RSR Boxing Results: Lucian Bute Retains Title & Antonio Tarver's Heavyweight Debut Results
By Geno McGahee
Lucian Bute, 27-0, 22 KO’s, showed once again why most feel he is the best 168 pound fighter, as he easily defended his IBF Super Middleweight Title against a game Jesse Brinkley, 35-6, 22 KO’s. From the opening bell, the smaller Brinkley could not find a way in to get to the bigger champion and the points began to pile up in favor of the champion.
In round 5, a tremendous left hook to the body sent Brinkley to the floor. He barely got to his feet and was saved by the bell. Brinkley tried very hard to land punches but he continually came up short. Bute was having difficulty with the upper body movement of the challenger, but was able to land one of the best punches in his arsenal, the left uppercut, dropping him to the floor in the eighth and then again in the ninth, ending the fight.
Bute can now look forward to a showdown with Kelly Pavlik, the former middleweight champion, and then eventually taking on the winner of the super six. Without question, Bute is one of the best fighters in the world today and there is plenty of matches that can further prove that.
Antonio Tarver, 28-6, 19 KO’s, the former Light Heavyweight Champion, came in at 221 pounds, making his debut as a heavyweight at the age of 41 against Nagy Aguilera, 16-5, 11 KO’s, taking a unanimous decision over the slower plodding opponent.
Tarver, physically, did not look as a heavyweight. He looked like a blown up 175 pounder. Aguilera gave a non-effort for the first nine rounds, standing against the corners and just taking the straight left hand as it came in with regularity. “The Magic Man” couldn’t really hurt Aguilera but he was far more talented and skilled and that was the difference, leading to a 98-92 win across the board.
The heavyweight version of Tarver needs to gradually move up if he’s going to find some success in the division. At 41, the odds are stacked against him, but we’ll see how he does in the next one and the one after that.