KEITH THURMAN WINS PBC ESPN DEBUT
THURMAN THUMPS VETERAN COLLAZO AS EXPECTED
Keith Thurman
San Francisco, CA– If you gave the Keith Thurman-Luis Collazo a minute of thought going in, one would soon come to realize that Thurman and Collazo would be the “competitive mismatch” that it turned out to be. The younger, faster, harder punching Thurman won the opening round and outside of a couple of “speed” bumps, the undefeated lad never looked back.
EXHIBITING GOOD SKILLS & RING ACUMEN
Putting forth a display of excellent footwork, probably the most overlooked intangible in analyzing boxing, the WBA 147 lb. titleholder cut off the ring giving the 33-year old no where to go. Forced to stand and exchange with the Tampa, FL resident who was fighting at home, Collazo (33-7-1, 19 KOs) was simply not in the same pugilistic zip code of the now 26-0 (22 KOs) Thurman.
COLLAZO HAD “BODY & FENDER” WORK IN MIND
While Collazo pressed Thurman with some effective body work in rounds three and four, Thurman adapted well and illustrated that he can remain calm and true to his game when faced with adversity. A left hand to the ribs clearly had an impact on the winner who, like most people, doesn’t like getting hit cleanly in the bread basket.
THURMAN GOES BACK TO WORK
Back in control in the blink of an eye, Thurman pressed Collazo in rounds seven and eight. Realizing that he was in a hole that Collazo had no chance of digging his way out, the corner stopped the fight before the start of round nine.
FORGET FLOYD, THURMAN SHOULD FACE BROOK OR KHAN
Although the WBA champ called out Floyd Mayweather, the real fights for Thurman would be to engage Amir Khan with the winner to meet unbeaten IBF guy Kell Brook.
WBO STRIPS MAYWEATHER, PACO ON RING TALK NEXT SUNDAY
We go to the “horse’s mouth” per se NEXT Sunday (7-19-2015) WBO President Francisco Valcarcel and I will discuss the WBO’s recent actions with their welterweight belt.
ENTIRE WRAP & UFC 189 TOO LATER TODAY RINGTALK.COM
Pedro Fernandez
Note: Mr. Fernandez is an award-winning writer, TV commentator, radio talk show host, former San Francisco Policeman and four-time Golden Gloves champion, who also pens feature stories for the R & B band Tower of Power. Comments regarding this submission can be left below.
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