| 17 September 2011
The Floyd Mayweather-Victor Ortiz Star Power televised card is about to get underway. First up is a bout between undefeated Mayweather Promotions fighter Jessie Vargas as he takes on Josesito Lopez.
Vargas is 16-0 with nine knockouts in his young pro career. Lopez enters with a record of 29-3 with 17 KOs.
Michael Buffer handles the fighter introductions, and we're ready to begin.
Round 1
Lopez comes out looking to the body. Vargas tries multiple jabs before eating a series of power shots. Jessie settles down and delivers a crisp three-punch combination. He also shows some elusiveness as Lpez tries to trap hima long the ropes. Nice hook while retreating by Vargas. Both men land a shot or two in the closing seconds.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Vargas
Round 2
Vargas keeps Lopez at bay with jabs. He looks a little more comfortable letting his hands go in this frame. Vargas goes to the body and head out in the center of the ring. Lopez keeps the pressure on and gets in a strong body shot that is answered in kind. Things get a little rough as they wrestle along the ropes. Some big punches just miss before the bell.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Vargas
Round 3
Vargas reaches to the body and comes over the top with a right hand. He flurries and backs off to avoid any counters. Lopez batters his way back to the corner, delivering body shots and hooks. Vargas takes a step back and tries to regain control. The action goes back to the corner, where Lopez has been most effective. They lean on each other and trade. Lopez leans in and lands three straight shots, but Vargas fires back.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Lopez
Round 4
Vargas waves Lopez in as he tries to show he's not bothered by the constant pressure. He's doing more hitting and moving now. Emanuel Steward isn't sure he can keep this up for 10 rounds. Vargas lands a left to the body and ties up. Lopez gets his hands free for some clubbing shots upstairs. He ducks his head and tries to take the fight back to close range. Vargas jabs his way through the closing seconds.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Vargas
Round 5
Lopez tries to step up the pace as he does at the start of every frame. Vargas rides it out and resumes boxing. He loves using the single shot downstairs before clinching. They trade shots along the ropes for a few seconds. Big miss by Lopez. Vargas throws a number of different punches with his back to the ropes, which is serving him well. Lopez smothers Vargas along the ropes, but he doesn't land too much that's flush.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Vargas
Round 6
Lopez walks through some punches to try to assert himself. He pounds away with both hands as Vargas covers up. The ref warns both fighters to keep their punches up. Vargas continues to circle away when he feels trouble. Lopez misses some big punches and Vargas tries to counter. Vargas lands a left to the head but takes two to the body. Lopez appears to be bleeding near his right eye. He pushes Vargas back into the ropes and lands a few more to the body.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Lopez
Round 7
Jim Lampley is making it sound like this is a wide victory for Lopez, but I haven't seen it that way. He has been the aggressor but hasn't always been effective. The cut was caused by an accidental head butt. Vargas returns to his jabs. Lopez lands a nasty left hook in the corner, then a right hand behind it. Vargas throws as he moves, though Lopez is blocking most of the shots. Lopez almost throws Vargas to the mat late in the round. Tricky one to score.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Lopez
Round 8
Lopez comes out firing. Vargas stands his ground and delivers a series of punches, the last of which is very low. The ref takes a point away from Vargas and gives Lopez time to recover. Lopez tries to show he's unfazed as he keeps advancing. Vargas' corner told him to pick it up, and he's trying to do just that. He's still punching as he moves, making Lopez chase him all over the ring. Lopez digs in and tries to get his offense going. He lands a nice left hook at the end of a flurry.
Tylwalk: 9-9
Round 9
Vargas jabs multiple times and gets shoved down by Lopez. Jessie dodges some huge punches before getting his hands going again. Lampley sounds frustrated by Lopez's inability to let his punches flow. Vargas now has some blood showing by his right eye. He strings together a series of head shots that is mostly blocked. Some scrambling down the stretch ends with nothing big landing.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Vargas
Round 10
Vargas opens up with non-stop punches as he tries to finish strong. Lopez blocks most of them but doesn't have much in the way of a response. Lopez is actually backing up a step as Vargas keeps his foot on the gas. Lopez sneaks in a left as they both try to get off. Vargas lands a nice left hook, but Lopez lands a bigger one that stuns Vargas for a second. Lopez may have a shot at a last ditch KO. Both men keep throwing to the final bell, and we'll go to the cards.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Vargas
Tylwalk: 96-93 Vargas
The judges score it 95-94 Lopez, 96-93 Vargas and 95-94 Vargas. The winner by split decision is Jessie Vargas.
