz stepped too close for comfort. Referee Mark Nelson warned him about that in the eighth, and would take a point from him in the 10th.
That final round was a tough ordeal for Salcido, 20-3 (14 KOs). After Nelson deducted a point, Cruz unloaded, punches rattling off the head of Salcido, who now didn't know what to do to nullify the assault. As Salcido tried to hold on again following another attack, Cruz stepped away and Salcido’s gloves touched the canvas for a knockdown.
Cruz went for the knockout but ran out of time, having to content himself instead with a comfortable decision by two scores of 99-89 and one of 100-88.
Previously, Brandon Figueroa put himself in line for a featherweight title shot with a close and perhaps somewhat controversial – albeit unanimous – win over Joet Gonzalez in a tough, all-action eliminator.
As ever with Brandon Figueroa fights, much of the action was fought at a close distance and a fast pace. Initially, however, Figueroa appeared to be smothering much of his own work, and it was Gonzalez who appeared to be doing the better job of taking a half-step back and finding extra leverage for his punches.
It was tough going from the off for both men. By the fourth round, Gonzalez, 27-5 (15 KOs), had a cut over his right eye, but even as Figueroa plowed forward, Gonzalez was first to land in most of the exchanges. The question already, however, was how long he would be able to withstand Figueroa’s pressure.
By the fifth, Figueroa appeared to be finding a rhythm, letting his hands go more instead of merely walking forward into Gonzalez’s punches, and he probably took the sixth on the basis of some solid body work over the final third of the frame.
Round 7 saw Gonzalez push Figueroa to the ropes, but now he was the one who was starting to smother his own work. He was at his most effective when giving himself a bit of room to work, but he was falling into Figueroa's trap and making it a phone booth brawl when he didn't need to.
The final quarter of the fight saw Gonzalez slowly start running out of gas as Figueroa, 26-2-1 (19 KOs), began to move through the gears. By the championship rounds, roles had been reversed, with Figueroa now the one torquing his punches and Gonzalez working more closely than necessary.
Figueroa closed strongly, digging punches to Gonzalez’s ribcage and his increasingly crimson face. The only question was whether he had turned up the heat in time to overcome an early deficit.
The judges determined that he had. The MGM Grand Arena crowd wasn't thrilled, but Figueroa was adjudged the victor by scores of 115-113 and 116-112 twice.
Kieran Mulvaney has written, broadcast and podcast about boxing for HBO, Showtime, ESPN and Reuters, among other outlets. He presently co-hosts the “Fighter Health Podcast” with Dr. Margaret Goodman. He also writes regularly for National Geographic, has written several books on the Arctic and Antarctic, including most recently Arctic Passages: Ice, Exploration, and the Battle for Power at the Top of the World, and is at his happiest hanging out with wild polar bears. His website is www.kieranmulvaney.com.
