Here’s a quick round-by-round report of the action leading up to Wilder vs Molina at the Bartow Arena, Alabama. The arena was sold out to a crowd in excess of 8000 fight fans which is testament to Wilder’s huge following in his hometown. Let’s get to it!
Wilder vs Molina Undercard: Round by Round
Jose Pedraza (19-0, 12 KO) vs Andrey Klimov (19-1, 9 KO): IBF Junior Lightweight Championship
Round 1: Cagey opening. Pedraza looks the smoother operator, with greater snap as he momentarily comes forward with a thudding combination. Pedraza on back foot for whole round, and not much action here. Pedraza, 10-9.
Round 2: Neither man really finding their range yet. Pedroza very elusive, and edging in shots landed – but they are few and far between. Not scintillating stuff, but still early in the 10-rounder. Pedroza comes forward in final seconds and lands a flurry. Pedroza, 10-9 (20-18).
Round 3: Pedraza landing with a number of punches in opener. Breaking down distance and entering pocket frequently. Not fight-changing power, but one senses it will take its toll on Klimov as the fight progresses. Still, Klimov fancies his chances here, and isn’t too deterred from the task. Pedroza, 10-9 (30-27).
Round 4: Pedraza is the loose, confident stylist here who is proving elusive. Left-hand counter from Pedraza. Klimov still not getting his shots off. Bout still not catching fire, and is looking more like an exhibition. Pedraza is getting the job done, nonetheless. Pedraza, 10-9 (40-36).
Round 5: Klimov wants Pedraza to stand his ground and open up, but his foe is too slick and mobile to pin with anything significant. Cute, clever stuff from Pedraza, but he’s dishing out more dance than dazzle. Pedraza’s in control and looking very comfortable. Klimov really needs to rough this guy up if he is to leave with title tonight. The crowd, predictably, is becoming restless. Pedraza, 10-9 (50-45).
Round 6: Mid-way through round, Pedraza comes forward, remains on front foot, and starts chopping away at Klimov. Tasty landing shots. Less dancing now, more banging. Good variety of punches from Pedraza. Klimov throwing, but lacking the snap and accuracy needed to tag his man who utilizes a lot of lateral movement. Pedraza, 10-9 (60-54).
Round 7: Pedraza very busy with assault in opening seconds, draws blood from Klimov. Hooks, straights, uppercuts. All there. Pedraza has his man figured out, and is looking for the knockout. Pedraza playing bully, bossing his Klimov. Flowing combinations from Pedraza. Klimov’s energy draining, getting tagged frequently. He could be about to go. Hard shots from Pedraza. Target practice. Klimov walks to corner looking beaten, his face a bloodied mess. Pedraza, 10-9 (70-63) – very close to becoming a 10-8 round.
Round 8: This could be the end for Klimov. Three minutes should more than enough for Pedraza to get the job done. Klimov still fighting, lands to body. Pedraza actually struggling to find Klimov here. Ballsy character is Klimov. Pedraza taking more punches than in previous rounds, but looks to waiting to land a big shot. Pedraza only finds Klimov’s body in round. Klimov just about edges this round due to his clean head shots. Klimov, 10-9 (79-73).
Round 9: Left-hand counter from Pedraza who is perhaps preserving energy before the championship rounds arrive. Action begins to slow. Not much to report on here. Neither man really landing. Hard to score. Pedraza, 10-9 (89-82).
Round 10: Pedraza ups his work-rate and finds success in a couple of exchanges. He looks comfortable en route to picking up the IBF title – should Klimov not force a late upset. That would be doubtful, indeed. Pedraza, 10-9 (99-91).
Round 11: More of a glorified sparring session in this round. No heavy shots landed, but Pedraza is simply the better boxer. Pedraza, 10-9 (109-100).
Round 12: Not much to report on once again, except for a slip from Pedraza. Pedraza gets a few shots off in closing seconds. Pedraza, 10-9 (119-109).
Result: 119-109, 120-108 (twice), Pedraza
BoxingBase.com Scorecard: 119-109, Pedraza
Ivan Redkach (16-0, 9 KO) vs Dejan Zlaticanin (18-0, 14 KO): WBC Lightweight Eliminator
Catch SHOWTIME’s Redkach vs Zlaticanin Highlights:
Round 1: Obvious height and reach advantage for Redkach. Zlaticanin not intimidated by the bigger man, charges forward and throws heavy hooks to head and body. Redkach uncomfortable, holding due to pressure. Non-stop stuff from Zlaticanin, who seals round. Zlaticanin, 10-9.
Round 2: Zlaticanin landing nice to the body. Continues pressure, but his opponent begins to find the target with straight shots in tail-end of round. Still another Zlaticanin round. Zlaticanin, 10-9 (20-18)
Round 3: Zlaticanin finds success with hook upstairs early. Redkach responds well with nice jabs and hard shots to body, getting busier. After Redkach lands some crisp shots, including an uppercut, he is dropped by a low blow. Accidental? Redkach also received a cut somewhere during the exchange. Doctor inspects – doesn’t seem too nasty. Harder round to score. Redkach, 10-9 (29-28)
Round 4: Zlaticanin lands a hard hook upstairs, follows with another, senses he has his man hurt. He then knocks down Redkach with mean left-hook! Redkach regains his feet, but Zlaticanin swarms him with heavy shots until referee steps in. Redkach was unable to respond, so the call shouldn’t be too controversial.
Result: Zlaticanin wins via 4th round TKO at 1:24
Julian Williams (19-1-0-1, 11 KO) vs Arman Ovsepyan (14-4, 11 KO): Junior Middleweight Contest
Round 1: Ovsepyan dropped by hard right-hand in opening seconds. He back-peddles for remainder of the round, is a tough cat and can’t be finished. He survives, despite eating right-hands and other venomous shots from Williams. Big Williams round. Williams, 10-8.
Round 2: All Williams, heavy shots. Big straight-right from Williams. Target practice. Should be an early night for the superior operator here. Spearing jab from Williams. Body shot. Ovsepyan has recovered from a hellish 1st round well, but is being outclassed in every area. Williams, 10-9 (20-17).
Round 3: Williams very busy in opener, as is Ovsepyan remarkably. Brave stuff. Williams beginning to load up, possibly looking to make this the last round. Spearing Williams triple-jab. Ovsepyan lands to body. Flurry of straights from Williams. Williams round. Williams, 10-9 (30-26).
Round 4: Fast, vicious straight shots from Williams. Jabs, crosses. Great shots. One-two. Ovsepyan still there, throwing occasionally. Lacks his foe’s power. Williams targeting body now. Mixing it up and dominating without doubt. Williams, 10-9 (40-35).
Round 5: Williams lands right-hand immediately following bell. Stuns Ovsepyan. Same old story again. Williams landing crisp and clean with superior, smarter offense, and takes round. Williams, 10-9 (50-44).
Round 6: Williams really needs to find the knockout here. In terms of performance, he’s done everything right – except find the finisher. Can he? Ovsepyan is one tough character, but hard to put away. And the guy is growing in confidence here and throwing some leather. Credit were it’s due, Ovsepyan is landing some shots. But Williams lands a hard left-hook, buckles his man’s legs, and the referee dives in to save Ovsepyan. Crowd hate it – but given the landslide scores and nature of bout, does it matter?
Result: Williams wins via 6th round TKO
Let us know your thoughts on the Wilder vs Molina undercard action. Get discussing, fight fans!
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