OBSTACLE OVERCOME
Jacobs comes through a tougherthananticipated test against Sulecki
‘I THINK THERE’S DEFINITELY A DIFFERENT LEVEL THAT I CAN REACH’
BROOKLYN, NY APRIL 28 ★★★ MAIN EVENT ★★★ UNDERCARD ★★★ ATMOSPHERE
IT is now 13 months since Daniel
Jacobs came within a whisker of dethroning red-hot favourite Gennady Golovkin with a valiant performance at New York’s Madison Square Garden. But across Brooklyn Bridge at the Barclays Center, in front of his hometown crowd, it was Jacobs who almost came unstuck at the hands of a valiant underdog.
Maciej Sulecki, who has been operating mainly as a super-welterweight over the past couple of years, was not given a prayer by many in the build-up, with Jacobs expected to put on a show at the top of the second Matchroom Boxing USA card.
But Sulecki proved he belongs in the mix in a bustling 160lb division, which has been left very much in limbo since Canelo Alvarez’s failed drug test put a six-month delay on his highly anticipated rematch with Golovkin.
Contenders like Jacobs, who became the mandatory challenger to the Kazakh’s WBA title as a result of this 12-round unanimous decision, know that they will not get a shot at the championship until next year at the earliest, with Canelo and Golovkin expected to clash in September. Even so, defeat against previously unbeaten Pole Sulecki was unthinkable for a man with eyes on Golovkin, a grudge match with Jermall Charlo or even an unlikely crosspromotional tussle with Frank Warren’s WBO champion Billy Joe Saunders.
But until the 12th round, there was a feeling that Sulecki might be about to upset the apple cart as a result of a workmanlike performance which never allowed Jacobs to really find his rhythm. Too often the “Miracle Man’s” best work would come in the closing stages of a round which gave him no time to really build on it. That was until the last session, when Jacobs floored Sulecki with a vicious right hand only a few seconds into the round. It looked like a heavy one but Sulecki was up well inside referee Harvey Dock’s count. Immediately, however, the idea that the visitor may be about to get an unlikely decision victory evaporated. As it happened, the three judges did not think it was such a close encounter and the knockdown proved elementary to the result.
John Mckaie had it 116-111, while Carlos Ortiz Jnr scored Jacobs a 117-110 winner. Steve Weisfeld’s 115-112 card seemed to best tell the story of the fight but Jacobs admitted it felt a little too close for comfort.
“My corner told me I was up and I knew if I came on in the 12th round then I would get the decision,” he said. “He’s a tough durable guy, he belongs at middleweight. I think there’s definitely a different level that I can reach. I’m happy with the performance but it’s now back to the drawing board.”
Another man who maintained his march towards a world title tilt was heavyweight
Jarrell Miller, who also claimed a unanimous decision like fellow Brooklynite Jacobs. However, despite some heavy attacks to both head and body, Miller was unable to send tough Frenchman Johann
Duhaupas to the canvas at any point. The local man, who weighed in at a whopping 304 1/4lbs, won widely on all three cards with Bernard Bruni and Julie Lederman scoring it 119-109, while Larry Hazzard returned a tally of 117-111. Shada Murdaugh was the referee. Before that, WBA lightweight champion
Katie Taylor added the IBF belt to her collection with a resounding points win over Argentina’s Victoria Bustos. After racking up an early lead behind the jab, Taylor moved through the gears in the latter stages to cap one of the most complete performances of her career to date.
HBO might have regretted not showing the Bray star, a former five-time world amateur champion, on the live broadcast given the reaction the performance drew from the 7,892 crowd. Even the ringside Roy Jones Jnr gave her a standing ovation. Ron Mcnair and Waleska Roldan returned cards of 99-91, while Tony Paolillo had the bout, refereed by Sparkle Lee, 98-92.
Now the plan is to claim the remaining two lightweight belts before the year is out, with talks already underway regarding a July showdown, most likely in England, against WBO champion Rose Volante. If that goes well for Taylor, she will box again in America this September before targeting a December clash with the brilliant WBC belt-holder Delfine Persoon. Olympic gold medalist Daniyar
Yeleussinov of Kazakhstan kicked off his career by forcing referee Eddie Claudio to wave off the challenge of Missouri’s previously undefeated Noah Kidd at 2-52 in round three of their scheduled sixrounder.
Russia’s Nikolay Buzolin also clinched an inside-distance win against a previously undefeated opponent when he knocked out New York-based Irishman Larry
Fryers in the sixth and final round. Uzbek puncher Shohjahon Ergashev was forced to go the distance for the first time as China’s tough Zhimin Wang managed to hang tough for the full 10 rounds. Even so, John Basile and Robin Taylor scored it a 100-90 shutout, while Kevin Morgan had it 99-91. Eric Dali refereed.
Brooklyn’s Julian Sosa did just enough to edge out Detroit’s Larry Ventus over six, with Dali in charge. But he had to make do with a majority decision as Roldan scored it 57-57, while both Basile and Morgan made him a 58-56 winner.
There was a shock in the opening bout, as Kazakh Dimash Niyazov was dropped twice by Mexico’s Angel Sarinara, who claimed a six-round UD. Scores were 59-52, 59-53 and 58-54.
THE VERDICT Matchroom should be pleased with their second US outing, but there are bigger things to come.