5 Knockdowns For Gonzalez; Ward Impresses Against Findley

 By:  Jeff Townsend
Bayareasportsdrive.com
Published by Al Reyes-BASD 

In a crowd-pleasing fight that saw back-and-forth action and numerous knockdowns, Julio Gonzalez (41-3, 25 KOs) of Huntington Beach, CA knocked down Vitali Kopitko (24-9, 9 KOs) of Kiev, Ukraine five times before the fight was stopped in the third round of a scheduled 10 round light heavyweight bout in the main event at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California.   

The fight started with good action and Gonzalez working behind his jab, utilizing his height and reach advantage to maximum effect.  Very quickly, Gonzalez landed a hard body shot and Kopitko went down.  Before the round would end, Gonzalez would drop Kopitko for the second time, again from a body shot.  

Kopitko may have had a difficult time handling these body punches because he is essentially a blown-up super middleweight (168), fighting the great majority of his fights in that division.   In contrast, Gonzalez is a tall (6’2”), decently strong light heavyweight (175) who has spent his entire career in this division. 

In the second round, Kopitko turned it around and used his awkward, southpaw style to his advantage.   Kopitko let loose with a barrage of punches, hurting Gonzalez in the process.   The crowd was clearly excited by the apparent comeback and determination that Kopitko was exhibiting.   

The third round began with the fighters engaging in a toe-to-toe battle, with no regard for defense.  Gonzalez soon won this battle by dropping Kopitko with a strong power shot to the head.  Gonzalez would go on to knock down Kopitko two more times in the round, both from body shots.  Despite the round nearly being over, the referee stopped this fight at 2:52 of the third round and saved Kopitko from further punishment.   

Julio Gonzalez is a top-level fighter who has held the WBO Light Heavyweight belt and has only lost to the very best light heavyweights in the world (Roy Jones, Jr., Clinton Woods and Zsolt Erdei).   He has never been knocked out and looks to be in line for another title shot.   He is currently ranked #2 in the IBF, with no fighter at the #1 position, so a title shot may come soon for Julio Gonzalez.  

Gold Medal Winner Andre Ward Displays Olympic-Sized Skills 

In the semi-main event, 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist and Oakland native Andre Ward (10-0, 5 KOs) pounded out an impressive unanimous decision win over Derrick Findley (6-2, 5 KOs) of Gary, Indiana in a six round middleweight bout.  Ward established his jab from the opening bell and used it completely dominate the fight.  Jabbing both to the head and body, Ward hit the extremely muscular and shorter Findley at will while landing some power punches as well.  

This was the type of fight that reminded boxing fans why Ward was awarded the Gold Medal at the Athens Olympics.  It seemed that Ward was in a zone, giving angles, moving in and out and landing whatever he wanted.  In addition to solid boxing fundamentals, Ward’s superior hand speed and excellent reflexes allowed him to take control of the fight and never look back.  

A lot of this had to do with Findley’s fighting style.  Findley’s major flaw was that he did mix up his offense and defense.  He would stand in front of Ward with his hands covering his face in order to prevent being hurt from punches.  However, when Findley employed this ‘earmuffs’ style, it was almost impossible for him to land any punches.  Findley seemed to be waiting to land the one big punch that would end the fight but Ward always would be moving away by the time he finally would throw a punch.   

Findley was able to land a few left hooks when he could get on the inside as well as landing some punches when he could find Ward momentarily on the ropes.  Other than that, it was the Andre Ward Show.   By the fifth round, the crowd was chanting “Andre, Andre” and clearly enjoying watching the hometown hero look impressive.  All three judges scored it 60-54, giving Ward a six round unanimous decision and a shutout.   

Antonio Johnson’s Future Appears Bright

In earlier action, Antonio Johnson (6-0, 3 KOs) of Minneapolis, MN displayed impressive boxing skills against experienced journeyman Sean Holley (8-21, 2 KOs) of Inglewood, CA,  forcing a stoppage by the referee at the very beginning of the third round.  Despite the fight being billed as a junior middleweight (154) bout, the fighters were much closer to being welterweights (147) since Johnson weighed in at 148 pounds while Holley came in at 150.   

Johnson used a good, stiff jab to set up his accurate punches while showcasing his considerable hand speed.  His talent really came to light when he used his superior foot movement to turn Holley, giving Johnson angles from which he was able to effectively land punches.  The ringside physician came into the ring before a punch was thrown in the third round to inspect Holley.   The decision was made that the fight should be stopped, giving Johnson a TKO win.   

Managed by James Prince, Johnson has been brought along slowly in his young career.  He has only faced one fighter with a record above .500 which is not unusual for a young prospect.  However, it looks like Johnson has the skills to someday become a real contender.  

Attendance for this final installment for 2006 of Fight Night at the Tank, presented by Goossen Tutor Promotions, was 4,152.   

Questions or Comments, email Jeff at:   renostar66@hotmail.com