07.08.04 – By Don Deane: Foxwoods Resort and Casino along with Banner Promotions brought fight fans an action packed night of bouts on August 7. The main event was the WBO Lightweight title fight between Acelino Freitas and Diego Corrales. The semi main was a WBA Super Featherweight title bout between Yodsanan 3k Battery and Steve Forbes.
Yodsanan 3K Battery vs Steve Forbes- 12 round WBA Super Featherweight title fight.: Fans were treated to a glorious bout between Yodsanan and Forbes. As expected, Yodsanan came out a bit more aggressively and tried to feel out Forbes. Forbes was looking for counters and scouting Yodsanan early and found time to land a good left in round one. Yodsanan started the body work and landed a good right hand in round 2. Round 3 saw both fighters start to loosen up a little bit and they came together for a nice flurry with 10 seconds left in the round. Yodsanan was able to wobble Forbes in round 4 but Forbes shook it off and continued the body work. In the middle rounds the strength difference between Yodsanan and Forbes became apparent as Yodsanan started to push Forbes around the ring and to the ropes. In round 8, Forbes began to turn it on by coming out from close quarters and letting combos loose from a good distance. Forbes hardly possesses punching power so his attempt at matching strength with Yodsanan became futile quickly. In round 9 it started to become the same kind of fight as the early rounds showed, but more punches were thrown at this venture. In the championship rounds the two went back and forth to the loud ovation from the crowd. In the end, Yodsanan earned a 117-111 decision on all three judges cards. Eastside had it 116-112 for Yodsanan. Yodsanan runs his tally to 43-2-1 while Forbes slips to 24-3.
Acelino Freitas vs Diego Corrales- 12 round WBO Lightweight title match
Freitas came out showing a lot of lateral movement and quick counterpunching. His foot and hand speed were both superior to Corrales’ early on. Freitas moved through the first few rounds bouncing on his feet and countering Corrales with wild, looping punches. When Corrales was able to get Freitas near the ropes he was able to land straighter punches, as he did in round two. Another early theme was defense as both fighters were able to weave under many hooks thrown by the other fighter. In round 4, Freitas seemed to lose a touch of his speed but was still countering Corrales’ straighter punches. Corrales was struggling to find his range and because of that he was telegraphing most of his right hands. Round 5 saw Corrales finally finding a place for his left hand, but he still wasn’t able to land the jab with consistency. Even though Corrales was finding Freitas with more punches, he still wasn’t taking advantage of the work on the ropes. In round 6 Freitas landed a sweet uppercut and still was quicker with hand speed. Corrales was cutting the ring off quite effectively at this point to varied results. In round 7 Freitas continued to own the fight and was able to land a solid right and later stun Corrales. Corrales did deliver for his fans in the round by hitting Freitas with a solid combo. In round 8 the tables turned. Corrales landed a hard counter right hand off a Freitas body shot and was able to maneuver the stunned Freitas to the ropes. Corrales let loose and decked Freitas with a brutal right hand. After a lengthy delay over Freitas spitting out his mouth piece the round ended with no further barrage. In round 9 Corrales dropped Freitas again with a stiff right hand as Freitas stood upright and off balance. Freitas spit his mouthpiece out again as soon as he stood up. Referee Michael Ortega stood by his word and took a point from the frustrated Freitas. The deduction proved to be moot as another attack by Corrales in round 10 sent Freitas ducking to the floor where he finally had enough and quit during the count. Corrales improves his ledger to 39-2 with KO number 32, while Freitas suffers his first professional defeat and drops to 35-1.
Undercard Results
In a 12 round cruiserweight fight, decent prospect Felix Cora Jr. earned a 118-110, 119-109, 119-109 decision over Jermell Barnes for the USBA and NABA Cruiserweight titles. Eastside agreed with the 119-109 assessment. The fight was rather lackluster and wasn’t enjoyed much by the patrons of the venue. Cora improves to 15-0-2 while Barnes drops to 16-6.
In a fight scheduled for 10, Junior Welterweight Sharmba Mitchell marked time by blasting out game Moises Pedroza in a round and a half. Mitchell spent the first round feeling out Pedroza. He saw what he needed to see and put Pedroza out with a left cross-right uppercut combo in round 2. Mitchell gets to 55-3 with KO number 31. Pedroza goes home with a ledger of 24-8-1.
In another 140lb bout, Marvin Cordova Jr made his pro debut a spectacular one by decking Luciano Silva in round 4. With the KO, Cordova is 1-0 with 1 KO while Silva drops to 3-1.
In the exciting walk out bout, Lightweight prospect Ramazan Palyani pounded out Aderivaldo Dos Santos in round 5. Ramazan was in control the whole way and looks like a young man with a lot to offer the sport. Palyani moves to 9-0 with stoppage number 5. Dos Santos falls to 5-2.