03.02.07 – By Scott Frake: Cory Spinks (36-3, 11 KO’s) successfully defended his IBF junior middleweight belt on Saturday night, winning a 12-round unanimous decision over challenger Rodney Jones (37-4-1, 22 KO’s) at the Silver Spurs Arena, Kissimmee, in Florida. Neither fighter did much to excite the crowd, many of whom loudly booed both fighters beginning in round four all the way until the 12th round. The final judges’ scores were 118-109, 120-108 and 120-108.
Part of the problem that made the fight so dull, it seems, was the fact that Jones, 38, had little power, poor hand speed, and scarcely any offensive skills for which to put any pressure on the much quicker Spinks. At 6’1,” 153 lbs, Jones was all arms, resembling a poor man’s Antonio Margarito, minus the power, high work rate and overall skills. In part, Jones’ lack of power was because he often tended to fight in close, a tactic that prevented him from extending his arms all the way to get the maximum power on his shots. On the rare occasions that Jones would fight at the proper distance, he would do remarkably well, landing cleanly to Spink’s head and driving him backwards.
It was clear after the first couple of rounds that Jones didn’t have the offensive skills to be competitive with Spinks. Though, Jones constant pressure did appear to have an exhausting effect on Spinks, 28, as he faded badly in the second half of the fight, causing him to run and clinch a lot.
In rounds one through six, Spinks totally dominated the fight, using his superior hand speed to counter the slower Jones when he would attempt a punch. Spinks mixed up his punches well, throwing hooks, jabs, and hard body shots to punish the southpaw Jones. Having easily won the first three rounds, Spinks suddenly got cautious in the fourth round, perhaps feeling the effects of one of Jones’ right hand shots.
Whatever the case, Spinks slowed way down and started to pick his shots more, and electing to trade less. The crowd, of course, hated it and booed loudly. It seemed odd, though, because Spinks seemed to be treating Jones as if he were a knock out puncher, one that should be avoided it all costs, rather than a weak-punching fighter that he, in fact, seemed to be. Nevertheless, I had Spinks easily winning every round in the first half of the fight.
In rounds seven through twelve, Spinks looked exhausted, throwing fewer shots and losing power on his shots. During these rounds, Spinks clinched a great deal and used his legs to keep out of trouble. By this time, the audience seemed disgusted with Spinks’ defensive fighting and loudly booed during and after every round of the fight, including when the final decision was awarded to Spinks. For his part, Jones continued to press the action, but he was just too slow, and his punches lacking in power to have any substantial effect on Spinks. Aside from the 10th round, a round that I narrowly gave to Jones, Spinks appeared to easily win the remaining rounds of the fight.
To say that the fight was boring, is being kind, for it was much more than that, to be honest. In fact, it was almost painful to watch and many times, I was tempted to turn it off. Clearly, judging from the chorus of boos that were showered on Spinks, I’m not the only one that found this match to be deadening to watch. I can’t blame Spinks for being a dull fighter, since he’s doing the best he can with his limited offensive skills. He’s from the similar mold of Chris Byrd or John Ruiz, fighters that have had a difficult time capturing the boxing public’s appeal.