In a battle of longtime contenders former world title challenger Gabriel Rosado scored an impressive sixth round TKO over veteran Glen Tapia on Thursday night at the Monte Carlo Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, NV. Rosado, who was coming off two straight losses going into this fight was able to control the tempo of the combat by using his jab and movement to keep Tapia at distance where he was unable to be effective.
As the fight went on Rosado was able to have increasing success in being able to land combinations on Tapia. Although Tapia, who entered the bout having lost his previous three bouts prior to this encounter, was consistent in attempting to pressure Rosado, he simply could not find a way to nullify Rosado’s movement and could not land anything significant to turn the ebb and flow of the fight in his favor.
After gradually sustaining punishment over the course of the bout, Tapia was knocked down by a barrage of punches in round six. Although Tapia was able to get up from the knockdown, he was unable to defend from a follow-up flurry by Rosado forcing Referee Robert Byrd to step in and stop the fight. Official time of the stoppage was 1:15 of round six.
Gabriel Rosado advances to 24-11, with 14 Knockouts. Glen Tapia falls to 23-5, with 15 Knockouts.
Also on this card, rising Welterweight prospect Keandre Gibson scored a ten round majority decision over a very “Game” Alejandro Barrera. Despite being under constant pressure by Barrera, Gibson was able to consistently land combinations to the head and body and was able to make Barrera miss with much of his offense. As the bout progressed Barrera began showing the effects of the punishment that Gibson was administering and was bleeding heavily from the nose as well as from cuts over both of his eyes. It was understandable given the punishment Barrera had taken how one would think the bout would have been stopped to prevent further damage, but Barrera showed his mettle and fought on until the final bell. Official scores were 95-95 (Even), and 97-93, 98-92 both in favor of Gibson.
Unofficially, I scored this fight 98-92 or ten rounds to two in favor of Gibson. Although Gibson’s overall activity and his ability to land the cleaner, more effective punches of the two fighters was the story of the fight, this was a grueling fight and one that likely took a lot out of Barrera as well as served as a crucial step in the development of Gibson as he looks to climb the ladder towards contender status in the 147lb. Welterweight division.
Keandre Gibson advances to 18-1-1, with 7 Knockouts. Alejandro Barrera falls to 29-4, with 18 Knockouts.
In a bout for the WBC International Jr. Lightweight championship Bekman Soylybayev (12-0, with 4 Knockouts) scored a ten round unanimous decision to retain his title over Fernando Vargas (32-13-3, with 21 Knockouts) Official scores: 98-92, 99-91, and 100-90.
In a Lightweight bout rising prospect Randy Ochoa (10-1, with 9 Knockouts) stopped veteran Raul Chirino (11-7, with 6 Knockouts) in the second round. Official time of the stoppage was: 1:35 of round two.
This card provided a look at two fighters in different weight classes at different stages in their respective careers. For Keandre Gibson, his victory over Alejandro Barrera in what was an entertaining bout will likely earn him an opportunity to attempt to become a contender in a talent deep Welterweight division in 2018.
For Gabriel Rosado some might be tempted to call his stoppage win over Glen Tapia one of the most impressive performances of his career under circumstances where he was in a “Must Win“ scenario. This observer was particularly impressed with how Rosado, who has taken part in several exciting fights over the years and is a fighter known for a come forward style, was able to maintain a disciplined and tactical approach in this fight. Simply put, Rosado executed an effective fight plan. was able to do so without sustaining much punishment, and showed that he is quite capable in taking a tactical Boxing approach as opposed to relying on the brawling type style that has endeared him to Boxing fans. Whether or not this victory over Glen Tapia could be the start of a career resurgence for Gabriel Rosado remains to be seen, but if he can put forth similar performances in future outings as he was able to do in this fight against Tapia, it would not surprise this observer to see Rosado back in the mix in the Middleweight division.
“And That’s The Boxing Truth.”
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