| 18 February 2012
It's time for Showtime Championship Boxing, coming to us tonight from the American Bank Center in Corpus Christi, Texas. Paul Williams and Nobuhiro Ishida will collide in the main event, but before we get to that, IBF light heavyweight titleholder puts his gold up for grabs against Gabriel Campillo.
Gus Johnson, Al Bernstein and Antonio Tarver are on hand to call the action, and Tarver has special insight into the light heavyweight division after spending so much time campaigning there. The Magic Man believes Cloud still needs one defining fight against a compelling opponent to really become a household name. Until then, all he can do is keep winning and trying his best to look good doing it.
Campillo comes to the ring first as the challenger. He's a former WBA titleholder looking to capture his second world championship belt. Hailing from Spain, Campillo is 21-3-1 but just 2-1-1 in his last four bouts.
Cloud makes his ring walk to some old school music, namely "Can't Truss It" by Public Enemy. His professional record is a perfect 23-0 with 19 KOs.
Two judges are from Texas and the third is from Minnestoa. The referee for this bout is Mark Nelson. Jimmy Lennon Jr. handles the formal fighter introductions, getting us prepared for a scheduled 12 rounds of boxing for Cloud's IBF strap.
Round 1
Cloud flicks some jabs right out of the gate. Campillo circles and remains cautious. Cloud throws the right to the body. Both men jab away with Cloud landing more. Campillo keeps moving but gets hit with a two-punch combo to the face. Cloud sets up a huge right hand that sends Campillo straight down to the canvas. He beats the count but still has 1:06 to try to survive. Cloud closes in and smashes Campillo into the ropes. The ref calls that a knockdown too since the ropes held him up. Now Campillo has just over 40 seconds to make it out of the round. He does it, but that was a great first round for the champ.
Tylwalk: 10-7 Cloud
Round 2
Campillo tries to throw something to show he's still in it, but Cloud smacks him with a counter right. Now Campillo jabs and comes forward. Cloud reaches to try to score with another big right. The champ jabs and weaves while coming in. Campillo uses multiple jabs to set up his left hand. There come three punches in a row from Campillo. Cloud tries two straight rights but Campillo is moving well. Good combination punching from Campillo as he makes an impressive response in this round.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Campillo
Round 3
Both men attempt to pick up the pace a bit. Campillo looks very comfortable behind his jab, but he needs to be wary of counter rights. Campillo finishes a combo with an uppercut, then goes back to work again. Another uppercut lands for Campillo, and he puts head and body shots together. Campillo continues to out-work Cloud as they move around the ring, but he is flirting with disaster from Cloud's haymaker counters.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Campillo
Round 4
Cloud goes right after Campillo with repeated left hooks, mainly to the body. Campillo avoids real trouble and isn't throwing as much. Cloud tracks him down but gets put on the defensive once Campillo starts punching. Campillo covers up well while Cloud unloads with both hands. Cloud is targeting the body more but eating shots to the head at the same time. Close round this time.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Cloud
Round 5
Campillo controls the pace again in the first minute, throwing too many punches for Cloud to set himself. He shrugs off some flurries by Cloud and attacks the body. Cloud is missing a lot in this round, possibly tiring himself out. He does find the range with a left hook. Campillo settles with a stiff jab, then both men try some combo punching. Campillo lands repeated head shots in the final 10 seconds, but Cloud connects with his own right hand at the bell.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Campillo
Round 6
Cloud opens with body shots. Campillo keeps both gloves hugh to block hooks, but Cloud keeps coming. The champ is cut in two different places, which could contribute to his sense of urgency. Campillo weathers the storm and returns fire with both hands from the outside. Cloud thumps home a left hook, then counters with glancing shots as Campillo pulls the trigger. Another close round that I could see going either way.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Cloud
Round 7
Campillo's guard and movement are helping him avoid flush shots. He opens up with both hands, driving Cloud straight back. The fighters seem to be taking turns flurrying while the other man covers up. Five-punch combo by Campillo causes Cloud to momentarily switch stances. He's having a hard time answering so much incoming fire. Cloud eats some inside shots while he hunts for an opening for a fight-changing power punch.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Campillo
Round 8
Nothing huge lands in the first 45 seconds, but Campillo gets on track first with punches landing from both hands. Cloud tries to respond with left hooks. Campillo's head movement has been just good enough to protect him from harm, and he sets up a big combination with his jab. Cloud's left eye looks nasty and he absorbs some big left hands. Cloud digs down deep trying to will himself back into this round.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Campillo
Round 9
You have to wonder if Cloud's eye is going to hold up for four more rounds. He could very legitimately be down on the cards too despite that huge opening round. Campillo continues to show much greater accuracy as he jabs his way into range. They battle along the ropes with Campillo landing and getting out of countering range. He steps forward to pepper Cloud with both hands again, finding a home for an uppercut and a right hook. Clod tries to keep Campillo stationary, but to no avail.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Campillo
Round 10
Both men fire off jabs, and Cloud attempts to get his body attack going again. Campillo unloads with both hands, starting upstairs and finishing to the body. He's coming at Cloud from different angles and really landing at will. Campillo lands about five punches in a row with only one coming back the other way. Cloud bulls his way forward, but his right hand has less snap on it now.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Campillo
Round 11
Amazingly, Cloud probably needs another knockdown to win. He steps up his work rate but is still mostly chansing. Campillo corners him and rips more combinations. He lets both hands go to the body and finsihes with an uppercut. The ref calls time to look at cuts on both sides of Cloud's face. That may have been good for Cloud, who gets a burst of energy. Campillo mocks him before exchanging again, and he eats a right hand. He probably should stop showboating if he wants to bring this fight home.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Campillo
Round 12
Will Campillo dance or fight in this last round? It's mostly dancing in the first minute. Cloud can't quite track him down but he's hunting for a right hand. Campillo covers up and barely escapes a few bombs. Cloud pops a jab and keeps swinging. Now Campillo finally throws a left hand. A Campillo combination is answered by a Cloud counter right. The champ keeps swinging, with Campillo content to throw one final combination and raise his hand in victory.
Tylwalk: 10-9 Cloud
Tylwalk: 114-112 Campillo
The judges score it 115-111 Campillo, 116-110 Cloud and 114-112 Cloud. Cloud wins by split decision and retains his IBF light heavyweight title.
Cloud's mother appears to have passed out in the ring. The crowd boos the decision and applauds Campillo as he walks to one of the corners.
Jim Gray asks Cloud if he felt he was ahead and winning the fight, and the champ says he doesn't think Campillo did enough to take the title away. He said he was concentrating on staying busy, because Campillo fought a very smart fight.
Campillo gives the cold shoulder to Gray for a second but eventually talks through an interpreter. He feels like he controlled the action after the first round and deserved the win. He also says the homegrown talent has the advantage in these kinds of situations, but he would go for a rematch if an immediate one was granted.
